The Youngest Son of the Eunhae Merchant Group - Chapter 522

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

The Youngest Son of the Eun Hae Trading Company Chapter 522

Chapter 522. Meeting Again (3)

Ding, ding.
The sound of a bell rang out.
It was the signal to take lunch.
As I rose from my seat and stepped out of the archives, I found a simple meal laid out on the table I had seen earlier.
The Chuyong Palace Disciple Attendant bowed respectfully and spoke.
“Given the nature of this place, the meal is modest. We hope you will forgive us.”
Indeed, bringing soup or noodle dishes to a place like this would be impractical.
On the table were tea and dumplings.
Since I hadn’t come here to indulge in fine dining, this was more than sufficient.
I smiled and replied.
“I have no desire to set out a full meal in a place where books are stored. This is plenty.”
“Thank you so much for your understanding.”
And dumplings were a common lunch food.
Most people couldn’t afford lunch. Being able to eat lunch at all was a sign of wealth.
“Ah, have my Guard Warriors outside eaten?”
“It appears they have not.”
“Please see that they are provided with a meal as well.”
“Understood.”
“And they seem to be standing the whole time—bring them some chairs to sit on.”
Yes.”
I quickly finished the dumplings and returned to the archives.
There were still many books left to read.
.
.
.
Only after the sun had set was I finally able to finish all the books Maengcheon Scholar had selected for me.
Phew, that was exhausting.
I stretched and rose from my seat.
It was time to head back.
Tomorrow was the conference, so I couldn’t stay up all night.
Before leaving, I needed to return all the books I had read to their proper places.
I had hoped I might receive help from Maengcheon Scholar, but he had already departed.
There was nothing to be done.
Fortunately, I remembered the original positions of all the books.
I say this with some pride, but I have quite a good memory.
So I pushed the cart along, returning each book to its proper place one by one.
That was when it happened.
“Hmm?”
A particular book caught my attention.

[Nine Ways to Make Chuk Yung Palace Look Foolish]

What? Why would such a book be in the Archives?
If the people of Chuk Yung Palace saw this, they would have destroyed it immediately—the title is far too blatant.
But as someone closely connected to the Northern Sea Ice Palace, I could not ignore this book.
I glanced left and right before pulling the book from the shelf.
And I opened it.
“Ugh!”
But the book suddenly began forcibly absorbing my energy.
A demonic tome?
It must be a demonic tome.
Otherwise, there would be no way it could forcibly absorb someone’s energy like this!
So I immediately tried to pull my hands away from the book—

[It has been a long time, Yeon.]

Characters materializing on the pages of the book.
At that same moment, my vision shifted.
.
.
.
“It has been a while.”
At the familiar voice, I lifted my head. The Ancestor was looking down at me.
“Ancestor?”
“Yes. It is I.”
I scratched my head and rose from my seat.
“I was clearly in the Archives of Chuk Yong Palace. Did you arrange a Spiritual Training Realm there as well?”
“If Yeon, who inherited my will, were to go there, I thought it likely he would visit such a place.”
“Still, ‘Nine Ways to Make Chuk Yong Palace Look Foolish’? If others had seen that, it would have been destroyed immediately.”
“Yet it certainly captured your curiosity, did it not?”
“W-well, that is true.”
I could not deny that.
“And fear not. To others, it appears as different characters.”
“Pardon?”
“Surely something like ‘A Study of Ancient Languages for the Development of Chuk Yong Palace’s History and Traditions’… what was it again?”
“A book title no one would ever dare touch.”
“Hehehehe. Precisely.”
There was a reason it had remained undiscovered all this time.
I spoke to the Ancestor.
“In any case, I was startled when the book suddenly absorbed my inner energy.”
“As you know, those Chuk Yong Palace fellows must be kept on edge.”
That would explain why they sensed blood-scent at the Doyeon Gate and Blood Heaven Gate.
“Therefore, I could not infuse my own energy into that book. If it contained cold qi, they would grow suspicious.”
“So you absorbed my inner power to activate this Spiritual Training Realm?”
“Precisely so.”
I nodded in understanding. That much made sense to me.
“But why have you summoned me this time?”
Through the Ancestor’s Spiritual Training Realm, I had grasped the true essence of the Jinseol Twelve-Form Sword Technique, and I had properly mastered both the Ice Sea Transformation Heart Method and the Ice Sea Water Severing Technique.
And I had also learned the Extreme Yin Soul Ice Technique.
Honestly, it felt as though I had learned everything already… was there still more to learn?
“Did I not speak through the book’s title?”
“Pardon?”
“I summoned you to teach you the ways to make Chuk Yong Palace look foolish.”
The emotion in the Ancestor’s voice was clearly hostility.
Yet it was too weak to be called hostility… was it wariness?
“I… Ancestor, was there no Ice Flame Conference during your time?”
“That’s right. So naturally, I left Anbae here, didn’t I?”
“Y-yes, that would be the case.”
“I was the one who created the Ice Flame Conference in the first place.”
I didn’t know that. Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master, had never mentioned it to me.
“The Chuyong Palace Lord’s brat kept acting up, so I beat him once and forced them into negotiations.”
Did he really only hit him once?
He must have beaten him into a pulp.
That’s why two sides that were so opposed and despised each other would agree to a ceasefire.
“I have to deal with the constant meddling from the side. Don’t make it troublesome, will you?”
“…Yes. Otherwise, it becomes irritating.”
“But even if they maintain a ceasefire and hold periodic conferences, there’s no telling when their relationship might fracture. So I’ve arranged this Anbae as a precaution.”
“You mean to prevent Chuyong Palace from harboring ulterior motives, sir?”
“Is it only Chuyong Palace?”
“Sir?”
“The Ice Palace could also harbor ulterior motives. I’m only telling you now, but the Ice Palace Master himself was reluctant to agree to the ceasefire with them, and it took considerable effort to persuade him.”
“You handled the Ice Palace Master quite diplomatically, sir.”
Since they were old friends, I thought he had coaxed him gently, and that he was quite an affectionate person in his own way.
But my thoughts were shattered by the Ancestor’s next words.
“That’s nonsense. I told him I’d kill him if he didn’t listen.”
“…”
I was left speechless by those words.
“Ahem, well, that’s why the role of Seolpung Palace is so important.”
In other words, I was to ensure that neither faction harbored ulterior motives or sparked unnecessary conflict.
“So what I’m going to teach you now is a martial art called the Extreme Ice Sword.”
“Sir? I’ve never heard of the Extreme Ice Sword before.”
“Really? Good thing I left this Anbae behind! Seolpung Palace’s supreme technique nearly disappeared.”
“Is that so?”
I tilted my head in confusion.
“Isn’t the supreme technique the Snow Soul Sword Technique?”
“Snow Soul Sword Technique?”
At the Ancestor’s question, I explained carefully.
“Yes. From what I know, the Snow Soul Sword Technique is a sword method that only the Young Palace Master and the Palace Master learn…”
I explained what I knew about the Snow Soul Sword Technique.
It was a sword technique that allowed one to display peak performance in any environment, and especially wielded tremendous power when snow fell.
At my explanation, the Ancestor nodded.
“Ah, I know of that. Though it wasn’t exclusively taught only to the Palace Master and Young Palace Master.”
So that was the case.
“It’s excellent enough that they restricted it to only the Palace Master and Young Palace Master, but honestly, it’s also quite difficult. So to use it properly, simple training alone won’t suffice.”
“Is that so?”
I spoke of the cultivation I had been doing all this time.
I explained my training methods up to that point.
Training in the rain when it fell, entering a barrel made to resemble a swamp to practice….
The Ancestor chuckled softly as he listened to my poignant training story.
“You are training properly.”
“Pardon?”
So that truly was the correct training method!
“However, even if you master the Soul Severing Sword through such training, it will only be half of what it can be. And if I say this, you might find it strange….”
The Ancestor continued.
“In truth, the Soul Severing Sword is not a sword technique.”
“Pardon?”
Not a sword technique? What does that mean?
“It is not a sword confined within forms and patterns. You will likely not understand this until the distant future.”
Ah, so that was why there was only one form.
“Well, I have already arranged for this as well, so you will eventually face it.”
The Ancestor’s words continued.
“Furthermore, if you master the Extreme Ice Sword that I will teach you now, you will be able to take one step closer to understanding it.”
So there is an order to the spiritual training realm?
“I understand. I will listen carefully to your teachings.”
“A good attitude.”
The Ancestor spoke to me with a serious gaze.
“Child, what do you think you must do to suppress Chuk Yung Palace?”
Hmm?
Did he just call me “child”?
His form of address has changed….
“You are slow to answer.”
“Ah! My apologies. I was delayed in my thoughts. I believe we would need a more powerful cold force.”
“You are wrong.”
“Am I not correct?”
“That is right, you are not. The best way to suppress fire is with an even more powerful fire.”
I could not help but be confused.
A more powerful fire?
“But Ancestor, the martial arts of our Seolpung Palace are based on cold force. Yet you speak of powerful fire? Would that not require learning fire techniques?”
“No. Our Seolpung Palace’s martial arts are more than sufficient to employ fire techniques.”
The Ancestor extended his hand.
My Eun Moo-geom at my waist was suddenly in the Ancestor’s grasp.
As the Ancestor gathered his true energy, ripples of force spread through the surroundings.
And the Eun Moo-geom began to glow.
Yet the white light gradually shifted to blue.
“Touch the blade.”
At this, I carefully placed my hand against the blade.
“Ow! That’s hot!”
I quickly pulled my hand away and cried out. Then I blinked my eyes.
Wait? I just said it was hot….
“It’s hot, isn’t it?”
“Yes. It was hot.”
“When you layer cold upon cold, and then cold upon that, drawing out the extreme yin, you paradoxically feel heat. Technically it’s frostbite, but when that frostbite becomes severe enough, you perceive it as a burn.”
“I see.”
“And fire’s nature is also heat. In other words, you’re meeting heat with heat.”
“So it’s a matter of perception, then?”
“Exactly!”
The Ancestor seemed satisfied with my understanding.
“But because this is an ice blade, it becomes a countermeasure against Chuyong Palace’s fire techniques in itself.”
“So you’re saying we strike from the front and undermine from behind.”
The Ancestor nodded at my summary.
“And this will prove invaluable when facing those from the Ice Palace as well.”
Indeed… that would be the case.
From what I could tell, Snowwind Palace’s martial arts were formidable, but not quite on par with the Northern Sea Ice Palace.
Yet the two palaces maintained equal standing, and I’d wondered why… now there was an answer.
“No time to waste. Draw your sword.”
Eun Moo-geom had already returned to my hands.
Shring.
I unsheathed the blade.
How long would this take this time, anyway?
The dread settling over me suggested… this training would be long and arduous.
Why are tears forming?
.
.
.
I opened my eyes.
What filled my vision was the Archives, its shelves densely packed with books.
I’d returned.
I looked down at my hands.
The book from before had vanished.
Burned countless times learning the Extreme Ice Blade… though calling it “burned by ice” sounds strange.
In any case, the places I’d been burned countless times were completely unscathed.
My torn clothes were also intact.
Of course… it wasn’t my body that went to the Spiritual Training Realm, but my soul.
I’d known this, but the training was truly grueling this time.
By my perception, it felt like nearly three years had passed?
As I complained about the long and arduous training, the Ancestor had sharply rebuked me, asking if I’d truly thought I could master this technique in merely three hours.
Sigh…
I exhaled softly and settled down.
Whenever I learned something through the Ancestor’s Anbae, there always seemed to be a use for it soon after…
Could it be?
No, stay calm. Nothing will happen.
After composing myself and organizing the books, I left the Archives.

As I emerged with my weary body, the Yeo Eung-am Warrior and Chang-un Warrior, who had been sitting in chairs, quickly rose to greet me.
It was wonderful to see faces I hadn’t seen in three years.
Though the two warriors wouldn’t understand this feeling.
“Have you finished?”
“Yes. Let us return now.”
I returned to my quarters and had a simple dinner.
“Did you make any progress today?”
At Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master’s words, I nodded.
“Yes. It was a meaningful day in its own way.”
I continued speaking.
“Tomorrow is the conference, and I apologize for having to absent myself due to personal matters.”
“Personal matters, you say?”
Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master gently shook her head.
“If it were truly personal business, the Young Palace Master wouldn’t have been away all day, would you? Am I wrong?”
…
Unnecessarily perceptive.
I chuckled softly and changed the subject.
“Shall we discuss the conference details now?”
“Yes.”
At that moment, Seo Hyang’s eyes, who had been eating dinner, became vacant.
What was that?
After waiting a moment, her gaze returned to normal, and she looked at me and spoke.
“There’s… something I need to tell you.”
.
.
.
The next morning.
After eating, I dressed in formal robes for the conference.
They were garments prepared by the Northern Sea Ice Palace—white silk adorned with elaborate silver embroidery.
This was both to clearly display my affiliation with the Northern Sea Ice Palace and to maintain the dignity befitting such a conference.
As I emerged in my formal robes, Palgap exclaimed in admiration.
“Wow! As expected of our young master! With your divine radiance, even the clothes shine brilliantly!”
“I am rather handsome, after all.”
At my words, Palgap’s expression grew stern.
“Young Master, when I offer praise, you should simply remain silent.”
Why am I being scolded?
I scratched my cheek and left my quarters.
After waiting in the courtyard for about half an hour, Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master, emerged.
She too was beautiful in her white ceremonial robes.
“Let us go.”
“Yes.”
We followed those who had come to greet us toward the conference hall.
And we took our seats at the prepared chairs.
Moments later, the door opened and the Chuhyung Palace Lord entered.
“My apologies. In truth, something has come up with the Young Palace Master of the Main Palace, and she cannot attend this gathering. Thus, I have come in her stead.”
Yet neither I nor Bing Haerin, Young Palace Master, were flustered.
Last night, Seo Hyang had informed us of this beforehand. And there was one more thing that Seo Hyang had told us.
That was….
Ah… they are arriving now.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————