The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 10

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Youngest Son of the Nakhyang Jin Family — Chapter 10

“Are you truly saying I may do this?”
“Of course. I said I need them. Send me the obedient children. Of course, there are conditions.”
“What conditions might those be?”
“Unconditional obedience to my commands.”
“Hmm….”
Baek Jin-hwa stifled a small groan, her chopsticks clicking softly as she pondered something. She couldn’t begin to fathom my intentions or where I meant to deploy the Hao Sect disciples.
Then, ceasing her chopstick work, she turned her gaze toward me.
“Is this perhaps… another transaction?”
“Of course. I can hardly expect to use Hao Gate for nothing.”
“Then that suits me well. A transaction with the Young Master seems quite lucrative indeed.”
Baek Jin-hwa’s eyes gleamed as she licked her lips.
The money that would emerge from my purse appeared far more precious and appetizing than the food before her.
Such was the nature of Hao Gate’s people.
Moreover, she could gather intelligence from within the Nakhyang Jin Family itself.
For her, it was a situation of mutual benefit—there was no reason to refuse.
“I shall submit the payment later. I will send it at the appropriate time.”
“Good. And one more thing.”
“What else remains?”
“I wish to receive a jade token from Hao Gate.”
At the mention of a jade token, Baek Jin-hwa’s eyes widened in genuine surprise. She appeared quite startled, but soon composed herself and studied my expression carefully.
Having gathered her thoughts, she broke into laughter.
“Hohoho— wherever did you learn of such a thing?”
“My ears hear many things. Do not underestimate the intelligence network of our Nakhyang Jin Family.”
A jade token is essentially a pass to enter the places that Hao Gate operates in secret.
Beginning with the lowest tier—the copper token—there are silver tokens, gold tokens, and finally the jade token: the highest rank, rarely granted to anyone.
Naturally, my knowledge of this stems not from the Nakhyang Jin Family’s intelligence.
I had experienced it firsthand.
In that hellish place I had entered without any token at all, I had fought desperately for survival and barely managed to escape.
“Yet you ask for a jade token, not even a gold one. I confess myself somewhat bewildered. This is not something given lightly to anyone….”
“Do you want something in return?”
“…Indeed. Considering the value of a jade token, you would need to offer something quite substantial.”
I nodded at her words.
I had naturally anticipated such a demand.
Among those connected to Hao Gate, fewer than ten possessed jade tokens—it was an extraordinarily rare credential.
I smiled faintly and regarded her.
“How about this?”
“What do you have?”
“I’ll sweep away the Black Crow Society for you.”
“…!”
“They’re from the same underworld as you, and lately they’ve been gnawing away at your operations bit by bit. You lack the strength to strike them directly, yet you can’t ignore them either… I’ll resolve that for you.”

The Black Crow Society.

An organization formed by the lowest strata of the Central Plains.
On the surface, it resembled the Hao Gate in structure, but they were fundamentally different.
The Hao Gate, positioned at the very bottom, consisted of powerless individuals who gathered and traded information. The Black Crow Society, by contrast, was a congregation of criminals of every stripe.
Most bore bounties on their heads—thieves, bandits, demon cultists, and those who had dabbled in every conceivable crime, including human trafficking.
With such individuals gathered together, the organization could hardly be considered normal.
Lurking in the shadows, they would undertake any deed for coin without hesitation—the worst organization in the current Central Plains.
That was the Black Crow Society.
Recently, they had begun extending their reach beyond mere contract work to even the information networks that served as the Hao Gate’s lifeblood. From Baek Jin-hwa’s perspective, she would naturally wish to eliminate them before they grew any stronger.
“Hohoho— Today has been nothing but surprises. To hear the Young Master of the Jin Family speak of sweeping away the Black Crow Society… how delightful.”
“Isn’t this exchange sufficient? If you doubt my word, shall I draw up a contract?”
At my words, Baek Jin-hwa shook her head.
Such a document would hold no meaning whatsoever.
The Nakhyang Jin Family possessed overwhelming strength, authority, and renown in all things.
A mere contract would bind them to nothing—no one could hold them accountable.
She understood this better than anyone.
Soon, Baek Jin-hwa’s laughter faded as she fixed her gaze upon me, then withdrew something from her bosom.
A circular jade token.
“I hope my gamble proves successful.”
“Have no fear. It will take time, but soon you won’t hear that name spoken again.”
“Hohoho— I failed to set a deadline, didn’t I? What an oversight… ”
An oversight?
No.
She too must have anticipated that I could not resolve this in the immediate future. Thus, she had never even considered setting a deadline in the first place.
Rather, she possessed the confidence that even should I fail to keep my promise and the Black Crow Society persist, she could demand payment for the jade token in some other form.
I accepted the token with a smile and regarded Baek Jin-hwa.
“Come now, eat. The food today is quite exquisite.”
“Hoho— I shall savor it with anticipation.”

* * *

“Ugh— I honestly have no idea what you’re all talking about.”
Once Baek Jin-hwa had departed the inn, Chu Hyeongi finally unleashed the words he’d been holding back.
Despite hearing countless explanations from those around him, his inability to comprehend them filled him with genuine regret.
“Who exactly was that woman? Something about a deal? Did Young Master make some kind of transaction with her?”
“Forget everything that happened today. Don’t go spreading pointless gossip about it anywhere.”
“I didn’t really catch most of it anyway while eating. Though I did see money changing hands… Why so much money? It happened last time too.”
“It was worth that much.”
“More than that expensive meal?”
“Yes.”
Chu Hyeongi exhaled with an expression of lingering disappointment.
The remaining food and drink seemed abundant to him. More importantly, since neither I nor Baek Jin-hwa had met solely to dine, we’d devoted more time to conversation.
Though most of the empty plates were Chu Hyeongi’s doing, he still seemed fixated on the leftover food before his eyes.
I should have suggested he take it with him if I’d known.
“Well, at least I understand that Young Master is preparing something. So shouldn’t I be doing something too? To be of some help at your side?”
In that moment, Chu Hyeongi’s eyes sparkled.
He seemed to harbor disappointment, having thought I’d handled the previous matter without informing him.
I smiled.
“You may not realize it, but you’re already proving invaluable. And you will continue to do so.”
“Really? Is that true? Ah, I appreciate that— but you have to tell me these things sometimes, or I won’t know!”
“You seem pleased.”
“Of course I am! If I’m helping Young Master, how could I not be pleased?”
I watched him grin foolishly.
Chu Hyeongi possessed extraordinary strength.
Abandoned at birth because his strength was so unnaturally formidable, he wielded power incomparable to others. Even without formal martial training, he could overpower third-rate martial artists with ease.
Against those untrained in martial arts, he would be absolutely overwhelming.
If such a man were to systematically learn martial techniques, he would become even more invaluable. It had been the same in my previous life.
“Follow me.”
“Huh? Where are we going?”
I led Chu Hyeongi forward.
Retracing our steps, we made our way back to the residence.
My destination was already determined.
Ignoring Chu Hyeongi’s murmurs about where we were headed, I navigated the familiar path toward a main hall situated quite far within the Sega compound.
The main hall stood in a secluded location.
Being a place where few ventured, the surroundings were equally quiet. As I opened the door and stepped inside, a thick cloud of dust rose into the air.
This place clearly hadn’t been cleaned.
“Cough! Damn— can’t even get cleaning done without our hands?”
Chu Hyeongi waved his hand through the dust with a grimace. No matter how secluded a place might be, such neglect was unthinkable.
Though admittedly, servants and maids couldn’t reasonably maintain this location.
This was the Secret Library.
A repository where the Nakhyang Jin Family had accumulated secret martial techniques over countless years.
Though the So Family was a merchant house, it was abundantly clear they had once harbored dreams of becoming a martial family. The sheer volume of secret manuals crammed into this space defied imagination.
Whichever direction I looked, there were nothing but secret manuals.
I waved my hand to disperse the billowing dust and stepped slowly inside.
“Why have you come here?”
“A foolish question. I came to find secret manuals.”
“Secret manuals?”
“Yes.”
I nodded and surveyed my surroundings.
Looking at the heaps of secret manuals piled high, one might mistake this place for the Secret Library of a Major Sect or the Demon Sect itself, yet most of what lay here was worthless garbage.
Martial techniques purchased with coin from collapsed families and sects, yet missing their crucial components, or incomplete versions—some even received from the Imperial Court but utterly useless.
Everything imaginable was here.
But were there only bad ones?
Not entirely.
With careful selection, one could salvage a technique or two.
Thinking of such possibilities, I turned to look at Jang Chuchyeong.
“You’re quite strong, aren’t you?”
“Strong? Well… I’ve never lost to a merchant in terms of strength.”
“I heard you were abandoned because of that strength?”
“Ah, I don’t remember clearly. Something about a child prodigy or… I’m not sure what they said.”
“With such strength, it’s remarkable you never thought to learn martial arts.”
“Baek Chong-gwal offered to take me as a disciple, but I refused. I prefer being by Young Master’s side. Besides, the Family Head brought me here as Young Master’s servant in the first place.”
Jang Chuchyeong spoke matter-of-factly, though his expression darkened.
It seemed childhood memories had stirred unpleasant recollections.
I let out a soft chuckle and nodded.
So, what would be best?
In truth, the answer was already clear.
My purpose in being here was to establish a systematic foundation in martial arts before meeting ‘him’—there was no need to overthink it.
I slowly surveyed the area around me.
‘I’m certain it was somewhere around here.’
I brushed away the thick layers of dust one by one, checking the titles of the secret manuals.
But with so many manuals, searching through them individually would inevitably consume considerable time.
How much time had passed?
I discovered a familiar name.

Twelve Violent Fists.

Despite its simple name, it belonged to a prominent family that had once made quite a reputation through the Fist and Kick Arts.
Though the martial techniques had been severed when the clan fell to ruin, unlike other incomplete versions missing crucial content, this was a complete manual.
And here, the inner cultivation method and the Twelve Heavenly Arts as well.
These were martial techniques I could use effectively until I met ‘him’.
“Learn this.”
“Huh? You’re telling me to learn martial arts?”
“Yes. Do you object?”
“No, even if I did object, if Young Master commands it, I’ll learn. But why martial arts all of a sudden?”
“After experiencing what happened last time, you still say such things? Situations like that can occur anytime.”
At my words, the light in Chu Hyeongi’s eyes shifted.
Crunch—
He clenched his fists and furrowed his brow.
It was a memory he wished never to recall again, but hearing that such circumstances could happen once more, he seemed to have changed his mind.
“Can you manage it?”
“I must learn it! I need to be more helpful to Young Master than anyone else! Don’t I?!”
“Correct. You see it clearly.”
Watching the boy bristle with determination, I nodded my head.
Whether my words had lifted his spirits, his expression brightened considerably.
Only then, having calmed himself, did he accept the two secret manuals.
The way he clutched them tightly to his chest was unmistakably that of someone cherishing something precious.
“I’ll help you as much as I can from beside you. But ultimately, it’s you who must accomplish this. Don’t forget that.”
“Don’t worry! I’ll become the greatest under heaven and beat down anyone who dares touch Young Master!”
At the words ‘greatest under heaven,’ I couldn’t help but let out a quiet laugh.
I didn’t expect anything quite so grandiose.
If he simply grew enough to protect himself and become useful, I would consider Chu Hyeongi to have fulfilled his role sufficiently.
Moreover, this would undoubtedly make future matters proceed more smoothly. I nodded and left the Secret Library with him.
Now, next was….
I smiled, fingering the jade token in my possession.
I’ve cultivated a person; now I need to acquire manpower.

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