The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 198

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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 Jin Family of Luoyang – Chapter 198

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Myeong-ryun, climbing the winding mountain paths of Mount Song, exhaled a sigh and shook his head.
The image of Jin Cheon-u that had surfaced in his mind refused to fade.
Though I had encountered countless individuals since stepping into the martial world, I had never before met anyone so audacious as to stand before the names of the Martial Arts Alliance or the Blue Heaven Sect.

“Young Master, that is…!”
“Surely he is not absent? Then, who should Soocheonchu and I speak with upon entering the Martial Arts Alliance? Surely not the Commander? Or perhaps the Sword Emperor?”

In that instant, his irrefutable words—having become the spokesman for the Jin Family of Luoyang—caused my head to throb.
Normally, the Commander and Mo Yong-cheon would have discussed this matter, but Jin Cheon-u had effectively summoned the actual leader of the organization, the Alliance Master himself.
There were countless reasons why refusal was impossible.
It was a meeting where the Young Master of the Jin Family of Luoyang would directly address his relationship with Sa Do-cheon, and Soocheonchu himself would be present.
The absence of the Alliance Master would seem peculiar.
“However, it will not be easy… Amitabha Buddha.”
Yet things would not proceed as Jin Cheon-u envisioned.
Though he held the title of Martial Arts Alliance Master, the one known as Gong-hwang, the Empty Emperor Hye-myeong, devoted himself to Buddhist offerings and paid no heed to worldly affairs.
Only Myeong-ryun would know that this was no mere religious devotion.
His master was now attempting to break through a barrier that stood before him.
To ascend to that unreachable heaven, he was refining his body and spirit, cultivating his mind, and seeking enlightenment.
Therefore, he would not descend.
Myeong-ryun had already climbed Mount Song and passed through the temple gate.
Confirming the disciples bowing their heads, I propelled myself toward the place where my master dwelt.
A location within Shaolin that no one else sought—where only a small hermitage and a Buddha statue for offerings existed.
The moment I arrived there.
Myeong-ryun saw it.
His master, seated in meditation before the Buddha statue.
The solemnity was so profound that even speaking seemed sacrilegious, so I remained silent, waiting. Then, at last, Hye-myeong’s voice reached me.
“Amitabha Buddha—what brings you to this place?”
“Master, your disciple has come urgently with something to tell you.”
“Something to tell me…? If you wish to discuss descending the mountain, then leave.”
At those words, Myeong-ryun offered a bitter smile.
Though he was my master, he was truly harsh and relentless.
With ears and eyes, he could not help but see and hear how the world turned, yet my master clung solely to one thing and disregarded all else.
He had even accepted the death of Martial Arts Master Ho-yeon with indifference.
How could one possibly change such a master’s heart?
Myeong-ryun exhaled a sigh and continued speaking.
The alliance between the Jin Family of Luoyang and Sa Do-cheon, or how Sa Do-cheon’s Cheon Lord had arbitrarily entered the lands of Henan and established a stronghold within the Jin Family compound.
Beyond these matters, Myeong-ryun had spoken of various conversations that had circulated within the Jin Family, yet none of it proved sufficient to move Hye-myeong’s heart.
Just as I was beginning to think perhaps I should abandon this effort, Myeong-ryun withdrew a small letter from his robes.

“A letter for the Alliance Lord.”
“I would not accept that either.”
“Then you need only leave it and depart. Whether to read it or not is surely the Alliance Lord’s decision, is it not?”

The faint smile that had graced Jin Cheon-u’s face did not fade.
Though I could not discern the letter’s contents, I wondered if perhaps it contained matters concerning Sa Do-cheon.
“It is a letter sent by the Young Master So of the Jin Family of Luoyang.”
“Leave it and go.”
“Master… please…”
“Did I not tell you to leave—!”
Clang—clang—!
Whoosh—!
Hye-myeong’s voice echoed forth with maddened intensity.
Simultaneously, countless birds took flight in a great flock.
Though it was merely a single utterance, it carried a force that seemed to surpass even thunder itself.
Myeong-ryun, who had been about to speak, closed his mouth.
His master, who possessed only the will to breach the wall, had now become something beyond a master—an existence untouchable and beyond casual address.
In the end, Myeong-ryun had no choice but to lower his head and withdraw from the chamber.

* * *

The Blue Heaven Sect departed with Cheon Yul’s bodyguards as hostages, and already a day had passed.
It was fortunate in a sense that no major conflict had erupted, yet oddly enough, my chamber was filled with an incessant clamor.
I furrowed my brow and turned my gaze away.
“This is all your fault!”
There stood Soocheonchu Cheon Yul.
Unable to contain his roiling emotions, he paced back and forth across the room, his agitation and fury laid bare.
A sharp gaze pierced toward me menacingly.
After half a month of abstaining from food and drink, his pallid, ashen complexion had already regained its natural hue.
Contrary to the commotion he raised as if displeased, it only meant he had eaten his fill and rested comfortably.
With his restored vigor, Cheon Yul’s piercing voice assailed my ears.
“If you had simply agreed to a proper martial contest, I would never have needed to meet that bastard!”
At those words, I smiled faintly and shook my head.
I had never intended to agree to a martial contest from the beginning.
Was it not he who persisted despite hearing my refusal from the start?
Thanks to that, I provoked the Martial Arts Alliance.
Or rather, to be more precise, it was I who provoked them.
Using Baek Jin-hwa, I had quietly spread rumors about Cheon Yul, and even the Martial Arts Alliance, which initially disbelieved them, eventually had no choice but to accept them as truth, investigating through their own methods.
As a result, the Blue Heaven Sect moved into action.
If there was any fault on my part, it was merely that I utilized Cheon Yul’s arrival to some degree.
I pressed him further with an unbothered expression.
“The fault lies with the Young Master So who came seeking me out.”
“But what was I supposed to do when the Martial Arts Alliance took all my bodyguards!? Is there a greater humiliation than this!?”
Cheon Yul couldn’t contain his resentment and furrowed his brow.
Not only had he failed to draw his sword even once against the Blue Heaven Sect, but he had also suffered the humiliation of his own guards being captured by them.
For the Young Master So of Sa Do-cheon, it was enough to make one’s teeth ache.
This was likely the first time in his life he had endured such shame.
I smiled and took my seat.
Despite his sharp tone, I maintained my composure, set down an empty teacup, and carefully poured tea before offering it to him.
Whether his throat had grown parched from all the shouting, Cheon Yul accepted the cup without hesitation and drank it down in one gulp without even savoring it.
It must have been quite hot, yet he endured it remarkably well.
Watching him, I continued speaking.
“Still, I did prevent the Young Master So from being dragged away himself.”
“You think I went willingly?”
“Had you resisted, some of your limbs would surely have been severed.”
“Ugh….”
Cheon Yul swallowed a groan and furrowed his brow.
No matter how much pride he possessed in Sa Do-cheon, he seemed to accept that it would not have been easy given the strength and numbers of the Blue Heaven Sect.
Then, picking up a snack that lay nearby and eating it, he regarded me with a frown.
“You’re my friend, yet I can never tell what you’re thinking.”
“I’m not your friend. And I’m not thinking anything at all.”
“A man who thinks of nothing wouldn’t show up in that situation. If we’d left it alone, it would have ended on its own.”
I neither confirmed nor denied his words.
But it was certainly true.
No matter how formidable the Blue Heaven Sect was, facing Soocheonchu wouldn’t have been easy. Moreover, if he had died in the fight, Sa Do-cheon’s fury wouldn’t have stopped at mere anger.
A true confrontation between emperors could have erupted, so Myeong-ryun would have exerted some effort while still trying to resolve the matter peacefully.
It was I who blocked that situation.
Rather, I stirred up trouble.
Do you not realize that?
Cheon Yul, tilting his head with a somewhat crooked expression, pointed at me with the wine cup in his hand and asked.
“What do you want?”
“I have no desires regarding Soocheonchu.”
“So you do have something you want from the Martial Arts Alliance?”
“Haha.”
“My friend had this cunning side to him.”
“I am not your friend. Rather, shouldn’t you start preparing? I intend to depart tomorrow.”
“What’s there to prepare? A single sword that can cut anyone down is enough.”
Cheon Yul tapped the sword sheath beside him and laughed.
Whether he believed that with just that blade he could traverse the entire realm, his expression and eyes brimmed with confidence.
But his grasp of the situation was certain.
“By the way, that fellow Myeong-ryun. You said he was a disciple of Gong-hwang, right?”
“That is correct.”
“Wow—that’s no joke. Every time our eyes met, I felt chills run down my spine. But with the Sword Emperor’s disciple, I felt nothing.”
Though both were disciples of an Emperor, one must never compare the Sword Emperor and Gong-hwang on the same level.
Like the Death Emperor, he was an absolute master who dominated an entire era, and now he is recognized as the strongest of the orthodox sects.
No matter how great and respected the Sword Emperor’s accomplishments are, compared to what Gong-hwang has achieved, they pale in comparison.
Just as with Cheon Yul, since Gong-hwang personally cultivated his disciple, the strength that resulted transcends common sense.
“Blue Heaven Sect Master Myeong-ryun! I’ll remember that!”
“It is surprising that you did not know until now.”
“I knew of him. But I didn’t realize he was at that level.”
At those words, I shook my head.
There are none who do not know the name of Blue Heaven Sect Master Myeong-ryun.
With more than a decade of age difference between us, the experience and accomplishments he has built in the martial world during that time far surpass Cheon Yul.
He entered the Changryong Dan at the youngest age and became its leader in an instant, then left that place at the same age as Moryeong Hyeok and entered the Blue Heaven Sect.
And now he even holds the position of sect master.
Having achieved all of this with overwhelming speed and skill, even the jealous Moryeong Hyeok could not help but acknowledge Myeong-ryun and harbor inferiority.
As I sighed softly while thinking such thoughts, Cheon Yul suddenly pointed his finger at me.
“First I’ll defeat you, then that fellow!”
“Why do you place me first and him second?”
“…That fellow is stronger than you.”
At those words, a smile escaped my lips unbidden.
Something about Cheon Yul’s incomprehensible gaze and expression made him tilt his head.
“Or is it the other way around? Is he first and you second?”
“Think as you wish.”
“Ah, forget it! I’m going to rest. Come find me when you’re ready. Whether it’s him or you, I’ll beat you both anyway.”
Cheon Yul rose from his seat with a snort of laughter.
Soon after, he patted my back lightly and waved his hand as he left the room.
It seemed he was returning to the empty room that had been provided for him.
As the door closed and the once-chaotic room fell into a silence as complete as death, I felt my mind finally ease with the quiet.
I lay down comfortably and sank into thought.
“I’m certain it will reach him.”
I smiled, thinking of the letter I had given to Myeong-ryun.
Hye-myeong, who supposedly secluded himself in the mountains performing ascetic practices.
But I knew that was not the truth.
He who glimpsed the heavens in his duel with Geomcheon had not merely seen that sky—he had fallen into the obsession to ascend it.
Like opium, it had addicted him, slowly consuming him until he reached this state.
This journey to the Martial Arts Alliance was precisely for that Hye-myeong.
A seat where someone exists yet does not exist.
A person whose name can be spoken but whose face cannot be seen.
I would place the true master back in that seat where only a name now sits.
“It is time for you to work now, Venerable Hyemyeong.”
I smiled, envisioning his face, which I had never seen.

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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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