The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 255

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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 255

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Once a rumor begins to spread through the martial world, it becomes impossible to contain. It was only a matter of time before a single whisper would swell into something enormous.
And when it bursts, it happens in an instant.
By then, there is no stopping it.
Currently, the center of rumors had been the Sword Emperor, the Martial Arts Alliance, and the Young Master So of the Jin Family of Luoyang, but a single piece of news suddenly emerged that extinguished what had seemed like an endless, never-ceasing tide of gossip.
“Is it really… true? Geomcheon Muheo is dead?”
“The heavens… that can’t be right?!”
“This is ridiculous! It must be nonsense! Even Gonghuang and the Death Emperor are alive, so how could Geomcheon….”
The death of Geomcheon Muheo.
As the rumor—whose origin no one could trace—began to circulate, it spread across the entire Central Plains like poison poured into a well.
The shock was beyond words.
Even those called ideological opponents did not hesitate to call Geomcheon the heaven above the heavens.
At the news of such a person’s death, the talk of the Sword Emperor and the Martial Arts Alliance was instantly buried.
“Everyone thinks it’s a lie. Anyone would. But… they say Gonghuang knew about it. That’s supposedly why he came down from Mount Song.”
“Why would that be…?”
“Something about Geomcheon’s final testament, or so they say. In any case, there’s no doubt that Gonghuang descended from the mountain… so even if this were true, it wouldn’t be unreasonable.”
Sighs erupted from all corners.
Geomcheon’s death could have been dismissed as mere hearsay.
However, when it was corroborated that Hye-myeong, who had been secluded on Mount Song, had come down for this very reason, the rumor gained credibility.
There had been many curious onlookers wondering why Hye-myeong had descended from the mountain, and now they finally had an explanation that made sense.
After all, it was well known that Hye-myeong harbored deeper feelings for Geomcheon than anyone else.
Naturally, such rumors also reached the still-turbulent Martial Arts Alliance.
“Is this true, Alliance Leader?”
Jegal Daewun, the Commander of the Martial Arts Alliance, pulled forth the doubts that had lodged in his mind with an expression of utter disbelief.
Even he found it difficult to believe that Geomcheon was dead.
“Hehehehe—.”
Yet Hye-myeong only laughed without answering.
Then he let out a light sigh and shook his head.
The attention of all people had been pouring toward the Martial Arts Alliance due to the matter of the Sword Emperor.
But a single rumor had changed the entire atmosphere.
The death of Geomcheon.
And Hye-myeong’s descent from the mountain, knowing of it.
The public’s gaze could not help but shift in an instant, and those who had spoken of the Sword Emperor now turned their attention toward Geomcheon Muheo.
For the Martial Arts Alliance, this was welcome news.
Due to the Sword Emperor’s elusive nature, people had begun to voice the Alliance’s incompetence, but such talk had suddenly vanished.
Though there would still be those who remained concerned, it would not be the same as before, and as time passed, the name of Geomcheon would be spoken by far more people than that of the Sword Emperor.
A move to perfectly redirect their attention.
‘So the Jin Family’s youngest has grown concerned about this old monk.’
The source of this rumor right now.
Hye-myeong could not possibly be unaware of it.
After all, Mu Heo’s death was known only to Hye-myeong and Cheon-u alone, so if one of them did not speak, it could never have been revealed.
If it leaked outside, it was undoubtedly Cheon-u’s doing.
“Amitabha Buddha—this old monk has caused unnecessary worry.”
Hye-myeong sighed and thought of Cheon-u.
He, who lived hiding his master’s existence and concealing that he was a disciple, had opportunely spread this rumor at such a time, which had the effect of dispersing the attention and talk concentrated on the Sword Emperor’s affairs.
In any case, with this, I could now focus on pursuing traces of the Sword Emperor without worrying about the world’s eyes and ears for a while.
And one more thing.
“Amitabha Buddha—Commander, bring Gok Bangjoo here.”
“Understood.”

* * *

Dabie Mountain.
That place, which cradled a long river running down into Hubei, was one of the representative mountains of Henan.
If one boarded a boat here and traveled downstream, one could enter Hubei territory in less than half a day, making it a place many people sought out.
As I stopped my horse while confirming that river course, I could finally see the form of Dabie Mountain, which could be called my destination.
Though not quite as grand as Shaolin’s Songshan, the expansive and majestic vista of the mountain had something that overwhelmed a person.
The moment I rolled my eyes and confirmed the long mountain range stretching endlessly, I unknowingly wore a bitter smile and revealed an exasperated expression.
“So he disappeared in a place like this?”
An unnamed mountain range stretched endlessly with no visible end.
The breadth and landscape, which even seasoned mountaineers would find difficult, made me think that once lost within, if one did not know the geography, escaping might be impossible.
The reason I shook my head without being greatly surprised was simple.
Having entered and returned from Tianshan, it did not strike me as particularly daunting.
That said, there was still a problem.
The greatest challenge was that I had to search through that vast expanse and find the one presumed to be Hao Munzhu.
If Chu Hyeongi were here, it would have been far easier.
The reason I did not bring him was simple.
He had certainly endured an exhausting journey.
Bringing Namgung Yeon would be useless since he knows only martial arts, and Cheon Yul would be equally unhelpful.
Chaeseoha was out of the question from the start, so I had to search this vast place alone.
I scratched my head and moved forward.
Soon I stopped my horse at the entrance of Dabie Mountain and dismounted, then took out a small birdcage that had been hanging from the back of the saddle.
“Let me check where it goes.”
The carrier pigeon that Baek Jin-hwa had given me.
Since this was the bird that Hao Munzhu had used to send her last letter, I had brought it specifically to pinpoint her location.
Opening the cage door and releasing it, the bird began flying toward a specific location, just as she had said it would.
I caught sight of the unnamed character, tracked their movements, and launched myself forward at full speed.
I couldn’t afford to lose them.
With the mountains running deep and trees densely packed, if they slipped from my sight even for a moment, tracking them down again would be far from simple.
I adjusted my pace to match theirs as closely as possible, ascending along the mountain paths.
Had I been running like this for roughly six hours straight?
The unnamed character, who had been alternating between rest and flight, finally began circling around a particular location.
I rushed toward that spot without hesitation.
The moment I arrived, closing the distance in an instant and took in the scene before me.
My brow furrowed involuntarily.
“There was a battle here.”
The surroundings were filled with such evidence.
Sword marks were visible on trees scattered throughout, and the ground bore countless traces of hidden weapons alongside bloodstains scattered in various places.
One was being pursued, while many were pursuing.
If the one being pursued was Hao Munzhu, then who were the pursuers?
I couldn’t determine exactly who they were, but their numbers were considerable.
Based on the traces, ten perhaps?
They appeared to be powerful experts of considerable skill, yet they couldn’t easily capture Hao Munzhu, whose exceptional lightness technique allowed him to escape—the signs of their struggle were unmistakable.
“Neither side had an easy time of it.”
I abandoned my thoughts and surveyed the surroundings.
The traces of Hao Munzhu’s escape using lightness technique caught my eye.
Had he headed westward?
Even from the sporadic traces of his lightness technique, I could deduce that he moved at a speed the pursuers couldn’t easily match.
Traces were scattered everywhere.
Signs of him hiding his body, perhaps to catch his breath.
He appeared to have gathered mountain vegetables to sustain himself, and I could identify locations where he had rested briefly to alleviate his fatigue.
Hao Munzhu had traversed various parts of this Dabie Mountain in a relentless chase, and throughout it all, he had made considerable effort to conserve his strength.
Consequently, the pursuers seemed unable to capture him easily either, and it was clear they had struggled considerably over several days within this Dabie Mountain.
As I slowly followed such traces, dense undergrowth eventually blocked my path, but on one side, the vegetation was bent and trampled left and right as if someone had passed through.
I pushed through it and advanced further ahead.
“…This is troublesome.”
A high cliff suddenly revealed itself before me.
The fierce current flowing directly below was remarkably strong—it seemed that anyone caught in it would struggle to survive.
Yet what could someone with their life hanging in the balance do when facing such a situation?
Whether cut down by a blade before my eyes or swept away by the current, death was the same either way.
Then the probability he jumped was high.
Checking every location around me, there was no bloodstain from a slain person anywhere, so I had no doubt that Hao Munzhu had thrown himself off this cliff.
Moreover, some of the pursuers appeared to have jumped after Hao Munzhu, while others had left traces of moving along the current on mountain paths.
I scratched my head and let out a hollow laugh.
No matter how I looked at it, the probability of survival seemed almost nonexistent.
Yet this was Baek Jin-hwa’s request, and the object that had brought the Blood Wind was involved, so I couldn’t simply abandon it.
Without even a moment’s hesitation, I hurled myself over the cliff.
It was far faster and easier than scaling the mountain and chasing the water’s course.
Splash—!
The violent torrent seized my body with a harsh roar and dragged me relentlessly downstream.

* * *

“Cough, cough— Did I survive….”
In some unknown place.
A man who had barely crawled free from the raging waters gasped roughly, his breathing ragged and uneven.
His ashen complexion, drained of all color, gave no indication of how long he had been swept through that freezing current.
Once he steadied his breathing, the man first surveyed his surroundings.
Where was this place?
Recalling how far he had been swept along, it occurred to him that he might have crossed beyond Henan and into Hubei territory.
Yet there was too little information to make any reliable guess about an unfamiliar location.
Moreover, with the pursuers who had thrown themselves after him potentially closing in at any moment, I could not afford to linger and ponder deeply.
He hurriedly composed himself and rose to his feet.
Glancing about cautiously, he began to move.
In any direction—east, west, north, or south—if he could only escape this place, surely he would be able to find some village where people dwelled.
“I must hurry….”
He could not fathom how the pursuers had learned that he possessed the object, but given their relentless persistence, it would be no surprise if they blocked his path again at any moment.
The man steadied his breathing while touching what lay in his bosom.
Though it had been submerged in water for an extended time, he harbored no great concern.
He had sealed it thoroughly from the beginning.
The greatest danger was losing it to them.
“Absolutely… not! Never!”
That place whose very existence had been doubted.
Passed down as a phantom legend, it had long since been buried by the ages, no longer even spoken of among men.
Darma had there awakened to Buddha’s compassion and karma, laying the foundation of Shaolin’s martial arts; Cheonma had conceived divine techniques while embracing the demonic nature; and Sambon the Shaman had comprehended the principle of the Supreme Ultimate, achieving the Sword of Wisdom.
Yet save for these few, no one had ever found it.
Now, the location of that place had finally been revealed in the Heavenly Mechanism Map I held in my hand.
A secret Heaven itself had concealed.
That place, which had never once revealed itself to the Central Plains throughout all of history, I had finally obtained through an obsession that carved away blood and soul.
And so, I could never surrender it to anyone.
The will inscribed in blood burned within me, fiercer and colder than ever before.

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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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