The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 325

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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 325

The crystalline light of the full moon illuminated the dark streets of the night.
Though the place seemed to hold a silence as if death itself had settled there, the voices of those searching for someone echoed ceaselessly from all directions.
It was as if those sounds were meant to shatter the stillness.
Sensing all of this, I gazed upon a man.
A single figure standing motionless.
With his back to the moonlight, he watched me quietly.
The face of this stranger was utterly unfamiliar.
His expression revealed nothing, and though his gaze felt strangely familiar, it was equally foreign.
I tried to answer the question I had posed while looking directly at him, yet oddly, my voice refused to emerge, as if permission had been denied.
Thud—
The man took another step toward me.
Simultaneously, though winter had not yet arrived, a chilling night breeze blew forth, and a cold that pierced to the bone seemed to seep through my very marrow.
“Are you Cheon-u of the Jin Family?”
As that single phrase pierced my eardrums, my voice burst forth as if it had been granted permission, speaking of its own accord.
“That would be correct, but… who are you?”
“It is a pleasure to meet you. I am… Yeon-un.”
“Yeon-un?”
I frantically searched my memory for the name Yeon-un. Yet no one came to mind—this was someone with whom I had no past connection.
As I regarded Yeon-un with questioning eyes, a faint smile appeared at the corners of his mouth.
“There is no need for caution. I am simply pleased to meet the Young Master I have only heard of in rumors.”
“I am hardly so remarkable. But… what is your affiliation, Yeon-un?”
“Ah— I have none. I simply prefer to wander.”
A wanderer.
Is that why my memory yields nothing?
I relaxed my guard and allowed a subtle smile to cross my lips.
“If you have no other business with me, might I take my leave? I have someone I must find, and I cannot afford to waste time.”
“Hmm—”
At that moment, Yeon-un, who had been watching me, let out a soft sound.
As if thinking for a brief moment, he fell silent for a short time, then drew a small smile across his lips and his eyes gleamed.
“If you would permit it, I would like to help you.”
“No—”
“You are searching for your elder brother who is with the Masked Martial Artist, are you not?”
At his calm words, my expression became peculiar.
Given the circumstances, it was certainly something I could have deduced, yet among those pursuing the Masked Martial Artist, it seemed no one had discovered my brother’s true identity.
Had they known, they would have come to lodge a protest at the inn.
So how could he possibly have learned this so easily?
As I regarded Yeon-un with questioning eyes, he smiled with an expression I could not read.
“If you wish to find them, simply follow me. The situation has become quite grave, so it would be best to hurry…?”
“Lead the way. I need to verify whether your words are true or not.”
“Ha, of course. This way.”
Yeon-un propelled his body forward, moving toward the west.
Cutting swiftly through the dark night streets, I kept my gaze fixed upon the man ahead.
“How did you know?”
“It’s simple. I heard two people whispering in the place where they hid themselves.”
“…I heard the Bandits are also searching for the Masked Martial Artist. Why didn’t you inform them?”
“Ha— I am not one who has ties with that group. I merely stopped by today to see the Stone Merchant’s establishment.”
Since there were more than one or two called Bandits, not all of them were working together to find the Masked Martial Artist.
Was Yeon-un one of those types?
Yet the unsettling feeling only deepened my thoughts.
Yeon-un, who had been leading the way, turned his head to look at me, and once again wore a smile.
“I’m not speaking this way to do anything suspicious. Well, I was thinking I might receive some reward for my trouble.”
At those words, I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.
“If you had saved my brother, you would have received a much more generous reward, wouldn’t you?”
“Ha, how could I handle all those people? I prefer not to earn money only to end up on the road to the afterlife. On the other hand… the Young Master’s reputation is so resounding that I thought it would be fine.”
I nodded at those words.
Even if the Bandits, the Socheonmun, and the Wuhyeonse clan all came rushing in with their blades drawn, I possessed the strength to stop them all.
The power that the alias Golden Dragon bestowed.
Not stopping meant that my blade’s edge would be directed toward them.
Whoosh— Boom!
At that moment, someone launched a signal flare that drew a number in the sky.
As the brilliant light spread out elegantly, all those searching the surroundings rushed fiercely toward that location.
Seeing this, I furrowed my brow.
For merely a collision or stolen food, the situation had become excessive.
Had it truly escalated to this degree?
Once more, Yeon-un’s voice reached my ears.
“It’s because the Socheonmun and the Wuhyeonse clan are grinding their teeth.”
“Over such a trivial matter?”
“To be precise, it’s because of the Masked Martial Artist. While being chased, he’s already cut down over twenty people. It’s fortunate that there have been no deaths.”
Only then could I grasp the situation accurately.
It wasn’t merely a pursuit—blades had been drawn.
While it was possible, the problem was that it had gone too far.
Though there were no casualties, both sides had reached a point where they could not withdraw even if they wished to.
Meanwhile, the warriors of the Binggung would have been equally desperate.
Subduing incoming enemies without killing them is difficult.
So their hands were bound to be excessive.
Clang-clang-clang-!
At that moment, the sound of clashing blades echoed from not far away.
“Stop this! Stop!”
“Aaaahhhhh!”
“Die!”
Jin Myeong’s voice rang out desperately trying to stop them, but to those already grinding their teeth for the honor of their clans and sects and vengeance for their fallen comrades, it was nothing but a hollow cry.
Swords clashed relentlessly, sparks erupting in a spectacular display.
In that moment, I saw it.
The figure clad in a masked martial artist’s garb.
The warrior from the Northern Ice Palace who had orchestrated this chaos.
Her form was cut and torn in places from the fierce exchange of blows. The instant I confirmed this, I found myself frowning.
“Insane.”
The face gradually revealed.
Unlike what I had assumed to be a warrior of the Northern Ice Palace, it was the Junior Princess of the Northern Ice Palace—or should I now call her the Palace Master?
It was Seol Ha-yeon, the ruler of that place.
“Do you know her?”
At Yeon-un’s question, I didn’t even answer and launched my body forward.
Moving faster than an arrow, I closed the distance in an instant. Sensing the sudden presence, everyone’s eyes widened in shock as they looked at me.
Kwaaang—!
I descended forcefully, splitting apart those locked in fierce combat. The moment my feet touched the ground, the rough wave of force sent everyone stumbling back several steps.
Those barely maintaining their balance swallowed hard, staring at me, and then seemed to realize something as they gasped.
Before anyone could open their mouth—
“…Cheon-u!?”
It was my brother who recognized me first.
I turned my head searching for the source of the voice and furrowed my brow.
“What are you doing?”
“What do you mean… The young lady was in danger, so I was trying to save her….”
“That’s something the So clan’s martial artists should handle. This is no situation for you to involve yourself in, brother, when you don’t even know martial arts.”
“That’s… true….”
Jin Myeong lowered his head with a trembling voice.
He might have been displeased at being scolded by his younger brother, but he seemed to have lost his nerve at my sharp gaze.
I exhaled a sigh and turned my eyes.
A woman clad in black masked martial artist’s garb.
With tears here and there, there was no way to hide it anymore.
“Junior Princess, what brings you here?”
“….”
“Junior Princess? Did you just say Junior Princess?”
“That’s what I heard… So, that woman is the Junior Princess of the Northern Ice Palace!?”
As the fighting stopped, the murmurs that arose left everyone speechless. They must have known she was from the North, but they hadn’t known she was destined to rule the Northern Ice Palace.
Several faces went rigid.
Yet what stopped their feet wasn’t only because of the Junior Princess.
“Now that I think about it… isn’t that fellow the Young Master So of the Jin Family?”
“The Golden Dragon?!”
“He defeated Tae-hwang in a wager duel…?”
A quiet murmur rippled through the crowd, quickly swelling into chaos.
The Young Master So of the Jin Family, the Golden Dragon, the Jin Family of Luoyang.
Such names shattered their resolve and bound their feet. Thus, no one dared draw their blade, and instead their eyes darted about searching for their leader’s guidance.
As if pleading for direction on what to do.
While I waited for the commotion to settle, Seol Ha-yeon approached me quietly, removed her torn veil to reveal her face, and bowed lightly.
“It’s pleasant to meet you again in such a place, Young Master.”
“This is hardly the time for pleasantries, Junior Princess. You could be dragged before the Martial Arts Alliance at any moment.”
“…I merely responded to their attack.”
Perhaps because of her indifferent words, a furious cry erupted from someone.
“What nonsense! It was you who started the fight!”
“That’s right! You stole from us and then harmed our disciples!”
An angry shout rang out loudly.
The killing intent that had subsided flared up again, and with it, the momentum they had lost ignited anew as everyone raised their blades.
Ready to strike at any moment.
I furrowed my brow at the sight.
“What do you have to say about their accusations?”
“…We did collide.”
“How did that happen?”
“On the road… there was a praying mantis, and I was startled trying to avoid it….”
At that moment, everyone who heard this explanation was left speechless.
Some even scratched their ears, wondering if what they heard was truly real.
The explanation was that absurd.
I let out a small sigh and furrowed my brow.
“The Junior Princess of the Northern Sea was startled by a praying mantis?”
“I had never seen one before, and it lunged at me….”
There was no deception in Seol Ha-yeon’s expression.
Her slightly flushed face, embarrassed, spoke volumes.
Because of this, the people of So Cheong Gate stared at her with vacant eyes and fell silent.
“Then what about the theft? Did you really do such a thing?”
“…I became lost while wandering and caught a pleasant aroma, so I followed it. However, I saw no one there, and the meat was about to burn, so I ate it. After all, if it burned, it would be inedible anyway….”
Her head lowered further and further.
From her perspective, she had been wandering and was starving. When she discovered the camp, meat on the verge of burning lay right before her eyes. If it was going to be discarded anyway, wouldn’t it be better to put it in her stomach?
Was this the situation?
I was at a loss for words, too astounded to know what to say.
“Why didn’t you apologize and resolve this?”
“I tried to, but they drew their blades first, so I thought this was how things were done in the Central Plains.”
My gaze turned toward the martial artists gathered around.
She had clearly made a mistake, but their anger had flared so quickly that they drew blades first. Given Seol Ha-yeon’s prideful nature, she would hardly let the matter pass.
Naturally, a fight would have broken out, and they would have clashed fiercely.
Such a situation had grown progressively larger, eventually reaching this point.
I smiled bitterly and assumed a martial stance.
“Since this person has a connection with the Jin Family, I shall take responsibility for this matter.”
“…How do you intend to take responsibility?”
“Indeed. No matter how renowned the Golden Dragon may be, many have shed blood, and the sect’s honor has been dragged through the mud.”
That was true.
They would naturally have no intention of backing down easily.
I would feel the same in their position.
“I shall do my utmost to treat the wounded, and as an apology for this incident, I shall provide appropriate compensation…How does that sound?”
“Ahem!”
“Hmm….”
The Soching Sect and the Woo Hyun Family were not large organizations.
Such places were always starved for funds.
Therefore, if needed, whether through money or other means.
From their perspective, they could not easily dismiss the temptation this proposal offered.
For our side was far too vast to allow them to maintain their pride.
“What will you do?”
Just as I smiled once more.
A faint breeze blew from behind.
Simultaneously, a gaze that felt oddly familiar.
Without thinking, I turned around, and my eyes fell upon Yeon-un, who sat to one side gazing at me with an enigmatic smile.
His expression seemed far colder than the moonlight itself.

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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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