The Youngest Son of the Nanyang Jin Family - Chapter 60

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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 60

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Silence enveloped the surroundings.
“…Pyo Du, are you alright?”
“You were just testing him, weren’t you? You weren’t actually fighting seriously?”
At the voices echoing around him, Yang Jachun finally regained his senses.
He stared at his right palm, split open, then turned his gaze to his sword embedded in the ground.
“Ha….”
Upon confirming all of it, he suddenly realized that everything unfolding before his eyes was not a dream, but reality.
Ha—
“Pyo Du! You were just testing him, weren’t you?”
Testing him?
Yang Jachun had initially harbored the same thought.
But after being dismantled in a single move, he had changed his mind.
Of course, the burden of facing Jin Cheon-u might have prevented him from displaying his true capabilities.
Yet that was only at the beginning.
As his attacks were relentlessly blocked and countered, he had gritted his teeth and eventually thrown everything he had into trying to bring Jin Cheon-u down—of that, he was certain.
“This is absurd….”
“Pyo Du?”
“Was that… truly your full strength?”
“In that final moment, it was.”
“…!”
“Cough?!”
Full strength, indeed.
It was openly said that within Sega, only the Guard Commander Baek Ja-hyeon possessed the skill to block that single move.
Yet he could do nothing against it.
Absolutely nothing.
As if he had been waiting, the opponent moved his sword with such exquisite precision that Yang Jachun had no choice but to lose his grip.
He had survived only because his opponent was Jin Cheon-u; in actual combat, it would have been complete defeat.
Yes, there would have been nothing but death.
“…Then does this mean the Young Master’s skill has truly surpassed yours?”
“Without question. They kept calling him a genius, and he truly is one.”
It was not merely because he had been defeated.
With talent, one could elevate their cultivation to a certain level through training alone.
But there was something that no amount of cultivation could fill.
That was the practical experience gained by walking the line between life and death.
No matter how high one’s martial prowess reached, without sufficient experience, even winnable battles would be lost.
Yang Jachun’s swordsmanship was a battle-tested technique honed through countless life-and-death encounters, yet Jin Cheon-u’s blade seemed to transcend even that.
Each movement flowed seamlessly, as though a single martial artist were simultaneously engaging multiple adversaries.
It defied all rational comprehension.
“….”
Yang Jachun’s gaze fixed upon the spot where Jin Cheon-u had stood.
Footprints were clearly imprinted in the trampled grass.
Yet there was only a single pair.
In other words, despite the countless exchanges of offense and defense, Jin Cheon-u had not shifted his position by even a single step.
“Hah.”
There were only two possibilities for such a thing.
Either the disparity in skill was so overwhelming as to defy comparison.
Or, he had anticipated every move his opponent would make and responded accordingly.
Regardless, the fact remained that Jin Cheon-u had accomplished what even Baek Ja-hyeon, hailed as the greatest master of the Nakhyang Jin Family, could not.
Yang Jachun scratched his head vigorously, retrieved his sword from the earth, and turned away.
As the heat drained from his mind, the surrounding landscape finally came into focus.
A small pavilion overgrown with weeds, utterly neglected and unkempt.
“Sigh… when will I ever clean this up?”
The mere thought of it was dizzying.

* * *

Yang Jachun was far from a fool.
Though his mind was consumed with what had just transpired before his eyes, he would soon accept the truth and acknowledge the vast gulf between our abilities.
Once that happened, the warriors would naturally have no choice but to follow me.
After all, there was no idiot among them foolish enough to resist when Yang Jachun, their strongest master, had submitted.
Moreover, commanding the warriors of Sega would become far simpler.
I had a fortnight ahead of me.
Within that time, I intended to elevate my strength to its absolute zenith.
To a degree that would leave no weakness against the Shadow Assassins.
With my thoughts thus organized, I departed the Underground Organization, passed through the Luoyang City Gate, and walked for roughly half a distance.
Then, clustered houses came into view.
People did not dwell only within the city walls; small villages like this had formed beyond the gates as well.
I entered the village.
I already knew where I needed to go.
However, I had never visited during this period in my past life, so I harbored some uncertainty about whether it would be appropriate.
Not long after, I spotted an old man between the low compound walls.
He sat upon the veranda, a small blade in hand, carving something with focused intensity.
Two young children played about him, surrounded by toys of various kinds scattered about.
Objects I had never seen in the marketplace.
The old man before me was their creator.
I let out an involuntary chuckle.
“You’re living well.”
Upon hearing my words, the Old Man carving wood turned his head slightly to regard me.
Perhaps the distance between us was too great?
He couldn’t quite make me out and furrowed his brow.
“Who are you?”
“Our Geum Chabek has grown so old that even I don’t recognize him.”
At those words, the Old Man’s expression turned puzzled.
He set down what he held in his hands and rose to his feet, then slowly approached me.
The moment he drew near enough to see my face clearly, his eyes widened as large as lanterns.
“My goodness, aren’t you the Young Master?”
“It’s been a long time.”
“Hehe, how you’ve grown! I nearly wouldn’t have recognized you if I hadn’t looked carefully.”
“Geum Chabek has aged considerably as well. I thought you’d already passed on.”
“Hehehehe. How can you say such sorrowful things? With grandchildren and granddaughters as lovely as these, how could I depart so hastily? Come now, what are you doing standing out here? Do come inside. I cannot leave the Young Master standing outside.”
The Old Man opened the closed door and ushered me in, then hurried into the room to prepare a seat.
He called out to a woman who appeared to be his daughter-in-law, and despite his age, his voice rang out with surprising vigor.
I gazed upon his figure with a smile.
“It’s good to see your face like this. It feels like only yesterday you were making toys for me.”
“Hehehehe, those were merely trifling tasks. Didn’t I make all of the Young Master’s toys?”
I nodded at the Old Man’s words.
This was Geum Chabek, who had overseen the servants before Hong Gu-hyeon.
Though he had left Sega around the time I was born, his exceptional craftsmanship meant my grandfather entrusted him with work, and he created toys and other necessities for me.
Thanks to this, despite leaving Sega, he had managed to earn a decent living.
In truth, if he had wished, he could have lived in a grand mansion, yet he remained frugal, building a modest home outside the city where he still resided.
Even this house itself was constructed by his own hands.
I observed the children playing in the courtyard.
Various toys scattered about the grounds suggested that despite his age, his craftsmanship had not dulled.
If anything, it had become more refined.
These were items worthy of being sold without shame.
Confirming this, I nodded.
“Your craftsmanship remains unchanged.”
“Hehehehe, you speak of these? The skill I once used to craft the Young Master’s toys now goes into making things for those children. It’s more enjoyable than I expected.”
“When I was young, I owed you much. Thanks to you, I was never bored.”
“Hehehehe, I’m glad to hear you say so. But tell me, is there a reason you’ve sought me out? It doesn’t seem you’ve come asking me to make toys again…”
“Different, yet similar in a way.”
“Pardon? What do you mean by similar?”
“I’d like you to craft something for me.”
“Craft something?”
I nodded.
Geum Chabek crafts everything from start to finish himself.
He procures materials on his own, and since what he creates isn’t sold in the marketplace, even with careful inquiry, one wouldn’t be able to find its maker.
In the case of Pyo Hyeong-geom’s mask from before, since it was something sold in the marketplace, if it hadn’t been burned and someone had discovered it, one could follow the clues and eventually trace them back to me.
But this time was different.
Without knowing Geum Chabek, it would be impossible to find him.
“Hehehehe, does the Young Master truly wish for a plaything? Then this Geum Chabek shall roll up both sleeves and craft it for you! What shall I make?”
“A mask.”
“A mask… you say?”
Geum Chabek blinked his eyes with a puzzled expression.
He questioned why what I’d sought him out to create was merely a mask.
Such things were sold aplenty in the marketplace.
“What I want is a mask that isn’t sold anywhere. Something special.”
“Oho! If that’s the case, this Geum Chabek can certainly make it, hehe. But what might you use it for…?”
“Nothing much… Father’s birthday is coming up soon, isn’t it? I plan to use it then.”
“Is that time already upon us? Hehe— So you’re preparing something for the Family Head. I understand! This Geum Chabek shall do my utmost to craft a truly special mask for you!”
Geum Chabek boasted confidently, patting his chest repeatedly.
With his swift hands, once he set his mind to it, it wouldn’t take long.
I smiled faintly and handed over a purse.
Geum Chabek’s eyes widened in surprise as he accepted the weighty object.
“What…! No, Young Master, since this is for the Family Head’s birthday, shouldn’t I simply craft it for you?”
“I appreciate that. But what I need isn’t just one.”
“Not just one…?”
“Well… would fifty do?”
“…Fifty?!”
Geum Chabek gasped in astonishment at the number fifty.
The quantity was far greater than he’d anticipated.
Watching him struggle to close his gaping mouth, I couldn’t help but smile.
His jaw would surely drop.
“Is it impossible?”
“No, it’s possible. Of course it is. But… by when…?”
“I’d like to have them within a fortnight. At minimum, is a week too difficult?”
“Young Master, are you perhaps… trying to kill this old man?”
“I know it’s difficult. But I ask you to do your best.”
….
Perhaps because of my use of the word “ask,” Geum Chabek stared at me blankly.
It seemed he hadn’t expected such words to come from my lips.
Normally I issued commands.
Geum Chabek knew this better than anyone.
Because of that, he must have sensed my earnestness.
He exhaled with a long sigh.
“Our Young Master seems quite eager. Excellent! I, Geum Chabek, shall forge it even if I must burn my very soul for it!”
Sensing my resolve, Geum Chabek nodded firmly in affirmation. He was the type who, once committed to a task, could think of nothing else—already his mind seemed consumed with visions of what mask he would craft.
“I’m grateful. Then, send Chu Hyeongi to me in seven days.”
“No, Young Master. I never said seven days…”
I rose from my seat with a soft chuckle.
I gave Geum Chabek’s shoulder—still bewildered—a light pat before quietly slipping from the room.
“Young Master? Please hear this old man out. Do you truly wish to see me perish…Young Master?!”
Listening to Geum Chabek’s voice fade behind me, I smiled faintly and turned my steps toward the Nakhyang Jin Family compound.
The sun was already sinking toward the horizon.
As I gazed upon the crimson sunset and re-entered Luoyang City, turning my feet toward home, a chill seized me.
A shiver ran down my spine.
Suddenly, I felt a gaze upon me—unmistakable and piercing.
In that same instant, I steadied my mind.
As though nothing had occurred.
As though I had noticed no one’s stare.
My pace remained measured, my breathing undisturbed.
My eyes gazed boldly forward.
Walking thus, I drank in the crimson sunset and smiled softly to myself.

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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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