Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 155

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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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Third-rate Martial Arts Family, Greatest Under Heaven – Episode 155
A hawk descended upon the Baek residence with a flutter of wings.
A single letter that had flown from Gilju.
I slowly read through the characters.
‘The pacification of Gilju is complete.’
It had been three months since Baek Moo-ryang and Dang-gun, leading the martial artists, set out on their expedition.
At last, they had succeeded in completely eradicating the black bandits of Gilju.
‘It took longer than I expected… No, I shouldn’t think that way.’
Gilju was the second-largest province even within the vast Gangseong region.
A territory so expansive that an entire small nation could fit within it without crowding.
Three months was remarkably swift when considering they had not only annihilated five black bandit factions but also rooted out every last remnant hiding throughout the region.
[They gathered representatives of Gilju’s common people and asked them.]
[If they had a choice, they preferred that the main family leave Gilju and return. Though they were warned that Honam’s black bandits might launch an attack, they would not yield their position.]
[Respecting their choice, we intend to withdraw immediately.]
‘Just like Father. He explains everything even when there’s no need to warn them.’
Nevertheless, they desired the Baek family’s withdrawal.
How typical of the Hakka—insular and hostile to outsiders.
‘They’re not fools, so they must understand things could become more dangerous in the future.’
People often fail to make the right choice even when they understand the situation.
One who nearly drowned as a child cannot enjoy swimming no matter how safe the waters are.
Having wandered as refugees for long years and suffered persecution, they reject outsiders regardless of how much goodwill is shown.
‘Yet once they open their hearts, they become a steadfast base that will never betray.’
With such thoughts, I rose to my feet.
My steps led to the pavilion where the Namgung group stayed.
My purpose was to inform Namgung Cheon-hu of the news.
“Namgung Cheon-yeong. The pacification of Gilju is complete, and we will return shortly.”
“I see. Understood.”
Though my business was concluded, I lingered for a moment, observing Namgung Cheon-hu.
He returned my gaze with an expression asking if there was more to discuss.
Though fundamentally expressionless, I detected the faintest hint of emotion in his eyes.
‘Hmm. He’s starting to want to kill me. I can’t blame him—I’d feel the same.’
Previously, Namgung Cheon-hu had spoken of conducting mobile strike operations against Gilju’s black bandit factions.
In other words, the pacification of Gilju was originally the Namgung family’s responsibility.
However, the peak experts, who numbered twenty-one including Namgung Cheon-hu himself, had been cut in half to twelve.
Though still considerable, it was insufficient to conduct mobile strike operations across such vast distances in a different province.
“Has there been any trouble with security in Muju?”
“Nothing particularly serious has occurred.”
Consequently, Namgung Cheon-hu and the Changcheon Sword Sect Members merely filled the gaps left by the Dang and Baek families.
They were performing the role of guarding Muju, which could be called the rear.
“I appreciate your efforts.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
As I left the Namgung Guys’ quarters, I furrowed my brow.
‘There’s no way they’re staying put quietly.’
The Namgung Family taking charge of Muzhou’s security wasn’t my intention.
Namgung Cheon-hu had offered to take on the defense first.
He spoke grandly of guarding the rear, but in reality, he’d volunteered to play the role of a watchdog protecting the house.
‘If he’s abandoned the idea of establishing merit and demanding a stake in Gangseong afterward, then…’
He wouldn’t abandon scheming entirely, so I had to assume he’d decided to see this through to the end.
But that’s not all.
‘A watchdog. If the dog opens the gate, outsiders can plunder the house far more easily.’
He wouldn’t team up with bandits to rob the place, but the fact that the dog won’t bark leaves everything defenseless.
In my assessment, there was no other reason for the Namgung Family to volunteer for the rear guard.
‘The problem is that Namgung Cheon-hu couldn’t possibly not realize I’ve seen through him.’
I clicked my tongue. Cornering someone of Namgung Cheon-hu’s stature—the Family Head himself—based on circumstantial evidence and suspicion was something I couldn’t handle the aftermath of.
If only I could catch concrete evidence that Namgung Cheon-hu was in league with the Black Bandits, things would be so much simpler.
Well, these are all factors I need to consider in this game of schemes anyway.
‘In the end, to bring down the Namgung Guys, I need to create a situation they can’t escape from.’
To do that, I’d have to take risks and expose their weakness.
While guaranteeing maximum safety, yet making it appear to Namgung Cheon-hu as an undeniable opening.
‘This is difficult. Very difficult.’
I’d need to put my heads together with the Young Scholar and devise a decent strategy.
As I walked while thinking such thoughts, I arrived at the rear courtyard of the quarters.
I could see Adu and Jegal Seol-ha practicing.
“Seolha.”
“Ah, Senior Brother!”
Jegal Seol-ha wiped the sweat from her forehead with a bright smile.
“If you’re going to practice, why not do it in the training grounds instead of here?”
“There are other people in the training grounds.”
Her shyness around strangers never changes.
“Besides, I don’t need that much space. I can practice my techniques right where I’m sitting.”
Jegal Seol-ha plucked the strings of her pipa deliberately.
Beautiful melodies shot forth, and dust rose from Adu’s chest.
“It’s a training method that would be impossible without the Monk’s help.”
“Impossible, or rather—even with Adu as an opponent, it seems excessively crude as a method.”
Jegal Seol-ha was mastering the pinnacle of her sound-based technique while using it against Adu.
She was even doing it by launching one-sided attacks against a stationary Adu.
No matter how sturdy his body is, treating him like a meat shield seems a bit much, doesn’t it?
“Isn’t that something you shouldn’t be saying, Senior Brother? You claimed you were teaching me to grasp the essence of murderous intent, yet you just fired killing intent at me for days on end.”
“…You have a point.”
It was true that while efficient, it was an excessively crude training method.
Ordinarily, before one masters the Intent of Righteousness, their resolve shatters and they either suffer heart damage or fall into demonic delusion—such is the norm.
‘Now that I think about it, I’m truly grateful that Seo endured this for several months.’
I continued because she seemed capable of bearing it, but had I detected even the slightest wavering in her resolve, I would have stopped immediately.
“Seolha, are you finished?”
“Yes. Let’s stop here for today.”
“Then give me some rice cakes.”
“I’ll buy some in a moment. Would you like to come shopping with me and pick them out together?”
“Really? I’d love to!”
By the way, the only compensation Adu received for assisting with training was a bundle of rice cakes each day.
In monetary terms, it wasn’t even worth a single silver coin—quite the bargain, wouldn’t you say?
‘Well, considering how I’ve been using Adu, I suppose I’m the worst of the lot… but Seolha has truly changed so much.’
In the past, she would kneel and say things like “Young Girl will surely repay this kindness” over the most trivial matters.
Yet now that same girl had become brazenly shameless, perhaps excessively so.
How should I put it—she seemed very, very far removed from what one would expect of a proper daughter of a prestigious family.
I wonder how it came to this.
‘…But Adu seems to like it too.’
What was it he said—that getting hit while training his external martial arts, plus receiving rice cakes, made it worthwhile.
A master of the Eum School’s techniques could certainly strike an opponent’s internal and external body with a single pluck of the string, so it would indeed serve as training… but….
I simply smiled warmly at the thought.
If everyone’s happy, that’s what matters.
“So you two are heading out?”
“Yes. We’ll wash up and go buy rice cakes.”
“I’ll come with you.”
“You too, Senior Brother?”
“Yes. My mind’s been cluttered, so I thought I’d eat dinner out.”
“A change of scenery is important. I’ll go wash up quickly then.”
Jegal Seol-ha’s face brightened as she moved with the lightness of a feather.
From the way she hurried, it seemed her stomach was quite empty.
‘No, wait.’
Jegal Seol-ha reappeared after more than an hour had passed.
Though it had been early evening just moments before, the sun was now setting in a golden haze.
“Did I keep you waiting long?”
She made no apologies.
“Yes. Really. Incredibly. Absurdly.”
“Seolha, did you sleep in there?”
“Hehe. Why are both of you like this? A true man should patiently wait for a woman’s grooming—that’s the way of things.”
As Jegal Seol-ha turned with a smile, her elaborate silk robes swirled around her.
She was indeed beautiful.
Unlike usual, she wasn’t wearing her face veil.
Her presence alone was enough to captivate countless men, and now she revealed her made-up face rather than her bare one.
“How are you holding up with the veil?”
“It’s been a while since I enjoyed some attention. If any men get too bold, my older brother will handle them.”
“That’s not particularly difficult, but…”
Wasn’t the real issue not dealing with them, but finding the minds of those men who grew bold distasteful?
“Let’s go. I had someone send word ahead to prepare food while we wait.”
“The usual place.”
I led Adu and Jegal Seol-ha toward the inn.
Yuaru. Once a business establishment of the Suhoji Guild, the inn where the Yuhanji Conference had been held.
Situated on the banks of Yuhanji Lake, a landmark of Agan County, it was a place with particularly beautiful scenery.
“Welcome, Young Master. I shall escort you to the highest floor.”
Following the Innkeeper’s guidance, I climbed the stairs and had just reached the door of the assigned guest room.
‘Hmm? There’s someone inside.’
Whether they had deployed some concealment technique or not, their energy was extremely faint, but it fell short of deceiving my senses.
There were definitely people in the guest room—two martial artists, no less.
‘Assassins?’
I examined the Innkeeper’s face. There was no trace of tension.
This meant they had hidden themselves without the inn staff’s knowledge.
-There are people inside. Be ready just in case.
After sending a telepathic message to Jegal Seol-ha and Adu, I thrust the guest room door open with the force of lightning.
The next moment, surprise crossed my face.
Because both people inside were ones I recognized.
“Chu Dal? Old Man?”
“Welcome, Young Master. Hehehehe.”
Chu Dal and Yeo Un-hyeok. They were the ones who had been waiting for me in the guest room.
‘Now that I think about it, half a year has already slipped by.’
Chu Dal and Yeo Un-hyeok had been away for half a year, saying they would go train in the secret techniques of the Yingui Sect of the Shentou Meridian.
Eight months had already passed since then, so it was well past time for their return.
“But how did you end up here?”
“Older brother! It’s just that… whoa!”
Chu Dal approached with a broad smile, but his eyes widened like lanterns.
It was a shock so great that the joy of reunion vanished in an instant.
“Th-th-th-older brother. The young lady behind you… who is she?”
“Ah.”
I realized why Chu Dal had been so startled as he approached.
This fool, seeing his older brother for the first time in ages, and yet his eyes were drawn to the woman?
‘No matter how heavenly Seolha’s beauty is, this is rather irritating.’
Since propriety demanded it, I introduced Jegal Seol-ha to Yeo Un-hyeok first.
“Sa-mae, pay your respects. This Old Man here is the Hundred-Li Pavilion Master of our main family. And this fool making that vacant expression is Chu Dal.”
After offering respects to Yeo Un-hyeok, Jegal Seol-ha gazed at Chu Dal with curious eyes.
“So you’re Chu Dal. I’ve heard so much about you from my older brother.”
“Y-Young Master? That’s… that’s far too much honor.”
Seeing him stammer like that, I couldn’t help but chuckle.
“Chu Dal, Chu Dal. The character for ‘to do’ paired with the character for ‘otter’—Chu Dal.”
“Ah, hyung-nim! Please stop making those strange sounds!”
“You gave up complaining years ago—why are you suddenly asking me to stop now?”
I strode over and wrapped an arm around his neck.
“Are you embarrassed in front of Seolha? How sudden. Did I raise you this way? How will the next Divine Warrior ever be useful if his composure is this shallow!”
“Ugh! Hyung-nim! You resort to violence the moment we see each other after so long!”
“This isn’t violence—it’s a sign of affection, you brat!”
“Ow! It hurts! Damn!”
In that instant, Chu Dal’s head slipped away as smoothly as if it had been oiled.
“…Oh. Not bad.”
Yang Hwi had always shown genuine affection toward Chu Dal.
Just now, he’d been joking around while choking him, but he’d applied real force.
Yet Chu Dal escaped so easily.
“Hehe. I’m not the person I was before.”
“I see. I’ll promote you from third-rate Chu Dal to second-rate Chu Dal.”
“Second-rate? Ha! A prodigy who reached first-rate at fifteen years old, and you’re only giving me second-rate?”
Chu Dal thrust his shoulders back and declared boldly, but soon realized something was off about the atmosphere.
“Hyung-nim?”
“Chu Dal.”
“Yes? Why did the mood suddenly change?”
“Well, you’re the only first-rate here.”
“What?!”
Yeo Un-hyeok went without saying, and everyone present here—Yang Hwi, Adu, and Jegal Seol-ha—were all at the peak realm.
“R-Really?”
“Yes.”
“…”
Chu Dal recalled the suffering he’d endured over the past six months training in the Asura Hell Technique.
Truly hellish days. All this time, he’d endured by looking forward to this very moment.
“By the way, you mentioned prodigy. For your information, we’ve decided not to use the term ‘master’ for first-rate cultivators.”
“…”
“First-rate, third-class, second-rate Chu Dal! Now that I say it, it really does suit you perfectly?”
Suddenly, tears streamed down Chu Dal’s face.
“Hey. Are you crying?”
“…”
Chu Dal, age fifteen, shed tears in front of a woman for the first time!

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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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