Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 83

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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 083
A carriage raced swiftly down the main road.
Sprawled across its roof, I couldn’t stop grinning.
“Hehehehe, Ascendant Sword Dragon. Kya! Chu Dal, doesn’t that sound magnificent?”
“Elder Brother. How long are you going to keep boasting about that epithet?”
“Until I get tired of it?”
“…Goodness, making such a fuss over a single epithet?”
“What did you say? A nobody without an epithet shouldn’t even grumble—I won’t even hear it.”
“….”
Chu Dal’s expression darkened as he looked toward Dang-gun, Dang-yeon, and Gu Ak with pleading eyes.
Gu Ak simply ignored Chu Dal.
“Ahem. Young Brother, allow me to congratulate you once more. Ascendant Sword Dragon—what a splendid epithet, rivaling One Strike, One Kill.”
Gu Ak, who once bore the epithet Blood Demon, had received the task of One Strike, One Kill from Baek Moo-ryang after joining the Baek Family.
Seven years had passed since then. One Strike, One Kill had become his established epithet, and he was quite pleased with it.
“Baek Ik-gak-ju! Is that so!”
Chu Dal turned to Dang-gun and Dang-yeon with even more desperate eyes.
But.
Both of them possessed splendid epithets of their own—Dark Dragon and Poison Flower respectively.
“Hahaha, understand, younger brother Chu Dal. Ascendant Sword Dragon—if I obtained such an epithet, I’d be elated myself.”
Dang-yeon, Chu Dal’s last hope, was not on his side either.
She wore a mischievous expression.
“That’s right, that’s right. When you gain such a splendid epithet at a young age, you can’t help but be thrilled.”
“How can this be… Even Elder Sister….”
“Hoho, once you obtain your own epithet, Chu Dal, you’ll understand the feeling.”
Seeing Chu Dal’s despair, Dang-gun looked at me with sympathy.
“Still, don’t tease younger brother Chu Dal too much. Without an epithet, being mocked must be quite painful.”
“You’re right. I understand.”
Watching me nod, Chu Dal felt even more irritated.
“When I say it, you never listen! But when Elder Brother Dang says it, you nod right away! You’re discriminating against people!”
“Are you and Elder Brother Dang the same?”
“We’re both people! What’s the difference!”
“This brat.”
“Haha, younger brother Hwi. Just be patient this once.”
“Hmph.”
Even amid his annoyance, Chu Dal felt puzzled.
‘I’ve noticed it for a while now, but Elder Brother Hwi is strangely weak when it comes to Elder Brother Dang.’
Even the same words seemed to receive more careful attention when they came from Dang-gun.
‘It’s strange. Elder Brother Hwi is someone who acts alone, arrogant, and lives for his own pride,’
“Hey. You just insulted me.”
“N-No, I didn’t!”
Chu Dal quickly attempted to change the subject.
“By the way, Elder Brother. Why did you invite Jeong Wol-mun?”
Just yesterday, before leaving Jeong Wol-mun, I had invited the senior members of Jeong Wol-mun to Baek Manor.
To Chu Dal’s thinking, it was an action that made no sense.
“For the main family to become the supreme power of Muzhou, we need to eliminate Jeong Wol-mun. Yet you invited them?”
“Chu Dal.”
“Yes.”
“You can see one thing but not two?”
Watching me wear an indifferent expression, Chu Dal chuckled softly.
He really never explained things gently.
“This inadequate younger brother’s mind cannot comprehend it, so please explain.”
“It’s simple. We need to shore up the main family’s weaknesses.”
“Weaknesses? Does the main family have weaknesses?”
Over the past few years, Baek Manor had grown and transformed at a pace that even the phrases “dramatic reversal of fortune” and “rapid monthly progress” could not adequately describe.
From Chu Dal’s perspective, watching it all unfold right beside me, Baek Manor seemed to have no particular weaknesses.
“What weaknesses could the main family have? We’re growing our forces just fine.”
“I’ll answer that question instead. Is that acceptable, Younger Brother Hwi?”
At Dang-gun’s question, I nodded.
I was curious about what the Dang Family’s patriarch thought as well.
“Of course.”
“Then, Younger Brother Chu Dal. The Baek Family’s weakness is simple. It’s the lack of numbers.”
“Numbers? But Patriarch. The number of martial artists under the main family is certainly not small.”
As the name of Baek Manor spread far and wide, countless martial artists sought to join my ranks.
The number of reformed dark-path martial artists brought in and rehabilitated through Gu Ak, who served as both the Baek Family’s pillar and reformation pillar, was also considerable.
As a result, the current Baek Manor’s household members numbered well over a thousand.
“Younger Brother Chu Dal is right. The numbers are certainly not small. But consider this—what if we compare ourselves to our Dang Family?”
True to his thoughtful nature, Dang-gun first sought my permission, glancing in my direction.
“Younger Brother Hwi. I hope my words don’t offend you.”
“You’re speaking facts. Even if I were offended, there’s nothing to be done about it. It’s fine, Elder Brother Dang.”
“Then so be it.”
Dang-gun continued.
“Our Dang Family has over twenty masters at the peak realm.”
“Ah.”
Though it was only a single exclamation, Chu Dal could immediately grasp the Baek Family’s weakness.
“There’s no upper generation.”
“Correct.”
Martial arts are a craft that must be cultivated over decades of time.
“To use the Eight Sects as an analogy—the Baek Family lacks first-generation disciples and senior-level core members. Though we’re now accepting and training new talents like Dongnyang-jijae, they cannot shoulder the martial power of the third and second generations and beyond.”
Of course, it’s possible to fill this gap by accepting lone wandering martial artists.
But the problem is.
“Why would a master of the peak realm settle for the Baek Family when there are larger, more prestigious sects to join?”
The Baek Family was undoubtedly growing at a rapid pace.
Yet despite this, they still lacked much.
‘The ten-year agreement with the Dang Family has four years remaining. I must increase our strength six-fold compared to now within that time.’
To achieve in four years what had taken six years to accomplish, multiplied by six.
“I’ll absorb them. If that’s impossible, I’ll make them allies at minimum. That’s why I invited Jeong Wol-mun to our main residence.”
Chu Dal gazed at Yang Hwi with a hint of admiration on his face.
Only a year older than himself. Yet the breadth and depth of his thinking were incomparable to his own.
“But is it alright to say such things in front of a merchant?”
Inside the carriage was naturally Jin Geum-bo, the client who had commissioned the escort mission.
Yang Hwi deliberately turned to Jin Geum-bo with a mischievous expression.
“I meant for you to hear it. You probably already knew anyway. Isn’t that right, Merchant Jin?”
Jin Geum-bo laughed awkwardly and replied.
“Ha, haha. This Jin can only marvel at the blueprint of the Ascending Heaven Sword Dragon Namgung Cheon-yeong. Now I understand why the Baek Family has grown with such momentum these past years.”
“You needn’t gild the lily.”
“Gild the lily? It’s nothing but plain truth. Truly remarkable, Ascending Heaven Sword Dragon Namgung Cheon-yeong!”
Jin Geum-bo had originally called Yang Hwi “Young Master Hwi,” but since obtaining the epithet of Ascending Heaven Sword Dragon, he had consistently adhered to the title of Ascending Heaven Sword Dragon Namgung Cheon-yeong.
A merchant’s rhetoric that mixed flattery with elevation of the other party.
Truly befitting a merchant, or perhaps….
“I apologize once more, Merchant Jin. I’m sorry the escort mission was delayed due to personal matters.”
“As I’ve said before, it’s fine! Rather, it was an honor to witness the heroic bearing of such young talents!”
“Do I perhaps need to cultivate a more splendid reputation?”
“That, well….”
Despite being a merchant of considerable experience, Jin Geum-bo could not hide his flustered expression.
His true intentions had been pierced too keenly.
‘Truly a frightening fellow, Namgung Cheon-yeong. How much has he seen through?’
The information Jin Geum-bo had provided to the Baek Family was only one thing.
That he wished for the Ascending Heaven Sword Dragon—or rather, Geom-wae—to accompany the escort mission.
Yet Jin Geum-bo could not suppress his anxiety that his hidden intentions had already been discovered.
“Well then, very good. Since I’ve taken on this escort mission, I shall certainly see it through. Have no worries.”
“…I shall trust you, Ascending Heaven Sword Dragon Namgung Cheon-yeong.”
At that moment, the carriage began to slow its pace.
“Ah. We’ve reached the Yangtze River already.”
The Yangtze River flows along the northern boundary of Gujiang, the northernmost point of Gangwon Province.
The party planned to travel to Anhui via the Yangtze River from this point.
“Let me see, the ferry. There it is.”
The group waited at the ferry for several hours.
As a large boat capable of carrying an entire carriage approached, Gu Ak raised his hand.
“Captain. One carriage and six people. How much is the fare?”
“Where are you headed?”
“Head to Anhui.”
“What a coincidence—I’m heading that way. Just give me a hundred silver taels.”
Chu Dal’s eyes widened.
“A hundred silver taels just to go the same direction? That’s highway robbery, you scoundrel!”
Yang Hwi smacked the back of Chu Dal’s head and pulled out his purse.
“You fool, crossing a single prefecture is cheap at a hundred taels.”
The captain, having received his payment, ordered his crew to load the carriage onto the vessel.
The boat, now carrying all the other passengers as well, began to leisurely depart from the dock.

* * *
Yang Hwi’s party disembarked near Anqing in Anhui Province.
It was the most suitable location to proceed toward their destination of Jiezhou.
“Merchant Jin, I intend to travel as directly as possible from here to Jiezhou.”
“The choice of route belongs to the escort leader. I shall follow.”
“We may need to camp under the stars along the way.”
“For a merchant, sleeping outdoors is like a companion. Do not worry yourself.”
Though he spoke without concern, sleeping under the stars could hardly be comfortable for a merchant who was no martial artist.
Therefore, Yang Hwi drove the horses in a straight line while steering toward areas with settlements whenever possible.
“There is a small mountain village called Fengjiazhuang ahead. We shall lodge there this evening.”
“Understood, Namgung Cheon-yeong.”
Fengjiazhuang was a place I had visited several times in my previous life when I wandered the martial world as a vagrant.
Though that was more than a decade in the future, since it was a clan village, it would surely exist now as well.
‘The village chief of Fengjiazhuang was probably around my age.’
A small memory from my past life surfaced hazily.
A young village chief who had admired martial artists in his youth and had come seeking me out in the middle of the night with wine.
We had shared a pleasant drinking session together.
‘In this life, perhaps I’ll teach him a simple martial technique.’
This too would be a small amusement for one who defied the flow of time.
It was as I harbored such thoughts.
‘Hmm?’
My keen qi sense detected something unfolding beyond the mountain ridge ahead.
Chu Dal and the others soon noticed the disturbance as well.
“Brother Hwi, I hear noise.”
“Elder, there are bloodstains visible.”
“I know. Beyond that ridge—”
I cut my words short and launched my body forward.
The Thousand-Step Technique—swift as wind, whoosh whoosh whoosh.
I dashed like a tempest, covering a hundred zhang as easily as a single step.
Near the entrance of Fengjiazhuang, I spotted a man wielding a blade in front of a thatched cottage.
His rough features and leather garments screamed bandit—there was no mistaking his profession.
I drew my sword.
Clang!
After deflecting the bandit’s blade, I moved my feet.
“Who are you, argh!”
My heel struck precisely at his dantian, and the bandit rolled across the ground with a scream.
“Argh! Arghhhh!”
Ignoring his cries, I turned my attention to the woman who had nearly become a victim.
A middle-aged woman drenched in terror, trembling without even managing to express her gratitude.
“Hwi, you’ve arrived. What’s the situation… bandits, I see.”
Dang-gun, who had caught up to me using his lightness technique, hardened his expression upon seeing the bandit.
At that moment, the middle-aged woman grabbed my pant leg.
“P-please help! The bandits are in the village!”
I immediately extended my spiritual perception widely.
“Elder Dang. Besides this one, there are twelve more in the village.”
“Twelve? Understood. I’ll kill them all, so remember that.”
It was an excessively brutal statement, but I nodded without concern.
“Got it. I’ll calm this woman down and follow after.”
The Tang siblings and Gu Ak launched themselves toward the village center.
Chu Dal remained at my side instead of following them.
“H-hyung-nim. Isn’t killing all twelve of them too much?”
.
I regarded Chu Dal in silence.
Now that I thought about it, he was only fourteen.
Far too young to become accustomed to death.
“Chu Dal. Remember this.”
I swung my sword.
The bandit’s head and body separated as he rolled across the ground.
“Among those who live the life of a thief, there is not one who doesn’t deserve to die.”
That was the moment.
“Because they are like this.”
I seized the forearm of the woman aiming for my back.
In her hand was a short dagger.
“Die! Die! Please…!”
Even while subdued, the woman continued to struggle desperately.
A woman with no inner strength attempting an ambush against a martial artist, and even after failing, displaying such an attitude?
There was only one reason.
“Who is the hostage? A child?”
The woman didn’t answer, but her eyes betrayed her.
“It is a child.”
They had already taken a hostage and staged a performance for the villagers.
‘They must have spotted the carriage approaching from a distance and set up their trap in advance.’
After striking the woman’s vital point, I spoke.
“They’ve taken the child as a hostage. Chu Dal, let’s go.”
A chilling rage swept through my entire body.
These vermin need to be uprooted completely.

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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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