‘Hmm, that’s a martial art that wasn’t in the novel. And it’s different from the Thousand Changes Ten Thousand Inspection Art.’
Could it be a martial art he was personally taught by the Golden King, the lord of the Golden Blood Chamber? Curious, he asked via telepathy, and Sama Hyeon answered immediately. They were in the middle of a duel, but his opponent hadn’t even entered the Transformation Realm. It was an action both Jin Cheonhee and Sama Hyeon could afford because neither of them felt any particular sense of crisis.
[Correct. This is a Hand Art[[수공(手功)] I learned from my master called the Golden Hand. Simply put, my hands themselves become stronger~]
‘He learned the Golden King’s Golden Hand on top of his own insane grip strength?’
It was an incredibly good combination. So good, in fact, that Jin Cheonhee himself couldn’t think of a better combination; the synergy was a perfect match.
“You rat bastard!”
The Red Bear Clan member charged, swinging his fists with terrifying force. However, Sama Hyeon deliberately maintained his rabbit-like stance, dodging each and every one of the man’s attacks.
‘Wow… he’s doing that just to piss him off.’
It might look funny to a spectator, but the Red Bear Clan warrior was so angry his eyes were turning red.
Kwang, Kwaang!
Sure enough, after continuously dodging the attacks by a paper-thin margin, at just the right moment…
[Shall we end this~?]
Tak—
A golden hand grabbed the Red Bear Clan member’s pelvis. Surprisingly, as he twisted the pelvis, the man’s leg dislocated.
Udeudeudeuk—!
“Kuaaaaaargh!”
[Nice scream~]
And just like that, the giant collapsed to the floor with a thud. Sama Hyeon made an exaggerated fist-and-palm salute. If Jin Cheonhee had dispatched his enemy with indescribable speed, Sama Hyeon’s duel was a dance in itself.
“It seems the match is decided. So then, did everyone have a good time?”
At his salute, the people of the Five Poisons Sect who had been laughing just a moment before did not answer, their faces stiff. They knew now, too. They knew that Sama Hyeon had not been fighting seriously. And that meant there was an enormous gap in skill between the two of them.
[How do you like it, brother~?]
Sama Hyeon sent that telepathic message and then offered an exaggerated bow to the sect leader as well.
The sect leader said, “Hahahahaha! I like your spirit.” The sect leader’s laughter alone echoed in the silent world. “The duel is over! Both men are worthy of being this sect’s guests. Therefore, let us welcome our guests!”
With the sect leader’s words, the duel came to an end. And the party was guided to the quarters where esteemed guests stayed. But the stares of the Five Poisons Sect’s disciples were so sharp that the back of his neck prickled.
***
“I didn’t know the Cult would want the Blue-Eyed Mad Doctor.”
“It is because there is one within our cult who despises him.”
“Kekekeke. Well, of course. From the rumors I’ve heard, he’s a proper madman. It’s understandable that the Cult would hate him.”
In a certain place within the Five Poisons Sect. In an underground stone chamber where no light entered, a modulated voice like scraping metal let out a low, vicious laugh. Its counterpart’s voice was also modulated, thin and dry. The owner of the dry voice spoke again.
“The poison to put the Guardian Spirit Beast to sleep has already been prepared.”
“Then all that remains is the great undertaking.”
“The Cult has high hopes for you.”
“Kekekekek. If the undertaking goes well, this sect shall become the Cult’s most stalwart ally.”
“Of course, it will. Then, I pray for your fortune in war.”
The dry voice disappeared after those words. A moment later, the voice like scraping metal muttered to itself, “Heuh… It won’t be long now before a mongrel’s rule over this sect comes to an end…”
A wicked scheme was in motion in the darkness.
***
The welcoming banquet was intensely exotic.
‘Wow, the Sichuan Tang Clan was amazing, but this is even more so.’
Since each blood-clan had different skin colors and bone structures, the exotic atmosphere was even stronger.
‘It feels even more foreign than Wannong.’
As he was watching the entertainers’ dances, a servant who was carrying food missed his step and spilled some liquor.
Jjaeng-gang!
The silver flask and cups spilled, making a loud noise.
‘Oh dear, that looks like expensive liquor.’
Sure enough, the Vice Sect Leader rose to his feet. “What is the meaning of this in front of our guests!”
In that instant, the whip in his hand flew out like a striking bird and lashed the servant.
Jjaak!
The servant, being a commoner who had not learned martial arts, coughed up blood from that single blow and rolled across the ground. The Vice Sect Leader began to whip the servant, who was rolling on the floor, once more.
“Mercy… Please…!”
“How dare a lowly worm like you ruin the banquet?!”
‘Wow, he’s going to kill him.’
He had seemed to have a magnanimous side, but to whip someone for spilling a little liquor. He wasn’t a member of the Unorthodox Faction for nothing.
Jin Cheonhee rose to his feet. “Stop, please stop.”
But instead of answering, the Vice Sect Leader lashed out with his whip again. Jin Cheonhee quickly imbued the teacup in his hand with internal energy and threw it. Surprisingly, the rotation of the teacup wrapped around the whip.
Jjaeng-gang!
The Vice Sect Leader, having shattered the teacup instead of the servant, stared with wide eyes. It was because the scattering fragments of the teacup had strangely not left a single scratch on the servant. That meant that the teacup he had just thrown contained a much greater level of martial skill than expected.
Sama Hyeon swallowed his liquor and thought, ‘Strangely, he didn’t imbue it with much internal energy.’
He had expected him to throw it with a decent amount of internal energy, if not Sword Qi or Sword Aura, but instead, Jin Cheonhee had thrown it with the minimum amount of internal energy. And yet, he had not only reduced the whip’s power but had also controlled the fragments as he wished. It was difficult to fathom how profound a calculation was contained in that single throw.
The Vice Sect Leader swallowed his anger and said, “The Five Poisons Sect has its own laws.”
Jin Cheonhee glanced at the sect leader. But he was just watching this unfold without a word. He couldn’t tell what his scheme was, but it was clear he didn’t want to get involved in this matter.
“If you continue to whip him, this man will die.”
It seemed that if someone didn’t step in, they would be cleaning a corpse off the floor of the banquet hall.
“If so, then that too is because he is weak and dies.”
“Even if he is a commoner who does not know martial arts?”
“The same. If one does not have the strength to bear the consequences of one’s own sins, then it is a fitting law that they should also die.”
‘Hmm, so talking nicely isn’t going to solve this, is it?’
It seemed he was planning to make Jin Cheonhee back down by insisting that this was the law of this place. But Jin Cheonhee knew that no law was more important than a person’s life. Furthermore, whipping a commoner who hadn’t even learned martial arts with an energy-imbued whip was the same as telling him to die. Since he was going on about laws, he had no choice but to respond in kind.
“So it seems the Five Poisons Sect has a law of making its guests uncomfortable by whipping a member of its household in front of them?”
At Jin Cheonhee’s words, the Vice Sect Leader’s face began to turn crimson. “What did you say?!”
In that moment, the sect leader stepped in. “Enough, Vice Sect Leader. You have gone too far.”
Since the sect leader himself had spoken, the Vice Sect Leader had no choice but to tightly suppress his anger. “Hmph… Alright. I admit I went too far.”
Jin Cheonhee thought, ‘The whipping has stopped. If he’s the type to hold a grudge, he might torment him behind the scenes, but… at least this person’s life has been saved today.’
But that alone was enough for the servant to be tearfully grateful. “Thank you. Thank you.”
[This is as much as I can do for you.]
An immediate saving of a life. The servant continued to bow his head.
“It is nothing… I am just grateful.”
[Will you be able to move?]
Jin Cheonhee asked that and then, after discreetly taking his pulse, immediately changed his words.
[Fortunately, you will be able to walk, but you have sustained internal injuries. If you go to the rear court, the Senior Physicians will treat you. I will let them know in advance.]
Having upset his master, this servant’s life of hardship had just begun. But since this was a connection he had made today, it would be best to do what he could as a physician. Jin Cheonhee thought that much and then rose from his seat.
The atmosphere was shattered, and the banquet ended as it was.
‘My master wanted to make the Five Poisons Sect our ally… but if it’s the worst kind of sect that I’m imagining, it will be a problem even if they become our allies.’
But one doubt remained.
***
Jin Cheonhee and his party returned to their quarters. The Five Poisons Sect was generous enough to lend them not just a rear courtyard, but a large mansion to stay in. Thanks to that, the 4th Martial Force Battalion of the White Dragon Medical Pavilion was also able to stay here.
“It doesn’t seem like the sect leader and the vice sect leader get along, do they?”
At Jin Cheonhee’s words, Sama Hyeon nodded. “Yeah, throughout the banquet, they talked with other people, but the two of them barely spoke to each other. They didn’t even make much eye contact.”
“The fact that the others took it so naturally means… they already know that their relationship is bad…”
Jin Cheonhee trailed off, lost in thought. “Putting aside the fact that it might be difficult to draw the Five Poisons Sect in… to try and kill someone with a whip over a simple mistake. Even if they’re in the Unorthodox Faction, unless they’re a mountain stronghold or mounted bandits, they don’t usually go that far, do they? And that servant hadn’t even learned internal arts.”
“Well, even mountain strongholds and mounted bandits usually prey on each other, not commoners. The only commoners they could use would be captives. And when you’ve killed all their family and friends, who knows if they’d put poison in your food?”
Truly, the martial world. A person’s life is as fleeting as a fly’s.
Sama Hyeon said, “Well, still, killing someone with a whip behind the scenes and beating a commoner to death in the middle of a banquet while drinking are two different things. A guy whose appetite for liquor survives while watching that… that guy is something else.”
It was quite interesting. The Unorthodox Faction did indeed live by committing evil deeds. But even villains have their own excuses, and they believe themselves to be on the better side of things. Didn’t even gangsters in old gangster movies each have their own semblance of a cause? Like the legend of the good bully¹. It was what you’d call self-excuse, self-rationalization.
Because of that, unless the group had completely turned to fanaticism like the Blood Sect, it was rare for them to stain their hands with blood in a joyous setting. To cut someone’s throat at a gathering where everyone was drinking together, the victim had to be a common enemy of the group, and it had to become some kind of ritual. There were surprisingly few places where people would whip a weak commoner to death at a banquet while drinking and laughing and enjoying music.
Suddenly, Jin Cheonhee recalled a memory from his past life.
‘However, it’s not that they don’t exist.’
How mad can a group of humans become? Conversely, how rotten must one become to reach that point?
Sama Hyeon said, “The Vice Sect Leader acting like that means one of two things. Either the Five Poisons Sect, while not on the level of the Blood Sect… is a deranged group one tier below it. Or, he’s deliberately showing his cruelty to challenge the sect leader’s authority.”
“…”
Jin Cheonhee was lost in thought.