Chapter 64

“In case Moyong Seo doesn’t do that, I’ll tell you one more thing to prepare for.”

Finally, Cho Yoon decided to lay down a bit more insurance just in case this world was currently in the timeline before the protagonist of ‘The Returned Hero’ regressed. Still wearing a subtly conflicted expression, Hui quickly focused on Cho Yoon’s words.

I’m truly sorry, Protagonist. Just let me sell you out this once. But it won’t be that bad for you… probably.

Besides, I’m trying to save your father, whom you couldn’t save in the original ‘The Returned Hero’, right? So, even if you eventually realize I’m the mastermind who drastically altered the world, cut me some slack.

Silently offering excuses to the protagonist he had yet to even meet, Cho Yoon spoke.

“Right about now, the Moyong Clan should be leading a search across Liaoning to find the rightful successor to a certain divine artifact. Is that correct?”

“Ah, you even know about that! That is correct. Moyong, the Beggars’ Sect, Emei, Hebei, and Shaolin are all preparing for it together. They are being so overly cautious that their movements actually seem sloppy, so I have been subtly assisting them here and there.”

“Moyong Seo is the perfect talent for that divine artifact. Though the family that originally forged the artifact fell into ruin long ago, their bloodline continued through Moyong Seo’s mother.”

“Gasp!”

Hui suddenly began to hiccup.

“Th-that, hic! I certainly heard that Moyong Seo was an illegitimate child Moyong Jeong sired outside, hic! And that he was brought into the Moyong Clan after his mother died, hic! To think that was the case… Oh my, I apologize. It has been quite a while since I was genuinely shocked.”

“Please, take your time,” Cho Yoon assured him. “The Moyong Clan will likely realize this soon enough anyway. However, discovering the exact capabilities of the divine artifact will take them considerable time, so there is no need to rush. Therefore, I only have one piece of advice to offer you.”

Hastily lifting the teacup before him, Hui gulped down the liquid while holding his breath. Quickly recovering his composure, he nodded attentively.

“Whether Moyong Seo changes or remains the same, do not orchestrate hardships in his life,” Cho Yoon warned. “If he changes, he will already possess a massive driving motive, so there is no need for you to artificially supply one. If he remains the same and you interfere, he will harbor a ferocious, burning vengeance against you, Sect Leader. He is an individual who will naturally grow into a powerhouse even if left entirely alone, so bestow grace upon him early and secure him as an ally.”

Look at this, Protagonist. Look how hard I’m working to pave your future with flowers. I’ve even pacified Hui—the mid-boss mastermind who originally orchestrated crises in the early-to-mid story just to ‘temper’ you into a better hero. I’ve ensured you can comfortably focus solely on leveling up.

Having gone this far, Cho Yoon felt he no longer needed to feel incredibly guilty about completely warping the original storyline.

In fact, if the protagonist grew up perfectly well like this, wouldn’t it just naturally lead to a happy ending?

The absolute worst Demonic Cult Leader in history, destined to unite the unorthodox factions, was currently being actively rehabilitated. The protagonist wouldn’t have to suffer his father’s death, and his older brother would remain perfectly fine. There would simply be no catalyst for a tragedy to explode.

Even if the protagonist eventually sparked a revolution against the corrupted martial world alongside the newly discovered rising stars, it would likely conclude smoothly.

“Certainly… information of this magnitude is worth taking a risk for,” Hui murmured, lightly tapping his lips with his fingertips, lost in deep thought. Eventually, he clenched his fist and nodded resolutely. “If I play my cards right, I might obtain both the future hero and the Seven Star Sword simultaneously. It will all depend on how well I execute this, of course.”

“…”

“Honestly, the medicine to cure Moyong Jeong alone is already an overwhelmingly generous payment, but I will gratefully accept this,” Hui continued. “I am still too foolish to grasp the full picture, but you, Great Hero Immortal Healer, must surely possess a profound grand design for revealing such heavenly secrets to me.”

“…”

Far from having a ‘profound grand design,’ Cho Yoon had single-handedly derailed hundreds of chapters of future plot developments entirely out of a selfish desire for his children to grow up well-treated. He had to exert intense effort to keep his guilty conscience from showing on his face.

Smiling with deep satisfaction, Hui retrieved a round silver tray from beneath the tea table. Arranged neatly upon it were a gold key, a red jade plaque, and a silk fragrance pouch.

“I have also prepared a meager offering I wish to give you. Please, accept these without any burden.”

What is this? Doesn’t this just put us right back at square one? Cho Yoon stared at the silver tray, slightly tense.

The surface of the gold-plated key boasted exquisite craftsmanship, and upon closer inspection, the red jade plaque appeared to be carved entirely from a solid piece of coral to resemble a peony.

Above all, the unique scent emanating from the fragrance pouch bothered him. He had noticed it even before entering the room but had casually dismissed it, assuming Hui was simply burning a new type of incense. Apparently, that wasn’t the case.

Well, considering the person holding the financial lifeline of the Central Plains prepared this, there’s no way these are ordinary items.

Having been constantly swept up in preposterous situations ever since descending the mountain, Cho Yoon steeled his resolve, determined not to be easily swayed this time, and focused intently on the upcoming explanation.

Oblivious to Cho Yoon’s internal guard, Hui picked up the key and began explaining methodically.

“First, this is the master key that grants access to my private villas scattered throughout the Central Plains. Since I rarely leave Guangdong Province, they will mostly be empty. I have purchased and stockpiled at least one estate in the affluent neighborhoods near every major bustling city. If you ever have reason to descend the mountain again, please do not stay in a noisy inn; seek out my villas and use them to your heart’s content. They are the estates with locks bearing the exact same pattern as this key.”

“…”

Cho Yoon, who had always felt rather displeased staying in poorly soundproofed inns with the children, nodded quietly.

An environment where the boisterous, drunken shouting from the first floor drifted up to the upper rooms every single evening hardly seemed conducive to the children’s rest.

After cheerfully prattling on about how each villa was fully staffed with servants and equipped with a courier station for his absolute convenience, Hui lifted the red coral peony plaque. The gold tassels, woven generously with pure gold thread, swayed smoothly.

“Simply put, this item grants you full authority over every silver bank and escort agency affiliated with Hao Sect… Do you happen to know the Peony Escort Agency in Xi’an?”

“Yes, I know of it.”

The Peony Escort Agency was a flourishing enterprise in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province—the city closest to the Mount Dumang. Cho Yoon knew of it because he often saw the agency’s escorts, uniformly dressed in matching red uniforms, roaming the streets whenever he descended into the city to sell medicine and purchase rice.

“The Peony Escort Agency is the Hao Sect affiliate located closest to the Qinling Mountains. Therefore, moving forward, whenever Young Lady Lim and Young Hero Lim write letters to you, Great Hero Immortal Healer, I intend to deliver them to the Peony Escort Agency in Xi’an using the fastest ‘Heaven-grade’ courier service! If you simply bring this plaque down and present it, you will be able to easily receive and send letters. Without paying a single copper in commission fees!”

Hui counted on his fingers as he added brightly, “If I assign an exclusive, top-tier escort to the route, traversing Guangdong, Hunan, the Yangtze River, and Hubei to reach Shaanxi should take no more than twenty days at the absolute latest.”

Looking at the beaming Hui, Cho Yoon felt genuinely, deeply moved. It was a gift that pleased him to no end.

The world of Korean martial arts novels—or rather, this ancient world steeped in loosely researched oriental fantasy—suffered from a level of transportation and communication so underdeveloped it couldn’t even begin to compare to the modern era.

Properly paved roads were only found in bustling cities. For ordinary people lacking martial arts, merely crossing a mountain was a life-risking endeavor. Above all, the sheer scale of a single province was practically the size of an entire country. Without even looking far, the Sichuan region alone was so vast it had historically constituted the entire ‘Kingdom of Shu.’

In short, unless one learned martial arts, traveling to another region in this martial world was excruciatingly difficult. One had to be at least a professional escort for an agency—which functioned similarly to a modern postal and courier service—to even dare set foot on foreign soil.

This was exactly why, when Cho Yoon first met Nan Wi-jeong and heard he had “traveled all the way from Sichuan to Shaanxi,” his heart had ached for him, realizing just how utterly desperate he must have been.

Therefore, when he finalized the agonizing decision to send the children away to Guangdong Province—a coastal region unfathomably distant from the inland Mount Dumang—Cho Yoon had prematurely abandoned any hope of frequently exchanging contact with them.

Since he had to remain on the mountain to look after Cheon-oh, he couldn’t constantly travel back and forth just to check on them.

He had been quietly resigning himself to the hope of seeing their faces perhaps once a year.

But now, he had suddenly acquired a guaranteed method of communication that allowed him to exchange letters with the children every twenty days. How could he not be overjoyed?

This was infinitely better than the supplementary explanation that he could freely withdraw money from the silver banks as if it were his own. His previously guarded favor toward Hui abruptly skyrocketed. Bowing his head slightly, Cho Yoon spoke.

“Thank you for your consideration.”

“…Wow.”

However, Hui’s reaction was slightly bizarre.

Startled by the abrupt, breathless exclamation, Cho Yoon lifted his gaze to see Hui pressing his fingertips against his lower lip, his eyes sparkling brilliantly.

Wondering if the original ‘Cho Yoon’ expressing gratitude was truly such a shockingly rare occurrence, he merely blinked.

“To witness the Great Hero’s smiling countenance… it is truly an honor. Fufu, Young Lady Lim and Young Hero Lim are incredibly fortunate. Now, finally, we have this fragrance pouch. Its function is actually quite similar to the peony plaque.”

“…Yes.”

Smiling countenance? Did I smile?

Reflexively, Cho Yoon raised a hand and lightly touched his own cheek. The corners of his mouth felt as rigidly expressionless and wooden as usual.

When did I smile? 

While he was busy agonizing over this, the topic swiftly moved on.