A voice abruptly tore through his thoughts.
“Benefactor.”
“Hmm?”
Jin Cheon-hee looked up to find his vision filled with Sama Hye.
“Oh, Hye-ah. Why aren’t you resting?”
“Since Benefactor isn’t resting, I came too. Besides, I didn’t get hurt in this duel.” She gestured toward the low table. “Is that Go?”
Sama Hye settled herself across from him without waiting for an invitation.
“Hmm… Both the black and white stones look chaotic.”
“I was just placing them randomly by myself.”
“You look like you have a lot on your mind. Shall I help?”
She rolled up her sleeves, her movements brisk and confident.
Ah, Hye-ah must know.
There was no way the Hangzhou Branch Leader couldn’t read the current atmosphere. Furthermore, Sama Hyeon was not the type to hide information from his sister; he had likely told her whatever she wished to know.
“If you have worries, shall I listen? Young Pavilion Master?”
Laughter burst from Jin Cheon-hee at her directness.
“Alright. Hangzhou Branch Leader. I need a Branch Leader’s perspective.”
“Good. I will… take the white stones. It looks like white has the advantage.”
“You hate losing.”
“Of course. Young Pavilion Master. The Hangzhou Branch Leader is a human who can’t sleep at night if she loses. That is how I climbed to this position.”
She smiled gently and placed a white stone with a sharp clack.
“I’ll go first? Young Pavilion Master.”
“We didn’t even decide who goes first, yet you just place it. Hangzhou Branch Leader.”
“I hate losing, but I also hate leaving an advantageous path to take a disadvantageous one. Young Pavilion Master.”
“I recognized that trait during the duel. Branch Leader.”
Sama Hye laughed aloud, a clear sound in the quiet night.
“Right. Indeed, Benefactor. What worries do you have about the Great Orthodox and Unorthodox War? This Hye-ah, who favors advantageous positions, will offer advice.”
Does Sama Hye know the weight of her words?
Even the Four Great Department Heads found discussing the future with the Young Pavilion Master of the White Qilin Medical Pavilion burdensome. If it were simply a discussion about medicine, they would be comfortable, but for matters concerning the Pavilion’s future direction, they always deferred to his master.
It was natural. Few could keep up with the processing speed of the Zhuge Clan. Therefore, Jin Cheon-hee’s conversation partner was always his master.
Sama Hye spoke, breaking his reverie. “I won’t run away in the middle, so don’t worry. I can at least be a conversation partner.”
The opponent was Sama Hye.
The Sama Clan was renowned as strategists, but she was from a branch of a branch… a distant lineage that usually garnered little attention. They did not suffer from a lack of offspring like the Zhuge Clan, nor did they wield a massive Sword Gate like other martial clans.
In a way, are they similar to the Kim, Lee, or Park families of Korea?
Still, as a modern soul who loved the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Jin Cheon-hee held a secret expectation. Perhaps it was a bit of fan spirit.
“First, Benefactor, what is your worry?”
Jin Cheon-hee spat out five syllables, heavy with implication.
“…Non-aggression between government and martial world.”
“Unexpected. Young Pavilion Master? To be thinking about that in this situation. Hmm…” She tapped her chin. “The Empire has vast territory, and martial artists can easily become excellent assassins. The Imperial Family will continue to manipulate from behind this board. Is that what worries you?”
Clack.
Jin Cheon-hee grasped a black stone and placed it firmly.
“Yes, correct. Branch Leader. To the Imperial Family, martial artists are a thorn in the eye. The government inherently lacks the capacity to maintain public order throughout the Empire. No, nowhere in human history has centralized power reached the very bottom.”
Even in modern South Korea, famous for its tight administration, there were thousands of islands. Among them, about four hundred were inhabited, and the rest were uninhabited, some not even marked on maps. It was impossible for administrative power to reach all these thousands of islands evenly.
It was an inconvenient truth. Surprisingly, on a global scale, places where public authority saturated every corner of the territory were rare.
The current Gangho was a situation where major cities, let alone remote islands, suffered from this disconnect. The lack of communication technology was a massive hurdle. Even in his previous life, in a country as vast as the United States, serial killers could hide in rural villages for years, leaving dozens of bodies behind. Where the system didn’t work, it simply didn’t work.
Ultimately, this era possessed an administration that spun in circles of confusion. Still, as a former Deputy Magistrate who had managed such haphazard administration, Jin Cheon-hee could argue he was doing his best within the given conditions.
“Yes. Furthermore, clans that earn money by the sword eventually collude with high officials. Even if the Emperor changes, this collusion does not disappear. Humans are beings of desire, and those who have want more. That is the current reality of the Orthodox and Unorthodox.”
Clack.
A black stone landed.
“This Hye-ah guessed correctly. Benefactor. Then the subjugation of the Sea Sand Gang was exceptional.”
Click.
A white stone answered.
“Yes,” Jin Cheon-hee replied. “Because the Sea Sand Gang paid enough money to the Governor. Originally, such a large-scale subjugation shouldn’t have happened. So… yes. I see this as the essence of the current non-aggression between the government and the martial world.”
Snap!
A black stone blocked the white stone’s advance.
“Unexpected. While worrying about the Great Orthodox and Unorthodox War, you are wary of the Imperial Palace which hasn’t appeared even once.”
“…”
“The only one viewing this board like that is you, Young Pavilion Master.”
“Is that a compliment?”
“If you had to choose between the Government and the Murim, which would you choose?”
At that question, Jin Cheon-hee answered without a single point of hesitation.
“The place where I will be is the White Qilin Medical Pavilion.”
“…I see.”
Thus, the two played Go all night, waiting for patients who did not come.
That night, Sama Hye couldn’t sleep. Perhaps the saying that one cannot sleep on a day of defeat applied to Go as well.
***
The next night.
Jin Cheon-hee woke abruptly from a nap.
Hwanggu, curled up beside him, was still deep in slumber. Yet, a strange sensation prickled at Jin Cheon-hee’s skin.
My head says no.
This was the White Qilin Medical Pavilion treatment center, located in a corner of the Martial Righteous Alliance headquarters. It was protected by the White Qilin Unit and fortified with simple formations.
Yawning slowly, he roughly tied back his loose, long hair.
“Surprising. To think someone would visit my room like this. You don’t seem like an assassin; where did you come from?”
At the sound of Jin Cheon-hee’s voice, Hwanggu opened his eyes slightly, then startled and barked.
Woof!
A human shadow was visible against the paper of the door.
It’s okay. Not your fault, Hwanggu. The opponent is just that formidable.
The Gangho was wide, and masters were many.
“Come in.”
He called out only after adjusting his attire. The door slid open, and a figure stepped into the room.
“It is an honor to meet Hero Jin Cheon-hee, the Blue-Eyed Mad Physician. I am Moyong Rip, Leader of the Dark Shadow Hall of the Moyong Clan.”
Jin Cheon-hee instantly cross-referenced the name against the library of information stored within his mind, utilizing the clarity of the Profound Primordial Complete Foundation Divine Art.
Moyong Clan.
The rulers of Liaoning Province, sharing dominion with the Gongsun Clan.
Reports suggested their power had nearly doubled compared to a few years ago, a reaction to the Gongsun Clan’s recent expansion. Although not yet enough to shake the Gongsun Clan’s roots, their external influence was lagging.
The assassination and intelligence organization of such a Moyong Clan was this Dark Shadow Hall.
Let’s not ask why an Orthodox clan organizes an assassination group under its command.
Simply refraining from banditry or piracy made them Orthodox enough by current standards. If he was the Dark Shadow Hall Leader, he had to be at least a Super Peak Master.
In the original novel, Moyong Rip was a character who died in a blind Blood Event without a chance to be active. In Supreme Heavenly Demon, the weak died like flies, but the strong were also dispatched if the plot required an excuse. The power balance was maintained by equalizing enlightenment and mortality rates. If someone too strong appeared, they were usually written out via Ascension.
“I am a bit surprised that the Dark Shadow Hall Leader of the Moyong family visited so abruptly. Please sit for a moment. I will serve tea. Do you like red bean tea by any chance?”
“I heard receiving that red bean tea gets one dragged to the White Qilin Medical Pavilion research building. I will drink other tea.”
“As expected of the Dark Shadow Hall. To know even the inside jokes of the Medical Pavilion.”
“You flatter me. Do you have other tea?”
“How about burdock tea? It has medicinal herbs added, so it is excellent for health.”
“Seems everything is medicinal tea.”
Jin Cheon-hee smiled faintly and arranged the tea set.
“Master always worries a lot.”
He prepared the burdock tea without lighting a fire. Warming the water with just the Fire Yang Qi rising from his hand was a simple task.
“To use precious internal energy just to brew tea. As rumored, a prodigy is indeed a prodigy.”
“What work is more important than meeting a guest and brewing tea to serve? It is far more precious than cutting people.”
To Moyong Rip’s roundabout sarcasm of ‘Indeed, One Light is One Light’, Jin Cheon-hee retorted with his own subtext: ‘Isn’t it better than stabbing the belly of a bastard who visits at night?’
On the surface, both men beamed with continuous, gentle smiles.
The water in the cup swelled, diffusing a golden hue. Although burdock tea was common, the medicinal scent here was profound beyond measure. It was fascinating that burdock alone could create such an aroma, likely enhanced by the supplementary herbs.
Moyong Rip took a sip and admired it inwardly.
“So, what brings you here?”
Scarcely had he swallowed a sip when Jin Cheon-hee got straight to the point. It was a silent signal: I will show courtesy, but state your business quickly and leave.
As expected, he has a temper.
The irony was that the boy possessed the social skills of a physician. Listing only his deeds so far, he seemed like a madman with wild hair, but in person, he adhered to proper etiquette.
The only problem was that temper.
“You must have heard from the Alliance Leader that the Great Orthodox and Unorthodox War will happen soon. Our clan wishes to form an alliance with the White Qilin Medical Pavilion. As you already know, our clan was not involved in the Blood Event of the Zhuge Clan in the past, nor have we harmed the White Qilin Divine Physician, the last kin of the Zhuge Clan, since then.”
“…”
“In other words. Since we have no grudges, I believe we are the most suitable alliance partner…”
“You know that the Gongsun Clan and Zhuge Clan—that is, White Qilin Medical Pavilion—are already allies? Therefore, the Gongsun Clan’s opinion is also needed.”
In other words…
Even if you have no grudge with the Zhuge Clan, don’t you have a grudge with our ally, the Gongsun Clan? So unless you resolve that grudge somehow, we can’t help it either.
Hearing Jin Cheon-hee’s deflection, Moyong Rip replied smoothly.
“We hope the White Qilin Medical Pavilion reconsiders the alliance with the Gongsun Clan and forms an alliance with us instead.”
Truly… an insidious human.
So that was how he wanted to play?
Moyong Rip began to list the things the Moyong Clan could offer over the Gongsun Clan. All were tremendous interests. Conceding them meant the Moyong Clan had made a significant resolution.
Better not answer right now.
Jin Cheon-hee just smiled and chimed in appropriately.
“I will discuss it with Master first and give you an answer.”
“Well. I know the Young Pavilion Master has the authority to decide that much.”
He had found out even that.