A small village in Guxian lay nestled in silence.
Beyond the quiet hamlet where a stream wound its way through the earth, Mount Yuanyun rose against the sky. Near its summit, upon Xianhwa Peak, a small legend had been passed down through the generations. It was said that So Chan, the Old Beggar and founder of the Beggar Sect, had attained enlightenment here before ascending to immortality.
As if to anchor that legend in reality, a rock the size of a house, vaguely shaped like a sitting human, stood near the precipice.
It was said to be the Origin Spirit left behind by the Old Beggar before he shed his mortal coil. Thus, the locals named it the Origin Spirit Rock.
Hwiiiing.
Occasionally, a strong wind swept over Xianhwa Peak, battering the stone, but the Origin Spirit Rock stood its ground, unyielding and stoic.
Thud, thud.
The silence was broken by the rhythm of heavy footsteps. Dozens of martial artists ascended the steep path leading to the peak. They were uniformly dressed in tattered, patch-work robes and carried short batons at their waists. Their eyes, burning with a mix of desperation and fanaticism, scanned every inch of the terrain.
Walking with leaden steps, they finally halted upon reaching the summit.
“Is it hopeless?”
The man standing at the forefront looked up at the distant sky, his face etched with exhaustion.
He was Mu Hong, the Hall Master of the Splendid Flower Hall, the secret intelligence organization of the Beggar Sect that reported directly to the Beggar King.
“We have searched the entirety of Mount Yuanyun thoroughly for fifteen days. But we haven’t found the Green Gourd Bottle…”
The Green Gourd Bottle.
It was the sacred artifact of So Chan, the founding patriarch. Originally, the Beggar Sect had revered the bottle as their symbol of authority, but in later generations, it was lost to time, replaced by the Dog Beating Stick.
“Hmm.”
Mu Hong lowered his head, a heavy sigh escaping his lips. He had received the Beggar King’s command and wandered the martial world for what felt like an eternity, hunting for this single object. If the Green Gourd Bottle could be recovered, the Beggar King would possess the ultimate justification to claim the position of Sect Leader he so deeply desired.
That ambition was terrifyingly deep. Following a lead that the bottle was hidden in Mount Yuanyun, Mu Hong and his trusted subordinates had turned the mountain upside down. Yet, fifteen days had vanished like smoke, and they had found nothing.
“Hall Master. Just as a divine sword chooses its master, isn’t it said that a sacred object is also bestowed by the heavens?”
Jeong Gak, the Deputy Squad Captain of the Splendid Flower Squad, forced a smile to offer comfort.
“Hasn’t the Hall Master searched for the Green Gourd Bottle with sincerity for a long time? Heaven knows your devotion; it will surely provide an answer soon.”
“I truly wish that were so.” Mu Hong wore a dry, brittle smile. “Only then will the Supreme Elder become the true Sect Leader.”
Like the Beggar King, Gu Hong-cheong, Mu Hong was dissatisfied with the current moderate stance of the Beggar Sect. He had served Gu Hong-cheong, who sought strength and radical reform, with unwavering loyalty. But in the orthodox factions, justification was power. For a Supreme Elder nearing a hundred years of age to seize the throne, the Green Gourd Bottle was not just a trinket; it was a mandate from history.
Another hour passed in futile searching.
Let alone a Green Gourd Bottle, they couldn’t even find a stone shaped like a gourd. Despair began to settle over Mu Hong and the Splendid Flower Squad like a cold fog.
“It can’t be helped.”
Moistening his cracked lips, Mu Hong squatted down, his head bowed in defeat.
Planning lies with man; success lies with heaven.
Since they failed to find the relic, the grand plan for the Beggar King’s ascension had turned to sea foam.
“You all worked hard.” Rising to his feet, Mu Hong spoke in a weary, hollow voice. “Let’s go ba…”
The sentence died in his throat. His eyes widened.
In the distance, atop the sacred ground of Xianhwa Peak, two shadows had appeared.
He saw a tall man in blue robes and a younger man dressed entirely in black. They were standing before the Origin Spirit Rock, touching it, tapping its surface with irreverent curiosity.
Those guys?
The Origin Spirit Rock was a relic embodying the soul of the founder. Even if one were not a disciple, one would show respect. But to touch and tap the holy stone right in front of Beggar Sect experts?
“They must be tourists who heard the legend of our Sect.”
Mu Hong frowned and signaled Jeong Gak. “Send members to tell them. That is a relic of our Sect and is not to be touched carelessly.”
“Understood.”
Just as Jeong Gak nodded and turned to execute the order—
“Th-that…”
The squad members pointed at the Origin Spirit Rock, their mouths gaping. Mu Hong and Jeong Gak turned back, and like their subordinates, their jaws dropped in horror.
As the young man in black nodded, the man in blue produced a steel wire from his pocket that flashed with a cold silver glint.
And then, in a single breath, he slashed the rock.
CRACK!
The sharp steel wire dug into the ancient stone as if it were soft tofu. A splitting sound rang out, sharp and terrifying, followed immediately by a heavy resonance.
RUMBLE!
The earth shuddered. With a vibration that seemed to shake the sky, the massive rock split cleanly in two.
Whoosh.
Dust billowed outward, carried away by the mountain wind, revealing the cleaved halves of the Origin Spirit Rock tumbling down the cliffside.
BANG!
With a thunderous crash, the sacred stone shattered upon the rocks below, and Mount Yuanyun trembled as if in the throes of an earthquake.
“Th-that…” Mu Hong was paralyzed.
To destroy a relic containing the traces of the Beggar Sect founder? It was blasphemy beyond measure.
But then, a miracle occurred.
Amidst the rubble where the Origin Spirit Rock had once sat, a small object shone with a brilliant jade-green light.
“Don’t tell me…”
The Green Gourd Bottle.
The sacred object had been embedded beneath the massive rock where So Chan was said to have sat in meditation.
Filled with a sudden, frantic joy, Mu Hong sprinted toward the peak. “Green Gourd Bottle! The Green Gourd Bottle!”
His subordinates, snapping out of their shock, scrambled after him.
“As expected, it was stuck in a place like this.”
Meanwhile, the man in blue casually picked up the jade bottle and tied it to his waist.
“Let’s go now.”
“Yes.”
The young man in black nodded, and the two turned to leave.
“W-Wait!”
Mu Hong, lungs burning from his sprint, shouted desperately as he crested the rise.
“Hand it over!” He pointed a trembling finger at the bottle hanging from the man’s waist. “That is ours.”
“…”
The man in blue and the young man in black narrowed their eyes, assessing the disheveled group.
Feeling the weight of that stinging gaze, Mu Hong realized how they must look. “Ah, no… we are absolutely not thieves!”
Despite his protest, fifteen days of rough living in the mountains had left them with bushy beards and wild eyes. Combined with the bulky physiques honed by external martial arts, they looked far more like mountain bandits than noble beggars.
“If not thieves, then robbers?”
When the man in blue smirked, Mu Hong straightened his posture, trying to muster dignity. “I am Mu Hong, Hall Master of the Splendid Flower Hall of the Beggar Sect.”
“Splendid Flower Hall?” The man in blue shook his head, his expression skeptical. “I have never heard of such a place in the Beggar Sect.”
“Of course. Our Hall is an intelligence organization under the Supreme Elder…” Realizing he had revealed too much, Mu Hong waved his hand impatiently. “Anyway, I am definitely a person of the Beggar Sect. And that gourd bottle is…”
The young man in black nodded slowly. “We know. That this is a sacred object of the Beggar Sect.”
“Is that so? Haha, that is a relief.”
Sweeping his chest in relief, Mu Hong smiled broadly and extended his hand. “Then hand it over quickly.”
“Do not worry. We will definitely deliver this Green Gourd Bottle to the Beggar Sect.”
“I told you. I am a Hall Master of the Beggar Sect.”
“We will deliver it to the Beggar Sect personally.”
“What do you…”
As Mu Hong stammered, the man in blue pressed his lips into a thin line, feigning solemnity. “Go with peace of mind. We swear to deliver this gourd bottle to the Beggar Sect.” He turned to his companion. “Let’s go, Black Leopard.”
The man in blue was Hyeok So-jin, and the man in black was Black Leopard.
They had come to Mount Yuanyun under Bu Eunseol’s specific orders to secure the bottle. Since they were not affiliated with the Beggar Sect, they held no reverence for the Origin Spirit Rock. To them, it was simply a container to be opened.
“Wait!”
As Hyeok So-jin turned away, Mu Hong’s expression turned fierce.
“Didn’t I say that is a sacred object of our Sect?”
“Didn’t we say we know?” Hyeok So-jin replied, his voice brimming with confidence. “We know it’s a sacred object, and we swore to deliver it. Why do you keep stopping us?”
“No, I mean…” Mu Hong gritted his teeth.
It was true they might deliver it to the Beggar Sect, but currently, the sect was divided. If these strangers handed it to Deputy Sect Leader Hae Pung of the majority faction, Gu Hong-cheong’s ambitions would crumble into dust.
“It can’t be helped.”
Realizing words were useless, Mu Hong channeled his internal energy.
“There is no choice but to seize it.”
Watching Mu Hong’s aggressive stance, Hyeok So-jin smirked. “As expected, you are robbers.”
He unclipped the Green Gourd Bottle and tossed it to Black Leopard. “Black Leopard. You deliver this to Brother Bu… no, the Squad Captain.”
“Deputy Squad Captain…”
“These bastards will cling on desperately to seize the bottle and make the Beggar King the Sect Leader. I’ll take care of the trash, so you go first.”
Only then did the realization strike Mu Hong like a lightning bolt. These two not only knew exactly who Mu Hong was, but they had also picked this fight intentionally.
“Who are you!”
At Mu Hong’s shout, Hyeok So-jin spoke nonchalantly.
“No need to know. You just need to get beaten up thoroughly and then deliver these words clearly to that old man.”
“What? What?”
“Fifteen days later. Noon. Ascension Platform.”
Stretch.
Hyeok So-jin pulled the Steel Wire Blood Thread wrapped around his left wrist taut. He smiled brightly.
“Tell him if he wants to find the Green Gourd Bottle, come there. Tell him the Ten Demonic Successor of the Wolf Fang Pavilion will be waiting.”
Hyeok So-jin’s teeth, revealed in a feral grin, sparkled brighter than the steel wire reflecting the sunlight.
The forest after the rain was heavy with silence.
Deep in the mountains, secluded from the village, an old temple sat on a gentle slope. Abandoned for years, moonlight filtered through the perforated roof, and the night breeze whispered through the rotting beams.
Inside, the furniture lay broken, draped in thick cobwebs.
Crack, crack.
A bonfire burned in the center of the ruin. Seated before it was an elderly man with a sturdy build. His eyes flashed in the darkness, and his frosted hair looked as if it were crafted from spun silver.
It was Gu Hong-cheong, known to the world as the Beggar King, one of the Four Gods and Seven Kings.
“Say it again.”
In front of Gu Hong-cheong, a man lay prostrate on the dusty floor. It was Hall Master Mu Hong.
“The Green Gourd Bottle was stolen?”
“I have committed a mortal sin, Supreme Elder.”
Mu Hong buried his face in the ground. He had attacked Hyeok So-jin with his disciples, but they had been thoroughly dismantled and forced to flee. Shame burning his cheeks, he reported the entire disaster to his master.
“Ten Demonic Successor of the Wolf Fang Pavilion.”
Gu Hong-cheong sighed deeply, his gaze drifting to the patch of night sky visible through the ruined roof.
“The mistake of that time eventually grabs this old man’s ankle.”
Years ago, he had killed eight members of the Wind and Cloud Squad but failed to catch the Ten Demonic Successor who had killed Seong Ryun and escaped. If he had pursued him to the bitter end back then… this humiliation would not have come to pass.
“Even if the worst happened, I should have found him and killed him without fail.”
Deep, molten anger simmered in Gu Hong-cheong’s voice.
It was said the youth who killed Seong Ryun had become a successor candidate of the Demonic Palace. And now, reborn as the Deathly Shadow Squad Captain, he dared to ruin Gu Hong-cheong’s lifelong ambition?
“So. What does he demand?”
“That is…” Mu Hong hesitated. “He says if you want to find the Green Gourd Bottle, the Supreme Elder should come alone to the Ascension Platform fifteen days later.”
“Hahahaha.”
Gu Hong-cheong laughed heartily, a sound devoid of mirth.
“He must be serious.”
Only now did he realize that Bu Eunseol genuinely sought a duel.
“Sometimes among the young, there are those who overestimate their ability and talent.” He scoffed, the corners of his mouth twitching. “Such bastards never realize that there are those who have already walked the path they are climbing… and that the gap of decades cannot be bridged in an instant.”
“Supreme Elder.”
“Moreover, he is more foolish than I thought. If he held the card the enemy wanted, he shouldn’t have left room for negotiation.”
Laughing low, the Beggar King reached into his bosom and produced a small brass bowl.
“Deliver this secretly to Elder Jin.”
Mu Hong’s eyes widened as he accepted the bowl with trembling hands. It was the Beggar King Order, the ultimate symbol of Gu Hong-cheong’s authority.
“And fifteen days later…”
Gu Hong-cheong’s voice dropped to a whisper, his eyes narrowing like needles.
***
Ascension Platform.
It was a wide, flat plateau atop Mount Huitang in Guideok Prefecture, a place where one could once leisurely enjoy the surrounding scenery. In the past, it was a famous spot frequented by poets and travelers, but time had been cruel; now, it was desolate, a bleak stage of gray stone and wind.
Bu Eunseol stood alone in the center of the open platform.
Standing motionless with his eyes closed, his figure seemed to melt into the landscape, as still and silent as the mountain itself.
Thud, thud.
The heavy, deliberate sound of footsteps announced an arrival. An old man with silver hair tied high ascended the final steps to the platform.
Though wrinkles marked his face, his eyes were clear and sharp, and his palms were large and thick like iron pot lids.
It was the Beggar King, Gu Hong-cheong.