Chapter 348 – I'm Not Weak Enough to Be Manipulated (2)

Taoist Cheong-wol simply couldn't understand Dam Ho.

The number of heroes gathered in the training ground alone was a thousand. Adding the Wudang Sect's disciples scattered throughout the mountain, several thousand were on Wudang Mountain.

Though individual differences in martial prowess existed, they were all martial artists who had learned martial arts. Dam Ho's current actions were turning all those martial artists into enemies.

"Why?"

He couldn't understand.

If he showed just a little more flexibility, he could have received their enthusiastic support and become a hero of the martial world.

Was joining hands with him such a difficult thing?

It was something that could be done with just one blink of the eyes.

Nothing would hurt his pride, and no one would suffer losses.

It would be good for everyone, with nothing bad coming from it. Yet he was creating such fierce confrontation.

Even at that moment, Dam Ho continued walking straight toward him.

Toward the Wudang Sect's leader.

Even with his limping leg, he never stopped once.

Taoist Cheong-wol found himself asking unconsciously:

"Why go to such extremes? Why reject our proposal?"

"Because it's right."

Dam Ho answered without a moment's hesitation.

Though it didn't show outwardly, he was extremely angry at the moment.

After the Martial Alliance fell to the Demon Cult, demonic ways were rampant everywhere. Only powerless people suffered because of it. But orthodox sects claiming to uphold the righteous path had never once shown the will to resolve this.

At least during his journey from Guizhou Province to Hubei Province, the scenes he witnessed were always the same.

That fact made him angry.

Dam Ho knew.

That he himself wasn't a righteous person. And he had no intention of becoming one. But that didn't mean he would just stand by and watch the martial world flow as it pleased.

The martial world had been stagnant for too long.

Like a stagnant pond with no flowing water, everything remained motionless.

Those who controlled the existing order were only eager to protect what they had. They had become fat fish.

They had grown so large that they left no room for other fish to squeeze in.

The Nine Great Sects and Five Great Families were precisely those fish. And Taoist Cheong-wol was the leader of the fat fish occupying a narrow well.

One who thought the well he dominated was the best.

He blocked the waterways to the outside and controlled everything. Because of this, the martial world that should be free had lost its vitality and become stagnant.

That way, they couldn't fight.

Not only against the Demon Cult but also the Celestial Righteous Church.

The martial world needed to become stronger.

There was no need for fat fish in the pond. So Dam Ho decided.

To create ripples in the pond where fat fish were the masters.

When a ferocious fish entered, the pond's fish would struggle to survive.

He could see the wavering eyes of Taoist Cheong-wol, the leader of the fat fish.

It was an appearance never shown to even the Wudang Sect's disciples or elders.

Dam Ho moved toward Taoist Cheong-wol.

He wasn't merely a ferocious fish.

He was a massive crocodile.

Kuuuu!

As Dam Ho moved, massive ripples formed in the pond called the Wudang Sect. Those ripples were shaking all of Wudang Mountain to its core.

The heroes' faces turned deathly pale.

The same was true for the Wudang Sect's Taoists.

They faced an unprecedented massive challenge and storm.

The storm and killing intent Dam Ho brought were directed at them.

"Great Hero Dam!"

The faces of Wudang Sect disciples receiving the terrifying killing intent head-on were deathly pale, and even the elders could only tremble their beards without daring to move rashly.

They never expected Dam Ho to reveal hostility so openly. If they clashed with Dam Ho like this, the losses would far exceed any gains, which was clearly evident. So they couldn't move easily.

Unable to bear it, Lee San-ha, the Wudang Sect's lay disciple known as the Swift Shadow Sword, stepped forward.

"Let's stop here, Great Hero Dam! What good would come from further hurting each other's feelings? Good is good, so let's reconcile here."

It was words spoken with great courage, intending to mediate. But Dam Ho's response far exceeded his expectations.

"Move aside!"

"Wh-what…"

"If you don't want to die."

"Gr-Great Hero Dam?"

Lee San-ha's voice naturally trembled, and his complexion turned deathly pale.

"Those uninvolved should not interfere. If you don't want to die."

"What kind of nonsense… Krek!"

Bang!

Instantly, Lee San-ha let out a scream and was flung backward. Like a stone shot from a catapult, Lee San-ha crashed into the training ground's wall and collapsed.

Seeing Lee San-ha lose consciousness, convulse intermittently, and then die, the heroes were shocked. Several among them rushed forward in anger.

"Fist Demon!"

"How dare you commit murder on Wudang Mountain!"

Unable to contain their rage, they swung their swords at Dam Ho. But before their swords could even swing halfway, thunder echoed.

Kwabang!

The martial artists who charged enthusiastically were flung backward, spraying blood. This time there wasn't even the usual scream.

They crashed among the heroes without moving. They had died instantly.

"You bastard!"

"How dare you!"

Several more martial artists charged.

But they too suffered the same fate as the previous martial artists before they could swing their swords.

No one could stop Dam Ho's steps.

"If you attack, you'll die. All those unrelated to the Wudang Sect, get out."

Dam Ho's low voice echoed through the training ground.

Even at his arrogant words, the heroes were speechless.

It wasn't a matter of martial skill levels.

Countless heroes were overwhelmed by the ferocious momentum Dam Ho emanated.

The heroes glanced at each other.

Though they claimed to have gathered to protect the martial world, among them, not many truly had the courage to fight with their lives on the line. And even among those with such spirit, extremely few wanted to throw away their lives in vain.

Dying fighting Dam Ho would be a dog's death.

One that no one would acknowledge.

Truly a meaningless death.

So they hesitated to step forward and watched each other's reactions.

When the situation became like this, those most troubled were precisely the Wudang Sect's Taoists.

Unlike the heroes, the Wudang Sect was no different from their home.

They couldn't flee their home just because Dam Ho was frightening, nor was there any guarantee they could win without great damage even if they fought.

Thump! Scraaape!

Dam Ho's ominous footsteps were roughly shaking their souls.

The moment they heard those words, neither Jin Ja-gang nor Woon-jeong knew what reaction to show.

Woon-jeong shouted.

“Why? I can’t believe Miss An Ryeong is Poison Dragon’s enemy!”

An Ryeong said calmly.

“Because it was our An family medical house that caused all this. The conflict between medicine sects and poison sects originally started with us. So if you trace it back, I become the enemy who provided the trigger for the medicine sects’ massacre.”

Jin Ja-gang asked.

“What was that trigger?”

“In the past, medicine sects were excessively powerful compared to poison sects. So they attempted to merge the poison sects.”

Jin Ja-gang’s eyes narrowed.

Though An Ryeong’s words were sudden, the content was something he had heard several times before.

Iron Umbrella Sect’s Gang-gyu had said they had no choice but to do what they did.

Jin Ja-gang had shouted at such Gang-gyu.

“Did you torture innocent people and mock their deaths because you had no choice!”

But Gang-gyu had smiled bitterly and left his final words.

“Innocent… you say…”

Jin Ja-gang recalled what he had heard from Pyeon-bok afterward.

“The most prevalent theory is that medicine sects failed because they didn’t consider Sichuan Tang family. Sichuan Tang family’s power is tremendous. Even while under attack, they organized a poison sect alliance and systematically struck back at medicine sects.”

Bian Bu had told Jin Ja-gang that in Central Plains, unlike in Yunnan, medicine sects had attacked poison sects.

That was the complete opposite of what Jin Ja-gang had known until then.

“So?”

“We gave hints to the poison sects.”

Jin Ja-gang clenched his molars so hard that tendons stood out on his jaw.

It matched Bian Bu’s story.

If Tang family had received hints and prepared in advance, they could have done it. Since An family medical house and Physician Bell Healers had long-standing relations, they probably extracted Physician Bell Healers in return and elevated them to the Six Poison Cliques.

Strength naturally entered the hand pulling Black Thread.

An Ryeong showed a slightly pained expression.

Jin Ja-gang said.

“Now I understand. Though it wasn’t direct harm, that’s sufficient reason to die.”

An Ryeong gritted her teeth.

“Medicine sects were… gak… planning to devour all poison sects. If that plan had succeeded, it would have been poison sects, not medicine sects, that were massacred ten years ago!”

“For a confession, it seems sloppy. Or do you hope I’ll forgive you?”

“Medical houses are naturally close to both medicine sects and poison sects. We don’t want either side to become too strong. But we didn’t think medicine sects would be pushed back this far either. We planned to mediate at an appropriate level.”

“But things went wrong and medicine sects were destroyed… Are you planning to avoid responsibility that way?”

“There was someone who intervened midway.”

Jin Ja-gang flinched.

The words “surely not” almost burst out.

“It’s someone you know well. The central mediator of the Martial Alliance ten years ago.”

Baek Li-jung!

Baek Li-jung had poison sects join the Martial Alliance and demanded their support in return. And he had been riding high ever since.

Poison sects wouldn’t have missed such an opportunity, and according to their interests, medicine sects’ fate was decided.

An Ryeong looked at Jin Ja-gang and said.

“Poison Dragon. I already knew you were looking for Physician Bell Healers. Meeting in the village was coincidental, but even if we hadn’t, we would have inevitably met here.”

Jin Ja-gang had noticed when dealing with An Ryeong that she already had some hidden agenda to some degree. That’s why he had spoken less and kept distance from An Ryeong.

But if she had come to meet him deliberately, that might have been useless.

“You came to meet me… on purpose.”

“Right. To confirm whether I could join hands with you.”

“So you tested me? Drawing in all that talk about heroism and resolve to smell human warmth?”

“You might not believe it, but now is exactly when heroism is needed. I believe that.”

“If you had spoken so openly from the beginning, things would have been better than now. Though it’s rather shameless talk coming from someone who provided the cause for a sect’s massacre.”

“That hurts. Too direct.”

“The talk about betrayal and blade fights was ultimately directed at yourself.”

An Ryeong’s face reddened at being hit on the mark.

“Acting tough on purpose because of guilt toward your family, and pretending to be even more righteous. Obsessing over heroism and blood debts. Is that your way of apologizing for your family’s past sins?”

Jin Ja-gang suddenly began reciting sect names.

“Hundred Flower Valley, Medicine King Sect, Precious Ginseng Sect, Merchant Emperor Valley, Silkworm Raising Sect, Heavenly Peach Sect, Five Pine Sect, Nine Immortal Sect, First Second Valley, Four Treasure Sect…”

These were all names of Yunnan medicine sects that had been trapped in the same mine shaft as Jin Ja-gang.

Jin Ja-gang said through gritted teeth.

“Yunnan medicine sects who died from the aftermath when An family medical house tried to arrange things conveniently for themselves… Among them, those who were buried alive with me. I lived for eight years in that mine shaft, breathing beside their corpses. I survived alone, carrying the resentment of each of their sects on my shoulders.”

“I…”

An Ryeong couldn’t give any answer with her reddened face.

“Did you tell me not to look down on the world? Did you say I needed that much resolve to avoid bloodshed? Don’t make me laugh. Who is preaching to whom?”

Jin Ja-gang’s anger could be felt completely even by Woon-jeong.

An Ryeong closed her eyes tightly and tried to gather strength to answer, but Woon-jeong looked behind and shouted in surprise.

“Poison Dragon! Miss An Ryeong! This isn’t the time to be talking like this!”

Before they knew it, the Arhat monks had come down from the walls and were slowly approaching. Including the Arhat monk from the main gate, there were seven. Definitely not a number to underestimate.

An Ryeong spoke as if resolved.

“A greater upheaval is approaching the martial world. Bigger than ten years ago. It won’t end with just blood feuds between medicine sects and poison sects. With even Shaolin Temple involved, it won’t finish at an appropriate level.”

“I know.”

“You’re not the only one feeling it. Everyone who makes their living by the sword in the martial world feels the same. They just don’t know when it will happen or how it will start.”

Jin Ja-gang’s killing intent increased.

“You said the level of blood feuds between medicine sects and poison sects? From the position of someone who experienced that blood feud, that’s very unpleasant talk. I don’t think I need to hear more of your words. I’ll grant your earlier request. Go quietly.”

Jin Ja-gang’s hair began rising. Woon-jeong, knowing what Jin Ja-gang was about to do, stopped him.

“Poison Dragon! She said she came to meet Poison Dragon. No matter how angry you are, you can’t harm an envoy!”

Hesitation.

When Jin Ja-gang wavered briefly, Woon-jeong persuaded him again.

“Miss An Ryeong already told us the missing character anyway. Even if that monk had been alive, there’s no guarantee he would have told us.”

Jin Ja-gang pondered Woon-jeong’s words briefly and nodded in agreement.

Woon-jeong finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Jin Ja-gang waved his hand to release Black Thread from An Ryeong’s neck. A thin bloody mark remained on An Ryeong’s neck.

“Taoist Woon-jeong is right. Since you said you came as an envoy, I’ll spare you today.”

“Poison Dragon!”

An Ryeong spoke with strength in her eyes.

“Our An family medical house doesn’t forget blood debts. That’s why I stopped you from attacking Physician Bell Healers. Indestructible Heavenly Sword and Tang family will also face our blade someday. Don’t forget that our ultimate targets are the same.”

Jin Ja-gang stared at An Ryeong and answered.

“I remember you saying blood debts should be respected. I feel the same about An family medical house. I’ll watch a little longer. But if there’s a blood price to be collected from An family medical house, I’ll come to collect it.”

“Do you think you can face them alone without our help?”

Jin Ja-gang looked at An Ryeong silently.

An Ryeong spoke again.

“I came to persuade you, Poison Dragon. This is the first and last proposal. I understand you, but it’s best not to be optimistic that even our superiors will understand you.”

A sneer appeared at Jin Ja-gang’s lips.

“First you imposed your thoughts with this and that, now you’re threatening?”

“It’s not a threat. It’s fact.”

“Fact or not, I have no intention of joining hands with those who weren’t honest from the beginning. Getting stabbed in the back once is enough.”

“Stubborn!”

Jin Ja-gang gestured to Woon-jeong.

“Let’s go now.”

“What? Just like this?”

Seven Arhat monks were glaring at them, and behind them was An Ryeong with injured arms.

Whether understanding Jin Ja-gang’s words as wanting to fight, looking at the Arhat monks made him sigh, or understanding it as wanting to flee, they couldn’t just leave An Ryeong alone.

But Jin Ja-gang really just walked toward the main gate.

Woon-jeong followed Jin Ja-gang awkwardly while looking around at the Arhat monks and An Ryeong.

But amazingly, the Arhat monks didn’t block Jin Ja-gang. They slightly turned their toes as if yielding the way.

“Huh?”

Woon-jeong was so amazed by this strange occurrence that he couldn’t close his mouth.

“H-how is this happening? Why aren’t the Shaolin monks stopping us?”

Jin Ja-gang explained as he exited through the broken main gate.

“Why do you think Miss An Ryeong blabbered everything in front of the Arhat monks?”

“That’s…”

It wasn’t long after Jin Ja-gang and Woon-jeong left Grand Harmony Courtyard’s estate.

Thud thud thud thud!

Suddenly dozens of archers in white clothes appeared from both sides of the estate and began entering through the estate’s gate. Simultaneously, they leaped up onto the walls and ran along them, taking positions on the walls and raising their bows in unison to aim inside.

Woon-jeong, who had moved far from the estate and watched this, couldn’t continue speaking.

“Poison Dragon… did you know? That so many people were near the estate?”

“To some extent.”

“Then you should have given me a hint! I was anxious not knowing why Poison Dragon was having such a leisurely conversation!”

Even Jin Ja-gang, sensitive to auras, hadn’t completely predicted their numbers. He had thought there would be fewer than what was visible.

The archers’ skills were that excellent.

Jin Ja-gang also stood and looked back like Woon-jeong for a moment.

“Though I couldn’t believe most of what she said because she was loose-lipped and self-centered, one thing is certain. She seems intent on collecting Physician Bell Healers’ blood debt from the Arhat monks.”

Swish swish swish swish!

The sound of tremendous amounts of arrows being shot could be heard even by Jin Ja-gang and Woon-jeong.

Woon-jeong’s shoulders trembled, and Jin Ja-gang concentrated on watching that scene.

An family medical house.

So-bong having strength unsuited to her age, and there were too many suspicious points.

‘Are they the ones behind that foot rot disease that Taoist Haewol mentioned…’

Or had An family medical house also been corrupted by ‘them,’ causing them to betray medicine sects?

He couldn’t give a definitive answer yet.

If Jin Ja-gang hadn’t met Taoist Haewol, he might have immediately turned his blade of revenge toward An family medical house.

But could An family medical house, which was blaming itself for providing the cause of the blood feud between medicine sects and poison sects, really be the mastermind?

Through this incident, Jin Ja-gang deeply felt the meaning of saying the martial world moves as if alive.

Each sect, each faction was struggling with all their might for their survival. Repeatedly combining and separating, all of them tangled and gathered so the entire martial world moved as if alive.

It was hundreds, thousands, and simultaneously one.

As Taoist Haewol had said, it was a massive life that could never be moved by the Martial Alliance Leader’s power alone.

Those who had been eating away at the roots of this massive life from long ago.

Jin Ja-gang wanted to discover their identity even more.