Chapter 91 – v4c16 – Village of the Elders

Volume 4 Chapter 16 – Village of the Elders

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Translated by Rain

Read more at Nineheavens.org

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Pavilion of Perfect Enlightenment was a place where flowers are said to bloom in all seasons and never wither even in the dead of winter.

Behind Pavilion of Perfect Enlightenment, the forbidden land and forest magic landscape spread all the way to Mount Song.

The Patriarch's residence, Simbu, where anyone without authority was said to be found guilty and decapitated if he sets foot there.

An underground dungeon where rakshasas and asuras were locked deep underground forever and forced to kill each other.

Ghost Pavilion, the residence of Grand Madame Tang, whose whereabouts were unknown if not visited at the right time.

In addition, there were some strange stories in the Luoyang Sword Family that were widely rumored, but did not dare to speak about them publicly.

Among them, there was a place called Senior Citizens' Village, which from a distance looked like nothing more than an ordinary village at the foot of a mountain where elderly people lived together.

Those who knew the identity of that place called it the Senate of the Luoyang Sword Family with respect and fear.

* * *

Early morning.

Luoyang Sword Family, outskirts.

The Elders' Hall Master, known as the Little Giant, was walking up the hill.

There were fields of green barley sprouts growing along the hills, and fields of green onions, garlic, and spinach that had survived the winter and were growing.

Even though the sun had not yet risen, diligent old men were inspecting the fields.

Among the old people in shabby clothes, there were some whose faces he could recognize, but the Elders' Hall Master seemed oblivious.

He acted as he had learned from the previous Elders' Hall Master.

There was a reason why people who have accumulated wealth, fame, and power that no one in the world can envy, live here like mere village riches.

The old man who had just passed by herding a herd of goats was the former master of the Guest Reception Hall, who retired before he even reached the rank of elder.

The old man who inspects the barley sprouts with careful movements was once a guard warrior of the Luoyang Sword Family who used those movements to reap the supplies and demands of his enemies.

The Elders' Hall Master passed them by and eventually reached the entrance to the village.

“This is a senior citizen village. What business do you have here?”

Two middle-aged warriors dressed in old guard clothes stared at him.

Like the warriors guarding Pavilion of Perfect Enlightenment, they were retired warriors belonging to a special unit under the direct control of the Senate.

“…I am from the Main Family’s Elders’ Hall. I came because I had an appointment with the village chief.”

The warrior left him waiting and walked into the village, saying he would check.

He let out a small sigh at the behavior of the elderly people who had clearly made an appointment but did not tell him in advance at the entrance.

They did not welcome those in power and even despised them.

“…It sounds like a pig being slaughtered.”

The security guard answered his question indifferently.

“Yes.”

“Is there some kind of feast?”

“I don’t know.”

“…I see.”

After a while, the middle-aged security guard returned.

“Please leave your weapons here. You are not allowed in or out with them.”

“There is none.”

“The use of internal energy is strictly prohibited inside.”

“I know.”

“If you shout loudly or make a fuss, you may be kicked out.”

“I understand.”

The Elders' Hall Master sighed as he answered each and every detail.

* * *

In the small, shabby village hall, elderly people were gathered together, warming themselves by the fire and chatting.

These people were too old to do farming.

The Elders' Hall Master came in, but no one paid him any attention.

“I, Wang Mo, a humble junior, greet the family’s elders to receive your teachings.”

The Elders' Hall Master politely bowed, but what came back was a teasing snort.

“What does the guy who boasted about becoming the master of the Elders’ Hall on his first and last visit teach?”

The Elders' Hall Master sighed inwardly.

“…I didn’t mean to brag, but it was a visit to receive the Senate’s approval as usual.”

“Look at how he talks back.”

“What a mean fellow. A fellow like that is bound to cause trouble later and come crawling to us to clean up his mess.”

Fingers were pointed and words of criticism flew in.

The Elders' Hall Master engraved the word 'endurance' over and over again in his mind.

When an old man holding a cane, who seemed to have a formidable background, raised his hand, the room became quiet.

The woman with her flowing white hair was the head of this village and the Lord of the Senate.

“Okay, let me tell you what it is.”

She did not offer him a place to sit and have tea.

The Elders' Hall Master stood and spoke politely.

“Actually, I wanted to receive teachings about seclusion from Eldest Young Master Yeon So-hyeon, but it was already concluded yesterday at the Supreme Executive Council.”

“The ban on that child’s seclusion will be lifted starting from the time official work begins today. I understand.”

Her glazed eyes turned towards the Elders' Hall Master.

“That’s why we only accepted your visit request today.”

In short, he did not want to give advice about the Eldest Young Master's seclusion.

“…If you won’t even give me, the master of the Main Family’s Elders’ Hall, advice on such a grave matter, then what is the purpose of the Senate’s existence?”

The Elders' Hall Master was attempting to make a point, but the elders did not care.

“This is just a village where old people with nothing to do and no connections live together.”

“Our pleasure lies in having our calves grow well and our crops growing well, not in confirming our own power.”

The Elders' Hall Master wanted to just turn around and leave.

However, he endured it, remembering the instructions from the previous Elders' Hall Master.

He had been told that for him, the success of his position as master of the Elders' Hall depended on how much advice he could get from the Senate.

“…Aren’t the people here elders who are treated and cared for well by the Main Family? Are you saying that such people won’t give advice on matters pertaining to the Eldest Young Master?”

Nothing was readable on the wrinkled face of the Lord of the Senate.

“The respect we receive and the treatment we receive are just compensation for our past devotion to the Main Family.”

The metal ring on her cane swung and made a clear sound.

“Other than that, we are just villagers.”

The Elders' Hall Master made a bewildered expression.

“A mere village head? Does a mere village head have the power of appointment and dismissal over the Main Family’s Elders’ Hall Master, and the power of nomination over the Main Family’s Law Enforcement Court Master and Enforcement Court Master?”

He took a step forward.

“They are the ones who elect the Supreme Council members who are members of the Supreme Executive Council that leads the Main Family?!”

Even as he yelled, he inwardly regretted his outburst.

The eyes of the elderly people sitting huddled together in the narrow hall were all turned towards him.

Each and every one of them was a figure who had dominated the past.

Those eyes had no energy or spirit.

He couldn't move.

The Lord of the Senate waved her staff slightly, and a clear sound rang out once more.

The Elders' Hall Master suddenly came to his senses and looked at her.

“We are just villagers who are not interested in power, authority, or influence.”

She smiled faintly.

“Isn’t that why we were given such enormous authority?”

"…."

She waved her hand at the Elders' Hall Master, who couldn't find anything to say.

“If you have no business, you can leave now.”

Other elders added their words one by one.

“Okay. Go back quickly.”

“Why don’t you go downstairs and play with power among the kids?”

The Elders' Hall Master closed his eyes for a moment, then showed his courtesy in a polite manner again.

“…Could you please give this junior some advice on the current succession issue of the Main Family?”

“…Was there a succession problem in the Main Family?”

“I don’t know much about such difficult problems.”

Elderly people picked their ears or acted in a way that seemed distracted, as if they were staring into space.

The Lord of the Senate clicked her tongue.

“You too are not cut out to join the Senate.”

“…What do you mean?”

Instead of her, the elders around her spoke one by one.

“Don’t intervene.”

“Don’t get involved.”

The Lord of the Senate raised her finger and pointed at him.

“Pretend you didn’t see even if you saw it, and pretend you didn’t hear it even if you heard it.”

A wrinkle appeared on the Elders' Hall Master's forehead.

“…That is the first thing taught to those who join the Main Family.”

“Now that you hold the office of the Elders' Hall Master, do you feel like you've become some great presence? A ‘little giant’ or something, do you feel like you’re something special because others praise you?”

“…Are you scolding me for being arrogant?”

The Lord of the Senate looked at him with distant eyes.

“Do you know why there are no clear rules for selecting a successor in a family as large as the Main Family?”

“…Wouldn’t this mean that we should select a successor in the wisest way possible at the time?”

When one of the old men burst out laughing, the others also spat and laughed at him.

The laughter died down as the Lord of the Senate waved her staff.

“The Main Family belongs to the Yeon Clan, and among the direct Yeon Clan, there has always been an outstanding person of a different caliber in each generation. That is why, until now, there has been no rule in this Yeon Clan for selecting a successor.”

The Elders' Hall Master recalled the current candidates.

Regardless of who they were, they were ridiculously strong candidates.

“…Then I guess these are very special times.”

“No, these are times like no other.”

The Elders' Hall Master sighed.

“I have to say this, but the Main Family is of a different level now than it was when the people here were on active duty. It has become a much larger, much more powerful family. And it has become that much more complex.”

It was a remark criticizing her for referring to the current Luoyang Sword Family as the Yeon family just like a long time ago.

The Lord of the Senate laughed at him, revealing her missing teeth.

“The Elders' Hall Master of the pre-war era claimed to be one of the thirteen members of the emergency planning council and then disappeared. You will end up like him.”

The Elders' Hall Master gritted his teeth.

“…I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I can’t understand the teachings because of my lack of wisdom.”

“The advice ends here.”

The Lord of the Senate struck her staff hard.

“Leave this village immediately.”

* * *

The Elders' Hall Master was polite on the outside, but on the inside he was angry as he went down the hill.

The elders in the village hall clicked their tongues.

“Even if we tell him, he can’t hear, so what is the use of telling him?”

“Even if we show him, he can’t see. There’s no use in showing him.”

They spared no effort in giving advice to future students.

Don't be obsessed with playing with power.

The Main Family was the Yeon family.

One of the direct descendants of the Main Family always has an outstanding person of a different rank.

So don’t think of yourself as something.

Don't intervene,

Don't get involved,

Don't even pretend to hear,

Don't even pretend to see it.

There was currently no succession issue in the Main Family.

* * *

The old people got up from their seats and headed to the large yard where they were roasting a pig.

They walked around and had a long conversation.

“It is a cause for celebration, as the succession issue, which was the Main Family’s biggest problem, has disappeared.”

“I have to slaughter a pig on a day like this. When will I slaughter it?”

“I’m glad ‘that guy’ changed his mind.”

“Anyway, this time he didn’t weed out the top committee members.”

“Ah, it’s because he has a picky eye for people.”

“That’s right.”

“It’s because it’s so difficult to find a decent person in this big family that he can see….”