Chapter 487

“Heueueu… heueuk!”

It was a chilling sob.

He wasn’t crying, but making a strange sound as if crying as Baek Li-jung clutched his head.

“This doesn’t make sense… I even surpassed Northern Li Sword Immortal… I can’t defeat that one bastard? Him! Him!”

Baek Li-jung slammed his head into the ground like a madman.

Bang! Bang!

“Heueue! Heue!”

Even while doing so, sobbing sounds continuously flowed from his mouth, making it utterly bizarre.

Righteous Alliance martial artists who belatedly fled and came down the mountain saw that scene. Baek Li Family’s experts blocked Baek Li-jung with their own bodies.

The Righteous Alliance martial artists stirred.

“That’s the Alliance Leader, right?”

“Isn’t the Alliance Leader’s condition a bit strange?”

Baek Li-jung, regardless, continued muttering while slamming his head. He was searching for the reason he lost to Jin Ja-gang.

“That bastard’s dog was completely controlled! But then! Then why couldn’t you defeat him even though I freely released you as I wanted! Were the words whispered to me sweet lies!”

Bang! Bang!

“Heueue heue.”

Baek Li-jung shook his head left and right, looking like a madman to anyone.

The Righteous Alliance martial artists stirred and gathered around. Even the Baek Li Family experts blocking him was now useless.

Shake shake.

“Was it insufficient… was something insufficient to transcend evil…”

Baek Li-jung muttered.

“All of us in this mortal world are Buddha, demon, and asura. However, I accumulate merit through the demonic path in this mortal world so when reborn in the Pure Land, I will become Buddha.”

These were words Baek Li-jung had said to Great Buddha Beom-bon.

Baek Li-jung’s head tilted crookedly and stopped.

“I see. Was evil insufficient? Were the merits of the demonic path insufficient? Can’t I shed it unless I reach complete evil myself?”

Baek Li-jung turned his head to look at the Righteous Alliance martial artists.

The auspicious energy that had dwelled in one eye was already gone, and both eyes were now exuding dark energy.

“Heook!”

The Righteous Alliance martial artists jerked back in surprise.

Baek Li-jung with his head tilted crookedly made both hands like hooks, clenching and unclenching. Red, blue, and black veins bulged on the backs of his hands and forearms, spreading disgustingly across his whole body like spiderwebs.

“Through the demonic path… I must accumulate more merit… until I become complete evil…”

The Righteous Alliance martial artists who heard Baek Li-jung’s muttering shouted.

“Something’s wrong!”

In an instant, Baek Li-jung leaped at the Righteous Alliance martial artists.

“Uaaaaak!”

Crack!

The sound of bones crumbling rang out and blood splattered.

The terrified Righteous Alliance martial artists shouted wildly and began fleeing in all directions.

“The Alliance Leader has gone mad!”

“The Alliance Leader fell into qi deviation and became insane!”

Baek Li Family experts urgently shouted.

“Catch them! Don’t let a single one escape, catch them all and kill them to silence them!”

***

Yeong-gwi carried Jin Ja-gang and rushed with lightness skill to a nearby inn.

Son-bi followed behind, looking envious.

Jin Ja-gang began writing a letter as soon as he arrived at the guest room, without even washing.

“What letter is it?”

To Yeong-gwi’s question, Jin Ja-gang answered.

“It’s a letter going to Great Buddha.”

Since Jin Ja-gang handed it over unsealed, Yeong-gwi could see the contents.

Yeong-gwi tilted her head at first, then her eyes widened.

“What?”

Jin Ja-gang asked.

“Can you get it to Great Buddha within two days? Great Buddha is heading to Mount Huang.”

“If we use Leper Mound’s external communication network, we can somehow send it by carrier pigeon. But…”

Yeong-gwi suddenly asked as if challenging him.

“But did you really write this seriously?”

Yeong-gwi, who tried not to speak informally in front of others, was so flustered she even spoke casually in front of Son-bi.

Son-bi, unable to contain her curiosity, came and read it. Then Son-bi’s eyes also widened like Yeong-gwi’s. Unable to speak, she just opened and closed her mouth while looking at Jin Ja-gang.

Yeong-gwi shook her head vigorously then said with a strange expression.

“I don’t know if it’s really okay to send this kind of content…”

“It’s fine. And the reason I didn’t seal it is.”

“I get it now. You mean to spread rumors.”

“That’s right. Time will be insufficient, but we must spread rumors as much as possible.”

“Got it.”

When Son-bi looked strangely at Yeong-gwi who kept speaking casually, Yeong-gwi changed her tone.

“Ah, not ‘got it’ but… I understand. Then I’ll contact Tang Family branches too. Since time is urgent, I can’t prevent tracing the source of the rumors. Great Buddha will quickly know the source of the rumors is the Tang Family.”

“I understand.”

Since the matter was urgent, Yeong-gwi left the inn immediately.

Jin Ja-gang made a request to Son-bi.

“I must make a shameless request to Young Lady. Can you go with me to Wuhan? It could be a dangerous path.”

Wuhan?

Not Mount Huang?

Wuhan was a thousand li away. Much closer than going to Mount Huang.

When she wondered how to get to the eighteen hundred li road to Mount Huang within five days, Jin Ja-gang had no intention of going to Mount Huang from the start.

Son-bi soon nodded in agreement. Instead, she wrote with her finger on the table asking to also inform her master Im I-eon.

“Let’s rest here briefly then depart.”

When Jin Ja-gang prepared to circulate qi for healing, Son-bi went outside the door to stand guard.

Jin Ja-gang immediately grabbed Divine Ladle River Sword and sat cross-legged. Through Divine Ladle River Sword, internal energy began moving ceaselessly and vigorously. It was such fierce movement that if he handled internal energy wrong, everything would tangle up.

He could understand why Divine Ladle River Sword had the name divine sword attached to it.

“Great Buddha…”

He couldn’t be confident whether Great Buddha would move as Jin Ja-gang thought.

He did everything he could for the Namgung Family. The fate of the Namgung Family, and the fate of the martial world, now depended not on heaven but on Great Buddha’s judgment.

Even if just to find clues about the Hungry Ghost King.

Jin Ja-gang recited Great Buddha’s dharma name a few more times, then soon cast off distracting thoughts and began concentrating on recovering from internal injuries.

***

Shaolin Temple’s intelligence capability, having planted their people throughout the entire martial world, was unparalleled.

The letter Jin Ja-gang sent to Great Buddha arrived at Mount Huang in a day and a half, and Beom-bon received the rumor and letter almost simultaneously.

Mount Huang.

It was Jin Ja-gang’s letter received with the Namgung Family’s estate right at hand.

Great Buddha’s expression was calm as he read the letter. However, at the end, the smile disappeared from his thinly smiling eyes.

The surrounding Arhat monks looked at Beom-bon with puzzled eyes.

Beom-bon read aloud the contents of the letter Jin Ja-gang sent as if confirming.

Great Master Beom-bon.

I have questions about the Hungry Ghost King, so come to Mount Song within half a month.

I will only wait at Shaolin Temple until then.

The Arhat monks’ expressions hardened.

What absurd letter is this!

It was already rude to come ask the head of Shaolin Temple about whatever this Hungry Ghost King was, but he was even telling him to come to Shaolin Temple.

Saying he’ll wait at Shaolin Temple for half a month! As if someone would receive him!

However, conversely, if premised on Shaolin Temple not receiving him, the meaning of those words could be interpreted differently.

If you don’t come within half a month, I’ll sweep away Shaolin Temple!

Though Shaolin Temple appeared empty with all personnel that could be mobilized for the Righteous Dharma March mobilized, Shaolin Temple had numerous monks and previous generation experts secluding within the grounds. Moreover, since he was considerably injured, even if Jin Ja-gang ran wild, it would be difficult to inflict greater damage than expected to the main temple itself with martial arts.

But Jin Ja-gang’s specialty was poison.

If poison was spread throughout Shaolin Temple’s main temple, the main temple would become a place of death. How could Shaolin Temple hold its head up in the martial world with its main temple ransacked!

This was the part Shaolin Temple most worried about during the Righteous Dharma March.

The farther the distance of the Righteous Dharma March, the more the main temple emptied. They joined hands with the Righteous Alliance to prevent that, but the Righteous Alliance happened to get beaten by Jin Ja-gang at Yuelu Mountain and fled in defeat.

Beom-bon couldn’t continue speaking for a while.

The elders of Embracing Sect who were just preparing to attack the Namgung Family came to find Beom-bon after hearing news that Jin Ja-gang’s letter arrived. Among them were monks weak in intelligence who didn’t know about the Hungry Ghost King.

“Abbot’s grand-nephew. What is this Hungry Ghost King you speak of? What is it that he wants to ask the abbot’s grand-nephew?”

Beom-bon didn’t answer that and muttered to himself.

“Poison Dragon… is doing… something very dangerous. To openly mention such a name.”

Jin Ja-gang was trying to pull the Hungry Ghost King above water.

The contents of this letter were already spreading as rumors. If anyone saw it, it would look like Beom-bon had connections to the Hungry Ghost King and Jin Ja-gang had caught his weakness.

If Beom-bon led the Arhats to meet Jin Ja-gang, it would confirm to the world that Beom-bon had a relationship with the Hungry Ghost King, and if he ignored the letter, Jin Ja-gang would attack Shaolin Temple as is.

He was making Beom-bon suffer with one letter.

“Hmm. Poison Dragon…”

When Beom-bon muttered and didn’t answer, the person beside him urged an answer.

“I say, abbot’s grand-nephew?”

Beom-bon thought briefly then shook his head and changed the subject.

“Poison Dragon says he’ll attack the main temple. Moreover, Tang Family’s grand compound is spreading it as rumors. What should we do?”

“What can that bastard do alone?”

Another monk expressed concern.

“When chasing Zoroastrian Cult Leader Demon Emperor, Poison Dragon slaughtered followers without any hesitation. We can protect the main temple, but numerous people residing in the main temple will be harmed.”

An elder said.

“There seems no need for the abbot’s grand-nephew to move for just one mudskipper. How about having lower disciples handle it?”

“Not a mudskipper but Poison Dragon.”

That one statement from Beom-bon revealed how Beom-bon viewed Jin Ja-gang.

“Benefactor Poison Dragon clearly specified this person, and spread rumors in the martial world, so we cannot avoid it.”

The elder still seemed to have doubts whether this was something the abbot should personally handle.

“But the road back to Mount Song from here is a long road exceeding twenty-five hundred li. Since two days passed while the letter came, even departing now wouldn’t be a leisurely journey.”

“The half-month deadline Benefactor Poison Dragon mentioned probably has that in mind too.”

An expert who killed two of the Three Martial Venerables.

“Then what does the abbot’s grand-nephew think? We cannot delay long with the Namgung Family before us.”

Beom-bon looked at the Namgung Family’s estate.

The Namgung Family, having heard some story, had tightly locked their doors and spread all kinds of formations outside the estate.

“Mm… The formations look complex and solid. Befitting the Namgung Family. There’s no way the Namgung Family will easily let us pass, and even breaking through by force would take two or three days.”

A smile appeared again in Beom-bon’s eyes.

“Come to think of it, this letter is Benefactor Poison Dragon’s plea.”

“Plea?”

Beom-bon’s thin eyes turned toward the Namgung Family’s estate.

“A plea not to attack the Namgung Family. The half-month time signifies that. Two days for the letter to arrive, and if we waste three more days on the Namgung Family, the remaining time is ten days. To return to the main temple after that is quite tight timing.”