Chapter 13 …
The Plan of the Buddha Mountain Stronghold
“What?”
“There’s a rumor spreading through the streets and marketplaces of Xianggang that the daughter of the Gangnam Faction has become a disciple of Master Wolyeong.”
Geobeokdo, the chief of the Buddha Mountain Stronghold, frowned at the information Ogu, the deputy chief, had brought.
“They say they’ve confirmed that she is staying at the Gangnam Faction.”
“Master Wolyeong is staying at the Gangnam Faction… In that case, it’s highly likely that Wolyeong handled the incident at Wangak Mountain Stronghold.”
“Based on our observations so far, that’s very likely. Most of the people traveling to and from the Gangnam Faction were merchants. Wolyeong appeared after the Wangak Mountain Stronghold incident, so perhaps she took care of the matter in order to take the daughter of the Gangnam Faction as her disciple.”
“So what about Mu Jeongchang Gongmyeongdo?”
“The information team thinks it’s likely just a disguise for appearances.”
Ogu’s expression did not look very pleased.
“A disguise, huh…”
“Although the Wolyeong Sect is in the middle of the orthodox sect hierarchy, its nature leans toward the righteous side. It’s thought that Master Naeng Yeoseol, the previous head of Wolyeong Sect, might have annihilated Wangak Mountain Stronghold to gain a disciple. Then, the leader of the Gangnam Faction, Jin Seol, could have called Mu Jeongchang Gongmyeongdo to go with her to Wangak Mountain Stronghold. That’s the assessment of the intelligence team.”
“So that’s why all attention was focused on Mu Jeongchang Gongmyeongdo?”
It seemed to make sense.
“Exactly. If Wolyeong Sect hadn’t been behind them, even though the item belonged to no one, they wouldn’t have dared touch it knowing the chief of Wangak Mountain Stronghold was behind it.”
Ogu nodded.
“Hahaha!”
Suddenly, Ogu laughed loudly. Ogu didn’t know why, and he couldn’t ask.
“So you mean the thieves basically stole something that was ours, huh?”
Depending on how you looked at it, it wasn’t wrong from their perspective.
With Master Wolyeong Naeng Yeoseol’s appearance, they could reinterpret everything from their own standpoint. No one thought of it as a misunderstanding.
“Wolyeong Sect… Master Wolyeong…”
Ogu stopped laughing and muttered softly to himself.
Both were formidable opponents. Or rather, the precise expression was that they were not opponents to fight directly.
“If we burn down the Gangnam Faction, Wolyeong Sect won’t just stand by, right?”
“That seems likely…”
Ogu spoke cautiously, knowing exactly who they were dealing with.
Ogu closed his lips firmly, exhaled deeply, then inhaled slowly, nodding to himself.
Since the adversary was Wolyeong Sect and Master Wolyeong, they had no choice but to abandon any plans for revenge against Wangak Mountain Stronghold.
This was the unspoken principle of the martial world: the strong survive, and the weak perish.
To survive in the martial world, one must bow to the strong and trample the weak. By living this way, a chance may eventually come to crush the strong, and when that moment arrives, one takes their place.
This was the fate of those who entered the unseen world of the Jianghu.
Yet, they could not simply let things go. News of the Wangak Mountain Stronghold incident had spread to the surrounding mountain strongholds in Guangdong Province, and staying idle could provoke dissatisfaction.
“If we do nothing, the other mountain strongholds will gossip that we’re cowards, right?”
Ogu remained silent.
“It’s fine. Speak your mind.”
“In fact, even the supreme chief would hesitate if it were Master Wolyeong, so naturally, our chief would hesitate as well.”
Ogu narrowed his eyes.
“But if we’re being wronged like this, we could quietly take out the people working at the Gangnam Faction, one by one…”
Ogu’s plan was this: they didn’t need to attack the Gangnam Faction directly. By eliminating its workers as a warning, the faction would lack manpower and collapse naturally. They could exact revenge for Wangak Mountain Stronghold without killing Jin Seol.
Ogu looked at him.
“Why… do you say that?”
Ogu asked cautiously, fearing he might be struck.
Ogu, convinced his idea was correct, approached with a worried expression.
“Did that thought come from your own head?”
“Well… actually…”
“Speak the truth.”
“The intelligence team suggested it. They said it would be the best course of action.”
Ogu nodded as if to say, I thought so.
He knew Ogu wasn’t exactly clever on his own.
“But who will carry it out?”
“One of the captains could handle it, perhaps?”
“Among the captains… fine. Do it. But!”
He paused, swallowing hard.
“Carry out the plan in a place where no beggars are around, so the commoners won’t notice! If they find out, it’ll be troublesome.”
Though called rogues, they were still martial artists.
If word got out that martial artists were taking revenge on ordinary civilians, the righteous sects, who often made a show of virtue, would create endless trouble.
“Alright!”
“Ugh, I’m bored.”
With Jin Seol leaving with Master Wolyeong to become her disciple at Wolyeong Sect, there was no one left to play with after work, and Geomryeong spent some rather dull days.
Master Wolyeong had tried to tempt Geomryeong to join her at Wolyeong Sect to learn martial arts together, but he stubbornly refused. In the end, she took only Jin Seol with her.
“Perhaps it’s time to leave here?”
At first, Geomryeong had worked to earn money, but after playing with Jin Seol, that purpose had faded.
Moreover, with the money looted from the Black Tiger Sect and Wangak Mountain Stronghold, he saw no reason to continue working.
“So this is what people call bonds between people.”
Geomryeong didn’t understand much about relationships between people.
You couldn’t truly learn it from books or by hearing about it. Indirectly, one could, but that was only second-hand experience.
Emotions that arose between people living together were complex and varied for each person.
Lost in thought, Geomryeong entered an alley.
Tall walls stretched along both sides, and the alley ended in a dead end.
Geomryeong reached the end, turned, and saw a figure standing behind him.
A man with a square jaw covered in thick stubble, broad shoulders, and an imposing stature.
He was one of the twelve captains of the Buddha Mountain Stronghold in Guangdong Province, known as Cheolsu Nonggo.
He had trained in the external technique “Cheollyeoksu,” similar to Iron Mastery, not extremely formidable, but enough to be considered a first-class martial artist.
“Do you have business with me?”
Geomryeong’s tone had changed.
“You knew I was following you?”
Nonggo asked, puzzled.
“Of course. I knew from the moment I left the house that you were tailing me.”
Nonggo squinted, scanning Geomryeong up and down. He saw no sign of a high-level martial artist.
“You knew I was following you? And yet you acted casually?”
“Should I stop working just because you follow me?”
Geomryeong’s composure overflowed.
Is this guy really not a high-level martial artist?
Even ordinary adults would feel intimidated in his presence, yet the young man showed no fear.
If my first target is a master… this could be bad.
Geobeokdo, the chief of Buddha Mountain Stronghold, had ordered Ogu to eliminate the workers at the Gangnam Faction quietly.
The captains volunteered for the task. Simple reason: whoever carried it out would become the chief of the now-empty Wangak Mountain Stronghold.
They had tracked Geomryeong early in the morning through the marketplace, but things weren’t going as expected.
“Again, why did you follow me?”
Geomryeong’s question startled Nonggo.
“To kill you.”
Geomryeong nodded as if it were natural.
“Hmm… The information network of the Green Forest is impressive. They already know?”
“Know what?”
“That I killed all the people at Wangak Mountain Stronghold. I’ve heard the intelligence team is formidable, but I left no trace proving it was me. Amazing, more than I imagined.”
Nonggo was momentarily speechless.
“If you came to kill me, I shouldn’t stay at the Faction any longer.”
Nonggo couldn’t tell if Geomryeong was joking or serious.
Let’s wait.
Nonggo pondered again.
It’s widely known that Wangak Mountain Stronghold was attacked, and no one knows the culprit…
Nonggo eyed Geomryeong’s feet, noticing a subtle movement.
Just bluffing.
A faint smile appeared on Nonggo’s lips. His suspicions vanished instantly.
“This kid has a remarkable mind. I almost fell for it.”
Geomryeong looked at him.
“Remarkable mind?”
“You said you were a master to make me let my guard down, didn’t you?”
“Believe it or not, that’s your choice.”
Geomryeong claimed to be a master, but Nonggo didn’t believe him.
“You’re moving your feet nervously, right? Too many people around would be a hassle. Let’s end it here.”
Nonggo approached Geomryeong.
“Exactly. Too many people around would be troublesome.”
Whoosh!
As Geomryeong spoke, the atmosphere completely shifted.
“Ah!”
Nonggo, sensing the change, stared in shock.
The playful youth in front of him had vanished, replaced by a completely different presence.
Gurgle!
Nonggo grabbed his throat and collapsed to his knees.
Breathing heavily, he could barely speak.
He stretched one hand toward Geomryeong, trying to speak, but the killing intent made it impossible.
“Gag… gurgle…”
“I heard you retreat if you lose a fight. Seems that’s not true. Seeing a child beaten, the parents step in, right?”
Nonggo’s face flushed red from lack of blood to the brain.
“Sa… sa…”
“Begging for your life?”
Nonggo nodded violently.
“You came to kill me, failed, and now beg for your life? There’s no such law. If you aim for someone’s life, you must accept that you can die too. Why don’t you understand that?”
Nonggo’s eyes rolled in frustration.
“Grandpa Ghost was right. People want to be the hero, but there are no heroes in this world.”
Hack!
Blood spilled from Nonggo’s mouth, disgusting to see, but Geomryeong watched calmly.
Soon, Nonggo’s breathing ceased.
Geomryeong cast a cold glance at him before turning away.
“There’s no reason to stay here any longer. As Grandma Jeon said, I should travel the Central Plains and meet more people. But first, I should take care of these guys properly, so Jin Seol’s family can be at ease.
