Chapter 76
Eun Sowol narrowed her eyes slightly as she caught sight of the subtle exchange of glares between the two men.
“Did you two make up?”
Startled, both men turned their heads in opposite directions.
“We never fought.”
“That’s right. It was just a minor disagreement, Sowol.”
If that “minor” disagreement had escalated even slightly more, the entire area would’ve been in ruins.
“But, Grandpa… how did you really end up here? Did you follow me?”
“Ahem! Follow you? Nonsense! I just happened to have business on Haenam Island. By pure coincidence, I ended up on the same ship as you lot!”
“Oooh…”
Eun Sowol nodded, seemingly convinced, but Dok Go-ryong snorted as if it was the most absurd thing he’d ever heard.
“What are you going to Haenam Island for?”
“I thought I’d try my luck catching a big fish.”
At that, the expressions of Dok Go-ryong and Dang Jin-ak stiffened subtly.
“You went all the way to Haenam Island just for that?”
“There’s a special kind of fish that only lives there. What about you? Why are you heading to such a distant place?”
“Uh…”
She couldn’t just say it was to find a rare elixir.
“We’re going fishing too!”
Since they were going after the Thousand-Year Hwari, it wasn’t exactly a lie.
“All the way to Haenam Island?”
“Yes! My uncle says he has a lucky fishing spot there.”
Eun Sowol shamelessly threw Dok Go-ryong under the bus.
“Hmm… a lucky spot, huh?”
Yang Hwichun looked at Dok Go-ryong with suspicion. But Dok Go-ryong answered with even more shameless confidence than Sowol.
“It’s my personal lucky spot, so I can’t reveal it.”
“Hmph, when did I ever ask? Keep it to yourself and fish all you want.”
Fortunately, he lost interest with a scoff.
‘Brother, do you think the Flame King is also after the Hwari?’
Dang Jin-ak sent a telepathic message to Dok Go-ryong while Yang Hwichun was talking with Sowol.
‘…He might be. Maybe others are after it too, not just him.’
‘What should we do? If the others are all top-tier masters like him…’
‘Even so, we should be able to snag at least one. The kid only needs a thousand-year one, not a ten-thousand-year one.’
‘True, most will be focused on the ten-thousand-year Hwari, so we can…’
‘We just need to grab the thousand-year one.’
Still, what was this uneasy feeling?
There were already two known factions on this boat alone after the Thousand-Year Hwari. There might be more.
Just how many Hwari fishers were currently gathering on Haenam Island?
***
“When fishing, you must never show impatience. Only with endurance and perseverance can one catch fish.”
“So it’s like fishing for time.”
“Exactly! Despite being young, Sowol has a wise heart.”
“…Tch. What good is that if I can’t catch a single fish?”
Despite Yang Hwichun’s praise, Eun Sowol sagged her shoulders in disappointment.
Currently, she was fishing alongside Yang Hwichun and Dang Jin-ak.
It took a full day and half to reach Haenam Island by boat. Since they boarded yesterday evening, they would arrive at dawn the next day.
To ease her boredom, Yang Hwichun had suggested fishing.
She readily agreed, hoping it would help pass the time… but—
“How is it even possible not to catch a single one?”
She hadn’t even had a nibble.
Eun Sowol, now bored again, leaned against the railing and yawned every few moments.
Baekwoon, also slouched over the railing like a pile of laundry, mimicked her yawns.
“Haaam… Ptooey! Ack! Uncle Aki!”
As Sowol yawned with her mouth wide open, Dang Jin-ak shoved his finger into it. Sowol accidentally bit it lightly and smacked his shoulder in protest with her little fists.
Dang Jin-ak chuckled softly, dodging her playful attacks.
“I’m done! This is boring!”
Eventually, Sowol let go of the fishing rod.
“But it’s just starting. Why not try a little longer, child?”
“What do you mean starting? I haven’t caught a single fish!”
She glanced at the empty fish basket with disdain and snorted.
“Forget it, Grandpa. Tell me another fun story, like last time!”
“A fun story… Is there anything in particular you want to hear? What I’ve told you so far isn’t even a tenth of my stories.”
“Tell me about something that happened in Haenam!”
“The place we’re headed?”
“Yes! Haven’t you been there before? You said you traveled around the Central Plains.”
“Of course! Whenever I got bored, I’d head over to Haenam. Let’s see… Since it’s an island region, it’s full of fresh seafood, and it’s especially famous for its pearls. There are also hot springs scattered around, making it quite a tourist spot.”
“Ooh! Pearls and hot springs!”
Eun Sowol’s face melted into a dreamy smile, imagining herself adorned in pearl jewelry and soaking in a warm spring.
“But I’ve heard pirates roam freely around there.”
At Dang Jin-ak’s words, Sowol snapped back to reality.
“P-Pirates…?”
“My grandfather once said he ran into pirates on the way to Haenam Island.”
“Ah, yes. Pirates are quite active in that area. But like bandits or tollkeepers, if you pay them a certain fee, they usually let you pass without issue. Sometimes, fools who don’t know their place get out of hand. By the way… Dangpa, now that’s a name I haven’t heard in a while.”
“You know my grandfather?”
Dang Jin-ak’s eyes widened slightly.
“Of course I do. We fought on the same battlefield long ago. I believe we took care of those pirates together back then.”
“I didn’t know Grandpa had ties with the Flame King. Why haven’t I heard about this before…?”
Up until now, all Dang Jin-ak had heard about Yang Hwichun were warnings from his clan leader.
“So, you’re closely connected with Dangpa.”
“Yes. I am his direct disciple and current heir to the Sichuan Dang Clan—Dang Jin-ak, at your service.”
“Oh? You’re more prominent than I expected. But why would the heir of the Sichuan Dang Clan travel the world without followers?”
“Ahaha, well, various reasons. But mainly because I admire my senior.”
“You mean that rascal next to you?”
Next to Dang Jin-ak, Dok Go-ryong sat slumped, face covered with a black hat, asleep against the railing.
Dang Jin-ak gave an awkward smile, recalling the bickering between them.
“His words may be rough, but to me, he’s a lifesaver.”
“Hmph… a lifesaver, you say…”
Yang Hwichun didn’t seem entirely convinced.
Maybe if Jin-ak said he was being blackmailed, the old man would have nodded in agreement.
“So, Grandpa, how did you catch the pirates?”
Prompted by Sowol’s curiosity, Yang Hwichun snapped out of his thoughts and continued.
“How? I just set fire to their ship and gave them each a nice lump on the forehead. That rascal kept bragging about being the Sea King or whatever—he was a real headache back then.”
“S-Sea King? That sounds like a really powerful guy! Like you, Grandpa!”
“Pfft! Powerful? He was just some third-rate thug! Once I darted around their ship and turned it into kindling, they lost the will to fight! The sight of a pillar of fire rising in the middle of the open sea—Sowol, you should’ve seen it!”
It sounded like another tall tale…
But now that they knew he was the Flame King, it didn’t sound so far-fetched anymore.
“Ahem. Since then, pirate activity has declined significantly. Last I checked, the Haenam Sect was regularly sweeping them out.”
“You mean the Haenam Sect I know?”
“Yes, the same Haenam Sect that’s part of the Nine Great Sects. Do you know what that is?”
“I know the basics.”
Nine martial sects and one powerful gang—the pillars of the Murim world.
“Shaolin, Wudang, Beggar’s Sect, Mount Hua, Haenam Sect… and…”
What were the others?
When Sowol couldn’t finish, Yang Hwichun chuckled.
“Amitabha, Kunlun, Zhongnan, Gongdong, and Jeomchang.”
“Wow! You remember all of them?”
“Haha! I’ve been in the martial world nearly seventy years. Of course I do.”
She could never memorize more than the major ones, even after reading so many martial arts novels.
And not all the Nine Great Sects even played big roles in the original work.
But she did know about the Haenam Sect.
After all, that’s where they were headed—and it had been mentioned in the original.
‘The protagonist’s internal energy core containing the Yeoryang Energy was found there.’
To be precise, it had been discovered by the Namgung Clan in the past. After a bet with his father, the protagonist ended up obtaining it.
Judging by the surrounding context… that core was most likely from a Ten-Thousand-Year Hwari!
And if there’s a Ten-Thousand-Year Hwari, there has to be a Thousand-Year one too!
‘I’m so glad I brought those two along.’
Eun Sowol smiled slyly as she thought about Lee Jaeha and Lee Mugul, the father and son who had tipped her off about the Hwari.
