Chapter 120
Not long after that, another message arrived from the Great Tian Sect.
According to Choyo, the messenger who brought the letter was the same little kid who had come before.
“Again?”
“Yes, it was the same child.”
It seemed strange that, despite being extremely cautious, they kept using the same messenger every time. But Choyo had observed the kid closely and found nothing unusual or special about him.
“Then it doesn’t matter.”
If Choyo, whose intuition was keen, said there was nothing particularly strange, then it was safe to trust him.
I checked the letter sent by the Qi of the Great Tian Sect.
The sender seemed to have taken control of the Great Tian Sect and, perhaps having changed their alias in the meantime, signed the letter as “Daechun-Ya.”
“Did he change it himself?”
Probably not. A title like that couldn’t just be changed at will.
But given the arrogance and overflowing egos of the lesser sect disciples, maybe it was possible.
“That’s not the important part.”
Whether he called himself Daechun-Ya or inherited the name of Daechun-Gui wasn’t my concern.
However, the content of the letter was something I needed to pay close attention to.
It roughly detailed the instructions that the Blood Demon Sect had given to the Great Tian Sect.
[Report
…
…was instructed to find something. They said that if it is found, this mistake will be forgiven.]
“What are they supposed to find?”
Some words were written, but the text was smudged, or perhaps deliberately vague so that it wouldn’t be easy to understand.
And… if they lost something, couldn’t they just retrieve it themselves? Why make the Great Tian Sect do it?
It was subtly suspicious.
I narrowed my eyes and stared at the letter for a long time.
It wasn’t a forgery.
They wouldn’t lie recklessly when entrusting their lives to me.
“Hmm.”
I closed my eyes and pondered.
It seemed death truly frightened them. That ruse I hastily thought of had still fooled them faithfully.
Of course.
When one has nothing in hand, death is not frightening.
But the more one possesses, the more terrifying death becomes.
So anyone with much to lose is inevitably weak.
Now, with the Daechun-Gui dead and the Great Tian Sect under his control, he must be even more afraid of dying. The Qi’s main goal would be to extract the antidote from me.
Moreover, the Qi had been deceived at the moment when his master had died, and he himself was standing at death’s threshold.
Deceived at his weakest moment, even if doubts lingered about my actions that day, he would not easily shake the suspicion buried deep in his heart.
After staring at the letter for some time, I called for Yingying.
“Yingying! Bring me paper, brush, and ink.”
“Paper, brush, and ink?”
“Yes, I’m going to write a letter.”
Straight to the Tianhua Sect Leader.
It seemed the rabbit hunt was not yet finished, so I had to inform him that we would need the hunting dogs a little longer.
And…
“I need to write to Cheonghyeon too.”
I gripped the brush Yingying brought me and thought about the contents of the letters I would send to the two of them.
“Master, a letter has arrived.”
A young disciple of the Tianhua Sect ran in, carrying a letter brought by a messenger from the Tang Sect.
He handed the letter to the sect leader with a bright expression.
“A letter from the Tang Sect.”
“Let me see.”
Yu Daeseung’s face brightened at the news of the letter.
The young disciple quickly handed it over, wondering, ‘Would a letter from the Tang Sect make him this happy?’ and quietly stepped back.
Without hesitation, Yu Daeseung opened and read the letter.
[Tianhua Sect Leader, Tianhua Sword Yu Daeseung – Personal
Greetings, Leader.
The days have grown quite cold.
I hope you are well.
Is Cheonyeong well? And Jaheon?
I have no doubt that the sect leaders are also doing well.
Bia is doing fine as well, and my father is well.
The reason for this letter is to request your help.
It concerns the Great Tian Sect.
Do you recall when I mentioned that one year would suffice? I must apologize, but I think I need to slightly revise that statement.
New information has arrived, and I wish to investigate it further, so I would like to make use of the Great Tian Sect a bit longer.
I feel uneasy that my personal curiosity delays the leader’s revenge, but, as I said, this is important to me, so I hope you will allow this favor once more.
If you do not wish it, I will accept your decision with humility.
After all, the leader’s peace of mind is more important than their lives, and a friend’s revenge is more important than my curiosity.
– Tangbi]
Yu Daeseung immediately wrote a reply.
[There is no problem in granting the favor.
However, when you trick him into taking a supposedly harmless medicine, making him bleed and almost die, didn’t you clearly specify a one-year period?
I wonder how you intend to resolve that.]
Shortly after, a reply arrived from the Tang Sect.
[Tianhua Sect Leader, Tianhua Sword Yu Daeseung – Personal
Leader,
Do not worry, there is a method.
Tangbi has devised a clever plan.]
[It would be good if you could give me a hint about this plan.
If not, it’s fine.
I will not force you to reveal anything.]
Yu Daeseung wrote back again. He was curious what scheme this clever little girl had come up with.
By now, Yu Daeseung began looking forward to the days when letters from Tangbi would arrive.
It was a pleasant diversion in his otherwise tedious life.
Of course, he was still busy perfecting the final move of the Tianhua Hundred-Flow Sword Technique, but in other times, the days were dull as ever.
Corresponding with Tangbi had become an enjoyable activity.
The Tang Sect messenger who frequently came to deliver letters had also grown close with the disciples of the Tianhua Sect.
This was evidence of the frequent correspondence between Tangbi and Yu Daeseung.
[Yu Daeseung – Personal
Consider your age.
A child your age is not expected to use underhanded tricks against seniors.
Moreover, he intended to harm you.
There is no need for mercy in your hands.]
One of the Tianhua Sect disciples departed for Sajeon with the reply, and Yu Daeseung sat near the window where he could see the flowering tree, waiting again for a letter.
The tree, planted years ago, had grown considerably, much like a child growing swiftly.
Meanwhile, at the Namgung family…
Namgung Taegang asked Namgung Cheonghyeon, who was sitting quietly as if waiting for something:
“What are you waiting for?”
Cheonghyeon hesitated briefly before answering:
“A letter.”
“Huh?”
“A letter from Tangbi.”
Namgung Cheonghyeon was already holding a few letters Tangbi had sent previously.
Taegang was curious about what they had discussed but didn’t bother to ask.
The backwash pushes the front wave aside,
The sandbar piled like a mountain crumbles into pieces,
Time flows like water, years flee like the wind.
Several seasons pass.
With time, spring blossoms bloom again,
Newly-feathered birds stretch their necks and sing.
Mountain peaks, which seemed indestructible, are worn down slightly by the wind,
And the fragments roll down slopes as soil and gravel.
A child sheds their infancy,
The child grows, passes through youth, and prepares to become a boy.
