Chapter 82
“Excuse me.”
Namgung Baek’s gaze was fixed on the two men who had just entered the inn.
One had eyebrows that met in the middle like a seagull’s wings, and the other had a face pitted with pockmarks.
They were looking around as if searching for something, and they were dressed unmistakably as Taoists.
The only peculiar thing was that both of them were wearing leather gloves.
However, with the worn-out caps on their heads, the frayed sleeves of their black robes, and their white tunics, they were certainly Taoists.
Very poor ones, at that.
Hong-seol clapped her hands together.
“They’re as black and white as the lyrics of the song!”
“Besides, people often call Taoists ‘horse-noses,’ don’t they?”
It was a mocking term, suggesting that the way Taoists squinted their eyes while wearing their caps made them look like horses.
“Baek.”
At Namgung Ho’s gentle reprimand, Baek quietly nodded, as if acknowledging his mistake.
“Oh, heavens!”
Just then, the Taoists spotted them and rushed over in a flurry.
Before they could even open their mouths, Namgung Ho spoke first.
“I have cast a barrier of energy, so speak freely.”
He had wrapped them in an invisible barrier of energy so that the people in the inn could not eavesdrop on their conversation.
It was a feat that only a Master of Namgung Ho’s caliber could perform.
“Yes, yes!”
The Taoists in their caps nodded repeatedly before prostrating themselves on the floor.
They were on the verge of tears.
“What on earth is the matter?”
“Please, help our Changnyeong Sect, Elder!”
“Elder!”
“A great calamity has befallen our Changnyeong Sect!”
“That is correct!”
It seemed the one with the seagull eyebrows held a higher rank.
Judging by how the pockmarked one echoed every word the other said like a reflection.
Changnyeong Sect?
Hong-seol and Baek exchanged glances at the unfamiliar name.
The situation was as follows.
“We have come from Mount Changnyeong, which is about a day’s ride from here. We are a Taoist sect with some renown in the vicinity.”
“That is correct!”
A Taoist sect?
Hong-seol, who had been thinking of the Mount Hua or Wudang Sects, tilted her head.
Looking to the side, it seemed the name was unfamiliar to Namgung Ho as well.
“I apologize, but...”
The seagull-browed man read Namgung Ho’s troubled expression and waved his hand.
“It is only natural that you do not know us! Our sect has not even been around for a hundred years.”
“Yes, it has not been that long.”
“Oh, is that so?”
“Our founder, the True Man Han Seo-jin, was originally a disciple of the Wudang Sect. But he had his own convictions, so he opened this independent sect.”
“We are similar to the Wudang Sect, yet different! Though rare, we do accept female disciples.”
“I see.”
Namgung Ho nodded.
Since the Wudang Sect’s headquarters was also located in Hubei Province, it was not strange for there to be a branch.
“Our sect focuses on the sword, and we have created and mastered quite a few outstanding martial arts.”
“They are martial arts worth seeing.”
“In particular, the technique of ‘No-Pass Hand,’ which directly defends against an opponent’s sword with one’s bare hands, is immense!”
“It is truly astonishing!”
“It is made possible by these ‘Leather Hand-Gloves.’”
“They are gloves made from specially tanned leather!”
As they spoke, the seagull-browed man and the pockmarked one proudly clapped their gloved fists together.
‘Ah, so they were items used for martial arts.’
The moment of understanding regarding their peculiar leather gloves arrived.
The Taoists continued, spitting as they spoke.
“We have already reached the third generation of Sect Leaders.”
“Not the second, but the third!”
They seemed to have quite a bit of pride in their sect.
The explanation was dragging on.
At this rate, the sun would set.
“But why did you come looking for my grandfather?”
When Hong-seol suddenly interjected, the seagull-browed man and the pockmarked one looked at her with skepticism.
“Come to think of it, who is this young lady...? Is she someone who should be hearing about our sect’s affairs?”
“Is she someone who should?”
Namgung Ho waved his hand.
“It is fine to speak. In fact, it was this child who realized there was a hidden meaning in the nursery rhyme you spread among the children.”
“Oh! As expected, the young lady of the Namgung Clan is brilliant from the start.”
“Indeed, she is extraordinary.”
The young lady of the Namgung Clan.
It was a title that felt ticklish and pleasant, yet burdensome.
Hong-seol blushed in embarrassment.
‘Wh-what do I do? Should I tell them the truth now? If I stay quiet, Grandfather and Brother might think it’s strange.’
It was Namgung Baek who saved Hong-seol.
“You saw correctly. Seol is the most brilliant among my siblings.”
Feeling both happy and shy, Hong-seol lowered her head.
‘To think Brother Namgung Baek would say that...’
He seemed genuinely pleased by the Taoists’ reference to her as the “young lady of the Namgung Clan.”
“No, are you not the genius Namgung Baek, famous throughout the land! Seeing how you cherish her like a jewel, she must indeed be a remarkable young lady.”
“She must be brilliant!”
The Taoists seemed to believe Hong-seol was from a branch family of the Namgung Clan.
Namgung Ho also watched the situation with a satisfied expression, his arms crossed.
“I didn't do it all by myself. Grandfather and Brother helped me...”
Embarrassed by the praise, Hong-seol stuck out her tiny pink tongue and bowed her head.
Having finished praising Hong-seol, the Taoists got to the point.
“Actually, our second-generation Sect Leader recently ascended to immortality.”
“Ascended?”
“It means he became a god, or in other words, he passed away.”
Namgung Baek whispered an explanation to the puzzled Hong-seol.
The seagull-browed man continued.
“We were keeping the former Sect Leader’s body in the mourning hall to hold the funeral, but...”
His voice trailed off.
Even the pockmarked one, who had been habitually echoing his senior brother, bit his lip and fidgeted.
‘Why are they like that?’
What could be the matter that they were hesitating so much?
“Speak your mind clearly.”
“Yes, the truth is...”
Even though the energy barrier was up, the seagull-browed man lowered his voice to a whisper.
“The late Sect Leader has become a Jiangshi.”
“What?”
At those words, Namgung Ho’s eyebrows twitched.
Feeling his sleeve tugged, Namgung Baek looked down. A terrified Hong-seol was clutching his sleeve.
It was a chance to score some points.
- It is alright, I am here.
Namgung Baek sent a Voice Transmission and raised his hand to pat Hong-seol’s back.
He could feel the little girl’s trembling subside little by little.
“We do not know the reason either. The problem is that the late Sect Leader has awakened as a Jiangshi and is destroying the temple grounds.”
“The whole place is in chaos!”
“During the day, he hides in the surrounding mountains, but as soon as night falls, he comes out and wreaks havoc. We do not know when he might harm the disciples of our sect!”
“It is a dangerous situation!”
“The late Sect Leader, who used the Taoist names ‘Jang’ and ‘Wi,’ was a master who had honed his sword art to the limit. You must surely know his name, Elder.”
“You must know... you do know, right?”
The pockmarked one, who had been parroting his senior, panicked and turned his statement into a question.
However, Namgung Ho frowned, as if he couldn't quite recall.
Finally, the seagull-browed man sighed and gave the answer.
“The late Sect Leader originally used the names ‘Eon,’ ‘Jun,’ and ‘gyo.’”
“He was from the Jinju Eon Family.”
“The Sword of No Return, Eon Jun-gyo!”
It was the nickname that finally burst from Namgung Ho’s lips as he remembered.
“Yes, that is correct. I heard that you defeated the late Sect Leader in a duel when you were young. We simply cannot handle the late Sect Leader now that he has become a Jiangshi.”
“It is beyond our ability.”
“Therefore, we are asking for help from the Sword King, who once defeated the late Sect Leader.”
“Please, help us.”
The way the Taoists bowed their heads looked truly desperate.
However, Namgung Ho’s expression remained uneasy.
“Even if he was a Sect Leader with peerless martial arts, he must have passed all his skills on to his disciples. If all the disciples attacked together, would it not be possible to suppress him?”
At that, the Taoists’ faces grew even darker.
“Even if he is a Jiangshi, it is the body of our late Sect Leader. Please understand the hearts of his unworthy disciples who cannot bring themselves to strike him.”
“We ask for your understanding.”
“Hmm.”
Namgung Ho stroked his beard, looking troubled.
“I have one question.”
“Please, speak.”
“Why did you not seek help from the Martial World Alliance in Wuhan, but instead seek me out in secret?”
If it were the Martial World Alliance Leader, with his mastery of the Soul-Snatching Palm, he would surely be more than capable of suppressing the Sword of No Return.
At those words, the two Taoists exchanged glances.
The seagull-browed man spoke as if apologetic.
“Actually, it is because of... the current Sect Leader.”
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