Chapter 09 …
Someone Else
“Even if I tell you, you’ll complain anyway. I’m not going to teach you anything tastier than hangwa anymore.”
At the mention of something tastier than hangwa, Jianling’s eyes sparkled, and the mischievous expression from before disappeared completely.
“Is there really something tastier than hangwa?”
“Of course! There are so many things tastier than hangwa.”
“What is it then?”
“Uh… I’m not telling you!”
Jianling’s expression changed instantly.
“Why won’t you tell me? You don’t know, right?”
“No, I know! Grandma, don’t teach Jianling Uncle, okay?”
“Alright, alright, I won’t teach him either.”
The old woman spoke with a kindly smile, like a loving grandmother. She seemed to enjoy watching the two of them and nodded repeatedly.
“That’s unfair… Grandma! That’s not fair, is it?”
“Why not! Here it is.”
As Jin Aseol interjected, Jianling pouted.
“Oh, right!”
Then Jianling suddenly seemed to remember something and said,
“What’s right?”
“It’s about time your dad comes to the marketplace.”
“Who?”
“Who else? Your dad. Let’s go.”
“Really? Then let’s go. Grandma, I’ll come see you again later.”
“Sure. Do as you wish.”
Jin Aseol greeted the old woman and held Jianling’s hand as they walked together toward the marketplace entrance.
The old woman watched them with a meaningful smile.
“I had been waiting, thinking this young one would have outstanding talent, but a child even more exceptional has appeared before my eyes… If these two children are accepted as disciples of our sect, our sect’s name will surely resound throughout the martial world.”
The old woman’s name was Leng Yuesol, the former head of the Wolyeong Sect, known in the martial world as Wolyeong Seonja.
She had coincidentally discovered Jin Aseol and was trying to gain her trust to make her a disciple, when she noticed Jianling.
At that moment, Jianling’s voice reached Leng Yuesol’s ears.
“I’m telling the truth. That grandma is really a martial arts master too.”
Leng Yuesol’s eyes sparkled.
“Lies! How can grandma be a martial arts master? I know her better than you do.”
“I’m telling the truth. She’s weaker than me, but she really is a martial arts master.”
Leng Yuesol chuckled softly. She thought Jianling was lying.
If someone could recognize her as a martial artist, they would either have a similar level of accomplishment or be a true master. But she had checked Jianling carefully and could find no traces of martial training.
“Are you trying to tease Aseol again?”
“No, really… How can you not believe people?”
“Uncle always lies whenever he opens his mouth.”
Despite the constant grumbling, the two walked side by side toward the marketplace.
“Wow! He’s really coming.”
“See? I told you I wasn’t lying!”
Jianling said proudly, but Jin Aseol had already run ahead.
“Dad!”
Seeing Jin Aseol running toward him calling his name, Jin Seol was flustered, but he spread his arms wide and picked her up.
“How did you come out here?”
“Well, Uncle Jianling said it was about time Dad came, so I came out. And he really is coming! Like a mouse stepping behind an ox!”
Jianling could only shrug at Jin Aseol’s words.
Jin Seol looked at Jianling with a slightly displeased expression.
It was natural; he didn’t like an outsider mingling with his precious daughter. But since he was too busy to play with Jin Aseol himself, he let her play with Jianling without objection.
“So, you finished your work and are now playing with Aseol?”
“Yes, Lord Jin!”
Jianling’s demeanor now was different from when speaking with Leng Yuesol.
He strictly distinguished between martial artists and ordinary people.
Although the Pyo clan could be considered part of the martial world in some sense, Jianling only considered those whose names were known in the martial world. So Jin Seol and the Pyo clan’s members were not seen as martial artists by him.
“It’s time to sort out the tributes. You really finished all your work?”
“Really! Uncle Jianling is super fast.”
Jin Aseol defended Jianling, and Jin Seol’s expression softened as he nodded with a smile.
“Alright, Aseol! Let’s go home.”
“Okay!”
As Jin Seol carried Jin Aseol and walked, the Pyo clan members and retainers followed behind.
Jianling stepped aside and waited for them to pass.
Then Jianling noticed the bag of hangwa Jin Aseol was holding.
“Oh, right. My hangwa. Hey! I need to get my hangwa back!”
Jin Aseol stuck her tongue out and smiled victoriously at Jianling’s shout from behind.
“So, the Wangak Mountain Fort gang fought the Gangnam Pyo clan in Hong Kong and seized their tributes, right?”
Ogu, the vice leader of Buddha Mountain Fort, reported to the leader Son Oh after investigating the signs of the massacre at Wangak Mountain Fort.
“Yes. And the Lord of the Gangnam Pyo clan, Jin Seol, called the ruthless spear master Gong Myeongdo and visited Wangak Mountain Fort with the Pyo clan members. They took all the tributes and the items in the fort.”
Leader Geobeok of Buddha Mountain Fort gathered Omu. Something didn’t add up.
There were no visible wounds on the corpses, nor signs of a major fight. They were reportedly killed internally. But Gong Myeongdo wasn’t skilled enough to do such a thing, as far as Son Oh knew.
“Ogu!”
“…!”
Son Oh calling him by name with affection made Ogu feel strangely uneasy.
“If you fought Gong Myeongdo, who would win?”
“Someone like Gong Myeongdo? Twenty seconds would be enough.”
He spoke confidently. Though a little slow-witted, he was one of the twelve leaders of the Nokrim in Guangdong.
“Yeah, I think so too. But if you attacked Wangak Mountain Fort, could you really massacre them like that?”
“Well…”
“I know the fort’s leader, Akjeong. Though he may not match Gong Myeongdo, he should be able to fight for at least fifty seconds. With luck, he could even win.”
Ogu nodded. There was nothing wrong with Son Oh’s reasoning.
“Check again.”
“Eh?”
“Someone else got involved.”
“Who?”
Son Oh gestured to Ogu. Unease gripped Ogu as he approached Son Oh. This uneasy feeling had never been wrong before.
Thunk-thud-thud!
“You idiot! That’s why I’m telling you to check!”
“Is that true?”
Two men in shabby clothing, with messy hair and worn-out shoes, were sitting under a large willow tree along a busy street, talking casually.
They were beggars.
But not ordinary beggars—these were part of the martial world’s Gaebangbando, a notorious group under the Gu Pailbang.
Gaebang!
Although appearing as beggars, they were one of the three major intelligence networks of the martial world, along with Hao Mun and the Heaven’s Trading Union.
Their combat power was impressive, but more fearsome was their intelligence network. Their ability to gather information was unparalleled.
Not all beggars were part of Gaebangbando. The best way to identify a member was the knots they wore around their waist.
The left beggar had two knots, and the right beggar had three knots. Three knots usually indicated a minor regional leader.
These two were Gaebang’s Hong Kong branch leaders, Gaegulgae and Nageolgae.
“They say Buddha Mountain Fort’s Nokrimdo have entered Hong Kong. This is because Akjeong of Wangak Mountain Fort and thirty others were massacred by someone using internal martial skills.”
A month had passed since the Wangak Mountain Fort incident. It was so quiet that even Gaebang didn’t know what had happened until they noticed unusual activity from Buddha Mountain Fort.
“To whom?”
Nageolgae asked in surprise. Not many could kill using internal martial skills.
“It’s not known yet.”
“If they were killed using internal martial arts, a true master must have visited Wangak Mountain Fort.”
“Yes. Judging by the way the massacre was carried out, it must have been someone from the heterodox side, not a simple dispute.”
“Hmm…”
“But there’s something strange.”
“What?”
“Before Wangak Mountain Fort was massacred, they had a dispute with the Gangnam Pyo clan. The tributes were taken, and Pyo Duna’s right hand was cut off by Akjeong. Jin Seol called Gong Myeongdo to retrieve the tributes…”
The two recounted the events so far.
Hearing this, Gaegulgae instinctively thought a bloodstorm was about to descend on Hong Kong.
“They probably touched the items because they were unguarded?”
“Yes. But for Buddha Mountain Fort, which manages Guangdong’s Nokrimdo, it wouldn’t have been a pleasant matter.”
“Of course. They’ve probably taken others’ items before, but never had their own taken.”
Even though they spoke openly on a busy street, no one paid them any attention, allowing them to converse freely.
“Buddha Mountain Fort is also looking for the internal master, but if they wait too long, they won’t leave the Gangnam Pyo clan alone.”
Gaegulgae nodded. If Buddha Mountain Fort left the Pyo clan alone, their reputation would suffer, and they would exact a fitting punishment.
“The Gangnam Pyo clan could disappear.”
“Given the Wangak Mountain Fort incident, they won’t overlook this lightly.”
“Right. But we have no reason to help them, correct?”
“Exactly. Observing is best. Our priority is finding the internal master, not the Gangnam Pyo clan.”
“True. That guy might cause trouble elsewhere.”
Gaegulgae looked determined.
“Check it out. Place people with both the Gangnam Pyo clan and Buddha Mountain Fort to observe what Buddha Mountain Fort will do.”
“Understood.”
“Good. I’ll report this to the branch and request support if needed. That’s all for now.”
“Got it!”
Nageolgae got up and strolled along the street. Gaegulgae slowly stood, looked at the sky, and said,
“The weather’s really nice today.
