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Chapter 67. The Cold Glint of a Well-Polished Sword (14)

‘He wanted me to go visit him.’

“Then, please introduce me to the Hefei Prefect.”

“Really? Well, if you want to see him, then why don’t we go right now? I just happen to have some business there.”

“Huh? Right away?”

“Yeah. Let’s go!”

Having tied down the ox, Si-Hyeon figured that she might as well cut off the horns.[1]Thus, Woo-Moon and Si-Hyeon quickly set off for the Hefei Prefecture government office.

“Oh, oh! Young hero Song! I’ve been waiting for you.”

When Wang Geon-Pyeong heard that Woo-Moon had come to visit, he was delighted and came out to meet him.

“Hello, Prefect Wang.”

The two people exchanged small pleasantries for a while, and then Wang Geon-Pyeong looked over at Si-Hyeon and Ma-Ra.

“By the way, young hero Song, who are these beauties you brought with you? They must be your betrothed, correct?”

Although it was true that people in Murim tended to get married a little later[2], most ordinary people would have already been married at Woo-Moon’s age, even more so for someone of his status, a child of an influential person in society.

Thus, it was more than understandable for Wang Geon-Pyeong to misunderstand.

“No,” Ma-Ra said coldly, with an expressionless face.

On the other hand, Woo-Moon and Si-Hyeon’s faces turned red.

“They aren’t, Prefect Wang.”

“N-no!”

“Oh, pardon my misunderstanding, young hero! Then, would you mind introducing the two of them?”

As he spoke, Wang Geon-Pyeong glared at Ma-Ra. To think this little girl dared to speak so brusquely to him despite not even being Song Woo-Moon’s betrothed! However, when Ma-Ra stared back at him with a frosty, cold gaze, he flinched in fear.

‘W-what the hell is she? Why is her stare so terrifying? Someone might mistake her for some kind of merciless killer with a glare like that.’

“This is my junior disciple-sister. She is also the Guild Master of the Leebi Merchant Guild.”

Si-Hyeon bowed her head politely, feeling grateful to Woo-Moon for introducing her as the Guild Master.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Prefect Wang.”

“A, haha. Please excuse my mistake. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Guild Master.”

As Wang Geon-Pyeong greeted her hesitantly, Woo-Moon continued with a wry grin, “And this young lady is my personal escort.”

“Ah, I see...Wait, personal escort? But aren’t you an expert martial artist? Do you really need an escort? Moreover, she’s a woman, just how...”

“Although she may be a woman, she’s just as skilled as I am.”

“Oh! Is that so? That’s amazing,” Wang Geon-Pyeong said somewhat distractedly, while the gears in his mind were spinning even faster now. According to his research, Woo-Moon was someone who had recently joined the Iron Sword Baek Family and was the grandson of the Palm Martial Emperor.

‘To think he not only has a relationship with the Saber Emperor but he’s also the grandson of the Palm Martial Emperor. That’s pretty damn incredible. The closer I get to him, the better the benefits will be. Moreover, if that girl is his junior disciple sister, doesn’t that mean she’s the Palm Martial Emperor’s grand disciple?’

The two Absolute Masters—the Palm Martial Emperor and the Saber Emperor. They were two figures that no one in the imperial government, including the emperor himself, could ever ignore.

There were a total of fourteen Absolute Masters in the world, and among them, three were members of the government. This granted the imperial government a very high status; besides the Justice Coalition, it was the only force to have three Absolute Masters among the ranks.

Of course, the government officials firmly believed that they still didn’t have enough Absolute Masters, but unfortunately for them, that wasn’t something they could change just because they wanted to.

Most of the martial artists who joined the imperial government were far more likely to pursue political power and reputation rather than honor, valor, or perfecting their cultivation.

Moreover, even if they never intended to pursue political power originally, once they spent a long enough time in the imperial government, they would gradually become aware of its incredible advantages. Once that happened, most started to only consider martial cultivation as nothing more than a means to elevate their official position, which led most officials to strive to reach Peak-level cultivation at most. Such cultivation was more than enough to guarantee a high position and allow them to flaunt their status wherever they went.

As a result, despite the fact that the imperial government had directly opened the imperial library to officials and encouraged cultivation, the ratio of Absolute Masters to martial artists was significantly lower than that of other martial forces. Of course, that was exactly why the three Absolute Masters who were members of the imperial government were even more respected.

The four people went to the drawing room of the Hefei Prefect’s residence and drank tea as they talked about various things. In the midst of their conversation, Wang Geon-Pyeong suddenly took out a black jade tablet from his pocket and handed it to Woo-Moon.

“What’s this?”

“This is a magistrate’s tablet bestowed upon you by His Majesty the Emperor himself. Also, this is...”

Wang Geon-Pyeong took out a second object—a book made of what seemed to be extremely high-quality materials.

“This is the Nine Yin White Bone Claw, one of the imperial palace martial arts. This is also bestowed upon you by His Majesty the Emperor himself.[3]

Si-Hyeon’s eyes sparkled. It was truly a great thing to be bestowed a royal award by the Emperor himself.

“Whoa, hold on a moment there! I told you I didn’t want to take a government position, didn’t I? Also, I don’t think my achievements were great enough to deserve an award like this anyway...”

“Yes, yes, I know. Actually, this is an honorary magistrate’s identity tablet.”

“Honorary magistrate’s identity tablet?”

“Yes. Basically, this tablet grants you the magistrate status. However, note that I am saying ‘status’ rather than ‘position.’ You will not be considered an actual member of the government and you won’t have to take any orders in that quality. It’s just the status, with no obligations attached.”

If that really was the case, there was no reason for Woo-Moon to refuse. Moreover, in any case, as a citizen of the empire, Woo-Moon was fearful of repercussions if he refused a reward the emperor bestowed directly upon him.

Regardless of how Woo-Moon felt about the reward, the emperor was the emperor. Under him, there were three Absolute Masters and plenty of Transcendent and Peak martial artists, with millions of soldiers as subordinates. Even the Demonic Cults, considered the strongest among the powerful sects, had to make way and bow their heads in front of the imperial family.

Woo-Moon accepted the imperial identification tablet and the luxuriously made manual handed to him by Wang Geon-Pyeong.

The tablet was inscribed with the words “Bestowed upon Song Woo-Moon by order of His Majesty the Emperor,” as well as a note that it was an honorary position.

‘Well, this is fine, I guess. I don’t even know the relevant commandments and tasks anyway, so that worked out well.’

He then cast a cursory glance at the manual, then put it in his pocket.

Woo-Moon and Si-Hyeon didn’t know about this, as they were practically country bumpkins, but the Nine Yin White Bone Claw was truly an incredible technique. Four hundred years ago, it had been used by the Emperor’s number-one expert, and its power remained a legend throughout the world.

Still, seeing Woo-Moon receiving an award and military honors directly from the Emperor, Si-Hyeon was as happy as if it were her own award.

‘That’s amazing, just amazing!’

The two weren’t aware of it, but in fact, it was due to the aid of the Saber Emperor Jeong I-Moon that Woo-Moon had been bestowed with such an incredible award. Jeong I-Moon had even put off pursuing the Blood Cloud Devil Emperor in order to meet with the Emperor to speak about Woo-Moon personally.

Specifically, Jeong I-Moon insisted that Woo-Moon would become an important figure in the future, so he wanted to build a good relationship between the boy and the imperial government before that happened. Moreover, he had also mentioned that Woo-Moon was the grandson of the Palm Martial Emperor. Therefore, the Emperor, who trusted Jeong I-Moon’s loyalty and judgement, personally bestowed a title and rank upon Woo-Moon.

As Woo-Moon and the others conversed, Woo-Moon then mentioned something that he had noticed earlier.

“By the way, Prefect Wang, something seems to be bothering you. Has anything bad happened recently?”

“Oh, was it noticeable?”

Although Wang Geon-Pyeong was going to be recognized for his contributions regarding the slave market this time around and receive a higher position, he wasn’t able to enjoy that thought.

After musing for a while, he finally spoke up.

“My youngest daughter, whom I love the most, has been kidnapped!”

“Huh?”

Woo-Moon and Si-Hyeon were surprised.

“Three nights ago, an intruder suddenly broke into my residence and kidnapped my daughter. According to my subordinates, the intruder’s attire was similar to that of a reported rapist known as the Lust Demon. He appeared in Hefei a little while back...”

It was only natural that Wang Geon-Pyeong’s face would be filled with a deep sorrow. What parent in the world wouldn’t react in this manner when discovering that a Lust Demon kidnapped their child?

Instead, Woo-Moon actually came to respect Wang Geon-Pyeong’s ability to stay professional. Even in such a situation, he was able to carry out his duties and welcome his guests with a smile.

At that time, Woo-Moon sensed a qi transmission.

—Senior Brother, I have a favor to ask.

—What is it?

—If you have time, could you catch that Lust Demon for us? I think that if we can take advantage of this opportunity to show favor to Prefect Wang, it would be of great help to both you and me in the future. Of course, I’m also worried about that girl, too.

Woo-Moon also agreed with her thought process, too. Moreover, above all, it didn’t suit his temperament just to watch while a Lust Demon operated in the city where his mother and junior sister lived.

Fortunately, there was still some time left before he had to leave on the mission.

“Thank you for telling me this, Prefect Wang. Actually, if you don’t mind, I would like to help. I’ll go look for that demon myself.”

“Oh! Would you really? It would be a blessing if you would take charge in this matter, young hero Song.”

For the sake of his daughter’s future and reputation, Wang Geon-Pyeong had been unable to inform anyone or launch any large-scale search for the culprit. Thus, when Woo-Moon, a young expert recognized by the Saber Emperor himself, offered to catch the Lust Demon, he was so grateful that he almost cried.

Woo-Moon then asked a few questions about the Lust Demon. However, his questions didn’t lead to much, as the Lust Demon moved so irregularly, coming and going so often that the Hefei Prefecture office was unable to find any relevant traces.

When Woo-Moon then returned to the family estate, he actually found out that the Iron Sword Baek Family had designated this Lust Demon as a target for extermination. However, he also discovered that no one had put much effort into finding the criminal.

If the Iron Sword Baek Family had been a sect rather than an Ancient Family, they would have put in much more effort and tried to catch the criminal.

This was one of the many differences between the sects and the Ancient Families. Most sects survived by receiving donations from local officials and merchants in return for protecting the area. By contrast, Ancient Families usually made their wealth by controlling the local markets themselves and conducting business directly. Therefore, unlike the sects, Ancient Families weren’t very active in solving local issues or maintaining public order.

Of course, if something were to happen that went beyond what they could overlook, or if it involved a member of the family, then they would have to take their own face into consideration and do their best to solve the issue.

With all of that considered, it seemed as though the Iron Sword Baek Family wasn’t taking the Lust Demon that preyed on Hefei all that seriously.

From that night on, Woo-Moon spent his days up on the roof of the tallest building in the center of Hefei, circulating the energy of the Forbidden Divine Art to keep surveillance on the city as he maintained a prime state for battle.

A day passed as he stayed vigilant, then two and three, but the Lust Demon showed no signs of appearing.

‘Why doesn’t this bastard show up?!”

It wasn’t until the fourth night, around the time that Woo-Moon started to get irritated, that he managed to find a sign of this secretive Lust Demon.

‘That’s him!’ Woo-Moon thought. He had noticed a masked man sneakily following a woman into her house and then felt a brief energy spike inside the room.

Woo-Moon considered just grabbing the Lust Demon and crippling him on the spot, but then he changed his mind when he saw the man coming out of the house with a large bundle on his shoulder.

“Looks like he’s kidnapping someone again. Alright, let me follow you to your hideout.”

As if he was perfectly familiar with Hefei’s terrain, the Lust Demon advanced quickly, avoiding populated areas and running alongside the Yangtze River. A few minutes later, he went onto a small ferry moored on the riverside and rowed down the river with skillful movements. The ferry quickly traveled to a large ship floating in the middle of the river.

“Damn it, I might lose him if I’m not careful.”

As he ran forward, Woo-Moon broke off a thick branch from a tree next to him and hurled it forward.

Woosh!

With a sharp thud, the flying branch pierced the Lust Demon’s arm.

Startled by the sudden attack, the Lust Demon quickly moored the ferry to the large ship and quickly scaled its hull.

“I won’t let you escape!”

Woo-Moon then broke off a handful of smaller branches, holding them under his arm as he darted forward to the river. He tossed them one by one onto the river’s surface and stepped on each branch as he ran forward, using them to run across the water.

Splash, splash, splash, splash!

A deluge of white foam rose around his feet and spread out in all directions.

A few moments later, he heard a shout from the vast ship the Lust Demon had escaped to.

“An enemy is approaching! Everyone, light the torches and prepare your arrows! Stop him!”

All of a sudden, the surroundings became extremely bright. What was revealed was not just one but dozens of ships!

It was the Azure Dragon Stronghold, one of the many bands of pirates that littered the Yangtze River. As the oil-filled torches were thrown into the water one by one, Woo-Moon’s figure was revealed.

“J-just what the hell is that bastard?!”

“How can that bastard use Floating Duckweed Crossing Water?!”[4]

“What are you doing? Shoot him quickly! Sink him!”

Countless arrows flew at him, but Woo-Moon took off his outer robe mid-air and spun it like a windmill, deflecting all of them.

1. A Korean proverb—if you started working on a task anyway, you should see it through to the end. ☜

2. Later with respect to the time period, where men began to get married at 15, women at 13/14, and child brides (essentially children sold into wealthy families to become brides when they reached adulthood) at 12. ☜

3. A reference to the Condor Trilogy by Jin Yong. ☜

4. A legendary movement technique that martial artists used to walk on water. ☜