Chapter 321 The Purpose of the Debate

Chapter 321: The Purpose of the Debate

Where all eyes were fixed, a handsome young man clad in black robes stood with his arms crossed.

It was Seon Woo-jin.

Beside him stood Jeungchil and about thirty others with blank expressions.

They were all dressed in white robes and blue hero caps.

Then, as Wei Zhengguo casually scanned their faces, his eyes widened in shock.

Thanks to his high martial prowess, he could recognize each and every one of their faces despite the distance.

“!”

Seon Woo-jin didn’t miss the moment his expression changed and immediately raised his voice to shout.

– These are all the martial artists from the Hyeongsan Sect that you, Wei Jung-guk, have been secretly marrying off for some time now! Surely you don’t claim ignorance?!

Wei Zhengguo could feel cold sweat trickling down his back.

‘Oh, how did he…!’

It was a crisis.

Even when the supreme masters from the north were wiped out, he hadn’t felt this desperate. But now, this was a real crisis.

If he couldn’t resolve this situation now—this situation where evidence had surfaced right here, where all the Hyeongsan Sect disciples had gathered, proving he had turned the main sect’s disciples into real-life brides—then regardless of the outcome of this battle, he himself might be buried alive.

Moreover, there was no time.

Even now, disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect who recognized their faces were murmuring here and there.

“That person… isn’t that Master Zhiwen?! He hasn’t been seen for quite some time now?!”

“That’s Master Jashang! He was teaching me kindly just a short while ago. Why is he like that…?”

Wei Zhengguo’s mind began racing.

It seemed the option of pretending not to know them was already gone.

In this situation, where those who recognized their faces had appeared, doing so would clearly backfire.

Then, the mastermind of the regime swiftly devised a second plan.

‘If I can’t pretend not to know them…’

Then he had no choice but to pretend he hadn’t heard Seon Woo-jin’s words.

Wei Jung-guk feigned an angry voice and shouted urgently.

– You bastard! What the hell did you do to our Hyeongsan Sect disciples?! Did you actually make it look like a real marriage to frame me?!

At those words, Seon Woo-jin chuckled softly.

It was exactly the reaction he had anticipated.

He didn’t immediately retort.

Instead, he burst into loud laughter.

– Ahahahahahaha! Hahahahahahaha!

At that laugh, the flow of Wei Jung-guk’s words faltered slightly.

The murmuring disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect all began to focus their attention on Seon Woo-jin.

Seon Woo-jin, who had just captured everyone’s attention with his laughter, immediately continued speaking.

– That’s a laughable story! So you’re saying I infiltrated the Hyeongsan Sect and kidnapped all thirty of their masters in a single day?! Including five supreme masters?!

At those words, the faces of the Hyeongsan Sect disciples darkened.

They could easily grasp that such a feat would be impossible, even for the absolute master of the Fifteen.

Seon Woo-jin continued speaking.

– So you’re saying you didn’t even know that fact until now, when all the disciples were gathered together, and you’re just finding out about it now?! Is this really the Hyeongsan Sect that prided itself on being one of the Nine Great Sects?!

At those words, the faces of the Hyeongsan Sect warriors flushed red.

They had been filled with pride just moments ago at being part of the Nine Great Sects, which only made their shame all the more acute.

Then, facing them, Seon Woo-jin burst into laughter once more.

– Ahahahahahaha! How amusing, how amusing! The leader of the Hyeongsan Sect is trampling his own sect’s honor into the dirt just to save his own skin! What a remarkable leader indeed! Hahahahahaha!

The martial artists of the Hyeongsan Sect could only bow their heads in shame.

They were too ashamed to lift their faces.

It was the moment it became clear who had won the argument between Sun Woo-jin and Wei Zhengguo.

Then, Wei Zhenggu clenched his teeth.

Rage surged up, unbearable.

But that was all.

He, too, could no longer refute it.

It was because he could feel all too clearly the disappointment and distrust in the eyes of the Hyeongsanpa disciples directed at him.

‘This, this insolent brat…’

Wei Jung-guk knew well that the true victory in an argument lay not in defeating one’s opponent, but in persuading the surrounding audience.

And in that sense, he also knew he had already lost.

But that didn’t mean he could simply admit defeat like this.

Somehow, even if it meant resorting to sheer stubbornness, he had to turn the situation around.

Wei Jung-guk clenched his teeth hard once, then opened his mouth wide and shouted.

– You damned scoundrel! You dare try to deceive us with your cunning lies! Enough of your nonsense! If you insist that’s what I did, then produce the evidence! Where on earth is the proof that I forced them into a sham marriage?! Did they say that?!

Wee Jeong-guk decided to focus solely on the fact that there was no direct evidence.

Even if Seon Woo-jin had actually brought the fake married couples, there would be no proof he was the one who made them that way.

To prove that fact, one would have had to bring in those who had arranged sham marriages or have those sham spouses testify.

But those who had arranged the sham marriages were already among their own people, and those who had become the sham spouses could never testify to that fact.

Therefore, there could be no direct evidence.

‘If they just keep insisting there’s no evidence, we can resort to force! By then, all this arguing will be pointless anyway!’

That was precisely the moment when the ruling faction was thinking exactly that.

Seon Woo-jin chuckled as if he’d expected it, then turned around and called out to someone.

“Master Mo, the True Man.”

Then, from behind the dazed-looking Six Harmonies Sword Masters, someone stepped forward.

It was Mo Dong-ju, the peerless master of the Hyeongsan Sect who had surrendered to Seon Woo-jin.

He had been standing hidden behind the Six Harmonies Sword Masters, unnoticed by others.

But as he stepped forward, the martial artists of the Xingshan Sect began murmuring in astonishment.

“Master Mo?!”

“Isn’t that Master Mo Dong-ju, the Sword Saint of Fengjiang?!”

“Didn’t you say that Master Mo passed away recently after being attacked by them in Akyang? Then why is he with that author?”

“Exactly. And it looks like he’s carrying someone on his back?”

Mo Dong-ju, who had been notorious as the Hyeongsan Sect’s troublemaker since childhood, had become a highly respected figure after reaching the pinnacle of martial arts. His exceptional skills and cheerful personality made him immensely popular even among the disciples at the Hyeongsan Sect’s main headquarters.

When such a Mo Dong-ju appeared on Xianwu Jin’s side, the faces of all the Xingshan Sect disciples couldn’t help but fill with confusion.

“C-could it be… that witness is perhaps a certain private tutor?”

“Th-that… So the head of the sect really turned the disciples into sham marriages?”

That was what the Hyeongsan Sect disciples were thinking.

Contrary to their expectations, the witness was not Mo Dong-ju.

Mo Dong-ju, having approached Seon Woo-jin, carefully set down the person he had been carrying on his back beside him.

He was a shabby, emaciated old man who could barely stand on his own.

As soon as he touched the ground, Sunwoo Jin tried to steady the staggering old man beside him.

But the old man blocked Seonwoo Jin’s hand, staggered briefly, and then, finally, stood up straight on his own.

The old man’s eyes, unlike his aged and sickly body, blazed with a fierce, tiger-like glare.

He finally glared at Wi Jeong-guk with terrifying eyes and began to shout.

– You bastard, Wei Jung-guk! Do you know who I am?!

At that moment, Wei Jung-guk was frowning, not recognizing who he was.

But his face, which had been twisted in anger at the rude tone, suddenly began to change, shifting into an increasingly astonished expression as if he had just realized something.

“No… no way…?!

Then the old man snorted derisively and roared savagely.

– Yeah! Looks like you’d completely forgotten about me after all! I figured you would, since you haven’t come to see me in years! But I never forgot you! I endured that hell just to see your face again! Finally, I’ll fulfill that wish before I die!

Wei Jung-guk’s face had now turned completely white.

He had fully realized who this person was.

Too stunned to utter a word in response.

Then, the old man’s name burst forth, not from his own mouth, but through the mouths of other Hyeongsan Sect disciples.

His disciples, recognizing his voice, suddenly cried out in horror.

“Th-that voice… Could it be?!”

“The, the former head of the Cheongong Sect?!”

And upon hearing that name, the disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect cried out in shock once more.

“Wh-what?! You say he’s the former Grandmaster?!”

“You mean the former Grandmaster Cheonggong who passed on the position ten years ago and ascended to heaven?!”

Their voices spread like a wave among all the former Hyeongsan Sect disciples in an instant.

In that instant, a single emotion appeared on every Xingshan Sect disciple’s face.

It was sheer astonishment.

The identity of the sickly, frail-looking, shabby old man was revealed to all the disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect: he was Qing Gong Zhenren, the former head of the Hyeongsan Sect before Wei Zhengguo.

He, who was believed to have ascended to heaven after passing the position of leader to Wei Zhengguo, had appeared here in such a shabby state.

Wei Zhenggu muttered, his face turning deathly pale.

“H-how… how could you…?”

The reason he had disappeared was not ascension, but because he had been imprisoned by Wei Zhengguo.

But it was a fact unknown to anyone, even forgotten by Wei Zhengguo himself…

Before passing on the position of head disciple to Wei Zhengguo, Qing Gong Zhenren had once received a proposal from him to revive the Sixfold Sword Technique together.

Upon hearing this, Qing Gong Zhenren was shocked.

‘The Sixfold Sword Technique?!’

Truthfully, he had never once opposed Wei Zhengguo’s opinions before that moment.

Though somewhat radical, Wei Zhengguo was a grateful disciple who had restored the lost martial arts and led the revival of the Xingshan Sect. Moreover, his martial prowess was formidable, making him the obvious choice for the next Sect Leader. Qing Gong Zhenren respected him for that.

But when it came to the Demon-Slaying Sixfold Sword Technique, he simply couldn’t.

Wei Zhengguo’s plan to turn fellow disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect into real marriages and use them as components for the sword inspection had crossed the line of righteousness far beyond recognition.

That day, Qing Gong Zhenren had hurled abuse at Wei Zhengguo for the very first time.

‘Inom! How could you, a disciple of the righteous sect, harbor such a vicious thought?! What difference is there now between your words and those of the Blood Sect’s demons?! If you commit such an act, what difference would there be between our Hyeongsan Sect and the Demon Sect?! Are you trying to make our Hyeongsan Sect a disgrace to the martial world?! I absolutely cannot forgive you! To even entertain such thoughts—I must reconsider passing the position of Sect Leader to you!”

Of course, he didn’t truly intend to do that.

He had simply thought that a strong shock therapy was needed to make the stubborn and unyielding Wei Zhenggu reflect on his ways.

Through this incident, the Blue-robed Immortal had hoped Wei Zhengguo would truly reflect and grow into a better leader.

But it seemed those words weren’t taken that way by Wei Zhengguo.

After shouting at Wei Zhengguo to leave immediately and turning back to sit down, Qing Gong Zhenren suddenly lost consciousness.

This was because he had been struck by a pressure point technique from behind by the ambushing Wei Zhengguo.

After that, he awoke trapped in the deepest part of the Penitence Hall. He heard from his disciples that he had ascended to enlightenment and, just before that, had passed on the position of head disciple to Wei Zhengguo.

This news came directly from Wei Zhengguo, who had come to find him in the Penitence Cave.

Qing Gong Zhenren, imprisoned with his powers suppressed, was enraged.

‘You bastard! How could you do such a beastly thing?!’

Yet despite the former head disciple’s fury, Wei Zhengguo merely let out a sinister laugh.

‘What a beastly thing to do. That’s quite amusing. If only I’d known sooner that beastly deeds could be so entertaining. Heh heh heh.’

‘What? What did you say?!’

Wei Zhengguo did not kill Qing Gong Zhenren.

He merely kept him locked away in the Penitence Chamber, occasionally visiting to berate, humiliate, and torment him.

This sadistic habit of keeping his enemies alive and playing with them like toys was the true nature of Wei Zhengguo that Qing Gong Zhenren had never known before.

Yet, that very Qinggong Zhenren had been rescued by Sun Woo-jin and Mo Dong-ju while they were investigating the Penitence Cave, and now stood here.

He was precisely the ideal candidate Seon Woo-jin had been searching for.

Cheong Gongjin, his eyes blazing with seething hatred, shouted at Wei Junguk.

– Did you demand witnesses to prove you forced my sect’s disciples into sham marriages?! Here I am! I am that witness—the one who opposed it, only to be imprisoned for ten years, forced to eat insects, unable even to die! How about it?! Will you now admit your wicked deeds?!

Wei Zhengguo could no longer utter a single word of rebuttal.

His mind went completely blank, as white as a sheet of paper, unable to form a single thought.

He suddenly found himself staring blankly at the disciples of the Hyeongsan Sect.

He then realized they were all staring at him with eyes filled with shock and disgust.

And Wei Zhengguo also realized.

Those gazes were no longer the gaze of looking upon the Sect Leader.

Their gazes were no different from those directed at an unforgivable demon.