Chapter 4 Pruning (1)

Chapter 4 Pruning (1)

“A disciple of Hwasan, Gu Yangjeok, requests an audience with the Sect Leader.”

No sooner had Gu Yang-jeok uttered those words than Baek Dan-hyeon’s voice came from inside.

“Come in.”

Entering, Gu Yang-jeok approached Baek Dan-hyeon, who stood by the window overlooking the scenery of Hwasan.

“I have something to discuss.”

“What might that be?”

“Please grant me permission to step outside for a moment.”

At this unexpected request, Bai Danxian’s eyebrow twitched.

“Your official assignment is still far off. What is the reason?”

“There is something I wish to investigate outside.” “What is it you wish to investigate?”

“Investigate?”

Gu Yangjie brought out the words he had prepared beforehand.

“I intend to visit the trading house that manages Hwasan’s valuables and finances.”

Baek Dan-hyeon’s expression stiffened. It could be seen as a polite refusal.

“You suddenly come visiting right after your wall-facing period ends, and I wonder what you have to say. If that’s what you’re going to say, then just leave.”

His voice was firm, leaving no room for further discussion.

But Gu Yangjeok had no intention of backing down.

“During my wall-facing period, I reflected on my life thus far. And then a question arose. Don’t you find it strange, Grandmaster?”

Even at that brief statement, Baek Dan-hyeon looked at Gu Yangjeok with a fresh, understanding gaze.

Yet, he remained silent for a while before finally speaking.

“…You suspect something.”

“Half, no, I’m almost certain.”

“Do you have concrete evidence?”

At those words, Gu Yangjeok countered. His voice carried a hint of frustration.

“You mean evidence?”

“Yes, evidence that the Sanghui committed wrongdoing. ”

“That’s something we can investigate later.”

At that, Baek Dan-hyeon gave Gu Yang-jeok a look that said, “I knew it,” and scolded him.

“Do you even know anything about the merchant guild? And traveling the martial world? With your skills, you’d lose your life to bandits.”

“I may not know much else, but I’m confident my skills won’t be outmatched.”

“……What?”

Gu Yang-jeok stated it with absolute certainty.

“At this level, there’s no one in this vicinity who can defeat me.”

“Hmph!”

It was pure arrogance, so Baek Dan-hyeon approached Gu Yang-jeok with a deliberately angry expression.

“You’re arrogant with your measly skills? This head of the sect—no, your master—certainly didn’t teach you that!”

So he was worried about my low skill level, was he?

‘Well, all he’s shown so far is thuggery and third-rate to second-rate skills. He’d probably die a miserable death if he went outside.’

Gu Yangjie lightly clenched and unclenched his right hand.

It was time to show his master the true value of his half-year of training.

“I’ll show you myself.”

“Go!”

Baek Dan-hyeon roared, channeling his full power into his left hand as he unleashed the Golden Water Palm.

If he couldn’t even dodge this simple opening move, his arrogant words would be nothing but empty boasts.

If he managed to block it, he intended to offer a word of praise and encourage further training.

But…

“…!”

A result he had never anticipated unfolded before Baek Dan-hyeon’s eyes.

‘He dodged the Golden Palm with a single step?’

Baek Dan-hyeon couldn’t hide his astonishment, letting out an involuntary gasp of admiration.

Had his martial arts improved this much during his wall-facing training?

Though it was a situation warranting anger, a strange sense of awe swept through his mind.

“Whoa…”

“Is it done now?”

At those words, Baek Dan-hyeon’s eyebrows twitched.

“No, not yet!”

The power that had grown from a single breath to a full breath unleashed a small burst of energy.

Pang!

A streak that split the wind swirled around Baek Dan-hyeon’s fingertips.

That was no simple golden needle technique.

A single touch would tear skin—not fatal, but certainly enough to inflict injury.

Gu Yangjie sensed Baek Dan-hyeon’s intent and smiled with ease.

‘Martial artists are born liars, I suppose.’

The martial world was precisely where one most often bowed low, swearing to repay a favor, only to stab the knife in the back.

It was a golden needle, but only slightly dangerous?

Compared to the martial world, this was a mere trifle. One could even call it mild.

Indeed, the current Sect Leader, Baek Dan-hyeon, was the good man Gu Yang-jeok remembered.

Gu Yangji briefly shed his playful expression and channeled his energy with a serious look.

“Huuu…”

A deep breath flowed through his chest, and the breath squeezed from his chest surged through his entire body.

At that moment, the energy in his dantian stirred.

The first to notice this change was Baek Dan-hyeon, who was in contact with Gu Yangji.

‘…So it wasn’t five years of cultivation after all?’

Objectively speaking, that was correct. The sheer volume of his qi remained unchanged.

But its very purity had transformed.

As if the days of murky darkness had never existed, a nearly pure white essence now gathered within Gu Yangjie.

Exhaling the breath he’d held, Gu Yangjie began pushing Bai Danxian’s hand outward.

“……!”

Could he be pushed aside so easily?

Baek Dan-hyeon clicked his tongue in admiration at the skill Gu Yang-jeok displayed.

At the same time, he felt proud.

“Had you been hiding your martial prowess?”

Recalling the story he’d heard before, Gu Yang-jeok gave a light nod.

“It wasn’t out of any ill will.”

“Right, right. I’ve been misjudging my disciple. To possess such outstanding skill…”

But as if he had to ask this one thing, Baek Dan-hyeon’s expression stiffened.

It felt unfamiliar that Gu Yang-jeok’s skill, which he had always taught and watched over, had grown so much.

On one hand, it troubled him that Gu Yang-jeok had matured enough to worry about the sect’s affairs.

“Why have you only now revealed your true abilities?”

“Why? Is that necessary?”

“……”

The sharp glint vanished from Baek Dan-hyeon’s eyes, replaced by a weary expression as he looked at Gu Yang-jeok.

Paying him no mind, Gu Yang-jeok recalled the monk he had just met, Jo Hoon, and the hermitage he had destroyed.

And he briefly recalled events yet to unfold.

It was all misfortune born of poverty.

He was prepared to do whatever it took to prevent it. It was nothing short of resolve.

“I can no longer stand by and watch. One or two days is all it takes. Please let me go.”

“……Jiyeok, you.”

Don’t you know what you might do?

Wondering if he should speak frankly, Baek Dan-hyeon stroked his beard from top to bottom.

Looking into Gu Yang-jeok’s eyes, it seemed futile to dissuade him. Then another plan was needed.

Suddenly, one solution occurred to him.

‘If Jang-myeong acts as a shield, at least he can block the enemy’s sudden actions.’

It was the strategy of spear and shield.

While Gu Yangjie’s current skill was extraordinary, compared to his senior brother, Yu Zhangming, he still had many shortcomings.

Moreover, hadn’t Gu Yangjie always followed Yu Zhangming since childhood?

He was worried about Gu Yangjie alone, but Yu Zhangming was trustworthy.

At that moment, Gu Yangjie made the first move.

“I’ll go out with Senior Brother Yu and return.”

“You mean Zhangming?”

“Yes.”

True brothers, as expected.

Bai Danxian smiled with satisfaction.

He felt proud that his disciple had grown both physically and mentally during the half-year of wall-facing training.

“Very well! I permit your outing!”

“Ah, and there’s one more thing I’d like to request.”

“……?”

“Please grant us access to the Plum Blossom Hall.”

At those words, Baek Dan-hyeon showed his displeasure.

He was uneasy about Gu Yang-je’s interest in the Plum Blossom Hall.

“Isn’t that where the scholars who manage the documents reside? It’s not a suitable place for the disciples of the Fire Mountain to frequent.”

“I have matters to investigate there as well.”

Faced with Gu Yangji’s resolute expression, Baek Dan-hyeon nodded, seemingly resigned.

“…Understood. I’ll inform the head of Plum Blossom Hall beforehand.”

“Thank you.”

Baek Dan-hyeon composed his expression and asked Gu Yangji.

“When do you plan to depart?”

“I intend to leave as early as this evening, around the hour of You (酉時: 5-7 PM).”

Gu Yangjie spoke calmly. It could even be called conviction.

“I will return within three days at the latest.”

* * *

‘There was a time when he spoke like that.’

Gu Yangjie gazed at Yu Zhangming with a look of pity.

A marketplace quite distant from Huashan.

There, a medicine peddler with a paper label reading “Indestructible as Diamond” stuck to his forehead was shattering roof tiles.

Clang!

“Now, witness! This is the power gained from long-term medicine use!”

“Ooh-!”

Being such a rural area, quite a few passersby had stopped nearby.

Seeing Yoo Jang-myeong among them, Gu Yang-jeok let out a sigh.

‘If he looked closely, he’d see it’s fake. Has practicing sword techniques deep in the mountains made him unable to spot a fraud?’

Whether he knew Gu Yang-jeok’s worry or not, Yoo Jang-myeong himself was exclaiming in amazement, one after another.

“Hey, look at that! They’re selling a divine elixir that hardens the body—not quite invincible, but still—for just one tael of silver!”

At those words, Gu Yangji felt a throbbing headache coming on.

“I understand you’re amazed since it’s your first time seeing it.”

“Better to buy it first, right?”

Clink.

As Yu Zhangming’s hand reached for his money pouch, the medicine peddler pricked up his ears.

“Hey, you there, Master Taoist! You really know your stuff!”

Gu Yangji replied curtly.

“What’s with the big talk from a peddler who probably mixes in snake dung or some other crap? You’d put a million-word scholar to shame.”

“Wh-what?!”

“Brother, there’s no need to engage with such a person.”

Yu Jang-myeong shook his head sideways.

It seemed the worldly-wise hermit had been charmed by the medicine peddler’s silver tongue.

“Don’t they say taking the elixir makes your body sturdy? You shouldn’t be so suspicious of people.”

‘He’s completely gullible…!’

Gu Yangji sighed again.

There was a reason he was traveling with Yu Zhangming.

Partly to gain the sect leader’s trust, but also because he needed fame.

Fame that could represent Huashan so powerfully the merchants couldn’t refuse.

That was precisely Yu Zhangming, currently known as Huashan’s Plum Cloud Sword.

‘If I went alone, they’d surely kick me out.’

He brought Yu Zhangming along for various reasons and for the symbolism.

He also trusted him a little because he’d been outside a few times before.

But reality was a cesspool.

“Wow, going out with a master like this, you even get to encounter such mysterious elixirs.”

‘…And you say this isn’t your first time outside? Then what have you been doing out there all this time, Senior Brother?’

Yu Jang-myeong, who had been called the late-stage disciple of Hwasan, had only ever walked on neatly paved paths under the guidance of the headmaster or elders.

So he couldn’t help but be unnecessarily amazed by that medicine peddler’s nonsense.

Gu Yang-jeok swallowed his curses.

“I told you that’s not a divine herb.”

“Then how did that man split a rock in two with his bare hands?”

At that, the windbag who seemed to be on the peddler’s side chimed in.

“Huh… Even the Taoist who came down from the mountain wants to buy that medicine?”

The windbag’s smug expression made Gu Yangjie’s face completely contort.

‘I’m totally being used here.’

Just as Gu Yangji was flustered, a voice suddenly rang out from behind.

“You scoundrels! How dare you try to swindle people in front of Hero Yu!”

“Wh-what… swindle!?”

Seeing Yu Zhangming startled and hide his money pouch behind his back, Gu Yangji wore an expression of utter disbelief.

“Why won’t you believe me… but believe that fellow?”

At that, Yu Zhangming scratched his cheek, avoiding eye contact, and replied in a low, almost muttered voice.

“…I thought maybe a disciple might try to tear down someone who’s doing well.”

Since it wasn’t entirely wrong, Gu Yang-jeok clamped his mouth shut.

His behavior as a child had been a bit like that.

He let out a deep sigh without realizing it, but quickly changed his mind.

‘I can change my perception from now on.’

After a moment, Gu Yang-jeok’s gaze turned back.

“Thank you for stopping my brother.”

“……”

Standing there was a middle-aged man with a gaunt frame and a distinctly aggrieved expression.

He couldn’t bring himself to speak, his gaze fixed only on Yu Zhangming.

Gu Yangjie instantly anticipated his next move and frowned.

Thud!

And that anticipation proved correct.

“Brother Yu!”

His expression suggested he had much to say to Yu Zhangming.

Gu Yangjie shook his head and led the two men into a nearby inn.

* * *

“Enemy.”

The moment Yu Zhangming spoke, Gu Yangjie recoiled, waving his hand.

“I’d rather go alone than clean up after someone I don’t even know by name.”

“……If that’s truly your wish.”

At this point, one might expect him to concede and rise, but Yu Jang-myeong called the waiter over and ordered one less serving.

Seeing this, Gu Yang-jeok couldn’t help but snort.

‘He almost blew the monk’s money to feed a medicine peddler, and now this!’

“Go ahead and wait. I need to have a word with this gentleman.”

His tone was utterly uncompromising, leaving Gu Yangjeok with a sullen expression as he propped his chin on his hand.

Had he taken this as some sort of tacit agreement?

-Truly my disciple.

Yu Jangmyeong’s telepathic voice came through, sounding almost proud.

‘I’m already pressed for time, and this man has absolutely no sense of urgency?’

All he needed was to confirm the decisive evidence he’d seen at Plum Blossom Hall before leaving Huashan.

Gu Yangjie’s gaze shifted to the man seated opposite Yu Zhangming.

His look of grievance was quite convincing.

A curt remark slipped out of Gu Yangjie’s mouth.

“I’m pressed for time. Speak quickly.”

-You bastard!

At that, Yu Zhangming’s eyes narrowed, but the man merely bowed his head in what seemed like deep gratitude.

“I can only express my deepest gratitude to you, Master…”

Yu Zhangming offered a gentle smile.

“It’s fine. Now, please speak freely.”

“…Thank you.”

Before speaking, the man let out a deep sigh and revealed his name.

“My name is Baek Cheon. I was once a fairly successful merchant.”

“Ah, I see.”

Baek Cheon’s face darkened, as if recalling painful memories.

Up to this point, Gu Yangjeok showed no interest whatsoever.

“But… just ten days ago, I was forced to abandon my trade due to a grave injustice.”

“What happened?”

At those words, Baek Cheon swallowed a wave of bitterness.

“The merchant guild framed me. Not only did they falsely accuse me of selling counterfeit goods, but they also banned me from trading throughout the entire Shaanxi region.”

“…Hmph!”

“Still, we had to survive. My wife and I struggled to find a way to make ends meet. But…”

Baek Cheon’s words trailed off, and a moment of silence passed.

Gu Yangji knew without needing to hear the rest.

‘It couldn’t have ended there.’

It was only natural. Once a merchant was cast out by a guild, they weren’t sent away gently.

At the very least, they were made unable to even consider doing business again. In martial arts terms, it was like severing their vital meridians.

Baekcheon had likely endured that process too.

Yu Jangmyeong’s eyes suddenly grew still.

“What is the name of that guild?”

“The Golden Ring Trading Company.”

Thud!

No sooner had Baekcheon finished speaking than Gu Yangji slammed his palm down on the table.

Clatter!

The bowl holding the appetizer spilled its contents, and the chopsticks floated through the air before tumbling down.

Yu Jangmyeong’s expression froze in terror.

“What the hell are you doing now?”

“No, Brother. Don’t you remember?”

Only then did Yu Zhangming recall why he had come this far. His expression changed as he realized his mistake.

At that moment, Gu Yangji’s telepathic voice reached him.

-I’ll first clear out any nearby ears.

-You mean there’s someone eavesdropping?

Gu Yangji had detected an uninvited guest even Yu Zhangming hadn’t noticed.

Yu Jang-myeong couldn’t help but be impressed.

-Your qi perception has increased tremendously in just half a year.

Even to that telepathic message, Gu Yang-jeok didn’t reply, instead gazing at Baek Cheon with a face full of joy.

‘I was already wondering how to break in, but this gives me a reason, doesn’t it?’

Unable to withstand that gaze, Baek Cheon unconsciously scratched the back of his head.

“I… I simply cannot understand why you are doing this.”

“The Golden Ring Trading Company is in Shangzhou, isn’t it?”

At Gu Yangjeok’s words, Baek Cheon slapped his knee.

“How did you know that?! Could you have known beforehand?”

‘First, I should try to get rid of this uninvited guest.’

Gu Yangji didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he glanced sharply at the waiter who had come to bring the ordered food.

But that gaze was far too intense for the waiter to bear.

Zhen Huiyan.

A strange skill that could project overwhelming pressure onto those of much lower cultivation—one of the fortunes he had gained in his previous life.

“We’re fine. Give it to that beggar over there.”

“…Yes, sir.”

Unaware his palms had grown damp, the waiter passed the food to the beggar lying in the inn’s corner.

No one else in the inn noticed, but one person did.

Only Gu Yangjeok caught it.

‘Judging by his Sun Meridian, he’s at least a county-level beggar.’

He must have come to see the executioner known as the Spicy Sword. There seemed to be no other reason.

But at times like this, a clear warning was necessary to avoid trouble later.

Gu Yangjie sent a telepathic message to the beggar holding the food.

-Don’t try to eavesdrop.

The message hit its mark precisely. The beggar crept out of the inn and vanished somewhere.

Only then did Gu Yangji speak.

“Can you hear the situation clearly?”

The Golden Ring Trading Company.

It was the sole trading company handling the finances of the Huashan Sect.

Simultaneously, Gu Yangji had discovered one fact at the Plum Blossom Pavilion.

‘So you’ve been having fun with our assets…?’

The viscous smile that had earned him the nickname ‘Blood-Seeing’ began to spread across his face.