Chapter 14

Yang-hwi smiled contentedly as he surveyed the notices plastered throughout the marketplace.

Whoever penned these certainly had a flair for prose, didn’t they?

“Heh, isn’t it magnificent? ‘Those who wish to reclaim their lost kin, come to the Baek Manor!'”

Gu Ak frowned sourly at him.

“Putting up those notices and hiring people to spread the word cost well over a thousand silver taels. Young Brother So, you had better see this through.”

“You made thousands of taels thanks to me, yet you begrudge a single thousand? And for Sister Rang’s sake, no less? I suppose that gives me plenty to chat about when I visit her quarters today.”

“Damn it… I ought to rip that sharp tongue of yours right out…”

Two days had already passed since Rangrang took up residence at the Baek Manor.

Gu Ak, whose face had flushed with irritation at Yang-hwi’s banter, suddenly grew tense, an uneasy look settling across his features.

“Young Brother So. I sent Rangrang to the Baek Manor only because you spoke reason. But if you harbor any other thoughts, we become mortal enemies.”

Gu Ak belonged to the direct bloodline of the Honggyo Gang, one of the three major Black Dao Factions reigning over E’an County, while the Baek Manor stood firmly within the Orthodox Faction.

Indeed, it was a martial clan renowned for its unbending righteousness—its lord bearing the moniker First in Dispensing Chivalry.

No matter how necessary the arrangement, watching his lover reside under the Baek Manor’s roof was never going to sit well with him.

“Put your mind at ease. My father granted his permission.”

Naturally, the day Yang-hwi brought Rangrang home, he had gone straight to Baek Mu-ryang and disclosed everything that could be said.

“He felt uneasy harboring the lover of a Black Path Band member, to be sure, but my father is not a man to stand by and watch a helpless woman come to harm.”

Gu Ak nodded in silent agreement. Doubt anyone else he might, but he could trust in Baek Mu-ryang’s righteousness.

He trusted it more, in fact, than he trusted the men who shared his own table.

“The First in Dispensing Chivalry wouldn’t stoop to such lows, that’s true.”

“Careful now. It breaches propriety to toss about the name of an esteemed family head—not to mention my father—so carelessly.”

Gu Ak’s face twisted in sheer indignation.

“The First in Dispensing Chivalry is barely six years older than I am! You’re the strange one, calling me ‘brother’ when you ought to address me as an uncle!”

‘Count my previous life, and you’re younger than me, you bastard.’

Yang-hwi smirked and steered the conversation elsewhere.

“Shall we leave the trifles aside? In any case, we will have our answer by tomorrow.”

“Now that you mention it, Young Brother So, you never did say who would claim to be Rangrang’s father. Just who on earth are you trying to lure into such an elaborate trap?”

“Well, let’s just say it is someone capable of ending a master of the Peak Realm.”

Gu Ak let out a mocking snort.

“A hero of our time and a genius of the Unorthodox Faction such as myself has passed thirty years of age without scaling the wall to the Peak Realm. What possible motive would someone capable of killing such an expert have to pose as a courtesan’s father?”

“When driven to desperation, a man will pose as a father or a mother all the same. Besides, what is so extraordinary about reaching the Peak Realm?”

Confronted by Yang-hwi’s flippant remark, Gu Ak was left utterly dumbfounded.

“Peak Realm masters are nothing special? If that were true, our gang would have seized dominion over all of E’an County long ago.”

His reasoning was sound enough. Even within the formidable Honggyo Gang, one of the foremost powers in E’an County, the only person to attain such heights was the gang leader himself.

It was a boundary that allowed one to reign as the supreme expert across an entire county.

That was the Peak Realm.

And yet.

‘Is the Peak Realm truly that high a mountain? In my past life, I cleared that hurdle before reaching twenty, using nothing more than my family’s martial arts.’

“At any rate, this younger brother must take his leave. If I am to breach that towering wall of the Peak Realm, I cannot afford to neglect my training.”

These days, Yang-hwi spent every waking hour in relentless cultivation.

Had Gu Ak not lost his patience and barged in after a mere two days, Yang-hwi would still be out in the Martial Arts Field, hardening his body through rigorous conditioning.

“If you fancy yourself a hero, conduct yourself with patience. I will send word before long.”

“…I will hold you to that. My father’s gaze has been cold lately, and the brothers are convinced this will only invite humiliation. Make sure this does not end up looking like a fool’s errand.”

“Understood, understood.”

Yang-hwi returned directly to the Baek Manor. Having finished his assigned conditioning, he shut himself in his quarters under the pretense of scholarly study and writing.

‘This should suffice for the organization.’

Taking up his brush, Yang-hwi inscribed the titles across the blank covers of the two volumes.

[Sky-Covering Sword Manual]

[Harmonious Heavenly Dual Origin Art]

Within those pages lay the compiled insights of his past life alongside every secret of the two new divine arts he had forged.

In essence, he had created a pair of esoteric manuals.

‘The paper is still crisp, and the ink barely dry, so I cannot present them to Father just yet, but…’

It hardly mattered. A way forward would present itself soon enough.

With that thought, Yang-hwi gazed out into the night. Hours had slipped away, and a luminous full moon hung high and round in the heavens.

‘The moment is ripe. I certainly hope our guest arrives tonight.’

Yang-hwi settled immediately into a cross-legged position. Just as he had done over the preceding two nights, he chose not to sleep, instead circulating the Harmonious Heavenly Dual Origin Art to sharpen his Qi Perception through the dark hours.

Roughly four hours drifted past in this quiet focus.

Through Qi Perception pushed to its outer limits by the art, a faint, subtle vibration brushed against his senses—the unmistakable resonance produced by the circulation of True Qi.

‘Aha. So that was the way of it. You didn’t simply toss a Jade Pendant to your daughter and abandon her without thought.’

Resting on the wooden stool, the Jade Pendant Rangrang had given him was trembling delicately.

It was vibrating in harmony with the distant frequency drifting through the night.

Yang-hwi scooped up the Jade Pendant and slipped out into the courtyard.

‘The tremor sharpens as I close the distance. I need only trace its source.’

The resonance led toward the tallest structure in the immediate vicinity of the Baek Manor—straight to its rooftop.

Entering through the main gate at this hour was out of the question, which meant scaling walls and vaulting across the tiles with the body of a young boy.

‘A month of conditioning makes child’s play of this.’

Kicking off the ground, Yang-hwi scaled the heights in three swift bounds, landing on the roof before turning his gaze toward the solitary elder waiting along the ledge.

“You seem rather fond of the full moon, elder.”

The figure wore ragged, weathered garments and carried a traveler’s pack upon his back.

Deep furrows etched into his skin spoke of a lifetime of regret, yet his eyes burned with an obstinate resolve, worn down by the years but far from extinguished.

“A solitary life makes for lonely nights. What brings a young master out at such an hour?”

“I came to offer company to one who seemed to be calling for a guest.”

At the realization that the boy had answered his signal, a glint of surprise flitted across the elder’s eyes.

“A young master blessed with remarkable Qi Perception, it seems. Yet guests come in two sorts: those who are invited, and those who intrude.”

“Seeing as the invited party will not be coming, why not spare a moment to converse with the intruder?”

With those words, Yang-hwi withdrew the Jade Pendant from his robes, and the elder’s face instantly set into stone.

“Do not misunderstand. Sister Rang presented this to me as a gift, claiming she no longer had use for it.”

“…It appears a thorough explanation is required.”

“If you wish to converse, ought we not exchange names first? Ah, though there is little need for mine. You already know who I am.”

Just as Yang-hwi surmised, the elder had already uncovered his identity.

Before sending out the signal—or rather, the moment he beheld the notice in the streets and wept tears of turbulent emotion—he had scoured every detail concerning the Baek Manor.

“They said the master of the Baek Manor took in a young beggar, but it seems he merely staked an early claim on a burgeoning talent.”

“Your words cut a bit deep, elder.”

“Forgive me. I meant only to speak plainly, and it came out poorly. I offer my apologies for calling you a beggar, young master.”

“I would rather you apologize for calling me a mere talent.”

“?”

“That I was a beggar is true enough, but talent alone does not describe me. I am no ordinary prodigy; I am a genius rarely seen in an age. Some might even call me peerless.”

“…”

The elder realized with a start that he was being dragged entirely into the boy’s pace.

“Young master. I harbor no ill will toward the Baek Manor. If you would simply summon the young lady named Rangrang out for a brief moment, I will depart in peace.”

“Elder. I regret that as a scion of an upright Orthodox clan, I only converse with those who have introduced themselves properly.”

Did you bother asking the name of every passerby when you were begging in the streets?

The elder swallowed the sharp retort rising in his throat and offered his name instead.

“Yeo Un-hyeok.”

“Red Cloud. A name of considerable elegance.”

“The young master’s name carries no less weight. The lord of the Baek Manor must possess great discernment in naming.”

“He bestowed upon me a name far greater than I deserve. And what name did you grant your daughter, elder?”

“…A-rang.”

“Yeo A-rang. You must have wished for your daughter to grow up in bright joy.”

“That was indeed my wish. Now, I would have an answer to my request.”

The longing etched across the elder’s face was painfully raw.

For a fleeting moment, Yang-hwi felt the urge to cast aside his plots and reunite the man with Rangrang at once.

‘No, that will not do. Only if my scheme succeeds can father and daughter live in peace.’

“Sister Rang is bound by love to Gu Ak, son of the Leader of the Red Bridge Gang, Gu Cheol-hyo. Their devotion to one another is absolute.”

“I am aware.”

“Then are you also aware that the Leader of the Red Bridge Gang views Sister Rang as nothing more than a leash to rein in a talented but disobedient son?”

Keeping his overarching design in mind, Yang-hwi pressed on.

“The Leader of the Red Bridge Gang is a man who thoroughly exploits anyone whose weakness falls into his grasp. He is cold-blooded, and his ambition outstrips his station.”

“Are you warning me against reckless haste lest I reveal a weakness? Rest easy. Humble as I may look, I have walked a path where the careless do not survive.”

“What I mean is that to the Leader of the Red Bridge Gang, even his own flesh and blood is merely an instrument to be used. As for Gu Ak’s weakness… well, you need no explanation there.”

Only then did the elder’s countenance undergo a violent shift, his calm vanishing to make way for a suffocating, muddy rage.

“Has harm befallen Rang-ah?”

“Sister Rang is poisoned.”

Yang-hwi recalled the faint trace of toxins he had detected while sharing tea with Rangrang.

There was scarcely any need to name the culprit behind it.

“I say it once more: the Leader of the Red Bridge Gang would exploit the father of the courtesan his son cherishes without the slightest remorse. Doubly so if that man harbors a fatal vulnerability.”

Yang-hwi cast his thoughts back to his previous life.

The old man who had failed to locate his daughter before her life was extinguished.

Only after coming across the Jade Pendant sold upon the black market had he uncovered the truth, feeding a vengeful fury against the Honggyo Gang.

In the end, the elder had brought all his might to bear, washing the Honggyo Gang in blood until the entire faction was annihilated.

“A tangled web, is it not? A daughter found after more than a decade apart. A daughter doomed to perish at the hands of her lover’s father. A Black Dao Faction commanding dozens of warriors alongside a master of the Peak Realm. And a boy who appeared out of nowhere, spinning this wild tale.”

“Perhaps. Yet tangled as it is, could it possibly match the twists of my own life? I thank you for the warning, young master. But from this point forth, I must ask that you keep out of this old man’s affairs.”

Hmph. This is straying from the course.

Yang-hwi had dropped deliberate hints throughout the exchange, making it plain that he held a solution.

‘I expected him to at least inquire after my intentions.’

There was no helping it; he would have to use stronger medicine.

“The public enemy of the martial world, the Deer-to-Horse Transformer, Yeo Un-jeok.”

In an instant, the elder—Yeo Un-jeok, masquerading under the alias Un-hyeok—shot toward Yang-hwi like a bolt of lightning.

And yet.

The lunging arm. The grasping fingers. For the first time, a hand emerged from his sleeve, knobby, scarred, and heavily calloused like a raven’s claw.

As though time had ground to a crawl, every movement burned itself vividly onto Yang-hwi’s vision.

He drew upon the True Qi coiled within his dantian, compensating for his young body’s lack of raw momentum with a decisive Stamping Step.

Never letting his eyes leave those fingertips, he moved without a fraction of wasted effort.

Deflecting the raven-claw hand upward, Yang-hwi drove his Spear Hand Technique straight toward the elder’s exposed throat.

In that single exchange of moves, Yang-hwi claimed victory.

“…You are no mere child.”

“Is that all you have to say after ambushing a child?”

“I had no design to harm you. I meant only to… subdue you and extract a vow of silence.”

“I know. You did not infuse internal energy into that strike.”

That was precisely why he had been able to parry the blow and launch an immediate counter.

Whether born of carelessness or benevolence, the elder had stayed his hand.

‘Of course, had the gulf in our martial prowess been insurmountable, even that leniency would not have saved me.’

Fortunately, for a public enemy of the realm, Yeo Un-jeok’s martial skill was modest.

He had never gained such notoriety through martial violence in the first place.

The Deer-to-Horse Transformer—one who could rework a deer until it passed for a horse.

The elder standing before him possessed a genius that lay in an entirely different domain.

“Elder. I bear no hostility toward you. Sister Rang is a woman of genuine virtue, and you are her father.”

“…What is it you truly want?”

“Every thread of this trouble traces back to the fact that Sister Rang’s beloved has the Leader of the Red Bridge Gang for a father. The heights of the Peak Realm. The might of the Honggyo Gang. The true problem is that the man wielding such power is rotten to the core.”

Yang-hwi’s lips curled into an easy grin.

“So, won’t you join hands with me on a little venture? For Sister Rang’s sake—to secure your daughter’s happiness.”

It was somewhat ahead of schedule, but to clear room for the Baek Manor to expand its reach, the time had come to sweep away the local Black Path Band factions.