Chapter 25: Clear and bright sky

“Hmph, I never thought I’d end up going on a mission with that bastard Jin Ga. No, wait. Is it now Cheon Sojin? Where the hell did this incompetent fool come from…”

As soon as I finished hearing about the mission and stepped out of Raeji’s room, Cheongmyeong muttered to himself.

It was clearly meant to be heard.

I turned my head, and he wore a contemptuous smile, staring at me.

A deep sigh escaped from my chest.

It was clear from his entire demeanor why he still hadn’t graduated.

‘Am I really supposed to go on a mission with this jerk? Ha…’

He was talking nonstop, getting excited and mumbling to himself.

My head started to throb.

I really had to go on a mission with this idiot?

The taste in my mouth turned bitter.

“The only thing that fool from Jinchendae can do is menial tasks. I refuse to work with someone like you.”

What could I possibly use him for?

“Still, considering the innocent villagers we’ll be saving, I guess I have no choice but to take you along. Even if you’re a fool.”

“……”

From the aura he emitted, it was clear that he had a high-ranking cultivation, certainly among the top in Zhongyuan, but his speech and actions were too foolish.

In that case, there’s only one solution.

“Did you happen to ask Master Raeji for permission? You know, to let a guy like you join a mid-level mission? Well… I don’t mind if the conditions are met, but it’s still annoying, since I could end up being stuck with someone who’ll never even get to do a mid-level mission in their life…”

“Shut up.”

This guy wasn’t someone who would listen.

Master Raeji must have thrown his hands up in defeat with Cheongmyeong, but not me.

It’s time for some mental reprogramming.

I had originally planned to teach him a lesson with a good beating, but especially for an unruly person like him, a good thrashing should do the trick.

“What did you just say…?”

Cheongmyeong widened his eyes and stopped in his tracks.

His hands and feet trembled slightly, so he definitely understood.

He wanted to hear it again, and I was happy to oblige.

“Did you block your ears? Shut up and stop babbling.”

“This bastard… Did you think I didn’t hear you the first time? I gave you time to apologize…”

“Quit whining. Am I your mother?”

Despite saying that, I flicked my fingers.

“How dare an inferior noble like you insult me this way? As your senior, I’ll teach you a lesson! Prepare yourself!”

From his overreaction to just a few words, he seemed no different from Namgungjin Mk2, who just had some martial skills.

Or maybe it’s because Cheon Sojin is treated like a joke, so anyone feels like they can take a swing at him.

“How dare you disrespect me like this!”

Bang!

Cheongmyeong kicked the ground and charged toward me in an instant.

The former direct disciple of the head of the Wudang Sect, with exceptional martial skills, was attacking me.

“Take this!!”

In that split second, as his speed approached, I could sense his aura and thought:

This is slow.

The speed was not slow at all, and Cheongmyeong was perfectly executing the Jieyunzong (梯雲縱), a technique that the Wudang Sect prides itself on, but that was all.

‘Is he looking down on me?’

For some reason, perhaps due to his petty pride, he was using the Lesser Qing Sword Technique (소청검법) instead of the Taiqing Sword Technique (太淸劍法).

It was sharp, but this kind of thrust wasn’t practical for real combat.

If it doesn’t land, it’s meaningless.

Though he hadn’t reached the level of the “Ten Flowers” yet, I followed the footwork to the best of my ability.

Next, I successfully stepped through the positions of heaven (天) and earth (地), but didn’t quite reach the position of humanity (人).

That alone was enough.

With a sudden burst of speed, I closed the distance between us and entered Cheongmyeong’s range.

“Wh-What!”

At the moment he was shocked and startled, I grabbed him by the collar and threw him with a circular motion.

“Ugh! What is this?!”

His reputation as the former direct disciple of the Wudang Sect didn’t seem to be unfounded, as he tried to recover his stance.

‘Full of openings.’

Rather than dealing a direct blow, I aimed a strike at his waist to break his stance.

Boom!

A pleasant recoil surged through my body as he screamed and fell to the ground in a pathetic heap.

“Y-You cowardly bastard…!”

Cowardly?

Who attacked first?

The fool who let his guard down is the real idiot.

He struggled, trying to escape, but I wasn’t about to let him go.

“Ugh…”

I stomped on Cheongmyeong’s fallen head.

How does that feel?

It was a kind of performance.

Wham!

I kicked his outstretched hand away as he tried to grab my leg, then leapt back, creating some distance.

‘He’s solid.’

It seemed that his Taiqing Qi (太淸强氣) had also reached mastery, and he was using it to protect his body.

It was clear that he was a genius with extraordinary skill for his age.

“This… this can’t be…!”

Because of his lack of real combat experience, Cheongmyeong had been beaten without mercy.

However, to completely subdue him, it would take more effort with the current level of my Ilwolgi (일월기), which was troublesome.

“Do you want to continue?”

Cheongmyeong, seemingly in disbelief, mumbled weakly.

“This doesn’t make sense… I am from the great Wudang Sect…”

“I haven’t even drawn my sword. If you want to continue, I won’t stop you.”

Sure, I would be stronger if I drew my sword, but he hadn’t used all his power yet, so I couldn’t guarantee the outcome.

However, it seemed to have worked, as he faltered and avoided my gaze when I stared down at him with my arms crossed.

Unlike before, there was a clear sense of wariness in his demeanor.

But he didn’t stop talking.

“Th-This bastard, do you think you can handle this? I am from the great Wudang Sect…”

“Keep barking.”

The moment I raised my hand, Cheongmyeong startled and twisted his body.

He tried to escape, but—

Boom—!!!!!

A punch with the technique of late-stage preemptive strikes exploded with force.

“Ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!”

With a strange scream, he rolled on the ground.

While he was protecting himself with his energy, he was overacting.

“You try to bark because you’re hiding your weakness, right?”

[Silence]

“Let’s just end this peacefully. Got it?”

[Silence]

If he doesn’t listen, maybe I should think about how insufficient my punishment was.

Cheongmyeong oddly has a talent for provoking punishment.

If that’s a talent, then it’s a talent.

“Hey, isn’t that Cheongmyeong-hyung?”

“Why is he lying on the ground? Isn’t that Cheon Sojin? What’s going on? Did they fight?”

“Could it be Cheongmyeong?”

Hearing the loud noise, people started to gather one by one.

“Not going to answer? Are you going to wait until the others arrive?”

Delaying will only hurt Cheongmyeong.

“Ugh…”

He couldn’t make eye contact and slightly nodded.

Yeah, it would have been better if he’d just done this from the beginning.

Clank—

Clank—

Hee-hee-hee—

I heard the voice of the driver.

“We are now in Gansu (甘肅).”

Getting off the carriage and looking around, all I could see were mountains and trees.

‘What’s going on?’

Since this was the end of the road, the carriage could go no further.

No, there wasn’t even anything that could be called a road.

A sense of unease crept over me.

‘This is a bit different from what the master described…’

No matter how much the Black Path (黑道) consists of people who live day by day, they wouldn’t come to such a deep mountain valley and cause trouble.

They mostly act based on profit, and aside from a few specific forces, they prefer settling in busy cities or large towns where trade is active.

Master said this place was a resting spot for the merchant group in a remote village, but it’s hard to imagine that they would have traveled so far from the main road up here.

This definitely seems…

‘For now, let’s head to the village.’

I walked toward the area where a group of people had gathered.

Including Cheongmyeong, there were six people in total.

Interestingly, they were all from the Wudang Sect.

“Cheongmyeong, are you not feeling well? You’ve been unusually quiet today…”

“Yeah. Is something going on?”

Even when the team members spoke, he had no choice but to keep his mouth shut.

He shot me a sideways glance.

How can I say I got beaten by some incompetent young master and am staying quiet?

“Cheongmyeong, little hero.”

“What is it, you bastard?”

I just called him lightly, but he immediately put his hand on his sword with a wary voice.

Don’t be scared.

“Are you sure you’ve come to the right place?”

“What are you talking about? This is the right place. You didn’t forget, did you?”

Cheongmyeong looked around with a confused expression.

If this place is indeed correct…

‘Does this bastard not feel something strange?’

Cheongmyeong must have received the same explanation from Master Raeji, but it looks like he’s not thinking at all.

‘I know talent is the most important thing, but…’

What if this kind of guy becomes the head of the sect? That would be a disaster.

My head is starting to ache.

“What should we do now?”

“Let’s first find the village and take a look around. We need to be careful, or we’ll be in big trouble.”

Looking at the members of the unyielding faction, they all nodded.

“That sounds good. It’s quite a way in.”

“I’m worried about how much the commoners are suffering. Let’s hurry!”

The team members began to ascend the mountain path, following me.

More than anything, they were concerned about the commoners.

Seeing this, maybe the righteous sect still has hope?

“Wait, I’m the leader here! You can’t move freely like that…!”

Turning around, I saw Cheongmyeong running toward me with a panicked face.

“We have to go together, what’s the problem? Are you not going?”

“Well, it’s not that, but…”

“Then stop talking and follow me.”

[Silence]

“What is it? Didn’t you say the Black Path took over?”

“It seems like nothing has happened.”

“By the way, this village is quite small.”

“Well, it’s a remote village, so that’s not surprising.”

I walked around the village, scanning the surroundings.

“I don’t see any Black Path people.”

It looked peaceful on the surface.

‘I don’t like the feel of this.’

There were more than a few suspicious things.

The state of the village didn’t match the information Master gave me.

It’s obvious that someone is hiding here.

“Let’s take a look until evening.”

“That sounds good.”

“Let’s do that.”

It would be nice if something special happened…

At that moment,

“When are you going to stop just watching?”

Cheongmyeong, who had been wearing a displeased expression, suddenly shouted.

“What?”

“Hmph! Are you scared? You coward, didn’t they say that in the world of heroes, you shouldn’t be afraid? You can just stay here and watch for the rest of your life!”

‘This bastard, no way…’

I quickly tried to grab his wrist, but Cheongmyeong used the Zeyun technique and dashed forward in the blink of an eye.

“Hey? Cheongmyeong! You can’t go alone…!”

“Hey, what are you doing? Hurry up and follow me!! Move quickly!!”

When the leader Cheongmyeong ran, the rest of the team followed him.

‘I didn’t think he’d be this reckless…’

Well, this works in my favor.

He’ll make a good bait.

Anyway, I just need to wipe out the Black Path and take the Blood-Severing Pill.

But despite the cheers, as soon as we entered the village, we were surrounded by the hidden enemies.

“…”

Well, what else did I expect?