Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 106



Only Krnovel

Episode 106 – Shin Sang Pil Beol

It is an award that is so great that even the words “greatest ever” are not enough.

That is a reward that is so ‘instant death’ that it can be said to be a must.

But I had absolutely no reason to refute it. My mind went blank and I couldn’t think of anything.

So I have only one option.

‘Shall we fight…?’

If he can even beat the Grand Prince of Murim, what can he not do?

Since I was going to do it anyway, I thought I should do it properly······

No matter what, that wasn’t it.

Since the Grand Prince of Murim had the reputation of being a senior in the martial arts world before becoming a member of the royal family, he was somewhat tolerable.

But he wasn’t the emperor.

To begin with, he didn’t have the Dragon Fang and his body was in a state of ruin, so he didn’t have the confidence to fight the Emperor and survive.

Of course, since I’m going to die anyway······.

No, but even though Jugwancheon is Jugwancheon, the emperor was also an emperor.

therefore······.

“You don’t seem to understand why Jim and the Viceroy want to reward you so much.”

The emperor’s voice was suddenly heard.

Normally, he would have displayed humility like a thousand and ten thousand, but not now.

“To be honest······ yes, Your Majesty.”

That’s exactly what I meant.

Now that we’re on the subject, I really wonder why they do that.

What on earth is the reason for forcing something on someone who doesn’t want it?

If you’re going to force it on me, I won’t say anything again.

But don’t you bring along the warriors of the Golden Guard, don’t you spread the ‘Cheonrajimang’ sword, and don’t you bring along the best swordsmen of the world?

It wasn’t to the extent of forcibly squeezing it in, it was to the extent of forcibly shoving it into the mouth.

If it’s a ‘punishment’ given to a criminal, it’s natural to enforce it. But honestly, I couldn’t understand why they force-fed him a ‘reward’······.

“The ancient sages said that there are three things a ruler must always be wary of when governing.”

The emperor continued speaking as if he had seen through my doubts.

“One is to employ a subject who lacks virtue. Two is to give a high position to a subject who has little talent. Three is to not punish a subject who has committed a crime.”

A subject who lacks virtue will only end up with ’empty talk’ when dealing with the people.

Those who are given high positions despite having no ability are only focused on showing off.

If those who commit crimes are not properly punished, the country’s will will not be established.

“Everyone is making the country sick and rotting, so we must always be on guard against this in order to govern properly.”

but.

“Still, there are things that can be taken into account to some extent. Just like how you caused all that trouble and I didn’t punish you at all.”

I flinched and trembled without realizing it.

At the same time, I let out a sigh of relief.

What that meant was that the Emperor had decided to forgive my previous rudeness.

But when I think about it carefully······.

‘What does it mean?’

Whether you die as a punishment for your rudeness or die as a reward, death is the same.

The emperor continued speaking, whether he knew or not.

“The above fall into the category of ‘mistakes’. This means that they can be corrected. However, do you know what one thing can lead the country into ruin and can never be corrected?”

The Emperor’s words ended in a question.

But perhaps the question wasn’t really one that required an answer. The emperor continued to ask and answer questions.

“It is said that the person who has accomplished something is not given the appropriate reward.”

“······.”

“The result is that it undermines trust between the ruler and his subjects. This leads to the creation of conflicts between subjects and their officials, and ultimately even causes great strife.”

If someone achieves great things but is not properly rewarded, there are bound to be those who feel dissatisfied.

No matter how hard they work, no one recognizes their efforts, so they resort to corruption and bribery to find a way to survive.

When these people start to pile up one by one, the very foundation of the country will rot.

Good faith is rewarded and punished.

They say that if rewards and punishments are not clear, even small things cannot be accomplished.

The emperor may have some tolerance in handing down punishments, but he would not back down an inch when it came to giving rewards.

“Punishment is a means of punishing ‘evil deeds’, while rewards are a means of encouraging ‘good deeds’. By giving a reward to one person, I am implementing a ‘policy’ of encouraging goodness for all people.”

By instilling a firm ‘belief’ that if you achieve merit, you will be rewarded.

Even if something outrageous happens, such as a person with merit escaping, the government officials and the people have a firm belief that they will somehow capture him and reward him.

“If you govern only with laws and punishments, the people will only try to avoid immediate crimes and will not feel ashamed of them. However, if you govern with virtue and good deeds, they will feel ashamed of their own sins and will not disrupt order.”

If the belief that rewards are given in proportion to merit is practiced in a place where many people see and hear about it, even those who have not seen or heard it directly will unconsciously form that belief.

“But if there is nothing in return for those who risk their lives to go to war and achieve great achievements, who in this world would be loyal to their country and sacrifice their lives for me?”

This was why the Emperor wanted to reward me somehow.

·········What, I had nothing to say.

It felt like my throat was blocked and no words could come out.

“It is not my ‘right’ to give appropriate rewards to those who have achieved great things, but my ‘duty’ to do so.”

No, what can I do when you say that!

If Ju Gwan-cheon had blocked all my paths to survival, then the Emperor would have delivered the final blow and decapitated me.

So, the ministers of Taehwajeon immediately gulped and swallowed their saliva, looking as if to say, ‘Maybe me too…?’

In particular, the warriors of the Golden Guard had gleaming eyes, and they seemed eager to accumulate achievements.

Thus, their loyalty to the emperor was almost on par with that of the ‘cultists’.

To that extent, it wasn’t a ‘refutation’, but rather just a ‘foul play’, and they were really going all out to tackle it head on… I was speechless.

‘Shall we fight…?’

Seriously, this is all I could think about.

‘How much of the converted merit is left?’

I hurriedly searched through my pockets, but I couldn’t find the scroll. Come to think of it, I didn’t have the scroll at the moment.

That’s why the remaining conversion merit could not be confirmed.

There was no way to check how much life I had left.

Still, one thing was confirmed.

‘It’s not over yet.’

It’s not over yet.

Of course, if it had been ‘confirmed’ that I would receive that award, I would have had to die on the spot.

He could not avoid death in front of that ridiculous ‘reward’ that was so great that it was a merit that saved millions of people, that it was worth dying for, and that it was enough to build a nation.

And yet I’m not dead yet.

This meant that not everything was over.

In other words, it seemed to mean that there was still a way to survive. A single way to survive that even the Master had not anticipated.

But what the heck is that······?

I racked my brain desperately. Furthermore, I split my time into several parts, constantly repeating Yeo Dong-bin’s teachings.

In this high-speed world moving towards the moment, I thought over and over again.

‘ah···!’

And so a brilliant idea occurred to me.

“Your Majesty, may I just say one thing to you?”

“Tell me.”

At the emperor’s nod, I took a moment to collect my thoughts and then opened my mouth.

“Your Majesty’s wise words have opened my eyes and heart.”

“Are you saying that you will accept the reward quietly?”

The emperor asked with sparkling eyes, but I only lowered my head further.

“With all due respect, Your Majesty, I cannot accept Your Majesty’s award.”

“What is the reason?”

The emperor’s eyebrows suddenly twitched.

He seemed to be watching to see what I was talking about, but I opened my mouth without even blinking.

If it doesn’t work logically or with justification······.

“The incident at Guizhou Castle was not my achievement, but that of the ‘King of the Yangtze River.’”

He consistently pretends not to know and is being ‘forced’.

“It wasn’t you who did it?”

As expected, the emperor’s face as he looked at me was filled with amazement. The ministers around him were also shocked and asked, “What the hell are you talking about?”

But I still didn’t bat an eye.

“That’s right.”

As if to brush off a lie that didn’t even exist, Eungseon continued to act as if she didn’t know anything.

But in fact, it is not so far-fetched, because I was active as the ‘King of the Yangtze River’ in Guizhou Province.

Even when I was traveling around Guizhou Province to treat the epidemic, I never took off my ‘mask’ and just wore it.

Above all, it was the Yangtze River Swordsmen who helped the people of Guizhou Province, so the people of Guizhou Province knew me as the ‘King of the Yangtze River.’

Of course, it was a secret known to everyone that I was the King of the Yangtze River. The Emperor was one of them.

Still, most people didn’t know.

I thought that most of the ministers of Taehwajeon gathered here probably didn’t know.

Until now, ‘The Dragon Warrior of the Missionary’ and ‘The King of the Yangtze River’ were known as separate figures.

“The lord of Guizhou Castle said you did it?”

Of course, I knew all about the names of the Lords of Guizhou and Feng Zi.

As expected, it seemed right that Pungjamyeong had confessed everything to the emperor.

“that······.”

I rolled my eyes from side to side once and answered.

“I wonder if I······ made a mistake.”

“Did I make a mistake?”

“In relation to the epidemic, the Lord of Guizhou Castle came to Hyemin Hall in person and asked me for help.”

“That’s what they said.”

“So Hye-min-dang came forward to help, but I think they may have mistakenly thought that I had come forward because of that.”

“What you’re saying is, only Hye-min-dang is involved. You have nothing to do with this matter?”

“That’s right.”

Since I was going to be stubborn, I had no choice but to put a metal plate on my face.

There was no other way since no more logic, justification, or persuasion could be used.

“So, does that mean that the one called ‘King of the Yangtze River’, who was maintaining the security of the Yangtze River, defeated the elder of the Demonic Cult?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“But why were you in Guizhou Province and not Jiangxi Province?”

The emperor’s words suddenly came in and left me speechless for a moment. However, I quickly thought of something to say and opened my mouth again.

“I, too, heard rumors of the plague and took action. I was worried about the Hye-min Party member who had been dispatched······.”

“Then why did you make such a fuss when you could have just said that?”

“that······.”

“that?”

“I was flustered and did that because you suddenly spread your net. I also feel wronged.”

“It’s unfair?”

“That’s right.”

“That’s right······.”

Then the emperor seemed embarrassed and trailed off. It was understandable, since I had decided to put an iron plate on my face, and it was impossible for me to refute this excuse.

That would be the case, for the Emperor wanted to keep the secret that I was the King of the Yangtze River.

And this Taehwajeon is the place where the emperor takes care of state affairs, and it is an ‘official’ place where many ministers gather.

The historians were immediately recording every word of the conversation between me and the emperor.

Therefore, the Emperor cannot declare here that he is the Great King of the Yangtze River. If he were to declare here, the secret would be exposed to the world and would be recorded in history.

“That’s really strange.”

A look of embarrassment appeared on the emperor’s face.

No, the look of embarrassment only lasted for a moment.

“Aren’t you the one who is called the King of the Yangtze River?”

The emperor’s voice was suddenly heard.

“yes?”

“hmm?”

“huh?”

All the ministers and officers of Taehwajeon, including me, made a fool of ourselves.

* * *

The emperor said that he was the king of the Yangtze River.

At those shocking words, a stunned silence fell upon the entire Taehwajeon.

The ministers of Taehwajeon were wide-eyed, doubting their own ears.

The historians, who were quickly recording the conversation with brush strokes, were expressing absolute shock, saying things like, ‘What, what?!’

In particular, Ju Gwan-cheon was looking at the emperor with his mouth wide open······.

“Your Majesty, Your Majesty······?”

It seemed like that was something that had not been discussed with the subject.

Last time, just like when I met the Emperor’s sister at the Murim Alliance, it seemed like revealing that I was the King of the Yangtze River was an arbitrary act by the Emperor.

So it seemed like there was still room to pick it up.

“What do you mean when you say that Soshin is the King of the Yangtze River······?”

“It’s true.”

But the emperor was undaunted.

I wonder if the Emperor was somewhat angry that I had blocked him earlier, or if he had decided to block him too.

“Aren’t you the ‘Great Swordsman of the Fire Dragon’ and the ‘King of the Yangtze River’ at the same time?”

It seemed like there was no such thing as secrets anymore.

I was extremely embarrassed, but I still had room to be stubborn.

“I would like to hear why Your Majesty thought I was the great king of the Yangtze River.”

“Are you asking for evidence, in simple terms?”

I nodded cautiously.

That would be the case, as there was no ‘evidence’ that I was the King of the Yangtze River.

I only saw the face of the person wearing the mask, and I did not take off the mask to see my face.

Although the circumstantial evidence was certain, there was no physical evidence.

“There is no evidence.”

As expected, the Emperor seemed to have no evidence to back it up······ But.

“Then it doesn’t matter at all.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I heard that the Jangganghyeopdan’s warriors pointed their swords at the Geumuiwi······.”

And the warriors of the Golden Guard move only on the orders of the Emperor.

Pointing a sword at the Emperor could be seen as pointing a sword at the Emperor himself.

“Even if the Jang Gang Hyeopgaekdan are punished for treason, it would have nothing to do with you.”

The emperor spoke as if to tell me to keep being stubborn.

As I put the iron plate on his face, the emperor grabbed the iron plate and started tearing it off.

······The emperor had been using the word ‘foul play’ instead of ‘rebuttal’ all along.

‘Then why are you doing such useless things······.’

Of course, it was my fault for being the first to throw a tantrum at the Murim Grand Prince, but I felt I had to say something and move on.

“What do you think? Are you still going to deny that you are not the King of the Yangtze River?”

······First, let’s resolve the current situation.

So, I was wondering how to answer that.

I thought it was unlikely that the Emperor would do that, but since they had decided to go together, I thought that it could really happen.

“······.”

Eventually, when I had no answer, the entire Taehwajeon was in an uproar.

“Oh my god!”

“Is it really true that Hwa-ryong-dae-hyeop was the great king of the Yangtze River?”

Most of the ministers of Taehwajeon opened their eyes in surprise. The historians, too, were leaving records in a single stroke as if it was a jackpot.

With this, it was not only known to the world that I was the King of the Yangtze River, but it was also recorded in history.

But what was even worse was that even ‘force’ didn’t work.

A situation where logic, justification, arrogance, and stubbornness are all blocked.

It was impossible to return the reward because the subject matter blocked all possibilities.

It was impossible to hand down rewards since the emperor had accused him of ‘treason’.

In the end, I had no choice but to accept the reward.

The reward was virtually ‘confirmed’.

But for some reason, I didn’t die. It wouldn’t have been strange if I had died instantly, but I was still alive.

Is the heavens looking down on me?

······That couldn’t be happening.

There is no way that the heavens, which are trying to kill me, can be merciful to me.

That means there is still a way to survive······.

‘ah···!’

A thought suddenly flashed through my head.

“Your Majesty, I have something to ask you.”