Tangmunjeon - Chapter 246



Only Noblemtl

Episode 246: The Meeting at Mt. Wudang

The first day’s meeting ended with the unconventional statement of position by Yu Yu-do-in, the head of the Kunlun School. Everyone was so excited that a full conversation could not continue.

The only fortunate thing is that Yoo Yoo Do-in only left Namhwagak, but did not leave the Mudang faction.

It meant that there was still room for compromise.

Even Yoo Yoo-do did not want to abandon Kunlun Mountain and run away. For him and the other Taoists of the Kunlun School, abandoning Kunlun Mountain was only the lesser of two evils.

As the day came to a close and the next day’s meeting began, one positive thing happened.

The leader of the Jongnam faction, who had disappeared for a while because the sword of the first-line swordsman, Yeo Dong-bin, was stolen, appeared at Namhwagak.

The frontliner apologized with a haggard expression.

“I’m a little late because something important came up in the sect. I ask for your understanding.”

The presence of one more person does not change the dynamic of the meeting.

But it was enough to lighten the mood. At the same time, people felt as much curiosity as they did about the direction of the meeting.

Seonwooja, the leader of the Hwasan faction, asked quietly.

“I heard the story. There was something unpleasant with the Jongnam faction, right? How was it resolved?”

Sunwooja’s voice and expression seemed serious at first glance. However, people realized that there was a strange sense of humor and interest in Sunwooja’s voice.

When you become a long-term member or a head of a household, you will know that the Jongnam faction and the Hwasan faction are not on good terms, even if you don’t want to know it.

The frontliner answered in a mumbled tone.

“···You’ll be able to get it back soon.”

“Ahem! I believe so.”

The smile on Seonwooja’s face grew slightly deeper.

Rather than a smile filled with regret, it was a mocking laugh directed at the idiot who had the best sacred water of the sect stolen.

Then, Ilseonja, the leader of the Jongnam faction, did not back down either. Ilseonja said with a dark smile.

“Look here, Seonwooja. I don’t think you should be smiling like that either.”

“Huh. Who said that I laughed? I can’t even begin to fathom the heartbreak I felt upon hearing the sad news about Jongnampa.”

When the leader of the Hwasan faction, Seonwooja, was about to give up, Ilseonja whispered.

“No need to act like a fool. Seonwooja. Are you saying that I ran into a Hwasanpa master on my way to the Mudangpa?”

“Volcano Sect Master? What brings you here?”

“It looks like you have a story to tell someone…”

The frontliner kept his mouth shut and said nothing more.

And he smiled even more sinisterly than Seonwooja.

Sure enough, not long after, a Hwasanpa master, panting heavily, appeared in the Namhwagak conference room.

People had a gut feeling that something serious was happening.

The master of the Volcano faction that had just appeared was also quite old, and his martial arts skills seemed to have reached the peak of their power.

It is rare for a top-notch drone to move in person just to deliver a message, and it is even rarer for him to come in such a hurry that he is out of breath.

That is why the elders and heads of households in Namhwagak only showed a little interest and did not scold the Hwasanpa Taoist monk who had barged into Namhwagak.

Seonwooja asked the Taoist monk of the Hwasan faction.

“What’s going on?”

The Hwasanpa Taoist master held his breath but did not make a sound, instead sending a short message to Jang Moon-in.

It was probably an act to keep things confidential, but some people were able to read the contents of the transmission using the shape of the lips.

‘Stand.’

The situation was clear. The library containing the essence of the Hwasanpa’s martial arts had been raided.

If you had to rush here to tell me the news, you probably didn’t lose just one or two miscellaneous books.

In some ways, this is a more serious situation than the Jongnam faction that had the Yeoam District Prosecutors’ Office stolen.

Seonwooja, the leader of the Hwasan faction, got up from her seat unsteadily, feeling dizzy.

“Well… something came up. The Hwasan faction will be absent from the meeting for a while. We’ll be back as soon as possible.”

Even though Jongnampa’s leader, Ilseonja, had lost the Samun’s treasured sword, his expression wasn’t too bad.

Because I liked the idea of ​​a bigger problem for the Volcano faction.

But at the same time, other people in the conference room also felt a subtle sense of unease.

The theft incidents of the Jongnam faction and the Hwasan faction. I had a gut feeling that the timing of the two incidents was very coincidental.

While they were away from their sect for a while, they were overcome with anxiety that thieves might sneak into their sect and steal their valuables.

While the elders and the heads of household were anxious and worried about whether to return to the temple, the party of Dang Mujin exchanged glances with each other.

‘Namgung Myung, this bastard, he’s so excited about the opportunity that he’s doing it.’

‘Please don’t get caught.’

‘Just remember that if you get caught by any chance, you have nothing to do with me.’

The second day’s meeting ended without much progress, leaving only a dismal atmosphere.

*

On the third day, the meeting continued without much progress.

The Yoo Yoo Do-in still shouted loudly that they had to launch a preemptive strike against the Demonic Cult, but there was no particular response to his claim.

The elders and heads of households who gathered at the non-partisan party have carefully weighed the pros and cons for the past two days and decided on a future course of action. It is extremely difficult to change a decision once it has been made.

There was one thing that was fortunate for the Yoo Yoo Do-in, the leader of the Jongnam faction also expressed his opinion that it would be better to attack the Demonic Cult first.

Of course, it wasn’t because I was worried about the Kunlun sect.

I am just worried that if the Kunlun faction gives way and the Gongdong faction collapses, it will be the Jongnam faction’s turn.

It would have been better if the meeting had simply been dragging its feet, but the long-spoken speakers were having trouble concentrating.

It was because my heart went to the soybean field after hearing the story that thieves had broken into the Hwasanpa and Jongnampa.

It was obvious that people were reluctantly staying in their seats, hoping that the meeting would end quickly.

The Demonic Cult is a threat that may come in the future, but the nameless thief – who has now been given the nickname Shintu – is a threat that lurks nearby.

As the atmosphere became more and more strange, those who had insisted on launching a preemptive strike against the Demonic Cult, especially Young Heo-ja, became anxious.

It took years just to get this position. If we don’t seize this opportunity, it will be nearly impossible to strike at the Demonic Cult before it rises.

On the third day, the atmosphere of the meeting ending in a hurry filled Namhwagak, and when no one was sure whether the fourth day meeting would actually be held, a presence was felt outside Namhwagak.

People’s curious gazes turned toward the sliding doors of Namhwagak.

But no matter how much I thought about it, there was no one who would return to Namhwagak now.

Two people entered Namhwagak while receiving attention from people.

People who had been sitting there with expressions of being bored until now suddenly stood up from their seats without realizing it.

People’s eyes were focused on one of the two new arrivals.

He was probably a little over fifty years old.

He was a man with a slightly whiter face than other people, and narrow eyes and lips.

The moment they sensed his momentum, everyone in Namhwagak’s hands went to their waists.

It is instinctive to look for the weapon.

However, everyone except the shamans kept their black swords in their black sea sword holders. People’s hands twitched at their waists as if they were anxious.

No one in this place knew the identity of the white-faced man, but people could not take their eyes off him.

There was only one reason. It felt like his martial arts had gone beyond the peak of mastery and had clearly reached the realm of the super-peak.

Dang Mu-jin was equally surprised.

‘There is a supreme master who is not a 6-star?’

So, there are three possibilities.

Like Hwayeonshinni, he is a hermit from the past, a warrior from the Sapa, or a warrior from the Demonic Cult.

‘No, the probability of him being a hermit is low. If he is a hermit, at least one or two people should have recognized him. If so, then he must be a warrior of the Sapa or Demonic Cult.’

While Dang Mu-jin was pondering, the white-faced man lightly extended his hand.

“Oh. I didn’t expect you to notice me this much since I came so late.”

When Geulseon heard that story, he asked. Among the top masters he knew, there was no one like that.

“Who are you?”

“I am So Gyu-un, the new leader of the Gongdongpa. Back in the days when I wandered north of the Yellow River, I was called Baek Ye-hyo. Call me whatever you want.”

Baekyahyo. White night owl. It was a strangely fitting nickname.

However, it seemed that there was no one present who had heard of the nickname Baek Ya-hyo.

The leader of the non-partisan faction, Yeongbo Jinin, sat quietly and asked.

“Nice to meet you. But it seems like no one here knows you. Is there any way to prove that you are the head of the communal faction?”

“Since the Gongdongpa doesn’t have anything that can be called a Jangmunryeongbu, the only things I can show you without a weapon are the Chilsangkwon and the Bokmajangbeop. If there’s anyone who wants to practice martial arts, we can do it after the meeting. If it’s necessary, you may raise your sword outside of the Mudangpa.”

He certainly has a confident attitude, as if he has mastered the martial arts of the shaman faction. Of course, it is unlikely that a warrior from the Sapa or Demonic Cult would have entered the Shaman faction so calmly.

Since many of the members of the Gongdongpa defected after working for the Sapa, their reputation among outsiders often fell.

Just like the previous eldest son, Muryangja, wasn’t very famous until he became the eldest son.

People still didn’t completely trust Baek Ya-hyo, but their suspicions were somewhat reduced.

Now, people’s eyes turned to the man next to Baek Ya-hyo.

A character with a relatively weak presence and so little activity that it is difficult to guess why he is there.

But some people knew his face.

The party of Dang Mu-jin also knew his face, and Yeong Bo-jin also knew who he was.

Tae-ui-geom-mun-ju.

Since the previous Taeui Geommun leader died in Nogunsan, he had to take over the position at a relatively young age.

A person whom Dang Mu-jin tried to kill by going to find him, but he was unable to kill him because he ran away while abandoning the inspection of the royal family.

Baek Ya-hyo introduced Tae-ui Geom-mun-ju to the people.

“This place is called Taeui Geommunju Yanggwak. I don’t know if it’s okay to call it Taeui Geommunju since Taeui Geommun has already disappeared, but somehow we ended up meeting and came together. From what I’ve heard, your situation is very difficult, and it seems like you know something that you should know.”

Tae-ui-geom-mun-ju glared at Dang Mu-jin. His eyes seemed to be burning with resentment.

It was the third day in a row that the same story was being repeated over and over again, and no one was coming forward to talk.

Thanks to this, Tae-ui-geom-mun-ju was able to naturally take over the right to speak.

“Unlike you, I am an unskilled person. My skills are shameful to even call me a warrior, let alone a lord. However, I have something I must tell you, so I have risked my life to stand here.”

Dang Mu-jin stood up from his seat to say something, but then stopped.

It was not an atmosphere where one could suppress Tae-ui-geom-mun-ju’s remarks by force, and I was also curious about what he was trying to say.

“Those of you here may have been discussing the future based on the story of the dragon. However, there is something you need to think about first.”

“What is that?”

“Coincidentally, I have a personal grudge against Yi-ryong, so I have been following his past activities for the past several years to find out what kind of person he is.”

Surprisingly, Tae-ui-geom-mun-ju did not embellish his actions. Rather, he was overly candid and honest. He said he followed me because of a grudge.

Rather, that is why people listened a little more closely to the story of the Tae-ui-geom-mun-ju.

Tang Mujin raised his eyebrows and looked at Taeyi Geommunju. Taeyi Geommunju also did not avoid Tang Mujin’s gaze like before. He opened both eyes wide and glared at Tang Mujin.

Those were not the eyes of someone who wanted to live in luxury after leading the party to ruin.

It was the gaze of someone who wanted to run towards destruction together, and the gaze of an assassin who wanted to leave a small scar on Dang Mu-jin even if it meant giving up his own life.

The Taeui Sword Master began to tell a story.

“First, let’s start with the story of the dragon’s master.”