Wudang Sacred Scriptures-Chapter 102

After one operative discovered a sword mark, other members of the Black Death Division began spotting them as well.

“There are sword marks here too.”

“This tree has two distinct sword marks.”

Captain Jeong Seop-bo of the Black Death Division tensed.

Sword marks in the mountain? Could it be that the Jeong Family’s pursuit team arrived ahead of us?

There were widespread rumors that the Cave Daoist had killed the Waryong Divine Sword of the First Branch of the Jeong Family.

Since the Jeong Family had issued no formal statement, the general consensus was that it was nothing more than a baseless rumor.

Still, the Jeong Family excels in clandestine ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) operations and subterfuge—it’s highly likely they’ve sent out a covert pursuit team.

Captain Jeong Seop-bo grew anxious.

The Cave Daoist had to be claimed by their Black Death Division—no one else.

As he examined the sword marks on the trees, Jeong Seop-bo found himself bewildered.

There were no traces of combat around the marks—only the cuts on the trees themselves. And all the sword marks were positioned at a uniform height.

They weren’t made by someone jumping up and slashing.

As a master at the peak level, Jeong Seop-bo could discern such distinctions immediately.

Does this mean he was training martial techniques here all this time?

Once he reached that conclusion, curiosity took hold.

What kind of martial art would leave marks at that height?

Just observing a few trees wouldn’t be enough to tell.

But if all the surrounding trees bore sword marks at the same height...

Only one martial technique came to mind.

He had to confirm it immediately.

If the technique trained here was indeed that one, then it would confirm that the Cave Daoist had in fact killed the Waryong Divine Sword.

“Light the torches and illuminate the surrounding trees. Now.”

At the captain’s order, the Black Death Division operatives gathered branches and crafted torches, lighting them without delay.

—Fwoosh!

—Fwoosh!

As flames suddenly flared up in the mountain darkness, the shadows instantly receded.

Captain Jeong Seop-bo’s eyes widened in shock.

On numerous trees around them, sword marks extended in parallel lines—

There’s no doubt. These are traces of Sword Guided by Qi!

His eyes, thrown wide in shock, suddenly fixed on a single point.

A faintly pale shape had emerged between the trees.

It’s him!

The Cave Daoist was nearby.

The man who wielded Sword Guided by Qi.

But—

As the faint figure came fully into view under the torchlight, Captain Jeong Seop-bo was stunned.

It was a middle-aged Daoist in a white robe.

Though he felt a momentary sense of relief, he couldn’t help but find it strange.

A Daoist in full robes, in the middle of the mountains?

And on the chest of the Daoist’s robe was a clear Taiji emblem.

“Wudang Sect?”

The middle-aged Daoist nodded.

“Indeed. Captain of the Black Death Division of the Demonic Cult Alliance, I am Hyeonam, Head of the Wudang Sect’s Disciplinary Court.”

“The Head of the Disciplinary Court of Wudang Sect...? What are you doing here?”

“I’ve come to hold you accountable for the slaughter of our sect’s disciples. And since you were courteous enough to light the way for us, how could we possibly turn down such hospitality?”

“...?”

At Hyeonam Dojang’s signal, other Wudang Daoists emerged from the darkness like ghosts.

“By order of the Grand Elder’s Decree, disciples of Wudang—slay the Demonic Cult’s villains to the last!”

At Hyeonam Dojang’s thunderous command, Songmun Swords were unsheathed in unison beneath the torchlight.

****

Chwi Dugae stepped into the Guandi Temple, eyes wide with disbelief.

“What in the hell is going on here?”

He had rushed over after receiving a message from Gwak Yeon, delivered by a runner.

“Hm? Who are these two?”

His gaze turned suspiciously toward the old man and child standing beside Kwak Yeon.

“This is Elder Jo Cheon-yang of the Hao Clan.”

Kwak Yeon offered no further introduction for Gwaa.

Chwi Dugae’s eyes twitched wide.

“Jo Cheon-yang, the infamous Heavy Ghost?”

Jo Cheon-yang offered a clasp-fist salute.

“Old Jo of the Hao Clan greets Rear Beggar.”

Chwi Dugae returned the gesture begrudgingly.

“Pleasure to meet you, Elder Jo.”

He immediately turned his gaze back to Kwak Yeon and asked,

“So this is why you suddenly left the guesthouse?”

Kwak Yeon nodded.

“We can’t return—not with the constables swarming the place.”

A murder had taken place at the guesthouse, so it was only a matter of time before the authorities launched an investigation.

The constables might chalk it up to a dispute between martial artists and sweep it under the rug, but staying there any longer would definitely lead to complications.

Chwi Dugae’s attention turned back to the two members of the Hao Clan.

“What a strange coincidence, though.”

In the midst of tracking the Vice Branch Leader of the Hao Clan, here was one of the Clan’s senior leaders, together with Kwak Yeon.

And right after a skirmish with swords.

Of course, he was curious about the whole story.

As Kwak Yeon remained silent, Jo Cheon-yang spoke softly.

“I have a past acquaintance with Daoist Kwak. Due to certain circumstances, I sought his aid this time.”

“What circumstances?”

“That is... an internal matter of our clan.”

Kwak Yeon interjected.

“There’s no need for Elder Jo to keep anything hidden. Rear Beggar and I are working together on this incident.”

Jo Cheon-yang nodded.

“Rear Beggar, I am deeply ashamed. As an Elder, I failed to stop our Vice Branch Leader from committing such atrocities.”

“You knew, then?”

“I didn’t know the full story. But now that Daoist Kwak has explained it to me, I understand everything.”

Kwak Yeon spoke.

“Rear Beggar, there’s no need to interrogate this Elder.”

He was right. This had been the unilateral doing of the Vice Branch Leader and his faction.

There had merely been long-standing bitterness toward the Hao Clan.

Chwi Dugae, unable to hide his discomfort, spoke bluntly.

“Then I’d like to know why this Elder was being pursued by assassins.”

This time, Jo Cheon-yang hesitated. Seeing that, Kwak Yeon said,

“Elder, how can we help if we don’t know the circumstances?”

Kwak Yeon had refrained from asking, hoping the two would reveal it themselves when they were ready.

Now, Chwi Dugae had appeared.

Truthfully, Kwak Yeon didn’t particularly want to know why they were being chased by assassins.

He’d helped them partly because Gwaa had asked—but also because it was a way to find the Vice Branch Leader’s whereabouts.

That said, if they sincerely sought help, he wasn’t unwilling to offer it.

When Gwaa had trembled in fear, Primordial Void Qi had instinctively activated, allowing him to unleash the Infernal Flame Qi of the Great Yin Jade Maiden Divine Art to its full extreme.

In that sense, he owed Gwaa a small debt.

After a moment of contemplation, Jo Cheon-yang spoke.

“I have no choice. Though it brings shame to the clan, we can no longer stand by while the Vice Branch Leader continues to poison the martial world.”

“...”

“Gwaa is the son of the previous Clan Leader. His real name is Baek Hyeon-gwa.”

Kwak Yeon’s gaze turned to Baek Hyeon-gwa.

He had believed her to be a cross-dressing girl—but she was in fact a boy.

“The assassins weren’t after this old man—they were after Gwaa. Because... he witnessed the death of his father, the former Clan Leader.”

Chwi Dugae flinched and asked,

“What?! Are you saying Clan Leader Baek of the Hao Clan was murdered?”

“Yes. None of us Elders had any idea at the time.”

“How is that even possible? I mean, for all its filth... the Hao Clan is still a major sect. How could no one know the Clan Leader was killed?”

“No one could’ve known.”

Gwaa spoke up, as if in protest.

“Father... Father died in a truly strange way.”

Kwak Yeon felt a dull ache in his chest at Gwaa’s words. That trembling voice was filled with love and sorrow for his father.

At the same time, a question arose.

“Can you tell us what happened—what exactly was so strange?”

At Kwak Yeon’s gentle prompting, Gwaa nodded and began to speak.

“That day, I was in Father’s study. I was hiding behind the folding screen, planning to jump out and surprise him. I used to do that a lot. Father was always so busy, and unless I did something like that, I couldn’t get time with him. But then...”

Gwaa’s face twisted with terror.

“That day, Father came in with the Vice Branch Leader and the Seventh Elder. The Vice Branch Leader sat and talked with Father, while the Seventh Elder pretended to browse paintings. But then he suddenly approached Father from behind... and placed his hand on the back of his neck. The Seventh Elder’s hand was glowing red. Father couldn’t move at all. He just trembled for a long while and then...”

“Gwaa, that’s enough. Rest for a moment.”

Jo Cheon-yang gently calmed the weeping Gwaa and continued in his place.

“At the time, the Vice Branch Leader was Im Saeng, the current Clan Leader. That Seventh Elder, Yang Won-gak, is now acting as the Vice Branch Leader. In any case, no one could determine the cause of Baek Clan Leader’s death back then. So it was declared a natural death due to overwork.”

“...”

“Gwaa may be young, but he’s a clever child. He knew how dangerous the truth was and held his tongue. When the clan was busy with the funeral, he slipped out and came to me. I was staying in Kaifeng at the time, and this child made it there on his own, disguised as a beggar.”

Jo Cheon-yang’s eyes glistened with moisture, recalling Gwaa’s pitiful state at the time.

Chwi Dugae seemed moved by the tale and suddenly asked,

“Didn’t Clan Leader Baek have other family?”

“He lost his wife long ago. Gwaa was his only child.”

“...”

“In any case, once the Vice Branch Leader and the Seventh Elder realized Gwaa was missing, they must have figured it out. When I learned they were searching for him in secret, I disguised Gwaa as a girl and pretended to be a blind man. We wandered the land together that way.”

Kwak Yeon, who had been listening quietly, asked,

“Then why, here in Aknyang, did Gwaa stop dressing as a girl, and why did you drop the blind act?”

“Over three years have passed. Gwaa’s grown, and the disguise no longer works. Besides, there hadn’t been any sign of pursuit. I never imagined they would find us now.”

“That’s not quite enough to justify the decision.”

Jo Cheon-yang nodded.

“In truth... I had secretly called for a Council of Elders. I planned to expose the truth of that day using Gwaa’s testimony, and impeach both the Clan Leader and Vice Branch Leader. In the Hao Clan, the Council of Twelve Elders is the highest authority—even the Clan Leader can be removed.”

“Then that means... one of the twelve leaked the meeting to the Vice Branch Leader’s faction?”

Jo Cheon-yang nodded with a bitter expression.

“Yes. Council meetings are always kept in absolute secrecy. They exist to counterbalance the leadership—that’s the tradition. I never imagined one of the Elders would be aligned with the Vice Branch Leader.”

“So those men had stationed themselves here in Aknyang—the path to Gunsan Island, where the secret meeting was to take place.”

“That seems to be the case. What I still don’t understand is... how they knew we were here.”

Kwak Yeon thought for a moment, then asked,

“Can the Hao Clan’s Aknyang Branch be trusted?”

“The Branch Master in Aknyang is trustworthy. He admired Clan Leader Baek greatly.”

“Then Elder, you must have visited the Aknyang branch after arriving here?”

“I went to ask him to help me arrange passage... Surely not...”

“There’s a spy among them. One of the Vice Branch Leader’s agents must’ve taken note of you.”

“Ah... This is all my fault.”

To the self-blaming Jo Cheon-yang, Kwak Yeon asked,

“When and where is the Elder Council meeting scheduled to take place?”

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