WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Chen

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◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈

Chapter 213: An Unwanted Invitation (2)

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Sichuan Province, where Liu Bei had grandly founded Shu Han, only for it to be destroyed by one of Cao Cao's lackeys and reduced once more to an imperial provincial administrative region.

Known to most people simply as a place with many rivers and unusual food, it was enjoying an unexpected boom.

The only problem was that the boom had come from war.

“When is this damned war going to end?”

“Winter will be here soon. How long are they planning to keep fighting?”

“They said the Martial Alliance would crush them in no time... Isn't the Blood Cult stronger than expected?”

“Maybe the Martial Alliance is just weak.”

At first, the merchants had beamed as people suddenly flooded into Chengdu. Yet as the flames of war spread across all of Sichuan, freezing trade and the economy, their expressions gradually stiffened.

It wasn't as if the Martial Alliance members had nothing to say in their defense.

For one thing, the Blood Cult had far more people than expected.

There were enough of them to make Qingcheng, Emei, and the Tang Clan, who had stood by with their hands behind their backs while the Martial Alliance bled in their own backyard, rush into action as though they were about to soil themselves.

The Iron Zombies occasionally mixed among the Blood Cult forces were especially terrifying to ordinary Martial Alliance members.

Whenever those pale-skinned beings appeared on the battlefield, the Martial Alliance's morale plummeted.

Overwhelming the enemy with numbers was one of the Martial Alliance and its allies' greatest strengths, but Iron Zombies and illusion arts were not things they could overcome through sheer numbers.

The Iron Zombies earned all sorts of nicknames, such as “Alliance Member Grinder” and “Corpse Maker.” Their momentum only began to weaken after the Poison King of the Tang Clan, the Qingcheng Sect Leader, and Emei's Elder Council stepped in.

Still, problems remained.

The dark arts of those heretical martial artists, which they had only learned about in theory until then, were far stranger and more grotesque than the bastard guest instructors had described.

They also left aftereffects almost without exception.

Even the banishing evil and suppressing spirits techniques that every Martial Alliance member was required to learn upon joining did not work at all.

Not that the people who had sold off their Spirit-Sealing Orbs had any right to say that.

Some had spent their first month in the Alliance hugging their Spirit-Sealing Orbs like precious eggs, doing nothing but sucking their thumbs. After seeing even those people driven mad by the Blood Cult's illusion arts, the members who still had orbs simply resolved to sell them the moment they returned home.

Few commanders in the Alliance had deep knowledge of heretical martial artists or dark arts, let alone experience with them. They had no choice but to consult the military manuals passed down by the Martial Alliance and respond accordingly.

The more they did, the more they heard their subordinates scream and curse at their superiors.

Yet even in the middle of it all, one organization achieved outstanding results.

“But why the hell is Tiger Hall fighting a completely different war from the rest of us?”

“Could Hall Master Gu Jeongryong be from the Blood Cult? How else could the difference in casualties be this huge?”

“But they're killing far too many Blood Cult bastards for that.”

As people watched Tiger Hall pile up achievements like an awl sticking out of a pocket and began to question it, Gu Jeongryong gave a casual answer.

“Because we fought them alongside Jin Sowoon first.”

“Jin Sowoon?”

“The Black Flame Dragon?”

The moment they heard that familiar name, people began desperately searching for the difference between Tiger Hall and themselves.

Naturally, they began by digging into everything connected to the name Jin Sowoon.

“What the hell is this?”

While everyone searched with their eyes practically on fire, those stationed at the front discovered a clue in the classified “Jin Sowoon Report.”

The rescue procedures and methods for responding to Blood Cult attacks in the report differed sharply from the Alliance's existing military manuals, so people were understandably uneasy about relying on unverified methods.

But for Alliance members who lost a comrade every day, the only difference was whether they died without trying or died after trying.

War was harsh enough to make people act strangely.

With the mindset of fight or die, the Alliance members followed Jin Sowoon's tactics.

Then they cursed more fiercely than ever before.

“Fuck! Those crazy bastards had methods this good, so why were they hiding them from us all this time?!”

“Those motherfuckers clearly shelved it because the report was written by someone from a small-fry sect like the Taeul Sect!”

“They increased casualties that could have been reduced. Those bastards must be Blood Cult spies!”

The Alliance leadership had its reasons for refusing to follow unverified tactics, but would members who had watched their friends die understand that?

It became customary for Alliance members to crudely copy the classified Jin Sowoon Report and pass it to other units. Before long, copied versions had spread throughout every Martial Alliance expeditionary force.

The Martial Alliance began cracking down.

“Reports continue to arrive that Alliance members are fighting based on an unorthodox report. Pavilion Masters and Hall Masters must firmly guide their subordinates to follow the leadership's orders.”

That only provoked the expeditionary forces.

“Firmly guide us? Is this bastard insane? You want us to stick our necks into that death trap? We can't take this anymore. Keep pushing us, and we'll cut off your heads first.”

“That isn't what I meant! How do you plan to deal with this after returning to the Martial Alliance?!”

Even within the leadership, fierce arguments broke out over whether they should follow Jin Sowoon's tactics.

“Hmm... So this is the report written by that boy called Jin Sowoon?”

“P-Poison King... That's classified...”

“Even ordinary warriors of our Tang Clan have copies of this report. Does calling it classified mean anything anymore?”

“...”

The Poison King, Dang Hyeokje, took out an identical copied report from his robe and waved it around.

“If it works, then it should be applied.”

“Poison King... But we are acting under the Martial Alliance's orders...”

Before his subordinate could finish, Dang Hyeokje raised an index finger to his lips and made a soft shushing sound.

“How long do you intend to keep obeying orders from a Martial Alliance tens of thousands of li away? Will you only come to your senses after every Alliance member is dead?”

“...”

Dang Hyeokje tilted his head slightly and spoke in a low voice.

“Are you afraid of the Alliance Leader but not afraid of me?”

A cold chill swept through the command center.

Gulp.

Dang Hyeokje could poison everyone inside with nothing more than a simple rub of his fingers if he wished.

There was no way they would not fear someone like that.

As if playing an instrument, Dang Hyeokje waved his fingers through the air.

“I'll take responsibility for the Alliance Leader. What matters now is reducing casualties until we understand our enemy.”

Persuaded(?) by the Poison King, the Martial Alliance adopted the new tactics and gradually began driving the Blood Cult from Sichuan.

The leadership finally admitted that its previous tactics had been sloppy, and from then on, it immediately followed Jin Sowoon's report.

As the fighting against the Blood Cult grew increasingly intense, winter slowly approached.

#

“Um... Benefactor Jin, may I ask what this is?”

Seriously, he still insists on calling me benefactor.

“Come on, can't you tell? It's the prayer bead from the treasury, Academy Student Ilgak.”

What was it again? A sacred relic belonging to a Black Path martial artist known as the Demon Buddha.

Its malevolent qi had been so powerful that it had been stored in the deepest part of the treasury.

Yet Ilgak's expression was oddly complicated.

“Benefactor Jin... This is the Black Spirit Bead. It is an artifact filled with the true energy of the Demon Buddha from when he was alive. If you bring something like this around so carelessly...”

“What choice did I have? It was the only Buddhist-related item in the treasury.”

I had searched every corner of the treasury, even its deepest storage rooms, but there was no meditation staff or golden Buddha statue.

It would have been strange for the Martial Alliance treasury to contain Buddhist items in the first place. Shaolin Temple would have taken them all long ago.

“You can use it if you cleanse the malevolent qi with the Muscle-Tendon Change Classic, can't you?”

“...That is true.”

Ilgak could not stop looking at the Black Spirit Bead with a complicated expression.

His shiny head practically had the words, Can I really accept an artifact like this? written across it in huge letters.

Then again, he had probably never expected to receive anything beyond his monthly stipend in exchange for loyalty to the Alliance.

Once people grew used to receiving no compensation, they eventually began to equate themselves with the Alliance.

I am the Alliance, and the Alliance is me. What an absurd form of mental victory.

Of course, people like Ilgak did not have much to worry about.

Those with solid backing could be rewarded through promotions and privileges.

But what about low-ranking Alliance members, whose monthly stipend was everything?

They lived in a system where hard work still earned them nothing but that stipend, so they came to see receiving it without working as perfectly natural.

To change that mindset, the people at the top needed to change their way of thinking first.

“If you don't want it, just give it back. I'll sell it and add the money to the delegation's funds. I'll consider Academy Student Ilgak's efforts to be loyal devotion to the Alliance.”

“N-No, that isn't it...!”

When I held out my hand, Ilgak hurriedly moved the Black Spirit Bead away from me.

What? Did he use the Avalokitesvara Azure-Steel Hand to dodge my hand just now?

Ilgak had naturally displayed a graceful Shaolin technique, and even his gleaming bald head turned red as he spoke.

“S-Sell it? If a peerless demonic artifact like this were carelessly released into the world, the chaos it could cause...”

Wouldn't it have been nice if he'd said that from the beginning?

One corner of my mouth rose naturally.

“So you're saying you'll use it yourself?”

“...Amitabha.”

Ilgak wrapped his hands protectively around the Black Spirit Bead and put his palms together.

What a dishonest person.

Still, the others did not react any differently from Ilgak.

Yeo Samtong held a new bow.

Namgung Seonhwa held a robe woven from Heavenly Silkworm Thread.

Cheol Sunjik held a banknote.

I spoke to ease their burden.

“If receiving a reward from the Alliance makes anyone uncomfortable, feel free to return it at any time.”

“...”

“...”

“...”

No one stepped forward.

Then...

“Um... Brother.”

“Yeah? What is it, Jaehwa?”

Moyong Jaehwa hesitantly took a step forward.

“Then... why didn't I get anything?”

“Ah! You? I've already received something for you.”

Moyong Jaehwa's face brightened at once.

“W-What is it?”

“Mysterious iron!”

“M-Mysterious iron?!”

I gave him a large nod.

“That's right. I received the material and sent it to a skilled craftsman in advance. Once the other materials are gathered, you'll get an excellent bow in return.”

A ridiculous divine weapon called the Sun Bow.

Moyong Jaehwa did not know the secrets of the Fifteen Divine Weapons. He was just so fixated on the words mysterious iron that his mouth opened wide in delight.

He's a cute kid, really.

“Oh, right! Take this too.”

“Pardon?”

Moyong Jaehwa took the banknote, then stared wide-eyed at the amount written on it.

“B-Brother! What is this? One hundred nyang in gold?”

“Yeah! Go out, get some rest, and buy whatever you need with it.”

“...N-No. Even so, this is...”

I smiled as kindly as I could and patted his shoulder.

“It’s fine! It’s fine! Your brother is giving it to you, so just keep it.”

I think I might have some things to apologize to you for later.

“Th-Thank you, Brother!!”

He's so innocent. He's making me feel guilty already. Ahem.

Anyway, the issue with the Dualities Eight Trigrams Myriad Manifestations Formation and the White Path Society had been more or less settled.

Before Jegal Jeonggi, their own grandchild, Jegal Somyeong had stood not as a family elder, but as the Martial Alliance's Grand Strategist, and thrown Jegal Jeonggi into the Golden Prison.

For all practical purposes, he had been expelled from the Academy. After leaving the Golden Prison, he would not even be able to work as a low-ranking martial artist.

The White Path Society delegation, which had nearly caused massive loss of life through this incident, naturally began the process of disbanding.

As promised, I swallowed the entire delegation office the White Path Society had set up. And...

‘Hehe... One hundred and thirty blossoms.’

The first thing I did upon entering my new office was check the Seven-Colored Flower Tea inventory.

Wow, how much was all this worth?

It was a truly insane waste of money, but when I thought about all that Seven-Colored Flower Tea going into my mouth, affection for the White Path Society suddenly bubbled up inside me...

“What did Representative Jin receive?”

Cheol Sunjik, who had carefully tucked away the banknote worth two thousand nyang in gold, asked me.

I answered as if it were nothing.

“I only decided to have the Academy Medical Hall prepare a restorative medicine for me.”

“Medicine?”

I nodded calmly and showed them my nearly healed injury.

“This incident did quite a number on my body.”

Sighs erupted all around me.

“Young Master Jin. Only something like that... Did you perhaps take care of us instead of yourself...?”

Namgung Seonhwa looked ready to hand over the robe she had received, but I shook my head.

“No. Haven't all of you suffered greatly because of me? Of course I should take care of you.”

I smiled at the people gathered around me.

“I'm satisfied just knowing that all of you have received compensation.”

Because the restorative medicine Sama Jeong made would become a peerless spiritual medicine that only the Martial Alliance Leader would be able to take in the future. Hehe.

It would help increase internal energy, and more importantly, it would intensify the qualities of the Five Elements qi.

Its method of preparation would be treated as classified in the future, so it would be a spiritual medicine that no amount of money could buy.

Once I took it, the power of the Demon-Extinguishing Hand would rise to the level the Blood Jade Hand had originally possessed.

At this rate, people might suspect me of being a demonic being who had learned the Blood Jade Hand. Hahaha.

Just as I was enjoying Seven-Colored Flower Tea while looking like someone who had transcended all personal greed...

“Representative Jin. Someone from the White Path Society is here.”

An unexpected guest had arrived.

The original owners of this office entered hesitantly.

They had held positions in the White Path Society delegation and barely survived the Dualities Eight Trigrams Myriad Manifestations Formation.

They had come to collect their personal belongings after losing the office.

I put on a generous expression.

“Ah, tell them to take whatever belongings they need.”

I had already moved all the Seven-Colored Flower Tea into my personal locker, so they would not dare think of taking it.

Still feeling uneasy, I remained firmly in place to guard the tea.

The White Path Society members gathered possessions that could fit into a small box. Instead of leaving immediately, they came toward me.

‘What? Are they planning to take the Seven-Colored Flower Tea?’

Unable to tolerate that possibility, I hardened my expression and fiercely furrowed my brow.

Then...

Beginning with the person in front, they clasped their fists one after another.

What is this?

“Representative Jin. We have been very discourteous to you.”

“Hm?”

While I stood there dumbfounded by their sudden behavior, one of the White Path Society members continued.

“I believe we viewed you through a narrow and prejudiced perspective because of our limited understanding.”

Then they lowered their heads even further.

“Nothing like that will happen again. We will certainly repay the favor of saving us this time.”

The others followed and bowed.

Oh? So not everyone in the White Path Society was a beast in human skin.

Once I confirmed that the Seven-Colored Flower Tea was safe(?), I gave them the kindest smile in the world and slowly nodded.

The people around me looked impressed by my magnanimity...

“So, how do you plan to repay that favor?”

“Pardon?”

The White Path Society members, who had all bowed with clasped fists, raised their heads with blank expressions.

Don't tell me these people had intended to repay me with mere words?

When my eyebrows twitched, one person stepped forward with an awkward smile.

“I-Is there something you need?”

The White Path Society members even broke out in cold sweat, as though they had received a completely unexpected question.

As if a good idea had just occurred to me, I snapped my fingers.

“Ah! How about this? Jegal Jeonggi was locked in the Golden Prison this time, so the White Path Society Leader's position is vacant, right?”

“Pardon? Ah... yes.”

Ak Jupyeong, whom I had expected to appear naturally once Jegal Jeonggi left his position, had strangely not appeared. Without its center, the White Path Society was in chaos.

And now was my chance.

“How about using this opportunity to place a proper leader in the position?”

“A proper leader... What do you mean by that...?”

I put an arm around one White Path Society member's shoulders, then turned him around to face Namgung Seonhwa.

I'd given enough of a hint for him to understand, right?

As expected, he asked in surprise.

“Y-You mean Young Lady Namgung?”

“Ah! Well! I'm not forcing you. This is an internal matter for the White Path Society, after all. But! At a time when the society is so divided, shouldn't someone with proper qualifications take the White Path Society Leader's position?”

Namgung Seonhwa was a direct descendant of the Namgung Clan, and one of the elite who had overcome every obstacle through her own strength to enter the Academy.

There could be no one more qualified.

‘Jegal Gipyo? What use would that weasel be?’

The White Path Society member considered my words for a moment, exchanging looks with the others.

After a brief silence, the White Path Society members finally spoke.

“T-Then we will discuss the matter.”

With a satisfied smile, I gestured to Namgung Seonhwa.

“There you have it, Young Lady Seonhwa. Why don't you go speak with them?”

“Pardon? Me?”

I sent Namgung Seonhwa and the White Path Society members out together, then said,

“Choose carefully! This is entirely for the White Path Society's sake! Even if you disappoint me or betray me, I'll only be a little, just a little upset!”

“J-Just a little...”

I had said this much, so they would handle things themselves.

They would imagine for themselves just how much my little was.

If they still failed to act properly after I had given them such clear hints, they would truly need to be judged. Judged in blood.

Once everyone had hurried out together, silence returned to the delegation office.

“Ha... You swallowed even the White Path Society?”

Seong Moran, who had watched the entire scene, let out an incredulous laugh.

I shook my head at her.

“Swallowed it? I only handled what needed to be done.”

Seong Moran seemed to have grown used to my calm response by now, and changed the subject.

“What are we going to do about the Invitation of Distinguished Figures? You haven't said who is coming yet. Can we use the person the White Path Society invited for our event?”

“Probably not. There will surely be people who dislike the White Path Society falling into my hands.”

“Then what will you do? You said you invited someone separately.”

“Invited someone?”

Would anyone really come because I asked?

The most famous person likely to act on my request would be Bang Duchil.

Uh... Hmm...

I couldn't invite the Green Forest Battle King to the Martial Arts Academy, could I?

When I hesitated, Seong Moran slightly furrowed her brow.

“What... You didn't invite anyone? This could become the symbolic event of our delegation. We can't just let it fade away.”

I nodded as though I agreed.

Of course. We could not ruin the symbolic event of the Jin Sowoon Delegation, which had even brought down the White Path Society.

“Hmm... I did send another letter.”

“What do you mean, another letter?”

“There's someone who would never accept an invitation, but would come of their own accord after receiving a letter from me.”

“Hm?”

Seong Moran tilted her head, unable to understand, but I could not answer her right now.

I only felt sorry for Moyong Jaehwa.

#

“...Hmm?”

Eunho looked suspiciously at the banknote Moyong Jaehwa held out.

“The Eldest Senior Brother gave you this?”

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

“He said it was just a gift and told me to buy something tasty.”

“Just... a gift?”

Moyong Jaehwa and Eunho, who had somehow become close friends as same-age peers, put their heads together over a single banknote.

“I sense... a scheme.”

Moyong Jaehwa looked anxiously at Eunho.

“W-Why?”

“No. There's some hidden intention. The Eldest Senior Brother isn't the kind of person who spends this much money freely.”

“But he did raid the Martial Alliance's treasury and give us gifts.”

Eunho firmly shook his head.

“That's different. I don't know why, but whenever money is involved, the Eldest Senior Brother becomes... how should I put it... really strange.”

More precisely, it was like his eyes went wild.

“And someone like that is handing out this much money?”

“...”

As Moyong Jaehwa listened to Eunho, he too began to feel that something was wrong.

No, it went beyond that. The antennae of his sixth sense began to twitch.

“N-No way...”

“What? What is it? Do you suspect something?”

“No, that can't be it. No way... Even so, it involves him too...”

Within the Moyong Clan, Moyong Jaehwa alone had awakened a sixth sense.

A sixth sense he had evolved on his own to escape the endless days of cruel torment.

It was commonly known as Grandfather Sense!

That sense rang frantically in alarm.

His entire body trembled, and cold sweat poured down like rain.

“E-Eunho! W-We need to run!”

“H-Hey! What's wrong with you all of a sudden?!”

Before Eunho could say anything else, Moyong Jaehwa, who had been heading outside the Academy, fired the Flying Dragon Claw and shot up to the dormitory roof.

Eunho watched him, then followed Moyong Jaehwa to the rooftop of the dormitory building without quite knowing why.

Just as he was about to approach the trembling Moyong Jaehwa...

-Moyong Jaehwa!!!! You damned bastard!!!! Where are you?!?!

“Urk!”

A Lion's Roar more violent than anything he had experienced in his life ravaged his insides.

Footnotes:

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