WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 526: The Monster That Feeds on Despair (11)
──────
I had always wondered.
Most of the orders passed down to us in my previous life had been idiotic.
What could have happened for an order like this to be issued?
I wanted to know.
“So, in the end, we should consider this entire massive Sword Tomb a single trap.”
That was the conclusion we reached after talking for the past sichen.
It was something our group had realized the instant we saw demonic beings traveling alongside jiangshi.
“Can we really call it a trap? Weren’t the martial legacies found here genuine?”
“Hmm... Then should we assume they entered in pursuit of the martial legacies as well?”
Even that conclusion returned to square one in the face of a new question.
They had their aides bring more tea and adjusted their attire. The new topic seemed to pique everyone’s interest.
‘What the hell are they doing?’
I asked out of pure curiosity.
“Then what do you think this is if it isn’t a trap?”
Light-Fingered Fist Saint Gong Choryang furrowed his brow in displeasure.
“Aren’t we discussing that right now?”
“No, is that really important in the first place?”
“If you don’t understand your opponent properly, you can’t respond to them properly either. Don’t you know that?”
His voice dripped with irritation, and anger rose within me, but the gap in our seniority was too wide for anything I said to truly reach him.
“So we’re just going to keep holding meetings until the enemy attacks?”
“You fool... Tsk.”
Gong Choryang and the other seasoned martial artists all clicked their tongues as they looked at me.
No, was I the fucking strange one here?
“There were jiangshi and demonic beings beyond every other cave along the route we took. At this rate, we’ll be surrounded.”
“This place has a high ceiling and openings on every side, making it difficult for the enemy to launch a surprise attack. On top of that, people have been stationed in every cave connected to the Central Wing. It is the ideal place for defense.”
Didn’t that also mean we couldn’t get out?
“Do you not understand why they established an encirclement and cut off the main route to the Central Wing in the first place?”
“They cannot approach the Central Wing easily because we claimed it first and turned it into occupied territory.”
What the hell? Had he read a different book on military strategy than I had?
It wasn’t as if there were two Sun Tzus. What kind of nonsense was he spouting?
“We did not claim this place first. We are surrounded. If this drags on, the moment our food and drinking water run out, no one in the Central Wing will survive.”
“Do you not know why we made the Central Wing our base? Five streams flow through this area. We also have enough stored food to last us for quite some time.”
Streams had tributaries.
The demonic beings had occupied all of those tributaries, and where else would the blood from corpses in the caves flow?
Perhaps all five underground streams would become useless before long.
“Ha... What an ignorant brat. It’s not as if I should have to teach you every little thing just to bring you into a leadership meeting...”
Gong Choryang was a renowned master of the previous generation. His martial prowess was great enough for him to establish the Sangkwon Sect.
Still, at that moment, I wanted to cast aside all matters of seniority and fight him.
Even if I lost, I wanted to crush that mouth of his.
“Phew... Then let me ask just one thing. The Martial World Corps... the escape party... no, whatever this organization is called, what is its purpose? Is it to escape?”
“We cannot gamble with the lives of the White Path sect members in such a dangerous situation.”
“Then how about working with the Black Path to minimize the casualties?”
Gong Choryang looked as though he were about to vomit.
“Was the Taeul Sect a sect that stood between the orthodox and unorthodox paths? How can you so easily suggest joining hands with those untrustworthy animals?”
“Then... what are you planning to do?”
“The Martial Alliance’s Third Investigation Corps and the investigation corps of each sect are entering the Sword Tomb. We will cooperate with them, eradicate evil, and establish a White Path base within the Sword Tomb.”
In short, they intended to hold out like hell.
“Are you certain of that?”
“The Second Investigation Corps entered, and I heard the Third Investigation Corps would be entering as well. Of course they’re coming.”
What was this, some new method of suicide?
“...”
I was speechless.
#
After reaching the conclusion that it was uncertain whether the Sword Tomb was an enemy trap, the next topic became what we should do to pass the time until the Martial Alliance arrived.
The moment they dressed that topic up to sound plausible and important, I could no longer bear it and stormed out of the tent.
No one tried to stop me.
If anything, plenty of people gave me looks that asked why I had stayed that long.
They showed particular displeasure at Cheonsim Seonsa following me.
Cheonsim Seonsa had no need to do so, yet he quietly came out after me without saying a word.
“Did you dislike what they discussed?”
Cheonsim Seonsa looked at me with a knowing smile.
“It’s more than dislike. Unless they’ve decided to die, do they really have time to sit around like that?”
“You see things quite pessimistically.”
Pessimistically? If we settled in and held out here, even the best possible outcome would be total annihilation.
One small mistake, and we would be captured by the demonic beings and tortured. If things went truly badly, we would later face the Martial Alliance during the Orthodox-Demonic War as jiangshi.
More importantly, there was one decisive reason I could not trust that leadership.
※ Alpha Grade
- Death Report
· Light-Fingered Fist Saint Gong Choryang
· Twin Palm True Star Gal Sangtak
· Golden Saber Divine Lord Yeong Ukjae
· South Sea Divine Nun Sa Suae
· Lone-Flying Tyrant Saber Bae Doyeon
And many others.
They had all been wiped out in the Sword Tomb in my previous life.
That was the decisive reason I could not trust their judgment.
“What do you think we should do?”
“We need to leave.”
I looked at Cheonsim Seonsa.
“I don’t understand why they chose to wait.”
It would have been easy to dismiss them as idiots, but they must have known everything I had brought up during the meeting.
Every time the teacups were refilled, a Tang Clan martial artist had tested the tea with a needle for poison.
That meant they were not entirely unaware of what I had said.
The things spoken during the meeting might have been deliberate stupidity.
“Do you know something?”
I asked because he wore a meaningful smile, but Cheonsim Seonsa shook his head.
“Not at all. I have no idea. But I can tell you one thing. You often see that kind of attitude in the Martial Alliance.”
“What? Why?”
“When you sit in such a position, there are times when you must deceive even your own allies.”
“...”
As I listened, something suddenly felt strange.
“This is a rather random question, but why do you look after me so much?”
When we met the Empty-Handed Divine Hand and at the Martial World Corps leadership meeting, Cheonsim Seonsa had raised me up to an excessive degree while putting himself in the background.
That was not even proper etiquette according to seniority.
Considering the weight of the Shaolin Sect’s name, Cheonsim Seonsa’s actions so far had come close to tarnishing Shaolin Temple’s reputation.
“Hmm? Haha. It seems you have no talent for seeing yourself objectively.”
“What do you mean?”
“There is such a thing.”
“...”
“You must have wondered why you were allowed to sit in the leadership meeting as well, right?”
“Yes.”
“You said you would bring us to the Central Wing.”
Cheonsim Seonsa met my eyes with a serious expression.
“And you did it. That is why you sat there.”
“...What?”
What was he talking about?
“It must mean nothing to you, to the point that you wonder why it matters. You will understand one day. You will understand the kind of influence you have on people.”
After saying something I could not understand, Cheonsim Seonsa changed the subject.
“Will you return? Or do you need time to think?”
I looked around.
Cheonsim Seonsa’s words aside, I first needed to find out what the Martial World Corps was hiding.
What were they trying to conceal by insisting on waiting here?
After considering Cheonsim Seonsa’s question for a moment, I shook my head.
“I’ll look around a little longer.”
“Do not overexert yourself. Your wounds are still deep.”
I headed in the opposite direction.
#
As I observed the people gathered in the Central Wing one by one, several strange things caught my attention.
The situation was worse than I had thought.
The Black Path, in particular, appeared to be in worse shape than the White Path.
Some fought over scraps of food, while others had died because their wounds had gone untreated.
There were especially many who appeared to have starved to death, and the Black Path’s food situation seemed far worse than the White Path’s.
Even with conditions deteriorating this badly, it was strange that the Black Path did not readily join the White Path.
I knew the Black Path hated the White Path. Still, it was difficult to understand why people who valued their own lives and interests above all else would cling to their principles even at the cost of their lives.
Hadn’t Do Gwangsu, who had never once visited his ancestors’ graves, become a devout Buddhist because he wanted to survive somehow?
Entrusting their lives to the White Path was not more important to the Black Path than staying alive.
“Who are you?”
As I wandered through the Black Path camp, several people began to approach me.
I readily revealed my identity.
“I am Jin Sowoon, Hall Master of the Martial Alliance’s Yuseong Hall.”
I gave them a light fist-and-palm salute.
Despite hearing my affiliation, they neither introduced themselves nor offered anything in return.
“So why is a White Path runt snooping around the Black Path camp?”
“May I know your name?”
“Why do you need to know my name?”
Ha. This was exhausting.
One side tired me out by speaking in circles and mocking me.
The other tired me out with their prickly attitude.
“Wouldn’t it be better for me to call you Master So-and-so or Brother So-and-so rather than call you this bastard or that bastard?”
“You little bastard!”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The Black Path martial artists who had been listening to our conversation drew their swords and held them to my throat.
I did not move.
The prickly man seemed intrigued by my reaction, his gaze moving over Jin Sowoon’s face.
“You mean to say you are not afraid of their attacks?”
“It’s not that. If I die here, won’t the Black Path and White Path start fighting again?”
“...Fight again?”
“Is that not what happened?”
Most of the sword wounds on the dead had been inflicted by White Path sects.
Given the large number of people who had starved to death, a major battle must have taken place here.
“You have a sharp eye.”
“One does not become the Hall Master of Yuseong Hall for nothing.”
“Call me White Tiger.”
“Oh...”
A small exclamation escaped me.
This man was Gongson Pung, the White Tiger Fist Guest, named among the Black Path’s Five Fists alongside Blood Brawl.
He looked younger than I expected.
Considering that he had made a name for himself in the martial world over twenty years ago, he must have achieved a high level at an incredibly young age.
“To think I would meet Senior Gongson Pung, the White Tiger Fist Guest, here.”
“...State your business.”
“Why are you not cooperating with the White Path?”
“...”
The slight goodwill in Gongson Pung’s eyes twisted.
“Are you an ignorant brat who knows nothing of the world?”
“If you know who I am, please set aside such words. Senior, you should know how difficult it is for a Taeul Sect disciple to become the Hall Master of Yuseong Hall.”
Gongson Pung had once stood between the orthodox and unorthodox paths.
Things had completely soured, and he had turned fully to the Black Path, but he had once had many friends among the White Path.
“What I am saying is very simple. Jiangshi and demonic beings have appeared. Their objective is clear. Why refuse to cooperate? Is it because of what you stand to lose?”
Gongson Pung fell silent in thought for a moment.
Then he slowly continued.
“Fine. You said yourself that you are not a brat, so I will leave that aside. This is not a matter of cooperation. It is a matter of who is using whom.”
“I know we can expect tremendous losses. That is why...”
“That is not what I mean.”
“Then what do you mean?”
Gongson Pung’s eyes began to shake violently.
It looked as though he were struggling desperately to suppress some emotion rising within him.
‘What could he be remembering...?’
It was a strange sight.
Once someone reached Gongson Pung’s level, it was natural for their emotions to become steadier.
“It seems you do not know about the Black King’s Wraith.”
“The Black King’s... what?”
I thought he said wraith, but perhaps I had misheard...
Crunch.
Gongson Pung ground his teeth as he stared toward the White Path formation.
“The Black King’s Wraith... Those damned White Path bastards intended to use us as prey for the Black King’s Wraith, using their meager food as leverage.”
“...”
I blinked repeatedly.
I could not understand a word of what Gongson Pung was saying.
“Um... By Black King’s Wraith, do you mean a ghost?”
For the famed White Tiger Fist Guest to fear a ghost...
Perhaps my lukewarm response touched a nerve, because his expression instantly turned vicious.
“It is not a ghost!!”
Gongson Pung’s lower lip trembled.
“It is not a ghost... It is real... The Black King himself!”
His eyes shook wildly, as though he could no longer think rationally.
“The Black King who has lived here for hundreds of years, that man...”
His voice, crushed beneath fear, filled the cavern.
“He will kill every last one of us who entered the Sword Tomb.”
Footnotes:
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
