## Chapter 93 – 93. Xi’an (5)
#93. Xi’an (5)
The moment I opened the door to the room, an intangible force surged from the first floor, heading straight for me and Chun Yeo-hwa.
‘How confident can they be to act like this?’ I thought, releasing my own magic to counter it. Of course, I hadn’t reached the level where my magic had a physical presence like Kang Cheol-ho, the branch manager of the Hunter Association, so the inn wouldn’t be damaged.
Chun Yeo-hwa had said it was best to avoid causing trouble in the orthodox sects’ territory, but if we kept putting up with it every time someone picked a fight, they’d just see us as pushovers.
I ignored the miscellaneous energies coming from the first floor, focusing my magic on the one that seemed the strongest among them.
The energy the guy released and my magic collided in the air, but it was only for a fleeting moment. My magic overwhelmed his, crushing it as if devouring it whole.
He probably suffered a considerable internal injury. It was the price for acting out of line without knowing his place.
I leisurely walked down the stairs, and some rather familiar faces came into view. Especially the face of the guy whose nose I broke was a sight to behold.
‘He was mediocre-looking even when he was fine, but now he’s just plain ugly.’
The others were guys I’d seen at the inn during the day, but there was someone I hadn’t seen before. A middle-aged man who looked a bit like a rat.
“Are you the Elder?”
“Y, yes!”
His complexion was deathly pale when I looked at him up close. He was sweating buckets, and it was a wonder he wasn’t collapsing right then and there.
Probably trying to save face as an Elder, he seemed to be barely holding on because of his disciples behind him.
“Oh ho, are you the one they call Elder?”
Chun Yeo-hwa, realizing that she couldn’t avoid a fight any longer, released her energy, putting pressure on the Elder. Under Chun Yeo-hwa’s pressure, the Elder looked haggard, as if he’d aged five years in an instant.
“Hey.”
“…Yes.”
“Hand over everything you’ve got.”
“…Excuse me?”
“You ruined all the fun, damn it.”
He had committed a grave sin.
Not only did he interrupt a happy moment between Chun Yeo-hwa and me, but he dared to come to apologize empty-handed?
“If you’re not here to apologize for what your disciples did, but to argue, I think I’m going to be very unhappy…”
This was a kind of warning.
Hand over the settlement money if you don’t want to get beaten up in front of your disciples.
“I, I am Soo Yang-geon, the Third Elder of the Hundred Flowers Sect, the Wind-Shattering Swordsman! I came here after hearing that you oppressed and assaulted the disciples of the Hundred Flowers Sect!”
“…Choosing a punishment drink over a welcome drink.”
“?!”
He visibly flinched at my words, but I didn’t really mean anything by it. It was just something I wanted to say once.
“Do, do you know that the Hundred Flowers Sect is a subsidiary sect of the Great Mount Hua Sect, and yet you act so rashly!!”
“Mount Hua Sect?”
Those plum blossom bastards?
Now I knew why that Elder was acting so cocky. He had a big company backing him, so that’s why he was acting like that.
“How absurd. Does being a subsidiary disciple of the Great Mount Hua Sect mean you’re allowed to harass women in broad daylight? Even women who have lovers?”
“What?!”
The Elder’s eyes, which had been trembling with anxiety, were now filled with anger. That anger was directed at the disciples behind him.
“You guys! Is that true!!”
His voice echoed loudly throughout the inn, and the disciples’ faces were dripping with cold sweat.
His intention was clear in his attempt to scold his disciples now. He probably realized I wasn’t intimidated even when he mentioned their backer, the Mount Hua Sect, so he was getting desperate.
If my guess was right, his next move was obvious.
“…I admit that this incident was a mistake on the part of our sect’s disciples.”
Just as expected, he eagerly took the bait as soon as I threw it to him. Well, for an Elder to admit fault without any excuses, there would be many things at stake, such as face and pride.
Especially with his disciples watching.
“So?”
“…We will thoroughly educate them to ensure that this never happens again…”
“No.”
I cut him off.
He didn’t understand the point of the situation.
“Your disciples harassed my woman. In response, I gave them a reasonable punishment and even generously let them all live.”
Koo-oong!
The mana circle released mana according to its master’s will.
A power different from internal energy began to press down on the entire first floor of the inn.
It was a pressure far stronger than the magic I had unleashed a moment ago. For the record, this was me overdoing it.
Having reached the 4th Circle somewhat hastily, my body hadn’t yet adapted to the mana circle. As a result, if the output of magic exceeded the standard, my whole body throbbed.
“Those who shouldn’t even be seen in my sight dared to bring their sect’s elder and try to oppress me. I can’t possibly let such guys leave here with all their limbs intact.”
I deliberately lowered my voice and imitated the 말투 of characters in the martial arts novels I used to read. Judging by their expressions, it seemed to be quite effective.
Especially the disciples’ expressions were a sight to behold. They were the ones who had been criticizing me without a clue, but if they had even a little sense, they would have realized that I was stronger than the Elder.
-Great hero.
At that moment, the Elder’s voice echoed in my head. I was wondering what was going on, but soon realized it was the telepathic transmission (傳音) that often appeared in martial arts stories.
It was similar to telepathy magic.
-I admit that this incident is clearly the fault of our Hundred Flowers Sect, and I apologize. So please, ease your anger…
I didn’t answer.
I didn’t think a mere apology from a middle-aged man was worth listening to.
Besides, I didn’t know how to use telepathic transmission. If I answered with telepathy, it might spread the information that I didn’t know martial arts, which could lead to troublesome situations.
-Th, then I will prepare a compensation that will satisfy you.
Compensation? Only then did I start to feel a little moved.
I thought he was just old on the outside, but it seemed he knew how to use his head a little.
-How about weapons? We have one of the best blacksmiths in Xi’an in our Hundred Flowers Sect. The swords he makes are so excellent that they are said to be the best in all of Shanxi. The swords supplied to the Mount Hua Sect are also made by our Hundred Flowers Sect.
I had been reluctant to carry around Guillénium anyway, and a blacksmith who made swords for the Mount Hua Sect.
It was a tempting offer, but in fact, it was better to get weapons from the modern world. The manufacturing technology itself was on a different level.
“Money.”
I whispered in a voice small enough for only the Elder to hear.
Instead of receiving a sword as compensation, I’d rather have the money from this neighborhood that I couldn’t get on Earth. Of course, there was also a way to bring a large amount of useful items from Earth and earn money by selling them myself.
But that was too much of a hassle, and there was a high possibility of attracting strange flies.
‘I don’t know if there’s such a thing as inviolability of consulates in this world, but even if there is, that kind of thing would be useless in the face of money.’
It was more profitable to extort money from the rich or rob bandits.
-If, if you wish, I will prepare it in money. So please, refrain from using your energy…
I thought the Elder had been acting unnecessarily humble since earlier, but it seemed that the release of magic had worked better than I had imagined.
I was already thinking of stopping because my body seemed to be creaking, but the Elder realized the gap between us and acted like a dog that had turned its belly up.
When I withdrew my magic, the expressions of the disciples who had been half-rolling on the floor brightened up. The cold sweat that had been streaming down the Elder’s face also decreased.
“I will overlook this incident in consideration of the face of Elder Soo Yang-geon, the Wind-Shattering Jelly.”
“Wind-Shattering Swordsman…”
Either way, I didn’t like the fact that someone weaker than me had such a 멋들어진 title in the first place.
The Elder cautiously got up from his seat, lightly clasped his fist, and disappeared with his disciples.
This incident would mean that I would not be invited to the Hundred Flowers Sect. In the first place, the reason he spoke in telepathic transmission was probably because he wanted to resolve this incident as quietly as possible.
Of course, if I didn’t like the amount of money he brought, I might put on a mask and go find the disciples of the Hundred Flowers Sect every time they were out and about, and beat them half to death.
Anyway, now that the situation was roughly settled, there was only one thing left to do. I hugged Chun Yeo-hwa and ran up to the second floor.
“There’s no need to rush so much…”
I was in a hurry.
The first floor of the inn had become a mess because of the commotion just now, but that was the clerk’s job to take care of, not mine.
If they felt wronged, they shouldn’t sell customers’ personal information.
***
“…Here it is.”
After the sun had set and evening had arrived, Elder Soo Yang-geon returned to the inn wearing black clothes and handed me a pouch filled with silver.
Upon closer inspection, there were also a few silver ingots.
In reality, it seemed to be worth about 100 million won.
Normally, I would have been satisfied and moved on, but the other party was the Elder of the Hundred Flowers Sect, one of the leading sects in Xi’an.
“…If the sincerity is lacking, I get upset.”
Magic flowed out from my upset heart. The Elder’s complexion turned pale, and he trembled.
“In, instead, I will give you information…!”
“Information?”
“…If you go southeast from Xi’an for about three days, you will come to a small village called Jinheung Village. Near the mountains there, an ancient temple has been discovered.”
“Ancient temple?”
An old temple, isn’t that a common occurrence in China?
“However, rumors are spreading in Xi’an that the ancient temple is where the Vajra Divine Monk (金剛神僧) spent his last years.”
“Vajra Divine Monk?!”
Who the hell is that, you otaku.
“So what? In the first place, rumors are just rumors.”
“…There are reports that the Mount Hua Sect and the Jongnam Sect are showing movements. That’s enough to say that it’s beyond the level of dismissing it as just a rumor.”
“Are you upset that I’m speaking informally?”
“N, no.”
I keep thinking that just because I’m old, I can be treated with respect. My complexion gets worse every time I speak informally.
Do I really have to have a life-or-death duel to wake up?
“But even if the rumor is true, if it’s an ancient temple, wouldn’t someone have already looted everything and left nothing behind? Is it enough for two forces from the Nine Great Sects to move?”
“It is said that there may be a martial arts manual left behind by the Divine Monk somewhere in that ancient temple.”
“Martial arts manual?”
“Yes, judging from the rumors that the Shaolin Temple in Henan is also showing movements, it seems difficult to dismiss it as completely unfounded.”
“Hmm…”
I don’t know who the Vajra Divine Monk is, but I know what the Shaolin Temple does.
In martial arts novels, it’s always called the 태산북두 of the orthodox martial arts world, along with the Wudang Sect, a sect of monks who are so heavy-assed that they only move in a hurry after the martial arts world becomes a mess.
If such a place is moving, it seems difficult to see it as completely unfounded.
“But is it okay to give me such important information? Isn’t the Hundred Flowers Sect going too?”
“We’re not going.”
“Why?”
“The Mount Hua Sect is moving, so how can we, as a subsidiary sect, dare to show greed? Of course, it’s not that we don’t covet the Vajra Divine Monk’s martial arts, but it is said that the Divine Monk mainly dealt with fist techniques and palm techniques.”
Soo Yang-geon lightly tapped the sword at his waist. Well, fist techniques and palm techniques would be of little use in a place that mainly deals with swords.
Besides, it was clear that it would be difficult to sell it for money. It was obvious that he would be disliked by his parent company, the Mount Hua Sect, so would he be crazy enough to do that?
‘…Should I consult with Chun Yeo-hwa first?’
For the record, Elder Soo Yang-geon, the Wind-Shattering Jelly, was only able to return after being extorted for five more secretly stashed silver ingots.
If you’re going to replace it with information, you should at least bring reliable information, not try to make do with rumors.
