Reincarnation of the Martial Emperor

Chapter 15: Are you dancing right now?

I looked at the flickering candlelight.

My mind was complicated as the events of the day kept coming back to me.

‘Umm….’

From the perspective of managing a clan or a faction, how to distribute wealth was a very important issue.

Because the ones who consume that wealth are people.

Naturally, the demonic nature of wealth is that it cannot satisfy everyone, and I too have been tormented by the complaints of my subordinates my entire life.

Great Cycle Pill.

That small pill was undoubtedly a treasure great enough to decide the rise and fall of a sect.

Because the value and destructive power of a single absolute master within a clan was enormous, and it was a precious item that could save the life of such an absolute master in an emergency.

Of course, the Jaegal Clan would never do such a thing for the sake of appearances, but if simply disposed of for silver, it was a rare treasure that would fetch a price of at least tens of thousands of taels.

Although I was the third young master of the clan, it was difficult for me to understand consuming such a great item for the sake of nurturing a single member of the new generation.

Because I was a promising genius?

Was it really just to preserve the bloodline?

Even for me, who had managed the Underworld, this was a problem not even worth contemplating. Follow current novᴇls on novel-fire.net

Wealth is investment.

It might be a different story if I were certain that the person I decided to invest in would grow into a heavyweight on the level of the Seven Revered of Jianghu.

But one cannot predict such things just by looking at the seedling.

Predicting a person’s destiny is not a matter of insight but the realm of prophecy, and naturally, humans are not gods.

If I had selected and invested in talent with such a divine eye, I would probably be managing the world, not the Underworld.

Come to think of it, is that why they treat the emperor as a god and call him the Son of Heaven?

Suddenly, I wondered if the imperial family really had such divine eye powers.

‘…….’

Since this wise Jaegal Clan was making a decision that even this Martial Emperor, who managed the Underworld, would not make, I had no choice but to ask.

But.

The Old Man of Heavenly Wisdom’s answer was absurdly simple.

-My child. Aren’t you suffering from the Six Viscera Strange Disease?

At the old man’s short but warm reply, my chest has been strangely fluttering ever since.

The Old Man of Heavenly Wisdom’s decision was not based on the logic of distribution or rational intellect, but simply a worried heart.

In that old man’s eyes, I was just a pitiful grandson suffering from an illness.

Just an ordinary grandfather who was more concerned than for his other descendants, whose insides burned black at the sound of my cough.

He was just sorry for having forced the Nine Phoenix Gates, where even healthy children die, upon his physically weak grandson.

I was the fool who tried to interpret such blind love logically.

‘Hah, really.’

How should I put it.

This is a first.

Joy?

Pleasure?

But it couldn’t be explained with such simple words.

Something was ticklish and fluttering inside me, but there was no way to know the identity of this strange emotion.

In my life, the existence of parents had never been there from the beginning.

The children left behind in Baengrang Village at that time were mostly those who did not even know their parents’ faces, or even their own names.

The poison mist that had enveloped Baengrang Village had turned the children into idiots.

Among those who held their breath and endured like me, some were lucky enough to regain their full sanity, but in the end, all I could remember was that I was from the Jin family.

My name, Gang-cheon, was a name I gave myself back then.

It didn't have any grand meaning; I just thought I had to have a name that sounded strong and powerful to survive.

The more I thought about it, the more my head ached, and I just shook my head in frustration.

“……I guess this is what the Orthodox Faction is like.”

People of the Underworld, while spewing all sorts of curses at each other, generally do not ask about each other’s parents.

Come to think of it, it was an unwritten rule.

If you don’t believe me, you can try it out.

If you want to leave this life full of sorrows, just grab any guy with a sword in the Underworld’s territory and mention something about being a bastard.

Then you can very easily become a public enemy of the Underworld.

In reality, eight or nine out of ten orphans in the Central Plains become members of the Underworld.

“Hoo….”

Having experienced the love of an ancestor after being so lowly, I felt more curious than grateful.

Should I say I can’t believe that I can obtain a rare treasure that would cause a major bloodbath if leaked to the Jianghu with just a single word?

If I keep experiencing things like this, will I also become a noble Jaegal person who doesn’t drink and puts on airs in everything.

But still, everything felt as awkward as wearing clothes that didn’t fit.

At that moment, the hook-nosed fellow unexpectedly announced a visitor.

“Third Young Master, the First Young Master is sending word.”

“The First Young Master?”

Why would Jaegal Cheon come at this late hour?

“I’ll be out in a moment.”

I was about to put on my outer robe and go out, but then I froze awkwardly and let out a chuckle.

Come to think of it, I was Jaegal Hwi now.

In the Great Murim Alliance Leader’s quarters, even a small brush inside was a secret.

But now, there was no reason to hide my space, nor did I need to be careful about meeting anyone.

This was a place where even the lowest servants could come and go.

I was feeling the need to erase my old habits one by one.

“No. Just let him in.”

“Yes, Third Young Master.”

Jaegal Cheon, who entered my quarters like that, stood there silently and looked at me.

But his gaze had changed.

I had occasionally felt the unique fervor of someone looking at a competitor, but this was the first time I had seen such clear hostility.

“You broke your promise.”

Hmm?

A promise?

I’ve never made any promise to this guy?

“That day, you definitely told me. That you would never take on the Nine Phoenix Gates.”

“What?”

It was absurd.

It seemed the previous owner of my body had made some damn secret pact with that guy.

Only then did I understand all of Jaegal Cheon’s actions.

Whatever his strange gaze meant, he had been clearly favorable to all my decisions so far.

As long as I couldn’t pass the Nine Phoenix Gates, I couldn’t become his competitor anyway, so that guy had been at ease until now.

I couldn’t say now that it wasn’t a promise I had made, and it became a rather awkward situation.

I gestured with my eyes to the chair on the opposite side.

“First, have a seat. Don’t stand there with a sore neck.”

“Answer me. Why did you suddenly change your mind.”

“I said sit.”

This might not be the Great Murim Alliance Leader’s office, but it was still awkward to look up at someone.

“My goodness.”

As I rose to be level with Jaegal Cheon’s gaze, his mouth opened again.

“You are physically weak. I don’t want to make you like the second brother. I….”

“You can be the Clan Head, brother.”

The thing this guy was seriously misunderstanding was that I was only interested in the Jaegal Clan’s support, not in taking over the Jaegal Clan itself.

That would rather be a burden to me.

I had no intention of embracing the rigid bookworms of the Jaegal Clan, nor did I have the ability to do so.

“The strategist of the Murim Alliance? I’d rather fight with my fists; I wouldn’t take that even if you gave it to me, so don’t worry about that either. What else do you want to hear?”

“Th-that’s….”

“Should I write it out in blood for you?”

“No….”

This behavior of mine must be a completely different reaction from what he had expected.

But this was truly my sincere feeling, without a shred of falsehood.

“If you’re that anxious, we can even get a notary. I’ll say it again, I have no interest in being the Clan Head or anything like that, and I wouldn’t do it even if you gave it to me. I have no intention of entering the Murim Alliance and making a name for myself either.”

Jaegal Cheon’s gaze fell to the floor.

“Even if you think that way, the clan elders….”

Well, he wasn’t wrong.

An awl in a pocket is bound to stick out eventually.

As I revealed my skills, the Old Man of Heavenly Wisdom’s thought that I was the reincarnation of Echoing Energy would surely turn into conviction.

Undoubtedly, the leaders of the Jaegal Clan would use any means necessary to make me serve in the Murim Alliance.

Naturally, I fully understood this guy’s feelings.

“You’re anxious, aren’t you? It’s the trouble that all the older brothers in the world with outstanding younger siblings go through. It’s your fate as an older brother, what can you do. Why are you so slow-witted?”

“You, you bastard!”

He probably grew up hearing that he was a prodigy in his own right, but unfortunately, the problem was that the previous owner of this body, no, I, was too much of a genius.

I found him so cute that I laughed like that for a while, then lay down flat on the bed.

“I’m tired, so you can go now. Let me know if you need a blood oath. Whoever you bring as a notary, I’ll write it right in front of them.”

Jaegal Cheon, who had been silent for a while, glared at me with gloomy eyes.

“Can you write that blood oath in front of Father as well?”

“How many times do I have to say it.”

“Let’s go. Now.”

Oh?

He’s really telling me to go?

Hey, you bastard, do you think I, who held the entire Underworld in my grasp, would covet something like this Jaegal Clan?

How many subordinates did I command as if they were my own limbs, and how much silver did I roll, this bastard, really.

I really can’t hit this guy.

In the end, I had no choice but to sigh and get up.

“Hey, brother.”

Sensing my unusual atmosphere, Jaegal Cheon took a step back.

“M-speak.”

“It’s the hour of the rat. It’ll be the hour of the ox soon.”

“Even if it’s the middle of the night, if we pay our respects, he will wake up. Since we’ve brought it up….”

“Shit, brother.”

Around this time, I was seriously considering a beatdown.

I was curious about the Jaegal Clan’s family martial arts anyway, so I thought it was a good opportunity.

“Hoo, can’t you tell what kind of guy I am just by looking at me? Do you really not have a feel for it? Can you manage this large clan with that kind of sense? When a person speaks seriously, you should at least pretend to listen. Come here.”

At my gesture, Jaegal Cheon retreated even further.

“Wh-what are you trying to do now.”

“Aigoo, just by looking at you, you’ve just begun to taste the second rate, haven’t you? No matter how shabby I am now, that level is just a post-meal pastime. Wait? If you’re only at that level even after passing the Nine Phoenix Gates, maybe it’s not that big of a deal after all?”

It really wasn’t a big deal.

Seeing the external ki flowing unstably, his internal energy was not refined either, and his overall presence and gaze were embarrassing to even call him a martial artist.

His hands were extremely soft, and his posture and gait were also incredibly unstable.

Indeed, martial arts are something that is lacking even if you train for a lifetime, so how can you complete it just by passing a few gateways.

Thinking about it that way, the Shadowless Terrace were really strange guys.

“Come here.”

What this guy was experiencing now was not the childishness of a younger brother, but the madness of the Martial Emperor.

“You don’t want to? Then I’ll go.”

The boy, who had been constantly stepping back and trembling in anxiety, finally shouted out as if in a struggle.

“Wh-who in the world are you! A lawless person like this cannot be Hwi!”

“I am the Martial Emperor. Shit, brother.”

“M-Martial Emperor?”

Thwack!

Thwack-thwack!

“Wh-what is this…!”

“If you do it like that, your shoulder is exposed! Waist! Head!”

“Kuaaak! Aak!”

“Oh? Your hands and feet are moving separately? Are you dancing right now?”

Huh?

There was a satisfying springiness to the impact.

This guy was fun to hit.

Unbeknownst to me, a lot had built up since I was reincarnated, and it felt refreshing and great.

On the other hand, the clumsy fist techniques he threw out were just an eyesore.

I need to reconsider the Nine Phoenix Gates.