Chapter 358
The Martial Alliance's secret vault. As the name suggests, this secret warehouse contains so many treasures that one cannot easily imagine.
Not only are there various secret manuals and elixirs, but there are also countless weapons such as treasured swords, precious swords, and treasured armor.
In my past life, although I frequented the Martial Alliance, I had never once come near this place.
Of course, I had often received things that were taken out from inside.
"Anything... one thing?"
"Ah, yes. I didn't mention that. There is an area inside that only I can enter, and an area that is not. As long as it's not a forbidden area, you can take anything out."
The Alliance Leader's words meant that he was not going to bring us something if we said what we wanted, but that he was giving us the opportunity to enter inside and choose for ourselves.
This has one more great meaning besides simply receiving a good item.
It means that we can see and choose the items inside with our own eyes.
As is the case in many areas, if you can see and experience many things, you accumulate that much experience.
The same goes for having an eye for things.
A person who has seen many strange and amazing things can choose many strange and good things later on.
My senior brothers and I are about to have an experience that we can't have anywhere else.
"Alliance Leader... but we don't have the eye to recognize which items are good. If we happen to bring out the wrong item..."
"Bring out the wrong item? What does that mean?"
To Un Gwang who had asked stealthily, the Alliance Leader, narrowing his eyes and looking at him, asked back.
"Ah. Yes. If I happen to bring out an item that is not of great value to me, or if I bring out something I can't use..."
"You are worrying for nothing."
"Yes?"
"Where do you think this place is? This is a place where items that are specially managed even within the Martial Alliance are gathered. Ordinary martial artists say that they would have no other wish if they could just have one of the items in here, no matter what it is."
"Ah..."
"And also, when you bring out an item, I said I would give it to you, but did I ever say that you must use that item, or that you must take it?"
"No, you didn't."
"If you bring it out and think you can't use it, sell it. All the items in here are probably quite valuable."
At the Alliance Leader's unreserved words, everyone looked at him in surprise.
Then the Alliance Leader laughed heartily and said, "It means that I'm not letting you in here just out of gratitude. The work you have done is that great, and it will be of great help to the martial world. I'm just embarrassed that this is the only reward I can give you as the Alliance Leader."
At the Alliance Leader's sincere words, my senior brothers nodded their heads with a firm face.
"Alliance Leader. Thank you. I asked a foolish question. Without even understanding the Alliance Leader's intentions."
"Huhu. It's alright. Then who will go in first?"
After briefly gathering their thoughts, we decided to just go in from the highest rank.
Un Gwang went in first, and then Senior Brother Un-hwang.
Next, Senior Brother Un Cheol went in, and after Senior Brother Un-ji-hak went in, I was the last to go in.
The first two were a natural order, and Senior Brother Un Cheol and Senior Brother Un-ji-hak bickered a little about who should go first, but in the end, thanks to Senior Brother Un-ji-hak giving way, the order was quickly decided.
"What do you think you are most lacking in?"
Just before the first in line, Senior Brother Un Gwang, entered the secret vault, the Alliance Leader asked Un Gwang.
Un Gwang's eyes sparkled at the question.
Although the Alliance Leader had just casually thrown a question, it was because he had taught us on what basis we should look for the necessary items when we go in.
The intelligent Un Gwang seemed to have understood it at once.
"Right now... I think I am most lacking in physical strength and the absolute amount of internal energy."
Un Gwang, as if he were thinking for a moment, soon opened his mouth.
Then the Alliance Leader, with a broad smile, answered, "Those two are problems that only time can solve. But who knows. There might be an item in here that can shorten that time."
Un Gwang bowed his head deeply to the Alliance Leader to express his gratitude and then entered the secret vault.
Because the Alliance Leader's words a little while ago meant that there was such an item, so he should go in and look for it.
"Then shall we wait for a while? I wonder what he will bring out."
A little time passed after Un Gwang went in.
Gwak Seok-san, who had nothing to do, spoke to me.
"Is Hyeon Yang well?"
"Yes. My master is well."
"We used to contact each other often, but lately, I can't get in touch with him at all. It's hard to see his face."
"My master has recently seen a great achievement and is concentrating on his training."
"Oh. Really?"
"So even I, who am with him in the Wudang Sect, find it hard to see his face."
"Hmm... Hyeon Yang is working that hard?"
Gwak Seok-san said with a slight frown.
It seems he is unconsciously conscious of my master.
"And you, Branch Chief... no, what should I call you now?"
"Call me Martial Artist Gwak. I don't have a special position in the Alliance yet."
"Yes. Martial Artist Gwak, did you come here because your term as branch chief ended?"
"You could say that. Actually, I could have been the branch chief for longer, but the Alliance Leader called me."
I know well what it means that the Alliance Leader called him.
He will soon become the leader of the White Tiger Squad and make a name for himself as the most outstanding White Tiger Squad leader in history.
Until the Demonic Cult bastards attack and he dies at their hands.
Perhaps the fact that he will become the leader of the White Tiger Squad is still a secret, so there is no need to make a fuss by pretending to know.
"Perhaps the Alliance Leader recognized Martial Artist Gwak's true worth and wants to keep you close."
"Hmph. I don't know. I don't have any position yet, so I asked to be excused from duty, but he didn't even pretend to listen. Can't you see that I'm guarding this place now?"
He said in a voice that was half-joking.
Although his voice must have reached the Alliance Leader, the Alliance Leader, pretending not to have heard, was closing his eyes and feeling the wind.
Although I didn't know well, it seems the two of them have a quite close relationship.
Come to think of it, that's why he must have entrusted him with the position of the leader of the White Tiger Squad, the most famous among the strike teams of the Martial Alliance.
"Isn't it because the Alliance Leader has a plan?"
"What plan?"
I glanced at the Martial Alliance Leader out of the corner of my eye.
The Alliance Leader, who had seemed to have no interest in Gwak Seok-san's words, was now glancing this way, pretending not to be looking, as if he had become interested in what I had said.
The relationship between Gwak Seok-san and the Alliance Leader. And using the future I know, I should score some more points with the Alliance Leader at this opportunity.
"The reason the Alliance Leader deliberately called in Martial Artist Gwak, who was doing a good job as the Hubei branch chief, is probably because he wants to entrust you with a very important task."
"Hmm...?"
"If that weren't the case, the Alliance Leader, who knows the importance of the Hubei region well, would not have had to deliberately take out a competent martial artist like Martial Artist Gwak. But since Martial Artist Gwak has been active mainly outside the Martial Alliance, you can't say you're that close to the other martial artists inside the Martial Alliance, right?"
"That's... right?"
"So I think he assigned you to this kind of duty so that you can spend as much time as possible with as many martial artists as possible and get to know their faces."
Gwak Seok-san, at my words, couldn't answer and just opened his eyes a little wider.
The Alliance Leader was now looking at me openly.
I, holding back a blooming smile, continued, "Actually, there's nothing better than this kind of duty to get to know people you don't know well, right? If you just stand guard, time doesn't go by well, so you have no choice but to have all sorts of conversations, and originally, conversation is the best way for people to get to know each other."
Gwak Seok-san, looking at me, looked back at the other martial artists he was on duty with, and then said, "Hmm-hmm. It's true that I've decided to have a meal with the people I met today after my duty hours are over..."
As I gave him a knowing smile, Gwak Seok-san hurriedly continued, "But among the martial artists I'm on duty with, there are some who don't talk much, so I can't get to know them. In that case?"
"In the case of such people, it would be an opportunity for Martial Artist Gwak to get to know that that person is not a person who talks much, that he is a person who likes to be taciturn. In any case, you have to experience a person to know them, right?"
"No......"
Gwak Seok-san couldn't continue his words again.
Then the Alliance Leader, with a hmm-hmm cough, came up next to me.
"Unhwi-ya. That's enough. That bastard probably just thinks I'm harassing him, even though you're thinking about it."
"Alliance Leader! Did you really have that intention?"
"If not, would I have assigned you to a different duty every day? Ask any of the other martial artists. Is there any other martial artist besides you whose duty station changes every day?"
"I thought I was just filling in every day..."
"Tsk. That's why I'm debating whether to appoint you as the White Tiger Squad leader or not. The White Tiger Squad is not a place that can be led just by being good at fighting and performing missions well."
The Alliance Leader very naturally revealed the fact that he was trying to entrust him with the position of the White Tiger Squad leader.
While my senior brothers, who didn't know how great a position the White Tiger Squad leader was, showed a nonchalant reaction, the other martial artists, who had been pretending to have no interest in our story, were surprised and looked back and forth between the Alliance Leader and Gwak Seok-san.
"That's why I said I didn't want to do it, didn't I, Alliance Leader? I said I wasn't confident."
"Looking at you like that, I want to entrust it to you even more. If I just entrust it to you, I'm sure you'll do a good job..."
"Although I will do my best if I am entrusted with it, I don't know if it will be to your satisfaction."
The way they treated each other was very natural and informal.
In the Martial Alliance, there is probably no other young martial artist besides Gwak Seok-san who can treat the Martial Alliance Leader like that.
When I have time later, I felt a desire to find out if there was any relationship between Gwak Seok-san and the Martial Alliance Leader.
As the Martial Alliance Leader and Gwak Seok-san began to bicker, the door of the secret vault opened and Un Gwang came out.
Although I thought it would take quite a while, he came out much sooner than I thought.
For a moment, everyone's gaze in this place was directed to Un Gwang's hand.
Because they were curious about what Un Gwang had brought out.
At first, I thought he would have brought out an elixir.
Because there was nothing better than an elixir to replenish his lacking internal energy or stamina.
But in his hand, there was something completely different that I hadn't expected.
No, to be precise, there was something that I had thought Un Gwang might have.
"Alliance Leader. I will take this."
"No... will that really do? I'll give you a chance to change it even now."
"No. This is good."
Because in his hand, there was a secret manual.
But that secret manual was not a complete secret manual.
A secret manual that was torn and burned in places. A secret manual that seemed to be unable to function as a secret manual right away because there were too many missing parts at a glance.
The Nine Heavens Forbidden Demonic Divine Art.
It was a martial art that was called a divine art of the past that was said to have protected the martial world from the demons in the legends of hundreds, thousands of years ago.
"That secret manual has too many missing parts, so it will be useless..."
"Yes. That's why I want to try to restore this martial art."
Un Gwang's eyes were sparkling.
When Un Gwang has those eyes, it's not easy to stop him.
(End of Chapter)