Rebirth of the Thunder God

-Young Master. This person is the young mistress of the Moon Maiden Palace.

"What did you say?"

Namgung Hui was so surprised that he ended up speaking out loud.

Baek Seolhwa, who was watching this, raised her eyes and said.

"What are you two talking about so much through telepathy? Tell me too."

"Phew……. I think we need to move."

* * *

As Choyeon said, they moved to an empty clearing in a deserted mountain.

Of course, there were people who tried to follow Baek Seolhwa in between, but after she shattered the groins of a few people, no one followed anymore.

Baek Seolhwa finished off the dumplings she had packed and continued speaking.

"Munch, munch. The dumplings are really amazing. By the way, you want me to disguise myself?"

"Yes. It would be better in many ways. You don't want to be chased by people like this every time, do you? Right?"

"The horseflies are quite annoying. Munch. This is really a hassle. But I don't know how to disguise myself."

"Don't worry about that. I'll help you. Actually, we're also changing our appearance due to our circumstances. Young Master, it's okay to help the young palace mistress, right?"

"That's for you to decide. However, I'd like to leave the village today."

"The disguise won't take that long. Let's see……. People might get suspicious, so let's have you dress as a man."

Choyeon, as if Baek Seolhwa's opinion didn't matter, immediately prepared for the disguise.

Baek Seolhwa shook her head as if she had no choice and asked Namgung Hui.

"Then is the young master here actually a woman too?"

"That's not it. I've always been a man."

"Ah~ I see. Your skin is so fine, I thought you were a woman. It seems better than mine."

It was understandable. It was a face that hadn't seen sunlight for ten years.

No matter how much Namgung Hui disguised himself as a farmer, he couldn't deceive the eyes of a master.

Baek Seolhwa was the young palace mistress of the Moon Maiden Palace.

She was a master who was on a different level from other rising stars.

"Young Master. Since she has to take off her clothes to dress as a man, please go down to the village first."

"Alright. Then I'll wait in front of the inn from before."

Namgung Hui thought it wouldn't be bad to have some time to himself and look around the marketplace for the first time in a while.

And so, Namgung Hui went down to the inn they had visited earlier, but it was even more crowded than before.

Even though it was still far from dinner time.

‘They’re all carrying swords, so they must be martial artists.’

Not only that, but they were all wearing the same style of martial arts uniform, looking as if they were from a single sect.

As Namgung Hui was looking around at them, someone pointed at Namgung Hui and shouted.

"That's the guy who was with that woman earlier!"

"Catch him!"

It seemed they had come to take revenge for being beaten by Baek Seolhwa. And in a group at that.

Namgung Hui briefly debated whether to fight or run away.

‘It probably won't do any good to cause a commotion.’

He had already secretly left the family estate.

No matter how much he disguised himself and moved along the Flying Swallow's route.

It wouldn't do any good to cause a commotion.

If the attention of those around him was drawn, the possibility of his identity being revealed would naturally increase.

And if he got into a fight, his disguise might come off.

‘I have to run away.’

Having made up his mind, Namgung Hui quickly turned around and ran towards the marketplace.

Fortunately, the level of the warriors was not that high.

Although there were many of them, it wasn't impossible to shake them off.

"Hey! The guy is running away. Chase him!"

The warriors rushed after Namgung Hui.

But with Namgung Hui's ethereal movement technique, the distance gradually widened.

As Namgung Hui completely disappeared into the marketplace, the warriors stopped in their tracks like a dog that had been chasing a chicken.

"Tsk! Change of plans. Everyone, block off the marketplace!"

* * *

Namgung Hui hid in the entrance of an alley and eavesdropped on the warriors' conversation.

They were more persistent than he thought.

It would have been normal to give up after being shaken off to this extent.

They were persistently following him, as if someone's testicles had burst.

‘Chohwa will probably run into them too, but she'll handle it well. The young palace mistress is a better master than me.’

As long as Namgung Hui's own identity wasn't revealed, it was fine.

Even if the young palace mistress's disguise was revealed, no particular problem would arise.

Since he was in the marketplace, Namgung Hui decided to look around.

‘The world has changed a lot in sixty years.’

They say that even mountains and rivers change in ten years.

Sixty years was enough time for the mountains and rivers to change at least six times.

Even after searching through Namgung Hui's memories, there were not many memories of the world.

Most of them were just childhood memories.

Therefore, Namgung Hui strolled through the marketplace with an excited heart.

He was the very picture of a country bumpkin who had come from the countryside.

‘They even sell meat on skewers now. The world has become so abundant.’

In the past, skewers were all mushrooms or vegetables.

It was natural, as meat to eat right away was scarce.

But now, there were pieces of meat even on the skewers that the common people could eat.

Namgung Hui felt a sense of pride at that sight.

Because the Thunder God's death was not in vain.

Because the justice and chivalry he had practiced remained intact on this land.

The fact that he had contributed to this peaceful daily life made Namgung Hui's heart swell.

Then, something suddenly caught Namgung Hui's eye.

‘That's the mark of the Hao Faction. So they still exist.’

It seemed that the mark of the Hao Faction was the same in the past and present.

Since he had found the Hao Faction anyway, Namgung Hui decided to stop by.

He might be able to get some useful information.

And so, Namgung Hui entered the brothel where the crow feather flag, the mark of the Hao Faction, was hanging.

-Creeeak.

As soon as Namgung Hui opened the door of the brothel, a fist flew at him.

Namgung Hui quickly unfolded the Thunder Cloud Step and deflected the fist.

As the fist cut through the empty air, Namgung Hui quietly opened his mouth.

"My, my. Punching a customer on the first meeting is the same as it was in the past."

The man who had thrown the punch glared at Namgung Hui and said.

"Who are you? I haven't seen your face around here."

"I came to meet the crow. The mole should step aside."

"!!?"

When Namgung Hui knew the Hao Faction's code word, the man's eyes widened.

And even though Namgung Hui was dressed as a country bumpkin, the movement technique he had just displayed was not ordinary.

It was also a very unfamiliar movement technique.

It was a martial art that even the Hao Faction, which dealt with information, did not know.

"You're a suspicious one. Capture him and……."

"That's enough. Step aside."

A sharp woman's voice came from upstairs.

"Seeing as you came looking for us knowing who we are, you seem to be a customer. Taesik. Bring some tea."

"Yes."

Namgung Hui naturally walked towards the floor where the voice had come from.

It was a natural movement, as if he had made such visits many times.

And so, Namgung Hui arrived at the top floor.

The escort warriors all had their hands on the hilts of their swords.

They were also showing their will to cut Namgung Hui down if necessary.

Intimidation.

It was probably to test Namgung Hui's intentions for coming.

Namgung Hui, regardless of whether the escort warriors were glaring at him murderously or not, opened the door with a light step.

-Slide.

When the door opened, a person's figure was revealed beyond the curtain.

It seemed to be the woman with the sharp voice.

"Welcome. You seem to be the culprit of the commotion outside, where are you from?"

"The Hao Faction is a place that trades information, so I can't tell you for free."

"As expected, you came looking for us knowing who we are. Do you have any information you want? Or do you have a request for us?"

"Do you have a summary of the events in the martial world for the past sixty years, that is, from after the Great War between Justice and Evil until now?"

"Sixty years……. Even a simple summary would be quite a lot. And the price will be high accordingly. Do you have any money?"

It was natural to be suspicious, as Namgung Hui was dressed shabbily now.

But because of the movement technique he had displayed earlier, they couldn't rashly turn him away.

On top of that, the woman in front of him had been rolling her eyes diligently since a while ago to figure out Namgung Hui's identity.

Each piece of information like this was the Hao Faction's source of income.

"A very simple summary will do. How much will the information fee be?"

"You'll have to pay at least 500 silver taels."

"So you're saying it's about 100 silver taels worth of information. So it's low-grade information."

"!!!"

The woman's surprised expression flowed from beyond the curtain.

It was probably because Namgung Hui had guessed not only the grade of the information but also the exact price.

‘Their skill at inflating prices is the same as it was in the past.’

"What kind of absurd lowballing is that?"

"Hey, Branch Leader. No. Division Chief. Isn't it the Hao Faction's rule to quote five times the price to someone you're seeing for the first time? And you don't sell anything but low-grade information to people who come without a letter of introduction like this. Right?"

"Who on earth are you, Young Master? Seeing as you even came in disguise, you must not be of ordinary status."

As expected of a Hao Faction division chief, she saw through Namgung Hui's disguise.

Since he hadn't learned face-changing or bone-shrinking techniques, there was a limit to his disguise skills.

Besides, Namgung Hui's spirited eyes could not be hidden even with a disguise.

"So if I tell you who I am, you'll give me the low-grade information?"

The division chief quickly racked her brain.

‘It won't be too late to judge after I know who he is. If necessary, I can just sell him to the Daexiong Gang. Low-grade information is no big deal.’

"Alright. If you just tell me who you are, Young Master, I will give you the information you want."

"Good. It'll be faster to show you than to tell you."

Namgung Hui threw the identification tag in his pocket over the curtain.

-Flick! Thud.

"!!!"

The division chief who caught the identification tag couldn't hide her surprise at the name 'Namgung'.

Her surprised attitude was clearly transmitted even from beyond the curtain.

Before she could compose herself, Namgung Hui quickly threw a question.

"You're not thinking of selling my information to someone else, are you?"

"…Of course not."

"Well, I don't believe you, but it would be better not to. I tend to hold a grudge."

Namgung Hui's words were true.

He was a man who knew how to see things through to the end.

In all aspects, whether it was martial arts or grudges.

"Then please wait a moment. I'll sort out the information and bring it."

"Alright. Don't think about doing anything foolish."

"O-of course I won't do such a thing."

The division chief hurriedly disappeared somewhere.

It seemed she had moved to a separate place where information was stored, but Namgung Hui didn't care what she was thinking.

‘If she tries anything foolish, that would be good in its own way.’

Namgung Hui had to climb the Thunder Sect alone anyway.

That meant he had to get rid of Choyeon.

He was planning to use this as an excuse to leave Choyeon behind and climb Mount Huang.

As Namgung Hui was also busily racking his brain, the division chief came out with a bundle of scrolls.

"This is what I got after sorting and sorting. The sixty years were not easy."

Namgung Hui took the bundle of scrolls and said.

"Can I take this with me?"

"Yes. It's a copy, so you can take it. However, please know that our Dongling branch has no intention of selling your information, Young Master. And please don't forget my goodwill."

Although the Namgung family had fallen, it was still a family that had its name on the list of the Five Great Families.

Even just the Namgung family's Azure Sky unit could lay waste to a single branch of the Hao Faction.

Well, this much was a given.

‘Still, you never know. The second or third brother might demand my information.’

"Alright. Dongling Division Chief. I will definitely remember your sincerity. Then, shall I try selling some information too?"

"Information? May I know roughly what kind of information it is?"

"The leader of the Heretic Alliance. I'm thinking of selling some information about him."

(End of Chapter)