Rebirth of the Thunder God

'No! This is!'

Namgung Hui couldn't hide his bewilderment at the unexpected information written on the scroll.

The whereabouts of the Blood Cult, which he had expected to get from the Hao Faction or the Beggars' Sect.

For some reason, the Sichuan Tang family had given Namgung Hui information about the Blood Cult.

"How did you catch the tail of the Blood Cult? I heard even the Martial Alliance couldn't do it."

"Doesn't that mean the ability of our Sichuan Tang family is more outstanding than the Martial Alliance? The interrogation of our Tang family is the best in the world. No matter how much of a Blood Cult member they are, they have no choice but to open their mouths in front of the Tang family's torture techniques."

"How did you handle the restriction?"

"That's a secret of our family, so I can't tell you. Just know that there is a way."

It was strange. It was a method that even the Poison King in his past life couldn't do.

Did the members of the Tang family make up for the absence of the lost Rain of Ten Thousand Flowers in this way?

He didn't know what the method was, but he had to admit their power.

Namgung Hui read the place name written on the scroll again.

'Guangdong Province. Ten Thousand Great Mountains. It's a place I've heard of from my master before.'

It was said to be a vast mountain range with as many as a hundred thousand peaks.

It wouldn't actually be a hundred thousand, but it meant there were that many mountain peaks.

A perfect place for a secluded residence.

Guangdong Province was quite far from the Central Plains, so it was difficult to send a search party.

And the language used in Guangdong Province was also quite different, so there were even difficulties in communication.

In other words, if an outsider infiltrated, they would be easily noticed.

Namgung Hui put the scroll that Tang Soso had given him into his bosom and opened his mouth.

"Thank you very much for the information. I'll use it well."

"The Blood Cult is a descendant of the Demonic Cult, so aren't they a common enemy? Still, I hope you know that I told you first out of goodwill."

"I understand. I won't forget your goodwill. It's getting late, so you should go back."

"...Yes."

Tang Soso hesitated as if she had more to say and then turned back.

Namgung Hui, thinking that she would say it tomorrow if she had something important to say, entered his quarters.

There wasn't much time left until the Martial Alliance tournament.

The Blood Cult, the Hoicheon Association, the Heretic Practitioners' Alliance... Numerous forces would be hiding their identities and acting in the dark.

Namgung Hui would face the enemies in the eye of that storm.

* * *

The next morning.

Namgung Hui spent a busy day as soon as he opened his eyes.

First, since he had brought Cheon Yeohwa, he had to assign her a certain mission.

'I can't take her to the Martial Alliance tournament. I'll have to ask her to set up a merchant guild.'

It wasn't that Namgung Hui was trying to make money.

Of course, the more money, the better, but how long would it take to earn a large sum of money by setting up a merchant guild now?

He was just thinking of laying the foundation for the Association by disguising it as a merchant guild.

And if he grasped the flow of funds, he would be able to see the situation that was not visible from the outside.

Because merchants reacted more sensitively to the situation in the martial world than anyone else.

'And people can't ignore food, clothing, and shelter while living.'

A huge amount of supplies suddenly flowing into the Ten Thousand Great Mountains? There was a high probability that it was the work of the Blood Cult.

It could be that they were preparing for a war.

Or it could be a phenomenon that occurred because a large number of Blood Cult members had gathered.

Not only that, but it was also noteworthy that a huge amount of funds was flowing out of the Martial Alliance.

Whether a spy from the Association was embezzling money.

Or whether they were trying to punish the Blood Cult.

He could grasp the trend of the martial world itself.

'I have a decent amount of silver. I don't have to worry about the merchant guild. If I get help from the Myriad Gold Merchant Guild and the Azure Sky Escort Service, it will be even easier to establish a position.'

There was no doubt about Cheon Yeohwa's outstanding resourcefulness.

However, the key was whether he could trust her herself, but he wondered if she would betray the person who had even rescued her from slavery.

And with the martial prowess Namgung Hui had shown and the information power of the Hao Faction, would she be able to run away with the silver?

If she were sane, it would be difficult to do so.

As Namgung Hui was organizing the plan for establishing the merchant guild, Tang Soso, whom he had met last night, came to his quarters.

"Young Master. May I come in?"

"No. I'll come out."

The room was a mess.

There was also a slight stench because Chichi had drunk the Thunder Liquor and thrown the bottle anywhere.

It was not a sight to show to an outsider.

As Namgung Hui tidied up the place and came out, Tang Soso was wearing rather flashy clothes, unlike last night.

"Young Master. You're leaving for the Martial Alliance the day after tomorrow, right?"

"That's right. But why are you wearing outing clothes?"

"I have something to prepare in advance before leaving the day after tomorrow."

"I don't have anything to pack."

A few bottles of Thunder Liquor to charm the famous masters of the martial world would be enough.

The rest of the snacks could be procured with money locally.

Wasn't it the law that a martial artist only needed one sword?

"You said you've never been to the Martial Alliance, Young Master, right?"

"That's right. I was only lying in bed, so I didn't have a chance to go."

"Then it's understandable that you don't know. In fact, there are several things you need to go to the Martial Alliance."

"A sword, a body, money. Are you saying there's something else needed besides these three?"

"Of course. The three things you mentioned are also important, but what I'm saying is necessary is essential for the convenience of the journey."

Namgung Hui stroked his chin for a moment and looked at Tang Soso.

There was definitely no sign of lying.

Then it meant there was something Namgung Hui didn't know during the journey, but he couldn't guess what it was.

'A poisonous land? It's not the Southern Barbarians, so there's no such thing. And it's unlikely that a group of demonic bandits will appear in the middle. What on earth is it?'

It seemed something Namgung Hui didn't know had happened in the past 60 years.

And to the extent that he had to pack preparations.

"Then I can't just pack my own things, so I'll bring a companion."

"By companion, do you mean the Young Palace Mistress?"

"That's right."

As Namgung Hui nodded, Tang Soso bit her lip.

"...Yes. Let's go together on this occasion. I also have to greet the Young Palace Mistress."

"You haven't visited her yet?"

"I didn't have time for that because I was learning the Rain of Ten Thousand Flowers."

"That's true. Well, Seolhwa's personality is on the easygoing side, so it won't be difficult to get along with her. Let's go."

Namgung Hui also didn't have many friends, but Baek Seolhwa would have even fewer than him.

Namgung Hui at least had a friend of the same sex named Jegal Geon, but Baek Seolhwa probably didn't have a single friend of the same sex.

Since she had refused Seomun Hye's request for friendship before.

'By the way, I wonder if Seomun Hye returned safely.'

As they say, no news is good news, so since there had been no word, she must be doing well.

The marriage proposal had also been called off, so there was no reason for Namgung Hui to care.

"Namgung Hui. What are you doing at this hour?"

Baek Seolhwa was slightly sweating, as if she had been warming up since the morning.

Perhaps because her hair was wet, she looked unusually alluring.

"I came because I have something to prepare before leaving for the Martial Alliance. You can hear it from Miss Tang Soso here."

In order to pass on the troublesome explanation and to create a friendship between the two, he turned the topic to Tang Soso.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Tang Soso, from Sichuan. You're the Young Palace Mistress of the Moon Maiden Palace, right?"

"Yes. As you know, my name is Baek Seolhwa. But what do you mean we have to prepare?"

"Let's not do this here, let's go out and I'll show you. Follow me."

Baek Seolhwa glanced at Namgung Hui and then followed Tang Soso.

And she quietly whispered in Namgung Hui's ear.

"What do you mean we need something?"

"I don't know either. She said it's something we'll need on our way to the Martial Alliance, so we'll know when we see it."

"Really? Alright, I understand for now."

Namgung Hui tilted his head.

He had asked her to accompany him because he was concerned about Baek Seolhwa and wanted to take care of her, but he couldn't understand why she was exuding such a cold ki.

Soon, Tang Soso's steps stopped at a certain shop.

Seeing the miscellaneous goods piled up and being sold, it seemed to be a general store.

Tang Soso looked at various items and then nodded.

It seemed she was satisfied with the quality of the products.

"Shopkeeper. Do you have an umbrella made of paper mulberry here?"

"Yes. Of course, we do. And it's an umbrella imported from Sichuan."

Was it because the word 'Sichuan' came up?

Tang Soso's nose seemed unusually high.

As the shopkeeper brought out the umbrella, Tang Soso examined it in detail.

"It's indeed from Sichuan. Can you give me two of these?"

"Yes. That will be 5 silver coins in total."

Namgung Hui was about to argue why an umbrella was so expensive, but Tang Soso readily opened her purse.

"It's cheaper than I thought. Here's 6 silver coins."

"Oh my! Thank you. As expected, a beautiful person also has a beautiful heart."

"Don't mention it. Then, sell a lot."

Namgung Hui couldn't let Tang Soso, who had even paid, carry both umbrellas, so he immediately helped her.

"Miss Tang. Was the thing you needed an umbrella?"

"Yes. It's essential to go to the Martial Alliance."

"Does it rain that much in Zhengzhou, Henan, where the Martial Alliance is located?"

"Coincidentally, since 10 years ago when you were ill, there have been unusually heavy localized downpours. There's a rumor going around that it's because a dragon has coiled itself in the Yellow River. Anyway. It's difficult to pass without this paper mulberry umbrella."

"No. Can't we just go by carriage? Do we have to go with an umbrella?"

"You can't cross Mount Tianzhong by carriage. And if it rains too much, the carriage can't pass either."

"Can't we just run in the rain? A martial artist won't catch a cold just from getting wet..."

"You will. That's why people are saying it might be a rain brought by a dragon."

At this point, Namgung Hui couldn't just let it slide.

If it were someone else, they would have doubts about the existence of a dragon, but Namgung Hui was different.

Wasn't the founding master of the Thunder Sect the Azure Dragon?

It was too realistic to be just a baseless story.

'The Azure Dragon handled Thunder Ki, so a water dragon would handle water ki. It seems there really is a dragon in the Yellow River.'

Of course, he had no intention of going to find it.

Spirits sometimes had a belligerent nature, and seeing as it was causing a downpour, there was a high probability that it was an imugi that had failed to ascend, rather than a dragon.

The downpour might be the result of that imugi's resentment.

"But with that much of a downpour, can this paper mulberry umbrella handle it? It'll just tear."

"Of course, the Tang family will take care of that. If we treat this with a special chemical, it won't tear even if a rock falls on it."

He had no doubt about the Tang family's skill.

Then, since he roughly understood the meaning of packing an umbrella, the next preparation was the key.

"Then what's the next preparation we need?"

"We just need to buy some cheap distilled liquor."

"Why alcohol...?"

"I'll show you when we leave on our journey the day after tomorrow. It's quite a mouthful to explain in words."

Namgung Hui just let it go.

It was annoying to ask every single thing, and it didn't seem like Tang Soso was talking nonsense.

This time, Namgung Hui bought a dozen bottles of distilled liquor and carried the sack.

At the sound of the sloshing alcohol, Chichi reacted.

"Kkik? (Did you buy that for me?)"

"No. So just go back to sleep."

"Kkik. (Hmph. Alright.)"

As Chichi went back to sleep, Namgung Hui opened his mouth.

"Miss Tang. May I ask you for a favor before we leave?"

"Of course. If it's something I can do."

"It's nothing much, but I'd like you to mix this stone powder into the dagger and bracelet."

"With this much, it won't be difficult. Since I have the equipment, it should be done by today. Then may I ask you for a favor too?"

"Of course."

Tang Soso stopped her steps for a moment and said with a determined expression.

"Let's have a match."

(End of Chapter)