Rebirth of the Thunder God

"Is the leader of the Hoicheon Association the Emperor?"

"Hmm... The question itself seems to be wrong. First, let me give you some supplementary explanation. The Hoicheon Association has three leaders. They are referred to as the Three Heavens, and the heads of those places manage the Hoicheon Association."

"Ah. I think I've heard something about that before. They're called the Three Heavens (Samcheon), referring to three skies, right?"

"Yes. The names of those places are Imperial Heaven, Northern Heaven, and Demonic Heaven."

"Imperial Heaven must be the Emperor's faction. What are Northern Heaven and Demonic Heaven? Demonic Heaven's name sounds ominous from the start."

He could tell from the name that Imperial Heaven was the Emperor's faction, but he couldn't understand the Northern Heaven and the Demonic Heaven.

Didn't Demonic Heaven fit better with the name of the Blood Cult?

"Yes. Your question is valid. I was also puzzled when I first heard the name Demonic Heaven. Well, even now, the Three Heavens are in the midst of a power struggle, keeping each other in check."

"So what kind of people are Northern Heaven and Demonic Heaven?"

"Northern Heaven are literally those who came from the north. The descendants of the Yuan Dynasty. And it's a group formed by uniting with the forces of the North Sea Ice Palace."

"What? Descendants of the Yuan Dynasty? Then they must be on very bad terms with the current imperial family, so why?"

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend. When they drove out the Yuan, there were those who helped from within. They were the forces of Northern Heaven."

"In other words, from the Yuan Dynasty's perspective, they are traitors and rebels. Well, I understand."

But given Zhu Yuanzhang's personality, it was hard to understand why he would have left Northern Heaven alone after driving out the Yuan Dynasty.

Wasn't it the founding emperor, Zhu Yuanzhang, who used the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and then discarded them?

The fact that he discarded the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult but left Northern Heaven alone seemed to suggest there was more to the story.

"Ah. And Northern Heaven is not just made up of Yuan descendants. The descendants of the Five Poisons Sect and the Sun God Palace are also with them."

"!? Is that true?"

"What would I gain by telling a lie?"

Thinking about it, if those groups had united under Northern Heaven, it was understandable why the Five Poisons Sect had the Sun God Palace's fire bombs.

And the reason why the Ice Soul Poison had flowed into the Central Plains was probably also something that happened under the name of Northern Heaven.

Thanks to this, his resolve to retaliate against the Hoicheon Association became even clearer.

"Then what kind of people are Demonic Heaven?"

"These people are also just as their name suggests. They are the descendants of the Demonic Cult."

"..."

At this point, Namgung Hui was beyond dumbfounded and simply found the Hoicheon Association strange.

To embrace two organizations that were once hostile.

No matter how much the enemy of my enemy is my friend, they couldn't stay in the same boat forever, could they?

'Then is it because of Demonic Heaven that the Blood Cult came out looking for the sacred artifacts of the Divine Cult? To secure legitimacy and rally their forces?'

He had wondered why they were so quiet, but it seemed they were busy with internal affairs.

Demonic Heaven versus the Blood Cult.

He didn't know which side currently held legitimacy, but it was clear that their positions would change depending on the whereabouts of the sacred artifacts in the future.

And the grand plan of a great undertaking was probably to get revenge and also to divert the attention of the Martial Alliance to carry out this plan.

'Things have gotten interesting. If I play my cards right, I might be able to blow away one of the heavens of the Hoicheon Association.'

Namgung Hui nodded and voiced his remaining questions.

"I want to know more about the Commander. Do you know anything about him?"

"The Commander... I don't know much about him either. We were in the same military, but you know as well as I do. That the eunuchs are sinister."

Nod, nod.

If it was the forces of the Eastern Depot, it went without saying.

In fact, there was a high probability that the personal information of the Commander that Namgung Hui had received from the Black Tortoise Troupe Leader was also fabricated.

"Then forget about the Commander. What is the true purpose of the Hoicheon Association? Why are they planning things so secretly?"

"That's a really difficult question to answer. Well, I don't know the details either, but to put it simply, the current Emperor dislikes martial artists."

"Well, martial artists don't listen to the Emperor's words well, so from the perspective of the Son of Heaven, it would be annoying. So is he trying to rule over the martial artists directly?"

"As far as I know, yes. Killing off the martial artists would cause problems in its own way, wouldn't it? It would have been impossible to drive out the Yuan Dynasty without the help of martial artists. Even now, there are many barbarian tribes who are coveting the country. You may not know, but the Potala Palace in the west and the true remnants of the Yuan in the north are prime examples. Besides them, the descendants of the Liao Dynasty are also targeting the Great Ming Empire."

'Descendants of the Liao. Is it related to that Yelu Guang fellow? Well, Jegal Geon is probably investigating this, so I'll find out eventually.'

His head was already beyond complicated and was spinning.

Hoicheon Association, Blood Cult, Black Tortoise Troupe Leader, Mad Dragon, Beak Seolhwa, Imperial Heaven, Northern Heaven, Demonic Heaven...

There was no room to add the descendants of the Liao to this.

It was a trip to Mount Heng to soothe his troubled mind, but instead, his head had become heavier.

"I think I've asked all the questions I had. What is your request? You know I can't grant an unreasonable one."

"It won't be difficult. If you meet someone from the Yang family like me in the future. Please show them mercy just once."

"You mean spare their life?"

"Yes. I believe the information I've given you is worth that much."

"Alright. That's not too much to ask. I'll spare the life of a Yang family member, just once."

"Good. Good. A master like you wouldn't make empty promises. This is it... This is it..."

The Yang family martial artist's face seemed to hold many stories, but Namgung Hui's mind was also complicated, so he didn't ask.

He just offered a final farewell.

"Any last words?"

"Last words. Rather than that, I want to say one thing to you. In the Asura Axe, there are people from the military like me, but there are also many from origins you wouldn't expect. Keep that in mind. The martial world is vast, and there are many extraordinary people..."

Finishing his words, the Yang family martial artist raised his hand and struck his own celestial spirit gate.

Namgung Hui could have stopped him, but he didn't see the need to keep him alive.

Having joined the Green Forest Alliance in the first place, he must have shed a lot of innocent blood.

And if he returned to the Hoicheon Association, he might leak information about Namgung Hui.

'They are truly a massive organization. Just Imperial Heaven alone might be enough to make the entire Martial Alliance struggle. And now Northern Heaven and Demonic Heaven.'

This must be why the Dark Shadow Brigade Leader was confident that he would be overwhelmed with despair if he found out the true identity of the main body.

The reason he had mentioned the Black Tortoise Troupe Leader's name might have been because he had discovered something suspicious about him and wanted Namgung Hui to take care of it.

Unlike his past life, this was an era where a moment of carelessness could easily get you stabbed in the back.

Namgung Hui shook his complicated head to clear his thoughts and decided to collect the spoils of war first.

'I was running out of silver coins, so this is great. How much is this. One, two, three... Five hundred taels.'

But as Namgung Hui was collecting the money pouch, he found an unexpected letter in the chief's room.

[Azure Sky Escort Agency. Shaanxi-bound.]

[Leader: Namgung Chan. Capture alive (must).]

'These bastards, no wonder the stronghold felt empty, they went to attack the escort agency. This is no time for this. Let's go right away.'

Namgung Hui executed his movement technique towards Shaanxi Province and spread his electric net wide.

A radius of about 100 zhang around Namgung Hui became his domain.

It was a truly unbelievable search ability, but even this felt insufficient.

How could he find his brother in an instant in this vast Central Plains?

In truth, he wasn't worried about the mediocre bandits, but if there was even one master from the Asura Axe, his brother's safety could not be guaranteed.

'All Asura Axe bandits must be assumed to be at the Transcendent level. The Yang family martial artist just now was also a Transcendent master who could handle strong ki.'

As for Namgung Chan, his martial prowess was honestly not outstanding.

It was partly because the latter half of the Azure Sky Boundless Sword Art was lost, but also because he had spent more time on commerce than on martial arts to raise the declining family.

As a result, it was true that he had been a great help to the family, but not in terms of personal prestige.

The descendant of a martial family is treated well only when their martial arts are outstanding.

Perhaps the reason for the Namgung family's poor evaluation at the martial arts tournament was because the young family head, Namgung Chan, did not possess outstanding martial arts.

Namgung Hui was very worried about his brother.

He himself must have a strong desire to become stronger, but to sacrifice himself for the family.

Namgung Hui didn't think he could go that far.

Even now, wasn't he running around for his own happiness rather than for the family?

Living altruistically was in itself a quality of a chivalrous hero.

And it was also a human image that did not fit in the current era.

How long had he run like that?

Multiple presences were detected in Namgung Hui's electric net.

Seeing them tangled up chaotically, it seemed they were in the middle of a battle.

Feeling rushed, Namgung Hui threw his body forward with all his might.

Cutting through the wind, he arrived at the scene, and a person went flying, spraying blood.

Seeing the blue clothes, it was a person from the Azure Sky Escort Agency.

Namgung Hui swung his hand like a thunderbolt.

In his hand was a throwing knife, which he had drawn at some point.

The throwing knife, imbued with his will, flew freely, tearing through the bandits.

-Puk! Sagak! Sagak!

Some had their chests pierced by the throwing knife.

Some had their necks cut by the throwing knife, busy spewing blood in all directions.

An unrealistic situation that happened in an instant.

In the face of overwhelming martial power, not only the bandits but also the people of the Azure Sky Escort Agency were at a loss for words.

Namgung Chan, who discovered Namgung Hui late, looked at his younger brother and shouted.

"Hui!"

"Brother! Are you alright?"

"Yes. I'm alright for now. By the way, how did you know I was here and come find me?"

Namgung Hui walked towards Namgung Chan, flapping the letter in his hand.

"I got some information unexpectedly."

Even though the battle was not over, he was perfectly calm.

But that appearance was so natural that it didn't feel out of place.

It was because Namgung Hui had already dominated the atmosphere of the battlefield.

The bandits cautiously watched Namgung Hui's expression, then bolted.

Would Namgung Hui really just watch such bandits go?

As if waiting for this moment, he took out another throwing knife and threw it at their backs.

The throwing knife danced, drawing a deadly and beautiful trajectory.

-Seuk! Seuk! Hwiririk!

The throwing knife that returned to Namgung Hui's hand was clean, without a single drop of blood.

Proof that his exquisite skill had reached its peak.

Of course, this was also possible because he could imbue the throwing knife with sword ki.

'The 10th stage of the Purple Thunder Divine Art is definitely different. The level of willpower I can imbue in the throwing knife is on a different dimension.'

Namgung Hui had no time to be lost in sentiment.

There were many injured among the Azure Sky Escort Agency group.

He skillfully laid down the injured and began treatment.

Fortunately, Namgung Hui was not late, and he had knowledge of medicine.

Namgung Hui applied a splint to the last patient, applied golden sore medicine to the wound, and then stood up.

"As expected, the Tang family's golden sore medicine works well."

"Young Master. Isn't it still too painful? At first, I thought you were applying poison."

"Isn't it that what's good for the body tastes bitter? It's that effective, so just bear with it, Martial Artist Heo. How can a man get married if he's such a crybaby?"

"Ahem! Why are you suddenly applying golden sore medicine to my heart? If you have a nice young lady, introduce me to her first."

Namgung Hui was in no position to talk about marriage when he was in a tight spot himself.

Moreover, wasn't he also looking for a nice woman himself?

Namgung Hui quickly changed the subject from the awkward answer.

"Martial Artist Heo. By the way, where were you going?"

"The escort mission, you mean? It's a new business partner that the young family head recently established. Where was it... Ah, right. I think it's the Pungun Merchant Guild. As far as I know, it's one of the three major merchant guilds in the Central Plains."

The three major merchant guilds of the Central Plains.

Myriad Gold Merchant Guild.

Golden Merchant Guild.

Pungun Merchant Guild.

To have opened a deal with the only merchant guild that didn't have the character for 'gold' in its name.

He thought, 'as expected of my brother,' but on the other hand, Namgung Hui couldn't understand.

'I definitely opened the way with the Myriad Gold Merchant Guild, so why is he dealing with the Pungun Merchant Guild?'

If you're curious, you can just ask.

Namgung Hui approached his brother, who had finished cleaning up, and asked.

"Brother. What about the Myriad Gold Merchant Guild, and why are you dealing with the Pungun Merchant Guild?"

"It's a deal between merchant guilds. Can we only deal with one place? And this deal is one that we've been pursuing for a long time."

He wasn't very knowledgeable about escort agencies and merchant guilds, so he nodded at Namgung Chan's words.

"Hui. And the Pungun Merchant Guild said they have business with you. They asked me to deliver this letter."

"With me? I should read it first."

Namgung Hui had no connection with the Pungun Merchant Guild, so he opened the letter with a puzzled heart.

And the content written there was so unexpected that he rubbed his eyes and read it again.

[There is something I would like to tell you about the Demonic Cult.]

(End of Chapter)