Rebirth of the Thunder God

The owner of the footsteps walked down the corridor, revealing his ki as if to show off his overwhelming presence.

Unfortunately, that direction was the office of the Dugu family head where Namgung Hui was, so it was truly difficult.

'Could it be the Dugu family head? It would be difficult to face such a master in this state.'

It was impossible to greet such a master while hiding his identity.

He was an opponent he had to fight with all his might, and if he fought, other enemies would surely attack.

'Come to think of it, Bukgung Jinwu's words to cause a ruckus were contradictory. What? He told me to deal with everyone who picks a fight?'

The Blood Cult members were more tenacious than he thought.

Even if he dealt with one, other guys would surely rush in, so it might be impossible to defeat them one by one.

Namgung Hui also wanted to deal a blow to the Blood Cult, including the Dugu family, but he couldn't get a chance.

Unless he met the Dugu family head in a secret place like the Silver Moon Forest.

There was no way to do anything in the middle of the Heavenly Altar Pavilion like this.

Either way, Namgung Hui was now in a desperate situation.

Could he really hide properly from such a master?

But if he opened the office door and went out now, he would surely meet his eyes, so he couldn't go out.

'If I open the window and jump out, other people will see me. Besides, he's not a master of a level who wouldn't notice that.'

Namgung Hui, looking for a place to hide in the office, opened a long wooden box in a corner.

'Is it a wardrobe? I can hide my body here for now.'

Namgung Hui entered the wardrobe and immediately performed the Blood Severing Great Art he had learned from Muchi.

Then his heart began to beat slower and his whole body began to droop.

Perhaps because the blood wasn't flowing properly to his head, he felt as if he were dreaming in a dazed state.

'Muchi managed to hide in the ground in this state.'

It felt like being buried alive in a coffin?

It was a dark and narrow space, and he couldn't recognize things well, and his mind was hazy, so he felt a sense of fear creeping up on him.

The fear of the abyss.

It was a state where it wouldn't be strange at all if a demonic thought came to him because of this.

But Namgung Hui had already experienced death, and his cultivation was not so low as to fall into a demonic thought.

Jeobeok. Jeobeok. Jeobeok.

The sound of footsteps was heard clearly, and the office door opened.

"Hmm... Did someone come and go?"

At Dugu Jin's question, an answer was immediately heard from the corridor.

"Greetings to the family head! I just went in to clean and came out."

"You're a child of a branch family. What was your name again..."

"It's Dugu Taek. Family head."

"Yes. I think that was the name. But I didn't ask you to clean."

"Ah. That's because the Great Elder often told us to clean the family heads' offices as well."

"Tsk. That smelly guy should just keep himself clean. Is it his business to clean other people's offices? Well, since I just have to take one thing, you can take care of the cleaning or whatever."

"Yes! Family head."

Dugu Jin approached the ledger that Namgung Hui had looked at and tilted his head.

"Did someone touch this?"

The startled Dugu Taek hurriedly made an excuse.

"It seemed to be too dusty, so I wiped it with my hand. Did I make a mistake by any chance?"

"No. It was just that the dust was wiped off only around here. I'll be leaving now, so you can finish cleaning. If you can, open the window a little too."

"Yes, sir!"

Dugu Jin took the ledger that Namgung Hui had looked at and went out.

This was just an office for show, and it seemed he didn't even do his work here.

Indeed, the only things on the bookshelf were two ledgers.

And there were no writing brushes, ink, or other tools around.

Even in the wardrobe where Namgung Hui was hiding, there was at most one old robe.

And so, as the Dugu family head, Dugu Jin, disappeared, Dugu Taek let out a sigh of relief.

"Phew... I almost got caught."

Namgung Hui, around the time Dugu Jin's presence completely disappeared from the Heavenly Altar Pavilion, released the Blood Severing Great Art and crawled out of the wardrobe.

'This Blood Severing Great Art. The feeling of powerlessness is so unpleasant that I can't use it often. Besides, I can't even move my body properly while using it.'

It was a martial art with many restrictions, as much as the heart beat slowly.

As much as that, it had an excellent effect in hiding one's presence, but it was also followed by danger.

If the Dugu family head had noticed Namgung Hui's presence in advance and launched a surprise attack, he would surely have suffered a fatal wound.

'I'll have to use it while looking at the situation. It's too powerless to use recklessly.'

Still, since he had safely shaken off the Dugu family head, Namgung Hui stood up from the floor and said.

"Young Master Dugu Taek. Thank you."

"Ah. You were hiding there? You managed not to get caught by the family head. It's a great relief."

"That's right. I guess I didn't have a presence because I'm a person who doesn't know martial arts. Then I'll help you clean."

"I didn't think I could do it because my hands and feet were trembling, so that's great. I'll ask you to do so."

It was unlikely that Dugu Taek, who was not yet of age, would be normal after deceiving the family head.

Just by looking, it seemed the Dugu family head had reached the realm of the Extreme Demonic long ago, as his ki was extremely stable and natural.

A momentum that seemed to crush the opponent unconsciously.

That seemed to be deeply related to the Dugu family's family martial arts.

'Don't tell me he restored the lost Dugu Nine Swords. If so, the Dugu family would have taken the position of Cult Leader in one go.'

The Dugu Nine Swords was a martial art that was considered a legend even in the era of the Thunder God in his past life.

A sword art consisting of a total of nine techniques.

An invincible divine art that had never been defeated.

Such a Dugu Nine Swords, as its name suggests, was the family martial art of the Dugu family, but at some point, they had lost that martial art.

And at that time, the Dugu family was not even a member of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

So how long ago was that?

It didn't appear even if you searched through the literature, and it was considered a legend that was only passed down orally.

Namgung Hui grabbed a rag and a broom and began to clean the office diligently.

It was also because he felt sorry for Dugu Taek, but most of all, it was to get something more.

Namgung Hui opened his eyes wide like a beast aiming for its prey and began to search.

'Not this, not this either. Not that either. What's with all the useless things in this office? Indeed, they would have taken all the useful things like just now.'

Was it all because the radical faction and the moderate faction had split and the confrontation had begun?

It seemed they had put all the important documents and things in their own abodes.

If he had known this, he would have searched the clan village more, even if it was unreasonable, so it was a shame.

And so, when Namgung Hui had dusted off all the dust in the office, he saw a ledger rolling in a corner of the floor.

When he opened it, the members of the Dugu family were listed.

'It seems to be a roster. This is a pretty good harvest.'

Namgung Hui put the roster in his robes before Dugu Taek could see it and stood up.

"The cleaning is done now. You won't be able to find a single speck of dust, so the family head will praise you, right?"

"I don't know. Since the family head rarely visits... perhaps it will be this dusty again on his next visit. Or he might never come again. In fact, he recently moved his office to his residence."

"His residence, you mean the clan village?"

"Did you hear about the clan village from the Great Elder? Of course, he often stops by the clan village, but the family heads have their own residences."

"Can I ask where?"

"..."

He was clearly hesitant, as if it were a secret he shouldn't tell.

Namgung Hui had no choice but to use the honey trap again.

He looked at Dugu Taek with sparkling eyes.

Grabbing his hand tightly was a bonus.

"Y-young lady. You shouldn't do this."

"What shouldn't I do?"

"I-I, that's..."

Gulp.

He even swallowed his dry saliva and showed a tense attitude.

Namgung Hui felt even more sorry for Dugu Taek, but it seemed he couldn't miss this information.

"Rather, isn't it too much for you not to tell me when I'm asking you like this? I don't really like men who play hard to get..."

"Phew... Alright. I'll tell you. The Blood Heaven Peak, another peak next to Gwangcheon Peak, is the base of the family heads. Since they have to do closed-door training and have many things to do in secret, most of the direct descendants reside there."

"Really?"

"Yes. What would I get for lying?"

Namgung Hui, who had gotten the answer he wanted, immediately let go of his hand and distanced himself from Dugu Ta-ek.

Dugu Taek licked his lips as if he were somewhat disappointed, but Namgung Hui did not notice Dugu Taek's expression.

'The military power of the clan village alone was not at a level to be ignored, but the direct descendants reside in another place? Not even the inner city?'

Looking at it this way, the Blood Cult was larger than he thought.

It seemed to be at a level comparable to the heyday of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

On the other hand, the orthodox martial world was inferior to its heyday in the past.

First of all, they were lazy, steeped in peace, and not only did they join the Hoicheon Association for their own interests, but there were fewer people who devoted themselves to martial arts than in the past.

For example, the number of people who thought of martial arts as a means of making money, such as escort agencies and merchant guilds, had increased compared to before.

Of course, this was not a bad thing.

As the times change, it is only natural for people to change accordingly.

But apart from that, they were too buried in material things, lost the essence of martial arts, and had a tendency to be too obsessed with the meaning of money.

Did they call this the 'golden-almighty' principle in the merchant families?

Anyway. With the current military power of the orthodox faction, even one Blood Cult seemed to be too much.

On top of that, if the schemes of the Hoicheon Association were added, the outlook was so dark that it was dizzying.

'If it's really like this, I have to deal a blow to the Blood Cult and get out somehow. He said it was the Blood Heaven Peak. I'll have to stop by there.'

"Um... Young lady. Now that you're done looking around, shall we go for a meal?"

"A meal? Ah. I just ate before I came up. I'm not hungry. Let's eat next time."

"Next time? Then perhaps your affiliation and name...?"

"I'm I Jayeon of the Pungun Merchant Guild. I'll stop by again next time, so let's eat then."

"Yes! I'll be waiting."

Namgung Hui looked at Dugu Taek, who was wagging his tail like a bright puppy, and smiled a bitter smile.

That person was an enemy.

As long as his name started with Dugu, he was a man he could not coexist with.

Unfortunately, there would be more innocent-looking people like Dugu Taek.

Beak Seolhwa would be busy trying to save such people, but Namgung Hui was not that merciful.

Namgung Hui patted Dugu Taek's shoulder and left the Heavenly Altar Pavilion.

Now it was time to meet Bukgung Jinwu and settle the score.

The appearance of the Heavenly Altar Pavilion that Namgung Hui had left looked particularly cold today.

* * *

"Young Lady I. What brings you here? I believe your mission is not yet over."

"I think I've done enough by catching one Mad Dragon. I've learned quite a lot from him, haven't I?"

"All I learned was that he was trying to poison us. He was spouting such strange things that I didn't get much out of it."

Was this because of the encryption work that Cheon Museong had mentioned?

It seemed that even the smart Bukgung Jinwu had not seen through it.

Or he might have figured it out but was pretending not to because he didn't know the formula yet.

"So you're telling me to go to a clan village that's no different from a death trap and cause a ruckus?"

"When did I tell you to go into the clan village? It's enough to just cause a commotion at the Heavenly Altar Pavilion. Just 'deal with everyone who picks a fight.' Is that difficult?"

"First of all, I've disguised myself as a Pungun Merchant Guild employee, but it doesn't make sense for a merchant guild employee to have outstanding martial power. If you investigate, the underlying strength of the Pungun Merchant Guild will be revealed anyway, so instead of doing that, please give me another identity."

"Another identity, you say?"

"Give me an identity that will allow me to enter the Blood Heaven Peak.”

(End of Chapter)