Rebirth of the Thunder God

"Princess. If you have a moment, let's have a talk."

Ju Hwayeong, perhaps not expecting Namgung Hui to request a private meeting, looked at him with surprised eyes.

"Not the young lady of the Tang family here, but you want to have a talk with me? Is your taste for mature women like me..."

"That's enough of your nonsense. Just follow me. Soso. I'm sorry, but please be alone for a moment."

"Alright. Go on."

Tang Soso was rather broad-minded, so she didn't get easily upset over trivial matters.

She certainly had a good personality for being a friend.

And so, Namgung Hui led Ju Hwayeong to a corner of the tiny deserted island and resumed the conversation.

"The reason I called you out separately is because I have something to ask about the Anti-Heaven Alliance. Even if it's Soso, it's not good for her to know everything."

"Alright. I understand, so just get to the point of why you dragged me here."

"First, I would like you to arrange a meeting with the Divine Treasure Fortress. I've already built a friendship with the Young Fortress Lord, Jin Myeongho, so if you just make the request, he will gladly meet me."

"I've heard about you from the Young Fortress Lord. He said you decided to be friends? Yes. It would be much faster for me to send a message than for you to contact him. I will gladly grant you this much."

"And didn't you ask me to join the Anti-Heaven Alliance last time?"

"That's right. You remembered without forgetting. I thought you had forgotten while playing around with the White Phoenix."

Namgung Hui shook his head at Ju Hwayeong's sarcasm and continued.

"This time, I will make the proposal. Let's form an alliance."

"An alliance? Isn't that something formed between organizations of the same level? Surely you, who are not even the Young Family Head, are not talking about an alliance with the Namgung family. Do you perhaps belong to a separate organization?"

"That's right. In fact, I have recently established an organization called the Righteous Heaven Alliance. Naturally, I am the leader."

"Righteous Heaven Alliance? That's a grand name. The will of heaven. Still, there is no better name to stand against the Hoicheon Association. The one who tries to turn back the heavens and the one who carries out the will of heaven. Hahaha! I am very much looking forward to seeing who will win. Good. I will form an alliance with you anytime. But will the power of a newly established alliance be able to meet my expectations?"

"That is a matter to be seen in the future. To be honest, I believe we will surpass the Anti-Heaven Alliance in an instant. If that happens, you are welcome to come under the Righteous Heaven Alliance. Even if you can't be the Vice-Leader, I will give you a key position."

"The Vice-Leader position will be taken by your partner, the White Phoenix, I see. I'm sorry, but I will not go under you. As a princess, I cannot do such a thing. This is something I cannot do even if I wanted to. Now, is your business finished?"

Namgung Hui, as if he still had more to say, shook his head and spoke.

"Unfortunately, I still have more to say. In fact, this could be called the main point. As a princess, you must know more about the imperial family than anyone else. Isn't this information that even the Hao Faction and the Beggars' Sect cannot find out? So I'm asking, is the current emperor a person of the Hoicheon Association?"

Perhaps because the word 'emperor,' her grandfather, came up.

Ju Hwayeong's expression became somewhat complicated.

Ju Hwayeong's expression, which had been distorted for a moment, returned to its original state, and her mouth slowly began to open.

"...Probably not. At least, His Majesty the Emperor. Of course, I cannot be certain if that is still the case now. You know their tricks well, so I trust you understand."

Just because he was the emperor, there was no law that said he couldn't be subjected to the Hoicheon Association's forbidden techniques or brainwashing.

Rather, they might have repeatedly performed thoroughly prepared brainwashing to use the emperor.

Or they might try to control him like a scarecrow with the Gu poison they used.

The emperor was revered as heaven, but his personal martial prowess was by no means strong, so it was a perfectly possible thing.

'If they make the emperor a puppet like that, it would be perfect.'

"Then you can't be certain about the emperor's safety either?"

Ju Hwayeong shook her head and said.

"His safety, at least, will be secure. Because there are at least three masters of the Transformation Realm by His Majesty's side."

"But that's also quite strange. If there are masters of that level, wouldn't it be worth trying to plot against the Association in reverse?"

"That is what I am curious about as well. What His Majesty's inner thoughts truly are."

"Hmm... It seems there is no way to know, even if you are the emperor's granddaughter."

"Among His Majesty's numerous blood relatives, there will be no one who knows his inner thoughts. That would be the same for that so-called great General as well. The secret struggles within the palace right now must be more fierce and complicated than we can imagine. I disliked that, which is also why I came out and created the Anti-Heaven Alliance."

Just hearing about it was enough to make one's head throb, the secret power struggles within the court.

Namgung Hui also had no confidence in this field, so he decided to leave it to Jegal Geon or Yewol and move on for now.

"Since you say three masters of the Transformation Realm are protecting him, there won't be much to worry about for the time being. No matter how quickly General Yi gets stronger, it will be difficult for him to face three masters of the Transformation Realm."

"But is General Yi the only master in the Association? If you combine the masters of the Demonic Heaven and the Northern Heaven, there will be at least five masters of the Transformation Realm."

"Are you saying there are that many masters of the Transformation Realm in the Association?"

This was something Namgung Hui had not expected.

No. Rather, should he say that it was still difficult to gauge the Association's true power?

Unlike the Blood Cult, which he had personally explored, he hadn't been able to properly grasp even one of the Hoicheon Association's Three Heavens.

That was also why he was asking Ju Hwayeong about the Association like this.

"Yes. I haven't grasped everything either, but I have grasped a certain amount about the Imperial Heaven and the Northern Heaven. However, explaining this with words would take quite a long time, so I will write it down in a document and send it to you later."

"I would be grateful if you could do that. Then I will also sort out what I have grasped about the Blood Cult and send it to you."

"It seems you have been to the Blood Cult recently. Seeing you mimic a demonic art earlier, it seems you gained something there."

"That's right. And what happened to the Mount Hua Sect? I heard they were coming to help the Princess, but I didn't see a trace of them."

"Ah. It would be better for you to hear about that from the young lady of the Tang family. Now that we've almost finished talking, why don't you ask her?"

As Ju Hwayeong said, Namgung Hui had already made all the proposals he had as the leader of the Righteous Heaven Alliance, so it didn't matter.

No. Rather, if Tang Soso knew the reason, it would be right to ask her.

As Namgung Hui nodded, Ju Hwayeong moved her steps first.

Namgung Hui followed her from behind, lost in thought for a moment.

'I should be able to trust the Princess by now. Even if she is the emperor's blood relative. If she's being chased for treason like this, she won't join hands with them.'

Of course, one could never be sure.

Blood is thicker than water.

She could grab the hand the emperor extended at any time, but fortunately, the emperor didn't seem to be on the Hoicheon Association's side, so it seemed it wouldn't be bad to be in the same boat for now.

And so, Namgung Hui, who had returned to Tang Soso, asked about the Mount Hua Sect as Ju Hwayeong had said.

"Ah. The Mount Hua Sect couldn't come because of an unexpected natural disaster. Do you remember the Yellow River we crossed under an umbrella last time?"

"When we went under an umbrella, it was the section where the road was blocked because an imugi was causing a downpour."

-Woong woong!

The moment the word 'imugi' came out, a sword cry rang out from the Thunder God Sword.

But as if only Namgung Hui had heard the sound, Tang Soso calmly continued to speak.

"That's right. That's the place. Suddenly, it started pouring more than usual, so the Mount Hua Sect disciples couldn't cross over. As it was, they were trying to help while hiding their identities like me, so their feet were bound to be tied even more."

"It's a good thing for the Mount Hua Sect, then. Since I've made an appearance like this, there's no need for them to take the risk. By the way, how did the Princess get in touch with the Mount Hua Sect Leader?"

"Just know that there's a somewhat complicated family matter. It's a bit much for me to say it with my own mouth."

'A family matter. It seems the Mount Hua Sect Leader has a somewhat tragic story, what with his son's problem and all.'

It was beneficial not to dig into such stories in detail.

If he found out unnecessarily and got involved, it would only be tiring for Namgung Hui.

"Since the Mount Hua Sect wasn't involved with the imperial army, there's nothing we need to do for them. Then, everyone, get some sleep. Let's just kill time for five days."

And so, the boring time on the deserted island passed faster than expected.

* * *

Although five days could be called a short time, it did not feel that short to Tang Soso and Ju Hwayeong.

From the sleeping arrangements on the first night to physiological phenomena. It was quite nerve-wracking.

Of course, rather than being conscious of Namgung Hui, their nerves were on edge because it felt like the imperial army could raid them at any moment.

No matter how much Namgung Hui covered their tracks with formations.

How effective it would be was an unknown.

As it was, hadn't it not been that long since Namgung Hui had started learning formations?

After about three days passed, they were able to go to sleep with some peace of mind.

But it was inevitable that people would gradually become worn out.

Not being able to wash properly and relieving oneself was no easy task.

Should he say it was a great fortune that since there were two women, they could rely on each other?

And so, five hellish days passed, and finally, the suggestion to move came from Namgung Hui's mouth.

"I just checked the beach, and all the imperial troops have withdrawn. The Princess's soldiers are also still doing well."

"My soldiers are guys who will do well even without me, so you don't have to worry too much. I didn't raise them to be so weak. By the way, are you saying we can finally step on land?"

"It should be possible by tonight. Still, just in case, you'll have to disguise yourselves as men until Hangzhou. The same goes for you, Soso."

"Disguising as a man is nothing. If we can just escape this place, I welcome it anytime."

"Yes. If so, that's a relief. Do you agree with me, Princess?"

"As you said, isn't it unavoidable to pass the checkpoints easily? I never imagined in my dreams that I would disguise myself as a man in my life, but it's quite an interesting thing."

Rather, Ju Hwayeong looked slightly excited.

To her, even this experience seemed to be a form of entertainment.

For her, who had always lived while maintaining her dignity as a princess, not just disguising as a man, but the very act of visiting Hangzhou must be a very interesting thing.

The reputation of Hangzhou, the city of pleasure, was famous throughout the Central Plains.

Of course, it might not be a very pleasant experience for women.

And then, when the sun set and night came, the journey to the Central Plains finally began.

Ju Hwayeong, as if she had never been excited, looked down at her body with a rather displeased expression and said.

"It's so hard to breathe. I never knew disguising as a man would be this stuffy. Soso. Isn't it hard for you?"

Tang Soso looked at Ju Hwayeong's chest and let out a deep sigh.

"That's because yours are unnecessarily big, Princess. They just get in the way of your swordplay."

"And you, who don't even use a sword, are just unnecessarily small."

"What! Who's small! They've gotten a little bigger this time, you know?"

"Oho. To think that's the shape they are after getting bigger. How small were they before? Haha!"

Namgung Hui shook his head at the childish argument and immediately gave them instructions.

"Now that it's dark, we will cross the sea right away. I trust you can all perform Water-Walking, so I will go first. Just follow me."

Namgung Hui ran across the sea, following the route Yewol had given him.

If he ran too fast, Tang Soso and Ju Hwayeong might not be able to follow, so he adjusted his speed appropriately.

And since unnecessary noise could leak out, he needed to be careful.

How long had they run like that?

Taking breaks in between, by the time the day was dawning, they were finally able to leave the Zhoushan Archipelago and enter Xiaoshan, right next to Hangzhou.

"Heok. Heok. Finally... land...! This damn sea. I'll see if I ever come back."

Tang Soso, as if life on the sea had been arduous, even spat towards the sea.

Ju Hwayeong, who had had an even harder time, didn't even look at the seashore.

However, as soon as they reached land, someone was running towards Namgung Hui's party as if they had been waiting.

And they were dressed in attire that definitely did not look like that of an orthodox faction member.

(End of Chapter)