Rebirth of the Thunder God

Namgung Hui left the family estate to head for Guizhou Province.

Although he had just returned home, Chohwa chided him for leaving again, but since she knew better than anyone how busy Namgung Hui was, she even packed him rice balls while wiping away her tears.

Namgung Hui was now sitting in a clearing in a wild mountain, deliciously eating those tear-soaked rice balls.

'As expected, Chohwa's rice balls are great because they have a lot of meat. I'd like to feed them to Seolhwa later.'

Namgung Hui savored even the refreshing air blowing from the mountain and looked up at the blue sky for a moment.

How long had it been since he had appreciated such a clear sky?

He hadn't been able to get proper rest even at the family estate.

Originally, he had planned to get some rest and maintenance while waiting for news from On Yuha, but due to the unexpected meeting with the Heretic Faction Leader, he had no choice but to thoroughly revise his plans.

It wasn't just to chase after his outstanding martial prowess, but also because of the Demonic Cult's sacred artifact that was said to be in the Shaolin Temple.

Whether it was the Young Cult Leader's sacred artifact, whose form he didn't know, or the Saintess's sacred artifact in the shape of a blue flame, he said that Namgung Hui had to go to the Shaolin Temple and investigate it himself.

Still, since he had boasted that the existence itself was certain, he had no choice but to go, pretending to be at a disadvantage.

Since the Shaolin Temple was more steadfast than any other sect, the Demonic Cult's sacred artifact would not be going anywhere for the time being.

'While I'm at it, it would be good if I could stop by the Shaolin Temple, meet the Divine Dragon, and also meet the Martial Alliance Leader, the Divine Monk.'

The story related to the Black Tortoise Troupe Leader that he needed to ask him about.

And the forces of the Hoicheon Association plotting within the Martial Alliance.

He had to ask how the Martial Alliance Leader was perceiving the current situation and how seriously he was thinking about it.

Even if he was a monk of the Shaolin Temple who had turned his back on the secular world, he could no longer turn a blind eye.

Besides that, Namgung Hui had spent the three days busy with other things.

First, to get closer to the martial prowess of his past life even a day sooner, he had taken the spirit medicine smuggled from the Imperial Palace's treasury and now possessed six cycles of internal energy.

No matter how many spirit medicines he took and increased the total amount of his internal energy, if he couldn't make it completely his own, it would obviously be a case of too much being as bad as not enough, so he had only consumed a moderate amount.

After that, he also took some time to re-establish his understanding of the Purple Thunder Divine Art after a long time.

In fact, since heart art training had to be entered in the most peaceful state.

It was best to do it in a place as cozy and comfortable for the mind and body as home.

Well, the Thunder God Sect was the quietest and had the clearest air, but for Namgung Hui, his own room was also bound to be quite familiar.

Having spent 10 years lying down in his room, a sense of stability must have formed unconsciously.

Namgung Hui, who had finished the rice balls cleanly, savored the feeling of fullness that filled his stomach and lungs and stood up from his seat.

Now, it wasn't far to Guizhou Province.

It was a distance he could reach within the day if he hurried his steps.

Of course, this was a statement that only applied to Namgung Hui.

Since he was still near Hunan Province, it was a distance that would take others several days.

Stepping onto the land of Hunan Province, someone came to mind.

'Hwang Sujin of the Golden Merchant Guild. She must be quite busy now that she's become the Young Guild Leader. Should I stop by on my way?'

If it was just a brief stop, there would be no major disruption.

For Namgung Hui, who had learned the Wind God Steps, a short delay was a tolerable level.

It was also on his route.

And as it happened, it was a good idea to ask for advice regarding the Taejeong Merchant Guild's matter.

Above all, finding out how the internal power struggle within the Golden Merchant Guild was going was also a rather important matter.

How much they had escaped from the clutches of the Hoicheon Association.

Strike while the iron is hot.

As soon as the Golden Merchant Guild came to mind, Namgung Hui immediately shot his body towards Changsha.

Although there were no Nine Sects One Union or large martial world factions in Hunan Province, there were quite a few large and small sects that had established their bases, such as the Green Forest, which used Mount Yuelu as its base, or those that had settled in Dongting Lake and Yueyang.

Rather, with so many small and medium-sized sects, it felt even more crowded.

Before the Mount Heng Sect, which had fought for the last seat of the Nine Sects One Union, was annihilated, the riffraff couldn't run rampant, but now it was so chaotic that it was reminiscent of the Warring States period.

On his way to Changsha, where the Golden Merchant Guild was located, Namgung Hui had no choice but to stop by Yueyang.

What comes to mind when one thinks of Yueyang would be different for everyone, but for Namgung Hui, only two things came to mind.

The first was Yueyang Tower.

Currently, famous people from all over the country flocked there to recite poetry or paint, but originally, Yueyang Tower's beginning was a military tower built for the purpose of military training.

But because of the excellent scenery, literary people began to flock there.

And because of that, its nature changed to a tourist destination for enjoying culture and entertainment.

The second was Dongting Lake, a place that could not be explained separately from Yueyang Tower.

Dongting Lake was so praised as the number one lake under heaven.

There were almost no places that could be compared to its scale and beauty.

Well, beauty is different for everyone based on their own standards and feelings.

But in terms of scale, if one were to judge objectively, it was by far the best in the Central Plains.

Because such a number one Dongting Lake could be seen at a glance from Yueyang Tower, the current Yueyang Tower was born.

Naturally, as it was a place where many people gathered, small and medium-sized factions began to gather around it.

In fact, during the days of Yueyang Tower as a military facility mentioned earlier, sects could not be established due to the non-aggression pact between the government and the martial world.

That was why none of the Nine Sects One Union had established a base in Hunan Province.

The Mount Heng Sect, which was in Hunan Province, was fortunate that it was some distance from Yueyang; if it had been close, the imperial family would not have tolerated it.

Yueyang Tower, as a military tower, disappeared and now it had become an inn where the common people could come and go freely.

And even now, it was so crowded that there was no room to set foot.

Namgung Hui also wanted to see such a Yueyang Tower, but it was almost impossible to even get a seat here unless one had made a reservation in advance.

Well, if Namgung Hui used his original fame, sharing a table would be possible, but he didn't want to mention his name just to get a seat at a mere inn.

Besides, Namgung Hui was currently disguised as Namgung Jayeon.

Since he wasn't in his original form when he met Hwang Sujin, he had returned to the appearance he had when he met her.

'I wonder what kind of expression she'll make when she finds out I'm actually a man, not a woman.'

Since she was a friend with very firm reactions, watching it would be quite fun.

Still, since Namgung Hui considered her a friend in his own way, he planned to reveal this fact at some point.

In the future, if he had the chance, he would have to tell the Sword Dragon of the Wudang Sect, Cheonghak, with dignity.

And so, Namgung Hui looked up at Yueyang Tower, then turned around.

The bustling street was a little suffocating, and there were many inns overlooking Dongting Lake even if it wasn't Yueyang Tower.

On top of that, since he had substituted a meal with rice balls, he didn't feel like eating.

'Then shall I go straight to Dongting Lake.'

Namgung Hui was about to move his steps to head towards the vast Dongting Lake.

Suddenly, the crowd in front of Yueyang Tower split in half, and the murmuring sound of people could be heard.

"Everyone, make way! The Wolf King is arriving!"

"The Wolf King! One of the Ten Great Masters is here?"

"It seems he was invited by the recently formed Iron Blood Alliance. Let's stay out of it so we don't get caught up in anything and get hurt."

"Tch! I thought I'd get to see Yueyang Tower after a long time, but it looks like I'm out of luck. Damn it."

It wasn't the first time Namgung Hui had heard the title 'Wolf King.'

It was a name written in the Martial World Ranking List provided by the Beggars' Sect.

Although he was listed at the very last place, 10th, it was a title that carried a different weight just by itself.

Unlike ordinary talents of the younger generation, it meant that he was strictly among the ten strongest martial artists in the entire martial world.

Of course, this was limited to the orthodox martial world.

And it was a list that excluded reclusive masters and those who thoroughly hid their martial prowess.

Even so, the fact that the Wolf King was a strong martial artist was an unchanging fact.

Besides, there was no law that said the Wolf King couldn't improve, and he was bound to have a hidden move.

Not infrequently, such martial world rankings were overturned.

Especially when the situation in the martial world was chaotic.

And so, a group of people began to enter through the parted crowd.

They were all wearing the same gray martial robes, and a wolf emblem was clearly drawn on them, so it was presumed they were from the same affiliation.

Still, the peculiar thing was that even though they had the same color, the style of their martial robes was vastly different.

If one person wore it so tightly that their figure was emphasized.

Another wore it so loosely that it seemed to thoroughly cover their body, to the point that the clothes fluttered.

As for the Wolf King, who appeared to be the leader, although he wore a loose martial robe, it looked small on him, perhaps because of his massive muscles.

On top of that, the long spear slung on his back heightened his presence all the more.

It was a momentum that would have made the crowd part on its own, even without someone's shout.

Indeed, a man worthy of being one of the Ten Great Masters.

As the Wolf King walked through the crowd, he punched one of his subordinates and said.

"I told you this kind of fuss was unnecessary, didn't I? It's not like His Majesty the Emperor is arriving, and this kind of attention is quite burdensome."

The man who was hit on the head, despite being hit hard enough to make his head shake, burst into a hearty laugh and continued.

"Haha! Great Leader. Sometimes, we have to show our presence so that people don't treat us carelessly. Aren't there a lot of riffraff gathered near the Iron Blood Alliance? We have to show them that our prestige is different."

The Wolf King shook his head, pointed to the spear on his back, and said.

"That's something that can be shown with this, without having to say it. Anyway. Since you said you got a reservation at Yueyang Tower, let's catch up after a long time."

"Oh! Are you treating, Great Leader?"

"Yes. You've all suffered a lot following me and training. Today, it's my treat. Let's all drink until our noses are crooked!"

"Waaaah!"

And so, the Wolf King's group entered Yueyang Tower with a fervent cheer.

Namgung Hui, as the Wolf King passed him, looked at him intently and smelled a not-unfamiliar scent from him.

'A martial artist who uses a spear. It definitely looks different from the spear of the Divine Spear Yang family. It's a spear blade specialized for stabbing, with a sleek design.'

His facial features were also somewhat different from the people of the Divine Spear Yang family.

If the people of the Divine Spear Yang family had the impression of a typical powerful family.

The Wolf King's impression was that of a ronin, rough and as if he had been through harsh storms.

Well, since he wasn't greatly interested in the Wolf King, Namgung Hui turned his attention away from him and continued his steps towards Dongting Lake.

Now the parted crowd also headed towards their original destinations like Namgung Hui.

And the lively streets of Yueyang returned to their usual state.

However, when so many people gather like this, incidents and accidents are bound to happen.

As soon as Namgung Hui left Yueyang Tower and entered Dongting Lake, a loud noise was heard.

(End of Chapter)