Chapter 30
‘Stop!’
Who in the world could utter such words to the people currently at the Samryun Peak estate?
Moreover, who was Golden Fist, Jang Myeong?
He was a key figure of the Kongtong Sect, one of the Nine Great Sects.
Jang Myeong drew his eyebrows into an eight-character shape and glared towards the entrance of the estate from where the voice had come.
‘Ah…!’
Only then did he soften his glare.
Because the figures who had entered the estate were of a much higher status than himself.
The top master of Shaolin Temple and the one whom even Moyong Cheon had treated as an elder while he was alive, Grand Master Gong-seung.
The Sword God of the Jongnam Sect, Master Yong-gak, who was evaluated as having the most profound martial arts in the current Orthodox Martial Path after Moyong Cheon.
The Dragon Head of the Beggars’ Sect, Hong In-geol, who was called the best informant in the martial world.
The leader of the Martial Alliance, who led the entire Orthodox Martial Path in name and reality, and the peerless swordsman born of the Great Kunlun Sect, Ha Won-sang.
The Abbess of the Emei Sect, Hong-ryeon, who was considered the top among female swordsmen by sublimating the chronic disease of the Nine Yin Severed Meridians into martial arts.
Needless to say, the heads of the eight great martial families were also there, and even the key masters of the younger generation of the Orthodox Faction, whose fame had recently become widespread, were entering the hall.
‘Ah!’
‘To be able to see them, it is an honor beyond words!’
‘As expected of the God of War’s funeral! The strongest in the martial world are gathering!’
Exclamations flowed from here and there in the estate.
And for good reason. It was the first time in the last ten years that such masters, who were the backbone of the martial world, had gathered in one place.
Moreover, the appearance of Grand Master Gong-seung and Master Yong-gak, who had not shown themselves to the world by staying in Shaolin and Jongnam respectively, was unimaginable, so the hearts of the crowd began to pound with a strange excitement.
Among them, the person who spoke, blaming the chilling atmosphere of the estate, was Abbess Hong-ryeon.
She had seen at a glance that a minor friction between the Orthodox Martial Path and the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was about to break out, so she had deliberately raised her voice to reprimand Jang Myeong and at the same time, tried to resolve the situation.
“E-Esteemed Sword Empress.”
Jang Myeong performed a respectful cupped fist salute.
He blushed, but inwardly he thought it was a relief.
And for good reason. He had been implicitly afraid of Wi-ji Chan’s aura.
‘You’ve appeared at the right time!’
But he thoroughly hid his inner thoughts and, as if he were holding back today because he was in front of the elders of the Jianghu, he glanced at Wi-ji Chan with a flushed face and then averted his gaze again.
“This is the funeral of the esteemed God of War. How can you disturb the atmosphere with personal feelings? Everyone, please restrain yourselves. Are you not ashamed in front of your juniors?”
Abbess Hong-ryeon spoke, encompassing not only Jang Myeong but all the people in the estate.
At that, no one could act rashly.
Then,
“So-ah…”
She called So-ah in a gentle and benevolent voice that was quite different from before.
Hearing Abbess Hong-ryeon’s voice, So-ah felt a surge of emotion but suppressed it and approached, performing a respectful cupped fist salute.
“Grandma…”
Did he remember the time he had held his grandfather’s hand and climbed the Emei Sect, drinking the tea that Grandma Hong-ryeon had poured for him?
So-ah’s throat was choked up.
***
The mourners, who had been bustling with the appearance of the top masters of the Orthodox Martial Path, could not help but be astonished once again.
It was because of the appearance of Wi-ji Gang.
The current cult leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, who had been abdicated the position of cult leader by Wi-ji Un a few years ago.
“We greet the Cult Leader!”
A total of two hundred members of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult knelt in unison and greeted the procession of the golden eight-horse carriage.
‘Those Demonic Cult bastards, they’re rolling in money.’
‘A golden eight-horse carriage! How on earth do those guys make so much money?’
‘To think I’d live to be envious of the Demonic Cult bastards.’
Honestly, the Orthodox people were jealous.
Because no one except the emperor could own such a golden carriage.
But their thoughts were soon completely erased.
“Father…”
It was because they felt an indescribable pressure from the figure of Wi-ji Gang, who revealed himself by lifting the curtain made of luminous pearls, along with Wi-ji Chan’s murmur.
“Everyone, rise.”
“As you command!”
Wi-ji Gang’s voice flowed out with dignity.
Whether it was intentional or not, a faint internal energy was contained in that voice, and just by hearing it, the depth of the internal energy was at a chilling level.
“Chan.”
Wi-ji Gang called Wi-ji Chan softly.
Just by looking at Wi-ji Chan’s flushed face, he could guess how much his son had suffered, so he also did not feel good.
“Father. I have done something presumptuous. I should have brought Grandfather to our cult…”
“No. You did the right thing.”
“Father…”
“What was the result of the duel?”
Wi-ji Chan’s complexion changed drastically at Wi-ji Gang’s direct question.
In that moment, Moyong Baek, who had been silent, received the question instead.
“Are you the new cult leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult?”
“And you are?”
“I am the current head of the Moyong Family, Moyong Baek.”
“I am the cult leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, Wi-ji Gang.”
“Now that enough people have gathered, I will make an important announcement.”
“…”
“The God of War and the Heavenly Demon. The Heavenly Demon and the God of War. The result of the duel between the top masters of the Jianghu.”
***
Moyong Baek headed to the center of the estate.
Now that the Martial Alliance Leader and the cult leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult had arrived, he had to announce the result of the duel.
“Fellow martial artists of the Orthodox Martial Path. And esteemed guests of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. As you all know, my father and Senior Wi-ji Un, the Heavenly Demon who is called the supreme of the Unorthodox Path, had promised a duel a long time ago, and they fought a duel according to that promise. And the result is…”
Gulp—!
The sound of the crowd swallowing their saliva flowed out.
It was a moment when everyone could not help but be nervous.
“The two of them reached a draw. During the duel, they exhausted all their Innate True Ki, and as befitting those who had reached a realm beyond the heavens, they returned to the estate and even enjoyed some liquor. After passing through the realm of a final burst of life, the two of them passed away with smiling faces.”
Murmur, murmur—!
People began to whisper.
They had guessed that it would be a result of mutual destruction, but upon hearing that the two had reached a draw, some had an expression that said, ‘As expected!’, while others showed a look of disappointment.
Just then.
“Chan.”
Wi-ji Gang called Wi-ji Chan softly.
“Yes, Father.”
“Is the Moyong family head’s words true?”
“Yes. That is correct.”
Wi-ji Gang’s eyes trembled slightly.
‘Father was a person who had reached a divine level… God of War… were you really a God of War?’
But that was a meaningless question.
***
The funeral was more chaotic than expected.
This was especially true for the people of the Moyong family.
Today, even the strongest of the Orthodox Path, such as Grand Master Gong-seung and Master Yong-gak, had arrived as mourners, so they could not be negligent in treating them. Moyong Baek was at his wit’s end due to the barrage of questions from such prominent figures.
But even in the midst of that, he was worried about So-ah.
He himself had been through many funerals in his life.
He had become somewhat hardened to such things through numerous funerals.
But So-ah was not.
It would by no means be easy for So-ah, who had not yet reached his prime, to suppress his grief and play the role of a chief mourner.
“So-ah.”
“Yes, Uncle.”
“Go get some fresh air for a while.”
“No. How can a chief mourner leave his post?”
“No. It’s fine since I’m here. And haven’t the family members arrived as well? Moreover, your friends have come after a long time, so you should at least say hello. Why don’t you take Hwa-ah and go for a walk? Hwa-ah must be having a hard time too.”
Moyong Baek, knowing that So-ah’s stubbornness was like an ox’s sinew, mentioned Moyong Hwa’s name.
Having no choice, So-ah nodded his head.
“Yes, then.”
***
So-ah left for a while with Moyong Hwa and Huin-dung-i.
So-ah was having a hard time, but Moyong Hwa was also having a hard time at the funeral, where she didn’t know whether to cry or laugh.
Just then.
A group of figures gathered around the two.
It was Myo-seon and the Tang siblings.
“So-ah!”
“Jin So-ah…”
“Young Master Jin.”
The three called So-ah’s name without anyone going first.
Mixed emotions crossed their minds.
In particular, Myo-seon had cried so much that her face was swollen. So-ah felt his heart break seeing Myo-seon’s face.
But he pulled himself together and greeted his friends.
“Thank you all for coming. You too, Young Master Tang.”
Three years was by no means a short time.
Not only So-ah, but they had also changed a lot.
Myo-seon and Tang Hwa-rin no longer had the appearance of girls but had the features of proper young ladies, and Tang Il-gi’s martial arts seemed to have improved even more, as a faint light flowed from his two eyes.
“So-ah. Are you okay?”
Tang Hwa-rin approached So-ah’s side, grabbed his hand, and asked with a worried expression.
Her bold actions were still the same, but this time, Tang Il-gi did not reprimand her.
“Yeah, thanks to you.”
“You rascal! You’ve become more dignified since I last saw you.”
“Hwa-rin, you’ve become a lady too.”
“Haha, you seem to be really okay. You’re even joking. Still, I’m glad.”
Tang Hwa-rin let out an awkward laugh.
So-ah, as if grateful for her heart, responded with an even brighter smile.
And so, they chatted about this and that for a while.
Although it was a time of mourning, the time spent chatting with friends he had met after three years lightened So-ah’s heavy heart, at least for a while.
***
Moyong Hwa and the Tang siblings, after about a shichen had passed, paired up and disappeared somewhere.
It was to give So-ah and Myo-seon some time alone.
The moment Myo-seon arrived at the Samryun Peak estate, she had been shedding tears endlessly.
The Tang siblings, feeling a sense of pity for such a Myo-seon, had tactfully left.
“So-ah… Grandpa… did Grandpa really pass away with a smile?”
Myo-seon asked, composing her voice.
So-ah patted her shoulder and nodded his head.
“Yes, Myo-seon. Grandpa really passed away with a smile. I’ve never seen Grandpa’s face smile so brightly in my life. He passed away so happily… like that.”
Hearing So-ah’s words, Myo-seon’s expression brightened.
She wondered if there was such a thing as a peaceful death, but when she thought of the happy smile of the Living Buddha Grandpa, her heart calmed down a little.
“Haha, is this the child you were talking about?”
Myo-seon’s gaze turned to Huin-dung-i.
Seeing Huin-dung-i sitting next to So-ah, yawning indifferently, she felt more cute than scared.
“Yeah. This is Huin-dung-i. The tiger I told you about before. Still, this guy protected Grandpa while I was away. He’s a grateful fellow.”
So-ah knelt down and stroked Huin-dung-i’s face.
At that, Huin-dung-i flipped over, showed his belly, and rubbed his back on the ground.
“Oh my! Why is he doing that?”
“He always does this when he’s in a good mood. Since he was little.”
“You rascal. Grandpa passed away, and you’re so happy? Haha.”
Myo-seon, as if her mood had lifted, threw a joke.
But Huin-dung-i was still going crazy.
“Haha. Myo-seon. He’s an animal. What would he know?”
“You’re right. I was foolish.”
“Myo-seon.”
“Yeah?”
“Grandpa missed you very much at the last moment.”
“…”
“I felt like I had to tell you this.”
“So-ah…”
“Grandpa said that while he had many regrets looking back on his life, there was one thing he didn’t regret at all, and that was taking you and me in. He said he had never forgotten you. That’s what he said.”
Myo-seon’s gaze turned to the empty air.
“I…”
Then her body trembled like an aspen tree.
So-ah just gently held Myo-seon’s shoulder.
For some reason, it felt as if his grandfather’s laughter was still brushing past his ears.
(End of Chapter)