Chapter 135
Chapter 135: The Greatest Swordsman In The World (1)
"Im Ye-rin is only approaching 14th floor. The fact that she has access to Hwangbo Geom's home means there is a deep connection."
Choi Jae-jun let out a sigh.
"Just to be sure, I looked into whether Im Ye-rin was a relative of Hwangbo Geom's, but that wasn't the case."
I quietly studied the photo of the house and the photo of Im Ye-rin.
Choi Jae-jun continued speaking.
"The reason I said 'she might be a spy' as a guess is because I have no idea what kind of connection Im Ye-rin has with Hwangbo Geom."
Im Ye-rin.
From the time of Seong Chu-hyeon and Park Seon-su.
And now Hwangbo Geom alongside Park Je-hwang.
Once could be coincidence, but twice is intentional.
Kim Tae-yang.
‘What do you think?’
[Kim Tae-yang says, ‘I still…… I'm not sure’. +1 Happiness]
Decide quickly.
Whether to feed her Gu Poison and make her talk.
Or simply kill her.
I passed the choice to Kim Tae-yang.
For now, I had to deal with the problem right in front of me.
I asked Choi Jae-jun.
"How do you plan to retrieve the missing subordinates?"
If the Blue House had buried the incident so that it couldn't even be reported—
Resolving it through the law was impossible.
Then fists closer than the law would have to step forward.
"Originally, I had planned to deploy a large number of Goryeo Sword Sect members, but I scrapped that."
"Why?"
At that, Choi Jae-jun answered as though it were obvious.
"Hwangbo Geom! If the real Hwangbo Geom is there, deploying twenty men or a hundred men would be completely meaningless."
He seemed to genuinely fear the man.
"Hwangbo Geom. Even if he was once called the Greatest in the Republic in the past, you said he has been retired for a long time."
A climber grows stronger by climbing.
Although Korea's tower had been blocked at 37th floor.
Even so, if he had retired long ago, at best he would be a master at the level of 30th floor.
But Choi Jae-jun waved his hands in refusal.
"The tremendous martial power he displayed in the past was unapproachable! It has been several years since he retired, yet the number of people who still call him the Greatest Sword Under Heaven is beyond counting."
Choi Jae-jun said this while watching my reaction.
Me, the Nameless Hero.
And conscious of Ghost, who built the Golden Tower.
"W-well, of course there is you, senior."
So this is how great he is.
Hwangbo Geom.
A surge of competitive spirit boiled up inside me.
There was also the purpose of investigating Im Ye-rin, but—
The flame within me as a martial artist was beginning to blaze.
Since taking on Kim Tae-yang's body, I had not met a worthy opponent.
The only fight I had was against the Black Bear Demon Beast.
Rather than the Black Bear Demon Beast, which was a demon and a spiritual beast, I wanted to clash with a true master.
Choi Jae-jun finished speaking, rose, and walked toward the equipment he had set aside behind him.
His bow and arrows.
The Scarlet Scale Armor and sword I had given him.
"What are those weapons?"
Choi Jae-jun answered.
"I'm going alone."
"……You just said you couldn't deploy Goryeo Sword Sect members."
He looked at me.
His eyes were filled with resolve.
"That's why."
Without unnecessary sacrifices.
Choi Jae-jun, alone.
To face Hwangbo Geom, the so-called Greatest Sword Under Heaven.
What an immense sense of responsibility toward his subordinates.
Built Baekgyeong Group from nothing with bare hands.
So this is the blood of Chairman Choi.
I like it.
"Allow me to assist you."
"Pardon?"
He looked at me with bewildered eyes.
"Why the surprise. You had laid out all those weapons in plain sight while I was watching."
"Ah, that……"
"You sent a message saying Im Ye-rin might be a spy. You had been waiting for me to return all along, hadn't you."
When I struck the mark, Choi Jae-jun scratched the back of his head.
That look was both endearing and admirable.
In any case, the reason Choi Jae-jun lost his subordinates was because of what I told him—to keep watch over Im Ye-rin.
I bore responsibility as well.
"Let's go together."
I rose from my seat.
Choi Jae-jun geared up and asked me.
"Do you have a plan?"
"Jae-jun must have come up with one."
"Ahaha……"
"You have no plan, do you?"
"……"
"It's fine. A frontal charge is a strategy in itself."
Choi Jae-jun fell silent.
I picked out a suitable sword from Choi Jae-jun's table and said:
"If the Blue House has pressed this down, then we simply raise it back up with a force greater than the Blue House."
Let's see.
Hwangbo Geom.
Who truly holds the title of Greatest Sword Under Heaven.
* * *
The foothills of Gapyeong.
We arrived at a spot overlooking the house I had seen in the photo.
Choi Jae-hwa had also joined.
The wounds he had sustained from Park Je-hwang a few months ago had all healed.
Choi Jae-hwa gave a light bow and approached me, clasping my hand.
From him, I sensed a sharpness different from before.
White Bow Demon.
He had transformed into a man upon whom the title ‘Demon’ now suited remarkably well.
"Your growth is visible."
"Thanks to you, senior."
I had given Choi Jae-hwa, who had taken heavy injuries, elixir pills made from the Three-Extremes Refining Furnace.
He had reached a considerably higher level compared to the past.
They say three days is enough to see a man transformed.
The despair Choi Jae-hwa had experienced.
The top-grade elixir pills I had given him.
And the bone-grinding training Choi Jae-hwa had put himself through—these were the achievements.
I turned my head and said to Choi Jae-jun.
"Jae-jun will find himself outmatched now."
"A younger brother's growth is something even an older brother can celebrate."
And yet he muttered with a tinge of regret.
"Maybe I should have a bout with the Murim Alliance Leader……"
Hwangbo Geom's house was quiet, just as it appeared in the photo.
"There's a village not too far away."
"Yes. It's a quiet village of about ten households."
"Would the sounds from Hwangbo Geom's house carry to that village?"
"Unlikely. The reason we can see both Hwangbo Geom's house and the village at a glance from up here is because of our vantage point—there is a small mountain blocking the view between them."
"Neither visible nor audible."
"Whatever happens in that house, no one would know. Isn't that suspicious?"
I nodded.
Choi Jae-hwa added.
"For reference, I investigated that village as well. There was no land or property owned by Changbai Sect, and there was no connection whatsoever."
"I see."
I took the photos from Choi Jae-jun and examined them one by one again.
Choi Jae-jun looked at his wristwatch and asked,
"It's still a long while before nightfall."
At that, Choi Jae-hwa offered his opinion.
"Brother. The sun does set faster in the mountains, but that doesn't necessarily work in our favor."
"Why?"
"It's unfamiliar terrain. Going in while it's still bright could actually be the better option."
"Dressed like that?"
Choi Jae-jun pointed at him with a look of disbelief.
The two of them were outfitted as though ready to wage war.
"The opponent is the opponent, after all."
"And what would we say when we get there? 'Excuse me, Master Hwangbo Geom. Could you open the door for us?'"
"I'm not afraid."
As I listened to their exchange, I spoke quietly.
"Let's do it at the end of the Hour of the Ox."
"Pardon?"
"3 a.m. I have something in mind. It's a strategy inspired by something Jae-jun said."
"What do you mean……?"
Choi Jae-jun tilted his head.
Swiish.
I looked at Choi Jae-jun and gave him a thumbs-up.
* * *
We put the plan into motion and waited for the right moment.
I sat cross-legged and circulated my energy, and the brothers followed suit.
A crimson moon rose.
Darkness swallowed the mountain ridges.
The end of December.
Cold air descended along the mountain.
From the mouths of the three martial artists, breath rose in pale clouds against the creeping chill.
Breath sinking into the silence.
A quiet mountain.
The brothers, seemingly tense, began speaking to each other in small exchanges.
"Brother, what are you going to do about Im Ye-rin?"
"Senior will decide."
"Im Ye-rin being a spy—that's pretty shocking."
"Did you get attached to her? I noticed you were fussing over her last time."
"What are you talking about? I was only doing it because senior told me to keep an eye on her."
"For something that was just a duty, you were awfully close to her."
"It was all the mission!"
"Im Ye-rin is quite pretty, though."
"Shut your mouth!"
The brothers bickered.
Then Choi Jae-jun brought up the subject.
"But what could Im Ye-rin's connection to Hwangbo Geom be?"
"Not family, not a relative either."
"Hwangbo Geom's lover…… surely not?"
"You really are bothered by it."
"Ah, damn it. It's nothing like that."
As I listened to them, I spoke quietly.
"You said Park Je-hwang was affiliated with Changbai Sect."
"Yes, senior. Ah—my apologies. Our voices were a bit loud."
They apologized, but I paid it no mind.
"Im Ye-rin is connected to Park Je-hwang."
"What?!"
The two looked at me simultaneously.
"Im Ye-rin and Park Je-hwang are high school classmates."
Choi Jae-jun exclaimed in surprise.
"That can't be. The high school Park Je-hwang graduated from was a different one."
"Park Je-hwang transferred schools. Before that, they attended the same one."
"How do you know that?"
I interlaced my fingers and answered.
"Because I am also a classmate."
"……!"
The two's eyes flew wide open.
It was time to tell them.
At this rate, it would be something they would learn regardless.
"S-senior!"
"Hush. They're coming."
I rose and looked down below with movements like a cat's.
Buuuum—.
Eeeeng—.
Dozens of motorcycles came up along the mountain foothills and parked in front of Hwangbo Geom's house.
These were delivery couriers.
Dozens of them dismounted and looked at one another with bewildered expressions.
"Will that…… Actually work?"
"It's Jae-jun's plan, so it should."
"Ah, that was senior's plan."
"Senior. Brother. Let's just set fire to the place now."
"Are you out of your mind? How would you contain a forest fire in the middle of winter. There's a village over there too."
"Is that really the issue right now."
"Jae-hwa. You've really changed. Get a grip, man!"
The brothers bickered.
I smiled faintly and said,
"What Making Noise In The East While Striking In The West requires commotion. There is no need to go as far as setting a fire."
‘Excuse me, Master Hwangbo Geom. Could you open the door for us?’
The strategy had started from what Choi Jae-jun had said.
I had several untraceable phones and untraceable bank accounts obtained from the Black Market—
And using those untraceable phones, I had placed delivery orders.
At 3 in the morning, of course.
The couriers had refused the request to deliver deep into the mountains at that hour, but—
When I offered two million won up front per delivery, they came rushing over.
Brooom—! Brroom!
The mountain that had been quiet erupted into noise all at once.
The couriers shouted this and that at one another, and then—
One of them approached Hwangbo Geom's house and pressed the doorbell.
There was, of course, no response.
Then another approached and pressed the bell again.
Some wandered around the perimeter of the house peering in, while others pounded on the gate.
Thud! Thud!
Choi Jae-jun exhaled slowly—huuu—and spoke loud enough for me to hear.
"You think the door will open because of that?"
"Unlikely."
"Then?"
"Hush."
I fixed my gaze on one spot in the darkness.
The two brothers' eyes followed mine.
"Jae-jun. You said that your subordinates who had been monitoring Hwangbo Geom's house reported that no one had ever come out, correct?"
"Yes."
"Was there any word that Hwangbo Geom had skill in concealment arts?"
"I…… have never heard of such a thing."
The Goryeo Sword Sect martial artists were masters.
They had maintained a thorough watch over Hwangbo Geom's house.
Yet Hwangbo Geom had broken through that surveillance at some point and dealt with them.
The answer was one.
A secret passage.
"There!"
Choi Jae-hwa pointed to a spot.
The village, some distance away from Hwangbo Geom's house.
Even with the motorcycles making a racket, no sound would reach there—
Tic—.
At 3 in the morning.
The lights in one house in the village came on, blazing brightly.
* * *
What I had been paying close attention to as I studied the photos Choi Jae-jun had taken were the vehicles and the people coming and going.
People moved in and out with considerable frequency, and yet Hwangbo Geom had not stepped outside even once throughout.
The house was quite large, and it appeared that at least three or four people lived there at all times.
And yet not a single one had come out.
Furthermore, while people and vehicles came and went busily, not a single car delivering food supplies had appeared.
The nearest supermarket to Hwangbo Geom's house was a considerable distance away.
That would mean there was a separate route through which the people working at Hwangbo Geom's house and the food supplies traveled.
There was a small mountain blocking the path between his house and the village, but—If a small tunnel had been dug beneath it, the straight-line distance was not far at all.
"Hwangbo Geom had been moving back and forth through that village."
I used Wind God Steps and ran toward the village.
I told the Choi brothers to hide somewhere suitable and wait.
They looked as though they wanted to follow me, but even with Big Dipper Eighteen Steps, keeping up with me was beyond their capacity.
Arriving alone at that house—
I put on the Dark Moon Mask.
The compound wall of the house was unusually tall for a rural mountain village.
Inside the wall, large trees grew in dense clusters.
I lightly shifted my form and leaped over the compound wall.
There was a courtyard.
Inside the house, it sounded as though someone was moving about urgently.
I surveyed the surroundings.
"A well?"
What business does a well have in this day and age.
On the old well, from which the bottom could not be seen, a single ladder was rested.
Out of keeping with the aged well, the ladder was made of stainless steel.
"This is it."
I paused for a moment to listen carefully, confirmed there was no sound from the bottom of the well—
And immediately leaped into it.