Chapter 192

Woo Jang-rak stared out the window.

Inside his room was a chest containing the Buddhist scripture. Since it was such a precious item, he hadn’t even entrusted it to his subordinates, keeping it in his room instead.

Even when Pyo Wol and the wanderers went out to drink, he never once stepped outside his room.

Consequently, his subordinates were also positioned around the room, not moving an inch.

Some might call him rigid and inflexible, but this stubbornness was the very way Woo Jang-rak had lived his life.

“Once I deliver this to the Shaolin Temple, my mission is over. After this mission, I should tell the Manor Lord that I won’t be taking any external missions for a while.”

If it were simply a matter of delivering the scripture to the Shaolin Temple, it wouldn’t have been this tiring. What made him even more exhausted was the presence of Pyo Wol, who was accompanying him.

Pyo Wol’s unpredictable movements, which could flow anywhere at any time, kept his nerves on edge and wore him down.

If he had known nothing about Pyo Wol, it wouldn’t have been this difficult.

Because he knew all too well how terrifying Pyo Wol was, he couldn’t help but be on edge at his every small gesture.

“Hoo!”

Woo Jang-rak let out a deep sigh.

Realistically, there was no way for him to control Pyo Wol. He could only hope that their journey together would end as quickly as possible.

“Hm?”

Just then, a peculiar light flickered in Woo Jang-rak’s eyes as he looked out the window.

Down below, monks in gray robes were passing by. The ordination marks on their foreheads were clearly visible.

Woo Jang-rak quickly called a subordinate to guard the scripture in his place and rushed down to the first floor.

When he went outside, he could see the backs of the monks as they walked away.

Woo Jang-rak hurriedly ran towards them.

“W-wait a moment, monks!”

At Woo Jang-rak’s voice, the monks who were walking ahead stopped and turned around.

There was an old monk with nine ordination marks on his forehead, an exceptionally handsome young monk, and young monks who still had a boyish air about them.

The old monk greeted him with a half-bow.

“Amitabha! Were you calling for us?”

“Are you perhaps from the Shaolin Temple?”

“That is correct. I am Woon-il, and this child is a second-generation disciple, Bo-gyeong. The rest are third-generation disciples.”

Woo Jang-rak was surprised by the old monk’s identity.

A name with the ‘Woon’ character meant he was of Elder rank even in the Shaolin Temple.

Woo Jang-rak quickly made a Fist-Palm Salute and bowed to the old monk.

“I am Woo Jang-rak from the Snow Cloud Stronghold in Chengdu. It is an honor to meet an Elder of the Shaolin Temple like this.”

“The Snow Cloud Stronghold? That is where Yu Daehyeop is the Manor Lord, is it not?”

“So you know of it.”

“How could I not? He is a great patron of our temple. But what brings someone from the Snow Cloud Stronghold here?”

“I was on my way to the Shaolin Temple under the orders of my Manor Lord.”

“To our temple?”

The old monk, Woon-il, looked puzzled.

He was the Junior Martial Brother of the current Sect Master of Shaolin, Elder Woon-ji, and had come here to celebrate the birthday of the Wudang Sect’s Sect Master, Cheongjin Jin-in.

As an Elder of the Shaolin Temple, he was aware of most situations, but he had not heard any news of a visit from the Snow Cloud Stronghold.

“Amitabha! For what reason are you visiting our temple?”

“Actually, our Manor Lord recently managed to acquire an Original Buddhist Scripture from the Western Regions. He intends to donate a portion of it to the Shaolin Temple.”

“Amitabha! How virtuous. How virtuous! How could we be so grateful!”

“So I was on my way to the Shaolin Temple with a portion of it.”

“Does that mean you have the Original Buddhist Scripture with you now? The original, in Sanskrit?”

“That is correct.”

“Amitabha! To meet you here in Baokang, of all places. The Buddha’s protection is with us.”

Elder Woon-il gently closed his eyes and repeatedly invoked the Buddha’s name.

The young monks following him did the same.

Among them, the eyes of the young monk Elder Woon-il had introduced as Bo-gyeong shone particularly brightly.

“Martial Grand-uncle! Since it has come to this, how about we escort these people to the Shaolin Temple? If it is an Original Buddhist Scripture from the Western Regions, it is a priceless treasure that cannot be converted into wealth. Wouldn’t it be a disaster if it were lost on the way?”

“Hmm!”

Bo-gyeong’s words had a point, so Elder Woon-il nodded his head without realizing it.

Although it had a strong martial sect inclination, the foundation of the Shaolin Temple was, in the end, Buddhism. To understand the Buddha’s teachings more deeply and spread them far and wide was the very reason for the Shaolin Temple’s existence.

Studying an Original Buddhist Scripture from the Western Regions would allow for a deeper understanding of Buddhism.

Elder Woon-il spoke cautiously.

“Amitabha! Would it be possible for you to show us the scripture?”

“Of course. Please follow me.”

Woo Jang-rak led the Shaolin monks to the room where he was staying. The martial artist guarding the room looked at the Shaolin monks with a bewildered expression.

“Who are these people?”

“They are esteemed monks from the Shaolin Temple. You may step outside for a moment.”

“Yes!”

Once the subordinate went outside, Woo Jang-rak carefully opened the chest. A yellowed book, finely wrapped, was revealed.

The moment he saw the book, Elder Woon-il’s pupils shook violently. He had instinctively recognized that the book before him was an authentic original.

He carefully took the scripture and turned it page by page.

He could see the Sanskrit that densely filled the pages.

It was undoubtedly an original.

There were over ten such original books inside the chest.

“Heh! Woon-hae will be pleased.”

Woon-hae was his Junior Martial Brother and the foremost scholar-monk in Shaolin.

He preferred studying Buddhist scriptures over practicing martial arts. Within the Shaolin Temple, there was no monk more well-versed in Buddhism than him.

To others, it might just be an old, yellowed book, but to the monks of the Shaolin Temple, it was a treasure more precious than anything else.

Elder Woon-il handed the scripture back to Woo Jang-rak and said,

“Great Hero Woo! Had we not known, we could have ignored it, but now that we know of the scripture’s existence, we cannot simply stand by. Even if it is a little inconvenient, please accompany us to the Shaolin Temple.”

“Heh! If we travel with the esteemed monks of Shaolin, there could be nothing more reassuring.”

“What help could this old man be? But Bo-gyeong will be a great help. He possesses martial prowess that can be called the best among the second-generation disciples.”

“Oh!”

“Even so, he is known in Henan Province as Bo-gyeong, the Ten Steps Invincible.”

At Elder Woon-il’s introduction, Bo-gyeong looked slightly embarrassed.

Among the second-generation disciples of the Shaolin Temple, he possessed by far the most outstanding talent.

He was particularly engrossed in the Hundred-Step Divine Fist and had delved deep into it, reaching an extraordinary level.

With complete mastery of the Hundred-Step Divine Fist, one could shatter a large rock from a hundred steps away, but Bo-gyeong had not yet reached that level. However, he possessed the skill to pulverize a rock within at least ten steps.

That alone was enough to contend for the top spot among the prodigies of the new generation.

Woo Jang-rak smiled.

“If such a great person escorts us, we can only be grateful.”

“However, there is one problem.”

“What is it?”

“We came here representing the Shaolin Temple to offer congratulatory greetings at the birthday banquet of the Wudang Sect’s Cheongjin Jin-in. So please wait for a few days until the birthday banquet is over.”

“Hmm!”

Woo Jang-rak let out a low groan.

Staying a few more days wasn’t difficult, but to do so, he would have to reach an agreement with Pyo Wol.

Woon-il looked puzzled.

“Is there a problem?”

“Ah! No. I was just lost in another thought.”

“Then why don’t you, Great Hero Woo, also ascend Mount Wudang with us?”

“Us?”

“Yes! Rather than waiting at the foot of the mountain, take this opportunity to ascend Mount Wudang and broaden your horizons. Originally, Cheongjin Jin-in is so frugal that he has never once held a birthday banquet until now. But this time, his disciples pleaded so much that he couldn’t refuse. Given Cheongjin Jin-in’s disposition, he will probably never hold such an event again after this birthday banquet.”

It was extremely unusual for Wudang to open its mountain gates so wide.

Because of that, many sects were planning to send delegations to attend Cheongjin Jin-in’s birthday banquet.

“There probably won’t be a bigger event than this in Hubei Province for the next few decades.”

“Umm!”

“We will take responsibility for guarding the scripture, so Great Hero Woo, please take this opportunity to ascend Mount Wudang and take a brief rest.”

As Woon-il repeatedly urged him, Woo Jang-rak could no longer refuse.

“Understood. I will do so.”

“Amitabha! A wise decision.”

Only then did Elder Woon-il show a satisfied expression.

It wasn’t a bad thing for Woo Jang-rak either.

The journey might be delayed a little, but as long as the experts from the Shaolin Temple were with them, their safety was all but guaranteed.

Elder Woon-il said,

“Then let us meet here again early tomorrow morning and go to Mount Wudang together.”

“Understood. I will inform my companion as well.”

“I am already looking forward to our journey together.”

“As am I, Sir!”

“Oh, and for the safety of the scripture, I will leave Bo-gyeong here.”

“Pardon?”

“It’s not that I don’t trust you, Great Hero Woo, but that is how important the scripture is. I hope you understand.”

Currently, Elder Woon-il and his disciples were staying at a different lodging. It was difficult to find another lodging in Baokang, and since there were no spare rooms in the inn where Woo Jang-rak was staying, he had no choice but to opt for leaving Bo-gyeong behind.

“I understand.”

Woo Jang-rak agreed.

“Then I will see you again tomorrow, Great Hero Woo!”

“Yes! Travel safely, Sir!”

Elder Woon-il left the inn with his disciples, and only Bo-gyeong remained.

Bo-gyeong plopped down on a chair and asked Woo Jang-rak,

“Is there anything I should know while we are together?”

＊＊＊

Pyo Wol and Soma parted ways with Woo Pyeong Dojang and the others and headed for the inn.

Pyo Wol was silent the entire way back.

His mood was so dark that even Soma couldn’t easily strike up a conversation.

The fact that not only Jin Geum-woo but also all the comrades who followed him were dead weighed heavily on his mind.

It was the Golden Sky Society, a gathering of the so-called prodigies of All Under Heaven. And Jin Geum-woo was the Society Leader of the Golden Sky Society, and his comrades were all renowned prodigies.

For such people to die and for Jianghu to be this quiet made no sense.

It was the nature of Jianghu to blow even small incidents out of proportion and gossip about them. Yet, for Jianghu to be so quiet when such a huge incident had occurred was incomprehensible by Pyo Wol’s standards.

‘There is definitely some external force at play.’

Jianghu did not yet know the truth.

No, it was also possible they were pretending not to know, even though they did.

Pyo Wol’s mind naturally grew complicated.

‘There’s too little information.’

All the information he had obtained was secondhand, passed through the mouths of others.

And since it was heard after passing through several stages, the core of it was completely missing.

As of now, he knew nothing about what Jin Geum-woo’s group had experienced, or who was involved.

‘The only thing I suspect is the Nine Dragons.’

The letters sent by Jin Geum-woo all commonly mentioned the word Nine Dragons. But he only mentioned that he was tracking the Nine Dragons, and never once said exactly what the Nine Dragons were.

Whether it was a person, a group, where it was, or if it even actually existed was unclear.

First, he had to grasp the true nature of the Nine Dragons. Only then could he solve the secret behind Jin Geum-woo’s death.

Pyo Wol’s gaze became calm.

During the walk back to the inn, his complicated thoughts had become somewhat organized.

Returning to the inn, Pyo Wol sensed that the atmosphere had changed somehow.

Woo Jang-rak, who had been holed up in his room and had never once shown himself outside until now, was sitting in the center seat.

Woo Jang-rak rose from his seat to greet Pyo Wol.

“You’ve returned?”

“You must have something to say.”

“How did you know?”

“Even a fool could tell, seeing you sit there with such a serious expression.”

“Haha! Did I look that pathetic?”

“A little! What is it?”

“I have come out like this because there is something I must ask for your understanding, Great Hero Pyo.”

“What is it?”

“The truth is, due to certain circumstances, it seems we must stay here for a few more days.”

Woo Jang-rak cautiously stated his business.

“Why?”

“I met some people from the Shaolin Temple here. I would like to go to the Shaolin Temple with them.”

“Are the ones from the Shaolin Temple also attending the Wudang Sect Master’s birthday banquet?”

“That… how did you know?”

Woo Jang-rak’s pupils wavered.

He had never expected that Pyo Wol would know that much.

He himself wouldn’t have known that such an event was being held at the Wudang Sect if he hadn’t met Elder Woon-il.

Woo Jang-rak cautiously continued.

“This will probably be a good opportunity for you as well, Great Hero Pyo. Since it’s the first event the Wudang Sect has held in decades, many people will come to celebrate. Just seeing them will greatly broaden your knowledge of Jianghu. It’s an opportunity that’s not easy to come by. For the sake of your future, Great Hero Pyo, it wouldn’t be a bad thing to experience a Jianghu event like this at least once.”

He was truly and earnestly trying to persuade Pyo Wol. But Pyo Wol’s gaze was not on him, but on the young monk descending from the second floor of the inn.