Chapter 290

Pyo Wol furrowed his brow slightly.

It was because of the clamor coming from all over the streets.

Coming outside for the first time in a while, he found that all of Runan had turned into a construction site.

The pavilions and mansions destroyed by the fight between Jin Clan and Snow Blade Sword Manor were beginning to be repaired.

It was a scene that brought to mind the saying that destruction must precede creation.

Once the war ended, the martial artists had receded like the tide, but laborers had taken their place.

With the reconstruction of the collapsed mansions and pavilions, Runan was bustling with life for the first time in a long while.

As the desolate streets were restored, people began to frequent them again. Street stalls were set up, and countless people came out to engage in economic activity.

As the reconstruction work progressed, the streets became even more vibrant, and the noisy sounds of hammering and people chattering could be heard everywhere.

It seemed the people were now accepting Jin Clan as the ruler of Runan.

The proof was that Snow Blade Sword Manor’s name was no longer heard anywhere.

Because it had ended in Jin Clan’s victory, no one mentioned Snow Blade Sword Manor.

Pyo Wol walked on, feeling the palpable change in the streets’ public sentiment.

He was headed for the street where the workshops were gathered.

The Ghostly Rain had been badly damaged through the fierce battles. The blade was chipped, and cracks had formed on its surface.

It would hold up for a while, but it needed to be repaired in advance to be used for a long time.

He didn’t know if there was a craftsman here with skills comparable to Tang Sochu’s. But he wasn’t having a new one made, just a simple repair. Surely there would be a craftsman he could entrust it to.

In the workshop district, the sound of hammering had been ringing out since morning.

Thanks to the fight between Snow Blade Sword Manor and Jin Clan, the workshop district was enjoying an unprecedented boom. Once the battle between the two sects ended, the surviving martial artists had commissioned repairs for their weapons.

In every workshop, weapons left by martial artists were piled up like mountains.

The craftsmen heated the weapons in the forge and then hammered them into shape for repair. There were so many weapons to fix that the craftsmen were no longer accepting new customers.

Pyo Wol carefully examined the weapons displayed on the stalls in front of the workshops. One could tell a craftsman’s skill just by looking at the condition of the weapons sold at the stalls.

He had passed more than ten workshops, but none of them met his standards.

Most of them fell short of Pyo Wol’s high expectations, which had been set by his familiarity with Tang Sochu’s skill.

The workshops that were somewhat decent were so swamped with orders they didn’t have a moment to spare.

In the end, Pyo Wol gave up on getting his weapon repaired here.

He didn’t know how much longer he would stay in Runan, but he didn’t want to entrust the Ghostly Rain to craftsmen who lacked skill.

Just as he was about to turn back, having no other choice.

“How dare you cut in front of me?”

“I was clearly here first, what do you mean, cutting in?”

“I came to this workshop first.”

In front of a workshop in a corner, two martial artists were raising their voices.

One had an incredibly large build, while the other was slight but possessed a sharp glint in his eyes.

At first glance, the martial artist with the large build seemed to have the advantage. He was as big as a bear and had immense muscles to match. But the small-statured martial artist facing him didn’t back down an inch as they argued.

Both were faces he had never seen before.

The most distressed by their confrontation was the old craftsman who appeared to be the workshop’s owner.

The old craftsman shouted.

“I told you to take this elsewhere, not here. What are you two doing when I said I’m not opening the workshop?”

“Shut up, old man.”

“I said, shut it.”

Despite the old craftsman’s pleas, the two men paid him no mind. Instead, they glared at each other with even fiercer eyes.

“You’d better back off now.”

“Bullshit!”

“You little grain of rice, you really…”

The one whose anger exploded first was the martial artist with the huge build.

Without warning, he swung a fist the size of a pot lid. The small-statured martial artist countered by swinging his saber.

Crash!

The clash between the two men destroyed the innocent workshop.

“You damn bastards! Please stop. I don’t make weapons anymore!”

The old craftsman screamed in despair, but the two men didn’t even pretend to listen.

The old craftsman was a fixture of this workshop district.

Many of the craftsmen doing business here had learned how to work with iron from the old craftsman. His skill was that certain.

But now he was too old and his whole body ached, so he no longer ran the workshop. He was just guarding it out of boredom and not doing any actual work.

But those two men, having heard a rumor from somewhere, had shown up in the morning and were stubbornly insisting that he repair their weapons.

The old craftsman, Old Man Hong, had told them he had put down his hammer, but the two men didn’t even pretend to listen.

“You thugs! Please, just listen to me.”

Old Man Hong cried out in despair, but he couldn’t stop the two men from fighting.

“What do we do?”

“Oh, dear!”

The owners of the nearby workshops fretted, but there was no brilliant solution they could offer.

Unable to watch any longer, one workshop owner spoke to a young martial artist who was a customer.

“Please stop those men.”

“Why should I?”

“Sir! He is like a master to me. If you stop their fight, I’ll do your repairs for free.”

“Hey! Are you telling me to make enemies of those two?”

“What?”

“I mean, isn’t that right? What am I supposed to do if I get involved in their fight and make enemies of them? They say you should never recklessly interfere in the disputes of the Jianghu.”

The young martial artist refused, giving his own reasons. But to the workshop owner, it just sounded like a cowardly excuse.

Other workshop owners also asked for help, but everyone refused.

It was clear at a glance that the two men’s martial arts were extraordinary. No one wanted to take the risk of getting involved in their fight.

It was then.

A woman walked toward the workshop where the martial artists were fighting.

Thud! Thud!

The sound of her footsteps cut clearly through the noise.

She was a beautiful woman with a curvaceous figure, black hair that fell to her waist, and impressive eyes tinged with blue.

The woman had a power that drew everyone’s gaze.

Perhaps the men were simply mesmerized by her beautiful appearance.

The woman fearlessly approached the workshop where the martial artists were fighting. And she said.

“That’s enough.”

At the woman’s calm words, the fighting martial artists paused their dispute for a moment and looked at her.

“Who are you?”

“Woman, stay out of this.”

The two men raked their eyes over the woman’s entire body with unpleasant gazes. But the woman, her expression unchanging, spoke calmly.

“I have business here, but I can’t enter with you two like this. I would appreciate it if you would take your dispute elsewhere and clear the way.”

“Is this bitch crazy?”

“What’s some squatting-to-pee kind doing meddling? Get lost, now!”

In an instant, the woman’s expression turned icy.

“Can you take responsibility for what you just said?”

“Responsibility? Did you just say ‘responsibility’ to me, Gwak Dae-yong? Yeah, I’ll take responsibility all you want.”

“The woman talks too much. Get lost.”

The large man smirked lecherously, while the small-statured man looked at her with a contemptuous gaze.

Their reactions were different, but one thing was the same.

They were both dismissing the woman.

“I’ll say this one last time. Both of you, leave this place.”

“This bitch…”

“Should I kill you first? Why do you talk so much?”

It was at that moment.

Swiish!

A sharp sound of something cutting through the air echoed through the workshop district.

“Keuk!”

“Heok!”

The large man who had identified himself as Gwak Dae-yong and the small-statured man screamed at the same time. A deep gash had suddenly appeared on each of their shoulders.

A look of fear dawned on their faces.

‘Wh-when did she draw her sword?’

‘I didn’t see her swing it.’

Both men prided themselves on being experts, yet they hadn’t sensed when the woman had drawn her sword.

If the woman had been ruthless, they would already be dead.

The wounds on their shoulders were also a sign that the woman had held back considerably. If she had cut just a little deeper, their muscles and bones would have been severed.

Only then did they realize the woman was an incredible expert, and their faces turned deathly pale.

The woman stared at them and said.

“Shall we continue?”

“N-no.”

“I have urgent business, so I’ll be on my way…”

They fled without a backward glance.

Seeing this, the other workshop owners wore expressions of satisfaction, while also wondering about the woman’s identity.

The martial artists who had just been causing a ruckus were clearly experts, yet she had subdued them so easily.

Suddenly, the woman looked around. The martial artists nearby quickly turned their heads to avoid her gaze.

Then, the woman’s eyes met Pyo Wol’s.

A peculiar light flashed in the woman’s eyes. She immediately strode over to Pyo Wol and acknowledged him.

“It’s been a while.”

“It has.”

“Are you also here on business?”

The woman looking at Pyo Wol with cool eyes was none other than Eom So-so, who used to travel with Dokgo Hwang.

Eom So-so’s blue-tinged eyes held a strong sense of wariness toward Pyo Wol.

Even when Dokgo Hwang had shown favor to Pyo Wol, she had always been wary of him. It was the same now.

She was first to suspect whether meeting Pyo Wol here and now was a coincidence or an intentional encounter.

Pyo Wol answered.

“I was going to get a weapon repaired.”

“And?”

“They all fall short of my standards.”

“Is that so?”

Eom So-so stared intently at Pyo Wol. But no matter how she looked into his eyes, she couldn’t read his thoughts.

“Huu!”

Eom So-so let out a soft sigh.

She felt that she had overreacted.

“If you really only came to get a weapon repaired, then follow me. Old Man Hong’s skills are the best around here, anyway.”

“Old Man Hong?”

“The owner of the workshop where those men were just fighting.”

“Is that right?”

“He was originally from Hainan. He moved and settled here a long time ago. But his skills are top-notch.”

Eom So-so approached Old Man Hong. Old Man Hong then bowed to Eom So-so.

“This lowly one greets you, Miss.”

“No need for formalities. Where is my sword?”

“Yes! I’ve repaired it perfectly.”

Old Man Hong quickly brought out a long wooden box from inside. Inside the box was a sword and scabbard engraved with an antique pattern.

Eom So-so handed the sword she was holding to Old Man Hong and took the sword and scabbard from the wooden box in return.

The sword in the wooden box was her original one. It was just that the blade had been damaged, so she had left it for maintenance and borrowed a temporary sword.

A smile graced her lips as she received her sword.

The temporary sword she had been using was good, but the one she had used for a long time and was accustomed to was the best.

“Thank you. Thanks to you, it’s like new.”

“Not at all, Miss! It was an honor for me to be able to work on your sword.”

Old Man Hong replied with a look of deep emotion.

Although circumstances had forced him to leave Hainan Island and settle in this distant place, he had never once forgotten Hainan. That was why he had put his utmost effort into maintaining Eom So-so’s sword.

Eom So-so pointed at Pyo Wol and said.

“If you don’t mind, please take a look at this person’s weapon as well.”

“I will do so.”

Old Man Hong replied without a word of complaint.

Eom So-so said to Pyo Wol.

“You can leave it with him now.”

“Thank you.”

“If you’re thankful, come to the Celestial Origin Tower tonight.”

“Celestial Origin Tower?”

“The Young Master still has lingering feelings for you. I’d like you to come and make your position clear.”

“So he’ll give up?”

“That’s right!”

Eom So-so answered honestly.