Chapter 384

Pyo Wol bought a sword and left the workshop.

The middle-aged clerk followed him to the entrance and bowed to Pyo Wol.

“Thank you. Please come again.”

When he straightened his back, which had been bent nearly ninety degrees, Pyo Wol was nowhere to be seen.

The clerk stared intently in the direction Pyo Wol had disappeared for a moment.

“Was he just a customer who came to buy a sword?”

The clerk frowned slightly.

It was the expression he made when he had something on his mind.

The clerk had felt a sense of unease from Pyo Wol. But he couldn’t pinpoint the exact source of his unease. So he had approached him directly and sold him the sword.

He thought that by talking to him, he might be able to figure out the source of his unease. But contrary to his expectations, he no longer felt any sense of unease from Pyo Wol.

The clerk scratched his head and muttered.

“I guess I’m past my prime. To think my instincts have dulled this much…”

He trudged back into the workshop.

The artisans were still wrestling with lumps of iron.

They were true artisans.

They focused only on making weapons and knew nothing about how the workshop was run.

The real master who managed the workshop was the clerk.

The clerk went out through a side door at the back of the workshop. A shabby warehouse came into view.

After confirming that no one was around, the clerk entered the warehouse.

Inside the warehouse were piles of iron ingots used for making weapons.

When he pushed aside a shelf stacked with iron ingots, a secret space behind it was revealed. Even the artisans of the workshop did not know of such a space.

The clerk entered the secret space.

After descending about twenty steps, a rather large underground space appeared.

About a dozen people were gathered in the underground space.

There were eight men and two women.

When the clerk came down, their gazes focused on him. The clerk then grinned and spoke.

“Is everyone’s preparation going well?”

“Yes!”

They answered in a short, firm tone.

The clerk nodded as if pleased with them and said.

“This is a mission that mobilizes the Ten Blood Assassins. You must do your best to support her. We don’t know when she’ll make her move, so be fully prepared.”

The clerk’s name was Lee Myung-hak.

Lee Myung-hak was an Assassin of the Hundred Wraith Union.

He once boasted such great skill that he was part of the Ten Blood Assassins. But as he stepped back from the front lines and retired, his name was removed from the Ten Blood Assassins.

Lee Myung-hak had no regrets.

It was impossible to live one’s entire life as an Assassin.

When you were young, you could easily overcome the nerve-wracking tension, but as you aged, a moment of precariousness was bound to come.

For Lee Myung-hak, who had been active as one of the Ten Blood Assassins for fifteen years, a crossroads had arrived.

He was tormented by the terrible feeling that if he continued to kill, his humanity would be destroyed, and he would no longer be able to live as a human being.

At this crossroads, Lee Myung-hak decided to retire. But even if he wanted to retire, it was useless if the Hundred Wraith Union Lord did not permit it.

Naturally, the Hundred Wraith Union Lord did not permit it.

It made no sense to let go of an Assassin as useful as Lee Myung-hak.

Lee Myung-hak, who wanted to retire, and the Hundred Wraith Union Lord, who did not.

The two chose a compromise.

Lee Myung-hak would step back from the front lines and work as a support Unit Leader.

He would not carry out killings on the front lines, but he would take care of the Assassins deployed on important missions.

He would gather information and use decoys to distract the enemy’s attention, setting the stage for the Hundred Wraith Union’s Assassins to run wild.

Lee Myung-hak was an expert in the ways of Assassination, having been active as one of the Ten Blood Assassins.

Naturally, the support he provided was the best.

Because of this, Assassins going on dangerous missions hoped that Lee Myung-hak would support them. But Lee Myung-hak rarely went out on support missions, and even then, it was only for very dangerous ones.

This mission was also extremely dangerous. That was why Lee Myung-hak had come out to provide support himself.

Lee Myung-hak muttered.

“It should be fine, right? It’s a job that someone like Ye-seol can handle.”

＊＊＊

Yoo Soo-hwan had a puzzled expression.

It was because Pyo Wol, who had returned to the Inn, was holding a sword he had not seen before.

“What is this?”

Yoo Soo-hwan knew well that Pyo Wol did not use this kind of longsword. So for him to appear with a sword was bound to be puzzling.

Pyo Wol tossed the sword to Yoo Soo-hwan and said.

“You use it.”

“Pardon?”

“You use a sword as a weapon, don’t you?”

“But I haven’t even recovered my Martial Arts yet… Well, anyway, since it seems to be a gift, I’ll gratefully accept it.”

Yoo Soo-hwan gently caressed the sword.

It had been a long time since he had touched a sword.

Although he had lost his Martial Arts, he had never once forgotten that he was a Swordsman.

Yoo Soo-hwan said.

“It’s a fine sword. The artisan’s skill seems to be quite good.”

“So it seems.”

“I will use it well, thank you.”

“Use it? Isn’t it still too early?”

“That’s true, but it seems the time it takes to recover my Martial Arts might be shortened a bit.”

“How?”

“The Sin-ui who can heal my body happens to be not far from here. I thought I’d have to go to the South Sea to meet him.”

A smile touched Yoo Soo-hwan’s lips.

He had heard the unexpected news at the gathering with Namgung Wol, Yong Hasang, and Yeom Huisu.

While they were talking about this and that, Yeom Huisu mentioned that he had met a strange Physician.

On his way here, he had met a Physician wandering in the nearby mountains, and his description was identical to the Sin-ui that Yoo Soo-hwan knew.

“So you’re saying that for some reason, this person called Sin-ui has left the South Sea and has been spotted moving nearby?”

“That’s right. So, I’d like to be away for a while.”

“You’re going to look for the Sin-ui yourself?”

“Yes!”

“Can you find him alone?”

“I know the Sin-ui’s tendencies best. Now that I have a rough idea of where he is, I can find him on my own. And since I’ve just gotten a good sword, I want to find him as soon as possible.”

Pyo Wol nodded at Yoo Soo-hwan’s words.

He understood how he felt.

Even ordinary people feel a sense of loss when they become weak. It went without saying for a Martial Artist who had trained his Martial Arts to a high level.

A Martial Artist trains in Martial Arts to elevate their body and mind to a high state. The sense of deprivation when such a person who has transcended human limits loses everything they have built is many times more severe than the feeling an ordinary person has when they become weak.

It was the same for Yoo Soo-hwan.

He pretended to be fine on the outside, but he too was hiding a great sense of loss.

He was also worried that he might never regain his Martial Arts. But he couldn’t reveal such inner thoughts in front of Pyo Wol or the others.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No.”

Yoo Soo-hwan said firmly.

Pyo Wol looked at his face for a moment, then nodded.

He had read the firm will in Yoo Soo-hwan’s face. A person with such a strong will does not easily change their opinion.

Even if the price was their own death.

For Pyo Wol to offer help here was no different from insulting Yoo Soo-hwan.

“I wish you luck.”

“Thank you.”

“When will you leave?”

“I’m planning to go right now.”

“I see.”

“Yes! The sooner the better. It would be a big problem if he moves to another place while I’m wasting time.”

“That’s true.”

“Then…”

Yoo Soo-hwan gave Pyo Wol a Fist-Palm Salute. Then, carrying only the sword, he left the Inn.

Pyo Wol watched his retreating back for a moment, then sat in the seat Yoo Soo-hwan had just occupied.

The entire view of Poyang Lake came into sight.

It was a landscape that resembled the South Sea where Yoo Soo-hwan was born and raised. Although it couldn’t compare to the sea, it would have been enough to create some ripples in Yoo Soo-hwan’s heart.

Yoo Soo-hwan had left unexpectedly, but Pyo Wol did not feel a sense of emptiness.

Because all encounters in Jianghu were like this.

You never knew when a connection would form or when it would be severed.

Jianghu was a place where a sudden connection could last unexpectedly long, and a connection thought to last a long time could be severed in an instant.

Just as his meeting with Yoo Soo-hwan was unexpected, it was not at all strange for their parting to be sudden.

Pyo Wol organized his thoughts as he looked at the scenery Yoo Soo-hwan had been watching.

‘If Hong Ye-seol is targeting someone, it surely won’t be an ordinary opponent.’

Normally, there would be no reason for Pyo Wol to care about Hong Ye-seol’s Assassination. She had her life as an Assassin, and an Assassin’s life is completed by killing someone.

The problem was that the target she was commissioned to kill happened to be by Poyang Lake.

Poyang Lake was like a volcano on the verge of eruption.

The Golden Sky Society and the Silver Lotus Society.

The Jewon Merchant Group and the Blood Phantom Organization.

Centered around them, the interests of numerous Martial Artists and Sects were intertwined, causing countless conflicts.

For now, a balance was somehow being maintained, but it was so precarious that it could be shattered by a mere finger poke.

In such a situation, an Assassin named Hong Ye-seol had appeared.

The intensity of the volcanic eruption would depend on who she assassinated.

The Hong Ye-seol that Pyo Wol knew was a very prideful person.

So much so that she had quit a mission just because another Assassin was jointly assigned to the kill.

For such a person to receive help from another Assassin.

The clerk at the workshop was an Assassin, and Hong Ye-seol had visited the workshop.

That meant this mission was important enough for her to swallow her pride and accept help from another Assassin.

There was too little information to deduce Hong Ye-seol’s target.

The easiest way to get information was to subdue the Assassin at the workshop whom Hong Ye-seol had contacted. But doing so could provoke Hong Ye-seol and lead to the worst possible outcome.

‘This is difficult!’

Pyo Wol was quite confident in his battles of wits, but the situation by Poyang Lake was so complex that even his mind couldn’t easily paint a picture.

At times like this, he wanted to forget everything and have a drink. But he didn’t want to change his principles now and start drinking.

Drinking feels good at the moment, but it loosens the nerves and slows down physical reactions.

So, no matter how complicated his thoughts were, he could not rely on alcohol.

Instead, Pyo Wol ordered tea from the Waiter.

After drinking a cup of well-brewed tea, his head felt a little clearer.

“Hoo!”

It was when Pyo Wol let out a soft sigh.

Someone opened the door of the Inn and came inside.

Instantly, the gazes of the customers inside the Inn focused on the newly appeared person.

Normally, receiving the attention of so many people would make one feel awkward or shy, but the new customer showed no such signs.

The new customer looked around the Inn for a moment, then walked straight toward Pyo Wol.

Only then did Pyo Wol turn his head to look at the customer.

The customer was a woman.

A woman with a very beautiful appearance at that.

The moment Pyo Wol saw her, he thought of an Ice Flower.

He felt a cold beauty, like a flower made of ice.

A sword hung at her waist. She was not an ordinary woman, but a Martial Artist.

As Pyo Wol watched, the woman opened her red lips.

“Are you Pyo Wol, Great Hero?”

“And you are?”

“I see I’m right. My name is Namgung Seol.”

“Namgung?”

“I’m Wol’s Noona.”

“You’re from the Thousand Water Society.”

“That’s right.”

Namgung Seol nodded.

Everyone knew that the Thousand Water Society was an organization formed by the former Five Great Noble Families, with the Namgung Clan at its core.

After the Great Demonic War, they accepted many Martial Artists from the outside, and the traces of the Five Great Noble Families had faded. But the position of the Thousand Water Society’s Society Leader was still almost exclusively held by a member of the Namgung family.

Even though it was not inherited by bloodline, the reason the Namgung family continued to hold the position of the Thousand Water Society Leader was that they showed outstanding ability in Martial Arts.

It was the same for Namgung Seol.

She had been famous for her immense talent since she was young.

Despite being a woman, she displayed a genius that allowed her to aim for the position of the next Society Leader.

It was the general opinion within the Thousand Water Society that if her older brother, Namgung Jin, had not been in the society, she would have definitely become the Society Leader.

Her older brother, who was also Namgung Wol’s brother, Namgung Jin, was a tremendous genius. Having shown his genius early on, Namgung Jin rose to the position of the young Society Leader, allowing no competition.

Namgung Seol didn’t show much ambition for the Society Leader position either. However, rumors said her desire for Martial Arts was so great that she spent most of her time in Training.

Namgung Seol asked.

“May I join you for a moment?”