Chapter 22: How Much Is My Life Worth? (2)
Cheon Yangho was drinking at a tavern.
A man entered and sat across from him.
“What brings you here without even sending word?”
He was Gwak, the Branch Leader of the Po River Branch under the Zhejiang Branch. Cheon Yangho had come all the way to the branch to see him.
“I thought I’d stop by while I was at it. It’s been a while since I last saw your face.”
“How many years has it been?”
“A year or two.”
“Time really flies.”
The two of them had entered the Martial Alliance together.
In truth, Gwak had never liked Cheon Yangho very much. Cheon Yangho was the sort of person who would gladly use others for his own benefit. Even among those who had entered alongside him, he had never enjoyed a particularly good reputation.
Even so, Gwak was smiling at him now for one pitiful reason—Cheon Yangho was doing well for himself. He was openly regarded as one of the real power holders in the branch. If he rubbed him the wrong way for no reason, only troublesome matters would come to the Po River Branch. That was why, among their peers, Cheon Yangho was like a pile of filth. Better to avoid him because he was dirty.
“You’re not the sort to come all this way without a reason. So, what is it?”
“There’s something I’d like to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
“You were in the White Dragon Branch when you were at the Main Division, weren’t you?”
“I was.”
Gwak had once been one of the rising stars at the Main Division. However, after making a major mistake during an operation, he had been demoted here.
“Then you must know the Iron Sword Corps fairly well too.”
“Well enough.”
“Have you heard of Baek Socheon?”
The moment he heard the name, Gwak flinched.
‘Just as I thought. There was no way this bastard came just because he wanted to see me.’
The name erased even that thought.
“Why are you asking about him?”
“So you do know him.”
“I asked why.”
“You know about the incident at the Wencheng Branch this time, don’t you?”
“The Liang Qiu incident? I heard some lunatic wiped out an entire family.”
“That’s right. I went down there to investigate, and Baek Socheon happened to be there. He seemed rather unusual, so he piqued my interest.”
“He was someone who did very well in the Iron Sword Corps. His skills were exceptional.”
Gwak decided that this was as far as he would go.
In reality, he knew Baek Socheon very well. He even knew that Baek Socheon had once become not only the Commander of the Iron Sword Corps but also the Deputy Pavilion Master before being demoted.
However, a gag order had been issued regarding Baek Socheon. Especially anything related to the Secret Pavilion. If he carelessly opened his mouth about that, he could end up in serious trouble. Besides, he still hadn’t given up hope of making his way back to the Main Division.
If he and Cheon Yangho had been closer… no, if they had at least been fellow entrants who were genuinely happy to see each other, he might have told him those things and warned him never to speak of them.
But as far as Cheon Yangho was concerned, this was the limit.
“So how did Baek Socheon end up at the Wencheng Branch?”
“He was injured and lost the ability to use Internal Energy.”
“He can’t use Internal Energy?”
“That’s right.”
Cheon Yangho frowned.
Black Hand couldn’t possibly have been defeated by someone who couldn’t even use Internal Energy.
“Was he very strong?”
“Yes. Extremely strong. He was at least on the level of a Squad Leader.”
Avoiding specifics, Gwak answered in a way that was neither exactly true nor exactly false.
“Thank you. We’ll meet again sometime.”
Cheon Yangho rose and immediately left.
Watching him leave the instant he had heard what he wanted, Gwak was left dumbfounded.
He inwardly felt relieved that he hadn’t told him everything.
The bastard had even left without paying for the drinks he had consumed. If someone gave you valuable information, wasn’t it only natural to at least buy them a drink?
‘What an ill-mannered bastard.’
He didn’t know why Cheon Yangho was investigating Baek Socheon.
‘I hope Martial Artist Baek beats the living daylights out of you!’
That was his honest wish.
Of course, he had no idea that Cheon Yangho was involved with Baek Socheon far more deeply than he imagined.
Had he known, he certainly wouldn’t have regretted paying for the drinks that day.
Black Hand never appeared.
They had even searched every back alley, wondering if he had gotten dead drunk somewhere and was rolling around with a woman, but they found no trace of him.
Wang Gon found himself wishing Black Hand had simply been too ashamed and run away.
At least then, there wouldn’t be a powerful enemy capable of killing him.
But that was impossible.
The possibility he had desperately hoped wasn’t true was slowly becoming reality.
“There’s no doubt Baek Socheon got him.”
He should have realised it the moment he heard that a Squad Leader of the Iron Sword Corps had been exiled all the way out here.
The bastard was the same kind of man he was.
That was why he could kill without hesitation and then cover it up.
There were only two ways to deal with him.
Win him over…
Or eliminate him.
If he delayed, the Gang Leader would eventually notice what had happened.
Before that happened, he had to settle everything somehow and prove that everything remained under his control.
At that moment, one of his subordinates came to report.
“Cheon Yangho requests an audience.”
From that meeting, one of those two options would be decided.
A carriage stood in the forest near the Wencheng Branch.
It was the same carriage Wang Woo had ridden before, but this time Wang Gon was inside.
The person who appeared cautiously after making sure he wasn’t being followed was Cheon Yangho.
As soon as he climbed aboard, Wang Gon skipped the greetings and got straight to the point.
“Did you find any trace of Black Hand inside the branch?”
“No. I couldn’t.”
“It’s highly likely Baek Socheon did it.”
“I made some inquiries about him.”
Cheon Yangho repeated everything Gwak had told him.
“He was one of the Iron Sword Corps’ brightest talents?”
“Yes. Not merely someone on the level of a Squad Leader. I heard he was exceptionally skilled. Although his dantian was damaged and he couldn’t use Internal Energy, he was still more than capable of dealing with someone like Black Hand.”
Wang Gon was startled.
If someone whose dantian had been destroyed still possessed such terrifying ability, then he must truly have been incredibly skilled.
“That young brat is impressive.”
“He isn’t young. He’s thirty-eight.”
“What?”
Wang Gon’s eyes widened.
Thirty-eight meant someone who had experienced every hardship imaginable.
“Damn it.”
Only now did he understand why Baek Socheon had remained so composed while beating both him and Black Hand that day.
‘I picked the wrong person to provoke.’
But that wasn’t the only problem.
‘If this bastard investigates the incident together with Lim Chung, I’ll be in serious trouble.’
Noticing Wang Gon’s increasingly grim expression, Cheon Yangho spoke carefully.
“I’ll continue looking into him. For the time being, I think it would be best if we avoided contacting each other. Too many eyes are watching.”
Wang Gon assumed Cheon Yangho was trying to distance himself from the affair.
‘You fool. It won’t be that easy.’
The moment he accepted his first bribe, there had already been no escape.
No matter how much he struggled, the net wrapped around him would only tighten.
Wang Gon was not the sort of man who would simply let him go.
“You’ll have to get rid of him.”
Cheon Yangho was genuinely startled.
The reason he had suggested avoiding contact had been to gauge Wang Gon’s reaction.
He hadn’t expected such a direct request to eliminate Baek Socheon.
Between persuasion and elimination…
Wang Gon had chosen elimination.
Leaving such a troublesome enemy alive would only bring endless future disasters.
The pain from his battered face, along with the inconvenience and frustration caused by Black Hand’s disappearance, had also contributed to that decision.
“I can’t do that.”
“You can.”
Wang Gon handed him a pouch he had prepared.
Inside were bank notes issued by the Central Plains Money Exchange, each worth one thousand nyang.
There were ten of them.
Compared to the amount he normally received, it was an astronomical sum.
Ten thousand nyang.
A leader earned eleven hundred nyang a year.
By killing a single man, he could earn what would normally take nearly nine years to make.
Ten thousand nyang.
It was not a sum anyone could casually refuse.
As Cheon Yangho silently stared at the pouch, his mind raced.
‘That penny-pincher is offering ten thousand nyang? Why is he so desperate?’
‘Because he got beaten? Because he thinks Black Hand is dead?’
‘Even so, he wouldn’t spend this much…’
Then one possibility occurred to him.
‘As I thought! They’re the ones behind the Liang Qiu incident.’
He had already suspected as much from Wang Woo’s reaction earlier, but even then he had found it hard to believe.
Cheon Yangho knew he absolutely couldn’t let them realise he had figured it out.
Otherwise, they would try to eliminate him as well.
“It’s a lot of money… but I still serve the Martial Alliance. I can’t kill a fellow member. Besides, he’s someone who even took down Black Hand.”
He had never fought Black Hand himself, but he was convinced Black Hand had been at least one level stronger than he was.
“Even so, if you were determined, you’d find a way.”
“Well…”
Cheon Yangho deliberately trailed off.
He had only wanted to see Wang Gon’s reaction.
Instead, he heard something completely unexpected.
“I’ll give you another ten thousand once it’s done.”
“…!”
“Don’t get greedy. I’m already more than angry enough as it is.”
Cheon Yangho wasn’t being greedy.
Only one thought filled his mind.
‘Twenty thousand nyang!’
It was enough money to equal nearly twenty years of work.
Enough to change his life.
“You decide how to kill him. Just don’t drag it out. Finish it as quickly as possible. So? Will you do it? Or will you give up twenty thousand nyang?”
The scales in Cheon Yangho’s heart had already tipped.
Nothing could outweigh twenty thousand nyang.
All that remained was deciding how to kill him.
“I’ll do it.”
“Good.”
Wang Gon handed him the money pouch.
As Cheon Yangho tucked it into his robes, he spoke.
“Once he dies, the branch will investigate. If I’m assigned the case, that’s one thing. But if someone else handles it, they may begin to suspect you, Gang Leader.”
“They might.”
“In that case, use the missing Black Hand.”
“Put the blame on him?”
“Wasn’t he always extremely proud of his martial arts? You can simply say he acted on his own and disappeared.”
Thus, while pretending to help Wang Gon, Cheon Yangho also created an escape route for himself.
“That’s a good idea.”
Even if Black Hand’s corpse were discovered later, it wouldn’t matter.
By then, everyone here would have already been replaced.
After Cheon Yangho left, Wang Woo climbed into the carriage from the driver’s seat.
“Father, isn’t twenty thousand nyang far too much?”
Moreover, this money wasn’t from the Divine Transformation Gang’s funds.
It was their personal fortune.
To Wang Woo, it was practically part of his future inheritance.
His dream was to succeed his father.
He wanted nothing more.
Simply living like his father would let him rule Wencheng like a king.
For that to happen, his father’s treasury could never run dry.
“It is a great deal of money. But it has to be this much before that bastard will move.”
“Even so… it’s twenty thousand.”
“Don’t begrudge it. That twenty thousand will become the chains he’ll wear for the rest of his life. He’ll be our dog forever.”
Wang Gon had already fully tasted the sweetness of power.
To savour something even more intoxicating, he would climb even higher.
If necessary, he would spend his entire fortune to do it.
“Power is money. As long as you hold on to power tightly enough, you can always make more money. Understand?”
“Yes.”
Wang Woo answered reluctantly.
He had tasted the sweetness of money before the sweetness of power.
And not some grand ideal.
Just something this simple.
‘…Still, twenty thousand is such a waste. With that money, I could spend an entire year enjoying myself at the White Flower Pavilion…’
Cheon Yangho wasted no time arranging Baek Socheon’s assassination.
Waiting until tomorrow wouldn’t create a better opportunity.
Nor would it make his opponent any weaker.
Suppressing his presence, Cheon Yangho carefully approached Baek Socheon’s residence.
Twenty thousand nyang was simply impossible to refuse.
There were also two additional reasons why he had made this decision.
The first was that he had learned his opponent could no longer use Internal Energy.
No matter how skilled someone was, without Internal Energy they were nothing more than an empty shell.
The second reason was the small cylindrical hidden weapon in his hand.
The Ten-Step Death Needle.
The poison coating its needle was an incomparably deadly toxin, and it was said that anyone within ten steps could never avoid being struck.
Because of its terrifying lethality, it had been classified as one of the Golden-dragon weapons forbidden by the Martial Alliance despite being a single-use weapon.
Merely possessing it was a grave crime worthy of imprisonment in the Thunder Prison.
Cheon Yangho had obtained it by chance and kept it hidden ever since, determined to use it one day when the moment came to change his destiny.
That moment had arrived…
Along with twenty thousand nyang.
He heard movement in the courtyard.
Judging by the sounds, someone was training.
‘Even better.’
Someone deeply absorbed in training was the perfect target for a surprise attack.
His opponent had no Internal Energy, so there was no way he could detect Cheon Yangho’s presence from more than ten steps away.
Under the moonlight, Baek Socheon was training his body.
Today, he was doing one-finger handstand push-ups.
After finishing a set, he switched to another finger and repeated them.
It was such brutally intense training that one could scarcely believe it was possible without even a trace of Internal Energy.
Sweat poured from him like rain.
While one man endured unimaginable agony through sheer willpower…
Cheon Yangho responded not with applause…
But by drawing out his hidden weapon.
Completely unaware that living the kind of life he had was the reason he had never received the full truth from his fellow entrant, Cheon Yangho aimed the Ten-Step Death Needle at Baek Socheon from within the darkness, a darkness every bit as deep as the one in his own heart.
Sign up to join the discussion...
Already have an account? Log in
No comments yet. Be the first to discuss this chapter.