I thought it was just garbage, but it turned out to be great garbage.
It’s one thing for those who have mastered martial arts to kill each other.
Well, if you’re going to fight, you should be ready to take a hit.
But touching normal people who haven’t mastered martial arts was considered almost a taboo even in the Murim.
And it was the same in Heavenly Bright Moon.
Unless in special cases, attacking regular folks was off-limits.
But the idea that one must sacrifice the lives of those who haven’t practiced martial arts to gain power is just ridiculous.
“I can’t imagine even magic arts would go this far…”
Hearing Hongryeon mutter in surprise, I nodded too.
Yeah. Among all the magic arts I know, none had such a cruel training method as the Sleep-Mind Technique.
“What do you think the reason is?”
“Hmm… well, it’s not about the innocent… No, it’s probably that they want to maximize the emotions felt when the unprepared suffer and sacrifice, right?”
Injustice, frustration, resentment. Maybe it’s about embedding those negative feelings into the soul to accept them?
Hano also slightly nodded at my words.
“Looking at this, it seems the Sleep-Mind Technique is closer to ritualistic magic through human sacrifice than actual martial arts, so it could be trying to harness emotions and souls.”
“Then someone who practices it consistently would…”
“Definitely be strong.”
“But if that’s the case, the authorities would have already stepped in. Hano, has there been a large-scale massacre of regular people?”
“Well… as of now, there hasn’t been such an incident.”
Of course, it was different in Heavenly Bright Moon. The energy of Hongseongsan rampaged, and the Cheolhyeol Master who took that energy began the massacre starting with Seomhwa Village.
Not only that, but places where that energy accumulated continued to erupt, plunging the world into chaos, leading to the deaths of countless people.
But at least for now, it was different. Just as Hano said, those incidents had not occurred.
In other words, I could conclude that the Cheolhyeol Master in Heavenly Bright Moon wasn’t as powerful as predicted.
“Is that all about the Sleep-Mind Technique?”
“Well, the more you learn it, the more you can control, but other than that, there’s not much else. From what I see, this doesn’t seem to be all there is about the Sleep-Mind Technique… what Gwangyeok-gyu wrote seems to be all, though.”
He shook the book and offered it to me. I sighed as I looked at it.
“Shouldn’t we inform the Murim Alliance?”
Hongryeon said worriedly, and I nodded.
The reason the Green Forest Eighteen are establishing themselves all over the world.
If the rogue factions acting independently, not affiliated with the Black Flame Alliance, are merely paving the way for the Iron Blood Clan, it was only natural that we had to stop that.
Of course, it was only natural to stop that.
The only thing I needed to do to prevent such things was to request the Murim Alliance for help and continuously ask the authorities to deal with the surrounding thugs.
“But aren’t you already doing that?”
“I think we need to step it up a notch.”
I gave a wry smile at Hano’s words.
After leaving Hano to drink alone for a bit, I looked for Cheonilhwa. When I told him the story I heard from Hano, he groaned with a serious expression.
“That’s quite ruthless. I understand. I will relay that to my superiors.”
Even though the Empire’s officials accepted bribes and tried to take care of their own, they weren’t so corrupted as to allow something akin to human sacrifice against defenseless civilians.
That being said, if Cheonilhwa reports this to the center, there will definitely be some movement.
“However… Hmm…”
Cheonilhwa’s expression was grim as he flipped through the booklet. It made sense.
The one who interpreted this booklet was the branch leader of Hao-mun, belonging to the Black Lotus.
And what needed to be dealt with by the authorities weren’t members of the Black Lotus but rather the Sapa.
In other words, the authorities were finally getting these talks.
Depending on the interpretation, the content could change, but wasn’t the Black Lotus trying to use the authorities to preserve their own power?
Also, the individual practicing the Gwangyeok-gyu could be a private citizen. Should the military really be involved?
Naturally, the state doesn’t want to use state power.
Especially, moving the military requires considerable funds and effort.
Many are hesitant to send the military to eliminate evil monsters, let alone bandit purges.
Moving the military for a bandit hunt based on the Empire’s entire territory would indeed be a significant burden.
If such discussions come up, it might even add more weight to mobilizing the military.
Of course, considering the matter, it wouldn’t go unpassed, but the fact that there’s opposition suggests it could take time to handle.
So, I smiled and said, “You can mention my name. I don’t know how much it will help…”
Currently, my reputation was soaring continuously. Not only the righteous sect but also the underworld and the authorities held my alias, Shinsan Seonja, in high regard.
So if I guaranteed Hano’s interpretation and claimed this was a danger, it would be hard to dismiss it as merely a power struggle of the Black Lotus.
“But if that happens…”
Naturally, from the staunch perspective of the Iron-Blooded Emperor, it would be infuriating. It would mean overturning the trap he laid.
Cheonilhwa looked at me with concern.
I looked on.
Considering the many forces targeting me these days, I laughed at him while thinking that those trying to pull such malicious acts might also be after me.
“It’s what I’ve prepared for.”
“Hmph. If that’s the teacher’s will… I understand.”
“You may use the name of Hongseong Clan.”
“And you may use the name of Moonjeong.”
As Hongryeon and Chaejin immediately followed up behind me, Cheonilhwa gave a wry smile.
“I’m grateful for the sentiment.”
The righteous faction is simply hoping to see the depraved fall.
As such, they want to crush anyone related to the Dark Black Lotus, no matter who they are.
So if the righteous factions of Hongseong Clan and Moonjeong step in, they’ll likely want to investigate the circumstances further, which will take more time.
In other words, this burden falls solely on my shoulders.
At Cheonilhwa’s cold retort, the expressions of Hongryeon, Chaejin, and Sayoon darkened.
“Don’t look at it that way.”
Well, the Steel Blood Alliance targeting me is something I was actually hoping for.
After finishing my meeting with Cheonilhwa, I decided to sleep at Cheonghoelu for the day.
“Phew. I guess I’ll have to sleep with you after all.”
Chaejin shook her head and tried to snuggle closer, while Hongryeon grabbed her by the nape of her neck, spreading her golden hair.
“Stop spouting nonsense.”
“Then what should I do?”
“Is it not possible to just sleep together?”
Sayoon raised her hand to speak, causing Hongryeon and Chaejin’s faces to turn red. I shook my head at them with a smile.
“Don’t worry about me.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Exactly. Let’s just sleep in the same room.”
In the end, I was dragged into the special room prepared by Cheonilhwa.
The quite spacious special room had two chambers, each with a large bed.
As the gazes of Hongryeon and Chaejin began to cross, I sat on the long couch.
“I have some work to do today, so you all sleep well.”
I might as well check the documents I received from Cheonilhwa while I’m here. Things like the current situation in the North and the items newly handled by the military.
And if I also need to get updates on the recent happenings in the martial world from Hano, I’ll probably have to stay up all night.
“Uh… I’m fine with it.”
“I’m not fine. And since we’ve fought earlier today, you should wash up and rest properly, right? So don’t worry about me, and feel free to sleep.”
I pointed toward the small room. If the door is left open, it should be alright for me to be alone in there.
“Alright. You all wash up first.”
After taking the documents I received from Cheonilhwa, I went inside and started reading.
I gathered the documents and went inside to read them.
How much time had passed? While I was sorting out what to do after checking the materials, Sayoon peeked in with her hair still damp.
“Innkeeper.”
“Hmm?”
“Shall I brew you some tea?”
“I’ll make it myself. Just sit down and dry your hair.”
I handed her a towel from this room to wrap around her head.
Her cheeks were flushed red as if she had just washed with hot water, and Sayoon smiled brightly as she sat down.
“I can dry this right away.”
As she sat cross-legged and concentrated for a moment, heat radiated from her body. In an instant, she was completely dry and grinning from ear to ear.
“It’s a technique to shake off moisture using inner energy.”
“Oh, that’s amazing!”
“Chaeran taught me. She said when we go out into the martial world, I can dry off like this after washing in a river.”
This was something that didn’t even exist in Heavenly Bright Moon, so it was quite fascinating. As I stared at her, Sayoon smiled and lightly tied her now-dry hair, facing me.
She was smiling, but there was definitely a shadow in her expression.
“Um… why is the Iron Blood Clan trying so hard?”
Sayoon’s voice had grown somber. It made sense from her perspective; before joining Hongseong, she must have been someone who’d find it most agreeable as an Iron Blood Clan member.
Without a place to fight or lean on, just a weak person who could only be taken advantage of.
It seemed that she felt pretty uncomfortable about those like her becoming sacrificial lambs for the Nighthaze Technique.
“I… don’t like those kinds of people.”
She clenched her fist tightly.
“…And targeting the Innkeeper too… that’s unforgivable.”
I paused the tea I was preparing and looked at her.
Just a moment ago, the image of Sayoon ignited with hatred towards the Iron Blood Clan flashed through my mind.
That face that had made us all sad.
It was evident in the current Sayoon as well.
“It’s good to be angry, but I hope you don’t fight solely out of hatred.”
That’s why I had to say it.
“Please don’t forget what Hongseong Divine Art is for.”
At my words, Sayoon smiled widely.
“Of course, I know. Hongseong Divine Art is a martial art meant for protection. So…”
She stared at me seriously and said,
“I’ll definitely protect you.”
Yes.
That’s how it should be.
Becoming a revenge-driven avenger consumed by hatred wasn’t what I or we wanted.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
