Chapter 676
Soyeomra Guyangcheon.
He is the eldest son of the revered Gu family located in the border region of Shanxi, and the offspring of Gu Cheol-un, a tiger warrior who is considered to hold the lowest rank among the Hundred Great Masters.
In his younger days, he was known as the scoundrel of Shanxi, infamous for his unruly behavior and greed.
Whether it was merely youthful folly or something more profound, as time passed, his talents began to shine.
Before the Shinryongwan massacre occurred, he showcased overwhelming military prowess at the Yongbongjihoe and earned the title “Jinryong” (眞龍).
Not long after, he prevented a massacre at Shinryongwan, exterminating the Sapha and earning the moniker “Soyeomra.”
Afterward, due to events planned within the Meng clan, his name briefly gained attention throughout the Central Plains…
However, shortly after, his whereabouts became shrouded in mystery.
Additionally, because of the Shenlong (神龍) plan carried out in collaboration with the Shaolin, the rumors that had once spread were quickly silenced.
Within just a few years, talk of Soyeomra disappeared as if voop, like a mouse vanishing into the shadows.
“What could it be?”
Beomdong asked, tilting his head as he glanced at the letter in his hand.
It took Beomdong four days to gather all this intel.
It wasn’t particularly difficult to obtain, and had he focused, it could have been wrapped up in two days flat.
Yet, Beomdong felt a strangely subtle sense of alienation.
“There’s more than one or two oddities here.”
While studying the information regarding Soyeomra, he noticed several alarming gaps.
These were clues indicating someone had intentionally wiped clean specific details.
“Who could it be?”
Only a select few could manipulate information within the clan itself.
The leader of the Cheongryongdae, the current lord’s bodyguard and one of the top ten masters.
Or perhaps the Ark of Openness or the head of the Shaolin.
At best, the numbers wouldn’t exceed ten.
How could there be gaps in this information?
That wasn’t the only peculiar detail.
“Did they also meddle in the affairs of Sacheondangmun?”
This was an incident that had caused quite a stir in the Central Plains a few years back.
It had been revealed that the prominent Tang clan had conducted human experiments in secrecy.
As a result, the Tang faction lost their esteemed status among the Four Great Families, leading the righteous factions to want nothing more than to hush the Tang clan up.
Herein lies the issue.
“Top secret information?”
What transpired during that time was treated as highly confidential even within the clan, and just like monster ranks, it was categorized by color.
The incident originating from the Sacheondangmun was labeled “white information.”
Even the powerful chief of the information department couldn’t access it.
In regards to that intel—
“There are traces of Soyeomra’s involvement…”
The records stated that the head of the Tang family had exposed the human experiment in order to tackle it.
It was said he directly eliminated the elders, gathered evidence, and submitted it to the alliance…
Here, whispers about Soyeomra began seeping into the narrative.
“Does this mean something more happened?”
What could have transpired that even the Great Lord did not comprehend?
Beomdong continued inspecting the information with a wrinkled brow.
“So many women around… My fiancée, the sword dancer, and the Tang clan… Tang clan?”
His eyes widened as he read on.
From the Tang clan’s Dokbong currently treading the path to ruin.
To the snow peak of Mo Yong-ga and…
“Even the descendants of the Sword Master are included?”
It seemed he had a way with women; he really did have a flair for that, it seemed.
However, one point was puzzling him.
“If he’s chasing women, why didn’t he go for Bihyeonhwa?”
Bihyeonhwa, famously known as Hanam’s most beautiful.
A prodigy in leveraging her beauty for information.
“Failed.”
Not only did he fail to approach her, but Bihyeonhwa returned utterly wrecked!
“—Please… save me. Save me, please, please, please… save me… please.”
Her heavy makeup was crumbling, and she scratched her face with her long, thin nails.
Bihyeonhwa, with dead-fish eyes, was found broken in some alley at the entrance of the clan.
“I need to run… I’m scared, I’m scared… please help me… help…”
The sight of her trembling and disheveled was enough to send chills down anyone’s spine.
Afterward, Bihyeonhwa was entrusted to a physician for treatment.
Her mind never fully returned.
Even now, she remained paralyzed with fear, unable to step outside the treatment room.
What on earth had she endured?
According to the notes written down in Bihyeonhwa’s arms, Soyeomra was known by the name Pajeolyeop back then, and was the leader of the collapsing rumor sect.
“That was a lie.”
Upon digging further, he realized that was entirely fabricated.
It seemed only logical to conclude that she had figured out Bihyeonhwa’s intentions from the get-go.
Thanks to that, it took much longer than anticipated to extract any information.
What’s worse,
“There’s not a single trace.”
If she was found near the clan’s entrance, someone must have approached that area.
Yet, the guards on watch had sensed nothing; not even a whiff.
There was no evidence at all.
Since Bihyeonhwa returned so damaged that she couldn’t even respond to queries, the whole scenario was highly bizarre indeed.
“Add to that, someone else disrupted everything in the middle.”
While Beomdong was busy with plans, Cheongryongdae sent a person over, but of all things, that person vanished without a trace.
Here’s the snag.
“Of all times, why again the Baekhwasangdan?”
Baekhwasangdan, a group gathering enough people to constitute their own sect.
The Meng clan found that suspicious and dispatched personnel from Cheongryongdae.
Only for that very person to also disappear into thin air!
This was a martial artist from the Cheongryongdae, the most illustrious swordsmen in the league.
Within just a few days, situations twisted and turned oddly.
And at the center of it all…
“There’s Soyeomra?”
They said it was related to the Demonic Cult.
Recently, whispers of that organization had spread from Hanam to the wider Central Plains, reaching all the way to where the Meng held their ground unyieldingly.
As the Meng focused their investigations here, Beomdong was also digging into it.
Amid all this, the activities of the current Baekhwasangdan inevitably appeared suspicious.
“I doubt there’s a direct connection, but something feels off.”
Baekhwasangdan is one of the leading factions among the clans of Central Plains.
Even if they weren’t part of the pro-Murim Alliance, I doubt they would engage in pointless antics.
“Judging from their recent actions, there’s something odd.”
They seemed to be plotting something under the radar.
Especially upon confirming that the young master he encountered was Soyeomra, his suspicions began to boil over.
A rising star from a few years back, who, prior to being formally recognized as the youngest Hwagyeong, had been discussed in hushed tones of rumor.
More importantly,
“He is very much from the Gu family.”
The Gu family is a prestigious clan located on the Shanxi frontier.
The Four Great Families… Well, perhaps they don’t fit precisely into the Three Great Families level, but they are a well-respected family holding a decent tier.
It’s noted they’ve been around for centuries, but they truly began to stand out during the time of the current patriarch, Hohyeop.
Following him, the eldest daughter Gu Hee-bi, known as the Sword Phoenix, the eldest son, Soyeomra, and the second daughter, Gu Yeonseo, were mentioned.
Recently, public perception painted the Gu family as a comparatively strong faction.
However.
Because it’s precisely this ‘Gu family’, Beomdong felt a hint of unease.
The reason is none other than…
“Opaque information…”
Amidst information coded from green to white, the Gu family’s intel was tinted black.
It seems there have been recent changes in that information. Even Beomdong struggled to ascertain the implications of that blackness.
It was impossible even to glimpse at it, much less read. That’s just the nature of black data.
It was his first encounter with this level of classification, yet it had to be the Gu family!
Even among the other Four Great Families, the best they managed was red; where on earth did this black radar come from?
More than a few peculiarities hung in the air.
It was alarming to find an unknown energy had dropped onto the Baekhwasangdan’s territory.
This was affirmed when he stumbled upon Soyeomra while casually checking the area.
Rankings were stewing in silence.
From the manner in which he had been treated to the series of events that followed.
It was a situation that naturally brewed doubt within him.
“If this is the case…”
Beomdong had two strategies to follow until now.
One was to—
“Expand personnel to gather detailed intel.”
There was a method to observe every move and seek openings.
“It’s a tad challenging at present.”
Given how the situation currently stands with the Meng, they couldn’t just leap into action.
The non-war regime was just around the corner, and there was also the looming threat of the Demonic Cult.
Moreover, Beomdong’s autonomy to act on his own was compromised by the distribution of forces throughout the entire region.
Gaining information while avoiding the might of Baekhwasangdan was practically impossible.
Then,
“Is the second option the only choice left?”
For the time being, it appeared there remained just one viable course of action.
To go see for himself.
If covert investigation hits a wall, one might as well openly search for answers.
“The justification feels somewhat lacking…”
Should he lack justification, he could just fabricate one!
That’s the kind of place the Meng’s information department was.
“Besides, no matter how high his skill level, he’s still just a young brat. It shouldn’t be too hard to handle.”
Though his strength caught him off guard, at the end of the day, he was still a kid.
No matter how strong, it’d be tough for him to confront the Murim Alliance. Also,
“From what I see, he seems to have so much to protect.”
There appeared to be some sticky relationships with the women surrounding him. He could utilize that to nudge them a little.
So, until the investigative authority is correctly established, he would need to keep a low profile.
With that in mind, Beomdong turned around and said.
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