The Martial Genius Who Remembers Everything Chapter 110

[ … words ]

***

Everyone’s gaze turned toward me.

I did not take my eyes off Il-myeong.

“Is the Yongbongjihoe here?”

For some reason, Il-myeong glanced at Namgung Seon-hwa before looking back at me.

“…Well, not everyone is here, but it is true that the Yongbongjihoe has moved.”

“And the person who wants to see me is ‘Yong So-a’?”

“That is correct.”

The Nine Great Sects were showing movements unrelated to the exam, and the Yongbongjihoe was here for reasons unknown.

My head was a tangled mess due to the chaotic information.

My energy was too depleted to make a cold judgment.

It was impossible to make an analytical decision.

I decided to simply make an instinctive choice based on insight.

“Forget it. If it is a seat for reconciliation, it would be better to meet at some other time than now.”

When I mentioned the incident at Maryeong Plateau, Il-myeong let out a chuckle.

“He probably will not apologize.”

He asserted it as if he were speaking of an immutable truth.

I also knew it, so I nodded.

“Then there is even less reason to see him.”

Il-myeong looked around. Even though the people’s figures should not have been clearly visible due to the darkness, Il-myeong examined everyone without missing a corner.

“If things go on like this, failing the exam will not be the problem. Donor, can you handle all that karma?”

“The two people here could have failed the exam in the first place because of that person.”

When I said that while pointing at Namgung Seon-hwa and Seong Mo-ran, Il-myeong nodded again.

In my previous life, I had quite a bit of goodwill toward Il-myeong, but for some reason, seeing him like that now made me feel irritated. If I were to smack his head, would he still try to smile like a ‘Little Buddha’?

“Jin Gong-ja.”

Seong Mo-ran joined the conversation.

“We are fine.”

When Seong Mo-ran looked at Namgung Seon-hwa, she also nodded.

“I am not fine.”

“…What is important right now is not what happened at Maryeong Plateau, but the Murim Regular Exam.”

Everyone nodded without realizing it.

They all hoped to escape this situation by any means.

My premonition was telling me a completely different story, but since everyone had said so, it would not do to hesitate.

I stood up from my seat.

“Where is it?”

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I moved with Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa. I had selected only those who could potentially influence the Yongbongjihoe.

Il-myeong slowed down the speed of his Geumgang-budong-shinbeop (Diamond Immovable Body Technique), which moved like a ghost, to match our pace.

Since Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa’s conditions were already not normal, just using their movement techniques was consuming a lot of their mental and physical energy.

After following him for about an i-gak (approximately 30 minutes), lights began to shine from afar.

Torches were lit everywhere, and a large bonfire in the middle illuminated the area.

A fatty pig was turning over the bonfire, emitting a savory smell.

It was a starkly different scene from us, who were being chased by thousands of people.

I felt unnecessarily offended and said.

“Is there no consideration for the So-bul (Little Buddha) senior who avoids cooked food?”

He spoke with a Buddha-like smile.

“This is not for us. It is for you all.”

“…”

“I thought that if you were to rest immediately, nutritional supplementation would be needed first.”

The unpleasantness of my previous life resurfaced.

It felt as if I were seeing the surrounding environment changing without being told, even though it was clearly about us.

I shut my mouth and followed the So-bul.

Passing the bonfire, there was a small campfire lit inside.

And around it, seven men and women were standing on both sides.

There were faces I had seen at the Taeeul Sect, and faces I had seen in my previous life.

And in the center of them, that man was standing.

“It has been a while.”

“…”

Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa were about to clasp their hands in a salute (pogwon), but upon seeing me, they lowered their hands again.

Some of the men and women standing on both sides frowned at my rudeness toward their senior, but Yong So-a himself seemed not to care, not even showing a change in expression.

“I heard you are going through a hard time?”

His tone, spoken calmly, scratched at my nerves.

“Before that…”

Everyone’s eyes gathered on me.

“Start with an apology.”

“…!”

“…!”

“…!”

And their eyes widened in surprise. There was even someone who opened their mouth as wide as a gourd as if they could not believe it.

Yong So-a stared at me intently.

In my previous life, I could not even dare to meet those eyes that seemed to pierce through something.

“My actions were natural. There is nothing to apologize for.”

“Do you know how many people almost died because of you?”

“The best choice at the time was for me to go out and call for people. That you managed to leave that place by breaking the formation is just a matter of hindsight.”

“Do you not think about the fact that the formation became tangled because of you, making the rescue even more difficult?”

“In the end, you deciphered the formation, and I did the best I could. Since everyone chose their own best, there is no need to apologize to anyone.”

“You spin sophistry very well.”

“I heard your party is very exhausted; are you going to continue wasting time like this?”

At Yong So-a’s words looking at Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa, I readily nodded.

“Why did you call me?”

“To help you.”

“Ha!”

It was me who could not control my emotions at Yong So-a’s words.

To think that the day would come when I would hear that man say he would help me, rather than saying he would kill me.

“Why?”

“Because that is my best.”

That attitude of speaking as if he did not care about the past between us.

Knowing that the attitude was sincere scratched at my nerves even more.

“In more detail.”

Yong So-a tilted his head as if he did not understand.

“Is the reason important?”

“A justification is the greatest driving force behind the movement of the Baek-do (White Path). Would Yong So-a, the hero of the Baek-do, have moved all the way here without a justification?”

Yong So-a stared at me with his unique, strange gaze.

“The Jeong-do-hoe (Righteous Path Association), formed mainly by the Nine Great Sects, is calling all the remaining disciples here, excluding the main disciples of their own sects.”

Namgung Seon-hwa’s hands trembled.

She looked like she was struggling just by imagining it. I quietly held her hand.

“Just to catch us?”

“It is not you. It is ‘you’.”

“That is what I am curious about. Why are you coming all the way here just to catch ‘me’? Simply because I am scheduled to be the top-ranked enrollee?”

“To the current Jeong-do-hoe, that is just as important.”

“And you said you would help me to correct such a wrong?”

One of the men standing on the side stepped forward.

“I have been watching, and you were like this at the Taeeul Sect too, but your arrogance knows no bounds.”

So Je-ho of the Cheongseong Sect. He was the person who had been at the Taeeul Sect.

I looked at him once, then ignored him and continued to look at Yong So-a.

So Je-ho’s face turned red, but I did not care.

“Fine. How are you going to help? It is not like you are going to take us to the Murim Academy.”

“I will do that.”

“What?”

“Do you think I cannot do it?”

The Yongbongjihoe was a group of people with the most outstanding grades among the graduates of the Murim Academy of the time. Moreover, Yong So-a and Il-myeong were together in this place right now.

“Is it not a question of whether you can or cannot?”

It was something that should not be done.

“The exam regulations state that anyone who receives help from their sect, allies, or those related to them will be disqualified from the exam.”

“Do you think everyone follows the exam regulations?”

“…”

“You just have to decide. Will you do it, or will you not?”

“Fine. I cannot help but accept in this situation. I want to hear the conditions.”

“Conditions?”

“There must be a price, right?”

“There is none.”

At Yong So-a’s words, not only I, but Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa also widened their eyes.

“You just have to enter the Murim Academy with the top scores and become the top-ranked enrollee.”

Yong So-a’s hand was raised slowly. And he pointed to the two people next to me.

“However, neither they nor anyone else in your party can accompany you.”

A strange silence settled around us.

“…”

“…”

Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa had hollow expressions as if they were watching the sand they held in their hands scatter.

“Hehehehe.”

Conversely, since I had expected it, laughter leaked out.

“As expected, that petty mind of yours does not change.”

“You bastard! Your words are excessive.”

I did not even hear So Je-ho’s shout.

“I refuse.”

“Why?”

Yong So-a had an expression that he could not understand at all.

I gave the best answer I could.

“Because that is not the right thing to do.”

Yong So-a’s expression cracked slightly for the first time.

“In more detail.”

“In more detail, you say…”

He probably does not like the current forces of the Murim Alliance.

Because in a few years, Yong So-a would create his own faction and encroach upon the Murim Alliance.

Shaking up the existing forces to remind them of their incompetence was something the rising forces had to do.

The appearance of a new hero could also be a justification to replace the people of the Elder Council, including the Jeong-do-hoe.

Moreover, if he could create that hero with his own hands and manipulate them to his heart’s content, it would be even better.

Someone from a lowly sect who could be discarded without any trouble if they became useless in the future.

Many things came to my mind, but I did not bother to say them.

Instead, I racked my brain as much as possible in a direction that could tease him.

“Because I cannot agree with the justice you speak of.”

His justice ultimately maintained the lifeline of the Baek-do.

But his justice ultimately abandoned all of my companions.

“You have only wasted time. It is not quite right to call it a substitute, but please buy us some time for about a day. If it is the Yongbongjihoe, you can do at least that much, right?”

I was about to turn away when So Je-ho stepped forward again.

“I have not yet told you to go back.”

I ignored his words and took a step forward.

“This bastard!”

So Je-ho of the Cheongseong Sect emitted strong killing intent.

The killing intent, which would have been nothing under normal circumstances, assaulted my whole body, feeling as if it were mincing my nerves.

Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa, who were standing next to me, let out a groan and collapsed to the floor.

The killing intent he emitted unexpectedly had dealt a blow to their insides.

“Ugh.”

As Namgung Seon-hwa spat out a mouthful of black blood, So Je-ho’s complexion turned pale only then.

He looked as if he had not known it would be like this either.

The ‘White-Handed Goddess’ Dang Seo-hee quickly jumped out and checked Namgung Seon-hwa’s pulse. Then, she took out a pill from her pocket and put it into Namgung Seon-hwa’s mouth.

As Namgung Seon-hwa’s complexion improved, she then checked Moyong Jae-hwa, and as she was about to return to her place, she stared at me intently.

“You, how much have you slept?”

“Since when are you asking about?”

“…”

As Dang Seo-hee with a cold expression reached out her hand to check my pulse, I quickly pulled my hand away.

“…”

Dang Seo-hee looked at me again with a grumpy face.

“You have to give me your hand.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Is it because of So Je-ho?”

“That is right.”

“Will you give me your hand if So Je-ho dies?”

“Can you do that for me?”

So Je-ho’s complexion turned white.

“I can make you have bloody diarrhea for about a month. Instead, give me your hand.”

“It is a promise.”

Dang Seo-hee checked my pulse and then widened her eyes, which were always half-closed.

“Do you want to die?”

“Do I have a fatal disease?”

“You are the most serious among them. It would not be strange if you died right now.”

Namgung Seon-hwa and Moyong Jae-hwa, who had recovered their complexions, looked at me without being able to speak.

“Please distract the pursuers so I can get some sleep.”

“If it stays like this, you will die.”

“Even so, I have no intention of giving up on the Murim Regular Exam.”

“Then you have to follow Yong So-a.”

“Seo-hee sunbae.”

“Why are you calling me?”

“Is there something strange about the people here?”

“?”

“I mean, only people from the Nine Great Sects are gathered here. There is only one person from the Five Great Clans, you, Seo-hee sunbae.”

“…”

“The justice that Yong So-a speaks of is ultimately just taking sides.”

Dang Seo-hee looked at Yong So-a with half-closed eyes.

Yong So-a still had no change in expression.

“I do not know what words Yong So-a used to seduce you, Seo-hee sunbae, but Yong So-a is no different from the evils of the current Murim Alliance that he despises.”

“…!”

“…!”

“…!”

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