The Martial Genius Who Remembers Everything Chapter 80

[ … words ]

***

Bang Du-chil was persistent.

Every time they made eye contact, he kept shouting about ‘sworn brotherhood’ and followed them around.

If it weren’t for Dong-ryong getting injured in battle and needing recovery, he would have wanted to run away in the dead of night long ago.

“I’m…… sorry.”

Dong-ryong, who had risen from the bed, hung his head like a prisoner between Geum-pyo and Eun-ho.

“Please, forgive me. Daesa-hyeong.”

Dong-ryong, unexpectedly, remembered his actions clearly.

He said that while he was hit within his consciousness, it wasn’t he who was moving his body.

There is no way to see the outside situation when the Sal-seong (Slaughter Star) wakes up. His ability to maintain consciousness was solely thanks to the Tae-eul-jin-gyeong.

The fortunate thing was that the more his achievement in the Tae-eul-jin-gyeong increased, the stronger the roots of his consciousness would grow, and Dong-ryong would never become an ak-gwi (evil spirit) again.

“I won’t…… I won’t do it again.”

“Do what?”

“……Those… things.”

He couldn’t finish his sentence and looked like he was about to cry.

His teary eyes, which looked as if they would spill tears at any moment, made me struggle to hold back laughter.

“You mean turning into an ak-gwi?”

“Hic, hic.”

Tears fell from his eyes, which were widened like a rabbit’s.

He was terrified of when his Sal-seong might wake up again.

He looked so cute that I wanted to tease him.

“But what if the Sal-seong wakes up next time…….”

“Waaaah. Hic, hic.”

Dong-ryong burst into tears.

Geum-pyo and Eun-ho knelt.

“Sahyeong! I will take responsibility.”

“Daesa-hyeong! I will take responsibility too.”

Why are these guys kneeling all of a sudden?

“Hmm, how do you two intend to take responsibility?”

“……We talked about it last night. If…… Dong-ryong becomes an ak-gwi again, Eun-ho and I……”

“Stop there! What on earth are you talking about?”

My heart suddenly sank.

What on earth is in their heads?

I sighed.

“Don’t worry. Dong-ryong won’t become an ak-gwi again.”

“Yes? Really? Sahyeong?”

“Yes. Of course, to reach a stable state, he needs to study the Tae-eul-jin-gyeong to death and raise his achievement significantly, but even if he reaches the 5th star, he will be able to suppress the Sal-seong, and when he reaches the 7th star, he will never fall into the Sal-seong again.”

Geum-pyo and Eun-ho stood up quickly and hugged Dong-ryong’s shoulders.

“Dong-ryong! Did you hear that! You’re not an ak-gwi! There’s no way my younger brother could be an ak-gwi!”

“See! I told you there was no need to worry, didn’t I!”

Dong-ryong was laughing with tears and snot running down his face.

I didn’t know if he was happy about not becoming an ak-gwi or happy that they could go together.

They didn’t know, but thanks to the Tae-eul-jin-gyeong, Dong-ryong now possessed immense talent that wouldn’t fall behind any unique constitution.

I watched the three brothers, excited and with their arms around each other, and said:

“That is why you must not have any gaps in your training from now on. My intention in making you practice the Haeng-gong (energy circulation) to death was all for that reason.”

“Of course. Of course. Now, even if you say you can make fermented soybean paste from red beans, I will unconditionally believe your words, Sahyeong.”

“Good grief.”

<><><>

One thousand two hundred refugees arose from the three villages in the Cheon-mok Mountain area.

Their homes were wretchedly destroyed, the roofs of the unmanaged thatched houses had all collapsed, and the blood shed by the mountain bandits flowed into the village streams and wells, leaving them with no way to sustain their lives.

“Mom, I’m hungry.”

“Yes, just endure a little longer. Let’s go up the mountain and dig up some edible herbs.”

“Are you going to leave me again? You’re not, right?”

“……Yes, let’s go together this time.”

Yet, they felt infinite gratitude for being alive and seeing each other again.

“They said they all intend to turn their backs on their hometown and head towards Hangzhou. It’s hard to get through this winter here.”

Village Elder Heo, who had become the spokesperson for the three villages, sighed deeply.

“It’s fortunate enough that we could meet each other like this again. This is all thanks to you.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Elder Heo took out the 5,000-nyang bill I had given him from his bosom.

“This is what you entrusted to me.”

“Didn’t I tell you to buy necessary goods?”

“We aren’t that shameless.”

Elder Heo paused before continuing.

“I will repay this favor somehow. It will be impossible in my lifetime, but in my children’s lifetime…… if that’s not possible, in my grandchildren’s lifetime…… if that’s not possible, I will repay it through the next descendants.”

The old man with white hair looked guilty, as if he had no way to express his gratitude.

I searched the Ssang-mak-chae (Twin Tent Fortress), but no treasures were found.

According to Yang Gun-baek, Ssang-mak-chae had spent a lot of money expanding the mountain fortress recently.

Anyway, useless people.

In the end, I subjugated the fortress, but since nothing came out, there was nothing to distribute to the village.

“If it takes that long, won’t I end up not receiving the benefit?”

“…….”

I held out the bill again.

“It won’t be enough, but please use it to rebuild the village.”

If the village disappears, it will take a long time for the mountain fortress in Cheon-mok Mountain to be rebuilt.

If the fortress can’t grow, it will take time for Bang Du-chil to take over the Green Forest Alliance.

Moreover, I know too well what it feels like to be caught in a massive battle or war and have unrelated people suffer.

‘If I really need money, there are a few more places I can rob.’

“……But……”

The old man, who had never received anything in his life, seemed afraid of the massive sum of 5,000 nyang itself.

Hmm, what to do…….

Actually, I had a method in mind.

“Then how about this? Use this money to rebuild the village, and send a portion of the profits from the village to the Tae-eul-mun (Tae-eul Sect) in the future.”

“……?!”

The old man’s eyes widened.

“Does it make you feel a bit more comfortable if you think of this as an investment?”

People like Elder Heo feel more comfortable receiving if they are given even a small burden.

It’s a characteristic of those who have never had anything for free in their lives.

“Th, then……”

“Is that okay?”

Elder Heo nodded vigorously.

“I will send one-tenth of the profits from the three villages to your sect for the next thirty years.”

“Ah, no…… that’s too much.”

I just meant for him not to feel burdened, not to put a shackle on himself.

However, Elder Heo shook his head as if his neck would fall off.

“No. I must do at least that much so I can accept this money and the villagers can comfortably settle back in the village.”

“…….”

The villages around Cheon-mok Mountain are a route that merchants must pass through.

Moreover, it is a route where those exhausted from passing through the high mountains must stop and rest before or after crossing the mountain.

Elder Heo and the villagers didn’t know how much their village could develop.

When I couldn’t answer readily, Elder Heo grabbed my hand with a determined look.

“Instead, I have a request.”

“What is it?”

“Please allow us to use the name of the Tae-eul-mun in the village.”

“What do you mean……”

“I mean let us say that these villages are under the protection of the Tae-eul-mun.”

This kind of contract is common in commercial districts where sects are based, but there was no example like me signing a contract for three whole villages, especially in a place far from the sect.

Moreover, the Tae-eul-mun is currently in a state of closing its gates, and the distance is too far for the Tae-eul-mun to extend its influence here.

“At least I hope others will be afraid of our villages.”

Elder Heo was glancing at Bang Du-chil and his party.

He was probably wary of the story that he would rebuild the mountain fortress on Cheon-mok Mountain again.

But after seeing him dig a huge pit with one palm strike in the process of clearing bodies after the battle, bury all the corpses in it, and cover it with soil with a single punch, he just couldn’t speak.

I scratched my head and answered.

“That might be a bit difficult. In the first place, the Tae-eul-mun isn’t such a frightening sect……”

At that moment, Baek So-ryeol, who was listening, started whispering to Bang Du-chil.

Bang Du-chil crumpled his huge body to listen, then nodded and stepped forward.

“I’ll do it!”

“Yes?”

“I will do it. Protecting the three villages, that is.”

“…….”

Bang Du-chil tapped his chest and laughed heartily.

“Instead, let’s become sworn brothers. That way, I’ll have a justification to protect them, won’t I?”

“…….”

Elder Heo looked at me, delighted by Bang Du-chil’s words, and Baek So-ryeol, standing next to Bang Du-chil, was suppressing her laughter.

I had already been suspected of being a spy for the dark path because I had operated with the Green Forest Alliance a few times in my past life, and now I was in a situation where I would become the sworn brother of the future Green Forest Alliance leader.

Isn’t this…… leaving me with no defense if I’m treated as a person of the dark path?

Suddenly, Elder Heo looked at me with desperate eyes, like someone leaving a will.

“……If, if I could do that, I would have no regrets even if I died right now……”

I pressed my throbbing head with my fingers and asked Bang Du-chil.

“Haa…… why on earth are you trying to become sworn brothers with me? I am just a third-rate martial artist with a sect that is nothing special and no background.”

“I have never met anyone greater than me until now.”

“You say I am great? I met a chance encounter, so I became like this because I was lucky. But Brother Bang, didn’t you achieve immense martial arts with nothing? Even looking at future potential, I don’t compare.”

At my assertion, Bang Du-chil shook his massive head.

“The ‘greatness’ I speak of is not about martial arts.”

“……Yes?”

Then he smiled, revealing whiter teeth than I thought.

“A man who stands up for the weak without fear and does not hesitate to part with his precious assets…… a man with such great magnanimity is not easily found even if you search the world.”

“…….”

“You made me feel surprised for the first time. It is only natural for a man to want to become sworn brothers since I cannot make someone like you my subordinate!”

It’s an absurd logic, but…… there is no way out.

If he comes at me with such sincerity from the beginning, it’s hard to refuse to the end.

Elder Heo, who was leaving a will as if he were dying just a moment ago, nodded as if his neck would break.

“Haa……”

I eventually sighed deeply.

Yes, when did I ever walk the path of a righteous person of the white path?

“All right. Let’s do that……”

“Go bring a sword!”

No, I haven’t even finished answering…… And more than that, a sword? A sword?

“Why a sword?”

“To become sworn brothers, we need a blood covenant……”

This person says scary things so nonchalantly.

I stopped him and sent a look of help to Baek So-ryeol standing next to him.

“We’ve seen enough blood, are you still craving blood? Let’s just share a cup of brotherhood!”

“Yes. Darling. I don’t want to smell the stench of blood anymore.”

Fortunately, Bang Du-chil listens obediently to Baek So-ryeol.

“Is that so? Tell me, Elder Heo, is there alcohol in this village?”

“You bastards drank it all, what are you talking about!”

Funnily enough, Elder Heo didn’t stop swearing even after seeing Bang Du-chil’s dignity.

Of course, Bang Du-chil didn’t pay much attention to that either.

“Hmm…… I’ll have to go buy some alcohol in a nearby village. Wait a moment, brother.”

We haven’t even shared the cup of brotherhood yet, but he’s already calling me brother.

I’m already worried about how difficult the days ahead will be.

As Bang Du-chil moved his huge body and disappeared, Baek So-ryeol approached and whispered softly.

“You are truly amazing, Young Master Jin.”

“What do you mean?”

“The structure seems like you’ll lose out for now, but in a few years, you’ll gain tremendous profit. The profits from the three villages around Cheon-mok Mountain, and becoming sworn brothers with the Green Forest Alliance Leader…… wouldn’t you say?”

Baek So-ryeol was calling him the Green Forest Alliance Leader as if it were natural, as if she had seen a future where Bang Du-chil became the Green Forest Alliance Leader.

Indeed, she is not an ordinary person.

“It must have been Lady Baek’s idea, right?”

When I told her what I suspected, Baek So-ryeol gave a meaningful smile.

As expected, there is no way such an idea came out of that huge but simple-looking Bang Du-chil’s head.

“Why did you insist that the Green Forest Alliance Leader become sworn brothers with a person from a white path sect?”

“That was purely Darling’s idea. He wanted to have you so much but didn’t know how, so I just gave him a hint.”

“…….”

Baek So-ryeol scanned my face carefully, then continued.

“And I thought Young Master Jin would become the greatest threat to our house in the future. So I thought it would be good to form a connection on purpose.”

“……Me?”

As for me, I was considered the number one most harmless person in the Martial Arts Alliance in my past life.

I am so harmless that I was so harmless that the Martial Arts Alliance used to put me at the forefront of the war against the Demonic Cult as a meat shield.

When I tilted my head, not understanding, Baek So-ryeol gave her signature meaningful smile.

“Hehe, you still don’t have self-objectivity. That’s why men are cute.”

<><><>

“Daesa-hyeong!”

While we were drinking all five jars of alcohol we bought on the excuse of sharing the cup of brotherhood with Bang Du-chil, Geum-pyo came running in a hurry.

“I think you need to come outside for a moment.”

When we headed out of the inn, a procession of injured people was passing by.

And their faces immediately came to mind in my head.

‘Gye-ryong Merchant Group.’

The procession of 100 wanderers who had gone to subjugate the fortress majestically was less than a quarter remaining.

Even most of those were injured, wrapped in bandages, and wearing splints.

“Sahyeong.”

Looking where Eun-ho was glancing, Gye Yeon-seung, whose right sleeve was fluttering, was pulling a cart carrying two black coffins.

Judging by the fact that Gye Yeon-seok and Gye Cheol-yeong were not visible, it seemed that the two were inside those two coffins.

“…….”

“…….”

Gye Yeon-seung, who made eye contact with me, turned his head away immediately as if he had committed a sin.

We didn’t say anything until the Gye-ryong Merchant Group disappeared.

“Should we feel sorry?”

“No.”

“Yes?”

I looked straight into the eyes of the three brothers who were puzzled.

“We must be afraid. Because we don’t know when we might end up in such a state.”

And as soon as I finished speaking, I unleashed my killing intent.

“…….”

“…….”

“…….”

The Geum-Eun-Dong brothers all twitched their eyebrows, but there was no other reaction.

“Cough.”

The scream came from an unexpected place.

Yang Gun-baek appeared from behind the alley with a pale complexion and a terrified expression.

“A-are there any bad things happening……”

Yang Gun-baek said, trembling.

“Ah, I’m sorry. I was training my disciples.”

Yang Gun-baek was looking at me and my disciples as if seeing ghosts.

<><><>

The Geum-Eun-Dong brothers naturally vacated their seats, and as soon as Yang Gun-baek sat down, he asked.

“Are you really sure you don’t have the ability to control the wind?”

Bang Du-chil is making a fuss about becoming sworn brothers, and Yang Gun-baek is making a fuss about whether I control the wind.

“Didn’t I tell you? A strong northwest wind blows around this time every year. Moreover, because of the long drought, the fallen leaves on the mountain had no moisture.”

“You are truly a fascinating person. I thought only someone like Zhuge Liang in the old days could say such things.”

Yang Gun-baek, who looked at me with complex eyes for a moment, spread a map on the table.

“The first gate of the Hell Regular Exam is all over. A total of 3,842 people received the gate pass.”

“The Haomun will be busy from now on too.”

“……That is correct.”

“How many people will be targeting us?”

“…….”

The number of people who passed the first gate is huge, but the number of people who didn’t pass is even more amazing.

The Martial Arts Regular Exam considers not only passing the gate but also passing the final point with the gate pass as the test.

And those who failed the gate start targeting the gate passes of those who passed.

“We will try our best to block it, but since the Beggar Sect has already moved……”

“I know. That’s why we need to know more clearly.”

“It’s…… a lot.”

Bang Du-chil decided not to take the Martial Arts Academy exam anymore because he is staying on Cheon-mok Mountain, and he handed me all six gate passes, including his own and the four new ones he received for the first gate.

Yang Gun-baek couldn’t continue his words easily.

I nodded as if I understood.

The gate pass changes owners countless times, and the owner guarding the gate pass kills countless people.

It is not the White Path fighting the Black Path.

The White Path and the White Path wage a war bigger than most Black-White wars under the name of an exam.

That is how important the Martial Arts Academy is to the current rising stars.

After organizing my thoughts for a moment, I asked Yang Gun-baek.

“So, how many people are currently targeting Cheon-mok Mountain…… no, targeting us?”

This is the reality of the Martial Arts Academy Regular Exam.

It was the reason it was called the Hell Regular Exam.

Yang Gun-baek’s mouth opened heavily.

“We are seeing at least 200 groups. More than 4,000 people.”

“…….”

And right now, we had become the most delicious prey.

“……Isn’t there something wrong with the number?”

“I’m sorry……”

There are so many people looking for me.

This kind of popularity is a bit burdensome.