Chapter 22 : Molting

Chapter 22: Molting

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The day he departed for the Namgung Family.

Dong Bong-su left the family estate early, leading Yeoro with him and carrying only simple travel attire.

Was it because he had risen too early? Not a single person was in sight yet.

A quiet morning.

As always, it was a good time to think.

Holding Yeoro’s reins, he calmly continued the contemplation he had begun the day before.

How was he supposed to learn martial arts?

For now, all he could do was watch with the naked eye and imitate what he had seen.

Last night, relying on his accumulated memories—the movements of the Black Division leaders and the warriors he had seen within the family—he tried to recreate various martial arts. He could imitate the forms, but it did not go well. It was an imitation in the truest sense. Nothing more, nothing less.

In the end, that meant there was no way to learn martial arts without being taught.

Then what should he do?

Either read books or apprentice himself to someone. Of the two, the former was the inferior choice, the latter the superior one. For anything, learning alone by getting broken and torn apart was slower than learning from someone who had already been broken and torn apart. That way, one could move on to the next stage without repeating the same mistakes.

Dong Bong-su reflected on himself.

In his current state, he would not be welcomed anywhere. In terms of avoiding attention, the half-mute hireling Sosam was an appearance with optimal camouflage, but it was a poor guise for learning anything.

Running out of the Danri Family like this and becoming someone’s disciple would not be easy. After all, by this world’s reckoning, he had already reached the age of eighteen, and from what he had heard, once one reached around this age, it became difficult to newly learn martial arts. Even if someone did take him in, it would likely not be a great master.

‘For now, I’ll set this problem aside.’

He had not yet truly experienced the Martial World.

When it came to learning martial arts, it would not be too late to decide after experiencing more of it.

If he went to the Namgung Family this time, his horizons would surely broaden greatly.

There, the chances of obtaining a solution to this issue would be high. If it truly did not work out, he could learn from books.

He cleared his mind again and stood quietly, waiting for the others to come out. However, only on the surface did he appear still, he was not idle in the slightest.

All across Dong Bong-su’s body, hidden beneath his clothes, grains of sand were continuously appearing and disappearing. It was the practice of the Inventory Divine Art. It was not a technique with something like proficiency or levels, but when he looked back on his survival so far, it had been the most useful ‘art’ of all. It was a technique that even surpassed the skills granted upon leveling up, ‘the Inventory Divine Art’.

In addition to that.

Recently, he had realized that this art could be advanced as well. Specifically, it was the ability to take out or put away two items at the same time. He had not yet mastered it perfectly, but it had become possible to a certain extent. If more time passed, he would likely be able to pull out or store three or even four items simultaneously in one go.

Like a duck paddling its feet furiously beneath the water to glide smoothly across the surface, he continued to steadily train the Inventory Divine Art while standing there.

Just how much more time passed like that?

By the time sunlight was gradually warming the land, those who would be departing for the Namgung Family began to show their faces one by one.

The Black Five Division members came out first and quietly lined up in front of the family’s main gate. They were likely waiting for Gi Dae-hyo and Gi Man-ji.

Dong Bong-su watched their expressions and quietly moved to stand in a secluded corner. It was to remain faithful to Sosam’s role. If it were Sosam, he surely would have done the same.

After a short while, Gi Man-ji appeared, neatly dressed in the uniform of the Black Five Division, and began checking the departing personnel.

“All members of the Black Five Division are assembled.”

After counting all of them, his gaze also flicked once toward Dong Bong-su.

“Yeoro is here as well.”

To him, Dong Bong-su as Sosam was no more than an accessory to Yeoro. Gi Man-ji then went on to check the tribute gifts to be taken to the Namgung Family and the number of personnel assigned to transport them. As expected, there were no issues.

“Mm. No problems. Who hasn’t come out yet?”

“At this point, everyone has gathered except for the young master and the young lady.”

At Gi Man-ji’s question, one of the Black Five Division members answered. The young master he referred to was Danri Kang Hae, the eldest son of Dan Ri Cheon-u, while the young lady meant the second daughter, Dan Ri-hui. Gi Dae-hyo had not yet come out either, but since he was the one to whom Gi Man-ji would report after everyone was assembled, he was not mentioned at all.

Although Danri Kang Hae and Dan Ri-hui were nowhere to be seen, Gi Man-ji did not think much of it. Their tardiness was an everyday occurrence, so it was something he had anticipated anyway.

“Then everyone is here.”

After quickly finishing another headcount with both eyes, Gi Man-ji went inside the family estate. Not long after, he came back out. The difference was that, unlike before, Gi Dae-hyo now stood at the forefront.

As soon as he emerged, Gi Dae-hyo walked straight forward through the ranks of the Black Five Division members without saying a word. It was a silent signal to depart.

In place of Gi Dae-hyo, Gi Man-ji shouted loudly.

“Let’s go.”

With those words, all personnel followed Gi Dae-hyo and began the journey to the Namgung Family.

Although the two most important individuals were missing, no one found it strange. Dong Bong-su was no exception.

Everyone in the Danri Family already knew well what kind of people Danri Kang Hae and Dan Ri-hui were.

Without even needing to look, Danri Kang Hae would be drinking at some inn in Bongyang’s bustling district, fondling women’s bodies, while Dan Ri-hui would still be inside the family estate.

She pathologically hated traveling together with those beneath her. Most likely, aside from the Black Five Division members gathered here, other Black Five Division members assigned to escort her from a distance were also remaining behind at the estate. After they departed, she would follow the group later as a rear party.

The group continued walking along the road. Before they knew it, they had arrived at Bongyang’s bustling district.

“All halt. We’ll wait for a moment.”

At Gi Man-ji’s words, everyone stopped in place. As everyone knew, the reason for the halt was to pick up Danri Kang Hae.

Since it was still early, the bustling district was quiet.

Except for one place.

Crash—bang!

From inside an inn with a splendid signboard reading *Haengho Inn*, loud noises erupted as if someone were fighting.

“Again?”

Gi Dae-hyo muttered quietly and began walking toward the inn. He was the only one who spoke out loud, but everyone except Dong Bong-su was reciting the same words in their minds.

Danri Kang Hae was the eldest son of Dan Ri Cheon-u and a martial prodigy blessed with outstanding aptitude and talent. Bongyang was not a particularly large city, but when it came to the finest prodigy in Bongyang, everyone unanimously named Danri Kang Hae.

However, his character was frivolous, and he loved alcohol and women far too much, so unsavory rumors always followed him.

That was precisely why Gi Dae-hyo had told Dan Ri Cheon-u the day before that ‘the Namgung Family might not want either of them.’ Danri Kang Hae’s skills were excellent for his age, and his fundamentals were outstanding, so in terms of ability, he was more than qualified to enter the Namgung Family as an outer disciple. The problem was his character.

Because it was the Family Head’s order, Gi Dae-hyo had no choice but to carry out this task, but honestly, he did not have high expectations. The only thing he could truly trust right now was Yeoro, the blood-sweating treasured horse called the Heavenly Horse. At best, he could only hope that the rumors about Namgung Byeok collecting fine horses were an understatement.

Gi Dae-hyo shook his head once and approached the inn.

Even in the meantime, the sounds of fighting inside the inn did not cease.

Thud—crash—bang!

As he walked toward the inn entrance, Gi Dae-hyo felt a deep sense of puzzlement.

Just who could be there, to be able to fight Danri Kang Hae like that in Bongyang?

Regardless of his character, Danri Kang Hae was a fairly well-known rising star of the later generation in Anhui Province. Among those belonging to the small and mid-sized sects of Bongyang, there was not a single person who would dare challenge him, nor even anyone capable of enduring several exchanges with him. Recently, because there was no one left who could stand up to his tyranny, the inns he frequented had actually become rather quiet.

‘Just who in the world is it?’

The moment Gi Dae-hyo thought that to himself…

Bang!

With a loud crash, someone was flung out of the inn and rolled across the ground. Though his face was flushed red from drunkenness, he was still a young man with strikingly handsome features.

It was Danri Kang Hae.

“Mm!?”

An exclamation of surprise escaped Gi Dae-hyo’s mouth.

What had happened? The person inside the inn had not merely exchanged blows with Danri Kang Hae, they had actually forced him into defeat.

A sudden sense of foreboding brushed across his mind.

On the other hand, unlike Gi Dae-hyo, Dong Bong-su, who was watching the situation unfold, was feeling something entirely different. He had already stopped practicing the Inventory Divine Art, which he had been training incessantly ever since leaving the family estate.

[An enemy with a level difference of 10 or more has approached within 20 meters of you. 20.]

It was because the Spirit Eye had activated.

Without even needing to look, the target of the Spirit Eye was undoubtedly the one who had driven Danri Kang Hae out of the inn.

“Damn it! I’ll kill this bastard!”

Danri Kang Hae spat curses as he forced his body upright. There was no need to say who the target of his rage was, the one who had driven him out of the inn.

When he had only half-raised himself, Dong Bong-su saw a brown figure shoot out of the inn like lightning.

Flap—flutter!

The hem of the brown-robed figure’s long coat billowed violently, creating a peculiar tearing sound as cloth and air clashed. The brown-robed man charged straight at Danri Kang Hae the moment he appeared, giving him no chance to evade before stomping down on his throat.

“Kgh!”

As Danri Kang Hae’s body, which had been half-raised, was forced back down onto the ground under the man’s foot, Dong Bong-su turned his gaze toward Gi Dae-hyo.

Clang!

Just as expected, upon seeing Danri Kang Hae being attacked, Gi Dae-hyo drew his sword without a moment’s hesitation.

“Stop!”

The brown-robed middle-aged man turned to look at Gi Dae-hyo while still keeping his foot planted on Danri Kang Hae’s throat.

Only then did Dong Bong-su get a proper look at him. He was a middle-aged man of average height with a cold, impassive face. The chill in his eyes made him seem ruthless by nature, regardless of the depth of his martial arts.

With a voice as cold as his expression, he spoke to Gi Dae-hyo.

“What is it?”