Chapter 82 : Chapter 82

Chapter 82. The Beggar (4)

Downstream of the Chimju River.

There too, faint, whitish energies were flowing.

It was not strange for water ki to flow in the water, but something bizarre was mixed in between.

Black skeins of thread.

Unlike other natural ki, a thicker, more noticeable black energy was flowing, entangled with the blue skeins of water ki.

The scene looked as if the black skeins were devouring the blue ones.

I turned my head and traced the flow of the black skeins backward.

Just like the water ki, the black skeins were flowing from the upstream towards the downstream.

I used my movement technique to run against the flow for a while.

I stopped at a point midway between where the people of Chimju lived and the beggar village.

There was no black energy flowing on the Chimju side.

Instead, a much denser black skein was continuously gushing out from the center of the boundary and flowing downstream.

To my eyes, it looked as if black ink had been daubed onto a blue cloth.

Without delay, I threw myself towards the Chimju River.

Even I did not know when this eye would close.

I had to find the brush that was dabbing that black ink before my eye closed.

***

“Is he alright?”

Sang-gu asked Baek Hyang.

He was not asking about Baek Hyang’s condition.

Sang-gu’s hand was pointing towards Jin Yuseong, who was swinging his sword alone like a madman downstream.

“More! More! More!”

Jin Yuseong was shouting alone as he swung his sword.

Baek Hyang smiled awkwardly and said.

“It seems my Senior Brother is engrossed in his training.”

Just then, Jin Yuseong, who had stopped swinging his sword, turned his gaze towards the Chimju River and suddenly started running along it towards the town of Chimju.

After staring blankly at the scene for a moment, the events of the day suddenly came to So Honggae’s mind. The argument between Jin Yuseong and the master of Choi Manor.

When that was combined with the Ghost Sword Young Master’s infamy, a terrifying conclusion came to mind.

“Quick, stop him! Don’t let him attack Choi Manor!”

At So Honggae’s shout, the others were startled and hurriedly dashed off.

“Stop!!”

“B-Bro! Y-You have to hold back!”

“Senior Brother!! Calm down!!”

“You crazy bastard!!”

Was it because he heard their shouts?

Jin Yuseong, who was running, soon slowed his steps.

But Jin Yuseong’s gaze was not on them.

Instead, he was staring intently at the Chimju River. At the visibly turbid water.

Just as the others who had caught up to Jin Yuseong were about to grab him.

Fwoosh.

Suddenly, Jin Yuseong leaped towards the turbid river water.

“……”

Splash.

As the water splashed, the people who had followed Jin Yuseong watched the scene with stunned faces.

Dang Sopyeong shook his head, and So Honggae muttered in disbelief.

“……Did he run all the way here just to go for a swim?”

Baek Hyang smiled awkwardly and defended Jin Yuseong.

“Maybe he went into the cold water to calm his anger?”

“Even our Beggar’s Gang members don’t wash in that dirty water.”

“……”

While they were chatting, Jin Yuseong, who had swum to the deepest central part, suddenly dived into the water.

“He must be quite angry. Hmph.”

While So Honggae snorted with a dumbfounded expression, Jin Yuseong, who had dived in, came back up to the surface.

He swam out of the Chimju River.

After getting out of the water, Jin Yuseong casually tossed a small lump of iron in front of So Honggae’s feet.

“Check it.”

So Honggae’s expression had suddenly become quite serious.

Strange characters were engraved on the lump of iron, and a sinister energy was flowing out of it.

Even without a special eye like Jin Yuseong’s, one could feel the energy clearly if they examined it from this close.

It was undoubtedly a cursed object containing a sinister spell.

Just then, Jin Yuseong’s voice reached So Honggae’s ears.

“It seems someone has been using tricks to drive the beggars away.”

Only then did So Honggae grasp the situation and look up at Jin Yuseong.

“But how did you notice this?”

“Last night. I saw someone throw something in this direction. I came here just in case.”

Jin Yuseong replied without batting an eye.

An old saying in the Jianghu. Hide three-tenths of your skill.

His special eye was no different from a trump card, so he had no intention of telling the Beggar’s Gang about it.

“Then did you see the face of the one who threw this?”

At So Honggae’s question, Jin Yuseong calmly nodded.

He hadn’t witnessed it, but he already knew who the culprit was.

***

As the sun was setting. A manor located on one side of Chimju.

“Father. Is it really alright?”

To the young master’s question, the manor lord Choi Cheol replied.

“Are you talking about that thing from last night?”

“Yes. The Beggar’s Gang scoundrels might notice……”

At his son’s timidness, who would one day inherit the family, Choi Cheol snorted.

“Hmph. What’s there to be afraid of from beggars who only care about what others think? The downstream of the Chimju River is dirty water anyway. Do you think a mere lump of iron thrown in there would be noticeable?”

Even though he himself was a man who pretended to be a chivalrous hero because he was conscious of others’ opinions, he spoke like a righteous man.

“Besides, we’ve come this far. How long are you going to delay the grand plan, worrying about what they think? If we drive out the beggars, the Beggar’s Gang fellows will disappear as well. Once the Beggar’s Gang is gone, we must finish the final task we’ve postponed, mustn't we?”

The young master looked at his father with a complicated expression.

His father had always been a greedy man.

But he was also exceptionally patient. At least, he knew how to hide his true self in front of others.

Pretending to be a member of the Righteous Path, pretending to be a magnanimous person—it was all the same. He had been exercising patience for the sake of the bigger picture.

If they openly committed acts of the Underworld, there was always the risk of being taken down by the likes of the Beggar’s Gang or so-called chivalrous groups.

That method was effective. Even now, the residents of Chimju were on their side, so the famous Beggar’s Gang couldn't touch them carelessly.

But recently, his father had been showing a lack of patience, disguising his impatience as the righteousness of a true man.

‘Is it because of that…?’

It started after he laid his hands on that sinister object.

The words to stop this now came up to his throat, but the young master couldn't bring himself to say them.

His father’s stern gaze. He realized it would be futile to speak.

“……I understand, Father.”

Just as the young master, having paid his respects, was about to leave the Leader’s Hall.

A commotion started to be heard from outside the Leader’s Hall.

“What is going on!”

At Choi Cheol’s shout, a martial artist who was standing guard a little away from the hall belatedly answered.

“They say the Beggar’s Gang has come!”

At the martial artist’s shout, the young master looked at his father with anxious eyes.

“Hmph.”

Snorting, Choi Cheol walked out of the Leader’s Hall with a dignified stride.

So Honggae’s shouts and the cries of the martial artists guarding the entrance of Choi Manor were mixed together.

“Bring out the manor lord at once!!”

“If you come any further, we won’t stand by either!”

Choi Cheol stepped forward, shouting.

“Stand aside!”

Passing the martial artists, Choi Cheol stepped forward and asked confidently.

“What brings you here at this late hour?”

So Honggae frowned and shouted.

“Master of Choi Manor. There is a witness who saw you throw this sinister object into the Chimju River!”

Saying so, So Honggae held up the cursed object he had retrieved from the river.

The cursed object was still emitting a sinister energy. So Honggae was circulating his internal energy to resist it.

“What grudge do you have to put such a sinister object in the water the beggars drink!”

So Honggae asked again, as if demanding an answer.

At the appearance of the unexpected object, Choi Cheol’s eyes momentarily wavered, but he quickly returned to his original expression.

“Hmph. I don’t know what that thing is, but I can see that the Beggar’s Gang is trying to frame me, Choi Cheol! It’s extremely disappointing to see the highly renowned Beggar’s Gang act in such a manner!”

“There is a witness, yet you still try to lie your way out of it!”

“A witness? A witness brought by you people who were already harassing the good people of Chimju by only taking care of the beggars? Are you telling us to believe that?”

Saying so, Choi Cheol slowly turned his head and shouted to the surroundings.

“If any martial brother in the Jianghu hears this story, they will laugh at the Beggar’s Gang!”

The commoners of Chimju, who had gathered at the noise from Choi Manor, gave strength to Choi Cheol’s words with their voices.

“That’s right!!”

“Why are you doing this to us!!”

So Honggae’s face turned beet red as he suppressed his anger.

And just as he, having barely calmed down, was about to say something, Jin Yuseong’s voice was heard.

“Tsk. What a variety of nonsense.”

For some reason, So Honggae felt a sense of foreboding and quickly reached out to grab Jin Yuseong.

But he was a step too late.

As if there was nothing more to consider, Jin Yuseong used his movement technique and rushed towards Choi Cheol.

Fwoosh!

The reason Jin Yuseong had stayed still until now was not because he was being considerate of the Beggar’s Gang, nor was it because the commoners were watching.

It was simply because he didn't know yet if that man had committed the crime.

But not anymore.

Instantly closing the distance, Jin Yuseong swung the Restoring Name Sword at Choi Cheol’s neck.

The Restoring Name Sword grazed the neck of Choi Cheol, who hastily retreated. A thin stream of blood flowed down Choi Cheol’s neck.

The martial artists of Choi Manor began to form a siege formation around Jin Yuseong to protect their lord.

“Protect the Manor Lord!!”

“What are you all doing!! Kill that bastard at once!!”

Nam Geon and Baek Hyang, without a moment’s hesitation, rushed towards the Choi Manor martial artists to help Jin Yuseong.

“G-Gonna protect bro!!”

“Senior Brother!!”

With a sigh, Dang Sopyeong also moved to help them.

“Haa. That crazy bastard finally did it.”

So Honggae, who had spat out a curse, also launched himself with a shout.

“Damn it. Help the Ghost Sword Young Master for now!! Don’t kill the martial artists!! Subdue them alive!”

While subduing a Choi Manor martial artist blocking his path by striking their acupoints, So Honggae was also watching the life-and-death struggle between Jin Yuseong and Choi Cheol.

‘Unbelievable.’

Jin Yuseong was overwhelmingly pushing Choi Cheol back.

Even while the Choi Manor martial artists were helping their lord.

So Honggae had heard rumors that the Ghost Sword Young Master’s level was exceptional for his age, but he had never expected him to be this outstanding.

‘Any later and it’ll be irreversible.’

Just as So Honggae, who was not yet convinced that Choi Cheol was the culprit, had that thought, Choi Cheol spat out a curse and quickly thrust his spear.

“How dare you, you son of a bitch!!”

At a speed incomparable to before.

So Honggae’s eyes were inevitably captivated by the spear technique.

What was more surprising than the speed was the energy contained in the spear.

An immense amount of internal energy was coiled around Choi Cheol’s spear.

The overflowing energy formed a spear qi, so much so that it looked like a skein of thread.

Spear Silk.

A technique that far surpassed the publicly known level of Choi Cheol.

Swish.

A small cutting sound echoed.

Jin Yuseong twisted his upper body sharply. His martial arts uniform was torn, and a shallow wound appeared on his side.

For some reason, a demonic smile hung on the lips of Jin Yuseong, who had narrowly escaped with his life.

“As expected. The poor harvest in this area was also your doing.”

Choi Cheol was scheduled to suffer from Qi Deviation and a Mental Demon soon.

While Mental Demons or Qi Deviation can be caused by various factors, the most representative cause was reckless martial arts training.

Indeed, this man currently possessed an amount of internal energy incomparable to what was publicly known.

So, where did all that energy come from?

So Honggae, who was eavesdropping on their conversation while fighting the Choi Manor martial artists, could also easily deduce the source of that energy.

“So you stole the natural ki with a sinister cursed object!!! Because of that man, innocent commoners ended up as beggars!”

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