Chapter 107 : Chapter 107

Chapter 107: The Mission to Rescue the Mistress of the Flower Moon Pavilion (1)

Geombigak.

The leader of the loan sharks.

Ma Pyeong-sam knew how sinister nature was hidden behind that smiling face.

He could not not know because he had already uncovered everything about him through the information network of the Hidden Shadow.

In truth, it was because he was such a sinister person that he was chosen by the Hidden Shadow, but the fact that he was an unpleasant human being could not be denied.

The point that was making him angry now was not the fact that Geombigak was such a sinister person, but the reality that he was being played by such a sinister and insignificant human being.

“If you do not wish to cause friction with our cult, kill that woman.”

“I cannot kill her.”

Geombigak, who had replied so, smiled faintly.

“I am not a card that can be discarded just yet, am I?”

Grind.

Ma Pyeong-sam's emotions, which were usually not prone to fluctuation, fluctuated rarely in recent times.

How could Ma Pyeong-sam have known that there was a law in the Rogues' Guild that forbade killing among the successors?

Perhaps even Wisu had not known this.

It might have been a problem that was even more unexpected because he was a martial artist of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, where the survival of the fittest was a given.

‘What should I do.’

Although Ma Pyeong-sam was the hidden sword of the Demonic Cult who did whatever was ordered, it did not mean that he was foolish.

It meant that Ma Pyeong-sam was clearly aware of the current situation, which had become twisted beyond belief.

Therefore, Ma Pyeong-sam was currently in a not-so-good mood.

Very rarely, a chill seeped into his voice.

“In that case, you should have destroyed the evidence.”

Was his name Ma Sok?

He was referring to the limb of the Mistress of the Pavilion who had been sent away alive.

If he had killed him, it would have been a problem that could be denied even after killing the Mistress of the Flower Moon Pavilion.

It would not be easy, but if it were the capabilities of the Hidden Shadow, they could have caused confusion in the information network of the Rogues' Guild at least once.

“I told you. That bastard is the property of the clan.”

Geombigak replied without hesitation.

“Oops! I had forgotten about the existence of the law then. It was just a mistake. Haha.”

The fact that he purposely added those words at the end must be his intention to mock him.

“…….”

Although Ma Pyeong-sam's expression was still unmoving, a small annoyance was sprouting in his heart.

In the first place, if it weren't for the method of having to instigate Geombigak to eliminate the Mistress of the Flower Moon Pavilion, there would have been no reason for it to be this complicated.

He followed Wisu's command because it was so, but he was in a state where he was not pleased with anything.

“So you're saying you won't kill her?”

“It's not that I won't kill her, but that I can't. You have to get your words right.”

Grit.

Ma Pyeong-sam quietly ground his teeth.

That upstart called Geombigak must have planned this whole situation.

He was a type of human that Ma Pyeong-sam despised, one who did not know the greater cause and focused on petty gains.

‘Should I kill him.’

A killing intent arose.

It was a problem that could be solved by tearing the Geombigak who was currently causing his annoyance to death, and then killing Yeo-wol as well.

Considering his martial prowess, it was also a matter no different from turning over his hand.

“Why? Do you want to kill me?”

As if he had noticed Ma Pyeong-sam's demeanor, Geombigak smiled slyly and provoked Ma Pyeong-sam's mood again.

Seeing that he acted like that even after knowing that Ma Pyeong-sam was from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's intelligence organization, the Hidden Shadow, it was clear that the person called Geombigak was also not a normal human being.

“……No. How could I harm you, sir.”

Ma Pyeong-sam regained his unshakable mind.

This was because he too could not make the mistake of losing a great deal for a small gain.

Considering the effort that the Hidden Shadow had invested so far to make Geombigak the leader of the Rogues' Guild, the current Geombigak was a card that could not be easily discarded.

“Then let's move on from this problem.”

“Hmm.”

When there are multiple commands, it is common for them to conflict when they are put into practice.

In such cases, the general principle is to prioritize the higher command.

In Ma Pyeong-sam's judgment, the goal of making Geombigak the leader of the Rogues' Guild and taking control of the Rogues' Guild in the shadows would be a much higher-level goal than the command to kill the Mistress of the Flower Moon Pavilion.

Therefore, he was planning to keep both of them alive for now.

For now, that is.

***

Tat!

The footsteps of the wanderer Lee Chun-baek, who had crossed the vast Yangtze River with a graceful lightness art, finally reached the shore.

Having departed from Anhui and crossed to the south of the Yangtze River, the place where he had set foot was Jiangnan, which could be called the domain of the Evil Faction Alliance.

“Hmm.”

Except for the time he spent with his master, his life as a wanderer had always been one of wandering aimlessly like a duckweed, but he found himself, performing his lightness art alone, quite awkward.

It must be because the footprints that the younger brother named Dancheon Myeong had left on his life were larger than he thought.

Lee Chun-baek recalled the reason why he had set foot on this distant land of Jiangnan.

-Chun-baek hyung, I have a favor to ask.

-What is it?

-Please summon the Evil Faction Alliance Leader to Anhui.

-……How?

-To be honest, I'm not sure about that.

-Hmm.

-I have no one else to ask but you, Chun-baek hyung.

-Is it urgent?

-A friend's life is on the line.

-I'll try.

In truth, this was the first time his younger brother had made such a clueless request.

But he could not bring himself to refuse, with the words that it was for a friend, and that a life was even on the line.

It was also because Dancheon Myeong's friend was also Chun-baek's friend, but it was also because of his belief that Dancheon Myeong would have acted the same way if he himself had been in danger.

“I should hurry.”

When Lee Chun-baek, the successor of the Mysterious Sect, fully unleashed his sect's secret lightness art, his body began to cross the land of Henan faster than the wind.

***

Having achieved old age in the turbulent Jianghu of a forest of swords and mountains of blades meant being strong. It did not just mean the strength of one's martial arts, so it would not be an exaggeration to call it a survival skill.

Come to think of it, the old beggar Chwipung-gae was a person like the epitome of an old man.

“Hide thirty percent of your true skills.”

“Why is that?”

“Because that fact will become your life-saving ultimate technique in an emergency.”

“Indeed.”

Hiding one's true strength.

“Also, it is right to hide a good thing that is only for you, even from those close to you.”

“A good thing only for me?”

“A serendipitous encounter could be an example.”

“Even to those close to me?”

“That's because human jealousy is an emotion that cannot be rashly judged.”

“Hmm.”

Regarding how to conduct oneself.

“Especially, if you have a secret that only you possess, it is best not to reveal it unless absolutely necessary.”

“Because it's a secret?”

“There is a reason why a secret is a secret. If you rashly reveal that secret, you may fall into poverty.”

“Indeed.”

Even the importance of secrets.

I learned the philosophy of begging, the philosophy of an informant, and insight from Chwipung-gae. Although I did not learn martial arts from him, that was the reason I considered him my master.

And I learned from Chwipung-gae how to live smoothly in the world. Although I did not inherit his blood, that was the reason I considered him like a parent.

In any case, Chwipung-gae’s teachings on how to conduct oneself were something that became my flesh and blood.

In a way, they were very obvious knowledge, but it was because they were somewhat new to me.

Until I met Chwipung-gae, I had no master or adult to teach me such things, so I didn't even have a chance to learn.

-I'm not sure what it is myself, but you seem to be harboring some big secret. Try to always protect that secret, unless absolutely necessary.

The words that Chwipung-gae had left as a farewell on the day I left the Beggar's Gang and headed for the Secret Pavilion came to mind faintly.

I think he was right.

The fact that I had regressed should be classified as a top-secret among secrets. This is because it is a mystery whose mechanism even I do not know.

Following Chwipung-gae’s advice, it is something that should never be revealed.

“Chwipung-gae. You are right.”

After I regressed, I practiced Chwipung-gae’s teachings.

It wasn't that I just followed it because it was an adult's teaching, but it was also the result of a thought experiment I had conducted on my own.

-I have regressed!

-Is he crazy?

This is the most common situation that would occur if I were to reveal the fact of my regression.

The other person would at least think of me as a frivolous person, and in the worst case, they might even evaluate me as a swindler or a mentally deranged person.

-I have regressed!

-Oh-ho. A living serendipitous encounter is walking over there!

It would be a problem even if they believed the fact that I had regressed.

It was because it was not difficult to guess how I would look in their eyes.

In any case, it was like that.

There was no reason for me, who had lived the life of a skilled informant, Myeong-gae, to go out of my way to reveal the fact of my regression.

I cannot deny that the strong intuition that for some reason, I should not reveal it also played a part.

.

.

.

If one were to regress like me and intend to keep that secret, there is an important point.

Namely, the circumstance called 'plausibility'.

-Myeong-ah.

-Yes.

-That, the Immaculate Pomegranate.

-Yes.

-By any chance, may I ask how you came to obtain it?

One day, Uncle Yeo Baek had asked cautiously, as if he had been pondering it for a long time.

-I was lucky.

-Indeed, you must have been born with heavenly luck.

-I suppose so.

It passed like that.

-I have something to ask you.

-Please speak.

Singija had also asked cautiously once.

-How did you become the successor of the Healing Sage?

-It seems heavenly luck reached me.

-Well, the Healing Sage’s Mind Cultivation Art was arranged throughout Jianghu…… if one were followed by heavenly luck, one could have reached it.

-I suppose so.

-You were lucky.

-I was lucky.

It passed like that.

-How did you discover the Garden of Joy?

-I was lucky.

-Indeed.

The question from the Dragon Head Clan Leader Musan-gae also passed like that.

Because my education is short, my understanding of the branches of mathematics, probability and statistics, is lacking, but I know how extremely low the probability is for all these coincidences to happen to one person.

But it is also true that all those things can fall into the category of 'it just happened by chance'.

As I said, this is because the Jianghu Murim is a mysterious world where serendipitous encounters are rampant.

Isn't a flow of events like 'I fell off a cliff after slipping on a mountain and survived unscathed, and in a cave I happened to find there, I discovered the legacy of a past master, and by collecting that legacy, I became an absolute master' in the realm of common sense in the Jianghu Murim?

A coincidence as overlapping as this is called heavenly luck, and it is not a rare occurrence in the Jianghu Murim.

Since common sense is another name for plausibility, it also means that a coincidence of this degree has plausibility.

It's not my assertion, but the perception of the Jianghu Murim is like that.

-Dancheon Myeong might be a person born with heavenly luck.

It means that all those who had questioned me with suspicion had concluded so.

But the current case is a little different.

For example, to have noticed alone the fact that a nameless master, who was not known to exist, belonged to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's intelligence organization, the Hidden Shadow.

To know the exact location of the Hidden Shadow's hidden safe house in Anhui.

And even to be able to decipher the code of that Hidden Shadow.

I know that these are things that, like the previous events, are difficult to claim as 'it just happened by chance'.

That was the reason why I had left this method as a last resort.

It was because I knew that it would destroy the plausibility that I had painstakingly protected.

Nevertheless, the reason why I finally stepped forward is because the Mistress of the Flower Moon Pavilion, Yeo-wol, is my friend.

***

“I know the whereabouts of the Mistress of the Pavilion.”

At my calm confession, Ma Sok’s eyes widened.

As if he could not understand the current situation, Brother Gangpae had a suspicious look.

“Where should we go?”

Ma Sok asked.

“Follow me.”

Saying so, I initiated my lightness art.

Since a lot of time had already been delayed, we could not delay any longer.

The destination was the underground secret cave that the Hidden Shadow's code was pointing to.

“Are you sure?”

Ma Sok asked cautiously.

“Trust me.”

“Yes.”

This time, it was my turn to ask.

“Any other questions?”

“None.”

I just gave a nod at Ma Sok's words.

Information is about handling context.

There is no way a person like Ma Sok would not know that the context and plausibility in my current behavior have been completely erased.

But Ma Sok did not ask me for the reason.

He did not harbor any suspicion.

He just trusted me.

This too must be because Ma Sok is my friend.