Chapter: 19
Before long, the pitch-black night receded, and the faint light of dawn spread across the roof of the Geumjeon Guild.
But Baek Dugwang had remained awake the entire night.
His bloodshot eyes stared at the dim light outside the window.
They’ll be here soon.
The unknown force that had wiped out the Black Tiger Fortress, the Bisal Hall, and the Gwanghyeol Sect.
His thoughts drifted back to the nightmare he had experienced years ago in Jiangxi.
Would he abandon everything and run away again, just like before?
Or would he meet his end here?
After struggling with himself throughout the night, as dawn finally broke, he made his decision.
Baek Dugwang summoned every key member of the Geumjeon Guild to the guild master’s chamber.
His unusually solemn demeanor filled the room with heavy silence.
“You’ve all heard.”
He finally opened his dry lips.
“Last night, the Black Tiger Fortress, the Bisal Hall, and the Gwanghyeol Sect were all wiped out. We’re next.”
His gaze swept slowly across the faces of his subordinates.
These were the men who had trusted and followed him all this time.
“I’m staying.”
He spoke quietly.
“But I won’t drag the rest of you into this. Anyone who wants to run, leave now. I won’t hold it against you. Check the ledgers and take whatever share you think belongs to you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the atmosphere grew even heavier.
Everyone simply looked at one another.
Not a single person moved.
Baek Dugwang shouted in frustration.
“What are you all standing around for?! Check the ledgers, grab anything valuable, and get out of here!”
“G-Guild Master…”
“…Right. You go first. You have a family, don’t you?”
“Well… that’s the problem. None of us know how to read the ledgers. How are we supposed to know what to take?”
The moment he finished speaking, the others eagerly chimed in.
“Exactly! What if we accidentally take debt records instead of money?!”
“Which one’s expensive, this jar or that scroll? We have no idea!”
Baek Dugwang stared blankly at the unbelievable sight before him.
Excuses.
Ridiculously clumsy, foolish excuses.
It was true that they couldn’t read.
But valuable jewelry and silver were scattered all over the room.
All they had to do was grab something and run.
Yet none of them were leaving.
Instead of saying embarrassing things like, “We’ll die together,” or, “We’ll stand by you until the end,” they were expressing those feelings in the most characteristically awkward way possible.
Baek Dugwang let out a helpless laugh and nodded.
“You ignorant idiots…”
Yet that foolish sincerity warmed his heart.
“Fine. What would a bunch of illiterate fools even do out there anyway?”
He let everything go.
And accepted it.
The fate that was coming.
Just then—
Bang!
A loud crash echoed from downstairs.
It was followed by a brief scream and sudden commotion.
Baek Dugwang’s heart sank.
They’re here!
Just as he leapt to his feet, the guild master’s door burst open.
But it wasn’t an enemy.
“G-Guild Master! Some men have—!”
The subordinate’s report ended there.
A shadow appeared behind him and struck the back of his neck.
His eyes rolled back as he collapsed face-first onto the floor.
Thud.
A long shadow stretched over the unconscious man’s body.
Then two men stepped inside.
Baek Dugwang doubted his own eyes.
The Namgung Clan’s Third Young Master, Namgung Cheon.
And behind him stood the Extinction Sword, Mujin.
Don’t tell me… they’re the ones who wiped out the Black Tiger Fortress!
While everyone in the room remained frozen, Namgung Cheon slowly turned his head and casually looked around.
His indifferent gaze eventually settled on Baek Dugwang.
At that instant, Baek Dugwang’s breath caught.
An overwhelming aura that made every hair on his body stand on end.
The pressure was on an entirely different level from anything he had imagined through rumors.
If I fight… I’ll die.
The option of resisting vanished from his mind.
Only one choice remained.
Thud!
Without the slightest hesitation, Baek Dugwang dropped to his knees.
“I, Baek Dugwang, Master of the Geumjeon Guild, pay my respects to Young Master Namgung!”
Even Mujin paused in surprise.
No resistance.
No defiance.
A perfect surrender.
At least I have to save my men.
Baek Dugwang remembered that terrible day in Jiangxi.
His comrades being slaughtered one after another.
Meaningless resistance only spills more blood.
Especially the blood of those who had faithfully followed him.
If sacrificing his own life could end everything, then that was the last thing he could do for the men who had trusted him.
With his forehead pressed against the floor, he shouted.
“I know you’ve come to kill me! But my men are guilty only of following me! Please… let my life alone be enough!”
His voice thundered throughout the room.
Even so, Namgung Cheon said nothing.
After quietly watching Baek Dugwang for a moment, he walked over to the ledgers scattered across the floor.
Rustle.
He casually flipped through the pages.
“…”
Baek Dugwang swallowed hard.
Why isn’t he saying anything?
Cold sweat trickled down his back.
The only sound filling the room was the turning of pages.
Then Namgung Cheon finally spoke.
“You’re fairly skilled at making money.”
It was an entirely unexpected first remark.
Unsure whether it was praise or mockery, Baek Dugwang slowly raised his head in confusion.
Namgung Cheon continued.
“I didn’t come here to kill you.”
“…What?”
The words escaped Baek Dugwang’s mouth before he realized it.
If he hadn’t come to kill him…
Then why?
Namgung Cheon shut the ledger with a sharp clap.
Looking down at the kneeling Baek Dugwang, he finally stated his purpose.
“I want you to clean up Anhui’s underworld.”
“…!”
Baek Dugwang couldn’t believe his ears.
Just moments ago, he had been prepared to lose his head.
Now the Third Young Master of the Namgung Clan was offering him control over the entire underworld of Anhui.
The Namgung Clan.
The absolute rulers of Anhui.
If Namgung Cheon had said it, it couldn’t be an empty promise.
Then…
…This is an opportunity.
But another question arose.
“Why… me?”
At the trembling question, Namgung Cheon recalled the intelligence he had received from the Hao Clan.
Baek Dugwang, Master of the Geumjeon Guild.
A man whose greed for money knew no bounds.
Yet one who never crossed certain lines that should never be crossed.
At the very least, he was nothing like the beasts who sold children.
And there was more.
—Baek Dugwang. Peak Realm expert. He has recruited many capable wandering martial artists with money and systematically trained them in martial arts, building the organization’s foundation.
Namgung Cheon glanced toward the corner of the room, where the guild members were still kneeling.
At first glance they looked like an unruly mob.
But each possessed a surprisingly solid foundation of internal energy in their lower dantian.
They were completely different from the bandits of the Black Tiger Fortress.
Military strength.
Financial power.
And at least a minimum moral standard.
That was enough.
Having reached his conclusion, Namgung Cheon answered indifferently.
“Because you’re the least worthless.”
With that, he turned around without another word.
Still kneeling, Baek Dugwang stared blankly at his departing back.
Creak… Bang.
Only after a long while…
After Namgung Cheon’s presence had completely disappeared…
Did Baek Dugwang cautiously open his mouth.
“…I-Is he gone?”
At his trembling question, Naeng Cheolsan, standing beside him, quietly nodded.
The very next instant—
“Heh… Hahahahahaha!”
As though he had never accepted death only moments ago, Baek Dugwang suddenly jumped to his feet and burst into manic laughter.
His bewildered subordinates stared at him.
“We lived! We survived, you idiots!”
He ran wildly around the room, shouting.
Then he suddenly grabbed Naeng Cheolsan by the shoulders.
“Cheolsan! Did you hear that?! Me! Baek Dugwang! I’m going to become the head of Anhui’s underworld!”
“Guild Master, please calm down. You’re shouting.”
Despite Naeng Cheolsan’s calm words, Baek Dugwang couldn’t contain his excitement.
“How am I supposed to calm down?! Hey, Cheolgwi! Go tear down the Geumok Pavilion sign immediately and make a new one that says ‘Great Money Guild!’ No, wait! ‘Golden Guild’ sounds even better! Whatever! Just make it the biggest, flashiest sign you can find!”
After laughing noisily for quite some time, Baek Dugwang proudly declared to the still-silent Naeng Cheolsan.
“Cheolsan! From today onward, we’re not the Geumjeon Guild anymore—we’re the Golden Guild! Hahaha!”
Naeng Cheolsan silently continued organizing the scattered ledgers.
Without even looking up, he pointed at a section of the ledger and said,
“Understood. I’ll deduct the cost of the new signboard from your salary next month.”
“…What?”
“Since it’s a personal order from the Guild Master, naturally it should be paid from your personal expenses.”
Instantly, Baek Dugwang’s loud laughter stopped.
The expression of a man who had seemed to own the world twisted in an instant.
After an awkward cough, he forced himself to speak casually.
“…Ahem! Now that I think about it… ‘Golden Guild’ sounds rather vulgar.”
Naeng Cheolsan looked at him with a faint smile.
“The Geumjeon Guild. Yes… our current name is perfect. Friendly. Down-to-earth. Don’t you think so, Cheolsan?”
As he said those words, Baek Dugwang’s shoulders drooped miserably.
The highest floor of Drunken Immortal Tower, the grandest and most luxurious tavern in Hefei.
In the center of the room, a middle-aged man dressed entirely in black quietly drank tea alone.
He was Ak Mu-gyeol, the Black Ghost Blade, commander of the Black Wind Unit—one of the ten military divisions of the Four Black Lotus Alliance.
Before him, a subordinate knelt with an investigation report spread open.
The lengthy report had just ended.
“…You may leave.”
At Ak Mu-gyeol’s command, the subordinate carefully placed the report on the table and quietly exited.
Left alone, Ak Mu-gyeol silently lifted his teacup.
Namgung Cheon…
The report still echoed vividly in his ears.
Immediately after the Sword Marsh… the martial tournament. Guo Shan of the Thunderbolt Gate, Gal Museong of the Blood Ghost Sword… and finally, the Extinction Sword, Mujin.
Every single name listed in the report belonged to someone formidable.
And then there was Mujin.
The sole disciple of the Wolf King.
A Transcendent Realm master whom even Ak Mu-gyeol himself couldn’t confidently defeat.
Yet he defeated all of them… in barely ten days.
A deep frown formed between his brows.
And in less than two days, he exterminated three entire sects.
It was impossible to believe that someone barely past twenty had accomplished all of this.
Even someone blessed with the legendary Heavenly Martial Body couldn’t possibly reach the Transcendent Realm at such an age.
That level required decades of relentless cultivation and countless life-and-death encounters.
Yet Namgung Cheon had reached it.
Like a dragon that had slept for ages, only to awaken with a deafening roar.
This goes beyond talent or fortunate encounters.
It defied reason.
It violated common sense.
Ak Mu-gyeol sank into thought.
The deaths of those paying tribute aren’t the issue.
Money could always be collected elsewhere.
But…
Namgung Cheon.
For what purpose had he shattered all common sense and revealed himself so openly?
“The only place left untouched was the Geumjeon Guild, wasn’t it?”
At his quiet murmur, the vice commander standing like a shadow behind him replied.
“Yes. Strangely enough, only the Geumjeon Guild was spared.”
“Go there tomorrow morning. Whatever it takes, find out Namgung Cheon’s intentions.”
“By your command!”
The vice commander answered and turned to leave.
At that very moment—
Whoosh.
A cold gust of wind slipped through the window, violently shaking the oil lamp on the table.
The shadows in the room stretched long before settling back into place.
That was all.
Yet Ak Mu-gyeol’s eyes narrowed.
Beside his own shadow on the wall…
Another shadow overlapped it.
Had the lamp not flickered, he would never have noticed.
Ak Mu-gyeol spoke quietly.
“How long have you been there?”
The vice commander spun around in shock.
The Black Wind Unit members simultaneously reached for the hilts of their swords.
Then a voice emerged from within the shadows.
“For quite a while.”
With those words, someone slowly stepped out of the darkness.
The very man from the report.
The swordsman carrying two blades.
Namgung Cheon.
He calmly walked over and sat across from Ak Mu-gyeol.
“I heard you were looking for me.”
Meeting Ak Mu-gyeol’s gaze directly, Namgung Cheon smiled faintly.
“Good timing. I have something I’d like to discuss as well.”
