Chapter 446: Shaken (1)
Mo Yong-woo was busy.
He had been busy even at the Martial Alliance, but here, he was busier still.
The Demon-Sweeping Corps had lost more than two hundred comrades-in-arms in the recent operation, and now they trained as though their lives depended on it. They had been notorious for their brutal training even before, but by now, training and life itself had practically become one and the same.
By the time the Demon-Sweeping Corps finished for the day, the sun would already be sinking toward the horizon.
That was when Mo Yong-woo’s own training began.
He limited himself to four hours of sleep a day. Every time he trained, he wrung out every last drop of Inner Qi and physical strength until he was completely exhausted.
Even then, he did not rest. Unless he was meeting with Yeon Hojeong, he devoted himself to keeping abreast of developments in the martial world, and whenever he still had time to spare, he would read even one more line from a book.
It was not because of some compulsion to work himself to the bone.
He simply believed that anything he put into his body or mind now would someday prove immensely useful.
Before he knew it, he had lived like that for more than a month, nearly two.
“Whew.”
CLANG!
The tip of the Demon-Sweeping Greatsword sank into the ground.
He had poured out every shred of internal force and exhausted every ounce of strength his muscles could produce.
The greatsword that normally felt as light as a switch now seemed as heavy as an iron pillar.
Panting hard, Mo Yong-woo sheathed the weapon and suddenly staggered.
Did I overdo it?
He always trained without leaving himself anything in reserve, but today seemed to have been worse than usual. He did not even have enough strength left to maintain his balance.
Thud!
Mo Yong-woo dropped to the ground, immediately crossed his legs, and began circulating his qi.
An hour later—
“Now I feel alive again.”
A vessel had to be emptied before it could be filled.
And a vessel repeatedly emptied and filled would, in time, grow larger and sturdier.
Mo Yong-woo’s body and dantian were undergoing exactly that process.
Perhaps that was why. It was not merely that his Inner Qi had increased. His rate of qi accumulation was vastly faster than it had been two months ago. His body, driven to its limits day after day, had begun greedily drawing in True Qi simply to keep itself from breaking down.
Once that became second nature, he found himself capable of unleashing dozens of cleaving strikes in a single breath.
He had not attained some new enlightenment or stepped into a higher realm, but this too was an enormous gift to a martial artist.
It was perhaps the greatest reward effort alone could earn.
“You all right?”
Mo Yong-woo did not startle at the sudden voice. He had sensed the newcomer while circulating his qi.
“You’re here?”
He turned his head and saw Yeon Hojeong standing with his arms folded, moonlight spilling around him from behind.
...
For some reason, Mo Yong-woo suddenly found Yeon Hojeong’s appearance strangely mysterious.
With the cool yet gentle moonlight at his back, his sworn younger brother looked almost like some mysterious man descended from another world.
Then again.
Mo Yong-woo found himself accepting the thought.
Brother Yeon has always had that kind of presence.
The night sky was filled with stars.
Not a breath of wind stirred, and the world was utterly still.
Just like my life back then, when I felt trapped with nowhere to go.
He did not know why, but his thoughts drifted back to the days before he had met Yeon Hojeong.
Back when he had lost the struggle for power against his brothers and had been sent to Zhejiang to manage a merchant company.
His state of mind then had been miserable beyond words.
No one had understood how he felt. Even if they had known, they probably would not have been able to understand.
That was when Yeon Hojeong appeared.
Just as the darkness around him had reached its deepest point, on the verge of turning into a bottomless abyss where not even a single star could shine.
He really was unbearably arrogant.
A smile rose to Mo Yong-woo’s face without his realizing it.
Yeon Hojeong had shown up in the middle of the night and proceeded to lecture him about becoming a giant of the Orthodox Path and getting his head straight.
A complete stranger had berated him so thoroughly that his insides had churned.
Of course Mo Yong-woo had been offended. He was only human.
And yet, at the same time, it had been the first time in ten years that anyone had stirred such strong emotion in him.
That was probably when his life had begun to change.
Not because Yeon Hojeong had done something for him, but because he had felt the sincere concern behind that harsh rebuke.
Strangely enough, Yeon Hojeong’s voice had always possessed a certain persuasive force. Logic aside, even though his voice was fairly low, there was something about it that could mysteriously set a person’s emotions ablaze.
Showing up out of nowhere like that...
Just as he had tonight, Yeon Hojeong had always appeared without warning.
He would suddenly appear, then suddenly disappear again.
And it was not merely with Mo Yong-woo. Yeon Hojeong had burst onto the scene just as abruptly in this harsh and dangerous martial world, then grown at an explosive pace until his three-syllable name was engraved across the land.
Mo Yong-woo had asked him to become sworn brothers not merely out of loneliness, but because he had genuinely been drawn to him as a person.
Yeon Hojeong had that kind of charm.
And now Mo Yong-woo stood beside that very sworn brother, railing against the world for the sake of everything under heaven.
The realization brought a genuine smile to his face.
“What’s with that smile?”
Yeon Hojeong asked with an uneasy look.
Mo Yong-woo rose to his feet.
“I’m happy to see you. It’s been a while.”
“What do you mean, a while?”
“That is your problem, Brother Yeon. You’re so busy all the time that you’ve lost your sense of time. Remember when I asked you to have a drink with me? You forgot and never showed up.”
“A drink? When?”
“See? You don’t even remember.”
Yeon Hojeong clicked his tongue.
“If I did that, sorry. I really do need to get my head on straight.”
“There’s no need to apologize. But no matter how great a master you are, you still need rest. At this rate, you really will work yourself to death.”
“I didn’t come here to hear something that ominous. Anyway, the reason I came—”
“Enough.”
Mo Yong-woo raised a hand and cut him off.
For some reason, Yeon Hojeong found his mouth snapping shut.
Normally, he would have tossed out some joking remark, but there was something about Mo Yong-woo tonight that made joking difficult.
“Have you eaten?”
“About half a day ago.”
“Then keep the promise you broke. Wait here a little while. I’ll bring us something to drink.”
Yeon Hojeong stared at him for a moment, then dropped down where he stood.
“Let’s see what the Commander of the Demon-Sweeping Corps can do in the kitchen.”
“Hahaha!”
It took Mo Yong-woo about half an hour to return.
Yeon Hojeong’s eyes widened.
“Not bad.”
“Hmm?”
“You actually know what you’re doing.”
The small drinking table held two simple dishes and three bottles of strong liquor.
He could tell from the smell alone.
One dish was an ordinary stir-fry of vegetables, while the other had been made from dried meat softened and cooked again, yet both smelled better than what most inns served.
Mo Yong-woo burst into hearty laughter.
“It’s the spices. When the ingredients are poor, you have no choice but to disguise them with seasoning.”
“Knowing how to disguise them is impressive enough. I couldn’t make anything like this.”
“Does a man of your caliber really need to master cooking too?”
“Why not? I hear these days a man has to cook well if he wants his wife to dote on him.”
“Oh?”
Mo Yong-woo’s eyes gleamed.
“Has some young woman caught your eye?”
“Maybe someday. Though that’s a problem too. Even if I like someone, it doesn’t mean she’ll like me back. Relationships really are difficult when you think about it.”
“I can’t exactly tell you not to worry. With your reputation, there must be countless women interested in you.”
“I hate people who get dazzled by a name, regardless of whether they’re men, women, old, or young.”
“That isn’t what I meant. The greatest master under heaven may be the greatest when it comes to wielding a blade, but does that make him the greatest at dealing with people too? Relationships go both ways. Even someone far greater than you would still have worries when it came to another person.”
“Was this supposed to turn into counseling?”
“I’m merely saying that someday, you too will meet a woman who stirs your heart. When that happens, I hope you won’t overthink everything. Just be honest with her.”
Yeon Hojeong smiled.
“And what about you, Brother? Is Miss Tang still not good enough for you?”
Mo Yong-woo chuckled.
“How long ago was that? You’re still bringing it up?”
“Oh? ‘How long ago,’ huh? So there really was something?”
“There was nothing. We were both far too busy, for one thing. Besides, neither Miss Tang nor I particularly care for relationships that are forced into being.”
“Listen to you, complaining on a full stomach. When we return to the Alliance, ask her to have some tea with you.”
“Haha. All right.”
That easygoing generosity was one of Mo Yong-woo’s greatest strengths.
Even a close younger brother could have irritated anyone by tossing out remarks so casually, but Mo Yong-woo never lost his smile.
And it was precisely because of that temperament that Yeon Hojeong could relax around him.
Others might not know it, but Mo Yong-woo was one of the very few people before whom Yeon Hojeong showed his unguarded self.
“We’ve talked long enough. Shall we drink?”
“Sure.”
Their cups clinked together.
It had been quite some time since they had last shared a drink.
Perhaps because their bond had deepened, the liquor tasted stronger too.
It was harsh, but pleasantly so. Had they drunk together often, perhaps the flavor would not have felt quite this rich.
Mo Yong-woo asked casually,
“So what brings you here at this hour?”
It was a comfortable question in a comfortable setting.
Even Yeon Hojeong, whose nerves had been somewhat taut, felt the burden he had been carrying begin to melt away in that ease.
“Something happened among the Martial Alliance leadership.”
“What?”
Yeon Hojeong told him everything without holding anything back.
Mo Yong-woo’s gaze deepened.
“Councillor Deung... You don’t think my brother was behind it, do you?”
“Not Mo Yonggun. I can’t be certain, of course, but I don’t think it was him.”
“Why?”
“A tiger and a wolf may look different, but they both have fangs. Mo Yonggun’s fangs may be poisoned, but I don’t think he’s the kind of beast that bares them for no reason.”
It was a vicious assessment and high praise at the same time.
At the very least, with a common enemy before them, Yeon Hojeong considered Mo Yonggun closer to a capable ally than an untrustworthy enemy.
“Hmm.”
Mo Yong-woo rubbed his chin.
“Councillor Deung is the leader of the Kongtong Sect. Kongtong is in Gansu, and within Gansu, its influence can be called second to none.”
“So you’re saying it wouldn’t be strange for him to obtain information like that?”
“That is what I think, but...”
“...”
“At the same time, I also find it strange.”
“What part?”
As though discussing something in passing, Mo Yong-woo refilled Yeon Hojeong’s cup.
“How could an organization stupid enough to leak information so carelessly have planted spies throughout the Central Plains for decades, meddled with even the imperial court and provincial governments, and still avoided exposure?”
Yeon Hojeong grinned.
“This is why talking to smart people is easy.”
“What do you think, Brother Yeon? Are you certain someone deliberately leaked that information?”
“I’d say the odds are as close to a hundred percent as they can reasonably get.”
“Then that is strange as well.”
Mo Yong-woo frowned.
“They chose this moment to leak it? Are they aiming for something?”
“Before we talk about what they’re aiming for, we should talk about how they were able to leak that kind of information under these circumstances.”
“...!”
Mo Yong-woo’s face hardened.
Yeon Hojeong drained his cup.
The liquor no longer tasted harsh.
Mo Yong-woo stared at him for a long moment before asking haltingly,
“Are you saying... you think one of the councillors is an infiltrator?”
“I’ve suspected it for a long time. That’s why I told them not to reveal the identity of the Three Creeds at the council meeting.”
“...!!”
“Now I think we have to treat it as virtually certain. Either one of the councillors, or someone extremely close to one of them, is an infiltrator for the Three Creeds.”
“...Damn.”
Mo Yong-woo had suspected something might be wrong, but hearing that it could truly be the case left him speechless.
These were not some middling practitioners.
They were the leaders of the Nine Great Sects.
One of those giants might be an infiltrator?
Where in the world had they sold their honor and pride?
As confusion swirled across Mo Yong-woo’s face, Yeon Hojeong spoke.
“I think I’ll have to return to the Alliance before long.”
“Yes. You probably will.”
Mo Yong-woo nodded, then suddenly flinched.
“Wait. You don’t mean alone, do you?”
“I do.”
“...”
“That’s why I came. It’ll probably be soon, but I don’t know exactly when. So if I suddenly vanish one day, don’t panic. I wanted to ask you to take command of the Righteous Justice Corps in my absence.”
He appeared without warning, and now he was saying he might leave just as suddenly.
What an impossible man to deal with.
Setting aside the gravity of the situation, Mo Yong-woo knew he could never live this way himself.
He stared quietly at Yeon Hojeong, then smiled.
“There is no need to ask, Supreme Commander. Just give me the order.”
“...”
“But make sure you come back with all four limbs attached. Don’t make your subordinates worry about you.”