NOVEL NEXT Chapter 229
Chapter 229: Peak
Thud! Thud! Thud!
My head felt like it was about to crack open.
I squinted, sensing a throbbing headache.
“…Gong!”
From a distance, I heard a voice calling out to me. It was Geumhu’s voice. Only then did I completely regain my consciousness. Wiggle!
I moved my fingers.
With that, all my memories came flooding back. The sensation of achieving the final moment of Shinma Jeondo during the duel was vividly clear.
But I couldn’t implement it right now.
My capacity for Hwakyung was insufficient.
Hmmm…
To break through the Wall of Hyeongyeong, I needed to reach that stage and circulate the Upper Dantian to freely deploy four of my Ki-gong simultaneously for explosive power.
Like an eight-cylinder engine.
‘It wasn’t the clue to breaking the wall of Hyeongyeong that I expected, but I’ve gained something important.’
Shinma Jeondo wasn’t the direct way to leap over the wall of Hyeongyeong.
However, it was like obtaining a new skill to be used after overcoming the wall. I thought this as I turned my body.
“Eungong! Are you awake?”
With a soft sensation, a sweet fragrance brushed against my nose.
Geumhu’s voice rang out again.
After sorting out my thoughts, I slowly opened my eyes.
The moment my hazy vision cleared completely, what first caught my eyes was a mountain.
Yes.
Two gigantic mountain peaks were shaking right in front of me.
Wait, looking closely, it wasn’t a mountain.
It was breasts.
A pair of soft, plump sumiddo were covered in fabric, greeting me. I knew Geumhu had a large chest.
But I didn’t expect it to be this big.
I involuntarily flinched and withdrew my hands.
It wasn’t the right time to indulge in sumiddo yet.
That day, I should have earned those sumiddo when I defeated Geumhu.
So that…
“Eungong?”
Geumhu bowed her head. Her silver hair flowed down like a waterfall.
As she was close, I could suddenly smell her fragrance again. How soft was she? Thinking about it, I realized I was resting my head on Geumhu’s lap.
Recognizing my surroundings, it seemed I was in the separate wing of my room.
[I’ve erased all traces of Martial Arts, so don’t worry. Sangong.]
She relayed to me sweetly.
Now, without embarrassment or reluctance, Geumhu addressed me as Sangong. Instead, I felt embarrassed.
Sangong?
We weren’t married yet, so that title felt a bit off.
Lying on Geumhu’s soft thighs, I found myself growing drowsy.
As I inhaled Geumhu’s scent and began to close my eyes, I suddenly jolted awake and stood up.
Looking out the window, it was already midnight. The moonlight rested on Geumhu’s shoulders.
[Thank you, Senior.]
[Don’t mention it, it’s because of the connection between you and me. Hehe.]
Geumhu smiled.
[I’ll step out for a moment. I have some errands to run.]
I needed to find Dongchang’s Residence.
But I didn’t feel the need to voice it.
Geumhu answered me through the communication.
[Got it. Sangong. Take care and come back safely. I’ll be waiting here.]
With Geumhu seeing me off, I left the room. As I expanded my Ki sense, I caught the presence in the separate wing. Sosumahu and Heuksaryong were in the same room, while Jeoksawol was staying alone.
Everyone was doing well and safe.
Having grasped the situation, I trudged out of the separate wing toward the Mosan Sect Mountain Gate.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
At the mountain gate, which had torches flickering, a Mosan Sect disciple was on guard.
“Is this Little Hero? Are you going out?”
One of the disciples asked me. I nodded.
“I’m just going to buy some meat and liquor at the juru.”
The Mosan Sect had a long-standing tradition.
Like those old fogies from the Wudang Sect who claimed to practice seonsul, they stuck to vegetables and herbs only.
They offered the same diet to us guests, but honestly, I couldn’t stand it.
I didn’t understand why they wouldn’t eat pork, good for vitality.
Besides, I was renowned as the son of indulgence in the Central Martial World.
It wasn’t strange at all to say I’d be out at the juru at midnight since it operated at night.
‘For sure, that Dongchang guy has set up a residence at the juru.’
It’s been years since I started my life as a Dongchang agent, so I could tell without seeing.
“Oh, I see. Have a good trip.”
The disciple opened the gate with an unimpeachable face after hearing my words.
I quickly descended the mountain. Jiangsu Province was the area where the capital of the Ming Empire, Nanjing, was located. Thanks to the fertile land, it was a wealthy neighborhood overflowing with riches.
Naturally, Gu Yong, where Mosan lay, was a bustling place, alive even at night.
Especially since Mosan Sect was a wealthy sect, Gu Yong naturally boasted the aura of a flourishing city.
Once I arrived at the marketplace, I used my Ki sense to thoroughly investigate the surrounding merchants.
Dongchang was the best intelligence agency of the Ming Empire. While the disguises of its agents were thorough, I was the one who dispatched those agents.
It was easy to spot even the simplest disguises.
Not long after I began exploring the marketplace…
I finally discovered their residence. They had donned an impeccable disguise, right down to fake beards, but I couldn’t hide my sense of smell.
Despite using a special deodorizing agent, the faint whiff of urine hit my nostrils.
What was most challenging during my time as a eunuch was controlling my urine. In the Ming Dynasty, eunuchs had both their testicles and penises removed. Consequently, lacking a physical structure made it difficult to hold back urine, as they would end up like a person suffering from incontinence.
Thus, the hyangnang was developed. Its fragrance masked the stench. Of course, when out in the field, they used specialized deodorizing agents instead of the hyangnang. Using its fragrance risked detection by a Dongchang agent.
However, my senses honed at the stage of Hwakyung couldn’t be deceived. Laid low and covertly, I followed a Dongchang agent’s trail.
As expected, they entered a high-end juru. I nonchalantly entered the juru, took a seat, and ordered some Dongpa meat.
A faint sense, a gaze detected. The eyes of Dongchang agents were upon me. So this was indeed their hideout.
First things first, I needed to replenish my vitality. While tearing into the hot Dongpa meat, I scanned my surroundings.
The residence isn’t solely for eunuchs. Some local informants cooperated, knowing of Dongchang’s existence, while ordinary employees were completely oblivious.
Local informants, civilians, and Dongchang agents.
I needed to distinguish between them clearly.
Eating pork to boost my vitality, I meticulously searched through the first floor of the juru with my Ki sense and finally located the eunuch who seemed to be in charge.
The eunuch was playing the role of the manager on the first floor of the juru. Though disguised as a civilian, the type of skills he had, evidenced by his nails and fingers developed from his eunuch training, were detectable to me. While there were quite a few martial artists among the guests on the first floor, none of them could measure up to this manager. Except for me, of course.
Using my Ki sense, it was evident there were secret facilities underground.
I sent him a message.
[I am Lee Cheol Soo, disciple of the Gongdong Sect Martial Department, under the Crown Princess’s secret order. I have come to request your cooperation regarding the Mosan Sect operation.]
It was true that I received a hidden order from the Crown Princess. The Dongchang guys wouldn’t be ignorant of that.
No, those eunuchs would’ve likely kicked off their surveillance the moment I entered the juru. Even if I didn’t have her orders, I was still the Gongdong Sect Leader’s disciple and a martial exponent of high renown in orthodox martial arts.
Hehe…
I had risen to such a high position! Soon, there would be a mountain of fan letters in front of the Gongdong Sect Mountain Gate.
As I contemplated my rosy future, waiting for a response while munching on the Dongpa meat…
[So you are the great hero of the Gongdong Sect, Lee Daehyup. Nice to meet you. I am Gwang Jaryang, a Dongchang agent serving the Crown Princess.]
Dongchang agent serving the Crown Princess, Gwang Jaryang.
Hearing the name of the man who was once my direct superior felt nostalgic here.
I suspected the Crown Emperor had sent one of the left-right agents near the Mosan Sect. Of course, all of them were people I knew from that time.
Though the face of the manager disguised now was unfamiliar, that was only natural.
By the time I became head of Dongchang, they all would have retired, but right now, they were likely active adults.
Speaking of which, I also recalled the current head of Dongchang, Hwakyung’s Master, Jang In-taegam’s face.
It felt a bit like returning home after a long time.
Home?
I shook off the unnecessary thoughts. I didn’t even want to think about my hideous life as a eunuch in my past life. Because now, I was an alpha male, a grown man.
Just as I tried to leave the past behind in front of my former superior…
Gwang Jaryang’s voice echoed in my head.
[The Crown Princess has foreseen that you would find the residence, so she commanded that we fully cooperate with you in any way. What assistance do you require?]
What?
The Crown Emperor predicted I would come and gave orders in advance?
*
At the same time.
Beijing. Hwangje’s Secret Residence.
In the courtyard of a luxurious mansion, completed far more splendidly than the restored Gongdong Sect, Yujinhwi walked around in the guise of a woman.
After all, this residence was strictly managed by Dongchang, and most importantly, the world regarded her as a man, so being in a woman’s guise was a perfect cover.
‘Is it okay, Saje?’
Though her body was casually dressed, her mind was restless.
Saje Lee Cheol Soo.
The fact that he had headed to Mosan Sect with the Crown Princess’s secret order kept gnawing at her.
Mosan Sect was akin to the enemy’s territory.
Moreover, Cheol Soo had to face Hyulma, the leader of the Blood Sect.
A monster that had lived for over a thousand years, a master of the Boundary of Life and Death.
Of course, he wouldn’t be revealing his full strength this time, but still, it was unavoidable to feel worry.
Saje hadn’t reached the stage of Hyeongyeong yet.
While gazing at the shimmering surface of a pond under the moonlight, a voice reached Yujinhwi’s ear.
“What are you worrying about like that?”
“I see the Crown Princess.”
It was Hwangje Juga-yul.
“Were you thinking about this Little Hero?”
Upon hearing Juga-yul’s words, Yujinhwi didn’t waver.
Having spent time with the Crown Princess, she already knew her insight reached the level of telepathy.
Yujinhwi now believed.
Juga-yul had reincarnated from the future fifty years ahead. In that future, she ruled all under her reign as the Emperor.
There was no other way to explain Juga-yul’s foresight and prayers.
“Indeed. Doesn’t the Crown Princess worry?”
Hearing Yujinhwi’s words, Juga-yul smiled.
Worry.
It would be a lie if it didn’t worry her.
Juga-yul’s gaze turned to Yujinhwi. Yujinhwi’s beautiful eyes were glistening.
As expected, attachment was shallow. Fate was fickle.
Juga-yul cared for Noya. But unlike Yujinhwi, there was a trust beyond just worry.
“I’m not worried.”
With Juga-yul’s words, Yujinhwi’s expression hardened.
Soon, Juga-yul’s voice entered Yujinhwi’s ear.
[I believe in you. If I didn’t have the confidence that Noya would win, I wouldn’t have accepted your order. Noya is that kind of person. I trust Noya, so I have no worries.]
Since she believed, she didn’t worry.
As Juga-yul said this, her eyes had already lost their focus.
Observing this, Yujinhwi trembled.
That was not belief.
It was fanaticism.
What on earth happened in the future that led the Crown Princess to become so twisted?
Yujinhwi couldn’t comprehend.
At the same moment, events unfolded in Beijing.