[TS] Became a Peach Saint – Chapter 289

BANG!

The door to the Main Leader’s Office burst open violently, as if it might shatter, and in walked Yang Ik-jun, the Naegakju of the Murim Alliance.

“Main Leader!”

“Why are you only coming now!”

Normally, the Murim Alliance Leader would have scolded him for not maintaining decorum, but today, he welcomed the Naegakju more warmly than anyone else.

“So, what’s the news?”

“Shin Yi has finished his schedule at Shaolin Temple and has entered Jeongju!”

“Finally…!”

Hearing the Naegakju’s words, the Murim Alliance Leader’s face lit up with joy.

‘How long have I waited for this? Not even my first love under the cherry blossoms made me wait this long.’

The Leader, with a satisfied smile, patted Yang Ik-jun on the shoulder.

“You’ve worked hard, Naegakju.”

“……”

Though he brought good news and even received praise from the Leader, Yang Ik-jun’s face was filled with worry.

“Naegakju, what’s wrong?”

“Well… Leader.”

“Haha, speak freely.”

The Leader’s principle of always listening to his subordinates remained unchanged.

“Previously, I mentioned that Shin Yi’s personality is not just eccentric but downright bizarre.”

“Didn’t I respond to that? Geniuses are naturally eccentric, just like me. Hahaha.”

Seeing the Naegakju’s expression, the Leader let out a hollow laugh, though inwardly he was concerned.

But sweat was dripping down the Naegakju’s back from tension.

Sitting in front of the Naegakju was none other than the Sword King, Namgung Hwi.

“Before I say anything, I want to mention that Deputy Inspector Jeon Ho, who was with Shin Yi, had no choice either.”

“I know you care for the Deputy Inspector. Don’t worry about me, just speak plainly. What’s the big deal?”

Seeing no way out, the Naegakju nodded slightly and steadied himself.

“First, Shin Yi departed from Hefei, followed the river to Jeongju, handled some business at Shaolin, and then arrived here.”

“You reported that. But what’s the problem?”

“There was some trouble in Jeongju. It seems there was friction between Shin Yi and some late-stage practitioners who stayed overnight in Jeongju for the Dragon and Phoenix Gathering.”

“Shin Yi is very young, isn’t he?”

Yang Ik-jun nodded at the Leader’s words.

“Correct. He’s barely past his coming-of-age ceremony.”

“Regardless of age, Shin Yi’s medical skills deserve respect. But since he’s still young, conflicts among youths are common, aren’t they?”

Even the Emperor had to show proper respect to Shin Yi. That was the martial world, which upheld absolute meritocracy.

“It’s not the kind of conflict you’re thinking of, Leader.”

“Then what?”

The Naegakju’s throat tightened with tension.

“After beating them half to death, he tied them to the back of a cart and dragged them around until they listened.”

“WHAT!?”

The Leader’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

The Murim Alliance Leader thought he must have misheard. But the Sword King, who had reached the pinnacle of martial arts, couldn’t have misheard.

“Who was it!?”

“First, Jeogal Jo-ryeong…”

“Don’t tell me you mean Jeogal Jo-ryeong from the Jeogal Family!?”

The Leader cut him off and urgently asked again.

The martial world isn’t just made up of major sects. There are countless minor sects and families.

Thinking it was just one of them, the Leader couldn’t hide his shock at the mention of one of the Five Great Families.

“It’s Jeogal Jo-ryeong, the daughter of the Jeogal Family and granddaughter of the Murim Alliance’s military advisor.”

“……”

‘Since when have the major sects and families become so rotten?’

The Leader’s white beard trembled with anger.

The scene is trembling with tension.

Naegakju Yang Ik-jun, who was watching this, fully understood the Main Leader’s feelings. The vague master-disciple relationship between the Main Leader and the military was also famous in the Murim.

“The granddaughter of a close friend has suffered such a terrible fate…”

“Also… is there more?”

As Naegakju was pondering when to bring up the next topic, the Main Leader’s voice, filled with anger, reached his ears.

“P-Paeng San-wol…”

The name that came out of Naegakju’s mouth was one of the five great families of the Central Plains, the Hebei Paeng family.

“Huh… the first child of the Paeng family head. Surely, there’s more?”

“Dang Eun-hye is also involved.”

“Goodness, the daughter of the Poison King.”

“Yes…”

The Main Leader, who seemed to be half-giving up, gestured to Naegakju, who was cautiously observing the situation.

It meant, “If you have something to say, just say it all.”

“…Namgung Woon-hwi.”

“……”

As soon as Naegakju spoke, the Main Leader’s office was engulfed in silence.

The Namgung family, always mentioned like a habit. Their first son was practically a failure.

He relied on the family name to bully those weaker than him, got drunk and tried to show off his martial arts while clinging to a woman, and even got ambushed.

To the Main Leader, he was a precious grandson, but to others, the first son of the Namgung family was someone too embarrassing to even mention.

Moreover, the third son was vain and had only recently entered the Murim, so the Main Leader saw the family’s only hope in the second grandson, Namgung Woon-hwi.

Despite his young age, he had already reached the level of a first-class martial artist. How could one not adore him?

But when Namgung Woon-hwi’s name came out of Naegakju’s mouth, the Murim Main Leader couldn’t say a word.

“Main Leader, are you alright?”

Seeing the Main Leader’s condition not looking good, Naegakju hurriedly spoke, but the Main Leader didn’t hear a thing.

“If this incident spreads, the martial artists of the Central Plains will point fingers at the Murim Alliance without exception.”

“Huh?”

The ones who got beaten up were the disciples of the major sects who had enemies within the Murim Alliance. Why would the Murim Alliance take the blame?

‘Are they ashamed that the disciples of the Nine Sects and One School got beaten? No…’

After a brief moment of contemplation, Naegakju realized that the conversation with the Main Leader had gone off track.

“Uh, Main Leader.”

“Speak.”

“The ones who got beaten up weren’t Shin Yi, but the junior disciples.”

“…?”

The Main Leader’s face, aged seemingly overnight due to deep worry, showed confusion.

“Shin Yi personally beat up the junior disciples.”

“What on earth are you talking about?”

The Main Leader had always heard that Shin Yi had a peculiar personality, but never that his martial arts were advanced.

It was hard to believe that a doctor, who had trained in martial arts for self-defense, could beat up junior disciples who had been training in martial arts since childhood.

In the history of the Murim, there had never been a doctor with such high-level martial arts skills.

If Chang Cheon Un-geom, who had been defeated by Namgung Myung and Hyanghyang, hadn’t hidden his encounter with Shin Yi, things wouldn’t have escalated this much. But Namgung Myung’s vanity couldn’t tolerate it.

Thus, the Main Leader’s confusion was natural.

“It’s exactly as I said. Shin Yi personally beat up the junior disciples.”

“……”

The Main Leader’s office fell into silence once again.

Naegakju had no choice but to wait for the Main Leader to speak.

After a long period of contemplation, the Main Leader slowly opened his mouth.

“So, how badly were the children hurt?”

Naegakju, who always reported with formality, had even used the harsh term “beat up.”

They would likely need at least half a month to a month to recover.

He must have been injured again. That’s what the leader thought.

“Paeng San-wol had all her teeth pulled out without a single one left.”

“What? Are you saying they didn’t fight?”

Even if they fought risking their lives, they could die, but it’s impossible to lose all their teeth.

“Shin Yi said he defended a disabled person.”

“Ahem. It seems Shin Yi has quite a foul mouth…”

Without teeth, her appearance might be ruined, but since the swordsman’s arm wasn’t cut off, it wasn’t a big problem.

“Next, Jeogal Jo-ryeong was slapped, losing her teeth and her cheekbone was crushed.”

“……”

It’s getting worse.

This is not child’s play.

“Out of the four, only Dang Eun-hye was unharmed.”

“Four?”

The leader finally realized who the disabled person Paeng San-wol defended was.

“What happened to our Woon-hwi…”

The leader, already seeming to know the outcome, asked weakly, making the advisor even more cautious.

“His face was smashed into a table, his eyelids torn off, his cheekbone crushed, and all his teeth knocked out. His lips were split, revealing his gums, and the bones in his limbs were shattered to dust.”

“How, how could they be so cruel! Even the heretics wouldn’t go that far, what on earth was the reason?!”

“Last time, Shin Yi was reported to care deeply for the common folk, especially children.”

Even as his mind grew hazy from the second piece of news, the leader nodded.

“When Namgung Woon-hwi was staying at the inn, a tea boy accidentally splashed tea water while moving it.”

“Just tea water?”

“Yes. It seems Namgung Woon-hwi had feelings for Jeogal Jo-ryeong.”

Sword King Namgung Hwi is the elder of the Namgung family. It was natural for him to know even the minor news about his second son, whom he had been keeping an eye on.

“The tea water the boy was moving splashed on Jeogal Jo-ryeong, and seeing this, Namgung Woon-hwi tried to punish the boy, even drawing his sword.”

“Surely that boy…?”

The advisor, peering into the Sword King’s heart, nodded.

“Correct. The boy was only ten years old, a mere child.”

“No way! No way! Woon-hwi wouldn’t…”

The leader, only denying even after hearing the story, made the advisor sigh involuntarily.

“Namgung Woon-hwi had his own justification.”

“Just because of splashed tea water?”

“Yes.”

In the Central Plains, honor and justification were more important than anything, but anyone could tell this made no sense.

Especially when it came to harming a child, no justification was needed.

“He always liked to talk about the family’s honor and had a tendency to look down on others, but I never thought it would be this severe…”

“So, Namgung Woon-hwi had to bear the wrath of Shin Yi, who witnessed the scene.”

Having finished the report, the advisor calmly waited for the leader’s response.

“So, what happened to Woon-hwi, no, the later disciples?”

“The deputy inspector secretly rescued the later disciples who were tied up in the grass. They are now being treated in the medical hall.”

“Sigh…”

Frustrated, the leader covered his face with his hands.

The relationship with Shin Yi, which they should have built up, had already been twisted before they even met.

The problem was that the leader also shared the Namgung family’s trait of cherishing their kin.

Because of this, the leader, lost in anger, didn’t know what to do.

“What should we do about this…”

The leader pondered.

Should he bow his head to Shin Yi and save the first son, who had been showered with excessive affection since childhood? If so, he would have to abandon the second son.

The advisor said they didn’t release them, but rescued them.

This meant Shin Yi’s anger was still not fully appeased.

The sound was indirectly being conveyed.

“Main Leader, Shin Yi is said to care deeply for the common folk.”

“Main Leader, Shin Yi is said to have a peculiar personality.”

The reports the Main Leader had received so far flashed through their mind.

Shin Yi, without a care for his own reputation, had clashed with the disciples of the Great Gate Sect. If they had known beforehand that his personality was that eccentric, they would have sent a cart or someone to resolve the situation somehow.

‘I should have listened properly. I shouldn’t have taken it lightly and should have paid special attention…’

In the martial world, conflicts start with disputes and end with death. If someone survives in the midst of that, it means they are either strong or have some issue with their body.

Not everyone can be strong, so in the martial world, there are more injured people than healthy ones. Considering the future influence Shin Yi holds, it would have been wise to side with her.

But if they thought about the future of the Namgung Family, they had to save the second son.

Shin Yi, who could even cure incurable diseases as if they were mere colds, would surely be able to save the second son.

“Naegakju, what do you think I should do…?”

“In my opinion…”

BOOOOM—!!

Just as Naegakju was about to speak, the Main Leader’s office collapsed, and a massive boulder crashed right in front of their eyes.

“What the!”

BOOM! BOOOOM!

It seemed the boulder didn’t just fall on the Main Leader’s office, as a series of loud noises echoed around.

The strange thing was that the boulder seemed to move as if alive, avoiding people and only crashing into buildings.

***

Ding!

───

[Hit Rate Lv.4]

◎Hit Rate Enhancement++++

◎Perfect Accuracy

Projectile hit rate correction

◎Posture Control

Stable control in any posture for hit rate correction

◎Recoil Control

Controlling recoil for hit rate correction

◎Prediction Enhancement

Prediction-based hit rate correction

Skill level increases with overlapping purchases

[Price: 160 million won]

───

“Pretty good performance.”

The hit rate correction skill I leveled up during the deserted island survival with throwing was quite impressive.

“Huh, it’s gone…? Why?”

While I was checking the skill, the application officer frantically waved his hand where the iron stone used to be and muttered in confusion.

─Click, click.

“Hoo— Maybe it’s your future that’s missing?”

In the midst of this chaos, Jeon Ho, who had come to stop me, also started causing a ruckus.

“No! My salary! My job…!”

“Jeon Ho, I’ll give you plenty of money, so go get the Undefeated in Combat exchange list for me. Let’s tear down the pillars of the Yeombyeong Alliance.”

Jeon Ho, who had been flustered, looked back and forth between the Murim Alliance and me, then nodded with a bright smile.

“Yes, Han So-jeo. I’ll get it right away!”

“Good.”

He’s a friend who solves worries really quickly.