Chapter 45

The Ghost Gate Sealing Battle at Manse Mountain.

Officially announced as the rebellion of Yi Ja-ryong, and known among the martial world and civilians as the Beijing Turmoil, several days had passed since the incident ended.

Despite the major event that had twisted the flow of the world, surprisingly, the world continued as usual. The vastness of the world meant that the events in Beijing hadn’t reached other regions, and the Imperial Family was putting all their efforts into restoring order.

Of course, Beijing was still in chaos. The damage left by the Ghost Gates that had opened not just at Manse Mountain but throughout Beijing was no small matter, so it was unavoidable.

Although the Imperial Family had taken decisive action, they were also in disarray due to the massive void left by the death of the Commander of the Imperial Guards, Gwak Dan.

Fortunately, the current Emperor, Seonghwa Emperor, was a capable man.

Despite the suggestions from his ministers to abandon the half-ruined Beijing and move the capital to Nanjing, he firmly declared that he would protect Beijing. He opened the Imperial Family’s treasury and personally began the task of identifying the rebels who had joined Yi Ja-ryong.

Though the Imperial Guards were shaken by the death of the Emperor’s first sword, Gwak Dan, the unrest quickly subsided when the Seonghwa Emperor personally took charge.

The absence of the Imperial Family’s greatest martial force, Gwak Dan, was somehow filled. Han Gyeran, the “Invincible of the East,” who had been cautious since the Seonghwa Emperor’s ascension, personally followed the Emperor and supplemented the lacking martial force.

Though not a Peerless Master, Han Gyeran was one of the top martial artists in the world, excluding the Peerless Masters, so she could barely fill Gwak Dan’s role.

Namgung Woo learned of Beijing’s situation thanks to the vivid testimony of someone who had been in Beijing until the day before.

“Still, since His Majesty is personally taking action, Beijing will soon stabilize.”

Paeng Hu-sang calmly and respectfully explained the aftermath of the Beijing Turmoil to Namgung Woo.

He might not have been this kind even to an old friend. But to Paeng Hu-sang, Namgung Woo was someone who deserved such treatment.

When they first met at Manse Mountain, he hadn’t known, but during his time in Beijing, Paeng Hu-sang had learned in detail from his younger brother Paeng Mu-ho about the kindness Namgung Woo had shown to the Hapbuk Paeng Family.

The first life-saving grace of saving his younger brother Paeng Mu-ho and his eldest daughter Paeng Ha-ryeong.

And the second life-saving grace of extending the life of Paeng Ye-ryeong, who had less than two years left to live, by teaching her his divine art.

To Paeng Hu-sang, it was a debt he could never repay, even with his own life.

Generally, when people described Paeng Hu-sang, they often mentioned his rough temperament, but Paeng Hu-sang knew when to hold back.

If he hadn’t, he would have been driven out of Hapbuk like a criminal, disliked by the Imperial Family.

Though his natural temperament was rough, Paeng Hu-sang understood human decency. That’s why his nickname was “King.” If he had truly been an unruly person, he would have been called something like “Blade Demon” or “Blade Ghost.”

“And although it hasn’t been publicly announced, there have been whispers within the Imperial Family about you, Benefactor.”

“Hmm…”

Namgung Woo let out a small, polite hum.

Han Gyeran, whom he had encountered at Manse Mountain. She had mentioned that she was staying with the Hapbuk Paeng Family and would contact them later.

“I heard you met Her Majesty, the Grand Empress Dowager.”

Since there was no need to hide it, Namgung Woo nodded calmly.

“That’s correct.”

“Her Majesty said that your mother is from the same hometown as her.”

“More precisely, it’s a bit further away. Around Muan County and Handan County.”

Namgung Woo compared the distance to that between Tianan and Qingzhou.

Though approximate, since Namgung Woo had traveled from Shanxi to Beijing, the margin of error wouldn’t be too large.

“A distance like Muan and Handan… If people from those two counties met in the distant land of Joseon, they would consider each other fellow townsfolk. Her Majesty was right.”

Paeng Hu-sang stroked his neatly trimmed beard and muttered in agreement.

After a moment of silence, Paeng Hu-sang’s expression grew more serious.

“Benefactor, do you intend to become the Imperial Family’s son-in-law?”

“…Is that something I can refuse?”

Even though Namgung Woo had lived in a future where democracy was established, he wasn’t ignorant of the absolute power held by a monarch in an autocratic system.

Even in the distant future, though nominal statuses might have disappeared, implicit statuses remained. There was an overwhelming social authority gap between an ordinary employee and the chairman of the company that employed them.

If that was the case between employer and employee, how much stronger would the command authority be between a nation’s ruler and its subjects?

But Paeng Hu-sang cut straight to the point.

“Of course.”

Although the Hapbuk Paeng Family had left Beijing and settled in Tianjin, wary of the Imperial Family, and even abandoned their independent intelligence organization due to pressure from the Eastern Depot, the Hapbuk Paeng Family was the second most powerful of the Seven Great Families, the backbone of the White Path Martial World.

Moreover, the Imperial Family, which had once held unprecedented power, had now fallen in an instant.

On top of that, Paeng Hu-sang and Namgung Woo were Peerless Masters who had done the Imperial Family a great favor.

How rare were Peerless Masters?

Officially, there were only fifteen Peerless Masters in the martial world: the Three Poles and Twelve Honored Ones.

There might be other Peerless Masters hidden within the Imperial Family, or reclusive masters in remote areas, but it was widely believed that their number wouldn’t exceed thirty.

This wasn’t a baseless estimate. There was a precedent.

About fifty years ago, there were seventeen known top martial artists, but only twelve of them had truly reached the level of Peerless Masters.

The remaining five were at a level similar to Han Gyeran, but at the time, there was no way to verify if they were truly Peerless Masters.

Then, the Blood Sect caused an unprecedented crisis. Reclusive masters hidden in remote mountains emerged, and the Imperial Family revealed its hidden forces, increasing the number of Peerless Masters to over thirty.

Considering that twelve of them belonged to the Blood Sect, it meant that six Peerless Masters had been hidden in the Central Plains.

Anyway, if that was the case fifty years ago, it wouldn’t be much different now.

Over time, martial arts had improved, but some had also been lost. After the Blood Sect turmoil and the Jeongsa Great War, the number of Peerless Masters had drastically decreased.

“Benefactor, you are one of those twenty or so Peerless Masters. With me, Paeng Hu-sang, supporting you, even the Imperial Family wouldn’t dare force you.”

In the current situation where the absence of the world’s strongest had been confirmed, the Imperial Family had lost its absolute coercive power over Peerless Masters.

Even after Paeng Hu-sang’s lengthy explanation of why Peerless Masters were so powerful, Namgung Woo remained silent, so Paeng Hu-sang asked again.

“Are you troubled?”

“…Yes, embarrassingly so.”

“Embarrassed? How could it be embarrassing for a great man to agonize over a life-changing decision?”

If someone had heard Paeng Hu-sang’s words, they might have retorted, “Is that something you should be saying?!” But only Paeng Hu-sang and Namgung Woo were present.

“Though I hesitate to make your decision harder, may I present you with another option?”

“I’d be glad to hear it.”

Namgung Woo felt subtly grateful to Paeng Hu-sang.

He had taken on the task of negotiating with the Imperial Family on his behalf and had even offered to lend his name if Namgung Woo refused the Imperial Family’s proposal.

Though Namgung Woo had done the Hapbuk Paeng Family a great favor, such kindness was rarely repaid in full. Living in a harsh world where proper repayment of favors was rare, even the Hapbuk Paeng Family’s actions moved Namgung Woo.

But as soon as he heard Paeng Hu-sang’s proposal, that feeling vanished.

“How about our Ha-ryeong?”

§

When Namgung Woo left the Family Head’s Hall, it wasn’t his subordinates, the Yang Brothers, waiting for him, but the fourth most important person in the estate.

“Ah, Benefactor. Are you done with the Family Head?”

Paeng Ha-ryeong hurried over. Normally, he would have casually replied and walked with her, but after what Paeng Hu-sang had just said, he felt awkward around her.

Namgung Woo subtly mixed in the evasive techniques of Infinite Steps to distance himself from Paeng Ha-ryeong.

“Benefactor?”

Paeng Ha-ryeong tilted her head, noticing Namgung Woo’s unusual behavior.

“Huh? Ah, yes, the discussion went well. By the way, where are the Yang Brothers?”

“Huh? They said you told them not to wait and to go train, so they’re sparring at the Training Ground…”

“The Training Ground. I haven’t had a chance to properly check their skills lately. I should do that now.”

“Ah, I’ll come with you, Benefactor!”

Namgung Woo awkwardly tried to distance himself from Paeng Ha-ryeong, while she clung closely to him.

And a pair of eyes watched the two.

“Hmm…”

From a distance, Paeng Ye-ryeong, who had been planning to discuss the Void Spirit Divine Art with Namgung Woo, decided to postpone her original goal.

“Well, I’ll let my sister have today.”

It was a peaceful day at the Paeng Family’s Villa.