Chapter 92

The entire martial world was on edge, but surprisingly, the end of the Unmong Great War was rather anticlimactic.

The Orthodox Martial World, having achieved a great victory at Hahong Lake, pushed into Hunan Province with unstoppable momentum, nearing Cheonjasan Mountain. Even the Wudang Sect, busy closing the Ghost Gate in Hubei Province in hopes of finally uprooting Banunbang, gathered every last bit of their strength and threw it into the fight.

However, the ones who ended the war were neither Banunbang nor the Jegal Family, nor even the Wudang Sect, who had seriously considered sending their sect leader down the mountain to deliver the final blow.

The one who put an end to the war was none other than the Inspector of Hunan Province. Wielding the laws of the Ming Dynasty, the Inspector forcibly halted the martial world’s conflict.

No one believed this decision was made solely by the Inspector alone. Martial artists are not ignorant of worldly affairs. It was well-known that while the Seonghwa Emperor was wise, his favor dimmed when it came to the words of Man Gwibi.

It was clear to everyone that Man Gwibi was pulling the strings behind the Imperial Family to protect Banunbang.

In the end, the Orthodox Martial World disbanded without uprooting Banunbang. But the gains were significant. Banunbang’s influence in the martial world had completely crumbled, and the Unorthodox Martial World, which had rallied to their aid, disintegrated.

Even external allies like the Black Sword Ghost and Myeolseomma, as well as key figures within Banunbang, abandoned the faction. The once-mighty Banunbang, comparable to the nine major sects, was no more.

Thus, the Orthodox Martial World succeeded in bringing the entire Huguang region under their control.

The Jegal Family and their primary allies, the Wudang Sect and the Hyeong Mountain Sect, saw their reputations soar to new heights. Those who participated in the Unmong Great War reaped wealth and honor, with some even earning new titles or reaching higher levels of mastery.

Though there were some regrets, considering that Banunbang had been weakened to the level of a mid-tier faction, the Orthodox Martial World had met the minimum conditions for a satisfactory withdrawal.

The atmosphere in the Jegal Family was nothing short of a festival.

Of course, it was only natural. Objectively, Banunbang had been a formidable rival, surpassing even the Jegal Family and rivaling the Wudang Sect.

They had defeated Banunbang, and with minimal losses at that. Even when Banunbang had pulled out the shocking move of reviving a supreme master from two generations ago, known as the Five Yin Demon Lord, they had still emerged victorious.

The Jegal Family threw open their storerooms and held a grand celebration. The festivities extended not only to the Orthodox Martial World but also to neutral martial artists and wanderers who had sided with them. Even the common people of Wuhan and Hubei Province benefited from the celebration.

Everyone laughed, chattered, and sang of joy—joy of victory, joy of survival, joy of growth. Wuhan became a city that never slept, filled with the sounds of laughter and merriment.

Yet, amidst all this, there was one member of the Jegal Family who could not join in the unrestrained joy and revelry.

Jegal Seon-a.

In her room at the Jegal Family’s main residence in Wuhan, Jegal Seon-a stared blankly out the window. The blurred lights and the cacophony of sounds mixed with the bright lights.

If she stepped out of her room and walked a little, she could join the banquet and take her place among the celebrants. But she didn’t want to. She didn’t feel much joy at the end of the war.

She was relieved that her family would no longer be hurt, but she couldn’t share in the jubilation of victory.

Jegal Seon-a knew it was a wicked thought, but she couldn’t help but wish the war had continued a little longer.

The battles in Hubei Province had lasted nearly a month. During that time, Jegal Seon-a had spent many days with Namgung Woo at Changcheon Pavilion. Looking back now, those were truly nostalgic days. There had been many difficult and painful moments, but still… it had been good.

Just watching Namgung Woo’s back as he protected her had filled her with an indescribable sense of fulfillment.

If the war had continued, perhaps he would have stayed by her side.

“Ugh…! What am I thinking, Jegal Seon-a! Get a grip. He’s… Ha-ryeong’s.”

Jegal Seon-a muttered to herself and hugged her pillow tightly. True to her status as the daughter of a noble family, her pillow was made of silk, soft and fluffy.

After subjecting the innocent pillow to several rounds of suffocation torture, Jegal Seon-a lay sprawled on her bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. She suddenly sat up at the sound of a voice outside her door.

“Seon-a, it’s your father. May I come in?”

“Y-yes! Please come in!”

Jegal Seon-a quickly threw off the blanket and got out of bed. In the few steps it took to reach the door, she hastily straightened her clothes and hair.

Jegal Jong, who had opened the sliding door himself, looked at his daughter, who clearly showed signs of having moved hurriedly, and made a bitter expression. It was obvious to him what his daughter, who had refused to attend the banquet and locked herself in her room, had been thinking about.

“Let’s sit down for a bit.”

“Yes. Over here…”

Though there was no need to guide him, the awkward atmosphere prompted Jegal Seon-a to pull out a chair for him.

Father and daughter sat facing each other. Following the teachings of seniority, it was Jegal Jong’s place to speak first.

“You went to Luoyang, didn’t you?”

Though the subject was omitted, there was no need to ask for clarification.

The two of them knew well who the common denominator was—the one who had gone to Luoyang.

“Yes…”

“Why didn’t you follow him?”

“…What?”

“Isn’t that why you’re struggling?”

At her father’s words, Jegal Seon-a could only move her lips like a mute, unable to speak.

Jegal Jong waited silently, giving his daughter time to gather her thoughts and speak.

“I… don’t know.”

“About what?”

“Just… my feelings. I don’t know if this emotion is right, and if it is, whether I should follow him…”

It was a feeling she was experiencing for the first time. This unfamiliar emotion—was it really what people called love?

Perhaps it was because her Resonance Power had been too deeply influenced by Namgung Woo’s powerful Upper Dantian Mental Strength. If that were the case, then it wasn’t a pure feeling but merely a result of being swayed by his power.

It was a very Jegal Family-like dilemma.

Not knowing, they avoided acting rashly. The Jegal Family’s characteristic of making decisions based on thorough understanding and analysis was evident here.

If someone from the Hapbuk Paeng Family or the Huangbo Family had felt such emotions, they would have charged forward without looking back.

The real-life example of this was Paeng Ha-ryeong. Having never left her family home before, she had followed Namgung Woo all the way to Jiangnan. Paeng Ha-ryeong’s bold approach was too radical for Jegal Seon-a to emulate.

And even if the emotion wasn’t a side effect of Resonance Power but a genuine feeling, there was still a problem.

Paeng Ha-ryeong was sincere. But could Jegal Seon-a really make a close friend and now a valuable benefactor to her family into a rival? The moral guilt made Jegal Seon-a shrink back.

After Jegal Seon-a poured out her worries over a long period, Jegal Jong asked, “Is there a law in the Ming Dynasty that prohibits polygamy?”

“Huh? P-polygamy? No, there’s no such law, but…”

“Then is Ha-ryeong so narrow-minded that she would reject you?”

“…She does have a bit of a temper when it comes to Namgung Woo…”

Jegal Seon-a answered, recalling how Paeng Ha-ryeong, who was usually generous, reacted very sensitively when it came to matters involving Namgung Woo.

Jegal Jong skillfully hid his flustered expression and quickly changed the subject.

“If you speak your true feelings, Ha-ryeong isn’t the type to outright reject you, is she?”

“That’s… true…”

“If you’re unsure, you can watch from the sidelines a bit longer. If it turns out to be because of Resonance Power, you can continue the relationship as it is. If your feelings are genuine, you can confess to Ha-ryeong and hear her true thoughts. It’s not too late.”

“But… will that work?”

Jegal Jong’s heart wasn’t at ease either. Sending his beloved only daughter to another man was not an easy decision for any father.

Especially since it wasn’t a monogamous relationship but a polygamous one, making the decision even more difficult and painful. The thought that his beloved daughter wouldn’t have the undivided affection of one person was something that filled him with resentment.

But more than that, Jegal Jong found it unbearable to see his daughter alone in her room, brooding.

And he thought that Paeng Ha-ryeong might not be so bad after all. She had once almost become a member of the Jegal Family, and in this war, she had fought her hardest for the Jegal Family.

Since Paeng Ha-ryeong and Jegal Seon-a were close friends, if they could accept each other, it might be better than being alone.

Of course, if Jegal Jong had known Namgung Woo’s true identity, he would have gone through another level of deliberation. But since Jegal Chong hadn’t even revealed Namgung Woo’s affairs to his own younger brother, ignorance was bliss.

“The Martial Alliance will soon hold a meeting. Our Jegal Family will, of course, send representatives.”

The world was changing rapidly, day by day.

The Martial Alliance could no longer remain idle.

“How about you come along, Seon-a?”

“M-me too?”

“Yes. The family head hasn’t fully recovered from his internal injuries, and the Great Master of Nengyun Pavilion was severely wounded in this war, but we’ve hired reliable guards, so there won’t be any problems like last time.”

Though the Jegal Family’s two Supreme Peak Masters were both incapacitated, Jegal Jong had minimized the gap in their martial strength by taking in martial artists who had fought in the war as retainers and hiring wanderers.

Among them, the best were on standby to escort those attending the meeting.

“It’s been a while, but you’ve lost a lot of weight, haven’t you?”

The third-generation wanderer, Hwang Ryong-ho Yi Ho-yeong, greeted Jegal Seon-a as she approached the carriage.

It was a long journey to Luoyang. Dressed in her finest travel clothes, Jegal Seon-a bowed to him before boarding the carriage.

“Please take care of me on the way to Luoyang.”

“Don’t worry.”

And so, a procession of several carriages from the Jegal Family set off.

This scene wasn’t unique to the Jegal Family in Wuhan. Similar processions were setting out from all over the land.

To Luoyang.

To Luoyang.

The Orthodox Martial World began to move for the Martial Alliance’s meeting.