Chapter 20. For Some Reason, the Eldest Young Master Looks Like the Young Master of the Demonic Cult

The chief steward’s head was spinning.

The Eldest Young Master, who had only been thinking about how to die, didn’t even flinch at the family head’s dissuasion. It wasn’t that he wasn’t from a demonic path; wasn’t the Eldest Young Master like the young master of the Demonic Cult?

“Grandfather, please go inside. This is the one who tried to kill me. I almost died, so this is a lot of consideration.”

“Oh… r-right.”

The family head’s eyes widened in surprise, then he laughed for a moment and stuttered.

He was surprised by the firmness, happy at the words that he had almost died, and then he looked at the chief steward, who was covered in blood and hanging from the ceiling, and stuttered.

“But don’t kill him… ahem, never mind.”

The family head felt as if the chief steward’s betrayal and the revealed conspiracy were not a big deal. On the contrary, he just couldn’t believe that the day had come when his eldest grandson was talking about killing someone.

As the family head went outside, Songhwa saw him off and then came in and asked.

“Young master, the family head has also left, shall we beat him more?”

Hugong frowned.

“I told you to go out a while ago, why are you still here! He’s naked and covered in blood!”

Songhwa smiled faintly.

“I’m your shadow, young master. Shall I get you some water?”

“Yes.”

“Hehe.”

After quenching his thirst with water, Hugong opened his mouth towards the chief steward.

“Gwak Do.”

“…Yes.”

As he answered and opened his mouth, thick blood flowed out from the chief steward’s busted lip.

“This one… ahem…”

Because he had misspoken, Songhwa and the three guards looked back as if to ask why he was suddenly calling himself ‘this one’, so Hugong coughed repeatedly and continued.

“When this young master looks at it, there are parts that cannot be explained unless there is someone behind you. Let’s hear it.”

“You are… wise. They are… the Black Group (黑團).”

“The Black Group? Was there such a thing in the martial world? I’ve never heard of it.”

Was it newly formed? No matter how much he tried to remember, it didn’t come to mind, so Hugong kept tilting his head.

Songhwa quickly whispered in his ear.

“Young master, why are you suddenly pretending to know?”

“Ahem, get away from me. Is there anything I don’t know?”

Just then, Gwak Do chimed in.

“It’s… natural that you’ve never… heard of it.”

“Of course. I knew it.”

“The Black Group is… an organization secretly formed by… the Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun.”

“Huh?”

Not only Hugong but everyone in the room was surprised and their eyes widened.

The Seomun Family was one of the ten great families of the world, and although they were competing with the Jinju Eon Family for the last seat, their power was strong and they were a family that pursued the righteous path.

And although the Cheongwolmun was classified as a minor sect outside the nine great sects, its reputation was well-known in the northern part of Anhui.

Suddenly, the faces of Seomun Heon, the Third Young Master of the Seomun Family, and Ban Gyoin, the daughter of the Cheongwolmun Sect Leader, came to mind.

‘How strange. I didn’t feel any sense of incongruity from those children…’

The Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun.

It couldn’t be seen as completely absurd.

If you think about it differently, the situation of the Cheonhwa Library was a table set for anyone to eat.

Moreover,

‘Seomun Chu didn’t have a clear feeling.’

Hugong had seen the Seomun Family Head, Seomun Chu, a couple of times.

When he recalled him, he unknowingly frowned.

Seomun Chu had a smiling face, but there was no sincerity to be found in his smile. He had gotten the impression that he was a person whose inner thoughts could not be read.

The Cheongwolmun Sect Leader?

‘Ahem, I’ve never seen him.’

Hugong put aside the thought that had come to his mind and opened his mouth towards the chief steward.

“I told you to tell the truth, but you’re spouting interesting stories.”

“I know it’s hard to believe. But in this situation… how could I lie? The formation of the Black Group was… prepared as a backup plan. Because the Eldest Young Master… wouldn’t die even when he seemed to be dying… I-I’m sorry.”

“You’re trying to deceive me with absurd words. The Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun are prestigious orthodox sects, so how could they do such a shameless thing? You must be trying to find a way to live by making up a nonsensical story.”

“Eldest Young Master, if I had intended to lie… wouldn’t I have named a more plausible place? In the northern part of Anhui… what fool would point to the Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun as the masterminds of a conspiracy?”

It was a persuasive argument.

“Continue.”

“Recently, the joint suicide of the family head and the Eldest Young Master… became a bubble, and the execution of the backup plan… gained momentum. The plan is for the Black Group to infiltrate and destroy the Cheonhwa Library… and then for the Seomun Family and the Cheonwolmun to drive out the Black Group. To execute that… we had already modified some of the formations and closed some of them to allow entry and exit…”

“And an innocent Hexagonal Eel came in through that gap and was stirring up the ground.”

“Yes, but I… have always been against the backup plan. Because I wanted to minimize the sacrifice of the Cheonhwa Library…”

“Hmm…”

The reason Hugong had originally suspected that there was a mastermind or a larger connection was because of the modification of the formations. It was an intention to facilitate external infiltration.

On the other hand, the fact that the chief steward was a commoner who did not know martial arts was also considered. Even if the guard captain and vice-captain were won over, the scale of the conspiracy seemed weak.

‘Things have gotten complicated. The Seomun Family and the Cheonhwa Library.’

To believe it blindly was absurd, and to not believe it, the chief steward’s testimony was consistent.

“I can’t believe your words.”

Hugong decided to push a little harder.

“The Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun will also… deny it. But the Seomun Family and I have exchanged tokens… so that is the proof.”

“A token?”

Hugong’s eyes lit up.

“Yes, you will be able to find it at the temporary residence where I was staying.”

“We’ll have to check. I’ll postpone taking your life until then.”

**

Hugong immediately faced the family head.

The family head, who had heard what the chief steward had confessed, reacted as if it were ridiculous and jumped up.

“Not the unorthodox factions, but the prestigious orthodox sects, the Seomun Family and the Cheonhwa Library, tried to swallow up another family by taking advantage of their difficulties. That’s ridiculous! The token is also just something he can say. That Gwak Do fellow is clearly trying to drive a wedge between us.”

“We need to confirm.”

“How can we confirm? We can’t just go and question them directly.”

Of course. It was like asking a robber if they were a robber. It would be a problem if they were a robber, and even if it was revealed that they were not, it would be rude to suspect them.

Therefore,

“We just need to throw out a bait. A bait that they can’t help but react to, wherever it is.”

“A bait?”

***

Evening.

Hugong summoned the guard team.

Excluding the necessary personnel inside, the available personnel were a total of 19.

All of them were trustworthy.

Even when the Cheonhwa Library was in a state of mental collapse, they had not wavered, and they were people whom the chief steward’s side had not even attempted to win over in the first place.

The atmosphere of the guard team was endlessly heavy.

Having already heard the contents of the chief steward’s confession, they were all grim, with expressions that showed they were prepared for death.

It was understandable.

If they were to go and question the Seomun Family or the Cheonhwa Library like this, a dispute would arise, and it would be like hitting a rock with an egg, so there was a high possibility that today would be the last day of their lives.

As Hugong stepped forward in front of them, they all knelt in unison.

“Just give us the order. We will fight with our lives on the line.”

Hugong nodded his head vigorously.

“Yes, fight and die! That is what a martial artist is!”

“Yes!”

They answered in one voice, and it echoed loudly in the night sky.

Hugong, who was pleased by their great spirit, had a smile on his face.

“But not today.”

“…?”

Then why?

Everyone looked at the Eldest Young Master with questioning eyes.

“Today, you will go out and spend the day, and you will return tomorrow night. You have only one thing to do! Go to the taverns, inns, and marketplaces and spread a rumor.”

“…”

Everyone still didn’t understand what it meant.

Everyone listened to the Eldest Young Master’s following words.

“The rumor is this. That the Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun have created a third organization called the Black Group, and you are to spread as much as possible the process by which they tried to swallow up the Cheonhwa Library. The content should be the same as the chief steward’s confession. Change into your everyday clothes, and be careful not to get involved in any arguments or disputes. By tomorrow night, make it so that everyone in the northern part of Anhui is talking about this.”

The faces of the guard team brightened.

“Do you understand?”

“Yes!”

Apart from being prepared to die, they couldn’t help but feel fear. They had thought they would rush in without thinking, filled with anger, but hearing the Eldest Young Master’s response, it was extremely wise.

Currently, the only thing that had been revealed was the chief steward’s confession.

If the Seomun Family or the Cheongwolmun denied it, it would be the Cheonhwa Library that would be in a difficult position. But if they did nothing, they would have to tremble in anxiety that they would be attacked. So the plan to spread a rumor was a brilliant move.

If the Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun were truly the masterminds, the rumor would make the two families shrink back, so they wouldn’t have to worry about additional damage.

The organization called the Black Group would also find it difficult to move.

And without having to go and question them, the burden of explanation was thrown to the Seomun Family and the Cheongwolmun.

If the chief steward had made up a false story, then it was just a rumor and could be easily dismissed.

A cool head, and swift action.

It’s easy to say, but how difficult is it to put this into practice?

They were satisfied that the Eldest Young Master had given the order without hesitation, with the help of the night. The Eldest Young Master of the Cheonhwa Library, who was called a genius among geniuses, had truly returned.

After sending the guard team away, Hugong summoned Jong Muguk and Songhwa.

“Jong Muguk.”

“Yes, Eldest Young Master, please give me your orders.”

“You are to go to the chief steward’s external residence. He said there is a scroll token he received from the Seomun Family, so pretend to be on an errand for the chief steward and get the token somehow.”

“Yes.”

After explaining where the token was stored, Hugong then looked at Songhwa.

“Songhwa, you go with Jong Muguk. Your mission is just to watch. Stay far away from the residence and observe the situation. If Jong Mugug fails, come back alone, and if he succeeds, come back together. If Jong Mugug doesn’t come out after half a quarter of an hour, then he is either dead or things have gone wrong, so don’t hesitate and come back. Do you understand?”

“Yes, young master.”

Two hours later.

Jong Muguk and Songhwa returned.

Both of them did not look well.

Among them, Jong Muguk’s complexion was the worst.

He slammed his forehead on the floor and opened his mouth.

“Eldest Young Master, I’m sorry. When I arrived at the chief steward’s residence, it was empty, and I couldn’t find a single ant. The token the chief steward mentioned was also gone, and the place was in a mess.”

Jong Muguk’s hands trembled, afraid that the blame for his failed mission would fall on his family.

Hugong looked at Songhwa for confirmation.

Songhwa confirmed that it was true, saying that she had also heard it from Jong Muguk and had gone into the residence herself to check. As she did so, she was panting with anger, and her flared nostrils showed no sign of shrinking.

Hugong inwardly nodded his head.

‘He must have thought the matter was settled when he heard about the suicide and erased the traces.’

It wasn’t something to be disappointed about.

It would be nice to have the token, but it was fine even if he didn’t.

Whatever the token, if the other party denied it, it would lose its effect.

On the other hand, the fact that they had carefully dug up the place where the token was hidden and erased the traces had a great meaning. Wasn’t the credibility of the chief steward’s confession increasing?