Reaper of the Drifting Moon

After their seclusion ended, the Qingcheng sect continued to expand.

Because new disciples continued to be accepted, there was insufficient space to stay for the upcoming generations.

It was not difficult to expand.

In Sichuan Province, the Qingcheng sect had already established a unique force. There were so many active disciples who was willing to donate large amounts of money for the Qingcheng sect.

As the power of the Qingcheng sect grew, the benefits to be received also followed. There was no reason not to donate.

In a way, it was like a Qingcheng sect tax, where both the disciples and the sect prospered together.

As time pass by, a whole new environment was created. Because of that, even the disciples of the Qingcheng sect were unable to memorize the names of the newly created buildings.

The Qingcheng sect often changes its establishments, but there are some places that do not change.

One of them was Sangqing Palace.¹

Since Sangqing Palace was the most important place in the Qingcheng sect, the security was strict.

Most major events of the Qingcheng sect were all decided at Sangqing Palace. Even today, the elders were gathered at Sangqing Palace, including Muryeongjin,² a long-time sect leader of the Qingcheng sect.

Muryeongjin was an old man in his early seventies. But looking at his appearance alone, it was hard to guess that he was at that age.

Because of his unconventional appearance, deep eyes, and naturally flowing dignity, he only looked like he was in his early to mid-fifties.

It was the same with the other elders.

The elders who had mastered the martial arts of the Qingcheng sect looked much younger than their actual age. Rather, the person who looked the oldest was Woo Jinpyeong, who is called the Jinang (last) of the Qingcheng sect.

Because he came from a branch family of the Qingcheng sect, his martial arts were the weakest. That is why he looked much older than the other elders.

The first person to speak was Muryeongjin, the sect leader.

“Has the outside situation calmed down?”

“It seems that the search for the assassin has come to an end.”

“How dare an assassin target our sect? Do you think this makes sense, junior brother?”

“Of course it doesn’t make sense. It’s highly likely that someone has plotted this.”

Woo Jinpyeong’s eyes lit up coldly as he answered.

“Who do you think it could be?”

“It’s too early to make a hasty decision because we don’t have the right information yet.”

“Are we going to leave it that way?”

“Of course not. I’ve already sent some of my disciples to gather information.”

“As expected of junior brother Woo.”

Muryeongjin smiled, satisfied.

The old man with a heavy atmosphere, who had been silent until now, opened his mouth.

“Whoever caused this situation must never be forgiven! Our sect is currently at a crucial turning point. We must make it so that something like this never happens again.”

He was Mu Jeong-jin,³ an elder of the Qingcheng sect.

Mu Jeong-jin was unquestionably the number one sword of the Qingcheng.

No matter how brilliant Woo Jinpyeong was, the Qingcheng sect would not have been able to achieve this level of development if it hadn’t been supported by the armed forces of Mu Jeong-jin.

Woo Jinpyeong nodded in response to Mu Jeong-jin’s words.

“It will be so, senior brother!”

“The Shaolin Temple, the Wudang Sect, and the Mount Hua Sect, who participated in the battle after opening their doors during the War of the Demons and Heaven, regained their former reputation. However, those who sealed their doors and did not participate in the war such as our sect and the Emei sect, only gained an empty name of ‘Four Heavenly Kings’ in Sichuan. However, our actual power is far short of theirs. To catch up with them, we must tighten our reins. If we can’t move forward because we’re caught up in an incident like this, even if we die, we won’t be able to reach our previous glory.”

At Mu Jeong-jin’s words, all the elders nodded their heads.

A lot of things have changed in Jianghu due to the war that took place several decades ago.

At that time, Jianghu was in danger of being conquered by the Celestial Demon Union.⁴

If the extraordinary martial artist named Lee Kwak had not formed the Providence Alliance [천의맹(天意盟)] and resisted, Jianghu would have fallen into the hands of the Celestial Demon Union.

At that time, the Shaolin Temple, the Wudang sect, the Mount Hua Sect, the Qingcheng, and the Emei sect had their gates closed. However, soon the Shaolin Temple, the Wudang sect, the Mount Hua Sect boldly opened their gates and participated in the Heaven’s Will Alliance, and made a great contribution in driving out the Celestial Demon Union. On the other hand, the Qingcheng and Emei sect did not open the gates because they were too careful.

The difference divided the fate of the five sects.

The Shaolin Temple, Wudang, and Mount Hua sect, who participated in the war, regained their former glory with praise from the people, but the Qingcheng and Emei sect were criticized by the people.

Since they unlocked their gates late, Jianghu’s gaze on them was unbearably cold. It was unfair because of their circumstances, but they could not turn back Jianghu’s already tilted gaze.

Now, people did not think that the Qingcheng sect and the Emei sect were in the same ranks as the Shaolin Temple, the Wudang and the Mount Hua sect.

Actually it was true.

Jianghu’s outstanding martial artists preferred the other three sects more than the Qingcheng sect or the Emei sect.

The Qingcheng faction has recently expanded its ranks and has been eagerly following the three clans, but the gap was still considerable. The gap was not narrowing at all, but rather widening.

Because of that, the sense of crisis that Qingcheng felt was really great.

“Don’t worry. If things go as planned, we’ll be able to catch up with them within a decade.”

“How dependable. It’s reassuring to have someone like you!”

“No, senior brother!”

“Since you’re so great, your son must have taken after you.”

Woo Jinpyeong’s face darkened slightly at Mu Jeongjin’s words.

“Woo Gunsang has isolated himself to focus his training with the thought of atonement.”

“Is that so?”

“I apologize.”

“What do you mean?”

“My son—”

“It’s understandable for a boy of his age.”

“There’s no need for you to apologize for something that has already been taken care of peacefully.”

“I will make sure that he pulls himself together.”

Mu Jeong-jin replied with a look that said nothing was wrong.

“Yes, that’s plenty. No matter what anyone says, Woo Gunsang’s talent is real.”

At Mu Jeong-jin’s words, the elders nodded their heads.

“I heard that you accepted Emei’s sects proposal of marriage?”

This time, it was Muryeongjin, the sect leader, who opened his mouth.

Woo Jinpyeong made a sad expression.

“How did that happen?”

“Marriage with the Emei sect… Not bad. Is the bride the youngest disciple of the Abbess of Nine Calamities?”

“That’s right.”

“It’s rumored that she possesses both intelligence and beauty. If that’s the case, it’s not bad match for Woo Gunsang.”

“I think so too.”

“Then why is your expression so dark?”

“It’s probably because I’m reluctant.”

“Is it because of the Abbess of the Nine Calamities?”

“Yes.”

When the Abbess of the Nine Calamities was mentioned, all the elders frowned at once.

There was an existence that made people feel bad just by hearing their name. Guhwasata was such a person.

Like the Qingcheng sect, the Emei sect fell behind because of the late opening of their gate. No, the Emei sect was far below that of the Qingcheng sect, let alone the other three great sects.

For that reason, she was determined to catch up with the Qingcheng sect in any way.

Such tenacity of the Guhwasata made the elders of the Qingcheng uncomfortable.

“If Woo Gunsang gets married to the youngest disciple of the Abbess of the Nine Calamities, we will have no choice but to make concessions.”

“Hmm, so that’s the problem. If we make a mistake, there’s a risk that our sect will be the ones who will be devoured. That’s why I’ve rejected the proposal so far, but now, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“However, we have no choice. We can’t continue to be enemies in this small land of Sichuan. Accept it.”

“I will.”

“Woo Gunsang is the only hope of the Qingcheng sect to catch up with the other three sects. Never forget that fact.”

The meeting ended with Mu Jeong-jin’s last words.

* * *

Bright Moon Palace was an old hall with the history of the Qingcheng sect.

Although the size of the hall is not very large, it is separated by a high wall and there is a space for closed training in the basement.

All those who stayed in the Bright Moon Palace left a great mark in the history of the Qingcheng sect. Giving the Bright Moon Palace to Woo Gunsang meant that the Qingcheng sect had great expectations for him.

Pyo-wol looked at the Bright Moon Palace without saying a word.

He saw the real Bright Moon Palace for the first time today, but he didn’t feel that it was unfamiliar because he saw a hall like this every day in an underground cave.

Although there are third generation disciples who stood guard at the entrance of Bright Moon Palace, Pyo-wol knew ten more ways to sneak into Bright Moon Palace.

There was no one who was not a disciple of the Qingcheng sect who knew this place better than Pyo-wol. No, even among the disciples of the Qingcheng sect, there was no one who could rival Pyo-wol.

Pyo-wol was walking along the wall and jumping lightly around the corner.

A tiled roof was placed on top of the walled fences of the Bright Moon Palace. It was only created when the Bright Moon Palace was first built, and did not exist in any recently created fences.

Pyo-wol crawled on the tiled roof of the wall fence.

Originally, when a tiled roof was put on, the inside of the wall would be filled with soil. But as time passed, the soil inside of the wall would flow down making its inside empty.

The same was true for the fortifications in the underground cave.

It was not possible to fill the insides of the wall with soil because the layout was made in a hurry in the underground cave, but Pyo-wol guessed that maybe the situation was the same for the real wall of the Bright Moon Palace.

His thoughts turned out to be right.

Pyo-wol crawled through the empty space between the wall and approached the nearest place to Bright Moon Palace.

He felt some soldiers passing under the wall. But they could never be aware of his existence.

Pyo-wol was able to move while unfolding the Turtle Breathing Technique. Even if the soldiers knew in advance and prepared for an intruder, it was not easy to detect Pyo-wol’s presence.

Pyo-wol, who was moving while holding his breath, heard the voices of the soldiers chatting under the wall.

“Wow, did Woo Gunsang bring in a woman again?”

“Shh! Be quiet!”

“To bring a woman inside under the pretext of closure training. That’s really bold of him. Is it one of our disciples this time?

“Hey, I told you to be quiet! If you don’t want to get caught and be scolded, be careful with your mouth!”

“Damn it!”

Their conversation gave Pyo-wol valuable information.

‘He brings women in here?’

The Qingcheng sect was basically a Taoist sect.

In the recent years while expanding the sect, they have accepted a lot of disciples and their secular tendencies have strengthened, but the fact that they are a sect based on Taoism has not changed.

It was, of course, unimaginable to hold a woman in the training hall. However, a man named Woo Gunsang secretly took the woman into his residence.

From what he heard from Dojin, he said that Woo Gunsang was the object of admiration by the Qingcheng disciples, but it seemed that there was something different inside the sect from what is known to the world.

‘Wherever you go, there is always someone who is different on the inside.’

It was unfortunate for the Qingcheng sect disciples, but it was a good thing for Pyo-wol.

After confirming that no one was around, Pyo-wol quietly flew to the roof of Bright Moon Palace.

He landed on the roof silently.

It was starting to become dim.

Soon night came.

For others, darkness was a big obstacle, but for Pyo-wol, the night was like another weapon of his. Pyo-wol moved while completely being assimilated into the darkness.

He kicked off the roof tile and infiltrated inside.

He crawled on all fours like an animal. Still, he did not make any sound.

Pyo-wol carefully went through the roof and looked inside the hall. However, the figure of the person presumed to be Woo Gunsang was nowhere to be seen.

‘It looks like he’s in the basement.’

Pyo-wol did not panic.

He already knew that there was an underground basement here.

The problem was opening the entrance to the basement. When the entrance is opened, Woo Gunsang who was inside had no choice but to notice.

So Pyo-wol have to think of infiltrating using other places instead.

He went through the ventilation hole, which was essential for any underground space. Perhaps even the martial artists of the Qingcheng sect do not know that there was a ventilation hole here.

The ventilation holes were hidden quite well.

Pyo-wol soon found the place behind a large pillar. It was the vents.

He carefully opened the vent and sneaked inside.

Pyo-wol completely concealed his presence by utilizing the Turtle Breathing Technique. Still, he was not complacent, so he moved as slowly as possible.

Finally, Pyo-wol arrived at the underground basement.

The location of the ventilation hole was on the ceiling overlooking the underground basement. .Pyo-wol carefully peered into the underground basement.

He saw a six-foot-tall man lying there with his clothes off. Next to him was a half-naked woman.

‘Woo Gunsang…!’

As the best weapon of the Qingcheng sect, Woo Gunsang had a well-trained body.

The densely developed muscles were reminiscent of a snow leopard (雪豹) that freely roamed in snowy mountains, and calluses were lodged on his palms and back.

He was sleeping with the woman in his arms, but there were no flaws in the look of Woo Gunsang.

It looked like he would react immediately if there was even a small stimulus from the outside.

Woo Gunsang looked like a well-forged sword.

Pyo-wol felt goosebumps all over his body. This was the first time he had personally seen a warrior who had reached this level. He also felt a thrill when he saw Gu Juyang, the leader of the Blood Shadow Group, but this time it was different.

Woo Gunsang exuded an atmosphere as someone who had reached such a high stage by taking the right steps. There’s a natural aura flowing out. It was a kind of energy that assassins who did not learn proper martial arts and only learned how to kill could never have.

But Pyo-wol never faltered.

‘He is also human. If he had his blood drawn or get stabbed with a knife, he would die nonetheless.’

Pyo-wol looked into the underground basement.

Weapons were scattered everywhere.

There were a lot of swords in particular, as if to prove that the martial arts that Woo Gunsang had learned was swordsmanship.

There were various types of swords, such as long swords, daggers, and yam swords.

Pyo-wol rehearsed the whole scene in his mind.

A picture that can only be seen by him was painted in his head. When the painting was completed to some extent, Pyo-wol took out a small bundle of rope from his bosom.

It was a gift given by the Blood Shadow Group.

Pyo-wol made the rope in the form of a noose and sent it down through the ventilation hole.

It was when the noose almost reached Woo Gunsang’s face.

Woo Gunsang, who was asleep, suddenly opened his eyes.

His eyes were looking exactly where Pyo-wol was hiding.

‘Caught him!’

At that moment, Pyo-wol pulled on the rope.

Ping!

Editor’s Notes

1. Sangqing Palace. 상청궁(上清宮).
2. Muryeongjin. In the manhwa, he was referred to as the Saint of Martial Spirit.
3. Mu Jeong-jin. In the manhwa, he was referred to as the Saint of Martial Justice, the Qingcheng sect’s greatest warrior.
4. Celestial Demon Union. The MTL version used Shin Ma-ryun. 신마련에.