Chapter 44 - A First-Rate Warrior Who Gathers People (3)

The regions where the Nine Great Sects and the Five Great Noble Clans are located always bustle with people, even if they aren't major cities.

Whether they settle in the Five Great Mountains or a small village, a new city springs up around them.

Unusually, the villages surrounding the Zhuge Clan see a heavy traffic of Confucian scholars and learned men.

While their martial studies might be one thing, when it came to scholarly studies, there was nowhere in the world that could rival the Zhuge Clan.

After leaving Yueyang and heading toward Mount Longzhong, I rested for a day and headed straight for the Zhuge Clan.

It was a grueling march traveling all day long, but after cleansing my body with innate true qi at Wolhyang's grave, I hardly felt any fatigue.

"Hoo..."

By the time I arrived at the Zhuge Clan at the foot of Mount Longzhong, a massive crowd had already formed right from the main gate.

"Just what in the..."

I searched my memory, wondering if I had mistakenly arrived on an anniversary of the Zhuge Clan, but today was just an ordinary day.

"Perhaps..."

Seeing me staring blankly, an old man standing in front of me studied my expression.

"Did you come because you have business here as well, Sir Warrior?"

"Are you speaking to me?"

"Yes."

"I suppose I do."

"Then you just need to stand in line here."

The old man was dressed in shabby clothing, and in one hand, he held the hand of a child who appeared to be his granddaughter.

"I see. Do you know much about this place, old sir?"

"Old sir? Nonsense. Just call me Old Man Heo."

The old man spoke in startled surprise, but his gaze was fixed on the Black Dragon Sword.

"How could I do that? And you don't need to worry, I only wear this sword for self-defense."

Although I said that, the old man's attitude remained polite.

"There is a major issue in our village, so I have come a few times. Today makes the seventh visit already."

"What major issue requires you to visit seven times?"

"A giant serpent has appeared in the village."

"... A giant serpent?"

"Yes. A giant serpent appeared a year ago and has been eating the villagers. We called in escorts to try and hunt it, but this giant serpent's skin is so hard that neither arrows nor spears could pierce it."

"Ah..."

"The escorts said the giant serpent was too incredible to be killed, and that an array had to be set up to trap it."

I knew the true identity of the giant serpent in the old man's story.

The Iron-Clad Black Python.

The entity that appeared in Chaoyang of Hubei Province and completely wiped out a slash-and-burn village along with five other villages in the area.

Its skin is as hard as steel, and its size is immense enough to swallow a cow in a single bite.

It is a demonic creature with such tremendous strength that erasing a mansion-like house wouldn't even take fifteen minutes.

The reason the demonic creature that appeared in Chaoyang of Hubei Province hadn't been caught for so long was because, unlike other demonic creatures, it didn't harbor a spiritual pill.

Ultimately, it was only after all five villages were wiped out and hundreds of people died that the Murim Alliance took action.

'At that time, the Seungho Hall Leader and Vice Hall Leader were swallowed whole.'

In my past life, this incident caused three halls of the Azure Dragon Pavilion to collapse, and led to the reorganization of Seungho Hall.

Unlike the White Wolf Pavilion, which the Minor Orthodox Unit belonged to and was a gathering place for street thugs, a group composed of elite experts was swallowed whole by a single Iron-Clad Black Python.

"Oh my, so what has the Zhuge Clan been saying all this time?"

"They told us that they could only handle this issue after reporting it to the Murim Alliance and receiving their approval."

The hope the old man harbored was a futile one.

The Zhuge Clan taking action ultimately meant the Murim Alliance would be paying the costs.

And the Murim Alliance would never hire the array masters of the Zhuge Clan—whose high fees were second to none in the world—just to save a slash-and-burn village.

'In the end, they went to hunt it directly instead of sealing it.'

Even though I knew the answer, I couldn't just tell him the harsh reality outright, so I subtly changed the subject.

"I hope everything works out well. Is this your granddaughter, old sir?"

As I looked at his granddaughter and gestured, the child grabbed the old man's leg and hid behind him as if scared.

The old man looked entirely unaccustomed to looking after a child.

"My son and his wife were eaten by the giant serpent this time, so I brought her with me."

"Ah..."

I had tried to lighten the mood, but somehow it became even more depressing.

Fortunately, it became the old man's turn, and a person dressed as a scholar who was receiving people at the main gate frowned upon seeing him.

"You again! Didn't I tell you? We will contact you once a decision is made."

"My lord, it has only been fifteen days and the giant serpent has appeared again, eating ten villagers. Please, just let me meet the Patriarch once."

The scholar let out a deep sigh.

"Do you think the Patriarch is some local constable? Who does a mere slash-and-burn village chief think he is..."

Clicking his tongue, the scholar gestured to the warriors around the main gate, and the warriors moved to drag the old man away.

Seeing the old man being dragged away and the crying granddaughter, I couldn't just stand by and do nothing.

"Hold on a moment."

"What is it?"

The scholar looked me up and down as he spoke.

"This person is my companion."

The scholar quickly saw through our relationship and scoffed.

"I know you're doing this out of pity, but don't meddle unnecessarily. This man is from a slash-and-burn village."

"What's wrong with being from a slash-and-burn village?"

"..."

"He will be going inside with me. Please pass a message to the Patriarch."

The scholar and the warriors gathering around burst into ridiculous laughter.

"Are these fools drunk in broad daylight..."

Before he could finish speaking, I thrust a promissory note in front of his face.

"Hah! Do you think a promissory note like this is... so... great..."

The scholar's mouth clamped shut as he read the promissory note.

The warriors who had been laughing around him also peeked over in curiosity, and their eyes shook violently upon seeing the note.

"T-Two hundred taels of gold!!"

At the words someone spat out, gasps of astonishment erupted from both the family members and the guests alike.

Dispatching an array master from the Zhuge Clan typically cost around twenty taels of gold a year.

Two hundred taels of gold was enough money to hire ten such array masters for a full year.

And the Zhuge Clan had a rule that such massive commissions were to be handled personally by the Hall Master of the Artisans' Hall or the Patriarch of the family.

"May we go in?"

"Uh... Y-Yes. I will guide you."

The scholar suddenly bowed deeply and pointed toward the main gate with both hands.

I said to the old man.

"Let's go in."

* * *

When one thinks of a martial faction capable of deploying Qimen arrays, the Mount Mao Sect comes to mind, but in reality, the Mount Mao Sect's strengths primarily lie in Demon-Subduing and subduing spirits.

They are more effective at countering the necromancy and ghost arts used by those commonly known as heterodox sects.

But if one were to pick the absolute greatest martial faction in Qimen arrays, it is undeniably the Zhuge Clan.

While most sects in Murim earn profit by running merchant groups or developing mines, the Zhuge Clan accumulates wealth surpassing the other Five Great Noble Clans by selling Qimen arrays to the sects of Jianghu.

Because Qimen arrays are incredibly difficult to deploy and require constant maintenance, barring exceptional cases like the Boundless Indestructible Soul-Extinguishing Array, a lack of upkeep causes their foundations to twist and shake over time, eventually leading to their unravelling.

For this reason, the sects of Jianghu had to continuously pay exorbitant fees not just for the initial installation, but for ongoing maintenance as well.

Though the massive costs were a heavy burden, the Qimen arrays of the Zhuge Clan boasted the best effectiveness, making them a necessity rather than a choice for martial factions that had countless enemies in Jianghu.

"You may step in this way."

After guiding us to a guest room for receiving visitors, the scholar in charge of guidance filled out a document regarding the dispatch and said he had forwarded it.

"It will take some time for the approval to be issued and a meeting to be arranged."

"We will wait."

The scholar gauged my reaction, while simultaneously looking quite uncomfortable with the old man being in this space.

"Um, when you meet the Patriarch, couldn't you meet him alone?"

"Did I not say we are companions?"

"..."

If the scholar found this situation uncomfortable, the old man found it terrifying.

He had asked to meet the Patriarch of the Zhuge Clan, but it was clear he never actually expected to meet him like this.

Furthermore, the warriors in the guest room, including the scholar, were looking at the old man with disdain.

For someone who found it difficult even to interact with a young person like me, enduring such a heavy atmosphere seemed far from easy.

"Old sir. It's fine. Don't be so nervous. We just came to talk, didn't we?"

When I spoke while looking at his granddaughter, who was in pain because he was squeezing her hand too tightly, the old man finally let go of her hand in shock.

"... Oh my. Are you alright, little one?"

"..."

The granddaughter nodded while checking the surroundings just like her grandfather, then took his hand again.

A moment later, two people walked in.

One was a middle-aged man in modest attire, and the other was an old man dressed so flamboyantly that he was the exact opposite of Old Man Heo standing on this side.

With a plump figure and silk clothing.

He entered while adorned with precious jewels and casually fanning himself with a white feather fan modeled after the one held by Zhuge Liang in the past.

That man was none other than Zhuge Jeong, the Hall Master of the Artisans' Hall and practically the teacher of all the array experts and array masters affiliated with the Zhuge Clan.

Although not from the direct line of the Zhuge Clan, he was a relatively close collateral relative and also the younger cousin of Zhuge Somyeong, the Murim Alliance's Chief Strategist.

"Why, Chief Heo. I heard the news. I heard your village suffered a great tragedy?"

Zhuge Jeong quickly ran over and grabbed the old man's hands as he spoke, and the old man called Chief Heo was startled.

"Y-You remember me?"

"Of course I remember. Didn't we exchange greetings at Mount Geummok twelve years ago?"

"Ah..."

Chief Heo looked at Zhuge Jeong with a deeply moved gaze.

"I actually already heard your story, Chief Heo. I was absolutely furious when I found out you hadn't been given a proper response despite telling us several times."

"No, no. The warriors are entirely blameless."

Chief Heo shook his head vigorously, as if flustered.

"To tell the truth. Upon hearing that the giant serpent appeared, I was prepared to immediately lead our family's men and seal it myself, but you see, an array fundamentally cannot be established carelessly without the Murim Alliance's permission."

"Ah... T-Then what should we do?"

"I will send someone right away to seek permission before any greater damage occurs. If that doesn't work, I will visit the Murim Alliance personally and get an answer. I will settle this once and for all."

"Oh my. Thank you. My lord. Thank you so much."

Chief Heo shed tears and even prostrated himself on the floor in a deep bow.

Zhuge Jeong quickly helped him up.

"You should head back up now. Doesn't the sun set early in the mountains? Your granddaughter also looks very exhausted."

"Yes, yes. I must. I leave it in your capable hands."

Chief Heo bowed to Zhuge Jeong, the middle-aged man standing next to him, the scholar, the warriors, and even me, before leaving the guest room.

Once he left, Zhuge Jeong and the middle-aged man took their seats.

And unlike when he was speaking with Chief Heo just a moment ago, he frowned and said.

"Did you say your name is Jin Sowoon of the Taiyi Sect?"

"It is a pleasure to meet—"

"Why are you doing something so useless?"

"—you. I am Jin Sowoon."

Instead of answering the question, I tilted my head.

"Thanks to you dragging that man in, the Zhuge Clan has been burdened."

Hearing those words, I nodded.

"So you were lying, as expected."

"What?"

"There's no way the highly paid Zhuge Clan would do something like volunteer work, right?"

The Murim Alliance's permission is needed to set up an array?

Arrays were never subject to permission in the first place. Who in the world would report to the Murim Alliance every single time they set up an array?

Ultimately, Zhuge Jeong had just shifted the responsibility to the Murim Alliance and gotten rid of Chief Heo.

"Listen here, brat. Don't get arrogant just because you have some money. The reason we came out isn't because of your money, but because we heard you helped the Namgung Clan, who are close to us."

"Ah, so that was it. It would have been even better if you had come along and helped out back then. I suppose you didn't help because the timing didn't align, not because of the money?"

"... Brat. Did you come here to argue with me?"

"I did not. Let's talk business then."

"Before that. You there."

Zhuge Jeong pointed at the scholar.

"You can't even write a dispatch application properly and submit a document like this?!"

Zhuge Jeong aggressively tossed the document at the scholar; it smacked the scholar's face and fell to the floor.

"You're supposed to write the dispatch target's name and the duration!"

"A-Ah, that was because this guest said the person wasn't on the roster here, so he would leave it blank and discuss it directly."

"Not on this roster?"

Zhuge Jeong looked at the hundreds of nameplates placed on one side of the guest room's wall.

It was a comprehensive list of all the dispatch targets currently active in the Zhuge Clan.

"Brat, what is it that you want?"

After looking once at the man sitting next to Zhuge Jeong, I spoke.

"Zhuge Cheongi. The dispatch period is five years."

FLINCH.

The middle-aged man stared deeply into my face.

Sensing this, Zhuge Jeong let out a fake cough and continued.

"I don't know how you know of that child, but he is not an official array master."

"That does not matter."

"... It does matter. That goes against our family's regulations—"

"Ah, and the amount of two hundred taels I wrote down was meant to show that I will pay two hundred taels per year."

"..."

Zhuge Jeong loved money.

When he finished his mandatory service in the Murim Alliance and others stayed behind to strive for success, he returned to his family faster than anyone else and worked to take control of the array masters. He had known since his youth that the position of dispatching and managing array masters handled the most money within the family.

"I heard you like money."

The dazed Zhuge Jeong's face flushed bright red.

At that moment, the middle-aged man who had remained quiet carefully opened his mouth.

"May I ask what you plan to use Cheongi for?"

He was none other than Zhuge Hyeon-un, the current Patriarch of the Zhuge Clan and the son of Zhuge Somyeong.

"Please speak comfortably. If the Patriarch of the Zhuge Clan speaks to me so formally, won't people curse me?"

"Ahem. Understood. What do you intend to use Cheongi for?"

"The Taiyi Sect currently has no defensive facilities. I intend to entrust that part to him."

"But... Cheongi's studies in Qimen arrays are quite lacking."

That couldn't be true.

Zhuge Cheongi was a genius on the same level as Yong So-ah in the field of scholarly studies.

He just didn't study it because he had no interest. Even if Zhuge Cheongi started studying now, it was certain he would acquire skills surpassing any array expert in the Zhuge Clan in the shortest amount of time.

"What I plan to entrust him with is not Qimen arrays, so you do not need to worry."

"..."

"..."

Zhuge Jeong and Zhuge Hyeon-un locked eyes with each other.

Then Zhuge Jeong frowned and spoke.

"Are you, by any chance, trying to install mechanisms? No! Those foolish contraptions are devices that only hurt people."

Currently, the perception of mechanisms and formations was depreciated to a trivial level compared to Qimen arrays.

And the new concept that would eventually change that perception entirely was Zhuge Cheongi's mechanisms and formations.

"Furthermore, that child is imprisoned in the Golden Jade Prison for the crime of critically injuring someone with a mechanism. Therefore, I cannot dispatch him even more so."

"Isn't it only natural for injuries to occur during the process of experimentation? Can someone be imprisoned in the Golden Jade Prison for such a thing?"

According to what Zhuge Cheongi had said, the reason he was imprisoned in the Golden Jade Prison was because all the array experts in the family hated the mechanisms and formations he created. I was pointing out this very fact.

Zhuge Jeong's expression slowly began to reveal his displeasure.

"Even if casualties occur because of the mechanisms and formations Zhuge Cheongi makes at the Taiyi Sect, the Taiyi Sect will take full responsibility for everything. If you want, I will even draw up a contract for you."

"..."

Zhuge Jeong looked at Zhuge Hyeon-un, as if urging him to say something.

However, I got the feeling that Zhuge Hyeon-un was somehow taking my side.

He continued observing me before looking at Zhuge Jeong and speaking.

"Judging from the story I've heard so far, as the Patriarch, I don't think I can refuse."

"Patriarch!"

"In truth, isn't it only natural for injuries to occur during the process of experimentation? At the Sichuan Tang Clan, dozens of people are poisoned every month. Without such trial and error, wouldn't we eventually become stagnant water as well?"

Zhuge Hyeon-un looked at me.

"Furthermore, if we can experiment with mechanisms and formations through the Taiyi Sect, it would be an opportunity for us to broaden our horizons as well. I believe there is nothing unacceptable from my end... However, the final decision-making authority for dispatching lies with the Grand Supreme Elder, so I ask that you only take my words as a reference."

He used words like 'reference' and 'ask', but to Zhuge Jeong, it wasn't something he could easily overlook.

The Patriarch had already provided justification, and although Zhuge Cheongi's imprisonment in the Golden Jade Prison had been decided by a unanimous vote from the Elder's Hall, Zhuge Cheongi was, at the end of the day, Zhuge Hyeon-un's youngest son.

"Ahem..."

Zhuge Jeong was rolling his eyes around, squeezing out a thought.

"If the Patriarch insists that far, then it must be done. However, doesn't our Zhuge Clan only accept clients who meet our standards? Unfortunately, the Taiyi Sect does not meet those standards."

Zhuge Jeong leisurely waved the fan modeled after the white feather fan.

I asked, despite already knowing what those standards were.

"What are those standards?"

Zhuge Jeong smirked and replied.

"You must be an existing client of the Zhuge Clan."

This was precisely one of the reasons the Zhuge Clan's name was considered the absolute best in the world.

The Zhuge Clan even handpicked the people who paid them.

"What an absurdly contradictory standard."

"If you met the standard, an invitation would have already been sent from the Zhuge Clan."

People of Jianghu often used invitations from the Zhuge Clan as one of the metrics to gauge the strength of a sect.

Through this method, they were making their name more valuable than gold.

"Hmm... In that case, the Taiyi Sect will have to wait a little longer."

"Well. You haven't received an invitation in the past five hundred years. Is there any reason you'd receive one in the future?"

"That's true as well. Then how about giving me an opportunity?"

"An opportunity?"

"Yes. If I accomplish a task that even you can accept, please allow the dispatch of Zhuge Cheongi."

"Haha, what task could there possibly be for me to acknowledge you?"

"How about the Iron-Clad Black Python? I mean the giant serpent you lied about to Old Man Heo earlier."

"Huh?"

"If I hunt it, how about counting that as passing the standard?"

Not just Zhuge Jeong, but even Zhuge Hyeon-un's eyes widened in surprise.