episode_0091

*** ***

The week passed quickly. Every time, you administer rice cakes and Naedan and learn martial arts under the guidance of the black cat… or catch a fire and learn how to control the Knight’s Heaven, or fight with the black cat.

It was a great summer vacation in itself, except for the trouble of having a black cat lose its guard and run around naked.

Now it was time to rip open Hwari’s stomach.

Hwari’s alertness was close to zero due to the rice cakes that had been injected at regular intervals over the past week. I threw in the rice cake connected to the article.

Peeing!

“Wow!”

It’s so heavy that you can’t help but exclaim with admiration. I thought it would be quite big, but it almost fell apart in an instant. I adjusted my stepping foot, lowered my center of weight, and manipulated the knight cloth. A difficult opponent to pull up simply with force.

“sum! Tea! Wow!”

The Gisacheon control skills that I had honed over the course of a week began to shine. When Hwari pulls hard, loosen the rope slightly to disrupt the force and then pull for a moment. As you skillfully relax, the pulling power gradually weakens.

Right now at this moment. If you pull it all at once, you can catch it in one go. The experience I had accumulated while fishing for various marigolds for a week whispered to me.

I put my energy into the knight cloth and pulled it up in one go.

Wow!!

A huge Hwari, as big as 7 ships, was dragged ashore. The level of fluttering power was also different. The strength of its fins is so strong that every time it flaps, it jumps as tall as a person.

The black cat’s fishing pole overpowered Hwari, who was running wild with the intention of going into another pool.

“Oh my god, it’s amazing how much it has grown in just a week.”

“That’s right.”

It was amazing to see it double in size in just a week, even though I already knew the result. Is this a spiritual object?

I was in a bit of a hurry and cut into Hwari’s stomach. When I explored the underwater cave for the last time today, it was almost full of water. In order to get out safely, I needed to move a little faster.

“Oh…”

The inner circle has clearly grown. As a result of combining at most 20 inner edges the size of a little fingernail, an inner edge similar to the size of a ping-pong ball was formed.

With this, the water elixir was secured. It’s called Hwari, but it’s just a name given because its scales resemble flames, and it’s a fish born and raised only in water, so of course it’s water-based.

“The way back will be quite tight, so let’s throw away all the useless things.”

“Umm…but I’d like to take this iron fishing rod as a souvenir!”

“Okay.”

The water in the underwater cave had risen to a quite dangerous level. Roughly 90%? If I had had one more day, I might not have been able to get out.

“Puha..!”

The water level of the Minjanggang River, which was embarrassing to be called a river, also rose significantly. The two of us sighed heavily after swimming into the Yangtze River.

“Ah~ It was fun. The weather has become much more pleasant.”

The sweltering heat also showed signs of abating. Although it was still a hot summer day, I felt like I had passed a critical point. It was a satisfying vacation in many ways. The black cat was freed from the gaze of people for the first time in a long time and enjoyed a summer vacation, fishing and playing in the water to its heart’s content.

I, too, had plenty of eye candy, got some elixirs, and stayed cool in the scorching heat, so it was a satisfying vacation.

I returned to Sichuan Province with a smile on my face.

“…Why is this like this?”

Sacheonseong was dead.

*** ***

The atmosphere in Sichuan Province was beyond words. The number of people walking around the market was reduced by less than half, the stalls that were always stocked with goods so that they burst out were empty, and people’s eyes were full of deep sorrow.

Just by looking at it, you can tell that something big has happened.

“Senior. I’ll stop by somewhere else, collect some information, and then head to the guesthouse.”

“Yes, I understand. I’ll go to the guest room first.”

The black cat disappeared somewhere, perhaps intending to first contact Wolbokdang and obtain information. I, too, was embarrassed by the current situation. Was there an event like this in Sichuan Province?

When I arrived at Rongin Gaekjan, I was able to hear the reason why the current atmosphere in Sichuan Province was so messed up.

“Bandits?”

“Where did you come from after being locked up in a temple for a week? Four of the seventy-two Nokrim houses have joined forces to occupy Mt. Jeongnam on Namgyeong-daero and are taking all the property they can.”

Since Yoo Yu-yeon was away, we had no choice but to hear from Jeong-sam about the current situation in Sacheon Province.

It was news that could not be heard. Jeongnamsan Mountain on Nanjing-daero is a three-day walk from Sacheon Province. If an ordinary person walks, it would take three days, but if an expert who knows how to use a horse or light ball runs, it would take at most a day from the castle.

“4 supreme masters, and for a bandit, the number of troops recruited by masters is as many as 500. It is a huge number of people that cannot be handled by the power of the Sichuan Province clans.”

“Hehe.”

I couldn’t stop myself from laughing. Although there were many sects in Sacheon, there were only three masters. Even if you take out Sichuan Province, you will still be outnumbered by experts.

I can’t believe such an uproar broke out in Sacheon while I was on vacation.

First, I found out the current situation through Jeongsam’s mouth. First of all, the clans in Sichuan Province feel a sense of crisis and are trying to join forces, but the situation does not seem to be going well. In fact, it was absurd to think that the clans of Sichuan Province alone could drive out the bandits.

“What is the news about the giant breakwaters in Sacheon?”

“Well, I will have to step forward as time goes by…but not right now.”

That’s right. Even if the news spread quickly in Sichuan Province a week after the bandits occurred, it was not long before the news reached Hwangbo Segawa, Jeomchang, Ami, Cheongseong, and Jongnam faction.

First, I will send my disciples down to find out the truth and then move on.

In order for the big factions, such as the nine factions and the five major factions, to move, a reasonable cause is needed. Being tied to a cause is both a disadvantage and an advantage of political factions.

Political factions should not swing their swords unless there is a just cause. What is the reason why people believe in and follow political factions and stay away from religious factions? This is because the Sa sect uses its power arbitrarily and harms people for its own gain, but the righteous sect follows the cause and does not use its power carelessly when there is no proper cause.

As the Five Generations and the Nine Factions can be said to be the leaders of such political factions, they consider justification more than other political factions.

In any case, Sichuan Province is the territory of the Sichuan Province clans. No matter how many bandits appeared, as soon as they appeared, they suddenly advanced to Sichuan Province and subdued them, which was a kind of overstepping of authority.

Even at the minimum, it would take more than a week for the giant breakers to come out.

As I was listening to Jeongsam about the various damages, a black cat appeared.

“Um…senior. There’s a bit of a problem.”

“What’s the problem?”

“Elixir. There was a place called Cheonyu Sangdan that was supposed to sell wood elixirs… but it looks like it was robbed by bandits.”

“Hehe…”

I burst out laughing because it was so absurd. I put on my bamboo hat and got up. In order to find out the circumstances surrounding my elixir, I planned to meet the victim who had encountered the bandits in person rather than obtain information indirectly from Jeongsam.

*** ***

“So you’re saying that all of your luggage was taken away?”

“That’s right…whew…it’s going to be difficult to trade until the charlatans come out and take down the bandits.”

Yu-chan’s complexion was as pale as a person who was about to die. This is understandable since he was threatened with his life by bandits and had all his belongings stolen.

“But…I think if the bandits knew it was an elixir, they would take it.”

“There are so many dangers lurking in the world, how can you carry around an elixir like an elixir? Since it was stored in a double structure in the cosmetics box, there is a good chance that the items will be safe. Of course…it’s not impossible that I got caught.”

I wanted to get more information about the bandits, but Yu-chan didn’t seem to have the energy to talk anymore. Since we couldn’t capture and harass a man whose fortune was stolen by bandits, Black Cat and I had no choice but to quench our appetite and retreat.

“It’s a shame.”

“Sure.”

The opportunity to obtain an elixir this easily is very rare… but it was quite disappointing. Suddenly a bandit appeared.

In fact, there was only one cause that came to mind. Yeo-il-ye.

“Is this because it was caught?”

“There is a possibility. In any case, the reason bandits appeared in Sacheon was probably because they cut down the leader of the seventy-two mountain houses.”

You may be wondering why Yeo Il-ye came to the strict Sichuan Province and caused an uproar after capturing Mak Yu, but they are bandits.

Although they do not have the strength or courage to wage an all-out war against the Jeomchang faction, they must retaliate, so the chosen method is to plunder strict people. They have truly astounding humanity.

It’s like holding other innocent people hostage while they can’t do anything about Yeo Il-yeon or Jeom-chang, who touched the living things.

This is a threat to us to stop because if you mess with us, more innocent people will suffer.

If you act too far away, the meaning will not be conveyed, but if you do this in front of the store window, you can be swept away in an instant, so you come to the formidable city of Sichuan and do it.

As for the owner of Nokrim Seventy-Two Houses, it is at the highest level at best. The reason why such a bandit league could still survive was because retaliatory measures were taken in this way when they were tampered with.

“I didn’t know they would come out so suddenly.”

It’s not like they killed a single living vegetable. Although Bu Chae-ju was injured, all the bandits were fine and even the living vegetables were intact.

An action that made it clear that ‘Mak Yeobu’, not ‘Gaewangchae’, had business to attend to. No matter how new the Nokrim Seventy-two houses are, they do not interfere with their personal finances. These guys called ‘bandits’ are literally nothing more than a lump of silver.

It is also an unusual situation for the Sanchae to come forward even though Yeo Il-ye is a disciple of the Jeomchang school and has expressed her opinion so clearly. However, in addition, four other countries joined forces to block the roads of Sichuan Province.

Rather than saying that the bandits came together out of abnormal anger, it would be more reasonable to believe that there was an unknown culprit behind it.

“Well, the bandits must have been greedy for Sichuan Province. It must have happened someday.”

There was some truth to the story of the black cat.

Bandits tend to move between territories frequently. Passers-by do not intentionally try to pass by places where they hear rumors that bandits have settled down. Unless you set up your nest in a really good location, the longer you stay in the same spot, the less profit you make.

Since they were basically bandits, did they just want to settle down in Sacheon, the land of gold and silver, with a suitable cause behind them?

There was nothing strange about choosing a place near Sichuan Province as the new home.

Sichuan Province is a city that develops every day, so it’s mouth-watering.

That’s right, but…

“Something is lacking.”

Because Yeo Il-ye touched the Makyeobu, the bandits run amok. It was a story with nothing particularly strange. It is understandable that such an event unfolded in Sichuan Province. In the end, what if Black Cat hadn’t guided Yeo Il-ye to Jeongnam Mountain?

Yeo Il-ye would not have been able to find out that Mak Yeo Bu had the Seven Jewels of Jade, and she would not have been able to catch the beginning of revenge.

That makes sense. It makes sense…but what should I say about this? I felt like something important was missing.

There were still insufficient clues to draw a conclusion.

“Phew…”

I paddled the whale. Once you realize that you are tired, your body quickly becomes heavier.

First, I swam for a long time to escape the cave, and returned to Sichuan Province, experiencing the heat for the first time in a long time. And as soon as I returned, I collected information and met with merchants without even having time to relieve my physical fatigue.

Was I thinking too much in my tired body?

“First of all…let’s go back to the guesthouse, eat something, and talk to Yu Sa-yeon.”

“Okay.”

After returning to the guesthouse, eating proper food for the first time in a while and drinking a cup of hot tea, my head began to turn slightly.

“This…is quite a crisis situation.”

As soon as I put something in my stomach and nutrients began to be supplied to my brain, the information that had been crammed into my head began to be digested one by one. As the gathered information melted into my head, I began to feel a real sense of crisis.

As the information began to digest in my mind, the first conclusion that came to mind was:

The profession of Sacheon Ronin itself is facing a huge crisis!

Not only is it a first-class job, but even after collecting dragon balls and reaching the pinnacle, the job that greatly increases my martial experience and fills my wallet is in danger of disappearing!

Why do sects hire Sacheon ronin? This was because in this clean area of Sacheon Province, no incidents that would make the members of the Murim sect truly famous occurred.

It was a struggle to gain at least a little bit of fame by showing off the rogues that people disliked, in order to shake off even a small name.

This Sichuan province was a clean and peaceful area at the same time.

However, a bandit alliance appeared in Sichuan Province. These are real evildoers who are plundering merchants entering and leaving Sacheon Province and causing enormous property damage.

The bandits’ actions must have had a huge impact on the people of Sichuan Province.

At most, the people of Sichuan Province were furious against the Sichuan people who kicked away baskets full of chestnuts.

You can’t help but be shocked by the real threat of having your life threatened and your property stolen.

How will the people of Sichuan, who experienced a real crisis, not a staged one, treat the faction that solved this situation?

It was obvious that Sichuan Province would become the loser, boasting absolute popularity that would overthrow Yeongjimun, which was at its peak of popularity.

This is truly the birth of an invincible public statement.

This is a union of mountainous resources that cannot be resolved by the small and medium-sized factions in Sichuan Province, so it can only be resolved if the large factions behind it move.

Depending on what kind of agreement the major sects reach, it is unclear which sect will take the lead in the subjugation and how long the subjugation will take.

It was not going to happen that five major factions came forward at once.

Even if it is attached to the entire Nokrim Seventy-Two Houses, the Gupailbang or Odaese will frown at the thought of having to deal with bandits at best. However, it was not something that could be tolerated for the sake of respect, for four of the nine factions and one of the five major families to rush into the alliance of four living quarters.

Perhaps one sect will step forward as a representative.

Well, it was none of my business how the big clans controlled their interests.

My part-time job is that if Invincible Gongmun is born, a huge recession will hit me, a Sichuan nerd!

At best, subjugating the ronin who kicks chestnut baskets will be effective in the new Sacheon Province, which has been reorganized under the order of the Invincible Gonggongmun, which defeated the four mountain houses of the Green Forest Seventy-Two Houses, the great evil that really threatened Sacheon.

Under the new order of the Invincible Gonggongmun, all uncompetitive clans will lose their positions to the Invincible Gonggongmun and take down their plaques, and those clans that have held out will also give up the idea of hiring Sichuan ronin to direct the show and crouch until the aftereffects of the subjugation of bandits disappear.

The moment the existence of the Invincible Government was established, the Sichuan people were exposed to an unpredictable and murderous cold wave.

“Sseu-eup… Let’s start with money right now…”

Sometimes in martial arts movies or martial arts worlds, you are stuck in a cave in the mountains and only train while eating wild animals and drinking waterfall water, but if you train like that in this world of martial arts, your training efficiency will hit the bottom in an instant.

First of all, does it make sense to train while providing food, clothing, and shelter yourself? How much time does it take to get there? Being a full-time housewife is not something you have for nothing. The effort and time a person must put in to eat, sleep, and drink is absolutely not small.

Therefore, money is indispensable in this world of martial arts.

Even just training requires money. That way, you can cover food, clothing, and shelter with money and focus only on training.

Money is also needed to acquire elixirs to shorten training time and martial arts appropriate to one’s level.

Once the Sichuan bandit situation is resolved, it may be possible to purchase the earth attribute elixir. What if I purchase a wood elixir? It’s like losing all your assets.

“Keuung.”

A Sacheon ronin who can experience sufficient real-life combat until the peak. Even if I couldn’t do it, I planned to continue living as a Sichuan until I reached the peak of maturity, so I didn’t worry too much even if my pockets were empty after purchasing the elixir.

Because Sacheonangin’s profits were that high.

“Hehe~ So, please gamble in moderation.”

The black cat laughed and teased me. Among the Sichuan people, the only one that is not serious is the black cat. I don’t think all Sichuan people can predict the future like I do, but there is a sense of crisis that all people instinctively feel.

Sichuan Province is home to small and medium-sized groups that are powerless to resolve the bandit crisis. At a time like this, if you were to direct as a Sichuan ronin without any warning, you wouldn’t know what would happen, so the requests would have been cut off.

With the appearance of the bandits, the rogues sense the changed atmosphere and cannot help but feel anxious.

“Senior~ Don’t worry too much~ You can take care of me and just practice martial arts~”

It is a pillar room that lives on the back of a black cat. I’ll be a living toy. Even if I had to go and get the earth attribute elixir myself, I would have to save some money.

“I don’t think there will be any requests for a while. It looks like there will be a lot of commotion because of the bandits. Do you have any plans to go outside?”

I shook my head at the black cat’s suggestion.

The time you need to invest to get to the top so you can reach the peak is much longer than the time you need to invest to get the elixir. The thing that can dramatically shorten the process is to continue activities as a Sichuan ronin.

Other than Sichuan Nangin, there is no other job that focuses on training so much, has high profits, and allows you to accumulate both martial arts and practical experience at the same time.

I can’t give up this crappy job!

I will have to use my own means to ensure that the occupation called Sichuan Ronin can be maintained without any major damage.

If Sichuan Ronin falls, I will not be the only one who will be in trouble.

Even in similar years, both bankers and brokers are in trouble.

I wonder if we can somehow come up with something if we combine our efforts.

We need to do something by using the black cat’s information power, the influence of the rogues, and middlemen.

I turned my attention to the exclusive seat for Yu Yu-yeon. Whenever Yu Yu-yeon was on the first floor, the dedicated seat for Yu Yu-yeon was empty.

The person who feels the most threatened by this situation right now is Yu Yu-yeon, so we have no choice but to act diligently.

Yes, it was more likely that Yoo Yu-yeon, who was working diligently right now, was preparing a solution rather than me, who had just finished understanding the situation. Let’s listen to the solution and then move on.

That was when I was organizing my thoughts and sipping tea to soothe my tired body and mind.

Squeak.

The door to the guesthouse opened.

“Excuse me.”

Originally, there were no customers visiting Ronin Gaekjan, but today, Ronin Gaekjan has a cluttered and calm atmosphere. There are no brokers who are excited about counting money, and no rogues who are satisfied that they got a good practical experience from a request, and it is just full of people who are building a place to live because of bandits.

As the sonorous sound rang out, everyone turned their gaze toward the entrance.

Familiar Jeomchangpa uniform and red sable fur.

And a pretty white face that matches the sonorous voice. He looks like he has a white hat neatly pressed down on his head. I saw a person with a typical noble face and a bright smile.

A very specific look.

Anyone could see that he was a disciple of the Jeomchang Sect, anyone could see that he was a member of the descendants, and anyone could see that he had an appearance that would suggest that he was part of the Jade Dragon God Association.

“I came here to see the benefactor of my sister-in-law, Yeo Il-ye.”

Perhaps because they were concerned about my identity being revealed, the Ronin remained silent. In that silence, Hyeok Kirin lifted his long eyebrows and began to look around the ronin guesthouse…

The gaze stopped in front of me.

Hyuk Kirin smiles in the direction of me and the black cat, probably because he heard Yeo Il-ye’s story about me and the black cat.

“Haha, I guess you were just staying in your seat.”

High Priest of the Jeomchang Sect. The leader of the descendants.

She is also a cross-dresser and a princess of direct imperial lineage.

Hyuk Kirin from Okryong Credit Union came to visit me.