The power of a single move had completely broken their will to fight.

The number didn't matter.

How could the number of people compare to the number of flying needles that Cheonyeong had scattered and thrown?

Because they hadn't expected it, they couldn't defend, and because they couldn't defend, numerous injuries occurred.

Yang Mando, who couldn't move, was staring at his fallen subordinates with a blank expression.

Such a thing…

Without even being able to swing his sword once.

It was chilling.

The hidden weapons that had been in the air had plunged towards the ground with a fierce momentum just by him lowering his hand.

"You bastards! Can't you kneel!"

Swoosh!

There were those who were injured but had not yet fallen.

But they were scattered by the elusive movements of Gwi-su, who had dug into the broken battle line, and the relentlessly spewing palm energy.

Yang Mando was just watching blankly.

"Branch Leader."

"…"

"How about you lower your sword?"

Cheonyeong, who had approached at some point, looked down at Yang Mando, who had stopped in a half-crouched position, and said.

His will was broken.

Yang Mando's arm lost its strength, and the tip of his sword drooped towards the ground.

At that sight, Cheonyeong, who grinned, shouted so loudly that it echoed through the branch and over the wall.

"The Geumdang branch of the Black Heaven Gate has persecuted the Tang Family! As a punishment for this, I have destroyed the Geumdang branch. It is a regrettable matter, but such is the etiquette of the martial world! If you raise your swords again, you will be ruled by death!"

It was the final punctuation mark on the fight that had ended in an instant.

There was no longer any need for Gwi-su to fiercely spew palm energy and knock them down.

Starting with Yang Mando, the warriors of the Geumdang branch all knelt down at once.

"Branch Leader Yang."

"Yes."

"Please get up."

"…Pardon?"

"The fight is over, so why are you kneeling?"

At Cheonyeong's softened tone, Yang Mando lifted his head and blinked his eyes.

What was this again?

When a war was over, wasn't it natural to decide the treatment?

And that treatment was mostly death or imprisonment.

Because if they were kept alive, it was obvious that they would become enemies again.

At the very least, it was only right that he, the branch leader here, should have his life taken, and that was the custom of the martial world.

But he had no killing intent.

Even now, even in that hidden weapon technique that had poured down like a torrential rain.

If he had put killing intent into it, there would have been a succession of deaths, not injuries.

So he was curious.

"You're not going to kill us?"

"Why would I kill you?"

"Pardon?"

"I'm not some murderer, what would I do by killing all these people?"

"But, even if others are not, I am a defeated general."

"So?"

"So? A defeated general naturally has to take responsibility…"

At Yang Mando's words, Cheonyeong smirked and said.

"Let's have a drink."

"A drink?"

"For me, the spoils of war are the Geumdang branch and a pleasant drinking party with Branch Leader Yang. The rest can be taken care of as you see fit. Whether you leave or stay."

"…"

"Personally, I prefer the latter. The Tang Family still needs a lot of people, and Branch Leader Yang seems quite capable."

"Are you trying to recruit me?"

"Yes."

"It seems I looked like a person who would easily change masters."

"Because it won't be a bad choice."

"Not a bad choice?"

"It doesn't matter if you leave. However, if we meet on the battlefield again, we will drink blood instead of liquor."

Cheonyeong smiled brightly and helped Yang Mando up.

Yang Mando, who had been blinking his eyes in bewilderment, burst out laughing.

Only then did he realize.

The reason he had bought the inn, the reason he had caused such an incident, and even the reason for the generous treatment after the fight.

Rumors would spread in an instant.

The single hidden weapon technique that had destroyed a whole branch would be known as a divine feat, and the goodwill he had shown would be beautifully packaged and spread.

That was what he needed.

With this fight, he had instantly gotten a building to use as a branch, and had even gained the respect of the people who had been on edge about their fight.

And he hadn't forgotten to add a chilling threat.

"Lord Tang, you are as skilled in stratagem as I have heard."

"Don't even mention the 'kyo' or whatever. It just makes my blood boil for no reason."

"…"

"And I just go with the flow. Those who are of the same mind will flow along the same stream as me."

At Cheonyeong's words, Yang Mando smiled without realizing it.

Go with the flow…

That's right.

However, how the water flows is the heart of the person who changes the stream.

And Yang Mando had such a thought.

The back wave that had pushed in.

Under the guidance of Tang Cheonyeong, a new stream was being created in Sichuan.

It would become the order.

And people would gather along that stream, and the gathered people might form a village and prosper.

Why did he feel that way?

He wanted to watch the progress of him, who had destroyed a whole branch in an instant with just the two of them.

"It seems I'll have to open the storage and take out some good liquor."

"That sounds good."

"Since it's the first day, I will treat you. I have to thank you for not taking the lives of my subordinate warriors."

"I won't refuse."

Cheonyeong grinned, and Yang Mando commanded the relatively unharmed warriors.

"Put away your swords and treat the injured!"

"Yes!"

As Yang Mando left to prepare the drinking party, No Gwanyeong approached.

"You are truly amazing."

"What is?"

"Didn't everything go as you planned?"

"Luck was on my side."

"But, what on earth was that?"

"That?"

"The hidden weapon technique. I've never seen anything like it. You only put power into the fall, and you withdrew your killing intent, didn't you? If you had put killing intent into it until the end… I don't think there would have been many survivors in the branch by now."

At No Gwanyeong's words, clicking his tongue, Cheonyeong curled up the corners of his mouth.

His observation skills were something else.

It seemed he had seen that too.

"It's still far from perfect. Although I've realized a way to use a large amount of hidden weapons, I haven't been able to put my will into each and every one of them."

"Hah! Each and every one of the thousands of hidden weapons?"

"Yes."

"Should we call that level 'Imperial Needle'?"

"Shall we call it that when it becomes possible later?"

At the jokingly said words, Cheonyeong smiled and nodded, and No Gwanyeong let out a dry laugh.

He was serious?

He was really dreaming of such a realm?

When he first saw him, he had only thought of him as a reckless youth who would be fun to watch.

How much could he grow?

How far could he go up?

The next him had approached with a martial prowess and charm that overwhelmed him.

He wanted to be by his side.

Although he had stopped, he wanted to help the one who was moving forward to become great.

And now, he couldn't even fathom it.

Where his end would be.

"You are a truly amazing person, Lord."

"Amazing?"

"Yes. You make me wish I were even one year younger."

At No Gwanyeong's laugh, Cheonyeong tilted his head and said.

"You're still in your prime."

"Pardon?"

"I hope you will always be by my side, reliably."

"What are you saying! Hahat!"

"When the banquet is over, please call the One-Horned Demon right away."

"…"

"We need to stabilize Geumdang quickly. From now on, the Black Heaven Gate Lord will not just leave things to the branch."

"Understood."

Cheonyeong was already preparing for the next step.

He had obtained the pretext.

The rumors would also spread sufficiently.

From now on, he had to become a thorn under the fingernail.

He had to make it painful and bothersome so that they could never neglect it.

The more they tried to dig it out, the deeper it would get, and it would tear the flesh and go inside, gradually making the inside fester and destroying the Black Heaven Gate.

* * *

"What? What did you say?"

"The Geumdang branch has been completely taken over."

At Chief Steward Eun Yuwon's report, Maeng Yung's brow furrowed deeply.

From the perspective of the huge clan that was the Black Heaven Gate, the place called Geumdang was not that great.

Because it was not a very large village, the number of inns and taverns was small, and since it was a place where merchant groups had not settled, there was not much profit.

In the martial world where wars broke out almost every day, what was the big deal about losing one such branch?

But Maeng Yung felt anger.

It wasn't just because the relationship with the former Black Heaven Gate Lord, Maeng Segwang, was bothersome, or because his younger sister, Maeng Seoryeong, was staying at the Tang Family.

A man who had grown like a wild grass had at some point grown into a tree that could not be held with one hand and had reached the point of sowing seeds.

Sichuan was on edge at his movements.

In the midst of the attention, Geumdang had been taken.

The Black Heaven Gate had lost.

"It is said that a fight broke out on the way to pay respects after taking over the inn."

"What did you say? You damn bastard!"

"And after the fight was over, he is said to have given the warriors of the branch a chance to choose."

"A choice?"

"That's right. Whether to stay or leave."

"The casualties?"

"There are none."

"None?"

"That's right. There are many who are injured, but it is said that there are no dead."

"…"

"Also, there is one strange point."

"What is it?"

"It is said that the man named Tang Cheonyeong destroyed the branch in a single move."

"A single move? Did he have a martial arts contest with the Geumdang branch leader for the branch!"

"No."

At Eun Yuwon's words, Maeng Yung's face contorted.

What was it that was not again?

"It is said that there were over fifty warriors who confronted him."

"…What?"

"It is said that most of them collapsed at once from a single hidden weapon technique."

"Ah, a hidden weapon technique?"

Maeng Yung couldn't help but be flabbergasted.

If he had really used hidden weapons to take over the branch, then of course, bad rumors should have been circulating.

Weren't they the weapons of cowardly men?

But why was everyone praising him?

"It was said to be like rain falling. When Tang Cheonyeong scattered hidden weapons in the sky, they fell like rain. These are words that have been frequently talked about recently."

"Rain?"

"That's right. The people who heard that are said to be praising Tang Cheonyeong, calling him the Responding Dragon."

"Hah!"

The Responding Dragon was a sacred dragon that was said to bring rain and wind to the human world.

"A man who was called a flood dragon until just a while ago…"

"And there were two of them. They destroyed the Geumdang branch with just the two of them."

"So what are they doing now?"

"As soon as they took over the branch, a hundred One-Horned Demons called from the Seongdo branch began to be stationed."

"…"

"And they called carpenters and began to repair the inns and taverns in Geumdang for free, and they are said to be looking for ways to expand the business rights of Geumdang by calling the merchant groups of Seongdo. The people of Geumdang are said to be welcoming their swift movements. They are also said to be opening up opportunities to stay at the Tang Family by accepting people from nearby martial arts schools and academies into the branch."

When Eun Yuwon's long explanation was over, Maeng Yung's face was as contorted as it could be.

The man was already prepared.

It was clear that he had set up all the plans and had put the finishing touch by taking over the Geumdang branch.

Otherwise, how could he move so swiftly?

"What should we do?"

"…"

"Geumdang is a land that is a waste to invest in. But if we leave it alone, the rumors will grow out of control. Hearing the rumors of Geumdang, the nearby regions will also welcome the Tang Family to come in. Perhaps the Tang Family is aiming for this."

His words were right.

It was an excessive investment.

Geumdang was a land that did not have that much value.

So the Black Heaven Gate had not paid much attention to it.

But the Tang Family was pouring money and people into such a land.

It was to show.

That the Tang Family did not treat even a small region carelessly.

And it was a provocation.

By nibbling away at the territory of the Black Heaven Gate.

"Chief Steward Eun."

"Yes! Lord."

"It seems the Tang family man is asking me for a sword dance."

"Pardon?"

"Then I should respond."

"But… there is no pretext."

"A pretext? Is that important?"

"…"

"The words of the powerful are the pretext. We will be pointed at for now. But who will remember a disappeared clan for so long?"

Maeng Yung's eyes began to shine with a blue light.

(End of Chapter)