Moon-Shadow Sword Emperor

Episode 168

‘Dangaju, Lee Kang-hak, and Buddha. Now even the Sword King.’

It is said that when he was young, he wandered all over the central plains in search of veins, and he had at least one acquaintance in each region.

Even all of them were giants that could not be ignored.

‘At this point, I have doubts.’

What on earth was Dokgo Woojin doing when he was young?

No matter how much I thought about it, it seemed like he wasn’t simply traveling to find a successor.

“Tianreimun must have used martial arts as his main martial art. “It looks like you have mastered the sword technique.”

“yes. It just so happened that it happened that way. “I learned and learned martial arts, but sword fighting seemed to suit me better.”

“Well, it could be because each person’s martial arts suit is different.”

“May I ask how you met Master?”

“We encountered it while suppressing a group of demonic bandits who had crossed over from Jiangxi to Anhui.”

“It looks like they joined forces for a while to subdue the magic enemy.”

“On the contrary, it was the opposite. They clashed because they mistook each other for enemies. In the aftermath, the entire base of the magic bandits was blown away.”

“…….”

I had nothing to say.

It is said that the Sword King of the time and the future King of Gwon fought.

I couldn’t imagine how terrifying the battle must have been, with the hordes of magic bandits being wiped out just in the aftermath.

Seeing as both sides are fine, it looks like the misunderstanding was resolved along the way.

“They say he is a man with great wealth and no knowledge, and he is the master and his disciple. A young man with terms and conditions is an expert in flower painting. “I have never seen such incredible talent before.”

“It would be burdensome if you floated it like that.”

“Take this.”

The Sword King took out a rough wooden plaque from his chest and handed it to me.

On the front was the word Emperor (帝王) and on the back was an amber gem.

As I accepted it with a puzzled expression, the Sword King let out a hollow laugh and added,

“If you show it to the warrior guarding the front of the Presbyterian Hall, he will be able to summon me.”

“…!”

“If you want to ask for advice about martial arts, come see me anytime. “I have also learned martial arts that use thunder energy, so there is quite a lot I can tell you.”

“Why are you giving me, an outsider, these items?”

“Because you are indebted to your teacher.”

“What do you mean by debt?”

“As I said just now, your teacher and I had a fight that stemmed from a misunderstanding. “Your teacher suffered quite a few injuries in the process.”

“…….”

“I found out later that he realized my identity and took matters into his own hands.”

“Are you saying you were sorry for what happened at the time?”

“okay. I managed to resolve the misunderstanding and things ended well, but that incident always bothered me. “If I were not careful, he could have died because of me.”

“If so, I will forward this to Master. “I don’t think it’s something I can keep.”

“It is done. “If you tell me that, your teacher won’t come looking for me.”

“…That’s true.”

I scratched the back of my head and smiled bitterly.

It was just as the Sword King said.

Dokgo Woo-jin did not have the courage to leave his family and make the long trip to Anhui.

“But that doesn’t mean I can’t visit your teacher. There’s no way I would want that friend to draw attention to me unnecessarily. “Isn’t that right?”

“…….”

“So, keep that item for yourself. Your teacher will certainly want that too. This is the guy who sang the song of the successor to the successor…”

“I understand. “I will accept it gratefully.”

“Even if you’re not necessarily asking for advice on martial arts, it would be nice if you could come and talk to me sometimes. “As I get older, I find it annoying to go outside the house, but I’m also curious about news outside the house.”

“I will definitely visit you if I have a chance to stop by Anhui in the future.”

After putting the wooden plaque in his bosom, he politely bowed his head.

I gained unexpected income.

The right to face the Sword King whenever you want.

Being able to freely enter Jangnojeon meant being able to visit the royal family of Namgung when needed.

It was an item of value in a different way from the reward plaque received from Plum God Sword.

I felt like it could be useful in the future.

“Oh, can I ask you a favor?”

“Please tell me anything.”

“When I have time, I want Sunghoon to do some dancing with that guy. He is a guy who has devoted himself to training, even reducing his sleeping time, to avenge the defeat he suffered at the Yongbong branch. “There will be no shortage of sparring opponents.”

“I will.”

“The debate between peers of the same age will be a good stimulus. “Then I’ll just leave.”

“Aren’t you going back to the banquet hall?”

“Why should I wish a happy birthday to an old man I see every day? “I have no intention of hanging out with bullies who are waiting for an opportunity to get involved.”

After leaving the training hall, the Sword King turned his back and headed to the Presbyterian Hall without any regrets.

I chuckled and walked in the opposite direction.

‘It seems like the brotherly love is deep.’

The Taesang family head of the Namgung family was the younger brother of King Geom.

It was known in the world that he ascended to the position of Gaju in place of his older brother, a born military man.

“Huh!”

“That’s amazing!”

As the banquet hall got closer, a loud noise penetrated my ears.

Judging by the atmosphere, it seemed like the guests were delivering gifts to the head of the Taesang family.

I fiddled with the items in my arms and increased my walking speed.

‘I’m worried that the gift I prepared may seem small since this is such a big deal.’

* * *

The banquet continued late into the night.

I had a private drinking party with a few like-minded people.

“So I said this then. How dare you ignore the name of Hwang Bo-sega and still think you will be safe!”

The elder of the Hwangbo family told his heroic story with a bright face.

Sogaju of the Moyong family responded with an awkward expression.

“Wow. “The alcohol tastes good.”

Peng Yanzhi, a woman from the Hebei Peng family, made a boiling sound and shook the glass in her hand.

The young men surrounding him reacted fussily to his easy-going appearance.

“Anyway, what gift have you prepared for the branch leader?”

Zhuge Hyuk-jin, who was sitting next to me and drinking, picked up a snack with chopsticks and asked.

I shrugged my shoulders and responded.

“It wasn’t that big of a deal.”

“Besides, I think the Taesang family’s reaction was unusual.”

Midway through the banquet.

Guests invited to Sega took turns presenting the gifts they brought.

Precious herbs, gold and silver treasures, antique porcelain, fancy jewelry, perfumes imported from the West, etc.

All kinds of valuable items were piled up on the platform.

While everyone was competing and boasting about the items they had brought, I quietly handed the letter wrapped in a silk cloth to the head of the Taesang family.

The seal symbolizing the head of the Sacheon branch and the seal symbolizing Hwayang Sangdanju were stamped side by side in the lower right corner of the letter.

‘I guess you could say that I’ve done enough to save my face.’

The content written in the document was a list of items to be sent from Hwayang Sangdan to Namgung Family.

With the subjugation of the Japanese pirates in Zhejiang, Huayang Merchant Marine Company was able to utilize the sea routes that had been blocked for a long time again.

Originally, the main source of income for Hwayang Merchants was overseas valuables brought in through maritime trade.

The various precious items that had been imported so far would soon reach the Namgung family.

I’m just saying this now, but I came here as a representative of Hwayang Sangdan.

‘No, I think it would be more accurate to say agent rather than representative.’

The reason why I, who did not belong to Hwayang Sangdan, delivered the gift on behalf of the owner of Hwayang Sangdan was simple.

To avoid any possible friction with the Golden Dragon Sangdan.

Of course, the relationship between Hwayang Sangdan and Geumryong Sangdan was not very good.

I can guarantee that if the two merchants had participated in the banquet at the same time, problems would have arisen in some way.

‘Considering the attitude the owner of the Golden Dragon Company showed toward me… in the worst case scenario, a stabbing might have occurred.’

Hwayang Sangdan had no choice but to worry.

He doesn’t want to cause trouble at his business partner, Namgung House, but that doesn’t mean he can’t avoid participating in the party.

That’s why I delivered the gift on their behalf.

‘It was an offer I had no reason to refuse.’

Nominally, it was a ‘gift prepared jointly by the Sacheon branch of the Murim League and Hwayang Sangdan’, but in reality, most of the price of the item was paid by Hwayang Sangdan.

In other words, I was showing off by spending money that other people had spent.

Although I only had to pay a portion of the price, I had to bear a considerable amount of expense, but it was not a huge burden.

“Branch leader, please get a drink too.”

The head of the Mo Yong family’s family approached me holding a bottle of liquor.

I held out my empty glass with a smile and spoke to him.

“You must have had a hard time coming this long way.”

“Didn’t you do anything worth the trouble? As I boarded the carriage and looked out the window, I saw that we had arrived at our destination.

“Just because you travel by horse-drawn carriage doesn’t mean that long-distance travel isn’t difficult.”

“Hasn’t the branch manager also come a long way?”

I rolled my eyes as I brought a glass full of alcohol to my mouth.

Each person gathered here had an influence that could not be ignored.

There was a need to leave a good impression on everyone possible.

‘Anyway…’

I glanced at Zhuge Hyuk-jin, who had already moved to the other side.

The elder of the Hwangbo family was smiling and looking at him with his young eyes.

‘You’re more friendly than I thought.’

He was quite good at dealing with people.

She was completely different from her twin sister.

It was to the point where I had doubts as to whether it was the person who had been lying in the hospital bed not long ago.

‘Perhaps this is the reason why Zhuge Hyeok-jin, not Zhuge Hye, was appointed as the head of Soga.’

After thinking about various things, I put down my half-empty glass on the table and turned my head.

Paeng Yeon-ji, the daughter of the Paeng family, quietly sat down next to me and stared at me with a provocative gaze.

He had been looking at this person’s notice earlier and it seemed like he had something to say.

“Heavenly Dragon Little League.”

“yes.”

“Isn’t it a bit boring to just drink like this?”

“……?”

“I would like to ask for a favor.”

Oh oh!

People around her gasped at her sudden remark.

Did they think there was something interesting to see?

Inciting voices were heard from all over.

Dozens of pairs of eyes looked this way with anticipation.

In this atmosphere, I couldn’t even say no.

This is because it may cause discomfort to the other person.

“great.”

I nodded willingly and got up from my seat.

Peng Yeon-ji, who followed, stood up and touched the sword tied to his waist and spoke.

“I wanted to get a glimpse of the capabilities of the small cooperative that won the Yongbong branch at least once.”