Wi Cheon-gyeong could not hide his surprise.
‘To grasp one's martial level or internal energy with just a glance is something only masters who have broken through the Extreme Heaven Realm can do.’
In truth, he was greatly mistaken.
Having worked as a mortician for a long time, Bu Eunseol could perceive a person's body shape and muscle structure as if seeing through their clothes, and remember it like a face.
He had discerned that the thigh muscles of the Second Squad members, including Wi Cheon-gyeong, were well-developed.
‘That kind of thigh muscle shape not only allows for instantaneous bursts of maximum strength, but also grants excellent endurance.’
Bu Eunseol, who had been observing the muscles of the Second Squad members, including Wi Cheon-gyeong, turned his head.
Hyeok So-jin, Jo Nam-cheon, and the members who had not yet been chosen for a squad were standing there blankly.
“The leader of the Third Squad is…”
At that moment, Hyeok So-jin grinned at Jo Nam-cheon.
Since he was known as Bu Eunseol's follower, he naturally thought he himself would be the leader of the Third Squad.
“Jo Nam-cheon, you take charge.”
At that, Hyeok So-jin's face contorted in an instant.
“B-Brother Bu? Then I am…”
“Hahaha, you certainly know how to judge people.”
And Jo Nam-cheon grinned at Hyeok So-jin.
However, Bu Eunseol's next words completely wiped the smile from his face.
“And So-jin, you are the Vice Leader. From now on, in my absence, you are in command of everything.”
Instantly, Jo Nam-cheon's face crumpled mercilessly.
“Pfft.”
Hyeok So-jin, his eyes curved like half-moons, brought his face close to Jo Nam-cheon’s and said with a solemn expression.
“From now on, I will call you 'Presumptuous'."
Then, as if nothing had happened, Hyeok So-jin’s face, smiling brightly with sparkling eyes, was the very picture of loathsomeness.
“Stop talking nonsense and get out of my way.”
As the furious Jo Nam-cheon trembled with veins popping on his forehead,
“By the way.”
Wi Cheon-gyeong, who had been silent all along, opened his mouth, his eyes hidden by his bangs staring intently at Bu Eunseol.
“Why do you call Squad Leader… no, the Third Squad Leader, by his proper name?”
“What do you mean?”
“I'm asking why I'm 'Bangs' and he's Jo Nam-cheon.”
When Wi Cheon-gyeong questioned him in a rebellious tone, everyone around looked surprised.
He was always of a taciturn and quiet nature.
“When we spoke, he was the only one who stated his name and offered a greeting.”
Bu Eunseol swept his cold eyes over Wi Cheon-gyeong and the other members.
“What did you do, other than say you didn't want to be a squad leader?”
For a moment, Wi Cheon-gyeong, having nothing to say, lowered his head and shut his mouth.
Just then, Won Sae-mun stepped forward tactlessly and said,
“My name is Won Sae-mun.”
“Too late, Twin Swords.”
As Bu Eunseol cut him off, Won Sae-mun’s face turned red and then pale.
However, perhaps for the sake of his dignity as a squad leader, he did not argue further and bit his lip.
“But why did you re-divide the squads?”
At Jo Nam-cheon’s question, Bu Eunseol replied.
“Unless it’s an all-out war, there will be no need for thirty men to move out in a horde. From now on, each squad will be assigned separate missions.”
“But, will you be alright?”
Suddenly, Han So-ung, who was standing behind Won Sae-mun, tapped his Bronze Shell Armor and spoke.
“Going to Shaanxi in this state, I mean.”
“What do you mean?”
When Bu Eunseol asked, Han So-ung smirked and showed a challenging smile.
“Isn’t this a mission with no chance of success to begin with?”
Then he pointed to the members who were either grinding their teeth or glaring at Bu Eunseol as if they wanted to kill him.
“There’s no need to handle things so arbitrarily and earn the resentment of the members.”
In fact, apart from Jo Nam-cheon, Won Sae-mun, and Wi Cheon-gyeong, most of the members were openly displaying their dissatisfaction.
There was only one reason they could survive in the Demon Palace despite being troublemakers.
Most of them possessed the skills of a Peak-Level master, capable of carrying out missions alone.
Even in the Demon Palace, there were few who treated them lightly, so their pride had soared to the heavens…
So what if he became the leader by the Heavenly Demon Emperor's command? To treat them like neighborhood dogs?
The majority of the members could not yet accept Bu Eunseol's attitude.
“It doesn’t matter.”
But Bu Eunseol, on the contrary, smiled coldly.
“Because what’s needed for this fight is not unified strength.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Even if you gave me ten times the number of the Rootless Unit, we cannot win in a direct confrontation with the Banished Blade Sect.”
For a moment, Han So-ung's mouth fell open.
Could it be that Bu Eunseol had given up on everything and was going to Shaanxi with a whatever-happens-happens attitude?
“Then why are you leading the members to Shaanxi? It’s a losing battle anyway.”
At that, Bu Eunseol looked at the distant sky and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
“Just do as I say.”
At that moment, all the members of the Rootless Unit wore expressions of bewilderment.
—Just what is this man?
All their previous superiors had tried to dominate them with their martial arts or asserted their authority while giving orders.
But Bu Eunseol, despite his outstanding martial arts, did not use his strength, nor did he brandish his high position.
A nonchalant and cynical personality and excellent powers of observation.
And a strange charm that subtly captivated people’s hearts.
It was as if there was something unknowable about him, even arousing their curiosity.
Curiosity.
The relationship between people begins with curiosity.
It is the instinct of all humans to want to know what they do not know.
‘Is this a good start?’
Bu Eunseol smiled as he looked at the doubtful eyes of the members.
‘They will follow my orders to some extent.
If only out of curiosity about what kind of person I am.
And what results those orders will bring.’
“We’re leaving.”
As Bu Eunseol and Hyeok So-jin turned around, the members of the Rootless Unit, who had been blinking as if mesmerized, hurriedly followed behind him.
*
Nagan-ru.
It was the most famous tavern in the Xi'an Prefecture.
Partly because of the beautiful surrounding scenery, but also because it sold Baijiu made by a master from the renowned Seobongju House at a cheap price.
Murmur, murmur.
The interior of the three-story Nagan-ru was filled not only with tourists but also with famous scholars who came to enjoy the alcohol.
“…”
By the window on the Upper Floor, five martial artists sat at a table, drinking with stern expressions.
They were all dressed in blue martial robes, and at their waists, they wore swords with two Plum Blossom Pattern tassels hanging from them.
They were the Second Disciples of the Mount Hua Sect.
Grind.
The martial artists were all grinding their teeth, glaring at the banquet hall in the inner part of the third floor.
Unbelievable nonsense was flowing out from there.
“Hey, did you guys know? That Baek Mun-ryong, the third of the Ten Swords of Mount Hua, was a handyman who used to clean the stables at my house?”
“Hahaha. What’s so great about that? Gu Dae-won, an Elder of the Mount Hua Sect, used to work under my father, who is a moneylender, collecting debts.”
As the voices from the banquet hall grew louder, the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect clenched their fists.
Just what kind of gutsy madmen were in there…
To be spouting such nonsense in the Xi'an Prefecture, which could be called the Mount Hua Sect's territory?
“Calm down. Didn’t they say even the king gets cursed behind his back?”
Bang Uk, the eldest of the seated Second Disciples, spoke in a low voice.
“If a disciple of the great Mount Hua Sect gets angry at the ramblings of drunkards… there would be nothing more ridiculous.”
At his words, Bang Uk's junior brother, Gok Sang-cheon, forced a laugh and added.
“Senior Brother is right. There’s no need to react to every word of those madmen…”
But his words were not finished.
Because another unbearable statement came from the banquet hall.
“That's nothing. Did you know? The current Sect Leader of the Mount Hua Sect, Pung Won-san, his family were servants in my house for generations…”
Finally, with the Sect Leader’s name being mentioned, the disciples of the Mount Hua Sect could not contain their anger and rose to their feet.
“What madman is spouting such nonsense in broad daylight!”
Bang Uk, enraged, walked to the front of the banquet hall and shouted.
“The one who just mentioned the Sect Leader’s name, get out here right now!”
At that, the door of the banquet hall opened and a man with flushed cheeks staggered out.
“Who’re you?”
“We are disciples of the Mount Hua Sect!”
“If you’re disciples of the Mount Hua Sect…”
At Bang Uk's shout, the man, with a dazed expression, clapped his hands.
“Then aren’t we all one big family!”
“One family, what nonsense are you talking about?”
The man revealed his yellowed teeth and grinned.
“Since you’re the disciples of Pung Won-san who was a servant in my house, you are also servants…”
The man’s words were cut short.
The enraged Bang Uk had thrown a punch at the man's face.
“Hmph.”
But the man, with a snort, lightly dodged Bang Uk’s fist.
“As expected of a servant house’s disciples, your fists are pathetic.”
At the attitude of the man, who was picking his nose and sneering, Bang Uk’s eyes blazed like torches.
“For those who dare to insult our Main Sect, there is only death!”
Shing!
As Bang Uk drew his sword, all the Second Disciples behind him also drew their swords.
But the man just smirked and stuck his head into the banquet hall, saying.
“Hey, the servant house’s disciples have drawn their swords, saying they’ll kill me.”
At that, men armed with weapons began to come out of the banquet hall one by one.
There were nine of them.
Moreover, every one of them had piercing eyes and a stable stance.
Only then did Bang Uk realize that the group before him were not ordinary drunkards but masters of the Martial World.
“Who are you people?”
“This will be our answer.”
Crash! Clang!
The inside of the tavern where the fight broke out became a scene of chaos.
The six disciples of the Mount Hua Sect, including Bang Uk, fought back bravely with their swords.
The fight, which seemed like it would be fierce, ended more anticlimactically than expected.
“Ugh.”
It had not even been a Quarter of an Hour.
The six disciples of the Mount Hua Sect, including Bang Uk, were thoroughly beaten and lay miserably on the floor.
“Do you think you can touch our sect… and leave the land of Shaanxi unscathed?”
At Bang Uk's words, filled with rage, the man grinned and shook his head.
“We are not leaving.”
“What?”
“What fault do newcomers like you have? It's all the fault of that servant who taught his disciples poorly.”
The man, smirking, knelt down and forcibly took the sword from the waist of the fallen Bang Uk.
“What is the meaning of this!”
“Make sure to tell the servant. We’ll be sightseeing around Shaanxi for four days, so if he wants his sword back, he should come and find us himself.”
“Servant.”
“I mean Pung Won-san.”
Grind!
A blue flame blazed like a blade in Bang Uk's eyes.
This man was still calling the Mount Hua Sect Leader a servant, insulting him.
“Alright, I will be sure to go.”
Bang Uk swallowed the anger and killing intent flowing down his throat and said.
“If you lot are men, don’t you dare run away from Shaanxi!”
“Hahaha. You worry too much.”
The man, Won Sae-mun, who had slung the confiscated sword at his waist, laughed and said.
“This elder is a man of his word, so make sure to bring that servant with you when you come.”
*
Zhongnan Sect, Jade Purity Temple.
This was a small Daoist Temple located about ten li away from the Zhongnan Sect's Main Base.
Originally, the Jade Purity Temple was a place for Wall-Gazing Cultivation or Mind Cultivation, but now it was used to serve Jin Ga-ryeong, the grand-uncle of the Zhongnan Sect Leader.
Having retired long ago, he had escaped the miscellaneous duties of the sect and was living a life like an Immortal, secluded in this place.
“Well then, shall we study the Yeo Mountain Go Records, where the Immortals were said to have played?”
His only joy in life, at over a hundred years old, was Go.
He had even made a separate Go Room on one side of the Jade Purity Temple and was playing Go.
—Murmur, murmur….
But from the vicinity of the Zhongnan Sect's Main Base, the sounds of many people talking could be heard.
Faintly mixed with shouts and curses, it didn’t seem to be the voices of the Zhongnan Sect disciples.
“Where has everyone gone?”
There were hardly any disciples who should have been around the Jade Purity Temple, only a young boy doing chores was moving about the yard.
Feeling curious, Jin Ga-ryeong asked the boy who was sweeping the front yard of the Jade Purity Temple.
“What is going on?”
“Since around noon, ruffians have been appearing one by one, causing a ruckus and demanding to test their skills against the sect’s First Disciples.”
“What? Test their skills?”
Jin Ga-ryeong felt puzzled.
Occasionally, there were young people who traveled around sects to make a name for themselves through duels.
But in such cases, it was common to seek out secluded masters or sects that dominated a region.
There were no madmen who would come to a great sect like one of the Nine Great Sects and demand a duel.
“Is that why the disciples of this temple have also gone out?”
“The elders said that most of the disciples from the Main Base are on their Journey in the Martial World…”
“Hmph. I see.”
Feeling annoyed, Jin Ga-ryeong waved his hand.
Hadn’t he washed his hands of the sect's affairs long ago?
Entering the Go Room, he carefully opened a cabinet on one side.
Inside were a Go Board made from a five-hundred-year-old Ginkgo Tree and Go Stones made of jade.
He had even cast aside the Beloved Sword he used when he roamed the Martial World, but he cherished this Go Board and stones so much that he polished them meticulously every day.
Creek.
Jin Ga-ryeong, who was smiling contentedly,
“…”
His mouth gaped open like a carp on a hook, and his eyes widened.
The box containing the Go Board and Go Stones, which should have been emitting an ancient glow, was gone.
And in its place was a black lump that gave off a musty smell.
It looked just like cow dung…
And it smelled and was shaped like cow dung too.