When Geonmuguk released Ilseon’s blood vein, money that hadn’t existed before suddenly appeared.

“I forgot. I have money separately saved up from the continental battlefield.”

“How much?”

“About four hundred thousand nyang.”

“That’s quite a lot?”

Ilseon also revealed the secret code of the continental battlefield. Gowol noted that down as well.

Previously, the Sinseonchae funds were eight hundred thousand nyang, plus the forty thousand nyang Ilseon had separately saved. Combined, they had already obtained one million two hundred thousand nyang. At that, Iseon blinked angrily.

Back to Iseon’s turn.

“You’ve only given us fifty thousand nyang so far, but you alone ate up four hundred thousand?”

Ilseon looked like he wanted to argue, not apologizing at all, but the blood vein was suppressed, and he could say nothing.

“Iseon has more property. I know he bought gold and hid it.”

Ilseon couldn’t hide his embarrassment. It seemed he had tried to pretend not to know about that gold until the end.

When Iseon scored points with his own gold, Ilseon blinked irritably. A blink war started between the two.

Again it was Ilseon’s turn.

“I was going to mention the gold too. Give me credit for that!”

“That’s not happening. If you feel wronged, don’t forget and take better care. Also, the second Sinseon might brag using your property.”

Ilseon gave up completely on the property. He thought as long as he survived, he could gather money anytime.

“I also bought some land.”

“How many pyeong?”

“A considerable amount.”

Actually, this was started more to gather information than for property, but the two misunderstood the situation. For Geonmuguk, it was a grateful situation.

Meanwhile, the more Ilseon’s property was revealed, the greater Iseon’s sense of betrayal grew.

“Brothers? Bastard! You were eating it all alone.”

In fact, he thought it was possible to eat it all alone. But he was angry because it was done without saying a word.

Next, Ilseon replied.

“Don’t you know even your fifty thousand nyang came from me? Without me, you’d be stabbed and dead in some gambling den ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ right now. Kaak, tsk!”

Although their relationship was founded on loyalty, once it collapsed, it was instant.

So the two revealed the estates of the dead Samsun and Saseon as well. They only thought about trying to show favor to Geonmuguk to survive. Iseon even harbored a grudge to kill Ilseon.

When no more property was left, Geonmuguk suppressed the two’s blood veins.

The two, who insulted each other whenever it was their turn, soon fell asleep.

Geonmuguk said to Gowol:

“Tomorrow morning, take the two around the battlefield and recover all the property.”

“Yes, understood.”

Until then, they intended to keep the two alive. Ilseon might have taught the battlefield code incorrectly.

Geonmuguk asked Pungcheongyoju:

“Please assist the soldiers tomorrow.”

“Understood.”

Pungcheongyoju nodded obediently.

“I thought you’d scold me harshly. Squeezing money even from these villains.”

“How much suffering Gowol and I endure with that squeezed money, do you know?”

“I’m sorry.”

“I didn’t mean to brag. It means that villain money is being used well and meaningfully.”

If the Sinseonchae funds went in this time, it seemed that forming an intelligence organization might be finalized.

“I heard everything about what kind of guys those are from Gowol. Why do you let those bastards sleep? Hang them upside down instead!”

“Understood. When they wake, I’ll start by pulling their nails.”

Of course, it was a joke. Any evil ended by giving death. That was Geonmuguk’s fixed rule. Not for them, but for himself.

After finishing the conversation with Pungcheongyoju, Geonmuguk approached Gwonma, who seemed uninterested and was just looking up at the moon.

They stood side by side and looked up at the moon together.

“Do you know what I felt on this trip? I’ve lived too obsessed only with martial arts. I’ve trained all my life, fought all my life.”

Once, Geonmuguk said similar words to Ian. Not to live a life only of training. Now Gwonma was realizing the same.

“I just realized a moment ago. This is the first time I’ve looked at the moon for so long. Does that make sense? Living my whole life without even looking at the moon once.”

Geonmuguk’s gaze went toward the moon with him.

“From now on, try to enjoy life a little.”

“That’s the plan.”

If he could keep that promise, if Gwonma could take a step back from martial arts… maybe he could really break down the cliff. Life must change for martial arts to change.

The next day, Gowol and Pungcheongyoju took Ilseon and Iseon and toured the battlefield. The code they gave was accurate. They found not only the money but also the gold deposited and organized and recovered other properties.

Ilseon had amassed this much property in just a few years. That also meant there were many more victims.

Ilseon and Iseon tried all sorts of words to curry favor with Gowol, but Gowol did not utter a single word to them. The one who spoke to them was Pungcheongyoju.

Of course, Pungcheongyoju only said unpleasant things like that they would go to the most painful hell or bet on which one would survive, so they ignored it.

After organizing most of the property, Geonmuguk sat the two in front again.

“Now, tell me about Jeonju?”

Ilseon thought his life depended on this answer.

“If I say everything, I’ll die! But if I show signs of hiding something, I’ll die too!”

That was the key. The problem was that he didn’t know much about Jeonju.

“How can I package this to survive?”

Ilseon glanced at Iseon beside him. Since that guy didn’t know anything, he thought he had to score points here for sure.

“I can survive. I contributed much more property, and if I provide information about Jeonju, I survive!”

Taking a deep breath, Ilseon opened his mouth.

“I only saw Jeonju once.”

“When?”

“When we first shook hands.”

“Do you know who he is?”

“No. There was a curtain between us, so I couldn’t see his face. But one thing was clear. Judging by his voice, he was quite an old man.”

“From now on, we have to find an old man. How many such people are there in this world?”

At Geonmuguk’s mockery, Ilseon was flustered and quickly added:

“The people Gwonma killed yesterday were the Eight Ghost Swordsmen. They don’t act just for money, so Jeonju isn’t simply a rich man. Surely, he’s the head of a big sect or a person with great power.”

Then Iseon blinked.

Ilseon quickly said:

“No need to release his blood vein. That guy knows nothing about Jeonju.”

“How should we do then? Maybe you have better information?”

At Geonmuguk’s words, Iseon blinked even faster.

Geonmuguk suppressed Ilseon’s blood vein and released Iseon’s again.

Then more words than expected came out of Iseon.

“I spoke directly with that person. Without a curtain.”

Then the blood vein-suppressed Ilseon blinked and groaned as if trying to speak. That was a violent signal that the words were all lies.

“Tell me in detail.”

“It was the very day Ilseon met him. I was waiting for Ilseon at the coachman’s seat of the carriage in the courtyard of the manor. Soon after, Jeonju came out first. But I saw him bow his head slightly to the coachman as he got on the carriage. It was definitely a polite gesture.”

Ilseon struggled and groaned so much that his blood vein was released.

“That’s a lie! Why would Jeonju bow to the coachman?”

“It’s true. I saw it clearly.”

Both spoke simultaneously, making a noisy scene.

“That’s fabricated. If that happened, he would have told me. Why didn’t he?”

“What? You think you got fooled like a fool by a lackey? Jeonju like a coachman? What do you think would have happened? He would have beaten me saying, ‘Don’t talk nonsense,’ right?”

Ilseon could not argue. Because it probably was true.

“You bastard! Where did you get that nonsense? Do you want to live so cowardly?”

“Cowardly? Where did that word come from? It’s from your filthy heart.”

I motioned Ilseon to be quiet and said to Iseon:

“Continue.”

“I even talked with that coachman while waiting. He was an ordinary person. A round-faced, likable-looking man, ah! He had a tattoo on his chest. I happened to see it when he bowed.”

“What kind of tattoo?”

“A golden pig tattoo. It was so strange to see a pig tattooed on a person’s body that the tattoo remains vivid even now!”

Thinking it was important information, Ilseon stepped forward.

“This guy’s specialty is lying. Don’t believe him. He’ll do anything to survive…”

Smack!

Ilseon, standing in front of Iseon, vanished. His face smashed by my blow, he rolled away far like a corpse.

Iseon looked at me, shocked, then his shock turned into joy.

“So I survived!”

He looked ecstatic.

“That guy is worse anyway. It’s right for you to die later.”

For a moment, Iseon flinched. “Die later” meant after getting old and aging, right? But no. The look in Geonmuguk’s eyes was only cold.

“Spare me!”

“You four committed acts that could not let you survive from the start. Be satisfied with a gentle send-off.”

“Keep your promise! You bastard! Who the hell are you? Who are you…?”

Smack!

Iseon flew to where Ilseon was and died instantly.

Geonmuguk did not hesitate at all to eliminate them. He didn’t expect their redemption, nor did he give a grand meaning that he died as a heretic disciple by revealing his identity.

As he turned around, Gwonma was walking toward him.

“Weren’t you going to dig up even the behind-the-scenes bastards?”

“Yes.”

“But is it okay to kill them all?”

“We found out who’s behind.”

A round figure, a golden pig tattoo on the chest. Someone I knew well before returning. Sometimes a coachman, sometimes a construction laborer, sometimes a tavern owner’s assistant. He enjoyed hiding his identity. And at the same time, he was an extremely greedy man.

“To kill him, I have to get permission from Father.”

Gwonma was surprised at Geonmuguk’s words.

“Who exactly?”

A name slipped from Geonmuguk’s mouth.

“Jisaeng (池生).”

Gwonma immediately recalled a person.

“No way? That golden pig of the Sadomeng?”

“Yes. That’s the one.”

“Is he behind this?”

Gwonma’s expression hardened. Not because it was Jisaeng, not because he was from Sadomeng. But because Jisaeng was a loyal subordinate of one person.

The second-in-command of Sadomeng, Yaryulhan (耶律韓).

Jisaeng was one of the four most trusted hands of Yaryulhan. Those underlings swore loyalty and each tattooed a mark on their chests; Jisaeng tattooed a golden pig and swore to earn endless money for life.

“That money ultimately went to Yaryulhan.”

Geonmuguk felt fate was guiding him. Not just for this incident.

Yaryulhan.

He was an enemy. A person with a deep connection to Geonmuguk, Ma Ui.

Ma Ui had once asked Geonmuguk to kill someone someday while giving acupuncture. Though the name wasn’t mentioned directly yet, Geonmuguk already knew.

Yaryulhan massacred Ma Ui’s family in front of him. Since that day, Ma Ui lived only to kill Yaryulhan. When asked, Geonmuguk vowed to act if capable. Now, he thought the time had come.

Gwonma noticed I would not give up.

“Yaryulhan is out of the question!”

“Why not?”

“If you touch him wrong, a war might break out.”

“There won’t be war. There will be chaos and turmoil though.”

“You’re serious.”

In the past, Ma Ui had asked Father to kill him, but Father refused.

Yaryulhan, who enjoyed the absolute trust of the Sadomeng leader, was a figure with more meaning than just an evil of the heretic faction.

“I thought the mastermind behind this was the worst villain. He hid in the shadows and used pawns like Ilseon to suck the youth’s blood until death. Probably a few days later, the immortals will be reported dead to Jisaeng. Then Jisaeng will make more immortals and repeat the same act. Even if Jisaeng dies, another Jisaeng will do the same.”

This kind of bastard. The absolute evil Geonmuguk thought of.

A villain that even the orthodox faction cannot touch, and ordinary people cannot even approach.

Father once asked, “What do you think martial demon is?”

I answered then:

—I think it’s the belief of the main sect to defeat absolute evil.

To catch great evil that even the orthodox cannot handle. That is what I think martial demon is. The heretic faction must tremble at that name. That’s the Cheonma Shin Gyo I want to create.

“Ordinary people would have to back off and endure. But we aren’t ordinary people, right? We don’t have to endure, right? The reason I trained and worked so hard was so I wouldn’t have to endure at times like this. Why should we endure? They should endure. Stop tormenting people and stop acting crazy.”

Gwonma silently stared at Geonmuguk. Geonmuguk looked back without a word.

By personality, Gwonma was the one who could be persuaded most, but by his relationship with Father, also the one least likely to listen.

Finally, breaking the long silence, Gwonma announced the end of the trip.

“Let’s go back to the sect. The lazy trip ends here.”

The suddenly begun trip suddenly ended. But disappointment did not arise. Gwonma turned his big back and added an unexpected phrase.

“To get the sect leader’s permission, all the Ma Jons have to get involved.”