Chapter 534

The main hall. He sat alone in one corner.

A cup of tea had been placed before him.

It had already gone cold, but he did not touch it.

He remained still, listening to the cries and murmurs coming from the courtyard.

It was deep into the night when Gwak Inhyeok came to find him.

He was one of the oldest martial artists in the Sichuan Alliance.

It had been seventy years since he subdued Mount Tai and began being called the Mount Tai Iron Sword.

Then, what kind of place was Mount Tai?

It was simple.

Currently, the most famous wandering martial artist organization in the martial world was the Wind and Cloud Alliance.

The leader of the Wind and Cloud Alliance, the Wave King Jang Cheonryong, was a martial artist of the Boundless Manifestation Realm and operated with Mount Tai as his base.

Mount Tai was the land of wandering martial artists.

Among those classified as wandering martial artists, there was hardly anyone who had never visited Mount Tai. It was the most famous of famous places and the greatest of symbols.

Gwak Inhyeok was ninety years old this year.

He had subdued Mount Tai when he was only in his mid-twenties.

Naturally, there were those who believed he would become the Wave King, but he refused.

He silently descended from Mount Tai and settled in Sichuan, which had been a complete mess.

The one who immediately swallowed up the Mount Tai that had been organized like that was Jang Cheonryong.

In any case, Sichuan had been even more disorderly than Mount Tai.

Gwak Inhyeok, who had established himself there before Kang Cheonwoo, moved together with Kang Cheonwoo.

When Kang Cheonwoo organized Sichuan and began rebuilding the Sichuan Alliance, which had almost collapsed, he was also by his side.

In other words, he was undeniably one of the greatest contributors.

He was more than qualified to take the position of Vice Leader, but he refused.

He was satisfied with the position of Elder and never looked beyond it.

If he had desired a title, he would never have descended from Mount Tai.

Such a man had come to find Unhwi.

His eyes were truly strange.

His body had already passed its prime, but perhaps it was better to say that his eyes belonged to someone who had lived a long life.

He spoke.

“Would it be all right if we sat and talked, Young master Seol?”

“Yes. Please sit.”

Gwak Inhyeok sat across from him.

He looked at the teacup, then looked at Unhwi.

“Have you eaten, Young master?”

“Not yet.”

“I heard you walked for three days.”

“It was a short distance.”

Gwak Inhyeok looked at Unhwi for a moment.

“Short...”

“Yes. It could be called far, but for me, it was certainly a short distance.”

The old man let out a low laugh.

It was not really laughter. It was merely a small sound that came from his nose.

“I have watched Alliance Leader Kang for a long time. No, I have watched Cheonwoo for a long time.”

“......”

“In this world, I never imagined that he would pass the Thunder Emperor to someone. And he even passed on his martial arts... It is astonishing.”

Unhwi said nothing.

He simply listened.

“On one hand, I wondered if he had ever been wrong. I thought about it for a very long time.”

“......”

“He was not.”

After saying that, Gwak Inhyeok stared at Unhwi.

To be clear, Gwak Inhyeok had the eyes to read situations.

At the very least, he had clearly noticed the current situation.

“Is it very urgent?”

“Do you mean Sichuan? Or the Sichuan Alliance?”

Gwak Inhyeok’s eyes narrowed.

He answered a question with a question.

And he divided it into two possibilities.

He looked at Unhwi for a moment, then let out a faint laugh.

“I am asking about both.”

“Then I will answer both. Sichuan is urgent. And the Sichuan Alliance is even more urgent.”

“......”

“May I hear the reason?”

“You know very well what kind of person Gun Mugeol is, Senior.”

“......”

“Gun Mugeol personally killed Alliance Leader Kang. Do you think someone who dreams of unifying the martial world would remain still with such an opportunity before him?”

“......”

“The Alliance Leader of the Sichuan Alliance has died, and the position of Vice Leader is vacant. And Gun Mugeol personally killed the Alliance Leader of the Sichuan Alliance. In the martial world, people are proclaiming that Gun Mugeol has now moved closer to the position of Supreme Master of the Martial World. From Gun Mugeol’s perspective, there could not be a better situation.”

Gwak Inhyeok said nothing.

“On the other hand, the reason the Sichuan Alliance is urgent is not because of outside forces.”

Unhwi continued.

“The inside is the problem.”

“......”

“When Alliance Leader Kang was alive, the inside was held together. Because he was the center. Now, that center is gone. Before the grief even fades, division will begin. There are people like Elder Liu Zhenheng or Senior Gwak, whose thoughts are clear, but there will also be people who see this situation as an opportunity. Once the funeral ends, it will rise to the surface. It may already be rising now.”

Gwak Inhyeok slowly nodded.

There was nothing wrong with his words.

Rather, they were precise.

Even through the eyes of an old man, they were precise.

“So that is why you intend to become acting Alliance Leader.”

“Gun Mugeol needs a name he cannot easily touch. If someone from the Sichuan Alliance takes that position, all Gun Mugeol has to do is shake that person. By using internal division or applying pressure. He has already used that move once and seen results.”

“......”

“I am not praising myself, but I am different. Gun Mugeol and I are already on opposite sides. There is no room for wavering. Above all, he will not touch the Blood Heaven Arbiter of the Blood Heaven Sect at this time. No, he cannot touch him.”

Gwak Inhyeok stared at the teacup.

For a long time.

“......If Young master takes that position, the resistance within the Sichuan Alliance will not be insignificant.”

“I know.”

“What do you intend to do?”

“I will do it my way.”

“......Your way?”

“I will bind them with force.”

It was a short answer.

Gwak Inhyeok looked at Unhwi.

His eyes were not heavy.

He was calm.

Not because he was fearless, but because his thoughts had already reached their conclusion.

The old man stared into those eyes for a long time.

“What do you intend to do with the Sichuan Alliance?”

“I intend to make it an alliance with the Blood Heaven Sect.”

“Not absorb it?”

“I have no intention of doing that. The Sichuan Alliance must remain the Sichuan Alliance, and someday it must be returned to Alliance Leader Kang’s people.”

“Alliance Leader Kang’s people.”

“Yes. Above all, they must be people whom the members of the Sichuan Alliance can follow.”

Gwak Inhyeok slowly closed his eyes, then opened them.

It was the look of someone who wanted to ask something more.

But he did not ask.

Unhwi knew what that something was.

And Gwak Inhyeok knew as well.

They both knew this was not the time to put it into words.

Gwak Inhyeok rose from his seat.

“......I will bring you a meal. Eat while it is here.”

His footsteps moved away.

Unhwi watched the old man’s back, then lowered his gaze.

The cold teacup entered his sight.

***

The next morning.

Liu Zhenheng came to visit.

Like Gwak Inhyeok, he came alone.

He stopped briefly before the main hall door before entering.

Unhwi was sitting.

This time, the tea was warm.

Liu Zhenheng sat across from him.

The words did not come out immediately.

Unhwi did not speak first either.

He had some idea of what Liu Zhenheng wanted to say.

“I thought a lot last night.”

“What did you think about?”

“About Young master taking the position of acting Alliance Leader.”

“Have you reached a conclusion?”

“Not yet.”

Liu Zhenheng spoke honestly.

“To reach a conclusion, I need to know something. What Young master wants.”

Unhwi looked at Liu Zhenheng with a strange expression.

Liu Zhenheng asked.

“Does the Blood Heaven Sect want the Sichuan Alliance? Or does Young master personally want it?”

Liu Zhenheng had clearly grasped the situation completely.

There was no choice but for Unhwi to become acting Alliance Leader of the Sichuan Alliance.

Only then could the Sichuan Alliance survive.

But the intention behind this question was different.

If the Blood Heaven Sect wanted the Sichuan Alliance, then he meant to refuse.

In other words, it was also a declaration that he would rather disband than crawl beneath the Blood Heaven Sect.

This could not simply be seen as pride.

It was conviction.

It was will.

The end of a massive organization called the Sichuan Alliance was not to survive by relying on someone else.

It was to flourish or disappear.

It had to move in one of those two directions.

That was the history it carried.

And that was the will of the Sichuan Alliance that once had the Sichuan Overlord.

Unhwi looked directly at Liu Zhenheng and spoke firmly.

“Neither.”

“Neither?”

“Yes. It was Senior Kang’s wish.”

Liu Zhenheng’s expression hardened.

“......I have already heard that.”

“Senior Kang wanted it, and I want it as well. But the reasons are different.”

“I would like to hear those reasons.”

Unhwi thought for a moment.

He had to speak precisely.

Liu Zhenheng was not someone who wanted to hear what he wished to hear.

He wanted to hear what was correct.

“Gun Mugeol must be stopped.”

“......”

“Senior Kang has died. The position of Alliance Leader of the Sichuan Alliance is empty. The moment Gun Mugeol learns of this, he will reach out toward Sichuan. There are several ways to stop it, but the fastest is to have someone sitting in the Sichuan Alliance whom Gun Mugeol cannot recklessly touch.”

“......”

“That person is Young master.”

“Gun Mugeol and I are already on opposite sides. And if the Blood Heaven Sect and the Sichuan Alliance are connected, Gun Mugeol’s calculations will change.”

Liu Zhenheng placed his hands on his knees.

“The justification is weak.”

“I know.”

“It is especially weak to the people of the Sichuan Alliance. The idea that an outsider will protect us is a matter of pride.”

“That is why I am acting Alliance Leader.”

Unhwi spoke.

“It is not the position of Alliance Leader. It is acting. I am not saying I will take the Sichuan Alliance. I am saying I will fill the empty seat. That difference is not small.”

Liu Zhenheng looked at Unhwi.

“Until when?”

“Until the Sichuan Alliance can stand on its own.”

“What does standing on its own mean?”

“When it can endure Gun Mugeol’s pressure alone. When the inside has been settled. At that time, there will be no reason for me to remain in this position.”

Liu Zhenheng remained silent for a long time.

The sound of wind came from the courtyard.

The white mourning lanterns were still hanging.

The funeral period had not yet ended.

“Young master.”

“Yes.”

“I will ask one more thing honestly.”

“Ask.”

Liu Zhenheng’s eyes directly targeted Unhwi.

“Do you know how things are moving inside the Sichuan Alliance right now?”

“I know part of it.”

“Not part. I mean all of it.”

“Then tell me yourself.”

Liu Zhenheng let out a short breath.

“As soon as the news that Alliance Leader Kang had died spread, there were people who began moving from last night.”

“......”

“They are not aiming for the position of Alliance Leader. They are aiming for more practical things. Alliance Leader Kang’s legacy. The assets of the Sichuan Alliance. Influence over the subordinate sects. They are moving to secure those things.”

Unhwi looked at Liu Zhenheng.

“Are they Elder-level figures?”

“That is right.”

“You know who they are, Elder Liu.”

Liu Zhenheng was silent for a moment.

“I do.”

“Tell me.”