Chapter 66: Tang Soyeon
First, I calmed everyone down.
“I think it'd be better to discuss the details somewhere quieter.”
At my words, Yu Gwangcheol nodded.
“Agreed. Let's go to my room.”
“Yes. I'll put Young Master Tang down first, then come right over.”
I carried Tang Sogyeom to her room and laid her on the bed.
Then I immediately headed to Yu Gwangcheol's room.
Jang Ho followed behind me.
Inside, everyone from Kunlun was waiting in tense silence.
The moment Jin Gwangung saw me, he urged me on.
“You brat. What happened?”
“Tell us already.”
I took a breath before speaking.
“Yes, Master. Early this morning...”
I gave everyone a rough explanation of what had happened during the night.
Jang Ho had been kidnapped by masked men.
Tang Sogyeom and I had happened to notice something was wrong, tracked them down, and rescued him.
Naturally...
I left out anything related to Trance Powder, the Shadow Corps, and Tang Sogyeom's true identity.
“...And that's how we ended up coming back.”
When I finished, the room fell silent for a moment.
But the silence didn't last long.
“Where is it?”
Jin Gwangung narrowed his eyes.
I blinked.
“Pardon?”
“That shrine.”
His tone hardened.
“Where is it?”
“Why do you need the location...?”
“I want to see for myself what kind of bastards would do something like this.”
“There shouldn't be any need for you to go that far....”
Jin Gwangung's eyes sharpened.
“The moment those masked bastards pointed a sword at my disciple...”
His voice dropped.
“it stopped being your problem alone.”
“Now it's Kunlun's problem.”
Then he muttered under his breath,
“Daring to draw a blade on my disciple....”
I answered carefully.
“Should I guide you there?”
“No need.”
He snorted.
“Just tell me roughly where it is.”
So I explained the shrine's location as precisely as I could.
Jin Gwangung listened quietly.
The moment I finished...
he shot to his feet.
“I'll be back.”
I stared at him.
“You're going alone?”
Jin Gwangung scoffed.
“Why?”
“Are you worried about this old man?”
Then he grinned.
“Or are you worried about whatever stragglers might still be there?”
His confidence was more than enough.
I immediately accepted it.
“No.”
“I spoke unnecessarily.”
“I'll be back soon.”
Jin Gwangung strode over to the window.
Then threw it open.
Without another word, he stepped onto the railing and launched himself outside.
Typical Jin Gwangung.
Impatient as ever.
After that, the Kunlun group asked me question after question about what had happened.
How I found Jang Ho.
How many masked men there were.
Who they might have been.
Why Tang Sogyeom had returned unconscious.
I explained as much as I could.
With so many questions and answers passing back and forth...
more time passed than I expected.
After hearing everything, Elder Yu Gwangcheol spoke with a grave expression.
“Hm...”
“This incident seems to have been planned for quite some time.”
He frowned.
“Otherwise, they wouldn't have dared carry out a kidnapping this boldly.”
Then his gaze shifted toward Jang Ho.
“Young Master Jang.”
“Do you have any idea who might have done this?”
"..."
Jang Ho's face stiffened.
“Th-That....”
His lips moved...
but in the end, he swallowed whatever he'd been about to say.
He clearly knew something.
Then...
BANG!
The door flew open.
I turned.
Jin Gwangung stood in the doorway.
What?
He's already back?
He strode inside.
But unlike when he'd left...
he wasn't empty-handed.
A man's body hung limply over one shoulder.
"...!"
Everyone's attention immediately fixed on him.
Jin Gwangung casually dropped the body onto the floor.
THUD!
The floor shook.
I looked down at the man sprawled there.
That guy...?
It was the largest of the masked men.
The same one who had thrown Trance Powder at Tang Sogyeom and me.
To my surprise...
Jin Gwangung had brought the corpse all the way back.
I stared at him blankly.
“This was the only one still there.”
Jin Gwangung brushed off his robe and spoke bluntly.
“What do you mean?”
He answered immediately.
“In the underground chamber beneath the shrine...”
“this was the only corpse left.”
My eyes widened.
“The other six were gone.”
He rubbed his chin.
“Looks like someone went in and cleaned the place up.”
"...!?"
Jin Gwangung muttered,
“If they were going to clean up, why leave this one bastard behind...?”
At that moment...
Jang Ho took a step forward.
His gaze was locked onto the dead man's exposed face.
“Young Master Jang.”
I spoke quietly.
“Do you know who he is?”
Jang Ho's hands clenched.
After a brief silence...
he finally forced himself to answer.
“...He's my uncle.”
“What?!”
Myeongjeon reacted first.
Everyone else looked just as shocked.
I asked,
“He's from the Iron Mountain Sect?”
Jang Ho bit his lip.
“Yes.”
“He's my father's younger brother.”
He lowered his gaze.
“I only know that my father and uncle had a serious argument recently.”
“Anything beyond that...”
He shook his head.
“I don't know.”
At his words...
I reached my own conclusion inwardly.
So that's it.
I was already certain the Shadow Corps had been involved in this kidnapping.
Naturally...
the Righteous Alliance would be somewhere behind it.
But Jang Ho's uncle had probably been used as part of the process.
Internal conflict inside the Iron Mountain Sect....
They'll probably cover the incident up that way.
The Shadow Corps must have left only the uncle's body behind precisely to make the explanation look clean.
At the same time...
a chill ran down my spine.
It's a good thing we left the shrine quickly.
If we'd stayed even a little longer...
we might have encountered whoever came to erase the evidence.
I probably would've found a way out on my own.
But Tang Sogyeom had been poisoned by Trance Powder.
And Jang Ho had still been unconscious.
They might not have made it out safely.
Yu Gwangcheol drew a deep breath, then looked at Jang Ho.
“Young Master Jang.”
“What will you do now?”
“Do you still intend to continue toward Luoyang and participate in the Dragon-Phoenix Awakening Tournament?”
Jang Ho shook his head.
“No.”
His expression was heavy.
“I think I need to contact my sect first.”
Yu Gwangcheol nodded.
“Good.”
“Given the situation, send a messenger bird as soon as possible.”
Jang Ho pressed his lips together and nodded.
Everyone in the room seemed to conclude that the entire incident had been caused by internal conflict within the Iron Mountain Sect.
The martial world was a ruthless place.
Tragedies born from power struggles between blood relatives were hardly rare.
And since it appeared to be an internal sect matter...
the Kunlun group chose not to dig any deeper.
Once the situation was more or less settled...
people began leaving the room one by one.
I returned to my own room and sat on the bed.
The disappearances at Black Spirit Valley.
And now this kidnapping.
The Black Spirit Valley incident hadn't happened in my previous life.
Maybe this kidnapping hadn't either.
Why were things like this happening now?
Was there some connection between the two incidents?
Just as I started thinking about it...
Knock, knock.
Someone tapped on my door.
Then it opened.
“...Young Master Mujin.”
Tang Sogyeom entered with an awkward expression.
Her face was still pale...
but fortunately, her eyes and steps looked steady.
I stood.
“How are you feeling?”
“Much better, thanks to you....”
Tang Sogyeom hesitated briefly.
Then continued in a quiet voice.
“About when I was paralyzed by the poison...”
"..."
“I wasn't completely unconscious.”
She lowered her eyes.
“My body wouldn't move, but... I still had some awareness.”
"..."
Her gaze shifted toward my hands.
“I remember you helping me breathe.”
I silently nodded.
Tang Sogyeom spoke quietly.
“So...”
“you know I'm a woman now, don't you?”
I nodded again.
“Yes.”
Tang Sogyeom let out a short sigh.
It didn't sound like resignation.
More like someone who had finally made a decision.
“Then...”
“I suppose I should be honest with you.”
She straightened and formally greeted me again.
“Let me introduce myself properly.”
This time...
the voice that came out was a delicate woman's voice rather than the refined tone she had used before.
“My name is Tang Soyeon of the Sichuan Tang Clan.”
Tang Soyeon.
One of the Two Phoenixes of the Five Dragons and Two Phoenixes.
And the eldest daughter of the Sichuan Tang Clan Head.
...So I was right.
I'd already suspected it.
The expression she'd shown when Jin Gwangung mentioned Tang Soyeon the night before.
And her exceptional hidden-weapon skills, strong enough to defeat several masked martial artists in an instant.
When I put those two things together...
Tang Soyeon was the only name that came to mind.
I looked at her.
“Why disguise yourself as a man?”
Tang Soyeon shrugged lightly.
“It's more convenient.”
She smiled.
“It's easier to travel alone, and I don't want to attract unnecessary attention.”
I frowned.
“Was it really necessary to go that far?”
“The martial world isn't exactly safe.”
The instant I asked...
Tang Soyeon's gaze deepened.
“Because I wanted to broaden my experience.”
She took a breath.
Then continued.
“Not as Tang Soyeon of the Sichuan Tang Clan.”
“Not as one of the Five Dragons and Two Phoenixes.”
Her voice was calm...
but sincere.
“I wanted to experience the martial world as just another martial artist.”
“Not through empty fame...”
“but as myself.”
"..."
There was genuine conviction in her words.
The will of a young martial artist who wanted to step outside the safety of her family and see the real world for herself.
Then something occurred to me.
“Still...”
“is it all right for you to travel disguised like this?”
I asked.
“Surely people in your clan must have plenty to say about it.”
Tang Soyeon waved a hand dismissively.
“So what?”
"..."
“If people have mouths, they'll say whatever they want.”
She smiled faintly.
“It's not like any of them can actually say it to my face.”
Then she shrugged.
“Of course, the elders nag me a little.”
“I just let it go in one ear and out the other.”
Her tone was bold and completely unapologetic.
Hm.
She feels a little like Yu Seola.
Tang Soyeon and Yu Seola.
For some reason...
putting the two of them together sounded like it could become very entertaining.
I looked at Tang Soyeon again.
“What you wanted to ask me...”
“is to keep this secret, right?”
Tang Soyeon nodded.
“Yes.”
I smiled.
“Don't worry.”
“Young Master Tang Sogyeom.”
Apparently satisfied with my answer...
Tang Soyeon smiled too.
“Thank you, Young Master Mujin.”
I nodded.
“Then you should return to your room and rest.”
“Your body probably hasn't fully recovered yet.”
I thought the conversation was finished.
But then Tang Soyeon suddenly spoke again.
“Ah!”
“There's one more thing.”
I tilted my head.
“Something else?”
Tang Soyeon immediately answered.
“Let's go together.”
“Together...?”
What did she mean?
Then she continued.
“Let's travel together.”
Her eyes sparkled.
“To the Dragon-Phoenix Awakening Tournament.”
For some reason...
the word Mad Flower flashed through my mind as I looked into her eyes.
