The Lazy Young Master of the Jin Clan

“Do I not have to do anything?”

“Yes. I don’t think it will be necessary. But thank you. For coming with me.”

“It’s nothing.”

Cha Seol, who had at some point shed her resentment towards Jin Sohyun, smiled brightly.

“Has the Great General Manager of the Heretic Path's Alliance left?”

At Cheon Yerang’s question, Jin Sohyun nodded his head.

At this, Cheon Yerang stared at Jin Sohyun with a surprised face.

Jin Sohyun, who felt burdened by her gaze, smiled awkwardly and asked.

“Why…?”

“I thought you wouldn’t just let him go because of your deep hatred for the Heretic Path's Alliance, Young Master Jin.”

“I thought so too.”

The hatred for the Heretic Path's Alliance that had continued for a long time.

Jin Sohyun had to soothe himself before facing Mu Yu. Because otherwise, he felt like he would kill Mu Yu in a single breath.

But when he actually faced Mu Yu, his hatred did not boil up.

‘Was it because of his eyes?’

The reason was Mu Yu’s eyes.

His hazy two eyes were the eyes of a person who had lost their purpose in life.

So Jin Sohyun could not bring himself to kill him.

Of course, there would have been no need to.

“He won’t be able to return alive anyway.”

“Why?”

“I’m not the only one who harbors hatred for the Heretic Path's Alliance.”

As Jin Sohyun stared at a distant place, Cheon Yerang noticed that something was happening somewhere.

‘I can see it in Young Master Jin’s eyes, but I can’t see it.’

Despite having the blue eyes, Cheon Yerang could not see what Jin Sohyun was seeing.

In front of the bitter-feeling Cheon Yerang, Jin Sohyun patted his shoulder.

“Oh my.”

“Big brother! I’ll pat your shoulder for you!”

Cha Seol made Jin Sohyun sit in a chair and massaged and patted his shoulder with her small hands.

“Does it feel good?”

“Thank you. But this weight is something I can’t get rid of no matter what.”

“Why? Is something wrong?”

“No. It’s something you don’t need to know, Seol.”

“Tsk! You’re mean.”

“But I can’t help it.”

How could he tell the still young Cha Seol that the martial world might be destroyed, and that the imperial palace was behind this?

No, how could he tell this to everyone except her?

Jin Sohyun, who had at some point become the hope of the martial world, surpassing the righteous and heretic paths, had heavy shoulders.

‘How did it come to this?’

He just wanted to live lazily.

Now, it wasn’t enough to help the righteous martial world, but he had to save the martial world from Ju Cheon and the imperial palace, who were trying to exterminate it.

‘I’ve heard it, so I can’t pretend I don’t know. Sigh… my life.’

Was the punishment for living lazily until now coming all at once?

“Once this is over, I’ll live quietly in a place where no one knows.”

At Jin Sohyun’s lamenting mumble, the two women perked up their ears.

“Ugh… I don’t want to do it.”

***

The expressions of the leaders of the Martial Alliance who had heard the news were very serious.

“The extinction of martial artists… the destruction of the martial world…”

The non-interference between the government and martial arts, which had been an unwritten rule until now, had been quietly observed for a very long time.

That’s why the martial world was able to grow its own independent power.

But now the imperial palace was trying to get rid of the martial world?

“Then Ju Cheon must be a person of the imperial palace.”

“He might just be a dog of the imperial palace.”

“Nothing is known about the Heretic Path's Alliance Leader’s martial arts. It might be the martial arts of the imperial palace.”

“Huh… if the Heretic Path's Alliance is really receiving support from the imperial palace, then isn’t it a fight that can’t be won in the first place?”

“There might be more explosives!”

Chaos ensued.

Until now, the faces of those who had argued that they had to fight against the Heretic Path's Alliance to regain the territory of the Martial Alliance and to bring peace to the Central Plains were filled with fear and despair rather than spirit.

Cheon Yusin and Gu Daepil could not blame them.

The opponent was the imperial palace.

In other words, they were people who had the world itself on their backs.

The meeting ended in silence, and Cheon Yusin remained with Gu Daepil, Namgung Muhyeok, and Zhuge Goun to talk.

“The imperial family probably won’t be able to step forward directly.”

“That’s probably right. If they had intended to, they would have mobilized the imperial army long ago and would have pushed away both the righteous and heretic paths.”

In the past, the imperial palace’s evaluation of the martial world, which was a collection of martial artists, was just a bunch of thugs with a little more strength. Nothing more, nothing less.

But as history repeated itself, sects and martial families were established, and factions were created, a system that had not existed in the martial world began to be created.

And the righteous martial world, which protected justice and order, that is, the Martial Alliance, was born, and with the advent of demonic arts, the Ming Cult and the heretic martial world, with them as the leaders, were born.

From then on, martial arts and the martial world developed further.

The martial artists who were called thugs had at some point become strong enough to fly in the sky and to cut down Mount Tai with a single sword.

From this point on, the imperial palace’s evaluation of martial artists changed greatly.

They are dangerous beings.

The imperial palace had no intention of leaving the martial world alone, but the problem was that people who wanted to use them began to appear.

They had escaped the eyes and ears of the emperor, which were everywhere in the imperial palace.

And the martial artists of the martial world, who possessed powerful strength, were a very good sword for them to use.

“The emperor could not touch the martial artists. Because the majority of his vassals were against it.”

The emperor feared the martial artists.

And the vassals considered the martial artists a good sword to use.

And so the martial artists survived.

Until now.

“There are not many people in the imperial palace who consider martial artists a thorn in their side. And to secretly take out that much explosives, it’s impossible with ordinary power.”

Cheon Yusin, who was listening quietly to Zhuge Goun’s story, had a headache.

“In the end, there is only one person who moved Ju Cheon.”

A being whose name could not even be uttered.

“That’s right.”

“One good thing is that that person will no longer be able to interfere in our fight.”

“So this fight must not be dragged on for too long. We have to see the end… with one battle.”

They had to end everything with one battle.

So that the sky could no longer intervene.

“Alliance Leader.”

The voices of young martial artists were heard from outside the door.

“What is it?”

“The family head of the Zhuge Clan has come.”

“The family head!?”

Zhuge Goun stood up with a surprised face.

Namgung Muhyeok and Cheon Yusin also had surprised faces.

“Guide him in.”

“Ah, already…”

Seureuk—

With the sound of a soft robe fluttering, a middle-aged man in white appeared with Zhuge Yeop.

‘Zhuge Yeop? I thought he was dead, but he managed to survive. Did he return to the clan?’

Cheon Yusin narrowed his eyes at the return of Zhuge Yeop, who had not been seen since the great explosion on the plain.

In the meantime, the man with a benevolent impression sat down in an empty chair and waved his folding fan.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“It’s nothing.”

As Zhuge Yeop left the meeting room, the middle-aged man introduced himself with a smiling face.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am Zhuge Suk, the family head of the Zhuge Clan.”

“Zhuge Family Head…”

The family head of the Zhuge Clan, who was evaluated as never leaving the clan before the end of the martial world and had never shown himself to the outside, had personally come to the Martial Alliance.

“Family Head.”

As Zhuge Goun bowed his head deeply and paid his respects, Zhuge Suk raised his hand.

“Don’t be too formal. We are in front of the Alliance Leader, the Beggars' Sect Leader, and the Namgung Family Head.”

“Ah, yes!”

As Zhuge Goun, who had been proud even when facing the White Moon Divine Lord, cowered, the three looked at Zhuge Suk with strange eyes.

“You all have faces that want to ask many things.”

“You are… younger than I thought.”

At Namgung Muhyeok’s honest question, Zhuge Suk smiled gently and said.

“The age of the family head of the Zhuge Clan is younger compared to other families.”

Saying this, Zhuge Suk tapped his head with his finger.

“No matter how wise a person is, they cannot go against the passage of time. The family head who decides the important affairs of the family needs the physical strength and intelligence to judge them wisely and make the right decisions, so the Zhuge Clan succeeds the family head at an early age.”

“Huh… I see.”

“By the way, I heard you met the Great General Manager of the Heretic Path's Alliance. Would you tell me this interesting story?”

At his polite request, Gu Daepil personally met Mu Yu and briefly explained the stories he had shared with him.

At that, Zhuge Suk, who had been letting out small exclamations of admiration while listening to the story, put down the folding fan he was holding.

“The imperial palace.”

“Come to think of it, doesn’t the Zhuge Clan have a connection with the imperial palace since ancient times?”

“It’s been a very long time. But the people of the Zhuge family in the imperial palace are no different from outsiders who have left the family. In other words, although the surname is the same, it is difficult to see them as the same family.”

“Then what should we do now…”

“Since the imperial palace cannot directly intervene, their existence will not be that much of a threat.”

At Zhuge Suk’s confident answer, the faces of the four, including Cheon Yusin, brightened slightly.

“Really?”

At Gu Daepil’s question, Zhuge Suk slowly nodded his head.

“But the threat of an explosion still remains, so please spread a rumor.”

“Spreading a rumor is not difficult… but what should we say?”

“A big explosion occurred and there were many casualties. Most of them were martial artists belonging to the Martial Alliance.”

“But even if we spread such a rumor, the explosion happened in a very remote place…”

“No. The explosion will happen at a martial arts faction belonging to the alliance.”

“What do you mean by that?”

At Namgung Muhyeok’s question, Zhuge Suk smiled faintly.

“We will gather thunder bombs and intentionally cause an explosion. Of course, there will be no actual casualties. We just need to blow up a few buildings.”

“To create a big explosion, we need at least…”

“A dozen or so will be needed. We, the Zhuge Clan, have them.”

Everyone’s gaze turned to Zhuge Suk.

The use of thunder bombs was forbidden in the martial world, so just possessing them could be a great crime.

Nevertheless, Zhuge Suk revealed this proudly.

“We are not the only sect or family that possesses thunder bombs. It’s just that they can’t reveal it. We, the Zhuge Clan, are not as strong in martial arts as the Namgung Clan or the Beggars' Sect. We have prepared thunder bombs to protect our family from a possible threat.”

“Since the situation is what it is… we can’t blame the Zhuge Clan.”

With Cheon Yusin’s one word, it was over.

Since the alliance leader had decided to bury it, there was no place that could criticize the Zhuge Clan anymore.

Zhuge Suk, who knew this, bowed his head slightly to Cheon Yusin and then continued.

“If we cause an explosion and then spread a rumor, the imperial family will not be able to just stand by. They will start an investigation. If so… that person, who can be said to be the mastermind of all this, will no longer be able to support the Heretic Path's Alliance. And that is when.”

Zhuge Suk raised his folding fan and covered his mouth.

“It is time to resume the war.”

***

“It’s been a while.”

“It’s been a while.”

“…”

“It’s good to see you all like this again.”

Four people sat around a round table.

They were Gwak Myeong, Yeom Yoa, Heonwon Hu, and Beo Mu, the masters of the Four Divine Daoist Temple.

Heonwon Hu, who had regained his position as a master only after a long investigation, had a very tired face.

“You all know why we have gathered.”

At Gwak Myeong’s words, the three masters nodded their heads.

“The war that had stopped will start again within the next two months, and this time… the late-stage prospects will also directly participate in the war.”

The first battle, which was a fight of the adults, had ended in the defeat of the righteous martial world.

And now it had become everyone’s fight.

Because of this, the late-stage prospects belonging to the Four Divine Daoist Temple also had to prepare for the war.

“Select the ten most outstanding late-stage prospects from each Daoist temple. With the chosen children, we will attack the flank.”

At Gwak Myeong’s explanation, the masters nodded their heads and recalled the ten late-stage prospects they had been eyeing in their minds.

“Don’t forget. Our purpose is to shake the Heretic Path's Alliance. We must never fight head-on.”

“I know.”

Yeom Yoa said this and crossed her legs.

“Anyway, the overall purpose is one.”

A blue line stretched long on the map placed in front of the four masters.

“The purpose is one.”

The time to risk everyone’s lives was approaching.

(End of Chapter)