Chapter 50

Reorganization

Cheon Wigang stood before the false being who had died while wearing his face.

Only then did it truly sink in that everything was over.

"You resolved the lifelong wish I could never fulfill."

The one who accomplished it was none other than Cheon Muyang.

The eldest son of the Cheon Clan, whom he had once thought a once-in-a-generation ruffian.

"You're the one who did it."

Cheon Wigang and Cheon Seonhak.

The two pillars of the Cheon Clan felt emotions they could not put into words.

Among those countless feelings, the one they shared was pride.

"Tsk."

Cheon Muyang shrugged his shoulders.

Those gazes were unfamiliar to him as well.

"I merely did what I ought to have done."

Glance.

Cheon Muyang looked toward the corpse of the one who had impersonated Cheon Jungho.

With his death, the Demonic Cult's thirty-year grand scheme that had loomed over the Cheon Clan could be considered a failure.

"They were truly vicious. They say a gentleman's revenge isn't too late even after ten years, but…."

"They are no gentlemen."

"Yes. They're far more vicious than that."

Thirty years.

Their hatred and rage, unchanged over such a vast span of time, was almost worthy of respect.

It meant it had never been diluted.

And so, Cheon Muyang did not relax his guard even now.

"You two must understand as well."

"...."

"Nothing is over yet."

This was only the beginning.

If the grand scheme aimed at the Cheon Clan spanned thirty years, then how many years would the grand scheme aimed at the Central Plains' martial world encompass?

A hundred years—perhaps even several hundred.

"If we don't capture and eliminate the root cause, how could we ever sleep soundly with both legs stretched out?"

The Demonic Cult.

They were always dangerous.

Yet as eras passed, the Central Plains' martial world forgot its fear of the Demonic Cult, even coming to dismiss it as nonexistent.

"While the Central Plains' martial world forgot the Demonic Cult, the Demonic Cult never once forgot its hatred."

They had merely waited for the right time.

And that time would not be far off.

The threat of the Demonic Cult was not some vague, messianic delusion of the distant future—it was an existential threat already aimed at their throats.

"Before long, the Demonic Cult will surely rise again."

The timing could be inferred.

A thirty-year grand scheme.

Ten years from now.

In the memories of a nameless past, the very day the Cheon Clan had been annihilated—that would be the appointed day.

"The Demonic Cult…."

What he had thought was merely an internal power struggle within the clan turned out to be the Demonic Cult's insidious plot.

This was never just the Cheon Clan's problem.

It was an issue directly tied to the entire Central Plains' martial world.

"You're right."

"Yes. Their rage and hatred are enough to burn this entire world down."

That would be the beginning of the chaos they yearned for—and the beginning of a new order reborn atop that chaos.

Cheon Muyang had seen that future's starting point with his own eyes.

He wanted to stop it.

Perhaps this was the destiny of a life he had failed to fulfill in his previous existence.

"But I have no intention of just taking it lying down. Not even a little."

"Ha. That's right."

The Cheon Clan would change.

There would no longer be a Cheon Clan that only endured.

"Yes. We must prepare."

Ten years.

Cheon Muyang believed it was enough.

If it was something that had to be done anyway—

"Of course, in the process, I intend to raise the name of the Cheon Clan high once more in the Central Plains' martial world."

The name of the Cheon Clan would stand tall again in the Central Plains' martial world.

The world had forgotten the Cheon Clan.

But now, it would remember.

The roar of the dragon that once ruled the heavens.

"...."

Cheon Wigang and Cheon Seonhak trembled.

"If that is your will, I will follow it."

Cheon Seonhak steeled his resolve once more.

Had he not already decided to become Cheon Muyang's sword and shield?

Whatever that path might be, he would follow it.

"Do it. The Cheon Clan will support your will."

Cheon Wigang was the same.

Until now, the clan had been unable to offer any help.

But that would change.

"As expected, you really are an interesting bastard."

Nangwang, though an outsider, was already so deeply entangled with the Demonic Cult that there was no turning back.

If he did not rely on the Cheon Clan, Nangwang would surely become their next primary target.

"So, what do you plan to do?"

"Until something more interesting than you shows up, I'm thinking of relying on the Cheon Clan of mine."

Nangwang was not foolish.

Unless he abandoned everything and shut himself away in Shaolin, there was nowhere in the Central Plains' martial world where he could evade the Demonic Cult's hidden blades.

If that was the case, then choosing to fight head-on and die was far more in line with who Nangwang was.

"Then, I'll hire you properly."

"Hire me?"

"I mean for you to take on a commission."

"A commission…? Are you saying you'll buy me with money?"

Nangwang asked with a smile.

Of course, it wasn't because the commission itself interested him.

'Was that all you had? You're predictable too.'

The world was mistaken.

That Nangwang was someone who moved for money.

But that was far from the truth.

'Buy me with money?'

Money was merely the price attached to a commission.

He never moved for money itself.

To the wealthy, he demanded half their fortune; to the poor, he would move even for three copper coins.

That wildly inconsistent standard was precisely why Nangwang was known as an eccentric in the Central Plains.

"So, what is it?"

Nangwang's smile did not show it outwardly, but it carried deep disappointment.

Yet whether Cheon Muyang noticed or not, he continued speaking.

"A sword against a sword, a saber against a saber."

"...."

"Our clan has no one who wields the saber. So the opponent for the Saber Lord will be you."

Nangwang's gaze changed.

It was a commission he had never even imagined.

"So you're saying… defeat a Saber Lord with a saber?"

"Yes. That is the commission."

"And anything else?"

"Do as you please."

"Your tone sounds a bit more polite than before, but you're still insolent."

"What can I do? Things were buttoned wrong from the start. I'm the one asking for a commission, so this is me showing my utmost courtesy."

"Utmost courtesy, my ass. You're really something."

Cheon Muyang shrugged.

Then he said,

"So? What'll you do?"

Heh.

Nangwang let out a hearty laugh.

What an utterly absurd commission.

One he had never heard of in his entire life.

"You always go beyond my imagination."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Fine. It is a compliment."

Swish.

Nangwang held out his hand.

Cheon Muyang tilted his head.

"What does this mean…?"

"The commission's advance payment."

"...."

"Professional ethics must be upheld."

It was an unexpected response.

Still, thinking it very much like Nangwang, Cheon Muyang searched his robe.

Fortunately, he found a single coin tucked away in the corner of his pouch.

Grin.

Cheon Muyang smiled.

He already knew of Nangwang's eccentricity.

"This is my entire fortune."

A single coin.

An old, worn coin whose age was impossible to tell.

"Your entire fortune, really?"

"That's right."

"The cost-benefit ratio is terrible."

"So? Not going to take it?"

"As if."

Nangwang accepted the single coin.

"With this, the commission is sealed."

"Good."

The wandering Nangwang.

Until now, he had belonged to nowhere.

But that was no longer the case.

He might now be called Nangwang of the Cheon Clan.

It was a choice different from the principles he had lived by until now, but even Nangwang knew it was time for him to seek change.

'A Saber Lord, huh….'

All of this was for the sake of reaching the saber sky the Saber Lord had revealed.

Reaching it was not the goal.

Cutting that sky apart—that was the path Nangwang sought.

'I only glimpsed it briefly, but….'

Whether it was possible remained unknown.

Clench!

Nangwang tightly gripped his saber.

Leaving behind the blazing fighting spirit of Nangwang, the three gathered together.

"What now?"

"Before heading to the Yongbong Gathering, shouldn't we first carry out a major reorganization of the clan?"

"Yes. We should."

"Leave it to me. This ruffian will try swinging the knife properly for once."

"I leave it to you."

"Yes."

Cheon Muyang's smile was that of a ruffian.

Yet no one thought of Cheon Muyang as a ruffian anymore.

It could only be called remarkable progress.

"Let's go."

"Mmm."

"Ah, wait a moment."

As if something had come to mind, Cheon Muyang approached the corpse of the decayed Demonic Cultist.

"...."

Along with a vile stench,

There was a strange bead atop the corpse, emitting a lustrous light.

'There's definitely something to this.'

He needed to know.

And so, Cheon Muyang placed the bead into his robe.

An ominous feeling crept over him.

***

The Cheon Clan faced a great upheaval.

The Elder Council's power was completely annihilated by Cheon Muyang's Inspection Unit.

The corruption already committed by the Elder Council had been identified by the Cheongyeondan and Geumsan, who had once been a Black Statue.

In the process, all those who had defected and those who had been gnawing away at the clan were struck down.

"This can't be happening!"

"Yes. It can."

"Do you think the Supreme Elder will just stand by and watch?!"

Cheon Muyang sneered right in their faces.

At their foolishness—still unable to grasp that the times had changed.

The era of the Third Elder and the Supreme Elder had come to an end.

"They're dead."

"W-what do you mean by that?!"

"The Third Elder and the Supreme Elder. Both of them are dead."

"T-that's impossible!"

"Accept it."

There was no one left who could cling to the authority of the Elder Council.

Those who were meant to exit with the flow of the times would simply do so.

Of course, not without paying the price for the corruption they had committed.

"Hoo…."

So many areas had been tainted by the Elder Council that after purging them all, the Cheon Clan almost felt hollow inside.

"Thankfully, no one is pushing back?"

He had worried there might be resistance.

However, aside from the clear charges, all those who were purged were people with poor reputations within the clan to begin with.

"Tsk. So it really wasn't a lack of talent."

Those who were expelled believed the Cheon Clan wouldn't function without them.

Some of them probably even thought the clan would realize the void they left and come begging for them to return.

"They were just blind."

Like Mu-myeong, those who had silently guarded the clan remained steadfast.

Rather, once they were given authority and positions that suited them, efficiency improved markedly.

"Still, we should recruit new talent."

"On that matter, I do have something to say."

"Ah, you've arrived, Lord of the Cheongeum Pavilion."

Cheon Muyang welcomed Geumsan.

Geumsan had become the Lord of the Cheongeum Pavilion.

And with the sharp insight that had uncovered corruption, he was now removing inefficiencies and ensuring funds circulated properly.

"Thanks to that, we can provide better supplies to more people."

With no money leaking out along the way, the Cheon Clan's funds now returned fully to its members.

Not only did base stipends and bonuses increase, but the quality of uniforms and swords provided to trainees improved dramatically.

And that wasn't all.

With the training grounds perfectly refurbished, even individual cultivation rooms could be fully equipped.

"It was something that should have been done anyway."

"But you said you had something to discuss?"

"Yes. It concerns talent…."

Geumsan's expression was not particularly bright.

"Go on."

"The Cheon Clan is stable enough as it is now. However, your goal isn't merely maintaining the status quo, is it, Young Master?"

"That's right."

"And so, in order to secure talent for the future, I wanted to suggest that we also consider cultivating such talent ourselves."

Cheon Muyang's eyebrows lifted.

Interest.

"Cultivating?"

"Yes. For example, the children who were captured by the Black Statues and then rescued by you, Young Master."

Cheon Muyang understood immediately what Geumsan meant.

"Ah. That's a good idea."

"If we take those children in, they'll surely become capable talents."

"Agreed."

Cheon Muyang nodded.

They could be taught administration from a young age under the concept of trainees.

"That's a fine idea. May I leave it entirely to you, Lord of the Cheongeum Pavilion?"

"Yes…."

"Before that, have Nangwang take a look at them. There may be children with talent in martial arts."

"I will do so."

Cheon Muyang smiled.

Any shortcomings could simply be filled.

Only now did Cheon Muyang truly sense that it was time to leave the clan.

'Before heading to the Yongbong Gathering… this timing feels right.'

Just then—

"Young Master."

"Oh. You arrived at the perfect time."

The Leader of the Cheongyeondan had come.

"Just as you said, Young Master."

"As expected."

Smiling, Cheon Muyang picked up the Heavenly Light and rose from his seat.

It was time to step beyond the clan's gates.