Chapter 95
Return (2)
Cheon Muyang headed for the clan head’s office.
The Wolf King and the others decided to remain at the training grounds.
“Go on. It’s been a while since I’ve come to the training grounds myself, so I should personally see how much they’ve improved.”
For that reason, Cheon Seon-hak accompanied Cheon Muyang.
“A great deal has changed. So much so that I nearly walked right past it.”
“It was so old that, since we were rebuilding anyway, we decided to expand it properly.”
“I see.”
Though many things had changed, the clan head’s hall seemed largely unchanged.
“The clan head’s hall is the same.”
“Blindly replacing everything with something new isn’t always the answer.”
A harmony of the old and the new.
The buildings of the Cheon clan embodied the meaning of learning from the past to renew the present.
“True. If this place had changed as well, I might have been disappointed.”
At the stage of expanding a clan, the thing to guard against most was empty ambition.
“You know that better than anyone, so don’t worry.”
“Yes.”
Cheon Muyang smiled.
Neither Cheon Seon-hak nor Cheon Wi-gang, nor even the Lord of the Cheon Golden Pavilion, were people who would fall into that trap.
“Clan Head, the eldest young master has returned.”
“Let him in.”
The door opened.
Inside, Cheon Wi-gang could be seen buried beneath a stack of documents comparable to those in the Namgung clan head’s office.
“You’ve come.”
“Yes, Clan Head.”
Cheon Muyang offered a respectful greeting.
“Hm.”
Cheon Wi-gang’s eyes, now visible, were dark and shadowed.
It looked as though he had gone several nights without sleep.
“There are quite a lot of documents.”
Wham!
Was it his imagination, or did killing intent flash briefly in Cheon Wi-gang’s eyes as he looked at Cheon Muyang?
“That’s thanks to the fine mess you caused in the martial world.”
“A mess?”
At that, Cheon Muyang let out a small laugh.
The word “mess” seemed to carry a great deal of Cheon Wi-gang’s pent-up resentment.
“It was all for the sake of the Cheon clan.”
Crack!
It seemed Cheon Wi-gang could no longer endure it.
The iron wall of his composure collapsed.
“Beating up Paeng Do-hyeok of the Hebei Paeng Clan as well!”
Realizing his slip, Cheon Wi-gang lowered his voice again to reclaim the dignity of a clan head.
“Was that truly for the Cheon clan?”
It seemed the Hebei Paeng Clan had lodged a formal complaint with the Cheon clan.
“They’re ridiculously petty for people their size.”
Not just petty.
They held grudges as well.
“Dirty bastards. If I meet them again later, I ought to beat them even harder.”
“Answer me. Can you truly call that an act for the Cheon clan?”
The Hebei Paeng Clan was a family that boasted prosperity rivaling even the Namgung clan.
Since they held authority over merchants traveling through Hebei, dealing with them must have been quite troublesome.
To be at odds with the Hebei Paeng Clan meant accepting enormous losses.
Cheon Muyang knew this as well, yet he felt no regret.
“Yes.”
“……”
“They committed acts of discord.”
They were strong, yet they oppressed the weak.
Despite being in a position and standing where they could easily show mercy, they did not.
That was unmistakably discord.
“That is why I stepped in.”
And so Cheon Muyang intervened.
To stop Paeng Do-hyeok’s wrongdoing and to reestablish the principles of righteous chivalry.
“How can that not be said to be for the Cheon clan?”
“……”
A subtle tension filled the room.
Cheon Wi-gang felt a renewed sense of emotion as he looked at Cheon Muyang, who met his pressure head-on without retreating even a step.
As expected….
Cheon Wi-gang, too, was a man who understood chivalry.
Thus, he had no reason to be dissatisfied with Cheon Muyang’s actions.
“You are right.”
Even so, the reason he had asked was to see whether Cheon Muyang had acted excessively, carried away by youthful zeal.
“So do not worry about the Hebei Paeng Clan.”
“…….”
“The Cheon clan does not fear the Hebei Paeng Clan.”
Cheon Wi-gang was the iron wall that protected the clan.
Yet now, that shield had gained an edge as sharp as a blade.
Had there already been friction with the Hebei Paeng Clan?
It seemed so.
Still, proving how vastly different the Cheon clan was from the past, Cheon Wi-gang showed no trace of weakness.
“That’s right. The Hebei Paeng Clan’s blade wasn’t all that sharp.”
“Was it not?”
Only then did Cheon Wi-gang smile.
However, he soon realized that the reason Cheon Muyang had gained fame in the martial world was not limited solely to the Hebei Paeng Clan.
“But then.”
“Yes. Is there more you wish to say?”
“What do you intend to do about the Green Forest?”
The Green Forest.
They were not a group to be provoked lightly.
“That is a very different matter from the Hebei Paeng Clan.”
The Hebei Paeng Clan was a prestigious orthodox family.
Thus, even if conflict arose, it did not lead directly to all-out war.
The Green Forest, however, was different.
Who was the Green Forest Overlord, after all?
Was he not the one who had personally gone to Shaolin and received official recognition of the Green Forest’s legitimacy?
“Truly, it could have put the clan in danger.”
Another problem with the Green Forest lay in Shaolin’s endorsement.
To clash with the Green Forest was, in effect, to reject the judgment of Shaolin itself.
“Are you afraid of the Green Forest?”
“Of course not.”
Cheon Wi-gang was not someone who feared the Green Forest in the slightest.
It was not fear.
“What I truly fear is the potential sacrifice that might arise because of the Green Forest.”
“……”
Cheon Muyang nodded.
The perspective of someone who was merely the eldest young master and that of Cheon Wi-gang, who led the entire clan, were bound to be different.
“I understand.”
Chivalry?
That, too, was important.
However, it only held meaning if the clan itself endured.
“I was confident.”
“Confident?”
“Yes.”
Cheon Muyang was certain.
“That the Green Forest Overlord was not that kind of person.”
First was the Green Forest Overlord’s character.
As widely known, he was eccentric—but as proven by the fact that he had gone alone to Shaolin, he was a man as upright as bamboo.
Thus, Cheon Muyang was confident that the Green Forest Overlord would not tolerate the degeneration of the Green Forest.
And furthermore—
“Even if the Green Forest were to become hostile toward the Cheon clan…”
Whooong!
A storm-like aura burst forth from Cheon Muyang’s entire body.
“I was confident that I could cut them all down.”
“……”
It was arrogance.
Yet Cheon Muyang’s aura was so intense that even that arrogance seemed like humility.
Glance.
Cheon Wi-gang looked toward Cheon Seon-hak.
He already knew the two had crossed blades once at the training grounds.
Nod.
Cheon Seon-hak nodded his head.
In other words, he agreed with Cheon Muyang’s assessment.
“I see.”
“Is my answer sufficient?”
“Yes. I merely wished to ask you.”
“What about?”
“Your true intentions.”
Cheon Wi-gang had received every report regarding Cheon Muyang’s actions.
However, those reports only detailed his actions and their results—his true intentions could not be discerned.
“Well done, Muyang.”
“Yes, Father.”
He wanted to call him Father.
In his previous life, he had incurred an indescribable debt to Cheon Wi-gang.
However, Nameless could never become Cheon Wi-gang’s son—but now, things were different.
“Father, you say….”
Cheon Wi-gang, too, looked at Cheon Muyang with renewed eyes.
“I never realized until today how pleasant that word would sound.”
“…….”
There were no further words.
Yet the three men, including Cheon Seon-hak, exchanged glances and smiled.
“Then, I will take my leave.”
“Very well. Go.”
The three pillars of the Cheon clan—
Cheon Wi-gang, Cheon Seon-hak, and Cheon Muyang—felt a warm bond pass between them without needing words.
“Please don’t overexert yourself.”
“Of course. I won’t.”
“And make sure to take your elixirs as well.”
“Wouldn’t it be better for the trainees to take them rather than me?”
“The Cheon clan only runs smoothly because the Clan Head is holding the line.”
“I understand. I’ll make sure to take them.”
“Yes.”
With that, Cheon Muyang stepped out of the office.
“He’s grown up before we knew it.”
“He always had been.”
“Had he?”
“Yes. We simply failed to notice.”
A boy’s growth often happened in an instant.
“I see.”
And the heart of those who watched that growth from the side was inevitably complex.
Though he had no children of his own, Cheon Seon-hak felt that he somehow understood that feeling.
“Shall we have a drink?”
“That sounds good.”
“I’ll prepare it.”
“…….”
That night, the two drank until dawn broke.
***
Cheon Muyang, who had risen since daybreak, headed straight for the training grounds.
Despite it being before sunrise, many people could already be seen heading there.
“Hm?”
“Hah!”
“Hngh, huff!”
If anything, he was late—before Cheon Muyang even arrived, the training grounds were already in the midst of intense training.
“This is… impressive.”
Cheon Muyang marveled at the heat of the training grounds, so intense that not even the chill of dawn could seep in.
“Hey! Your steps are slowing!”
The Wolf King’s roar echoed again and again.
“I told you to lower your stance more!”
What initially looked chaotic actually had a proper structure.
There was a group running, a group practicing horse stance, and a group swinging swords.
There were even several children present.
“Hey now! Didn’t I tell you the movements must be exactly the same as before! Can’t you focus!”
“Y-yes!”
While the Wolf King controlled all three groups from the center, there were those who effectively led each group.
“Oh ho.”
The running group was led by Wol-yeong.
The horse-stance group was led by Neung Ryeo-un.
And the sword group was handled by Cha Myeong-hak.
“So they’ve already established a system?”
In just one day.
Cheon Muyang could only smile as he watched them dominate the training grounds.
“Uncle is going to be shocked.”
If Cheon Seon-hak were to see this scene, he would surely be dumbfounded.
This was the moment the Wolf King truly ascended as chief instructor.
“Uncle really should stay active.”
The Wolf King, having reached a recent enlightenment, clearly felt complete in some way.
By contrast, Cheon Seon-hak was still someone striving to move forward.
Naturally, there was bound to be a difference in how they taught.
“That’s for the best.”
By age as well, Cheon Seon-hak was not yet at a point where he should be retired to the rear, merely nurturing juniors.
The world would yet come to know his presence.
“In the end, nothing’s better than a martial arts tournament.”
Cheon Muyang had already hinted as much to Cheon Seon-hak before departing for the Yongbyeong Gathering.
The one who would go out into the martial world next and raise the Cheon clan’s prestige would be Cheon Seon-hak.
“Until then, I should rest a bit.”
As he thought that—
Cheon Muyang was confident that his idea of “rest” would be very different from the Wolf King’s.
“Hey! Can’t you straighten up!”
The Wolf King’s shout rang thunderously.
Watching this, Cheon Muyang felt that if he entered the training grounds now, he might disrupt the flow.
“The eldest son of the clan can’t even use his own clan’s training grounds. How ridiculous.”
With a faint smile,
“I should go see Uncle Geumsan.”
Cheon Muyang headed for the Cheon Golden Pavilion.
Since the Inspection Unit lay along the way, he decided to stop by as well.
“Hm….”
Before his departure, many had sought to join the Inspection Unit, so its defenses were now extremely tight.
The level was impressive—it seemed they had been training intensely.
“They won’t fail to recognize me, will they?”
He worried briefly.
“Unit Leader!”
Fortunately, many recognized Cheon Muyang.
“Yes. You’ve all been working hard since early morning.”
“Not at all!”
The Inspection Unit answered directly to the Clan Head alone.
As such, it possessed strong independence—and thus handled many confidential matters.
In a sense, it was the place that required the strictest vigilance.
“Is there some special situation?”
“Ah—no, there isn’t.”
They looked flustered.
Which was understandable, since nearly every issue actively discussed within the clan lately was directly related to Cheon Muyang himself.
“I see.”
“Yes!”
And so, they could only remain silent in front of Cheon Muyang himself.
“Keep up the good work.”
“Yes!”
After commending their efforts, Cheon Muyang continued on toward the Cheon Golden Pavilion.