Setting One’s Resolve (1)

“Impressive.”

At Seo Jong-dam’s sudden remark, Seol Hong-baek set down his teacup.

“You mean Teacher Jin-hyeon?”

“Yes.”

Seo Jong-dam looked out the window.

The moon was up before they knew it. Judging by the hazy clouds, the night would be quite dark.

“Above all, he seems clear about public and private matters. His temperament is firm, so there’s little room for needless misunderstandings.”

“Heh.”

“His outward level of martial arts didn’t look overwhelming… but he carries considerable inner strength. His body, especially, is excellent.”

Seol Hong-baek’s eyes gleamed.

“His body?”

He wasn’t one to boast, so few knew it, but Seo Jong-dam’s skill was worthy of elder status in any great sect.

With that level and discernment, he could read a martial artist even better than Seol Hong-baek could.

“His muscle density is remarkable. No one would call that frame sloppy. At his age, that kind of density… doesn’t come from casual training.”

Considering not even three months had passed since Jin-hyeon awoke, it was a startling assessment.

Seol Hong-baek was likewise surprised.

“You truly saw that?”

“Yes.”

“Is there any way a scrawny man could build that body in two or three months?”

“No.”

Seo Jong-dam was unequivocal.

“If he’d once built that body before and then had inner power to aid him, perhaps. But that inner strength would have to rank among the very top in the world.”

“…!”

“Or if he cultivated a body-refining art specialized for the physique, then it wouldn’t be impossible.”

In short, barring something special, it was near impossible.

So Seol Hong-baek could only conclude Jin-hyeon practiced some special martial art. Otherwise, it made no sense.

“His body isn’t just what the surface muscles show. If anything, he looks a touch lean. But look within, and every strand of muscle has lively resilience.”

“You can see that much.”

“In the past I saw it in many criminals. Nowadays I see it in many talented individuals. If you look with care, you’ll notice it too.”

That wasn’t the whole of it.

Seo Jong-dam was famed for his eye. No one earns the number two seat of the Investigation and Defense Court on skill and wit alone without backing.

If anything, that very discernment had been used as a pretext to sideline him to head instructor at the Loyalty and Righteousness Academy, which was proof of how sharp he was.

“At any rate, he’s formidable.”

Seo Jong-dam sipped his tea.

“I won’t overstate his martial arts, but the man himself looks solid. From his voice and eyes, he isn’t the sort to betray or traffic in evil.”

Seol Hong-baek smiled.

“Yes.”

Seo Jong-dam sighed.

“Seems I worried for nothing.”

Saying he’d come because of the Loyalty and Righteousness Academy recommendation and the Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild was only half the truth. Seo Jong-dam was curious about the man himself.

The reason was simple. He worried the man might harm Seol Hong-baek.

A man who appeared from nowhere and revealed a lost Tianshan art. And with such decent character that in under three months he’d built a strong trust.

Such ties are rare. For Seo Jong-dam, who’d spent half his life facing villains, suspicion that Jin-hyeon had come to the Seol Clan with ill intent was only natural.

But the man he met was nothing like those fears.

He’d refused the Academy recommendation, and even handed over a corruption register concerning the Sichuan Branch.

No cautious villain would go that far. In a single meeting, Jin-hyeon proved he was worthy of trust.

Seo Jong-dam smiled wryly.

“My apologies. I know your eye is second to none, but I meddled out of a ‘just in case.’”

“Think nothing of it. We’re only grateful for your care for our house.”

“Heh.”

Setting down his cup, Seo Jong-dam stroked his beard.

“In any case, this is a rare joy for the Seol Clan. With the lost Tianshan art reclaimed, you’ve only to soar.”

Seol Hong-baek shook his head.

“Opening the path to greater strength doesn’t mean everyone will fly. Nor do I mean to fly higher.”

“Mm?”

“Now is the time to strengthen our foundation.”

“Your foundation?”

“If not for Teacher Jin-hyeon, we wouldn’t even have known our swords were like that, and the Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild’s evils might have brought us down.”

Seo Jong-dam’s face hardened.

In truth, the Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild’s exposed crimes were so many they were hard to count.

They even sought to topple forces like the Divine Iron Merchant Clan, the Fragrant Brocade Merchant Guild, and the White Sword Seol Clan to found a kingdom of their own.

‘Damnable bastards.’

That they could do so much with money alone was galling. The thought that a mere merchant guild without even great-sect-level force had sought to upend Sichuan’s balance was unbelievable.

The Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild was a tumor born not only of Sichuan’s powers but of the Heavenly Will Alliance’s failure to act.

And the Seol Clan had nearly been dragged under by that absurd force. Truly, it was impossible to contain the fury that welled up.

“The Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild’s wrongs go without saying. But if I’d sharpened our foundation and watched more keenly, matters wouldn’t have come to this.”

“…….”

“Husbanding strength is as important as expanding our clan’s capacity. This affair taught me that.”

Seo Jong-dam nodded gravely.

“The Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild will pay for its crimes.”

“As they must.”

“A junior at the Investigation and Defense Court told me that Central Headquarters is sending martial examiners.”

Seol Hong-baek’s eyes widened.

“By Central Headquarters, do you mean the White Wolf Bureau’s main office?”

“Yes. If it were just Mighty Tiger, they probably wouldn’t have done so, but the web of corruption is so broad that the main office’s martial examiners will come in person.”

“Oh ho,they’re quick.”

“It signals a will to block other power-brokers from meddling. With this, we can consider the Mighty Tiger Merchant line finished.”

“What of those who fled?”

“They’ve captured more than half of the masters under Mighty Tiger. But Lee Ho-gon’s first and second sons are still at large.”

“I see.”

Seol Hong-baek’s face clouded.

Seo Jong-dam asked with a smile,

“Why? Worried about them?”

“As if.”

“Then?”

Seol Hong-baek spoke plainly.

“Teacher Jin-hyeon has done something great. But we still don’t know which group joined hands with him.”

“…….”

“If the main-office martial examiners decide to tug at that thread, Teacher Jin-hyeon could also…”

“There’s no need to worry.”

“Huh?”

Seo Jong-dam chuckled.

“A junior told me that as well. About who worked with Teacher Jin.”

Seol Hong-baek was startled.

“They found out?”

“How could they not? However awkward they seem, the Investigation and Defense Court’s investigative power is substantial.”

“Who are they?”

He asked not from curiosity alone, but to see if that force had issues.

“It’s a group called the Five Tigers Merchant Guild.”

“Five Tigers Merchant Guild?”

“A mid-sized merchant guild based in Yibin, southern Sichuan. They’re not large, but have been around for a hundred years.”

“A mid-sized merchant guild you say?”

“Yes, to put it unkindly, just another middling guild. But that’s only the signboard.”

Seo Jong-dam’s gaze deepened.

“In truth, that merchnat guild…”

They wandered the market until midnight, but no other assassins or masters appeared.

Do-min, taut with nerves, went straight to her room and collapsed.

Jin-hyeon sat on the steps outside and looked up at the sky.

“Looks like rain.”

Just then—

“It seems so.”

Jin-hyeon turned with a smile.

Seo Mun-hoe leaned with arms crossed beneath the high wall.

“Isn’t this reckless? The Sichuan Branch seems to be watching.”

“If you thought I couldn’t avoid the errand boys’ eyes, I’d be offended.”

“Enough—let’s talk inside.”

A short while later—

With a single oil lamp between them, shadows cut deep across their faces.

“Impressive work.”

Jin-hyeon smiled.

“Dropping just the right bomb at the right time, I enjoyed the show. It would’ve been impossible unless I was always overlooking everything.”

“And without knowing how to shape information, it wouldn’t have blown up so beautifully.”

“Fishing for a praise?”

“Hardly.”

After a sip of water, Seo Mun-hoe spoke.

“We couldn’t secure four tenths of the Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild’s businesses.”

“So you took the other six tenths?”

“Yes.”

“That’s huge. I didn’t expect you’d seize the businesses themselves.”

“Beforehand, we lined up proper intermediaries.”

“But if you hog the take midstream, won’t the Heavenly Will Alliance, or the Divine Iron Merchant Clan or the Fragrant Brocade Merchant Guild notice?”

“Thus the six tenths. Most of what we took belonged to the same kind of places as us.”

“Ah hah.”

So, over half of Mighty Tiger’s operations couldn’t see daylight, and the Black Society took nearly all of those in the shadows.

A mere seven days, eight by midnight. That they stripped out what mattered in such a short time spoke to Seo Mun-hoe’s prowess.

“If you say ‘most,’ you poached a few public-facing businesses too.”

“It’s a hot-blooded merchant guild that started this; taking that much is only natural. If we didn’t, they’d suspect us.”

“Huh? A hot-blooded merchant guild?”

Seo Mun-hoe produced a folded document from his breast and handed it over.

“The group that joined you to take the Mighty Tiger apart is the Five Tigers Merchant Guild.”

“Mm?”

“A hundred years ago, after the Eight Wastes Alliance Leader died, the Hao Clan established fifty-plus merchant guilds and martial halls across the Central Plains for identity laundering. The Five Tigers Merchant Guild is one of them.”

Jin-hyeon’s eyes flashed.

“You were thoughtful enough to account for me too?”

“And us. If digging into you led them to the Black Society, we’d be the ones in trouble.”

“You understand well.”

“Read the document first…”

“So Five Tigers takes Mighty Tiger’s seat?”

Seo Mun-hoe flinched.

Jin-hyeon’s lips quirked.

“Planning to move the decoy merchant guild from the outskirts into Sichuan’s center and start in earnest?”

“…”

“Well, that’s not bad.”

Seo Mun-hoe’s eyes sank low.

He could deny it, but didn’t bother. The man wouldn’t believe him anyway, he had the eye to spot a lie.

“Just who are you?”

“Jin-hyeon.”

With that bland reply, Jin-hyeon cocked his head.

“Can that really fool them? Hundred-year tradition or not, who’d believe a middling outskirt merchant guild pulled off something this big…”

“It’s not just any guild.”

“…?”

“The Five Tigers Merchant Guild will also double as information brokers.”

Jin-hyeon’s eyes lit.

“Information brokers? Publicly?”

“Yes.”

“The Heavenly Will Alliance lets that slide?”

“No matter how grand the Heavenly Will Alliance is, it can’t govern all the Central Plains. If it could, regional sects and Murim clans would have vanished.”

“Mm, true enough.”

“The plains are full of intel outfits. The Heavenly Will Alliance knows. They just choose to look away.”

“So, legal by omission.”

“Yes.”

“If you flaunt that you sell intel, won’t people avoid you?”

“The real patrons are received elsewhere.”

“Layered masks.”

“That’s how we survive.”

“So you’ve slipped past the Heavenly Will Alliance’s Sichuan Branch?”

“By now, they’ll have concluded Five Tigers has long cultivated its intelligence trade.”

Jin-hyeon was genuinely impressed.

“Thorough. I expected you’d come to the center, but not that you’d go openly into brokering.”

“Thank you for the praise.”

“Yeah, this praise was well deserved.”

“But my dream doesn’t end there.”

“Dream?”

“Read on.”

Jin-hyeon unfolded the document.

A moment later.

“…Impressive.”

“You flatter me.”

Jin-hyeon nodded, face grave.

“I don’t know if it’s feasible, but the vision itself surprises me. You’ve made me see you anew.”

“…”

“What puzzles me is why you are showing me this.”

Seo Mun-hoe laced his fingers on the table, his face hardened.

“Without beating around the bush, I’ll be blunt.”

“Getting to the main topic is good.”

“By liquidating all of the Mighty Tiger Merchant Guild’s assets, businesses included, and three-tenths of that sum is enough to found several solid merchant guilds—and all of that goes to you.”

“And?”

“Setting organizations aside—from my personal view, you’re Sichuan’s wealthiest man.”

“So?”

Seo Mun-hoe hesitated, and cleared his throat.

“Have you any interest in investing?”