Turbulent Times Create Heroes. (4)

Yu Jinsan was dumbfounded.

They had captured the previously mysterious golden warrior? He took the lead and ran down the central passage.

After a moment, the ambush team came into view ahead.

At their head was Yu Seol, clutching a chain.

To his surprise, she was dragging someone, tightly bound, by force.

“Grandpa!”

His granddaughter, having spotted him, called out with a joyful face.

“Child…”

Yu Seol dropped the chain and ran up to hug her grandfather’s neck tightly.

“I missed you, Grandpa.”

It was a reunion with his only family member after a long time, so of course it was heartwarming.

The choked voice of his granddaughter made Yu Jinsan’s heart ache as well.

“Uggh. Grandpa, you’re smothering me.”

Releasing his neck, Yu Seol inspected her grandfather from top to bottom.

Had she noticed that something was different?

She narrowed her eyes and, in a small voice, asked.

“…growth?”

Yu Jinsan immediately understood what his granddaughter’s question meant.

She had cleverly noticed that the post-effect of the Muscle Changing Technique had reached nine-tenths completeness.

“Yes. Your grandpa finally did it.”

Yu Seol was genuinely pleased as if she had achieved it herself.

With a proud look, she began to pat her grandfather’s arm.

“Heehee~ I knew you’d do it! Well done~”

Yu Jinsan felt oddly uneasy for some reason.

It was pleasant to be congratulated on his achievement, but he couldn’t shake a nagging discomfort.

Besides, the resistance fighters were watching them.

This was no time for lingering.

Embarrassed, he cleared his throat and changed the subject.

“Ahem! Anyway, you’ve worked hard. First, let’s take a look at the fellow you brought in.”

When Yu Seol stretched a hand back, the chain sprawled on the floor flew up on its own.

Swoosh—!

She yanked the snared chain, and the bound strange man was dragged in with a rattle.

“My gift.”

Yu Jinsan leaned in to examine the man his granddaughter had brought.

He was clearly a master who had reached the Supreme realm, but he was not wearing a mask.

His face was swollen, his robe torn to shreds, and his eyes seemed unfocused, as if he had given up.

“Is this guy really a golden warrior?”

Yu Seol shrugged and glanced back.

She was signaling the team members lined up behind her.

They hurriedly began to explain.

“Yes, absolutely!”

“We all saw it.”

“He got beaten up by the Yin Monster great warrior and his mask was smashed.”

Since everyone had witnessed it, there was no room for doubt.

At that moment, Yu Seol grabbed the golden warrior’s ear and pulled it down to expose his face.

She did it to give her grandfather a clear look at his face.

“Remember before? He looks similar to that dark man we saw at our place, right?”

How could he not know.

He was the fearsome strange monk sent from Tianzhu to spy on the murim world’s strength.

Judging by his skin color, the granddaughter’s guess seemed correct.

Yu Jinsan wasn’t entirely unaware of their identity either.

He had some suspicions, but now he could be certain.

“You lot are from Little Thunderclap Temple.”

Then—the dim fellow’s pupils slowly began to focus.

Yu Jinsan didn’t miss that tiny reaction.

“So it’s true. Surprised that I know?”

“……”

There was no reply, but he would learn more through interrogation.

In any case, capturing such a key figure alive was an extremely encouraging achievement.

Now the pieces seemed to be coming together.

‘Sword Marquis said Tianzhu’s invasion would occur simultaneously across the Central Plains. If so, was this island one of their footholds?’

Just imagining it sent chills down his spine.

Then Il Kwang, who had been watching nearby, couldn’t contain his curiosity and asked.

“Little Thunderclap Temple—what kind of force is that?”

“They’re very wicked people who, after unifying Tianzhu, intend to overthrow the world.”

“You said Tianzhu?”

Yu Jinsan glanced down the passage they had come through and said.

“This will take a while to explain. It’s better if we move our location first.”

The ambush team had just returned, so the area was too chaotic.

There was no urgent need.

They needed to sort the newly acquired supplies and let the warriors rest.

Under Il Kwang’s orders, everyone began moving in perfect coordination.

“At one time, many forces existed in the Tianzhu murim world.”

The resistance leaders gathered in the operations room listened intently to Yu Jinsan.

After glancing around, he continued speaking.

“Among them were sects that properly walked the path of Buddhism, but there were also heretical factions using evil arts like Little Thunderclap Temple.”

Jong-hyun, the resistance unit commander and a former martial artist, asked.

“So in martial terms, they’re like a demonic cult?”

“That’s right. From now, I’ll tell you what I know about them.”

He was qualified to know, having suffered and resisted them for many years.

Yu Jinsan began to recount everything he knew about the Tianzhu murim world.

From their terrifying conspiracies to the existence of the Blue Dragon Troops trying to stop them.

His explanation went on for nearly the length of a meal period.

Each detail was so staggering it was hard to accept.

Perhaps for that reason, everyone was left speechless, stunned.

After a while, Il Kwang blinked and spoke.

“They’re even more monstrous than I thought.”

“Still, nothing will change immediately, so let’s focus on the task at hand.”

The Sea Dragon Island resistance couldn’t afford to worry about Tianzhu right now.

Il Kwang nodded as if he understood, then asked what had been on his mind.

“By the way, you said Hwang So-cheon is the leader of the Blue Dragon Troops?”

He was the commander of the elite national force, the Golden Army, and a provincial commander.

Il Kwang, also a former government troops commander, seemed to know him.

“No doubt. I heard it directly.”

“Somehow I always thought he was a sinister fellow. By the way, from what you say, Sir, you don’t seem to be from the Justice Faction, is that right?”

“You could say I’m closer to the Evil factions.”

“Then that’s just perfect.”

Yu Jinsan was puzzled.

Normally, neutral figures prefer those from the Justice Faction over the Heterodox factions.

He couldn’t understand it.

“What do you mean by ‘perfect’?”

Il Kwang scratched his head awkwardly and asked.

“To be honest, I’ve been hesitating to ask from the start. About my daughter’s wellbeing.”

“Hmm. Your daughter is from the Evil faction murim world, I see. If she’s someone I know, I’ll tell you.”

Yeon Cho-hee, who had been watching silently, spoke up first.

“Her name is Yongyong.”

Suddenly her face had flushed slightly.

She looked anxious but hopeful.

Yu Jinsan crossed his arms and racked his memory for a moment.

No matter how he thought about it, there was only one person he knew with that name.

“Could it be… the leader of the Evil Sect Alliance?”

“That’s right. Yongyong is my daughter.”

Their daughter was the head of the Evil Sect Alliance, a Heterodox coalition?

They weren’t that close to her, so they never dreamed they’d be connected like this.

A small smile appeared on Yu Jinsan’s face.

“As far as I know, she’s doing quite well. She’s trading blows with the Murim Alliance despite being at a disadvantage, but her life isn’t in immediate danger.”

Yeon Cho-hee exhaled in relief and rejoiced.

“Phew. That’s really a relief. Thank you, Sir.”

“But if you had such a remarkable daughter, why didn’t you request support?”

“How could I call my daughter into a certain-death situation…?”

It was a reasonable point.

She alone couldn’t exert any influence on this island.

And sending subordinates would have been impossible—there was neither justification nor the leeway to do so.

“Well, that’s true. Anyway, my talk is done; let’s go interrogate the fellow.”

This underground base had a small detention wing.

Calling it a detention wing was generous—it was just a small space where someone could be tied up.

And currently, his granddaughter was guarding that place.

“Is there anything we can do to help?”

Yu Jinsan slowly shook his head and stood up.

“If needed, I’ll let you know. He won’t open up easily, but we’ll share the results later.”

He didn’t actually have high expectations.

Hadn’t they already experienced the strange monk called Blood Death Guest?

He knew better than anyone how vicious those people could be.

If they could squeeze a few clues from him, that would be enough.

Yu Jinsan moved along the central passage toward the detention wing.

Seeing the scenes everywhere made him strangely pleased.

The residents sitting around braziers, chatting and eating, looked full of life.

It was a stark contrast to the old days when they merely clung to life in darkness.

“Thank you…”

Looking left, a middle-aged woman stood with hands clasped and bowed.

She must have known that things had changed since he and his granddaughter joined them.

When their eyes met, Yu Jinsan nodded once.

“Hold on a little longer. Soon everyone will be able to go outside.”

After speaking, he hurried off, feeling somewhat burdened.

He couldn’t keep his granddaughter waiting alone in the detention wing any longer.

Entering a narrow passage off the central corridor, he found a small room.

“You’re back?”

At the entrance, Yu Seol stood wide-eyed, clutching the Dragon Flower Spear.

“Yes. You did well keeping watch, child.”

“Mm. Come on in.”

Yu Seol nodded and stepped aside.

Then he saw the beaten man, wrapped in chains and in tatters.

His gaze slowly shifted toward Yu Jinsan.

At the same time, he croaked something in an awkward voice.

“…How did you find out?”

He seemed puzzled that his identity had been uncovered in the central passage.

“Who in the Central Plains would know the name Little Thunderclap Temple?”

“So it’s you… the Blue Dragon Troops?”

He appeared to be mistaking him for the Blue Dragon Troops.

It wasn’t surprising—they were the only force that had been tracking them for centuries.

And Tianzhu already knew of the Blue Dragon Troops’ existence.

Yu Jinsan nodded, intending to keep the conversation going.

“Yes. You do have an eye for things, for your sort.”

The strange monk from Tianzhu curled one corner of his lip and sneered.

“Do you dare think the likes of you can stop us?”

“We’ll see when we try. Judging by you, you’re below a higher rank. What’s your rank?”

The strange monk they’d captured in Ho County last time had claimed to be one of the Eight Guardians.

He sounded less impressive in martial skill and aura, so Yu Jinsan probed him a bit.

“……”

He clamped his mouth shut once more.

To continue the conversation by any means, he needed to pique his interest.

“We once caught one of the Eight Warrior Guardians who wandered Shaanxi. He used two rings as weapons.”

At that moment, the chain rattled and tightened.

Simultaneously, the bound strange monk widened his eyes and shouted.

“That man wouldn’t be beaten by you!”

His eyes were full of blind faith.

As expected, he seemed to be of a lower rank than the Eight Warriors.

If so, how many absolute masters did Tianzhu have? It was staggering.

“They’re all full of hot air. If they’d actually been hit by her, they’d know better.”

Yu Jinsan pointed with his chin at his motionless granddaughter.

As expected, he couldn’t respond and avoided Yu Seol’s gaze.

“……”

After a brief pause, Yu Jinsan casually probed the question he was most curious about.

“Is Jeon Sa-ryong’s identity… an Arahat?”

He was Tianzhu’s top master who sought godhood—known as the Cult Leader of Little Thunderclap Temple.

There was no answer, but Yu Jinsan noticed his lip twitch slightly.

“So not, then. That would mean he’s likely one of the Blood Thunder Temple Heavenly Kings.”

The strange monk they’d captured before had said that above the Eight Ho-beop were four masters called the Blood-Thunder Temple Heavenly Kings.

If Jeon Sa-ryong wasn’t an Arahant, it was highly probable he was one of those four.

While lost in thought, the strange monk’s expression suddenly changed.

Had he finally noticed them trying to extract information with mind-reading techniques?

The bound man narrowed his brow in fury.

“You bastard!”

In that instant, Yu Jinsan’s hand cracked across his cheek.

Slap—!!

The slapped strange monk’s head snapped to the side as he clamped his mouth shut.

“But if you’re always staring, where do you get off acting all big in front of elders?”

They couldn’t extract any more information using the same method.

Yu Jinsan beckoned his granddaughter to come closer.