Chapter 36
After escaping Huangfu Ming’s pursuit, Baek Mu-Gun passed through the Thousand Pine Forest’s trap array with the Thunder God's Heavenly Eyes and returned safely back to his residence in the Heavenly Underground Cave. Upon entering, he found Seonwoo Kang and Shangguan Bihe waiting for him. The two breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Mu-Gun unscathed.
“Are you hurt anywhere?” Seonwoo Kang asked.
“As you can see, I’m fine.”
“That’s a relief. You have no idea how worried I was. How did it go?”
“It went as planned. They probably won’t be able to break through the trap array for a while.”
“I don’t know what I would have done without you, Brother Mu-Gun.”
“It’s all thanks to Young Master Baek that I can be together with Brother Seonwoo like this too.”
“That’s right. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t have been able to prevent the Great Huangfu Family’s warriors from taking Sister Bihe away back then.”
“Come to think of it, I’m a major contributor to protecting your love. I should ask for a nice set of outfit later on.”
“What’s one set? I’d be willing to give you ten sets.”
“It’s fine, I’m just kidding. I’ll be contented if the two of you live happily together.”
“I’m worried this incident with the Great Huangfu Family will cause problems for your family, though.”
“You don’t have to worry about that. It’ll be hard for them to figure out who I am anyway. Even if they did, they won’t be able to make a move easily given the far distance.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
“If you’re so worried, why don’t you provide some support from the Medicine King Family?”
“How?”
“By getting the Medicine King Family to provide medicinal pills so that the Baek Sword Sect’s martial artists can become strong as soon as possible.”
“Hmm, that’s not something I can decide on, so I don’t think I can give you the answer you want.”
“I’m not asking you to decide right away. I’m asking you to bring this up to Patriarch Seonwoo later if possible.”
“Okay, I’ll try talking to him. However, we act with discretion when providing medicinal pills to a certain family in murim, so I don’t think Father will simply allow it.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t bear a grudge against you even if Patriarch Seonwoo refuses.”
The Medicine King Family tried not to intervene in the affairs of murim whenever possible. If their medicinal pills became renowned, they would become a target in murim. In fact, the Medicine King Family providing the Thunder God’s successor with the Divine Thunder Essence Pill was an unprecedented case.
However, whether they wanted it or not, the Medicine King Family had become entangled with the Great Huangfu Family, one of the forces in murim. In addition, the only people willing to protect the Medicine King Family from the Great Huangfu Family’s threat were Mu-Gun and the Baek Sword Sect.
For the Medicine King Family’s safety, the Baek Sword Sect had to increase its power. However, the former’s support was needed to do that. If the Medicine King Family recognized that point, they would consider supporting the Baek Sword Sect with medicinal pills. In addition, if the Nine Celestial Demons Sect’s existence were revealed, the possibility of that happening would be even higher.
***
Meanwhile, the Great Huangfu Family devoted all their efforts to looking for a new array master when their array master died in Mu-Gun’s hands. However, doing so was not as simple as they thought.
Array masters wouldn’t wait for the Great Huangfu Family to summon them. Furthermore, not all array masters were the same. While their skills were all of different levels, only those with considerable skills could break through the Thousand Pine Valley’s trap array. However, a skillful array master was rarer and harder to find than a skilled martial artist.
The Great Huangfu Family searched everywhere for several days, but they failed to find a talented array master. Eventually, they turned to the Hebei Peng Family for help. It would have been better to ask for help from the Great Zhuge Family, who were renowned to be the best in array techniques, but they were too far away.
Hence, the Great Huangfu Family instead requested the support of the Hebei Peng Family’s array masters, who were closest in proximity to them. However, they hadn’t received a reply yet even though it had been a few days since they sent a pigeon message.
Unable to overcome his frustration, Huangfu Jun summoned Huangfu Ren and asked him, “Is there still no news from the Hebei Peng Family?”
“There hasn’t been any response yet. They’d probably only make a decision after confirming the reason why we need their array masters.”
“Some people really hate seeing others do well.” Huangfu Jun frowned.
Array masters were usually needed during the discovery of former masters’ legacies. Hence, it was highly likely that the Hebei Peng Family was trying to delay sending their array masters on the off chance that doing so would help the Great Huangfu Family obtain the legacy of a great master.
The Seven Great Clans were tied together with the Seven Saints Alliance, but they were ultimately competitors. They wouldn’t want other families to get ahead.
“I’ll send a pigeon message again to urge them.”
“Yes, do that. What about the situation at the Thousand Pine Forest?”
“We’re trying to look for an entrance other than the Thousand Pine Forest, but we haven’t been able to find anything in particular.”
“A smart rabbit has three homes. They likely dug another entrance, considering they had hidden their home this much. Spare no effort in locating it.”
The Great Huangfu Family interrogated the Jinan Medical Clinic members but failed to identify the Medicine King Family. However, they did discover that Seonwoo Kang was a descendant of a family that had been living in Mount Tai and studying herbs and spiritual herbs for generations.
Mount Tai was not far from Jinan, where the Great Huangfu Family was based. Nevertheless, the Great Huangfu Family never caught wind of their presence.
They weren’t just staying in some random location. Rather, they had been living within the home ground of the Great Huangfu Family. Just the fact that they could live under the Great Huangfu Family’s noses made their meticulousness and stealthiness as plain as day. Those people wouldn’t have come unprepared. Hence, there was a need for a thorough investigation.
“Understood. I also received reports from the members I sent to the Great Sima Family.”
“What did they say?”
“For starters, it seems true that the young patriarch of the Great Sima Family, Sima Bi is currently away on a trip.”
“What’s the destination and reason for the trip?”
“They weren’t able to confirm that.”
“What about Sima Bi’s composite sketch?”
“Well, it’s not easy to find someone familiar with Sima Bi’s face.”
“Does that make sense to you? That man is the Great Sima Clan’s young patriarch. Lots of people should know what he looks like.”
“That’s usually the case, but Sima Bi hasn’t done any external activities in the past decade.”
“Are you saying he's been cooped up in a small room for ten years without doing anything?”
“It’s known that over the past decade, he frequently entered into closed-door training and focused on honing his martial arts. Due to that, there have been rumors circulating around stating that the level of his martial art is very high.”
“If so, we can’t rule out the possibility that the person who broke Sheng’s arm was Sima Bi, can we?”
“It’s not entirely impossible, but I honestly doubt it.”
“Why’s that?”
“Even if the Great Sima Family’s forces had grown rapidly over the past decade, they’re still nowhere near the Seven Great Clans. It wouldn’t make sense for him to reveal his identity like that either unless the power of the Great Sima Family is much stronger than what is known.”
“Are you implying that someone deliberately used Sima Bi’s name to create a conflict between us and the Great Sima Family?”
“Yes. I have found a piece of evidence to support that theory. Someone allegedly annihilated the Great Sima Family’s Flying Lion Platoon in Nanjing.”
“In Nanjing?”
“The Great Sima Family’s Flying Lion Platoon were occupying the Sky Flower House for some reason, but they seemed to have been obliterated by an unidentified individual.”
“Isn’t Sky Flower House a brothel?”
“Yes.”
“What’s there to gain from a brothel?”
“I couldn’t confirm that much. However, the Flying Lion Platoon wouldn’t have moved just to obtain a brothel.”
“That aside, did you just say that the Flying Lion Platoon was annihilated?”
“Yes.”
“To summarize, the mysterious figure who destroyed the Great Sima Family’s Flying Lion Platoon may very well be the one who broke Sheng’s arm?”
“Yes. If you think about it that way, the story would make sense.”
“But what grudge does he have against us that he is trying to cause a conflict between us and the Great Sima Family?”
“Even if he doesn’t have a grudge against us, he could have a grudge against the Great Sima Family. Maybe he’s trying to borrow our power to get rid of the Great Sima Family.”
“In other words, he’s trying to trick us into killing someone else so he wouldn’t have to lift a finger.”
“That’s right. Furthermore, since he interfered with the Great Huangfu Family’s matters and broke Sheng’s arms, he likely tried to shift the responsibility to the Great Sima Family in fear of future troubles.”
“What do you think is the possibility that he’s also the black-masked man who killed the array masters?”
“In my opinion, it’s likely the same person.”
“In the end, the answer is within the Thousand Pine Valley.”
“Since we’re on the subject, what do you think about sending extra Peak Realm masters?”
“Sending additional Peak Realm masters?”
“I think Ming will find it difficult to catch him alone.”
“Hmm, if we’re going to do it, we should do it with certainty. Send Kuan and Juan.”
“Understood.”
The Great Huangfu Family sent Huangfu Kuan and Huangfu Juan as additional support to the Thousand Pine Valley. Like Huangfu Ming, Huangfu Kuan and Huangfu Juan did not make it into the rankings of the Ten Heavenly King Fists, but they both boasted strength in the Peak Realm.
The addition of two Peak Realm masters following Huangfu Ming further threatened the Medicine King Family. However, as long as they couldn’t break through the Thousand Pine Valley’s trap array, it was useless no matter how many Peak Realm masters came.
***
Fifteen days had passed since Mu-Gun killed the two array masters. So far, the Great Huangfu Family had not been able to break through the Thousand Pine Valley’s trap array. Since they hadn’t made any movements to examine the trap array yet, they probably still couldn’t find an array master.
There were ten days left until the Medicine King Family could finish refining the Divine Thunder Essence Pill. If Mu-Gun could hold out for another ten days, he’d be able to take the Divine Thunder Essence Pill and enhance his internal energy. After that, he was confident he’d be able to stop anyone from the Great Huangfu Family.
The key issue was that he had to hold out for ten days. Mu-Gun went to the Thousand Pine Forest several times a day to check if the Great Huangfu Family was examining the array formation. It took seven days and nights before he finally found people examining the array formation of the Thousand Pine Forest. They were the array masters sent by the Hebei Peng Family.
After delaying their response, the Hebei Peng Family finally sent their array masters on the condition that they would receive the Black Iron that the Great Huangfu Family procured with difficulty. Upon confirming that the array masters were examining the array formation, Mu-Gun immediately returned to the Heavenly Underground Cave and met Seonwoo Pyo.
“Did you visit the Thousand Pine Forest again?” Seonwoo Pyo asked.
“Yes. It seems like they managed to recruit array masters.”
“That’s bad news. How about eliminating them just like you did last time?”
Mu-Gun pondered for a brief moment before answering, “I don’t think doing that’s going to be easy. There are masters stuck next to the array masters, and I suspect that they’re of the Peak Realm. Also, since they’ve been had once, they’ll be thoroughly prepared this time.”
“Then what should we do? If we leave them as it is, they’ll likely enter this place in a few days.”
“How long until the Divine Thunder Essence Pill’s refinement is completed?”
“We still have to wait three more days.”
“That’s cutting it really close.”
“I’ll try to hasten the process as much as I can.”
“Understood.”
It was a fight against time now. It would be fortunate if the Divine Thunder Essence Pill were completed before their enemies could break through the Thousand Pine Maze Array, but if the opposite happened, they would be faced with the worst-case scenario.
It was also difficult to escape from the Heavenly Underground Cave before the warriors of the Great Huangfu Family could storm in. Contrary to Huangfu Jun’s expectations, the Thousand Pine Valley was the only entrance to the Heavenly Underground Cave.
For as long as the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists were blocking the Thousand Pine Valley’s entrance, escaping from the Heavenly Underground Cave would be hard. Moreover, they couldn’t stop the Divine Thunder Essence Pill's refinement process halfway through to leave. If they did, all the precious spiritual herbs that they had used would go to waste.
Regardless of what would happen, they would have to wait until the Divine Thunder Essence Pill was completed. Although their situation wasn’t ideal, Mu-Gun remained relaxed. He was confident that he could somehow stop the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists camping outside the Thousand Pine Valley’s entrance.
If that were the case, the Divine Thunder Essence Pill being refined in time and enhancing his internal energy would just be icing on the cake. While both the Great Huangfu Family and the Medicine King Family focused all their efforts to break through the array formation and finish refining the Divine Thunder Essence Pill respectively, three days passed.
The Great Huangfu Family was the first to achieve their objective. Learning from their previous mistakes, the Great Huangfu Family gave all their might to protect the array masters this time until they could destroy the Thousand Pine Valley’s trap array. Just like that, they penetrated the Thousand Pine Maze Array on the third day.
News of that was immediately conveyed to the Heavenly Underground Cave. Now that they had broken through the Thousand Pine Maze Array and entered the Thousand Pine Valley, it wouldn’t be that difficult to find the entrance to the Heavenly Underground Cave. In a brief moment, the Great Huangfu Family’s warriors would storm into the Heavenly Underground Cave.
“How long until the Divine Thunder Essence Pill is completed?” Mu-Gun asked, retaining his composure despite the circumstances.
“It will take half a day more.”
“Please finish the refinement of the Divine Thunder Essence Pill, Patriarch Seonwoo. I’ll stop the warriors of the Great Huangfu Family.”
“Can you do it alone? Didn’t you say that they had three Peak Realm masters in their group?” Seonwoo Pyo expressed his concerns upon hearing Mu-Gun’s words.
“Did you forget who I am?”
“Of course, I know how strong the Thunder God’s successor is. However, you have yet to consume the Divine Thunder Essence Pill.”
“A tiger is still a tiger even if it’s yet to grow, so don’t worry and just focus on what you have to do, Patriarch.”
At Mu-Gun’s confident remarks, Seonwoo Pyo recalled the face of Guyang Hwi, the predecessor of the Thunder God’s successor. The more he looked at him, the more he thought that Mu-Gun was like Guyang Hwi.
It wasn’t just once or twice that he felt like Guyang Hwi had returned to life. Guyang Hwi was a man of his word. Upon thinking that Mu-Gun would be no different, Seonwoo Pyo’s uneasiness disappeared as if it never existed in the first place.
His belief in Mu-Gun became firm.
“I’ll leave it to you, then.” Seonwoo Pyo said with a trusting smile.
Mu-Gun briefly nodded. He then headed to the entrance of the Heavenly Underground Cave to prevent the advance of the Great Huangfu Family’s martial artists.
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