"Taoist."
"Go."
"That… Taoist."
"Ah, go."
"Taoist…"
"Ah, shit!"
Chung Myung spun around and kicked Namgung Do-Wei.
Kwang!
"Kuak!"
Namgung Do-Wei rolled across the ground after the kick.
"This bastard! The more I let him, the more he drags me down!"
Chung Myung glared at Namgung Do-Wei with wide eyes.
"Yah! Do you think we're that easy? Just because you tell us to accept, do we have to? The world's best Namgung family is joining, so how can the beggars from the Heavenly Friends Alliance refuse?"
Namgung Do-Wei jumped up in shock.
"T-taoist! That's not what I meant…"
"It's not? It's not, and what? Did the sect leader give you permission? Did the Tang lord say it was all right? Ohhh! Not that either? Now that you're the Lord of the Namgung family, the sect leader of Mount Hua and the Tang family lord don't matter to you?"
"M-me?"
I did that?
"Yes, you! You bastard! Is there another Namgung here?"
Namgung Do-Wei looked at Chung Myung as if he'd seen a ghost.
When in his life had he ever encountered such a person? As the Lord of the Namgung family, he had always lived with expectations and support, so the existence of a human named Chung Myung was too cruel.
However, as always, Chung Myung didn't care about others' positions.
"Who does this brat think he is? When he was doing well, he'd go around saying the Five Great Families were the leaders and rulers of Anhui! Now that he's lost all his legs, what? Unity? Family? I've never even eaten with you, so who are you thinking of calling an alliance or family, you brat?"
"T-that isn't it, Taoist! First, listen to what I have to say…"
"No need!"
The Five Swords watched this scene from a short distance with strange expressions. The Namgung family saw someone throw away all their dignity as the next Lord, clinging to Chung Myung, and Jo Gul looked back at Baek Cheon with an odd look.
"Um… Sasuk."
"Uh?"
"Was that man always like this?"
"…"
'How would I know?' was all Baek Cheon could say.
What could he say? The man had looked clean and neat at the tournament…
Yoon Jong scratched his head, clearly confused.
"Why is he acting like that?"
Baek Cheon shrugged.
"From Namgung's young lord's perspective, he has no choice but to join the Heavenly Friends Alliance."
"For sure?"
"Yes. There's no other way."
Baek Cheon looked quietly at Namgung Do-Wei.
'Anhui is too dangerous now.'
Anhui, in Zhejiang province, bordered the Yangtze River. It didn't fully overlap with the pirates' direct territory, but it was a place where pirates could lead a fleet and attempt a landing whenever they wanted.
And…
'The pirates must be enraged now.'
Of course, the pirates' morale is at an all-time low, but the Black Dragon King's eyes are likely wide open.
Why not?
Even if all of this was Jang Ilso's plan, the pirates were defeated miserably by the Heavenly Friends Alliance, and the Black Dragon King lost one of his arms to Chung Myung.
The Black Dragon King would try to vent his anger somewhere. The Namgung family would be the perfect target.
This all started when the Namgung family attacked the pirates. And the Namgung family's strength was now less than a third of its original number.
"The pirates will attack Namgung?"
When Yu Yiseol said this as if she had guessed, Baek Cheon nodded.
"Normally, the Namgung family wouldn't be afraid even if the pirates attacked, but… the situation is not good now."
They had lost too many forces on Plum Blossom Island, but the bigger problem was that they had turned their backs on the Nine Great Sects.
In this situation, even if the pirates attacked the Namgung family, would the Nine Sects help?
Baek Cheon scoffed quietly.
'No, I don't know. Even if they hadn't turned their backs, would the Nine Sects really have helped them?'
Baek Cheon had seen enough to no longer trust the Nine Great Sects.
"The pirates' defeat isn't a big problem in the grand scheme. The problem is that the Black Dragon King has probably lost much control over the pirates because of this incident. Isn't it a basic murim strategy to attack external enemies and control internal troubles?"
"Yes, Sasuk."
Yoon Jong nodded as if he understood.
"From the pirates' perspective, the Namgung family is the easiest prey right now."
"Yes."
At that moment, Jo Gul spoke.
"That's not all."
"Uh?"
Baek Cheon turned toward Jo Gul, who looked at Namgung Do-Wei with slightly bitter eyes as if he knew something.
"A family sect is based on strength. No matter how honest and pure they try to be, problems are inevitable."
"…Past grudges can resurface, that's what you mean."
"Yes. Kangho isn't a place that leaves weak spots alone."
Tang Soso nodded bitterly.
"Sahyung is right, Sasuk."
"Hmm."
Baek Cheon sighed softly.
'Right. No sect has felt this as deeply as Mount Hua.'
Just think about when Mount Hua lost their strength due to the Demonic Cult's attack. Did those who tried to take everything from Mount Hua hold a special grudge?
'No. That wouldn't be the case.'
When the strong lost power, those who once greeted them with smiles turned into robbers. Kangho was a place where smiles could turn into theft. If this continued, even if the pirates fell silent, the Namgung family would likely suffer a fate similar to Mount Hua's past.
"Since they can no longer be with the Nine Great Sects, no sect will help the Namgung family. The remaining Five Great Families are too far apart… and, as you know, they're not on good terms."
"Right."
"So… the young Lord of Namgung needs a roof right now. Not for himself, but for the surviving members of the Namgung family to rest."
"Hmm."
Yoon Jong nodded in understanding.
"But, Sasuk."
"What? Do you have more questions?"
"… It's not something that needs an answer."
"Then what?"
Yoon Jong looked at Namgung Do-Wei with a trembling face and said,
"If he wants to join the Heavenly Friends Alliance, he can just tell the sect leader or Tang lord. So why is he acting like that with Chung Myung? He must have already seen that guy can't do anything when the sect leader orders it."
"…"
Namgung Do-Wei was tirelessly clinging to Chung Myung, getting kicked and pushed back. Baek Cheon watched with an odd expression.
"…His injuries are too serious. He probably doesn't have good judgment now."
"…"
They couldn't understand the situation at all.
In the past, many bandits were busy writing accounts, but quite a few people gathered and sat around the main room.
Namgung Do-Wei, who was able to join thanks to Hyun Jong's consideration, gulped as he looked at the faces gathered.
The weight felt so different.
If he had been Namgung Do-Wei in the past, he might not have felt this pressure. But now, he had to desperately hold back from shrinking.
Did the Namgung family, having lost Namgung Hwang and standing at a crossroads, feel unworthy?
No.
'It's because their status is different now.'
It didn't matter if he called himself weak. That was the truth.
Those who haven't experienced it probably wouldn't understand. But anyone in Namgung Do-Wei's position would feel similar emotions.
Namgung Do-Wei glanced at Hyun Jong.
'Even that person is the same.'
When he first saw Hyun Jong, he was the sect leader of a nameless sect. Although he sat at the high table with sect leaders from the tournament, it wouldn't have been odd if Hyun Jong had been kicked out at any moment.
But when they met again on the Yangtze River, he had become the sect leader of the Great Mount Hua sect, which had defeated even Wudang and become one of Kangho's core sects. Now, as leader of the Heavenly Friends Alliance, he could stand up to the Shaolin abbot and Jang Ilso of the Four Precepts Alliance.
What would be strange about being nervous in front of such a person? Rather, anyone not nervous would be insane.
'It's not just sect leader Hyun Jong.'
Tang Gunak, the Tang family lord sitting next to him, was the same.
Of course, Tang Gunak had a high status in the past.
But could Tang Gunak from a few years ago compare to the second-in-command of the Heavenly Friends Alliance now?
That was impossible.
Namgung Do-Wei knew the power of the Five Great Families best. Though they were equal in name, no matter how hard they tried, they could never compare to the Nine Great Sects. Even Namgung Hwang wouldn't dare stand on par with the Shaolin abbot.
However, the Heavenly Friends Alliance was different. Hadn't they already proven they could stand on par with the Nine Great Sects?
The disciples of Mount Hua and the Tang family guarding their sides were also extremely strong.
'The problem is that this isn't all.'
The power of the Heavenly Friends Alliance still remained. They could call in the Nanman Beast Palace and the North Sea Ice Palace at any time.
This was why he couldn't help but realize just how great the Heavenly Friends Alliance was.
And decisively!
Namgung Do-Wei's gaze turned to Chung Myung, whose face displayed pure annoyance.
'A young swordsman who defeated the Black Dragon King.'
He didn't know for sure, but the moment this fact spread throughout Kangho, there would be a great uproar. No, maybe the uproar had already begun, and the world had turned upside down.
Chung Myung has been famous until now. Many were called the best in the world, but Chung Myung alone became famous for one reason.
'That person is not just a possibility.'
In other words, Chung Myung was someone who would definitely become the best in the world.
There was no best in the world in Kangho right now. Not just now, but most of the time, there was no definitive best.
In the end, you had to compete to find out who was strongest. But skilled warriors of a sect had too much at stake to easily compete.
If they lost, they had too much to lose.
That's why there were those called the best in the world, but it's difficult for a true best to exist. That's why terms like the Three Greatest Swordsmen or the Five Great Swordsmen existed.
But Chung Myung was not among them.
He had made it clear at the tournament that he would one day become the best, and his subsequent actions showed that day wasn't far off.
'And the Black Dragon King.'
Now, everyone would realize it. The Heavenly Friends Alliance would soon have the undoubted best warriors in the world.
No one in Kangho didn't understand what that meant.
'The order of Kangho can truly change.'
Changed by Chung Myung's hands!
Namgung Do-Wei clenched his fists. It was too much to follow, but he couldn't afford not to. The path he was on led to the top.
'So I must join the Heavenly Friends Alliance…'
Just as Namgung Do-Wei was about to make up his mind again,
"Huhuhuhuh. It's nice to meet you all again like this. Well, it's all thanks to me preparing the ship on time, but don't thank me. It's only natural for Heavenly Friends Alliance members to help each other… Kuak!"
Chung Myung's fist suddenly landed on the chin of Im So-Byeong, who was acting cute.
"This punk, I was just going to let it go, but you keep scratching me? Yeah, bastard! If you'd come even a little earlier, I would've kicked Jang Ilso's butt! I told you to hurry up and bring the ship, but you couldn't even do that properly because you were late!"
Thinking about it, Chung Myung got angrier and climbed on top of Im So-Byeong's stomach, swinging his fists. Im So-Byeong protested while desperately blocking the punches raining down on his face.
"N-no! Why is that my fault? I did my best…!"
"Ohh, this man is Evil Sect at the core, so you couldn't stand to see the Evil Sect leader's balls fly off? Stop making excuses and die now, you bastard! Die!"
"No, I'm that bastard's enemy! Ackk! I'm going insane!"
Cold sweat ran down Namgung Do-Wei's forehead.
'W-what is…?'
How could something like this happen in a place where so many people were gathered?
"Ahem."
At that moment, Hyun Jong cleared his throat softly.
Namgung Do-Wei turned to Hyun Jong with a look that said, 'Then, of course, that deserves punishment…'
"Let's start the meeting."
"Yes."
"Die! Die, you bastard!"
"First, let's get to the first issue…"
Chung Myung, who was beating Im So-Byeong, and the others who were starting the discussion acted as if it was nothing.
Namgung Do-Wei, blankly watching the horrifying scene, looked up at the ceiling.
'Should I just ask them to put me back into the Five Great Families?'
It certainly seemed… he wouldn't adapt easily.
Ha… haha…