Chapter 601

Chapter 601. The Lazy One Resolves (1)

Saha, the Historian, couldn’t close his mouth.

“That…”

He tried to say something, but barely managed to open his mouth again.

“Ah, no, it’s just…”

After opening and closing his mouth several times, the historian finally finished his sentence with a deep sigh.

“Is that possible?”

Gwanggu Shingae chuckled as he drank.

His Adam’s apple moved violently.

“Gluuup!”

With a sound so satisfying that anyone who heard it would feel relieved, Gwanggu Shingae wiped his lips with the back of his hand.

“What’s impossible about it?”

“No, but still…”

“So, what does history say about it?”

“It’s just…”

The historian mumbled.

Why was it so difficult to put into words what was so clear in his mind?

“The… Radiant Martial Sovereign (광휘무존) wielded his sword and rose up in fury…”

“Kikikiki.”

“The heretics, who were advancing with momentum, fled in terror, and the luminous aura that enveloped the Radiant Martial Sovereign shone so brightly that he looked like a celestial god descended to earth.”

“Exactly.”

“…”

“Hey, aren’t you a historian? Didn’t you already know all this?”

“Ahem.”

The historian coughed exaggeratedly.

“As you well know, history always has a touch of exaggeration.”

“But you said it was accurate this time!”

“Ugh!”

Finally, the historian burst out in irritation.

“You have to believe to a certain extent! How can I believe that the Baekgeom Fortress (백검성) fled just because of the Radiant Martial Sovereign after defeating the Righteous Martial Alliance (정무맹) and starting the pursuit? That’s not something a human can do!”

“Well, that’s how it was, what can we do?”

Gwanggu Shingae yawned lazily and stretched.

“But still…”

The historian frowned.

History has the task of conveying facts, but it also takes the form of orally transmitted accounts.

When you hear the story of Zhang Fei stopping Cao Cao’s army alone at Changban Bridge, no one in the world wonders if it was real or false.

Everyone implicitly assumes there is exaggeration.

If they were told it was false, they would believe it less than if they were told it was an indisputable historical fact.

The same goes for the Radiant Martial Sovereign.

No one can deny his achievements, but no one believes that everything that is said about him is accurate. It is natural to assume that there is historical exaggeration.

But…

“Is this real?”

He came to hear hidden stories, and it turns out that what he heard was completely true.

“Hahaha…”

As a historian, there couldn’t be anything more joyful. But the historian couldn’t laugh. Who could laugh after hearing that?

“Baekgeom retreated?”

“No.”

Gwanggu Shingae replied firmly.

“It didn’t retreat. It fled.”

“Isn’t that the same thing?”

“The nuance is different! Retreating implies that they still had strength but decided to conserve it by distancing themselves from the enemy. This was that they couldn’t stand it and fled.”

“…”

I mean, you don’t understand, friend.

The historian’s voice rose.

“But it’s Baekgeom. You said that with their power they could have faced the alliance gathered in Hefei.”

“Yes. They wouldn’t have won, but they could have fought.”

“And you’re saying that the Radiant Martial Sovereign defeated them alone? So he’s stronger than Baekgeoms?”

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.”

Gwanggu Shingae clicked his tongue with a look of pity.

“How did you become a historian with that head?”

“…Did I say something wrong?”

“It’s not that you said something wrong. It’s that you didn’t say anything right.”

“Huh?”

“Say something that makes sense. No matter how strong Wei Yanho (위연호) is, how was he going to face Baekgeom alone?”

“But the result…”

“If you only base it on the result, even Liu Bang was stronger than Xiang Yu. But was he really?”

Gwanggu Shingae kept clicking his tongue.

“I don’t know how you study history with that mentality.”

The historian felt irritated.

But now was not the time to argue.

“They had their reasons too. Managing a martial sect is like that. Spending all their resources and forces just to eliminate Wei Yanho? Would it really be worth it?”

“…It couldn’t be said to be beneficial, but not a loss either.”

The historian spoke with determination.

“Especially seeing what happened afterwards, isn’t it obvious? Thinking about what the Radiant Martial Sovereign achieved afterwards, the Baekgeom Fortress should have eliminated him at any cost at that time.”

“That’s result.”

“No. It’s not result.”

The historian didn’t seem willing to budge.

“Even if I had lived in that era, I would have come to the same conclusion. Given the trajectory of the Radiant Martial Sovereign, it was obvious that he would become their biggest obstacle. They should have eliminated him as soon as possible. Isn’t that so?”

“Ohhh.”

Gwanggu Shingae smiled mockingly.

“You’re not that dumb.”

“…”

As the historian pondered how to respond to that strange compliment, he heard Gwanggu Shingae’s mocking voice.

“But you’re not smart either. You know one thing, but you ignore two.”

“Huh?”

“First, even if what you say is correct, Baek Hoemyung (백회명) had no authority to make that decision. ‘I will risk everything to defeat the enemy’ is an option that only someone with absolute power can make. As a clan leader, he couldn’t do it.”

“That’s true.”

“And second… even if he could have decided, they couldn’t have fought against the Radiant Martial Sovereign. To eliminate him, they would have had to accept enormous losses.”

“Isn’t that obvious? There is no benefit without sacrifice.”

“That applies if they had to face Wei Yanho. But there was someone else who could do it for them.”

“…Ah!”

Something flashed in the historian’s mind.

“The Demon Cult (마교)!”

“Exactly.”

Gwanggu Shingae nodded.

“The Demon Cult and Wei Yanho also had an irreconcilable enmity. There was no need for them to take the losses when the Demon Cult would take care of it. On the contrary…”

Gwanggu Shingae drank. The sound of the liquid going down his throat was clear.

“As much as they had joined forces, Baekgeom would not be willing to lose power fighting against the dangerous Demon Cult.”

It was obvious.

Although Baekgeom and the Demon Cult formed a temporary alliance, there was no mutual trust. Once their common enemy (the Central Plains) disappeared, they would face each other again.

“In the end, only one would remain standing.”

“Correct. Even if that weren’t the case, Baek Hoemyung had no other choice.”

“…Right.”

He understood Baek Hoemyung’s position.

After winning the great battle against the Righteous Martial Alliance, he must have thought that he already had victory assured. So, instead of focusing on the immediate enemy, his attention turned to the Demon Cult advancing towards the Central Plains.

The Demon Cult was the Demon Cult.

Although they had formed an alliance, they would never be permanent allies.

“So they preserved their forces and let the Demon Cult deal with Wei Yanho?”

“In his mind, yes. At that time, it seemed impossible for him to escape.”

The historian nodded.

He understood why Baek Hoemyung chose to flee, and why he felt ashamed to do so.

“In the end, what endures is the result.”

Gwanggu Shingae laughed mockingly.

“No matter what circumstances were behind it, people only see the result. What endures is the result. As much as Baek Hoemyung and Baekgeom have made a thoughtful decision, what does it change? The result is that they fled from Wei Yanho.”

“That’s true.”

“And it’s not that they were wrong.”

It was the truth.

Baek Hoemyung retreated for several reasons, but the main one, without a doubt, was one.

“No matter how many excuses you put, it doesn’t change anything. They fled because Wei Yanho was strong. If he hadn’t been, they wouldn’t have hesitated to eliminate him.”

The historian nodded.

“There is no retreat without an excuse, no flight without a reason. Every retreat has its motive. But if it doesn’t change the result, a retreat is just a retreat. Isn’t that so?”

“You’re right.”

The historian also agreed.

Although it was hard to believe, if Gwanggu Shingae was telling the truth, Baekgeom had fled because of Wei Yanho.

“Of course, there were multiple factors. For example… if they hadn’t pursued the Martial Alliance and extended their lines, Wei Yanho wouldn’t have been able to handle them. Many died, but he actually only faced a small fraction of the Baekgeomseong swordsmen.”

“Mmm.”

“If cats want to face a tiger, they must attack in a group. If they go one by one in a row, they will only end up in their stomach. Baek Hoemyung knew it, that’s why he retreated. But what does it matter? In the end, they fled.”

Was Baek Hoemyung’s decision correct?

The historian couldn’t help but nod. It was wise. In his place, he would have done the same. But that doesn’t excuse him.

The world, history, is like that. A correct decision does not absolve you. What endures is the result.

“And ultimately, that decision was the worst.”

“The worst?”

“So far, it’s the story that is told. They fled, and Wei Yanho showed his power to the world. Shortly after capturing a Bishop of the Demon Cult, he saved the Martial Alliance and defeated the Baekgeom Fortress. What a heroic act.”

The historian was confused.

Normally, Gwanggu Shingae didn’t speak well of Wei Yanho. Although in his many criticisms there was hidden affection, he was not someone who praised him openly.

Why was he talking like that all of a sudden?

“But the world is not that simple. Baek Hoemyung didn’t know it.”

“What?”

“How bestial that guy was.”

“…”

Gwanggu Shingae laughed at the historian’s confusion.

“He didn’t know it, he couldn’t know it. Just as little is known about Wei Yanho, at that time little was known about him either. He didn’t know how ruthless he could be once at war. That was his biggest mistake.”

The historian felt a chill.

“What did the Radiant Martial Sovereign do?”

“Nothing special. He just chased them.”

“…”

“But that was what was really terrifying. Really… yes, really terrifying.”

Gwanggu Shingae shuddered.