Chapter 243

Chapter 243
The stillness in the chamber deepened.

Though no one spoke a word, the burning resentment on their faces made it clear that their fury was pushed to the absolute limit.

“The Black Flame Dragon wouldn’t have brought us to this hall just to mock us. We are meant to view this as a genuine proposition, correct?”

The Demonic Path Sect Leader balled up the document I had provided, grinding his teeth in pure malice.

“I believe our patience has been stretched entirely too thin. After sharing a few light words with the Alliance Leader, have you completely forgotten whose territory you stand in?”

The Demonic Path Sect Leader’s rage radiated off him, as if he were on the verge of splintering the furniture to pieces.

To be fair, his hostility was perfectly understandable.

Out of nowhere, a massive, unanticipated invoice had been dropped right into his lap.

The remaining figures in the room seemed to be waiting on a single signal from the Demonic Path Sect Leader to launch an attack.

I observed the Demonic Path Sect Leader with total composure.

“There is just one detail I find confusing… What exactly made you assume the tasks I performed wouldn’t cost you a thing?”

“……”

True to form for individuals possessing a scoundrel’s perspective, they viewed receiving free labor as their natural right.

“I hold no loyalty to the Black Thought Alliance, and the majority of you are actively preparing for a conflict against the Murim Alliance—the organization I actually represent. Despite that reality, I exerted myself on your behalf, and yet you expect to walk away without offering any compensation?”

“……Th-That action was taken for the sake of both factions’…… what was the phrasing again…….”

“The greater good?”

“Precisely! The greater good! That was the reason!”

It is always the same with these hypocrites; they only invoke noble concepts when it serves their immediate needs.

“The treaty we ratified was a simple peace accord, was it not? It would be a completely different matter if we had formed a true coalition. Aren’t you overestimating the obligations of a party with whom you have only signed a pact that amounts to little more than a temporary truce?”

“……”

“Regardless, if I hadn’t executed my maneuvers flawlessly, there would be precious few individuals in this chamber currently drawing breath.”

“……”

I slid a revised agreement toward the Demonic Path Sect Leader.

While the rest of the assembly reviewed their terms with grim expressions as though they were swallowing poison, Wang Ju-bal, who had recently assumed control as the Sect Leader of the Four Dragons Sect, glanced over at the paperwork held by Hwang Bu-sik beside him.

“Hold on. What is the reason for the discrepancies in the figures across these agreements?”

“What?”

“Let me look.”

Prompted by his observation, the various leaders began comparing their respective documents.

The ones faced with astronomical demands grew increasingly outraged, whereas the figures who found their obligations cut in half showed visible signs of relief.

“What is the meaning of this deception, Black Flame Dragon!”

I responded with an air of complete casualness.

“Is it not perfectly logical that the pricing would differ between the factions eager to clash with the Murim Alliance and the ones pursuing a peaceful resolution? I do not claim to be a selfless philanthropist, so I see no reason to demand a uniform price.”

Equity is not a principle that must be maintained under all circumstances.

Particularly in a dynamic like this, creating a division is essential to force someone to break rank first.

“……Be that as it may, a demand of five hundred gold taels is simply outrageous.”

Hearing Hwang Bu-sik’s declaration, Il-myeong let out a sudden, startled gasp.

“F-Five hundred gold taels?”

Honestly, why are you losing your composure?

It isn’t as though the bill is being handed to you.

Immediately after, he reached out to me using a secret Sound Transmission.

-Benefactor Jin, what is your true objective here?

-I performed a service, did I not? I intend to allocate a portion of the proceeds for you as well, Senior Il-myeong, so please set your mind at ease.

-……That is completely missing the point of my concern!

If he simply remained quiet, he would get his fair share.

Yet, the anxiety-driven monk persisted in his lecturing.

-Do you honestly believe they will surrender such a massive fortune without a fight?

If I doubted my ability to extract the funds, I would never have initiated the demand.

“Black Flame Dragon. I do not deny that you put forth a great deal of effort. Even so, our organizations cannot simply discard five hundred gold taels for an affair of this nature.”

The moment Hwang Bu-sik took a stand, the rest of the leaders swarmed in, seizing the opening they had been anticipating.

“Precisely! Do you imagine a thousand gold taels is a trivial sum to be thrown about?!”

“Even allowing for a total lack of practical awareness, this has gone entirely too far!”

“Employing a top-tier contract killer demands a mere fifty gold taels, and they handle the elimination of the remains as part of the service!”

It never fails; people sing a completely different tune once their immediate peril has passed.

Naturally, villainous scoundrels of the Black Path would be doubly treacherous.

I let my gaze sweep over every single person in attendance.

“My, it appears the lives of the esteemed leaders gathered here hold very little value in their own eyes.”

The bellicose faction—specifically the ones presented with demands totaling a thousand gold taels—bolted upright, their eyes burning with hostility.

“Wait, what is the meaning behind such a sudden accusation……!”

“Indeed! Regardless of the dispute, there is no call to insult us in this manner……!”

I tilted my head slightly.

“Are you under the impression that every single double agent has been rooted out?”

“……What?”

In that identical second, the gathered leaders turned entirely rigid.

They are remarkably gullible for individuals who supposedly rule the criminal underworld.

I clarified the situation for them.

“I never claimed to have apprehended every single infiltrator.”

“Wh-What sort of ridiculous deception is this?!”

“Y-You explicitly stated that the danger had been completely neutralized!”

“Correct! You even participated in the celebration feast!”

Good grief, it seemed a misunderstanding had occurred during our previous dialogue.

“My statement was that I had managed the ‘pressing crises.’ My objective was to eliminate with maximum speed the immediate threats who were positioned closest to you and plotting to take your heads.”

“Th-Then……?”

I gave a subtle nod.

“Naturally, there are still moles operating within your ranks.”

The leaders began to shudder, looking exactly like desperate gamblers who had just discovered that the high-stakes match where they forfeited their properties and fortunes had been rigged against them from the start.

“What is the remaining number?!”

“Would it be wise of me to reveal that data to individuals who may very well turn into my adversaries down the road?”

“Y-You insufferable scoundrel!”

I took note of the utterly stunned look on the Demonic Path Sect Leader’s face.

“This is precisely why you ought to have enthusiastically embraced my proposal for a unified front. Had you done so, I would have resolved the entire issue without charging a single copper.”

“You absolute viper……”

The mental capacity of these criminal syndicates was far more naive than I had originally anticipated.

Wasn’t this a completely elementary tactic?

The entire membership of the Sojeong Squad operated on the exact same level.

“Regardless, it appears none of the parties present have any desire to honor the invoice. Therefore, I shall take my leave.”

“Where do you imagine you are walking off to?”

A sharp clatter echoed through the room.

The unoccupied seats were launched through the air by internal force, slamming into the entryway and piling upward to completely seal the exit.

Impressive, he managed to execute the Airborne Object Grasping technique.

“The work of the Envoy Delegation has concluded, so it is only proper that I journey back to the Murim Alliance.”

“You intend to depart in this manner?”

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”

Seeing my completely unfazed reaction, which treated the departure as an absolute certainty, the Demonic Path Sect Leader finally managed to master his explosive temper.

“……The claims you just made. Are they verifiable fact?”

“Do you take me for a liar?”

“It could easily be a fabrication!”

The Demonic Path Sect Leader seemed to lose his grip on his temper once more, his voice rising automatically.

“Is it not the foundational trait of the Orthodox Path to manufacture falsehoods every single time they speak?!”

“Do you truly hold that conviction?”

“……”

The Demonic Path Sect Leader fixed his eyes on me, his expression mirroring that of a man desperately attempting to track a hidden token beneath moving cups on a dealer’s table.

I met his intense gaze without flinching.

“Are you absolutely certain? Are you willing to gamble that this is a deception?”

Despite the massive amount of shouting that had filled the room, the core issue was remarkably uncomplicated.

“If you are convinced I am lying, withhold the funds. If you believe I am speaking the truth, settle the debt.”

A straightforward choice with even odds.

The solitary catch was that the collateral required for this particular wager happened to be their very survival.

When it came down to it, no rational player in the world would participate in a match where their own life served as the entry fee.

If an individual like that did exist, they would be a lunatic of the highest order.

I took a single stride forward, shattering the heavy quiet that had claimed the chamber.

“Are you entirely willing to bet your life that my words are false?”

“……!”

The Demonic Path Sect Leader, who had been glaring at me with unvarnished malice, finally broke and dropped his gaze.

Once the initial domino falls, managing the remainder becomes an effortless task.

I proceeded to lock eyes with each of the other leaders sequentially.

“If you possess absolute certainty that this is a bluff, there is zero purpose in maintaining this stand-off with me.”

As our gazes collided one after the other, the leaders uniformly averted their eyes toward the floor.

“Are you certain it is a lie?”

Amidst the suffocating quiet that had once more taken hold of the hall, the Demonic Path Sect Leader forced out a reply.

“……We are unable to assemble a thousand gold taels on such short notice.”

I knew they would capitulate!

I forced down the smirk that threatened to split my face and maintained a perfectly professional tone.

“I am entirely willing to accept material assets and credit slips as alternative payment.”

As it turned out, there wasn’t a single true high-roller in the entire room.

—

With the fraudulent accusations against the Envoy Delegation successfully cleared away, the Black Thought Alliance Leader found it far simpler to arrange audiences with the representatives, though the actual frequency of their consultations remained sparse.

The dominant factions within the coalition, who had previously been hunting with murderous intent for any pretext to strip Cha Seok-du of his title as the Black Thought Alliance Leader, fell completely silent following the exposure of the hidden moles. Cha Seok-du seized that precise window of vulnerability to wield his authority over appointments completely unhindered.

Where he had once encountered endless bureaucratic roadblocks when attempting to name even a solitary Pavilion Master, he now began systematically installing his loyalists into the core positions that would form the structural framework of the Black Thought Alliance, all thanks to the backing of Dam-ak.

From the precipice of a disaster where he had nearly been stripped of his command by rival factions, he had achieved a spectacular political resurrection and solidified his grip on power.

The Black Thought Alliance was finally starting to operate with the discipline of a structured syndicate.

And the individual who had engineered this entire transformation was not an insider from the syndicate, but rather Jin So-un, a representative belonging to the Murim Alliance’s Envoy Delegation.

“……”

“Ha! Look at this haul. What do you suppose the grand total is?”

Il-myeong watched Jin So-un as he methodically sorted through a mountain of financial notes, his expression resembling a monk engaged in decades of silent contemplation against a stone wall.

Jin So-un’s robes were visibly distended, packed to capacity with a variety of bank drafts, rare Spiritual Medicines, precious relics, and various other luxuries he had aggressively extracted from the elite leadership of the underworld.

Remarkably, that hoard represented merely a portion of the payment, as they had promised to deliver the outstanding sum directly to the Envoy Delegation’s quarters by the following afternoon.

It was an utterly surreal spectacle.

Fearsome tyrants of the criminal world had willingly surrendered their fortunes and bowed their heads in submission, pleading, “We trust you will handle this matter favorably.”

In the entire chronicle of the Jianghu, how many individuals could claim to have witnessed such an inversion of power?

Il-myeong fought to banish the chaotic thoughts threatening his mental discipline.

“Benefactor Jin…… would you permit me a single inquiry?”

Jin So-un gave a sudden start of suspicion, instantly crossing both arms over his chest to shield his riches.

“I previously stated I would distribute a portion, but I refuse to hand over anything exceeding a hundred gold taels. Regardless of your thoughts, this wealth was acquired through my own individual efforts.”

“……”

What sort of unprincipled opportunist did this youth take him for?

Swish—

Jin So-un contracted his posture even further, tightening his guard over his spoils.

“Don’t tell me you are planning to claim you have no need for any funds whatsoever.”

“……I intend to dedicate my share to a worthy cause, ensuring it serves to spread the enlightenment of Buddha.”

“Tsk.”

Observing Jin So-un, who looked inexplicably annoyed by the response, Il-myeong pressed forward with his point.

“What drove you to use such aggressive extortion…… rather, what drove you to demand this money? Given that resolving the issue was an absolute necessity regardless, wouldn’t performing the service without a fee have fostered a far healthier relationship between our factions over the span of time?”

“Do you honestly expect me to travel all the way to the headquarters of the Black Thought Alliance, endure this miserable ordeal, and journey home empty-handed?”

“……”

Just as Il-myeong’s gaze was beginning to cloud over with total disillusionment.

“Ah, but wait! There was a secondary purpose as well!”

Jin So-un gestured with his hands in an exaggerated display of animation.

Witnessing that performance, whatever microscopic shred of respect Il-myeong had managed to preserve instantly evaporated.

Wholly indifferent to the monk’s judgment, Jin So-un dropped his arms and lowered his tone.

“Isn’t there a clear benefit to bleeding away a portion of the martial capability possessed by those underworld scoundrels?”

“Bleeding their capability?”

Because of Jin So-un’s interventions, the previously fractured Black Thought Alliance had managed to anchor its authority with unprecedented stability.

How could anyone logically interpret that outcome as a reduction of their power?

“To be entirely precise, I am referring to the warmongering faction. From the very beginning, those fools were the exact breed of tyrants who would never stop clamoring for a bloody campaign so long as they felt no terror toward their target.”

“……Did your actions not merely serve to inflame their aggression even further?”

“Human psychology is a fascinatingly hypocritical thing. To an individual, a tiny splinter embedded beneath their own fingernail causes far greater psychological distress than witnessing the horrific amputation of someone else’s limbs.”

Without warning, the amused expression vanished entirely from Jin So-un’s features.

“Are you aware of who faces annihilation first when a grand conflict erupts?”

“……The vanguard forces deployed at the absolute front of the line, I imagine.”

Jin So-un shook his head in denial.

“Incorrect. The most defenseless individuals are the first to perish. And the figures who survive until the final hour are the exact masterminds who orchestrated the conflict in the first place.”

“……”

“If people remain convinced that consequences will never touch their own lives, they are entirely capable of sending thousands, even tens of thousands of souls to their graves purely to increase their personal wealth.”

For reasons he couldn’t quite articulate, Il-myeong felt that Jin So-un’s countenance at that moment resembled a being completely devoid of human feeling.

“Furthermore, we are dealing with individuals who have spent their lives at the absolute zenith of the criminal underworld, executing their whims through unchecked violence and authority. That is precisely why I was required to engrave this trauma into their consciousness. The devastating revelation that they are fundamentally vulnerable, and the paralyzing dread that they too can be broken.”

Yet an instant later, Jin So-un’s eyes gleamed with an intensity that outshone any ordinary martial artist.

“Consequently, the next time the topic of military expansion arises, an icy hesitation will take root in their minds.”

In that precise second, Il-myeong felt a fundamental shift occur within a corner of his own awareness, like a structural beam snapping cleanly.

The visage that had just moments ago appeared cold and dead now seemed detached and brilliantly luminous, evoking the image of an ascetic who had achieved ultimate comprehension of the universe.

……Naturally, that impression only held weight if one deliberately looked away from his heavily laden, bulging robes.

Il-myeong finally gave voice to the persistent contradiction that had been troubling him.

“If you harbor such a deep aversion to bloodshed…… why did you play such a pivotal role in facilitating the creation of the Black Thought Alliance?”

He was fully aware of the intricate details and the ultimate fallout of the Black Path Night March that Jin So-un had set in motion.

During the concluding challenge of the Regular Exam, Jin So-un had chosen to offer his allegiance not to Yong So-ah, but to the martial artists of the underworld.

While one couldn’t attribute the entire sequence of events solely to Jin So-un, it remained an indisputable truth that his actions had exerted an enormous shaping influence on the creation of the Black Thought Alliance.

Faced with Il-myeong’s inquiry, Jin So-un maintained a brief silence before offering his reply.

“Senior Il-myeong, is it your genuine belief that the Murim Alliance stands as a beacon of righteousness?”

The monk froze.

Il-myeong’s physical progression halted entirely for a heartbeat.

It was a fundamental truth he had never once permitted himself to interrogate.

No, it was a principle he believed he was under a sacred obligation never to question.

Though the phrasing was elementary, the philosophical weight hidden beneath the words was incredibly vast.

“……I maintain faith that it constantly endeavors to steer its course toward true justice.”

“As I anticipated, the worldview of someone who has known only safety and privilege is magnificently naive.”

The words struck like a volley of poisoned needles.

As Il-myeong remained completely silent, struggling to construct an adequate defense, Jin So-un’s icy analysis cut through the air once more.

“The Murim Alliance that I have interacted with bears absolutely no resemblance to that idealized vision.”

Yet, oddly enough, the venom of the words failed to cause injury.

Instead, it felt as though Jin So-un was extracting a weapon embedded deep within his own flesh simply to display the underlying trauma.

“To the defenseless masses, the Murim Alliance operates with a brutality that eclipses the criminal syndicates and a malice that surpasses the worst of the Unorthodox Path.”

“……”

“The Murim Alliance has remained stagnant for far too long. As a consequence of that inertia, it is systematically decomposing from within.”

What could possibly be the ultimate design of the man standing before him?

Did he possess even a shred of institutional loyalty as the chosen champion of the Murim Academy, or as an elite prospective leader destined to command the Murim Alliance in the future?

Or was his true ambition to actually seize the mantle of Vice Alliance Leader within the Black Thought Alliance, precisely as he had boasted during the celebration?

With his currency-stuffed robes shifting noticeably, Jin So-un leaned in closer.

“Are you aware of the specific rumor that greeted me most frequently upon my enrollment at the academy?”

“Was it not a constant acknowledgment of how extraordinary your talents are?”

After all, his martial breakthroughs could easily be categorized as nothing short of miraculous.

However, Jin So-un gave a slow, deliberate shake of his head.

“They claimed I was a harbinger of cataclysm. They predicted that my very presence would throw the Jianghu into utter turmoil and dismantle the foundations of justice.”

It was a tragic assessment, yet entirely logical from a political standpoint.

To the entrenched elite who refused to jeopardize their hoarded fortunes and institutional control, Jin So-un represented an intolerable threat to their stability.

Even Yong So-ah had attempted to exploit that exact chaotic nature of Jin So-un to purge the corruption festering inside the Murim Alliance.

“Granting all of that, how can those internal systemic flaws justify your hand in organizing the Black Thought Alliance?”

In response to Il-myeong’s challenge, Jin So-un offered an analogy.

“Are you familiar with the legendary reservoir located within the sovereign’s palace grounds, which houses the most exotic aquatic life gathered from every corner of the world?”

It was a wildly disconnected narrative, yet Il-myeong found himself captivated by the refined, scholarly cadence of the delivery and listened in rapt silence.

“……I am familiar with the tales.”

“When transport teams attempted to convey the specimens to that reservoir, the obstacle that caused them the greatest despair was ensuring the creatures survived the journey. Regardless of how meticulously they managed the transport conditions, every single specimen perished prior to reaching the palace gates.”

Organisms that rely on an aquatic environment are incredibly fragile, capable of dying from the slightest variance in water conditions.

Il-myeong understood this reality perfectly well, yet before he could consciously register his own interest, he found himself utterly engrossed in the tale.

“The strategy that ultimately resolved the crisis involved introducing the specimens’ primary apex predator directly into the transport vessel.”

“……Their apex predator?”

Jin So-un let slip a quiet, knowing chuckle.

“It sounds entirely counterintuitive, does it not? Placing irreplaceable specimens—where the loss of a single life is considered a failure—in immediate proximity to their mortal enemy. Yet, when that countermeasure was deployed, an incredible thing occurred: not a single prize specimen perished before arriving at the royal court.”

“……”

“They preserved their lives by swimming with frantic, ceaseless energy to evade the hunter.”

As the realization washed over Il-myeong, a physical tremor ran through his body.

A profound epiphany, unlike anything he had ever extracted from a lifetime of studying sacred Buddhist texts, struck his consciousness with the blinding clarity of a lightning bolt.

Jin So-un then shifted his weight backward, stretching his limbs casually.

“Naturally, the core purpose behind the creation of the Black Thought Alliance extends far beyond merely forcing a purification of the Murim Alliance, but it will undeniably exert a beneficial pressure on them for the foreseeable future.”

“Are you implying there is an entirely separate objective at play?”

“……That is a revelation for a future date.”

“……”

The instant he locked eyes with Jin So-un’s resolute gaze, Il-myeong achieved absolute certainty.

Just as Il-gak had previously asserted, Jin So-un was undeniably an “Enlightened One.”

There was no longer any logical basis to interrogate or second-guess his strategy.

The young man was already analyzing existence through an entirely elevated paradigm.

Il-myeong could not even begin to comprehend the magnitude of spiritual transformation required to view the canvas of the world from such a transcendent vantage point.

“In that case, are we initiating our journey back to the Murim Alliance immediately?”

Jin So-un answered instantly, his tone treating the matter as a foregone conclusion.

“Negative. There remains an outstanding piece of business requiring our attention.”

“……”

Predictably, the reality that he had absolutely no inkling of what chaotic scheme Jin So-un would hatch next filled the monk with profound anxiety.

Wholly unconcerned with his companion’s internal distress, the edges of Jin So-un’s mouth curled into a predatory smirk.

“We have an appointment to ensnare a thoroughly deceitful, clever beast.”

“……”

Regardless of the chaos, was he not an “Enlightened One” operating on an entirely different level of consciousness?

‘I resign myself to the unknown. ……Amitabha.’

For reasons he couldn’t entirely explain, Il-myeong realized that since setting foot inside the territory of the Black Thought Alliance, his internal mastery of the state of absolute emptiness had expanded significantly.