Chapter 192

Chapter 192
**Chapter 192**
**Chapter Title: One Wing Alliance**

“Soyah. Walk me through the details of the ten-year pact our main family has struck with the Tang Clan.”

“At once, Brother.”

Baek Heon-so began his account.

“The Baek Clan and the Tang Clan have joined forces, agreeing to advance on Hunan from both flanks. The core objective is to build sufficient standing within ten years to be formally recognized as the Tang Clan’s trusted allies.”

“Why Hunan, of all possible territories?”

“Because Hunan is underworld territory, falling under the indirect dominion of the Blood Slaughter Union. We need not contend with White Path factions there, so there is no pressure to justify our actions to anyone.”

It was a sound point, yet there lay a far more substantial reason beneath it.

“If conquering Hunan were truly our aim, it would have made more sense to ally ourselves with some established faction in Hubei right now. Why turn to the Tang Clan? And why seal this pact a full ten years in advance?”

He was right—seizing Hunan was never the true end goal.

“The heart of this ten-year agreement is not Hunan at all. It is the Tang Clan.”

Baek Heon-so looked faintly confused, but Tang Gun and Jin Yeong-gil both nodded in understanding.

“I see now. Because we are the ‘Sichuan’ Tang Clan, are we not, little brother?”

“The most powerful faction in the lands bordering the Min River, masters of hidden weapons.”

“Both answers are correct.”

The greatest strength of hidden weapons lay in their ability to strike enemies from afar—from one distant vessel to another, for instance. What was more, the Min River marked the source of the Yangtze, which stretched eastward across the breadth of the realm.

“And our Baek Clan holds territory in Jiangxi. Soyah, do you know what Jiangxi is most renowned for producing?”

“Of course—grain, is it not? Jiangnan rice is the gold standard of quality.”

Cloth and grain: these two formed the bedrock of all trade across the world. Among textiles, Sichuan silk was the most celebrated; but the finest rice to be found anywhere grew in Jiangxi.

“Jiangnan rice. Half the population of the known world relies on rice harvested from Jiangnan.”

“And the waterway that carries Jiangnan’s harvest to every corner of the realm is the Yangtze.”

Tang Gun sprang to his feet, electrified by sudden realization.

“Sichuan—where the Yangtze rises! Combined with Jiangxi’s premium grain! You have been planning to control Yangtze trade from the very beginning!”

The land of Hunan itself was never the prize. The very name Hunan spoke of its position south of the Yangtze; what the Baek–Tang ten-year pact truly targeted was control over the Yangtze trade routes, and Hunan was the key to it. For decades, Hunan had been underworld territory, and it was here that the Yangtze Water Alliance’s pirates carried out their most brutal raids.

‘We swore this vow the moment we reached beyond the bounds of time itself.’

He would raise his family to full clan standing. No—more than that: he would seize the title of the greatest house under heaven.

“One thing is required to lay claim to supremacy: wealth.”

Wealth—not mere currency for daily trade, but financial power of a magnitude that could reshape kingdoms. That was what the Baek Clan needed. But how could it be achieved?

“I understand now. Young Master Baek intends to revive the legacy of the Cloth and Grain Merchants.”

Jin Yeong-gil was counted among the Three Great Tycoons of the World—or so the saying went. In truth, however, he ranked only third. Worse still, compared to the first and second tycoons, he was little more than the outermost finger on the hand. This was no personal judgment; it was the universal consensus. The first and second among the Great Tycoons were the heads of the Shanxi Merchants and the Hui Merchants—guilds so powerful it would be no exaggeration to say half the merchants of the Central Plains operated under their influence.

“Long before the Shanxi and Hui Merchants ever rose to power, there were the Cloth and Grain Merchants.”

The two pillars of trade: cloth and grain. In ages past, the great merchant alliance that transported Sichuan silk and Jiangnan rice along the river systems was known as the Cloth and Grain Merchants.

“They cannot exist in the present day, though.”

The reason was straightforward. The Yangtze spanned tens of thousands of li, and unlike in former times, underworld forces now held overwhelming sway. The Yangtze Water Alliance alone rivaled the Blood Slaughter Union as one of the two most powerful unorthodox sects in existence.

“Nor is there any shortage of competition. Every major merchant house deals in cloth and grain.”

“No tycoon can afford to ignore rice or textiles.”

“Even Yangtze shipping sees every faction along the banks dipping in to take their share.”

“The waterways from Sichuan to Jiangxi have fewer rival factions, it is true… but the Yangtze Water Alliance pirates that haunt those stretches are the fiercest of all. That is precisely why others have not dared to venture there.”

Obstacles lay at every turn; it was no wonder the Cloth and Grain Merchants had faded into history. Yet—

“If we succeed, the profits will be beyond measure.”

‘To dream of ruling the world, one must first build the means to reach it.’

The precedent was clear in the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans. The Shanxi Merchants, rooted in Shanxi, were closely aligned with the Nine Great Sects; the Hui Merchants, based in Anhui, provided the financial backing for the Five Great Clans. To aspire to the title of Greatest Clan Under Heaven, the Baek Clan needed financial power to rival both the Shanxi and Hui. Jin Yeong-gil, one man already numbered among the Great Tycoons, was the perfect partner. Given the right instruments, he could build a merchant empire to stand alongside theirs.

“The prowess you displayed during the subjugation—your ability to stand as Cloth and Grain Merchants—was exactly what caught my attention.”

“Precisely so, Lord Jin.”

The Heaven-Covering 108 Swords had revealed a new ultimate technique: Eagle’s Roar Resonance, capable of shaking the very foundations of the Water Alliance.

“You subdued over a hundred bandits in a single day. If you can maintain that level of mastery, it will give us a decisive advantage against the pirates.”

What truly made the Yangtze Water Alliance pirates formidable was not their seamanship, but their mastery of aquatic arts. Should pirates strike a ship’s hull from beneath the waves, moving faster than fish, a vessel could be sent to the bottom in less than a quarter of an hour.

“But the Baek Clan is different—water has never been our domain.”

Eagle’s Roar Resonance was a sonic attack unleashed through the depths; vibrations carried far more powerfully through water than through air.

“Little Brother Hui—pirates and mountain bandits may both be enemies, but the Water Alliance is in a wholly different league from any forest bandit host.”

The reason was simple: whoever controlled the Yangtze commanded untold wealth.

“Is it truly possible, then?”

“Who can say for certain?”

All eyes turned to him, puzzled by such an uncharacteristically vague reply.

“Precisely because the outcome is uncertain does it hold such value.”

Jin Yeong-gil had not committed to forming an alliance with Yang Hui—only to making the attempt.

“It is a gamble. The odds are slim. That is exactly why it is a wager worth making.”

A faint smile touched Jin Yeong-gil’s stern, sharp features—the ambition of the one man who bore the title ‘of the World’.

“The Shanxi and Hui are not the only powers that matter. As an individual, I may rank among the top three merchants alive; as a merchant house, however, we are nowhere near the foremost.”

Jin Yeong-gil was one of the Three Great Tycoons, yet his Jin Manor did not even number among the Ten Great Merchant Groups. Beyond the Shanxi and Hui, there were the Yue Merchants of Guangdong, the Zhe Merchants of Zhejiang, and countless others vying for supremacy.

“In the martial arts, there exists a concept known as mutual destruction.”

When faced with an unbeatable foe, a practitioner might sacrifice their own life to strike down their enemy—a final blow that ensured neither would survive.

“The weak are weak because they cannot overcome the strong. But I ask you: if defeat were certain, would you simply bow your heads and offer your throats to the blade?”

The young leader of the Tang Clan shook his head at once.

“Never. If we cannot win, we shall drag them down alongside us.”

The Tang Clan were masters of poisons, and they did not deal in toxins that offered an easy, painless end. It was not merely that their poisons were crafted for assassination; they refused to use any concoction that would allow an enemy to surrender without suffering. They repaid kindness twofold, and injury tenfold. Rather than yield peacefully, the Tang Clan would douse themselves in their own toxins and perish alongside their foes.

“And what of the Baek Clan?”

Yang Hui turned the question back to Baek Heon-so.

“Even should they take our lives, we shall strike at their very hearts. Who can say? A stand made in desperation might yet turn the tide.”

“A worthy answer.” Yang Hui nodded in approval.

“I, Jin Yeong-gil, feel the very same. I would hold the whole world in my hands, and leave nothing above the name Jin Yeong-gil.” His quiet voice grew stronger, ringing with conviction. “And so I—Jin Yeong-gil—am prepared to stake everything I have, at any moment!”

The declaration came from the only person in the room who bore a title recognized across the realm. His gaze met Tang Gun’s, and a spark of understanding passed between them. Without a word of prompting, they spoke as one.

“Our Tang Clan is little more than a hound before the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans.”

“And the Baek Clan is not even recognized as a proper clan.”

“Lord Jin… do we possess that much value?”

It sounded like a plea, an excuse offered before failure had even come—but Jin Yeong-gil nodded.

“I do not trust the Baek Clan, nor the Tang Clan. I trust my own judgment. That is what gambling is, is it not?”

In other words, the Baek and Tang were worthy of staking the Great Tycoon’s entire fortune upon.

“Congratulations, Lord Jin.”

“For what?”

“The best investments are made without hesitation.”

“That is the merchant’s creed. Buy when the value is low, sell when it has risen high.”

Jin Yeong-gil laughed aloud.

“Is that so? Then how much should I give?”

“If I am to sell high, I must first give you a taste of what is to come, must I not?”

Yang Hui took Jin Yeong-gil’s wrist and channeled his energy into the older man.

“Your consideration is appreciated, but one matter must be made clear.”

“Regarding Jeomchang?”

“Keep this between us. The golden seal ailment was linked to Jeomchang—but we cannot make any move against them as yet. In fact, I hope to secure Jeomchang as an ally.”

The Jeomchang Sect held the Chang Mountains of Yunnan, a region long rich with goods from beyond the borders. Jin Yeong-gil listened to the details, then nodded slowly.

“Another gamble. Cloth and grain form the foundation, but the more goods we control, the stronger our position.”

“Furthermore, they are one of the Nine Great Sects.”

Even united, the Tang and Baek could not match Jeomchang’s power. That was the standing of a Great Sect. With them at our side, securing dominion over the Yangtze would become far simpler.

“I apologize for deciding without consulting you. In return, I shall ensure the golden seal ailment never troubles you again.”

Pure, potent energy settled deep within Jin Yeong-gil’s dantian.

“What power… what immense power…” Jin Yeong-gil, whose knowledge of martial arts extended only to health-preserving practices, felt its effect instantly.

“It is called the Immortal Egg Valor Art. You shall never be afflicted by corrupting qi again, my lord.”

“That is all it does? It feels far too powerful for such a limited effect.”

Yang Hui himself did not know—he had not yet fully mastered the mysteries of elixir cultivation. The Immortal Egg Valor Art was his own creation; it might hold strengths he had not yet discovered.

“I thank you, Young Master Baek.” Tang Gun, who had watched in silence, spoke at last.

“So our alliance now stands upon three pillars.”

“Indeed.”

“We can no longer call this the Baek–Tang Alliance.”

“Names shape reality. What shall we call ourselves?”

After a moment’s thought, Yang Hui replied.

“I have a name. May I propose it?”

“What is it?”

“One Wing Alliance.”

Feathers join to form a wing. There were three feathers now, but one day, the One Wing Alliance would spread its wings and soar to the highest heavens.

“By the way, Lord Jin—”

“Speak freely, Young Master Baek.”

Yang Hui smiled. The foundation had been laid; it was only right that his partner should provide the resources.

“How much do you intend to invest?”

“Ah?”

“Would a million taels be too modest a beginning?”

Jin Yeong-gil’s eyes widened, then he laughed heartily, shaking his head.

“Have you ever considered becoming a merchant yourself? I would gladly back such a partner with everything I have!”

“Bear in mind that the Tang Clan’s contribution is separate.”

“Is that so? You are starting more ambitiously than I expected!”

“Fear not—their share will not be in coin.”

“Not in money?”

Yang Hui spoke without asking Tang Gun’s permission, but the Tang leader did not mind. He watched Yang Hui speak with bright anticipation.

“Gather as much Ice Essence as you can find.”

It was time to bring the Three Origins Return Art to completion.