Chapter 236

Chapter 236
**Chapter 236: Provocation at the Pre-Night Banquet**

Je Gal-seon truly lived up to his renown as the Young Clan Heir of the Je Gal Clan. In the time that had passed, his martial skill had flourished at a rate worthy of being a direct descendant of such an esteemed household.

*Ah… it stings.*

Baek Yang-hwi pressed an egg—one Chudal had somehow managed to find—against his throbbing cheek. Even if he could not match A-du’s standard, his constitution was robust enough to stand against anyone; was this truly justified? Just how hard had the man struck him?

“Ahem. My apologies. I never had any idea Seol-ha had requested this.”

“I told you! I warned you before you swung!”

“Did you? When my temper flares, my hearing goes completely.”

…What galled him most was that further anger would serve no purpose.

*I could have dodged it easily, yet her resentment would never have faded. And thinking through her perspective, evading it felt like a betrayal in itself.*

Putting himself in her position, he acknowledged he would have acted no differently.

*If my own daughter brought Jeong In home without permission one day…*

He would kill the boy. Without hesitation.

He might forgive his daughter, but the young man was another matter entirely. Fool enough to deepen their bond without first seeking approval from the clan elders? He deserved retribution. Plain and simple.

“Is your temper cooling at all?”

Even after learning the full truth, Je Gal-seon remained glum.

“I will not apologize. Even if this was all a pretense, you ought to have spoken to me beforehand.”

He directed a sharp look toward Je Gal Seol-ha, who responded with a sheepish “ehehehe” and quickly diverted her gaze.

“Instead of apologies, let me offer you gratitude. Yang-hwi, your actions have strengthened the main house.”

He was referring to the formation of the Yeonwol Corps.

“The Wudang Sect is using this Young Phoenix Assembly as an opening to expand its influence across Hubei—right into the Je Gal Clan’s own domain! Thanks to you, we now hold both the moral standing and public support to take the lead.”

If the Je Gal Clan viewed matters this way, half the purpose behind establishing the Yeonwol Corps had already been achieved.

“Service between the main house and the Je Gal Clan is only proper.”

“Your words are heartening. That said…” Je Gal-seon sighed before continuing. “Your actions have also brought the main house some difficulty.”

“Hmm? What kind of trouble?”

“You will hear it from another.”

Another. There was only one person who fit that description, given the Young Clan Heir’s uncle’s standing.

“The Clan Head wishes to speak with you. Do you have time?”

Je Gal-pae, known as the Crouching Dragon, was the head of the Je Gal Clan. Recalling his impression of a man whose calm bordered on icy detachment, Yang-hwi nodded.

“Of course.”

—

The Je Gal Clan Head, Je Gal-pae, was quartered in the guest reception hall the Wudang Sect had prepared for honored visitors. Even here in Hubei—the Je Gal Clan’s ancestral lands—he chose to stay in lodgings provided by Wudang. The implications were impossible to miss.

“Baek Yang-hwi of the Heaven-Covering Baek Clan respectfully seeks audience with the Clan Head. It has been some time.”

He offered a formal bow, then nodded in greeting to the figure standing beside Je Gal-pae: Je Gal Hwa-un, Je Gal-seon’s son and Seol-ha’s elder brother. *Come to think of it, Brother Je Gal did not appear in the Young Phoenix Brawl at all.*

“Indeed. Has more than a decade truly passed? You have grown considerably.”

Je Gal-pae appeared unchanged, clad in the Wa-ryong-gwan—the ceremonial robes of the Clan Head—and watching him with frigid eyes.

“I have summoned you to seek answers.”

“Please ask anything.”

“Why did you accept Seol-ha’s proposal? You are not ignorant of custom and protocol.”

“Because of you, marriage negotiations with the Namgung Clan have stalled.”

*He is shifting blame so subtly.* Scheming minds all shared the same tell. If anything, the fault rested with Je Gal Seol-ha, who had made the proposal to begin with.

*If not for Seol-ha’s grandfather, I would speak my mind… but silence is the wisest course now.*

“The Heaven-Covering Baek Clan of Gangseo. The Tang Clan of Sichuan. The Namgung Clan of Anhui. And the Je Gal Clan of the Yungzhong Mountains.”

Je Gal-pae instantly grasped the intent behind his phrasing. “Not the Je Gal Clan of Hubei, but of the Yungzhong Mountains.”

He had deliberately omitted any regional modifier only when speaking of the Je Gal Clan.

“Just today, I spoke personally with the Taegeuk Sword Elder. He came to call on me.”

Even for the formidable Je Gal-pae, receiving a direct visit from one of the Ten Heavenly Martial Honored Ones was extraordinary.

“The Sword Elder sought you out? What purpose?”

“He inquired whether I might stand alongside him. It would seem he holds me in high regard.”

“And what was your answer?”

“I declined. The Je Gal Clan is family to my father’s sworn brother.”

In short, his decision rested entirely on loyalty to the Je Gal Clan. How would Je Gal-pae counter such reasoning?

“Namgung cannot ally with Wudang. They are proud and will never willingly yield supremacy. And you have disrupted the marriage alliance we had arranged.”

The Namgung Clan, in other words, had been their ideal partner. It was also an accusation: had he intentionally sabotaged the match?

*As expected, perceptive as ever.*

There had been some truth to that suspicion. With Wudang and Je Gal aligned on one side, and Namgung and Baek on the other, he would gain leverage in the coming power struggle.

“Let us speak plainly. You have diminished the main house’s interests. How do you intend to make amends?”

He paused, glancing toward Je Gal-seon and Je Gal Seol-ha, who stood listening. To refer to his own granddaughter as an “asset” while she stood right there… yet it was true. In every great clan, daughters were regarded as precious resources. Still…

*The strongest reply is to show that Seol-ha has become far more valuable than before, through Lady Eun-hu’s backing.*

This moment was pivotal for the Baek Clan; it could reshape the entire balance of power going forward. He needed to respond with cool calculation and perfect precision.

—Seol-ha.
—Yes?
—Do not look so downcast.

Je Gal Seol-ha loved her family deeply, yet here her own grandfather spoke of her as nothing more than property. It struck him again: however well he might get along with Seol-ha or Uncle Je Gal-seon, he would never feel at ease with the cold Je Gal-pae.

“What gives a clan daughter her true value?”

“Speak.”

“Beyond political union, she is a means to bring in exceptional talent as family. A chance to infuse fresh vigor into a noble line that would otherwise grow stagnant.”

Direct-line daughters might be assets, but if their worth lay only in marriage, the daughters of great houses would never set foot in the martial world—they would be kept locked away, sheltered and idle.

Je Gal-pae’s expression sharpened with interest. “Go on.”

“As you know, I was adopted. The Baek Clan’s main line will pass to my younger brother, Heon-so. So what path remains open to me?”

“Is that so?”

He sighed. No matter how he weighed it, the bargain felt like chaining his own ankle to iron. Seeing someone he cared for hurt so deeply, he no longer wished to play by Je Gal-pae’s cold rules. She had stood by him so often in the past—this much was the very least he owed her.

“Are you offering to become a son-in-law to the Je Gal Clan?”

“No. My understanding with Seol-ha was entirely for show, and I will not enter a loveless marriage. But neither will I stand by and watch her be forced into one.”

He offered a faint smile and added: “I am her senior brother. Looking out for a junior sister’s future is hardly overstepping, is it?”

If the matter was framed as clan business, he would meet it with the bonds of sect kinship.

…After a long silence, Je Gal-pae spoke.

“There is logic in your words. Still—you must stand by what you have said.”

“Naturally. I do not speak without meaning to keep my word.”

He braced himself. The demand would follow: would the Baek Clan compensate by offering Jeong In in Seol-ha’s place? He needed to counter perfectly to avoid falling into that trap. The Namgung would dangle the engagement as bait anyway—perhaps he could turn that back on them as well…

“That will do.”

…Pardon?

“You have accepted full responsibility. See that you honor it.”

*Full responsibility? That was not what I agreed to.*

“I have heard Baek Mu-ryang—one of the Twin Swords Wanderer Duo—is a man of honor who never breaks his word. Do not tarnish your father’s good name.”

*His reaction is nothing like what I expected.*

“I called you here for another matter. Let us speak instead of the pre-night banquet.”

Once the final sixty-four competitors were chosen, the Young Phoenix Brawl split into the True Dragon Battle and the True Phoenix Battle. The pre-night banquet gathered mid-ranking elders from every participating clan on the eve of those contests.

“You have been moving about like a carp in a storm, stirring up trouble everywhere. Do you have a plan?”

“Must a banquet require one? Eat, drink, and be merry—that is all.”

“As Clan Head, I ask you to speak frankly. The Namgung are preparing something; you must know that.”

True enough. After the humiliation dealt to Namgung Cheon-yeong, it would be far stranger if they remained silent.

“Ah—for them, I do have something in mind.”

—

This assembly’s True Dragon Battle promised to outshine every gathering that came before. The reason was clear: four of the Ten Heavenly Martial Honored Ones were in attendance—the Great Sea Dragon King, the Thunderclap Silver Fox, Yeo Il-rak Bul, and the Taegeuk Sword Elder.

—It has been some time, Master. I trust you are well.
—Ah, young hero. Enjoy the occasion.

He sent a quiet message to Lady Eun-hu, seated far off at the high table, and received her reply. As the Sword Elder had noted, she seemed to be keeping her distance.

*Beyond the Honored Masters—what a gathering of legends.*

The Je Gal Clan Head sat prominently; nearby, the Beggar Clan Leader idly scratched his stomach. Sect leaders and clan heads filled the rest of the high table, including Tang-seong, Head of the Tang Clan, who offered a faint smile and nod. He bowed slightly in return. He would need to pay his respects properly later.

*When does the real work begin?*

Officially, the banquet was simply a time to gather, feast, and celebrate. But with the most powerful figures of the martial world assembled, it would not end there. This was where alliances were forged, rifts deepened, and quiet judgments passed.

“Heon-so. Go and mingle. Introduce yourself to the other young masters and build connections.”

“At once, Brother.”

With Baek Heon-so gone, only Chudal remained at his side.

“Brother—what will you do?”

“About what?”

“The mood… it is wrong. Cold as a winter’s breath.”

Sharp as always. Laughter and conversation filled the room, yet it was the deceptive calm before the storm.

“I will adapt as events unfold.”

“‘Adapt as events unfold’—you make having no plan sound so elegant.”

*It is not like that, you fool. I have thought this through from every angle. I simply wish to see what move they make first.*

“Hahaha! What a magnificent occasion!”

The first strike came. Laughing loudly, Namgung Four Swords, an elder of the Namgung Clan, rose to his feet. Judging by the empty seat beside him, the Clan Head himself had not yet arrived.

“On behalf of the Namgung family, I extend our gratitude to the Wudang Sect!”

After the obligatory pleasantries, Namgung Four Swords turned to the matter at hand.

“A fine gathering indeed—though I find myself troubled by one who is present among us but ought not to be.”

Every eye turned toward him.

“Ought not to be? To whom do you refer?” asked the Huashan Sect Leader.

Namgung Four Swords smiled thinly. “I speak of the regrettable incident in the second round, just as the finalists for the True Dragon Battle were being decided.”

“What incident is this?”

“All here know our Young Clan Heir was publicly shamed. None can claim ignorance.”

Listening closely, Yang-hwi felt his focus sharpen. *A direct challenge? How bold.*

“Huashan’s prodigy Jade Purity Daoist; Peng, Young Clan Heir and grandson to the Venerable Great Sea Dragon King; A-du Gong, disciple of Venerable Rak Bul; and finally, our own Young Clan Heir against the Baek Clan’s young master. Every one of you saw it, did you not?”

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the hall.

“In the final contest for the flags, something occurred that I, simple as I am, cannot comprehend.”

He then laid out the details: how Baek Yang-hwi had supposedly violated the rules from the start; how Jade Purity and A-du had avoided confrontation and surrendered their flags rather than fight; how Peng Wang, though in an opposing group, had instead aided Yang-hwi and ultimately withdrawn from the contest.

“Young Clan Heir Peng set an example all should follow. Yet rather than claim victory fairly, he yielded his flag to one who already held one.”

If true generosity had been his intent, the final flag should have been decided in open competition. Instead, it had passed to Yang-hwi, leaving Namgung Cheon-yeong utterly humiliated.

“Is this not strange? Worse still, it is said Young Clan Heir Peng handed over his flag because he lost a wager. The grandson of the Great Sea Dragon King… defeated by someone from an obscure, unknown clan?”

Having planted every seed of doubt he could, Namgung Four Swords spoke in a ringing voice:

“I cannot understand it. Perhaps it is my own failing. If there is some explanation, I would hear what others make of it.”

*In other words—we were ganged up on. You all conspired behind the scenes to disgrace the Namgung heir.*

*Clever. Invoking the Heavenly Martial Honored Ones by name on purpose.*

He glanced at Peng Wang, who attended the Great Sea Dragon King. In his position, he could not simply admit he had lost fair and square. The matter had risen to touch the very pride of the Honored Masters themselves.

“Brilliant young masters contend… yet someone from a house no one had heard of until days ago stands at the top of the list?”

Sudden rises were not unheard of in the Young Phoenix Brawl—obscurity could vanish in a moment’s glory. But the elder’s words were carefully chosen to leave suspicion festering.

“Against the previous champion of the True Dragon, the greatest talent of Shaolin, and Huashan’s foremost disciple? I am truly at a loss.”

One hundred twenty-eight stood ready to compete. More than a hundred sects and families were gathered here. By raising the banner of fairness, he ensured no one could simply look away. Doubt had been sown; other clans would now view the Baek Clan with distrust.

*If one of the Honored Masters spoke now, this entire charade would crumble