Chapter 1823. Side Story – Journey Outside (4)

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"Uh...."

"Is he insane?"

It wasn't Jin Seokrim who reacted to the action, but his saje.

This behavior had gone far beyond acceptable limits. At this point, it wasn't just a matter of disrespecting Jin Seokrim—it was practically an insult to the entire Zhongnan sect.

"Sahyung! There's no need for you to step in. That little brat—I'll take care of him myself..."

"Step aside."

"Sahyung?"

"Move."

Jin Seokrim pushed aside the disciple blocking his way and strode across the tavern toward Cheong Myeong.

He stopped three steps in front of him, his presence radiating intimidation.

"Get up."

Gulp, gulp, gulp.

"Get up. Sitting there won't make me let this slide. If you don't want to end up in an even worse state, get up." 

Gulp, gulp, gulp. Cheong Myeong ignored him and continued drinking.

Jin Seokrim's expression hardened as much as it possibly could.

He wanted nothing more than to act immediately, but something held him back—the boy's age.

If he struck first, people would definitely say he had fought with a mere child. So, even if it wasn't a formal duel, he had to make sure the boy attacked first.

"If you're so confident, get up. I'll see for myself whether you deserve to be so arrogant."

But even after hearing those words, Cheong Myeong continued drinking as if he hadn't heard them.

A vein bulged on Jin Seokrim's forehead. With a crack, his clenched fist trembled as he spoke through gritted teeth.

"Is this what Mount Hua teaches you? All you've learned in your sect is how to act spoiled like a child?"

"Yes, yes. Acting spoiled is all I know."

"No, it seems Mount Hua wouldn't be able to teach you anything anyway. You were just born that way. A rotten seed from the start."

Gulp, gulp, gulp.

Jin Seokrim bit his lip. This brat had no intention of engaging. He was never going to get up.

"Cowardly bastard."

"Sahyung, let's just go. There's no need to deal with someone like him."

Jin Seokrim exhaled sharply, letting out a long sigh.

Striking first was out of the question, and continuing to hurl insults felt foolish. In the end, he had no choice but to back down.

Biting his lip, he turned away, but not before throwing out one last insult.

"Looking at you, I can already guess what kind of person your Sahyung Cheongmun is. And to think such a person is being called 'the Hidden Sword of Tao'—what a joke. 'the Empty Sword' would suit him much bett—"

Wham!

"Huh?"

Yang Gwanjeong doubted his own eyes.

'What?'

That guy had been sitting there just a moment ago, drinking like he was deaf to the world...

So why was he now floating in midair? No, wait—was that even possible? To launch oneself like that, at the very least, his feet should have been touching something—

'Feet?'

"Sa- Sahyuuuung!"

They were touching. No, more accurately, they were planted.

Right into Jin Seokrim's face.

Thud! Jin Seokrim fell backward in an instant.

"Aaaagh! Sahyung! Sahyung! Are you okay?"

His sajes panicked and rushed to his side. The once-flawless face of Jin Seokrim was now marked with a bright red footprint.

"This bastard!"

Cheong Myeong landed lightly on the ground, still holding his liquor bottle, and started shouting.

"I keep hearing you talk about Cheong Mun this, Cheong Mun that—what? You guys think Sahyung is your friend or something? Huh? You punks think that just because I trash-talk Sahyung, you can too?"

"....W-What is he even saying? This lunatic."

"My Sahyung, huh? Sure, he can't use a sword properly, he's already getting premature wrinkles at his age, he refuses to exercise, so his gut keeps getting bigger, his personality is trash, and he nags worse than a grandmother with five kids, but—"

"Uh… we never said anything that bad, though?"

"But you little bastards dare talk about him? Only I get to insult my Sahyung! You're all dead meat!"

"He ambushed him! That was a cheap shot!"

"Catch him! Grab that bastard now!"

Only then did the Zhongnan disciples fully process what had happened and charge at Cheong Myeong.

"Idiots."

Cheong Myeong scoffed, grabbing an empty bottle from the table.

"You think—"

Crash!

The bottle smashed straight onto a charging disciple's head.

"I wanted to just drink quietly and leave!"

Crash!

Another bottle took down another disciple. In the blink of an eye, five Zhongnan disciples were sprawled out on the ground. Cheong Myeong exhaled a breath of frustration.

"Why the hell aren't you helping me?! I said I wouldn't cause trouble!"

"Ugh..."

"Ahhh... My back... Ughhh."

Cheong Myeong surveyed the wreckage of the tavern, then smirked as he picked up another liquor bottle.

"Hey."

He nudged Jin Seokrim, who was still lying on the ground, with his toe.

"You should really pick your fights more carefully. Why do you idiots always act so tough?"

"..."

"Tsk. You ruined my drink."

Just as Cheong Myeong drained the last of his bottle and reached for another—

"Over here!"

"He's here, Sahyung!"

"Cheong Myeong is right here!"

"Huh?"

The door of the tavern burst open, and a group of people wearing the martial robes of Mount Hua rushed inside.

"Cheong Myeong-ah!"

"Oh no, already..."

Cheong Myeong hesitated and stepped back. Before he knew it, the tavern was packed with those devil-like Mount Hua.

"Come on, Cheong Myeong-ah. Come here."

"The Sect Leader specifically ordered us to catch... no, bring you back."

"Cheong Mun will be here soon too. You know you'll get in more trouble if you run away, right?"

Cheong Myeong quickly turned his head to look around, but the entrance was completely blocked, and even the windows that could have been used as an escape route were covered by Mount Hua disciples.

Beating them all would be difficult even for him, and if he laid hands on his sasuks any further, they'd definitely try to strip him of his rank. He was, quite literally, caught in a dead-end situation.

"But... I barely had a few drinks..."

Just as Cheong Myeong pulled a face full of injustice—

"O, over here!"

"Huh?"

At a small side door leading to the kitchen, the young errand boy Cheong Myeong had helped earlier raised his hand.

"Here!"

Before his mind could even process it, his body reacted instinctively.

"He's escaping!"

"Catch him!"

In an instant, Cheong Myeong grabbed the errand boy under his arm and bolted through the kitchen at full speed. In his other hand, he still clutched a bottle of liquor.

"Stop right there!"

"Cheong Myeong! Please, just stop right there!"

"Hey, you damn brat!"

Hearing the distant shouts from behind, Cheong Myeong ran with everything he had.

He dashed beyond the outskirts of Xi'an, past the desolate areas, and finally hid in a small nearby mountain, letting out a sigh of relief.

"...That was close."

Well, actually, the trouble had already happened. Realistically speaking. 

But at least he hadn't been caught. That meant he had at least one more day of freedom.

Now then...

Cheong Myeong turned his gaze to the young errand boy beside him.

"I appreciate the help, but are you sure you're okay being here? The tavern was still open, weren't you in the middle of working?"

The boy looked at him with an exasperated expression.

'You're the one who dragged me along.'

It's not like he had volunteered to come along…

"You've got loyalty, kid! Loyalty!"

But seeing Cheong Myeong grin like an idiot, the boy didn't feel like arguing anymore.

"It's fine. After causing that kind of trouble with those people, I was probably fired already. …It's a bit disappointing, but what can I do? It was my own mistake."

"Disappointed? That you lost your job?"

"Yes."

"Why? Isn't it great not to have to work?"

The boy looked at Cheong Myeong in confusion but quickly nodded in understanding.

Judging by his appearance, this guy seemed to be someone who trained in the mountains, practicing martial arts and meditating. It made sense that he wouldn't understand the ways of the world.

"Everyone has their own circumstances. The owner of that tavern had a decent personality and paid well, so I was hoping to work there for a while. I could've saved up a lot of money that way."

"Hmm? What does a kid like you need money for? Is there something you want to buy?"

The boy shook his head.

"It's not about buying something. I want to start my own business."

"Business?"

"Yes."

Cheong Myeong's face lit up with interest. The boy looked too young to be dreaming about something like that.

"Do your parents run a business or something?"

"Ah… I'm an orphan. I don't have parents."

"An orphan? Wow, nice! Me too!"

"…."

Cheong Myeong grabbed the boy's hands and shook them enthusiastically, as if he had found a kindred spirit.

"Oh, so that's why? You have to figure out a way to survive?"

"Not exactly…"

The boy stood up. His eyes took in the view of Xi'an in the distance, where countless lights sparkled against the night. The city looked magnificent and beautiful under the dark sky.

"I want to become a great merchant. I don't really know why… It's just my dream."

Cheong Myeong chuckled, took a swig from his bottle, and smiled.

"Then I feel bad, what should i do? Looks like I got in your way."

"You didn't. It's just a slight delay. If I work harder to make up for the lost time, I'll still be able to open my own store one day."

The boy, who had spoken so confidently, then scratched his head awkwardly.

Normally, he wouldn't say things like this. Whenever he spoke about his dream, people would just scoff, telling him that an orphan with no money and no family was just dreaming too big.

'Guess I got carried away.'

Maybe he was still feeling bitter about losing his job that he had been planning to stay in for a long time. It must've loosened his tongue.

"Sorry. Just forget I said anything—"

"That's amazing."

"…Huh?"

The boy looked up at Cheong Myeong, who was leaning against a tree with a wide grin.

"I don't really get it, but it sounds cool. A dream, huh…"

"Um… What should I call you?"

"Call me Dojang. At least by title, I'm supposed to be a Taoist."

"Alright. Dojang, do you have a dream? Like mastering the Tao or something?"

"Well."

Cheong Myeong shrugged.

"If I had to say… escaping from Mount Hua?"

"…Excuse me?"

"Going somewhere where no one nags me, spending the whole day drinking and eating, living however I want, never having to deal with boring, annoying adults again? Maybe something like that?"

The boy tilted his head in confusion.

"That's strange. From what I can see, you're quite skilled in martial arts. If you really wanted, couldn't you just do that? You even ran away from them just now."

"Huh?"

"But you still plan on going back to that place you hate so much?"

"Well… yeah?"

"On your own?"

"Uh?"

[Tl note: ....okayy, one more chapter guhh, I ran out of cookies for the raw]