Murim Alliance

The damage inflicted on the traders across Sichuan was no longer something that could be ignored as the Yaoguai's latest attack was so severe it discouraged all the traders of Chengdu from traveling through the southern roads, causing a lot of difficulties for the villages that relied on the minor peddlers and small-time peddlers roaming these routes.

As the independent escort warriors were recently gathered by a merchant to take down the Yaoguai once and for all, the people became hopeful once again but that was only the start of the nightmare as recorded later on. Not only did the warriors fail to kill the monster, they were all hunted down and reduced to a single survivor.

First-rate warrior Lee Song was lying in a room, riddled with battle wounds, and struggling for his life through a strong fever that left him unable to meet the guests standing over his bed.

"The situation has escalated out of control. Now that a hunting party of this level was reduced to one survivor, this Yaoguai must not be your average low-ranked demon."

"The Emei Sect has ignored the situation long enough. While it is not their territory, a Daoist Shaman must be invited to deal with this."

"This leaves little room for debate. The Qingcheng sect then?"

"It is unwise but we are out of options."

"Send our monthly tribute to them then. Upsetting the Emei sect will motivate them to move when their territory is being invaded by Daoists. It will serve as a reminder not to ignore the common people again."

The merchants and headmen of Shuangliu were already upset with how their pleas went unheard by the Abbess of Mt. Emei Sect. By inviting the Shamans to this territory, things may escalate badly between the two factions but at least this monster that keeps killing people will be dealt with. 

It was a cunning and smart plan and knowing the rivalry between Emei and Qingcheng sects, there would be no way for the Qingcheng sect to say no.

And so a month passed…

The situation with the Yaoguai was a mysterious one; on one hand, the people lived in fear and merchants would only travel in daylight to reduce the risk of attacks but on the other, river trade boomed significantly as the Yaoguai wouldn't attack the waterways.

During that month, many stories and rumors were established about the Yaoguai. How it is a vicious demon, not a tiger of any sort, how it kills people and drags them to the forest to feed on them, how it can appear anywhere in Shuangliu and strike many trade routes at the same night.

The monster's hunger was surely insatiable. A tiger or a vicious beast would wait a week before going for a hunt again, this one was just running amok and killing nonstop.

Then a different rumor surfaced, this time from an escort, who rode back to the local garrison of a nearby town one night, informing the people he met with the wildest story ever; not only was the caravan he was in attacked, but once he was riding his horse back at full speed, he ran into a different hunting party that was also being attacked by the monster.

Was this strange? Maybe. It was already established that the monster was already too fast and would hit many caravans in the same night but the scout swore on the name of his ancestors that his first run into the monster, a guard actually managed to skewer the monster with a spear and cut off its arm. For the second time, he ran into the monster, which was almost fifteen minutes from the first encounter, the monster was fine and was fighting without losing a limb.

Now this can be explained as both speed or demonic regeneration but maybe… just maybe… It is not just one monster.

What if there are two of them?

***

— The Murim Alliance, Kaifeng City, Henan Province —

"This is a nasty affair, a nasty affair indeed." Spoke Moyong Ryun, as he observed the Grand Stratagem Hall while resting on the rail of an upper level.

"It is." Replied the woman who was resting her back on the wooden pillar and giving a cold stare to the situation on the ground floor.

"I can understand the envoys of the Imperial Palace and the Northern Sea Ice Palace to visit but the Unorthodox bastards? What was he thinking?" Moyong Ryun spoke and shook his head.

"Understanding old man Jegal is like acquiring the wisdom of both his long life and his lineage. I gave up on that a long time ago." Tang Hye said but a faint smile appeared on her as if she found an amusing thought just now.

"You are right. Although he was not our master and we disagreed on most things, we learned a lot working under him." Moyong Ryun nodded and then his eyes turned cold, "Inviting the Unorthodox factions to join the Murim Alliance is still a mistake though, I don't care what the old man thought."

"Keep your enemies closer, he once said. He thought by inviting them to the Alliance, he would slowly assimilate them into our ways, making Orthodox out of the Unorthodox." Tang Hye said and had an easygoing look on her face as she turned to Moyong Ryun.

"Wishful thinking." Moyong Ryun said and remained grimacing while Tang Hye only smiled.

"I agree." She said and looked at him, "Don't make such a frown though. Your handsome face is wasted on you if you don't smile."

Moyong Ryun couldn't help but smile and feel a chill in his spine at the same time. The one he was standing beside was none other than the Poison Phoenix of the Tang Clan of Sichuan, a lifelong friend she may be, but trusting a member of the Tang clan is like holding a snake to your neck. He enjoyed letting her into his head but he was a man known to draw strict lines and build strong walls.

As their gazes aligned to the event going on downstairs, they saw a man in a white burial robe lying in a coffin on a stone platform with many monks, both Buddhist and Daoist, surrounding his body with incense sticks and censers. Some of them chanted, some read ancient texts, and some stood still on the sides waiting for their roles.

It was a very private and important affair, readying the late General Strategist of the Murim Alliance, Jaegal Jaechul—The White Crane Scholar— to his journey for the afterlife. Not anyone would just witness this part of the funeral but since this place held many sensitive documents and strategic secrets, two capable personnel of the Grand Stratagem Hall such as the Poison Phoenix and the Twin-Spears Dragon were required to stay as guards.

But then, the Hall was finally opened and two individuals walked in. One of the two was old and the other was middle-aged, one was bald and the other had long hair, the two of them had similarly long beards and were thin and tall yet their bodies reflected their martial physiques and incredible prowess.

One wore a modest yellow Buddhist robe and held a staff as he walked, the other wore a white-blue expensive robe and held a sword on his left.

One was the Merciful Palm Buddha, Wu Hyeon, Abbot of the Shaolin Temple, and the other was the Sword Supreme, Namgong Jian, Patriarch of the Namgong noble clan. Two members of the Ten Supreme of Murim.

The two men stood equal to each other, not stepping over the other or even backing out of courtesy.

To that sight, both Moyong Ryun and Tang Hye descended from the upper floor and stood at the side of those great men, cupping their fists, and bowing their heads.

""We greet the Alliance Leaders, Lord Namgong, Lord Abbot.""

As the youngsters greeted the elders, the two men smiled and greeted them back with a nod before facing the monks who had finally closed the coffin.

"Is everything ready?" Asked Namgong Jian as he approached the coffin from the side.

"Yes, Lord Namgong." The Wudang Monk approached Namgong Jian and greeted him with respect.

"The Lord Abbot and I wish to pay respects to our old friend one final time." Namgong Jian said.

The monks bowed, backed away, and stood as far away as they could on the sides. The Sword Supreme and the Shaolin Abbot walked side by side again, the Sword Supreme on the left and the Abbot on the right.

"This is going to turn into a big headache, old friend." Namgong Jian said.

"Amitabha!" The Abbot sighed as he displayed little interest in the matter Namgong Jian was talking about.

"Some Unorthodox sects have sent their representatives for the funeral. It seems that the promise of the late General Strategist has enticed them more than we anticipated. Now we have to oversee this mess ourselves."

"It is the way of the Heavens, one man sows, and another reaps. Though he may not like the yield, the fruits are still of value."

"Tsk! Such a materialistic monk!"

"Little is known about the plans of the White Crane. Although we can directly ask his assistants, the Alliance can still benefit from the manpower." The Abbot said as he turned to Moyong Ryun and Tang Hye, who bowed as the leaders looked in their direction.

"Hmph!" Namgong Jian looked at the two youngsters and then at the monk beside him.

His heart was at unease as he was opposing the idea of inviting the Unorthodox factions into the Alliance. While his partner in leadership, the Shaolin Abbot, didn't mind it, many members of the Alliance displayed their dissatisfaction and the situation of the Five Noble Families was starting to get shaky, unlike the Nine Sects One Union that would still benefit from this situation either way.

"Let's say goodbye to our old friend. The road to Hubei is long and we can't delay him more."

As the Shaolin Abbot, Gu Xianbin, said his goodbyes to the late general strategist, Namgong Jian followed suit and the two headed back outside the hall. Following them, the monks surrounded the casket once again, did the final preparation by hanging the decorations and the talisman that needed to be hanged, and then carried it up.

After that, they started walking outside the hall.

"So, who will be our new boss?" Moyong Ryun asked Tang Hye as they followed the funeral outside.

"How would I know?" Tang Hye said and didn't meet Moyong Ryun's eyes.

"You're hiding something." Moyong Ryun said perceptively.

Tang Hye gave a sigh and replied.

"Naturally, the younger brother of General Strategist Jegal Jaechul, the Three-Eyed Scholar, Jegal Shen, should be the only one qualified enough to meet the requirements."

"But?"

"But he is busy managing the Murim in Hubei. Wuhan is the area where the Jegal clan operates so it is impossible for them to spare any core member now, especially with their rivalry with Sima Clan."

"And what are the alternatives?" Moyong Ryun asked.

"I merely speculate that our once quiet hall will be busy with new members. In order to compensate for the absence of the White Crane Scholar, the Leaders can only push as many young talents as they can to fill the gap. They are easier to control, faster to influence, and would give all the factions an equal share of control over the future of the Alliance." Tang Hye made a very well-educated guess and then realized that she was comfortable just now, "It's all just a guess after all."

"Sigh! My peaceful days are now over!" Moyong Ryun complained, "To think that what will replace the nice old man would be a council of hot-headed young masters. General Strategist, you departed way too soon."

"At the fine age of 80."

"Too soon… too soon."

The dynamic duo of Tang Hye and Moyong Ryun would now be in charge of the Great Stratagem Hall after Jegal Jaechul and a lot of new members would join them as Tang Hye said. It will be a circus of contradicting interests but for the good of Murim, they must navigate carefully through these new waters.

The funeral parade has long since exited the hall and headed into a large crowd of warriors and vagabonds who came to pay their respects. Even the Emperor, who was known for his close relationship with the White Crane Scholar, sent Kang Dochul, the Administrator of the Bureau of Murim Affairs, to attend the occasion as envoy.

It is said that many years ago, the White Crane Scholar was on the frontline against the barbarian invaders along with many Murim Warriors and the Imperial Army under the command of the Emperor, who was but a prince back then. That Prince became the Emperor thanks to the success of repelling the invaders and all of that was thanks to the White Crane, Jegal Jaechul. If the Emperor himself could be present on this occasion, he would have, but his duties of managing an Empire kept him in his council.

"I will go greet some of the people I know." Moyong Ryun said and walked away from Tang Hye.

Meanwhile, one of Tang Hye's guards approached her and started whispering. She closed her eyes with what seemed to be a tad of frustration and looked ahead at the funeral.

"A what, you said? Who is this Tang Seong? A bastard?"

"Yes, Elder Tang Sungki's wife had an illegitimate child… the situation was discovered due to…"

"Shush! Shush! Shush! I want a report on my office. For heaven's sake! This family will burn itself to the ground one day. Tell them I won't return this month. Our whole reputation will be tarnished!"