I recalled my previous life.
When an investigation team from the Imperial Palace was sent to resolve the Fogbound Mountain incident, the fog suddenly vanished.
When the Emperor later granted the Silver Mist Sword to the Alliance Leader of the Murim Alliance.
Both events had one thing in common—the Imperial Palace.
It meant that an expert from the Imperial Palace had taken this sword, and when the sword was sheathed, the fog disappeared.
And later, this sword was granted to the Alliance Leader.
The rumor that anyone unqualified would go insane upon grabbing this sword seemed false.
I was holding it just fine.
Now it made sense how an expert from the palace could claim it.
It seemed that for those unqualified, the sword didn’t drive them mad—it simply restricted its power.
After all, I had never heard of the Alliance Leader displaying any exceptional power with this sword.
Just then, the creature peeked out from my left sleeve.
“Kui.”
It snorted and chuckled when it saw the Silver Mist Sword in my hand.
“Wait… are you the one who led me to this cave so I could take this sword?”
The creature nodded.
“Well… thanks.”
I guess that silver tael it swallowed paid for this.
Either way, now it was confirmed the sword didn’t harm me and was securely in my possession.
So I’d use it well.
Better that I wield it than let it fall into the Alliance Leader’s hands, causing innocent blood to be spilled.
I picked up my broken sword.
I finally understood why it had snapped.
It simply couldn’t withstand the sword Qi of someone who had just reached Peak.
The shattered blade was still covered in frost—that was proof.
As for the crazed warrior’s body…
I remembered what he said right before dying.
That the letter in his pocket was his atonement for his sins.
I approached his body and searched his robes.
A part of me wondered if he might come back to life, but thankfully, nothing happened.
I found an identification token and a letter inside his inner pocket.
Because it was tucked into his right chest, the Silver Mist Sword hadn’t pierced through them.
Guess that was lucky… in a way.
The token was engraved with the words Snow Wind Palace (雪風宮) and the name Yu Deok-jin.
The letter had already been opened.
Since it belonged to someone dead, I pulled it out without hesitation and read it.
[As I told you before, bring me that sword.
Do so, and I shall acknowledge you as my son.]
There was no sender written.
But from the context, it was clearly from Yu Deok-jin’s biological father.
Wait… Snow Wind Palace?
That sect was wiped out over a decade ago.
In the north, there still exists an overwhelmingly powerful sect—the North Sea Ice Palace.
Snow Wind Palace was known as the guardian family of the Ice Palace.
But it was annihilated over ten years ago.
No one knows exactly how or by whom.
Some say the Ice Palace destroyed them to hide some disgraceful secret.
Others claim a force targeting the Ice Palace eliminated its guardian family.
Rumors were all there was.
In truth, the Ice Palace itself was a place shrouded in mystery.
It was said that just one sword from there could summon blizzards across the northern plains.
So Yu Deok-jin… was trying to deliver this sword when this happened.
Honestly, I had no clue what exactly went down.
But I knew this letter was important.
I tucked both the identification token and the letter into my pouch.
As I prepared to leave the cave, Yu Deok-jin’s corpse caught my eye.
I went and gathered some dried wood, then cremated the body.
I gave him a slight bow.
It had been self-defense, but he still died by my sword.
I figured offering a little respect was the least I could do.
After a brief moment of silence, I stepped out of the cave.
The heavy mist was completely gone.
It confirmed that when I sheathed the Silver Mist Sword earlier, it had indeed absorbed the fog.
“Hey.”
When I called, the creature poked its head out of my sleeve.
“Where do we go now? You know the way, right?”
The creature hopped out of my sleeve.
Come to think of it… how did it stay inside my sleeve the entire time I was fighting Yu Deok-jin?
Well… it must’ve had its ways.
“I need to find my group.”
Its tail pointed left, and I followed.
The next day after Palgap and the others started searching for Eun Seo-ho.
They needed to go down the cliff, but no matter how long they made the ropes, it was impossible to climb all the way down.
The only option left was to circle around the mountain to descend.
They had no choice but to rest through the night since it was impossible to move in the dark.
But no one could sleep.
Most of those who chose to stay behind and search believed that Eun Seo-ho was probably dead.
At the very least, they were hoping to retrieve his body.
Still… for some reason, Palgap didn’t believe Seo-ho was dead.
He had no proof.
No reason.
It was just a feeling.
As soon as the sun rose, they set out again.
They walked and walked.
Then… they realized something was different.
The thick fog that had been covering the mountain was gone.
Completely.
“Th-The fog… it’s gone.”
No one had any idea what sort of Mysterious Power caused it.
But thanks to the lifted fog, they could now clearly see how deep the cliff really was.
And that only made Seo-ho’s survival seem more impossible.
“…Let’s go.”
Following the words of Escort Chief So Gun-deok, who had remained behind to lead the group, they resumed their search.
About half a day later…
So Gun-deok raised his hand.
It meant halt.
Then a group of about a dozen people emerged from the bushes.
Judging by their mismatched weapons, it was clearly a Forest bandit crew.
Though… something about them seemed oddly sloppy.
After walking for about one shichen with the creature leading me…
I started hearing the clashing of weapons.
The creature heard it too and immediately slipped back into my left sleeve.
As I approached the noise, I couldn’t help but be shocked.
‘What… Why are they fighting there?’
It was Escort Guards Yeo Eung-am and Lee Pil, Escort Chief So Gun-deok, four members of the Eunpoong Division, and Escort Guard Seo Wu.
The standouts were definitely So Gun-deok and Seo Wu.
I finally understood why Seo Wu was so renowned.
The way he fought… was incredible.
Like a butterfly fluttering through the air, he danced between enemies, cutting through the Forest bandits.
So that’s why they called him the White Butterfly Sword.
But the fight wasn’t ending anytime soon.
They had only managed to reach a stalemate.
Still, why were they even fighting here?
So Gun-deok’s group probably stayed behind because of me.
But those dozen or so opponents, while dressed like Forest bandits, weren’t actually from the Forest.
Something felt… off.
They were hesitant to use killing strikes.
And the sword techniques they used had a very distinct characteristic.
Their sword paths curved in the shape of the character 乙 (Eul).
I knew exactly which sect used sword paths like that.
The fight hit a lull, and I quickly stepped forward.
If someone died here, it wouldn’t end cleanly.
“The way your sword curves… that’s the Snake Eul Sword Technique (蛇乙劍法). It belongs to the Inscribed Eul Sect (乙銘派) near Yeo River. Why are orthodox martial artists pretending to be Forest bandits?”
At my words, the opponents froze in shock and looked straight at me.
Just as I thought.
“W-Who… who are you?”
I smirked.
“My name’s Eun Seo-ho. I’m the Chief of the Virtuous Wind Department of the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
“Kui!”
I gave my left sleeve a light tap.
‘Quiet.’
Then, suddenly, someone came rushing toward me—like a charging bear.
“Young master! Oh heavens! Young master, is it really you? How are you alive?”
Palgap grabbed me and started bawling.
Seeing that made me feel a little guilty, so I patted him on the back.
“Sorry. It’s… a long story.”
First, I needed to finish this conversation.
I calmed Palgap down and turned back to the others.
“I asked why you’re pretending to be Forest bandits.”
They hesitated.
The way their faces stiffened told me I was right—they were disciples of the Inscribed Eul Sect.
“Is it… because you needed money?”
“…!”
Their expressions twisted even more.
As expected.
I knew the story behind the Inscribed Eul Sect.
They borrowed money from the Murim Alliance, got used and exploited, and in the end were branded as members of the Unorthodox Sect and wiped out.
I glanced at one of their warriors.
The one wearing a half-mask.
So that’s the Half-Faced Swordsman (半面劍客).
In the future, he’d become a wandering warrior famous under that name, which eventually brought attention to the excellence of the Inscribed Eul Sect.
Well… their swordsmanship was sharp enough that the Murim Alliance wanted to exploit it.
“So. What do you need the money for?”
They kept hesitating.
“I’ve got quite a bit of money. If you need, I can lend it to you. But if you reject this offer… the Inscribed Eul Sect will fall from the Orthodox into the Unorthodox.”
“…”
“Is that really what you want?”
Just then, one of them barked from the side.
“Senior brother! Even if one more person joins them, we still hold the advantage. And didn’t he say he’s rich?”
“…”
“It’s all bluff. If we kill them all, no one will know.”
“…”
“Senior brother! Are you going to just stand by and watch the sect leader die?”
I looked at the one yapping beside me.
Sigh…
No wonder I felt something disgusting from earlier.
Still, now that I’ve reached Peak, it’s true what Master said. It’s much easier to endure this kind of filth.
Anyway, the awkward movement around his mouth whenever he pronounced certain words made it obvious.
He was wearing a Human Skin Mask (人皮面具).
I stepped forward using No-Trace Step, grabbed his face, and tore the mask off.
It happened so fast he didn’t even have time to react.
But the others were far more shocked.
Because underneath… was a completely different face.
“…”
Realizing his real face was exposed, he tried to run.
But he didn’t get far.
The swordsman with the half-mask slashed his arm clean off.
“Gaaaah!”
“Who the hell are you?”
“Ask me again… when we get back.”
“Ugh… urgh…”
The one called ‘senior brother’ quickly struck his pressure points to stop the bleeding and sealed his meridians.
Then he cupped his fists toward me.
“I am Yun Eul, eleventh-generation disciple of the Inscribed Eul Sect. I deeply apologize for the trouble we’ve caused, Chief Eun.”
“Catching a spy hiding in your sect is a good thing.”
He also bowed politely to the rest of my party.
“We’ve no excuse if you call us Unorthodox. It’s true we acted as bandits. But please, I ask that the responsibility fall on me alone.”
He dropped to his knees.
“I beg you.”
The other disciples immediately followed.
“No, this is our fault too. We failed to advise our senior brother properly.”
“We’re equally guilty.”
“Please punish only us. Don’t let this reach our sect.”
“If our sect leader learns of this… hngh…”
I stared at them for a moment before speaking.
“So… how much do you need?”
“…What?”
“I asked how much you need. He mentioned earlier the sect leader was ill.”
Yun Eul hesitated, then answered.
“About… one hundred silver taels…”
I pulled a gold tael from my pouch and handed it to him.
“Take it.”
His eyes widened.
“Th-That’s a gold tael…”
“Correct.”
“I… I can’t accept something this large.”
As he waved his hands in refusal, I chuckled.
“Did I say it’s free?”
“Huh?”
“All money comes with a price. This money’s no different.”
He stared at me, tense.
“What’s the price?”
“You’ll come under the Eunhae Merchant Group.”
“I… don’t understand.”
“It’s nothing complicated. I helped you today. So, when the time comes, if the Eunhae Merchant Group needs help, you’ll help us.”
“That’s… something we ought to do anyway. If you call that a price… it’s embarrassing.”
“Do you know what the future holds? The help we ask for might be… a lot more troublesome than you think.”
“I don’t believe Chief Eun is the type to make unreasonable demands.”
“Hahaha.”
I burst out laughing.
“I’m actually a pretty ruthless employer. Isn’t that right?”
At my words, Palgap sniffled and muttered,
“You’re ruthless alright… Falling off a cliff, surviving just fine, and not showing up for ages… You nearly gave me a heart attack… sniff…”
–TL Notes–
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