The Youngest Member Chapter 44

After subjugating Heungsan Fortress, the escort proceeded smoothly.

Since it was the only mountain stronghold in Hubei Province, there was no need to et bandits, and thanks to Head Escort Jang Seongguk's experienced command, there was no need to wander off the path.

"Hwaaam!"

"Young hero Song, I think your mouth is going to tear."

Song Yiyeon touched the corners of his mouth and then clicked his tongue.

"The mission seems to be smooth from now on. I wonder what the others are doing. I heard that Nangong Jin guy was assigned a mission to subjugate a black path sect in Anhui."

"Is there a black path in Anhui?"

Cheon Woojin tilted his head. He couldn't understand how the proud Nangong family would keep a black path sect by their side.

Song Yiyeon nonchalantly nodded his head and answered.

"Of course there is. If the black path disappears, who would need the help of the Nangong family?"

"Aha."

Although the white path despised the black path, on the other hand, it was because of the black path that there were people who relied on the white path. Cheon Woojin, who thought it was a truly strange relationship, suddenly asked.

"Are you envious of young hero Nangong?"

"Well..."

Song Yiyeon couldn't answer easily and trailed off.

In fact, it would be a lie to say he wasn't envious.

Song Yiyeon was also a man who had entered the path of a martial artist. Naturally, he couldn't help but be envious of Nangong Jin, who was from the Five Great Families.

Although it was true that Nangong Jin's martial might was outstanding, would he have been able to reach that level if he had been born in an ordinary rchant family like himself?

After thinking for a mont, Song Yiyeon shook his head.

"Isn't being born as the young family head in such a great family a great opportunity in itself?"

"That's true."

Cheon Woojin agreed with those words. After all, he was also in a position where he had learned martial arts from two renowned masters.

Cheon Woojin, who was looking at Song Yiyeon's envious expression for a mont, suddenly said.

"Didn't you also get an opportunity, young hero Song?"

"?"

Song Yiyeon tilted his head as if he genuinely didn't know. At that sight, Cheon Woojin continued calmly.

"I observed you carefully when we subjugated Heungsan Fortress. It was a pretty high-level Virgin Boy Art."

"Oh, is that so?"

Song Yiyeon's face brightened. He had guessed it inwardly, but hearing it from soone else's mouth was even more welco.

"How did you co to learn that martial art?"

It was sothing he had been curious about all along. He had expected that he had learned it from the Anhui Song family, but Family Head Song was not learning martial arts, and he even seed to not know that his son had learned the Virgin Boy Art.

Song Yiyeon mumbled for a mont and then said with a sigh-filled voice.

"When I was young, my body was weak, so I almost died several tis. Once, even the renowned doctors in the neighborhood all shook their heads, but my father still didn't give up."

Among the many Taoists and Buddhist masters that Song Habaek had brought at that ti, there was one who had cured Song Yiyeon's illness. He was a man called Master Jinbeop from a secular family of Shaolin, and he had said that Song Yiyeon could only live if he learned martial arts.

"So, you learned it from him?"

Song Yiyeon shook his head.

"To be precise, I taught myself. He just gave

a book and left. He knew that I was the only son of a family, and he told

to do as I pleased, whether to learn it or burn it, and I learned it to live."

Cheon Woojin had an impressed expression. The heart formula of the Virgin Boy Art was quite profound, so it must have been difficult to learn on his own.

"Amazing. But there will be a day when you hit a wall, what do you plan to do then?"

All martial artists hit a wall soday. There were those who were frustrated by hitting a wall not long after entering martial arts, and there were tis when a genius who had been on a roll hit a wall in his later years.

What was needed at such tis was one's own enlightennt or a master's teaching. At Song Yiyeon's current level, a master's teaching was more important than his own enlightennt.

Song Yiyeon narrowed his brow.

"That's the problem. In fact, the manual that he gave

was the first volu. It's been a long ti since I've read it over a hundred tis and mastered it all, so I haven't made any progress recently. There must be a second volu, or a middle and second volu..."

"Hmm."

The best thing would be to find the person called Master Jinbeop and receive the next martial art. However, there was no way that Song Yiyeon hadn't tried this.

As Cheon Woojin also narrowed his brow and fell into thought, Song Yiyeon said with a smirk.

"For your information, I couldn't find the person called Master Jinbeop even after searching all the secular families of Shaolin. In fact, for a monk, he had an atmosphere like an immortal. Anyway, his identity has fallen into a labyrinth."

"It's a difficult problem."

"Well, it'll work out sohow. Also, even if it's not the Virgin Boy Art, there are the White Will Protecting Righteousness Art and the Black Tortoise Iron Shell Art that we learned this ti."

However, Cheon Woojin was still lost in thought.

Of course, the two martial arts that Song Yiyeon had ntioned were also excellent. However, they were lacking to be used as a foundation martial art. Leaving aside whether it was a high-level martial art or not, the nature of the White Will Protecting Righteousness Art and the Black Tortoise Iron Shell Art itself was like that.

"It won't be easy to learn another heart formula now. The dantian that has once tasted the pure internal energy of the Virgin Boy Art will regard other internal energies as impurities."

As Cheon Woojin spoke in a serious tone, Song Yiyeon also nodded with a sowhat darkened face.

"...I know."

"In the end, it ans you have to learn another Virgin Boy Art."

And a Virgin Boy Art of a high level at that. However, since the Virgin Boy Art itself was a unique martial art, it would be really difficult to obtain. Even if he used the financial power of the Anhui Song family.

Cheon Woojin, who was thinking deeply, shook his head.

"For now, I haven't heard of any masters who have learned the Virgin Boy Art in this era."

"I suppose so. If they had mastered it, they would be the most famous masters of the era, and if not, they would all be hiding it like ."

In the sowhat serious atmosphere, Song Yiyeon suddenly clapped his hands and changed the mood.

"Well, what can we do? We'll have to try in various ways."

Cheon Woojin also nodded his head and agreed with Song Yiyeon's words.

"Anyway, for now, you're doing better than anyone else of your age. The full power you showed when you subjugated Heungsan Fortress was definitely superior to young hero Nangong's."

Song Yiyeon's eyes widened.

"Hah, is that really true? Am I stronger than that guy?"

"We'll have to exchange blows to know, but at least that's how I saw it."

Song Yiyeon felt sothing welling up inside him. Song Yiyeon trusted Cheon Woojin's words more than anyone else in the world.

"But you said I'm doing better than anyone else of my age, but compared to you, young hero, I'm nothing."

At Song Yiyeon's words, Cheon Woojin didn't know how to answer and just narrowed his brow. After thinking for a long ti, Cheon Woojin finally said cautiously.

"I'm an exception. I've been a bit unique since I was young. My masters always said so."

"...You're annoying."

"Anyway."

Cheon Woojin, unlike his usual self, let out a dry cough and looked away. While he was feeling Song Yiyeon's sharp gaze from the side.

Fortunately, Head Escort Jang stealthily approached and said.

"The escort is now in its final stages, how about we stop by a village for a al before we arrive?"

Cheon Woojin, who was about to change the subject, answered with a bright face.

"That's great. But, do you usually stop by a village for a al even when we're not here?"

If it was because of them, it would be a little difficult. Because he had no intention of uselessly delaying soone else's escort while on a mission.

At that, Head Escort Jang Seongguk, who had been like a 'kkondae' before the Heungsan Fortress incident, said with a truly benevolent smile.

"Of course. We're all doing this to make a living."

And so, before crossing the next mountain path, the escort followed a side road and entered a small village.

* * *

Song Yiyeon and Cheon Woojin just moved their chopsticks without a word.

Although it was a delicious al eaten outside for a change, the atmosphere was not good.

Head Escort Jang's expression had turned into that of a rotten pollack. He let out deep sighs and barely ate his rice with his chopsticks.

"A plague. Damn it, why now of all tis..."

"We'll have to go back, right?"

At Song Yiyeon's question, Head Escort Jang let out another deep sigh. Song Yiyeon scratched his head with an embarrassed expression.

"I suppose so. After all, the village with the plague is in the middle of a mountain path with only one village."

Head Escort Jang, who seed to be unable to swallow his food, soon put down his chopsticks. In the rapidly depressed atmosphere, everyone except Cheon Woojin let out a groan.

The escort was already sowhat delayed due to the Heungsan Fortress guys. However, he had thought that they would be able to reach the promised date just in ti, but a plague had suddenly caught them by the ankle.

It was truly a natural disaster that could not be helped by human power.

The problem was that it didn't seem like the Henan Escort Agency, the destination of the escort, would say, 'Ah, since it's a natural disaster, it couldn't be helped. Of course, you don't have to pay the penalty. There's no such thing as a human doing sothing without this much understanding.'

In the end, the Yicheng Escort Agency, which had arrived late due to taking a big detour around the mountain, would have to pay a penalty to the Henan Escort Agency, and the responsibility for that was solely on the head escort, Jang Seongguk.

"Hah..."

It was as if Jang Seongguk's sigh was piercing through the floor and extending into the ground.

Cheon Woojin glanced at Jang Seongguk and then ate his noodles again. It was his theory that there was no need to waste emotions on things that could not be helped by effort.

While he was eating his noodles alone like that.

"Hey, did you hear the rumor that Ma Butcher's daughter caught the plague?"

"What, what did you say!"

"That family's daughter, I tell you, she often went to Bogang County. Gae-pyeong from the cloth store said he saw a few blue spots on her neck and earlobes."

The conversation of two middle-aged n from a table quite far away was heard. Although they seed to have lowered their voices, they could not deceive Cheon Woojin's ears. Cheon Woojin stubbornly ate his noodles while concentrating on the conversation.

"No, isn't Bogang County a place with a plague? Why did she go there without fear?"

"I don't know. She might have hidden a man. Anyway, have you seen Ma Butcher's daughter recently?"

The man, who had been thinking for a long ti, shook his head.

"That's right. There's a rumor that Ma Butcher is hiding his daughter who caught the plague in a room and secretly looking for a doctor."

"Shouldn't we tell the villagers and chase them out? What if a big disaster befalls our village because of this!"

"Are you going to go and tell Ma Butcher?"

"No, that's..."

Hearing that, it seed that the man called Ma Butcher had quite a temper. Well, since he had never put down his knife his whole life, his temper would be as fiery as a decent martial artist's.

Cheon Woojin was lost in thought for a mont.

'Blue spots on the neck and earlobes.'

Generally, when one caught a plague, red spots would appear regardless of the body part, and blisters would form and pus would co out.

Blue spots were certainly not a common symptom.

The problem was that he had a mory of hearing about that symptom before.

- Woojin. A man's actions must be certain. Once you have drawn your sword, you must have the will to kill.

At that teaching of the Black Master, Cheon Woojin had once asked, 'Then, did you kill everyone you wanted to kill, master?'

- Mostly. Unfortunately, there are three martial artists I couldn't kill, and the first of them is the Dark Heavenly Son.

It was a story he already knew. However, the words that followed were quite interesting.

- The second is that White Master guy, and the third is a guy called the Poisonous Hand.

Since he had never heard the nickna 'Poisonous Hand' before, Cheon Woojin had asked, and the Black Master had continued to explain about him.

As one could infer from the nickna, he was a master of poison arts, and he had been a friend of the Black Master when he was young and a disciple of the Dark Heavenly Son.

'To be a friend of my master...'

Naturally, he would not be a normal man.

He was a madman who was crazy about poison, and it was said that he would not shy away from any ans, whether ethical or not, to research poison.

And so, after researching only poison arts his whole life, he had finally gone mad, and he had been caught and had run away after sprinkling poison on the sleeping young Black Master, saying he would experint on his body.

- I should have chased that guy and torn him to shreds, even if it ant vomiting blood, but my body was greatly injured, so I missed him. Even after that, I chased him for three years with the intention of smashing his head, but I couldn't find him.

Cheon Woojin, who recalled the past, smiled bitterly. Whenever his Black Master talked about the Poisonous Hand, he would grind his teeth as if he were still angry.

Of course, his White Master would refute those words like a habit.

- That's ridiculous. Does it make sense that a martial artist of your level couldn't catch a guy like that? You just let him go because you once considered him a friend, even though it was bitter. Although that guy is the greatest villain in the world, since he is a human, it's not that he has no emotions.

- Hmph, you're writing a novel.

Cheon Woojin, who had returned from his reverie, moved his chopsticks again and had a strange smile. At that sight, Song Yiyeon asked again.

"Young hero, what's wrong?"

"I was just thinking about the old days."

"Ah, about your masters?"

Cheon Woojin nodded his head.

Anyway, it was said that the Poisonous Hand would often poison entire small villages to confirm many cases when researching poison arts.

He would usually release the poison in the well or the largest farmland in the village.

When one was poisoned by his poison, the symptoms were very similar to the plague called smallpox, but strangely, blue spots would appear on the neck and earlobes.

Cheon Woojin, who had organized his thoughts, said to the still sullen Head Escort Jang.

"Can we make it on ti if we don't go around the mountain?"

Head Escort Jang's eyes widened for a mont, and he nodded his head vigorously.

Soon, Cheon Woojin, who had coolly drunk even the soup, put down his noodle bowl and said.

"Then let's go through the village right away."

"...We can't do that. The escort is important, but the escorts and porters are the greatest strength of the escort agency. If they catch the plague, the entire escort agency will be shaken."

Whether that was the case or not, Cheon Woojin, who had gotten up from his seat, adjusted the Crescent Moon Staff on his back and then said nonchalantly.

"What has spread in Bogang County is not a plague."

At the sa ti, not only Head Escort Jang and Song Yiyeon, but also everyone in the inn looked at Cheon Woojin with a surprised face.

(End of Chapter)