Chapter 340 – When Heart Reaches Its Peak, Heaven Moves (3)

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When Dam-ho straightened and looked up, Jin Gung-ja had already vanished. Left in his wake was a masterless sword and a severed arm gripping its handle. Fresh blood still dripped from the arm severed at the forearm.

Anyone, even a three-year-old child, could tell that the arm belonged to Jin Gung-ja. Dam-ho silently gazed at his arm.

Though Dam-ho defeated Jin Gung-ja and severed his arm, his expression wasn’t bright. Jin Gung-ja was a master from the previous generation of Mount Hua Sect. Dam-ho himself didn’t regard him highly, but his master Hyeon-so was different.

Jin Gung-ja held the position of shifu to Hyeon-so. When the two faced each other, it was obvious what spiritual suffering Master Hyeon-so would endure.

Dam-ho didn’t want such a situation to arise. So he couldn’t help but feel regretful that he couldn’t kill Jin Gung-ja now.

Dam-ho shook his head slightly and turned around. Then he saw the Azure Sky Escort porters who had barely survived. Fewer than half the original personnel had survived. The survivors too all bore wounds large and small.

“Krek!”

Nam Woo-saeng, who had been knocked down by Jin Gung-ja, forced his body to rise.

Though suffering severe injuries where even breathing was painful, he forced himself up and walked toward Dam-ho.

“Haah, haah! Thank you, Great Hero Dam.”

“……”

So much blood had Nam Woo-saeng lost that his face was pale as death, and his eyes were filled with tears.

He wasn’t crying from his own wounds. He wept for the Azure Sky Escort brothers who had died meaninglessly that day.

Their deaths pained his heart more than his own injuries. Yet he endured the pain.

He wasn’t an ordinary person but the head escort of Azure Sky Escort Agency. He bore responsibility for organizing the situation and had to prioritize the greater good under all circumstances.

Expressing gratitude to Dam-ho came first, and cleaning up the scene came second.

After thanking Dam-ho, Nam Woo-saeng approached the surviving escorts.

“Krek! Head Escort…”

“Waaaaah!”

The survivors burst into tears the moment they saw Nam Woo-saeng’s face.

Sorrow at losing comrades they had worked alongside overshadowed joy at survival.

Nam Woo-saeng consoled them.

“It’s alright. It’s alright.”

But hot tears streamed endlessly from his own eyes too.

After weeping for a while, Nam Woo-saeng wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and spoke:

“Now let’s collect the bodies. We have a long way to go.”

“B-but Head Escort!”

“How can we?”

The escorting porters and hired workers looked at Nam Woo-saeng with resentful gazes. They resented that he spoke of transporting cargo before their sorrow had even faded.

But Nam Woo-saeng was resolute.

“Didn’t you know this might happen? We are martial artists who staked our lives on transporting cargo. Even if comrades die, we have the responsibility to transport cargo to where our clients desire. Moreover, the cargo we transport goes to Shaolin Temple and the Martial Alliance. Weeping can be done after transport is complete.”

“Krekek!”

“Head Escort!”

The escorts gritted their teeth and suppressed their tears.

Not that Nam Woo-saeng wasn’t sad. But he knew that only successfully transporting the cargo would prevent his comrades’ deaths from being in vain.

“Let’s move.”

At Nam Woo-saeng’s words, the escorts began collecting their comrades’ bodies and cargo.

“Krek!”

“Uuh! I’m sorry.”

The moment they saw their dead comrades’ faces, tears burst forth. Their faces quickly became drenched with tears.

Weeping, they gathered their comrades’ bodies and loaded them onto a large cart. Seeing their comrades loaded like cargo caused fresh tears to flow.

Some escorts collected scattered cargo. Though some had disappeared into the river, considerable amounts still lay on the deck.

They transferred the cargo to an intact cart.

Dam-ho silently watched all of this. Their sorrow reached him through the air.

Suddenly Dam-ho’s gaze turned to the opposite side. Where uncollected bodies still lay. He was there.

‘Jo Su-gwang.’

The young escort porter who had asked Dam-ho to remember his name. He still lay on the ground uncollected.

Dam-ho lifted Jo Su-gwang in his arms.

He was heavy.

Dam-ho carefully placed Jo Su-gwang on the cart. At Dam-ho’s action, the escorts’ eyes reddened.

They knew how much Jo Su-gwang had respected Dam-ho.

“Still, you’re lucky. To have someone you so admired accompany you to the end.”

“Go well, Su-gwang.”

The escorts who had been close to Jo Su-gwang in life each said a word. Dam-ho thought Jo Su-gwang’s path wouldn’t be lonely.

Finally, all bodies and cargo were collected. But their horses fell far short. Many had been swept away in the river or killed during the assault.

Especially, there was no horse to pull the cart carrying the bodies. The cart was so large that one or two horses couldn’t budge it.

While the escorts wore confused expressions, Dam-ho brought over Black Ghost. Dam-ho removed all other horses and had Black Ghost take their place.

“I ask this of you.”

At Dam-ho’s words, Black Ghost snorted and exerted strength. The enormous cart, which hadn’t moved an inch, began moving smoothly.

Dam-ho walked silently beside Black Ghost.

***

“The greatest problem is insufficient funds.”

“Mm!”

“So many people have joined suddenly, causing many unexpected problems. But the greatest problem is that far too much capital is required for the personnel.”

The middle-aged monk earnestly speaking was Gwang-in, who oversaw Shaolin Temple’s finances.

In the vast main hall where Gwang-in spoke, both Shaolin Temple’s and the Martial Alliance’s leadership had gathered.

The atmosphere in the hall was extremely heavy. There was no helping it. Since the Martial Alliance’s martial artists joined Shaolin, unexpected problems had been surfacing.

First, with so many people joining suddenly, lodging problems arose. With ten to twenty people crammed into single rooms, martial artists poured out complaints.

If everyone received rooms fairly, it would be one matter. But only lower-tier martial artists received such arrangements.

Second was the food problem.

Shaolin Temple fundamentally prohibited meat consumption. Shaolin’s monks were accustomed to not eating meat. Ordinary martial artists were different. They weren’t accustomed to the austere vegetarian life. They secretly brought meat in and cooked it. But to the meat-prohibiting Shaolin monks, this was unforgivable.

Due to such circumstances, conflicts arose between ordinary martial artists and Shaolin monks. Unforeseen problems caused Shaolin’s leadership and Martial Alliance’s leadership to convene.

They barely reached agreement to permit meat consumption only at a simple restaurant set up outside Shaolin Temple, temporarily settling the problem. But problems weren’t limited to meat.

With two groups having entirely different living environments meeting without preparation, numerous problems surfaced. Resolving such problems required enormous expenditure. Consequently, Shaolin’s previously solid treasury began to empty rapidly.

The Martial Alliance had also hastily retreated with little cargo. In reality, the massive Martial Alliance appeared to be living off Shaolin Temple’s support.

There was much needed but insufficient funds. Money to purchase weapons, grain to fill storehouses, all were insufficient. Though Shaolin’s lay affiliates provided support, it wasn’t enough.

This wasn’t a problem that could be resolved through belt-tightening or modest assistance. Consequently, discontent was emerging even among Shaolin’s monks.

Being the one managing Shaolin’s vast storehouses, Gwang-in’s sense of crisis was greater than anyone’s.

Nam Cheon-san and Namgung Chang wore troubled expressions.

Though they held positions as Martial Alliance Leader and Military Advisor, such positions proved useless at times like these.

When the Martial Alliance was thriving, they couldn’t have imagined having to worry about such problems. Shaolin’s storehouses had always been full of treasure and grain. Now that it had fallen, little remained in their hands.

Gwang-cheon, Shaolin’s abbot, spoke:

“Amitabha Buddha! Continuing like this, we’ll collapse among ourselves before opposing the Demon Cult. We must establish countermeasures immediately.”

“Indeed. The longer time passes like this, the more disadvantageous our position becomes.”

Shaolin’s monks spoke earnestly.

Watching them, Nam Cheon-san’s expression darkened noticeably. He glanced at Namgung Chang.

Though personally opposed to Namgung Chang, Nam Cheon-san acknowledged his ability. It was thanks to Namgung Chang that the Martial Alliance could build its strength.

He hoped Namgung Chang would provide answers this time too. And Namgung Chang didn’t disappoint his expectations.

“Shaolin Temple is martial world’s final sanctuary. If this place falls, the martial world will suffer irreparable damage. No single sect or family can oppose the Demon Cult alone.”

“Everyone already knows that fact, do they not? Don’t dance around the subject. Speak directly, Military Advisor.”

One of Shaolin’s monks spoke with undisguised dissatisfaction.

Despite the irritation, Namgung Chang’s expression remained unchanged as he continued:

“Therefore, I intend to request greater support of military forces and funds from each sect.”

“Do you truly think they will agree?”

“As I mentioned, they have no choice. The Martial Alliance has already fallen. If Shaolin and what remains of the Martial Alliance collapse further, no protective barrier will exist to shield them.”

“Yet not all sects regard the Martial Alliance’s actions favorably.”

“I understand. But they too have no choice.”

“Mm!”

“Especially larger sects have much to protect. They will prefer to see the Martial Alliance bleed on their behalf rather than shed blood themselves.”

“Amitabha Buddha!”

At Namgung Chang’s blunt words, Shaolin’s monks closed their eyes and recited sacred verses. No matter their shared thoughts, hearing such unfiltered speech was difficult.

After all, Shaolin had provided support precisely to avoid stepping forward directly.

Gwang-cheon spoke:

“Amitabha Buddha! In cases like Wudang Sect, Kongtong Sect, Qingcheng Sect, or Emei Sect, Military Advisor Namgung’s words mean obtaining support won’t be difficult. Though distances separate us, they’ve long shared our intentions. The problem is Mount Hua Sect.”

Instantly, Namgung Chang’s complexion stiffened completely.

Mount Hua Sect was his achilles heel.

Everyone with even slight knowledge of martial world affairs knew that he had failed to support the badly damaged Mount Hua three years ago due to personal feelings.

Especially, his irredeemable hatred for Mount Hua’s Fist Demon Dam-ho was legendary. The damage Dam-ho inflicted on the Namgung Family had been tremendous. It had severely broken the Namgung Family’s spirit.

“Amitabha Buddha! Now is a time when we need even one more supreme master. If the Fist Demon were to join us, it would truly be reassuring.”

“Indeed. Though he has a brutal personality, he still ranks among martial world’s top supreme masters. If we could persuade him to join, it would surely be an enormous help.”

“The Demon Cult itself fears this martial artist. Did he not crush the Tang Clan’s and Demon Cult’s schemes in Sichuan Province? With persuasion, he could become tremendous strength.”

Shaolin’s monks murmured among themselves. Namgung Chang and the Martial Alliance personnel’s expressions visibly stiffened.

Gwang-cheon’s gaze turned toward Namgung Chang.

“Military Advisor!”

“Yes, Abbot.”

“What do you think of our suggestions?”

“Most reasonable words indeed. I naturally agree.”

“You mean we must recruit Mount Hua Sect and the Fist Demon?”

“Yes. I will draw them in by whatever means necessary.”

Namgung Chang answered with deliberate composure. But he couldn’t help his eye corners trembling.

His fingernails dug into his palms as he clenched his fists so hard.

‘Fist Demon!’

That despicable name tormented him even here at Shaolin.