Volume 6 Chapter 4 – Sword Family Fortress

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Translated by Rain

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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The Red Venom Spider stood up from her seat and spoke.

“The Emei Sect has drawn the Dali Duan Family into an alliance to keep the Sichuan Tang Family in check.”

The Fourth Young Master nodded.

“The Chengdu Governor’s wife is precisely a member of that Dali Duan Family.”

At those words, Yeom Baek-ha slapped her palm down.

“So that was why! The reason why her father, the Chengdu Governor, cannot stop the Emei Sect’s blatant atrocities against the Tea Fan Maiden, which Sangwan Nan-hwa established with her friends…!”

“That is right. In the first place, the very fact that the Chengdu Governor could rise to that position was thanks to his wife and the Dali Duan Family.”

At those words, Yeon Ha-eung wore a bitter expression.

“Is it the Dali Duan Family’s strategy to grow the Emei Sect to have it keep the Tang Family in check? To leave her own daughter to be pressured for such a reason. The Governor’s wife is indeed a frightening person.”

“It is not that rare of a personality, either.”

“Especially the higher up one goes.”

“Sigh…”

Yeom Baek-ha asked a question to stop the flow from drifting sideways.

“Then what is the situation of the other Tea Fan Maidens?”

“Their families are wealthy, but their business foundations are entirely within the territory of the Emei Sect.”

The Fourth Young Master crossed his arms and sighed.

“They are effectively holding their families hostage.”

Elder Yu nodded.

“And the rest of the Tea Fan Maidens are also hostages to keep Sangwan Nan-hwa bound.”

* * *

At a safe zone near their arrival at the Luoyang Sword Family, Elder Yeom and the troops bid farewell to the investment delegation.

They would head to a nearby outer barracks of the Luoyang Sword Family for maintenance before returning to the War Department.

Although everyone shared brief greetings, the window of the Emei Sect’s carriage never opened.

Elder Yeom did not pay attention to the Emei Sect either.

Thus, the investment delegation’s procession began to climb the hill along the highway of the Luoyang Sword Family.

“This way.”

And as they drew near the Luoyang Sword Family, the window of the Emei Sect’s carriage opened.

At the sight of a wrinkled hand coming out and beckoning, the nun accompanying the Abbess of Administration quickly rode her horse to the side of the carriage.

“Yes, Lady Abbess of Administration.”

From the dark carriage, the low voice of the Abbess of Administration leaked out.

“From now on, make sure to warn the children never to display any signs of agitation.”

Bowing her head at those words, the nun sent a sound transmission to the Emei Sect members.

[Everyone, it is the order of the Abbess of Administration to be strictly careful never to look around or lose focus.]

No sooner had the sound transmission ended than exclamations burst from the procession riding ahead.

“Oh!”

The members of the investment delegation began to make a fuss, regardless of who it was.

“Is that place indeed the Main Family of the Luoyang Sword Family!”

“Hey, move your head out of the way over there!”

“No, why are you blaming me for your short neck?”

As the noisy racket was heard, the Abbess of Administration clicked her tongue and slammed the window shut.

Regardless, the members of the investment delegation poked their heads out of the carriages climbing the gentle slope and made a fuss over the panoramic view unfolding before them.

To the stubborn people of the Imperial Capital or the prestige-loving people of Luoyang, it would appear as an undignified sight.

Yeon Ha-eung, who was riding on the roof of the carriage, smiled bitterly to himself.

‘But that is the characteristic of the cheerful Sichuan people.’

Just as he thought.

The one most excited by the appearance of the Luoyang Sword Family beginning to reveal itself beyond the hill was Tang Go-gyu, the sage of the Tang Sect and representative of the investment delegation.

Sitting beside Yeon Ha-eung, he was clapping his hands and rejoicing like a child.

Seeing this, Yeon Ha-eung smiled and asked.

“Have you not visited here several times in the past, Sage Tang?”

Tang Go-gyu nodded, smiling brightly.

“Indeed. Yes. But there is no helping that I find myself marveling every time I see it.”

Right then, another exclamation of ‘Woah!’ arose from the members of the investment delegation.

A middle-aged man, poking his head far out of the carriage, shouted toward Tang Go-gyu with his face flushed in excitement.

“Sage Tang! Sage Tang! Is that indeed the famous ramparts of the Sword Family?!”

As they climbed the slope, everyone could not contain their marvel at the sight of the red ramparts revealing themselves as if rising abruptly.

It was not colored by the sunset; it was actually a red wall.

“What a consistent response!”

Tang Go-gyu chuckled at that question and shook his head.

“Everyone asks like that when they first visit the Sword Family, but no. It is not!”

In place of Tang Go-gyu, who was too busy laughing, Yeon Ha-eung explained in a loud voice.

“That is merely an earthen fortress! The Main Family excavated and restored the ruins of an ancient dynasty and refined it slightly!”

The reason it gave off a red tint was because it was an earthen wall.

However, just as Tang Go-gyu had said, the reason people showed such a consistent response was because the scale of that earthen wall was grand.

As the procession headed toward the entrance of the earthen fortress along the well-paved carriage road, the gateway entrance reconstructed by the Luoyang Sword Family came into view.

“That is the very first gateway leading to the Sword Family!”

Just as he said, the entrance of the earthen fortress was constructed in the form of a complex wooden fortress.

Once the carriages that had arrived earlier and were waiting for their turn slowly moved out, Yeon Ha-eung stepped down from the carriage.

“Yo! Hard work!”

At his characteristically energetic greeting, the Gate Commander welcomed him with a smile.

“Why, isn’t this Advisor Yeon?”

Due to the nature of the Outer Courtyard’s work, where Yeon Ha-eung went in and out as if crossing his own threshold, the Gate Commander could not possibly fail to know him.

“You know that even Advisor Yeon must follow the inspection procedures, right?”

“Of course, of course.”

Yeon Ha-eung took out his identification card, the Luoyang Sword Family’s entry permit, and the Fourth Young Master’s invitation for the investment delegation from his chest pocket and handed them to the Gate Guard Captain.

“Please wait a moment.”

In the meantime, an approaching guard member rubbed a cotton ball dabbed with chemicals onto Yeon Ha-eung’s face.

“Verification for human skin masks and disguise completed. Thank you for your cooperation.”

Entering a small office, the Gate Guard Captain verified the authenticity of the identification card and the entry permit.

And only after meticulously comparing the invitation with the request for entry cooperation for the Fourth Young Master’s investment delegation, which had been submitted in advance, did he step outside.

“Thank you for waiting.”

“Not at all. Haha.”

Handing back Yeon Ha-eung’s belongings, the Gate Guard Captain waved his hand to signal his subordinates.

“Pass through!”

Thereupon, the guard members cleared the wooden barriers to open the way.

The repeating crossbows that had been aimed at the procession from atop the earthen wall also turned away, and the gazes of the guard members, who had their hands on quivers in various places, directed toward the next approaching carriage.

“Now, we move again!”

The barriers were cleared and the investment delegation’s procession began to move again, but it could not run as fast as before.

This was due to the internal structure of the gateway, which bent in a zigzag shape.

“…”

Those who poked their heads out to look fell silent.

Because the sight of the troops positioned above the zigzag passage, ready to unleash crossfire at any moment, was threatening.

Nevertheless, no one pulled their head back inside the carriage.

Because they were anticipating what kind of landscape would unfold as soon as the gateway ended.

“Oooh!”

This time, indeed, the stone citadel of the Luoyang Sword Family revealed its majestic grandeur.

A height where one could not even scale it by leaning a ladder against it.

A length that stretched beyond human vision.

It was a scale unbelievable to have been fortified by a single family.

Wonderment.

“…”

Even the people of the investment delegation, who had been chattering eagerly, shut their mouths.

Or, with their mouths wide open, they could not say a word.

For such a massive citadel to exist in the land of Luoyang, where an invasion by external enemies was hard to imagine, made the viewer feel a severe sense of incongruity.

Yeon Ha-eung smiled bitterly to himself at those people’s reactions.

‘Since even I, who travel this road constantly, am bound to lose my speech every time I see it…’

Just then, Tang Go-gyu spoke to Yeon Ha-eung in a low voice.

“Seeing those fellows’ complexions, it feels like the rice cake I choked on during my fifth birthday has finally gone down.”

“Is that so…?”

At his words, Yeon Ha-eung peeked back slightly.

The reactions of the Emei Sect members were diverse.

A nun who, blankly staring at the grandeur of the ramparts, steered her horse in the wrong direction.

A nun who, while pretending to look elsewhere, stealthily examined the equipment of the light-armored cavalry unit on patrol.

A nun who had a blunt expression, yet her complexion was somehow pale.

The luxurious Buddhist robes and extravagant jewelry the nuns wore were losing their luster in an instant.

“Indeed, this is the world’s number one family…”

“The saying that they place everyone below them beneath the imperial court has no exaggeration.”

“Not on the borderlands, but a fortress city right in the middle of the Central Plains. Is it to show off the power of the Sword Family?”

“If so, the effect is certainly clear. To think a single family accomplished all of this, my legs are trembling.”

“Haha. Just looking at this sight, wouldn’t the enemies of the Luoyang Sword Family be paralyzed with fear?”

At the talk that began to drift to his ears, Yeon Ha-eung muttered.

“Is that really so…?”

Hearing that voice, Tang Go-gyu, who was examining the ramparts, asked.

“I was distracted and did not hear. What did you say?”

Yeon Ha-eung waved his hand.

“No. It is nothing.”

Looking at Yeon Ha-eung in slight puzzlement for a moment, Tang Go-gyu got distracted by sight-seeing, looking around again.

‘No matter how high they build the walls, no matter how thick they build the walls, there will always be those who covet and try to occupy what belongs to others.’

Yeon Ha-eung looked up at the ramparts that drew closer, the top of which could not be seen without craning one’s neck.

‘The more one possesses, the more one fears losing even more than that, and the more one gains, the more one covets others’ belongings.’

Look at this tower of vanity and showmanship built by the Luoyang Sword Family.

Look at this wall, which seems to shape the image of iron-fist rule and iron-fist sanctions.

Look at the history built with blood and corpses, regardless of ally or enemy.

Look at those who willingly hate the Luoyang Sword Family.

‘Emei’s Starry White Hair, the Old Poison Fiend.’

Even without confirming, he could tell that the old woman was glaring at the ramparts of the Luoyang Sword Family with smoldering eyes inside the dark carriage.

Since the era of the Martial Alliance ended, the Emei Sect had followed the success stories of the noble families and was enjoying success incomparable to the past.

‘Although many other sects collapsed as times changed, the old woman had successfully revived the Emei Sect.’

Yet, the old woman hated the Luoyang Sword Family.

Merely because they stood above them, she envied the Luoyang Sword Family.

To catch up with the Luoyang Sword Family, what on earth would that old woman not do?

The Luoyang Sword Family, which constantly built walls, was a hungry ghost, and those who coveted that position were also hungry ghosts.

The world was a battlefield of hungry ghosts.

‘Then again, I am not in a position to speak like this, either.’

Yeon Ha-eung laughed at himself.

Was he himself not someone trying to get hold of the Kaifeng Yeon Family?

Was he not someone who thought hundreds of times a day about how to take the family, or else burn it all down?

How could such a person point fingers at others?

His gaze directed toward the carriage the Tea Fan Maidens were riding.

They too were busy poking their heads out of the window, sight-seeing the scenery of the Luoyang Sword Family, which they were seeing for the first time in their lives.

‘I wonder which side they are on.’

A situation where hungry ghosts, trying to eat them alive, charge.

Are they prepared to survive in this dog-eat-dog struggle?

Are they prepared to willingly become a hungry ghost, to eat and be eaten?

“Is it said that the inside of these ramparts is that famous fortress city?”

At that question, Tang Go-gyu burst into laughter again and replied.

“I knew indeed that question would come! Hahaha!”

Swallowing a bitter smile inwardly, Yeon Ha-eung answered in a loud voice.

“These ramparts are merely the outer city, and past the outer city residential area lies the inner city!”

It was so.

The fortress city of the Luoyang Sword Family was even a double fortress.