Ten days had passed since they began scouring the Beggars’ Sect headquarters.
Living as beggars, Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un had gathered a wealth of information. They learned that Nobong, said to be bedridden, wasn’t at the headquarters but was secretly staying somewhere in Kaifeng, still directing the sect. They also discovered that, aside from Nobong, only Haepung knew about the artificial energy cores.
“The reason those who retrieved the energy cores came to Kaifeng is likely singular,” Namgung Un said with a confident expression after completing their investigation. “Sect Leader Nobong, holed up near the headquarters, is the mastermind overseeing the energy cores.”
His efforts seemed to be bearing fruit, as Namgung Un had carefully observed and drawn fitting conclusions.
“I agree,” Bu Eunseol said, smiling at him. “Now we can shed this beggar disguise.”
Leaving the Beggars’ Sect was surprisingly simple yet difficult. One only needed to inform their mentor, return the knots, and be done. The challenge lay in the settlement process. The sect’s iron rule was that those leaving must abandon everything gained from the sect.
Though a righteous faction, the Beggars’ Sect was rooted in beggarhood, with simple, brutal rules—often an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Thus, not only the knots but also any martial arts learned had to be left behind. If one had learned hand techniques, their hands would be crippled; if leg techniques, their legs would be lamed. For inner energy techniques, one’s energy would be dispersed.
But when Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un, newly minted Second Knot disciples, announced their departure, Inguk readily agreed. “You can go.”
These two hadn’t even mastered a simple footwork technique that a child could learn in a day, despite four days of training. Haepung’s decision to promote them to Second Knot disciples, thinking they were promising, had been utterly mistaken.
“Are you returning to Fujian?” Inguk asked.
“Yes, sir,” Bu Eunseol replied.
“Very well,” Inguk said with a solemn expression. “But once you leave the sect, you must never mention its name. And forget everything you’ve seen and heard here.”
In a low voice, he continued, “Our disciples are spread across the Central Plains, watching your words and actions like the back of their hands. If you utter a single careless word, you’ll lose your life immediately. Understood?”
At Inguk’s grave words, Bu Eunseol bowed deeply, while Namgung Un just grinned.
“Go. I’ll handle the rest.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Hehe.”
As the two turned to leave, Inguk’s face showed a hint of regret. True beggars like them were rare in the sect now, and he’d grown slightly fond of them while teaching.
“They haven’t forgotten the righteous faction’s duty, at least,” Namgung Un muttered in a low voice as they walked down a mountain path after leaving the sect. “Leaving a sect isn’t easy, yet they let us go smoothly.”
Bu Eunseol shook his head. “If they truly upheld a beggar’s duty, they wouldn’t have touched artificial energy cores.”
“What?”
“A couple of nobodies became Second Knot disciples at the headquarters,” Bu Eunseol said firmly. “Inguk may have wanted to let us go, but Haepung, hearing this news, won’t let us off easily.”
“No way,” Namgung Un said, shaking his head. Even if the sect was corrupt, he couldn’t believe they’d harm former disciples. “Then why formally announce we’re leaving? They wouldn’t have noticed if we just slipped away.”
“I told you, the Beggars’ Sect seems lax but is a meticulous intelligence organization,” Bu Eunseol said, gazing at the distant sky. “If we vanished quietly, they’d sense something was off and investigate our every move. If they discovered one of us is a Southern Palace scion, it’d cause trouble.”
Only then did Namgung Un realize something. If Bu Eunseol had infiltrated the headquarters alone, the sect would never have traced him. He had taken the risk of formally leaving for Namgung Un’s sake.
Sniff.
Namgung Un wiped his nose. There was no need to thank Bu Eunseol for every little thing. He was his sworn brother, and Namgung Un would follow him for life.
Step, step.
Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un left the village, crossing a mountain pass to the next. The sun was setting, painting the sky golden. As they passed through a dense forest trail, a sharp whistle cut through the air.
Whoosh.
Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un collapsed instantly. Long needles were lodged in their necks.
Rustle.
A middle-aged beggar in tattered clothes emerged from the bushes—Inguk.
Step, step.
He checked their pulses. No heartbeat—they were dead. As he pulled out the needles, black liquid oozed out. The poison, from the Seven-Step Gut-Severing Snake, killed before one could take seven steps.
“Was this really necessary?” Inguk muttered, looking at their bodies with a pained expression.
Though not bright, they were innocent and pure disciples. Since they had barely learned martial arts, he thought letting them go would be permitted. But when Haepung heard they were leaving, he issued an unexpected order:
“Send disciples to deal with them quietly.” Inguk had pleaded, insisting they were harmless, simple beggars. But Haepung was unmoved.
“The sect is achieving a great cause. No disruptions or cracks can be allowed.”
At Haepung’s firm command, Inguk decided to handle it himself. Rather than let other disciples kill them painfully, he’d do it cleanly and bury them quietly.
“Poor souls.” Tears welled in Inguk’s eyes. Teaching them had been frustrating, but their pure, desireless demeanor had briefly cleansed his heart. “What sin did you commit? It’s my fault for dragging you, mere beggars, into the harsh martial world.”
Muttering with a pained expression, Inguk drew his short staff and began digging. After creating two deep pits, he carefully buried Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un.
“In your next life, be born into a good family, not as beggars.”
Night had fallen, and moonlight bathed the scene. After a deep sigh, Inguk turned away.
About an hour later, Boom! Soil and sand shot into the air, and two figures emerged in the moonlight—Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un, having undone their disguises.
“There are good people in the Beggars’ Sect too,” Namgung Un said, looking wistfully at where Inguk had gone.
Knowing Inguk was secretly following, they had walked calmly. When he fired the poisoned needles, they blocked their acupoints to stop the poison and used the Turtle Breathing Technique to feign death.
“It’s separate from the sect’s actions,” Bu Eunseol said, his gaze subdued.
In truth, few disciples at the headquarters were tainted by evil. It was only the leadership, corrupt and divided, that caused the disciples to follow suit.
“Now we find Nobong, hiding in Kaifeng,” Bu Eunseol said.
Namgung Un replied cautiously, “Just the two of us? Shouldn’t we call my palace’s intelligence operatives?”
“In the Beggars’ Sect’s territory, especially Kaifeng, bringing in operatives would alert them immediately.”
“But just the two of us searching…”
“Don’t worry. We’ll find him easily.”
“How?”
Bu Eunseol looked at the distant sky. “What did the sect’s disciples at the headquarters think of Nobong, the current leader?”
“They wanted to know if he’s recovered or what he’s been up to.”
“Yet they can’t find him in Kaifeng. What does that mean?”
“Well…” Namgung Un nodded, realizing something. “He’s in a place beggars would never go.”
“Exactly,” Bu Eunseol said in a low voice. “With so many beggars roaming Kaifeng, yet no trace of Nobong, he must be in a place they can’t access.”
The next day, Namgung Un emerged from an inn, transformed back into a refined young master of a noble clan. Overnight, he had scrubbed off the grime, removed the yellow dye and debris from his teeth, and donned clean blue robes that smelled faintly of fragrance. He felt like an immortal soaring through the heavens.
“Ahh.”
Spreading his arms under the bright sunlight, Namgung Un marveled. Wearing clean clothes, eating proper food, sleeping in a clean bed—these things he once took for granted now felt profoundly blissful.
“I didn’t realize it was this good,” he said, taking a deep breath. “I’ve been living far too happily.”
Bu Eunseol gave a faint smile. “It’s good to be content with life, but don’t seek happiness through comparison. That only makes your heart more barren.”
Namgung Un paused, struck by the depth in Bu Eunseol’s brief words, which carried the insight of an elder facing twilight.
“You’re right. I shouldn’t find happiness through comparison.”
Looking up makes you feel endlessly small; looking down makes you feel endlessly great. Such is human perspective and satisfaction.
“Are you satisfied with your life, Brother Bu?” Namgung Un asked, assuming the answer would be affirmative.
But Bu Eunseol shook his head. “Not at all.”
For Bu Eunseol, happiness was clear: his grandfather, Bu Zhanyang, who gave him a name, teachings, and boundless love. Those peaceful days with him were the only happiness in his life.
“Brother Bu,” Namgung Un repeated, his expression wistful.
At the mention of happiness, Bu Eunseol’s eyes turned ashen, like burned-out embers, reflecting the pain of yearning for something unattainable.
“There are many things in this world that can make you happy,” Namgung Un said firmly. “They may not be visible or within reach yet, but…”
With a smile brighter than the morning sun, he added, “You’ll definitely find them.”
Bu Eunseol had a knack for casting a lonely, desolate aura around him. Yet Namgung Un, untainted by it, radiated warmth and hope, sharing that light with others—a feat Bu Eunseol could never accomplish. He could achieve the near-impossible, but sharing such warmth and hope was beyond him.
Softly, in his heart, Bu Eunseol murmured, ‘May his path be filled with only bright light.’
Unbeknownst to him, Namgung Un was fervently praying the same: ‘Heavenly spirits, please let Brother Bu live a happy life.’
Everyone has something different. Failing to accept that breeds envy and personal misery. These two, heedless of their own possessions, wished only for each other’s happiness.
Because of this bond, one would later rise as the pinnacle swordsman of the righteous faction, while the other would become a grand master transcending both righteous and evil paths.
***
Where do beggars avoid begging?
The estates of nobles or high officials? Gambling dens or brothels of the black path? Escort agencies teeming with armed escorts? Money exchanges? Or martial academies that never open to outsiders, fearing technique leaks?
The answer: places guarded by fierce warriors or gatekeepers. Lingering there risks a beating that could leave one crippled for a few coins.
But there’s an even more avoided place: remote estates or mountain villas far from the city. Visiting such places for a handful of rice or coins could mean starving on the way back. Beggars must roam countless times for a single bite, so they absolutely avoid isolated estates.
Cheonhwa Villa, nestled deep in Cheonhwa Mountain, far from the city, was one such place. The grand villa by a lake exuded an eerie atmosphere. Its owner, Gwanbi, the Kaifeng Fist Master, had once gained fame for creating the Empty Cloud Fist. Retired long ago, he reportedly built this villa to train disciples in his technique.
Under a moonlit night, two figures overlooked Cheonhwa Villa—Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un.
“I never imagined the Beggars’ Sect leader would be hiding there,” Namgung Un said, standing atop a peak overlooking the villa. “The shadowy forces have wide reach, setting up a hideout in a place with no connection.”
Bu Eunseol and Namgung Un had searched remote estates near Kaifeng that beggars would never visit, pinpointing Cheonhwa Villa as Nobong’s hideout.
“It’s not just wide reach. Gwanbi, the villa’s owner, is likely their puppet,” Bu Eunseol said in a low voice. “Otherwise, he wouldn’t have willingly offered his villa as a hideout.”
Even with the sect’s influence, using an unconnected place like Cheonhwa Villa was unlikely. Thus, Gwanbi was surely in league with Nobong and the shadowy forces behind the energy cores.
“That makes sense,” Namgung Un said, scratching his head.
Bu Eunseol added, “With warriors who’ve consumed artificial energy cores gathered there, it’s more than a mere hideout.”
Their investigation revealed that the villa housed warriors who had taken energy cores or Demon Seeds, which originated from this place. Nobong, under the pretense of illness, had settled here to manage the energy cores.
“No wonder the sect is divided,” Namgung Un said. “The leader neglects sect duties to collude with external forces.”
Nobong, citing illness, had long abandoned sect affairs. Haepung, aware of Nobong’s collaboration with external forces to create energy cores, was secretly collecting them to build his own faction. Yet most disciples, unaware of this, saw both Nobong and Haepung as neglecting sect duties.
“I just don’t understand,” Namgung Un said, shaking his head. “Nobong doesn’t seem to want a stronger sect, wealth, or pleasure. Why do this?”
As sect leader, Nobong could wield power and luxury rivaling an emperor. Yet he seemed unattached to the sect. Why, after reaching such heights, would he orchestrate this?
“Perhaps he became sect leader to do this,” Bu Eunseol said.
Namgung Un’s jaw dropped. “You mean Nobong was a spy from the start?”
“It’s just a possibility. The martial world is riddled with spies.”
“Hm.” Namgung Un crossed his arms. “Dealing with them will spill a lot of blood.”
The villa likely housed warriors who had consumed energy cores or Demon Seeds, granting immense power that ordinary martial artists couldn’t match.
“I’ll request reinforcements from my palace,” Namgung Un said, then corrected himself, scratching his head. “No, since you uncovered all this, Brother Bu, the demonic path should handle it.”
If Bu Eunseol resolved this, his fame would echo across the land. But he shook his head calmly. “I don’t need accolades. If I wanted them, I wouldn’t have infiltrated the sect.”
“What?”
“Let’s deal with them first.”
“Then I’ll request support from my palace.”
“No need to sacrifice your palace’s forces,” Bu Eunseol said, gazing faintly at the villa. “The sect has already done irreversible things. They should clean up their own mess.”
“How?”
“The stage is already set.”
“What?”
“They’re already divided.”
Bu Eunseol smiled and began giving Namgung Un various instructions.
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