Chapter 142. A Chance to Protect

Zhuge In-hwi thought that he must bring Tang So-hwa to the Four Seasons Hall.

He had to read for himself the thoughts trapped in that abyss.

Yet instead of revealing his confusion, he spoke calmly.

“So please wait as well, Young Lady Tang. I cannot return while leaving the Alliance Leader behind. At the same time, I cannot send only you and the Young Lord back to the headquarters first. It was because the Blood Sect abducted you that we came this far. We cannot know what might happen on the road you two take, and I cannot spare anyone to accompany you and divide our strength.”

Tang So-hwa stepped back.

“I will wait for a quarter of an hour.”

And at once she sharpened her tone again.

“But after a quarter-hour, even if you say such things, I will depart.”

Zhuge In-hwi was about to say that even a quarter-hour was unacceptable.

“Hall Lord.”

Had Namgung Jin not intervened.

The Young Lord of the Namgung Clan, with a smile as if he had no intention of fighting, stepped in front of Zhuge In-hwi.

“We will move.”

At that tactless remark, Zhuge In-hwi turned his head toward the Young Lord.

The latter went on cheerfully, as if sensing nothing.

“After all, we did not leave from the headquarters, so we are not obliged to undergo inspection at the Four Seasons Hall, are we? Those at the headquarters never granted us permission to depart, either.”

Namgung Jin, with his characteristically upright voice, ignored the pressure of the Four Seasons Hall Lord.

“And is there not a Hubei branch near the headquarters? We can take Young Lord Tang Hak to the Medical Hall of the Hubei branch for urgent treatment, and when you all arrive, we will then bring him back to the headquarters.”

Before Zhuge In-hwi could reply, Namgung Jin added words that touched on a sensitive matter.

“If we go to the Hubei branch, the Tang Clan will not be subject to needless suspicion either. After all, the Wudang Sect and the Zhuge Clan are also at the Hubei branch.”

When Namgung Jin intervened, Tang So-hwa shifted the conversation at once.

“As soon as we arrive at the Hubei branch, I will request reinforcements. I will send people here.”

“Ah, Young Lady Tang, that will not be necessary. On the way here, I already requested reinforcements from the branch. By the time you and I reach the branch, reinforcements will already have arrived here.”

At those words, Tang So-hwa’s gaze turned aside.

“You are still quick in judgment.”

Namgung Jin gave a bitter smile and shrugged.

“Yes, people do not change so easily.”

It seemed to be a conversation that only the two of them could understand.

The eldest daughter of the Tang Clan and the eldest son of the Namgung Clan exchanged glances, mocking the authority of the headquarters figure standing before them.

Behind them, Namgung Hyun’s energy also sank into gloom.

The Four Seasons Hall Lord, his head a tangle of thoughts, swallowed a deep sigh.

Fortunately, fortune favored him.

Zhuge In-hwi sensed a passage opening behind him.

Wind blew in through a great fissure in the rock.

Sssaaa—

And he felt the energies of those before him shift.

Especially, Tang So-hwa’s aura froze cold.

The Alliance Leader had crossed over, and Muso was overjoyed.

“Alliance Leader! What in the world happened?”

“It is a relief to see you unharmed.”

“… But why have even the Blood Sect members who were sprawled about vanished?”

Those who had been waiting for the Alliance Leader each threw out questions, but no answer came.

He walked straight toward them.

Thud.

Zhuge In-hwi lowered his gaze to the ground. The Alliance Leader had thrown something. From the dull sound, it seemed to be a block of wood.

“Do you know what this is?”

Whether the question was directed at Tang So-hwa or not, it was she who replied.

“A wooden box.”

For a moment, silence fell.

In that instant, countless ripples passed between the two of them.

Yet Zhuge In-hwi could not understand the situation.

After some time, the Alliance Leader spoke in a low voice.

“It seemed to be yours, so I picked it up.”

“It is not mine.”

“Is that so? It looks like a box for storing pills, and among us, are you not the only one who makes pills?”

“Well. But it seems those more senior than you, standing just behind, are far likelier to carry pills. Is it not strange that you suspect me outright?”

Tang So-hwa parried the suspicion brazenly.

Yet her voice trembled faintly.

The Alliance Leader looked as though he wished to ask more, but he swallowed his words.

The Tang Clan Head had stepped forward, shielding his daughter, and stood before the Alliance Leader.

“Alliance Leader, why have you only now returned?”

Though sounding concerned, the Tang Clan Head’s bearing was harsh. It seemed he was not alone in finding something troubling about their exchange.

“I dealt with all the Blood Sect members before returning. In case they tried to cross the passage.”

“Did you not say yourself that the Blood Sect would never pursue into the Central Plains?”

Worried by the Alliance Leader’s silence, Muso joined in.

“… Alliance Leader, are you truly well?”

The Alliance Leader drew in a deep breath, then let it out like a sigh.

“Let’s talk after we return. Isn’t everyone very tired?”

His voice carried no strength.

But scarcely had he spoken of returning than Tang So-hwa moved.

As she supported Tang Hak, Namgung Hyun, who had been silent all along, quickly stepped in and lifted Tang Hak into a cart instead.

The Namgung martial artists exchanged glances at the sight, and the Alliance Leader called for the Young Lord.

“Young Lord Namgung Jin.”

Namgung Jin, about to head toward the cart, turned his body.

“Yes, Alliance Leader.”

“You also crossed the formation, so you must undergo inspection. And once the inspection is finished, let us speak together. There is something I must say to everyone.”

“Yes. I will do so.”

Once Namgung Jin agreed, the Alliance Leader immediately turned his head and looked over each member of the party.

“All safe…”

As though the tension had eased, the Alliance Leader brushed his hand across his face.

At last, he took a step forward.

“The talk will not take long. We will finish quickly and then rest well.”

Following the one at the front, all began walking back toward Wuhan.

Though they had crossed life and death together and completed their task, an uneasy wall had formed between them.

It was only out of respect for the Alliance Leader that they held their tongues for the moment.

Since he had said they would speak once they returned, they meant to wait until then.

They believed the Alliance Leader would soon tell them what had happened inside.

Thus, the gates of the Murim Alliance headquarters—so often a topic on the lips of idle gossips—opened once more, silently embracing those who had returned.

***

Anyone belonging to the Murim would have heard of the Four Seasons Hall of the Murim Alliance at least once.

Considering that most would never visit it in their lifetime, it was excessively famous.

Yet, contrary to its reputation, its structure was very simple.

The Four Seasons Hall consisted of merely four pavilions. Even those were low buildings, so low that the sky could be taken in at a glance.

Having stepped out of Autumn Pavilion, Tang So-hwa lowered her gaze.

The surroundings were utterly quiet. Except for the Autumn Pavilion, all others had been emptied.

Even within Autumn Pavilion, few people remained.

Though the Hall Lord had called it “inspection,” there was nothing elaborate about it. He would hold a hot fire to their faces and arms, show them a few characters and have them pronounce them, then cut off a piece of their hair and a fingernail to take with him.

They said each person would be isolated and examined separately, yet the inspection was so simple that one could hardly understand why separation was necessary.

So-hwa stood quietly in front of Autumn Pavilion.

Seeing that she was the only one here, she must have been the first to undergo inspection.

Since the Alliance Leader had said there would be a talk once the inspections were done, everyone was told to wait.

Creak.

At that moment, the sound of a door opening was heard. Though they had claimed the Four Seasons Hall was emptied to prevent contact with others.

So-hwa turned her gaze toward the source of the sound.

There, she caught sight of a plaque that read Summer Pavilion.

The Summer Pavilion was where disputes within branches or secret matters were reported.

It was a place where much information was gathered, including the hidden faults of Alliance members, and where Namgung Hyun had once been dispatched.

In the shadow of Summer Pavilion stood a man.

The hair falling over his shoulders was enough to recognize him even from a distance.

So-hwa looked at him and spoke.

“Hall Lord, will you not undergo inspection?”

“The Alliance Leader and I were the first to receive the inspection. We had to see how the inspection was carried out.”

“Then where is the Alliance Leader?”

“He has gone to burn incense.”

‘Burn incense…’

Finding the action unsurprising, So-hwa let out a hollow laugh.

She asked in a mocking tone.

“Did you not say that none could leave the Four Seasons Hall until the talk was finished?”

Zhuge In-hwi’s lips curved.

“The Alliance Leader remains in the Four Seasons Hall. Since he always burns incense upon returning from outside, it seems the habit has stuck. He said he would first go to Spring Pavilion to offer incense.”

Tang So-hwa gave a smile whose meaning could not be discerned.

“Would it have meaning to burn incense in a place without ancestral tablets?”

“Meaning lies not in the place but in the heart, so it should not matter.”

The Spring Pavilion was a pavilion for mediating conflicts within the Alliance. For the Tang Clan of Sichuan, it was like the Clear Night Pavilion. To claim that reverence could be found in a place where every sort of debate was hurled back and forth was absurd.

Yet the Four Seasons Hall Lord seemed to understand the Alliance Leader’s heart.

Tang So-hwa realized then that the Hall Lord truly knew nothing. Thus, she too replied as though she knew nothing.

“Then I should not go to Spring Pavilion right now.”

“Yes. I would appreciate that.”

Soon after, the Hall Lord revealed the matter he had been holding back.

“Would you care to speak with me in the meantime?”

He turned his head eastward.

“You must be tired. Let us sit in the Winter Pavilion and talk.”

“Must it be Winter Pavilion?”

The Summer Pavilion was where secret matters were reported. Autumn Pavilion was occupied with members undergoing inspection. That left only Winter Pavilion.

But Winter Pavilion was the place where those who defied the rulings of Spring Pavilion were punished. To go in there alone with the Four Seasons Hall Lord was disquieting.

When So-hwa did not move, the Hall Lord smiled and urged her on.

“All places within the Four Seasons Hall are much the same, but Winter Pavilion in particular does not let sound leak out.”

A hall once used to turn comrades into criminals—of course, no sound would escape. It was built with the utmost care to ensure silence.

The Hall Lord added, as though to reassure her.

“It would be a place where Young Lady Tang may speak most freely.”

So-hwa’s brows tightened slightly. The subtle movement did not escape him; he responded at once.

“I wish to speak with you not as Hall Lord, but as a man of the Central Plains curious about you. Whatever you say, I am prepared to hear it. Think of it as an anonymous report, if you will.”

So-hwa smiled.

“You speak as if you take me for a spy of the Blood Sect.”

“No.”

In that moment, all sound in the surroundings vanished. It had already been quiet, yet now it felt as though cotton had been stuffed into her ears—the very flow of air seemed stifled.

Upon that silence, a voice cold as first snow descended.

“I know you are a member of the Blood Sect.”

“You are mistaken.”

When So-hwa cut off the suspicion, the Hall Lord gave a soft laugh.

“You have not yet chosen, that is all. But you could at any moment become a hand and foot of the Blood Sect, could you not?”

At Zhuge In-hwi’s words, So-hwa fell silent.

She had thought he knew nothing, yet he acted as though he knew something.

Gauging her silence, Zhuge In-hwi spoke in a calm tone.

“Summer Pavilion receives many tales of which you are unaware. Of late, strange and uncanny reports have been gathered, and in them, your name has come to my ears more than once.”

A shadow passed across Zhuge In-hwi’s pale gray-blue eyes. His voice grew as dark as the look in his eyes.

“Once today’s inspection is over, the Alliance members will likely demand that you account for your movements. Young Lady Tang, you will be forced, again and again, to prove that you are not of the Blood Sect.”

Zhuge In-hwi fixed his gaze on So-hwa, as though telling her this was her choice.

“I am giving you a chance before that happens.”

His measured voice, gentle yet enticing, offered her a careful proposal.

“A chance to make me protect you.”

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