Chapter 286

After everyone had left, the main hall lay empty and silent.

The Four Kings’ Lord, Gwae Galhyeon, sat alone on his dragon throne.

With his eyes closed and one hand supporting his head, he looked almost as if he were tired and asleep.

But in truth, he was not sleeping.

On the contrary, he was maintaining a clarity of senses sharper than anyone else inside the Four Kings’ Hall.

His lips, which had been still as if in meditation, slowly curved into a faint smile, and he murmured softly, “Not bad at all. Don’t you think?”

Suddenly, from the empty space where no one stood, a voice echoed.

“At that level, he should be able to handle those ranked at the bottom of the Thirty-Six Stars of the World with ease. He’s definitely superior to Prince Gwae Jeonggi, and I’d say he’s on par with Prince Gwae Changgi.”

Gwae Galhyeon remained seated, observing the events unfolding within the hall.

As the world’s second strongest, his effortless power allowed him to see beyond the hall’s walls as clearly as if they were in the palm of his hand. This was no difficult feat for him.

The problem was that the shadow lurking in the darkness was also watching the heirs in other realms, just like the Four Kings’ Lord himself.

Even though he was the Four Kings’ Lord’s shadow, completely unknown to the world.

Gwae Galhyeon smiled faintly and said, “Hwiyeom, so your senses tell you that, do they?”

The shadow called Hwiyeom fell silent for a moment, scanning the heirs, then spoke again.

“Perhaps you saw something I missed, just like during the time of Lord Sa.”

Gwae Galhyeon said nothing in response, only offering a faint smile.

After a moment, he spoke once more.

“Did you sense anything from the child’s appearance?”

Hwiyeom thought briefly before answering.

“He doesn’t resemble his father, Lord Seolcheon, much. Rather, his physique is sturdy, like the descendants of the Gwae family. But his facial features carry the likeness of his mother, Miss Dong Ahyeon.”

“Indeed, that’s what I thought.”

Nodding at Hwiyeom’s words, Gwae Galhyeon fell into deep thought.

Just as his sons competed by any means to become the next Four Kings’ Lord, he too had once desperately sought something—one precious thing that, if obtained, would have made him willing to give up everything else.

So, in the end, Gwae Galhyeon sacrificed all the values he had held dear in life to obtain it.

It was an inevitable, natural, and easy choice for him.

But then he realized something.

Some things cannot be gained no matter what you sacrifice.

No matter how hard you struggle, some things the heavens simply will not allow.

After that, Gwae Galhyeon gritted his teeth and made a vow.

He would take everything.

And if the heavens refused to grant him that one thing, he would take everything else instead.

Now, Gwae Galhyeon’s current goal was to claim the honor of being the world’s greatest—something no leader of the Four Kings’ Alliance had ever achieved.

To defeat the Blood Wolf Swordmaster Ban Jungyang and leave his name as the greatest of this era.

That was the only remaining purpose in his life.

So, he planned to quickly pass the leadership to his sons and devote himself to training.

At least, that was his plan until today.

Gwae Galhyeon smiled faintly as he whispered the name of the one who had breathed new life into him.

“Seolpung…”

---

Sun Woojin and his group set off directly westward.

Their destination was Yangju Dongga.

From Taeju, where the Four Kings’ Alliance was based, to Yangju, where Yangju Dongga was located, the distance wasn’t great.

For top-tier masters, it could be covered in a single day’s journey.

However, the Yangtze River lay in the middle of the route.

They would have to cross a vast river, as wide as a sea, where the opposite shore was barely visible.

Sun Woojin addressed his companions.

“You’ve experienced fighting against the Hae Nam Sect before, so you know that battles on the Yangtze are completely different from those on land. If there’s going to be an ambush, it’ll be there.”

Yeon Taejin asked, “You think there will be an ambush?”

Sun Woojin smiled wryly.

“It’s fifty-fifty. I don’t think Gwae Jeonggi will just wait quietly until we leave Jiangsu Province. He’ll definitely try something. Whether it happens on the Yangtze, I’m not sure yet.”

“Hmm. The Yangtze, huh? That’s going to be troublesome.”

The group frowned, deep in thought.

They all knew well the difficulties of naval combat, so if enemies launched a coordinated attack on the river, it would be a serious problem.

But watching them, Sun Woojin thought to himself,

“Maybe an ambush would be better. If there’s no attack, that probably means…”

He looked toward the western sky where Yangju Dongga lay.

The sun was descending from its zenith, halfway down the sky.

Judging by the time, the sun would likely reach the horizon by the time they arrived at the Yangtze.

They would see the sun setting beyond the river.

“A setting sun…”

The feeling was unsettling.

There was no need to read too much into natural phenomena, but trusting one’s instincts was always important.

Sometimes, feelings knew more than the mind.

Sun Woojin said to his group, “Let’s move as fast as we can. I want to reach the Yangtze before nightfall. Maybe we can cross before they make their move.”

Everyone nodded.

If they could avoid a naval battle on the Yangtze, running would be the least of their worries.

---

The group arrived at the Yangtze just as Sun Woojin had predicted—before the sun had touched the river’s surface.

Jin So-eun gasped at the vastness of the river, where the horizon stretched beyond the opposite shore.

It felt like looking out at the open sea.

“Wow! Is this really a river?!”

Though the opposite shore was faintly visible, it looked more like an island in the sea than a riverbank.

They had crossed the Yangtze once before, traveling from Soju to Taeju, but this stretch was much wider.

Gazing at the expansive river that reminded her of the ocean, Jin So-eun suddenly thought of Gwangju.

Her hometown, which she had never left until recently.

Born in Gwangju’s Jinga Market, she had trained in martial arts in a remote mountain there since she was nine, never once leaving.

Yet, in just a month or two, she had crossed into Jiangsu Province—the stronghold of the Four Kings’ Alliance—and now stood before a river as vast as the sea.

It was almost absurd.

“How did things change so suddenly?”

Not only that.

She, whose sole purpose had been to revive the Natural Art, had naturally mastered it, fought the Hae Nam Sect’s Jin Taedo, met the Demon Realm and the Saintess, and now even encountered the world’s second strongest, the Four Kings’ Lord himself.

And with one of his heir candidates, no less.

It was as if a frog from a well had been thrown into the ocean, and her life’s scale had changed just as drastically.

“Is this what they call a complete transformation?”

But such transformations usually took time; hers had happened in an instant.

Jin So-eun looked at the cause of all these changes.

“Lord Sun Woo.”

As soon as they arrived at the river, he was already negotiating to rent a boat.

Though they had just arrived, he was haggling over the price of a large vessel with the boatman, as impressive as ever.

It was hard to imagine anything he couldn’t do.

Sun Woojin soon finished the negotiation and returned to the group with a bright smile.

“The deal’s done. We can cross the river at night. We’ll depart immediately. The boat is large enough for all the Six Harmonies Swordmasters to cross together.”

The Six Harmonies Swordmasters and the Black Tiger Sakwol had been following the group in hiding since they entered Taeju, the Four Kings’ Alliance’s base.

But at least for crossing the river, they had to be together, so Sun Woojin had deliberately rented a large boat.

Jin So-eun absentmindedly watched Sun Woojin, who was chatting with Seolpung while stroking the fur of Unmyo Baekah resting on her shoulder.

Her life could be divided into before and after meeting him.

After meeting him, the scale and nature of her life had changed drastically.

“It’s like being swept up in a great storm and dropped into a strange land.”

Since meeting him, her life had been busy, dangerous, and always new.

In short, dynamic.

For someone as somewhat timid and quiet as Jin So-eun, it was overwhelming.

Look at them now.

Even though they had boarded the boat and set off, they remained on high alert for ambushes while crossing the Yangtze.

Because Lord Sun Woo had warned them of possible attacks, no one in the group could relax.

Even though their boat was the only one with lights on after sunset.

If attackers were silently approaching from the dark, calm waters beyond, no one would be surprised.

Because Sun Woojin had already said so.

Only when they neared the lights on the opposite shore did everyone finally allow themselves to relax.

Yeon Taejin smiled and said, “Looks like we’ll cross without a hitch after all. Even our clever Lord Sun Woo can be wrong sometimes.”

Sun Woojin laughed and replied, “Indeed. That’s a relief.”

This was Jin So-eun’s daily life now.

Always on guard against ambushes, and always grateful when nothing happens.

But what if someone asked her now, “Do you hate the present because of that?”

Jin So-eun felt she could confidently shake her head.

Because her old self had nothing—no one, nothing at all.

Only her grandfather and the plants and animals in the mountains.

She didn’t have a single person she could call a friend.

But that wasn’t the case anymore.

Setting foot on solid ground, Jin So-eun let out a relieved sigh and turned to the group.

“Phew, honestly, I was pretty nervous. I was worried we’d end up surrounded by dozens of boats in the middle of the water, like back when we were with the Haenam faction.”

At that, Jeung Chil scoffed loudly.

“Hmph! With me around, what’s so scary about a few dozen boats? Short-haired girl, you need to learn to trust your team a little more!”

Jin So-eun caught a quick glance and smile exchanged between Seol Poong and Sun Woo-jin at Jeung Chil’s words.

And she could guess what that smile meant.

She’d heard stories before about how Jeung Chil had been tossed around like a ball on the water by Oh Ik-deok of the Haenam faction, teased and humiliated.

But Jin So-eun didn’t feel the need to bring that up and embarrass him.

She just smiled and nodded.

“Alright, I will, Senior Jeung.”

Jeung Chil always called her “short-haired girl,” yet he insisted she call him “oppa.”

But Jin So-eun still found that word awkward.

It just felt strange to say.

Really.

It was purely awkward—not because she felt uncomfortable around him.

To be honest, Jin So-eun actually liked Jeung Chil.

He always laughed carelessly and said thoughtless things, but she now knew well that he was purer and kinder than anyone else.

So what if someone was a little frivolous?

Without him, their journey would have been much quieter, much more boring.

Like a pinch of salt bringing out the flavor in meat, his presence made their journey livelier and more enjoyable.

Just as Jin So-eun was quietly considering Jeung Chil with kindness, Yeon Tae-jin suddenly gave a meaningful smile and approached with a captivating expression, responding to Jeung Chil’s boast.

“Oh my, I never knew Oppa Jeung was so skilled in water combat that he could confidently take on So-eun, who’s from the famous Jin family of Guangdong. Truly impressive.”

Though her face was beautiful and her expression alluring, the group noticed her eyes gleamed with the playful mischief of a cat.

It was clear she had no intention of humoring Jeung Chil’s bragging at all.