Even after witnessing a person turn to dust and vanish, Yeon Woo-jin remained unfazed.

“Are you alright?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t think this old man is cruel or evil?”

“No. Grandpa, you said it yourself. Those people were bad guys. You were just doing what needed to be done.”

Hearing such words from a child, Yeon Cheon-baek stared blankly at him for a moment before bursting into laughter.

Strangely, the boy reminded him of himself.

Come to think of it, during the fight with the Blood Cult, Yeon Woo-jin hadn’t let out a single scream.

That was no ordinary courage.

Even when a stray blade came flying toward him, he didn’t flinch or move.

At the time, it had startled even Yeon Cheon-baek.

To think there might be someone skilled enough in stealth to fool him like that…

But Yeon Woo-jin’s demeanor in that moment had been extraordinary.

Though he couldn’t move while in Yeon Cheon-baek’s arms, his killing intent had been palpable—almost as though he were part of the fight.

It felt like looking at himself as a child.

Even their personalities seemed similar.

The thought made Yeon Cheon-baek feel a surge of affection.

“It’s as if the heavens sent this boy to me.”

At that moment, he thought of someone else.

“Tsk, if that brat had married and had a child, they’d be about Woo-jin’s age.”

Yeon Cheon-baek’s expression turned bitter as he recalled his only son.

Back when he hadn’t yet become as powerful as he was now, a group had attacked his home, seeking revenge.

While fleeing, his wife had been killed, and his young son had disappeared.

He’d searched for his son everywhere but to no avail.

To Yeon Cheon-baek, it was his weakness that had caused it all.

So, he grew strong—so strong that no one could ever challenge him again.

Yet every time he was alone, he couldn’t help but think of his son.

The memory of that child made his loneliness even more profound.

To this day, he had remained unmarried, unable to forgive himself for what happened to his wife and son.

But now he had Yeon Woo-jin.

“I will never lose you.”

Yeon Cheon-baek clenched his fist, silently vowing to protect him no matter what.

However, he couldn’t bring Woo-jin to Mushincheon right now.

As much as he wanted to take him there and declare him heir, there were too many preparations to make.

More importantly, Woo-jin would become a target.

Yeon Cheon-baek had no other descendants.

In Mushincheon, where survival of the fittest reigned supreme, anyone could challenge for power.

And now, if Woo-jin were suddenly to appear?

People would stop at nothing to kill him.

Why?

Because that was how Yeon Cheon-baek had raised them.

In Mushincheon, the strong ruled. Power was everything.

If someone as seemingly weak as Woo-jin were to sit atop Mushincheon as its heir, chaos would follow.

Even now, there were powerful candidates being supported by various factions. Those factions would do everything in their power to eliminate Woo-jin.

For now, the best way to protect Woo-jin was to hide him.

Yeon Cheon-baek had inspected Woo-jin’s body and found it strange—unlike anything he had ever seen.

His Qi channels were underdeveloped, like those of a newborn. His meridians were located in abnormal places, and the flow of his energy was unusual.

Normally, when someone received Qi, it flowed to their dantian.

But in Woo-jin’s case, it flowed to his head.

Yeon Cheon-baek had tested this several times, but each time the energy moved to Woo-jin’s brain. Even when he tried to force it toward the dantian, it would return to the head.

It was unprecedented. Yeon Cheon-baek had no idea what to do.

For now, he decided to raise Woo-jin outside of Mushincheon while keeping a close eye on him.

He needed a suitable place.

“Ah, there’s that house.”

He remembered a house he’d passed on his way here—clean, well-maintained, yet oddly unoccupied.

It seemed like fate had shown him that place for Woo-jin.

There was no reason to hesitate.

“I’ll clean it up, hire some servants, and settle Woo-jin there.”

 

*****

Before bringing Woo-jin to the house, Yeon Cheon-baek inspected it thoroughly.

It was empty.

Judging by the lack of recent activity, it seemed like the house’s former inhabitants had been wiped out by some calamity.

Though the house was deep in the mountains and somewhat suspicious, Yeon Cheon-baek decided that if the owners returned, he’d simply explain the situation and compensate them.

After confirming the house was unoccupied, Yeon Cheon-baek hired servants, ordered repairs, and had the place cleaned.

He even put up a grand signboard: Ilmu Manor (一武莊).

He trained the servants carefully, ensuring they knew how to treat Woo-jin.

The once-empty house soon came to life, bustling with activity.

Now, all that remained was to bring Woo-jin and give him a happy home.

“Wow! This was my room?”

“Yes. Do you feel like your memory’s coming back?”

“…No. I don’t remember anything.”

“That’s alright. From now on, we’ll fill it with happy memories.”

“You’re right! I’ll fill it with memories of Grandpa!”

Yeon Cheon-baek’s lips twitched as he tried to suppress a smile.

How could he not adore a child who said such things?

Sweeping Woo-jin up into his arms, he hugged him tightly.

“That’s right! You’ll fill it with memories of your grandpa. Got it?”

“Yes!”

“How can you be so cute? Whom do you take after?”

“I take after you, Grandpa!”

“Of course you do! Hahaha!”

Yeon Cheon-baek felt truly happy.

For the first time in forever, life felt meaningful. The long darkness of his loneliness had finally been replaced with light.

The servants, watching the two of them, couldn’t help but smile as well.

It seemed they had found a good master to serve.

Everything was perfect—except for one thing.

The manor had no warriors to guard it.

“I’ll need to leave for Mushincheon occasionally. What if something happens while I’m gone?”

He couldn’t trust just anyone with Woo-jin’s safety.

“I’ll summon the Heavenly Martial Brigade (天武隊) to guard this place.”

The Heavenly Martial Brigade was one of his personal elite forces.

The only problem was that they were currently stationed in Mushincheon.

Yeon Cheon-baek hesitated.

“Surely nothing will happen in such a short time… But what if it does? Should I take him with me? No, that defeats the purpose of setting up a safe place for him.”

This kind of indecision was unlike him.

Yeon Cheon-baek was a man who normally acted first and thought later.

But when it came to Woo-jin, he couldn’t help but overthink everything.

Before he knew it, Woo-jin had become more precious to him than life itself.

“Right! I’ll make it quick and come back as soon as possible.”

Rather than waste more time worrying, Yeon Cheon-baek made up his mind.

“Woo-jin, this old man has some errands to run. I’ll be back shortly.”

“Alright, Grandpa. Have a safe trip!”

“Keep an eye on the house. I’ll be back before you know it.”

“Yes!”

“Such a good response. My boy!”

Yeon Cheon-baek lifted Yeon Woo-jin high into the air, rubbing their cheeks together affectionately.

After indulging in his doting moment, he carefully set Woo-jin down and gave him stern instructions.

“If, by chance, anyone tries to break into the manor, pull out that item over there and hide in your room. Understand?”

“I shouldn’t run away?”

“No. That building is safer. This old man has set up protections to ensure no bad people can enter it.”

“Understood.”

“Though I don’t think anything will happen. This is just me being overly cautious, so don’t be too scared.”

“I’m not scared at all.”

“Hahaha! That’s my grandson! Alright, this old man will be off now.”

“Take care, Grandpa!”

“Yes, yes!”

With Woo-jin’s cheerful farewell, Yeon Cheon-baek leapt into the air, soaring high and disappearing in an instant.

Some time after Yeon Cheon-baek left, two figures appeared on a mountaintop overlooking the manor.

Dressed in black masks, they looked down at the house, tilting their heads in confusion.

“Huh? What’s that?”

“Are those our people?”

“Doesn’t look like it. Just ordinary folks.”

“Yeah. They seem to have set up shop and are living there.”

“What the hell? Did the sect leader sell the place to someone else?”

“No way.”

“Then someone must have illegally taken over the property.”

“Let’s go back and report this to the sect leader.”

“Good idea.”

“What? There are people at Cheongho Manor?”

“Yes, Sect Leader.”

“Who the hell are these fearless bastards?”

“They were acting so boldly, as if it were their own home, that we were completely caught off guard.”

“They even replaced the signboard with one that says Ilmu Manor.”

“Changed the signboard? What is this? A trap to lure us out?”

The sect leader muttered to himself, and a middle-aged man standing nearby spoke up.

“Surely not. There’s no way they’d know this place is one of our bases.”

“You never know. It could be a ploy by Mushincheon to drag us out. That name Ilmu Manor—it sounds ominous, like it’s referring to the Martial God (Ilmu-shin).”

“If you’re that scared, why don’t we just join Mushincheon? Our sect’s strength would immediately place us among the upper ranks.”

“What? Are you, a vice sect leader, seriously suggesting we submit ourselves to someone else?”

“Well, Sect Leader, you’re the one constantly trembling in fear.”

“When have I ever trembled?!”

“So, should I invite Mushincheon here?”

“Damn it! Why did I ever make you my sworn brother? You’re such a pain.”

“Haha. You admired my strength, that’s why.”

“Ugh, heavens…”

“But honestly, how long do you plan to keep avoiding Mushincheon? Our people are starving because we’re stuck in hiding. Mushincheon didn’t even demand we surrender everything—they just asked us to join. Why are you so scared of them?”

“If we join Mushincheon, do you think the Martial Alliance or the Evil Alliance will still give us work? They claim to be united, but in reality, they’re just cleaning up Mushincheon’s messes. We’d be reduced to a mediocre sect doing grunt work. Do you think they’ll pay us well?”

“And how much work are we getting now?”

“We’re just lying low, weathering the storm. Just wait a little longer—they’ll start forgetting about us.”

“Meanwhile, our base was left empty, and now random people are living in it.”

“We can’t send all our men there. You go check it out quietly. If it’s just some nobodies, scare them off and chase them away.”

“Me? I’m the vice sect leader!”

“Exactly. You’re the most reliable. If there’s a martial artist there, they’ll flee the moment they hear your epithet.”

“But it’s more fun when the lackeys announce my epithet. If I have to say it myself, it feels a bit lame.”

“That’s an order.”

At the sect leader’s command, the vice sect leader pouted and grumbled under his breath.

“You only call it an order when it suits you.”

“Are you going or not?”

“Yes, yes, I’m going.”

“Make sure to live up to your title as the Black Death God (흑사신).”

“Come on, everyone knows my personality by now. This is just how I am. You like it too, Sect Leader.”

The sect leader knew him well—that was precisely why he was sending him.

If it were anyone else, they’d start by slitting throats, and things would get messy.

Sending the Black Death God ensured the situation would be handled discreetly, even if it involved someone important.

“Alright, I’ll be back soon!”