The Eldest Daughter of the Tang Clan of Sichuan Protects the Family

Part 1

Chapter 24. Trap

"That is..."

As Namgung Jin parted his lips, Zhuge In-hwi fell silent, seemingly waiting to listen.

But Namgung Jin could not continue his words.

It seemed wrong to say that he had waited to confirm whether the Blood Sect was truly trying to kill the Tang Clan.

It would only prove the fact that he had been there but did not help and merely watched the fight, rather than clearing up any misunderstanding.

As the silence dragged on, the Hall Lord spoke again.

"On that day, the Emei Sect received a note from Black Sky Demon saying that unidentified individuals were chasing him and asking for help."

He spoke in a calm voice, informing them of the situation as he had been told.

"It seems the Emei Sect's three main disciples were practicing a formation nearby. The elders, concerned that their young disciples might be hurt in the chaos, rushed to the scene and discovered over a hundred Blood Sect members causing a commotion... In fact, right now, the Emei Sect's protests are even louder than the Tang Clan's."

"The Emei Sect knows about the resurgence of the Blood Sect?"

Namgung Jin asked in surprise, to which Zhuge In-hwi answered affirmatively.

"It seems they heard a rough version of the incident from the Tang Clan, so they probably knew about the Blood Sect's actions right after the Tang Clan, though not as quickly as Namgung did."

The Tang Clan shared news of the Blood Sect's outbreak with the Emei Sect?

The unexpected news caused deep furrows to form between Namgung Jin's brows.

But that was not the end of it.

"And there has been a protest from the Hubei branch as well. They are asking whether you passed through Hubei when you were chasing the Blood Sect."

"Hubei also knows about the resurgence of the Blood Sect?"

"Yes. Not only Hubei, but there has also been a report from the Shaanxi branch. They are asking whether the Blood Sect passed through Hubei or if you circled around it and returned to Shaanxi. They want the Blood Sect's movement route to be made public."

The muscles in Namgung Jin's jaw twitched.

He then spoke again.

The question came out slowly, as if he really did not want to ask it.

"Does every member of the Murim Alliance know about the Blood Sect's resurgence?"

The worst-case scenario.

It was truly the worst.

The Blood Sect might be spread throughout the Murim Alliance, and before they could figure out their structure, the outbreak of the Blood Sect had already been made known. It even seemed that there was a misunderstanding that Namgung was protecting the Blood Sect.

Now, whatever Namgung Jin does, he will be under the watch of the Murim Alliance, and the Blood Sect could quickly hide their movements.

Namgung Jin rubbed his face with one hand.

However, the misfortune did not end there.

Zhuge In-hwi said something even more shocking.

"It would be fortunate if only the Murim Alliance knew."

A smile disappeared from Zhuge In-hwi's face, and his voice, as stiff as his expression, followed.

"Lord Oh from Eastern Depot has come to see the Alliance Leader."

Lord Oh of Eastern Depot. This referred to Eunuch Oh Gil-hong.

Eastern Depot is the central institution of the Imperial court, collecting all the information of the Central Plains, but it had never exerted influence on the Murim. Yet, the symbol of Eastern Depot, Eunuch Oh, had come to the Murim Alliance.

Namgung Jin naturally became tense at these words.

If something had gone wrong, a battle between the Murim and the Imperial court—something that had never occurred in the long history of the Murim—could take place.

"It seems Lord Oh has received a favor from the Divine Physician of the Yeonju Group. He came to the headquarters after hearing news that Physician Jin-cheol is being interrogated. He insists that the old physician and the Blood Sect have no connection, and that he would personally escort him to prove this."

Zhuge In-hwi pressed his temple with his long fingers as if he had a headache.

"Even though Lord Oh says so, it remains true that the old physician had contact with the Blood Sect, making things difficult for the Alliance Leader. Fortunately, the Tang Clan proposed a compromise—taking the physician to their medical hall. Since the physician himself agreed, Lord Oh stepped back slightly. As it is impossible for an outsider to leave the Tang Clan's estate without permission, the Alliance Leader also consented."

Namgung Jin let out a dejected sigh.

It seemed that the Murim Alliance had known about this for quite some time.

Perhaps they had heard of the Blood Sect's resurgence the very day they left Sichuan.

Yet, the Anhui branch still did not know about it.

Not until the moment the Hall Lord arrived.

Completely excluded from the information, Namgung Jin felt an unpleasant sensation.

The story was that the Murim Alliance had suspected Namgung.

Then, it dawned on him. Perhaps when he had hidden information from other sects, others might have felt the same way.

Only then did Namgung Jin understand the look in the eyes of the eldest daughter of the Tang Clan that day on Emei Mountain. The excessive anger in those eyes. The image of the girl he had encountered in the dark forest grew clearer in his mind.

That subtle change had benefited Namgung Jin.

The Hall Lord, who had been observing Namgung Jin's spiritual energy, smiled.

"In my opinion, the Young Lord is neither someone who would conceal the Blood Sect's resurgence nor someone who would make a reckless choice seeking fame and honor. So why hide the Blood Sect's resurgence?"

The Hall Lord asked bluntly.

He had already made up his mind about Namgung Jin.

Namgung Jin was not involved with the Blood Sect.

Thus, the question was even more intriguing.

"Is there a reason why you had to hide the Blood Sect's resurgence from the Murim Alliance?"

Namgung Jin hesitated for a moment.

Now, Namgung Jin was in a perilous situation.

Due to his wrong judgment, he had hidden the Blood Sect's resurgence, which had put other branches in danger.

He couldn't even imagine how big the compensation demand would be.

The Anhui branch was run solely by Namgung Jin. Thus, he alone would bear the full cost of the compensation.

The thought of causing great damage to his clan made a surge of fear rise from deep within his heart. Alongside that fear, cowardly thoughts crept in.

Namgung Jin unconsciously recalled the body of Cheong-hae. His cousin and Namgung's pride, who had been victimized by the Blood Sect on his way back to Anhui.

A weak thought arose in him: Should he tell them about the reason for suspecting the Tang Clan by showing the corpse of Namgung Cheong-hae, who had fallen victim to the strange poison of the Blood Sect?

However, Namgung Jin soon turned away from that thought.

It was too grave a matter to attempt shifting the fury of other sects onto the Tang Clan.

Namgung Jin looked at the man seated before him with a bitter feeling.

He was having a private meeting with a young Hall Lord favored by the Alliance Leader.

Unless it was an event hosted by the Alliance of Noble Clans or the Murim Alliance, Namgung Jin had no reason to meet someone from the headquarters. That alone showed how seriously the headquarters regarded this matter.

The Tang Clan had endured that scrutiny and revealed the resurgence of the Blood Sect on their own accord.

The Tang Clan certainly didn't seem to be connected to the Blood Sect.

No, even if there was a spy of the Blood Sect within the clan, at the very least, the one who played this move appeared unrelated.

Namgung Jin thought to himself that though his own mistake was about to bring shame upon his clan, he could not drag the innocent into the mire as well.

That, he believed, would be the true disgrace.

With a bitter smile, Namgung Jin shook his head.

"No. I wasn't certain it was the Blood Sect, so I intended to confirm it myself before reporting it. It was merely my own arrogant judgment—nothing more. Because of my reckless decision, great harm was done."

"Is that so?"

A light rebuttal.

It seemed Zhuge In-hwi didn't believe those words.

"There are fifteen corpses in the corpse examination room. Yet you said you had captured nine members of the Blood Sect and five unknown martial artists."

He lowered his gaze to the floor and lifted his teacup.

"Who was the corpse in the far back?"

Namgung Jin was surprised by Zhuge In-hwi's words, but didn't show it. He wasn't foolish enough to believe that a blind man could not perceive the world.

He was merely startled that he would mention Cheong-hae's body first.

Namgung Jin decided it was meaningless to try and hide Cheong-hae's corpse. So he spoke plainly.

"He's my cousin, Namgung Cheong-hae. Perhaps you've seen him a few times at the headquarters. He belonged to the Black Tortoise Pavilion of the Four Directions Hall. Do you know him?"

The Four Directions Hall served as the headquarters' martial force.

Though the Four Seasons Hall was said to punish alliance members through discipline, it would have been impossible without force. The Four Directions Hall was often dispatched to carry out its enforcement.

Zhuge In-hwi's expression turned curious.

As expected, it seemed he knew the man.

His blue-gray eyes lifted once more.

The shadows cast by his long lashes occasionally stirred, creating waves in his eyes. Though his expression remained calm, his heart seemed to be in turmoil.

Namgung Jin did not ask further about their connection and instead gave his explanation.

"I should have given him a proper burial, but as I was chasing the Blood Sect, I had no time. Still, I couldn't send him off hastily either, as he was a brother I was deeply connected to. So I kept his body for a while."

"I see..."

Zhuge In-hwi swallowed the rest of his words as he recalled the corpse examination room.

Fourteen of the bodies there had stab wounds. Each bore terrible injuries that could be deemed the cause of death.

But one corpse had no wounds. It was even dressed neatly.

Though it had been specially handled, Namgung Cheong-hae's body also bore signs of corpse examination.

Instead of asking about Namgung Cheong-hae's cause of death, Zhuge In-hwi slowly read the situation.

Namgung, encountering the Tang Clan of Sichuan.

Namgung appeared only when the Tang Clan's direct descendant was on the brink of death.

Moreover, he moved the Blood Sect members not to the Sichuan branch but to the Anhui branch. He managed to break through that long distance in just seven days and nights.

His reckless actions painted a clear picture of intent.

Was he trying to sever the connection between the Tang Clan and the Blood Sect?

Did he suspect the Tang Clan and find traces of them on Namgung Cheong-hae's corpse?

As Zhuge In-hwi carefully pondered, he swallowed the now cold tea.

A chill spread throughout his body.

'If it's internal injury, does that mean poison? Could Namgung have figured out the Tang Clan's poison technique? Or did he assume it based on the peculiarities of the poison?'

The Hall Lord, who had recalled something, swallowed a deep breath.

'There's a cunning one in the Tang Clan.'

He set down his teacup with a smile and then turned to the silently watching Young Lord.

"Did you hear? The Blood Sect supposedly leaked the Tang Clan's poison."

The aura that had been emanating from the young swordsman immediately shrank back.

Observing the reaction, Zhuge In-hwi continued.

"It's a poison that damages the internal organs, but the heart and organs react differently. Moreover, the manifestation time is inconsistent, making it impossible to find an antidote based on the symptoms alone. It's a highly potent poison, and even within the Tang Clan, it's only been stored, not used."

Zhuge In-hwi quickly revealed the reason he had brought it up.

"The Tang Clan shared the antidote's manufacturing method with the headquarters. Since the Blood Sect used this poison, they've been instructed to always have the antidote ready and to make more whenever necessary."

"What?"

Namgung Jin, who had planned to listen calmly, instead responded with a blank question.

In any sect, martial techniques couldn't be leaked outside.

There were even techniques forbidden to be shared within the same sect or family, such as advanced martial techniques that could only be taught to elders or direct descendants.

If martial techniques were leaked, countermeasures might be developed.

The Tang Clan's poison was like that.

If there was an antidote, the poison itself was nothing.

But to even share the antidote's method...

Was this truly happening?

For someone like the Young Lord, who had been strictly trained as a direct descendant of the clan, this behavior was shocking.

The Hall Lord, observing Namgung Jin's bewilderment, was now certain that he had suspected the Tang Clan and the Blood Sect.

It seemed a member of Namgung had been harmed by that Blazing Herb Poison.

I had felt uneasy about the Tang Clan readily handing over their clan's poison and antidote recipe; was it because of Namgung?

At this point, even if Namgung Jin explained why he had hidden the resurgence of the Blood Sect, it would only seem laughable.

If he claimed it was because he suspected the Tang Clan, even if he presented the body of someone who had died from the poison, few would believe him.

Some might even think he fabricated the incident, using the leaked poison to stage a false narrative.

Would they not think he was attempting to pin the blame on the Tang Clan to avoid responsibility?

Even with a member of the Four Directions Hall dead, Namgung had deliberately concealed his death. The state of the body was so well preserved that it was hard to determine when the poison had taken effect.

The Young Lord's caution had now turned into a complete misstep.

Even if some believed Namgung, the Murim Alliance would not look favorably upon the fact that the Blood Sect's poison technique was never shared with the headquarters.

In contrast, the Tang Clan had immediately put their clan's antidote on the table when faced with the Blood Sect.

It was Namgung who had left the Alliance members in danger, and it was the Tang Clan who had provided the solution.

Zhuge In-hwi chuckled inwardly.

'This is interesting.'

It might be an oversensitive thought, but it seemed as though someone was using the Murim Alliance to torment Namgung.