Episode 1004.
Into the Abyss (4)
“What?!”
Jinyang, surprised by the vitality of Namgungin who suddenly disappeared, came under the pavilion.
“…!!”
Jinyang’s eyes wavered.
Namgoongin fell down with his head on the table. My head was turned this way, but my wide-open eyes were very cloudy.
dead.
Namgung-in’s face, which turned pale for an instant, looked like that of a corpse.
“Leader?”
“…Damn it.”
Yeon Ho-jeong looked around.
Countless people are waiting in places that cannot be seen. It seemed that each person had been ordered to stay in their respective residences.
Naturally, no one but the parties involved knew what happened here.
A rupture of a cardiac artery can be seen as a suicide, but it can also be seen as a rupture caused by a penetroscope introduced from outside the body. Since he could not ask the other person to cut off his head, he committed suicide by rupturing his heart vein, which created a very strange situation.
‘You took a hit.’
I don’t know how long it’s been since I was caught in a trap.
That too was a fatal trap.
Yeonhojeong suppressed the anti-Black Taoist warriors who blocked the way of the Namgung family with his energy and entered.
That act itself will cause Namgoongin’s death to be a murder, not a suicide. Even if it is not this kind of atmosphere, it is common sense that people who are together are suspected, but since what she has done so far is so unconventional, suspicion towards Yeon Ho-jeong will explode like a torrent.
Of course, any thinking person would know that Yeon Ho-jeong is a person who has the ability to kill an opponent without using such unreasonable methods, but there is a difference as big as heaven and earth between what you know with your head and what you feel with your heart.
‘why.’
A complex expression appeared on Yeon Ho-jeong’s face as he came up to the pavilion and looked down at Namgung-in.
‘How on earth were you driven to the edge that you committed suicide?’
Namgoongin is a person who lacks ability.
However, the subjects of comparison are so outstanding that he, as the loser of Anhui, can be said to be one of the most powerful figures in Wulin.
What kind of threats did such a person receive that he chooses to commit suicide without even using a knife?
‘for what reason?’
It was then.
‘…!’
Yeon Ho-jeong suddenly remembered the days of the Emperor of Darkness.
Why? Why do events from the past suddenly come to mind amidst a terrifying incident that occurred out of nowhere?
‘…Something similar.’
Something similar happened. In the past, during the time of the Emperor of Darkness.
Although the flow of events was different and the people were different, there were three incidents that were strangely similar in terms of circumstances.
Yeon Ho-jeong closed his eyes.
Jinyang opened his mouth with a nervous expression.
“Leader. “What are you going to do?”
Although he left all the brain work to So Jeong-gwang, he was still a person who had been working in Heukdo for a long time. In the first place, there is no way a stupid person of this age could have a professional-level military force.
He knows it too. What a huge impact this will cause. The moment Namgung-in committed suicide, they realized that their fate had been caught up in a storm.
However, Yeon Ho-jeong was still immersed in his thoughts with his eyes closed.
Jinyang tried to urge him once more, but closed his mouth and waited. That was the only way for him right now.
‘It was that time.’
I don’t know if I know Jinyang’s feelings.
Yeon Ho-jeong recalled the first time a similar incident occurred.
‘Hwanya.’
There was a warrior who said he had no name because he didn’t know who his parents were, but he was lucky enough to learn martial arts and named himself Hwanya.
He was a warrior who followed Yeon Ho-jeong along with the Five Great War Gods of the Heukje Castle. He was a warrior under the command of Nam Su-hwal-ui (藍手活醫), who was in charge of the guard of Yeonho-jeong among the five great military gods, and was a rare hero in Heukdo who was cheerful, full of responsibility, and able to devote himself to others.
However, Hwanya died less than a month after the Heukje Castle was built.
The reason was suicide.
A few days before committing suicide, he seemed particularly unwell. I remembered that.
‘I asked what happened.’
Hwanya smiled and said it was okay. The area under his eyes was dark and he had lost a lot of weight, but Yeon Ho-jeong thought it was simply fatigue from too much work.
So he told Namsu Hwalui and ordered him to take a vacation, and even though Hwanya was given vacation time, he stayed at Heukje Castle.
And on the third day of his vacation, he committed suicide.
It was truly a sudden death. Yeonho-jeong was Yeonho-jeong, but his superior, Nam Soo-hwal-ui, was in a daze all day due to the tremendous shock. Because he was a subordinate who was like a brother to him.
Hwanya’s death was a mystery whose cause was unknown until Yeonhojeong fought his final battle.
That wasn’t all.
‘Pyeonghoe Wang Mubyeong.’
Pyeonghoe was in the third year of the founding of Heukjeseong, and Wang Mubyeong died ten days before the full-scale battle with Saeumgyo.
Pyeong-hoe committed suicide like Hwan-ya, and Wang Wubyeong lived in a state of intoxication for several days before falling off a cliff and falling to his death.
‘….’
Yeon Ho-jeong opened his eyes.
Hwanya Pyeonghoe Wang Mu-byeong.
And Namgoongin.
Although the flow of events is different, all three except Wang Wubyeong committed suicide. In the case of Wang Mu-byeong, no matter how drunk he was, it is not common for a warrior like him to fall to his death. Because of that, there was a lot of talk about it being suicide or assassination.
What is important is that all four people suddenly lost their lives in unexpected circumstances.
‘Why?’
The mystery surrounding the deaths of Hwanya and Pyeonghoe Wang Wubyeong was never solved.
It was so busy that it was difficult to mobilize all of the manpower. During the Hwanya period, all efforts were made to maintain the Heukje Fortress, and during the general meeting, there was a vacuum in information power due to the conflict of interest with Jeonggeombang, a new Baekdo sect.
The same thing happened during the time of King Wubyeong. As it was just before the battle with Saeumgyo, I was wondering if I had been attacked by the enemy, but was unable to come to a conclusion.
‘No, that wasn’t it either.’
War makes people devastated.
A lot of blood was lost before the Black Emperor Castle was built, and countless battles were fought even after the Black Emperor Castle was built.
In the end, it was believed that the deaths of the three people were also related to him. Although the exact circumstances are unknown, even people with strong mental ability can be shocked enough to lose their sense of self due to an unexpected incident.
‘But…’
I was in doubt the whole time.
It wasn’t that I just left it alone because it was an unsolvable problem and didn’t pay attention to it. At least Yeonhojeong was like that.
As a result, the case remained unsolved until the end because he died after being beaten by the party official’s memorization while dealing with the leader of the Saeum cult.
‘Could it be Namgung India?’
It’s an excessive leap.
I also knew Yeonho. The probability that the unexpected deaths of the three subordinates during the Heukje Castle era were related to Namgungin’s suicide is virtually nil.
But why do I care so much?
Is this a memory that came to mind because there aren’t actually many people around me who committed suicide? Or really…
“Captain.”
Yeon Ho-jeong looked at Jinyang.
Jinyang said with a stern face.
“Shouldn’t we do something?”
“…Sura.”
Yeon Ho-jeong shook his head.
“There is no other way.”
“But if we keep going like this, we…”
“Wait a moment.”
Yeon Ho-jeong held Namgung-in’s pulse.
Even though he just died, almost all of his vitality has already been drained. Even if a person dies, his/her vitality will continue for half as long or more than half of the time, but his body is already filled with death energy.
‘…!’
Yeon Ho-jeong’s eyes became sharp.
“Jinyang. “Take a look at the pulse of the Nangong family.”
Jinyang immediately checked Namgungin’s pulse.
After a while.
“…what?”
Jinyang’s expression was one of bewilderment.
“This is fire, right?”
When you are hit by a firearm, marks will be left on your blood vessels and pulse, just like if your skin is burned.
Traces of fire were evident near Namgoongin’s severed heart vein. It was as if he had died after being stabbed by a master who had learned Yeoyanggong.
“Was there a Duke Yeolyang in the Namgung family?”
Yeon Ho-jeong raised his head without answering and looked at a pavilion in the distance.
He pursed his lips quietly.
How long has it been?
It rattled.
With the sound of a door opening in the distance, a master walked towards the pavilion.
It wasn’t visible to the eye, but I could tell by its presence. He was a peak expert. He is a true expert with martial arts skills right in front of him.
He quickly came to the head of the family’s separate room, but stopped for a moment. This was because I did not feel that Namgoongin was popular.
However, after a while, he also walked faster and arrived at the pavilion.
“omg!”
The eyes of Seok Jeong-pil, the leader of the Changcheon Noeryongdan (蒼天雷龍團), the head of the military group that discusses the best in the Namgung family, were colored with astonishment.
“Go, matriarch?!”
Yeon Ho-jeong and Jinyang don’t even look. As he hurriedly approached Namgung-in, his face turned pale in an instant.
“…Matriarch.”
Seok Jeong-pil, who was blankly looking at Namgung-in’s face, turned to Yeon Ho-jeong.
“These guys… what are they doing?!”
The moment when life was about to spread from Seok Jeong-pil’s body.
Phew.
The yellow dragon flags that came loose from Yeonhojeong’s fingertips surrounded the pavilion. This was to prevent Seok Jeong-pil’s life from leaking out.
Just one number clearly shows the difference in level. Seok Jeong-pil’s prayers were shaken wildly. Although he was shocked by the death of the family head, Yeon Ho-jeong’s Qigong ability was so great that even the shock was instantly forgotten.
Yeon Ho-jeong put his index finger to his lips.
“quiet.”
“…?!”
“There’s a reason I only called you. “It’s because I don’t want to make a big deal out of it.”
“Are you saying that right now?!”
“Namgung Gaju committed suicide.”
“what?!”
“I cut my own heartbeat.”
Seok Jeong-pil, who was glaring at Yeon Ho-jeong with menacing eyes, carefully traced Namgung-in’s pulse.
Seok Jeong-pil’s eyes were bloodshot.
“Nonsense! “The head of the family has never learned Yeoyanggong!”
“I was just stating the truth. “You are free to believe it or not, but the reason I called you was because I thought you had the most influence here, aside from the head of the family.”
“…?!”
“It seems we have fallen into a trap.”
“That’s what you mean…!”
“If I had intended to kill him, I wouldn’t have come so loudly and done it so openly. “You know my powerlessness.”
For a moment, Seok Jeong-pil hesitated. There was truth to what Yeon Ho-jeong said.
However, he was greatly shocked and found it difficult to think rationally.
“What kind of trick are you playing?!”
Emotions consumed reason.
It was natural. Anyone would do this. If the leader, Gong Daesa, had been found like this, Yeon Ho-jeong would have also arrested the people around him first.
“I have nothing to say. “From now on, we will move to uncover the death of Nangungaju, so please control the Sega warriors well so that they do not become agitated.”
Yeon Ho-jeong turned around.
Chaaaang!
Seok Jeong-pil pulled out his sword and aimed it at his back.
“Don’t move! “Get down on your knees right then and there…!”
puck!
“Ugh!”
Seok Jeong-pil grabbed his wrist and stumbled. The person who slapped his wrist was Jinyang.
Jinyang sighed and said.
“I hope this clears up the misunderstanding.”
“These guys!”
Like that, Yeon Ho-jeong and Jin Yang left the Namgung family.
When the door opened, the warriors scattered to the left and right stared at Yeon Ho-jeong with faces full of shame.
Yeon Ho-jeong looked around for a moment and confidently passed between them.
No one could say anything until Yeon Ho-jeong and Jin Yang disappeared.
* * *
“…the sky is clear.”
There are too many clouds to call it clear.
The man looked at the sky for a while and smiled vaguely.
“Goodbye, Gaju Namgung.”
At that time, a servant’s voice was heard outside the door.
“The head of the Moyong family has arrived.”
“already?”
The man straightened up.
“Ask them to come in.”
