Chapter 91
There were wondrous places.
Among them was a place that, from afar, looked like nothing more than an ordinary village on a mountain slope where old people lived, and so it was called the Old People’s Village.
Those who knew the true identity of that place called it the Council of Elders of the Luoyang Sword Clan, with both reverence and fear.
Part 16: The Village of Old People
***
The Luoyang Sword Clan, also called the Heavenly Clan, had many strange places befitting its fame.
Wongakjeong, where flowers bloomed throughout the four seasons and were said not to wither even in the depths of winter.
The forbidden land stretching from behind Wongakjeong all the way to Mount Song, the Demonic Forest Realm.
The Clan Head’s residence, the Deep Section, where anyone without authorization who set foot inside was said to be found beheaded, regardless of right or wrong.
The underground prison, where rakshasas and asuras were said to be eternally imprisoned deep beneath the earth, made to kill one another forever.
Grand Madam Tang’s residence, the Ghost Pavilion, where anyone who did not visit at the proper time and hour would end up missing.
Aside from these, there were many wondrous places in the Luoyang Sword Clan about which rumors abounded, but which no one dared speak of openly.
Early dawn.
Luoyang Sword Clan, outskirts.
The Head of the Council of Elders, known as the Little Giant, was walking up a hill.
Along the hill, there were fields of fresh green barley sprouts, as well as scallions, garlic, spinach, and the like that had endured the winter and were growing.
Although the sun had not yet fully risen, diligent old people were already inspecting the fields.
Among the old people dressed in clothes so shabby they could hardly be called proper garments, there were some faces he could recognize, but the Head of the Council of Elders did not acknowledge them.
He acted just as the previous Head of the Council of Elders had taught him.
There was always a reason why those who had once accumulated wealth, honor, and power that none under heaven could envy now lived here like mere old peasants.
The old man who had just passed by while driving a herd of goats was a retired Reception Hall Master, one who had retired even before he had risen to the position of elder.
The old man carefully inspecting the barley sprouts with meticulous hands had once been the foremost warrior of the Luoyang Sword Clan, a man who had used those very hands to harvest the heads of enemies as though gathering crops.
The Head of the Council of Elders passed them by and finally reached the entrance of the village.
“This is the Old People’s Village. What business brings you here?”
Two middle-aged warriors wearing old guard uniforms stared at him openly.
Like the warriors who guarded Wongakjeong, they were retired warriors belonging to the Special Assignment Unit directly under the Council of Elders.
“…I am the Head of the Council of Elders of the main clan. I have come because I have an appointment with the village chief.”
The warrior made him wait, saying he would confirm it, then walked into the village.
Even though he had clearly made an appointment before coming, the old people had not informed the entrance in advance. The Head of the Council of Elders let out a small sigh at their conduct.
These people did not welcome those currently holding power.
They even despised them.
“…I hear the sound of a pig being slaughtered.”
At his question, the guard answered indifferently.
“That is correct.”
“Is there some kind of feast?”
“I do not know.”
“…I see.”
A short while later, the middle-aged guard returned.
“Please leave your weapons here. You cannot enter while carrying them.”
“I have none.”
“The use of internal energy is strictly prohibited inside.”
“I know.”
“If you shout loudly or cause a disturbance, you may be expelled.”
“I understand.”
Answering every petty warning one by one, the Head of the Council of Elders swallowed a sigh.
***
Inside the stuffy, shabby village hall, old people were gathered in small groups, warming themselves by the fire and chatting quietly.
They were people too old even to work the fields.
The Head of the Council of Elders entered, but no one gave him so much as a glance.
“Wang Mo of the later generation pays respects to the elders of the clan and seeks your guidance.”
The Head of the Council of Elders offered a respectful bow, but what returned was cold snorting laughter.
“A bastard whose first and last visit was to brag that he had become Head of the Council of Elders now comes seeking guidance?”
The Head of the Council of Elders sighed inwardly.
“…I did not come to brag. I came according to procedure to receive the Council of Elders’ approval.”
“Look at that bastard talking back.”
“Rotten fellow. It is always bastards like that who cause trouble later and come asking us to clean it up.”
Baseless insults flew at him along with pointing fingers.
The Head of the Council of Elders repeatedly carved the character for “endure” into his heart.
When an old woman holding a cane that seemed to have no ordinary origin raised her hand, the hall fell silent.
Her long white hair hung down messily. She was the village chief of this village and the head of the Council of Elders, the Elder Council Head.
“Very well. State your business.”
She did not even offer him a seat.
The Head of the Council of Elders remained standing and spoke with proper respect.
“In truth, I came to seek guidance regarding the confinement of First Young Master Yeon Sang-hyeon, but the Supreme Management Council already reached a conclusion yesterday.”
“Starting from the hour when official duties begin today, an order lifting that child’s confinement will be proclaimed. I know.”
Her cloudy eyes turned toward the Head of the Council of Elders.
“That is precisely why we accepted your request to visit only today.”
In other words, they had not wanted to give him advice regarding the First Young Master’s confinement.
“…If, even on such a grave matter, you will not give advice even to me, the Head of the Council of Elders of the main clan, then what is the purpose of the Council of Elders’ existence?”
The Head of the Council of Elders had intended to deliver a sharp rebuke, but the elders cared surprisingly little.
“This is merely a village where old people with nothing to do and no ties left gather to live.”
“Our joy lies in watching the foals grow well and the crops ripen properly, not in confirming our own power.”
The Head of the Council of Elders wanted to turn around and leave then and there.
However, he endured it as he recalled the request of the previous Head of the Council of Elders.
The man had told him that success or failure in the position of Head of the Council of Elders depended on how much advice he could obtain from the Council of Elders.
“…Are the people here not elders who are respected and honored by the main clan? And yet such people refuse to offer advice regarding the First Young Master?”
Nothing could be read from the Elder Council Head’s wrinkled face.
“The respect we receive and the treatment we are given are merely compensation for the devotion we showed the main clan in the past.”
The metal rings hanging from her cane swayed and gave off a clear sound.
“Other than that, we are nothing more than mere peasants.”
The Head of the Council of Elders looked dumbfounded.
“Mere peasants, you say? Those mere peasants possess the authority to approve the Head of the Council of Elders of the main clan, and the authority to nominate the Head of the Guardian Court and the Head of the Law Enforcement Court?”
He took one step forward.
“Are you saying such people elect the Supreme Committee members who make up the Supreme Management Council that leads the main clan?!”
The moment he shouted, he felt that he had made a mistake.
The gazes of the old people sitting huddled together in the cramped hall turned toward him all at once.
Each and every one of them had once been a figure who had dominated an era.
Their eyes held no aura.
No spirit.
No presence.
He could not move a muscle.
When the Elder Council Head lightly shook her cane, a clear sound rang out once again.
The Head of the Council of Elders snapped back to his senses and looked at her.
“We are mere peasants with no interest in influence, authority, or power.”
She gave a faint smile.
“Is that not precisely why such heavy authority was entrusted to us?”
To the Head of the Council of Elders, who could find no words to answer, she waved her hand.
“If you have no business, leave now.”
The other elders added one word at a time.
“Yes, hurry back.”
“Go down below and play your power games among yourselves.”
The Head of the Council of Elders closed his eyes for a moment, then once again assumed a respectful attitude and bowed.
“…Might you perhaps give this junior some advice regarding the current succession issue of the main clan?”
“…Was there a succession issue in the main clan?”
“I know nothing about such difficult matters.”
The old people acted as though they were playing dumb, picking their ears or gazing into empty space.
The Elder Council Head clicked her tongue.
“You are not fit to enter the Council of Elders either.”
“…What do you mean?”
Instead of her, the surrounding elders spoke one by one.
“Do not interfere.”
“Do not get involved.”
The Elder Council Head raised a finger and pointed at him.
“Even if you see, pretend not to have seen. Even if you hear, pretend not to have heard.”
More wrinkles formed on the Head of the Council of Elders’ forehead.
“…Those are the first things taught to those of low rank who enter the main clan.”
“Now that you have become Head of the Council of Elders, do you feel so important? Because others lift you up, calling you the ‘Little Giant’ and whatnot, do you think you have become something?”
“…Are you rebuking me for being arrogant?”
The Elder Council Head looked at him with her cloudy eyes.
“Do you know why a massive clan like the main clan has no clear rules regarding the selection of a successor?”
“…Is it not because the successor is meant to be chosen in the wisest way according to the circumstances of each time?”
When one of the old people burst into laughter, the others all joined in, mocking him so hard that spittle flew.
When the Elder Council Head shook her cane, the laughter subsided.
“The main clan belongs to the Yeon family, and among the direct descendants of the Yeon family, in every generation, there has always been a true one of a different caliber. That is why this Yeon family has never had rules regarding the selection of a successor.”
The Head of the Council of Elders recalled the current successors.
Each and every one of them was an absurdly outstanding candidate.
“…In that case, it seems the present era is an exceptionally special one.”
“No. The present era is also no different from any other.”
The Head of the Council of Elders let out a sigh.
“It may not be my place to say this, but the main clan now is on a different level from when those here were active. It has become a far larger and far more powerful clan. And it has become that much more complicated.”
It was a pointed remark aimed at how she had described the present Luoyang Sword Clan like the old Yeon family of the past.
The Elder Council Head exposed her missing teeth in an ugly grin and sneered at him.
“The Head of the Council of Elders from two generations ago strutted around, claiming he was one of the Thirteen Members of the Emergency Countermeasure Council, and then disappeared. You will end up like him.”
The Head of the Council of Elders clenched his teeth.
“…I have no idea what you mean. This junior is too foolish to understand your teaching.”
“The advice ends here.”
The Elder Council Head struck her cane down hard.
“Leave this village at once.”
Outwardly, the Head of the Council of Elders remained respectful, but inwardly, he suppressed his anger as he descended the hill.
The elders in the village hall clicked their tongues.
“What is the point of telling him when he cannot hear even after being told?”
“What is the use of showing him when he cannot see even after being shown?”
They had not withheld advice for the sake of their junior.
Do not become intoxicated by power games.
The main clan is the Yeon family’s clan.
Among the direct line of the main clan, there is always one true person of a different caliber.
So do not act as though you are something important.
Do not interfere.
Do not get involved.
Do not pretend to have heard.
Do not pretend to have seen.
At present, the main clan has no succession issue.
***
The old people slowly rose from their seats and headed toward the wide yard where a pig was being roasted.
As they walked, they chatted among themselves.
“The succession issue, which was the main clan’s greatest concern, has disappeared, so this is something to celebrate.”
“If we do not slaughter a pig on a day like this, when would we?”
“It is a relief that ‘that boy’ changed his mind.”
“By the way, this time, that boy did not weed out the Supreme Committee members.”
“Tsk, that is because that boy has a demanding eye for people.”
“Indeed.”
“To think it is this hard to find a decent person in this great clan who can satisfy that boy’s standards…”