NOVEL WEB Chapter 6
6. Where Are You Sitting and Waiting?
All eyes inside the tavern snapped to the entrance.
The staff’s faces twisted in dismay.
“Isn’t that the monk Ha Yeonsang?”
“That bandit?”
“Is he crazy? After getting thrown out in one piece, he shouldn’t even be lurking around here.”
A few rough-looking men started to approach, but then hesitated.
Standing there was Sun Wukong, looking completely out of place.
No one dared to act rashly. Never mind his unusual appearance—he walked in, drawing every gaze, and yet his expression and manner were utterly relaxed.
Their thoughts took a strange turn.
‘Did that monk bring some Martial Master with him?’
‘Tch. Is he a Martial Master himself? The way he walks, he looks like a total slacker.’
‘Still, just in case, let’s inform Chief Yang.’
Taverns like this always attracted all sorts of riffraff. Among them, there were always Martial Masters hiding in plain sight, and it was a regular occurrence for someone who looked ordinary to turn out to be a Murim expert.
So, it was only natural for the staff to be wary of Sun Wukong.
One of the staff went to call Chief Yang, the tavern’s resident powerhouse, while the others calmly accepted Sun Wukong as a guest.
“Sir, let me show you to a room.”
The attendant bowed deeply to Sun Wukong, completely ignoring his companions, the Bearded Man and Narrow-Eyed, as if they didn’t exist. Sun Wukong figured something must have happened here before, but didn’t bother to ask.
“Before that, is there anyone unusual among your guests?”
“Unusual, sir…?”
“Someone who came alone, someone with a strange vibe.”
“Well, if you put it that way, I…”
“Someone who looks tough.”
“Ah…”
The attendant’s expression stiffened for a moment, as if something came to mind. It was a fleeting change, but Sun Wukong didn’t miss it.
He tapped the attendant’s shoulder.
“Go tell them: Stone Flower Sect has brought the goods. Come and get them.”
“…!”
“Oh, and bring plenty of liquor. Any snacks will do. No, wait—fruit. Bring all the fruit you have.”
As the attendant left the room, the Bearded Man jumped up.
“What are you thinking?!”
“What do you mean? I just want to see his face.”
“That Blood-Iron Fiend… The rumors about him are terrifying. More than a dozen Martial Masters from the Murim Alliance have died trying to catch him.”
“Guess they only sent weaklings after him.”
“What…?”
Calling the Murim Alliance’s pursuit squad weaklings—unbelievable.
The Bearded Man was confused. Did Sun Wukong really think everyone else’s Martial Art Skills were trash, or was he just so clueless about Murim that he could talk so carelessly?
‘Probably both.’
The Bearded Man had seen Sun Wukong’s prowess against the Stone Flower Sect firsthand.
He might be living as a bandit now, but he was once an outside disciple of Shaolin.
‘I couldn’t even follow his movements with my eyes.’
That was the truth. No tricks, no traps, no sorcery.
Not even some special Martial Art Skill—just pure physical movement.
‘He completely demolished that so-called first-rate fighter with just basic brawling.’
Honestly, it wasn’t even a fight. It was a one-sided beating.
‘But still…’
This is the Blood-Iron Fiend! The Blood-Iron Fiend!
Not some two-bit Black Path thug from the sticks, but a real Martial Master.
‘He survived five years after becoming a Murim public enemy. He’s the real deal.’
Narrow-Eyed seemed to share the same worries, his eyes darting with anxiety.
If they got caught up in a fight now…
Whether Sun Wukong noticed or not, he just kept drinking, downing the snacks and liquor as they arrived.
“What’s wrong? Why are you two just sitting there?”
“Well…”
“Are you scared?”
“Y-yes, we are.”
“Tsk. You two have only heard rumors about the Blood-Iron Fiend or whatever. Have you ever actually seen him?”
“No.”
“So you don’t even know if those stories about how strong he is are true?”
“Well…”
Do you really have to see it with your own eyes? The rumors are enough.
The Bearded Man bit back what he wanted to say.
Sun Wukong chuckled.
“I can see what you’re thinking, even if you don’t say it. Don’t worry. This old man has a plan.”
Old man, my foot.
The Bearded Man was already in his forties. No matter how you looked at it, this guy didn’t even look thirty. And yet…
“Enough about that. Let’s talk about you two.”
“Huh?”
“You call yourselves bandits, but there’s only two of you, and you just wander around town without a care. You don’t exactly live normal lives, do you?”
“Well, we call ourselves bandits, but really, we just drift around like water weeds, doing whatever comes our way.”
“You said you were a Martial Artist once?”
“I was an outside disciple, but, well, life happens. This guy here was a local kid I knew, and we did some river piracy together. Then we got chased out of there, so now we’re here, pretending to be bandits.”
“I saw the constables walk right past you earlier without arresting you. Some bandits you are.”
“Ahem.”
“You’ve had your share of ups and downs, huh? Why’d you get kicked out of here? Judging by the staff’s looks, they were ready to beat you senseless.”
“Well…”
The Bearded Man hesitated, clearly uncomfortable.
“Let me guess. It was about a woman, wasn’t it?”
“…!”
Sun Wukong snickered.
“You probably fell for one of the girls working here. Turns out, she had a tragic story. As a man, you couldn’t just stand by. Tried to help her escape, got caught red-handed. Am I right?”
The Bearded Man’s mouth hung open.
He was clueless, unpredictable, and full of holes, but sometimes he seemed to see right through you, which sent a chill down your spine.
Maybe he was just guessing, but sometimes, behind that playful glint in his eyes, there was a depth that…
“Well, it’s just a boring old story.”
“You fool. Everything in this world is connected by strings, like a spider’s web. The String of Karma, the String of Misfortune. There’s no need to get tangled up. The more you struggle, the more trapped you become.”
“…”
“What I’m saying is, don’t waste too much energy forging ties. If it’s a true bond, the String of Karma will connect you no matter what. If it’s a shallow bond, it’ll pass like a breeze.”
For some reason, the Bearded Man’s face grew pensive at these profound words.
Sun Wukong poured him a drink.
“Here, know its worth. This is a drink poured by the Great Sage Equal to Heaven himself. It’s more precious than Imperial Liquor!”
Whenever he starts sounding impressive, he ruins it with stuff like this.
The Bearded Man smirked and downed the drink. It was fiery liquor, but somehow it cooled his anxious heart. His tangled thoughts suddenly felt clear.
Sun Wukong chuckled again.
“But really, is it ever that easy to tie or cut a bond? The world is imperfect, so how could any relationship—good or bad—be perfect? As long as you don’t forget that we all strive for completeness in this imperfect world, that’s enough.”
“…!”
The Bearded Man’s chest tightened.
Profound.
They say beautiful words have a fragrance. For a moment, he thought he understood what that meant. Or maybe it was just the liquor talking.
He, too, had once been a Shaolin outside disciple, trained in the Buddhist Dharma.
From that one phrase, he felt such a noble fragrance that his whole body trembled.
He knew what it was, instinctively.
‘A moment of enlightenment.’
The truth seemed just within reach, swaying like a breeze.
‘Just a little more…’
If he reached out, he could almost grasp it.
Then Sun Wukong burst out laughing.
“What? Surprised? This Great Sage was once the disciple of the smartest guy in Buddhist Dharma, and now I’m a Buddha myself. A Buddha! Not some statue you see in a temple, but the real thing.”
“…”
The Bearded Man suddenly felt deflated. That thread of enlightenment he’d almost grasped vanished before his eyes.
“Ah…”
He let out a sigh of regret. A Buddha, really? Every time he opens his mouth… Just a moment ago, he’d seemed so different, but now he was back to being a total slacker.
The Bearded Man had no idea what Sun Wukong’s true nature was.
Just then, heavy footsteps sounded outside, and a rough-looking man barged in.
“You said you’re from the Stone Flower Sect? And you brought that crazy monk who calls himself a bandit?”
“Is that the Blood-Iron Fiend?” Sun Wukong asked.
“No. That’s Chief Yang, the manager here,” the Bearded Man replied.
Sun Wukong folded his arms.
“So, where’s the guy I told you to bring?”
“So you’re the one. They say a golden giant took down the Red Wolf of Hubei at the docks.”
“You bastard.”
Suddenly, Sun Wukong hurled his cup at Chief Yang. Chief Yang smirked. In this line of work, people throwing cups at you was nothing new, and as a skilled Martial Master himself, he figured this was nothing…
Smash!
“Gah!”
Chief Yang’s thoughts were cut short. The cup flew at him several—no, dozens—of times faster than he expected, with a destructive force he couldn’t ignore. His mind went blank as his body staggered.
He barely managed to stay on his feet.
Sun Wukong was already right in front of him.
Chief Yang instinctively raised his hands to defend himself.
“…?”
Something was wrong. He was sure he blocked, but Sun Wukong’s fist had already broken through.
Ah, he’s impossibly faster than me.
Smack!
Chief Yang collapsed, clutching his bloodied face.
“Go bring him. Tell him Stone Flower Sect has brought the goods. Now. Or I’ll smash your head in right here.”
Terrified, Chief Yang scrambled out the door.
Sun Wukong shrugged at his two stunned companions.
“Honestly, people like that never listen until you beat some sense into them…”
He sat back down and resumed drinking as if nothing had happened.
Not long after, Chief Yang returned, looking like he’d run for his life.
“T-the person upstairs says if you don’t bring the goods right now, you’ll die.”
“Hah.”
What? Who’s threatening who now?
Sun Wukong clicked his tongue.
“Must’ve left his wits in the afterlife after running for his life so much. Go back and tell him: if he doesn’t come down, he’ll find out what it’s like to be beaten to death for real.”
Chief Yang looked like he was about to cry. Even the Bearded Man, who usually couldn’t stand him, felt a pang of sympathy.
Right now, Sun Wukong looked exactly like a drunken troublemaker yelling for someone to come out.
‘A Buddha, he says…’
What kind of Buddha gets drunk and causes a scene?
But then another thought struck him. Remembering the depth Sun Wukong had shown earlier, he wondered,
‘Is this some kind of psychological warfare?’
Momentum and atmosphere can decide a fight. Provoking your opponent to disrupt their composure is a classic Strategy of Provocation, a time-honored path to victory.
The Bearded Man was impressed.
He seemed so carefree, just drinking and acting thoughtless, but—
‘The fight’s already begun!’
A fierce psychological battle was already raging beneath the surface!
The Bearded Man looked at Sun Wukong with newfound respect.
Sun Wukong furrowed his brow slightly, but to the Bearded Man, it looked like the calculating gaze of a Martial Master sizing up a distant foe.
Of course, Sun Wukong was really thinking,
“Who does he think he is, ordering me around? He’s not even worthy to sit at the same table as me.”
Who dares to boss around the Great Sage Equal to Heaven?
Even the Jade Emperor would send down the Taebaek Golden Saint to summon me.
Damn, how arrogant.
Just then, a menacing aura could be felt from outside.
It was Killing Intent.
Sun Wukong smirked.
“Come on, if you’re going to come, just do it. Don’t make such a spectacle of yourself.”
Creak!
The door opened, revealing a man with cold, piercing eyes. Beneath his brows, a sinister glint betrayed his cruelty.
Blood-Iron Fiend.
The Murim public enemy had arrived.
The Bearded Man broke out in a cold sweat.
‘Damn. Why are the rumors always so accurate these days?’
He looked terrifying at a glance.
At that moment, Sun Wukong raised his cup and said,
“You’re here? Have a drink.”
As if greeting an old friend, he smiled brightly.