The Regressor of Mount Hua-Chapter 319. The Confusion of Black Shadows (1)

The Juvenile Fist Emperor had appeared.

This news swept across the entire murim.

"The Juvenile Fist Emperor? Are you talking about the elder of the gangho murim?"

"What brought out that reclusive old man?"

The Juvenile Fist Emperor had been in seclusion for quite some time.

Though he had officially cut ties with the secular world over a decade ago, he had already stopped all activities in the murim well before that.

In fact, he was practically retired.

However, due to his eccentric behavior and the occasional news of his continued survival, he had remained one of the Seven Empyrean Overlords.

"What brought him out? Hey, you young ones must be joking, right?"

"What are you trying to say?"

"Ha, seriously. You young ones really must not be interested in the gangho. What else could the Juvenile Fist Emperor's appearance in the gangho mean?"

"What do you mean?"

"It seems I have to tell you what kind of person the Juvenile Fist Emperor really is.

"The Juvenile Fist Emperor, Jing Bai. He was a man of justice and a noble warrior.

"The Juvenile Fist Emperor was neither from a noble family nor a mysterious sect. He was born a lowly Third Class warrior and a wanderer."

The source of this c𝓸ntent is frёeweɓηovel.coɱ.

"A wanderer? Wow, that's amazing."

It wasn't that there weren't any Absolute Masters who were wanderers. However, reaching that level was as difficult as picking stars from the sky.

After all, no one knew if they could reach the Coruscant Realm even if they trained in a peerless divine art or were an unparalleled genius.

So, it was surprising that a wanderer, and a Third Class warrior at that, had become an Absolute Master.

"Most wanderers are blinded by money and tend to get dirty rolling in the mud, but the Juvenile Fist Emperor was different. Despite being an orphan, he never cursed his fate, but rather pointed out what was wrong with the world and lived righteously. Because of his personality, he had almost died more than once when he was young, but thanks to his natural talent for martial arts and his unceasing efforts, he survived and worked hard to become an expert."

He didn’t just become a master. The Juvenile Fist Emperor became known as a chivalrous man who protected the weak.

"Wow, that truly is impressive. He sounds like a true hero."

"There's no one among the old people like me who doesn't know him."

"What happened next?"

"A-ahem! Maybe I’ve talked too much. My throat’s a bit dry..."

"Attendant! Bring over the food and drinks as quickly as possible!"

"You're young, so you're quick-witted."

"Enough with the compliments. Please continue your story."

The storyteller continued to speak while quenching his thirst with alcohol.

"At that time, he was even revered as a hero and a member of the Five Dragons and Three Phoenixes. However, his life after that wasn't so easy. Whether it was the Righteous Faction or the Evil Faction, the Righteous Faction wouldn't let him off easy."

A wanderer with no connections had become a master.

The murim was a place where power was the law. This power also included the power of one's backing. If one was alone, people would bully them.

Although Jing Bai was invited to visit the Martial Alliance, he was discriminated against and treated unfairly simply because of his humble origins.

"For someone who was more upright than anyone else, the hypocritical behavior of the Righteous Faction was unbearable. Whether it was the Nine Sects and One Gang or the Five Great Ancient Families, he went around trying to fix what was wrong, making it so that he was almost expelled from the Righteous Faction murim."

"So what happened next?"

"The so-called higher-ups tried to kick out this crazy bastard who ran wild like a bull, but they couldn't openly touch the Juvenile Fist Emperor, who was famous as a hero at the time. So, they gave him an impossible mission instead."

People gathered around the storyteller. It was like a child listening to a fairy tale from his grandfather before going to bed.

"However, the Juvenile Fist Emperor completed all of those impossible missions, contrary to expectations, and was recognized by the Righteous Faction murim. After that, he became the hammer of the Martial Alliance, helping the weak and punishing the wicked with his fists. But..."

"But?"

"One day, the Juvenile Fist Emperor realized during a mission that he was being used. Half of the missions he thought were for peace and safety were actually for the selfish desires of the rotten old members of the Martial Alliance."

While some of the missions were truly for the Righteous Faction murim, or at least something related to it, some of them were personal. This pure and upright martial artist had become a good tool for some of the leading figures to exploit.

"Outraged, the Juvenile Fist Emperor took action. He tracked down the hypocrites hiding behind masks of virtue and struck them down with a single blow. Some people even agreed with his actions and joined him. Among them, the famous ones were the Taiji Sword Yun Guang and the current Martial Alliance Leader Nangong Weiwu."[1]

No matter how powerful the Juvenile Fist Emperor was, he was still one man. To change the system, he needed allies.

Although he was alone and lacked political power, he gained backing from the martial artists of the Wudang Sect and the Nangong Family.

"Ohhh..."

"After that, the corrupt hypocrites who had indulged in power and satisfied their own selfish desires were brought down by the forces backing the Juvenile Fist Emperor, and the Martial Alliance was reorganized."

"What happened to the Juvenile Fist Emperor?"

"During the civil war of that time, the Juvenile Fist Emperor, who became one of the Seven Empyrean Overlords, was temporarily revered as the new Martial Alliance Leader. However, he refused, saying that he wasn't fit for such a high position. Then, after leaving these words, he went into seclusion about ten years ago."

An old man like me would only be a burden to the younger generation. Moreover, I'm too tired to enjoy anything properly, and the young people will take care of the rest. So, I’ll cut ties with the secular world and live out the rest of my days in peace. However, if the Righteous Path turns to the wrong path again, I'll return to the murim to ask for forgiveness and set things right.

With those words, the past hero Juvenile Fist Emperor, who was once a wanderer and a great man of his era, disappeared into the backstreets of history.

"In other words, the fact that the Juvenile Fist Emperor has reappeared in the murim is..."

"The hypocrisy of the murim, the Black Shadow Division, is real."

***

Sometimes, the entire murim was influenced by one person.

The Juvenile Fist Emperor, one of the Seven Empyrean Overlords, had done that. Now, a storm called the Juvenile Fist Emperor had swept across the murim again.

"The Juvenile Fist Emperor has appeared?"

"Does that mean that the current Martial Alliance is rotten?"

"I mean, it's led by not just anyone, but Nangong Weiwu, who once helped The Juvenile Fist Emperor purge the corruption, right?"

"Seriously!"

"Those hypocritical bastards!"

The Juvenile Fist Emperor was a hero and a hammer for justice that punished hypocrisy.

Although many years had passed, the murim still remembered those words.

The mere appearance of Jing Bai had stirred the murim to its core.

Trust in the current Martial Alliance began to plummet, while the criticism and inquiries continued.

The entire region was in an uproar. They asked what had happened to the Righteous Faction, which was affiliated with the Martial Alliance.

Even the Evil Valley, which was in a cooperative relationship with them, had some who asked, 'Is it okay to form an alliance with those hypocrites?'

"...Ha?"

Zhou Xuchuan had also received news of the Juvenile Fist Emperor’s return.

"What in the world is this..."

He was flustered. It was really unexpected news.

The Juvenile Fist Emperor, Jing Bai...

Zhou had never even considered such a possibility.

Frankly speaking, the man was simply too old.

It was said that Jing Bai was around 120 years old.

He had first appeared in the murim nearly a century ago, and after enduring countless trials, he was used by the Murim Alliance around seventy or eighty years ago.

After that, as it was known, he had joined forces with Nangong Weiwu and the others to punish corrupt martial artists and change the Righteous Path.

Roughly fifty years ago, after receiving occasional visits from a few close acquaintances, he went into complete seclusion.

I can't believe the Juvenile Fist Emperor is still alive!

In his previous life, the Juvenile Fist Emperor never appeared.

Five years from now, in his previous life, the Dark Heavens Association had appeared and threatened the Central Plains murim.

At that time, the Righteous Faction—its power weakened by the long wars that began with the Seven Swords War—had reached out to the Juvenile Fist Emperor for help, but received no response.

At that time, it was assumed that the reason they never received a response wasn't because the Juvenile Fist Emperor didn't like the state of the Righteous Path, but because he had fulfilled his life's calling and moved on to the heavens.

And so, the Juvenile Fist Emperor was removed from the ranks of the Empyrean Overlords.

While he had been someone forgotten in Zhou Xuchuan's previous life, in this second life, the Juvenile Fist Emperor felt like a figure from a different era.

This is the worst.

The timing couldn’t have been worse.

If it had been under normal circumstances, there wouldn’t have been this much chaos.

But the Black Shadow Division controversy had shaken everything.

"The brush is mightier than the sword."

He could just see Blessed Existence cackling.

"I'm going to Hefei right now!"

It was far too serious to delay. He had no choice but to leave his party behind and move swiftly.

Even if he wanted to take them along, they simply couldn’t keep up with his speed.

Worried about being separated for too long, he contacted nearby branches of the Martial Alliance and the Valley of Phantoms, requesting an escort for his party.

Then, without sleep or food for three days and nights, Zhou Xuchuan rushed to the Martial Alliance headquarters in Hefei, ceaselessly using his lightness technique.

***

Hefei, Martial Alliance.

The atmosphere in the Martial Alliance couldn't have been worse.

"Martial Alliance, reveal the truth!"

"Release the list of those kidnapped and tortured by the Black Shadow Division!"

From the main gate to three zhang beyond the walls, groups from the murim came out with banners and protested every day.

Even warriors who were usually proud members of the Martial Alliance now lowered their heads and remained silent in shame.

"Welcome," Zhuge Xiang greeted Zhou Xuchuan as if he had been waiting for him.

Perhaps because he had not slept for several days, he looked terrible. His face was pale and there were dark circles under his eyes.

"Welcome." Nangong Weiwu added, his face not looking much better.

"What the hell is going on?"

"How much do you know?" Zhuge Xiang asked with a bitter smile.

"I've only heard the rumors."

He hadn’t even taken the time to access intelligence from the Xia Wu Sect, the Valley of Phantoms, or the Gold Will Merchants.

He had come straight here to hear it from them directly.

Zhuge Xiang opened his mouth to respond, but Nangong Weiwu raised his hand to stop him and spoke himself.

"...Ha!"

Zhou Xuchuan sighed.

There was nothing he could do. The fact that The Juvenile Fist Emperor had shown up—this was the worst-case scenario.

"Have you tried persuading him?"

The Black Shadow Division was a necessary evil.

No matter how much they tried to make excuses, it was wrong. However, that wrongdoing had saved countless lives.

Zhou Xuchuan felt that, if explained properly, it could be understood as an unavoidable situation.

"Persuade?"

Nangong Weiwu let out a hollow laugh.

"If that were possible, this wouldn’t be happening."

"It really is... a very difficult situation."

The final battle with the Dark Heavens Association was just around the corner.

Of course, the Seven Empyrean Overlords just had to become enemies at a time like this.

Their foe wasn't just an Absolute Master. While the Juvenile Fist Emperor was a single man, his influence was anything but small.

He was a hero whose influence rivaled that of the Sword God—one who could sway the murim more than even the Martial Alliance Leader or the Evil Valley Master.

I guess I should consider it fortunate that he isn't part of the Dark Heavens Association.

After all, if the Juvenile Fist Emperor had actually joined the Dark Heavens Association, he wouldn't have been the Juvenile Fist Emperor.

He wouldn't have had this much influence in the first place.

"This reminds me of Li Chu." The Heavenly Strategist said with a heavy sigh.

The Bear Fist Hero, Li Chu.

He had been from a small and medium-sized sect, but had become fed up with the discrimination and hypocrisy of the Righteous Faction murim, so he betrayed the Martial Alliance and joined the Avaricious Wolf Star of the Dark Heavens Association.

"This is different from the Dark Heavens Association's underlings."

Li Chu's actions were unforgivable.

Even though his intentions made sense, he ended up committing massacres and joining hands with the Dark Heavens Association, which had turned the murim into a nightmare.

The Juvenile Fist Emperor, however, was different.

He was a true hero.

He didn't seek any personal gain, refused the support of the people, and had gone into seclusion.

"Those of the murim will become disappointed in the Martial Alliance, and the solidarity fostered through the Righteous Path will be weakened. The entrenched factions of the Dark Heavens Association will thoroughly exploit this situation through politics. Moreover, opportunists outside of the Dark Heavens Association may run wild and cause even more trouble," Zhou Xuchuan said, speaking so fervently that spittle shot out of his mouth.

"The Martial Alliance... may split."

The hypocrisy of the Martial Alliance, or rather the Righteous Faction, had been what had called out the Juvenile Fist Emperor.

1. We think this is a typo or a brain fart, as the current Taiji Sword is Yun Guang. We may change the previous chapters depending on if the author continues with this new spelling. ☜