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Chapter 263: The Greatest Worry (5)
Everyone in the hall was shocked three times.
First, when Jeong Yeongwoo calmly picked up his severed wrist from the floor.
And then again...
Poof!
...when he forcibly reattached that wrist to his shattered forearm.
“What, what are you doing?”
“Does he think just sticking it back will work?”
Even though this was a world where demons roamed freely after the reset, some common sense remained.
For instance, severed body parts wouldn’t reattach properly without special measures, and being impaled through the chest usually meant death.
However, Yeongwoo was far beyond the common sense of this world.
Sssrrp.
“Oh, oh?”
“No way... is that...”
The crowd, watching the absolute demon from the Korean Peninsula, stood with their mouths agape.
It was unbelievable, but it was happening right before their eyes.
The lower arm, which Yeongwoo had seemingly just stuck on, started to meld with the elbow.
The bone fragments sticking out of the torn skin gradually began to find their places.
Crunch, crack!
A gruesome sound echoed through the hall as the shattered bone pushed aside ligaments and muscle tissue to return to its original position.
“Master...?”
Jeong Taeryong of the Five Masters of Anshan, who had stepped forward to welcome ‘Master Jeong,’ hesitated and then stopped in his tracks.
That’s how shocking Yeongwoo’s' recovery show’ was.
“My god.”
“...Unbelievable.”
As everyone was in shock, Yeongwoo calmly lifted his left wrist with his right hand to check the time.
“I should get going.”
“Where are you going so suddenly? How about a meal with us...”
Jeong Taeryong, coming to his senses, hurried to invite the guest into the city, but it was already nearing six in the evening.
‘Even if I leave for Seoul right now, I’ll only arrive at midnight.’
But that wasn’t all for today.
Before returning to Seoul, he had to stop by Dalian to collect the promised money.
Once in Seoul, he would receive defense funds brought by the Strongest Swords from various places...
‘Then I have to enter the night dungeon.’
Therefore, if possible, he needed to make time for some rest.
“Let’s leave the meal for another time. Today, the whole city is likely to be quite busy.”
“Huh? What do you mean by that...”
As Jeong Taeryong looked puzzled, Yeongwoo quietly showed three fingers.
“...Oh, right.”
Thirty million.
That was the cost for Anshan City not to turn this demon into their enemy. But as everyone had just seen, this man had tremendous power. He might even have the strength to defeat Im Dupyeong.
“Preparing the mentioned amount shouldn’t be a big problem. But...”
Jeong Taeryong added that gathering thirty million in cash would take some time.
Yeongwoo nodded as if he had expected this.
“I’d love to wait and have tea while you collect it, but it can’t be helped.”
Yeongwoo waved his hand, calling Negwig.
The horse, waiting with two alien slaves on its back, clattered its metal hooves and approached.
“I will return tomorrow afternoon. You can give me sixty million in a lump sum then.”
Sixty million.
This was the agreed pay for two days of the highest rank service but gathered in this way; it seemed much larger.
“Oh... You mean you’ll take today’s money and tomorrow’s together?”
“Yes. If it’s too much to pay all at once, you’d have to bring the money to Seoul directly, which might be difficult in terms of time.”
This was because unusual weather would arrive at night.
“Understood. Then, we’ll deliver sixty million tomorrow.”
As Jeong Taeryong made a promise with a bow, Yeongwoo returned the gesture with his still awkward stance.
“Stay healthy until tomorrow... and take good care of the tribute.”
Saying this, Yeongwoo leaped onto Negwig, who had approached.
Leap!
Then, waving his left arm, which had mostly healed, he bid farewell to the citizens of Anshan.
“See you again!”
In turn, the citizens, still looking stunned, waved back at Yeongwoo.
* * *
Heading south again.
Yeongwoo drove Negwig at full speed toward Dalian.
The city where Dalian Swordmaster Tian Zhulin was likely waiting with twenty million in cash.
“Kept your promise, I hope?”
When Yeongwoo muttered worriedly, the golden goblin in the back seat made an unintelligible noise.
- Kitt!
It was unclear whether it implied that humans couldn’t be trusted or if it was excited about sweeping up a large amount of coins again.
In any case, if Dalian City hadn’t prepared the money...
‘Then what should I do? Fight Tian Zhulin?’
Although Yeongwoo had threatened that he would come for the money, he hadn’t thought through what he would do if they hadn’t prepared it.
If he were indeed a demon to the core, he might have caused a massacre in Dalian as a warning.
But Yeongwoo was just a particularly notorious’ freak,’ not a tremendous demon or a villain.
‘Of course, my accumulated evil deeds are superhuman.’
Thus, he wanted to avoid anything significantly increasing his tally of evil deeds.
After all, reducing his evil deeds to near zero was one of his long-term goals.
Quaaaat, quaaaat!
Soon, the sight of Dalian City began to appear in the distance.
‘Almost there.’
For Tian Zhulin, Yeongwoo’s return might not be very welcome.
Especially since he hadn’t stopped by Tongliao City, which Dalian had recommended.
There must have been a reason for recommending that faraway city.
“Swordmaster Tian! Is the money ready?”
When Yeongwoo shouted from the city’s outskirts, a swift presence emerged from the front at the right time.
‘Dalian Swordmaster.’
It was none other than Tian Zhulin, the guardian of Dalian City.
“Keep it down. Everyone can hear you.”
Sure enough, Swordmaster Tian did not look pleased. In contrast, Yeongwoo looked troubled when he saw her empty-handed.
“Where’s the money?”
“It’s being brought. Did you think I would carry that much money myself?”
Tian Zhulin pointed somewhere inside the city.
It probably meant that those designated as the transport team were bringing the money bags.
Yeongwoo tilted his head.
“That won’t do.”
“Why... why not?”
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“Starting tomorrow, you must bring the money to the Korean Peninsula. Specifically, we’ve set up a brokerage in Incheon.”
Yeongwoo explained that it would be safest if the strongest person in Dalian, Tian Zhulin, personally transported the money.
As expected, she exploded in anger.
“This crazy bastard! It’s not enough that you’re extorting money; now you want me to deliver it personally?”
Tian Zhulin’s knuckles cracked as she clenched and unclenched her fists.
Her pride as a Chinese citizen and her responsibility as the city’s protector were in conflict.
Normally, she would have challenged this demon to a duel on the spot, but Dalian City was effectively held hostage.
Beijing’s Im Dupyeong problem would be one step closer if she drove him away.
Thus, from her perspective, making a pact with either side meant the same thing—succumbing to evil.
“Sigh...”
Tian Zhulin took a deep breath and closed her eyes briefly.
“I’m sorry for the harsh words. I went too far.”
“It’s okay. I’m used to it. If I get the money, you can curse me all you want.”
“...Damn it.”
Tian Zhulin let out a dry laugh, just as two swordsmen carrying large backpacks appeared from inside the city.
They were the transport team Tian Zhulin had mentioned.
“This is the promised twenty million.”
“Great.”
Yeongwoo jumped down from Negwig in delight, and Tian Zhulin finally noticed his left arm’s condition.
“What happened to your arm? Did Tongliao give you trouble?”
“No, it was too far, so I couldn’t go.”
“What? Then where did you go?”
Tian Zhulin was shocked.
Yeongwoo pointed northeast.
“The only place I could get to on time was Anshan.”
“Did you extort money there too?”
“Extort money? I won their hearts, even losing my arm in the process.”
Yeongwoo lifted his left arm slightly.
Then he had the goblin pack the money bags onto the transport team’s backpacks.
-Kikit!
As a result, Yeongwoo’s total karma holdings shot up to a staggering 68 million.
Available Karma: 68,492,500
Of course, ten million of this needed to be returned to Shandong Province.
‘So that leaves about 58 million... still a lot. The money never seems to run out.’
However, due to the rapid increase in income, the likelihood of increased taxes was significant, so he couldn’t afford to be careless.
Normally, collecting money spread across the planet shouldn’t incur additional taxes, but the amount was substantial enough to raise potential issues.
‘In a way, this is mercenary work... depending on the viewpoint, it could be considered business income.’
Yeongwoo watched as the goblin finished packing the money into the interdimensional bag.
“All set? Is the amount correct? twenty million?”
-Kiit!
The goblin gave a thumbs up with its small hand in affirmation.
“...”
It was unclear whether this gesture was learned from top-tier warriors or if it was a universal gesture in the universe, but it indicated the amount was correct.
“Let’s go. We don’t have time.”
As Yeongwoo mounted Negwig again and took the reins, Tian Zhulin asked urgently.
“What about tomorrow? Do we send the money to Incheon?”
“Yes. Whether you come personally or send someone else, it should be someone with significant martial prowess. You’ll have to gather the money again if the tribute gets stolen.”
With this brief advice, Yeongwoo sped south.
It was time to return ten million karma to Shandong Province and return to Seoul.
* * *
At 6:14 PM, as Yeongwoo approached Yantai in Shandong Province, the Shandong Twin Evils, who had confirmed his territorial mark, greeted him early.
“Master...”
It was the voice of Shandong's First Evil, Zhang Jaham.
Yeongwoo assumed they were preparing for their usual excessive welcome, but...
“Master Jeong! Please hurry!”
Upon hearing Shandong Second Evil Wu Qingjin’s voice, Yeongwoo grew cautious.
He sensed the urgency and significant fear in Wu Qingjin’s shout.
‘What’s going on? Has Beijing already started retaliation?’
It was quite possible.
If true, it was a miracle both Shandong Twin Evils were still alive.
‘Fortunately, I’m not too late.’
If so, who among the State Council members is in Shandong now?
Since the Fourth Member was dead, it was likely someone ranked third or higher.
With these thoughts, Yeongwoo asked Zhang Jaham and Wu Qingjin.
“Why are you so tense? Is someone here in Shandong?”
The two middle-aged men nodded with relieved expressions.
“You knew, as expected?”
“Indeed... you’re no ordinary person!”
Yeongwoo cleared his throat and asked nonchalantly.
“Who exactly is here?”
Zhang Jaham cautiously answered with a bow.
“Well... I don’t know his name.”
“...Name?”
Yeongwoo’s expression hardened slightly.
Zhang Jaham, who had bet on Yeongwoo’s side, would never refer to a State Council member as ‘name,’ nor would he be unaware of their name.
The common practice when these officials visited was to announce their rank and name.
In other words, the guest in Shandong wasn’t a State Council member but...
“Could it be...”
“Yes. He’s from the National Tax Service. He said you’d understand.”
“Oh.”
Yeongwoo’s greatest concern had arrived in Shandong.
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