Chapter 1421: Is This the Sichuan Tang Family? (Part 1)

A thunderbolt struck the Tang Family.

"Where is the Thunderbolt Cannon (雷擊砲)?"

"The Thunderbolt Cannon isn't something we can reveal without the permission of the family head! It requires the family head's order!"

"Do you think you can keep spouting such nonsense even after the Tang Family turns into a sea of flames? Open it immediately!"

"Oh, understood!"

The tightly closed Forbidden Weapons Arsenal's (禁用暗器庫) door opened. The artisans of the Tang Family dedicated their lives to creating the best weapons. Even these artisans, who had prohibited the use of their creations against people due to their overwhelming power, revealed their creations to the world after decades.

"Open the Heavenly Poison Storage (天毒庫) too!"

"Well, Elder, the Heavenly Poison Storage..."

"Do you want to die in my hands?"

Even the most important poison storage, which required the family head's permission to open and was forbidden to open without it, was now wide open.

Those with resolute determination in their eyes leaped into the poison storage without hesitation, pressing the purified poisons and cold toxins into their sleeves.

Tang Byeok nodded heavily as he witnessed this scene.

There was no one here capable of fighting properly at the moment. Facing the Evil Tyrant Alliance under such circumstances would be a futile resistance. For any ordinary sect, that was.

'But we are the Tang Family.'

They could fight because they were the Tang Family. Even if it fell into the hands of a person who didn't know martial arts, the weapons crafted by the Tang Family could kill unrivaled experts. Because they had dedicated their lives to creating such weapons.

"Elders, make sure there are no issues with the formations! We can't afford any mistakes!"

"Understood!"

The elders, upon hearing the Tang Byeok's words, rushed to various places in the family to ensure that the defensive formations (絶陣) installed throughout the Tang Family were functioning correctly against external intruders.

"All who can fight, come forward! No, even those who can't fight, come forward! This is a fight to protect the Tang Family. If the Tang Family doesn't exist, neither do you. You must defend the Tang Family with your lives!"

At the bloody shout of Tang We, everyone with the surname Tang rushed out.

Those who had lived in the dark secret room managing poisons, those whose footsteps were unsteady due to the aftereffects of studying poisons, and even the women of the Tang Family who were not recognized as true members but still dipped their sleeves in poison and held cold weapons in their hands. 

And the artisans who had never let go of their hammers in their lifetimes were the same.

"What is happening here?"

One of the young artisans asked, and the older ones spoke as if spitting out the words.

"The Evil Tyrant Alliance is attacking."

"The Evil Tyrant at a time like this?"

Without a family head. Without those who could fight. But precisely at such a time, the Evil Tyrant Alliance attacked?

"Qingcheng and Emei have already fallen. Next is our turn."

"Ours...?"

The young artisan's face turned pale.

"Then, shouldn't we run away? If Qingcheng and Emei couldn't handle them, how can we?"

"Where can we run to?"

"...What?"

One of the older men, with his tongue in cheek, said.

"If we run away, we might survive. But this place will disappear. The workshop of the Tang Family that we've dedicated our lives to."

The young artisan turned to look at the large workshop. The sight of the collapsed workshop entered his eyes.

"Do you think we can rebuild this collapsed workshop?"

"That's... difficult."

"Exactly."

They could tell because they were artisans. How difficult it would be to rebuild the workshop where all the unique skills of the Tang Family for hundreds of years were concentrated.

Some items may have been created without knowing how. Even though the technology had been put into practice, there were still things left to use because they remain. Even if they knew how to make them, there were things they couldn't obtain materials for anymore.

But how could they rebuild this workshop?

The collapse of this workshop meant the collapse of the Tang Family. And it meant that everything the ancestors dedicated their lives to in this workshop turned into ashes in their generation.

Could they accept that? Could they allow it?

"You can run away."

"Huh?"

"Young ones like you should live. But we've lived enough. We can't just watch this workshop collapse. It's better to die fighting."

One of the older men reached out and grabbed a sword that adorned the workshop.

Swish!

A dazzling gleam emanated from the drawn sword. Even at a glance, it was no ordinary sword. The artisan who had been staring at the sword nodded heavily.

"We have to fight. Even if it's futile, we have to fight. It's the duty of someone with the Tang family name."

"⋯⋯."

"Our ancestors must have fought like this to protect the Tang Family. Now it's our turn."

The young artisan bit his lips at the seemingly plain words.

"Where would I go?"

"Hmm?"

"I am also a Tang Family artisan! And even if I swing a sword, as a young one, I should be better at it than the elderly. Now, you can only use small hammers."

"Haha. You cheeky fellow."

The young artisan reached for the stack of completed flying needles.

"We have to fight. If it's about protecting this workshop, we have to fight. Isn't this the Tang Family, and isn't this workshop the Tang Family? But where is the Tang Family if the Tang Family is not here? The Tang Family should be in the Tang Family." [last part...um idk]

The older artisans looked at the determined young artisan with warm eyes.

"Yes. That's how people with the Tang name live."

"Let's go. Is it over there?"

"Go first. We'll follow soon."

"Yes!"

As the young artisan rushed out of the workshop, one of the artisans who had been watching him stood up. His steps headed towards the deepest part of the workshop.

Clang!

Clang!

A faint sound of a small hammer echoing consistently.

The weak sound of the hammer, which seemed like it would stop at any moment, gradually grew louder. The artisan who headed to the deepest part of the workshop glanced at the old man hammering in front of a small furnace.

"Master Shen (神手)."

Clang!

The words he tentatively uttered were drowned out by the hammering sound.

"Master Shen."

Even after calling again, the hammering sound didn't stop. The artisan, watching the old man quietly hammering, opened his mouth again.

"Grandfather."

Then, the hammering sound slightly weakened.

"We will fight to protect the workshop. Grandfather, it would be better for you to avoid putting your body at risk."

Clang!

With the increasing sound of the hammer again, the artisan's mouth closed. A small hammer striking a pile of heated metal. The sparks flying.

The artisan who silently watched the old man nodded slowly. The old man's eyes weren't focused properly. The blurry eyes made one doubt whether this person knew what he was doing right now.

Where would such a person go? Even if he were in his right mind, the old man wouldn't have left the workshop. Everything he had dedicated his life to was right here.

This old man was the soul of the Tang Family. Then shouldn't he be where he rightfully belonged?

"Do as you wish, Grandfather."

The artisan bowed deeply and turned away.

After the artisan left, the old man, left alone, lifted the iron with tongs and turned it around. He then pushed it into the furnace. Sparks flew into the air.

The old man, Tang Jopyeong, with dim eyes, stared blankly at the burning furnace.

- Jopyeong.

"⋯⋯."

- Those damn bastards will eventually die buried under the name I created. Those bastards who don't know what comes first and what comes later. Those who value what I created more than their own lives can't walk the right path. If you ever become a true artisan of the Tang Family, you should change things like this. Do you understand?

'Grandfather.'

It was something his grandfather had said to him. He spoke while patting his head with his hand.

Tang Jopyeong grabbed tongs and pulled out the heated iron from the furnace.

'Did I say I would do that?'

He didn't remember well. The only thing he remembered was that the hand patting his head was warm.

So, what did Tang Jopyeong do?

Did he indeed keep the promise his grandfather had made? Or did he become the kind of person his grandfather scolded?

Clang.

The small hammer struck the heated iron.

Melting, tempering, cooling, striking.

All those processes ultimately excluded all trivial things and left only the purest and fairest. And those left behind were made even stronger by human effort.

That was the craftsmanship of the Tang Family. What he had been doing all his life.

Clang!

The small hammer struck the heated iron.

Clang!

Relentlessly striking the iron, Tang Jopyeong slowly raised his head.

The Tang Family's workshop.

Everything he touched was there. Everything he had.

The old man, who silently watched over the workshop, raised the hammer again.

Clang!

Regular sounds of a hammer. Despite the hammering sounds feeling like they would soon be cut off, they echoed softly, getting smaller and smaller.

"All members of the Tang Family are preparing for resistance according to Lord We's orders."

Tang We nodded slowly. Then, Tang Byeok, who had been quietly observing Tang We, opened his mouth.

"Lord We, after you finish this, it won't be difficult to secure the position. Even if Gaju-nim opposes, everyone in the family will support you, Lord."

Tang We had lost his martial artists. In a normal situation, regaining his past position was impossible. But this was different. If Tang We could command the remaining people and prevent a massacre, his loss of martial arts would be insignificant.

Then the re-establishment of the Grand Elder We might not be a dream after all.

"Lord We."

"...Yes?"

Tang Byeok looked at him unexpectedly as his voice flew out of nowhere.

"Don't call me Lord We. I am not Lord We."

"...Yes, Chief Elder."

"If, by any chance, I can stop them, I will willingly confine myself to the back room of the Tang Family."

Tang yeok widened his eyes.

"What, what are you talking about? Chief Elder! You are trying to save the Tang Family."

"Do you think I'm doing this for the sake of that insignificant power?"

Tang We's face showed a slightly bitter expression.

"Power? It's important. But more important than that is the Tang Family itself. Even that power comes from the Tang Family. The reason I disapproved of Gaju-nim wasn't because I disliked him, but because I considered him unfit to lead the Tangga. It wasn't to satisfy my personal desires."

"Chief Elder..."

"I'm putting my life on the line, even sacrificing others' lives, to protect the Tang Family. That's all I'm trying to do. What comes after is not the business of an old man like me. I can't be picky about it now, but I can only accept it."

Tang Byeok closed his eyes slightly.

He still didn't like Tang Gunak the same way. No, it would be more accurate to say that he regarded him as an enemy rather than that. But such a relationship with Tang Gunak was insignificant. Everything in front of the name Sichuan Tang Family was meaningless.

"We must protect it. We must protect it somehow. I am a Tang Family member. It is my duty and belief as someone who has lived his whole life in the Tang clan."

"I understand what you mean, Chief Elder."

At that moment.

"Elder! A messenger from Gaju-nim has arrived!"

"What?"

Tang Byeok sharply turned his head and turned around.

"I,I came for the General, but this...!"

"Bring it here! Right away!"

"Yes! Here!"

The person who ran inside took out a green-colored book[?might not be] from his arms and held it out.

"Come here."

Tang Byeok tried to stop Tang We from reaching out and grabbed the book himself. He tore it open the sealing and took out the paper inside, and Tang We's head slowly lowered as he read it.

"May I ask what it says?"

At Tang Byeok's words, Tang We laughed and showed the letter in his hand.

"Gaju-nim is advising us to abandon the family and run away."

"Huh?"

Tang Byeok looked at Tang We with an incredulous expression.

"Gaju-nim still seems tender-hearted. That's why I can't be at ease."

Tang We held the letter in his hand over a lamp. 

The letter that was on fire slowly smoldered and burned.

"Even in the midst of this, he tells us to report to the four-legged snake[?]...Who does Gaju-nim think he is?"

Tang We shook his head and quietly lowered the burning letter. The letter containing the family head's signature instantly turned to ashes and disappeared.

"The enemies will arrive soon, so make haste. It will be a long day today."

"Understood, Chief Elder."

Tang Byeok bowed his head and went outside. As he left, Tang We sat down on the bed with a sigh.

'....Sichuan Tang Family.'

He wouldn't let the Tang Family collapse.

Even if he was a failure, he would remain a failure of the Tang Family.

That was Tang We's last determination, dedicated to the Sichuan Tang Family for a lifetime.

'Ancestors, please watch over us.'

Until the moment he died, he would be a Tang Family member. That would never change.