Chapter 320: The Wave Behind Me Said So
Chapter 320: The Wave Behind Me Said So
It was jarring.
The disciple standing before him, speaking so boldly of the Unification of the Murim, felt like a total stranger.
This was the man he had trusted to protect the Pungcheon Cult better than anyone else—the one to whom he had handed over the mantle of Cult Leader.
He had even gone so far as to check if the man was under the influence of a Soul-Seizing Technique. He wasn't. So Baek-ta was not under any form of soul manipulation.
What if it’s a technique I don’t know? he wondered. But if such a technique existed, its master would already be ruling the Murim.
Taking the first step toward the Unification of the Murim? You lunatic! Do you even know what kind of path that is?
He suppressed the urge to scream and maintained the decorum befitting a meeting with the Cult Leader.
"And how exactly do you plan to do that?"
It was a joke, Master. That was the response the former Pungcheon Cult Leader hoped for. If he said that, they could just laugh it off and move on.
But So Baek-ta spoke calmly, his face devoid of even a trace of humor.
"I must first achieve the Unification of the Outer Lands."
The Pungcheon Cult was not the only power in the Outer Lands. Though not as densely populated as the Central Plains, many sects here vied for supremacy.
In the Outer Lands, the Pungcheon Cult held a position similar to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult in the Central Plains. Naturally, there were other factions that held power comparable to the Murim Alliance or the Unorthodox Path Alliance.
"Are you saying you intend to start a war?"
"It would be impossible to make them submit without shedding blood."
So Baek-ta went a step further.
"Help me, Master. With your assistance, the Unification of the Outer Lands will be much easier to achieve. Please, do it for the sake of the Cult."
Finally, the former Pungcheon Cult Leader’s anger exploded.
"Shut up! You insolent brat!"
A frigid aura erupted from the former leader's body.
Swaaaaaaa!
So Baek-ta didn't even blink. It was as if he had expected this reaction from the moment he broached the subject. He wasn't intimidated in the least.
"It is a hollow dream!"
"Why is it a hollow dream? Why is it 'hollow' for a martial artist to dream of the Unification of the Murim?"
"Do you have any idea how many people will die in a war? Thousands, tens of thousands will perish!"
The former leader's voice rose, but So Baek-ta’s tone became even more subdued.
"Since when did you care so much about human lives, Master?"
"!"
The former leader's expression froze. His disciple was crossing the line. No—from the moment he spoke of taking the first step, he had already stepped far beyond it.
"Why is that dream reserved only for the Demonic Cult, the Murim Alliance, and the Unorthodox Path Alliance? Are we not allowed to dream it? Since I was a child, the thing I heard most from you and the elders was the 'Advance into the Central Plains.' If this is how you truly felt, why did you all say those things so often?"
Faced with this interrogation, the former Pungcheon Cult Leader was at a loss for words.
In that moment, he thought of a certain arrogant and clever individual. If it were that man—the one who kept adults awake at night—he would have had a sharp, stinging retort to snap this fool back to his senses. All the former leader could manage was this:
"You are not in your right mind."
Like a true madman, So Baek-ta walked over to the Sound Thunder Bell and struck it.
Dong! Do-ooong!
The sound of the Sound Thunder Bell echoed through the Cult Leader’s Palace. It felt like a declaration—that a new era had begun. To think he would hear the Sound Thunder Bell, a sound he had once longed for, in such a manner.
The situation felt utterly surreal.
He almost expected people to come rushing out from behind the curtains at the signal of the bell, shouting that it was a surprise welcome party for his return.
Of course, no such thing happened. So Baek-ta’s eyes were more serious than they had ever been since their reunion.
"And were you in your right mind when you abandoned the Cult, Master?"
True. As the boy said, he hadn't been in his right mind back then. He felt guilt for that. But that guilt was toward the Pungcheon Cult, not So Baek-ta. These weren't words he should be hearing from the one who had inherited everything he owned.
"Others may say such things, but you, of all people, should not."
"No. Others might not be able to, but I can."
Do-ooong!
The Sound Thunder Bell rang out again.
The demon carved into the bell seemed to be staring at him, mocking him. The former leader clenched his fists. His anger had reached a boiling point; it was only a matter of time before it overflowed.
Just then, the words Geom Mu-geuk had spoken echoed in his mind.
— The answer does not lie within you, Cult Leader.
Ah, I’m getting worked up again and failing to see clearly. I’m fighting with my own heart again.
As the sound of the bell faded, the former leader forced his emotions to settle.
"Fine. Let's say I acknowledge your dream. But you! You haven't even achieved the Twelve-Star Great Achievement of the Calamitous Heaven Great Demonic Energy yet. How can you dream of the Unification of the Murim?"
It would be one thing if he had reached the ultimate principle of Illusion Arts. At least then, his strength would offer some form of temptation.
But for So Baek-ta to reach the Great Achievement of the Calamitous Heaven Great Demonic Energy, it would take at least another ten years.
So Baek-ta stroked the Sound Thunder Bell and answered calmly.
"In a martial arts tournament, martial skill is the most important thing. But for the Unification of the Murim, other things are far more important."
"What 'other things'?"
So Baek-ta didn't answer. Instead, he walked toward the former leader.
"Now that you've seen the Sound Thunder Bell, you should head back. The elders must be waiting for you."
He injected internal energy into a mechanism on the Grand Tutor’s Chair, and a wall descended in front of the sacred relic.
A wall also descended in front of the Sound Thunder Bell. As the demon on the bell vanished behind the wall, it seemed to whisper:
You’re a has-been. You can't keep up with the young. When the rear waves of the Yangtze surge forward, the old waves must give way.
Fortunately, the former Pungcheon Cult Leader pushed the negative thoughts aside.
Listen here, you demon. That 'rear wave' told me something. He told me to stop having these solitary battles within my own heart. My rear wave is the kind of guy who tells me that until I'm sick of hearing it. You got that, you bastard!
Calming the storm raging in his heart, he looked at So Baek-ta again. Fine. I will look only at the 'you' of the present.
He read a powerful will in the gaze directed at him. This boy was serious.
"You must have known I would try to stop you. Why did you tell me?"
He expected a response like, 'You lost the right to stop me when you left the Pungcheon Cult.' Instead, So Baek-ta gave a reason he hadn't considered at all.
"No, I didn't know. How could I know what was in your heart, Master? I thought there was a chance you might help me. You might have grown tired of being a mere babysitter for the Young Cult Leader. Since my dream would be several times easier to achieve with your help, of course I had to tell you. Now, please, leave."
So Baek-ta began to walk away first.
Until a moment ago, the former leader had been wondering: Who turned my once-calm disciple into this?
But as he watched the confident retreat of his disciple's back, he wasn't so sure anymore. Perhaps So Baek-ta had always been this kind of person, and he had simply failed to see it.
Perhaps he was only now paying the price for never once asking his disciple what his dream was.
*
The first thing the former Pungcheon Cult Leader said upon returning to the guest hall was:
"I just don't know."
He recounted the entire conversation he’d had with his disciple in the Cult Leader’s Palace to Geom Mu-geuk and the Demon Buddha.
His emotions were actually more volatile now than they had been during the meeting. He had suppressed so much while trying to control his heart in front of his disciple. Now, it all came pouring out.
After hearing the story, Geom Mu-geuk and the Demon Buddha were stunned. They hadn't imagined the new Pungcheon Cult Leader would be planning such a thing.
"I wanted to handle it like you would, but it didn't go well. I feel like I was completely played."
The former leader didn't bother putting up a front of pride before Geom Mu-geuk. He felt no hesitation even in front of the Demon Buddha; it seemed the journey they’d shared through the sandstorms had been worth it.
"Don't you dare tell me to be patient from now on! Don't tell me to look closely, either! I'm going to shout when I want, get angry when I want, and think whatever I want! Ugh, I should have just smacked him on the back of the head and called him a lunatic."
The Demon Buddha nodded, his expression suggesting that such behavior suited the man much better.
Geom Mu-geuk smiled at the former leader. He was grateful that the man was making an effort to follow his advice. You did well, Cult Leader. Since the Illusion King is behind this, we must be cautious—extremely cautious.
"The fact that he revealed his plan to you means his preparations are likely already complete."
A problem as serious as finding the Illusion King's hiding place had arisen. Geom Mu-geuk certainly didn't want the Pungcheon Cult to be dragged into a war.
Regardless, one natural question arose.
"If the person behind him influenced this decision, what could they possibly gain by plunging the Outer Lands into war?"
The former leader had been so focused on his disciple that he hadn't thought that far ahead.
"What could it be for?"
"That's what we have to find out."
What did the Illusion King want?
If his goal was simply to seize control of the Pungcheon Cult, he wouldn't have steered them toward starting a war.
What exactly had transpired between the Illusion King and So Baek-ta?
In the life before his regression, the Pungcheon Cult had never started a war in the Outer Lands. When the people changed, the events changed with them.
Geom Mu-geuk asked the former leader:
"Do you regret it? Putting him in the position of Cult Leader?"
The word 'Obviously' almost escaped his lips but got stuck in his throat. Did he really regret it? If so, why didn't the answer come immediately?
Geom Mu-geuk asked a different question.
"If you could go back to that moment, would you appoint someone else?"
After a moment of contemplation, the former leader answered.
"Even if I went back, I would still choose him."
No matter how much he thought about it, So Baek-ta had been the best choice at the time. However, if he could go back, he would ask the boy about his dreams and plant a different dream before that hollow one could take root.
He would raise a disciple who, even if someone poked at the dark desires deep within his heart, could say, 'Why are you touching that, you bastard? Get lost!'
"Then that's enough. You just have to set your disciple straight now."
"How?"
"You're the one who has to answer that, Cult Leader. This is the Pungcheon Cult, after all. What shall we do?"
The former leader stood up and said:
"First, there is someone I must meet."
Since they didn't want to draw attention, they left the Demon Buddha and the guards behind and slipped out of the guest hall in secret.
*
The place Geom Mu-geuk and the former leader arrived at was the home of Seong Ya, who had been the Chief Elder among the Six Great Elders.
He was the person the former leader had cherished most during his time as Cult Leader.
"He is not a man who would break a promise to me."
The former leader trusted him.
His house stood alone in the middle of the windswept wasteland. It felt desolate, but it had a certain atmosphere. Furthermore, because it was in an open area, one could see anyone approaching from a distance.
The front gate was open.
"Elder Seong."
The former leader called out from the courtyard, but no one emerged.
After exchanging a look, Geom Mu-geuk and the former leader entered the house together.
The house was empty.
"Judging by the dust, it looks like it's been vacant for quite some time."
At Mu-geuk's words, a shadow of worry crossed the former leader's face. Given the circumstances, Seong Ya’s absence felt ominous.
The two of them searched the interior. It was orderly and clean. The way the house was arranged spoke volumes about his personality.
"Does he have a family?"
"He was always a solitary man."
"Who was he closest to?"
The former leader sighed after a moment of thought. He didn't know who Seong Ya had been close to. And yet, he called him the person he cherished most. He had spent his life caring only about how others treated him.
"I really don't know what I was thinking, living like that."
"Don't blame yourself too much. Most people are like that."
"Aren't you different?"
I was the same. No, I was worse.
"Am I not the Young Cult Leader?"
"I was the Cult Leader!"
"Cult Leader!"
"Yes, Cult Leader."
"No, look at this."
Geom Mu-geuk had discovered something. There were scraps of burnt paper next to the desk.
"The house was so neatly organized, yet these ashes weren't cleared away. He must have rushed out in a hurry after reading this."
Unfortunately, only the charred corners of the paper remained; the contents were illegible.
As the former leader carefully examined the scraps, touching them with his fingers, he said something surprising.
"Can you restore this?"
"No."
"I can."
Geom Mu-geuk was startled by that claim.
"Is there an Illusion Art for that? Please, teach me!"
"There is no such Illusion Art."
The former leader stood up, leaving the ashes where they were, and walked out of the house. Geom Mu-geuk followed him and asked:
"I thought you said you were going to restore it?"
"I'm going to restore it now."
"Shouldn't we at least take the ashes with us?"
"That paper is a secret letter treated with a special chemical. The real contents only appear when heat is applied."
"How do you know that?"
Then, a shocking answer came from the former Pungcheon Cult Leader.
"Because I'm the one who chose it."
"Is it a secret letter used by the Pungcheon Cult?"
"No."
Then how did the Cult Leader know? And he said he chose it? What did it mean that the Pungcheon Cult Leader had chosen that paper?
"Go Wol used to nag me so much about choosing something cheap and high-quality. He said it was to save money."
At those words, Geom Mu-geuk understood.
The fact that he had chosen it, and the fact that he could restore the contents—the answer was already there.
"It's a secret letter used by Eun-wol."