Chapter 58: Don’t Kill Him for the Time Being.
Chapter 58: Don’t Kill Him for the Time Being.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon demanded alcohol the moment he sat down.
I brought out the liquor I had stocked at home and poured him a full cup.
“Did something unpleasant happen?”
Only after draining several cups in rapid succession did the Blood Heaven Blade Demon reveal the reason for his fury.
“Those pathetic bastards are openly ostracizing me.”
“Hahaha.”
“I’m not saying this to be funny.”
“My apologies. I just never imagined a Demon Lord could be the victim of bullying.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon glared at me, his eyes widening to show he wasn't joking.
“I’m sorry. Exactly how are they ostracizing you?”
“No one will speak to me.”
“Wasn’t it always like that?”
“Well, they didn’t talk to me much before, but never like today. I wouldn’t be this angry if they had just confronted me directly.”
“Confronted you about what?”
“About you, you brat!”
“Me? Why me?”
“They suspect you and I conspired to kill the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord. That’s why they’re shunning me.”
“Did we?”
“We didn’t.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon fixed me with a cold, piercing stare.
“But you did. You killed her, didn’t you?”
“Why does everyone suspect me?”
“Because you’re the one who’s stained his hands with the most blood lately. Is there any law saying the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord’s blood couldn't be on those hands? It was you, wasn't it?”
Instead of answering, I simply stared back at him. He must have read it in my eyes—the truth that I had indeed killed the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord.
“Why are you telling me the truth?”
“I haven’t said a word.”
“No, you didn’t say it with words. Your eyes gave you away.”
If I had wanted to deny it, I could have. There were two reasons why I didn't.
First, I wanted to maintain a sense of tension. Being close is one thing, but our relationship would eventually be that of lord and subject. I wanted him to trust and follow me without harboring any ulterior motives. A proper amount of tension in a relationship helps prevent mistakes.
The second reason was that I trusted him. I wanted to tell him the truth, and I believed that doing so wouldn't cause any problems.
“You really do trust me.”
“If I didn't, I wouldn't have appointed you as the Left Proctor.”
“I am one of the Eight Demon Lords before I am your Left Proctor.”
“You may be one of the Eight Demon Lords, but you are my Left Proctor.”
“If you trust people this easily, you’ll get stabbed in the back one day.”
“I didn’t trust you easily. Think about everything that has happened between us, Elder.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon suddenly asked, “Aren’t you afraid?”
“Of what?”
“Becoming an enemy of the Eight Demon Lords.”
“To be precise, it’s the Four Demon Lords.”
“The Four Demon Lords?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon stared at me blankly for a moment, then slammed his cup onto the table and bolted upright.
“What? When did you kill three more? Who? Who did you kill?!”
As he shouted, I quickly spoke up.
“Please, calm yourself. That’s not what I meant.”
It was only for a split second, but I was surprised he actually thought that. Just how highly did this man think of me?
“Then what do you mean by the Four Demon Lords?”
“Listen to my logic. Since the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord is dead, there are seven left, right? If we exclude you, that leaves six. The Sword Venerable is halfway on my side, so that makes five and a half. Let’s say five and a half Demon Lords are my enemies for now. But in this situation, you and the Sword Venerable aren't just going to sit idly by, are you? If the two of you handle one and a half Demon Lords between you, that leaves exactly four. That’s why I said my opponents are the Four Demon Lords. In fact, it could be even fewer. If just two more out of the seven join my side, I’d only have to deal with two. Easy, right?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon looked at me with the most incredulous expression I had seen since we met.
“Fine. I already knew you were a lunatic, so I’ll let that slide. But there’s one thing you haven’t considered.”
“What is it?”
“Neither I nor the Sword Venerable will ever fight the other Demon Lords.”
I knew that. It was an ironclad rule that had existed among the Demon Lords for a very long time.
“I know. I’ll do the fighting. You just need to make sure you don’t betray me.”
“People don't betray people; circumstances do. That’s why you shouldn't trust me.”
“Then I won’t create the circumstances for betrayal. So please, help me, Elder.”
I treated the Blood Heaven Blade Demon with trust. I believed that was the best way to make him one of my people.
After another drink, he spoke as if venting.
“One wrong move and you’re dead, you bastard!”
For a moment, my heart stirred. I felt his genuine worry behind those gruff words.
“Yes, I’ll be careful.”
We drank in silence. When a cup was empty, I refilled it, and we drank again. As the bottle neared its end, he shared one piece of information.
I had said before that the Blood Heaven Blade Demon was more emotional than I was. He had denied it then, but he was definitely an emotional man. If he weren't, he wouldn't be telling me this now.
“The Demon Lords have summoned someone to uncover the truth behind this incident.”
“Who is it?”
An unexpected name fell from his lips.
“The Pungcheon Cult Leader.”
I was startled. Of all people, the Pungcheon Cult Leader? That was the very same Pungcheon Cult where I had obtained the Sound Thunder Bell and the Blood Eye Purifying Water.
“Why the Pungcheon Cult Leader?”
“The Soul-Seizing Demon Lord’s sorcery is based on the demonic arts of the Blood Cult. As you well know, the Blood Cult was the predecessor of the Pungcheon Cult. They believe that if the Pungcheon Cult Leader examines the body, he’ll be able to determine the exact cause of death.”
“I heard the Pungcheon Cult Leader never leaves his throne.”
“He will definitely come.”
“Why are you so sure?”
“Because they’ll make sure he comes. Don’t underestimate the power of the Eight Demon Lords. They will get him here one way or another—whether through threats, bribes, or whatever it takes.”
This would have been impossible back in the days of the Blood Cult. They had fought several wars with our Cult and were a faction that could not coexist with us.
However, after they transitioned into the Pungcheon Cult, the relationship changed. By joining hands with the Eight Demon Lords, the Pungcheon Cult had established itself as a sort of ally.
“What about the Pungcheon Cult’s sacred relic?”
“He’ll handle it. If he’s that worried, he’ll probably pack it all up and bring it with him.”
“Couldn't they just send the body there instead?”
There were ways to preserve the body and send it by carriage.
“The Pungcheon Cult Leader coming here isn't just for the autopsy.”
“Is there another reason?”
“There are three more. First, the Demon Lords are demonstrating their resolve to find the culprit. They want to show the Main Cult, the Murim Alliance, and even the Unorthodox Path Alliance that the Eight Demon Lords are never to be touched. That is the most important objective.”
“They want to show that they can even move the Pungcheon Cult Leader. That if anyone touches a Demon Lord, they will face certain retaliation.”
“Exactly.”
“And the second reason?”
“It’s because of the Cult Leader.”
“My father?”
“They want to show him. They want to flaunt that the current alliance between the Pungcheon Cult and the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult exists because of the Eight Demon Lords, not because of him.”
The Eight Demon Lords had constantly tried to keep my father in check. Perhaps my father bringing me into this was also a result of that conflict.
“And the third reason?”
“It’s you.”
“Me?”
“If you did kill the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord, the Pungcheon Cult Leader will definitely find out through you. He’ll analyze you and figure out what method you used to kill her.”
He was right. If it was the Pungcheon Cult Leader, he might even realize that I had put Blood Eye Purifying Water in my eyes.
I had to keep the fact that I killed the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord a secret at all costs. If it were revealed, the retaliation from the Demon Lords aside, their desperate opposition would make it impossible for me to become the successor.
“But are you going to be okay?”
“Me? Why me?”
“You’ve become my accomplice, haven't you? Since you’ve been drinking with me all night, they might think we acted together.”
“I might have just dozed off for a bit while drinking.”
I chuckled at his suggestion that he would slip away like that if things got dire.
“Which of the Demon Lords went to fetch him?”
“How did you know one of them went?”
“Naturally, someone important would have gone. It wouldn't even be strange if they all went together, would it?”
“The Demon Buddha went.”
The Demon Buddha, one of the Eight Demon Lords, was close friends with the Pungcheon Cult Leader. Sending him meant they were determined to bring the Cult Leader back.
I smiled and asked the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, “Should I go after them and kill the Demon Buddha? Or should I kill the Pungcheon Cult Leader as he sets out? Or… should I just kill them both?”
“If you do that, it’ll start a war with the Outer Rim Murim. If we fall into internal strife, those idiots in the Murim Alliance will suddenly start screaming about overthrowing the Demonic Cult. And the Unorthodox Path Alliance will be watching with bloodshot eyes, looking for scraps to pick up.”
“Then why don't you join me and get covered in blood for once?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon stood up and said, “If you want to die, die alone.”
“Weren't you and I in a 'live together, die together' relationship, Elder?”
“Second Young Master, from the moment we are born, our lives are 'every man for himself.' I’m leaving.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon walked out of my room.
I drained the last of the liquor.
The Pungcheon Cult Leader is coming, is he?
*
The next morning, when I arrived at the Heavenly Demon Hall upon my father’s summons, he wasn't sitting in his Grand Tutor’s chair but was standing by the window.
“You called for me, Father?”
“Come here.”
I slowly climbed the stairs and walked to where my father was standing.
“I heard the Seohwan Formation is already in an uproar.”
“Are ghosts any different? It’s likely just the start of a power struggle.”
The Seohwan Formation, having lost its master overnight, was in chaos.
But there was no sorrow in that chaos. Since the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord had always been immersed in her own world, no one mourned her death. The ghost practitioners were only focused on who the next Soul-Seizing Demon Lord would be.
“Leave the Cult for a while.”
“Where to?”
“Isn't it about time you toured the Huangquan Pavilion branches in the Central Plains?”
I could tell. Father also knew that the Demon Lords had summoned the Pungcheon Cult Leader. He was trying to send me away out of concern.
“Please reconsider sending me away.”
“Your reason?”
“The Eight Demon Lords have summoned the Pungcheon Cult Leader to investigate the death of the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord.”
As expected, Father wasn't surprised at all. He already knew. I began to suspect that one of the Demon Lords might be Father’s subordinate. Or perhaps a highly skilled spy was delivering precise information on their movements.
“If I leave the Cult at a time like this, they will suspect me.”
“They already suspect you. That’s why they called the Pungcheon Cult Leader. He is not an easy man to deal with. I don’t know what method you used to kill the Soul-Seizing Demon Lord, but he will surely prove it was your doing.”
“It wasn't me, Father. Perhaps the Murim Alliance sent an assassin?”
“That would mean they want war with us, but they are far from wanting a war right now.”
We and the Murim Alliance knew each other inside and out. If a war were to break out, no matter how secretly it was prepared, signs would be detected at least three days in advance.
“Are you truly confident you can get through this unscathed?”
“Yes.”
“Where does this confidence come from?”
He had asked the same question before. I gave the same answer, phrased differently.
“If you were in my position, Father, would you have left the Cult?”
“No.”
“I am your son.”
“Yes, you are my son, but you are not me.”
“But I can at least imitate you. And if the subject of the imitation is you, Father, then just imitating you is enough.”
Father realized he could no longer break my will.
“Fine. Then keep one thing in mind.”
I thought he was going to tell me to be careful. I naturally assumed he would.
But as Father turned and walked away, he said, “You must not kill the Pungcheon Cult Leader.”
In that moment, I realized.
“Wait… were you worried about the Pungcheon Cult Leader this whole time, and not me?”
Father added as he strode away, “Not the other Demon Lords either! Don’t kill anyone for the time being.”
“I told you, I didn’t kill her!”
I denied it to the end, but Father had already closed the door and left.
I slowly descended the stairs and walked out of the Heavenly Demon Hall along the path of blood.
Kill the Pungcheon Cult Leader? I know more about the Pungcheon Cult and its leader than anyone. To me, he’s a man as precious as a treasure vault. However, if he comes all the way here to pressure me… he’ll become an even more precious man to me.