Chapter 155
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 155
Chapter Title: The Return, and... (1)
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News of Seo Ryang's return spread through the cult in an instant.
It had been a full three months since he had left the cult under the titles of Acting Head of External Inspections and Special Investigator. The cultists' reaction was quite enthusiastic.
“He's finally back. I heard this inspection was quite the spectacle.”
“A spectacle?”
“That's right. They say he concluded the inspection very aggressively. I heard he even roared at the lords of the Seven Houses who resisted.”
“As expected of him. Huh? But where did you hear that?”
“You know Senior Ghost Spear, right?”
“I do.”
“He was dispatched to the Thousand Treasures Golden House.”
“Whoa, against the Lord of the Golden House…”
“No, not the Thousand Treasures Golden House. I heard he completely tore apart another house, practically shattering it. They say he treated the Lord of the Golden House quite favorably.”
“Well, the Lord of the Golden House is known for his upstanding character.”
“In any case, they say he made the authority of our main sect perfectly clear. There are even rumors that some of the house lords were trembling before the Third Young Master.”
“Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?”
“So what if it is? Besides, have you ever seen smoke without a fire? There must be a reason for such a rumor.”
“True.”
“Anyway, it's incredible. He's the first since the First Young Master, isn't he? A disciple who perfectly carried out the Cult Leader's command.”
“That's something we wouldn't know. The higher-ups would know the full story.”
“Compared to him, don't the other disciples seem a bit pitiful?”
“Pitiful?”
“The First Young Master is in a league of his own, so let's set him aside. Among the other disciples, who else has made as strong an impression as the Third Young Master?”
“Shh! Hey, you shouldn't say things like that so carelessly.”
“What does it matter? Speaking of which, take the Second Young Master. The Cult Leader has yet to give him an acting command.”
“Hey, I told you to stop. You'll get yourself killed before your time.”
“Hehehe. If I die a natural death, is that truly the life of a cultist? A cultist must live like a cultist.”
“Enough nonsense. Let's go get something to eat. I'm starving.”
“Hey, wait up!”
The two cultists ran off, laughing.
Not far from the two men, in an alley cloaked in the shadow of a building, Je-hwan placed his hand on the hilt of his sword.
“How dare those bastards…!”
Just then, Gwan Pyeong raised his hand.
“That's enough.”
“Young Master.”
“Is there any need to react to the chatter of ignoramuses?”
“Those lowly curs presumed to judge you, Young Master. Their filthy mouths should be torn apart.”
Gwan Pyeong shook his head.
“Among the cultists, there are those who curse not only me, but also my eldest brother, and even the Cult Leader. Do you intend to hunt down and kill every single one of them?”
“But…”
“They say it's no crime to curse the emperor behind his back. There's no need to get so worked up.”
Je-hwan, who had been glaring coldly at the departing cultists, relaxed his stance.
“My apologies. I was too agitated.”
“It's fine.”
His voice carried a natural chill.
Judging by appearance alone, Gwan Pyeong was not a particularly impressive man. But anyone who met him face-to-face feared him.
It was likely due to his unique, cold aura—an energy generated not by his temperament, but by the martial arts he practiced.
Je-hwan felt it was a shame.
Everyone thought of the Young Master as a cold and cruel person. But he knew that the Young Master was a man of deep affection and humanity.
And that he was a man of extraordinary ability.
“Enough of this, let's be on our way.”
“Young Master. Perhaps it would be better to take a carriage, even now?”
Gwan Pyeong shook his head.
“Why ride in a carriage when I have two perfectly good legs to walk on? It's not that far.”
“…”
“I enjoy walking. I can take my time, see the sights, and look at people's faces.”
“I understand.”
Je-hwan knew why Gwan Pyeong rarely took a carriage.
Gwan Pyeong liked to observe people. To be precise, he was someone who considered it important to read the atmosphere within the cult.
The mood of an organization could be gleaned from the words and actions of its members. But his insistence on walking wasn't merely to gauge the atmosphere.
He was a man who, by nature, disliked authority. That was the kind of person Je-hwan believed Gwan Pyeong to be.
*People don't know. They don't know how incredible the Young Master truly is.*
He was a man who did not reveal his true self.
If the Young Master were to intentionally display his capabilities, the opinions within the cult would change dramatically.
“Je-hwan.”
“Yes? Ah, yes.”
“What are you thinking so deeply about?”
“It is nothing. Your subordinate was lost in thought for a moment. My apologies.”
“You apologize for a great many things. By the way, how is your mother?”
“Ah, her condition is improving. I believe she will regain her strength soon.”
Gwan Pyeong nodded.
“That's a relief. I acquired some medicinal herbs from the Blood Soul Pavilion. They said these are particularly effective for restoring one's energy.
I'm a layman in that field, so I can't be sure, but I hope they will be of help.”
“I am eternally grateful.”
A look of deep gratitude appeared on Je-hwan's face.
It was rare for a superior to care for the family of even their closest subordinate. In that respect, Gwan Pyeong was certainly a man who showed a remarkable human side.
Whether it was genuine or a carefully crafted facade.
Gwan Pyeong looked up at the sky.
*The air is hot.*
Being impervious to heat and cold, he didn't feel the heat, but the air was so scorching it felt suffocating to breathe.
*I'm still not used to it.*
He was from the northeastern part of the Central Plains, a region where the cold was far more dominant than the heat.
He had been chosen as the Cult Leader's disciple in his youth and had begun his life in the Divine Cult, but this heat was something he found difficult to acclimate to.
Unlike the desolate, arid lands of the northeast, the lush, forested scenery of the south still felt foreign to him.
*I must get used to it.*
Yes, I must.
*To make this place my kingdom.*
A glint appeared in Gwan Pyeong's eyes.
He presented a kind face to the world, but he too was a man of ambition. No, perhaps he was the one among all the disciples most obsessed with ultimate power.
But he did not reveal his ambition outwardly.
It wasn't because he feared the checks of his brothers or worried about bothersome complications. He was a man who was congenitally unable to understand the emotion of fear.
The reason he didn't reveal his ambition was simply that he disliked things around him becoming complicated.
*To have such great ambition, yet hate complications... I suppose I am a peculiar man.*
How long had they walked?
Finally, the Palace of the Demonic God came into view.
Gwan Pyeong stopped walking.
As Gwan Pyeong gazed up at the Palace of the Demonic God, a secret admiration rose in his eyes.
*No matter how many times I see it, it's magnificent.*
It was neither ornate nor dazzlingly brilliant.
But it possessed an ancient grace, was grand, and at the same time, serene. It was a building perfectly suited as the abode of an absolute ruler, the dwelling of a god.
*I like it.*
Gwan Pyeong's face flushed slightly.
*To live here and survey the world... what a magnificent thing that would be.*
The ambition he had painstakingly suppressed surged forth.
An absolute ruler never acts rashly. A man who shakes the continent's balance of power always observes the world in silence.
His hands, clasped behind his back, tightened.
*There's no need to strike first. Even without me, they will tear each other apart.*
The battle for succession is the most intense of struggles, yet it can also become strangely dull.
For a while, the succession battle had been incredibly dull. No one had been willing to make a move against another.
But a few months ago, a crack appeared in that silent battle.
*I never thought the fourth would fall like that.*
The fourth was a boy who knew how to use his head.
But he had forgotten something important. That was why he was seen not as wise, but merely as clever with petty tricks.
*He should have properly assessed his opponent.*
The confidence that he himself was the most special.
Confidence is an important trait, but too much of it becomes poison. The fourth was a perfect example of that.
“…The third.”
“Pardon?”
“It's nothing.”
Gwan Pyeong's eyes deepened.
*In that sense, I suppose I too have misjudged the third.*
After waking from his demonic deviation, the third had changed so much it was as if he had become a different person.
*Perhaps the demonic deviation drew out his dormant nature.*
Gwan Pyeong shook his head.
Knowing oneself is just as important as knowing one's opponent. It was for that very reason that he had come to the Palace of the Demonic God of his own volition for the first time in a year.
*I shouldn't worry about the third.*
He spoke to the gate guard.
“Inform the Cult Leader that the second requests an audience.”
The gate guard shook his head.
“My apologies, but no outsiders are permitted to enter the Palace of the Demonic God today.”
Gwan Pyeong tilted his head.
“Is something happening at the palace?”
“The Third Young Master is in a private meeting with the Cult Leader.”
“...!”
“Please return tomorrow.”
Gwan Pyeong's face hardened.
Je-hwan stepped forward.
“Could you not at least deliver a message? As the Young Master has come after such a long time, the Cult Leader might…”
“Please leave.”
His attitude was utterly cold.
A muscle in Je-hwan's cheek twitched.
“Hey…”
“Stop.”
Gwan Pyeong turned around.
“Let's go back.”
“But, Young Master.”
Gwan Pyeong walked away with long strides, as if he felt not a shred of disappointment. Watching his back, Je-hwan eventually sighed and followed.
Gwan Pyeong's gaze grew sharp.
*Seo Ryang.*
* * *
“Have a drink.”
“Yes.”
Seo Ryang raised his cup.
Lee Cheonsang spoke as he poured the liquor.
“It's Jiannanchun from Sichuan.”
“The aroma is excellent, as expected.”
“It's worth drinking.”
After filling Seo Ryang's cup, he held out his own.
Seo Ryang politely clinked their cups and downed the liquor in one go.
*Kuh.*
It was strong. And invigorating.
A tingling sensation resonated deep in his stomach. Though his body did not get drunk, the feeling of it searing his esophagus and coiling in his stomach was definitely addictive.
“You did well.”
Seo Ryang looked at Lee Cheonsang.
Lee Cheonsang still wore an indifferent expression.
Blinking, Seo Ryang looked at him and picked up the bottle.
“Shall I pour you a glass?”
A flicker of light appeared in Lee Cheonsang's eyes.
But only for a moment.
“Pour.”
The Jiannanchun gurgled as it filled the cup.
Lee Cheonsang took the cup and drained it immediately. Still the same straightforward way of drinking.
Seo Ryang scratched his head.
“Cult Leader.”
“Speak.”
“I've always been curious, but doesn't your stomach burn? How can you drink such strong liquor like that without any side dishes?”
It was a question tinged with a human touch. Lee Cheonsang shook his head.
“I don't wish to ruin the liquor's aroma with food.”
“Ah, I see.”
Seo Ryang grumbled to himself. *I guess being the strongest under heaven means you have a stomach of steel, too.*
Lee Cheonsang refilled his cup again.
“Did you not enjoy drinking?
Seo Ryang flinched.
He himself might ask all sorts of thoughtless questions, but he never expected Lee Cheonsang to ask something like that.
“I do like it. But I just don't get drunk these days.”
“You must have quite the tolerance.”
“You drink to get drunk, but since I don't, no matter how much I pour down my throat, I find myself thinking about it less and less.”
“It's better than drinking and making mistakes.”
*Uh, that's true, but...*
Seo Ryang tilted his head. For some reason, the man seemed quite human today, unlike before.
*He might be called the peerless Demonic God, but in the end, a man is just a man…*
“For now.”
Startled, Seo Ryang looked at Lee Cheonsang.
Lee Cheonsang, who had refilled his cup at some point, asked with an air of indifference.
“I'd like to hear your review of that bastard, the Vice Lord of the Sword Palace.”
“Ah, that guy?”
“And I also want to hear why you didn't return promptly, even after the inspection was over.”
A glint appeared in Lee Cheonsang's eyes.
“In detail.”
…Shit, he hasn't changed a bit.