Chapter 206
Chapter 206
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 206
Chapter Title: Kongtong Sect
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The entrance to White Snow Valley was far narrower than it appeared from outside.
A width barely enough for two or three people to pass.
Sheer cliffs towering to dizzying heights, like a folding screen stretched out.
Even a narrow path where light barely penetrated, making it hard to secure visibility.
"If ambushed here, even a peak-level master would meet a dog's death without fail."
"Even without explosives, just a volley of arrows...!"
"Now I understand why the Beast Horde crumbled here a dozen years ago."
The moment they entered White Snow Valley, it became crystal clear.
This place was an impregnable natural fortress.
No matter how many demonic troops the heretics threw at it, breaching it wouldn't be easy.
Even if they somehow managed to conquer it, they'd have to brace for over half their forces to be annihilated.
The survivors of the Doctrine Scholars' faction had realized this too, their faces draining to pale white.
"We were targeting a place like this...?"
"What in the world was the Elder trying to do to us?"
On the other hand, some squeezed their eyes shut, guessing the fate awaiting them.
There was nowhere left for them to run.
Banakbeol had shoved them into the narrow path first and blocked the rear.
Continuing forward like this, they'd run into the sect leader they'd betrayed. They couldn't turn back with us holding the line.
It was a perfect dilemma.
Moreover, the Doctrine Scholar they followed was a traitor colluding with the South Palace Clan and the Demonic Cult.
With even their justification lost, their morale was nonexistent.
"......"
"......"
"......"
As the wretches trudged on in silence, the narrow path finally came to an end.
"...It's finally over."
As the cramped path vanished, sunlight poured down brilliantly.
The basin, surrounded entirely by cliffs, boasted breathtaking scenery. It felt like stepping into another world, utterly divorced from the outside.
Cool waterfall waters cascaded, dense trees and underbrush everywhere filling the air with forest scent.
"What... is this place...?"
"Was there somewhere like this on Kongtong Mountain...?"
The disciples of the Doctrine Scholars' faction all wore stunned expressions.
And rightly so—Kongtong Mountain had always been a barren wasteland where not even a single blade of grass grew properly.
Compared to that, this was a paradise like Peach Blossom Land.
Even we wanderers and insects were amazed, but for them, the shock must have been greater.
"Y-Young Cult Leader, this is too disorienting."
"Are you... all right, Young Cult Leader?"
But their captivation with the scenery lasted only a moment.
An entirely unforeseen problem arose.
No, it wasn't unforeseen.
It was just far more severe than anticipated.
Boom...!!
White Snow Valley brimmed with pure Dao qi.
In Buddhist terms, it equated to demon-warding power.
Demon-Subduing Heavenly Pure True Formation.
The demon-subduing energy enveloped the entire valley.
It was a deadly poison to demonic cultivators or specters harboring grudges.
Writhing!
My dantian clenched tight.
My whole body ached as if pricked by dozens of needles.
Grrrrr...
It felt like a growl rising from the deepest abyss.
The pure demonic nature, long dormant, stirred unpleasantly, coiling as if ready to burst forth.
But the real issue was the specters.
Their presences were fading in real time, as if about to vanish.
"My new recruit! My new recruiiits!"
"Nooooo! Alert! Alert!"
The new specters suffered the worst, with Numbers Fifteen and Sixteen dashing about like spooked wild boars.
My mind was a mess, seriously.
As I frantically tried to circulate the Black Dragon Heart Formula to do something,
Clang, clang, clang!
Suddenly, Kongtong Sect swordsmen descended from the cliffs in droves, surrounding the entrance in unison.
Demon-Purifying Evil-Exterminating Sword Formation.
The Kongtong Sect's proudest formation.
The Doctrine Scholars' faction turned ghastly blue.
"Elder Maehak...!"
Someone spotted the old man at the formation's vanguard and cried out, only to get harshly rebuked.
"Shut your mouth! How dare a traitor like you casually utter a Daoist's name!"
"W-We didn't mean—"
"You butchered your fellow sect brothers, and we're sparing you immediate judgment—consider that a mercy! Drop your swords and surrender at once! Otherwise, we'll sweep you all away!"
The Doctrine Scholars' survivors exchanged wary glances.
If they really lowered their swords and got attacked, they'd be done for clean.
The demon-subduing qi intertwined with the Demon-Purifying Evil-Exterminating Sword Formation, explosively amplifying its power.
Before the specters could be swept up, I quickly regulated my breathing and circulated the Heavenly Demon Heart-Protecting Art. The rampaging pure demon gradually subsided.
At the same time, reciting the Black Dragon Heart Formula's incantation inwardly restored the specters' strength.
"Huff! Heave! Heave!"
"What kind of place is this that it can even affect Heavenly Demon qi...?"
Confirming most specters were safe, I issued an order to Banakbeol.
"Banakbeol too... all units, load and stand ready."
Click, click, click!
At my command, Banakbeol likewise reloaded their Repeating Crossbows with steel bolts, aiming at the Doctrine Scholars' faction.
Perhaps due to the demon-subduing qi, my voice carried clear irritation.
"Drop your swords while I'm asking nicely. Unless you want to end up as pincushions."
"!!"
"!!"
"...A-Alright. Please just turn those ominous arrows aside."
Sword formation ahead, Banakbeol steel bolt barrage behind.
The Doctrine Scholars' faction finally tossed their swords to the ground and raised their arms high.
Whew, finally over.
As I let out a light sigh,
"Young Cult Leader! Behind you!"
At Number Fifteen's urgent cry, I belatedly whipped around. A presence was blitzing through the entrance.
Distracted by the demon-subduing qi, I'd failed to properly sense the rear.
"Ha! How dare you lot—"
"The White-Faced Ghosts' weakness is that their individual prowess drops sharply right after breaking stealth. I'll draw their attention first."
The Lion Deer King hurriedly drew his Fierce Deer Blade again. Gongson Beom tried to leap that way.
Over a dozen White-Faced Ghosts burst from the shadows.
As they drew swords to attack,
I too reached for the Northern Star Arm quickly, but suddenly black sword qi plummeted from the sky like a meteor.
Accompanied by resounding vibrations shaking heaven and earth.
『Uninvited guests may not enter herein.』
Rumble...!
Slash!
It felt like the world had been cleaved apart.
Along the diagonal cut, the White-Faced Ghosts plummeted with torsos and legs severed in unison.
"!!"
Swordsmanship verging on the divine.
The realm of mind-sword unity was right there.
And.
Beneath the shower of blood like rain.
A middle-aged man had appeared, lightly sheathing his sword. Not a drop of blood stained its blade.
The Doctrine Scholars' faction's eyelids twitched at the sight of him. The sword formation swordsmen knelt on one knee in unison.
"We see the Sect Leader!"
"We see the Sect Leader!"
Step, step!
The middle-aged man, dashingly clad in Daoist robes, walked toward us.
With each step, the faction's qi rippled outward like waves. The demon-subduing energy filling White Snow Valley swirled around him.
He alone seemed to exist in this world.
'This is the Kongtong Sect Leader...!'
Even as Young Cult Leader, I'd never met heads of the Nine Great Sects or Six Great Clans, so this was my first encounter with an old sect leader.
Yet, old sect leaders were indeed on another level from other sect heads.
If the Dark Lord was the sea, this man was the mountain.
Standing solitary there, he exuded unyielding solidity, as if he'd endure unchanging for a thousand, ten thousand years.
How had trash like the Doctrine Scholar possibly rebelled against this man?
"Infinite merits to the Buddha! We've only exchanged letters till now, so I was curious what sort of person you were. Meeting you like this, you're far more upright and heroic than I imagined."
But the moment the middle-aged man smiled at me, the aura around him vanished clean.
More like a warm neighborhood uncle?
"I am Sunhak, who leads Kongtong despite my meager talents. On behalf of Kongtong, I thank the Tang Clan for their aiding hand."
I returned the courtesy with a formal clasp of hands.
Lion Deer King aside, I was currently the Tang Clan's representative.
"I am Tang Un-hwi of the Tang Clan's Stormwind Squad Banakbeol. We see the Kongtong Sect Leader."
Entry into the Kongtong Sect achieved.
* * *
『Are you alright, my lord?』
The Vampire Demon's transmission pierced my ear.
The corner of my mouth curved.
『A bit. What about you, Vampire?』
『...Truth be told, not great.』
The Vampire Demon's aura wavered unstably.
『This place itself is like poison to me... It doesn't seem like a mere safe haven.』
Even pure demon was shaken—how could he be fine?
I needed to help him quick.
『I'll recite a few incantations, memorize them. Can't go full power, but you should manage basic stealth.』
Moments later, the Vampire Demon regained a steadier aura.
『Thank you. I can breathe now. Honestly, the more I see, the more this place doesn't add up.』
『Right? Even I was shocked—way stronger than the Demon-Subduing Heavenly Pure True Formation I'd only heard about.』
『When I heard the Beast Lord tucked tail and ran, I just scoffed... What's the secret here?』
『Not just the formation.』
It had even roused the pure demon, which Tang Gyu-jin and Yu Su-min couldn't detect.
No matter how supreme the formation, this didn't make sense.
Actually, White Snow Valley itself defied logic.
'Natural energies are overwhelmingly pervasive throughout the gorge.'
The sole lush spot on barren Kongtong Mountain. Overflowing with vitality, teeming with birds and insects.
Inexplicable.
Eerie.
No, at this level, it qualified as a calamity phenomenon.
『Could any calamity produce natural energies this abundant?』
Calamities and eeriness were mostly anomalies from twisted providence, usually negative.
But White Snow Valley's calamity was different.
Its vitality was potent enough to constitute great nature itself. The ley lines bubbled furiously.
Even I, who'd seen countless calamities, beheld this for the first time.
『There are. Like where a divine beast died.』
『But from what I know—』
『Yeah. Rare. Divine beasts usually choose to return to nature before their lifespan ends.』
Even if dying untimely, a divine beast's corpse was a spirit pill all coveted by humans and spirits alike.
Cases lingering long enough for calamity phenomena were near nonexistent.
『Plus this is Kongtong Mountain. With ley lines grand enough to rank as a Daoist holy site, it'd absorb any calamity before it formed.』
『So... an entity surpassing even those ley lines met its end here?』
『Probably.』
『Is that possible? To reach that level, it'd have to be a Heavenly Dragon or Phoenix at least—nothing like that could—』
The Vampire Demon, born with calamity-like powers or perhaps from long companionship with me, was unusually knowledgeable about such phenomena for a layman.
Thus trailing off, he suddenly gasped in realization.
『...There is. Ha! Why didn't I think of it sooner?』
No need to limit calamity causes to divine beasts alone.
Divine Immortals.
Humans ascended to divinity existed too.
In the distant primordial era, hadn't a being rivaling Heavenly Dragons or Phoenixes resided on Kongtong Mountain?
『Then what you're saying is—』
『Yeah. This is Gwangseong Zi's 'real' tomb.』
『!!』
『Not sure exactly how it relates to the Gwangseong Tomb you visited.』
Publicly, the known Gwangseong Tomb was the stone cavern where Gwangseong Zi cultivated in his final years.
Meaning it wasn't where he actually passed.
Perhaps he'd cultivated at the tomb but ascended here in White Snow Valley.
If so, the Demon-Subduing Heavenly Pure True Formation was the seal controlling Gwangseong Zi's lingering spirit energy.
『...Beyond my imagination's grasp.』
『The immortals' world is nonsense through and through anyway.』
Starting with the pagoda folk and shed-skins, it was all illogical.
While analyzing White Snow Valley's calamity, True Person Sunhak finished judging the Doctrine Scholars' faction.
"Why did you do it?"
"Sect Leader! Hear us out! It was all because the Doctrine Scholar deceived us—"
"For those cultivating the Dao, selfish desires are the innermost demons to guard against most—I taught you that endlessly."
True Person Sunhak sighed deeply, then flicked his finger with resolute eyes.
"Your punishment will be addressed after the war ends."
Before the Doctrine Scholars could shout, his finger strikes sealed their acupoints swiftly.
At that instant, the Vampire Demon cried out urgently.
『My lord!!』
『...Yeah. I saw it.』
True Person Sunhak's finger strikes weren't Kongtong techniques.
Blood Surge Finger.
My master's signature martial art.