Twisted Loyalty

Sagong Wun could not refuse the meeting Dokgo Jin had requested.

Not only was he eager to learn how the search for the traitor had progressed, but word had also reached him that Dokgo Jin had successfully cleared the Mugeuk Gate in the process.

Whatever his political ambitions, Sagong Wun was still a martial artist at heart.

The moment they sat across from each other, Sagong Wun asked, "I heard the news. Did you truly conquer the Mugeuk Gate?"

Dokgo Jin nodded calmly. "Yes. It was all thanks to you, Hall Master."

"Hahaha! Truly magnificent! What do you mean, thanks to me? You would have uncovered the truth soon enough even with a little digging." An expression of genuine admiration spread across Sagong Wun's handsome face. "I knew my eye for talent had not failed me. To think you broke through that legendary trial, an ordeal everyone deemed utterly impregnable..."

"It was certainly not an easy task."

The Master of Cloud Sea Hall raised a hand to cut him off. "Say no more. I intend to challenge it myself before long, and I cannot stoop to the cowardice of gleaning hints beforehand."

Dokgo Jin looked mildly surprised. "Have you never challenged the Mugeuk Gate yourself?"

Sagong Wun offered a self-deprecating smile. "I have not. My plan was to prepare thoroughly, conquer it as the very first person in history, and give our Eldest Senior Brother a proper shock. But I kept putting it off, and so much time slipped away..."

"Then it seems I have unintentionally cut in line ahead of you."

"Think nothing of it. I delayed only out of my own lack of confidence. Besides, the Dragon Tiger Plaque Master possesses more than enough qualification." Sagong Wun paused, his demeanor turning earnest. "Though I doubt you came all this way merely to tell me about the gate. Have you found the collaborator?"

Dokgo Jin held his gaze in silence for a few heartbeats before speaking in a measured cadence. "I have confirmed that neither the Limitless Hall Master nor the Supreme Harmony Hall Master has cultivated demonic arts."

Sagong Wun nodded emphatically. "Of course! I knew my senior brothers could never commit such treachery."

Dokgo Jin then made an unexpected confession. "Truth be told, Hall Master... I lied to you earlier."

"Hm? What do you mean by that?" Sagong Wun asked, his brow knitting in confusion.

A faint, cold smirk touched the corners of Dokgo Jin's lips. "When I claimed I sought you out first because I trusted you most."

Sagong Wun let out a light, airy chuckle. "I already knew that was mere flattery. Was it not simply because I am the easiest of the three hall masters to meet?"

"That is true as well," Dokgo Jin replied without hesitation. "However, the primary reason was that you were the most suspicious."

Sagong Wun's face instantly hardened, his smile vanishing like mist in a gale.

"The funds funneled into the alliance from the outside are immense," Dokgo Jin continued coolly. "Yet among the Three Hidden Halls, Cloud Sea Hall is the only place capable of laundering and absorbing such sums without drawing the slightest attention."

Sagong Wun was the maternal grandson of the Ten Thousand Prosperity Merchant Guild Master. Because of that lineage, vast tides of wealth moved constantly between his grandfather's merchant empire and the Northern Heavens Alliance.

Slipping illicit enemy gold into that roaring river of commerce would be child's play.

"From an objective standpoint, it makes perfect sense," Dokgo Jin said. "Compared to the other two hall masters, your factional backing is weaker and your personal martial prowess lags behind. To overturn those disadvantages and claim the mantle of Alliance Leader, one might deem an extraordinary gamble necessary."

Despite the provocative accusation, Sagong Wun responded with quiet composure. "I am disappointed that you view me in such a light. Do you truly still harbor such thoughts, even after inspecting my internal energy?"

"Naturally, I know it is not you. You are a man who intends to win the leadership through your own methods. However..." Dokgo Jin's eyes flashed with a chilling sharpness. "Would your trusted retainers think the same way?"

"...!"

"They desire more than anyone to see you ascend to the alliance throne. Yet they would have assessed the situation with cold realism. Realizing that an orthodox, straightforward approach would never suffice, they are precisely the ones most likely to have made a desperate, perilous wager."

Sagong Wun's expression sank like lead, turning stone-cold. "My men are not so foolish."

"Allow me to ask you a question, Hall Master. Did you inform your inner circle that I was hunting for the Kunlun Demon Palace's mole?"

"..."

Sagong Wun's pupils trembled ever so slightly. Instead of answering, he turned his head aside, averting his eyes. "Why should I answer that?"

"Knowing your temperament, you would not have concealed it from your closest confidants. And among those who heard it, there must have been someone whose reaction was unnaturally sharp."

"..."

Unable to bear the scrutiny any longer, Sagong Wun closed his eyes. Dokgo Jin pressed forward, unrelenting.

"None of the three hall masters are colluding with the enemy. Yet the trail of funds flowing into the Three Hidden Halls is undeniable. That means someone received it." Dokgo Jin spoke with devastating precision. "You are more brilliant than anyone, Hall Master. In your heart, you already suspect who it is. Someone who stands at your very elbow... someone who shook hands with the enemy under the self-righteous excuse of doing it for your sake."

"Haah..."

A heavy, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ragged sigh escaped Sagong Wun's lips. A bitter, hollow grimace spread over his face. "Now that I see the full picture, you are a truly terrifying man. Did you come seeking me from the very start with all of this calculated?"

"I merely weighed the possibilities," Dokgo Jin replied evenly.

From the moment he had accepted this mission, Dokgo Jin had assessed Cloud Sea Hall as the most probable den of treason. Yet after interacting with Sagong Wun in person, he realized the man's pride and character would never stoop to such depths. That was why Dokgo Jin had visited the other two hall masters—to eliminate the remaining variables one by one.

The moment both were cleared of suspicion, Dokgo Jin's gaze had snapped back to Cloud Sea Hall.

If the master ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠was innocent, then the shadow cast beneath him had to be guilty.

Rather than wasting time and energy inspecting the inner qi of every single retainer, Dokgo Jin had chosen to leverage Sagong Wun's own intellect.

Judging by his reaction, there is no mistake.

Dokgo Jin's reasoning was sound: the collaborator could never have hidden their agitation from a man as sharp as Sagong Wun. Anyone genuinely wise would never have joined hands with the Kunlun Demon Palace in the first place. Even if they helped their lord seize the seat of Alliance Leader through demonic aid, he would become nothing more than a blackmailed puppet on a string.

A fool who cannot see an inch past his own nose.

A retainer with such shallow foresight would inevitably lose their composure the moment they learned an investigation was underway. Sagong Wun could not have failed to notice the sudden change in their behavior.

"While I was inside the Mugeuk Gate, someone from Cloud Sea Hall came searching for me at Mugeuk Hall," Dokgo Jin said. "Who was that person?"

"...!"

"Is that not the very retainer you suspect, Hall Master?"

Before visiting Supreme Harmony Hall, Shin Pyeong—unable to contain his bursting curiosity—had approached Dokgo Jin to ask whether he had truly conquered Mugeuk ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Gate. During that conversation, Shin Pyeong mentioned that while tailing Dokgo Jin on Yoo Seol-ah's orders, he had crossed paths with a warrior from Cloud Sea Hall loitering near Mugeuk Hall.

Even before meeting Do Euncheon, Dokgo Jin's instincts had honed in on that anomaly. The moment Do Euncheon's pure internal energy cleared him of suspicion, that intuition hardened into ironclad certainty.

Sagong Wun murmured as if speaking to the empty air. "...I explicitly ordered him to lie low and exercise patience, yet he could not endure even that brief moment. I summoned him back at once, but it seems you had already caught his scent."

"..."

"In truth, I was already investigating his movements."

Dokgo Jin stared directly into his eyes. "Were you investigating him to uncover the truth, or to bury it?"

Sagong Wun let out a mocking, self-derisive laugh. "You speak dangerous nonsense." Raising his voice, he called out toward the antechamber: "Nobang!"

The heavy doors parted, and So Nobang walked inside. His face was pale and visibly rigid.

"You heard our entire conversation, did you not?" Sagong Wun asked.

"Yes, Hall Master."

"What do you have to say for yourself?"

"...!"

So Nobang's eyes shook violently.

"Speak only the truth," Sagong Wun said softly. "Do so, and I give you my word that I will preserve your life."

Dokgo Jin's brow furrowed. "That is unacceptable, Hall Master."

Yet Sagong Wun's voice was unyielding. "He is my man. Whatever ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠punishment is due, I shall bear the responsibility myself. Do not interfere."

"..."

A storm of conflicting emotions flickered across So Nobang's weathered face.

In the end... has it come to this?

Squeezing his eyes shut for a fleeting moment, So Nobang reopened them and spoke with absolute resolve. "Hall Master, please heed this final counsel from your servant."

"Final? What nonsense are you spouting?! Did I not say I would—"

So Nobang cut him off, speaking with quiet, unwavering conviction. "You possess every virtue and qualification required to become the next Alliance Leader. Save for one single flaw."

"..."

"You must become ruthless. You lack the coldness required to cut down a subordinate without hesitation the instant suspicion arises."

"Nobang."

"It was the greatest honor of my life to serve you."

With those words, So Nobang turned and glared fiercely at Dokgo Jin. In that very instant, a torrent of sinister, violent demonic qi erupted from every pore of his body.

"...!"

Just as a shocked Sagong Wun moved to intervene—

Thump-thump-thump-crack!

A rapid sequence of muffled, violent ruptures echoed from within So Nobang's chest and meridians, reverberating through the office.

"Nobang!"

Sagong Wun cried out in horror, lunging forward, but it was already far too late.

Dark crimson, corrupted blood erupted like fountains from So Nobang's eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. His limbs lost all tension, and his body collapsed to the floor like a marionette whose strings had been severed in an instant.

He had shattered his own heart meridian and destroyed his dantian.

"..."

Dokgo Jin looked down at the lifeless corpse, a complex, bitter taste lingering in his mouth.

A twisted devotion... but a loyal servant all the same.

In those final moments, the glare So Nobang had directed at Dokgo Jin had contained no genuine hatred. It had been a desperate, silent plea. Rather than launching an attack, he had used his final breath to send a sound transmission straight into Dokgo Jin's mind.

He had revealed the location of all the incriminating evidence, begging Dokgo Jin to spare Sagong Wun from the fallout.

"You foolish, foolish man..." Sagong Wun slumped forward, burying his face in his hands, unable to move for a long time.

Inside the hidden compartment beneath So Nobang's chair, investigators uncovered forbidden demonic manuals, vast quantities of gold drafts, and detailed secret ledgers.

Every individual implicated in laundering the Kunlun Demon Palace's funds was rounded up and subjected to severe punishment.

Although Sagong Wun had no direct involvement in the treason, he could not escape penalty for failing to oversee his direct subordinate.

The Elder Hall handed down a formal sentence: three years of house arrest, strictly confining him to his hall.

"In a way, it is a blessing in disguise," Sagong Wun remarked with a serene smile when Dokgo Jin came to see him once more. "I can finally devote myself entirely to cultivation without distraction."

"I regret that things unfolded this way," Dokgo Jin said.

"Do not pay it any mind. You simply performed your duty with your usual diligence. It was my failure for not scrutinizing my own people properly." There was truly not a speck of resentment in Sagong Wun's clear, open gaze.

"I am grateful that you view it so graciously." Dokgo Jin was quietly impressed. He is a truly formidable man.

The Limitless Hall Master and the Supreme Harmony Hall Master were both extraordinary figures, but Sagong Wun possessed a vessel of a fundamentally different magnitude.

"Still," Dokgo Jin noted perceptively, "whose benefit was that confinement order truly meant for?"

"Hahaha. As expected, you already figured it out."

Though Sagong Wun held no direct military authority within the alliance, his external diplomatic accomplishments were monumental. The results he had secured at the recent summit of the Eight Great Clans alone had been of staggering value to the alliance's standing. Halting Sagong Wun's movements entirely would be a severe loss for the Northern Heavens Alliance as a whole.

"The Elder Hall had no choice in the matter," Sagong Wun said with a light shrug. "They could hardly overlook treason within my hall without doing anything. But mark my words, they will invent one pretext or another to lift the confinement before long."

"I see. That is a relief."

"You should take your leave now. It seems someone has been waiting outside for quite a while."

"Then I shall take my leave."

Dokgo Jin clasped his fists in a formal salute and exited Cloud Sea Hall.

Just as Sagong Wun had said, the White Fang Unit Leader stood waiting in the courtyard, his features concealed behind his stark white mask.

"Let us depart, Dragon Tiger Plaque Master," the masked commander said in a low, deferential tone. "The Banner Lord is expecting you."

"..."

Dokgo Jin fell into step behind him, turning his path once more toward the Tiger Gazing Tower.

The hunt was finished. It was time to receive his reward.