Reward
The quantity of treasures unearthed from the hidden cave was staggering.
Musa from the Murim Alliance continued to haul them out in large numbers, yet the haul never seemed to dwindle.
“This load is too much for just these people to carry. It looks like the Demon Slayer Unit will need to stand watch today and bring in more martial artists tomorrow.”
“We’ll also need to prepare carriages.”
“A rumor is bound to spread no matter what.”
“Even at midnight, countless people have already seen our group heading this way. The secret cannot be kept.”
The Alliance Master nodded.
“Proceed as planned.”
The following morning.
The officially dispatched martial artists transported the treasures on carriages.
A seemingly endless line of wagons.
Covered with cloth to hide the contents, yet the rumor spread like wildfire among those who climbed the mountain and caught a glimpse.
Someone who was too late to the scene asked.
“What exactly happened here?”
“They say a bandit’s den was raided. The stacked valuables there look like a mountain of riches.”
“What? Bandits? A bandit raiding his own home? What kind of idiot would do that.”
“You’re right. That’s beyond stupid. It’s almost insulting to call them bandits.”
Crack.
The sound of teeth shattering echoed through the crowd.
Everyone turned around.
A small woman with glowing eyes was glaring at the Murim Alliance convoy.
Her hair looked as if she had been running her fingers through it for hours—completely disheveled. Her long fingers gnawed and snapped, blood staining the nails.
“Who is this woman?”
They had shown a flicker of interest, but she was clearly just some strange woman. They turned away and continued their conversation.
“Hey, what’s that blue thing behind the wagon? It looks almost like a human leg…”
A blue mass had poked through the torn cloth.
“Oh, it’s a jiangshi, they say.”
“What? A jiangshi? Then… the Blood Sect?”
The conversation continued.
But Yeong-yeong discovered no openings among the Murim Alliance martial artists and simply turned to leave.
“They must have finally been exterminated by the Murim Alliance. Such fools. Getting caught with their tails between their legs…”
Yeong-yeong had no idea that the Thousand-Li Tracking Scent soaked in Heavenly Meteorite Stone needles had been planted there.
She had only seen a jiangshi guarding the entrance to the cave.
After luring it into a trap and burying it alive, something that emerged from the cave was a Transcendent master.
Yeong-yeong knew every face of the Murim Alliance’s Transcendent experts.
Naturally, it had been concluded that the cave had been turned over by the Blood Sect.
“I lured them to their deaths, they escaped, and then they were wiped out by the Murim Alliance in the meantime.”
The treasures the previous Yeong-yeong had taken were one thing, but losing the Heavenly Meteorite Stone was the most painful part.
She loved pretty things and couldn’t help herself.
Since she had already been robbed once, trying to steal the Heavenly Meteorite Stone again in a short time was impossible, no matter who she was.
Even though the stupid Blood Sect fools were all dead, she hadn’t forgotten her oath from yesterday.
“I’ll find the Blood Sect’s headquarters, plunder it, and hunt for that Heavenly Meteorite Stone again!”
She used the information network she had built.
Primarily to track rare items, but from now on she would use it to pursue the materials needed for making jiangshi.
The hidden cave in Luoyang, where the rarest treasures had gathered, had been looted, but many locations across the country still remained untouched.
***
When Yuseong returned to the Murim Alliance, he was summoned to the conference room and questioned for a long time.
It was not an interrogation.
“It’s incredible that you can kill jiangshi in an instant. If only the Divine Physician were here, the Blood Sect’s jiangshi would be nothing to fear!”
“However, the fewer people who know about this, the better. We must thoroughly seal the lips of everyone who was present that night.”
“That’s right. If the frightened Blood Sect members hide themselves away, it will become even harder to exterminate them…”
“If we can find their headquarters, we can wipe them out completely.”
Jiangshi created from a Transcendent master’s corpse could wield their former martial arts without tiring.
No need to worry about fatigue!
Their bodies were hard enough that Sword Qi could not cut them.
Even if they were stupid, they would follow orders perfectly.
With just a flick of the wrist, they could be neutralized.
Just from what had been gained, they had slain seven jiangshi at the Transcendent master level and captured one alive.
Eight Transcendent masters—if this had happened during the Blood Sect’s peak power, it would still be an insignificant force.
“Divine Physician, could you perhaps demonstrate it for us?”
An elder made the request.
The eyes of the people burned with excitement.
It was enough to make Yuseong step forward on his own.
“Shall I demonstrate it on that one?”
A captured jiangshi sat blankly inside a special iron cage.
Its eyes were empty.
With no one to give orders, it showed no aggression.
Even when buried alive, it had only struggled in a desperate attempt to survive according to its own abilities.
“Of course, we should test it on a healthy jiangshi first. Just don’t kill it. There are many things to research.”
Since they had captured a jiangshi and obtained the piper that controlled it, they could achieve meaningful results after study.
Yuseong stepped forward.
“I’ll remove its left hand.”
“Oh, it can even do precise strikes? Well, the other guys all targeted the heads, so it was a silly question.”
The elder stepped aside.
Yuseong raised his hand.
The people watched intently, clenching their fists to see what changes would occur.
Pasu-
“How!”
Without any special process, the left hand turned to ash and scattered.
Everyone’s bodies jolted.
Killing that difficult jiangshi with one flick of the wrist!
The Elder Cheonun shouted in shock.
“Spiritual arts! It’s actually spiritual arts!”
“…Yes.”
Since it had used a recovery skill, calling it spiritual arts was appropriate. It had always been treated that way before.
“Then, if the people of Mount Ma Sect also learn this spiritual arts, can they use it?”
The idea occurred to Elder Cheonun, who knew a little about spiritual arts.
Yuseong broke out in a cold sweat.
‘Are they trying to have me teach them?’
He thought of Jin Eunseon, who had been exchanging letters with him lately…
Spiritual arts were not something; they were skills he had awakened by receiving divine power.
“Elder Cheonun, in the Murim world, martial arts manuals are as important as one’s life. Surely your spiritual arts are the same, right? Mount Ma Sect members are not from there, and I have only a minor connection with the place.”
Yuseong looked troubled, so Jeonseong Yeong-yeong provided support.
“Wait, my thinking was too shallow. Sorry, Divine Physician.”
The Elder Cheonun apologized sincerely.
It seemed he had really wanted to know if spiritual arts could be passed on to Mount Ma Sect.
“No. I thought about whether they could learn it, but with my unique constitution, there is no one who can replicate this.”
“Haha… I see.”
“Instead, if the Blood Sect appears, I have no intention of staying safely in the rear. If I am stationed on the front lines, it won’t matter. Whenever a jiangshi appears, please call for me.”
“Thank you very much!”
In this world, there was no reason to think of them as undead.
Thanks to them, he had excluded one method for accumulating divine power.
But.
Since he knew jiangshi were treated as undead, he had wanted to go to the place where they appeared on his own.
There was one thing Yuseong had not considered…
Sizzle!
His face burned.
‘I’m sorry. But I can’t give up on raising my divine power no matter what.’
A lame excuse that Yeong-yeong with her sharp eyes would not hear.
Was Yuseong really able to kill jiangshi so easily?
Now that he had the answer, the agenda moved on to rewarding the merits.
No one pointed out that no one had followed the trail of the previous Yeong-yeong.
They had gone to the military office to report, but because of the meeting they had not made a formal report, yet even with a small flaw, the merits covered everything.
The treasury manager, who had a dark expression, stepped forward with a relaxed face as if the rumor had disappeared overnight.
“First, we must make it clear that some treasures must be returned to their original owners.”
“Hmm… is that really necessary?”
An elder, greedy for astronomical treasures, spoke.
“That’s… because some of the manuals belong to each sect and the items have clear origins. There are high-ranking officials who have placed bounties on the previous Yeong-yeong and the treasures, so we don’t need to make enemies for no reason.”
“Hah, that’s true. Many Luoyang citizens saw the treasures being transported… how unfortunate.”
“Still… even if we recover all of them, the Murim Alliance’s operating funds won’t be a concern. This is all thanks to the Divine Physician and his companions. Thank you.”
Everyone was smiling contentedly.
Clap clap clap!
The sound of applause echoed through the conference room.
When someone began clapping, others followed.
Yeong-yeong clapped, the elders one by one joined in, and finally the Murim Alliance Master, swept up in the mood, also clapped.
“Thanks to the Divine Physician, we no longer have to worry about funds. But if something like this happens again, don’t hesitate to come find me. It was dangerous, wasn’t it.”
The one who had started the clapping was Jeong Rip, the leader of the Demon Slayer Unit.
His reliable words.
But Yuseong had no intention of seeking out Jeong Rip again in the future.
‘I’m not his mission. What if I tell him I asked and he gets fired from the Demon Slayer Unit position?’
The scene he had shown earlier.
Hadn’t he thrown his resignation letter without hesitation to avoid involving the Murim Alliance in the internal affairs of the Haomen Sect?
‘Only when there is no other way.’
This time, he hadn’t expected the Blood Sect to be involved.
Formally receiving ownership of the Heavenly Meteorite Stones was easy.
Since the merits of finding the previous Yeong-yeong’s cave were recognized, it was included in part of the reward.
“So you want me to make a sword with this?”
“Yes, the detailed specifications are written in the attached document.”
“Good. I’ll ask you to make it as fast as possible.”
Thanks to Tang Harin’s help, the Heavenly Meteorite Stones obtained this time were sent to the Tang Clan.
Considering travel time and the time needed to make the sword, it would take several months.
But at least they would have the minimum power they needed.
***
A few days later.
Physician Yang, looking pale and haggard, delivered a piece of news.
“My master has gone missing!”
Together with Im Yeon-hwa, the granddaughter of the Divine Physician.