The Cult’s Hidden Agenda
“……!”
Cheon Sohyeon’s shoulders trembled.
This is fucking ridiculous.
So the greatest reason for the Divine Fist’s entry into the Buddhist order was the Demonic Cult’s push into the Central Plains? They had decided on their grand strategy because of something like that?
“A-are you saying you’ll verify his entry into the order and then move into the Central Plains?”
Cheon Sohyeon forced back the trembling at the tips of his fingers.
“What the hell are you talking about? No matter how exceptional a monk is, he’s still just one person, isn’t he? Does it really make sense to say the balance was broken because only one man disappeared?”
“That is a fair point, but in rare cases, such a thing does happen. In the Divine Fist’s case, it did.”
“……”
“As the history of the Divine Cult proves, one of the greatest obstacles to unifying the world under the demonic way has always been the monks of Shaolin. In our present age, their influence has only grown stronger. Do you know why?”
“Because the martial arts of the righteous, those who stand against evil, kept advancing? It doesn’t seem like it was just because of the Divine Fist’s power.”
“That is partly correct, but not entirely.”
“Why not?”
“Sects that carry on the Buddhist lineage are, by nature, rather closed-off. They have little contact with the mundane world, so information is scarce; their weaknesses are hard to find, and even their true scale is difficult to determine.”
“……”
“If one were to point out a flaw, it would be that they sometimes speak of compassion while acting overly lax and indulgent……”
“And Shaolin was different?”
“Exactly. Shaolin of the present age has begun meddling in the world of mortals as though it has forgotten the proper duty of a Buddhist temple, and it even permits killing.”
Sama Hyeok continued in that flat, even tone.
“With one hand holding a ritual mallet and the other a weapon of war, with the mouth that should be speaking of great compassion instead only shouting battle cries, they are no different from the other sects of the martial world.”
What the hell was this bastard even trying to say?
Frustration rose up to his throat. Unable to hold it in, Cheon Sohyeon blurted, “Why are you telling me all this?”
His gaze tangled with the Chief Military Counselor’s.
Those ashen pupils were already rippling with some eerie power. It looked like the same eye art as before, but it seemed to be a martial art specialized in reading an opponent’s intentions.
“What is your opinion of Shaolin’s conduct, Young Master?”
Cheon Sohyeon had no clue why he was being asked this all of a sudden. Was this some kind of test?
After turning over a dozen thoughts in his head, he gave his honest answer.
“If you look at it from their point of view, I don’t think they’re necessarily wrong.”
“Please explain in detail.”
“Didn’t they conclude that simply speaking of great compassion wasn’t enough to save all beings?”
“……”
“The reason a monk trains in martial arts is, in the end, to deal with other warriors. Just talking about compassion and shouting from the sidelines won’t stop a massacre.”
Watching Sama Hyeok’s face carefully, Cheon Sohyeon went on.
“If they commit slaughter, they’re still monks; if they decide it disrupts their cultivation, they’ll naturally stop. And if the martial arts they’ve built through austerity lead them toward the devil’s path, I doubt they’d see that as a problem.”
After a brief silence, Sama Hyeok nodded.
“You understand that as well. Shaolin must certainly think the same. And their shift from setting compassion aside to actively opposing demons happened abruptly in this era. The Cult concluded that the Divine Fist had a great influence on it.”
“……The Divine Fist’s influence?”
“Yes. With a temperament that can hardly be called that of a Buddhist monk, he awakened the ultimate principles of subduing evil and unleashed every ounce of violence he had toward the devil’s path. As a result, he came to exert enormous influence over the martial world, and the black-path forces of the age began to regard him as a kind of deterrent.”
Cheon Sohyeon snapped his mouth shut before it could hang open.
How the hell did they figure all that out…?
He had never imagined the Demonic Cult understood Shaolin in such detail. They had clearly made a serious mistake about the Divine Fist’s character, but most of Sama Hyeok’s statement was not wrong.
Had they planted an intelligence network in the Central Plains despite their seclusion?
Shaolin might be unusually domineering among Buddhist sects, but there were still plenty of parts that made no sense to him.
Especially the conduct of those monks who preached compassion even to the wicked and insisted on teaching them under the banner of guidance. He hated that kind of thing more than anything.
Why should anyone care for and educate those utter wretches who only continued their massacres? There were other beings in the world who truly needed help.
If he hated the temple, then a monk ought to leave it—but even that didn’t suit his nature, so he had thrown himself into remaking the temple instead.
Sama Hyeok’s voice continued.
“In other words, the Divine Fist, who once reigned as the absolute master of the Orthodox Martial Alliance, vanished, and Shaolin, the pinnacle of those who oppose the demonic, also left the world. There could be no better opportunity.”
What kind of nonsense was this now?
Cheon Sohyeon swallowed hard.
“Left the world? What does that mean? Are you saying Shaolin has entered seclusion?”
“Yes. We obtained a notice stating that, for the mourning period honoring the Divine Fist’s entry into the order, they would be closing their gates.”
Cheon Sohyeon’s eyes shook violently.
F-fuck……!!
The successive shocks made it hard to keep his composure. So this meant that because of him, Shaolin was closing its gates, and the Demonic Cult was about to rise?
As he reckoned the danger that would soon descend upon the world, a crushing pressure seemed to pin down his entire body.
Then Sama Ryang, who had remained silent until now, spoke with a stiff expression.
“Then the wars of the underworld will begin before our sect even makes its move.”
“Exactly. The black-path forces will have no choice but to vent the fury they’ve kept buried. This is a time to watch the situation closely.”
As the exchange continued, Cheon Sohyeon’s pupils trembled as if an earthquake had struck them. His gaze shifted to Sama Ryang.
“What are you saying? Don’t tell me the sect plans to use a borrowed blade?”
“Yes, it seems that way.”
“……”
Borrowing another man’s sword to strike down the enemy. In other words, from the Demonic Cult’s perspective, it meant using the black path to stir up the righteous sects.
The cult would spare no means or methods in pursuit of a world ruled by the demonic way, and they would invade the Central Plains.
Since they would try to use every card in their hand, it was entirely possible they would incite conflicts all across the Central Plains by wearing the masks of either the Orthodox or the black path.
And if the Orthodox and the black path dragged each other into a war of attrition across the world before the Demonic Cult finally revealed itself, what would happen then?
Goddamn it!
It was obvious as day. The demonic would swallow the world whole.
Overwhelmed by information too hard to accept, confusion surged through him.
Th-this all happened because of my reincarnation?
The rising chaos gradually curdled into something close to guilt. However unintended it might have been, I had influenced the Demonic Cult’s decisions.
“Young Master, are you all right?”
Cheon Sohyeon met Sama Ryang’s eyes. Concern filled that gaze. In those pupils, it was not Hye Gwang but Cheon Sohyeon reflected back at him.
That was enough to jolt him awake, as if it were telling him that now, at last, it was time to do his best in the form of Cheon Sohyeon.
Right. Nothing has happened yet.
Cheon Sohyeon tightened his grip on his wits.
Amitabha.
If he could achieve his goal—stop the grand scheme by whatever means necessary—then all of this would turn out to have been needless worry. It was no time to feel defeated.
“So that’s how it is. But whatever the reason, as I said before, I want to stop our sect’s advance. Is there no way to cancel this grand scheme?”
“There is not.”
The Chief Military Counselor answered without hesitation.
“If this concerned some other matter, it might be possible to listen to the opinions of the senior members and cancel or revise the plan. But when it comes to this grand strategy, no room for reconsideration was left.”
“……”
“His Lordship’s command has already been given, and while this may not be the greatest desire of the sect members, it is indeed a long-cherished wish of theirs.”
“Is that so.”
Sama Hyeok studied Cheon Sohyeon’s expression closely. Even after receiving a clear refusal, his eyes still burned as intensely as the sun itself.
He looked as if he had no intention of yielding. Watching those eyes, several ideas began to form in Sama Hyeok’s mind.
As the silence stretched on, Sama Ryang’s expression hardened. He looked at Sama Hyeok, then at Cheon Sohyeon.
“……”
He had hurriedly composed himself, yet the rare look of bewilderment still clung vividly to his face. Since the young master was usually overflowing with confidence, the contrast struck even harder.
That means… you’re that desperate.
Sama Ryang clenched a fist beneath the table. He knew all too well how much effort had gone into this.
Scenes of him training until his clothes grew rough with sweat, then later scanning documents with hollow, exhausted eyes, were still fresh in his memory.
To add even a single step to that journey, Sama Ryang made his decision.
“If there are other senior members who share your opposition, would it be possible to hear their opinions as well?”
“You know better than anyone that that’s impossible. Even so, why bring it up?”
“As you may have guessed, I too oppose it, like the young master.”
“And?”
Sama Ryang lowered his head over the empty table.
“I understand what the Military Council wants. If you will allow it, I’ll join and help the family’s affairs. Please, give me a chance.”
“You’re speaking seriously?”
“Yes.”
Sama Hyeok frowned and said, “Your attitude has changed abruptly. Just days ago you were refusing us, talking about following your own fate.”
“……”
“If your heart is elsewhere, then there’s no way the Military Council can accept you. Isn’t this all just talk to make your goal easier to achieve?”
“It isn’t.”
“Ryang.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Everyone in the family knows how stubborn you are. Even if stopping this grand scheme is deeply important to you, changing your mind couldn’t have been easy. There must have been a clear turning point. What was it?”
After a short silence, Sama Ryang answered, “I realized that the duty bestowed by heaven can also be carried out in the Military Council.”
“If that were something you could discover on your own, you would have done so long ago. Why now?”
“The young master showed me that medicine alone is not the only profession that can save people.”
Sama Hyeok’s mouth curved faintly upward.
“You mean saving people with words instead of herbs?”
“Yes.”
Sama Hyeok’s gaze turned to Cheon Sohyeon.
“Is that true?”
“It is. We can use the sect’s forces to take lives, yes, but the Military Council’s work can also save them in return.”
It was what he had told Sama Ryang while discussing strategy. In truth, it had been little more than a lofty-sounding line, nothing particularly remarkable.
And yet the reason Sama Ryang had bent his will was simple: he had decided to walk that path together as a scholar, so that he could stop the grand scheme.
Sama Hyeok looked at him as though weighing the matter over and over. Then, with a cautious air, he let his lips move as if sorting his thoughts.
“Hmm.”
Though the silence dragged on as if his mind were in turmoil—
Things are going smoothly.
He had already decided the answer in his heart. Before ever meeting the Third Young Master, he had predicted—and hoped—that this might happen.
An unexpected gain.
Because the period of peace had lasted so long under the sealed gates, the Cult’s current might was stronger than at any other time.
Even so, Sama Hyeok judged that alone to be insufficient. The various powers of the Central Plains had also preserved their strength.
To secure true victory, every single cult member must wage a holy war with all their heart.
In other words, the whole should become a perfect organization. Yet his belief was that such a thing could not truly exist.
Just as the near-complete Cult Leader, ever seeking perfection, had once again retreated into closed cultivation, the Divine Cult of the present still had room to evolve.
There were certainly parts that needed further sharpening, and parts that had to be cut away.
That was why he had left room for delay. To see whether any senior members truly opposed it, and if so, why; to devise a plan for how to sever those doubts if necessary.
Sama Hyeok spoke in his deep, weighty voice.
“Before I make my intentions clear, there is something I must say to you, Young Master.”
“And what would that be?”
“Even if I listen to opposing opinions, I cannot promise the Military Council’s stance will change. Unless there is proper justification, it would only be natural to let it pass unheard. More to the point, even if there are those who oppose it, they will not speak lightly.”
“Of course they won’t.”
Cheon Sohyeon nodded.
To speak against the Demonic Cult’s grand scheme would be insubordination, almost tantamount to treason. Who would dare voice opposition so easily?
Even so, earning the Chief Military Counselor’s acknowledgment was certainly meaningful.
If he were recognized by him, it would mean the Military Council officially acknowledged that opposing the grand scheme itself was no crime.
Come to think of it now, the Chief Military Counselor’s sudden appearance had been nothing short of ideal for both him and Sama Ryang.
“And you’re still satisfied with that?”
“It doesn’t matter. You can’t get full just from the first bite. That much is enough for now.”
“Then, as the young master wishes, I will hear the opinions of the senior members. However, I believe the possibility of the grand strategy being canceled or postponed is virtually zero.”
Unexpected words came from Sama Hyeok’s mouth.
“Still, if Sama Ryang joins, it is obvious the work of the Military Council will become easier. That comes close to being your merit, Young Master, so I will offer you one piece of information.”
“You mean information?”
“Go and seek out Imaje of the Senate.”
Cheon Sohyeon asked, “Imaje?”
What kind of fiend was that now? Since he belonged to the Senate, he was probably some kind of elder in the Demonic Cult.
“The reason may differ, but I believe he will share your view that moving into the Central Plains is too soon.”
“I see. Thank you.”
Meeting Sama Hyeok’s eyes, Cheon Sohyeon let the corner of his mouth lift.
What an utterly black-hearted bastard.
No doubt the Chief Military Counselor, as the head of the Military Council, would be displeased by any action that opposed the grand strategy. If things collapsed at this stage, all the plans they had painstakingly prepared would turn to dust.
And yet he was still willing to accept it, and even provide information. That suggested not merely that he believed the possibility was low, but that he had his own hidden intentions.
Dark light flashed in Cheon Sohyeon’s eyes. If there was a summit he had set his sights on, then no matter what it was, the will of the former Divine Fist who had once dominated the world burned in those eyes.
Whatever it is, I’ll smash it all to pieces.
Even if it meant turning the Demonic Cult upside down, he would do it. With that resolve, Cheon Sohyeon steeled himself.