Dragon Gate Assembly (5): Oro-mokje of Shin-gang, Ilwol Divine Palace
Having heard the report from his subordinate, the Lord of the Ilwol Cult wore a faint smile on his lips.
"The Asura Blood Cult is on the move... How intriguing."
The Asura Blood Cult. They were a deviant bunch who had broken away, claiming to be the true successors of the ancient Ilwol Divine Cult. Rejecting the doctrines of the Ilwol Cult that revered the Ilwol Star God, they obsessed over the Blood God Asura instead. Some killed people and absorbed their blood essence to boost their martial prowess. Others kept victims alive while siphoning their pure qi to awaken their own spiritual nature.
The Ilwol Cult's arts were branded as demonic by the so-called righteous faction weaklings, But that was only because they bordered on overwhelmingly domineering hegemonic arts—so-called ‘Ba-gong’ techniques. It was a shedding, a transcendence. The old Ilwol Divine Cult of ancient murim had collapsed because the positions once held by madness-inducing demonic arts that corrupted the mind were crushed under the weight of ultimate destructive power and might.
Paradoxically, that was precisely why the current Ilwol Cult existed.
"These mongrels worshiping a petty god like Asura dare to lay hands on the Central Plains, which should be our cult's domain?"
A vibration rippled out from the Ilwol Lord's entire body, so intense it felt like the whole Ilwol Divine Palace was shaking.
The Ilwol Lord was the legitimate successor of the ancient murim's Ilwol Divine Cult. No matter how much the Asura Blood Cult claimed to be the true lineage, it was nonsense. If they truly were, why hadn't they returned to the Ilwol Cult? Why grovel to a false god like Asura and hole up in some remote corner of Tianshan?
Thus, it was only natural for the Ilwol Lord to fly into a rage.
"Su-gyeong... I was leaving him be, watching from afar, because he seemed worth sparing the Central Plains for, rather than destroying it outright."
He was the one who had awakened the Ilwol Cult from its long slumber of peace, delivering teachings from afar. Regardless of how Baek Su-gyeong himself felt about it, that's how the Ilwol Lord saw it.
Not long ago, the worthless dregs who had clung to their positions through the law of the strong devouring the weak had vanished. New faces filled their places, transforming the entire cult's atmosphere. With no one in the world left to teach him, the Ilwol Lord—who had been idling away time in Oro-mokje of Shin-gang—was enraged because they had dared to touch the Central Plains where Baek Su-gyeong resided.
"L-Lord!"
"Ilwol Sovereign!"
"Why do you rage so?!"
"Please quell your wrath!"
The elders, startled by the Ilwol Lord's fury echoing through the Ilwol Divine Palace, rushed in and kowtowed frantically.
To them, the Ilwol Lord was a god. The Ilwol Star God, a true heavenly descendant sent from the heavens above. Unlike the fools squatting in the imperial palace of Bukgyeong, delusionally calling themselves the Son of Heaven or descendants of Emperor Hunyuan, he was the genuine article. That was why the Ilwol faithful revered their lord as a present human god.
"It seems I must take a little trip."
The eighth volume of Wudang Sword Hero that had been floating in the air before him snapped shut with a crisp sound, without his hand even touching it. As he rose, golden dragon robes billowing, the Ilwol Lord's gaze turned to the elders.
"Prepare."
"As you command!"
Baek Su-gyeong, a single scholar, was setting the world in motion.
"...You're not joking with me right now, are you?"
Gal Ye-ryeong's voice was ice-cold.
It was a time when they should have been fully focused on the martial tournament, with no room to spare. She had just promised Namgung Som-in to settle their differences once and for all at this Dragon Gate Assembly due to clashing opinions. Time was already short even if they poured every moment into training, yet the intel brought by these so-called allies was absurd.
The Blood Cult. The Blood Cult, no less.
Remnants of ancient murim's madmen, hiding in the shadows of Tianshan after the old Cheonsan Sect vanished, now scheming to dominate the jianghu.
"I didn't call you out here for a joke. I know you're on a top-secret mission, but..."
Gal Ye-ryeong shot Cheongpyo a glare laced with irritation.
"The Asura Blood Cult. If their Tianshan branch got wiped out, you should've just pulled back..."
"It was the sect leader's order. He told us to check just in case."
Gal Ye-ryeong pressed a hand to her forehead at Cheongpyo's words. Ya Noe was a wise man. From his perspective, unsure of any variables, he would have sent the Red Tide first, then followed with Cheongpyo to minimize risks. She knew exactly what her master had been thinking.
The problem was that every last warrior from Gwigungak had been lost, leaving only Red Tide and Cheongpyo alive. And that the Blood Cult warriors had infiltrated the Central Plains.
"What about Baekwon?"
"Still under confinement."
"So, to fight the Blood Cult right now, our available forces are just the three of us here and the Luoyang branch? That's it?"
Gal Ye-ryeong's voice sharpened.
"Are you kidding me?"
"...I'm sorry, Yajeop. It's my incompetence."
"Red Tide, shut it. Don't talk yourself down like that. If you're incompetent, that means every single person in the main sect is incompetent—what else could it mean?"
Red Tide fell silent at Gal Ye-ryeong's sharp rebuke. She wasn't just anyone; she was one of the Three Great Commanders. It was true that Haomen warriors were generally considered the weakest among the Ten Demonic Subordinates, but that applied only to the lower ranks. The gap in skill between low-level info-gatherers and direct subordinates of the Haomen Lord like the Three Great Commanders was vast. Even so, those at the peak were exceedingly rare.
"Have you confirmed how far they've come?"
"Every scout we send loses contact. It seems the Blood Cult has scattered around Luoyang, cutting our hidden lines one by one."
Gal Ye-ryeong furrowed her brow at Cheongpyo's report.
"You sent the Luoyang branch guys?"
"...No choice."
"Damn it. They really pull out all the stops. And we're already short on manpower!"
Gal Ye-ryeong glared irritably at the two men. This was the worst.
The Blood Cult infiltrating righteous faction territory was bad enough, but if they were lying in ambush, slaughtering Haomen agents one after another... They were essentially rats in a trap.
Crunch. Shadows darkened Gal Ye-ryeong's forehead as she gnawed her nails.
"What's their goal?"
"No idea. Couldn't figure it out. They sweep us away the moment we make contact."
Red Tide's voice was thick with self-loathing. He had witnessed his Gwigungak protectors being butchered by Blood Cult warriors firsthand.
Even if the gathered stars of the righteous factions in Luoyang now were rising stars making waves, could they really withstand the Blood Cult's assault? It was a fair question.
Gal Ye-ryeong spoke up.
"We have to assume they deliberately left the Tianshan branch intact just to wipe it out now?"
"That's our read. But it's suspicious. Why smash the Tianshan branch they've ignored until now, and why right at this moment?"
Cheongpyo's doubt was valid. If they were going to leave it, they could have used it to feed false intel, lulling the Central Plains into complacency. Or spread disinformation to lower their guard. But the Blood Cult hadn't. They'd abruptly annihilated the Tianshan branch.
Why?
"My head's killing me already..."
Gal Ye-ryeong sighed deeply.
Red Tide said, "Right after intel reached the main sect that the Blood Cult had nested in the old Cheonsan Sect territory, they suddenly wiped out the Tianshan branch. Maybe they're wary of info leaking to the Ilwol Cult."
"The Ilwol Cult... But they don't have a branch in Shin-gang, do they?"
"Just like you said, Yajeop. We don't interact much with the Ilwol Cult, so hitting our branch over that is pure speculation."
Cheongpyo shook his head. "Cheongpyo. We survived because of that man. It could be a mix of factors."
"Hmm."
"What're you talking about?"
At Gal Ye-ryeong's question, Cheongpyo and Red Tide explained what had happened in Tianshan. Her eyes narrowed as she listened.
"A master wielding an unseen sword art?"
"Yeah. And if he's living in Tianshan, it makes sense they'd act so frantically. They might feel pressured by his movements."
"That doesn't add up. What kind of group is the Blood Cult?"
Gal Ye-ryeong had a point. Madmen of ancient murim—that phrase summed up the Blood Cult, armed to the teeth with extreme martial arts and cruelty. For such a group to feel threatened by one mysterious master? Absurd. Unless that hidden expert in Tianshan was a Martial Emperor with the power to annihilate the Blood Cult, there was no way.
Cheongpyo said coolly, "Our best bet right now is to use the Luoyang branch disciples as bait, lure them into the tournament grounds during the Dragon Gate Assembly, and overwhelm them with sheer numbers."
"Cheongpyo!"
"Understand, Red Tide. But there's no better option."
It was cold, but not wrong. Red Tide grimaced. Cheongpyo closed his eyes. Gal Ye-ryeong furrowed her brow.
"Is that really the best you got, Cheongpyo?"
"The best I can think of. Even if it means sacrificing some Luoyang branch disciples, we need to draw in the righteous factions' power to strike."
"Got a way to lure them? When we don't even know where they're hiding?"
"We'll leak intel."
Gal Ye-ryeong frowned at Cheongpyo's words. Haomen wasn't righteous, so they excelled at disinformation ops too. But in their current trapped-rat situation, deliberately leaking info meant bracing for the worst. The enemy might swarm the Luoyang branch to erase it outright. It was a desperate ploy to at least mutual destruction.
Gal Ye-ryeong said, "Ready to embrace death?"
"No choice."
"Ha...".
Her sigh was heavy, red hair whipping in the night breeze.
"Fine. If that's the only play, no helping it."
With options so limited, choices were few.
Grind. Teeth clenched, Gal Ye-ryeong declared, "I'll be the bait."