The Nine Heavens
"And you can keep this puppet. Taking it back home is a chore anyway, so think of it as a reward for conquering the Kunlun Sect."
"Yes. Have a safe trip back, Sister."
"Right. I've already crushed the Murim Alliance headquarters, so once I destroy the strongholds of the Nine Sects and One Gang—like Wudang, Shaolin, and Namgung—my mission will be over."
"That's a lot."
"Well, I've split up my forces and sent them out, so it's fine. At any rate, I hope you dye Mount Ten Thousand in blood as soon as possible. It is autumn, after all. Even the immortals in heaven won't be able to tell if Mount Ten Thousand is painted in blood or autumn leaves."
Was that her idea of a joke? Regardless, my sister's puppet went limp, as if its connection had been severed. I folded it up neatly and stuffed it into the spatial pouch I had plundered from the old man, Chi-o.
"Ah, this is a pain."
At this rate, it would be awkward if I didn't slaughter everyone in the Kunlun Sect. I planned to secretly smuggle out Jin-yo and the other women I'd bedded, since we'd built up some affection under the sheets, but I couldn't do the same for the men. My sister would eventually find out from her subordinates if I left the Kunlun remnants alive. Of course, I wouldn't be punished even if I spared them all, but my reputation would hit rock bottom. Especially now, with the promised ten years drawing near, I had to be sensitive about how others perceived me. They wouldn't kick out someone like me who had rapidly reached the middle stage of Qi Circulation and even acquired a Dharma treasure, but since this was a critical period, it was better to be thorough.
After pondering for a moment, I decided to head over to where So-wol was. Jeongha seemed to have fallen in love with the scenery of Mount Kunlun lately, busy playing tourist. On the outside, she pretended to be a sword-crazed warrior with zero interest in feminine things, but she actually loved pretty things more than anyone. If I handed her a hairpin she'd never even wear, she would treasure it in her jewelry box. Ha, last time she accepted my gift with a nonchalant shrug, only to secretly wrap it in silk and tuck it away in her treasure chest. It was incredibly cute.
"Ah, Master."
"How's your progress coming along?"
So-wol was drenched in sweat, her hands moving in fluid arcs. Strangely, she didn't use weapons like swords, preferring her fists and feet instead. When I asked her why, she said it just felt more comfortable and natural. Personally, I couldn't understand it. Knuckles were better than bare hands, a sword with superior reach was better than knuckles, and a spear was even more efficient. But since she was stubborn about it, I let her be.
"I have fully mastered the use of Sword Qi. It feels more natural to me now than it did for the Green Forest Bandit King, who relied on the power of formations and Dharma treasures—or whatever they were. I suppose I can be considered to have truly reached the Transformed Realm."
The Bandit King, who was essentially her makeshift master. So-wol confidently declared that she had surpassed him in just a single month. Seeing her progress like this made it hard to tell her to stop.
"What about Qi Circulation?"
"The enlightenment of Sword Qi is somewhat connected to the manipulation of energy. Far from regressing, I have made slight progress."
That was good news. The bad news was that if it had been me or Jeongha, we would have reached Qi Circulation in that time. But then again, Jeongha and I were anomalies, so I brushed that thought aside.
"That's great."
"This is merely your concubine's personal speculation, but..." So-wol hesitated slightly.
"What is it?"
"I believe the realm known as the Profound Realm will be of great help to my Qi Circulation. After searching through Kunlun's archives and secret vaults, I found that the insights of Qi Circulation mentioned by you, Lady Jeongha, and Lady Ryeo-ah overlap with the Transformed Realm."
"Really?" In that case, there was even less reason for me to stop her. Since So-wol had already reached the Transformed Realm and claimed it aided her cultivation, I had to trust her.
"However, there is a problem."
"What is it?"
"There are only about four masters of the Transformed Realm in the current Murim."
"..." How many martial artists were there again? A hundred thousand? A million? And she wanted to reach the Profound Realm? Could she actually pull it off?
"The Alliance Leader, the Abbot of Shaolin, the Blade Emperor who is the strongest of the Unorthodox Faction, and the Heavenly Demon. That is all of them. I wonder if I can achieve it."
"Uh, do your best."
"At any rate, we have obtained everything we can from this place, so we may depart. Thank you for indulging your concubine's stubbornness."
"If you're grateful, let's have a quick round of sex."
"..." Without a word, So-wol stripped off her sweat-drenched clothes.
"I'll get straight to the point, Jin-yo."
"What is it, you devil?"
"From now on, I'm heading to the Heavenly Demon Sect according to my orders. I'll leave the cleanup of the Kunlun remnants to my sister's subordinates stationed nearby, so take the women and leave."
"What?"
"I made myself clear. And here, just in case, I've packed a bundle of Core Condensation-grade healing pills. If anyone gets hurt while you're running, feed them these and keep moving. I heard Qinghai was heavily swept through, so if you flee in that direction, there should be fewer monsters."
This was for the best. Sensing the monsters' murderous intent, the remnants of the Kunlun Sect had fled the mountain and scattered into the secular world. Since I was bound by my family's orders, tracking them down one by one was out of the question, so I had no choice but to leave the cleanup to the subordinates. It was the best decision for both Jin-yo and me. Since the Kunlun Sect was effectively destroyed, my sister would let it slide, and the rest of the family would just accept it. Thus, I left Mount Kunlun before any more complications could arise.
"..." Jin-yo looked as if she wanted to say something, but she ultimately gave up. Well, I had used contraception, so she wouldn't get pregnant unless she defied astronomical odds. Among the knowledge I had rented from Ryeo-ah, there was a spell for contraception.
"Tsk, tsk. To think you wasted such a grand opportunity to acquire my knowledge on a mere contraceptive spell."
"That's my business."
"More importantly, do you have any intention of intercepting some of the sacrifices laid out in the Seohang Kingdom? Compared to the scale of the entire kingdom, a tiny fraction won't even be missed. It wouldn't be detected."
"Absolutely not."
Even if I were to embezzle, I had to read the room. Touching a grand undertaking ordered by the City Lord? That was practically a suicide wish.
"Hmph. Fine, then."
By the way, what on earth is the City Lord thinking? The City Lord of Yagwi City was famous for wandering away from the city to seek clues for the next realm. He must have returned while I wasn't looking. More importantly, what could have happened to make him break a well-aged jar like the Seohang Kingdom? What benefit could there be?
"No. That's not it." Usually, selling off a well-systematized ranch for quick cash wasn't done for profit, but to cover a loss. Otherwise, there was no reason to completely uproot a farm where humans reproduced on their own. Surely, this massive human sacrifice wasn't for refining some elixir to reach the next realm. If grinding up humans could raise one's realm, humanity would have gone extinct long ago. The existences of the Harmony Realm and above would never have allowed it.
"Hmm."
Do you know something?
"If an existence of the Harmony Realm requires such a massive human sacrifice, there are generally two possibilities: a burnt offering for a heavenly being, or recovery."
Recovery?
"If an existence at the level of the Harmony Realm gets injured, that injury is no ordinary wound. They would need to slaughter every living soul of at least an entire nation to absorb their life essence."
Holy shit, isn't that just a demon god? What kind of Harmony Realm is that? They should just call it the Demon God Realm.
"I was merely giving an extreme example. However, since the means to injure a Harmony Realm existence are inevitably extraordinary, the means to heal them must be equally extraordinary."
Ah, whatever. It's not like there's anything I can do about it anyway. Let's just go beat up the Heavenly Demon. With that thought, I watched Jin-yo leave the mountain and set off. Let's quickly crush the Heavenly Demon and go home.
Mount Ten Thousand. The headquarters of the Heavenly Demon Sect, a place whose sheer scale rivaled that of a decent kingdom. However, the name "Ten Thousand" was a bit of an exaggeration; "One Thousand Mountains" would probably be more accurate.
"I am looking forward to this."
"Are you that excited?"
"The Heavenly Demon is praised as the man closest to being the strongest under the heavens in the current Murim. How could I not be thrilled?"
"Though that Murim is already in ruins, so it doesn't mean much anymore."
Currently, the Five Great Noble Families had dwindled to just one, and the Nine Sects and One Gang had become a mere three sects. As for the Beggars' Sect, which was a decentralized network—how did they fall, you ask? When the entire country, not just the Murim, was filled with slaughter and bloodshed, what kind of madman would keep playing the beggar? The very people who used to toss coins to beggars on the street were now barely surviving the onslaught of monsters themselves. Beggars turned to banditry instead of begging. Naturally, their identity was completely uprooted, and with their elders and chief eliminated, it was fair to say the Beggars' Sect had been destroyed from its very roots. While other sects and families had collateral branches or survivors, the Beggars' Sect, due to its unique culture and identity, lost even the slightest chance of revival.
"This country's time is almost up too." How many human villages and castles must have existed on the way to the Heavenly Demon Sect? Yet none of them remained intact. They had either been completely wiped out, or only a lucky few had survived. And since I had killed even those survivors, the only intact major organization left in this world was the Heavenly Demon Sect. Even this wasn't because the Heavenly Demon Sect was exceptionally strong, but simply because the person in charge of their destruction—me—hadn't shown up yet. Their lifeline was only intact because I hadn't arrived.
"Oh-ho." So this was the Heavenly Demon Sect. True to its reputation as a war-hardened faction, even its gateway fortress was towering, equipped with dozens of watchtowers, cannons, guard forces, and all sorts of defenses. Of course, I was far too strong to be stopped by mere numbers. As I walked closer, a horned monster approaching from afar, I could see the humans panicking. I heard that aside from the Heavenly Demon Sect, external powers like the North Sea Ice Palace had been wiped out, along with the capital and major cities of the Seohang Kingdom. It was a chaotic era of absolute terror, where fear of monsters had reached its peak. A man who looked like the commander seemed to be shouting words of encouragement, but there are limits to what courage can achieve in this world. I enlarged my Dokkaebi club to a massive size and swung it down. The fortress walls crumbled with a thunderous crash, burying everyone standing atop them under the rubble.
"Let's go." The order I received was the total annihilation of the Heavenly Demon Sect. Taking the Heavenly Demon's head was important, but the primary objective was slaughter. To fill the crucible of the Seohang Kingdom with as much blood and as many lives as possible.
"Wow, this is far." I unfolded the map, which depicted Mount Ten Thousand nestled within a dense mountain range. To reach the Heavenly Demon Palace, it seemed I had to pass through thousands of peaks. This was practically a nation built on top of a mountain range. Calling them "peaks" was an understatement; it was no different from crossing thousands of mountains. No wonder the Murim Alliance and the Heavenly Demon Sect could never deliver a decisive blow to each other and remained bitter rivals for so long. With that, I issued an order to the monsters I had gathered on my way to the Heavenly Demon Sect.
"Go and slaughter them all! Scatter as you please, run wild, and do whatever the fuck you want! No one will stop you!"
"Waaaah!" "Kyahaha! I wonder what the blood of a young virgin tastes like!" In this world, there were cultivation methods that accumulated power through slaughter. Though their ceiling was low, their floor was high, making them quite popular. I secretly popped the head of the bastard who babbled about virgins, then hurried along.
"Let's move quickly. Those guys will take care of the humans scattered throughout the Heavenly Demon Sect, and I'll handle the Heavenly Demon myself."
The Ninefold Heavens of the Heavenly Demon, abbreviated as the Heavenly Demon Peak. It was the tallest and most majestic peak in Mount Ten Thousand, a place rich in natural energy directly connected to a dragon vein. The Elder Council consisted of nine members—and at this point, it was easy to guess their roles. Each elder guarded one of the Nine Heavens of the Heavenly Demon Peak, serving as the gatekeepers of the nine passes leading to the Heavenly Demon Palace. Supposedly, to gain an audience with the Heavenly Demon, one had to traverse the nine passes with awe and respect, but such things were meaningless now. Besides, they didn't seem to have any intention of forcing their traditions on us. Still, just in case, I decided to ask.
"Who might you all be?"
"We are the members of the Elder Council. I am the Sword Demon, Hyeok Un-seong."
"The Purple Lightning Demon Lord, So Hwal-i-un."
"The Black Wheel Blade Demon, Kang Cheong."
"The Ghost of the Reaching Blade, Sapa Do-gi."
"The Six Lotus Thunder, Chan Rye."
Huh? What's this? I thought they said it was the Elder Council. Is this it? What about the rest of the Nine Heavens? When I gave them a questioning look, the Sword Demon, clad in black robes, caressed the sword cradled in his arms and spoke in a grating, metallic voice.
"The rest have all fallen. The Ripping Blade Demon was killed in a joint attack by Core Condensation-stage monsters. The other three went missing while wandering the Murim, and in all likelihood, they are dead."
"Ah." I suppose even elders wouldn't just stay cooped up at home all the time. By the way...
"You know about Core Condensation?"
"We are not ignorant. Though we are far from the capital of the Seohang Kingdom, in this remote borderland, we were able to distance ourselves from the mundane world and draw closer to the truths and mysteries of the universe."
"Is that so? Yet you didn't run away." Seeing how four of their so-called elders were already dead, they didn't seem strong enough to stand up to cultivators or monsters. They were probably terrified, which is why they ignored all their traditions and showed up together like this. But I had no intention of fighting them one by one just because they had gathered in a crowd.
"You know you're all going to die, right?"
"We are aware."
"Let me make a proposal. Follow your traditions and rules. Don't make a pathetic scene."
The Sword Demon, acting as their representative, furrowed his brow. He, too, seemed displeased with the current situation.
"I do not like disregarding a tradition that has lasted for a thousand years either, but what choice do we have? We must save the hundred thousand followers of our Holy Sect. The Heavenly Demon resides in the Heavenly Demon Palace, so you will have to kill us to pass."
"Let's not do that. Let's stick to tradition. We'll only send out one person as well." I gestured to So-wol, who was standing beside me. The Sword Demon tilted his head slightly, looked at So-wol, and drew his sword.
"A face I have never seen before. The Transformed Realm? Yet I sense demonic energy. A half-breed?"
"Oh, you can tell right away. From now on, she will break through the Nine Heavens. Alone. Isn't this better for you guys too? It gives you a chance to kill at least one more enemy."
The Sword Demon's eyes narrowed. However, he did not nod. Too much was at stake for them to act on hasty pride or curiosity. But his hesitation quickly became moot.
"I deliver the command of the Cult Leader. First Elder, Sword Demon."
"Grand Protector."
"From this moment on, all elders shall take their positions at the gates of the Nine Heavens. The gates of the four vacant elders shall be guarded by myself, the Left and Right Protectors, and the Yin-Yang Extreme Demon."
"The Grand Protector and the others aside... to think the Yin-Yang Extreme Demon was still alive."
And so, So-wol's challenge to conquer the Heavenly Demon Sect begins.