The Hunters and the Hunted
If the Great Yao of the exchange group harbored complaints, they could easily be suppressed by force or placated with words. But Seon-gu had crossed the line.
‘Even I only heard about this recently. Where on earth did that fellow hear it?’
Unbeknownst to anyone, a dark, sinister killing intent flickered in Jekyeong's eyes. It was true that Seon-gu knew how to use his head to some extent, but he was still nothing more than an ordinary Great Yao. Jekyeong did not consider him the type of caliber capable of interacting with the Human Race. The fellow lacked the ability for such a feat, and he had even less courage.
Therefore, the first person Jekyeong thought of was Myeong-ha. Myeong-ha was on Haeyeon Island, and Haeyeon Island was within the Heukgyo Water Territory. Furthermore, Myeong-ha knew that Jekyeong held small gatherings with several Great Yao. No matter how he looked at it, Myeong-ha was the most likely suspect.
Jekyeong had stationed subordinates on Haeyeon Island early on to keep watch on Myeong-ha. Though called surveillance, in reality, it was a warning. There was no way Myeong-ha wouldn't notice the eyes watching him.
‘I've never heard of Seon-gu and Myeong-ha making contact. There wasn't even a hint of it. If Myeong-ha had deliberately set out to evade my eyes, it wouldn't be entirely impossible, but...’
Did that fellow really need to go that far? Myeong-ha was no fool. As a business partner, he knew exactly where Jekyeong's boundaries lay. He wouldn't risk offending Jekyeong just to establish a connection with a minor figure like Seon-gu.
‘If he was the one who leaked the story to Seon-gu, it means he also knows what I did in Jimagwon.’
Jekyeong recalled the expression Myeong-ha had worn not long ago when speaking of the events in Jimagwon—that nonchalant face, which seemed completely devoid of any suspicion toward him.
‘I'll know once I check.’
Jekyeong did not overthink it. He knew that overanalyzing things often led to ruin. In times like this, keeping it simple was frequently the correct answer.
“Myeong-ha.”
Jekyeong immediately went to Haeyeon Island to meet Myeong-ha. Myeong-ha seemed slightly surprised by Jekyeong's sudden visit, but soon smiled and served him tea.
“How surprising. For Fellow Daoist to seek me out first when it isn't even an auction day?”
“I have something to ask.”
Sensing that Jekyeong's demeanor was different from usual, Myeong-ha's attitude also turned serious.
“Ask away. If it is something I can answer, I shall do so.”
“Have you contacted Seon-gu?”
“Seon-gu?” Myeong-ha frowned slightly, then replied with an uncertain tone. “Is the Seon-gu you speak of the Great Yao of Myeongyeop Waters?”
“Yes.”
“I have never contacted him,” Myeong-ha said firmly.
“Seon-gu is a member of a small gathering I organized. Yet, at this recent meeting, that fellow spoke of the exact same thing you did.”
“The thing I spoke of?”
“The story of the Ghost Demons of Jimagwon.”
“Ah.” Myeong-ha nodded in understanding. “I see. So, Fellow Daoist suspected that this Seon-gu heard the story from me?”
“Is it not a reasonable suspicion?”
“Well, indeed it is. But as I said, it wasn't me.”
“Then who?”
“He must have heard it from somewhere else.”
Jekyeong's expression shifted subtly. Where was this 'somewhere else' Myeong-ha spoke of? Naturally, it was the Human Territory. Since Myeong-ha had originally learned of the Jimagwon Ghost Demons through his information network in the Human Territory, Seon-gu could certainly have done the same.
‘Has Seon-gu really established a connection with the Human Race?’
This was a completely unexpected possibility. It seemed absurd, but upon second thought, it wasn't entirely impossible. Just like Jekyeong himself, some of the more clever Yao beasts occasionally engaged in trade-like dealings with other races.
“This Seon-gu fellow... it seems he is not as simple as he looks,” Myeong-ha remarked in an insinuating tone.
Jekyeong glared at Myeong-ha. “Nothing is certain yet. Do not try to instigate me with your glib tongue.”
“How would I dare?” Myeong-ha immediately backed down, but Jekyeong did not lower his guard.
‘Yes. It's still unclear. This fellow might be lying, or Seon-gu really might have obtained information from the Human Territory. And if Seon-gu had heard that story from Myeong-ha, would he have been foolish enough to blabber about it right in front of me?’
Once suspicion took root, everything became doubtful. Regardless, the answer lay with Seon-gu, so he simply had to investigate him.
In his heart, Jekyeong wanted to march straight to the octopus's cave right this instant and subdue him by force. Questioning him could always come afterward.
But unfortunately, he could not do that. At least, not right now. If he made a move on Seon-gu now, no matter how careful he was, he wouldn't be able to escape the suspicions of the other Great Yao in the exchange group. Had he not cared from the beginning, it would be one thing, but Jekyeong had no desire to hand over the precious collaborators he had painstakingly gathered on a silver platter to Gyeongwang Palace or the Court of Demons.
Jekyeong decided that he needed to monitor Seon-gu, but once he resolved to do so, he found no suitable method. Even if a Great Yao's Divine Sense was inferior to that of a human Foundation Establishment cultivator, it was not so weak that they wouldn't notice the approach of low-level Water Beasts. Furthermore, in the Myeongyeop Waters where Seon-gu resided, there were several other Great Yao. If he sent half-baked underlings, they would likely meet a grim fate rather than successfully conduct surveillance.
‘What should I do?’ Cheongo could not operate underwater, so he was naturally excluded. Hyeongu was intelligent and quick-witted, but his face was already too well-known, making him unsuitable. Han Cheong-yu and the human subordinates were also excluded for the same reason as Cheongo.
‘Looking at it this way, I really have no useful subordinates.’
In truth, there was no need to be so disappointed. How could monitoring a cultivator or beast of a higher realm ever be easy? If one could do it, it was extraordinary; if not, it was only normal.
‘Perhaps I should look for a way to deal with him quietly instead.’
Just as Jekyeong was beginning to shift his thoughts, Myeong-ha came to find him again.
“Fellow Daoist, I have brought some very interesting information. It is something you will find highly intriguing.”
“Is it about Seon-gu?”
With a faint smile, Myeong-ha nodded and handed over a Jade Slip. Jekyeong cast a suspicious glance at Myeong-ha, then extended his Divine Sense to scan the contents of the Jade Slip. Instantly, his expression stiffened.
Hoyeon Mu: Eldest grandson of the Hoyeon Family.
Hoyeon Sowol: Ancestor of the Hoyeon Family. Late Foundation Establishment. Entered seclusion over twenty years ago to break through to the Golden Core Realm, but there has been no news since. Presumed dead due to the aftermath of a failed breakthrough.
Hoyeon Sin: Patriarch of the Hoyeon Family. Mid Foundation Establishment. However, suspected of hiding his true strength publicly; highly likely to be at the Late Foundation Establishment stage.
“Is it not intriguing? It seems Fellow Daoist Jekyeong's grand reputation has spread all the way to the Human Territory.”
“I don't know about intriguing, but it certainly makes me angry.”
Yokai Fire flared up, and the smooth Jade Slip burned to ash in Jekyeong's grip, leaving nothing behind.
“Since ancient times, human cultivators have regarded Flood Dragons as living treasures. Their blood is used to refine precious elixirs or practice secret arts, their bones are materials for forging artifacts, and their flesh is a spiritual medicine that replenishes Vital Energy. It is no exaggeration to say their entire body is a treasure. Frankly, it was stranger that no one had targeted Fellow Daoist until now.”
“They probably didn't believe it.”
“Mhm. Honestly, it is hard to believe. A Flood Dragon at the Great Yao stage in such a minor cultivation world? If I hadn't seen Fellow Daoist with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it either.”
It was only normal not to believe it. A Flood Dragon settling down in a mediocre place like Yangseo Lake, let alone the Heukgyo Water Territory, was akin to an elephant squeezing into an anthill. It was absurd. No one but a fool would believe such a tale.
Yet, looking at it now, it seemed such a fool truly existed.
‘Hoyeon Mu. The eldest grandson of the Hoyeon Family.’
The information Myeong-ha brought was highly useful. The Jade Slip recorded everything from the personal profile of a man named Hoyeon Sin, who had established contact with Seon-gu, to general information about his background, the Hoyeon Family.
‘Hoyeon Sowol, the ancestor of the Hoyeon Family. Late Foundation Establishment. He entered seclusion to reach the Golden Core Realm, but there has been no news for over twenty years. Presumed dead due to the aftermath of a failed breakthrough. Hoyeon Sin, the Patriarch of the Hoyeon Family. Mid Foundation Establishment, but suspected of hiding his true strength. He might be at the Late Foundation Establishment stage.’
During the days when Hoyeon Sowol was talked about as the next Golden Core cultivator, the prosperity of the Hoyeon Family was dazzling. However, after Hoyeon Sowol entered seclusion to break through to the Golden Core Realm and went silent for over a decade, the family's fortunes began to gradually decline.
It was inevitable. Although Hoyeon Sin was a Mid Foundation Establishment cultivator fully capable of leading a family, his father, Hoyeon Sowol, had been a powerhouse who vied for the title of the strongest beneath the Golden Core Realm.
‘A predictable story.’
The tale of the Hoyeon Family was merely one of many common examples of rise and fall. Whether groups or individuals, cases of soaring high as if to touch the heavens only to plummet straight back down were dime a dozen.
However, the Hoyeon Family had it somewhat worse. They had made far too many enemies when their power was at its peak. Had Hoyeon Sowol succeeded in his breakthrough, none of that would have mattered. But he had failed—or at least, he was publicly known to have failed. Consequently, their past karma was beginning to catch up with them.
“The reason the Hoyeon Family is trying to hunt—ah, target Fellow Daoist—must be to aid Hoyeon Sin's breakthrough.”
Myeong-ha had inadvertently used the word 'hunt,' but upon catching Jekyeong's icy glare, he quickly corrected his phrasing.
“Whether it is to break through to the Late Foundation Establishment stage or the Golden Core Realm, I cannot say... but one thing is certain: they must be desperate. The jackals that were once trampled by the Hoyeon Family are slowly preparing to bare their fangs.”
The Hoyeon Family and Seon-gu had joined hands. No, under normal circumstances, an insignificant, ordinary Great Yao like Seon-gu would never have the chance to entangle himself with a power like the Hoyeon Family. It was more accurate to say he had been unilaterally recruited.
‘Interesting.’
An enemy and a prey are different. Though he had faced countless enemies who wished him dead, he had rarely encountered hunters who sought to hunt him. It was no exaggeration to say he hadn't met a single one since becoming a Great Yao.
‘It feels like I've returned to the days when I was just an ordinary beast.’
This time, the hunters were quite formidable. At the very least, they possessed the strength to claim the title of hunter. A thrill of tension rippled from the tip of his head to the end of his tail. Even his breathing grew slightly heavy.
“You seem amused,” Myeong-ha remarked casually.
“Hmm?”
Jekyeong noticed Myeong-ha's gaze drifting slightly downward. When he touched his tongue to the corner of his mouth where Myeong-ha was looking, he realized the corners of his lips had curled upward without him even noticing.
“Seeing you now, you truly are a Yao beast, Fellow Daoist. You are usually so refined that I briefly forgot.”
“You, too, are half-Yao.”
“Only half-Yao,” Myeong-ha replied. The smile remained on his face, but it carried an inexplicable chill.
“In any case, fine. Since you went out of your way to bring me this information, I assume you want a piece of the action?”
“This is precisely one of the reasons I like you, Fellow Daoist. There is no need for tedious explanations.”
“No need for idle chatter. I'll let you in. In exchange, assist me to the best of your ability.”
“Of course, I must.”
A few days after parting with Myeong-ha, Jekyeong met Choi Ju-tang in Bul-mang-won and requested him to gather information on the Hoyeon Family. While he was at it, he also inquired about the current atmosphere within the Human Territory.
“The atmosphere over here is highly charged, Master. There are even whispers circulating in various places about marching into the Yao Territory immediately to exterminate the Yao beasts once and for all.”
Exterminating the Yao beasts was an unrealistic notion, but it nonetheless indicated just how inflamed the passions of the Human Race had become.
‘If the Hoyeon Family moves... they will undoubtedly try to ride this wave.’
The movements of a major power like the Hoyeon Family were not something that could be easily hidden.