Chapter 294: To the Next Destination
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 294: To the Next Destination
Perhaps my expression looked quite serious, because Danri Sohwa spoke with a faint smile.
“You don’t need to worry too much. Nothing that would concern you is going to happen, Young Master.”
“Pardon?”
“In the first place, how many masters of the Flower Realm do you think the Evil Alliance has that they could just send one away so easily?”
Hearing that, I realized she was right.
Among the masters known as the Top 100 Experts of the World, the majority were at the pinnacle of their power, while those who had reached the Flower Realm were few and far between.
If I narrowed that scope to just the Evil Alliance, there were probably only around ten.
“Having lost a powerful card like Old Monster Mangong at a time when they need to conserve their strength, the Evil Alliance Leader will have no choice but to focus on internal affairs for a while. More importantly, do you remember what I told you about the relationship between the Black Crow Sect and the Black Dragon Castle?”
“You said they were sworn enemies, I believe?”
“Yes, the fact that the two factions are mortal enemies is so famous that there’s hardly anyone who doesn’t know.”
Listening to Danri Sohwa, a question popped into my head.
“Did something happen between the two factions?”
“Hmm… It’s not a very pleasant story…”
She glanced at me, gauging my reaction.
It seemed like a topic she didn’t want to broach. But having come this far, a mage’s curiosity was too intense to suppress.
“It’s alright, you can just tell me.”
“…You said that old man, Old Monster Mangong, was after Hyeolhwa, correct?”
I nodded.
Last night, Wang Chwiong had shown an abnormal obsession with the woman named Hyeolhwa.
No, the word ‘possessiveness’ was more fitting.
“As you may already know, the Black Crow Sect is a school that handles centipedes. For an Evil Faction, it has a surprisingly deep history, and it’s renowned throughout the Central Plains for its expertise in poison. Within the Black Crow Sect, there is a Great Method passed down only to the Sect Leader.”
“A Great Method?”
“The Yin-Absorbing Flesh-Blood Insect-Birth Great Method.”
The moment I heard the name, an unpleasant thought crossed my mind.
“…Don’t tell me.”
Danri Sohwa quietly nodded.
“The Yin-Absorbing Flesh-Blood Insect-Birth Great Method is a dark art derived from an unknown demonic art hundreds of years ago. Its purpose is to cultivate a powerful poison.”
What came out of her mouth next was rather shocking.
First, a woman with dense yin energy is selected to incubate the egg of a poisonous creature. After successfully hatching, the creature feeds on the woman’s yin energy to grow.
Once fully grown, the creature eventually pierces through the woman’s skin and emerges into the world. This is called a Yin-Absorbing Insect.
The Yin-Absorbing Insect itself is famous for possessing an extremely potent poison, but it has another use.
“Besides the Yin-Absorbing Flesh-Blood Insect-Birth Great Method, there is another cultivation method in the Black Crow Sect passed down only to the Sect Leader and his direct lineage.”
The Poison-Absorbing Flesh-Blood Divine Art.
As the name implies, it is a martial art that accumulates poison and internal energy by consuming poison.
“On the surface, it’s called a Divine Art, but its origins are closer to a demonic art. Because of that, unlike the Sichuan Tang Family, which accumulates poison in a relatively stable manner, it’s an unstable method where seven or eight out of ten practitioners lose their lives right from the introductory stage.”
Slurp.
Danri Sohwa took a sip of her green tea and calmly continued her explanation.
“To a Poison Master who has learned the Poison-Absorbing Flesh-Blood Divine Art, the Yin-Absorbing Insect is the ultimate elixir. That’s likely why Old Monster Mangong was after Hyeolhwa. There are rumors that she has a Yin-Blood Constitution. It’s the perfect constitution for raising a high-quality Yin-Absorbing Insect.”
Hearing the purpose, which was steeped in such a vile desire, I unknowingly furrowed my brow.
“The problem is that the wife of the Black Dragon Castle Lord had a constitution similar to Hyeolhwa’s. When Old Monster Mangong found out, he tried to kidnap her. Fortunately, the kidnapping failed, but in the process, she was poisoned and ultimately died in the arms of the Black Dragon Castle Lord.”
Danri Sohwa wore a bitter expression.
Perhaps she felt the Black Dragon Castle Lord was similar to herself, having experienced the death of a loved one.
“The fury of the Black Dragon Castle Lord, who lost his wife right before his eyes, was beyond imagination. Although he couldn’t kill Old Monster Mangong due to the Evil Alliance Leader’s intervention, he did manage to slaughter over 200 disciples of the Black Crow Sect and eventually kill Mangong’s eldest son. Of course, Old Monster Mangong wasn’t the type of person to feel things like paternal love.”
Nevertheless, a justification was given, and the war between the two factions began.
Although there were no direct clashes due to the Evil Alliance Leader, disciples of the Black Crow Sect would occasionally be found dead under mysterious circumstances, or martial artists from the Black Dragon Castle would go missing.
Now, 15 years later, the animosity between the two factions has reached a point where no one can resolve it.
“When the rumor of Old Monster Mangong’s death spreads, the Black Dragon Castle Lord will make his move. His goal will, in all likelihood, be the annihilation of the Black Crow Sect. To prevent that, the Evil Alliance Leader will find it difficult to turn his attention outward for the time being. If he lets this situation fester, the Evil Alliance could split into several factions.”
The moment the Black Crow Sect and the Black Dragon Castle, both part of the Twelve Demonic Sects, engaged in an all-out war, the Evil Faction of Murim would cross a river of no return.
According to the law of the jungle, the victor would devour everything the loser possessed, and the surrounding area would be swarming with hyenas aiming for the scraps.
“Of course, given the Evil Alliance Leader’s personality, he won’t completely wash his hands of it. Still, since there’s no concrete evidence, the most he’ll do is send a few assassins to gauge my level.”
“…That’s a relief to hear.”
Swallowing a sigh, I rose from my seat.
“Are you leaving?”
“I can’t keep a busy person for too long.”
“…You say that now?”
After bidding farewell to the grumbling Danri Sohwa, I left Monghyeonru.
It was a short but intense meeting.
We probably wouldn’t see each other for a while.
*
“My lady.”
A young maidservant entered the room and approached Danri Sohwa.
“What is it?”
“Young Master Kang has left Seoyu County.”
“Is that so?”
Rising from her seat, she smiled and stroked the maidservant’s head.
“Could you tell the others below that the ‘coffin’ needs to be delivered?”
“Yes.”
After the maidservant nodded with a blank expression and left the room, she sat back down and continued writing her report.
-Old Monster Mangong, Wang Chwiong, deceased.
Danri Sohwa narrowed her eyes at the short but powerful sentence written at the top of the report.
Kang Hyun-woo didn’t seem to consider this matter very serious, but this was the death of Old Monster Mangong, who was called one of the strongest forces in the Evil Alliance.
Once word of this got out, the repercussions would surely sweep over not just the Evil Alliance, but the entire Central Plains.
Of course, with no witnesses, things would be fine for a while.
The real problem would begin after Old Monster Mangong’s body, secured from the underground, arrived at the Evil Alliance.
Therefore, the Evil Alliance Leader would do everything in his power to stop the rumors from spreading.
‘He’ll try to handle this without the Black Dragon Castle Lord finding out, one way or another.’
Tap, tap.
Tapping on the desk, Danri Sohwa suddenly looked at the ring on her index finger and gave a wry smile.
Afterward, she prepared another letter and began to write something down.
The letter’s destination was the Hao Clan’s Guangxi Province branch.
And Guilin, in Guangxi Province, was also where the Black Dragon Castle had newly established itself after being pushed out by a large eastern sect.
“…I’m just doing the work I was paid for, so there’s no need to thank me.”
Danri Sohwa fiddled with her ring and gazed out the window.
The road to Wuhan was a continuous stretch of dense forests and rugged mountains.
*
After leaving Seoyu County with Cheon Yeo-hwa, I diligently made my way toward our next destination, Xiangyang.
‘Xiangyang… that’s the Jegal Family, right?’
The Jegal Family.
A prestigious family belonging to the Five Great Families, they were also known as the Divine Strategist Zhuge.
They were the most insidious and vile of all the Orthodox Faction martial artists, which was why Cheon Yeo-hwa had warned me to be careful.
‘But still… is there any reason for us to even meet?’
Now that I had the moniker of Shadowless Sword, I planned to travel as quietly as possible until I reached Wuhan.
If only to avoid getting entangled in strange incidents like the one in Seoyu County.
Above all, I had no intention of staying in Xiangyang for long.
So, if I was careful for just a few days, I wouldn’t have to get involved with the Jegal Family.
“Hyun-woo.”
“Huh?”
Cheon Yeo-hwa, who was following behind me, grabbed the collar of my clothes.
“That sword I saw yesterday. If it’s alright, could you show it to me again?”
“The sword?”
“…Is that not possible?”
“No, it’s not that. I just didn’t expect you to make such a request.”
I thought she was going to ask for a snack again.
I readily handed the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword to Cheon Yeo-hwa. The pure white scabbard reflected the sunlight filtering through the leaves, glowing softly.
“…It won’t come out.”
But the sword would not be drawn from its scabbard.
Cheon Yeo-hwa’s physical strength was on par with a B-rank Hunter, so it couldn’t be a lack of power.
‘Could it be that only its master can draw it?’
Shing—
As expected, the moment I gripped the hilt, the sword slid out smoothly without any resistance.
“…This time, could you try drawing out its demonic energy like you did yesterday?”
Wooooong—
As Cheon Yeo-hwa requested, I infused it with demonic energy, and the sword immediately responded, its presence beginning to assert itself.
A dark, inky demonic energy, deeper than before, began to rise faintly.
Watching this, Cheon Yeo-hwa’s face was somewhat stiff.
“…Hyun-woo, have you ever heard what our Cult worships?”
“No.”
When I shook my head, Cheon Yeo-hwa began to tell me about the Heavenly Demonic Cult.
It was a bit out of the blue, but she wasn’t the type to talk about unnecessary things, so I decided to listen quietly.
“The Cult has worshipped the Sacred Fire and the Demon God since ancient times. The one chosen by the Sacred Fire becomes the ‘Divine Maiden,’ and the one chosen by the Demon God becomes the ‘Heavenly Demon,’ and they lead the Cult. However, since the first Heavenly Demon, not a single person has been chosen by the Demon God. Divine Maidens have appeared from time to time, but even that position has been vacant for the last 200 years.”
The Heavenly Demon and the Divine Maiden.
The Heavenly Demon leads the Heavenly Demonic Cult, and the Divine Maiden assists him.
But since no new Heavenly Demon appeared after the first, the Cult Leader has led the Cult for generations.
Cheon Yeo-hwa broke off a branch and crouched down, beginning to draw something on the ground.
Soon, what was drawn on the ground was a blazing fire, a man with wings, and a giant monster.
“According to the scriptures, in the beginning, there was a vicious monster that devoured humans.”
The monster was larger than a mountain range and ate hundreds of humans at every meal.
The humans, who couldn’t even muster the will to resist the transcendent monster, prayed to the heavens.
They begged for the monster to be killed.
Did their desperate prayers reach the heavens?
One day, the sky split open, and the Demon God descended.
[The omnipotent Demon God raised a black flame, and everything burned without a trace until the monster was turned to ash. He shared the Sacred Fire, a fragment of his power, with the humans and said.]
—The monster is dead. Build your lives upon this land.
With those words, the Demon God returned to the sky.
Afterward, a man chosen by the Demon God led the survivors to build a new home, and they cultivated their lives upon it.
Thus, the foundation of the Heavenly Demonic Cult was laid, and he would later be called the ‘Heavenly Demon.’
“I was uncertain at first, but what just happened has made it clear. Your demonic energy carries a presence similar to the Sacred Fire.”
“…The Sacred Fire?”
At Cheon Yeo-hwa’s words, my gaze unknowingly turned to the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword.
“Is it because of the sword?”
Even to me, the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword was a demonic blade that exuded an alien aura.
Just from the description that a fragment of the monster called Tam was sealed within it, I thought I understood what she meant by the change in my demonic energy.
But contrary to my expectation, Cheon Yeo-hwa shook her head.
“It is a sinister demonic sword, but that sword merely amplifies your demonic energy. It is nothing more and nothing less.”
“Hmm…”
True, I had felt my demonic energy being amplified after obtaining the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword, but I had never felt like something fundamental had changed.
If anything, thanks to the amplified demonic energy, something I had only faintly felt within me now felt much more intense.
Though I had no idea what it was.
“Is it a big problem that my demonic energy feels like the Sacred Fire?”
Hearing my question, Cheon Yeo-hwa seemed to think for a moment, then made a strange expression.
“There is a good example and a bad example. Which would you like to hear first?”
“Um… the good one?”
“As the first Divine Maiden to appear in 200 years… no, since you are a man, a Divine Male? Tsk, that doesn’t sound right. It would be better to call you a Saint. In any case, you could be hailed as a Saint and instantly gain a position within the Cult rivaling that of the Cult Leader.”
“Oh, then what’s the bad one?”
“You could be branded a heretic and hunted by the believers. For your information, including the lay believers, their numbers easily reach the hundreds of thousands.”
“…”
I quietly stored the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword in my inventory.
‘It feels like every time I gain more power, I just get more restrictions…’