Chapter 2 - The Shadow of the Divine Cult is Everywhere
Sado Hwan.
Ranked 23rd in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the legitimate heir of the Sado family—one of the six great families leading the cult.
He was the leader of the Black Shadow Corps, one of the cult's premier fighting forces, and known as a Peak master on the verge of reaching Super Peak.
Famous for his arrogant, aristocratic personality, he wasn't just skilled in martial arts; he was said to enjoy poetry and painting, excel at tea ceremonies, and even master music to perfection.
In short, he had the image of a damnably lucky all-rounder chaebol heir.
But the reality is different.
In truth, he was a master meticulously engineered.
Why bring this up all of a sudden?
Because I'd become Sado Hwan.
Around twenty people stood before me.
The elderly man at the front spoke to the masked figure beside him in a flustered voice.
"Why hasn't the body swap happened...! Didn't you say the great ritual succeeded?!"
"The ritual proceeded normally. Surely you saw this one's soul leave his body."
At my feet lay a man I'd never seen before, dressed in utterly ragged clothes.
And the ornate robes I was wearing.
It didn't take long to piece it together.
The fallen man was Mu Jin, the protagonist of Murim Return.
I was Sado Hwan.
Which meant I'd landed smack in the early part of Murim Return.
The exact moment when the protagonist Mu Jin and Sado Hwan of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult swapped bodies.
It wasn't a dream. I secretly pinched my thigh, and it hurt like hell.
What the fuck.
It was the kind of absurd event you'd only see in web novels.
The "great ritual" they mentioned was the Soul Swap Great Law, an evil technique that swapped souls.
That was how Mu Jin had taken over Sado Hwan's body.
The problem was that I'd gotten caught in between.
Maybe my perfect acting had made the Soul Swap Great Law recognize me as the real Sado Hwan and pulled me in.
I had no way of knowing.
While I was piecing it together, their alert stance grew even more tense.
"There's only one possible explanation."
The masked man spoke in a grave tone.
"What is it?"
"His cultivation realm far exceeds what we anticipated."
"...No way."
The old man's cheeks quivered as he stared at me.
"Has he stepped into the Super Peak realm?"
"Nothing else explains it."
In the world of Murim Return, the cultivation realms went third-rate to first-rate, Peak, Super Peak, Fire Transformation, Mystic, and Life-Death.
From Mystic onward, they were the stuff of legends and history books. The consensus was that Fire Transformation marked the human limit.
Even Peak made you a regional overlord, and Super Peak put you in the world’s absolute top tier.
So these guys thought I was top-tier in this world.
I'm fucked.
Because I wasn't.
As I said earlier, Sado Hwan was an engineered master.
One fabricated by the Sado family, one of the six demonic great families. Not raised from scratch.
A total scam.
Sado Hwan suffered from a special blocked meridian condition. He could accumulate infinite internal energy, but he couldn't project it outward.
In the Murim Return world, projecting qi externally made you a first-rate martial artist.
By that metric, Sado Hwan was barely second-rate.
Of course, with his massive reserves, circulating it internally let him exude tremendous presence.
In fact, I could feel something inside me right now.
It poured like a waterfall, swirled fiercely like a vortex.
Internal energy.
Even I, who knew nothing of heart arts or techniques, could sense the insane volume.
But that was it.
Forming sword qi to empower weapons like others, or manifesting the hallmark Gang Qi of Super Peak masters? Impossible, even in death.
In other words...
Sado Hwan was a one-trick pony of pure bluff.
"Even the Sword Saint hadn't touched the threshold of Super Peak at that age..."
The old man continued in shocked tones.
"First the Heavenly Demon, now Sado Hwan. Why does heaven bestow such monsters upon that vile cult?"
Seemed more monstrous to yank souls out of innocent people, but that was the average view of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Anyway, the most important, undeniable fact:
I was Sado Hwan now, and they were my enemies.
"..."
This was a truly fucked situation.
These guys were murim folk.
And murim folk lived to kill after every meal.
No way a normal guy like me could handle them.
"No choice. Blow up the cave."
"What?! Then we can't use the ritual anymore! And this is an ancient Orthodox faction ruin!"
"You think rituals or ruins matter now? Besides, aren't there more of these sites?"
"Those aren't in our territory. This could spark a war!"
The old man pointed at me.
"If he gets out alive, it's war anyway. Better to bury him with us—for the good of murim."
"...But the Black Shadow Corps will come looking soon. We can't collapse the chamber in time."
"That's why I'll buy time."
The old man drew the sword from his waist.
"Even if he's Super Peak, his experience must be shallow. Delaying him should be feasible."
"But, sire, you'll—!"
"If this old man's life brings peace to murim, I'll gladly give it."
"Sire...!"
My take on these bastards? One sentence.
Putting on a show.
They swapped innocent souls for their own gain, yet posed as apostles of justice.
Probably plotting to backstab even now.
Order the explosion, fake a delay, then bail.
That was the old man's true nature.
Pure wuxia cliché. The epitome of rotten Orthodox hypocrisy.
But his skill was real. Auspicious blue energy gathered on his sword.
Hummm—
The blade vibrated.
Sword Qi, the mark of a Peak master.
Common power meter in wuxia, but at that level, it could slice boulders like tofu.
Against it, I'd be bisected in a second.
"Draw your sword, Sado Hwan."
Even the original Sado Hwan would've died here for sure.
Bluffing presence against sword qi? Useless. Just a perfect dummy for practice swings.
Only one thing I could do.
What I did best, my lifeline here.
Acting.
Act like the strong. Keep them mistaken.
They thought Sado Hwan was Super Peak.
They'd instinctively cower, go defensive.
Buy time.
My only way to survive.
The Black Shadow Corps will arrive soon.
They were right at the cave entrance, just lost in the surrounding formation.
(Side note: In the original, they find the unconscious, captured Sado Hwan and the altar. That's why the protagonist suffers as a near-traitor upon returning to the cult.)
So just stall a little.
Not hard.
I'd auditioned as a chaebol heir, and Sado Hwan wasn't far off.
Plus, no one studied Murim Return characters harder than me.
And it worked before.
Mu Jin, the protagonist, escaped crises with amateur acting multiple times.
No reason I couldn't. Hell, I'd do better. He was just a con man; I was an actor.
...Aspiring, anyway.
Don't flinch, don't tremble.
Trust my will and acting chops. Go for it.
If it fails, I die.
I hardened my gaze.
Huh?
Then it happened.
The massive energy settled heavily in my lower abdomen surged upward.
It settled precisely where my eyes were.
Reacting to my will, the internal energy had moved!
My vision sharpened insanely. In the dark cave, it was like watching 8K video—opponents crystal clear.
Their faces stiffened instantly. Something was working.
Of course, I couldn't emit it. Shooting internal energy from eyes would make me Superman.
But this was enough.
Acting is half presentation, after all.
Whew.
Taking a deep mental breath, I opened my tightly shut mouth.
"Draw my sword?"
Sado Hwan's voice—deeper than the cave itself—echoed through.
People flinched at the sound alone.
Chilling. A single short phrase, yet goosebumps prickled their napes.
But more terrifying were Sado Hwan's eyes.
No word fit better than "fierce." Like a tiger's—no, a dragon's—pupils, an overwhelming pressure poured from them, binding his foes.
The old man read it.
This young punk has accumulated truly immense internal energy.
Internal energy built year by year at minimum; the young inevitably lagged.
Yet Sado Hwan's level defied common knowledge.
Demonic arts are fearsome indeed. Must nip this in the bud.
No matter Super Peak, a cave collapse meant death by crushing.
Sado Hwan spoke again.
"Truly insolent."
"The insolent one is you, Sado Hwan! Have you no respect for your murim elders?!"
"Respect?"
Sado Hwan slowly shifted his gaze.
The madness in his eyes made them step back.
"Respect is what the weak show the strong. Isn't that what you owe me, Mo Yong Su?"
"How do you know my—!"
The old man, Mo Yong Su, recoiled in shock.
He'd had zero prior contact with Sado Hwan.
How did he know his face, identify him instantly?
Did our intel leak?
"Wondering if our intel leaked, are you?"
Mo Yong Su jolted, eyes bulging unwittingly.
Sado Hwan advanced slowly. Each step oozed lethal leisure and boredom.
Now at the altar's base, he said:
"How foolish murim folk are."
"What?"
"You still don't know: there's no place in the world untouched by the shadow of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult."
"You bastard!"
Mo Yong Su stomped hard, footprint cratering the floor. His body shot forward like light.
...Still not drawing his sword?
Mo Yong Su gritted his teeth. Sado Hwan's eyes tracked him and the blade's path perfectly—yet no draw.
The Mo Yong family's signature Piercing Star Sword lived up to its name: piercing stars with blinding speed.
If unblocked...
I'll cleave him!
But then—
Clang—!
Another sword blocked the strike aimed at Sado Hwan's neck.
Its owner: a mysterious woman in a black bamboo hat.
"You're late."
"My apologies, Leader."
Even blade-to-blade, she replied calmly. Her demeanor was icy, composed.
Mo Yong Su gasped in horror.
"What is the meaning of—!"
Sado Hwan's face was nonchalant, as if he'd expected it.
"I told you."
His voice unwavering, Sado Hwan declared:
"The shadow of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is everywhere."
Shwick shwick shwick—!
Before his words finished, dozens of shadows rose from the darkness. As if they'd been there all along.
"Wh-who are you?!"
Black Shadow.
The dark silhouettes drew blades, awaiting Sado Hwan's command.
"Black Shadow Corps."
Sado Hwan responded softly, like an echo.
It was a verdict.
"Show them the dignity of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult."
Sword lights flared from all sides.
Acting as the Heavenly Demon