Chapter 440
Chapter 440
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 440
Chapter Title: What Remains (4)
Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's Radiance Left Emissary, Byeon Cheol-yeong.
He was a man of unmatched status and martial prowess in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, surpassed only by Hyeok Ryeon-gang before his eyes.
Yet even he, who held a position one step below the leader and above all others, found himself overwhelmed by the immense killing intent leaking from Hyeok Ryeon-gang the moment he uttered the words, "Eon Yong-un claims to be Wi Cheol-jin's successor."
"Left Emissary. What did you just say? Eon Yong-un what? Did I hear that right?"
At that, Byeon Cheol-yeong was once more struck by the realization that if Hyeok Ryeon-gang was the moon, he was merely a firefly.
"...Yes. Eon Yong-un claims to be the successor of the Revered Heavenly Demon."
"Considering everything that rascal has done so far, he wouldn't have made that claim quietly, would he?"
"Yes. More precisely... he claims to be the Sword Demon's successor, and that our cult..."
Byeon Cheol-yeong hesitated, as the topic was too grave to speak lightly, carefully choosing his words.
Hyeok Ryeon-gang glared at him with a face twisted like an asura ghost.
"Left Emissary. Stop holding back your words. My patience has limits. Even for you."
Byeon Cheol-yeong swallowed dryly and summarized the contents of the rumor mill circulating in the martial world.
"...Eon Yong-un is proclaiming himself the rightful heir, and calling our cult a fraudulent sect that has distorted the words of the Founding Heavenly Demon."
"Through that gazette, you say?"
"Yes. Here."
He pulled out the gazette he had tucked into his sleeve.
Hyeok Ryeon-gang took it and read through the text, where key phrases had been garishly highlighted in red and blue pigments.
『Shocking Revelation! Unimaginable True Identity!! Eon Yong-un, Heir of the Sword Demon?!!
Eon Yong-un says:
-The Sword Demon was merely a lonely swordsman enraged by his master's death, not someone who sought to deceive the masses.
It was the fraudulent cult Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, which worships bizarre forces and gods, that twisted his intentions to suit their tastes.
I will set this right.
P.S.
Testimonies from members of the Grass Weed Society who held grudges against the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult—full disclosure in the next issue!!!』
The moment he confirmed the contents, a blaze of samadhi true fire erupted in Hyeok Ryeon-gang's grip.
Whoosh—
Having incinerated the gazette in an instant, Hyeok Ryeon-gang ground his teeth and stared at Byeon Cheol-yeong.
"Is there any credibility to this?"
"Our spies have verified it, and it doesn't seem entirely baseless."
"What does the Elder say?"
"The Brain claims that if Eon Yong-un stole the martial arts left by the Revered Heavenly Demon, it explains the inconsistencies in his actions."
"So it's true."
"...The Radiance Right Emissary has headed to Lake Tai to confirm."
"I'll head to Ten Thousand Demons Hall after sorting my thoughts. Tell everyone to gather."
"Heavenly Demon Reborn! Ten Thousand Demons Vindicated!"
Byeon Cheol-yeong slammed his forehead to the ground at Hyeok Ryeon-gang's words and swiftly departed the Heavenly Demon Cave like scattering smoke.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's Cult Leader, Hyeok Ryeon-gang.
This man, who had come closest to becoming the Heavenly Demon in nearly a century, was the cult's dignity and terror incarnate.
Who would dare dawdle at his command?
Even those who had scoffed at the attendance demands from Ten Thousand Demons Hall, led by the Radiance Left Emissary and the Brain, came rushing at the news of Hyeok Ryeon-gang's personal arrival.
"The Eldest Young Master arrives!"
"The Youngest Young Master arrives!"
Among them were the two dragon-blooded survivors of the bloody struggle for the Little Cult Leader position.
The leaders of the Five Elements Banners, the cult leader's personal guard, were present.
"The Five Elements Banner Lords arrive!"
"Reverse Heaven Demon Gu Cheon-seo and Chaos Witch arrive!"
The two Cult Protector Kings who had preserved their factions amid recent events.
And even the heads of the eight noble families ruling the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.
"The Eight Noble Families' Family Heads arrive!"
Thus, all the great demonic heads upholding the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult had gathered in Ten Thousand Demons Hall.
How much time had passed when, at last, Hyeok Ryeon-gang entered, clad in pitch-black dragon robes.
Thud. Thud.
The great demonic heads of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult prostrated themselves in unison toward the absolute being who had entered.
"Divine Cult Invincible! Ten Thousand Demons Vindicated!"
But Hyeok Ryeon-gang let out a hollow chuckle as he passed them by.
Sitting upon the throne at the head seat, he spoke.
"Lately, all I've heard is talk of 'where we were crushed' and 'what went wrong'... yet you lot spout 'Divine Cult Invincible' from your gaping mouths with ease."
"......"
At Hyeok Ryeon-gang's words,
the great demonic heads, heads bowed, offered silence as atonement for a moment.
"Until now, I've let whatever rumors fly pass without care. I thought trials were to be expected before the day of the Heavenly Demon's rebirth."
Hyeok Ryeon-gang rested his chin and opened his mouth.
"But this is too much. You're surely aware of the rumors swirling in the Central Plains, aren't you?"
"......"
"Raise your heads. And tell me how you plan to restore my trampled dignity."
At those words, the first to step forward was Jin Heum-ryang, head of the Jin family, currently the most cornered in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.
"Yes, Jin Family Head."
Jin Heum-ryang, who had lain low to escape the backlash of Blood Demon Jin Gwae-ryang's rebellion,
now spoke first in this moment, hoping to slightly appease Hyeok Ryeon-gang and his kin's wrath.
"We must cut out the tongues of those who dare bandy the Revered Heavenly Demon's name, capture the culprit Eon Yong-un and rend his body into five pieces, and burn the Righteous Martial Academy to the ground."
His words were scarcely a proper proposal.
Merely an expression of will.
Yet as a starting point for discussion, it wasn't bad, so Hyeok Ryeon-gang nodded.
"And the rest of you?"
Confirming the cult leader's wrath had not fallen on Jin Heum-ryang, the others began to speak one by one.
"Listen, Jin Family Head. Realistically, is capturing Eon Yong-un and rending him possible? With the Eastern Alliance's relay stations and all, the orthodox sects' responses are sharper than before. Isn't that why even Ten Thousand Demons Hall opted for a prolonged war?"
"I agree with the Yeon Family Head. For a show of force, Kunlun or Xining would be appropriate—pushing deeper into the Central Plains risks coming back empty-handed."
Thus began the Ten Thousand Demons Hall meeting, quickly devolving into a muddy quagmire of debate.
"Can we venture beyond the mountains with such a timid attitude?"
"Exactly! They've spent their lives gnawing at this barren land, puffing up their noble airs—that's why they can't think beyond such notions!"
They shared only absolute obedience to the cult leader.
The demons of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains were self-interested folk.
Each wished to preserve their faction's full strength, harboring grudges built over a century in the mountains.
Especially so, amid the fallout from the recent Little Cult Leader struggle.
In this midst, the most spirited was Ma-ok Military Lord Yeon Ok-ran, who had first recognized Eon Yong-un's value.
"Hee hee hee! You other family heads haven't even seen the front lines yourselves, yet you spout such nonsense?"
Thus Yeon Ok-ran shot barbs at the seated figures, fiddling with slender jade fingers from who-knows-where.
"What did I say? That Eon Yong-un would be the biggest obstacle to our cult's events? Heh. My hands were always much prettier."
One of the Eight Noble Families, forgetting for a moment who was present in Ten Thousand Demons Hall, bellowed in rage.
"Ma-ok Military Lord! Do you mock Ten Thousand Demons Hall and the Eight Noble Families' decisions?!"
At that moment.
The air in Ten Thousand Demons Hall seemed to be sucked toward Hyeok Ryeon-gang.
He slammed his fist down on the table before him.
BOOM!!!!!!!!!!!
In an instant, the table around which all were seated turned to dust.
The great demonic heads' eyes widened in shock.
"!?"
"!!!"
It was inevitable.
The table in Ten Thousand Demons Hall was made of stone called "equal to metal and rock," said to be as hard as steel.
No one, even striking with full power, could reduce it to powder in one blow.
Yet Hyeok Ryeon-gang pulverized it without a single crack,
all while precisely controlling the force so no one was caught in it.
"...The Cult Leader's Heavenly Demon Divine Art has finally reached the Eighth Star!"
Some wore expressions of rapture.
Others assumed rigid, tense postures.
Then, Ma-noe Gal Hyo-bong, who orchestrated the cult's grand and minor schemes, spoke.
"...The orthodox dogs have planted Eastern Alliance relay stations everywhere, but there are gaps. They haven't built a Great Wall, after all."
Having opened thus, Gal Hyo-bong continued.
"Of course, sending a large army would draw their eyes inevitably, but infiltration into the Central Plains isn't impossible. Our planted agents come and go freely, and didn't the Radiance Right Emissary go to Lake Tai with them?"
As Yeon Ok-ran opened her mouth to retort defiantly,
"That's different from capturing Eon Yong-un..."
Reverse Heaven Demon Gu Cheon-seo, her master and lord of the Ghost King Manor, finished for her.
"...The agents can slip through because they've traded silk for decades or even centuries, right?"
"Yes."
"You're not senile yet. They're not combat forces. And the Radiance Right Emissary alone can't capture Eon Yong-un."
"Impossible."
As Gu Cheon-seo's questions continued for a moment,
"True. None of us old fogeys here, myself included, could do it alone. Of course, the Cult Leader could... but that slippery eel muddies the waters, so even he can't descend personally."
Gal Hyo-bong nodded to the attendants behind him.
The attendants unfurled a map with a rustle.
Gal Hyo-bong began laying out his stratagem in earnest.
"Reaching Dankang District and the Righteous Martial Academy is impossible. Accounting for the Eastern Alliance relays, Beggar Clan, and Haomun branches, we'd be detected en route—sending forces that far is unfeasible."
"But?"
"However, we can reach Xi'an. Through the plank roads on the thousand-foot cliffs of the Great Qinling Mountains and the valleys below, it's nearly direct."
At Gal Hyo-bong's words,
Chaos Witch Gyeong Seol-ran, who had silently observed the proceedings since entering Ten Thousand Demons Hall, added a word.
"...You're referring to the Shadow Path True Formation stratagem that Han Gaozu Liu Bang used to sneak into the Central Plains?"
"Yes. With this, we can't send an army, but we can dispatch an elite unit. Once in Chang'an, Luoyang and the Martial Alliance are within striking distance."
"Hm. If we can burn the Martial Alliance, it would restore some of our cult's pride. Is that your thinking?"
"Moreover, with good fortune, we can target Eon Yong-un too. The gazettes circulating now shock us, but... within the orthodox sects, those who resent him make fine bait. I'll coordinate the timing."
It was then that Hyeok Ryeon-gang spoke again.
"The Brain will read the opportune moment, so we'll leave that. But when the time comes, who will step up?"
No one stepped forward immediately.
The path was as hard to return from as to infiltrate.
Opportunity's arrival and success were separate matters.
"......"
But in this hall were those backed into a corner.
None other than the forces of Hyeok Ryeon-gang's youngest son, Hyeok So, disadvantaged in the Little Cult Leader race.
With the eldest young master dominating the power struggles in the Ten Thousand Great Mountains, inaction meant slow withering followed by purge.
For them, this was an opportunity.
"This subordinate will step forward."
Extremely dangerous, yes.
But success would overturn the board in one stroke, placing him above the Little Cult Leader as Heavenly Demon Divine Art successor.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Meanwhile, No Sam and Namgung Yun, who had recently been staying at the bandit stronghold, had descended with Do Jung-gwang to a remote alley in Hanzhong, a great city north of the Great Qinling Mountains.
"Got the gazette."
"I sent word too. A beggar'll be here soon. You?"
"How old do you think I am? Can't I send a single message to Haomun?! What kind of question is that?!"
"With that throat boiled from firecrackers, you don't look like you can shut up! Pipe down, you bastard!"
No particular reason otherwise.
It was time for the regular gazette.
Sensing Eon Yong-un was plotting something at the Heavenly Martial Tournament, they had come down via Beggar Clan and Haomun for specifics.
Rustle—
The moment Namgung Yun unfurled the gazette, the three gaped.
"...Big Bro really went all out with his brush."
Namgung Yun gaped at the gazette's oozing intent to drag down the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
No Sam and Do Jung-gwang gaped at Eon Yong-un's origins.
"Heh, that kid Yong-un. I half-expected it, but... Sword Demon. So that's it."
"Right! No wonder the Blood Cult flunkies follow him so readily! Damn, what a freak. How'd a guy like that pop out from your crowd?"
At that moment.
A black-clad figure in a bamboo hat blocked the alley entrance and spoke.
"Nice atmosphere."
As the three assumed combat stances,
the black-clad figure lifted his bamboo hat slightly with two fingers.
Namgung Yun gaped once more.
"...Eon Yong-un? Why the hell are you here?"
Eon Yong-un grinned and replied.
"I'm heading to the Martial Alliance."