Chapter 242: Clue (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 242: Clue (2)
“Uh, well…”
Chun-bong scratched her head.
“He’s gone.”
The surrounding crowd stood in a daze, staring blankly at the empty space where Seo-jun had just vanished.
The banquet hall was an absolute wreck. Shattered furniture and debris littered the floor. At the very least, the plates Seo-jun had preemptively moved out of harm's way remained intact.
“Man, what are we going to do about all this?”
As Chun-bong scratched her head awkwardly, Namgung Myeong let out a soft chuckle.
“It is fine. We can take this opportunity to replace everything with new sets.”
“Aren’t they expensive?”
“It is a trivial amount.”
The Namgung Clan was wealthy. To them, it truly was pocket change.
Chun-bong idly picked up a plate that had rolled across the floor.
‘Even I can tell this looks expensive.’
Did her brother move them aside because he knew they were pricey? It wasn't just the plates; the rest of the furnishings must have cost a fortune as well.
“Can’t we just bill the Imperial Palace for this?”
“Haha…”
Namgung Myeong laughed awkwardly, shifting his gaze to the remaining guests. Most of them were lost in deep thought, likely meditating to glean some martial insight from the clash between Transcendent Realm masters they had just witnessed.
“Let us conclude the gathering here for tonight.”
Since things had escalated to this point, there was no reason to drag it out any longer.
Namgung Myeong smiled gently.
“However… would the Jongnam Sect mind staying behind for a moment?”
They say a crane that holds its head too high is destined for an early grave.
Even if it was the independent action of a now-deceased Elder of the Murim Alliance, he had no intention of letting this slide.
Namgung Myeong’s eyes sank into a cold, freezing chill.
* * *
The Emperor kicked off the empty air, soaring through the night sky with a satisfied smirk.
“That was a good bit of fun.”
The man known as the Evil-Annihilating Heavenly Lord was far more interesting than he had expected.
Based on the rumors, he assumed the man would be a blood-crazed lunatic. Regardless of his true nature, he seemed quite decent on the surface, didn't he?
Of course, like most monsters in the Transcendent Realm, he clearly wasn't entirely sane. That alone made watching him rather fine entertainment.
His martial skills seemed incredibly solid as well.
‘What should I try the next time that fellow visits the Imperial Palace?’
Just thinking about it filled him with anticipation. A devious smile played on the Emperor’s lips.
‘Should I try a classic honey trap?’
Judging by his behavior at the banquet, that could be quite amusing. Weren't beauties the one thing the Imperial Palace had in absolute abundance? If he wished, he could easily bury the man in the soft embrace of beautiful women.
Or perhaps letting him personally experience the firepower of the Imperial Artillery Corps, the pride of the Empire, would be a good show. If necessary, he could even have the Imperial Consorts do something…
“Hmm?”
Just then, something strange caught the Emperor’s Qi sensing. A ripple in space. Simultaneously, his eyes snapped wide open.
“What…?”
Something was approaching at a speed that transcended imagination. The Emperor felt a sudden surge of competitive spirit.
“Ho, so you want to go at it?”
He didn't care who it was or how arrogant they were. All that mattered was that this person had thrown down the gauntlet.
An absurd amount of internal energy gathered at the tips of the Emperor’s feet.
Borrowing the properties of the Heaven-Sun Imperial Extreme Fire Divine Art, his internal energy transformed into a miniature sun. He gave it direction and fired it off all at once.
Kwaaaaaaaa──────────!!
A brilliant crimson trajectory etched itself across the night sky.
“Hahahaha…!”
The wall of air blocking his path burned away under the scorching heat. It was a speed no ordinary person could ever hope to match; they wouldn't even be able to catch a glimpse of his heels.
The Emperor laughed loudly, mocking whoever was foolishly trying to follow him.
“Try your best to keep u—huh?”
Riiip! The space right in front of him tore open. At the exact same time, a familiar face popped out.
“My, isn't this reunion a bit too early?”
The Emperor laughed awkwardly and pushed his speed even further.
Kwaaaa! The Emperor was undeniably fast, flying like a meteor as he spewed roaring flames from the soles of his feet.
However, if there was one thing he didn't know, it was that Seo-jun’s lightness skill—if absolutely nothing else—possessed a speed that completely defied common sense.
Kwaaaaaaaaang─────────!!
With a massive sonic boom, Seo-jun’s figure blurred right past the Emperor.
“Good heavens…”
The Emperor stared blankly as Seo-jun pulled away.
“…He’s fast.”
It was a nonsensical speed. How was such a thing even possible?
A moment later, Seo-jun, who had pulled far ahead, reappeared right in front of the Emperor’s nose.
“Hey.”
Seo-jun’s hand clamped down on the back of the Emperor’s neck.
“Didn't you say you’d tell me once we got to the Imperial Palace?”
“I think it would be better if we talked this out.”
The Emperor grinned. Seo-jun grinned right back.
“Look at you, getting cold feet.”
“Yes, I’m absolutely terrified, so if you could just let go of th—whoa!”
Kwaaaaaaaaang────────!!
Still holding onto the Emperor by the neck, Seo-jun flew at a ridiculous speed. As he tore through space while simultaneously executing Primordial Unity-bo, the surrounding scenery blurred into streaks of light.
It took only a few minutes to reach the Imperial Palace in Beijing.
Seo-jun hurled the Emperor toward the sprawling palace visible beneath his feet.
Tak! Landing gracefully on his feet, the Emperor chuckled.
“Man, you really are stupidly fast, aren't you? No wonder you treat the Black Lotus Union’s territory like your own front yard.”
“So.”
“Hmm?”
“What do you know about the God-Destroying Association?”
Seo-jun looked down at the Emperor, casually standing on thin air.
The surroundings were growing quite noisy. But Seo-jun didn't care. He simply glared at the Emperor, pressing him for answers.
The others in the palace, however, could not afford to be so calm.
The imperial martial artists, alarmed by the explosive appearance of an intruder, surrounded the area with torches. All sorts of defensive formations were being activated in an attempt to eliminate the threat.
The Emperor grinned and snapped his fingers.
Snap!
With a crisp sound, a ripple spread outward, instantly dispelling the formations.
“Don't do anything unnecessary. Go back inside and sleep.”
The martial artists obeyed the Emperor’s command without hesitation. The area fell dead quiet in an instant.
The torches that had lit up the night were all extinguished, yet the Imperial Palace remained brilliantly illuminated.
Standing on the palace grounds, the Emperor looked up at Seo-jun.
“What do I know, you ask?”
Fiddling with his chin, the Emperor sat down casually on a nearby decorative structure.
“A promise is a promise, so I’ll tell you… but the truth is, I don't know the exact details either.”
“What, you punk?”
Should he just wreck the Imperial Palace the same way he did the banquet hall? Seo-jun seriously considered it.
Sensing the dangerous shift in mood, the Emperor quickly continued.
“Those guys approached me once.”
“The God-Destroying Association did?”
“Yeah. They said I looked like I’d fit right in with them.”
Grinning, the Emperor explained the situation.
“When that fellow contacted me, he asked only one thing: whether I liked the Central Plains.”
The man had come forward boldly to demand an audience with the Emperor. He was only at the Super Peak Realm. However, he possessed a strangely irritating presence.
“It looked interesting, so I captured him for the time being…”
“And?”
“He was a total bust. I only got two things out of him. That they use the name God-Destroying Association, and that their ultimate goal is to eliminate the Divine Blood.”
“Is that all?”
“There’s more.”
The Emperor laughed. Seo-jun clicked his tongue.
“Then you didn't just get two things.”
“Ah, is that how it works?”
The Emperor burst into laughter.
“Haha…! Anyway. I actually found out about their origins.”
The captive must have been a low-ranking member, as his mind was covered in restrictive seals, but the Emperor had managed to keep him alive just long enough to extract a few critical pieces of information.
“Don't be shocked when you hear this.”
“Just tell me already.”
“Their origin is…”
The Emperor smiled broadly.
“The Blood Cult.”
Seo-jun furrowed his brows.
“I heard the Blood Cult was completely uprooted, down to its very foundations.”
“That’s right. Exactly.”
Six hundred years ago, the Transcendent Realm masters of that era had used every means possible to completely erase their very existence from the world.
“Then where did their secret manuals go?”
“They would have been destroyed.”
“For the most part, that’s true.”
“What?”
They uprooted the cult but intentionally left some of their demonic manuals behind?
“Are they idiots?”
“The reason the Blood Cult was so dangerous was because they tried to summon a god to the Mortal Realm.”
“So they erased only those specific techniques and kept the rest?”
“To be precise, they pocketed them. Their martial arts were actually quite decent.”
Some of the martial artists who had gathered to destroy the Blood Cult had secretly made off with the manuals.
Naturally, they weren't fools dreaming of the Blood Cult’s revival. If they were, all the Transcendent Realm masters of the Central Plains would have swarmed them again.
Unless one was a supreme figure at the Profound Realm, no one would have the guts to try that.
“Are the Blood Arts really worth that much? It’s not like they’re martial arts you can openly show off.”
At Seo-jun’s question, the Emperor shook his head.
“The Blood Arts were just a bonus they grabbed. In the first place, the Blood Cult was a group centered around sorcery.”
“Is it some incredible sorcery?”
“It is incredible, but honestly, that was a bonus too.”
Seo-jun’s brow furrowed. Harsh words were on the tip of his tongue, but he held them back since the man was actually providing useful information.
“Stop beating around the bush and just get to the point.”
“Fear.”
“What?”
“The group known as the God-Destroying Association was born out of a fear of God.”
“What the…”
This Emperor bastard simply couldn't explain things straight. Was it because he was so used to just doing whatever he wanted?
‘Looking at him, it feels like he’s doing this on purpose.’
Suppressing the overwhelming urge to smack him, Seo-jun asked, “How did you suddenly reach that conclusion?”
“Didn't you tell me to just get to the point?”
The Emperor grinned.
“I can explain in detail if you want.”
“…Fine, that would be better.”
Seo-jun shook his head.
* * *
Six hundred years ago, some of the Transcendent Realm martial artists who set out to destroy the Blood Cult witnessed a fragment of a god’s power.
They realized, with agonizing clarity, that a god was not an existence a mere human could ever dare to oppose.
A martial artist whose spirit is broken cannot move forward, so many of the Transcendent Realm masters of that era chose to enter seclusion.
To a martial artist, a secret manual is more precious than gold.
Since they were going into hiding anyway, a few of them made off with the manuals to research new forms of martial arts or sorcery in secret.
As time passed, one of the martial artists who had continued this research discovered a sliver of a possibility of opposing a god. He then sought out several others who had gone into seclusion with him back then.
“That was likely the beginning of the God-Destroying Association. Of course, more than half of this is my own speculation, so it’s not entirely exact.”
“Didn't you say there were restrictions placed on his mind? For someone saying that, you seem to have found out quite a lot.”
“It’s thanks to the technology of the Imperial Palace. We aren't far behind the Tang Family, who are famous for this sort of thing.”
The Emperor grinned and shook his head.
“However, the other Transcendent Realm masters probably won't pay much attention to these God-Destroying Association fellows.”
“Even though the Geum Family was wiped out?”
“Because it’s not certain. To be precise, they have a justification not to act.”
The Emperor continued, “Though, of course, almost no one even knows about them in the first place.”
“Will it be problematic for you if this information gets out?”
“Not really? You can do whatever you want with it.”
“Is that so?”
Seo-jun let out a hollow laugh as he looked at the Emperor. He had been on guard because the man acted so suspiciously, but now he wondered if the Emperor was just a regular guy with a few screws loose.
“By the looks of it, you probably don't have many friends.”
“Hmm? An Emperor has no need for useless things like friends.”
“Oh dear…”
So he really didn't have any friends. That must be why he was so incredibly bored all the time.
Seo-jun gave a short laugh and turned his back on the Emperor.
“I’ll drop by if I’m bored next time.”
“Ho?”
The corners of the Emperor’s mouth curled up into a smirk.
“I’ll be looking forward to that.”
* * *
Seo-jun organized his thoughts as he leisurely made his way back to the Namgung Clan.
‘The God-Destroying Association…’
If it was a group born out of the fear of God, it wasn't strange for them to be wary of the Divine Blood.
There was no definitive proof that the God-Destroying Association had destroyed the Geum Family, but Seo-jun was certain. It was more than likely them.
‘The martial art that inflicted the severed meridians on Chun-bong was definitely the Ice Soul Divine Art.’
It was also highly probable that the God-Destroying Association was the group that had tried to recruit Elder Jong-in of Mount Hua to the Black Lotus Union.
Perhaps there were even more of their spies hidden within the Murim Alliance or the Black Lotus Union.
There was no way to find out right now what kind of promises they had made to convince martial artists to join hands with them, but he wasn't curious about that in the first place.
Only one thing mattered.
‘There might be a clue at the North Sea Ice Palace.’
The possibility was slim, but there might be something at Mount Hua as well.
‘I wonder what the Ice Palace Master is up to?’
It looked like he’d be seeing her again soon.
Seo-jun smirked.