Chapter 117: The Wicked Blood Cult (5)
Chapter 117: The Wicked Blood Cult (5)
The Haeguem Fleet changed course from Jiangnan as scheduled.
The route from Nanjing to Shanghai along the Yangtze River was a short distance, taking no more than two days. Soon, they were faced with the vast expanse of the South Sea.
There is a certain magic to a sea surface covered in thick, falling snow. Just gazing upon it brings a refreshing clarity, as if the chaos filling one's mind has been bleached pure white.
Even the blade-like wind could not graze the hem of his robes. Such was the Peerless Realm—a status granted to an individual who has transcended nature. His expression remained as gentle as ever.
"What are you so dissatisfied about?"
He chided his daughter. She sniffled, her nose dyed red by the winter wind, and grumbled.
"If the destination was Tianjin, we could have taken him there ourselves, even if it took a little longer."
She wasn't wrong. The path from Shanghai to Liaoning required coastal navigation anyway. While the Haeguem Fleet consisted of vessels capable of ocean voyages, there was no need to take unnecessary risks in the winter sea.
Therefore, if they headed north along the coast of the Central Plains, they would inevitably pass Tianjin. Though they wouldn't dock at the harbor, they could easily get close to it.
However, Murong Seo-jeong shook his head with a smile.
"How can you try to block the path of one who carries a great purpose? Besides, did he not say that the current Dragon Slaying Alliance does not have much time?"
"What about the danger? Eon Do-cheon has already targeted us several times! If Hyeon-hwi leaves alone, they will surely try to plot against him again...!"
"It wouldn't be the Peng Family if they shied away from dangerous lands."
Only then did Murong Seo-jeong turn his gaze. Beyond the hazy sea mist, the port of Shanghai was receding into the distance. He thought of the young man who would be racing across that vast continent somewhere beyond that far distance.
"Furthermore, it is not as if he doesn't know that one is refined within those dangerous lands."
It likely wouldn't even be that dangerous. While there might be some threats, it certainly wouldn't be at a level where his life was at risk—provided that the woman smiling by Peng Hyeon-hwi’s side was from the background he suspected.
There had been a brief rumor about a marriage alliance between the Peng Family and the Demonic Cult. Since then, there had been no significant movement, and things had quieted down following intelligence reports that the Heavenly Demon’s children had died in rapid succession.
But if that rumor wasn't just a rumor...
‘Now I see how the Jiangnan Heavenly Merchant Guild was able to obtain rare treasures from the Western Regions so easily.’
All trade through Mount Cheon was under the thumb of the Heavenly Demon Cult. If they had invested even a fraction of those massive riches, infiltrating Jiangnan by disguising a merchant guild would have been child's play.
Murong Seo-jeong let out a short laugh.
"These are truly turbulent times."
The outcasts from beyond the borders, led by the Blood Cult and the Five Poisons Sect of the Southern Barbarians, were invading. A faction of the Five Great Clans had joined hands with the wicked seeds of Chongqing to run rampant.
And in the midst of all this, if the Peng Family of Hebei and the Demonic Cult of Mount Cheon were pursuing a marriage alliance...
What use was there anymore in distinguishing the world between the Orthodox Martial Sects and the Unorthodox Black Path?
And if that was the case...
"I must seriously consider fostering goodwill with the Peng Family."
"Huh? What does that...? You mean, a-a marriage alliance...?"
"I should leave that possibility open as well. However, there will be a great mountain to cross."
The towering peak known as Mount Cheon.
Especially since that girl’s gaze was anything but ordinary.
Murong Seo-jeong looked at his daughter and then recalled the appearance of that other girl. Her disguise wasn't enough to deceive the senses of one in the Peerless Realm. If one looked with suspicion, her true nature could be deduced.
Even though his own daughter was precious enough to be the apple of his eye and boasted a beauty counted among the 'Flowers of the Martial World,' he couldn't help but think:
‘It won't be easy.’
Murong Seo-jeong ended up laughing heartily. Still, strengthening ties with the Peng Family was worth considering. If the trade network stretching from the Western Regions to Mount Cheon passed through the Yellow River, across Hebei, and all the way to Liaoning...
Then all the wealth and treasures of the Nine Provinces would flow along that path.
"But, if it's what you want."
"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!"
*
Cheon Hwa-ryeong was walking along the snowy mountain path, smiling brightly. Even those who would normally advise her to maintain her dignity dared not open their mouths to the Supreme Master right now.
"Ah, I finally feel alive."
Her thoughts escaped her lips before she realized it. She finally felt alive. It was as if color was finally returning to a world that had been dyed in shades of gray until now.
In a state of joy bordering on religious ecstasy, Cheon Hwa-ryeong walked with light steps and laughed.
"It seems you're not even trying to hide it anymore."
"Whatever do you mean by that?"
"Never mind."
Peng Hyeon-hwi fell silent, walking so close to her they were almost touching. She giggled at the sight.
Yes, this was it.
The reason he didn't speak of her identity despite knowing it, and the reason she didn't stop the act despite knowing he had figured it out, was simple.
Even if she revealed herself as the Little Heavenly Demon of the Sixth Heaven Esoteric Buddhism right this moment, their relationship wouldn't change. The situation wouldn't worsen; in fact, there would be more they could do. The warriors of the Esoteric Buddhism, currently disguised as escorts and porters for the Cheon Merchant Guild, would be able to move more freely.
But she didn't. She continued to act like the daughter of a merchant guild. Like a child enjoying a game of house. Recalling her childhood days of playing house, she let out a soft, playful laugh.
"Young Master, you must not forget your promise to this young lady."
She leaned in close to Peng Hyeon-hwi and whispered softly.
"In exchange for my small merchant guild guiding the Young Master to Tianjin, you promised to guarantee my safety."
"I think I'm the one who needs his safety guaranteed..."
"Young Master Peng."
"Ah, yes. Miss Cheon. Of course. Naturally, I must attend to you until the trade deal with the Dragon Slaying Alliance is concluded."
"Hehe. Hehehe... Uhuhu...!!"
She burst into laughter for a good while before swaying and leaning her forehead against Peng Hyeon-hwi’s chest.
In that instant, the porters and escorts—who had been normally carrying cargo, keeping watch, or sharing trivial jokes—all glared at Peng Hyeon-hwi simultaneously.
Amidst that, only Cheon Hwa-ryeong’s low, gentle voice echoed.
"My martial arts training is lacking, so winter travels are always treacherous and exhausting. Ah..."
"Why... why are you doing this...?"
"Please carry me on your back."
At that moment, a chilling sensation ran down Peng Hyeon-hwi’s spine. His body stiffened, and he slowly reached out. He continued the journey with Cheon Hwa-ryeong on his back, stiff as a wooden statue.
"If I am too heavy, please tell me at any time."
"Do not worry about that, Miss."
Watching this, Zhuge Jeong-yeong looked around with a look of utter confusion. He stared at Peng Hyeon-hwi flirting with Cheon Hwa-ryeong with burning eyes, struggling to suppress his killing intent. Then, suddenly disgusted by his own attitude, he hung his head in self-loathing.
[Carry her, Peng Hyeon-hwi.]
The moment he heard that Sound Transmission, his hands moved automatically. Dammit. Seo Wi-ryang. To think that old man was the elder-level figure dispatched to the Jiangnan Heavenly Merchant Guild.
Actually, if one had to pick the Super Peak master most loyal to Hwa-yeong, Seo Wi-ryang couldn't be left out, so perhaps it was inevitable. Or perhaps I should be relieved that there's at least one Super Peak master in the group.
Anyway, earlier... man. Chills.
‘She brought an entire combat unit from Mount Cheon with her.’
I looked at the porters and escorts of the Cheon Merchant Guild who were naturally surrounding me. From a distance, each one looked ordinary. There was a porter grumbling about the winter journey, and an escort looking careless as he took a whetstone from his shirt to rub his hands.
But all of them had... how should I put it? Eyes like serial killers.
When they all glared at me at once earlier, I barely managed to stop my Middle Dantian from reacting instinctively.
"Hehe... Hehehe..."
I decided to ignore Hwa-yeong, who was practically burying her nose in my neck and panting. She was born more beast than human, so it was pointless to scold her for acting like one occasionally.
And I'm definitely not saying this because I think I'd lose to her in a one-on-one fight. Anyone would be helpless when their 'dead point' is seized by a Peak Realm master stronger than themselves.
Does our family's martial arts have a dead point? Of course. The Peng Family's lineage includes external arts, and no external art is completely without a weakness. Our family's dead point is the neck. If your neck gets cut, you die.
Right now, Hwa-yeong’s willow-like arms were wrapped right around my 'dead point.'
[Are you enjoying yourself?]
I turned my head to see Zhuge Jeong-yeong looking at me with a look of utter patheticness. When I didn't respond, Zhuge Jeong-yeong glanced around and let out a sigh.
[To think that the Cheon Merchant Guild, one of the top guilds in Jiangnan, was actually the hands and feet of the Demonic Cult. Even the Alliance hasn't realized this, so this will be quite the trump card for my father.]
For the record, I hadn't revealed Cheon Hwa-ryeong’s identity to him. He had figured things out based on the information available.
The fact that a single merchant guild in Jiangnan—not the Peng Family or the Hao Clan—provided enough martial power to counter Eon Se-jeong. The fact that the daughter of said guild was showing me a suspicious amount of favor. The fact that the Jiangnan Heavenly Merchant Guild was a trading entity that had grown its power through trade with the Western Regions since long ago.
It wasn't hard to piece together the clues. And Zhuge Jeong-yeong was more than clever enough to do so.
[Does the Murong lady know as well?]
If it's about my engagement, she knows. I told her directly and even indirectly rejected her confession.
When I nodded, Zhuge Jeong-yeong looked up at the sky with a deeply troubled face and muttered.
"Why did Heaven create me, Zhuge Jeong-yeong, and then..."
Isn't it a betrayal of your ancestors for you to say that?
Anyway, we peacefully entered the eastern part of Henan Province. From here, it was a two-day walk to our destination near Yeonan, which meant we were starting to enter the activity range of the Blood Cult's spies.
I tried to ignore the creepy sensation of someone fiddling with the Myeongmun acupoint on my spine and thought to myself:
Right, what use is an ambush when we're under the protection of an elite Demonic Cult unit that includes the Little Heavenly Demon?
No matter how great the Blood Cult's influence was, this much martial power could break through any frontal assault. If we slaughtered Eon Se-jeong and uprooted the Blood Cult spies like this, the Jinju Eon Family would be left completely isolated.
The Zhuge Family Head was likely intending a 'feint to the east while attacking the west' strategy, so thwarting this would be a bonus.
The terrible situation where the Blood Cult and the Jinju Eon Family were stirring up trouble in the east of the Martial Alliance, the Chongqing Ten Thousand Ghosts Alliance was causing a revolt in the west, and the Blood Cult was rampant in Yunnan to the south... at the very least, we would succeed in disrupting it in the opening stages.
*
"Zhuge Jeong-yeong and Peng Hyeon-hwi are moving together. Why have you not moved yet?"
"Does it not seem strange?"
Despite Eon Se-jeong’s urging, the enchantress of the Blood Cult did not move easily. She dismissed the spy who had finished reporting and fell into thought.
"No matter how much their blood boils, they aren't stupid enough to not know that this journey is practically a death trap. And yet, they say their only companions are a few warriors from a merchant guild..."
"Those brats must have forgotten their place. If you are so afraid, I will go and provoke them myself."
"No. Do not do that. Their path is heading exactly this way. If that is the case, it wouldn't be a bad idea for me to go out and greet them personally."
Was it instinct? Or the sixth sense gained from years of experience?
She stood up, furrowing her brow. It was suspicious that their path coincided exactly with the Cult's ritual, and that they were moving despite knowing she would target their lives.
But if she was confident in her ability to escape, it wouldn't be difficult to see what they were thinking and what preparations they had made.
"Fist Lord, please be ready. We will strike in one day."
*
"Leader."
An escort who had visited a village in the distance and returned approached and bowed before the old man. When the head escort in charge of the Cheon Merchant Guild’s caravan stroked his beard and glanced at him, the escort spoke.
"A few Blood Cult dregs are observing us."
"Tsk, petty tricks."
"What shall we do?"
"Did the Supreme Master not say this was a trap? We must play along. Leave them be."
As he spoke, he turned his gaze to glare in that direction for a moment. He wondered how long he had to keep playing along, then looked back at the Supreme Master hanging onto Peng Hyeon-hwi’s back at the front of the line.
When he realized how long it had been since he’d seen her smiling so brightly, he couldn't help himself.
"Yes, that's enough."
Seo Wi-ryang, disguised as the head escort, found himself wearing a fatherly smile.
*
‘The Sixth Heaven Esoteric Buddhism...?!’
Jeok Il-ryeon, the Guest Elder of the Blood Flame Unending Blade, widened her eyes and swallowed hard.
Others might not know, but having occasionally clashed with the Demonic Cult, she couldn't help but be familiar with their aura. Her eyes narrowed as she calculated the gains and losses.
She had just confirmed that a martial unit of the Demonic Cult was plotting something while disguised as a Jiangnan merchant guild.
She gulped. She had to weigh the risk against the opportunity. This wasn't just about eliminating a young master of the Peng Family who had reached the Peak Realm and a young master of the Zhuge Family whose realm was even lower.
If there were elder-level figures among them, things would get complicated. The chance of failure would also increase.
However, if she succeeded... if she could eliminate them here...
‘If I can find out what the Demonic Cult is plotting in Jiangnan and report it to our Cult...’
This tedious work in the Outer Hall would finally be over. Her hands twitched as she struggled to suppress her greed.
After carefully assessing the martial power under her command, she soon nodded.
Both Eon Se-jeong and herself were Super Peak masters. If that was an ordinary Demonic Cult unit, they couldn't have dispatched more than two warriors of that level. To hide in the exclusionary environment of Jiangnan, they couldn't send warriors who stood out too much.
In that case... in that case...
‘I can do it. I can!’
She immediately turned and ran toward the safehouse where Eon Se-jeong and her subordinates were located.