Chapter 430
Chapter 430
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 112
>Chapter Title: The Situation (2)
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Justice Alliance's main headquarters grand conference hall.
There, the leaders of the core factions known as the Nine Great Sects and Seven Great Families had gathered.
The martial artists referred to them as the Seventeen Lords.
Normally, this gathering would include the Alliance Leader, Vice Leader, and Chief Strategist, totaling twenty attendees, but this conference hall seated only fourteen lords.
The Alliance Leader, Vice Leader, and three strategists were absent, as they were receiving the envoy from the imperial palace.
The Shaolin Temple's abbot, who never involved himself in worldly affairs, was absent as usual, as was the head of the Sacheon Tang Family—one of the Seven Great Families currently in seclusion. The Nangong Family also lacked representation, as they had yet to select a new head following the death of Head Nangong Jin at Timber Sword Manor.
In truth, the lords' conference had been convened due to the recent string of incidents.
After the great righteous-demonic war, the martial world had remained peaceful for a time.
But starting with the Shaolin Temple's Supremacy Step incident, the martial world had been thrown into uproar by a single individual, making it impossible to simply sit back and observe any longer.
"Hoo. Sect Leader Jeong. Is that truly the case?"
"Amitabha. It is true. Senior Monk Jeong Myeong, dispatched as an investigator to Timber Sword Manor, confirmed it personally."
As Sect Leader Jeong Han of the Hangsan Sect spoke, the lords' expressions grew grave.
And with good reason. They had gathered precisely because the movements of that Heavenly Demon—known as the seventh heaven—were far from righteous.
To hear that Timber Sword Manor, a major pillar of the central plains, and its lord Gu Cheon-mu—one of the Seven Heavens—had sworn loyalty to him was utterly shocking.
"How could such a thing..."
This was no trivial matter.
The pinnacle of the current martial world was the Seven Heavens.
For one of them to submit and swear loyalty to another meant a crack had formed in the balance among the three major powers that had held steady until now.
Moreover,
"I just don't know what's happening anymore. That mysterious swordsman who killed the Nangong Family head, and that monstrous force that wiped out the Mount Qingcheng Sect's disciples—it's all too much."
Nangong Jin, head of the Nangong Family and one of the Eight Stars, along with much of the family's forces, had fallen to this enigmatic wanderer.
They had heard he was defeated by the newly emerged seventh heaven, the Heavenly Demon, but the sudden appearance of such an unknown master was hardly good news in the current climate.
"Take a look at this."
Sect Leader Jin Sok of the Mount Qingcheng Sect placed a rubbing on the round table.
It depicted a mark: a vertical line piercing through the center of the number two.
"Is this the mark?"
Sect Leader Gu Cheol-ja of the Mount Hua Sect asked, and Jin Sok nodded.
"Indeed. It was carved into the scars on our disciples. I don't know which faction left this mark, but they're no ordinary foes."
"No ordinary foes?"
"If my judgment is correct, each of their corpses was felled by a single stroke—and not just any stroke."
"Not just any stroke? What do you mean?"
"It appears to be Sword Control with Qi."
"What? Sword Control with Qi?"
Sword Control with Qi was a feat possible only for supreme masters who had surpassed the wall and reached the pinnacle of the Flower Realm.
If so, nothing less than an Eight Star-level martial artist had annihilated them.
How many incidents had erupted in this short span?
At that moment, an old beggar holding a staff with a faint green glow spoke up.
"It seems the peace lasted too long."
He was Hong Won-seok, the current Beggars' Sect Leader.
Sect Leader Gu Cheol-ja of Mount Hua rebuked him as if scolding a child, clicking his tongue casually.
"Sect Leader Hong, how can you say such a thing? Are you implying someone stirred this up to shatter the peace?"
"Since we maintained friendly ties with the court, there have been minor clashes, but never a string of major incidents like this. Do you see this as a simple matter?"
"......"
Sect Leader Gu Cheol-ja of Mount Hua fell silent at the Beggars' Sect Leader Hong Won-seok's words.
Deep down, he had no choice but to agree.
One incident might be coincidence, but a chain of them pointed to some conspiracy or plot.
Then, someone spoke up.
"But hasn't one organization been unusually quiet lately?"
The speaker was Peng Il-hyeon, head of the Hebei Peng Clan.
Having suffered heavy losses from the Western Imperial Consort incident at the imperial palace, the clan was in near-seclusion, its influence diminished.
"Amitabha. Clan Head Peng. Surely you don't mean them?"
At Sect Leader Jeong Han's words, everyone's thoughts turned to one faction.
A faction that had been eerily silent as of late.
Unlike the Demonic Alliance, plagued by constant clashes, it was the Heaven and Earth Society—rumored that its Chairman might be gravely ill.
"Exactly. The ones who haven't shown their faces yet but schemed through the Western Imperial Consort from the palace."
"Hmm."
Some nodded, finding merit in his words.
Since the righteous-demonic war, the Heaven and Earth Society had moved quietly, as if conserving strength.
They could not be ruled out from these events.
Seizing the moment, Peng Il-hyeon of the Peng Clan pressed the point.
"If all these incidents tie back to the Heaven and Earth Society, letting it slide will only make things worse..."
However,
"It's not so easy to assume that."
"Clan Head Huangbo?"
The interrupter was Huangbo Seong, head of the Huangbo Clan—one of the Seven Great Families.
The Huangbo Clan had particularly poor relations with the Hebei Peng Clan.
Thus, Peng Il-hyeon could not hide his displeasure at his intervention.
"What do you mean it's not so easy?"
"While we can't rule out the Heaven and Earth Society entirely, blowing this out of proportion due to personal grudges would be problematic too."
"What!"
-Bam!
Peng Il-hyeon slammed the round table.
Yet despite his rage, most lords showed little reaction.
Some even smirked mockingly.
'Tch.'
Peng Il-hyeon's face twisted.
Not content with losing half his forces when Outer Hall Leader Peng Seok-im attempted to assault the Western Imperial Consort, he was now in near-seclusion.
His influence was no longer what it once was.
Believing his own shame had been exposed, Clan Head Peng Il-hyeon suppressed his anger and addressed Huangbo Clan Head Huangbo Seong.
"...This isn't about personal grudges. Clan Head Huangbo, are you not denying my words out of emotion?"
"It's not necessarily that. Isn't the Shadow Steps—those spying on the Heaven and Earth Society—under your management, Clan Head Huangbo?"
"Sect Leader Hong?"
Shadow Steps.
This was a group known only to a tiny few even within the Justice Alliance.
They were covert agents trained in secret; even the righteous factions that championed justice and harmony did not officially acknowledge them, so they were rarely mentioned.
But this was a conference of those select few lords, so the Beggars' Sect Leader spoke freely.
"Does your statement mean you have intelligence on the Heaven and Earth Society?"
"We received one piece of uncertain information—possibly disinformation."
"Uncertain information? What do you mean?"
At Sect Leader Hong's question, Huangbo Clan Head Huangbo Seong's eyes narrowed.
Not long ago, he had received intelligence of unknown origin.
By his knowledge, most Shadow Steps agents embedded in the Heaven and Earth Society's inner stronghold had perished.
Yet through the outer secret network, a coded message arrived via secret code.
The problem was that the sender claimed contact via the token of a Shadow Steps agent dispatched to Blood River Valley—who had also died.
'They claimed to be a hostage captured at Timber Sword Manor.'
Half a year prior, the prestigious Timber Sword Manor had abruptly declared seclusion.
The cause was unknown, but the sender via this secret channel had identified themselves as a hostage from Timber Sword Manor.
Still under verification and not yet shared officially,
"The intelligence stated a major internal strife will soon erupt in the Heaven and Earth Society."
"Major internal strife?"
"Has the Chairman's illness worsened?"
"If the uncertain intel proves true, that could be it. Then those anticipating strife might be involved..."
-Thud!
It was then.
All eyes turned to someone seated at the right side of the round table.
There sat a man clutching his left eye, sweating coldly, face contorted in pain.
He was Danmok In-ho, head of the Danmok Clan—one of the Seven Great Families.
"Clan Head Danmok? Are you alright?"
"Your complexion looks poor, Clan Head Danmok."
At their concern, Danmok Clan Head Danmok In-ho waved it off, then closed one eye as if it pained him.
"Ah. I injured my eye during training recently. My apologies."
"Hoo. If it's difficult, perhaps rest..."
"It's nothing. More importantly, I have some intriguing intelligence myself. Shall we discuss it?"
"Intriguing intelligence? What is it?"
As all focused on him, Danmok Clan Head Danmok In-ho slyly curled his lip and spoke in a meaningful tone.
"The seventh heaven at the heart of this agenda has sparked a civil war within the Heaven and Earth Society."
'!?'
>* * *
>At the same time.
The VIP quarters prepared for the imperial envoy.
There, an utterly unforeseen event was unfolding.
The high-ranking official who had arrived as envoy lay dead on the floor, throat slit, while two masters fiercely clashed swords.
A middle-aged man who had been executing sword strikes barehanded widened the distance, pointing his left sword formula at his foe.
The sword on the floor—elegant in form—rose on its own, generating sword force as it shot forth.
-Swoosh!
The opponent executed the Adhesion Principle, grasping the sword hilt.
Even as blue flames sparked from the energy clash, the sword did not yield.
-Crackle!
Witnessing this, the middle-aged man's eyes gleamed with undisguised astonishment.
'Grasping Sword Control Force with the Adhesion Principle?'
Even he, who had surpassed the wall, could not do so easily. It was an extraordinary feat.
The middle-aged man's identity was none other than Justice Alliance Leader Jeong Hyeon-mun.
The man before him, who had seized the Sword Control Force with Adhesion Sword Style, sneered.
"Is this that famed Single Radiance?"
It was the treasured sword bestowed upon him by Timber Sword Manor Lord Gu Cheon-mu.
Gazing at the sneering man, Justice Alliance Leader Jeong Hyeon-mun spoke in a voice thick with doubt.
"...You're not Wi Tak-hyeon."
"What nonsense? If I'm not Wi Tak-hyeon, then who is?"
The man's identity—who mocked Jeong Hyeon-mun as if toying with him—was Justice Alliance Vice Leader Full志 Reverse Sword Wi Tak-hyeon.
As he regarded him, Alliance Leader Jeong Hyeon-mun inwardly denied it.
No, it was not him.
Wi Tak-hyeon, his longtime comrade—no, sworn brother—would never arbitrarily kill an envoy from the palace.
Moreover, no Eight Star could advance so rapidly in prowess.
Alliance Leader Jeong Hyeon-mun glanced at the Zhuge Chief Strategist collapsed behind him, right leg severed, then raised his inner energy further.
If he didn't subdue him quickly, the Chief Strategist's life might be in peril.
>* * *
>With the war ended, the plaza overflowed with corpses and captives being cleared by the retainers, while the wounded were hastily transported to physicians.
In the Heaven and Earth Society's main hall—its signboard shattered—all executives gathered on the first-floor grand hall, excluding the injured.
At the head seat sat the ringleader, Mok Kyung-un, with Timber Sword Manor Lord Gu Cheon-mu leading the imported loyalists to his immediate left: masked Mara Hyeon, Subduing Demon Fist Master Ja Geum-jeong, Seop Chun, and Mong Mu-yak.
To the right sat Pa Bu-wang Ho Tae-gang, Island Poison King Baek Sa-ha, Dark Sect Leader Hwan Ya-seon, and Blood River Valley Lord Lee Ji-yeom.
In the midst of these executives—directly before Mok Kyung-un's gaze—stood a strikingly beautiful silver-haired woman, poised rigidly.
She was Chun Chu, the Heaven and Earth Society's top executive.
Even as a surrendered captive, Chun Chu gazed at Mok Kyung-un with a leisurely smile.
She spoke first.
"I figured you'd be in a rush, but apparently not?"
She had guessed Mok Gan's true aim in this Heaven and Earth Society war to some extent.
Thus, she assumed the man before her would be quite anxious.
She had planned to seize the initiative in negotiations using that, but what was with this inexplicable composure?
Of course, the reason was simple.
A voice noisily resounding in Mok Kyung-un's mind.
-Master... it's me, Go Chan. Master? Master? Can you really not hear me? I'm possessing Wi So-yeon's body, but I can't muster the will to escape. Master? No, damn it, if there were talismans on the coffin, fine, but the lid's open now and still no response—has this bastard gone deaf? What the hell?
>[Chapter 112: The Situation (2)] End