Chapter 246
Chapter 246
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 246
Chapter Title: Heavenly Realm
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It had been about three days since then when the Sword Demon and I visited the Azure Dragon Martial Hall. During that time, the Sword Demon had put even more effort into organizing his sect's affairs. The reason was that the Shadowless Sect, which had recently joined the Thirteen Laws, still had a fragile foundation. I couldn't interfere with the Sword Demon, so for those three days, I simply reviewed my own martial arts.
"They're gone."
Upon arriving at the Azure Dragon Martial Hall, there were no trainees in sight. Even Yun Gwang, the Thunder God Style instructor, and Ji Pyeong were absent. The vast hall looked like an empty, abandoned building. We walked inside, but there were no signs of life, so after roughly half a shichen of searching, we left the Azure Dragon Martial Hall. As the Sword Demon walked out, he muttered,
"As expected, with the conflict against the Wind God Style fully underway, they couldn't hold out at the Azure Dragon Martial Hall. I had my suspicions..."
"What should we do?"
"From what we learned last time at the Maiden Sect, there's still no word of Lee Gwang in the martial world. It means they're still only deploying Jin So-cheong on the surface for guerrilla warfare. To find Lee Gwang, we'll need to make a separate effort."
"It's frustrating that we couldn't pin down a specific time and place back then."
"It wasn't the right situation."
The Sword Demon spoke briefly, then continued.
"Rather than Lee Gwang, we should track Jin So-cheong's movements first. The two are inseparable, like needle and thread, so finding Jin So-cheong is as good as finding Lee Gwang."
The Sword Demon activated the Maiden Sect's intelligence network once more. After about half a day, the Maiden Sect's leader appeared to trade information. I had brought the information fee in advance.
"Jin So-cheong has earned the moniker Divine Spear, and recent reports say he's headed to the Mount Zhongnan Sect."
"Divine Spear... That fits. But Mount Zhongnan Sect?"
"Yes."
"Why there?"
"I'm not sure about the reason."
"......"
The Sword Demon pondered deeply before asking another question.
"What happened to his pursuit of the Eight Demonic Lords of the Eight Demonic Sects?"
"Excluding you, Sword Demon, and the Black Demon, they've all been defeated. At this point, you two could be called the Twin Demonic Lords."
"Kekeke! Twin Demonic Lords?"
The Sword Demon let out a hollow laugh, as if it was absurd.
"How did the Black Demon survive?"
"It seems he's completely disbanded the Black Night Sect and is constantly on the run. Even Jin So-cheong appears to have half-given up on him."
"I see. You may go."
Once the Maiden Sect's leader left, the Sword Demon stared in the direction she vanished and said,
"I'm convinced now. Jin So-cheong must have used the Maiden Sect's information. He leveraged their intelligence to learn about the Eight Demonic Sects and strike them."
"Jin So-cheong using the Maiden Sect's information? That doesn't make sense."
I retorted in disbelief.
"Why not?"
"Jin So-cheong has never let any of the Eight Demonic Lords live after facing them. The Maiden Sect's leader, the Yin Demon, fell to Jin So-cheong's hand, so how could she provide information to her sect's enemy?"
"Kekeke..."
The Sword Demon chuckled loudly before saying,
"That's not the case. The Thunder God Style realistically can't use the Beggar Clan or Embroidered Uniform's information. But to fight a massive force like the Wind God Style, intelligence is essential. Without the Maiden Sect's network, the Thunder God Style couldn't even fight in the first place."
"Ah."
"If Lee Gwang or Jin So-cheong aren't fools, they'd spare at least minimal collaborators."
Hearing the Sword Demon's words sparked a sudden realization in me.
"Are you saying the Maiden Sect's Yin Demon faked her death and is actually cooperating with the Thunder God Style?"
"That's likely. Though the Yin Demon is said to be dead, that information came solely from the Maiden Sect. Circumstantially, it's clear the Thunder God Style and Maiden Sect are working together."
"Hmm."
"The Yin Demon has long been skeptical of the Eight Demonic Sects' very existence. She might be using this chance to borrow the Thunder God Style's power to dismantle the Eight Demonic Sects, launder her past, and reemerge as a neutral righteous sect."
"......"
"The Black Demon specializes in hiding while doing contract killings, so even the Maiden Sect can't track him down. The other Lords had domineering natures and couldn't hide as well as him."
If the Sword Demon's speculation was correct, it all fit together. The Eight Demonic Lords, leaders of the Eight Demonic Sects, weren't fools either, so they would have tried to avoid fighting Jin So-cheong. Yet Jin So-cheong had relentlessly tracked and confronted them in this short time thanks to help from the Maiden Sect, fellow members of the Eight Demonic Sects and information specialists.
The Sword Demon stroked his chin.
"We could coax the Maiden Sect's leader into arranging a meeting with the Yin Demon, but that'd be difficult. As a publicly dead person, she'd desperately avoid me. For now, let's head to the Mount Zhongnan Sect where Jin So-cheong went."
"I've been to the Mount Zhongnan Sect's main headquarters. We can go straight there with Instant Step."
"Even so, let's move only to the village in front. We need to assess the situation."
"Yes."
Flash!
The Sword Demon and I arrived at the village before Mount Zhongnan. We checked for any signs of Jin So-cheong here, but he wasn't present. He either hadn't arrived yet or had already entered Mount Zhongnan— one of the two. The Sword Demon pondered before saying,
"Why would Jin So-cheong come to the Mount Zhongnan Sect?"
"Hmm..."
"He's nearly finished subduing the Eight Demonic Sects he targeted, leaving only the conflict with the Wind God Style. In that context, Mount Zhongnan Sect... Hmm..."
As the Sword Demon sat on a bench in thought, a sudden idea struck me, and I spoke up.
"Could it be because of the Yellow Mountain Sect?"
"Yellow Mountain Sect?"
"The Yellow Mountain Sect is the Wind God Style's largest base in the Central Plains. Their sect leader, Dragon Sword God Yong Jung-il, is direct blood kin to the Wind God Style's guardian warrior Yong Bi-cheon."
"Hoo. That makes sense. So he's come to enlist cooperation from the Mount Zhongnan Sect and Mount Hua Sect, who oppose the Yellow Mountain Sect?"
"Yes. Or perhaps to expose that the Yellow Mountain Sect is the Wind God Style."
"Hmm..."
The Sword Demon thought long and hard, then nodded.
"You seem right. With Mount Zhongnan's Supreme Sword Yeon Jeong-hong there, it's reasonable to think that way."
Hearing him, a question arose in me—more like an itch from piecing together uncertain info accumulated over my past lives. I asked the Sword Demon,
"Yeon Jeong-hong is the Mount Zhongnan Sect's top expert and sect leader among the Nine Great Righteous Sects. Just how skilled is he?"
"Shaanxi's Number One!"
The Sword Demon declared firmly.
"Even though Mount Hua Sect surpasses Mount Zhongnan in both quantity and quality of experts, Mount Zhongnan can rival them solely thanks to Yeon Jeong-hong. I once saw his prowess at a gathering between the Eight Demonic Sects and Nine Great Righteous Sects in the past—he was truly an extraordinary expert."
"......!!"
"That's why Lee Gwang can accept him as a close friend. Someone like Lee Gwang doesn't befriend those not on his level."
I was startled.
'That level?'
For the Sword Demon to openly call him impressive meant Yeon Jeong-hong was a transcendent expert even back then. Now, quite some time after the early stages, his level was immeasurable. It wasn't for nothing that Jin So-cheong had tensed up before him when we raided the Mount Zhongnan Sect before.
The Sword Demon said,
"Waiting in the village is pointless without knowing where Jin So-cheong is. We'll have no choice but to infiltrate the Mount Zhongnan Sect."
"Shall we move to the main headquarters building?"
"Yes."
Flash!
Using Instant Step, I transported the Sword Demon and myself to a remote spot in the Mount Zhongnan Sect's main headquarters. Sensing no presence, we began moving while concealing our own.
"This way."
The Sword Demon seemed to sense something and ghosted toward it. There were Mount Zhongnan experts everywhere, but the Sword Demon used the Seven Stars Stealth Shadow harmony for superb concealment, so it was no issue. I followed suit quietly, but my lower attainment in Seven Stars Stealth Shadow had me breaking a sweat.
Eventually, we reached a secluded area far from the main headquarters—a hermitage in the midst of a dense forest. Hiding our presence in the woods, we observed it, and spotted a single figure inside.
'Mount Zhongnan's Supreme Sword Yeon Jeong-hong!'
He sat still in meditation. The Sword Demon watched him for a while, and after about one shichen, strode toward the hermitage.
"Good to see you, Yeon Jeong-hong."
He was revealing himself to Yeon Jeong-hong here?!
I couldn't fathom the Sword Demon's thinking and panicked, but had no choice but to follow. Then, Mount Zhongnan's Supreme Sword Yeon Jeong-hong, in meditation, half-opened his eyes and replied.
"I wondered who it was—Sword Demon Seomun Daeryong."
"It's been since that past gathering. Good to see you, Sect Leader Yeon."
Yeon Jeong-hong showed no surprise. He'd likely faintly noticed the Sword Demon's concealment too. That was why the Sword Demon had emerged—hiding further was pointless. Yeon Jeong-hong rose and said,
"What brings you to our sect?"
"To be direct, I came because I heard Jin So-cheong was coming to meet you."
"Hoo..."
Yeon Jeong-hong blinked before saying,
"What do you plan to do upon meeting Jin So-cheong?"
"The Triple Excellence Lee Gwang and I made a promise. He'd have his sect's guardian warrior spar with me. But with Lee Gwang hiding somewhere in the martial world without a trace, I have no choice but to tell his disciple Jin So-cheong."
"Are you certain?"
"I, the Sword Demon, have never spoken falsely from birth until now."
For a moment, Yeon Jeong-hong and the Sword Demon's eyes met. Yeon Jeong-hong observed us with deep, abyssal eyes before turning to me. Then he said,
"A prodigy of the world. But still unripe to rival Lee Gwang, no?"
"That's nothing for you to worry about."
"Heh heh. You're truly an odd one..."
Yeon Jeong-hong grinned as if amused. Then he said,
"Wait here a moment. I'll bring Jin So-cheong."
As expected, Jin So-cheong was already at the Mount Zhongnan Sect, meeting Yeon Jeong-hong. As we sat in the hermitage waiting, he soon returned with Jin So-cheong. Jin So-cheong looked shocked upon seeing the Sword Demon but quickly regained composure and cupped his fists.
"It's been a while, Sword Demon Seomun Daeryong."
"Have you been well?"
"No major issues."
The Sword Demon eyed him before saying,
"You can guess why I've come?"
Jin So-cheong gave an awkward smile.
"I am inadequate. My master has been busy lately and rarely shows himself in the martial world. Allow me to apologize on his behalf for the discourtesy."
"Haha, enough of that. In any case, I believe it's time to fulfill our promise."
With that opener, the Sword Demon gazed sharply at empty air and continued.
"Isn't that right? Triple Excellence Lee Gwang!"
Swoosh...
"......!!"
In that instant, as if space itself parted, Lee Gwang naturally appeared from what had been empty air. I thought it was sorcery or spatial translocation and was shocked, but the transcendent experts present showed no reaction—it seemed to be an Intent Severing Technique. With intent manipulation, one could not only control perception but also blend into nature and emerge like a daylight goblin.
Lee Gwang had apparently been at the Mount Zhongnan Sect with Jin So-cheong. He stared at the Sword Demon before saying,
"You have a peculiar obsession. What's so important about letting that young pup gain experience that you'd follow him all the way here?"
"Hahaha. Just as you cherish Jin So-cheong, I cherish my own disciple. It's nothing shameful to want him to exchange moves with an expert."
Lee Gwang groaned in frustration. As expected, the Sword Demon was a burdensome opponent for him. After some thought, he said,
"Fine. The location is perfect, so let's have your sect's guardian warrior Baek Woong spar right here."
"Ah, but before that, one thing I'd like to ask."
"What is it?"
The Sword Demon looked at Lee Gwang with meaningful eyes before saying,
"Have you ever heard the name Dugoseong?"
"......!!"
Lee Gwang couldn't hide his agitation. Even the iron-willed veteran was shocked by the sudden topic. He then said with a fearsome expression,
"...What about Dugoseong?"
"Nothing major. Recently, I came across information about him, and I might have more to share."
"Don't beat around the bush. If you have info on Dugoseong, I'll pay any price to obtain it."
Lee Gwang seemed feverish. The Sword Demon grinned slyly and replied,
"Haha. Let's finish the spar first and talk after. We should foster friendship, no?"
"...Fine."
Swoosh.
Lee Gwang stepped forward. Facing him, I thought,
'Thank you, Master.'
The Sword Demon had brought up Dugoseong for no other reason than to prevent Lee Gwang from using lethal strikes under the guise of a mistake. If he upset the Sword Demon, who held key info on Dugoseong, he'd never learn about it. The Sword Demon had set up a safeguard for my sake.
I gritted my teeth and gripped my sword tightly.
The day had finally come.
The day to cross swords with Lee Gwang as a third party!
"Please advise me."
Right here, right now.
"Come."
To resolve a hundred years of grudge.