205
205
The Demonic Cult's affairs are resolved within the Demonic Cult.
"Finally — my turn, just the two of us traveling together!"
Upon my proposal to head to Shaanxi and bed the Demonic Sword Consort, Lee Si-a let out a cheer.
"Of course, it's my turn this time, right? Huh?"
"Naturally."
I'd gone to Mount Hua Sect with Sagong Hee. I'd gone to the Hwangbo Clan with Dokgo Yeon.
As a result, Lee Si-a had fiercely wanted an outing herself. Having spent months in Hubei, she wanted to get out and have some fresh air for a change.
"It's fine, right? Huh?"
"Take care, Shia."
"Sister. Please take good care of Gaga."
"Of course. I'll keep my eyes peeled and make sure you don't bring home any more women, so don't worry."
Lee Si-a reassured Sagong Hee and Dokgo Yeon while glaring at me. Her tone sounded like she was telling them she'd watch me, but I could read her eyes.
Wink.
Among the three, the woman who would let me embrace other women to my heart's content was Lee Si-a. The moment she leaves Hubei, she's the woman who will allow me to freely take other women.
"I'll head out carefully."
I finished preparing to depart with Lee Si-a. To move covertly without drawing attention, I'd readied an all-black uniform.
"This is really comfortable!"
Lee Si-a was very pleased with the newly modified Moon Woman suit tailored for her. After seeing the Moon Woman suit on Dokgo Yeon, the two women had urged me to make one for them too, and I'd crafted a new Moon Woman suit for Lee Si-a for this trip.
"Ta-da."
Lee Si-a lifted the skirt that barely covered half her thighs. Tight black inner pants that just barely concealed her buttocks covered her lower half.
"If anyone looks, they'll only be disappointed, right? If some guy thinks, 'There's no way she can kick in that,' I'll crush his face. What do you think?"
"A good idea."
Any man would be distracted by what's under that skirt and unable to concentrate on the fight. Some might curse Lee Si-a's boldly exposed lower body as lewd and cowardly, but who cares?
It's nothing new — Lee Si-a is a demon.
She's the type to use her physical beauty to draw a man's gaze and then land a punch; she actively exploits it.
"Still, you're truly bold. To wear this just because I dressed you in it."
"It's pretty. If you look at me and get lustful thoughts, that's all that matters."
Lee Si-a proudly displayed her fully exposed back. The fabric covering the front gathered at the center of her lower back to cover her buttocks, leaving her shoulder blades and pale white back openly visible.
"If I didn't have this, I wouldn't have worn something like this."
Lee Si-a draped a black cloak over the Moon Woman suit. The outfit that had been sheer lewdness instantly turned demure with the long cloak. After tying a belt around her waist, I brought out a secret weapon for her.
"Shia, wear this too."
"...Wait. What is this?"
"Pride."
Shia's face flushed bright red at the squishy, soft object in her hands. Even though she'd been unfazed by exposing her back and showing her legs completely, the moment she realized the purpose of the item I'd handed her, she started getting angry, blushing with shame.
"The Heavenly Demon doesn't do stuff like this! Besides, everyone would know even if I wore it!"
"Even if they know, it looks pretty when worn. That's the point."
The Moon Woman suit included special protective gear for women who lacked volume around the middle dantian. It also shaped the clothes nicely, but more importantly, it helped protect the heart and keep the body warm.
"False Breasts. Won't you put them in?"
The material replicated about nine-tenths of Lee Si-a's buttocks. It was composed only of elements harmless to the human body, and there was no worry of them falling out unless she moved violently using her martial arts at full power.
"If you wear these, it will be good for both of us."
"Why?"
"Because I can caress your breasts, and you won't get too sexually aroused from the caresses."
"That makes me even angrier!"
Lee Si-a held the false breasts in both hands with a face that looked like she might cry.
"With these, you can become similar to Yeon."
"...Just you wait. I'll definitely grow at least as much as her for real."
Lee Si-a pulled the shoulder of her cloak aside and tilted it back. I pushed the false breasts in from the sides, then reached around from behind and adjusted them with my hands, as if caressing her breasts.
"Perfect."
"......."
Lee Si-a sighed with a look of resignation. She looked like she had a lot to say, but she grumbled while looking at her body, which now had wavy curves instead of a flat line.
"...When we do it later, don't take off my top."
"Of course. By then, I can just do this."
I lifted the skirt of the Moon Woman suit and grabbed her buttocks with my hand. Its firm, cozy feel made my Yang energy surge.
"Then let's head to Shaanxi."
"Wait. You're not thinking of going straight to Shaanxi, are you?"
After Lee Si-a had fully donned her cloak and taken on the appearance of a demure lady, she pulled my hand.
"Since we still have time, how about we let the Demonic Sword Consort know that a very dangerous Sex Demon has appeared?"
"How?"
"That's obvious."
In the forest far from the Cheon Family Estate, where Sagong Hee and Dokgo Yeon couldn't hear, Lee Si-a secretly proposed to me.
"We pick one target, and on the way to her, we bed every woman we meet. When you traveled with Gyeon-hui and Yeon-i together, you must have held back and couldn't have your fill, right?"
"......That is extremely dangerous."
This is why traveling with Lee Si-a is a bit more comfortable. Because she actively encourages my Sex Demon antics.
"So who should we target?"
"There's one woman who's the easiest."
Lee Si-a rubbed her fingers together.
"Want to go take Dang Seo-hee after a long time?"
* * *
From Hubei to Sichuan.
The reason Lee Si-a mentioned Flame Demon and suggested going to Sichuan first was that the route I had taken with her on our first journey had been from Hubei to Sichuan.
"Hum, hm-hm, hum~"
Lee Si-a hummed a tune and walked beside me. In her maiden days, she had followed behind me warily, but now she stayed by my side without refusing my touch at all.
'It's finally taking effect.'
At first, she'd tap my hand, asking why I was touching her, and later she'd flinch and dodge. But now, even when I touched her, she acted calm or even enjoyed my touch.
Squeeze squeeze.
I had cut a horizontal slit in the back of her cloak at the waist — a hand pocket. My hand slid in, easily lifting the back of the Moon Woman suit to grab a handful.
"There are quite a few people ahead."
"Damn."
I pulled my hand out from behind Lee Si-a, then broke off a nearby branch and threw it forward like a throwing knife.
"Who goes there!"
"Bandits."
"I'll handle it quickly and be right back."
Lee Si-a tightened her black gloves and vanished forward. I guarded her back and followed; Lee Si-a scattered red gleams from her eyes and moved lightly like a wolf landing among a pack of rabbits.
"Kheok!!"
In the blink of an eye, she took down five men and left them unconscious. Lee Si-a handed me the gloves, and I used the Zhongli Divine Fire Well on the gloves to sterilize the parts that had touched the men's skin.
"What are bandits doing in a place like this...?"
"Looks like they're after an escort bureau?"
"An escort bureau?"
I recalled the map of the route we chose. It was a path heading west along the Yangtze River then straight toward Chengdu, with several fairly high and rugged mountains blocking the way at intervals.
'This isn't a suitable route for an escort bureau.'
Bashu is a region of rough terrain. The fastest way from Hubei to Chengdu in Sichuan isn't a straight line, but a winding route that goes up through Chongqing like a wave.
There's no way an escort bureau would travel through this area that even murim warriors avoid. Why would a bureau risk moving through when bandits appear like this?
"Shall we take a look?"
"A good idea. Let's go."
We held our breath at the spot where the bandits had been hiding. Below the ridge, there was a small path just wide enough for about two carts, and in the distance, escort warriors appeared with a wagon.
"Muyang Escort Agency? Recognize the name?"
"...It's an escort bureau of the Demonic Cult's Sichuan branch. But if it's that bureau, then clearly—"
"Kuhahaha! Halt, you bastards!"
The bandits shouted, making the canyon echo, and descended along the ridge. The escort warriors didn't even draw their swords and didn't respond to the bandits.
After instantly gauging the bandits' level, they looked indifferent, finding them not worth engaging.
Clearly, these were not ordinary escort warriors.
"I am the master of the <Ghost Camp> among the Green Forest 72 Stockades, 'Mountain Ghost'!"
"Ever heard of him?"
"No. A nobody I've never seen or heard of."
The bandit leader shouted, proudly thumping his chest. His bellowing was so loud that if government troops were nearby, they'd come running here immediately.
"You cannot simply pass through here! If you want to pass, pay the tax!"
"Why is that?"
The escort warrior who appeared to be the head of the group exuded an air of irritation.
"Not even government troops, yet demanding tolls. This is why bandits are..."
"Hahaha! Enough chattering! Attack!"
The bandits all rushed at the escort warriors. The warriors arrogantly tilted their heads back, then burst with black demonic energy and vanished from their spots.
"What?!"
They'd messed with the wrong people. The escort warriors were all demons who had learned demonic arts, and the bandits were subdued all too easily.
"Kill them."
In stark contrast to their brave charge, every time the demons swung their swords, a bandit's head went flying.
Thunk, thwock.
Lee Si-a frowned at the fact that their 'subduing' clearly meant 'killing.'
"They could have just maimed them and moved on."
Having spent time with Sagong Hee and Dokgo Yeon, she'd grown considerably gentler. She had always been that way, but now she wouldn't choose to kill unless the person absolutely had to die.
"This is why the Orthodox Faction and the Demonic Cult keep clashing and wanting to fight."
In the same situation, the Orthodox Faction would flaunt their strength and make the bandits flee, but the Demonic Cult simply kills them all.
"Seeing this, it seems black and white can never get along. Bi-cheon, what do you think? Even if I become the Heavenly Demon, will those demons listen to me?"
"If they don't listen, they'll either leave the Demonic Cult or pretend to obey while killing in secret."
No matter how much you suppress from above, you can't stop one or two from going off course.
"But at least seven out of ten, Shia, will respect your will. Because you will become stronger than anyone."
"I hope so. Suppressing with force, huh..."
Lee Si-a held my hand and smiled bitterly.
"To do that, I'll have to become stronger than this person here, right?"
"Heh heh, you think you can become stronger than me?"
"Of course. I'm the woman who will become the Heavenly Demon. I'll be the sole sovereign under heaven."
"Aiming for me is a desirable thing. Then, to avoid being caught by you, I'll fly even higher..."
I let go of Lee Si-a's hand. Lee Si-a also shut her eyes tightly.
"Who are you people?"
While we were talking, someone who had noticed our presence appeared before us. The middle-aged black-clad man mobilized all the trailing escort warriors — Demonic Cult members — and surrounded us.
"Why are such strong martial artists just standing there watching?"
"If you knew we were just watching, couldn't you just pretend you didn't see us and keep going?"
"Impossible. It is best to eliminate future trouble. Now that you may have learned our true identity, we must silence you, even if we have to annihilate you here."
The escort warriors began to give off demonic energy. I sensed that the man acting as the representative was incredibly strong, and it gave me goosebumps for no apparent reason.
"That fellow is at the Peak Realm."
"To be a regional Rear Fortress Lord, one must be at least at the Peak Realm."
"......How do you know about me?"
The head of the escort warriors grew clearly wary. To me, that reaction was even more suspicious. Lee Si-a tilted her head at him, then pointed at herself and asked me.
"It seems he doesn't know me. So is he on that bastard's side?"
"If he knew you and came to kill you, that would make sense, but seeing that confused expression on his face now, he doesn't know you at all... hmm."
I looked Lee Si-a up and down.
The Black-and-White First Flower — she had grown incomparably since her days at the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering. Not just taller, but her baby fat had faded, and she'd become a fine lady.
"Could it be that?"
"...Ah, no way."
Lee Si-a dismissed my suspicion. But that didn't mean Lee Si-a had eliminated the possibility entirely.
The only way to resolve this farce was to reveal our identities. Lee Si-a took off her hat and handed it to me.
"I didn't expect the Sichuan Rear Fortress Lord to personally lead an escort mission."
"......!!"
The man who was the head of the escort warriors and called the Sichuan Rear Fortress Lord wore an utterly alarmed expression—
"I greet the Princess!!"
He threw himself face-down on the ground and bowed his head. Lee Si-a lifted the corner of her lips in my direction as if to show off.
"The Heavenly Demon Divine Art is proof of existence itself."
Lee Si-a's eyes were gleaming red.