Chapter 220
Chapter 220
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 220
>Chapter Title: Dog Child (3)
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The moment I heard the words spat out by the middle-aged beggar in front of me, that thought came to mind first.
‘Wow. This trick exists here too?’
Heavenly Demon dog child. Isn’t that just calling me the Heavenly Demon’s bastard?
Honestly, at first I was like, ‘Why make me do something this stupid?’ But soon enough, it struck me as a pretty valid tactic.
‘Everyone who sees Master flips their shit and starts praising him nonstop, so yeah, it’s guaranteed to work.’
Forget making someone say it—they’d flip out and draw their weapons the second anyone uttered “Heavenly Demon dog child” in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Just look at Jin Ha-yeon.
‘Good thing I came alone.’
The Beggars’ Sect deputy seemed pretty high up in skill, so to hide my identity and forces, I’d come without bringing anyone else.
If guys like Dam Bin or Jin Ha-yeon were nearby, they’d have charged in to lop off that deputy’s head on the spot.
‘Master. It’s a sacrifice for the greater good. Please understand.’
After silently begging my master’s forgiveness in my head, I cautiously opened my mouth.
“Heavenly Demon. Dog child.”
The moment those irreverent words left my lips, a strange thrill shot through me.
I’d always cursed the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult in my head as a pack of insane cult fanatics in my diary, but this was the first time I’d ever said it out loud.
And right after I spat that insult about my master.
The middle-aged beggar suddenly shot up from his chair, bowed his head, cupped his fists, and paid his respects.
“I apologize for my rudeness today. Since this is Gansu Province, I had to prepare for any possibilities.”
All traces of his previous shady attitude were gone—he’d transformed into a perfectly polite beggar.
It felt oddly uncomfortable seeing someone who looked at least fifty showing such utmost courtesy.
“I understand completely.”
At my response, the deputy straightened up and opened his mouth with the most innocent smile in the world.
“More importantly, I was truly amazed by this place. Everyone looks so happy. In my short thirty-seven years of life, I’ve never seen a place with such a wonderful atmosphere.”
“…Thirty-seven years?”
That face?
I’d pegged him at over fifty at least.
‘Even living as a beggar, how does a face age like that?’
Thinking about it, it made sense enough.
‘Come to think of it, back in the military, I mistook our company commander for my dad’s age just from his face.’
When I found out he was in his late thirties. That’s when I realized career military life was no joke.
Misinterpreting my words a bit, the deputy flashed a bright smile that didn’t suit his wrinkled face.
“Hahaha! Thirty-seven years without seeing anything like it! You’ve achieved true benevolence here…. Our Beggars’ Sect should learn from this and teach beggars trades so they can earn their own keep.”
Feeling awkwardly flattered by the old beggar’s praise, I decided to shift the conversation topic a little.
After all, there was a specific reason for meeting the deputy.
“Ahem. Truth be told, there’s another reason I arranged this meeting.”
“Another reason?”
As the deputy asked back, I slipped my hand into my sleeve and pulled out a booklet.
One labeled [Blood Chronicle].
“What a sinister-looking book.”
The deputy frowned at the dark red lettering.
“Have you heard anything about a guy called Ghost Valley Man who was active in Shanxi Province a few years back?”
“Hmm… Ah! I’ve heard of that mountain called Ghost Valley Mountain. Everyone who went in vanished without a trace, so a few beggars even went to investigate.”
As expected from the Beggars’ Sect, an info network—they knew something.
With the conversation flowing easily, I gladly shared what I’d seen in Hollow Mountain and Pingliang County.
How they used Illusory Dream Formation and flower pollen to brainwash the masses.
The formation arrayed across Hollow Mountain.
Traces of countless human sacrifices and ominous sorceries.
“If you don’t believe me, read what’s in that book. It’s about sorcery, so it might be hard to understand, but it mentions using human blood as offerings.”
At my suggestion, the deputy opened the Blood Chronicle and started reading, only to slam it shut before finishing.
“…How could such evil exist!”
I spoke to the deputy, his face flushed with uncontainable rage.
“It’s not certain, but between the blood sorceries and everything else, I suspect they were connected to the Blood Cult.”
“!!!”
The deputy’s shocked expression lasted a moment. Then he seemed lost in thought before nodding and speaking.
“It’s certainly worth suspecting.”
“Exactly. We’d step in if we could, but we don’t have the power yet to scour the Central Plains hunting Blood Cultists. So, we’d like to ask the Beggars’ Sect—famous for your righteousness, chivalry, and unmatched information network—to handle this.”
Was it the flattery about their righteousness and chivalry? Or genuine justice, wanting to exterminate those vile bastards?
The deputy shot to his feet, face blazing with fury, and shouted boldly.
“Don’t worry! The Beggars’ Sect won’t let scum like that get away!”
Realizing he was fully on board, I nodded and said.
“Then I’ll tell you how to pass through the formation on Hollow Mountain. Investigate Hollow Mountain, Pingliang County, and that Ghost Valley Mountain where Ghost Valley Man supposedly lived—something should turn up.”
“Your desire for peace in the jianghu is truly worthy of the title great hero! I’ll send letters right now and mobilize every Beggars’ Sect member in Gansu to start investigating Hollow Mountain and Pingliang County.”
As I struggled to hide my joy at the news of dragging every beggar in Gansu into it, the deputy suddenly looked like something had occurred to him.
“Ahem. You can leave the Blood Cult matter entirely to our Beggars’ Sect, but I have one request.”
“Feel free.”
“Investigating the Blood Cult will tie up our eyes and ears. If it’s not too much trouble, could the Maitreya Illuminated Cult keep an eye on the Demonic Cult for us? This place is close to Xinjiang, after all.”
“Of course—we should.”
Watching the Demonic Cult was no trouble. Half the people around me were Demonic Cultists anyway—just turn my head.
At my firm reply, the deputy spoke gravely, like he was offering advice.
“The Maitreya Illuminated Cult seems righteous enough that you’ll join the Martial Alliance someday. Let me share some info from them.”
Info from the Martial Alliance? I perked up immediately.
“For the past few years, the Demonic Cult’s movements have been unusual. That’s why we suspected the Maitreya Illuminated Cult too—their activity.”
“Unusual movements…. If it’s not rude, could you be more specific?”
“There are rumors they’ve started teaching kids in Xinjiang demonic arts willy-nilly. Probably raising monstrous killers to invade the Central Plains.”
I nearly flinched but managed to keep my expression neutral thanks to my civil servant training.
“…Truly vile bastards.”
All we did was give kids a chance at education.
‘What the hell do these righteous fools think the Demonic Cult is?’
Glancing at the Demonic Cultists around me, it didn’t seem like a misunderstanding.
Back when I pushed education reform, just suggesting delaying demonic arts training made Master and the Demonic Path Academy head froth at the mouth.
‘…They saw it right.’
It hit me anew how many lunatics surrounded me.
But that wasn’t the point now.
‘These guys already figured that out.’
The key was that the righteous sects already knew we were teaching Xinjiang kids.
“So, is the Martial Alliance preparing for war with the Demonic Cult? It’ll be dangerous once they mass-produce those murder machines.”
The deputy nodded like it made sense.
“I think so too, but there are a few issues holding back war prep.”
“If it’s not rude, could you share what you can with us?”
“Hahaha. Alliance internal matters are off-limits, but Demonic Cult stuff? No problem. If it was just teaching kids, fine—but their weird actions have opinions split sharply on war.”
“Weird actions?”
“Yeah. Those infamous brutal enforcers are supposedly pulling carriages with kids in them. Not with horses—with people.”
“…….”
“And they’re wandering Xinjiang surveying ley lines, or digging in the desert middle to plant trees and flowers. So in the Alliance, some say they’ve just gone mad from demonic arts.”
“…….”
I had nothing to say.
Most of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult were lunatics, but this was different.
‘That… was my orders?’
The enforcers pulling carriages? That was for kids’ school commutes.
I just hadn’t expected Master to make people—not horses—pull them.
Ley line surveys and planting flowers? No need to explain.
‘You guys know about the greening project!?’
I couldn’t exactly call them out on it.
“Ahem. Y-yeah, they do seem pretty crazy.”
“So the Alliance is leaning toward watch-and-wait for now. Oh, one more odd bit of info, but it’s so absurd.”
“With the Maitreya Illuminated Cult now bordering Xinjiang, even ridiculous Demonic Cult intel could be useful.”
I said it to gauge how deeply the Martial Alliance had dug into the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
But the response was unexpected.
“It’s about the Heavenly Demon’s newest disciple, the Eighth Young Master.”
“…Eighth Young Master?”
My voice trembled slightly without meaning to, my eyes nearly shaking.
No way they’d already figured me out.
Sure, I’d suspected the Martial Alliance at first during that pre-academy assassination attempt.
But it turned out to be the former Protection Yard Leader’s doing. Later, the former Elder Leader was involved too.
Either way, internal job—so I figured the Alliance didn’t know about me yet.
“Is there something about the Eighth Young Master?”
Hiding my unease, I asked. The deputy shrugged casually.
“Word is, all those bizarre Demonic Cult policies came from that Eighth Young Master. Not only that—this guy supposedly reached peak realm at fifteen, mastered sorcery at seventeen to dig wells saving the thirsty, and months later hit superhuman realm with sword aura.”
“…….”
“Even fanatics know idolization and exaggeration have limits. It’s so over-the-top no one buys it.”
“…….”
Everything except the sorcery mastery was true, so I had no comeback.
Not like I could brag about my achievements here.
“Ahem. Yeah, sounds pretty exaggerated.”
“Well, it’s overblown, but the Heavenly Demon doting on his youngest disciple seems real. Why else credit him for all that?”
The deputy nodded to himself, explaining his theory.
“Fast demonic arts progress, and favored by the Heavenly Demon—even if superhuman’s a stretch, he’s probably nearing peak realm’s end now. In their terms, near Extreme Demon. Maybe hyping sword threads as sword aura.”
I gladly nodded at his completely off-base reasoning.
“Very sound deduction.”
He nodded back at my reply.
“Anyway, he’s someone to watch, so keep an eye on the Eighth Young Master.”
That thought crossed my mind.
Maybe hand over the diary I’d been diligently writing for over three years since getting dragged into the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.