Chapter 313
Chapter 313
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 313
>Chapter Title: The Passage of Time (2)
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The path leading from the eastern foothills of the Heavenly Myriad Mountains toward the New River.
Given a brief rest, Il-mok closed his eyes as if in meditation, repeating deep breaths.
Sinking deep into his inner self, Il-mok repeated only one thought to himself.
‘Trample them.’
Naturally, the first image that came to mind was the martial prowess the Heavenly Demon had displayed.
With each step the Heavenly Demon took, the nomads collapsing like insects, writhing on the ground.
Once that single image filled his mind completely, Il-mok snapped his eyes open and drew up his internal energy from his dantian.
Il-mok's demonic qi, flowing out of his body through his meridians, surged precisely toward the spot he was staring at.
Staring at a tree stump, Il-mok approached it, repeating the same thought inwardly.
‘Trample them.’
And with each step Il-mok took toward the tree stump.
Step.
The density of the qi gathering at the tree stump increased.
Step.
He advanced slowly like this for a moment. When the distance to the tree stump was about a zhang away.
Fine cracks formed along the growth rings on the tree stump.
“Ugh.”
Il-mok clutched his head with his right hand and halted his steps.
At the same time, the demonic qi pressing down on the tree stump scattered away like heat haze, futilely.
At that moment. From behind Il-mok, who was suffering from the headache, came a kindly laugh.
“Heh heh heh. Excellent.”
To his master's praise, Il-mok forced a smile and replied.
“I am deeply sorry that I cannot even take a single step toward following Master's teachings.”
On the way back to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's main headquarters. Whenever he had time, Il-mok repeated training like this, following the Heavenly Demon's guidance.
The Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon.
However, the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon he executed was mere child's play compared to his master's.
And through several repetitions of this training, Il-mok realized a very important fact.
Even after becoming somewhat accustomed to executing the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon, this technique was extremely inefficient—a crucial fact.
Visualizing trampling someone in his mind while simultaneously manipulating qi projected outside the body demanded an enormous amount of mental energy.
Doing two tasks at once, each burdensome enough on its own, felt like his brain was burning up.
Moreover, even with all that effort, to suppress dozens or hundreds at once like his master had done would require a terrifying amount of demonic qi.
That was the difference between the mindset of trampling foes with mere intent that the Heavenly Demon had displayed and the formula of the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon he had been taught.
The former was a feat impossible to realize without ascending to the Heavenly Canon Scripture.
The half-baked imitation martial art known as the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon was, in truth, an art that reached the pinnacle of inefficiency.
Nevertheless, the reason Il-mok trained in the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon was quite simple.
‘Whew. For training in manipulating qi outside the body, nothing beats this. Perfect for focus training too.’
As the Heavenly Demon had said, the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon was an excellent technique for training rather than its own power.
Il-mok, feeling the headache from the rapid mental energy drain, closed his eyes again as soon as it subsided and sank back into meditation.
Watching Il-mok train in the Supremacy of the Heavenly Demon once more, the Heavenly Demon soon stood with hands behind his back, a satisfied smile on his face.
Il-mok opened his eyes and took a few steps toward the tree stump again.
Step. Step.
This time, larger cracks formed on the tree stump than before, and a childlike smile appeared on Il-mok's face.
It was a strange sight.
In the past, he had trained in martial arts simply to survive.
He had been kidnapped and brought to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. By the hand of his master, the Heavenly Demon.
And because he had learned the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword, which carried the insane side effect of obsession, he had trained to eliminate that side effect.
Yet now, with the compulsion gone, he seemed to actually enjoy training in martial arts.
But this was inevitable.
Power had that much addictiveness.
Not just the power to kill or coerce others.
Controlling qi with the mind, and in the future, interfering in the world's principles with the mind.
Each step upward brought a feeling like becoming an immortal, inevitably drawing out a smile.
Thus, Il-mok thought.
‘Heh heh heh. Now that the Oirat tribe's khan is gone too, once the trade routes stabilize completely, I can take it easy, rest, and train in martial arts now and then.’
If he had leisure later, even if he tossed aside work, he would at least train a little in martial arts.
It wasn't just for the fun of getting stronger.
It was because, fighting against the black path gangs of the martial world, the hypocrites of the orthodox faction, the Huihui cultists of the western regions, and the northern nomads, he had realized the most important fact.
That this world was one where the weak were devoured.
* * *
A few days later. Il-mok, the Heavenly Demon, and the group crossed the New River and arrived at the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's main headquarters.
Since some had been injured in the battle with the nomadic warriors, they decided to stay at the headquarters for a few days for rest and treatment.
On the way after parting with his master in front of the Heavenly Demon Hall. The Heavenly Demon smiled gently at Il-mok and said,
“It worked out for the best. The first and sixth brothers said they've missed seeing you because you've been busy going back and forth between the western commandery and Gansu, and it's been so long.”
“…I will visit them soon.”
Il-mok, who had been throwing slaves into the Demonic Horse Pavilion like discarding trash and fleeing, thought, ‘It's come at last.’
To escape reality, Il-mok headed to Wind Rock Hall first, to rest for the day.
The maidservants welcomed Il-mok back from greeting the Heavenly Demon, and unusually, Jeong-hyeon stepped forward toward him.
“Y-Young Master. Th-there's s-something I need to tell you.”
“Speak freely.”
“Th-the power of this s-strange bow you g-gave me as a g-gift is v-very impressive, b-but there's o-one problem.”
Jeong-hyeon spoke very cautiously.
She was always overly cautious in conversations with others, but this time even more so.
After all, she had to complain about an item the Young Master Il-mok had thoughtfully gifted her.
“Th-the arrows are t-too big and h-heavy, so if the b-battle drags on, it's a b-big problem.”
She had fully realized this issue after the battle with the Oirat tribe.
Even during the battle, the arrows ran out quickly, forcing her to borrow O-hallak's bow, but the bigger problem came after.
“B-because there weren't enough arrows, I h-had to search the b-battlefield to f-find and reuse them.”
On top of that, after recovering the arrows covered in blood, flesh, and other gruesome matter, she had to clean or wash them to reuse. Since it was a specially made bow, reuse was essential.
Hearing her plight, a certain image naturally formed in Il-mok's mind.
Her rummaging through the entire mountain to find arrows.
‘…What, she's not some soldier who lost her spent casings.’
As a camouflage battle uniform naturally overlaid her imagined figure, Il-mok vigorously shook his head.
‘Horrifying.’
Reminded of the nightmare from the Sichuan Secret Passage Blood Death, Il-mok hurriedly apologized to Jeong-hyeon.
“Ahem. Sorry, Miss Jeong. I overlooked an important part. I'll think of a solution for that.”
Was it because memories of his previous life's horrific military surfaced?
‘The issue is the bow's power… With the spirit beast's bones and hide remaining, maybe I can make something.’
Strangely, he found the clue in memories from his previous life.
* * *
The next day.
Il-mok moved to follow his master's orders.
However, since meeting the eldest senior brother could be life-threatening, he headed first to where the sixth senior brother was.
At the entrance to the massive compound Il-mok arrived at hung a plaque reading [Entry Academy].
When Il-mok first bought the color-eyed people and nomads, he couldn't keep calling them ‘slaves,’ so various names had been suggested early on.
Like ‘Foreigners' Education Center’ or ‘Color-Eyed Initiation Academy.’
But by the Heavenly Demon's order, expressions like ‘foreign’ or ‘color-eyed’ were all withdrawn.
It was because of the grand principle that, regardless of nationality or skin color, once they joined the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, they were all equal members.
Thanks to that, the simplest name ‘Entry Academy’ stuck. Moreover, even former slaves were now just called cultists or believers of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Entering the Entry Academy, Il-mok saw the newly joined color-eyed people and nomads.
They were diligently receiving instruction from the Demonic Horse Pavilion instructors, chanting Central Plains tongue with awkward pronunciation.
Moving along while briefly observing them, Il-mok soon found Jong-ri Chu.
It was truly an astonishing sight.
“Engrave the teachings of the Great Heavenly Demon, Blood Rain Heavenly Demon, deep in your heart.”
It had been only half a year since he first bought and initiated the slaves, yet here was the surreal scene of him already teaching doctrine.
‘…Blood Rain Heavenly Demon? That crazy punishment fanatic?’
The madman who periodically tore apart villains in front of the masses to instill fear in the common folk.
And the color-eyed person receiving this gruesome doctrine education was, curiously, just one.
The color-eyed man receiving one-on-one doctrine instruction from Jong-ri Chu was someone Il-mok recognized.
From the first time he bought slaves, this man had picked up the Central Plains tongue unusually quickly.
‘His name was… James?’
Recalling the middle-aged Englishman's name, Il-mok approached Jong-ri Chu and James and greeted first.
“Your youngest junior brother greets Sixth Senior Brother.”
“Come in!”
Jong-ri Chu welcomed Il-mok with a bright smile, and James hurriedly performed a fist-and-palm salute toward Il-mok.
Seeing a color-eyed person greeting with a fist-and-palm salute felt novel in many ways.
Especially.
‘…What did he eat wrong? Why are his eyes like that?’
The emotion of ‘faith’ was emanating from the man's pupils.
He had tried to hide it, but it was clearly the terrified gaze he once had.
“Ahem. How's life here?”
When Il-mok asked in a lukewarm tone, James replied with conviction.
“Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. Great. Thank you for bringing me here. Thank you again.”
“…….”
Il-mok involuntarily looked at Jong-ri Chu with suspicion-filled eyes.
He wondered if they had fed him some strange drug and brainwashed him, like that Ghost Valley bastard's methods.
It was a misunderstanding.
About a month ago. Once James became somewhat proficient in the Central Plains tongue, he began studying doctrine and realized he had held prejudices.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. This place was not some evil denomination.
It was a holy site teaching excellent doctrine.
The doctrine that all humans harbor evil within, and those with power vent that evil to torment the masses, resonated deeply with him.
Above all, the cult's principle of executing such evildoers and saving the masses felt beautiful.
After all, he himself had been just a lowly deckhand exploited by those with power.
“Western world. Too many evildoers. Nobles. Rich people, they torment us. Catholicism. Sells indulgences. Not on our side. But Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. Saves the pitiful people.”
“Hahaha. This friend seems to hope our cult's doctrine spreads to the west soon.”
As Jong-ri Chu chimed in cheerfully, James nodded with a reverent face.
“Sixth Young Lord's words. Correct. They are the words of Blood Rain Heavenly Demon. Western world. Must dye it red with the blood of bad men to save the pitiful people!”
“Hahaha! You've remembered today's lesson perfectly! Excellent!”
“…….”
Watching his beaming sixth senior brother and the reverent James, Il-mok stared at them with a speechless expression.
‘Dye the western world red with the blood of nobles and rich people…?’
For some reason, Il-mok began to doubt James's nationality.