Chapter 167
Chapter 167
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 167
Chapter Title: To Sichuan (1)
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The death of the Sword Phantom brought massive upheaval to the martial world.
Gwan Woong and the Heavenly Demon Cult's leadership, who had accepted the Sword Phantom's mediation and abruptly retreated with the Nangong Clan within reach, didn't take the Blood Cult issue seriously at first.
Though Blood Cult spies had been confirmed lurking everywhere—especially disrupting the extraction of Divine Demon Division members, even breaking down reporting chains—they didn't see it as an immediate threat to the Heavenly Demon Cult.
Only when a full investigation began and key figures like the Undying Demon Physician Hwanoong, who had vanished into the shadows, and Deputy Shadow Fragrance Leader Dam Ik, who oversaw intelligence, along with several other core leaders, were confirmed as Blood Cult spies did Gwan Woong and the Heavenly Demon Cult leadership suffer a profound shock. The fact that elder-level figures like Hwanoong were spies meant the Blood Cult had been operating in secret within the demonic path for over decades.
Gwan Woong, who remembered how the Blood Cult had terrorized the martial world a hundred and fifty years ago, inflicting massive losses on righteous and demonic sects alike without discrimination, threw everything into rooting out the spies hidden in the Heavenly Demon Cult—no, the entire demonic path.
For over a year, they interrogated captured spies and their collaborators, using the information to uncover more. Officially executed spies numbered over a hundred, and including those who had turned or secretly sympathized, the total approached three hundred.
But not everything went smoothly.
Detecting spies led to large and small clashes, with heavy casualties.
The flames of rebellion that started from Myriad Poison Valley were no small matter either.
The rebellion, centered on Myriad Poison Valley, seemed like it would fizzle out quickly when the valley suddenly vanished. But it swelled unexpectedly due to the intervention of unforeseen players. The Mad Buddhist, who joined late, had pulled in the hegemon of Tianzhu, the Thunder Sound Temple.
The Thunder Sound Temple, always eyeing a chance to advance into the Central Plains martial world, declared the Mad Buddhist a branch of their order. They spared no support for the Return to Heaven rebels, sending vast funds and substantial forces.
Tensions with the Southern Rivers martial world were also a major burden for the Heavenly Demon Cult.
After the Sword Phantom's death, they halted the fight and retreated abruptly, but they hadn't fully abandoned the Southern Rivers regions they had seized.
Even amid battles with Blood Cult spies and the Return to Heaven forces backed by the Thunder Sound Temple, they established sub-altars everywhere, steadily expanding their territory. There were countless skirmishes, but no large-scale battles like the one a year ago.
The Central Plains martial world was embroiled in equally severe internal strife.
The Murim Alliance's reputation had plummeted for failing to properly counter the Heavenly Demon Cult's invasion of the Southern Rivers. On top of that, their fumbling response to the Blood Cult had lost them the warlords' trust, leaving them in disarray.
It didn't end there. Vicious power struggles erupted among factions vying for the vacant Alliance Leader position, plunging everything into chaos.
The Righteous Heaven Alliance, formed around the Young Tiger Clan, didn't miss the opportunity as the Murim Alliance fell.
They provided full support to the battered Southern Rivers martial world under Heavenly Demon Cult attack. Forces under the Righteous Heaven Alliance, along with sects, rooted out and expelled Blood Cult spies hiding within. They even crushed sporadic Blood Cult plots across regions, growing in just one year to rival the Murim Alliance's position.
The simultaneous Blood Cult purges across the martial world, starting from the Sword Phantom's death, were nearly complete.
Though they failed to uncover and eliminate the core leadership, the general consensus was that they had at least severed all the limbs.
Some raised concerns that the Heavenly Demon Cult had executed over three hundred, while the Murim Alliance and Righteous Heaven Alliance captured just over a hundred. But as the Blood Cult completely vanished like before, those views gained no traction.
For over three months, no word of the Blood Cult was heard anywhere, and the warlords' attention gradually shifted back to the Southern Rivers martial world. The conflict had paused due to the Blood Cult issue, but it wasn't truly over.
As tensions simmered between the Heavenly Demon Cult and the Southern Rivers martial world, Sima Geon and his group, pursuing Myriad Poison Valley westward, arrived at Yushu on the southern edge of Qinghai Province, where the Tongtian River flowed.
Five massive yaks grazed leisurely.
After eyeing the yaks for a moment, So Surin approached Sima Geon and Cheol Woo, who were perched on a rock.
"How's it going?"
So Surin, wrapped head to toe in fur clothing, snatched the pouch from Cheol Woo's hand as she asked.
"Kugh! Good stuff."
The liquor, fermented from yak milk, was bland in aroma and gritty in taste—hardly appealing. But its fierce burn chased away the freezing cold like nothing else.
"What do you mean? That idiot's getting his ass handed to him proper."
Cheol Woo snatched the pouch back from So Surin and clicked his tongue at Noe Jeon, who was backpedaling furiously.
"Yeah. He's getting pushed hard today. It wasn't like this just a while ago."
So Surin, eyes fixed on the spar between Noe Jeon and Manchu, couldn't hide her surprise.
"His growth rate is insane."
Gwa Yu handed So Surin some jerky as he spoke. He tried to sound nonchalant, but envy was clear—his own rapid progress had stalled recently.
"You're no slouch either. You'll smash through that wall soon and leap ahead. Don't sweat it."
"Right."
Her expression unchanged, but So Surin's encouragement added strength to Gwa Yu's voice.
"You idiot! You got done again. I told you not to let your guard down."
Cheol Woo bellowed at Manchu, who had charged aggressively only to fall into a trap Noe Jeon had set.
"It's less Manchu getting careless and more Noe Jeon luring him in cleverly. Experience gap's still too wide to bridge."
Sima Geon, who had been intently watching the spar, whistled as Manchu blocked the follow-up after taking the hit and counterattacked.
"Impressive. No wonder Senior Joo Yu-gal marked him."
"Yeah, he's got talent, alright."
Cheol Woo, having watched Manchu's growth up close, acknowledged it.
The spar continued for another incense stick's time before ending in Noe Jeon's defeat.
"Whew, I'm dying."
Noe Jeon, drenched in sweat, panted heavily as he groped for his waterskin.
"Serves you right."
Cheol Woo sneered disdainfully.
Noe Jeon drained the skin in one go and said with a look of relief.
"That Manchu's no joke. He's on fire with his growth. Totally different from a few days ago. Especially his footwork."
Noe Jeon shook his head, watching Manchu chat brightly with Gwa Yu.
"Drunken Immortal Steps have fully matured. It sways like it's drunk, but it's fast, with weird changes. Tricky as hell to deal with. Deputy Leader might struggle soon."
"Bullshit. No matter how he dances, one punch ends it."
Cheol Woo scoffed and shook his fist.
"Sure, sure."
"Shut it. You can't even beat a punk kid."
"Didn't the Deputy Leader struggle a bit a few days ago himself?"
"Struggle? Dream on?"
Cheol Woo glared daggers and grabbed the fleeing Noe Jeon.
After a brief thrashing, Cheol Woo, grinning victoriously and downing liquor contentedly, turned to Sima Geon.
"So, you sure about the decision, Boss?"
"Yeah. No choice but to head back now. Can't wander forever."
Sima Geon's face, as he sighed, flickered with mixed emotions.
After the fight at the Abyssal Sky Hall, Sima Geon and his group headed toward Myriad Poison Valley.
The distance to the Ten Myriad Mountains, home of Myriad Poison Valley, was vast.
They traveled nonstop for two months.
But their destination kept changing.
The Yin Demonic Nest, opposing the Heavenly Demon Cult, had already abandoned Myriad Poison Valley and fled.
Sima Geon and his group shadowed the Yin Demonic Nest secretly while observing the clash between Return to Heaven, centered on Myriad Poison Valley, and the Heavenly Demon Cult. But at some point, the Yin Demonic Nest vanished completely.
Not just them—their initial allies, Ma Uk of the Crimson Flame Clan and the Left Sword Demon of the Phantom God Clan, evaporated like smoke.
Even the Heavenly Demon Cult seemed to be pursuing but hadn't pinned them down properly.
Sima Geon and his group didn't give up.
Believing they must have left traces, they closely monitored Return to Heaven, the force they built.
In the process, they clashed with the Heavenly Demon Cult.
They smashed every encounter, and eventually—perhaps by orders from above—the Cult started avoiding them.
After three months of calmly watching the Return to Heaven-Heavenly Demon Cult disputes, they finally stumbled on the quarry's whereabouts by chance.
Half a year after picking up the trail, they reached Yushu—but too late. A village chief told them a group resembling the Yin Demonic Nest had passed through eight months prior.
Chase the faint traces onward, or give up and return? They had to choose.
Sima Geon chose return.
A full year had already passed, and they couldn't wander endlessly on uncertain leads. Plus, they had brothers waiting back home.
"You're not giving up, right?"
So Surin asked, her face slightly tense.
"Of course not. That bastard gained power, swung it around, then vanished. There's a plan behind it. He'll come back. And rampage again. We'll wait for that."
"Got it."
So Surin, whose grudge against the Yin Demonic Nest reached the heavens, withdrew without argument. She too believed they would return.
"Alright, that just leaves heading home. Manchu."
Cheol Woo beckoned Manchu.
"Yes, Brother."
"Remember what I mentioned the other day."
"The other day... Oh, yeah."
Manchu's eyes sparkled.
"Boss decided. What's the route?"
"Sichuan, obviously. From there, the Yangtze gets us there quick. We could follow the Tongtian River, but it's too circuitous."
Even "quick" meant two months: to Sichuan, boat down the Yangtze, then south to Shao Xing.
"Sichuan means we can drop by the Tang Clan."
So Surin casually brought it up, glancing at Manchu.
"Hold on."
Manchu pulled out a ragged map from his bosom.
It was crudely drawn with uneven proportions, but major mountains and rivers were discernible.
"Yushu here's the spot. Best is cross to Sichuan, take the Dadu River tributary south, then the main Yangtze. But detouring via Chengdu isn't bad. We can ride the Min River by Chengdu to join the Yangtze anyway."
So Surin brightened at Manchu's words and turned to Sima Geon.
"It's on the way anyway. Mind swinging by the Tang Clan? Got stuff to ask the old man."
"Sure. No big deal."
Sima Geon nodded readily, as if it needed no thought.
"Wait, hold up."
Noe Jeon, who had sidled close to eavesdrop, cut in urgently.
"To Sichuan?"
"Yeah."
"Sichuan means..."
Noe Jeon's head swiveled southeast.
"We gotta cross that again?"
Noe Jeon pointed to the towering mountain range in the distance. Only then did the group realize it was the Pa-yan-kara Mountains, the gateway from Qinghai to Sichuan, and their faces drained of color.