The Heavenly Demon Goes to Smash the Murim Alliance (6)
The thread started with a simple eyewitness account of the incident.
After that, the forum posts kept mentioning Hwaryeong’s raid on the Murim Alliance. As time passed, however, the discussion gradually shifted from whether her actions were justified to whether they had been excessive, so the impact slowly faded. Then someone brought up the phrase “Orthodox faction level,” and before long the topic had transformed into the usual clash between the Orthodox and Demonic factions.
It was the same thing that always happened. Whether the original poster was joking or being serious, Orthodox and Demonic users bickering with each other was simply daily life in the Hwaryong Muin community. In other words, the fact that those two factions had started fighting again meant that things would soon return to normal.
The power structure inside the Murim world was going to change drastically now that the Murim Alliance had been crushed like this. Many players had joined the Alliance not only for the quests it provided but also because they trusted the strength of the Orthodox faction. After that faction was destroyed by a single player, quite a few would probably quietly slip away. The number-one player clan, the Player Murim Alliance, would clearly suffer massive damage from this incident as well. The Demonic side that had been lying low would rise to prominence, and the Murim world would fall into chaos.
But that had nothing to do with him.
With that thought, Han Seo-woo watched a recording someone had taken of Hwaryeong fighting inside the Murim Alliance. The way she unfolded her martial arts was impossibly refined—so much so that it was hard to believe a player was using them.
Watching her fight made Han Seo-woo think of his own master. Come to think of it, they really do resemble each other a lot. Since the prevailing theory was that the avatar had been modeled after the Heavenly Demon from Apis, it was only natural they looked alike. But it wasn’t just the appearance. The aura was similar too.
Thinking about his master made him want to log into Hwaryong Muin. Yeah. Let’s go play.
Han Seo-woo tossed his smartphone onto the bed and lay down inside the capsule. Connecting to Hwaryong Muin instead of Apis lifted a weight from his chest. He was so sick of Apis after an entire season that he didn’t even want to look at it. Once the next season started he would have to play that game for over ten hours a day again, so he might as well rest while he could.
Though… was logging into Hwaryong Muin really resting? His master would probably drill him to death the moment she saw him. Hmm. He had no idea.
When the Demon descends upon the world, all shall kneel before the Demon!
All shall kneel!
The moment Han Seo-woo logged into Hwaryong Muin, voices rang out from far away. The Cult Leader must be doing something with the followers. Good timing. If he had arrived earlier, she probably would have scolded him for not participating in the Divine Cult’s affairs despite belonging to it.
Han Seo-woo could never understand their behavior. The way they worshipped a living person—the Heavenly Demon—as an absolute god. The way they claimed that someone with outstanding martial prowess could do whatever they wanted. If not for his master, Han Seo-woo would have left the Divine Cult long ago.
He glanced around the empty streets of the Divine Cult, then headed for the training grounds to warm up. Since the Cult Leader was gathering people, most of the cultists would be participating, so the training ground should be quiet. That was what he thought, but when he arrived, one guest was already there.
A woman stood in the center of the training ground, smoking a long pipe. She clearly knew Han Seo-woo had arrived but did not turn her head.
“It has been a while.”
“Greetings, Master. It has been a long time.”
Only after Han Seo-woo offered a polite greeting according to proper etiquette did the woman finally turn around. Cold, indifferent eyes. The faint dark circles beneath them. Lips pressed into a firm line. Wild, unkempt hair that stuck out in every direction. The black martial robes she always wore as if it were a habit. A woman who embodied both nobility and arrogance so perfectly that the words suited her even with messy hair. The person revered as a god by the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. The one who had restored a cult that had nearly been wiped out. The one who had swung the blade of revenge across the Murim world and driven the Orthodox faction to the brink of destruction. An undeniable member of the current Murim’s strongest. The Heavenly Demon. Baek Hwaryeong.
She looked at Han Seo-woo with an expression of pure disdain, then brought the pipe back to her lips.
“Foolish disciple. What are you thinking, neglecting your training like this? You were already lacking in so many areas, yet you disappeared for a long time and only now show your face.”
“Master, this disciple has been training desperately elsewhere, even if not in this place.”
This was no lie. Although he had not logged into Hwaryong Muin, Han Seo-woo had trained the Divine Art more frantically than anyone. Because that training was the path to producing results as a pro gamer. Thanks to it, he had even won the league championship this season, so it would not be wrong to say he had spread the fame of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art far and wide.
Baek Hwaryeong looked him up and down, then gave a smile that was closer to a sneer.
“Is that so? Then this seat shall test you later.”
The moment he heard her words, Han Seo-woo realized his day had just turned dark, yet his expression did not change. It wasn’t as if this only happened once or twice.
“Anyway. Disciple, there is something this seat wishes to ask you.”
“Ask me anything.”
“Do you know anything about the one called Minga?”
“Minga?”
“The interesting fellow who has been stirring up trouble in the Orthodox faction lately.”
Aah. She’s talking about Lady Hwaryeong.
“What I know is probably similar to what Master already knows.”
“Why? Are you not both outsiders?”
“Just because we are outsiders does not mean we are all connected. Master, you do not have ties with every single person in the Murim world either.”
“Hoh. What a shame.”
Lady Hwaryeong’s actions really have been remarkable. If even Master is showing interest, it is safe to assume that most people in the Murim world are keeping an eye on her. Should he say she has been firewood from the moment she first appeared in Apis?
“By the way, Master, why are you interested in that person?”
As far as Han Seo-woo knew, his master was not the type to care much about outside affairs. No matter how big an incident occurred, she would say it was nothing compared to what she had done and pay it no mind. So why was she interested this time? Was it because the person was using the Heavenly Demon Divine Art?
“Is it not interesting that an outsider using the Heavenly Demon Divine Art destroyed Mount Hua and attacked the Murim Alliance?”
“That is true.”
“On top of that, that trash Hyeolgyoju keeps mentioning the name everywhere he goes.”
Baek Hwaryeong spoke and once again brought the long pipe to her lips.