Chapter 124
Translator: penny
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: Sword Star Heo Eun-chang
Sword Star Heo Eun-chang.
He was a once-in-a-generation genius produced by the Wudang Sect, and currently served as the leader of the Murim Alliance.
'Hmm, so he's not quite the Sword Star yet?'
Come to think of it, the title of Ten Strongest Under Heaven had only come about after the Second Righteous-Demonic War.
The Ten Strongest Under Heaven had been formed by gathering the unrivaled existence known as the Martial Emperor who appeared at the end of the war, the Heavenly Demon and Blood Demon as leaders of massive organizations, and other famous figures.
In other words, this era was still before the title of Ten Strongest Under Heaven had been established...
'Right now, they consider the Murim Alliance Leader to be the World's Greatest Martial Artist, don't they?'
In the Central Plains, centered around the orthodox sects, the widespread belief was that the Murim Alliance Leader was the strongest.
Of course, that reputation would gradually change with the outbreak of the Righteous-Demonic War.
In any case, at present, the middle-aged man before my eyes was regarded as the World's Greatest Martial Artist.
"Sword Phoenix, it's been a while."
"Greetings to the Murim Alliance Leader!"
Seeing Moyong Hui bow her head politely made me feel inexplicably irritated.
'Tch, I wonder if I could win if we clashed right now?'
Heo Eun-chang had yet to ascend to the Profound Realm.
He was at the pinnacle of the Fusion Realm, with the wall of the Profound Realm right before him.
Back in my Lecherous Demon days, I could have taken on ten like him and won, but in my current state, it was quite ambiguous.
He was two full stages above me, who had only just passed the early Fusion Realm and was stabilizing my foundation.
'A straight fight... maybe three out of ten chance of victory?'
But on the flip side, that meant it was worth a shot.
Compared to when I'd met the Martial Emperor before and hadn't even dreamed of fighting back or fleeing, this was a far better situation.
As I gauged the gap between Heo Eun-chang and myself, he continued admiring Moyong Hui without so much as glancing my way.
"Heh... you've already reached the Fusion Realm. How old are you again, Sword Phoenix?"
"I'll be twenty-five in just a few days."
"Then that means you're still only twenty-four. To reach the Fusion Realm at that age—truly a blessing for the martial world!"
Heo Eun-chang said that much before finally turning his gaze toward me.
"And you must be Mok Jimyeong."
"Greetings, Alliance Leader."
I didn't like it, but I dipped my head anyway.
At my gesture, Heo Eun-chang let out a hollow laugh.
"I heard about you from the Moyong Family Head, but I just can't believe it. You're really still in your early twenties?"
"Yes."
I answered with a sullen expression.
I'd wondered how he knew my name, but it seemed my father-in-law had already sent a letter.
His different reaction compared to Moyong Hui suggested it contained details about my skills as well.
'Not sure if this is good or bad.'
In any case, it looked like I wouldn't have to bother proving myself tediously.
He seemed to have already assessed my realm on his own.
He alternated glances between Moyong Hui and me, shaking his head in disbelief.
"A true dragon and phoenix pair worthy of the name... but whether this will bring fortune or calamity, even I cannot say."
True to his Wudang Sect Taoist roots, his mind jumped straight to omens of good or ill.
But he wasn't entirely wrong.
'The martial world is about to get chaotic fast from here on out.'
The Central Plains martial world, peaceful for over a century, would soon be hit by a string of history-making events.
The Second Righteous-Demonic War, the Blood Cult upheaval, the emergence of the Lecherous Demon, and more.
For the record, the emergence of the Lecherous Demon referred to me, Mok Jimyeong.
'It was a far bigger deal than the Righteous-Demonic War or the Blood Cult upheaval.'
It was enough to unite all the righteous, demonic, and evil factions, after all.
Besides that, the Demonic Cult, which had been biding its time, would begin its activities, and the long-silent Outer Frontier Martial World would start paying attention to the Central Plains.
And the event that would kick it all off was the impending Second Righteous-Demonic War.
Did Taoists have an instinct for such things?
He wasn't a complete phony, it seemed.
After sighing to himself, Heo Eun-chang belatedly offered us a smile.
"I've shown poor hospitality to my guests. My apologies. As I age, I find myself worrying over trifles."
"Not at all."
Moyong Hui denied it immediately.
Meanwhile, I stared straight into Heo Eun-chang's eyes.
His concern for the future as Alliance Leader wasn't wrong, but it wasn't something to show us either.
It was more fitting to say he was testing our reactions because he wanted something.
'Typical of the orthodox faction folks.'
And I'd dealt with plenty like him before.
The Shadow Gate Sect Leader had been similar not long ago.
Heo Eun-chang stared at me for a long moment before smiling faintly.
"Hui-gae told me you never reveal your true feelings, and indeed, I can't read your thoughts at all."
"I don't show my emotions much to begin with."
I shamelessly spouted something that would leave Cheon Woojin dumbfounded if he heard it.
But he merely furrowed his brow slightly.
"I see, I see. Hmm..."
What was so hard to understand? Really.
As I kept staring at him with a sour look, he finally raised the white flag first.
"We'll get to know you gradually. From what the Moyong Family Head said, I hear you want to investigate the Blood Cult and the Demonic Families."
"Yes."
He paused briefly at my curt reply before continuing in a kindly tone.
"My knowledge is limited, so the Blood Cult is a name I've never heard before. I know a bit about the Demonic Families, but..."
"And?"
"Could you perhaps explain what you know about this Blood Cult?"
Even if he asked me to explain, I knew nothing either.
I'd come here precisely to find out.
'Of course, I have my suspicions...'
But they were all just my imagination.
I merely shrugged.
"I don't know. My father-in-law told me to look into it, so here I am."
"Hmm, is that so?"
For someone hearing of the Blood Cult for the first time, he sure seemed to know something.
I considered probing a bit, then gave up.
'No rush.'
Dragging things out here would only disadvantage me.
Seeming to abandon extracting info from me as well, he finally got to the point.
"You're here to join the Murim Alliance, I presume?"
"Yes. I plan to take the Yellow Dragon Exam."
"No need for that. What test does someone like you require? I'll put you straight into the Black Tortoise Division."
Black Tortoise Division.
The Murim Alliance's information-handling unit... and the only place without any women to my liking.
Facing the worst of the futures I'd anticipated, I hurriedly opened my mouth.
"Alliance Leader, I'd prefer to join somewhere other than the Black Tortoise Division."
Sensing something off in my urgent tone, Heo Eun-chang's eyebrow twitched.
"Why is that? If you're looking into a new organization, nowhere is more suitable than the Black Tortoise Division..."
I absolutely couldn't tell him the honest reason here.
Saying there were no attractive women would earn me some awful looks.
Instead, I laid out a plausible excuse.
"I'm well aware that the Black Tortoise Division handles intelligence within the Murim Alliance. However, I don't think I'd achieve my goals there."
"Hmm?"
He nodded as if to say, go on.
I continued fluidly, like flowing spring water.
"You just said yourself that you'd never heard of the Blood Cult organization. I don't think it's because the Black Tortoise Division is incompetent, but rather because field agents missed reporting it. No matter how skilled they are, they can't fabricate information from nothing."
"So you're saying the field agents are incompetent?"
"Not at all. Realistically, they can't report every single thing they see. They report what they deem important, and differences in judgment have led to this situation."
"There's merit to that. So you want the White Tiger Division?"
"Yes."
He nodded so readily that he shot me a suspicious look.
But there was no flaw in my argument.
Heo Eun-chang pondered briefly before turning his head aside.
"Sword Phoenix. Do you also wish to join the White Tiger Division?"
"No. I want to return to my original unit, the Vermilion Bird Division."
This part had already been arranged beforehand.
Moyong Hui had wanted to be in the same unit as me, but I'd half-forced her to stay in the Vermilion Bird Division.
'Hard to pick up women if we're together all the time.'
Of course, that wasn't the whole reason.
The Righteous-Demonic War was about to break out soon.
And the White Tiger Division would fight in the most dangerous places.
Moyong Hui might be an absolute expert who'd reached the Fusion Realm, but who knew how the world turned?
I was confident I could survive alone somehow, but getting her involved too might lead to some unfortunate mishap.
Thus, I wanted her in the safer Vermilion Bird Division.
But rational arguments weren't enough to convince her, so I'd resorted to rather forceful methods.
The most me-like approach: breaking her down with pleasure at night.
Having heard Moyong Hui's preference as well, Heo Eun-chang pondered briefly before nodding readily.
"Hmm, very well. Sword Phoenix to the Vermilion Bird Division, and you to the White Tiger Division. Consider it done."
It was settled so simply it made his earlier fretting over assignments seem ridiculous.
This must be the power of connections and the sweetness of authority.
'Father-in-law, thank you.'
I was truly grateful to Moyong Hwan for sending the letter to the Murim Alliance in advance.
Not only had he given me his daughter, Moyong Hui, but he was even helping with my romantic pursuits.
'Baek I-ryeong, just you wait!'
My next target was
Baek I-ryeong, the prodigy of Mount Hua Sect known as Red Peak.