Chapter 53: That's Exactly Me
The middle-aged man, bound tightly, writhed like a fish on a cutting board. His face was smeared with tears and snot from the extreme terror he'd felt inside the sack, and his pant legs were soaked through.
When our eyes met, he thrashed even harder, as if desperate to say something.
"Mmmph! Mmph!"
Who the hell is this guy?
Beats me.
But I had a pretty good guess. I quietly lifted my gaze to Tae Sa-rok and Paeng Bi-cheong. I wanted to hear it straight from them.
Tae Sa-rok spoke up.
"Yong Baek-heon. What you said was half right and half wrong. The position of Changgonghoe Leader used to rotate among several people— a few months for some, up to a year for others. It was to spread the risk as the head of the Anti-Cult Alliance."
"And?"
"Not anymore. This piece of shit has been 'Yu Jin-bong' for the last three years. Basically, he's taken full control of Changgonghoe."
The middle-aged man pissing himself with a gag in his mouth was the current Changgonghoe Leader.
Having already suspected as much, I just nodded curtly.
Tae Sa-rok glared at me with a hardened expression.
"Looks like you had an idea. Then do you know why Yu Jin-bong hasn't been replaced?"
"He has powerful backers?"
"Exactly. This bastard's a double agent. Planted by the Cult Leader's Palace."
At that, Yu Jin-bong stopped convulsing. The middle-aged man seemed to have resigned himself completely, his cheeks merely twitching.
Paeng Bi-cheong beside him looked shocked too.
"Young master? Is that true? The Leader was a double agent?"
"Yeah. Not just colluding with the Cult Leader's Palace—he was planted there by the Grand Cult Leader himself."
"Then why...?"
"Why did I just sit back and watch? Yeah, I figured you'd wonder that too."
"Yes."
The reason he hadn't purged the Leader despite knowing he was a double agent.
Tae Sa-rok let out a deep sigh.
"I couldn't beat his backer either. Who in the Hundred Thousand Mountains would dare defy the Heavenly Demon? Like he said earlier, mess with the wrong people and you could get wiped out root and stem."
"......"
Listening to their exchange, I felt Yong Mu-geuk's power anew. Even the Anti-Cult Alliance, formed to overthrow the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, had to watch his shadow. Fail to do so, and survival itself was impossible.
What a contradiction.
The Heavenly Demon is that great a being. It's not just personal might—true power lies in how one commands those beneath.
Commanding those beneath, huh.
I slowly approached the bound man. Paeng Bi-cheong flinched, but Tae Sa-rok held up a hand to stop him.
I removed the gag from the man's mouth, and he began wailing desperately.
"Young Cult Leader! Spare me! I was just following the Grand Cult Leader's orders!"
"Of course you were."
"And I'm from the Third Enforcement Squad! You might not remember, but I carried out many of your orders alongside Senior Cheok-san Do-wang! Don't abandon your subordinate!"
"Third Enforcement Squad?"
I furrowed my brow for a moment. If he'd served under Cheok-san Do-wang in the Third Enforcement Squad...
—Did you happen to go to Seon-mong-hyeon too?
"Y-Yes...?"
—Answer via transmission.
Seon-mong-hyeon in Yoryeong Province. Did you go there too?
—Ah, Yoryeong! Yes! We did! We went there! You remember? We caught that guy there who looked just like you, Young Cult Leader! Haha!
—That's me, you son of a bitch.
I drew my Heavenly Slash Sword and brought it down on his neck.
"Gurk...!"
His laughter cut short as the blade sank in, eyes bulging, limbs spasming.
I unleashed the Hyeol-lyeong Gye-ma-sul on the dying man. A murky true demonic energy began flowing into my hand.
Tssszz...
Hmm? Didn't you hate using Hyeol-lyeong Gye-ma-sul on the living because it lets grudging spirits in? That's why you chose the Path of the Prior Demon, right?
I'll just extract the memories and discard the energy. It's worthless sludge anyway.
Tsk tsk. You're pissed, huh.
He wasn't wrong. By coincidence or fate, this bastard was one of my enemies. The sight of those people dying horribly still burned in my eyes.
Anyway, from the memories I absorbed, what happened in Seon-mong-hyeon that day was...
In the end, that man escaped.
The mysterious giant wielding the Total Lightning God Sword. A master on par with a Great Protector, but he'd taken heavy wounds and fled. Upper-level Protectors had swarmed in to aid Cheok-san Do-wang.
Bongmareung clicked his tongue.
No gains, huh. Now I've got to bother exorcising the spirit... Still, it was something you had to do once, so let's head back to Wayong Hall and handle it.
Yeah.
Of course, "no gains" meant regarding the Seon-mong-hyeon incident. I'd gotten plenty otherwise—thanks to the intel this scum had held as Yu Jin-bong.
For starters, I'd uncovered the link to the Murim Alliance.
Contact with the Murim Alliance goes through the Beggar Clan.
Beggar Clan. A den of vagrants and beggars—not exactly upright, but one of the Nine Great Sects forming a pillar of the Murim Alliance. True to their info-trading nature, they were using Changgonghoe to extend their reach into the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
And the Baekdo Church leader I'd ordered captured...
Still no leads. They don't even know who it is.
But with Beggar Clan backing Changgonghoe's moves, the tail would show soon enough.
Confirming a few other new facts, I stood.
Then I felt their stares.
"......"
"......"
Paeng Bi-cheong and Tae Sa-rok, both staring at me with stiff expressions.
"What? Spit it out."
"No, even so... executing someone planted by the Cult Leader's Palace...?"
"Didn't expect you to do it yourself. You okay with that?"
I smirked at Tae Sa-rok's question. These were the guys who'd stuffed a man in a sack like rotten meat.
And if my hunch was right...
"You were planning to kill and dump him here anyway, right? Using me as your backer."
"Exactly. I become the new Yu Jin-bong, we ride together. That boat'll flow into irreversible rapids like the Yangtze's currents. Wasn't that your plan?"
"Spot on."
I'd use Yong Baek-heon's identity as Changgonghoe's shield. In return, I'd install Tae Sa-rok as Leader and make him my limb.
And the price...
"Someday, I'll demand control of Taesa Clan from you. Though the Cult Leader's Palace strictly forbids meddling in the Eight Great Clans' affairs, you'll owe me for the risk."
Once I reclaimed the Young Cult Leader seat, he'd back me in Taesa Clan's power struggle. A steep demand, but he nodded.
I'd bolt from the Hundred Thousand Mountains anyway.
"Fine. That's the least I can do. Any other terms?"
Tae Sa-rok's gaze slid away. He was looking at Ok Geum-ran, standing silently beside me.
I furrowed my brow slightly.
What? He better not be asking for her.
That'd be a huge letdown.
But Tae Sa-rok said curtly,
"Just keep that promise."
"Promise?"
"The one to give her freedom. Honor it. No other conditions."
With that, Tae Sa-rok turned sharply. While we talked, Paeng Bi-cheong had cleaned up the body and hoisted it.
I watched their retreating backs. Looking out for Ok Geum-ran's freedom amid all that.
Quite the romantic.
Tell me about it.
But the person in question barely reacted. Ok Geum-ran just sighed, pale-faced, shaking off her tension.
"Sis, you okay?"
"Yeah."
"Don't lie. You look awful."
"Truth is, I pushed Sama Blood Art hard for once and got anemic. Head's spinning like crazy."
"Then..."
"I'll handle it. Don't worry."
Ok Geum-ran lifted the gourd from her waist and gulped it down. Color slowly returned to her face.
But her voice stayed grim.
"Honestly, I'm still worried. That guy..."
"Has ambition?"
"Yeah. What if Tae Sa-rok stabs you in the back? Then what?"
A valid concern. For now, he thought I was Yong Baek-heon, so no issue. But if he learned otherwise, he'd flip in an instant.
I just smiled.
"Then he'd better remember he could end up like that. I just showed him."
I pointed to the bloodstain on the ground, clear even in the dim moonlight. My enemy's blood.
But it felt off. I'd avenged my grudge, yet...
Revenge is always like that. Never as refreshing as you hope. But it's necessary.
Ok Geum-ran grabbed a broken broom from some grave and swept the floor. Watching her, I shook off my thoughts.
Time for the next issue: extracting the Tanghyeol-go from Gyeon So-hee.
Decrees from the Grand Cult Leader were posted across the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
Promote Upper Protector Maeng Yeom-ro to Great Protector.
Strip Upper Protector Geum Se-ryang of rank indefinitely.
Conduct special inspection of all Gye Clan Manor operations.
The new Great Protector spot went to Hong-an Hyeol-gwi Maeng Yeom-ro, whom I'd met at Jibbeop-gak. Geo-geom Hyung-ma Geum Se-ryang was dragged to the punishment cave.
The Gye Clan Manor's inspection wouldn't end well either.
"Geum Se-ryang's arrest means the Cult Leader's Palace and Great Protectors already know about the bribery. Gye Yeong-mu will likely face punishment."
"What kind?"
"Probably stripped of position."
"......"
"Not satisfied with the outcome?"
Tae Sa-rok bowed to me again, acting like nothing happened. His attitude had shifted—more direct now.
No big deal.
"They didn't nab the middleman. Your old contact."
I was being bluntly honest with him too.
Mentioning Yong Jin-seok made Tae Sa-rok smirk.
"I'd love to see that guy hauled to the punishment cave too. Just wait a bit."
"Will do."
"By the way, when do you plan to handle 'that matter'?"
"What matter?"
"Infiltrating Doggo Clan Manor's blood storage vault. Tomorrow?"
He'd read my plans without me saying a word.
I stared, and he grinned.
"Saw Ok Geum-ran fixing that black uniform you wear often."
An annoyingly smug look. No reason to hide it, so I nodded.
Then Tae Sa-rok said something unexpected.
"While you're in there, could you grab something for me too?"
"What?"
"Taesa Clan gifted Doggo Clan a statue called 'Seven Demon Lords' long ago. It's stored in that vault. Mind bringing it back?"
"Pretty brazen."
"You think I'd ask for free?"
A book emerged from Tae Sa-rok's robes. The title read:
Oho! Take it! This is a two-birds-one-stone find for you!
Yarul Bi-cho...
One of the past Heavenly Demons, grandmaster of Yarul Clan.
A relic left by a past Heavenly Demon, and the ancestral art of my next challenge, Yarul Sa-ta. Hence, two birds.
Perfect! Might as well shit while farting! This guy's on point.
......
How a spirit came out with such vulgar metaphors was beyond me. It let me pull off a natural scowl.
"Tae Sa senior, do I look like some paid thief to you?"
"Pardon?"
I'm a gentleman thief who takes what I want on my terms. Tae Sa-rok, oblivious, bowed his head.
"My apologies. Young master, I didn't mean..."
"Don't get your hopes up. If I see it on the way, I'll grab it."
"......?"
I didn't say I wouldn't steal.
Tae Sa-rok rolled his eyes briefly, then bowed and withdrew.
"Then take care."