Chapter 494
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 494
Chapter Title: It's Cut Off
"So this is it, huh? Hmm."
One of the Demonic Cult's young lords.
Seok Mu-won rested his chin on one hand while tapping the armrest of his chair with the other, his gaze fixed on the small wooden statue before him.
"It definitely resembles Grandfather, but..."
He clearly remembered the face of the previous cult leader, Seok Won-cho, whom he had seen in his childhood.
The face on the statue bore an uncanny resemblance to that one.
To someone who knew him well, it looked similar; to someone who didn't, it didn't.
It was a truly ingenious carving.
"Whose handiwork is this?"
Seok Mu-won's eyes gleamed coldly.
The Sesegwaneum Cult.
The Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara Statue.
This was the secret cult currently spreading covertly among the common folk.
The Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara Statue.
That was the problem.
With the name "Heavenly Demon" on top of the statue's face subtly mimicking the previous Demonic Cult leader's...
If the Righteous Heaven Alliance happened to discover it, they would assume it was the Demonic Cult's scheme and come hunting for them.
It could drag them into quite the annoyance.
Whoever was behind this was meticulous.
They were stealthily and rapidly expanding their own power base while framing the Demonic Cult as the culprits.
Tap, tap, tap.
Seok Mu-won kept drumming on the chair's armrest.
"What should I do with these bastards?"
Seok Mu-won pondered.
This was a critical time for the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
They had finally gathered all the fragments of Emptiness just recently.
Not only that—they had also uncovered some of the primordial fragments that resonated with the Asura Thunder Spirit Returning Heart Method while searching for the Emptiness ones.
In the closed-door training chamber, Cult Leader Seok Cheon-gyeong was in the process of fusing them all.
Though Seok Mu-won had failed to seize the Emptiness fragments by manipulating Gwang Hoe-cheon.
He had succeeded in diverting the Righteous Heaven Alliance's attention to the Blood Cult using their schemes.
And yet, there was a faction using them in turn to bolster their own strength.
"Black Wind."
"Yes."
A low voice answered from the shadows at Seok Mu-won's quiet call.
"Find them. Whoever's behind this scheme."
"Understood."
With that, several presences vanished.
"Tch. I'm already lagging behind Elder Brother Sama, and now these riffraff are stirring up trouble too."
Seok Mu-won muttered irritably.
His senior brother, Sama Hu-do, had earned his spot closest to the cult leader's successor position among the disciples through his discovery of the Asura Thunder Spirit Returning Heart Method's true nature.
"Hoo. Either way, I should report to Father."
Seok Mu-won rose from his chair and began walking.
He headed to Seok Cheon-gyeong's closed-door training chamber, located in the deepest part of their stronghold.
Before the thick iron door.
"Father. It's your son, Mu-won."
He announced his presence with an infused voice and waited silently.
It might be a crucial moment.
All he could do was wait for Cult Leader Seok Cheon-gyeong's response.
Less than half a shichen passed.
"What is it?"
"We've found traces of those we discussed last time."
"The fools who dare impersonate the great Demonic Cult?"
"Yes."
"Who are they?"
"A group calling themselves the Sesegwaneum Cult. They worship a statue called the Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara Statue, and its likeness resembles Grandfather."
"......"
There was a brief silence with no reply.
"Fucking bastards. Find the ringleaders. I'll tear them apart myself."
"I've ordered Black Wind to track them down."
"I see. Understood. The great accomplishment is nearly complete. We'll meet again soon. Withdraw for now."
"Yes, sir."
Seok Mu-won bowed and turned away.
His expression was complex.
There was joy at his father, the cult leader, achieving his great accomplishment, mingled with bewilderment at how swiftly it had come.
And rightly so—his son was trailing a step behind his senior brother in the competition.
He knew full well his father wouldn't simply hand over the cult leader's seat just because he was his son. That urgency gnawed at him.
'Should I mobilize Dark Wind too?'
He commanded two armed forces.
He had already moved one.
But the impatience to show results before his father emerged from seclusion welled up within Seok Mu-won's chest.
"How's it progressing?"
"It's spread across all of Henan, Shaanxi, Shanxi, and Hebei."
The middle-aged man nodded at his son's report.
"Good. And the south?"
"It's gradually spreading into Hunan and Guizhou."
"Excellent."
The middle-aged man stroked his beard with a satisfied smile.
Before the father and son sat an exquisitely crafted small golden statue.
It was identical to the one called the Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara Statue.
"News from Luoyang?"
"It's cut off."
The middle-aged man's expression shifted subtly at the young man's calm reply.
"You mean contact with the envoy has been severed?"
"Yes."
"Hmm."
The middle-aged man gathered his thoughts.
Once finished, he turned to his son.
"So, what should we do?"
The youth sensed this was a test for him.
"First, we need to assess the situation in Luoyang."
"Send another envoy?"
"That would be repeating the mistake of chasing a sparrow on the roof. And not just anywhere—Luoyang."
Luoyang, where the Righteous Heaven Alliance's main headquarters was located.
That made it all the more vital—and dangerous.
They had proceeded with utmost secrecy, yet the envoy's reports had ceased.
Sending another there was absurd.
"Then what do you propose?"
"Through the Dark Secret Guards."
"The Dark Secret Guards?"
"Yes. They're still reporting normally."
The clan spies embedded in Luoyang.
"The new manor is a key stronghold. A dagger at the Righteous Heaven Alliance's throat. But sending another envoy risks exposing our tail."
The manor, to be built via the envoy using carrier pigeons, was positioned exquisitely to strike the Righteous Heaven Alliance's vulnerabilities in case of emergency.
"So, mobilize the Dark Secret Guards? What if Heavenly Eye Pavilion catches their tail?"
"We can say they were investigating Demonic Cult movements."
The middle-aged man nodded at his son's words.
A smile crept onto his lips.
He was pleased that his son had thought of the same ploy.
The Dark Secret Guards moved for clan matters—they were the clan's power.
They knew nothing of the Sesegwaneum Cult.
Even if Heavenly Eye Pavilion caught them, it wouldn't implicate anything shady.
Everyone kept it hushed, but the Nine Great Sects and Five Great Clans had all planted spies in Luoyang to swiftly gather intelligence.
"What if the Nine Envoys reveal everything they know?"
The severed-contact envoy was one of the Nine Envoys.
"They know nothing. At most, Yungjung Mountain."
The middle-aged man nodded, satisfied with his son's answer.
The Nine Envoys knew of Yungjung Mountain, but it was far from their clan.
If raided, they'd find only Demonic Cult traces.
"Exactly. That's one of the Demonic Cult's hidden bases. If someone like Ha Mu-baek learns of it..."
The middle-aged man trailed off.
There were clues to the Demonic Cult there.
Clues the Jegal Clan had uncovered with full effort.
While securing countless absolutely loyal followers through their sorcery.
And pitting the Righteous Heaven Alliance and Ha Mu-baek against the Demonic Cult in a scheme to profit as fishermen—reaping the benefits.
A carrier pigeon soared from Yungjung Mountain toward Luoyang.
Back at the safehouse, Ha Mu-baek was deep in thought.
He had come to Luoyang to smooth the Fierce Dragon Corps' path forward.
But now he was entangled with the Demonic Cult.
The Fierce Dragon Corps was likely preparing to move under Heavenly Eye Pavilion's orders by now.
Heading to the border with the Sa Hye-ryeon—it was true he felt uneasy leaving it solely to Han Seol-bing.
Yet handing these guys over to Elder Gong Son and returning to the corps didn't sit right either.
A nagging unease from not resolving it properly lingered.
On top of that, what the envoy had said bothered him.
Yungjung Mountain.
Of all places, the Jegal Clan.
The possibility that they were involved with the Demonic Cult.
"What a headache."
Ha Mu-baek furrowed his brow.
How long had he been mulling it over?
"Hoo. Solo operations end here."
He muttered as he stood.
No matter how he sliced it, dumping thorny issues on Elder Gong Son was the easy way.
Ha Mu-baek grabbed the napes of the two subdued men.
The carrier pigeon handler yielded nothing special.
Everything was in his conversation with Ha Mu-baek.
In the end, he had thrown in with the Demonic Cult for family vengeance.
Aiming to exterminate all warriors in the world, no less.
Still, capturing him was to halt the manor construction.
Its location was far too precarious.
Using those near-brainwashed by the Demonic Cult to stir chaos in Luoyang and distract the Righteous Heaven Alliance.
Then striking from the manor?
It would inflict serious damage, so preventing its construction was best.
Ha Mu-baek leaped into the air.
He arrived at Heavenly Eye Pavilion in an instant.
This time, he entered covertly.
Thus, the gate guards noticed nothing.
Heavenly Eye Pavilion Lord Gong Son Dan-gyeong was no exception.
He was immersed in his duties.
Swish.
Ha Mu-baek lightly released his presence, and Gong Son Dan-gyeong looked up upon sensing it.
At that moment, four figures dropped around Gong Son Dan-gyeong.
They stared at Ha Mu-baek, tense.
"What brings you here?"
Thud. Thud.
Ha Mu-baek tossed the two he held by their napes.
"What are these?"
"Dig into them a bit."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong frowned at Ha Mu-baek's words.
"Why?"
"Sesegwaneum Cult."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong's face hardened at Ha Mu-baek's curt reply.
From his expression, Ha Mu-baek realized he was aware of the Sesegwaneum Cult.
"You knew."
"The recent headache-makers. We only had a vague grasp due to the Mountain-Crossing Demonic Forest, but thanks to you, we've been focusing on them lately."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong glanced at the two sprawled on the floor.
"Are these related? We did identify the Jeon Ga Merchant Group's leader as a Sesegwaneum Cult follower not long ago."
He glanced at Jeon Dok-u and continued.
"That one's their envoy."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong's gaze shifted to the other.
"And did you know about this?"
Ha Mu-baek pulled out the Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara Statue from his bosom and lightly tossed it toward Gong Son Dan-gyeong.
One of his guards leaped out, caught the statue, checked it for danger, and handed it over.
Gong Son Dan-gyeong's face stiffened further as he examined it.
He recognized the face.
"Demonic Cult?"
"They call it the Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara Statue."
The name alone evoked the Demonic Cult.
Gong Son Dan-gyeong tilted his head.
"Too obvious, isn't it?"
They had disguised it as the Sesegwaneum Cult, yet named the statue Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara.
That nullified the cover name.
"They say the corrupt world must be destroyed to birth a pure new one."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong nodded at Ha Mu-baek's words.
"I've heard the gist of their doctrine too."
"Heavenly Demon Avalokitesvara descends, all things rejoice, eternal lords forever."
Ha Mu-baek quietly recited the chant they muttered like a mantra.
"First time hearing that."
"That one muttered it obsessively."
"Hmm."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong eyed the envoy with lingering suspicion.
It was too easy.
Heavenly Eye Pavilion had barely grasped their tail.
Yet Ha Mu-baek snagged it in days while staying in Luoyang—they were exposing themselves as Demonic Cult too blatantly.
"And this one came from Yungjung Mountain."
Gong Son Dan-gyeong's eyes flashed.
He reacted to the name Yungjung Mountain.