Making the First Move
The White Dragon Unit was thrown into complete chaos.
Yakseon’s specially prepared antidote was proving its worth in spectacular fashion. Five members of the unit had fallen victim to Sa-an Gwi-gun’s hidden schemes without even realizing how it happened.
They had been moving according to his will, slowly slipping entirely into his grasp.
So this was it.
Only now did everything make sense. In my previous life, I finally understood why the Ju family had collapsed so pathetically. With the White Dragon Unit already under the enemy’s control, no critical information would have reached us.
“Of all people, it had to be that bastard.”
He was no ordinary opponent. I knew the Twelve Demon Emperors, but I didn’t know all twelve equally well. If I had to name the most difficult adversary from my past life, Sa-an Gwi-gun’s name would rise to the top without hesitation.
He was a truly vicious creature who had heaped humiliation and disgrace upon me. This time, I will catch him without fail. Slowly. Thoroughly. I would close every escape route, tighten the noose around his throat, and hunt him properly.
“What an interesting fellow.”
The man with eyes slit vertically like a serpent’s was none other than Sa-an Gwi-gun. His martial art, the Soul-Destroying Illusion Art, was a truly wicked demonic technique—essentially a form of soul manipulation or mind domination.
It slipped into the gaps in a person’s emotions and seized control of their mind. The victim never even realized they had been struck before they were rendered utterly helpless.
“I truly didn’t expect this.”
Sa-an Gwi-gun lifted the teacup before him and took a light sip. The shock he felt upon realizing that the one who had seen through his Soul-Destroying Illusion Art was merely a boy not yet of age was beyond words.
“Not the Sword Sovereign. Not the Sword Dragon. And certainly not the Blood Sovereign.”
He had prepared meticulously. He had been confident that no one among them would detect him. So where had things gone wrong? To think that a mere child had seen through his entire scheme.
The White Dragon Unit was the eyes of the Ju family. His plan had been to blind those eyes and slowly devour the family from within. But that plan now lay in ruins. He had invested considerable effort into the unit, only for that little brat to expose everything.
“Let’s see who wins. You, or me.”
He felt a deep, genuine interest in Ju Woo-jin. No one had ever excited him this much before. His plan to swallow the Ju family was only just beginning.
Yakseon’s speed at producing the antidote improved noticeably with each passing day. Everyone in the Insujeon, except for a few physicians, was focused entirely on manufacturing it.
Seeing this, Yakseon asked, “Do we really need this many?”
I nodded without hesitation. If I only planned to use it once, why would I have brought Yakseon here in the first place?
The antidote will provide considerable resistance against the Demonic Cult’s arts in the future.
That was my judgment after having experienced the Demonic Cult’s dominance in my previous life. Once the Cult began its campaign, this nameless antidote of Yakseon’s would demonstrate tremendous power. It would be like possessing a single pill with strength comparable to Shaolin’s anti-demon techniques.
In short, Yakseon was Sa-an Gwi-gun’s natural enemy and ultimate counter.
That was one thing. The real question was how to draw the bastard out.
“For now… let’s start with Yang Gon.”
It was the name Ju Tae-san had mentioned before his death. If Yang Gon truly was the spy Sa-an Gwi-gun had planted, I would use him as bait to catch an even bigger fish.
Having made up my mind, I moved immediately. I headed north toward the inner court where the White Dragon Unit was stationed.
The atmosphere within the unit was rather subdued. The five members who had received my antidote had been removed from duty and were currently confined to their quarters under observation. I had left the task of monitoring their movements to Muyoung.
“What brings you here, Young Master?”
At that moment, Yang Gon greeted me with a warm, friendly smile.
“I was bored.”
“Hahaha, I heard you’ve stopped visiting Geungnakru lately. With less to do, perhaps you should find a new hobby…”
I listened to his words with half an ear as I stepped inside. This was the deputy chief’s office. There was nothing particularly special about it. The White Dragon Unit had two deputy chiefs, including Yang Gon. The other was currently away on an external mission.
“I heard the news about the chief.”
“Ah, so you’ve heard as well, Young Master. We’ve dispatched men in every direction to find the culprit. Whoever did this…”
“I see. Any progress?”
“Not yet. Haha. I must say, I never expected you to take interest in such matters.”
“Of course I would. After all, I’m the one who threw the chief into the prison.”
At those words, Yang Gon froze for a moment. Then he tilted his head and asked again, “What do you mean by that?”
“Exactly what I said. I put the chief in the prison. Is there a problem?”
“No, but why…”
“That’s what I’d like to know.”
I smiled faintly and looked straight into Yang Gon’s eyes. His pupils showed not the slightest tremor. At first glance, he appeared completely guileless.
Not yet.
I spoke slowly. “Didn’t he try to attack me during the Heavenly Meeting? Working together with Madam Lee.”
“That’s true, but… I was under the impression that the Family Lord personally ordered him confined as punishment.”
Yang Gon looked genuinely puzzled. It made sense. He knew perfectly well that I lacked the authority to unilaterally imprison a unit chief. In other words, he was now suspecting that someone behind me had given the order.
“If that had been the end of it, I would have obediently accepted the Lord’s decision.”
I observed Yang Gon’s reaction even more carefully. His expression hardened instantly, and he asked cautiously, “Is there… something more?”
“Who knows? I’m still looking into it.”
“……”
A meaningful remark. With those words, I slowly left the room. Yang Gon looked like he had a lot to think about.
Indeed.
Was he truly Sa-an Gwi-gun’s man, as Ju Tae-san had claimed? Or had Ju Tae-san lied to me in his final moments simply to sow confusion?
I had cast the bait. Whether the big fish would bite or not remained to be seen.
I kept close watch on Yang Gon’s movements. At the same time, I monitored the White Dragon Unit’s overall activity. Since I couldn’t do it alone, I decided to ask for a little help from Jeokryongdae Chief Ju Yu-ran.
“There haven’t been any unusual movements. But why exactly did you want me to watch the White Dragon Unit?”
Yu-ran didn’t know the reason. I hadn’t told her. Besides, I hadn’t placed much expectation on the Red Dragon Unit from the start.
The Red Dragon Unit could never truly track the White Dragon Unit’s actions anyway.
Their natures were fundamentally different. There was no way the White Dragon Unit would leave traces the Red Dragon Unit could follow. However, they would at least notice that I had unleashed the Red Dragon Unit to tail them.
If Yang Gon was involved, he would definitely have sensed it. I had deliberately let the Red Dragon Unit run wild so he would notice. Whether he became more cautious or chose to ignore it, I planned to slip through the gap that appeared between those two reactions.
“Oh, did you hear?”
Yu-ran sat beside me and spoke with a mischievous expression. “The incident a few days ago when our matriarch was attacked while returning from her family’s estate.”
“The Dismantling Asura?”
“Yes. It’s about that very Dismantling Asura.”
In the original timeline… the eldest sister had been attacked first on her way back to the academy after the Heavenly Meeting.
The Dismantling Asura was essentially a perverted serial killer who only targeted women. But the situation had changed strangely from my previous life.
This time, he attacked my now-healthy mother first and met his end.
I looked at Yu-ran with a question in my eyes.
“It seems the Dismantling Asura was a master from Heuk-gak. The pavilion master of Heuk-gak has sent a formal letter of protest.”
“The Heuk-gak master? After daring to attack the Ju family’s matriarch?”
“Yes. That’s why the Blood Sovereign seems absolutely furious right now. As soon as the Family Lord returns…”
“He’ll probably dispatch an envoy.”
The process had changed slightly, but the subsequent procedures remained similar. My father, wary of Heuk-gak’s movements, had planned to send an envoy to exchange positions and settle the matter.
And that was exactly what had happened before. The problem comes after that.
This incident would cause the Ju family to boil over internally. The hardliners, led by the Blood Sovereign Ju Tae-hwi, strongly insisted that Heuk-gak’s arrogant and insolent behavior must be uprooted completely. The moderates, including the Grand Elder, argued that there was no need to provoke Heuk-gak’s temper.
In truth, my youngest uncle’s words are correct.
That didn’t mean I couldn’t understand the moderates’ position. The Ju family might be comparable to or even surpass the Five Great Families, but it was still just one clan. On the other hand, Heuk-gak was a massive alliance uniting countless black path factions, sects, and families.
In a way, it was like the Murim Alliance that would be born once the Demonic Cult began its campaign. Its scale was so enormous that it couldn’t even be compared to the Ju family.
The Heuk-gak master likely knew this and had deliberately issued the provocation. But why?
Was the Heuk-gak master always this reckless?
He was the leader of a vast alliance. His martial prowess was high enough to claim a seat among the Ten Supreme Sovereigns. No matter how strong Heuk-gak was, if they clashed with us, they would have to be prepared to lose at least two of their four limbs.
That was the true power of the Ju family, which possessed two of the Ten Supreme Sovereigns.
The Demonic Cult.
Those bastards were moving Heuk-gak as well. No, the organization was probably already under the control of demonic practitioners on the inside. Either way, this incident would cause both the Ju family and Heuk-gak to suffer from internal headaches.
Heuk-gak would also see its hardliners, who demanded punishment for the Ju family, clash with its moderates. And if both sides began to waver, who stood to gain the most?
The Demonic Cult. No one else.
“That’s right, they’ll dispatch an envoy. But…”
“You’re worried, aren’t you? Because my youngest uncle is truly enraged.”
“Yes. Seriously, how do you read my mind so perfectly every time?”
Yu-ran looked at me with great interest. To her, it was endlessly fascinating that Ju Woo-jin could understand her meaning the moment she spoke and even reach the correct conclusion.
Is this really the same idiot young master I used to know?
She seemed to have that thought dozens of times a day. That was how much interest Yu-ran had taken in Woo-jin.
“No.”
I shot up from my seat. So this was the scheme meant to shake the family from within. How disgusting.
Once I understood, my mind became clear.
“What? What’s no?”
“For now, Chief, just keep watching the White Dragon Unit’s movements. It’s fine if they notice. In fact, if you make the surveillance clumsy and obvious, it will work even better for me.”
“You’re really not going to tell me what this is about, are you?”
“I’ll tell you when it’s over. This might not be a problem limited to the White Dragon Unit alone.”
I stopped there.
“I need to move first.”
“What? Where are you going?”
“Where else? To Heuk-gak.”
There was an old saying from a small but fierce nation in the east: strike while the iron is hot.
Before my father returned. Before the elders’ meeting could be held.
I will move first.
I had to go to Heuk-gak. I would calm the internal turmoil there and quell the discontent within the Ju family. In doing so, I would completely erase Sa-an Gwi-gun’s cowardly conspiracy.
Without delay, I headed straight for Geomhonjeon. I needed to see my eternal ally—my youngest uncle.