Episode 201

On a dark night, at the burial mound containing the remains of the Three Heavens.

Next to that, someone was shoveling constantly. They made a small burial mound and removed the bracelet they were wearing on their wrist.

They filled it with dirt again and sat in front of it.

They poured the prepared alcohol onto the ground and onto the burial mound too.

“This is the alcohol of Somi which I wanted to share with you people one day. What do you think? Isn’t it sweet?”

Sa Dohak mumbled and sighed with a bitter look. Dong Bang-gu had been a follower of Sa Dohak for a long time.

His intelligence was beyond comparison, and he was a major contributor to the growth of Sa Dohak, who lacked any sense of judgment, whether right or wrong, and helped to eliminate chaos when he seized control of the Demonic Cult.

He helped Sa Dohak with forces and laid plans to achieve things. And such a person’s death couldn’t be accepted.

When he returned to the Demonic Cult, he thought that that man would be there to welcome him.

“I lived twenty years longer than you….”

He drank one cup and then poured another into the burial mound. There is a sequence to life, being born by a process, but there is no sequence needed for death. As if to prove those words, Dong Bang-gu, the one he loved the most, was gone.

‘I never should have left the Demonic Cult.’

That feeling of regret still remains etched in his mind.

Dong Bang-gu stopped him after hearing that he was going to encounter a formidable man. In the end, he gave up and saw him off with a smile, but if he had stayed behind in the Demonic Cult, he wouldn’t have died so miserably.

Prrrr…

Sa Dohak’s eyes trembled violently.

He took a sip of the alcohol and frowned.

“Are you planning on making a tomb?”

Despite the sound, Sa Dohak didn’t even turn his head as if he already knew. He just accepted it naturally and said,

“After all, this is where other people are buried right? Moreover, there is no body.”

Dan Woo-hyun’s laughter sounded out, making Sa Dohak lift the bottle of alcohol in hand and shake it.

“I drank it all.”

“Don’t worry. I brought another.”

“Hahaha, I guess these times call for such a mood.”

He burst out laughing and patted the spot next to him. When asked to come and sit down, Dan Woo-hyun approached and sat down.

“Name?”

“Dong Bang-gu.”

“A funny name.”

“Kuahahah! Right? I always made fun of him by calling him Shit Bang-gu! He was so shocked and made a lot of noise each time I did that…”

“It is bound to happen.”

Dan Woo-hyun laughed and drank at the burial mound and poured alcohol there.

Even though they had never seen him before, he felt pity for him. Because of his immature actions, he wouldn’t have been able to let go of the worries he had before he died.

“Aren’t you thinking about odd things?”

“No, I just wonder if I would have packed my stuff and ran away if I was in that man’s positions.”

“What nonsense! What a ridiculous thing to do!”

Sa Dohak jumped up and raised his voice.

Although he may have been a symbol of fear to others, he was the warmest toward Dong Bang-gu. No, to be precise, Dong Bang-gu naturally led it to be so.

“He wasn’t the type to do so!”

“Being born and dying are the will of the Heavens. This will also be the case for anything.”

“That damned sky, that damned Heaven! Fuck.”

“Haha.”

Sa Dohak looked up at the sky and cursed. Eventually he looked at Dan Woo-hyun and fixed his gaze. He tried to be cautious when he saw the determined look in his eyes.

However, before that Dan Woo-hyun spoke quickly.

“You want to go?”

“I don’t need money, status, fame, or skills.”

“But you need money.”

“Be serious you idiot!”

He knew Dan Woo-hyun was someone obsessed with money because of Dan Somi, but even in a situation where he was speaking in a serious manner, the fact that he spoke about money felt irritating.

Dan Woo-hyun shrugged and only then Sa Dohak opened his mouth.

“But I cannot forgive people who treated him like that. Black Wind Godly Demon? I will not leave that bastard alone.”

“It will be like throwing an egg at a rock.”

“…What?”

When the name of the Black Wind Godly Demon came up, Dan Woo-hyun laughed. Shocked, Sa Dohak looked at him blankly so he said,

“I am saying that your strength won’t be enough.”

“…I am the Demonic Emperor though?”

“The opponent is one who claims to be the Black Wind Godly Demon.”

Five Emperors.

Five Emperors of the Central Murim.

Among them, the most capable were Sa Dohak and Namgung Chun.

But there was one fact that both Namgung Chun and the other Emperor knew and even acknowledged.

In reality, the strongest among the Five Emperors is Sa Dohak. He achieved great strength as a Heavenly Demon God and created his own martial arts, and what was no less impressive than that—reaching the peak in the Demonic Cult.

Due to the stubbornness of the Central Murim arts practitioners, people did not want to praise the leader of the Demonic Cult, who was one of the Five Emperors, but in truth it would be more appropriate to call them One Demon, Four Emperors.

That was why Sa Dohak was even more flustered.

“I really cannot win?”

“You will know when you fight him.”

These words came from the mouth of Dan Woo-hyun and not someone else, as if he had been greatly shocked and changed.

Dan Woo-hyun sipped his drink and began to say.

“Everything you have comes from him.”

“…!”

Jang Sam-tae was in a deep sleep. The sleep which wouldn’t break showed just how hard his journey was.

And what happened there has already been told.

No matter what nice places they had been to, he couldn’t rest as comfortably as he did in his home.

He even thought of that in his dreams.

As usual, they woke up early in the morning and swept the yard and took the trash out. Then he headed to the kitchen to make the meal for Somi, which didn’t take him long.

Since he hadn’t been able to cook for a while, he promised that he would do everything he could to cook things that would literally melt on Somi’s tongue.

And thinking about that made him smile brightly.

‘Hehe…’

Slowly, the sensation of drowsiness began to fade and his senses began to return.

Clack! Clack!

“Woah! So fast!”

“Hoho, right. Really.”

But then he heard sounds from outside.

The voice of Dan Somi reached his ears. He seemed to really like Dan Somi, as he heard Dan Somi’s voices in his dreams too.

“Smile…!”

The laughter didn’t cease.

“But where are you going?”

He was impressed by the voice which came next.

It was definitely the voice of Namgung Sohye.

The moment he heard the slow voice, he unconsciously swallowed a groan. It was nice to hear from her, but she was a woman he didn’t like in many ways.

“Hehehe, don’t worry. It’s a nice place.”

The voice of Namgung Chun.

Even though it was all a dream, the voices felt so clear as if they were talking next to him.

Jang Sam-tae unconsciously relaxed his stiff face.

He didn’t know about the rest, but Namgung Chun was nice.

Not only did he give him work, but sometimes taught him valuable lessons too.

“It’s so noisy, you people. Can you not go quietly?”

Jang Sam-tae’s expression crumpled at the sound he soon heard. The moment he heard that voice, he felt fear creep up.

Groaning like someone who walked through the flames of Hell.

“Umm… fucking bastard….”

The sound of Dan Woo-hyun’s voice brought him back to senses. But since it was a dream, he spoke out loud.

If possible, just say it out loud once.

But…

“This guy, how dare he act like this?”

“Euk!?”

Things he wanted to voice out. With no incoming hits next.

It would be fun for once.

All the voices he heard in the dreams but none were as good as Dan Woo-hyun’s.

This is because whenever he saw Dan Woo-hyun in his dreams, he would wake up.

Startled, he opened his eyes and looked around. The first thing he saw was Dan Somi’s face.

For some reason, the child hesitated and slowly turned her head. Namgung Chun, Sa Dohak, and Namgung Sohye were standing there and if he followed their gaze, Jang Sam-tae was lying down with Dan Woo-hyun sitting beside him.

“Eik!?”

He hurriedly got up and held his breath, feeling scared as if he had seen a ghost.

How did this happen?

He couldn’t understand it, which made him look around.

Clack! Clack!

The ground shook violently.

Why is the floor shaking so much? He turned his head and looked around.

He saw Kwon Mujin and Ma Jang-kang sitting next to him.

They looked tired and they were moving.

This meant that this was the inside of a carriage.

He looked out again.

The scenery inside the hugely spacious carriage caught his eye. It was so wide that there was still space for many more to come in.

Jang Sam-tae looked at Dan Woo-hyun with an expression which showed he couldn’t understand him.

“That… Manor Lord… is this a dream?”

“Would you like to get hit once?”

Jang Sam-tae shook his head.

No matter how much he thought about it, it was reality. When he looked out, he saw that the carriage was moving at high speed, following a very familiar road.

Drip…

A cold sweat broke out.

“A picnic…? Then shouldn’t you have woken me up earlier? Was the food prepared delicious…”

“No, forget it. There is no need to pack food when you have a long way to go. If there is a village around, we will stop by and eat.”

‘A long way….’

Jang Sam-tae’s heart beat like crazy when he heard that it was a long way. He quickly turned his head and looked at Ma Jang-kang sitting in the place of the coachman.

He made eye contact with him briefly and then turned his head.

“We are going around the Central Plains for the first time in a while.”

“Manor Lord, I just came from wandering around the Central Plains a few days ago.”

“I know.”

“It is a time when both my mind and body are tired and I need to rest well….”

“That’s why I didn’t wake you on purpose.”

The corners of Jang Sam-tae’s lips trembled.

If one moves an adult who is sleeping and not a child, unless they were a fool, they would wake up.

However, the fact that he didn’t wake up meant that they sealed his blood points.

And he says he didn’t wake him up on purpose?

“You don’t prefer this?”

“Uh…?”

“I asked if you didn’t want to go around with Somi.”

‘Fuck!’

If you ask that question, then the answer will come back fixed.

Jang Sam-tae turned his gaze and looked at Dan Somi. The child’s eyes were large and they shifted back and forth as if they were a bit anxious.

Jang Sam-tae raised the corners of his lips with the most awkward look.

“Of… of course I want that. Ha… haha, traveling with Somi? I love it.”

“Right?”

Dan Somi’s bright smile and answer struck Jang Sam-tae in the heart.

With a forced smile he glared at Dan Woo-hyun.

If he had decided to go to the Thousand Mountains like this right from the start….

‘Wouldn’t it have been better if I hadn’t gone to that place from the start!?’

He frowned as he thought about it.

Pak!

“Ack!’

“I see everything, I see it all.”

Jang Sam-tae sat down, holding his head.