Chapter 52

The Sacred Flame Festival was ten days away.

The Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was buzzing with a different kind of energy than usual.

It was because the Little Demons who had been assigned various missions at the Great Sacred Flame Council were returning to the main altar one after another.

From Third Young Lord Gu Cheong-won to Fifth Young Lord Yuk Ja-heung and Sixth Young Lady Wi So-rang.

It was said they had all carried out their assigned missions splendidly.

On the other hand, there were Little Demons who had not yet returned.

They were none other than Fourth Young Lord Heuk Un-hwi and Seventh Young Lord Baek Su-gyeong.

The members of the Demon Cult were waiting for the two to return, or rather, to be precise, they were waiting for Baek Su-gyeong’s return.

All this time, Baek Su-gyeong’s movements had been the perfect topic of conversation among the demonic practitioners.

This time was no different.

The way he casually volunteered for the most difficult mission, and the way he slipped out of the Divine Cult in the dead of night.

Neither choice had been anything one could have predicted.

Because he was that kind of Baek Su-gyeong, the demonic practitioners were extremely curious as to whether he would be able to complete his mission successfully.

And the same was true for the Elder Council Lord.

Despite their antagonistic relationship, no one wanted news of Baek Su-gyeong more than the Elder Council Lord.

By now there had been more than enough time for a carrier pigeon from Heuk Un-hwi to arrive ten times over saying he had killed the brat, yet the complete lack of any news only amplified his unease.

The Demon Eye Pavilion was the only one with an information network that reached all the way to Shufu, so he had gone to great pains to extract information from there.

After paying such a steep price, a freshly delivered confidential report finally arrived in the Elder Council Lord’s grasp.

With hands that trembled ever so slightly, the Elder Council Lord unfolded the document.

Inside, it contained words he could never have imagined.

<Seventh Young Lord Baek Su-gyeong, returning to the main altar accompanied by former Ghost-Face Unit Leader and former Longevity Cult Leader Ak Mu-jin. Expected to arrive within two days.>

“Ak Mu-jin!”

The Elder Council Lord practically screamed.

Ak Mu-jin was the man who had vanished years ago after falling into his schemes.

Since then, he had left no trace, so he had assumed the man was dead—

“He was alive? He was the Longevity Cult Leader? He is coming back together with Baek Su-gyeong?”

The Elder Council Lord read the letter again and again.

Even so, the contents would not sink into his mind.

If anything, his head was in such a tangle that he felt dizzy.

All sorts of thoughts rose up in no order.

Why had Baek Su-gyeong taken the heretical cult subjugation mission?

Had he known of Ak Mu-jin’s existence from the beginning?

What was he aiming for in coaxing Ak Mu-jin over?

Could it be… him? Could he know the disgraceful secrets he had tried to hide?

And the most fundamental question.

Just what in the world was Baek Su-gyeong?

A line of cold sweat trickled down his forehead.

No matter how high and sturdy an embankment is piled, the law of the world is that a small crack can still bring it down.

Right now, it felt as if he could hear the illusory sound of a crack running through the embankment of power he had built up with such effort.

Because of Baek Su-gyeong.

“What in the world happened to Heuk Un-hwi!”

He had left in high spirits vowing to kill Baek Su-gyeong, and now there was no word at all.

Even in the report, his name was not mentioned once.

“Could it be that he was beaten by Baek Su-gyeong?”

No other hypothesis came to mind that could explain the current situation.

If he had succeeded, they would never have received information that Baek Su-gyeong was returning to the main altar with Ak Mu-jin in tow.

“Was that brat really this strong?”

He had to admit it whether he liked it or not.

That Baek Su-gyeong was a being far beyond what he had imagined.

“This is no time for this.”

The Elder Council Lord immediately left his quarters.

His destination was the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan.

About fifteen days after leaving Shufu, we were just short of the Demon Cult’s territory.

When I had first set out from the Demon Cult, my party had been modest, but before I knew it, it had grown considerably.

Including myself, Im Yeon and the guards, there were five of us.

Ak Mu-jin and eleven subordinates.

Heuk Un-hwi and two subordinates.

In total, no less than eighteen people.

“Kill me! Just kill me instead!”

Heuk Un-hwi, his entire body bound with the Crimson Scaled Dragon Whip atop his horse, let out a rage-filled roar.

‘Here he goes again.’

He had been like this ever since we set out from Shufu.

He had made such a fuss that we had gagged him, and the moment we loosened the bit for a moment, this was what we got.

“If you want to die that badly, you can just sever your own meridians. I left your internal energy intact, did I not.”

I replied flatly.

If I had been truly ruthless, I would have shattered his dantian outright. I had spared him that much since he was still my sahyung, but I almost wondered if I should have made him taste something harsher.

“I told you to kill me! Kiiiill me!”

“Tsk tsk.”

I clicked my tongue at the way he was acting as if he had not heard me.

This meant he had no actual intention of dying.

‘Yeah, it’s better to stay alive.’

He would taste extreme humiliation from here on, but still, having his life was something.

“Once we reach the main altar, my clan will tear your limbs apart! Do you hear me, Baek Su-gyeong!”

“Sure, sure.”

“I will kill all of you as well!”

I was not the only target of Heuk Un-hwi’s curses.

They included not just Im Yeon, the guards, Ak Mu-jin and his subordinates, but even Gwak Seok, the man who had been his own subordinate.

Gwak Seok turned his head away with a bitter look.

His comrades had long since bolted. It had been a reasonable choice, since there was no good end waiting for them if they returned to the Demon Cult.

Only Gwak Seok had remained.

Whether it was because his weakness had been seized, or because of stubborn loyalty, I had no way of knowing.

“……”

Leaving Heuk Un-hwi’s thrashing behind, I turned my gaze to Ak Mu-jin.

He was quietly staring straight ahead.

“Unit Leader Ak, are you prepared. The Divine Cult is right in front of us.”

Ak Mu-jin’s face was still expressionless, but he could not hide the turbulence in his eyes.

Only someone who has experienced it can know what it feels like to return to a place you thought you would never be able to come back to.

I was the same.

I had felt it in my previous life after the Demon Cult was destroyed.

“I am ready.”

“That is awfully short. Do you not have anything more to say?”

“I do not.”

Ak Mu-jin firmly shut his mouth.

Honestly, when it came to taciturnity alone, he could easily rival the Heavenly Demon.

‘Though things might be different if this is involved.’

“Woong Gyo.”

I signaled with my eyes to the one-armed man, Woong Gyo.

Woong Gyo immediately took out a mask from his breast and handed it to Ak Mu-jin. It was a spare mask he had worn back when he was the Longevity Cult Leader.

I had told him in advance before we set out to make sure to bring it.

Ak Mu-jin looked back and forth between the mask and me and asked,

“What is the meaning of this?”

“From now on, whenever I ask you something, put this on and answer. We cannot have a proper conversation like this.”

Expressionless, Ak Mu-jin accepted the mask.

“Back then, I was a cult leader.”

He meant that the reason he had delivered fiery speeches before countless believers while wearing the mask was because he had been given the role of ‘Cult Leader.’

“I do not think that is it. Just put it on.”

“……”

Without a word, Ak Mu-jin slowly put on the mask.

‘Now then, how will it be?’

I watched him with curious eyes.

Masked, Ak Mu-jin let out a hollow laugh.

“Do you know there are academies in the capital that teach the art of speech? If just putting on a mask were enough to make a man talkative, those academies would have all gone out of business.”

Instead of answering, I gave a faint smile.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Because it is fascinating.”

“What is?”

“Do you not see? You are already talking more.”

“…!”

His eyes behind the mask widened in surprise.

Masked Ak Mu-jin was definitely more talkative than before.

He said things like how it had been truly a long time since he had taken this road, and how once he returned to the Demon Cult he should visit the tavern he used to frequent.

He tossed out trivial stories one after another.

Was this the power of the mask?

‘How satisfying.’

I had not thought it would actually work.

I had only prepared it half as a joke.

It was as we crossed into the Divine Cult’s territory.

Im Yeon spoke up in a low voice.

“Young Lord, do you perhaps have a secret plan for dealing with the Patriarch of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan’s wrath?”

I quietly looked at Im Yeon.

Her face was full of worry.

No wonder she had spoken less the closer we got to the Demon Cult, she must have been worrying about what would happen once we arrived.

“The Patriarch of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan is a terrifying man. His own martial prowess is enough to shake heaven and earth, and because of his fiery temper he has shed countless amounts of blood. I am worried for your safety, Young Lord.”

“There is no need to worry. Things will work out somehow.”

For a moment, Im Yeon seemed at a loss for words.

With her own life on the line, she probably could not understand what I was so relaxed about.

Even though our group had grown, if the clan’s Patriarch alone appeared, none of us would even have our bones left.

However, that kind of situation would not occur.

The Patriarch of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan was unexpectedly cool-headed.

And I had a way to hold him back. Temporary, perhaps, but still.

“Understood. I will not worry.”

This time, I was the one left speechless.

Im Yeon accepted it this easily? Why?

Perhaps having sensed what lay in my heart, she gave a faint smile.

“Your words have never been wrong, Young Lord.”

Her words, filled with firm belief, drew a small laugh from me.

It struck me that this was the reward for having built up trust well.

Perhaps because her heart had grown lighter, Im Yeon cracked a joke.

“We will not find the Patriarch himself waiting to greet us, will we?”

Sometimes I felt it, but Im Yeon could be unexpectedly sharp.

For in front of the Divine Demon Gate, where we arrived on horseback, the Elder Council Lord, the Patriarch of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan, and their subordinates were waiting for us.

“Gasp, Y-Young Lord…!”

Leaving Im Yeon stammering in surprise, I dismounted.

“What brings you all here? Have you come out to welcome my return?”

I deliberately joked.

The Elder Council Lord did not seem to have the composure to respond to my words. His gaze was sweeping not over me, but behind me.

He was no doubt searching for Ak Mu-jin.

Hwoooong!

It was then.

With a sharp rushing sound, a gust of wind rose up. The Patriarch’s figure disappeared and, in the blink of an eye, he reappeared before the horse bearing Heuk Un-hwi.

It had been at least fifteen meters of distance, yet his movement was so natural it was as if he had always been standing there.

“Mmph, mmph!”

Perhaps recognizing his father, Heuk Un-hwi thrashed about.

“……”

For a while, the Patriarch said nothing.

He only looked down at Heuk Un-hwi’s horribly severed forearm.

“…Was this the Seventh Young Lord’s doing?”

His voice was eerily flat.

But in contrast to that, black energy began to seep from the Patriarch’s body.

It was Black Kite Blood-Wind Hardened Qi, granted only to the Patriarch of the Hundred-Succession Heuk Clan.

Reflecting the Patriarch’s inner state, that energy began to writhe wildly as if alive.

“I had no word from him, but I did not worry. He was not such a weak child. Yet I never imagined he would return in this state.”

The Patriarch’s gaze, which had been fixed on Heuk Un-hwi’s severed arm, slowly turned toward me.

At that, my whole body grew hot as if scalded.

He was only looking at me, yet the killing intent contained in that gaze was so overwhelming it choked off my breath.

“I will ask again. Was this the Seventh Young Lord’s doing?”

The space around the Patriarch warped.

The Divine Demon Gate, which divided the inside and outside of the Demon Cult, shook as if it might be torn up at any moment, and the ground for dozens of jang trembled as if it would split.

Because of that, even the Elder Council Lord gave up trying to search for Ak Mu-jin and retreated.

‘Man, this is no joke.’

The pressure bearing down on me also rose, and it felt like my body might just burst with a bang.

If that happened, the Divine Demon Gate would end up covered completely in my blood.

I kept a smile at the corners of my mouth.

“Yes, I did it.”

I had still not lost my composure.

Because this situation had not deviated a hair’s breadth from what I had anticipated.