Chapter 85

“I wrote it myself to ensure your safe journey, Young Master. I added my own notes especially to the more difficult parts, so please refer to them. And—”

“…Sorry, but I have to leave now.”

“Ah, yes.”

It felt like she would go on forever, so I had no choice but to cut her off.

Still, her feelings for me came through loud and clear, so I gave her a smile.

“Thanks.”

I hurriedly mounted my horse.

The Heavenly Demon’s horse was already a good distance away.

“I’m off.”

Behind me, Im Yeon cried out in a wavering voice.

“Young Lord! Please take good care of yourself!”

I gave a small shake of my head from the saddle.

I appreciated the concern, but anyone listening would think I was going off to die.

I quickly chased after the Heavenly Demon’s tail.

As I closed the distance and drew my horse up beside his, the Heavenly Demon spoke in a low voice.

“Your guard’s loyalty is impressive.”

“She’s still a spy, you know.”

“You say that, but you’re smiling.”

“Ha. Am I?”

The air outside the Divine Demon Gate was cold.

In the early dawn, the breath from our two horses diffused into the air.

I snuck a glance at the Heavenly Demon’s profile, as if he were bearing the weight of the world on his shoulders.

It felt strange.

In my previous life, I had ridden this road to escape the Heavenly Demon, but now I was traveling it with him to protect him.

Wasn’t this what you’d call the irony of fate?

In any case, it didn’t feel bad, but one thing bothered me.

I still didn’t know our destination.

The Heavenly Demon had said he would tell me later.

“Master, where exactly are we headed? You can tell me now, right?”

“Mount Song.”

“Mount Song…?”

My voice when I repeated it was laced with confusion.

Where was Mount Song?

Wasn’t that where the Shaolin Temple stood, revered alongside the Wudang Sect as one of the twin pillars of Orthodox Murim?

Why would he choose a place that was practically holy ground to the orthodox?

“Why are we going there?”

“You don’t need to know.”

The Heavenly Demon replied coldly.

It was the response I’d expected, so I didn’t lose heart and pressed again.

“Don’t tell me you’re planning to wipe out Shaolin or something?”

It was a joke, but Master’s face didn’t so much as twitch.

Shaolin had still been standing perfectly fine up until just before Master turned into a demon.

My head spun.

No matter how hard I thought about it, I couldn’t think of a reason for the Divine Cult’s leader to visit Mount Song.

According to Gal So-ye, Master always came back weakened after his trips to the Central Plains.

Was it related to the reason he was visiting Mount Song?

‘It probably is.’

I didn’t know what exactly that was yet, though.

But I’d find out when the time came.

I shifted the topic in my mind.

‘So our destination is Mount Song…’

My mind began to spin.

I dug into my memories from my previous life, pulling up the cities along the way and what I could gain from the areas near them.

‘If I play this right, this could be pretty lucrative.’

The first thing that came to mind was the Heretical Alliance.

On the way to Mount Song, we would inevitably pass through several of their territories.

It was a perfect chance to secure extra Tranquil Frost Pills.

The two pills I’d acquired before with the Heavenly Demon were already long gone.

On top of that, near Xi’an was a precious item that wouldn’t be discovered until several years from now.

If I could get my hands on it during this trip, I’d be able to live comfortably for a while, and buy all the elixirs I wanted.

But if I wanted the plan to go my way, I needed to hold the reins of this journey.

If I left it to the Heavenly Demon, he’d obviously just charge straight there by the shortest route.

I turned to the Heavenly Demon and spoke.

“You know, I used to roam around the Central Plains for a while. Did you know that?”

“I’m not interested.”

Of course he wasn’t.

“But the Grand Strategist begged me over and over to take the best possible care of you. Now that I know the final destination, I was thinking I could plan out our schedule. What do you think?”

“Sounds like you have places you want to stop at.”

Sharp as always.

I brazened it out.

“My top priority is to give Master the most luxurious and comfortable journey possible. Everything else is just a bonus.”

“Do as you wish.”

For once, Master agreed surprisingly easily.

Afraid he’d change his mind, I spoke quickly.

“Great. Let’s head to Lanzhou first.”

We had to pass through Lanzhou to get out to the Central Plains anyway.

We spurred our horses toward it.

On the way to Lanzhou, what I paid the most attention to was the alcohol.

In every village we passed, I made sure to refill Master’s wine gourds so they never ran dry.

“That’s not it. Do it again.”

Every night before we went to sleep, I trained with the Heavenly Demon.

I was tired from riding all day, but I still did my best to follow his instructions.

If I whined about how hard it was, he’d probably just make the training even harsher.

Like that, we arrived in Lanzhou after about seven or eight days.

As we rode into the marketplace, I found myself smiling faintly.

‘Has it already been half a year?’

This was the place where I had first met the Heavenly Demon.

I’d come back to the place where everything had begun.

I couldn’t help but feel a bit sentimental.

“Master, how about we stay at Golden Silk Pavilion tonight?”

Golden Silk Pavilion was one of the most luxurious restaurants and inns in Lanzhou.

The food and lodging were extremely expensive, but there was no need to worry about that.

I had the hefty sum the Grand Strategist had pressed into my hands.

“Do as you like.”

Master was as indifferent as ever.

As if I’d been waiting for this, I booked the two most expensive rooms in Golden Silk Pavilion, then shouted to the waiter.

“Fill this table to the brim. With the most expensive, best-tasting dishes you’ve got. And bring out your finest liquor.”

Before long, a sumptuous feast was laid out.

I devoured dish after dish I didn’t even know the names of like a man possessed.

The Heavenly Demon took a few bites here and there, then devoted himself entirely to the wine.

“You’re going to make yourself sick like that, Master.”

The phrase getting an upset stomach didn’t really suit someone like the Heavenly Demon, but as his disciple I felt obliged to say something.

“Man, I’m stuffed.”

With a satisfied look, I leaned back deep into my chair.

Both my tongue and belly were happy. It was a luxury I’d never once enjoyed in my previous life.

‘Yeah. This is how it should be.’

I figured I was allowed at least this much. I’d more than earned it.

I emptied my cup and looked out the window. The view was pretty nice.

I could clearly see the Heretical Alliance’s Lanzhou branch I had visited before.

‘It’s still a mess, huh. The Heavenly Demon did practically smash it to rubble. They’ve fixed it up a bit, but I see it’s time for the calamity to return.’

“Master, since we’ve eaten, how about a walk?”

“Just a walk?”

“A walk, and a bit of fun on the side.”

“Sounds like you’re plotting to use me again.”

The Heavenly Demon’s gaze turned toward the Heretical Alliance branch.

He looked like he already knew what I was planning.

“Rather than using you, I’m just trying to relive some memories.”

“While getting more Tranquil Frost Pills is it?”

“Hehe, exactly. This time we won’t even need to cause a big scene like before. Once we show up, they’ll hand them over without a word.”

“And if they don’t?”

“Want to go check? Think of it as having a little bit of fun.”

‘A little bit of fun.’

That was probably a phrase that didn’t exist in the Heavenly Demon’s vocabulary.

Still, now that we’d eaten, what else were we going to do, sit around in our rooms?

We might as well go out and change the mood.

‘He’ll obviously say no, but I’ll talk him around somehow.’

I was lining up persuasive lines in my head when I got an unexpected answer.

“Do as you like.”

“Really?”

Delighted, I rushed to add on.

“Like I said, Master doesn’t have to do anything. Just stand next to me. They’ll bring out the Tranquil Frost Pills on their own. Let’s go.”

Soon after, we were standing in front of the Heretical Alliance’s Lanzhou branch we’d visited before.

Even from outside the wall, I could see the collapsed hall.

It had been nearly half a year since Master had turned the place into scorched earth, but it still hadn’t been fully restored.

Well, even the wall of Hidden Cloud Pavilion that Heuk Un-hwi had wrecked hadn’t been fully repaired yet.

In any case, maybe it was because of the aftereffects of that day.

The Lanzhou branch of the Heretical Alliance had its gates thrown wide open.

We walked right in.

“Who goes there?”

One of the warriors inside scowled and barked at us.

Without even looking at him, I spoke.

“Tell your branch chief to come out.”

“You think ‘branch chief’ is some mutt’s name?!”

At his shout, warriors of the Heretical Alliance came swarming in.

The atmosphere grew hostile in an instant.

When I glanced at Master, he was watching with eyes full of interest.

As if he were curious to see what kind of trick I would pull this time.

Acting bold, I stuck out my belly in an exaggerated fashion and said,

“I’ve got no business with small fry. Go fetch your branch chief.”

“You little punk, you think this is some random place you can cause trouble in? I’ll make sure you regret it!”

“W-wait!”

While a few of them were losing their minds, a middle-aged man who at least looked calmer held them back.

“C-could it be… that, you know…?”

“What are you babbling about?”

“The one from half a year ago, th-that—”

Before the middle-aged man could finish, the one I’d been waiting for finally appeared.

“What brainless fool dares to call for this branch chief! Do you have a death wish?!”

A man glared at Master and me, eyes brimming with killing intent.

I tilted my head.

It wasn’t the face of the branch chief I remembered.

“The face changed.”

“What face are you talking about?”

“The old branch chief had a catfish mustache.”

“Catfish mustache… that was the previous branch chief.”

The branch chief’s pupils trembled.

“Previous? Guess he got fired because of us, Master.”

Considering the branch had basically been demolished, it would’ve been stranger if he’d kept his position.

“C-come to think of it…!”

At that moment, the branch chief’s mouth fell open as if it were going to split.

He’d finally recognized us.

I grinned.

“You remember us, don’t you?”

“Ah, y-yes! The ones at the center of the Star-Radiance Cataclysm…”

The branch chief became extremely polite.

Not only did he bow and scrape himself, he even urged his subordinates to get on their knees at once.

‘Star-Radiance Cataclysm, huh. Not a bad name for it.’

Back then, Master had displayed a technique that was practically godlike.

With radiance like a river of stars, he’d wiped out the Lanzhou branch of the Heretical Alliance.

“A-and to what do we owe the honor of your visit?”

I held out my palm toward him.

“Hand it over.”

“W-what do you mean?”

“Tranquil Frost Pills.”

“…!”

“You must’ve gotten some when you became branch chief.”

“T-that…”

“Stalling like this, I guess your memory’s gotten a bit fuzzy. Want us to show you ‘that’ again?”

The branch chief’s body trembled.

He was clearly remembering the nightmare from half a year ago.

“Hand it over while I’m still asking nicely.”

I had always hated the unorthodox sects more than the Demon Cult.

Cult members were reckless and brutal, but these guys were calculating and vile.

For the sake of their own gain, they’d stab people in the back, cheat them blind, even kill them without blinking. That was the riffraff of the unorthodox.

“H-here you are.”

In the end, the branch chief handed me a wooden box of Tranquil Frost Pills with shaking hands.

I shook the box toward Master.

“Told you, right? All you had to do was show your face.”

Master shook his head.

I guess he didn’t like my method.

He asked,

“Are you going to extort Tranquil Frost Pills like this from now on as well?”

“Yeah. Since we’re already out of the Cult, I might as well take what I can.”

I’d used up both pills in the last half year.

I still hadn’t fully escaped the effects of the True Blood Severed Meridians, so I needed to stock up to make sure I never ran out.

“I won’t bother you with it next time. I’ll handle it on my own.”

“How?”

“Ambushes, of course. I never mentioned it, but I’m pretty good at that sort of thing.”

“Understood.”

Master cut me off firmly.

After a sweet day in Lanzhou, we set out again.

Our next destination was Tianshui.

This was also Heretical Alliance territory.

Just like in Lanzhou, we found a luxurious inn and finished a good meal.

Then I slipped a hundred coins to the waiter and dug for information about the Tianshui Heretical Alliance’s Tianshui branch chief.

The waiter summed him up in one phrase: “a bastard worth beating to death.”

He said the man would, without fail, make the rounds of the nearby pleasure houses and drink himself senseless around sunset.

It was almost that time now, so it seemed like the perfect moment to head out.

“Master, I’ll step out for a bit.”

However.

“Why are you coming with me?”

The Heavenly Demon came out with me.

“A walk.”

I tilted my head but let it go and kept walking.

Since he kept following, I couldn’t help but feel a little pleased.

Maybe he was stepping in personally to help me get Tranquil Frost Pills because he was worried his disciple might be in danger.

Like that, we arrived at the Heretical Alliance’s Tianshui branch.

There was a tea house with a view of the front gate.

If we waited there, the branch chief was sure to show himself.

“Master, let’s grab a cup of tea up there.”

“I have no desire to.”

Suddenly, Master strode straight toward the branch’s front gate.

“What are you doing?”

Master didn’t answer.

Seeing him approach, the guards aimed their weapons at him in alarm.

Master paid them no mind and flicked a finger.

Kwaaa-rung!

At the same time, the front gate vanished without a trace.

“A-a raid!”

Pandemonium broke out in an instant.

Even though it was a small branch, a dozen or so warriors poured out.

They shouted,

“What have you done to our gate? Do you have any idea this is a branch of the Heretical Alliance?”

Instead of replying, Master glanced at me, one corner of his mouth turned up.

“This is the approach that suits me.”

All I could do was let out a disbelieving laugh.

Right. The Heavenly Demon wasn’t the type to sit back and watch petty schemes like mine.

My stealthy plan had gone up in smoke, but this way was going to be a lot more fun.

I smirked and stepped up beside him.

“Well then, why don’t we have ourselves a little fun?”