Chapter 153 - I Had No Intention of Taking You With Me

Geom Mugeuk deliberately provoked him.

The Wicked Laughing Demon had said that anyone with less internal energy could not evade the mutual-destruction art. That meant even the Demon Supremes might be in danger. The master of Villains' Valley could not be allowed to die either, since they needed his clue about the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society.

But when it came to internal energy, Geom Mugeuk was more confident than anyone present. However profound Yang Cheogi's reserves might be, they could not surpass his own, which had already exceeded those of the Demon Supremes even before he absorbed the Seductress of Supreme Bliss's internal energy.

"Let's walk that road to the underworld together. I talk enough that you won't be bored, at least."

Taking this as mockery, Yang Cheogi's eyes grew even redder. Though the Heavenly Light Instant-Kill Art seemed poised to erupt at any instant, Geom Mugeuk provoked him further.

"Right up to your death, all you've done is dream of things you'll never achieve."

Those words struck Yang Cheogi's rawest nerve. Demon Supreme, sect leader, alliance leader, valley master—he had become none of them. The wounds left by a life in which he had achieved not one of those ambitions ran far too deep.

At the very moment Yang Cheogi decided, 'Yes. You.'

WHOOOSH!

A palm strike from the master of Villains' Valley, who had been waiting for an opening, hurtled toward Yang Cheogi's back.

As far as the valley master was concerned, Geom Mugeuk absolutely could not die. If he did, the Demon Supremes would never let the valley master live.

Yang Cheogi whirled around like lightning and thrust out his palm.

With an ear-splitting explosion, both men slid backward. Yang Cheogi was driven farther back—not because his internal energy was inferior, but because he had gathered it to use the Heavenly Light Instant-Kill Art and could not fully exercise his usual strength.

Enraged, Yang Cheogi unleashed Blood Calamity Finger.

ZING!

But the sound that followed was not Blood Calamity Finger piercing flesh. It was a sword passing through a body.

SHUNK!

Blood Calamity Finger went wide of its intended target, the valley master's face. Blood had spattered the tip of Yang Cheogi's outstretched finger.

He slowly lowered his head to look at his chest. A keen, coldly gleaming blade protruded from it, having entered through his back.

With the sword still embedded in him, Yang Cheogi slowly turned around.

He had thought Geom Mugeuk or one of the Demon Supremes had ambushed him, but they remained where they had been.

He saw the unfamiliar man who had attacked him. This was the valley master's last trusted subordinate, a master of concealment and swordsmanship. The valley master's final move had not been Stone Elder, but this man. The hidden trump card he had kept secret even from Yang Cheogi had worked perfectly.

Yang Cheogi's knees slowly buckled. He had neither the strength nor the opportunity to turn his head and choose someone else.

"Damn it... I had... no intention... of taking you with me."

At that moment, red light burst from Yang Cheogi's eyes.

POP! POP!

The ambusher's eyes burst, and he toppled backward. At the same time, Yang Cheogi's own eyes burst as they poured out light, and he died.

Without doing this, he would have died without ever using the Heavenly Light Instant-Kill Art. Left with no choice, he had taken his attacker down with him—a man whose name he did not even know.

He died without being able to use even his final secret technique on the person he wanted. Just as Geom Mugeuk had said, he had spent his life dreaming of things he could never achieve, right up to the very end.

The Wicked Laughing Demon gazed impassively at his corpse. His senior martial uncle's death brought their long-standing debts and grudges to an end, but he showed no emotion. He looked neither relieved nor saddened.

The master of Villains' Valley, on the other hand, was smiling.

He was the one who had survived in the end. Though even the subordinate who had been his hidden trump card was dead, what mattered was that he was alive at this moment.

"Spare me, as you promised!"

Neither Yang Cheogi's death nor his subordinate's meant anything to him.

Geom Mugeuk regarded him coldly.

"Whether you live or die is up to you."

The valley master began speaking about the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society.

"He never revealed his identity. Even when he met us, he wore a bamboo hat with a veil attached. He wouldn't meet us when we contacted him. He always contacted us and set the time and place himself."

"How did he draw you in?"

"What else? Money."

He had offered a fortune large enough to sway the valley master.

"But don't look down on me for that. Money is what keeps me in this seat. You have no idea how precarious it is, or how many madmen are willing to die as long as they can sit in it just once."

Money was what allowed him to hold on to his position.

Both the Grotesque Demon and the Iron Chain Wielder had been powerful enough to challenge him for it at any time. What kept their ambitions in check was the money that allowed them to indulge in pleasure.

"Didn't you say you had a clue that could lead us to him?"

"I do. But first, promise me here and now that you'll spare me. Swear it on your Divine Cult."

"I swear on the Cult. If you give me a clue that can lead us to the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society, I will spare you."

Only then did the valley master reveal his clue.

"Do you think I trusted him blindly? I secretly investigated him. But it wasn't easy. The people I sent either disappeared or were found dead. Still, I sent more, and more after that. And finally, I learned one thing."

An unexpected phrase came from the valley master's lips.

"The Young Dragon Tournament."

The Young Dragon Tournament was a martial competition hosted by the Orthodox Martial Alliance. It selected talented promising young martial artists from the orthodox factions to join the Alliance's elite ranks.

"My spies gave their lives to obtain this information. The leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society is definitely plotting something involving this year's Young Dragon Tournament!"

The valley master trembled with anxiety, afraid they would say this was not enough.

But he need not have worried. Geom Mugeuk was recalling something about the Young Dragon Tournament.

'Ah! Come to think of it, this is the year!'

Geom Mugeuk nodded.

"Very well. I'll accept that as useful information."

"Then you'll spare me?"

"I will keep my promise. I do hope you manage to stay alive."

"?"

When Geom Mugeuk and the Demon Supremes turned and left the main hall, the villains were waiting outside.

The spear-wielding Colossal Might Ghost Spear and his followers, Hidden Moon and his assassins, the drug-intoxicated men, the groups made up entirely of women, the hunters, and the beggars—they were the very people who had refrained from attacking us earlier.

As we emerged, they began streaming into the hall one by one, their eyes filled with killing intent and greed.

Curses erupted inside, soon followed by the sounds of fighting. Among several screams, we heard the valley master's as well.

The scene made it perfectly clear why Villains' Valley could never emerge into the world as a single organization. This place was hell.

* * *

At the entrance to Villains' Valley, I formally thanked the Demon Supremes.

"Thank you for your help."

The Blood Heaven Saber Demon replied,

"Did we do anything? They fought among themselves and died."

"That's how it ended because all of you were there. Imagine if I'd gone alone. I'd still be in there, covered in blood and fighting like mad."

I met each Demon Supreme's eyes in turn.

The eyes behind the Wicked Laughing Demon's mask conveyed profound gratitude.

None of this would originally have happened. But my intervention had allowed him to settle his old debts and grudges.

The Single Flower Sword Supreme smiled.

"Thanks to you, I enjoyed getting out for some fresh air."

The Single Flower Sword Supreme, who had refused to become my wing, had served admirably as one this time. Sometimes, the people who say they will never belong anywhere are the very ones who become most deeply involved. Perhaps they guard against it in advance because they know they fall in deeper than anyone else.

Beside the Sword Supreme, the Drunken Demon drank. He had begun making a serious effort to reconcile the Blood Heaven Saber Demon and the Single Flower Sword Supreme. Though he had made a mistake in his youth, he now acknowledged it and was trying to put it right. I liked that, brother.

Finally, my eyes met the Blood Heaven Saber Demon's. Had he not come to the Yellow River Inn earlier, I might have died.

I did not thank him aloud. My feelings would already have reached him through my eyes.

Even I did not know how my relationships with these people would end. Things were good now, but something might yet drive us apart. Or we might forge bonds deeper than anything I could currently imagine.

I knew what would happen at the Young Dragon Tournament, but these newly formed relationships had never existed before. All I could do was give my best at each moment.

"What are you going to do now?"

I answered the Blood Heaven Saber Demon's question without hesitation.

"Go to the Orthodox Martial Alliance."

The Young Dragon Tournament would be held at the Alliance headquarters in about two months.

"That will be dangerous."

"This succession trial requires me to capture the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society. Failing the trial would be more dangerous for me."

"So? You're going to take part in the Young Dragon Tournament yourself?"

"No. If I competed, I'd eventually be exposed. I'll have to stay nearby. There's someone I can enter instead—someone completely unknown in Murim."

"Who?"

Geom Mugeuk named someone unexpected.

"Your disciple."

Seeing the Blood Heaven Saber Demon's startled expression, Geom Mugeuk smiled.

"I'm going to have Investigator Seo participate in this tournament."

If I asked Heaven-Reaching Pavilion, they would create a flawless cover sect for us. Seo Daeryong would enter as a member of that sect.

"What role will you play?"

"A servant or a bodyguard should keep me from standing out."

The Demon Supremes gave me looks that asked whether that would really keep me from standing out.

Perhaps worried, the Blood Heaven Saber Demon tried to come along.

"I'll go too."

Geom Mugeuk's gaze shifted to the Heaven-Destroying Great Saber.

"Everyone would think that saber was a fake, wouldn't they? Surely the Blood Heaven Saber Demon wouldn't come all the way to the Orthodox Martial Alliance carrying the Heaven-Destroying Great Saber. Right?"

It was a roundabout way of saying he was too conspicuous to come.

The Wicked Laughing Demon's mask and the Single Flower Sword Supreme's White Flower Sword, engraved with a red camellia, were also far too well known in Murim.

Yi An would draw every eye if she went, and the scar on the burly Jang Ho's face would do the same. Seo Daeryong was perfect for this task.

"Sounds fun. Little brother, I want to go too."

As if the Drunken Demon wouldn't stand out either.

"I'll tell you everything that happened over drinks later. Oh, and I may ask all of you for help again with the Heavenly Mandate Society's leader. I still have two of my three requests left. I hope I can count on you then as well."

The Demon Supremes nodded. Geom Mugeuk felt reassured. With their help, he would truly have the confidence to take on even the Orthodox Martial Alliance.

'All right, my right-hand man. Let's make a name for you at the Orthodox Martial Alliance.'

* * *

After parting with the Demon Supremes, I headed straight for Wuhan in Hubei Province, where the Orthodox Martial Alliance was located.

I ran using Swift Step, reveling in its extreme speed. Through trees, between people, over rocks—I ran and ran.

No one recognized me. Even a wild beast chasing me failed to catch up and gave up. In a flash, I vanished into the distance.

The sooner I arrived, the more time I would have to train, so I kept running, pushing Swift Step to the utmost speed I could achieve.

Once I reached the vicinity of the Alliance headquarters, I bought food that would keep for a long time and supplies for living in the mountains, then headed into them.

It would be quite a while before Seo Daeryong arrived after receiving my message, and even longer before the Young Dragon Tournament began.

Until then, I intended to hole up quietly in the mountains and do nothing but train.

I began that very day.

I forgot people, forgot my mission, forgot revenge.

I trained as though I had been born for the sole purpose of practicing martial arts. I trained with the conviction that I could sleep when I was dead. I ate and trained, circulated my qi and trained, trained and trained.

A month later, I was walking through the marketplace looking like a shaggy brute.

I had deliberately left my newly grown beard untrimmed. I discarded the martial uniform I had trained in and bought a shabby, cheap outfit that would not attract attention.

When I reached the inn we had agreed on, Seo Daeryong was waiting.

Having entered the Orthodox Martial Alliance's territory, he was visibly tense.

I was delighted to see him after so long. Though our eyes briefly met, he did not recognize me.

Only when I sat down across from him did he belatedly realize who I was and start in surprise.

"Pav—!"

I covered Seo Daeryong's mouth before he could say "Pavilion Master."

"Trying to let everyone know I'm here?"

"No, of course not. You startled me."

With my unkempt hair and mountain bandit's beard, even Seo Daeryong had failed to recognize me at first glance. No one else would recognize me either.

"But why do you look like this?"

"It's a disguise."

"Ah! What's with the beard? What an amateur disguise! It'll only make people stare more."

For all his criticism, he stood out just as much. He was wearing a white martial uniform with the character for "righteous" embroidered on his chest.

"Look at me. Anyone would take me for a member of the orthodox factions, wouldn't they?"

"Look around. Who else is wearing anything like that? It's exactly the sort of outfit a new Alliance recruit wears excitedly for a few days before shoving it into a corner."

"I still think it's better than that filthy beard."

"Not scruffy, but filthy!"

We looked at each other and laughed together. After that happy reunion spent attacking each other's appearance, Seo Daeryong asked seriously,

"But why did you call me all the way here?"

He had come without being told anything beforehand. I gave the thoroughly tense Seo Daeryong a meaningful smile.

"Let's do a job together."