Chapter 161 - Sometimes Tragedy Lies Close at Hand

Their qi presences were different.

Father’s was like sinking into a bottomless abyss: my body grew cold, my true qi slowed, and the terror of suffocation gripped me. The qi presence of Jin Paecheon, the Martial Alliance Leader, was like a typhoon encountered on a dark sea.

I stood firm against his qi presence. The raging waves hurled me into the air, then dragged me down to the depths, but I did not lose consciousness.

My martial arts began reacting reflexively. When faced with a formidable foe, the Wind God's Four Steps stirred me like this.

'Let’s fight. Let’s tear that qi presence apart! Let’s break through the typhoon!'

Struggling to suppress the temptation of this supreme martial art, I endured the Martial Alliance Leader’s qi presence to the end. Just as sparring with Father in the tavern had helped me enormously, merely withstanding this pressure would teach me a great deal.

As I held out, an expression crossed his face that seemed to say, Well, look at this little fellow.

At the same time, the pressure intensified. Lightning now struck the typhoon-ravaged sea. Vast whirlwinds formed across its surface, drawing the seawater upward. His qi presence truly inspired tremendous terror.

So the Martial Alliance Leader was this domineering a man. It occurred to me that perhaps he was the reason Father dreamed of unifying Murim. The existence of such a powerful adversary could hardly have failed to spur Father on.

I had reached the limit of what I could endure. Now I had to collapse or flee.

At that very moment, I saw them again.

Two eyes.

Enormous eyes watching me.

Some colossal being was looking at me. I recognized it as the Heavenly Demon's Soul I had once seen in a painting.

I had not even learned the Nine Calamities Demonic Art yet. Why did I keep seeing visions of the Heavenly Demon's Soul?

The enormous Heavenly Demon's Soul stood towering in the sea, shielding me from the oncoming typhoon as it looked down at me. Its gaze seemed to hold disdain, longing, or pity. It also seemed to hold no emotion at all.

The vision of the Heavenly Demon's Soul slowly faded.

The Martial Alliance Leader’s qi presence, which had surged toward me as though to kill me, had already vanished. Standing some distance away, he was astonished that I had endured to the end.

I was on the verge of collapse. Had the Heavenly Demon's Soul not shielded me at the last moment, I would have lost consciousness and fallen. It, too, must have been a vision conjured by my mental fortitude, but it had been so vivid that it felt as though the real Heavenly Demon's Soul had visited me.

I repeated what I had told him earlier through sound transmission.

“Only I can save your granddaughter.”

Jin Paecheon no longer reacted with blind anger. These words came from someone who had withstood his qi presence.

“What do you mean by that?”

Meeting the Martial Alliance Leader and revealing my identity.

Normally, I would not have made that choice. I had ultimately done so because I possessed two weapons.

The first was my faith in my experience—both my experiences before regression and those I had accumulated dealing with the Demon Supremes afterward. I trusted myself.

But without my second weapon, I would not have recklessly chosen to meet the Martial Alliance Leader on the strength of experience alone.

My second weapon was his granddaughter, Jin Haryeong.

With her so deeply involved in this affair, I was certain that he would ultimately have no choice but to help me. I felt sorry for her, but I intended to make full use of her. This was for her sake as well, after all, so surely she would understand.

“Have you heard of the Heavenly Mandate Society?”

Jin Paecheon nodded. They had recently been committing all manner of atrocities while impersonating the Cult, so naturally the Orthodox Martial Alliance would know about them.

“On my father’s orders, I have been pursuing them. In the process, I learned that they are plotting something involving this year’s Young Dragon Tournament.”

“What is your source?”

“The master of Villains' Valley.”

Jin Paecheon showed no surprise. Just as he had heard of the Heavenly Mandate Society, he would have received word of the valley master’s recent death. He simply had not yet known that the two matters were connected.

“I heard that Villains' Valley has a new master.”

“He disclosed this information to save his life, so it is reliable. That is why I entered my subordinate in the Young Dragon Tournament and came here to catch them.”

“If that were the case, you should have informed us.”

“There are circumstances that prevented me from doing so.”

“What circumstances?”

“Eliminating the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society is the succession test assigned to me.”

Jin Paecheon’s gaze deepened with a cold intensity, and he released his qi presence again. This time, it was unlike the typhoon-ravaged sea he had shown me before. It enveloped my body gently, like a spring breeze, seeking to read changes in my emotions. He was attempting to determine whether I was telling the truth.

“Tell me about Haryeong.”

“I am certain that the Heavenly Mandate Society is targeting Miss Jin.”

“Why are you so certain?”

“I learned that the Heavenly Mandate Society was plotting something involving the Young Dragon Tournament. But when I arrived, I found that Miss Jin had entered this year’s tournament—and was even a strong favorite to win. A string of coincidences? Absolutely not. They will undoubtedly target her. No, they devised their plan knowing from the outset that she would compete.”

“Even if that is true, I can deal with it myself. Why would I entrust my granddaughter’s affairs to you?”

“Because if anyone other than me intervenes now, Miss Jin will be in danger.”

The qi presence gently enveloping me turned cold in an instant. The mere mention of danger to his granddaughter made it radiate killing intent.

“The Heavenly Mandate Society is a far larger and more powerful organization than we initially thought. They may already have recruited people among the leadership of the Cult, the Orthodox Martial Alliance, or the Unorthodox Alliance. That is also why we must converse through sound transmission now.”

I told him how they had already recruited the master of Villains' Valley and the Wicked Laughing Demon’s senior martial uncle. If figures of that stature had been won over, this was not a matter to take lightly.

“If you investigate, you will find that I am telling the truth. Fortunately, they do not yet know that I have come all the way here to pursue them. If you place your trust in me, I will root them out completely.”

Jin Paecheon stared at me in silence. Normally, he would have dismissed this as a plot by the Cult and refused to believe me. But with Jin Haryeong involved, he could not reject me so easily.

I was the only person who could save his granddaughter now.

With my strongest weapon at the forefront, I continued persuading him.

“I imagine you have received various reports about me. I do not know what they said, but one thing is certain. I am striving to establish a Demonic Path different from what came before. At the very least, I do not hatch schemes that exploit the opposing side’s young granddaughter.”

The Divine Cult of the Heavenly Demon, the Orthodox Martial Alliance, and the Unorthodox Alliance sent countless spies to one another. As a result, they all knew the basic facts. I assumed he knew at least something of my activities as Pavilion Master of Yellow Springs Pavilion.

“Do you know why I resolved to save your granddaughter, no matter what?”

“Why?”

“Because, despite being the Martial Alliance Leader’s granddaughter, she was willing to go so far as to marry someone to protect a mere servant’s life. You have raised her wonderfully.”

It was sincere—and also my Divine Art of Flattery.

Jin Paecheon strode toward me.

In a flash, his sword was pointed at my throat.

“Go back and wait. I will give you my answer soon.”

“Yes. I will wait.”

I bowed respectfully to him and turned away.

His gaze against my back was so powerful that it felt as though it would pierce right through me.

His suspicion of me was only natural. Still, I could only hope he would make a wise decision.

* * *

When I returned to the inn, Seo Daeryong had packed everything so we could leave at a moment’s notice.

“Ah! You’re back!”

“What’s all this?”

“What do you think? I packed so I could bolt if things went wrong.”

“What about me?”

“Don’t worry. I packed your things too, Pavilion Master.”

“No. If things went wrong, that would mean something had happened to me, wouldn’t it?”

“That doesn’t mean I should get caught too, does it?”

“...”

“...”

“Ah! You have no idea how much I missed those lame jokes of yours.”

“I wasn’t joking. Anyway, how did it go? You met the Martial Alliance Leader, didn’t you?”

“I thought I was going to die.”

“He’s strong, isn’t he?”

I nodded.

“I’m glad you made it back.”

Seo Daeryong began unpacking again. The playfulness had left his face, replaced by profound relief.

By now, I knew Seo Daeryong well enough. He was not joking: if something happened to me, he would flee immediately. He was not the sort to charge in emotionally, vowing revenge.

Only after returning and reporting everything would his revenge begin. Just as he had memorized the personal details of the Demon Army soldiers to avenge his senior from Yellow Springs Pavilion, he might memorize every martial artist in the Orthodox Martial Alliance. Whether it took ten years or a hundred, he would dream of revenge until the day he died. That was the kind of man Seo Daeryong was.

“What about your identity, Pavilion Master?”

“He knows who I am now.”

“Then he must know about me too.”

“That’s right.”

“Can I still win the tournament?”

His expression was too serious for me to ask, Can you even manage it?

“Now you absolutely have to.”

“Why?”

“The Martial Alliance Leader knows about the Heavenly Mandate Society now, doesn’t he? Would he want his granddaughter to win and become their target?”

“So he’ll want me to win and become their target instead.”

“Exactly.”

“Ah, how is a man without a grandfather supposed to bear such injustice? Grandfather! Are you watching?”

I laughed at Seo Daeryong’s joke and said,

“Look on the bright side. This is the moment in your life when you have the Martial Alliance Leader cheering you on.”

“Ah! You’re right. Now I have another story to boast about over drinks. But is it all right to reveal everything to him like this?”

“We need to abandon the idea that we can accomplish anything while deceiving the Martial Alliance Leader. I’ll continue being honest with him. I’ll show him all ninety-nine truths.”

“Then what’s the remaining lie?”

“Why do you assume it’s a lie?”

“What?”

“It could be a truth I haven’t told him yet.”

“What truth?”

Looking out the window at the distant buildings of the Orthodox Martial Alliance, I said,

“You’ll find out later. Much later.”

* * *

At dawn the next day, I woke.

The Heavenly Demon’s Body-Protection Art had awakened me.

I left my room and went downstairs, where someone sat alone in the closed dining area. He revealed no qi presence, yet even his silhouette in the darkness made his presence felt. Merely sitting there with his back to me, he put me on edge. It was Jin Paecheon, the Martial Alliance Leader.

“You’ve come.”

I sat opposite him. There was no sign of the Heavenly Dragon Guard nearby. Still, they would be hidden at various points not far away, guarding the surroundings with impenetrable vigilance.

Jin Paecheon abruptly brought up Father.

“I have met your father twice or so in my lifetime.”

I listened in silence.

“Each time I met him, he made me feel I needed to work harder. Your father was the one who kept me from stopping.”

I felt I understood his feelings. Father yearned to grow stronger more than anyone.

“I had forgotten that for a while, but yesterday you rekindled the dying embers in my heart.”

That was how strongly I had impressed him by withstanding his qi presence. If I was already this capable at such a young age, what would I be like later? He must have felt threatened by that prospect.

“Very well. I will entrust this matter to you.”

He must have deliberated at length before reaching that decision. Who had he consulted? Who was the person he trusted most?

“But I have one condition.”

“Please tell me.”

“I must know every step of your progress from this point onward. Starting now, one of my people will accompany you. That person will observe your every move.”

I could already sense someone concealed nearby. He was as accomplished at concealment as Hwi, Father’s bodyguard. Of course, I gave no indication that I had detected him.

The possibility of a traitor would not be the Martial Alliance Leader’s only reason for entrusting this matter to me.

He also wished to test me—to discover what kind of person I was, since I might become the next cult leader. In the end, I was taking a test set by both the demonic cult leader and the Martial Alliance Leader.

“In return, I have a condition as well.”

“What is it?”

“Our side will deal with the leader of the Heavenly Mandate Society. In exchange, I will handle it as discreetly as possible and return home.”

Jin Paecheon nodded and rose.

“Do only what you came to do, then leave.”

I understood his concern. He meant that I should not stir Jin Haryeong’s heart.

“The subordinate who came with me teases me. He says fated love always ends in tragedy. But young people these days do not like tragedies. That goes not only for me, but probably for your granddaughter as well.”

I knew very well why Jin Paecheon was so worried. His son and daughter-in-law had met a tragic end together, so he wanted at least his granddaughter to escape a tragedy born of romantic entanglements.

“Sometimes tragedy may lie close at hand.”

“What do you mean?”

“Your granddaughter’s declaration before all those people that she was seeing me probably wasn’t motivated solely by affection or goodwill toward me.”

“You mean it was because of the man who wants to kill you?”

“Miss Jin takes after you, Alliance Leader. She cannot tolerate injustice.”

“That sometimes makes me worry all the more.”

“Then investigate who he is and how he is pressuring your granddaughter. That single investigation will do more for your relationship with her than worrying a hundred times.”

Jin Paecheon stared at me for a moment, almost glaring, then left with one last remark.

“Stop worrying about things that are none of your concern and do your assigned job properly.”

After watching his retreating figure disappear into the distance, I went upstairs to my room on the second floor. Before entering, I spoke into empty air.

“When I sleep, you should get some sleep too. I’ll tell you if I’m going anywhere.”

Despite my needless attempt at friendliness, the concealed man gave no answer.