Ascension of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 126

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 126

 

 

 

 

 

“Hmm…”

 

As soon as they arrived at the Black Steel Gate Branch, Zhuge Munhyeon and Mujin stopped at the entrance with grimaced faces.

 

Despite wearing the masks they had received in advance, the smell of decomposing corpses stung their noses.

 

If even Zhuge Munhyeon, who had traversed countless battlefields and walked among piles of corpses, was like this, how much worse must it be for Mujin, who had only breathed the fresh air of the temple grounds before coming out into the world?

 

They say spring sun is good for daughters-in-law and autumn sun is good for daughters, but autumn afternoons aren’t exactly cool all the time.

 

Even though the days had grown shorter, the warm sunlight accelerated decomposition.

 

“It’s common sense to preserve corpses in cool places… but they left them under the sun?”

 

“Ah, is that so? Should we move them now then?”

 

Zhuge Munhyeon shook his head at Yangmun’s words.

 

That would only matter at the beginning.

 

Even if they put them in shade now, too much time had already passed, so they would decompose just the same. Moving them now wouldn’t make the decomposition disappear or the smell go away.

 

“Hmm, but… the culprit seems bolder than expected?”

 

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

 

“They broke down the door and entered from the start.”

 

The first thing Zhuge Munhyeon examined was the broken main gate.

 

The door panels had already been shattered to pieces and even the debris had been cleared away, so no traces could be found, but the doorposts (pillars where doors hang) remained askew.

 

“Let me see.”

 

Zhuge Munhyeon stepped back slightly and extended his fist, assuming the door had been closed.

 

“Hmm, they broke it in one strike.”

 

“Y-you can tell that too?”

 

“Roughly.”

 

He nodded toward Yangmun, who was looking at him in surprise.

 

He knew from doing it many times.

 

He had never once failed to go through the main gate, and there had been few occasions when someone opened the door saying “please come in.”

 

Usually, he broke them down.

 

Since it would be troublesome to strike multiple times, he often broke them in one go.

 

Doing that repeatedly made the remaining traces look similar.

 

“Well then, shall we go inside?”

 

“Yes!”

 

Yangmun’s voice rose.

 

It had been quite some time since they started the investigation.

 

Not only were they there, but even coroners sent as support from the Black Cat Room were present, yet none of them had examined the traces of the broken main gate.

 

Seeing how he immediately figured out the culprit’s entry route, expectations of ‘Is this indeed a Zhuge person?’ couldn’t help but arise.

 

“Hmm… they gathered the corpses? Neatly arranged.”

 

“That’s correct.”

 

“Hmm.”

 

His face frowned.

 

The most important thing when examining a murder scene was preserving the scene.

 

Usually it was something subordinates did, but even he, as a sect leader, knew that much.

 

It was common sense.

 

“Who was the first person to discover the scene?”

 

“Ah, that’s…”

 

Yangmun called Deputy Branch Manager Yeom Ak to ask.

 

“Who was the first one dispatched?”

 

“Patrol Squad Three.”

 

“Bring them here.”

 

“Yes.”

 

A man named Min Wa, the Squad Leader of Squad Three, was summoned.

 

Well, they say people’s lives often follow their names.

 

Round face, chubby cheeks, big eyes and flat nose—he looked exactly like a snail… Ahem!

 

“Do you happen to remember the situation at that time?”

 

“Well… the fire had somewhat died down and all the warriors were dead.”

 

“That’s not what I meant—I’m asking about what position the corpses were lying in.”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“You don’t remember?”

 

“Well, at the time there was no time to think about such things…”

 

“Oh dear, how unfortunate. If we just knew whether the corpses had fallen face up or face down, we could roughly guess how the culprit moved…”

 

As he muttered as if to himself, Yangmun, who had shown a startled expression, soon frowned and scolded Min Wa.

 

“You stupid fool! You can’t even remember that! If your head is bad, you should have at least drawn a picture!”

 

“I-I’m sorry.”

 

“Remember it right now! Give at least a rough explanation!”

 

“Th-that is…”

 

“Good grief!”

 

Yangmun’s voice rose.

 

It was because Zhuge Munhyeon’s investigation had given off a professional scent from the very beginning.

 

Hmm, he’s weak to experts.

 

“Branch Manager, stop scolding him.”

 

“I apologize. That stupid fool seems to have damaged important clues…”

 

“Didn’t he say there was no time to think? If you scold him like that when he’s trying to remember… even thoughts that were about to come won’t surface.”

 

“You’re right.”

 

While nodding, Yangmun still glared at Min Wa.

 

“Snail… I mean, Squad Leader Min.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Despite the gentle tone, Min Wa, who had already been scolded once, answered gloomily.

 

“Could you perhaps draw what you remember?”

 

“It won’t be accurate though?”

 

“That’s fine. It’s better than having nothing at all.”

 

“Understood.”

 

Min Wa immediately gathered the subordinates who had arrived with him at the time and drew the positions of the corpses lying in the courtyard based on their collective memory.

 

“Mujin.”

 

“Yes, Young Master.”

 

It was a rare opportunity.

 

If he was inexperienced due to lack of experience, he needed to learn and master it.

 

Even though Zhuge Munhyeon couldn’t reveal that he was the Heavenly Demon, he wanted to wholeheartedly teach his disciple many things.

 

“Remember this well. If you ever have to investigate a murder case later, it’s good to go through procedures like this.”

 

“Understood.”

 

Mujin nodded with a serious expression.

 

As a descendant of the Zhuge Family, he had shown his strength many times, but Zhuge Munhyeon had rarely displayed such wisdom, so he was inwardly surprised.

 

It seemed as if he would soon point at someone and shout ‘You are the culprit!’

 

After human-shaped drawings were finally drawn on the ground, Zhuge Munhyeon returned toward the door while everyone watched.

 

“Hmm.”

 

After carefully examining the positions where the corpses had been placed, Zhuge Munhyeon tried to return to the situation at that time.

 

While such investigations could be learned through professional training, fighting many battles allowed one to roughly infer the situation at the time just by looking at traces left on the battlefield.

 

It’s similar to how a craftsman who has hammered iron countless times can look at a sword and determine how the hammering was done, how long it was in the forge, and so on.

 

It’s a talent created by long years and experience.

 

“The numbers are small?”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“The number of culprits is small. Even considering that Squad Leader Min’s memory might not be accurate… I don’t think it exceeded five.”

 

“Five, you say? What do you mean by that? The Dangyang Branch had as many as a hundred martial artists.”

 

“The culprits must have been that strong then.”

 

“How, how could that be…?”

 

“Well, to break down the main gate and boldly charge in to cause such carnage… they must have had enough skill not to fear the Black River Gate.”

 

“…”

 

“Even if the Black River Gate were to pursue them, they had confidence they could handle them sufficiently, so they carried out such an act.”

 

Again, words born from experience.

 

The strong don’t worry about future troubles.

 

You can tell that much just from how they left the corpses behind.

 

Corpses hold a lot of information.

 

By examining how they fell, where they fell, and the remaining wounds, you can tell how they died and even what kind of attacks they received.

 

“If they had wanted to hide their identity, they probably would have thrown all the corpses into the burning pavilions.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

Since it made sense, those listening nodded and murmured among themselves, and their trust in Zhuge Munhyeon’s abilities was rising dramatically.

 

Of course, there were those who viewed this unfavorably.

 

The coroners who had examined the corpses earlier.

 

They were the experts, so what did this guy from the Zhuge Family know to speak so definitively?

 

But since Yangmun was nodding so earnestly with a trusting expression, they could only silently frown.

 

“Branch Manager.”

 

“Yes!”

 

The voice born from trust rang out higher and more vigorously than before.

 

Orthodox and unorthodox distinctions?

 

Now they were just expert and victim.

 

“Before examining the corpses, could you tell me about the martial prowess of those who were at the Dangyang Branch?”

 

“Is this to gauge the culprits’ martial prowess?”

 

“Yes.”

 

He’s smarter than expected.

 

Just from watching the investigation process, he’s guessing the intent behind my questions.

 

“The deceased Dangyang Branch Manager Lee Eungbaek was at a similar level to me, having reached the peak stage.”

 

If he expressed it as peak stage rather than Tan Qi, it meant he had already mastered projecting his energy.

 

That’s an excellent level for a branch manager.

 

“What about the rest?”

 

“Well, they would have been at a similar level to our branch. Most would have been at the Chung Qi level, but there were also some who had reached Hyeon Qi.”

 

“I see.”

 

A faction’s strength usually has a triangular structure.

 

The higher you go, the fewer skilled individuals there are.

 

But if they didn’t just face the branch manager and a few skilled martial artists, but massacred everyone at once, then the most skilled among the culprits must be at least Ui Qi level or higher.

 

That meant they were at the elder level of a major sect.

 

A level that currently only the Family Head and Hyeonho Dan Leader had reached in the Zhuge Family, excluding himself.

 

‘The Black River Gate must have a headache too. A master of uncommon level attacked their branch.’

 

What kind of grudge could it be…?

 

But they’re unorthodox.

 

What they do mostly causes trouble for others, so who knows when, where, or from whom they might have earned resentment.

 

“Good. Now let’s examine the corpses. Please include the burned corpses as well.”

 

“Yes!”

 

Thanks to Yangmun’s almost devotional faith, the corpses were quickly prepared.

 

Getting closer, his face wrinkled more at the terrible smell.

 

At this rate, they might emit corpse poison.

 

But then.

 

“We’ve already examined the corpses, so you can refer to our investigation results.”

 

“…”

 

A nearby coroner held out a record sheet.

 

Zhuge Munhyeon, who received it, chuckled and passed the record sheet to Mujin without even reading its contents.

 

How could he trust what others had seen?

 

I only believe what I see with my own eyes.

 

But the coroner, feeling ignored, bristled and shouted.

 

“Look here! We already conducted the autopsy!”

 

“…”

 

Zhuge Munhyeon paused and looked at him, tilting his head sideways.

 

“Right, you examined some corpses? Then I have nothing to do? I might as well go back. I don’t want to be stubborn with someone who doesn’t want me here.”

 

As he brushed off his hands and tried to get up, Yangmun frowned and shouted at the coroner.

 

“What the hell are you doing right now!”

 

“Branch Manager, how can you trust such a person’s words? Examining corpses is what we coroners do…”

 

“Shut up!”

 

“Br, Branch Manager.”

 

“Tsk! You guys who’ve had no results for days… What have you found since coming here? You haven’t revealed anything about the culprits and have just been writing records day after day. Get out of the way! Or should I throw the record sheets you wrote at my Black Cat Bang Leader and give him a good cursing?”

 

“…”

 

At Yangmun’s fierce glare and sharp words, the coroner retreated without further comment.

 

“Confucius, I apologize. Let me apologize on their behalf.”

 

“…Shall we continue the investigation then?”

 

“Please do.”

 

Zhuge Munhyeon smiled coldly at the coroner who had been excluded from the investigation and pushed back.

 

An expert should speak with skill.

 

“Huh, cut in one stroke?”

 

“Pardon?”

 

“This corpse here, cut diagonally from the shoulder. This was cut in one stroke. Looking at how the flesh was pushed aside and the bones inside were crushed, it was hit by a heavy weapon…”

 

“Then it must be someone who uses something like a halberd or crescent blade?”

 

“That’s very likely. Let me examine a bit more for now.”

 

“Yes.”

 

As he needed more information and continued examining, Zhuge Munhyeon felt something strange.

 

‘Why is this…’

 

The wounds on the corpses were similar to traces left by a certain martial art he knew.

 

‘…Breaking Extreme Blade?’

 

It was a name he found after searching his memory for a while.

 

But why were there traces of martial arts similar to that?

 

Could it be that Demonic Cult members are in the Central Plains?

 

Just as his mind filled with questions in an instant.

 

“Confucius! Confucius!”

 

A young voice calling out to him at the top of their lungs could be heard.

 

Since the broken gate hadn’t been repaired and the outside was clearly visible, he could immediately see who was shouting.

 

It was the shopkeeper.

 

The one the Second Family Head had asked to deliver news to the Dangyang Branch.

 

Why is he here…?

 

“The Dangyang Branch is under attack!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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