Chronicles of the Martial God’s Return - Chapter 85

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Thousand Mountain Demonic Cult.
At its center sat the cult leader himself, one of the Five Emperors—Sa Do-hak, the Demonic Emperor.
He reclined upon a grand throne, gazing down at those below, yet his expression was like that of a pure child, utterly delighted.
“So, what came of it?”
“The Punggeom Sect entered Ak-yang and seized control of the region.”
“Ah, excellent. Just as you predicted, General.”
“I merely arranged for them to move accordingly. It was inevitable.”
General Dong Bang-gu let out a low chuckle.
The world praised the Jeongal Family’s stratagem above all, yet the Demonic Cult’s general possessed cunning no less formidable. Had it been otherwise, the cult would have fallen victim to Jeongal Un’s machinations long ago.
Moving the greedy Marquis of Honam was absurdly simple.
He had wanted to set foot where the Celestial Corpse lay, but that was impossible. Instead, spreading rumors of Dongting Lake to those who chased another Warrior’s Secret Treasure was child’s play.
At that time, countless sects and families were already attempting to establish footholds in Ak-yang, so the Demonic Cult had discreetly dispatched some of its masters to aid the Punggeom Sect from the shadows.
Why the Punggeom Sect?
For Dong Bang-gu, it had been the perfect choice.
A sect unknown to the wider world—one whose fall would not provoke the Murim Alliance into swift action.
A sect whose headquarters could be relocated to Ak-yang without difficulty.
After careful sifting and deliberation, the Punggeom Sect had been all that remained. Consequently, they found themselves unwittingly dragged along in the Demonic Cult’s grasp.
“Then they attempted to seize a certain manor.”
“A manor?”
“Yes. They clashed with those within, and ultimately…….”
“Hahahaha!”
Sa Do-hak already knew the broad strokes from dispatches—that the Punggeom Sect, which Dong Bang-gu had manipulated, had been destroyed, and all of its disciples and members had been arrested and dragged to Beijing.
What intrigued him was the manner in which it had unfolded.
Yet the more he heard, the more delightful it became.
“The Gentleman Swordsman…… The Gentleman Swordsman, you say…… So that wretch proclaimed himself thus?”
“Yes. Our operatives interrogated him in the dungeon just before the disciples were transported to Beijing, and he revealed that he calls himself the Gentleman Swordsman.”
“An epithet I’ve never heard before.”
Dong Bang-gu laughed awkwardly at that.
It could be nothing but unfamiliar—for it was an epithet drawn from puppet theater alone.
“He is the protagonist of a puppet play that children have taken to recently. Theatrical troupes have begun staging productions of it.”
“Ah? Such a play exists?”
“Yes, reportedly quite entertaining, though…….”
“Hahahaha! Then we might say the master in Honam is the very hero of that play!”
“That is merely his own claim, Your Majesty. We must not take it at face value.”
“What does it matter? If he proclaimed himself the Gentleman Swordsman with his own lips, then the Gentleman Swordsman he is. Tell me, was there nothing else of note?”
“In the manor were three men, one elderly man, and a young girl.”
“Only four? Then the Gentleman Swordsman must be one of them.”
“Yes, so it would seem.”
“Fascinating. Truly fascinating.”
Dong Bang-gu gazed at Sa Do-hak’s smiling face, unable to contain his own joy.
To stand as one of the Five Emperors, to hold the title of Demonic Emperor—one became a being who could look down upon all others.
Had such a person ever shown interest in anyone before?
Never.
Even the Sword Emperor had failed to capture Sa Do-hak’s intrigue, for he already sensed his own supremacy.
Yet now such a being was directing his attention toward someone.
The very atmosphere shifted with it.
But what Dong Bang-gu truly needed to report was something else entirely.
“However, upon further investigation, a most curious fact came to light…….”
“Yes? What else is there?”
The Demonic Emperor Sa Do-hak rose abruptly from his throne. Fascination blazed across his features.
Whenever he heard accounts concerning Honam, his face would brighten—like a child listening to tales of old, yearning for the heroes of legend.
Dong Bang-gu smiled faintly.
“When the matter at Changbai Mountain occurred, the manor contained only the current Master, Dan Woo-hyun, and his daughter. When the Hukdo Society incident erupted, one additional man appeared, but in all likelihood…….”
“Hahahaha! Of course, yes! It was him! The Gentleman Swordsman is amusing enough, but what I truly sought was he! Finally, finally I have found him!”
“Yes, your assumption would be accurate. Moreover, Jeongal Un has yet to realize it, it seems…….”
“What now? What else is there?”
Dong Bang-gu nodded. In truth, this was the most crucial part of all.
“Do you remember the affair of Mu Shin and Sam Cheon from before?”
“Yes, the business with that Gu Hwang betraying and running off, correct?”
“Indeed, sir. It appears a man named Dan Woo-hyun appeared at that location.”
Learning of this matter had been pure happenstance.
Chasing only the thread of Gu Hwang, he had overlooked what lay directly before him. By chance he heard that Hyun-ryung had been present there, and upon investigating that matter, discovered that a man named Dan Woo-hyun had also been present at that very place.
Was it not remarkably convenient?
“Ah… what of it?”
“This man Dan Woo-hyun is highly suspicious, sir.”
“Ha ha ha ha!”
Sa Do-hak laughed like a madman.
It had been far too long. Since he had laughed like this.
The words tumbling from Dong Bang-gu’s lips were so entertaining, so captivating, that they filled him with delight.
Life returned to Sa Do-hak’s eyes—eyes that had been counting only the days until death arrived.
Dong Bang-gu was not a man given to false speech. He would not speak at all unless he possessed certainty.
Therefore, what had come from his lips now could be taken as fact without reservation.
If that were so, then it followed that this man Dan Woo-hyun was the one who had deceived so many masters of the Righteous and Demonic Paths and absconded with the Celestial Corpse; that the vanished Gu Hwang and the dead bodies alike were his handiwork.
Sa Do-hak rose abruptly from his seat.
“I shall meet this man face to face.”
“…Sir, you cannot leave the Sect unattended.”
“For the time being, you and the Vice-Master shall handle affairs as you see fit. The Murim Alliance is in disarray thanks to that fool Mo Yong-hyuk, so nothing of consequence should arise.”
Dong Bang-gu exhaled deeply. Once Sa Do-hak had made such a determination, there was no stopping him.
“Understood, sir.”
“However, keep careful watch over the series of incidents occurring of late.”
Dong Bang-gu bowed his head respectfully.
The series of incidents Sa Do-hak spoke of referred to several martial artists found dead—their bodies withered and twisted like dried wood.
They had been discovered across the Central Plains, and the dead included members of both the Righteous and Demonic Paths without distinction.
At first they had begun their investigation wondering if villains such as the Twin Demons of Yin-Yang had surfaced once more, but the markings upon the corpses suggested these were not their methods.
Members of the Demonic Sect had been attacked as well, and thus retaliation was warranted. So Dong Bang-gu had not ceased his pursuit, and even now kept watch over the Central Plains.
“Fear not, sir. Should matters develop, I shall dispatch a messenger.”
“Excellent! Ha ha!”
Sa Do-hak laughed heartily once more and departed.

After supper had ended, Namgung Cheon settled Dan So-mi upon his lap and began sharing stories with her in hushed, affectionate tones.
Determined to coax the girl—who harbored not the slightest interest in the Martial World—into engagement, he drew forth tales of old.
“The history of these Central Plains is quite ancient, you know.”
“How ancient?”
At Dan So-mi’s question, Namgung Cheon let slip a contemplative hum.
When had people first begun to speak of the Martial World?
Perhaps it was during that chaotic era when Shaolin was founded—when the Dharma Master walked, when Sam Cheon existed, when Mu Shin drew breath.
In those days, the very concept of Righteous and Demonic Paths had not yet taken firm shape; he had heard it was a turbulent time when only those who revered Martial Arts sought to display their prowess.
“More than a thousand years ago, then.”
“Wow…! So it’s that old? Would So-mi have to die and be born again several times over to make a thousand years pass?”
Dan So-mi counted on her small fingers, curling and uncurling them repeatedly.
But as human life is uncertain—one knows not when one shall be born or die—Dan Woo-hyun could not provide an answer.
Thus Dan Woo-hyun tilted his head and spoke.
“Well, even if one lived a hundred years, one would need to die and return ten times to span a thousand.”
“…That’s far too long.”
“In any case, the history of the Martial World surely began more than a thousand years past. And the ones who opened that epoch were precisely Mu Shin, Sam Cheon, and the Dharma Master of Shaolin.”
“Mu Shin…? Sam Cheon?”
“Sam Cheon was a figure who wielded tremendous influence over the Martial World. The very fact that no one since has earned an epithet bearing the character for Heaven shows their greatness.”
Dan So-mi tilted her head, murmuring “Sam Cheon? Sam Cheon?” as if trying to recall where she had heard the name before, though it eluded her memory.
“And what of Mu Shin?”
“Mu Shin is said to be a legendary figure whom no one has surpassed even after a thousand years have passed.”
“Wow! Is he really that strong?”
“With a single stroke of his sword, the heavens would split; with a kick, Mount Tai would crumble. And though it is legend, it is told that he faced tens of thousands of warriors and yet survived unscathed.”
Dan So-mi’s eyes grew bright and wide.
Whether truth or fiction, there was something enchanting about the tale that stirred her heart even in the listening.
“That’s amazing! How could such a person ever exist?”
Namgung Cheon, standing beside him, fielded the question.
“Ha ha, I think the same. If we’d lived in the same era, I’d ask to become his disciple.”
“Grandfather, aren’t you the best among those martial artists? That’s what Sister So-hye used to say every day…….”
“Ha ha ha, well, that may be…….”
Namgung Cheon answered with awkward laughter and let out a sigh.
The Martial World of that time was said to have been incomparably harsher than it is now.
What must it have felt like to stand towering above the world in such an era?
Then Dan Woo-hyun’s voice came.
“Don’t spout such nonsense if you have no intention of taking him on.”
“Hmm? I didn’t say I wanted to become your disciple. This is Mu Shin’s story.”
“Mu Shin wouldn’t have accepted either.”
“You can’t know that.”
“I do know.”
Namgung Cheon snorted in exasperation.
“But if you ask me, that Mu Shin is impressive, yet Grandfather is even more impressive. Because Mu Shin isn’t beside So-mi now, but Grandfather is.”
“Ha ha ha! Well, I’m grateful for that.”
Namgung Cheon stroked Dan So-mi’s head.
Dan So-mi sometimes spoke with a maturity that made one wonder if she were truly a legendary figure reincarnated, yet she possessed an instinctive gift for words that brought warmth to those around her.
“Then in that Martial World where Grandfather is, Mu Shin is the greatest, and Sam Cheon is second, right?”
“Ha ha ha, yes, that’s right. Everyone thinks so.”
Dan So-mi didn’t know who Sam Cheon or Mu Shin were, but she nodded enthusiastically at Namgung Cheon’s words.
“No, that’s wrong.”
“What do you mean, wrong?”
At that moment, Dan Woo-hyun drained a cup of wine and let out a faint laugh. Then he turned to gaze at Namgung Cheon, his expression twisting slightly.
It was the gleam of anger kindled by remembrance—a raging crimson fury that burned in his eyes.
“Mu Shin was certainly the strongest, but he was not the greatest.”
Namgung Cheon’s brow furrowed.
Then who else had there been?
After a brief moment of thought, Namgung Cheon recalled a name.
“The one who established Shaolin’s system…….”
“Not the Dharma Master either.”
“Then who in the world do you mean?”
Without answering, Dan Woo-hyun raised the wine cup to his lips again. The moment he set it down, he gripped it with force, and the cup shattered with a crack, crumbling to dust.
Dan So-mi, who had been quietly listening, Namgung Cheon, and even Jang Sam-tae and Kwon Mu-jin, who stood attentively at a distance, all started.
Then, slowly, his mouth opened.
“Hyeol Ma……. He is the one who ascended to the seat of greatest.”
The wine cup, now dust, swirled up on the wind.

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