Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 190

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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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Episode 190
“You’ve arrived, Sect Master.”
“……Yes, so you have.”
The Sect Master watched Cheon Hui and his group climbing the mountain, then brushed his chest once with a sigh of relief.
“I worried they might be delayed……but it seems my concern was needless.”
“There was no need to worry. Cheon Hui was with them, after all.”
The Wulian Pavilion Master laughed beside him.
Seeing that smile, the Sect Master himself broke into a gentle one without thinking.
“You’re right.”
It was a statement brimming with absolute confidence.
And rightfully so.
Everything Cheon Hui had accomplished thus far had earned them that trust.
As the two men smiled together.
“Oh? What brings you out to the mountain gate?”
Cheon Hui, who had drawn close without warning, posed the question.
The Sect Master regarded him with a pleased expression, noting his genuine bewilderment.
“I was taking a breath of fresh air.”
“Fresh air?”
Cheon Hui’s face said he found the explanation absurd.
‘What nonsense is that?’
Fresh air existed everywhere on the mountain.
There was no need to come out to the gate for it.
‘Well, it doesn’t matter. I came to see the Sect Master anyway.’
Cheon Hui locked eyes with him.
“The mission is complete.”
“Good. Everyone worked hard.”
The Sect Master looked past Cheon Hui’s shoulder at Jeok Geom, Cheon Hyang, and the members of Bi Geom Dan and Hwa Ryeong Dan—all of whom looked barely able to catch their breath.
“……It seems you all went through quite an ordeal.”
“An ordeal? That’s just a lack of stamina—that’s all there is to it.”
Cheon Hui clicked his tongue dismissively.
“Legs trembling over such a short distance. Pathetic, really.”
‘Such a short distance……?’
‘They covered in two days with the Divine Method what would take four days on horseback!’
Several of them felt a surge of emotion at the words.
Having departed from Sayou Valley, they had made their swift return to the Huashan Sect by alternating only between the Divine Method and Cloud Technique.
For those unfamiliar with such speeds, the journey had been anything but short—making their exhaustion entirely justified.
Yet.
……
None of them spoke.
Having spent time with Cheon Hui, they understood his nature well enough to keep their mouths firmly shut.
They had seen all too clearly what might happen if they dared complain.
Then Cheon Hui let fall a casual remark.
“If you’re already exhausted at this level, we’ll need to intensify the training regimen.”
The words fell like thunder from a clear sky.
Even Jeok Geom, who had trained under Cheon Hui the longest, rushed forward in alarm.
“M-Master!”
“What is it?”
“The current training is already overwhelming. If we make it any more intense, it will be……”
“What’s this? You’re saying you can’t manage it?”
Cold sweat poured down Jeok Geom’s face.
“That’s not what I meant. Perhaps we could increase the intensity gradually……”
“My, what abundant leisure you seem to have.”
Cheon Hui turned his gaze toward Jeok Geom and the members of Bi Geom Dan.
“Did you learn nothing from this mission?”
“I beg your pardon……?”
Cheon Hui began pointing out the members one by one with his index finger, listing their shortcomings in a steady stream.
“Those three there sustained injuries to their forearms. And Jeok Un—I noticed his ribs nearly took a sword slash. And those two beside me……”
“Gasp!”
“When……?!”
As he enumerated every single weakness without omission, their faces grew increasingly dark and turned downward.
“And Jeok Geom.”
Cheon Hui’s finger pointed directly at Jeok Geom, standing right before him.
“You’re not injured, but you got tangled up in the Bi Geom Formation midway and lost your footing. That’s how you sustained those internal injuries, isn’t it?”
Jeok Geom’s head drooped low.
“……Yes, sir.”
“No severe injuries, only ten minor ones. Is that all? If the Bi Geom Formation had been executed properly, half those minor injuries would’ve been nothing but bruising. But what’s this—training too demanding for you? And after all this?”
Cheon Hui shook his head, his disapproval evident.
“You have no sense of crisis at all.”
“…….”
“Why do you think we train?”
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed.
Then, sweeping his gaze across the disciples lined up behind Jeok Geom, he spoke.
“So you’re ready for real combat.”
“Ready for real combat……?”
“No matter how hard you train or how high you raise your realm, one mistake in actual combat means death. Look at yourself. Thanks to sparring with me and this training, you won easily enough, didn’t you?”
“Well…….”
“What if I’d never taught you the Bi Geom Formation, or you’d never sparred with me?”
“……!”
Jeok Geom’s body trembled suddenly.
As if struck by lightning, his frame shook, and he bit down hard on his lower lip.
“Some of us wouldn’t have made it, sir.”
“Exactly. Then why say such things?”
“I apologize. My perception was lacking—I failed to understand your profound wisdom.”
Jeok Geom bowed deeply.
“Well, it’s late, but at least you understand now. Since you’ve grasped it, shouldn’t you train harder?”
“Sir?”
Jeok Geom’s voice came out hollow.
“Nagan Peak. Three times.”
Cheon Hui grinned and pointed toward the summit with his finger.
“I’ll give you a full hour.”
His smile deepened with the words.
Only then did the situation dawn on them—Jeok Geom and the Bi Geom Dan’s faces fell.
“Master!”
“I thought we were getting some rest……!”
The Bi Geom Dan let out a cry of protest, and immediately they bolted into a run.
Cheon Hui tilted his head as he watched them go.
“Why aren’t you going?”
“Us……too?”
Cheon Hyang asked, bewildered.
“You’re not going?”
“…….”
“One hour.”
The Hwa Ryeong Dan, spurring themselves on with all their strength, rushed after the Bi Geom Dan toward Nagan Peak.
By the time everyone was ascending the peak,
“Wouldn’t a day of rest be proper?”
The Sect Master approached.
“No, sir. That would set us back.”
Cheon Hui cut him off cleanly.
“We’re already playing catch-up. If we rest even a day, the next day we’ll suffer twice over. Better to push hard now than to ease up and pay for it later.”
“I suppose that’s true.”
The Sect Master nodded.
Putting things off was easy.
But chasing after what had been delayed was harder than anything else in the world.
‘And especially now.’
Just then, Cheon Hui spoke to the Sect Master.
“There’s something I need to discuss with you.”
Some time later, Cheon Hui and the Sect Master arrived at Ja Ha Pavilion and sat facing each other.
Pitter-pour—
The Sect Master poured tea and asked,
“What brings this on?”
“We brought down Sayou Valley.”
“You brought down Sayou Valley…….”
The Sect Master’s eyes widened slightly at the almost offhand way this was said, despite his own measured tone.
It was a bewildering statement.
The task he had given Cheon Hui was to aid the Hwayu Escort Agency, not to destroy Sayou Valley.
“How did that happen?”
“The ones who attacked the Hwayu Escort Agency turned out to be sent from Sayou Valley. So I figured I’d uproot them while I was at it, struck them in the heat of the moment.”
“In the heat of the moment……?”
The Sect Master stared at him in disbelief.
He couldn’t even laugh.
Simply in the heat of the moment, he had destroyed an entire faction?
It was something he had never heard of in his lifetime.
The Sect Master pressed his forehead.
A dull ache was beginning to form.
‘Everything else is fine……. But that confidence of his worries me.’
He exhaled deeply and looked at Cheon Hui.
Concern welled up in him.
His martial prowess was extraordinary, and his intellect was equally sharp.
Yet perhaps because he excelled so greatly, he moved without hesitation.
‘I hope that confidence doesn’t become his undoing in the years to come…….’
The Sect Master, with a wry smile, finally spoke.
“I’ll contact Jongnam separately.”
Cheon Hui smiled.
‘A hint is all he needs to understand.’
The Sect Master’s eyes grew serious.
The gentle impression faded, replaced entirely by the authority that befitted his station.
“So it’s an all-out war for the fate of Shenxi.”
“And we need to finish this decisively this time.”
“Finish it decisively, you say…….”
The Sect Master’s eyes flashed with intensity.
“You have a method?”
Cheon Hui nodded and spoke.
“Just tell Jongnam to wait quietly for about two weeks.”
The Sect Master’s eyebrows twitched.
“It seems better to move before they realize Sayou Valley has been destroyed.”
“If we attack now, we’ll only catch the small fry. The ones pulling the strings from behind will cut their tails and flee immediately.”
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed.
“Then creatures like Shinju Sapae will simply pop up elsewhere.”
“So that’s why we wait.”
“Exactly.”
The Sect Master asked with a puzzled expression.
“But if we keep waiting, won’t they just hide themselves further?”
“If everything had already collapsed, they would. But right now, only Sayou Valley has fallen—the other Shinju Sapae are mostly intact.”
The Sect Master stroked his beard.
“Hmm, so it’s not yet the time for them to cut their tails, you’re saying.”
“When a pavilion is damaged, you don’t rebuild it from scratch. You repair what’s broken—it’s cheaper and easier that way.”
Cheon Hui’s mouth twisted slightly.
It was a smile that suggested some scheme lay beneath.
“Now that they’re cornered, they’ll have to make one last attempt to test us. That’s when we pull them all up by the roots and crush them—so thoroughly they never set foot in Shenxi again.”
* * *
Four days later, in the highest chamber of Pungyeol Tower.
In ordinary times, this would be a space filled with the plucking of stringed instruments and the laughter of honored guests, but now it was utterly silent.
That was because there were no courtesans in the room.
Only two men stood present.
They were Geumhwi Faction Leader and Seophon Sect Leader.
Upon learning of Sayou Valley’s destruction, Geumhwi Faction Leader had contacted Seophon Sect Leader in secret and arranged an urgent meeting.
But the two had spent a while now in silence, merely raising cups to their lips.
Then, after a moment:
“What do we do now?”
Seophon Sect Leader broke the silence.
His gaze fixed on the Geumhwi Faction Leader.
Conflicting emotions churned behind his eyes like a whirlpool.
Anxiety, agitation, confusion……
Most of them were negative.
And with good reason—the Shinju Sapae had only just clasped hands and begun to stretch their limbs, yet already one pillar had crumbled.
One axis, collapsed.
“……Do we have any say in the matter?”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader remained surprisingly composed.
Or rather, he seemed resigned to it all.
“Once the Shinju Sapae joined forces, we crossed a river from which there was no return.”
As the Seophon Sect Leader’s face twisted,
“You know that well enough.”
A soft voice interjected.
The Cold Woman sat between them.
As naturally as if she had been there all along.
‘When did she sit beside us?’
‘……I didn’t sense a thing.’
The Geumhwi Faction Leader and Seophon Sect Leader’s backs were slick with sweat.
They knew the Cold Woman was a master.
But this—this transcended even that understanding.
Just as both men began to perspire,
“Shall I show you how to break through this situation?”
The Cold Woman’s whisper fell softly.
The Geumhwi Faction Leader’s eyes widened instantly.
“There is a way?”
“It’s simple.”
The Cold Woman moved her crimson lips.
“Request their support.”
“……You mean to wage an all-out war?”
“Is there another choice?”
The corners of the Cold Woman’s eyes curved upward.
“They’ve already paid a heavy price to aid you. They won’t wish to lose more of what they’ve built.”
“Our opponents are Jongnam and Huashan. Even with their support, their numbers would be limited. We’re outnumbered in skilled masters from the start—our chances are nearly nonexistent.”
“Then don’t fight as faction against faction.”
“What do you mean……”
“Why not propose a Martial Match, wagering the fate of the factions?”
“……!”
“……A, a Martial Match?!”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader and Seophon Sect Leader were taken aback.
It was a stroke that exploited their weakness.
If they had overwhelming numbers, you simply limited the clash from the outset.
But that too had its problems.
“Jongnam and Huashan have Jongnam Geom Seong and Huashan’s Divine Blade, along with countless other masters. Even a Martial Match would give us no real chance.”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader spoke with skepticism, and the Seophon Sect Leader nodded in agreement.
Seeing this, the Cold Woman traced her lip.
“That’s precisely why you must request their support.”
“……You mean skilled masters?”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader’s brow twitched.
“Would they truly send such a master?”
“They’d be pleased to. A single skilled master can accomplish what countless soldiers cannot. And since it’s a Martial Match, no one dies—so they lose nothing, do they?”
“So either it works, or it doesn’t.”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader bit his lip.
In the end, they meant to use these men as tools until the very end.
But what choice was there?
He had been the one to clasp hands with them first.
The Geumhwi Faction Leader sighed and spoke.
“Even so, we cannot defeat Jongnam Geom Seong or Huashan’s Divine Blade.”
“There’s no need to worry about that. Jongnam Geom Seong has already left Shenxi.”
The Cold Woman’s lips twisted into a smile.
“And Huashan’s Divine Blade is currently staying with the Murim Alliance, so it will take them time to arrive. Rush the Martial Match before both return to Shenxi.”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader was momentarily taken aback.
“Then they won’t refuse, will they?”
He grasped the crux of her meaning.
“No. They can’t refuse. They’ll propose ending this pointless conflict through a martial match. But what if they postpone the match, or refuse altogether?”
The Cold Woman’s eyes narrowed.
“Could they bear the scrutiny such an act would invite?”
She spoke with utter certainty.
They were the Nine Major Sects and Four Unorthodox Schools.
The Shinju Sapae, by contrast, were an upstart unorthodox faction.
Yet if this unorthodox Shinju Sapae proposed ending a prolonged conflict with a martial match against Jongnam and Huashan, only to deliberately postpone it?
It would be chaos.
Without the Jongnam Geom Seong and the Huashan Sword Prodigy, they would be branded as nothing—a sect of no consequence.
Jongnam and Huashan, already reeling from their retreat before the Shinju Sapae, would see their standing plummet entirely.
The Geumhwi Faction Leader asked carefully.
“Do you think you could win in a martial match?”
“It depends on which master they send. Even without the Jongnam Geom Seong and the Huashan Sword Prodigy, they have no shortage of formidable experts.”
“And you?”
The Cold Woman smiled faintly.
“So long as it isn’t them, it’s simple.”
The Geumhwi Faction Leader’s eyes widened.
Her words could mean only one thing—that she would secure victory unconditionally.
‘Is her skill truly at that level?’
He studied her carefully.
Her eyes betrayed no tremor as she spoke with such unwavering confidence.
“Very well.”
He rose from his seat and spoke.
“I’ll request reinforcements at once. What of the Seophon Sect Leader?”
The Seophon Sect Leader, who had been listening quietly, furrowed his brow before nodding.
“I will follow suit. Considering it, there seems to be no better course.”
“Then we are all in agreement.”
The Cold Woman rose slowly as well.
“Then in ten days, we shall send a letter to Jongnam and Huashan in the name of the Sagwi Bang.”

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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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