Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 238

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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 238
Kangho trembled with great upheaval.
It was caused by a rumor spreading faster than ever before.
‘Nok Lim and Dae Eun Trading Company have entered Sa Hyuk Ryeon.’
Those who had set foot in Kangho dismissed the absurd claim as mere gossip.
Besides, hadn’t the Sapa factions long dismissed Nok Lim as nothing but bandit rabble?
Yet days later, when the leader of Nok Lim visited Sa Hyuk Ryeon alongside the master of Dae Eun Trading Company, the rumor proved true.
“Well, I’ll be damned. Nok Lim is really joining Sa Hyuk Ryeon.”
“Surely it’s to fill the void left by Baek Gwi Seong’s destruction? And seeing that Dae Eun Trading Company entered as well, it seems Sa Hyuk Ryeon felt the pressure.”
Of late, Sa Hyuk Ryeon had earned a reputation as the weakest of the Guzhou Three Powerhouses.
Its strength had withered since the Faction Destruction of Baek Gwi Seong, one of the Six Pillars.
But if Nok Lim joined, everything changed.
As a single faction, Nok Lim was massive—few were comparable.
A membership rivaling Gae Bang itself.
And on top of that, the existence of its leader and the Four Kings of Nok Lim who served beneath him.
They held their own against the Five Emperor Sects.
Perhaps it was only natural.
Without such strength, how could a mid-tier faction survive in this age of the Guzhou Three Powerhouses?
“Sa Hyuk Ryeon will grow stronger.”
Everyone who heard the news thought the same.
With Nok Lim’s entry into Sa Hyuk Ryeon, it was certain to become far more powerful than it was now—or even than when Baek Gwi Seong still lived.
Just as all were shaking their heads at Sa Hyuk Ryeon’s newfound strength, a startling rumor began spreading swiftly from Shanxi.
‘The leader of Nok Lim went alone to the Murim Alliance’s Shanxi branch and rescued his subordinates.’
Those who heard it held their breath.
And no wonder—such a thing was hardly ordinary.
The grand master of Nok Lim, so recently admitted to Sa Hyuk Ryeon, walked boldly into a Murim Alliance branch and spirited away his men?
Even if casualties were light, it was no trivial affair.
To trample upon the Murim Alliance’s very pride.
Collision between the Murim Alliance and Sa Hyuk Ryeon could well result from this.
Most who heard the news thus deemed the leader of Nok Lim reckless.
“He went too far. He must be drunk on his success now that he’s joined Sa Hyuk Ryeon.”
“But he only did it to rescue his men, didn’t he?”
“Will the Murim Alliance truly concern itself with that? What matters most is that the Nok Lim leader personally attacked a Murim Alliance branch. Besides, I hear Nok Lim made a move against the Cheonha Trading Company under the Murim Alliance’s protection. In such circumstances, if the Murim Alliance backs down, their honor is lost.”
The people of Kangho fell silent.
The more they turned it over in their minds, the more grave the situation seemed than what lay on the surface.
It was possible that the two great powers—Murim Alliance and Sa Hyuk Ryeon—might clash outright.
“……But then, who brought down Hang San Estate?”
Someone posed a question that had only just occurred to them.
The leader of Nok Lim had gone directly to a Murim Alliance branch to rescue his subordinates.
At that level, he surely could not have left those who slew his men unpunished…….
“Huashan Sect, they say.”
“Ha! Huashan again? Remarkable. At the time of Baek Gwi Seong’s destruction, I thought it mere fortune, yet now there isn’t a day when Huashan’s name goes unheard.”
At the rumor that Hang San Estate’s ruin was Huashan Sect’s work, gossips’ eyes shone bright.
There could be no tale more captivating than this.
Ask any person in Kangho which faction commanded the most attention in the present age, and all would answer Huashan Sect.
And indeed, nearly half the rumors shaking Kangho these days were entangled with Huashan.
And now they were enmeshed in this great affair as well—there was nothing more delicious to gossip about.
As both gossips and people of Kangho turned their attention to Huashan Sect and Nok Lim.
“Nok Lim…….”
Hyeon Sang closed his eyes slowly after reading an Official Letter that had just arrived from the Murim Alliance.
The letter contained thanks for aiding the Cheonha Trading Company and a notice that Nok Lim would be proclaimed an enemy of the Murim Alliance.
‘Kangho will be consumed by chaos.’
A thin smile played at his lips.
To proclaim Nok Lim an enemy was a warning to Sa Hyuk Ryeon.
An ultimatum: expel Nok Lim.
But.
‘Will they truly do so?’
He thought not.
If Sa Hyuk Ryeon expelled Nok Lim now, they would have nowhere left to retreat.
‘Nothing is eternal, they say…….’
He felt the curtain falling on the age of peace that the Guzhou Three Powerhouses had created.
‘Then again, isn’t it strange that they’ve maintained peace this long at all?’
His eyes, sharp and open once more, gazed up at the clear blue sky.
The youngest disciple’s face flickered across the cloudless expanse—appearing, vanishing.
From that moment, there had been no peace on Huashan.
Nothing but the hunger for vengeance against Baek Gwi Seong consumed him—and in the end, he had achieved it.
But in that very moment, peace had shattered.
“Senior.”
Hyeon Ryeo, who had been watching Hyeon Sang quietly from across the room, spoke in a low voice.
“Shall I prepare?”
Hyeon Sang nodded.
“Yes. The fact that they’ve sent an Official Letter suggests they’ll request our sect’s support when they strike down Nok Lim.”
“Understood. Then I’ll make sure everything is ready—horses, provisions, all of it—so we can leave at any moment.”
“I’d be grateful for that.”
Hyeon Sang replied and nodded as he watched Hyeon Ryeo move to begin the preparations.
“But do we have enough funds?”
“Plenty. Our Cheon Hui brought more than enough when he returned from this last mission.”
Hyeon Ryeo smiled brightly.
She remembered Cheon Hui coming directly to her upon his return and handing her the note of credit.
At first, she’d been so startled by the enormous sum that she hesitated to accept it at all.
But the moment Cheon Hui mentioned he’d brought it from Hangshan Estate, she took it without further delay.
Seeing Hyeon Ryeo smile, Hyeon Sang opened his mouth.
“Just as well. As for Nok Lim, the opposition is……”
“Ahhhhh! M-Master!”
“Arrrggghh!”
“……quite formidable, it seems.”
“Even so, this time we won’t be moving alone—the Murim Alliance marches with us.”
Great cries of anguish echoed from outside, but the two continued their conversation undisturbed.
“And the disciples have grown stronger too.”
Hyeon Ryeo spoke with eyes alight.
In mere years, her disciples’ skills had advanced by leaps and bounds.
They changed from one day to the next.
“But still, I can’t help but worry……”
“K-koff! P-please stop!”
“Stop now!”
“……there’s nothing to be done about it.”
“Besides……”
“Ahhhhh! P-please, I beg you!”
“……Cheon Hui is there too, so……”
As the screams continued to interrupt her, Hyeon Ryeo’s gaze drifted toward the window.
Countless disciples were clinging to a steep cliff that led to a distant peak, crawling upward with painful effort.
And sitting atop the peak was a young man who yawned and spoke.
“Yawn… come on up, won’t you?”
It was Cheon Hui.
Perched on the summit, Cheon Hui swung one leg lazily as he called down to them.
“The first ten to reach the top get to rest.”
The Huashan disciples’ faces twisted in anguish.
Easy to say, but in their current state, it was no simple task.
Iron Rings locked around both wrists and ankles.
And on their backs hung a solid Iron Sword weighing nearly fifty jin.
In truth, simply climbing up at all was a feat.
Yet Cheon Hui found the disciples still struggling up the slope pathetic.
“Sigh, just that much weight?”
The climbing disciples felt a surge of bitter frustration.
‘Just that much?!’
‘It’s like carrying two grown men!’
But none of them dared voice their grievance aloud.
They’d already seen what happened to those who did.
“Well, a quarter hour’s already passed.”
Cheon Hui rose to his feet.
“Then we’ll all head back down.”
“S-Sect Master?!”
“What are you saying!”
Cheon Hui brushed off his backside as he spoke.
“You said I’d have only one quarter hour.”
“B-but that doesn’t mean——”
Cheon Hui hefted the Iron Sword.
Lifting the blade—which weighed some fifty cattles—as effortlessly as a twig, Cheon Hui’s disciples’ faces drained of all color.
That was when it happened.
“Cheon Hui.”
A soft voice reached them.
Hyeon Sang, who had been watching from the window of the Ja Ha Pavilion, was looking at Cheon Hui.
The disciples, noticing their Sect Master only now, widened their eyes and broke into wide smiles.
“We pay our respects to the Sect Master!”
Hyeon Sang chuckled awkwardly at their salute, which sounded less like a greeting than a desperate plea for salvation.
“The disciples seem to be struggling. Would it not be wise to rest a moment?”
“Rest? Over something this simple?”
Cheon Hui tilted his head quizzically.
“Are all of you struggling?”
“N-no, not at all.”
“H-ha ha……”
The disciples laughed stiffly.
They wanted to say yes, but they couldn’t risk what might happen if they did.
Cheon Hui smirked at them, then glanced at Hyeon Sang and moved his lips.
“They all say they’re fine……”
Hyeon Sang cast a quick look at the disciples.
The corners of their mouths, curved in awkward smiles, trembled slightly.
‘……Sect Master.’
‘Please, help us.’
Hyeon Sang’s expression softened at the sight of their eyes, full of desperation and sadness. He moved his lips again.
“Still, Cheon Hui. However important Cultivation Training may be, surely rest between sessions is necessary, is it not?”
The disciples’ eyes widened.
They saw hope in the Sect Master’s words.
But then.
“This is rest, right now.”
Cheon Hui spoke with evident confusion.
“The real training begins when we head down.”
At Cheon Hui’s words, both the Sect Master and the disciples sat slack-jawed.
Not a soul had imagined this ordeal could be called rest.
Yet Cheon Hui continued as though it were obvious.
“It’s strange, really. They’re struggling even with this simple rest, causing concern for the Sect Master——”
Cheon Hui shook his head slowly.
“Perhaps I should increase the training intensity so you never worry about rest again.”
Hyeon Sang’s expression turned helpless.
His attempt to look out for the disciples had only made their training harder.
Flustered, Hyeon Sang opened his mouth.
“But if they are to rest, wouldn’t it be better to rest properly?”
“Rest properly? How will they grow strong that way? Time is of the essence now.”
Cheon Hui waved his hand as he spoke.
“Their skills are still far too lacking. Without me on this last mission, they would all have returned as corpses.”
“……”
“I can’t clean up after them forever. They need to develop enough skill to at least keep themselves alive.”
“Ahem. You speak rightly.”
Hyeon Sang cleared his throat and nodded.
Cheon Hui’s words were true.
No matter how difficult and grueling the training was, it would ultimately serve them well in the years to come.
“Then work hard.”
The disciples’ eyes bulged wide.
‘Sect Master!’
‘Why are you accepting this?!’
Hyeon Sang turned away from his disciples’ gazes and closed the window.
‘Forgive me. But this training will help you all in the future.’
Cheon Hui watched the disciples staring helplessly at the closed window, then let out a cold laugh.
“Now then, shall we begin proper training?”
Their faces turned ashen.
“Come now, everyone down!”
The Iron Sword in Cheon Hui’s hand suddenly split into dozens of blades, raining strikes upon them.
Crack! Crack! Crack!
“Aaaaagh!”
“Ugh!”
“M-master!”
The disciples tumbled down one after another, their cries of anguish echoing across Huashan.
* * *
A grand hall illuminated by Night-Illuminating Pearls.
Its pillars and walls alike were painted entirely white, creating an atmosphere of stark desolation.
And at its center, upon a silk mat.
There sat Im Yang Baek, the foremost of the Nok Lim Four Kings, cross-legged with his eyes pressed shut.
His appearance was truly striking.
His bare chest, unmarred by any garment, was covered entirely in scars and drenched in sweat.
Then thick steam rose into the air.
The sweat flowing from his body evaporated, the mist born from it wrapping around him completely.
And soon after, the fog dispersed.
Slowly—
His closed eyelids lifted open.
His dark pupils were revealed, gazing upon Jang Ho Un, one of the Nok Lim Four Kings known as the White-Robed Ghost Face.
Then Im Yang Baek spoke.
“How stands the situation?”
“The name of Nok Lim is echoing loudly across all Under Heaven. Especially the news that you, our leader, visited the Shanxi branch has become frequent fodder for gossip.”
“Excellent.”
Im Yang Baek’s lips twisted slowly into a smile.
The beginning had been promising.
Seeing Im Yang Baek’s satisfaction, Jang Ho Un steadied his breathing and continued.
“And we’ve obtained information that the Murim Alliance intends to declare Nok Lim as an enemy.”
“As expected, then.”
Im Yang Baek let out a dry chuckle.
“Nothing outside my predictions.”
Then Jang Ho Un asked carefully.
“……Will it truly be alright?”
Jang Ho Un swallowed and spoke.
“The sects within Sa Hyuk Ryeon were those who fended for themselves. If, with Nok Lim becoming the Murim Alliance’s enemy, they withdraw their hands…….”
“That will not happen.”
Im Yang Baek stated it as fact.
“The moment Sa Hyuk Ryeon extended their hand to us first, all Under Heaven came to know that Sa Hyuk Ryeon without Nok Lim is weak. And they would exclude us? That would be nothing but self-destruction.”
Jang Ho Un nodded, then asked cautiously.
“But leader, why did you personally seek out the Murim Alliance’s branch?”
“Hehehehe, did I appear as reckless as the gossip suggests?”
“No, no, not at all!”
Jang Ho Un startled and quickly dropped to his knees, his forehead striking the floor with a thud.
“I was foolish to fail to grasp your deeper intentions and dared to ask.”
Im Yang Baek spoke gently, observing Jang Ho Un’s bleeding forehead.
“Why do you think I entered Sa Hyuk Ryeon?”
“……Was it not to elevate the name of Nok Lim, long disparaged as mere bandits?”
“That is part of it, certainly. But there is something beyond that which I seek.”
“Beyond, you say……?”
Im Yang Baek’s eyes grew cold and distant.
“The position of Sa Hyuk Ryeon’s leader. I shall seize that seat.”
“……!”
“But to accomplish that, I must first elevate Nok Lim’s standing above the Five Emperor Sects.”
Im Yang Baek asked with undiminished composure, watching Jang Ho Un’s widened eyes.
“Have you gathered intelligence on the Huashan Sect?”
Jang Ho Un scrambled to his feet and pulled a thick ledger from his chest.
“Here it is.”
“Hmm, quite a lot.”
Im Yang Baek took the ledger and began to read, and a suffocating silence descended over the hall.
After a moment, once the Nok Lim Lord had finished reading the ledger, a cold smile played across his lips.
“Summon the remaining Nok Lim Kings.”
“Are you going yourself?”
“Better to do something decisive than to bungle it halfway.”
Im Yang Baek laughed softly.
“Hehehehe. If it’s the Huashan Sect that brought down Baek Gwi Seong…….”
He paused, and his eyes gleamed with a keen, icy light.
“Then they’re perfectly suited to announce to All Under Heaven that a new Nok Lim has been born.”

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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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