Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 282

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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 282
“Quite impressive.”
“So this is Ami Mountain…….”
The members of Myeoljeoldae ascending Ami Mountain couldn’t help but gasp in admiration.
Ami Mountain displayed a beauty as extraordinary as its renowned reputation throughout All Under Heaven.
The mountain’s ridge rose to a height that might rival heaven itself.
And with its gentle slopes, one felt overwhelmed at the sheer magnitude of Ami Mountain spreading before their eyes.
“Quite high, isn’t it.”
Yet Cheon Hui’s observation was flat.
Having lived in his past life on the Tianshan Mountain Range, whose peaks towered twice as high as Ami Mountain, he could do no more than offer such a muted response at the sight before him.
Instead, his attention turned elsewhere.
‘Why are there so many temples here.’
It was no wonder that Ami Mountain was called one of the Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains—every trail wound past temples and hermitages.
The Golden Summit, the Ten-Thousand-Year Temple, the Pure Sound Pavilion, the National Protection Temple, and countless other temples and monasteries dotted the slopes.
Ami Mountain seemed to consist almost entirely of temples and hermitages.
‘Yet it’s quiet.’
Cheon Hui scanned his surroundings.
Quiet was putting it mildly.
From the temples and hermitages around them came not a single breath, not a whisper of movement.
‘Did they all flee at word of war?’
As he walked on, taking in the sights around him.
“We’ve arrived.”
The nun who had silently guided them up the mountain from the Mountain Gate stopped and pressed her palms together in greeting.
They stood before a plaque inscribed with “Bokho Temple.”
Though not as grand as the Sorim Temple he’d seen before, it was still quite large and spacious.
‘Hmm? Quite concentrated Dharma Power.’
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed as he studied the plaque.
From the three characters written there flowed a serene Dharma Power, enveloping the surroundings.
It was the kind of energy that spoke of no ordinary hand having written it.
As he continued to examine the plaque.
“Are those reinforcements……?”
“With so few numbers?”
Whispers rippled through the crowd.
Looking down, Cheon Hui saw that many nuns had gathered beneath the plaque.
Some were fully ordained, their heads shaved to a pale blue; others, affiliated disciples, kept their hair long.
All stood watching Cheon Hui and Myeoljeoldae.
It was then.
Ting—
The sudden sound of a bell rang out.
“Amitabha Buddha.”
A soft Buddha Call accompanied it.
‘Quite skilled.’
Cheon Hui’s eyes brightened as he turned his head toward the source of the voice.
It was a voice laden with considerable Dharma Power.
At the same moment, the nuns parted in two, and a figure emerged between them.
“Welcome to Ami Mountain.”
A middle-aged nun with a benevolent expression spoke, her Six-Ring Staff held in her right hand, her gaze calm and measured as she looked down upon Myeoljeoldae.
The members of Myeoljeoldae’s eyes gleamed.
Only one nun in the Ami Sect possessed such an ornate Six-Ring Staff.
“For the Sect Master herself to come out to greet us.”
All of Myeoljeoldae tensed.
Normally, a Sect Master refrained from stepping out to meet visitors first.
That she had come herself suggested the matter was grave indeed.
Meanwhile, So Un Sa Tae watched the tense members of Myeoljeoldae, and felt a complicated stirring within her.
‘They’re young.’
Nam-cheon had spoken truly.
Myeoljeoldae were still young, unable to shake their mark as a Later Generation Master.
Though the Dharma Power they emanated was quite formidable for their age…….
But that alone was nothing, considering they were Later Generation Masters.
What came to Ami Mountain were the elite of Sa Hyuk Ryeon—specifically, the Blood Shadow Troop and Ghost Shadow Troop.
Compared to their enemies, they were merely pitiful.
‘It would be difficult for them to become a major force…….’
A sigh escaped from within her.
But soon she shook her head.
Despite their youth, they had come risking their very lives to aid the Ami Sect.
Gratitude alone would scarcely suffice.
She was forcing down the disappointment welling up inside her, about to offer her thanks, when—
‘Who is that youth?’
Her gaze naturally fixed upon one figure.
The handsome youth at the front.
The sharp-featured youth seemed different from the others; no matter how carefully she examined him, she felt nothing at all.
As if he had never studied the martial arts.
Yet given that he stood here now, it was inconceivable he had never trained in martial arts at all.
But his appearance was far too young for one who had ascended to the stage above Husigi.
‘Has he mastered an art that conceals his martial prowess?’
As she gazed at Cheon Hui, trying to discern his nature—
‘I never thought I would see that again.’
Cheon Hui’s eyes, rather than meeting hers, were fixed on something else.
It was the Yuk Hwan Jang, ringing with the sound of bells.
A staff fashioned from crimson wood.
Upon it lay a circle wrought of gold, and within it, six rings.
The Yunh Hoe Yuk Hwan Jang.
‘How is it unchanged from before?’
To Cheon Hui, it was simply extraordinary.
Three hundred years had already passed since this object’s creation.
Yet nothing about it had altered.
Neither its Beopryeok, nor its outward form, nor…….
‘Even that.’
Cheon Hui gazed quietly at a single mark carved horizontally along the Yunh Hoe Yuk Hwan Jang.
A long, jagged crack running straight across.
It was a mark left by his former self when he had struck down the Ami Sect’s Sect Master.
As he stood there, gazing quietly—
Thunk.
Ho Gwang Gae jabbed him in the ribs.
“Dae Ju, you should offer a greeting…….”
Ho Gwang Gae wiped the cold sweat from his brow and, glancing furtively at So Un Sa Tae, spoke—whereupon Cheon Hui shrugged and offered his salutation.
“I am Cheon Hui, Dae Ju of the Myeoljeoldae. We have come to offer our aid, having heard of your difficulties.”
A simple greeting that conveyed his purpose alone.
Yet its impact was profound.
It was because of the Sect Token he had revealed.
“Cheon Hui…… the Maehwa Divine Cooperation?”
“The Maehwa Divine Cooperation has come to aid our sect……?”
So Un Sa Tae and the other disciples of the Ami Sect could not conceal their astonishment.
For Cheon Hui’s fame was ringing resoundingly throughout Zhongyuan.
‘No wonder I could not sense any internal energy at all. So he was the Maehwa Divine Cooperation.’
So Un Sa Tae regarded Cheon Hui with new eyes.
For the Maehwa Divine Cooperation was the one who had defeated and driven back Nok Lim Dae Je.
Young as he was, he was of a different caliber entirely.
Only then did her faintly stiffened expression relax, and a smile emerged.
“Thank you for coming to help us.”
The words carried a gentle tone.
At those words, Cheon Hui’s mood grew strange, and he scratched his head.
‘To think I would hear gratitude from the Ami Sect’s Buddhist nuns.’
In his past life, it was the female adepts of the Ami Sect who had hurled all manner of curses upon him, rushing toward him in their willingness to die.
And now to receive thanks from their descendants…….
‘If those nuns knew about this, they’d raise an uproar.’
A faint chuckle slipped free.
An uproar indeed.
They would likely vow to tear him apart.
Meanwhile, So Un Sa Tae regarded the suddenly laughing Cheon Hui with puzzlement, then spoke as if to refresh the atmosphere.
“We’ll discuss the details inside.”
What he was about to tell them concerned the Sa Hyuk Ryeon, and it was the sort of thing that might shake the disciples’ resolve if they overheard it.
“Of course.”
Cheon Hui nodded.
He’d been wanting to step away from this spot anyway—it felt awkward to keep talking beneath the temple sign.
‘And being stared at the whole time isn’t helping either.’
After hearing Cheon Hui’s agreement, So Un Sa Tae turned to the elderly nun standing beside her.
“Sister. Please show these honored guests—those who’ve come to aid our sect—to their quarters.”
“Amitabha Buddha. As you wish.”
The elderly nun, So Hye Sa Tae, bowed her head.
So Un Sa Tae nodded, then turned her gaze to Cheon Hui, her expression settling into a smile.
It was soft, yet sharp.
“And you, Gentleman, come with me.”
Cheon Hui followed So Un Sa Tae as she turned and led the way, arriving after a short walk at a small room.
‘Remarkably austere.’
Upon entering, Cheon Hui swept his eyes around the space and offered himself a quiet observation.
It was an exceptionally modest chamber for someone who served as both the patriarch of Bokho Temple and the Sect Master of the Ami Sect.
And it was hardly decorated.
There was only a bare table and two chairs.
That was all.
Cheon Hui scratched his chin.
‘So the rumors about her lack of ambition are true.’
In the current Gangho, there was scarcely any rumor of the Ami Sect at all.
This was because the sect’s present Sect Master, none other than So Un Sa Tae before him, harbored little desire for power and influence.
He’d heard as much, but as he surveyed this room—which seemed even more ascetic than he’d expected—So Un Sa Tae carefully tilted the teapot in her hand.
The tea poured out in a soft stream—
A delicate fragrance bloomed, filling the chamber.
Once she’d finished pouring the tea into the cup, So Un Sa Tae set down the pot and spoke.
“A sip of this will ease your mind and body. You must be weary from the hurried journey—do drink.”
“Thank you. I shall.”
The moment Cheon Hui replied, he lifted the cup and drained it in one gulp.
“Mmm—the tea has a bitter edge to it.”
His manner was far removed from the refined art of tea ceremony, yet there was something hearty and refreshing about it.
‘Different from what I imagined.’
He was the Plum Blossom Divine Art, renowned throughout Shenxi as a great chivalrous master. He’d thought her a daoist of deep propriety, but meeting her in person felt rather different.
So Un Sa Tae, observing this Cheon Hui who differed somewhat from the legendary Plum Blossom Divine Art of the rumors, also lifted her cup and took a sip of tea.
It was to suppress the worry that threatened to surface again.
Having swallowed her concern along with the tea, So Un Sa Tae opened her mouth.
“I hear that the Myeoljeoldae was newly established by the Murim Alliance as a special unit…….”
Her expression grew serious.
“How many members in total?”
She asked with evident hope in her tone.
So Un Sa Tae did not believe that those who had arrived were the entirety of the Myeoljeoldae.
Surely a special unit of the Murim Alliance wouldn’t dispatch only forty members.
‘The rest are likely being kept in reserve somewhere hidden.’
It seemed a reasonable assumption.
But.
“Including myself, there are forty-three of us.”
Her hopes crumbled at once.
“……So that truly is all?”
Cheon Hui felt a quiet laugh rise within him.
‘She doubts us, then.’
Though her expression remained composed, he’d caught the flash of disappointment in her eyes before it vanished.
“Yes.”
Cheon Hui spoke without concern.
“The forty-three of us are the entirety of the Myeoljeoldae.”
At this brief and direct answer, So Un Sa Tae’s expression hardened.
“……Then will the Murim Alliance provide other reinforcements?”
“Other reinforcements, you mean…….”
“The Three Divisions and the Four Great Units, I presume.”
Unable to wait any longer, she cut through Cheon Hui’s hesitation and spoke. No matter how much she tried to stay composed, she couldn’t help herself.
It concerned the very survival of the Ami Sect.
Cheon Hui recalled the message he’d received upon arriving in Sichuan and opened his mouth.
“The Pama-dae and the Hyeobwi-dae are supposedly heading straight for the Ami Sect, but…….”
For a moment, So Un Sa Tae’s expression brightened.
Both the Pama-dae and Hyeobwi-dae were among the Four Great Units of the Murim Alliance, and they maintained substantial numbers.
But then, with Cheon Hui’s next words, her brightened expression vanished as if washed away.
“Since Sichuan is quite far from the Alliance, it’ll take them another four or five days to arrive.”
……
So Un Sa Tae closed her eyes slowly.
‘This is the worst.’
She exhaled silently within herself, then opened her eyes and spoke softly.
“So the Alliance’s support amounts to only Do Jang and the Myeoljeoldae who have already arrived, then.”
A bitter smile escaped her lips.
A master like Maehwa Divine Cooperation had come to the Ami Sect, but it was woefully insufficient.
The number of enemies heading toward the Ami Sect was hardly one or two.
They numbered roughly two thousand all told.
A bitter laugh couldn’t help but rise.
But soon she composed herself and, turning to Cheon Hui, pressed her palms together in salute.
“Amitabha Buddha. At least the cooperation of Do Jang and the Myeoljeoldae offers some strength.”
It was an expression of gratitude accompanied by a bitter smile that slipped out despite her efforts to master her emotions.
“It’s our duty.”
So Un Sa Tae met the eyes of Cheon Hui, who responded matter-of-factly, then opened her mouth.
“If we find ourselves in danger, can you lead the disciples of our sect to safety?”
So Un Sa Tae, her bitter smile erased, continued calmly.
“I won’t have the bright young lives of our disciples thrown away in this conflict.”
The odds of victory in this war wouldn’t even reach ten percent.
No—it would be worse than that.
In such circumstances, she had no wish to watch the Later Generation Masters who would carry forward the future of this sect and the other Orthodox Sects lose their lives.
At that, Cheon Hui responded in his characteristically lighthearted manner.
“But we came here to fight.”
So Un Sa Tae shook her head.
“There’s no need to stake your lives in a place like this. These are too precious to die here—your disciples, the Later Generation Masters of the Myeoljeoldae, and you yourself.”
Cheon Hui gazed at So Un Sa Tae in silence.
Clear resolve flickered in her eyes as she regarded him calmly.
“Hmm, even if the Ami Sect falls?”
“A building that crumbles can be rebuilt anytime so long as the spirit of the Ami Sect endures. But…….”
So Un Sa Tae spoke without wavering.
“A life lost cannot.”
Ah?
Cheon Hui looked at So Un Sa Tae with eyes that showed approval, then nodded.
“Very well. I’ll do as the Sect Master says. If we’re in danger, I’ll lead the Ami Sect’s disciples away.”
“Thank you.”
“But if there’s no danger, then there’d be no need for that, would there?”
So Un Sa Tae was taken aback by this unexpected remark and looked at Cheon Hui, then smiled softly. She took it for youthful overconfidence.
“Then I have no objection.”
“Good.”
Cheon Hui spoke and smiled.
It was a smile brimming with absolute confidence.

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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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