Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 316

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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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316
Episode
A stark room containing only a table.
Ok Gi Rin, sipping tea with measured grace, carefully set down his cup and offered a gentle smile.
His posture was refined and elegant—the picture of proper tea ceremony.
Cheon Hui, by contrast…….
Gulp—
As if downing spirits, he poured the tea straight into his mouth, then set the cup down with a dull clink.
Then he wiped his lips on his sleeve.
The contrast could not have been starker.
Cheon Hui opened his mouth at once.
“So what’s the assignment?”
At those words, Ok Gi Rin drew a Communication Talisman from his robes and handed it over, as if to say Cheon Hui should read it himself.
He added a soft remark as he did.
“Once you see this, everything will become clear.”
Cheon Hui took the proffered talisman.
The seal of the Alliance was stamped upon it—it was certainly from Je Gal Goong.
He read through the message at once.
— Hubei Province, Wuhue. Black Fiend Gang and Poong Ri (Wind Fox) sighted. Cheonjeongdae and Myeoljjeol Corps to confirm and investigate.
“Cheonjeongdae?”
Cheon Hui tilted his head at the unfamiliar name.
“It is the designation of a special detachment led by Bin Do.”
Ok Gi Rin answered with a faint smile.
His voice carried unmistakable pride and confidence.
At the same time, his eyes brightened.
It was as though he hoped Cheon Hui would ask more about Cheonjeongdae.
But.
“Hmm, is that so?”
Cheon Hui showed no further curiosity, asking nothing more.
He simply withdrew his gaze from the talisman and moved straight on to discussing the operation itself.
“So you want me to join you in dealing with this Black Fiend Gang and this fellow Poong Ri in Wuhue?”
Ok Gi Rin was momentarily taken aback by Cheon Hui’s blunt manner—hardly the speech of a Daoist—but soon composed himself and spoke.
“Detailed orders have not yet come down, but that is likely the case.”
“Understood.”
Cheon Hui tossed the talisman aside carelessly.
Ok Gi Rin watched it fly through the air, then fluttered his sleeve in a circular motion.
Whoosh—
The talisman, drawn along by the arc of Ok Gi Rin’s hand, drifted gently into his grasp.
A remarkably intricate Geumnasu technique.
Cheon Hui noticed that the circular gesture naturally expressed the form of Taeguk.
‘Taegukshou?’
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed.
Taegukshou was among the most difficult hand techniques even within the Wudang Sect to master.
And to prove the point, the technique Ok Gi Rin had just displayed wove together complex patterns with deep application of Internal Force.
‘One of the Three Greatest Later Generation Masters under Heaven, they say—so he does have talent.’
A faint twist played across Cheon Hui’s lips.
Indeed, he was from Wudang.
‘Hmm, I’d like to see his martial arts.’
Cheon Hui’s eyes slowly darkened.
His gaze, grown as deep and dark as an abyss, wrapped around Ok Gi Rin, even as he was about to swallow.
Swish—
Just then, Ok Gi Rin tucked the caught talisman back into his robes and moved his lips.
“Detailed instructions will be sent down shortly.”
Ok Gi Rin paused briefly, then looked toward Cheon Hui.
More precisely, his gaze dipped slightly, as if looking toward the abdomen hidden by the table.
“But are you certain you will be all right? I hear that in your previous assignment, you sustained a grave abdominal wound from the Immortal Heaven Sect Master’s attack.”
Ok Gi Rin mentioned the rumors circulating recently through the Alliance and continued.
“It might be wise to request a delay from Je Gal Goong…….”
“No, it’s fine.”
Cheon Hui cut him off sharply.
His lips were twisted in pain.
“It’s already healed.”
Ok Gi Rin’s eyes widened.
According to rumor, the wound Cheon Hui had sustained to his abdomen was so severe that his organs were visible.
Yet in barely a few days, he had recovered enough to carry out a mission.
Cheon Hui felt Ok Gi Rin’s gaze and glanced down at his abdomen.
A scar remained, but it wasn’t enough to hinder his movements.
“When do we depart, then?”
Cheon Hui asked.
Ok Gi Rin shook his head.
“Nothing has been confirmed yet.”
Nothing confirmed yet, he says.
Cheon Hui narrowed his eyes and thought to himself.
Why not just leave immediately?
He preferred carrying out missions to lingering at the Murim Alliance anyway.
No—more precisely, he found the current life at the Murim Alliance thoroughly grating.
‘People come looking for me every single day without fail.’
Perhaps it was the consequence of the reputation he’d built recently.
Strangers appeared at his door daily, seeking an audience with him.
Everyone from the Nine Factions and One Gang to young martial artists wanting to join the Myeoljjeol Corps.
The numbers were staggering.
And dealing with them was absolute torment for Cheon Hui.
There were countless moments when he wanted to simply kick them out.
‘Missions, though—how much better are they? Just trade blows and be done with it.’
As Cheon Hui sat contemplating the mission, he recalled a previous one.
‘What was that one’s name—Poong Ri? He’ll be strong, I suppose. Ideally, I’d face someone of the caliber of Nong Jil or the Immortal Heaven Sect Master.’
The corners of his mouth rose slowly.
At the thought of life-and-death battles with those two, the competitive fire that had been smoldering ignited once more.
Meanwhile, Ok Gi Rin caught his breath.
The aura that Cheon Hui unconsciously radiated was so overwhelming that Ok Gi Rin’s back grew damp with sweat.
‘Such an aura…….’
His eyes wavered endlessly.
The presence flowing from Cheon Hui before him conjured an illusion—as if he were gazing upon his own master.
It was startling.
Who was his master?
None other than Mok Heo Jin In, the Taeguk Sword Emperor.
The current Sect Master of the Wudang Sect and a figure whose name invariably surfaced whenever the title of First Sword under Heaven was discussed.
Yet now, a man in his early twenties of the Maehwa Sword Association had awakened that memory—of one who had commanded the world since ancient times.
Through the eyes of none other than Mok Heo Jin In’s disciple, who had walked that path beside him for so long.
‘……The world is indeed vast, as Master said.’
Ok Gi Rin marveled inwardly.
In truth, his visit had been less about delivering a joint mission than about assessing Cheon Hui.
And though Cheon Hui’s presence had once appeared utterly opaque, like an abyss, Ok Gi Rin could finally sense its subtle contours now.
A boundless, vast presence.
‘But…….’
Ok Gi Rin narrowed his eyes as he contemplated.
He understood that Cheon Hui was formidable.
Yet to bow his head was something his pride would never permit.
Was he not himself counted among the greatest talents under Heaven before Cheon Hui?
The Wudang Sect had such expectations for his talent that they had given him one of their only two spirit pills—a Taecheong Dan.
How could he betray such faith?
‘I cannot yield.’
Ok Gi Rin drew upon his Inner Force to counter the presence of Cheon Hui, which was encroaching and pressing down relentlessly.
His sleeve danced and rippled.
At the same time, a pure white aura flowed from his entire body, settling like mist.
Whoosh—
In an instant, Ok Gi Rin’s released Inner Force manifested in two contrasting lights: black and white.
Then those two lights suddenly began to rotate and blend into one.
Like watercolor mixing on canvas, the light gradually formed a perfect circle.
The Taeguk.
‘Hm?’
Cheon Hui paused, his attention caught by the aura that brushed against his senses, and turned to look at Ok Gi Rin.
The presence emanating from him was formidable.
An accumulation of Internal Force that should have been impossible at his age was surging through him.
It was then.
Whoooosh!
Ok Gi Rin moved his hand.
The same technique as before.
Taegukshou.
The Taegukshou traced a perfect circle, wrapping around Cheon Hui’s presence like flowing silk, engulfing it completely.
And in that instant.
Shhhhh—
The churning air fell silent.
Cheon Hui’s presence that had filled the chamber scattered into fragments.
It was but a moment.
Having confirmed the presence that vanished in an instant, Ok Gi Rin gathered his power back in.
“……That was impressive.”
Ok Gi Rin spoke in an even tone.
Yet beneath his composed facade, he was reeling from a profound shock.
His Taegukshou hadn’t fully erased that presence before it disappeared on its own.
In other words, Cheon Hui ahead of him had withdrawn his presence of his own volition.
And in a span of barely a heartbeat at that.
‘To gather such an aura in a single breath.’
Ok Gi Rin swallowed hard.
It was far more difficult to withdraw Internal Force than to unleash it.
Retract too hastily, and one slip could leave one’s Qi and Blood twisted—it happened all too often.
Yet Cheon Hui ahead recovered so swiftly and emerged unscathed.
That alone was troubling.
The speed with which he’d withdrawn his aura suggested that even this level of presence had not been his true strength.
Then Cheon Hui’s lips moved.
“Your depth of power is considerable. I’d wager you’ve consumed quite a few elixirs?”
Ok Gi Rin offered a bitter smile at those words.
“I’ve been blessed with fortuitous opportunities.”
“Is that so?”
Cheon Hui shrugged his shoulders.
There was nothing more to say in response to that.
A brief silence fell between them.
For a moment more.
Swish—
Ok Gi Rin rose from his seat.
“Then I shall take my leave.”
With that farewell, Ok Gi Rin pressed his palms together, murmured “Infinite Buddha,” softly, and departed from the Myeoljjeol Corps’s Pavilion.
“A joint operation, then……”
A moment later, watching the members of the Myeoljjeol Corps bid farewell to Ok Gi Rin as he grew distant below the window, Cheon Hui twisted one corner of his mouth.
“They’ll each do their part well enough.”
* * *
The Grand Conference Hall of the Murim Alliance.
Je Gal Goong opened his mouth as he regarded the core leaders already seated around the circular table.
“Therefore, this mission will be carried out jointly by the Myeoljjeol Corps and the Cheonjeongdae.”
His voice was pitched low.
Those seated at the table wore expressions of keen interest at his words.
The Myeoljjeol Corps of the Maehwa Sword Association.
The Cheonjeongdae under Ok Gi Rin.
Both elite units had been established recently under the leadership of the Maehwa Sword Association’s promising Later Generation Master and Ok Gi Rin.
On the same day and hour.
Yet the gap between the Myeoljjeol Corps and the Cheonjeongdae had grown significantly wide.
“Is there a particular reason for conducting the mission jointly?”
Mok Yeong Ja asked, looking at Je Gal Goong.
There was discontent threaded through his tone.
In truth, he was dissatisfied with this mission.
There had been no shortage of voices within the Alliance lately drawing comparisons between the Myeoljjeol Corps and the Cheonjeongdae.
And with good reason: the Myeoljjeol Corps had been executing missions since long before the Cheonjeongdae even existed, and had never once failed.
But had those missions been easy?
They had not.
Operations like the annihilation of Mount Emei, the destruction of the Immortal Heaven Sect’s Main Headquarters—the most critical assignments throughout the war with Sa Hyuk Ryeon—they had succeeded in every last one.
What made it even more extraordinary was that not a single member of the Myeoljjeol Corps had fallen.
Granted, the Cheonjeongdae had accomplished the feat of stemming the tide of heterodox forces attempting to penetrate the Yangtze River valley and crushing them, but when set against the Myeoljjeol Corps’s record, their achievements paled in comparison.
Even the Three Great Corps and Four Pillars, the very backbone of the Murim Alliance, had not amassed accomplishments to rival the Myeoljjeol Corps.
At the question, Je Gal Goong turned his head at once, his eyes meeting Mok Yeong Ja’s.
“It is because those are the only two corps the Alliance can mobilize immediately, sir.”
He continued in measured tones.
“The Greater Harmony Corps and the Dharma Subduing Corps are nearly all engaged in blocking the Yangtze River valley, and their key personnel sustained injuries in this Immortal Heaven Sect operation and cannot move.”
“As for the other corps—”
Mok Yeong Ja’s mouth closed before he could finish.
The Divine Dragon Corps, another of the elite units, had been reduced to near total annihilation, while the Sagely Death Corps was currently engaged in a separate mission.
It was then that Gok Pyeong spoke up.
“What of the Three Great Corps? I heard the Iron Blood Corps has made good progress in recovery.”
“They’ve only managed emergency repairs. Complete restoration is still far off. If they venture out prematurely, they’ll only exhaust themselves further.”
Je Gal Goong let the words spill out smoothly.
Everyone fell silent at that.
The other two units of the Three Great Corps—the Golden Guard Corps and the Heavenly Martial Corps—were occupied with facing off against Gwiwon Shingoong and Sipyamun, who had recently joined forces.
“So we’re left with those two alone.”
Someone spoke, accepting the necessity of the operation.
“But is there truly a reason to press forward with such urgency?”
Cheol Su Bi Geom’s eyes hardened as he spoke.
“Why not give the Iron Blood Corps time to recover and move together instead?”
At those words, everyone’s expression shifted with temptation.
But then.
“There is no time for that.”
The Murim Alliance Master’s voice fell flat and even.
Those assembled tensed at once—the Master had remained silent until now, leaving everything to Je Gal Goong, but the sound of his voice changed everything.
The Master’s eyes swept across them.
Those gathered felt a chill run down their spines under that gaze.
His transparent pupils seemed to pierce straight through to the depths of their souls.
And then.
The Master extended his index finger.
In that instant, the paper the military strategist had been holding rose into the air of its own accord and settled upon the table.
It was the Heogang Seop Mul technique.
Everyone gasped at the display of the Heogang Seop Mul, yet at the same time their eyes fixed upon the unfolded sheet.
And moments later.
“……!”
“This cannot be!”
Everyone could not hide their shock.
For the paper bore information that demanded their astonishment.
The Bi Cheon Society—entering the fray.

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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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