Heavenly Demon of the Huashan Sect - Chapter 322

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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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Chapter 322
A
Wuxue, in Hubei Province.
The streets overflowed with people, though most were not permanent residents of Wuxue itself.
Merchants and escort agents who had come to cross the Yangtze River. And the drifters who loitered in the alleys, leaning against walls, either hired by these travelers or waiting to be hired.
Nearly all of them were such transient souls.
A city one passed through.
That was what Wuxue was.
For this reason, inns and pleasure houses dotted Wuxue’s streets with unusual frequency—built to tempt those who passed through with money in their pockets.
And such temptations revealed their true nature only when night fell.
The sun set, and darkness descended.
As if on cue, lanterns hung from every doorway along the street, casting their glow.
The sight of red and yellow flames dancing everywhere created an illusion as if the stars of the night sky had fallen to earth.
It was dreamlike, mysterious.
Those who saw it were drawn by the light, stepping into the street one by one.
Not long after.
“Guest! Right this way!”
“Hah! I made quite a name for myself back in Yunnan, you know!”
“This wine tastes fine!”
In an instant, the streets grew loud.
Guests filled the inns and pleasure houses, and the entire street began to pulse with vitality.
Those drinking and carousing.
Those laughing brightly with women on their arms.
So many people expressed their desires freely on Wuxue’s streets.
“Come now, fill my cup.”
A middle-aged man in a white long robe, with women on both sides, laughed with sinister amusement.
“The gentleman has good taste.”
“Right away, sir.”
The women on either side of him smiled at him with their eyes narrowed.
Dressed in gauze-thin garments, they spoke in coy voices while quickly filling wine cups.
The patrons seated nearby glanced at the spectacle.
The middle-aged man was displaying behavior more fitting for a pleasure house than an inn.
It was a sight that made one’s face flush.
Then, as if the middle-aged man felt the glances directed at him, he planted both feet on the table.
Thud!
The dishes rattled, and food spilled.
Yet the man seemed utterly indifferent, sharpening his gaze as he swept his eyes across the surrounding patrons.
……
At that, everyone hurried to look away. They lowered their heads silently and continued eating, eyes fixed only on their own food.
“Splendid!”
Pleased with their reaction, he burst into hearty laughter.
His loud guffaws shook the inn. Yet neither the other patrons nor even the innkeeper dared say anything to him.
He was not someone to be crossed.
Saek Hun Su Sa, the Pretty Scholar of Color—Jang Pyo.
He was the skilled master who had come to control Wuxue after Dok Gwi Su mysteriously vanished.
‘That fool actually removed himself without being asked.’
A smile deepened at the corners of Saek Hun Su Sa’s mouth. With Dok Gwi Su gone, Wuxue was now as good as his own.
“Fill my cup again.”
Just as he, in high spirits, tilted his wine cup to his lips.
Whoosh—
The sound of the curtain rustling reached his ears.
A pale white hand appeared between the curtains, accompanied by a very subtle sound.
And at the same moment.
A footstep.
The sound of footsteps came.
It was a quiet sound.
But somehow it lingered in the ear.
Drawn by that small sound, everyone in the inn fixed their gaze on the curtain.
Swish—
A young man appeared, parting the curtain.
With hair tied loosely back, barely brushing his shoulders, he was a striking young man whose sharp eyes commanded immediate attention.
As he stepped fully into the inn, the black long robe swaying behind him fell still and settled into place.
“Welcome!”
The Inn Attendant, who had been watching Saek Hun Su Sa from behind a pillar, hurried forward to greet the youth.
“Will you be dining with company?”
The Inn Attendant spoke naturally enough.
He meant to seat the young man before Saek Hun Su Sa could react.
“No.”
The youth, Cheon Hui, answered plainly.
He had shed his sect robes and now wore the sort of plain martial robe and long robe one could find anywhere.
It was a way to conceal his identity.
Crude as it appeared, it was effective.
The most memorable of his distinguishing features known to Sa Hyuk Ryeon would be simple enough.
A Daoist of the Huashan Sect.
All he needed do was obscure that.
And the best way to do so was to remove the Huashan Sect robes and eat meat.
‘It’s been a while since I’ve indulged in decent meat.’
Cheon Hui’s nose twitched at the rich smell of cooking, and he smiled slightly, his lips parting with anticipation.
“Just myself.”
“Understood. I’ll seat you at once.”
The Inn Attendant moved with practiced haste.
Better to escort him to a table and draw attention away than to linger here in conversation.
Soon the Inn Attendant led Cheon Hui to a table positioned as far from Saek Hun Su Sa as possible.
“Fool of a boy.”
Saek Hun Su Sa watched Cheon Hui settle into the distance and let out a contemptuous snort.
His face wasn’t entirely unpleasant.
But the idiot had no sense.
“Carrying two swords through Kangho.”
The mockery came unbidden.
For anyone in Kangho to carry two swords was as good as announcing they didn’t know the first thing about martial arts.
‘Some fool pretending to be a martial artist.’
Saek Hun Su Sa turned his gaze from Cheon Hui, reaching for his wine cup, only to find it empty, and his eyes narrowed.
When he looked around, he noticed the women at either side of him were watching Cheon Hui with glazed, distant eyes.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
Saek Hun Su Sa’s eyes flashed, and he spoke.
His voice, cold as winter ice, startled the women from their reverie on Cheon Hui.
“He’s taken your fancy, has he?”
At Saek Hun Su Sa’s icy murmur, the women flinched.
“No, my lord.”
“How could we, with you present?”
The two women hastened to reply, clinging to Saek Hun Su Sa and fawning over him.
Yet.
“Enough.”
Saek Hun Su Sa spoke coldly.
A heart grown cold could not be warmed again.
He poured wine into his cup himself with a sharp gesture.
He stared menacingly at the cup brimming with warm wine before swallowing it in one gulp.
“The wine tastes foul.”
Speaking coldly, he hurled the cup he’d been holding with vicious force.
It was aimed at Cheon Hui, who was just about to sit at the table the Inn Attendant had guided him to.
Whee-shhh!
The cup cut through the air as it shot forward.
Watching the cup fly toward the unguarded youth’s head, Saek Hun Su Sa’s lips twisted into a slow smile.
The cup covered the distance in an instant.
It seemed certain that it would strike the back of that unlucky boy’s head and send him crashing down unconscious.
Just as the cup was about to land—
Whoosh!
The cup vanished.
……!
Saek Hun Su Sa’s eyes widened in shock.
The man’s eyes flew wide in shock, then slowly closed and opened again as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just witnessed.
Abrupt.
Cheon Hui stopped in his tracks.
“Look at this.”
The words fell from him in a glacial tone.
“Guest?”
The Inn Attendant, unaware of what had just transpired, looked bewildered as Cheon Hui suddenly halted mid-stride.
Swift—
Without warning, Cheon Hui spun around.
The wine cup remained clasped in his hand.
“You must have a death wish.”
His voice, sharp as winter frost, settled over the inn.
It was the bite of deepest cold.
Saek Hun Su Sa’s face drained of color.
‘He caught the cup? That cup?’
His eyes widened in shock.
The wine cup had been hurled with Internal Energy infused into it.
Yet he’d snatched it from the air with a speed so flawless the man hadn’t even seen it coming.
It was a technique that only someone of exceptional skill could execute.
‘A Master……!’
Realizing his blunder, cold sweat beaded across Saek Hun Su Sa’s back.
In his younger days, he would never have been so reckless.
Even bearing two swords, he was the type to investigate an opponent thoroughly before making a single move—such was his discipline.
But lately, with Wuxue lying in the palm of his hand, he’d grown complacent without noticing it, and now this moment had arrived.
It was then.
Tap, tap.
Footsteps echoed through the space.
Cheon Hui, regarding Saek Hun Su Sa with utterly indifferent eyes, began to move toward him.
With each step, the distance between them shrank.
Whoosh—
A wind rose from beneath.
The lanterns inside the inn trembled and scattered their light in all directions.
Cheon Hui had drawn upon his Internal Energy.
Gasp!
Saek Hun Su Sa’s body began to quake.
With each step the young man took, an indescribable pressure bore down upon him.
There were no words for it.
The women on either side of him watched in alarm as he trembled like an aspen leaf.
“Master?”
“What troubles you?”
Hearing their words, Saek Hun Su Sa’s complexion darkened visibly.
The women standing beside him spoke as though nothing were amiss.
As if they felt no pressure at all.
‘This presence is aimed only at me……’
Thump!
His heart hammered against his ribs.
Breath came short and shallow.
It felt as though invisible hands were closing around his throat.
The young man came to stand directly before him.
Crash!
Saek Hun Su Sa toppled backward, chair and all.
Rolling across the floor, he scrambled desperately onto his knees and pleaded.
“A Master—I failed to recognize your station and committed a grave offense.”
Everyone in the inn fell silent, unable to conceal their shock.
Saek Hun Su Sa was the greatest Master in all of Wuxue.
And yet here he knelt, begging for forgiveness.
To this mere boy.
It was then.
Swift—
Cheon Hui moved his hand in silence.
It was his right hand that held the wine cup.
A faint Energy Wave flowed from his palm, and as the sleeve of his black long robe swayed, something shot forward.
‘Water, the wine cup?!’
By the time Saek Hun Su Sa belatedly confirmed what was flying toward him—
Crack!
A sharp sound exploded through the air.
Along with it, Saek Hun Su Sa felt a sharp pain bloom across his forehead and his consciousness rapidly slipping away.
He collapsed.
* * *
Cheon Hui tilted a full wine cup and placed the Five-Spice Braised Pork into his mouth.
“Not bad at all.”
The taste was simple and unpretentious.
Yet for Cheon Hui, who hadn’t enjoyed meat in so long, it tasted better than any delicacy under heaven.
“Hmm? The wine’s gone.”
Cheon Hui spoke, glancing at his empty cup.
“Right away, sir!”
Someone promptly poured more wine.
It was Saek Hun Su Sa.
With a vivid wine cup mark stamped across his forehead, he knelt and poured wine into Cheon Hui’s cup.
“Is there anything else you require?”
Saek Hun Su Sa wrung his hands together, bowing and scraping.
Not a trace remained of his earlier arrogance.
The women who had come with Saek Hun Su Sa could barely follow what was happening.
‘Just who is this man…….’
‘He subdued Saek Hun Su Sa in an instant.’
They exchanged glances.
Though they were courtesans, they were also members of Hao Wen.
It was precisely to extract information about Saek Hun Su Sa that they had attached themselves to him, yet something entirely unexpected had unfolded.
Then it happened.
Clatter—
Cheon Hui set down his chopsticks.
He was satisfied.
“Ah, now that feels like a proper meal.”
Cheon Hui rose with a faint smile, fastening his two swords at his sides.
“Are… are you leaving now, sir?”
Saek Hun Su Sa’s face brightened.
For him, nothing would be a greater blessing than to let matters rest as they were.
“I’ll settle the bill right away.”
As Cheon Hui said nothing further, Saek Hun Su Sa hurried off.
Cheon Hui glanced at him departing to settle accounts, then immediately turned his gaze elsewhere.
Saek Hun Su Sa lay beyond his notice.
He was merely an insect passing by.
What truly held Cheon Hui’s interest now were the two women seated in the corner of the room.
‘The regional director of Shenxi said there were many Hao Wen members in the pleasure houses—seems he was right.’
Cheon Hui’s eyes narrowed.
The martial power radiating from the two women carried the same quality he had felt from the director at Hao Wen’s Shenxi branch before.
Cheon Hui spoke as he looked at them.
All the while quietly deploying Energy Suppression.
“You’re with Hao Wen, aren’t you?”
The two women flinched at Cheon Hui’s direct question.
But soon they composed themselves.
“We’re not sure what you mean…….”
“We’re merely courtesans.”
The two spoke in deliberately soft, gentle tones.
Hao Wen members could never openly reveal their affiliation.
So they tried to hide it.
But.
“Never mind. Just guide me.”
Cheon Hui ignored their efforts and spoke only what he needed to say.
His voice ice-cold.
“To the branch director here.”

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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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