Namgung Heavenly Demon - Chapter 89

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 89

Upper Snowy Peaks of the Gonlun Mountain Range.

Bingwhagak (Ice Flower Pavilion), a pavilion of the Kunlun Sect covered in eternal snow that never melts year-round.

Despite its beautiful name, a sharp aura circulated within the pavilion.

“…Four days.”

An old man who had been staring at a cold teacup quietly opened his mouth.

“No, finish it within three days. No longer than that.”

After finishing his words, a tremendous energy emanated from the old man’s entire body.

That energy was directed toward a middle-aged man across the table.

A middle-aged man wearing splendid silk robes.

Despite the tremendous energy pressing down on his entire body, the middle-aged man instead fiddled with the cold teacup and chuckled.

“Grand Elder, rushing won’t make it happen. Do you think reading the grain of bedrock and digging without causing collapse is so easy?”

“It’s already been three months.”

The old man, Baekheung, Grand Elder of the Kunlun Sect, coldly cut off his words.

He rose from his seat and walked to the window with his hands clasped behind his back.

Outside the window, a fierce snowstorm was raging.

Baekheung, who had been quietly staring at the fierce snowstorm, clenched his fist and continued speaking.

“Even Eulmyeol Sword has entered Xining.”

At Baekheung’s words, the middle-aged man’s hand that had been touching the teacup stopped.

For the first time, faint wrinkles formed on his brow.

“…You mean the Wandering King’s disciple.”

“That’s right. Even his disciple has started lurking around these mountain foothills. Do you know what this means?”

Baekheung slowly turned his head to stare at the middle-aged man.

His eyes flashed like a beast’s.

“It means the Wandering King crouching below the mountain has called his disciple to act in his place.”

The Wandering King.

The pinnacle of wanderers who roam Tianxia, an absolute master whom even the Alliance Leader cannot treat carelessly.

Such a person had been staying in these Kunlun mountain foothills for several months.

Kunlun knew this but pretended not to know.

Because of a promise made with the previous sect leader.

But now the situation was different.

Baekheung opened his mouth while staring at the eternal snow with sharp eyes.

“The seal of the Secret Treasury is wavering, and the energy flowing out from within is gradually growing stronger. It’s only a matter of time before the Wandering King senses this.”

“The Wandering King….”

The middle-aged man muttered while stroking his chin.

His eyes narrowed.

“It’s certainly a troublesome situation. The Wandering King cannot come up the mountain due to his agreement with Kunlun, but Eulmyeol Sword is not bound by that. At this rate, there could be disruptions to our plan.”

“It’s more than just disruptions.”

Baekheung turned toward the middle-aged man and spoke coldly.

“If they notice the existence of the Secret Treasury and intervene, Kunlun’s prestige will fall to the ground. If it becomes known that the Nine Sects coveted the Demonic Sect’s legacy and joined hands with merchants like you….”

Baekheung couldn’t continue his words.

It was a horrifying thought even to imagine.

That’s why they had to hurry.

They had to take what was in the Secret Treasury and cover everything up before anyone noticed.

“So speed things up. Finish everything within three days.”

Under Baekheung’s pressure, the middle-aged man showed a troubled expression.

“However, if we rush too much, there’s a risk of collapse. Moreover, there are limits to controlling noise and vibrations….”

“I’ll provide as much money as needed.”

Baekheung spoke decisively.

“I’ll give you as much as you want. So break through without regard for means and methods.”

The middle-aged man’s eyes sparkled.

There was no surer motivation for a merchant than money.

He smiled and nodded.

“Very well. Three days. I’ll open the door to the Secret Treasury within that time.”

Then he rose from his seat and bowed respectfully.

“Then, I’ll take my leave now. I need to check the site.”

As the middle-aged man was about to leave the pavilion, Baekheung quietly added.

“Xueqiang Village… There are no others you’ve contacted besides them, correct?”

“Don’t worry about maintaining secrecy. Those common folk of Xueqiang Village will also remain silent forever.”

At the mention of eternal silence, Baekheung’s eyes narrowed.

But that was all.

He didn’t add any other words.

With those words, the middle-aged man left the pavilion, and Baekheung, left alone, approached the window again.

Whiiing—.

The snowstorm was growing fiercer without any sign of stopping.

His gaze was directed beyond the snowstorm, toward the bottom of the mountain range.

The mountain base shrouded in darkness.

That place where the Wandering King would be staying.

“…He must be watching.”

Baekheung knew.

That the Wandering King’s eyes were monitoring Kunlun even at this very moment.

‘Even so, he won’t be able to move rashly.’

Because of the past agreement.

However, that patience must also be reaching its limit now.

The appearance of Eulmyeol Sword.

This might be the final warning the Wandering King was sending.

Not to cross the line any further.

‘However, if things continue like this, Kunlun will be forgotten.’

That much had to be prevented.

“Seolying Secret Vault….”

Baekheung muttered quietly.

It was one of the Cheonma Seven Vaults that Sangdocheon, the Golden Bird Society Leader who had just left, had told him about.

Cheonma Seven Vaults.

Seven secret treasuries where Cheonma had hidden martial arts and treasures in preparation for contingencies, dividing Tianxia into seven regions.

One of them was precisely the Seolying Secret Vault.

And within the vault, there would surely be Kunlun’s lost martial arts that had been fought over with the Demonic Sect for hundreds of years.

Not only that.

The secret techniques of prestigious sects that various Cheonmas had defeated while traversing Tianxia and legendary elixirs would be accumulated within.

‘The Seolying Secret Vault is merely one of seven, but with the power contained in just that one, Kunlun can rise again.’

And it would be able to proudly reign as the leader of the Nine Sects.

That’s when it happened.

Wooong—.

The entire pavilion vibrated minutely.

Heavy waves echoing from deep underground.

Baekheung’s pupils shook.

Was it because the time for the secret chamber to open was not far off?

Looking at the snow-covered mountain, memories of the Great War between Orthodox and Demonic suddenly revived in his mind.

Young Sect Leader Cheon Myeonghyeon, who had looked down at him with red eyes on that hellish battlefield.

Just recalling the arrogant gaze of the one who later became Cheonma made his body tremble.

‘Are they still afraid?’

The existence called Cheonma was such an absolute terror.

But Baekheung forcibly suppressed and swallowed his fear.

“…Didn’t he disappear?”

A fact known only to a very few within the League.

So even if they touched that treasure trove, there was no way he would appear.

As his trembling body calmed down, Baekheung’s eyes gleamed with madness.

‘What matters is not the past, but the glorious future that Wolying Secret Vault will bring to Kunlun.’

And the fact that he was opening that future with his own hands made his heart pound violently.

“How exciting.”

Kunlun’s future.

A satisfied smile spread across Baekheung’s lips.

* * *

At the foot of Kunlun Mountains shrouded in thick darkness.

Namgung Cheon stopped on a ridge overlooking Xueqiang Village.

‘…How strange.’

He felt something was off from the first impression.

According to the information Jegal Hyeon had given him, Xueqiang Village was a fairly large village located on the route to Kunlun.

It wouldn’t be strange in itself for Yonghopioguk to be staying there with dozens of cargo loads.

However.

‘There’s no presence, and I can’t feel any energy.’

Namgung Cheon slowly descended the slope while using his Shadow Stealth technique.

As he entered the village entrance, a strange scene greeted him.

From the houses to the household items scattered in the courtyards.

Except for being frozen, everything was ordinarily in its place.

‘It doesn’t feel like people left the village.’

If someone had left in a hurry, their belongings wouldn’t have remained so intact.

Namgung Cheon walked deeper into the village.

As he walked, he suddenly noticed the inside of a house with its gate wide open.

And the moment he saw the rice bowl left on the dining table.

“…”

Namgung Cheon’s eyes turned cold.

‘They killed everyone.’

To silence them.

Namgung Cheon looked around various parts of the village.

It was empty.

The cargo from Yonghopioguk that Jegal Hyeon had mentioned was nowhere to be seen.

‘Weren’t they supposed to be staying in the village?’

Where had those bastards gone?

Namgung Cheon closed his eyes and circulated Taeheohosimgong to expand his energy sensing.

Wooong—.

A faint energy mixed in with the wind.

It was flowing from behind the village, where Kunlun Mountain’s rugged terrain began.

Namgung Cheon’s gaze turned toward the mountainside.

‘There’s something there.’

It felt like the energy of many people was being artificially suppressed.

‘It’s a formation.’

And it was quite large in scale.

Namgung Cheon immediately crossed the village and headed for the mountain.

The steeper the mountain path became, the clearer the hidden presence grew.

Had he climbed for about an hour?

The dense coniferous forest ended, and a flat clearing appeared beneath a massive cliff.

And there.

‘So the carts were here.’

Dozens of carts were arranged in a circle, with numerous barracks erected around them.

Many people busily moving between the barracks.

They were constantly going in and out of a huge cave carved beneath the cliff.

‘Is it a mine?’

Namgung Cheon moved closer.

As he heightened his energy sensing, he could clearly feel regular vibrations and noise.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

The sound of striking something with a chisel could be heard continuously.

‘Seeing how the sound is concentrated at one point, it’s not a mine.’

When mining gold or jade, they usually expand the tunnels following the veins.

Namgung Cheon raised his head to examine the mountain terrain.

Kunlun’s ridgeline revealed under the moonlight.

‘Xueqiang Village.’

Namgung Cheon repeated that unfamiliar place name once more.

‘It was a name I’d never heard before, even though Qinghai and Kunlun aren’t that unfamiliar to me.’

It was natural.

Such a village didn’t exist in those days.

In his memories of his past life, this place was just a desolate mountainside where people couldn’t live.

Perhaps due to some reason like an avalanche, the mountainside had become flat, and a village was built on top of it.

‘The terrain has changed so much that I didn’t realize where this was.’

A red light flashed in Namgung Cheon’s eyes.

‘…It’s beyond there.’

On the other side of this massive cliff.

Cheonryong Gorge, a natural fortress with sheer cliffs and raging torrents.

And cleverly hidden in the crevices of strange rocks in the middle of that cliff.

‘Where Seolying Secret Vault is located.’

It was a secret vault that would never open unless one had learned the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

‘Then these people are…’

To forcibly open that secret vault.

‘They chose the crude method of digging in from this opposite side.’

A cold sneer crossed Namgung Cheon’s lips.

It was beyond reckless—it was insane.

‘And to do this insane thing, they slaughtered the villagers.’

Namgung Cheon’s eyes grew cold.

Though it was from his past life, not only were they trying to steal his belongings, but they had also slaughtered completely innocent civilians.

Moreover, this was the Gonryun Mountain Range.

‘The Kunlun Sect couldn’t have been unaware. Rather, they either condoned it or cooperated.’

The Nine Sects were coveting the Demonic Sect’s legacy and digging through mountains.

Not content with that, they had erased an entire village to keep it secret.

Namgung Cheon raised his head again to look at the massively carved cave entrance.

‘To properly confirm it, I’ll eventually have to enter the cave.’

However, the martial prowess of those guarding the entrance was no ordinary matter.

‘One Transcendent Realm expert and… ten Peak Realm experts.’

Plus formations on top of that.

‘It would be difficult to pass by using stealth techniques. In that case….’

Swoosh—.

The energy of the Shadowless Stealth Technique scattered around his body like a heat haze.

Namgung Cheon’s hand moved toward Mukhon at his waist.

Sring—.

The pitch-black blade gleamed coldly in the moonlight.

Whoosh—! Thud.

As a dark blue sword aura blazed from Mukhon, his form shot forward.

And.

Slice—.

Following the black trajectory drawn in midair, a head flew up.

“Kill them all and then check.”

Droplets of blood scattered like flower petals over the white snow field.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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