Reincarnation of the Blood Demon - Chapter 36

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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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Blood Demon Reincarnation
Chapter 36
Automatic Hunting
Crack.
The sound of something thin shattering.
“…….”
As Juk Un-hui stirred his frozen body, the dark ice coating his surface crumbled and fell away in fragments.
He caught a piece of ice and held it in his palm. A piercing cold. Far different from the chill of ordinary frost, it lingered only a moment before melting into nothing.
He clenched his fist. There was nothing to hold. It had been nothing but dissipating energy from the start.
‘My condition…….’
He had crossed the threshold.
Countless internal and external wounds sustained in the fierce battle. The Blood Meridians and muscles and bones, the Dantian and more, damaged in the creation of the Bright Moon Extreme Polar Art—these remained, yet at least he was no longer on the verge of immediate collapse.
The pain was unavoidable, cursed as it was. And recuperation could not be postponed for long.
‘But that much is enough.’
He exhaled slowly and examined his Dantian once more.
The first thing he perceived was Blood Demon Qi shimmering with a sensation distinct from Fire Qi. Beyond it, he could dimly sense a chillingly cool energy taking root.
‘The Bright Moon.’
The Internal Core, formed as materialized Void Qi hardened into substance.
Just as he had seen in his mind’s eye, the Blood Demon Qi had become a vessel, cradling the Bright Moon within.
Without touching directly, the Bright Moon hung suspended in the equilibrium of attraction and repulsion.
It seemed stable at first glance, yet was not entirely so.
‘For now, the balance between Blood Demon Qi and Death Qi holds, but it cannot always remain this way.’
In a word: a state of equilibrium between Yin and Yang energies.
Yet if either Blood Demon Qi or Death Qi tilted even slightly, the Bright Moon would reveal its true nature and run wild.
‘I was fortunate this time. There’s no guarantee the next occasion will end the same way.’
A runaway of Extreme Yin Polar Qi is not a situation one encounters often. Even Juk Un-hui could not guarantee ten out of ten successes.
Moreover, Death Qi continued to accumulate even now, moment by moment, adding many things to worry about.
Yet Juk Un-hui set aside his thoughts cleanly.
‘But this is not a problem to contemplate now, in any case.’
He had survived the crisis of the flesh, but there were still mountains of troubles piling up beyond that.
Juk Un-hui forced his body, stiffened by the cold, to rise.
“There’s much to be done.”
* * *
Several days later, in Seo Ryong County. At a certain inn.
In a spot where the sunlight fell pleasantly, a young man leisurely sipping wine turned his gaze.
‘He’s come.’
The authoritative crimson martial robe, the tall and striking frame, a body and bearing that were visibly well-maintained.
And finally, features so strikingly similar to the Cult Master in his memory.
There was no mistaking it.
‘The Eldest Prince of the Blood Heavenly Cult, Juk Ha-jin.’
Looking at his half-brother, Juk Un-hui raised his cup with a playful smile.
“Long time no see, Brother. Will you join me for a drink?”
At that moment, the patrons of the inn, belatedly registering the presence of the Eldest Prince, stirred.
“Oh……!”
“The Eldest Prince!”
“What brings him here…….”
Guests gathered in small groups over wine cups widened their eyes, and a server holding a tray laden with food froze in startlement.
Yet despite this, not a trace of fear showed in their faces—a testament to the Eldest Prince’s reputation throughout Seo Ryong County.
‘……And here I am, also a Third Prince, for what it’s worth.’
Juk Un-hui swallowed a bitter smile inwardly.
Though he wore no disguise, not a single person in this inn had recognized him during all this time he’d ordered food and sipped wine.
“…….”
Juk Ha-jin did not answer immediately.
He glanced at the cup offered in his hand, then drew a charming smile and spoke to the patrons of the inn.
“My apologies for the intrusion on your leisure. Would you all mind clearing the space? I’ve come to speak with my youngest brother about matters of some importance.”
At those words, the patrons startled anew and glanced sideways at Juk Un-hui.
Never would they have dreamed that the figure sitting there was the Third Prince of the Cult.
It was perhaps natural, given how differently Juk Un-hui appeared from the rumors spread beyond.
“Yes, of course!”
“Please, speak freely!”
That the great prince of the Blood Heavenly Cult had personally asked this of them sent the guests into raptures—they scrambled from their seats and hurried out in a frenzy.
“We have always admired you greatly, Great Prince!”
“My dream is to enter the Dragon Hall!”
“Thank you. I’d be glad to see you again someday.”
To the martial artists bowing with flushed faces, Juk Ha-jin returned each farewell with a smile and a meeting of eyes.
Once all the guests had departed, he withdrew a Silk Pouch from his robes and handed it whole to the bewildered innkeeper.
“I’m afraid I’ve quite ruined your lunch business. Please, do accept this. It should cover a day’s loss, at least.”
Of course, it was nothing of the sort. The purse carried by the great prince of the Blood Heavenly Cult was hardly ordinary.
It held enough silver for the innkeeper to close his doors and live in leisure for years.
“No, no, I couldn’t possibly—! How could I accept such a sum—!”
To the innkeeper’s stammering protests, Juk Ha-jin merely shook his head with a gentle smile.
“If you truly wish to ease your conscience, then when those guests return, treat them with utmost care using these funds. That alone would satisfy me.”
“Ah… this is an honor beyond my entire life! I shall do exactly as you say! Thank you, thank you, Great Prince!”
“Good, I’m grateful. Oh, I won’t need any appetizers.”
“Yes, understood! I shall close the establishment for today—please, enjoy your time in peace!”
The innkeeper bowed repeatedly, his face awash in gratitude.
The great prince nodded, his affable smile never wavering.
‘Well now, this is no ordinary man.’
A fellow barely twenty years of age, yet possessed of such meticulous control? Whether genuine or performed, it was equally impressive.
Juk Un-hui clicked his tongue and took another sip from his cup.
With the innkeeper gone, the two were left entirely alone.
“Sigh…”
Juk Ha-jin exhaled a long breath, pulled back his chair, and sat across from his brother.
“It’s been far too long, brother.”
That same gentle smile played at the corners of his mouth, yet the atmosphere that emanated from him grew harder to approach.
Juk Un-hui, however, showed no concern whatsoever and smiled back openly.
“I hope you’ve been well. Your mission appears to have concluded successfully.”
“Yes, I wrapped it up cleanly. Thank you for your concern. But…”
He trailed off for a moment, then continued in a quieter voice.
“I believe we have matters to discuss.”
His mouth remained curved in a smile, but his eyes had grown cold—dark and weighted as the depths of the sea.
Juk Un-hui met that gaze squarely. He set down the cup he’d been holding before his brother, then poured wine into it deliberately.
“Come, have a drink first. You’ve traveled far and must be parched—”
“Un-hui.”
The interruption came sharp, his voice heavy as stone.
“I am not jesting.”
Juk Un-hui finished pouring and looked directly into his brother’s eyes.
“I understand.”
“Then…”
“Have you come from inspecting the Hwan Hon Sect?”
At this direct pivot to the matter at hand, Juk Ha-jin’s gaze shifted subtly.
“What if I have?”
Juk Un-hui’s eyes widened slightly as he pressed back.
“Then what are you doing here? Why aren’t you rushing to the Hwan Hon Sect’s main stronghold?”
“…What did you say?”
“Unless I’m mistaken, the rot runs deep. You ought to excise it entirely while you have the chance.”
Juk Ha-jin’s eyes hardened further, and the smile at his lips turned cold as a blade’s edge.
“Rot or no rot, they are my subordinates. It is my judgment alone to decide what must be cut away.”
“And the stench of that rot is already drifting as far as Nam Hwa County.”
The reply came smooth and casual, yet Juk Ha-jin was in no mood for further pleasantries.
“Brother.”
His smile persisted, but now it carried the reek of blood.
A thick, savage scent that proclaimed why he was the great prince of the Blood Heavenly Cult.
“Do you wish to make war with me?”
Juk Un-hui too withdrew his hand from the cup and spoke with utmost gravity.
“The Hwan Hon Sect has involved itself in Human Sacrifice.”
“…!”
Juk Ha-jin’s eyes twitched, a ripple passing through them.
“I cannot say how thoroughly you’ve examined the site, but there will certainly be traces remaining. The scale was far too great.”
Though the work had been conducted within barriers and formation arrays, the magnitude had been enormous. Remnants would inevitably linger, no matter what precautions had been taken.
“You prepared the Great Ritual. Hundreds must have died. Did you know about this?”
Juk Ha-jin couldn’t answer. He probably hadn’t known. It was something that had happened while he was out on the cult leader’s orders.
Juk Ha-jin squinted, offering a rebuttal.
“……Even so, it wasn’t your place to act.”
“There were people from our side among the victims.”
“That’s regrettable, but—”
“And in the first place, why do you think I acted alone?”
“What?”
“Just as you did, brother. I am no different.”
Juk Ha-jin’s gaze turned to his half-brother, his expression riddled with confusion.
Juk Un-hui laid out his trump card with measured calm, ready to overturn the situation.
“Father ordered me to purge the Hwan Hon Sect.”
“……!!”
Juk Ha-jin’s expression hardened into something entirely different from before.
Where his smile had vanished, disbelief and tension emerged in its place. And unease.
For the first time since facing Juk Un-hui, Juk Ha-jin spoke without any pretense of composure.
“……The cult leader himself said this?”
“Yes.”
“If you’re lying now……”
“I’m not fool enough to invoke Father’s name with a falsehood.”
Juk Ha-jin clenched his jaw. Further interrogation was unnecessary.
No one in the Blood Heavenly Cult, unless they wished to die, would dare invoke the cult leader’s name with a lie.
That was what being the cult leader of the Blood Heavenly Cult meant.
“…….”
In his silence, a conflict surfaced that hadn’t been visible before. His expression grew heavy with thought. And rightly so.
‘If the cult leader is involved in this, everything changes.’
The cult leader had noticed the Hwan Hon Sect’s corruption before anyone else, and had even sent not the eldest prince, but the Third Prince to suppress them.
This was nothing short of a glaring failure on the eldest prince’s part.
Even an ordinary man would find the heavens bearing down on him, much less the eldest prince who reverently addressed his own father as “cult leader” even when no one was listening.
Though Juk Ha-jin seemed to be fighting to maintain an emotionless face, Juk Un-hui could see the tempest swirling clearly in his eyes.
Now it was time to move forward.
“As for those from the Hwan Hon Sect.”
Juk Un-hui drained his cup in one go and immediately refilled it, continuing his words as though they flowed naturally.
“They happened to barricade themselves in a remote area with a formation array in place, so it was quite difficult to track them down.”
“……?”
“Even now that the array is broken, it’s still an isolated location. I suspect no one besides you would have properly confirmed what happened there.”
“What are you trying to say?”
Juk Ha-jin asked in a quiet voice.
Juk Un-hui smiled as he spoke.
“The outside world has no way of knowing who destroyed the Hwan Hon Sect.”
“……!”
Whether it was unexpected, Juk Ha-jin’s eyes widened slightly.
“You’re saying you’ll give me credit for this?”
Juk Un-hui was offering the merit of suppressing the Hwan Hon Sect to Juk Ha-jin.
For Juk Ha-jin, that would be the best possible outcome.
Not only could he avoid the cult leader’s censure, but he could also project to the outside world an image of decisiveness—a man who pruned away rotted branches.
“What do you gain from doing this?”
Juk Ha-jin narrowed his brow with suspicion, but Juk Un-hui merely hemmed and hawed as though it were nothing.
“I’m simply looking out for my brother, as a younger brother should.”
“Don’t evade the question.”
Even as his brother pressed him, Juk Un-hui continued pouring his drink in silence. He lifted the cup slowly to his lips, and his eyes met Juk Ha-jin’s directly.
The moment his patience finally reached its limit.
“You──”
Juk Un-hui drained his cup and spoke bluntly.
“I discovered that the Sixth Elder was behind the Hwan Hon Sect.”
“……!”
Again, Juk Ha-jin’s eyes flared with reaction.
He’d come lightly, intending to punish his younger brother somewhat, only to hear far more than he had anticipated.
Juk Un-hui leaned in with a hushed, goading whisper.
“This is a clear challenge. Will you overlook it?”
“…… What evidence do you have that the Sixth Elder is behind this?”
Juk Ha-jin asked, struggling to maintain his composure, but Juk Un-hui merely smiled faintly.
“Well, that’s something you’ll need to investigate from here on, brother. Find someone who would know.”
“…… Ha.”
The attitude of a man asking how much more needs to be spoon-fed. Juk Ha-jin let out a hollow breath, utterly exasperated.
‘Was this the aim all along?’
Pitting him against the Sixth Elder—a strategy of the Borrowed Knife Murder, checking his opponent without lifting a finger himself.
He couldn’t fathom why the Sixth Elder had surfaced at all, but it was likely true.
There would be no reason to single out the Sixth Elder specifically unless it served a purpose, and even if this were a ploy to sow discord, investigating the main headquarters of the Hwan Hon Sect as he’d suggested would lay everything bare.
The real mystery, then, was singular.
“Why… won’t you step forward yourself?”
If he played this right, he could accumulate truly tremendous merit.
Juk Un-hui shrugged.
“Because I believe in peace, brother. What good is fraternal love without it?”
That was what he said, but the truth was: I’d rather not fight, so you go ahead and exchange blows with the Sixth Elder in my stead.
As Juk Ha-jin’s expression turned incredulous, Juk Un-hui smiled broadly, suffused with familial affection.
‘Shall I try some Automatic Hunting.’

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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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