The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 365

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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 365.
Nam Goong Woon’s face twisted in utter incomprehension.
“Completing an inner core through death?”
“Until moments ago, this man possessed no inner core. But the instant his breath ceased and his blood circulation stopped, an inner core materialized.”
Bu Eunseol’s eyes gleamed with a profound, shadowed light.
“It appears that to artificially create an inner core, one must inject something called a demon seed—the foundation of demonic essence—into a living person.”
He exhaled deeply before continuing.
“And when the person bearing the demon seed dies, the artificial inner core reaches completion.”
“So you’re saying… they used a living person’s body as soil and planted the seeds of an inner core within it?”
“Precisely.”
“Then…”
A chilling premonition flashed through Nam Goong Woon’s mind as he muttered softly.
He spun around abruptly.
Nam Goong Woon began methodically examining the corpses of the fallen Masked Assassins.
Almost immediately, he noticed slight bulges near their temples and the back of their necks.
Steel sang.
Nam Goong Woon drew a razor-sharp golden needle blade and made an incision across one corpse’s temple.
The flesh parted.
As the wound opened, a small pearl-like sphere tumbled out amid a spray of blood.
An artificial inner core.
These Masked Assassins too had been implanted with demon seeds capable of generating inner cores.
“This cannot be…”
Nam Goong Woon trembled with disbelief.
“It was true, then.”
Until now, Nam Goong Woon had traveled the Gangho more extensively than most of his peers, yet he had rarely witnessed such darkness.
But to plant seeds within living bodies and then kill them to harvest inner cores?
Such cruelty—something he had never heard of nor witnessed in his life—kindled a profound fury within him.
“Gae Bang has been a pillar of the Orthodox Sects for generations. Yet they commit such atrocities?”
Nam Goong Woon clenched his fists as he spoke.
“What could Gae Bang possibly lack to resort to such wickedness?”
“Your words ring true. They must have lacked much. Very much indeed.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with measured calm.
“The Nine Sects One Alliance—the very name suggests Gae Bang was once called the greatest faction under heaven for generations. Yet in these times, that title has become hollow; their influence and martial prowess have withered considerably.”
Bu Eunseol continued, conjuring the faces of Geol Wang and Gu Hong Cheong in his mind.
“Long ago, voices within Gae Bang began calling for a stronger organization. Gu Hong Cheong stood at the forefront of this movement.”
“So they create inner cores by sacrificing human lives to forge a stronger Gae Bang?”
“Gae Bang can afford such things. They have no shortage of people.”
With Gae Bang commanding the beggars across all of Zhong Yuan, their members were truly beyond counting.
Unless one held considerable rank, the deaths of countless subordinates would go unnoticed.
“To commit such atrocities simply because people are plentiful… I cannot fathom it.”
“If one could gain tremendous profit by killing a person, the faction most capable of executing such a deed with ease would likely be Gae Bang.”
“But Gae Bang reveres the way of chivalry and righteousness….”
Bu Eunseol cut off Nam Goong Woon’s words decisively.
“That is merely ancient history. Because Gae Bang failed to produce outstanding disciples, it has walked the path of decline, and now it has degenerated into a gathering place for those who worship power.”
Nam Goong Woon offered no further objection, sighing with an expression of shame.
Gae Bang, once called the greatest faction under heaven and a pillar of the Orthodox Sects, was committing such acts to gain power?
He felt so ashamed he wanted to hide in a mouse hole.
“I shall return to the Main House at once and report this matter. And I will request that the Murim Alliance investigate Gae Bang.”
“It will be futile.”
“Pardon?”
“The true culprit behind the Nae Dan is not Gae Bang. They are merely pawns being manipulated by their own greed.”
“Pawns, you say? You mean Gae Bang itself?”
“Mm.”
Bu Eunseol sighed with an expression of resignation and briefly recounted everything she had experienced thus far.
From Heuk Ryeon in Cheong Hae to the members of Gwan Bu who cultivated the Nae Dan in the Underground Fortress.
And even the fact that some mysterious force had completely eradicated destroyed sects and turned them into tools at their command.
“Just as Heuk Ryeon Ju was manipulated, Gae Bang too must have been controlled. By cunningly exploiting that desire to become the greatest faction under heaven once more.”
“So there is another force orchestrating all of this.”
Having heard everything, Nam Goong Woon shook his head and sighed.
“I had no idea such things were happening, not even in my dreams.”
And he stroked his chin with a grave expression.
“If such forces are behind this, shouldn’t we inform the Murim Alliance more quickly? If they begin an investigation, we should be able to easily obtain evidence that Gae Bang has been compromised.”
“Every faction and organization has eyes and ears connected to external forces. Gae Bang would be no exception.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with conviction.
“The intelligence network of these shadowy forces surpasses even my own. The moment I inform the Murim Alliance, Gae Bang will receive the information immediately and destroy all evidence.”
Nam Goong Woon felt a heavy silence settle over him.
There were forces casting such darkness over Murim, and Bu Eunseol had been clashing with them all this time?
“Then there is no way forward.”
“We must obtain the evidence ourselves.”
“How do you propose we do that?”
Bu Eunseol pointed to the corpses of some fifty men.
“Gae Bang fed these people the seeds of the Nae Dan, so they will surely come to retrieve them.”
Nam Goong Woon let out a sound of realization.
He understood that Bu Eunseol intended to pursue them directly.
“Then shouldn’t we put the Nae Dan back inside them?”
“It doesn’t matter. Now that we’ve discovered something is amiss, they will have to return to their base.”
“I see. Then I shall wait with you.”
Bu Eunseol and Nam Goong Woon concealed themselves in a location some thirty paces away from where the Masked Assassins lay collapsed.
About an hour passed.
With the sound of piercing wind, a dozen or so beggars arrived at the Open Ground where the Masked Assassins lay unconscious.
They carefully examined their surroundings, checking whether anyone was present.
But they could not find Bu Eunseol and Nam Goong Woon, who had concealed their presence with utmost discretion.
Once they confirmed there was nothing unusual, they drew short blades from their robes.
Then they approached the fallen Masked Assassins and began retrieving the inner elixirs that had formed at their necks and temples.
Squelch. Thud.
They handled the corpses of the Masked Assassins with practiced skill, as though they had recovered inner elixirs countless times before.
“…!”
Then one of the Masked Assassins discovered a corpse from which Nam Goong Woon had already recovered the inner elixir and called out to his companions.
The Masked Assassins huddled together and whispered urgently for some time, then immediately deployed their lightness technique and swiftly departed.
Whoosh.
As they executed their lightness technique, the concealed Bu Eunseol and Nam Goong Woon began to follow them discreetly.
The Masked Assassins did not rest for even a moment, maintaining their lightness technique for a day and a half.
And finally, they arrived at Gaebong.
Upon reaching Gaebong, the Masked Assassins suddenly scattered in all directions once they arrived at Market Street.
Bu Eunseol and Nam Goong Woon watched their movements from the roof of a tall pavilion.
“So it truly was Gae Bang.”
Though they appeared to be dispersing and moving separately, they were all heading toward where Gae Bang Headquarters was located.
Since one inner elixir had not been recovered, it seemed they were scattering to shake off any potential pursuers before heading to headquarters.
“What do we do now? Once they’ve entered Gae Bang Headquarters, it will be difficult to obtain evidence.”
Bu Eunseol spoke matter-of-factly.
“We’ll have to infiltrate directly and gather the evidence ourselves.”
“You intend to infiltrate Gae Bang Headquarters?”
“That’s right.”
“That’s absolutely impossible.”
Nam Goong Woon waved both hands in protest.
“Gae Bang Headquarters is even more difficult to infiltrate than the Murim Alliance or Shaolin.”
Nam Goong Woon sighed and continued.
“Beggars have their own unique characteristics, so if an outsider infiltrates, they’ll be exposed immediately. No matter how skilled a spy is, infiltrating Gae Bang is absolutely impossible.”
The Murim Alliance and Shaolin may have strict security, but at least outsiders and visitors move about freely.
But inside Gae Bang Headquarters, only beggars gather.
Moreover, no matter how well one disguises themselves as a beggar, real beggars can easily identify a fake one.
In short, unless one becomes completely invisible, infiltration into headquarters is absolutely impossible.
“We can infiltrate as beggars.”
Crack, crack, crack.
Bu Eunseol deployed the Bone Restructuring Technique.
Her facial structure shifted, and Seol So’s face became slightly more simple and naive.
“Brother Bu, changing only your face won’t be enough.”
Nam Goong Woon shook his head firmly.
“Beggars have their own lifestyle and habits. Ordinary people don’t know these things, so no matter how well one disguises themselves as a beggar, they’ll be exposed immediately.”
He then spoke carefully.
“The Main House has skilled intelligence operatives. I could dispatch them for infiltration instead.”
“You speak wisely. No matter how capable an informant is, they’ll be exposed the moment they enter a beggar’s den.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with an unbothered expression.
“If a spy sent by the Nam Goong Family is discovered, it won’t be just your problem—it will become an issue for the entire Nam Goong Family.”
“But…”
“It’s fine. I’ve played the beggar many times in the past.”
Bu Eunseol patted Nam Goong Woon’s shoulder.
“You should return to the Nam Goong Family. I can handle this alone.”
And I offered a faint smile.
“Once I obtain clear evidence, I will certainly share it with you.”
Those words meant that I would give him the decisive evidence found in Gae Bang so that he could become the family head.
But Nam Goong Woon’s pride was wounded instead.
Bu Eunseol, the successor of the Demonic Path, was risking her life infiltrating to capture the forces disrupting Murim.
And he was simply saying he couldn’t go?
“Bu Hyung, I have no ambition to become the family head.”
Nam Goong Woon spoke after drawing a deep breath.
“I simply never fled when trials approached. Just as you taught me.”
And he spoke with firm resolve.
“I will follow you too, Bu Hyung. Together, like before.”
“There’s no need.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with a grave expression.
“Disguising yourself as a beggar is not easy. You won’t endure even a single moment and will flee.”
“Ha, is beggar disguise really that difficult? That’s probably because Bu Hyung…”
Nam Goong Woon, who was continuing with a laugh, fell silent.
Bu Eunseol’s gaze was infinitely serious.
‘Bu Hyung is not someone who speaks nonsense.’
Nam Goong Woon wavered for a moment.
During those days as a wanderer when he traveled with her, dangerous situations repeated endlessly—situations where a hundred lives wouldn’t suffice.
But back then, Bu Eunseol had never worn such an expression.
Which meant this task was incomparably harder and more perilous than those times.
‘But I am different now than I was then.’
‘Besides, if infiltrating Gae Bang Headquarters goes worst, all that happens is exposure and escape, right?’
Nam Goong Woon, having steeled his resolve anew, laughed and struck his chest.
“Is there anything I cannot do if I’m with Bu Hyung?”
Nam Goong Woon clasped his hands together and spoke with earnest conviction.
“Please, take me with you. I beg you.”
“Are you sincere?”
“Of course.”
Bu Eunseol sighed.
“Never regret this.”
“Don’t worry!”
Nam Goong Woon patted his chest once more and spoke with confidence.
“Nothing like that will happen!”
Nam Goong Woon immediately regretted his words.
“Ugh.”
The moment he accepted the clothes Bu Eunseol had brought, a wave of bitter regret crashed over him, and he began to retch.
To infiltrate Gae Bang Headquarters, Bu Eunseol led Nam Goong Woon to a small village far removed from Gaebong.
Upon arriving at the village, she immediately located the lair of beggars gathered near the outskirts.
They were not beggars belonging to Gae Bang, but vagrants treated worse than livestock.
“I need two sets of clothes.”
Bu Eunseol offered money to the man who appeared to be their leader.
He revealed yellowed teeth in a grin, pocketed the money, and without asking a single question, had his subordinates bring the clothes at once.
After all, martial artists who borrowed beggars’ clothes to evade pursuit were a common sight.
“And give us two basins as well.”
When Bu Eunseol demanded basins, the leader couldn’t hide his bewilderment.
“What would you need basins for?”
Instead of answering, Bu Eunseol offered more silver.
Without hesitation, the leader had his men bring two broken basins they were using.
With clothes and basins in hand, the two entered a secluded forest and began changing.
But Nam Goong Woon couldn’t change—he only continued retching.
“Ugh. Ugghhh.”
By now, Nam Goong Woon’s face was smeared with tears and mucus.
The clothes worn by beggars reeked indescribably, and there were traces of feces and insects clinging to them.
Merely holding them—let alone wearing them—caused the noodles he’d eaten a year ago to rise in his throat.
“You should give up now.”
Bu Eunseol, who donned the filthy beggar clothes without hesitation, spoke.
“At this rate, you’ll be exposed before we even enter Gae Bang Headquarters.”
Nam Goong Woon quickly stopped retching and wiped his mouth.
“What are you talking about? It’s just that what I ate yesterday hasn’t digested properly.”
He took a deep breath and forced himself to put on the beggar clothes.
The moment the upper garment touched his body, the sour and acrid stench made his eyes water.
Crack.
Then Bu Eunseol deployed the Reverse Bone Technique, adjusting her physique to become gaunt once more.
In a skeletal frame dressed in beggar clothes, she became an ordinary vagrant one could see anywhere.
“Can you deploy the Reverse Bone Technique?”
“Of… of course.”
Nam Goong Woon inhaled and began deploying the technique.
Crack.
Though he altered his face to appear ordinary, Nam Goong Woon’s frame was naturally large and imposing.
As a result, despite the beggar clothes and altered face, his physique still appeared robust.
“You carry far too much nobility in your bearing.”
Bu Eunseol spoke as she examined Nam Goong Woon’s form.
“Reduce your frame further and add more fullness to your face. That would appear far more natural.”
“Add fullness to my face? Where in this world does one find a fat beggar?”
“Fat beggars may not exist, but beggars with swollen faces are common enough. Consume rotting scraps of filthy food long enough, and the body and face swell of their own accord.”
“Is… is that so?”
Crack, crack, crack.
Following Bu Eunseol’s counsel, Nam Goong Woon employed bone-shrinking techniques to compress his frame as much as possible while deliberately expanding the facial structure.
The result was the unmistakable physique of a bloated beggar.
“But can I truly infiltrate Gae Bang Headquarters with merely this level of disguise?”
Nam Goong Woon’s expression betrayed his anxiety.
Gae Bang Headquarters was nothing short of a den of beggars—a place where even the slightest awkward gesture or off-putting aura would be immediately detected.
“Of course not.”
Bu Eunseol led Nam Goong Woon outside.
Then, with a mysterious smile, she spoke.
“From now on, you shall undergo intensive training to truly become a beggar.”
Bu Eunseol immediately led Nam Goong Woon toward Seong Do.
“To become a beggar, you must first grow accustomed to the gaze of others.”
“The gaze? What manner of gaze?”
“You will understand once we walk through Market Street.”
Bu Eunseol led Nam Goong Woon into the crowded Market Street and began their walk.
Passersby wrinkled their noses or cursed whenever they passed the two reeking figures.
Some even erupted in anger or approached to kick at them.
‘These wretches?’
Nam Goong Woon’s fury rose to the crown of his head.
As a direct descendant of the Nam Goong Family, had he ever been subjected to such treatment?
After merely half a day of walking, the contemptuous gazes and revulsion of the crowd made his head spin with vertigo.
“Does this not anger you, Bu Hyung?”
At Nam Goong Woon’s words, Bu Eunseol offered a faint smile.
“Is it not the natural instinct of humans to avoid that which reeks and is filthy?”
“So those who are filthy and foul-smelling deserve contempt? To be kicked without reason?”
“Such is the way of the world.”
Bu Eunseol answered Nam Goong Woon’s question with detachment.
“People despise those weaker and more unfortunate than themselves. It makes them feel their own happiness.”
The words were so deeply pessimistic that Nam Goong Woon could not laugh them away.
Moreover, was not Bu Eunseol’s expression and gaze tracing through the past?
“Did you truly live the life of a beggar, Bu Hyung?”
“I did not merely live as a beggar—I was one.”
Bu Eunseol spoke flatly, her eyes avoiding Nam Goong Woon’s wavering gaze.
“Abandoned from such a tender age… I never even obtained a name.”
‘So that’s how it was.’
Only then did Nam Goong Woon begin to understand what kind of life Bu Eunseol had lived.
And why her heart had frozen so completely.
―Her coldness was not her nature. Rather, some catalyst had caused her heart to freeze entirely.
Nam Goong Woon had harbored such thoughts before parting with Bu Eunseol in the past.
And he had wished for her frozen heart to thaw, and for her surroundings to always remain warm.
‘I’ve been spouting nonsense without knowing anything about Bu Hyung.’
As Nam Goong Woon recalled his former thoughts, an unexpected sense of remorse washed over him.
He had been born into a distinguished family and raised without want.
If he too had grown up in such harsh circumstances, powerless and struggling? He might have become just as frozen, cynical, and misanthropic as Bu Eunseol.
“I realize now that I knew nothing of your circumstances.”
As Nam Goong Woon scratched his head, Bu Eunseol shook her head.
“There is no need for such thoughts. It is merely the past.”
“And yet I cannot help but feel that I was hopelessly naive about the ways of the world.”
“What cannot be seen, and the ugliness that need not be sought out—you need only do your best in your own position.”
Bu Eunseol believed there was no reason for someone like Nam Goong Woon to despair over not knowing the dark and sordid aspects of the world.
He had been born a descendant of a noble house and had grown up bright and unblemished. His good character and conduct brought light to those around him.
That alone was sufficient for Nam Goong Woon to exert considerable positive influence on countless people.
“Bu Hyung.”
“Now that you understand, you should return.”
Only then did Nam Goong Woon realize.
Bu Eunseol had been showing him deep consideration all along.
The reason she had taken the time to let him experience poverty was not truly to have him stay, but to send him back.
‘I am no longer the naive fool I once was!’
In the past, he would have given up and left immediately. But now was different.
Nam Goong Woon shook his head firmly and spoke.
“There is one thing I have learned since meeting you, Bu Hyung.”
He wiped his nose and spoke matter-of-factly.
“If one overcomes all the trials that come, one can surely become a great person.”
“Nam Goong Woon.”
“I will prove it.”
Nam Goong Woon had made his resolve firm. And he believed.
That with Bu Eunseol, he could overcome all these trials.
“Are you truly certain you will not regret this?”
“Of course!”
Nam Goong Woon’s eyes gleamed like torches freshly kindled.
“Very well.”
Bu Eunseol, as if resigned, held out the wooden ladle she had been carrying to Nam Goong Woon.
“Then let us begin again.”
As Nam Goong Woon took the ladle, he would soon come to understand.
The trials I had faced until now were nothing but child’s play. Now I understood why Bu Eunseol had been so adamant about discouraging me from accompanying her….

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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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