The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 37

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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 37.
The sky was crystalline blue, unmarred by a single cloud.
Mo Gwang, the gatekeeper standing watch at the entrance of Demon Palace, let out a languid yawn.
“Ahhh.”
As he gazed upward at the heavens, he turned to his colleague Jang Sam beside him and spoke.
“When things were hectic, I desperately wished for some peace and quiet… but now that it’s finally quiet, I find it unbearably dull.”
“What nonsense is that? There was a time you were praying for no one to show up at all.”
“Who? Me?”
“Don’t you remember? Back then.”
In that moment, Mo Gwang recalled the carts being carried out from Demon Palace several months prior.
The Ten Demon Experts tournament.
The countless young boys and girls who had entered Demon Palace for that event had emerged as cold corpses.
“Let’s not speak of that.”
Mo Gwang shuddered and shook his head.
Though he lacked the exceptional talent to rise higher and thus served as a gatekeeper, he too had once entered Demon Palace as a young man, harboring grand ambitions.
Yet witnessing those idealistic young martial artists carried out as mangled corpses had inflicted an indescribable anguish upon him.
“Regardless, I wonder what those selected as Ten Demon Experts are doing now.”
Jang Sam murmured while gazing toward the distant sky.
“I’ve heard they each entered the Ten Demonic Gates to receive instruction in genuine demonic arts… though how would mere gatekeepers like us ever learn such information.”
“Didn’t I just tell you to stop talking about that?”
Just as Mo Gwang was beginning to furrow his brow in irritation,
Footsteps echoed steadily.
A silhouette could be seen walking toward the entrance of Demon Palace in the distance.
Though clad in a patched martial robe, his bearing was exceptional and his eyes gleamed with vitality. His face appeared to have only recently shed its boyish features, yet an imposing, lion-like presence emanated from him.
‘This is no ordinary person.’
Mo Gwang had served as a gatekeeper for nearly twenty years now.
Having devoted his youth entirely to this duty, his eye for reading people had become as keen as any fortune teller’s.
“What brings you here, honored guest?”
Mo Gwang maintained a respectful demeanor befitting a gatekeeper of Demon Palace, his tone appropriately dignified.
‘What kind of gaze is that…’
The moment their eyes met, his confident bearing evaporated entirely, and his throat constricted.
“I’ve come to meet the Master of Man Bak Dang.”
“The Master of Man Bak Dang, you say?”
Mo Gwang tilted his head in confusion at the youth’s words.
Baek Jeon Cheon, the Master of Man Bak Dang, rarely revealed himself and always remained deep within Demon Palace’s inner sanctum.
“That person is not someone you can simply meet by seeking him out. Do you have an appointment arranged?”
At that moment, Jang Sam, who had belatedly regained his senses, jabbed Mo Gwang’s ribs sharply and spoke.
“Wasn’t there an instruction sent down from Man Bak Dang yesterday?”
―Within the next few days, someone seeking the Master will visit our headquarters. Do not question their identity—escort them respectfully to Man Bak Dang.
“What instruction? I never heard anything about it.”
However, Mo Gwang had stepped away and missed that conversation entirely.
“Never mind you. I’ll handle this myself, so don’t concern yourself.”
Jang Sam, having pushed Mo Gwang aside, scratched his head as he spoke.
“Please follow me. I shall guide you to Man Bak Dang.”
Just as he was about to lead the way forward, Mo Gwang raised his hand to stop him.
“The visitor’s register? Shouldn’t we fill out the visitor’s register?”
“Shh. This is an order from Go Hong, the Vice-Master of Man Bak Dang.”
As Jang Sam whispered and tried to move on, Mo Gwang grasped his shoulder.
“Do you not remember when the Master recently instructed us to skip procedures and not bring anyone into the main hall?”
“Ah, you inflexible fool. I’m telling you, this isn’t your place to intervene!”
While Mo Gwang and Jang Sam bickered in hushed tones,
“I shall fill out the register.”
The boy stepped forward with a refreshingly innocent expression, and Mo Gwang politely gestured toward the table.
“Please write here.”
The boy nodded and picked up the brush, beginning to write.
―Chanyang Sect….
As the boy wrote, a bitter smile crossed his face.
“I shall write it again.”
Shaking his head, he picked up the brush once more and wrote with a single, fluid stroke.
‘Chanyang Sect?’
At that moment, as Mo Gwang gazed at the visitor’s register and saw the characters “Chanyang Sect,” a distant memory suddenly surfaced.
‘The boy who came on the final day of the Ten Demon Experts Tournament?’
Mo Gwang had not forgotten that day.
The harrowing image of that boy in monastic robes, unflinchingly tearing at his own fingers with a sickening sound and drawing blood….
‘He has grown so much in that time.’
Mo Gwang’s eyelids trembled slightly.
That shabby boy in monastic robes had somehow transformed into a dignified martial artist.
“Is that all?”
Hearing the question, Mo Gwang snapped back to attention and looked down at the register once more.
―Nangya Sect, Bu Eunseol.
‘Nangya Sect!’
As Mo Gwang stared at the visitor’s register, his eyes nearly bulged from their sockets.
The Ten Demonic Gates.
One of the ten sect names that upheld the very foundation of the Demonic Path was written in the register!
‘She has become one of the Ten Demon Experts!’
Mo Gwang’s heart swelled with emotion.
The last boy he had guided had finally overcome all adversity and become one of the Ten Demon Experts?
He felt a sense of pride as though he himself had played a part in this achievement.
“I, I….”
Mo Gwang clutched his pounding chest and bowed respectfully.
“Please, follow me!”
I followed Mo Gwang’s guidance, stepping slowly into the Demon Palace.
‘Something feels strange.’
The novelty of these emotions was something I shared with the surroundings.
When I first came here, I was nothing but a lowly salt merchant with no martial prowess. Yet now, having become a master of Nangya Sect, I walked through the Demon Palace with confidence.
‘Have only I changed?’
The Demon Palace I had returned to remained as magnificent as ever, its solemn atmosphere permeating every corner.
Just as it had been that day.
“This is Man Bak Dang.”
As we finally arrived before Man Bak Dang, erected near Seo Won within the Demon Palace, Mo Gwang bowed his head.
“Once you enter, someone from Man Bak Dang will guide you further.”
I nodded lightly and stepped into Man Bak Dang.
Mo Gwang, watching my retreating figure disappear into Man Bak Dang, quietly clasped his hands together.
He prayed that blessings would grace the path of the youth who had survived adversity and tribulation.
“May fortune favor you.”
* * *
Man Bak Dang.
The brain of the Demon Palace, where brilliant minds gathered—a place comparable to the Grand Strategy Hall of the Murim Alliance.
However, unlike the Grand Strategy Hall, which housed only strategists devoted to tactics and warfare, Man Bak Dang also oversaw the operations and management of the Demon Palace itself.
“Young Master Bu.”
As I entered Man Bak Dang, a young man greeted me with a light bow, as if he had been waiting.
“I am Sim Wol of Man Bak Dang.”
Sim Wol possessed remarkably refined features and appeared to be roughly my age.
Upon seeing someone close to my own age, I suddenly realized how Nangya Sect was filled with older men.
“I am Bu Eunseol of Nangya Sect.”
“I have heard much about you from the Sect Leader. Please, follow me.”
As I followed Sim Wol deeper inside, a tightly sealed iron gate came into view.
“Lord Sect Leader. It is Sim Wol.”
Sim Wol spoke before the iron gate in a very respectful tone.
“Young Master Bu of Nangya Sect has arrived.”
The moment those words left his lips, the iron gate opened with a grinding sound.
From the weight of the sound, it appeared the gate was operated not by human hands, but by some special mechanism.
“Welcome.”
Upon entering, I saw bookshelves overflowing with volumes, and beyond a wooden partition lay a study with a desk and writing implements arranged neatly.
And seated before it was a middle-aged man with a refined demeanor.
It was Baek Jeon Cheon, the Master of Man Bak Dang.
“Your bearing has grown even more refined in the interim.”
I furrowed my brow in confusion.
Baek Jeon Cheon held no insignificant position, and his brilliance and acuity rivaled any master.
So why did he show such courtesy even to a fledgling like myself?
“Hehe. There’s no particular reason. It’s simply become a habit.”
Baek Jeon Cheon spoke matter-of-factly, having seen through Bu Eunseol’s inner thoughts.
“Unlike the Murim Alliance, the Demon Hall tends not to place much value on strategists.”
The Orthodox Sects cherish and promote exceptional strategists.
But within the Demon Hall, strategists—those weak in martial prowess who relied solely on intellect—were treated as inferior beings.
This stemmed entirely from the Demonic Path’s unique culture of revering tyranny and strength.
“Bu Eunseol of Nangya Sect offers her respects to the Master of Man Bak Dang.”
Having regained her composure, Bu Eunseol bowed with utmost formality toward Baek Jeon Cheon.
She had observed him since the Ten Demon Experts tournament, and he had rendered considerable aid in saving her alongside Hyuk Ryeon Eung.
“The Ten Demon Expert from Nangya Sect is far too courteous.”
Baek Jeon Cheon wore a playful smile.
“Tell me—I hear Nangya Sect lives quite differently from ordinary sects.”
“It suits me perfectly.”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
His grin faded as his gaze deepened, signaling he was about to broach the main topic.
“You’ve heard the full account, I presume?”
“I have.”
“This situation places the Demon Hall in considerable difficulty as well. We cannot simply ignore the demands of the Ten Demonic Gates.”
Bu Eunseol’s brow furrowed.
Ignorant of the broader martial world’s politics, she knew little of the relationship between the Demon Hall and the Ten Demonic Gates.
“Are the Demon Hall and the Ten Demonic Gates separate entities?”
“Nangya Sect remains indifferent to the martial world’s affairs, it seems. They haven’t even told you about the Ten Demon Experts.”
Baek Jeon Cheon smiled slightly before continuing.
“The Demon Hall is a coalition formed by the Ten Demonic Gates pooling their strength. The two cannot be entirely separated, yet neither can they be called one body.”
Seeing Bu Eunseol’s confused expression, Baek Jeon Cheon elaborated further.
“Normally, the position of Demon Hall Master is assumed by someone from one of the Ten Demonic Gates. However, the current Master does not hail from the Ten Demonic Gates. Moreover, not all Demonic Path sects view the Demon Hall favorably.”
From Baek Jeon Cheon’s explanation, Bu Eunseol grasped two critical points.
The Demon Hall Master and the Ten Demonic Gates stood at the apex of the Demonic martial world, yet their relationship was merely one of cooperation.
And not all Demonic Path sects viewed this coalition favorably.
“And to speak frankly, the Ten Demon Experts plan is merely called that in name. It was never about selecting successors to the Ten Demonic Gates. It was solely to forge ten sharp blades—weapons to eliminate the Orthodox Sects’ great masters.”
Bu Eunseol’s expression remained unchanged.
She had already anticipated as much.
“You seem unsurprised.”
Baek Jeon Cheon continued with a slight smile.
“In other words, the Ten Demon Experts tournament was the Demon Hall’s plan to counter the Murim Alliance’s great masters. Most of the Ten Demonic Gates rejected it from the start.”
Baek Jeon Cheon’s smile turned bitter as he went on.
“There was no need to recruit outsiders merely to kill the great masters. That’s why the current situation has arisen.”
―The current Demon Hall has no choice but to heed the Ten Demonic Gates’ wishes.
Baek Jeon Cheon likely meant to convey this.
It was necessary to explain why the Demon Hall had no choice but to forcibly summon Bu Eunseol, who trained in martial arts at Nangya Sect.
“I am fine. I will endure any trial.”
Bu Eunseol replied with composure, and Baek Jeon Cheon exhaled a deep sigh.
“Do you recall Kang Mu Ryun, grandson of the White Horse Sect Master?”
When Bu Eunseol shook her head, Baek Jeon Cheon continued.
“He was one of the three who attacked you in the end. He inherited the White Horse Sect’s supreme techniques, yet perished because he underestimated you.”
“So the three of you attacking together… that was underestimating me?”
“Do not misunderstand. I am well aware of how exceptional your talents are.”
Baek Jeon Cheon continued.
“The terrifying aspect of the White Horse Sect’s unconventional methods is that no matter how many enemies surround you, you can fight as though facing a single opponent.”
Baek Jeon Cheon spoke in a subdued voice.
“However, because Kang Mu Ryun combined his strength with his companions, his vital energy became dispersed, and consequently, the true power of the White Horse technique was never fully demonstrated.”
Combined attacks require extremely precise rules and principles.
Without them, allies could destroy one another in chaotic combat—which is why the Gangho developed the martial art of “Combined Formation Techniques.”
“Had it been a one-on-one duel… perhaps you might not have withstood Kang Mu Ryun.”
Bu Eunseol did not answer and changed the subject.
“Is the Sect Master not at the Demon Palace?”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung, the Sect Master, had been prepared to face punishment to rescue Bu Eunseol.
She thought that if he were at the Demon Palace, he would surely have come to see her.
“He has gone out into the Gangho to handle various matters.”
“Because of me?”
“Yes.”
Baek Jeon Cheon answered honestly.
“The Sect Master originally oversaw the sect’s protection. However, having relinquished his position as Lord, he departed to handle affairs in the Gangho—thus he is enduring a considerable punishment of his own.”
“Why?”
Since surviving Hell Island, I had harbored this question in my heart all along, and now I laid it bare before Baek Jeon Cheon.
“The Sect Master and I share no connection.”
From Bu Eunseol’s eyes as she gazed upon Baek Jeon Cheon, radiant light poured forth.
“Then why would he endure punishment to aid me?”

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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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