The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 637
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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 637.
Murim fell into shock.
The Cheon Hae Medicine Forest, which for generations had treated the poor and aided young patients.
That place had not only created Immortal Demons and Shil Hoon In within Murim, but had also conducted cruel experiments using patients.
Taking patients hostage, they manipulated Murim’s factions, the Merchant Realm, and even the Imperial Court from behind the scenes as they pleased.
It was revealed that they were the force that had been throwing Murim into chaos.
―Countless children had been abducted by the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest and subjected to brutal experiments.
―The Cheon Hae Medicine Forest was also the birthplace where Immortal Demons were first created and cultivated, producing countless Shil Hoon In throughout Murim.
―They had taken hostage not only the children of Murim’s noble families but also those of the Merchant Realm and the Imperial Court.
And using this, they had been secretly controlling Murim’s every move.
As these facts poured out, the people fell into profound shock.
The Cheon Hae Medicine Forest, which had treated the poor for free using money earned from the wealthy and had relieved countless commoners from poverty.
That place had actually been abducting children and taking patients hostage, manipulating not just Murim but the Merchant Realm and the Imperial Palace itself?
Did this even make sense?
―The Moo Hon Ryeong Ju was right.
Amid the condemnation of all under Heaven.
Bu Eunseol, the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju who had set out to strike the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest.
It turned out he had already discerned the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s crimes long ago and had marched forth to prevent their wickedness.
But due to the Murim Alliance’s interference, he ultimately could not personally execute them.
Unable to bear the public’s condemnation, the Murim Alliance quietly offered an apology to the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju.
―We regret that due to the Divine Position Sect Leader’s misguided judgment, we inadvertently obstructed the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju’s efforts.
But it was not an official apology, nor was there even mention of compensation.
Though Baek In Cheong, the Divine Position Sect Leader, confessed everything in detail out of conscience, the Murim Alliance was instead evading responsibility.
―If the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju had possessed certain information, there would have been no need to fight. Yet he recklessly mobilized his forces without evidence.
―In the end, the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju bears some responsibility for this conflict.
Though there were no major casualties.
The lines of responsibility were clearly divided.
If compensation were to proceed, an astronomical sum could be set depending on the negotiation results.
They absolutely refused to admit fault.
―In truth, the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju merely harbored suspicions. Was it not the Orthodox Sects who brought concrete results?
The Murim Alliance had its own justification.
This was because it was the masters of the Orthodox Sects who had meticulously exposed all evidence of the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s crimes.
―There is merit in that argument. After all, the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju merely prolonged matters through combat.
The people came to accept the Murim Alliance’s position to some degree.
After all, the decisive evidence of the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s crimes had been secured by the Orthodox Sects.
Particularly, there were hidden contributors to how the Orthodox Sects were able to secure evidence of the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s crimes.
They were none other than the Wudang Sect and the Gae Bang.
―The Wudang Sect, like the Moo Hon Ryeong Ju, had also suspected the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest.
―Thanks to the Wudang Sect’s support of the scattered masters of the Gae Bang, they had thoroughly uncovered evidence of the Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s crimes.
The masters of the Gae Bang, supported by the Wudang Sect, regrouped and pooled their strength.
The Murim Alliance’s investigation team had failed to uncover the evidence of Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s atrocities, yet he had discovered them all, piece by piece.
―Gae Bang was far too precious an organization to be destroyed merely because of the leadership’s misdeeds.
Nam Goong Woon, once the youngest of the Nangung Family, had infiltrated Gae Bang and methodically exposed the evil deeds of Gae Bang’s master, No Bong.
As a result, Gae Bang—which had been founded on integrity and conducted its affairs through consultation—
was revealed to be committing cruelties and atrocities behind closed doors that even the Demonic Path would not dare undertake, leading to its closure.
However, all those evil deeds had been perpetrated by Gae Bang’s master No Bong and vice-master Hae Poong, while the vast majority of Gae Bang’s disciples remained ignorant of these facts.
Through this incident, Gae Bang had been given an opportunity to wash away its infamy and rise once more.
―Gae Bang had reopened its gates.
With full support from the Wudang Sect once again, Gae Bang finally lifted its closure and resumed its activities as a proper sect.
Though overshadowed by No Bong’s misdeeds, Gae Bang possessed many exceptional individuals with righteous spirit and noble character.
Recognizing this potential, Wudang spared no effort in providing comprehensive support, and Gae Bang ultimately reopened and resumed its operations.
―Gae Bang deserves such a chance.
The Orthodox sects’ martial artists nodded in agreement.
Gae Bang had been a sect that performed good deeds for generations.
If numerous branch leaders strictly upheld the sect’s rules and performed many righteous acts,
they would soon reclaim the honor of being the greatest sect under heaven.
Yet upon reopening, Gae Bang made a shocking announcement to the martial world.
―Our sect merely discovered evidence of wrongdoing under Wudang’s support. In truth, it was none other than the Muhonjung Master who brought down Cheon Hae Medicine Forest.
Gae Bang was known to have found evidence of Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s atrocities, exposed the secret facilities within, and rescued the patients held hostage.
But such achievements were actually thanks to Muhonjung Master Bu Eunseol?
―It was Geuk Hye Bin, the successor of Mu Ha Soo Yu Jeong, and the young masters of Nangya Pavilion under her command, who identified the internal secret facilities and rescued the hostage patients.
Gae Bang was able to infiltrate Cheon Hae Medicine Forest and conduct its investigation in secret
precisely because of the young masters Nangya Pavilion had covertly stationed there.
―The reason bloodshed was minimized during the full-scale conflict between the Murim Alliance and the Demon Hall was due to the ghostly mercenary tactics of Hyuk So Jin, the successor of Jeol Cheon Myul Ji.
Gae Bang not only honestly revealed the contributions of Demon Hall’s heroes that had previously gone unrecognized,
―but also made clear that Cheon Hae Medicine Forest’s swift collapse was entirely thanks to Muhonjung Master Bu Eunseol.
He had not only secretly eliminated Rim Ju, but also rescued the patients being held hostage.
The martial artists were left utterly astonished.
It was none other than Hyuk So Jin, the successor of Jeol Cheon Myul Ji, who had commanded the Demon Hall’s Blood Mu Dan, avoided bloodshed with the Murim Alliance, and sustained the prolonged conflict.
Meanwhile, Bu Eunseol had treated the hostage patients and eliminated Il Mong Ja, the master of Cheon Hae Medicine Forest?
While the hidden contributions of Bu Eunseol and the successors of the Ten Demonic Gates were remarkable, what truly astounded them was Gae Bang’s candor in revealing these truths.
―Gae Bang has truly changed.
In the past, they would never have revealed such things for the sake of the Orthodox sects’ reputation. Now they openly expose hidden truths without hesitation.
―The hierarchy of the Ten Demonic Gates will surely shift now.
The martial artists now recognized that the rankings within the Ten Demonic Gates had undergone a transformation.
Jeol Cheon Myul Ji had been ridiculed for caring for dying old men while stealing their secret techniques,
and Mu Ha Soo Yu Jeong had been mocked for maintaining its position within the Ten Demonic Gates through wealth accumulated over generations.
Yet through this incident,
they had not only elevated themselves to the level of the Hwawoo Sword Sect and the Blood Flame Sect,
but it became known to all under heaven that unlike other sects of the Ten Demonic Gates that had failed to produce outstanding talent, they had cultivated exceptional successors.
―Why are you completely omitting No Bu’s contributions?
It was then that an unexpected figure stepped forward.
Chim Wang Jong Ri Sa Hyeon suddenly claimed that he had been able to treat the patients held hostage and addicted to Inhwa.
He began insisting that this was due to the Chim Wang Dan he had created.
―I gave the Chim Wang Dan to Moo Hon Ryeong Ju! That’s how they were able to be treated!
Chim Wang spread these rumors while spitting indignantly.
Only then could the Murim people finally resolve the last question that had long puzzled them.
How exactly had so many people addicted to Inhwa become perfectly healthy?
Moo Hon Ryeong Ju had grasped the entire situation beforehand.
While manipulating the grand scheme, he had been executing plans to save those held as hostages.
―The Ben Maeng will offer an official apology. And we will proceed with compensation for the damages to the Demon Palace.
The Murim Alliance, desperate to conceal their own mistakes, could not withstand the public criticism and scorn.
In the end, they offered an official apology to the Demon Palace and Moo Hon Ryeong Ju.
They announced that they were sending Gong Son Dan Gyeong to the Demon Palace to negotiate the terms of compensation.
―He is truly a great master of the Demonic Path Murim and the successor to the Demon Palace.
Due to his remarkably young age,
Moo Hon Ryeong Ju Bu Eunseol had long been counted among the rising stars.
Only now did the world realize that he was one of the great masters currently shaping the political landscape of Murim, and that his every move exerted profound influence across all of Murim.
* * *
Murim Alliance, Gunkon Pavilion.
Murim Alliance Leader, Jeong Cheon Je Sin Do Mu Bi, always conducts his closed-door cultivation in secret locations.
Because of this, the office of Gunkon Pavilion remained mostly empty, with only servants occasionally coming to clean during the day.
Rumble.
Yet at the dead of night,
a low vibration emanated from the study room within the inner sanctum of the Gunkon Pavilion office, and a concealed door materialized.
Click.
As the door opened, a hunched old man in a blue robe slowly revealed himself.
His face was obscured by darkness, yet his eyes gleamed with crystalline clarity,
flickering with white brilliance even in the shadows.
He was Shin San Ja, known as the greatest sage of Murim.
“All anyone talks about is that fellow.”
Shin San Ja, who had entered the Gunkon Pavilion office, wore a faint smile.
It had been a long journey.
He had known Bu Eunseol for ages, and through him, he had devised a plan to overturn the Murim Alliance and drive a blade into the Three Realms.
Of course, that was not all—the most crucial plan still remained….
Click.
He proceeded through a hidden mechanism in Gunkon Pavilion toward the secret chamber beneath Yeongak Dojeon.
Creak.
As he entered the secret mechanism of Yeongak Dojeon, his hunched frame straightened, and his appearance transformed into that of a dignified elderly man in his prime years.
A prominent nose, and eyes that gleamed with the fervent light of torches.
His lean frame was packed with dense muscle, and from a distance, he resembled a blade honed to razor sharpness.
Countless scars covered him from head to foot.
Mu Jon, Dan Mok Ki.
The eldest of the Three Supremes, and sworn brother to Jeong Cheon Je and Sin Do Mu Bi.
To conceal his younger brother Sin Do Mu Bi’s death from the Orthodox Sects, he had been serving as the leader of the Murim Alliance.
Now he had shed his disguise and returned to his true form.
“This looks rather troublesome.”
Mu Jon gazed at the Eternal Ice Pavilion, now transformed into a rectangular metal shape, and released a sigh.
“So she was already capable of entering this place.”
I already knew that Bu Eunseol, posing as Seon Woo Jin, had descended into the underground of Yeongak Dojeon.
But I had preserved Jeong Cheon Je’s corpse here so that no one but myself could enter.
I had constructed a gateway that concentrated all of my martial mastery and enlightenment.
Yet Bu Eunseol’s entry here meant she was achieving far greater progress than I had anticipated.
“Then I must adjust my plans somewhat.”
Mu Jon shook his head and swept his hand across the rectangular metal form of the Eternal Ice Pavilion.
The sword marks carved into its surface were instantly erased.
Whoosh.
As I drew upon my inner force, a low vibration resonated, accompanied by metallic clicking sounds.
Clatter.
Soon the Eternal Ice Pavilion returned to its original form, complete with its transparent lid.
“My brother.”
Mu Jon gazed upon Sin Do Mu Bi’s face within the Eternal Ice Pavilion and exhaled a profound sigh.
Sin Do Mu Bi. Before he was the foremost master of the Orthodox Path, he was my benefactor who had saved my life countless times.
When I fell into despair and defeat, he lifted me up again and again, guiding me toward the righteous way.
Not knowing whose hand had taken him from this world was, for me, as though the heavens themselves had collapsed.
“Now the end is slowly coming into view.”
During all this time posing as Jeong Cheon Je, I had never known a moment of peace.
Having wandered Gangho my entire life, it was difficult to find trustworthy people within the Murim Alliance.
The most talented had already been recruited by external forces, and those who remained unrecruited either lacked skill or possessed unreliable natures.
Yet I could not directly overturn the Orthodox Sects while serving as the Alliance leader.
For Murim harbored not only the Three Realms, but also numerous hidden factions.
After much deliberation, I attempted to cultivate disciples to oppose them, but ultimately failed.
The individuals I trained were all exceptional in martial prowess, but nothing more.
To stand against hidden forces required more than martial skill alone.
One needed an unwavering resolve that knew no surrender.
And the superior wisdom and adaptability to survive any circumstance.
In the end, I selected Mu Gyeol, a disciple I had taken late in life despite my advanced years.
Using the identity of Seon Woo Jin, which I had long prepared, I set in motion a plan to overturn the Murim Alliance.
But in that process, the son of Baek Ri Mu Ha appeared.
“The sole survivor of Sa Ha Manor.”
As I recalled Bu Eunseol, fragmented memories suddenly flooded my mind.
My younger brother Sin Do Mu Bi was Ma Cheon Je. Together with certain forces, he struck down Sa Ha Manor.
But afterward, Ma Cheon Je’s movements grew peculiar.
He mobilized secret organizations to conduct endless investigations around Sa Ha Manor.
Sensing this irregularity, I too began my own investigations and eventually discovered a mysterious mechanism hidden within Sa Ha Manor that defied detection.
―A mysterious mechanism that even Jeong Ma Ssang Cheon Je’s abilities could not perceive….
I realized Ma Cheon Je had sensed something and watched his movements relentlessly.
And years later, I learned a shocking truth.
Was it the cruel jest of fate….
The bloodline of Baek Ri Mu Ha, living in seclusion with hidden identity, was being raised under Chil Ji Ma Do Bu Chanyang’s hand.
And Ma Cheon Je had discovered this.
But in the meantime, Jeong Cheon Je was killed by an unknown assassin.
And I had to live as Jeong Cheon Je to maintain the balance of the Orthodox Murim.
Thus, as I continued living as the leader of the Murim Alliance, I encountered Ma Cheon Je several times and came to know all the details.
That Bu Chanyang was born through the Absolute Demon Path Plan, and that Baek Ri Mu Ha was one of the legendary Three Families—
a member of the Baek Ri Family.
But years after that.
Chil Ji Ma Do was brutally murdered.
And the child he raised threw himself into the Demonic Path for Bu Chanyang’s vengeance.
That was Bu Eunseol.
She participated in the Ten Demon Hall Conference.
As if Ma Cheon Je had been waiting, he pitted her against the successors of the Ten Demonic Gates, and she ultimately became the successor of the Demon Hall.
Bu Eunseol was an exceptional blade.
According to Ma Cheon Je’s arrangement, she was rampaging wildly through Murim to capture Hyung Su, who had killed Bu Chanyang.
But something unexpected occurred.
Bu Eunseol, who had been continuing her journey through Gangho investigating Chil Ji Ma Do’s death, eventually came to me and offered her loyalty.
―This one.
The exceptional talent I had failed to find despite wearing out iron shoes traveling the entire Murim was right before my eyes.
―It would be even better to have her in my embrace.
I had already been planning to approach Bu Eunseol when the time came.
For she possessed what I had desired even in my dreams.
But to think she would come to me of her own accord? For me, it was an opportunity beyond measure.
So I unhesitatingly gave her the identity of Seon Woo Jin.
With this one.
She could accomplish far more than Mu Gyeol, whom I had prepared for so long.
And that gamble succeeded.
Bu Eunseol perfectly embodied the persona of Seon Woo Jin and was steadily climbing the ranks of the Murim Alliance, and moreover—
she even naturally joined forces with Gong Son Dan Gyeong, who knew my secret.
And finally, she even discovered the headquarters of the Infinite Realm.
That formidable master had even crushed Cheon Joon single-handedly.
If things continued in this manner, it wouldn’t be long before all the powers in Gangho turned their blades toward Bu Eunseol.
Then I would need to accelerate various tasks and draw out that child’s latent power as quickly as possible.
Only then could I reach the final destination of everything I had planned.
“The time draws near now. My brother.”
Mu Jon’s eyes gleamed as he gazed down at the Eternal Ice Pavilion.
“Wait just a little longer, and I shall announce your death to the world… and grant you eternal rest.”
As Mu Jon turned away with a deep sigh, his footsteps faltered.
The orb suspended above the corpse.
I noticed that the color of the Eternal Ice Jade, which maintained the pavilion’s frigid essence, had shifted slightly.
“Does this require replacement as well?”
The Eternal Ice Jade was known to never change its nature even after thousands of years.
Yet it seemed that was not entirely true.
Click. Whoosh.
Mu Jon opened the pavilion’s lid and examined the Eternal Ice Jade carefully.
“There is still time.”
I nodded and murmured in a low voice.
“Since the Eternal Ice Jade is in that place anyway… I can have him handle a few more matters first, then send that one away.”
Just as I was about to close the pavilion again,
“…!”
A peculiar sensation brushed across my mind.
For some reason, my sleeping brother’s face seemed subtly different.
“That cannot be.”
To discern the signs,
I had observed hundreds of times already, searching for any lingering traces of Hyung Su.
Yet I had never detected anything amiss.
Could it be because of the Eternal Ice Jade’s color change? Why did this unfamiliar sensation suddenly emerge, something I had never sensed before?
‘Something is there.’
Mu Jon’s eyes flashed.
And I examined the corpse with extreme caution.
Because Jeong Cheon Je’s body, which appeared to rest peacefully in slumber…
was actually in an indescribably wretched state, far different from its outward appearance.
“….”
I mobilized all my faculties to examine his corpse.
Yet no matter how carefully I looked, I found nothing unusual.
But the more I gazed,
the more the atmosphere seemed subtly different from before.
“The spirit has departed.”
I pressed my forehead and shook my head.
“Does even a corpse possess an aura?”
I seem to have become overly sensitive from handling so many matters recently.
“It’s merely because the color of the Eternal Ice Jade has changed….”
My eyes suddenly gleamed as I muttered in hollow despair.
“The color of the Eternal Ice Jade… has changed.”
A peculiar thought abruptly flashed through my mind.
The color of the Eternal Ice Jade, which was emanating frigid energy, had changed.
Then… could it be that something exists within my younger brother’s corpse, and because that something has changed, the Eternal Ice Jade has also transformed?
“If that something were so infinitesimally small that it would be utterly impossible to detect….”
Dissection would be the only method.
Yet I could not bring myself to touch my younger brother’s incomplete remains.
I gazed blankly at the Eternal Ice Jade that maintained the frigid aura of the Eternal Ice Pavilion for a long while.
Then, observing a pale luminescence subtly rising, my eyes brightened.
“Yes, there was such a method.”
As I drew upon my inner force once more, my pupils became transparent.
Simultaneously, a transparent current flowing from my body gently poured onto Sin Do Mu Bi’s corpse.
It was said that upon reaching the pinnacle, one could synchronize the opponent’s vital energy circulation into one’s own body without even touching them.
I was employing the Heart Sutra of Heaven’s Physician, the secret technique of Jeong Cheon Je.
‘With this, I might surely discover something amiss.’
If I slightly modified the Heart Sutra of Heaven’s Physician, I could scan the interior of the physical body rather than merely the vital energy circulation.
Since this secret technique could even detect formless vital essence, sensing the interior of the body would be comparatively simple.
Whoooosh.
The transparent current flowing from my body grew increasingly dense.
Simultaneously, various pieces of information began flooding into my mind instantaneously.
‘What is this.’
Despite examining the corpse through countless methods, I had never sensed anything.
Yet upon drawing forth the Heart Sutra of Heaven’s Physician and observing, something I had previously been unable to detect——
Something extraordinarily minute was felt emanating from Sin Do Mu Bi’s earlobe, was it not?
“Forgive me, younger brother.”
Drawing upon my inner force, I gently manipulated his earlobe.
The flesh parted, and from within, a minuscule bead suddenly ejected.
“A bead.”
The gleaming bead was no larger than a grain of rice, and it possessed a yellowish hue.
It appeared as though its color had changed, much like the Eternal Ice Jade.
“What in the world is this.”
Tearing my gaze from the bead, I was startled once more.
Upon removing the bead from the earlobe, the aura of the corpse became entirely unfamiliar.
It was a sensation only I, who had witnessed the living Jeong Cheon Je, could perceive.
“A corpse should not possess an aura. Yet….”
I possessed broader knowledge and experience than perhaps any other in Gangho.
And yet, I had never heard of such a bead existing.
At times like this, I must become not Mu Jon, but Shin San Ja, the Foremost Sage of Murim.
“Then I truly must seek out the real sage.”
Mu Jon drew a deep breath.
The one who had helped me become Shin San Ja, the Foremost Sage of Murim.
A disciple of Gu Beop Ja Mo Ryun… I was going to seek out the true Foremost Sage of Murim.
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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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