The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 705

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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 705.
‘Mu Jon.’
Bu Eunseol clenched her fists tightly.
‘So he intends to dangle me before them as a delectable morsel.’
If this came to pass, the senior masters—and even Sam Gye’s interests entrenched within the Murim Alliance—would turn their scrutiny and restraint upon her.
Bu Eunseol’s path forward would undoubtedly become fraught with peril.
“You have long shouldered life-or-death covert missions, and risen to positions of great authority, yet never once have you wielded power for personal gain.”
Mu Jon’s voice resonated softly throughout the Great Training Arena.
“The current state of Murim is turbulent, and the Alliance Master responds with discretion. Yet this very caution prevents us from fortifying the Alliance’s inner foundations.”
Mu Jon fixed his gaze upon Bu Eunseol and nodded slowly.
“Therefore, I have long sought a suitable figure to whom I might entrust the Cheong Sim Ryung.”
In that instant, the senior masters upon the platform bore expressions as though struck from behind.
Cheong Sim Ryung.
It was an inspection authority directly under the Murim Alliance Master, granting the power to investigate improprieties within the Alliance.
Yet in all the history of the Murim Alliance, the Cheong Sim Ryung had never once been bestowed.
The Murim Alliance was not operated at the whim of its Master alone.
The opinions of countless senior masters, elders, and meritorious contributors held far greater weight.
Moreover, the majority of current Alliance affairs were managed by Vice Master Buk Ri Seung and numerous senior masters.
Yet to suddenly thrust such formidable authority into Seon Woo Jin’s hands without consultation?
Those most deeply taken aback were Hyung Dang Ju, the Dharma Protector Master, and the Jip Beop Dang Master.
And the Elder Council.
The Hyung Dang, Dharma Protector Division, and Jip Beop Dang—which currently safeguarded, enforced, and controlled the Alliance’s laws—functioned perfectly well.
And the Elder Council, in truth, wielded formidable influence transcending the very laws themselves.
Yet to grant the Cheong Sim Ryung—a blade that could be turned upon them—to Seon Woo Jin, who had only just become Cheop Mil Won Master?
Was this not, in essence, a means to restrain the existing factions while bringing the Cheop Mil Won Master under his direct command?
‘True to the name Shin San Ja—he calculates the utility concealed within his hand with meticulous precision.’
Bu Eunseol’s eyes narrowed to slits.
Mu Jon was a man who knew how to wield the cards he held with certainty.
He had granted her formidable authority to turn even against himself, yet in exchange, he had placed a leash upon her through the lives of the Elite Division members. And by publicly bestowing the Cheong Sim Ryung,
he had caused
the forces of Sam Gye lurking within the Murim Alliance to bare their fangs at Bu Eunseol.
Murmur, murmur.
As the unexpected situation unfolded, the complexions of not only the assembled martial artists but also the senior masters of the Murim Alliance shifted.
“Alliance Master.”
At last, unable to bear it further, Buk Ri Seung ventured forth hesitantly with his concern.
“If you bestow the Cheong Sim Ryung so abruptly, the senior masters will mount considerable resistance.”
“It matters not.”
Mu Jon smiled faintly.
“She will do well.”
“However.”
“So now I must even be cautious about the Alliance Leader’s inherent authority?”
Only Buk Ri Seung could voice such an opinion from the platform.
With the Alliance Leader standing in the public eye.
There was no one who could firmly oppose his words.
―….
The senior members’ eyes gleamed, yet there was nothing they could do.
In the end, they could only clench their lips shut and regard him with venomous gazes.
“Continue to serve us well.”
As Mu Jon handed over the Cheong Sim Ryung, Bu Eunseol extended both hands to receive it.
“I shall fulfill my duty faithfully.”
“And.”
Mu Jon’s lips parted once more.
“I shall place the Cheong Myeong Unit under your direct command so that you may execute this task with full capability.”
The Cheong Myeong Unit—was that not the division led by Mu Gyeol?
In the end, Mu Jon had placed another leash around Bu Eunseol’s neck.
With this arrangement, Mu Gyeol would be able to conduct close surveillance of her.
“Thank you.”
After offering a bow and turning away, the corners of Bu Eunseol’s lips rose slightly.
‘Everything proceeded as I anticipated.’
I had not expected him to grant the Cheong Sim Ryung so publicly.
But I had already foreseen his attempt to attach Mu Gyeol to my tail.
Therefore, I had sent a letter to Mu Gyeol—probing his true intentions once more and confirming whether he walked the same path as Mu Jon.
―Even should the Elder command it, I shall never become your watchdog.
Fortunately, Mu Gyeol maintained his stance that he walked a different path from Mu Jon.
Having confirmed this, I could accept the Cheong Sim Ryung with equanimity.
‘I shall sever these leashes one by one.’
From the start, I had discerned that Mu Jon’s ultimate objective was not avenging Jeong Cheon Je, nor drawing out the Sam Gye within the Murim Alliance by using me.
I had seen through his true purpose.
He was concealing the truth of Sa Ha Manor.
He had deliberately repeated uncertain words, yet fabricated the lie that my father had used the Black God Technique and was thus blamed on Cheon Am Seong.
Once a man speaks falsehood, he will spew lies whenever it serves his interests.
Thud, thud.
As Bu Eunseol, having received the authority token, returned to her seat, the atmosphere in the hall became ambiguous.
In the history of the Murim Alliance, no one so young had ever obtained both the position of Council Member and the Cheong Sim Ryung.
Rather than the inauguration of Mu Cheon Danjoo Baek Mu Sung, it felt as though this had become the inauguration of Seon Woo Jin, who suddenly wielded extraordinary power.
“….”
Yet Baek Mu Sung remained seated with an unperturbed expression.
As if events unfolding had nothing whatsoever to do with him.
* * *
A tectonic shift was occurring within the Murim Alliance.
Geum Jeong Shin Ryong Baek Mu Sung assumed the position of Wu Tian Duan Master, a seat that had long remained vacant.
For generations, the Murim Alliance had upheld strict hierarchies and seniority.
Rather than elevating brilliant young talents, it had favored veteran masters and elders who had steadily maintained their positions over long years.
Yet now, transcending age and seniority, a figure like Baek Mu Sung was elevated to Master?
Still, this much was tolerable.
Though Baek Mu Sung was young, he maintained good relations with the veteran masters and elders.
He was a man who walked the same path as they did.
But the case of Seon Woo Jin was utterly incomprehensible.
Seon Woo Jin, who had been a candidate for Master, ascended to the position of Director of the Murim Alliance’s Cheop Mil Won, and received the Inspection Mandate as well.
No matter how exceptional his martial prowess, he was a newcomer from the Merchant Realm with no support base within the Alliance.
To grant such formidable power to such a person was unthinkable.
―This cannot continue.
The veteran masters of the Murim Alliance were already weary, enduring repeated seclusions.
They had grown exhausted by the Alliance Master’s arbitrary decisions—neglecting Alliance duties while ceaselessly placing young talents in key positions.
Now, with personnel changes that completely disrupted the Alliance’s established order being implemented unilaterally, discontent had reached its peak.
―If matters proceed this way, we have no choice but to apply restraint, even if it means altering the Alliance’s regulations.
Eventually, the veteran masters gathered around the Elder Council.
And they sought to restructure the Murim Alliance’s personnel system—a power that had been the exclusive prerogative of the Alliance Master.
―A weakening of the Alliance Master’s authority is a weakening of the Alliance itself. We must proceed with caution.
Yet something strange occurred.
Before Jeong Cheon Je entered seclusion, he grasped the movements of the veteran masters and instead began actively encouraging their plans.
―Is there truly a need to alter the regulations? If the goal is merely to curtail the Alliance Master’s authority, I myself consent to it. Proceed as you see fit.
The veteran masters felt something beyond mere strangeness—it was uncanny.
Though Jeong Cheon Je had frequently entered seclusion in the past, he had maintained considerable attention to internal Alliance affairs and the broader martial world’s circumstances.
Yet now he continued his seclusions without the slightest interest in either the Alliance’s operations or the martial world’s developments.
And he had simply consented to curtailing the Alliance Master’s authority?
―If such is the Alliance Master’s will, there would be no reason to refuse.
Ultimately, under the Elder Council’s direction.
The system was restructured so that all final command authority over major Alliance organizations could be transferred from the Alliance Master to leaders of the rank of Hall or Council.
And the heads of each organization were granted the ability to directly select the leaders under whom they would serve.
In truth, such actions amounted to.
Drastically curtailing the Alliance Master’s authority and severing his limbs.
In the Demon Hall, where strength is paramount, this would constitute treason.
But in the Murim Alliance, which values connections and seniority, it was a permissible restructuring of the system.
―Incidentally, should you come under the Elder Council’s command, you need never fear inadequate treatment within the Alliance for the rest of your life.
And the Elder Council began laying groundwork to bring organizations—excluding those directly under the Alliance Master—voluntarily under its command.
―Our Main Force is also undergoing restructuring. If you are a combat contingent not belonging to the Seven Great Units, serving under our Main Force would not be unfavorable.
Baek Mu Sung also moved with remarkable swiftness.
Rather than subjecting the existing Wu Tian Duan members to harsh training to restore the unit’s former glory.
He filled the new Wu Tian Duan entirely with his own people.
Baek Mu Sung had cultivated broad connections with numerous senior figures since his childhood.
Even before joining the Murim Alliance, there were no shortage of young martial artists who followed him.
Now that he had become a Danjoo, it was only natural that talented individuals and capable minds would gather around him.
As he filled the Wu Tian Duan with his own people,
it soon reached a point where it could stand shoulder to shoulder with the Sungwi Unit, which had boasted the greatest power among the Seven Great Units.
―The future of the Ben Maeng lies with its young martial artists.
As the Murim Alliance’s system was reorganized and the Elder Council and Baek Mu Sung’s faction grew beyond control,
Gong Son Dan Gyeong began building her own power base as if she had been waiting for this very moment.
Originally, the position of Chief was one that could be replaced at any time based on merit and demerit.
In reality, it was supposed to be impossible to consolidate a faction around such a post.
Yet she had consistently accomplished remarkable feats up until now.
Moreover, she was coordinating various matters in concert with the young Grand Master Seon Woo Jin, who had become the head of the Cheop Mil Won.
She had even brought Beok Goong Ryung, who was rapidly establishing himself as a core force within the Murim Alliance, into her circle of support.
In the end, Gong Son Dan Gyeong had become someone who could firmly maintain her position as Chief despite the pressure from senior figures—
truly one of the highest leaders of the Murim Alliance itself.
―In the Ben Chong Sa Jeon, connections and distribution matter. Position is not important. If one has ability like Seon Woo, they will be valued accordingly.
The Murim Alliance was a place where no one could grow alone.
Martial artists without connections or the backing of a sect
not only watched as connections and distribution dominated the landscape, but when they saw the Elder Council suddenly deny the Alliance Lord’s authority and
expand their own influence, they felt nothing short of disillusionment with the organization.
Yet when the Chief Inspector Division publicly declared it would conduct personnel affairs based purely on ability, disregarding all else,
they could not help but be enthusiastic.
―Rather, let us submit to the Chief Inspector Division.
The young leaders of the previous generation, witnessing the irrational factional struggles within the Alliance and lacking both backing and sect influence,
requested to become subordinate to the Chief Inspector Division.
Though their individual positions were not high, their numbers were considerable.
Thus, the Elder Council maintained its existing position firmly, with solid senior figures concentrated there.
And the Wu Tian Duan, which had built its own faction through the Seven Great Units and various covert organizations.
And the Chief Inspector Division, which had risen as a new force with the absolute support of young martial artists.
Before long, these three had transformed into an organization that competed fiercely for power, much like the Demon Hall itself.
Murim Alliance, Jeol Jeong Gak. Conference Hall.
Bu Eunseol and the Elite Division members had now become part of the Cheop Mil Won.
The Cheop Mil Won itself was a place that grasped the state of Murim affairs and identified and eliminated forces that disturbed the Gangho.
Excluding the formidable authority to mobilize Murim Alliance branches at any time,
what I had been doing thus far was not substantially different from this.
“Then we have become martial artists of the Cheop Mil Won, have we not?”
Jeong Jong Do, who was sitting in the conference hall, asked carefully.
“I thought we might need to transfer our positions to the Cheop Mil Won.”
“That will not happen.”
Bu Eunseol spoke calmly.
“The existing Cheop Mil Won has become a subordinate organization supporting our Elite Division.”
“Cheop Mil Won… supporting the main force, you say?”
Jeong Jong Do’s eyes nearly bulged from their sockets in shock.
Cheop Mil Won was an organization directly under the Alliance Master’s command.
In practice, it could execute various missions without interference from anyone else.
Yet a mere secondary-tier unit like the Elite Division was placing Cheop Mil Won under its authority?
“The main force is the Elite Division, after all.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with composure.
“Until the day we transition from the Alliance to the Muhon Society, I have no intention of changing our name.”
In that instant, the eyes of all the Team Members rippled like water.
The name Elite Division had become
the most exceptional independent organization within the Murim Alliance,
and had become the very identity of the Team Members themselves.
Bu Eunseol understood this well, so rather than imposing the name Cheop Mil Won upon them,
she chose to preserve the Elite Division’s name out of consideration for them.
“From this day forward, all Team Members shall receive treatment and stipends equivalent to secondary-tier Lords. Tae Mu Ryong shall receive treatment and stipends befitting a Dang Master, and Jeong Jong Do shall receive those befitting a Vice Dang Master.”
Tae Mu Ryong and all the Team Members gaped in astonishment.
Because Bu Eunseol had leapt to become the Cheop Mil Won Master in one bound, they too had undergone a meteoric rise in rank.
“I’m to receive treatment as a Dang Master?”
As Tae Mu Ryong opened his mouth, Jeong Jong Do blinked his eyes.
“I’m a Vice Dang Master?”
Then all the Team Members, including Gye Muk, pointed at their own faces with their fingers.
“We’re all secondary-tier Lords?”
The Team Members, staring at one another with dazed expressions, felt their bodies tingle and smiles spilled across their lips.
No matter how little sense of belonging they harbored toward the Murim Alliance, receiving such an extraordinary promotion externally
naturally made their shoulders swell with pride.
For a time, all the Elite Division members had glazed eyes, as if they had drunk potent liquor.
“Still, the Elder Council is destroying itself just as the Master anticipated.”
Tae Mu Ryong, the first to regain his composure, spoke up.
“Without needing to employ various schemes, they’re tearing apart the power structure of the Murim Alliance of their own accord.”
He continued speaking.
“The foundation for the Master to eventually reshape the Alliance into a tripod formation is being laid by their own hands.”
Jeong Jong Do, listening intently, nodded his head.
“Indeed. Mu Jon may not sleep a wink over this matter. He’s made a foolish move.”
Bu Eunseol shook her head.
“He likely anticipated it already.”
“Surely not.”
“What he desires doesn’t seem to be the power of the Murim Alliance itself.”
Bu Eunseol narrowed her eyes.
“Before the reorganization, the Alliance Master held the authority to appoint Chiefs. Had he intended to reject such a structure, he would have replaced the Chief position long ago.”
The officials all nodded in agreement.
For now, the Elder Council had curtailed the Murim Alliance Leader’s authority, and with the Chief Inspector Division’s power growing so dramatically, they couldn’t afford to touch him carelessly.
But a man of Shin San Ja’s stature couldn’t possibly have failed to anticipate that such circumstances would unfold.
If he had judged that the fragmentation of Murim Alliance power would hinder his own agenda, what then?
He would have removed Gong Son Dan Gyeong from her position first.
“But I suspect the one we must watch closely isn’t merely Mu Jon.”
It was then that Tae Mu Ryong spoke.
“The Chief’s instincts are remarkable. If things continue this way, eventually the Chief will uncover the identity of the Original.”
“That won’t happen. If it did, we’d have to suspect even Bong Gong.”
Previously, Beok Goong Ryung had manipulated the Youling Island incident to help the suspected Bu Eunseol.
In doing so, he had essentially proven that Beok Goong Ryung and Bu Eunseol were different people.
Among the Orthodox Sects, no one would suspect a man whose name was inscribed on the Heroes Monument while he lived.
“True, but somehow I sense the Chief would suspect Bong Gong as well.”
Bu Eunseol wore a bitter smile.
In the past, she would have harbored the same worry.
But recently, Gong Son Dan Gyeong’s temperament had changed considerably.
And with a fragile trust now budding between them, she wouldn’t suspect or conduct fierce investigations as she once had.
“I’m uncertain whether the Cheong Myeong Unit Master can be trusted.”
It was then that Gye Muk spoke.
“He may be acting as though he’s at odds with Mu Jon on the surface, all while scheming to earn the Original’s confidence.”
Mu Gyeol walked a different path from Mu Jon, as I had made clear, yet outwardly he remained his disciple.
I was concerned that any trace of Bu Eunseol’s activities might leak out.
“With careful vigilance, it should be manageable. We’re still in the same boat, after all.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with a grave expression.
“What truly concerns me is the movements of Baek Mu Sung—Danju Baek.”
When we last fought, Baek Mu Sung’s skin tone had shifted slightly.
That was unmistakably the phenomenon that appeared when the Cheonghae Gye’s brainwashing had fractured one’s personality.
Which meant the Cheonghae Gye had already infiltrated the Murim Alliance.
“His collusion with the Cheonghae Gye is now certain. Mu Jon granted me authority precisely to prevent the Three Realms, which have taken root in the Murim Alliance, from spreading further.”
Bu Eunseol drew a deep breath.
“Before long, the Wu Tian Danjoo will establish himself as a central force of the Main Alliance. Perhaps….”
Bu Eunseol couldn’t finish her thought.
She had recalled the shadow of Gong Son Dan Gyeong she had glimpsed in her inner vision.
‘Even if she has been subjected to the Cheonghae Gye’s brainwashing, as long as her love for the Chief remains… couldn’t that be undone?’
Baek Mu Sung had ultimately surrendered himself to the Three Realms, so by all logic, the outcome could only be catastrophe.
Yet Bu Eunseol harbored a fleeting hope—couldn’t she use Gong Son Dan Gyeong to break his brainwashing?
‘For now, I must set him aside.’
Bu Eunseol shook her head.
Now that I had assumed the position of Cheop Mil Won Master, my task from this moment forward was to root out
Hyung Su, the man hidden within the Murim Alliance who had brutally murdered my grandfather.
“What became of the materials we requested from Mangyeong Jeon?”
At Bu Eunseol’s words, Tae Mu Ryong nodded toward Gye Muk.
Thereupon, Gye Muk and one of the Team Members unfolded a massive sheet of paper across the conference table.
Bu Eunseol, now a senior figure within the Murim Alliance, had requested all organizational charts of the Murim Alliance through Mangyeong Jeon.
“Frankly, it’s absurd beyond measure.”
Tae Mu Ryong released a heavy sigh, shaking his head in disbelief.
The hidden forces within the Murim Alliance.
They were so vast that they could have formed an entirely separate Murim Alliance.
Jeong Jong Do, who had been studying the organizational chart, likewise shook his head in dismay.
“At this scale, it’s essentially as if there exists a second Murim Alliance.”
If the Murim Alliance possessed organizations in the light,
Then necessarily, there existed corresponding organizations in the shadows.
For instance, if there was a Hyung Dang to punish criminals, there was a separate Hyung Dang to punish the hidden martial artists who dwelt in darkness.
Furthermore, just as Man Geum Hall oversaw the Alliance’s finances and Mangyeong Jeon managed all intelligence,
There existed separate entities handling secret funds and concealed information that could never be revealed.
“Why would they deliberately create duplicate organizations?”
To Jeong Jong Do’s question, Bu Eunseol spoke with measured calm.
“Someone must do the dirty work, must they not?”
“The dirty work.”
“On the surface, it was established as an alliance to protect the peace and justice of Murim. They could hardly conduct such sordid affairs openly.”
The Team Members exhaled deeply at those words.
To maintain a martial alliance,
One must perpetually generate profit and eliminate numerous opposing forces.
An organization to handle all the dirty work was inevitably created.
In the end, there was no such thing as a righteous alliance to preserve the peace of Gangho.
“Had I known the Ben Maeng was in such a state, I would never have become a martial artist here.”
At Gye Muk’s words, all the Team Members nodded in agreement.
They were all orphans of fate, and their sole aspiration in joining Murim was one thing.
Born as men, they possessed the integrity to do what was right.
Yet under Bu Eunseol’s command, they had witnessed all the filthy underbelly of the Murim Alliance.
Draped only in a pristine white banner on the surface.
The Murim Alliance was in truth a sewer reeking of rot and decay.
“Do you think Gong Son Chong Sa knew of this?”
“She likely did. She too is a senior figure of the Ben Maeng.”
Bu Eunseol smiled bitterly.
“In the past, the Sovereign never wished to go to the Murim Alliance. I believed it was because vile individuals gathered there, but… now I understand the true reason.”
Beok Goong Ryung had long been recognized as a righteous hero, so he was thoroughly versed in the affairs of the Orthodox Sects.
He knew the Murim Alliance was a filthy place and had chosen to turn away from it entirely.
‘I feel somewhat remorseful.’
Beok Goong Ryung had always been wary of the Murim Alliance and kept his distance, yet Bu Eunseol had persuaded him through the matter of the Three Realms.
He had brought him into the Murim Alliance.
‘So that’s why he held the Murim Alliance in such contempt….’
Beok Goong Ryung likely understood the Murim Alliance’s circumstances to some degree.
He had come to realize just how monumental a decision it had been for him to enter the Murim Alliance upon hearing those words.
“These are the tasks you must undertake going forward, Lord Bu Dae Ju.”
Bu Eunseol, who had been observing Tae Mu Ryong, withdrew a small booklet from her robes and placed it upon the table.
“On this day, investigate thoroughly whether there are any traces of Baek Ri Danju of Seongwi Dan moving to the Pyeong-an Funeral House in Hwangju.”
Now I could access the highest intelligence of Mangyeong Jeon.
From this moment forward, I intended to identify which of the Seven Great Lords had laid hands upon my grandfather.

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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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