The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 712

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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 712.
Dang Pae’s funeral was conducted with utmost solemnity and grandeur.
The leaders of the Righteous Path Sects—the Nine Sects One Alliance, the Eight Great Families, and the Murim Alliance—all attended to pay their respects.
Moreover, those from the Demonic Path, Evil Sects, and Dark Path who had been acquainted with him sent their condolences as well.
Though Dang Pae was the patriarch of the Dang Family, a cornerstone of the Eight Great Families, he maintained friendships with outstanding figures regardless of their affiliations.
As patriarch, he had quietly aided those in need and concealed his virtuous deeds from public knowledge.
When the world learned of these facts belatedly, they realized a great luminary of Murim had fallen, and lamented deeply.
With the funeral concluded, Dang Gon naturally had to hold his inauguration ceremony as the new patriarch.
Yet he postponed the ceremony.
For he had to hunt down and slay the culprit who had toyed with his father’s life and inflicted upon him a malignant plague.
―The patriarch’s affliction stemmed from the Black Essence Pill that Bu Yeon Sang In of the Cheonghae Realm had administered.
Dang Pae’s illness was a scheme of the Cheonghae Realm—a mysterious substance capable of transforming the human body into a vessel of dark energy.
The Black Essence Pill, crafted by Gojeoklim, had been introduced into his body.
―Identify every force that approached the patriarch during his illness!
Dang Gon mobilized the entire intelligence network of the Sichuan Dang Family to uncover those who had approached his father.
Yet this was no simple task, even for the Dang Family’s intelligence apparatus.
‘There is no other choice.’
Bu Eunseol, observing this, fell into contemplation.
In truth, just before his death, Dang Pae had secretly revealed through silent transmission the identity of the Cheonghae Realm’s Special Divine Guard who had approached him in secret.
And the reason he had conveyed this to her was
that among all in Murim today, only she
stood in direct confrontation with the Three Realms and possessed the strength to oppose them.
He must have known this all too well.
He must have known it all too well.
‘A son must avenge his father’s wrongs.’
Originally, Bu Eunseol had planned that once Dang Pae’s funeral concluded,
she would immediately seek out Bu Yeon Sang In and make him pay the price he deserved.
But when Dang Gon postponed even his inauguration and cried out for vengeance, she fell into deep deliberation.
‘Even if they call themselves the Special Divine Guard, from the Cheonghae Realm’s perspective they are merely pawns. I cannot bring down the White Horse Sect’s signboard for this.’
The figure who had secretly approached Dang Pae during his illness
was none other than Hyuk Ryeon Eung, the Lord of the Baek Ryeon Pavilion of the White Horse Sect.
The Sichuan Dang Family’s Ssang Seong Pavilion.
There, all the senior members of the Dang Family, including Dang Gon, were seated.
They were all consumed with rage.
Through Bu Eunseol, they had learned
not only detailed information about the fearsome force known as the Three Realms,
but also the identity of the culprit who had harmed Dang Pae.
The senior members of the Dang Family wished to mobilize their forces immediately and strike the White Horse Sect, yet they held their tongues.
Because Dang Gon had not spoken a word.
After a long silence, Dang Gon finally spoke.
“I will go to the White Horse Sect alone and take his head before returning.”
It was the optimal approach.
The White Horse Sect was not the main base of the Cheonghae Realm, and Hyuk Ryeon Eung was merely a vassal bearing the Cheonghae Realm’s name.
Even if accountability were demanded, it would not justify obliterating the White Horse Sect.
Moreover, though their influence had waned compared to the past, the Ten Demonic Gates remained the Ten Demonic Gates.
Even mobilizing all the Dang Family’s forces could not guarantee absolute victory.
After much deliberation, Dang Gon resolved to challenge him alone.
Hyuk Ryeon Eung was the Baek Ryeon Gak—the master of the Baek Ryeon Pavilion, a position equivalent to the chief instructor who taught and trained all disciples of the White Horse Sect.
Given his station and pride, he would never refuse a duel.
The elders did not oppose Dang Gon’s decision and all gave their consent.
Though he had not yet ascended to family head.
Already, Dang Gon bore the responsibility of the entire Dang Family’s fate as its true patriarch.
“Then, I shall take my leave.”
Dang Gon set out toward the White Horse Sect, leading only his direct subordinates.
Upon reaching the White Horse Sect’s territory, he sent even his subordinates back to the Dang Family.
When his subordinates protested, Dang Gon spoke.
―I go to challenge the Baek Ryeon Gak alone. Yet if I bring troops, the White Horse Sect will look down upon the Main House.
Reluctantly, his subordinates obeyed and returned to the Dang Family.
‘Vengeance can only be taken now.’
Dang Gon had not yet risen to family head.
If he challenged as the Dang Family’s patriarch, it could immediately escalate into a sectarian war.
Thus, the only way to preserve the Dang Family intact while achieving vengeance was… now.
“So this is the White Horse Sect.”
At last, Dang Gon arrived before the White Horse Sect.
Yet standing there was a wanderer in worn martial robes.
It was Bu Eunseol, disguised as Seol So.
Bu Eunseol approached and nodded toward Dang Gon.
Seeing those serene and tranquil eyes, Dang Gon recognized her as Bu Eunseol.
“You.”
Dang Gon’s expression of delight soon shifted to something peculiar.
“Bu Eunseol, is it truly you?”
“What do you mean?”
When Bu Eunseol asked, Dang Gon shrugged.
“Somehow you seem like a completely different person.”
“That is true. I am a different person now.”
“Not because of the disguise, but your aura and eyes… you seem entirely transformed.”
Dang Gon stroked his chin as he spoke.
“Come to think of it, I sensed this change since you last spoke with your father.”
Bu Eunseol’s eyes gleamed.
Only then did she recall the orb she had received from Dang Pae, which rested in her possession.
‘It was only after receiving the orb from the family head that I began to sense something.’
Bu Eunseol, who had been contemplating something deeply for a moment, nodded faintly.
‘I should visit Ma Geom Ja later.’
After all, Ma Geom Ja would be able to identify any treasure scattered throughout Tianxia.
Having organized her thoughts, Bu Eunseol changed the subject.
“In any case, let us go together.”
However, Dang Gon shook his head.
“This is neither a matter of the Main House nor a personal challenge of mine.”
No matter how cleverly he concealed his tracks or erased all evidence of his involvement.
The White Horse Sect was the White Horse Sect. What if Bu Eunseol’s true identity were exposed?
It would constitute an act of rebellion against the Demonic Path, and Bu Eunseol would become the enemy of a million practitioners of the Demonic Path.
“That is precisely why I have come bearing an identity with no loose ends.”
Bu Eunseol spoke matter-of-factly.
“This duel absolutely requires a witness. The White Horse Sect might otherwise claim otherwise.”
In truth, approaching the White Horse Sect alone and requesting a martial contest was an extraordinarily dangerous undertaking.
Even if the White Horse Sect accepted the challenge and Dang Gon emerged victorious, there was no guarantee he would escape unscathed.
Yet if he were to bring all the forces of the Dang Family with him, combat would erupt before he could even request the duel.
Understanding all of this, Bu Eunseol had come in the guise of the wanderer Seol So.
She intended to aid him alone.
“If luck turns against us, you could die as well.”
“It cannot be helped. I have simply befriended the wrong person.”
“Hehehehe.”
At Bu Eunseol’s jest, Dang Gon burst into laughter.
Though she came alone, her arrival was equivalent to gaining ten thousand soldiers.
‘She has come to look after me until the very end.’
Due to Dang Pae’s death, Dang Gon had been consumed by a rage that threatened to strip away his reason.
Yet when he learned that his father had anticipated even this, and had informed Bu Eunseol of Hyung Su, he was able to recover his composure immediately.
Thus he regained his clarity of mind.
―You are now the confident family head of the Main House.
His father had spoken thus.
Now he was no longer a junior family head, but the family head responsible for the Sichuan Dang Family.
“Very well.”
Dang Gon, casting aside his reverie, shrugged his shoulders and nodded.
“Then, let us enter.”
The White Horse Sect.
One of the Ten Demonic Gates, it was the sect that had created the White Horse Technique, known throughout Murim history as the most formidable and terrifying method.
Originally, the technique had originated from the Orthodox Sects.
Yet due to the Orthodox Sects’ inherent tendency to reject unconventional weapons and techniques,
the method had always remained a minority pursuit, and its development had been considerably slow.
However, from the perspective of the Demonic Path, matters were different.
People took note of the whip’s mysterious techniques and formidable power, and masters who favored it emerged without end.
Thus the whip method evolved through the Demonic Path practitioners, and finally when Baek Mu Heun, called the Whip Deity, perfected the White Horse Whip Technique.
The White Horse Sect was born.
“Who are you?”
As Bu Eunseol and Dang Gon stepped through the main gate of the White Horse Sect, Wi Sa, bearing a whip as white as snow, blocked their path.
“Dang Gon from the Dang Family.”
Dang Gon withdrew a letter tablet from his robes and extended it to Wi Sa.
“Please deliver this to Baek Ryeon Gak’s master, Hyuk Ryeon Eung.”
Upon seeing the letter tablet stained crimson, Wi Sa’s eyes gleamed.
Such tablets could only be challenge letters.
“Wait a moment.”
Wi Sa, clutching the tablet, hurried inside.
After some time passed, a figure who appeared to be Wi Sa’s lord emerged and opened the door.
“Our sect currently refrains from Murim activities. The master has no intention of accepting challenges, so please depart.”
“It seems the master hasn’t read the tablet.”
Dang Gon spoke with a slight smile.
“Tell him to read its contents. Otherwise, there will be all-out war between the Dang Family and the White Horse Sect.”
“Are you challenging this sect now?”
“Challenging?”
Dang Gon’s eyes flashed.
“If you understood how great a favor it is that I came directly to the White Horse Sect and delivered this tablet, you would never speak such words.”
“Wait a moment.”
Realizing something had gone awry, Wi Sa’s lord turned back inside.
After considerable time, the gate opened again and Wi Sa’s lord spoke.
“The master requests your presence. Please follow me.”
Dang Gon nodded and entered the White Horse Sect alongside Bu Eunseol.
After walking for some distance, they arrived not at a guest hall for receiving visitors, but at a vast armory.
Upon entering, the interior displayed countless whips.
Some were as thick as a grown man’s forearm, coiled like serpents.
Others were woven from human hair.
It seemed every whip humanity could craft was exhibited here.
“Wait here for a moment.”
As Wi Sa’s lord departed, Bu Eunseol and Dang Gon exchanged glances.
No matter how different their paths, Dang Gon was the Dang Family’s second master and soon to be its patriarch.
Yet they were made to wait inside such an armory?
“They don’t seem interested in fighting.”
Dang Gon, observing the whips displayed around them, shrugged his shoulders.
“Summoning us to an armory like this tells the tale.”
Bu Eunseol nodded in agreement.
An armory symbolized a faction’s military might.
It was obvious that inviting guests to this place was meant to flaunt the White Horse Sect’s prestige.
A sect’s prestige was its power, after all.
It seemed Hyuk Ryeon Eung was attempting to make Dang Gon acutely aware of the White Horse Sect’s strength once more, thereby suppressing his spirit.
Indeed, this Weapon Storage was a repository of poison and secret techniques on a scale that surpassed even the Dang Family—it could be called the greatest of its kind.
Moreover, considering this was a public Weapon Storage, there must surely be a separate armory where genuine weapons of power were kept.
The White Horse Sect’s true depth was beyond imagination.
Creak.
At that moment, the door to the Weapon Storage opened, and a figure approached with measured footsteps.
He wore martial robes embroidered with crimson thread, and a transparent whip was coiled at his waist.
It was none other than Hyuk Ryeon Eung, the Lord of Baek Ryeon Gak of the White Horse Sect.
“An unexpected guest has arrived.”
The Lord of Baek Ryeon Gak held a position equivalent to a military commander who could direct all of the White Horse Sect’s forces.
Not only must he possess exceptional martial prowess, but he must also be skilled in strategy and troop deployment, with extensive connections among the leadership of various sects.
By that measure, Hyuk Ryeon Eung was in fact a man of substantial power second only to the sect leader himself.
He could be called one of the three most influential figures of the White Horse Sect, surpassing even the Vice Leader.
“Lord of Baek Ryeon Gak, Hyuk Ryeon Eung.”
Though Hyuk Ryeon Eung was superior in both status and age, I offered my greeting first as the host.
Crunch.
Dang Gon’s fists clenched so tightly they trembled.
Before him stood the cunning man who had deliberately struck down his father with grave illness and sought to steal his sworn brother’s martial arts.
Every fiber of my being yearned to sever his head in a single stroke and place it upon the memorial tablet.
‘I must endure.’
To achieve vengeance, I had to remain composed.
Lest I forget this truth, had Bu Eunseol not risked her life to stand at my side?
The moment I lost control, everything would crumble to dust.
“The Dang Family, Young Patriarch.”
Dang Gon swallowed his rage and offered a measured greeting.
“Dang Gon.”
“I have long heard of the Young Patriarch’s reputation as the ‘Restless Spirit of the Dang Family.'”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung spoke with a leisurely expression.
“Why did you send a challenge letter attributing the Patriarch’s death to yourself?”
In his challenge letter, Dang Gon had declared that he would face Hyuk Ryeon Eung and extract blood debt for Dang Pae’s death.
And should the challenge be refused, not only would the Dang Family wage total war against the White Horse Sect.
He had also written that he would scatter evidence throughout Murim proving that Hyuk Ryeon Eung was a puppet of Sam Gye.
“Do you have an explanation?”
“Of course.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung spoke calmly.
“I have an old acquaintance I have known for many years. However, he was in poor health, so he made a request of me.”
He regarded Dang Gon with an untroubled gaze and continued.
“He simply asked that I wear a mask, deliver a letter along with something placed in a wooden coffin. That was all.”
“Can you prove it?”
“Of course. However….”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung shook his head with a regretful expression.
“That friend ultimately succumbed to illness and died young. Because of that, all I can prove is my friend’s grave.”
Dang Gon let out a soft chuckle.
“Truly befitting a member of the Cheong Ha Gye Special Divine Guard—your tongue is quite silver.”
“Do you believe what Dang Pae says?”
“It seems you heard the story from your father?”
Dang Gon spoke coldly.
“Did you find the Dang Family’s intelligence network so laughable? Or does Cheong Ha Gye believe it can manipulate all the sects of Jeongsayang-do at once?”
“I don’t understand what you’re saying.”
When Hyuk Ryeon Eung played dumb, Dang Gon spoke with a chill in his voice.
“It seems you don’t wish to maintain your position as Bu Yeon Sang In.”
In that instant, Hyuk Ryeon Eung’s leisurely expression froze cold.
“Has Dang Pae become a chatterbox at the final moment?”
He knew the Sichuan Dang Family’s intelligence organization had recently been reorganized.
But he was well aware it wasn’t at a level to uncover his identity within Cheong Ha Gye so swiftly.
He knew it far too well.
“Don’t carelessly speak the Family Lord’s name with that filthy mouth of yours.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung instead spoke with derision.
“I speak it because it’s worth speaking.”
A cold gleam flickered in Dang Gon’s eyes.
“It seems the Family Lord spoke such words to me directly?”
“Then you received help from Muk Hon Ryeong Ju?”
Cheong Ha Gye knew well that Bu Eunseol and Dang Gon were close friends.
Moreover, the only one operating a formidable intelligence network while openly confronting Sam Gye across Tianxia
was Bu Eunseol alone.
“How curious. Is she the only one you fear in this world?”
Dang Gon too wore a mocking smile, his expression showing incomprehension.
“I cannot fathom why Sam Gye fears her so greatly.”
“Nonsense.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung spoke calmly.
“What exactly do you want?”
“Vengeance for my father.”
“You mean to destroy Ben Gye?”
“Not at all. That is not my task.”
Flames ignited in Dang Gon’s eyes.
“I merely wish to eliminate Bu Yeon Sang In—the puppet of Cheong Ha Gye who deliberately poisoned the Family Lord and fed him the Black Corruption Pill.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung stared directly into Dang Gon’s eyes.
He realized that what Dang Gon truly desired was indeed vengeance.
“You are destined to become the head of the Dang Family. Yet you cling to hollow emotions instead of seeing the greater picture.”
He shook his head as if disappointed.
“Such things become meaningless with time.”
“Make your decision, then.”
As Dang Gon spoke coldly, Hyuk Ryeon Eung replied with a subtle tone.
“If you lose to the Bon Gak’s patriarch, the Dang Family would have no other candidates, would it?”
His tongue moved smoothly as he laid bare the Dang Family’s predicament.
“Simply forget this matter. In exchange, I will grant you martial techniques that surpass the Dang Family’s Eight Great Secret Arts.”
“So you thought I would sell my father for martial prowess?”
“Not merely ordinary techniques.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung spoke again.
“The secret manual includes the method to create Blood Twin Blades.”
Blood Twin Blades were a hidden weapon developed by Tang Cheon Gun.
But due to their overwhelming power and cruelty, he had left no blueprints for posterity.
Yet it seemed the Cheonghae Realm had obtained them.
“I refuse.”
“I have not finished speaking.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung smiled faintly.
“I will also include the secret manual of Tang Cheon Gun’s hidden weapon techniques.”
At Hyuk Ryeon Eung’s words, Dang Gon’s eyebrows rose.
The Dang Family’s lineage had long been severed, yet even the hidden weapon techniques of their ancestor Tang Cheon Gun were in the Cheonghae Realm’s hands?
If he could reclaim them, the Dang Family’s martial arts would advance to new heights.
“Is that condition sufficient?”
At Hyuk Ryeon Eung’s question, Dang Gon let out a soft laugh.
“You believe no outstanding talent will emerge from the Main House.”
And he spoke calmly.
“That is why you believe offering Blood Twin Blades and the secret manual will appease us.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung shook his head with a sigh.
“So what changes if you maintain such pride?”
He spoke persuasively.
“How can the Dang Family advance without grasping what is offered?”
“There is nothing more to discuss.”
Dang Gon spoke firmly.
“Choose. Will you proudly reveal to all under heaven that you are a Special Envoy of the Cheonghae Realm? Or will you continue to maintain your position as patriarch of the White Horse Sect?”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung laughed with ease, stroking his chin.
Yet his true heart burned with anxiety.
The Special Envoys of the Cheonghae Realm possessed vast discretionary power.
They could support fallen sects and rebuild them, or incite conflicts between factions.
Like the authority of an absolute being—they could do whatever they desired.
But if that identity were exposed?
I could no longer maintain that formidable position.
‘I thought I would never face a threat from anyone in my entire life.’
Sam Gye already dominated Murim as if they owned it, and their intelligence network was unparalleled across Tianxia.
No intelligence organization could detect the movements of the Cheonghae Realm Special Divine Guard.
Yet my identity had been exposed, and now I was being blackmailed because of it.
‘Perhaps this is for the best.’
If Dang Gon so much as opened his mouth, I could not maintain my position as a Special Divine Guard of the Cheonghae Realm.
Rather, I should be grateful that he dares to challenge me in the name of revenge.
“Very well.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung nodded.
“If you desire such a confrontation, then let us have it.”
As the lord of Baek Ryeon Gak, Hyuk Ryeon Eung ranked among the ten greatest masters of the White Horse Sect in martial prowess.
Moreover, since becoming a Special Divine Guard of the Cheonghae Realm, I had mastered an astonishing array of martial techniques beyond imagination.
Yet among the later-generation experts,
there was no way I could lose to Dang Gon, who was even considered unremarkable in his abilities.
“However, this must remain confidential.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung wore a sinister smile.
“We cannot provide fodder at a time when Jeongsayang-do is growling like this, can we?”
The Murim Alliance and Demon Palace remained locked in a standoff, and the atmosphere in the orthodox sects grew increasingly tense.
If, in such circumstances, a member of the Dang Family were to kill a lord of the Ten Demonic Gates,
or if a master of the White Horse Sect were to strike down a patriarch of the Eight Great Families?
The clashes between Jeongsayang-do factions would spiral into an uncontrollable conflagration.
“Agreed.”
“Then in two days, at dusk. At the Pavilion Before Hong Jeong Rim, halfway up Cheon Pae Mountain. We shall meet there.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung smiled.
“If you wish to flee, you are welcome to do so. Bon Gak will surely understand.”
“A petty provocation.”
Dang Gon spoke calmly.
“Do as you wish. Your position as a Special Divine Guard of the Cheonghae Realm is already forfeit regardless.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung’s smile vanished.
“Why should I duel you if you intend to speak carelessly regardless of the outcome?”
“Bon Gak does not speak twice with one mouth.”
Dang Gon withdrew a letter from his sleeve and presented it.
“Whoever wins, we shall make no mention of each other—a sworn covenant.”
Upon seeing Dang Gon’s seal imprinted on the document, Hyuk Ryeon Eung’s stern expression finally softened.
“Hehehehe. How thorough.”
“Rinse your mouth and come.”
“I shall await that day.”
Hyuk Ryeon Eung, wearing a smile, turned and departed with a laugh.
Two days later.
A crisp autumn wind swept across the landscape.
Two shadows moved through the falling leaves, watching the crimson maple foliage scatter like fresh blood.
One of them was Dang Gon.
Ever since meeting Hyuk Ryeon Eung, he had secluded himself in his room at the Inn, doing nothing but meditating.
Bu Eunseol’s martial prowess was formidable, and she was well-versed in the demonic arts.
In particular, she had fought against members of the White Horse Sect multiple times.
If he could obtain her counsel?
It would prove invaluable in his confrontation with Hyuk Ryeon Eung.
Yet Dang Gon asked Bu Eunseol nothing.
Instead, he remained alone in his room at the Inn, meditating.
This was to savor the sublime martial realm that Dang Pae had achieved, and to once more contemplate and comprehend the profound mysteries of the martial arts he had demonstrated.
Bu Eunseol understood this, so she refrained from disturbing him and waited patiently.
―Could he win?
―Should she not tell him now about the weaknesses or characteristics of the White Horse Sect’s techniques?
In the past, Bu Eunseol would have hesitated.
But Dang Gon had changed once more after Dang Pae’s death.
Even if she were to kneel and reveal the secret to victory, Dang Gon would not listen.
Not because he was confident of winning, but because this was his first trial as the patriarch of the Dang Family.
Countless crises would befall him in the future.
Each time, Dang Gon would have to overcome numerous trials as the patriarch of the Dang Family.
This battle was both his revenge for his father’s death and his first step as patriarch.
‘And….’
Bu Eunseol’s eyes gleamed with sudden insight.
‘The White Horse Sect is where the most contemptible members of the Ten Demonic Gates gather.’
If her suspicions were correct.
Then she should not be concerned with the outcome of the battle, but rather with Hyuk Ryeon Eung’s schemes.

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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
—————