The Introverted Heavenly Demon - Chapter 111

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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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The Introverted Heavenly Demon Episode 111
The End of Sectarian Conflict
The headquarters of the Cheong Yun Merchant Group located in Chengdu was brimming with vitality for the first time in ages.
To be precise, it had always been busy before, but over the past several days, the merchant group seemed frantically occupied with its core business operations.
The faces of the clerks organizing ledgers and inspecting goods radiated energy, and the expressions of external merchants coming and going from the merchant group were bright.
For the first time since Baek Hyeon assumed the position of Merchant Guild Master, the merchant group had reclaimed its original vitality.
Of course, the Ho Rim Escort Agency’s decision to continue its dealings with the Cheong Yun Merchant Group had exerted considerable influence on this recovery.
Farm owners, mine operators, ranchers, and small merchants who had considered halting or reducing their transactions with the Cheong Yun Merchant Group reconsidered their positions, and the merchant group was preparing for another period of prosperity.
Within mere days, a merchant caravan assembled by the merchant group would depart for Henan alongside the Ho Rim Escort Agency, transporting tea equivalent to twenty cartloads.
Hyeon Yi’s face, preparing for his first large-scale merchant expedition since assuming the position of Merchant Guild Master, brimmed with anticipation and excitement.
However.
“Your expression appears heavy. Is something troubling you?”
“I had no worries whatsoever until you appeared.”
“The Minor Sect Leader certainly has a talent for jokes that seem out of place.”
It was no joke.
Until moments ago, I too had been filled with hope like everyone else in the merchant group.
Until you suddenly materialized before me.
“Very well, what business brings you to seek me out?”
I sat facing Yu Gwan Ji, who had suddenly come looking for me, in my chamber.
Yu Gwan Ji maintained the same neat appearance and attire I had seen most recently.
While he was hardly a threat to me now, the impression formed at our first meeting seemed reluctant to fade.
The fact that seeing him still made my stomach churn was evidence enough.
Besides, there was no way he would have appeared before me without purpose.
“The Sect Leader has instructed me to convey a message to you regarding this matter.”
“Father? How so?”
“A Protective Dharma King naturally possesses the means to maintain swift communication with the Sect Leader.”
“Hmm.”
It was exactly as I had anticipated.
After causing such a significant incident in Chengdu, I had wondered how to report it to the Sect Leader, yet it appeared he could see through my actions from that distant place as clearly as if looking at his own palm.
He likely used messenger birds for this purpose.
“What did Father say?”
“There are pleasant words and unpleasant words to convey, but which would you prefer to hear first?”
“…Begin with the pleasant words.”
Yu Gwan Ji gazed at me and offered a slight smile before continuing.
“He said, ‘You’ve stirred up quite an interesting situation.'”
“Does this concern the acquisition of the Pal Cheon Am Bang?”
“Indeed. The Sect Leader said that you demonstrated good judgment by anticipating the coordinated attack from the Righteous Martial Arts Society and the Martial Alliance against the Il-Wol Divine Sect and Black Path forces, responding preemptively, and absorbing the legitimacy and popular support that the Black Path possessed into our faction.”
“And?”
“He said he acknowledges your decision this time and will support you from behind, so continue consolidating the Black Path forces throughout Kangho and transforming them into the Main Sect’s military strength.”
I listened to the Sect Leader’s words conveyed through Yu Gwan Ji and nodded silently in acknowledgment.
I had already anticipated that the Sect Leader would grant his approval for this matter.
Securing justification before the confrontation with the Martial Alliance was something the Sect Leader had long considered crucial.
I even found myself wondering whether the Sect Leader, in sending me here, had perhaps harbored expectations for precisely this outcome all along.
No—I was certain he had.
“Now relay the rest of the message.”
The pleasant tidings had concluded; it was time to hear what I dreaded.
“A massive cache of poison was discovered in the Sea Sand Gang’s merchandise warehouse.”
“What?”
“It was a toxin called White Dissolution Powder. Not lethal in itself, but consuming a sufficient quantity causes the body’s vital energy to wane and induces complete exhaustion. Its distinctly salty taste makes it difficult to administer covertly, but when mixed with salt, it becomes nearly undetectable.”
Poison had been mixed into the Sea Sand Gang’s wares—the very salt sold to the impoverished.
It was beyond comprehension.
“Had it been distributed as planned, thousands of Chengdu residents would have been poisoned.”
“Had it been distributed? Then it wasn’t actually distributed?”
“The Minor Sect Leader has incurred a debt to me this time.”
Yu Gwan Ji’s lips curled upward in a ghastly smile.
His eyes remained expressionless while only his mouth grinned—an unsettling visage.
“I was under the Sect Leader’s orders to closely monitor the Tang Sect’s movements….”
“The Tang Sect?”
“Yes. The day before the Qingcheng Sect disciples descended the mountain to strike the Pal Cheon Am Bang, I discovered them secretly infiltrating the Sea Sand Gang’s warehouse.”
The Tang Sect—a family and faction renowned for poison and concealed weapons.
They harbored resentment toward me from the previous Sichuan Merchant Conference, and had even sent assassins to strike at me.
I had thought them quiet of late, yet they had been scheming all along.
“And what did you do?”
“Naturally, I broke their limbs one by one and sent them back, then recovered all the White Dissolution Powder and buried it in the earth. I also gave the Sea Sand Gang strict orders to increase their warehouse security.”
Had Yu Gwan Ji truly intervened, the Tang Sect members likely would not have escaped with merely broken limbs.
He claimed I owed him a debt.
By his account, I had genuinely narrowly averted a catastrophic crisis thanks to him.
“Regarding this matter, the Sect Leader instructed me to tell you: do not become a reckless youth whose eagerness leads him into the enemy’s trap.”
….
I had no words of defense against the Sect Leader’s rebuke.
I had known the Tang Sect harbored animosity toward me, and I should have anticipated that the Martial Alliance would conspire with them to strike at the Sun and Moon Divine Sect.
What would have transpired had such a massive poisoning catastrophe unfolded through the Sea Sand Gang’s salt?
The Martial Alliance would have undoubtedly condemned and attacked the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, citing the deep connections between the Sect’s Chengdu Branch and the Sea Sand Gang.
Especially now that I, as Minor Sect Leader, had personally incorporated the Black Path forces under my command.
Yet to orchestrate a large-scale poison terror targeting common civilians, not even martial artists—
The conduct of these so-called Righteous Martial Arts Society proved far more sinister and cunning than I had reckoned.
“You speak truly. I have made a grave error this time. Having narrowly escaped calamity thanks to you, I have incurred a considerable debt. I shall accept the Sect Leader’s censure upon my return.”
“Ha ha.”
Yu Gwan Ji laughed heartily for a time before speaking.
“Like father, like son—neither of you can speak plainly, it seems.”
“?”
“The Sect Leader instructed me to convey both praise and admonishment simultaneously, lest you become overconfident. There is no need for you to concern yourself with what I have done. I merely fulfilled the duties assigned to me. All our Disciples, not just myself, hold in deep admiration the decisiveness and resourcefulness you displayed in this matter.”
“If you say so.”
“The Sect Leader also instructed me to convey this: once you have concluded your business in Chengdu, do not delay—return to the Sect Headquarters. There is no benefit in postponing your cultivation of divine techniques any longer.”
“I was already planning to return to the Sect Headquarters soon.”
Yu Gwan Ji’s teacup had long since emptied, and he rose from his seat to straighten his robes.
It seemed as though our conversation was drawing to a close.
Yet Yu Gwan Ji appeared to have more to say even after delivering the Sect Leader’s words.
“Minor Sect Leader, now I, as the Protective Dharma King of the Divine Sect, dare to offer a word of counsel.”
The hearty expression from moments before had vanished entirely; Yu Gwan Ji had returned to his usual cold demeanor.
What more could he possibly wish to say?
“As you grow as a figure of the Kangho, you will inevitably form friendships across all factions and exchange teachings with many. The Sect Leader was no different at your age. However…”
The moment I heard these words from Yu Gwan Ji, the faces of Hye Woon from Shaolin Temple and Gyeong Yun, a leading disciple of the Qingcheng Sect, surfaced in my mind.
Yu Gwan Ji, who had been active in Chengdu recently, had undoubtedly been observing my every move.
He certainly knew about my visit to the Cheong Nan Guest House to meet Hye Woon.
Though things had quieted somewhat of late, from the perspective of a zealot like him, there was no way my growing closeness with the rising stars of the Righteous Martial Arts Society could appear favorable.
“Remember well the final fate of the Shu Road Master. For there is but one inevitable conclusion to the bonds between Sun and Moon Divine Sect Disciples and those of the Kangho Murim.”

* * *
The executives of the Cheong Yun Merchant Group had gathered at the main gate to bid farewell to us as we departed for the Il-Wol Divine Sect Headquarters.
“Gang Leader. Thank you for all your consideration and care. I will visit the Sect Headquarters again soon to pay my respects. You as well, Sister.”
“Don’t concern yourself with our affairs—focus on concluding your business journey well.”
“Please convey my regards to Mother. To Hwa Rin and Father as well.”
Hyeon Yi, exchanging farewells with both me and Baek So Cheong in turn, had grown considerably more composed, gradually acquiring the dignified bearing befitting a major merchant guild master.
It was only natural.
After all, who had taught him?
“Next time, come to Chengdu when the harvest season arrives. You will be able to properly observe the workings of the merchant guild and the escort agency. You might even visit the Grain Market itself. The sight of vast quantities of grain stacked on the Riverside Open Field, with merchants and guilds conducting their transactions on such a grand scale, is truly magnificent.”
“I look forward to it.”

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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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