The Introverted Heavenly Demon - Chapter 112

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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 112
Divine Cultivation Training
Even the Ho Rim Pyo Lord and his son seemed reluctant to see us depart, repeating their farewells multiple times.
Meanwhile, Seo Pil, the leader of the Haesa Bang, stood at a distance, and when our eyes met, he bowed deeply in silent greeting.
“Let us depart.”
I turned my back on all these people and the countless others I had not yet met, finally beginning my journey back to the Sect Headquarters.
Yet throughout the entire journey back to the Sect Headquarters, my mind churned with a succession of tangled thoughts.
The conversation I had once shared with the Dongbang Family Head, and the parting words Yu Gwan Ji had left behind—these circled endlessly in my thoughts.
-During his wanderings through Kangho in those days, the Baek Sect Leader formed bonds with several of the realm’s most renowned late-stage masters.
-What became of them?
-They died.
-…And when the Baek Sect Leader returned to the Sect Headquarters, he had become an entirely different person. He had transformed into someone so ruthless that even I was taken aback.
-For the bonds between Il-Wol Divine Sect disciples and Kangho martial artists can only end in one way.
I understood that the Sect Leader had once grown close to the righteous martial artists of the Baekdo Martial World during his youthful wanderings through Kangho.
In those days, he must have possessed the same bold and cheerful temperament as the late-stage masters of other martial traditions.
But what could have happened then to transform the Sect Leader so completely?
From what Dongbang Cheon and Yu Gwan Ji had said, it was clearly no pleasant or beautiful affair.
Moreover, that incident bore some connection to Baek So Cheong.
“Minor Sect Leader.”
“Sister.”
When Dongbang Cheon first spoke those words, I had believed it to be a matter unrelated to me directly.
But seeing that Yu Gwan Ji had deliberately chosen to tell me suggested it might not be so simple.
In any case, I would need to exercise greater caution when meeting with Hye Woon or the dignitaries of the Baekdo Martial World.
“What troubles you so?”
Yet worrying now would change nothing.
So I would set aside my thoughts on the matter here.
“I was considering how best to broach this subject with Sister.”
“Yes?”
I smiled faintly and withdrew a small book from the travel pack slung across my shoulder, offering it to Baek So Cheong.
“What is this?”
“The essentials of the Ho Rim Shadow Steps. The Yoon National Lord gave it to me before we departed.”
“For me?”
“It seems Sister will have need of it, so I hope you will study it in your spare moments. Ah, and I received permission from the Yoon National Lord, so have no concerns. Let us call it a birthday gift.”
“Thank you. But didn’t you give me a birthday gift not long ago?”
“There have been many birthdays I failed to celebrate, so consider this compensation for those.”
….
Though I did not speak it aloud, Baek So Cheong surely understood why I had gifted her the Ho Rim Shadow Steps.
Given the formidable power of the Il-Wol Divine Sect’s demonic cultivation, she would know better than anyone that defensive techniques like protective arts, as well as supplementary martial skills such as movement techniques and body-lightening methods, were somewhat lacking.
Conversely, this meant there was considerable room for growth through martial arts that complemented the Il-Wol Divine Sect’s techniques.
I myself was a prime example—having mastered the secrets of the Ho Rim Shadow Steps in that brief time and grown remarkably stronger, I had matched the foremost disciple of the Cheong Sung Sect.
“During this journey to Chengdu, I truly felt it. I must grow stronger.”
“But Minor Sect Leader, you’re already plenty strong, aren’t you? You can even defeat the first disciple of Qingcheng Sect….”
“No. I may possess the martial arts to protect myself, but that alone is insufficient.”
“How much stronger do you wish to become?”
“I want to grow strong enough that even with my sister always at my side, I can feel assured of her safety.”
“…!”
Baek So Cheong, who had been walking ahead, widened her eyes in surprise at my words and gazed at me.
At that moment, the rising sunlight from behind my back enveloped her face in radiance.
“So if you wish to lighten my burden, sister, you too must grow stronger.”
I urged my horse forward while gazing toward the distant horizon.

* * *
I devoted myself to cultivating my inner power, traveling between the Cultivation Chamber and the Hall of No Mind day and night.
I became so absorbed that I lost track of what month or day it was, what hour of the day it had become.
“Would you examine it once?”
I loosened the front of my inner robe slightly and spoke to Baek So Cheong.
“Again?”
“I cannot gauge my own progress accurately by myself.”
“Hmm. What if someone enters the Cultivation Chamber?”
“No one will come. It’s fine, so please do.”
“Hmm… then, I’ll take the liberty.”
“Go ahead and feel it.”
Baek So Cheong placed her right palm against my chest with a serious expression.
“This is really….”
“How is it?”
Her hand, which had been tracing across my chest, stilled, and I waited expectantly for her to speak.
“It’s definitely much hotter than before.”
“Truly?”
“Yes. And….”
“And?”
“The muscles on Minor Sect Leader’s chest have also grown more developed than before. Have you been exercising diligently lately?”
“Hmm. Who asked you to notice such things?”
As I reproached her, Baek So Cheong withdrew her hand with an awkward expression, and I adjusted my robe and closed the front of my garment once more.
Though I did not show it outwardly, I felt greatly encouraged upon hearing that my body had grown hotter than before.
It was proof that this cultivation I had been dedicating myself to was making gradual progress.
The Sun and Moon Dual Extreme Divine Art.
This legendary inner power, created by the First Sect Leader of the Il-Wol Divine Sect, was undoubtedly the gateway for me to transcend the first-rate realm and reach the pinnacle.
When inner power cultivation reaches the pinnacle, one becomes capable of not merely expelling intense inner energy, but of imbuing it with specific properties or manipulating it with precision.
This is why sword force and fist force—manifestations of true qi—are typical indicators of the pinnacle realm.
As for the Sun and Moon Dual Extreme Divine Art that I was cultivating….
“At this rate, won’t I actually reach the realm of Samadhi True Fire?”
“It’s somewhat different in nature. Ah, would it be difficult for my sister to understand if I explained?”
“….”
From the first stage to the third stage of the Sun and Moon Dual Extreme Divine Art, my inner energy was infused with the solar principle—or the nature of fire—to draw forth intense heat through cultivation.
Even though I was only training in the first stage, the heat contained within my inner energy grew stronger with each passing day.
Though for now, the heat only emanated from near my heart.
“To aspire toward the pinnacle of mastery before even reaching twenty years old—truly remarkable.”
“I still have far to go. I’ve only just begun taking my first steps in divine art cultivation.”
“How humble of you.”
“Humility is the virtue of a true master.”
“Why don’t you say that with the corners of your mouth turned down?”
“Hmm. Hmm. When have I ever….”
The incantations of divine art were intricate and abstruse, and consequently, manipulating inner energy according to them proved even more difficult.
Fortunately, thanks to the assistance I received from Myeong Joon in the Hall of No Mind, my training progressed steadily without faltering or losing my way.
For a martial artist, growing stronger and advancing in cultivation consistently and smoothly was truly a joy and a blessing.
“By the way, this is quite fascinating. Would it be alright if I touched it once more?”
“By all means.”
Baek So Cheong seemed fascinated by the concept of infusing the nature of fire into inner energy through cultivation.
Just as she reached out her hand toward my chest again.
Knock, knock.
A sound of knocking came from outside, and Baek So Cheong hastily withdrew her hand from my chest.
“Oh?”
Jin Seol, who appeared then, stepped into the Cultivation Chamber, tilted her head in curiosity, and then offered respectful salutes to Baek So Cheong and me in turn.
“I pay my respects to the Minor Sect Leader. Baek Young Lady is here as well. Shall I return later?”
“No, Jin Young Lady. I was just about to leave.”
“Then, Sister, since I have matters to discuss with Jin Bu-gung Ju….”
“Understood. I’ll be on my way then. Hehe.”
Baek So Cheong offered salutes to Jin Seol and me in turn, then departed the Cultivation Chamber with a peculiar smile playing at her lips.
Left alone, Jin Seol too cast me a smile whose meaning I could not quite discern.
“Minor Sect Leader, it seems you’ve been spending considerable time with Baek Young Lady lately.”
“My sister has been assisting me in my cultivation.”
“That is a good thing. I hope your training bears fruit.”
I could not fathom why these two women kept exchanging such enigmatic expressions whenever they looked at me.
Perhaps there was some understanding that passed between women.
“May I report on the matter you requested now?”
“Go ahead.”
Yet today’s meeting with Jin Seol was truly for business.
Jin Seol quickly returned to a serious expression and began her report.
“As you instructed, I investigated the person named Nangung Yeon Hwa, but….”
The reason I had asked Jin Seol to investigate Nangung Yeon Hwa was not merely out of curiosity about the Sect Leader’s past.
The past between Nangung Yeon Hwa and the Sect Leader held the key to understanding what the Sect Leader now sought to achieve through the Il-Wol Divine Sect.
Perhaps it would even determine my own fate going forward.
“There was nothing particularly new to report.”
“Nothing? Even with Ma Yeon Palace’s intelligence network mobilized?”
“Yes. However, I believe that very fact carries significant implications.”
“How so?”
“As the cherished daughter of the Namgung Clan and a promising cultivator of her generation, it would be natural for countless rumors to circulate following her untimely death. Questions about why she died, how it happened, and what grudges it may have spawned.”
“Yet no one knows anything about it, you’re saying.”
“Precisely. It means the information was deliberately suppressed. Either by the Namgung Clan themselves, or by another immense power.”
Someone was actively concealing the truth about Nangung Yeon Hwa’s past.
I could have inferred as much from what Dongbang Cheon had said.
And one of the great powers seeking to hide this truth was none other than the Il-Wol Divine Sect and the Sect Leader himself.
“However, our efforts were not entirely fruitless.”
“?”

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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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