The Introverted Heavenly Demon - Chapter 18

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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 018
Brothers
Namgung Eon’s fist contained all the inner force he had accumulated throughout his lifetime.
The pure inner energy of the Namgung Clan’s unique cultivation method was indeed as renowned as I’d heard….
Thud.
The Hyeon Ma Gyeong inner force that filled every meridian and blood vessel in my body elevated not merely physical abilities like strength and stamina, but also reflexes, vision, dynamic sight, and even sixth sense to their peak.
No special technique was needed to deflect Namgung Eon’s assault.
The moment I simply extended my right hand and swatted away his fist, the inner force contained within it scattered into fragments, and his fist came to a futile halt in empty air.
A sharp intake of breath!
Even so, he immediately gathered his entire body’s inner force once more and thrust his other fist forward, demonstrating that Namgung Eon’s willpower transcended the limits of his body and cultivation.
Yet the power behind it was far inferior to the first strike.
I twisted my body diagonally while extending my left hand to seize his arm, then bent it backward and pressed it against his back.
With my right arm, I wrapped around his neck and locked him in place using my shoulder.
It was true that my grappling technique had not yet reached a supremely advanced level, but with the overwhelming difference in physical ability and inner force, Namgung Eon found himself completely immobilized and could only struggle helplessly.
A roaring cheer!
Seeing me seize victory in the sparring match in an instant, the Sun and Moon Divine Sect disciples erupted in unified cheers.
I held Namgung Eon’s neck in an iron grip, leaving him unable to move even slightly.
“The Minor Sect Leader’s victory! Surrender!”
“Declare your defeat!”
The Sun and Moon Divine Sect disciples were shouting at Namgung Eon to surrender.
The Namgung Clan’s martial artists could only shift their weight nervously, likely waiting for Namgung Eon to cry out his surrender.
A strained gasp!
Yet Namgung Eon’s mouth remained sealed.
I too was unsurprised, knowing full well that he would never surrender.
In that moment, my eyes met the gaze of the Left Elder, who had delivered the Sect Leader’s command to me.
The Left Elder, wearing a faint smile, was anticipating that I would immediately sever Namgung Eon’s life.
It would make a perfect picture, wouldn’t it?
The Minor Sect Leader and the Namgung prince had engaged in sparring while emotionally heated.
The Minor Sect Leader had seized victory, but the Namgung prince, bound by pride, had refused to declare surrender, and in his stubbornness, he had perished.
The fifth son of the Namgung Clan had unfortunately lost his life, and the Sun and Moon Divine Sect would cease further investigation into the Namgung Family’s attempt to kill the Minor Sect Leader….
However, instead of breaking Namgung Eon’s neck to carry out the Sect Leader’s command, I asked him a question.
“Namgung Eon, are you not afraid of death?”
“I have already steeled myself for death. I am not afraid.”
Namgung Eon answered with difficulty, his entire body straining as he struggled.
“Are you afraid of humiliation?”
“I am not.”
“Then what are you doing right now?”
“Minor Sect Leader, exactly as you said to me just moments ago.”
“…I see.”
Receiving an answer that came exactly as I had anticipated, I found myself bursting into an involuntary laugh.
I couldn’t guarantee that Namgung Eon would accept my proposal.
But based on what he’d said, I thought it was worth attempting.
I spoke in a voice only Namgung Eon could hear.
“Listen carefully to what I’m about to say….”

* * *
The Sect Leader’s Hall at the heart of the Il-Wol Divine Sect Headquarters.
Two masters who aspired to dominate Tianxia sat facing each other, and for the past hour, only the sound of go stones being placed on the board had echoed through the chamber instead of conversation.
Click.
A white stone pierced into the upper left corner, leaving black in a dire position.
The black territory sprawling across the right side hadn’t been captured yet, but the white forces arrayed on all sides were far too formidable.
Scattered across the board were white’s aggressive formations—precarious things clinging to life by a thread, having penetrated relentlessly from the opening stages.
Though the situation looked hopeless, no sign of distress crossed the face of Namgung Patriarch Nam Goong Jin Yu.
Baek Sect Leader Baek Mu Myeong, waiting for his response, finally opened his mouth.
“It seems things have begun, judging by the commotion outside.”
Nam Goong Jin Yu replied.
“When hot-blooded youths from families sworn as eternal enemies meet, it would be strange if things remained peaceful.”
The Baek Sect Leader gazed intently at the Namgung Patriarch, then tilted his head slightly.
“Do we really need to go this far? It’s embarrassing to say from my own mouth, but that boy Baek Yeon is quite….”
“I’ve seen it myself, so I know.”
Nam Goong Jin Yu recalled the appearance of the Minor Sect Leader Baek Yeon when he’d arrived at the Il-Wol Divine Sect.
Not only his formidable inner power, but even in his mere stance, there gleamed an arrogant demeanor.
It was as though he were gazing upon a younger version of Baek Mu Myeong, who had been renowned for his martial prowess and wild temperament.
Considering he was merely eleven years old, he was truly a monster.
“Will you still not acknowledge it?”
“I have no choice but to acknowledge it…. This game will be difficult to break through.”
“Sigh….”
Jo Cheong Ryu, the spy personally captured by the Minor Sect Leader, had already confessed his origins in the Namgung Clan.
Yet Nam Goong Jin Yu stubbornly maintained that it had not been under his orders.
However, both the Baek Sect Leader and the Namgung Patriarch knew the truth.
The fact that the Namgung Patriarch had accepted the Baek Sect Leader’s proposal for negotiations and visited the Il-Wol Divine Sect in person, bringing even his eldest son with him, meant….
That he acknowledged the Namgung Clan’s defeat in this affair and was willing to preserve the Il-Wol Divine Sect’s honor to minimize damage.
“….”
During the silence between them, both men harbored similar thoughts.
Considering the forces spread throughout Kangho and the martial power of a Sect Leader who had entered the realm of enlightenment, the Il-Wol Divine Sect held the advantage.
The Namgung Clan’s reckless attempt to assassinate the Minor Sect Leader, and the Patriarch’s personal arrival to answer the Sect Leader’s demands for explanation, both stemmed from this reality.
Yet the Namgung Clan’s allied forces were no trivial matter, which was why the Sect Leader hesitated to launch an all-out war immediately.
Not to mention the Martial Alliance with the Huashan Faction’s Master as its leader, and behind that lurked even more formidable powers.
However, neither Baek Mu Myeong nor Nam Goong Jin Yu were the type to stake their lives on immediate battles alone.
Having only just grasped the stones and begun the opening formation, the true game was only now beginning.
Among the so-called Nine Great Factions and One Alliance of Kangho, the Shaolin Faction—known as the Taishan and Northern Dipper of the martial world—along with Wudang, Zhongnan, and Emei, maintained distance from the Martial Alliance, while the Beggar Clan remained fractured.
Among the Five Great Families, the Moyong Clan was challenging the Namgung Clan’s stronghold,
and beyond that, there were the wandering masters of Kangho who belonged to neither the righteous nor the demonic path….
The Kangho martial world still had much unclaimed territory.
Then what would be the strategy for victory…?
The Baek Sect Leader, lost in deep contemplation, suddenly asked, driven by frustration.
“Then should I assume you’ll continue attempting such things in the future?”
“From now on, I must proceed with caution. I just lost one pawn, so now I have only four remaining….”
“Ha!”
Baek Mu Myeong felt his mind reeling at the Namgung Patriarch’s words, comparing his own son to a go stone.
Even he, known throughout the world as the King of Ten Thousand Demons, the Cheon Ma, could not easily conceive of such a notion.
At this point, it became difficult to tell who was the Demonic Cult’s leader and who was the patriarch of a noble family.
If such madness stemmed from resentment toward Baek Mu Myeong, when could that resentment ever be resolved?
Clack.
Finally, Nam Goong Jin Yu, who had cast the stone, rose from his seat.
“Let’s go.”
The sounds from outside grew increasingly clamorous.
Baek Yeon, the Minor Sect Leader, and Namgung Eon, the Fifth Young Master, were of similar age, but among the five young masters of the Namgung Clan, the Fifth Young Master was the slowest to master martial arts.
Even if the two fought a hundred times, I could not imagine the Fifth Young Master winning even once.
Though his heart ached, the Namgung Patriarch had steeled himself.
He simply wished to witness a final moment befitting a young master of a prestigious martial family.
The Fifth Young Master was the weakest in martial prowess, but his unwavering spirit surpassed that of his four elder brothers.
And when the two arrived at the location where the banquet was being held….
‘What is happening?’
The dozens of people in the Banquet Hall were so shocked that they failed to even notice the arrival of the Sect Leader and the Namgung Patriarch.
And the scene unfolding before Baek Mu Myeong and Nam Goong Jin Yu was….
A sight that would make even the absolute masters of Kangho’s martial world widen their eyes in astonishment.
In the center of the Banquet Hall stood Baek Yeon, the Minor Sect Leader of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, in a solemn posture….
And Namgung Eon, the Fifth Young Master of the Namgung Clan, stood respectfully before him, slowly kneeling and prostrating himself in reverence.
Once, twice, three times….
‘What… what is this….’
Thus, after completing thirteen great prostrations according to the Sun and Moon Divine Sect’s doctrine, Namgung Eon, still on his knees, pressed his forehead to the ground.
“I am Namgung Eon, the Fifth Son of the Namgung Family!”
Then he began to cry out loudly toward Baek Yeon.
“I wish to take refuge in the Sun and Moon Divine Sect and become a believer! If you will accept this humble life, I pledge my eternal loyalty and offer my life for Myeong Joon and the Sect Leader!”
Baek Yeon gazed upon him with a pleased expression, then spoke solemnly.
“In the name of Myeong Joon, I, Baek Yeon, Minor Sect Leader of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, declare: from this moment forth, Namgung Eon is a believer of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect and our brother, to be treated with love, and to share in both joy and glory, pain and hardship with our believers.”
Baek Mu Myeong watched as the Namgung Patriarch’s legs buckled and his head shook uncontrollably.
“Eon! What in the world is the meaning of this?”
The Namgung Patriarch staggered forward toward Namgung Eon, his voice trembling.
Namgung Eon finally lifted his head, turned toward his father, and offered a respectful bow.
“Father. I am grateful for the grace you have shown me all these years. From this moment forward, I shall become a disciple of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect….”
“You wretched fool!!”
The Namgung Patriarch thundered like lightning, rushing forward.
His fury was not directed at his son Namgung Eon, but at the Minor Sect Leader of the Demonic Cult—Baek Yeon.
There was no way his fifth son would suddenly pledge himself to the Divine Sect if he were to die here.
It had to be the work of that wretched little demon, the Minor Sect Leader.
Whether through coercion or demonic manipulation….
With that conviction, the Namgung Patriarch could no longer contain his rage.
Whoosh!
The palm strike the Namgung Patriarch unleashed toward Baek Yeon carried with it a sinister killing intent and formidable internal energy.
He gave no consideration to the fact that his opponent was merely the Minor Sect Leader of the Divine Sect and a young nobleman.
Consumed by fury, he had poured all his strength into this killing blow, intent on annihilating whoever stood before him in a single breath.
Baek Yeon sensed instinctively that he could not defend against this attack by any means.
And yet.
“Enough.”
The Baek Sect Leader’s form flickered once, and in the next instant he stood before the Minor Sect Leader, sweeping his right hand—infused with the inner energy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art—through the air.
With that seemingly leisurely motion, the sinister palm force of the Namgung Patriarch vanished without a trace, and the ominous demonic energy radiating from the Baek Sect Leader caused the Namgung Patriarch to recoil.
The Namgung Patriarch sensed the terrifying demonic power emanating from the Baek Sect Leader and shrank back.
As the Namgung Patriarch clenched his teeth, a grinding sound escaped.
He cried out again toward his son.
“Eon! I know not what tricks this wretch has played on you….”
“Father.”
Namgung Eon spoke with his back straight and his voice clear, addressing his father directly.
“All my life, I have lived without the slightest doubt, devoted to the principles of the Namgung Clan and the banner of righteousness and chivalry. I was prepared to sacrifice my life to establish virtue in Kangho. Yet today, my faith has been shaken to its very foundation.”
“Eon…?”
“At least until I understand what virtue truly means, I will not die. Forgive me.”
“…You insolent wretch!”
Yet those words did not reach Nam Goong Jin Yu’s ears at all.
The fifth son of the Namgung Clan becoming a disciple of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect?
The family’s honor would be dragged through the mud—how could he ever hold his head high as the Family Head after this?
Nam Goong Jin Yu gathered his inner energy.
It would be better to end this with his own hands than to see his son fall into the grasp of the Demonic Cult.
And yet.
“I would advise the Namgung Patriarch against reckless action.”
“Baek Sect Leader?”
“I will not stand idle while my disciple is harmed before me….”
Seeing the Baek Sect Leader refer to Namgung Eon as his “disciple” and shield him, the corners of the Minor Sect Leader Baek Yeon’s mouth rose slightly.
The sight of the Namgung Patriarch thrashing about in fury was equally satisfying.
Everything was unfolding precisely according to his plan.
Persuading Namgung Eon, who had resolved to die with honor as a martial artist’s son, was no simple task.
Yet when the Minor Sect Leader spoke of surrendering to the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, Namgung Eon’s heart finally wavered.
Though I had not obeyed the Sect Leader’s command to kill Namgung Eon, the outcome proved to be an even greater gift to him.
“Damn it!”
The Namgung Patriarch spat out a curse thick with rage, his gaze turning cold as ice upon O Nam.
“All members of the Namgung household—rise from your seats. We withdraw immediately!”
With those words, he led his retinue away from the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, offering not a single word to Namgung Eon, nor to the Sect Leader and Minor Sect Leader.

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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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