The Introverted Heavenly Demon - Chapter 40

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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 040
Who Shall Be the Groom
“Indeed. Baek Young Lady, might you offer your insights on what would be best for Ho Bin?”
As Baek So Cheong expressed her interest, Ha Seung Ji’s eyes brightened, and he began explaining the circumstances methodically.
“When I first set about finding a suitable husband for Yeon Ryeong, the foremost condition I considered was none other than exceptional martial prowess.”
“Naturally. A most reasonable criterion.”
“Thus, I leveraged my position as Sect Master of the Kunlun Sect and sent invitations to every sect with whom we maintained contact.”
“So you held a martial competition to select a husband.”
“Precisely so.”
“With the opportunity to become son-in-law to the Kunlun Sect’s Sect Master, many formidable competitors from various sects must have participated.”
“Indeed. However, high martial skill alone was insufficient for participation. There was a second condition for the groom, you see….”
As Baek So Cheong offered appropriate encouragement and reactions, Ha Seung Ji grew increasingly animated and absorbed in his explanation.
“Though my sect lacks the virtue of its Sect Master, it is composed of Taoist priests who walk the path of the Righteous Sects. Because of this…. Ah, well.”
“What troubles you, Sect Master?”
“In the end, only about twenty competitors from the Righteous Sects and wandering heroes with whom we had contact arrived, allowing us to hold the martial competition. Ah, forgive me. That I did not send invitations to the Sun and Moon Divine Sect and the Minor Sect Leader was because I was unaware that your sect and the Minor Sect Leader possessed such exceptional virtue….”
As he spoke thus, Ha Seung Ji’s eyes darted toward me.
Did he fear I might harbor resentment at not being invited to that competition?
I responded silently with a fist salute toward Ha Seung Ji to indicate my indifference.
“So then, who emerged victorious?”
As Baek So Cheong pressed forward impatiently, Ha Seung Ji continued with an embarrassed expression.
“The victor was, well, none other than my sect’s first disciple.”
“Pardon?”
He had held a martial competition to find a husband for his only daughter, yet the champion turned out to be his own disciple.
To me, it seemed a rather anticlimactic conclusion.
“Then the groom must be present here. Ah, could it be…?”
Baek So Cheong’s eyes brightened further, apparently finding this development intriguing.
The “could it be” at the end of her question stemmed from concern that this first disciple might be the one recently slain by Yu Gwan Ji….
“Ah, no. Do Seung was indeed an excellent disciple, but…, Do Woon! Rise and greet the Minor Sect Leader and Baek Young Lady!”
“Yes.”
At Ha Seung Ji’s call, a man named Do Woon who had been seated with other disciples some distance from our table abruptly rose and offered his respects toward us.
Baek So Cheong regarded Do Woon, who was to become Ha Yeon Ryeong’s husband, with eyes full of curiosity.
I harbored little desire to concern myself with the matter, yet I could not avoid returning the courtesy….
“Do Woon of the Kunlun Sect offers his respects to the Minor Sect Leader and Baek Young Lady.”
I returned his greeting and observed him briefly.
Since Ha Yeon Ryeong did not appear particularly pleased with him as her marriage partner, I had wondered if he might be unattractive, but such did not seem to be the case.
Do Woon was a man of considerable height with a face that bore no flaw—his features were refined and well-proportioned.
“Master Do Woon possesses exceptional martial skill and is the first disciple of the Kunlun Sect, so he lacks neither virtue nor righteous spirit. What could be Miss Ha’s objection?”
Baek So Cheong asked carefully, her expression puzzled.
“That is precisely what eludes me. During the martial competition itself, Yeon Ryeong seemed curious about who her groom would be and appeared to anticipate it with subtle eagerness, yet after Do Woon’s victory, she has become like this….”
As I listened to his account, Ha Seung Ji himself seemed equally mystified, his voice trailing off weakly.
‘Is he truly asking because he doesn’t know?’
It was exasperating.
If Do Woon was the senior disciple of the Kunlun Sect, then he would be the senior martial brother of Do Seung, whom I had glimpsed briefly—which meant he had to be at least in his mid-forties.
In this world, marriages with significant age gaps were hardly uncommon.
But who would willingly send a thirteen-year-old girl to marry a man in his forties, three times her age?
I desperately wanted to point out this contradiction right then and there.
“Young Lady Baek. All the disciples of our sect are rough men, and since the wife of our Minor Sect Leader passed away long ago, there is no woman to hear Yeon Ryeong’s troubles. Therefore, I humbly ask….”
But as always, my desire remained just that—a desire.
Such was the nature of an introvert.
Whenever a conversation threatened to grow lengthy, I suppressed what I wished to say.
“Sect Master. Do not worry. I shall speak with Ha Yeon Ryeong myself.”
“Ah, thank you so much, Young Lady Baek. Truly, I am grateful.”
Besides, there was no need for me to intervene.
As Ha Seung Ji had said, Baek So Cheong would handle it appropriately.

* * *
The banquet continued late into the night, but our party departed somewhat early.
I left Namgung Eon as our representative to reconnect with old friends from the Righteous Sects whom we had not seen in some time.
Baek So Cheong asked where Ha Yeon Ryeong’s quarters were, then disappeared—evidently heading straight to speak with her.
I had no idea what they would discuss, nor did I particularly care to know.
With my own path stretching ten thousand miles before me, I had no desire to concern myself with the matrimonial affairs of strangers.
After such an eventful day, I yearned desperately to retire to bed.
Yet there remained one final task.
I stopped by my quarters to retrieve the letter I had prepared beforehand, sealed it securely, and made my way toward the Taoist Temple where the Kunlun Sect disciples were lodged.
I could have entrusted this to Young Ho Bin, but given its importance, I chose to handle it personally.
“I would be grateful if you could deliver this letter to the Sect Leader of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect as swiftly as possible.”
“Rest assured, Minor Sect Leader.”
In the letter, I had briefly outlined the circumstances that led us to visit the Kunlun Sect after encountering the eccentric Gwangheosan.
I was concerned that Yu Gwan Ji might reach the Sect Leader first and speak against us.
I had written vaguely about Gwangheosan and Yu Gwan Ji.
After all, these matters would require direct explanation before the Sect Leader.
I might even be confronted with Yu Gwan Ji, but I was confident that before the Sect Leader, I could justify my decisions.
Or was I truly confident…?
Regardless, the Sect Leader would surely hear me out.
Though worry gnawed at me, I felt certain I could manage somehow.
Was the Kunlun Sect not counted among the ten great sects of Kangho?
If I could establish a favorable relationship with the Kunlun Sect for the Sect Leader’s grand design to unify Tianxia, he would surely deem my judgment sound.
From what I had witnessed thus far, the Sect Leader was surprisingly pragmatic and rational in his thinking when it came to his grand designs.
‘I truly need to rest now. I’m on the verge of collapse.’
As I finished my business and headed toward the Guest House where our party was staying, such thoughts occupied my mind.
‘My lord.’
‘Hush.’
From a pavilion beside the roadway came the murmur of Kunlun Sect disciples conversing amongst themselves.
Young Ho Bin had signaled to me, and I had quieted him because their conversation was far from ordinary.
“I never expected Yeon Ryeong to behave so brazenly before the Sect Master. Surely you must be displeased, Senior Brother?”
“Say no more of such things.”
“The Sect Master has indulged his only daughter far too much, which has spoiled her manners entirely. To speak plainly, when you become the Sect Master of our main branch before long, there will be no shortage of far more suitable marriage prospects. Is that not so, Fifth Senior Brother?”
“Indeed it is. That girl Yeon Ryeong is as rough-mannered as a man, with a frame grown lanky and devoid of any feminine grace. Should she miss this marriage opportunity, she will surely never find a husband and must spend her life alone. Though I hear Mu Hak possesses considerable aptitude, so perhaps that arrangement will prove fortunate. Hehehehe.”
I remained concealed in the darkness, listening intently to their discourse.
Young Ho Bin seemed startled by my behavior.
His expression suggested that eavesdropping on others’ conversations was hardly the conduct befitting a man of honor.
What of it? I am the Minor Sect Leader of the Demonic Cult.
“Senior Brother, no matter how I consider it, this marriage seems far too disadvantageous for you. Would it not be wise to withdraw from it now?”
Those conversing were unmistakably Do Woon, the First Disciple, and his junior disciples.
Though their casual remarks about the woman who was both the Sect Master’s daughter and would become the First Disciple’s sister-in-law grated upon my ears, there was nothing particularly troubling in what they said thus far.
That is, until Do Woon’s voice continued.
“It seems you disciples truly know nothing of how the world works.”
“What do you mean, Senior Brother?”
“Consider this: the Sect Master cherishes his daughter as dearly as his own life. Now, if it were not I but some outsider who married Yeon Ryeong, what would become of me?”
“What would become of you?”
“After all these years of hardship and cultivation in our sect, I would become like a dog chasing chickens. It is as clear as fire that the Sect Master would pass the position of next Sect Master to his son-in-law.”
“Surely he would not go to such lengths?”
“The very fact that you think otherwise proves you know nothing of the world. Not to mention your ignorance of what manner of man the Sect Master truly is.”
“Then… are you saying you had already considered such matters before accepting this marriage proposal?”
“Need I say it twice? If there were no such reason, why would I bind myself in marriage to such a wild, unruly girl? Mark my words—once I marry Yeon Ryeong and inherit the Sect Master’s position in a few years’ time…”
“Then?”
“I shall cast out both the Sect Master and that girl Yeon Ryeong from Kunlun Mountain, and take a new wife from among the daughters of high officials or wealthy merchant families. From that point forward, it will be as though a tiger has sprouted wings—the Kunlun Sect shall truly command all under Heaven.”
“Truly, Senior Brother, your foresight is remarkable! We are all in awe of your vision.”
“Once matters proceed thus, you shall all prosper and enjoy wealth and glory. There will be no need to dwell in mountain corners, subsisting on vegetables while pursuing the Way.”
The Kunlun Sect disciples, who had been speaking in hushed tones until then, soon abandoned all pretense of caution and burst into raucous laughter.
I left their laughter behind and departed the pavilion, making my way through the darkened paths back toward the guest house.
Young Ho Bin remained silent, and I too had nothing to say.
Having inadvertently witnessed the true nature of these so-called First Disciples and junior disciples of the Righteous Sects, I could only feel a profound sense of pity.
I pitied the young girl Ha Yeon Ryeong, who must marry this man Do Woon without knowing his true intentions.
‘Wait. Did she truly not know?’
It occurred to me that Ha Yeon Ryeong’s refusal of the marriage to Do Woon might stem from far more than merely the age difference.
What if she had already learned of Do Woon’s true nature beforehand?
Yet if she feared the shock it would cause her father, she could not speak truthfully, and thus found herself forced into this marriage?
No—this was more than mere speculation.
Ha Yeon Ryeong had been born and raised within the Kunlun Sect, growing up alongside her fellow disciples and martial siblings, so she would certainly have had ample opportunity to discern the true character of Do Woon, a nature that even her master, the Sect Master, remained ignorant of.
Then truly, what a pitiful child.
By the time such thoughts crossed my mind, I had arrived at the Guest House.
And there, waiting for me alongside Baek So Cheong, stood an unexpected figure.
Baek So Cheong greeted me warmly, yet her expression betrayed a certain discomfort as she spoke.
“Minor Sect Leader. I know you must be weary, but might we spare a moment for conversation?”
“Hmm… What is the matter?”
“Ha Yeon Ryeong says she has an urgent matter to discuss with you. It is a difficult request, but… Miss, please speak for yourself.”
“Yes…”
Ha Yeon Ryeong bowed her head deeply, concealing herself behind her short hair, hesitating for a long moment before she could find the words.
I felt my chest tighten with an inexplicable unease.
I could not fathom what these women had been plotting in my absence.
“Minor Sect Leader… The truth is… I do not wish to marry Do Woon. So I wanted to ask…”
And at last, Ha Yeon Ryeong lifted her head and looked toward me, her voice trembling.
Her face had flushed crimson as a ripe apple, and her words came forth unsteadily.
“Would you… be willing to become my husband, 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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