The Introverted Heavenly Demon - Chapter 44

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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 044
Family
That evening, a modest banquet was held to commemorate the Minor Sect Leader’s entourage safely completing their pilgrimage to the Holy Site and returning.
It was also a welcome gathering for Ha Yeon Ryeong, who had visited the Sun and Moon Divine Sect as a guest of the Kunlun Sect.
“Mother, I trust you have been well in my absence?”
“Indeed. It brings me joy to see you in good health.”
“Brother! You have returned safely?”
“Yes, Hyeon. Have you been well?”
Seeing Baek Hyeon, who appeared to have grown slightly taller in my absence, and Jang Su Ryeon, whose sullen expression remained unchanged, made the reality of returning home sink in.
In Jang Su Ryeon’s arms was my youngest sister, Hwa Rin, who would soon celebrate her first birthday.
Reflecting upon it, the journey had been brief in some respects and lengthy in others.
Namgung Eon would return today to his original post at Myeong Shin Palace.
I too would resume my cultivation, and Baek So Cheong and Young Ho Bin would likewise return to their daily routines.
Wait—what about Ha Yeon Ryeong?
The marriage discussions that had briefly transpired seemed to have faded into nothing.
“Minor Sect Leader. Ha Nangja will be staying at the Sun and Moon Divine Sect for some time, so it would be improper to continue calling her by that title indefinitely, would it not?”
“Hmm….”
Baek So Cheong, too, seemed concerned about this matter and proposed settling upon a proper form of address for Ha Yeon Ryeong during the banquet.
“What if Ha Nangja were to call the Minor Sect Leader ‘Elder Brother’?”
“Elder Brother?”
In this world, the term “Elder Brother” is of course what a woman calls her biological older brother.
Yet even those not bound by blood use it for close male figures.
Lovers employ it as well.
Ha Yeon Ryeong’s flushed face upon hearing this seemed to stem from precisely such connotations.
“Speak no such nonsense.”
Baek So Cheong’s expression grew crestfallen, but I could not bring myself to accept her proposal.
It was true that during the pilgrimage to the Holy Site, I had grown emotionally closer to the others.
Yet certain boundaries must be maintained with clarity.
How much effort had I, an extreme introvert, expended to establish the Minor Sect Leader’s authority?
Should the Minor Sect Leader’s dignity crumble within the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, my position would be utterly precarious.
When I coldly refused, Baek So Cheong displayed a hint of disappointment, yet said nothing more.
And then.
The murmuring in one corner of the banquet hall suddenly ceased, and the Sect Leader unexpectedly entered the hall.
I quickly rose and bowed respectfully to the Sect Leader.
The Sect Leader approached me with his customary expressionless face and came to a halt.
His gaze lingered upon me briefly before turning directly toward Ha Yeon Ryeong.
“Ha Nangja.”
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
“It would seem you have come not merely to deliver the Sect Master’s personal letter.”
Then, displaying a playful smile rarely seen from him, he continued.
It was surprising to see this side of the Sect Leader.
“Tell me honestly. Do you wish to marry the Minor Sect Leader?”
“Yes, I do. Of course, if the Sect Leader and Minor Sect Leader permit it.”
Ha Yeon Ryeong answered in great flustered confusion, and those gathered in the Banquet Hall turned their gazes toward me once more with keen interest.
Of course, I found such attention from the crowd utterly suffocating.
If not for the Minor Sect Leader’s dignity, I would have fled without hesitation.
“I see. Hmm. Indeed, that is so.”
The Sect Leader regarded me with an inscrutable gaze, nodded several times, and then spoke.
“As the Sect Leader of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, I have no intention of forming a betrothal with the Kunlun Sect.”
The unexpected, cutting rejection darkened the expressions of Ha Yeon Ryeong and several others, yet the Sect Leader’s words did not end there.
“The Sun and Moon Divine Sect stands on the threshold of a great undertaking. Should we form ties of kinship with the Kunlun Sect, the gossips of Kangho would fixate upon the private relations between our two sects, risking the obscuring of our grand design.”
Then the Sect Leader turned to regard me once more with gentle eyes and added a single remark.
It was a statement no one had anticipated—one that startled all who heard it.
“However, as Yeon’s father, should he and the young lady wish to court one another, I would of course welcome it. Yet both remain young, so I would counsel against undue haste.”
The expressions of those who had been disappointed brightened once more, and some even chuckled with amusement at the Sect Leader’s addition.
Yet none seemed more delighted than Baek So Cheong and Namgung Eon.
I could not fathom why they made such a fuss over it, more so than the principals themselves.
The Sect Leader then turned his head to address me.
“Do you understand my meaning?”
“Yes, Father.”
What the Sect Leader sought to convey was unmistakable.
He was declaring that he would not wield my marriage as a political instrument, and in this matter alone, he would wholly respect my will.
For me, it was nothing short of joyous.
Yet it was also utterly unexpected.
In this age, a child’s marriage was a formidable weapon of considerable political utility—and the Sect Leader was renouncing it.
How could a man who seemed willing to sacrifice anything for the grand undertaking of the Demonic Path’s dominion do such a thing?
“Young Lady Ha. I shall have chambers prepared for you in Jeokwol Palace, so dwell there as freely as you would in your own home.”
“Sect Leader… I scarcely know how to express my gratitude.”
“So Cheong, and Hyeon Yi!”
“Yes, Father.”
“Yes?”
“Young Lady Ha is as much your sister as any blood relation. Address her as elder sister-in-law and younger sister-in-law.”
“Yes, understood.”
This declaration meant that though Ha Yeon Ryeong would not be formally accepted as a disciple, she would be recognized as an honored one.
Baek So Cheong and Baek Hyeon seemed delighted at gaining a new sister.
Yet Jang Su Ryeon’s expression, still sullen, suggested she did not regard Ha Yeon Ryeong favorably.
“Then, let us all enjoy this day together.”
Having concluded his business with brevity, the Sect Leader turned and made his way toward the Sect Leader’s Hall.
Watching Jang Su Ryeon follow behind him with a discontented gaze, I found myself suddenly contemplating something.
‘Come to think of it… the Sect Leader’s marriage to Jang Su Ryeon….’
I had never heard the detailed background or circumstances of how the Sect Leader came to marry Jang Su Ryeon, his second wife.
However, I was aware that Jang Su Ryeon’s family owned the Cheong Yun Merchant Group, one of the most prominent merchant enterprises in the Southwest Jianghu Region.
It was only natural that an enormous amount of money was required to operate and develop the Sect.
The Cheong Yun Merchant Group would benefit immeasurably from having the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, one of the greatest powers in Kangho, as their backing.
Therefore, the marriage between the Sect Leader and the daughter of the Cheong Yun Merchant Guild Master was undoubtedly the result of both sides’ political calculations aligning perfectly.
Could the words the Sect Leader had spoken to me today have stemmed from regret over his own political marriage?
As I pondered this, my gaze drifted toward Baek So Cheong without my realizing it.
“Minor Sect Leader, what is it? Do you have something to say?”
“Ah, no, nothing at all.”
The Sect Leader had obtained Baek So Cheong from a woman of unknown identity before his marriage to his first wife, Baek Yeon’s biological mother.
I had given it little thought until now.
But the fact that the Sect Leader kept Baek So Cheong’s mother’s identity under such strict secrecy…
【Baek Yeon! There are limits to arrogance. How dare you lay hands on your sister before me!】
And the way he cherished Baek So Cheong no less than anyone else, even if not openly displayed…?
Could it mean his love for that woman he had met before his political marriage ran that deep?
As numerous puzzle pieces suddenly fell into place, I felt an inexplicable chill run down my spine.
I had never imagined that the Sect Leader, who appeared so utterly devoid of blood and tears, could possess such a romantic side.
And then.
Not long after the Sect Leader departed, a man approached me as I sat at the head of the banquet table.
A man in his forties with refined features and neat scholarly attire—none other than that unfamiliar man I had seen meeting with the Sect Leader in the Sect Leader’s Hall.
“I greet the Minor Sect Leader.”
I regarded this man who had suddenly offered his respects with a measured gaze.
Given that he was important enough to meet privately with the Sect Leader and moved freely through the Sect Headquarters, he was clearly at least a high-ranking Disciple of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect.
Yet no matter how hard I racked my brain, I could not place who he was.
Though considering the vast number of Disciples scattered throughout Kangho, it was hardly strange that there existed high-ranking members whose faces I did not know.
“I welcome your visit to the Sect Headquarters. However, my knowledge falls short, and I confess I do not believe we have met before.”
This was an indirect way of asking him to reveal his identity, and the man seemed to understand, breaking into a faint smile.
“How disappointing, Minor Sect Leader. Are you still pretending not to know me?”
Ah…!
Only then could I recognize this man’s face—particularly those hollow, penetrating eyes that seemed to see through a person while simultaneously seeing nothing at all.
Though his carefully groomed eyebrows, short beard, pale complexion, build, and gait were all completely different from what I had seen before.
In this world, there were those who were adept at using face-changing masks to disguise themselves as others.
Those with exceptional skill could even use multiple masks to impersonate several different identities.
Yu Gwan Ji, the Protective Dharma King, whom I had encountered on Kunlun Mountain and who had driven me into a corner.
He too was one of the masters of such disguise techniques, and had even infiltrated the Kunlun Sect by changing his appearance.
“So it was you after all.”
After recognizing him, I turned my head slightly to look at Ha Yeon Ryeong.
Yu Gwan Ji was the very man who had attempted to abduct and kill Ha Yeon Ryeong.
I had made it clear that Yu Gwan Ji was not affiliated with the Divine Sect, so his identity being revealed here would be problematic.
Yet the fact that he appeared here so brazenly confirmed he was indeed a madman.
“Do not worry, Minor Sect Leader. I spoke with the Sect Leader about that day’s events, and only now have I come to understand your true intentions.”
Yu Gwan Ji continued speaking softly, maintaining a smile on his face.
“My thinking was shallow back then. I have learned much from you, Minor Sect Leader. Please forgive my mistake.”
With that, Yu Gwan Ji respectfully pressed his palms together and bowed his head before me.
Is that so?
I could not know exactly what the Sect Leader and Yu Gwan Ji had discussed there.
But judging from the Sect Leader’s earlier reaction and Yu Gwan Ji’s current demeanor, it was clear they viewed my actions positively.
While I could not say Yu Gwan Ji had completely abandoned his suspicions of me, at least I need not worry greatly about him for now—or so I thought.
Yet remembering what this bastard had done to me still made my blood boil.
“Heh.”
I let out a small laugh, audible only to Yu Gwan Ji.
Yu Gwan Ji smiled back at me, though the meaning behind my laughter was surely different from what he imagined.
“Young Ho Bin.”
“Yes, my lord.”
I called to Young Ho Bin, who stood beside me and had been listening to our exchange.
“The security of the Sect Headquarters troubles me greatly. The discipline here has grown far too lax.”
“My lord, what do you mean…?”
“With the Minor Sect Leader, the Sect Leader’s Wife, and a guest present here, are peddlers truly permitted to come and go as they please?”
Upon hearing my words, the smile that had filled Yu Gwan Ji’s face vanished in an instant.
Young Ho Bin wore a puzzled expression at first, then nodded as if understanding my meaning and replied.
“I see. If unauthorized persons enter and exit freely, the discipline of the Sect Headquarters will surely collapse.”
“Precisely. Young Ho Bin.”
“What are your orders, my lord?”
“You must act yourself. Throw him out at once.”
“Yes.”
Yu Gwan Ji looked at me with startled, disbelieving eyes.
“Minor Sect Leader, what are you…. A peddler, you say?”
“Let it be known to this peddler: none may enter here without the Minor Sect Leader’s permission.”
“Martial Artist Young Ho. What are you doing? I too am a disciple bearing the Sect Leader’s authority….”
“We have no such person in the Main Sect. It seems your mind wanders in confusion.”
“What are you—. Release me at once!”
Young Ho Bin seized Yu Gwan Ji’s arm and dragged him forcefully out of the Banquet Hall.
Yu Gwan Ji’s face flushed crimson with indignation as he thrashed about….
‘If you feel so wronged, then reveal yourself as the Protective Dharma King Yu Gwan Ji.’
In the end, other guards who came running at the commotion joined in, seizing Yu Gwan Ji and shouting at him as they expelled him from the Banquet Hall.
“These days, peddlers are remarkably persistent. Our disciples could learn a thing or two from such tenacity.”
With my murmur, the Banquet Hall, which had been briefly in turmoil, soon returned to its original atmosphere as if nothing had happened.
The night deepened, and music rang out beneath the glittering stars.
I remained seated at the head of the table until the banquet’s end, saying little, yet no one troubled the Minor Sect Leader with fatigue from the long ordeal.
It was, in every sense, a perfect banquet for an introvert.

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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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