The Introverted Heavenly Demon - Chapter 7

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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 007
The Young Tyrant
‘Twenty-one….’
Beyond that, there were countless other things I wished to ask Myeong Joon.
But by the time I’d asked a few questions, the thirty-three prostrations were nearly complete.
-Myeong Joon, if I return to this place, will I be able to see you again?
‘The Seonghwa Hall is normally off-limits due to your father’s restrictions, so it will be difficult for you to visit.’
-Do you know my father well?
‘I’ve watched him since he was young, so I know him well enough. In short, he’s a stubborn fellow.’
-Ah, I see… Then it will be difficult to see you again?
‘You should be able to find the Patriarch at other sacred halls of the Myeong Cult….’
-Sacred halls! I understand.
The Myeong Cult was the old name for the Sun and Moon Divine Sect.
Myeong Joon seemed to prefer the name ‘Myeong Cult.’
‘…How old-fashioned. Always concerned with hierarchies and formalities.’
-What did you say?
‘Oh, I’m just thinking to myself.’
With that, the prostrations ended, and Myeong Joon said nothing more to me.
“The Divine Demon Assembly is now concluded. Your status as Minor Sect Leader has been recognized before Myeong Joon, so no one will be able to challenge it until the next assembly.”
The official ceremony seemed to be drawing to a close with Woo Sa’s solemn declaration.
But then.
“Please allow me to see the Minor Sect Leader!”
The crowd began to stir, and it seemed Young Ho Bin, who had lost consciousness from my earlier strike, had regained his senses.
Young Ho Bin pushed through the crowd and rushed toward me, then dropped to his knees and prostrated himself completely.
“This humble disciple of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, Young Ho Bin, respectfully addresses the Minor Sect Leader!”
Woo Sa tried to stop Young Ho Bin in surprise, but when I nodded to indicate it was fine, he quietly stepped back and allowed him to continue.
Even with his forehead pressed to the ground, Young Ho Bin spoke with powerful conviction.
“This foolish disciple harbored the arrogant thought of withstanding the Minor Sect Leader’s three-strike technique before the Sacred Fire, and such a grave miscalculation deserves repayment in death. Yet thanks to the Minor Sect Leader’s merciful restraint, I have been granted this final opportunity to offer my apologies before you and Myeong Joon before I depart this world. Moreover, to receive such lofty teachings from the Minor Sect Leader and express my gratitude on bended knee—I shall have no regrets even in death.”
Having spoken thus far, Young Ho Bin raised his head with resolve and drew the short blade hanging at his waist.
“I humbly pray that the Minor Sect Leader shall become the radiant light of the sun and moon that dispels darkness, and establish the Demonic Path across all Tianxia.”
Young Ho Bin brought the blade to his own throat, and without a moment’s hesitation, he swung it.
My body reacted before my mind could think.
“Wait.”
Ever since I killed Song Sam-chong-gwan not long ago, I had been trapped in shock.
I no longer wished to witness death before my eyes.
It was nothing more than that simple thought.
Without realizing it, I reached out and grasped the hilt of Young Ho Bin’s blade, stopping him from taking his own life.
The disciples watching this scene drew sharp breaths.
‘Wait. Isn’t this…?’
In that moment, my eyes met with the Sect Leader’s, who had been watching this unfold with an expressionless face from across the way.
The Sect Leader appeared indifferent on the surface, but his true thoughts were far different.
At this moment, he was coldly assessing the Minor Sect Leader.
He harbored expectations in the Cheon Ma’s innate ferocity and cruelty.
Not only here, but at any moment, I must never disappoint the Sect Leader.
Crack!
I struck Young Ho Bin’s cheek with all my strength.
The force sent the short blade he was holding flying to the ground.
“Worthless trash.”
At my cold words, Young Ho Bin’s eyes widened in shock.
“Your life was dedicated to the Sun and Moon Divine Sect the moment you pledged yourself to it, and I merely borrowed it for a time. Who told you that you could throw it away whenever you pleased?”
“Minor Sect Leader…?”
“When you die is for me to decide.”
At those words, Young Ho Bin clenched his teeth and his lips trembled.
“Minor Sect Leader! I will gladly offer this life for the Sun and Moon Divine Sect and for you!”
“Do not rejoice. You will come to regret surviving today.”
The disciples around us nodded with expressions of admiration for the Minor Sect Leader’s cruelty.
Behind them, the Sect Leader’s face remained expressionless, but the moment our eyes met, I saw the corners of his mouth lift slightly.
The Sect Leader turned and began descending from Gwangmyeong Hall.
Leaving Young Ho Bin behind, still pressing his forehead to the ground in repeated bows, I followed the Sect Leader downward.
Glancing back, Young Ho Bin was still pressing his forehead to the ground.
I had overcome another crisis.
I had maintained my position as Minor Sect Leader and had not witnessed anyone’s death before my eyes.
As I reflected that I had safely passed another day, a sigh of relief escaped me.

* * *
Though many incidents had recently unfolded within the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, Sect Leader Baek Mu Myeong’s schedule remained largely unchanged.
The Sect Leader had but one paramount obligation.
Secluded cultivation within the Sect Leader’s private Cultivation Chamber.
Due to the unique nature of his martial arts, solitary training was absolutely essential for him.
While none knew the precise characteristics of the Sect Leader’s techniques, this truth was universally acknowledged throughout the Sun and Moon Divine Sect.
Beyond this, he merely made brief appearances at gatherings where the faithful assembled.
The Sect Leader simply observed, while the Gwangmyeong Left Elder and Gwangmyeong Elder shouldered the weightier responsibilities.
Though it might appear irresponsible to some, no one dared raise objections to the Sect Leader.
“Sect Leader.”
“Woo Sa. What brings you?”
“I wish to offer my counsel regarding the Minor Sect Leader.”
“…Go to the Council Chamber.”
Yet this moment demanded the Sect Leader’s absolute authority and judgment.
In the Council Chamber of the Ilwol Great Hall, the Gwangmyeong Left Elder, the Gwangmyeong Elder, and the Blood Cloud Palace Master awaited him.
“The one called Young Ho Bin, who stepped forward as a challenger from the Divine Demon Assembly, was a formidable warrior without peer among his generation across all five sects. Truthfully, I feared the Minor Sect Leader might not prevail.”
“Yet such concerns proved groundless.”
The Left Elder, who commanded the Omun—the Sun and Moon Divine Sect’s frontline martial force—first praised the Minor Sect Leader’s achievement.
The Blood Cloud Palace Master, responsible for transmitting martial techniques to the faithful, nodded in agreement.
Inwardly, the Sect Leader scoffed.
Fewer than half of those present had truly believed the Minor Sect Leader could win.
Even fewer had actually wished for his victory.
And he himself had harbored no such expectations either.
The Sect Leader recalled the recent succession of events surrounding the Minor Sect Leader.
‘I feigned weakness to reveal an opening to him, so the performance was indeed genuine.’
He had been deeply disappointed upon witnessing the Minor Sect Leader’s apparent frailty in recent days.
When told that such weakness was merely an act to deceive Song Mu Gyeong, he had initially harbored doubts.
Yet observing the Minor Sect Leader’s subsequent conduct suggested the claim held merit.
Moreover.
‘It displeased me. I wished to handle it myself from the beginning.’
The Sect Leader had been genuinely impressed by the Minor Sect Leader’s words spoken immediately after eliminating the fanatic Song Mu Gyeong, who had committed blasphemy against him.
Ruthlessness devoid of blood or tears, the persistence to eliminate a disciple while crafting justification that precluded all objection, and the brilliance of his stratagem—
The Sect Leader now believed his own judgment in elevating him to Minor Sect Leader at such an early stage had been vindicated.
“However, there remains a matter of concern.”
The Sect Leader’s reverie shattered at the words of Woo Sa Baek Ryung Hou, the eldest present and his uncle.
The Sect Leader recognized this statement as the crux of the matter.
“The Heavenly Demon Nature is a fearsome characteristic that defies control. The Minor Sect Leader has already revealed the blood radiance of the Heavenly Demon Nature on three confirmed occasions. Fortunately, he has not yet experienced a rampage, but…”
Once when slaying the assassin who threatened him at the Grand Sect Gathering, once when eliminating the traitor Song Sam-chong-gwan, and once when repelling the challenger at the Divine Demon Assembly.
The Heavenly Demon Nature, which proved the Sect Leader’s qualifications, earned the reverence of the faithful.
Yet Woo Sa, seasoned by experience, could not conceal his apprehension beneath his admiration.
Such an incident did not occur in that place….
But what if the Minor Sect Leader could not restrain Cheon Ma’s rampage and fell into madness?
“The concern lies ahead. The Minor Sect Leader has passed through the Divine Demon Assembly, and will soon face the next trial. If he cannot endure and suffers a seizure, it will bring great calamity. Moreover, considering the Minor Sect Leader’s naturally cruel and savage disposition, the worry is only deepened.”
The records of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect contained relevant documentation on this matter.
When one bearing Cheon Ma revealed crimson eyes, it signified that Cheon Ma had awakened.
It was possible to suppress it through killing or by regulating one’s qi through breathing techniques, but it was not an easy task.
If the crimson eyes persisted for approximately two hours, madness would inevitably take hold.
That madness would not subside until he slaughtered everything—himself and all around him.
The Left Elder, Woo Sa, and the Blood Cloud Palace Master waited for the Sect Leader’s words.
“Listen well, all of you.”
After a moment of silence, the Sect Leader finally spoke.
His voice carried a tone of reproach.
“Have you grown so accustomed to long years of peace that women’s thoughts now nest in your heads? If so, then from tomorrow, all of you shall dress in jeogori and skirts, and pin your hair with hairpins.”
“…!”
The sudden torrent of the Sect Leader’s rebuke and condemnation flushed the faces of all three men crimson.
The Sect Leader’s words continued.
“The Sect Leader of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect is a seat that calls for blood. Wherever the Minor Sect Leader treads, a storm of blood should always sweep through. Cheon Ma’s rampage? I would rather like to witness it once.”
“…My thinking was shallow.”
Woo Sa bowed his head.
“Hear me well. The reason I appointed my son Baek Yeon as Minor Sect Leader is not because he is my eldest, nor simply because he possesses Cheon Ma. There is but one reason….”
The Sect Leader declared with a gravity unlike any before.
“It is because he possesses the cruelest disposition I have ever known. To lead the forces of the Demonic Cult and subjugate the Martial Alliance, the Sect Leader must become a merciless tyrant. If that boy lacks such a disposition, he is utterly worthless.”
Those who knew well the bloodless and tearless nature of Sect Leader Baek Mu Myeong understood that his cold declaration toward his own flesh and blood was no exaggeration.
And all gathered here, save the Sect Leader himself, came to realize it simultaneously.
‘He has finally resolved himself.’
The unification of Tianxia under the Sun and Moon Divine Sect.
The Sect Leader’s plan for this had begun.
And upon the Minor Sect Leader, who possessed talent worthy of being called the greatest in the history of the Sun and Moon Divine Sect, the success or failure of that plan rested.

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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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