Chapter 79: Chapter 79
One of the men most favored to become the next Young Cult Leader.
He had come to the First Small Palace.
And he had brought his entire force with him.
“Should I break down the door?”
The gaunt, snake-like man right behind him was his adjutant, Jo Yang-ak.
“No need. They’re coming out.”
Mu Han-seong grinned and jerked his chin forward.
Then, Creeeak!
The doors of the First Small Palace opened, and the emotionless killing spirits of the Black Fire Guards poured out like spreading ink.
And through the path they formed, a man with a flawless visage, as noble and solitary as a black heron, walked out.
The First Young Master, Cheon Mu-gi. It was him.
Though it was a meeting between brothers, it was worlds apart from when Maeng Hwi and Mao had met.
As if a dragon and a tiger were crossing paths, bloodthirsty auras surged from both sides.
A moment later, the two young masters stood face to face at a natural frontline formed by their mutual wariness.
The adjutants stood at attention behind and to the right of their masters, ready to strike at any moment, glaring and sizing each other up.
It was truly a hair-trigger situation. Just as the tension reached its peak…
The two young masters spoke.
“If you came because you missed me, you shouldn’t be so shy. You could have just come inside. I’m not so heartless as to turn away a brother who visited in person.”
“Why would I bother when you’d crawl out on your own if I called? Besides, I hate setting foot in such a gloomy, stuffy house.”
“You must be feeling impatient. But even so, don’t let it show on the surface like this. Your enemies will see it as a weakness and look down on you.”
“Save your lectures for the Third Young Lady or the youngest. Looks like you got played properly this time. You’re the one looking ridiculous, brother.”
“Did it look that way?”
“Yeah. Why? Are you mad? Then let’s fight.”
FWOOSH.
It was a bone-chilling clash of auras. The surrounding air was already so sharp it could tear falling leaves to shreds, and both sides had their weapons in hand.
At this level, a single dropped coin would be enough to spark a bloodbath.
However, faced with the endlessly calm demeanor of the First Young Master, the Second Young Master, Mu Han-seong, quickly deflated.
“Tch. You never have any fun.”
He waved his hand backward. It was an order for his men to fall back and block anyone, not even a rat, from getting close while the two of them talked.
At that, the adjutant and the Hundred Strange Brigade backed off, forming a semicircle perimeter far away from them.
“Show’s over. Piss off.”
Bothering the passing cultists was just a bonus.
“Stand down.”
Cheon Mu-gi also watched this and ordered the Phantom Demon Lord to fall back.
The Black Fire Guards immediately leaped onto the walls, drawing their swords and taking defensive positions.
Unlike the rowdy Hundred Strange Brigade, their movements radiated discipline and authority.
Of course, to Mu Han-seong, it was just bullshit military discipline.
“You’re so full of yourself just because it’s your house.”
“Just tell me why you’re here.”
“Why ask when you already know? What are you going to do? It’s a total mess everywhere.”
Mu Han-seong scowled deeply. The reason for his visit was obvious. The notices plastered all over Cheonsan were the cause.
“The Hundred Commander’s Seal? Has Father lost his mind? How could he give that to the little bastard? And that same bastard hands it right over to the Third Young Lady without any pride? This is a joke. Isn’t it?”
“Watch your mouth.”
“Did I say anything wrong? It was baffling enough when he took in that spineless youngest bastard, and it was infuriating how he only doted on the Third Young Lady. Now they’re openly colluding? What else is this?”
“I will pretend I didn’t hear your disloyalty toward Father. But if you run your mouth one more time, you’d better be prepared.”
“Acting like a filial son while secretly enjoying this. I know your game. So, what are we going to do?”
The two of them were inherently the fiercest rivals. They got along worse than anyone else.
But when the Third Young Lady was involved, it was a different story.
There was an implicit agreement to take her down first, and then settle the score between themselves.
“You know the Mad Dragon Hall is already shaking because of that bastard Narak lately. If we drag our feet, they’ll fill their hundred spots in a flash. You get me?”
“Then you should have managed them better. You were born with nothing, and besides the Five Dragon Halls’ support, you don’t have much to brag about.”
“This is my fault? You’re the one who threw a fit about the Three Great Noble Houses when I tried to go after the youngest first, which caused this whole mess.”
“Hmm…”
Cheon Mu-gi let out a shallow hum. It wasn’t an incorrect statement.
He hadn’t touched Mao, Maeng Hwi, and Maeng Won-won in the first place because he hadn’t felt the need to antagonize the Ma and Maeng families while securing the Elder Council’s support.
“Understood. Then let’s do this.”
After a brief deliberation, Cheon Mu-gi nodded and made a gentle proposition.
“I will convey my intentions to the Elder Council and separately summon the division commanders to order them not to participate in the recruitment.”
“Will that be enough?”
“Hmm… Still, just in case, how about you go to the Third Small Palace and persuade anyone who shows up to turn back?”
Was that what he wanted to say all along? Mu Han-seong replied with an incredulous expression.
“You want me to be the scapegoat for this mess when everyone is watching?”
“But knowing your personality, just sitting around doing nothing wouldn’t sit well with you either, would it?”
Hah. Mu Han-seong bared his teeth in a wide grin.
He ran a hand through his lion-like mane and spoke.
“But if I just leave quietly, I’d look like a fool. I’m not an idiot, you know. Right?”
He didn’t say he wouldn’t go. Well, that was exactly like him.
Cheon Mu-gi raised the corner of his mouth slightly and asked the main question.
“What do you want?”
A smirk tugged at Mu Han-seong’s lips.
“I heard. They’re offering a traveling allowance just for participating if you’re a current Five Dragon Hall member. To appease the guys who show up and send them back, I need to have something to offer them, don’t I? It’s not like I have a prestigious family backing me up like someone.”
“So you’re asking for money? Are you a bandit?”
“It’s only natural to pay the price if you want to employ a servant. To hire someone like me, you’ll have to empty a granary. Hand over one of the merchant guilds run by the Cheon Family.”
Cheon Mu-gi’s eyes turned cold. His expression was exactly the same as before, but his gaze was different. It showed just how absurd he found the proposal.
But.
“Hmm.”
Cheon Mu-gi quickly masked it, letting out a nonchalant hum. He nodded and readily accepted the offer.
“As an older brother, I have no reason not to take care of my lacking younger brother.”
Cheon Mu-gi had taken a step back. Surprisingly, it was Mu Han-seong who was caught off guard.
‘What? He’s permitting this so easily? This bastard. He must be really desperate.’
Otherwise, an offer thrown out so randomly wouldn’t have been accepted so easily.
“However, if you take over a guild managed by the Cheon Family, the timing would be too coincidental and might look bad… So I will make a separate request to Elder Ma.”
“Ma Family, Cheon Family. What do I care? Do as you please. Since I even got an allowance from my brother, I have to do as you say. Leave the Third Small Palace to me. I won’t let a single stray ant in.”
Mu Han-seong thumped his chest, completely exposing his good mood.
Cheon Mu-gi maintained a composed expression, inwardly mocking him.
‘How foolish. The reason a nobody like you rose to that position isn’t because you’re exceptionally outstanding. It’s because of your tendency to never compromise with the older generation and go your own way. To the ignorant masses, your simple-mindedness and ignorance occasionally disguise themselves as hegemony.’
But for a man like that to take money from the Ma Family, and to oppress their youngest?
What would happen then?
It would be great prey for the rumor-mongers who love to find flaws.
And for some, the facade surrounding the Second Young Master would be stripped away, leaving only disappointment.
There was no need to destroy him completely. Just creating a single crack would be more than enough.
“Give my regards to the Third Young Lady.”
“I don’t know if she’ll swallow it, but I’ll try.”
The two men laughed simultaneously. With this, the deal was struck.
Now, the recruitment at the Third Small Palace would absolutely never succeed.
“Oh, right. The youngest. If you let him off the hook again this time, it’ll just spoil the kid.”
Mu Han-seong paused mid-step as he turned to leave, smirking as he spoke.
“I’ll discipline him appropriately.”
Discipline, my ass. That’s just a polite way of saying he’ll kill the kid.
Mu Han-seong resumed his walk. His destination was the Celestial Isle’s Third Small Palace.
He would likely spend some cozy time with his sister for a while.
And…
“Summon all the division commanders to the First Small Palace.”
“Command received!”
Cheon Mu-gi also turned back toward his estate.
A victor’s smile draped across his lips.
‘Sa Hae-ryeong. Whatever you’ve schemed, it won’t go your way. Never.’
However, there was one thing even Cheon Mu-gi, who was manipulating the situation from behind the scenes, didn’t know…
The situation itself was entirely a board set by Jang I-seo, and he was now enthusiastically stepping right into it.
* * *
– Wolha Village, Seventh Small Palace.
A few days had passed since they returned to the Seventh Small Palace.
In the pale, blue-tinted hours before dawn, Jang I-seo sat cross-legged in meditation for the first time in a while.
The air carrying the morning dew drifted in through the open window, accompanied by a refreshing breeze.
His mind grew tranquil. It felt as though the wrinkles on his face were smoothing out.
It was so satisfying that the saying ‘suffering begins once you leave home’ came to mind.
Truthfully, this was his first time sinking into such peaceful meditation since his encounter with the Heavenly Demon.
He had been busy plotting to weave Cheon Mu-gi into his schemes the moment he returned.
Today was a rare day with time to spare.
And Jang I-seo had been secretly waiting for this moment.
The reason was clear.
He had successfully sealed one of the nine holes in his dantian, the congenital curse he never expected to cure in his lifetime.
‘Demonic qi no longer leaks out. It’s safe to say the risk of dropping dead without reason has completely vanished.’
It was a tremendous opportunity.
To think that stepping into the Heavenly Demon Palace by chance would bring about such a miracle.
Furthermore.
‘There are still impurities left in my acupoints, but I have definitely entered the initial stage of the absolute realm.’
This was his greatest triumph.
He had shattered the wall of the first-rate realm that he thought he would never overcome in his lifetime, ascending to the absolute realm.
Just how incredible was this?
Put simply, if a first-rate expert was simply a warrior who was exceptionally skilled with a sword, the absolute realm was the domain of monsters who could emit internal energy and exert superhuman strength.
Depending on how it was utilized, the difference was earth-shattering.
Things he understood intellectually but couldn’t execute because his body couldn’t keep up were now possible.
Of course…
‘I won’t be able to advance past the initial stage until I seal more holes. My internal energy won’t accumulate any further than this.’
Wanting more than this would be greedy. Hadn’t he barely managed to seal it by receiving pure demonic qi from the Heavenly Demon, like a miracle?
Moreover, the Heavenly Demon’s qi adhered to only a single pathway, making it impossible to split and send through two.
In short, sealing the Nine-Orifice Body was finished. It meant there was no other way to grow stronger.
And the Heavenly Demon likely thought the same.
‘He saw my limits. That’s why he taught me the Heavenly Demon Divine Art despite me not being his official successor. Because I’m no longer a threat to the Demonic Cult.’