Chapter 94: The True Demon

The Sichuan Tang Clan began to reorganize its interior.

Upon hearing the story to prevent the war that would break out in Sichuan, Adept Heo Do showed enthusiasm to handle it directly, saying that the cooperation of the Emei Sect, one of the three great forces leading the orthodox factions in Sichuan, would be necessary.

Thanks to that, or perhaps because of it, Teacher Emerald Bamboo looked at me with sorrowful eyes, like a cow being dragged to a slaughterhouse.

‘Peace certainly does not come for free.’

…I pretended not to see. I realized once again that peace is a very expensive thing.

Taoist Cheongpung said he would return to the Qingcheng Sect and try to elicit the opinion of the leadership.

With my intervention, the position of the Sichuan Tang Clan became clear. If the Qingcheng Sect and the Emei Sect agree to that opinion, minor arguments will naturally subside on their own.

‘The unorthodox factions must also know that the Demonic Cult is involved in the current conflict, and if someone like Elder Baek voices their opinion from within, their leadership will also avoid war.’

If it were merely a confrontation between orthodox and unorthodox, a war could break out at any time, but in this conflict, the Demonic Cult is involved. The unorthodox factions cannot act rashly.

In the end, opinions to restrain themselves will arise even within the unorthodox factions, and an agreement between orthodox and unorthodox can be reached.

If the story flows this far, the Demonic Cult will not reap the benefits of a fisherman, but might instead be attacked on both sides by the orthodox and unorthodox.

Even if the orthodox and unorthodox do not ally, there is a high probability they will not just stand by and watch the Demonic Cult, which plotted the conspiracy.

The Demonic Cult will also gradually pull out from here.

‘If they think rationally, that is.’

The problem is that, looking at the behavior of the Demonic Cult bastards, they might try to pull another stunt…

‘Should I just march into the Demonic Cult, prove that I am the true direct line of the Heavenly Demon, and crush them all?’

Did Yi Hwa say that the current Heavenly Demon is only a half-baked one?

For a brief moment, a crazy thought crossed my mind.

The Heavenly Demon Yeon Cheong-un.

It was a terrible assumption.

“What are you thinking so hard about?”

Baek Mu-ho looked at me and tilted his head. The thought I had just now must have been clearly revealed on my face.

“Me? What?”

“No, you just had a face as if you chewed on a live bug.”

Suddenly, a strange dryness felt in my mouth.

It really felt like I had chewed on something.

“…Did you have to use that kind of comparison?”

“What can I do if you had that face?”

“Sigh…”

Only a sigh came out.

“But what are you worrying so much about? What we can do is already finished, isn’t it? The stage is set, so won’t the rest flow on its own?”

He was probably trying to say that I was looking for trouble. He wasn’t wrong.

With the giant factions moving in earnest, how much could we do?

At most, watching how the set stage flows would be all…

[Hmm. Is it fine if I do it this way?]

A voice that cut off my thoughts was heard. It was a voice I had never heard before.

‘Who is it?’

Moreover, it was a female voice. Unless one of my masters suddenly went through a severe voice change, or lost a precious part of his masculinity, it was definitely someone new.

[If you can hear my voice, will you roll up your sleeve slightly?]

She was certainly someone using the Meridian Mirror for the first time.

Since it wasn’t a difficult task, I rolled up my sleeve as instructed.

“Why all of a sudden? Are you trying to beat me up?”

Perhaps mistaking my action for trying to pick a fight, Baek Mu-ho hurriedly stepped back and grumbled.

“As if I would beat up a friend over something like…”

[You look delicious.]

“…that?”

“Why did you put a hook at the end of that?”

Baek Mu-ho growled, tensing up.

“Shut up. Be quiet for a second.”

I thought I just heard something.

What was it?

Delic… what?

[Ah, do not misunderstand. I did not mean it in a strange way.]

‘No matter how I think about it, it felt like words meant in a strange way.’

Is it a joke popular in heaven these days?

Or is it too high-level for me to understand?

Perhaps because my face hardened completely, a voice trying to clear up my misunderstanding came from heaven.

[I only said that because the way your veins stand out is beautiful. I only said it because I wanted to bite them until they bled, so do not think of my words as low harassment.]

“…”

I quickly pulled down my sleeve.

Oh my goodness.

To think there is a vein-lover in heaven who wants to bite pretty veins when she sees them!

“Did you eat something wrong?”

Thanks to that, Baek Mu-ho, who was highly on guard against me, narrowed his brows.

“…I wish that were the case.”

It seemed I would need a middle ground to converse with this person speaking to me right now.

‘So please, any master, come and translate!’

***

…Was what I thought at that time.

[It’s been a while.]

“…Yes!”

Thanks to Baek Mu-ho’s consideration—who thought my behavior was very bizarre, worriedly said I looked tired, and told me to go rest—I was able to converse with heaven without restraint.

That was good… it was really good…

As if responding to my wish for a translator, the person who suddenly popped up was none other than Master Heavenly Demon.

‘In many ways, this person is a bit uncomfortable.’

Though there was a feeling of becoming familiar occasionally, should I say his very existence is still uncomfortable?

Well, the fact that he is like the root of the main enemy that made me run around recently also probably played a part.

‘By the way, I thought the reason he stopped visiting recently was because of discord among the masters…’

Sending Yi Hwa to me, that is.

Honestly, when I heard that Yi Hwa had come to me under Master Heavenly Demon’s orders, I was surprised.

Though it was through an oracle, it meant there was another communication method besides the Meridian Mirror.

[Well, that’s how it turned out.]

As if reading my dilemma, Master Zhang Sanfeng spoke in a lukewarm voice.

Just hearing it, he was clearly displeased, but he didn’t check Master Heavenly Demon.

Did it mean the masters had reached an agreement in their own way?

‘Then as a disciple, I just have to accept it and eat well, right?’

So, let’s shut up and stay quiet about the matters between the masters.

Sure enough, the conversation proceeded on its own from above.

[Bian Que and Hua Tuo, whom I sent to the Underworld, found out something. A place called the Seonhwa Sect… Argh! Damn…!]

‘Did you bite your tongue while speaking?’

The way he suddenly cut off his words and spat out a curse was exactly like that.

Do masters like him also bite their tongues?

[Accursed causality.]

[Pfft!]

[…What is so funny, Zhang Sanfeng?]

[Because it’s funny? Honestly, seeing you struggle because of that level of causality is funny, isn’t it?]

[Sigh…]

It seemed the words Master Heavenly Demon was trying to bring out, the information, was of a lineage that required paying causality.

Since it was a fact found in the Underworld, it made sense.

“Is it because you sent Yi Hwa?”

[Yes. To send the child named Yi Hwa to you, he created a gap in the Divine-Sealing Great Barrier and directly intervened in the land. From your perspective, it might seem like he just sent a word, but the heavenly principles established by heaven strictly regulate such transcendental existences intervening in the land. To the point where someone of the Heavenly Demon’s caliber goes through such trouble. Well, although they say most of the consumed causality was used to create a gap in the Divine-Sealing Great Barrier.]

To think that Master Heavenly Demon, who was said to belong to the side with the most abundant causality among the masters, became like a beggar just to deliver a few words.

Moreover, he said he collected quite a bit of causality by selling items recently, which probably meant he threw all of it in.

It felt a bit fascinating, but on the other hand, another thought came to mind.

‘Then what on earth is this conversation…’

Does this conversation not go against the heavenly principles?

It was somewhat puzzling.

[Then, from here, it is my turn to step forward.]

Here she comes, the vein-lover!

[Hmm… It seems you do not like me very much.]

I flinched without realizing it the moment I heard her voice, and seeing that reaction, she spoke with a voice full of regret.

‘I am weak against this kind of thing…’

Moreover, hearing about causality, it didn’t seem like she could suddenly descend to the land and bite my arm just because she liked me.

So… oh, whatever.

*Swoosh! Swoosh!*

I rolled up my sleeve for her to see.

[Ho-ho-ho. What a cute child.]

As if my heart was conveyed, a laugh carrying warmth was heard.

‘It would be really great if that “cute” doesn’t refer to my veins.’

Needless to say, I didn’t do the foolish thing of uttering this inner thought.

[…Anyway.]

And the words that causality was needed followed.

[They say the martial artists of the Seonhwa Sect lamented their unjust deaths in the Underworld. They are appealing that the demons of the Demonic Cult invaded and tore off their face skins alive.]

“Their face skins…”

It was a horrific story.

Tearing off face skins while they were still alive. It was no wonder they lamented their unjust deaths even after going up to the Underworld.

[If you intend to make a human skin mask, it is in better condition if you tear it off while they are alive. It makes a higher quality one.]

‘Thank you for the kind explanation, Master Heavenly Demon.’

Even though it is a bit disgusting.

More than that.

“Which means the demons of the Demonic Cult are disguising themselves as the people of the Seonhwa Sect, is that it?”

[That would be the story. In a situation like this, what they aim for is obvious.]

“…The peace agreement between orthodox and unorthodox.”

Emotions scatter reason. If they pull a stunt under the name of the Seonhwa Sect at a time like this, the peace agreement could fall through.

Must they endure and pass it over even after suffering such a thing?

It becomes a checkmate.

It must be stopped.

[You should be able to stop it if you step forward. They seem to be roughly at the level of the guys who chased Yi Hwa.]

He must be talking about the mutes called Mute Commanders who chased Yi Hwa.

I recalled they were not to be ignored, but Master Heavenly Demon spoke of it lightly.

That wasn’t the problem, though.

“They are demons of the Demonic Cult, are you fine with this?”

[Those trash?]

“…”

Yes, those trash.

Wasn’t sending Yi Hwa to me for the sake of making me the Heavenly Demon?

I secretly thought that was the reason, but seeing him treat the demons of the Demonic Cult as trash, it felt a bit strange.

I should say I felt a sense of discrepancy.

[Hmph!]

As if reading my inner mind, Master Heavenly Demon snorted.

[Because there is God, there is Demon. Demon is both sides of God, and another face. What I left when I was on earth is the Way to reach such Demon.]

The origin of the beginning.

The divinity of the beginning.

Master Heavenly Demon’s words discussed something great.

[I discussed the great Demonic Way, I never discussed trivial evil deeds. What they pursue is unorthodox and evil. Evil is nothing but the residue born of human emotion. Those who follow such residue are not my followers. In the end, they are just using my name to run wild as they please. Why should I care about such bugs?]

‘Demon is a path to reach divinity, but evil is nothing but the residue born of human emotion?’

Master Heavenly Demon’s shout left a great ripple in the concepts I harbored.

[Kill them all. If you are the disciple who inherited my martial arts, it is what you should naturally do.]

The True Demon commanded to sweep away the trivial evil.