Chapter 391 - The Heavenly Demon Emperor (2)
Chapter 391: The Heavenly Demon Emperor (2)
A reputation that came after the breakup of the alliance with the Forces of Justice.
A reputation that was close to notoriety.
Threatening the emperor to change the state religion and kidnapping the leaders of the Forces of Justice after cutting down their arms, including Yeon Buso, who was thought to be the future of the Yulin.
Those were the things that the new Lord of the Demonic Cult had done.
What he did was completely different from what the previous Lords of the Demonic Cult had done.
This man, Chun Yeowun, seemed unstoppable.
“That young man over there is the Lord of Demonic Cult?”
“The Heavenly Demonic Emperor!”
“He doesn’t look that strong… huh!”
It was the first time for many to see Chun Yeowun’s face and there was one thing that shocked the Masters of the Blade God Six Martial clan.
No matter how much they looked at him, Chun Yeowun didn’t look like someone important or capable.
‘Huh, it hasn’t been that long, but he didn’t change much at all.’
6th leader Poong Chungwun looked at Chun Yeowun, whom he hadn’t seen in a long time. He was the one who could recognize Chun Yeowun’s face in an instant.
If there was anything that changed about Chun Yeowun, then it was the energy surrounding him.
If it could be expressed in terms of alcohol, then in the past he was close to turning into a strong wine and now he looks like a high-quality wine that would exude subtle fragrance.
‘In such a short amount of time he was able to grow so much?!’
Was it the position that changed him?
He looked more reliable and dignified than at the time when Poong Chungwun met him in the Demonic Cult.
It looked like Chun Yeowun was the same, yet different at the same time.
The Yulin members were surprised, but there was another person who couldn’t help but be surprised when he looked at the Lord of the Demonic Cult for the first time.
He was Gar Mojam, a member of the 18 River families, who attended the treaty as a representative for the Forces of Evil.
His expression hardened as he looked at Chun Yeowun. He couldn’t help but remember the words that were said about this Lord.
[He was a young man with a pure white face, Chun Yeowun, the leader of the Demonic Cult. Ah… he must be coming from the Ten Thousand Mountains, but seeing the Lord treat him so politely, it looks like Yang Danwa was someone of a high ranking position in the Demonic Cult.]
At that time, he had thought that Yang Danwa was the person who had to be caught.
However, seeing the Lord of Demonic Cult, who revealed his face from the mask, only one thing passed through his mind.
‘… Demonic Cult… Lord of the Demonic cult?’
It was a guess, but Gar Mojam was certain.
This man had to be the true culprit behind what happened, the one who beheaded his nephews, and disappeared right after killing them.
This man on the podium was Chun Yeowun, whom he vowed to kill once the civil war within the Forces of Evil subsided.
‘That bastarddddd!’
He couldn’t even express his anger through his mouth.
It was because of the absurd strength he had just displayed to everyone on the castle grounds.
Even if there was a slight chance of success, he would have rushed over to the podium and torn him to pieces.
‘Shit!’
While he was struggling, something passed through his mind.
[The Lord of the Demonic Cult killed my nephews.]
[…. have some debts to pay.]
[Give me the chance to repay the debt. When the treaty is over, confusion is sure to arise. If that’s the case, we already know who the Forces of Justice or those Blade Clan bastards will target, right?]
It was what he had discussed before leaving for the treaty.
The words of Hang Yen, the West Strong King.
In order to kill that monster, everyone had to work together.
Only then was there a possibility of taking him down.
‘Now that I look around, I am not the only one who wants to kill him.’
The expressions of the Forces of Justice and the Blade God Six Martial clan, who were all supposed to be stronger than the Forces of Evil, were stiff.
Even the 3rd leader Nam Gung-kyong, an extremist, was in deep thoughts.
‘Isn’t this situation like out of the frying pan into the fire?’ -¹*
At first, he was trying to use the power of the Blade God Six Martial clan.
He hoped that they, who had 12 Superior Masters behind them and 3 Supreme Masters in the beginning level, would be able to create a strategy to take down the Lord of Demonic Cult, Chun Yeowun.
But when he looked at the bomb on the ground, he realized that the Blade God Six Martial clan was a lot more dangerous than he made them out to be.
‘Did they intend to kill everyone in here?’
Bombs like that could get the task done.
He had been to the Imperial palace before when they were demonstrating the bomb and the explosive powers it held within it.
However, this bomb, which was in the castle, was three times larger than the Imperial palace bombs.
‘I shouldn’t use those men.’
Even the Forces of Evil, which were considered to be evil, would never take such actions.
However, it was safe to say that bombs were something that the people of Wulin would never ever touch.
With that alone, the Blade God Six Martial clan was very close to being the 1st faction that had to be destroyed.
‘Which of the two should I aim for first?’
After seeing the level of Chun Yeowun, Lord of the Demonic Cult, he was even more confused.
Looking at how he took control over the Air Swords, it looked like no one in the castle could stand up to Chun Yeowun, who was a Divine Master, in a one-on-one battle.
Even Yi Mok, one of the five strongest warriors of Wulin, didn’t seem to be an opponent.
‘Great Leader…’
It was very clear from the dark expression that Great Leader Yi Mok had.
He was at the crossroads of making a decision.
A situation that was difficult to decide on which side to aim for first to suffer the smallest losses from.
That was when he heard someone call him.
[Leader Nam Gung.]
He tried to see who was sending him a telepathic message, but the most shocking thing was the person who sent it.
It was the member of the Blade God Six Martial clan who had shown the Air Swords moments before.
He was shocked at the sudden contact from an unknown person, but the next message puzzled him even more.
[No, shouldn’t you be called the Leader of the Forces of Great Heaven (Name of their Extremist group)?]
‘Ah?’
Shockingly, that man from the Blade God Six Martial clan knew his true identity.
It was even more shocking when his true identity was brought up from the mouth of someone who was a part of the Six Masters of the Blade God Six Martial clan, whom he never met before.
‘How did he know about that?’
Just in case, he looked over at Dang Pil-soon, another member of the Forces of Great Heaven, but it seemed like Nam Gung was the only one who received the message.
That being said, this man from the Blade God Six Martial clan knew that Nam Gung Kyong was the leader of Forces of Great Heaven.
‘Terrifying information gathering. Could there be a spy among us too?’
While he didn’t respond, the Blade God Six Martial clan master kept on talking.
[I’m going to make a suggestion. As you have seen, that man there is of the Divine Master level, a monster who went beyond the level of human beings.]
That was one thing Nam Gung-kyong could agree with.
Even the Great leader of the Forces of Justice and Yulin, Yi Mok, a Supreme Master level and one of the five strongest warriors, was called a one-man army.
Just the Supreme Master level is difficult for anyone to touch, but if Chun Yeowun went higher than that, it meant that Chun Yeowun was close to being invincible.
The Blade God Six Martial clan was an enemy, but it felt like it was worth listening to him.
Hesitating for a moment or so, Nam Gung-kyong sent a message.
[What is your suggestion?]
[Here, when everyone is ready to fight their own battles, it would be better for the Forces of Great Heaven and us to join hands.]
[….]
[I even know about that thing you are hiding.]
After that comment, Nam Gung-kyong frowned.
It seemed like the Blade God Six Martial clan knew about their plan.
It was definite that there was a spy inside his organization, and that spy seemed to be in the top ranks for him to gather such information.
Fortunately, the contents of the plan were only known by him, who was the leader of the organization.
[Why don’t we form an alliance until we defeat him?]
Nam Gung-kyong’s eyes narrowed at the suggestion from Sword Master Lee Wook.
Yet, the proposal was, as expected, to form an alliance.
It meant to eliminate the common enemy first and then fight among themselves.
It was mutually beneficial, but he never thought that such an offer would be made.
‘So they fear the Lord of the Demonic Cult this much?’
Seeing that, Nam Gung-kyong couldn’t help but think that the Lord of Demonic Cult was indeed great.
It was nothing more than a temporary alliance, and the Sword Master of Blade God Six Martial clan, who just got overpowered by the Lord of the Demonic Cult, turned nervous enough to propose such an alliance.
If only this faction, the Blade God Six Martial clan, hadn’t been considered an evil force, they could have been considered as elite warriors.
‘… there isn’t much of a choice here.’
After pondering for a while, Nam Gung-kyong made a decision.
If the five strongest warriors were scared to move against Chun Yeowun, then it was better to join hands with the enemy and kill Chun Yeowun on the spot for the sake of the future.
It would be even more of a mess if everyone fought for themselves and ended up with more sacrifices on their side rather than the Demonic Cult.
As he was about to answer, he heard something startling.
[I have already reached an agreement with the representative of the Forces of Evil. Have you decided?]
‘Forces of Evil?’
These people were moving fast.
In a way, it would have been embarrassing to ask for help from others, but these people of the Blade God Six Martial clan seemed dead set on wanting to kill Chun Yeowun.
Chun Yeowun seemed to have made too many enemies.
[Understood. We will keep up the alliance until we kill the Lord of the Demonic Cult.]
[… we are running out of time, persuade the Great Leader of the Forces Of Justice.]
[I will.]
It felt like the Great Leader of the Forces of Justice, Yi Mok, would side with Nam Gung-kyong.
When his son’s severed arm was sent back, he displayed great anger.
Nam Gung-kyong seemed sure that there would be no objection to the fact that everyone should kill the Lord of the Demonic Cult, Chun Yeowun, first.
“Listen! Our enemy is here. It is Chun Yeowun, the Lord of the Demonic Cult, who destroyed the 18 River families in Yongho!”
Perhaps there was anger residing in him, Yellow River’s Gar Mojam was the first one who ordered his subordinates.
His subordinates didn’t know about the Yongho, and listening to that, they couldn’t contain their anger.
These people were feared in the Yellow River, some even considered them as scary as the 18 river families.
“Today we will soothe the souls of our fallen comrades with his blood! Follow me!”
Clang!
With that, Gar Mojam drew his Water Dragon Blade, and seventeen elite members with excellent skills pulled out their own respective weapons and shouted.
“Let’s soothe the souls of our fallen comrades with blood!!!”
It was to raise their morale.
They too knew that the Lord of the Demonic Cult, Chun Yeowun, was a monster.
Yet, they had to shake off the fear to deal with the enemy.
“Descendants of the Blade God! For the sake of our future, the Lord of the Demonic Cult has to be killed!”
As a response to Gar Mojam’s order, Sword Master Lee Wook shouted at the twelve masters who were behind him.
The members of the Blade God Six Martial clan shouted to boost their morale.
“Wahhhhhhhh!!!”
The atmosphere was set.
Almost all the people who were aiming for Chun Yeowun’s neck were elite warriors.
‘This momentum needs to be kept.’
Nam Gung-kyong hastily sent a telepathic message to Great Leader Yi Mok.
[Great Leader. This is a great opportunity. At this point, we need to take down the Lord of the Demonic…. Ah?]
However, something unexpected happened.
Tak!
Even before he could complete what he was saying, Great Leader Yi Mok went onto the podium and stood beside Chun Yeowun.
[Great Leader! Don’t tell me that you want to side with him…?]
Nam Gung-kyong was thinking that it was impossible for Yi Mok to go one-on-one with Chun Yeowun and was trying to plan something, so he didn’t even see what his Great Leader was doing.
‘No, what is that man doing!?’
There was another person who was climbing up onto the podium.
It was Poong Chungwun, the 6th leader, who walked up and stood beside the Great Leader.
“Let’s go!”
Nam Gung-kyong’s eyes widened at the voice of 7th leader Moyong Kang.
‘!?’
Not just Moyong Kang, even the other leaders who came to the treaty, slowly moved up the podium.
In addition to Poong Chungwun, Moyong kang and the 11th leader Hong Pilwoo and 13th leader Jegal’s head, Jegal Yonggi, stood next to Yi Mok.
That meant that all the leaders of the Forces of Justice except him had moved onto the podium.
“What is this?”
And that wasn’t it.
Rumble! Rumble!
About one hundred and forty heads of small factions of Yulin walked up and stood on the podium.
‘This?’
Embarrassingly, the remaining 100 people who didn’t move were the members of the Forces of the Great Heaven organization.
The way everything happened made it look like Yi Mok was siding with the Lord of the Demonic Cult.
No, it was more like he was in on the plan, like they were working together.
Confused, Nam Gung-kyong asked in a loud voice.
“Great Leader! What are you doing right now? You are not planning to work with the Lord of the Demonic Cult, right?”
The alliance was broken.
In addition, Yi Mok was the one who looked like he wanted to punish the Lord of the Demonic Cult with his own hands until a couple moments ago.
From Nam Gung-kyong‘s perspective, who completely trusted Yi Mok, this was like a blow to his head.
That was when the Great Leader spoke.
“Leader Nam Gung-kyong! How dare you plan to join hands with those people?!”
“!?”
Nam Gung-kyong’s eyes went wide.
Pointing to the Blade God Six Martial clan and calling him out like a spy, he couldn’t help but go speechless.
Although he was running the Forces of Great Heaven behind Yulin, it was his aim to seek true justice, but for him to be pushed away like this was unexpected.
‘Do they have differentiating opinions?’
Lee Wook, who had been waiting for a response, realized that something had gone wrong, looking at how the people of Yulin were climbing up the podium.
Lee Wook, who had watched what unfolded, shouted at the Great Leader of Forces of Justice.
“Great Leader of the Forces of Justice of Yulin! Are you siding with the Lord of the Demonic Cult? As far as I know, the alliance with the cult is broken, so isn’t this too much?”
It was his attempt to help out Nam Gung-kyong, who was in trouble.
Moreover, Lee Wook didn’t want Chun Yeowun to have any helpers on his side.
He didn’t want to see even a single possibility of someone helping Chun Yeowun.
‘… to get the help from a member of the Blade God Six Martial clan.’
Nam Gung-kyong’s expression crumbled.
It was a shame for the leader of the Forces of Great Heaven to get help from those who seek destruction.
However, if he couldn’t get back into the good graces of the Great Leader, then the situation in which he would be alienated would occur.
That was when Yi Mok looked at Lee Wook.
“I don’t think you should talk about such rightful things.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“Did you think that I wouldn’t know if you planted spies and tried deceiving me with that booklet?”
“!?”
This time, it was Lee Wook’s eyes which went wide at the unexpected words.
Shockingly, Yi Mook seemed to have known that the hidden booklet inside the fist of Yeon Buso’s severed arm was a fake one.
‘How did he know?’
Great Leader Yi Mok and his people had moved as Lee Wook had intended.
Not only did they break off the alliance with the Demonic Cult, but they even tried their very best to make sure that the people of the Demonic Cult didn’t come over to the treaty, so he thought everything was going as planned.
Looking at Yi Mok’s eyes, Lee Wook knew that the Great Leader knew the truth.
He opened his mouth as if to counter it.
“Yulin has been fighting the Demonic Cult for hundreds of years. Do you know what it means to hold their hands after such a long confrontation?”
“?”
“That is something that only a new faction, which recently stepped foot inside the Wulin, would say. You know nothing.”
“I know nothing?”
“I have been exchanging information with the Lord of the Demonic Cult for a while and not once have I ever heard or been reported that he called himself the Lord of the Demonic Cult.”
Sword Master Lee Wook couldn’t understand it.
Although he reviewed the booklet several times, he made sure that it was flawless.
‘… what is the problem with calling the Lord of the Demonic Cult as Lord of the Demonic Cult?’
However, the expression of Nam Gung-kyong crumbled as he mumbled.
“… Chun Ma… Chun Ma of the Sky Demon Order!!”
“Chun Ma of the Sky Demon Order?”
At those words, Chun Yeowun smiled.
The words ‘Demonic Cult’ were something that people who didn’t know about the Demonic Cult used in general terms.
The members of the Demonic Cult introduced their Lord as Chun Ma of the Sky Demon Order, but not as the Lord of the Demonic Cult, yet, Chun Yeowun had abbreviated himself as ‘Lord of the Demonic Cult’ in the booklet.
‘This…!’
It was only then that Lee Wook realized his mistake.
He got caught because of a few words that he used!
“Ha! To get caught by such a simple thing…”
It was weird.
It was something that most people would have ignored, but the insight of the Great Leader, who noticed the subtle difference, was even more shocking.
Clang!
Yi Mok pulled out his sword, Blade of Heavenly Peace, which was on his waist while looking at Lee Wook, aimed his sword in his direction and spoke.
“It was your mistake to not understand what you were writing.”
“Tch!”
It was said that when one fights for a long time, one would understand the enemy a lot better than the ally.
It was a fatal mistake that Lee Wook overlooked.
Editor Notes
¹* = Figure of speech. The phrase is used to describe the situation of moving or getting from a bad or difficult situation to a worse one, often as the result of trying to escape from the bad or difficult one.