Chapter 140
It took quite a lot of time to get to Anhui, but the way back was quick.
We had come on our own two feet, but this time we were comfortably riding on Yongyong’s head.
“I guess it feels like we stayed quite a long time because we went through so much.”
The actual time we stayed in Anhui was just a little over a week, but perhaps because of all the things we experienced, I had the illusion that we had stayed for a long time.
As I was absently gazing at the outskirts of Anhui Province growing distant and turning into a dot, the Haomun Leader approached and spoke to me.
“Great Hero.”
“Oh, yeah. Haomun Leader.”
She looked as if she had something to ask me, so I had her sit next to me.
After sitting beside me, she hesitated for a moment before opening her mouth.
“Um…, Great Hero.”
“Yeah, feel free to ask.”
“Do you intend to join forces with the Murim Alliance, Great Hero?”
“…”
I could immediately tell her intention behind the question.
She was on good terms with us, but strictly speaking, she was not affiliated with the Green Forest.
Haomun was several times, no, dozens of times larger in scale than the Green Forest. And she was the Leader of that Haomun.
No matter how loosely connected Haomun’s organizational structure was, she had many people to Take Responsibility for.
From her perspective, this situation where we might potentially ally with the Murim Alliance couldn’t help but be concerning.
I grinned at the Haomun Leader as if telling her not to worry.
“Don’t worry. I have no intention of joining hands with them.”
When the war breaks out, my Sword will never point at the Murim Alliance. However…, I will never entrust my back to the Murim Alliance either.
It is simply a relationship of using what can be used and helping where help is needed.
That was the relationship I wanted with the Murim Alliance.
Perhaps catching on to my intention, the Haomun Leader quickly nodded.
“If that’s the case, I am relieved.”
And…
“What about Haomun?”
“…Pardon?”
…Taking this conversation as an opportunity, I asked her seriously.
“I have no intention of joining hands with the Murim Alliance. But Haomun is an exception. What about you guys? Are you going to go with us?”
“…”
Until now, our cooperation has continued with the feeling of Haomun repaying the debt it owed me.
But it would be different from now on.
From now on, events that would stake the fate of each Sect would follow one after another.
In such crucial matters, it wouldn’t be right to simply bring up debts of gratitude and grudges.
Right now, I am sincerely asking her. Would Haomun join hands with the Green Forest and go to the end?
“It must be hard to decide.”
Usually, the faster someone is at calculating, the longer they agonize over weighing this and that. I thought it would take the Haomun Leader quite some time to deliberate as well.
However…
“Of course. Haomun will go with you to the end, Great Hero.”
“…What?”
…She answered so quickly that it put my thoughts to shame.
It was an attitude that showed she hadn’t agonized over it at all.
Surprised by this, I asked her with a blank expression for a moment.
“…Why? Is it because you like me?”
Is she offering up Haomun entirely just to seduce me?
“Or is it because we’re both from the Unorthodox Faction?”
From Haomun’s standpoint, joining hands with the Murim Alliance would be a bit Burdensome, so is it saying it’ll go with us since we’re in the same Unorthodox Faction? No, a group like Haomun should be able to Survive on its own.
Various thoughts popped into my head, making it complicated, but the Haomun Leader just grinned.
“It is neither because of my romantic feelings for you, Great Hero, nor simply because we are of the same Unorthodox Faction.”
“…Then?”
“It’s a feeling that if we are with you, Great Hero, our Haomun will not only Survive but also be able to develop further.”
“A feeling…”
Is it okay to simply follow a feeling for a crucial matter that decides the Sect’s path?
When I tilted my head, she answered in a Serious voice.
“I tend to trust my feelings quite a bit. Do you remember the day we first met?”
I couldn’t possibly forget. Cheongwolru in Sichuan.
And the Haomun Leader who had approached me pretending to be an Ordinary House Mistress.
“…At that time, my feeling told me to catch this man. And because I trusted my feeling then, I received your grace, Great Hero, and was able to escape from the fiend, my father.”
“…”
“And this time as well, my feeling is telling me, to follow you unconditionally, Great Hero.”
The Haomun Leader bowed her head to me with eyes that held not a single ounce of falsehood.
“I will speak on behalf of Haomun. Haomun and I will follow you until our lives end, Great Hero. So please, lead Haomun and me to the very end.”
“…”
Haomun does not hesitate to bow their heads or lower themselves, because that is their way of surviving.
But even taking that into account, her attitude right now was excessive. Just what did she see in me to go this far?
‘I’m not that amazing a person.’
Such anxiety crept in. However, before that anxiety could settle, this thought came first.
I wanted to reward this woman, who believed in me without a doubt, for her trust.
At this, I instead grinned as if full of confidence and reached out my hand to her.
“Alright, Haomun Leader. You made a good choice. I’ll make sure you never regret it.”
“Great Hero…”
“Let’s go to the end of this World together and live luxuriously in the end.”
“…Yes.”
Grab.
She looked shy for a moment before grasping my hand in return.
And starting with that, the Green Forest and Haomun formed an Alliance rather than a simple cooperation.
* * *
“Haomun Leader, the war will definitely break out within a few years. So…”
“Yes, I will do so.”
I trust her. The Green Forest and Haomun had also decided To Cooperate more deeply…
I shared information with her and gave her a few instructions, and she followed my words without complaint.
“Alright, then let’s have Haomun do just that.”
“Yes, understood.”
After finishing such a close conversation between the Haomun Leader and me…
“Great Hero…, I have one more thing I’m curious about.”
“What is it?”
…She pointed at the Sword at my waist and asked.
“…What is the identity of that Sword? It’s not the one you originally used, and it doesn’t seem like an Ordinary item…”
“Oh, this?”
Come to think of it, I hadn’t explained this, had I?
“The name of this Sword is the Heavenly Demon Sword. It’s the sacred artifact of the Demonic Cult.”
“…Pardon?”
As soon as she heard my answer, she freaked out.
“The s-sacred artifact of the Demonic Cult? If so…!”
It made sense; what was a sacred artifact? It wasn’t a simple object, but something that contained the history and spirit of a Sect, considered perhaps even more important to that Sect than life itself.
In the original work, before formally declaring the Righteous-Demonic War, the Demonic Cult Bastards would seize their sacred artifact, the Heavenly Demon Sword, and use it as a symbol to start the war.
Now, if I were holding this, what did that mean?
“If they find out we have this, we will draw the constant attention of the Demonic Cult…?”
“…Correct.”
…If I kept this, I would inevitably draw the Demonic Cult’s hostility.
I ended up taking it by chance, but this Heavenly Demon Sword was a considerably dangerous item.
I lightly stroked the blade of the Heavenly Demon Sword with my hand and said.
“…It’s fine. Once we arrive in Hunan, I’ll dispose of it myself.”
“…For someone saying it’s fine, you look incredibly regretful.”
…Honestly, it was a shame.
I, who had only used a Saber, finally found a Sword that fit perfectly in my hand after a long time, but of all things, it had to be the Demonic Cult’s sacred artifact…
Still, well…, considering it would draw the Demonic Cult’s hostility, disposing of it was the right answer.
“Great Hero…, a moment of greed could ruin everything entirely.”
“…I know.”
Seeing my regretful eyes, the Haomun Leader pressed me. At this, I nodded once more.
“Leader.”
Then, this time, Dongryong-i approached, saying he had a question. His eyes were full of anxiety.
“Yeah, Dongryong-a.”
“Didn’t you tell the Murim Alliance Bastards to bring the Gongcheongseokyu in the end, Leader?”
Gongcheongseokyu.
The Supreme Elixir was the Winning Prize of the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering. Originally, I had planned to win the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering and obtain it, but I couldn’t because the Demonic Cult Bastards intruded midway.
“So, as a second-best option, I told the Murim Alliance Bastards to bring it as a condition if they wanted to negotiate with us.”
“Yeah, what about the Gongcheongseokyu?”
“The Murim Alliance Bastards won’t break their promise, right? Without it, Bang Sam-i’s Dantian will…”
It seemed Dongryong-i was worried about that.
I patted Dongryong-i’s shoulder to reassure him.
“Dongryong-a, you saw how weak they are. But despite being weak, they have a lot of money. They’ll probably think one Gongcheongseokyu is a cheap price to pay to talk with us.”
If those guys had any brains, they wouldn’t want to create a two-front war. They would definitely come looking for us.
“So don’t worry and let’s wait, Dongryong-a.”
“If you say so, Leader, I Understand.”
I had never told Dongryong-i anything wrong. Knowing this well, Dongryong-i also lost his anxious expression and nodded.
“By the way, Leader.”
“Hmm?”
“What is that at your waist, Leader? That doesn’t look like an Ordinary item either…?”
Dongryong-i pointed at the small gourd bottle hanging next to the Sword at my waist and asked.
At this, I grinned and answered.
“Oh, this?”
* * *
“Halt for a moment.”
After leaving Anhui and completely shaking off the Pursuit Squad, the Demonic Cult party stopped on the road.
“Oh, Little Heaven. Are you alright? Can you regain your senses?”
It was to check the physical condition of Deputy Cult Leader Cheon Ye-Seo.
The Grand Elder carefully laid Cheon Ye-Seo, whom he had been holding in his arms, on the ground as if handling a treasure, and examined her condition with his one remaining arm.
“Ugh…, ugh…”
“…”
Groaning in pain, she was arguably in her worst physical condition.
There was concern that she might lose her life while halfway to the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
‘…This won’t do.’
Eventually, the Grand Elder made a decision and spoke to her.
“Deputy Cult Leader. Even if it’s dangerous, you must consume the Gongcheongseokyu now.”
The Gongcheongseokyu they had taken along with the Heavenly Demon Sword was present.
Although consuming it could potentially lead to Qi Deviation when her consciousness was unclear, the Grand Elder judged that this was the only way to recover her body.
“I will help you with Circulating Qi. Hurry, the Gongcheongseokyu.”
“Ugh…”
However…
“…?”
…No matter how much he searched her robes, the Gongcheongseokyu could not be found on her.
“Where…, is this…”
“Grand Elder, we must go.”
“Understood…”
As there was a delay, it couldn’t be helped.
The Grand Elder could only pray that she would hold on until they arrived at the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains, and he had no choice but to set off on the road.
* * *
When I stole the Heavenly Demon Sword, I was able to obtain this gourd bottle that was next to it.
And I could quickly guess its identity.
‘It’s the same thing I saw last time.’
Even when I first encountered her a few years ago, she used to hang medicines all over her body like this.
“It was something like a Tonic.”
Because she was congenitally weak, she used to carry around things like tonics that could momentarily give her energy.
As soon as I figured this out, I put it in my pocket for the time being.
Not only did it have the effect of weakening her combat power, but I also planned to drink it myself if push came to shove.
“Ah, I’m tired right now anyway. Should I just drink it?”
Since it was something carried around by a bitch who cared terribly about her own body, its effects were bound to be amazing.
So, without hesitation, I popped the stopper off the gourd bottle and…
“What? Why is it empty? No, there’s only one drop…Huh?”
…I flinched at the sweet fragrance emitted by the single drop of white liquid inside the gourd bottle.