Chapter 86
“Come to think of it, you possess a strength that does not match your age.”
“…”
Hearing his words, I could be certain.
‘This bastard doesn’t know who I am.’
Just as I don’t know about this guy called the Blood Demon Corpse King, he doesn’t know about me either.
“How did you know about me? Do you perhaps know about the other Elders as well? And those above them?”
The Blood Demon Corpse King looked at me and asked many questions, like a scholar who had discovered an unknown lifeform. And then…
“Or perhaps…”
Swoosh-.
“…!”
“…Are you a Cult member too?”
…He suddenly reached out, trying to touch my hand.
He was trying to sneakily find out if I possessed demonic energy, or what Martial Arts I had learned.
Swish-!
“What utter nonsense.”
Of course, I wasn’t the type to fall for such a shallow trick. I pulled my hand back in an instant and glared at him.
“Do I look like a madman? Why in the blazes would I be a Demonic Cult member? Even if I die a hundred times over, I’d never associate with you fanatics. And why is your tongue so long? Your visage is repulsive, so just say what you need to say and get lost.”
“Hoh…”
When I maintained my hostile attitude, the Blood Demon Corpse King tilted his head as if he couldn’t understand.
“Strange. Our Cult hasn’t done anything to earn resentment in the Central Plains for hundreds of years… Why do you reveal your anger so openly?”
“…”
Then, when I didn’t answer, he gave a rough nod as if he understood.
“It seems you don’t want to talk…I understand. Then shall we talk about our Imugi?”
“Spit it out.”
“…”
The Blood Demon Corpse King furrowed his brow for a moment, as if my tone annoyed him, but soon continued speaking.
“…Originally, that monster is Our Cult’s property. I captured it myself, and I was the one who entrusted it to the Moran Caravan Agency as cargo. You may be holding onto it for now, but it is a very precious item to us that we must absolutely get back.”
“Hmm…, and so?”
“…I would like you to return it quietly. If you do, Our Cult will not make an issue out of this incident.”
Sss-.
As he said that, the Blood Demon Corpse King subtly emitted his Aura. It was a terrible demonic energy…, one that made you feel sick just from the slightest contact.
A heavy pressure that made my breath stop for a moment. Anyone who had learned even a little bit of Martial Arts…, would have succumbed, unable to overcome the energy pressing down on them.
However…
“…Heh heh.”
“…”
…For some reason, only laughter came out of me.
Trying to make me submit with just this?
Thud.
I instead propped my feet up on the table and spoke with a relaxed smile.
“Are you a moron?”
“…What?”
“No, this half-wit bastard comes to a Bandit and tells him to give back stolen goods because they were originally his. Anyway, since you live holed up in the mountains like a coward, you have no concept of how the world works.”
“…”
The Blood Demon Corpse King’s face became expressionless. In contrast, my face brightened even more.
“That Imugi is a spoil of war that I obtained through legitimate looting. If you are vexed, you should have managed your property better. If you want it back, pay the price.”
“The price…”
The Blood Demon Corpse King muttered quietly with an expressionless face. He looked as if he was holding back his anger and calming his mind.
Thud.
Eventually, he took something out of his chest and placed it on the table. Looking closely, I saw it was… banknotes.
“It is the currency of the Central Plains. There are probably about 100 Gold Gwan.”
“Oh.”
I couldn’t believe he was trying to resolve this with money and conversation even after I provoked him and picked a fight like this. While marveling at his patience, I could grasp the Heavenly Demon Cult’s intentions.
“They are trying to avoid conflict as much as possible.”
There is nothing more enjoyable than teasing a guy who has no will to fight and delivering barbs one by one.
“100 Gwan is too little, isn’t it?”
“Of course, this isn’t the end. This is a down payment. If you hand the Imugi over to Our Cult…”
“If I hand it over…?”
Hearing the Blood Demon Corpse King’s next words, I flinched for a moment.
“I will pay an additional 500 Gold Gwan.”
“…”
Wait, did these bastards have this much money?
Then again, the Heavenly Demon Cult is a place with its own history and tradition. Since such a place had been holed up in the mountains for hundreds of years, it must have amassed a lot of wealth.
Even so, I didn’t expect them to offer a huge sum like 500 Gold Gwan all at once.
“These bastards…, how high will they go?”
“600 Gwan.”
“Understood.”
“700 Gwan.”
“I’ll accept that.”
“…1000 Gwan.”
“…”
When the unit reached a thousand, the Blood Demon Corpse King stopped speaking.
And soon after…
“Would that be enough?”
“…”
He showed his willingness to agree, as if even this was possible.
1000 Gold Gwan.
The amount I received from fencing the Shanxi Yu Family’s goods was 200 Gwan, and the price I received for helping Haomun was 200 Gwan, making a total of 400 Gwan.
And now, the Heavenly Demon Cult is offering more than double that amount as the price for the Imugi.
Just how many round-trip flights would the Imugi have to make to earn 1000 Gold Gwan?
…I can’t even fathom it.
Perhaps, if I had only looked at the visible profit, I would have sold the Imugi right here and now.
However…
“2000 Gwan.”
“…”
“No, that’s too little. 5000 Gwan.”
“…”
I had absolutely no intention of doing so.
It wasn’t simply because I had grown attached to Yongyong.
An Imugi on the verge of ascension.
It was an existence like a necessary sacrifice to fulfill their deepest desires.
I had absolutely no intention of just watching and letting them get what they wanted.
“Ah, just hand over the real estate of the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains to me. Then I’ll give you the Imugi.”
“…You bastard. You had no intention of negotiating in the first place.”
“You just figured that out? You witless cur.”
“…”
Usually, if someone acted like such a scoundrel, a normal person would draw their Sword.
But the Blood Demon Corpse King still maintained a calm expression and merely stared at me intently.
Then he took a sip of the water placed in front of him…, and muttered to me as if talking to himself.
“I thought…, you knew a lot about Our Cult…, but was I wrong?”
“…”
“Anyone who knows the power of Our Cult…, wouldn’t be able to utter such defiance… Could it be… that you’re deliberately acting tough to hide the fact that you’re scared out of your wits?”
The Blood Demon Corpse King’s expression as he said that was filled with confidence.
Befitting an elder of the Great Heavenly Demon Cult, he had a face that said he could wipe out a place like this Green Forest all by himself.
And I actually understood that confidence of his.
Taking over a place like Hunan Province, which was still nothing but a hick town, would be a piece of cake with his power.
However…
“I think the one acting tough is you, not me.”
“…”
…The situation is different right now.
Until the time comes…, they cannot make a move.
“It’s not time for you guys to make a move yet. Isn’t that right?”
“You bastard…”
“If you happen to leave even the slightest bit of damage on us, I will immediately report this to the Murim Alliance.”
“…!”
“No? I’ll spread it to All Corners of the World, not just the Murim Alliance, that the Demonic Cult bastards who have been keeping quiet for hundreds of years are actually this vicious, and that they are currently making War Preparations.”
“…”
In the first place, messing with the Kunlun Sect in Qinghai and drawing the attention of the Murim Alliance was a huge overreach for them.
If they happened to get the timing wrong, their hundreds of years of waiting would all be in vain.
So they must be holding their breath even more right now. That was the reason he was trying to reach a Peaceful Resolution no matter how much I acted up and ran my mouth.
“You don’t want to ruin your Demonic Cult’s hundreds of years of great work by your own hands, do you? If not, then take the hint and get lost. Lay even a single fingertip on the Imugi, and I’ll show you just how loose my lips can be.”
“…”
“Probably even the Beggar Bastards rolling around on the streets will come to know what kind of guys you are.”
You can’t hit me.
In reality, behind me is Haomun, which stretches across the world. If I set my mind to it, making it known that the Heavenly Demon Cult invaded the Hunan Green Forest would be a piece of cake.
He must have known that too, as he merely glared at me.
“…You have a very wicked tongue.”
“That’s because I was born in the Year of the Snake.”
“Hmm…, I see. The Year of the Snake…, you are young.”
The Blood Demon Corpse King looked off into the distance as if estimating my age, then maintained his gaze and continued speaking.
“It is a mystery how a young friend like you knows so much about the Cult, but… You are right. We are waiting for the time. We have been holding our breath since the time of my Grandmaster. And that time has not yet come. Thanks to that, an unwanted peace has continued for hundreds of years.”
As he said that, his eyes were filled with remorse.
“For someone like me, such peace could only be true torture, because I couldn’t obtain the corpses of masters. Of course, even so, I couldn’t dare to disobey Heaven's Command, so I merely endured and endured.”
With those words, the Blood Demon Corpse King deeply bowed his head. His figure seemed to contain a profound sense of regret and helplessness.
However…
“It’s hard listening to an old bastard talk. So what is it you want to say?”
“Heh…”
“…?”
…The moment he raised his head again, his face held a bright smile.
“Confound it. Why is he smiling?”
Naturally, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease at that smile.
“An order has come down from the Main Headquarters.”
“…”
“If a Peaceful Resolution to the problem proves impossible…, it is acceptable to use force.”
…Eh?
Hearing those words, I was the one who became dazed.
“I suppose it’s true that you have no intention of resolving this peacefully with me, right?”
On the contrary, the Blood Demon Corpse King’s expression was like that of a child about to play a game.