Absolute Regression
Chapter 74: Trust Your Gut
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TL: FoodieMonster007
"I've been looking for a strategist lately."
I met with Sama Myeong today to tell him just that.
"Am I not enough for you?"
I laughed at Sama Myeong's joke.
"Father and I are both greedy people, aren't we? Father would never share Strategist Sama with me. You know my father well, don't you?"
Sama Myeong deflected the question with a smile.
"That's why I came for your advice, Strategist. I wanted to ask what kind of strategist I should look for."
Sama Myeong fell silent, fiddling with his cup. He appeared calm, but his mind must have been racing.
He's probably sorting through everything right now. My reason for visiting, how much he should tell me, and how his words might affect him, our Cult, or the succession battle. I don't know the conditions for a good Strategist, but I know one thing from experience. A good strategist ultimately makes good choices.
Sama Myeong was a better strategist than anyone I knew, so he would surely give me a proper answer.
He drank another cup of wine. By the time I refilled it, he had finished his thoughts.
Sama Myeong looked at me meaningfully. "Haven't you already made up your mind?"
The question was significant. I could tell Sama Myeong already knew about the shackled man. He even knew that was the person I had in mind.
He was asking me, Are you thinking of that man from the Heavenly Wind Cult as your strategist?
It was obvious. Head Strategist Sama Myeong had to know about the shackled man who served as a strategist for the Heavenly Wind Cult.
I had been visiting the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's residence about a theft case. When I suddenly met with Sama Myeong to find a strategist, he naturally thought of the shackled man.
"There is someone I'm considering, but I'm not certain yet."
He would never answer a direct question, so I asked with my eyes.
My gaze asked, Would it be alright to make him my strategist?
Sama Myeong stared at me, holding back his answer. This was the most important moment of our meeting.
"Winning a person over is never certain. The result only comes after a long process. So for now, Second Young Lord, please trust your gut."
Trust my gut. It was ordinary advice that anyone could have given, but the advice had a different meaning now. He knew I had the shackled man in mind. Telling me to trust my gut was his way of advising me to accept him.
If the shackled man were a danger to our Cult, Sama Myeong would never have said this. It meant Sama Myeong acknowledged the man's abilities.
Sama Myeong was not my man, but he was loyal to our Cult. He wouldn't recommend just anyone when I might become the next Heavenly Demon.
"Yes, I'll trust my gut."
I raised my cup. Sama Myeong nodded once and then toasted vigorously.
Today, he had only told me to trust my gut. Whether my father or a Demon Supreme questioned him later, he was free from blame for recommending the shackled man to me. The same was true for me. I couldn't question his recommendation because he hadn't made one. Sama Myeong had only told me to trust my gut.
We drank for four hours. We talked about many things, but Sama Myeong never lost his composure or made a single slip of the tongue.
A few days passed. On the surface, nothing changed, but behind the scenes, the Demon Supremes were busy with schemes and political maneuvers.
And today, the fateful day finally arrived.
"The voting must be in full swing right now," Seo Daeryong said.
I nodded. "I suppose so."
The Demon Supremes were meeting now to decide the next Demon Supreme.
I didn't know if the Blood Heaven Blade Demon or the Flower Sword Supreme had persuaded the others. I didn't visit them to ask, and they didn't come to tell me.
"You're involved in this too, aren't you, Director?" Seo Daeryong asked.
I nodded obediently.
"You're my right-hand man. Aren't you upset that there's so much you don't know?"
"No, I'd rather not know, forever. I'll never get sulky about being excluded. So please, keep doing things without my knowledge. I'd be fine finding out you unified the murim from rumors the next day!"
"You've always been this funny. You were just pretending to be gloomy when we first met, weren't you?"
"Even I'm confused now about what kind of person I am."
"Being bright is good. She'll like that more too."
"……"
"I'm talking about that junior you like."
"You mean the one even I had forgotten about?"
Seo Daeryong nodded, giving up his denial. "Thanks to you, Director, we'll end up getting married."
"If you want that to happen, you need to eat first. Ask her out for a meal."
"What's the point of asking someone who's busy?"
"What does being busy have to do with eating? Things fail because you put that kind of pressure on them from the start. Just approach her as someone she can see often and comfortably."
I saw a slight sparkle in Seo Daeryong's eyes. "Does seeing her often change anything?"
"It does, but you can't become someone she's too comfortable with. This is the most important part. Don't let yourself look like a pushover!"
"How do I not look like a pushover? Should I put strength in my eyes?"
I sighed. "Good grief!"
Seo Daeryong quickly said, "It's a joke, a joke."
"It's sadder because I know it's not."
"I'm not that clueless."
I couldn't verify his claim. A subordinate rushed in to report the voting results.
"The results are in."
"What happened?"
"It was a draw."
"A draw? There are seven Demon Supremes. How could it be a draw?"
"One of the Demon Supremes abstained."
"Ah, so there was an abstention."
It wasn't public which Demon Supreme voted for whom. It seemed either the Blood Heaven Blade Demon or the Flower Sword Supreme only persuaded half of the others.
"So?"
"They've decided to settle it with a duel between the first disciple and the third disciple. It will be held tomorrow."
"So it comes to this in the end."
It wasn't intentional, but a duel would decide it. This was a good outcome for the Western Illusion Sanctum. No one would complain if the more skilled person became the Demon Supreme.
After the subordinate left, Seo Daeryong asked, "Who do you think will win?"
"Why do you ask?"
"I'm going to the marketplace to place a bet. A low-paid life like mine needs a turnaround like this."
"Bet your entire fortune on Cheong Seon!"
"Why the third disciple?"
"You're not betting on the third disciple. You're betting on the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader. To be precise, you're betting on his desperation. He won't let his disciple lose. Where are you going?"
"I'm going to mortgage my house!"
Seo Daeryong opened the door but stopped before leaving. "You're not going to stop me?"
"Because you wouldn't actually gamble anyway."
"How do you know?"
"Gamblers aim for a windfall. They don't think about changing their reality like you do."
Seo Daeryong grinned and closed the door. "I'm really going now. I'm going to eat with strength in my eyes."
I walked to the window. Martial artists hurried across the training grounds as twilight settled. The various organizations that heard the voting results would be watching tomorrow's outcome closely.
Cheong Seon winning is important, but the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme are more important to me. I couldn't have come this far without them. Thank you, Elders.
The duel took place the next day.
The seven Demon Supremes, their subordinates, and the shamans of the Western Illusion Sanctum gathered around the dueling stage. The confrontation was open to all, so the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader and I also took our seats. Father, however, did not attend.
The first disciple, Yang Do, and the third disciple, Cheong Seon, stepped onto the stage.
A roar erupted from the shamans of the Western Illusion Sanctum.
They were far weaker than the deceased Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme, but one of them would be the next to lead the Western Illusion Sanctum. The fate of the Western Illusion Sanctum depended on who won.
Would Yang Do, the established powerhouse, win? Or would Cheong Seon, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's student, win?
The odds favored Yang Do seven to three. Although Cheong Seon was the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's disciple, she had not trained for long.
Since neither Yang Do nor Cheong Seon knew the Spacetime Manipulation Technique, we could actually watch them fight. Otherwise, it would have been the blandest fight in the world. The two would have vanished, only to reappear after a victor was decided.
The two exchanged no polite greetings.
"You cowardly bitch. You sold out our Master."
"Bringing up our Master now is the real betrayal. You stupid Senior Brother."
The duel began with cold curses. They knew their lives and futures were on the line, so they showed no mercy and fought with every trick they knew.
Black smoke from Yang Do engulfed Cheong Seon, while her Soul-Seducing Art invaded Yang Do's mind. Ghostly wails filled the air as a haunted wind blew.
A black monster shot from the ground to drag its opponent down. A red hand emerged from thin air, trying to rip its opponent's head off.
Though it was a fight between disciples, it was fiercer and more powerful than expected. Everyone was surprised because they had expected so little.
KWAKWAKWAKWAKWANG!
The earth shook with a deafening roar. Thunder cracked from the clear sky.
The demonic practitioners watching despaired.
How in the world do you block those techniques?
Watching this fight, anyone could see why the orthodox sects considered the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme so troublesome. One uncounterable technique followed another.
Everyone held their breath.
No one looked down on them for throwing hidden weapons or rolling on the ground.
A black demon leaped out to block incoming hidden weapons. Ghostly energy flowed from their hands even as they rolled on the ground. Blood that melted the earth surged forward, and a heat haze tried to tear off an opponent's arms.
They used every method available in a desperate, brutal fight. It wouldn't have been strange if one had bitten out the other's throat. The demonic practitioners watching were swept up in the passion of it all.
And at a certain moment!
The ghostly wails that had filled the air suddenly stopped.
The gray smoke swirling madly around them cleared, revealing them standing face to face.
Everyone could tell the fight was over, but it was not yet clear who had won.
Yang Do spoke first. "That last technique?"
"The finishing demonic qi I learned from my new Master."
"I've known since we were young… that you were this kind of bitch."
"Then you must know well that I'll become a greater Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme than our late Master."
Cheong Seon left him standing there and walked toward the gathered shamans. She spoke in a sharp, clear voice.
"And so, our Western Illusion Sanctum will become the greatest of the Eight Demonic Factions!"
The moment her words ended…
"……"
Blood fountained from Yang Do's mouth, nose, and ears. The first disciple collapsed, every blood vessel in his body severed.
A momentary silence fell. No one had expected Cheong Seon to kill the first disciple so cruelly. Then, a roar shook the very ground.
WAAAAAAAH!
Cheong Seon walked slowly to where the seven Demon Supremes sat. She offered a polite clasped hands greeting. "Greetings, I am Cheong Seon."
Those who had chosen her smiled. Those who had not were stiff.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon rose from his seat and shouted for the others. "A new master of the Western Illusion Sanctum has been born!"
Everyone roared at his cry.
It was the moment a new Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme was born.
Cheong Seon looked at the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader and gave him a polite clasped hands greeting.
Next, she looked at me and greeted me.
She did not, however, even glance in Sa Woojong's direction.
Sa Woojong looked very disappointed. He had clearly hoped for at least a secret, fleeting glance. At some point, his life had stopped going the way he wanted.
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