Chapter 278: Are You Nervous Seeing the Number One Beauty of Hubei After So Long?

TL: FoodieMonster007

I went to the residence of the Fist Demon and the Blood Heaven Blade Demon. The Blood Heaven Blade Demon was reading a book.

"What book are you reading all the way out here?"

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon answered without lifting his head.

"Since you won't let me go home, I have to read here."

"Where did you get that book?"

"It seems there's a library for the Branch martial artists."

Would martial artists even read books? The Blood Heaven Blade Demon was the type to find something to read even in a token library. He truly loved books.

"Stop reading that. Read this first."

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon finally closed his book and looked up.

"A messenger pigeon came from the Murim Alliance Chairman's granddaughter."

"Why his granddaughter?"

"She sent an invitation to a prodigy gathering and a request for help. It's undoubtedly related to this incident."

"So they're starting to show a reaction."

The Blood Heaven Blade Demon had advised me to respond based on their reaction. Word came from an unexpected person.

I surmised that whoever connected the Heavenly Peace Sect Leader and Jin Hagun was now pressuring Jin Hagun because of the recent failure. Jin Haryong must want to see me because a problem has arisen for her Orabeoni, Jin Hagun.

The Fist Demon asked, "What are you going to do?"

"A friend is asking for help, so I have to go."

The Fist Demon's expression turned serious.

"You must be cautious about going to the Murim Alliance."

Contacting them before was different. Now that I was the Young Cult Leader, my actions could become the Cult's official stance.

"I'll move with caution."

The Fist Demon said firmly, "We'll go with you."

He spoke without asking the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's opinion. They had clearly already decided to move with me until this matter was over.

"If you two attend, the entire Murim Alliance will go on high alert. You're the ones who put our Cult's Hunan Branch on high alert, after all."

The two Demon Supremes smiled faintly. They must have also found the Hunan Branch high alert incident amusing. The Poison King or the Drunken Demon might have been able to attend the banquet with me, but these two had to move without being noticed.

"Please stay at the nearest Murim Alliance safehouse. If I need help, I'll send word immediately."

Just as the two Demon Supremes nodded, Cheokyeon arrived. He reported that someone was here. An unexpected messenger pigeon was followed by an unexpected visitor. Coincidentally, both were women.

"Martial Artist Lee has arrived."

Lee Ahn entered the Hunan Branch. She wore a mask and a different martial arts uniform than usual. All the Branch martial artists stopped and stared at her.

Her beauty shone through the mask, but the qi she exuded was even more extraordinary. Her very gait projected the aura of a master, overwhelming ordinary martial artists. She wore a black martial arts uniform and a black mask. The words 'the Ghost Shadows' were embroidered in white on the mask.

Green Mask followed behind her with about ten martial artists. They all wore the same attire, and every one of them exuded an extraordinary aura.

"Lee Ahn!"

Lee Ahn looked over at my call. Normally, she would have run to me shouting, "Young Master!" But conscious of the eyes around her, she walked slowly instead.

[You got a new martial arts uniform? It looks great!]

Lee Ahn quickly replied to my telepathy.

[Don't talk to me! I'm going to give a cool greeting.]

[Right now, you're moving the arm and leg on the same side.]

[Stop it! Don't tease me! This is my first formal greeting to the Young Master, so I'm going to do it coolly.]

She walked up to me and offered a polite clasped hands greeting.

"We greet the Young Cult Leader."

[Such pretense!]

[Endure it!]

The martial artists with her lined up behind her.

"We greet the Young Cult Leader."

After their resounding greeting, Lee Ahn introduced them.

"This is the first squad of the Ghost Shadow Squad."

Green Mask stepped forward and greeted me.

"I'm Green Mask, the Division Leader of the first squad. I offer my formal greetings to the Young Cult Leader."

The first squad of the Ghost Shadow Squad was finally complete. Green Mask still wore his blue mask, but his eyes looked incredibly trustworthy. He was a man who had turned down a Demon Supreme position to be a Division Leader. I believed his first squad would be superior to any other in the murim.

"It's only the first squad for now, but it'll gradually expand."

I could feel Lee Ahn's pride. Green Mask added his loyalty.

"We only carry out the Young Cult Leader's orders."

"Any order?"

"Yes, that's correct."

"What would you do if I ordered you to go and kill the Murim Alliance Chairman right now?"

It was a suicide mission, but Green Mask answered without hesitation.

"We'll carry out the order immediately."

"What if Father gives an order? And what if that order conflicts with mine?"

Green Mask was flustered for a moment but soon answered calmly.

"We only follow the Young Cult Leader's orders."

"I appreciate your loyalty, but I make an exception for Father's orders. Consider Father's orders as my own and follow them. Understood?"

"Yes, I understand!"

I patted Green Mask's shoulder, feeling a deep trust.

"I'll be counting on you from now on."

"I will serve you with all my loyalty."

I made my real request through telepathy.

[Take good care of your Captain, more so than me.]

Green Mask answered with his eyes. His gaze was more trustworthy than any words.

I walked past Green Mask to stand before the first squad members. They were all young. Since Lee Ahn and Green Mask had carefully selected them, I knew I could trust them. As I passed, each member removed their mask and stated their name.

I made eye contact with each of them, then spoke.

"There's something I always tell your Captains. Cherish yourselves the most. Live for your own happiness."

Their expressions showed they had heard this before. Lee Ahn must have told them about me.

I asked one of the Ghost Shadow Squad martial artists, "Do you know why it was named the Ghost Shadow Squad?"

"I heard it was named with the will to become the Young Cult Leader's shadow."

"Yes, that's right. You are my shadows."

I felt Cheokyeon tense up behind me. The Ghost Shadow Squad's aura was no less than that of the bodyguards. Calling them 'my shadow' must have sparked a strange rivalry.

He probably considers himself and his men to be the shadows.

I pretended not to notice and continued speaking to the Ghost Shadow Squad.

"It'd be strange if the main body is happy but the shadow is unhappy, right? So don't make me a bad guy. Make sure the shadow is happier than the main body. I believe this organization will only get stronger when you're happy. Now, repeat after me. We will become happy shadows!"

"We will become happy shadows."

The first squad members looked awkward as they repeated the words. They might have heard I was a peculiar Young Cult Leader, but they probably never expected to repeat such a chant.

Happiness. The word had never been emphasized in any Demonic Cult organization before. It probably didn't exist in the orthodox or unorthodox sects either.

Just then, Lee Ahn cut in.

"But you all know that his words don't mean you should become cowards, right?"

"Of course!" they answered resoundingly.

"You've worked hard coming here. Cheokyeon, provide the Ghost Shadow Squad with food and rooms. Captain, come see me for a moment."

After the Ghost Shadow Squad went to rest, Lee Ahn and I walked through the flower garden.

"How did you get here?"

"I heard you were here, so I stopped by on my way back to our Cult. It was on the way."

"You didn't just come to show off your first squad members?"

"Was it that obvious?" she laughed awkwardly.

She had rushed straight here just to show them off.

"I wanted to show them to you first, Young Master. How are they? My subordinates."

I paused, wondering how to tease the tense girl, but she beat me to it.

"That's a relief. Thank you for saying I chose well."

"I didn't say anything, though?"

"I can tell you're just thinking of how to tease me. If I'd messed up, you wouldn't even be thinking about it."

Lee Ahn was too quick-witted. I offered sincere congratulations instead of teasing her.

"Yes, they all looked fine. You worked hard selecting them."

Lee Ahn beamed. That one sentence seemed to reward all her past hardships.

"How have you been?"

"Traveling through the Central Plains, I realized I'd been living in a well. I also felt how truly important experience is."

"In that sense, let's go have one more experience together. The invitation arrived the day you got here. It must be fate that we go together."

The messenger pigeon from Jin Haryong arrived the same day as Lee Ahn. I thought it was fate telling me to have these two brilliant women meet. I believed the meeting would help them both grow.

There was another reason, too.

I recalled my conversation with Jin Haryong.

[Do you have a girl back home? A girl you like?]

[There's a woman prettier than you.]

[Prettier than me? Then the credibility of your words just plummeted.]

[You're the number one beauty of Hubei, right? She's the world number one beauty.]

[You have to show me next time, that world number one beauty!]

I had planned to introduce them if the opportunity arose. Now, it finally had.

"Who sent the invitation?"

I smiled faintly. "The person who made my credibility plummet."

Jin Haryong held the gathering as usual.

Prodigies made all sorts of efforts to participate. One had to stand out in their region just to receive an invitation. The gathering's biggest advantage was building connections with children from other sects. Just getting noticed by Jin Haryong made the event meaningful.

The young prodigies secretly dreamed of marrying Jin Haryong. Most were the best and brightest in their own towns, so they dreamed big. She was the Murim Alliance Chairman's granddaughter, the number one beauty of Hubei, and an outstanding martial artist. As a marriage partner, she was the best in the orthodox sects murim.

Of course, they realized it was an unattainable dream once they met Jin Haryong in person. She led the gathering excellently but never revealed personal feelings. Especially after the last Young Dragon Tournament, she allowed no openings.

"Is something wrong? You seem tense."

Jin Haryong's bodyguard, Chu Ho, asked with concern. She seemed particularly tense today.

"I'm fine."

She didn't necessarily expect Geom Mugeuk to come. Their statuses were now clearly different. Coming to the Murim Alliance was a great risk, so he was more likely to stay away.

Nevertheless, she felt a baseless expectation. For some reason, it felt like Geom Mugeuk would come. He was the kind of man who inspired that.

Meanwhile, people gathered in the banquet hall. They exchanged greetings, all trying hard to make themselves known.

She peeked from behind the curtain, but Geom Mugeuk was nowhere to be seen.

Is he not coming?

She put aside her disappointment and hurt pride. Her Orabeoni desperately needed him.

"It's time for you to go out."

At Chu Ho's words, she composed herself. Her expression was completely different as she went outside. When she appeared, everyone clapped and cheered. First-time attendees were greatly impressed by the number one beauty of Hubei.

Usually, she would start by thanking the esteemed martial artists for coming.

"Welcome, my friends."

She started with a joke. Laughter erupted, and the atmosphere immediately lightened.

"When my grandfather starts a speech, no one can even blink, no matter how boring it is, right? Well, it's okay to doze off now."

Laughter followed again. Jin Haryong wasn't originally so easygoing, but she had changed after meeting Geom Mugeuk. She was trying to change, though even she didn't know why.

"You must have heard some unusual news lately. News from the Demonic Cult, and news from the Evil Alliance."

Everyone's expression stiffened at the mention of the Demonic Cult and the Evil Alliance. Most were children of prestigious families and had heard rumors about the heirs. The rumors about the Demonic Cult's heir were especially incredible.

"Those rumors tell us why we must gather and unite. A person more formidable than any heir in history has appeared. Our grandfathers and parents won't be the ones to face him. We are."

A heavy silence fell over the hall.

Jin Haryong paused her speech and looked around at them. The young martial artists had to awaken. They had to genuinely change to face him.

At that very moment, Jin Haryong's eyes met someone's among the prodigies.

She startled the moment she saw him.

When on earth did he come in?

Geom Mugeuk stood among the crowd, smiling.

Ah! He came!

A surge of gladness welled up inside her. His eyes were unchanged. They were still clear, deep, and pure, yet looked like they could play a prank at any moment.

She was grateful. When she asked for help, he hadn't refused. He, the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult, now stood alone among the orthodox sects. All because she had asked him to come.

She stared at Geom Mugeuk and continued her speech.

"The Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult in the rumors is no ordinary person. They say he's stronger, smarter, and braver than anyone else, and he even keeps his promises well, right?"

Geom Mugeuk's smile deepened.

"So we too must get our acts together and build our skills. If we let our guard down, the sword of the Demonic Cult's Young Cult Leader will one day pierce our hearts. So let's all join forces and strive! For the peace of the murim! There's no time to doze off."

The prodigies cheered enthusiastically.

In the noisy hall, the two of them just gazed at each other.

After her speech, Jin Haryong immediately met Geom Mugeuk in the rear garden.

"You really came."

"We agreed to be friends, didn't we?"

"It's just awkward seeing you after so long."

"You can be comfortable. I came as a friend."

Seeing Geom Mugeuk up close, Jin Haryong felt needlessly nervous. With her Orabeoni's problem weighing on her, all sorts of thoughts crossed her mind.

He really came as a friend, right? Could I be getting deceived by this man?

Gratitude and fear mixed within her. She tried to ease her tension with a playful remark.

"So, are you nervous seeing the number one beauty of Hubei after so long?"

"Well, I'm someone who sees the world's number one beauty all the time."

"Bragging again?"

"I thought you'd say that, so I brought her."

"Then let's see her, that world number one beauty."

Until that moment, Jin Haryong thought Geom Mugeuk was joking.

Geom Mugeuk turned his head. In the distance, Lee Ahn stepped out from behind a building. Jin Haryong was startled, realizing he had really come with a woman.

Lee Ahn emerged from the building's shadow and walked slowly toward them.