Chapter 321: Our Cult Does Not Permit It

TL: FoodieMonster007

I waited in a remote forest on the outskirts for the martial artist Go Wol had sent from the Hidden Moon.

Once the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader and I decided to move, no one could monitor us.

Unless the Illusion King moved personally, tracking our movements would require someone with the stealth and movement arts of Uncle Hwi, Father's bodyguard. A person with such skills was incredibly rare.

"Cult Leader, as you said, if Elder Seong is a man of deep faith, he must have been forced to step down from his position."

"Did that disciple of yours pressure him and drive him out?"

"That's highly likely. He might have desperately opposed the plan to unify the Outer Regions."

And now Elder Seong was missing.

"Do you think Jo Baekta killed Elder Seong?"

I answered honestly. "There's a possibility."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's gaze turned cold.

"If he did… I will not forgive that bastard."

I said nothing. This was an issue between the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader and his disciple, so his will was what mattered.

Just then, a man arrived.

The man introduced himself as Hwang. He was the Hidden Moon's person in charge of the Outer Regions.

His gait alone told me his martial arts and movement arts were extraordinary.

Despite his skill, he looked ordinary. This was a characteristic of the Hidden Moon's active martial artists. They were so plain they would never stand out in a crowd.

"I've brought the information you requested. Elder Seong asked us to look into a certain smithy."

"Where is it?"

Hwang mentioned an unexpected place.

"It's the New Champions Smithy."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader tilted his head.

"The New Champions Smithy? Was there such a place?"

He had never heard of the New Champions Smithy in the Outer Regions.

"It hasn't been around for long and isn't very large, so you probably wouldn't know of it," Hwang explained.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader nodded. He likely assumed that since he didn't know about it, I wouldn't either, but I knew about the New Champions Smithy.

In my life before returning, the New Champions Smithy had another name.

The number one smithy in the Central Plains.

Back when Hwa Mugi and the Twelve Zodiac Kings dominated the murim, the New Champions Smithy was the most famous smithy in the Central Plains. It was the best, controlling hundreds of regional smithies and supplying weapons to most major sects. They amassed enormous wealth selling weapons.

So this is where the New Champions Smithy began!

I had thought the New Champions Smithy had no connection to Hwa Mugi or the Twelve Zodiac Kings.

But seeing them appear now, it was clear they were connected.

"This is unexpected. I thought Elder Seong would have been investigating the Grand Sun Sect or the Black Sand Gang."

In terms of power, the Heavenly Wind Cult was like the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the Grand Sun Sect was like the Murim Alliance, and the Black Sand Gang was like the Evil Alliance. When Jo Baekta said he would unify the Outer Regions, he meant to strike the Grand Sun Sect and the Black Sand Gang and bring them to their knees.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader had naturally expected an investigation related to them, so his confusion about a smithy he had never heard of was understandable.

"Do you happen to know why he requested an investigation into the New Champions Smithy?"

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader asked just in case, but the answer was what we expected.

"We couldn't find out the reason. Here is the information he took with him."

"Thank you."

Hwang left immediately.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader and I stood there and read the documents about the New Champions Smithy together. The information was varied. It included personal details of the Chief and his workers, detailed records of weapon production and supply, and even a layout of the buildings.

"That disciple of mine's plan to start a war must be connected to the New Champions Smithy. Elder Seong must have realized this and commissioned the Hidden Moon to investigate."

"I think so too. Elder Seong ran out while looking at these documents. Something must have caught his attention."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader shook his head as he read.

"I absolutely hate numbers."

A large portion of the data was numerical. How much was produced, how much was earned, how much was spent.

Just then, something strange caught my eye.

"Look at this. This is the amount of iron purchased last year. It's ten times more than the year before."

"I see."

"And this is the amount of weaponry they sold last year."

"Compared to the iron they bought, they didn't sell that many weapons. The difference is too large, isn't it?"

"But they purchased even more iron this year. They must have had a lot of stock left over."

"It's certainly suspicious."

We looked at each other, nodded, and immediately shot off toward the New Champions Smithy.

Before visiting the New Champions Smithy, we bought veiled bamboo hats to cover our faces. We decided to pose as customers.

"It's larger than I thought."

"According to the documents, they bought land near the smithy last year and expanded."

Numerous carts loaded with goods moved back and forth. The sounds of hammering iron and working bellows came from all directions.

A guide greeted us.

"How may I help you?"

"We've come to buy swords."

"There are many types for different swordsmanship styles."

"The finest quality swords."

"Please follow me."

The man guided us somewhere. I followed him and surveyed our surroundings. Coming as a customer allowed us to look around openly.

In every building, muscular, bare-chested men frantically forged weapons.

At a glance, nothing seemed suspicious. It looked like an ordinary smithy.

We entered the place the man led us to, where various swords were on display.

"Please, take your time and look around."

After examining the swords, I asked the man, "Don't you have anything better than these?"

"We have premium quality items, but they're very expensive."

"Let's see them."

"Please wait a moment."

A moment later, a muscular young man entered, not the previous guide.

"I am Hojyung."

Hojyung. This man was also in the information from the Hidden Moon. Since the Chief rarely showed himself, Hojyung effectively ran the smithy. We came as customers specifically to meet him.

"You wish to see our premium items?"

He opened a box he had brought and handed me a sword.

I drew the sword and examined it. It wasn't a famed or treasured sword, but it was very well-made for an ordinary one.

"Give me twelve of these."

"Twelve of them?" Hojyung was startled.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader next to me also looked at me in surprise.

"You're not really going to buy them, are you?"

"I am. We've come a long way, and they're working hard. I'm buying a sword for each of the bodyguards."

"Buy them with your own money!"

"Of course."

Seeing a potential big customer, Hojyung asked cautiously, "Excuse me, but may I ask where you are from?"

I tapped the veil on my bamboo hat, signaling that I didn't want to reveal my identity.

"My apologies. It seems this is your first time doing business with us, so I was discourteous."

As someone who dealt with many martial artists, Hojyung's words and actions were very polite.

"Someone introduced me."

"Who was it?"

"Elder Seong of the Heavenly Wind Cult."

When I mentioned Elder Seong, I carefully observed Hojyung's expression.

"Ah, I see. He is a very respectable man."

He showed no sign of being flustered. I felt that Hojyung, at least, had nothing to do with Elder Seong's disappearance. Was Elder Seong even missing? It would be a relief if he had gone into hiding voluntarily.

"Then you'll be taking the swords with you directly."

"That's right."

"Understood. Please wait a moment."

Hojyung went inside to prepare the swords.

I left the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader there and quickly went outside. The Hidden Moon's information included a layout of the buildings, so I moved without hesitation.

I encountered people along the way, but they didn't notice me.

I had completely mastered the Shadow Step. It made them blind to my presence and guided me deep into the smithy.

I moved between the various buildings, using the Swift Step, the Shadow Step, and the Vanishing Step.

A large building stood in the most secluded corner. The sound of metal striking metal came from within.

I could feel martial artists hiding around it. The iron-tight security suggested this was where the Chief forged swords. This alone showed it was no ordinary smithy.

Can they truly detect my Shadow Step, which has reached complete mastery?

I didn't test that today. I wasn't looking for the Chief. I was looking for the iron they had purchased. All that iron had to be stored somewhere, but I couldn't find where it was kept.

Could they have secretly forged everything and sent it somewhere else?

But the smithy was too small for that.

Just then, I saw a vacant lot overgrown with weeds.

According to the Hidden Moon's documents, this was the land they had bought last year. They had bought it while actively planning something. Why buy it just to leave it neglected?

I released dozens of strands of qi to survey the area and check for anyone hiding.

Then, I felt something from the ground of the vacant lot. I first thought it was a hidden person, but it wasn't.

All of my qi focused on that spot.

"The swords are ready."

Hojyung brought twelve swords, well-packaged in leather and tucked into a long satchel.

Only the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader was in the room.

"Where did the other gentleman go?"

"He felt a bit stuffy and went out for some fresh air."

"I'll go get him."

Hojyung was about to go outside, but the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader stopped him.

"First, let's settle the payment for the swords."

He held Hojyung back to buy time, but he was inwardly suspicious.

No way. Did the Young Cult Leader calculate this far? That I would buy time by paying? Yes, that ruthless and greedy Young Cult Leader is more than capable of it. Go Wol, oh, Go Wol. I came all the way to the Outer Regions just to get ripped off.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader paid the price.

He took out the money as slowly as possible, counting it two or three times to confirm.

When the payment was finished and Geom Mugeuk still hadn't returned, Hojyung went outside.

Geom Mugeuk had returned at some point and was stretching in front of the building.

"The swords are all ready."

Only after we landed far from the New Champions Smithy did I tell the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader what I had found.

"I found out where that iron is."

"Where was it?"

"There was a secret workshop underground. They were making weapons there."

By releasing my qi, I had discovered a large underground space. I could feel constant, minute vibrations and noise coming from it.

"The scale was enormous."

"So they were preparing for war there."

A war required a massive amount of supplies.

But more important than supplies was keeping the preparations secret from the enemy. Jo Baekta had joined hands with the New Champions Smithy to secretly prepare war materials. More precisely, the Illusion King must have connected the two of them.

"There must be a considerable amount of supplies stockpiled there."

"What will you do now?"

"I need to meet with Jo Baekta."

The moment to finally meet him alone had come.

"What for?"

"He revealed his plan to you, Cult Leader, which means he expected the information to reach me. If so, he must have something to say to me. He's shown one card, so I need to see what other cards he's holding."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader gave a meaningful smile. He was probably thinking, My disciple has finally met his match.

"Oh, and this is the money for the swords. Please take it."

"It's fine. Consider it my gift to the young ones."

"Are you going to regret it again later?"

"If I'm going to hold this over your head for a long time, I have to be the one to pay."

I gave him the satchel with the swords.

"Then please give it to them yourself. The bodyguards will be thrilled if you give it to them, Cult Leader. I'll be going to the Cult Leader's hall."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader took the satchel.

"While I take the credit, you go show him the true power of the next wave."

When I entered the Cult Leader's hall to meet Jo Baekta, he was drawing a pattern on his face in front of a bronze mirror.

"Young Cult Leader, please wait a moment."

Jo Baekta greeted me from the reflection.

"Take your time."

I walked up behind him and watched as he created unique lines, unlike any in the world.

"Our Cult has three patterns. The Gyohwa symbolizes our Cult, the Cheonhwa is for war, and the Punghwa is drawn upon death. The pattern I'm drawing now is the Cheonhwa, for heading into battle."

Indeed, its colors and shape were intense. The one I saw on the first day was the Gyohwa. Now I was seeing the Cheonhwa.

"What do you think? Would you like to try drawing one?"

"I'll pass. You must not have heard the rumors about me. I'm a pacifist, you see."

In the bronze mirror's reflection, Jo Baekta looked at me with a faint smile.

"You seem to be quite timid."

"Isn't it the timid who start wars?"

Jo Baekta's hand flinched and paused for a moment before he resumed drawing.

"Be wary of cowards. You never know what they might do."

I asked him in a calm tone, "You must have known that telling the Cult Leader meant it would reach my ears. Why did you reveal it?"

"Because the Master I remember was not one to speak of our Cult's important matters to others."

"The Master would probably say the same. The you that the Master remembers was not a disciple who would commit such a nonsensical act."

He laughed in the reflection.

"What's the real reason for all this?"

"I did it to get your permission. After all, if we're to wage war, we need your permission, whether it's explicit or tacit, don't we? If we just went ahead, you could use it as a pretext to strike us. You're more than capable of doing that, aren't you?"

Finally, Jo Baekta completed the Cheonhwa on his face and turned around.

"Permit our war."

I could tell from his confident eyes. He would start the war even if I didn't permit it.

What has made you so agitated? What has filled you with such confidence? What has deluded you into thinking the sandstorms of the Outer Regions cannot be pierced by the blades of our Cult?

"Very well. I will state our official position."

To see his hand, I would have to push him hard.

I spoke to him in a cold, authoritative tone.

"Our Cult does not permit your war."

An unreadable heat flared in Jo Baekta's eyes.

I threw cold water on that heat.

"So go wash your face and erase it all."