Chapter 425: Come Here and Have a Drink

TL: FoodieMonster007

Lee Ahn and Han Seol went to the Ice Palace. They were there today for a special reason.

"I apologize for imposing," Lee Ahn said, bowing respectfully to the Ice Empress. "The Young Cult Leader strictly ordered that I must not leave the Empress's chambers."

"The Young Cult Leader has already been here," the Ice Empress replied.

Before departing the palace, Geom Mugeuk had already made a request, that Lee Ahn and Han Seol be looked after while they stayed together for a while. If it had been any other enemy, he would have let Lee Ahn move with them to gain experience.

He did not, however, for the Blood King. Even if Lee Ahn had achieved complete mastery of the Soaring Sky Sword Art, he would have still kept her confined to the Empress's chambers.

The Ice Empress did not consider it an imposition at all. It concerned the safety of her daughter and the Ice Palace, and it was a request made out of trust in her.

There had, however, been a small dispute before she accepted the request.

[Are you not underestimating the Ice Palace?]

His words sounded as if he were telling even her to hide within the Empress's chambers.

[If it were an ordinary enemy, I would have left it to the Empress and already departed the North Sea. But these individuals use the Self Destruction Art without hesitation. There will be great sacrifices.]

[Even so, they are enemies targeting this palace, so we must deal with them.]

Of course, besides the Ice Empress, there were many masters in the Ice Palace. If they stepped forward, it would be a great force, but it would also entail many sacrifices.

[They are not enemies, but monsters. And we are good at catching monsters.]

To the still-hesitant Ice Empress, Geom Mugeuk added one final persuasion.

[Let the demons catch the monsters.]

How could she refuse a request made as he humbled himself, a demon? Grateful, she was curious about one thing.

[Why are you helping us to this extent?]

Because they are Hwa Mugi's subordinates.

[Because I was treated to good wine.]

Following Geom Mugeuk's request, the Ice Empress had all the martial artists around the Drunken Demon's residence withdraw. She considered any defense an unnecessary sacrifice if the Blood King was moving personally.

Recalling her brief conversation with Geom Mugeuk, the Ice Empress looked at Lee Ahn. She was standing by the window, looking outside. She had been a woman who strangely drew her in from the first time they met.

"Your name is Lee Ahn, isn't it?" the Ice Empress asked.

Lee Ahn, who had been gazing out the window, turned to the Ice Empress and replied respectfully, "Yes, that's right."

"The Young Cult Leader seems to care for you deeply," the Ice Empress observed.

"He's always been a very affectionate person," Lee Ahn said.

"An affectionate Young Cult Leader, you say."

"You're watching the birth of a new Heavenly Demon Divine Cult."

Lee Ahn said it like a joke, but the Ice Empress took it seriously. After all, he was the Young Cult Leader who had restored her relationship with her daughter.

Perhaps as time passes, she will recall this day. That she saw the Heavenly Demon when he was still the Young Cult Leader.

Han Seol asked, "What was the Young Cult Leader like when he was younger?"

The Ice Empress looked at her daughter. It was the first time she had seen her show interest in someone. She had never been curious about others before. Indeed, thanks to Geom Mugeuk, she was experiencing many new things.

Lee Ahn hesitated for a moment before answering Han Seol's question. He hadn't always been like that. He was a good person, but not this good. Not until the day Geom Mugeuk suddenly changed, as if hatching from an egg, the day the succession tournament took place.

From the moment he returned after finishing the duel, Geom Mugeuk changed. On that day, Geom Mugeuk said this, "From today onwards, I will live a new life."

He truly kept his word. Geom Mugeuk changed, and that change transformed everyone around him. Herself, the Demon Supremes, and even the Heavenly Demon.

She recounted what Geom Mugeuk had said that day. "The Young Cult Leader believes people don't change little by little. He believes they change drastically when there's a turning point."

That's why she also tried to change. To become an exception to the saying, 'People never change.'

"He matured and changed a lot," Lee Ahn said.

As she replied with a smile, something caught Lee Ahn's eye. Far outside the window, red smoke was rising. It felt ominous, undoubtedly a signal.

"Ah! Smoke is rising over there too!" she exclaimed.

As if responding to that smoke like a beacon, another plume of smoke began to rise far away in the opposite direction.

"I'll raise your monthly salary next month," the Innkeeper said.

The Cook, in the kitchen, smiled faintly at the Innkeeper's words. He was a mute, but acquiring this Cook was the greatest fortune in the Innkeeper's life. The food tasted excellent. He had no major complaints about his treatment. He never capriciously threatened to quit. He simply cooked silently in the kitchen.

Just then, a guest remarked, "Looks like there's a fire? Look at that smoke."

"Why is the smoke so red?" another guest asked. "Shouldn't black smoke rise if there's a fire?"

The Innkeeper and the guest looked at the smoke rising in the distance.

Suddenly, someone shouted, "Oh, my goodness, you startled me!"

The Innkeeper turned his head, startled. The Cook, who had emerged silently without anyone noticing, was also looking at the smoke. He had never once left the kitchen during business hours.

"It seems a fire broke out somewhere over there," the Innkeeper said.

The Cook replied, "It's not a fire."

Both the Innkeeper and the guest were startled by the Cook's words. It was surprising enough that the Cook had left the kitchen, but it was the first time they had seen him speak like this.

"You can speak?" the Innkeeper asked.

The man who spoke felt completely different from his usual self.

"It's a signal from our master, calling us."

"What?" The Innkeeper's eyes widened in confusion, wondering what he meant.

THWACK!

The Cook's hand pierced the Innkeeper's heart.

"You don't need to raise my monthly salary," he stated.

The guest who was with them screamed and fled. As the Cook waved his hand, the fleeing guest's body was torn apart, spewing blood as he collapsed.

The Cook smiled as he looked down at the blood flowing from his hand and arm. He inhaled, sniffing the scent of blood, then walked outside, his hand still dripping blood. As he recited an incantation, red smoke began to rise even from the blood that had fallen from his hand onto the ground.

It was smoke to awaken someone else.

The Drunken Demon was sitting on a wooden platform in the courtyard, drinking wine. Dozens of wine bottles were scattered around him, along with a large wine jar. He was clearly determined to drink. It wasn't the same wine. He was drinking dozens of different types of wine from the North Sea.

The Drunken Demon took a sip from one wine, then another. Each time, he evaluated the wine.

This wine is light, that's good. This wine is strong, that's good. This wine is sweet, that's good. This wine is bitter, that's good.

He evaluated every wine not by what was bad about it, but by what was good.

Then he looked up at the wall and asked, "Care for a drink?"

A man was standing on the wall, looking down at him, having arrived without a sound.

He was the Blood King. He, who had been naked, now wore a red martial arts uniform. The strong scent of blood revealed his identity.

He had encountered no obstacles on his way here from outside. There were no martial artists guarding the area. It meant they knew he was coming and were waiting.

Behind the Blood King, far in the distance, red smoke was rising in various places. The tension of a war's eve could be felt in the rising red smoke.

The Drunken Demon took another drink. "Come here and have a drink."

The Blood King simply stared down at the Drunken Demon without a word.

"Suit yourself, then," the Drunken Demon said, drinking deeply. Even as he drank, his gaze remained fixed on the Blood King.

Hot and cold. Cold and hot. Both men had eyes that contained both heat and cold.

The scent of wine and the scent of blood. The two primal scents that stirred humanity mingled in the space where they faced each other.

The Drunken Demon acted as if he wasn't tense at all, but his body reacted differently. Instinctively, his body tensed, preparing for the opponent's attack.

He's here to kill me.

Geom Mugeuk was correct. He had said the mastermind would surely target him, and now he had come directly.

And the Blood King wasn't alone today.

A dozen martial artists climbed onto the wall where the Blood King stood. The man who climbed up right next to the Blood King was the Northern Blood Sect Leader. The others who came with him were the Northern Blood Sect Leader's trusted subordinates.

The Northern Blood Sect Leader asked the Drunken Demon, "Where have you hidden the Extreme Cold Body Constitution?"

The Drunken Demon rebuked him instead. "Why are you, the Northern Blood Sect Leader, being led around by this foul stench of blood?"

It was a remark that stung his pride, but the Northern Blood Sect Leader pretended not to hear and asked again, "I asked where the Extreme Cold Body Constitution is."

The Drunken Demon took a drink and replied, "Why do you keep asking? Did you leave it with me?"

The Northern Blood Sect Leader looked at the Blood King. Then the Blood King said in a low, resonant voice, "He won't tell us willingly. Kill him."

The Blood King accurately assessed the Drunken Demon. He seemed to be just idly drinking, but the Blood King understood that the Drunken Demon's essence was as potent as his blood. He was no easy opponent.

The Drunken Demon addressed the Blood King. "I have a question. May I ask it?"

The Blood King simply stared at the Drunken Demon without a word, as if daring him to ask.

"That Self Destruction Art you all use," the Drunken Demon continued, "when you explode, does that red head of yours explode too?"

It was an intentional provocation. He thought the Blood King would surely show some emotion, especially with the Northern Blood Sect Leader present. But the Blood King's gaze didn't waver.

He's calmer than he looks.

The Drunken Demon also sensed the Blood King's nature. His opponent wasn't a rampaging madman. He was the most difficult type of enemy to face, one who could be hot when needed, and cold when required.

SHING!

The one who drew his sword was the Northern Blood Sect Leader. Since the Blood King had given the order to kill, they had to step forward. Moreover, if they just stood by while the Drunken Demon provoked the Blood King like that, they might be killed by the Blood King himself.

When the Northern Blood Sect Leader drew his sword, his subordinates also drew their swords in unison. Their momentum was extraordinary. Though they revealed their killing intent, the Drunken Demon's gaze remained fixed on the Blood King. To send them forward, knowing full well they would be sacrificed, meant…

He wants to test my strength?

And perhaps also to deplete his inner arts. Despite exuding such a strong scent of blood, the man himself was utterly ruthless.

And that smoke! It must be a signal calling someone.

Meanwhile, the Northern Blood Sect Leader was equally ruthless. He had been forced to come with the Blood King, but he knew well how dangerous his current situation was. He was being pushed to face a Demon Supreme, after all.

Even if all my subordinates are sacrificed, I must survive.

First, the Northern Blood Sect Leader ordered three of his subordinates to attack. The three subordinates leaped down from the wall. After all, the number of people who could attack together was limited. The best strategy would be to engage in a rotating attack, wearing down the opponent's strength.

The three martial artists approached the Drunken Demon from three directions. The Drunken Demon remained seated, drinking wine.

WHOOSH!

Suddenly, a powerful surge of alcohol qi erupted around them, and in an instant, they all vanished into a mist. From within the mist, the whistling sound of swords being swung was heard. The sound of flesh and bone being severed was heard, as was the snapping of necks.

SWISH!

When the mist dissipated again, the Drunken Demon was still sitting there, drinking wine. The three men who had approached to kill the Drunken Demon lay sprawled as corpses around him. No one had seen how they died, as it had happened within the mist.

"If you prefer the scent of blood to the scent of wine," the Drunken Demon said, "I'll let you have your fill."

The Northern Blood Sect Leader's expression hardened. He had known the three would fall, but not so quickly. Moreover, fighting within a mist that completely obscured vision was absolutely disadvantageous.

"Unleash your sword qi and enhanced sword qi!" the Northern Blood Sect Leader commanded.

At his command, the remaining subordinates simultaneously unleashed their sword qi. Again, the alcohol qi obscured their vision.

WHIZZ! WHIZZ! WHIZZ!

Only after a barrage of sword qi did the Northern Blood Sect Leader order them to cease their attack. As the mist cleared, the chaotic state of the area was revealed. The ground was overturned and shattered.

The Drunken Demon was perched on the edge of the shattered platform, drinking wine. What was astonishing wasn't that the Drunken Demon was unharmed. It was that not a single wine bottle scattered around him was broken. In other words, it meant the Drunken Demon had protected the wine bottles amidst the flying sword qi.

Is this even possible?

The Northern Blood Sect Leader, as well as the other martial artists, were disheartened.

The Drunken Demon looked up at the Northern Blood Sect Leader and said, "I told you to come here and drink."

When no one replied, the Drunken Demon drank directly from the bottle. Since the Blood King still hadn't uttered a word, the Northern Blood Sect Leader was the one facing the Drunken Demon.

"It seems you're trying to buy time," the Northern Blood Sect Leader said, "but you shouldn't hope for the Young Cult Leader's help."

"You're the ones buying time," the Drunken Demon retorted. It was a rebuke, questioning why the Blood King and the Northern Blood Sect Leader weren't stepping forward themselves, instead sacrificing innocent subordinates. "Are you worried? Worried the Young Cult Leader will arrive before you kill me?"

Naturally, the Northern Blood Sect Leader was worried. He sensed that the Blood King held the Young Cult Leader's martial arts in high regard. If he had been confident in eliminating both of them together, he wouldn't have had Yang Seok lure the Young Cult Leader away.

"The Young Cult Leader cannot come," the Northern Blood Sect Leader declared. "He is already in our hands."

It was a remark meant to unsettle the Drunken Demon, but he didn't fall for it. "If that were true, you would've offered to trade the Young Cult Leader for the Extreme Cold Body Constitution right here and now."

More astute than anyone, and with absolute faith in Geom Mugeuk, the Drunken Demon even made a joke. "Don't worry. The Young Cult Leader always comes last for me."

The Drunken Demon slowly rose from his seat, holding the wine bottle. Though it was merely a drunk man rising from his seat, his presence made everyone tense.

"The one you should be worried about isn't the Young Cult Leader. It's me."

Even in this moment of taut tension, the Drunken Demon gulped down wine directly from the bottle. "Because you won't drink with me and just swing your swords around, I've been drinking alone."

The color of the alcohol qi shimmering around the Drunken Demon's body began to change.

"Because I'm very drunk."