Chapter 607: You Think Just Anyone Gets Wiped Out to Destroy Evidence?

TL: FoodieMonster007

In the courtyard of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult safehouse, Seo Jin was training her swordsmanship. She practiced the Yellow Dragon Sword Technique, which Geom Mugeuk had reinterpreted. The style was not difficult, yet it was profound.

It was the kind of swordsmanship that revealed a different aspect each time her skills improved. For that reason, she found herself more and more impressed as her abilities grew.

For the past few days, she had been completely engrossed in her training. She practiced swordsmanship during the day and honed her ghost techniques at night. It was the first time in her life she had ever trained in martial arts so diligently.

Even before this incident, she had been well aware that the murim was a frightening and dangerous place. However, having lived as a blood relative of the Ghost Sect, she had never once felt true fear.

Through this experience, she realized something. The murim she had lived in until now had been a sheltered one, like a greenhouse. It was a murim where she only ever disciplined local ruffians.

The real murim was a place where the young man smiling brightly in front of her could be the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. It was a world where a barefoot martial arts academy instructor could be targeting that same Young Cult Leader.

She learned that stepping out of the greenhouse door did not just mean facing a strong wind. It could mean an immediate thousand-foot cliff.

If Geom Mugeuk and Lee Ahn hadn't come to help me this time, could I really have survived here?

Seo Jin's gaze turned back toward the entrance. It felt as if the door would open at any moment.

The two Demon Supremes and Lee Ahn, who had left to retrieve the Young Cult Leader, had not returned for days.

You told me when you recruited me, didn't you? To just trust you. I do trust you. So please, hurry back.

When she thought about it, she was even more worried because this whole affair had started because of her. It had all begun while investigating the death of Lim Hyeon, her hometown friend.

Just then, Gyo Seok and Yoo Gwang of the White Dragon Class, who had come to the safehouse with her, came out. Now that they knew her identity, they were extremely cautious in how they treated Seo Jin.

"Were you training?"

Seo Jin smiled at the two of them.

"You can be comfortable around me."

"Still, we can't do that."

To an ordinary martial artist, a demon of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was the very definition of terror. Even while staying at the safehouse for the past few days, they had been on pins and needles. They did not even speak loudly, afraid they might run into the demons managing the safehouse or get on their bad side.

"It's frustrating, isn't it? They'll all be back soon."

Gyo Seok, who had been watching Seo Jin's expression, blurted out in a half-resigned tone.

"You're going to kill us in the end, aren't you?"

Seo Jin asked back with a puzzled expression. They had been fine for days.

"Why are you suddenly saying something like that?"

At that, Gyo Seok glanced at Yoo Gwang beside him.

"He said his anxiety disappeared this morning."

Yoo Gwang, who always had the word 'anxious' on his lips, had suddenly said his anxiety was gone today.

"I don't know why, but my heart has become calm."

Gyo Seok sighed at Yoo Gwang's words.

"Thanks to that, I feel even more ominous."

"I'm telling you, the anxiety is gone!"

"That's what I'm asking, why did it suddenly disappear!"

"Maybe something good is about to happen."

"No, you need to stay anxious! That's what makes me feel at ease."

This was not just talk. Gyo Seok's anxiety was genuine.

"I have a favor to ask. I've written a letter to my parents in my room. If I die, please make sure to send it. Ah, don't worry. I didn't write a single word related to the Demonic Cult, no, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. No one will know that we were wiped out by the Divine Cult to destroy evidence."

It was at that very moment.

"You think just anyone gets wiped out to destroy evidence?"

The three of them turned in surprise to see Lee Ahn entering.

"Commander! You're back?"

Seeing her return safely, Seo Jin was overjoyed. Behind her, the Fist Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme followed.

Seo Jin politely greeted the Fist Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme as well. Gyo Seok and Yoo Gwang stepped back, bowing their heads and holding their breath.

After the two Demon Supremes went inside, Seo Jin asked Lee Ahn.

"What about the Young Cult Leader?"

"He'll be here soon."

Leaving the relieved Seo Jin, Lee Ahn teased Gyo Seok and Yoo Gwang.

"You can send that letter yourself when you leave. You punk, save such useless worries for when you're big enough to actually be worth silencing."

Gyo Seok then asked joyfully.

"Are you really letting us live?"

"If I was going to kill you, I'd have done it already."

"Thank you."

Then, Gyo Seok looked at Yoo Gwang.

But why is your intuition so scarily accurate?

Thinking that his intuition had been right, Yoo Gwang mustered his courage.

"I have a request."

"What is it?"

"I want to follow you to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult too."

Gyo Seok, startled, tried to stop Yoo Gwang.

"You! Are you crazy?"

Lee Ahn stared silently at Yoo Gwang. It would be nice to have a subordinate who was good at sensing ominous things. However, he was too young and naive to be taken in for such a reason.

"I refuse."

"May I ask why?"

What should she say to this clueless kid who did not know what it meant to live as a demon? That if a war broke out, he would have to point his sword at his friends? Could you kill Gyo Seok, who is right next to you? Your parents, who sent you to a martial arts academy to learn martial arts, would faint. Are you still okay with that?

Just as Lee Ahn was pondering what answer she could use to persuade him, a clear answer came from the entrance.

"Because you're not skilled enough yet."

Turning, they saw Geom Mugeuk entering the safehouse. This time, both Lee Ahn and Seo Jin welcomed him together.

"Young Cult Leader!"

Lee Ahn had answered Seo Jin with confidence that Geom Mugeuk would arrive soon, but she had still been worried deep down. The opponent was, after all, who he was.

She might have said, 'Who's worried about whom?', but if not her, who else would worry about Geom Mugeuk?

"When you become exactly ten times stronger than you are now, come find Lee Ahn then."

In that moment, Lee Ahn knew. This was the right answer. No matter what she said to explain things to him, it would only leave Yoo Gwang with lingering attachments and a complicated heart.

However, if he strived to become ten times stronger, he would grow into a fine martial artist. By the time he became about ten times stronger, this incident would have become a memory of his youth. If he still remembered this and came to find them then, that could truly be called fate.

"Can you do that?"

Yoo Gwang answered Geom Mugeuk's question vigorously.

"Yes! I will become ten times stronger and come see you again!"

After his loud declaration, Yoo Gwang's expression darkened.

"Ah, I'm anxious again."

At that sight, Gyo Seok let out a sigh.

"He'll be anxious until he's ten times stronger. I guess I'll have to live my whole life hearing him say he's anxious."

"You said I should be anxious!"

Geom Mugeuk had a feeling the two's friendship would continue just like this. Even if he did come back after becoming ten times stronger, it felt like they would come together.

Yes, he thought, don't lose this friendship over something that will seem like nothing in hindsight. Protect it well.

Just then, Yeom Baekjin walked out. When he appeared, Gyo Seok and Yoo Gwang excused themselves and went back to their quarters.

"You've returned?"

Yeom Baekjin was curious about what had happened to his brother, but he did not dare ask first. How could Geom Mugeuk not know what was on his mind?

"From now on, you are the Principal of the Yellow Dragon Academy."

From those words, he understood. His brother was dead. He was about to ask who killed him but stopped himself. That would be no different from asking the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult, 'Did you kill my brother?'

He was not as surprised as he had expected, nor was he as relieved or thrilled as he had thought he would be.

"He went without pain. He died without even realizing he was dying, so don't be too sad."

Even though it was the brother who had tried to kill him, he felt a sense of relief that he had died without pain. It seemed blood was still blood.

"From now on, the Yellow Dragon Academy will be different."

His brother had strived only to make it the number one martial arts academy in the Central Plains. Yeom Baekjin had no such ambition.

"Even if I only raise one, I will raise a martial artist with proper character."

"You can start with the two rascals who just went inside."

Yeom Baekjin nodded and looked at Geom Mugeuk, then Lee Ahn, and then Seo Jin.

Geom Mugeuk could feel it. In the way Yeom Baekjin looked at Seo Jin, there was no longer a premonition of a tragic fate that had run its course. This was because Geom Mugeuk had started this whole affair to change the fate of those two.

I did it.

And so, the matter of the Yellow Dragon Academy was completely concluded.

Geom Mugeuk told the Fist Demon and the Flower Sword Supreme about what happened with the Sword King.

"I've decided to be friends with him."

He told them honestly, thinking the Demon Supremes should know. Neither the Fist Demon nor the Flower Sword Supreme would have ever believed these words if anyone other than Geom Mugeuk had said them.

The aura of the Sword King they had witnessed was immense. There had been no room for anyone else to step between those densely packed sword blades.

"What kind of person is he?"

The Flower Sword Supreme showed her curiosity. Since the man was a sword user, her interest was natural.

"To be honest, I don't know him that well, but I did get this impression. He's a man who wants to be freer than anyone, but he's tightly bound by them."

Then, the Flower Sword Supreme said something unexpected.

"Like you?"

Geom Mugeuk smiled at her. It seemed that in the Flower Sword Supreme's eyes, he also appeared to be someone tightly bound and longing for freedom.

"Since there's someone who understands me like this, I think I can endure the pain of my bonds."

"Who in this world could possibly bind the Young Cult Leader? You must have bound yourself."

Because of that, she thought Geom Mugeuk's longing for freedom must be even more desperate.

"That's right. I'm someone who wants to roam this murim freely. The reason I went on a journey with my father was also because I hoped he too would live a free life."

To that, he added another honest confession.

"However, just as much as I desire freedom, I also have an equal desire for power. It's not just any position, it's the seat of the Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, isn't it? Freedom is nice for a day or two, but what kind of grand freedom would make me kick this position away without hesitation? I definitely have the ambition to inherit it and manage it well."

Of course, before that, my priority was to persuade my father to give up on his unification of the murim within the five years we promised.

Just then, the Fist Demon, who had only been listening, said calmly.

"You will be a good Cult Leader."

Geom Mugeuk's gaze turned to the Fist Demon. At times like this, one could feel how much power the silence of taciturn people held. If he were to say something like this to someone, they would probably say, 'Are you sucking up again!', but a single phrase like this from the tight-lipped Fist Demon flew to him with great strength.

"A better Cult Leader than my father, of course, right?"

Of course, to the Fist Demon, his father's existence was an impregnable fortress.

"That would be difficult."

Geom Mugeuk smiled and asked a question. It was time to express his gratitude to him.

"Leaving behind the chair that led to the underground, that was your intention, Master, wasn't it?"

The person the Sword King trusted must have been a true master, probably one of the Twelve Zodiac Kings. The Fist Demon had fought such a master and still left the chair behind.

The Fist Demon merely gave a slight nod, not taking any credit for it.

It is a rule that you must express even greater gratitude to those who do not seek credit. By recognizing his intention and expressing gratitude in words like this, the difficult fight the Fist Demon had endured could finally be properly concluded.

Geom Mugeuk bowed his head respectfully, putting a period on the matter.

"Thank you very much."

That night, Geom Mugeuk opened the Spacetime Manipulation Technique. He did it not for training, but to rest for the first time in a while.

A white sandy beach stretched out before a blue, endless sea. A comfortable chair sat under a large-leafed tree.

"Ah! This is so nice!"

As he leaned back comfortably in the chair, the words of contentment came out on their own.

"Here, you rest a bit too."

He placed the Secret Box on the spot he had made for it beside him. Then, for a while, he gazed at the blue sky and the sea.

Feeling the sea breeze, which carried a gentle warmth as it blew softly, his mood naturally lifted.

"I've learned a lot about you on this trip."

As the energy inside my body became my own, my feelings toward the Secret Box also grew more familiar.

"Where are the other three energies?"

He had a guess about one place. The Murim Alliance.

The Secret Box came from our Cult, and he had obtained orbs from the Evil Alliance, the Heavenly Wind Cult, and the North Sea Ice Palace. In that case, would there not be one in the Murim Alliance too?

"There's one in the Murim Alliance, right? Isn't there?"

How great would it be if you could talk?

Even if it was stored in the Murim Alliance, he could not just go to the Murim Alliance Chairman or Jin Hagun and demand they hand over the orb. Like the ones he had obtained so far, he would probably get it when his fate intertwined with it.

Geom Mugeuk decided not to rush. It was the same when he first obtained the Secret Box. He would leave it to fate and be at ease.

Geom Mugeuk cleared his mind and savored the time alone. He dozed off in his chair, woke up, and strolled along the beach, squatting down to watch the crabs scuttling by. He lay down again and fell asleep, then woke up again and watched the sea. Then he shouted.

"I really don't want to leave!"

The next morning, carriages were prepared for the return to our Cult. There were three carriages in total.

The Fist Demon rode in the lead, the Flower Sword Supreme in the middle, and Geom Mugeuk, Lee Ahn, and Seo Jin rode in the last carriage. Separate carriages had been prepared for the two Demon Supremes so they could travel comfortably.

Seo Jin, sitting across from Geom Mugeuk, expressed her gratitude.

"Thanks to you, I was able to avenge my friend. Thank you, Young Cult Leader."

Considering what you did for me in my life before I regressed, this is nothing.

Geom Mugeuk gave her a meaningful smile and asked.

"How do you feel about going to our Cult?"

She seemed to ponder what to say for a moment. Seo Jin suddenly held out her hand, palm facing up.

"……"

Black smoke rose from her palm, forming a black wolf. It was small enough to fit on her palm, but it was a magnificent-looking wolf with a gallant gaze.

"When the Commander first recruited me, I was like this."

SSSSSSST!

Again, more black smoke billowed up in front of the wolf, forming the face of a large tiger. The moment that tiger opened its mouth wide, the magnificent wolf burst with a POP and changed into a terrified dog with its tail tucked.

"This is my state right now."

Geom Mugeuk laughed as he looked at the dog. So you knew how to do tricks like this, but you never showed me during your mercenary days.

"It's just like me in front of my father."

With an expression of shared misery, Geom Mugeuk petted the dog, and the dog made of black smoke rubbed its face against his hand.

Petting the dog, Geom Mugeuk said, "Whether it's a tiger, a wolf, or a dog isn't important."

"Then what is important?"

The same sentiment Geom Mugeuk wished for Lee Ahn was conveyed to Seo Jin.

"What's important is whether you're happier at Headquarters than you are now. I don't want an unhappy tiger."

Seo Jin had not known the Young Cult Leader for long, but she knew at least that he was speaking from the heart.

POP!

The dog disappeared, and in its place, the wolf from before was formed again.

"Even if I can't become a happy tiger, I will strive to become a happy wolf."

Right, the her I met as a mercenary before I regressed was like a wolf. Live just like that, Seo Jin. But this time, be a wolf that lives with a bright smile.

Now, thinking about returning to our Cult, faces he wanted to see came to mind one after another. These were faces he had not been able to see properly because he had left the Cult in such a hurry.

Geom Mugeuk stuck his head out of the carriage window and shouted loudly.

"Alright, let's head for our Cult! This time, we're going as fast as possible!"