Chapter 824: You Only Show Up When I Curse You!

TL: FoodieMonster007

KWAAAA!

Hwa Mugi's atmosphere changed. His killing intent vanished completely, which was more terrifying than when it had been running wild.

The sight was enough to break everyone's spirit. He had withstood the combined attack of the Fist Demon and Baek Jagang, even recovering his inner qi in the process.

The Fist Demon broke the heavy silence. "I apologize. I should have noticed it first."

When he struck Hwa Mugi, he felt a defensive qi unlike any he had ever encountered. He should have realized it then.

Geom Woojin responded firmly to the Fist Demon's self-reproach. "Even those watching from the side couldn't figure it out. It would have been impossible to realize it while fighting such a difficult battle."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader nodded. "None of us who fought earlier noticed it either."

Who could have imagined such incredible martial arts existed?

He added naturally, "If one needs to be at this level to cause a bloodbath, I could never cause one in my lifetime."

Hwa Mugi was no longer smiling, as if a layer had been peeled away, revealing his true self. "The orthodox, unorthodox, and demonic factions, as well as those from outside the pass, all gathered to wait for me. Are you people even sane?"

His words implied that they were the ones who had made him this way, just as he had said before.

As Hwa Mugi's cold gaze fell upon him, Jin Paecheon knew he had made the right choice in coming. What if he hadn't come to help the Demonic Cult Leader? Could the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult have handled that monster alone? And if the Celestial Killer Star, who had swept through the Demonic Cult, had come to the Murim Alliance, could he have stopped him?

He had come for his grandson, but in the end…

Hagun, you sending me here ending up saving this grandfather of yours.

The boy had even made him take the Gentleman Sword with him.

Geom Woojin asked Baek Jagang, "Will you continue to fight?"

He had discovered the secret of the defensive qi, but this battle was still between Baek Jagang and the Fist Demon. The decision to stop was theirs to make.

Baek Jagang looked at the Fist Demon before answering, seeking his opinion first. It was a courtesy to the man who had fought alongside him.

Normally, the Fist Demon would have insisted on fighting. Ending a battle after the opponent had just refilled his inner qi was an unbearable disgrace. However, Baek Jagang's choice to attack alongside him had made an impression. He valued rational practicality over pride, but he was not a man without honor or self-esteem.

Why fight blindly against an opponent he didn't know how to handle, just for the sake of it?

The Fist Demon chose practicality over pride and took a step back. "I will follow the Chairman's will."

Baek Jagang did not make a decision immediately. He turned and asked the others, "Do you have any good ideas?"

His lack of pretense made him seem more trustworthy.

Jin Paecheon spoke quietly. "The more extreme the effect of a demonic art, the greater the side effects. We must find that weakness."

He was certain that absorbing inner qi must have come at a cost.

KWAAAA!

Hwa Mugi's killing intent flared once more, completely different from before. This was his true killing intent, mingled with that of the souls dwelling inside him and the weight of three hundred years, and it seemed to say: 'I have no such thing as a weakness!'

Death started to feel terrifyingly close to those present.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader lamented, "Where on earth is the Young Cult Leader? With that smart head of his, he should be telling us, 'This is this, and that is that! You fight that monster like this!' Sigh, why is he never around when I really need him, but he always shows up to take my artifacts? He even came in a swarm to take Go Wol away! He always appeared whenever I cursed and complained before, didn't he? Show yourself, Young Cult Leader!"

The Sword King gave the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader a hopeless look. How can he joke at a time like this?

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader even turned around, desperately hoping to see Geom Mugeuk walking down the road to the Demon Village, but no one appeared.

The Sword King's gaze followed the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's into the distance. Why have such ridiculous expectations? he thought, even as he also hoped to see Geom Mugeuk.

It wasn't just the Sword King. Jin Paecheon and Baek Jagang felt much the same. Geom Mugeuk had shown them such amazing things that they couldn't help but expect a lot of the young man.

Surely, if it were the Young Cult Leader, he would find the answer to this battle.

Just then, Jin Paecheon and Baek Jagang's eyes met. They realized they, the Chairman of the Murim Alliance and the Chairman of the Evil Alliance, were thinking the same thing and waiting for a young man the age of their own sons or grandsons. They shared a silent fear that someone might realize it.

"What do you think?" Geom Woojin asked.

Everyone looked at Geom Woojin. Surely he isn't asking Hwa Mugi that?

Hwa Mugi also thought the question was directed at him. "Do you think I will answer that?"

"I was not asking you." Geom Woojin's gaze was directed far beyond Hwa Mugi, toward a building's roof.

Everyone followed his gaze. On a distant roof, someone was waving happily at them, so far away he looked like a dot.

"Get your ass over here," Geom Woojin growled in a low voice.

The person on the roof launched himself forward as if he had heard it. He crossed the distance in an instant, as if shifting space. None of the masters present could perform such a swift movement art.

As far as they knew, only one person possessed such a divine ability.

"I have returned, Father!" Geom Mugeuk chirped happily.

Everyone stared at Geom Mugeuk, surprised.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader's mouth hung wide open, his face a mask of surprise and joy. He wanted to scream, 'He's here, he's here! The Young Cult Leader really came at my call!'

Geom Mugeuk, whom they had waited and waited for, had finally arrived.

"I was in such a hurry that I couldn't buy you a gift, Father," Geom Mugeuk apologized.

Geom Woojin rolled his eyes. This was definitely his son, because no one else would be talking about gifts in a situation like this. "How long have you been watching the fight?"

Geom Mugeuk replied, "I arrived when the fight broke out outside the tavern."

In other words, he had arrived at the Demon Village when the Evil Alliance Chairman and the Fist Demon were fighting Hwa Mugi.

"Why were you hiding?" Geom Woojin asked.

Geom Mugeuk hesitated. When he arrived, his inner qi was completely depleted. No matter how urgent the situation, he had to replenish his inner qi, so he meditated at a distance so great that neither Hwa Mugi nor his father could sense him.

All that time, he monitored the situation with the Divine Eye Technique. As soon as his meditation ended, he used the technique he learned when he first climbed the mountain with his father to signal his arrival, sending Geom Woojin a tendril of the same energy he once used to detect wild boars tens of meters away.

Still…

"I wasn't hiding," he denied fervently. "You haven't fought in a long time, so you should show off your skills and take some credit from your son. So, Father, you should fight later too. I yielded to you because I am a filial son."

A sneer touched Geom Woojin's lips.

Seeing it for the first time in a long while, Geom Mugeuk laughed and exchanged a glance with his father.

Welcome back.

I'm home, Father!

They could now understand each other with just a look.

Anyway, Geom Mugeuk was relieved and happy.

I wasn't too late!

He had been afraid someone might have died or suffered an irreversible injury. He had feared arriving to find everything in shambles. These worries had driven him to run without rest, stopping only to recover his inner qi. He hadn't slept or eaten.

As a natural worrier, he had imagined all sorts of terrible outcomes on his way here. However, one thought always calmed his anxiety.

It will be fine. Father is there.

And surprisingly, there were unexpected people here as well.

"Chairman Jin!" Geom Mugeuk continued his greetings with his back to Hwa Mugi, who simply watched in silence.

Hwa Mugi didn't get angry at the intentional disregard. Instead, he stared at Geom Mugeuk with a caution he had never shown before.

Geom Mugeuk bowed politely to Jin Paecheon. "Long time no see!"

His gaze fell on Jin Paecheon's injury, then to the Gentleman Sword at his waist. He understood at once why he had come and what had happened.

"Thank you for coming," he said politely.

Jin Paecheon also looked down at the Gentleman Sword. "Thank Hagun, not me."

"I'll seat Hagun at the head of the table at our next gathering. Of course, he'll have to buy the drinks as the price for bragging," Geom Mugeuk said. Next, he bowed politely to Baek Jagang. "Did Sayin say anything, Chairman Baek?"

"He told me not to come because he was worried I would get hurt."

"I guess I'll have to seat him at the bottom of the table."

Geom Mugeuk was surprisingly talking about a gathering of friends, even cracking silly jokes, with Hwa Mugi right behind him. He then made a promise, "I'll never forget the grace you've both shown me by coming here today. If a day comes when you need me, I'll be the first to arrive!"

For Jin Paecheon and Baek Jagang, there was no greater reward. It was a promise that the Young Cult Leader would come to save Jin Hagun or Bi Sayin if they were ever in danger.

"Come to our side first," Baek Jagang added.

Jin Paecheon smiled at Baek Jagang's joke.

Hwa Mugi's eyes sharpened as he saw the two Chairmen relax.

They were so serious a few moments ago, but now they're laughing?

The atmosphere changed completely the moment Geom Mugeuk arrived. The gloomy battlefield seemed to brighten.

Hwa Mugi opened his mouth to say something, but Geom Mugeuk ignored him and continued his greetings.

Geom Mugeuk didn't want Hwa Mugi to know much he had thought of him, from his life before regression until this very moment. No one here could know how fateful and important this meeting was, or how much he had both feared and waited for this moment.

So he wouldn't spare Hwa Mugi a single glance.

Besides, the people here were more important than Hwa Mugi.

It was the one mindset he had held since his regression.

I didn't regress to kill you. I regressed to live a happy life with these people.

He would uphold that principle, even now.

He turned to the Fist Demon. "Master, your disciple has returned."

"Welcome back."

Geom Mugeuk delivered the news the Fist Demon wanted to hear most. "Commander Lee has also safely completed her mission. She will arrive later with her subordinates."

Joy flashed in the Fist Demon's eyes. His daughter was safe. Geom Mugeuk's bright expression also meant that all the Demon Supremes and demons who went with her were safe as well. A fight against the Darkness Palace Lord wouldn't have been easy.

He silently patted Geom Mugeuk's shoulder with his large hand. "You worked hard."

"Anyone watching would think the fight is already over," Hwa Mugi cut in, seething. He certainly hadn't expected his first meeting with Geom Mugeuk to be with the back of the young man's head.

Geom Mugeuk spoke without turning around. "I'm holding you in high regard, aren't I?"

"What?"

"I should at least pay my respects before I die."

Geom Mugeuk meant he was saying his greetings because he might die by Hwa Mugi's hands. Since it was a direct acknowledgment of his skill, Hwa Mugi couldn't refute it, so he was left speechless.

Geom Mugeuk next turned to the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader, whose face was full of anticipation as if saying, 'It must be my turn this time, right?'

However, Geom Mugeuk sighed and grumbled, "Cult Leader, did you curse me even while fighting such an important battle?"

"That's because you only show up when I curse you!"

Their gazes met. Geom Mugeuk had never felt so welcome.

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader sighed heavily. The artifacts must be effective. He appears whenever I curse him.

Geom Mugeuk added, "As expected of the Cult Leader. You're always helping our Cult in moments of crisis."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader immediately protested, "I came here against my will. This is just something I need to do if I want to keep freeloading off the Cult."

Geom Mugeuk smiled. The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader was someone who could naturally make such jokes in front of him.

Meanwhile, Hwa Mugi was stupefied. Is he really going to greet every single person? he thought, but Geom Mugeuk did just that, greeting each person as if to show off.

The souls inside him began to clamor. How could they stay still after seeing this?

Now it was noisy outside and noisy inside.

Geom Mugeuk approached the Poison King, who stood quietly behind the others, next. "Why are you just watching from the back instead of melting him with poison?"

The Poison King glanced at Geom Woojin with a look that said, 'Because the Cult Leader didn't allow me to!'

Only with Geom Mugeuk present could he convey such a half-joking, half-serious message to the Cult Leader.

"Father, from now on, just send the Poison King to kill your enemies while you enjoy a drink with the others."

The remark revered the Poison King as the best.

The Poison King was inwardly delighted, though he didn't show it. No, no one was happier than him to see Geom Mugeuk.

If there had been a single casualty, he intended to obey the Cult Leader's absolute order to run away and protect Geom Mugeuk. He had been drowning in anxiety, fearing he might have to abandon the Cult Leader on the battlefield. Geom Mugeuk's appearance was a joy as great as discovering three rare poisonous insects in a row.

Finally, Geom Mugeuk looked at the Sword King. "Are you alright? Why did you come out, Ak-hyung? You should have stayed hidden."

Anyone could see that the person most injured was the Sword King.

The Sword King pretended to sigh. "As you know, my appearance stands out too much. I couldn't hide in time."

Geom Mugeuk grinned. "By the way, Division Leader Cha is also safe," he remarked. The joy of their reunion wouldn't stop him from seizing the golden opportunity to tease his friend.

The Sword King grew flustered at the mention of Cha Yiran. You're teasing me about her now? In front of the Cult Leader and the Chairmen?

"…Why are you telling me that now?" he exclaimed.

Finally, Geom Mugeuk turned to face Hwa Mugi.

Hwa Mugi grit his teeth. He's only looking at me now?

He felt like a nameless nobody, no, the Young Cult Leader had probably intended that.

Geom Mugeuk regarded his nemesis. Naturally, Hwa Mugi wouldn't know that he had hoped their meeting would be even more insignificant. That he had imagined saying, 'I'll be back in a moment,' during a game of Go with his father, gone off to kill Hwa Mugi, and returned in time to say, 'It's my turn, right?' as if nothing had happened.

Unfortunately, Hwa Mugi emerged into the world sooner than expected, changing both their fates.

Geom Mugeuk looked at Hwa Mugi, his eyes deep with meaning. You'll never know where I came from to stop you. You'll never know how long a path I've walked to get here.

Oddly though, Hwa Mugi returned his gaze with eyes that also seemed to have seen an infinite amount of time. "Strangely, you do not feel unfamiliar to me."

"That happens when you see a handsome face," Geom Mugeuk replied, smiling. "Anyway, I'm starving to death because I ran without stopping to eat. Please, I beg you… Let's eat first, then fight!"

Now was the moment for today's battle to move on to the next stage.