Chapter 320 : Desire (色) (4)
Chapter 320: Desire (色) (4)
'So in the end, those Left and Right Great Virtuous Ones are the problem.'
When the Heavenly Demon gave him this mission, he had said that the Potala Palace's esoteric monks boasted formidable internal energy through bedchamber arts.
But he'd never mentioned they were committing atrocities like this.
Meaning that, just as the old woman and the monks had said, the religion had been functioning reasonably well until a few years ago.
While Il-mok organized his thoughts, the two esoteric monks grovelled for mercy.
"W-we only followed orders to s-survive."
"As w-we said, everyone who rebelled was k-killed by the Left and Right Great Virtuous Ones."
They hadn't forgotten how this man had just spared the villagers' lives.
When the man heard the villagers had been forced to sacrifice the little girl because of the Potala Palace, he showed them mercy.
'Th-Then, us too.'
'W-we can survive.'
Clinging to that hope, they begged for their lives.
But all they got in return was an ice-cold gaze.
"How pathetic. You scumbags already knew everything, didn't you?"
"K-Knew everything? W-What are you talking about?"
"The vanished Dalai Lama, the brutal nature of the Left and Right Great Virtuous Ones, the Potala Palace's corrupted ways. You already know the truth, don't you? That the Dalai Lama who supposedly went into closed-door meditation is dead."
"W-we don't know anything."
"W-we just did as we were told to s-survive."
Hearing them grovel, the corner of Il-mok's mouth twisted up into a smirk. But his eyes remained utterly indifferent.
"You're no different from the Left and Right Great Virtuous Ones. Vermin who crossed a line that should never be crossed, drunk on pleasure and the thrill of growing stronger."
They thrashed their bodies in a desperate attempt to beg for their lives against Il-mok's verdict.
Then something strange happened.
As they jerked violently, red lines appeared across their necks, followed by a belated sting of pain.
The sense of deja vu filled their eyes with despair.
But there was nothing they could do.
Their heads had already slipped free from their necks and were falling to the ground.
* * *
Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang stared indifferently at the two headless corpses. He turned his head to Il-mok and asked, “That was far too light for vermin like them."
"Punishing the wicked is enough. There's no need to become monsters like them."
"Hmm."
Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang stroked his beard with a contemplative expression for a moment, then asked Il-mok again.
"So what's the plan now? You've gathered a decent amount of intelligence on the Potala Palace."
"I plan to head straight for the Potala Palace."
Hearing that, the five Hyeokryeon Family warriors who had come with Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang stared at him in surprise.
But the people who had been traveling with Il-mok from the start didn't even blink.
"Hmm. You plan to exploit the element of surprise?"
"Yes."
"There could be casualties. In the worst case, you could die."
"This is the best option. We've already killed these monks, so if we drag things out, word will reach the Potala Palace."
"On the other hand, we'd also have time to prepare. For instance, sending word to the main headquarters for reinforcements."
Il-mok shook his head at that suggestion.
"That's a bad move. No matter how chaotic the Central Plains may be right now, mobilizing the Divine Cult’s combat units on a large scale risked exposure. And more importantly," Il-mok paused and fixed Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang with a steady gaze. The old man had barely spoken a word during the entire journey here, yet now he was picking apart every decision.
Il-mok looked at him as if issuing a warning. "While we sit around wasting time, more girls will be taken."
But Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang was no pushover of an old man to be cowed by Il-mok's gaze.
"Hmm. Sounds a bit too emotional for a commanding officer to say."
"You want a rational answer? Then I'll give you the same one. More girls will be taken. And as a result, the esoteric monks' internal energy will grow even stronger. But that's a secondary concern."
"Then what's the real problem?"
Il-mok and Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang faced each other as if locked in a staring contest, and the rest of the group quickly split down the middle.
Il-mok's attendants moved to his side, while the Hyeokryeon Family warriors took their positions behind Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang.
In that volatile atmosphere, Il-mok answered.
"The real problem here is that we are the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. Since when has our cult ever weighed the odds of success before confronting evil?"
Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang stared into Il-mok's eyes like he was trying to read his soul, then broke into a hearty laugh.
"You're right. A demon of the cult should act exactly so. Hahahaha."
The old man's sudden shift in attitude left Il-mok feeling completely deflated.
'Has he gone senile?'
He felt like he should look into vacancies at the Pure Mind Hall for the old man.
* * *
Il-mok and his party left Anda County and headed for the Potala Palace.
As they rode on horseback to cover a distance of several hundred miles, Jeong Hyeon cautiously opened her mouth.
"Senior H-Hayeon. There's actually something I d-don't understand."
"Ask freely."
They had been traveling together for about three years now, and they had gotten quite comfortable with each other in their own unique way.
Jeong Hyeon struggled with people getting close due to the aftereffects of her Demonic Art, and Jin Hayeon had a businesslike personality that drew sharp lines between work and personal matters.
Jin Hayeon's characteristic coldness might have been off-putting to some, but for Jeong Hyeon, that measured distance actually made her feel comfortable and safe.
"I un-understand that the Potala Palace was corrupted by those Left and Right Great Virtuous Ones, but I d-don't understand why they remain as the Left and Right Great Virtuous Ones."
Jin Hayeon furrowed her elegant brows at Jeong Hyeon's question.
She had only been thinking about eliminating the Potala Palace's villains per Il-mok's orders and had never considered that angle.
But now that Jeong Hyeon mentioned it, the whole situation was definitely bizarre.
They had gone as far as murdering the Dalai Lama, but instead of taking his empty throne, they were making up elaborate lies about him still being alive.
If it were a throne determined by bloodline, that might make sense. But they even went as far as killing those who resisted, so there was no reason to leave the seat empty.
The rest of the group listening in suddenly realized the bizarreness as well.
While no one could readily come up with an answer, Il-mok casually opened his mouth.
"Miss Jin, Miss Jeong. Mind if I take this one?"
"I don't mind."
"I-I'm all ears."
"First, my reasoning is just speculation. It's not certain, so there's no need to take it as fact." Il-mok laid a bit of groundwork before sharing his theory.
"The reason they left the Dalai Lama's seat vacant is probably greed and distrust."
"Greed and distrust?" Jin Hayeon repeated, looking completely lost.
She is not the only one; everyone else looked equally confused.
"These are men who killed the Dalai Lama, the most senior figure in their religion and a fellow member of their sect, purely out of greed for martial power and authority. Imagine how deep that greed runs. And those consumed by greed tend to be equally consumed by distrust. Humans naturally measure others against themselves."
"I understand they're greedy. But if they're that greedy, there's even less reason to leave the Dalai Lama's seat alone."
When Jin Hayeon pressed the point with evident confusion, Il-mok smiled faintly and answered. "You're right, but there's one problem with that."
"What problem?"
"There's one seat and two people."
Those listening around them let out soft murmurs of realization.
Meanwhile, Jin Hayeon alone still wore a puzzled expression.
"Even if one of them became the Dalai Lama, they could simply share power. Or they could take turns."
The reason Jin Hayeon couldn't understand them was simple.
From her cool-headed perspective, there were clearly logical solutions.
But not everyone is as cool-headed and as rational as she is.
Knowing this, Il-mok gives her the answer.
"Hahahaha. If you look at it purely from a logical standpoint, that would work. But those two don't trust each other at all. If the other one claimed the Dalai Lama's seat first, they'd never leave the other alone."
"But they're twins."
"Miss Jin. History is absolutely overflowing with cases of people blinded by greed betraying their own flesh and blood."
The party each fell into their own contemplation.
Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang was among them, though he wasn't reflecting on Il-mok's lesson.
'Hmm.'
He was reviewing everything Il-mok had shown during this journey.
The Eighth Young Master was a peculiar man in many ways.
In truth, during the journey to Tibet, he'd been thinking he might need to revise his assessment of the Eighth Young Master.
The man was celebrated as a genius within the cult, but he seemed somewhat lazy.
However, his conduct in Anda County had exceeded expectations on multiple fronts.
'When it comes to his talent for martial arts, there was never even a shadow of a doubt.'
The esoteric monks Il-mok had faced weren't particularly impressive by Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang's standards.
But putting that aside, the sword paths Il-mok had carved commanded his attention. It was nothing flashy, but the movements were so clean and concise they sent a chill down his spine.
On top of that, he could vaguely see the shadow of the current Heavenly Demon when Il-mok had used that technique to subdue the last opponent.
And Il-mok's brilliance didn't end with martial prowess.
'Cautious, but once a decision was made, he didn't hesitate.'
That was true when he rescued the girl from the esoteric monks, and equally true after he'd executed them.
He'd first tried to engage in dialogue to confirm he wasn't making a mistake.
Once it was certain the other party was evil, he'd acted with a decisiveness that betrayed not a trace of hesitation.
'If it had been the Eldest Young Master, he probably would have lopped off those monks' heads first without asking a single question.'
Sure, the Eldest Young Master had massive anger management issues, so he was an extreme example. But most of the Demonic Cult was like that.
Because the Cult was filled with trigger-happy maniacs, the Eighth Young Master’s calm and calculated approach stood out all the more.
But what pleased Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang most was something else entirely.
'Heh. The odds of success don't matter when it comes to punishing evil.'
That was exactly how a member of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult should act.
Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang’s nitpicking had only been to test Il-mok.
If Il-mok had started preaching caution right then, or if he'd decided to back off and beg headquarters for backup, Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang would have abandoned all expectations of Il-mok without a shred of regret.
He would also ensure that his granddaughter would never go near Il-mok ever again.
He would have done so even if she threw a massive crying fit or pointed pure killing intent right at her own grandfather.
The man his granddaughter had chosen to serve as her lord was turning out to be way more impressive than he expected.
Then again, it was precisely because he was that kind of man that his granddaughter was so fixated on him.
'...To the point of abandoning this old grandfather.'
Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang hadn't forgotten that the moment he’d tested Il-mok, his granddaughter had moved behind Il-mok without a single moment's hesitation.
‘... They say raising children is a thankless endeavor.'
His eyes stung, and Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang quietly lifted his gaze to the blue sky above.
Thanks to his incredibly deep martial cultivation, he managed to keep a perfectly straight face. But the truth was, Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang really had no right to criticize his own son for being an overprotective fool.