Chapter 331 : Shadow (6)
Chapter 331: Shadow (6)
The last senior monk who had been holding a woman hostage fell.
There was a hole drilled through his forehead.
"Eek!"
The woman who had been held hostage by him only then belatedly let out a scream.
While the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's martial artists were calming her down, one martial artist with the most outstanding skill turned his head to look somewhere.
To the direction from which the arrow had flown.
That martial artist hadn't missed it. He clearly witnessed the impossible sight of the arrow's trajectory physically twisting in mid-air at the very last second before reaching the target’s vicinity.
'To think I would witness the legendary technique of controlling arrows with Qi…’
This was a huge misunderstanding on his part.
Telekinesis, be it with a sword or with arrows, was a feat strictly possible only after a martial artist had reached the Realm of Truth and achieved a significant degree of mastery over it.
In that sense, the third advice that Il-mok proposed to her might have sounded like complete and utter nonsense, but Il-mok had explained his reasoning to her.
—In the end, Force Qi works on the same principle.
He theorized that the reason why those who just stepped upon the Supreme Peak Realm could use Force Qi, albeit with a massive effort and concentration, was because Force Qi fundamentally works the same.
Essentially, the closer a martial artist naturally progressed toward the Realm of Truth, the faster they could condense their Force Qi and the more devastating its destructive power became.
By that exact same logic, handling the movement of an arrow freely using Qi would be possible only upon entering the Realm of Truth, but…
—Altering the already loosened arrow’s trajectory should be feasible enough with your current realm. Because ultimately, simply taking that impossible first step was the most important part of the journey.
The ultimate goal Il-mok had set for Jeong Hyeon was never to achieve a perfect, flawless mastery of Telekinesis with arrows.
It was merely to induce a momentary, instantaneous change in trajectory.
Just like what she had accomplished right now.
* * *
Meanwhile, around the exact same time Il-mok’s maids and martial artists were scattering across the Tibetan region to execute the surviving remnants of the Potala Palace, the place that should have become somewhat quieter after they left, was also operating quite busily.
The reinforcements dispatched from Gansu Province didn't solely consist of those ten combat-ready martial artists.
There were people going back and forth to the Potala Palace's library, scribbling something on paper all day long.
They were those who had been in charge of doctrine education in Gansu Province.
When they first arrived at Potala Palace, Il-mok welcomed them with a bright smile.
"I've been waiting so eagerly for you to come."
Following the enthusiastic welcome, Il-mok instructed them on what they would need to do going forward.
"First, you should read the scriptures here, then find things that align with our Cult's doctrine and transform them into the doctrine of the Maitreya Luminous Cult."
Il-mok pointed to the Potala Palace's massive library while speaking to those who had been conducting doctrine education in Gansu Province.
'We rushed here for twenty days without rest...'
'Oh, Lord of Ten Thousand Demons.'
'Please look after us, your pitiful followers.'
Those who received the instructions felt their vision go dark.
And now, several days later, they had circles under their eyes from constantly analyzing the Potala Palace's scriptures nonstop.
However, they weren't the only ones running around busily.
In the wide open space at the center of Potala Palace, a group of about a dozen people had gathered together and were beautifully playing a wide variety of musical instruments.
They were those who had been doing missionary work through music and theater in Gansu Province.
Sometimes they played calm and gentle melodies, sometimes they played hymns, and sometimes they performed things like opera.
Some of the women staying at the Potala Palace would shed tears in their rooms whenever the musicians played sorrowful melodies, while others would gather in the courtyard to happily watch the performances whenever they played hymns or acted out operas.
While they were comforting the wounded women through art.
And while those artists were diligently working to soothe the women's wounded souls through the power of art, a completely different group of people was busy medically treating the wounded women.
"Wounds of the body aren't the only wounds that need treating. Wounds of the heart are also wounds."
They were those who had worked as female nurses in Gansu. In particular, the women from Pingliang County who had experience treating those addicted to Butterfly Dream Grass made up the majority.
Though these women were suffering pain completely different from drug addiction, the women from Pingliang County deeply understood better than anyone that an illness of the mind was just as real as an illness of the body.
"Don't blame yourselves. None of the terrible things that happened to you was your fault."
"The truth is, we too were once victims who were sold into human trafficking and forced to work as lowly prostitutes in the Central Plains."
"The Maitreya Luminous Cult rescued us and taught us letters and medicine, allowing us to become nurses like this."
The specialized missionaries and the dedicated medical women worked tirelessly around the clock, and thanks to their genuine empathy and efforts, they were able to slowly but surely heal the deep scars of the rescued women, even if it was only little by little.
It was somewhat of a surreal sight.
The musicians playing the beautiful melodies and the vast majority of the medical women treating the patients weren't originally from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
If you think about it logically, summoning these people in the present of the martial artists of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was a massive gamble. After all, no matter how much the Maitreya Luminous Cult had spread its wings in Gansu, its core remained as a branch of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Nevertheless, the sole reason Il-mok had confidently summoned them as reinforcements was that he had a very solid reason to trust them.
It had been several years since the Maitreya Luminous Cult first took root and spread throughout Gansu Province.
During that time, the most heavily guarded secret of the Maitreya Luminous Cult had been secretly revealed, but strictly only to those whose faith and loyalty toward the Cult were steadfast.
And these people from Gansu were those whose faith hadn't wavered even after hearing the Maitreya Luminous Cult's true identity.
While they were absorbed in treating the women and analyzing the Potala Palace's scriptures, time flowed quickly, and about two weeks had passed.
The highly anticipated second batch of reinforcements dispatched from the main headquarters finally arrived.
The group consisted of around twenty martial artists, alongside about fifteen staff hailing from the Missionary Hall and the Pure Mind Hall.
Now that he had finally gathered the bare minimum number of required personnel, Il-mok immediately called all the rescued women in the Potala Palace to gather in the central courtyard.
"I sincerely apologize for the long delay. Now I'll send you back to your hometowns in order."
Since there was still insufficient manpower to send them all at once, Il-mok decided to send back women whose hometowns were in areas close to the Potala Palace first.
While explaining the order of return, one young woman cautiously raised her hand.
"Um..."
"Please speak freely."
The young woman gained courage from Il-mok's words and asked a question.
"Do we have to return to our hometowns?"
"If you do not wish to return to your hometown, what else are you planning to do?"
"Well, my family back home already has far too many mouths to feed. I'm afraid that if I return, we simply won't have enough food to survive.... I know it's incredibly shameless of me to ask after everything you've done, but... is there any way I could stay here?"
Not just her, a small number of women also nodded in agreement and looked at Il-mok.
After thinking for a moment, Il-mok soon answered her question.
"If there's anyone who wants to continue staying here, feel free to speak. However, you must visit your hometown. If you simply vanish without sending any word, or if you only send a written letter, wouldn't your families be sick with worry?"
"Ah…"
"Th-thank you!"
"Th-then I'll stay here too!"
Several women instantly burst out in relieve, and quite a few others quickly expressed that they shared the exact same desire as the first young woman.
In the end, whether they planned to stay here or not, it was decided that all the women would visit their hometowns first.
After that, several martial artists periodically left the Potala Palace with the rescued women.
And every time the martial artists successfully escorted a group of women back to their respective hometowns, they couldn't help but feel a complex swirl of emotions.
The first emotion was a heavy bitterness.
The sight of women who had been dragged away by those monks and their parents embracing each other while shedding tears filled their vision.
"Mother! Father!"
"Oh, my daughter!!"
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."
Whenever they witnessed such reunions, they couldn't help but think they should have come to Tibet a little earlier.
The second emotion was fulfilment.
"Th-these people rescued me."
"Oh, thank you. Thank you so much."
"I'll repay this debt somehow, great heroes."
For the Divine Cult’s members, it was the moment when they could finally realize that the reason they learned Demonic Arts while enduring even terrible side effects was to feel exactly this kind of fulfilment.
Each time, the martial artists would struggle to compose their emotions and answer with calm expressions.
"Everything was accomplished by the Incarnation of Maitreya."
"We merely follow that person's will."
After safely escorting the women home, the martial artists would promptly return to the Potala Palace. However, the medical women, the musicians, and the doctrine scholars often stayed behind in those villages.
The medical women would carefully tend to the long-term health of the rescued women while offering free medical treatment to the impoverished villagers.
The musicians would cheerfully perform beautiful melodies, smoothly mixing religious hymns into their sets.
Meanwhile, the scholars who had exhaustively studied the Potala Palace's scriptures set up schools to teach the locals.
They spread the Maitreya Luminous Cult's doctrine by adapting the Potala Palace's original doctrine.
Out of the original Tibetan doctrines, they willingly affirmed and praised anything that the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult did not strictly classify as 'evil'.
"Haha. As long as both parties are fully consenting and happy, how could the pleasure of intimacy be a vile act?"
Conversely, any concepts that violated the core tenets of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult were swiftly dismantled and turned into a common enemy.
"Seeking happiness and pleasure in this life isn't a sin. However, trampling on others' happiness for your own pleasure is a sin. Just like the corrupt monks of the Potala Palace."
Replicating the exact same successful methods they used in Gansu Province, they periodically held engaging public sermons to rapidly expand the Maitreya Luminous Cult's influence.
Also, as they had done in Gansu Province, they taught letters to the villagers.
All of these efforts were executed perfectly in order to slowly but surely scrub away the thick, traumatic shadow the Potala Palace had forcefully cast over the entirety of Tibet.
* * *
Beijing. The Forbidden City.
In the depths of that place that could be called the heart of the Han Dynasty, two eunuchs were having a conversation with serious expressions.
"You say the tail was stepped on?"
Hearing the question of the old eunuch with his hands clasped behind his back, the eunuch kneeling on the floor answered.
"That's correct, Supreme Eunuch."
"Then what happened to the one who stepped on that tail?"
"...I'm ashamed to report, but we completely lost track of him."
As soon as that eunuch's answer ended, a suffocating energy flowed from the eunuch called Supreme Eunuch.
Instantly realizing his life was in imminent danger if he didn't salvage the situation, the kneeling eunuch frantically added.
"H-however, we were able to identify who stepped on the tail."
"Depending on how heavy that person's name is, I'll decide how to deal with you."
"It was the Dark Shadow Pavilion Lord of the Demonic Cult."
The Supreme Eunuch frowned.
Seeing that minutes change in the Supreme Eunuch, the other eunuch felt his blood run cold, but he swallowed a sigh of relief inwardly at the Supreme Eunuch's following words.
"If it's the Dark Shadow Pavilion Lord, it seems highly likely that he traced the scent back to us through the Silver Moon Trading Company."
"T-this lowly one has also come to that exact same conclusion."
"Tsk. It seems unchecked greed has finally invited disaster. What is the current status of the Silver Moon Trading Company?"
"There haven't been any particular changes yet."
"Discard it."
"...Then what will you do about the funding source?"
The Silver Moon Trading Company.
In truth, the company was nothing more than a massive, secret financial pipeline established by the Eastern Depot and the inner court eunuchs.
They claimed the company was necessary because utilizing official Imperial funds for secret operations carried the severe risk of leaving traceable trails.
However, while they officially used that as their righteous justification, the ugly reality was that the vast majority of the wealth siphoned through the Silver Moon Trading Company was being funneled directly into the back pockets of the high-ranking eunuchs and the directors of the Eastern Depot.
The only reason the company had ever connected with Deng Bi was simply that it was just something that happened unavoidably while trying to exchange information or goods obtained from the Western Regions, including the Black Bean Demonic Tea.
And the only reason they maintained the Silver Moon Trading Company even after Deng Bi was eliminated from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was also because of the Silver Moon Trading Company's original purpose.
They were simply too damn greedy to throw away the golden goose that was lining their own pockets.
"Tsk. You're asking the obvious. We will simply build a new trading company from scratch."
"I'll follow the Supreme Eunuch's will."
After the eunuch who showed respect left, the Supreme Eunuch turned his head to look at the table.
On the table he was looking at, a huge map was spread out.
"The Demonic Cult has noticed."
It was a comprehensive strategic map that vividly marked every single massive faction residing across the Central Plains, including the Demonic Cult's headquarters in Xinjiang.
"It seems we need to shake up the situation a bit, even if by force."
While muttering to himself and moving pieces on the map here and there for a moment, the Supreme Eunuch's hand hesitated.
"Wait. The fact that the Dark Shadow Pavilion Lord moved means that the old monster also noticed, yet he's been quiet until now."
As he recalled the terrifying old monster universally known as the Heavenly Demon, the Supreme Eunuch's face instantly became solemn.
"Don't tell me... is that monster secretly infiltrating the Forbidden City as we speak!?"
Startled by the possibility, the Supreme Eunuch began to dish out order after order.
"Issue a top-level alert to the Eastern Depot and Imperial Guards! Not even a single ant should be able to enter the Forbidden City!!"
And yet, strangely enough.
Despite frantically preparing for an imminent assassination attempt by a supreme master worshipped by the martial world as a living god, a confident smile slowly spread across the Supreme Eunuch's face.
'Hehehe... To think you would willingly walk right into your own grave on your own two feet. I truly am grateful.'
He smiled as if he possessed the confidence to kill even the supposedly invincible Heavenly, so long as they fought right here within the walls of the Forbidden City.