Chapter 390 : Friend and Foe (2)
Chapter 390: Friend and Foe (2)
The sudden shout sent a ripple of confusion through the Demonic Cult's ranks.
Should they ignore the Taoists and attack, or should they actually stop and talk to them?
Il-mok channeled his internal energy and called out to Wi Jin-hak to break the tension.
"Cult Leader, I'll go talk to them! Please keep the army moving forward!"
With every moment being of the essence, they could not simply leave the martial artists standing idle here.
Wi Jin-hak stared at Il-mok for a split second before giving a firm nod.
"I'll trust you to handle it. Resume the march!!"
At Wi Jin-hak's command, the Demonic Cult's martial artists once again advanced, and the Taoist priests of the Qingcheng Sect stepped aside to clear a path for them.
Without missing a beat, Il-mok used his lightness skill to glide over to the Qingcheng Sect Taoists with his two maids trailing right behind him.
"It's good to see you, Taoist Master Cheongmok. But what brings you all the way out here?"
"Hahaha. Didn't I just announce it to the whole army? We came to form a formal alliance with the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult."
Il-mok offered a brief martial salute, which Cheongmok returned in kind.
For some reason, Taoist Master Cheongmok's gaze looked incredibly clear and serene, but the faces of the Taoists standing behind him were an entirely different story. Even the Sect Leader of Qingcheng shared that same complicated and deeply troubled gaze.
They were practically oozing an aura that screamed: " We have a million objections, but speaking up will only make things worse, so we're just letting Cheongmok handle this.”
"Though it pains me to say this, didn't you explicitly tell us before that we couldn't sail in the same boat?"
"Hahaha. How could a person's heart possibly remain the same their entire life? Ah. Is it too late for us to join you now?"
Il-mok smiled awkwardly.
From the Demonic Cult's perspective, securing the Qingcheng Sect as an ally was an unbelievably massive win.
And it wasn't just because of the Qingcheng Sect's combat power.
Qingcheng was the longstanding master of Sichuan, and Sichuan was the largest granary in the northwestern Central Plains.
Given that the enemy held the North China Plain and the Yangtze Plain, which together formed the Central Plains' greatest granaries, securing Sichuan was a strategic win.
If Qingcheng became their ally, the Cult could conquer Sichuan without shedding a single drop of blood.
In the end, only one problem remained.
Can these people be trusted as allies?
After all, an internal traitor was always infinitely more terrifying than a powerful enemy on the outside. Knowing this, Il-mok politely beat around the bush as he dug for their true intentions.
"We're always open to an alliance. I'm just incredibly curious to know exactly what kind of change of heart caused you to suddenly reverse your stance."
"A change of heart, you say..."
Taoist Master Cheongmok stroked his beard and trailed off for a moment as if recalling the past.
"After I woke up from our battle with the Blood Cult, I had a lot of time to think."
Right after witnessing the demise of the Heavenly Blood Jiangshi and the Blood Cult Leader, Taoist Master Cheongmok had passed out from severe blood loss and internal injuries.
When he finally opened his eyes, he was in a town called Ledu, located on the border between Qinghai and Gansu.
Though his life-threatening wounds had been urgently treated, the residual internal injuries had brought upon him a Heart Demon.
"The first thought that came to me was one of disillusionment. Once my revenge was finally complete, I just felt pathetic. I realized my entire existence had been consumed by the sole desire to kill someone. Hahaha."
It wasn't because of some cliché realization like 'revenge only breeds more revenge' or 'killing them won't bring the dead back.'
He had spent years honing his sword to cultivate the Dao.
Yet, somewhere along the line, he had become obsessed with using it purely to slaughter instead of using that sword to help people.
It was from that fact that his disillusionment came.
"Don't misunderstand, I definitely don't regret wiping out the Blood Cult. Not only did they slaughter our Qingcheng disciples, but they've murdered countless innocent civilians. It's just... a certain thought crossed my mind. I wondered why I was so determined to turn a blind eye to the Imperial Family's tyranny when I was so eager to hunt down the Blood Cult."
The fact that the Blood Cult had been alive and thriving proved one thing.
Il-mok's warnings to them had been completely true all along.
"Hasn't the Imperial Family slaughtered thousands of innocent civilians like the Blood Cult did? And they did it all just to satisfy their own greed for power. They don't even view the citizens as human beings. Unless they see the commoners as nothing more than livestock ready to be slaughtered and gutted whenever it's convenient, pulling off a massacre like that would be unthinkable. So why should I—why should our Qingcheng Sect—aim our swords at the Demonic Cult instead of the corrupt Imperial Family? That single question just wouldn't leave my head. Hahaha."
There was a historical reason, of course.
The founding ancestor who established the Qingcheng Sect had been mortal enemies with the Demonic Cult, and the two factions had relentlessly slaughtered each other during the Orthodox-Demonic Wars of the past
But that was also a matter of the distant past.
Out of all the current elders and disciples in the Qingcheng Sect today, not a single one of them had any direct enmity against the Demonic Cult.
Sure, there were times when a handful of Demonic Cultists would sneak into the Central Plains and stir up trouble.
Hell, the prime example was sitting in the Cult Leader’s throne, Wi Jin-hak.
He had gone on so many rampages through the Central Plains in his youth that he earned the title of Mad Demon.
But Taoist Master Cheongmok also knew the other side of the story.
The Orthodox Faction warriors and government officials that Wi Jin-hak and his Cultists slaughtered had mostly been hypocrites or corrupt men.
The so-called righteous sects only defended those victims and branded the Cult as 'pure evil' because they were technically on the same team.
All of that stemmed from a blind grudge inherited from the distant past.
So, should they prioritize punishing the Demonic Cult just to honor some ancient feud? Or should they take a stand and fight the Imperial Family who were actively committing atrocities in the present?
After agonizing over that question for countless sleepless nights, Taoist Master Cheongmok finally found his answer.
"After long contemplation, I set my heart in resolve. The Imperial Family has committed unspeakable evils, and you have at the very least committed no particular sin in the past several decades. Therefore, we've decided to ally with you to punish the Imperial Family. I originally trained my sword to pursue the Dao, but since it's already soaked in blood, I've sworn to make it a sword that exists solely to cut down evil."
As he stared at Cheongmok’s clear eyes, Il-mok asked a question.
"Is that the will and truth that you've established and acknowledge, Taoist Master Cheongmok?"
"Hahaha. I knew you'd recognize it instantly."
When Cheongmok let out a hearty laugh at the Zen-like question, Il-mok nodded in understanding.
By successfully conquering his Heart Demon, Taoist Master Cheongmok had officially broken through to the Realm of Truth.
Having himself ascended to the Realm of Truth and having witnessed several others around him succeed in doing so as well, Il-mok had developed a pretty solid understanding of exactly what it took to reach that stage.
'In the end, it comes down to intent and will.'
The process of advancing from the Realm of Truth to the Realm of Heavenly Communion could also be seen as a practice of imposing one's own will upon the world.
Things like Sky Walk, Sword Control Art, Force Qi Armor, and so on were also expressions of that progression.
Every single one of these abilities went far beyond simply controlling the physical body; they were arts that used pure will to force reality-defying miracles onto the world.
And in order to impose one's will upon the world, you need to acknowledge your own truth and establish your own will.
It didn't matter if it was a grandiose dream of embracing all your followers or a simple, humble wish to protect the person you loved.
It didn't matter if it was a righteous desire to bring justice to the world, or an arrogant ambition to crush the world beneath your heel.
All that mattered was possessing an ironclad will that would never waver, no matter what kind of harsh turbulence the world threw at you.
When a master who had completely perfected their understanding of martial arts and Qi manipulation finally forged that kind of unyielding resolve, the realm they stepped into was none other than the Realm of Truth.
"I offer my congratulations on your ascension to this realm."
"Hahaha. Are you really trying to flatter an old man who hasn't even come close to reaching your level yet?"
Taoist Master Cheongmok tossed out the joke with a soft smile, but then his clear eyes locked onto Il-mok as he added a serious condition.
"Since I've already laid my true intentions bare, I'll be completely honest with you. The alliance I'm proposing is strictly temporary. Just as we raised our swords against the Imperial Family for their atrocities, if it turns out you've been committing evil deeds after this war is over, the swords of Qingcheng will be pointed directly at your throats."
Despite the heavy warning hidden behind Cheongmok's smile, Il-mok just smiled right back.
"Stagnant water is bound to rot. If we have someone constantly keeping an eye on us to make sure we don't rot, isn't that something we should genuinely welcome?"
Taoist Master Cheongmok had fully expected Il-mok to take offense to his threat, but seeing the young man laugh and openly welcome the accountability made the old Taoist burst into an even louder laugh.
'Just as I thought. He's a man of immense character.'
After laughing heartily, Taoist Master Cheongmok stroked his beard and spoke only once his laughter had somewhat subsided.
"My goodness, look where my mind has wandered. Please excuse me for a moment."
Saying that, Cheongmok turned around and offered a deep bow to the Qingcheng Sect Leader.
"Sect Leader, thank you so much for indulging your Junior Brother's selfish stubbornness."
The Qingcheng Sect Leader stared at his Junior Brother's overly polite attitude with a dissatisfied scowl before replying.
"Tsk. It's not like you acting like this is anything new. And do you really think I'm just blindly following along just because you said so? I only accepted your proposition because, from where I'm standing, the Imperial Family's tyranny is a much bigger threat right now than those Cultists."
Only after hearing the Sect Leader's grumbling did Cheongmok straighten up with a warm smile spreading across his face.
"Is that the case? Hahaha."
"Don't laugh. I'm terrified I might actually start liking them at this rate."
"Haha. Since even the Sect Leader has now resolved to stand with them, do laugh along with me."
"Tsk. It's human nature for the heart and the head to want different things. This Senior Brother's Dao is still lacking. Unlike you, my heart and my intent haven't completely unified yet, so just leave me alone to grumble."
Listening to their back-and-forth banter that sounded straight out of a comedy skit, Il-mok had to bite his lip to keep from laughing out loud.
The combination of the unreservedly bright junior brother and the senior brother who grumbled yet looked after his junior felt strangely well-matched.
Taoist Master Cheongmok finished his conversation with the Sect Leader and turned his head to look at Il-mok.
"Despite how much he grumbles, my Sect Leader is someone who will defend a promise made in Qingcheng's name to the bitter end, so you have nothing to worry about."
"I am at ease. Hahaha."
Il-mok chuckled and turned his attention to his brand-new allies.
"Alright then. Since we're officially on the same side now, I'll give you a brief rundown of what we need to prepare for moving forward."
Il-mok gave them the abridged version of the war council they had held in Xining, but he shared only the details Qingcheng strictly needed to know.
Namely, that instead of marching immediately on Beijing, they planned to advance only as far as Shaanxi Province. There, they would link up with the Zhuge Family, Wudang, and the Beggars’ Gang to establish a massive frontline stretching from Gansu, through Shaanxi, and all the way to Hubei.
As for the concrete strategy or subsequent plans, Il-mok deliberately refrained from mentioning them. For one must always prepare against unforeseen circumstances.
"While I am grateful for Qingcheng's will to fight the Imperial Family, your priority right now is to defend Sichuan. Toppling the Imperial Family isn't going to happen overnight. If we want our massive allied army to stay fed during this long war, the Sichuan breadbasket must be protected at all costs."
Taoist Master Cheongmok turned his head to the side, and the Sect Leader of the Qingcheng Sect stepped forward and replied.
"Understood. In that case, we will head straight back to Sichuan right now. We'll send out letters to all our secular disciples and the local martial artists of Sichuan to rally as many people to our cause as possible."
"I leave it in your capable hands."
When Il-mok offered his respects with a clasped-fist salute, the Sect Leader likewise responded by lowering his head, and then turned his back and departed without further ado.
Il-mok watched the Qingcheng Sect depart for a brief moment before turning around and heading back toward the Demonic Cult's main army.
With his lightness skill, Il-mok zipped past the marching warriors until he arrived right next to Cult Leader Wi Jin-hak.
"Well then. How did it go?"
Il-mok gave him a quick rundown of the conversation that had just taken place.
"Therefore, for the sake of our supply lines, I have entrusted them with the defense of Sichuan for the time being."
"Hmm... Can they really be trusted?"
Even though Il-mok had felt nothing but pure sincerity from Cheongmok’s words and actions, he didn't bother trying to convince Wi Jin-hak to trust his judgment.
He couldn't risk the life and death of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and their allied factions based purely on his own gut feeling.
"As it happens, I already have a countermeasure in mind for that problem, Cult Leader."
Besides, Il-mok wasn't going to put blind faith in Qingcheng, either.
"We need to make some preparations in Gansu for our upcoming propaganda. In that case, while carrying out those preparations, I plan to stay behind in Gansu with a few key personnel to secure our rear."
"So you're planning to keep an eye on Sichuan from behind?"
"On top of that, Qingcheng won't be able to defend Sichuan all by themselves in the first place. So, using that as a convenient pretext, I plan to send a detachment of 'reinforcements' into Sichuan."
Wi Jin-hak nodded approvingly at Il-mok's scheme.
"Setting up our propaganda and locking down the rear. Since you've always been the brains of the operation, youngest, I'll confidently leave the rear in your hands. This Eldest Brother plans on wiping out Shaanxi as fast as possible."
As Wi Jin-hak turned his head to gaze eastward, a heavy wave of Qi flowed out from around him.
'I knew he was cultivating the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts, but he's definitely gotten a lot stronger.'
In Il-mok's mind, the image of Mount Hua and Zhongnan being burned to ashes by the calamitous flames scattered by Wi Jin-hak sprang to mind.