Chapter 170
Three months since their departure.
At last, they finally exited the tedious and harrowing Gobi Desert.
The barren sand dunes faded away, replaced by a land cloaked in rugged rocks and crimson earth.
Beyond that, an enormous mountain range rose, seemingly piercing the very sky with its majesty.
The Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range.
The holy land of the Demonic Cult, and a place legendary among the martial world of the Central Plains as its graveyard.
Black clouds coiled around the mountain peaks, exuding a ghastly and ominous energy that made one's knees go weak at a mere glance.
Lee Rin pointed at the mountain range with her finger and asked,
"Great Hero, is that mountain over there perhaps our destination?"
Her voice quivered with tension.
It was a weighty and dark pressure, different from the snowy mountains of the North Sea.
"That's right. That is the very heart of the Demonic Cult."
Jaseong's eyes turned sharply fierce.
"Everyone, be alert. That place is on a whole different level from anywhere we've faced so far."
The previously relaxed atmosphere vanished in an instant. Everyone's expression turned grave.
Lee Rin swallowed dryly; Gu Janghu rechecked the throwing blade at his side.
Gal Seo-ryeong and Han Soweol each inspected their weapons, steeling their resolve for what was to come.
Soon they entered a small slash-and-burn folk village, some distance from the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range.
Outwardly, it appeared to be a typical village, but the secret Xinjiang branch of the Hao Sect was hidden within.
As Jaseong's group arrived, the branch manager emerged, dressed in shabby sheepskin clothing, and greeted them.
"Greetings, Sect Leader."
The Xinjiang Province branch manager prostrated himself before Jaseong.
True to its reputation as the most dangerous assignment among the Hao Sect's branches, the Xinjiang Province manager exuded quite a presence.
Jaseong followed him into the village. Beneath the house disguised as the chief's residence was a secret conference room.
Jaseong naturally took the seat of honor.
"Report the information on the Demonic Cult."
At his command, the branch manager unfurled a scroll that had been prepared in advance.
"Since the Heavenly Demon's death, the Demonic Cult remains in turmoil and conflict. With the absolute central figure gone, long-repressed ambitions have exploded. Currently, the Demonic Cult is divided into three main factions."
"Three factions?"
"Yes. The Three Disciples of the Heavenly Demon are vying for the position of sect leader."
At the mention of the Three Disciples, Jaseong's thoughts briefly strayed to the past.
During the Seven-Star Cloud Blade incident, he had confronted the Heavenly Demon's fourth disciple, Yeom Musa.
A master whose skill matched that of a First Elder from the Nine Sects-One Union.
Back then, Jaseong had fought desperately, repelling him with a technique that risked both their lives.
"As the Three Disciples' conflict deepened, the power struggle among the Four Great Protectors who supported the previous Heavenly Demon has also intensified. Each is backing a favored disciple, thereby expanding their own forces."
"The Four Great Protectors?"
"Yes. The First Protector, Demonic Blood Exalted One. The Second Protector, Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens. The Third Protector, Desolate Demon Lord. The Fourth Protector, Black Moon Saint. These four currently wield true power within the Demonic Cult. Their martial arts rival even the Heavenly Demon's disciples, and they are notorious for their particular cruelty."
"I see. Do you by any chance have likenesses of them?"
"Unfortunately, the Three Disciples guard their identities so closely we could not acquire any. However, we were able to obtain likenesses of the Second and Third Protectors."
The branch manager pulled two portraits from his robes and spread them out on the table.
Jaseong looked down at the pictures. One was a brutish man with a coarse beard; the other, an old woman with grotesque face paint.
But the moment he saw the latter—
"...?!"
Jaseong's eyes trembled.
"What's wrong, Great Hero?"
Lee Rin noticed his change in expression and voiced her concern.
Jaseong could not answer. The old woman in the portrait—Second Protector Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens.
Her face strongly resembled a visage that lived on as a terrible nightmare in his memory.
The Red Light District of Ansun. That blood-soaked night.
At the moment when the sword aura of the Murim Alliance's experts descended.
The Demonic Cult expert who had used Jaseong's sister-in-law as a human shield to block the sword aura.
That had been Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens.
"This person... is this really the Second Protector Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens?"
Jaseong's voice came out as chilling as the cold winds of the underworld.
"Yes, that's correct. She's known for her mastery of poison arts and illusions, and is rumored to treat people like toys for her own amusement."
'I've found her.'
Jaseong's fist clenched so hard his knuckles cracked. The rage boiling in his chest threatened to swallow him whole.
'The one directly responsible for killing my sister-in-law... At last, I've found her.'
He slowly raised his head to look outside the window.
Far away, the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range loomed in the darkness like a massive monster.
Somewhere there lurked Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens.
And she had no idea yet that the family of the woman she so callously killed had returned from hell as a vengeful specter, now seeking her life.
"Prepare yourselves."
Jaseong stood. The killing intent radiating from his whole body filled the room.
"Tonight, we enter the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range."
The time for vengeance was approaching.
The calamity's blade was finally being leveled against the very heart of the Demonic Cult.
* * *
Before the real departure, Jaseong closed his eyes and drifted into a light sleep.
And, for the first time in a long while, he dreamed of that day.
'That day' was when, at sixteen, Jaseong was a junior guard returning from his first escort journey.
It had been a particularly lucky day.
They'd encountered a bandit gang, but the escort warriors' impressive might dispatched them with ease.
And by looting the dead bandits' pockets, they'd gained an unexpected windfall.
The money that fell to Jaseong, the youngest guard, was just a handful of coins, but it was more than enough to put a beaming smile on his face.
What's more, as Jaseong was heading home after wrapping everything up, the squad leader unexpectedly offered praise.
—Jaseong. I saw you wielding a cleaver against those three bandits earlier.
—?
—You should learn martial arts. You have martial talent.
... Martial talent. For someone like Jaseong, who possessed nothing, those words were wholly unexpected.
—Thank you.
As he left the escort agency, Jaseong clenched the coins tightly, afraid his luck might vanish.
—Fresh fish! Get your fresh fish!
With a now-bulging pocket, Jaseong noticed the market street he'd always ignored: blacksmith, noodle house, inn, academy, and so on.
Wandering slowly among them, Jaseong fell deep into thought.
"Should I buy a sword?"
The cleaver borrowed from the agency was too short and worn.
With a proper blade, it would be far easier to deal with bandits next time.
But Jaseong soon abandoned the idea.
—... A sword is too expensive. That money could feed my family well for several months...
As he passed the blacksmith, Jaseong stumbled upon something else worth buying.
A baby's rattle. It seemed reasonable to spend a little for the soon-to-arrive nephew or niece.
—Big Brother and sister-in-law will like this.
With that thought, imagining their broad smiles, Jaseong headed home at a brisk pace. When at last he entered the Red Light District—
—...?
A scene unfolded at the entrance to the district that was hard to believe even with his own eyes.
—Aaargh!!
—Sob! Gyeong-ah!
The entrance to the district was in chaos. A dozen corpses lay strewn on the ground.
To Jaseong, many of these dead were all too familiar. The courtesans, the errand boys, the local merchants.
And among the corpses, some were dearer than just acquaintances.
—Brother...? Sister-in-law...?
Near the end of that line of corpses on the ground, his big brother and sister-in-law lay side by side, blood pooling dark and thick.
—Young master. They were Demonic Cult members. They killed me and the baby in my belly.
Sister-in-law's corpse spoke.
—It was that old woman. Please... You must kill her.
Tears of blood streamed from the dead woman's face as she handed him a sheet of paper.
Drawn on it was the face of an old woman with grotesque makeup.
"... Second Protector Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens."
Murmuring those words, Jaseong opened his eyes. Leaning against the window, his gaze now glimmered icily, sharper than ever before.
"Sect Leader, all is ready."
Gal Seo-ryeong's calm voice split the darkness. She had finished all preparations and stood behind Jaseong.
And she was not alone. Lee Rin, Gu Janghu, and Han Soweol too.
All awaited his command, their faces set with grim determination.
Jaseong turned his gaze outside. In the far-off midnight gloom, the immense mountain range crouched.
The Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range. Its perilous slopes yawned like the jaws of a giant monster, radiating a pressure as if to devour all who dared approach.
'The Night Cat Celestial Spirit said it—the Samadhi Eyes will naturally reveal the place where Heaven's Mandate will descend.'
Jaseong activated the Samadhi Eyes.
Saaaah—
All color vanished from the world, and only the flows of energy stood out in sharp relief.
As befitted the Demonic Cult's heartland, everywhere in the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range countless streams of demonic ki swirled in chaos.
But through that chaotic maelstrom, Jaseong's Samadhi Eyes caught a single, distinctly different current.
Somewhere on the mountainside—still faint, but clear—a column of black smoke was rising.
It was not ordinary smoke.
It was a pillar of energy linking heaven and earth—a sign marked by the will of the Celestial Realm.
'Just as the Night Cat Celestial Spirit said. That must be the place where the Heaven-Transforming Creation Elixir will descend.'
The black smoke seemed to beckon someone, rising resolutely toward the sky.
Just witnessing that energy made Jaseong's dantian quiver minutely.
'If I can seize that opportunity, I will reach the transformation realm perfectly.'
Jaseong engraved two goals deep into his heart once again.
First, find Second Protector Ghost Mother of the Nine Heavens and repay his sister-in-law's and unborn nephew's grudge.
To sever her head and offer it before the sister-in-law's spirit.
Second, at the place where the Heaven-Transforming Creation Elixir descends, fulfill Heaven's Mandate.
Before the Demonic Cult claims its power and drenches the Central Plains in blood once again, steal it and make it his own.
Both goals were critical. Vengeance and Heaven's Mandate—neither could be forsaken.
"Let's go."
"Yes, Sect Leader."
"Yes, Great Hero."
Deeper into night, Jaseong's group began to move in silence.
The outskirts of the Ten-Thousand-Mountain Range were as treacherous as their reputation suggested.
Sheer cliffs, jagged rocks as sharp as blades.
There was nothing that could rightly be called a path, and one misstep threatened a thousand-foot drop.
Whoosh—whoosh—
Moving like shadows between the rocks, Jaseong's party advanced fluidly.
Though ordinary people would find such terrain impassible, for those who had mastered peak lightness skill, such obstacles were little trouble.
'Best to save Mansul's hidden technique for now. I can only use that twice a day, after all.'
Rubbing Mansul's soft white fur, waiting in his robe, Jaseong thought to himself.
After traveling for quite a while—
Chuk—
Jaseong raised his hand, halting the group. His gaze fixed on the massive boulder ahead.
[There's movement.]
At Jaseong's telepathic message, all held their breath. A moment later, the flicker of torchlight danced behind the rock.