Rebirth of the Thunder God

"Ah, and you have to take off all your clothes. It doesn't matter if you're wearing them since they'll freeze and crumble anyway."

That would be troublesome.

Wasn't he currently in disguise as a woman?

Aside from having to get new clothes, it would be difficult if his disguise as a woman came undone.

Because it would do no good to be discovered by Seong Sohui.

But Namgung Hui still hesitated.

Although he fully understood it in his head, it was difficult to put it into practice.

No matter how much of a friend she was, Beak Seolhwa was still a woman's body.

And Namgung Hui, although disguised as a woman, was a man in his prime.

For such a Namgung Hui to show his naked body to a woman would be no small embarrassment.

Even if all of this was an act for Namgung Hui, who had no personal feelings.

At Namgung Hui's hesitation, Beak Seolhwa smiled faintly and said.

"Don't tell me you're shy?"

"O-of course! Do you think you'd be any different?"

"I'm fine with it."

"Really? Then you can take off all your clothes in front of me?"

"Yeah. Want me to show you?"

As Beak Seolhwa was about to take off her clothes, Namgung Hui stopped her and said.

"N-no. It's fine. Since you're just infusing ki, it's okay to be lying face down, right?"

"Yes."

Namgung Hui let out a deep sigh, sat on the bed, and first took off his outer garment.

He was about to remove the various devices that were cumbersomely wrapped around him for his disguise as a woman.

A different plan flashed through his mind.

'No. There might be a spirit medicine of extreme yin in the imperial palace's secret repository, right? Then I can just eat that, can't I?'

If that were the case, there would be no reason to show his naked body to Beak Seolhwa.

He had already taken the Small Rejuvenation Pill anyway. For the time being, he wouldn't be short of internal energy.

It was a little disappointing that he couldn't fully exert the efficacy of the Fire Spirit Divine Pill, but anyway, the energy of the spirit medicine dormant in his body wasn't going to fly away somewhere.

As Namgung Hui gathered his clothes and put them back on, Beak Seolhwa tilted her head and asked.

"Why are you putting your clothes back on? Did you change your mind?"

"Yeah. I thought of another alternative. I don't think I need to show you my naked body, Seolhwa. You don't need to spoil your eyes either. Right?"

"...Well, if you say so, I can't help it."

Namgung Hui nodded and hurriedly left the room.

Beak Seolhwa, who was chasing his back with a disappointed gaze, muttered to herself.

"It's not spoiling my eyes..."

After finishing her words, Beak Seolhwa collapsed on the bed as if her tension had been released.

On the bed where Namgung Hui had stayed for a moment, his warmth was still full.

* * *

Namgung Hui greeted the morning, listening to the chirping of a different kind of bird.

Perhaps to forget what had happened last night, he moved diligently.

He sat in a cross-legged position and finished circulating his energy.

And for the first time in a long time, he went out to the backyard and loosened his body.

And he also checked the new martial arts he had created, the Heavenly Thunder Emperor Divine Art and the Flash Lightning Thirteen Thunders.

He also used the Two-Forms Heart Method from time to time and gauged how he would use it in a real fight.

As he moved so busily, his troubled mind became a little more at ease.

Now that it was almost time for a meal, he turned his steps towards the inn before Muchi's grumbling could be heard.

"Are you on your way back from training since morning?"

Beak Seolhwa also seemed to have just woken up, as she asked with a disheveled face.

Even that defenseless face was truly beautiful.

"Yeah. I went to check the martial arts I made this time. Did you just wake up? You woke up a little late."

Usually, she also woke up as early as Namgung Hui.

"I just went to bed a little late yesterday, so my eyes are just opening now. I'm hungry. Let's go eat."

Namgung Hui had also come after pouring out a lot of energy, so he nodded and followed her.

"You've come at a good time. I was about to call you for breakfast, so you've saved me the trouble."

At the inn's dining table, Seong Sohui seemed to have woken up a long time ago, as she was sitting demurely and sipping tea.

Come to think of it, physicians also didn't sleep in much.

Because if there were no sick people last night, they had to wake up early and take care of the patients.

Seong Sohui put down her teacup and opened her mouth.

"You two seem to have made up. You look quite friendly today."

At her words, Namgung Hui answered.

"What do you mean, fought? We just had a little misunderstanding. And friends are bound to be like that sometimes."

Seong Sohui nodded with an unreadable smile.

"Yes. Then. Let's all eat together amicably."

Seong Sohui had even finished ordering, as if she had expected the party to come.

It might have been possible because she had learned the preferred foods of the party during the journey.

As Namgung Hui and Beak Seolhwa took their seats, dishes were placed in front of each of them.

Muchi, as if he had been waiting, immediately moved his chopsticks and began to empty his bowl.

A little while later, when everyone had finished their meal, Namgung Hui brought up the topic of their future schedule.

"We'll be entering the Hundred Thousand Mountains within today. Chunsam, you take good care of the Little Saintess. Okwol and I will likely move separately once we enter the Blood Cult."

Hadn't Namgung Hui even received a directive from Cheongi-ja?

Although he didn't have to listen to Cheongi-ja's request, there was no way he would have entrusted him with a task that would harm Namgung Hui.

Rather, he would have given him a mission that could deal a fatal blow to the Blood Cult.

It would be better to use the back door that the Pungun Merchant Guild and Cheongi-ja had prepared as much as possible.

On top of that, he couldn't guarantee what would happen to Beak Seolhwa's whereabouts.

Since she herself couldn't get her bearings, there was a high possibility that things would not go as planned inside the Blood Cult.

"Chunsam will protect the Saintess well. I trust you two will also do well on your own."

Beak Seolhwa was lost in thought for a moment and then asked Muchi.

"The person named Bukgung Jinwu, can I meet him?"

A member of the Bukgung family belonging to the moderate faction, and the person who had given Muchi the order for this trip to the Central Plains.

From what he had heard, he seemed to be playing the role of a military strategist in the moderate faction.

If he was in such a military strategist-level position, he would be able to have a conversation with Beak Seolhwa to some extent.

"That's not difficult. Rather, I wanted to ask. Jinwu is kind. He will meet you."

If this happened, the possibility of Namgung Hui moving separately alone inside the Blood Cult increased.

Perhaps he would be busy with something like assassinating a key figure or stealing something.

It could be a lost manual.

Or it could be the assassination of an elder-level figure.

Or an unimaginable mission might be waiting...

"Then the situation is roughly sorted out. Little Saintess. The people of the Blood Cult might be rougher than you expect. Because the thing called demonic art even pollutes a person's mind."

"You don't have to worry about me. This young lady should just worry about Miss Seol."

"Well, Okwol will do well on her own."

Beak Seolhwa's martial arts had already surpassed the later generation masters and were approaching the level of the top ten masters of the White Path.

Of course, if the Orthodox, Unorthodox, and Demonic factions were gathered in one place, the weight of the words 'top ten masters of the White Path' would be slightly diluted, but still, it was a martial power of a different dimension from the hundred great masters.

Rather, recalling her past life, her current evaluation might have been set quite low.

If she were given just a little bit of spirit medicine, she would surpass the top ten masters in one go.

Even if she were to be subdued by force, there was no great worry.

From the point where the moderate faction was searching for the symbol of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the name value of being a descendant of Sosu Mahu was by no means low.

Of course, Namgung Hui couldn't guarantee whether Beak Seolhwa would reveal that fact, but if it came to it, it could be used as a means to escape a crisis.

As the whereabouts were settled, Namgung Hui stood up from his seat and said.

"Let's leave right away. The night in the mountains comes early."

"Then I will take the lead now. Everyone, follow me."

Muchi put Seong Sohui on his back and took the lead.

Although it was not difficult to head to the Hundred Thousand Mountains, it would be impossible to find the base of the Blood Cult among the hundred thousand peaks without Muchi.

As Namgung Hui and Beak Seolhwa nodded, Muchi launched his body first.

And so, as Namgung Hui's party disappeared, a carrier pigeon flew up into the sky from above the Yangshan Inn.

* * *

The Hundred Thousand Mountains originated from the meaning that there were a hundred thousand peaks.

It boasted such a vast area that it was not enough to call it a mountain range.

The fact that it was located in Guangdong Province was only because the Blood Cult was there, and the area of the Hundred Thousand Mountains extended past Guangxi Province to Yunnan Province.

A huge mountain range that encompassed three provinces.

This was the reality of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

It was difficult to find even if one went out to search, and since one didn't know what kind of traps would fly from the high peaks, it was no different from a natural fortress.

The fact that the Blood Cult was in Guangdong Province could also be a forged fact.

It was just that the last place the Blood Cult members were seen was Guangdong Province.

It wouldn't be strange even if they had gone to Guangxi Province or Yunnan Province through the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

Seeing such a Hundred Thousand Mountains in person, it was so magnificent that the existence of a human being felt shabby.

The countless peaks were lined up to the point of confusing one's current location.

Muchi pointed to one of the peaks, which was as large as his own build, and said.

"We're here. That's the headquarters of the Divine Cult."

"Is it okay to tell us so readily?"

"I trust you two, no, the three of you, including the Saintess."

The Little Saintess, who was famous for being righteous, and Beak Seolhwa, who was from the Divine Cult, aside.

Namgung Hui was a dangerous element to the Blood Cult.

Even now, wasn't his hostility as great as that mountain peak?

Namgung Hui himself could not guarantee what kind of harm he would inflict on the Blood Cult.

And yet, Muchi said he trusted Namgung Hui.

Rather, because of his remark, Namgung Hui felt inwardly sorry.

Looking at Muchi's innocent-looking eyes, it seemed his hands would become somewhat dull.

Did he make that remark with this in mind?

Considering Muchi's usual self, that would absolutely not be the case.

He must have said it because he sincerely thought so.

'But that doesn't mean I can just leave the Blood Cult alone. I'm sorry to Muchi, but I can't yield here.'

"Chunsam. No, Muchi. Don't trust me. Didn't I also come here because I have my own schemes? You're not unaware of that fact, are you?"

"I know. But I still trust you."

Namgung Hui looked at Muchi's firm-looking expression and then shook his head.

A person who looked so resolute was difficult to persuade.

"Alright. Do as you please. Then let's enter the cult right away."

"Good. Follow me. From now on, you have to step carefully, just like me."

It seemed that formations or mechanisms were installed.

It was a natural thing, since the Blood Cult would not be without sorcerers or military strategists.

Muchi's memory was better than he thought.

He moved his steps along a complex and diverse path.

Sometimes he would touch something on the wall, and sometimes he would tap a rock, performing actions that looked rather comical.

And so, how long had he walked?

By the time the sun was setting, he had arrived at the peak that Muchi had pointed at.

In fact, it was difficult to see it as a peak, and it would be more accurate to say it was a mountainside located below the peak.

The peak seemed to play the role of a guiding star to find the location of the Blood Cult.

A steep land located on the mountain ridge.

A secluded place hidden in the natural fortress of the Hundred Thousand Mountains.

The Heavenly Blood Divine Cult.

A name that swore a bloody revenge while succeeding the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

Perhaps because of that name, the smell of blood seemed to vibrate from the entrance.

As if it wasn't Namgung Hui's illusion, Beak Seolhwa also covered her nose and turned her head.

"The smell of blood. You smelled it too, right?"

"Yes."

As if to confirm the words of Namgung Hui and Beak Seolhwa, people popped out one by one from between the dense bushes.

They looked at Namgung Hui's party and exuded a thick killing intent like the smell of blood.