Rebirth of the Thunder God

What Namgung Hui proposed was simple.

That he would become the core axis in place of the untrustworthy Martial Arts Alliance.

He intended to build a new force under the name of the Righteous Heaven Alliance.

Of course, they were more distrustful of Namgung Hui, who was still quite young, than the Martial Arts Alliance.

Even if Namgung Hui was the current sect leader of the Thunder God Sect.

So, he had no choice but to sell all sorts of names.

Namgung Uncheon, the head of the Namgung family and his own father.

Tang Cheonsang, the head of the Sichuan Tang family and the Poison King.

Yong Ujin, the sect leader of the Mount Hua Sect and the Sword Emperor.

Besides that, he also casually included the princess, Ju Hwayeong, and the Divine Treasure Fortress.

Although they were not in the Righteous Heaven Alliance but the Anti-Heaven Alliance, it didn't matter. Their purpose was clearly the overthrow of the Hoicheon Association, even if their affiliation was different.

‘The Divine Treasure Fortress. If they are the descendants of the Fighting Immortal, they are certainly trustworthy. Along with the Thunder God Sect, they are a place with a deep connection to our Kunlun Sect, so it's a good idea to solidify our alliance on this occasion. Alright. For now, I will follow your plan.’

In the end, Namgung Hui succeeded in persuading them.

He had put out the urgent fire and succeeded in nurturing a new spark.

Now, all that was left was to use this spark to burn down someone else's house.

That place would surely be the Hoicheon Association and the Blood Cult.

‘I've only just turned a crisis into an opportunity. I must make good use of this opportunity and launch a counterattack.’

The more Namgung Hui learned about the Hoicheon Association, the more he realized that their power was not ordinary.

The writing left by the Azure Sky Sword Emperor.

In it, it was telling him that the Hoicheon Association, which had been secretly active for 60 years, was not ordinary.

Were they trying to control this world itself as they pleased?

Even just to figure that out, a battle with the Hoicheon Association would be an unavoidable fate.

"Namgung Hui. Thank you so much for treating my maternal grandfather. Thanks to you, I've regained my only remaining blood relative."

Namgung Hui, at Jeok Hwarin's words, shook off his thoughts and looked at her.

"It was something I had to do anyway. It was just to find out the whereabouts of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art. Don't thank me too much. Just thank me moderately."

"Moderately? Pfft. Alright. I'll thank you moderately as I please. Then are you leaving the Kunlun Sect now?"

"I have to. To stop the Blood Cult, I have to inform them of this fact as soon as possible and join forces with the martial world of the Central Plains."

Not only the Martial Arts Alliance, but if he could also get the help of the Iron Blood Fortress, he had to reach out to them as well.

They, too, would know better than anyone that if the Kunlun Sect fell and the Heavenly Demon Divine Art fell into the hands of the Blood Cult, they would be next.

Right now, the area around Chongqing where they were located was just a thoroughfare through the Central Plains.

One way or another, the Blood Cult would have to pass near the Iron Blood Fortress.

There was a high probability that they would thoroughly trample them, even if it was just because their backs were itchy.

Because if the Iron Blood Fortress were to surround them from behind, even the Blood Cult, the strongest single force, would have no choice but to suffer damage.

"What a shame. To part so soon. I thought it was a chance to score some points."

"What's the point of scoring points with me? Go and score them with the Daoists of the Kunlun Sect. Then who knows. They might even pass on their martial arts to you."

If she were Cheongheo's granddaughter, she might be allowed to climb the Jade Purity Peak.

Even just looking at how much Cheongheo had suffered, it was more than enough to do that for her.

Right now, wasn't the reason Cheongheo had gone under the Heavenly Dao Immortal because of such affection between blood relatives?

They, too, had felt a lot about this incident, so there was a need to be more flexible.

"Then why did you refuse the martial arts that the Kunlun Sect offered? You were the one who made the biggest contribution in this incident."

As she said, Namgung Hui was the troubleshooter who had played the biggest role in this incident.

Nevertheless, Namgung Hui had refused all the martial arts that the Kunlun Sect had offered as compensation.

But did he get nothing? That was not the case.

Rather, it could be said that he had received the greatest benefit.

Of course, it wasn't something the Kunlun Sect had given him directly, but there were many achievements he had obtained by visiting the Kunlun Sect.

First of all, he had received the clone technique, Dividing Thunder Flashing Shadow, from the third sect leader of his sect.

On top of that, he had fully received the True Emperor Sword Form that his sworn brother had been unable to pass on.

And the biggest gain was, of course, the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Not a single one of these three was not precious.

Since he had received a whopping three such divine arts, it was an undeniable fact that he was the biggest beneficiary.

But all of this was close to what Namgung Hui had obtained on his own.

It meant that the Kunlun Sect had not compensated him directly.

But that didn't mean Namgung Hui had not received any compensation from the Kunlun Sect.

Perhaps a special compensation that could be even more joyful to Namgung Hui than the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

That was something that Cheongyo Jin-in had done for Namgung Hui.

‘You, that necklace. By any chance, isn't it a magic tool made by immortals?’

‘That's right.’

‘Hmm. From what I see, it seems to have had a functional problem recently. May I take a look? Not only the repair, but it seems some performance improvement is also possible.’

‘!? Really? Then I'd like to ask you a favor.’

Namgung Hui, who even bowed his head and handed over the magic tool.

Cheongyo Jin-in, as much as his meticulous personality, looked over Namgung Hui's communication magic tool with all his heart and soul.

‘Certainly, the magic formula of the magic tool has worn out and been erased. If I re-engrave this and reinforce it on this occasion, its performance will be even better than before. Please wait for two days.’

And so, unexpectedly, Namgung Hui stayed at the Kunlun Sect longer.

And the communication magic tool he received after two days was in a state of being completely repaired.

‘This has a more profound function than I thought. It doesn't seem to have been made by an ordinary immortal. So even though I only touched the magic formula a little, it's recovering its energy on its own. After about three days, you should be able to use it like before.’

Namgung Hui, who had received the communication magic tool back, was so happy that he wanted to bow to Cheongyo Jin-in right away.

As Namgung Hui smiled broadly, it felt as if the entire Kunlun Sect was brightening up.

The Kunlun Sect Daoists, as if they had been infected by that smile, laughed along with Namgung Hui.

Namgung Hui stroked the magic tool hanging around his neck and said.

"What I have now is more than enough. It's an excess. An excessive amount is worse than none."

"Hmm... Really? For that, you seem to have a lot of greed."

"That must be your delusion. Anyway. I'll stop by again next time, so until then, train hard."

"You're coming again, that's a promise?"

"It's not a grand promise. Anyway, to stop the Blood Cult, I have no choice but to come."

Because he had to let them know that he had the manual of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

That way, it would be easier to disperse their forces, and the damage to the Kunlun Sect would be reduced.

However, the probability of Namgung Hui being in danger would increase, but Namgung Hui had no intention of refusing this crisis.

Because a crisis brings both danger and opportunity.

He was planning to make good use of that opportunity.

"Anyway. For that reason, I'll be on my way. Dancheong, you too, learn hard from Cheongheo Jin-in until then. When else would you get to learn the martial arts of the Kunlun Sect?"

"Yes. Young Master. I will learn hard."

Now that they knew Namgung Hui's true identity, they were calling him 'Young Master' instead of 'Great Hero' or 'Young Hero.'

Since the title was not important anyway, Namgung Hui patted Dancheong's shoulder and then moved his steps towards the mountain gate with Jang Hwang.

And so, as soon as they were separated from the Sun God Palace disciples, Cheongheo Jin-in was waiting for Namgung Hui at the mountain gate.

"Thank... no. Since you told me to stop, I'll stop there. Instead, please go and come back safely. The fate of our Kunlun Sect is on your shoulders, so don't forget."

Cheongheo's words were burdensome, but what he said was not particularly wrong.

It was a situation where it was not an exaggeration to say that the rise and fall of the Kunlun Sect depended on how Namgung Hui would act in the future.

"Yes. I will try my best to produce results. Cheongheo Jin-in, you too, please don't worry too much. If you do, your heart disease will relapse."

"Hoho. I'm not saying you have to produce results. But if you do, we'll be grateful. You must have had a good talk with the Sect Leader, so I'll stop here. Please take care."

And so, with Cheongheo's farewell, Namgung Hui completely left the Kunlun Sect.

Jang Hwang, watching the Kunlun Sect disappear again into the barrier, opened his mouth.

"It's a shame to leave like this. I was just getting used to it."

Perhaps because Jang Hwang was a sorcerer, the Kunlun Sect, which performed Daoist arts, seemed friendly.

Besides, he had also gained quite a lot from the Kunlun Sect.

The transformation art, one of the manuals left by the deceased Cheongsu.

Since Jang Hwang was the one who could learn it most usefully, the Kunlun Sect Daoists had also obediently handed over the manual to Jang Hwang.

Perhaps they had handed it over as compensation, or because they hated the sight of the transformation art itself.

But that joy was also short-lived.

The dark clouds hanging over the Kunlun Sect were clearly visible without anyone saying anything.

As Cheongheo had said, a huge responsibility had been placed on Namgung Hui.

‘Not only do I have to stop the Blood Cult. I also have to check the movements of the Hoicheon Association, just in case.’

There was no law that said there were no spies of the Hoicheon Association in the Blood Cult.

Hadn't there been a few in the hard-line faction, including the Poison Demon, who had been in communication with the Hoicheon Association?

Besides that, there were surely spies of the Hoicheon Association that Namgung Hui had not identified.

"Even if you get used to it now, it will be new when you come next time. Because the disciples who were in seclusion are said to be coming out soon."

As much as the Kunlun Sect had entered a seal.

There were far more disciples who had entered seclusion training.

Right now, among the second-generation disciples, there was no one who had shown their face except for Unhak.

The majority of the second-generation disciples were said to be in seclusion training at the Jade Purity Peak.

And some of the first-generation disciples were also not coming down from the Jade Purity Peak to guide them.

Since it was the only place Namgung Hui had not been able to visit, he had no idea how strong they would be, but seeing the level of the other first-generation disciples and Unhak, they would by no means be easy.

"Yes. To come back again, we have to leave quickly. Let's go."

***

Namgung Hui, who had left the Kunlun Mountains, had no choice but to pass through Nahi's village.

Although the time Namgung Hui had stayed at the Kunlun Sect was not that long.

The completely destroyed buildings were in a clean state, even if they were desolate, as if they had all been cleared away at some point.

"Huh. Dad. When did you get back?"

"I just got here. Mungchi. It seems you've been working hard to rebuild the village. The condition is better than I thought."

"Ahem. I did work hard. It's just that there's no one besides you, Dad, who recognizes it."

"Don't tell me. Nahi will also be grateful. Is a fox's wit ordinary?"

"Huh? Really?"

"Of course. She's probably just not showing it to you."

Although Mungchi was trying to win Nahi's favor, it seemed Nahi was still not budging.

But just as there is no tree that doesn't fall after ten strikes.

He believed that Mungchi's heart would also see the light someday.

Namgung Hui had something to say to Nahi and Mungchi about Cheongsu, so he visited the abandoned shrine where Nahi was with Mungchi.

"Nahi. Are you in there?"

A rustling sound of something being cleared away was heard from inside, and soon, a voice like a rolling jade bead was heard.

"Yes. I'm inside. Please come in."

As Namgung Hui opened the door and entered, although the scenery was clean, the atmosphere felt busy.

It was difficult for others to notice anything, but to Namgung Hui, who had sensitive five senses.

‘It was a mess until a moment ago. It's full of traces of being hastily organized.’

Well, whatever Nahi's usual tidiness was, it didn't matter to Namgung Hui.

Because all he had to do was tell her and Mungchi the true identity of the Heavenly Dao Immortal.

"Mungchi. You sit down too. I came because I have something to say to you two."

Nahi glanced at Mungchi with a slightly displeased expression and then asked.

"Is it an important story?"

"If it's important, it's an important story. Because you two are the parties involved."

"Us?"

"Yes. It's a story about the Heavenly Dao Immortal. Since you're sitting, listen."

Namgung Hui explained step by step that the Heavenly Dao Immortal was actually Cheongsu in disguise.

What his motive was, what he had plotted by pretending to be the Heavenly Dao Immortal, he only told the parts that Mungchi and Nahi needed to know.

When Namgung Hui's story ended, Nahi trembled in shame and her face turned bright red.

"H-How could he!"

Mungchi was just as surprised.

"Dad. Is it true? The Heavenly Dao Immortal was a fake?"

"Yes. Since this older brother here has learned that transformation art, if you really don't believe it, try testing it."

As Jang Hwang nodded his head from the side, Mungchi had no choice but to believe Namgung Hui's words.

"A fake..."

"Well, the transformation art is real, so. Don't let what you've learned go to waste. There is sin in people, but there is no sin in Daoist arts."

"Uh. I got it. I had no intention of giving up the transformation art I learned with difficulty."

Although Mungchi had been made to work by the Heavenly Dao Immortal, it seemed he didn't feel much humiliation.

That was probably because he hadn't been ridiculed like Nahi.

Since Namgung Hui also had no talent for comforting in such matters, he left Nahi alone and came out of the abandoned shrine.

"Mungchi. Why did you follow me out without comforting Nahi? This would have been your chance."

"Ahem. That is. It's because I also have something important to say to you, Dad."

"What is it? By any chance, did you confess to Nahi and get rejected?"

"N-No! Why do you say it like that?"

"Well, if it's not, it's not. Why are you getting angry? Then what do you have to say?"

"The leader of the Mad Wind Group I mentioned before has returned. And he brought monks in strange attire."

"Strange attire? Don't tell me! Were they wearing red kasayas?"

(End of Chapter)