Chapter 161
Chapter 161
Creak!
The door slid open, and Youngho looked at Cheonung with calm eyes.
“You arrived earlier than expected.”
“The atmosphere’s been too vicious lately. There’s nowhere to waste time. Thanks to you, even I’m taking damage from those Orthodox Sect bastards. Honestly, why did you have to try to Ascend in the first place?”
“It seems the rumors have spread quite a bit?”
“With all the commotion that happened, do you think it could be contained? Of course the rumors spread. Still, don’t worry. The Orthodox Sect bastards seem to have had their pride hurt that you nearly Ascended, so they’re trying to keep it as secret as possible.”
“Ahem!”
Han Yonghu cleared his throat and said,
“I am the Murim Alliance Leader, you know.”
“The only reason you haven’t ended up dying somewhere in the Jianghu is because you’re the Murim Alliance Leader. If you didn’t have someone assisting you, your capital would’ve been drained dry by now.”
The remark was so accurate that Han Yonghu turned his head away and pretended not to hear. It was a conversation so childish that it was hard to believe it was between the Murim Alliance Leader and the Lord of the Unorthodox Alliance.
However, Youngho, who had already experienced this kind of situation dozens of times, spoke without the slightest disturbance.
“I know how close the two of you are, so let’s stop there and begin the meeting.”
As Youngho sat down, Han Yonghu naturally handed him a document.
Youngho casually skimmed the document with his eyes and spoke indifferently, as if it were nothing significant.
“It seems the Heavenly Demon will move soon.”
“…!”
Han Yonghu and Cheonung both tried to maintain calm expressions, but their stiffened faces clearly revealed just how serious the current situation was.
“That damned fickleness… that bastard is acting however he pleases again.”
When Cheonung muttered quietly, Han Yonghu nodded slightly in agreement.
“But this time the whim is too severe. To think he hasn’t even kept half of the agreement…”
“It might be false that the Heavenly Demon will move, but there’s no harm in staying cautious.”
He appeared relaxed, yet he was meticulous.
He appeared detached, yet he was more vigilant than anyone.
For a moment, Han Yonghu and Cheonung looked into Youngho’s hazy, unfocused eyes.
He was not so immersed in thought that he forgot his surroundings. Nor had he relaxed to the point of excessive ease.
Yet ever since the Ascension incident, Youngho’s eyes had always been like this. As if he were looking somewhere else instead of here, as if he were gazing at somewhere far beyond what they could see.
Whenever that happened, they were inevitably reminded of the Heavenly Demon, which made the situation rather ironic.
Youngho seemed unconcerned with whatever thoughts they had as he gazed out the window and spoke.
“The problem is that the Demonic Cult will likely move before the Heavenly Demon.”
“That cannot be dismissed as false.”
At Han Yonghu’s statement, Youngho shrugged in agreement.
In truth, even the recent Jiangshi incident already showed signs that the Demonic Cult would soon begin to move.
The fact that they had no idea what schemes the Demonic Cult might have prepared in the Central Plains made the situation all the more unsettling.
The Demonic Cult was dangerous.
Knowing this well, Youngho did not hesitate to voice his opinion.
“The Orthodox Sect must gradually gather in one place. Hainan in particular will become a major force.”
When Hainan was mentioned, Han Yonghu looked pleased as if he himself had received praise.
“Well, Tanyeong is there after all. I’m truly looking forward to seeing how much he has grown.”
“Personally, I believe he will be stronger than the Dark Emperor.”
“If that’s the case, there could be nothing better. Then how will the Unorthodox Faction gather its forces?”
“One of the advantages of the Unorthodox Faction is numbers, isn’t it?”
“That’s true.”
“But to be honest, the Demonic Cult’s location is too unfavorable for us to win through sheer numbers.”
“Indeed… sending a large Unorthodox army across the Yangtze River would take considerable time.”
“And above all, the mediocre ones would only be swept up in the Demonic Cult’s madness.”
“Yonghu, I told you already. For the Unorthodox Faction, it’s fortunate enough if they’re too stiff to move. In that faction, the ones who don’t kill their own allies are the ones who get preferential treatment.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. I’m just saying it’s a shame.”
Certainly, the Unorthodox Faction held a massive numerical advantage thanks to the Green Forest bandits and the water bandits of the Yangtze.
Most of them were only Third Rate Martial Artists or Second Rate Martial Artists, but no matter who it was, in order to kill someone they still had to swing a sword or throw a punch.
Doing it once was no problem.
But if it had to be done hundreds or thousands of times, even the strongest expert would eventually grow exhausted.
‘What a shame. This time I could’ve killed a few of the ones I wanted under the pretext of using them as meat shields.’
Cheonung suppressed his disappointment internally and looked at Youngho.
“So what method do you have?”
“It’s simple. We fight together with the Kunlun Sect, which lies closest to Cheonsan.”
“Have you truly gone mad? Did your head break while trying to Ascend?”
“…You really say whatever you want to your disciple, don’t you?”
When Youngho asked awkwardly, Cheonung looked at him with an even more incredulous expression.
“What lunatic would try to tie the Kunlun Sect with the Unorthodox Alliance? In the entire world, you’re probably the only one.”
“Then it will be very unfortunate news for the Alliance Leader, but we should wait until the Kunlun Sect suffers significant damage. No matter how strong they are, for the sake of their sect’s survival, they will eventually retreat the front line.”
What Youngho said was practically equivalent to declaring the annihilation of the Kunlun Sect.
Yet Han Yonghu merely gave a bitter smile.
Whenever the Orthodox–Demonic War erupted, the Kunlun Sect had always fought on the very front line.
More precisely, they had no choice but to fight there.
For the Demonic Cult to invade the Central Plains, they always had to pass through the Kunlun Mountains.
Until now, the Kunlun Sect had been strong enough to block the Demonic Cult’s invasions without major problems.
In truth, they had only endured until reinforcements arrived.
Yet even that feat would have been impossible for any sect other than Kunlun.
However, the glory of that past had shackled the present Kunlun Sect.
They had become the unbreakable fortress wall standing before the Demonic Cult, the pillar of the Orthodox Sect that must fight to the very end even if they collapsed. They could never retreat.
In truth, Youngho and the leaders of both the Orthodox Sect and the Unorthodox Faction already knew.
If the Demonic Cult truly rose in this generation, then this time the Kunlun Sect would inevitably be annihilated.
No one openly spoke of it, but the fact that the Sect Leader of the Kunlun Sect had not attended this Joint Training Ground said enough.
And as befitting the Supreme of the Unorthodox Faction, Youngho was calmly suggesting that the Unorthodox Faction should claim the territory left behind after Kunlun’s destruction.
Perhaps that was why Han Yonghu ended up asking a question he normally would not have asked.
“Youngho… if you fought the Heavenly Demon now, what would your chances of winning be?”
At that, Cheonung’s expression stiffened with tension, and Youngho’s face also became serious.
Youngho remained silent for a moment, as if organizing his thoughts.
However, there was little point in remaining silent forever, so he soon spoke.
“Based on the Heavenly Demon I last met, if we fought ten times, I would lose five.”
It was incredible news.
But at the same time, it sounded so unbelievable that Han Yonghu and Cheonung asked again in disbelief.
“Your win rate is fifty percent?”
“Recently, I realized the principles of nature, and it has been quite helpful.”
“Hah… living long enough really lets you see insane disciples like this.”
As Cheonung said that, a smile he could not possibly hide bloomed on his lips.
Didn’t that essentially mean he stood on equal footing with the Heavenly Demon?
“It seems there’s some misunderstanding. I am speaking strictly based on the Heavenly Demon I last met. I do not know what kind of enlightenment he may have gained or how much stronger he has become since then.”
“But it means you can hold your ground, doesn’t it?”
“That’s true, but… it’s somewhat ambiguous.”
It sounded like humility.
But because Youngho always spoke the truth before him, Han Yonghu could not suppress his curiosity.
“I don’t quite understand what you mean. No matter how extraordinary the Heavenly Demon is, even at that lofty realm, this amount of time shouldn’t be enough for him to grow much stronger…”
“In terms of martial understanding alone, I am slightly below the Heavenly Demon.”
“…What?”
“To put it simply, I am weaker than the Heavenly Demon. I am merely filling the shortcomings of my realm through the principles of nature.”
The situation seemed understandable yet confusing at the same time.
As his head began to ache, Cheonung groaned and asked,
“Didn’t you say last time that you broke through the Wall of the Transformation Realm?”
“I did. It’s true that I surpassed the Transformation Realm two and a half years ago.”
“Then doesn’t that mean you have reached the same realm as the Heavenly Demon?”
Looking at Cheonung’s bewildered expression, Youngho replied in a hollow voice, as though he had just heard something even more absurd.
“Then Master and the Alliance Leader—did you both wield Sword Aura skillfully the moment you reached the Transcendent Peak Master Realm?”
“…Hm?”
“You both walked that path once, so you should know well. Sword Aura is simply Sword Qi that has been refined, reshaped, and processed with greater precision. And most martial artists cannot perfectly wield Sword Aura the moment they reach the Transcendent Peak Master Realm.”
It was an obvious truth.
After all, adapting to a newly acquired weapon required time.
“At the very least, those who remain in the Transcendent Peak Master Realm for quite some time can be said to use Sword Aura perfectly. Around the middle stage of the Transcendent Peak Master Realm, they finally master Sword Aura and begin trying to understand Hardened Force in order to step into the Transformation Realm.”
Hearing that, Cheonung and Han Yonghu let out sighs as if recalling something they had forgotten.
“You are thinking correctly. I have not yet fully consolidated my realm.”
“Th-then originally, wouldn’t the Heavenly Demon be far stronger than you? Is this ‘principle of nature’ truly that extraordinary?”
“The principles of nature are indeed extraordinary. But what exactly are you trying to say?”
“Well, you said that one can only fully master Sword Aura around the middle of the Transcendent Peak Master Realm, didn’t you? Then doesn’t that mean the Heavenly Demon has already comprehended half of the realm beyond the Transformation Realm?”
Youngho let out a deep sigh at the fatigue he had not felt in a long time.
“No. The realm beyond the Transformation Realm… that name is bothersome, so I will simply call it the Transcendent Realm, meaning a state that surpasses the Transformation Realm.”
“That’s fine, but hurry up and explain!”
By now, Cheonung and Han Yonghu could not suppress the curiosity inherent to martial artists.
What did the Heavenly Demon’s realm feel like?
No—what exactly was the realm beyond the Transformation Realm like?
Even within the Transformation Realm, gaining enlightenment could be felt physically as one grew stronger.
Youngho, barely hiding his annoyance, explained a little.
“From the Transcendent Realm onward, the most important thing is how one handles Internal Energy. It is not enlightenment about the sword, nor enlightenment about martial arts. It is simply feeling the energy within one’s body. That is the Transcendent Realm. Master should already know this to some extent since I explained it before.”
It was a statement that seemed understandable yet incomprehensible.
Youngho knew they did not understand, but he did not mind.
No matter how much he explained, even Cheonung would not fully grasp it.
“The method of controlling energy differs from sect to sect, so it is impossible to set an exact standard. But there is one thing I can say with certainty.”
Youngho spoke gently, as if teaching a disciple.
“Up to the Transformation Realm, you can think of it as walking along a somewhat rough road. But from the Transcendent Realm onward, instead of a road, it feels like climbing a cliff.”
“Then has the Heavenly Demon climbed quite far up the cliff you mentioned?”
“No. At most, about three feet.”
“…Isn’t that extremely low?”
“It’s high. I only realized that after reaching the Transcendent Realm myself.”
Youngho chuckled softly, as though the very act of saying this was absurd.
“That the end is merely the beginning of something new.”