Chapter 166
Chapter 166
“What are the Demonic Cult’s movements?”
At Youngho’s question, Muyeon scratched his head as if truly troubled.
“Damn it, they’re quiet. I thought once those bastards started, they’d go completely insane, but strangely their advance is slow.”
“The Demon Brain isn’t someone to be taken lightly. He surely has some kind of plan.”
Youngho spoke while looking at the troops preparing to move toward the frontlines.
“I know why you don’t address me casually. You’re worried the army’s discipline might collapse, right?”
“That’s part of it.”
“There’s something else? I didn’t know that. Anyway, Muyeon, when I’m not here, you’re the one who must lead the Asura Squad.”
Muyeon groaned, clearly feeling the burden.
“I think there are plenty of people smarter than me. Even without going as far as Myeongnyang, Hosan would be more than capable as a commander.”
“No, he isn’t enough. There’s no one more suitable than you.”
“Is it because I understand formations well?”
“There’s a more fundamental reason than that.”
“A fundamental reason…?”
When Muyeon tilted his head in confusion, Youngho pointed at Muyeon’s eyes.
“The reason is those eyes of yours that allowed you to learn and understand formations.”
“…….”
“Your head is good. But your eyes are even better. Whether it’s terrain or the sky itself, you can sense when the weather will change just by looking at it. Your eyes are developed to the point that calling them a divine ability wouldn’t be an exaggeration.”
The corners of Muyeon’s mouth kept trying to rise. He had never realized that receiving recognition from someone else could feel this sweet.
“Your eyes are the kind that can see everything on the battlefield. So.”
Muyeon had thought he had already sworn loyalty long ago. But at this moment he realized something.
“When I’m gone, you must make every decision. Myeongnyang will only give advice—he’s not the one who must make the choices.”
Only now did he realize that he had finally accepted this man as his lord.
“Your responsibility is my responsibility, and your choices are my choices.”
Even though he already knew the answer, Youngho deliberately asked again.
“You can do it, right?”
Muyeon immediately dropped to one knee and spoke.
“I obey.”
Youngho smirked and turned his gaze back toward the window.
“They’re about to depart.”
First-generation disciples of Shaolin and Mount Hua, the Blue Sky Unit of the Namgung Clan, and forces from dozens of sects and clans departed for the frontlines.
The Green Forest and the Waterway Strongholds had only managed to send five thousand soldiers each due to rushed preparations, but even that was a considerable number.
Altogether, fifteen thousand soldiers.
A military force capable of annihilating almost any sect, and one that even the Murim Alliance and the Unorthodox Alliance could not ignore.
And five days after they arrived at the frontlines, news arrived that they had been completely wiped out.
Bang—!
Hye-gak could not control his trembling body and roared while exhaling hot breaths.
“This is impossible! Not only the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Families, but every sect of the Murim Alliance except those too far away to support sent reinforcements! And yet they were annihilated?!”
“But annihilated they were.”
At Youngho’s cold words, Hye-gak stopped hiding his aura.
Kwoaaaaaa—!
A terrifying Killing Intent erupted from Hye-gak’s entire body and shot toward Youngho.
The atmosphere was so murderous that it would not have been strange if a corpse appeared at any moment. While everyone else panicked, Youngho opened his mouth.
“Has the Fist King awakened?”
“Not yet…! If you say another word—!”
“Shaolin is taking this war too lightly.”
“Our Shaolin—!”
“Should I refrain from insulting you?”
Youngho seemed tired of speaking with Hye-gak and spoke with finality.
“I need information from the Fist King. Among those who left for this expedition, he was the only Absolute-Level Master.”
Youngho stood and slowly walked toward Hye-gak. Reaching him, Youngho lightly pushed Hye-gak’s chest with his fist.
“And if I may give advice, you should stop further smearing the Fist King’s reputation. Thanks to him, five hundred soldiers managed to return alive.”
While staring coldly into Hye-gak’s eyes, Youngho asked Myeongnyang,
“Myeongnyang, the current situation?”
“Sichuan and Gansu have fallen to the Demonic Cult. Fortunately, more than half the common people and martial artists managed to evacuate, but…”
When Myeongnyang trailed off, Youngho spoke in an utterly indifferent voice.
“Continue.”
Myeongnyang squeezed his eyes shut. He truly did not want to say it, but it had to be delivered.
“It is believed that all the common people who failed to evacuate have been killed.”
Thud—!
Everyone present felt as if their hearts had dropped.
Even Hye-gak, who had been raging moments ago, asked with a trembling voice,
“H-how many…? Just how many common people did the Demonic Cult kill…?”
“Roughly four thousand.”
At the absurdly large number, some were filled with rage toward the Demonic Cult, while others trembled at their own incompetence.
And to all of that—
“Stop the hypocrisy.”
Youngho spoke in a voice devoid of emotion.
“If things had been handled properly from the beginning, this would never have happened.”
If words could kill people, this would be such a case. Hye-gak flinched at the icy tone.
There was no excuse to make. If it had not been for Youngho, the delay would have been even worse, and not only the common people but even the Tang Clan—known as the rulers of Sichuan—would have suffered immense damage.
Tang Myeongak, who understood this, had his pupils grow cold.
Yet Youngho did not press further. Even though if he pushed the Orthodox Sect now, he could seize real authority with justification on his side.
Instead, he confessed something that worked against him.
“I expected things would turn out roughly like this. In truth, they were nothing more than meat shields meant to buy time and gather information.”
Bang—!
Namgung Hyeon slammed the table and shouted furiously.
“What exactly do you mean by that?!”
Even facing Namgung Hyeon, who did not bother hiding his aura, Youngho spoke with calm eyes.
“Exactly what I said. Your disciples and your household members were bait.”
The boiling rage in everyone’s heads began to cool, replaced by cold and calculating fury.
Tang Myeongak revealed Killing Intent and gritted his teeth.
“Have you still not resolved your grudge against us?”
“I never had a grudge to begin with. It’s merely that you felt guilty.”
“Then how do you explain this situation?!”
“The explanation is finished. Fifteen thousand troops were bait, and now we must hear the information brought back by the Fist King.”
“How dare you!”
“Do not disrupt the army’s discipline.”
Just as Tang Myeongak tried to draw a hidden weapon from his sleeve, Youngho’s cold rebuke exploded outward.
Calm yet explosive, Youngho’s lethal presence froze Tang Myeongak in place as he glared back.
“I can promise one thing. If I had been on that battlefield instead of the Fist King, the one who would have died would be me.”
The words were shocking and difficult to understand. Youngho was clearly stronger than Hyewon. So why would he die?
“The Demonic Cult intentionally let the Fist King live. If he hadn’t tried to save the soldiers, he wouldn’t have been injured like that.”
Hye-gak gasped. Tang Myeongak stared in disbelief. And Namgung Hyeon and several others who realized the Demonic Cult’s intention could not hide their hardened expressions.
Youngho looked at the dumbfounded crowd with cold eyes and scoffed.
“The Fist King is weak. More precisely, he is weak for the war that is about to begin. So letting him live is not much of a problem. But me?”
At Youngho’s words, Hye-gak swallowed nervously.
“If they can kill me, they won’t hesitate. And if I were the Demonic Cult, I would do the same. Because you people are foolish and weak.”
Everyone fell silent.
Cheonung and Han Yonghu already knew. The others had only just realized.
Zhuge Lianhua and her father lowered their heads, as if exposed for deliberately ignoring a truth they already knew.
Meanwhile, Myeongnyang smiled brightly, clearly feeling satisfied.
“Abbot!”
At that moment, a Shaolin disciple burst through the doors of the council hall. His ragged breathing showed how urgent the situation was.
“The Fist King has awakened!”
Before Hye-gak could say anything, Youngho stepped forward.
“Lead the way.”
The monk hurriedly guided Youngho.
In less than half a Dakyung, Youngho arrived at the Fist King’s residence and opened the door without waiting for permission.
Hyewon was not surprised.
‘I thought he would come the moment I regained consciousness, but this is extremely fast.’
That alone showed how serious the situation was.
“Fist King.”
“The enemy who faced me was only one man.”
At that single sentence, everyone following Youngho widened their eyes.
Hwangbo Ranghyeon, who as a fellow fist practitioner understood exactly how high Hyewon’s realm was, was especially speechless with shock.
Hyewon himself gave a bitter laugh.
“It shocked even me to say it. But there’s no time to waste.”
“The one who fought me didn’t reveal his name, but he said he was one of the Twelve Demons.”
“The Twelve Demons?”
Because such a thing had never existed before the Regression, Youngho asked again in surprise.
Hyewon nodded slightly.
“Do you know something?”
“No. I only know that the Demonic Cult does not like empty titles.”
“I see… They intentionally let me live.”
Even though Youngho had already deduced it, hearing it from the man himself carried greater impact.
Hyewon did not hide the resentment in his voice.
“All twelve of the Twelve Demons were present. And even though only one of them fought me, I ended up like this. They are strong. At the very least, every one of the Twelve Demons is a step above me.”
“Any other information?”
“The demonic practitioner called Gundo we saw before belongs to the Twelve Demons. Other than that, I only know that each of them is exceptionally outstanding, even among the Demonic Cult.”
Only then did Youngho smile with satisfaction.
“You must be in shock, so rest. You have played a very important role. Thanks to you, we learned a great deal.”
It was difficult to believe those words had come from Youngho’s mouth.
Not only was his tone warm, but he even spoke with such consideration.
Turning around immediately, Youngho spoke to Myeongnyang.
“Myeongnyang, the demonic practitioners called the Twelve Demons are stronger than the Fist King. And there are probably dozens more with martial might comparable to him.”
“Understood. And the enemy intentionally revealed this information.”
“To break our morale. Nasty bastards. But we also now have quite a few who are stronger than the Fist King. Still, people will be uneasy. From the next battle onward things will change. Bring Absolute-Level Masters who are stronger than the Fist King or at least capable of supporting him—people like Namgung Cheon or Hwangbo Nyeong.”
“Understood.”
“From now on, we’ll form our strategy with them.”
As he said that, Youngho’s eyes shone coldly.