Chapter 177
Chapter 177
“Quite a lot.”
After receiving information about the enemy forces from the Man in Black, Pungwol muttered quietly.
“If we clash head-on, there’s even a chance we might lose.”
It was something he normally would never have said. Until recently, he had never even considered such a possibility.
But after personally feeling Youngho’s Martial Presence, Pungwol had no choice but to acknowledge it.
The sword called Youngho might, if things went wrong, even reach the level of his god. Even Kang Chowon, whom he had once dismissed as a mere brat, had killed the Young Cult Leader of the Divine Cult.
Considering that the current Divine Cult was worlds apart from its past, it was something almost impossible to believe.
Not only the Cult Leader, but even the average cultists had become clearly different in level. Some had grown strong through artificial means, but beyond that, even greater talents had begun to pour out.
Among them, the most representative were likely the Twelve Demons. Yet even that was unsatisfactory. Originally, if the military force were composed solely of the Twelve Demons and the cultists, conquering the Central Plains should have been an effortless task.
Cheonung, who had been considered the strongest after the Heavenly Demon, should not even have been a match for Dan Hyeokse. But everything had changed because a being named Youngho had appeared.
Youngho.
Everything had gone wrong because of that young bastard. Plans that should have been executed twenty years later had been advanced because of him.
Even the tens of thousands of Jiangshi created to minimize the Divine Cult’s losses had all been wiped out by Youngho.
Grit.
His teeth ground together on their own. Pungwol clenched his arm so hard that veins bulged along his hand.
Rumble—
The strength in his arm showed no sign of loosening.
“……”
After regaining his composure through deep breathing, Pungwol fell into deep thought. Soon after, he made a decision and let out a long sigh.
By tradition, the Cult Leader was assigned guards. Exactly five guards.
As those who protected the Heavenly Demon, they were powerful.
Although they were not stronger than the Heavenly Demon, they were individuals who did not fall short when compared to the greatest masters of the Orthodox Sect and the Unorthodox Faction.
And at this very moment, they hated Pungwol.
KWA—AAAA—!!
An immense aura that could easily be called a storm of Demonic Energy erupted from the five men.
Killing Intent sharpened again and again, directed solely toward Pungwol, taking on a keen blade-like edge.
Within their eyes, where hatred flickered, a powerful restraint was visible.
One of the men locked eyes with Pungwol and spoke.
“…What business do you have with old men kept in the back room?”
To Pungwol, who bore all the responsibilities of the Divine Cult, the man shot forth his Killing Intent.
Even someone like Pungwol, who possessed a certain level of martial realm and a firm mental fortitude, found it difficult to endure the Killing Intent of the five men standing before him.
Pungwol shielded his body with Demonic Energy while calmly looking at them.
“Sonhu, I have a request for you.”
The man called Sonhu sneered and replied.
“A request, not an order… I’m quite curious what kind of grand stratagem you’ve come up with to act like this. Wasn’t it because of those bastards called the Twelve Demons that we were pushed to the sidelines?”
Despite the mocking tone, Pungwol didn’t even blink. As though he were simply stating what needed to be said, he calmly expressed his opinion.
“You already know that we will soon wage a full-scale war against the Orthodox–Unorthodox Alliance.”
“Of course I know! And isn’t He Himself personally taking the field? How fortunate that before I die, I’ll get to see His power.”
“Therefore, I have a request. I would like you to handle the rear of the Alliance.”
“What?”
The thick Demonic Energy began turning pitch-black. Faced with the suffocatingly vile aura, Pungwol steadied his breathing in rhythm with his pounding heart.
As if he could endure no longer, Sonhu unleashed a Lion’s Roar.
“You bastard!!!”
KWA—AAA—!
The surrounding impurities shattered under the shockwave of Qi. Yet Sonhu, seemingly unconcerned, continued venting his fury.
“Creating those Twelve Demons and pushing us away from His side wasn’t enough—now you’re trying to erase the very meaning of our existence!”
“One thing I’ll say—I never once pushed you away from His side.”
“You still haven’t come to your senses…!”
Just as Sonhu’s hand was about to move, Pungwol spoke.
“Do you know how to handle clerical work? It might be good to learn it now.”
“…What?”
“The will of that person is the will of the Divine Cult. The Divine Cult will eliminate those troublesome martial artists this time, and afterward, it will remove the Imperial Family.”
At those words, Sonhu’s eyes widened.
“Are you saying that is truly His will?”
“To Him, the Imperial Family may as well not exist. But if they become annoying, He said He will remove them.”
“Then they will disappear.”
No matter how the Imperial Family might attempt to approach the Divine Cult that had seized control of the Central Plains, such an act alone would be enough to offend Him.
“So why are you telling us that?”
As if he had been waiting for that question, Pungwol nodded.
“I want you to assist Him.”
“What? What do you—!”
As Sonhu suddenly realized something and flinched in shock, Pungwol answered before he could even speak.
“To assist Him, food, clothing, and shelter are essential. But when we’ve turned the Central Plains into ruins, where would we obtain such things?”
“Y-you… don’t tell me…?”
“No matter how much they are unbelievers, they won’t suddenly be unable to do what they’ve done all this time. Not only clothes, but even the food presented to Him will always be of the highest quality.”
“You’re telling us to run a country?”
“Something like that. Compared to before, you’ll simply spend more time sitting than standing. You’ll still be serving Him all the same.”
Sonhu was so shocked he couldn’t close his mouth. The same was true for the others.
What Pungwol was saying was simple.
“We will govern a nation. And naturally, our nation will come to be called this.”
Looking at the Demonic Practitioners whose eyes burned with deep fervor, Pungwol spoke.
“A nation that has designated the doctrine of the Sun–Moon Divine Cult as its state religion—Sun–Moon Cult Nation.”
“…!”
“I never intended to dominate the world. He merely finds the Imperial Family bothersome, so we will remove it.”
If the Imperial Family were removed and the Sun–Moon Divine Cult did not take the Emperor’s seat, another Emperor would eventually appear and annoy Him again.
The old monsters who understood how the world functioned spoke with broad smiles.
“It seems I misunderstood you.”
“My apologies.”
Despite the men’s apologies, not even a trace of joy appeared on Pungwol’s face.
“I merely relayed the truth. Besides, you’re all old now, and the time has come for the generation to change. Still, since you’ve lived long as His guards, it’s only right you receive a fitting reward.”
For the cultists of the Divine Cult, a reward meant doing something beneficial for Him. That alone was reward, repayment, and recognition.
But everyone was shocked by the next words.
“Sonhu, He remembers your name.”
“…!”
The highest honor—so perfect it could be called the ultimate reward. Sonhu fell to his knees and wept.
“He doesn’t know the names of the others, but He said He at least remembers your faces. So rather than a reward… it would be more accurate to call it His ‘grace.’”
Simply being by His side had already been the greatest honor… they had never sought repayment…
The men who had once been the Heavenly Demon’s guards cried uncontrollably like children.
Their sobbing made it hard to believe they were masters of the Transformation Realm.
Their wailing, bordering on madness, made the hair on one’s body stand on end.
Even stranger was that Pungwol, watching them cry, sincerely envied them.
Faced with such a bizarre and alien situation, Muyeon couldn’t hide her uncomfortable expression.
After reporting everything she had seen to Youngho, he spoke with a tired look.
“These guys are really consistent.”
Pungwol was pitifully handing his entire plan to the enemy.
Though simple, it was massive information. Muyeon and Youngho both nodded.
“Muyeon, you learned those Heretical Arts well.”
“It’s not just that. It’s a mix of formations, mechanisms, and various other things.”
“The method is shady anyway, so can’t we just call it Heretical Arts?”
“I plan to step into the warm sunlight someday instead of living in some musty dark corner, so I’d rather not call this technique Heretical Arts.”
Surprisingly, Muyeon had reproduced Samra Mansang, one of the Demonic Cult’s techniques.
The process of creating the spell resembled Taoist Sorcery more than Heretical Arts, but the result was identical to Samra Mansang.
Muyeon glanced at the martial artists sweating profusely before asking Youngho,
“How much Internal Energy did this consume this time?”
“About twenty gapja.”
“….”
Honestly, the efficiency was terrible. Though it had only recently been developed, its shortcomings were obvious.
Seeing Muyeon’s expression darken, Youngho casually stuffed a dumpling he had been eating into her mouth.
Before she could even react in surprise, he spoke in a completely drained voice.
“It’s already amazing that the spell only consumes Internal Energy. Samra Mansang of the Demonic Cult requires Innate True Qi to use. And it’s not like your Internal Energy is permanently erased, so what’s the problem with twenty gapja?”
He was right, but the disappointment was still unavoidable.
Since Youngho felt the same way, he deliberately changed the subject.
“Still, those guys are something else. Faith in the Heavenly Demon is one thing, but they hadn’t even thought about attacking the Imperial Family until now?”
“Y-Young Master!”
Muyeon’s face turned pale at the statement, which could easily lead to execution for insulting the Imperial Family.
Seeing her reaction, Youngho chuckled.
“Come on, it’s hilarious. At first they were making all kinds of noise about conquering the Central Plains, but it looks like they only just thought about dealing with the Imperial Family.”
“Well… they are the Demonic Cult. Aren’t those guys all crazy to begin with?”
“Yeah. Which is exactly why it pisses me off even more.”
For a brief moment, the air around Youngho grew heavy.
Fortunately, he controlled his aura well, so only Muyeon nearby could feel it—but it was not a good sign.
Muyeon swallowed hard as she looked into Youngho’s eerily gleaming eyes.
A chillingly restrained Killing Intent shone within his gaze.
With a cold smile, Youngho said,
“The Demon Brain already felt my Martial Presence last time, yet he’s still arrogant. Then again, he’s capable enough to deserve that arrogance.”
Youngho acknowledged it frankly.
Honestly, every member of the Twelve Demons possessed skills that even Youngho recognized.
He was even certain that the one he considered the weakest could defeat the Fist King.
And that made him even more irritated.
‘Our side is incredible too…’
Even though Kang Chowon, merely a Junior Disciple, had displayed overwhelming power, Youngho could only laugh at Pungwol’s continued disregard for the Unorthodox Alliance.
Moreover, not only the Unorthodox Alliance but also the Murim Alliance had many talented individuals.
Youngho looked at Tanyeong, who was struggling to even support his exhausted body after expending his Internal Energy.
In the future he would be called the Sword King, and even now he had already stepped into the Domain of the Absolute.
Tanyeong was extremely close to the level of the Twelve Demons.
If Horyeung were assigned to assist him, he could probably kill one of the Twelve Demons.
Aside from that, Kang Hosan and Jeonghyeon had already reached martial levels equal to—or even beyond—members of the Twelve Demons.
Within the Orthodox Sect, there were many outstanding figures such as Namgung Cheon, Tang Gunhyeon, Hwangbo Nyeong, and Hyeonu.
And if one considered not only martial arts but also techniques such as sorcery and formations, even Muyeon could face one of the Twelve Demons.
Although Namgung Cheon and the other Junior Disciples were weaker than before the Regression, at the current point in time they were extremely dependable.
Youngho smiled wickedly.
‘You’d better look forward to it. This time, our armies are about the same size?’
Youngho quietly looked toward Cheonsan, where the Heavenly Demon would be.