Chapter 144
At the White Sword Pavilion in the Baek Sword Sect, Baek Cheon-Sang, who had just returned from Jinhua, told Baek Mu-Gun about all the decisions made during the Zhejiang Martial Alliance meeting.
It was decided that the name of the Zhejiang Martial Alliance would be changed to the Loyal Heart Alliance.
The Loyal Heart Alliance?
It was named with the intention of uniting to protect murim from the Nine Celestial Demons Sect. Why? Is it not to your taste? Cheon-Sang asked.
No, I think it is pretty good, especially since it is meaningful.
That aside, the Loyal Heart Alliance United Corps will begin operations in a month. The Ten Clans of Zhejiang will have their elite forces dispatched by then, Cheon-Sang continued to brief Mu-Gun about the agendas discussed in the meeting.
Did the other clans oppose it?
Some of them did so out of concern for their clan homes safety, but I told them that focusing all our forces at the United Corps headquarters would actually lower the Nine Celestial Demons Sects threat on their homes.
I was expecting a lot of opposition, but it seems you all came to a conclusion quite easily, Mu-Gun said in surprise.
Well, the Ten Clans of Zhejiang are well aware that they are not individually strong enough to deter the threat of the Nine Celestial Demons Sect.
We should request the Three Great Clans of Fujian to send their elite forces to the United Corps headquarters as well, then, Mu-Gun suggested.
That goes without saying. If they want to be on equal standing with the Ten Clans of Zhejiang, it is only right that they bear the same responsibility as we do, Cheon-Sang said.
That makes sense. However, we should take into account the Wuyi Sword Sects circumstances, Father.
The Wuyi Sword Sect had less than two hundred martial artists right now. If they sent one hundred of those to the Loyal Heart Alliance United Corps, their headquarters would basically be empty.
If the Wuyi Sword Sect fails to fulfill their responsibilities, the other clans might have a problem with it.
We should change the Wuyi Sword Sects responsibilities instead of making them deploy martial artists, then.
What do you suggest?
It would be most reasonable to change their responsibilities to financial support, Mu-Gun recommended.
Financial support?
The Wuyi Sword Sect is making huge profits from the production and trade of the Wuyi Rock Tea, so they would not be too burdened if they provide financial support instead.
It would be better to discuss this with the other Patriarchs first. Before we do, we should ask the Wuyi Sword Sect about their intention.
As you have said, Father, we can make a decision about that through discussion.
That aside, how is the work regarding the Four Great Evil Clans going? Cheon-Sang changed the topic.
It seems the Seven Great Families are making preparations to attack the Four Great Evil Clans, Mu-Gun explained.
What? If they attack the Four Great Evil Clans without evidence that the Four Great Evil Clans are related to the Nine Celestial Demons Sect, they will receive a lot of criticism from murim. Cheon-Sang was surprised.
It wont be a big problem since they are an evil faction at the end of the day. The tyranny and wicked acts that they have committed are no small matter. Moreover, although the Seven Great Families aggression stems from the Four Great Evil Clans connection to the Nine Celestial Demons Sect, they also harbor the intention to use this opportunity to absorb the territory and rights of the Four Great Evil Clans.
Well, considering the inclination of the Four Great Evil Clans, there is no harm in rooting them out before they cause any more trouble. Looking back, the evil factions have always been the first to stand with the demonic sects once the latter begins spreading chaos, Cheon-Sang said in agreement.
Thats right. Above all, if the Four Great Evil Clans are really connected to the Nine Celestial Demons Sect, then we have to make the first move, even if it may seem unreasonable. Otherwise, we could suffer greater damage in the future.
I commend them, though. I thought for sure that you would be the first to take action.
I was actually about to.
What was your plan?
Mu-Gun told Cheon-Sang the strategy that he had thought of. He also mentioned putting on the brakes due to Dan Seol-Youngs objection.
My second daughter-in-law is right. Even I think you tend to go too far when the Nine Celestial Demons Sect is involved. Of course, as a martial artist from the righteous faction, we should take the lead in fending off the Nine Celestial Demons Sect, but your life does not belong to yourself alone. The Baek Sword Sect and the Loyal Heart Alliance are behind you. You can put the Baek Sword Sect and the Loyal Heart Alliance in a predicament with just a single mistake, so you should always be careful when making decisions. More importantly, as Seol-Young said, this is something that you cannot resolve by yourself, so you have to learn to wait and have faith in the power of murim, Cheon-Sang advised.
Understood.
Anyway, if were going to be leaving Wenzhou and moving our headquarters to Shaoxing, we will be quite busy starting today.
There is no need to go out of our way to rush it. We can simply order the venerable elders and the White Dragon Corps to move first. That will give time for the rest of our members to prepare. Once theyre ready, we can bring them over ourselves.
Thats a good idea. What does the Heavenly Secret Hall plan to do, though? Cheon-Sang asked.
The Heavenly Secret Hall also decided to follow the Baek Sword Sect to Shaoxing.
Thats a relief. At least we wont face any big issues in receiving intel from the Heavenly Secret Hall.
Thats correct.
I take it that the Medicine King Family will stay in Mount Yandang?
Yes. Since various spiritual herbs grow in Mount Yandang, it is hard for them to move somewhere else, Mu-Gun explained.
Moving will make it quite troublesome to get spiritual pills, then.
You dont have to worry too much about that. We can simply use the Eun Merchant Groups ships since they often travel between Wenzhou and Shaoxing.
Okay. I will leave this matter to you, then. Make all the necessary preparations to ensure that we will suffer no setbacks. Cheon-Sang put his faith in Mu-Gun.
Understood.
Is there anything else you would like to discuss? I would like to take a rest now.
Thats all. I will take my leave now, Father.
Okay. Great work handling the Baek Sword Sects matters while I was away, Cheon-Sang commended Mu-Gun.
I did not do anything special. Well then, please have a good rest.
Mu-Gun bowed and left the White Sword Pavilion. He then headed to the training hall.
* * *
Inside the splendid pavilion of the Heavenly Killer Sects manor, which was built inside a sheer cliff, Heavenly Killer Divine Demon Dok Go-Seong sat on his throne while listening to the report of Shadowless Demonic Monarch Jae Kang-Cheon, the head of the Six Heavenly Killer Monarchs.
I have figured out a way to lure out the Golden Shield Sword Dragon.
What could that be? Go-Seong asked as he rejoiced.
The Heavenly Killer Sect had lost three Demonic Monarchs and multiple Higher Demons to Mu-Gun. That was equivalent to thirty percent of their high-ranking forces. Go-Seong made up his mind to kill Mu-Gun, whom he thought of as their mortal enemy, at any cost, but it was difficult to find an opportunity to take him out due to the Baek Sword Sects formidable forces. That was why he couldnt help but feel glad that Kang-Cheon figured out a way to punish Mu-Gun.
If we use the Putuo Sword Sects Young Matriarch to our advantage, we can lure out the Golden Shield Sword Dragon, Kang-Cheon said.
The Putuo Sword Sects Young Matriarch?
Shes rumored to be the Golden Shield Sword Dragons past lover.
Doesnt that mean that they are no longer in a romantic relationship now?
Thats right. Their relationship apparently ended when the Golden Shield Sword Dragon married two other women.
How do you plan to lure that bastard out with a woman he has already broken up with? Go-Seong asked, seemingly unable to understand Kang-Cheons idea.
He will not turn a blind eye to having his past lovers life in danger.
Kang-Cheons idea was simple. They would capture the Putuo Sword Sects Young Matriarch alive and use her as a hostage to lure out and kill the Golden Shield Sword Dragon.
They are nothing more than old lovers, and he is already married to two other women. Do you really think he will still risk his life for her? Go-Seong asked, clearly in doubt.
Im confident he would not if he was from a demonic faction. However, righteous bastards like him will definitely try to save their old lover at the risk of their own lives.
You have a point. Those righteous bastards often pretend to be uselessly kind.
More importantly, even if we fail to lure out the Golden Shield Sword Dragon, we wont have anything to lose anyway, so there is no harm in trying.
Where is the Putuo Sword Sects Young Matriarch at now?
She is at Mount Heng in Hunan Province. From what I have heard, she visited the Mount Heng Sect to request a duel, Kang-Cheon said.
I dont need to know her reasons. Will there be any problems capturing that woman alive?
Of course not. That woman is only at the Upper Peak Realm, so it wont be a problem even if we only send one of the Higher Demons, Kang-Cheon confidently said.
I permit you to proceed with this plan immediately. How do you plan to deal with the Golden Shield Sword Dragon after luring him out, though?
Why dont we make use of the Three Greatest Assassin Organizations, which we have just recently acquired, and the Ten Surfaces Ambush Formation?
That sounds good. It will eliminate the need to use our own forces.
May I proceed with this, then?
No, it would be better to be certain. Send two of the Six Heavenly Killer Monarchs.
You want to send two of them? Kang-Cheon asked in surprise.
Wouldnt it be better to move with certainty on the off chance that something goes wrong?
Understood. I will make the necessary preparations.
After obtaining Go-Seongs permission, Kang-Cheon immediately began planning the operation to lure Mu-Gun out. The first task was to capture So Yeon-Hwa, who was at Mount Heng.
* * *
After breaking off her relationship with Mu-Gun, Yeon-Hwa became depressed for quite a while. However, as the Putuo Sword Sect's Young Matriarch, she could not afford to stay depressed for a long time. She snapped herself back to her senses and resumed her journey around murim, which she had put on hold due to Mu-Gun. After having a duel with various martial clans, she finally arrived at Mount Heng in Hunan Province.
Although they were not part of the Nine Prominent Sects, Mount Heng Sect was a prestigious sect in Mount Heng with hundreds of years of tradition. Not wanting to simply pass by the Mount Heng Sect after coming all the way to Mount Heng, Yeon-Hwa stayed with them for seven days to spar with their martial arts masters. After gaining a lot of enlightenment through those duels and enjoying their great hospitality, Yeon-Hwa descended Mount Heng.
Her next destination was the Great Ximen Family, one of the Seven Great Families. It would take five days to travel to Changsha and visit the Great Ximen Family, perhaps even more since she wanted to take her time to enjoy the scenery around her.
On the third day of her journey to Changsha, Yeon-Hwa crossed a small mountain. Considering it wasnt that tall and it had quite a smooth route, she judged it would only take her two hours to cross over it. However, halfway down the mountain, a group of people blocked her path. Yeon-Hwa could not tell who they were, but it was bright as day that they did not harbor good intentions.
Who are you? How dare you block my path? Yeon-Hwa asked, her right hand moving to the hilt of her sword so that she could draw it at any moment.
Are you Putuo Sword Sect Young Matriarch So Yeon-Hwa? a man with a cold demeanor asked instead of answering Yeon-Hwas question.
The question made Yeon-Hwa realize that the people blocking her path had been aiming specifically for her.
I am sure I asked who you are.
Considering youre not denying it, it seems Im correct. The cold-looking man shrugged.
I will ask you one last time. Who are you? Why do you stand in my way?
If you follow us obediently, we will not hurt you.
You are truly someone I cannot communicate with. Yeon-Hwa frowned at the man when he showed no interest in listening to her. Since she could not hold a dialogue with them, she examined them instead.
They were all giving off a cold aura, and they did not seem far behind her in terms of strength. The cold man in particular seemed far beyond her current capabilities.
It will do you good not to think of doing anything stupid. You will only hurt yourself for no reason, the cold-looking man warned.
What do you plan to do with me? Yeon-Hwa asked.
I intend to use you to lure out someone, he admitted.
Who are you trying to lure? Yeon-Hwa asked with a stiffened expression.
The Baek Sword Sects Young Patriarch.
Yeon-Hwas expression hardened. I think you chose the wrong person. I no longer have any relationship with him. Even if you use me, you will not be able to lure him out.
Who knows? I am willing to bet that the Baek Sword Sects Young Patriarch will come to your rescue.
It was hard to deny the cold-looking mans words. Yeon-Hwa knew that Mu-Gun would come running to save her no matter what danger awaited him. She could not bear to do that to him.
Id rather die
If you think this is going to end if you die, you are gravely mistaken. Baek Mu-Gun will not know that you are dead. We just need to send him one of your belongings. Once he receives it, he will immediately assume that we have you captive, the man said as if reading Yeon-Hwas thoughts. The way he spoke made him sound as if he was completely devoid of emotions.
Yeon-Hwas eyes shook. The man was right. Dying here would be useless. If so, then all she could do now was run away from these people.
Yeon-Hwa immediately turned around and kicked off the ground.
What a nuisance. The man lightly waved his hand.
With a sharp, ear-splitting sound, a thin flying dagger pierced Yeon-Hwas thigh.
Agh! Yeon-Hwa fell to the ground with a scream before she could activate her movement art.
Subdue her.
As the man ordered, the people standing behind him approached Yeon-Hwa. Yeon-Hwa clenched her teeth and stood up, then swung her sword at them. However, the man simply threw another dagger to deflect her sword away. In that short gap, the others quickly subdued her.
Do you bastards think you will ever be safe after doing this? Baek Mu-Gun will not leave you bastards alone.
That is exactly what we are hoping for. Take her away.
Yeon-Hwa tried to threaten them with Mu-Guns name, but the man did not waver at all. Not long after, he and his subordinates disappeared with Yeon-Hwa.
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