Chapter 93
In the middle of a sheer cliff that was hundreds of feet high stood a large artificially constructed entrance to a place with several buildings, making it seems as if a manor had been transported into it. How it was humanely possible to construct such a structure inside a cliff was a mystery. Nevertheless, and although it looked nothing like a building erected for royalty, it was none other than the Heavenly Killer Sect headquarters.
Heavenly Killer Sect Patriarch Dok Go-Seong, one of the Nine Great Demon Kings, sat inside the most magnificent building in the cliff. Unlike his fierce nickname, ‘Heavenly Killer Divine Demon,’ Go-Seong looked like an average person. No one would suspect he was the Heavenly Killer Sect’s leader based on his looks alone, but the cold and eerie energy he emitted showed otherwise.
Go-Seong received a report from his subordinate. Unfortunately, it was an upsetting one for him.
“So you’ve lost all Four Peerless Wanderers?”
“When we went to their supposed hideouts, they were already gone. It seems Thunderous Wind Palm Han Baek informed them faster than we could reach them.”
“That’s why I told you to make sure you eliminate that man.”
“I’m sorry.”
“No, there’s no point in blaming you all for what's already happened. What we do next is more important. Have you located Han Baek and the person who helped him?”
“We haven’t determined which clan he’s from yet, so we’re having trouble doing so. However, though it is still uncertain, we believe that the person who wiped out the Nine Dragons Stronghold of the Blood-Crazed Clan’s Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin and the person who helped Thunderous Wind Palm Han Baek are the same.”
“Really? The Blood-Crazed Clan has to be searching for him desperately too, then?”
“That’s right. It’s for that reason that I think we don’t have to go out of our way to look for him.”
“You’re saying we should wait for the Blood-Crazed Clan to find him and get rid of him?”
“Considering he wiped out both the Heavenly Killer Saber Monarch and the Assassination Hall, by no means should we consider him an easy opponent. It won’t be difficult to kill him if we put our all into it, but if we do, we should prepare to suffer a huge loss. Hence, I think it’s a good idea to let the Blood-Crazed Clan handle him instead.”
“If we do, won’t the Blood-Crazed Clan take away all the glory and accomplishment?”
“At the end of the day, it’s just one person. Even if we hand that man over to them, it would be much more beneficial for us to eliminate the many other hidden masters.”
“Have you gotten more intel about the other hidden masters’ locations?”
“We have found the hideouts of the Pandemonium Sword, the Three Supreme Heroes, the Life Stealer Flying Saber, and the Heavenly Wind Assassin. They’re hidden masters who were active in the same era as the Four Peerless Wanderers.”
“Good. Let’s get rid of them first, but don’t stop tracking the Four Peerless Wanderers.”
“Understood.”
After accepting his subordinate’s suggestion, Go-Seong shifted the responsibility of getting rid of Baek Mu-Gun to the Blood-Crazed Clan and focused on eliminating the other hidden masters first. In the midst of it all, the Blood-Crazed Clan focused their intelligence team on finding Mu-Gun, who had wiped out the Nine Dragons Stronghold.
In terms of information power alone, the Heavenly Killer Sect was superior to the Blood-Crazed Clan. However, the Heavenly Killer Sect’s intelligence team was tasked to find the numerous hidden masters in the Central Plains, while the Blood-Crazed Clan’s intelligence team concentrated on finding the person responsible for wiping out the Nine Dragons Stronghold. The difference between that was reflected in the outcome.
The Blood-Crazed Clan first identified the people who passed by Mount Jiulong throughout the Nine Dragons Stronghold’s annihilation, then picked out those who were suspicious. Afterward, they located the known Absolute Realm masters in Zhejiang Province and Jiangxi Province.
In doing so, they confirmed that the Baek Sword Sect’s Baek Mu-Gun visited Jiangxi Province. However, Mu-Gun’s martial arts didn’t fit the description of their suspect. Mu-Gun was in the Absolute Realm, but while many of the Ten Clans of Zhejiang’s patriarchs were aware of it, it wasn’t yet known to the public.
The Blood-Crazed Clan was initially unsure if Mu-Gun was the perpetrator, but the age and appearance of the Nine Dragons Stronghold’s destroyer were consistent with Mu-Gun’s, especially the fact that he used a sword and a golden shield. Hence, despite being unaware of Mu-Gun’s true martial arts prowess, they were convinced he was the one who wiped out the Nine Dragons Stronghold.
They immediately analyzed the Baek Sword Sect’s combat forces. First of all, their patriarch, Baek Cheon-Sang, was already proven to be an Absolute Realm master. Since he managed to wipe out the Nine Dragons Stronghold, Mu-Gun was also likely to be an Absolute Realm master or close to being one.
Moreover, the Baek Sword Corps’ five squad leaders were Peak Realm masters, but their members were only known to be as strong as those from small or medium sects. Taking that into consideration, the only ones they had to pay special attention to was Cheon-Sang, Mu-Gun, and the five squad leaders. The five squad leaders really wouldn’t pose that much of an issue, though, so their main problems were Cheon-Sang and Mu-Gun, who were both Absolute Realm masters.
To defeat two Absolute Realm masters, it would take at least three martial artists of the same level. That was not a definite requisite, however. Four Upper Peak Realm masters would usually be enough to deal with one Absolute Realm master. The Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin’s Three Kings of Lulin were Absolute Realm masters. They also had Upper Peak Realm masters collectively known as the Twelve Commanders of Lulin.
Even if the Baek Sword Sect had two Absolute Realm masters, it would not be difficult to overpower them if the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin’s martial arts masters were mobilized. However, that meant a considerable number of martial arts masters would have to step up from the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin to attack the Baek Sword Sect.
The Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin was a union of seventy-two mountain strongholds that were scattered throughout the Central Plains, and the aforementioned Three Kings of Lulin and the Twelve Commanders of Lulin were chiefs of their own strongholds. It would take a considerable amount of time to gather them all.
The Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin would also find it hard to mobilize a majority of their strongest masters. Losing one of their UpperPeak Realm masters would be far worse than losing hundreds of their average bandits. In short, the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin couldn’t easily retaliate against the Baek Sword Sect with their entire combat forces.
Pondering about it, the Blood-Crazed Clan vice patriarch Ji Seok-Hwan eventually considered deploying the Blood-Crazed Clan’s combat forces. Upon receiving Seok-Hwan’s report, Hyeok Ryeon-Pae permitted the deployment of their martial arts masters without much consideration.
The Baek Sword Sect was the leader of the Zhejiang Martial Alliance. If the Zhejiang Martial Alliance’s power kept increasing, it could become a major obstacle to the Nine Celestial Demons Sect’s conquest of murim in the future. Hence, they had to dampen their momentum now, especially since it would also be recorded as the Blood-Crazed Clan’s achievement.
After getting Ryeon-Pae’s permission, Seok-Hwan immediately sent a messenger to the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin.
* * *
At the Flower Honor Manor, Mu-Gun drank tea with Cheon Yu-Hwa and Dan Seol-Young.
“The two of you look sweet together. I’m envious.” Yu-Hwa smiled as she looked at Mu-Gun and Seol-Young sitting beside each other while surrounded by an affectionate atmosphere.
She knew that Mu-Gun and Seol-Young had confessed their love and shared their passion for each other last night. Even if she didn’t, anyone would have grown aware of their relationship by just seeing the affection the two had when looking at each other.
“We must have made it too obvious in front of you, Hall Leader Cheon.”
“Do you really think you can keep your love for each other a secret just because you want to hide it?”
“With all due respect, shouldn’t you find someone worthy of you, too, Hall Leader Cheon?” Mu-Gun asked carefully.
“I’m not sure. If there’s another person like Young Master Baek, I will think about it.”
“Haha, that’s a bad joke, Hall Leader Cheon.”
Mu-Gun felt sorry for Yu-Hwa. He knew that Yu-Hwa had a burning love for him—no, for Guyang Hwi. Many men showed interest in her, but she rejected all of their advances because she still couldn’t forget Guyang Hwi. Fully aware of that, Mu-Gun felt as if this was all his fault. Hence, he wanted to at least help her meet a good person now.
However, when Yu-Hwa showed no interest in it, Mu-Gun did not insist further. Unfortunate as it could be, she had decided.
“By the way, how is the search for the hidden masters going?” Mu-Gun asked.
The assassination attempt on Han Baek allowed Mu-Gun to confirm that the Heavenly Killer Sect had begun executing their plan. Hence, after returning to Wenzhou, he requested the Heavenly Secret Hall to find the other hidden masters instead of the Four Peerless Wanderers. He knew that the Heavenly Killer Sect would attempt to assassinate the other hidden masters as well, so he tried to prepare countermeasures against it. Commissioned by Mu-Gun, the Heavenly Secret Hall compiled a list of masters who played an active role during the war against the Hell-Blood Demon Sect and began investigating the ones in the list who had been off the grid for more than a decade.
“We have mobilized the Undern Sect’s intelligence network to support the Heavenly Secret Hall, but we’re still having a hard time. However, the Undern Sect is actively cooperating, so we will see some results soon.”
The Heavenly Secret Hall was derived from the Undern Sect but existed separately from them. Still, since they had the same roots, the Heavenly Secret Hall and the Undern Sect formed a minimum level of connection with each other, sharing information and conducting joint operations whenever necessary. The Undern Sect might lack in-depth information on murim forces, but they were more skilled than the Heavenly Secret Hall when it came to finding specific individuals through the information network they had spread widely throughout murim.
Knowing that the Undern Sect would be better at locating the other hidden masters, the Heavenly Secret Hall asked for their help. In response, the Undern Sect willingly cooperated with the Heavenly Secret Hall. Despite so, the Undern Sect was not omnipotent, so they required some time to produce some results.
“I know you’re doing your best, but I would appreciate it if you can get results faster. Please take good care of this matter.”
“Understood. I’m also keeping an eye on the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin’s movements, but they haven’t done anything noteworthy yet.”
Aside from finding the hidden masters, Mu-Gun also requested them to monitor the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin’s movements. He knew that the Seventy-Two Strongholds of Lulin would not overlook the total annihilation of the Nine Dragons Stronghold, and while it wouldn’t be easy, it wasn’t entirely impossible to identify and locate him. If they managed to figure out he was the one who obliterated the Nine Dragons Stronghold, they would definitely target the Baek Sword Sect.
In preparation for that, he kept eyes on them through the Heavenly Secret Hall. Fortunately, they hadn’t done anything so far, which had to mean they were yet to realize he was the culprit. Still, it was too early to be relieved. He had to continue observing them.
“Please keep an eye on them. If they manage to find me, they will definitely not let it slide.”
“Understood.”
“I will be on my way for today, then.”
“Be safe.”
Mu-Gun left Yu-Hwa’s room. Seol-Young then saw him off as he left the Flower Honor Manor.
* * *
A few days later, Cheon-Sang, who had left for Shaoxing to inspect the new manor, returned to the Baek Sword Sect. Mu-Gun visited Cheon-Sang as soon as he arrived.
“You must be exhausted after such a long journey.”
“Of course not. Is everything alright?”
“Yes. One of the Four Peerless Wanderers, Nine Dragons Fist Hwang Rei, arrived at Wenzhou a few days ago.”
“Really? Have you met him in person?”
“Yes. I had a drinking party with him and Elder Han Baek. He seemed like a nice and high-spirited person.”
“You’ve done well. You’re even doing all of the things that I should be doing.”
“Don’t say that. I can only do this because you support me from behind, Father.”
“Even if those are just empty words, thank you.”
“They’re not. I mean it from the bottom of my heart.”
“Okay, fine.”
“By the way, how did your trip to Shaoxing go?”
”As the investigation team suggested, we decided to buy the manor at the foot of Mount Xianglu and establish the united corps there.”
“What did you think of it when you saw it in person?”
“The land was wide enough, and the feng shui was also good, so it’s a great place to establish the united corps. The other patriarchs of the Ten Clans of Zhejiang also liked it. However, I’m worried because an exorbitant amount of funds will be required to purchase the manor and establish the united corps.”
“I think it would be better to use the funds we obtained from the former owner of the Hangzhou Merchant Company and the Myth Vault for now.”
The Hangzhou Merchant Company’s Jang Hyun-Chul and the Myth Vault’s Jang Hyun-Sung amassed more than 500,000 silver nyang of private wealth combined, which the Baek Sword Sect claimed as theirs since it was their right as the victor. Mu-Gun proposed to use it as the initial funds for the Zhejiang Martial Alliance United Corps.
“We won’t have enough money to use for the Baek Sword Sect’s growth if we use that for the Zhejiang Martial Alliance United Corps’ establishment, so I’m not sure if it would be wise to do that.”
“The Zhejiang Martial Alliance United Corps will be the base of the Baek Sword Sect in the future. If you think about it that way, then our investments in the Zhejiang Martial Alliance United Corps are basically an investment in the Baek Sword Sect’s growth.”
Establishing the Zhejiang Martial Alliance around the Baek Sword Sect would eventually turn it into the Baek Sword Sect’s base. Hence, the funds spent on its creation definitely shouldn’t be considered a waste. They could just think of it as building a new base for the Baek Sword Sect.
“A headquarters is certainly necessary. However, training martial artists and improving their skills are far more important. Eventually, it would take an exorbitant amount of funds to develop the Baek Sword Corps’ martial artists.”
“I’ll take care of that, so don’t worry.”
Mu-Gun was confident. Aside from the Myth Vault, he had also deposited funds in other vaults. If he were to withdraw those, he would have enough to increase the Baek Sword Sect’s martial prowess and still have money left behind. However, Cheon-Sang didn’t know that, so he couldn’t understand where Mu-Gun’s confidence was coming from.
“How do you plan to do that?”
“It’s hard for me to tell you the full details, but just think of it as an arrangement left behind for the Thunder God’s successor.”
“Is it fine to use that for the Baek Sword Sect’s matters?”
“It is entirely up to the Thunder God’s successor on where to spend it. No one will say anything about it no matter how I use it, so you don’t have to worry.”
“Alright, then. If you, the Thunder God’s successor, say so, then so be it. I will trust you and spend as much as required for the Zhejiang Martial Alliance United Corps’ establishment.”
“Thank you. Spend as much as you need.”
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