Chapter 294: The Two of Us (2)
Shwaaaaa!
“So this is what they call the sea.”
Cheon Yura revealed a strange sense of wonder at the sight of the seaside scenery, which she was seeing for the first time in her life.
“I can even taste the salt in the air. This is quite a refreshing experience.”
She walked barefoot along the sandy beach, rejoicing like a girl her age.
“This fine soil… So, this is what they call sand?”
Considering the environment of the Ten Thousand Mountain Range, where not even a riverbank was easy to come by, it wasn’t surprising that Cheon Yura reacted like this.
“I used to dream of doing this by the sea when I conquered the Central Plains someday. It was one of my childhood dreams.”
“Uh, hmm…”
Did she really need to conquer the Central Plains just to play by the sea?
After nearly a full shichen of enjoying the seaside view, she finally sat down beside me with a relieved expression.
“During the half-year you were gone… I struggled a lot emotionally.”
Was it because she had heard that memories here wouldn’t remain?
She calmly confessed her feelings.
“So I threw myself into work. If I ever heard news of your death… I felt like something inside me would break at that very moment.”
She let out a faint smile.
“I’m glad you’re alive, Jin Yeomyung.”
“……”
Hmm…
The moment I saw her like that.
I was overwhelmed by the urge to push her down and kiss her senseless.
Of course, I shouldn’t do that with the Senior Brothers probably watching from nearby…
While I was battling an internal struggle completely different from that of my inner demon, she continued speaking as she gazed up at the sky.
“You didn’t return right away because you were out there… doing something for me again, weren’t you?”
“I’m not trying to boast.”
I replied while turning my head away.
“Because it’s something I should do, naturally.”
She fell silent.
Yes, it was natural.
In this life, I had decided to devote everything to her.
I would never let this life end up like my previous one.
‘The two of us lived happily ever after.’
I wouldn’t accept any other ending.
“Natural… huh.”
Cheon Yura quietly repeated my words to herself.
Though I couldn’t check her expression since she was sitting right next to me, for some reason, I had the feeling that her face had turned red.
I asked her a question.
“There’s something I want to ask.”
“Speak.”
“Yura… What do you want to do about Cheon Yujeong?”
“……”
Cheon Yura didn’t respond immediately.
Even though they harbored hostility and murderous intent toward each other, Cheon Yujeong was still her biological older sister.
And both of them knew that fact.
After staring silently ahead for a while, she finally spoke with difficulty.
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know?”
“Of course, normally I would have said I don’t care what happens to someone like Cheon Yujeong. No, actually, I probably would’ve mocked her, saying it serves her right. But…”
“But?”
“Seeing her in that state… I find myself with complicated feelings.”
“……Hmm.”
Cheon Yura’s expression looked truly troubled.
Even a bitter connection was still a connection.
No matter how determined you were, a bond wasn’t something easily severed.
“I’ll leave her fate to you. I don’t want to think too deeply about Cheon Yujeong.”
“…Alright.”
As if she no longer wanted to dwell on the topic, Cheon Yura changed the subject.
“More importantly, I have something to tell you about the Cult.”
I straightened my posture.
“I’m listening.”
She spoke the words I had been expecting.
“First of all, the Cult is now preparing to advance into the Central Plains. And those preparations are nearly complete. Within two months, a force of ten thousand will depart from the Ten Thousand Mountain Range.”
Ten thousand.
A regular army of ten thousand would be terrifying enough, but ten thousand elite Cult warriors…
‘The northern regions of the Central Plains will be drenched in blood.’
Since the Cult had settled in Gansu Province, the first objective in any righteous-demonic war had always been the same.
“The first target… Is it still the Joint Sect?”
One of the old sects located in southern Gansu.
Not only was the distance convenient, but because they used the Demonic Sword Art, symbolizing demonic extermination, as their primary martial art, relations with the Cult were at rock bottom.
“Yes. The first objective is to dominate the Gansu and Shaanxi regions.”
If that happened, the sects located in Shaanxi, like Zhongnan and Mount Hua, wouldn’t be able to avoid disaster.
Even if the three sects banded together, unless they received reinforcement from the Murim Alliance, they would barely be able to hold out.
“A lot of blood will be shed.”
“More importantly, the justification is on our side. Unless Bukcheon interferes, the outcome is practically decided.”
If the righteous sects had any justification, Bukcheon might have intervened, but judging by the way things had unfolded, it would be difficult for them to take any action.
After all, the Cult had officially participated in the Murim Tournament at the invitation of Namcheon Sword King, the Alliance Leader.
As a result of that tournament, the Cult’s Young Cult Leader had nearly been killed, and I, the successor of the Demonic Heaven’s Jin Clan, had gone missing.
“Bukcheon never actively meddles in Murim affairs, so they probably won’t move this time either.”
…Honestly, it wasn’t looking good.
No matter how much justification we claimed to have, if the three old sects suffered devastating losses, the Murim Alliance would be forced to act.
It would eventually lead to a full-scale war.
“What’s the current situation with the Murim Alliance? Is Namcheon Sword King still the Alliance Leader?”
She shook her head.
“No. After that incident, the Namcheon Baek Clan closed its gates. I heard Namcheon Sword King Baek Dogyung stepped down from his position and secluded himself within the clan.”
“…Really?”
I let out a cold sneer at those words.
‘So he does have at least a shred of conscience, huh?’
Or perhaps he was simply trying to avoid responsibility for what was about to happen.
“Then the next Alliance Leader… Is it going to be Sword Supreme Sage Gwan Hyun?”
I expected her to respond as if it was obvious…
Unexpectedly, Cheon Yura shook her head again.
“No. I heard they haven’t decided on a new Alliance Leader yet.”
“That’s surprising.”
Given Sword Supreme Sage Gwan Hyun’s ambition, I thought he would have snatched the position immediately.
Was he holding back because of the looming war as well?
“Jin Yeomyung.”
At that moment, Cheon Yura wore a grave expression.
“This is just my prediction, but I don’t think the Cult Leader will last past this year.”
“……!”
“I’m already in the process of receiving the transfer of power to become the next Cult Leader. The Righteous-Demonic War… yes, it’s partly to root out the remnants of the Heaven-Defying Society, but it’s also a means to solidify my position.”
“With our current strength, unless something goes terribly wrong, we’re almost guaranteed to win….”
“…That’s true.”
Cheon Yura nodded heavily.
“If we go to war, I’ll give everything to win. But I don’t want our cultists to shed blood in a pointless conflict. More than anything, the true enemy of our Cult right now isn’t the righteous sects….”
“……”
Her true nature hadn’t changed, whether in my past life or this one.
Feeling proud, I reached out and stroked Yura’s hair.
“Ugh! Stop that!”
Though she told me to stop, she didn’t actually try to pull away.
I let out a small laugh and kept running my fingers through her hair for a while.
‘In the end, if I want to stop this war, I’ll have to persuade the Cult Leader.’
Though Cheon Yura and the Heavenly Thunder Corps were preparing for the Righteous-Demonic War, the true foundation of all this still lay with the Cult Leader.
“A year, huh….”
The Cult Leader had once granted me five years.
And though that time hadn’t completely run out yet, it seemed his own time was ending sooner than expected.
“I plan to advance as slowly as possible. Even if I won’t remember this place, my principles won’t change. If you, Jin Yeomyung, can convince the Cult Leader, that would be ideal.”
“Then I’d better wrap up things here quickly and return.”
I stood up from my seat.
Cheon Yura also slowly stood and looked into the distance.
From far away, Yoo Jeon and Ma Seoyeon were approaching.
“I hope our founders were able to finish their conversation well too.”
After Yoo Jeon declared that he would face the trial using Resonance Qi, he had given me and Cheon Yura a bit of time.
Well, it seemed he needed some time to talk with Ma Seoyeon as well.
“Sorry for making you wait.”
“Not at all.”
I glanced at Ma Seoyeon.
Yoo Jeon, with his nearly expressionless face, was hard to read, but Ma Seoyeon was different.
And then….
“……”
Just like how I had placed a chrysanthemum in Cheon Yura’s hair, I could see a blue seoksan ornament decorating the back of Ma Seoyeon’s head as she lowered it deeply.
The Will of Joy.
The moment I read that, I bowed my head to the two of them.
“Congratulations.”
“…Originally.”
Yoo Jeon spoke with a bitter expression.
“I had planned to reject her feelings until the very end.”
“……”
“To me, she wasn’t a woman, but more like a daughter.”
“What made you change your mind?”
“After watching you two. More precisely, after watching you.”
“……!”
In truth, Yoo Jeon hadn’t been able to make up his mind until the very end.
He had noticed that the disciples were plotting something around the youngest, but…
He had no intention of accepting it either.
“The Divine Demonic Physique… is originally a symbol of misfortune.”
Yoo Jeon spoke calmly.
“Those born with it suffer their entire lives, fall into endless trials, and are tormented by love they can never truly attain.”
Flinch!
I noticed Cheon Yura’s shoulder twitch slightly.
I had heard this before from the Cult Leader.
‘All previous Heavenly Demons… never had a happy ending with their lovers.’
And now, the reason for that came from Yoo Jeon’s mouth.
“That’s because the very nature of the Divine Demonic Physique is a power that should not exist in this world.”
“Is it because this is the era of humanity?”
“You understand well. It’s the same principle as why the Grand Heavenly Lord operates as a partial spirit, not with a full body.”
After a brief silence, Yoo Jeon suddenly spoke again.
“You’ve probably already guessed, but the first Grand Heavenly Lord was a woman.”
“……!”
“She was wiser and more beautiful than anyone else in the world. And… she was also the lover of my master.”
“……”
Something about Yoo Jeon’s words felt off to me.
Could it be… could Yoo Jeon have…?
Yoo Jeon continued bitterly.
“I had believed without a doubt that their future would be bright. I had hoped they would spend a hundred years together in the newly rebuilt Sun and Moon Divine Cult.”
But there was no way Yoo Jeon would be saying all this if the ending had been good.
“She was… the priestess of the Sun and Moon Divine Cult before she awakened as the Grand Heavenly Lord….”
“……!”
“What?”
Cheon Yura and I were both shocked.
We had heard that the Heavenly Demon Founder had been created from the combined efforts of the last remnants of the Sun and Moon Divine Cult.
But now he was saying the priestess of that cult had become the Grand Heavenly Lord?
“Even before the Grand Heavenly Lord, there were already groups that followed the Heavenly Evil. After the fall of the Western Jin, they stirred up chaos in the Central Plains for many years.”
I didn’t need to hear the rest to know.
Because of those people’s actions, their story must have ended in disaster.
“…If I keep talking, the mood will just get heavier.”
Yoo Jeon reached for the hilt of his sword.
“Let’s speak with our swords from here on.”
The union of Yoo Jeon and Ma Seoyeon.
If two who had reached the Transcendent Demon Realm and the Supreme Demon Realm combined their strength, it would undoubtedly unleash transcendental power.
Yoo Jeon shifted his gaze toward Cheon Yura.
“Sorry for dragging you into something like this so suddenly.”
“I don’t mind. In fact, it looks exciting, so I’m actually looking forward to it.”
As she said that, a slight blush appeared on Cheon Yura’s cheeks.
She gripped her sword with a slightly excited voice.
“The founders of the Yoo Family and the Ma Family…”
Two sword demons who ranked among the greatest in the history of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
Their legends were still preserved in the deepest part of the Divine Demon Record.
It was only natural that she would be excited to face such legendary beings.
“Please, grant me the honor of exchanging a bout.”
I looked at the excited Cheon Yura with a slightly bitter expression.
‘She looks happier than when she reunited with me, doesn’t she?’
But well, as long as my Yura was happy…!
Just as both sides began raising their momentum—
Ma Seoyeon locked eyes with me and spoke.
“Hey.”
“Yes, Senior Sister.”
“I’m not going to thank you.”
She frowned and raised her voice a bit.
“Yeah, I’m not saying thanks. Damn bratty junior!”
Seeing that, Cheon Yura leaned in and whispered softly to me.
“Sounds like she’s saying thank you.”
“Hmm.”
Who would have thought there was someone even more stubborn than Cheon Yura in this world?
“Instead of saying thanks, I’ll convey my feelings… with my sword.”
…Did that mean she intended to slice my neck?
Yoo Jeon spoke with his signature bitter smile.
“Let’s begin.”
No further words were needed.
No matter how great the union of Ma Seoyeon and Yoo Jeon might be, it couldn’t possibly surpass the synergy between Cheon Yura and me.
Paht!
With those words, Cheon Yura and Ma Seoyeon simultaneously kicked off the ground.