Chapter 317: The Unprecedented Crisis Sweeping Through the Murim (3)
Somewhere in Beijing.
Inside a massive government office with a plaque that read *oyal Prince's Palace* a man sat holding a brush, writing something.
"Second Heavenly Lord, Old Han, eliminated."
He had a well-groomed beard and a dignified face.
With the addition of a splendid *Waryong Crown*, his appearance truly gave off the impression of a capable high-ranking official.
However...
"Third Heavenly Lord, Gam Unbi, dead."
If one quietly listened to the words coming from his lips...
"Fourth Heavenly Lord, Hwan Pyeong, killed in action."
...one could not shake off the feeling that he was writing a death list.
"As for Fifth Heavenly Lord, Gwan Hyun... should I put that on hold for now?"
A slight smirk tugged at his lips.
"Sixth Heavenly Lord, the idiot, currently being revived."
Instead of writing the name Sangdo in the sixth slot, he wrote the word Cheonchi (Heavenly Fool) instead.
"Seventh Heavenly Lord, Baek Ryeo, effectively eliminated."
"Eight Heavenly Lord, Janhyeol, dead."
"Ninth Heavenly Lord, Beggar, dead."
"Tenth Heavenly Lord, Lust Fiend, killed first."
He finally filled in all ten names with his brush.
And then...
"Kuk!"
The man ran his eyes over the names he had written and began to laugh, covering his mouth.
"Keuhuhuhu!"
His laughter only grew louder with time, refusing to die down.
"Kuhahahaha! What a masterpiece! Truly, a masterpiece!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
He laughed so hard that he even slammed his desk with his fist. It wasn’t until nearly a quarter-hour had passed that he finally managed to stop.
"Heh... I laughed so hard my stomach hurts."
Still chuckling to himself, his expression suddenly turned cold.
"After spending more than half a century raising the Ten Heavenly Lords, they’ve been practically wiped out. And some didn’t even manage to retrieve their essence."
It was especially painful this time since he had put considerable effort into building their social status.
"Finding replacements for the Ten Heavenly Lords isn’t an issue... but with the Heavenly Timing approaching, it will be difficult. Should I be satisfied with the four temporary ones I’ve already selected?"
Behind him, the shadows of twenty figures loomed.
"Luckily, the Awakened Body was completed. Had it not been, things would have gone very badly."
He turned around and spoke.
"Report."
The figures that came into view were all young men who appeared to be in their twenties or early thirties.
The muscular man standing furthest to the right replied.
"Yes, as ordered, we launched surprise attacks on the nine factions refusing to submit to our society. Six of them resulted in success."
The man receiving the report twitched the corner of his eye.
"...You failed in three?"
Flinch!
Feeling his displeasure, everyone immediately prostrated themselves.
"W-we apologize! Please forgive us!"
"P-please, have mercy!"
Even those who had succeeded in their missions trembled like leaves in the wind, pressing their heads to the ground.
Regardless of how strong they had become, the man standing before them was a tyrant who held absolute power over their lives.
"Which ones did you fail to take?"
The muscular man, glancing nervously at the man, replied.
"The Bukcheon Geom Clan, the Namgung Clan... and the Black Lotus Union."
"……"
The man fell deep into thought.
Failing with the Bukcheon Geom Clan and the Namgung Clan wasn’t too surprising.
After all, each had a top expert from the Eight Armies, and he had only dispatched one person to each.
But the Black Lotus Union was a different story.
"You mean you failed to kill the leader of a ragtag bunch of outlaws that hasn’t even been around for a few years? And you sent three people?"
A deep scowl flashed across his face.
"Who did you send?"
"Woo Hwayoung and two of her followers."
Woo Hwayoung had been among the top five of their successful creations.
Unlike the ones in front of him who were simply numbered—First, Second, and Third—she had been given an actual name, which signified her value.
"Come to think of it, I don’t see them here?"
"They’re all dead."
"……Hmm."
He stroked his chin lightly.
He had planned to kill them anyway if they returned after failing.
But the fact that all three had died without even managing to flee carried significant implications.
"I heard the so-called top expert of Black Lotus Union, Ten Thousand Evil Blade Emperor, was away. Was the Union Master Demonic Sword Flower really that skilled?"
"……."
None of the others dared answer his mumbled question.
"This is troublesome. At the very least, I need to secure control over all the demonic factions before I can begin anything."
Tap, tap, tap.
He fell into contemplation.
Sending subordinates again to kill the Black Lotus Union Master wouldn’t be difficult, but doing so risked exposing their position.
For now, it was wiser to be satisfied with the minor success of seizing the Evil Overlords of Heaven and move on to the next plan.
"Ah, by the way."
He shifted his gaze toward his subordinates.
"I heard the Cult is planning quite the spectacle soon, right?"
One of the young men replied.
"Yes. They are said to be selecting a new husband for the Young Cult Leader."
"Puhehe! What on earth is that Cult Leader thinking? They don’t have much time left anyway."
"Jin Yeomyung. Jin Yeomyung, huh…."
After pondering for a moment, the man’s lips curved into a sinister grin.
"Akho, Seolbaek, Gwanggeun."
"Yes!"
"Awaiting your orders!"
Two men beside the muscular one quickly stepped forward.
"Kill that Jin Yeomyung. I’ll contact our agent there, so infiltrating won’t be difficult."
The man scanned the three with a toothy grin.
"Whoever kills him, I’ll grant the position of leader."
Flash!
A gleam of fierce ambition lit up in the eyes of the three men.
Currently, the so-called “Completed Works” were divided into two ranks.
Those who had been given a name, and those who had not.
And among those with names, there was no official ranking.
However, just recently, Jaseong had managed to kill Manakwang, allowing him to step ahead of the rest in their silent competition.
If one of them succeeded in killing the man called Jin Yeomyung, as the master had ordered, it would finally bring an end to the long and drawn-out battle for supremacy that had been waged in the shadows.
"That Jin Yeomyung must undoubtedly be the Cult Leader’s chosen candidate for the Young Cult Leader."
I had no doubt about it, after enduring so many years in the dark.
"My plans versus the Cult Leader’s plans. Which will prevail? Let’s put it to the test, keuhuhuhu…."
He was the man who sought to lead the Completed Works and plant a seed of rebellion within the Heavenly Demon Cult.
His nickname was Heavenly Researcher.
The Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion Master quietly mulled over the proposal I had given him.
"You wish to enter that place…?"
"Yes. And I ask that you open the Main Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion to us as well."
He tilted his head at my words.
"No matter how prestigious it may be, to you it would be nothing more than a playground, wouldn't it?"
"Not for me, but for my subordinates."
"Ah."
The Pavilion Master nodded while stroking his chin.
"That sounds reasonable."
He had once told me the survival rate in the Main Pavilion was only five percent.
But that statistic applied solely to the new recruits of the Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion.
"All your subordinates are on the verge of reaching the Peak Master Level, so it might actually be the perfect challenge."
Of course, the higher one's skill, the better the odds of passing through the Pavilion.
Given that my subordinates had already surpassed the level of mere graduates and had grown into instructor-level experts, overcoming the Main Pavilion seemed entirely possible.
"Have you already decided who you’ll send?"
Despite that, the Pavilion’s structure required exactly six participants.
I began folding my fingers one by one as I named them.
"Baeksa, Heuksa, Jeoksa, San Dojeon, Ma Jinseong. And…"
I paused briefly before continuing.
"I’ll also send my younger brother, Jin Yeowoon."
"Hmm?"
The Pavilion Master's expression twisted slightly.
"Your brother isn’t a member of the Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion."
"That’s something I’m hoping you’ll overlook with the authority of the Demonic Faction Lord."
"…So you’ve already secured that position?"
Even though he wore a mask, I could tell the Pavilion Master's face had scrunched up.
"Even for you, you’re trampling all over the long-standing traditions and regulations of the Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion."
Though he grumbled, the Main Pavilion was largely disconnected from the current Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion anyway.
"Well, I’m counting on you, nonetheless."
As I bowed slightly, the Pavilion Master let out a faint sigh.
"Looks like you owe me one."
"…I won’t forget this favor."
Like before, the Pavilion Master and I left the Pavilion, just the two of us.
"By the way, why are you putting your brother through the Main Pavilion? Last I heard, he was still busy with his successor training as the next Clan Leader."
"Well, about that…"
I clicked my tongue in mild displeasure.
"Even though I’ve been away for just a little while, my brother’s progress hasn’t been impressive."
"Hmm? I heard your brother was already close to Peak Master Level?"
Jin Yeowoon’s rate of growth had been steep enough to catch the attention of the entire Cult.
However…
I ground my teeth, my expression twisting in frustration.
"That’s barely enough. How could someone destined to lead the Demonic Heaven’s Jin Clan fall short of my own subordinates?"
Sure, if he stacked all the clan’s secret arts on himself, he might be able to defeat San Dojeon.
But that level was far from satisfying to me.
"Especially that Ma Chulsoo guy. When I saw him recently, he had changed quite a bit."
"Ma Chulsoo? Ah, you mean the top graduate of our Thousand-Day Pass Pavilion and the Young Clan Leader of the
Ma Clan?"
The Pavilion Master spoke with unmistakable pride in his voice.
"…There’s no need to sound so proud. Yes, that Ma Chulsoo."
Ma Chulsoo, who had inherited Cheonsalseong from my brother, becoming the current wielder of that power.
While I had been struggling outside, he had broken through his seclusion and was officially declared the Young Clan Leader of the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan.
"I found that he had already surpassed the Peak Master Level."
"Really? Is that true?"
The Pavilion Master looked genuinely surprised.
Even Pa Yeongyeong, the Young Clan Leader of the Pa Clan, was still barely clinging to the boundary of Peak Master Level.
The fact that Ma Chulsoo, who had been struggling around First Rate Martial Artist level just a few years ago, had already surpassed that boundary was astonishing.
"Once I become the Demonic Faction Lord, I’ll be moving to the Heavenly Demon Pavilion. When that happens, I won’t have the time to keep an eye on the clan. So I need to push him hard now to raise his skills."
This was different from me supporting my brother from behind.
One day, he would succeed Jin Gun-ak and take a seat among the Cult’s Elders.
If I didn’t push him now, Jin Yeowoon might spend his entire life struggling in Ma Chulsoo’s shadow.
‘This is a perfect opportunity. Once he comes out of the Main Pavilion, I’ll pass on everything I learned from Senior Brother Gwanchun…’
I resolved to train him until he was worthy of his position as the next Clan Leader of the Demonic Heaven’s Jin Clan.
Sensing my intentions, the Pavilion Master murmured quietly.
"The Cult’s Golden Generation… Truly, the Founder’s blessings are upon us."
His voice trembled slightly.
‘Well, to be fair, the Founder really is looking out for us…’
I kept that thought to myself.
Before long, the Pavilion Master and I stood beneath the massive Asura Statue we had seen before.
But there, someone blocked the entrance leading underground.
An old man.
“…Who are you?"
The Pavilion Master immediately raised his guard and asked.
The man had a hunched back, clearly past his seventies. I was sure I had seen him before.
However, the old man paid no attention to the Pavilion Master’s question and fixed his gaze on me instead.
"It has been a long time, Young Master."
"You are…?"
"Heh heh! We met once before, back at House of Slaughter, when I offered you some unsolicited advice."
The old man bowed respectfully with his hands clasped together.
"My name is Heavenly Researcher."