Chapter 461: Ancient Covenant (1)
Liaodong Fortress, Jinzhou.
“You really came all the way out to this remote place.”
Saber Demon Pa Uryang clicked his tongue as he looked at the ragged group beside him.
They had driven their horses all the way here, scavenging for food however they could.
Thinking back to the final day when Beijing fell, honestly, there wasn’t a sliver of hope to be seen.
“Monarch, are you alright?”
“Yes. In fact... I might be the most intact one here.”
Lord Baek Cheong, Ju Baek Ryeo, nodded her head.
Saber Demon eyed her with a curious gaze.
Normally, such scrutiny from him would have been a great discourtesy, but no one here rebuked him now.
No, they couldn’t.
The one who held the lifeline of the dozen imperial family members here was none other than Saber Demon himself.
“It’s fascinating. You haven’t undergone a Body Reformation, and yet that old hag appearance has reversed like this.”
At the word “old hag,” Lord Baek Cheong gave a bitter smile.
“It’s not exactly a good sign. The fact that my authority is returning means, conversely, that the Grand Heavenly Lord’s power is growing stronger.”
In the past, during the incident at Yugaeongsan, Lord Baek Cheong had all her powers stripped and barely escaped with her life.
Afterwards, she lost her youth and became almost a shell of a person.
But ever since the skies turned red, her wrinkled skin rapidly smoothed out, and in barely a month, she regained her youth.
“That’s why, now more than ever, we must avoid falling into the Grand Heavenly Lord’s hands.”
“Hmmm... certainly.”
Saber Demon shifted his gaze slightly and glanced at the surviving royal members.
Honestly, it was already a miracle they had made it this far, guiding the imperial family.
These were people who had never ridden in carriages with fewer than four horses in their entire lives, yet they had made it here.
That they could do so was partly due to Saber Demon and the Extreme Do Clan’s capabilities, but also because their physical strength had improved far beyond expectations.
Just then, someone called out to Saber Demon.
“Warrior Pa.”
Both Saber Demon and Lord Baek Cheong turned their eyes at once.
The caller was none other than the Emperor of the Empire.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Is it safe to enter Jinzhou Fortress like this? After all, Liaodong is...”
Saber Demon reassured the Emperor, whose words trailed off with unease.
“Please don’t worry too much. Though this region is teeming with foreign tribes, they’re still less dangerous than demonic beasts.”
“R-right...”
“Also, I have no intention of revealing our identities to the lord of the city. It’s far too dangerous right now.”
Most likely, news that Beijing had fallen would soon spread across the entire Central Plains.
Though they had broken through quickly enough that the news might not have reached Liaodong yet, that was just a matter of time.
‘The lord of a place like this is bound to be cozy with the foreign tribes. Revealing our identity recklessly would be dangerous. Even if he acts friendly at first, who knows how quickly he might change?’
Take Qinghai, for example, which fell under the sphere of influence of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
Though Qinghai was officially part of the Empire, the intrusion of all manner of foreign tribes, the Evil Overlords of Heaven, and the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult made it a place where central government control barely functioned.
Especially since the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was one of the key players entangled in Qinghai’s power dynamics, Saber Demon kept this in mind clearly.
More than anything—
‘An Emperor without military power is nothing but a pawn to be used. I can’t afford to let this opportunity fall into someone else’s hands.’
Though Saber Demon appeared simple-minded on the surface, he was actually a deeply calculating and seasoned individual.
One of the key reasons Cheon Yura had chosen Saber Demon over other masters to send to the imperial family was precisely because of this discernment.
“The moment internal restoration is complete, our Cult will move. Please endure until then.”
“Y-yes. Right now, the only ones I can rely on are you and the organization to which you belong.”
The Emperor suddenly clenched his teeth with a slightly enraged expression.
“If the Justice Alliance were still intact, things would’ve been much better... those useless fools...”
Before the Murim had split into the Southern Murim Alliance and the Northern Murim Alliance—
Back when the Southern Heavenly Sword King had been Alliance Leader, the Justice Alliance had maintained a moderately close alliance with the imperial family.
But after both the Southern Heavenly Sword King and Sword Supreme Sage Gwan Hyun fell from power, and Jegal Cheon seized control, the alliance between the Justice Alliance and the imperial family rapidly deteriorated.
The Emperor gripped Saber Demon’s hand and shook it up and down.
“I shall never forget your service.”
‘You better not. Do you have any idea why I’m putting myself through this hell instead of returning to our Cult?’
Saber Demon thought to himself, but bowed his head respectfully.
“Just the promise of the Empire’s sovereign is already more than enough for me.”
When escaping Beijing, the Emperor had made several promises to Saber Demon.
Each of those promises was tremendously weighty, but the most significant among them was none other than the declaration that the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult would become the Empire’s official religion.
If the Cult could stand behind a restored Empire, then it would have nothing to fear from anyone anymore.
‘By the way... that brat really became the Heavenly Demon?’
With that sudden thought, Saber Demon barely suppressed the itch in his hands.
‘I’d like to go a round with him... but that damn Sword Fanatic probably already ran off to challenge him.’
The last letter he had seen stated that the internal rebellion had been quelled and the Cult Leader replaced.
‘What would Jin Gun-ak say now that his son became the Heavenly Demon? Actually, should I have pushed harder to have Seolyeong as his second wife?’
Even if not a concubine, there’s always the excellent system of a second wife, isn’t there?
‘...If the Cult Leader has disappeared, maybe it’s not too late?’
Even if he knew it was a vain desire, if there was any chance, he was willing to cling to it.
That had been the driving force that enabled him to raise the Pa Clan to the top among the Six Great Clan until now.
Of course, considering his unwavering devotion thus far, it was very, very likely to all end in vain.
It was then.
Rumble! Rumble rumble!
A massive earthquake, as if heaven and earth had flipped over, erupted without warning, and I, along with Saber Demon and the others, flinched and quickly began surveying our surroundings.
And before long—
“W-what in the world is that?!”
Saber Demon opened his mouth wide in shock at the bizarre phenomenon unfolding before his eyes.
The number of personnel the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult had mobilized for this Central Plains campaign totaled a staggering twenty thousand, including both combatants and non-combatants.
Of them, a vanguard force of two thousand troops broke free from Ten Thousand Great Mountain and rapidly moved south into the Shaanxi region.
“Horrific.”
“There isn’t a trace of human presence.”
Though many Cult Members set out from Ten Thousand Great Mountain ablaze with passion for the invasion of the Central Plains, it didn’t take long for that atmosphere to die down.
“There’s no one to be seen in the county.”
“There was a large earthquake recently... maybe they fled elsewhere?”
Even if Shaanxi Province was treated as a remote region within the Empire, it was still a place divided into administrative districts with stationed regular troops.
And yet… not even the slightest sign of life could be felt in a county where at least a few hundred should have been living.
“Captain, we’ve found something.”
The newly appointed Blood Dragon Demon Clan Lord and Sword Demon Ma Chulsoo, who had been designated as the vanguard commander, moved toward the site reported by his subordinates.
Where Ma Chulsoo arrived was none other than the government office—the place where the county magistrate conducted his duties.
“It seems they gathered here to make a last stand and were wiped out.”
Ma Chulsoo clenched his teeth as he looked at the bodies of government soldiers and civilians strewn miserably across the area.
“…Brutal.”
Parts of bodies had been torn away, and intestines were spilled across the floor and already hardened.
Even in Ten Thousand Great Mountain, such a scene of carnage was rare.
“Damn it, this is just depressing…”
One of the subordinates accompanying Ma Chulsoo ground his teeth in a low voice.
But no one rebuked him.
Everyone was feeling the same way.
“We’ve come this far, and not a single sect is reacting?”
Ma Chulsoo’s remark reflected just how far gone the Central Plains had become.
Normally, the moment they stepped out of Ten Thousand Great Mountain, countless sects should have gathered to check and confront the vanguard.
But up to now, the only battles they’d experienced were fending off a few reckless demonic beasts that dared to attack.
“At this pace, we’ll reach Xi’an in a day.”
“Xi’an... isn’t that Mount Hua’s territory?”
“Yes.”
Originally, Xi’an, the capital of Shaanxi Province, had been the domain of the Zhongnan Sect. But after Zhongnan Sect’s near collapse, Mount Hua took control of Xi’an.
“Well, if it’s Xi’an, at least it’s a major city—we can rest there.”
The Mount Hua Sect had once been a key sect in the Northern Murim Alliance.
In the past, things might have been different, but now they were no enemy to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
However—
“C-captain.”
“……”
The moment the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult’s vanguard arrived near Xi’an—
Ma Chulsoo, upon seeing the state of Xi’an, spoke a single word.
“Report to the main force.”
His gaze was fixed not on a city, but on a demonic realm that had once been Xi’an.
Upon receiving Ma Chulsoo’s report, I immediately separated from the main force and rushed to Xi’an.
“You arrived quickly.”
“……”
I said nothing, instead locking my eyes on the state of Xi’an.
“I’ve seen many ruins in my time... but never anything like this.”
“No doubt about that.”
The city of Xi’an, a major metropolis, was now entangled in massive tree roots and plant-like things that emitted deadly energy across the entire area.
Not only that, but a dark purple aura surged and flowed throughout the city.
“Have you tried entering?”
“Are you mad?”
Ma Chulsoo scowled as he shot back.
“That’s no ordinary evil qi—never before have I seen such a clearly death-laden energy. You expect us to just stick our necks into that and see what happens?”
“Fair enough.”
As the leader of the unit, Ma Chulsoo's judgment was correct.
I frowned slightly as I sensed the aura surrounding Xi’an.
‘It’s familiar. And similar.’
Salma So Jeong. Then Baek Sang-ah, So Cheon, and Gu Chil, who inherited So Jeong’s progress.
The deathly aura those very individuals had released was strikingly similar to the one flowing from Xi’an right now.
‘I could just pass by, but something feels off. There must be a cause behind that state… hmm?’
As I focused my mind to observe the state of Xi’an, I sensed a massive presence from deep within the city.
“…Ma Chulsoo.”
“Yes?”
“You come with me alone. The rest, wait here.”
“Huh? Why me of all people… wait… C-Cult Leader… Hey, you!”
Ma Chulsoo’s protest came from behind, but I ignored him and vaulted over the walls of Xi’an.
The moment I crossed Xi’an’s walls, what greeted me were numerous corpses dried up like mummies.
But there was one peculiar detail.
“There are quite a few demonic beast corpses too.”
Many demonic beasts had perished, leaving only outer hides behind without much resistance.
“Ugh! I can barely endure this without reinforcing my body…”
Ma Chulsoo, who had followed me in, couldn’t withstand the intense evil qi and began circulating his internal energy at full strength.
If Ma Chulsoo, whose true inner power was near the Supreme Demon Realm, was struggling this much, others wouldn’t even last a moment.
‘Something’s… not right…’
As I surveyed the surroundings, I felt a strange sense of dissonance.
Beneath the dark purple energy, the scene resembled the abandoned villages often seen in the House of Slaughter.
‘This doesn’t seem like the work of the Grand Heavenly Lord…’
Perhaps it’s the subtle logic of thesis-antithesis-synthesis.
This phenomenon, which should’ve become a great disaster in the world, was now suppressing the excessively rising energy in the air by absorbing the surrounding vitality.
‘Maybe I should’ve brought either Qilin or Yinglong along? Those guys could probably explain what’s going on…’
Ma Chulsoo and I continued moving deeper into Xi’an.
Naturally, there wasn’t a hint of life to be felt.
But then—
At the center of Xi’an,
In front of the pavilion where the Lord of the City would have resided, stood someone wearing a black judge’s robe, face obscured.
“Welcome, Successor.”
Sensing the formidable presence from the stranger, I instinctively summoned the Heavenly Demonic Divine Art.
The Heavenly Demon Founder and all the former Heavenly Demons.
The Founder’s disciples.
And even the Necrotic Tremor and the Four Atrocities I’d faced just recently.
Compared to them, the presence before me wasn’t inferior in any way.
“Who are you?”
“I am called Jin Gwang.”
Unexpectedly, the stranger responded politely, clasping hands in greeting.
Then—
“Before anything, would you care to exchange a brief greeting with me?”
“…A greeting?”
Sssmirk—
His face was covered by black cloth, but I could tell the man was smiling.
Rumble—
A massive earthquake shook the entirety of Xi’an.
“Damn it! What the hell is that?!”
Ma Chulsoo screamed at the surreal phenomenon that had suddenly begun.
Though I didn’t speak, I fully empathized with Ma Chulsoo’s reaction.
Behind the figure named Jin Gwang, as the surrounding pavilions collapsed, a colossal blade mountain began to rise in their place.