Chapter 19 : Things That Can Only Be Seen When Seen Properly

Chapter 19: Things That Can Only Be Seen When Seen Properly

The Martial Alliance’s assassination unit, having recovered the corpse of the Taiji Sword Emperor, immediately withdrew to Yunnan. That was because the closest of the Nine Sects was Mount Dian, which was located in Yunnan.

From Mount Dian’s perspective, which had been in the middle of preparing rice to send to the Bright Cult, the Martial Alliance’s assassination unit arriving together with the Taiji Sword Emperor’s body was like a bolt from the blue.

That was because they had only just barely finished cleaning up the turmoil caused by the attack they themselves had carried out.

Moreover, Mount Dian was thrown into a difficult situation by the demands of the Seven Swords of Wudang, who clamored for immediate revenge and requested support.

“What should we do about this?”

At the Sect Master’s question during the urgently convened council of elders, no one answered.

That was only natural. If they refused the Seven Swords of Wudang’s request, they would face criticism for turning a blind eye to the suffering of a fellow sect of the Nine Sects. If they accepted it, the opponent was the problem.

The opponent was the Vice Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult—someone who had forced them to retreat without being able to properly strike even once, despite Mount Dian assembling an assault force amounting to eighty percent of its top experts and fully half of the sect’s overall strength.

Furthermore, according to the explanation given by the Martial Alliance’s assassination unit, the Taiji Sword Emperor had been struck down by a single sword without even managing to draw his own blade in a one-on-one duel with the Vice Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult.

That Vice Cult Leader had produced such a result against the Taiji Sword Emperor, who had been the number one person of the Hundred Paths.

Sending their disciples against someone like that would be no different from pushing them to their deaths. There was no one in the hall who did not understand that.

That was why the elders of Mount Dian, who would normally resent coming in second when it came to aggressiveness, were keeping their mouths shut.

It was because those who would die immediately in such a clash would undoubtedly include disciples they themselves had raised with their own hands.

After glancing over the elders who were tightly sealing their lips for those various reasons, the Sect Master let out a sigh.

“Heh heh, this really is….”

As the Sect Master’s sigh suggested, Mount Dian was in a suffocating position. To that Sect Master, the Ghost Immortal finally opened his mouth with difficulty.

“We must not move.”

“We must not move?”

“Yes. He is… difficult to deal with.”

In short, it meant that even if they fought, they could not win. When their strongest expert evaluated the situation that way, sighs erupted from all around.

Amid those sighs, the Sect Master asked,

“Even if we are prepared to die?”

At the unexpectedly severe question, the elders’ eyes widened. Up until now, the Sect Master had been regarded as a moderate.

Amid the elders’ surprise, the Ghost Immortal, who had received the question, shook his head.

“It would be a pointless death.”

“To that extent?”

“My death itself would not be the problem. Countless disciples’ lives would be cut short in vain. It means that Kongtong did not suffer for nothing in the past.”

When the story of Kongtong—who had come close to annihilation due to a clash with the Vice Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult—was mentioned, sighs once again erupted from all sides.

Kongtong, which had barely managed to maintain its lineage, had still not recovered its former prosperity.

The fact that it even remained among the Nine Sects was due to the consideration of the other eight sects, who felt they had failed to help Kongtong at the time.

Otherwise, it would have been eliminated long ago, and another sect would have taken its place among the Nine Sects.

Kongtong had suffered that much.

Because the Ghost Immortal’s warning meant that Mount Dian could end up the same way, the council of elders—famous for its aggressive temperament—could only sink into deep sighs.

It was an emergency situation. Mount Dian could not rashly comply with the Seven Swords of Wudang’s demand, but it did not hesitate to relay the news.

First, Eastern Goshawks carrying urgent message requests flew toward the Martial Alliance. The same was done toward Wudang, to which the deceased Taiji Sword Emperor had belonged.

Two Eastern Goshawks left Mount Dian, spreading their wings wide as they flew eastward.

Beneath those flying Eastern Goshawks, a carriage could be seen moving busily. It was the carriage carrying Yul Han.

Because Yul Han accepted Cold Blade Blood’s advice that it would be better to arrive before the Martial Alliance began any response, the carriage moved at high speed.

The option of using lightness techniques, which would be far faster than a carriage, had also been considered, but following Flashing Light Blood’s opinion that abandoning even the carriage and running might be misinterpreted as fear, they decided to maintain carriage travel.

That was why they drove the carriage at maximum speed, giving the horses only the bare minimum of rest.

As a result, unlike before, they frequently left sparsely populated mountain paths and took official roads better suited for carriage travel.

Naturally, they drew more eyes, and the news reached the ears of the Hundred Paths sects located in Sichuan.

Sichuan had long been famous as a region with many sects of the Hundred Paths.

It was home to two of the Nine Sects—Mount Emei and Qingcheng—and also the land where the Tang Clan, one of the Six Great Clans, had established itself.

Those three sects all identified that a carriage bearing the clear crest of the Bright Cult had entered Sichuan.

“Eradicate the demon without regard for death.”

This phrase hung at the mountain gate of Emei Sect, a Buddhist sect—and moreover, a sect of nuns.

From long ago, Emei had been aggressive.

Whether it was to avoid being looked down upon as a sect of nuns, or due to the fierce climate of Sichuan, the nuns of Emei, unlike typical Buddhist disciples, never hesitated to fight when it was necessary.

Those nuns of Emei were the first to leave their mountain gate.

It was because a decision had been made that they could not allow the Demonic Cult’s carriage to pass safely through Sichuan, their own front yard.

The Tang Clan, known for responding to a breath with a typhoon, also did not remain idle.

They dispatched two hundred martial artists armed with various hidden weapons.

When two of the three pillars of Sichuan moved, the small and mid-sized sects of Sichuan also began to stir.

Claiming they had to lend a hand, those sects that heard the news each selected martial artists and joined the two groups.

As a result, the number of martial artists easily surpassed the thousand mark. In short, the martial world of Sichuan had blocked Yul Han’s path.

However, Qingcheng—one of the places called the three pillars of Sichuan—did not join in those movements. Among the Sichuan martial artists rushing out, criticism toward Qingcheng grew loud.

Seeing their rival Qingcheng’s reputation deteriorate, faint smiles appeared at the corners of the mouths of Emei and Tang Clan martial artists.

Of course, it was not as if Qingcheng was quiet just because no one came out. Inside, fierce debates were taking place.

Arguments so heated that one might wonder if such passion existed in Qingcheng, which was famed for its quietness, were unfolding.

“Even if it is no exaggeration to say that the entire martial world of Sichuan has risen, I question whether it is right for our Qingcheng to sit idly by like this.”

At the end of the Qingyun Pavilion Lord’s words—one of the two halls to which Qingcheng’s swordsmen belonged—the Sect Master, who had been sitting silently in the seat of honor listening to the elders’ heated debate, asked,

“Do you know who is riding in that carriage right now?”

“Well… isn’t it a demon lord?”

“A demon lord… Indeed, someone from the Bright Cult, which is called the Demonic Cult, must be riding there. Then, do you know what he has done?”

“T-That is… as with all things demon lords do, isn’t it something that brings harm?”

“Something that brings harm… Have you seen it, Pavilion Lord?”

“Pardon?”

“I am asking whether you have seen it with your own eyes.”

“Well…”

The Sect Master withdrew his gaze from the Qingyun Pavilion Lord, who could not answer, and continued while looking at the elders.

“Has our Qingcheng become so thirsty for blood that we would step forward to punish someone we do not even know, without knowing what they have done wrong?”

At the Sect Master’s unexpectedly sharp question, everyone shut their mouths and could not respond.

Then the Sect Master’s incisive words poured down upon the elders.

“If this is the case, who is the demon lord, and where is the breadth of heart? All of you, return and undergo a hundred days of training. And you should feel ashamed. You must deeply reflect on the sin committed by your own thoughts and mouths that insisted blood must be spilled simply because a carriage bore the Bright Cult’s mark. The disciples are watching. Today, as I came here, I could not bring myself to raise my head. I was afraid of the clear, shining eyes of the young disciples looking at me!”

Bang.

At the sight of the Sect Master slamming the table and standing up to leave, the elders of Qingcheng closed their eyes and could not say a word.

Because there was not a single word that was wrong.

“Haa….”

After the Sect Master left, sighs erupted from all around the meeting hall where only the elders remained.

Though they shared the same cultivation grounds, these sighs were of a different nature from those of Mount Dian, settling deeply over the seats of the Qingcheng elders’ council, which was wrapped in silence.

In the end, the martial artists of Sichuan—excluding Qingcheng—stepped forward to block the carriage Yul Han was riding in.

It happened only half a day after Yul Han’s carriage, bearing the clear crest of the Bright Cult, had entered Sichuan.

Even that short amount of time showed just how keenly and sensitively the martial world of Sichuan reacted.

When a massive armed force of well over a thousand people blocked the way, Cold Blade Blood and Flashing Light Blood, who were sitting on the driver’s bench, could not hide their tension.

Because those filled with fighting spirit and killing intent blocked the road, Yul Han stepped down as soon as the carriage stopped, without even asking the reason.

It was because he had grasped the other side’s intent from their momentum.

As Yul Han stepped down, Blood Wolf followed beside him. Though it was gaunt, with patches of fur missing, there were many who recognized Blood Wolf.

After all, even if only briefly, Sichuan had not been free from the damage caused by Blood Wolf.

Because of that, many Sichuan martial artists flinched. They were facing once again the monstrosity against which spears and blades had not worked.

Naturally, Yul Han, who came forward with such a monstrosity at his side, was not going to be viewed favorably. Immediately, Abbess Hamyeol of Emei stepped forward and shouted,

“How dare the spawn of the Demonic Cult bring such a vile thing and set foot here! Do you wish to die— guh!”

Slash.

Though spears and blades belatedly all turned toward them, they could not match the speed of Flashing Light Blood, who had already rushed in and placed his sword at Abbess Hamyeol’s neck.

Even with hundreds of spears and blades pointed at him, Flashing Light Blood showed no fear. Instead, with a fierce expression, he snarled at Abbess Hamyeol.

“Watch your mouth. He is not someone a wretch like you can dare to speak of!”

He had just displayed the fastest sword among anyone present. From the fact that such a person addressed Yul Han as ‘sir,’ tension filled the eyes of the Sichuan martial artists.

Moreover, there were even those who recognized Flashing Light Blood.

“F-Flashing Light Blood! One of the Thirteen Bloods of the Demonic Cult!”

At someone’s shout, the Sichuan martial artists stirred.

The Thirteen Bloods of the Demonic Cult were those whom only sect masters of great sects or the very strongest experts could possibly face head-on.

Perhaps intending to calm that shock, another female Buddhist nun stepped forward from among the Sichuan martial artists.

“Withdraw your sword, bandit of demons!”

The one who shouted as soon as she stepped out was Thousand Hands Abbess, called the strongest expert of Emei.

Her original Buddhist name was Hamjin.

Because when she unfolded the Thousand-Hand Tathagata Palm—Emei’s supreme, mountain-shaking art—her hands looked as if they numbered in the thousands, she was given the sobriquet Thousand Hands.

Facing Thousand Hands Abbess, Cold Blade Blood, who had already stepped forward, let out a low growl.