Chapter 259

A hero descended upon Henan.

It was the phrase setting the county on fire these past few days.

The revival of the DEMON CULT.

The emergence of an organization called HEAVEN-BREAKING PALACE.

Henan thrown into chaos by their assault, and the people who died in the aftermath.

And the fact that Main Alliance Headquarters—Henan, praised as an iron fortress—had been cracked.

Even that alone was enough to leave everyone in shock, and yet—

It had happened on the very day the assault turned everything into a madhouse.

You’d think there hadn’t been an incident this huge since the Orthodox-Demonic War.

Not only did Divine Spear—who had been chosen as leader after Yoo Cheongil—lose consciousness in the attack,

Even Main Alliance Headquarters itself was struck, to the point the Martial Alliance could’ve been shaken to its core.

And on top of that, news spread that an absolute master believed dead—Sword Demon—had appeared.

While problems kept stacking up like a wall about to collapse—

Even inside that disaster, a person appeared, like a flower blooming in ash.

The one currently called Henan’s hero.

Little Sword Saint.

That was him—the one who rose as a new comet after saving Poison King and the Tang Clan in Sichuan.

He’d already been gaining quiet fame as the Sword Saint’s successor, but—

Starting with what happened in Sichuan, his name spread across the entire Central Plains.

Some people said—

Little Sword Saint was a genius comparable to the Seven Prodigies.

Then someone else said—

No, he was something you couldn’t even compare to the Seven Prodigies.

Questions piled up: If he’s the Sword Saint’s successor, shouldn’t it be like that?

And with this incident, it became “clear.”

Little Sword Saint—

No.

Moon Knight was an absolute master.

That kind of talk was filling Henan.

And.

Moon Knight, my ass.

As the bastard who had to hear it with his own ears, all I could do was sigh.

Moon Knight.

My epithet changed out of nowhere.

When did they switch from calling me Little Sword Saint—because I’m the Sword Saint’s successor—to Moon Knight?

What kind of stupid-simple epithet is that.

I could’ve let Little Sword Saint slide, but now it’s Moon Knight?

God. That’s embarrassing.

Every time an epithet gets slapped onto me, it makes me feel like shit. I couldn’t understand why something like that formed just because I did something “big.”

A hero who saved Henan by killing Sword Demon and saving Divine ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) Spear and Jegal Jin.

...Insane.

I let out a long breath, thinking about it.

What kind of garbage rumor is this.

My head throbbed.

I forced down the headache crawling up and started walking again.

At the same time, I tried to grasp the situation.

My rumor spreading across Henan, my reputation and fame rising?

Is that supposed to be a benefit?

I didn’t know yet. My thoughts hadn’t reached that far.

Because that’s not what I’m supposed to be looking at right now.

What mattered here was—

Why my rumor spread like that.

I had to dig into why “Moon Knight” and all that nonsense exploded outward.

Did this really happen because of what I did—no, because of what Yoo Cheongil did while borrowing my body?

I didn’t think so.

Even if what he did wasn’t small, and none of it was minor—

It still wasn’t something that should spread this far.

Not at this speed.

But if it really spread this quickly—

Someone intervened.

Someone. Or some organization.

And if it’s an organization that can meddle with rumors—

The Beggars’ Union.

The Beggars’ Union would’ve moved.

Then the question becomes: why did the Beggars’ Union move?

The Beggars’ Union belongs to the Martial Alliance. The place called the Martial Alliance’s ears.

That was widely known, even if it was unspoken.

So if the Beggars’ Union moved to spread the rumor, that meant, in other words, the Martial Alliance moved.

And if the Martial Alliance deliberately moved to spread my rumor, then the reason was—

To pull attention.

To drag the current situation’s attention onto me.

Then why point the attention at me?

That reason wasn’t hard, either.

Because it’s the easiest.

Turning the spotlight onto me is fast and convenient.

And once the spotlight gathers, the advantages are plenty.

They can reduce the blame that would pour onto the Alliance for the incident.

Main Alliance Headquarters—praised as an iron fortress—getting swept by a dark faction assault.

They wanted to divert eyes away from that.

Blame was coming, and the prestige the Martial Alliance had built could take a serious hit.

So in that situation, the Martial Alliance—

No—

My grandfather used me.

Thousand-Mile True Sight, Jegal Jin.

He used me as a tool to redirect attention.

Ha.

He really was something.

And the reason he called me to the Righteous Guidance Conference was the same.

To use me for sure.

To cover the Martial Alliance’s faults.

And to pour people’s eyes onto me.

Seven days and nights.

Not a long time, if you measure it.

And yet the reason I could become “a hero” in that span—

If you assume the Alliance itself stepped in—

Then it was beyond certain.

So the moment I opened my eyes, I’d become a hero.

Hah.

It was absurd.

No matter how I turned it, it was absurd.

And even beyond that—

It pisses me off, too.

He used me however he wanted.

He used me as a shield so countless things that should’ve slammed into the Alliance would slide off.

Of course it would piss me off.

...He’s slippery.

But if there’s one thing Thousand-Mile True Sight is truly slippery about—

He planted a carrot in the middle of it.

Right when I’d be furious, he mixed in a sweetener.

Where’s the carrot?

The carrot is what I’m being dragged to right now.

The fact that I’m going to the Righteous Guidance Conference.

Alongside his intent to use me, I could see the meaning buried inside it.

Come and take what you can get.

I’ll give you something big, so don’t complain.

I could feel Jegal Jin’s intent clearly.

If someone asked what “benefit” there is in attending the Righteous Guidance Conference—

...That’s easy.

If my guess is right, it’s a massive advantage.

Of course—

Only if I play it right.

It depends on how I act.

So I needed to get my head straight.

I barely woke up, and I already have to do this crap.

My fatigue hadn’t even faded, and I already had to think from the top down.

Damn it. I’ve got too much to figure out.

I hadn’t even properly checked the changes in my own body.

And I still didn’t know exactly what happened to everyone else.

“Tsk.”

CRACK. CRACK.

I loosened my neck while organizing my thoughts.

I was about to force my stiff body to loosen—

“We’ve arrived.”

The commander guiding me spoke. I sent my gaze forward.

A massive building stood in the distance.

Even inside the Martial Alliance, it boasted an intimidating size.

The True Assembly Hall.

As we approached the conference chamber inside the True Assembly Hall, I saw the door—and the people guarding it.

“Come this way.”

The commander went ahead toward the door, and the Martial Alliance members guarding it reacted.

“...Commander, we gre—!”

The one who started to show courtesy saw me behind the commander and froze solid.

From the trembling eyes and shocked face, I could feel his emotions.

“...Moon Knight...!”

“......”

I forced back the heat trying to rise into my ears. No matter how many times I heard it, I couldn’t get used to it.

No—this might be the first time I’d heard it directly.

I hid the mess in my chest and ran a hand over my face.

SSSS—.

I didn’t know if I was even “supposed” to hear something like that, but there wasn’t much I could do about it.

As I held back a sigh, the doorkeeper snapped back to himself and hurriedly opened the door.

CREAK—!

The door opened slowly. The commander slipped inside first.

I followed.

WHOOOOSH—!!!

“...!”

The air hit me and my breath caught.

Ha.

Inner power saturated the air so thickly that just inhaling made my insides feel sticky.

And the weight—so heavy that simply stepping into the space made my shoulders feel burdened.

My mind snapped sharp.

And the moment my foot fully crossed into the conference chamber—

WHOOOOSH—!!!

I felt eyes from all directions.

The people sitting inside the chamber.

...The Righteous Faction’s heavens.

The pillars, as they were called.

Those who formed the Righteous Faction, carrying the Central Plains’ immense achievements and fame.

The heads of power.

They were gathered here, pouring their gaze onto me.

They said they gathered them in seven days and nights.

And yet this many had arrived?

No—

It means this is big enough that they’d gather in seven days and nights.

It was dizzying.

I couldn’t even clearly see who was who.

All I could feel was the concentrated weight of their stares drilling into me.

My body felt like it might harden.

...Damn.

A parade of existences I’d never see anywhere else.

And among them—

...Those seats up there.

At the far edge of the gathered leaders, a space carefully measured near the dais.

Five seats stood out.

What were they for? I didn’t need long to think.

The Five Great Clans.

Among the countless houses, the highest tier.

Those seats belonged to the Five Great Clans, carrying an overwhelming name across the Central Plains.

...And three of them are already here.

Three were already seated among the five.

The first I recognized was White King.

White King, the head of the Murong Clan, was attending the Righteous Guidance Conference.

And besides him—

That man is...

A man with black hair, yet even sitting, his solid build stood out.

His features looked like he resembled someone strongly, and he wore a smile that carried the same kind of madness.

That man was probably—

Blade Absolute.

Blade Absolute Peng Wooseong.

An absolute master who hadn’t entered the Five Kings Under Heaven, but was said to be at that level—current head of the Hebei Peng Clan.

And—

The father of Black-Grand Saber.

The father of that lunatic—Black-Grand Saber Peng Dojun.

He really does look like him.

He did. I could see exactly where Black-Grand Saber’s giant frame and rough features came from.

And.

Next to him...

Beside White King and Blade Absolute—

Between their trained physiques, a relatively thin, slight middle-aged man sat.

Neatly kept hair, and a presence that fit “scholar” far more than “martial artist.”

Which means—

I checked his clothing.

Gray martial robes edged in black.

And a crest on his chest.

The moment I saw it, I understood who he was.

Someone from the Jegal Clan.

He looked like Jegal blood.

The young clan head?

The current head of the Jegal Clan is Thousand-Mile True Sight, Jegal Jin.

Even in old age, he never stepped down, so the man sitting there had to be the young clan head.

His name was probably—

Jegal Hyeongyeon.

A man famous more as a scholar—or a formation master—than as a martial artist.

The eldest son of Thousand-Mile True Sight, Jegal Jin.

Which meant—

...He’s my uncle.

My maternal uncle.

Maybe that’s why the way Jegal Hyeongyeon looked at me was especially intense.

I’m going to throw up.

Even if I wanted to ignore it, there were too many stares.

Not just from that side—everyone in the chamber was watching me.

I was starting to feel worn down, about to steady my breathing—

“Hm.”

A low breath came from the dais.

Then—

WHOOOOSH—!

What?

The inner power filling the chamber vanished in an instant.

“You’re here.”

The owner of that breath was none other than Jegal Jin.

At the single exhale he let out, the masters around the room pulled back their pressure.

People who could erase a mountain with their mere presence—tidied up by one sigh from a frail old man.

God of War.

It was a scene that made you understand what kind of weight that title—hero of the Orthodox-Demonic War—actually carried.

And right then—

“Come up.”

Jegal Jin told me to step onto the dais.

“......”

Do I go up, or not.

I hesitated for a moment, then moved.

The dais wasn’t high, but what should’ve been an easy step felt like lifting a mountain.

...Unbelievable.

The moment I stepped up, the seated figures came into full view.

What the hell am I supposed to do with those vicious stares?

Cold sweat threatened to start dripping on its own.

I was about to narrow my eyes through the tension—

TAP—!

A hand landed on my shoulder.

It wasn’t Jegal Jin’s hand.

It was much larger. Heavier. Solid.

Who?

I lifted my gaze toward the owner of the hand.

“...Huh?”

The moment I saw him, a dumb sound slipped out.

Cold, deep blue eyes.

The instant I saw those eyes, I knew.

The one with his hand on my shoulder was—

“...Sect Master?”

The current Sect Master of the Blue Moon Sect—the father of Cheon Eujin and Moon Dancer.

Moon-Thread Sword Cheon Seonghwa.