Chapter 51

Namgung Seohee (1)

Cheon Muyang stepped outside the family grounds.

The leader of the Cheon-gyeon Unit followed behind him.

"Are you planning to go alone?"

"The Wolf King and Uncle are probably busy as it is. I'm enough on my own."

Movement needed to be kept to a minimum.

That was why Cheon Muyang decided to go alone.

'Lately, things have been so busy that there hasn't even been enough time to train. I can't interfere with them.'

Under the teachings of the Wolf King and Cheon Seonhak.

Neung Ryeoun, Cha Myeonghak, and Wolyeong were growing frighteningly strong.

This was the time for them to solidify their foundations, and he didn't want to disturb that.

"Have the items been recovered?"

"Yes. We've recovered them and are in the process of sorting them. There are more usable things than expected."

Immediately after taking control of the family, Cheon Muyang had the Cheon-gyeon Unit retrieve every single item the Third Elder had hidden away.

"Good. As soon as the sorting is finished, make sure everything can be distributed."

"Distribution... Understood."

"Just give me a few usable spirit medicines."

"Yes. I will do so."

"And after that... wait a moment. I need to organize my thoughts."

Cheon Muyang closed his eyes.

He wanted to organize the chain of events that would unfold from here on.

'Let's put things in order.'

Cheon Muyang remembered.

That the Cheon Clan and the Namgung Clan's relationship had rapidly cooled following a certain incident.

'That incident happened around this time.'

That incident was most likely related to a daughter of the Namgung Clan who was in Hangzhou.

'Her name was Namgung Seohee.'

Among the younger generation known as the Five Dragons and Three Peaks, she was skilled enough with the sword to be called the Sword Peak.

The other Peaks were adorned with titles like White, Gold, or Ice, so the fact that Namgung Seohee was defined by the sword alone carried special meaning.

'It must mean her talent with the sword was exceptional.'

He remembered that she had run away from home in resistance to a political marriage.

'I recall it was a runaway.'

Whether by coincidence or simply because she wanted to leave her family, she headed not to Anhui, but to Hangzhou in Zhejiang.

If that had been all, nothing would have happened.

However, she was a woman overflowing with chivalry, no less than her devotion to the sword.

'She went out to hunt a Yin Demon.'

At the time, incidents were occurring throughout Zhejiang where only young women were being abducted.

Her learning of this was the beginning of everything.

She too was the daughter of a martial aristocratic family.

She knew she couldn't recklessly act on her own.

So Namgung Seohee requested help from the Cheon Clan.

'The place she asked for help... was the Sohung Bang....'

Perhaps thinking that asking the Cheon Clan directly might result in her being detained outright, Namgung Seohee contacted the Sohung Bang, known to be allied with the Cheon Clan.

The problem lay with the Sohung Bang.

'They didn't report it.'

As a result, Namgung Seohee had no choice but to act alone while waiting for Cheon Clan support that would never come.

'Even if it had been reported, there was no way the Cheon Clan had the leeway to help her back then.'

That was how bad the Cheon Clan's situation was at the time.

In any case, acting alone, Namgung Seohee met the worst possible outcome.

She was turned on and defeated by the Yin Demon instead.

It was her mistake to think it was just an ordinary Yin Demon.

'The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon.'

Neither of the orthodox sects nor the Demonic Cult, he was a martial world criminal belonging nowhere.

As his alias suggested, he was said to possess a thousand faces, even freely altering his physique.

'Since he had only been running away until then, she probably didn't think his martial arts were exceptional.'

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon was a fugitive.

So it wouldn't have been strange to assume his martial arts were weak.

Originally, the martial arts of those called Yin Demons were nothing special.

'But the reality was different. The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon was highly skilled.'

His martial arts were formidable, and his methods were cunning.

The fact that he slipped leisurely through the dragnet jointly cast by the Namgung Clan and the Cheon Clan after her disappearance was no coincidence.

They succeeded in rescuing Namgung Seohee after she had been reduced to a wreck, and so they stopped pursuing the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon.

'But that wasn't the end.'

With no one left to hold responsible for the incident, the Namgung Clan instead turned on the Cheon Clan.

『The Cheon Clan ignored Namgung Seohee's request for help. We will hold them accountable for that.』

Cheon Wigang never yielded.

As a result, the atmosphere deteriorated to the brink of all-out war.

『We will mediate this matter.』

At that moment, the Tang Clan stepped in.

Only then did Cheon Muyang begin to grasp the circumstances of the Tang Clan's involvement.

'At the time, the Clan Head must already have suffered internal injuries from the Wolf King and the Demonic Cult's vicious trap.'

Thus, he must have judged an all-out war with the Namgung Clan to be impossible.

'Whether the Tang Clan proposed it first or not, the Clan Head had no choice but to accept their offer.'

However, the Tang Clan was poison.

Whether some kind of deal had been made, the once-unyielding Namgung Clan accepted the Tang Clan's mediation.

And under the pretext of mediation, the Tang Clan intervened and stripped the Cheon Clan of many of its interests.

'That's the full story of this incident.'

Then, several years later, Cheon Wigang died suddenly, and five years after that, the Cheon Clan walked the road to annihilation.

'Back then, I was too consumed by anger toward the Namgung Clan to look at the situation calmly.'

Now was different.

Replaying the entire sequence from the beginning left an unsettling feeling.

'In the end, the ones who benefited were the Tang Clan. And the Namgung Clan.'

In other words, the one that suffered losses was the Cheon Clan.

'What if this outcome was something someone intended?'

Suspicion arose.

The Tang Clan.

'What if all of this is connected to the Tang Clan?'

Back then, he hadn't even considered the Tang Clan as being behind it, but now was different.

The Namgung Clan was suspicious as well.

Although they lost Namgung Seohee, the benefits they gained were not small.

However, the thought that the Namgung Clan would move even at the cost of their own blood made Cheon Muyang suspect the Tang Clan instead.

'It's definitely the Tang Clan.'

Cheon Muyang opened his eyes.

Before him still stood the Cheon-gyeon Unit Leader, awaiting orders.

Crunch.

Cheon Muyang ground his teeth.

"The Tang Clan will be somewhere around Hangzhou. Find them."

"...."

The Cheon-gyeon Unit Leader's eyes sank.

The claim that the Tang Clan was involved was not something that could be taken lightly.

"Understood."

However, the Cheon-gyeon Unit Leader was an observer.

He had agreed to assist Cheon Muyang, but he was not someone with true loyalty.

'Let's watch.'

He would merely observe.

Giving advice was not his mission.

'It was never my role to begin with.'

Sssshk.

The Cheon-gyeon Unit Leader vanished.

Sensing several shadows disappear along with him, Cheon Muyang tightly gripped the Cheon-gwang.

'The Tang Clan... ruthless. Even after blocking the arranged marriage, they still interfered?'

The future was different from back then.

Hadn't the arranged political marriage been prevented?

Even so, Cheon Muyang was certain.

That the Tang Clan was involved.

He just couldn't guess the reason.

'Why?'

Cheon Muyang shook his head.

Did the reason really matter?

'What matters is that the Tang Clan interfered and harbors hostile intentions toward the Cheon Clan.'

The Tang Clan's objective seemed clear.

To worsen the relationship between the Cheon Clan and the Namgung Clan.

'Let's see how that turns out.'

He had no intention of letting things go according to their plan.

Namgung Seohee arrived in Hangzhou.

All that remained was whether the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon would make his move.

'You're lucky, Namgung Seohee.'

She was lucky.

In this life, she would be given the chance to let the talent that never fully bloomed before finally flower.

"I should go to Hangzhou."

Cheon Muyang headed toward Hangzhou.

His priority was to find Namgung Seohee.

"Since the Sohung Bang, where she should have appeared, has already fallen, how will she act?"

It was something to wait and see.

Mount Kuaiji, located to the southeast of Hangzhou.

True to its reputation as a scenic attraction, many people visited the place, and since it lay close to Hangzhou, it was a favorite spot for those who enjoyed leisure and refined pleasures.

However, deep within the slopes of Mount Kuaiji, there existed a massive cavern known as Yu Cave .

Because many people had fallen to their deaths there, the area had now been designated as a restricted zone.

"Kehehehehehe."

From deep within the pit, a grotesque laugh echoed.

The madness filling the voice, as though intoxicated by something, could not be hidden.

"Perfection is finally just within reach."

The one Cheon Muyang was searching for—the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon.

However, he was not alone.

A man who stared coldly at the power-drunk Thousand-Faced Yin Demon.

And beside him stood Tang Sohye of the Tang Clan.

"Hand over the rest as well."

"Your body has already reached its limit. You can't accept that energy anymore."

Twitch!

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon's brow furrowed.

"What did you say?"

"Achieve perfection."

"And if I do?"

"Then you'll obtain what you want. Both of us will."

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon laughed chillingly.

Perfection was now close at hand.

Even the final sacrifice that would bring everything to an end had already been decided.

"Fine. I'll accept that proposal. Kehehehehe. Don't you dare forget it."

"We should never have to see each other again."

"...."

As if their business was finished,

Tang Sohye and the man turned their backs.

At that moment—

"But, you know...."

A chill ran through the air.

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon suddenly released killing intent.

"I can understand the Tang Clan's precious jewel, but you, brat—your eyes are downright insolent."

Shiiing!

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon's hand turned into a blade and shot forward like a dagger.

It was not aimed at Tang Sohye,

but at the man standing beside her.

"Tsk."

However, the man who had already turned away merely clicked his tongue and shook his head.

He remained calm, as though he had expected the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon to act exactly this way.

"This is why trash will always be trash."

Kaaang!

"...!"

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon was flung backward.

An unmistakable difference in power.

Yet what shocked him even more was something else.

'When did he draw his sword?'

He hadn't even perceived the moment the blade was unsheathed.

Drip.

Cold sweat ran down his body.

It had been only a single exchange,

yet the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon felt a pressure even greater than when he had been trapped within the heavenly dragnet.

"Breathing the same air as filth like you is unpleasant."

Flash!

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon's eyes widened once more.

"However, I have use for you, so I will not kill you. Therefore—"

"Kyaaaargh!"

One of the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon's eyes was ripped out.

Blood poured down.

"Never look up at the sky again."

An overwhelming gap.

Only then did the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon finally realize.

The green martial robe the man was wearing.

And the faint dragon pattern engraved upon his chest.

"S-surely...."

"Do you wish to lose your other eye as well?"

"Hhk!"

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon shut his mouth.

Seeing this, the man—his eyes once again as indifferent as before—turned his back.

"Trash should live the life of trash. Do not even think of crossing into this world."

"...."

The two of them departed.

Left alone, whether from unbearable pain or from rage, the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon clenched his lips tightly.

"Namgung Clan...."

The name he could not finish speaking.

As he muttered it under his breath, the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon's appearance slowly began to change.

Crack!

Crunch!

Even his very frame began to shift.

Transforming into a refined young noble one might often see in Hangzhou, the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon gently touched his awkward, mismatched eye.

"So the Namgung Clan has intervened? Kehehe. Acting all noble and proper... once I achieve perfection... I'll kill you too."

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon began walking toward somewhere.

Toward the deepest recess of Yu Cave—the very source of yin energy.

"Which eyes should I choose?"

There, countless corpses lay scattered.

They were those acquired from people known as the Black Traders.

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon's eyes gleamed as though he were browsing a marketplace, and he began searching for eyes that matched his newly changed body.

"You might think you're using me... but once I reach perfection, it all ends."

Only the final stage remained.

The Thousand-Faced Yin Demon curled his lips into a sinister smile.

"The Namgung Clan's precious jewel... Kehehe. I'm looking forward to seeing just how remarkable she is."

Having finished his disguise perfectly, the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon stepped out of Yu Cave.

Then, following the mountain trail of Mount Kuaiji, he slipped into the crowd.

"Good. Very good."

Smiling at several women whose eyes met his, the Thousand-Faced Yin Demon headed toward Hangzhou.

Two gazes quietly followed him.

"With this, the Sword Peak will be broken."

"Hmph. Trash is dealt with by trash."

"In return, the Namgung Clan will gain considerable interests in Zhejiang. All of it will become your achievement, Young Master."

"...."

"Congratulations in advance, Clan Head."

Tang Sohye smiled.

The smile was incomparably beautiful.

Yet the more beautiful the flower, the deadlier the thorns it concealed.

"Clan Head...."

But those thorns were subtle,

and those intoxicated by the flower could never notice them.

"When the time comes..."

"Everything will unfold according to your will, Young Master."

A gentle smile.

Tang Sohye's smile shone as brightly as sunlight.

"Good."

A strange, burning desire flickered in the man's eyes.

"...."

Watching him, Tang Sohye merely continued to smile.