Chronicles of the Heavenly Demon

The sunset lit the sky in a blood red glow. 

With blood pooling everywhere, it was hard to separate the sky from the earth. 

“Phew.”

Woon-seong breathed out quietly. 

By the time Woon-seong knocked down Tae Heo-jin, the battle was almost over.

Unlike the Demonic Army, which had been reinforced by their rear, the Martial Alliance had received no support. 

Moreover, the two masters from the Eight Bolt Blade King’s and Cheon Ah-young’s report did not appear. Instead, only a few of the 72 Supreme Masters had appeared. 

It was unknown why this was. 

But one thing was for certain. 

The current battlefield was Chongqing. 

A little further was a place called Wuhan, the City of Three Garrisons. 

Wuhan was a hub of the Martial Alliance. 

Obviously, Jwa Do-gyul would be there as well. 

Woon-seong ground his teeth as he looked in the direction of the sunset. 

East. 

Where the Martial Alliance was. 

Where Jwa Do-gyul was. 

Woon-seong growled. 

***

“Hmm, defeat again. Now, they are at our throats.”

The man sat alone in a dark room and spoke calmly. 

It was too calm of a voice for Murim, which had experienced another defeat. 

In the meeting about an hour ago, the man had acted completely differently, expressing regret for the dead and shedding tears. 

Perhaps Jwa Do-gyul remembered that, too. 

His lips curled up into a bloody smile. 

Maybe I have a talent for Chinese opera. [1] 

He changed his face so well that it might work. 

For a while, there were miscellaneous thoughts. 

Jwa Do-gyul eventually closed his eyes, firmly fixing his expression. 

“Hmph.”

The sound of irritation tumbled from his lips as he closed his eyes. There seemed to be something bothering him. 

Unlike before, was it pity for the damaged Martial Alliance?

“Too little damage.”

Those words told differently. 

“We have enough damage to the sects, but there is far less damage to the Demonic Cult than expected,” he muttered and slowly opened his eyes. 

It was as he said. 

The purpose of this was to weaken the two forces simultaneously by pitting them against each other. 

However, the number of demonic soldiers lost was too small. 

There was also damage to the sects, but not as much as expected. 

It was because many of the Taoist factions as well as the Great Jegal Clan had refused to get involved.  If their power remained intact, the large forces of the Orthodox Murim would pose a big problem for the Cult of the Inverted Sky. 

Even more problematic was the power of the Demonic Cult. 

The power of the Demonic Cult had been less affected than the Orthodox factions. 

“Huh, even though six provinces were captured, the damage to the Demonic Army is only 5,000.”

5,000 soldiers. 

That was a number that would make rivers out of blood and mountains out of corpses. But Jwa Do-gyul was saying that was too few. 

That was because 5,000 men was nothing compared to the full size of the Demonic Army. 

Too little damage. 

This was not good. It would not fulfill the orders given by the Inverted Sky, so his position inside the Inverted Sky would also weaken. 

I can’t have that.

Jwa Do-gyul closed his eyes again. 

He thought about his relationship with the Cult of the Inverted Sky. 

He had no memories from childhood. 

His first memory was the time spent with an old teacher inside a thatched house, aided by a dying candle. 

His teacher used to beat him harshly. 

He told Jwa Do-gyul that he had to save the sect. 

The boy had to find his teacher food everyday and was beaten if he failed to do so. 

The boy had to learn martial arts, and on the days he failed to do so, he was beaten. 

That did not mean the teacher was an excellent martial artist. 

At best, he was second-rate.

One day, after enduring severe abuse, Jwa Do-gyul killed his teacher. 

He stabbed and stabbed the sleeping man in the heart. 

It was not difficult to kill a second-rate martial artist, especially when they were passed out drunk. It was also because the man did not imagine Jwa Do-gyul would kill him. 

Jwa Do-gyul was fifteen then. 

After that, he ventured into the world and did what he had to do. 

What could a martial artist, who killed his own master, do with a sword?

Sell his skills, earn a day’s worth, eat and live another day. Soaking his feet in danger, not knowing when he would die. 

It was almost romantic. 

He lived like that until he met the Cult of the Inverted Sky. 

The Inverted Sky gave him elixirs and freedom. They did not hesitate to falsify rumors if need be. 

And so Jwa Do-gyul’s power and reputation sky-rocketed. Suddenly, he became a lord of Murim and could not live without the support of the Inverted Sky. 

I will be abandoned by the Cult if I continue like this. 

Jwa Do-gyul shook his head. 

To the Cult of the Inverted Sky, he was a consumable. Annoying if he disappeared, but replaceable. 

Many of the masters of Murim, like Jwa Do-gyul, were supported by the Inverted Sky and addicted to it. 

Thus, in order not to be thrown out, Jwa Do-gyul had to constantly prove his worth. 

In this case, too. 

I can’t help it. 

To prove his worth, he needed to greatly weaken the power of the Demonic Cult. 

A method of weakening the power… Was there any other way?

We have no choice but to capture the maximum power of the Cult.

Jwa Do-gyul’s lips curled. 

The Heavenly Demon. 

Defeating the Heavenly Demon would be the most shocking way to take down the entire Cult of the Heavenly Demon. 

The founder of the Martial Alliance was also a member of the Cult of the Inverted Sky. 

The Martial Alliance. 

That was the place which would be used as the Heavenly Demon’s grave. 

The Martial Alliance will disappear with the Heavenly Demon.

He tapped on the armrest, contemplating his plans. It was as if there was something there. 

To do that, I must first create an atmosphere for the resolution. I cannot let the Heavenly Demon think it is a trap. 

There was a good thing for that purpose.

A pouch sent from the Cult a while ago. The powder in it would create the atmosphere he wanted. 

Thinking up to this point, Jwa Do-gyul tilted his head back and laughed like a lunatic. 

He shook his head after a few moments, sobering. 

But what are the other Taoists and the Five Sword Sects doing?

***

“This is no easy task…”

The ‘Mysterious Old Man’ sighed deeply. 

‘Venerable Dragon’ Jegal Sung sat across from him. 

“That is all I have. I have gathered information, but I don’t have enough.”

Jegal Sung sighed. 

Concurrent with the war between Woon-seong and the Martial Alliance, the Justice Alliance was preparing something big. 

They had gathered information about people in the Martial Alliance, the Imperial Court, and the Cult of the Inverted Sky. 

Jegal Sung shook his head as if apologetic. Information is lacking.

In order to obtain justification for the enactment of justice, it was first necessary to prove that the current Martial Alliance was unfit, but there was very little evidence. 

“It’s only Jwa Do-gyul.”

The Sage said and Jegal Sung nodded. 

“Perhaps that vile bastard left some evidence.”

“We must find it…”

It wouldn’t be easy. Perhaps the evidence was deep inside the Alliance, somewhere only Jwa Do-gyul knew. 

“In the end, what the Justice Alliance needs is to find it.”

“King Jinseong feels no different.”

Jegal Sung sighed again. I feel like I have been sighing too much recently.

They also briefly mentioned Mount Hua, Shaolin, and the Five Sword Sects. But after some discussion, there was nothing much to do. 

“I should send word to the Cult Leader.”

“We should tell him not to kill Jwa Do-gyul, but to capture him alive and grab the tail of the Cult of the Inverted Sky.”

“Is it too much of a burden on the Cult Leader…?”

Jegal Sung sighed again.

“I don’t know. It just happened to be this way.”

Obviously, he could not deny that he had been sighing a lot lately. 

And that evening, from the dwelling of Jegal Sung, a messenger bird flew across the night sky. 

***

Flip—

“Hmph.”

Woon-seong opened the message sent to him and snorted. 

Fwoom—

A flame rose from his hands and burnt the letter. 

Black ash fell to the ground. 

Woon-seong muttered briefly after reading it, “These guys don’t know Jwa Do-gyul.”

Sang Gwan-chuk tilted his head and asked, “Was there something offensive in the message?”

Woon-seong shook his head. “No, no.”

Even as he said that, he was already thinking of Jwa Do-gyul. Evidence to connect Jwa Do-gyul, the Martial Alliance, the Imperial Court, and the Cult of the Inverted Sky… 

If it was Jwa Do-gyul, the man would have prepared for many situations since they would be his lifeline at any moment.

But to keep Jwa Do-gyul alive in order to find one? 

I cannot agree.

Woon-seong shook his head lightly. 

We don’t need him alive to find these strings. 

There were other ways to find them. 

Woon-seong came up with an idea and smiled. He asked the Strategist, “What is public opinion like in the Martial Alliance?”

The Martial Alliance had already been defeated by the Cult of the Heavenly Demon in Guizhou and Chongqing. If he thought about it normally, it would make sense for their spirits to hit rock bottom. 

But the Strategists’ words were completely out of common sense. 

“There is a calling for war.”

“For war?” Woon-seong eyes trembled. 

Sang Gwan-chuk said, “When the Martial Alliance loses, they incite the rest of Murim to fight. It seems like the Martial Alliance is leading the charge.”

“The Lord of the Alliance is indeed an inciter. Looks like the rest of Murim seems to work well as sheep.”

Woon-seong clicked his tongue. 

“In the end, we are going to hold an all-out war with the Martial Alliance. But no matter the call for either side, is there a way to change the resolution?”

Sang Gwan-chuk also wondered, but shook his head. “Actually, that was a concern.”

“You have your doubts.”

Sang Gwan-chuk grunted. 

“Actually…”

[1] Chinese opera, specifically Sichuan opera, is known for its actors changing masks/emotions (bian lian, or ‘face-changing’)