Chapter 401: The Truth Revealed (1)
The Demonic Master scowled.
It was the first time he had heard such words.
Yet Han Domeong’s words didn’t sound like a lie.
“Il Gongja and the Three Demonic Heavens devised a plan to kidnap those heading to Shaolin Temple and ambush those returning after the gathering. This was all orchestrated from the very beginning. It was a scheme to show the martial world the terror of the demonic path.”
The Demonic Master had been unaware that this plot was crafted by the Three Demonic Heavens and Il Gongja.
“And so?”
The Demonic Master asked why he was telling him all this.
“Il Gongja seems to especially trust you, so I’m only telling this to you. That’s why we’re planning to send Miss Hong to Sanbi. Since we’ve failed, we wish for Young Master San to succeed, and we’ll support him with all we’ve got. With Miss Hong and Elder Dong, they’ll be of significant help.”
The Demonic Master thought to himself.
‘If they want to send Hong Ayul out, they’ll need a justification. Ok Girin, who knows nothing, will believe the Elder’s words and send her. And if it’s said to be Il Gongja’s order, then even Ok Girin won’t be able to refuse.’
The Demonic Master smiled, realizing Han Domeong had thought this through.
But unexpectedly, he had managed to uncover the schemes of the Three Demonic Heavens’ heirs—that was an unexpected gain.
“Who is Young Master San targeting?”
“I told you already. Yong Hwarin’s friends.”
“You mean Pang Giyok and Tang Cheolgi?”
“Exactly.”
“They intend to kill them and use it as a warning—that getting close to Yong Hwarin is dangerous. By now, Young Master San should already be attacking them. We agreed to strike within fifteen days after the gathering ended. If one side acts first and news spreads, the others will be on guard, so we planned to strike around the same time.”
It was a rather clever scheme. Having been humiliated at Shaolin Temple, they were sure to go all-out for this attack.
The Demonic Master didn’t care what happened to the others.
All that mattered was that Yong Hwarin stayed safe.
“I will go to Young Master San then. That’s why I’m entrusting Il Gongja to you. Of course, I’ll stop by the branch to increase the escort force to keep Il Gongja in check. Well, now that Il Gongja has recovered, even if Il Gongja tries something foolish, it’ll be useless.”
Since Ok Girin had recovered his strength, Han Domeong felt secure enough to follow Hong Ayul himself.
‘He probably plans to kill Hong Ayul on the way and return.’
The Demonic Master knew Han Domeong’s true intentions but pretended otherwise.
“Understood. I will escort Il Gongja to the main sect with my life.”
Han Domeong had witnessed Eum Sajeok save Ok Girin multiple times in the cave and had grown less suspicious of him.
That was why he was now entrusting this task to the Demonic Master.
“If this mission succeeds, I won’t treat you poorly anymore. You’ll become the second-in-command of the main sect, right after Il Gongja.”
Throwing out such a tempting offer, Han Domeong left the room.
The Demonic Master added a few more lines to the letter he had been writing.
It was a warning that Yong Hwarin’s friends were in danger.
After sending out the Azure Messenger Rat, the Demonic Master began packing his things.
As expected, Ok Girin wasn’t pleased when Hong Ayul departed.
He still had lingering feelings and a dark desire to do something on her return trip.
Yang Gwak believed it was because he had reported to Il Gongja that Hong Ayul was being sent away from Ok Girin—and he was pleased with the thought.
Since it was said to be Il Gongja’s order, it was safe to assume it was meant to protect Hong Ayul.
Yang Gwak, seeing only what was on the surface, thought Il Gongja valued his sister more than the heir.
“Sister, take this. Don’t open it. Just make sure you bring it to the main sect. It’s something you must give to Master, so carry it carefully.”
“If it’s that important, why don’t you carry it yourself? Why give it to me?”
“I can’t help it. I’m worried about Il Gongja. You don’t want him to become the heir either, right? If he becomes the heir, he’ll never leave you alone. So please, do this for me.”
Hong Ayul also hated the thought of a man like Il Gongja becoming the heir to the Heavenly Demon Sect.
If that happened, she’d likely become his plaything.
So she thought it would be better if either Yang Sahyung or Eum Sahyung became the heir.
At least those two wouldn’t try to violate her.
“All right. I’ll hold on to it.”
Hong Ayul accepted the fairly large, sealed wooden case and placed it into her traveling pouch.
She didn’t really care what was inside.
Even if it was important, by nature, she didn’t have much interest in other people’s belongings.
Ok Girin watched her leave, pressing his lips together in regret.
‘Once she returns to the main sect, I’ll make her mine for certain.’
Ok Girin turned away, holding onto that promise.
Han Domeong parted ways with Il Gongja’s group and deliberately stopped by the Heavenly Demon Sect’s branch to delay time.
Seeing this, Hong Ayul asked,
“Elder, isn’t it urgent to meet up with Young Master San?”
It was a fair question—Han Domeong had acted as if it was extremely urgent when he left.
“I’ve thought about it and realized we don’t need to rush to the fight. There’s no need for us to confront Yong Hwarin’s friends ourselves. Young Master San will handle it well.”
Hong Ayul had also felt uneasy about making enemies of Yong Hwarin’s friends, so she was relieved and didn’t press further.
Han Domeong, searching for a way to separate Dong-oh from Hong Ayul, came up with a method.
One of the reasons he stopped at the branch was to stall for time, but another was to issue secret orders.
Seeing smoke rise from afar, Han Domeong smiled in satisfaction.
That smoke was the signal—the beginning of his scheme.
“Grandfather Dong, seeing how far the smoke has spread… it looks like there’s a fire.”
Hong Ayul spoke as she watched the smoke rise in the distance.
“That seems to be a village,”
Dong-oh replied.
With that, the two immediately activated their movement arts and dashed toward the source of the smoke.
As they drew closer, they began to see flashes of fire amidst the rising smoke.
“Ah! Ah!”
A village with dozens of thatched houses was ablaze, its people running about in chaos, trying desperately to extinguish the flames.
“Bring water, quickly!”
“Get the child out first!”
Screams and cries rang out from all over the village, turning the place into a scene of pure pandemonium.
Even from afar, the heat could be felt—it was that intense.
Then Han Domeong spoke.
“Elder Dong, go fetch water quickly! I’ll go inside and try to rescue people.”
Dong-oh hesitated for a moment, seemingly reluctant to part from Hong Ayul’s side.
Then Hong Ayul shouted,
“Grandfather Dong! Do as the Elder says! We’ll try to help the people here—please just go get water quickly!”
As Han Domeong ran into one of the burning cottages, Dong-oh watched him with a trace of doubt.
‘Was the Great Elder really someone with such compassion that he’d risk himself for mere villagers?’
But seeing him carry out people from one cottage and then dive into another, he began to think maybe Han Domeong was, in fact, someone who valued life.
“Grandfather Dong! Hurry!”
Urged by Hong Ayul, Dong-oh had no choice but to grab a jar and rush toward the stream.
Meanwhile, Hong Ayul gathered the crying children sitting on the ground and moved them to a safe place.
Then she dashed into another cottage, where flames were beginning to spread to the roof, to rescue more children.
At that moment, Han Domeong followed her in.
“Elder, I’ll search this place. Please go check the other—!”
Mid-sentence, Hong Ayul slowly turned around.
The supposed rescuer had drawn a sword and was radiating murderous intent.
A shiver ran down her spine.
“No way…”
Han Domeong grinned coldly.
“That’s right. Innocent people are dying… all to kill you.”
“You set the village on fire to lure Grandfather Dong away?”
“Elder Dong wouldn’t leave your side otherwise. Maybe it’s because he suspected me. That’s why I had to use a sure method.”
Heat from the roof above radiated down, sweat pouring from both of their bodies.
“Why are you trying to kill me?”
Hong Ayul asked, hoping to buy a little more time.
Perhaps because he thought he had the leisure, Han Domeong answered.
“Because Il Gongja has feelings for you.”
“For something like that? How do you plan to face Master’s wrath?”
Han Domeong gave a twisted smile.
And seeing that expression, Hong Ayul felt her heart sink.
“No… it can’t be…”
That expression confirmed the terrible suspicion.
“First Master treasures me like a granddaughter!”
She shouted, as if trying to convince herself.
“Sure, that may be true. But no one loves their disciple more than their own child.”
“But… but I’m the victim here. Why—”
“I don’t understand it fully either. But there’s one thing I do get—
You’re a hindrance to Il Gongja.
You’d interfere with his cultivation. And if he becomes the heir and tries to take you as his woman, the Elders’ Council will oppose it.
He probably thinks it’s better to remove a budding problem before it blooms.
Especially since he directly ordered me to take your life.”
“Liar!”
She screamed, disbelief written all over her face, but Han Domeong shook his head.
“Do you still not understand why we’re called the Demonic Path?
We sever all compassion for matters like these—that’s why we’re called demonic.
And the one who fits the name of the Demonic Path better than anyone… is Il Gongja himself.”
As Hong Ayul drew her sword, Han Domeong grinned once more.
“It’s just a desperate struggle.”
Hong Ayul tried to raise her energy, but a sting erupted from her lower dantian, and she clutched her stomach.
“What… what is this?”
“You don’t remember I fed you Qi Dispersing Poison this morning in preparation for something like this?”
“Coward…”
“That’s what it means to live in the Demonic Path.
Someone like you, raised in the Demonic Path, shouldn’t say such things.”
Han Domeong, still grinning smugly, slowly stepped closer to Hong Ayul.
She knew she couldn’t escape the Great Elder and glanced toward the exit.
Han Domeong shattered even that last glimmer of hope.
“Elder Dong won’t make it in time.
I’ve stationed main sect disciples at the stream.”
That’s why he had the leisure to answer every one of her questions.
“Now that your curiosity is satisfied, it shouldn’t be too agonizing.
You know well how common it is to die in vain when you live among the Demonic.”
Not wanting to waste more time, Han Domeong thrust his sword swiftly.
With her internal energy sealed, there was no way for Hong Ayul to dodge his swift sword.
All she could do was raise her blade for an instinctive defense.
Even within the Heavenly Demon Sect, Han Domeong was one of the few recognized for his swift swordsmanship—
It was impossible to evade.
But just as Han Domeong’s sword was about to pierce Hong Ayul’s chest—
Ziiiing!
Something shot through the air and struck Han Domeong’s blade hard.
The hidden weapon carried enough force to deflect a sword infused with the power of a Three Gaps-level martial artist.
