Chapter 746: Shall We Go Treasure Hunting?
As a new star shone, another constellation was completed.
“Haa.”
A sigh escaped from the lips of Gaye, the Palace Mistress of the Priestess Palace, who was gazing up at the ceiling.
Around the largest central star, lights flickered across various constellations nearby.
“The speed of unraveling is getting faster and faster.”
Standing behind her, as she was reporting in a trembling voice, was the Dark Palace Master, Hwa Mu-gyeong.
“At this rate, he will break the Seal of the Seventy-Two Stars Forbidden Soul Formation and emerge far sooner than expected.”
Hwa Mu-gyeong said nothing and simply looked up at the ceiling. The countless wrinkles layered upon his face thoroughly concealed any trace of emotion.
Moreover, the faint aura of darkness surrounding him made it impossible to guess what he was thinking.
That was why Gaye had to ask directly.
“Are you not afraid, Palace Master?”
“I am afraid.”
His voice, resonating like the toll of an ancient bell, carried the weight of truth.
Gaye knew. She knew that the only person in the world whom this Dark Palace Master feared was the one sealed within.
That was why this Sword Tomb plan had to succeed at all costs.
“This is our last chance. Will he be able to handle the Young Cult Leader on his own? Not to mention that both the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the One-Slash Sword Supreme are with him.”
At Gaye’s concern, Hwa Mu-gyeong spoke words she did not expect.
“He is not alone.”
At that, a light sparked in Gaye’s eyes.
“Whom did you send?”
“Someone trustworthy enough.”
But there was something even more important.
“He has completed the song.”
“!”
Gaye asked in a trembling voice.
“How? He still had a long way to go before achieving Great Attainment.”
Then, astonishing words flowed from Hwa Mu-gyeong’s lips.
“I gave him the Heavenly Will Divine Pill.”
Gaye knew. The Heavenly Will Divine Pill was the greatest elixir of the Heavenly Will Palace—an elixir the Dark Palace Master had kept to use only at the most crucial moment.
He had judged that the moment was now.
“We will retrieve all the Six-Origin Energies, and the Young Cult Leader will die this time.”
—
“The entrance to the Sword Tomb lies through an underwater cave hidden beneath the pond.”
Tae Soo’s voice trembled as he spoke of the entrance.
He was inwardly tense. Now that he had revealed his final card, his life naturally hung by a thread.
Fear gripped him so tightly that he could not even dare to test Geom Mugeuk with words.
Of course, Geom Mugeuk would never miss the chance to joke at such a time.
“Looks like you’re no longer of any use.”
When he met his cold gaze, Tae Soo flinched but forced himself to bluff.
“Are you sure I told you the real location?”
“If it’s not the left lake, then we can just try the right one.”
“What if it’s not even this mountain?”
“This mountain, you say it isn’t?”
When Tae Soo was questioned so bluntly, he found himself momentarily speechless. He had seen Geom Mugeuk countless times up to this point. What good would it do to deny it now?
Instead of replying, Tae Soo let out a sigh.
“I’ll make sure you’re buried in a sunny spot by the pond.”
“No, please bury me somewhere else. If I lie there and see the pond every day, I’ll only regret it. I’ll keep thinking I should’ve run away when I had the chance.”
The mischief vanished from Geom Mugeuk’s face.
“Then I’ll give you the chance now, so you won’t have to regret it later.”
When his expression turned serious, Tae Soo also grew inwardly tense.
“From this point on, think carefully before you decide. Even if I don’t kill you, you know very well that entering that place means a high risk of death. You can still leave now. If you wish to go, I’ll let you.”
At Geom Mugeuk’s offer, Tae Soo hesitated for a moment. If he left now, he could certainly preserve his life.
He had already survived after meddling with Treasure Map, which he never should have touched in the first place, so this was not a bad outcome.
He could live, if only he abandoned his greed. Leaving when he was offered a way out would have been the wise choice.
“…I wish to stay until the end.”
This time, he had a reason to see things through.
The choice wasn’t his alone. Geom Mugeuk turned to Ji Han and asked,
“And you? There’s no need for you to take the risk. You can wait for me safely in the village at the foot of the mountain.”
Ji Han seemed to have already thought this over, for he answered right away.
“How could I stay in safety when my lord walks into danger? I, too, wish to follow you to the end. But please, promise me one thing.”
“What promise?”
“Treat me as if I don’t exist. Even if I fall into danger, you don’t need to save me. Don’t even glance my way.”
He said this out of worry that his inferior martial arts might become a burden to Geom Mugeuk.
Though his skills were far from poor, Geom Mugeuk’s abilities were simply beyond comparison, and so such thoughts came naturally.
“I wouldn’t have paid you much mind to begin with. But now that you’ve said that, I’ll probably end up worrying.”
“Ah! That’s not what I meant!”
After amusing himself for a moment with Ji Han’s flustered reaction, Geom Mugeuk said to him,
“Don’t rely on my help. I’ll lend a hand if I can, but when things turn dire, you must survive on your own.”
“Of course. I’ll make sure I’m never a burden.”
Seeing the determination in his eyes, Geom Mugeuk’s gaze softened as he offered him a word of reassurance.
“When you’re with me, you don’t need to worry about that. If there comes a time when I can’t protect you, then that enemy would be one I couldn’t defeat even alone.”
Ji Han was truly grateful that Geom Mugeuk had brought him along.
He didn’t know what kind of role he would end up playing in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, but he believed that the chance to accompany the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult would be the first and last such experience in his life.
And it wasn’t just the Young Cult Leader—he was traveling alongside two Demon Supremes. It was, without a doubt, the greatest moment of his entire life.
He didn’t want to give up a once-in-a-lifetime experience out of fear.
Geom Mugeuk gave orders to Tae Soo and Ji Han.
“You two, head to that village over there right now, rent a guest room, and leave the carriage there. Wait—unload this luggage first.”
Geom Mugeuk took out his travel sack that had been loaded onto the carriage.
At that, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon asked,
“You’re not seriously planning to bring that along, are you?”
“I am. You might need a place to sleep when we get there.”
“We’ll be fine.”
“I won’t be. When you’re away from home, you should be even more particular about where you sleep.”
Once the travel sack was unloaded, Ji Han and Tae Soo took the carriage down toward the village.
Now only Geom Mugeuk and the two Demon Supremes remained there.
Geom Mugeuk took out a small piece of leather from his sack and spread it over a rock.
“Please, have a seat.”
The two of them sat side by side. No matter how one looked at it, the soft leather made sitting far more comfortable.
Then, from atop the mountain, came the faint sounds of weapons clashing.
Even on their way here, they had already seen many martial artists gathering in Zhejiang. Yet all of them, from across the vast province, seemed to be converging precisely upon this very Heavenly Eye Mountain.
It could only mean that someone was deliberately guiding them here.
“This smells like a trap, doesn’t it?”
At the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s question, Geom Mugeuk nodded.
“Yes, that’s what it looks like.”
“Would such an obvious trap even work?”
Then Geom Mugeuk looked up toward the mountain.
“Apparently it does. After all, everyone’s gathered here, haven’t they?”
While listening quietly, the One-Slash Sword Supreme asked Geom Mugeuk,
“Are those people behind this incident as well?”
“It’s not certain yet, but I believe they are.”
While Geom Mugeuk only speculated, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon spoke with conviction.
“If you think so, then it must be their doing.”
Such was the level of trust the Blood Heaven Blade Demon had in Geom Mugeuk’s judgment.
“You knew this might happen from the start, didn’t you?”
“I suspected it might. That’s why I asked you to come with me, Senior. If my guess is correct, this won’t be an easy fight.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the One-Slash Sword Supreme exchanged glances.
“I suppose we’ll have to make good use of that elixir, huh?”
At those words, the One-Slash Sword Supreme smiled faintly.
“Indeed, we should. Both of us, really—especially since it’s showing on our faces.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon couldn’t help but smile at that.
The vast increase in inner strength wasn’t what pleased him most—these days, nothing made him happier than hearing that he looked younger.
Meanwhile, Ji Han and Tae Soo returned.
“On the road today I saw martial artists arriving here one after another.”
It seemed the rumor had been spread thoroughly.
“Shall we also go treasure hunting?”
With that, Geom Mugeuk led them as they began to climb Heavenly Eye Mountain.
Amid the sounds of fighting from all around, Tae Soo said in a low voice.
“The Treasure Map had this written as Heavenly Eye Mountain, but the fact that its entrance could only be found through the western peak’s pond required deciphering a cipher. I was trained by my father in deciphering ciphers from childhood, so I solved it, but others won’t easily be able to.”
How far had they climbed the mountain?
There was a large clearing halfway up, and a fierce battle was taking place there. People were not merely fighting — many were being stabbed to death.
“Give me the Treasure Map!”
Surprisingly, even here they were fighting over the Treasure Map.
“I said I don’t have it!”
“That one has the Treasure Map!”
“Liar!”
It was utter chaos. They killed to search bodies for the Treasure Map, then framed others for the crime.
From this it was clear that most of those here had simply been swept up by rumors and did not even know whether the entrance to the Sword Tomb was actually here.
But the true masters did not join the brawl; they stood back and watched the situation from a distance.
Geom Mugeuk’s party also kept their distance and waited for the fighting to calm somewhat.
While the slaughter continued, someone spoke with inner power.
“Everyone, stop fighting! I will guide you all to the Sword Tomb!”
At that, those who had been fighting ceased instantly and stepped back.
Guide them to the Sword Tomb? Who in this situation would make such a claim?
All startled eyes turned to the man who had spoken.
Not only Geom Mugeuk, but the Blood Heaven Blade Demon and the One-Slash Sword Supreme, and even Ji Han and Tae Soo looked on in surprise.
The man who stepped forward to guide them wore an iron mask on his face. Because he wore an iron mask, his voice sounded peculiar. That made it hard to guess his age.
“How will you guide us there? Do you perhaps have the Treasure Map?”
As if to prove it, the iron-masked man took something from his bosom.
“That’s right, the Treasure Map of the Sword Tomb.”
Greed and murderous intent flared in the eyes of those surrounding him.
In the next moment the iron-masked man spread the Treasure Map before the people.
“Now, don’t fight — look.”
The martial artists approached and looked at the Treasure Map. Though they wanted to snatch it and flee, the iron-masked man’s peculiar presence and composure up close did not permit it.
The location written on the Treasure Map was indeed this Cheonmok Mountain, but it did not state the exact spot; instead there were inscrutable characters and numbers.
“As you can see, the exact entrance is encoded in a cipher. Even if you obtain this, you could not immediately reach the place.”
Then someone shouted.
“How can we trust that your Treasure Map is real?”
“The Treasure Map is real. I deciphered this cipher and found the entrance to the Sword Tomb.”
At those words the martial artists murmured.
“But you’ll guide us to the Sword Tomb?”
“Yes.”
Of course, they did not believe him.
“How ridiculous. You expect us to take your word? When people are killing each other left and right over it, you expect us to follow you?”
There were many among them who would gladly kill their companions for it. Why would they trust such a claim?
The iron-masked man explained.
“Because one cannot break into that place alone.”
Everyone showed surprised expressions.
“You must work together to enter. It is a place no single person can pass through.”
One of the martial artists asked again.
“Who are you?”
“There will be rumors once the treasure is obtained. Who here wishes to reveal their identity? Then you first disclose who you are. I will reveal mine afterwards.”
At that they no longer asked who he was.
Then another stepped forward.
“This is a trap.”
The man who spoke now was a middle-aged martial artist with a long scar from his forehead to his chin—an unforgettable face.
“Why a trap?”
He took something from his bosom and spread it before the martial artists.
“There’s a Treasure Map here as well.”
Those nearby checked its contents.
“It’s the exact same Treasure Map!”
Indeed, it was identical to the one the iron-masked man had shown—every character matched.
The scarred man said to them all.
“Why would anyone make multiple identical Treasure Maps? Isn’t this a plot to lure us here and kill us all?”
The martial artists murmured and grew uneasy. With two Treasure Maps in circulation, suspicion was natural.
The iron-masked man asked loudly.
“So what? Will you not enter?”
He understood their desires better than anyone.
“Whether there are two or three or ten Treasure Maps, will you go without verifying the place? If so, leave at once. Those who think it is a trap, depart immediately.”
Given the circumstances, the possibility that it was a trap was indeed high.
But no one left.
What if it really was true? There could have been several copies of the Treasure Map, after all. And if they left now, only for the remaining ones to seize the treasures of the Sword Tomb—such a thing was unbearable.
Someone shouted loudly,
“Someone must have made two copies of the Treasure Map to make us think it’s a trap and stop us from going to the Sword Tomb!”
Then other martial artists began shouting as well.
“I’m not leaving! Take me with you!”
“I’ll go too!”
“We’re not going anywhere!”
“We’ll follow you!”
Did they even know who was behind that iron mask?
But everyone’s eyes had already turned red with greed for the Sword Tomb’s treasure.
The iron-masked man looked at the scarred martial artist.
“You called it a trap. Then why haven’t you left?”
The scarred man said nothing—but in the end, he, too, stayed.
Watching from afar, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon immediately grew suspicious of the iron-masked man.
“That one seems suspicious.”
At his quiet remark, Geom Mugeuk turned his gaze toward the scarred martial artist who had warned everyone of a trap.
“If we think that way, that one’s suspicious as well.”
“Why?”
“Someone insisting on taking everyone along is suspicious, but someone who insists on stopping them is also suspicious. Why go out of his way to warn others?”
Hearing that, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon nodded—it did make sense.
Geom Mugeuk glanced around at the many gathered martial artists and said in a low voice,
“There are certainly enemies among them.”
At that very moment, Ji Han’s expression suddenly changed as he sniffed the air in alarm.
“I smell something.”
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