Chapter 124. It Seems Tempting Enough.

“C-Cult Leader. Why do you speak of a favor?”

The Head of the Senate did not know what to do with himself.

The Iron-Blooded Demonic God was the supreme ruler of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and also a god revered and worshiped by all the people in this region.

For the Iron-Blooded Demonic God, the one who had seized the title of Heavenly Demon that no one in history had ever dared to covet, the expression ‘favor’ was truly unfitting.

“Cult Leader, please just give us your command.”

The Head of the Senate bowed his head and made a gesture of respect towards the Iron-Blooded Demonic God.

However, the Iron-Blooded Demonic God’s thoughts seemed to be different.

“No matter that This One is the Cult Leader, how can I rashly give a command to the retired elders.”

“That is not so. Please command us at any time. Although we are old, we elders are always ready to follow the Cult Leader’s command.”

“That is not how it is.”

The Iron-Blooded Demonic God shook her head.

“Are you not those who have been loyal to Our Cult for a lifetime, and have devoted yourselves by dedicating your all? It is This One’s duty to treat you with courtesy so that you can spend the rest of your lives comfortably, so how could I rashly give an order.”

“C-Cult Leader.”

“However, this time, it is something that you might find interesting, so I have called you here.”

“What kind of matter is it that you say these old men might find interesting?”

The Head of the Senate’s eyes sparkled.

It was not often that a matter would arise that would make the retired elders lead their old bodies to move.

Nevertheless, the fact that the Cult Leader, the Iron-Blooded Demonic God, had called for the Head of the Senate like this must surely mean it was an exciting matter….

“Currently, the Seventh Young Master is carrying out a mission assigned by This One.”

“When you say the Seventh Young Master… Ahem.”

The Head of the Senate showed a somewhat uncomfortable expression.

And for good reason, as it was no exaggeration to say that Jin Cheon’s position within the cult was very low.

Of course, by performing a series of major feats, his recognition had risen, and his influence had greatly increased.

However, perhaps due to the limitation of his origin, having converted from the Righteous Faction, there were a great number of people who did not think favorably of Jin Cheon.

Especially the elders.

As they had participated in the last Righteous-Demonic War and fought desperate battles with the martial artists of the Central Plains, their hatred for the Righteous Faction members was enormous.

Moreover, the elders were very old, so they were stubborn, had strong prejudices, and had a strong tendency to question one’s roots.

“Of course, This One is not unaware that you do not think very favorably of the Seventh Young Master, but what is important is not the person but the mission.”

“What kind of mission is it that you speak of it in such a way, Cult Leader?”

“I hear the Seventh Young Master is scheduled to clash heavily with Hegemon Fortress.”

“…!”

“If it’s Hegemon Fortress, it seems tempting enough for you, is it not?”

“Th-That is!”

The Head of the Senate’s face flushed with excitement.

The reason he could not help but welcome a clash with Hegemon Fortress was due to a long-standing competitiveness.

From old times, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, called the sky of the Demonic Dao, and Hegemon Fortress, called the sky of the Unorthodox Faction, had been implicitly conscious of each other.

Of course, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult looked down on Hegemon Fortress as being one, no, three or four ranks below them.

On the other hand, Hegemon Fortress claimed that they were a force equal to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

The problem was that the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult and Hegemon Fortress had almost never clashed with each other.

Even if they did, it was only a small-scale battle with a small number of people, or a few one-on-one duels at most.

The reason was simple.

The Sky Mountain, where the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was located, and Zhejiang Province, the base of Hegemon Fortress, were at opposite ends of the Central Plains continent, so they rarely had a chance to meet.

Even during the last Righteous-Demonic War, Hegemon Fortress had simply watched the fire across the river and expanded its power….

“This One wishes that you would show Hegemon Fortress the dignity of Our Cult. Show the true power of the great Heavenly Demon Divine Cult to those foolish masses who have dared to claim to be our equals.”

“S-Such a thing!”

“How about it, this seems to be a sufficient justification for you to move.”

“How could there be any doubt?”

The Head of the Senate once again prostrated himself flat on the floor in a full prostration.

“I will persuade the elders and receive the Cult Leader’s command.”

“Will you do that?”

“It is a matter of crushing the fools of Hegemon Fortress, what old man would oppose it? It will be a unanimous decision.”

The Head of the Senate did not doubt his own words.

Among the elders belonging to the Senate, there were more than a few who wanted to crush Hegemon Fortress at least once in their lifetime.

Meanwhile, Jin Cheon’s party enjoyed a comfortable life at the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief’s safe house.

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief’s safe house was not some shabby house or hut, but a truly magnificent manor.

Perhaps that was a given.

Wasn’t the previous Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief a great thief called the greatest thief under heaven, who had openly stolen the precious treasures of the world?

As such, the wealth accumulated by the previous Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief during his lifetime was truly enormous, so it was perhaps natural that the current Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief’s safe house was a magnificent manor.

No, it was more than that.

“Greetings to the Manor Lord.”

“Yes, keep up the good work.”

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief received the greetings of the passing servants.

It turned out that the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief usually lived as the lord of the renowned merchant family, the Heavenly Ascent Manor.

That is, she usually disguised herself as the Lord of the Heavenly Ascent Manor and focused on commerce, and when she wanted to steal something, she would leave her post under the pretext of an excursion.

“Amazing. You’re not called the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief for nothing.”

“What do you mean?”

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief asked Jin Cheon, who was walking beside her.

“Your Disguise Art is one thing, but your acting skills are exceptional. In fact, isn’t acting more important than the Disguise Art?”

Indeed, what Jin Cheon saw as the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief’s true value was her acting skills rather than her Disguise Art.

Whenever the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief changed her appearance to someone else, she naturally acted out all of that person’s hand gestures, foot movements, expressions, tone of voice, and voice.

If the shell was a middle-aged man but the behavior was that of a young woman of marriageable age, it would create a sense of unease and arouse suspicion, but such clumsy aspects could not be found in the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief.

“Ah, for that, I have a certain history.”

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief said with a smile.

“My master was originally an artist who had mastered the arts of Face-Changing and Beijing opera.”

“Ah?”

“Have you heard of the Seven Absolutes Scholar?”

“Surely not Elder Yeon…?”

Jin Cheon was surprised to hear that alias.

The Seven Absolutes Scholar, Yeon Wi-sang.

He was a master of the previous generation who had mastered seven arts: Face-Changing, Beijing opera, zither, song, dance, calligraphy, and painting.

His reputation was so outstanding that not only the Imperial family but also the prestigious great sects had desperately tried to invite him.

To think that he was actually the greatest thief under heaven, the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief?

But on second thought, the Seven Absolutes Scholar was the most fitting person for the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief.

‘Don’t tell me he used Face-Changing for disguise, Beijing opera for acting, song for voice, dance for martial arts, and calligraphy or painting for forging or imitating handwriting?’

‘You, the more I see you, the smarter you are. That’s right. Master applied his talents to thievery.’

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief answered Jin Cheon’s telepathy.

‘His reputation as the Seven Absolutes Scholar must have also been helpful for thievery. When he went to perform, he would have been able to gather preliminary information there.’

‘That’s also correct.’

‘For those who were robbed, it must have been a case of darkness at the foot of the lighthouse. The Seven Absolutes Scholar they had met, at longest a few years ago, at shortest a few months ago, was actually a thief. Then surely….’

Jin Cheon looked back at the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief, who was disguised as a middle-aged man, the Lord of the Heavenly Ascent Manor.

‘Were you the Heavenly Art Divine Maiden Hye Wol-cheong?’

‘Well, as you know, it wasn’t my real form.’

‘We’ve met before.’

‘Huh?’

‘Was it about seven or eight years ago? Didn’t you come to the Heavenly Martial Academy with Elder Yeon? I think you were playing the zither then.’

‘Ah, yes, there was such a time.’

Jin Cheon was once again surprised by the fact that the girl who had been playing the zither next to the Seven Absolutes Scholar at that time was actually the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief.

Fate is such a mysterious thing, isn’t it impossible to predict even a moment ahead in the world’s affairs?

‘By the way. Have you heard from Hegemon Fortress?’

‘They seemed to be furious, but when I said my injury was serious, they gave me about a month’s time. Instead, if it exceeds a month, they said they would kill either my sister or my niece.’

‘A month is enough, so don’t worry. I’ve requested support from Our Cult.’

No matter how far the distance between the Sky Mountain and this Zhejiang Province was, it was enough time for the martial artists of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

‘So what do you want to steal?’

‘The Heavenly Principle Trigram, the Earthly Center Trigram, and the Wind and Cloud Trigram.’

‘…?’

‘They are kept in Shaolin, the Mount Mao Sect, and the Qingcheng Sect, respectively.’

‘Good grief.’

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief closed her eyes tight as if disgusted.

‘I would have been better off becoming a slave of Hegemon Fortress. Shaolin, the Mount Mao Sect, and the Qingcheng Sect? Isn’t that a death sentence?’

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief protested as if it was absurd.

And for good reason, as the three sects Jin Cheon had mentioned were even more terrifying than the Shijiazhuang Family and Hegemon Fortress.

Shaolin, the Mount Tai and North Star of the Murim, boasting a history of a thousand years, the Qingcheng Sect, which was enjoying its greatest golden age since its founding, and on top of that, the Mount Mao Sect, called the greatest Sorcerers under heaven?

It was a task that was twice as difficult as getting her sister and niece out of Hegemon Fortress.

‘Don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of Shaolin, and I’ll take care of either the Mount Mao Sect or the Qingcheng Sect. You just have to tackle one place.’

‘What do you mean?’

‘I’ll tell you the detailed plan later, so don’t worry too much. You just have to choose one of the two, the Mount Mao Sect or the Qingcheng Sect, and steal either the Earthly Center Trigram or the Wind and Cloud Trigram.’

‘Hmph.’

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief thought for a moment, then replied.

‘Then I’ll be back in a bit, so rest at the safe house.’

‘…?’

‘The Qingcheng Sect is far, so I’ll go to the Mount Mao Sect first to check on the situation.’

‘Ah.’

Jin Cheon understood what the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief was trying to say and nodded his head.

Since there was about a month left until the deal with Hegemon Fortress anyway, her intention was to get a grasp of the Mount Mao Sect in advance.

***

While the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief was away investigating the Mount Mao Sect, Jin Cheon stayed at the Heavenly Ascent Manor, focusing on training and planning.

Training was something he did whenever he had even a little time, so it was like breathing, and the planning was about how to lead the deal with Hegemon Fortress.

“In the end, the Hegemon Fortress Lord is the problem.”

“That is correct.”

“It’s obvious that the Hegemon Emperor will step forward himself, but it won’t be easy to stop a master who has reached the Mysterious Realm….”

Time passed, and one day, with three days left until the promised date with Hegemon Fortress.

“The Mount Mao Sect is next to impossible.”

“……?”

“There are too many spells cast around it. My master also said in his lifetime to not even dream of robbing the Mount Mao Sect, and I think I know why he said that.”

The returned Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief shook her head.

“Hmm. Then you take the Qingcheng Sect. I’ll take care of Shaolin and the Mount Mao Sect.”

“Alright, I will.”

It was while Jin Cheon and the Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief were talking.

“My lord! There is an emergency!”

“……?”

“A group of old men have swarmed in and are causing a ruckus!”

“Old men, you say?”

“This lowly one does not know for sure, but it seems they have come looking for the Young Master here.”

“For now, you may withdraw, steward. I will go out myself. Also, tell the manor’s family members not to wander around for a while and to stay as quiet as dead mice.”

The Heavenly Evasion Divine Thief hurriedly gave the order and then looked back at Jin Cheon.

“Old men, you say, who on earth did you call? To come unannounced and cause a ruckus?”

“……That, I’m not sure about either.”

“Let’s go quickly.”

“Let’s.”

Jin Cheon hurriedly moved his feet.

He couldn’t understand at all who Our Cult had sent, that a group of old men would come and cause a ruckus.

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