Chapter 149. It’s Been a While.

“S-such a thing.”

After hearing the whole story from his father, Dang Seong-yeong, Dang Cheon-wi was so shocked that he couldn’t believe it.

The Qingcheng Sect had commissioned an assassin sect to assassinate his family’s kinsmen?

And they even dared to touch not only the Tang Clan but also the Emei Sect…….

“Of course, it will be hard to fully trust the words of the Unrivaled New Demon. They are the Demonic Cult, after all.”

“Yes…….”

“That is why I am sending you.”

Dang Seong-yeong stated the reason he had come to see Dang Cheon-wi.

“The Unrivaled New Demon has all the evidence related to this incident, so go and see it with your own two eyes and confirm it. Also, if you can, stay by his side and build a friendship.”

“Pardon……?”

“The enemy of my enemy is my friend. If a situation arises where we have to collect the blood price of our kinsmen from Qingcheng, then the Righteous Heavenly Alliance will no longer be a trustworthy group.”

“Heh.”

Dang Cheon-wi laughed.

“They have long since betrayed their trust. Since when did the Righteous Heavenly Alliance have any trust?”

“The situation has changed.”

Dang Seong-yeong replied simply.

“Can you just flip it over like the palm of your hand?”

“Kinsmen have died. Also, the demands of the Righteous Heavenly Alliance are harsh. We can no longer be with them, so we have no choice but to switch sides.”

“In the end, you’re saying it’s the logic of power.”

“That is the way of the world.”

“Yes, well. I understand what you are saying.”

Dang Cheon-wi sneered.

“To you, Father, power is righteousness, and also trust, is it not?”

“It is a relief that you have realized it now. Do not forget. The prosperity of the family is your righteousness.”

Dang Seong-yeong also sneered, responding to his son’s sarcasm.

“So go to the Unrivaled New Demon. Since there is a past connection, you might be able to restore the relationship.”

“What do you want me to do when I go there?”

“Didn’t I tell you? Go and check the evidence he has.”

“Is that all?”

“If possible, stay by his side and watch him.”

“Pardon……?”

“I need to know what kind of person he is. Also, we might have to join hands with the Demonic Cult in the future, so it would be good to build a friendship in advance.”

“Heh.”

Dang Cheon-wi let out a hollow laugh.

Join hands with the Demonic Cult?

Those were not words that should come from the mouth of the clan head of the Sichuan Tang Clan.

They had been sworn enemies for hundreds of years…….

“Are you saying you want to walk a tightrope?”

“I have no choice. We have crossed a river of no return with Qingcheng. Besides, even if that’s not true, it’s the same whether Qingcheng takes over Sichuan and our family withers away. Wouldn’t it be better to join hands with the Demonic Cult than to wither and die?”

“…….”

Dang Cheon-wi did not reply.

However, he fully understood the meaning of Dang Seong-yeong’s words.

The situation was as such.

The Qingcheng Sect was enjoying its greatest prosperity since its founding and was aggressively expanding its power, unlike a typical Taoist sect.

On the other hand, the Emei Sect and the Sichuan Tang Clan had been steadily weakening, so if things went wrong, there was a possibility that they would fall to the level of a minor sect.

Hadn’t the Righteous Heavenly Alliance just tried to use the Emei Sect and the Sichuan Tang Clan as cannon fodder in the fight against the Demonic Cult?

“For the time being, our family will close its gates, just like the Emei Sect. So, in the meantime, stay by the Unrivaled New Demon’s side and build a friendship with him.”

“It won’t be easy.”

“That will depend on your ability.”

“…….”

“If there is even a little bit of old affection left, he will treat you well. So, prepare to leave. This is an order as the clan head.”

“……I accept your command.”

In the end, Dang Cheon-wi had no choice but to follow Dang Seong-yeong’s order.

The clan head’s order was law…….

‘I wonder if brother will even treat me like a person.’

Just thinking about meeting Jin Cheon made Dang Cheon-wi’s vision go dark.

He knew all too well that they had grown so far apart that even if they met again, they could not be like they used to be.

***

Meanwhile, the Righteous Heavenly Alliance was once again in an uproar over the sudden, bolt-from-the-blue news.

“What is this……!”

The Sword Saint couldn’t hide his bewilderment upon seeing the letter that arrived from the Sichuan Tang Clan.

The letter stated that the Sichuan Tang Clan had decided to close its gates due to an unfortunate incident within the family, and as a result, they would not be able to send martial artists to the Righteous Heavenly Alliance.

Originally, the Sichuan Tang Clan was supposed to fill the power vacuum created by the Emei Sect’s declaration of closing its gates.

But now that the Sichuan Tang Clan had also declared it was closing its gates, the Sword Saint was at his wit’s end.

But what bewildered the Sword Saint even more was the successive procession of closing gates.

Starting with the Shaolin, then the Emei Sect, and now the Sichuan Tang Clan.

Three out of the fifteen sects of the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Families had declared they were closing their gates one after another as if they had made a promise?

‘There’s something going on.’

The Sword Saint instinctively felt that this was no ordinary matter.

‘There must be a reason we are not aware of.’

He could somehow understand and overlook the Shaolin and Emei, but the fact that the Sichuan Tang Clan had also closed its gates was by no means a coincidence.

There must be an unusual reason for sure.

Was closing the gates something that could be decided easily?

To ban all external activities of a sect was the same as giving up most of the vested interests it possessed.

Even a common man tries not to let go of what he has in his hands, but for a place like the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Families to give up their vested interests?

What a ridiculous notion!

The Sword Saint was not unaware that they had made such a decision because the benefits of closing their gates were greater than all the vested interests they possessed.

Besides, wasn’t the Righteous Heavenly Alliance currently planning a retaliatory attack on the Demonic Cult?

The Sword Saint immediately called the Great Divine Physician of Immortals to discuss the matter.

“What do you think.”

“There’s something going on.”

The Great Divine Physician’s expression became serious.

“Following Shaolin and Emei, now the Tang Clan as well. It’s certainly suspicious.”

“Do you have any idea?”

“How could I.”

The Great Divine Physician shook his head.

“At this point, it’s clear that something we don’t know is happening…….”

“Is there no way to find out?”

“Even I don’t have a good solution for this.”

“Hmm.”

“Start mobilizing the Alliance’s intelligence network from now on to find out. It’s clear that something unusual is happening under the surface.”

“Then the retaliation against the Demonic Cult…….”

“We’ll have to stop it.”

“But this isn’t the first or second time the Alliance has lost face. If we let it go like this, will our authority stand?”

“But we don’t know what might happen. What if something happens if we rashly attack the Demonic Cult?”

“…….”

“There’s a time for everything. Attacking the Demonic Cult while the Shaolin, Emei, and Tang Clan have closed their gates is unreasonable. Don’t we have a ridiculously small number of martial artists right now?”

The Righteous Heavenly Alliance’s attack on the Demonic Cult was fundamentally based on using the Shaolin, Emei, and Tang Clan as cannon fodder.

It was to force the sacrifice of the non-Taoist sects and, furthermore, to increase the influence of the Taoist sects.

“Then I suppose there’s no choice.”

The Sword Saint said in a tone filled with displeasure.

Fwoosh. The True Fire of Samadhi, ignited by anger, burned the letter sent from the Sichuan Tang Clan.

And so, the Righteous Heavenly Alliance’s retaliatory attack on the Demonic Cult was scrapped.

After all they had suffered, they had to retreat without even a proper retaliation.

“Then, we’ll have to mobilize our intelligence network to the fullest and find out the reason for their closing of the gates first.”

“Yes, that seems to be the priority.”

“Damn bastards. How dare they raise a hand against the Alliance. I will make them regret it.”

The Sword Saint had no intention of letting the Shaolin, Emei, and Tang Clan go.

He planned to inflict a thorough punishment.

Of course, that would be after he found out the reason for their closing of the gates.

Flap!

A carrier pigeon flew in.

“Good.”

Jin Cheon smiled broadly after reading the contents of the letter delivered by the carrier pigeon.

“What is it, what is it? Is there some good news?”

Blood Qilin asked Jin Cheon.

“Yes, there is.”

“What news?”

“It seems the Righteous Heavenly Alliance bastards have canceled their attack on our cult.”

“Why?”

“They were probably concerned about the closing of the gates of the Shaolin, Emei, and Tang Clan. They were planning to use them to attack our cult, but with the power vacuum, it seems they’ve pulled out.”

“It really happened as you said?”

Blood Qilin looked at Jin Cheon again as if in surprise.

Jin Cheon had said it.

That the Righteous Heavenly Alliance’s retaliatory attack would not happen.

At the time, everyone had dismissed it as a ridiculous notion, but to think it would actually happen…….

In fact, the swift reaction of the Righteous Heavenly Alliance was something Jin Cheon had not anticipated.

‘I thought they would cancel only after we attacked the Demonic Prison. It’s thanks to Emei and the Tang Clan.’

Jin Cheon knew very well that the reason the Righteous Heavenly Alliance had canceled their retaliation was because of the closing of the gates of the Emei Sect and the Sichuan Tang Clan, so he considered himself lucky.

If not for that, the elites of the Righteous Heavenly Alliance would have invaded the territory of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and a large-scale battle would have broken out.

“So what do we do now? Do we go back to the cult?”

“No.”

Jin Cheon shook his head.

“There’s still one more thing left.”

“What is it?”

“The thing you’ve been waiting for, Senior Brother.”

“Huh?”

“You will soon be able to sweep away the Righteous Heavenly Alliance bastards to your heart’s content.”

Having crushed the Heavenly Killing Sect and shaken up the Emei Sect and the Tang Clan.

If so, only one thing remained.

‘The Demonic Prison.’

The hell where Jin Cheon had been imprisoned for twenty years in the past.

A place where not only the martial artists of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult but also figures from the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Families were imprisoned.

It was the dirtiest and ugliest weakness of the Righteous Heavenly Alliance, and a very important place that would be the starting point of its division.

“Really? Is such a fun event prepared?”

“Yes.”

“Where are we going?”

“Mount Hua.”

Jin Cheon answered Blood Qilin’s question.

“We are going to Mount Hua.”

The Demonic Prison was located on Mount Hua, the sacred ground of Taoism where the now-extinct Mount Hua Sect used to be.

***

While preparing to go to Mount Hua, Jin Cheon met a person sent from the Sichuan Tang Clan.

The Sichuan Tang Clan had secretly sent a carrier pigeon to inform him that they would send someone to inspect the evidence.

Jin Cheon evaluated the letter positively and readily accepted the Sichuan Tang Clan’s request.

‘They seem to want to figure me out by sending someone. Not bad.’

Jin Cheon’s goal was to win over the Emei Sect and the Sichuan Tang Clan and isolate the Qingcheng Sect in the Sichuan Murim.

Since the Emei Sect and the Sichuan Tang Clan had already closed their gates and were taking a wait-and-see attitude, there was nothing wrong with getting close to the Sichuan Tang Clan.

So, before heading to Mount Hua, Jin Cheon waited for the person sent from the Sichuan Tang Clan, and was soon greatly shocked.

“……You are.”

Jin Cheon’s expression hardened.

Dang Cheon-wi.

His only friend who had taken care of him and stayed by his side when he was studying at the Heavenly Martial Academy in the past.

Although they were not related by blood, he was a man with whom he had sworn brotherhood.

“I greet… the Seventh Young Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”

Dang Cheon-wi made a clasped hands greeting to Jin Cheon in an extremely awkward and cautious tone.

It was their first meeting since the Prince of Ningjing incident, but at that time, Jin Cheon hadn’t even given him a glance, so he had no idea how to act.

‘Dang Seong-yeong, you cunning bastard.’

Jin Cheon realized why Dang Seong-yeong had deliberately brought Dang Cheon-wi, and he ground his teeth inwardly.

He had immediately seen through the intention of using their past friendship to establish a connection through his son, Dang Cheon-wi.

‘Just you wait. I’ll make you regret it someday.’

Jin Cheon vowed revenge on Dang Seong-yeong and said to Dang Cheon-wi.

“It’s been a while.”

A grin spread across Jin Cheon’s lips as he said so.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep