Chapter 137: Divine Demon Physique (3)

“Cheon Yura…”

“I didn’t expect you to be hiding like a rat. Is eavesdropping your hobby now?”

“You bitch…!”

Cheon Yujeong’s eyes twisted in fury.

‘Young Cult Leader!’

Sa Biyeon, watching from behind, cried out in awe inwardly.

She hadn’t imagined her tongue could move so smoothly!

People really could grow, huh!

But more than anything, what delighted her was how completely unbothered Cheon Yura seemed by Cheon Yujeong’s presence now.

A stark contrast from the last time, when she’d shown an inexplicably submissive attitude.

“Wherever you found that confidence, your face looks a lot brighter now. Did your man stop by the Lesser Demon Hall or something?”

At that faintly lewd insinuation, First Elder’s expression twitched slightly.

Cheon Yura, in a rare move, mocked her opponent.

“Thanks for the compliment. But my man is currently busy with some business outside. I should really go get him soon.”

“……You bitch.”

Cheon Yujeong’s face contorted further.

Cheon Yura had claimed a decisive victory in this second confrontation, too.

“Hoohoo?”

And First Elder watched the verbal duel between the two with great amusement.

It seemed Cheon Yujeong hadn’t expected Cheon Yura to come out like this, and she showed her surprise with a moment of silence.

“Well, whatever happened, I suppose it doesn’t matter.”

Cheon Yujeong bit down her rage as she spoke.

“You’re with First Elder because you’re trying to convene the Seven Elders Council, right?”

“And if I am?”

“Then I’d like to tell you it’s a wasted effort.”

A hint of ease returned to her face.

“Except for First Elder and Fourth Elder, all the elders of the Council support me. All of the Cheon Clan forces under them too! No matter what you do, the Seven Elders Council won’t respond.”

Cheon Yura calmly agreed with her.

There was no denying Cheon Yujeong’s words, no matter how one spun them.

“That makes sense. What the Council wants is a puppet who’ll obediently follow their every word.”

“……!!”

Cheon Yujeong flared with killing intent, her whole body radiating malice after that direct blow.

But Cheon Yura didn’t bother to react.

She knew the moment she responded to that, she’d lose the upper hand.

And then—

“How unsightly, Yujeong.”

“First Elder!”

“That killing intent—won’t you put it away right now?”

At First Elder’s low but firm remark, Cheon Yujeong’s murderous aura vanished as if it had never existed.

Even she knew better than to ever clash with First Elder.

Still, she clenched her teeth, unable to fully suppress her anger, and First Elder clicked his tongue at her.

“You, who are normally so calm, can’t seem to control yourself in front of Yura.”

“I’ve shown you something disgraceful.”

Cheon Yujeong tried desperately to quell her fury.

Calm.

Political skill.

Weren’t those the only two advantages she had over Cheon Yura?

She couldn’t afford to lose even one of them.

“Well, fine. Puppet or not, if I can defeat you, I don’t care.”

Her expression returned to its usual composure.

“Now that he’s gone into Iron Steed Prison Cave, he’ll have no choice but to discover the truth. I wonder—once he knows what you really are, will he still treat you the same?”

“……You.”

This time, Cheon Yura’s face changed.

This was an era of rigidity.

With Confucianism flourishing and the noble class ruling society, that attitude had permeated into even the common people.

Even though this was the Murim, and the Heavenly Demon Cult had preserved its thousand-year-old purity, they weren’t completely free from the influence of the times.

Especially the so-called ‘noble clans’—their obsession with purity and exclusivity surpassed imagination.

Sa Biyeon and First Elder both turned over the implications of those words, but even they couldn’t figure it out.

That meant it was a massive secret known only between the two.

“More than anything, the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan Lord has stepped forward. Now that he has, this won’t end simply—unless the Cult Leader himself gets involved.”

The Sword Demon Ma Seonghwan never moved lightly.

But once he did, his path would be painted in nothing but blood.

Even if the Asura King Jin Gun-ak intervened, the end would still be an all-out war. No one could stop Ma Seonghwan’s momentum once it started.

“I see.”

Cheon Yura nodded slowly with a calm expression.

“In that case, I suppose I’ll need to go greet him personally.”

“……What?”

The completely unexpected statement left Cheon Yujeong stunned.

“If someone’s going to stop the Clan Lord, it should be the Young Cult Leader, don’t you think?”

“Do you even know what your man is involved in right now?”

He had gotten involved in none other than the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan’s succession dispute.

And she, the Young Cult Leader, was stepping up to protect him?

What did that make this situation?

“You crazy bitch! Are you planning to serve the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan to me on a silver platter?!”

Cheon Yujeong spat venomously. It disgusted her that her rival was being this thoughtless.

But Cheon Yura was unshaken.

“I don’t know.”

“What, what?”

“That man left my side. Why should I care what he’s doing now?”

In truth, she was receiving detailed reports of his every move through the Divine Ghost Unit, but she kept that hidden on purpose—to mess with Cheon Yujeong.

“But there’s one thing I do know.”

Cheon Yura declared proudly.

“The bastard left me behind because he thought it was for my sake. That man—he’d never let things end in your favor.”

Craack!

That absolute trust twisted Cheon Yujeong’s face into something monstrous.

“But it’s true that it’s dangerous.”

Twitch.

The moment their eyes met, Cheon Yujeong unconsciously stepped back.

It wasn’t killing intent.

It was something else entirely—cold and powerful, an intangible aura.

It resembled the primordial presence that the Cult Leader himself, the one bearing the name of the Heavenly Demon, would emit.

“That’s why, even if I have to put a leash on him, I’ll drag him back.”

***

[I succeeded in the grand method.]

[I was happy. So happy I felt like I was going to go mad with joy. All the figures had exceeded expectations. At this rate, if she continued to grow, the legendary Divine Demon Physique would once again appear in this world!]

[But then, a sudden incident occurred.]

[A report came in that the Saintess of Blood Cult had fled from the cult with the first test subject. I heard vaguely that it was because she wanted to make that failure the Cult Leader of the Blood Cult.]

[Realizing the gravity of the situation, the Cult Leader dispatched a large-scale pursuit force. The newly appointed Clan Lord of the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan took command of the unit and left the cult.]

[The pursuit succeeded, and the Saintess of Blood Cult was reportedly killed. The failed subject was recovered, but many argued that since the Saintess had been skilled in sorcery, she could have tampered with it somehow and thus the failure should be executed.]

[However, the Cult Leader decided to spare the failure. Publicly, she was declared dead, but secretly, she was placed in the branch family of the Cheon Clan, hiding her existence from the Six Great Demonic Clans. Other than the Cult Leader, the only one who knew this was me, who personally oversaw the task.]

‘Hmm?’

I tilted my head, feeling like something was missing from the record beyond this point.

Up until now, the story had followed a coherent flow, but now it was visibly choppy and fragmented.

[The position of direct blood relative to the Young Cult Leader was given to the successful subject.]

[The man named Grand Heavenly Lord tried to steal the successful subject but was stopped by the Young Cult Leader.]

[Out of nowhere, the Lord of the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan came to see me. I had no idea how he’d learned about this place, but I assumed he’d discovered it through the Saintess of Blood Cult.]

[He asked me if I could recreate the Heaven-Slaying Physique. The Heaven-Slaying Physique… while certainly unique, once the Divine Demon Physique had been realized, reproducing the Heaven-Slaying Physique would be relatively easy as long as the proper materials were available.]

[He provided the remains of his ancestor who had once possessed the Heaven-Slaying Physique. And he promised to support me with every resource required.]

[Three years later, I succeeded in recreating the Heaven-Slaying Physique. Surprisingly, unlike the Divine Demon Physique, the Heaven-Slaying Physique had a fundamentally different principle, which made it possible to be transferred to others. Of course, it required the sacrifice of the caster…]

[This is bad. That bastard, the Clan Lord, is trying to kill me. The newly appointed Cult Leader, who now sits on the Heavenly Demon’s throne, is no different.]

[This great achievement, somehow, must…]

“……”

It cut off.

There was clearly more information, but it was as if the book refused to be read any further.

It felt like a spell had been cast to only show me the parts I was meant to see—like someone had sliced out just what I needed.

‘There are definitely missing sections. It feels like if I meet some condition, I could read the rest…’

While I was pondering what to do, I suddenly heard a familiar voice in my ear.

“How was it? Did you enjoy the read?”

“…!”

My head slowly turned toward the source of the voice.

“Now that you know the truth… do you still feel the same about the Young Cult Leader?”

“Ma Jinyoon…!”

There stood Ma Jinyoon, drenched head to toe in blood, holding a sword.

‘When did he—?!’

When I had searched every corner of the secret chamber, he hadn’t been anywhere in sight—yet now, at the perfect moment, he appeared?

“J-Jinyoon!”

Ma Chulsoo’s face lit up when he noticed Ma Jinyoon and began to approach.

But—

“Brother.”

Chak!

“Please don’t come any closer.”

Ma Jinyoon pointed his sword at Ma Chulsoo with a cold expression.

“What… what are you saying?!”

Ma Chulsoo was bewildered by Ma Jinyoon’s completely different demeanor.

“Right now, I’m desperately holding back my killing intent. If someone comes too close—even if it’s you, Brother—I feel I might lose my sanity and thirst for blood.”

“…!”

He was struggling to control the demonic nature of the Heaven-Slaying Physique, his body drenched in cold sweat.

More than anything, his eyes had turned completely blood-red—no one would dare say he was in a normal state.

I asked him directly.

“Ma Jinyoon, why did you lead us here?”

Though panting, Ma Jinyoon responded.

“…One of the Heaven-Slaying Physique’s powers is something called the Memory of Blood.”

“Memory of Blood?”

“I only know the name, not the details. It’s the power to… read fragments of memories imprinted in blood.”

Fuuuh…

Ma Jinyoon exhaled deeply, lifting his chin.

“And… I also had help from someone.”

“Someone?”

“I can’t reveal who. I promised I wouldn’t…”

He glanced around as he spoke.

“This place… is where I was born. Or rather, it feels like it.”

“You found this place through that Memory of Blood power?”

“Yes.”

Like an animal’s homing instinct?

As I was about to ask something else—

“Brother. And Jin Yeomyung.”

Ma Jinyoon looked at us and dropped a shocking revelation.

“One of the Cheon Clan Elders who attacked me… is a traitor who has joined forces with an outside power.”

“……!!”

“Actually, more than just joining forces—he’s entirely a foreign element who infiltrated us.”

Someone like that existed within the Cheon Clan?

“He wants to see the Cult fall into even greater chaos. That’s why he awakened the Heaven-Slaying Physique inside me, and is now trying to throw the cult into civil war through my death.”

Ma Jinyoon hadn’t been hiding from us this whole time.

He’d been avoiding that very elder from the Cheon Clan who attacked him!

“Thankfully, as soon as I reached this area, that person seemed to fear something and vanished in a hurry. But… I’m already beyond saving.”

“Jinyoon!”

“That’s why… I want to entrust my will to you, Brother.”

His will?

‘No way… is he talking about the Demonic Faction Lord…?’

“Please inherit my Heaven-Slaying Physique.”

Ma Jinyoon smiled faintly as he spoke.

“If it’s you, I’m sure you can master the Blood Demon Heaven-Slaying Sword Art.”

Blood Demon Heaven-Slaying Sword Art.

The symbol of the Blood Demon—said to be capable of countering even the Heavenly Demon himself.

[The Heaven-Slaying Physique can be granted to others.]

[Of course, it requires the caster’s sacrifice…]

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