Chapter 97. The Murim Alliance Leader

Beyond a courtyard filled with peach blossoms stood a small pavilion and a single hall.

The Alliance Leader Cheong Ga was a Taoist of Kunlun.

Kunlun, being far away, did not involve itself much in the affairs of the Murim Alliance and rarely participated in the headquarters’ events.

That might be why Cheong Ga had been reappointed as Alliance Leader five times.

Among the sects and clans that constantly kept each other in check, the position unexpectedly went to someone from Kunlun—a sect that was both weak in power and lacking in ambition—like the catch of a fisherman who benefits while others fight.

It was said that during his first term, he didn’t do anything particularly noteworthy. But perhaps that was exactly why he was reappointed ten years later.

As So-hwa took in the modest dwelling, she understood why this martial artist had become the longest-serving Alliance Leader.

His demeanor, showing no attachment to power, gave a sense of calm to those who looked at him. It felt as though, if one simply made up their mind, they could remove this Taoist and take his seat.

Behind an old wooden pillar, a robed old man could be seen. Perhaps hidden by the thick scent of blossoms in the air, there was no scent coming from the Alliance Leader.

No matter how well internal energy was concealed, those who had refined their qi and blood over many years inevitably gave off a certain scent—like the dust in an old library.

Either the Alliance Leader knew how to conceal his qi with extreme precision, or perhaps the scent of his energy resembled that of peach blossoms.

So-hwa raised her gaze to the peach tree touching the pavilion.

Thinking that way, she began to suspect the Alliance Leader had deliberately surrounded his dwelling with peach trees.

When the Lord of the Four Seasons Hall stopped at the steps, a voice tinged with a smile was heard.

“You must be busy with preparations for the finals, Hall Lord, so you may go. Lady Tang, please come up.”

The Hall Lord silently greeted the Alliance Leader, then looked at So-hwa. But without any particular warning, he passed her and left the Alliance Leader’s residence.

Only after the sound of the door closing did So-hwa step up the stairs.

“I greet the Alliance Leader.”

“Yes. Have a seat.”

So-hwa took her seat and waited for him to speak.

There had to be a reason he had called her.

But whether it was the habit of the headquarters or simply his nature, the Alliance Leader said nothing and just stared at her. No different from Zhuge In-hwi.

Fortunately, So-hwa was used to this kind of exchange from dealing with her father, so she wasn’t flustered. A moment of silence. She didn’t feel awkward in the face of inexplicable silence and wasn’t particularly shaken.

Realizing that the Alliance Leader was quietly observing her, So-hwa simply let him do so and passed the time.

She even wondered whether the reason her father had taught her to endure such silences was because of this very old man before her. Had her father once been unsettled by this situation, too?

After a moment that felt like eternity, the Alliance Leader let out a laugh.

“So that’s why the Hall Lord looked so displeased. I really can’t read you at all. How rare, such calm.”

“Thank you.”

“That wasn’t a compliment.”

The Alliance Leader was someone who revealed his thoughts plainly. That, too, was not surprising.

After all, there was also an elder at home who spoke rashly despite his age.

“In-hwi must be all tied up inside.”

The Alliance Leader suddenly burst into laughter, amused by something.

“Aren’t you curious why I called you here?”

“I am curious.”

“And yet it doesn’t show at all.”

“People often say I’m expressionless. If I’ve offended you, I apologize.”

So-hwa said that as she slightly curled her lips.

The Alliance Leader looked at So-hwa as if amused, then lowered his gaze. Picking up a fallen peach blossom from the table, he began to speak.

“As I grow older, I find fewer reasons to speak. There are days I spend in complete silence. So when I do end up in a conversation, the words pour out without order—I repeat myself, go in circles, and it becomes tiresome.”

He let out a small sigh, as though sick of it all.

“Wanting to put an end to that wretched habit, I’ve spent quite some time quietly organizing my thoughts.”

His words sounded sincere—but didn’t quite make sense.

There’s no way the leader of the Alliance would have no reason to speak.

“And yet, suddenly, I found my tongue itching unbearably. Perhaps I’ve gone senile. I suddenly wanted to talk, and so I called you here.”

“What is it you wish to talk about?”

“Oh, nothing much. Just remembered an old dream I had and felt like chatting. You can let it go in one ear and out the other—just listen casually.”

The Alliance Leader stretched his hand past the railing and let the blossom fall. The fallen flower drifted gently, returning to the tree.

In that moment, as if a breeze had blown, a strong scent of peach blossoms tickled the nose.

“In that dream, I saw Kunlun being annihilated.”

So-hwa quietly closed her mouth.

The Alliance Leader’s voice filled the empty stillness.

“I was furious. I intended to head to Kunlun immediately, but strangely, I found myself unable to go. I definitely meant to, but then I was struck with the thought that I shouldn’t.”

He let out a hollow breath.

“It was just a dream, but it was a vision of a distant future. About twenty years from now, the Demon Sect resurges, Kunlun is wiped out, and the Tang Clan, Emei Sect, Qingcheng Sect, and even the smaller sects and unorthodox forces of Sichuan are all erased in an instant. Fortunately, three wise Taoist sects reversed the Alliance’s decision and rushed in, managing to stop the Demon Sect’s advance eastward.”

So-hwa looked at the Alliance Leader.

He still wasn’t looking at her, his gaze fixed beyond the railing.

“Ah, now that I think of it, I remember you as well. That dream was so utterly absurd—would you believe, in it, you slaughtered the Namgung Clan Head and his retainers, causing a great upheaval in the Central Plains? Rumors spread like wildfire that the Tang Clan was actually part of the Demonic Sect, and that you were a spy for them.”

For a moment, So-hwa’s breath faltered.

How could she forget?

This was the future she remembered.

The Alliance Leader was speaking of events that occurred after her death.

Suppressing the question that almost burst from her lips, So-hwa focused intently on the Alliance Leader’s words. She feared he might stop speaking.

“But the rumors about the Tang Clan didn’t last long. After all, the Demonic Sect hadn’t truly resurged. Those who used demonic arts were only mimicking the Demonic Sect. The Hall Lord of the Four Seasons was the first to say such things, but I didn’t believe him at the time. Perhaps frustrated, he left the headquarters, saying he’d bring me proof. But he never returned—he died suddenly, and so I couldn’t relay his words to the Alliance. Nor did I want to. I suppose I had grown truly senile by then.”

The Alliance Leader let out a laugh filled with self-reproach.

So-hwa momentarily stopped breathing. Due to her intense focus, her breathing wavered with every breath and gesture of the Alliance Leader.

To avoid interrupting the wandering thoughts spilling from the Alliance Leader like a monologue, she held her breath as much as possible.

“I gave up the position of Alliance Leader and returned to Kunlun. Before I died, I wanted to rebuild Kunlun. Rewrite the destroyed martial arts manuals and train new disciples.”

The Alliance Leader’s voice, which had wandered faintly like someone lost in a dream, suddenly grew clear.

“But perhaps because I returned home, my mind gradually began to clear. Months later, I finally realized something was wrong.”

“……”

“From time to time, I would remember something In-hwi had said to me, but as soon as it surfaced, it would fade. It was a conversation we’d had in my residence. Yet I had no memory of having such a talk, and I couldn’t hear In-hwi’s voice. I thought I was losing my mind.”

Listening to the Alliance Leader’s words, So-hwa recalled the effects of a particular medicine: Five Minerals Powder. Someone had likely clouded the Alliance Leader’s mind.

“Only after those symptoms repeated for several months did I begin to suspect that someone had tampered with my mind.”

“……”

“Fragmented memories all pointed to one place—the secret archive of the Zhuge Clan. So I returned to Hubei and sought them out. Naturally, the clan head refused to show me the archive. But strangely enough, In-hwi’s older brother told me there was a secret passage into it and led me inside. I didn’t even have time to be suspicious. At the time, everything was pitch black before my eyes, and I was afraid of everything. I wanted to grab onto anything—like grasping at straws.”

The Alliance Leader brushed his knees and let out a hollow laugh.

“And honestly, someone like Zhuge Ji-hwi wasn’t much of a threat to me.”

“……”

“You’ve heard the rumor, haven’t you? That the Zhuge Clan’s secret archive holds the martial arts of the Outer Regions. That rumor was half true. There weren’t many of the Outer Regions’ martial arts, but there was an entire bookshelf filled with records from the Outer Regions. Collected by the Blood Demon, they included not only martial techniques but also bizarre records—on making jiangshi, human-skin masks, dark arts and medical techniques for clouding people’s minds—strange things of all kinds.”

The Alliance Leader paused briefly, then added,

“And among them was a dark art that could connect all things—even time.”

At those words, So-hwa thought of the Blood Demon.

“They wrote that it could sever the end of time and reconnect it with the beginning of the past. They called it a ‘passage.’ But creating a passage of time wasn’t something any sorcerer could do. It was said only those chosen by their god could perform it. Honestly, I didn’t care much for such absurd talk at first and skimmed over it. I was more interested in what came afterward—a ‘passage’ that connected space. The ones known as sorcerers in the Central Plains were said to be the first clan to fall into the Blood Demon’s hands, and they created these passages between far distances at the Blood Demon’s command. There was even a map showing where the remaining passages in the Central Plains were located.”

“If such things existed… why didn’t the Zhuge Clan seek out the Blood Demon in advance?”

So-hwa, who had remained silent until then, finally asked.

The Alliance Leader laughed.

“That dark art record was a fake created by Zhuge Ji-hwi. The clan head and others probably didn’t know.”

“You mean Young Lord Zhuge Ji-hwi?”

“In-hwi wasn’t the only one who awakened a peculiar eye technique. I didn’t know at first, either. I only realized after entering the archive a few more times. Likely after repeating dozens of lives.”

“……”

So-hwa’s face stiffened.

Because he spoke of repeating countless lives.

It didn’t end with just one cycle.

So-hwa’s expression darkened, but the Alliance Leader didn’t notice. He simply continued recounting his dream.

“When I first entered the archive, I was naïve. Fooled by the cunning Ji-hwi, I took that map and wandered in search of the passage. Thanks to that, I easily reached Jin Yin Mountain. It’s known as the Blood Demon’s fortress. I went there to kill him. But he wasn’t there. He had already moved his base to the Central Plains, traveling back and forth between there and Jin Yin Mountain. At first, I didn’t know that. Enraged, I went around cutting down the Blood Sect members that got in my way, searching for the Blood Demon.”

“Eventually, I went to the grand hall that the members desperately tried to defend. Naturally, I thought the Blood Demon was inside. Why else would they give their lives to guard it? But do you know what I found when I broke through their defenses and entered?”

The Alliance Leader chuckled.

“Absurdly enough, the vast hall contained just a single old woman.”

So-hwa slowly blinked.

Because she had a good idea who that old woman might be.

As if confirming her thoughts, the Alliance Leader let out a deep breath and said,

“In their words, she was a sorcerer chosen by their god. One who could create a passage through time.”

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(T/N): Changed ‘sorcery’ to ‘dark arts’

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