Chapter 030. Half-Demon (6)
Namgung Clan.
A family of swordsmen that conquered the south of the Yangtze River with a single sword.
They have inherited the reputation of the Number One Sword Family under Heaven for a long time, but
Since monsters began to run rampant, their prosperity was not the same as before.
‘But Namgung is still Namgung.’
Dam Jeok-san thought, looking at Namgung Yeon who couldn't hide her astonishment.
The Namgung Clan still exerted immense influence throughout the entire Southern Zhili region, from Anhui where their main house was located to Zhejiang and Jiangxi.
If Southern Zhili, the center of logistics in the Central Plains, falls into chaos, its influence will naturally reach even the Northern Demonic Realm.
“So, it's not strange for the Yin God Cult to target your family.”
Dam Jeok-san continued calmly, looking at Namgung Yeon.
“…….”
However, Namgung Yeon was still looking at Dam Jeok-san in shock.
“Young Master Dam, before we have a proper conversation, I have something to say first.”
Namgung Yeon barely calmed her shock and called Dam Jeok-san.
“Thank you for saving my life. I, and the main house, will not forget today's grace and will repay it.”
She bowed her head deeply and said.
Her white nape, revealed as her long hair fell loose, briefly caught Dam Jeok-san's gaze.
For her to bow her head is a significant matter.
Because Namgung Yeon is the eldest daughter of the Family Head and at the same time the successor of the family.
Since the Young Family Head said it, Namgung's repayment will also never be light.
“Since you, the Young Family Head, say so, I look forward to it.”
If Namgung Yeon said that much, he could, depending on the case, obtain indirect assistance from the Namgung Clan in the succession struggle.
It was a considerable gain.
Perhaps more valuable than what he gained from predating the Butcher.
But both Dam Jeok-san and Namgung Yeon knew.
That was merely a matter for later.
“You may look forward to it, but…… there must be something else to discuss right now.”
Namgung Yeon paused for a moment and met Dam Jeok-san's eyes.
Not a single tremor or delusion was visible in his eyes.
Eyes as firm as when he blocked the Butcher from her.
Namgung Yeon also knew from the start.
That Dam Jeok-san does not utter falsehoods regarding matters related to monsters.
“I will ask despite the rudeness; could you perhaps explain the story you just told in a little more detail?”
However, because the matter coming from his mouth was so heavy, she had no choice but to confirm again like this.
“The Butcher's attack is a stepping stone to lure Senior Sword King to the north.”
Dam Jeok-san opened his mouth without a shred of hesitation.
“The Family Head…….”
Sword King Namgung Gwan.
The current Family Head of the Namgung Clan and Namgung Yeon's father.
Although he did not make it to the Eight Sovereigns of Murim, he was a master of the Entering Transformation Realm evaluated as being comparable to them.
The Entering Transformation Realm is a transcendent realm where even if a swarm of peak masters attack, holding him back is the most they can do―
Targeting such a Family Head might sound strange.
“An existence presumed to be a Cardinal granted the essence of demonic energy directly to the Butcher.”
However, at the following words, Namgung Yeon also had no choice but to accept it.
“A Cardinal, you say?”
Namgung Yeon asked back, crumpling her beautiful face.
The monsters standing at the top of the Yin God Cult, the Cardinals.
They are a breed that causes extreme chaos whenever they appear in the Central Plains Murim.
With martial power comparable to the Entering Transformation Realm, and even wielding bizarre sorcery, they are the pinnacle of monster worshippers.
That is the true nature of a Cardinal of the Yin God Cult.
If it's a Cardinal, even the Sword King can be put in danger.
But…….
“How do you know that fact, Young Master Dam?”
“…….”
Dam Jeok-san kept his mouth shut instead of answering.
Silence sometimes breeds speculation.
Especially since Dam Jeok-san is the direct disciple of the Lord of the Martial Sovereign Castle.
Even if he accessed the Yin God Cult's information through some unknown channel, it would not be strange at all.
Both of them knew that fact.
The silence did not last long.
“……I will believe you.”
Namgung Yeon nodded without bothering to ask back.
It's a matter related to her father, no one else. Nevertheless, Namgung Yeon believed his words.
That was the maximum respect Namgung Yeon could show to her savior, and at the same time,
It was also a sign of some respect for a peer who presented her with a path forward.
‘That's fortunate.’
Dam Jeok-san sighed slightly looking at such Namgung Yeon.
He could have explained fully by attaching this and that excuse, but it would have become quite troublesome.
Especially at a time like now when every second counts.
“The reason the Yin God Cult struck the Young Family Head using a stooge called the Butcher is simple.”
“Is it to not expose their existence?”
At Namgung Yeon's words, Dam Jeok-san nodded.
The Young Family Head of the Namgung Clan was brutally murdered by the Yin God Cult in Shanxi Province―
If such rumors spread, the Martial Sovereign Castle would be the first to step forward and exterminate them.
But what if the opponent is not the Yin God Cult but the Half-Demon Butcher?
“The Family Head…… No, Father will move.”
Namgung Yeon nodded as if she understood.
And the Yin God Cult Cardinal will attack the Sword King then.
To throw the south of the Yangtze River into chaos.
Even if Dam Jeok-san obtained information from somewhere. He wouldn't know everything.
But to derive such a conclusion in an instant.
His exceptional comprehension seemed not to remain only in martial arts.
“It's good that you understand quickly. So, this is a bit cautious to say, but there might be a traitor among the Namgung Clan swordsmen.”
“I know what you want to say; I have also heard enough about the notoriety of the Yin God Cult.”
Their meticulousness in infiltrating spies deep into the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Five Great Families was notorious throughout the Central Plains.
“One more thing……. Since we have to move urgently, we cannot take those with deep injuries. It is better for them to receive treatment nearby.”
Dam Jeok-san said, looking at the Azure Palace Sword Squad members including Namgung Mu-ryong.
Although Gyeong-won and Black Panther Spear took urgent measures, there were still quite a few whose conditions were critical.
If they don't receive treatment in time, they might die or become crippled.
Namgung Yeon also grasped that fact, so she nodded.
“Then I will have to entrust my safety entirely to you, Young Master?”
“Why, are you anxious?”
“That's not it; in the first place, the situation isn't much different right now.”
Namgung Yeon shook her head and said.
It was just bitter that the successor of Namgung had to rely on the help of the Third Young Master of the Martial Sovereign Castle in this situation.
In the relationship between groups, such favors will eventually become debts.
But looking at Dam Jeok-san, she thought owing a debt might not be bad.
‘Because as I repay the debt, we are bound to get closer.’
If he becomes the next Lord of the Martial Sovereign Castle, the Namgung Clan will also be able to receive indirect benefits.
Conversely, they might suffer harm when Dam Jeok-san falls from power, but…….
Namgung Yeon could not imagine such a future at all.
“What do you intend to do from now on?”
“The probability of the Cardinal stepping forward directly is extremely low.”
In a stable time like now, they cannot show themselves directly.
Because if they did, even a Cardinal would be subjugated in an instant.
“But the probability of using other means is high.”
Of course, it could pass without anything happening. But Dam Jeok-san completely ruled out that possibility.
He delved quite deeply into Buddhist studies while cultivating the Prajna Heart Technique.
Cause and effect exist in everything in the world. That is the karma spoken of in Buddhism.
The ability of Predation is the same.
In his previous life, when Seo Woo-joo awakened as a Predator, the world faced a crisis of destruction.
Perhaps Dam Jeok-san will also face a corresponding hardship. That was not a vague guess but an instinctive precognition.
‘So it's wrong to expect it to pass easily this time too.’
Thinking so, Dam Jeok-san opened his mouth again.
“We will pass through Shanxi as quickly as possible and go to the north.”
That is the safest.
Because in the land adjacent to the Northern Demonic Realm, there are branches of the Murim Alliance and the Unorthodox Alliance, as well as the Martial Sovereign Castle.
“Understood, then only I will accompany you. However, there are a few things I must take among the supplies being transported.”
“You can handle that as you wish. As long as it doesn't hinder the lightness skill.”
At Dam Jeok-san's words, Namgung Yeon nodded slowly.
“I will follow.”
Since she decided to entrust herself to him, she had no intention of raising objections.
“Ah, and by any chance…… can I borrow a decent carrier pigeon?”
“……I have one hawk received from the Family Head. Since it is a spiritual creature, it can go even near the Demonic Realm.”
“I ask of you.”
“Alright.”
Hearing Namgung Yeon's answer, Dam Jeok-san lightly flicked his finger and collapsed the qi curtain.
* * *
“Haha…….”
Namgung Mu-ryong smiled hollowly as if letting go of something and looked at Dam Jeok-san and Namgung Yeon.
They were talking close together as if having a secret meeting.
But what caught his gaze was not their close distance.
Dam Jeok-san unfolded a qi curtain unconsciously to block the sound.
That skill caught Namgung Mu-ryong's gaze.
‘Is that really the skill of a peak master……?’
The ability to handle qi transcended the common sense Namgung Mu-ryong knew.
If he were just an ordinary peak master, he would have tried to understand somehow.
But Dam Jeok-san even lost his dantian once.
Nevertheless, to show such delicate control of genuine qi.
If he doesn't die a dog's death somewhere, it will be sufficiently possible for him to leave his footprint in history, let alone putting his name on the Eight Sovereigns of Murim.
‘Perhaps the Young Family Head…….’
No, this is not it.
It was not a matter for a mere swordsman, not even the Family Head, to argue about.
When Namgung Mu-ryong was erasing his thoughts like that.
The qi curtain scattered, and Dam Jeok-san and Namgung Yeon walked towards him.
“Namgung Mu-ryong.”
Namgung Yeon looked at him and spoke in a clear tone.
“Please command, Young Family Head.”
Meaning she had an official order to give. Namgung Mu-ryong straightened his posture and answered.
“You take care of the Azure Palace Sword Squad and withdraw.”
“……What do you mean by that!”
Namgung Mu-ryong asked back as if he couldn't understand.
Gulp.
As emotions intensified, blood rose up his throat, but he didn't mind at all.
He couldn't listen to an order to leave the Young Family Head and withdraw. Especially in a situation like this.
“I will explain that.”
Dam Jeok-san took a big step forward and opened his mouth.
BOOM!
A formidable presence began to manifest from his figure.
“Gasp……!”
Namgung Mu-ryong looked at him with astonished eyes.
A presence beyond what he assumed looking at Dam Jeok-san presses him down.
No, it's not simply a matter of the presence being strong or weak.
‘Like…… a presence like an Asura that crawled up from the path of demons in the underworld.’
That is not something a young person can possess.
A presence that only one who has wandered countless battlefields and experienced just as many despairs and falls could emit.
He couldn't even guess what kind of life Dam Jeok-san had lived.
Of course, that was not purely Dam Jeok-san's spirit.
Because Seo Woo-joo's from his previous life was also hidden within it.
But even so. The density of life Dam Jeok-san experienced was unrivaled.
“The reason for not taking you is simple. You are not helpful, that's all.”
“…….”
In front of Dam Jeok-san speaking while revealing a formidable presence, Namgung Mu-ryong had no choice but to remain silent.
He turned his head toward Namgung Yeon and asked telepathically.
[Do you trust him?]
That was a question asked on behalf of the Family Head who ordered him to protect Namgung Yeon.
[Yes.]
Knowing that, Namgung Yeon answered with maximum certainty.
So that Namgung Mu-ryong could make a judgment.
[Understood, I will withdraw and take care of the Azure Palace Sword Squad.]
The gray-haired middle-aged man, Namgung Mu-ryong, only then accepted it clearly and withdrew.
If Namgung Yeon can trust him, that is enough.
‘The Third Young Master of the Martial Sovereign Castle and his subordinates are all extraordinary experts.’
It is a shameful thing, but as the Third Young Master said, they might just be a burden to the Young Family Head if they join.
Especially, the presence Dam Jeok-san showed became the decisive factor.
If it is one with such a presence, he will not be easily defeated or give up.
Some time later.
Above the sky where the rain stopped, a carrier hawk (傳書鷹) soared.
The destination was the north, and the recipient was Northern Heaven Sword Venerable Un Wol-hyang.
* * *
A cave deep enough that not a single ray of sunlight enters.
That place, filled with demonic energy to the extent that an ordinary human could not last even a moment, was a hideout meticulously prepared by the Yin God Cult.
“The Butcher…… was defeated.”
A man emitting purple ghost fire from his left pupil muttered quietly.
He feels it. The death of the existence to whom he granted immense demonic energy.
Ominous energy boiled and bubbled from the body of the man who felt that death.
A spirit too ominous to call human. But reason seemed too clear to call him a monster.
An appearance seemingly completely free from the demonic nature possessed when one becomes a Half-Demon.
“Huhu, interesting.”
The man swept his long fingers over his lips and muttered wickedly.
Was the girl of Namgung a more outstanding figure than expected? Or perhaps the Namgung Family Head attached a swordsman beyond what he assumed as his daughter's guard.
‘But it wouldn't be a result that could be overturned by just that.’
Unless a peak master intervened. Otherwise, the Butcher couldn't have been defeated.
Because the Butcher is a toy the man crafted with quite some effort.
Although the Grand Plan went wrong from the first step, the man didn't mind much.
He had prepared as many moves as possible in case of failure.
Because the ‘Central Plains’ was always a place full of variables.
“It would be troublesome if the Cult's movement is revealed already…… I will have to move the descendant of the Murong Clan.”
It was a card he cherished quite a bit, but it can't be helped.
Because destroying the Namgung Clan is the starting point of the Grand Plan. It was something that absolutely could not be given up.
‘If I move him, it won't matter what the Namgung scum hid…….’
Wi Cheon-rak was the most meticulous and insidious among the Cardinals of the Yin God Cult, but.
Even he could not notice the existence of the ability Dam Jeok-san possessed, ‘Predation’.