A Regressor's Bucket List

Chapter 277 : Southern Invasion (1)

The Empire, ‘Murim’.

Located in the eastern part of the continent, the Murim Empire was a power that held immense influence, contrary to its short and rugged name.

Of course, some might argue that any entity bearing the title of ‘Empire’ should naturally possess such status.

However, even within the territories of the Order’s Alliance, the Order was such a vast and large-scale organization that regions often remained unaware of each other’s existence unless they possessed significant influence.

For instance, the nation containing ‘Aileen Village’ where Valencia resided was merely one of the many minor non-Constellation kingdoms that most people couldn't even name.

And there were countless such nations within the Alliance’s territories.

Whether a place was called a kingdom, an empire, or a duchy often depended simply on what they chose to call themselves.

Furthermore, the greater the physical distance within the continent, the less interaction there naturally was. It was more common than one might think for nations to be part of the same Alliance yet remain completely ignorant of one another.

However, the Murim Empire was a country famous enough that anyone belonging to the Order would know of it.

Despite being a nation on the far eastern edge that maintained a direct front in the War against Demons, its existence was well-known even at the western tip of the continent.

Well, there were plenty of reasons to explain its fame.

But the most prominent reason was rooted in its ‘territory’.

Setting everything else aside, the Murim Empire boasted the largest territory among all nations belonging to the Order’s Alliance.

Of course, it wasn't famous simply because its land was vast.

It was a hegemonic power in the East with military strength to match its size, and as a force directly fighting on the most active anti-demon fronts in the eastern Alliance territories, it was a massive group that wielded tremendous influence across the entire continent.

To put it bluntly, if it weren't for the Murim Empire, the eastern region would have become the area where the Order’s influence was at its weakest, second only to the North.

The fact that several massive anti-demon fronts in the East had held firm for so long without collapsing was due to the power of the Murim Empire. In that regard, it was a hegemonic state of the Order’s Alliance that no one could ignore.

And ‘Emperor’ was the unique title used to refer to the leader of such a Murim Empire.

He held the authority to command the ‘Murim Alliance’, a unique martial power group consisting of five great sects: Shaolin, Wudang, Mount Hua, Jongnam, and the Beggar’s Gang.

He was the overlord of the eastern continent, possessing a private military force large enough to handle several anti-demon fronts independently without support from the Order.

To put it simply, excluding the Order’s headquarters—which held unrivaled authority by possessing ‘Heroes’ and ‘Priests’—the Emperor was the individual who commanded the most powerful private military group in the Alliance’s territories.

Perhaps that was why.

The goals of those who sought an audience with the Emperor were usually aligned.

‘…Military support.’

It was a natural conclusion, as the most important factor in war was manpower.

Without troops, the front lines could not be maintained, and the inability to maintain the front meant that no strategy or tactic other than retreat was possible.

No matter how brilliant a Hero might be, if they were surrounded and pushed by overwhelming numbers, there was no answer.

Setting aside victory or defeat, if one could not maintain the front line immediately, they would have no choice but to surrender what they held. That was the reality of war.

However, the current reality was that the Order’s Alliance was at a disadvantage compared to the armies of Magical Beasts due to reproductive cultural numbers and biological characteristics.

While there were differences depending on the race, in general, the Order’s forces felt the shortage of regular troops more acutely than the Demon King’s Army at the borders.

And the number one person those commanders of the anti-demon fronts sought out was the ‘Emperor’ of Murim.

Anyone maintaining an anti-demon front was bound to experience a severe shortage of troops at some point, and the Emperor’s powerful and massive military group, the Murim Alliance, always kept a surplus of troops sufficient to provide support to those in need.

This was possible because the Murim Alliance, composed of the four sects and one gang, possessed many Hero-class combatants.

But more than that, it was due to the high-quality regular troops they maintained through the various sword and blade halls under the great sects.

In other words, it was possible because they possessed countless ‘disciples’.

Of course, such tasks were originally the responsibility of the existing Great Guilds.

Fundamentally, guilds were organizations that moved to handle private requests, and there were many cases where retired Heroes from Great Guilds were utilized as troops through Constellation requests.

As the saying goes, a master is always a master; such methods always yielded decent results.

However, the nature of it was fundamentally different.

While Great Guilds also produced some troops to provide general support, they operated on a much smaller scale compared to the mercenary activities of Hero-class combatants, who made up their core strength.

This was because guilds were organizations that moved strictly based on ‘profit’, and raising and dispatching private soldiers was not easy to balance in terms of cost-effectiveness due to their expendable nature.

Therefore, most people sought the Emperor not because of a lack of high-level combatants, but to fill the numbers when they lacked the regular soldiers needed to form a front line.

“…I have heard the rumors.”

“…….”

“So, you have sought me out.”

However, U-jin had not sought him out for such reasons.

U-jin was not someone directly in charge of an anti-demon front, nor did he need that kind of manpower on an individual level.

Furthermore, while things had been a bit ambiguous before, the guild ‘Hunter’ had officially become a pillar of the Order’s forces following the Northern Subjugation War.

While they were not yet comparable to the Murim Empire, they had secured one hundred Hero-class combatants just from this Northern Subjugation War.

Though it would take some time, considering the potential growth of the Beastkin, it was already a predetermined fact that they would become one of the most powerful forces in the Order.

The strength of the Beastkin belonging to the guild ‘Hunter’ could not be considered small or weak.

If he needed troops, U-jin could have stepped up himself; there was no reason to go to the trouble of borrowing troops from another group.

So, why did U-jin come to meet the Emperor at this time?

The reason was none other than the ‘Xuanyuan Sword’.

『…It would have been dangerous if you had been even a little later in awakening the power of the Spirit Beast while holding the Sword of the Son of Heaven. Until just a moment ago, it was barely being suppressed.』

The Sword of the Son of Heaven.

Allen Tigris III had called it that, but to U-jin, the name ‘Xuanyuan Sword’—used by the last Emperor of Murim and the man currently before his eyes.

‘Gongsun Zan’—was much more familiar.

Since this was his first time meeting and speaking with him directly, it was hard to say he knew him well.

However, he clearly remembered that the name of the brilliant weapon used by the Emperor of the Murim Empire—who had perished along with three legions led by a Duke of the Demon King’s Army at the end of the War against Demons before his regression—was the ‘Xuanyuan Sword’.

『…What is this Sword of the Son of Heaven? All I know is that it reacts to Beastkin.』

『…It seems you truly know nothing.』

『In short, it is the sword that awakens the power of the Four Gods.』

If what Allen Tigris III said was true, the ‘Xuanyuan Sword’ was an item directly linked to the Four Auspicious Beasts, the four sacred animals that ruled the cardinal directions of North, South, East, and West.

In other words.

From the perspective of U-jin, who was desperate for even a slight increase in power before the ‘Great Event’, this sword itself was the piece of evidence regarding the ‘Four Auspicious Beasts’ that he had been longing for.

『The Holy Relic, ‘The Most Holy Demonic Sword’, demands that you stop talking and put your hand into that hideous lump first.』

『The Holy Relic, ‘The Most Holy Demonic Sword, says there will probably be something to grab.』

『The Holy Relic, ‘The Most Holy Demonic Sword’, advises that while it won't be as good as itself, it will still be useful.』

In fact, he had known for a while.

‘…I never thought it would be ordinary in the first place.’

Considering the place where it was found and the person who told him of its existence, it was impossible to think of it as an ordinary item.

Beyond just thinking ‘it might be so,’ he had a certain conviction.

If it were just a common artifact that could be picked up or bought anywhere, U-jin would have had no reason to carry around such a cumbersome item that didn't even help his current combat power.

He did so because he believed it possessed extraordinary power, even if he didn't know exactly what it was.

That thought was solidified inside the Darkest Dungeon.

『The Holy Relic, ‘Fragment of the Nameless Sword’, reacts to a certain energy.』

The minion of Isaac Einstein, he met there.

In the process of cutting down the nameless Succubus, this Fragment of the Nameless Sword had reacted to Tom Hardist’s mana.

Even if he couldn't pinpoint the exact reason, U-jin was certain then.

That this sword was somehow related to the power of the Beastkin.

…Well, of course.

Until he encountered Allen Tigris III and heard the term ‘Four Auspicious Beasts’ directly from his mouth.

He hadn't imagined that it would go beyond the Beastkin and be directly linked to the legendary beings of lore known as the ‘Four Auspicious Beasts’.

Coming to meet the Emperor today was in the same vein.

『Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise. They are collectively referred to as the Four Spirit Beasts, and are also called the Four Guardian Gods or Divine Beasts.』

『The Four Guardian Gods existed? For real?』

『…Existed? They all exist even now.』

The side benefits were more important than the main thing.

In truth, U-jin was more interested in the ‘Four Auspicious Beasts’ that were said to be directly connected to the sword than the sword itself.

To be honest, the sword didn't really matter, but in the current situation, the Four Auspicious Beasts were inevitably more important to U-jin.

As for a weapon, he was already going to use the ‘Dragoon’ created through Emily, and there was no reason for U-jin to use this sword himself.

Since it wasn't complete in the first place, he might reconsider if it were repaired, but for now, he couldn't use it as a weapon even if he wanted to.

And repairing this weapon to use it immediately was difficult.

Rather than its function as a weapon, its role as a kind of evidence that proved the existence of the Four Auspicious Beasts and could reveal their locations was bound to be more important.

“…I won't waste your time with a long introduction.”