novelraw Chapter 19
Chapter 19
Chapter 19:
7. Ten Thousand Mountain Range (2)
Jeong-min thought.
There's no need to wipe out the Blood Cult.
Who would that benefit? If the Blood Cult fell, the only faction of any use left in Xinjiang would be the Heavenly Demon Cult—that would actually make things worse.
In that case, just like with Potala Palace, the right move was to absorb them into a single alliance if at all possible.
If that came to pass, no one would dare look down on the Heavenly Demon Cult.
"Ho. Joining the Western Alliance, you say."
The Heavenly Demon, Hyeok Je-un, seemed not to have thought that far ahead; he was impressed by his grandson's ambition.
After a moment's thought, Hyeok Je-un nodded and spoke to Jeong-min.
"But what if the Blood Cult refuses? Will you crush them as the last resort?"
"No."
Jeong-min said firmly.
"They won't be able to refuse."
Because Jeong-min had a move.
A proposal the Blood Cult Leader could not turn down.
Cult Leader Gyeong. You may not know me—but I know you.
Seeing Jeong-min's faint smile, Hyeok Je-un nodded.
"Very well. I'll assign the Shadow Strike Corps to you."
"I'm more than enough on my own."
"Alone, into the Ten Thousand Mountain Range? It'll be treacherous. And if the first option is rejected, getting out alive won't be easy."
"It's not like I can always play in places with nice air and clean water. A troublemaker grows strong by being thrown around."
Calling himself a troublemaker left Hyeok Je-un somewhere between wry amusement and a smile.
"Alright. If you come back from this—"
"Yes?"
Hyeok Je-un suddenly went quiet.
A moment later, he continued with what he had resolved to say.
"I'll give you the position of Junior Cult Leader."
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.
.
The Ten Thousand Mountain Range.
Located in Mangyuan Prefecture, at the far northern edge of Xinjiang, this mountain encircled a wide plain in a ring.
And that plain was the Blood Cult's stronghold. To enter the Blood Cult's Main Hall, one had to cross the Ten Thousand Mountain Range without exception.
The problem lay in the state of the Ten Thousand Mountain Range itself.
"Hey there, young man."
Someone called out urgently to Jeong-min as he was about to set foot on the mountain.
He turned to look—2 middle-aged men carrying loads on their backs were watching him with worried expressions.
"Are you talking to me?"
"That's right. I'm asking—are you really thinking of going into that mountain?"
Jeong-min stared blankly up at the Ten Thousand Mountain Range.
It was high and treacherous; just crossing it looked like it would take several hours.
And from the murky air, an ominous energy could be felt.
"Yes."
"Don't do that."
"Why?"
"You must be an outsider. Anyone from Mangyuan Prefecture would know."
Jeong-min gave a vague nod.
One of the middle-aged men continued.
"That mountain is hell. The people around here don't go anywhere near it. You think that fence is there for nothing?"
Indeed, the fence encircling the Ten Thousand Mountain Range was imposing.
Though Jeong-min had already climbed over it.
In other words, he and the 2 middle-aged men were speaking across the fence between them.
"Why is it hell?"
"Demonic Beasts that devour men live in the Ten Thousand Mountain Range. And beyond it is the Blood Cult—a pack of killers."
Yes, that is exactly what I'm after.
I already know it's hell.
If I do not enter hell, who will?
Had Jeong-min not come here with that very intention?
On top of that, the Demonic Beasts said to appear in the Ten Thousand Mountain Range were supposedly stronger than the Tianshan Tiger?
I can't wait to fight one.
These words only stoked Jeong-min's competitive spirit.
"Thank you for telling me. I'll be on my way then."
"Ah—no, wait!"
Watching Jeong-min dart away and vanish in an instant, the 2 middle-aged men looked at each other and shook their heads.
"That young fellow is rushing headlong to his death."
"Looking at him now, he's not even that young—isn't he just a child?"
"Tch, leaves a bad taste. Should we have helped?"
"Let's go. It's not like we're wandering heroes. None of our business."
The 2 middle-aged men left just like that.
And Jeong-min continued up the Ten Thousand Mountain Range at a brisk pace.
He'd have to move at quite a clip to get across.
Roughly 2 hours should do it, I'd say.
Jeong-min recalled what the Heavenly Demon Hyeok Je-un had told him before he chose to head for the Blood Cult.
He had said he would give him the position of Junior Cult Leader.
And I'm only 14.
This too, he was told, was a decision his 2 older brothers had already agreed to.
Right—he had suspected it to some degree ever since he received the Heavenly Ascent Sword.
Because the Heavenly Ascent Sword is passed down through the generations to whoever bears the title of Heavenly Demon.
It was a little hard to understand why Grandfather was passing down the sword while he was still in good health.
Jeong-min mused on it as he looked at the Heavenly Ascent Sword hanging at his hip.
Honestly, it was difficult to grasp what his 2 older brothers were thinking. Their younger brother, so much younger than them, was to become Junior Cult Leader—didn't that sting their pride?
Becoming Junior Cult Leader essentially means inheriting the position of Cult Leader. Under Heavenly Demon Cult doctrine, the Junior Cult Leader takes the seat upon the Cult Leader's passing.
Saying his brothers were gracious was an understatement—they overflowed with generosity.
In the end, when Jeong-min had gone to Hyeok Jang-ho and Hyeok Mun-ha and asked, what he heard was:
—Then who else but you?
An absurdly straightforward response.
With nothing to say to that, Jeong-min had nodded and accepted.
It wasn't as though he had been desperate for the position of Junior Cult Leader—but still, if that seat was his.
Then I can make the Heavenly Demon Cult even stronger.
The Heavenly Demon Cult needed to grow stronger.
To stand against the Martial Alliance.
The Cult's efforts had likely already shifted the future somewhat from what he remembered.
The Martial Alliance and his father Bang-rip were secretly in contact—it would be no surprise if they came to strike the Heavenly Demon Cult at any moment.
So before that happened, he needed to secure an alliance with the Blood Cult as well.
1 is too few. 2 is uncertain. But 3 makes for strength.
An alliance with Potala Palace and the Blood Cult.
It was bluster and façade. There was no way of knowing whether the 2 groups would actually come to the Heavenly Demon Cult's aid when things turned dire.
Yet however insignificant it might seem, even 3 weaklings banded together could stop a single powerful force from drawing near.
Thinking of it made Jeong-min eager to reach the Blood Cult quickly.
The proposal the Blood Cult Leader could not refuse—Jeong-min held it in his hands.
That aside.
Jeong-min recalled another conversation he had with Hyeok Je-un before departing.
It was something that could perhaps decide the very fate of the Heavenly Demon Cult going forward.
—Grandfather. There is something I must tell you.
Upon hearing what Jeong-min had to say, Hyeok Je-un was startled—and yet at the same time, nodded as though he had already suspected it.
With an expression that said the tale his grandson told him had cut somewhere deep, Hyeok Je-un replied.
—I see.
A single word saying he had already dimly known it all.
From there, it was something the Heavenly Demon Hyeok Je-un had to handle himself. It was now out of Jeong-min's hands.
He could only hope his grandfather would make the right choice.
"Hm?"
It was right then.
Screech—Jeong-min, who had been moving at a run, dragged his feet through the dirt and stopped.
Something had appeared ahead.
It was—
A Demonic Beast.
The Demonic Beast, Blood Wolf!
True to its name, crimson-tinged fur that looked as though it had soaked in blood, and a drooling trickle of gore from its mouth.
It was easily twice the size of an ordinary wolf.
And 3 of these Blood Wolves had appeared before Jeong-min.
Well. They certainly look fearsome.
Though honestly, these Blood Wolves did not seem to be the real thing to worry about in the Ten Thousand Mountain Range.
Inside the Ten Thousand Mountain Range, there was a feeling that something far more ferocious was lurking.
—Grrrrr.
The Blood Wolves were not looking at Jeong-min.
Standing before them was some bandit.
"H-huu…"
What led Jeong-min to identify the man as a bandit was the green sash at his waist. Forest Bandits, huh?
Jeong-min thought as he took in the bandit's appearance.
What—Forest Bandits, here in the Ten Thousand Mountain Range?
When even one person could barely get through, why would anyone bother banditry in the Ten Thousand Mountain Range unless they intended to throw their life away?
Right beyond here is the Blood Cult. Who on earth are you trying to rob?
"I-if you come any closer, I'll stab you!"
The clean-faced bandit threatened, but the Blood Wolves advanced on him without hesitation.
The blood drooling from their mouths made the sight rather grotesque.
"D-don't come closer! Aaaaaah!"
The bandit swung his sword in a frenzy.
When the blade grazed the forehead of one Blood Wolf, the enraged pack lunged and tore the bandit to pieces.
—Rrrrgh!
"Kugh! Aaaah! H-help!"
But the bandit became a corpse within mere seconds.
Jeong-min watched the scene with perfect calm.
Hm. Certainly strong.
Not called Demonic Beasts for nothing.
As Jeong-min stood watching with arms folded, one Blood Wolf suddenly turned its gaze this way.
Ah, spotted me?
"Carry on with what you were doing."
—Grrrr.
The Blood Wolves stopped squarely before Jeong-min.
They were growling as if to drive him away.
As though warning others away from entering the Ten Thousand Mountain Range.
"Going to attack? Go right ahead."
—Rrrrgh!
The Blood Wolves snarled fiercely.
But as Jeong-min reacted without the slightest alarm, they actually tilted their heads to one side.
"How many years have I been eating swords? You think I'd flinch at the likes of you."
—Grrr…
Jeong-min watched the Blood Wolves for a moment, then looked to the right—at the bandit's corpse.
After a brief deliberation, he pulled a sack from within his garments.
"Actually good timing. Glad I thought to bring this just in case."
.
.
.
Along the way, he came across several more Blood Wolves.
Each time, Jeong-min had breezed past them with ease.
There was a reason he could.
"Right, here it is."
The mountain crossing ended and an open expanse came into view.
As Jeong-min moved toward it, he could see a cluster of dwellings formed beneath an oddly shaped cliff.
There were several straw-thatched houses. Some had smoke rising from them—dinnertime, perhaps—and children were running around playing in the village.
Jeong-min knew exactly where this was.
The Blood Cult.
His hands were drenched in blood.
Blood was dripping steadily from the sack strapped to his back as well.
And 1 more thing.
"Ow, ow, ow. Settle down."
The Demon Vein in Jeong-min's left arm was surging again with murderous intent.
The Demon Vein burned as if it might swallow Jeong-min whole at any moment.
Must be some formation cast over the Blood Cult.
Time to head in and see.
The clue to resolving this Demon Vein was right here.
.
.
.
Jeong-min came down beneath the cliff.
Even so, no one in the village paid him any mind.
The Blood Cult, for all its name implied, had a strangely peaceful and quiet atmosphere—a small village.
Right, even Jeong-min was entering this place for the first time in the flesh.
When you think about it, shouldn't this be called Blood Village rather than Blood Cult?
Jeong-min had heard rumors in his past life.
Nothing more than idle gossip going around, but the rumor was gruesome enough that dismissing it with a laugh wasn't easy.
The reason they all live huddled together like this.
Just then—as if finally noticing the sack Jeong-min carried on his back, the villagers' gazes began gathering toward him one by one.
"Who are you?"
"An outsider?"
Their eyes held an expression of seeing something uncanny.
"How did you get through the Ten Thousand Mountain Range?"
"And there's a formation over this place—just anyone shouldn't be able to get in."
Jeong-min let their murmured conversation drift past him.
Every single Blood Cult villager had red spots on their skin.
Some had large spots, some small, some with several scattered here and there across their faces.
Come to think of it, this is clearly dinnertime—but there's no smell of meat broth simmering.
Shing—swish—
There was a menacing air as though they might attack with their hoes and sickles at any moment, and Jeong-min set down the sack.
Thud. Blood seeped out along with the sound.
The Blood Cult villagers were startled.
"What is that?"
"Since you're curious, I suppose I should tell you."
Jeong-min undid the sack's cord.
At that, the Blood Cult villagers were even more startled, and swallowed hard.
"This is……"