“...Th-that... perhaps you inherited this seat’s blood?”
“...Pardon?”
“No, I’ve heard things here and there myself. They say you’re the illegitimate son of the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“So I was wondering if perhaps there had been some sort of arrangement between this seat and your father... something along those lines.”
Unhwi had heard something similar before.
When had it been?
Probably from U-rin of the Soul Demon Flame Palace.
At the moment of his death, after seeing the Blood Demon Heaven-Collapsing Art Unhwi unleashed, he had shouted:
You are the Heavenly Wayfarer’s bastard son.
Yeongunseong’s words were somewhat different, but the context was similar.
“When you fight seriously, radiance pours from your head... and somehow you resemble this seat when that happens. Of course, perhaps it’s merely my own misunderstanding. If I offended you, then I apologize.”
Unhwi shook his head.
“To answer the question first, I am not this seat’s hidden child.”
“Mmm...”
“I am wagering my life on that answer. I truly am not.”
“...If you say it that seriously, then I suppose it truly isn’t the case.”
“Yes. And I was not offended.”
“That’s a relief.”
Yeongunseong burst into hearty laughter.
“Well then, we’ve both said everything we needed to say and grasped each other’s intentions, so I’ll be going.”
“Thank you for both the advice and the warning.”
“What thanks? Let’s simply do well from now on.”
Waving his hand casually, Yeongunseong left.
Left alone at the edge of the cliff, Unhwi silently looked below.
A deep valley.
The bottom could not be seen.
Yeongunseong.
The last person he had seen in his previous life.
He was very different now.
When Unhwi had first entered the Blood Heaven Sect, he had learned under him.
At first, their relationship had been good.
But once Unhwi began purging figures within the Blood Heaven Sect, friction between them had continued to grow.
A relationship where they respected each other while also being capable of killing each other.
A relationship where, despite the gap in realms, both would still charge forward if it meant killing the other.
Would this time be different?
He did not know.
For a while, Unhwi stared at the place where Yeongunseong had disappeared.
If possible—
He did not want to fight Yeongunseong.
He meant that sincerely.
***
At the same time Unhwi crossed hands with Namgung Ho and spoke with Yeongunseong—
Someone was heading toward the Vice Leader’s residence deep within the headquarters.
It was Jeong Docheon of the Thunder Demon Cult.
He walked down a corridor without even a single lantern lit within it.
Even his footsteps were silent.
It was habit.
“Enter.”
The voice reached him before he even stopped in front of the door.
Jeong Docheon opened it.
Yu Cheong stood by the window.
Showing only his back.
Looking outside.
The darkening sky.
The red sunset dyed the side of his face crimson.
“Vice Leader.”
“Sit.”
Jeong Docheon sat down.
Still looking out the window, Yu Cheong spoke.
“How was it?”
Only four words.
But Jeong Docheon understood immediately what he was asking.
“...It was different from what I expected.”
“How so?”
“At first, I assumed it would be a formal conversation like the one in the grand hall.”
“So it wasn’t.”
“No. The moment we were alone together, he said he would kill me.”
Yu Cheong’s shoulder moved slightly.
It was impossible to tell whether he had laughed or not.
“Because of the Northern Wind Merchant Group?”
“Yes... and he also brought up those petty tricks used against the Snow Palace in the past.”
Back when Yang Seoljin had still been alive, an incident had occurred within the Snow Palace.
The White Snow Spirit Regiment and countless other groups had become entangled in it.
Even Juchae had been involved.
That incident as well had been Yu Cheong’s scheme, and Jeong Docheon had personally carried it out under Yu Cheong’s orders.
“He did not speak of it directly, but I am certain. He knows everything.”
Yu Cheong turned around.
He looked directly at Jeong Docheon.
His eyes were deep.
Like a bottomless well.
“So how did you escape?”
“I knelt.”
“Hoh.”
A faint smile formed on Yu Cheong’s lips.
“You?”
“...One must survive first, mustn’t one?”
“Yes. One must survive. Once dead, nothing can be done.”
Yu Cheong sat down across from Jeong Docheon.
“Did he ask anything else?”
Jeong Docheon hesitated briefly.
“...He asked about Heaven Beyond Heaven.”
Yu Cheong’s gaze changed.
Very slightly.
So slightly that an ordinary person would never notice.
But Jeong Docheon noticed.
“And how did you answer?”
“I told him I knew of it.”
“The truth?”
“...Yes.”
“How much?”
“...I spoke vaguely. I told him I knew more than someone completely ignorant would.”
“Then what did he ask afterward?”
“...He asked about Blood Stones.”
Yu Cheong sank into thought for a moment.
Blood Stones.
This was not something that could simply be ignored.
How much did he know?
Yu Cheong asked:
“What exactly did he ask about Blood Stones?”
“...He asked whether I knew why they were made.”
The corner of Yu Cheong’s mouth twitched.
Not something else—
The reason they were made?
“And what did you answer?”
“...For now, I told him I did not know.”
“Did he believe you?”
“...I do not know.”
There was no room for doubt here.
Jeong Docheon genuinely knew nothing about the purpose behind creating Blood Stones.
He only knew of the organization called Heaven Beyond Heaven.
He knew the method of creating them.
And he merely stored them within Peach Blossom Garden afterward.
He was essentially nothing more than a warehouse keeper.
Yu Cheong tapped the table with his finger.
Rhythmic sounds.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
“And Peach Blossom Garden?”
“He asked who the administrator was. The patrol cycle as well. And when the Maitreya Brahma Sect had visited.”
“Detailed.”
“Yes.”
“And what was your impression?”
Jeong Docheon thought briefly.
“...It felt as though he already knew.”
“About Blood Stones?”
“Yes. I do not know precisely what he knows, but at the very least, he knows what Blood Stones are made from. And he was already certain about the patrol cycle and the Maitreya Brahma Sect’s visit.”
Yu Cheong’s finger stopped.
Silence.
Outside the window, a bird cried out.
A sound announcing evening.
“Interesting.”
Yu Cheong murmured quietly.
From what he had just heard, the situation was becoming extremely interesting.
“The person this seat personally brought in is digging into this seat’s affairs.”
That was the conclusion.
Jeong Docheon said nothing.
This was not a matter he could answer.
“If the Heavenly Wayfarer learns of this...”
Yu Cheong laughed quietly.
“He already knows. This seat is not someone incapable of noticing. However.”
His words trailed off.
“He is likely watching. Watching to see how deeply that bastard digs. How much he uncovers. And.”
Yu Cheong’s gaze pierced into Jeong Docheon.
“Whose hand he chooses to take.”
Cold sweat ran down Jeong Docheon’s back.
“V-Vice Leader. I...”
“I know.”
Yu Cheong raised a hand, cutting him off.
“I understand better than anyone what kind of creature you are. Cunning. Servile. And precisely because of that, you survive.”
It was impossible to tell whether that was praise or criticism.
Perhaps it was both.
“Seol Unhwi has marked you.”
“...Yes.”
“He will not kill you. At least not yet.”
“......”
“Do you know why?”
Jeong Docheon slowly shook his head.
“Because the Blood Heaven Sect still needs you.”
Yu Cheong leaned forward slightly.
“There are not many capable of creating Blood Stones. And among them, your skill is unmatched. There is no way Seol Unhwi fails to understand that.”
“......”
“He will try to put a leash around your neck. No—he already has.”
Jeong Docheon’s face turned pale.
It was true.
Judging from the atmosphere and the conversation itself, Unhwi had not hidden his intentions at all.
To put it bluntly, it was no different from a hunter dealing with prey.
And yet Jeong Docheon could not deny it.
Because in that moment—
He had truly been afraid.
Yu Cheong leaned back against his chair.
“Let me ask you one thing.”
Jeong Docheon swallowed.
“...Please ask anything.”
Yu Cheong slowly opened his mouth.
“Between the distrusted and the trusted, which do you believe survives longer?”
A strange question.
Obviously the trusted one—
That was what Jeong Docheon nearly answered.
Then suddenly he realized:
This was not that kind of question.
“......”
“No answer.”
“...I am thinking.”
“You need not think long. With your mind, you already know the answer.”
Jeong Docheon clenched his teeth.
He already knew.
The answer.
“...The distrusted one.”
“And why?”
“The trusted are not viewed with caution. Which means the moment they become unnecessary, they are discarded easily.”
He paused briefly.
“But the distrusted are different. Because they are always watched, always visible, they become predictable. And predictable existences are...”
“Controllable.”
Yu Cheong finished the sentence.
“Yes. That is the answer.”
Jeong Docheon raised his head.
Yu Cheong’s mouth and eyes were smiling.
But it was impossible to tell what lay hidden beneath that smile.
“Seol Unhwi distrusts you. That is why he spared you.”
“......”
“I also distrust you. Which is why I spared you as well.”
Yu Cheong rose from his seat.
“Yang Seoljin of the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace would certainly have succeeded in what he intended to accomplish. Without question. But then a variable appeared.”
He walked toward the window again.
Once more, he looked outside.
“Seol Unhwi. He is the one who shattered my plans. He killed Yang Seoljin and used that opportunity to unite the Snow Palace into one.”
Jeong Docheon said nothing.
He merely stared at Yu Cheong while suppressing even the sound of his breathing.
“And now it seems he intends to turn you into the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace’s Yang Seoljin.”
Jeong Docheon swallowed hard.
“V-Vice Leader! Please do not doubt my loyalty!”
Yu Cheong turned his head.
Demonic Master Yu Cheong.
True to his title, he smiled.
“Do not worry. I do not doubt you. What matters is not my suspicion.”
Jeong Docheon slowly lifted his head.
Yu Cheong continued:
“It is your suspicion.”
Jeong Docheon’s eyes widened.
“You may go. Tomorrow will be busy.”
“...Yes.”
Jeong Docheon stood up.
He still had many things he wished to say, and even more answers he wished to hear.
But that was the end of it.
Yu Cheong had told him to leave.
Then leaving was the correct choice.
He bowed deeply.
“And Jeong Docheon.”
“Yes.”
“Remember one thing.”
Yu Cheong turned his head.
Only the side of his face was visible.
“If the distrusted wish to survive, there is one condition.”
“...What is it?”
“They must remain predictable. Until the very end.”
A meaningful statement.
“The moment they move beyond prediction, suspicion becomes certainty. And the moment that certainty is formed—”
His words trailed off.
But Jeong Docheon understood what came after.
Someone else would be entrusted with Blood Stone production, and Jeong Docheon would be forced to spit out every technique he knew in order to train them.
His mouth suddenly felt dry.
“...I will remember it, Vice Leader.”
“Go.”
Jeong Docheon withdrew.
The door closed.
Yu Cheong remained alone.
He looked outside the window.
The sunset had almost vanished.
Darkness was advancing.
No matter what—
He needed to learn exactly how much Seol Unhwi knew.
One thing at a time.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Yu Cheong made up his mind.
He would use one of the hidden cards he had kept in reserve.
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