At the promise that he’d be sent back, color returned to Buk Mu Gyeol’s gloomy face.If he got dragged off like this, he felt he’d never return.But if Yeon Cheon Baek said it, he would keep it.Because that’s the kind of man he was.“I have a question.”Yeon Cheon Baek smirked at Buk Mu Gyeol’s words.“You want to ask what I plan to use the Demonic Tiger Relic for.”“That’s right. Back then you said you were going to track Magi…”“Correct. Do you know the Demonic Cult?”“The Demonic Cult! How could anyone not? It’s the force founded by demons and demonic beasts coming up from the Demonic Realm.”“Right. Those bastards are preparing to surface again.”“S-so the Relic is to find them?”“Yes.”Hearing the reason, Buk Mu Gyeol’s face grew grave.This wasn’t merely the Central Plains’ problem.If demons and demonic beasts emerged, would they ravage only the Central Plains and stop?No.Once they conquered the Central Plains, their next targets would be the powers beyond the passes.“So it wasn’t just the Central Plains’ problem. If you’d said so sooner, I would have helped.”Yeon Cheon Baek grinned at Buk Mu Gyeol’s words.“Then I wouldn’t have gotten to see what you lot can do.”“…Sir?”“It’s been a while since I had a chance to enjoy myself. You think I’d pass that up?”Buk Mu Gyeol was speechless.From the start, this man hadn’t even regarded the Ice Palace as his opponent. It was just a game.“But looking around, you’ve been busy preparing. Why? Got greedy for the Central Plains again? Realm goes up and your hands start itching?”At Yeon Cheon Baek’s jab, Buk Mu Gyeol flinched.“T-that…”“Count yourself lucky.”At the smiling words, Buk Mu Gyeol’s skin crawled.If Yeon Cheon Baek hadn’t come here for the Relic and the Ice Palace had invaded the Central Plains—They would have met that monster.And he wouldn’t have held back like he had now.“A shame, really. I could’ve cut loose.”The way Yeon Cheon Baek smacked his lips made Buk Mu Gyeol’s knees go weak.In the end, unease pushed him to honesty.“In truth, an unknown force gave us tremendous support. They told us to invade the Central Plains at the right time, and they’d back us.”“Oh? Now that’s interesting. Go on.”“Among the things they provided was the Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Crystal.”“So you absorbed the crystal’s power and dragged your realm up.”“Yes.”“A force that can hand out Ten-Thousand-Year Ice Crystals without blinking. Even our Martial Deity Heaven doesn’t go that far.”Yeon Cheon Baek looked at Buk Mu Gyeol.“If they aren’t human, they wouldn’t covet such ice—so sure, they could give it away.”“N-not human?”“Demons. If their goal is to throw the Central Plains into chaos, it fits perfectly. Looks like you got played by the Demonic Cult.”At “played by the Demonic Cult,” Buk Mu Gyeol’s face flushed red.“Pathetic. When someone hands you something that outrageous, you should’ve been suspicious. Blinded by greed, you couldn’t see an inch ahead.”“I apologize.”“So you just about met me as a full enemy.”A chill like a blade.Feeling Yeon Cheon Baek’s killing intent, Buk Mu Gyeol trembled.The Ice Palace had nearly been wiped out.“To think you dared cast eyes on the Central Plains with only this much. You can’t even beat me—never mind that the Central Plains is guarded by my grandson, who’s several times stronger than I am.”“W-what? S-several times?”“Maybe even more. Truth is, I’ve never seen that brat go all out.”Was he supposed to believe this?“I trained like a madman to draw out his full power—and then realized my grandson’s just as much a training maniac. He’s young, too, so he gets stronger even faster.”“H-how old is your grandson?”“Barely past twenty.”He was at a loss for words.Barely past twenty—and several times stronger than Yeon Cheon Baek?And on top of that, a training maniac?And still getting stronger now?What kind of monster was that?“Hard to believe? I don’t believe it either when I look at my grandson. Heh heh. One thing’s certain. He’s my grandson. Heh heh.”Emphasizing “my grandson,” Yeon Cheon Baek laughed like the happiest man alive.Happy, no doubt.So Buk Mu Gyeol thought.Hearing all this made him curious about that grandson.What kind of person was he?“Curious?”At Yeon Cheon Baek’s question, Buk Mu Gyeol nodded.“Heh heh heh. You’ll meet him soon.”“I truly look forward to it.”“Want me to set up a duel? You’ll be in for a shock. Heh heh.”“Would you?”“Heh heh. Sure. Depending on how you behave, I’ll arrange it.”“Thank you.”They were talking about Yeon Woo Jin when—“It’s Yeoulryang. May I enter for a moment?”Buk Mu Gyeol looked to Yeon Cheon Baek.Asking with his eyes if it was all right to let him in.When Yeon Cheon Baek nodded, Buk Mu Gyeol said,“Enter.”Clatter—.Yeoulryang came in and handed a letter to Buk Mu Gyeol.Buk Mu Gyeol unfolded it at once and read.“Mm.”When he finished, he carefully offered the letter to Yeon Cheon Baek.“Would you care to read it?”“No. What’s it say?”“It’s from the force that {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} supported the Ice Palace. It asks when we will attack the Central Plains.”“When? Why tell you that?”“They say other frontier forces will join.”“Do they now? When?”“In a month.”A slow grin.“So, in a month, fun things happen?”“Y-yes.”“Then we’d better hurry back to the Central Plains. Heh heh.”Seeing Yeon Cheon Baek smile, Buk Mu Gyeol let out a breath of relief.He was no longer an enemy.“Do you know which frontier rats are ‘joining’?”“I do. The Southern Wilds Beast Palace, Podarap Palace, and Gale Monastery.”“Gale Monastery’s right on the way. We’ll drop by.”“U-understood.”Would the people of Gale Monastery know?That a real gale was blowing straight for them. ****“Gaaaah!”“Guhhhk!”This place, where screams never ceased from all sides, was Mount Hua.Countless people writhed in pain, tormented.They were the elites of each sect gathered from every corner of the Central Plains.Behind the writhing figures, the leaders of each sect were suffering as well.“Urk!”“Kehk!”“Gahk!”Thud-thud-thump—.With short cries, people were knocked away and rolled across the floor.At the center stood Yeon Woo Jin.The sect leaders strewn on the ground twitched, unconscious.Yeon Woo Jin scratched his head and muttered,“Oops. Maybe I hit a little too hard?”Hearing him mutter, Head Abbot Hyeon Go shouted,“Young Lord Yeon! These people are dying!”At the urgent cry, Yeon Woo Jin moved.He checked the nearest person first.White light rose from his hand, then drew in; the dying man’s eyes snapped open.As soon as the eyes opened, he moved on and saved the next one the same way.No matter how many times they saw it, it was astonishing.They never got used to it.To bring someone back from death that easily.Someone asked the dazed Head Abbot,“Did I just die and come back?”“Yes.”At “died and came back,” the man shook all over.“Compose yourself, benefactor. We’re only beginning.”“Beginning? I just died and came back!”“So did I.”“…What?”“I’ve died and come back dozens of times.”“E-even you, Abbot?”“Yes. You have no idea how many times I went to greet the Buddha.”“Good heavens…”“Prepare yourself.”“F-for what?”“What else? A bout.”“I—I’ll sit this one—”Before the sentence ended, some unseen force dragged him away.“N-no!”Watching the screaming man hauled off, Hyeon Go recalled what he’d gone through.Truly days like hell.Yeon Woo Jin drove people mercilessly.With the intent to kill.No—he did kill them.Then brought them back.That was the absurd part.One thing was certain.After finishing that training, they became stronger.More than anything, they grew hard.Death stopped being frightening.Resentment toward the Demonic Cult boiled up.Those bastards who had forced them to endure this agony—They gnashed their teeth, vowing to tear them to pieces upon meeting them.Hyeon Go felt the same.Soon, the ones Yeon Woo Jin was training now would be like that too.Did they know?That what they were going through was still only the basics?That true training hadn’t even begun?“Venerable, it’s time to go in.”Someone called to Hyeon Go.He turned. It was Venerable White Cloud, the Wudang Sect Head.“Already?”“I envy you, Venerable, to have leisure to worry about others.”“Call it nosiness. Haa… Let’s go.”Hyeon Go and Venerable White Cloud shuffled off with drooping shoulders.“Facing illusions while your whole body feels a thousand-catty weight…”“The body hardly moves, and the illusions ignore the formation’s drag and zip around—it’s sheer misery.”“Still, it’s better than the first time. I’m dodging decently now.”“Same here.”“We’ll be full of chronic injuries when this ends.”“Even if we are, he’ll heal us again. The pain is brief.”“Either way, we’re the lucky ones—chosen by that lord.”At Venerable White Cloud’s words, Hyeon Go nodded.“Let’s live up to his expectations.”“Let’s.”The formation they were heading into was the Heavenly Force Crown-Pressing Formation.Inside it, the body became crushingly heavy and hard to move.To move at all, you had to burn inner energy without pause—and on top of that, you had to fight the illusions Yeon Woo Jin injected.At first, no one could move properly; they got pummeled and dropped all over the floor.Not now.They were resisting, using footwork to dodge.Still not enough.At first, no one could see what meaning this training had.But once you stepped out of the formation, you felt it instantly.The body moved twice as fast as usual; inner energy ran quicker.Every response in the body was doubled, and the force hit harder.Those who experienced it, hard as it was, started stepping into the formation on their own to train.And finishing this training wasn’t the end.Final check: another spar with Yeon Woo Jin.The trainees, exhausted as they were, looked forward to it.How strong would they be when all this was over?With that hope, they threw themselves into practice.Watching them grit their teeth and endure, Yeon Woo Jin smiled.Even if the gates of the Demonic Realm opened and demons came out, they wouldn’t be able to do as they pleased with humans.Because these people would be there.Now he had one job.Find the rifts connected to the Demonic Realm and erase them.No—erase the Demonic Realm itself so this never happens again.How vast and dangerous was the Demonic Realm?How strong was the Heavenly Demon?Stronger than him?He was already strong enough.But if something even stronger than this existed in the Demonic Realm…Yeon Woo Jin clenched his teeth.Not enough.He had to get stronger.Thinking so, Yeon Woo Jin tightened his fist. ****Wheeeee—.Here, where sand-laden wind blew hard—The endless sea of sand: the Great Desert.“Seriously—how do you lot, and those Gale Monastery rats, live in a place like this?”“It’s not that we want to. We live because we’ve nowhere else to go.”“Click, click. Want me to grant you a parcel in the Central Plains? Put down roots there?”“I’m grateful, but how could we abandon our homeland? We must live here.”“If it’s not to claim better land, then why keep attacking the Central Plains?”

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