Chapter 821: Where is my son?

At the old man’s words, Ilcheonggeom asked back.

“The Gate of Heaven Sect Leader?”

“That’s right.”

“Huh?”

That old man is the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader? Ilcheonggeom couldn’t hide his bewilderment.

The search had only just begun yesterday. I’d planned to wait up to fifteen days if necessary, but the Sect Leader shows up so suddenly like this?

‘Is he really the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader?’

Doubt flashed for a moment. It was too flimsy to believe just based on his words alone. Besides.

‘Was he that strong?’

The Gate of Heaven Sect Leader’s known cultivation level isn’t that high. If anything, it’s a level where he couldn’t even contend with the deputy leader of the Blue Dragon Unit…

‘This guy…’

The old man is at least Hwagyeong. Unlike the information, his cultivation level was far too high.

So, as Ilcheonggeom looked at the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader with suspicious eyes, the old man spoke.

“I heard you were looking for me, so I thought it would be polite to come find you first. I hope you are pleased.”

At the old man’s words, a hollow laugh naturally burst out.

“Well now….”

His gaze cooled and sank.

“It seems you thought the Martial Alliance was quite a joke.”

At the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader’s words, Ilcheonggeom’s expression contorted.

“You appeared like this knowing the Martial Alliance was looking for you guys? Knowing who I am?”

Grrrrrrr—!!!

Starting from his shoulders, Ilcheonggeom’s battle aura began to waver faintly.

“If this is a joke, it’s not even funny.”

“A joke? As I said, I was merely showing courtesy.”

“Oh really?”

Grrrrk-!! Sword energy overlaid the blade.

The energy created ripples. Soon, wind slowly gathered.

“Then, I too must show appropriate courtesy.”

He entered combat readiness. Currently, the Blue Dragon Unit’s forces were dispersed, but they would converge shortly after the battle began.

He also recalled the possibility of Gate of Heaven Sect disciples being positioned nearby.

‘Subdue if possible. Eliminate if not.’

The order was to ascertain if they were related to the Demonic Cult and eliminate them all if so, but in this situation, doing otherwise would be fine.

Because the opponent appearing directly like this was a kind of declaration of war.

Crack-! He put strength into his soles. The ground caved in, and Ilcheonggeom’s body charged at the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader.

Fast. The sound followed only after Ilcheonggeom had already reached his destination.

Thump-!

The sword shook lightly.

Flashes poured out like spilling stars. Just as the light was about to reach the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader’s neck.

“I know the Great Leader’s objective regarding the Saint King.”

Halt-!

Whoooosh—-!!!

At the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader’s single utterance, Ilcheonggeom’s body stopped moving. The sword stopped, releasing strong wind pressure.

The blade stopped just before contact. Ilcheonggeom stared at the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader with chilling eyes.

“…What did you just say?”

His voice was filled with killing intent, but he ultimately didn’t continue his action.

Seeing this, the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader added.

“What did you just say, you ask-“

“And. I also know the Saint King’s condition is not good.”

“…!”

“I believe the Great Leader probably knows this too. Am I right?”

Ilcheonggeom’s pupils wavered at the string of information.

How on earth did he know?

At Ilcheonggeom’s reaction, the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader raised the corners of his aged mouth and said.

“Our eyes and ears aren’t limited to the Four Heavens.”

“…”

“I apologize if I surprised you. It just so happens that the Blue Dragon Great Leader’s objective doesn’t seem entirely hostile, which is why I came to see you.”

As he spoke, the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader moved his hand.

His slender finger touched Ilcheonggeom’s blade.

“If what I’ve seen isn’t accurate… I’ll accommodate the Great Leader’s desires… But if it is.”

He pushed the blade, and the sword moved without resistance.

“How about we talk quietly for a moment? I assure you, it won’t be bad news for the Great Leader.”

“…”

Hearing this, Ilcheonggeom’s breath hitched slightly. It was words he shouldn’t need to hear.

The Demonic Path.

A conversation with the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader, who was suspected of being involved with the Demonic Cult.

This was unacceptable for someone of the Orthodox Path. Moreover, as the Great Leader of the Martial Alliance.

He should immediately shut his ears and draw his sword.

He should have roared in anger, accusing the Sect Leader of daring to scheme against the Alliance’s Great Leader.

That was the virtue he should uphold as the Alliance’s Great Leader…

He surely knew that.

Chulkuk.

When he came to his senses, the drawn sword was already back in its sheath.

“…If you spout bullshit, I’ll cut you down right then and there.”

Grinding his teeth, Ilcheonggeom said.

“I am grateful for your magnanimity.”

The Gate of Heaven Sect Leader smiled, looking at Ilcheonggeom.

And then.

“…”

In the darkness, the master of the night watched this.

---

“Is that so?”

He said, listening to Amwang’s words.

“Yes.”

“Hmm….”

“The Gate of Heaven Sect Leader and Ilcheonggeom made contact.”

At those words, he clicked his tongue briefly inwardly.

It was something he had expected…

“Faster than I thought?”

It wasn’t that he was simply happy because everything went as expected.

‘I thought he would at least hesitate once.’

No matter what, he was the Alliance’s Great Leader. A person who had been involved with the Orthodox Path for a long time.

Even knowing the future, I thought he would refuse at least once.

But.

‘He takes the offer without much hesitation?’

Ilcheonggeom went along with just one word from the Gate of Heaven Sect Leader, without any hesitation.

Ah, well, it hasn’t been confirmed whether he’s fully gone along with it yet.

‘From my perspective, he’s already crossed the line.’

Once it reaches that point, it’s all over.

Thinking about it made him chuckle slightly.

‘Was I perhaps expecting something?’

I was just sneering, telling myself there was no further bottom and to expect the expected. But it seems a sliver of lingering attachment, if not regret, remained somewhere.

Disappointment only arises when you have expectations, after all.

“Still, well. Thanks to this, I feel refreshed.”

The smile he wore this time wasn’t a sneer.

It was a genuine smile born from feeling genuinely good.

If I’m going to kill them anyway, isn’t it better to have no lingering doubts? In that sense, this was a decent gain.

Ilcheonggeom even abandoned a conviction he might not have even known he had, so that’s that.

That’s enough.

“Now then, let’s see….”

He walked and bent down slightly. A ‘chulbak’ sound was heard.

It was the sound made by stepping on a puddle.

The space was dark, so the situation wasn’t clearly visible.

He immediately raised his hand and conjured fire.

Hwa-reuk-!

Although it was a small flame, it instantly illuminated the space. Soon, the space was revealed.

What I was stepping on wasn’t a puddle of water.

It was all blood.

A sharp, metallic smell. I directed my gaze into the pool of blood filling the floor.

“Kkeu…heu….”

A man whimpering as if terrified. On either side of him lay corpses that seemed to have already breathed their last.

Their throats were torn out, and they had died just like that. And I was the one who killed them.

This was the location of the guys suspected of having secret meetings with the Gate of Heaven Sect. The ones suspected of being from the ‘Demonic Cult’.

“So.”

He reached out and gently stroked the man’s cheek.

The blood on his hand smeared onto the skin. The man surely felt the drops of blood flowing down.

“P-please… please… please…”

The man’s lower body trembled violently. His pants slowly became wet.

It seemed he had wet himself.

Ignoring this, he asked.

“Who are you guys?”

I hope you answer this time. If you don’t want to end up like the ones I killed earlier.

---

Inside a room in the central part of the Martial Alliance in Hanam.

Sarak. Sarak.

It was a time when most were asleep and it was quiet. There, with a lamp barely lit, an old man moved his brush.

His speed was so fast that it seemed like only a few strokes, yet a letter was completed.

Furthermore, as if it wasn’t tiring, he didn’t rest even for a moment. The old man moved, solely focused on the letters.

Despite such fast and precise work speed, the letters on the desk didn’t seem to decrease. That meant the volume was immense.

It was a quantity that looked exhausting enough to make one unable to work, yet the old man silently carried on with his task as if unconcerned.

If there was one regret, perhaps it was that his speed had significantly slowed compared to his youth?

Twenty years. No, even ten years ago, he would have already finished the work with time to spare. The reality of his aging body truly hit him.

He continued working for quite some time after that.

“…Hmm.”

Then, the old man put down his brush for a moment.

He then rubbed his eyes with his thumb and index finger, perhaps tired.

“I’ve gotten old too.”

He murmured with a bitter smile.

The changes from before were clearly felt, making it even more so. After all, it’s natural to age at this age.

However, the biggest concern was that it wasn’t just his body that had aged.

‘Even his heart.’

It was the fact that his very heart had aged.

Time could sweep away even the beliefs and convictions one held.

Knowing that, the old man often recalled.

‘…Indeed.’

Did he still have any firmly held convictions left?

How much of the dreams he had in his youth remained in this old body?

He was curious. Terribly curious, yet paradoxically, he didn’t want to know.

Why could that be? Perhaps.

‘Is it because I already know the answer?’

Perhaps he was afraid of confirming it because he already knew the answer himself.

It felt that way, so the old man, Mookyeon, let out a bitter laugh and picked up his brush.

‘…I’ve been having too many stray thoughts.’

Lately, I’ve been thinking thoughts I haven’t had in a long time. Whenever I stop working, even for a moment, this happens.

I already knew the cause of this too.

‘It’s probably because of that child.’

Her name was Pi Yeonyeon, wasn’t it? The woman who appeared, claiming to be a descendant of the Eulryeong Sword Empress.

From the moment the child from Shanxi brought her up, Mookyeon’s insides had been in turmoil.

It felt like encountering remnants of the past I had forgotten. Forgotten, or tried to forget.

For years, I had been deceiving myself with the excuse that it couldn’t be helped, but with that child’s appearance, I couldn’t even do that anymore.

Was it really something that couldn’t be helped?

I left the Alliance because I couldn’t find the answer to this. But.

‘Now that I’ve returned, that child has appeared.’

It was as if she appeared before Mookyeon, reminding him not to forget his unfinished business.

Don’t run away this time. Try to provide the answer you couldn’t give.

It felt as if she had appeared with just such an intention.

“…Haha.”

Thinking thus, Mookyeon suddenly let out a laugh.

If this were a problem, it would be an incredibly difficult one. Then.

‘The one who set such a cruel problem….’

Who was the setter of the problem that complicated Mookyeon?

A face came to mind just then.

Someone who not only brought a child to reveal herself but also kept reminding him of what happened back then.

The Saint King.

Recalling him, Mookyeon stroked his wrinkled lips.

If there was a setter, it could only be that young man.

‘Perhaps… did he do it knowing everything?’

If so, what did he know that made him act that way?

It was unknowable.

Besides Pi Yeonyeon, the Saint King was also a difficult problem for Mookyeon to solve.

At least.

Not yet.

“…Hoo.”

While lost in thought, Mookyeon began to move his brush again.

He had rested enough.

Now was the time to do what needed to be done. So, just as he was about to resume his work.

“…”

Suddenly, Mookyeon’s moving brush froze.

He turned his gaze to the lit lamp. At that moment.

Pik.

The lit lamp suddenly lost its light. There was clearly no wind.

As the light went out, the room suddenly plunged into darkness.

It was a situation that was obviously unnatural. One might be flustered by this, but Mookyeon was rather calm.

He seemed to know why such a situation had occurred.

As if to prove this, Mookyeon quietly murmured.

“If I had known you were coming, I would have prepared some tea… I’m sorry I couldn’t.”

Mookyeon’s tone was friendly, as if meeting an acquaintance after a long time, but his eyes were not.

The room had been empty. But when Mookyeon spoke, someone was already standing before him.

Darkness shrouded the space, making it impossible to see even an inch ahead, yet one thing was clearly visible within it: burning red eyes.

The crimson pupils stared at Mookyeon, filled with emotion as if symbolizing rage.

He involuntarily swallowed dryly at that gaze, but Mookyeon forced himself to endure it.

And after a short while.

“Though I have many questions for you, who broke our promise.”

“Gak.”

Simultaneously, a large hand grasped Mookyeon’s neck.

His thin, frail body was lifted by the thick hand.

“I will ask only one thing.”

“Kkeuk-.”

“Mookyeon.”

Gu Cheolun asked Mookyeon.

“Where is my son?”

His voice sounded as if he could tear the other person apart at any moment.