Chapter 98. The Entire World is My Home (19)
As she had some free time for the first time in a long time, Si-Hyeon walked around various stores in the market with Gun-Ha, with whom she had become quite close.
“Let’s buy that, unnie!”
“Oh wow! It really is pretty.”
“Right? Hehe.”
While they were enjoying themselves, a commotion suddenly broke out.
“Get her! We can’t let her get away!”
A woman was fleeing frantically while a group of people chased after her.
“Ahh!”
One of the men chasing the woman flipped over a street stall, causing Gun-Ha to scream as she was hit by the flying items. Fortunately, it was nothing more than a bruise. However, Si-Hyeon was still instantly angered when she saw her dear little sister injured.
“These villains!”
“Should we get back at them, unnie?”
“How?”
“Since they’re chasing that woman, let’s help her hide!”
“Sounds good!”
Since Gun-Ha originally lived in Hefei, she knew all too well the various shortcuts and hidden paths. Si-Hyeon was similarly experienced in traversing the streets due to traveling frequently throughout the city for guild business.
Still, considering how fast the men were moving, the two had to move even faster, no matter how much time they could cut by using shortcuts. So, Si-Hyeon put Gun-Ha on her back and used her movement technique.
The two combined what they knew of the city and overtook the others, appearing before the woman.
“Here, come over here! This way!”
The woman was momentarily conflicted by the sudden appearance of someone wanting to help her. However, when she saw that both Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha’s cultivations weren’t that high, she felt reassured and followed them.
The three eluded the woman’s pursuers by moving through various side paths that one wouldn’t know if they didn’t live in the city. Eventually, Si-Hyeon led them to one of the secret alcoves hidden throughout Hefei.
As they stopped to take a breather, the woman suddenly turned around and put the edge of her sword at Si-Hyeon’s throat.
“Who are you? Are you supposed to be some trap set by Martial Heaven?”
Although Si-Hyeon hadn’t noticed it when they were moving, she realized the woman was an expert, seeing the way she held a sword. Although her skills weren’t comparable to Woo-Moon’s, she seemed to be much better than Mu-Jae.
“You’re a lot more innocent than you look. If I asked you something like that, would you answer ‘yes’? Don’t worry. We’re from the Baek Family.”
Seeing Si-Hyeon’s gesture, Gun-Ha pulled something out of her sleeve and showed it to the woman—it was an identification tablet that confirmed they were from the Baek Family. Seeing the tablet, the woman relaxed and put her sword down.
Her arrival in Hefei wasn’t something she had planned in advance; rather, she had arrived at the city because of her pursuers. Moreover, she had come in this direction out of a split-second decision rather than because she was led here, meaning that there couldn’t possibly be enough time for her pursuers to obtain a Baek Family identification tablet and set up a trap.
“Then, why are you both helping me? Don’t tell me the Baek Family has turned to charity?”
“Well, it’s not because we wanted to help you. It was just because we were injured in the aftermath of your chase. We only got involved because we were angry.”
“Hmpf. How leisurely your life must be.”
Now that they had space to breathe, Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha took a better look at the woman. She looked to be in her mid-twenties and was wearing black robes.
“But, by the way, what is Martial Heaven?”
The woman was taken aback for a second, but then shook her head.
“You don’t have to know.”
Before Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha could say anything, the three women were startled by a voice.
“The scent of the tracking incense is coming from around here! Hurry up and find that bitch!”
The woman in black just realized how much worse the situation was. Who could have guessed that somewhere along the line, she had been marked?!
Cold sweat rolled down her face as she bit her lip so hard that it bled. Si-Hyeon also tensed up, holding Gun-Ha’s hand tightly.
‘What should we do? I only got involved because I thought they could never find us. I never thought that things would develop in this way.’
Even though they had hidden themselves in a secret space between two buildings, they couldn’t be confident that their enemy wouldn’t find them if they decided to search this area. All they could do was hope that the warriors of the Baek Family, who had to have been dispatched to resolve the commotion within Hefei, would arrive before their enemy found them.
The woman in black, Ga Moon-Young, also felt that time was running out.
She knew all too well how strong and persistent her pursuers were. She knew that things would be over the moment she was discovered.
Even if the warriors of the Baek Family were to arrive, her pursuers were too strong for them to handle. She was certain that the Baek Family would have only sent basic guards, assuming that the commotion wasn’t a big deal.
Ga Moon-Young reached into her sleeve and touched the two alabaster boxes she had hidden there.
‘I can never, EVER let Martial Heaven get their hands on this. But, if so...’
She resolved herself and made a decision after looking at Si-Hyeon.
“I’m sorry, but I have a favor to ask of you.”
“What is it?”
She drew the two alabaster boxes from her sleeve and handed them over to Si-Hyeon.
“Take this. Please give this to someone later.”
However, Si-Hyeon didn’t take the offered boxes. She had a strange feeling that if she were to do so, she would definitely become involved in something dangerous. Seeing her hesitate, Ga Moon-Young immediately dropped to her knees and kowtowed.
“Please, I beg of you! This is something more important to me than my life.”
As Si-Hyeon continued to hesitate, the weak-hearted Gun-Ha stretched out a hand and took the alabaster boxes.
“Gun-Ha!”
Although Si-Hyeon tried to stop her, the two boxes were already in Gun-Ha’s hands.
“Thank you! Also...I have one more request. You must never open those boxes.”
Ga Moon-Young tore off her sleeve and tied her sword to her hand tightly. It was an expression of her will to never let go of her sword, even if she died.
After finishing her preparations, she put her ear to the wall and listened to the situation outside. The moment the coast was clear, she slowly opened the door and spoke softly.
“My name is Ga Moon-Young, and I am a member of the Eighth Division of the Heavenly Demon Cult’s Demon Army. Please hand them over to someone from the Heavenly Demon Cult.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Ga Moon-Young slipped out of the secret cavity. Once she was far enough away from Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha, she deliberately hit a wall with her sword.
Clang!
“That’s!”
“Over there! That bitch is over there!”
The pursuers heard Ga Moon-Young and chased after her.
Fleeing out of Hefei, Ga Moon-Young continued to run along the Yangtze River to lead the enemies as far away from Hefei as possible.
However, there were some among her pursuers who had a greater mastery of movement techniques than her, and soon, she found herself surrounded on all sides.
“Bitch! If you obediently hand over the Heavenly Demon Egg, I’ll spare your life.”
Ga Moon-Young just sneered at them.
“Have you ever seen a cultist of our Heavenly Demon Cult beg for their life or betray the cult?”
“...No, of course not. My bad. All of you bastards are just as stubborn as the next. Well, what are you doing? Attack her!”
Although Ga Moon-Young fought with every fiber of her being to survive as long as possible, it didn’t take long for her to fall to her knees, her body pierced by five or six different weapons.
“The Heavenly Demon Cult is eternal and will never die!”
With this final cry, Ga Moon-Young spewed blood from her mouth as her heart finally stopped breathing. In her last moments, she thought of Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha.
‘Please, the Heavenly Demon Egg...’
However, there was something that she hadn’t thought of—the mysterious demonic power that exuded from the two objects in the two alabaster boxes, the Heavenly Demon Egg and the Heavenly Demon Pill.
Ga Moon-Young herself had been less affected by the demonic power as she had cultivated the Demonic Arts of the Heavenly Demon Cult. Moreover, the effects of the demonic power would have been further mitigated by the adrenaline from her urgent pursuit. However, that wasn’t the same for Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha, whose cultivations were still quite weak.
After Ga Moon-Young had run to elude her pursuers, Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha looked at the two alabaster boxes with considerable perplexity. Each opened a box, with Si-Hyeon holding the box containing the Heavenly Demon Egg, while Gun-Ha opened the box holding the unidentified pill.
Right as they did so, the two girls seemed to be possessed by some strange power, and their eyes drooped half-open. With her long, slender fingers, Si-Hyeon picked up the Heavenly Demon Egg.
The Heavenly Demon Egg was roughly the size of a thumb and seemed almost heart-shaped. Moreover, it seemed extremely soft and pliable between her fingers, like a soft piece of clay. Si-Hyeon seemed under a spell as she put it in her mouth.
As soon as it entered her mouth, the Heavenly Demon Egg melted and flowed down her throat. At the same time, Gun-Ha also swallowed the unidentified pill, which, unlike the black Heavenly Demon Egg, was blue.
After doing so, they both quietly closed the boxes in their hands.
“Huh?!”
It was only after the boxes closed that the two were released from the strange spell and came to their senses. However, neither Si-Hyeon nor Gun-Ha could remember what they had just done. Rather, they felt as if only a split second had passed.
“So it’s the Heavenly Demon Cult....”
Gun-Ha looked frightened. Even though fifty years had passed since its disappearance, the notoriety of the Heavenly Demon Cult hadn’t faded whatsoever, and its very name still triggered fear.
Si-Hyeon was just as surprised and disconcerted by Ga Moon-Young’s identity. However, she was pragmatic about things, knowing they had to flee before Ga Moon-Young’s pursuers returned.
“Let’s go for now, Gun-Ha.”
“Uh, okay, unnie.”
Si-Hyeon and Gun-Ha quickly left their hiding place and returned to the Baek Family. They were only able to let their guard down after they passed through the main gate of the Baek Estate.
“Gun-Ha, they haven’t seen us, anyway. They won’t ever be able to find us. For now, don’t tell the mistress because she’ll worry. We can talk about it later when senior brother Woo-Moon or Grandpa comes back. Okay?”
There wasn’t anyone they could trust with this other than Sang-Woon or Woo-Moon anyway. If they were to speak out of turn for no reason, they could just end up putting themselves in even greater danger.
“Okay. I understand, unnie.”
“Head in, Gun-Ha. I’ll go back home, too.”
Before she entered the Song Residence, Gun-Ha held onto Si-Hyeon’s hand.
“You need to be careful too, okay?”
“Yes, yes, don’t worry.”
Si-Hyeon returned to the Leebi Guild and retired to her room without informing Mu-Jae about what had happened. However, her heart was pounding, and she couldn’t get to sleep.
Cough, cough!
Suddenly, her body jerked as her eyes opened wide. Unimaginable pain could be seen in her bloodshot eyes.
‘There’s something—something is going to my head!’
Something unknown was rising from inside her stomach. It moved upward into her brain, tormenting her with immense pain in the process.
Si-Hyeon’s teeth clattered constantly as she convulsed in pain, so hard that a tooth cracked.
The pain had reached the point where she would have passed out normally. However, for some reason, her body wouldn’t let her. She tried to call for help, but her body wouldn’t listen to her.
Alone on her bed, she curled up and softly moaned in pain.
In the midst of her agony, she could only think of one person.
‘Help me...something strange is happening to me.... Please, help me, senior brother...’
***
When he woke up, Woo-Moon could feel a strange tingling and an unpleasant sensation. He could see Ma-Ra standing right in front of his bed, staring at him blankly.
“What’s wrong, Ma-Ra?”
“You. Nightmare.”
“Kya!”
Eun-Ah nodded, as if confirming that Ma-Ra was telling the truth. Immediately jumping up, she leaped into Woo-Moon’s arm, rubbing her body all over him as if she were happy that Woo-Moon had finally come to his senses.
“Ah...”
It was a strange and indescribable feeling as if he was escaping an irritating dream. The reason he had felt so uncomfortable waking up was because his entire body was wet with cold sweat.
‘I had a nightmare? Just how long had it been since I had a nightmare?’
Woo-Moon hadn’t had a nightmare since he had started cultivating the Forbidden Divine Art and the Gentle Celestial Sword.
Although he thought it strange, he decided not to care, assuming it was just an isolated incident
Realizing that he had overslept somewhat, Woo-Moon met Jeong-Woo on his way back from a late breakfast.
“Uncle!”
“Yes?”
“Ah, they said that there would be an inauguration ceremony for the Righteous Warrior Squadron. It’s the squadron they formed for the spar with the Hegemon Clan. We should leave now, it’s starting.”
Woo-Moon was annoyed. Why did they have to hold an inauguration ceremony when all we had to do was just spar?
He muttered to himself in irritation for a moment before answering with a frustrated expression, “Fine, let’s go.”
“Understood!”
As Woo-Moon reached the front of the ceremony hall with the other Distinguished Swords, the talents of the Namgoong and Baekri Families greeted him. It seemed that they were waiting to go inside together, as befitting of the Three Great Sword Families.
“We were waiting for you, Young Hero Song.”
“Hyung-nim! Let’s go in now.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
With Woo-Moon standing at the front, the group entered the ceremony hall.