Chapter Content
Chapter 3: The Vice Cult Leader of the Past…….
The group was small.
One guide, one coachman, and one mangy dog.
Its coarse fur had fallen out in patches, and only a few teeth remained. The dog looked truly pitiful.
That must have been why it had been brought into the carriage.
When I offered it a piece of jerky I had dug out of the luggage compartment, the way it hurriedly licked and devoured it made my heart ache.
When I stroked the back of its neck, the dog flinched and trembled violently.
It seemed to be a very timid creature.
It was the one that had rushed out from a corner of the outer courtyard, chasing after the departing carriage in a panic. Its behavior looked exactly like that of a dog following its master, so I pretended not to notice and let it ride along.
I wondered if it might have been a dog raised by the owner of this body.
Even so, I could not bring myself to voice that thought and ask the guide or the coachman. I did not want rumors spreading that I could not even recognize my own dog.
For that reason, I forcibly suppressed my curiosity and continued stroking the back of its neck so that it would not feel afraid, even a little.
The coachman, seated on the driver’s bench, sent a voice transmission to the martial artist accompanying him as a guide.
-Why are we dragging along that monstrosity?
-How would I know? You beat it half to death, saying it was a monstrosity that craved human blood. But more than that, I’m curious about what this is all about.
-About what?
-The carriage. The carriage.
-Well, I was a bit surprised too when you asked for a carriage.
-Is that something to just be surprised about? If we went by lightness skill, even taking it easy we could reach the destination in half a day, but by carriage it takes two whole days……. What on earth are he’s thinking?
-It seems he wanted to travel.
-Travel?
-Yes. As far as I remember, the Vice Cult Leader hasn’t left the fortress in…… about five years, right? Then maybe you wanted to see how the scenery has changed and move at a leisurely pace.
-That man? If you said he longed for blood, maybe, but travel? That’s nonsense!
-Five years is a long time. He might have changed.
-Five years? Let fifty years pass and see if that man’s personality changes.
-I don’t think so. In the past, the Vice Cult Leader was truly…….
-That again? You’ve been telling that story no one believes for years now.
-That’s because you didn’t see it. Back then, the Vice Cult Leader was a real demon. If he still had the temperament he had then, the cult today would have taken on a completely different form.
-Crazy! You say he persuaded people with words instead of using a good blade, and that’s supposed to be…… that’s your problem. You’re too soft.
At the guide’s rebuke, the coachman merely let out a dry chuckle.
The two-day carriage journey held nothing of note.
From the start, we had moved along desolate mountain paths rather than the main roads, by the Vice Cult Leader’s order, so we never encountered other people.
Moreover, except when relieving himself, the Vice Cult Leader never left the carriage—not while it was moving, nor even at night when we camped outdoors.
Thus, without a single incident, the carriage carrying our group arrived at Yanqi.
Located along the Che’erchen River, which stretched long across central Xinjiang, Yanqi had abundant water.
Unlike the barren image of Xinjiang, it possessed plentiful farmland, and with that came ample harvests, making it a fairly prosperous city.
At the center of Yanqi stood the Ghost Lotus Sect.
It was one of the Eighteen Gates of the Demonic Path and one of the Five Great Demonic Gates of Xinjiang, yet strangely, it did not give off the gloomy, oppressive atmosphere typical of demonic martial sects.
A carriage bearing the unmistakable insignia of the Bright Cult entered that Ghost Lotus Sect.
The Ghost Lotus Sect Master, along with all of its leaders, came out to the main entrance to welcome the carriage from the Bright Cult.
When the guide dismounted and opened the carriage door, the dog with patchy fur and only a few remaining teeth jumped down first.
Flinch!
The people of Ghost Lotus Sect who had been waiting recoiled in surprise.
As he looked at them, the Vice Cult Leader—who had come down at some point—stroked the dog’s neck as it let out a low growl.
Grrrr.
Perhaps enjoying it, the dog lifted its head, marked with vivid red stripes, and wagged its tail.
Turning his gaze away from the dog, the Vice Cult Leader looked at those lined up before him.
“Pleased to meet you.”
“Ah! W-welcome. Welcome to Ghost Lotus Sect. I am Woo Sang-hyeon, the Gate Master.”
“Gwak…… Yul Han.”
I forcibly swallowed back the first syllable of my previous life’s name that had slipped out unconsciously and gave the name of this body.
Then I brought my two hands together in a formal clasp.
It was not as deep or submissive as the Ghost Lotus Sect Master’s gesture, but it was sufficiently polite.
However, the reaction to that clasped-hands greeting was quite different from what I had expected.
First, the faces of the Ghost Lotus Sect members standing before me drained of color. Moreover, the expression of the Gate Master, who had greeted me, stiffened completely.
‘Was this not right either?’
As if unaware of Yul Han’s concern, the guide stepped forward amid the heavy, frozen atmosphere.
“Are you planning to keep the Vice Cult Leader standing there? Do you need all your throats torn out before you come to your senses—!”
The sudden shout from the guide was cut off midway.
It was because Yul Han’s voice had interrupted him.
“That is excessive.”
“Yes?”
“He is the Gate Master of a sect. Show him proper respect.”
“Ah……. Yes…….”
Yul Han’s voice continued toward the guide, whose flustered expression was all too clear.
“Are you not going to apologize?”
“Pardon? Ah! M-my words were excessive.”
The guide reluctantly raised a clasped-hands salute toward the Ghost Lotus Sect Master, but he did not lower his head.
And yet…….
The moment he met the Vice Cult Leader’s coldly rippling gaze, the guide’s chest seized up with terror.
In that instant, the guide clearly understood what he had to do.
The clasped hands he had raised unwillingly were lifted higher, and his head bowed deeply.
And then…….
“P-please forgive me!”
His voice trembled as it came out.
At the guide’s apology, the Ghost Lotus Sect Master stiffened even further.
“N-no, it is fine. Your apology is excessive. It was my mistake that…….”
“It is proper to accept an apology for a wrongdoing, Gate Master.”
At Yul Han’s interjection that cut into his words, the Gate Master’s confusion deepened.
“Yes? Ah! Y-yes. Th-then I shall do so.”
Only after the Gate Master’s trembling voice—so rigid it had become soaked entirely in fluster—did the guide finally loosen his clasped hands and raise his head.
In that situation, one of Ghost Lotus Sect’s leaders hurriedly stepped forward.
“I am Hae-yeon, the Chief Steward. You must have suffered greatly, Elder. The Gate Master will escort the Vice Cult Leader inside.”
Fearing that dragging things out any longer would worsen the situation, the Chief Steward stepped in on behalf of the Gate Master, whose mind was in disarray.
Only after the Gate Master regained his composure and guided the Vice Cult Leader inside did the tension in the area subside.
Though, of course, the earlier confusion had not completely vanished.
Thus, even after the Gate Master led the Vice Cult Leader and the guide attending him inside with a group of people, the Chief Steward and several other leaders of Ghost Lotus Sect remained standing at the main gate, where the carriage was still stopped.
The reason was revealed immediately by the Chief Steward’s voice.
“Ghost Lotus Sect welcomes the visit of Flashing Light Blood.”
When the Chief Steward bowed his head toward him, the coachman asked in a puzzled tone,
“Do you…… know me?”
The coachman hurriedly changed the casual ending of his habitual speech into a respectful form. It was because of how the Vice Cult Leader had reacted to the guide’s behavior just moments earlier.
Whether or not he understood Flashing Light Blood’s thoughts, the Chief Steward of Ghost Lotus Sect continued smoothly.
“How could we fail to recognize Flashing Light Blood, one of the Thirteen Bloods of the Bright Cult? It is an honor to meet such a renowned great hero.”
It might have seemed excessive to offer such a welcome to a mere coachman, but it was not.
The Thirteen Bloods of the Bright Cult were masters whose abilities rivaled the heads of entire factions.
The Flashing Light Blood standing before them now possessed strength on par with Ghost Lotus Sect’s Gate Master. Otherwise, why would they both have their names listed together among the Five Swift Swords of the Demonic Path?
That such a person had come driving a carriage as a coachman was a considerable shock to Ghost Lotus Sect.
---
Ghost Lotus Sect escorted the visiting Vice Cult Leader from the Bright Cult to the Gate Master’s office. Despite it being his own office, the Gate Master offered the seat of honor to the Vice Cult Leader, Yul Han.
Yul Han shook his head at the Gate Master.
“For a guest to sit in the host’s seat is improper.”
“Yes? I-improper……?”
As the Gate Master stood flustered, Yul Han took a seat to the right of the seat of honor.
By convention, the hierarchy of seating placed the seat of honor first, followed by the left side of the seat of honor, and then the right.
Thus, the seat Yul Han chose was two levels below the seat of honor.
“W-why would you sit there…….”
To the Gate Master’s bewildered question, Yul Han replied,
“I understand that the left side of the seat of honor is for the hosts, the place where Ghost Lotus Sect’s leaders sit.”
That was, of course, the proper arrangement.
But propriety changed under the pressure of power.
If the guest was superior or stronger than the host, that seat became the guest’s place, not the host’s. Even the seat of honor.
“But how could we place the Vice Cult Leader in such a seat…….”
“I am comfortable here.”
If he said he was comfortable, what more could be said?
In the end, the Gate Master, after hesitating briefly, sat on the left side of the seat of honor—directly opposite Yul Han.
As a result, the seat of honor was left empty, but that was not what mattered.
Once the representatives on both sides took their seats, the others followed.
And yet…….
The leaders of Ghost Lotus Sect, who had quickly taken seats beside their Gate Master, slowly rose again.
Finding this strange, Yul Han asked,
“Why are you standing up?”
“Th-that is……. Cold Blade Blood is standing over there. How could we possibly sit while he…….”
At the reply from one of Ghost Lotus Sect’s elders, Yul Han turned his gaze backward.
His redirected gaze fell upon the guide standing respectfully behind him.
Cold Blade Blood.
He too was one of the Thirteen Bloods of the Bright Cult.
Naturally, Ghost Lotus Sect’s leaders could not help but feel burdened. A master equal to their own Gate Master was unable to sit and was instead standing.
Indeed, even within the Bright Cult, the Thirteen Bloods did not occupy a low position. Right below the Five Demons, who sat in elder seats, the next strongest were the Thirteen Bloods.
Because of that, the Thirteen Bloods were also referred to as elder-class masters.
The Bright Cult had sent such people along as a guide and a coachman.
It was a fragmentary glimpse of the status the Vice Cult Leader held within the Bright Cult.
Of course, the current Yul Han, who did not yet know the internal power structure or the lineup of masters within the Bright Cult, could not fully grasp that meaning.
Even so, he clearly understood the cause of the other side’s discomfort.
Perhaps because of that, Yul Han spoke in a calm voice to the guide standing behind him—that is, Cold Blade Blood.
“Let us sit.”
“How could this subordinate sit at the same table as the Vice Cult Leader…….”
“Standing there instead makes me more uncomfortable.”
“Even so…….”
“If you truly cannot sit, shall you step outside instead?”
Though called a guide, his role was not limited to guiding the way.
Just as with Flashing Light Blood acting as coachman, Cold Blade Blood serving as guide was also, in effect, part of the escort.
Such escorts separating from the person they were protecting?
That was impossible. Moreover, had the Cult Leader not sternly instructed them never to leave the Vice Cult Leader’s side?
And so…….
“I-I will sit.”
He hurriedly took a seat, but not directly beside Yul Han—he left one seat between them.
He felt it would be irreverent to dare sit right next to him.
With that arrangement, Ghost Lotus Sect’s leaders also had to reshuffle their seats, leaving one space between themselves and their Gate Master, causing a brief flurry of movement.
Once the disturbance settled, the conversation finally began.
Greetings that had already been exchanged were repeated at length, followed by introductions from each side.
And then, the main topic emerged.
Of course, it was neither Yul Han nor Cold Blade Blood who brought it up.
The one who spoke first was the Ghost Lotus Sect Master, who clearly knew the reason the Bright Cult’s envoys had come. After all, the one in a hurry was the one who dug the well.