Chapter 220: Chapter 220

Chapter 220: Son of a Bitch (3)

The moment I heard what the beggar in front of me said, one thought popped into my head.

'Wow. They have this trick here, too?'

Heavenly Demon, son of a dog. That's just a fancy way of calling him a son of a bitch.

Honestly, at first I was like, 'Why the hell would they make me do this?' It seemed absurd. But soon enough, I realized it was actually a pretty clever tactic.

'Yeah, this would work. My cult is packed with lunatics who lose their minds and start singing his praises the second they catch a whiff of my Master. An insult would set them off instantly.'

Forget repeating the phrase; there were plenty of people in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult who'd flip out and draw their weapons the instant someone whispered it.

Just look at Jin Hayeon for example.

'Good thing I came alone.'

As the heir of the Beggars’ Gang, his realm should be high; that’s why I ordered everyone else to stay put and came alone.

If Jin Hayeon or Dam Bin had been within earshot, they'd have crashed this meeting and tried to take his head right then and there.

'Sorry, Master, this is a sacrifice for the greater good. Please understand.'

After sending a quick apology to my Master, I carefully opened my mouth.

"'Heavenly Demon, Son of a Dog."

As the blasphemy left my lips, I felt a weird little jolt of excitement.

I'd spent years writing in my diary about what a bunch of crazy cultists they all were, but this was the first time I'd ever said anything like it out loud.

The second the words were out, the beggar suddenly sprang up from his chair, bowed his head, and clasped his hands in a respectful salute.

"I apologize for the rudeness I showed today. Since this is Gansu Province, I had to prepare for any possibility."

The snarky, suspicious guy from a minute ago was gone, replaced by the most polite beggar I'd ever seen.

Seeing someone who looked at least fifty years old showing such deep respect made me feel strangely uncomfortable.

"I understand completely."

Hearing that, the beggar straightened his posture and spoke with the brightest smile on his face.

"Anyway, I have to say, this place is incredible! I've never seen so many happy people in one place. Not in my entire thirty-seven years."

"...Thirty-seven years, you say?"

That face was thirty-seven?

I'd been thinking he was at least fifty.

'Can living on the streets really do that to a guy's face?'

Then again, yeah, it probably could.

'Reminds me of my sergeant in the army. I thought he was my dad's age just from looking at his face.’

When I found out that the sergeant was in his late thirties, I realized being a career soldier was not the way to go.

Maybe misunderstanding what I meant, the beggar spoke with a clear smile that didn't match his old-looking face.

"Hahaha! Yes, thirty-seven years and never seen anything like it! And that stuff about teaching them skills... incredible. Our Beggars’ Gang should learn from this place and teach beggars actual work so they can earn their own food."

Feeling somewhat embarrassed by the old-faced beggar's praise, I decided to shift the conversation topic a bit.

After all, there was another reason I'd arranged to meet with this beggar.

"Ahem. Actually, there's another reason I wanted to meet ."

As the beggar asked back, I reached into my sleeve and pulled out a book to hand him.

A book titled [Blood Curse Record].

"This is a rather ominous-looking booklet."

The beggar frowned as he looked at the blood-red lettering.

"By any chance, have you heard of someone called the Ghost Valley Master who was active in Shanxi Province a few years ago?"

"Hmm... Ah! I've heard of a mountain nicknamed Ghost Valley Mountain since everyone who entered that place went missing. We actually sent a few of our guys to check it out."

As expected from the beggars' information network, they were already on the case.

Since the conversation went smoothly, I gladly told him about what I'd witnessed at Mount Kongtong and Pingliang County.

About how they used a Formation, how they used drugs to brainwash the masses, about the Formation spread across Mount Kongtong, and about the human sacrifices and their blood-related sorceries.

"If you don't believe me, read through that booklet. It's about sorcery, so it'll be hard to understand, but the part where it says you need to sacrifice people and use their blood is pretty clear."

At my suggestion, the beggar began reading through the Blood Curse Record, but couldn't even finish it before slamming the book shut.

"...This is monstrous!"

Unable to contain his anger, his face flushed red as I spoke to him.

"It is not certain, but if you took account of their methods and sorceries, I suspect these people might be connected to the Blood Cult."

His eyes widened in shock for a moment before falling into contemplation. Before long, he nodded and said, "It's definitely worth looking into."

"It is. We'd love to handle it ourselves, but we just don't have the reach to go on a nationwide manhunt. That's why I wanted to ask for your help. The Beggars' Gang is famous for its honor, and no one can match your intelligence network."

Maybe it was the flattery, or maybe he was just a genuinely good guy who hated evil, whatever the reason, his face was a mask of pure fury as he shot to his feet.

"Say no more! Our Beggars’ Gang will never let these scum go!"

With the bait taken, I nodded and said, "Excellent. I'll tell you how to get past the Formation at Mount Kongtong. Start your investigation there and in the nearby town. You should also check out the Ghost Valley Mountain. You're bound to find a trail."

"You're a true hero! A real champion of justice! I'll send a letter immediately to mobilize all the Beggars’ Gang members in Gansu Province and begin investigating Mount Kongtong and Pingliang County."

I tried my best not to break into a massive grin. He was going to use his own people to clean up my mess after all.

Then, the beggar spoke with a look that said he had suddenly remembered something.

"Ahem. While you can leave all matters regarding the Blood Cult to our Beggars’ Gang, I do have one request."

"Feel free to speak."

"Investigating the Blood Cult will dull our eyes and ears. So if it's alright, could you Maitreya folks keep watch on the Demonic Cult? This is Gansu after all. It’s practically a neighbour to Xinjiang.”

"Consider it done. It's the least we can do."

Monitoring the Demonic Cult wouldn't be difficult at all. All I had to do was turn my head to see that everyone around me was a member of the Demonic Cult.

He seemed satisfied with my answer. Then he leaned forward and spoke with a grave face.

“Since you folks also seem to share values with the Orthodox Faction, joining the Murim Alliance is just a matter of time. So let me give you a tip, some intel straight from the top."

Information from the Murim Alliance—now that was naturally enticing news.

"For the last few years, the Demonic Cult has been acting strangely. Honestly, that's why I was checking you guys out in the first place."

"Acting strangely? Can you be more specific?"

"I've heard they've started teaching children in Xinjiang. They probably want to teach the children the Demonic Arts to raise an army of crazed killers to invade the Central Plains."

I almost flinched without realizing it, but I barely managed to control my expression with the skills I had honed during my life as a civil servant.

"...Truly vicious bastards."

And all I did was give the children an opportunity for an education.

'Just what the hell do these orthodox bastards think of the Demonic Cult?'

But thinking back to the Demonic Cult members around me, it didn't seem like a misunderstanding.

When I'd advocated for educational reform, just the suggestion of delaying the age for learning Demonic Arts had Master and the Hall Master Yeom Ga-hwi foaming at the mouth.

'...They had us figured out correctly.'

It was a moment that reminded me of a fact I'd forgotten.

That a bunch of psychotics surrounded me.

But that wasn't what mattered right now.

'The real problem is that they know. They know about the schools.'

The important thing was that the Orthodox Faction had already discovered we were educating the Xinjiang children.

"So is the Murim Alliance preparing for war with the Demonic Cult? It seems risky to wait until after this supposed 'killer army' is fully trained, doesn't it?"

The beggar nodded as if it made sense.

"I think so too, but there were a few problems with preparing for war."

"If it's not too much trouble, could you tell us as much as you're able to share?"

"Hahaha. I can't tell you about Murim Alliance’s internal matters, but talking about the Demonic Cult won't be difficult. It's not just the schools. They're doing a lot of other, really weird things. It's gotten to the point where nobody can agree on whether to attack them or not."

"That’s right. For starters, I hear their combat unit bastards are pulling carts loaded with children around the wasteland. Not with horses,  but people are pulling them directly."

"And that's not all. They've got teams wandering the desert looking for underground water. Others are digging in the middle of the desert to plant trees and flowers. The current theory circulating in the Alliance is that they've all just collectively lost their minds from practicing Demonic Arts.”

I had nothing to say.

While most of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult were indeed crazy, this was a bit different.

'Wait a minute... I ordered all of that.'

The combat units pulling carts were because of the kids' transportation to and from school.

I just hadn't anticipated that Master would have people pull the carts instead of horses.

As for prospecting water veins and planting flowers, well, there was nothing to say about that.

'It's called urban renewal, you ignorant fools!'

Not that I could call them out on it.

"Ahem. Y-yeah, they certainly do seem insane."

"Right? So for now, the Alliance is just watching them to see what happens. Oh, there's one more rumor, but it's too ridiculous to even mention."

"No, please. We're their neighbours now. We need everything you've got, no matter how crazy it sounds."

I'd said it to gauge how much the Murim Alliance had dug into the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

But the answer that came back was unexpected.

"It's about the Heavenly Demon's new disciple, the Eighth Disciple."

"...The Eighth Disciple?"

My voice trembled slightly without me realizing it, and my eyes almost wavered.

To think these bastards had already figured out information about me.

I thought back to the assassins who came for me before I even enrolled on the Hall of the Demonic Way. My first suspect back then had been the Murim Alliance.

But that turned out to be an inside job with the Divine Guardian and the former Chief of the Council of Elders as the main culprits.

Either way, since it was an insider's doing, I'd thought the Murim Alliance still didn't know about me.

"Is there some problem with the Eighth Disciple?" I asked while trying my best to sound casual.

The beggar shrugged and answered dismissively.

"I heard that all those strange things the Demonic Cult is doing are proposals from that Eighth Disciple. As if that were not enough, they say that fiend called the Eighth Disciple reached the Peak Realm at just fifteen, mastered sorcery at seventeen to create a well and save those suffering from thirst, and then a few months later entered the Supreme Peak Realm and even manifested Sword Force.”

"I mean, come on, if you're going to make up propaganda, at least make it believable. It's so ridiculous that nobody in the Alliance takes it seriously."

I still said nothing.

Because except for the sorcery part, all of it was true.

But I couldn't exactly brag about my achievements here, could I?

"Ahem. Hearing it now, it's certainly quite an exaggerated story."

"Well, it's heavily exaggerated. But it must mean the Heavenly Demon really likes the kid. Why else would they issue all those orders and credit them to this Eighth Disciple?"

The beggar nodded to himself as if satisfied with his thinking.

"So here's what's probably happening. The kid is a real prodigy, and if you look at how the Heavenly Demon dotes on him, combined with the fact that Demonic Arts progresses quickly, while Supreme Peak Realm is a stretch, he's probably approaching the end of the Peak Realm by now. Using the Demonic Cult's terminology, I'd guess he's close to the Extremity stage. They're just calling Sword Qi 'Sword Force' to make him sound better than he is."

It was a completely hilarious and wrong assessment, but I nodded along.

"Truly a reasonable deduction."

He then added, "Either way, since he's a person of interest, it would be good for you to look into the Eighth Disciple as well."

"I'll be careful." ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel✦fire.net

A thought occurred to me then.

Maybe I should hand over the diary I'd been writing for over three years since being dragged to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.