Chapter 424: Chapter 424

Wang Son frowned. "That's right. There will likely be a meeting between the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Clans at the Heavenly Martial Festival."

"......" Baek Suryong fell silent, contemplating the implications of this development.

Over the past decades, the Heavenly Martial Festival had become the most important event for the orthodox sects. What started as a simple children's martial arts tournament between the Five Great Academies had evolved into something far greater.

Now, the Festival served as a grand display of the orthodox sects' power, showcasing the prodigies who would one day lead them. This all served to keep the unorthodox sects in check.

Baek Suryong quickly grasped the orthodox leadership's intentions.

"Since it's such a symbolic event, the festival is the perfect place to declare all-out war against the Blood Cult."

During the festival, the orthodox planned to raise the banner of demon extermination and declare war on the Blood Cult for the first time in fifty years.

"Ha! As expected, you've already figured that out," Wang Son said admiringly. "That's exactly what our Beggars' Gang concluded, too."

Baek Suryong nodded. Still, anyone with half a brain could reach the same conclusion. If even individuals like him could figure it out, then the Blood Cult had probably already thought of it.

Although the chances of the Blood Cult marching troops into the heart of Hubei, where the Heavenly Martial Academy stood, were slim, they certainly wouldn't stay idle. Those crazy cultists were more than capable of turning the festival into a bloodbath.

Wang Son nodded, acknowledging his concern. "The Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Clans are aware of that possibility. They'll work with the Murim Alliance to root out any Blood Cult spies before the festival begins."

Having dealt with both the Namgung Clan and the Murim Alliance, Baek Suryong wasn't convinced this would work, but he couldn't do anything about it. Despite his renown as one of the Ten Supremes, the pride of the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Clans knew no bounds. He couldn't interfere with their decisions impulsively.

I should send a letter to the Murim Alliance, telling them to be more vigilant.

He suddenly remembered a story the Murim Alliance Chairman had shared about his personal experiences in the war fifty years ago.

"At the time, the Murim Alliance had many allies, including the Nine Sects One Gang, the Five Great Clans, as well as countless medium and small sects and martial families. Despite agreeing to join forces and strike down the Blood Cult, however, even starting the war was difficult."

"Because equal allies will always be full of petty disputes. The sects argued about everything, from how the troops should be organized, to which units would include their sect's elites, to how the spoils of war would be divided after victory..."

Yayul Hwang's eyes had blazed with a malevolent wrath as he reminisced.

"Even after we somehow finished our preparations and marched out, the problems didn't stop. Martial artists from sects that were normally at odds frequently got into fights, and they even bickered over rations for the sake of pride."

The current Murim Alliance Chairman had little regard for the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Clans, a stance that Baek Suryong firmly shared. While he acknowledged their formidable power, their lofty pride and concern for 'saving face' prevented them from achieving true unity. This had cost them dearly in the last war.

The annihilation of the Moyong Clan might have instilled a sense of crisis in everyone, but if they continue to act stubbornly in order to protect their pride, this alliance will be worse than useless.

The Blood Cult had spent five decades preparing for revenge and building their strength in the shadows. If the orthodox sects repeated their past mistakes, they would be the ones trampled this time.

"You look like you've got a lot on your mind," Wang Son remarked.

"I suppose I do," Baek Suryong sighed softly. "Thanks for visiting so late just to deliver this news."

"Haha! Don't mention it, we're brothers! Besides, I haven't even gotten to the really important information yet."

"Of course there is." Wang Son grinned and leaned closer.

"......" Baek Suryong's face twitched. A 'smell' wafted over, but by now, he had grown accustomed to the Beggars' Gang's restorative medicine. He could endure this much without difficulty.

"The Heavenly Martial Festival results have become even more important."

"What I'm about to tell you is top-secret information."

Wang Son hadn't come simply to report the destruction of the Moyong Clan. That was shocking news, but it would eventually be revealed anyway. The second piece of information he brought specially for his benefactor and brother was far more critical.

"As you know, the Nine Sects One Gang and the Five Great Clans take great pride in their lineage. The Nine Sects especially... well, to be blunt, they think of themselves as deities living above the clouds. In short, they're extremely arrogant."

Baek Suryong nodded in agreement. Although the Beggars' Gang was the 'One Gang' of the Nine Sects One Gang, as people who lived at the very bottom of society, they had every right to make such a statement about the other Nine Sects.

"The leaders of the Nine Sects are worried about this, too. They know their main sect's disciples think so highly of themselves that they won't listen to orders from others, no matter what."

Baek Suryong's brow furrowed deeply at the mention of the prestigious sects' overinflated pride, built over centuries of ruling the murim.

If they won't even yield to each other within the Nine Sects, how will they treat those from 'inferior' backgrounds?

For decades, no unorthodox sect had been powerful enough to rival the combined forces of the orthodox. This caused the arrogance of the Nine Sects One Gang martial artists who led the current era to pierce the heavens.

"Anyway, back to the point. Our Chief came up with a plan to solve this problem."

"The Dragon Head Chief?"

The Beggars' Gang Chief was a veteran of the last war. Recognizing the dangers of the Blood Cult, he devised a plan to unite the martial artists of the Nine Sects One Gang.

"He proposed organizing the battle formations based on this year's Heavenly Martial Festival results. In other words, everyone must accept the prodigies' results and follow the winner's command. I believe most of the Nine Sects' leaders have already agreed."

"Hah!" Baek Suryong let out a hollow laugh. The plan itself was astonishing, but upon deeper reflection, it was staggering how it played on the orthodox factions' egos. "They agreed because they think the Heavenly Martial Academy will naturally win."

For the past ten years, the Heavenly Martial Academy had dominated the festival with overwhelming results. Even before that, they had claimed almost every championship.

Moreover, most prodigies nurtured by the Nine Sects One Gang and Five Great Clans attended the academy. In fact, people joked that it was harder to find a Heavenly Martial Academy student who wasn't from one of these organizations.

For them, the academy's victory was a foregone conclusion, and most martial artists would agree.

Wang Son glanced at Baek Suryong nervously. "Uh, Azure Dragon Hero... As an Azure Dragon Academy instructor, you might find this upsetting, but..."

"No, I'm not offended at all. Prejudices are not easily changed."

"Prejudices? What do you mean?"

Baek Suryong shrugged instead of answering. If the Nine Sects One Gang hierarchy were established according to this year's festival results, as the Dragon Head Chief had planned, it would certainly strengthen the orthodox's unity in the Blood Cult war.

"On the contrary, this is good news for us... Ehehe..."

"Pardon? What did you just say?"

"Nothing." Baek Suryong grinned cryptically.

What if the Azure Dragon Academy, which rarely enrolls students from the Nine Sects One Gang and Five Great Clans, were to win the Heavenly Martial Festival? Could I use that as justification to command the entire orthodox murim?

No one in the jianghu could have imagined it, but a plan to make the impossible a reality was already forming in Baek Suryong's mind.

This wasn't the only unexpected good news about the festival, either.

"Also, the festival itself will feature several new events this year."

"New events? Like what?"

"Exhibition matches, essentially. For example, there will be a duel for graduates of the Five Great Academies and group matches for instructors. I hear the scale will be quite large."

"Exhibition matches..."

The more Baek Suryong heard, the more his smile widened. He instantly thought of who to send as the Azure Dragon Academy's graduate representative and which instructors would participate in the group matches.

"This is going to be so much fun!"

The orthodox sects clearly intended to display their power and influence before declaring war. Consequently, this year's Heavenly Martial Festival would attract a whole new level of attention and interest compared to previous years.

Wang Son offered some final words of encouragement, "It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the entire murim will watch the festival this year. Those who distinguish themselves will earn tremendous glory. I hope your students will be among them!"

"I'm always grateful for the Beggars' Gang's continued support."

"Haha! We're not strangers, we're brothers who share a rice bowl!"

Although they'd never actually shared a rice bowl, today Baek Suryong decided to gladly be the beggars' brother. That was how incredibly valuable Wang Son's information was to him.

Thanks to this, I can prepare in advance.

The main goal remained the same—for the Azure Dragon Academy to win the Heavenly Martial Festival. There were simply more benefits to winning now.

I need to think about how to command the Nine Sects One Gang and prepare for the exhibition matches in advance. All the festival's glory will belong to the Azure Dragon Academy.

Baek Suryong didn't want to concede a single thing. In matters , he was greedy enough to be called selfish.

Wang Son rose from his seat. "Well then, I'll be going."

Baek Suryong personally saw him off.

Before leaving the main gate, Wang Son scratched his head and looked back. "Ah, this isn't particularly important, but... lately, the other unorthodox sects' movements have been unusual too." Follow current novels on novel[f]ire.net

"Which ones are you referring to?"

After the Blood Cult vanished fifty years ago, the murim entered an era led by the orthodox sects, represented by the Nine Sects One Gang. From their perspective, it was a time of great peace.

For unorthodox sect martial artists, however, it was a dark time. They lived in the shadows, constantly fearing that the orthodox sects would target them next.

Now, the situation had changed. A war between the orthodox sects and the Blood Cult could break out at any moment.

The unorthodox sects were left with two choices. They could either side with the Blood Cult or wait for war between the two powers and seize the opportunity for themselves.

"For now, we're monitoring all the significant unorthodox organizations closely. The Viridian Forest, the Black Snake Alliance, the Mount Mo Sect, the Valley of Evil..."

"Did you just say the Valley of Evil?" Baek Suryong interrupted.

Wang Son nodded. "Yes. A man named Blue Eyed Freak became the new Valley Leader, and from what we've gathered, he's no ordinary figure. He seized control instantly after the Bloody Ripper died... Why are you smiling?"

Of course I'm smiling.

Baek Suryong couldn't help it, since he'd personally made that man the Valley of Evil's new master.

Looks like he's doing well.

Though he occasionally received direct letters from Blue Eyed Freak, hearing news through the Beggars' Gang felt different.

"I fought him once before. Regrettably, I let him escape, and it seems he took over the Valley of Evil in the meantime. Damn it, I should've killed him when I had the chance..."

Wang Son was completely fooled by the artful lie. "Oh my. So something like that happened. Anyway, the bigwigs of the unorthodox in the Valley of Evil and the Viridian Forest are making suspicious moves. I'm worried they might be conspiring..."

"Hmm... That's quite a tempting idea."

Wang Son stared at Baek Suryong in confusion. "Pardon? What did you just say?"

Baek Suryong feigned innocence. "What? I didn't say anything. You must be hearing things."

Translator's Note: I'm tired, so see you next week.