NOVEL NEXT Chapter 224
Chapter 224: Mosan Sect
When I said I had to call the group, Jeoksawol unexpectedly accepted it coolly.
“If the prince desires, then we shall do so.”
Not long after she left with those words, Jeoksawol arrived at the separate wing with Sosumahu, Heuksaryong, and Geumhu.
Tap.
They sat around the pavilion.
“So, Dad. What is it you wish to say?”
In the moment of awkward silence.
Sosumahu looked at me and asked.
It seemed she was still clear-headed. I looked at them and spoke.
“I have received a secret order from Her Highness the Crown Princess. Thanks to that, we have discovered the Blood Demon’s schemes and the traps set by the Blood Sect.”
Her Highness the Crown Princess.
At the mention of the Emperor’s name, everyone flinched.
They all knew. The fact that Yujinhwi had traveled to Beijing in response to the royal order.
No matter how much the _Inviolability of Official Affairs_ and _井水不犯河水_ (well water does not interfere with river water) are enforced, the position of the supreme ruler of the Empire could not be ignored.
Even Sosumahu, who brought it up, reacted. She slightly huddled and asked.
“What scheme is it?”
“It’s obvious that Gangsimajon cannot handle our group alone. So, the Blood Demon plans to use Gangsimajon as a vessel and intends to possess him directly.”
Posessing directly.
At that word, the eyes of the three masters of Hyeongyeong sank heavily.
“The Blood Demon is finally going to reveal himself.”
The first to speak was Jeoksawol.
As the commander of the Heavenly Alliance opposing the Blood Sect, the Blood Demon was practically her final objective, so she must have felt something.
“…Let him come. He cannot threaten me with mere possession. Tell Mom and Dad not to worry.”
Crack.
Sosumahu gritted her teeth. Her red eyes were ablaze.
Sosumahu raised her right hand. As she mastered Sosu Demon Art, her right hand transformed into a stunningly beautiful weapon tinged in white.
To Sosumahu, the Blood Sect, which tried to trap her in a song-like state and forge her into a Heavenly Demon, was a sworn enemy.
Of course, the Blood Demon was also a life-and-death adversary that could not coexist under the same sky.
Such a reaction was natural.
“…The Blood Sect is also the enemy of my sect. However, we must be cautious of the fact that he is attempting possession openly. He must feel confident enough to confront all three of us.”
Finally, Geumhu spoke in a calm voice.
Watching their reactions, I revealed the strategy the Emperor had shared.
“And Her Highness the Crown Princess intends to use this situation. As we face the Blood Demon who has possessed himself, the moment his spirit is sold to us, she plans to capture another high-ranking member of the Blood Sect alongside Sahyeong to extract information from them.”
Every Blood Sect member’s spirit is connected to the Blood Demon.
However, by using specific magical means, we could sever that connection and obtain information.
Naturally, there were many practitioners serving Dongchang for such purposes.
Of course, as it was not a simple case of the forbidden gold, if we obtained confessions, their minds would be shattered and turned into imbeciles, but I didn’t care if the Blood Sect’s minions became idiots.
‘They will probably deploy informants of Dongchang near the Mosan Sect, and when things go down, they will signal Beijing in real-time through the magical tools.’
Conveying information in written form like modern telegraphs was impossible, but sending simple signals to Beijing was entirely feasible with magical artifacts. Naturally, since magical artifacts were precious commodities, they couldn’t be used frequently.
The Emperor planned to use that precious magical artifact for this incident.
If we could discover the Blood Sect’s headquarters, sacrificing a magical artifact would be inconsequential.
“If you’re talking about information on the Blood Sect, then you mean their base.”
“Though her Highness didn’t specifically mention it, it’s likely.”
When I nodded to Sosumahu’s question, I emphasized that in the Central Plains there was no known base of the Blood Sect. If there had been, I would have obliterated it in my past life.
So, it was outside.
The problem was where outside.
The major regions surrounding the Ming Empire included: the Gobi Desert known as the Great Desert, Tibet referred to as Western Zhang, Mongolia called the Great Plains, Vietnam known as Southern Man, Korea referred to as Haedong, Japan called Dongyoung, Xinjiang and Central Asia ruled directly or indirectly by the Demon Sect, Siberia with the Northern Sea Ice Palace, and the territories occupied by the Dutch East India Company, including Taiwan and the Spanish-occupied Philippines.
Lastly, there was Liaodong with the Jurchens, meaning Manchuria.
Apart from that, far away were India known as Tianchu, and the Iranian Plateau called Pasa, but those were too distant for the influence to stretch to the Central Plains, making them unsuitable candidates.
‘I wonder where they’re hiding.’
Though I couldn’t know right now, I believed that the Emperor would certainly reveal their base.
“However, as Geumhu mentioned, this won’t be an easy fight. From the information collected so far, the Blood Demon is a sly one who seeks only safe battles by excluding all variables and risks. For him to reveal himself now means, as Geumhu said, he is confident enough to face us all.”
That lazy Blood Demon named Hyeolbuung revealing himself directly must mean he had some confidence.
I looked at Sosumahu, Geumhu, and Jeoksawol.
All of them were now precious to me.
As a grown man’s responsibility, I had to protect these ladies.
So, I needed to directly ask for their intentions.
“This will be a tough fight. Therefore, if anyone wants to back out now before heading to the Mosan Sect…”
As I was about to say that.
“Prince. What do you take me for? If it’s to eliminate the Blood Demon, I will gladly lead the charge.”
“I feel the same. Eungong. For you, I would face someone worse than the Blood Demon.”
“I have lived solely for this day. Dad. Even if my body shatters, I will take revenge on the Blood Demon.”
The three opinions aligned. I turned to look at Heuksaryong.
“And you?”
Hmph. “I won’t be left out. Brother. I am Heuksaryong. If the Lord of the Black Dragon Room gets involved in something like this, the entire demonic world will mock me.”
With Heuksaryong’s agreement, everyone was on the same page.
Then there was no other option.
“Very well. Now that everyone’s intentions are confirmed…”
Looking at them, I said.
“Let’s all head to the Mosan Sect. Starting tomorrow.”
Hearing my words, they nodded in agreement.
Now, the long preparations were over.
It was time to head toward the Mosan Sect and settle our grudges with the Blood Sect.
*
Baekdusan.
A sacred mountain considered a spiritual peak in both Liaodong and Joseon.
It is the starting point of the Baekdu Daegan, where spiritual energy is concentrated, and atop its peak sits the vast lake known as Cheonji (Heavenly Pool).
Beneath Baekdusan Cheonji, there was a cave.
The Blood Demon Cave.
Inside that cave, a mixture of the blood of male and female came together in the Blood Pond.
Under the bloody water of the Blood Pond, he awaited.
The Blood Demon.
The top master, worthy of the name, an absolute master in the Boundary of Life and Death.
Right now, he was an imperfect being unable to leave the Blood Pond. However, the Blood Demon could still survey ten thousand miles from his corner. Thanks to the numerous Blood Sect members connected to him by spirit.
“They’ve set out.”
Upon sensing Lee Cheol-soo’s group departure through his spirit, the Blood Demon smiled wickedly.
Honwon Geomje.
When he thought of the broken soul from that Primordial Sword Technique, the Blood Demon clenched his teeth even in his sleep.
If it were not for him, he would have achieved his purpose three hundred years ago.
Thus, severing the root of the Primordial Sword Technique was paramount.
Lee Cheol-soo and Yujinhwi.
He could not tell which of the two was the real successor, but it would be wise to kill both.
However, after Yujinhwi was summoned to Beijing, he could no longer gather information.
Juga-yul, that damn little girl.
Hwangje Juga-yul.
She thoroughly purged all the pawns of the Blood Sect and even turned the current Emperor into a puppet, seizing the throne of the Hall of Great Harmony.
Moreover, she took most of the elixirs necessary for his resurrection, which was why the Blood Demon was still trapped in the Blood Pond.
What’s worse, the thoroughness of her purge made acquiring information on her surrounding areas nearly impossible.
The one who ruined the Blood Demon’s grand plan was none other than her.
‘Once I deal with Lee Cheol-soo, the next will be you and Yujinhwi.’
The Blood Demon gritted his teeth toward Juga-yul and transmitted his will to Gangsimajon through his thoughts.
[Gangsimajon.]
[You summoned me, Sovereign.]
[They have set out.]
The blood-soaked gaze of the Blood Demon glowed eerily.
He said.
[Proceed as planned.]
[Understood!]
Hearing Gangsimajon’s response, the Blood Demon’s smile deepened.
The energy that surged from his body pierced through the Blood Pond’s red water toward the cave’s ceiling.
Bubble, bubble, bubble.
The blood pond seethed with crimson bubbles.
The Blood Demon laughed.
“It seems I will finally get to breathe the outside air again.”
Since I am personally involved now, they are no different from fish in a barrel.
Thinking that, the Blood Demon burst into loud laughter.
*
Having departed from the Gongdong Sect, our group finally arrived in Jiangsu Province after a long journey.
The distance from Gansu Province, located at the western edge of the Central Plains, to Jiangsu Province’s southern coastline was incredibly vast.
However, thanks to the support of Hao Mun, led by Jeoksawol, we managed to come to Jiangsu Province reasonably comfortably.
And finally, the sign reading Mosan Sect came into view.
Mosan Sect.
A Daoist sect based at Mount Maoshan in Jiangsu Province, well-versed in Left Daoism, talismans, and rituals.
Its history is more ancient than that of the Gudaimun Sect.
Founded by Wei Huazun, the daughter of the ancient minister Wei Su during the Western Jin dynasty, Mosan Sect focuses on talisman arts, including magical arts and charms, unlike typical martial arts sects.
It is the sect of sorcerers who wield magic, akin to a medieval martial arts tower in the world.
Mosan Sect is also among the few White Path Orthodox factions continuously thriving alongside Haenam Sect in the Jiangnan martial arts world controlled by the evil factions.
However, due to the characteristic of employing Left Daoism’s sorcerous arts, they were subtly looked down upon in the martial world, yet they were quite wealthy.
Even in modern times, many people buy charms from capable shamans at a high price, so in the illogical medieval martial world, how much more would this be the case?
In fact, unlike the modern era, the talismans of the medieval martial world held real effectiveness.
And the talismans directly infused with spiritual power by the Mosan Sect’s masters? It’s at a level where you can’t even get enough of them. Thus, their vaults overflowed with gold and treasures.
We had arrived in front of the mountain gate of that very Mosan Sect.
“Ho ho. Is this the Mosan Sect? It seems unnecessarily flashy.”
Sosumahu muttered to my side.
As she said, the mountain gate was indeed larger and more splendid than that of the Gongdong Sect.
At the moment I was preparing to enter while watching the sign that read Mosan Sect,
“Ugh!?”
Sosumahu grasped her head. She staggered. I caught her as she swayed. She trembled slightly as she opened and closed her eyes.
Tears were welling in her eyes. She said to me.
“Dad! Where are we? I’m scared of the talisman.”
In her regression to a childlike state, Sosumahu nestled in my embrace, trembling slightly.
This is madness.