abcnovels
Chapter 323: Confusion (2)
Chapter 323: Confusion (2)
Chapter 323: Confusion (2)
Swish…
A brief shower had passed, causing the trees to get soaked with some of it falling into the artificial lake.
Drop. Drop. Drip.
The lake, which calmly accepted this water, was producing a gentle mist. It was at a small pavilion where he was able to enjoy the scenery at a glance. His vice leader took the lead.
“Here…”
The Black Demon Warlord, who followed him, was shocked by this.
Yuwon Palace which was located on the outskirts of the land, there was a small lake along with many tall trees around it, so it was a good place to chat quietly and exchange honest opinions.
At one time, elders and high ranking officials often visited this place, but at some point it turned difficult with the Heavenly Demon pushing his disciples ahead and asking for a shift in where their meetings were held.
“Follow me. They are waiting.”
At the vice leader who came to such a place without another thought, he followed the place with a confused look.
If there was someone the vice leader said was waiting, then would there not be just one person in the sect who it could be?
“Here it is.”
As expected, there was a white haired old man sitting in the position where they had come to.
“I brought him.”
“Hmm.”
As soon as the Black Demon Warlord entered, he immediately knelt down and bowed his head.
“I greet the highest in the sect.”
Heavenly Demon Cheon Wol-seong—
The ruler of the Hundred Thousand Mountains and the head of the millions of demons in the Demonic Sect. As the supreme leader of the sect, he leaned back in the chair, waving his hand.
“That is such a cumbersome greeting, Vice leader, please step back.”
“Yes.”
Shhh
The vice leader stepped back at once. Even he left without saying a word as the order was given.
Step
When he had moved far enough away, the Heavenly Demon waved his hand at the Black Demon Warlord, who was there.
“Get up and come over here. This is black tea.”
At those words the tea pot which was placed on the table began to float in the air and pour itself into his tea cup in an elegant manner.
Shhhh. Shhhhh.
The vermillion colored tea filled the teacup. Gently, steam began to rise along with the fragrance spreading around.
Void Movement — The art of moving things with internal energy. It was a trick which could be used only after touching the Supreme Demon level, but he had not seen a single person use it as naturally as the white haired man.
“Hmmm. This is my first time smelling this.”
It was not just words a senior was saying. This truly was an unusual red color which came out as the tea sat there and time progressed.
He held up the cup for a moment, quietly appreciating the color and scent of the tea and carefully took a sip.
Swish…
“Huh.”
A unique scent stimulated his mouth and nose. And after a while, a bitter after taste lingered in his mouth.
“Surely it is wonderful. Even I, who doesn’t know the taste of tea, am liking this.”
“Of course. Because it was prepared for that.”
A brief silence spread around.
“Dae-yeom, you know.”
The Heavenly Demon’s voice was very calm, and this made Gu Dae-yeom go stiff.
“Yes, Sect Leader.”
He knew.
Perhaps the words coming from this point on. Until now, Cheon Wol-seong was this man who had been sitting with his hands behind his back and watching everything which happened in the sect.
The reason why he sent the vice leader to call him.
“Even if the rule of the sect says it belongs to the strongest, I hope you don’t feel too unworthy and look around the people around you. That way you will not miss the forest for the trees.”
“…?”
What did this mean?
Gu Dae-yeom listened to what he had to say.
“So, from now on, try to be greedy and broaden your knowledge.”
“Right. That is a good idea.”
Shhh
The Heavenly Demon took a sip of his tea in the most leisurely manner. And then, as lightly as passing by, he tossed it.
“I wish he was like you. The one in the position unable to find the direction, and the one without the position in the right direction… it is so hard to watch.”
“…”
Gu Dae-yeom had a thought, and his thoughts hardened as the Heavenly Demon continued to speak.
Perhaps he was one who had his own plan.
Was he talking about the recent success in recruiting the forces by pressing the members of the Black Demon Troops?
But who else could he be talking about?
What was the deeper meaning of the words he chose to say?
Was this a compliment? Or an unknown warning?
“Yes.”
Gu Dae-yeom was not sure what the intentions of the Sect Leader were. So he chose to keep his head down and stay silent.
“Right. If you are currently at the level of warlord… Dae-yeom, there are a few places where you can get pushed in the future.”
“…!”
At the words of the Heavenly Demon, Black Demon Warlord went wide eyed.
Little by little, he began to get a sense of what the Sect Leader wanted to say.
“Yes. Right.”
“One of those will be the position of vice leader.”
“…”
The eyes of Gu Dae-yeon turned to the ground.
The one who called him here was the vice leader.
What does it mean when he suddenly asked him to be a vice leader and that he could get a change in the position?
“I apologize. How can I…”
The Black Demon Lord noticed the context of it and tried to respond. Somehow, if it was not, now it felt like he would not be able to speak up later.
Even though the Demonic Sect’s highest intentions were being reflected and his eyes shone, he was stubborn.
“It seems that the sect leader misunderstood. I have no desire for power. The position of vice is high but in return for such a high position, the responsibility to take is also great. I would rather…”
“You just want to grow a lot of Black Demon Troops?”
“…!”
The Heavenly Demon asked what he could not answer. The eyes of Black Demon Warlord widened at this, and then went back to looking at the ground.
“Yes. That is all I want.”
Unparalleled strength.
The troops of the best who are amazingly strong and can infiltrate any place like moving in fog.
It had been the long held desire of the Black Demon Warlord to reach that level.
The sect, the battles of power and the position of vice leader, who spent more time sitting at a desk than on the field, was like an old tea which he would not drink.
“Don’t you know that if you want more, you need to do more?”
“I know. But it doesn’t fit me. No, to be honest, I want to live doing what I want to do. I don’t want to do anything I don’t want to do.”
It was a shameless and disrespectful attitude, but Gu Dae-yeom wanted to show his honest feelings now. The reason he wanted power is to do whatever he wants.
To get time running as he wanted. But in order to hold onto that power, a large part of his mental strength would be used.
Gu Dae-yeom did not want that. He wanted a bigger Black Demon Hall.
But he did not want others involved in that. He knew it felt like a huge contradiction of options, but that was the kind of person he was.
One who thought for himself alone. Also, he was one who knew very well how he worked.
“You will do what you want to do. Then, there must be just one way to get it.”
“What is it?”
“The seat to represent all.”
Flinch!
Those words made the Black Demon Warlord stand up.
“Sect Leader! Please end me. How dare I even…”
“Get up now. I didn’t mean it like that.”
Woong
Along with the words, the body of the Heavenly Demon floated into the air and forced him to sit back in his seat.
“…!”
This man’s terrifying martial arts — Not to mention that he was one who had higher efficiency in everything.
M-monster…
Gu Dae-yeom was realizing it once again just how terrifying the Sect Leader was.
“Leave the troublesome work to the elders and you can focus on building the troops which you want. After becoming the Sect Leader, who will disobey the supreme being of the sect?”
“…”
The Black Demon Warlord’s eyes shone.
Having everyone in the Demonic Sect as fighting troops. Leaving the troublesome things to his subordinates and elders.
Surely this was possible if he became the Sect Leader. But that was not what he wanted to be though.
“The Earth Demon. No, I apologize. The Fourth Disciple… you are planning to throw him out now?”
A strong self esteem—
No matter how strong he was , even in the Demonic Sect, where the strong ruled, there would be odd minimal changes. It seemed like the meeting between the Sect Leader and the elders was happening for some other reason.
The struggle for succession where blood was spilled with the blood of the sahyungs was an outcome of effort.
It was not something where he could take everyone down and subdue them with power.
The law created by the elders and the Sect Leader to protect themselves from challenges — To completely ignore that law would not be easy even for the Heavenly Demon.
“All of this is because of the guy called Seol-Hwi.”
“…”
Unexpectedly the Earth Demon holds him second in his forces, and at his name, Gu Dae-yeom frowned.
“The struggle for succession. There, that Earth Demon did nothing. You know it. That there are two suns in the sky of the Demonic Sect.”
“…”
He opened his mouth and closed it again. It was Seol-Hwi, not the Earth Demon, who killed the First, Second, and Third disciples.
It was a fact that everyone knew, and no matter what he said now, the judgment and thoughts of the Heavenly Demon could not be touched.
“Confusion will ensue. There will be no end to the mess and there will be a lot of fights until one of them disappears. Dae-yeom you are having some fun now but at one point you will also fall to a state of not doing anything. So—”
Phew
The Heavenly Demon sighed in a confused manner like he was angry.
“But, the Earth Demon has no intention to lead the sect.”
“…Uh?”
“In a way, it is the same nature as you, to do what he wants. But there is a crucial difference. You can use the power if you need to but he cannot. Death comes the moment he uses it, because he is born like that.”
“…!”
At first glance, the big picture began to come into the mind of Gu Dae-yeom. The two suns in the Demonic Sect’s sky, there was another person who stood out more than the first.
And one of them was even the second in command. The only person who could stop him was Heavenly Killing Star.
Although there was infinite strength in his hands, he would vanish if he used it.
“There is nothing to try, but I have to take care of my own people. My core warriors, escort warriors, and even the hidden troops who secretly carry out the orders. The positions are very limited and there are too many people to please. You have to be able to make difficult choices in times but that guy chose to sit. He is avoiding the responsibilities which a leader should take.”
“…”
“So, I thought it would be better for you to take the position. No matter what happens, the path ahead is rough and so it is better to be a bit greedy instead of lazy.”
“…What do you even expect me to do?”
The Black Demon Warlord already knew he had no choice now. The Heavenly Demon had already made up his mind and was ready for an outcome.
Gu Dae-yeom had no intention of accepting it. Either way, his things will happen.
If he refused though, someone else will be presented with the same choice. And his competitor, the Bloody DeathWarlord would be one of them.
“Bring the sect out of danger.”
“…”
“Seol-Hwi surely is one who catches my eye but he doesn’t have the right to succeed it. Rather than that, the Earth Demon, that child is more troublesome. The incompetent leader with the right to take the position will only bring the worst out of the sect.”
The Black Demon Warlord doubted his ears at the words of killing someone whom he chose to follow.
And this came from the mouth of the Heavenly Demon.
“Well. Isn’t that an impossible task? The Heavenly Killing Star is made of the most delicate body. He is better than steel but the body breaks atone use of it. I will make a plan for you to trigger him and then the rest will be handled by me.”
“…I-it is impossible though. For me.”
Gu Dae-yeom bowed his head.
It was nice that his opponent was not Seol-Hwi. But what of the Earth Demon? It was unknown how much damage would be caused if the Earth Demon was triggered.
“Even without the power of the Heavenly Killing Star, the Fourth Disciple is strong.”
He was strong. And if he did not exhaust all his pre-existing energy, his body condition would not open up. Even if it was a glass body, it was not a paper body which fell from a simple gust of wind.
In order to destroy the Earth Demon, the power of a warrior would not be able to handle it.
“If you are alone, it is difficult, but if it is two, that is different too. The vice leader will be your shield. I already told him.”
“…!”
Gu Dae-yeom was shocked. His eyes went wide.
Now things fell into place.
He did not understand why this was decided ahead of time, but the vice leader accepted his death.
If he and another Supreme Demon warrior joined hands, the flames of the Earth Demon would be extinguished and one or two of them might survive.
The Black Demon Warlord was sure that he would be alive. It was planned that way.
“How is it?”
The Heavenly Demon looked at him for the last time to ask it,
“Will you do it?”
It was a question which did not need an answer.