Episode 53
Are you okay?
Ghosts are often possessed by resentment just before they die and often turn into vengeful spirits.
Then, the vengeful spirit will wander through the nine heavens until it resolves its grudge and attains Buddhahood.
The ghost of Baeksan was exactly like that.
“Let go of it! I said let go of it!!”
Clang, clang! Clang!
The guy who had become a grudge was tied up in chains and screaming loudly.
It seemed that he still had a grudge against the fact that he had been mocked by me until just before he died.
Of course, I wasn’t the type of person to blink an eye at something like that.
“Here comes your favorite hot new recruit. This time, train him well.”
“Your name!”
“Your name!!”
“Hehehe, my pretty one! How about we have a serious conversation about our bodies together?”
“A newbie! A newbie that’s good for your body and healthy! This time, I won’t let you go! You’re mine! You’re mine! Kiyooosh!”
“Ahhhhh! Let go, I said!”
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Clang, clang! Clang!
I always say this, no matter how great a master you were while you were alive, you still end up just a ghost after you die.
The same goes for Baek San-do. Whether he was a demon or not, he was ultimately just a powerless youngest in the society of ghosts.
The beating has begun.
Still, he seemed to be holding on somehow because he had pride, but I wondered how long he could keep that attitude.
By the way, who was the most excited about number 15?
What is a kkiyoot? A kkiyoot.
Whoosh, whoosh whoosh-
I lightly swung the sword that Baek San had dropped.
It felt good in my hand and the feel of it was comfortable.
There is a disadvantage in that the yin energy penetrates into the meridians, but from my perspective of handling the spirit magic, it is rather an advantage rather than a disadvantage.
I thought I picked up some good loot.
I had no need to use it, but I thought it would be useful if I melted it down and made a dagger.
I put the Nalrakdo back in its scabbard and hung it on my back, wrapped Baek-san’s broken head roughly in a bundle, and returned to where the believer had originally been.
This head, along with the White Bone Net, would be a very important piece of evidence that would raise my reputation.
After that, the other two believers who had scattered were also found.
The three egrets of Kunlun.
When I asked them what their names were, the three believers introduced themselves as such.
They were originally an immigrant people living around the Kunlun Mountains, and they took refuge in Tian Shan and naturally became believers of the Angma Mythology Sect.
Now that I think about it, my skin seems a bit darker and my facial features darker than those of the Central Plains.
I decided to call them Ilno, Ino, and Samno in order of their age.
Their gazes looking this way were filled with excitement, fear, worry, and anticipation.
“Meet the young leader.”
“Meet the Young Leader!”
“I have met the young leader!!”
The three of them lay face down on the floor, pouring out their intense emotions.
My body trembled slightly, and tears poured down from my reddened eyes.
I was still standing there with my lion mask still on, and I couldn’t bring myself to open my mouth.
Although, in my experience, it only feels like two months.
Haven’t they been suffering greatly for the past six years, being chased by the swarms and weeds?
How can I fathom the sorrow of that office?
“I’m sorry for everything.”
“How can you say such a thing? The Somas consider it an infinite honor in their lives to have met the face of the Sogyo leader!”
“Thank you for holding on.”
I spoke with all my heart and carefully brought up the question I wanted to ask the believers first when I met them.
A question that even Baekgolmangsa couldn’t find out.
“The leader-”
My heart was pounding.
“Is the leader okay?”
Judging from the reactions of the 15th Ho and Gu Min-chae, it was certain that they had escaped Cheon-san safely, so I really wanted to ask.
It seemed as if the Master’s face was already gleaming before my eyes.
But for some reason, the three of them couldn’t answer easily and just looked at each other.
… an unknown sense of anxiety passed through my mind.
“Your Majesty.”
Then one of them swallowed dry saliva and barely opened his mouth.
“Weren’t you with the young cult leader?”
“…what?”
“We have known this all along.”
“Explain it simply.”
For a moment, my head became dizzy.
“That’s-”
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Kunlun Sanno began to explain carefully.
The content could be simply summarized in one word.
-Missing.
“After the Ssaecheonbong bloodshed, the five sects including the Bukhae sect dared to invade the Gyojujeon Hall.”
“I know that much.”
“The problem came right after that.”
“problem?”
“Yes. The leader wasn’t there.”
“!!!”
My eyes grew wide.
“Has anyone seen the Master rise?”
“That’s right. Not only the leader, but also the servants and deacons who were always guarding the area, and even the Homawi (guards) have all disappeared.”
Homawi was the one who always guarded the leader in the darkness. Each and every one of them was a master of the highest level, so as long as they were there, the master would be safe.
“Because of this, the internal strife in the new religion intensified. The Sword Demon Sangmu Sect rebelled and attacked the Jinma Gueum Sect, and the Holy Demon Dansim Sect accepted the survivors of the Yeo Ma Il Wol Sect and joined them, causing conflicts among the Seventy-Twelve Sects as well.”
The situation of Cheonsan being divided into two factions and fighting each other naturally came to mind.
It was a fact I had heard to some extent.
After hearing this directly, I felt truly depressed.
“Then why did the Angmasinhwajong come down from Cheonsan? If the Sangmujong, Dansimjong, and Ilwoljong joined forces to fight the rebellion, wouldn’t the Shinhwajong also naturally join them?”
“That’s-”
Ilno slowly continued, his voice trailing off and his eyes tightly shut.
“The opinion of the Sangmu, Dansim, and Ilwol sects was that a sect whose leader has disappeared cannot be recognized as a sect.”
“It looks like you got cooked.”
Now everything is sorted out.
The civil war of the Shinto religion was merely a conflict between the five sects that had joined the church and those that had not.
The opinion of the Angmasinhwajong was not included anywhere here.
In effect, he was expelled.
「… … .」
「… … .」
「… … .」
Right now, at this moment, the ghosts were not saying anything and were busy watching me.
“I’m sorry!!”
Kunlun Sanno hit his head hard on the floor.
Blood flowed from his forehead.
“Raise your head.”
“Haona-”
“I won’t tell you twice. Listen.”
Power came naturally to his voice.
Kunlun Sanno slowly raised his head with trembling eyes.
There is only one emotion contained within it.
Guilt.
It was a regret for not being able to properly serve the lord.
“How can that be your fault? Even in the midst of tribulation, it is the duty of the sect leader to comfort the believers. The fault lies with me and Master. I am sorry.”
I bowed my head with sincerity.
I didn’t have the face to look at their faces.
“Oh, my dear teacher!”
“Please don’t do this!!”
“We are simply grateful that our little sect leader has returned here, and we consider it a blessing from the first Heavenly Demon!!”
The Angmasinhwajong, having lost its master, was driven out of Cheonsan and scattered throughout Saewe and the Central Plains.
To avoid being pursued by the council and to find the missing master, he searched all over the world.
It is said that the followers of Shinwha Sect began to call this the ‘Angma Prison’.
During the time when the Angmasinhwajong was a Buddhist sect, the name was given in reference to the long journey from Persia to India and finally to Tian Shan, to escape the oppression of the ruling class, the ‘Flow of the Pear Tree’.
And now, six years have passed in a flash.
Now, the secret communication network between believers is slowly starting to loosen up.
This was because many cult organizations were destroyed or their followers were killed due to the persistent pursuit of the new religion.
It is said that even the whereabouts of the Master were not heard, and even the sect’s faithful faith weakened, to the point that there were even secret talks within the sect about whether a new leader should be chosen.
In the midst of all this chaos, my traces were discovered in Guryong County.
“Some people clearly saw it as a trick to lure out the new cult members, while others expressed the opinion that the younger cult leader who escaped Cheonsan safely with the cult leader had finally recovered and returned. After such a back and forth-”
“So, the three of you met Gu Min-chae while you were on your way to Guryong County to confirm the facts.”
“That is so.”
I shut my eyes tightly.
In the end, I was almost put in danger by my unreasonable summons.
I was so sorry.
What should I say?
My mouth wouldn’t open easily.
“…As you can see, I am not with Master.”
“We saw it too.”
“The same goes for healing old wounds.”
I had not yet taken off the lion mask that was covering my face on purpose. I thought it was not yet time to reveal my reincarnated identity.
For me. For them.
Did you read my mind?
Kunlun Sanno’s pupils shook.
Just in case I should hide again.
Or maybe I should postpone the revival of the mythical species.
“If you do-”
“One, I have appeared before you.”
“Oh, my lord!”
“I believe that this is the guidance and trial that the Heavenly Demon has given to me and you to lead you. My sin of abandoning you all this time is so great. In order to atone for this, I will somehow re-establish the Shinwha Sect with my own hands. Just as the old Pear Flower rose again in Cheonsan, Shinwha will now rise here in Sacheon.”
“!!”
“I will take you in place of the Master, and thus prepare the ground for the Master to descend again. And… in the end, the divine fire (神火) that arose in the Four Heavenly Heavens will spread across the Central Plains and reach the Tian Shan Mountains, burning all the equators, and making all the demons submit to us and look up to us (仰魔).”
“iced coffee-“
“So that I can do that, will you please trust and follow me again, a loser like me?”
“Are you sure you want to accomplish this?”
“Please lead us.”
“Please become the new leader, just like you did six years ago.”
Kunlun Sanno knelt on one knee and bowed his head.
I raised my head.
The moonlight of the clear, bright full moon looked especially clear today.
The same was true of the ripples that spread gently within my chest.
* * *
First and foremost, the most important task was to restore the Angmasinhwajong that had been scattered throughout the country.
They say there are quite a few faction organizations that have lost contact, so there may be one among them that has found clues to Master’s whereabouts.
“So who is currently leading your organization?”
“You are a blood-sucking demon.”
The Angmasinhwajong sect had a total of five loyal guardians.
Generals who become the ‘sword’ of the Shingeomcheonma.
Five Great Swordsmen.
The vampire demon was one of them, and he was also the head of one of the seventy-two sects called the vampire sect.
“Fortunately, my guardian angel was safe. It is the grace of the first Heavenly Demon. Then go and tell him.”
My eyes sank deep beneath the lion’s head.
“The new lord will be waiting for you in Danggata.”
The reincarnation demon temple
