I had known for a while that my father dreamed of unifying the Martial World.
The key was when he would finally draw his sword, the timing of it all.
If the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's guess was correct, that time was coming sooner than I thought.
“Haven't we yet to completely root out the hidden forces working in the shadows of the various sects?”
He’s thinking of war in a situation like this?
I knew well that my father was not one to handle such a great matter emotionally.
Nor was he one to create another major enemy while already facing one.
How could the Blood Heaven Blade Demon not know this?
Though they had grown distant, in his youth, he had been closer to my father than anyone.
That was why he knew my father better than anyone.
And yet, the reason he made such a guess was this.
“As you know, the Martial World has been at peace for a very long time. There haven't been any real fights. But this time, while dealing with those hidden forces, the Demon Sovereigns have awakened.”
He was right.
All the Demon Sovereigns had taken turns participating in the battles.
They had experienced true combat against powerful foes.
For masters of the Demon Sovereign level, the chance to face an enemy of similar skill was a rare opportunity that might only come a few times in a lifetime.
“As we fought them, we naturally began to prepare for war in earnest.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon's truly surprising words began now.
“And more than anything, the Main Sect has gained a power stronger than any other.”
“What do you mean?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon silently looked at me.
“Surely you don’t mean me?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon nodded.
He was right.
In the process of fighting the hidden forces, my martial arts had grown the most.
“Because of you, the possibility of the Main Sect achieving the unification of the Martial World has grown much greater.”
That was also true.
If I achieved Great Mastery in the Nine Calamities Demon Art and joined forces with my father, we could likely unify the Martial World more easily than if he were to do it alone.
Finally, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon added his last surprising remark.
“Perhaps the one who awakened the Cult Master's dream is you.”
I couldn't refute his words.
Whether it was true or not, what the Blood Heaven Blade Demon said was persuasive.
After all, I was the one who had influenced my father the most recently.
“Of course, my guess could be wrong.”
My father had changed a lot recently, too.
It could be a simple thought, influenced by how I treated the Demon Sovereigns, that he should also get closer to them.
That would be truly wonderful.
If not that, it could just be a way to appease the Demon Sovereigns in order to root out the hidden forces.
How I wished his heart was in such a place.
Truly, there was nothing more difficult than reading my father's mind.
The final reason for the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's speculation lay in the distant past.
“The Cult Master has dreamed of unifying the Martial World since he was young.”
“Have you spoken about it with him before?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s eyes deepened as he recalled the past.
“It was before the Cult Master even became the Heavenly Demon. At the time, he and the Fist Demon roamed the Central Plains, fighting everywhere. Just like you do now, the two of them traveled without any guards. Then one day, the Cult Master returned to the sect and told me with a flushed face.”
In those days when everyone was young, what had my father said to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon?
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon relayed my father’s exact words.
“This Martial World, I must take it for myself.”
The moment I heard those words, I pictured my father in his youth.
The moment he first held the dream of unifying the Martial World.
What had prompted my father to dream of unification? What had he seen then? Was it the good side of the Martial World? Or its ugly underbelly?
“After that, the Cult Master never once brought it up again.”
“That was probably the first and last time. My father is not one to go around revealing such dreams to this person and that person.”
When he wanted to tell someone about the passion boiling in his heart, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon had been his only audience.
Because they shared such a past, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon could confidently say back then that while a father might give up on one of his two children, he would never give up on him.
My heart grew heavy.
Could I make my father give up a dream he had held since then?
“What about you, Elder?”
“What about me?”
“What will you do if my father orders you to strike the Martial Alliance?”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s gaze dropped to his book.
He was clearly troubled.
“Please speak comfortably. I’ve prepared my heart to be disappointed!”
I said it playfully, but the Blood Heaven Blade Demon did not take it as a joke.
“I’m not ready to disappoint anyone yet. Not you, and not your father.”
His words told me what was in his heart.
No matter how close we had become, no matter how distant he and my father had grown, disobeying my father's order was by no means an easy thing.
Setting aside all personal matters, it was the relationship between a Cult Master and a Demon Sovereign.
Just the fact that he was contemplating it this much showed how much he cared for me.
“I won't let you face a moment of choice, Elder.”
It wasn't just the Blood Heaven Blade Demon, but the other Demon Sovereigns as well.
I would not let them fall into the dilemma of having to disobey my father’s order for my sake.
This was, in the end, a matter between my father and me.
“What do you plan to do?”
“You know what kind of Demonic Path I dream of, don't you? I have to persuade my father, one way or another.”
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon's gaze returned to his book.
After staring blankly at it for a moment, he spoke softly.
“Not everyone can live the way they want.”
I couldn't tell if he was speaking to me, to my father, or to himself.
*
I told him I would bring my pajamas and sleep over next time, and left the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s residence.
I felt he would want to be alone.
I decided to think about this matter positively.
I saw it as an opportunity for my relationship with my father, as well as with the Demon Sovereigns, to move to the next level.
Becoming friendly is easy.
The problem always starts after that.
We were now on a new testing ground for our relationships.
When I returned to my residence, someone was training in the courtyard.
It was Jeok-yeon, the head of my bodyguards.
News of my return must have already reached him, so it seemed he had been waiting at my residence for my arrival.
I watched without disturbing his training.
His skills had noticeably improved since I last saw him.
It meant he had trained relentlessly while I was in the Northern Sea.
When his round of training ended, I revealed myself.
“Your skills have improved a lot.”
At my appearance, Jeok-yeon bowed respectfully.
“Young Cult Master! I have been eagerly awaiting your safe return.”
His face was full of delight.
“I heard the news of your return and have been waiting. The other guards wanted to stay as well, but I sent them back to train.”
Just from those words, I could guess how diligently they were all training.
They didn't want to miss even a single day of their scheduled practice.
“Take off your blindfold.”
“It's alright.”
“I always say this, but I’m not alright with it.”
Looking at his eyes reminds me of Lee Ahn’s Full Body Petrification Art.
Feeling the resolve of the guards who would endure such pain to protect someone, I wanted to free them from their suffering as soon as possible.
The moment he untied the blindfold, I was startled.
His eyes had returned to normal.
“You’ve achieved Great Mastery!”
As if he had intended to surprise me, Jeok-yeon finally smiled.
“It is all thanks to you, Young Cult Master. Perhaps because you touched my eyes from time to time, my training in the Ghost Eye Technique progressed quickly.”
I knew that wasn't the reason.
He must have endured great pain and trained relentlessly.
“Then why are you wearing a blindfold?”
“It feels awkward to suddenly take it off.”
“Take it off. If you do, the female warriors will flock to you.”
“Then I should definitely keep it on. I plan to flock only to you, Young Cult Master.”
Perhaps because the pain in his eyes was gone, he seemed much brighter than before.
Still, perhaps feeling awkward about his uncharacteristic joke, he quickly said his farewell.
“Please rest well.”
“Jeok-yeon.”
“Yes, Young Cult Master.”
I couldn't just let him go like this after he had waited up so late to see me.
“You have to stay for a celebratory drink.”
I drank with Jeok-yeon and we talked about this and that.
Just as I reported what had happened with my father, Jeok-yeon told me everything that had occurred within the sect.
He had kept track of every detail, in case it might be of help to me.
He also told me that the guards’ skills had improved a great deal.
He spoke of how hard they were all working.
“Perhaps because of their desire to accompany you, Young Cult Master, everyone is training as if their lives depend on it.”
I always told them.
To travel with me, they had to become stronger.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon was right.
The Main Sect's power was growing stronger in every corner.
Especially those connected to me were all becoming stronger.
Even the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign, who hadn't fought against the hidden forces, had grown stronger through sparring with me.
Perhaps his words were true after all.
That I might really be the one who awakened my father's dream.
The next day, I went to the Valley of the Wicked to meet the Evil Heart Laughing Demon.
In the Evil Heart Laughing Demon’s residence, my bed and his were still there.
In addition, there was now a desk and chair that hadn't been there before.
The Evil Heart Laughing Demon was peering at something at his desk.
“I’ve returned safely.”
The two eyes behind the Evil Heart Laughing Demon's mask smiled brightly as he looked at me.
“You’ve come.”
The Evil Heart Laughing Demon welcomed me, unchanged.
“You have a desk now.”
Of course, the desk and chair were painted pure white.
“It’s convenient to have one.”
He then lifted what he was looking at to show me.
It was a ledger filled with numbers.
“I’ve been studying new things recently.”
Seeing him like this reminded me of when I went to the Central Plains with him before.
Back then, Blue Mask had relayed the contents of the ledger through a telepathic message, but now he was reading it himself.
It seemed he had learned how to read ledgers in the meantime.
I thought it was a good sign.
When masters of the Demon Sovereign level ascended to the next level of mastery, they often received inspiration from completely unexpected places.
That's what made them formidable.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon reading a book, the Evil Heart Laughing Demon reading a ledger.
This was a change that had occurred since I brought my bed here.
I could feel what was in the Evil Heart Laughing Demon’s heart in placing the desk.
In response to my sentiment of wanting him to lie down and sleep comfortably, he was showing me an even greater change.
As if to say, I've changed like this because of you.
“How was the Northern Sea?”
“It was a cool and beautiful place. You must have been there many times, right?”
Since he liked the color white, I thought he must have gone very often.
“I've only been there once. I can't stand the cold.”
I laughed out loud at the unexpected reason.
This time, the Evil Heart Laughing Demon asked.
“Then you must have visited the Northern Sea Ice Palace.”
“Visited? I practically lived there for a while.”
“It is known for not accepting outsiders. You truly are the Young Cult Master.”
I sat on the edge of my bed and told him in detail what had happened in the Northern Sea.
I made sure not to leave out anything about the Blood King and his subordinates.
Repeating the story could sometimes be tedious, but I didn't mind.
I believed that a small piece of information could later become a valuable one that could save a life.
After relaying the story about the Northern Sea, I brought up the most important reason for my visit today.
“I heard you met my father recently.”
“Yes, I did.”
“I’m curious about what you and my father discussed that day.”
A hint of puzzlement flickered in the Evil Heart Laughing Demon's eyes behind the eyeholes.
I was asking about a conversation between the Heavenly Demon and a Demon Sovereign.
No matter how close we were, it was not something one could casually ask about.
“I know it is a rude question.”
“You must have your reasons, of course.”
I did not hide the matter from him.
“I’m wondering if my father has begun to move toward unifying the Martial World.”
At the words ‘unifying the Martial World,’ the Evil Heart Laughing Demon's eyes shone intensely.
“Seeing you drinking with the Drunken Demon Sovereign yesterday made me think so. I wondered if my father was finally preparing to draw his sword.”
Only then did the Evil Heart Laughing Demon's eyes show that he understood why I had asked such a question.
“When I met him, he did not mention anything related to unifying the Martial World. It was all about sect affairs and everyday conversation. He mostly talked about you, Young Cult Master.”
“About me?”
“Yes, he asked me to take good care of you in the future.”
My father meeting the Evil Heart Laughing Demon to ask a favor regarding me?
It was possible, given that our relationship had improved recently.
But my unease did not fade.
“Are you worried?”
“Honestly, yes. Worried enough to visit you like this and commit such a rudeness.”
Setting aside their relationship with me, what were the Demon Sovereigns thinking?
Since my regression, they had changed a great deal.
My relationship with them had changed as well.
But had their views or feelings about the Martial World also changed? For instance, if I were to ask this question:
Would the Evil Heart Laughing Demon truly prefer a peaceful Martial World? Or would he rather run wild on a battlefield, unleashing his demonic energy?
Could I be certain that he preferred peace? Was the Evil Heart Laughing Demon before me that kind of person?
Then, the Evil Heart Laughing Demon spoke.
His words were as if he had read my mind.
“I can endure it.”
I knew the sentiment behind his words.
This was the Evil Heart Laughing Demon's heart toward me.
“I don't want to make you live a life where you have to endure, Laughing Demon Sovereign.”
His eyes behind the eyeholes seemed to ask, is there a way?
“We have to find it now. I will make my father and the other Demon Sovereigns say something other than ‘endure.’”
I still didn't know what words should replace the word ‘endure.’
“Young Cult Master.”
“Yes, Laughing Demon Sovereign.”
With clear, deep eyes, the Evil Heart Laughing Demon spoke softly.
“No matter what order is given, I will follow you, Young Cult Master. Your Demonic Path is my Demonic Path.”