Was it because my heart felt lighter?
The Swift Step was even faster on the way back.
After returning to the Main Sect, I ate and rested well.
Then, I bathed and changed into a new martial robe.
In the best of spirits, I was about to head to the Heavenly Demon Hall to see my father when I found two people waiting for me outside the gate, having heard of my return.
They were Seo Daeryong and Jang Ho.
Jang Ho's large frame seemed to have grown even bigger since I last saw him.
Seo Daeryong approached me, lowered his voice, and said suggestively.
“I shouldn't joke like this with my Master present, but if you combine the two of us, wouldn't we count as one Demon Sovereign?"
From those words, I immediately understood what was in their hearts as they waited for me here.
If they could, they wanted to step forward and lend their strength.
“The two of you are a match for three Demon Sovereigns."
“Do I handle two of the Demon Sovereigns?"
“Lord Jang will take two and a half, you take half."
“I am the right-hand man! Me!”
Jang Ho, who had always coveted the position of right-hand man, bowed his head respectfully to me.
He always looked so dependable.
“Young Cult Master, you have always shown more than I could ever imagine, so I am not worried, but please, judge the situation carefully.”
They were worried about me like this because my opponent was my father.
Seo Daeryong was also looking at me now, the playfulness gone from his face.
These were two men who would gladly give their lives for my command.
They were my people who must never die, so today's fight was also a fight for them.
“I'll make a reservation at the Flowing Wine Tavern. To drink the wine of defeat? I refuse such jokes.”
“I wasn't thinking of making such a joke, but you just did.”
Seo Daeryong smiled brightly and clasped his fist respectfully.
Jang Ho also clasped his fist and bowed his head.
It was a moment more empowering than any encouragement in the world.
“Book the entire Flowing Wine Tavern. Let's get drunk all night.”
Leaving the two men's encouragement behind me, I left my residence.
When I arrived at the entrance of the Heavenly Demon Hall, this time my brother, Geom Muyang, was waiting for me.
I could see how important this matter was to everyone.
“I heard everything from the Demon Buddha.”
It seemed the Demon Buddha had told my brother everything about this matter.
“So? Did you come to help your cornered younger brother?"
But my brother gave an unexpected answer.
"I came to save our cornered father.”
“Right. I suppose that's a joke only you and I can make in this Martial World.”
“It's not a joke.”
His eyes, looking at me, were filled with reproach.
“He trusted you and made you the Young Cult Master, and now you're going to defy Father's will?"
“If I fall out of Father's favor, wouldn't that be a good thing for you?"
“I thought so too.”
It seemed that wasn't the case, seeing him come out to stop me like this.
We stood side by side without looking at each other, gazing together at the view from the Heavenly Demon Hall.
The time had come to have a conversation we should have had at least once.
A conversation I couldn't have with anyone else, only with my brother.
“Do you know? That no one can speak about our father's life?”
My brother looked at me, his expression asking what I meant.
“That's why Father has probably never once heard it. Someone speaking about his life, about his existence.”
"But isn't the Grand Strategist there?"
“Yes, he is, and so is Uncle Hwi. They might be able to speak bluntly. They can comfortably talk about the Sect's affairs. But brother, do you really think they can dare to speak about Father's life, about Father's beliefs?"
"..."
My brother had probably never thought about this before.
“Are you doubting their loyalty?”
“I'm saying this because I know their loyalty is real. Because they are truly loyal, they can't do it. They won't do it. Because they will try to accept every aspect of our father. Because they will try to endure it all. You know how it is. Those who are close can't do it because they're too close, and those who are distant can't do it because they're too distant.”
After a brief pause, my brother asked.
“So? You're saying you'll do it?"
“Yes, I will.”
My brother shouted with an angry face.
"How arrogant!"
“Still, we have to do it. Because it's something even you think shouldn't be done. That's why Father is living a life where he can never receive advice or counsel. We have to tell him. 'Father, I think you are mistaken about that.' Someone has to tell him."
My brother was about to say something but ended up sighing.
How could he not understand the meaning of my words?
“Even if my choice is not the right one, so what? Father will correct me. Let's use our faith in Father for things like this."
My brother said nothing more.
“Go on in.”
“Still, thank you. For coming here because you were worried.”
“I told you I didn't come because I was worried about you.”
My brother, who had walked some distance away, turned back to look at me.
I was still looking at him.
His thoughts didn't change until the very end.
“Still, I am against this."
“That's why I'm doing it.”
I watched my brother's retreating back as he turned away again, then entered the Heavenly Demon Hall.
But know this.
You are now among the people I don't want to kill.
That's why I'm fighting this fight.
I stepped into the Heavenly Demon Hall.
My father was seated on the Grand Advisor's seat, as always.
Today, his appearance was more special than on other days.
It must be because I had truly felt how terrifying it was for that Grand Advisor's seat to be empty.
“Father, I'm here.”
I greeted my father in a brighter voice than usual.
I slowly walked the path of blood, a red carpet, to the foot of the Grand Advisor's seat.
For some reason, the path felt long today.
At the end of the path of blood, I looked up at my father.
Do you know, Father? On the day I regressed, I stood on the training grounds and looked up at you just like this.
Since that day, I have always been watching you.
After regressing, I made an effort with everyone, but at the center of it all was always my father.
"I have something to confess.”
Of course, my father would already know everything I was about to say.
But just like when I returned after being expelled, I told him the whole story.
“For the past few days, I've been visiting the Demon Sovereigns and pestering them to take my side.”
As expected, there was no surprise or agitation on my father's face.
“They are my Demon Sovereigns. Why did you ask them to take your side?"
“Perhaps because of jealousy?”
I could feel the corners of my father's mouth preparing to lift slightly.
“Your Demon Sovereigns are too magnificent. I suppose that's why I'm jealous.”
My father didn't scoff.
Instead, he nodded once as if agreeing with my words and said.
“It is not easy for such fine people to gather in one era.”
The moment I heard that, the Demon Buddha's words came to mind.
—Because the Main Sect has never been this strong.
Those fine Eight Demon Sovereigns had each changed in their own way and grown stronger in their own way.
Even at this very moment, they were growing stronger.
The stagnant Heavenly Demon Divine Sect had begun to flow freely, without obstruction.
“Since we're on the topic, why don't we call them all and see their faces? Don't they say that if you don't see each other often, your hearts grow distant?"
It was a probing move.
If, as the Demon Buddha thought, this was a stage set by my father, and his goal was to persuade me and rally the Demon Sovereigns as one, then my father would summon them.
If not, he would just ignore me and move on.
Father, how will you respond to this move?
My father did not back down; he accepted my move.
My father said in a low voice.
"Summon the Demon Sovereigns.”
Then, Hwi's reply came from the empty air.
“I receive your command.”
A silent passion spread from the depths of my heart.
My father really summoned the Demon Sovereigns.
Since he wasn't one to convene the Demon Sovereigns for trivial matters, I began to strongly suspect that what the Demon Buddha said might be true.
Father, in that case, what do you intend to do on this stage? With the Demon Sovereigns as your audience, are you truly trying to persuade me? Or are you planning to crush me with force?
A brief silence followed.
But it didn't feel awkward or uncomfortable, so I didn't deliberately continue the conversation.
I saved my words.
There would be much to say today.
How much time had passed?
Finally, the doors opened, and a person entered.
The first to arrive was the Fist Demon.
His large body striding across the red carpet looked as if he were walking out of the Gates of Hell.
He walked to the foot of the Grand Advisor's seat, bowed respectfully to my father, and then stood to the right, in my father's line of sight.
“Welcome, Master.”
Because we were in front of my father, the Fist Demon only gave a light nod.
I asked with my eyes.
Was the war with Father you spoke of a war against me?
The Fist Demon must have felt the meaning in my gaze, but he just stood there silently.
Another person entered.
A person who followed my father as much as the Fist Demon—it was the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign.
The pure white martial robe and her white hair suited her perfectly.
It was a complete contrast to the Fist Demon's entrance.
Watching her walk the path of blood with light steps, a thought occurred to me.
Wouldn't the female martial artists of the Main Sect think this when they see her?
I want to grow old like that.
That was the feeling the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign gave off these days.
She was personally demonstrating that age has no bearing on a person's transformation.
She also bowed respectfully to my father and stood beside the Fist Demon.
“You've come?"
The Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign also greeted me with a faint smile.
The first two to arrive were people who absolutely respected and admired my father.
They had chosen my father without a shred of hesitation.
The next person to enter was the Evil Heart Laughing Demon.
He walked in wearing a white mask.
Like the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign's pure white hair, his mask was a stark contrast to the red carpet.
After bowing respectfully to my father, the Evil Heart Laughing Demon stood on the opposite side of the Fist Demon and the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign, with the carpet between them.
It wasn't an intentional move to create a confrontation.
Since two people were standing on one side, he naturally stood on the other side of the red carpet.
The Evil Heart Laughing Demon looked at the Fist Demon and the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign before him with emotionless eyes.
Then, his gaze turned to me.
The two eyes within the eyeholes spoke.
Young Cult Master, I have arrived.
I smiled at him with my eyes.
Laughing Demon Sovereign, I've been waiting.
A courtesy that only he and I shared.
I really like this feeling.
When I turned my head again, my father was silently watching us.
'I'm sorry, Father.
Your Demon Sovereign was so cool that I brought him over to my side.
It's just one person, so please understand.’
The next to arrive, the Soul-Devouring Demon Sovereign, had a different feel from the Evil Heart Laughing Demon.
Because she was not only my father's Demon Sovereign but also the next one in line.
After greeting my father, the Soul-Devouring Demon Sovereign chose the spot next to the Evil Heart Laughing Demon.
With two people on the opposite side and one on this side, she stood in that spot, but the result was a confrontational standoff.
Though she faced the Fist Demon and the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign, she was not the least bit intimidated.
Moreover, as she stood side by side with the Evil Heart Laughing Demon, the auras of Evil Heart and Soul-Devouring, which stimulate a martial artist's primal fear, mingled, doubling the terror.
The next Demon Sovereign to arrive was the Drunken Demon, who entered reeking of wine.
He naturally stood next to the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign.
Unlike the Fist Demon and the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign, his eyes held a hint of apology as he looked at me.
He must have drunk a lot after telling me he would choose my father.
He looks incredibly weak at times like this, but I've seen it, haven't I?
What kind of person the Drunken Demon is on the battlefield.
The next Demon Sovereign to enter was the Demon Buddha.
He entered emitting a golden light and, without hesitation, stood next to the Drunken Demon.
Normally, he should have stood next to the Soul-Devouring Demon Sovereign, where two people were standing, to balance things out, but for some reason, he stood on the opposite side.
I could tell he had stood there intentionally.
He was the one who said this was a stage created by my father.
Therefore, he must be trying to heighten the tension of this stage.
No matter how hard he hammers at his statues, it seems he can't help his innate love for such conflicts.
The seventh Demon Sovereign was the Poison King.
As if to keep his word that he was on neither side, he stood alone, far away from both groups.
The Poison King had clearly shown where he stood in front of my father and the other Demon Sovereigns.
In a way, he was the bravest.
In this case, choosing neither side was a more difficult choice than choosing one.
However, by standing far apart, he was also keeping the promise he had made with my father long ago.
Because he had been told not to participate in the unification of the Martial World.
The last person to enter was the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
He had not been able to make a decision until the very end.
If he had, he would have come and told me.
What choice would he make today?
Walking the path of blood, he looked at the Demon Sovereigns standing on both sides.
Since the balance was off like this, I had briefly hoped he would stand on my side.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon stood on the opposite side without hesitation.
I feigned a disappointed expression and said to him.
“Elder, this is too much! I believed that at least you would support me."
He did not take my words as a joke.
Instead, he reprimanded me sharply.
“You are the one who is being too much, Young Cult Master. How dare you go against the Cult Master's will?”
The same displeased look he had when I first met him.
It was as if our relationship had been reset to the very beginning.
From this cold reaction, I knew.
That he had chosen me.
Even though he stood on that side, I felt that he had chosen me.
Why?
He was worried about the relationship between my father and me.
He had set aside my father's aspirations and my own demonic path, thinking only of that.
The worry that the more I confronted my father, the more a rift could form between us.
He must have decided that it was better for me if he stood on my father's side and scolded me sharply.
Thank you, Elder.
But I did not send a telepathic message of thanks, nor did I give him a look that said I understood his heart.
For now, following his intentions would be my way of thanking him.
But what should I do, Elder.
Today, I'm going to defeat my father and return.
And so, the Eight Demon Sovereigns gathered in one place.
Me.
My father and the Eight Demon Sovereigns.
A force so powerful that no one would find it strange if we were to walk out right now and set off to conquer the Martial World.
Finally, my father rose from the Grand Advisor's seat.
The Demon Sovereigns all straightened their postures and tensed up.
They, who had each been shining with their own colors until now, all became black and white, hiding themselves.
In that black and white picture, only my father and I revealed our presences, red as blood and blue as the sky.
My father, who had been gazing at me for a moment, began to slowly walk down toward the stage filled with spectators.