As dark clouds gathered, the surroundings quickly grew dim.
The flashing light seemed to draw nearer and nearer.
Crash! Crackle-crash!
The sky, holding back its thunder, finally let it out in succession as it poured down rain.
Swoooosh!
Geom Muyang stood by the window, watching the falling rain.
After Jin Ha-gun left with the Demon Slaying Branch, Geom Muyang and the division’s martial artists remained at the manor.
Jin Ha-gun had taken the White Dragon Division Lord with him.
After all, Geom Muyang couldn't keep him indefinitely.
Jin Ha-gun wouldn't be able to hold him for long either.
The news that the White Dragon Division Lord, of all people, had gone missing would send the Martial Alliance into an uproar.
How would he handle it?
If it were him, he would have faced it head-on.
He would have taken him to his father and made him confess everything.
How to mend that long-standing friendship would be entirely up to his father.
Of course, Geom Muyang didn't say any of this to Jin Ha-gun.
He didn't even ask how he planned to handle it.
He had entrusted him with the task of rescuing Gwak Yeong's brother, and that was enough.
Their relationship wasn't one where they would handle other matters together.
Just then, Gwak Yeong spoke from behind him.
"The rain makes me think of wine."
In truth, the rain made her think desperately of her brother.
Where was he? How was he? Was he eating properly? Was he being beaten? How scared must he be right now? This incident would haunt him for the rest of his life like a nightmare.
What was going to happen now?
Gwak Yeong was terrified inside.
Before the name Heavenly Wandering Hermit came up, she believed that this man, and the Master of the Demon Slaying Branch, could save her brother.
But the Heavenly Wandering Hermit?
The man who had sacrificed his entire life for the Righteous Path was behind this?
Even after watching Geom Muyang and Jin Ha-gun uncover the truth, she couldn't believe it.
Could something be wrong? Could it be someone's plot to frame him?
If she couldn't believe it even after seeing it with her own eyes, who would?
That was what the Heavenly Wandering Hermit meant to the people of the Righteous Path.
Making counterfeit weapons to earn money, on top of kidnapping and blackmail.
She thought her opponent was just a school of piranhas, swarming and tearing off flesh.
But behind them was a great whale that seemed ready to swallow the very sea.
"Why didn't you hand me over to the Demon Slaying Branch?"
He could have sent her to Jin Ha-gun.
A promise to save her brother was a promise, but she had committed the crime of betraying the honor of an Iron Workshop artisan by creating counterfeit hidden weapons.
Handing her over would have been less of a burden for him.
Geom Muyang, who had been looking out the window, turned to face her.
"Was it a lie?"
"Pardon?"
"That you would make weapons for me."
From the look in his eyes, Gwak Yeong could tell.
Ah! This man really intends to take me with him and put me to use.
"I didn't know. That your Iron Workshop was so short-staffed."
She replied with a misplaced joke.
Fortunately, Geom Muyang said nothing more and turned his gaze back to the window.
Her offer to make weapons for him had been sincere.
She was even prepared to live as a demonic practitioner.
But what truly scared her was this: what if she could never see her brother again?
Swoooosh.
She stared blankly at the pouring rain over Geom Muyang's shoulder, then...
"The one behind it..."
'Since the Heavenly Wandering Hermit is behind this, can the Demon Slaying Branch really save my brother?'
The words wouldn't come out.
The name Heavenly Wandering Hermit felt foreign on her tongue.
'What if the Demon Slaying Branch can't investigate him due to internal pressure?'
She was afraid that if she spoke so rashly, it might actually come true.
As if he understood her inner thoughts, Geom Muyang answered without turning around.
"Nothing has changed."
If she didn't know he was the First Young Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, she would have thought it was just a bluff.
But now she knew he meant every word.
That he intended to face whoever was behind this in the same way.
And those words were a great comfort to her.
Just then, Ho Myeong, the Division Lord, entered and reported.
"We've received a message from the Heaven-Reaching Pavilion regarding Hwa Yul-cheong's whereabouts."
Ho Myeong relayed the information to Geom Muyang.
"Hwa Yul-cheong resides at the Martial Pavilion in Wuhan. It is said he travels all over the Central Plains and is away most of the year, but he has currently returned to Wuhan."
"He's in Wuhan?"
"Yes, they say he returned a few days ago."
A man who is away most of the year returned to Wuhan just a few days ago? At the very same time he was in Wuhan? Could it be a coincidence?
Geom Muyang thought not.
This fact alone was likely proof of his involvement in this matter.
"Tell them to send all available information on Hwa Yul-cheong. His personality, family relations, martial arts, and his followers. Everything."
"Yes, I understand."
As Ho Myeong went outside, Gwak Yeong asked cautiously.
"Are you really going to confront him?"
Geom Muyang silently nodded.
"You know he has many masters following him, right?"
Flash!
A bolt of lightning brightly illuminated Geom Muyang's face.
His eyes resembled the lightning itself.
This man truly seemed like someone who would silently push forward no matter who stood in his way.
Just as he said, nothing has changed.
At last, Geom Muyang spoke softly.
"People like that..."
Someone who had weathered difficult times with him, who had seen him at his worst and knew his flaws better than anyone, and whom he trusted more than anyone else.
"I have them, too."
Jin Ha-gun entered the Alliance Leader’s Hall.
"Alliance Leader, I trust you have been well."
As always, Jin Ha-gun showed his grandfather the respect due to the Alliance Leader.
"Welcome."
Jin Pae-cheon's gaze towards his grandson was gentle.
Recently, Jin Ha-gun had been fulfilling his role more admirably than any previous Demon Slaying Branch Master.
He seemed more mature, and his reputation among his subordinates was excellent.
"I heard you altered the Demon Slaying Branch's original schedule and returned."
"Yes, there were circumstances."
"What is it?"
Unexpected news came from Jin Ha-gun.
"I received a message from the First Young Master of the Divine Sect."
At the mention of the First Young Master, Jin Pae-cheon's expression hardened slightly.
Although he had lost the succession to Geom Mugeuk, he knew the man was highly ambitious.
"He said there are people who have been counterfeiting their hidden weapons and distributing them in the Central Plains. He is tracking the one behind it and has requested our cooperation."
Jin Pae-cheon wore a look of surprise.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Sect had never asked for their cooperation before.
"For what reason?"
"An artisan from our Iron Workshop is involved."
Jin Ha-gun reported that Gwak Yeong was involved, and the reason was that her brother was being held hostage.
"The First Young Master is in Wuhan because of this matter."
Jin Pae-cheon's expression completely froze.
The First Young Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect entered Wuhan without his permission?
This did not sit well with Jin Pae-cheon.
"Honestly, the moment you give them an inch, this is what happens."
Jin Pae-cheon expressed his displeasure with the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect.
The rudeness of not informing him beforehand was one thing, but he was more angered that the Martial Alliance's information network had failed to track Geom Muyang's movements.
"You sent them back, I assume?"
"No. They are still in Wuhan."
Jin Pae-cheon's rebuke was directed at his grandson.
"You should have sent them back!"
"I apologize."
Jin Ha-gun knew.
It wasn't that his grandfather was displeased with him, but that he was being strict.
It was because the day he would name him successor was drawing near.
His grandfather wanted him to be a successor without a single flaw.
Jin Pae-cheon stared at Jin Ha-gun in silence for a moment, then rose from the Grand Advisor's seat and descended.
He walked up to his grandson and called him softly.
"Ha-gun."
Jin Ha-gun could tell.
This was not the Alliance Leader looking at the Demon Slaying Branch Master, but a grandfather addressing his grandson.
"Yes, Grandfather."
"I know how much you trust the Young Cult Master."
If even an old man like himself could be so captivated by Geom Mugeuk, how could a young man like Jin Ha-gun remain indifferent?
That was why there was something he had to tell him.
A warning he would have to repeat in the future.
A warning he had to emphasize precisely because he knew Geom Mugeuk was a good person.
"In your life, no matter how close you become, no matter how deep your relationship gets, you must not forget for a single moment that he is a demonic practitioner."
No matter how good a person he was, everyone around him was a demonic practitioner.
Jin Ha-gun knew very well what his grandfather meant by those words.
"Yes, I will keep that in mind."
He thought his grandfather was willing to overlook things this far because he was Geom Mugeuk's brother.
"I have one more thing to report."
In fact, this report was the main reason for his visit today.
"I am investigating the White Dragon Division Lord regarding this matter."
"The White Dragon Division Lord? Why?"
"He is one of the people behind this."
Jin Pae-cheon thought it was absurd.
"Do you have proof?"
"Yes. The person who rented the warehouse where the counterfeit hidden weapons were made is the White Dragon Division Lord. Not only that, but we have also found evidence that someone else is behind the White Dragon Division Lord."
He didn't say who it was directly.
His grandfather had to hear from the White Dragon Division Lord's own mouth that Hwa Yul-cheong was behind it.
"I must see this man myself."
"I have him waiting outside."
"Bring him in."
He might be confused and disbelieving at first, but his grandfather was the only one who could resolve this.
Only his grandfather could handle the Heavenly Demon Wandering Hermit.
A moment later, after the Demon Slaying Branch warriors brought in the White Dragon Division Lord, they left.
Jin Ha-gun had already spoken with the White Dragon Division Lord.
He had promised that if he told the Alliance Leader the whole truth, not only would his life be spared, but his sentence would be minimized as a reward for revealing the truth.
In fact, seeing the White Dragon Division Lord accept the promise, Jin Ha-gun had a thought.
'He really is behind it.'
It seemed a part of him had been doubting it all along.
No, even now, he couldn't completely shake off the doubt.
Was he really behind this? A man he had respected so much since he was a child.
Jin Pae-cheon looked down at him and spoke.
"Raise your head."
The White Dragon Division Lord raised his head.
He was trembling with fear.
"What happened? Were you really involved in this?"
Jin Pae-cheon asked calmly, but his gaze was as cold as frost.
The White Dragon Division Lord opened his mouth, his voice trembling.
"This matter was...?"
Unable to finish his sentence, he hung his head low.
"I am truly sorry, Alliance Leader."
He seemed too ashamed to confess, letting out only sighs.
Jin Ha-gun spoke to him.
"It's all over, so confess quickly."
The White Dragon Division Lord finally revealed the truth.
"This was ordered by the Heavenly Wandering Hermit."
Though it was a shocking statement, Jin Pae-cheon was not surprised at all.
Instead, he calmly asked again.
"Who did you say ordered it?"
"The Heavenly Wandering Hermit ordered it."
At that very moment.
Flash!
In an instant, Jin Pae-cheon's form was gripping the White Dragon Division Lord by the neck.
"How dare you play such tricks!"
Jin Ha-gun naturally thought his grandfather was angry because he had mentioned the Heavenly Wandering Hermit.
But that wasn't it.
Jin Pae-cheon let out a roar like a battle cry right in front of him.
Haaaaaaap!
A fierce wind, like a typhoon, raged around the White Dragon Division Lord.
It was the Lion's Roar, imbued with the potent inner energy of the Martial Alliance Leader.
At the moment that immense force, which seemed like it would blow him away, shook the White Dragon Division Lord's face and body!
Jin Ha-gun saw it.
The White Dragon Division Lord's eyes rolled back and then returned to normal.
It was as if his black pupils had vanished behind his eyelids and then reappeared.
"Haaaaaaap!"
With an even louder Lion's Roar, the White Dragon Division Lord's eyes rolled back again.
This time, they didn't return, leaving only the whites of his eyes visible.
"Ugh... ugh..."
As a scream escaped him, black liquid trickled from both his eyes.
It was as if his vanished black pupils had turned into liquid and were flowing out.
The White Dragon Division Lord seemed unaware of what was happening to him.
The next moment.
"It was the Heavenly Wandering Hermit's doing."
The words that slowly came out were not in the White Dragon Division Lord's voice.
After speaking in a bizarre voice, as if a monster resided within him...
The White Dragon Division Lord's body trembled violently once, then he collapsed.
Jin Pae-cheon looked down at him with a complicated expression.
"What just happened?"
By the time Jin Ha-gun checked on him, he was already dead.
When he injected energy to examine his body, he found that his meridians were severed to shreds.
Since his inner energy had been suppressed, it wasn't suicide.
'Was he under a dark art that would sever his meridians if he confessed?'
But hadn't he already confessed under Geom Muyang's torture? Why didn't his meridians break then?
Jin Pae-cheon said softly.
"It's the Mind Control Technique."
Jin Ha-gun was startled.
The Mind Control Technique was a dark art that allowed one to control a person's mind at will.
His grandfather had realized he was under the Mind Control Technique and had broken it with the Lion's Roar.
"It was set up so that if the Mind Control Technique was forcefully broken, all his meridians would sever, leading to death."
But why?
If they had placed him under the Mind Control Technique, why make him confess about the Heavenly Wandering Hermit? Shouldn't they have tried to hide their mastermind...
At that moment, Jin Ha-gun flinched as a chill ran down his spine.
'No!'
His grandfather would think that someone had used the Mind Control Technique to frame the Heavenly Wandering Hermit.
By revealing him, he had exonerated him.
And naturally, Jin Pae-cheon's suspicion turned toward one person.
"Where is the First Young Master now?"