Chapter 127: A Heavenly Demon Can't Be Ordinary
As Byeok Taesan stepped out of Byeok Taesoo’s office, a group of workers followed him closely.
In their hands were large fragments of gold.
These were pieces of the Golden Wall he had destroyed, where the Soul Augmenting Demonic Art had been embedded.
Byeok Taesan led them toward the place where Seung Doheung was staying.
Seung Doheung and the formation masters had set up their residence near Byeok Taesan’s pavilion.
Since there were still plenty of empty pavilions within the Golden Wall Manor reserved for guests, accommodating a few visitors posed no burden.
There, Seung Doheung and his group had been diligently researching and improving their skills, analyzing the formations they had recently acquired.
Ever since Byeok Taesan asked whether Seung Doheung had surpassed the Phantom Demon, Seung Doheung had been obsessively focused on improving his abilities.
It was as if failing to surpass the Phantom Demon would spell disaster, leaving him unable to relax even for a moment.
Given his current state, one could imagine his shock when Byeok Taesan suddenly visited in the middle of the night.
“Y-Young Master! W-What brings you here at this late hour...?”
Byeok Taesan glanced over Seung Doheung and the formation masters standing respectfully behind him.
He gestured toward them with a tilt of his chin.
The workers following behind Byeok Taesan stepped forward and dumped the gold fragments they had been carrying into the pavilion.
Seung Doheung and his group stared blankly at the scene, bewildered.
“W-What is all this?”
“It... looks like gold?”
“It is gold,” Byeok Taesan replied.
Everyone’s gaze snapped to Byeok Taesan.
They stared at him with such speed that their necks seemed at risk of snapping, then turned back to the growing pile of gold fragments. This back-and-forth repeated several times before Seung Doheung hesitantly asked.
“This gold... what exactly is it?”
“Analyze it.”
“Pardon?”
“It was originally part of a wall, but something special was engraved inside.”
Seung Doheung hurriedly grabbed a piece of gold and examined it closely. His eyes widened like lanterns.
“T-This is... Could it be...?”
“Once you finish analyzing it, report to me.”
Leaving only those words, Byeok Taesan turned on his heel and strode away.
Seung Doheung stared blankly at Byeok Taesan’s retreating figure before snapping out of his stupor.
“What the...? So, we’re supposed to analyze this and the massive formation from the warehouse?”
Seung Doheung’s face turned pale.
The other formation masters watching him from behind also started to look just as ashen.
It was clear they would need more formation experts.
“Does anyone know where we can find additional help?”
In moments like this, nothing was more reassuring than allies in the same field.
After handing over the gold fragments, Byeok Taesan returned to his quarters, feeling a sense of relief.
He sat on his bed and slowly closed his eyes.
The golden wall he had seen earlier had been incredibly intriguing.
Earlier, Byeok Taesoo had asked him why he had destroyed the Golden Wall.
“Because it was crude,” he had replied.
The Golden Wall wasn’t something the Heavenly Demon particularly valued, as Byeok Taesoo had assumed.
It was simply a creation by one of the previous Heavenly Demons, who had engraved their insights into the Soul Augmenting Demonic Art onto the wall to showcase their accomplishment.
The Soul Augmenting Demonic Art became more dangerous the more it advanced, putting its practitioner at risk.
That was how Byeok Taesan had met his end in the past, as had many of the previous Heavenly Demons.
Thus, each generation of Heavenly Demons sought ways to mitigate its dangers.
The Golden Wall was one such attempt.
Gold, in its essence, is perfect, which is why it holds its value.
It seemed that one of his predecessors had focused on that property, attempting to use gold to stabilize the art.
Byeok Taesan understood this at a glance, the intent behind the design of the Golden Wall.
Still, leaving behind something like this, with walls made entirely of gold?
That was undeniably the work of a Heavenly Demon.
“A Heavenly Demon can’t be ordinary. Except me.”
Byeok Taesan calmly reflected on himself, wondering if he, too, had done something so ridiculous.
But no matter how much he thought about it, he concluded that he was a perfectly ordinary Heavenly Demon.
In any case, the insights regarding the Soul Augmenting Demonic Art left on the Golden Wall held no value to Byeok Taesan.
However, the mechanisms and structures that could be extracted from the wall’s composition were a different story.
It was likely a complex fusion of various formations and techniques.
That, however, was Seung Doheung’s responsibility, so Byeok Taesan had no reason to concern himself further with it.
As he shifted his thoughts back to the Golden Wall, he realized something.
Maybe the knowledge within wasn’t entirely useless.
While it wasn’t effective in stabilizing the Soul Augmenting Demonic Art, its techniques might be repurposed.
For instance, it could help refine how the art was controlled.
“Gold... gold...”
An idea suddenly struck Byeok Taesan, using gold as a medium to amplify or finely manipulate the Soul Augmenting Demonic Art.
Lost in thought, Byeok Taesan slipped into a state of profound focus.
•••••
The Seventh Squad Leader of the Heaven Sword Corps, who was assisting with the relocation of the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion, surveyed the surroundings with a troubled expression.
A while ago, a warrior from the Golden Moon Merchants had approached and asked for help.
The Golden Moon Merchants had no intention of letting the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion reach Wuhan unscathed.
They planned to take what they wanted along the way and leave the pavilion heavily damaged.
To achieve this, they intended to stage an ambush and had sought the Seventh Squad Leader’s assistance.
If they had outright asked him to join in attacking the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion, he would have refused without hesitation.
But their request was simpler: they only wanted him to vacate his position momentarily.
The plan was to launch a surprise attack and then retreat, while the squad leader, under the pretext of pursuing them, would leave the procession temporarily.
Later, after the incident, he would return and ensure that the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion relied completely on him and his men for protection.
It wasn’t a difficult task. The only challenge was timing, when to leave and when to rejoin the group.
The squad leader walked silently, assessing the strength of the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion’s escort.
“Not as weak as I thought.”
The physicians of the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion were formidable, but the wanderers who had joined them on the Medicine King’s orders were even more troubling.
Still, no matter how skilled they were, they wouldn’t be able to fend off the Golden Moon Merchants if the latter made a full-scale effort.
If the Seventh Squad Leader and his team intervened, the situation might shift slightly, but even then, stopping the Golden Moon Merchants would be unlikely. Of course, he had no intention of helping the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion, either.
“How long will this take…”
He pondered as he walked. He had already instructed his subordinates to follow him immediately when he gave the signal.
While they continued marching, a group of attackers suddenly appeared, swords drawn, and charged toward them.
"Attack!"
“It’s an ambush!”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The physicians of the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion guarded their wagons and blocked the enemy's attacks, while the wanderers stepped forward to swing their swords.
After a brief clash, the attackers hastily retreated.
"Fall back for now! We can't do this like this!"
The attackers who had rushed forward quickly withdrew.
At that moment, the Seventh Squad Leader took action.
"Where do you think you're going? Come here and kneel before me!"
As he chased after them with the sound of the wind at his back, his subordinates followed in unison.
There was no time for anyone to stop or cheer them on.
Their rapid retreat and the squad leader’s pursuit left the others in a daze, merely watching the scene unfold.
This was precisely what the squad leader intended.
He quickly chased after the attackers, no, the warriors of the Golden Moon Merchants.
After some distance, they arrived at a secluded area, hidden from sight, where the warriors stopped and waited for him.
"Thank you for your effort."
One of the warriors spoke respectfully, to which the squad leader smiled and shook his head.
"It was nothing. But are your forces prepared? The wanderers with the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion seem more capable than expected."
"They’re just wanderers, after all. Besides, our forces are no pushovers."
The warrior began detailing the level of preparation their group had undertaken.
The squad leader listened and calculated silently.
“In about... hour, I should head back.”
The Golden Moon warrior smiled faintly and replied, "That’s what I figured. Well, I should return to the others now. Let’s share a drink sometime."
"Sounds good. Best of luck."
The Golden Moon warrior bowed lightly and retreated.
There were about thirty Golden Moon warriors gathered in that location. They would rejoin the ambush force for another attack on the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion.
As he watched them disappear into the distance, the squad leader muttered to himself.
"It seems like the end for the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion."
Today, the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion would lose many of its important physicians.
The Golden Moon Merchants planned to abduct those physicians. They would likely be confined somewhere for the rest of their lives, crafting medicines until their deaths.
All the wagons would be burned to ashes.
Those who remained would suffer grievous injuries.
In every sense, the future of the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion seemed bleak.
At least, that’s how it appeared to the squad leader.
About an hour later, the squad leader began heading back to where the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion had been, making a show of hurrying.
Since he hadn’t gone too far, the return trip was brief.
However, when he arrived, the sight before him was not what he had expected.
All the wagons were intact.
“They said they’d burn everything…”
Scattered corpses littered the area.
The squad leader quickly surveyed the surroundings.
Most of the physicians from the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion appeared unscathed, and they were tending to the injured.
“The wanderers survived?”
He had honestly thought they would all be dead. Yet, here they were.
“But their numbers are…”
The number of wanderers was initially about a hundred. However, now it seemed their numbers hadn’t diminished much.
“Squad Leader! You’re back! We were so worried!”
Noh Ju-gang, the chief physician of the Heavenly Medicine Pavilion, rushed over upon spotting the Seventh Squad Leader.
“Squad Leader, what happened to those who fled?”
“Unfortunately, they got away. They were incredibly fast. But here...?”
Noh Ju-gang let out a heavy sigh.
“Oh, don’t get me started. Not long after you went chasing after them, another group of enemies charged in. It was brutal.”
“Are you all right?”
“Fortunately, we managed to repel them without sustaining major losses. It’s all thanks to the foresight of our Pavilion Master. Who would’ve thought he’d send warriors of such caliber to assist us?”
“Warriors? Are you talking about those wanderers?”
“Yes. They were truly extraordinary. The enemies were quite skilled as well, but those wanderers utterly destroyed them.”
Noh Ju-gang excitedly began recounting the incident as if he had witnessed it firsthand.
He explained that over fifty masked enemies had attacked, but the wanderers had responded with perfect coordination to fend them off.
Some defended the carts, others stood with the physicians to protect them, while still others focused solely on killing the attackers.
It seemed that they had prepared in advance for such a scenario and executed their plans seamlessly.
The Seventh Squad Leader surveyed the wanderers with tense eyes.
He spotted the individuals who had unsettled him earlier.
“Are those the warriors you mentioned, Chief Physician?”
Noh Ju-gang glanced at the wanderers the Seventh Squad Leader was indicating and smiled as he shook his head.
“No, those individuals fought alongside our physicians to fend off the enemies. To be precise, they were more focused on protecting the physicians.”
“They’re not the warriors?”
The Seventh Squad Leader was taken aback, and Noh Ju-gang chuckled.
“They’re skilled, of course. Very impressive, actually. But the warriors I’m referring to are over there.”
Noh Ju-gang pointed to another group.
The Seventh Squad Leader turned to look. About ten wanderers were gathered, issuing commands to the others. They appeared to be senior members.
But no matter how hard he looked, their presence didn’t seem imposing. They didn’t strike him as true masters.
“Are they so skilled that I can’t even grasp their level?”
Whether aware of the Seventh Squad Leader’s thoughts or not, Noh Ju-gang continued with animated praise.
“They moved so swiftly, striking down the enemies, it left me speechless. Honestly, when they moved quickly, they were almost invisible. At times, it seemed like their swords multiplied into three. Truly astounding.”
The Seventh Squad Leader regarded the supposed masters with a grave expression.
Earlier, he had heard about the caliber of warriors mobilized by the Golden Moon Merchants.
If it had been only those he initially considered skilled, they would never have been able to fend off such an assault.
“In any case, you must be exhausted from chasing the enemies. Please rest. The smell of blood is too strong here, so we plan to set out shortly and rest in a village tonight. The journey may be a bit longer, but I hope you’ll understand.”
“Of course. That’s the best course of action. I’ll also help with the cleanup so we can depart quickly and rest properly.”
“Oh, that would be too much trouble for you...”
“It’s fine. Also, if possible, could you introduce me to those warriors over there?”
“Absolutely. Leave it to me.”
AsNoh Ju-gang walked away, the Seventh Squad Leader shifted his gaze to the supposed warriors.
At that moment, he made eye contact with one of them.
The man grinned, baring his teeth. But the grin felt unsettling.
“Why do I feel... uneasy?”
It was a fierce, violent sort of smile. Perhaps it was simply because they were wanderers.
Yet, it didn’t seem like something so simple could make him feel this way.
There was an inexplicable sense of unease, almost suffocating.
The man suddenly lifted something. It was a limp figure.
It was someone the Squad Leader recognized—the warrior from the Golden Moon Merchants he had spoken to earlier.
The Squad Leader’s face twisted in anger.