By Zephyria 
HF 10
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“Hey! Did you hear the news?”
“What news are you talking about?”
Just then, two men were seen pulling back the curtains of the inn, which had been empty until then. Their voices were so loud that their conversation echoed clearly through the vacant establishment. Mu-gyeong continued to drink his liquor without so much as a glance behind him. Meanwhile, the waiter employed by the servant brought out the food.
Did the waiters of the Demon Sect also practice external arts? The waiter, boasting a broad build in every direction, carried a tray balanced on his head. The tray was so large that, through some trick of perspective, it almost looked the size of a palm. Atop it was a feast: glistening roast duck, stir-fried beef, and even a dragon-phoenix bath brimming with boiled chicken and soft-shell turtle.
Looking at the food quickly set down, Ho-yeon noticed that everything except the beef had the animal’s head left intact. Despite the table being full of food, Ho-yeon felt his appetite vanish. This was because the Ice Palace considered the heads of animals in food to be ominous and always removed them.
Mu-gyeong lightly rolled up his right sleeve and picked up his chopsticks. How could he be so nonchalant ahead of a meeting with the Cult Leader? In truth, the name Tae-pyeong—meaning peaceful—suited Mu-gyeong better. Only Ho-yeon was on pins and needles.
“The Cult Leader has entered closed-door cultivation starting today!”
One of the two men who had just entered raised his voice as he sat in a nearby spot.
“What! Is that true? The Cult Leader is in closed-door cultivation?!”
Ho-yeon’s head instinctively turned toward the two men behind him. One had eyes so narrow they looked like slits, making it impossible to tell if they were even open; the other was a handsome man with a gentle impression, wearing a black leather blindfold. Almost simultaneously, his eyes met those of the man in the blindfold. While not as striking as Mu-gyeong, he possessed a notable appearance.
“Indeed. Since the heaven-like Cult Leader is devoting himself to his martial arts through closed-door cultivation, this humble servant truly feels insignificant.”
“To think the Cult Leader is in closed-door cultivation… I am truly surprised as well.”
Though the handsome man looked younger, it was the one with the slit eyes, who appeared older, that spoke in formal, respectful tones.
“Hey, bring the most expensive liquor in the inn! This humble servant must commemorate the Cult Leader’s closed-door cultivation!”
The words “closed-door cultivation” pierced Ho-yeon’s ears repeatedly.
Had the Cult Leader, who had told him to come from the Ice Palace, entered closed-door cultivation to attain some great enlightenment? Or perhaps he was using closed-door cultivation as a cover because the symptoms of the nine yang severed meridian had worsened.
Whatever the truth was, it was a relief for Ho-yeon. At the very least, he wouldn’t have to meet the Cult Leader in a day or two. Combined with Mu-gyeong’s arrogant behavior, the tension he had felt before the meeting vanished, making this news infinitely joyful.
Ho-yeon glanced at Mu-gyeong, who continued his meal. Did Mu-gyeong perhaps know that things would turn out this way? No, they said the Cult Leader entered closed-door cultivation today. There was no way Mu-gyeong, who had been with him until now, could have known that information.
Unable to hide his joy, Ho-yeon whispered very softly toward Mu-gyeong.
“I suppose we should call this a stroke of luck?”
Since it had come to this, Ho-yeon also rolled up his sleeve and picked up his chopsticks like Mu-gyeong. Fearing his stomach—which had been empty for over a day—might be shocked, he soothed it with lightly seasoned tofu. Considering his weak digestive system, Ho-yeon ate his meal calmly.
Mu-gyeong indifferently tilted his liquor glass, ignoring the Right Guardian standing beside the Demonic Shadow Guard captain posing as a waiter, as well as the Left Guardian and The Sharp-Tongued Demon sitting diagonally from him.
Including the captain in charge of the Demonic Shadow Guard, known as the Cult Leader’s shadow, the Right and Left Guardians held infinite trust in the Cult Leader.
As soon as the Guardians heard the full story from Jangun, the Cult Leader’s shadow, they had arranged the scene and even brought the captain along. The Sharp-Tongued Demon, desperate to join in, had appeared despite his reputation for being elusive.
“The North Sea Palace Master is useful after all. His daughter’s beauty is so outstanding that the Cult Leader is bound to be captivated.”
The Sharp-Tongued Demon’s telepathic transmission reached Mu-gyeong. He felt that he really ought to pluck out that useless remaining eyeball.
“It would have been a real disaster if we had arrived even a day sooner.”
Ho-yeon continued to speak to Mu-gyeong in a low, whispering voice.
As he tilted his glass, a twisted smile suddenly appeared on Mu-gyeong’s face. Ho-yeon was a truly mysterious existence to have appeared in his tedious life. The one who provided that mystery, Ho-yeon, kept his gentle eyes cast down while eating.
“It is indeed a stroke of heaven’s luck.”
Mu-gyeong’s smile was soon hidden by the hand holding the glass.
* * *
Less than half a day after entering the demonic cult headquarters, the vague image Ho-yeon had of the Demon Sect began to crumble.
He had imagined that even a low-ranking member would breathe out ferocious demonic energy and that the streets would be filled with a gloomy aura. He was certain that the headquarters, located deep within the hundred thousand great mountains, would not be a place where a human could live like a human. However, the people of the Demon Sect were, in the end, human. The commercial district located below the Elder’s Hall was bustling without cease.
The city near the ten-thousand-year snow palace where Ho-yeon had resided also had various people and shops. However, because the North Sea was plagued by constant snowstorms, most people wore thick furs covering them up to their eyes and wore hats. Consequently, they rarely engaged in unnecessary conversation except when buying or selling goods.
Yet, this commercial district was so chaotic with the conversations of people pouring out from everywhere that it was dizzying. Since he hadn’t heard a single bird chirp up until the second wall he passed to enter, it seemed a magic array that separated the interior from the exterior was engraved into the wall itself.
Ho-yeon sat in the carriage, resting his chin on the handle of the umbrella, and looked out the window. After finishing their meal, they were moving somewhere at Ho-yeon’s request.
Before leaving the inn, Ho-yeon had informed the sect of the details regarding the attack through Mu-gyeong’s servant. No matter if the Cult Leader had entered closed-door cultivation, he couldn’t simply convey no news at all.
Ho-yeon had suggested waiting at the inn until someone from the sect came. However, in less than fifteen minutes, a letter arrived from the Right Guardian, Il Gang-gun, who was essentially the Cult Leader’s right hand.
Il Gang-gun was said to be the sole decision-maker acting on behalf of the Cult Leader during his closed-door cultivation.
[Until the Cult Leader’s closed-door cultivation is complete, the entire custody of Wi Ho-yeon shall be entrusted to Mu-gyeong, the second son of Elder Mu Seong-pyeong of the Demonic Shadow Martial House.]
The Demonic Shadow Martial House was a family that had served the Cult Leader for a long time, and the head of the house, Mu Seong-pyeong, was currently one of the five demonic elders. To be the second son of such a family—Ho-yeon felt that Mu-gyeong’s status was once again dauntingly high. Of course, he was unaware that this was a letter hurriedly scribbled by Il Gang-gun, posing as a servant, in the back kitchen of the inn.
Il Gang-gun had spent the whole time gauging Mu-gyeong’s reaction to see if he had correctly grasped the Cult Leader’s intentions, but Mu-gyeong showed no particular reaction upon reading the letter.
“I guess the Cult Leader wasn’t as interested in me as I thought.”
That was just a moment ago, after leaving the inn and boarding the carriage. Mu-gyeong had responded readily to Ho-yeon.
“Or he might be pretending not to be.”
“No way.”
Hidden in Ho-yeon’s words was the thought: Would such a person act as if they were neglecting me? It seemed evident that the Cult Leader did not consider him to have the extreme yin constitution. It appeared he had simply bullied the Ice Palace into submission while in a state of indecision. If one considered that his temperament had become eccentric due to the nine yang severed meridian, it was roughly understandable.
Regardless, he had fallen into the Demon Sect all alone, and his entire custody had been handed over to Mu-gyeong. He had said he would repay the favor, but instead, he seemed destined to owe him even more. Surely Mu-gyeong wouldn’t just dump him anywhere and tell him to survive on his own?
Nowhere in the letter did it say to treat Wi Ho-yeon well or to ensure his life was preserved. Therefore, the person Ho-yeon needed to stay in the good graces of from now on was not the Cult Leader, but Mu-gyeong.
Furthermore, he needed to send word to the Ice Palace, which would require considerable funds and connections. Where on earth would he find such money and networks?
That wasn’t the only problem. Originally, as planned, after contacting the Demon Sect members, Seol-yeong would have had her blood paths paralyzed and been transported to the headquarters while blindfolded. The same applied to Ho-yeon in the carriage. That was how secretly the location of the headquarters was hidden. Although he had entered easily with Mu-gyeong’s help, now that he knew the location of the demonic cult headquarters, leaving would be practically impossible.
He had thought the Cult Leader’s closed-door cultivation was a blessing, but in reality, Ho-yeon had simply been trapped inside a vast cage called the demonic cult headquarters.