140 – Heavenly Fortune

In ​that ​moment, ​between ​the hair dyed ​dark ​by ​the ​Sleeping ​Flower Herb, white ears ​flushed ​red.

“That’s true… you ​have to teach ​me ​martial ​arts, ​so ​it ​would be troublesome ​if ​we ​were apart.”

At the ​ticklish sound of that ​voice, Mu-gyeong ​felt as ​if tiny ​snowflakes were ​gathering ​and ​melting against him. ​He nearly ​hugged Wi Ho-yeon so ​tightly he might crush ​him, but consciously relaxed ​the strength ​in ​his hands. He immediately kicked Tae-pyeong’s ​flank and pulled the ​reins.

Because ​he ​used ​Rapid ​Step from the ​start, Ho-yeon’s ​back ​was pressed tightly ​against ​Cheon Mu-gyeong. Mu-gyeong gripped the ​saddle with ​the ​hand holding the ​reins ​and ​wrapped ​his ​other arm ​around ​Ho-yeon’s waist.

The ​reason Cheon Tae-seong took an interest in ​Wi Ho-yeon might ​be because he ​had been revived as ​a blood-flame ​jiangshi. Instinctively, he ​would ​seek out frost ​energy.

Even if it ​weren’t for ​Cheon ​Tae-seong, Mu-gyeong ​intended ​to keep ​Wi ​Ho-yeon by ​his ​side. ​Recalling that moment ​in ​the underground ​cave ​of ​the ​Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Mountain, Wi Ho-yeon should have showered him with praise for the patience he showed in not smashing the ice palace to pieces.

However, until he tracked down Cheon Tae-seong and completely eliminated him, he planned to keep Ho-yeon in Hangzhou. Hangzhou was quite far from both the demon sect and the North Sea, and as long as one had sufficient financial power, it was one of the safest places in the Central Plains.

He had also received information that Cheon Tae-seong had left the hundred thousand great mountains and set foot in the Central Plains. The man’s trail led to the lands of Sichuan, where the Emei Sect and the Sichuan Tang Clan were located.

“Envelop yourself in Mystic Ice Astral Qi, as if you are blocking the wind.”

Was he intending to give lessons even while riding a horse? Ho-yeon, whose attitude toward learning had become deeply ingrained in the meantime, followed his teacher’s words. To block the wind that whipped his hair wildly, he wrapped his entire body in Mystic Ice Astral Qi. It was the moment he layered the blue frost energy thin, and thinner still. Cheon Mu-gyeong, pulling his waist closer, instantly absorbed the frost energy.

He thought he was teaching him something, but he just wanted to eat the frost energy. Ho-yeon’s drooping eyes sharpened slightly. But [visit our site]that was only for a moment. This was [unauthorized copy]because a heat devoid of any demonic energy was transmitted from Mu-gyeong, who was pressed against him.

At the fact that they were the only beings who could provide stability to one another, Ho-yeon’s cheeks flushed hot once again.

“But what happened to that madman? What if he comes back to the demon sect while you’re away?”

“A man who calls himself the First Heavenly Demon wouldn’t destroy his own cult with his own hands.”

“He’s a crazy person.”

“Wi Ho-yeon, didn’t I tell you?”

“What?”

Ho-yeon tried to look back at him, but the speed was so great that his head shook, forcing him to look forward again.

“Even if Cheon Tae-seong comes back to life, he is no match for me.”

“The Cheon Tae-seong that even the orthodox sect bastards feared, who is he! It is I!”

The madman had claimed to be Cheon Tae-seong and the First Heavenly Demon. However, Cheon Mu-gyeong’s words—even if he comes back to life—bothered him. It seemed absurd, but a thought began to creep in.

“…It’s not, is it?”

“If it isn’t not.”

Though he hadn’t even provided a subject, Ho-yeon’s mouth gradually fell open at Cheon Mu-gyeong’s answer.

“That person is the real Cheon Tae-seong? Not a madman?”

Wind rushed into Ho-yeon’s open mouth.

He was the incarnation of the heavenly ice polar dragon, yet he couldn’t believe the First Heavenly Demon had returned. Moreover, Wi Ho-yeon was someone who had believed the words about the arduous regression.

Cheon Mu-gyeong gave a short laugh at the sight of the dazed Ho-yeon.

“If he’s the First Heavenly Demon… then he’s the Great Demonic Master who created the heavenly demon divine cult! It was strange. To think there was a demonic practitioner who could fight on equal terms with you….”

Unable to settle his confusion, Ho-yeon spoke highly of Cheon Tae-seong.

“That bastard is literally the ‘first,’ but this seat is the ‘complete’ version.”

Ho-yeon consciously closed his drying mouth. For some reason, Cheon Mu-gyeong had been bragging about himself quite a bit lately.

And more often than expected.

“Not just among demonic practitioners, but there is no one in all the Central Plains who can fight me on equal terms.”

Just like now.

Ho-yeon admitted that among the members of the demon sect or the ice palace inhabitants, there was no one who could face Cheon Mu-gyeong. But the Central Plains were the Central Plains for a reason. That place itself signified the center of murim, and it was land governed by the orthodox sects and the Murim Alliance. No matter if he was the Cult Leader of the heavenly demon divine cult, he could not simply look down on the Nine Schools and One Gang or the Five Great Families.

What the demon sect called the realm of transcending demonicity was called the Mystic Realm by the orthodox sects. In the vast lands of the Central Plains, could there truly be no one who had reached the Mystic Realm, the same level as Cheon Mu-gyeong?

Ho-yeon remained in Cheon Mu-gyeong’s arms without affirming or denying. From that reaction, Cheon Mu-gyeong could clearly tell what Ho-yeon was thinking.

“Have I ever told a lie?”

“…You haven’t.”

“I believe I also told you that I once held the Central Plains in my hand.”

“You did hold the Central Plains. And in the next life, you wandered everywhere, and since you couldn’t end your tedious life by any means, you lived shut away in a cave. Ah, and there were times you harmed yourself because you couldn’t bear the boredom.”

Ho-yeon was still more concerned than anything else by the fact that he had harmed himself. It sounded as if he had tried to take his own life.

Throughout ninety-nine repeating lives, he was a man who could not even pass the age of thirty by any means. Ho-yeon himself had lived for a very long time, but he hadn’t repeated his life; he had simply been asleep.

“I… I said I was a variable. Then, there won’t be a reason to go back anymore, right?”

He was in a time that continued to move forward, but if only Cheon Mu-gyeong went back… would he then no longer exist in his world?

“Well.”

He gave an answer that was very ambiguous for Cheon Mu-gyeong. Ho-yeon swallowed his unorganized thoughts.

‘I was asleep for a very long time. Probably… I don’t know exactly, but it must be as long as the lives you repeated. Perhaps because you sought me out, you were swept into my time within the Ice Dragon’s Barrier.’

He couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud. If that were true, it would be admitting that Cheon Mu-gyeong’s arduous lives had originated from him. If it were truly the case, he didn’t know how he would handle the mountain-like guilt.

“We’ll know when the time comes.”

It would become clearer when the point of regression returned. But if the curse still didn’t break, what should he do then?

How was the ice dragon able to save him, even at the cost of its own life?

Because the long years were tedious? Because since the fire dragon died, the ice dragon, having become a half, would also be incomplete? Ho-yeon loved the children of the eumbyeol hall dearly. He couldn’t say for sure if he could give everything away like the ice dragon if the children’s lives were in danger.

However, one thing was certain: he found it hard to see those he cherished suffering.

“It gets better if you endure it. Though it is very painful.”

On that day, his heart had felt tight at Mu-gyeong’s pain, and he had wanted to heal him by any means; if he suffered so much that it was unbearable to watch…

He thought that perhaps he would gladly give his own flesh. Or perhaps he could do even more than that. No, more than anything, he wanted Cheon Mu-gyeong’s life to continue alongside his.

“Cult Leader, I think we need to change horses, so we should stop by a village tomorrow.”

Do-gyeon, who was following behind, raised his voice. Only then did Ho-yeon realize again that Do-gyeon was accompanying them on their journey. That was how absorbed he had been in Cheon Mu-gyeong.

Do-gyeon’s horse was no ordinary steed, but it struggled to keep up with Tae-pyeong’s speed, which didn’t tire even while carrying two men. But to stop by a village tomorrow.

“Are we camping?”

At Ho-yeon’s skeptical question, Mu-gyeong replied.

“Then did you think you’d sleep covered in a silk quilt?”

Since no one had a blanket to cover themselves with, Ho-yeon naturally assumed they would stop by villages along the way to find a place to lie down.

“What kind of mindset was it to tell me to pack plenty of gold if you were planning to camp!”

Do-gyeon raised his voice even louder, as if for both of them to hear.

However, Ho-yeon’s relief at Do-gyeon’s words lasted only until the sun set. Nowhere on the darkening mountain path could the lights of a village be seen. Because they had run so fast and avoided all barrier formations, they were able to traverse to the edge of the hundred thousand great mountains in one breath.

Tae-pyeong raced keenly even in the darkness, and Do-gyeon’s horse followed closely behind. Ho-yeon, thinking they would rest by now, ended up seeing the morning sun.

During that time, Cheon Mu-gyeong held Ho-yeon’s waist firmly, unchanged from the beginning, partly to protect his internal organs on the violently shaking horse.

Cheon Mu-gyeong only found a cave after the morning sun rose. Only then did Ho-yeon get off the horse and stretch his stiff visit our sitebody. Although Tae-pyeong was the one running, the fatigue felt by Ho-yeon, who was riding [stolen content]on top, was considerable. Just as he was looking for a place to sleep inside the cave, hoping he could finally close his eyes.

“Do meditative breathing.”

Cheon Mu-gyeong was a teacher who pushed his disciple quite harshly.

He knew that physical fatigue could be resolved through meditative breathing, but right now, he just wanted to rest comfortably. However, to meet his children even one day sooner, it was true that he had to reduce his sleeping time. And the fact that they would settle in Hangzhou and let the children live there was entirely Mu-gyeong’s kindness.

It was not easy for ice palace inhabitants to leave the North Sea. From the moment they left the ice palace, they were no longer under its protection and entered a lawless zone.

The road to the Central Plains was arduous, and it was easy to suffer at the hands of bandits or Black Path gangs. Thus, people usually went from the place they were born to their graves.

This wasn’t only true for ice palace inhabitants. Even for those of the Central Plains, not the outer murim, moving one’s livelihood with all their assets was a journey that required risking one’s life.

If it weren’t for Cheon Mu-gyeong, the children would never have stepped on the beautiful and warm land of Hangzhou in their entire lives. Because of that, he couldn’t let his greed for sleep hold them back.

Ho-yeon sat cross-legged on the cave floor.

“Your lower dantian is fairly stable, so imagine connecting all the clumped qi and blood of the lower dantian and lead it to the middle dantian.”

“It’s always easy to say….”

Despite grumbling that it was difficult, Ho-yeon possessed extraordinary talent. If he had learned ice art properly from a young age, he might have made a name for himself beyond the Central Plains and even in the demon sect.

“That is truly the Demonic Empress; who else could be the Demonic Empress?”

Do-gyeon spoke up again, as if for them to hear. Where else in the world would there be someone who received the protection of both the Heavenly Demon, the master of the heavenly demon divine cult, and the guardian who was the unofficial number one in the cult’s hierarchy?

Do-gyeon expected to be scolded by Cheon Mu-gyeong, but he was simply not taking his eyes off Ho-yeon. Do-gyeon was appalled seeing Cheon Mu-gyeong like that.

‘This isn’t a joke.’

Tsk, Do-gyeon smacked his lips. Recently, Cheon Mu-gyeong had been very energetic. He didn’t know about the nighttime affairs, but officially, he was.

The Cult Leader originally had no interest in the incidents and accidents occurring within the cult. Until Wi Ho-yeon appeared, he was closer to a divine being who merely observed.

But how about now?

Glimpses of the man Do-gyeon had missed so much—the one before he returned alive from the fire dragon subjugation—appeared from time to time.

What did it matter if the first male Demonic Empress was born in the history of the divine cult?

“Are you worried that he might suffer qi deviation while doing meditative breathing?”

Do-gyeon chuckled teasingly at Mu-gyeong, but he was treated as if he weren’t even there.

Mu-gyeong’s red gaze remained intensely fixed on Ho-yeon.