By Zephyria 
Ho-yeon looked down while supporting himself by pressing one hand against a tree trunk.
Clop, clop. The eyes of the horse gradually approaching him were wider than ever before. Tae-pyeong’s pupils, which usually stood out against the whites of his eyes, were now strikingly prominent. It was as if the emotions of a startled beast, wondering if what he saw was real, were laid bare.
The horse was far larger than an average specimen and resembled an untamed wild stallion, yet a saddle was strapped to its back. Perhaps because it had struggled to shake it off, the saddle was barely clinging on, floundering beneath a lush mane.
Seeing this, Ho-yeon was certain. He had hoped and wondered, and it really was Tae-pyeong.
“Tae-pyeong! Tae-pyeong! It’s me!”
Had he ever been this happy to see Tae-pyeong? Memories of being forcibly dragged to the Heavenly Demon Hall had already vanished. Ho-yeon stepped onto the ground first. At that, Tae-pyeong let out another strong snort.
The distance between them wasn’t far, but Ho-yeon pushed forward, waving his hands through the brush as if swimming through water. In response, Tae-pyeong began to gallop quickly toward Ho-yeon.
Ho-yeon wanted to throw his arms around Tae-pyeong, but the massive body was quite intimidating. As Ho-yeon simply stood there with a broad smile, Tae-pyeong suddenly slowed down and pushed his head toward him.
Ho-yeon vigorously stroked the long head and hugged his face. The firm muscles and warm body were just like his master’s.
“Where is Mu-gyeong? Where is Cheon Mu-gyeong?”
Ho-yeon asked, holding Tae-pyeong’s face with both hands.
“The Cult Leader… the Heavenly Demon?”
Knowing full well that he couldn’t have a conversation with a beast, he tried different titles. Tae-pyeong responded with a loud snort and a huff. There was no way to tell if he was saying he didn’t know or if he was simply happy to meet.
Tae-pyeong bent his four legs and sat down. He glared with wide eyes and snorted, an action that was essentially telling him to get on.
Ho-yeon tightened the crooked saddle and climbed onto Tae-pyeong’s back. The vague fear of what he would do if he couldn’t find a village vanished instantly, as if he had gained an army of ten thousand men the moment he mounted the horse.
As he gripped the reins firmly, Tae-pyeong turned.
“You know where the cult is, right?”
Overwhelmed with joy, Ho-yeon continued to talk to Tae-pyeong.
“The Heavenly Demon Hall is fine, so let’s just go quickly.”
If Mu-gyeong had seen this, he might have made a comment about him chattering even to a beast.
Huuu. After inhaling and exhaling through his large nostrils, Tae-pyeong didn’t even go through a proper trot to build speed; he immediately kicked off the ground with a rapid gallop. Ho-yeon tightened his thighs firmly to avoid falling off Tae-pyeong’s back.
When Ho-yeon used his internal power to make the muscles in his legs even firmer, Tae-pyeong accelerated further, as if showing that he had been holding back while carrying Ho-yeon until now. They charged across valleys with rushing currents and repeatedly climbed and descended mountains.
Did he actually know the way? A slight doubt bloomed—perhaps he was just running like a mad horse because he was excited.
Furthermore, the place Tae-pyeong was currently heading toward was a vast, towering cliff. Tae-pyeong showed no sign of stopping, as if he intended to pierce through the cliff with his own body.
Ho-yeon hurriedly pulled the reins, but he only heard the sound of teeth clacking, as if the horse was telling him to leave him alone. Just as he was about to crash into the cliff, Ho-yeon let out a short scream.
However, there was neither a strong impact nor a loud crash. Tae-pyeong continued to run along the mountain path. What reflected in Ho-yeon’s wide-open eyes was the scenery of the demonic cult headquarters, which had been hidden behind numerous barrier formations. If they ran left from here, there was the Shadowless Pavilion where the Heavenly Demon resided, and below that lay the Heavenly Demon Palace.
Ho-yeon whipped his head around, but no cliff was visible. Since he was an extraordinary horse to begin with, it seemed he knew all the magic arrays of this place.
Like the day he was intoxicated by demonic energy, Tae-pyeong ran toward the Heavenly Demon Palace, spraying saliva in all directions. Because the distance was considerable, the Heavenly Demon Palace, which looked like a mere dot, didn’t seem to get closer easily. However, while descending smoothly, Tae-pyeong suddenly changed direction and ran toward a giant rock above.
At the end of that path, two rocks larger than pavilions stood facing each other, and between them was a massive chasm dropping into an abyss dozens of zhang below. It was no different from a natural moat created by the erosion of time. Not a single part of the rugged demonic cult headquarters was easy.
Ho-yeon tried to grip and pull the reins again, but this time, he trusted Tae-pyeong. Tae-pyeong leaped across the gap between the rocks in a single bound. The wind swirling around the dizzying cliff below seemed to make an eerie sound, trying to pull him and Tae-pyeong in, but it could not overwhelm the madness-filled beast.
Ho-yeon felt he understood why Tae-pyeong had chosen that path. If they hadn’t leaped over the rocks, they would have had to take a long detour to reach the Heavenly Demon Palace.
As they ran straight, the shape of the Heavenly Demon Palace gradually drew closer. The Heavenly Demon Palace, towering black and saturated with demonic energy, only revealed its numerous pavilions, including the Heavenly Demon Hall, after passing through a massive plaza.
Finally, upon reaching the plaza, the Demonic Shadow Guard guarding the Heavenly Demon Palace emerged from the darkness in an instant. They knew it was Tae-pyeong coming toward the palace, but they had no choice but to block the path of the being riding upon him.
“Halt!”
Among those who had spread out in a fan shape to block Tae-pyeong, a man holding a long spear let out a Lion’s Roar. Tae-pyeong, as if intending to leap right over the man, became even more unruly.
“Stop! Stop! Tae-pyeong!”
If they broke through like this, the swords and spears of the Demonic Shadow Guard might be thrust into him and Tae-pyeong. This time, Ho-yeon pulled the reins as violently as he could.
Tae-pyeong still clattered his teeth, but just as he had accelerated with a rapid gallop, he came to a dead stop in an instant. Ho-yeon pressed his upper body tightly against Tae-pyeong to keep from being thrown forward.
Atop Tae-pyeong, who was stamping his feet in place several times, Ho-yeon slowly raised his head. He couldn’t tell if his heart was pounding wildly because of the excited horse’s sprint or because of the Demonic Shadow Guard pointing weapons at him.
They were all wearing masks, and only one middle-aged man holding a spear had his face revealed.
“I am Mumyeong, the 3rd Squad Leader of the Demonic Shadow Guard.”
The man with the bushy beard introduced himself to Ho-yeon. In truth, it meant he had no name; he was from the demon-taming cave and was one of the Cult Leader’s shadows. Since he had no name from the moment he entered the demon-taming cave, he had been called Mumyeong until now.
“…I am Wi Ho-yeon of the Ice Palace.”
Who didn’t know that? Nevertheless, Ho-yeon introduced himself. Sliding down from Tae-pyeong’s back, Ho-yeon cast his gaze toward where the Heavenly Demon Hall was located.
“I… I have come to see the Cult Leader.”
At Ho-yeon’s words, Mumyeong also looked toward the Heavenly Demon Palace. To be precise, he looked toward the right among the pavilions lined up beneath the palace. And the person running out from there, creating a violent wind, was the Right Guardian, Il Gang-gun, holding a fan.
* * *
Cheon… Cheon Mu-gyeong.
At a low voice heard from somewhere, Mu-gyeong turned around.
Had he awakened?
Mu-gyeong was in the middle of checking the place where he and Ho-yeon had been separated. Where he stood was a fairly high hill. Traces of a landslide that had swept down from a dizzying height had frozen solid like a single rock, forming a hill here.
Looking at it, it seemed best to go up from here. If he had Wi Ho-yeon freeze the ice walls more solidly in the soft parts and pushed forward with demonic energy centered on the places he could step, he would be able to carry Wi Ho-yeon on his back and climb up.
However, since it was quite high, if there weren’t suitable places to step, he might fall in the middle and have to climb back up.
Descending from the hill, Mu-gyeong headed toward the cavern at a speed where his form was invisible, just as he had come. The image of Wi Ho-yeon sleeping with flushed cheeks on the warm stone floor was vivid in his mind. No, he must have awakened by now, so he could clearly imagine him looking for Mu-gyeong with dazed eyes.
Passing through the dark tunnel and arriving at the cavern illuminated by luminous stones, Mu-gyeong cast his gaze toward where the snow leopard pelt was. However, Wi Ho-yeon was not there.
Cheon Mu-gyeong stood tall in the same spot, checking the surroundings only by shifting his red ocular glow. Then, after a pause, he opened his firmly closed lips.
“Wi Ho-yeon.”
It was nothing more than a low call, but it carried enough internal power to make the entire cavern ring.
“Wi Ho-yeon.”
Despite calling again, the being with fluttering white hair was nowhere to be seen. He wondered if, incredibly, the other was trying to play hide-and-seek with him. Simultaneously, he extended his energy perception throughout the cavern, but the only sensation of a living creature was that of the icefish in the pond.
In truth, Cheon Mu-gyeong had already realized it from the moment he saw the snow leopard pelt lying alone. Wi Ho-yeon wasn’t hiding. He simply wasn’t here.
Explosive demonic energy poured out from Cheon Mu-gyeong’s entire body.
The massive cavern was instantly filled with a dark red energy of unknown depth. The demonic energy, which absorbed even the light of the luminous stones, left not a single grain of light. The demonic energy, heavily suppressing the frost energy deployed around, sank into every part of the ice walls.
The ice walls permeated by the demonic energy let out an eerie wail. Pressed down by Mu-gyeong’s energy filling the atmosphere, not only the cavern but the entire Eternal Snow Mountain trembled.
Ten Thousand Demon Imprisonment Domain—a demonic art where ten thousand strands of demonic energy extended to place everything under the Heavenly Demon’s domain.
The demonic energy burrowed into the ice walls and the layered rock crevices outside the cavern like living snakes. Everywhere his energy reached fell under Cheon Mu-gyeong’s control, but Wi Ho-yeon was not felt anywhere.
“There was… just a way out.”
Had the voice that called him indeed been an auditory hallucination?
Once again, demonic energy of a more supreme level scattered in all directions from Cheon Mu-gyeong’s body.
Since there was no one to protect, thousands of Black Lightning bolts that crossed the void in an instant struck the ceiling of the cavern.
Rumble! It was not lightning falling from the sky, but reverse lightning soaring from the ground. As the hard ice walls cracked and were crushed, the ceiling collapsed, and ice boulders poured down.