By Zephyria 
As soon as the word Kunlun was mentioned, an ominous feeling washed over them.
‘No way.’
Seong Mu-yeon instinctively glanced at Seong Mu-ryong, and their eyes met. Seong Mu-ryong was undoubtedly thinking the exact same thing.
Just then, a disciple of the Hwasan Sect rushed into the courtyard.
“Sect elders! The scouts have returned!”
Several disciples, covered in dust, followed closely behind.
The moment Ma Jin-cheon had learned the location of the Divine Demon Sect’s stronghold from the Poison Freak, he had ordered his disciples to scout the area. They had just returned.
“What is the report?”
It was an early return.
Ma Jin-cheon had expected the scouts to rejoin them halfway through the expedition; their unexpectedly quick return gave him an immediate intuition that something had gone wrong.
The scouts were on the verge of collapse, having run without rest. Listening to their report, it was clear that the matter was urgent enough to justify such recklessness.
“There were traces of a large number of people staying at the Qinghai headquarters, but it is currently empty.”
“How can that be….”
“However, it seems they haven’t been gone for long. It doesn’t seem like the Poison Freak lied….”
Those words were enough to unsettle not only Ma Jin-cheon but everyone present.
“Ugh….”
At that moment, No Jeok-san regained some consciousness, thanks to Baek Ryeo-il continuously injecting inner force.
“Master No! Are you awake? What happened?”
He had just woken up and was not in a stable condition, but the people had no time to wait for No Jeok-san to fully recover his strength.
“Where am I…. Ugh.”
No Jeok-san looked around with hazy eyes, seemingly unable to grasp the situation. As he let out continuous groans of pain, his eyes suddenly snapped open.
“Kunlun! Kunlun is in danger!”
No Jeok-san grabbed the clothes of whoever was nearest to him and clung on.
“The, the Demonic Cult?!”
As luck would have it, No Jeok-san grabbed Seong Mu-ryong’s pant leg. Sharply sensing the alien aura emanating from him, No Jeok-san jumped in surprise, let go, and recoiled.
“You cursed wretches! Do you not fear the heavens! How could you be so cruel and atrocious… ugh!”
Soon, he lunged forward in a burst of rage, but Seong Mu-ryong was faster. Seong Mu-ryong grabbed No Jeok-san by the collar and lifted him into the air.
“What happened to the Kunlun Sect?”
Seong Mu-ryong pressed No Jeok-san with an agitated voice. He shook the already weakened No Jeok-san violently back and forth, demanding an answer.
“Brother! Calm down!”
Unable to watch any longer, Seong Mu-yeon stopped Seong Mu-ryong. While reluctantly letting go of No Jeok-san, Seong Mu-ryong still could not control his emotions, breathing heavily. Seong Mu-yeon had never seen him this infuriated.
Seong Mu-ryong’s rough behavior acted as a spark to the atmosphere, which was already tense.
The people, who had been watching from a distance until then, suddenly rushed forward. Some threw themselves in to separate No Jeok-san from the Demonic Cult side, including Seong Mu-ryong.
“I knew we shouldn’t have trusted those Demonic Cult bastards!”
“What? How dare you lay a hand on us? Get back this instant!”
The excited parties shouted at each other, stirring as if they were about to draw their weapons at any moment. Sensing that Seong Mu-ryong was about to use force again, Seong Mu-yeon did his utmost to keep him as far away as possible.
“Enough! Stop it, all of you!”
At that moment, a majestic voice infused with inner force thundered through the area. It was Ma Jin-cheon.
Only then did the people snap out of it and fall silent. They slowly let go of each other’s collars.
“This is no time for this. I am told that a few days ago, thousands of demonic cultists suddenly descended all at once. Master No barely managed to escape Mount Kunlun with the help of his disciples, tasked with seeking aid from the outside.”
During the brief period of chaos, Ma Jin-cheon had pressed No Jeok-san and gathered a significant amount of information.
“It seems the Divine Demon Sect left their headquarters in the meantime and attacked Kunlun. Since that happened three days ago, every moment is critical. We must help Kunlun.”
“Damn it…! I should have expected this! Il-gwang! We return to the Main Palace immediately!”
Seong Mu-ryong shouted like a thunderclap and bolted. Il-gwang and the Demonic humans immediately followed him.
That served as the signal for total chaos to erupt.
“Flowing Cloud Sword! Does that mean Kunlun has been annihilated?”
“Master No!”
Unable to hide their excitement, people poured out their questions, rushing toward No Jeok-san and Ma Jin-cheon.
Leaving them behind, Seong Mu-yeon chased after Seong Mu-ryong.
“Brother! Wait a moment! Let’s wait a bit and go together with the orthodox sects…!”
“There is no time for that!”
Seong Mu-ryong shouted, his gaze fixed forward as he sprinted across the ground.
“Big Brother headed toward Xinjiang just a few hours ago…! Do you understand what this means? If the Third Young Master has already seized control of Kunlun, it means Big Brother could encounter them on the road to Xinjiang with only a few dozen subordinates! Do you expect me to wait while those orthodox bastards waste time with useless bickering?”
They cut through the air and moved rapidly, soon reaching the plains where the demonic cultists were camped.
While Il-gwang called the squad leaders to issue orders, Seong Mu-ryong did not slow down, passing them and racing toward the northwest.
Seong Mu-yeon kept pace with him, glancing back. Thousands of demonic cultists followed behind them in succession, kicking up a massive cloud of dust that quickly receded into the distance.
“Who said anyone was wasting time?”
A familiar voice was heard. Baek Ryeo-il had approached them before they knew it.
“Master Baek! Where are the others?”
Seeing Baek Ryeo-il’s relaxed face, Seong Mu-yeon felt a sudden surge of relief.
“Look behind you.”
Before they knew it, numerous martial artists from the orthodox sects had joined the demonic cultists, walking shoulder to shoulder. Although they glanced left and right repeatedly, appearing uncomfortable with the fact that they were traveling with the enemy, they blended in without issue.
“Listen, Second Young Master. Don’t underestimate Kunlun. Despite how it looks, it’s a Great Sect that proudly holds a place among the Nine Great Sects. There’s no way it would collapse in just three days to the Divine Demon Sect, which is practically newborn.”
“We’ll know once we get there and check.”
At Seong Mu-ryong’s stiff reply, Baek Ryeo-il shrugged nonchalantly. However, Seong Mu-yeon thought that Baek Ryeo-il also secretly hoped Kunlun was holding out. The longer they could keep the Third Young Master tied down, the higher their own chances of victory would be.
After that short conversation, they fell silent. They had a long way to go. If they had energy to speak, it was better spent on running.
Yak Seon had visited Mount Kunlun several times. Each time, she had been greeted by an elegant atmosphere draped in thick mist. But this time was different.
Everything in sight was burning. The crimson fire of the demon was reflected fully in Yak Seon’s dark pupils.
Innocent people were falling in heaps before black blades.
“This… this wasn’t part of the story!”
Yak Seon shouted to the man standing behind her. Her voice was agitated, veins popping in her neck as if she wanted to devour him.
However, the man merely glanced at her, remaining completely composed.
“Then what did you expect? You asked me to take you to the Main Palace of the Demonic Cult. This is war. Did you think the path to the deepest part of the enemy camp would be a field of flowers?”
“Even so…! There was no need to kill all those people! What did they do wrong!”
“Wrong, you say….”
Step, step.
The man approached the railing with slow strides.
“If I had to say… their mistake was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Beyond the railing, beneath the high pavilion, a Hell Map unfolded.
The Kunlun Sect, a historic Taoist Sect, had burned into a handful of ash, and its disciples—regardless of age or gender—had been slaughtered.
“Since the Demon Subjugation Valley fell, there was no time to delay. This was simply the optimal location to approach closely without being noticed by the Main Palace. They wouldn’t have dared to scout the enemy camp. Kunlun was simply unlucky.”
“Luck? You gave the order with your own hand, and you call it luck?”
Yak Seon gnashed her teeth. Her clenched fists trembled.
“Yes, luck. The fact that the orthodox sects happened to catch the tail of the Demon Subjugation Valley, and thus I lost numerous subordinates and supplies and was pushed to the edge—if that isn’t luck, what is? It was an inevitable choice.”
“How dare you… commit such an act before my eyes…?”
“What will you do? Stand against my army alone to protect them? I wonder…. Think about what you must do, Great One. To achieve the great cause, you must close your eyes to everything else.”
Yak Seon eventually squeezed her eyes shut at the atrocity that was too painful to behold. It felt as if her heart would burst. But the boiling rage soon turned into sorrow.
“…You weren’t always such a ruthless and cold-hearted murderer. How did you become so broken, Seong Mu-geuk?”
“…….”
Seong Mu-geuk stared at Yak Seon out of the corner of his eye. The corners of his mouth curled upward.
“Just how old a story are you talking about? If the mountains and rivers change in ten years, wouldn’t a person change as well?”