Chapter 500

For an instant.

The power of the pinnacle brushed through the room.

The candle flames inside Black Moon Pavilion wavered. The incense smoke scattered. The teacups on the table trembled faintly.

Unhwi’s clothes fluttered.

But Unhwi did not move.

He remained seated.

He lifted his tea.

Took a sip.

Set it down.

Yu Cheong withdrew his power.

Slowly.

“What do you mean?”

Yu Cheong’s voice had grown lower. Even a man as intelligent as he was could not understand Unhwi’s words.

Yu Cheong had clearly planted more than a few roots within the Blood Heaven Sect.

There was no possibility Unhwi did not know that. Yet he claimed Yu Cheong’s roots did not reach the Blood Heaven Sect?

It was a contradiction.

Unhwi spoke.

“Exactly what I said.”

He continued in an even voice.

“Your roots reach somewhere other than the Blood Heaven Sect. I am not unaware of that.”

“...”

“And my roots do not belong to the Blood Heaven Sect either.”

Yu Cheong looked at Unhwi.

For a long while.

“So?”

“That is why I am speaking honestly.”

Unhwi continued.

“We both know our roots are different, and we both know we wish to cut the other down.”

“...”

“But the owner of the field is watching.”

Yu Cheong’s eyes trembled faintly.

The owner of the field.

The Heavenly Wayfarer.

“If we cut each other down before the owner’s eyes, the field will be ruined.”

“...”

“The owner of the field would not want that.”

Yu Cheong opened his mouth.

“You came here in the middle of the night to speak in riddles. What exactly do you want?”

Unhwi answered.

“I intend to warn the Heaven-Law Platform.”

Yu Cheong went still.

The Heaven-Law Platform.

Hearing that name from Unhwi’s mouth, Yu Cheong’s eyes narrowed slightly.

“...The Heaven-Law Platform.”

“Yes.”

“What did they do?”

“They reached for my people.”

Unhwi’s voice lowered.

“They sent three martial artists of the Five Realms of Martial Divinity to subdue my attendants.”

Yu Cheong said nothing.

“It was no different from adults swinging their fists at children.”

“...”

“They called it a warning.”

Unhwi looked at Yu Cheong.

“Since I received a warning, would it not be courteous to return one?”

Yu Cheong stared at him.

Silence passed.

A long silence.

Yu Cheong slowly spoke.

“You intend to warn the Heaven-Law Platform.”

“Yes.”

“Alone?”

“Yes.”

The corner of Yu Cheong’s mouth rose.

This time, it was a genuine smile.

“You will die.”

“That is possible.”

“Possible?”

“Yes.”

Unhwi answered calmly.

Yu Cheong’s smile faded.

He studied Unhwi.

Deeply.

And then he understood.

He understood what Unhwi was saying.

This was not merely a notification.

It was a proposal.

Borrowing another’s blade to kill.

Unhwi was asking Yu Cheong to tell him where the Heaven-Law Platform was.

Even knowing that he might die.

From Yu Cheong’s perspective—

It is not a bad proposition.

Unhwi would seek out the Heaven-Law Platform and fight them. There were two possible outcomes.

First. Unhwi died. A thorn in Yu Cheong’s side would disappear. Even if the Heavenly Wayfarer questioned him, Yu Cheong would not have acted against Unhwi.

Unhwi would have gone there of his own accord.

Second. Unhwi won. The Heaven-Law Platform would suffer a blow.

The Heaven-Law Platform was a complicated existence even for Yu Cheong. They belonged to the same Heaven Beyond Heaven, but they were not under his command. If the Heaven-Law Platform weakened, Yu Cheong’s influence would grow.

Either way, Yu Cheong had nothing to lose.

Yu Cheong looked at Unhwi.

“You mean to walk into the tiger’s den of your own accord?”

“We will have to go there to learn whether it is a tiger or a cat.”

“The commander of the Heaven-Law Platform stands at the very edge of the Supreme Void Realm.”

“I know.”

“And you will still go?”

“I am going because I know.”

Yu Cheong looked at Unhwi.

For a long while.

“...You truly are an interesting man.”

He murmured.

“Vice Leader.”

“Speak.”

“There is only one thing I wish to know.”

“One?”

“Yes. Where is the Heaven-Law Platform’s residence?”

Every word of this conversation had ultimately been for the sake of that question.

Unhwi did not know where the Heaven-Law Platform was.

But he intended to seek them out.

Then who could know with certainty where their headquarters lay?

The first was the Heavenly Wayfarer.

Unhwi had never intended to ask him directly.

The second—

Yu Cheong.

There was no possibility a man as meticulous as Yu Cheong would not know. Unhwi had skipped every intermediate step and chosen the surest option.

Yu Cheong did not answer.

Silence passed.

Steam rose from the teacups.

Yu Cheong opened his mouth.

“You are asking to borrow my blade?”

“Not your blade.”

“Then what?”

“I am asking for directions.”

Yu Cheong chuckled.

“If I show you the road, you may die at its end.”

“That is my concern.”

“If you die, the Primordial One may suspect me.”

“He will.”

Unhwi continued.

“But there will be no evidence.”

“...”

“I will have gone of my own accord. And as you know, the Primordial One is not so shallow-minded. You cannot truly believe he would fail to understand that I went there by my own choice and for my own reasons.”

Yu Cheong lifted his teacup.

He took a sip.

Set it down.

His eyes flashed.

The courtesy that had to be shown—

There was no longer any need for it.

The mask?

There was no reason to wear one.

“Let me ask you one thing.”

His manner of speaking changed.

Unhwi answered with a peculiar smile.

“Go ahead.”

“Why are you making this proposal to me?”

“...”

“We established before that you and I are enemies, and we have now established it once again. I do not understand why you would ask an enemy for help.”

Unhwi answered.

“Because you are my enemy.”

“What does that mean?”

“To be enemies means we know each other well.”

Unhwi continued.

“You are calculating what will happen if I seek out the Heaven-Law Platform.”

“...”

“At the end of that calculation, you will conclude that you lose nothing.”

“...”

“And so you will show me the way.”

Yu Cheong looked at Unhwi.

For a long time.

Then—

He laughed.

“Ha.”

It was a brief laugh.

But it held genuine amusement.

“You truly are an interesting bastard.”

It was almost a pity.

A genuine pity.

Had such a talent been his man, the time needed to accomplish his great cause might have been reduced by more than half.

No.

Perhaps it could have been achieved even faster.

Yu Cheong rose from his seat.

He walked to the bookshelves.

He pulled out a book.

No.

It was not a book.

It was a sheet of paper hidden behind one.

He placed it on the table.

Unhwi looked down.

It was a map.

A location had been marked deep in a mountain range a thousand li northwest of the Blood Heaven Sect headquarters.

“It is not the Heaven-Law Platform’s headquarters.”

Yu Cheong spoke.

“But it is one of their patrol outposts.”

“...”

“If you find that place, you should be able to learn the road to their headquarters.”

Unhwi picked up the map.

He folded it.

Placed it inside his clothes.

“Thank you.”

“There is no need.”

Yu Cheong sat down again.

He looked at Unhwi.

“Blood Heaven Arbiter.”

“Yes.”

“Remember one thing.”

Yu Cheong’s eyes grew cold.

“The conversation we had here tonight never happened.”

“Of course.”

“And.”

Yu Cheong continued.

“If you return alive.”

“...”

“Then we will play a game.”

He was smiling.

But his eyes were not.

Unhwi rose from his seat.

He did not offer a fist salute.

“Have we not already been playing one?”

Yu Cheong chuckled.

“Not that one.”

He pointed beside the table.

A Go board stood there.

“I mean a real game of Go.”

“Very well. Once I return, we will play.”

Unhwi turned away.

He walked toward the door.

“Blood Heaven Arbiter.”

Yu Cheong’s voice came from behind him.

Unhwi turned his head.

“You said the owner of the field is watching.”

“Yes.”

“You said the owner of the field does not pull the weeds.”

Yu Cheong continued.

“Do you know why the owner does not pull them?”

“I could not say.”

“He waits for the weeds to wither on their own.”

Yu Cheong was smiling.

“Whether you wither or I do.”

“...”

“Now that we know exactly what the other wants, this should be very interesting.”

Unhwi also chuckled.

“I do not think I will wither.”

“Nor do I.”

The two men looked at each other.

Both were smiling.

But beneath those smiles, blades were clashing.

Silently.

Invisibly.

And then—

The fact everyone had overlooked.

“Do you know that a poisonous weed has slipped into the field?”

“How could I not?”

“How do you intend to deal with it?”

Unhwi thought for a moment, then asked,

“Rather than asking how I intend to respond, allow me to ask you something first.”

“Ask.”

“Do you intend to help the poisonous weed?”

Yu Cheong chuckled.

“Of course not.”

“He is a fox wearing a tiger’s skin. If you use him, the great cause you seek to accomplish will advance more quickly.”

A great deal was contained within that brief sentence.

The poisonous weed and the fox wearing a tiger’s skin—

Both referred to Gun Mugeol.

And speaking of accelerating the great cause meant that Unhwi knew how far Yu Cheong’s restoration of the Heavenly Demon Cult had already progressed.

The smile vanished from Yu Cheong’s lips.

“You say something interesting.”

“Unless you answer, I cannot tell you how I intend to respond.”

“Ha. So if I want something, I should reveal my intentions first?”

“Yes. In the end, you wanted us not merely to predict each other’s intentions, but to speak them aloud. I should act accordingly.”

“Ha.”

Once again, it was closer to a sigh than a laugh.

“I have thought this before, but you are an exhausting bastard to deal with.”

“The feeling is mutual.”

The two men said nothing more.

They merely looked at one another in silence.

Realizing there was nothing further to discuss, Unhwi turned away again.

Yu Cheong did not stop him.

There truly was nothing more to say.

They could not reveal everything to each other.

Because they were enemies.

And so Unhwi left Black Moon Pavilion.

It was night outside.

The moon was high.

A cold wind blew.

Unhwi took the map from inside his clothes.

He unfolded it beneath the moonlight.

Northwest.

A thousand li.

Unhwi folded the map.

He placed it back inside his clothes.

His eyes gleamed in the darkness.

He remembered the dark blue bruise on Ju Soa’s neck.

He remembered Wonyang’s wrist, swollen to the point that it looked nearly broken.

He remembered the wound on Chief Seong’s face.

He had clearly told the three of them earlier.

That he would return tomorrow.

That they were to guard Blood Spirit Hall until then.

And that he was going to meet Vice Leader Yu Cheong.

None of it had been a lie.

Unhwi truly had come to meet Yu Cheong.

But he had not told them everything.

Now, Unhwi intended to go where the Heaven-Law Platform was.

And he intended to return tomorrow.

He could not stay away.

They had invited him first.

He had to go.