SYM 93

“Why is the Imperial Family involved with the Hongbaek Sect?”

Eun-hyeon muttered with a sigh.

If Cheong-un hadn’t been by his side, he would have suspected the Demonic Sect first in a situation like this.

But Cheonma Cheong-un was at the forefront of eradicating the Hongbaek Sect, and rather, the Imperial Family, who should have been protecting the people, was working hand in hand with the Hongbaek Sect. It was hard to believe.

“I think we need to think more about what to do next.”

“Yes, we should. We didn’t achieve our purpose in coming all the way to Seoa.”

Eun-hyeon and Cheong-un came to Seoa to reveal the identity of Seo Eun-hyeon. Of course, they met Seo Eun-hyeon in Seoa, but far from revealing his identity, they only gained the homework called the Hongbaek Sect.

“Master, let’s get in the carriage for now.”

Eun-hyeon nodded and got into the carriage. There would be nothing more to find by staying here. Cheong-un also got into the carriage.

Amhon moved in an orderly fashion, tied the remaining horses to the carriage, and Yoon Ju-myeong sat in the driver’s seat. Soon after, the carriage began to move.

“Cheong-un, I think we need to find out more about the Third Prince. Whether it’s just the Third Prince who is involved with the Hongbaek Sect, or if there is someone else.”

“In fact, the Third Prince has seemed like someone who doesn’t covet the throne. First of all, he is not a child of the current Empress, Empress Ja-hyeon, and he wasn’t a particularly outstanding figure. So, not much was known about him compared to the other princes, but looking at it now, even that must have been intentional.”

“So, there’s someone behind the Third Prince?”

“Since it seems certain that the Third Prince is involved with the Hongbaek Sect, I can’t jump to conclusions until it becomes clear. I will instruct them to investigate further. Now that things have turned out this way, I can’t trust the information about the Third Prince so far.”

“Well, in fact, who will inherit the throne is something that can’t be known until the very end.”

Sometimes, the youngest prince, who seemed far from the throne, ascended to the throne. So, it was difficult to know who was far or near from the throne until the last moment.

Eun-hyeon glanced at Cheong-un, who was sitting across from him.

“Ahem, Cheong-un, what are you going to do from now on? Do you have anything in mind?”

A brief silence filled the carriage.

“I’ll have to go to Beijing. They probably can’t perform such a Rite openly at places like the Altar of Heaven, the Altar of Earth, the Altar of the Sun, or the Altar of the Moon, and they can’t keep a thousand people in Beijing, so I’m thinking of searching the vicinity first.”

There were four places in Beijing where the country officially performed Rites. There were the Altar of the Sun, the Altar of the Moon, the Altar of Earth, and the Altar of Heaven in the four directions, east, west, south, and north, with the Altar of Heaven at the center. At the Altar of Heaven, the emperor himself performed prayers for rain or harvest festivals, and the other altars oversaw smaller Rites.

But no matter how much the Imperial Family was in collusion with the Hongbaek Sect, unless they were like King Eun of Ju, who was possessed by Dalgi, they couldn’t openly perform human sacrifice in such places.

“That’s right. No matter how much the emperor orders, they can’t openly perform human sacrifice. If they did, public sentiment would completely turn against them. But what is the Hongbaek Sect doing this human sacrifice for? You don’t need to perform human sacrifice to make Undead. What are they trying to gain through human sacrifice?”

“We should think of the Rite and the Undead as separate.”

Eun-hyeon nodded at Cheong-un’s words. The Undead made from the corpses of those who had undergone human sacrifice would be closer to recycling garbage. Then what is the purpose of performing the Rite?

Eun-hyeon sighed.

“But even if we find a place to perform the Rite near Beijing, it won’t be easy to save people. Since they are under hypnosis, they won’t run away even if we release them. Protecting and taking out over a thousand people is not an easy task…”

“I will check with the Demon Physician on the progress of the antidote research. Judging from what he said last time, the antidote research is almost complete. Apart from that, I can’t guarantee whether mass production is possible.”

In fact, the antidote itself would already be out. They had been researching the poison used by the Hongbaek Sect for a long time. But no matter how much he urged the Demon Physician, mass-producing that antidote was another story. First of all, most of the ingredients were rare, and even if they emptied the Demonic Sect’s medicine store, it would not be enough to make an antidote for a thousand people.

“Cheong-un. The antidote is more important than anything else. Without it, it’s impossible to save people even if we find a place to perform the Rite. So, what I mean is…”

Eun-hyeon watched Cheong-un’s expression. No matter how much Cheong-un was his disciple, and no matter how special their relationship was, it was not easy to bring up such a thing.

“Speak, Master.”

“Hoo, that antidote recipe. Can’t we make it public?”

“I haven’t checked everything, but the ingredients that go into making the antidote are not common. Even if we make it public, the only place that can make it is probably the Sichuan Tang Clan.”

“…So, to that Sichuan Tang Clan.”

“…Yes?”

Looking at Cheong-un, who was asking back as if he didn’t understand what he had said, Eun-hyeon swallowed hard.

He was aware that he was making an unreasonable request to Cheong-un, the Heavenly Demon of the Demonic Sect. But no matter how much he thought about it, there was no way to save a thousand people except for this method.

Cheong-un also said that even if he made the antidote recipe public, the Sichuan Tang Clan would be the only one that could make it right away.

“I think we should inform the Martial Arts Alliance of this matter and request the Sichuan Tang Clan to make the antidote.”

Eun-hyeon looked at Cheong-un, who was looking at him, and clenched his fists tightly with tension and guilt.

* * *

“The bathwater is ready.”

“Ah, I understand.”

Eun-hyeon was lost in thought, and when he heard that the bathwater was ready, he got up from his seat.

When he went to the bathroom, he saw a bath with steam rising from it.

He took off his clothes and put his feet in first. A groan naturally came out of his mouth at the warm temperature.

“Ugh, this is good.”

When he got into the tub, the parts that touched the water tingled. Eun-hyeon slowly settled down and recalled the events of the day.

When he suggested sharing the antidote…

‘To the Sichuan Tang Clan? Well, if we borrow the power of the Tang Clan, we might be able to make the antidote in time.’

He had said it with tension, but surprisingly, Cheong-un’s reaction was docile.

But the problem arose in an unexpected place.

‘It’s not that difficult to share the method of making the antidote. The Demon Physician will be disappointed that he can’t monopolize it, but since it’s not a poison made by the Demonic Sect from the beginning, it would have been revealed sooner or later. If the Hongbaek Sect continues to perform human sacrifice like this, the Sichuan Tang Clan will eventually make the antidote.’

Cheong-un was right. The Martial Arts Alliance had been investigating the Hongbaek Sect since the Godeok Temple incident, so it was only a matter of time before the antidote was made.

‘So, it’s not that difficult to make the antidote recipe public. But if we say that the Demonic Sect made this, will they believe it?’

Eun-hyeon trembled as he recalled how cold Cheong-un’s face was when he said this. He felt cold even though he was soaking in hot water.

Eun-hyeon told Cheong-un that this matter must be reported to the Martial Arts Alliance.

The Imperial Family might be involved, and a thousand people were being held as offerings. No matter how great the power of the Demonic Sect was, it was not something that could be handled alone.

When he told him that, Cheong-un’s reaction was beyond imagination.

‘The Martial Arts Alliance, you say? Do you still have expectations for those incompetent people even after being harmed like that, Master?’

It was the first time he had seen Cheong-un with such a cold face.

After that, only an awkward silence filled the carriage until it arrived back at the Manor where they had started.

Cheong-un, who had always approached Eun-hyeon first and stayed by his side to the point of being annoying after learning about Eun-hyeon’s identity, got up and left first.

Eun-hyeon got out of the carriage and couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.