Chapter 1208

<Chapter 1208> The Path of Radiant Ascension

The initiates of the Demon Entrance Academy followed their instructor westward. It was an endless march—crossing fields, climbing mountains, crafting rafts to cross rivers. Occasionally, we’d bump into ferocious beasts or demons, and instead of retreating, we fought them head-on.

It felt like we walked 200 kilometers a day for three weeks straight. If we weren’t martial artists trained in combat, we would’ve collapsed within days. At least at night, we had personal tents to sleep in. Of course, every night someone broke into Yeon Ha’s tent and… *did things*.

Anyway, after three grueling weeks, we finally arrived at our destination: Baek Mountain City. Behind the city loomed the massive Baek Mountain (White Mountain), its peak eternally covered in snow.

As I gazed at Baek Mountain, I thought to myself, “Though the names may have changed… seeing this white mountain means the story is unfolding as it did in the original.”

Demon Entrance Academy Dean Bae Taek-ju spoke before entering the city.

“This is your second trial. For the next two weeks, you will stay in Baek Mountain City and assist the Heaven Horse Spirit Sect’s Baek Mountain branch. Use any method necessary. Work for the sect, earn merit, and that merit will become your grade.”

Jeong Gam Modoon raised her hand.

“Question!”

“366, go ahead.”

“Can we do anything to earn merit?”

“It doesn’t matter what you do, but remember: you’ll be responsible for whatever actions you take.”

“…You mentioned forming six-person squads earlier. What’s the reason for that?”

“You’ll receive missions as squads. These are separate from earning merit. You must complete these missions no matter what.”

“What kind of missions?”

“They vary by squad. Any more questions?”

“…No.”

Modoon lowered her hand.

Bae Taek-ju glanced briefly at Baek Mountain and addressed us.

“There are currently three major forces in Baek Mountain City. First, the Baek Mountain Gold Family has been here for over 800 years. They’re both warriors and merchants.”

An instructor unfurled a large map showing a rough outline of Baek Mountain City. The Gold Family resided in the northern part.

“The Heaven Horse Spirit Sect’s Baek Mountain branch is located in the east, here. The sect doesn’t intend to fully dominate Baek Mountain City. …336, you have another question?”

“What does ‘not intending to dominate’ mean?”

“Dominating Baek Mountain City offers little benefit. Unnecessary control would only anger the Emperor. Even if domination were possible, the sect lacks the manpower right now. If resources were available, they’d send people to places far more important than Baek Mountain City.”

This continent is ruled by the Emperor. The Heaven Horse Spirit Sect merely governs in his name. No one can oppose the Emperor on this land.

“…So the sect isn’t hostile toward the Gold Family? What the sect wants is influence, correct?”

“You catch on quickly. Yes, the sect aims to gain influence second only to the Gold Family.”

“That implies the sect hasn’t yet secured significant influence in Baek Mountain City… meaning the third force is problematic?”


“Looks like it’s gonna be trouble…”

“That’s right. The third remaining force is the Thousand Intent Alliance, Baeksan Branch.”

Thousand Intent Alliance.

The initiates tensed at the mention of that name.

The Thousand Intent Alliance is a coalition of minor sects. But don’t underestimate them as just a bunch of small fry. They’ve gathered over a thousand minor sects. Though their history is short, they’ve been rapidly expanding their influence. In terms of sheer size alone, they surpass even the Heavenly Demon Spirit Sect.

The Thousand Intent Alliance is an adversarial force to the Heavenly Demon Spirit Sect. Their relationship is so hostile that it wouldn’t be surprising if war broke out between them tomorrow.

“I’ll say this upfront – do not think about fighting the Thousand Intent Alliance. The sect isn’t ready to fight them yet.”

“If the Thousand Intent Alliance launches a surprise attack, what should we do? Should we run away instead of fighting?”

Baek Taekju sharply turned his head toward the questioner, his eyes blazing with anger.

“Number 195. Are you seriously asking such a stupid question? The sect doesn’t run from puny things like the Thousand Intent Alliance. If we’re going to die, we’ll die fighting. However, we must hold the righteous cause. Do not forget this fact.”

Baek Taekju continued explaining about the relationships among the three major forces in Baeksan City.

The key player maintaining neutrality in Baeksan City is the Baeksan Gold Family. Five years ago, they publicly announced that they would ally with whichever force would benefit Baeksan City.

Because of this, both the Heavenly Demon Spirit Sect and the Thousand Intent Alliance are competing within Baeksan City. Not through swords and fists, but by developing Baeksan City to gain the support of its citizens.

In other words, the Baeksan Gold Family and the citizens of Baeksan City are effectively using both the Heavenly Demon Spirit Sect and the Thousand Intent Alliance to their own advantage.

“…I don’t understand. Is it absolutely necessary to secure Baeksan City?”

Jae Ga Mo Soon furrowed his brows and asked.

“Even if Baeksan City isn’t crucial, we cannot back down. We simply can’t hand it over to the Thousand Intent Alliance.”

“…If we can’t have it, perhaps destroying it is an option.”

“The Baeksan Gold Family has ties with the royal family.”

“…”

Jae Ga Mo Soon immediately shut his mouth.

The royal family refers to those who share bloodlines with the emperor. In other words, the Baeksan Gold Family could potentially call upon the emperor for help through these connections. Regardless of whether the emperor would actually intervene… antagonizing the royal family alone creates complications.

‘Ha…’

I let out a hollow laugh.

‘The Heavenly Demon Spirit Sect in novels was supposed to be the strongest force in the martial world… but in this world, all they seem to do is tiptoe around the emperor.’

At this point, I’m starting to get curious about what kind of person this emperor really is.

“Platoon leaders, step forward. I will assign your missions.”

Baek Taekju handed scrolls detailing the missions to the platoon leaders.

The leader of my 1st Platoon was Cheon Yu Un. He returned with the scroll and gathered our team together.

Me, Cheon Yu Un, Jae Ga Mo Soon, Yeon Ye Ha, Seo Mun So Rye, Jeong So Mok.

Number 290 Seo Mun So Rye was female. She uses a spear as her primary weapon. She’s somewhat pretty, but looks ordinary next to Yeon Ye Ha. Right now, I don’t plan to do anything with her, but if the opportunity arises, I’ll make her mine.

Number 151 Jeong So Mok is a male who specializes in fist and foot techniques. He’s also a spy for the Thousand Intent Alliance. Of course, Cheon Yu Un knows about this. In the original story, Cheon Yu Un tries to turn him into a double agent, but fails. In the end, Jeong So Mok dies while fighting against Cheon Yu Un.

We opened the scroll in a secluded spot to check our mission.

I skimmed through it quickly. Just as expected from the original story. Even without me stepping up, Cheon Yu Un and Jae Ga Mo Soon can handle it fine on their own.

‘The thing I need to do is… damn, there’s something alright. Damn Yom Goo Suk needs to stir up some trouble here.’

I clicked my tongue in irritation.

Jae Ga Mo Soon glanced at me disapprovingly before speaking about the mission.

“As written here, we will enter Baeksan City disguised as newly emerged wandering martial artists, concealing our affiliation with the sect. Our 1st Platoon’s mission is to gather information that could destabilize the Thousand Intent Alliance’s Baeksan branch.”

“Gathering intel, huh… what a pain. What are the other teams doing?…”


We’ve been assigned tasks such as driving off bandits or the like, I hear.

“…Have you been peeking at other squads’ missions?”

“Can’t you hear if you just listen?”

“My ears aren’t *that* good. As 88 said, this mission is a pain. Information capable of shaking the White Mountain Branch of the Thousand Cloaks Alliance? There’s probably none to be found. Even if there was, digging it up in two weeks would be tough. So we should prepare for mission failure.”

“Are you saying we should focus on merit instead of the mission?”

“Yes. It’s more rational. Anyone opposed, please raise your hand.”

No hands were raised.

“Then I’ll take it everyone agrees with my opinion.”

“366.”

“Yes, 88. Do you have any objections?”

“No, that’s not it. I agree with you. What I’m wondering is how we’re supposed to earn merit. Other squads can earn merit by helping the White Mountain Branch of the Celestial Horse Sect, but we can’t.”

Squad 1 has to keep its affiliation with the Celestial Horse Sect hidden. Thus, we can’t publicly assist the White Mountain Branch.

“What’s important in White Mountain right now isn’t the Celestial Horse Sect or the Thousand Cloaks Alliance. It’s the Bai Mountain Gold Family. But we don’t have any information on White Mountain. We’re too lacking in data. So today and tomorrow, let’s split up and gather information on White Mountain.”

“And after that?”

“We’ll make a plan based on the gathered info.”

“I’m in favor.”

Chun Yuyun grinned and spoke.

Jiegemuoshun looked around.

“What do the others think?”

Everyone agreed.

We confirmed our fake identities on the scroll and entered the city. We rented rooms at an inn on the outskirts of the city and dispersed to gather information.

“Chun Yuyun will probably monitor Zheng Xiaomu, the spy, just like in the original story. And me…?”

If I act like Yan Qiushi from the original, it should work.

I walked through the bustling streets of the city. The place was full of life, as expected of a commercial district. I headed toward a less crowded area.

Even in the busy district, there are places deserted during daylight hours.

This is the red-light district. It gets lively at night. And these areas are almost always connected to the underworld.

“In wuxia terms, they call it the Black Path.”

Sounds fancy, but really, they’re just street thugs. Like mafia in modern terms. They deal in prostitution, gambling, and the like.

And usually, behind the Black Path lies some evil sect of martial artists. Most likely, the Celestial Horse Sect is pulling the strings behind the black market groups in Bai Mountain City.

I avoided the large, flashy brothel buildings with five or more floors. Messing with those big ones could get annoying. I entered an alleyway in the red-light district. The atmosphere grew darker as I went deeper. Bloodstains weren’t uncommon on the ground.

When I reached the end of the alley, a small door in the wall suddenly swung open, and a man stepped out. His bare torso was covered in fierce tattoos, and he brandished a broadsword threateningly.

“Never seen you before. Not from around here, are ya? Who do you belong to?”

The thug taunted me.

I clenched my fists. No need to draw my sword.

“I’ll ask the questions. Who do *you* belong to?”

“Hmph, look at this guy, all confident…”

The thug suddenly hurled his broadsword at me. I caught it effortlessly with my left hand. He ran up the wall and leapt down at me, using his weight for the attack. He moved fast, and his punches showed signs of trained martial arts.

But that didn’t make him intimidating.

I moved slower than him. I raised my fist and delivered an uppercut. Though I moved later, my punch reached him first.

“Ugh!”

I grabbed his falling head.

Before I could summon lightning, my Lightning Heaven Flow (Leitian Liu) reacted on its own.

Zzzzzztt!

Electricity coursed from my palm into his body.

“Grrrrrrrrr!”