Chapter 23: Find and Bring Back That Bastard
"The Righteous Alliance has stopped their advance! And they're setting up a defensive position."
"……?"
The Clan Lords exchanged confused glances with each other.
What the hell is going on?
The Commander of the Flying Demon Clan's Strike Force reported out loud and clear to their ears.
“Furthermore, the Sword God and several of their other top masters are nowhere to be seen!”
The Six Demons tilted their heads in confusion.
“…Is he going to try to launch a surprise attack with just his best fighters?”
On the surface, it was the only interpretation that seemed to make any sense.
“Or has he infiltrated the cult’s headquarters by himself?”
Although the report had mentioned several missing masters, in the minds of the Six Demons, only the Sword God is worthy of their attention; the rest are discarded from their calculations. He was the only one from the Orthodox Faction whom they actually feared. The rest were not even worth their consideration.
"If that's how he's coming… then that’s a good thing.”
Mind Demon's words made the others nod in agreement.
No matter how strong that bastard is, there was no way he could take on the whole cult by himself.
Just the Mind Demon Clan’s Strike Force would be enough. If Mind Demon and his three hundred combatants all focused their Spiritual Power on him at the same time, the Sword God wouldn't even be able to tell left from right.
Usually, in a conventional group assault, there are always inherent physical limitations. That is to say, there is a hard limit on how many people you could deploy all at once. That's why when you first start adding more people to a coordinated attack, the power increases dramatically, but as the numbers grow, the returns diminish. The whole point of those fancy Formations is to deal with that problem.
But Spiritual Power has no problem with spatial limitations when used in a coordinated assault!
The more Mind Demon Clan’s combatant there are, the more their power increases proportionally without any drop-off. That's the overwhelming strength of the Mind Demon Clan when they work in unison.
Flying Demon shot up from his seat.
This development that Flying Demon’s Commander brought back was definitely not something to take lightly.
"I'll go see it with my own eyes."
***
'The wind's finally died down.'
Yu Gyeongseong jumped over a sand dune and stopped.
Night had already fallen, and darkness had already covered everything.
He figured if he was going to sleep, now was a good time while things were calm.
'When did they realize I was gone?'
They must have noticed by morning training, at the latest and would have used Shadow Bind to track him.
So they definitely know that he had left.
'Will they actually come after me?'
Hard to say.
But even if Flying Demon personally came after him, he'd have plenty of breathing room. He'd left before dawn and had been running nonstop until now.
Besides, even if Flying Demon came alone, he wouldn't be able to pinpoint Yu Gyeongseong's exact location. He needed Life Demon for that. And if he brought her along, the time they’d take to catch up to him would lengthen dramatically.
That was his assessment of the situation.
This should be enough.
'Let's rest here for a bit.'
Having made his decision, Yu Gyeongseong removed his long cloak, gave it a vigorous shake to clear the dust, and spread it beneath him on the sand. Just like that, he had a simple bed ready. He flopped down on it and stared straight ahead.
The darkness that descended on the vast land seemed to merge seamlessly with the night sky. The stars that adorned that sea of darkness are too many to count as it shone brilliantly before his eyes.
"……."
There was something liberating about this feeling.
A flutter of excitement at this new beginning stirred in his chest.
He ran his fingers through the fine sand next to him. He could still feel the warmth left over from the day's sunlight. When he lifted his hand, the grains flowed smoothly between his fingers like water.
If I threw this sand into the black sky, would it look like that?
In this moment, with even the wind holding its breath and all the world fallen into silence...
It felt like time itself had stopped.
The scene before him looked like something straight out of primordial times...
He'd seen the night sky countless times on Tianshan Mountain Range, but how could it feel so completely different now?
It was probably because...
He had changed.
'…I made the right choice leaving.'
As he closed his eyes, it felt like the stars were just pouring down on top of him.
***
It didn't take long for the Six Demons to gather again in one place.
Flying Demon had gone and returned at full speed, moving so fast that he didn't even stop to catch his breath.
The second he walked in, they all asked the same thing.
"Where's the Sword God?"
Flying Demon shook his head.
"I don't know where he is. From what I could tell, he's not at their camp… but I can't be certain."
He was saying he hadn't sensed the Sword God's presence there. But that didn't mean he could be absolutely sure the Sword God wasn't at the camp. He considered the Sword God to be above his own level, so he had to account for the possibility that the Sword God was deliberately hiding his presence.
"If they were planning to hit us with a surprise attack by using a small force, they would've been here by now, wouldn't they?"
Indeed, during the entire time Flying Demon was away, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult had been placed on its highest state of emergency alert with every eye and ear strained for the slightest sign of an intruder. Yet, they had detected no anomalies whatsoever.
"What the hell is going on…?"
In any case, the only one with any meaningful information was Flying Demon who'd actually been there. Knowing this, he quietly reported.
"Just from looking at how they're setting up their camp… it looks like they're planning to drag this out into a long-term standoff with us."
"Hmm…."
They didn't know what to make of it. It was just too weird.
Right when they needed time more than anything else, the enemy was suddenly just giving it to them. It felt like their enemy was doing them a huge favor.
That's why the Six Demons felt even more confused. But at the same time, they couldn't deny feeling a sense of relief. Whatever the reason, this was a lucky break, even if it didn't last.
As if giving voice to that sentiment, Mind Demon spoke up in a lighter tone.
"Wouldn't it be great if the Sword God suddenly got sick and collapsed? That bastard had the audacity to crawl all the way up this sacred mountain without fearing heaven itself! Hehe… May he receive divine punishment!"
Flying Demon finished his report.
"I left the Flying Demon Clan’s Commander there. If anything happens, he'll come running immediately."
“We may not know the whereabouts of the Sword God, but either way, it looks like our moment of destiny has been postponed for now."
Following Life Demon's words, Crushing Demon drove the point home.
"We need to make a decision now. We can't just sit around waiting for him to show up."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
In that moment, the Six Demons reached a unanimous decision.
"We find that bastard and bring him back!"
***
Yu Gyeongseong stopped walking and looked back the way he’d come.
He'd been heading steadily south for quite a while now.
'I must've covered close to 1000 li by now.'
He felt like it would be safe enough to start turning east now.
Even if the Orthodox Faction's territory was vast, there was no way he'd run into them at this distance. And he was way too far out for any of the cult's own scouts to be around.
He was totally alone now.
Yu Gyeongseong checked his remaining water and food supplies.
'It's cutting it pretty close…'
[That's the most well-known and stable route. We used that same road when we invaded the Central Plains because there are a few scattered oases with fresh springs along the way.]
He didn't know exactly where the oases were located, but since Shazhou was southeast of the Tianshan Mountain Range, that meant the travel route would run diagonally from northwest to southeast. So if he headed roughly northeast from here, he should be fine.
"……?"
That's when he suddenly sensed a faint presence.
He focused on the feeling for a second, and then he took off like the wind. It was definitely something alive.
'An animal!'
It was the first living thing he’d seen in this desert. What kind of creature could even live out here?
Whatever it was, he was happy to see it.
With any luck, he could solve his food problem.
But then...
The closer he got, the clearer the sensation became, telling him this wasn't just any animal.
It was a living thing, but…
'…A person?'
He stopped moving and focused again.
Just one. And judging by how it was continuously moving even at this very moment, it was definitely a person.
'Well, at least it's not someone chasing me.'
If that were the case, they'd be coming from the north, but this presence was coming up from the southwest.
Hmm... What should I do about this?
He was curious, to be honest. A person alone in this desolate place?
But he also had to think about how the other person would react.
What would it feel like to be alone in a world that seemed empty, only to suddenly encounter someone out of nowhere?
Would they be happy?
Or would they jump out of their skin?
It would vary from person to person, but either way, there was no denying it would be a huge surprise.
'Yeah, they’d probably be shocked.'
Yu Gyeongseong made up his mind. There was no need to actually meet. The best course of action was for both of them to continue on their respective paths in peace.
But it turned out he didn’t have a choice in the matter. Because he suddenly realized something.
'…They are coming… for me?'
He thought he might be imagining it, but when he checked again, it was the same. They were definitely walking in his direction.
What for?
'Did they spot me from this far away…?'
He doubted even one of the Six Demons could manage that. While speed had been his priority, he had also been careful to move with stealth in case someone was watching. That's why he found it hard to believe the thought that popped into his head.
He needed to confirm something.
So Yu Gyeongseong moved stealthily. He traveled far enough that his position would noticeably change even from a great distance.
But then…
'….'
The traveler changed direction to match. They adjusted their heading precisely toward where he was now.
And that’s when he knew for sure.
'They spotted me….'
And one more thing.
That person has business with me.
He didn't know what kind, but why else would they be walking right at him like this?
Yu Gyeongseong quietly assessed his opponent.
'….'
There was something strange about this.
He didn't know who this guy was or how he was doing it, but he was pretty sure they’d known where Yu Gyeonseong was there even before they’d even sensed him. Now that he thought about it, it felt like the person had been walking toward him the whole time.
'Either way, if they spotted me from this distance, I have to assume they're no ordinary person….'
But if they are a master, why were they walking so slowly?
The person was walking just a tiny bit faster than the pace of an average adult walking. Were they not even martial artist?
'….'
After waiting for quite a while, Yu Gyeonseong eventually started to get glimpses of the person between the dunes.
Judging by the build, it was a man.
He was pretty tall, carrying a large load on his back.
He was wearing a hat with a really wide, flat brim that resembled a plate. As he got closer, Yu Gyeongseong could start to make out his face.
'Definitely a man… looks like he’s on the older side.'
Even under the tan and the dirt, you could tell he wasn't young.
Now he was close enough to see his full appearance clearly.
A glimmer of interest appeared in Yu Gyeongseong's eyes. The sand here was so fine that feet sank deep with every step. Yet this man was walking as if he were on regular ground.
Was that why?
It did not look as though he was expending any significant effort, and yet his pace seemed surprisingly quick when considered against his apparent lack of exertion.
When they were close enough, a voice reached him.
"Ah, so it's you!"
'…?'
But… that first greeting was puzzling. Wasn't that the kind of greeting you'd give to someone you knew? Did he… know who Gyeongseong was?
And besides, the man shouldn't be able to see his face. It was hidden beneath the conical hat he was wearing. And yet, he sounded totally sure he’d found the right person.
How was that even possible?