Chapter 233

Chapter 233

The fact that the three basic necessities for human survival are clothing, food, and shelter is something that doesn’t need to be painfully stated to be understood.

Without clothing, one cannot protect oneself from the cold winds, and without a safe place to lie down and sleep, one is similarly vulnerable to external attacks. The intuitive reality that without food, one faces approaching death goes without saying.

Even nomadic peoples who move locations every few days, months, or at most once a year, rarely neglect these three necessities. In that sense, clothing, food, and shelter can be said to be the most important things for human survival. And.

From that perspective, Baek Risan was in surprisingly good circumstances for having been dropped in some unknown remote place. Because.

-Wear it.

“What, what is this?”

At least she wouldn’t have trouble with clothing and shelter among the three necessities.

“…….”

Baek Risan wrapped the tattered cloth scraps that Pipoong’s man handed her around her body and involuntarily wrinkled her nose at the musty smell. And the man, confirming her expression, quietly turned his gaze away.

-Is the smell that strong?

“……No, well, it’s not unbearable.”

-Even if it’s unpleasant, endure it. The sun here is strong. If you keep your skin exposed continuously, it’ll heat up quickly.

“……Ah, right.”

Baek Risan let out a sigh as she confirmed that the man, who had stopped speaking abruptly and looked around, set his sights on one direction of the sand dunes and began moving. Because she couldn’t understand this situation at all.

‘Not a person……’

Humans cannot harbor monster energy.

That’s not a fact proven by one or two years, ten years, or twenty years of history, but by hundreds and thousands of years. There have been dozens, hundreds, thousands of attempts throughout the long history of the Central Plains to obtain the power of monsters with a human body.

The Demonic Cult, the Orthodox Martial World, the Unorthodox Martial World, and even the Blood Cult, full of various sinister techniques, all failed to implant monster power into human bodies. So that man, who was emanating monster energy, was definitely not human but a monster.

He should be a monster, yet.

‘Then why is he helping me?’

Are there really monsters in this world who are friendly toward humans?

Baek Risan, harboring doubts, tilted her head and then stared at her beloved sword in its sheath. She couldn’t trust it, but that was the situation at hand.

‘From the circumstances, it seems that monster saved my life.’

The end of her memory was some large and bizarre monster attacking her.

At the very end, she thought she saw something like black lightning. And when she opened her eyes, the man was carrying her.

That’s where her thoughts got tangled. Monsters are naturally hostile to humans, so why did that monster save her, a human, and now even protect her?

‘Ugh.’

Baek Risan, who had been lost in thought while furrowing her brow for a moment, shook her head and stared directly at the man. Because she decided this was a problem that wouldn’t be solved by thinking about it.

“Since it’s come to this, let’s exchange names. What’s your name?”

-Name?

“Yeah. Name. Monsters also have names like us, don’t they? Like Heukya.”

-Heukya…….

The man, who had been thinking for a moment at Baek Risan’s question, remained silent and then bluntly spoke.

-Nakcheon.

“……Nakcheon? Dropping the sky……? That’s your name?”

-I don’t know if it’s a name. Everyone just called me that.

“Everyone? Monsters?”

-I don’t know. Whether they were monsters or humans.

“……Well, fine.”

It was a name she had never heard before. If he were a monster friendly to humans, there’s no way he wouldn’t be known, so he definitely must not have met humans very often.

Baek Risan, hearing Nakcheon’s name and nodding, asked another question.

“Can you take me back to where I originally was?”

-The heart of the Great Desert.

“Yeah. My companions are there, you know? They were on the verge of dying of thirst, so I need to get there quickly.”

-There are no people there.

“……What?”

-I mean exactly what I said. There are no living people there now.

“What do you…….”

At Nakcheon’s words, which seemed to pronounce a death sentence, Baek Risan gritted her teeth. And Nakcheon continued speaking before she could ask another question.

-The humans who were not far from where you were joined up with other humans and left the heart of the Great Desert.

“……What? Joined up with other humans, what on earth does that…….”

-Humans who frequently wander the Great Desert. They joined up with ones who are particularly nimble. They don’t appear to be dead.

“How do you know that?”

-I can’t know the edges, but if it’s the heart, I can know. If it’s something happening above the seal.

“……Seal?”

-There is such a thing.

Nakcheon, who cut off the conversation as if he had no intention of telling her everything, stared at Baek Risan intently. The following question.

-There’s no reason to go to the heart now. Your companions aren’t there. Where are you thinking of going?

“……Do you happen to know where my companions went?”

-I can know the direction they left the heart, but they wouldn’t have gone straight in that direction. Weak humans are sensitive to monster territories. They would have chosen a path with minimal conflict.

“So, you don’t know…….”

What should she do?

Baek Risan, who let out a sigh, organized her thoughts. In any case, she needed information.

‘There’s too little information to set a goal and move right now.’

Where in the Great Desert she was, where her companions went.

She knew nothing. From the circumstances, she suspected they might have been dragged away by disciples of the Demonic Cult, but she couldn’t just barge into the Demonic Cult demanding they return her companions.

‘If they didn’t die on the spot but joined up and went together, it means they don’t intend to kill them immediately.’

She didn’t know how much time was left, but there was time. Then there was one thing to do.

“Settlement.”

-…….

“Is there a human settlement nearby?”

According to the words of seniors who had been to Xinjiang, near the Demonic Cult, there seemed to be people who weren’t cult members but lived in settlements in the extreme environment. Then she could get information there.

-As far as I know, there are a few.

“Then take me there.”

Gather information.

Baek Risan, having set her immediate goal, clenched her fist and burned with determination.

Resolving to definitely rescue her captured companions.

***

“How did it go?”

“Nothing was there.”

“…….”

Seomooncheok, who had asked a question of Jeokyeol trudging over, fell silent at the answer he received. Jeokyeol’s answer could be interpreted in various ways.

“Nothing was there means…….”

“It means exactly what it sounds like. There were traces of being attacked by a monster, and the trail ended there.”

“……You mean they were taken by a monster?”

“I don’t know. But there was an enormous sword mark remaining. It was hard to see it as belonging to a monster.”

Jeokyeol, who let out a sigh, pressed her brow and shook her head, then stared directly at the party members who were barely regaining consciousness.

“Since we can’t track where they went, let’s hear your story first. Why on earth are you here?”

“…….”

“Seeing as you don’t know about Jeongmyeongdan, you didn’t walk here.”

Even for Qinghai martial artists who engage in numerous local battles with the Cult, reaching the center of the Great Desert isn’t easy. Countless great monsters swarm at the edges of the Great Desert, and the closer you get to the center, the more extreme the environment becomes.

“……Even if you ask why.”

At Jeokyeol’s pointed question, Seomooncheok, who had paused for a moment, stared at Jeokyeol intently. He knew that Jeokyeol was more friendly toward Central Plains people than other Demonic Cult members, but that was separate from whether he could fully trust Jeokyeol.

“……Those are eyes that don’t trust me.”

“Personally, I want to trust you, but right now I’m carrying the lives of all my martial brothers, am I not?”

“Haah.”

Jeokyeol, who let out a deep sigh, pressed her brow and shook her head. And the answer that followed.

“This won’t do. I’ll show one of my cards too. As far as I know, you’re disciples of Uicheonmun established by Baek Riyun, the direct line of the Baekri Family, right?”

“That’s correct.”

“I’m the guardian of your Gate Master.”

“……Pardon?”

What on earth was she talking about?

At Jeokyeol’s sudden statement, Seomooncheok, doubting his ears, reflexively questioned. And Jeokyeol, as if answering that question, unfolded her story.

“Is it hard to understand?”

“How can a Demonic Cult…… a Divine Cult member become the guardian of a Central Plains person?”

Isn’t that right?

Logically, it doesn’t make sense for a Demonic Cult member who has no choice but to be bound to Xinjiang to become the guardian of a Central Plains person who cannot be in Xinjiang. First of all, Xinjiang and the Central Plains are too far apart for guardianship.

In the case of a martial artist, you could call someone a guardian if they supported you with elixirs and taught you martial arts, but Baek Riyun is none other than the legitimate son of the Baekri Family, called the Greatest Family Under Heaven. It meant he had no shortage of martial arts to learn and consumed elixirs to the point of being sick of them.

“I’ve never heard such a story from the Gate Master either.”

“You wouldn’t have.”

At Seomooncheok’s appearance, showing suspicious eyes while asking, Jeokyeol nodded with a bitter smile. It wasn’t strange.

“Do you know the name of your Gate Master’s mother?”

“……I saw it written as Yeonbi on the memorial tablet.”

“You would have. But that’s not her real name. Her real name is Gongsun Yeonbi.”

“Gongsun……?”

Seomooncheok tilted his head, having no memory of seeing such a family name in the list of renowned families. But Jeokyeol’s words didn’t end.

“Not as much as the Central Plains, but our Cult has quite a few people too. Because the concept of family has become blurred in our Cult, we rarely distinguish which family someone is from, but due to the large population, there are about five families that have maintained their lineage from long ago.”

“…….”

“These five families continuously produce talented people and occupy most of the Cult’s core. And among them, the most outstanding family is the Gongsun Family.”

“…….”

“This Gongsun clan inherited the surname of the first Saintess, the bloodline of the Saintess. Young Master…… your Gate Master’s mother was someone who was to become the next Saintess.”

“……!”

At the truth suddenly confronted, Seomooncheok’s eyes widened. Because if that was true, it meant Baek Riyun was literally the direct bloodline of the family standing at the peak of the Demonic Cult.

“Forty years ago, in our Cult, the previous Saintess received the decree of the end of her heavenly mandate.”

“…….”

“At that time, the warmongers were gaining power in the Cult. The pressure on the Saintess, the leader of the peace faction, grew stronger day by day. If only she permitted it, everyone was clamoring that they would immediately commence the march to the Central Plains.”

That history of struggle with no end in sight. And the future of war where even one step ahead was unknowable.

The Divine Cult members, tired of the long fight, unanimously raised their voices. That they must strike down the Central Plains people who repaid grace with enmity. Even if only destruction remained at the end of that path, they must burn this moment.

“At that time, my charge…… Miss Yeonbi escaped from the Cult. With my help.”

“…….”

“The restriction that Divine Cult members cannot stay long on Central Plains soil unless they are of Gongsun Family blood cannot be lifted. And Miss was the only direct line of the Gongsun Family left.”

If there had been others, those advocating war would have forced them to lift the restriction. And then the Cult and the Central Plains Martial World would have collided.

“If I’ve said this much, you should understand why I’m explaining all this to you in such detail.”

“……Because Baek Risan, that girl, is one of the few remaining Saintess bloodlines.”

“It’s a bit more complicated than that, but well, yes.”

Jeokyeol, who let out a chuckle, continued speaking.

“I’ll pass on the eldest young master since I’ve never met him either…… In the case of Young Master Un, it’s relatively okay. Though he resembles Miss Yeonbi, he’s male, so that presence remains to some degree, and with forty years having passed, there won’t be many who can recognize him.”

“…….”

I wasn’t certain myself until I talked with him. Saying so, Jeokyeol, who shook her head, shrugged her shoulders.

“But the youngest young lady…… Baek Risan is a different story. That child is the spitting image of her mother. Anyone who remembers Miss Yeonbi’s old appearance will definitely recognize her as her blood.”

“That means.”

“The current situation is the worst situation.”

The sword mark that didn’t seem to belong to a monster, appearing in the direction where Baek Risan seemed to have headed. The Great Desert, a place where almost no one exists except Demonic Cult members.

The moment someone recognizes her, Baek Risan will be dragged straight to the Cult’s main mountain. Perhaps she’s already being dragged there.

“We must act before it’s too late. To do that, I need to know why you’re here.”

“…….”

“Why are you here?”

At Jeokyeol’s sharp and cold gaze, Seomooncheok, seeing Seohwa and Wangpal who hadn’t yet regained consciousness, let out a deep sigh. And.

“If I explain, it’ll be long but…….”

Seomooncheok, having made his decision, quietly opened his mouth.

“We were teleported here by a spy of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”

“……A spy from the Cult? What spy?”

“I don’t know exactly, but it’s probably the work of Cheonbangja Seogwang. A master of formations.”

“Seogwang?”

“Yes.”

“Who’s that?”

“……Pardon?”