Chapter 137: Before the Storm (1)
Chapter 137: Before the Storm (1)
“What do you mean, fake?”
When he was asked that, Woon-seong snorted.
“I heard that you took, burned, and destroyed all the nearby ships because you were afraid that our Cult would use them. Is that what a proper sect would do?”
Woon-seong’s words were not spoken harshly.
But frostiness, like the northern wind, seemed to blow through the air.
Several sect members bowed their heads at his words, as if they were reproaching themselves.
Woon-seong looked at them and continued to say, “A hero is someone who does what everyone else is wishing someone else will do, even if it is difficult. Only those who walk down that road can be called a saint.”
Someone who walked the narrow road.
That was something Nok Yu-on had told Woon-seong.
A hero’s path was narrow, steep and dangerous.
So no one wished to walk it.
However, there were those who chose that path, knowing it would be lonely and difficult.
Those were saints and heroes.
Nok Yu-on, Woon-seong’s master, was such a person.
Even though he knew the end, he walked confidently towards death.
Compared to him, the martial artists of the Qinghai Alliance could not be considered as saints.
No, they couldn’t even be considered Orthodox.
Woon-seong sneered, “In that sense, you are not Orthodox.”
“Khh, khh. ”
Yeon Seong bit his lip. In his mind, he wanted to rush out there and cut off the head of the one talking.
But he could not.
He could tell the difference between himself and the Heavenly Demon without fighting.
However, he shouted, “What the hell does that have to do with anything!?”
Woon-seong glared at Yeon Seong.
Without realizing it, Yeon Seong took a step back.
What kind of gaze…
Woon-seong eyes flashed with gold and rippled with energy. Others may not know, but Intimidation Qi covered Qinghai Lake.
Of course, the concentration was not very high, but it covered the entire Qinghai fleet.
But even with minimum energy, it could exert great power over the situation. After all, it was difficult to make rational judgments when your mind was clouded with fear.
The Intimidation Qi dug into his heart and Yeon Seong was terrified.
While Yeon Seong was terrified of Woon-seong’s eyes, Woon-seong the image of Jwa Do-gyul in Yeon Seong.
A man who lacked abilities, but liked to stand in front of people and pretend to be smart.
A man who stole from those lesser than himself and took advantage of others.
A man who despised peacemakers and orthodox rule-followers.
He’s just like Jwa Do-gyul.
Woon-seong reached out a finger, still looking at Yeon Seong.
Yeon Seong felt like Woon-seong was pointing to himself. “I’ll ask.”
Rawr! Rawr!
Woon-seong’s energy spread through the area, amplifying his voice. It was like thunder rolling across the entire Qinghai Lake.
It was so loud that even the civilians living near Qinghai Lake felt like the sky was ringing.
“Huhu.”
The pressure from the voice made Yeon Seong sound a little insane.
Woon-seong continued to speak, not caring about Yeon Soung.
“Why should I answer your questions?”
Rawr! Rawr!
It was extremely arrogant. However, Yeon Seong could not refute.
He was the Heavenly Demon.
The enemy had no reason to explain anything to him. It was clear that there was something going on between the Qinghai Alliance and the Cult of the Heavenly Demon.
“It is hard to say that the rest of the Alliance is innocent!”
Yeon Seong cried out, like a final plea.
At that moment, light flashed from Woon-seong’s fingers.
Bang!
There was a loud explosion.
There was a blast of white light.
Boom!
It contained tremendous power, as it was one of the demonic arts of a Demonic King!
“Cough!”
Even though it was a single explosion, Yeon Seong felt like his insides were shattered.
“Cough.”
The pain was not an illusion
After coughing up blood, pieces of his innards started coming out.
“W-what……. ”
He looked at the viscera mixed with his own blood, his eyes trembling.
There was no one who could live wish shattered veins and mangled internal organs.
Yeon Seong collapsed, eyes filled with disbelief.
The eyes of the other sect members shuddered as they watched him fall like that.
Woon-seong then pointed at the rest of them.
He seemed to be asking who was next.
“If you lived like that, you should at least take responsibility.”
At Woon-seong’s words, they bowed their heads further. What were they supposed to say?
Woon-seong looked down at them. According to what the Strategist said, some of them had been against taking the fishermen’s boats. Woon-seong was going to provoke them.
“Are you not upset that I am blaming you for what you didn’t do?”
At his words, some of them raised their heads.
It was hard to understand what Woon-seong was getting at.
Woon-seong only smiled at them.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” one of the sect leaders asked.
Looking at the ships lined up around him, Woon-seong said, “I am returning the ships you took from the fishermen and merchants back to their hands. It would be terrible to just leave so many ships floating in Qinghai Lake.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
Woon-seong meant what he said.
In fact, he had already talked this over with Sang Gwan-chuk.
As soon as this battle was over, even the boats prepared by the demonic practitioners would be given to the fishermen.
Of course, this was not done because Woon-seong was some hero.
It was an act to gain public sentiment, so to better spread the religious doctrines of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon.
Religion was about faith, about moving the mind and heart. It was better spread through favor than military action.
The hearts of the people were the will of Heaven.
Even if the Demonic Cult stepped foot in Qinghai, it would be useless if the religious doctrine failed to spread.
All calculations were meticulous.
However, Woon-seong’s actions looked different to those in Qinghai.
Especially to those who had protested about taking the boats in the first place.
Regardless of Woon-seong’s intentions, his actions had forced them to think differently.
Is that the demonic?
Is it an act?
Hmn.
Even the demonic had their own stories.
I thought that it was all bullshit the demonic did to defend themselves, but perhaps it wasn’t all nonsense.
So he put his sword down.
Clunk.
“If the words of the Heavenly Demon are true, then this one will surrender.”
That man was only the first.
Here and there, several others began to drop their weapons.
Clang.
Thunk.
“The same is true of this one.”
“I will surrender too, Lord.”
As the sect leaders dropped their swords, so did the sect members under their command.
“Huh, huh?”
Those who were still holding their swords began to notice.
Even if you wanted to shout out “fight”, it had become a situation where that could not be shouted.
The initiative was already in the hands of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon.
The Qinghai Alliance’s people, who survived because of such an atmosphere, surrendered.
A white flag appeared above the ships, signifying surrender.
Watching that, Woon-seong’s lips curled into a smile.
Qinghai Province was completely under the control of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon.
It had been a month and a day since the Cult of the Heavenly Demon advanced into Zhongyuan.
Qinghai had already fallen.
The speed of this war was unprecedented.
* * *
Woon-seong kept his word.
Immediately after the battle in Qinghai Lake, the group began to distribute the boats to the nearby fishermen and merchants.
“How can I thank you for this…”
“I thought I was going to starve to death…”
“Thank you. Thank you very much.”
The fishermen and merchants, whose livelihoods depended on boating in Qinghai Lake, bowed and thanked them.
The Demonic Captain, who was handing out the boats, told them, “Do not thank me, thank the God of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon.”
“Yes?”
The civilians tilted their heads.
Looking at the direction of Woon-seong’s barracks amongst the Demonic Army’s camp, the Demonic Captain murmured, “I am not the one who ordered the boats to be distributed, it was the Cult Leader.”
At the man’s words, an old woman raised her food in that direction.
“If the Cult Leader had not been here, this one would have starved to death.”
The old woman was just the beginning.
An elderly man, a father with a child, a middle-aged couple hand in hand, all came out to bow.
Some even donated to the Cult.
“It is a small sum compared to the price of one ship, but I wish to make a donation.”Of course, the Cult did not stop them. donating. It was a small amount of money, but their intention was what was important.
As the situation continued, the number of civilians in the area who admired the Cult increased.
As he did in Qaidam Basin, Woon-seong exempted the region from various taxes for a period of time, including protection tazes.
Those who were thankful about the reign of the Demonic Cult were not just those who received ships.
Soon, there were tales praising the Demonic Cult throughout Qinghai.
When Woon-seong heard the news, he nodded with a satisfied expression.
“It is proceeding as planned.”
Like he said, this plan had all been designed by Sang Gwan-chuk. It was Sang Gwan-chuk who understood that the essence of religion was the heart, not Hyuk Woon-seong.
“If it wasn’t for the Strategist, I wouldn’t have so much support.”
At Woon-seong’s praise, Sang Gwan-chuk lowered his head slightly. He then turned the ball back to Woon-seong, “It is genuine support. It’s all thanks to your generosity.”
Of course, that was not enough for Woon-seong.
He turned to look at the map calmly.
Sang Gwan-chuk also glanced down at the map.
On the map, the area corresponding to Qinghai was now completely covered in the colors of the Demonic Cult.
Wherever they went in Qinghai Province, it was not difficult to find the flags of the Heavenly Demon.
Woon-seong continued to stare at the map, looking slightly north.
Gansu.
Beyond the Jade Gate, the Western Army would be on standby. And if the allies in Qinghai Province advanced at the same time, they would be able to attack Gansu from both sides.
Woon-seong wasn’t sure why the Martial Alliance’s response had been so slow, but if it continued like this, it wouldn’t take long to capture Gansu Province.
Gansu…
Woon-seong’s eyes as he looked at Gansu shone with significance.