48. I Think I Know Who It Is
The silence was short-lived. Suddenly, a burst of laughter shattered the stillness.
"Haha, come on now. Has our Nine-Brain Elder finally lost his mind?"
"......"
"You're telling me the Great Sage Equal to Heaven has shown up?"
The other man laughed so hard he clutched his stomach and rolled on the floor.
Nine-Brain Elder fixed him with a deep, steady gaze and spoke.
"White-Eyed Demon Lord, do I look like someone who spins lies?"
White-Eyed Demon Lord stopped laughing and grew serious.
"No, you don't. You're not a liar. But you don't always tell the whole truth, do you?"
"......"
"The Great Sage Equal to Heaven, you say? Honestly, I can't believe it. The King always mentioned that name with a strange look in his eyes. He used to be so cold-blooded, you know."
White-Eyed Demon Lord closed his eyes, as if reminiscing.
"But think about it. Saying a golden monkey, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven Sun Wukong, carrying the Ruyi Jingu Bang and riding the Nimbus Cloud, might show up and smash his head in—is that normal?"
Nine-Brain Elder raised his voice.
"Are you doubting the King right now?"
"No, not at all. There's no one scarier or greater than the King. He's done a lot for us. But sometimes, don't you think he gets a little... paranoid? After all, he's practiced terrifying demonic arts for a long time..."
"You're saying he's gone mad?"
Even White-Eyed Demon Lord, who had been speaking so glibly, turned pale at that.
"Hey! I never said that. I'm just saying, maybe he's gotten a little too obsessed with his martial arts and an inner demon has taken root."
"Inner demon?"
"You know as well as I do. Inner demons can take many forms."
"So the inner demon conjured up the illusion of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven?"
"The King has no rivals. He's so strong that his inner demon would appear as an unbeatable opponent. He sees the mythical Great Sage Equal to Heaven as his adversary."
It sounded plausible. But to put it bluntly, calling it an inner demon was just a polite way of saying he’d gone mad. Nine-Brain Elder secretly agreed.
He remembered how the King, in a fit of paranoia, would shout for everyone to hide and hold their breath if Sun Wukong ever appeared.
White-Eyed Demon Lord smirked.
"Then tell me, Elder. Have you been possessed by an inner demon too? Why are you saying the Great Sage Equal to Heaven has appeared?"
"......"
Nine-Brain Elder was at a loss for words.
'Someone in the middle of the street claiming to be Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven...'
Normally, he would have dismissed it as the ranting of a madman. But not now.
He had witnessed overwhelming power on Honam Island. Anyone who could crush Honam Island with such force and then call himself the Great Sage Equal to Heaven—well, that was no coincidence.
"So that's it. You're just trying to shift the blame for this mess onto someone else, aren't you?"
"Shift the blame? What do you take me for?"
"Isn't it obvious? The Elder, famous for having nine brains, is making up stories about the Great Sage Equal to Heaven to cover up his own mistakes."
Nine-Brain Elder closed his mouth, looking defeated. This operation was a failure. It was his responsibility. Wasn't he just racking his brains for a way to dodge the blame, even if it meant using a fake Great Sage Equal to Heaven?
He glared at White-Eyed Demon Lord, embarrassed.
White-Eyed Demon Lord snorted.
"Hmph. While you lot have been crawling all over the place just to find a single sword fragment, we've been solidifying our base in Shandong, along with the Hao Sect and the Hwangbo Clan. So what if we move into Anhui? It's not like anyone was managing Anhui anyway."
"That's because the Namgung Clan was there!"
Nine-Brain Elder shouted harshly. White-Eyed Demon Lord smirked.
"And who struck first against the Namgung Clan? That was your side. Once you make a move, it's too late to back out. Now you have to deal with it. They've probably found some traces of us by now. We need to erase the Namgung before they can act."
"You think erasing the Namgung Clan will be that easy? Even the Evil Faction Alliance couldn't do it—they got crushed!"
"That was during the Namgung Clan's golden age. Now, with the Sword God gone, they're a shadow of their former selves. They're even outcasts among the righteous sects. What's the problem?"
Nine-Brain Elder fell silent.
He saw through White-Eyed Demon Lord's scheme. While he was busy searching for the Seven Star Sword Fragment, White-Eyed Demon Lord planned to extend his territory from Shandong all the way to Anhui.
If that happened, the power gap would become insurmountable.
But it wouldn't be that easy.
"Hmph. The Namgung Clan is still the Namgung Clan. You think a little trick from the Shandong Seven Shadows will bring them down?"
"Oh, I don't plan to attack them directly. That would get me killed for sure. I'm not that crazy. I'll just sow discord among the Five Great Families and slowly bleed them dry."
"Don't underestimate the Namgung Clan. Before that happens, we'll track you and the Dosan Sect down and stab you in the back."
White-Eyed Demon Lord burst out laughing.
"Don't worry about me. I've been operating in Shandong for decades. You think I'll get caught?"
He sounded supremely confident.
But that confidence lasted only a moment.
A panicked voice broke through.
"Demon Lord, we've got a problem! The Shandong Seven Shadows are in danger!"
A man appeared, drenched in sweat.
White-Eyed Demon Lord's face hardened.
This man was the watcher and contact for the Shandong Seven Shadows, and also a lackey embedded in the Hao Sect and Hwangbo Clan.
Behind him, Nine-Brain Elder sneered.
"Looks like you've been caught already, White-Eyed Demon Lord."
White-Eyed Demon Lord demanded roughly, "What happened? Who's threatening the Shandong Seven Shadows?"
"Well... urk!"
The man never finished his sentence. Suddenly, the tip of a sword burst through his throat. Blood splattered across White-Eyed Demon Lord's face.
Behind the collapsing man stood Muhwa, sword still pointed coldly forward.
Blood trickled down the blade.
White-Eyed Demon Lord bit his lip when he saw Muhwa's Namgung Clan uniform.
"So, it's the Namgung Clan."
"I'm also the reaper who's come to claim your head."
"Hmph. You think the Namgung Clan is still what it used to be without the Sword God?"
He snorted, but inwardly, he was rattled.
'The Heart-Seizing Technique of the Shandong Seven Shadows—maybe a few from the Namgung Clan could have noticed it.'
He had planned to pin the blame on the Hwangbo Clan, just as he had done before.
Their relationship was never that good, and they often fought over the top seat among the Five Great Families.
If suspicion fell on the Shandong Seven Shadows, the Hwangbo Clan would naturally be the first suspect.
White-Eyed Demon Lord was no fool. He never started anything without careful consideration. He understood the Namgung Clan's threat level and had thoroughly investigated the situation.
But this felt a little off for the Namgung Clan's usual style.
'Someone else is involved.'
That thought brought back what Nine-Brain Elder had said earlier.
'He mentioned a Retainer.'
For some reason, the name Great Sage Equal to Heaven, which he'd laughed off just moments ago, now weighed heavily on him.
Nine-Brain Elder sent a Transmission of Sound.
-If the Namgung Clan has caught on, it's best to pull out. That woman is the Law Enforcement Hall Leader. She wields considerable influence even within the Namgung Clan.
Nine-Brain Elder was a wise man.
He was right. With the Namgung Clan this close, there were only two options.
Either withdraw completely and hide, or eliminate the Namgung Clan.
'No, there's one more.'
White-Eyed Demon Lord gestured.
Six martial artists appeared around him like shadows.
"If you came alone, then all I have to do is kill you."
His voice rang out, cold and merciless.
If the Namgung Clan truly suspected them, they wouldn't have sent just one person.
Normally, the elders would have stormed in, swords drawn, like berserkers.
Nine-Brain Elder clicked his tongue.
-Tsk, what if the Namgung Clan sends reinforcements during the fight?
-Doesn't matter. I can't let her live.
-Do as you wish. Since the Dosan Sect's tail has been caught, the Great Corpse Sect will withdraw here and return to Hubei.
He was making it clear he’d be pulling out first.
-Good riddance. Get lost from Anhui Province. I'll handle things here.
-Tsk, that greed of yours will be your downfall one day.
White-Eyed Demon Lord sneered. Nine-Brain Elder might be called a genius with nine brains, but to him, he was just a coward.
Always overthinking, always hesitating, never getting anything done.
That's why he was still wasting his time chasing after a mere sword fragment.
Sensing Nine-Brain Elder's presence vanish behind him, White-Eyed Demon Lord turned to Muhwa and said coldly,
"If I kill you here, the Namgung Clan will never know our faces."
Even if he withdrew and hid, he had to eliminate any witnesses.
The Shandong Seven Shadows were under a Sealing Technique, so even if they were captured, it wouldn't be a problem.
Losing such useful tools was a shame, but it couldn't be helped. That woman, who had seen both White-Eyed Demon Lord and Nine-Brain Elder's faces, had to die.
Cha-Cha-Cha Spear.
All six drew their swords at once. Muhwa bit her lip.
'To think these rats are crawling around right at the Namgung Clan's doorstep.'
Muhwa quickly scanned the martial artists.
'Hwangbo Clan's disciples... Has the Hwangbo family gone mad?'
Nine-Brain Elder had just fled, but she couldn't chase after him.
The six men surrounding her were exuding a deadly aura.
Muhwa steadied her breath and raised her sword.
"Leave no survivors."
The moment White-Eyed Demon Lord's ruthless order fell, one of the martial artists swung his sword at her, aiming for her right side. The attack was fierce—enough to make even a top-tier martial artist hesitate.
Muhwa stepped forward with her left foot, twisting her waist left to dodge. Instantly, she snapped her waist back, using the momentum to drive her sword straight into the attacker's face. The blade plunged deep, and the man collapsed without a sound.
Before the sword had even left his face, another attacker lunged from behind. Attacking while someone else was engaged—dirty, but effective.
But what they hadn't expected was just how fast Muhwa was. She yanked her sword free, bent forward at a right angle, and the attacker's blade sliced through empty air.
In the same motion, Muhwa stomped down on the man's foot with her heel. With her inner strength behind it, bones shattered with a crunch. Straightening up, she slashed upward at the next attacker, drawing a crimson line from groin to forehead.
Another man, panicked, let out a scream and swung his sword horizontally. It was a clean cut, but nothing special—no real technique behind it.
Clang!
Muhwa easily blocked the attack, slid her blade along his, spun around, and sliced through his wrist. Blood spurted everywhere.
With four down in an instant, the remaining two hesitated and backed away, fear etched on their faces.
Muhwa glared at them coldly.
"You really thought you could wipe out the Namgung Clan?"
* * *
"Why? Watching a fight is fun."
Owl Demon watched as Sun Wukong grinned at him.
After rushing here like a madman, Sun Wukong now lounged on a tree branch, watching the fight as if he were at a festival.
If he had snacks, he’d probably be throwing a party up there.
Since spending time near Muhwa at Sun Wukong’s request, Owl Demon had grown attached to her.
Naturally—she always shared her snacks.
"You've gotten a bit chubby, but you still fly well, huh?"
"Then go after that guy over there, the one with the lump by his nose."
"I'll watch the fight a bit longer."
Sun Wukong chuckled. Owl Demon was probably worried about Muhwa.
Right now, Muhwa was completely overwhelming the six men. The real problem was the man with the bulging eyes in the back. As an Earth God, Owl Demon could instinctively sense powerful humans.
Sun Wukong patted Owl Demon gently.
"Don't worry. If things get dangerous, I'll step in."
"Don't worry about that either."
Owl Demon tilted his head for a moment, then took off in pursuit.
Sun Wukong turned his gaze back to Muhwa's fight. He hadn't planned to just sit back and watch, but after seeing Muhwa's movements...
"I think I know who it is."