Chapter 161: Demon Expulsion Unit
Myeongjeon was the first to react to my words.
“Pardon? Martial Uncle Mujin, what did you just say?”
“I said Kunlun will participate in the Demon Expulsion Unit.”
He stared at me blankly.
“Are you... serious?”
“I am.”
"..."
Myeongjeon looked utterly speechless.
Jin Gwangung slammed his liquor bottle against the floor and glared at me.
“You damned brat! What the hell are you saying? You're telling us to cooperate with the Righteous Alliance bastards who are using your death for their own gain?”
“I'm not saying we should cooperate.”
“Then what the hell are you saying? What exactly are you planning?”
Jin Gwangung's eyebrow twitched.
He looked ready to unleash a torrent of curses when—
“Elder Jin. Why don't we hear Mujin out first?”
Sect Leader Cheon Gwangcheon's calm voice echoed through the Abandoned Martial Hall.
Jin Gwangung turned toward him.
“Sect Leader, but—”
“There's no need to rush.”
Cheon Gwangcheon continued evenly.
“We can judge after hearing the entire plan.”
“Tch....”
Jin Gwangung frowned.
Cheon Gwangcheon glanced toward me and gave a slight nod.
Unlike the others, he had already heard my plan at the Sect Leader's Palace, so he didn't look particularly shaken.
Jin Gwangung stared at the Sect Leader with obvious dissatisfaction for a moment.
Then, as though giving up, he looked back at me.
“Fine.”
He clicked his tongue.
“Let's hear it, then. Tell us what the hell you're thinking.”
Everyone's attention returned to me.
“What I'm saying is....”
I slowly explained what I had in mind.
Why Kunlun needed to participate in the Demon Expulsion Unit.
And the plan I intended to carry out from here.
“...That's what I'm thinking.”
When I finished, silence once again filled the Abandoned Martial Hall.
Jin Gwangung was the first to speak.
“Keh-heh-heh.”
He stroked his beard while chuckling.
“That's one hell of a crazy idea.”
His grin widened.
“But if we're going to flip over the board the Righteous Alliance prepared, a little madness is worth it.”
Myeongjeon blinked.
“Still... isn't it too dangerous?”
Hyeongwon nodded in agreement beside him.
“Yeah.”
His expression was grave.
“One mistake and the entire Kunlun Sect could be put in danger.”
Yu Seola spoke then.
“It is dangerous.”
Her voice remained calm.
“But right now, it's also the only move available to us.”
She continued,
“If Moyong Seong really tried to kill Senior Brother Mujin, then the Righteous Alliance is likely behind it.”
Her eyes sharpened.
“If we're going to stand against the Righteous Alliance, we'll have to accept that much danger.”
Jin Gwangung smirked.
“Not bad.”
He glanced toward Hyeongwon and Myeongjeon.
“You're far more of a man than those two useless bastards trembling at the name of the Righteous Alliance.”
Yu Seola lowered her head slightly, embarrassed.
Hyeongwon immediately bristled.
“W-Who's trembling?”
He glared.
“I only said we should be cautious. I never said I opposed the plan.”
Myeongjeon reacted just as quickly.
“T-That's right! I wasn't scared either!”
His voice rose.
“The Righteous Alliance is nothing special!”
Jin Gwangung's mouth curled upward.
“Oh?”
He looked between them.
“Then that means all of you agree with Mujin's plan?”
Hyeongwon and Myeongjeon glanced at each other.
After a brief hesitation...
they reluctantly nodded.
Jin Gwangung then turned toward Cheon Gwangcheon.
“Then what does the Sect Leader intend to do?”
Rather than answer him directly...
Cheon Gwangcheon looked at me.
“Mujin.”
His expression was serious.
“Can you truly do this?”
I met his gaze directly.
“Yes.”
My answer was firm.
“I will make it work.”
Cheon Gwangcheon studied my eyes for a long moment.
Then slowly spoke.
“Very well.”
He nodded.
“Kunlun will stand with you.”
I bowed.
“Thank you, Sect Leader.”
And silently made a promise to myself.
I'll turn this whole board upside down properly.
If the Righteous Alliance had been using my death to build the stage however they pleased...
then this time...
I would make sure they experienced the exact opposite.
Several days after Mujin's firm decision...
an official notice from the Righteous Alliance spread across the martial world.
Its contents were exactly what the Alliance messengers had told Sect Leader Cheon Gwangcheon.
The Demon Expulsion Unit.
A new organization created to suppress the Demonic Cult's movements and root out cult forces said to be hiding throughout the martial world.
In the name of the greater cause of conquering the Demonic Cult...
each sect was requested to send promising young martial artists to join the Demon Expulsion Unit.
And surprisingly...
many sects welcomed the Righteous Alliance's demand.
The Demon Expulsion Unit was an organization directly backed by the Righteous Alliance.
To many martial artists...
joining it didn't feel like an unreasonable demand.
It felt like an opportunity.
To them, the Demon Expulsion Unit was not merely a force formed to conquer the Demonic Cult.
It was a new stage upon which one could gain fame and influence in the martial world.
The sects also saw it as a chance to strengthen their connections to the Righteous Alliance through their younger disciples.
Personal ambition.
Sect prestige.
Countless young martial artists carrying all kinds of desires began moving.
Toward Luoyang...
where the Righteous Alliance was located.
Luoyang.
The central city of the martial world, where the Righteous Alliance had established its headquarters.
Even under normal circumstances, the streets overflowed with martial artists.
But recently...
the number had become overwhelming.
Young Taoists with their hair tied high.
Young monks in Buddhist robes.
Heirs of great families wearing elaborate silk martial uniforms.
And even young martial artists from smaller sects dressed in humble clothing.
Every street was packed with people carrying swords and sabers.
The inns of Luoyang had filled up long ago.
Inside restaurants and throughout the marketplaces...
every conversation seemed to revolve around the Demon Expulsion Unit.
“I heard Shaolin sent people too.”
“Wudang did as well, didn't they?”
“Mount Hua, Kongtong, and Zhongnan are all participating too.”
“If this Demon Expulsion Unit properly establishes itself, the rankings among the younger generation might completely change.”
And today was an especially important day for the young martial artists gathered in Luoyang.
In roughly one sijin...
the Righteous Alliance would officially announce the founding of the Demon Expulsion Unit.
The Grand Training Ground of the Righteous Alliance was already packed with martial artists.
A high platform had been erected at the center.
Behind it...
countless banners fluttered in the wind.
Blue banners representing the Righteous Alliance and the newly established Demon Expulsion Unit.
Beside them stood the banners of the Nine Great Sects and One Union, the Five Great Families, and the other major forces of the righteous martial world.
The young martial artists filling the Grand Training Ground looked up at the banners with excited faces.
Some dreamed of advancement.
Others imagined earning great fame.
Some truly carried the greater cause of eradicating the Demonic Cult within their hearts.
And far above all of them...
someone else looked down on the crowd with arrogant eyes.
To the north of the Righteous Alliance's Grand Training Ground stood the Martial Observation Pavilion.
It was a tall pavilion overlooking the entire training ground.
Only the highest-ranking members of the Righteous Alliance were allowed to enter.
A place reserved exclusively for the chosen.
A young martial artist stood at its railing.
He wore an elegant blue martial robe embroidered with ornate patterns.
The man was—
Moyong Seong.
He looked down below and smiled faintly.
“Quite a crowd.”
One of the Righteous Alliance subordinates standing behind him bowed.
“Yes, Young Master. Far more martial artists have gathered than we initially expected.”
“Naturally.”
An arrogant smile appeared on Moyong Seong's face.
“This is an organization founded directly by the Righteous Alliance.”
His eyes moved across the Grand Training Ground.
“Anyone with even a little sense would know they couldn't afford to stay away.”
His gaze swept over the promising young martial artists gathered below.
Soon...
they would all be bound beneath one name.
The Demon Expulsion Unit.
And the person who would lead that unit would be none other than himself.
Moyong Seong.
It hadn't been officially announced yet...
but internally, the decision had already been made.
The son of Alliance Leader Moyong Cheonhwi.
The man standing at the highest point among the younger generation.
Heavenly Origin Star Moyong Seong.
Who could possibly be more suitable to lead the young martial artists of the righteous faction?
This is where it begins.
Moyong Seong spoke inwardly.
The great undertaking I've dreamed of for so long.
And this will be the first stepping stone toward it....
Desire gleamed in his eyes as he surveyed the Grand Training Ground.
Then—
Huh?
His gaze suddenly stopped.
It was focused near the platform at the front of the training ground.
Among all the colorful banners fluttering there...
a single white banner stood alone at the very center of the platform.
It was unlike anything he normally saw.
That only made it stand out more.
“What's that?”
The subordinate followed his gaze.
Then answered slowly.
“It was erected at Kunlun Sect's request.”
Moyong Seong's eyes narrowed.
“Kunlun's request?”
The subordinate answered cautiously.
“Before agreeing to participate in the Demon Expulsion Unit, Kunlun requested an opportunity to honor Kunlun's Young Hero.”
Moyong Seong's expression relaxed.
“Ah.”
He nodded as though remembering.
“That.”
Right. There was something like that.
When Kunlun agreed to join the Demon Expulsion Unit...
they had also requested permission to commemorate the deceased Han Mujin.
From the Righteous Alliance's perspective...
there was no reason to refuse.
Kunlun had lost its greatest young talent to the Demonic Cult.
Now it would use that disciple's name as a reason to support the Demon Expulsion Unit.
And the Righteous Alliance would publicly honor the fallen victim on the very day the unit was founded.
Could there be a better picture than that?
One corner of Moyong Seong's mouth rose.
Han Mujin.
He repeated the name inwardly.
While alive...
the name had annoyed him quite a bit.
That lowborn bastard who had supposedly inherited the martial path of True Immortal Cheongun.
For a brief time...
the title Kunlun's Young Hero had even been mentioned alongside Moyong Seong's own title, Heavenly Origin Star.
The insolent bastard didn't know his place.
When people spoke of the future of the righteous martial world...
Moyong Seong believed his name alone should have been enough.
That was why Han Mujin had always irritated him.
Even without his father Moyong Cheonhwi's orders...
he had already intended to deal with Han Mujin eventually.
Well, in the end, he was just an idiot who died.
A cold smile twisted Moyong Seong's lips.
Han Mujin.
You finally became useful after dying.
After all...
his death had allowed them to establish the grand justification of conquering the Demonic Cult.
Moyong Seong continued smiling in satisfaction for some time.
Then the subordinate behind him spoke carefully.
“Young Master, you should head down now.”
Moyong Seong glanced back.
“Why?”
“The founding ceremony of the Demon Expulsion Unit will begin shortly.”
Moyong Seong nodded.
“Is it already that time?”
A faint smile remained on his face.
“Very well. Let's go.”
He turned and began walking toward the stairs leading down.
Today...
the Demon Expulsion Unit would finally be born.
And the one standing at its center will be me.
Moyong Seong walked on without a single trace of doubt in his heart.
Completely unaware...
of the future waiting for him.
