Chapter 109. A Blessing In Disguise (1)

“Twisted Melody.”

“Yes.”

Sweat dripped down Twisted Melody’s body like a waterfall.

"Which of the moles were deployed for the Seven Swords War?"

"Those of the Kunlun, Mount Tai, Mount Song, and Mount Heng Sects. Additionally, all the moles we had who have infiltrated the Martial Alliance and the Evil Valley. Twenty for the Martial Alliance and thirty-two for the Evil Valley. In total, fifty-two."

“Okay. Then what happened to them?”

“... They were all killed by an unknown expert.”

“What did you do after that?”

"We deployed a regiment to the plateau to investigate on Blessed Existence's orders."

"And what happened then?"

"... we arrived two days before the Seven Swords War began. We investigated but found no trace of the moles. By the time we were done, the war had already ended."

"Hoho, that's right, isn't it."

The Dark Heavens Association Leader laughed coldly, his jaw clenched.

Twisted Melody flinched at the sound.

"Twisted Melody, you could have at least taken the Blood Muscle and Tendon Classic and prevented it from getting burned. To think you ended up doing nothing."

"Please kill me for my ineptitude!"

Thud!

Twisted Melody slammed his forehead into the ground.

“No.”

The Dark Heavens Association Leader shook his head. Only his eyes were visible in the deep, suffocating darkness.

"You still have a lot of work to do, Twisted Melody. Especially since you're someone that travels around a lot, aren't you? It'll be troublesome in the future if we were to lose such an excellent talent. There's no way I can kill you."

"It is not so. Please, kill this incompetent..."

"That's why I captured, tortured, and then killed your relative in your stead."

"...!"

Twisted Melody’s pupils trembled as he looked down at the floor.

"Is it not to your liking?"

"Of course it is! I am so deeply moved by the great generosity of the Dark Heavens Association Leader that I am at a loss for words!"

"What a relief."

The Dark Heavens Association Leader laughed in the darkness. His smile was closer to that of a demon than a human.

“Blessed Existence.”

“Yes!”

Blessed Existence, who was kneeling next to Twisted Melody, answered immediately.

“How’s your arm?”

While Blessed Existence had all of his limbs intact before, that wasn't the case anymore. Now missing his left arm, he was half-crippled.

"Thanks to how cleanly you severed it, I didn’t even bleed. It was done so perfectly that I didn’t need any healing. I don't even feel pain now. I, Blessed Existence, am so blessed by your consideration, Lord. Just as blessed as my name!"

Blessed Existence had been in charge of the Tomb of the Ominous Demon operation. When the Tomb of the Ominous Demon was flooded, he had been the one to bring out the Blood Muscle and Tendon Classic instead.

However, the Blood Muscle and Tendon Classic had also been burned, and the war that they had so ambitiously prepared for ended in a single day.

He had to take responsibility.

"Well, you're the brain of the Association, anyway. After much thought, I decided that as the brain, you don't have much use for your arm. That's why I severed it."

"I am truly grateful for your consideration!"

While some might think of him as crazy, Blessed Existence was actually genuinely grateful for the generosity of the Dark Heaven Association Leader.

To think that he was able to make up for his mistakes with just a single arm.

“Then let’s get to the point. Tell me what you think about Zhou Xuchuan.”

"While he doesn't lack ability, I think luck also played a great role."

“Luck?”

"Yes. By the time he met Zhou Xuchuan on top of the plateau, the Flower Scattering Palm was exhausted from dealing with most of the Demon Cult alone. On top of that, he underestimated Zhou Xuchuan due to his age. All of this, combined with various complex factors, led to his swift defeat."

"And?"

"Still, it's not an easy task to defeat one of the One Hundred Experts Under Heaven. Even with luck on one's side, you still need skill. Zhou Xuchuan definitely isn't an ordinary youngster. We'll need to be wary of him."

"The Evil Valley has the Phantom Bow Swordsman, the Martial Alliance has the Plum Blossom Order Sword... it seems that the

murim

has begun to sense the chaos, and talented youngsters are rising everywhere."

The Dark Heavens Association didn't allow anything to slip through the cracks, not even a mere sprout. This was especially true for a sprout from one of the prestigious forces like the Nine Sects and One Gang.

"Raise his kill ranking to the second level and keep an eye on him. If you have the chance, make sure he dies."

"He's a mere bastard who interfered with our Association's grand plan with his childish sense of justice. I will never let him go. He

will

die."

****

“When I first heard the news after killing that Demon Head Raging Fire Blood Demon[1], I honestly didn't understand what had happened,” Immortal Shang Ming said as he stroked his beard.

"Even if he had exhausted his stamina and qi, you defeated the Flower Scattering Palm in a one-on-one battle. That's a truly incredible feat."

"It isn't as impressive as you say. It was only possible because of luck," Zhou Xuchuan bowed and replied politely.

“Luck is also a skill. After all, it's impossible to defeat one of the One Hundred Experts Under Heaven through luck alone. Besides, no one would blink twice if you bragged about this, yet you remain this humble! The future of Mount Hua is bright.”

Even the Sect Master of the Kunlun Sect could never have imagined that Zhou Xuchuan would have accomplished such a thing.

"Given how well we get along, I’d love to talk more, but I’m not in a position to do so."

As the Sect Master, he couldn't leave the Kunlun Sect for long. A considerable amount of time had already passed since he began the investigation of the Tomb of the Ominous Demon.

Now that the Evil Valley and the Demon Cult had both withdrawn and the Seven Swords War officially ended, Immortal Shang Ming returned straight to the Kunlun Sect.

Thus, the Martial Alliance representative position regarding the Seven Swords War was left to Nangong Caiying.

"An order has come down from the alliance."

Nangong Caiying summoned Zhou Xuchuan and Tang Hui.

"Hefei, the Martial Alliance Headquarters, has issued a return order. Not only for me, but for you two as well."

"Do they want an explanation?" Tang Hui asked as if she had expected it.

"Yes. Neither Immortal Shang Ming nor I was privy to what actually happened to the Blood Muscle and Tendon Classic."

"Understood. We'll follow along."

It was something Zhou Xuchuan had expected before he began the battle. So, he decided to follow along without any complaints.

“Captain Zhou. What should we do?”

While the warriors of the Sichuan Tang Family were going to follow Tang Hui regardless of being asked, the Gold Will Sword Sect warriors were a little different.

“Go back and explain everything regarding the war to the Head Merchant.”

"Understood. Then, we'll see you later."

The Gold Will Sword Sect set off first and headed to Shandong, while the rest of the party, accompanied by Nangong Caiying, left for the Martial Alliance.

While Hefei wasn't far from Shanxi, they were all exhausted from the Seven Swords War and didn't want to walk on foot.

So, they went to find horses for their trip. However, since it wasn't urgent, they didn't rush and traveled leisurely instead.

"They said that the Plum Blossom Order Sword's skills were actually incredible... right??"

"It's true. I heard it directly from the Five Mountain Sword Sects Alliance disciples.”

Everywhere Zhou Xuchuan went, he had received unfavorable looks and was criticized for cowardly beating the Poison Phoenix through a wager and hiding under her skirt.

However, after his actions during the Seven Swords War and being given the Plum Blossom Order Sword title, all those looks changed.

"Then, I guess he must have defeated the Poison Phoenix fairly."

"Yeah, of course he did."

"Come to think of it, wasn't Great Hero Zhou also from the Lotus Pavilion? In the first place, only the talents of the Mount Hua Sect are chosen to join the Pavillion. Don't you think it was a bit strange that he was thought to be so weak? I always knew he would be strong."

"Didn't you say that the Plum Blossom Order Sword was a fool who didn't know anything and had a death wish when you heard he was participating?"

"A-ahem!"

The only forces returning to headquarters were the Nangong and Sichuan Tang Families.

The rest of the forces that had participated in the Seven Great Powers either stayed behind in the war zone to handle final matters or returned to their bases like the Kunlun Sect.

"Pfft!"

Zhou Xuchuan was a master. If he focused his hearing a little, he would be able to hear all the voices around him, no matter how softly they spoke.

Of course, he had been listening to all the talk about himself, catching every word. Since they all spoke so highly of him, a smile naturally appeared on his lips.

While he wasn't quite a hero yet, this praise was more than enough. He had never heard such outstanding evaluations in his previous life.

It felt even better that he was being recognized so highly, even at such a young age.

"Do you know how horrifying your face looks right now? It's so creepy that I have goosebumps on my arms."

Tang Hui clicked her tongue at the cheerful Zhou Xuchuan.

"It's natural to feel queasy when one's cousin is the one to buy land[2], how much more upsetting would it be when someone else becomes famous in war? It must be heartbreaking. Well, as the Great Hero, I guess I should let this go, right?”

Zhou Xuchuan couldn’t stop smiling.

"Do you seriously want to feel the pain of having your guts torn out?!"

I really shouldn't eat at the same table with this woman for a while!

[3]

After all, eating was something someone was supposed to do alone![4]

In the scary world of the

gangho murim

, who could easily be trusted?!

Especially within the Righteous Faction

murim

.

I never thought I'd live to see a day like this!

Whether it was friendly gazes or jealous and envious gazes, he had never received these sorts of stares in his previous life. Only the latter was something he had done to others several times.

He had only received insults or indifference in his previous life, which is why he had felt nothing when faced with the same before, but this was the first time he'd experienced such gazes on him.

Frankly speaking, it felt good.

Now, he could walk around with his chest puffed out and his nose held high.

"So, the Martial Alliance... I guess I'll see a friendly face, then."

"The Knowledge Dragon?”

“How did you know?”

Zhou Xuchuan was surprised.

"When I researched you. It was only a little research.”

“The Tang Family’s grudge really is...”

It was clear that she had investigated him in order to take revenge on her grudge.

“Come to think of it, you’ll be quite busy when you arrive at Martial Alliance, too.”

She was one of the Righteous Faction's greatest talents throughout the

murim,

one of the Five Dragons and Three Phoenixes. More importantly, she was the daughter of an Ancient Family.

It was natural that she would be busy with many exchanges.

While Tang Hui had a very venomous tongue, that didn't mean she didn't know etiquette. She was just always selective about whom she spoke to.

In fact, she had only ever spoken politely to the warriors of the Gold Will Sword Sect.

It was only when someone touched her pride or she met someone she didn't like that she released her venom and spat such sharp and sarcastic remarks.

"The Martial Alliance..." Tang Hui muttered, closing her eyes as if deep in thought.

Zhou Xuchuan looked at her, worried.

“Wait... she's not thinking about how she could put intestine-splitting poison in my food, is she?!!”

****

Hefei, the Martial Alliance.

The first thing that came into view was the magnificent main gate.

It wasn't the Martial Alliance headquarters for nothing. Its scale was magnificent.

Not only was its main gate impressive, but the walls lining the sides were also extraordinary. They were so long that their ends were nearly invisible.

Then, there was the line of people that stretched as long as the walls. Considering it was the heart of the Righteous Faction

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, there were quite a few visitors.

Originally, they would have had to wait in the long line. However, since they were returning to headquarters under official orders, there was no need.

Additionally, they were with Nangong's Tyrant Sword, the son of the Martial Alliance Leader, and the First Phoenix of the Five Dragons and Three Phoenixes. Naturally, they could ignore the line and go in directly.

"..."

Zhou Xuchuan shut his mouth as soon as he saw the main gate. He didn’t say anything and just looked around.

So, the Martial Alliance was like this before the war...

𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

This wasn’t his first time at the Martial Alliance.

He had visited it several times in his previous life. However, all of those times had been after the wars had started.

The first time he had visited the Martial Alliance was when there had been a brief period of peace after the Great War of Good and Evil ended.

In his memory, the Martial Alliance had already been completely destroyed during the Great War of Good and Evil.

Although it was said to have been half-restored by the end of the Era of War and Chaos, he had already been appointed one of the Five Elders of Mount Hua by then.

Since he was so busy rebuilding the Mount Hua Sect, there was no way he had the time to go to the Martial Alliance headquarters.

Peace...

He still couldn’t believe that the Seven Swords War had ended so easily. The Great War of Good and Evil should have immediately followed it.

I stopped it.

The Seven Swords War had been a turning point in Zhou Xuchuan's past life.

The future would change significantly depending on how this turning point ended.

One of the most critical events in the

murim's

history, the Great War of Good and Evil, followed closely behind.

However, that didn't happen. The Seven Swords War itself had ended in a single day.

No one knows how the future will change because of this one shift.

The original Seven Swords War alone should have had over ten thousand casualties. Many people should have been mobilized as the war raged on.

It was only natural since it was the combined casualties of the Martial Alliance, the Evil Valley, and the Demon Cult.

However, those who were supposed to die had survived. They would live on and influence the future.

What would happen in the future was now unpredictable.

1. Demon Head is the title given to those of the Demonic Path. It's the equivalent to Immortal in the Righteous Faction and the (Not yet revealed) of the Evil Faction. ☜

2. An idiom referring to the tinge of jealousy one feels when someone close to them is the one to succeed and not them. ☜

3. Idiom. Not eating at the same table means not spending time around someone. ☜

4. Eating is done alone. Eating with other people is a form of socializing rather than eating, which is why, in the olden days, you weren't supposed to talk when you ate, so you could focus on chewing and digesting. ☜