Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 158

When they arrived at Cheongeum Garden, the Four Mountains Fellows were deep in discussion, but they quickly stood and bowed their heads as Han Li entered. Han Li sat at the head of the table as they offered, and then he spoke, “What did Chief Wang say?” The four exchanged glances before the old man stood up. “As you may already know, if what he said is true, things are going to get complicated.” The old man began to speak, glancing at Han Li, but he couldn’t read any expression on his face. “Chief Wang revealed a lot of information about the Black Fiend Sect, but there wasn’t anything particularly useful. The most serious issue is that the Black Fiend Sect’s leader is unexpectedly in the Imperial City. Moreover, the current Emperor of Yue is just a puppet in his hands, so the Imperial Palace is now practically a den of the Black Fiend Sect. The palace’s chief eunuch, Lee Pa-woon, is said to be the sect leader currently in secluded training.” The old man’s face grew darker as he spoke. Although cultivators tend to look down on ordinary people, the ruler of the mortal world was a slightly different matter. Han Li, who had been listening with a blank expression, was also sighing inwardly. It wasn’t because he feared the imperial power, but because he knew that the current imperial family was jointly established by the Seven Great Immortal Sects. For this reason, each sect had an unwritten rule that their disciples were strictly forbidden from entering the imperial palace. The reason was that if one faction seized control of the imperial family, it would be disadvantageous to the other sects. For the past several hundred years, not a single disciple of the Seven Great Immortal Sects had set foot in the Yue Imperial City, and unless the imperial family did something terribly disrespectful, the cultivation world had not interfered in their affairs. The Black Fiend Sect had taken advantage of this gap to take over the imperial family! Even after hearing everything from Young Master So, he still hadn’t come to a concrete conclusion. If he broke the centuries-old tradition and rashly invaded the imperial palace, there was a possibility that he would be severely punished even after revealing the true nature of the Black Fiend Sect’s leader to the world. It wasn’t that there had never been a case where it was difficult to determine right from wrong. However, there were many cases where people were punished based on regulations without considering any circumstances or situations. He couldn’t afford to work hard and then get beaten up. However, it was unexpected that he had so easily grasped the identity of the Black Fiend Sect’s leader. This was all due to Han Li’s luck. No one, not even the Core Formation stage [a high level of cultivation] Dan masters, had ever seen the true face of the Black Fiend Sect’s leader. The two he had just captured were among the very few who knew his identity due to their special relationship with the leader. One was the leader’s cousin, whom he had once saved, and the other was the leader’s only disciple, who was greatly trusted. Ironically, it was because of their close relationship that they had exposed the leader’s identity. If they didn’t have a special relationship with the leader, they wouldn’t have entrusted such a vast area of Yue to Qi Refining stage [a low level of cultivation] cultivators. Even as Han Li was organizing his thoughts, the old man continued to speak. “…We haven’t been able to find out the extent of the Black Fiend Sect leader’s magical power, but there are four people like the Blood Servants we saw today, who are the protectors guarding the leader. It seems we won’t be able to handle them with our strength alone, so rather than attacking them first, we should ask for reinforcements…” “Don’t worry. The Black Fiend Sect leader is at most at the late stage of the Foundation Establishment [a mid-level of cultivation], not a Core Formation cultivator.” Han Li interrupted the old man’s suggestion and spoke with conviction. At those words, the old man’s face brightened, and the other three also seemed to relax a little. They had just been discussing what to do if the leader of the opposing side was a Core Formation cultivator. If that were the case, even if the Seven Great Immortal Sects sent reinforcements, they wouldn’t be able to touch them easily. “Senior, could you explain why you think so? Chief Wang, whom we interrogated, also knew nothing about the leader’s level.” The fourth, who had been out of it after his fifth sister ran away, had now come to his senses and asked Han Li clearly. “How rude, if Senior Han said so, there must be a good reason.” The old man immediately scolded the young man harshly. Then, Han Li, who had been watching, smiled slightly and replied. “It’s not a secret, so I’ll explain. It’s a fact I deduced from the fact that the Black Fiend Sect leader needs to use Foundation Establishment cultivators as sacrifices for his training. Although the Yellow Maple Valley doesn’t know the demonic arts inside and out, we do have some understanding of the evil arts that accelerate achievements through human sacrifice. It was common for demonic sects in the past to increase their achievements by absorbing the blood of other cultivators. By doing so, they could reach higher realms in a short time without spending most of their lives in training, so even righteous cultivators secretly learned such demonic arts back then.” Han Li raised the corners of his mouth and sneered. “It was a method with fatal flaws, where they had to massacre a large number of cultivators in a vicious manner in exchange for rapid growth. It was only effective up to the Foundation Establishment stage, and once they increased their magical power by receiving sacrifices, they would never be able to reach the Core Formation stage. Many people learned demonic arts in those days, but not a single one reached the Core Formation stage. You can see that from that. What’s even more serious is that the magical power stolen through blood sacrifices explodes frequently, and if they are even slightly careless, they will fall into a demonic state and die. It can be said that this is one of the reasons why such evil techniques have almost disappeared now. Also, the evil means of growing by stealing the magical power of other cultivators shook the cultivation world, and those who learned evil arts were hunted down, regardless of whether they were righteous or demonic. Instead of directly increasing cultivation through blood, like blood sacrifices, there was also soul sacrifice, which involved manipulating the souls of the victims. It allowed for rapid growth without the risk of being unable to reach the Core Formation stage or having unstable magical power. There wasn’t much written about soul sacrifice in the sect’s scriptures. However, I heard that the research on soul sacrifice was successful, and only a very small upper class of the demonic path monopolized it. It must be to avoid turning the entire cultivation world into their enemy. It’s said that soul sacrifice also has quite a few limitations.” As Han Li rattled off the secrets of blood sacrifice, the Four Mountains Fellows felt like they were glimpsing a new world, and at the same time, they understood why he was so confident about the Black Fiend Sect leader’s level. “We’ve learned about the Black Fiend Sect, but the bald Blood Servant who escaped also saw our faces. Shouldn’t we leave this place for now?” The skinny man asked worriedly. “No, they won’t be able to attack us right away. According to what I heard from Young Master So, the Black Fiend Sect leader is at a critical point in his secluded training, and he can only complete his technique in a secret chamber prepared somewhere in the imperial palace. They’ve put in years of effort to prepare for this opportunity, so they won’t give up so easily. They will definitely be busy gathering their forces to prepare for our attack.” There was a clear sneer in Han Li’s tone towards the Black Fiend Sect leader. At those words, the Four Mountains Fellows also seemed to relax a little. “Senior, then what should we…” The old man began to speak, seeking clear instructions. “You don’t need to do anything but wait for reinforcements. The enemy knows what we look like, but they don’t know where we’re hiding, and since the people in charge of Wolgyeong Fortress are in our hands, they can’t send anyone useful to attack us. However, everyone should refrain from going out for the next few days and focus on recovering. Once the people from the sect arrive, we’ll make a plan again.” Han Li rubbed his nose and narrowed his eyes. The others were at a loss, seeing him with a strange look on his face, and they closed their mouths. The magnificent imperial palace occupied a third of the vast Yue Imperial City. The layers of the jade-carved imperial palace were scattered with complex corridors and gardens, and even eunuchs and palace maids who had lived in the palace for years often got lost. Late at night, the palace, which was usually bustling with countless eunuchs and palace maids, was now silent except for the strict guards. At this time, a figure completely covered in a large cloak passed through each guard post with a golden plaque and approached an abandoned building in the imperial palace. His physique was surprisingly large, even from a distance. He stared at the door of the building with a sinister gaze, then threw off his cloak, revealing his shining bald head. It was the bald giant who had escaped from Han Li. Now back in the form of a normal person, not a monster, his face was pale, and he looked like he had lost a lot of energy. “Who is it?” Just as he was about to take a step, a cold voice came from inside the door. “Bing-yo, it’s me.” The bald giant answered, but he didn’t seem to have any intention of stopping, and he had already arrived at the door. “Cheol-ra, who went on a mission. You look weak, did you lose your energy? You said you were invulnerable to swords, but it seems you’ve suffered quite a bit?” The icy voice seemed slightly surprised at first, but as it continued, it revealed a sense of gloating. “Hmph, what would you know, you who can only make a cold expression? The guy I faced was someone who even if we had attacked together, we wouldn’t know what would have happened! If I hadn’t quickly transformed into a Fiend, I wouldn’t have survived.” “You even transformed into a Fiend? No wonder you lost so much energy. You’ll need a month of rest to recover. Tell me, how great was this opponent?” Bing-yo seemed curious at Cheol-ra’s cold words. “I’ll ask for forgiveness from the leader first and then tell you! Even the leader’s disciple fell into their hands, so I should receive any punishment.” “Cheol-ra, unlike the others, we are like the leader’s alter egos. For something like that, we’ll only get a scolding at most.” While Bing-yo was refuting Cheol-ra’s words, the tightly closed door of the building opened, revealing a pitch-black room. It was like a monster opening its mouth. Cheol-ra entered without hesitation. “Where did Cheong-mun and Yeop-sa go?” He asked the hazy human figure as he entered the door. “I’m temporarily in charge here, and they went to the Blood Thunder to train.” The white figure was emitting a white light in the darkness, making it impossible to know its original form. “Cheong-mun is already in the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment, yet he’s so focused on training. Isn’t he afraid that his true essence will go wild? And since when has Yeop-sa been so diligent?” The bald man seemed a little surprised. “Don’t be jealous. Yeop-sa showed signs of entering the mid-stage, so he went to the Blood Thunder. He has good talent and surpasses us both without effort, so what can we do?” However, Bing-yo’s tone already revealed his jealousy. “You don’t like Yeop-sa, so you’re trying to provoke me to fight him!” “Hehe, how could I? Now, we should see the leader.” When the bald giant Cheol-ra glared, the white figure merely changed the subject, even though his intentions had been exposed. Cheol-ra knew the other’s intentions, so he just snorted and walked into the darkness. After following the path, he arrived in front of an inconspicuous artificial mountain in the garden. The giant’s face showed respect. “Subordinate Cheol-ra greets the leader!” The giant bowed his head. “Why are you injured?” A middle-aged man’s benevolent voice echoed from a distant place in the artificial mountain. No one would have expected that the Black Fiend Sect leader would be in secluded training in such an underground place. “I am overwhelmed by your concern. Subordinate only lost some energy from transforming into a Fiend.” At those words, the leader was silent for a moment. “It seems this mission was a failure. If it had been successful, my disciple would have been with you.” “Subordinate failed to protect So-ju and Lee Ho-sik, so I ask for punishment from the leader!” The giant gritted his teeth at the leader’s words, which were spoken calmly. “How can I punish you? If you used the technique to transform into a Fiend, it means the enemy was strong, and you did your best. They are just a disciple and a protector. It would have been a headache if you had fallen into their hands.” “Thank you for your grace, leader. Subordinate will do my best to compensate for this failure.” The Black Fiend Sect leader was skilled at manipulating people’s hearts, and with a few words, he drew out the giant’s loyalty. “Yes, I’ll look forward to it! Now, tell me in detail what happened. I want to know which sect’s cultivator is so great.” “Understood!”