Tak— Tadatak—

After slipping out of the alley, Seolhwa kept the mask of the Sado Union Lord on and sent a voice transmission to the Hobupdae she had planted along the streets.

— Seize anyone with black cloth tied around their arm.

If it was the Blood Cult she knew, they wouldn’t stop at causing a ruckus in the arena.

‘This whole thing stinks of a plan to tarnish the Martial Alliance’s reputation.’

Which meant they would surely spread the miasma on the streets as well to fan the chaos.

No doubt the arena already had Blood Cult minions carrying miasma mixed in among the crowd, but there was no time to sweep the arena too.

‘I have no choice but to trust Grandfather.’

If it was Grandfather, he would surely keep the damage to a minimum.

Besides, Flowering-realm masters—the Shaolin Abbot and the Precept Hall Master—were present at the arena.

‘Right now...’

The people in the streets came first.

Tak— Tadak—!

A man with black cloth tied around his arm entered Seolhwa’s sightline.

He was a street vendor, calmly selling treats to children.

Seolhwa clenched her teeth.

If the miasma spread as-is, the little ones would be the first to turn into blood fiends.

‘Cruel as ever.’

Shuddering at the Blood Cult’s brutality, Seolhwa veered toward the man.

Tak— Whoosh!

“Ghk!”

A fierce wind burst.

By the time the children picking their treats looked up, the man had vanished without a trace.

Tak— Thwok—!

Seolhwa hauled the man she had snatched behind a building where no eyes could reach and checked him.

He was already unconscious.

When she searched his body, a small pouch of miasma turned up at his waist.

‘So that man was telling the truth.’

Men with black cloth on their arms really were the couriers for the miasma.

Seolhwa checked the man’s blood channels.

He had never learned martial arts.

There wasn’t the slightest trace of blood-cultivation either.

‘Not a Blood Cultist?’

Had they dragged in ordinary civilians and used them as miasma couriers?

“...”

Her gaze dropped to the black cloth tied around the man’s arm.

It was strange.

If they meant to spread the miasma without the Martial Alliance and Sado Union guards noticing, why make themselves obvious with black cloth on the arm?

It was practically begging to be suspected.

Unless a single premise flipped the story.

‘A situation where the couriers don’t know one another.’

They needed to regulate the coverage area of the miasma; since the couriers didn’t know each other, the black cloth let them identify fellow couriers.

That way, a small number could spread the miasma over the widest area.

‘Thousand-Person Blood-Fiend Poison forces the spreader to be the first one poisoned.’

Use untrained civilians to evade the eyes of Heaven Beyond Heaven masters and spare Blood Cult members from exposure.

Krunch—

The wall Seolhwa struck caved in and cracked.

She had overlooked what kind of cowards the Blood Cult were.

Knowing there were masters in Heaven Beyond Heaven, they had roped in the untrained.

‘Only one person would devise a ploy like this.’

The owner of the First Moon Medallion.

The one who claimed a moon medallion by stratagems and wiles.

Mo-wol.

If Mo-wol truly planned this, he would already have left Wuhan.

Tak—

“Union Lord.”

A black shadow dropped beside Seolhwa.

It was Ryeong, who led the Sado Union’s Hobupdae.

“The Hobupdae are arresting those with black cloth.”

“The Hobupdae alone won’t be enough.”

“...!”

“Mobilize everyone at the branch. We have to take them all.”

“Shall we dispose of them?”

Seolhwa shook her head.

“Recover only the miasma. Capture the couriers alive.”

They could not be killed lightly until it was confirmed whether they were Blood Cultists or not.

“Those with black cloth will have been posted at fixed intervals.”

****

Fwoooo....

Over the Martial Alliance, the Sado Union Lord—the Shadowless Demon God—appeared.

If this were the Alliance’s usual grand formation, breaking in at will would have been impossible, but during the tournament certain sectors of the Alliance had been opened, making it doable.

Everyone in the arena looked to the Shadowless Demon God.

So did # Nоvеlight # Ouyang Do and Gong Cheon, who knew of Seolhwa’s grandfather, Namgoong Mucheon, and of the Shadowless Demon God’s existence.

“!”

Behind the mask, Seolhwa’s pupils trembled fine as she found Ouyang Do and Gong Cheon.

The last image she had of Ouyang Do was of him lying as if dead.

So this was practically the first time she had faced the two since the battle with the Blood Demon.

“...”

Her heart wanted to run over, ask after their health, and trade glad greetings that very instant.

But she could not approach them as the Shadowless Demon God; she could only look on from afar.

‘That child.’

Ouyang Do and Gong Cheon recognized Seolhwa as well.

They knew the pitch-black power was the Imoogi’s strength.

‘She’s grown more adept at wielding it in no time.’

The corner of Ouyang Do’s lips tilted faintly.

But neither man let on they knew her.

It was plain she was hiding her identity.

“Shadowless Demon God.”

The Martial Alliance Lord, Namgoong Mucheon, stepped out before the arena.

Seolhwa looked down at him as well.

‘Grandfather.’

There was no way Grandfather had failed to recognize her.

He had always known of the Imoogi’s existence, and upon reaching Heaven Beyond Heaven, he had even witnessed that power.

Only, Namgoong Mucheon had never seen the Shadowless Demon God in person.

He would have been no little shocked to learn the Shadowless Demon God was his own granddaughter.

‘I never wanted to reveal it like this.’

Seolhwa pressed down on her lower lip and flicked something from her hand onto the arena.

It was a sack she had been holding since appearing above the arena.

The sack hit the platform and its contents spilled out with a clatter—

Pouches of various sizes, all tied at the mouth.

Namgoong Mucheon didn’t need to open one to know what lay inside.

‘Miasma.’

The very miasma that had, moments ago, swept across the arena in an instant,

turning those who inhaled it into slaughter-hungry fiends in a heartbeat.

“What are you—!”

The Suzak Division Lord, Yu Pyo, could bear it no more and started forward, but Seop Mugwang checked him.

For a breath long enough to hear even the sound of breathing, silence held.

The Shadowless Demon God spoke.

“I did not stop all of it. Send your subordinates to treat the wounded and hurry the cleanup, or else rumors will fester.”

Namgoong Mucheon fixed a hard gaze on the Shadowless Demon God.

Meeting that gaze, the Shadowless Demon God said:

“This incident is not the will of the Sado Union.”

Namgoong Mucheon dipped his chin.

“I know.”

“...”

Another long silence followed.

For those unaware, it felt like the two were trading a voice transmission.

After some time thus passed,

the Shadowless Demon God, who had been staring at Namgoong Mucheon, turned away and in an instant left the arena.

Silence settled once more over the arena she had left.

****

Tak.

After thwarting the Blood Cult’s scheme, Seolhwa returned to where she had met the scarred bamboo-hatted man.

As expected, he was already gone.

Seolhwa bit down on her lower lip.

‘I had so much to ask.’

How he knew she was the Young Union Lord.

How he had slipped past interdictions.

Why he was obstructing her work.

And the last thing he said:

“Don’t assume everything you do leads to the right path.”

What did that mean?

‘I have to find him.’

No matter what it takes.

Just then, something caught Seolhwa’s eye.

A throwing knife was lodged in the wall near where the man had stood.

Seolhwa went over, pulled the knife free, and checked what was pinned beneath it.

It was a hem of cloth embroidered with an unfamiliar sigil.

‘What is this?’

A sigil she had never seen, even in her previous life.

The Imoogi, too, said it was unfamiliar.

There was no doubt the man had left it, but she couldn’t tell what it meant.

After staring at the sigil for a long while, Seolhwa tucked the cloth into her breast and returned to the Martial Alliance.

****

The tumultuous tournament had come to an end.

In its final moments, an unknown miasma had spread and nearly sparked greater chaos, but thanks to the combined efforts of the Alliance’s masters and the Shadowless Demon God, a major disaster was averted.

Those poisoned by the miasma were moved at once to the Alliance’s Medicine Hall and treated, and those attacked by the poisoned were likewise treated by the Alliance.

The Alliance’s swift response, proactive measures, and the masters’ overwhelming prowess raised the common people’s trust in the Martial Alliance another notch.

Martial Alliance Main Hall, Alliance Lord’s Office.

Knock. Knock.

With a low sigh, Seolhwa rapped on the office door.

“Come in.”

A reply came at once from within, as if they had been waiting.

Seolhwa opened the door and entered, her expression taut.

“...Grandfather.”

“You’re here. I’ve been waiting.”

Namgoong Mucheon rose from his seat and came to the reception table.

Faces dear to her were already seated there.

“...Elders!”

Ouyang Do and Gong Cheon.

The two greeted Seolhwa with a hearty laugh and a kindly smile.

“Been a while.”

“Come, have a seat.”

A glad smile spread across Seolhwa’s face as well.

When she had returned to the arena with the confiscated miasma taken from the Blood Cult’s minions, finding the two there had startled her no small amount.

“I pay my respects, Elders.” 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Seolhwa belatedly offered her greeting.

“It’s good to see you in health.”

“This is all thanks to you. Without you, we wouldn’t be here.”

At Ouyang Do’s words, Gong Cheon nodded.

She had saved their lives, sent the Immortal Physician to pull them back from the brink—

All of it had been Seolhwa’s doing.

“Come, sit. There’s much to discuss, and we’ll take it slow.”

Seolhwa sat beside Namgoong Mucheon.

As Ouyang Do said, there was much to say, but the first words were set.

“I’m sorry, Grandfather. That I couldn’t tell you in advance... that I’m the Shadowless Demon God.”

Namgoong Mucheon clasped her hand with a gentle smile.

“I already knew.”