“Somehow, I knew something felt off.”

After arriving near the first information base, Yeon Hojeong looked around and nodded.

“Ow, my back. What are you talking about?”

Yeon Hojeong’s Heaven-Granted Flowing Flight was in full bloom. The speed of his movement technique, exploding with the internal force of the Yeon Clan Divine Core, was already more than enough for him to be called the head of a sect.

Je Gal Ahyeon had practically been carried here, but he had run far too hard. It was no wonder her back ached.

Yeon Hojeong gestured at the surroundings.

“How does it look to you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Tell me what you feel when you look at this terrain.”

Je Gal Ahyeon’s eyes gleamed. Yeon Hojeong would never ask a pointless question like this for no reason.

“Let’s see.”

Je Gal Ahyeon looked around seriously, then tilted her head.

“I don’t know. I don’t see anything especially strange. You said the first base was over there, in the forest?”

“Right.”

“They picked a good location, at least. You can tell they were careful. Unless someone was already suspicious and looking closely, even a master under heaven would just pass it by.”

“And other than that?”

“It takes good advantage of the terrain, so it’s useful for stealth and cover. It’s also a decent distance from the village, but because of where it is, it’s convenient for watching the village too. But...”

Je Gal Ahyeon’s eyes sank coldly.

“There are a lot of trees.”

“That’s it.”

The cold of winter had not yet faded. It would be two more months before new leaves sprouted on the bare trees.

Even so, the Divine Flame Cult’s information base was not visible. The trees were simply that dense.

“I don’t think they chose this kind of terrain just for stealth and cover. If you think about it coldly, there are plenty of places more hidden than this.”

“Which means?”

“There has to be another reason it had to be a place like this.”

Je Gal Ahyeon’s eyes sparkled. They looked like the eyes of a curious girl who had found something interesting.

“Are the other bases like this too?”

“Yes. I felt a strange sense of déjà vu, and now that I think about it, all the bases had dense trees around them. Dense enough that it would be hard to find them even if you tried.”

“Hmmm.”

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes burned.

He had met enemies of the Divine Flame Cult, but he had never fought one of its masters. Most of the people he had fought were demonic practitioners from the Perverse Lust Cult.

But he knew the characteristics of the Divine Flame Cult’s masters.

They worship fire.

Divine Flame, and Sacred Flame.

The Divine Flame Cult Leader was the agent of the god who had first given them fire, and received absolute trust from the believers. Like Perverse Lust and Mad Blood, their trust had also reached the realm of fanaticism.

That was why every martial art they used was based on Fire energy.

Of course, it was not ordinary Fire energy. From what he had heard, their heat-yang art was fundamentally different from the heat-yang arts of the Central Plains, and the prevailing evaluation was that the Fire energy it possessed was overwhelming.

According to a master from the Perverse Lust Cult, the firepower emitted by someone who had mastered the Divine Flame Cult’s martial arts was nearly equivalent to lava.

With firepower at that level, one had to assume even elemental weaknesses were ignored.

At the same time, I heard they train in places rich in Wood energy, using it as sacrifice to grow their Fire-energy-based martial arts. Then, after building a realm beyond a certain level, they train their heat-yang art in places rich in Water energy to suppress the elemental opposition in reverse.

It was the same principle as throwing a few drops of water into a raging fire only to make it burn more fiercely.

Yeon Hojeong looked around again.

This place is rich in Wood energy. All the bases are. It isn’t only for martial training. It must also be for escape and concealment if they’re discovered. Beyond that, in a place like this, even if a master several moves above them attacked, they wouldn’t be overpowered.

There was a saying: an iron fortress. It meant a state in which absolute defense was possible.

In that sense, for the people in charge of these bases, places like this were close to iron fortresses. If they concentrated their firepower, this entire place would become a sea of flame in an instant.

“Every enemy this time has learned extreme-yang martial arts. They’ve dug into heat-yang arts alone for hundreds of years, so when it comes to the level of their heat-yang arts, we should assume they surpass the martial arts of the Central Plains.”

Je Gal Ahyeon’s face turned serious.

“Then... that explains why they made bases in places rich in Wood energy.”

“Yes.”

Yeon Hojeong let out a sigh.

I should have noticed this earlier.

Only now did he understand why his father had told him to rest.

The usual him would have noticed something this strange right away. But because of his thick excitement and his mounting fatigue, he had thought of the enemy as if he were dealing with the Perverse Lust Cult, not the Divine Flame Cult.

That was why his grasp had been late. It was a mistake unlike him.

“How many of the formations you found are based on Water energy?”

“Two out of fifteen total.”

“Too few.”

“Formations that draw on Five-Element Qi in the first place are rare. They boast the highest level of difficulty.”

“Hmm.”

“And because formations that control and regulate qi don’t follow proper order, they inevitably break down naturally over time.”

“How long do they last?”

“Assuming they’re made properly, at least two months. The manufacturing itself isn’t that hard as long as people are assigned to it.”

“That’s good.”

“But we need a water source to complete the formation. If we install the formation without one, the area outside the formation’s range will become extremely dry.”

Yeon Hojeong looked north.

There was a long, narrow river near the northeast side of the village.

Je Gal Ahyeon nodded.

“It’s far, but if we connect formation axes, it’s possible. But it’ll take half a month just to connect the axes. If we work covertly, it’ll take about five more days on top of that.”

“Twenty days.”

Yeon Hojeong nodded.

“We have forty-five days before they send information again anyway. Now forty-two days remain.”

“Should we begin?”

“Of course.”

“Just this place?”

“No. This place and Xuchang, the two final bases...”

It was then.

PAAK!

Yeon Hojeong covered Je Gal Ahyeon’s mouth and withdrew to the rear in one breath.

Startled, Je Gal Ahyeon sent him a voice transmission.

[What is it?!]

[Quiet.]

There was tremendous weight in the voice transmission that answered her. Without realizing it, Je Gal Ahyeon clamped her mouth shut.

Hidden behind a massive boulder, Yeon Hojeong looked far to the north.

A master?!

HWARURURUK.

A qi wave like burning fire reached him like an illusion.

The unknown master was also suppressing presence to the utmost, but it was not enough to evade Yeon Hojeong’s senses, sharpened tremendously by rest, the Yeon Clan Divine Core, and the balanced Four Spirit Qi.

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes trembled.

What is this, all of a sudden?

This was an incredible master. Judging only by sensory perception, the completeness of the True Qi was, astonishingly, comparable to the level of the Six Great Clan Lords.

It was hard to compare to his father or Mo Yonggun, but at least compared to Clan Lord Peng or Namgung In, the Namgung Clan Lord, this person did not seem lacking at all.

A Transcendent Peak master not easily seen. A master of that caliber had entered an area only several dozen li from the Martial Alliance.

The corners of Yeon Hojeong’s eyes faintly shook.

These bastards have no fear.

If compared to the Perverse Lust Cult, it was as if a warrior-grade master who served as the vanguard had appeared.

At this exact timing? Why? Are they really this careless? Or do they have absolute confidence?

Question followed question. But when the enemy’s presence reached the front of the base, Yeon Hojeong stopped thinking.

He circulated Inner Qi covertly and maximized his hearing.

“Twelfth General, you’ve arrived.”

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes shone.

It was a familiar voice. It was definitely the middle-aged man he had heard in the thatched hut two days earlier.

A moment later, the unknown master’s voice came.

“I heard that half-blood sent word.”

Heavy.

The voice itself was somewhat high, yet somehow sounded low and resonant.

It carried tremendous dignity. The transmitted voice revealed the ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) bearing of a great master of his generation. Apart from the completeness or density of his True Qi, his pressure as a powerful man was itself tremendous.

“Yes.”

“What information was it?”

“Y-you have not heard?”

“...”

“Ah! Forgive me! This lowly one has committed a grave offense...!”

“It is fine. I am not the Eleventh General. I am not so heartless that I would punish you for failing to answer immediately.”

“I can only apologize.”

“So, what information was it?”

“It concerned a younger-generation figure named Yeon Hojeong, commander of the Martial Alliance’s field-force unit.”

“Yeon Hojeong. You mean that younger-generation figure whose fame has been spreading of late?”

“Yes.”

“Not even a Service Lord, but information about a mere brat?”

“Yes, but if the contents sent to us are true, we judge it to be sufficiently alarming.”

“Give me the letter.”

Yeon Hojeong’s gaze deepened.

He was the one who had thrown them false information based on truth. But now that his own name was coming from the enemies’ mouths, it felt strange.

Clench.

Strength entered his fist on its own.

The urge to rush out at once and blow their heads off, and a coldness even greater than that, ruled his body.

SHHK.

Je Gal Ahyeon gently gripped Yeon Hojeong’s shoulder.

She probably meant that she did not know what was happening, but he had to stay calm. Yeon Hojeong quietly steadied his breathing.

A moment later.

“Is this true?”

“We have dispatched an informant separately to determine whether it is true. It will take some time, but a sufficient investigation into this person called Yeon Hojeong should be possible.”

“...Whether this is true or false, it is clearly information that must be handled carefully.”

“Yes.”

“Could they have noticed our existence? Is it not possible they deliberately leaked this unbelievable information?”

For no reason, Yeon Hojeong felt his chest prickle.

“At present... we judge there is no possibility whatsoever. However, there is always the one-in-ten-thousand chance, so we are exercising particular caution.”

“I heard Hidden Shadow One was attached to the half-blood. Where is he now?”

“We have not located him.”

“What?”

“T-that is! He held the Sacred Flame Token and a handwritten letter from the Council of Elders! Since he was permitted to communicate directly with the leadership, he does not receive orders from our side!”

“The Council of Elders...”

Yeon Hojeong could hear a faint smile in the voice of the master called the Twelfth General.

There was ridicule mixed into that voice.

“Toothless old men. That is always the problem with those whose time to leave has come. Clinging to useless tradition and bloodlines. It seems this Cult, too, is a world where people live.”

“I can only apologize.”

“Fine. In any case, Hidden Shadow One is also only a man blinded by power. He is a fool I would not even want to share a table with, but for his own sake, he is not someone who would ever betray us.”

“Y-yes, that is correct.”

“Very well. I will stop by again later. Guard it properly.”

“I will remember!”

SHHK!

The presence of the master called the Twelfth General moved away in an instant.

“Whew, that nearly killed me. Why would someone important enough to be a warrior suddenly come all the way here?”

The owner of the grumbling voice entered the thatched hut.

Yeon Hojeong’s eyes flashed.

[Ahyeon. Return to the Martial Alliance exactly like this. You have to maintain your current presence. You absolutely cannot be discovered.]

[What about you?]

[I’m following him.]

Je Gal Ahyeon read the powerful will in Yeon Hojeong’s voice transmission. He was not someone who would stop just because she tried to stop him.

[Be careful. Don’t overdo it.]

[I know.]

SWISH!

Yeon Hojeong vanished from sight in an instant.