The time was when Baek Sowol and Zhuge Hyun had parted ways.

Zhuge Hyun hid his body and secretly watched the martial artists of Kunlun.

The place where the martial artists of Kunlun were was the Kunlun Sect's branch.

Since the current location was far from the Kunlun Mountains, it was natural that there was a branch.

'But those guys weren't branch members.'

The martial artists of the Kunlun Sect had directly referred to Kunlun.

If it were a branch, they would have surely included the word 'branch' when they spoke.

Zhuge Hyun's thought, thinking so, was exactly right.

"You've come, Taoist friend."

"Yes. As you said, Taoist friend, there were some rascals causing trouble."

As expected, there were beings who were bowing and scraping to the martial artists he had seen at the tavern.

'Those must be the original branch members.'

Zhuge Hyun continued to look around the branch.

A branch of considerable scale.

It seemed that their financial power was also considerable.

"Tsk. They're bastards who are unworthy of the title of Taoist priest."

Kunlun.

They were those who trained in the Tao, so they used the title of Taoist priest rather than martial artist, but Zhuge Hyun referred to them as martial artists because he didn't like them.

Originally, those who trained in Kunlun were those who had left the secular world.

Therefore, they did not get close to fame or wealth.

"Look at their state. They've just slathered themselves with money."

Zhuge Hyun continued to observe their behavior with a displeased look.

"Are these the ones who were causing trouble in the streets?"

"They're third-rate ruffians."

"How will you deal with them? Will you execute them as expected?"

"Heeik! P-please spare me!"

A murderous aura flowed between the Kunlun Sect martial artists, the branch members, and the ruffians.

"Lock them up for now."

"Understood."

"Great hero! Please spare me! Great hero!"

After the branch members of Kunlun dragged the ruffians away and locked them up, the people who seemed to be of high rank among the branch members and the martial artists of Kunlun moved to a secluded place.

For any other martial artist, it was a place where it would be difficult to even hide their body, let alone eavesdrop, but for Zhuge Hyun, who was not any other martial artist, sneaking into that place was as easy as lying down in his own living room.

"Since you Taoist friends are letting them live, there must be a place to use them, right?"

"As expected of Taoist friends who have studied in Kunlun, even if it's a branch. That's right."

"Then it must be for influence."

"That's right. Although Kunlun is in Qinghai, since the Taoist friends are natural-born Taoists, they don't come down from the mountains, and because of that, their influence is naturally small. I have a mind to solve that."

Zhuge Hyun clicked his tongue as he heard the story.

'They're just pouring a golden bucket over their heads.'

With the current conversation, Zhuge Hyun had inferred the entire situation.

The Namgung family, they were related to the ruffians.

Although it wasn't certain, he inferred that they had the intention of expanding their influence in Qinghai by using the ruffians.

Zhuge Hyun inferred that the current Kunlun was also planning a similar act.

"It seems we have to show them something for the foolish commoners to understand properly, don't we?"

"It's certainly a simple yet good idea. The black factions run rampant, and Kunlun intervenes to suppress them."

As Zhuge Hyun had expected, it was exactly right.

'Anyway, those who call themselves martial artists.'

Zhuge Hyun did not recognize those who called themselves the current martial world, so he referred to them as self-proclaimed martial artists.

While Zhuge Hyun's expression was gradually rotting, their conversation continued.

"Then, if we deal with the black faction group like that, how do you plan to deal with the heretical factions that are parasitic in this village?"

"They're just fakes, but how can we deal with them without a justification? Make a justification soon."

"Understood."

Zhuge Hyun frowned again at the story of the heretical factions.

'Ridiculous bastards. Are they saying they won't even see the martial artist forces other than themselves as sects?'

Originally, they were beings who should have been called at least a heretical sect, but they were beings who were not even treated as a sect.

It was a term that referred to those who were martial artist forces that had risen up in that region and did not follow the alliance.

'I hope the heretical faction guys here are some decent guys.'

Not all of those who had risen up for self-defense were proper humans.

Since most of them were no different from the black factions, which referred to bandits, ruffians, and the like who were full of greed, Zhuge Hyun did not have high expectations.

'I've gotten everything I can from here.'

Having heard everything, Zhuge Hyun immediately moved.

On the way, he snuck into the place where the Namgung family martial artists were staying and obtained information.

"Before those bastards open their mouths, we will raid the place where those Kunlun or whatever guys are and kill all the black faction guys to silence them!"

"As you command!"

It was information that was no different from his prediction.

'Next, shall I look for the heretical faction guys in this village?'

Zhuge Hyun moved to find the heretical faction group in the village.

And at the same time, he checked his plan in his mind.

'I can just use the strategy of dividing into three.'

Zhuge Hyun recalled his distant ancestor, the Marquis of Wu, as he moved to find the heretical faction.

A strategist unparalleled in the world who put forward the theory of dividing the world into three.

Although he did not achieve his will, who could belittle him?

'If it's a country, it's a different story, but if it's a village, there's no way it can fail.'

The three forces check each other, and if one force grows, the other forces join hands to check it.

For that, the balance of power had to be somewhat right.

The Taoist priests of Kunlun had sufficient power because they had learned the long-standing arts and martial arts that came down from the mountains, and the Namgung family had outstanding martial power because they had been in the military for a long time.

Therefore, Zhuge Hyun had the thought of supporting the heretical faction in this village from behind.

'I can sufficiently coordinate in the middle, so there's no problem.'

The plan in Zhuge Hyun's mind was perfectly taking shape one by one.

And at the same time, another thought came to his mind.

'If we see the guys who call themselves the current martial world as the orthodox faction, and the heretical faction properly joins forces to form a power.'

The thought that came to mind was the strategy of dividing the martial world into three.

The strategy of dividing into three, which had spread from the village level to the martial world level.

Zhuge Hyun, who was organizing his thoughts about it in his mind, soon let out a sigh and shook his head.

'The black faction group is a group of thieves, so they're excluded. And to include the government, their power is too great, and the justification is lacking.'

If the heretical faction forces joined forces and rose up as a single martial world force, there would be quite a possibility.

Of course, since these heretical factions were forces that had risen up at the village level, it seemed close to a miracle for them to unite.

'I can probably make them unite.'

But even if he did so, one was lacking.

'Would a single force that could match the orthodox and heretical factions just fall from the sky?'

A single force.

And a force that could match the orthodox and heretical factions that called themselves the current martial world.

Since there was no way such a force would just fall from somewhere, Zhuge Hyun put aside the thought of dividing the martial world into three for a while.

And so, Zhuge Hyun, who had racked his brain and tracked down the heretical faction force in the village, hid his body and watched them.

"Brother! Are you going to leave the Kunlun guys as they are? This village has been protected by us for a long time!"

A few burly martial artists were gathered in a shabby, abandoned house.

Watching them, Zhuge Hyun checked his plan once more.

He would maintain the balance of the three forces and prevent any one of them from becoming the winner.

And he himself would lend his strength to the forces of Kunlun, gain their trust, and infiltrate the Kunlun Mountains where the main Kunlun Sect would be, and assess the situation.

"How can you be so thoughtless? Although I don't like the current situation, if we confront Kunlun here, the ones who will surely suffer will be the ordinary people here."

That plan was discarded after seeing one man.

A burly, red-faced man who looked like a tiger.

"Do not forget that we have gathered to protect people."

The man who was the leader of the heretical faction in this village was a very proper human.

'Ho? Look at this?'

In Zhuge Hyun's mind, who had completely discarded his plan, another plan began to be engraved one by one.

Zhuge Hyun decided not to end with just supporting the heretical faction in this village.

The thought of supporting them and raising them as a major force in the martial world took root.

A plan to make the heretical faction rise up as a single large force came to his mind.

'Another force. It might be a bit of a stretch, but if I can somehow make it.'

The three forces of the martial world check each other.

And they are wary of the government, which has great power.

Because of that, even if not the government, the martial world forces will have no choice but to look after the common people.

'If it's a country, it's a different story, but as long as they are under the government, they have no choice but to be wary and look after them properly.'

Of course, the piece was still missing as long as he didn't create a proper force other than the orthodox and heretical factions.

'If I use the decent guys as a disposable card, Master will surely be disappointed.'

Although Zhuge Hyun usually moved according to a thorough and efficient plan, this time he decided to take a little detour.

'The fact that I was able to learn the Celestial Records was also due to something that was not in the plan.'

The meeting with his master, which was not in the plan.

Because of that, he had learned the Celestial Records, which he had thought was impossible for a human to learn.

'I should have died long ago, but I'm breathing here.'

The corners of Zhuge Hyun's mouth went up.

It was not his usual crooked smile.

* * *

Quite some time had passed since Baek Sowol had gained enlightenment by chance at the hut.

During that time, Baek Sowol was heading to the Heavenly Mountains with the merchant caravan.

As they entered the middle of Xinjiang, the bandits who had been popping out from time to time had disappeared, so peaceful yet boring days of journey continued.

The wild animals that appeared from time to time became food and leather by the martial artists of the caravan, led by Baek Sowol.

"Haha! Such high-quality tiger skin! If I were still doing business in Anhui, I could have surely gotten a good price..."

The caravan members were happy about the countless piles of high-quality leather, but they also became gloomy because they could no longer do business in Anhui.

Baek Sowol watched that from inside the carriage and fell into thought.

'To think the tyranny of the Namgung family is that bad. What on earth are they thinking?'

In Baek Sowol's memory, the Namgung family was a place with a decent reputation, but from what the merchants said, there was no greater villain.

'Let's stop thinking about it. The Namgung family is also an enemy to me.'

Baek Sowol sighed, leaning against the window frame of the carriage with a complicated heart.

"Great Hero Baek, is something bothering you?"

"No. It's just that as the Heavenly Mountains get closer, all sorts of thoughts come to mind."

Baek Sowol looked at the caravan member who had spoken to her from outside the carriage.

'He was the one who mentioned the White-Robed Sword Immortal after seeing the writing on the hut, right?'

A caravan member who seemed to know a lot for a caravan member.

"Your name is..."

"Ah, my name is Ju Wol-lyang."

"I'm sorry for not remembering."

"Haha, it's alright. Remembering all the caravan members' names is quite a task."

Baek Sowol made sure to remember the name of the man named Ju Wol-lyang this time.

A man with a lot of knowledge, both at the hut and in general.

A man who used extreme honorifics even to the young Baek Sowol.

"Great Hero Ju, you seem to be very knowledgeable."

"I am just a merchant, so the title of great hero is burdensome. And as for knowledge, well, it's not at a level to be called knowledgeable. I just drank a little of the academy's water."

Ju Wol-lyang laughed awkwardly.

He was a man who was somehow listless and had a faint impression, a man who was not likely to be remembered well.

"In my opinion, the title of great hero is fitting for someone like you, Great Hero Baek."

"The title of great hero is also burdensome for me."

"That must be the weight of a great hero."

Baek Sowol had asked several people to stop because the title of great hero was burdensome, but now she had no choice but to give up.

The reason was that since they had received the kindness of having their lives saved and had been continuously helped on their way to the Heavenly Mountains, they could not treat her lightly.

'Sigh.'

Baek Sowol sighed inwardly and continued to talk with Ju Wol-lyang.

Although the journey to the heavens could be boring, perhaps because she had someone to talk to, her boredom was somewhat relieved.

Ju Wol-lyang was a man who was quite knowledgeable about various rumors, especially about the martial world and martial artists.

"Great Hero Baek, do you know about the Heavenly Killing Star?"

"My knowledge is lacking, so I don't know well."

"Haha, that's possible. The Heavenly Killing Star is one who is born with the fate of a star mad with blood, and it is said that Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Chu, was the first historically confirmed Heavenly Killing Star."

"It's the first time I've heard of it."

"Because it's a story from the marketplace. Most of them are for entertainment, with all sorts of plausible words attached, aren't they?

Ah, by the way, the second confirmed one is said to be Lu Bu Fengxian."

"It seems that the Heavenly Killing Star is something that is attached to people who are famous for their martial prowess."

At Baek Sowol's answer, Ju Wol-lyang smiled meaningfully.

It was a smile like that of a gambler who had hidden a trump card.

"It's not just that their martial prowess is strong. It is said that they are beings who lack the 'process of building up'."

"The process?"

"Yes. Martial arts are originally something that must be trained by building a tower from the ground up, but the Heavenly Killing Star is a disaster that is at the top of the tower from birth, or something like that.

So they are terrible at laying the foundation, but they instinctively know how to kill people without being taught."

The moment she heard those words, her master's indifferent voice brushed past Baek Sowol's mind.

-Stop, that's enough.

When she was struggling to learn the martial arts properly, Baek Yoonjun had stopped her training without hesitation.

-There's no need to keep wearing something that doesn't fit your body.

At that time, she had thought he had given up on her because she was a dunce. But thinking about it now, that wasn't it.

'Master... saw it at a glance.'

When everyone else was emphasizing that the foundation was important, Baek Yoonjun had seen through that the 'process' was clothes that didn't fit her.

'Could it be that only Master already knew my vessel, which others could not see?'

Baek Sowol trembled. Her master had seen through the reason she had struggled in vain for 6 months at a glance and had taken off the clothes she had been forcibly trying to fit into.

'As expected... Master's insight was at a realm that an ordinary person could not reach.'

Baek Sowol's gaze wavered.

'Perhaps he read the desire for revenge boiling inside me and awakened my instincts to match the killing intent of a Heavenly Killing Star?'

Her master must have known and been considerate of her desperation for the power to tear her enemies to shreds right away, rather than orthodox martial arts, from the beginning.

Of course, Baek Yoonjun had just thought, 'Ah, she's terrible at learning this. It's hard to teach, so let's try something else.'

"It seems that such a rumor follows because he showed an unbelievable martial prowess alone."

Baek Sowol took her eyes off the awkwardly smiling Ju Wol-lyang and looked at the sky.

'Heavenly Killing Star...'

For some reason, the red river she had seen in the space of nothingness came to Baek Sowol's mind.

"The day is getting dark, so let's stay here for today!"

And in the sky that was beginning to get dark, a star that seemed to be shining red alone caught her eye.

(End of Chapter)