The Regressor of Mount Hua

Chapter 239. The Demonic Path Grows Restless (3)

Thud, thud, thud!

Someone dashed through the bushes, moving so swiftly they were almost mistaken for a beast, not a person.

"Over there!"

However, it wasn't a beast.

This was a person.

In the dead of night, when neither moon nor stars lit the sky, a group of people holding torches pursued him.

The torches flickered like will-o’-the-wisps. The lights gradually illuminated the surroundings like daylight as the number of torches grew from dozens to hundreds.

"Gasp, gasp!"

He wanted to stop right then and there. However, he knew what would happen if he did, so he kept running even though his heart pounded so much it ached.

But he was soon surrounded by a narrowing net, leaving him with nowhere to escape.

"It's no use running away! Southern Yang Guardian Fang Fotong!"[1]

The Southern Yang Guardian!

There was no one in the Central Plains, no, throughout the entire murim, who didn't know that name.

He wasn't just one of the One Hundred Experts Under Heaven, but he was also the third most powerful demon within the Demon Cult, after the Cult Leader and the Vice Cult Leader.

One of the Four Great Guardians!

The number of Righteous Faction warriors who had died at his hands was countless, and any martial artist would be terrified with their teeth chattering to see this Great Demon Head.

"I don’t know why you, who should be heading to Qinghai from Xinjiang, would be here of all places. But don’t even think about returning alive."

The sword in the hand of the leader of the pursuers gleamed ominously in the torchlight.

"W-Wait!"

Fang Fotong raised his massive hands in surrender, trying to halt the advancing pursuers.

"Talk, let’s talk!"

“Huh?”

The pursuers froze in disbelief. The Martial Alliance warriors surrounding him also looked dumbfounded.

"A cultist, moreover, one of the Four Great Guardians, wants to talk?"

The doctrine of the Demon Cult was strength first, strength second, and strength third.

They had a crazy ideology that strength was the truth and was everything, no matter what form it took.

That ideology was incredibly dangerous because it meant that if one had strength, any action could be forgiven.

They were so insane that even acts like murder, rape, human experimentation, and massacres were excused under their twisted ideology.

If anyone questioned this logic, Demon Cult members would often laugh and mock them, saying things like, ‘What sort of nonsense are you saying when you're a weakling?’

In the Demon Cult, opinions or reasoning held no value. Everything boiled down to power.

If someone faced a cultist and tried to propose, 'Let's resolve this with our words,' one hundred times out of a hundred, they’d receive an absurd response like, 'If you subdue me with your strength, I'll talk to you!'

Because Demon Cultists often acted like madmen with no sense of reason, the pursuers were stunned when one of them suddenly spoke so calmly.

"Oh, I see. So you're admitting that you're weak because you can't do anything with force, is that it? That's just like a cultist."

The pursuers nodded with a hollow laugh.

"That's not it! I don't want to fight! I don't want to kill anyone!"

"...has he gone crazy? No, did he just go crazy twice?"

Demon cultists were all basically insane. However, one of these insane cultists was behaving even stranger than usual..

A demon cultist, who should have been foaming at the mouth with their eyes rolling behind their head at the chance to prove everything through a showdown of strength, suddenly didn't want to fight.

"I'm being honest! As proof, even when I countered your attacks, I didn't kill anyone! Am I wrong?"

“Nonsense!” One of the pursuers snorted.

"Don’t act like you did that on purpose. You just couldn’t kill us because you weren’t strong enough. Now you’re trying to cover it up with this nonsense because of your pride!"

"W-wait! Listen to me!"

"Kill him!"

In the pitch-black darkness, without a single star or moon to illuminate the night, the sounds of clashing weapons filled the air endlessly.

Mount Song, Shaolin Temple.

“Fang Fotong?”

The head of Shaolin Temple, Divine Monk Abbot Hui Mian, flinched.

"The Demon Cult's Four Great Guardians, that Great Demon Head dares..."

The voice of Hui Zheng, the head monk of the Religious Precepts Office, was filled with anger.

Moreover, it wasn't just Hui Zheng. The entire Hui Generation of disciples was particularly upset.

"Namu Amitabha..."

The elder monks chanted to calm their anger.

"We can't leave that demon alone," Hong Gao said with a chilling look in his eyes.

"But there’s something that bothers me," the head monk of the Guest Reception Hall, Hong Shou, said as if something was bothering him.

"Something is bothering you?"

"Yes. Fang Fotong, he's acting strangely."

"Aren't those of the Demon Cult strange to begin with? They're all insane."

They were all maras[2] who had abandoned their reason in their pursuit of power.

None of them were normal.

If they really had to pick a relatively normal one out of them all, the only one would be the Heavenly Demon, who was in the Unfettered Demon Stage and free from the side effects of demonic arts.

"Well... according to the pursuers, he showed no bloodlust..."

"Huh?"

The monk questioning him widened his eyes in surprise.

"That's not all. From what I heard, he told them that he didn't want to fight and just ran away without fighting back."

"Could you be mistaken?"

"It's the truth. Truthfully, while there were some wounded among the pursuers, there were no casualties."

It was said that fighting without killing one’s opponent was far more difficult than fighting with the intent to kill.

Even as one of the One Hundred Experts Under Heaven, it was hard to imagine someone having the luxury to hold back while being pursued by over a hundred warriors.

No, it was simply unthinkable that a Great Demon Head would deliberately restrain himself in a fight.

"Did someone intercept and mess with our information?"

"That’s right. Don’t you remember what he did forty years ago?"

There was a reason why the old monks were angry at the name of Fang Fotong. It was because of a past incident.

The Iron Fist Massacre.

Forty years ago, before the changing of the generations in the Shaolin Temple took place, when the Hui Generation was still actively working throughout the gangho, a monster appeared in the Central Plains one day.

"If there are any bastards who have any skills, roll over here. I need to train a little."

The monster would later be called the Iron Fist Demon (鐵拳魔).

The Iron Fist Demon had learned a certain technique, and it was said that the more he practiced this technique, the stronger his body would become, eventually reaching the Diamond Vajra Stage.

In terms of its effects, it was said that not only was his skin impervious to external attacks, but his internal organs would also become stronger—to the point that he would eventually be able to withstand even attacks made with Internal Penetration Techniques.

In some ways, it was a peerless divine art. However, it was also a demonic art that made its cultivator increasingly vicious the more they trained in it.

The most terrifying aspect was how it was practiced. Unlike other physical cultivation arts that used objects like stones or trees, this one required a human target.

Not long after, it was revealed that this demonic art was one of the Demon Cult's One Hundred and Eight Cult Protecting Arts, the Iron Soul Cultivation Art (鐵魂氣功).

Afterward, members of the Righteous Faction attempted to subdue the cultist. However, most of them were unable to last more than a few moves. As time passed and the number of deaths increased, he was promoted from cultist to Demon Head, and the great sects finally intervened, unable to stand it any longer.

Leading the charge was the Shaolin Temple.

Up to this point, no one doubted their ability to subjugate the Iron Fist Demon. Everyone believed this rising Demon Head would soon be defeated.

But they were gravely mistaken.

Although the disciples of the great sects were confident, none of them managed to inflict a fatal wound on the Iron Fist Demon. In the end, they were all wiped out.

The damage to the Shaolin Temple was particularly devastating, especially for the Hui Generation. Among the casualties was Hui Mian's junior brother.

Naturally, the Righteous Faction's murim was consumed by a desire for revenge. The Shaolin Temple even sent an arhat to pursue the Iron Fist Demon.

However, the Iron Fist Demon caught wind of their plans and escaped. The Righteous Faction members who were gnashing their teeth ended up like dogs chasing after chickens.

A few years later, a Demonic Path master named Fang Fotong rose to the position of the Southern Yang Guardian, and it was later revealed that he was the Iron Fist Demon.

"..."

Hui Mian was lost in thought.

Hui Xiao...

When he closed his eyes, he could still see the face of the junior brother he had lost forty years ago. Thinking back on that incident, his heart still ached as if it was being squeezed.

Hui Xiao had been the most sincere and kind-hearted child.

When he encountered a hungry person during his cultivation journey, he would give them his food, even if it meant going hungry himself. When he saw injustice, he was always the first to step in and help.

Just how sad would Hui Mian have been when he lost such a wonderful junior brother to the Iron Fist Demon?

That memory was still vivid in his mind.

“We must personally capture the enemy of Shaolin and avenge him.”

Hong Gao stepped forward with his eyes burning with determination.

Even if the opponent was a Demon Head, it was still wrong for a monk to get so provoked and say ‘We must beat him with our own hands.’

Normally, Hui Mian would have scolded Hong Gao for that, but things were slightly different as it involved Fang Fotong. So this time, he let it go.

The other old monks were the same. Their eyes were also quietly burning with the resentment from forty years ago.

The Shaolin Temple abbot made his decision.

“You said he was in Shanxi?”

***

The Central Plains murim shook at the Demon Cult’s movements.

"What a relief."

The Evil Valley Master was relieved. Now that his forces were halved, he had been worried that the Righteous Faction or Demonic Path might attack.

But, fortunately, they fought on their own, even without his instigation.

"They're playing both ends against the middle."

While the ones who were actually fighting may have been the Righteous Faction and the Demonic Path, the one who truly benefited was the Evil Valley.

The moment the Great War of Good and Blood broke out, the Blood Cult's forces were forced to retreat, and the Ten Empyrean Overlords were reduced to the Eight Empyrean Overlords.

The Evil Valley Master had been ecstatic in his chambers when he heard that the Blood Demon and the Sword Immortal had traded lives.

Not long after, he heard that the Demon Cult was invading the Central Plains, and he couldn’t stop laughing.

“Heaven is helping the Evil Valley.”

He had nearly lost everything because of his foolish son’s mistake. Yet, even in his darkest moments, fortune seemed to have smiled upon him.

"In the Art of War, it's said that not everything can be solved by a war. It looks like that statement is true."

That lesson meant to win without fighting—to solve one's problems through means other than war.

That lesson had never been more appropriate than today. In fact, the Evil Valley had won without fighting any of the forces that held domain over the murim.

Regardless of whether the Righteous Faction or the Demon Cult won, they would both suffer great damage. As a result, all the Evil Valley had to do was accumulate their strength before the end of their war.

The Evil Valley Master calmly but surely recovered the divided Evil Valley and observed the war.

"The Demon Cult is advancing toward Qinghai, and the main forces of the Martial Alliance are also flocking to Qinghai. Oh, that makes sense because it would become a big deal if they were to overdo it here and fail to stop the Demon Cult's invasion. It's a shame that we won't be able to take even a single piece of land during this golden opportunity, but... well, it doesn't matter."

Most of the Righteous Faction moved to block the Demon Cult’s invasion.

However, they were worried about getting stabbed in the back by the Evil Valley. So, they stationed the minimum number of defensive troops at their border.

Of course, if the Evil Valley really wanted to, they would be able to take Guizhou or the other provinces. However, the rewards weren't worth the effort.

It would just be better for them to reorganize and build up their strength before defeating the Righteous Faction in battle after the Great War of Good and Demonic.

"But, what's with the Southern Yang Guardian?"

The Evil Valley Sect Master couldn't understand the Southern Yang Guardian's actions.

The Demon Cult was busy preparing for the Great War of Good and Demonic. However, the Southern Yang Guardian had gone all the way to Shanxi alone.

No, he might have been hiding in Shanxi all along. However, the Evil Valley Master was curious about why he was there in the first place.

More than anything, the false rumors about the Demon Head refusing to fight were cause for concern.

Meanwhile, the Martial Alliance also focused on the Southern Yang Guardian's movements.

"While the appearance of the Southern Yang Guardian is suspicious in many ways, it's also a good opportunity," Zhuge Xiang said, going to see Nangong Weiwu.

"The Great War of Good and Demonic is just around the corner. While it might not be feasible to imprison him because of Shaolin Temple’s involvement, executing him could boost the morale of our troops."

The Demon Cult didn’t care if any of the cultists died, as long as it wasn’t their Cult Leader. Their morale would remain unaffected regardless. However, the Martial Alliance was different.

It went without saying how the troops would react if it became known that they had dealt with one of the enemy's Four Great Guardians before the war even started.

“I heard that the Divine Monk will step forward. Do they really need the support of the Martial Alliance?”

The Shaolin Temple had asked that they be entrusted with the revenge of their enemy, Fang Fotong.

Because the temple didn't withdraw all of the forces needed for the Great War of Good and Demonic, the Martial Alliance decided to respect the nature of the murim, which valued connected karma.

Moreover, since Shanxi was right in front of Hanam, there wasn't much of an issue.

"As you said, the Shaolin Temple will take the lead, so our support itself won't amount to much. The Sword Dragon and the Poison Dragon should be enough.”

“Ah!” Nangong Weiwu exclaimed.

"Are you planning on having the Poison Dragon fight alongside the hero of the Righteous Faction to subdue the Great Demon Head, in order to dispel the suspicions surrounding him?”

“Yes. If the suspicion towards Poison Dragon deepens any further, it will also hinder his activities as part of the Black Shadow Division.”

“Indeed, that's the best way forward."

1. His name means 'The Pain of Buddha.' It's quite appropriate. ☜

2. Really simplified, Buddhist Demons. ☜