Chapter 768: Why Are You Asking Father That? |
It wasn’t the presence one felt simply because the opponent was the Heavenly Demon.
Even if they had passed each other on the road, the feeling would have been the same.
Even among hundreds of people, he would have recognized him instantly.
An unhideable presence. No—rather, a presence he didn’t even bother to hide.
“Father, your son has returned after finishing another adventure!”
When Geom Mugeuk greeted loudly, for some reason, the Sword King put on the shoes that had been hanging from his waist.
“Well then, brother in arms. Let’s go.”
He wore the same bright smile as always, yet Geom Mugeuk was more nervous than ever before.
First of all, how would his father react to his complete transformation?
Geom Mugeuk and the Sword King walked side by side along the Path of Blood until they reached the foot of the Throne Mat.
The Sword King clasped his fists together and offered a respectful bow.
“I am Ak Gunhak. Thanks to your son, I have the honor of meeting the most noble figure in the martial world. It is an honor to make your acquaintance.”
There was neither friendliness nor hostility in Geom Woojin’s gaze. His indifferent eyes shifted toward the Sword King’s feet.
“I heard you usually go around barefoot?”
It seemed Geom Mugeuk had spoken about him.
“I thought it improper to appear before such an esteemed person without shoes, so I put them on.”
It wasn’t because he was intimidated by someone stronger.
Originally, he had intended to enter barefoot, but hearing Geom Mugeuk call out “Father” had made him change his mind.
It wasn’t out of respect for the Heavenly Demon, but for Geom Mugeuk’s father. Wearing shoes was the greatest gesture of respect he could show.
Geom Woojin’s and the Sword King’s gazes crossed in midair. No matter how powerful the Sword King was, he could not compare to the father. Yet his strength was enough to provoke him.
That was why Geom Mugeuk, watching from the side, felt his heart tremble even more.
His friends—Bih Sa-in, Jin Hagun—none of them had ever pleased his father.
‘Father, this man is my friend too. Please look upon him kindly.’
Geom Woojin’s gaze, which had been fixed on the Sword King, turned to Geom Mugeuk.
At last, the moment had come.
As he silently looked down at his son, Geom Woojin rose from his seat.
He descended the stairs slowly—not fast, not slow—and his footsteps made no sound at all.
For Geom Mugeuk, this was a sight he had often seen, but for the Sword King, it was different.
With every step Geom Woojin took toward him, the Sword King’s heart pounded violently. Each step felt like a heavy fist of the Heavenly Demon striking his heart. If he followed his instincts, he would have taken a step back for every step the man took forward.
Geom Woojin stopped before Geom Mugeuk.
Even the Blood Heaven Blade Demon had recognized his son’s transformation—there was no way his father wouldn’t.
Sure enough, a faint smirk appeared on Geom Woojin’s lips—the very smirk that Geom Mugeuk liked so much.
Today, the emotion hidden within that smirk was this:
So now, after all that, you even show up having undergone a complete transformation?
Yes. Go ahead and smirk, father. After he was never the type to feel jealousy anyway.
Geom Mugeuk raised his hand high and confessed.
“I’ll say this first—I’m definitely your son. A disgraceful one who underwent Full Transformation before his father, but your son nonetheless!”
Then Geom Woojin extended his hand forward.
Swoosh. Grip.
Geom Woojin seized both of Geom Mugeuk’s arms with his hands.
Caught off guard, Geom Mugeuk flinched.
“If you’re trying to test whether my newly transformed body can be torn apart or not, please stop! If you try, Father, it will tear!”
Fortunately, there was no such test to see if his body would rip apart.
Swoosh.
Geom Woojin’s hand rested on his son’s shoulder. From there, he began examining his son’s entire body.
He touched and inspected his arms and shoulders, his waist and back, even his legs—meticulously, not roughly.
How much had the bones stretched? How had the skin and muscles changed? What about the balance of the body?
Geom Mugeuk felt his father’s touch unfamiliar. Thinking about it, except for when he had been very young, his father had never once laid a hand on him.
Yet his father’s touch carried the care as if Demon Doctor examining his patient. He was personally checking whether anything had gone wrong.
Even knowing that, Geom Mugeuk couldn’t help but feel tense inside. His father could suddenly strike without warning—and then say,
You’ve undergone transformation, yet you couldn’t even dodge that?
That would be just like him. Remembering the time he had claimed to master the Soaring Sword Art and had his face smacked by a gust of energy, he realized he needed to be ten times more alert today.
But what came today was a hundred times more shocking than that gust.
After finishing his inspection of his son’s body, Geom Woojin’s gaze turned toward the Sword King.
“This man…”
Then he looked back at Geom Mugeuk, his voice cold.
“Kill him.”
It was a command—to kill the Sword King.
Not only Geom Mugeuk but even the Sword King was startled. He had expected that the Heavenly Demon wouldn’t welcome him, but to think he’d be ordered to die was beyond imagination.
“Come on, Father. Sure, we might enjoy killing people, but isn’t this a bit much? He just arrived and greeted you politely—he doesn’t deserve to die for that!”
But Geom Woojin said nothing, as if the order had been perfectly reasonable.
“Well, he’s not better-looking than you, so it’s not like he stole a woman. Or is he someone who borrowed money from you in your youth and ran off?”
Of course, neither flattery nor jokes worked.
The Sword King was curious to see how Geom Mugeuk would handle this situation. He was indeed a son who could surprise people just like his father.
Geom Mugeuk let out a deep sigh.
“Brother Ak, if it were anyone else’s order, I might disobey—but Father’s command is absolute.”
What? So he really intends to kill me?
Geom Mugeuk drew the Black Demon Sword as if he truly meant to carry out the order.
Caught off guard, the Sword King stared at him in disbelief.
“Young Cult Leader, I even put your shoes on—are you really going to do this?”
Before the Cult Leader, the Sword King spoke to Geom Mugeuk with uncharacteristic formality, even though it was that very Cult Leader who had ordered his death.
“What can I do? It’s my father’s command.”
Seeing the utter seriousness in Geom Mugeuk’s face, the Sword King soon accepted the situation.
He glanced around the Heavenly Demon Pavilion, then looked back at Geom Mugeuk. To die by the hand of Geom Mugeuk while the Heavenly Demon watched from his throne—
“Well, if that’s the case, it’s a fine end.”
The Sword King also drew his blade. He had already once been ready to die for Geom Mugeuk beneath the Heavenly Eye Mountain. His death had only been postponed a little. With that thought, his heart felt strangely calm.
The two stood face-to-face, blades aimed at one another.
“Young Cult Leader, don’t let your guard down. I intend to fight with everything I have.”
Geom Mugeuk could feel it—the Sword King truly meant to die fighting him.
Of course, the reason he liked the Sword King wasn’t merely because the man tied his hair and walked barefoot. It was because, even standing before death, he remained so composed. If it were me, I wouldn’t be able to die like that—my skill’s far too precious for that.
A heavy tension filled the air.
Then Geom Mugeuk’s gaze, which had been fixed on the Sword King, turned toward Geom Woojin.
“It’s time you said it now, isn’t it? ‘Son, that’s enough. I understand that you value my command above your friendship.’”
But Geom Woojin simply stared at him in silence. He was truly pushing the command through.
“Then at least tell me the reason.”
Still, Geom Woojin gave no answer.
“This is too much!”
Geom Mugeuk sheathed the Black Demon Sword.
“You know I can’t kill him.”
“If you disobey, you’ll be stripped of your position as Young Cult Leader.”
His father’s eyes made it clear—he wasn’t joking. The Sword King looked nervously at Geom Mugeuk, wondering if he might actually give in.
“I’ll give up the position of Young Cult Leader.”
The Sword King quickly interjected.
“Young Cult Leader, I’m not worth that much.”
“Of course not.”
“What?”
“I’m giving up my position, not because you’re worth the title, Brother Ak. The seat that determines the fate of countless people within the cult cannot be compared to any value. Even my own life isn’t worth as much as that seat.”
If those words had been for his father, the next ones were for the Sword King.
“I want to kill him, but I don’t have the confidence to kill Brother Ak.”
Geom Mugeuk didn’t appeal to his relationship with the Sword King here.
He couldn’t approach it sentimentally, saying, ‘How could I kill a friend?’ That would only backfire with his father.
This choice, too, was a form of respect toward the Sword King.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t kill him because they were close—it was because he was too strong to kill.
It was consideration for the martial man that was the Sword King.
“Father, this man is the strongest person I’ve ever fought. I haven’t even seen his final move yet.”
Even before his father, the Sword King was still the First King of the Twelve Zodiac Kings.
If his dignity as a martial artist was diminished or his pride wounded, he couldn’t stay by Geom Mugeuk’s side. Especially not before Geom Mugeuk. If such a thing happened, he would simply walk away.
“Father, your son could die!”
Even so, his father did not back down.
“We have your older brother. I’ll even avenge you.”
“I refuse. Watching my brother become the Cult Leader would make me too sick to bear.”
“If you don’t kill that man, you won’t become Cult Leader anyway.”
Geom Mugeuk looked at his father. It was time to ask.
“Why are you testing me?”
“Testing you?”
“Yes. You’re not the kind of person to give such an order. If you truly wanted him dead, you would have killed him yourself.”
To his surprise, it was a test. And the reason was something he had never expected.
“I needed to see if you were still yourself.”
“…What?”
Then came words even Geom Mugeuk himself hadn’t known.
“In the process of transformation, the change in the body is not what matters most.”
Geom Mugeuk looked down at his own body.
“After seeing this smooth skin and smelling this fragrance, how can you say that? Not only that, my bones have changed, and my whole body feels light enough to fly. If not this, then what could possibly matter more?”
Geom Woojin gazed piercingly into his son’s eyes as he answered.
“Your mind.”
“!”
“Transformation rewires even the meridians in your head. Do you know why those who achieve it are so rare in the martial world? Because even if one endures the physical agony, the changes in the mind drive most people insane—or kill them.”
Though usually not a man of many words, when it came to martial arts, Father never held back his teachings.
“Have you changed in any way?”
“My mind feels clearer than before. I think faster, and my memory seems sharper too.”
He realized then that the reason he had fallen into enlightenment after the first exchange with the Sword King must have been because of this.
“What matters is how you’ve changed. Even if your mind feels clearer, your personality might have warped into something strange. But seeing your pathetic response just now…”
“‘I want to kill him, but I don’t have the confidence to kill Brother Ak.’”
Geom Mugeuk did not appeal to his relationship with the Sword King in that moment.
He could not take the sentimental route of “how could I kill a friend?”—that approach would have backfired with his father.
Besides, this choice served to preserve the Sword King’s dignity.
It was not that he could not kill him because they were close; it was because he could not kill someone so strong.
It was consideration for the martial man that was the Sword King.
“Father, this man is the strongest opponent I have ever fought. I have not even seen his final move yet.”
Even before his father, the Sword King had once been the First King among the Twelve Zodiac Kings.
If his standing as a martial man were damaged or his pride wounded, he could not remain by Geom Mugeuk’s side. Especially not before Geom Mugeuk. If such a thing occurred, he would leave.
“Your son might die!”
Even faced with that, his father did not relent.
“You have your elder brother. I will take care of the vengeance.”
“No. I cannot bear to watch my brother become Cult Leader.”
“If you do not kill that man, you will not become Cult Leader anyway.”
Geom Mugeuk looked at his father. It was time to ask.
“Why are you testing me?”
“A test?”
“Yes. You are not the sort of man who would give such an order lightly. If you truly wanted him dead, you would have killed him yourself.”
To his surprise, it really had been a test. And the reason was something he had not expected.
“I needed to confirm whether you remained yourself.”
“...What?”
Words followed that even Geom Mugeuk had not known.
“In transformation, changes to the body were not the most important thing.”
Geom Mugeuk looked down at his body.
“After seeing this smooth skin and smelling this fragrance, you say that? Bones had shifted, the whole body felt as though it could take flight. If not that, then what could be more important?”
Geom Woojin stared into his son’s eyes and answered.
“Your mind.”
“!”
“Transformation completely altered even the meridians in the head. Do you know why those who undergo it were so rare in the martial world? Even if they endured the physical pain, many went mad or died during the changes in the mind.”
Though his father was usually a man of few words, when it came to martial matters he spoke without holding back.
“Have you changed in any way?”
“My head feels clearer than before. I think more quickly, and my memory seems sharper.”
He realized then that the reason he had fallen into thought after the first exchange with the Sword King was for that very reason.
“What mattered was how you had changed. Aside from a clearer mind, your personality could have warped into something strange. But seeing your pathetic response just now…”
After finishing the explanation, Geom Woojin’s expression softened.
“Fortunately, there seems to be no change.”
It meant it had been a perfect transformation.
Actually, Geom Mugeuk had suspected the father’s test had another motive. There were many ways to check whether one’s mind remained intact.
So why command him to kill the Sword King? It was to observe how the Sword King would react.
Would the Sword King’s reaction pass his father’s approval?
And since relationships were already entangled, might his father have intended to deepen that relationship?
The Sword King had been willing to give his life for his father’s order, and Geom Mugeuk had shown he would relinquish the Young Cult Leader’s seat.
Geom Woojin must have known his son would never actually kill the Sword King.
Geom Woojin turned and climbed back up to the Throne Mat, speaking as he went.
“Congratulations, son.”
“!”
Geom Mugeuk stared at his father dazedly.
‘Congratulations, son.’
Those simple words shook him—he felt the sincerity in them.
“Thank you, Father.”
Geom Mugeuk bowed his head in thanks.
‘I had no intention of marrying in this life either, but Father keeps shaking my resolution.’
He did not let the good mood slip away.
“Father, to celebrate my transformation, please grant me one favor.”
Geom Woojin asked with a baffled expression, “What favor?”
It was shameless and bold.
“Please bestow the White Flower Sword to Brother Ak.”
A moment of silence flowed.
“You mean the White Flower Sword, one of the Cult’s four great treasured swords?”
“Yes.”
The White Flower Sword ranked among the four great treasured swords of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult alongside the Heavenly Demon Sword, the Black Demon Sword, and the Evil Spirit Sword.
If the Black Demon Sword was rough and destructive, and the Evil Spirit Sword harbored dark, malevolent qi, the White Flower Sword carried a gentle and noble aura.
“I wish to give Brother Ak the White Flower Sword as a gift.”
The Sword King was taken aback. When he had heard that Geom Mugeuk would obtain a treasured sword for him, he had not imagined it would be one of the Cult’s four. He knew of the White Flower Sword’s reputation.
“Young Cult Leader, that blade is far too grand for me.”
The Sword King politely declined.
“Still, it is a sword that suits Brother Ak.”
“I am no such noble person. I will accept only your sentiment, Young Cult Leader.”
At that, Geom Woojin issued an order into the air.
“Bring me the White Flower Sword.”
Hearing that, the Sword King startled, and Geom Mugeuk smiled up at his father.
‘I am in a bit of trouble. I am already worrying how I will stand in front of Father when that day comes.’
But for now, the Sword King took precedence.
“Please don’t issue a new order like ‘use that sword to kill this man’!”
The Sword King had been embarrassed even as he heard Geom Mugeuk’s joke.
Even before the Dark Palace Master, he had never once lost his composure—yet today, because of this father and son, he had been startled and flustered more times than he could count.
’So what now? You’re really giving me that precious White Flower Sword? One of the Four Great Treasured Swords of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult?’
Fine, if Geom Mugeuk wanted to give it to him, that much he could understand. That man was the type to do such a thing.
But the Heavenly Demon himself? And to think it was being given to someone who had once faced the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult as an enemy.
While he was still lost in thought, Hui appeared, carrying a sword case in his hands.
Geom Mugeuk exchanged a glance with Hui.
’Uncle, it’s been a while.’
The masked Hui’s eyes curved faintly, as though smiling. His gaze seemed to say:
’Congratulations on your transformation, Young Cult Leader.’
After handing over the sword case, Hui vanished silently.
As Geom Mugeuk accepted the White Flower Sword’s case, Geom Woojin spoke.
“It’s a congratulatory gift.”
“Thank you, Father.”
Geom Mugeuk bowed respectfully, then turned and presented the sword case to the Sword King right before his father’s eyes. Of course, he did not forget to make a joke.
“Open it carefully. It might explode.”
The Sword King looked down at the sword case in silence, dazed. He had never imagined he would receive such a precious sword so easily.
“Why… are you bestowing such a gift upon me?”
When the Sword King asked Geom Woojin, Geom Mugeuk quickly interjected.
“Hey, I’m the one giving it to you! Why are you asking Father? Look at me!”
But the Sword King continued to gaze at Geom Woojin.
Geom Woojin’s expression still held neither kindness nor hostility as he replied,
“Let’s just say… because you look better with shoes on.”
“No, those shoes also were my gift!”
‘You people are all insane.’ He couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud, so he softened his words instead.
Bowing respectfully, the Sword King said,
“Now I finally understand how someone like the Young Cult Leader could be born.”