“Since you’re from the Cave of Latent Demons, I assume you know about the ‘Dark Flower’.”

The Dark Flower is not only the basics in the Cave of Latent Demons, but also a basic cultivation method for all demonic practitioners…why is he bringing up such a basic cultivation method?

Woon-seong kept his confusion to himself. There was definitely a reason why the Heavenly Demon had asked about the Dark Flower — it couldn’t be to check if he knew the basics, after all. 

“I do, sir.”

As Woon-seong responded, Chun Hwi nodded lightly. Immediately, words began to flow from his mouth. 

“The Dark Flower sets fire to the mind. The burning mind becomes red, referring to the Red Heart, and the Red Heart shall be planted with the true demonic spirit…”

Like a thunderbolt in his head, Woon-seong felt a strange rhythm from these words that affected the qi inside of his body. Like a cotton ball soaking up water, he quickly accepted the words into his mind.

“…With that, the Red Heart shall bloom an everlasting flame.”

At the end, just as Woon-seong had begun to suspect, Chun Hwi said, “It’s a line from the ‘Red Heart’. Remember it.”

“Yes, sir.”

Woon-seong still sounded calm, but he was feeling a bit of shock and excitement. The ‘Red Heart’… It’s a part of the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon!

“The Dark Flower is a basic cultivation method of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon. But when it’s combined with the ‘Red Heart’, it becomes the ‘Advanced Art of the Dark Flower’, or the First Connection of the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon. Remember and review the ‘Advanced Art of the Dark Flower’.”

Woon-seong thought to himself, It looks like I’ll have to accumulate the ‘Red Heart’ into my ‘Tempered True Blossom’.

“I am grateful for your teaching. I will keep it in mind.”

The Heavenly Demon walked over to where Woon-seong had been sitting attentively. “Let me show you how the qi should flow.” He pressed a palm onto Woon-seong’s back. “I’ll inject some of my qi. Don’t resist it. Relax and let it flow.”

The Heavenly Demon told Woon-seong to relax, but how could the youth do so when it felt like being smacked by a tidal wave?

Guaguaguagua!

Not just physically but also mentally, Chun Hwi had begun to teach Woon-seong the day after he was appointed to the position. 

He taught me the First Connection of the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon on the first day. And he just taught me the Middle Connection on the second day… It looks like he wants to teach me everything in a short period of time. 

Even if so… it seems like he’s rushing it a bit too much. He’s barely past his forties… why would he need to hurry?

Soon Woon-seong had to stop asking himself these questions. 

“Focus your mind. Feel and remember the directions of the qi flowing.”

As the Heavenly Demon’s voice echoed in Woon-seong’s ears, he controlled the qi.

Woon-seong focused his consciousness on the process and memorized the flow. 

The Leader’s qi flows through my 12 main meridians, then the tangled meridians and exits back out. It’s a powerful presence that flows through in a short amount of time. But… why is it familiar?

It’s not completely identical, but the qi that the Leader is controlling inside me is following the path of the Tempered True Blossom.

The Tempered True Blossom’ was based on the Spear Master Sect’s ‘Completed Method of the Tempered Orthodox Qi’ and the Cult’s ‘Dark Flower’… I’ve also improved using the cultivation methods I learned from the Unrecorded. Since both the Tempered True Blossom and the Divine Arts make use of the Dark Flower qi-refining method, it’s understandable if they are similar.

However, this is too similar.

A lot of it is especially similar to the cultivation methods I learned from the Unrecorded.

How in the world…?

Even when considering that the Dark Flower is the basis of all demonic arts, how can it be so similar in where it flows — where it flows fast, where it flows slow, and even where it flows backwards?

The Red Heart is a cultivation method only taught to the bloodline of the Heavenly Demon or the Young Leader. How can the two be so similar?

Given that the Unrecorded had originally been a part of the Spear Master Sect, Woon-seong was sure that the mysterious Unrecorded was not of the Heavenly Demon’s bloodline. Obviously, there had been no Heavenly Demon with that name either.

So, why?

As Woon-seong was questioning it, Chun Hwi was actually asking himself the same questions. 

Hmm. There was a trace of worry in Chun Hwi’s heart at first, since this was the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon they were talking about. It wasn’t a problem about bloodline inheritance, but an issue of Cult secrets! 

Does he already know a cultivation method that has a similar breathing method? Even if the Red Heart is the First Connection of the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon, it won’t be completely different from the other cultivation methods. It can be somewhat similar to certain methods, but this is almost identical. 

The Heavenly Demon’s qi made a round through Woon-seong’s body once more. 

Chun Hwi shook his head. 

I even diagnosed all of his meridians, considering the chance that he may have somehow obtained the Red Heart… but it’s not the Red Heart… I can only conclude that he learned a different cultivation method. 

Just then, the Heavenly Demon’s gaze shifted towards the spear lying next to Woon-seong. 

It’s a different spear than what I saw back when he was a Demonic General… 

Oh, that’s right. I let him choose a weapon from the Demonic Armory. 

Suddenly, all of Chun Hwi’s worries and confusion melted away like snow. He smiled and glanced back at Woon-seong, who was still concentrating in silence.

He had figured out why Woon-seong’s cultivation would have traces of the Red Heart. 

I see… So it’s the spear of the Unrecorded, the one he used when he was still alive… 

Chun Hwi focused back on Woon-seong, observing the energy flowing through his meridians. The other’s blood vessels were also clearly visible, as if a ray of light was shining on him. 

However, it’s still not completely identical. His meridians are developed in a different way than that of the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon. It looks like he added the Unrecorded’s cultivation method on top of what he previously practiced. 

Impressive. 

But he still lacks understanding of the Unrecorded’s method. 

The accomplishments were not small, especially for Woon-seong’s age. But it wasn’t enough. 

He hasn’t reached the ‘Divine Shaped Flame’ yet… but the fact that he inherited the will of the Unrecorded… that in itself is a curious coincidence! Some would call that a strange fate. 

However, this child has much more to learn before he truly understands the Unrecorded.

But when he does create the Essence of the Divine Flame in the future…if he can achieve the Divine Shaped Flame with the ‘Unrecorded’s Mind Connection’, he shall be able to reach the truth between the Divine Art of the Heavenly Demon and the Unrecorded. And if so, he may achieve a whole new power. 

Chun Hwi smiled to himself at these thoughts. 

The energy that had been flowing in Woon-seong’s body was disconnected, rushing back to the Heavenly Demon. “I retrieved my qi. Now try it on your…”

Although Chun Hwi had retrieved his energy, he realized that Woon-seong had not woken up.

He’s already started to review. That is some talent. The things we call a ‘strange fate’ or an ‘enlightenment’ are not something easily achieved…and this child is already well aware of that. Enlightenment only occurs after continuously reviewing the knowledge and experience one has newly achieved. 

Practice, review, improve.

That was exactly what Woon-seong was currently doing, in a trance like state. 

I need to remember and repeat the usage of the ‘Red Heart, Woon-seong was telling himself. One at a time, with detail. The fact that it’s similar to the Unrecorded’s cultivation method bothers me, but I need to focus on the task at hand. 

No matter how hard Woon-seong thought about it either way, he had no answer. At this point, the information wasn’t necessary either. 

Undoubtedly, the Heavenly Demon had also noticed the similarities. 

Since the Cult Leader had chosen not to say anything, only time would tell. 

Remember the paths the Leader opened up. Since he retrieved all of his qi, everything flowing inside of me right now is mine. 

Within a short amount of time, Woon-seong was growing more and more familiar with this new energy. 

It’s flowing faster and stronger. So this is the Red Heart!

Woon-seong smiled to himself. The Young Leader of the Cult of the Heavenly Demon. And it’s symbol, the ‘Dark Flower Red Heart’! It’s just my first step, but I am closer to my revenge. 

As Woon-seong continued with his cultivation, Chun Hwi was watching him from the side. No, it was better to say that he was making a judgement. 

He’s skillful! It’s only his first time. How can he be reviewing for more than 30 minutes? On top of that, he has already fully understood parts of the Red Heart. 

Chun Hwi’s eyes deepened, a small satisfied smile on his face.

Hmm, simply knowing and understanding are two very different things. That’s just how talented he is…

What an amazing amount of talent.

Chun Hwi had no knowledge of Woon-seong’s past life. Thus, he had no choice but to conclude that everything was purely because of innate talent.

This much talent has never been heard of. 

Even those of the Heavenly Demon’s bloodline would not show such quick understanding.

Of course, Chun Hwi’s base assumption was incorrect. 

Still, it wasn’t like Woon-seong was going to correct him. 

At the same time though, Woon-seong’s real talent was not negligible. The Hyuk Woon-seong of the past life had been a genius apprentice. 

Every time Woon-seong breathed in, he understood a little more. Slowly, he was approaching the source of his confusion. It would take him a while to get there, but he was making great progress.

After some time, Woon-seong slowly opened his eyes.

Though he had not found any answers, but had reached some sort of understanding.

The teachings of the Heavenly Demon did not end there. 

The Heavenly Demon was not just some title — the previous cult leaders went through some hellish training. 

“Huff…huff…”

I’m sweating like it’s raining. I don’t remember the last time I sweat this much. 

There were now thin needles embedded into Woon-seong’s wrists and ankles, perfectly sealing his energy. Not only that, the weights on his arms and legs had also increased. 

“You were training with some quite interesting methods. Metal bracers… so sealing your inner strength and increasing the weight should vastly improve your fundamentals, correct?” 

That’s what the Heavenly Demon had said, so the weights were increased. 

Curse it all. Woon-seong almost wished he hadn’t even started weight training. 

On top of that, I’m forced to continuously make dynamic movements, Woon-seong complained in his heart.

Woon-seong darted through the dark like a mouse, running here and there.

Trrng!

Chun Hwi touched something with his fingertips.

It was a wire, thin like a strand of silk. The moment it was touched, an arrow was randomly released.

Swoosh—!

Woon-seong twisted to avoid it. 

Damn it! It grazed my thigh! It did not tear his clothing, but the spot still stung with pain. Thank Heavens it doesn’t have a tip. If it was an arrow with a proper tip, it would’ve ripped my thigh. 

Woon-seong did not have time to dwell on that as Chun Hwi touched the wire once again. 

This time however, it wasn’t just one wire. 

Swoosh—! Swoosh—! Swoosh—!

Shit! They’re coming!

Dodging arrows left and right, Woon-seong soon lost track of time. How long had he been running around in the dark?

Eventually, thousands of lights lit up the room with a soft hum. 

The brightness revealed Woon-seong, who stood there looking like a blood-soaked murder victim.