The atmosphere immediately became incredibly tense. 

It was the seven Soul Splitting Reapers who spoke first. 

The one who looked like their leader blocked Woon-seong slightly. “We were ordered to let no one inside.”

Woon-seong laughed dryly, “An order to let no one in…”

Woon-seong stirred up his aura as he talked, causing it to spread like fog and wind throughout the entire passageway. So as to avoid any meaningless casualties, he signaled for the servant to leave first. At the same time, he reached out and pulled down his White Night Spear. 

“Then I ask you in the name of the Young Leader. Is that order above the law of the Cult?”

The others in the corridor trembled at his voice. Along with the crushing qi imbued into Woon-seong’s words, his aura was suffocating. Their limbs trembling, the air around the Soul Splitting Reapers felt heavy like wet wool. 

Even more frightening was the culprit, with his shining golden eyes standing amongst a dark cloud. Look at him… it’s like facing a tiger disguised as a man. 

Moreover, what Woon-seong had said kept ringing in their ears. 

Was this order more important than the law of the Cult?

According to the laws of the Cult, the Vice Leader and the Young Leader were equally ranked. 

Equal positions. 

That was why an order from the Vice Leader could not be used to stop the Young Leader. 

Moreover, the ones to carry out the order were the Reapers themselves. As subordinates of the Vice Leader, it was reasonable for them to open the way. 

However, the members of the Soul Splitting Reapers acted differently. 

These seven men had pledged absolute loyalty to Joo Moon-baek and only Joo Moon-baek. 

Woon-seong made a slight movement with his spear, merely adjusting his grip, and seven swords immediately pointed in his direction. 

Seeing that, Woon-seong gripped his spear tightly. 

“So that’s the choice you have made.” 

He was here today to persuade the Demonic Teacher of Sun and Moon. These people could be considered the enemy, but he hadn’t been planning to spill blood today. 

“It looks like I’ll have to give the Demonic Teacher my apologies for dirtying his hallway first.”

As a result, even if this corridor turned into a pool of blood, a decision made was not easily taken back. 

The moment when the Soul Splitting Reapers were ready to die and leap towards Woon-seong, someone’s voice stopped them. 

“Enough.”

The gazes of Woon-seong and the Soul Splitting Reapers naturally focused in the direction of the voice, where a door had opened and a man was slowly walking out. 

Red and black clothing, just like the seven Reapers, only more stylish and luxurious. 

Woon-seong recognized the man and said calmly, “Soul Splitting Flame King.”

“It’s been a while, Young Leader.” The man also pretended that nothing was out of the ordinary. 

If it wasn’t obvious, Joo Moon-baek had just met with the Demonic Teacher. He may have been old, but he couldn’t hide the slight spring in his step. Or maybe he purposefully didn’t bother to hide it. 

Woon-seong’s eyes and thoughts moved rapidly. 

The Demonic Teacher of Sun and Moon isn’t with him. It looks like they haven’t allied yet.

Internally, he heaved a sigh of relief. 

If Joo Moon-baek had managed to convince the Demonic Teacher, it would have been a huge problem. 

Regardless, the relieved Woon-seong still growled. “I don’t know how you raise your dogs, but they were uselessly violent for being out of their bounds.”

The expression of the seven Reapers, who had just been called dogs, crumpled. 

“You may be the Young Leader, but you cannot insult us like that!” 

“We’d rather die in a fight than listen to an insult like that!”

Joo Moon-baek shouted and stopped them. “Enough!” His heavy voice echoed through the hall. “There’s no need to react against a taunt like that. Facing your blades against him will only make things complicated. Don’t you think so too, Young Leader?”

As he listened, Woon-seong’s eyes deepened. He’s no easy man. It seemed that Joo Moon-baek had the patience and caution to think things through, though he might be running out of it. 

As if supporting Woon-seong’s thoughts, Joo Moon-baek continued to taunt, “I’m sorry. Dogs are just dogs after all… It looks like they misunderstood my words when I said to not let in anyone normal.”

“‘Anyone normal’, huh…” Woon-seong knew it was no coincidence that the word ‘anyone’ had been emphasized, but he also knew not to lose his temper. Thus, he skillfully responded, “Don’t worry. How would any of this be the dogs’ fault? It’s just their master’s for not training them properly.”

This time, Joo Moon-baek’s eyebrow twitched and the atmosphere became glacial. 

I wasn’t planning to actually fight… But looking at the flow of things…

There was a voice that broke the mood. “How long are you going to block my guest like that, you brat.”

At that, Joo Moon-baek recollected all of his aura. “Hah hah. My apologies, Senior.”

Even though he had been called a brat, the Vice Leader didn’t look angry. In any case, the Demonic Teacher was older than almost anyone in the Cult — had probably been a Demonic King before Joo Moon-baek was out of diapers — he was qualified to call Joo Moon-baek a brat. 

Moreover, like Woon-seong had concluded, the Demonic Teacher was still neutral. Joo Moon-baek needed to give him some face. 

“Enough with the stupid chit-chat and let him in!”

Joo Moon-baek could only shrug. “Go in, Young Leader.”

The look on Woon-seong’s face was absolutely cold. He stared at the Vice Leader, then turned and walked towards the room. 

As Joo Moon-baek made way, so did his underlings. However, the seven Reapers glared at the young man with anger. 

As they passed by each other, Joo Moon-baek added, “I wish to meet you in a more proper setting next time.”

What the Vice Leader meant was a place where the two could fight each other to the death. 

This fit in well with Woon-seong’s desire to rip Joo Moon-baek a new one. 

Woon-seong faced him, smiling to show his fangs. 

“I agree.”

“Hmph!”

At the sound of Woon-seong’s words, there was a brief snort that left the room across the hall.

With that said, Woon-seong immediately entered the Demonic Teacher’s office of sorts. 

“So, what brings the Young Leader to the dwelling of this old man?”

The one speaking was obviously the ‘Demonic Teacher of Sun and Moon’, Lee Shin-jung.

Woon-seong observed him, taking in the plain clothing and the long white beard. “It’s an honor to meet you, Demonic Teacher. But I just realized… you seem to look like more of a divine spirit than a demonic master.”

“Hah hah hah. It’s odd to see the Young Leader flatter an old man like me. Oh, pardon me. I should’ve started with offering you a seat. Please, sit down. I’ll bring some tea.”

So this man is the ‘Demonic Teacher of Sun and Moon’, Lee Shin-jung. He looks like an ordinary old man. But that’s why I should be more cautious. He’s one of the Ten Demonic Masters — I must not let my guard down just because of his looks. 

Woon-seong noticed something black and white on the other’s arm. The coloring was unique, but it looked ordinary otherwise. 

Must be the ‘Black and White Heavenly Rings’. A bracer which grows into the shape of rings through injecting qi. I was told that it’s the Demonic Teacher’s unique weapon. Apparently it’s  a heavenly item that is designed to match the yin-yang qi he has cultivated. 

A little self-consciously, Woon-seong responded with, “Thank you.”

After Woon-seong had sat down, the Demonic Teacher did too. With a smile, he pushed a teacup towards the young man. “Have a drink. I harvested the tea leaves myself.”

Woon-seong picked up the cup of tea and drank it, letting the aroma spread through his mouth. A simple but sincere taste…

“How do you like it?”

“It’s not bad.”

“So if it’s not bad, do you mean it’s not good either?” For some reason, the Demonic Teacher found this terribly funny and burst into laughter. “Hahahahaha!” After laughing until he teared up, Lee Shin-jung suddenly stopped smiling. His piercing gaze landed on the body of the Young Leader. “You’re quite an honest man, Young Leader.”

“I just said my thoughts as is.”

“Hmm. Frankness is a good trait. I like people who are honest.”

“…”

“Now, tell me. What brings you here to meet an old man like me?”

All the talk about honesty was to bring up this question. 

The Demonic Teacher wanted to know why Woon-seong was here, without the other trying to hide his intentions or omit details. 

Very well. Woon-seong smiled. I wasn’t intending to hide it anyways. 

As long as the Demonic Teacher wasn’t an idiot, it was obvious why Woon-seong was here. Plus, Joo Moon-baek had just been here for the same purpose. 

Woon-seong looked up and replied, “I’m here for the same reason as the Vice Leader.”

“For the same reason as the Joo kid, huh…”

The Demonic Teacher’s gaze turned away from Woon-seong, as if the other man was in thought. Instead, his gaze settled on the White Night Spear that Woon-seong had set to the side. 

His eyes curled up like crescent moons. 

“You have quite an interesting spear with you.”

Woon-seong felt like the conversation was going in the wrong direction, but accepted the topic change for now. 

“I found it in the Cult’s weapon vault.”

“Ho ho. I’m sure you found it because you had a connection with it. The question is just how deep that connection is…”

Woon-seong seemed to notice a peculiar light in the Demonic Teacher’s eyes. Does he know something about this spear? If that’s the reason he changed the subject…

“Do you know about this spear?”

At that, Lee Shin-jung smiled innocently. “It’s your spear. I’m sure you know much more about it than I possibly do.”

Woon-seong felt like that was a smile that held many hidden meanings. I’m sure that the Demonic Teacher knows something about the Dragon Fang Spear of the White Night. Then does he also know anything about the Unrecorded? What about the force that the Unrecorded left behind in the spear?

But Woon-seong was hesitant to bring up any of his secrets, so he eventually cleared his mind. “You’re right. This is my spear.”

“Ho ho ho.”

To this response, the Demonic Teacher only chuckled. 

What kind of laugh that was, Woon-seong had no idea. I have no idea what this man is thinking…

“Then I’ll get straight to the point. I wish you to help me instead of the Vice Leader.”

“You want me to help you?”

“I know you haven’t left your tower for a while, but I assume you are aware of the situation within the Cult. Am I wrong?”

The Demonic Teacher continued to smile as he chuckled at Woon-seong’s serious tone. “Ho ho ho.” 

Actually, Woon-seong wasn’t wrong. Although he bustled about as if he lived in a farm village, the Demonic Teacher had eyes everywhere in the Cult. While not everyone knew about it, Lee Shin-jung controlled the largest organization in the Cult. 

Of course, Woon-seong had no idea. He’d just assumed that this was something important enough to travel into the ears of the Demonic Teacher. 

“I only know that the conflict between the Joo kid and the Young Leader is at its peak… and you want me to help you with it?”

Woon-seong nodded.

Lee Shin-jung drained the cup of tea in front of him. 

“Help, you say… That isn’t too difficult. To be honest, that Joo kid came and asked for the same thing.”

Woon-seong’s eyes seemed to sparkle. 

That’s obvious enough. Considering that Joo Moon-baek is, strictly speaking, slightly losing against me, it is easy to predict that he was going to make a move.

“He asked me to help him, and if not, to be on nobody’s side. Do you wish for the same, Young Leader?”

Helping me would be the best case, but it would still be the next best thing if he at least decides to not help the Vice Leader. And Joo Moon-baek would have thought the same. 

Woon-seong nodded once more as he adjusted his grip on the White Night Spear. 

“If so, I have no choice but to ask you the same question I asked the Joo kid.”

The same question that he had asked Joo Moon-baek. 

Perhaps the Vice Leader had been unable to answer the question. Or, at least, he hadn’t given the answer Lee Shin-jung wanted. 

Considering the Demonic Teacher hasn’t made a move yet… 

With Woon-seong still in thought about the current situation, a question came from Lee Shin-jung. 

“Young Leader. Is what you seek simply my help or my sincere help?”

Technically, Woon-seong only needed the Demonic Teacher’s help. But it would be even better if someone like Lee Shin-jung was sincere, so the answer was already established. 

“It is your sincere help.”

Woon-seong believed that Joo Moon-baek would have given the same answer, so the important thing was the Demonic Teacher’s response. 

“Hmm. So it’s my sincere help. That makes sense.”

“…”

“But do you know? In order to earn my sincere help, you need to fulfill one condition.” 

Woon-seong learned forward as he listened. 

“If you cannot fulfill it… even the Leader himself cannot earn my sincerity.”

“And what is that condition?”

The question made the Demonic Teacher smile. He didn’t tell Woon-seong the answer to that. However… 

“You may already have the answer to that, Young Leader. You just might not know it.”

In other words, everything was up to Woon-seong.