A moment of silence ensued.
Ma Taryong was staring at him blankly as they looked at each other.
He knew properly answering Seol-Hwi wouldn’t be easy.
He had no idea how deep Seol-Hwi’s knowledge was, and it was especially difficult to deal with those who spoke vaguely.
“…”
“…”
With no words, a war of nerves continued.
Ma Taryong is one of the Seven Messengers, and Seol-Hwi had been able to defeat one of them.
So, all his subordinates knew that the current standoff would be more important than a sword fight.
Because of that, no one spoke.
“Eh… this time he did what? That’s not possible. Why would someone from the Seven Messengers ask the Demon Lord for help instead?”
Of course, someone is bound to break the silence.
And as always. Imugi, who didn’t fully grasp the situation, decided to fan the flames.
“…”
“…”
However, the standoff between the two men still continued.
Ma Taryong’s eyes suddenly started to tremble to which the gears started turning in Seol-Hwi’s head.
He must be thinking very deeply about this.
After receiving the question, Ma Taryong could neither give a straight answer nor deny it altogether.
To deny it would mean refuting what had already been discovered. And Ma Taryong didn’t have time to fully process everything.
It was most likely because he didn’t know to what extent Seol-Hwi knew about it, so he ended up being cautious about what he would divulge.
As a result, the longer the silence continued, the more difficult it would be to lie.
He might be eventually forced to answer, and depending on the answer, he might be asked to leave. What happens if issues arise after that?
Or say if while they were retreating and the troops of Demon Lord attacked Mount Hua’s hideout, then these people would not even have an ounce of trust in him.
“…How did you know?”
It was the correct choice.
Ma Taryong finally admitted it, with a tired face.
“Tell me why first and then I will let you know where I heard it from.”
Seol-Hwi pushed him further. Somehow, he had to maintain the upper hand.
Now was the time for him to listen rather than giving away anything.
“Phew.”
Finally, he sighed and raised a hand.
“I hoped the Fourth Disciple wouldn’t make a risky choice.”
“…Risky choice?”
Everyone turned to him as he calmly poured out his thoughts.
“Right. Because here, no, where I got caught, there was a warrior that our people could never defeat.”
At that, Seol-Hwi nodded his head,
“Goo Jong-Myung is who you are talking about.”
“…!?”
And he was shocked again. It seemed like he felt his body go cold.
“Who are you? How do you know so much and in such detail?”
“Didn’t I tell you that I am from the Hidden Truth Corps multiple times already?”
Seol-Hwi spoke sternly this time.
“It is very strange. As you said, you are convinced that the Demon Lord and not the Earth Demon will save you? Why?”
“I wasn’t that certain. It’s not like I asked them to save me or anything in the first place. Rather I just let them know where the Mount Hua hideout was located.”
At those words, Seo Ryeong frowned.
“Then you mean you got caught on purpose, to weaken the troops of the Second Disciple?”
“What do you mean?”
Everyone turned to her at those words.
Seo Ryeong who caught their attention, pointed her finger to one side and said,
“If the Demon Lord was told about Mount Hua having a hideout here… He is someone who greatly desires achievements in order to be recognized further, which means he will attack as soon as possible. If a few more clues are added in… he would prepare very thoroughly.”
Regardless of how strong the Second Disciple was, it was natural to suffer a great loss if there was a battle with Mount Hua.
Afterwards, when the troops of the Second Disciple have been decreased due to the fight, he who had never felt vulnerable before will start to worry.
It was a plan to preserve the power of the Earth Demon while keeping the First and Second Disciples in line.
And informing them about the existence of the Mount Hua hideout was just an added bonus.
“Is that so? You didn’t ask Earth Demon for help. If you stayed still, you would have profited more.”
“Just who…?”
At the words that Seo Ryeong pointed out, Ma Taryong looked more puzzled.
Wasn’t his plan executed meticulously?
“With all that said, I wonder if he doesn’t know that now, because he isn’t stupid.”
When Jeok Song said that, this time Yong Jin and Yorim answered,
“If I were the Second Disciple, I don’t think I would pay much attention to that. It is because Mount Hua is a place which has such a strong presence here.”
“I agree with that. Now, it seems like he will be frantic with his people trying to get something out of this situation. Ah, right, captain. What about my weapon?”
When Seol-Hwi handed it over, Yong Jin thanked him.
After everyone said their piece, they turned to Imugi, who had pursed his lips as if he had something to say.
“You don’t get to talk.”
“Be quiet.”
“Can’t you read the atmosphere?”
Jeok Song, Yorim, and Seo Ryeong warned him.
Imugi, however, continued to speak anyway.
“Why will the Third Disciple not intervene here?”
He said what shouldn’t have been said.
Seol-Hwi and the team rested for a while.
Jeok Song, Yorim, and Yong Jin were on lookout duty, keeping an eye while Seo Ryeong was checking the condition of Songhwa.
In the meantime, Imugi was moving around under the night sky to bring branches, leaves, and various other things.
He was gathering them to set up camp and start a fire.
Seol-Hwi was sitting alone in the forest a couple steps away.
As usual, he was sitting on the trunk of a tree looking at the leaves.
However, Seol-Hwi’s mind wasn’t trying to predict where the leaves would land. Instead, he was thinking of the fierce battle a while back
I got them right three or four times out of ten.
He was thinking about how often he predicted movements of the elders correctly.
Left or right, front or back, to anticipate whether or not they will move.
After the most recent fight, it felt like the movements of his opponent kept replaying in the head.
Is there a way to be more accurate at predicting their next move?
Honestly, being able to predict three to four moves out of ten could be done by anyone.
Seven, no, he needed to be able to predict at least five out of ten moves properly to be able to react in an acceptable manner.
If that happens, then his fights would be significantly different from what they are now.
Just like the moves AI showed in the past.
“There…”
As Seol-Hwi’s thought process continued, a man with a strong physique approached.
It was Ma Taryong.
The condition he was in was quite poor. He had visible injuries on his body, and he looked exhausted from dealing with internal injuries.
He had to have suffered through harsh torture methods which he wouldn’t talk about.
Even so, seeing how he could still walk proved that he was a skilled warrior.
“You haven’t answered my question yet,” said Ma Taryong as he sat on the tree trunk.
Right, Ma Taryong did answer him but he hadn’t gotten the answer to his question in return yet.
So Seol-Hwi bluntly said,
“Someone who knew the future told me.”
“Well, future… someone? Who is he?”
“You wouldn’t know them even if I told you. I myself don’t know much about him either.”
Is it because the answer was too outlandish for him? Seol-Hwi felt Ma Taryong stare at him.
But what if it was true?
“I’m being serious and am telling the truth.”
“You don’t know who he is, but you still believed him. Are you seriously saying that?”
“At that time I didn’t have any other choice, I wasn’t strong enough to get through such situations on my own.”
“What are you even talking about!”
Ma Taryong turned angry.
But when he looked into the eyes of Seol-Hwi, it felt like there was no reason for Seol-Hwi to lie.
Even so, he still couldn’t believe it.
“Finally, I have a present for you.”
“…?”
Ma Taryong who was about to get up looked startled.
Present?
“I’ve never tried it, but I think it should be fine.”
The other person continued to say things he couldn’t understand.
However,
[Using the fourth slot Ten Thousand Year Pill]
Shh!
A clear light shone from Ma Taryong’s body, and it slowly faded after a while.
In response, Ma Taryong’s expression changed from being enraged.
“How did you do it?”
He was in shock.
Something amazing had happened.
“It is one of my abilities. With this pill here, you can immediately recover without even having to cultivate.”
A bit back.
Seol-Hwi used the pill in the golden belt.
<Would you like to use the pill on> ▶ You ▷ Ma Taryong
And he used it on the Ma Taryong.
It showed the effect of recovering around 50 million health and internal energy.
“Ah…”
As a result, Ma Taryong’s body was fully restored.
His lost internal energy and dantian which was on the verge of destruction had made a full recovery. Previously, his condition was one where he would need months of rest to fully recover.
“Actually, I was going to use it when I was in trouble. But now you need it more than me. There will come a time when I will need your strength more than mine.”
“…Ah, really.”
“It might not sound great, but please at the very least believe me when I say I came to help you.”
Ma Taryong didn’t respond to the statement.
It seemed as if the answer was already given considering his body had recovered thanks to this man’s mercy.
“H-how did you do that?”
Songhwa woke up after an hour or so.
Perhaps the brief break helped, his body looked in much better shape.
“It requires very special training, and a good brain is a bonus.”
As Imugi’s hand turned as small as his own, Songhwa’s eyes went wide in surprise.
He looked and touched it a few times.
He was displaying the behavior of a normal young boy.
“I-I also want to learn that!”
“Oh my. You cannot learn it with your current skills. This isn’t a kid’s game.”
“Ah…”
At those words, Songhwa’s shoulders dropped in disappointment
“How-ev-er. Who am I! Am I not the one who makes the impossible possible?”
“Wow! As expected!”
Songhwa jumped up in joy, enjoying the show.
“Tch.”
Seo Ryeong, who saw the exchange, clicked her tongue.
Trying to do things which destroyed the childhood of a child and making him listen to ridiculous things didn’t sit well with her.
“Seo Ryeong.”
Seol-Hwi called for her.
“What is it?”
“Let’s talk.”
Seol-Hwi waved and turned back as Seo Ryeong tilted her head and followed him, wondering what he wanted.
There were a few tree stumps surrounded by trees. And there she asked,
“What is it?”
“I wanted to make sure about your ability?”
“Why…”
Seo Ryeong was a little shocked as Seol-Hwi calmly said,
“Somehow, it seems like you have the ability to foresee the future like Songhwa.”
Seol-Hwi definitely remembered that the special ability which was written in her status window was foresight.
At first, he thought nothing of it, but after meeting Songhwa he remembered it again.
He wondered if she was the same as Songhwa.
“Well, it can be said to be similar.”
Seol-Hwi nodded at her abstract words.
Actually, this wasn’t what he wanted to ask.
“Then you see astrological signs?”
“Astrology…”
“Like Songhwa. Songhwa can see the future but also read the stars. Of course you can as well.”
“That too will be the same answer, it’s similar.”
Another abstract answer. Seol-Hwi felt that there was a story behind this.
“But was this what you really wanted to talk about?”
“No.”
Seol-Hwi shook his head as he turned to the sky before opening his mouth.
“It is about this mission.”
“…Yes, captain.”
“Do you think all of us can lie?”
Seo Ryeong looked at him wide eyed.
“Tell me honestly, what does this look like to you?”
Despite his question, she chose to stay silent as she was unable to figure out what the intention behind it was.
But perhaps, unable to stay silent, she said,
“I don’t know.”
Feeling his gaze on her, she continued,
“Still, one thing we know is that something bad will happen. I don’t know what that something is, but…”
“Thank you.”
Before she could finish, he thanked her and looked around, and then moved to where the rest of their members were.
Ma Taryong was cultivating with Seo Ryeong while looking into the distance with an unknown expression. Imugi and Songhwa on the other hand were still talking.
“Do you know anything about women?”
“Uh? Women? I am still…”
“Too young. That is this young brother’s area of expertise. I will let you know when the time comes, so make up your mind.”
“T-thank you.”
Imugi chuckled.
Songhwa nodded his head.
Seol-Hwi, however, didn’t like this.
“Tell me the safest route to retreat to the main Sect from here.”
The simulation he tried to use before calling Seo Ryeong.
The reason why he hadn’t used it today was because of this.
Of course, Seol-Hwi did expect it to show him the optimal route.
And his prediction was right.
But then something strange showed up.
<Upon choosing an option the additional details will be provided> ▶ Route 1 (Condition) Songhwa dies ▷ Route 2 (Condition) Songhwa dies ▷ Route 3 (Condition) Songhwa dies
The condition dependent on which choice was selected.
It was Songhwa’s death.
It was also a part that made him understand why the AI never talked about Songhwa.
