Amitabha Sect
Fortunately, Bisa-yeong's body had not suffered any major injuries.
It seemed he had only fainted and been struck on his acupoints.
Relieved, I released his acupoints and then gave his annoying head a firm slap with my palm.
"Damn brat!"
Smack!
"Uwaaaah! Wh-what the hell?!"
The blow to his head jolted him awake.
For a moment he stared blankly at my face, then suddenly looked around in panic as if remembering something.
"Th-this place… huh? Ah! The Giant Power Demon! Where's the Giant Power Demon?!"
It didn't take long for his eyes to fall on the corpse of the demon lying nearby.
"The Giant Power Demon… he's dead?"
As he muttered in shock, Brother Sak explained.
"Young Brother Seonu said a hidden master suddenly appeared, slew the demon, and vanished."
But as he said it, his eyes flicked toward me. I could only avert my gaze.
What else could I say?
I had killed him—but it hadn't been me who did it.
Bisa-yeong, oblivious to the tension between us, only gasped in awe.
"Oooh! Incredible! That demon even used Strong Vitality Transformation, yet some master slew him in an instant?! Truly, the martial world is vast, and eccentric geniuses abound!"
Well… true, but still.
It was embarrassing.
Anyway, we headed to the place where Brother Sak had left Lady Jeong-yeon and rejoined her. Then, as she had said, we managed to rescue the other four women as well.
Among them were another disciple of the Amitabha Sect and three ordinary women.
What struck me most was that all of them were extraordinary beauties.
Though Amitabha Sect was a Buddhist order for female disciples, unlike the nuns of the Hangsan Sect or the Sword Pavilion, they did not shave their heads. Some were even permitted to marry with the sect's approval.
That was why, when I first met Lady Jeong-yeon, I never suspected she was an Amitabha disciple—I simply thought her a great beauty.
But upon seeing the others, I realized they were all even more beautiful than her.
Bisa-yeong whispered to me through sound transmission.
— I think I can guess the order in which those demons sacrificed the women. They probably saved the most beautiful ones for last.
Huh? So that's how it was?
Did they keep the greatest beauties until the end?
The newly freed Amitabha disciple reunited with Lady Jeong-yeon in tears for a long while, then finally wiped her face and introduced herself.
"I am Jeong-an of the Amitabha Sect! Thank you for saving our lives!"
Though her body was still weakened from the long acupoint sealing, she was bright and spirited.
Compared to the calm, composed Lady Jeong-yeon, she seemed even more vigorous.
And among the rescued women, she was easily the most stunning.
Bisa-yeong's face turned red as he tried not to meet her eyes.
I chuckled and teased him with a transmission.
— Why are you blushing more than when you first saw Lady Cheong-yeon? You look like some naive village boy.
He glared at me and muttered back,
— Lady Hae and Lady Tang were too unreal, like they weren't even human. This one feels… more real. That's all!
…What?
So he was saying Lady Cheong-yeon and Lady Tang were too beautiful to feel real, but Jeong-an was just a little less beautiful, so she rattled him?
Either way, if I repeated that to anyone, he'd be doomed. For the sake of my friend's future, I decided to let it slide.
Afterward, we asked the women why they had been captured by the Blood Cult's leaders.
Lady Jeong-yeon and Lady Jeong-an's answer startled us.
"What? You were investigating the Righteous Chivalry Gang (Jeonghyeopbang)?"
They nodded, eyes blazing with anger.
"Yes. Reports came in that women—martial and common alike—were disappearing. While investigating, we found signs that the disappearances were linked to Jeonghyeopbang… and then we were attacked and abducted by mysterious experts."
Afterward, their acupoints were sealed and they were confined with many other women, until the Giant Power Demon's group transported them here.
I asked urgently,
"So you didn't know these were Blood Cult leaders, or that the demon was Jeo Ungwon, the Giant Power Demon?"
Both shook their heads.
"No, not at all. We never imagined the Blood Cult's leaders would appear so far from the frontlines."
We exchanged looks.
"This is irrefutable evidence, isn't it?"
"Yes. At least an eighty-percent certainty. The Blood Cult's forward base is…"
I trailed off, and the three of us finished together:
"Jeonghyeopbang."
"So it's Jeonghyeopbang."
"It was Jeonghyeopbang."
My fists clenched.
At last, we had found the Blood Cult's forward base.
If we could reveal and destroy it publicly, this might be the decisive variable that would change everything from my previous life.
Perhaps we could prevent the great soul-harvesting calamity that had once destroyed my clan, the Seonu family, and devastated most of Guizhou.
The faces of my family members—turned into puppets by the Blood Cult and slain by my own hand—flashed before my eyes.
I ground my teeth.
This time… I will stop it.
Thanks to the Amitabha disciples, exposing this truth to the world would not be difficult.
And it seemed there were still more disciples imprisoned in Jeonghyeopbang—important ones, no less.
"Lady Jeong-in of Amitabha Sect, you say?"
"Yes. She is said to be the future leader of our sect. She remains imprisoned there."
That was tragic indeed—but if such a disciple were being held, the Amitabha Sect would surely act with full force.
And if one of the Nine Great Sects mobilized its full strength, Jeonghyeopbang's fate was sealed.
Encouraged, I said,
"Then you must return to Amitabha Sect at once, and report what has happened with Jeonghyeopbang and Lady Jeong-in. Only then can she be saved."
But strangely, the women glanced at each other with heavy expressions before replying reluctantly.
"Yes… we must."
Huh? That didn't sound convincing.
Their vague answer made us exchange uneasy looks.
"Is there some problem? Why that expression?"
Jeong-an sighed deeply before opening her mouth.
"That is…"
But Lady Jeong-yeon stopped her.
"Junior Sister, no!"
Then she bowed apologetically to us.
"I'm sorry. This involves our sect's internal matters. We cannot speak freely."
Sect matters…
So there really was a problem.
My head spun.
Without Amitabha Sect stepping forward, we could not hope to reveal the truth or strike against Jeonghyeopbang.
We could not possibly fight such a huge faction with only our small team.
And yet, if they claimed it was sect business, I could not press them for details.
It was a dilemma.
Bisa-yeong, watching my expression, suddenly spoke up.
"Lady Jeong-yeon, we have no interest in your sect's internal affairs. But this involves the Blood Cult. Surely, as disciples of one of the Nine Great Sects, you will not turn away from this matter?"
…Wait, what?
The sharp, pressing tone of Bisa-yeong's words startled me a little.
But it seemed Lady Jeong-yeon was even more flustered than I was.
"Wh-what?"
"Am I wrong? We risked our lives to rescue you, yet you say only that your sect is troubled—and now you would turn away from a matter involving the Blood Cult's leaders…?"
"N-no, I didn't mean we would ignore it."
"Then what are you saying?"
"T-that is…"
His words seemed a bit rude to me, but Lady Jeong-yeon was already stammering, trying to respond.
Wait… this is actually working?
This brat Bisa-yeong—he had some skill after all.
Lady Jeong-yeon wavered, exchanging a troubled glance with her junior, Lady Jeong-an.
Jeong-an then spoke firmly to her senior.
"Senior Sister, I agree with our benefactor. In front of those who saved our lives—over a matter that concerns the Blood Cult—it feels wrong as Amitabha disciples to hide behind sect politics."
As expected, Jeong-an was straightforward.
Meanwhile, I sent a quick transmission to Bisa-yeong.
— Sa-yeong, that was impressive. How did you think to say that?
He smirked and replied:
— Who's asking who? 'How can you act that way as a righteous sect disciple?' Isn't that the trick you're always using on us?
Ah… so that's what this is.
Still, it was bold of him to use such words on women we had just met. Very much in character for the reckless Bisa-yeong.
At last, Lady Jeong-yeon let out a sigh and spoke.
"Haa… I suppose I can't hide it. It may expose the shame of our sect, but I'll tell you the truth. Even if we were to report this, I doubt the sect would oppose Jeonghyeopbang or take any action."
Her words made no sense.
I frowned.
"I don't understand. Didn't you just say that Lady Jeong-in, the Sword Peak of Amitabha Sect, was captured? And this involves the Blood Cult's leaders. Yet your sect would not act?"
Lady Jeong-yeon nodded gravely.
She explained that the leadership of Amitabha Sect was fractured into several factions.
And those currently in power were aligned with the Martial Alliance—and even friendly with Jeonghyeopbang.
"Aligned with both the Martial Alliance and Jeonghyeopbang?"
"Yes. They value maintaining good relations with the Alliance… but for some reason, they also maintain ties with Jeonghyeopbang. In fact, not long ago, when Senior Sister Jeong-in accused Jeonghyeopbang of threatening us, she was punished with confinement."
The Alliance connection I could accept—but why would pro-Alliance elders also favor Jeonghyeopbang? That was ominous.
Could it be… does the Martial Alliance already know Jeonghyeopbang is the Blood Cult's forward base?
…No, surely not.
But recalling Amitabha Sect's history, I began to understand.
During the last Great Blood War, Amitabha Sect had been the only participating sect utterly annihilated—none of its disciples returned.
Even Cheongseong of Sichuan, Tang Clan, and other sects of Guizhou and Guangxi had not suffered such devastating losses.
But Amitabha Sect's disciples had all perished.
The Martial Alliance had honored them with grand memorials, praising their noble sacrifice.
Yet Lady Jeong-yeon's bitter smile said otherwise.
"Yes, the Alliance mourned us with grandeur—but they gave us no real support. Nothing to improve our circumstances."
Amitabha Sect had lost more than half its disciples—both juniors and elders.
With so many of the leadership dead, the lesser factions had risen, leaving the sect divided for over ten long years.
So, though still counted among the Nine Great Sects and the "Three Pillars of Sichuan," in truth Amitabha Sect had long since fallen behind—even surpassed by Jeonghyeopbang.
I had never known things were this dire.
Then something struck me.
"So the reason the pro-Alliance faction gained power is…?"
Lady Jeong-yeon nodded gloomily.
"Yes. Without the Martial Alliance's protection, we couldn't even keep our seat as one of the Nine Great Sects. If we anger them, we might be expelled from the Nine, like Mount Song Sect was. So the elders…"
"Haa…"
Terrible.
It might be better than Mount Song Sect, whose disciples were scattered after losing their base—but being leashed like a dog by the Martial Alliance, stripped of free will, was hardly better.
It seemed Amitabha Sect could not be relied upon.
Even if they denounced Jeonghyeopbang, they lacked the strength to sway the world.
Sighing, I asked about Lady Jeong-in's punishment.
"So Lady Jeong-in was confined?"
"Yes. She was supposed to remain in the meditation hall under confinement. But she has never obeyed the orders of the sect leader and elders. When she heard of the missing women, she ignored their commands and investigated in secret… and then was captured."
"I see…"
So that was why they were reluctant—because she had disobeyed orders.
And since the elders favored Jeonghyeopbang, reporting the truth would be even harder.
Bisa-yeong groaned impatiently.
"Even so, this involves the Blood Cult's leaders! And your own sect's disciple is kidnapped—her fate unknown. What could be more important than that?"
He was right.
Yet Lady Jeong-yeon's face remained heavy.
"That is true, but…"
Then Lady Jeong-an cut in.
"The elders won't believe a report that links Jeonghyeopbang to the Blood Cult. They'll think we're lying to slander Jeonghyeopbang instead."
Our jaws dropped.
Bisa-yeong muttered unconsciously,
"At that point, the sect's completely screwed, what a—mmph!"
Luckily, I clamped his mouth shut before he finished.
I forced a laugh.
"Completely! Restructuring is needed, haha!"
Thankfully, the ladies didn't seem to understand him. …But why was Lady Jeong-yeon avoiding my eyes, and Lady Jeong-an covering her mouth?
The next moment, Jeong-an couldn't hold it back and burst out with a laugh.
Ah. So they had heard, and were just pretending otherwise.
As always, Bisa-yeong only managed to look impressive once a month, if that.
Either way, what we had learned from them was troublesome.
If they returned to report, they might be punished instead.
Even though the Amitabha Sword Peak herself was in peril, that was the sect's reality.
So now what?
If not Amitabha Sect, who could we turn to?
Mount San Sword Sect? The Martial Alliance? Or should I return to the Seonu Clan?
As I wrestled with these thoughts, Lady Jeong-an's eyes suddenly sparkled. She turned to her senior.
"Senior Sister, what about asking Senior Brother Hwa for help?"