After the competition ended, gossip around the world of Murim about the competition results spread like wildfire.
Tea House in Central Plains
"Have you heard? Not a single one of the Righteous Alliance's disciples even dared to reach the finals!"
"Hah! You mean they withdrew like frightened rabbits. I saw one boy from Shaolin trembling so badly he couldn't even hold his staff."
"Understandable, after all they're from Shaolin Temple and Jinhye withdrew in the competition just like three others and many evil and demonic master's are still lurking here..."
"Even Kunlun's disciples looked pale! The whole competition was dominated by unaffiliated wanderers, demonic sect disciples, and evil faction brats… The righteous path has truly lost its glory."
"How can't they not looked pale? Jeong Harin lost her life in that bloody competition!!!"
"Lost its glory? They've been humiliated. Mark my words, this will stain their reputation for decades."
Rowdy Tavern in the Northern Provinces where the Martial Wanderers gathered
"Did you fools see that duel between the Peerless Little Demon Lord and the Laughing Ghost Wanderer?!"
"See? No one saw a damn thing! Only the sound of blades singing through the air, faster than lightning!"
"It was just a show for the masters to see!"
"Masters my ass!!! Ptui!! I'm a Peak Expert and I couldn't even see a damn thing!!!"
"Haaaa! What can we do? They're monsters! We should distance ourselves to them..."
"I swear, I heard Mo Haryun's eerie laughter echoing like a ghost at midnight… I never thought a laugh could be that ugly.... and then—BAM!—a single strike and he was bleeding all over the arena."
"We all heard that, idiot!"
"What's more shocking than Mo Haryun following that kid Lucian like a loyal dog. HA! The world truly has gone mad. A seventeen-year-old commanding the Laughing Ghost Wanderer?! Absurd!!!"
"Absurd or not, I'm not laughing. That boy's sword is faster than death itself…"
"I know.... That boy is only seventeen yet he won the competition like nothing... I heard they never even scratch him!!!"
Kunlun Sect Grounds
"Senior Sister Harin… She's really gone. I can't believe this… sniff..." one of the closest disciples of Jeong Harin said while crying.
"We can only steel our hearts now.... hic.... I... I never thought senior would die meaninglessly....."
"She was our Kunlun's most gifted disciple in centuries… and her to be killed in front of the entire Jianghu just like that. She died before she can even mature... poor senior sister.... hic...." since Jeong Harin is only 16, she never even venture out of the sect yet.
"And by Matheus no less—the Young Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult. If even she couldn't withstand a single strike, what hope do the rest of us have?"
"Master says this shame will haunt our Kunlun sect for generations… but how do we fight demons who walk among us as if they're our kings? What will happen to righteousness now? Who will defend it??"
"Shhh! Don't let the Elders hear you speak such defeatist words."
Inside the Baek Clan Manor
"Did you see the Patriarch's face? The entire clan is in mourning…"
"Of course!!! Young master Yuhwan is our Clan successor! And the most talented descendant of the patriarch!"
"Young master Baek Yuhwan… our precious young master, our future Patriarch, torn apart in front of thousands..... those evil factions will definitely pay for this!!!"
"I heard Seo Hwa-rin smiled as she did it, like she was mocking our Baek Clan itself!"
"Her name will be cursed by the clan for generations… but curses won't bring back the dead. What will happen to our future now? Other young masters isn't as talented as young master Yuhwan...."
"HA!!! And now the entire Jianghu whispers that our Baek Clan is no longer untouchable. The wolves will smell blood soon...."
"We should prepare ourselves!"
Shadowy Tavern in Demonic Territory
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!! Did you see their faces?! Kunlun's pride, gone! The Baek Clan's heir, gone! The righteous dogs didn't even bark this time!"
"What will they do? They're the one that provoke us with that competition!!!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! That Han Daehyun brat helped us have a reason to kill them!!! What a fool! Tsk!!"
"If he's one of us, he'll have died long ago with a mindset like that.... What a waste of talent!"
"But.... that Seo Hwa-rin of the evil faction is different… that girl has guts. She made her name more well-known with that one kill. A brutal one at that!"
"HEHEHEHE!!! She killed the precious grandson of the Baek Patriarch, it seems war will commence again between evil faction and righteous alliance!"
"War? Ptui!!! They're crippled now! Will they dare wage war now? They'll be quiet for a long time... Trust me."
"And our Young Leader, the way he crushed Kunlun's genius with just one strike… Truly worthy of leading the future of the Heavenly Demon Cult."
"That to be expected! After all, he's our young leader! How can he be weak like those righteous greenhorns???"
"But... that boy Lucian… even young leader shows him respect. If he's not from the Heavenly Demon Cult, then where did he come from?"
"I know that Lucian brat is not a member of our Cult, I've never even saw him before! Who's that and why is Young Leader Matheus so respectful to him?"
"Who cares? He's a demon in human skin. And I like it."
"And have you heard????!!! Young leader is escorting him and Mo Haryun to our headquarters! We should hurry and go back now! How can we miss this chance???"
"What?!!! That lunatic Mo Haryun is coming too???!!"
"Idiot!! Of course, isn't he the dog of that Lucian brat now?"
Inns and Marketplaces
"Seventeen years old, they say. Seventeen! And yet that boy Lucian defeated everyone with ease."
"How can we rebuke it when we saw it ourselves.... That boy... I swear!!! He's a demon incarnate! Those eyes of him... It's devoid of life, I tell you! I felt shivers just by remembering when our eyes met!" A trembling master said.
"Ha! I relate to that!!! Just look at the sword he used! It was a demonic sword!"
"They call him the Peerless Little Demon Lord now."
"The way he fights… it's like he was born for bloodshed."
"I saw a glimpse of his sword technique! I tell you, it was made for taking life not protecting it!!!" A drunken grandmaster said who claimed to see the glimpse of Lucian's swordsmanship.
"Some say he's Matheus' sworn brother. Others say he's a hidden heir of the Heavenly Demon himself."
"He's no better than those demonic cultist so it doesn't matter! All that is clear is he's not walking the righteous path!"
"No matter what he is… one thing's certain. This Dragon and Phoenix Competition was no place for heroes. It became a stage for demons."
"Ha.... Well, it was indeed the arrogance of righteous alliance to provoke such lunatics to join this year's Dragon and Phoenix competition that lead to their disaster now...."
Whispers Across the Martial World
"Kunlun's brightest star has fallen. The Baek Clan has lost its treasure. The righteous sects are humiliated. The demonic path grows stronger by day. Ha..... this is a new era... only strength will speak louder now."
"Lucian... Mo Haryun… Matheus… and Seo Hwa-rin… these names will definitely shake the future of Jianghu...."
"It is our misfortune to be born in this era... Now all we can do is better ourselves in our martial arts or we'll die pitifully like those righteous brats..."
"Sighhhh!.... They say the heavens themselves trembled during this competition. Perhaps the world truly belongs to demons now...."
Despite people talking big about them, Lucian, Mo Haryun, and Matheus stayed inside the private room of an inn in Tiandu. One was eating, and the two were talking to themselves. Each of them had their own world.
"Hmmm… it seems I finally get to see my master's sect." Lucian muttered to himself when Mo Haryun suddenly replied.
"Your master? Heekekeke!! Where?"
"Where else? The Heavenly Demon Cult."
"Kehehehe… I knew it… hehehe… not a drop of righteousness in you… Kekekeke…"
"Cease that senseless laughter. Tch, I'm beginning to question why I bothered to bring you along… Hmph, now that I think of it, I never bothered to learn your name. From this day forth, I shall call you Shrieking Fool—a title befitting that grating laughter of yours."
"Ehhh?! Leader!!! Sooo… are you, too, a little pet of the current Cheonma? Kekekeke!"
"Silence. I've no desire to exchange words with you. Ugly mutt!"
"HEKEKEKE! How rude of you, Leader! You're offending me… do you want to see what happens next to those who offended me?!"
Then they suddenly start going for each other's necks again. They'd been like this for days now, but of course, they didn't use their weapons, only fighting with their martial arts. The only pitiful one to witness this repeated scene was Matheus.
"Why am I even sitting with these two? Ha… I can't believe I need to bring them to our Cult… I'd rather deal with assassins than deal with them… I should keep my distance."
Matheus took his food and stayed at the farthest corner of the room.
These two, Lucian and Mo Haryun, had been fighting like this every chance they got. There was no peace with the two of them around. Their moods changed constantly, and Matheus had simply given up on them, deciding to mind his own business.
"I'm not paying for whatever damages you cause…" Matheus said, as they had already destroyed three inns because of their… bonding. And of course, Matheus refused to pay for them.
"Ahem…" Lucian said, stopping, as he didn't have much money left after paying for the damages at those three inns. All the money he received from Jin Hwa-ryu was almost gone now, since Mo Haryun was just as broke as him and had no money to pay. And as his leader, well, he paid it. He had no choice anyway.
Then silence. They went back to their own seats again and began eating like nothing happened. Then…
"Kehehehhe!!!!"
"By the will of the heavens, restrain your tongue!!!!"
And boom, they were at it again.
"Aghhh! This is madness!!!!! Why am I being dragged here?!!!!!" Matheus almost wanted to scream at them, but they'd just punch him at best, like the first time he tried stopping them. So now, he could only shut his mouth and leave them alone, knowing they'd stop at some point and act like nothing happened again. See? They were back to normal again.
"Plop"—sitting in their own seats again.
"We should go now since we've already finished eating, and we've been staying in Tiandu for three days now. Who knows if the Righteous Alliance will suddenly ambush us knowing we're still in Tiandu." Matheus said. Actually, he just wants to bring them to his master and be done with them. And since Mo Haryun was Lucian's subordinate, he tagged along too.
"They should then! HEKEKEKEKE! Let's wipe them already… tsk… pathetic bastards… ptui!" Mo Haryun replied.
But Lucian agreed with Matheus. "Alright."
Actually, they were only fighting each other because of how bored they were after staying so long in this province. Lucian was doing it to temper his own hand-to-hand combat, while Mo Haryun was doing this for fun of having someone to fight him without being defeated. To be honest, Mo Haryun's laughter was really irritating to the ears—Lucian would rather hear his sword shriek than listen to Mo Haryun.
While irritating, Lucian also found him funny. Something about his personality was amusing to him. They always fought over small things, and this was the first time Lucian had a subordinate as weird as Mo Haryun. I mean, in his previous world, who would dare to quarrel with him?
Lucian didn't discriminate between those strong and weak as long as they had the mentality of getting better and doing everything they could to improve. What he despised were those strong but cowardly people and those weak ones content with being weak, doing nothing to better their situation. This wasn't without reason. In his past world, he discovered why his father died on the battlefield. His father was known as the Tyrant Emperor, obviously strong and capable of defending himself. Even if they suffered defeat, Lucian knew his father had the ability to escape. How could such a man bear to leave his family alone?
He started investigating what really happened and found out that his father would have won the war. The military plan was perfect, everything was in place, and they would surely have defeated the other empire. But a mishap occurred, and a strong commander emerged on the battlefield. That commander was from the enemy camp. His father revised the plan and set an ambush for that commander. He and a few generals went to carry out the ambush and successfully ambushed him. But they didn't expect that commander to be hiding more of his strength. Emperor Callistus fought to the death with that commander, while his generals cowered in fear after seeing the opponent was much stronger than anticipated. If they had helped the Emperor instead of fleeing, Callistus might have at least escaped with them. But no, they left their Emperor and fled for their lives.
It was an understandable and wise decision to save themselves in that situation, but how could Lucian accept that? It was logical, but it cost his father's life. How could he let it go when he knew they might have saved his father if they had just tried?
From that day onward, he hated cowards—both weak and strong. No, that's an understatement. He despised cowardly people deep in his heart. People couldn't help it if they were born weak, but they could do something about it. Thus, he found Jin Hwa-ryu and Mo Haryun amusing. Mo Haryun knew he would never win against Lucian but still purposely pissed him off to start a fight. Although suicidal, Lucian would rather have allies like that since he knew these types of people wouldn't flee in front of stronger enemies.
And as for Jin Hwa-ryu, Lucian liked that guy because even if he knew he was weak—of course, by Lucian's standards—he took the initiative to ask Lucian to duel with him and teach him, unlike other successors who fled with their tails tucked. It showed his desire to become stronger, the desire not to be content with being a frog in a well. Such people could achieve greatness someday, and he didn't hate them.
So, the three of them finally left Tiandu and went on their journey using their own movement techniques to travel toward the territory of the Heavenly Demon Cult.