Chapter 688

Baeksang stood alone before a mirror.

The mirror Southern Heaven Demon Empress had given him was large enough to reflect his entire body, unlike an ordinary one. Its surface was smooth, without a single scratch. Even in the Central Plains, let alone Nanman, a mirror of such quality would be hard to find.

But Baeksang looked into it for one reason alone: in his reflection, he could see the face of the son who looked just like him.

This has never happened before.

For more than forty years, he had steadied himself whenever he wavered. He had done it countless times to reach this position. Yet now he was more shaken than ever.

That must mean the grand plan I’ve spent decades carrying out is nearing its end.

A door opened behind him, and a familiar face appeared. Baeksang met the Captain of the Guards’ eyes in the mirror.

“Have you brought him?”

The Captain hesitated at the sight of his lord standing lost in thought, then answered.

“He’s on his way.”

“Then why are you here?”

“An urgent report.”

“An urgent report…”

Baeksang let the words trail off and crooked a finger. The Captain approached and lowered his voice.

“Last night, a massive wildfire was spotted three hundred li¹ to the north.”

“Ailao Mountain.”

“Yes.”

“Jin Taekyung must have started it.”

“We need to confirm that, but given everything that’s happened, he’s the most likely culprit.”

“It was Jin Taekyung. Once again, it seems glory-blinded moths have rushed toward the flames.”

“The small and midsized tribes near Ailao Mountain joined forces, or so we’re told. They attacked him with five hundred warriors and a hundred beasts, but…”

Baeksang waved him silent. He had heard enough. Five hundred stragglers hastily gathered together could do nothing to Jin Taekyung.

The saying the few cannot overcome the many meant different things depending on who the opponent was. Jin Taekyung clearly lay outside the equation.

“I can guess how that ended. What happened to Jin Taekyung afterward?”

“They say he routed the warriors, then headed toward Ailao Mountain alone.”

“He must have a purpose. The Poisonblood Grounds, perhaps?”

“The fire was too fierce for anyone to confirm where he went. It started at the mountain’s entrance and has already spread halfway up.”

“He means to see this through.”

Ailao Mountain was among the most forbidding mountains in Nanman. Its slopes were treacherous, its valleys deep. Winding ridges stretched for a hundred li¹ beneath a seemingly endless cover of ancient trees.

Now that a wildfire had settled over Ailao Mountain, it would take at least three full days and nights before there was even a sign of the flames dying down.

The whole mountain might burn.

If it was a coincidence, it was a remarkable one. Fire had not swept through Ailao Mountain in over two hundred years. The last time it had, someone from the Fire Gate Clan had used the entire mountain for kindling to destroy the Five Poisons Sect.

That was how Nanman found peace again.

But would it happen that way this time?

Baeksang studied his reflection in silence, then spoke.

“Evacuate every tribesperson living nearby. Choose three thousand capable warriors and blockade Ailao Mountain.”

The Captain of the Guards had continued his report impassively, but a flicker of agitation crossed his face.

“Three thousand? When we’ve already ordered a general mobilization across Nanman?”

“We need to hold Jin Taekyung there, if only as a precaution.”

“But my lord, even with that many men, we can’t surround the entire mountain…”

“For all its size, Ailao Mountain has few passable entrances. Deploy them accordingly.”

After a moment’s thought, the Captain bowed his head.

“As you command.”

“What of the other chieftains?”

“As I reported, five chieftains have disappeared. So have the warriors under the two chieftains who set out earlier with the scouting party.”

“So it comes to this. They refuse to accept reality.”

Baeksang’s voice was calm.

The missing chieftains were the ones who had never switched sides. Their loyalty to the Beast Miao King had held firm. Some had even spat at Baeksang when he tried to win them over.

“My lord, they’ve undoubtedly betrayed us. It isn’t too late to send men after them—”

Baeksang shook his head.

“Someone told me not long ago that one diseased tree does not make an entire forest sick. We need only thin out the afflicted trees.”

“You mean…”

“Thirty-two tribes have shared this land for centuries. I’ve often wondered how much longer that arrangement ought to last.”

The Captain’s eyes widened as he grasped his meaning.

“Thirty-two is too many to bring together behind one purpose,” Baeksang continued, his voice low. “It’s time to thin out the diseased trees and put the forest in order.”

Expulsion. Or elimination.

The will of the man who had driven out this land’s longtime ruler and taken his throne was unmistakable.

The Captain stared at his lord, mouth open, before asking, “What should we do?”

“If they leave, let them. Should they return home and rally their warriors, we’ll have both a justification and the strength to act.”

The Captain knew the balance of power had tipped long ago. But one man still worried him.

“If the Palace Lord—no, if Yayul Cheok joins them, it won’t be so simple.”

Baeksang regarded him for a moment.

“Long ago, while I was staying in the Central Plains, I heard an interesting story.”

“My lord?”

“A monkey was born from stone. Its nature was so fierce, and its strength so great, that Shakyamuni, whom the monks of the Central Plains revere, offered it a wager: could it escape the palm of his hand?”

His calm voice held the Captain’s attention.

“The monkey snorted and accepted. It rode a cloud to the edge of the world and even scribbled on five pillars it found there. Only when it returned did it learn that those pillars had been Shakyamuni’s fingers.”

Baeksang slowly opened his hand toward the mirror.

The enormous Palace Lord’s Hall seemed to fit in his palm. Sky and river, earth and mountain—even if the mirror had shown all of Nanman, it would have fit there too.

“Yayul Cheok is no different. Now that I hold this position, he can never escape.”

“Then…”

“We have word that he went east. Take a thousand Bai warriors and pursue him yourself.”

“As you command.”

The Captain bowed, then moved his lips again.

“I beg your pardon, but we’re dealing with the Beast Miao King. As a precaution, perhaps you should deploy the Baekcheon Unit.”

Baeksang silently shook his head. The Baekcheon Unit was the blade he had secretly honed for decades.

He had to draw and wield it when it was most needed.

“That will be all. Our guest has arrived. You may go.”

He was speaking to the Captain, but his gaze—fixed on the mirror throughout their conversation—had found the old man standing in the open doorway.

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

After confirming that the Captain of the Guards had left the Palace Lord’s Hall, Baeksang slowly turned around.

“You’ve come, Head Elder.”

The greeting was matter-of-fact. The answer was not.

“Shut that filthy mouth of yours.”

THUD.

An old man approached, leaning on a cane. Age spots covered his face, and every patch of exposed skin was wrinkled. Anger burned in the corners of his eyes, where fluid had gathered.

“You wretched bastard.”

“I see you overheard us.”

“Do you think this old man doesn’t know what’s in your black heart? You meant for me to hear, didn’t you?”

“If you mean what I said about Yayul Cheok—the villain who defied the Tribal Grand Council to save a murderer, then betrayed the Nanman Beast Palace—yes.”

“You bastard!”

WHOOSH! CLACK.

The old man swung his cane with all his strength. Baeksang caught it in one hand.

There was little force behind the blow, and no internal energy to speak of. Baeksang took the cane from him with ease, then flicked his sleeve. Invisible qi forced the old man down into a seat.

“You’ve aged since I last saw you. Your temper hasn’t changed, though.”

The old man trembled.

“If I’d known you would do this, I’d have beaten you to death with my own hands long ago.”

“But far too much time has passed for that. Yayul Cheok has betrayed the Palace and fled. The fate of the Miao people now rests with a boy you once caught stealing fruit wine and scolded soundly.”

“……!”

“It’s time to leave the distant past behind and think about what comes next. With the Chieftain and Lesser Chieftain gone, everything depends on the choice you make as Great Chieftain of the Miao people.”

The old man—the Miao Head Elder—glared at Baeksang for a long moment.

“So you’ve seized Nanman after all. Such ugly greed.”

“Call it what you like. There’s nothing I won’t do to obtain what I so desperately want.”

“You’re Palace Lord of the Nanman Beast Palace now. What more could you want? Do you mean to get your hands on the Beast King Stone and become a god?”

Baeksang shook his head.

“I have no interest in some ancient sacred treasure passed down only by word of mouth. What I want now is the future—and your wise choice, Head Elder.”

“The boy I remember wasn’t like this.”

“I changed. Everything does.”

“The Palace Lord trusted you. Even though I told him to be so wary, he trusted his one and only sworn brother.”

“Not every act of trust needs to be repaid.”

“It isn’t too late. Even now—”

“I crossed that river long ago. Once you’re on a tiger’s back, you can’t climb down. Now it’s your turn to get on, Head Elder.”

CRACK.

Bones shifted in the old man’s tightly clenched fist.

“So that’s what you want from this old man. You want me to betray the Palace Lord?”

“Of course not.”

Baeksang picked up his teacup.

“I want all the Miao people to betray him. You included.”

“……!”

“Read the situation carefully, if you want to save more than ten thousand of your people.”

“You bastard!”

“Remember: this is my first and last offer.”

Baeksang tilted the teacup.

The Head Elder squeezed his eyes shut.

After a short silence, his hoarse voice broke through.

“Impossible.”

CLACK.

Baeksang set down the teacup and stared at the Head Elder with deeply sunken eyes.

“Won’t you regret that answer?”

“Kill me instead. Ask any Miao person, and you’ll hear the same answer.”

“You haven’t disappointed me.”

Baeksang snapped his fingers. The closed door opened, revealing Bai warriors.

“Lock up the entire Miao leadership in the underground prison, including the Head Elder.”

The warriors bowed, took the Head Elder by either arm, and pulled him to his feet.

The old man, whose day of death was approaching, cried out in a ringing voice.

“Baeksang! You bastard! Aren’t you afraid of Heaven?”

By the time his scream had gradually faded into the distance, Baeksang was looking down at the empty teacup and muttering.

“What more is there to fear? Heaven’s will brought me this far.”

There had been a time when he resented Heaven.

After the Great Faction War ended and he returned to Nanman, Baeksang spent every day drunk. He drank as though each day were his last, then despaired when the next morning’s sunlight woke him.

Why did you let me live? Why?

Those days had been more painful than death.

But he could not spend forever writhing in grief. There was something he had to do.

Something he had to do.

Baeksang looked through the window at the blue sky.

Is this truly your will? No… Have you ever watched over me even once?

As always, he waited in vain for an answer.

Except for the unfamiliar voice that pierced his ears the next moment.

“Um… Shall I refill your tea?”

Baeksang turned toward it.

A pretty maid stood at the half-open door, looking at him.

“No need.”

“But your cup is empty.”

“I said there’s no—”

He stopped. After studying the maid for a moment, he said, “Come in.”

At his quiet command, the warriors who had moved to stop her stepped back. The door closed firmly behind her.

She hurried over in small steps and slowly tilted the teapot above his cup.

Trickle.

Steam rose, carrying the scent of tea. Yet Baeksang felt a throb of pain, as though he had inhaled Poison Mist.

Baeksang silently watched the teacup fill before suddenly speaking.

“Whose face is that, Demon Empress?”

The maid—Southern Heaven Demon Empress—smiled.

“A girl who worked in the Inner Palace. So young and fresh. She was too cute to resist.”

“Did you kill her?”

“Oh my. Does that matter so much?”

“That…”

“How interesting. Hundreds of people have already died, and you are worried about the life of one maid.”

Baeksang fell silent, then answered evenly.

“I only asked because it might disrupt the plan. Anything that happens in the Inner Palace is quickly discovered.”

“Ah, I see. Well, if that’s your concern…”

Southern Heaven Demon Empress gave him a coy smile and picked up the teacup.

“You needn’t worry about that. If there’s a problem, it’s at Ailao Mountain, not the Inner Palace.”

“Ailao Mountain? Do you mean…?”

“Yes. Jin Taekyung. That child has done something. We still haven’t heard from them, so I’m sure of it.”

Baeksang thought for a moment.

“It was a trap?”

“That’s right. A trap laid to catch the old tiger who had left the Palace. I never expected the young tiger to get caught in it instead.”

CLICK.

She set down her cup, amusement in her voice.

“Of course, I didn’t expect the young tiger to be strong enough to break it, either.”

“It must have been a thorough trap, for you to be so confident in it.”

“Two Supreme Peak masters. One was the Black Hand Fist Demon. The other…”

She paused and smiled at Baeksang.

“At any rate, he was strong. Far stronger than the Black Hand Fist Demon.”

“……!”

“It is astonishing. I thought those two would be able to deal with the Beast Miao King. It seems the Lord of Heaven was not interested in that child for no reason.”

For Baeksang, each revelation was more startling than the last. Jin Taekyung had not only killed two Supreme Peak masters single-handedly—the Lord of Heaven himself was also interested in him.

Baeksang also realized his own judgment had been sound.

Jin Taekyung.

The young man’s face came to mind. Baeksang had never been able to get a firm measure of him.

He looked at the smiling Demon Empress.

“You’ll take action yourself now.”

A Supreme Peak master was a formidable asset. With two of them dead, Baeksang thought her intervention inevitable.

At least, that was what he thought until he heard her answer the next moment.

“No? Why would I?”

She let out a short laugh.

“I do not have time to worry about that. Even if one of the major pieces has died, the current situation will not be overturned. What matters is the grand plan.”

“You mean…?”

“The Beast Miao King and Jin Taekyung no longer matter. Secure the Inner Palace and Outer Palace. Gather every force you have.”

Southern Heaven Demon Empress rose and crossed the room almost as though she were dancing. Her voice rang with delight.

“Three days. No more than three days.”

“……!”

“Be ready. That day, everything will begin—and end.”

THUD.

The door opened and closed.

Long afterward, Baeksang remained where he was, frozen.

That day was coming.

The day he had longed for more than anyone in the world—and feared more than anyone.