Rebirth of the Heavenly Demon

Chapter 23 – The Message My Death Conveys (1)

I returned home.

I was supposed to have come back from training in the mountains, but only Gwang-du knew that I had gone to catch Gwak Dosu.

“Young master, I can’t live out my natural lifespan because of you.”

Indeed, his eyes were sunken. It seems he hadn’t slept properly again, worrying about me.

“You fool, don’t worry about me.”

“How can I not worry? I’d rather die than suffer like this. So what happened? Did you really… catch that bastard?”

I nodded firmly.

“I’m someone who absolutely can’t live with debts.”

“Did you kill him?”

“Of course.”

Gwang-du covered his mouth and trembled. You fool, save your shock and horror for later when you hear the news that Gong Jong, the Branch Alliance Leader, has gone missing.

“By the way, did you practice the mental cultivation diligently? Show me.”

“Because I was worrying about someone…”

With an uncertain face, Gwang-du sat down and began to circulate his qi.

I inserted a strand of inner force to check if he was circulating his qi properly. Despite his exaggeration, he was doing it accurately as I had taught him.

“That’s enough. This level is excellent.”

“Really?”

Gwang-du was overjoyed. Truly, if I praised him even one more word, it seemed he might burst into tears.

“Why are you so happy?”

“Because it’s the first praise I’ve heard from you since I started learning martial arts.”

“Stop attaching unnecessary meaning to everything.”

“No! This is an unforgettable moment for me.”

Suddenly, I thought of Baek Pyo, who had been the head of my guards. He too was a truly sentimental person, rejoicing at the sight of the first snow. Come to think of it, coincidentally, the people closest to me all have this sentimental side.

“Now, I’ll teach you some forms.”

“Ah!”

Gwang-du was moved again. I had him bring the cheap sword he had bought. I thought I should buy him a decent sword soon.

First, I taught him three forms out of the seven forms of the Seven Forms of the Southern Sea.

There wasn’t any particular reason, other than thinking that repeating just one form would be boring, and teaching more than four might confuse him.

“Once you’re familiar with these three forms, I’ll teach you the rest.”

“Thank you, young master.”

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“Practice without even sleeping. I’ll test you at random.”

“What if I die from overwork?”

“Lazy people never die from overwork.”

“What if I fall into qi deviation!”

“That only happens to smart people.”

Gwang-du pouted. But I could feel it. How happy Gwang-du was. He’ll probably practice, skimping on sleep.

Am I not worried that he might really die from overwork?

Not at all. Gwang-du is a smart fellow. I felt it when he gathered information before. He has an instinct for sensing and avoiding danger. He’ll adjust his training intensity well on his own.

After teaching him the three forms, I turned to leave, but Gwang-du said,

“But young master, something’s different about you.”

He really has a keen eye. Noticing a change that even my parents didn’t see.

“What is it?”

“I’m not sure what… but somehow you seem calmer.”

After examining my face from various angles, Gwang-du suddenly exclaimed in surprise,

“Gasp! Don’t tell me? Did you get a woman this time? Right? Did you sleep with her? You did, didn’t you!”

You fool, I didn’t even get to see a woman.

I just shrugged my shoulders once to keep him curious and walked out. Gwang-du shouted from behind.

“You shouldn’t betray Miss Song!”

You fool, you need to have mutual trust to even talk about betrayal.

“Just focus on your training! And don’t betray yourself!”

***

The next day, the news I had been waiting for finally arrived.

Gwang-du came running in a hurry and shouted.

“Young master! Something terrible has happened! The Alliance Leader has passed away!”

It felt strange to hear about my own death through someone else.

It’s been a month and a half since I died. The fact that they’re only announcing it now means they must have had a lot of deliberation about selecting the next Alliance Leader.

There must have been meetings every day, and the heads of each organization must have been engaged in intense power struggles. Depending on who becomes the Alliance Leader, their own positions could be in jeopardy.

The one thing that puts my mind at ease is that the martial world is peaceful. There won’t be any internal or external forces trying to take over the Martial Righteous Alliance immediately.

“Oh really?”

“What kind of reaction is that?”

“What reaction were you expecting? Should I shed tears?”

“You should at least be surprised.”

“I am surprised.”

You don’t know. How surprised I was. I really didn’t expect to die like that.

“The martial world has been turned upside down now. Not just martial artists, but everyone with a mouth is talking about the Alliance Leader. Everyone’s gathering in taverns, it’s chaos. Let’s go too.”

Gwang-du pulled on my arm.

I went along pretending to be reluctant, but in truth, I was more curious. How everyone was talking about my death.

The dead remain in various ways. Some are beautifully idealized, some fall to the bottom, and others are forgotten.

What about me?

Indeed, not just the nearby taverns, but people in the marketplace were all talking about me.

“How did he die? Was he assassinated?”

“No, I heard he just died in his sleep.”

“He was blessed, truly blessed.”

“Anyway, who do you think will be the next Alliance Leader?”

“Yeah, I wonder.”

“I’m worried. All sorts of people will be rushing in to take the Alliance Leader position.”

“Is there even a proper candidate for Alliance Leader?”

“No. Cheon Hajin held onto it for too long.”

“True. He held it for over thirty years.”

I was slightly hurt by the phrase “held onto it.”

I thought I had lived my whole life sacrificing for the martial artists. Is this all the evaluation I get?

Moreover, there wasn’t a single word of condolence for my death.

It feels like my life lived for the martial world has been completely denied.

I wanted to slap each of them on the back of the head and say:

“You fools, I lived a life where I couldn’t even sleep properly because I was worried about you all!”

On the other hand, I also thought: Isn’t the Alliance Leader position one that naturally attracts criticism? They all need to vent their frustrations accumulated in real life by criticizing like this.

‘Fine, go ahead and criticize. If that relieves your anger, criticize as much as you want.’

The truly bad people won’t be criticizing me in places like this anyway. They’ll be engrossed in fulfilling their desires in dark places, like Yang Gi-cheol or Gong Jong who were killed by me.

At that moment, Gwang-du, who was sitting across from me, suddenly said,

“I wonder what kind of person the Alliance Leader was?”

Among the people in this tavern, you know best. Because he’s sitting right in front of you.

“Well, who knows.”

“It must be very regrettable. Dying in the position of Alliance Leader.”

“Why?”

“Well, you know? Because you’re dying while in the happiest position in the world. Ah! If it were me, I’d be too upset to even die!”

Happy?

Was I truly happy?

Everyone feared and found me difficult to approach. I had loyal subordinates who would give their lives at my command, but there was an invisible wall between them and me. Even with Gal Saryang, the Commander-in-Chief, I never had a deep conversation.

No one ever spoke their true feelings to me.

I was the same.

Baek Pyo, who was in charge of my security, was the most comfortable, but even he couldn’t completely shake off the distance created by our positions as Alliance Leader and guard. At least, that’s how it must have been for him.

The loneliness of being above all others.

I don’t know if I was happy or not, but at least I’m certain I lived a lonely life.

“By the way, how do they choose the next Alliance Leader?”

I shook my head at Gwang-du’s question.

“I don’t know either.”

I can’t tell you, but I know exactly.

If the Alliance Leader had designated a successor, that successor would take over the position.

Considering my age of seventy, it would have been natural to suggest establishing a successor, but all my subordinates were wary of my reaction. I was in such good health, and the issue of succession was a very sensitive topic.

Anyway, no one thought I would die. I was so healthy, and my martial arts had reached the peak.

If there’s no successor, the heads of the top ten organizations within the Martial Righteous Alliance gather to nominate candidates, and then they vote to decide the Alliance Leader.

That’s how I was chosen before. If the previous Alliance Leader hadn’t been poisoned by the Thirteen Dark Sects, I might have lived as a free person in the martial world forever.

Anyway, I heard later that the heads of the ten organizations at that time unanimously agreed to make me the Alliance Leader. That’s how much my skills had shaken the martial world.

In any case, that’s just what the Alliance rules say, but in the end, the will of Gal Saryang, the Commander-in-Chief, will be heavily reflected. Among the ten organizations, the ones directly under me with the strongest military power will support him.

The problem is that there’s no strong candidate for Alliance Leader that comes to mind immediately.

Perhaps that’s why my death wasn’t announced even after a month and a half.

Still, the reason I’m at ease is because of my trust in Gal Saryang. He should be able to lead the Martial Righteous Alliance well in my absence and select an excellent next Alliance Leader.

“Young master, let’s have a drink. A great elder of the martial world has passed away. We should have a drink in his memory.”

Yes, in the end, it’s only you.

“Alright, order the most expensive alcohol.”

“Do you have money?”

“Order a drink to celebrate becoming a martial artist.”

“When you put it like that, I can’t refuse… How weak you are to persuasion. Fine! I’ll buy a drink.”

Gwang-du shouted to the innkeeper.

“Give us some alcohol here! Something cheap and tasty!”

I smiled looking at Gwang-du.

Thank you.

For at least pouring a drink for my death.

I slowly turned my head to look out the window. Towards the Martial Righteous Alliance that must be somewhere far away.

Commander Gal, please choose a good Alliance Leader.