The Heavenly Demon Wants a Quiet Life - Chapter 36
Chapter 36: Tell Them to Handle It Themselves
────────────────────────────────────
The Owner of White Flower House glanced around at the courtesans of White Flower House sitting quietly before her.
There were five of them, all stunningly beautiful.
Though they hadn’t learned martial arts, their discerning eyes surpassed most.
These women were her direct subordinates.
White Flower House was a branch established by the Hao Clan with funding from the Golden Heavenly Alliance, and its owner served as the branch leader.
Furthermore, the Owner of White Flower House was also a disciple of the Hao Clan Leader.
“Nothing unusual from the Golden Heavenly Alliance?” she asked.
The woman on the far right responded.
“No, they’re leaning toward a wait-and-see approach for now. It must have caught them off guard. They likely never expected the Golden Wall Merchants to be this formidable.”
The Owner of White Flower House nodded.
In this incident, the Hao Clan had barely intervened.
Their role was limited to setting up White Flower House, gathering intelligence on the underworld, and devising strategies to manipulate them.
And in that, they had excelled.
The issue lay in what followed, which was handled by the Golden Heavenly Alliance and the Zhongli Clan.
And they had been thoroughly outmaneuvered.
The problem arose when the Golden Heavenly Alliance provided flawed intelligence on the Golden Wall Merchants.
More than half of the information they had shared was incorrect.
While the intervention of the Heavenly Divine Healer allowed the Golden Wall Merchants to prepare countermeasures, on the surface, it appeared to be simply a failure in intelligence gathering.
“Did you compare it with the data we compiled?”
“Yes. Even if we had handled it, we wouldn’t have been able to avoid all issues entirely.”
“Impressive.”
“They’re not to be underestimated.”
The Owner of White Flower House nodded again.
She had never taken them lightly, but now her sense of caution had deepened.
From now on, investigations would have to be conducted with even greater care.
There was a monster in that place.
“Byeok Taesan… what on earth is his true identity?”
He was utterly incomprehensible.
After organizing her thoughts for a moment, the Owner of White Flower House scanned the room with determined eyes.
“Start investigating the Golden Wall Merchants immediately.”
The five women turned their gaze toward her, awaiting more specific instructions.
“Look into everything they’ve acquired related to martial arts.”
The five women exchanged puzzled glances.
While it was true the Golden Wall Merchants had shown an interest in martial arts, acquiring valuable manuals was a different matter.
They had already conducted preliminary investigations on the Golden Wall Merchants and possessed most of the relevant information.
But the need for such heightened scrutiny felt excessive.
“Be extremely cautious.”
“Excuse me?”
Their confusion deepened.
Being cautious was standard practice, but emphasizing it so strongly implied a far higher level of vigilance than usual.
Even when investigating the Golden Heavenly Alliance, she hadn’t issued such a specific warning.
And yet, this time, she wasn’t simply urging caution—she was emphasizing extreme caution, leaving them uncertain about where to set the bar.
“To what extent should we be cautious?” one of them asked.
“Treat it as if you’re investigating a prestigious martial clan.”
“Excuse me?”
The Golden Wall Merchants were indeed formidable, but they were not on the same level as a distinguished martial clan.
The five women exchanged uneasy looks, their expressions betraying their confusion.
“And whatever you do, don’t go near the second young master, Byeok Taesan.”
Their expressions grew serious at last.
Byeok Taesan visited White Flower House yesterday.
He had utterly dismantled the schemes of both the Golden Heavenly Alliance and the Zhongli Clan.
It was known that the destruction had been achieved by his escorts, Cheon Kyungwan and Yoo Seoyeon, along with the Heavenly Divine Healer who accompanied them.
But now, it seemed there was more to the story.
“And one more thing…”
As the Owner of White Flower House spoke again, the tension in the room thickened. Already confused, the women braced themselves for more unexpected instructions.
“Dig deeper into the Golden Heavenly Alliance. Carefully investigate the organization behind them. You understand the danger, don’t you?”
“Yes, we are fully aware.”
The organization in question employed the Black Moon Sword as their messenger.
Investigating such a group was no simple task.
They were likely to incur significant losses.
But it had to be done.
The fate of the Shadowstep Records depended on it.
The Owner of White Flower House’s expression turned grim as she thought about the Shadow Records.
“I may have to request reinforcements after all…”
This could very well be an issue that determined the survival of the Hao Clan itself.
•••
“Young Master, Eastern Tiger Escort Agency has sent a message requesting instructions on how to proceed.”
“Eastern Tiger Escort Agency? Tell them to handle it themselves.”
“Excuse me?”
“They haven’t been exposed yet, and they’ve always done well on their own.”
“That’s true, but… with the Zhongli Clan involved—”
Byeok Taesan chuckled.
“Do you think the Zhongli Clan will survive this?”
“No. In the end, they’ll be absorbed by the Golden Heavenly Alliance. But are you saying you’ll just sit back and watch it happen?”
“If we intervene any further, the Eastern Tiger Escort Agency might get exposed.”
“They could just relocate, couldn’t they? They’re good at that—disappearing and reestablishing themselves elsewhere.”
“Not this time. Maintaining their current position is the best course of action.”
“Excuse me? Ah…!”
The Heavenly Divine Healer finally understood Byeok Taesan’s reasoning.
Under normal circumstances, the Demonic Cult’s support would have enabled them to handle any situation effectively.
But now, due to the Heaven-Sealing Array, the Demonic Cult couldn’t exert its full power.
“Still, won’t this situation be resolved soon?”
Under normal conditions, yes. But this wasn’t an ordinary situation.
This was the worst crisis in the history of the Demonic Cult.
It could take a long time for a proper successor to emerge and dismantle the Heaven-Sealing Array.
All potential candidates had been wiped out.
A similar incident had occurred centuries ago, according to historical records.
Back then, the Heavenly Demon had gone on a rampage, killing everyone around them. But it hadn’t been as severe as this.
Since then, people had rarely gathered around the Heavenly Demon in large numbers.
But this time was different.
The others had truly set out to eliminate him.
“Did those idiots really believe they could defeat me?”
They must have.
Otherwise, why would they have gathered en masse, seeking to increase their chances, however slim?
Elders, disciples, and heads of various factions had all banded together.
And he had killed every last one of them.
Thus, for the foreseeable future, the Heaven-Sealing Array would not resurface.
Not until the internal matters were resolved, and a new Heavenly Demon emerged.
“How long would that take?”
“Hmm… About ten years, maybe?”
“Ten years? Really?”
“That’s the minimum estimate. So, let them figure it out.”
The Heavenly Divine Healer scratched the back of his head.
“Ah… I understand. Then I’ll instruct them to handle it and act as usual.”
“Good.”
“There’s… one more thing I’m curious about.”
“What is it?”
“It’s about White Flower House.”
“Handle that too.”
“Excuse me? Me? I don’t even know what the Shadowstep Art is.”
“It exists. Think of it as the core martial art of Hao Clan. It includes everything—footwork, mental techniques, body techniques, swordsmanship, stealth arts—all combined into one unique martial art.”
The Heavenly Divine Healer stared blankly at Byeok Taesan.
“Why does Young Master have it?”
“I got it by chance. Purely by chance.”
Indeed, it was pure coincidence.
Back when he was in the Demonic Cult.
At the time, the entire leadership of Hao Clan was imprisoned in the Demonic Cult’s dungeon.
The audacious Hao Clan fools dared to investigate the Demonic Cult’s secrets and ended up directly caught by the Heavenly Demon.
Normally, they would’ve been executed on the spot, but the Shadowstep Art they possessed was too intriguing. So, they were locked up, and every detail about the Shadowstep Art was carefully extracted.
The intention wasn’t to learn it for himself but out of sheer curiosity.
He also wanted to see if it could serve as a foundation for further developing his martial arts.
Ultimately, it provided only the slightest bit of help. But because of that, the entirety of the Shadowstep Art was imprinted in his mind.
At that time, he realized how important the Shadowstep Art was to the Hao Clan and how they would fare in its absence.
After that, he simply lost interest.
However, the recent events brought those memories back vividly.
“And how did you figure out White Flower House is part of Hao Clan?”
“I saw a few people wearing veils.”
The Heavenly Divine Healer’s jaw dropped.
“You deduced they were Hao Clan based on just that?”
Of course, that wasn’t the only basis.
It just piqued his interest enough to look closer.
That’s when he noticed traces of the Shadowstep Art.
Although it wasn’t the genuine Shadowstep Art but an inferior version, it was still glaringly obvious to Byeok Taesan, who knew the real thing.
“Then what should we do about the Golden Heavenly Alliance?”
Byeok Taesan glanced at the Heavenly Divine Healer with a bored expression.
“Handle it yourself. If White Flower House provides information, pass it on to the Golden Wall Merchants. They’ll take care of it. Surely, a merchant of this level can handle something like this, don’t you think?”
“Well… That’s true, but…”
The Heavenly Divine Healer felt a peculiar sensation.
The way Byeok Taesan delegated tasks, it seemed effortless and simple when observed from the side, but in practice, it was far from easy.
It wasn’t negligence.
From the pinnacle, he simply adjusted the flow of events as needed and let others take care of the rest.
Somehow, it felt like Byeok Taesan was doing exactly that now.
‘Am I overthinking it?’
Perhaps he was genuinely too lazy to care. Still, it was an odd feeling.
“Then… What will the Young Master do?”
“Me? I’m going to a courtesan house.”
The Heavenly Divine Healer stared at Byeok Taesan in disbelief.
Another incomprehensible thought crossed his mind.
“How is your health improving despite frequenting courtesan houses?”
Byeok Taesan grinned.
“There are things like that. Things kids don’t understand.”
The Heavenly Divine Healer wore an incredulous expression.
“Who are you calling a kid right now?”
•••
The Golden Wall Merchants had been incredibly busy for a while.
The Golden Heavenly Alliance had initiated hostilities, and countering them left everyone in the merchant working tirelessly.
However, the situation was now becoming clearer.
The strength of the Golden Wall Merchants was formidable.
No, it wasn’t just them—the information consistently supplied by the Heavenly Divine Healer and the Hao Clan made them even stronger.
The Golden Heavenly Alliance, entangled in the counterattacks, was staggering.
Internal issues were beginning to surface within their ranks.
Since the alliance was a coalition of multiple merchants, each faction had its own interests, making unity difficult.
In tough situations, such fractures naturally fester.
Now that the Golden Heavenly Alliance had reached such a state, the atmosphere within the Golden Wall Merchants was considerably more relaxed.
Byeok Taesoo, the Family Head, redirected this newfound ease toward another endeavor, the results of which came to fruition today.
“Family Head, we’ve made contact.”
At the secretary’s words, Byeok Taesoo’s face lit up.
“Is that true?”
“Yes. And we received a very positive response.”
“Finally…!”
Byeok Taesoo couldn’t hide his joy.
“When can we expect them?”
“They mentioned wrapping up some work and arriving soon. It won’t take long.”
Byeok Taesoo nodded deeply.
“That’s great news. You’ve worked hard.”
“I didn’t do much. It’s the Record Pavilion that worked tirelessly, really.”
“Still, your consistent attention brought this to fruition, didn’t it?”
Byeok Taesoo’s words brought a smile to the secretary’s face.
It was only natural.
With Byeok Taesoo’s daily inquiries and unwavering interest, how could anyone not be invested?
“Although Taesan’s improving health provides some relief, I still feel compelled to do even better for him.”
“Even recruiting the Heavenly Divine Healer was a great achievement.”
At the mention of the Heavenly Divine Healer, Byeok Taesoo’s face lit up with pride.
Byeok Taesan had been the one to recruit him.
Watching his younger brother grow was immensely rewarding.
“Now that we’ve secured another exceptional physician, Taesan should recover in no time.”
“With two renowned healers working together, it’ll be quick.”
The general manager thought of the newly recruited physician.
He was the eccentric Needle Master.
His agreement to help was thanks to the Heavenly Divine Healer.
“In that sense, this is also thanks to Young Master.”
Had Byeok Taesan not brought in the Heavenly Divine Healer, the Needle Master wouldn’t have come either.
The secretary felt that everything had been going unusually smoothly lately.
‘Come to think of it… wasn’t it ever since Young Master started frequenting courtesan houses?’