Only I Am A Reader

Thanks to the momentum given by the Heavenly Demon's speech, the members left Mount Heaven in high spirits, ready to perform their utmost for the sake of the future.

To save humanity, to save oneself, to stand up to the Heavenly Strength Society's pride… There were far too many reasons to fight for a chance. People usually gave up even with the same motivations when met with extreme despair but having someone who could flip over the situation made the fight worth it.

From the very beginning, all of those who managed to successfully enter the Society simply went through too much filtering. If those possessing such exquisitely handpicked mentalities couldn't handle the pressure, then the future of Murim would have been even more questionable.

"Did you know? The Headquarters of the Murim Alliance had been infiltrated yesterday!"

"For real?"

"Yeah, my cousin was stationed there and got a big scolding over their carelessness. You don't seem surprised though…"

"Well, actually, I had a similar story to tell, but it now feels redundant. Our sect was also infiltrated… Someone left a letter in the Sect Leader's courtyard without anyone noticing."

"Woah, the same really happened over there! I guess that's why everyone is worked up today. A lot of strong Martial Artists are menacingly staring at people in the street. As the strongest between us brothers, you will protect me if something goes wrong, right?"

Amid the large eatery full of people in the middle of Shanxi, a pair of sworn brothers discussed the unusual news that they had only to discover that it wasn't so unusual. Most importantly, their talk was but one of many.

"The Grand Elder was very harsh with his beating. He made sure not to injure us, but his harmless attacks were the most painful!"

"You don't need to tell me, he truly has the talents of a max-level torturer. Do you believe that someone from the family is responsible for this?"

"Absolutely not possible. I only pretended to pass out in the middle to escape the rest of the punishment, all the screams that I heard were innocent ones."

"Oh~ So you did pretend. You better pay for this meal or I will rat out on you!"

"Heh, you think the Grand Elder didn't figure me out. He purposely let me off since he favors me. If you aren't looking for another torture session, you better cough up then."

A set of overnight events had set off a wave of chaos throughout the entirety of Murim. However, almost all of those who suffered from it remained silent. Although everyone had experienced the same thing, it was kept under wraps for the time being.

Once it became an open secret, the shame of it would disappear. This had proven how lacking the pillars of Murim were on a certain side, but it wasn't the time to do something about it now!

"Man, everyone's constipated about what happened. When are they going to tell us what this is all about?!"

"I bet you are dying to know~"

"Jung… Do you know something?"

"Is it really that apparent?"

"No, not really. Your face full of smug smiles doesn't say much… Just hurry up and share the news!"

"As sad as it is, I can't tell you what's inside since it's confidential. However, as someone who picked up one of the letters, I can at least tell you its source if you treat me at the Red Night."

"Man, your salary is five times mine, yet you always ask for treats. Fine! It better not be something that you made up. Better to lighten my money pouch than burden my mind…"

"The Heavenly Strength Society!"

"The Society?"

"You know them, right? The ones responsible for the infiltration are apparently from the ancient force that you used to be known as the Heavenly Demon Cult. At least that's what the pitch-black envelope said."

The one behind everything was actually the Heavenly Strength Society! After disappearing and hiding away for decades, the first thing the Society had shown was their battle prowess. Their monster-hunting deeds were known everywhere.

However, they had once again shown the world what being too outstanding meant! Aside from the normal members responsible for combat missions, there were more than a few specialized teams and squads who had been trained for infiltration, covert assassinations, and many more specific tasks. It was only that the world had no true idea about the multi-talented Heavenly Strength Society.

For most forces to have unknowingly got breached like that. It was better to say that the Society was very great at their job rather than their internal security being weak…

With that level of ability, it didn't seem hard to make a few strong organizations suffer from fatal damage in a matter of days, but the fact that they didn't do anything similar for so many years while having the capability stated the neutral image of the scary force. With a mix of fear and relief, that was how the Heavenly Strength Society sent out its message!

"Have you confirmed the contents of the letter?"

In the far corner of the eatery, two cloaked figures were sitting in front of a table full of food, but none of them seemed to be interested in touching it. The man seriously stared at the young woman as he muttered a few words.

"Yes. There was an estimated date and location of the disaster's arrival."

"The Heavenly Strength Society is undeniably connected to the monsters in the end…"

<I already told you that they are strongly related to this anomaly!>

"Thanks, Miyoung."

Ignoring the voice running in his head, the man smiled in appreciation. They had acted as the most active force for the last few years, but it was only natural that vagabonds like them wouldn't receive a targeted notice.

"There is no need for such words. It's only natural that you need to know about this as fast as possible. If I wasn't called back to Mount Hua, I would have remained by your side."

'We need to move quickly.'

The young woman's words seemed to hold a lot of meaning, but the man was too busy with his thoughts to notice the underlying tone…

<Man Seong, call out everyone. The last stretch is here.>

<Understood.>

Sitting at a table far away, a man dressed in common robes politely withdrew from his seat, ready to perform the duty that had been entrusted to him.