The scent of something cold and unfamiliar—like snow drifting over charred wood—brushed past his senses.
Up close, the Demon Lord's face was even more unsettling. His pale, almost ghostly skin shimmered under the sunlight, making him look hauntingly beautiful. But it was his dark inky eyes that carried specks of silver shimmers that made him almost lose his breath. As the book described—Baek Junghwa's beauty transcended all mortal comprehension. He trulywas unlike any man he had ever seen. It was hard to believe he was real.
"Damn, the book doesn't do him justice though." He thought to himself.
The Demon Lord approached him, his gaze on Wooyun was steady, measured, and unyielding. Wooyun's breath hitched as he felt the intensity of his stare on him, but he was also unable to look away—not that he wanted to.
"Do you wish to come with me?" He asked again, more patiently this time. "Because once you do, the chances of you returning here are slim to none."
Wooyun blinked. 'Go with him? To the Blood Moon Sect? Of course, it was the Blood Moon Sect. That was his home, in the north. This was how the story went in the original book. Seo-yoon didn't hesitate for a moment to leave because she knew there was no point in her staying here. She wouldn't suddenly be treated better, she wouldn't be able to grow, and she most certainly wouldn't be able to take over the merchant group. So what was the point? Wooyun felt the same way. Spending the rest of his time here living in the attic, constantly under Kang Choon-hee's rule. He would have to be a madman to want to stay so…why couldn't he bring himself to agree?
His eyes unconsciously moved to Eun-woo who had been staring at him with the same intensity. Though he didn't say it outright, he had come to know Eun-woo long enough to know what that look meant. 'Don't be a fool. Stay here where it's safe.' But was it safe? No, it wasn't. Especially not now with everyone knowing the Demon Lord's interest in him. He would never know peace here. So perhaps he was a fool—or at least wanted to be. For once in his life he was given the choice to choose. And he wanted to choose him.
"Don't be ridiculous," Choon-hee cut through these thoughts. His eyes fell on the older woman, whose face was twisted in rage.
"What use could you possibly have for this boy Lord Baek? He knows nothing, does nothing, and is nothing. You would be wasting your ti—"
Her last words were immediately caught in her throat when she saw the deadly glare that was sent her way. Her eyes paled, eyes bulged, and the vein on her neck seemed to expand at that moment. Her hand immediately went to her throat, clutching it for dear life. Slowly, it looked as though her skin was turning blue and Wooyun quickly looked at Baek Junghwa and saw that his glare had only intensified.
What in the world?
"Mother!" Yu-jun yelled as he grabbed a hold of her. Though his body was trembling he faced the Demon Lord. "Unhand her this instant!"
His voice quivered from fear, but his eyes regarded him with an almost violent contempt.
"Oh? You're finally able to speak now?" He said in a low voice that sent chills to everyone present, including Wooyun.
The Demon Lord's voice was devoid of any emotion, so cold in fact that Wooyun had half a mind to look up at the sky and wonder if winter had suddenly fallen upon them.
"Do you wish to share the same pain as your mother? I am happy to oblige." He said.
Yu-Jin's body trembled from fear and anger, and Do-yun who stood in the side reacted for the first time since Wooyun had met him. His eyes locked onto Wooyun, almost pleading with him to make all of this stop. Because for once, Wooyun, or more like Seo-yoon had the power to do so.
The young man couldn't help finding this situation hilarious. The family who had once looked down on him was now pleading, asking to be saved. My my. Oh, how the tables have turned.
A part of him had the decency to stop this madness, but another and unfortunately stronger part didn't seem to care. Instead, his gaze fell on the Demon Lord who looked so incredibly ravishing even as he choked his stepmother with justhis spiritual energy.
He simply couldn't believe how depraved he could be until that moment. I really do give myself the creeps.
"Lord Baek," he finally said. His gaze immediately turned to him.
"Please let go of the madam. Though she may be evil and vile (and deserves to be taken away by child services for the constant abuse she's inflicted upon me and the female protagonist), I still do not wish for her death."
Junghwa raised a brow at this. "Oh? Even with everything she did?"
Wooyun nodded. "I don't wish to have her blood on my hands." Well technically it would be your hands but whatever, same difference.
The Demon Lord paused as if contemplating his words before finally letting go of his hold on Kang Choon-hee. The minute he let go, the woman collapsed to the floor, her hands still clutching at her neck as she coughed and wheezed in pain.
"Mother!" Yu-jun called as he steadied her with his hands, Do-yun helping him at his side.
They truly painted the picture of a family at that moment.
"So?" He said as he looked away from the Kangs as if disinterested. "Have you decided?"
Wooyun took in a breath. "Yes, I've decided. Please give me a week to prepare my things." Though it came out as an order, Wooyun meant it as a request, one he had no problem abandoning if Baek Junghwa didn't agree with it.
As if knowing his intentions, the Demon Lord smiled. "Very well then. I shall give you a week to get your things in order. Not a second more."
Wooyun nodded, suddenly wondering if it was the right decision to agree to go with him after all.
Meanwhile, Jaha who stood at the side had a dark look on his face. He didn't like the fact that Junghwa had attracted this much attention and he especially didn't like the fact dang it was all because of Wooyun.
"Just what in the world do you want to do with this young man, Lord Junghwa?" Jaha asked Junghwa through the distant whispering technique.
Junghwa raised an eyebrow at his question. "Isn't it obvious? I wish to take him under my wing."
Though Jaha's face remained impassive on the outside, he was reeling on the inside. "My lord! I thought you were simply joking about taking in a disciple. Were you being serious?!"
"Why would I have brought it up if I wasn't?"
Jaha had no words. He couldn't believe that Baek Junghwa was being his usual eccentric self, even in such an important situation.
Why was Wooyun becoming a disciple such a significant event? In the Blood Moon Sect, the Demon Lord is chosen not solely by blood relations (though that can happen) but through connections. When a Demon Lord selects a disciple, it usually indicates that the disciple could potentially become the successor. Since Baek Junghwa is still young, he hasn't chosen a disciple to mentor yet, making Wooyun's selection the first. This was a huge deal, which was one of the reasons Jaha struggled to accept it. Additionally, despite not belonging to any sect, it was clear that Wooyun practiced righteous cultivation, making him an outsider in this context.
"You really couldn't have come up with a better excuse to have this young man? Also, what is with this sudden fixation? You've never been interested in anyone before." Jaha exclaimed.
"I'm not sure. I just saw something in him and I believe he could have the potential to satiate my interest. You know what I always say.Life is too short. Why not make it interesting?"
Jaha furrowed his brows when he heard this. Despite his light and playful tone, he could detect some weight in his words. His eyes wandered to the young man and he looked within him and saw a swirl of energy within him. It was strong and still unrefined but there certainly room for growth within him. Especially considering how he was only in the third level of qi refinement. He was most likely in the flowing stream stage, or at the most, raging ember.
A sigh escaped his lips. "Are you sure about this Lord Junghwa? The Court of Elders won't be happy about this."
A chuckle erupted in his mind, making Jaha flinch. "They can cry me a river for all I care."
I knew he was going to say that. Why did I even bother bringing them up? Jaha thought to himself.
"Well, we shall take our leave," Junghwa said, cutting through both Wooyun and Jaha's thoughts. He then turned to look at Wooyun. "I will have Jaha come get you when the time comes. And remember, I'm not known for my patience." He said as he gave Kang Choon-hee a piercing glare.
And with that, the demon lord left along with Jaha who sent the passive-aggressive sect leader a glare that would send a grown man running for the hills.
The air around the coliseum had visibly shifted after their departure, and all the people who were still there let out a sigh of relief.
"I can't believe that happened," a participant said and the others nodded in agreement. To think the tournament would end on such a weird note, and to think the demon lord would make a presence, in the flesh!
One of the sect leaders named Won turned to the man who had engaged in a conversation with Junghwa. "Sect leader Song. How did you, who is a saint level martial cultivator, not sense that demon's presence?" He asked in an almost accusatory tone.
"Me? How did you not know? We are on the same level!" He protested.
"How was he able to stay undetected for so long? Even if we've never seen what he looks like, we should've been able to sense the demonic qi coming from him." sect leader Won exclaimed.
"Who knows what kind of sorcery he used to disguise himself? For all we know, that might not have been his real face. But more importantly, why the sudden interest in taking on a new disciple?"
The others wondered the same thing, and all the attention went to Wooyun. The young man was still in a daze from meeting his favourite character in the book that he hadn't realized that all eyes were on him. It wasn't until Eun-woo cleared his throat to get his attention that he realized the current predicament he was in.
Over a hundred pairs of eyes were now on him, and the sight was unsettling, to say the least. His first instinct was to say: "What are you guys looking at?" The words spilled out of his mouth before he could stop himself. The sect leaders, participants, and spectators blinked and Eun-woo who stood next to him stiffened.
This was the first time anyone had ever spoken directly to the sect leaders like that. Not only that, Wooyun who was barely a raging ember was unshaken even amongst all of these giants. They were surprised he was able to speak normally to the Demon Lord even after feeling all that demonic qi in the air. Just who was this man? Was he a hidden gem they had overlooked? For even the demon lord to take an interest in him?
Sect leader Song snapped out of his stupor and faced Wooyun properly. Just as he was about to address him, Eun-woo grabbed hold of the young man, and the two left the coliseum at the speed of light. Once again, everyone was left in shock but the one who was the most choked was Kang Choon-hee who looked like she would faint from anger right then and there.
"We have no time to waste here, Do-yun, Yu-jun let's go!" She finally hissed and the three Kangs immediately went to their carriages so they could go back home and give Wooyun a taste of his own medicine.
"That young man just left! Shouldn't we go chase him down and question him about his involvement with a demonic leader? Especially as someone who is practicing righteous martial cultivation techniques." Another leader exclaimed.
Sect leader Song shook his head. "It's fine, we don't have to make any moves since he will be leaving after Wooyun and Eun-woo make their departure. It's too bad for that young man though. He will suffer quite a bit living in the north and working under those miscreants.
Meanwhile, Elder Yoon—a member of the Sun Sect, looked at Eun-woo's retreating figure. A pensive look took over his face as one of his disciples left with the new Blood Moon Sect "disciple".
One of the members using the distant whispering technique asked if it was okay to let Eun-woo go like this. "It doesn't matter. He will have to report back to the sect soon anyway. We will hear his answer then."