Chapter 203

When the Heavenly Demon fell, the atmosphere of the battlefield changed abruptly.

"The Heavenly Demon is dead!"

"Run! That monster will kill us all!"

The members of the Demonic Cult, who had been hiding around Baima Monastery, began fleeing in terror. Having lost their point of cohesion, they were no longer an army. They were nothing but a disorganized mob scrambling for their lives.

"Chase them! Leave not a single one alive!"

The combined forces of the orthodox and unorthodox sects pursued the fleeing Demonic Cultists. But there was no longer hatred in their blades—only the certainty of victory.

The Demonic Cult's army collapsed in an instant. The banner of the Demonic Cult, which had terrorized the Central Plains for decades, was trampled into the dirt.

And from afar, a roar of jubilation arose.

"Waaaaaa!!!"

"We won! We did it!"

"The Heavenly Demon is dead! Long live the Evil Path Association Leader!"

The cheers came from the warriors of both the orthodox and unorthodox paths, and from the commoners who had trembled in fear of war.

Their voices seemed ready to sweep across not just Luoyang but the entire Central Plains.

The long war was finally over.

At last, true peace was returning to the jianghu, which had been stained with blood and tears.

At the very center of that peace was Jaseong, the miracle that had blossomed from the Red Light District.

* * *

With the war's end, peace returned to the jianghu.

But instead of joining the victory celebrations, Jaseong quietly packed his belongings.

He did not head to the grand Black Union City or the headquarters of the Murim Alliance.

He returned to Guizhou City, Ansun, the place where everything had begun for him.

One autumn afternoon, as a chilly wind blew, Jaseong climbed a hill behind the Red Light District in Ansun.

The crisp sound of fallen leaves underfoot filled the quiet mountain path.

The sky was flawlessly clear and high, but the wind that blew carried a chill hurrying winter's approach.

Jaseong's steps were at once heavy and light. He was finally laying down the enormous burden that had weighed on him his whole life.

By his side was Lee Rin. She walked in silence, matching his stride, occasionally glancing sidelong at his face.

Upon Jaseong's shoulder, Mansul sat quietly, surveying the surroundings—unusually subdued.

Even the spirit beast seemed to understand what this place meant to Jaseong.

They walked for quite some time.

Halfway up the mountain, in a sunny clearing, there were two small grassy mounds side by side.

They were humble graves, without ornate headstones or grandiose adornments.

Yet the area was scrupulously clean, not a single weed in sight. The members of the Ansun branch had cared for it steadily in Jaseong's stead.

Jaseong stopped before the graves.

"......"

He stared at the graves in silence for a long while.

Faces from his memory shimmered before him—the foolish eldest brother who had never hesitated to help him, the kindhearted sister-in-law who had cherished him like her own younger brother, and the nephew who had passed before ever seeing the light of the world.

Jaseong slowly knelt. The chill of the soil pressed through his knees.

"Eldest brother. Sister-in-law. I'm here."

Jaseong took a bottle of liquor from his coat. It was the cheap rice wine his eldest brother had liked so much in life.

Now, he could afford the rarest spirits in the land, but today, this was the only appropriate drink.

Gurgle, gurgle.

The wine soaked into the earth before the graves. Its pungent scent carried away on the wind.

"I'm sorry I couldn't come by often. I had much to do. But... it's all over now."

Jaseong stroked the headstone. The roughness of the stone grazed his palm.

"You can rest easily now. I've kept my promise. The ones who wronged you are no longer in this world."

Jaseong's voice was calm. Yet there was deep sorrow in his bearing.

Though called the World's Greatest, in the face of these memories, he was still just a boy.

Lee Rin quietly knelt beside him. She placed the white chrysanthemum flowers she had prepared in front of the graves.

"Hello, eldest brother, sister-in-law. My name is Lee Rin," she greeted in a clear voice.

"Jaseong has suffered so much all this time. He fought until his body nearly broke, bleeding, persevering only with memories of you to keep him going."

Lee Rin rested her hand on Jaseong's shoulder. Her warmth passed into him.

"From now on, I will be by his side. So he will not be lonely or sad... I'll protect him. So please, you can rest at ease now."

At Lee Rin's words, Jaseong turned to look at her. In her eyes was deep affection and sympathy for him.

"Kiing."

Mansul hopped up to Jaseong's lap and rubbed against his face. The spirit beast's soft fur tickled Jaseong's chin.

They sat together for a long while. The wind rolled the leaves, clouds crossed the sun and uncovered it again.

In that calm, at last, Jaseong found true repose.

Before they knew it, the sun dipped behind the western hills. Twilight blazed red, painting the slopes.

Jaseong slowly got to his feet.

"It's time... to go."

He gave a deep bow to the graves.

"I'll come again. And next time... I'll bring even better news."

Jaseong turned away without regret.

His steps were much lighter than when he had arrived.

These were the steps of someone who had let go of the past and was walking toward the future.

Lee Rin slipped her arm into his and asked, "Great hero, where shall we go next?"

"Who knows."

"Then let's eat first. Aren't you hungry?"

"Weren't you just snacking on pastries until a moment ago?"

"That was just a snack! We must have Dongpo pork now that we're in Ansun!"

"You really are incorrigible."

Jaseong, Lee Rin, and Mansul trailing behind—their three shadows stretched long into the sunset.

* * *

Everything happened just as the previous Hao Sect Leader had said.

When the Heavenly Demon fell, the Demonic Cult, deprived of its heart, collapsed like a sandcastle.

The cultists, driven mad by violence, scattered to the winds, and with the destruction of the Blood Cult, the army of jiangshi that had once plunged the Central Plains into terror also returned to dust.

As the black clouds parted, the sun rose once more in a clear sky.

A few days later.

The plaza before Black Union City.

There, a historic sight was unfolding.

The warriors of orthodox and unorthodox sects, who had fought side by side in the Great Heavenly Demon War, now gathered as one.

The taoists and monks of the Nine Sects-One Union, swordsmen from the Five Great Clans, and the rough dark path men of the Evil Path Association all faced forward together rather than aiming blades at one another.

All their eyes fixed on the dais, where True Person Cheongho, sect Master of Mount Hua, stood.

His white hair blew in the wind as he began to speak, his face resolute.

"Warriors of the jianghu."

True Person Cheongho's voice rolled across the plaza.

"We have hated and killed one another under the names of 'orthodox' and 'unorthodox' for so long. But in this war, we have learned. True evil is not in the name of a sect, but in hearts blinded by greed."

He paused for a moment and glanced toward Jaseong standing beside him. In his eyes was deep respect and gratitude.

"Now, the distinction between orthodox and unorthodox is meaningless. We are all just warriors defending the Central Plains."

At this declaration, tens of thousands of warriors in the plaza all nodded.

Once, such a thing would have been unimaginable—but now they recognized each other as comrades who had shed blood together.

Thus, a new order was written for the jianghu.

With Shaolin, Wudang, and the Beggar's Union at the core, the destroyed Murim Alliance was rebuilt. But this time, it was different.

The Evil Path Association, the Tianxia Association, and even the Hao Sect—once ostracized—were named proudly among its official members.

Master Hye-gong, an elder of Shaolin, stepped forward and joined his palms before Jaseong.

"Namo Amitabha... Evil Path Association Leader Jaseong. Had it not been for you, the Central Plains would have fallen to the Demonic Cult and been destroyed. I and Shaolin will never forget your grace for all eternity."

Master Hye-gong bowed deeply.

It was an extraordinary sight—a high monk of the orthodox Shaolin bowing to the head of the unorthodox Evil Path Association.

Yet no one thought it strange.

The elders of other orthodox sects did the same. No one called Jaseong 'demon-head' anymore.

"The one who defeated the Heavenly Demon!"

"The great hero who saved the Central Plains!"

"We must make the Evil Path Association Leader the new Murim Alliance leader!"

In every street and alley, Jaseong's name rang out.

The boy who had once been called the prodigy of the Red Light District, the Calamity Sent from Heaven, now became a true hero revered by all.

'So this is the peak of the Central Plains... It doesn't feel so bad standing here.'

As he listened to the praise, Jaseong let a faint smile cross his lips.

But those were not the only ones praising him.

That night, when the festivities had quieted and darkness settled over Black Union City—

—Student of fate. You have fulfilled the end of Heaven's Mandate...

Suddenly, as Jaseong stood alone atop the city wall, gazing at the night sky, a majestic and familiar voice resounded in his mind.

It was the voice of Sword Immortal Lü Dongbin.

The night sky split open.

Kuuuuuuuu—!

A colossal pillar of light poured down from the heart of the sky.

A mysterious celestial radiance, brighter than moonlight yet gentler than the sun.

Swirling golden and silver light spiraled down toward the city wall where Jaseong stood.

"This is..."

Jaseong narrowed his eyes. Even without activating the Samadhi Eyes, he could feel the overwhelming, sacred energy.

Through the light appeared the form of an old man riding on a cloud.

His snowy white beard and robes fluttered; beneath his feet was an ancient-looking sword.

It was Sword Immortal Lü Dongbin.

He alighted gently before Jaseong. When his foot touched down, the rough stones atop the wall seemed to become smooth as jade.

"It has been a while, student of fate,"

Lü Dongbin said kindly.

"I greet the Sword Immortal."

Jaseong saluted with a cupped fist. Lü Dongbin nodded and continued speaking.

"I recall when I first named you executor of Heaven's Mandate. Back then, you were a child burning with vengeance... Now you have reached a level where you can hear your true voice and remain unrattled."

"That's thanks to the Room of Time, the Celestial Realm treasure you bestowed."

"You have endured much. You have completed all the decrees of Heaven's Mandate, and even defeated the incarnation of calamity, the giant of evil who was the avatar of the Heavenly Demons."

"......"

"The immortals of the Celestial Realm are all impressed and grateful for your might and spirit."

Lü Dongbin approached and placed a hand on Jaseong's shoulder. Warm energy flowed through Jaseong.

"You did more than fulfill a personal vengeance. You brought true peace to the Central Plains, erased the stale boundary between orthodox and unorthodox, and gave hope to the people in despair. That is what it truly means to be a great hero, and to follow the Way."

"Thank you."

"And so, the immortals of the Celestial Realm have prepared a final gift for you."

A gift from the immortals...?