The Cunning Treasure Hunter

A sudden silence fell beneath the tree.

Even Aiden took a moment to reflect on Vera and Marcus's words.

Had he really assumed the worst?

'...Now that I think about it, that wasn't quite right.'

The Demonic Sect had fallen.

It had crumbled, shattered, and its members had scattered without even being able to find a new Heavenly Demon.

The ones that remained were merely remnants of a sect that had collapsed fifty years ago.

Aiden had believed this as well.

But had he truly prepared for the worst?

Could he confidently say that they wouldn't follow in the footsteps of the Eastern Mountain Fiery Blade clan?

At the end of the day, he was only in his thirties. The Demonic Sect had already fallen twenty years before he was even born.

That meant… no matter how much information he gathered, no matter how many records he studied, he could never truly know the Demonic Sect of that era.

All he could do was assume and deduce.

"...You are not wrong."

Aiden admitted as he stroked his chin.

Seeing that, Kael raised an eyebrow.

"Well, well, to think the great Aiden would actually admit to being wrong?"

"I have always been like this."

"The Aiden I remember wasn't."

Kael narrowed his eyes.

Aiden clicked his tongue and added, "That's because they were always wrong."

"Haha, in the end, you were always proven right."

"That's all that matters."

Cutting off the conversation there, Aiden turned his gaze toward Vera and Marcus.

They were sharp.

Despite being born in an era without the Demonic Sect, they had reached this level of deduction in such a short time after returning from the Eastern Mountain Fiery Blade clan.

'Even if we increase our vigilance now... it's already too late.'

Aiden let out a deep sigh and shook his head.

Marcus and Vera did the same.

"If what the First Senior Brother says is true, then there is nothing we can do."

"I see. Then, what should we do?"

At Aiden's question, both Marcus and Vera furrowed their brows.

What should they do?

Truthfully, there was no answer.

To root out infiltrators at this point?

They would have to tear through the entire Mount Suncrest Sect, from the first-generation disciples to the third-generation disciples.

And that required the absolute determination of the Sect Leader.

However… right now, they were even suspecting that the Sect Leader or someone closely related to him had unsealed the underground Thunder Prison beneath South Peak.

After all, only a select few even knew of its existence, let alone the Left Arm of the Demonic Cult Leader that was sealed within.

Among the elders, perhaps only Great Master Thorne knew.

After all, he was among the vanguard that had fought against the Heavenly Demon when the Sword Saint led the charge.

While Marcus was still deep in thought, trying to find an answer…

Vera had already reached a conclusion.

There was no answer to this problem.

At least, with his young mind and limited wisdom, that was what he believed.

"There is nothing we can do."

Even Kael widened his eyes at the firm response.

He understood the implications behind those words.

If the remnants of the Demonic Sect had truly infiltrated, then Mount Suncrest would inevitably suffer the same fate as the Eastern Mountain Fiery Blade clan.

For a mere fourteen-year-old third-generation disciple to openly declare the possibility of Mount Suncrest's downfall…

It was either recklessness or courage.

And to Kael, both were admirable traits.

Regardless of his thoughts, Aiden wanted to hear the reasoning behind Vera's conclusion.

"What makes you think that?"

"Because it is already over."

"Over, you say."

"Yes. It has been fifty years. In the worst-case scenario, this was all planned by the remnants of the Demonic Sect ever since its collapse. Fifty years ago. Back then, our Great Teacher was still young, and even our Grandmaster and Master were either not yet born or were mere children."

Vera paused for a moment and took a deep breath.

A sigh, almost.

Discussing infiltrators inside Mount Suncrest, at the very heart of the sect, was not a pleasant feeling.

"Continue."

"...If that is the case, then the worst possibility is that the infiltrators have already long since settled inside Mount Suncrest, waiting for the signal to strike. There is no way for us to distinguish them now."

"Why do you believe that?"

"Because they have been here longer than we have."

Aiden's eyes narrowed.

A realization he had not considered.

"If we assume that the traditions of Mount Suncrest stem from the people living here… then if they have been here longer than us, it means they act more like 'Mount Suncrest's people' than we do. At best, it means they blend in better than us. At worst… it means they are already Mount Suncrest itself, and their ways have already become its ways."

"The very customs we have learned, practiced, and believed to be the righteous ways of Mount Suncrest… could have merely been their disguise all along."

"...That's correct. Then how exactly can we distinguish truth from lies? When the ones who created the standard for truth and falsehood… are the very ones who infiltrated long ago."

Aiden and Kael both fell silent.

Even Marcus was the same.

Unable to speak, he merely let his mind wander, imagining the vast and ominous scenario before them.

"...Then, in the worst-case scenario..."

"That's right. Even the very name of Mount Suncrest Sect could be shattered. There is no way for us to avoid or prevent this. As I said before, all of this has already happened."

Aiden let out a long breath.

But it couldn't end here.

"If there's no way to avoid it, then is there at least a way to rise again?"

"That's..."

Vera paused, calculating the possibilities in his mind before exhaling deeply.

Then, lifting his gaze, he looked directly at Aiden.

"...That would depend on who holds the reins after everything collapses."

Deep into the night.

Inside Scarlet Crown Chamber, the residence of the Sect Leader of Mount Suncrest Sect.

Gideon could not sleep easily.

It wasn't because of the powerful presence he could sense in the distance.

Nor was it due to the unpleasant conversation with the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult.

It was the unknown fear and anxiety gnawing at his soul.

The problem was, there was no one left to ask.

His disciple, Magnus, was practically dead.

Was there even a fragment of his consciousness left deep within that body?

It wasn't worth considering.

His opponent was the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult.

And… he had already reclaimed one-third of his original body.

A certain scene refused to leave Gideon's mind.

That moment when the leg that had once belonged to the Young Cult Leader returned, knocking on his door.

Without hesitation, he had drawn his sword and severed it from his disciple Magnus's body.

Then, as if nothing had happened, the Young Cult Leader had simply reattached his own leg.

There was no logical reason why severed flesh should reconnect simply by pressing the cut ends together.

But the Young Cult Leader's leg sprouted grotesque veins, extending like tendrils and burrowing deep into Magnus's body.

It was as if someone had stitched human flesh together with thick, pulsing cords.

A horrifying sight.

The same went for Aetheris.

That fool couldn't even withstand a single arm.

Even with silver needles embedded into his body to suppress the effects, it had only delayed the inevitable.

In the end, not even his mind could withstand the Young Cult Leader.

Aetheris had ultimately turned into a monster.

"...This is driving me insane."

Seated on his bed, Gideon finally stood up.

He left Scarlet Crown Chamber.

A luxurious training ground, paved with pristine white stone, came into view.

It was the first thing he had built upon moving into Scarlet Crown Chamber.

There had been no time, nor inclination, to maintain a front garden.

So he had torn it all up and replaced it with stone, making it a training ground instead.

And he moved the Peak Assembly to be held there.

But now… now, he finally understood why all the previous Sect Leaders had cultivated gardens in front of their residences.

At times like this, in the dead of night, who could he call upon to speak with?

Perhaps his predecessors had chosen to converse with the grass and leaves rather than face the emptiness.

At that moment.

A figure landed soundlessly in the center of the training ground.

It was that insufferable Young Cult Leader.

"Can't sleep, can you?"

"Would you be able to?"

"Was it such a horrific sight?"

"...For most, it's something they would never witness in their lifetime."

The Young Cult Leader chuckled, as if mocking him.

Gideon narrowed his eyes, frowning deeply.

"Why are you laughing?"

"I find your imagination lacking."

"What do you mean by that?"

"What do I mean, you ask..."

The Young Cult Leader perched himself on the railing of the steps leading down from Scarlet Crown Chamber to the training ground.

The polished white stone, crafted by the finest stonemasons at an exorbitant cost, was now being treated like a mere bench.

Gideon's frown deepened, but the Young Cult Leader paid no attention.

"Did you feel it?"

"Feel what?"

"The tremors of energy coming from Blooming Peak Pavilion."

Gideon scoffed.

"I am the Sect Leader, after all..."

"They're both at the peak of the transcendent realm."

The Young Cult Leader looked up at him with a grin.

That smile was impossibly ominous.