Chapter 17: Business Trip (2)

“Ahhh! O Lord of Ten Thousand Demons!!”

"The Heavenly Demon has graced us with his presence!”

Spurred by the initial villagers who were prostrating themselves and shouting, the number of people coming to pay their respects seemed to increase with each passing moment. At this rate, the villagers would soon overflow the narrow village entrance.

‘I can understand their ignorance, but what is Master thinking?’

Don’t tell me the old man is just a giant attention whore?

‘Then again, you probably can’t be a cult leader unless you have a penchant for the spotlight.’

While I was busy psychoanalyzing him, Master walked toward the villagers with a much more solemn expression than usual.

"Ahhh!"

“The Heavenly Demon Descends! Ten Thousand Demons Rejoice!!”

"The Heavenly Demon has come to save us!"

The villagers closest to him started shaking like they were high, their faces filled with pure ecstasy as they babbled nonsense.

As he walked, Master occasionally stopped to stroke their bowed heads or gently clasped their hands pressed against the ground. It was a masterful display of showmanship.

The reactions of those who received Master's blessing were truly a sight to behold. Tears streamed down their faces, some collapsed with foam at their mouths, and others convulsed, staring intently at the spot where my Master's hand had touched them.

'What the fuck is this?'

Following closely behind Master, I found the scene less astonishing and more disturbing.

It was a bizarre scene.

I had witnessed similar scenes a few times when I was Seo Ji-hoon, not in person, of course, but through the internet and YouTube. I had seen videos of cult leaders mimicking the projection of energy, causing followers to collapse dramatically, or chanting strange incantations while gripping a follower's head, inducing convulsions and frothing at the mouth.

Back then, I’d watched that stuff and laughed, ‘What is wrong with these idiots?’

But seeing it in person wasn't funny—it was frightening.

What the hell made these people so devoted to this cult?

Especially considering they were ordinary civilians, untouched by the influence of Demonic Arts.

And the funny thing was, the more I thought about them, the more Master’s actions started to make a terrifying kind of sense.

'Is this why he insisted on traveling in person instead of using the carriage?'

Whatever the reason, they are fanatics, and to them, Master is a god.

A modern analogy would be the relationship between a superstar and their devoted fans.

Imagine eagerly waiting in line to see your favorite celebrity, only to have them drive by without a second glance.

Disappointing, right?

But what if that celebrity suddenly stepped out of their car and started shaking hands and taking pictures with everyone?

The fans would be completely enthralled.

With minimal effort, Master transformed casual followers into fanatics.

I couldn't help but shiver at Master's subtle but detailed calculations.

* * *

It took about two incense sticks' worth of time to pass through the villagers who had come to see Master and reach the branch headquarters.

Looking back, the village entrance wasn't that far.

A distance that could be covered in one incense stick at a leisurely pace had taken us two incense sticks to walk.

'They still haven't dispersed,' I noted, observing the thousands still prostrating themselves and speaking in tongues between the branch headquarters and the village entrance.

"The Heavenly Demon Descents! Ten Thousand Demons Obeys!! Ma Gang-il, the Branch Leader of Aksu, greets the Lord of Ten Thousand Demons."

A voice boomed, cutting through the villagers' clamor. I turned to see a burly man prostrating himself before the building.

"Rise."

The man who stood up at Master's command was a middle-aged man with a fierce face.

"Let us go inside first. If this old man stays here any longer, the masses won't be able to continue their livelihoods."

"As the Heavenly Demon commands."

"Tell the branch members to calm and disperse the villagers after we go inside."

"By your command!"

Master quickly gave his orders and headed inside the building with the Branch Leader.

Jin Hayeon and I followed closely behind.

"You must be hungry after your journey. I shall have a meal prepared," Branch Leader Ma Gang-il offered as he led us inside.

Master shook his head at Branch Leader Ma Gang-il's words.

“My youngest disciple was training hard on the road. He’s drenched in sweat. Let’s let him get cleaned up and rest first. We can eat later.”

At Master's words, the Branch Leader's gaze fixed on me.

“Ah! So you’re the new disciple I’ve heard so much about! Hahaha!”

Unlike his grim face, the Branch Leader laughed cheerfully and acted friendly towards me.

“Then we will begin the meal in about two hours. I will give the order to prepare warm water for bathing. In the meantime, allow me to escort the Lord of Ten Thousand Demons to his quarters."

"Very well."

Once the conversation between my Master and the Branch Leader ended, Jin Hayeon quietly spoke to my Master.

"Then, until the bath water is ready, this servant will perform a massage on Young Master Il-mok’s body."

"Go ahead."

Jin Hayeon and I were led to a separate room where she applied acupressure and massage to soothe my exhausted muscles.

"Whew. I feel alive again."

My body, which had been exhausted from the brutally intense qi circulation and lightness skill training, became somewhat drowsy thanks to the massage and warm bath.

After a nice long rest, one of the local cult members came to take us to dinner.

"Eat."

Master instructed, picking up his chopsticks and taking the first bite. Our belated lunch commenced.

"Tell me, how are the teachings progressing among the people of Aksu County?"

And true to the ways of boomer, Master wasted no time delving into business matters during the meal.

"Every day, the branch members and I go around the village and take care of the villagers. In the process, we gradually teach them the doctrines written in the Secret Record of the Heavenly Demon. We would like to distribute the scriptures directly and have them study, but there are not many people who are literate, so we have no choice but to convey the teachings verbally."

The questioning continued, with Master peppering the Branch Leader with inquiries. The poor guy was so stressed that he barely touched his food. It was almost sad to watch.

Munch

Munch

Meanwhile, I was busy stuffing food into my mouth without pause.

When I was somewhat full, my Master's barrage of questions towards the Branch Leader finally came to an end, but the target suddenly switched to me.

"What do you think, Il-mok?"

"...About what, Master?"

"Do you see any way to improve this place based on the system you previously described?"

You pushed me around since morning, and now you want to give me more work?

I hid my exasperated thoughts and answered.

"I haven't looked around enough yet, so nothing comes to mind at the moment."

"Haha. That's understandable. After the meal, go around the county with the Branch Leader."

"As you wish, Master."

A tour of the county sounded like a leisurely sightseeing opportunity.

‘Even if something does come to mind, I should just pretend I don’t know and move on,' I decided. I had no desire to increase my workload.

With my work-dodging plan firmly in place, I picked up my chopsticks to finish my meal. And that's when Master dropped the bomb. "If you find nothing noteworthy in Aksu County, we shall visit other locations."

"Where else would we..."

"There are plenty of places to go. How many counties do you think follow our Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's teachings?"

"..."

I got the message loud and clear. If I didn't come up with something good, this "business trip" would never end.

And every leg of the journey would mean another "training session" like the one from this morning.

Moreover, Xinjiang boasted an unnecessarily vast territory. Much larger than South and North Korea combined.

'I'm fucked.'

If I didn't come up with something brilliant today, it seemed I was destined for a nationwide tour.

And that nationwide tour would be on foot.

* * *

After the stifling meal with Master, I departed the branch headquarters with Jin Hayeon and Branch Leader Ma Gang-il.

"Hahaha. It's an honor to be able to introduce Aksu County to you, Young Master."

Branch Leader Ma Gang-il spoke while showing a smile on his fierce-looking face.

Despite the scene resembling a nepo baby flaunting their parents’ influence on a senior’s workplace from the modern world, he showed no signs of displeasure.

As he showed us around, I was struck by how normal everything seemed. The crazy, fanatical welcome from earlier had completely vanished. It was just a regular county now.

'Well, it's been over one and a half incense sticks since Master entered the headquarters.'

Under the crimson sky that was just beginning to darken, villagers busily went about their business.

"Oh my. You should have told us if you weren't feeling well."

Unlike his fierce appearance, Branch Leader Ma Gang-il approached village elders with a sociable attitude.

"Oh dear. How could we burden such busy people doing important work with something like this?"

"Hahaha. Helping all of you is that important work, elder."

He effortlessly lifted the heavy bundle the hunched elder was carrying while chatting.

Watching this, I quietly asked the elder a question.

"Elder, could you tell me what kind of important work you mentioned earlier?"

At my question, the elder's gaze turned toward Branch Leader Ma Gang-il.

A look that seemed to ask who this young fellow was to be asking such questions.

Ma Kang-il didn’t miss a beat. He just chuckled and said, “Hahaha! You saw him earlier, Elder. This is the Heavenly Demon’s new disciple.”

As soon as his answer finished, the elder was startled and suddenly tried to kneel on the ground.

I had to lunge forward and physically hold him up to stop him. The last thing I needed was a guy old enough to be my grandfather bowing to me.

"That's not necessary."

“B-But how can I not pay my respects to a disciple of the Heavenly Demon?”

"It's fine. I'm here on a secret mission now, so it would be more troublesome if people's attention were drawn to us."

Only after I said that it would be troublesome for me did the elder give up trying to bow on the ground. He still seemed a little restless, though.

No matter what I said, it seemed things would remain uncomfortable as long as I was here, so I asked another question to quickly finish my business and leave.

"Elder, could you tell me what kind of important work you mentioned earlier?"

"W-well, isn't it the work of protecting us?"

The elder's story that followed was simpler than I expected.

Xinjiang, with its mountainous terrain and vast deserts, had always been plagued by bandits and raiders who established their bases near oases or within mountain ranges. On top of that, you had criminals spilling over from other countries. Life was already hard enough out here, but with them around, it was basically hell on earth.

And then, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult took root here in Xinjiang, cutting a large number of bandits and villains, making this desolate place a somewhat more livable world for ordinary people.

"I heard stories from my great-grandfather that back then, they had to worry every day about whether mountain or desert bandits would attack."

"...Pardon?"

When I made a puzzled expression at the elder's last words, Jin Hayeon, who had been listening beside us, spoke up.

“It’s been two hundred years since our Heavenly Demon Divine Cult took root in this region. Since then, we’ve gradually expanded our influence and now we have complete control over the Tianshan Mountain Range.”

Thanks to her explanation, I recalled what I had heard from her before.

'Ah, that's right, we were branded as traitors by the Imperial Court two hundred years ago.'

It seemed that they came over to Xinjiang from the Central Plains at that time and gradually expanded the area they managed.

"Though it's less frequent than in my great-grandfather's time, mountain and desert bandits still appear occasionally even now. And whenever that happens, the cult's warriors protect us. A few years back, my own son was attacked by raiders on his way to Urumqi on a business trip! But the cult's warriors saved my son."

"Those who rescued the elder’s son were likely part of the patrol unit from the combat units, Young Master Il-mok," Ma Gang-il added, ensuring credit was given where it was due.

"Actually, Aksu County rarely sees such incidents because it's close to the main headquarters. So, we mainly focus on helping village residents with their livelihoods, like this."

After hearing that far, I could more or less understand how things were operating.

'The branch headquarters in each region are like parishes?'

They cared for the local population, assisted with various tasks, and spread the cult's teachings. They also served as a security force, suppressing disturbances and combating bandits and raiders.

It now made sense why even ordinary citizens had become as fanatical as the cultists at the headquarters. For nearly two hundred years, the cult had been subtly indoctrinating them while providing aid. I doubted I could have resisted such constant influence.

However, to put it another way.

'To think they've been operating with the same methods for two hundred years… The South Korean civil service system feels like a modern marvel in comparison.'

It was dizzying in many ways.

Still, it wasn't a bad situation for me.

'With this, there's more than enough to change.'

If their entire operation was this basic, there were a million things I could fix.

Of course.

'I should minimize my involvement to avoid as much work as possible.'

I had no intention of falling into work hell again.