Chapter 1

That summer, when the Neung So-hwa were in particularly riotous bloom, the great Orthodox-Demonic War broke out the morning after a heavy rain.

No one expected it, not even when twenty-two branches and one hundred and twenty-nine sub-halls under the Orthodox Alliance throughout the Central Plains were simultaneously attacked.

No one knew that this fight would continue for a full thirteen years.

That it would become a fight in which we lost everyone we knew.

Not even Cheonma Shin-gyo (Demonic Cult), who started the war, knew.

The Orthodox-Demonic War.

How can one describe those thirteen years of horror?

On the battlefield, red snow always fell, and the wind screamed.

We gradually became accustomed to things we thought we would never get used to.

Several times a day, we sent the corpses of our comrades floating down rivers of blood, and in the blood-soaked corners of the battlefield, we could now eat without gagging.

The power of the demonic cult was beyond imagination, and the strength of the orthodox sects was immense.

The old masters of the orthodox sects broke their seclusion all at once, and the devils of the Heavenly Demon Cave were released from their seals.

The war, pushing and being pushed, killing and being killed, continued like that.

Friends, brothers, and comrades all died. Masters died, and novices died. The brave died, and the cowardly died. Heroes died, and devils died. Those who wanted to surrender died, and those who wanted to fight to the end died.

All who carried swords died.

When the Sorim Samsin Seung (Three Divine Monks of Shaolin) and the Baekpal Nahan (108 Arhats) destroyed a hundred God-Demon Formations and entered Nirvana, all the orthodox sect members embraced each other and wept.

Everyone shed tears of anguish at the death of the Cheongseong Chilhyeop (Seven Heroes of Qingcheng), who perished together with Gwonma after a three-day and three-night battle.

The Gaebang Bangju (Beggar Clan Leader) jumped towards the Exploding Sky Thunder for his disciples, and the broken Hwasan Jeilgeom (The Best Sword of Mount Hua) was buried in the heart of its longtime owner. Everyone cried then, too.

But now, no one cries anymore.

Upon hearing the news of the Mudeung Jangmunin (Wudang Sect Leader)'s death, everyone silently looked up at the sky. They wanted to cry, but no tears came. They were steeped in a deep sense of defeat, thinking that everyone would die anyway.

As time passed, the Orthodox Alliance was slowly being pushed back.

Someone who should not have betrayed did, and someone who was expected to betray first remained until the end and resisted. There was no blame, no praise. It didn't matter anymore. Everyone was too exhausted.

There were rumors of truces several times, but soon after, news of another disaster arrived. The rumors were just rumors. It was openly said that they wished the war would end, even if they lost.

The expectation that the war would be lost floated around the battlefield like a ghost. Like the river water frozen solid by the northwest wind, everyone's hearts were cold and rigid. Even habitual sword strikes were becoming heavy.

Rumors spread that the demonic cult would divide the orthodox sects that participated in the war into five grades and deal with them accordingly. The fourth grade would be beheading, and the fifth grade would be made into Zombies. The number of people committing suicide increased sharply.

Desertions also surged. Those who went to catch them ran away, and those who went to catch them again ran away as well.

Those who stayed to the end were those who were prepared to die for the future of the Martial World. They were brave, Infinite people.

One morning, when the magpies were chattering particularly noisily, just like that absurd morning when they heard the news that the war had broken out, another unexpected piece of news was delivered.

The news that the war was over. It was not a rumor, but a fact.

Everyone embraced each other and shed tears.

They cried and cried again, wondering if so many people had died for a war that would end so futilely.

It was not known why, or for what reason, the demonic cult had agreed to a truce in such a favorable situation.

Various rumors circulated about it. The two most likely rumors were that an invincible master had broken his seclusion and that a civil war had broken out within the demonic cult. But in the end, nothing was revealed.

Cheonma Shin-gyo (Demonic Cult) and the Orthodox Alliance, as if by agreement, remained silent about it.

Most of the Sects that participated in the war, including the Nine Sects and One Gang and the Four Great Clans, entered Sealed Door. The time had come to wipe away tears and raise new disciples.

As a year, then two years passed, new forces began to emerge in the Martial World, which had become a huge power vacuum. The landscape of the Martial World was rapidly changing.

Even in the midst of the turbulent years, Cheonma Shin-gyo (Demonic Cult) and the Orthodox Alliance remained silent.

It was a very long and deep silence, as if nothing had ever happened in the first place.

Twenty years passed like that.