Chapter 110
After parting ways with Sahyeon, I was on my way to Zhejiang Province.
That was because Sahyeon, while giving me some basic information about the Sacred Flame Cult, had said this.
“According to our informant, the most recent place where members of the Sacred Flame Cult were seen was Zhenhai, Zhejiang Province.”
“Zhenhai? Is that their base?”
“I don’t think so. I heard they travel around the surrounding villages as well, not just Zhenhai. They mainly go around the coastal villages by boat, spreading their teachings.”
“Coastal villages, traveling by boat…”
Only then did I understand.
“They could be in the Zhoushan Archipelago.”
The Zhoushan Archipelago was a group of islands consisting of numerous islands in northeastern Zhejiang Province, numbering more than a thousand in total. In other words, it was the perfect place to live in hiding. Sahyeon agreed with me as well.
But that was troublesome in its own way. There was no way I could search through all one thousand-plus islands just to find the Sacred Flame Cult. It would take years just to search for them, and if they moved somewhere else in the meantime, I might never find them.
‘Still, I heard their followers come out and operate in the open.’
Maybe I could learn something if I met one of their followers?
…With that thought, I headed for Zhenhai, where they had supposedly been seen recently.
The journey was quite long. There was considerable distance even between provinces, and I had to travel all the way from southern Guangxi to the northeastern end of Zhejiang. It wasn’t a journey that could be completed in just a few days.
Still, unlike last time, I didn’t get distracted looking for a beauty, so I was able to make steady progress. After continually hurrying along the road for about twenty days, I finally arrived in Zhenhai.
“Whoa, whoa.”
I looked around as a strong sea breeze blew against me.
As a coastal city, Zhenhai’s harbor had several ships docked there. Fishermen were lowering their nets and sorting through the freshly caught fish, while a market selling seafood had opened in one area.
But there was no one anywhere who looked like a member of the Sacred Flame Cult. I gazed at the distant horizon over the sea for a while before turning my horse’s head. The place I headed toward next was the largest-looking inn in the village.
When I dismounted and approached the inn, a waiter who had been bustling about inside came running out.
“Welcome! Are you staying the night?”
“I plan to stay for a few days. Do you serve meals?”
“Of course. Please wait a moment.”
The waiter took the reins from me and headed toward the stable. When I entered the inn, I saw a few people scattered around the tables. Since it was an awkward time of day, there weren’t many customers.
I took a suitable seat, and the waiter, who had tied up my horse, hurried over and asked,
“Would you like to order?”
“What does this place do well?”
As though he’d been waiting for me to ask that very question, the waiter began chattering enthusiastically.
“Our inn’s specialty is naturally dishes made with freshly caught seafood! How about our Yellow Fish Soup, simmered thickly with fresh seafood, mountain vegetables, and bamboo shoots? Or perhaps our tender soft-shelled turtle braised slowly in soy sauce and sugar…?”
“The Yellow Fish Soup, that sounds good. Give me that and a bottle of liquor.”
“Yes, sir!”
“And…”
I lowered my voice and placed a silver coin on the table. The silver coin was larger than expected, and the waiter’s eyes widened.
However, he quickly pocketed the silver and smiled slyly.
“Is there something else you’d like to order?”
“Friend, I like how quick you are on the uptake.”
I grinned as well and immediately got to the point.
“I heard the Sacred Flame Cult has come here before. Do you happen to know anything about them?”
“The Sacred Flame Cult?”
At my words, the waiter tilted his head. Then, as if he had suddenly remembered, he snapped his fingers and continued.
“Come to think of it, I believe that was their name. They come by from time to time. They’re the people who hand out food while telling everyone to believe in the Sacred Flame.”
“The Sacred Flame?”
“Yes, they’re really strange people. They go around preaching that we should believe in the Sacred Flame, and that if we believe in it, we can go to the Bright Realm. Does that even make sense? They’re not people from ancient times, so how can you believe in fire?”
‘He’s got a point.’
Was it because they were a derivative of a cult, making them a cult in their own right? Just as I let out a small chuckle,
“Still, I don’t think they’re bad people.”
“Why? Didn’t you just say they’re strange?”
“Well, that is true, but… unlike those other Demonic Path bastards, they don’t cause any trouble for the village. If anything, they sometimes help people who are in difficult circumstances.”
“Hmm.”
“At first, the villagers were very wary of them, but that’s decreased now. There might even be people who wait for them to come. They sometimes help out with work without asking for anything in return, so honestly, it’s convenient for us to have them around…”
The waiter continued rambling on about the Sacred Flame Cult, but I only half-listened while thinking about something else.
‘The Bright Realm…’
That was similar to the doctrine of the Guangjin Cult.
The Guangjin Cult also believed in the Underworld Register and that by performing good deeds and cleansing the darkness within humans, one could enter the world of light.
Though these people believed in the ‘Sacred Flame’ rather than the ‘Underworld Register,’ as Sahyeon had said, light and fire weren’t completely unrelated. If anything, they could be considered similar…
‘It’d be nice if there were something more definite.’
To that end, it would be better to meet one of their followers and talk to them directly.
I immediately cut off the waiter’s words and asked,
“Then do you know when they’ll come again?”
“I’m not sure. It’s been a while since they left, so they’ll probably come again soon… Oh!”
Suddenly, the waiter pointed somewhere. I looked through the window in the direction of his finger.
“They’re here! Over there!”
There was a group of people.
Their ages, genders, and appearances were all different, but every one of them wore pure white clothing. And embroidered on their sleeves with red thread was a design of flickering flames.
Looking at the embroidery, I realized the waiter had given me accurate information.
‘So that’s them.’
The followers of the Sacred Flame Cult. The people I had been looking for were right in front of me.
***
Fortunately, I found the followers of the Sacred Flame Cult in just one day, but I didn’t approach them right away.
If I approached them as though I’d been waiting for them, I’d only arouse suspicion, and I also needed some time to observe them.
Instead, I dressed myself like a beggar and went to receive the food they distributed once a day. I pretended to receive food while observing them from up close.
“Oh my, thank you so much again today. I don’t know how I could ever repay this kindness…”
“Not at all. We have plenty here, so please take some more.”
They always willingly gave out food. They didn’t merely hand out food, either. They went around various parts of the village helping people.
They mainly went around the outskirts of the village, distributing money and goods to people in difficult circumstances or the poor. Sometimes, they even helped villagers with their work, building a bond with them.
‘Looking at it this way, they do seem like ordinary religious people…’
I looked at the pretty young woman handing me food. Facing her, I casually opened my mouth.
“Um, isn’t it difficult to distribute food like this every time? You also seem to spend the whole day helping people in addition to this…”
The woman smiled brightly and replied,
“It would be a lie to say it isn’t difficult. But for us followers, even this is a form of cultivation. The more good deeds we accumulate, the more ‘firewood’ we can gather.”
“Firewood…?”
The woman slowly continued.
“According to the doctrine of our Sacred Flame Cult, all people in the mortal world are ashes whose fires have gone out. They can flare up again at any time, but their flames have been extinguished because of the karma from their previous lives. To burn again, they must gather firewood through good deeds.”
“I-Is that so?”
“Yes. So when we help others and gather firewood until a flame is kindled, only then can we reach the Bright Realm as the Sacred Flame.”
‘Wow, so that’s how it works.’
The world was vast, and there were certainly plenty of genuinely strange religions. But since I was also the leader of one such strange religion, I couldn’t show it. I clapped my hands and exclaimed as though I were genuinely impressed.
“Sooo that’s how it is! Wow, I am truly impressed! To perform good deeds as cultivation in order to become the Sacred Flame yourself, that’s truly remarkable!”
“You flatter me.”
“No, not at all. After hearing the doctrine of the Sacred Flame Cult that you told me about, I realized how narrow my own knowledge was. To accumulate good deeds and become the Sacred Flame, how amazing… That’s why I wanted to ask.”
I asked casually,
“If a humble person like me were to join the Sacred Flame Cult as well, would I be able to go to the Bright Realm?”
Yes, this was my true objective. To become a follower of the Sacred Flame Cult and meet their leader in person.
If I became one of their followers, I would naturally be able to reach the place where they lived. Even if I couldn’t speak with the cult leader, at the very least, I could confirm his face.
‘Eom Papa had told me the faces and distinguishing features of each of the Twelve Lion Kings in detail.’
If I saw one of them just once, I’d be able to recognize him…
Perhaps my desperation showed, because the woman’s eyes widened. Then she smiled gently and readily replied,
“Of course! Our Sacred Flame Cult always welcomes new people.”
‘Got it!’
“Then how does one become a follower? Do I go to the Sacred Flame Cult’s main altar and undergo an initiation ceremony? Does the Cult Leader happen to attend as well…?”
“No, that’s not how it works.”
The woman continued speaking in the same gentle tone.
“Those who have just joined the Sacred Flame Cult have not yet shed the taint of the secular world. So they must spend about a year performing good deeds and become ‘Pure Ashes.’ Only after becoming Pure Ashes can they go to the main altar and undergo the initiation ceremony.”
One, one year?!
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