The Jianghu abandoned a child.

And the one who took that child in was the Sect Leader of the Wudang Sect.

---

Guest.

Guest was originally a member of the Demonic Cult.

As the only flesh and blood of the Cult Leader, the Heavenly Demon Cheon Tae-seong, the child lived as the Young Cult Leader. Cheon Guest. Upon leaving the Demonic Cult, the child discarded the surname and became simply Guest. The surname was 'Cheon' because the child was the offspring of the Cult Leader.

From the moment of birth, Guest walked the path of the demonic way as the child of the Heavenly Demon and was subjected to countless atrocities.

From a very young age, the child had to bear the immense expectations of tens of thousands of cultists. Every time the child failed to meet those expectations, they were met with contempt and had to endure psychological pressure and agony.

If the child did not succeed, or failed to produce results beyond expectations, they were beaten all day long. They were stabbed with knives, struck across the body and limbs with all sorts of weapons, and subjected to harsh insults and mockery filled with disappointment. Their body became covered in whip marks, weapon scars, and torn, abraded skin.

Only by delivering results beyond expectations could the child receive love or treatment for their wounds.

But there was never any praise.

Everyone took it for granted that results beyond expectations would be achieved. Even the child's father, the Heavenly Demon, considered everything Guest did to be only natural.

From birth until the age of nine, for nine long years, the child endured this.

A child who kept hoping because they wanted to be loved, only to eventually realize they would never be loved and resigned themselves to despair.

That is why five years ago, at the age of nine, Guest escaped the Demonic Cult. They ran and ran until they collapsed somewhere, drenched in blood.

It was Hyeon-dam who saw this and took the child in.

Guest did not show any wariness toward Hyeon-dam.

It was as if the child had already given up on everything and accepted their fate.

At that time, Guest was in a critical state. There was no hope, no expectation, and no wariness. Guest had already passed through those stages thousands of times and reached the point of total resignation.

No one knew if Guest had truly left the Demonic Cult of their own volition. The fact that no one from the cult came looking for them meant they were essentially abandoned.

Guest learned the Righteous Path and came to respect Hyeon-dam to their very core, realizing that the Righteous Path is right and the Demonic Path is wrong. They acknowledged, accepted, and understood this with astonishing speed.

The people of the Wudang Sect did not criticize Guest. They were just a young child. A child who had escaped on their own.