Chapter 20: Formation of the Core Pillars

The scout from the Eastern Alliance never returned.

Kang Joon-oh's silence wasn't a retreat—it was a warning. And Lee-oh knew it.

Back in the heart of the newly forming sect, the tension was high. The village bustled with activity, but behind every smile and polite greeting, there was awareness: they had been noticed. And the eyes of the continent would only grow sharper.

Lee-oh stood beneath the unfinished archway at the sect's entrance, watching the sunrise creep over the eastern jungle. His robes were still dusty from yesterday's forest-clearing task. His inventory had fewer rare materials now—but the Sect Points counter had ticked over: 100,034/100,000.

Level 4.

It felt different this time—not just an internal surge, but a shift in the world around him. New system permissions unlocked. New access granted. He could now build faction buildings, appoint Pillars, establish region-based marketplaces, and unlock territory wards.

But one announcement stood out:

[SECT BUILDING UNLOCKED: Inner Circle - Pillar Rank Appointments Available]

If he wanted the Alchemist Merchant Sect to survive the pressure from the four territories, they needed structure—and leadership.

Building the Inner Circle

Lee-oh elevated three members to the rank of Pillar, granting them access to deeper system functionalities:

Daey-ib, the sharp-minded blacksmith whose mechanical ingenuity had turned scrap into alchemic-grade weapons. With full control over the Forge Division, he began refining enchantments and crafting hybrid gear—some swords had potion chambers in their hilts, others radiated minor healing fields.

Mirae, the former healer shunned by her guild, was appointed Defense and Medical Pillar. Her expertise in potions and recovery was only matched by her tactical mind. She started experimenting with barrier talismans infused with alchemic mist.

Ji-Won, the stealth-based rogue cultivator, became Pillar of Shadows. He commanded the scout network and built an outer web of traps, observation posts, and misdirection runes, masking the sect's real location in illusions and false scent trails.

Lee-oh convened a meeting.

"Each of you represents a core function," he said. "Our foundation is strong, but a war is brewing. The East already sent a scout. Next time, they won't knock."

He pulled out a hand-drawn map, dotted with pins and marks—zones of high spiritual energy, access routes to the mountain base, potential trade lines with nomadic merchants.

"We'll need more than defense. We need a message."

Sect Expansion Begins

With his Pillars mobilizing their divisions, Lee-oh began setting up Healing Pavilions in allied villages. Each offered basic potions for free and more complex ones for trade. A new slogan spread quietly: "The Alchemist Merchant Sect—Heal First, Trade Always."

While others prepared for war through armies, Lee-oh's strategy was subversive. Influence through trust. Loyalty through healing. Power through trade.

But even as they expanded outward, news came back.

From the West: a noble clan had blacklisted anyone seen doing trade with his sect.

From the South: mercenary groups were being hired, and some had maps heading toward the mountain.

From the North: silence. Which was worse.

And from the East…

That night, as the moon rose over the jungle canopy, Ji-Won returned from a covert mission with a bloodied armband in hand.

The emblem belonged to Kang Joon-oh's elite.

"They're scouting in pairs now," Ji-Won said grimly. "I had to take this one out. The other escaped."

Lee-oh looked at the blood-soaked cloth, then at the flickering torches lining the village path.

"Then it begins," he whispered.

The Pillars said nothing, but each placed a hand over their sect badge.

The first shadow of war had crossed their gates.