Chapter 96: The Greatest Demon of All Time (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 96: The Greatest Demon of All Time (1)
The face of Baek Wi-hyang, the Third Strategist of the Martial Alliance, hardened into a mask of stone.
For a moment, he doubted his own ears.
‘The one who cut off this head?’
If what the messenger said was true, then he was the Blood Demon himself.
‘He disguised himself as a messenger?’
His mind raced. He couldn't fathom that the leader of the Blood Cult would go so far as to disguise himself as a lowly messenger just to appear before this massive army.
But if he truly was the Blood Demon, there was no time for shock.
Baek Wi-hyang hurriedly let go of his sword hilt. He attempted to leap backward to create distance, but—
Crunch!
“Argh!”
The messenger stepped on his foot with lightning speed. The pain was so excruciating it felt as if every bone in his toes had been pulverized.
“Strategist!”
“What is the meaning of this?!”
“You’re not a messenger of our Alliance!”
Only then did the sect leaders and hall masters realize something was wrong and began to shout. Of course, not everyone just stood there yelling.
Several high-level experts, including Jo Cheong-un, known as Hengshan’s First Sword, leaped from their horses and drew their weapons to charge.
However—
Grip!
“Ack!”
They were forced to halt when they saw the messenger seize Third Strategist Baek Wi-hyang by the throat. If they moved even an inch closer, his neck would be snapped.
Peng Sa-yong, the head of the Hebei Peng Family, looked at the severed head of the Martial Alliance Leader, Merciless Blade Jeong Cheon, rolling on the ground and roared.
“You are no messenger. Reveal your identity this instant!”
The messenger holding Baek Wi-hyang by the throat raised a hand in a gesture, signaling them to be quiet.
With the Alliance Leader dead, the highest-ranking officer in this subjugation force was Strategist Baek Wi-hyang. No one dared to move recklessly.
“Finally, some silence.”
The messenger smiled thinly at the gasping Baek Wi-hyang.
That smile sent shivers down Baek Wi-hyang’s spine. Though the man was smiling, his eyes were so thick with murderous intent that Baek’s knees felt weak.
‘What is this bastard planning?’
It seemed he was the only one who had heard the man’s true identity. The messenger had clearly stated he was the one who beheaded the Alliance Leader, yet the other sect leaders acted as if they hadn't heard it. And it wasn't even a Secret Sound Transmission.
‘It’s the Blood Demon! This man is the Blood Demon!’
He wanted to scream it out right then and there. But with his life on the line, he couldn't bring himself to open his mouth.
‘Damn it.’
He was the only one who could save his own life in this situation. He had to use his wits to escape.
Barely suppressing his tremors, Baek Wi-hyang forced himself to speak.
“Why don’t you… let go of my neck so we can talk? Even if you’ve taken me hostage, there are so many…”
“Shh.”
The man silenced Baek Wi-hyang before he could finish. Then, he whispered something incomprehensible.
“From now on, I’m going to show you exactly why you have to die, Strategist Baek.”
“What? What are you…”
It happened in that instant.
The moment Baek Wi-hyang’s eyes met the messenger’s, strange visions began to unfold before him. It felt as if he were seeing himself through someone else’s eyes.
Yet, the scenes were entirely unfamiliar, as if they were events that had never happened.
‘What is this? This is…’
Countless events flickered by like a rushing stream. It felt like a mere heartbeat. He wanted to escape the illusion, but he had no choice in the matter.
Then, he saw someone pleading piteously.
[Please, spare me. I will live the rest of my life with my mouth shut. To kill a third-rate martial artist like me who hasn't even mastered internal energy...]
[You read it, didn't you?]
[Pardon?]
[You read it. The Secret Records of the Sword Immortal. That is the other reason you must die.]
It was his own face, but he looked incredibly despicable.
The flowing illusion suddenly came to a halt. In Baek Wi-hyang’s vision, he saw the eyes of the man he was supposed to be. Reflected in those eyes was the face of a man.
The man’s face, covered in scars and the weariness of a hard life, looked strangely familiar. He had definitely seen that face somewhere, but he couldn't quite place it.
Then, a name flashed through his mind.
‘So Woon-hwi?’
The face reflected in those eyes was undoubtedly one of the Twin Heroes—no, it was the Lesser Sword Immortal, So Woon-hwi. He looked rougher and more haggard, but it was definitely him.
Baek Wi-hyang was utterly bewildered. This was something he had never experienced.
But if the visions he had just seen were true, then these were the experiences of a completely different So Woon-hwi, seen through his own eyes.
Then, someone appeared before him.
‘You!’
It was the messenger—no, the Blood Demon. He had no idea what kind of sorcery the man was using.
‘Where is this? Why are you showing me this?!’
—I am showing you the reason you must die.
‘The reason I must die? What on earth are you—’
Crack! Crack-crack!
‘Wait?!’
Suddenly, the Blood Demon’s face began to distort. It shifted and transformed into someone else’s face, leaving Baek Wi-hyang in a state of utter shock.
The face the Blood Demon had transformed into was none other than the Lesser Sword Immortal, So Woon-hwi.
Strategist Baek Wi-hyang was drowning in confusion.
‘How can this be...’
Why would the Blood Demon transform into So Woon-hwi, the hero of the Orthodox Faction? He couldn't tell if this, too, was an illusion.
The Blood Demon, now wearing So Woon-hwi’s face, spoke to him.
—The Evil Faction calls me the Blood Demon, and the Orthodox Faction calls me the Lesser Sword Immortal.
‘!!!’
Hearing those words, Baek Wi-hyang felt a shock that transcended mere surprise; it was pure, chilling terror. If this was true, the Blood Demon was deceiving the entire Orthodox world—no, the entire world itself.
‘Impossible. That can’t be true.’
To the horrified strategist, the Blood Demon-turned-So Woon-hwi continued.
—The current Alliance Leader is dead, and the former one has been ousted. Soon, the Martial Alliance will appoint a new leader.
‘...?!’
In an instant, countless scenarios flashed through Baek Wi-hyang’s mind. It was the absolute worst-case scenario, something that must never be allowed to happen.
‘No! That can’t...’
Grip!
“Ack!”
The Blood Demon, still in the form of So Woon-hwi, tightened his grip on Baek’s throat. He smiled thinly and said:
—This is the future you created. With those hands, you invited your own death and decided the future of the Orthodox Faction.
“Ack... cough... who... are you...”
—Back then, I was just a member of the Martial Alliance’s Yellow Dragon Hall, a man not even worth naming. A spy for the Blood Cult.
“What...”
—Isn't it ironic? That man is now the hero of the Orthodox Faction and the leader of the Blood Cult.
“Cough... hack...”
It was strange. He was suffocating. These events were clearly an illusion created by sorcery. Yet, the grip on his neck felt increasingly real, cutting off his air.
Then, he suddenly snapped back to reality. He realized that even before he saw the vision, this man had already been holding him by the throat.
“Stop, you bastard!”
“Strategist!”
Shouts erupted around him. He was back in the real world, and the messenger was strangling him. As his breath was cut off, his vision began to fade.
‘I have to tell them. This... bastard... is So Woon-hwi... and the Blood Demon...’
He had to say it, but his mouth wouldn't open.
The messenger looked at him and smiled.
“It would be hollow to die without knowing, wouldn't it?”
“Cough... you...!”
Snap!
In an instant, his neck was broken.
Strategist Baek Wi-hyang’s pupils quivered before his head slumped forward. He had breathed his last.
*
‘Ah...!’
The feeling was indescribable.
Before my regression, in the moments before my death, I had wished for this opportunity countless times.
Strategist Baek Wi-hyang, the man who used my goodwill to satisfy his own greed and eventually killed me. He had finally died by my hand.
I remembered someone once telling me that revenge is hollow and meaningless.
I wanted to tell that person to shove it. Now that I had killed him, the weight that had been crushing my chest was gone, replaced by a sense of profound relief.
—You’ve finally achieved one of the goals you wanted so badly.
Yes. I had wanted this for so long.
I could have killed him back then, too, but I endured. But now, I finally possessed the power to handle the consequences of his death. Once I kill Moyong Su, all the grudges from my previous life will be settled.
—Shouldn't you deal with the situation here first?
True.
The shock of Baek Wi-hyang’s death lasted only a moment. One of the Martial Alliance experts who had been keeping his distance charged at me with an overbearing aura.
Looking at his face, it was Peng Sa-yong, the head of the Hebei Peng Family.
“You bastard!”
As expected of a Supreme Peak master, the energy he radiated was extraordinary. His saber technique, which seemed to cleave through the air like a falling thunderbolt, was likely the ultimate technique of the Peng Family’s Primordial Thunderbolt Saber.
I opened my palm, and the sword of the dead Baek Wi-hyang, which had been lying on the ground, flew into my hand.
“Slow.”
I swung the sword toward Peng Sa-yong’s ultimate strike. I didn't even need a technique from the Blood Heaven Great Achievement Sword. With the gap between our levels, a simple swing was as powerful as any ultimate technique.
Clang!
The moment sword and saber collided, Peng Sa-yong’s eyes widened in shock. He must have realized that he was completely outmatched in terms of internal power.
I poured strength into the blade and repelled him.
“Ugh!”
Peng Sa-yong’s body was sent flying back more than twenty paces. The other Martial Alliance experts tried to catch him, but they too were injured and blown away by the internal energy lingering in Peng Sa-yong’s body.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
“Gah!”
“Ack!”
“W-what is this?!”
The front line of the Martial Alliance was thrown into complete disarray by Peng Sa-yong’s flying body. Dozens of men fell to the ground, groaning in pain, unable to get back up.
Everyone was paralyzed with shock. They knew I was someone hiding my identity, but who could have imagined my divine authority would be enough to reduce a Supreme Peak master to this state in a single move?
Then, a middle-aged man in a navy-blue robe stepped forward.
“...Your boldness is as great as your martial prowess, Blood Demon.”
It was Jo Cheong-un, the greatest expert of the Hengshan Sect, known as Hengshan’s First Sword. He was sharpening his aura to a razor edge.
I knew this moment would come eventually, but I hadn't expected it to be today.
At Jo Cheong-un’s words, the reaction from the Alliance officials and warriors in the front was a sight to behold.
“What?!”
“The Blood Demon?!”
“He came here alone?”
Murmur! Murmur!
They never expected me to appear disguised as a messenger. It was only natural for them to fall into a panic.
Jo Cheong-un raised his sword high and roared.
“The enemy of our Alliance, the Blood Demon, has appeared! Prepare for battle!”
“Prepare for battle!”
The Alliance officials, shaken by his shout, snapped out of their daze and repeated the command. Soon, all eight thousand warriors of the Martial Alliance drew their weapons and reformed their lines.
As expected of the main force of the Martial Alliance, their momentum was formidable. It was incomparable to the forces of the branch unions.
—What are you going to do?
—Kill them all. They are enemies of the Blood Cult.
The Imitation Blood Demon Sword urged me to slaughter them. That might be one answer, but it bothered me that the Hengshan Sect and the Jinju Eon Family were among them.
Eon Yeong-in of the Jinju Eon Family was like a sister to Yeong-yeong, and the Hengshan Sect was the girl’s own sect. If I killed them, she would resent me deeply.
—So what’s the plan? They look ready to fight to the death anyway.
I smirked. If their spirits are high, I just have to break them.
I pulled the Evil Ghost Mask from my robes and covered my face. Then, I channeled my mental focus and underwent the Blood Demon transformation.
“It can’t be...”
“His hair turned blood-red.”
“It really is the Blood Demon.”
Seeing my transformation, the Martial Alliance warriors grew even more wary. But not a single person dared to move first.
They had seen the Alliance Leader, Jeong Cheon, die by my hand, and the Supreme Peak master Peng Sa-yong defeated in a single move. They were on edge.
Then, Jo Cheong-un shouted again.
“Warriors of the Alliance, listen! The Alliance Leader, the Strategist, and countless of our brothers have lost their lives to the Blood Demon! Their hot blood wails from the underworld—how can you show fear?!”
“He is right! Even if we bury our bones here today, if we do not kill the Blood Demon, countless more of our brothers in the martial world will perish!”
Eon Gwang-woon, the head of the Jinju Eon Family, added his voice. They were trying to rally their flagging morale.
But they surely didn't think I would just stand by and watch.
I concentrated my internal power and spoke.
“Listen, Martial Alliance.”
My voice echoed in all directions like thunder. Because I had infused it with the power of a Lion’s Roar, those with weak internal energy clutched their ears in pain.
“Ugh!”
“W-what is this sound...”
Flash!
Sensing the danger in my voice, Jo Cheong-un and Eon Gwang-woon leaped forward simultaneously. It was a strange coincidence that these two were the ones attacking me at once.
I wanted to avoid clashing with them if possible, but since they were the leaders of this force, I had no choice.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
The two masters unleashed their ultimate techniques, performing a sophisticated combined attack. I avoided their blades with slight movements of my upper body before diving into an opening and catching both their sword blades with my bare hands.
Clang!
“Impossible!”
Both Jo Cheong-un and Eon Gwang-woon were struck with horror as their swords were caught. As two Supreme Peak masters attacking together, they must have thought they could at least match me.
“Even the Merciless Blade couldn't last more than two forms. Did you truly think you could do anything to this Seat?”
“What?”
Their eyes wavered at my words.
“Back off.”
Creeeak! Snap!
I bent their swords with my grip. When I released them, the blades snapped back to their original shape, and the resulting shockwave of internal energy sent both men stumbling back more than ten paces.
Slide!
“Ugh!”
“Gah!”
They gritted their teeth and managed to stabilize themselves after ten paces. In truth, I could have inflicted severe internal injuries like I did to the Peng Family head, but I chose only to push them back. I was saving their face.
‘Senior Brother Jo. I wonder if you realize my consideration for you.’
If we hadn't shared a bond as senior and junior brothers at the Yikyang So Family, and if he weren't Yeong-yeong’s martial uncle, I would have dealt with him properly.
—Shouldn't you be thanking your sister Yeong-yeong instead of yourself?
Well, that’s also true.
I raised my voice again, channeling even more power.
“This Seat shall now grant you a chance to preserve your lives.”
At my words, Eon Gwang-woon of the Jinju Eon Family shouted back.
“Shut your mouth! This Alliance does not compromise with the Blood Cult—”
Before he could finish, I slammed my foot down hard on the ground.
BOOM!
The ground shattered, and a massive roar sent out a shockwave. Immediately, hundreds of warriors at the front of the Martial Alliance rolled their eyes back and collapsed where they stood.
Thud! Thud!
The sect leader-level experts barely managed to endure, but the front line was suddenly emptied.
At this sight, Eon Gwang-woon swallowed hard and muttered under his breath.
“...T-The Blood Demon Subjugation Step!”