Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Evil Ghost Battle Robe
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The Four Sword Inspector had been relentlessly pressing Dang Gyujin, but suddenly he panicked and rolled across the ground in a hurry.
“What the hell is going on…!”
Just moments ago, the beast had been perfectly obedient, and now it was baring its fangs at him. Of course he was terrified.
Especially since this was a creature he had cherished and pampered in the Black Bone Ghost Valley.
Tssstss!
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa—
Sealing Demon Sword Technique
Ghost Mist Slash
He unleashed a barrage of sword strikes to push back his assailant somehow.
But there was no killing intent in them at all.
Given the value of his foe, it seemed he just wanted to subdue him…
The problem was that the beast was in dire straits itself.
Keeeek!
The beast bulldozed through the sword winds with a reckless body slam.
In one swift motion, it tore into the Four Sword Inspector's left shoulder.
Kwaduduk!
“Arrrgh! You crazy beast!!”
The pain of his entire left arm being ripped off made the Four Sword Inspector swing his sword with true killing intent now.
The blade winds whipped up, slashing the beast to ribbons.
Shwaak! Shwaak! Shwaaak!
But the beast ignored the agony of its wings being shredded and slammed its forehead into the Four Sword Inspector's chest once more.
Kwaaaang!
“Keheok!”
Keeeek! Keeek!
It was a total mudslinging brawl.
「What a mess!」
「The beast is that desperate too. What good would it do to fall out of the Ghost King's favor?」
In the end, the Four Sword Inspector's flurry of sword strikes and the beast's brutal melee turned into a dogfight where either could drop dead at any moment.
“I don't know what's going on, but if it's come to this, I have to join in!”
Dang Gyujin, having regained her composure, charged back in and swept at the Four Sword Inspector's lower body.
Heaven-Earth Unity Scripture
Repel Evil Surge
Shishishishishik!
Sword qi filled the air like endless crashing waves, sweeping away all the ghost mists.
The Heaven-Earth Unity Scripture that Dang Gyujin practiced was inherently a power that repelled evil presences. It was the natural counter to ghost arts.
“You crazy bitch!!”
“Heehee! Crazy bitch? Is there any sweeter compliment for a girl like me? That's high praise!”
“You lunatic—”
“So let's get cozy and pick up where we left off. You say your mother sent you? Then we're allies, right? So it's fine if I chop off an arm or a leg?”
“Aaaah!”
“Which should it be? Arm? Leg? Or maybe… your head?”
The sight of her grinning proudly, drenched in blood!
「Ahem! Ahem!」
「It seems the Young Leader's new sister is quite the… fierce one.」
「We'd better be extra careful not to get on her bad side.」
「How in the world… did you spar with her?」
Whew, no good. From now on, I need to stay on my new sister's good side. Otherwise, I'd end up dismantled piece by piece.
Even I, her ally, felt that way—how must the Four Sword Inspector feel, busy fending off the beast?
“O, ooh, stay back! Stay away, you crazy bitch!!”
Naturally, his face grew paler by the second as Dang Gyujin's light sword drew ever closer.
Even trying to create distance with ghost mists or specters only seemed to amuse her more.
Heeheehehehe!
“This humiliation… I'll pay it back, I swear!!”
Unable to withstand the pressure from both the beast and Dang Gyujin any longer, the Four Sword Inspector pulled a strange crystal orb from his bosom.
「That's… a Return Pearl?」
「These bastards came fully prepared!」
The Return Pearl was a one-use magic tool that warped space to eject the user outside the formation's life gate.
It couldn't transport over vast distances, but it was a reliable way to preserve one's life in a pinch.
Now was the moment. For me, who had planned to lure him out of the estate, this was a chance I couldn't miss.
The Four Sword Inspector crushed the Return Pearl with eyes bloodshot red.
Dang Gyujin swung her sword in alarm, but his figure had already vanished in a burst of light.
“Ah—”
Dang Gyujin struck at empty air and gritted her teeth.
She still needed to interrogate him about his identity and his exact connection to her mother, but now the lead was gone.
Still, she let out a sigh of relief, thinking she had at least saved her brother. Then she turned her head back and startled.
「Of course he wouldn't be there.」
「Is the real hunt beginning now?」
I, who should have been there, had vanished without a trace.
* * *
In a wooded area not far from the Nine Dragons Branch Family.
“Huk— huk—”
Four Sword Inspector Mok Gaeil ran, gasping for breath.
His mount, the beast, had been stolen by the enemy, and the Ghost Array Formation had failed.
He had just used his Return Pearl, so all he had left were a couple of magic tools.
The problem was not knowing when Dang Gyujin might track him down with the beast in tow.
He had to hurry back to the shrine before this became public knowledge in the Nine Dragons Branch Family.
That way, he could silence Unhwi and Dang Gyujin.
And reclaim the beast too.
“Why! Why the hell am I in this mess—!”
Snatching the beast right out from under him was no small feat.
It required the prowess of the Ghost King like the old Young Leader from the rumors, or one of the eighty-one Holy Law Lords, or someone on their level.
For such a figure to be in the White War, it was a fatal blow to the Black Bone Ghost Valley's plans to advance into the Central Plains via Namgung Sanyoung.
“Maybe another group of shed-skins made their move. I need to report to Master and prepare countermeasures—”
Rustle!
Mok Gaeil stopped dead in his tracks after just a few steps.
Sss—
Beyond the dark forest edge, a pair of purple will-o'-wisps floated languidly.
They slowly took on the form of an evil spirit.
Though the shape was hazy and not fully defined, Mok Gaeil instinctively knew what it was.
No, he couldn't not know.
Every member of the Black Bone Ghost Valley would grind their teeth at the sight of it!
“E-Evil Ghost Spirit…? But the Young Leader clearly died six years ago—”
The Evil Ghost Spirit was the primal spirit that Young Leader Yeon Unhwi mainly wielded in battle.
A type of avatar, it served as the leader directing hordes of wandering souls and怨 spirits!
These days, it remained as a symbol representing the Young Leader in the Divine Church.
But after Yeon Unhwi met his end in the Heavenly Demon Divine Church, the Evil Ghost Spirit had vanished with him—or so it was said.
And now it was back?
That could only mean one thing.
—The Young Leader has returned!
A chill ran down his spine.
Step step!
Right then, someone slowly emerged from beneath the Evil Ghost Spirit.
A face Mok Gaeil recognized.
“You—”
“We have plenty to talk about, just you and me, don't we?”
Dang Unhwi twisted one corner of his mouth.
In that instant, Mok Gaeil saw Yeon Unhwi's smile overlaying Dang Unhwi's face.
“!!”
…The Young Leader is Dang Unhwi?
Had he faked his death all this time?
Was this the legendary resurrection of the dead? Or possession by a ghost?
Reincarnation?
Transmigration?
None of it made any sense.
“I see from your face that you know who I am. That'll make our chat much easier. So—”
Unhwi reached toward the sky.
The evil spirit settled onto his hand, elongating into the shape of a robe.
Evil Ghost Battle Robe.
A spiritual artifact materialized by weaving grudge threads leaking from the Evil Ghost Spirit.
The moment it draped over the body, it provided armor-like protection while simultaneously amplifying internal energy and sorcery.
Clack—
Unhwi wrapped the Evil Ghost Battle Robe around his upper body.
The long, cape-like hem billowed behind, emblazoned with a fearsome, distorted evil ghost visage.
As the jet-black garment enveloped him, it felt as if he had cloaked himself in pure darkness.
A gruesome wail from the Ghost Valley echoed chillingly.
Kiyaahahaha!
Kikikikik—
Ghostly qi and deathly aura swirled like a storm, poisonous miasma binding him like armor.
The Little Heavenly Demon had returned to the Central Plains after six years.
In this moment, Unhwi faced Mok Gaeil not as 'Dang Unhwi,' but as the Heavenly Demon Divine Church's Young Leader 'Yeon Unhwi.'
If the enemy was tied to the council as expected, this spot would become the courtroom for judging the sinner!
“E-Evil Ghost Spirit and Battle Robe too!? What… what the hell are you! Young Leader!? He can't be alive!!”
“Die first, and we'll chat slowly after. Do you know how long I've waited for you to slip away alone?”
“!!!”
Unhwi didn't wait for Mok Gaeil's reply.
He simply stomped the ground hard.
Kwaaang!
Shweeeeeek—
Clad in poisonous qi and deathly aura, his charge resembled a battering ram assaulting a castle gate.
Mok Gaeil hastily raised his sword with his remaining arm.
The lingering ghost mists clung to the blade, sharpening its ghostly edge.
But.
Crash!
The ghost mists shattered like glass upon colliding with Unhwi.
Hwaaaak!
Unhwi was already in his face, whipping up a kick.
Mad Wind Dance
Demon Wind Severing Kick
‘He's not the Young Leader!’
Fighting with martial arts instead of sorcery?
Mok Gaeil slashed down with all his might to block the kick.
Blood vessels burst, his eyes turning blood-red.
“…Almost fooled me. You're no Young Leader. Hoo! Yeah, that makes sense. A dead man coming back to life? Ridiculous.”
Mok Gaeil narrowed his eyes.
The purple glow trailing from Unhwi's eyes was chillingly eerie.
He hadn't expected the imitation to extend to the Violet Demon Eyes.
“I don't know how you got your hands on the Evil Ghost Battle Robe, but… the real Young Leader wouldn't fight me with martial arts like this! He'd have torn me apart with a flick of his finger!”
Mok Gaeil assumed a battle stance.
“You let Dang Gyujin go to hog the glory for yourself… but this works out perfectly! If I capture you here, everything will fall into place—”
“Ah, shut your yapping. Hey! Do you fight with your mouth instead of your fists?”
“…I'll kill you!!”
That fake had the Young Leader's knack for getting under people's skin, at least.
Mok Gaeil erupted his energy, drawing up his innate qi to its limit.
Reverse Blood Great Law.
A technique that burned life force to drag one's realm several times higher.
He figured this would overpower Unhwi, no matter what trump cards he hid.
Patsutsutsu!
The ghost behind him swelled massively, lending him greater power.
Black Bone Twelve Battles
Bone Thunder
Kwarururung!
Black Bone Ghost Valley martial arts blended sorcery to enhance attributes.
Bone Thunder would carry devastating lightning to crush Unhwi's techniques in one blow.
But Unhwi smirked.
Pfft!
Mok Gaeil might slip away if he chose to flee, but charging like this was a gift.
Unhwi had banked on him not running if he showed up alone!
Shweeeek—
He thrust out his hand blade.
Mixed with ghostly qi and poison, it formed a slashing wind edge far denser and sharper than during his bout with Dang Gyujin.
In itself, it rivaled a masterfully forged divine sword.
Skguk—
Pajijik, peong!
Bone Thunder was sliced midway.
Unhwi stepped forward boldly, entering sword range.
A perilous spot.
But Unhwi ignored it, unleashing Ferocious Tiger Twelve Strikes.
Relying solely on Mad Wind Dance's destructive power and the Evil Ghost Battle Robe's defense.
Spear and shield.
With such perfect offense and defense, what was there to fear?
Pabababababak!
Twelve afterimages laden with mad winds battered Mok Gaeil's entire body.
Martial arts and sorcery.
Physical strikes and primal spirits.
Two opposing forces, rarely combined, now meshed spectacularly for the first time.
Ferocious Tiger Twelve Strikes
Ferocious Tiger Frenzy Dance
Mok Gaeil's sword-wielding wrist snapped, his jaw shattered, head whipping back.
Wandering poison at the impact points raced through his meridians, devouring his internal energy and finally crushing his dantian.
Kwaaaang!
With Unhwi's final Shadow God Claw, Mok Gaeil's heart exploded completely, sending him flying back.
A gaping hole yawned in his left chest.
“Keuheok— Keok, keok!”
Mok Gaeil rolled grotesquely on the ground for a while.
No strength left in his body.
Consciousness sinking lower.
‘What the hell… happened…!’
Mok Gaeil could no longer tell if the figure before him was Dang Unhwi or Yeon Unhwi.
The dignity that subdued the beast with a word, the real Evil Ghost Battle Robe—it screamed Yeon Unhwi.
Yet the fluid martial arts suggested Dang Unhwi.
The Yeon Unhwi he knew would never use martial arts.
But the wandering poison and sorceries mixed in pointed to Yeon Unhwi.
Yeon Unhwi, Dang Unhwi, Yeon Unhwi, Dang Unhwi…
The names jumbled chaotically in his mind until Unhwi's shadow loomed over his head.
“No need to overthink it. Yeon Unhwi or Dang Unhwi, it's all the same in the end.”
Had he read his mind?
The voice was utterly cold.
Mok Gaeil forced his head up.
Beyond his blood-smeared vision, Unhwi grinned down at him like an evil spirit.
In that moment, he realized.
Ah, this man is indeed the Young Leader who died six years ago.
But he was also the Dang Unhwi they had targeted.
The Ghost Valley, the South Palace—they had touched someone they should never have—
“I'm going to rip every last one of you apart.”
Unhwi smashed down on Mok Gaeil's crown with full force.
Puuuuk!
Flesh sprayed everywhere.
Mok Gaeil's consciousness snapped.