The Heavenly Demon Copies Martial Arts
The shouts died down abruptly.
Black-robed figures rushed in with their wooden staffs raised high.
-Whick!
I adjusted my grip on the staff and swung it the moment I seized it.
-Thwack!
The head of the man charging from the front shattered against the staff and tumbled to the ground.
I used the staff’s rebounding force to counter the attack.
Two opponents flanking me on either side toppled after their heads were pounded again and again.
Gripping the staff with both hands, I thrust it forward.
“Kyah!”
A black-robed fighter barely deflected my strike and let out a horrified scream.
“You’re not a bare-knuckle expert? How can you handle a staff so perfectly?!”
“Oh my god, this form… It’s definitely the Eight Directions Gale Staff Form!”
The man grabbed the staff and howled in desperation.
“The Eight Directions Gale Staff Form—kyak!”
His jaw exploded on impact and he was flung away.
-Boom-boom-boom-boom!
The staff in my hand whipped around like a raging storm, unleashing overwhelming pressure.
Even though my copied moves were supposed to be inferior to the original, I had already surpassed them.
Their bodies were soaked in wine and women, while mine had been forged in a far harsher training ground.
The martial arts born from my monstrous physique transcended any genetic limitations or gaps that the copied techniques carried.
In fact, they radiated a ruthless, destructive power that could surpass the originals.
“Kyah! Aaaah!”
-Quak! Thwack! Crunch!
Black-robed men fell like withered leaves in the autumn wind, struck down one after another.
“Y-you monster…!!”
A black-robed fighter charged at me in despair, ready to throw his life away.
-Clank.
I stabbed the tip of my staff into his chest and stopped him mid-charge.
I slipped my hands into his arms.
-Sssik.
My two hands gripping the staff’s end slid straight to the middle of the pole.
“Ah…”
The black-robed man’s face gradually drained of color.
He was also a seasoned staff fighter who had mastered his weapon.
Seeing my stance, he realized exactly what mistake he had made and what counterattack would come next.
“W-wait—!”
The two ends of my staff whipped around in eight frantic directions at once.
“Aaaah! Ah! Aaaagh!”
I struck his shins, battered his waist, pierced his chest, shattered both shoulders, kicked his knees, and finally smashed the back of his head with all my remaining strength.
-Quak!
The staff shattered. His skull broke and he collapsed like a frog, twitching.
-Bwoong!
I threw my head back.
Three-section staffs whipped through the air and grazed my nose tip.
-Klang, krr-rang!
-Boom-boom-boom!
The remaining black-robed fighters had opened gaps for the three-section staffs to fly at me from every side.
-One Reed Crossing Three-Section Staff!
-Bwoong, bwoong!
-Pfft, pipipit!
Hard staffs slashed through the air like they could smash boulders, whistling past my ears.
-Kiiing!
I dodged by the width of a paper, my red eyes flashing.
-Cheong!
The three-section staff I had just evaded smashed into the stone floor and ricocheted away.
“You dodged every irregular strike of the three-section staff?”
“…”
I watched the ambushers calmly, as if nothing had happened.
What surprised them most was that I had actually survived.
“Tsk.”
From the side, So Jeongmun—still watching his subordinates—uncrossed his arms and clenched his fists.
-Zwang!
A stone fragment flew up when his staff slammed into the floor.
He dodged the unusual movement of the three-section staff aimed at my shoulder, its red eyes glowing.
“I don’t know what tricks you’re pulling, but—!”
Three fighters swung their three-section staffs from three directions.
“Before these staffs embedded with steel, even bones can’t be pulled out—kyak!”
His front teeth shattered and he was thrown backward.
I snatched the three-section staff from his grip.
-Whick.
The moment it landed in my hands, the three-section staff coiled around my body like a snake.
-Clack, clgrk!
-Whiriririk!
The black-robed men’s pupils shook violently.
“No way… Again?!”
-Grind.
I clenched my teeth.
-Cha-rak!
I leaped forward and swung the three-section staff at the same time, launching the first form.
-One Reed Crossing Three-Section Staff!
The black-robed men’s eyes widened in shock.
“You damned monster—!”
-Boom! Bang-bang! Quaaang!
“Aaaah! Uwaaaah!”
Three of them couldn’t even defend themselves before their heads exploded like fireworks.
The spectators probably didn’t understand what had happened.
But those who actually took the hits knew better than anyone.
This man had not only stolen their weapons but copied their martial arts perfectly, adapting them in real time.
They had watched it with their own eyes, yet still couldn’t believe what their brains were telling them until the very end.
“This madman… Where the hell did this monster even come from…?”
Those were their last words.
On the fighting stage, every black-robed fighter except So Jeongmun lay collapsed.
“Uuu… Uuu…”
Not a single one was still conscious.
Some had even stopped twitching.
The healthiest one was probably the one whose limbs were twisted in the opposite direction.
“You… you bastard…”
A blood-soaked black-robed fighter ground his teeth while trembling.
“If I had used my inner energy from the start, the same result wouldn’t have—”
-Quak!
My foot crushed his face, silencing him forever.
-Whoosh.
A cold wind swept across the arena.
Not a single voice could be heard as though ice water had been poured over everyone.
“Is this… even possible for a human?”
“Twenty-odd martial artists surrounded him and attacked at once, yet not a single thread of his robe was touched?”
One-on-one versus one-against-many were two completely different leagues.
In the jianghu, it was common for a single Transcendent Peak master to stand at the center and slaughter endless swarms of Second- and First-rate fighters.
One against many could never win.
That simple yet powerful principle had built and maintained every system of the martial world.
Even if someone reached the pinnacle of martial power, he still couldn’t act like an arrogant fool.
He had to belong to a group and seek its protection.
Anyone branded a murim traitor would be hunted like a dog no matter how talented he was.
Yet here, on the very stage in front of us, something was happening that defied every principle of the jianghu.
“He was like a demon back then too… but now the realms are different…”
Jegal Sea muttered from the high platform.
“He grew even stronger in that moment? And by such a wide margin? Can a human even do something like that…?”
-Flutter.
The sleeve of my black robe billowed in the wind.
“Huu…”
I exhaled the stale breath that had accumulated deep in my chest.
-Dalgreuk.
The blood-stained three-section staff slipped from my hand.
I lifted my head and looked at the last remaining man.
So Jeongmun was taller than me, with dark skin, and he had been watching me in silence since the beginning.
His sharp eyes, violent mouth, and arms bulging with muscles that twitched like living snakes.
So Jeongmun raised both hands.
-Clap, clap, clap…
He began to applaud.
Only the clear sound of applause echoed across the frozen arena.
I looked at him through a face smeared with blood.
So Jeongmun spoke.
“Impressive. Truly impressive. Yeah. Honestly, you really can fight.”
“…”
I blinked.
Behind my black pupils, red light simmered quietly once more as I stared at him.
“I can fool anyone else, but not you.”
“Fool…?”
So Jeongmun laughed as he looked at me curiously.
“Your foundation is body cultivation. But you must have learned staff or three-section staff at some point, right? Using that as a base, you adapt it to match your opponent’s specific movements, fake them, and create the illusion that you’re copying their martial arts even for a split second. You drive them into mental confusion and strike like lightning.”
“…”
“I can’t fool your eyes either, So Jeongmun. Your strategy digs psychological gaps in a way that deserves admiration. You must have plenty of real combat experience.”
“Enough nonsense.”
I clenched my fist.
“Come. Pick up any weapon you like and swing.”
“Heh heh heh. That glare is intense. Even the black-robed men who’ve been driven to the brink of death don’t have eyes like that. Weapons? Weapons, you say?”
So Jeongmun clenched his fists in response.
“I’m in the same boat as you. My foundation is body cultivation. Weapons are for cowards. Swords or other blunt instruments are for cowards.”
So Jeongmun clicked his tongue.
“The moment you subdue an opponent, it’s over too quickly. Not fun at all.”
“…”
“There was one guy back then who said something similar that really annoyed me.”
“Oh? You know about him? Must have been a strong one.”
“…”
“Strong.”
I remembered the Heavenly Demon Sect’s Yeomrangdae, moving like black rats through the pouring rain.
I also remembered the masked man in white standing in front of them, his pride and dignity at their peak.
So Jeongmun smirked.
“In that sense, I’ll make you a suggestion.”
“?”
So Jeongmun grinned slyly.
“The fight is already a mess anyway. You don’t think you’ll be able to leave this arena peacefully and safely, do you? Let’s stop playing around with these kids’ games. You and I both.”
“What do you mean?”
-Uwoong!
Inner energy surged from So Jeongmun’s hands, forming a hazy aura.
“Let’s use our foundation—body cultivation—and throw in inner energy as well. Let’s fight with everything we have, without regrets, and settle it like true martial artists.”
“…”
“Scared? Of course you are. Even a proud martial artist who only fought in duels would lose his composure when he’s pushed into a life-or-death realm like this, wouldn’t he?”
I stared quietly at So Jeongmun.
Already, he had decided to kill me here.
I could feel the aura rising around his body.
It was confident, the kind the representative of the Unwol Jiju would easily accept.
‘He’s probably already passed the Transcendent Peak stage.’
My black robe sleeve began to flutter again.
So Jeongmun smirked confidently, as if he had already won.
“You’re just a pile of meat anyway, but since it’s been a while since I fought at full power, let me ask you one thing first.”
He spread his palm toward me.
“What is the name of the martial arts you’ll use?”
“Name?”
So Jeongmun pointed to one side of the arena.
-Kulk, kulk…
There, Gang Ilbi was receiving emergency treatment from a doctor, still bleeding.
“The name of the pitiful little martial art you learned from that crippled third-rate trash’s master, who’s called the sect leader in that joke sect? It’s that pathetic technique born from a piece of talent and a body that he gathered like a miracle.”
“…”
I watched Gang Ilbi’s chest heave, teeth cracking, jaw broken, as he struggled to breathe.
Then I slowly turned my gaze back to So Jeongmun.
“There is no special name for the martial arts my master taught me.”
So Jeongmun looked at me as if I had said something ridiculous.
“Where did you hear such nonsense…?”
“No, wait. Now that I think about it, it does have a name.”
“What?”
So Jeongmun’s eyebrows twitched.
I rolled up the sleeve of my black robe again.
“Alright. From now on, I will face you with nothing but this martial art alone—born from a fake master and a third-rate sect.”
-Kiiing…
Red light began to seep quietly from my eyes.
“The name of this martial art is the Decisive Ultimate, Byeoksan-ryeon. However, besides this, there is a true, official name that perfectly suits the spiritual essence and pride of my master, which I thought of just now. And you will be completely shattered by it.”
“Heheheha!”
So Jeongmun laughed.
“They’re talking about each other’s masters and disciples like they’re all clowns! Disgusting old fools.”
He rolled his massive shoulders and clenched his fists.
His legs spread, stance solid.
“Fine! Listen up! What is the name of that great decisive ultimate martial art of yours, the one that belongs to Dang Sa-mun?!”
Gang Ilbi coughed up bloody phlegm with great difficulty from the side of the arena.
“Ha… ha… kulk, kulk…”
Gang Ilbi opened his eyes.
He raised his head.
He stared at the arena.
At first he looked confused, not understanding what had happened while he was unconscious.
Yet something deeper drew his gaze.
-Swoosh.
I spread my feet wide.
I spread both arms to the sides and opened my palms.
It was the exact same stance he had shown in front of the wooden dummy.
“That… that is…”
Gang Ilbi’s eyes flew wide open.
I glared at So Jeongmun and spat every word.
[Pride and arrogance are like ten thousand waves of the sea, yet chivalry stands against ten thousand waves of chaos…!]
“What?”
-Quaaang!!!
The first line of the stance, the first true step forward, shook the entire arena as if the floor had shattered.
From my whole body, massive inner energy began to gather.
-Pajik… pajijijik!!!!
From the tips of my feet, blue and red lightning surged upward.
“A man must strengthen himself by his own strength…”
The smirk on So Jeongmun’s face vanished.
“W-wait. This… this inner energy…?!”
His face turned as white as a sheet.
-Kwaaaaa!!
The lightning wrapped around my body grew brighter and brighter as time passed.
“Remember this well! The name of the martial art I will use to completely destroy you from now on is—!”
-Pajijijik!!
Based on the heaven-fire white sand and heaven-brain white sand, a colossal surge of inner energy exploded as if it would burst the blood vessels.
I roared while unleashing lightning from my entire body.
“A real man must stand strong by his own strength!!”