Chapter 197
Chapter 197
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 197
Chapter Title: Battle of the Three Demons 7
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A crescent moon, veiled by clouds, brought darkness to the night.
Mu-heun looked up and saw the Unorthodox Sect warriors running toward the wooden fence. Their faces were twisted in fear. But Mu-heun paid them no mind.
His gaze was fixed on what lay beyond them.
“You will pay the price.”
The Unorthodox Sect warriors rushing toward the wooden fence. At best, their skills were below the peak level. In short, they were a disorderly mob.
‘They probably aren't running here of their own free will. They must have been unable to defy the orders of the Ice Demon and the Flame Demon.’
However, he had no mercy to spare for those who were already trash.
“If your intention was to lure me out, you've succeeded… but am I the only one being lured?”
Mu-heun began to amplify his demonic energy, which had reached the pinnacle of extremity. Finely crafted strands of energy. Thousands of strands aimed their tips at one another.
The energies, clashing in perfect balance, created an explosion, generating a violet shimmer as if shattering space itself.
From that void, a sinister, violet demonic energy rose.
When he first possessed Baek Mu-heun's body, Cheon Mu-hyeok went to the library and found the Sun and Moon Records. The violet Sacred Fire he obtained then was the primal energy left behind by the Heavenly Demon 300 years ago.
And now.
Baek Mu-heun, who had inherited his will, unleashed the Heavenly Demonic Energy he had received.
*Kwoooaaar!*
“Master.”
Mu-heun said, finely tuning the demonic energy shimmering around his body.
“You asked me to look after the Divine Cult?”
*Shing*
He drew the Sun and Moon Sword from his waist and pointed it at the approaching Unorthodox Sect warriors.
“On behalf of my master, I shall punish the successors who have strayed from the path.”
* * *
The warriors of the Valley of the Wicked, who had been running towards the wooden fence, halted in their tracks. For there stood a demon they should never approach... a demon more sinister than the Ice Demon and the Flame Demon combined.
“This… is he telling us to die!”
“I-I'm not going!”
“Just kill me instead! How are we supposed to fight something like that!”
“Those fiends… they never intended to let us live from the start!”
“R-Run away!”
“Right! We'll die either way! Run! If we scatter in all directions, at least one of us might survive!”
“Run!”
"""Run!"""
Just then.
“Divine Sword of the Heavenly Demon. First Form. Nine Heavens Demonic Sword, Asura's Slash.”
*Chwa-aang!*
The massive, relentless sword strike crushed the Unorthodox Sect warriors who were heading for the wooden fence.
And it was not just one strike.
*Chwa-aang!*
Some had their torsos disintegrated, their heads sent flying. Others were split in half. Still others had only their heads cleaved in two.
The shapes of their demise varied, but they all met the same end.
Death.
Spilling their blood upon the ground. Their hearts stopping. Their brains bursting, making thought impossible.
The survivors among them groveled before Mu-heun, begging for their lives.
“P-Please! Spare us!”
“We'll do anything you say! Anything!”
“Please! Just give us one chance!”
“We were just following orders!”
“Mercy! Please show us mercy!”
“We'll swear lifelong loyalty! Please! Just spare our lives!”
Mu-heun looked down at the villains prostrating at his feet, begging for their lives.
The Valley of the Wicked.
A place where, as the name suggests, the wicked gather.
The path to becoming an evil person. It was simpler than one might think. A 'human' being, born and raised to possess a will, is an animal that makes constant choices from the moment it can think for itself.
What to eat.
What to wear.
What to do.
Daily life is a person's choice.
Their daily lives, that is, their choices, were simple.
Raiding merchant caravans.
Burning down villages.
Plundering crops.
Raping women.
Killing people.
These were the choices, the daily lives, of those called 'the wicked'.
Mu-heun spoke to the villains groveling at his feet.
Without a shred of pity,
Without any emotion.
“Divine Sword of the Heavenly Demon. Second Form. Heaven-Descending Sword, Descending Dragon Shatters the Heavens.”
The demon who reigns above the heavens.
The dragon summoned by that absolute demon descended from the sky. The violet dragon tearing through the heavens was truly immense, and the energy spreading out in its shape was truly sinister.
*Kwaaaaaaaaa!*
The roar of the dragon falling to the earth signaled the end for the villains who infested the Sidalmok Basin.
“Ah…”
*Kwoooaaar!*
Mu-heun erased the remnants left by the Three Supreme Blades of the World and the Seven Asura Melodies. The earth-shattering tremors and heaven-shaking shockwaves spread rapidly along the mountain range.
The sound of the air being torn asunder seemed to carry a certain meaning.
*I have come in response to your call.*
* * *
In the center of the Valley of the Wicked, the Ice Demon and the Flame Demon were tending to their beloved weapons.
The Ice Soul Demonic Fan and the Blazing Hell Blade.
The Flame Demon had ordered Jeok-in, the leader of the Soul Shadow Assassins, to wait at the wooden fence. He told him to hold his breath and wait, as they would send the Unorthodox Sect warriors to attack the fence. And if Baek Mu-heun appeared, he was to report immediately.
They had released the hounds to catch their enemy; all that was left was to wait. The remaining task was to calmly hunt the prey driven to the wooden fence.
However, the situation unfolded differently than expected.
*Kwang!*
*Rumble rumble rumble*
A deafening roar that shook the earth was heard, and the pavilion trembled.
And this sinister energy…
‘There was no need to have him wait, no need for a report.’
The Flame Demon, Cho Yeom-wi, said with a hardened expression.
“Senior Sister…”
“Yes, it seems he's here. Faster and more daringly than expected.”
“This bastard… is he doing this knowing he's facing the two of us?”
“Perhaps. But whether he knows or not isn't what's important. You know that too.”
“…Yes. To think his martial skill is at this level.”
“Indeed. This isn't the pinnacle of extremity. He has reached the state of demonic transcendence through the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon. What we feared has come to pass.”
“From the level we saw at the Divine Dragon Assembly… to possess power equal to ours in such a short time. It's simply indescribable.”
Just then.
Once again, a roar that shook the heavens and the earth echoed, and shockwaves traveled along the mountain range.
*Kwoooaaar!*
The pavilion shook, and cracks began to form on its pillars.
“To think we came together to ensure victory…”
“Yes… if I had come alone, I might have been devoured.”
“Get ready. We cannot allow a master of this level to strike first. If he came here knowing about the Valley of the Wicked…”
“We'll be in trouble if we stay here.”
The Ice Demon took out a white fan with a blueish tint, and the Flame Demon drew a demonic blade with a reddish glow.
“He is calling for us.”
“Hah. Arrogant bastard…”
* * *
Mu-heun was running in a straight line from the wooden fence to the Valley of the Wicked, destroying everything in his path.
If there was a forest, he blew it away. If there was a boulder, he shattered it.
*Kwaang!*
*Kwaang!*
*Kwaang!*
As if to announce his presence, he headed for the Valley of the Wicked. And finally, he arrived.
Past the salt lake in the Sidalmok Basin, through the forest, and along the cliff, was a gorge.
When Mu-heun reached the gorge, assassins leaped out from all directions.
Their skills were clearly different from the Unorthodox Sect warriors from before. The highly trained assassins threw daggers and detonated explosive pellets from all sides.
*Swish!*
*Kwaang!*
However, Mu-heun channeled immense energy into his Sun and Moon Sword and unleashed a torrent of massive strikes.
‘Nine Heavens Demonic Sword, Asura's Rampage.’
The flying daggers, the explosions from the pellets, all were cut down. Along with the assassins who threw them, and the traps and mechanisms they had prepared.
*Chwa-aang!*
*Chwaang!*
Afterwards, he swiftly slaughtered the warriors who charged out, risking their lives, and entered the Valley of the Wicked.
In the guise of a demon, painting the ground with the blood of warriors and paving it with their corpses.
“Finally, we meet.”
Mu-heun amplified his energy once more and directed his killing intent at the pavilion in the center of the valley. A warning that if they didn't come out now, he would obliterate the entire building.
Just then,
figures emerged from the main gate of the pavilion.
*Trudge, trudge*
*Drag, drag, drag, drag*
The masked Seven Ice Whites. Four of them had emerged. Their masks were inscribed with the characters for Four, Five, Six, and Seven. The problem was the people they were dragging with their free hands.
‘Pa-sun, Un-pyo, Cheon Ga-rak, Un-gak.’
The Seven Ice Whites held blades to the hostages' necks and spoke.
“Dragon Demon of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, wait a moment.”
“Our master has something to say.”
“If you do not wish to see these people die.”
“Lay down your sword and surrender.”
“What…?”
Mu-heun couldn't stop his expression from twisting.
“We do not wish to fight.”
“Everything can be resolved peacefully.”
“There is only one way.”
“Drop your weapon and surrender.”
With each word from the Seven Ice Whites, Mu-heun glanced at the hostages they held. Pa-sun, Un-pyo, Cheon Ga-rak, and Un-gak.
Then, softening his expression, he said.
“If I truly surrender… will you release them?”
At that, the four women spoke, smiling beneath their masks.
“Of course.”
“If you surrender.”
“There will be no more.”
“Deaths.”
Mu-heun lowered the Sun and Moon Sword he had held high, pointing it toward the ground.
“…”
Then, his expression turned icy as he spoke.
“You're spouting absolute bullshit.”
“…!?”
Just then.
*Pshik! Pshik!*
*Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!*
Violet poison needles shot out from the ground where the Seven Ice Whites stood, embedding themselves in their arms, legs, backs, and chests.
“Ugh!”
“Gah?”
“Keuk!”
*Kwang!*
In the brief moment the Seven Ice Whites were stunned, Hyeok, the Heavenly Demonic Corpse, burst from the ground beneath them.
* * *
Just before Mu-heun left the wooden fence for the Valley of the Wicked.
Mu-heun had borrowed some metal scraps from the Haomun branch leader, wrapped them around Hyeok's hands, and ordered him to dig underground and follow.
Mu-heun deliberately didn't run at full speed, instead carving a path of destruction as he moved.
Mu-heun moved above ground, while Hyeok moved below. After entering the Valley of the Wicked, Mu-heun sensed Hyeok's position.
‘Rescuing the hostages comes first… what should I do…’
He expanded his senses to survey the inside of the valley. Fortunately, the merchants were gathered in a cave at the far end.
‘They must have gathered them there to prevent them from dying in the battle.’
Feeling a wave of relief, Mu-heun then searched for Pa-sun, Un-pyo, Cheon Ga-rak, and Un-gak. And then he sensed it. Four masked warriors dragging them out onto the ground.
A fire raged within him, but he endured it. He even felt a sense of relief that they were bringing the hostages out on their own.
Mu-heun ordered Hyeok, who was underground, to move to the front of the pavilion. Cautiously, so the enemies would not notice.
Then, he began to play along with the enemies.
-What…?
Fortunately, the enemies didn't realize his true intentions. They just spoke with mocking smiles beneath their masks.
Mu-heun pretended to fall for their pathetic provocation while relaying a precise location to Hyeok.
And he had him prepare poison needles potent enough to immobilize even a formidable master for some time with a single hit.
-If I truly surrender… will you release them?
He didn't forget to play along while also checking the condition of the hostages.
The moment he sensed that Hyeok had finished all his preparations.
-You're spouting absolute bullshit.
He fired the needles coated in paralyzing poison, making them pierce through the enemies' skin.