There's No Way I'm a Demon!
I'm no demon, you idiot!
The sword gleamed like a mirror, reflecting light perfectly, crystal clear and razor-sharp.
Liz's eyes widened in sudden panic as she saw her own startled face reflected on the blade.
She yanked her sword over just in time.
The clashing blades sent a chill down her spine, yet the sound was strangely familiar.
Her blade slid aside with an awkward angle, deflecting the first strike by pure instinct rather than skill.
— Good reflexes.
The path the blade carved into the ground was clean and precise.
Liz's jaw dropped in awe as she stared at the ground, then barely dodged the next attack by jamming her own sword into the enemy's path with a screech.
—¡!!
Thankfully the opponent's blade veered upward into the sky, slicing through a perfect white cloud.
—What the heck is this?
Liz cursed the tower under her breath.
This is insane!
If the tower had parents, they'd probably be furious with me too.
I don't know how the mission got so tangled, but the difficulty is off the charts—middle boss and final boss combined?
Even the poison demon had followed its own route, and the Sun-Moon Cult's left protector had tracked me down, yet here I was complaining like an idiot.
Reacting to every movement was exhausting enough.
So she decided to cheat in the duel of steel.
—Blood Seed!
It was a shortcut, but it was all-out war.
Black blood erupted from Liz's entire body, turning the ground into a sea of red.
The left protector of the Sun-Moon Cult, Yeohwi-bin, saw her army stir in response.
The lord guardian muttered quietly, displeased.
—A trivial trick.
At that moment, a explosive wave of blood crashed toward her.
—Pew pew pew pew!
Bunnies, squirrels, wolves, tigers—every blood beast imaginable—leaped from the ground and sky, swarming her vision.
Yet her silver eyes remained calm, scanning every angle in an instant.
Her sword moved exactly as planned.
—…Kiiieeeeek!
Every single beast was sliced apart without exception.
Once their forms shattered, the blood beasts dissolved into ordinary blood.
Yeohwi-bin struck with her blade, aiming straight for the weak points she had locked onto.
—Godzilla.
—Booble-booble!
Black blood surged from the ground, boiling like a cauldron right in front of her.
A red alert flashed in her mind.
…This is dangerous.
She kicked the ground hard.
Right after, a giant made of pure black blood reached out to grab her in mid-air.
—Kwooooooo!
More than two arms and dozens of pitch-black tentacles from every part of its torso smashed toward her.
Even on the Heavenly Slaughter Star, this was rare.
Yeohwi-bin widened her eyes and nodded slowly.
—Indeed, as expected of the Heavenly Slaughter Star—a ruthless technique.
Having acknowledged the opponent's evil, she kicked off into the air.
She leaped higher, easily dodging the giant's arms and tentacles, then fell back beside her companion to create distance.
That Heavenly Slaughter Star had been more terrifying than she imagined.
She needed to stay cautious.
—…What the hell was that?
Liz rubbed her eyes, doubting what her own eyes had just seen.
After blinking a few times, she approached the old woman who had fled earlier.
—Were the Sun-Moon Cult originally a magic group?
—Magic? No, they're high-level martial artists wearing illusions as disguises.
—…So the teleportation and flight earlier were also martial arts?
—Yeah, Murim is a mess.
—No, that's western sorcery.
—Eh? The standards keep changing.
—You always go crazy, but sometimes you say the weirdest things.
The old woman began muttering nasty words again.
Liz tried to distance herself in disgust, but the old woman grabbed her arm.
—Wait.
—What?
Originally, an easy boss could be cleared just by hitting its head on the ground.
But for a hard one, you had to die dozens of times to figure out the strategy.
Now the boss's lackey was right beside me?
Excited, Liz leaned in to listen.
—The woman who just clashed with your sword is Yeohwi-bin of the Sun-Moon Cult, also known as the Sword Demon.
—…Sounds super grand, but is there any actual fighting help?
—I don't need the grand title, just useful info.
The old woman finally nodded.
—She was once a top master who ruled the world.
—Her swordsmanship lineage probably comes from there too.
—Aha.
—I don't know the details, but they say the legendary Sword Immortal Yeongdong-bin wielded the Heavenly Escape Sword technique that hides itself from the sky.
—…So that's important.
Liz felt a strange mix of excitement and disappointment.
—Who is Yeongdong-bin?
—Is that guy famous?
With only two pieces of info—Heavenly Demon Michael Jackson and Peach Fragrance from Mount Hua—Liz had no clue.
She scratched her head and sighed, her face looking even worse than before the clash.
—So how strong is she?
—Is she one of the top ten masters in the world?
—Hmm.
The old woman hummed, still staring at Yeohwi-bin.
—The Sun-Moon Cult doesn't follow the world's order.
—The top ten are just noise from people claiming to be number one.
—The Sun-Moon Cult on Heavenly Mountain is alone.
—Like poison in a jar, they ignore outside affairs and only fight to survive.
—Because they've survived so long, their blades are sharper and more ruthless than the soft-hearted central plains people.
—The Sword Demon Yeohwi-bin is a monster that grew by devouring everything she battled… or rather, everything that came at her.
Even the old woman didn't know her full past.
—It was a modern cult leader's secret blade.
—Only when it was about to stab her heart did the old woman realize its true sharpness.
—The Sword Demon Yeohwi-bin is a martial artist who killed a former cult leader by piercing her heart with her blade.
—Since the old woman had felt that blade herself, she understood the horror.
—…She can be counted in the top three strongest in the current central plains.
—Aha.
Liz nodded.
—So that crazy bitch is really strong?
—The old woman was the first to praise her like that.
—She has some bad luck, but Liz tried to stay positive.
—If I defeat her, I'll get tons of achievement points and my stats will skyrocket.
—Well, I might die, but one chance is worth it.
—What if I kill the old woman and run?
—Hmm, okay.
—First, accept the mission.
Liz mentally reviewed her plan and nodded.
—I think I have a rough idea.
—Thanks for the advice, old lady.
—Mm.
—So what do you plan to do now? Watching me and her fight?
—No, I have to fight too.
The old woman glared at the sorcerer standing beside the Sword Demon.
—If you can't kill the guy beside me, I'll make you regret it.
—Hmm, so we're dividing them up?
—Okay, I'll hold that Sword Demon girl back from coming at you.
—Yeah, trust me.
After the old woman and Liz finished their strategy talk, the sorcerer across from them finished talking too.
He moved his mouth as if saying something, while Yeohwi-bin stepped forward, gripping her shining sword.
—Oh, right.
Liz stepped forward as well.
She stared at the sword the Sword Demon held, already full of burning determination.
—Good, I'll take that.
—I guess it's time to switch to my 5th grade weapon anyway.
Liz's red eyes blazed as she gripped Cromwell's sword tightly.
—Kwaddeuk!
Black blood surged around her, forming armor.
Her vision turned red.
Her heart pounded wildly, yet her mind stayed clear.
—I'll kill that bitch.
She took a step forward.
—Kwoong-kwoong!
Her Blood Seed giant ran across the field too.
Two blood dragons lifted their heads from the ground she had already sprayed with blood.
—Anything under heaven can be cut by a sword.
—I'm not saying nonsense—give me your sword!
The demon, covered in blood and spitting red eyes, swung her blade with a savage grin.
Yeohwi-bin frowned and swung her sword to meet it.
—Smooth blade trajectory.
—Kwaaaaaang—!!
The two women clashed.
─── [ Heavenly Slaughter Star activated. ] [ Battle situation begun. ] [ Physical stats massively increased. ] [ Liz - Undertaker ] [ LV. 3 ] [ Job: Mad Demon ] [ Strength 41 → 54 ] [ Vitality 41 → 54 ] [ Agility 42 → 56 ] [ Mind 60 ] [ Asura Divine Art 6-star ] [ Mad Demon Hand 4-star ] [ Titles – Pioneer, Evil Star, Giant Killer ] [ Traits – Immovable Mind, Asura Sword, Heavenly Slaughter Star ] [ Skills – Blood Seed, Villain Detector ]