Chapter 472
Chapter 472
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 121
>Chapter Title: The Great Battle (4)
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In the time that flowed so slowly it was as if it had stopped entirely, the impatience that had taken hold grew into ever deeper anxiety, and that soon awakened something buried deep within.
The moment his tangled thoughts cleared and his mind simplified,
Roarrrrr!
A black flame entered Mok Kyung-un’s field of vision.
It took the form of a flame yet contained darkness like an abyss.
In the endless abyss emanated savagery alongside pure demonic nature, and strangely, it felt utterly familiar despite this being their first encounter.
What in the world was this thing before his eyes?
The moment he wondered, the black flame flickered, and a voice rang out.
-Can you see it?
‘!?’
-You can see it. Have we finally come face to face properly?
‘You…’
-I thought it would take far longer for you to introspect and behold yourself, but this is truly surprising.
This voice.
It was definitely that one.
The presence within him.
Was this its form? What the hell was it?
As he puzzled over its appearance, more alien than expected, the black flame flickered again, and the voice reverberated in his ears.
-There’s no need to question the natural progression that has brought us here. Your will has reached a level worthy of this encounter.
‘Level?’
-Even without a core, the stature of your human-born will cannot be denied as equal to mine, who has lived across eons.
Across eons?
Just what was this being?
In his journey of vengeance begun to avenge Grandfather, he had learned many things.
Yet the more clues he uncovered about himself, the deeper he fell into a labyrinth.
Especially because of the Ghost Sword.
‘…What the hell are you? Do you know everything about me?’
-A straightforward question.
‘Answer me.’
-A question to myself about myself. How peculiar.
‘What?’
What nonsense was this?
A question to himself about himself? As if…
-We are not separate entities, are we? No, you’ve surely sensed it already. Though our personalities and wills differ, we are one.
‘…’
Mok Kyung-un was momentarily speechless before denying it.
‘…Nonsense.’
-Why deny it? Because it would negate the life you’ve lived so far?
‘…’
Negation of his life.
Doubts about his identity had led him to the worst assumption.
That the presence within him was the true essence, and he was merely a derivative of it.
He had become aware of this when the black flame’s presence seized control of his body.
Even though his own will existed, he had completely lost control, as if his body wasn’t his own.
All he could do was watch.
-Fascinating. It was my desire and choice, yet I never expected you to form such a strong will.
‘What are you talking about?’
-Have you grown attached to your own life?
The black flame flickered.
Though his will’s stature had risen, humans were indeed unstable beings.
Born of human will, it seemed that in this short life, many emotions had formed.
Had it not yet fully accepted this?
But Mok Kyung-un asserted his will.
‘Attachment to life… Don’t presume to define me on your terms.’
-Don’t define you?
‘Even if the truth about me is something I never wished for, the life I’ve lived until now and these emotions I hold are wholly mine.’
-…
At Mok Kyung-un’s strong will, the flame fell silent for a moment.
Then it flickered again, and the voice resounded.
-I rated human potential highly, but you truly surpass my expectations.
‘What are you trying to say?’
-Just what I said. Praise. Though since you are me, is it self-praise?
‘…You keep referring to us as one to seize control of this body, don’t you?’
-I am but an impurity.
‘What?’
Mok Kyung-un couldn’t hide his bewilderment at the sudden remark.
What the hell was he saying?
-From the moment I lost everything precious to me, nothing remained.
‘…’
-To put it in human terms, I have no great lingering attachment to life.
‘No attachment?’
-Didn’t I say? Even non-humans, most intelligent beings lose meaning in living once they lose what they hold dear. If they possess the capacity for thought, that is.
At those words from the black flame, Mok Kyung-un’s gaze grew strange.
In his previously more emotionless state, he might not have accepted it easily.
The rage and killing intent after losing Grandfather had become his driving force, but beneath it lay a profound emptiness.
And trapped in the Heavenly Duke’s Sky Sealing Technique, the anxiety of possibly losing Cheongryeong, and the moment he imagined losing her, he felt emotions utterly different from rage or sorrow.
Yes.
It was the moment he rediscovered the meaning of life, just as it had said.
‘Calling yourself an impurity—does that mean you already consider yourself dead?’
-That could be an answer. It might be hard for you to understand…
‘…No. I think I get the feeling.’
The depth of emotion in Mok Kyung-un’s voice.
Sensing it, the black flame felt something subtle.
-Truly strange. You’ve lived but a fleeting instant, yet you feel the complex emotions I’ve known.
‘It’s not about how long you’ve lived, but how you’ve lived.’
-Hah!
At that, the black flame surged dramatically.
The writhing flame seemed to tremble with great agitation.
Then a hearty laugh boomed out.
-Hahaha! Yes, you’re right. Whether long or short, it’s how you’ve lived that matters.
‘…’
-Truly ironic. Is this what it feels like to see myself through myself?
‘You’ve been monologuing this whole time. What the hell are you? You speak as if you’re not human—are you really some divine incarnation, a god like those from the Blaze Fire Cult?’
-God… Believers in fire have called me that.
‘!!!!!!’
A god?
Then this other will within—no, separate from—him was truly a divine being?
As he reeled in shock, the black flame flickered and replied.
-But you can’t define me by that alone. Those who fear me call me terror, the greedy call me evil, and the pure call me immortal. It’s like the two sides of a coin.
‘…Depending on the viewer’s perspective?’
-Yes. Everyone defines themselves, but how they’re seen inevitably varies by the observer’s subjectivity.
‘Then what are you, defined by your own subjective view, not others?’
-A definition of my existence… It’s been ages since I spoke of myself to anyone. No, it’s the first time. Speaking of myself to myself.
‘…’
-I was born in darkness deeper than the abyss. I am the black flame that brings fear, terror, and chaos—the primordial demon itself. I am destined only to reign, the being worshiped by my followers.
Roarrrrr!
Within the blazing black flame, a form emerged, one Mok Kyung-un had never imagined.
An aura of majesty and pressure that encompassed all.
It was awe incarnate.
Even Mok Kyung-un was momentarily gripped by reverence, and the being that revealed itself drew closer to him, speaking.
-I am the King. The Demon King who rules all myriad demons.
* * *
At the same time, in the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
The warriors under Mok Kyung-un from the former Heaven and Earth Society, who had seized the high ground of this natural fortress-like peak, darkened their faces at the sight of the countless cavalry charging toward them.
-Thud thud thud thud thud!
Even at a glance, their numbers approached ten thousand.
Leading the rapidly advancing cavalry were fluttering banners proclaiming their identity.
Evil Alliance
First Alliance Leader: Mad Evil Tyrant Emperor Hang Sim.
Third Alliance Leader: Red Evil League Lord Im Mu-gun.
Seventh Alliance Leader: Light Kill King Ho Il-sa.
Ninth Alliance Leader: Great Branch Leader of the Yangtze Waterway Thirty-Six Branches, Gal Yun.
Poison King Baek Sa-ha frowned at the banners symbolizing the Evil Alliance and its four leaders, then spoke gravely.
“Hoo. The worst-case scenario has come to pass.”
“…Indeed.”
The amusement had vanished from Dark Clan Lord Hwan Ya-seon’s face, who had shown some composure despite their numerical disadvantage just moments ago.
And for good reason—the absolute worst situation they had feared was unfolding.
The alliance between the Justice Alliance and Evil Alliance had been somewhat anticipated from reports by branch messengers.
However, since their starting points differed, the strategy had been to deploy every means against the Justice Alliance and settle the fight before the Evil Alliance arrived.
That was why they hadn’t hesitated to use poison techniques from the start, but their fears had materialized.
The Evil Alliance had arrived at the battlefield far ahead of expectations.
“No matter that they came on horseback, this is too fast.”
“…We can only assume the Justice Alliance provided relay stations from each sect and branch.”
Relay stations.
Places prepared with lodging, food, stables, and wagons, their key role being fresh horses.
No matter how well-trained, horses couldn’t gallop endlessly for days.
By swapping for rested horses at these stations, they could move efficiently and swiftly without rest.
“Whew. Our chances have grown even slimmer.”
Fragment Fortress King Ho Tae-gang, positioned at the highest peak, wore a hardened expression as well.
Though they had repelled nearly two thousand Justice Alliance forces in the initial clash with poison techniques, the enemy still numbered over forty-four thousand.
And now, with the Evil Alliance’s forces added, the tide darkened further.
The worst part was,
‘Mad Evil Tyrant Emperor Hang Sim.’
The Evil Alliance’s First Alliance Leader, called the northern hegemon and one of the Seven Heavens at the pinnacle of the current martial world.
The other Evil Alliance leaders were no pushovers either, supreme masters, but Hang Sim was a transcendent grandmaster in the upper ranks of the Seven Heavens.
‘Of all times, while the lord is absent…’
They were the top figures of the Justice and Evil Alliances.
Among Mok Kyung-un’s highest executives, the only one capable of facing them one-on-one was Spirit Sword Manor Lord Gu Cheon-mu, another of the Seven Heavens.
‘Two of the Seven Heavens.’
Gu Cheon-mu alone couldn’t handle them.
The greatest crisis had arrived.
‘No way out. A defensive battle it is, then.’
The Hundred Thousand Great Mountains were called a natural fortress for good reason, perfectly suited for defense.
By holding the high ground and utilizing ambush points well, they could repel tens of thousands, making it the only way to face the full enemy force now.
At least the Szechuan Tang Clan and Evil Alliance lacked dedicated poison units, so the vanguard could delay their all-out assault with this, whittling down their numbers and morale…
-Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
It was right then.
Massive explosions erupted from the peaks where the vanguard was stationed, one after another.
‘No!?’
Sudden explosions.
The sites were none other than where archers and poison warriors of the White Family lay in ambush.
-Rumble rumble! Kaboom kaboom!
Who knew how much powerful explosive they’d used—three peaks collapsed, triggering landslides.
Justice Alliance Leader Jeong Hyeon-mun’s lips curled up as he watched.
‘Heh heh heh. They’ve made their move, the main body.’
Even with the Blood Poison Lord, without exhausting or eliminating their arrows and poison, a full clash was impossible.
But explosions had just ripped through the archers’ ambush sites, creating the perfect opening.
Though the Justice Alliance executives were baffled by the sudden blasts, Jeong Hyeon-mun swiftly raised his famed sword Ilhwi, his unique weapon, and bellowed.
“The opportunity is here! Charge!”
-Waaaaah!!!!
No sooner had his order fallen than Justice Alliance warriors, starting with those carrying torches to ignite the Blood Poison Lord, surged toward the Hundred Thousand Great Mountains.
The belatedly arrived Evil Alliance forces followed suit.
“Hahaha! Can’t let the Justice Alliance dogs steal all the glory. All units, advance!”
-Waaaaah!!!!
Over eight thousand cavalry roared in unison at Mad Evil Tyrant Emperor Hang Sim’s command and charged.
With the vanguard peaks where archers had been exploding and crumbling, the supreme executives shouted urgently amid the tidal wave of Justice and Evil Alliances’ combined assault.
“The enemy’s coming! The enemy’s coming!”
“Reform the front lines!”
Despite losing about seventy percent of their archers to the blasts and casualties mounting, they shoved aside allied corpses, staggering to their feet to reform ranks.
In the meantime, Evil Alliance forces approached within three hundred paces from the left, Justice Alliance from the right.
Thus, the all-out war of the three major powers dividing the current martial world was about to begin.
‘It worked. Their attention’s focused.’
‘Now, retrieve what belongs to that one.’
-Swish swish swish!
Just as they were about to clash, black shadows stealthily approached the rear peak guarded by Blood River Valley Lord Lee Ji-yeom.
[Chapter 121: The Great Battle (4)] End