Chapter 358: Heavenly Demon (2)
Chapter 358: Heavenly Demon (2)
The Heavenly Demon, having crossed the boundaries of the world, had only one impression.
"A failure."
What the Heavenly Demon had anticipated was a worthy rival who could stand tall and clash against his martial arts.
He believed such an existence would be found beyond the walls of the world. However…
"How can such a world exist? It is so primitive that I cannot find even a fragment of true martial arts."
Pangemonia was a world far too different from the one he had known.
It was a place where two creator deities fashioned their own creatures, and various races sometimes competed and sometimes cooperated to further the world's development…
In short, it was a disgustingly peaceful world.
Naturally, there was no way a martial rival of the caliber the Heavenly Demon sought could exist there.
The Heavenly Demon was deeply disappointed, and that disappointment soon curdled into extreme rage.
If this was to be the case, it would have been better to fight the war against the Heavenly Realm until the very end.
Filled with resentment, the Heavenly Demon decided to bring an end to this world.
"Kill them all. If it draws breath, leave not a single blade of grass or a single rat alive."
"By your command!"
The Heavenly Demon mobilized his familiars to slaughter every living thing on the surface.
Yupinel and Kalaron issued oracles to the creatures of the earth, mounting a passive resistance.
Thus, a massive war broke out with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.
Of course, the fact that the war was merely the result of the Heavenly Demon throwing a tantrum was never revealed to the world.
In the end, the Heavenly Demon was defeated.
It was only natural.
To begin with, the Heavenly Demon hadn't even taken the war seriously.
Furthermore, Yupinel and Kalaron had desperately fought back by borrowing from the laws of Causality in other worlds to create combat-oriented creatures called Dragons, even going so far as to pour massive amounts of their own divine power into them.
And so, the Heavenly Demon was defeated and sealed.
Even as Yupinel sealed him and drove a spear through him to act as a wedge, the only emotions the Heavenly Demon felt were disappointment and boredom.
Time flowed while he remained in that sealed state.
From within, the Heavenly Demon observed the world he had originally come from.
He had no interest in the Pangemonia Continent, where not even a sliver of martial arts could be found.
A man called the Sword Dragon seemed to be spreading some clumsy martial arts to the world, but it didn't look like it would ever reach a level that would satisfy the Heavenly Demon.
Therefore, it was better to find vicarious satisfaction by watching the world he had left behind.
Who knew? Perhaps a grandmaster like Bodhidharma or Zhang Sanfeng might appear.
Time continued to pass.
Then, one day.
A certain individual caught the Heavenly Demon's eye.
[You punk! So what if you're a Shaolin Elder? Who do you think you're acting like a geezer in front of my Master? Huh?!]
His first impression was simple.
What kind of crazy bastard is this?
It was the normal reaction anyone would have.
In truth, he was flabbergasted. He hadn't expected such a mad, delinquent-like fellow to emerge from the Orthodox Faction, of all places—not the Demonic Cult or the Unorthodox Faction. Furthermore…
[Cheon, will you not stop this at once?]
[No, Master, this monk with the upside-down hair started it first—]
[You brat! How can you be so rude to an Elder of the Shaolin? Is this how I taught you?]
The one called 'Master' seemed like a proper member of the Orthodox Faction.
In fact, men so upright they were stifling were rare even in the Orthodox Faction.
Wasn't the hallmark of the Orthodox Faction to profess chivalry and the righteous path while working behind the scenes for their own gain?
Yet, the Twin Dragon Sect Leader seemed like an ideal human being crafted to show exactly what a member of the Orthodox Faction should be.
And for the disciple raised by such a man of character to be such a delinquent…
[What are you glaring at? You want a piece of me, you monk—?!]
[Cheon, you rascal!]
"An interesting combination."
From that moment on, the Heavenly Demon watched.
He watched the path of the Radiant Dragon Hero, Jincheon.
It was truly miraculous.
A man who was, at best, a disciple of a third-rate rural sect went about causing trouble and turning the Martial World into a complete mess.
Even the Heavenly Demon couldn't help but be impressed by the sight.
What was most surprising was that Jincheon's actions were not proportional to his martial prowess.
With a level of martial arts that could be evaluated as mid-to-high Transcendent Realm at best, he fought and defeated masters of the Profound Realm.
If it had happened once or twice, one might call it luck, but…
[H-How could I… by a fledgling like you…]
[Real combat is different, you pampered Clan Head of the Murong family.]
[You dare… Do you have no sense of seniority? To the Head of the Great Murong Clan, you are at best a first-generation disciple—]
[Huh? What was that? I can't hear you very well because those are the words of a Five Great Families' Head who just got thrashed by a kid not even half his age.]
[K-Kugh…]
[Anyway, I won and you lost. So, as promised, kneel down, put your head on the ground, and apologize to my Master. We'll settle the compensation for mental distress after that… Ow! Ow! That hurts, Master!]
[That's enough, you brat!]
Things like this happened more than ten times.
Thinking coldly, the Radiant Dragon Hero never lost, even when fighting against opponents with a clear difference in skill that should have made victory impossible.
As long as it was a one-on-one fight, he boasted an absolutely undefeated record, even if the opponent's realm was far higher than his own.
Seeing this, the Heavenly Demon thought:
He is a true gambler.
It is easy for the strong to defeat the weak. Rather, it is only natural.
However, it is never easy for the weak to take down the strong.
To overcome someone stronger than oneself, something beyond the realm of martial arts was required.
A gambler's instinct, like a wolf snatching the throat of a tiger.
The Radiant Dragon Hero, Jincheon, possessed that.
Seeing this, the Heavenly Demon thought—no, he craved.
I want to fight that man.
The Heavenly Demon was sealed, but he could still convey his will to Yupinel and Kalaron.
He proposed a deal.
If they set the stage so he could clash with the Radiant Dragon Hero, Jincheon, he would quietly leave their world regardless of the outcome.
It was a proposal Yupinel and Kalaron had no choice but to accept.
The Heavenly Demon's seal would eventually break one day.
It was impossible to eternally seal a deity of the same rank.
And from the perspective of the Pangemonia Continent, there was no way to oppose the Heavenly Demon if he were to break free again.
So, how fortunate was it that the Heavenly Demon offered to leave on his own?
The deal was struck.
When the Radiant Dragon Hero Jincheon died at Nakbongpa, Kalaron and Yupinel paid a significant price in Causality to retrieve his soul.
And now.
Finally, the Heavenly Demon's wish had come true.
How long had he yearned for this moment?
The attacks of the opponent striking him were actually a threat.
The opponent was blocking his own attacks.
And even when struck, the opponent somehow endured, stood back up, and lunged again.
This ordinary occurrence was a miracle the Heavenly Demon had desired even in his dreams.
His long, long thirst as a martial artist was finally being quenched.
* * *
"…This is impossible."
"Master is…"
"……."
Patrick's companions, who had come up after promising a truce with the elders of the Demonic Cult, were speechless.
They couldn't believe the reality before their eyes.
That Double Dragon…
The strongest man on the continent, Patrick Schneider…
They saw him being overwhelmed in a miserably one-sided fashion.
It was a sight anyone who knew Patrick could never have imagined.
Barely enduring and blocking the opponent's attacks, only to be sent flying and rolling across the ground.
And the sight of Patrick forcing himself back up while coughing up blood was something they had never even dreamed of.
Grit!
The sound of teeth grinding rang out.
The owner of that sound was…
"I'll kill him!"
It was Elione, one of Patrick's wives.
The moment she confirmed Patrick's state, a terrifying killing intent that made even her allies flinch erupted from her body.
She immediately summoned a high-level spirit and charged forward. However…
Thump!
She was bounced back, blocked by a translucent barrier.
"Kugh…"
Grinding her teeth, Elione steadied her posture. The elders of the Demonic Cult spoke to her.
"How foolish. Did you think we brought you here without any preparation?"
"What did you do?"
"It is called a formation. To put it in terms you can understand, it's similar to a magic circle."
"Release it this instant, or else—"
"Ridiculous. Why should I listen to you?"
"I'll kill—"
"In the first place, this isn't something we can release."
"……."
"Because that is a formation deployed directly by our Great God."
Elione's expression crumpled.
She could tell instinctively that those words were not a lie.
But they expected her to just stand by and watch?
To just watch her man being brutally killed?
For an Elven woman with a fierce obsession for her mate, being told to endure this was impossible from the start.
"I'll kill—"
"Calm down, Elione."
It was then.
A soft hand reached out and stopped her.
If it had been anyone else, Elione would have reacted sharply. But the moment she saw who it was, she couldn't.
"April? You…?"
The one who calmly stopped her was April, who possessed an absolute reverence and devotion to Patrick that was no less than her own.
It was surprising that she was the one stopping her, but even more surprising was the calm look in her eyes.
"How can you be so calm?"
At Elione's reproach, which carried a hint of betrayal, April spoke calmly.
"Believe in the Young Master."
"……."
"A crisis like this is nothing to him."
Elione was stunned.
Was it a bluff? No, she seemed sincere.
* * *
"Hmm, it seems guests have arrived."
The Heavenly Demon nodded as he saw Patrick's companions brought by the elders of the Demonic Cult in the distance.
Though he had no interest in anyone other than Patrick, he had ordered the elders to avoid killing Patrick's companions if possible.
They had been chosen.
As witnesses to this historic duel.
Of course, he could never allow them to interfere in this sacred combat.
That was why he had deployed a formation in advance.
The Demon Soul Shattering Gold Array.
It was a formation that severed external intervention, and the Heavenly Demon had reinforced it by infusing it with his own divine power.
Unless someone possessed divine power equal to his own, it could never be destroyed.
"It was a technique I learned just for fun, but it turns out to be quite useful."
With a satisfied smile, the Heavenly Demon looked at Patrick and spoke.
"Now then, let us continue. This time, I would like to take the initiative. Try your best to endure."
Hearing the Heavenly Demon's words, Patrick forced himself up, coughing up blood.
"Cough… Dammit, this is really embarrassing."
Patrick felt as if his internal organs were being twisted…
No, they actually were being twisted.
He could see what looked like bits of internal organs mixed in with the blood he spat out.
He expected the man to be strong.
But he hadn't imagined it would be to this extent.
The difference in martial prowess was two, three levels… No, honestly, he couldn't even fathom the gap.
But the thing was.
"It's just as I expected."
"And what might that be?"
"I have a chance to win."
At Patrick's words, the corners of the Heavenly Demon's mouth curled upward.
"Ho, as expected of the peerless gambler. You have a move to overturn this difference in skill?"
"Of course. Two of them, in fact."
The Heavenly Demon's interest was piqued.
If it were anyone else, he might have dismissed it, but coming from this Patrick Schneider whom he had chosen, there was a high probability it wasn't just nonsense.
"May I hear them?"
"If you're curious, that'll be 5 gold."
Clink.
"……."
Uh, this was the first time someone actually paid.
Patrick looked at the 5 gold coins dropped before him with a bewildered expression before simply standing up.
Then, he spoke to the Heavenly Demon.
"I'll tell you for free, as a special favor."
"I'm honored. So, what is your chance of victory?"
"One is unyielding grit and an indomitable heart."
For a moment, the Heavenly Demon was speechless.
He was saying something so cliché in this situation?
"And the second is…"
Patrick spoke with a smirk on his lips.
"That you're a total newbie who's only good at martial arts. You brat."
The Heavenly Demon's face went blank at Patrick's words.
What did he just hear?
To him, who was called one of the Four Grandmasters in the Martial World and had honed his martial arts for thousands of years—a 'newbie'?
"Ha…"
The Heavenly Demon let out a hollow laugh.
He felt foolish for having expected some profound martial theory.
"I made a mistake."
Demonic energy began to billow from the Heavenly Demon's body. He took a step forward and continued.
"I made a mistake, even though I knew how talented you are at making your opponent angry."
"Thanks for the complime—"
Before Patrick could even finish his sentence.
The Heavenly Demon's body suddenly vanished without any precursor. In that instant, Patrick swung his left-hand sword toward his rear. It was a swift response, as if he hadn't let his guard down for a second. However…
Not a chance.
The Heavenly Demon brushed aside Patrick's White Dragon Sword with his right hand and extended his left.
His target was Patrick's right eye.
As a warning for disappointing him, he intended to take one of his eyes.
But in that moment…
Crunch!
Along with the sharp sound of flesh being torn, droplets of blood splattered onto the ground.
The Heavenly Demon's eyes widened.
It was the first time since he had come into existence.
The sight of his own blood falling in droplets.
What was most surprising was that the one who achieved this feat wasn't Patrick's sword, but…
"You punk!"
It was Patrick's teeth.
The moment the Heavenly Demon reached out, instead of turning his head to avoid the strike, Patrick had bitten down on that hand.
Absurdly, seeing as how Aura was even infused into his teeth, it was a move he had aimed for with full intent.
No, but still…
He bit me? Me?
"I knew he was a mad dog, but..."