Chapter 113: Sword Demon, Things Unseen by the Eye
Sword Demon, Things Unseen by the Eye
Chapter 113: Sword Demon, Things Unseen by the Eye
"Why do you keep wearing that eyepatch?"
Even after arriving at his quarters, the Sword Demon refused to remove the black cloth covering his eyes. Naturally, the Heavenly Demon grew curious. After taking a sip of water handed to him by the maidservant, the Sword Demon answered.
"They say it eases the mind. A kind of trick, really."
The Heavenly Demon studied the Sword Demon's expression and remarked,
"Fascinating. The new martial art you've learned must carry a high risk of falling into demonic madness."
The Sword Demon nodded slightly before loosening the eyepatch and turning his gaze toward the Heavenly Demon. The shape of his qi formed the Heavenly Demon's silhouette, and through the Abyssal Void Art, his eyes, nose, and mouth gradually materialized.
Perhaps because they had been friends since childhood, his form appeared far clearer than that of the elder masters.
At that moment, the Heavenly Demon's crimson lips stretched unnaturally wide, as if splitting apart, growing so large they nearly reached his ears. The sight resembled a grinning specter—a terrifying visage with one eye burning red and the other flickering blue.
The moment the Sword Demon observed the Heavenly Demon's qi through the Abyssal Void Art, he realized something: the Heavenly Demon had been alternating between accumulating Extreme Yin and Extreme Yang energies within his Yin-Yang physique all this time.
Only after mastering the Abyssal Void Art did the Sword Demon understand that the Heavenly Demon was no ordinary demon.
The Heavenly Demon asked,
"Are you looking at me now?"
The Sword Demon nodded cautiously before hesitantly posing his own question.
"Yeah. Are you... by any chance...?"
"By any chance what?"
"...Laughing?"
The Heavenly Demon tilted his head.
"No. What would I be laughing about?"
He turned to the maidservant and asked,
"Am I laughing?"
The maidservant timidly raised her head, but the moment she glimpsed his expression, she immediately lowered it again and replied,
"No, you are not."
The Sword Demon turned his head toward her and said,
"You. Look up."
He was curious—how would someone without martial arts perceive him when he unleashed the Abyssal Void Art?
The moment the maidservant saw the hollow sockets where his eyes should have been, her entire body trembled like a leaf. She had already feared the Sword Demon Alliance Leader, but now, faced with his eyeless gaze, her terror only deepened.
To the Sword Demon, the maidservant's form resembled that of a starving orphan he had once seen—fragile, as if she had long resigned herself to hardship.
Without realizing it, he asked her,
"Have you not eaten?"
Flustered, she answered truthfully.
"I ate just an hour ago."
"You're not hungry?"
"No."
The Sword Demon nodded.
"Eat well."
The maidservant bowed her head.
"Yes, Alliance Leader. Thank you for your kind words."
The Heavenly Demon glanced between the two before addressing the Sword Demon.
"Rest for now. I'll return after changing clothes and preparing."
The Sword Demon raised a hand in acknowledgment.
"See you later."
Once the Heavenly Demon vanished, the Sword Demon called the maidservant over.
"Does the palace have any dreamweed?"
"Shall I fetch some for you?"
"Yes."
When she returned with the dreamweed, the Sword Demon stared intently at her. Her face resembled that of a starving corpse, and inwardly, he was more than a little unsettled.
Quick-witted despite her trembling hands, she lit the dreamweed with a fire striker and handed it to him.
Exhaling pale smoke, the Sword Demon murmured,
"I can't see the smoke either. I used to enjoy watching it curl."
The maidservant replied,
"It billows beautifully."
Suddenly, the Sword Demon smiled—a rare sight. Her words seemed to amuse him. He patted the space beside him.
"Sit here. Don't be afraid. Since I can't see, I feel lonelier than before."
As she sat beside him, he took a drag and asked,
"Have I seen you before?"
"No. I was only recently assigned to these quarters."
"Then we've never spent the night together either."
"No."
"Are you pretty?"
"I wouldn't know."
"You must be. The Palace Lord doesn't keep unattractive women around. He has a taste for beauty. No need to tremble—it's common knowledge. Most women near him share his bed. Once, Wi Ji-cheon said something like that. Ah, do you know who Wi Ji-cheon is?"
"No."
"The friend who just left—that's Wi Ji-cheon."
"Ah... I know him as the Heavenly Demon."
"Right. Heavenly Demon. Among the Ten Thousand Demon Library's graduates, he ranks first. First is the Heavenly Demon, second is the Sword Demon, third is the Mad Demon, and last is the Phantom Demon. These four are considered the Ten Thousand Demon Library's Four Heavenly Kings. But do you know who coined that title?"
"I... wouldn't know. Perhaps the Ten Thousand Demon Library's elder masters?"
"No, the masters never said such things. It was all fabricated by the Heavenly Demon, Wi Ji-cheon. I believed it for years."
"So it was a lie?"
The Sword Demon tilted his head.
"No. It's not that simple. Wi Ji-cheon genuinely believes it. To him, that's how he perceives our strengths. Looking back, I think there's some truth to it. Speaking of which... I still can't see the Mad Demon. Is he still imprisoned?"
"I'm not certain, but I've heard so."
"Wi Ji-cheon is a funny one. Since we're on the topic, let me share another story. Once, drunk, he claimed that everyone who enters the Ten Thousand Demon Library might be the Palace Lord's bastards. The Heavenly Demon, me, the Mad Demon, the Phantom Demon... maybe even the Blood Lord. Oh, and the Tyrant too. He said all us young graduates were the Palace Lord's illegitimate children, born to maidservants. What do you think?"
The more he pressed about the Palace Lord—the supreme figure of the Ten Thousand Demon Palace—the more uncomfortable the maidservant grew.
"I... wouldn't know."
"Look at this. No matter how much trouble Wi Ji-cheon and I cause, the Palace Lord does nothing. And the Mad Demon? Release him, and he wreaks havoc—sometimes going berserk, slaughtering palace members indiscriminately, only to be imprisoned again. Isn't it absurd? Could this, too, be my friend's fabrication?"
The Sword Demon focused his Abyssal Void Art forward and laughed alone before pulling the maidservant closer, wrapping an arm around her waist.
"Don't tremble. Your shaking makes me feel like a monster. Let's go to the bedroom."
How could she refuse when refusal might mean death? Swallowing hard, she answered,
"Yes, I'll attend to you."
The Heavenly Demon had been eavesdropping near the quarters, completely erasing his presence. Only after the Sword Demon led the maidservant inside did he silently withdraw.
Wi Ji-cheon, the Heavenly Demon—this man's hobby was eavesdropping. All to gauge the Sword Demon's state of mind.
As he retreated to his own quarters, he recalled the words he had once spouted.
'The Palace Lord's bastards... Could be true, could be false.'
Now, it held no meaning. Wi Ji-cheon had long ceased caring about who his parents were. His only concern was whether he lived up to the title of Heavenly Demon.
Seated on the bed, the Sword Demon tilted his head and stared at the wall.
The corner of his lips curled slightly.
Through the Abyssal Void Art, he had clearly sensed the Heavenly Demon observing him until now.
'As I thought—you're not to be trusted.'
Though his eyes were gone, his heightened senses had long suspected the Heavenly Demon's covert eavesdropping. Now, it was confirmed.
The Heavenly Demon's form grew distant.
'Heavenly Demon... So you've been listening like a rat all this time?'
The maidservant, watching the Sword Demon, hesitantly began undressing.
But the Sword Demon stopped her.
"Enough. Get dressed."
"Huh?"
"I said dress. I don't even know your face. I've no desire to sleep with you yet."
Through the Abyssal Void Art's illusions, she still appeared as a starving orphan—hardly arousing. It would feel like rolling with a corpse.
"Come. Sit here."
At his gesture, she sat beside him again.
"If the Heavenly Demon asks, tell him we slept. He'll assume we did."
"Yes."
He draped an arm over her shoulder and whispered sternly,
"Let me ask again. Earlier—was the Heavenly Demon laughing?"
Terrified, she answered,
"Well... He was glaring at me and slightly shaking his head."
"Ah... So he was laughing."
She swallowed before adding,
"Yes... He seemed pleased."
As her fear grew, the Sword Demon patted her back.
"No need to be afraid. I was just curious—having no eyes does that. I'll rest now. Call me when dinner's ready. I'll need to eat early—I have somewhere to go tonight."
"Understood, Alliance Leader."
As she rose to leave, he asked,
"What's your name?"
"Lee Eon."
"Lee Eon... A simple, pretty name."
As Lee Eon exited nervously, the Sword Demon lay down, replacing his eyepatch.
The Abyssal Void Art, learned at the Ten Thousand Demon Library, surpassed his expectations—though the constant strain of perceiving qi-formed figures drained his mental energy.
Alone, he realized most of his thoughts revolved around the Heavenly Demon.
No one else... but him—I must kill him myself.
He suspected the Heavenly Demon knew this.
Thus, theirs was an unspoken alliance.
Killing the Heavenly Demon now would be difficult—he risked isolation in the Palace of Ten Thousand Demons. The Heavenly Demon spared him for the same reason: alone, he couldn't absorb the entire Ten Thousand Demon Palace's power.
The most efficient strategy?
Merge into a monstrous duo and devour the Ten Thousand Demon Palace piece by piece.
As the Sword Demon ate with Lee Eon's assistance, the Heavenly Demon entered.
"Serve me as well."
"Yes."
Sitting across from the Sword Demon, the Heavenly Demon picked up his chopsticks. Lee Eon attended quietly while the two ate in silence.
The Sword Demon frequently tapped his bowl with his chopsticks—unavoidable, given his blindness.
After a while, he spoke between bites.
"Where do we strike?"
The Heavenly Demon answered,
"Likely the Black Path. Provoking the White Path now would mean clashing with Yoo Jung-hong—too troublesome."
"Which faction of the Black Path? The Night Assembly Alliance? Or start with the Crescent Society?"
As strategic details emerged, the Heavenly Demon dismissed Lee Eon.
"Leave us."
"Understood."
After ensuring no eavesdroppers, the Sword Demon lowered his eyepatch and faced the Heavenly Demon.
"Friend."
Hearing the rare term, the Heavenly Demon nodded.
"What?"
The Sword Demon spoke almost pleadingly.
"No poison in the food. I'll cooperate fully. Losing my eyes limits what I can do."
The Heavenly Demon scoffed.
"You're exaggerating... You're resistant to poison."
As the Sword Demon glared while eating, the Heavenly Demon grinned again—crimson lips stretching ear to ear.
"Our juniors have grown well. The Blood Lord, the Phantom Demon—both stronger now."
"How do we kill them within the palace?"
"We'll find a way. Our juniors are stronger than most Black Path leaders. Rumor has it—when the Mad Demon last rampaged, do you know who imprisoned him?"
"No."
"The Young Palace Lord."
The Sword Demon burst out laughing.
"Impossible... How?"
"Well, the Young Palace Lord stepped in. Maybe our juniors assisted, ganging up to subdue him. The Palace Lord was busy rolling with maidservants, so it must've been the Young Palace Lord's doing."
The Heavenly Demon suspected the Young Palace Lord's white cat, White Cat, had captured the Mad Demon.
Understanding the bigger picture, the Sword Demon cut to the chase.
"So the plan is to break the Mad Demon out?"
"Once he's loose, he'll sow chaos. Then we act—just like always."
The Sword Demon nodded.
"Understood. But... can we even find him in the vast underground prison?"
The Heavenly Demon sipped his soup casually.
"You're here, aren't you?"
"What?"
Pointing to his own eyes, the Heavenly Demon said,
"You lost yours, so the elder masters must've taught you an art to amplify your senses. Descend, focus—you'll locate the Mad Demon instantly."
Suddenly losing his appetite, the Sword Demon set down his chopsticks and stared.
Before him sat a grinning monster—one eye blue, the other red—staring back without a trace of amusement.