Chapter 400
Chapter 400
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 400
Chapter Title: The True Heavenly Demon
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BOOM, kwarung-!
Lightning bolts rained down successively from the sky.
The swords surging in like waves were struck by the lightning and scattered to the ground. Soo-hyuk didn't allow a single blade to get close.
Meanwhile, Soo-hyuk and the Heavenly Demon clashed repeatedly.
The two of them darted through the blinding thunder and lightning at breakneck speeds.
Thump, thump-.
Soo-hyuk's heart pounded rapidly. His body wasn't just heating up—it felt like it was burning.
For the first time in ages, Soo-hyuk was feeling the strain on his stamina.
Fatigue kept rising.
For anyone else, that would have slowed their movements considerably, but Soo-hyuk was different.
The rising fatigue meant he had ramped up his output accordingly.
Kwang-!
The Heavenly Demon was sent flying backward by Soo-hyuk's swinging sword.
Sizzle. The Heavenly Demon's hand trembled visibly as it slid across the ground. The Heavenly Demon Sword hummed loud enough to see.
Splat-.
In that moment, one of the dancing swords from all directions grazed Soo-hyuk's shoulder by a hair's breadth.
Instead of intercepting it with lightning, Soo-hyuk had twisted his body to dodge.
Was his focus finally slipping, letting one get through?
Sensing something ominous, the Heavenly Demon's instincts moved his arm.
Bzzzt-!
"......!"
The Heavenly Demon's arm was charred by the lightning bolt that crashed down on his head.
His arm, unprotected by Heavenly Demon Blood Armor, burned hot. For the first time, the Heavenly Demon's expression twisted.
Whoosh-.
Soo-hyuk charged at the Heavenly Demon without pause.
He pressed relentlessly with his sword while raining lightning from above. As sword and lightning came one after another, the Heavenly Demon began losing his balance bit by bit.
Finally, the Heavenly Demon unleashed a grand technique.
The swords scattered everywhere flew in at once, forming an array. Soo-hyuk, who had been charging without rest, hesitated before the impenetrable defensive formation.
No matter what, he couldn't just charge headlong into that. In the end, Soo-hyuk halted his pursuit.
"Close one."
He clicked his tongue as his perfect counterattack came to nothing.
"You reacted to that?"
For the first time, he had dropped one of the lightning bolts intercepting the Myriad Swords Ghostly Dance directly onto the Heavenly Demon's head.
It was a strike meant to exploit a lapse in guard, and he thought it would land solidly. But the Heavenly Demon's instincts were sharper than Soo-hyuk had anticipated.
Still, it had results.
Sizzle-.
One arm.
Soo-hyuk grinned at the sight of the Heavenly Demon's arm charred like overcooked meat.
"Yeah. Now you're getting serious."
Just as his own heart was pounding harder, the Heavenly Demon's eyes were changing too.
Eyes gleaming with murderous intent.
His aura was completely different from the start. The ghostly wails were gone now.
"There you are."
The Heavenly Demon had become the ghost himself.
He had finally succeeded in drawing the real one out.
"......Heavenly Demon Spirit Possession."
That last strike had fully drawn out the Heavenly Demon Spirit Possession.
No more Zhen Ha-ryeong. The man devoured by the Heavenly Demon Spirit Possession had become the true Heavenly Demon the world feared.
This was the crucial part.
The second goal of this fight was to exorcise that thing.
"I hate you."
The Heavenly Demon laughed at Soo-hyuk's words.
"Killing innocent people like some maniac. Parasiting in someone else's body to survive. And grinning like an idiot for no reason. What the hell are you?"
"You've got it too, don't you?"
The Heavenly Demon spoke as if he knew everything.
"Something even worse than mine."
He had seen through something in Soo-hyuk.
Instead of confirming or denying, Soo-hyuk gave a different answer.
"Yeah. That's what let me make up my mind. Because I've got something worse than you."
"Doesn't matter."
As if uninterested, the Heavenly Demon spat ghostly energy from his eyes.
"You're dying today anyway."
The red energy enveloping him like aura surged and swelled, soon revealing its true form behind the Heavenly Demon's back.
A giant made of demonic and ghostly energy, rippling with red haze.
And that wasn't all.
Shra-la-la-la-.
The Myriad Swords Ghostly Dance scattered around gathered toward the Heavenly Demon.
The split swords merged into one blade. The remaining ones clung to the giant like armor.
Soo-hyuk looked up at the completed giant. A shiver ran through him at the demonic energy pouring from its eyes.
It was the same one from a year ago.
The ghost behind the Heavenly Demon gripped the sword formed by merging the myriad Myriad Swords Ghostly Dance into one.
And the next instant.
Flash-.
The giant vanished from sight.
Soo-hyuk reacted like lightning. Right after rolling reflexively, the ground split open.
Craaaack-.
The Demonic Path Ghost Idol's sword cleaved the earth. The plain split in two, unleashing terrifying power.
The Demonic Path Ghost Idol's assault didn't end there.
The massive sword unleashed sword beams in succession. The Demonic Path Ghost Idol moved exactly like the Heavenly Demon.
One might think something that size would be slow, but no—the larger it got, the faster it became.
Soo-hyuk scrambled to evade the barrage of sword beams. The ground split, clouds parted.
It was pure, violent force.
Kwang-!
Finally, the Demonic Path Ghost Idol's sword struck true above Soo-hyuk's head.
He barely blocked with his own sword, but his body was smashed into the ground. That alone was a heavy blow, yet the Demonic Path Ghost Idol didn't stop.
The sword it held scattered once more. It reverted to thousands of blades.
Thousands of swords poured down all at once.
Each one tore up the earth. The plain flipped over, dust billowing upward in a thick cloud.
Unhyang, watching the fight, cried out.
"Soo-hyuk!"
The Heavenly Demon's head turned at her shout.
Far off, riding Vulcanus, Unhyang flinched.
Her shoulders trembled visibly as her eyes met the Heavenly Demon's ghostly gaze. She couldn't put this terror into words.
The Heavenly Demon's killing intent washed over her. His target had changed.
The Heavenly Demon, consumed by the Heavenly Demon Spirit Possession, no longer cared about his promise to Soo-hyuk.
Now, he was a monster who wouldn't be satisfied until everything in sight was dead.
The moment he and the Demonic Path Ghost Idol moved toward Vulcanus.
Kwachik-!
Something from below pierced the Demonic Path Ghost Idol's abdomen.
The Heavenly Demon and Demonic Path Ghost Idol's gazes snapped down simultaneously. But before they could spot the attacker, the giant shook again.
Its armor shattered. When the second strike hit, the Heavenly Demon finally identified the foe.
It was Soo-hyuk, battered and bloody.
Bleeding profusely from head to toe, he charged at the Demonic Path Ghost Idol.
Kwang-!
This time, the giant shook even more violently.
And that shock transferred straight to the Heavenly Demon.
He vomited blood. The Heavenly Demon swung his sword at Soo-hyuk again.
Bzzzt-.
In that instant, thunder dragons appeared in the air.
Kyaaah-!
Five thunder dragons tore into the Demonic Path Ghost Idol's sword and limbs. The giant thrashed to shake them off.
In that gap.
Soo-hyuk had already mounted the Demonic Path Ghost Idol's head.
Sizzle-sizzle-.
The Heavenly Demon's eyes widened at the sight of Soo-hyuk summoning thunder and lightning atop the giant.
Thunder crashed down.
No, it wasn't thunder.
It was Soo-hyuk's sword.
The blade that had cleaved Runeterra's magic in one stroke now struck atop the Demonic Path Ghost Idol's head.
Craaaack-.
A single line was carved into the giant's body. With its limbs pinned, the Demonic Path Ghost Idol was bisected.
The giant collapsed. Red aura scattered, and the sword-armor lost power, raining to the ground.
"Cough!"
The Heavenly Demon spat blood again.
The Heavenly Demon and Demonic Path Ghost Idol were linked by soul. Damage to one hit the other instantly.
Though he had felled the giant, Soo-hyuk didn't stop. The moment the vomiting Heavenly Demon recovered his wits, Soo-hyuk was in front of him.
His body was a ragged mess, pouring blood. It was unbelievable how he could still move.
With that body, Soo-hyuk lunged at the Heavenly Demon. The staggering Heavenly Demon, his Demonic Path Ghost Idol shattered, collided with him.
Bang!
Bzzzt-.
Swords clashed, sword auras and lightning spraying everywhere. Each time the ground erupted, both spat blood.
In that moment of mutual unsteadiness.
Stab-.
Both swords pierced each other's shoulders simultaneously. Like mirrors facing each other, identical motions.
That was when it happened.
Soo-hyuk grinned through his mangled body.
The Heavenly Demon sensed something wrong. Perhaps Soo-hyuk had been waiting for this exact moment.
And sure enough.
Grip-.
Soo-hyuk finally seized the Heavenly Demon's arm.
"Finally... got you."
Rumble-.
Dark clouds blanketed the sky.
The lightning within the thunderclouds roared furiously, on the verge of boiling over.
"Thinking of dying together?"
Soo-hyuk shook his head at the Heavenly Demon's question.
"No one's dying here today. Just one soul."
Crunch-.
Soo-hyuk tightened his grip on the Heavenly Demon's arm.
A vow not to let go.
With their bodies locked, light flashed from the raging clouds.
Kwarung-!
Lightning crashed down on them.
The ground cratered from the impact. The two staggered in the depression.
Soo-hyuk released his hold and staggered back, straining his legs to stay upright.
And the next moment.
Thud-.
The Heavenly Demon dropped to his knees.
Sizzle-.
Hot steam rose above their heads.
Soo-hyuk didn't have the strength to twitch a finger. Neither did the Heavenly Demon.
A draw.
Or perhaps, the slimmest victory.
The kneeling Heavenly Demon twitched. With trembling hands, he reached for his dropped Heavenly Demon Sword.
But the fight was decided.
"Pointless struggling."
Thud-.
Soo-hyuk fully relaxed and sat on the ground.
His part in the fight was over. The one to take over was already there.
Someone walked into the devastated plain. Soo-hyuk looked up at him.
"I leave it to you."
Jin-un nodded at Soo-hyuk's words.
"Don't worry."
The final phase of this battle wasn't Soo-hyuk's to handle.
Jin-un approached the Heavenly Demon. Even without strength to grip his sword, the Heavenly Demon glared at him with ghostly eyes.
Though the moment he'd longed for had arrived, Jin-un remained calm. In this instant, he was devoted to his role.
Clap. Jin-un's palms met.
Whoosh. Darkness enveloped everything.
The tinkling of bells echoed in the dark. The moment his mind was drawn to the sound, the Heavenly Demon realized.
He was bound head to toe in chains.
"If I had my way, I'd rip you limb from limb..."
Drip-.
Bloody tears streamed from Jin-un's eyes.
"But for you, this will be worse."
Jin-un's formation settled onto the battered Heavenly Demon's body.
The formation created to excise the Heavenly Demon Spirit Possession's soul.
The moment it activated, the Heavenly Demon's eyes rolled back, and a soul poured from his mouth.
Glaring at the Heavenly Demon Spirit Possession emerging from him, Jin-un spat.
"Begone to hell."