I Was Crazy Too (4)
The first thing they felt was the difference.
Up until now, the Demonic Sect fighters they had faced had been, so to speak, beasts. Horrifying beasts that looked as though they had only just burst out of hell and into the world.
But the ones now revealing themselves felt entirely different. If the ordinary Demonic Sect members were heavy clubs, these men were forged blades. A chillingly honed edge was already pricking at their skin.
"Monk!"
"I know, donor!"
No sooner had Baek Cheon shouted than Hye Yeon kicked off the ground and launched himself into the air. Twisting his body midair, he drove out a fist like lightning. Terrifying force flooded forward.
Hundred-Step Divine Fist!
Seeing it, Jo Geol clenched his own fist.
One of Shaolin's seventy-two supreme arts, and the most famous fist technique in the world! And especially when unleashed by that Hye Yeon—what more was there to say about the power of the Hundred-Step Divine Fist?
Literally, that thunderbolt of force rushed straight at the Law Enforcement Messenger.
And at that very moment—
Fwaaaaaaash!
The Law Enforcement Messenger slashed down through the air with a hand.
Then a black streak, darker even than the night, bloomed into existence, and Hye Yeon's fist force, flying in with terrifying speed, was split cleanly in two.
...What?
Those who saw it blinked in disbelief.
Buddhist inner power carried the energy of breaking evil. Like Daoist Daoist Immortal Energy, it possessed the nature of destroying the world's impurity. And yet they had cut through Hye Yeon's force so casually.
The meaning of that sight was immense.
They were strong!
Stronger than the feeling alone could convey!
Worse still, the moment the Law Enforcement Messengers showed themselves, the Demonic Sect members who had been losing strength began to pour their power up like mad.
A vicious wave of demonic energy swept over them like a cloud of poisonous mist.
"Hup!"
"T-this is!"
Ogeom shouted in alarm.
In the next instant, Jang Il-so thrust out a hand. The bracelet around his wrist began to spin violently of its own accord before launching forward.
"As if I'd let you."
That bracelet, spinning before Jang Il-so's face at breakneck speed, soon became a streak of light and shot toward the Law Enforcement Messengers.
Gold light cleaving through the dark night sky. It was such a tremendous strike that even the Mount Hua disciples, who clearly knew he would be their enemy in the end, had to marvel at it for a heartbeat.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaaang!
The terrifyingly powerful bracelet aimed directly at the upper body of the Law Enforcement Messenger in the lead. Seeing the bracelet flying toward him as if it would pierce him through, Jeok-il's eyes narrowed. A brutal expression surfaced on his face.
Fwaaaat!
Jeok-il, gripping his thin sword, extended his arm. The tip of the sword and Jang Il-so's bracelet collided in midair and unleashed a massive explosion.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaang!
At the same time as the blast rang out, golden energy and black demonic qi burst in all directions like fireworks.
In that instant, Baek Cheon saw Jang Il-so's bracelet caught on the end of Jeok-il's slender sword.
That...?
For an instant, a shiver ran down his spine. It wasn't ordinary for someone to deflect a bracelet with that kind of force in the first place. Especially when the treasured weapon was that thin sword; to protect it from snapping under such impact would already be difficult enough.
But that Law Enforcement Messenger hadn't merely knocked Jang Il-so's bracelet aside—he had neutralized it and caught it as well.
They're on a different level.
A few of the people here had already encountered Law Enforcement Messengers in the North Sea. But the Law Enforcement Messenger they had met there and the one approaching now shared only the same rank; in terms of sheer skill, they were not even in the same league.
And there are ten of them.
Baek Cheon bit his lip before he realized it. Even so, the Law Enforcement Messengers that had drawn near were descending before the Demonic Sect members.
Thud!
Stopping, they lifted their heads to stare at the combined forces of righteousness and evil. Their number was exactly ten.
Behind their arrogant gazes, the Demonic Sect members gathered in silence.
Just from that sight alone, it was clear enough.
Those Demonic Sect members feared the Law Enforcement Messengers even more than Mount Hua's disciples feared the intruders they would have to face from now on, and even more than the Red Dogs who were glaring at the Law Enforcement Messengers like fierce hounds that had discovered a trespasser.
They fear their own allies?
It was a hard thing to understand at a glance, but within the Demonic Sect, this was common sense.
The Law Enforcement Messengers managed and commanded the common believers—the ones Central Plains people usually called demonic soldiers. But they had an even greater mission than that: to hunt out apostates within the sect and correct anything that strayed from doctrine.
So for Demonic Sect members, it was only natural that the internal enforcers would be more frightening than any outside enemy. The Demonic Sect's doctrine was the words of the great Heavenly Demon. For those who violated that gospel, there was only one possible end.
But there was one more thing that was equally certain.
Even if these men were charged with punishing the faithful, Demonic Sect members were still martial artists who worshiped strength. The fear they showed proved the power those Law Enforcement Messengers possessed.
Crk.
Jeok-il, standing in the lead, dragged the tip of his thin sword lightly across the ground.
"I'll admit it."
A clear voice flowed out.
It was an ordinary voice, and precisely for that reason, it felt all the more alien. After all, the only sounds they had heard from the Demonic Sect since arriving here had been threats and howls. This was the first time they had heard a voice so calm.
Jeok-il stared coldly at the righteous and evil coalition standing before him.
"That there are some among those lowly Central Plains bastards who are actually worth something."
At that, everyone's faces hardened.
It was mockery disguised as acknowledgment, dismissal disguised as praise.
"But that changes nothing."
Slowly, Jeok-il pulled down the mask that had half-covered his face. Rough skin and dusky lips were revealed. His eyes had begun to redden little by little.
"There is only one end for the fools who overestimate themselves and stand against the Cult: death."
The dusky lips twitched.
"But there is no need to pity yourselves. Your deaths will not be entirely meaningless. Your deaths will proclaim to the world the terror of the Cult. His greatness. And your weakness...."
"Wow, your mouth is fucking filthy."
Cheong Myeong cut him off sharply.
Jeok-il closed his mouth and glared at him fiercely. Cheong Myeong ignored him and let out a cold sneer.
"If you want to yap that much, then at least answer the question."
Jeok-il's mouth twisted.
"Merely speaking with an unbeliever makes me feel as though my innards are being twisted, but... the Cult is, by nature, merciful. Speak, foolish one. What is it that you wish to know?"
"Why did you come into the Central Plains?"
"...What?"
"With a bishop and this many Demonic Sect dogs... looks like a branch sect moved independently. You shouldn't have that authority."
Jeok-il's eyes wavered wide open for an instant.
It was a question he had never expected. Were they not Central Plains people?
"You... just what are you?"
How could a Central Plains man know something like that?
Cheong Myeong gave a faint snort.
"What, are you guys apostates?"
At that moment, murderous intent surged from the Demonic Sect members in a tidal wave. Not only the Law Enforcement Messengers, but even the Demonic Sect members guarding behind them unleashed their demonic energy and killing intent to the fullest.
So fierce was the pressure that even the Red Dogs flinched.
"How dare you... How dare you!"
Jeok-il, who had maintained his composure until now, suddenly rolled his eyes white as though his reason had been blown clean away.
"How dare you spout such filth! How dare you, you insect worse than a bug! How dare you!"
It was almost a howl.
No one around Cheong Myeong understood this violent reaction that had exploded so suddenly. No one knew what apostasy meant within the Demonic Sect.
"No, no."
Cheong Myeong continued in that same lazy tone, utterly unfazed.
"A low-level wretch like you wouldn't even have the power to apostatize, would you? If someone's apostatized, it'd have to be your head honcho."
Cheong Myeong glanced at the pillar of authority sticking up there and asked,
"What do you think? Did that bastard apostatize?"
"Shut your mouth, you dog!"
Jeok-il roared, utterly losing himself.
"How could a bastard like you possibly understand the deep thoughts of a bishop! You unbeliever, who cannot even guess with what feelings he stepped onto this filthy land!"
"Oh...."
For an instant, Cheong Myeong's eyes gleamed darkly.
So that's it.
Now it was certain. If the real Demonic Sect had moved, a mere bishop would never have set foot on Central Plains soil with only the branch sect that followed him. Which meant this was that bishop bastard's personal action.
Simply learning that much accomplished the immediate goal. If they could somehow deal with these men, then the Demonic Sect's invasion would stop for the moment.
But to do that....
"How amusing."
Cheong Myeong showed a savage smile.
"Looks like even the mighty Demonic Sect is split in two. Well, good thinking. Smart move. The Heavenly Demon bastard's head's been gone for over a hundred years, and you're still licking his soles? Pathetic, every one of you."
"Krrr...."
Blue veins began to bulge violently along Jeok-il's neck and face. He had completely abandoned reason to fury now, and he stared at Cheong Myeong with eyes that looked as though they might lunge and kill him at any moment.
The reason he didn't charge immediately was not because he had decided to restrain his anger. It was because too much anger had pinned even his feet in place.
"Don't worry. Even if something happens, I'll help you."
Cheong Myeong smiled and flicked his sword lightly.
"Even if the Heavenly Demon really comes back, who's to say a head that got cut off once can't get cut off twice? Right?"
"YOOOOOOOUUUUU!"
Jeok-il, inflamed beyond endurance, charged forward without looking back.
His original plan had been to reorganize the Demonic Sect members who had lost their reason and surround the enemy. There was no better tactic for dealing with a small number of strong foes.
Martial arts of the demonic path were, at their core, methods that stole human reason. There had to be a drastic difference between charging like beasts and moving under someone's command.
If he had calmly directed the others following behind him, it might not have been so difficult to deal with a mere handful of them.
But now, having fallen for Cheong Myeong's provocation, every plan that had existed in his head had burned down to white ash.
"I'll rip that mouth apart!"
Because Jeok-il himself had lost reason first.
Like a dragon whose reverse scale had been struck, Jeok-il—the sanctity of the Heavenly Demon insulted—became a beast himself and charged Cheong Myeong. The Demonic Sect members who had been holding their breath behind him all rolled their eyes white as well and surged forward like a black tidal wave pushed by a typhoon.
It was a carnival of madness with not a shred of reason left in it.
Anyone would have been terrified by the sight, but Cheong Myeong only smiled brightly.
Scarlet sword aura rippled along his blade.
"This is why I like the Demonic Sect."
Bang.
Kicking off the ground hard, Cheong Myeong met Jeok-il as he flew straight toward him.
To fight an enemy is war. But to deal with a beast that has lost its reason is nothing more than hunting. Cheong Myeong's sword, which had hunted Demonic Sect members countless times, shone with unrivaled clarity in the darkness.