Chapter 133: "You want to help the Palace Lord, don't you?"
Chapter 133
"You want to help the Palace Lord, don't you?"
Qilian Demon (3)
"Then follow my instructions."
To be honest, when Se-woon first spoke those words to him, Umun Tak had doubted.
But it wasn't distrust toward Se-woon, the man who had saved him from solitude.
No—his doubt was directed at himself.
How could someone like me, the disgrace of the Beast Palace, possibly help my brother?
It was a question of his own worth.
Yet, before departing on his mission—
"W-what is this power...?"
"Follow my senior brother. Once you arrive, you'll understand what this power is."
Se-woon had awakened an ability within him that even Umun Tak himself hadn't known existed.
The moment his task was complete, he raced from the Deep Fog Valley straight to the Heavenly Battle Arena.
And the instant he arrived—
"Now, Umun Tak!!"
His heart pounded wildly.
Can I live up to Se-woon's expectations?
Can someone like me truly help my brother?
[Go on, monster! Show them your strength!]
Just then, Muming—who had fought alongside him in the Deep Fog Valley—shoved him forward.
It was such a simple gesture, yet his tension melted away.
Whoosh!
Suddenly, radiant light erupted from Umun Tak's eyes.
A brilliant golden wildfire blazed from his dantian.
At last, Umun Tak—who had kept his lips sealed until now—spoke.
"Your master commands you."
No longer did he stutter.
The moment he realized his own purpose and value, he overcame the habit entirely.
The power of the wildfire was manifesting.
Thud!
Thud-thud-thud!
Endless footsteps echoed through the dark passage leading to the Heavenly Battle Arena.
Simultaneously, two hundred pairs of sinister, glowing eyes emerged from the shadows—
The Ghost Yin Jiangshi he had stolen from the Deep Fog Valley.
"Eliminate all who torment my brethren."
The command was absolute annihilation.
Boom!
Whoosh!
Like lightning, the Ghost Yin Jiangshi surged onto the battlefield.
The first to arrive tore through a Corpse Yin Jiangshi with its bare hands as if shredding paper.
Crunch!
Splat!
Another Corpse Yin Jiangshi was crushed into oblivion.
The sheer might of the Ghost Yin Jiangshi effortlessly overwhelmed their lesser counterparts.
The warriors of the Beast Palace watched in stunned silence as these new Jiangshi turned the tide in their favor.
And the fact that Umun Tak was the one controlling them?
That shocked them even more.
Se-woon was the only one who remained unfazed.
Just as I expected—utter domination.
Umun Tak was performing exactly as Se-woon had predicted.
Despite this being his first time commanding Jiangshi, his control rivaled that of Qilian Demon, a master who had devoted his entire life to necromancy.
The wildfire dwelling within Umun Tak was the key to it all.
The bloodline passed down through generations of Beast Palace Lords carried the power of life.
But hidden within that blood was another force—death.
The wildfire.
The name "Beast Palace" wasn't derived from the ferocity of Chuk Yeo-un's martial arts.
No—his power originated from the cycle of life and death, the natural order of a beast's existence.
In his past life, when Umun Tak took his own life, the Blood Cult had lamented the loss of the wildfire.
Qilian Demon, in particular, had shed tears of blood.
Only too late did he realize that without the wildfire, Ghost Yin Jiangshi would forever remain incomplete.
Its influence was far greater than he had ever imagined.
Ghost Yin Jiangshi linked through the wildfire grow exponentially stronger alongside their master.
Crunch!
Squelch!
[GGRRAAHH!]
At that moment, a Ghost Yin Jiangshi under Umun Tak's command tore the head clean off a Corpse Yin Jiangshi attacking Umun Gol—
Crunch!
Splat!
—and crushed it in its fist.
And this was with Umun Tak's current strength, barely at the pinnacle of martial arts.
These two hundred Ghost Yin Jiangshi would prove invaluable in the coming war against the Blood Cult.
But where one side rejoiced, another despaired.
How is that bastard controlling Ghost Yin Jiangshi?!
Qilian Demon, forced to watch helplessly as his meticulously crafted Jiangshi were stolen from him, was beyond shocked—he was horrified.
And it only got worse.
Damn it! The soul imprints on the Jiangshi are already complete! There's no way to reclaim ownership now!!
Control over Ghost Yin Jiangshi could only be established by imprinting one's own soul upon them.
Once that imprint was complete, killing the master wouldn't return ownership.
The Jiangshi would simply go berserk, rampaging until they self-destructed.
In short—they were irrecoverable.
All his efforts had been for nothing.
The Blood Cult's vast resources poured into creating these Jiangshi had evaporated into thin air.
Even if he managed to retreat and return to the main sect, he couldn't begin to imagine the punishment awaiting him.
And worst of all—
How the hell did that trash pull this off?!
Soul imprinting required mastery of necromancy at a corresponding level.
To control Ghost Yin Jiangshi, one needed martial prowess at least at the peak of the Hua Realm.
Yet the man before him hadn't even reached the pinnacle of martial arts, let alone the Hua Realm.
"Eyes on me."
"!!"
Distracted by Umun Tak, Qilian Demon flinched as Se-woon's voice suddenly rang in his ears.
When did he get this close?!
Turning his head, he saw Se-woon standing right before his barrier.
Just moments ago, he was fighting the Annihilation Jiangshi!
Qilian Demon's eyes bulged as he looked toward where Se-woon had been.
Crackle!
There stood an enigmatic pillar of ice—utterly out of place in the scorching southern lands.
What the—?!
And encased within it was the Annihilation Jiangshi that had been battling Se-woon.
Qilian Demon's stomach dropped.
Not because Se-woon could wield Yin-Cold Qi.
No, no, no! I have to retrieve it!
He'd already lost all his Ghost Yin Jiangshi to Umun Tak—if Se-woon stole his Annihilation Jiangshi too, it would be a disaster.
Desperate, Qilian Demon redistributed the barrier's energy and reactivated his necromancy.
Crackle!
A corpse lying beside the ice pillar opened its mouth, spewing forth Dark Mist once more.
This time, however, his goal was to reclaim the Annihilation Jiangshi trapped inside.
But—
Hiss!
Whoosh!
The Dark Mist failed its purpose, incinerated by emerald flames without a trace.
"GAHH!!"
Instead, the backlash from the failed spell wrenched a pained groan from Qilian Demon.
For some reason, retrieval had been impossible.
"Tsk tsk. Did you really think that would work?"
"Grrk... You...!!"
Se-woon clicked his tongue mockingly.
He had already coiled the Extinction Thread around the base of the ice pillar—imbued with his strongest anti-demon energy.
Of the three Annihilation Jiangshi, this was the only one he had bothered with.
After all, I let him summon the Jiangshi just so he'd try to reclaim this one.
Regardless, the Annihilation Jiangshi would remain sealed within the ice until the battle's end.
Which meant only one task remained.
Break the barrier.
And—
This time, without fail, slaughter Qilian Demon in the most brutal way possible.
Murderous intent flickered in Se-woon's eyes.
Screech!
The air itself tore apart as a deafening shockwave erupted.
BOOM!!
A colossal explosion rocked the arena as Se-woon's fist, wreathed in Primordial Qi, slammed into the barrier.
Yet not a single scratch marred its surface.
Qilian Demon, momentarily tense, cackled from within his sanctuary.
"Kihihi, you idiot!! Try a hundred times, a thousand times—it won't matter!!"
Se-woon remained unfazed by the taunt.
One isn't enough, huh?
Whoosh!
In an instant, the Extinction Thread coiled around Se-woon's right fist, morphing into a gauntlet.
Then I'll use two.
Groooan!
Hummm!
A resonant hum filled the air as golden energy surged around Se-woon's hand.
The anti-demon power of the Extinction Thread merged seamlessly with his Primordial Qi.
Shhhhk!
Se-woon stepped back, drawing his arm in.
Then, twisting his waist, he struck the barrier again.
CRACKLE!!
BOOOOM!!
An even greater explosion erupted. Unlike before, the barrier didn't emerge unscathed.
This time, fine fissures spiderwebbed across its surface under the force of the anti-demon energy.
"Y-you think your pathetic tricks can break my Thousand-Corpse Tortoise Armor?!"
Qilian Demon noticed the damage instantly but concealed his panic, swiftly repairing the cracks.
Whooosh!
Absolutely not!
He poured even more demonic energy into reinforcing the barrier.
But Se-woon paid him no mind, murmuring softly.
"If two won't do it..."
Then he'd use three.
Whoosh!
His entire body burned as if consumed by flames.
The inky blood left behind by Chuk Yeo-un, the Beast Fighting God, coiled around his soul.
Grrind!
Crackle!
Suddenly, the structure of Qilian Demon's barrier began to tremble violently.
W-what?! What's happening?!
Bewildered by the phenomenon, he didn't realize—
Se-woon's eyes were stealing the barrier's color.
Activating his Color-Stealing Eye, Se-woon pushed his spirit to its absolute limit—a realm he had never before ventured into.
Crackle!
Whooosh!
The power of the inky blood flowing through his meridians burned hotter than any Yang Qi. The robes covering his upper body disintegrated into ash.
The sudden, sun-like heat radiating from him drew the attention of every Beast Palace warrior mid-battle.
And what they saw left them aghast.
"T-that's...!"
"How... How does he possess that power?!"
"The Fighting God...!"
None could suppress their trembling hearts.
And for good reason.
Bared by the burned-away clothing, Se-woon's body bore vivid tattoos resembling flames.
Not mere ink—they recognized it at once.
This was the mark of the Fighting God's return, the very incarnation they had yearned for all their lives.
Whoooosh!
Haaa...
In that moment, Se-woon's essence, energy, and spirit fused into one.
Thud.
Se-woon lifted his gaze, peering through the barrier.
N-no...!!
Qilian Demon's trembling form came into view.
Se-woon uttered his verdict softly.
"One strike left."
"!!"
Screeeech!
With a sound like tearing space, Se-woon unleashed his fist.
BOOOOOOM!!
CRASH!!
A shockwave capable of shaking heaven and earth erupted—
And the barrier shattered into countless fragments.