Chapter 58
Chapter 58
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 58
>Chapter Title: Reception Center (3)
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While gazing at the back of Chu Il-hwan running ahead, Il-mok thought to himself.
'Still, he's running while gauging a certain level.'
Compared to the speed Chu Il-hwan had displayed at the very end during the sparring match, this movement was much slower.
Il-mok matched that pace appropriately for a while as well. Just as they left the main headquarters and entered the thicket.
Flash!
Chu Il-hwan, who had been leading the pack, suddenly accelerated.
"Haah!"
Naturally, the new cadets chasing after him sped up to keep pace, and the group that had been moving together began to spread out, some pulling ahead, others falling behind.
Amidst it all.
"Let's see if you can beat me this time too!"
Dokgo Pae suddenly brushed past Il-mok's side, shouting those words.
Il-mok shook his head as he watched Dokgo Pae's back gradually pulling away.
'Youth truly is a wonderful thing.'
Il-mok had no particular intention of beating Dokgo Pae.
No, he didn't even plan to run at full speed.
'Sweating is something I absolutely despise.'
It was because of the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword.
As his realm had risen sharply, subtle obsessive tendencies had begun to emerge one by one. One of them was an obsession with hygiene.
Fortunately, it wasn't severe yet. He wasn't at the point of bathing all day or washing his hands nonstop every time he touched something.
But whenever he kept touching things or started sweating, a nagging sense of unease would linger in the corner of his mind.
Because of that, he had even washed his hands earlier after tidying up the chair and table.
For that reason, Il-mok maintained a lightfooted pace with his movement technique, just enough to avoid sweating.
Thanks to that, he fell to the lower ranks, but Il-mok didn't mind.
Chu Il-hwan's figure was no longer visible, hidden by the thicket, but he could still see the backs of those ahead of him.
How long had he run in a state of empty mind, fixated only on the nape of the guy right in front of him?
"Huff. Huff."
Those who had pushed too hard chasing Chu Il-hwan or trying to climb the ranks began to slow down one by one as their internal energy or stamina ran out.
Il-mok, who had started in the lower ranks, overtook them one by one even while running at a moderate pace.
After about an hour of running like that.
By the time they reached the massive gate bearing the plaque [Demonic Path Academy].
Il-mok arrived around the middle of the pack.
"Huff. Huff."
Whether they had arrived before Il-mok or after, everyone was panting, breaths heaving up to their chins.
"Tch."
Il-mok wiped the sweat beading on his forehead with the back of his hand and clicked his tongue lightly.
Even running leisurely, an hour straight was enough to work up a sweat.
At that moment, Dokgo Pae approached Il-mok again, who was frowning.
"Huff. I. Huff. took first. Huff."
His face pale as if he might vomit any second, yet trying to force a triumphant expression, Il-mok let out a hollow chuckle in response.
"Congratulations. Keep it up."
Il-mok had no desire to get tangled in the antics of this prospective lunatic and tried to slip away after a casual congratulations.
"Huff. Are you. Huff. ignoring me again?"
Dokgo Pae took offense to Il-mok's nonchalant attitude and picked a fight once more, gasping as if his breath might give out any moment.
Il-mok frowned at the precarious sight.
"Hey, you look like you're about to hurl. Calm your breathing first."
Even a little sweat made him feel grimy, and if vomit splattered on his face or clothes, Il-mok wasn't confident he could endure it.
"Eek!! I'll definitely ruin that smug, laid-back face of yours! Huff. Urk."
Seething with rage, Dokgo Pae spat out his words hastily, only for vomit to surge up; he gulped it back and staggered away.
"Ugh."
Il-mok, who had narrowly avoided a gruesome fate, grimaced and stepped back.
"Whew."
As Il-mok sighed in relief after the crisis passed, and Dokgo Pae retreated to steady his breathing with deep inhales and exhales.
"Huff. Huff."
The lagging cadets were arriving at the Demonic Path Academy one after another.
And shortly after.
The last cadet to arrive collapsed to the ground with a thud the moment he got there, proceeding to re-examine his breakfast.
Chu Il-hwan, who had been grinning broadly at the entrance, spoke as if utterly unconcerned by the gruesome scene.
"Fortunately, no stragglers. Then, let us begin the entry ceremony."
Chu Il-hwan turned and passed through the entrance, and the cadets wisely followed.
"Huuuuh. Huuuuh."
Even the last cadet, who had emptied his stomach refreshingly upon entering, staggered after them.
To avoid mingling with the sweat-drenched cadets, Il-mok deliberately hung back, entering the Demonic Path Academy last at a slow pace.
'I felt it from the walls, but it's huge.'
The first things that caught his eye were the vast training grounds, followed by oddly familiar training apparatuses lined up in rows—reminiscent of what he'd seen during his military days in the modern world.
It was impressive that such massive facilities had been built in the middle of a mountain.
Chu Il-hwan, leading the cadets at the front, reached the center of the training ground and turned around.
"The Academy Master's address will begin shortly. Form ranks in neat rows and columns."
The cadets moved in perfect unison to line up.
Standing in place, they caught their breath in what was rest in name only.
Once the cadets had mostly steadied their breathing, an elderly man exuding a profound aura emerged from the building beyond the training ground.
His long hair and beard were entirely white, and wrinkles marked him as an old man—yet his sturdy build, upright gait, and imposing presence made it impossible to call him merely 'elderly.'
The elder approached to within a staff's length of the new cadets, stood ramrod straight, and opened his mouth.
"It is a pleasure to meet the talents who will shape the future of the Divine Cult."
At the elder's greeting, a few eager cadets bellowed in response.
"It's an honor to meet you, Academy Master!"
Yeom Ga-hwi, Master of the Demonic Path Academy.
Il-mok had heard the name countless times while preparing for entry.
Renowned for his upright character, he had perfected the Asura Blood Fist and attained Transcending Demon. Before taking the Academy Master position, he had traveled between the Central Plains and Xinjiang, pummeling countless villains to death with his fists, earning the moniker Fist Demon.
Above all, having reached Transcending Demon, he was the only sane person in this Demonic Path Academy.
But Il-mok didn't let his guard down.
'Reaching Transcending Demon just means overcoming mental illness—it doesn't mean he's some compassionate saint.'
Just look at his master, the Heavenly Demon, or the Hyeok-ryeon family head, Hyeok-ryeon Cheon-gang—boomers through and through.
Famous for his rigid personality, he might be an even worse boomer than them.
'...If he's a bigger boomer than Master, the address might drag on for over an hour.'
To avoid getting an earful from a boomer, Il-mok stood at rigid attention, pretending to listen intently to the Academy Master's words.
"...Finally, know this: in this Demonic Path Academy, your prior status means nothing. All cadets are equals, and judgments will be based solely on training performance. Keep that in mind."
Surprisingly, Yeom Ga-hwi wrapped up his address in less than half an hour.
'...Maybe Master is the biggest boomer in the Demonic Cult after all.'
As Il-mok entertained such trivial thoughts, the Academy Master turned briskly and departed, as if his business was done.
Chu Il-hwan paid his respects with a fist salute to the departing Academy Master, then turned to the cadets.
"I shall now guide you to the Black Dragon Hall, where you will stay for the next two years."
Chu Il-hwan headed west, and the cadets followed.
Upon reaching the manor bearing the plaque [Black Dragon Hall], Chu Il-hwan spoke again.
"You new cadets will reside here in Black Dragon Hall from today. Your names are posted at each room's entrance—go to your own, unpack, and settle in. Additionally..."
Chu Il-hwan informed them of the training ground locations for personal practice and the dining hall for meals during mealtimes.
"And since today is your first day, unpack and rest until dinner at the You hour (5-7 PM)."
Leaving those final words, Chu Il-hwan turned and left Black Dragon Hall.
Chu Il-hwan went a good distance away, then deployed his stealth technique and stealthily circled back toward Black Dragon Hall.
It was one of the Demonic Path Academy's traditions. Providing rest on the first day of entry.
But the reason wasn't truly for rest.
The Academy housed cadets at the brash age of youth. Even with instructors assigning ranks based on entry exams, some would undoubtedly refuse to accept them.
In other words, this "rest" time wasn't for resting. It was the Academy's unofficial sanctioning of hierarchy sorting.
Not just Chu Il-hwan—other instructors had already infiltrated Black Dragon Hall, prepared to observe these hierarchy bouts.
To accurately gauge the cadets' levels once more, and to prevent any deaths if things got out of hand.
And Chu Il-hwan's observation target was none other than Il-mok.
* * *
"Ugh."
Il-mok shuddered suddenly from a chill while unpacking, tilting his head.
"A cold?"
He wondered if it wasn't chastity in peril after all, but just a simple cold.
Right then.
Bang!
"I challenge you to a duel!"
As Dokgo Pae burst through the door declaring a duel, Il-mok sighed.
'As expected, the "if" became "when."'
Il-mok knew about this hierarchy sorting time too, thanks to Jin Ha-yeon and Gu Yang-mun.
But having already sweated, Il-mok wanted to bathe first above all, and he had little desire for duels or life-or-death matches.
"We'll call you the winner."
Even though he'd conceded surrender before, Dokgo Pae flushed red for some reason, drew his sword, and shouted.
"Eeeeek! If you're going to act like that, I won't hold back anymore! Fight here now, or come outside!"
Il-mok realized he had no choice.
Fighting here would wreck his precious rest space. Lingering in a messy room might trigger his obsessions, so he had no option but to go outside.
Word spread quickly that a top examinee and the runner-up were dueling.
Il-mok and Dokgo Pae faced off in the small training ground at the center of Black Dragon Hall. Some cadets came out to the courtyard to watch, while others peered through windows from inside.
Oblivious to becoming a spectacle, Dokgo Pae drew his sword and charged at Il-mok.
"Hraaah!"
Dokgo Pae, who had learned the Dokgo Clan's signature Dokgo Nine Swords, swung ferocious heavy sword strikes with no regard for defense—an all-out assault.
Most onlookers watching Dokgo Pae's intense aura and powerful strikes were startled or wore stiff expressions.
'As expected of the Dokgo Clan's eldest grandson.'
'For second place to have that level of skill...'
'...He was like that in the lightness skill test too. The eighth young master might lose.'
As the spectators mulled their own thoughts.
Exposed to the onslaught like a typhoon, Il-mok endured by barely blocking or dodging.
On the surface.
But inwardly, it was the opposite.
'Hmm? Not as impressive as I thought?'
In truth, Il-mok was on the verge of nervous breakdown at the mere thought of duels or life-or-death matches.
Thanks to the torment from his master, the Heavenly Demon, over the past few months. To be precise, it wasn't the duels he feared, but the insights that followed.
Each time he suffered under the Heavenly Demon, his realm advanced, making the side effects increasingly severe.
But this time was different.
'Insights or whatever, he has to pose at least a minimal threat for anything to happen.'
Il-mok sighed in relief as he deflected and evaded Dokgo Pae's onslaught.
Since this guy was the runner-up right behind him, there couldn't be any stronger cadets.
Which meant.
'Even if I duel the other cadets, insights are unlikely!'
It meant the reason to avoid duels or life-or-death matches was gone.
"!?"
As Il-mok's aura shifted from desperate defense, ripples formed in Dokgo Pae's eyes as he belatedly sensed the change.
But Dokgo Pae realized it too late.
Clang!
Dokgo Pae's sword, clashing with Il-mok's, suddenly veered in a bizarre path as if seized by a ghost.
Flash!
Il-mok's sword strike, too fast to follow with the eye, was already at Dokgo Pae's throat.
Having subdued Dokgo Pae with a single counterattack, Il-mok smiled and said.
"Good thing. Your level is lower than expected, so no need to worry about insights."
Il-mok meant it as sincere praise, but for some reason, Dokgo Pae's face turned beet red, as if about to explode.