Chapter 203
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 203
Chapter Title: Battle of the Three Demons (13)
The warriors of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, watching the life-or-death duel between the Ice Demon, Flame Demon, and Dragon Demon, were at a loss for words.
They knew the Cult Leader's disciples were strong, but to this extent…
Even the Ice Demon and Flame Demon, whom they had always seen up close, had far surpassed the level they had imagined.
Present here was Jin Mu, the Lord of the Radiant Heavenly Demon Brigade. He too was a master who had reached the Transcendent Demon state, albeit only in its early stages. Watching the candidates for Cult Leader wield the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon in ways that defied imagination, he couldn't help but be in awe.
Among them, the most astonishing was, of course… the Dragon Demon, Baek Mu-heun.
At an age where he had yet to pass his coming-of-age ceremony, he was facing two of the Cult's absolute masters at once. It was a sight so unbelievable that their mouths hung open.
So… what if, by some chance…
The Dragon Demon defeated the Ice Demon and the Flame Demon?
The spectators were focused on the outcome of this duel. They would realign their allegiances depending on who was left standing at the end.
***
The Flame Demon's Flame Dragon Dance was a blade dance whose direction was impossible to predict. Mu-heun stopped trying to match its fluid grace. Instead, he became more aggressive, thrusting his Sun and Moon Sword toward the Flame Demon, exploiting his openings.
“First Form of the Divine Heavenly Demon Sword. Ninth Heaven Demonic Sword, Asura's Slash!”
*Clang!*
Because Mu-heun continuously clashed the melodies of Heavenly Demon Ki in his dantian to create explosions, the formidable power of the Divine Heavenly Demon Sword remained intact. The problem was that the Flame Demon's blade was a tyrannical one that could cut through all those formidable explosions.
*Cough!*
However.
Even as he coughed up blood, Mu-heun did not give up. The violet energy swimming in his dantian. He refined it even more minutely, collided it, and made it explode.
“Second Form. Heaven-Descending Sword, Dragon Shattering the Heavens!”
*Rumble!*
A ferocious dragon soared forth. But the Ice Demon's ice wall once again blocked Mu-heun's Dragon Shattering the Heavens. However, Mu-heun did not know surrender. Before lotuses could sprout from the ice wall, he quickly executed his footwork and moved. Then, he scattered the violet flames across the salt lake.
“Third Form. Asura's Heaven-Annihilating Art, Severing the Heavens!”
*Rumble!*
Violet flames. A massive blaze, different from the Flame Demon's crimson fire, began to fill the salt lake.
“Fourth Form. Five Elements Demonic Sword, Dark Soul Void Strike!”
The Seven Ice Whites were continuously infusing yin energy into the frozen lake, but they couldn't handle Mu-heun's flames, which were based on the Transcendent Demon state.
The ice on the salt lake began to melt.
Mu-heun ran swiftly over the splashing surface of the melting lake.
*Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap!*
He circled the lake in a smooth arc, never ceasing his attack.
“Ninth Heaven Demonic Sword! Asura's Slash!”
*Clang!*
He attacked as if his internal energy was limitless.
The Ice Demon and Flame Demon were perplexed. No matter how fast the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon allowed for ki recovery during battle, repeating such consumption would soon deplete his internal energy.
Yet, Mu-heun seemed to pay it no mind, continuing his attacks as he darted here and there. And they were wide-range attacks that would never reach the Ice Demon and Flame Demon.
But wasn't this Baek Mu-heun, who had always prepared something extraordinary? Sensing something was off, the Flame Demon kicked off from his position and pursued Mu-heun.
“Flame Dragon Dance.”
*Clang!*
“Keuk…!”
Mu-heun wiped the blood trickling from the corner of his mouth again.
The Flame Demon's Hell Blade was still powerful, its might based on its ability to contain the Flame Demon's energy.
The Flame Demon's Hell Blade, reminiscent of the scales of a hard dragon emerging from lava. Its power far exceeded Mu-heun's expectations, each strike akin to a great catastrophe.
Furthermore, whatever trick he had employed, the Flame Demon's movements were as fast as exploding gunpowder.
Just then.
Mu-heun noticed the veins bulging on the Flame Demon's face and body. Veins that glowed red. And he saw steam rising from the surface of the salt lake where he stepped.
*'I see... He has absorbed fire energy into his body and enhanced himself.'*
It was truly a remarkable ability.
*'Indeed, each one of them is worthy of aiming for the position of Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, but.'*
Mu-heun stopped fleeing and charged at the Flame Demon. The Sun and Moon Sword and the Hell Blade clashed.
*KWANG! KAKAKAKAKAKANG!*
Fortunately, when he engaged the Flame Demon in close combat, the Ice Demon did not interfere. In fact, it was only natural. During the first attack, Mu-heun had exploited the fact that their powers were antithetical.
However, the situation remained dire.
*Clang! Clang! Clang! Jjeong!*
The Flame Demon's swordsmanship was sublime. The red pearl around his neck further amplified his power. In close combat, his strength clearly surpassed Mu-heun's.
Yet, if Mu-heun gathered a powerful aura for an unavoidable attack, the Ice Demon would invariably appear to defend and launch frozen ice swords at him.
That was why Mu-heun fought pressed tightly against the Flame Demon. Even as his grip tore from the force of the blade and his internal injuries worsened, he did not create distance and continued to fight.
A flurry of blows, a flurry of blows, a flurry of blows, a flurry of blows, a flurry of blows, a flurry of blows.
*Clang! Clang! Jjeong! Kwang!*
The Flame Demon also found Mu-heun's attacks difficult to handle, but it was nothing compared to Mu-heun's state. Mu-heun swung his Sun and Moon Sword while his entire body was covered in sword cuts.
A desperate battle.
To the warriors surrounding the salt lake, it seemed as if Mu-heun was simply charging at the Flame Demon in a state of desperation.
Jin Mu, the Lord of the Radiant Heavenly Demon Brigade, also thought there was no hope left.
*'Lord Dragon Demon. It was a good move to establish a formation and use the Heaven and Earth Reversal Technique to exploit the two disciples' powers. However, you have underestimated your opponents. The Cult is a cruel place. A place where a single misjudgment can cost you your life.'*
Jin Mu clenched his fists. He desperately wanted to stop the life-or-death duel, but he had already volunteered as a witness. Stopping this fight midway was out of the question.
However…
Just then.
*Crack.*
Cracks began to appear on the Flame Demon's Hell Blade. Mu-heun did not miss those cracks, and a smile touched his lips as he gripped the Sun and Moon Sword tightly.
*'Thank you again for giving me such a sturdy sword, Master.'*
Mu-heun executed the Divine Heavenly Demon Sword with all his might. It was a sword technique different from any he had used before.
As if they were originally a single form. He unleashed all four forms in succession.
“Divine Heavenly Demon Sword! First Form! Ninth Heaven Demonic Sword, Asura's Slash! Second Form! Heaven-Descending Sword, Dragon Shattering the Heavens! Third Form! Asura's Heaven-Annihilating Art, Severing the Heavens! Fourth Form! Five Elements Demonic Sword, Dark Soul Void Strike!”
As if to say that hell on earth was no hell at all, the Asura's slash struck the Hell Blade; like a dragon of destruction come to annihilate the heavens and earth, it coiled around the Hell Blade; and a sharp, heaven-splitting sword strike widened the cracks on the Hell Blade.
In that moment, the Flame Demon realized what Mu-heun was aiming for. That he had fallen for Mu-heun's ploy and engaged in close combat. But in this instant, with the Ice Demon not intervening, the Flame Demon could not stop Mu-heun.
The final blow. Mu-heun's yin, yang, and five elements met at a single point, creating an explosion as if to return everything to nothingness.
*CRACK!*
And with that, the Searing Hell Blade, which held all of the Flame Demon's energy, finally broke.
*Snap!*
At that moment.
The crimson flames condensed within the Searing Hell Blade began to erupt uncontrollably.
*Fwoooosh!*
It was enough to create the illusion of a giant sun pouring out. The Flame Demon prayed that his ominous premonition was wrong. But seeing Mu-heun's face, he realized.
That all of this was what Mu-heun had orchestrated.
“Ah, no!”
*KWAAAAANG!*
The demonic fire energy that the Flame Demon had condensed. That massive conflagration soared as if to pierce the heavens.
Mu-heun did not let that demonic fire escape. He swung his Sun and Moon Sword in a circle, executing the Heaven and Earth Reversal Technique.
The masters surrounding the salt lake began to distance themselves. The lake, which had initially been frozen by the Ice Demon, had already completely melted. And so, upon the splashing surface, a pillar of fire rose, one that could be seen even from a thousand li away.
An incredible heat.
Enough to evaporate all the water in the lake and melt all the salt left at the bottom.
Mu-heun felt the Heavenly Demon Ki churning in his dantian. The primordial violet Heavenly Demon Ki was ferociously devouring the demonic fire energy he had gathered in his Sun and Moon Sword and Yin-Yang Twin Dragon Robe.
Mu-heun had to make a decision. If not now, he would never be able to seize victory… It was a truly dangerous act, but he had to choose.
Mu-heun gripped the Sun and Moon Sword tightly,
“Keuhap!”
Riding the momentum, he plunged into the massive pillar of fire. Enduring the shock, he gathered and absorbed the energy of the scorching flames. The pain of his skin burning washed over him. It felt as if his body would burn to a crisp and he would die at any moment.
And he felt it.
He had reached the final stage.
He thrust the Sun and Moon Sword forward.
“Dark Soul Void Strike.”
*Fwoooosh!*
The demonic fire created by the violet Heavenly Demon Ki swallowed the salt lake. The last traces of moisture remaining in the lake evaporated in an instant, and the salt began to burn.
The intensely heated salt. Mu-heun unleashed another technique.
“Thunderclap Heaven-Opening Demonic Sword.”
A ferocious electric current flowed down, riding the steam that filled the air.
*Rumble, CRASH!*
Black lightning struck from the sky, delivering a massive electrical shock to the heated salt.
Just then.
Mu-heun scanned the Ice Demon and Flame Demon through the steam that filled the stage. The Flame Demon, his Hell Blade broken, had immediately created distance and hidden behind the Ice Demon.
He probably assumed Mu-heun would absorb his fire energy as before and then unleash an ultimate technique.
As if to confirm that prediction, Mu-heun shot forth the Divine Heavenly Demon Sword.
“Asura's Heaven-Annihilating Art, Severing the Heavens!”
To defend by creating another ice wall, the Ice Demon unfolded her Ice White Demonic Fan and swung it several times. Furthermore, the Ice Demon's subordinates positioned behind the lake, the Seven Ice Whites, once again poured out cold energy to lower the temperature of the salt lake.
“Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon. Ice White Demonic Fan. Ice White Severing the Void.”
*Clang!*
An ice wall instantly sprang up.
*KWAAAAANG!*
Once again, the Ice Demon's ice wall withstood Mu-heun's Severing the Heavens.
Just then, Mu-heun's fire energy and the Ice Demon's cold energy met, creating an unstable current, and the steam that had risen above the salt lake began to fall again as rain.
Mu-heun flashed a triumphant smile.
“……!?”
Seeing that smile, the Flame Demon felt that something was wrong.
Just then.
*Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!*
“What! What is happening?”
The rain falling on the salt lake. The moment the rain touched the ground, explosions began to erupt.
Only Mu-heun understood this phenomenon.
Mu-heun knew that if you slightly altered salt, it would explode upon contact with water.
That's why he had heated the salt of the lake, applied an electrical shock, and made it rain.
*Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!*
The salt floor, once a salt lake, continued to explode, emitting a formidable heat.
Seizing the opportunity, Mu-heun enveloped the explosions with his Sun and Moon Sword, Yin-Yang Twin Dragon Robe, and the Heaven and Earth Reversal Technique.
He gathered the energy he had absorbed from the Flame Demon's Hell Blade and detonated it.
“This is the end.”
The Ice Demon could only watch what Mu-heun was doing from behind the ice wall she had created… The Flame Demon spoke to the Ice Demon.
“Senior Sister…”
“…”
“That bastard is about to launch an attack that will kill us all. Don't spare your internal energy from now on, and create the hardest ice wall you possibly can. I, too, will prepare a technique to counter any attack that might break through the ice wall.”
“…Alright.”
Sensing the gravity of the situation, the Ice Demon obediently followed the Flame Demon's words.
*Crack, crackle.*
“Great Ice White Demonic Fan, Ice White Severing the Void.”
An ice wall thousands, even tens of thousands of layers thick, separated Mu-heun from the Ice Demon. It was as if it completely severed the space between them.
“Flame Demon's Annihilation, Limitless Crimson Lotus.”
The Flame Demon gathered ki in both hands and created a red lotus. He created a lotus that blossomed endlessly, one capable of nullifying any attack.
However.
Just then.
Mu-heun combined all the power he had gathered in his Yin-Yang Twin Dragon Robe and Sun and Moon Sword, and unleashed his final blow.
“Divine Heavenly Demon Sword. Fifth Form. Vast Heavenly Demon Wheel, March of Silent Void.”