Chapter 70
Chapter 70
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Priceless Treasure (2)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The divine relic left behind by the Heavenly Demon Patriarch, the Heavenly Demon Ring.
Its dull color and rough surface made it seem utterly worthless as a piece of art, but it was a priceless treasure that neither Sima Geon nor anyone else in the Heavenly Demon Cult could treat lightly.
Sima Geon examined the Heavenly Demon Ring closely before asking,
"Any specific message to pass along?"
"Nothing particular. He just asked that it not fall into their hands. And that the ring's owner is you, Division Leader."
"Ha! The Lord pulled a sly one. He knows damn well they won't give up on the Heavenly Demon Ring. Those bastards will do anything to reclaim it, and he hopes you'll smash them in the process."
"It probably came from the Strategist's head, not the Lord's."
Sima Geon gave a wry smile.
"Annoying. Why not just hand it over?"
"You call that an option? How many lives were staked on protecting this thing?"
Noejeon raised his voice and glared, as if the fact that he'd just regained consciousness meant nothing.
"Don't worry. I have no intention of handing it back right now."
Sima Geon chuckled softly, and a memory surfaced from when the Lord had been thoroughly drunk one day.
The Heavenly Demon Ring isn't just a simple relic symbolizing the Lord's position. According to the records, you need a certain level of ability to behold its true nature. But damn it! The amount of inner energy I poured into it...
Sima Geon hadn't coveted the Heavenly Demon Ring itself, but curiosity stirred within him. He hadn't heard exactly what ability was required, but he clearly remembered the part about pouring in inner energy.
'Inner energy, huh.'
He gently channeled his inner energy into the Heavenly Demon Ring.
About three tenths of his power—no change.
He increased it gradually. Even at seven or eight tenths, nothing happened.
"What are you doing?"
Cheol Woo asked with curious eyes. Sima Geon ignored him and focused harder, pouring in more inner energy.
Even when it reached full power at ten tenths, the ring showed no reaction. Sima Geon's brow furrowed slightly. He wondered if he'd wasted his time.
'Maybe the Lord's method was wrong to begin with. Still, I've started, so...'
Determined to see it through, he unleashed everything.
A whirlwind of energy erupted from Sima Geon's entire body, sweeping through the room and shaking the entire Dragon Star Annex building.
Furniture scattered in all directions, embedding into walls or punching straight through them.
The only one unaffected was Cheol Woo. Noejeon, who had dodged just in time, was now hiding behind his back.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Cheol Woo flicked away a flying shard with his finger and asked.
At that moment, a dazzling light burst from Sima Geon's hand—from the Heavenly Demon Ring he held.
"W-What is that?"
Cheol Woo shouted in surprise at the sudden change.
Noejeon's eyes, peeking from behind Cheol Woo, widened like saucers.
As the light filling the room faded, a sword appeared in place of the Heavenly Demon Ring.
The blade was about one and a half feet long and barely an inch wide. It was extremely thin, flexible like a soft sword.
"A sword?"
"It's a sword."
Cheol Woo and Noejeon exclaimed simultaneously.
"Crazy! Now I've seen everything."
Cheol Woo let out disbelieving laughs despite seeing it with his own eyes and reached for the sword.
"Wait."
Sima Geon, who had been staring piercingly at the blade, snapped shortly.
Cheol Woo flinched and pulled back his hand, grumbling complaints. But Sima Geon remained fixated on the blade. Realizing something was off, Cheol Woo shut his mouth with a tense expression.
Sima Geon, sweat streaming down his forehead unnoticed in his concentration, finally looked away from the sword after about two hours.
"Haa!"
With a deep sigh, he lowered the arm holding the sword.
As he cut off the inner energy flowing into it, the sword reverted to its original ring form.
"So it really did change. Hey, boss, can I touch it too?"
Cheol Woo asked cautiously. Sima Geon, mentally exhausted from pouring twelve tenths of his inner energy into it for so long, tossed the ring over without a word.
"Heh heh heh! So this turns into a sword."
Grinning widely, Cheol Woo caught it and channeled his inner energy just like Sima Geon had.
Five tenths, six, seven.
No change. Cheol Woo went all out. But even gathering all his power, nothing happened. He withdrew his energy with an irritated look.
"Boss, weren't you just injecting inner energy earlier?"
"Yeah."
"Then why isn't it working for me? It's not discriminating, is it?"
He gripped it hard enough to crush it, but the ring, unscathed even from full power before, showed no damage.
"Damn! It's tough as hell."
Cheol Woo cursed roughly and irritably handed it back.
Sima Geon took the ring and injected inner energy again.
Unlike before, when he'd poured in twelve tenths, it transformed into a sword the moment energy flowed in.
Cheol Woo and Noejeon gasped in shock—even Sima Geon was startled.
"W-What? Why's it doing that?"
Cheol Woo demanded, feeling wronged. Sima Geon had no answer. He didn't know either.
"Maybe it recognizes its owner?"
Both Sima Geon and Cheol Woo turned to Noejeon.
"Think about wild horses. Even the fiercest ones become tame once broken in, like they know their master. Seems the same here."
"This is a wild horse?"
Cheol Woo pointed at the ring with a what-kind-of-nonsense-is-this face.
"Yes."
"Say something that makes sense. You comparing a living animal to a lump of metal?"
"Does it even make sense that this turns into a sword to begin with?"
"......"
Cheol Woo couldn't retort to Noejeon's counter.
"That's not the point right now."
Sima Geon transformed the ring into a sword again and held it out to them.
"Look at the blade. You'll see something."
Remembering how Sima Geon had stared at it for ages, Cheol Woo and Noejeon leaned in close.
"What the hell is this?"
Noejeon finally lifted his head, face blank.
Tiny characters, so small they required intense focus to discern, densely covered the blade. He instinctively sensed they were extraordinary.
"If I'm not wrong, this looks like martial arts instructions."
Cheol Woo, looking up late, asked with uncharacteristically grave expression.
"Yeah."
"N-No way... the Heavenly Demon Patriarch's martial arts?"
Noejeon asked in a trembling voice. His dilated pupils shook wildly.
Cheol Woo, about to smack the back of Noejeon's head, sighed and prodded his temple with a finger.
"Idiot? Of course it is. You think some other guy's techniques would be engraved on the Patriarch's relic?"
"I was just checking, just in case!"
"Your 'just in case' can go freeze! I knew at a glance. Right, boss?"
"Yes. The patterns match a technique I know."
Cheol Woo, looking smug as if he'd guessed it, asked quickly.
"What is it?"
Sima Geon closed his eyes, recalling old memories, then spoke slowly.
"Heavenly Apex Sword. Some call it the Heavenly Demon Sword."
"Heavenly Apex Sword? Whoa! No way. For real?"
Cheol Woo shouted in shock.
Sima Geon brought the sword-transformed ring close and examined the inscriptions again.
"Not the whole thing, but what's on the blade seems like the latter three forms."
"You already knew about the Heavenly Apex Sword, Division Leader."
Noejeon said puzzledly.
"I know it. Never mastered it, but I know it well enough."
"What do you think, boss? Can you crack it?"
Cheol Woo asked slyly.
"Not sure. I thought it'd be easy before, but now it seems tricky."
"You're kidding. You can't guarantee victory with Severing Heaven Nine Forms? Impossible."
Cheol Woo radiated disbelief.
"Severing... Heaven Nine Forms? What's that?"
Noejeon glanced between them.
"It exists. Something like that."
Cheol Woo waved dismissively.
"So what is it?"
Noejeon pestered Sima Geon, curiosity winning.
"The obsession of seconds-in-command who never once beat the top dog."
"......"
"That obsession took form as the Severing Heaven Nine Forms."
Noejeon stared at Sima Geon, then sighed.
"Just say you don't wanna tell me."
"I lost."
Muk Noegang, leader of the Southern Murim, bowed his head and admitted defeat. The Heavenly Demon Cult warriors watching breathlessly erupted in cheers, boosting their morale.
"Heavenly Demon Arrives! Myriad Demons Bow!"
"Heavenly Demon Arrives! Myriad Demons Bow!"
The near-maniacal chants continued endlessly until Gwan Ung, who had felled Muk Noegang, raised a hand silently.
"Rise. I came here not to demand submission, but to gain a comrade for unifying the Murim."
Gwan Ung helped Muk Noegang to his feet.
"Thank you."
Muk Noegang bowed again.
In truth, no place enforced the law of the jungle like the Southern Murim, commonly called Namman.
The strong claimed and enjoyed everything; the weak were crushed mercilessly. Everyone in the Southern Murim accepted this as natural.
Having staked everything and lost, Muk Noegang had to accept any treatment. Yet Gwan Ung showed utmost mercy, treating him not as a mere loser. Gratitude was inevitable.
"Strictly speaking, you're not really Southerners."
"......"
"When the Heavenly Demon Patriarch unified the Demonic Path, only to see it fracture and self-destruct over time, one clan grew sick of the infighting, abandoned everything, and headed south."
Muk Noegang's eyes shook violently.
"That clan flew a banner embroidered with a black dragon, charging through the world at the Patriarch's side. Small in number—barely a clan—they boasted power surpassing any force that followed him. Thus began the legend of the Black Dragon Ink Clan."
Gwan Ung smiled at the shaken Muk Noegang.
"How's that? Do I have it right? I'd prefer an answer not as the Southern Murim's hegemon, but as head of the Black Dragon Ink Clan."
"Yes. But the name Black Dragon Ink Clan is long forgotten."
"Then let's revive it."
"The Southern Murim has already knelt to the Lord. But the Black Dragon Ink Clan serves only..."
Muk Noegang trailed off.
His wide eyes and trembling pupils fixed on the iron tablet in Gwan Ung's hand.
Gwan Ung smiled, pleased by the reaction.
"As expected, you recognize it. I knew the head of the Black Dragon Ink Clan would."
"A-Are you a descendant of the Heavenly Demon Patriarch?"
Muk Noegang asked in a quavering voice, his speech turning polite.
"Yes."
"Why didn't you say so?"
"Hahaha! I remember mentioning it before the fight. You didn't believe me."
"If you'd shown the tablet, I'd have knelt immediately."
"I wanted to prove it with strength, not this."
Gwan Ung tossed the iron tablet into the air and caught it.
"Well? Will you join me?"
Without hesitation, Muk Noegang knelt at the invitation.
"Muk Noegang, patriarch of the Black Dragon Ink Clan, greets the Lord."