Chapter 16
Chapter 16
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Heavenly Demon Divine Cult Double Agent
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The thick clouds parted.
Moonlight swallowed the manor whole in an instant.
Maeng So-un went berserk.
"Don't spout your bullshit on your own! You fucking retard! Second son?! That Maeng Wi-ryong is dead! I killed him, you hear me?!"
His massive body moved with startling precision. It was far too agile for someone so obese.
Boom!!!
His palm slammed into the outer wall of the building. Part of it crumbled with a deafening roar.
I drew my sword amid the chaos. The Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art I channeled clung to the blade, pursuing the soul of the dead man.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art
Second Form.
Soul-Pulling Thrust.
Blood stained the sword tip. Maeng So-un let out a squeal like a pig being slaughtered.
But as I slashed, I realized the truth. Maeng So-un's outer layer. What looked like ordinary skin was thick and tough.
The blood came from just a tiny scrape on the surface.
"You fucking bastard!!!"
A tyrannical aura surged toward me. I unleashed Ghost Spirit Step to barely dodge the incoming fist.
The attack itself wasn't sharp. But the real danger lay in the bizarre follow-up.
His internal energy was mixed into the air currents. Even in that sloppy, unrefined motion-not worthy of being called a technique-a shockwave trailed behind.
It was like blades of qi pouring from behind his hand, snagging and tearing my clothes. Blood spurted from the sliced wounds.
"I'll crush you!!!"
Boom!!!
His descending arm buried deep into the wall. Amid the shower of debris, I unleashed the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Sword once more.
Soul-Pulling Thrust. The sword strike that extended to sever.
Slash!!!
Blood sprayed again. But it was still shallow. No matter how much I poured in my qi, all I could cut was that outer layer.
Maeng So-un laughed.
"Don't act tough, you worthless shit!"
Boom!!!
In an instant, my chest caved in. His palm I couldn't dodge hammered straight into it.
My body slid across the floor and crashed into the wall. Blood pooled in my mouth, and I spat it out.
Every single blow.
Those movements were lethal to me.
Heavenly Tribulation wailed. Mocking its master's weakness, it restored my body. My chest slowly regained its shape. But the lingering agony twisted inside me, making me howl.
The enemy's body was nearly invincible. To me right now, it was utterly impossible to cut.
Like a rock.
Hitting it relentlessly was all I could do.
"White Demon Body is a supreme art that can't even be compared to the Black Heaven Axe Sect's techniques! You fucking retard! You think that pathetic sword of yours can cut me?!"
His fist flew with curses, aiming to smash my face.
Still a clumsy motion. Impressive only in its raw momentum.
I could dodge it. But just before I did, my eyes met someone else's.
That's when I realized.
I shouldn't dodge this one.
--Crack.
A gruesome sound erupted. My neck twisted as if it would snap, and I collapsed face-down on the floor.
"Father's second son? A ghost? To speak that name with such pitiful skill..."
Maeng So-un ripped an entire pillar from the building.
"White Demon Body surpasses it all. Your shitty techniques are nothing compared to this!"
Crack!
The pillar pierced my body. I vomited blood.
The broken parts regenerated instantly. But as my body healed, the pillar smashed another spot.
Crack!
Blood burst out. Shattered bones even pierced through my skin.
I wanted to scream. But I bit my tongue with all my strength.
Endure.
I have to endure.
There was a reason I deliberately took an attack I could have dodged.
Blood dripped from my bitten tongue. Amid the excruciating pain, I turned my head.
I could see them.
The gathering crowd. The shadows of the warriors.
Only Maeng So-un, oblivious, focused solely on pounding me.
Crack!
Part of the pillar snapped. Maeng So-un snorted and drove the broken chunk into my body.
My internals were pierced at once, my body convulsing. I clawed at the floor, choking.
"Huff... huff... you worthless shit... what can a punk like you... even..."
My nails broke. My head throbbed, thoughts muddled.
Only Maeng So-un's mocking voice scraped at my ears.
"Father's dead. The ghost will die too. In the end, you can do nothing. Wang So-hong? Fittingly pathetic name for a retard. Maeng Cheon wasn't much either."
I tried to grab my sword. But his foot crushed my hand.
The crunching sensation spread through my bones to my entire spine.
"Must be Father's last contingency. Why? Did he tell you to kill me too if he died? Makes sense... Father probably suspected something. Who killed the second son!"
"......"
"But in the end, I'll be the one standing. Me, Maeng So-un. I'm not satisfied with this shitty Black Heaven Axe Sect. I'll climb higher. I was born a powerhouse. To claim everything, I even killed the possible second son. Power. Yes. I'm the master of power. Joining the Myriad Gods Sect will give me more than I desire. Then everyone will know my name."
Maeng So-un cackled.
"The world revolves around me! I am the world's master! This is all fate!"
I shuddered as I opened my mouth.
"So... that's why..."
I spat out shards of broken teeth.
"You killed... the sect leader too...?"
"Of course! That was the deal with White Teacher! If I couldn't become Black Heaven Axe Sect Leader, I had to uphold the promise somehow-by killing Father! But listen, you damn bastard. Father didn't die completely. He's right here with me now..."
Maeng So-un patted his belly.
"His pure qi lingers inside me. No more nagging, no more forced training. What could be better? Heh heh. Even dead, the absorbed qi makes me stronger. This is normal generational change. I'll devour Father's power and stand even taller!"
Maeng So-un gripped the shattered pillar, aiming it at my head to finish me off.
"So die. Ghost. You fucking bastard. You soured my mood. I'll toss your corpse to sever all ties with Father."
"...Urk..."
I convulsed my shoulders.
"Heh... heh heh..."
Maeng So-un's eyebrow twitched.
"Lost your mind facing death?"
"Wouldn't... dream... of it... Thanks for... spilling it all... yourself..."
"What?"
Snapping out of his frenzy, Maeng So-un whipped around. He blinked at the countless shadows swarming in.
"Wh-when...?"
Black Heaven Axe Sect warriors.
Those gripping axes trembled. Some stammered in disbelief.
Doubt spread rapidly. Questions hung in the air.
I murmured. My severed tongue had reattached.
"Didn't you call them yourself, Maeng So-un? They came because you called. And they all heard."
Pain surged from within. Far beyond what I'd felt fighting Number 2.
But amid the writhing agony, I stood. I retrieved my dropped sword and leaned on it, stabbed into the ground.
The warriors buzzed.
"Y-Young master... what was that just now..."
"D-Did you really... kill the sect leader..."
"Bullshit! This damn bastard used some sorcery! I didn't kill Father! It was an accident..."
"Wang So-hong?"
Our eyes met through my torn mask.
The gatekeeper I'd seen daily. A warrior whose name I didn't know.
"You... Wang So-hong...? Why the hell are you here...?"
Still the fake name. But it remained useful.
Until the night ended, it was real. I straightened up within that name.
"I came to learn the truth. I'd received much from the sect leader. And I happened to overhear the conversation."
"No way... really...?"
"Maeng So-un, the sect leader's firstborn, murdered him deliberately. With the Disciple of Myriad Sages Divine Healer."
"My god... to betray heavenly principles..."
"I knew it!"
"Aren't you ashamed?! Maeng So-un!"
Maeng So-un ground his teeth amid the flood of rebukes.
"Shut your mouths! Just obey me! I'll give you anything-money, martial arts, whatever you want! It's just one master changing-what's with all the noise?!"
"Y-You're truly insane...!"
"Bullshit! The strong devour the weak! An old relic was crumbling anyway-what's not to like? This is the demonic cult's law! Follow the strong as always! And that's me! Maeng So-un!"
His erupting qi swept the area. The Black Heaven Axe Sect warriors staggered.
"What immense power...?!"
"Maeng So-un! You were hiding your skills!"
"My talent just blossomed late! Power far beyond the sect's axes! This is White Demon Body! The supreme art that will place me above all!"
"...Supreme art?"
I asked.
Maeng So-un turned to me.
"Yes. A supreme art. Corpse. Far beyond the sect's axes!"
"Wrong, you pig bastard."
"What did you say?"
I twisted the sword plunged into the ground, angling it toward Maeng So-un.
I smiled.
"How could that trash even touch her toes."
"...You fucking shit... daring to mock me...?"
"Yeah. I mocked you. Can't endure without laughing. Judging Black Heaven Axe Sect techniques with that crap."
I drew out my qi.
Bloody afterimages flowed over my body.
I heard Heavenly Tribulation's wail. In it, I knew what I had to do.
"Swing it like this."
I gripped the sword. The hilt fused to my palm.
Grip stance. I mimicked it perfectly. Held the sword right, gazed at the tip with my mind.
"Strike down like this."
Following Number 20's whisper, I lightly swung at the air. Felt the flow in the blade.
The Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art's whisper. The tyrannical roar within.
But it wasn't enough.
Not enough to cut him down.
I silenced Heavenly Tribulation's voice. Forgot the pain for a moment.
Focused. On my fingertips. On my toes.
Blocked out even the warriors' chatter, concentrating on one thing.
"Your sword is heavy. Truly heavy."
Before me was a rock. That impossibly hard thing my sword couldn't cut.
No matter how I swung, only scratches. Even leaving Demon Valley, all I had were deep gashes.
Thick hide.
His bones must be even thicker than flesh.
But I'd witnessed an axe shatter rock.
Maeng So-un laughed.
"Worthless shit. You think you can cut me? Goldfish, huh? You can't cut me. These scratches mean nothing. My body is rock! White Demon Body's power comes from an Adamantite Unbreakable Iron physique! You can't pierce me!"
"...Adamantite Unbreakable?"
I sneered. Gripped the sword tighter.
Regulated my breathing. Not all at once, but in bits.
Stockpiled.
My qi.
My strength.
My endurance.
--My story.
"For now, yes. But what if countless stories blend within? The sword is life itself. Time spent flows into it. So your sword is..."
Black Heaven Axe Sect Leader Maeng Cheon.
His firstborn, Maeng So-un.
And me.
--Even the name Wang So-hong, sworn as his second son until this night ends.
I didn't know what White Demon Body was. I knew only that the flesh before me was far tougher than any human's.
But did that change anything? The story was simple.
Absurdly simple, it almost made me laugh.
"Maeng So-un. Your father was a man who could shatter rock with an axe."
"He's dead anyway. And I absorbed that power fully."
"If qi conquers all, why does martial arts exist? You know nothing. Not what's in your father's hands, nor how he raised you."
"Shut up. I'll split you."
"Adamantite Unbreakable body? Supreme art White Demon Body?"
Clouds veiled the moonlight in that instant.
I murmured in the darkness.
"You're nothing. Even in death, you won't leave a proper name. As the one who killed his father who raised him, your corpse will rot in the streets."
"I'll kill you! With this invincible body!"
"Before me is just a pig bastard."
The sword sang from my fingertips.
Endurance wasn't enough, so I ground in bonds.
Black Heaven Axe Sect Leader, Maeng Cheon.
Time with him. Lessons from him.
Even the feelings received, I packed into the sword tip.
Nine Heavens Blood Demon Art's Second Form.
"I might still not cut rock."
Soul-Pulling Thrust.
The sword pursuing severed souls.
"But a pig bastard? That I can."
The thrust sliced through the darkness. Maeng So-un charged with a roar.
Bloody flash erupted from my hand. It met resistance, but I didn't retreat-poured in more force.
Twisted my leg muscles. Squeezed out even the last scraps of qi.
Advanced. Thrusting past bone. Roaring louder with demonic fury.
"That weight will grow heavier than a thousand-catty rock."
It burst forth over my gripped sword.
Shedding the frail shell after ten years.
Passing through Wang So-hong's tale.
My own story.
"...What?!"
The familiar Three Disasters Swordsmanship blended into the Nine Heavens Blood Demon Sword. Amid bloody afterimages, the honest swings layered on.
The pinnacle of pinnacles.
Crossing the brink of death, reaching its end: the time I'd spent.
Simple, overlooked by all...
--A mortal's struggle.
"...No way...?!"
Maeng So-un's face twisted. I placed words on the sword's tip.
"The strong devour the weak."
Bloody sword qi blazed. I gripped it calmly.
Pierced the blockage and advanced.
Maeng So-un's scream met my sword. At that end, crossing the wall, I realized.
Belatedly.
Far too late.
"Effort never betrays."
The old swings and the newly learned sword had merged as one.
"......"
--Squelch.
Our forms crossed. My feet slipped simultaneously. I forced my stumbling body upright. Exhaled the breath risen to my jaw late.
Shook the bloodied sword clean. Sheathed it.
My legs shook, but I held firm.
I didn't want to face this moment sitting.
"As you said, it's over. Maeng So-un."
"H-How..."
Maeng So-un looked at me. Blood trickled from the crack running from head to crotch.
"In that brief moment... you broke through the wall...?"
"Brief moment?"
I turned my head.
"That instant you saw was ten years to me, pig bastard."
--Crack!
Maeng So-un split in half and collapsed belatedly.