Chapter 98
Chapter 98
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: Descent of the Blood Heaven
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"Gok-cheong."
"Yes, Master."
"Look."
I gaze down. Countless lights flicker below the towering building.
It's bright. People are moving. The lights I always had to look up at are now beneath me.
But that doesn't bring any comfort. Those twinkling sparks below could rise above my head at any moment.
It's frightening.
The person beside me.
The world itself.
It feels like it's choking me every single moment.
"What are you thinking?"
"...My foolish mind cannot presume to grasp your meaning."
"It was just one question. You've already given your answer to it."
"......"
"Yet you can't speak it because of fear. I know."
He looked down below.
"Behold. The stars twinkling on the earth. That is life. Blood is the same. Lights kindled in the darkness. They were few in the past, but now there are many. And there will be even more in the future."
"......"
"But among those lights, ours is absent. You could call it scarce, but it's safer to say there are none at all. Why is that?"
"...Because the vile demonic cult has oppressed us."
"Wrong."
Gok-cheong turned his head. He stole a glance at his master.
He had long passed sixty, yet he still looked young.
The moment one surpasses the Transcendent Realm, aging halts. After shedding the mortal shell and rebirth, lifespan extends as well.
A wondrous state where the youth sacrificed for martial arts is returned.
That is the Transcendent Realm. Yet his master had gone beyond even that.
He couldn't even guess where he stood. Still, those eyes remained serene.
"Because our will was weak."
Our will was weak.
What did that mean?
Gok-cheong looked once more at the lights spread out below his feet.
"Are you saying our cult's will is weak? If our blood is weak, then what in the world is strong?"
"I saw it."
"...That..."
"A demon standing in the heavens. Even in broad daylight, the sun vanished. When its crouched aura unfurled, the earth turned pitch black."
"......."
"That's why we lost. Our will was weak, so our hands grew feeble. Our bodies fell, and our hearts broke."
"Then... does that mean our cult can never stand above the demon?"
"That's how it was. At least back then, that's what I thought."
The heavy hand gripping the railing trembled. Amid the quietly erupting blood-red aura, the iron handle shattered.
"But now it's different. Though I suffered deep internal wounds, I rose again, standing even more firmly than before."
"I am in awe of your great accomplishment, Master."
"Now, I feel certain I can surpass it. I stand at the very edge of my current perch. No one in the world could dare oppose me."
Gok-cheong thought the same. Was there truly anyone more terrifying in the world?
But the words, which seemed about to end, did not.
"Yet above the heavens lies another heaven."
"Pardon?"
"A crimson heaven. Blood Heaven. The will I harbored was to extinguish all the world's lights with blood. Lights may die only to rise again, but once washed in blood, they will shine red. Yes. I wished to become a proud red crane standing above it all. But..."
His master paused.
"I saw it. Standing above the Blood Heaven. Something that surpassed even the demon's sky... a power I could not dare refuse."
"What... is that?"
"Our cult, hidden away, was quietly amassing power. But lately, its forces have suddenly grown stronger. Do you know where that power comes from?"
"From some supporting faction..."
"It all weaves together like a spider's web. It may seem ordinary at first glance, but behind it lies 'that.' The existence that shapes the world from behind all things."
"What in the world..."
"Even so, I still dream. Of crushing the world with the power of the Blood Cult alone."
He turned his head. Looking at him, he lowered his voice.
"I probably... won't surpass it. Though I'll strive endlessly, my chances are slim. I've come to realize inevitably my limits. That there are walls in this world no amount of effort can overcome. I have already failed. My disciple. This body called the Blood Demon has dulled, and my spirit was defeated long ago."
"......"
"But you are different. You are the most exceptional among those I've found, a pearl shining alone and aloof in the mud no one else noticed."
"......"
"You... can show me a Blood Heaven that surpasses even that. You are my last hope."
"How could this disciple presume to..."
"Don't doubt it. Harbor ambition."
In an instant, his aura shifted. Startled by the chill, Gok-cheong looked up at him.
"Think of devouring it all. Don't hesitate like before."
"......."
"Are you afraid of me? So afraid you can't even present your will before me? It's a natural feeling. Who in our cult wouldn't fear me? If I so much as twitch a finger, you'd die. Crushed and broken."
"M-Master."
"But I won't. You are my blade. The name Blood Demon was once overshadowed by Heavenly Demon. The Blood Heaven that dreamed of resurgence was ultimately eclipsed by another sky-not even the Heavenly Demon. All that's left is an empty shell whose will was stolen by another."
He murmured.
"If you fear me, then go. Once you perfect the True Blood Forbidden Technique, you'll stand where I am. You'll be able to cast off all your fears. Then, everyone will look up to you. You'll live in a world without fear. Just as you've always wished."
"......"
"If you want to escape me, prove it. By becoming the Blood Demon."
It was a strange bond.
Gok-cheong reflected on his own life. A endless string of beatings and failures.
He had been a pickpocket wandering the marketplace streets with nowhere to go.
And the one who had picked him up stood before him now. But it wasn't a straight path to happiness.
On the contrary, even more dangerous tasks piled up. To survive, he even had to slit his friend's throat.
...I'm afraid of dying.
I can't even imagine myself after death.
Gok-cheong had always been afraid. Even at this very moment.
Will perfecting the True Blood Forbidden Technique truly free me from fear?
Will I be able to stop struggling desperately to surpass the man before me, just to avoid death?
In the midst of doubt, there was only one thing to do.
As always, move by another's will, not his own.
He'd never had a choice to refuse. If his master commanded, he would obey.
Even if it defied human decency...
He'd done so until now, and he would continue.
Until he no longer feared him.
"...I'll head to Ak-min. I'll incite the grand scheme there and gather the True Blood."
"Don't let a single mistake mar the task."
"I will keep that in mind."
"Go. Gok-cheong. Bloom brilliantly, as befits our cult's vice leader."
His master's robes fluttered in the wind.
"Make the myriad demons tremble in fear. Do that, and you'll gain what you've so desired. A you that fears nothing."
...
It clashes.
The Heavenly Blood Sword clings to my fingertips.
How's the body's condition? Perfect. Excellent. The genius I glimpsed before is now sprinting toward its peak.
The energy throughout my body sparkles like jewels. Ready to surge forward at any moment.
All the pent-up power explodes. The mad blood aura, long dormant, overflows.
Peak condition.
Surpassing it to the absolute pinnacle.
Then why the hell...?
Why can't I smash this idiot in front of me?
"How dare a worm like you...!"
---Kwaaaaaang!!!
Aura scatters.
I charge through it. Swords clash. I pour out every ounce of strength.
I chain the forms. Layer strong atop weak, death within the strong.
Collapse. Collapse. Collapse.
I whisper it into the sword over and over, until blood seeps from my gritted teeth.
Yet it doesn't collapse.
It refuses to crumble no matter what.
Why...?
"You filthy bastaaaaard!!!!"
Heavenly Blood Sword.
Linked Acupoint Sword Barrage.
In an instant, the erupting blood-red aura strikes the enemy. One light splits into twelve paths, mercilessly devouring him.
Eight are blocked. Three dodged. But one pierces true.
Bursting blood. Rending flesh. The wet tearing sound wraps the sword's tip.
Yet...
He rises again.
"Grraaaaaahk?!!"
---Kaang!!!
The sword sings. The atmosphere shifts abruptly, familiar forms turning alien.
The forms accelerate. Not just that-the sword tip begins trailing biting frost.
The clashing right arm freezes. I shake off the ice grains instantly, but in that gap, the enemy closes in.
Speed.
The speed is off.
What trick is this now?!
---Kadddddrdk!!!
They pour down. Innumerable swords.
The swordplay itself is simple. Uncomplicated. But if the previous strikes were merely heavy...
These are light but blindingly fast. The moment you match the speed, the next blow extends.
Clash. Clash.
My continuously clashing feet are steadily pushed back.
The shifts in energy flow with impossible naturalness. It feels like facing two swords at once.
Sword paths change the instant you grow accustomed. The blade's edge alters the moment you adapt.
"This... bastard...!"
It's not unwinnable.
But...
If this drags on, people will swarm. If I can't shake this leech quickly, things will get messy.
Better to...
"You...!"
Amid the crumbling leisure, Gok-cheong panted.
How dare this vermin. How dare it look up from below me...
It's trying to surpass me.
Me, who will become the red heaven!
"To a worm like you...!"
Exploding crimson light. Gok-cheong's rage erupted in the enemy's eyes glimpsed within the blood aura.
"To a third-rate like you...!"
No time to look back. Gok-cheong poured power into his blazing sword.
With all his might, he shoved the foe back. Creating distance, he drew the item containing everything from Ak-min.
"To think I must draw this before a half-baked fool like you!!!"
The mass of refined, purified blood gathered by the Thousand Net Reverse Blood Back-Death Array.
A single drop holding the life of a hundred men...
True Blood.
He didn't want to consume it. Truly didn't want to.
He wanted to do it in a safe place. Considering what would follow, it was only right.
But if he must...
---Tok.
A thick blood scent surged from the opened lid. Panting, Gok-cheong shouted.
"Count it an honor! What you witness is the first red heaven to grace this land!"
He tosses the emptied vial aside. Gripping the sword two-handed, he feels the boiling energy erupt.
Bursting terrain. Collapsing structures. Amid falling rocks, blood flashes.
Descend. Red star.
Devour all and manifest the will you harbor.
Surpassing Intent-Form Aura, constructing Heart Image...
The realm of the Heart Sword.
"I'll crush you all! Crush you all to pieeeeeces!!!!!!"
「Go. Gok-cheong. Bloom brilliantly, as befits our cult's vice leader.」
Gok-cheong swallowed the blood. Will-infused energy formed shapes, clinging to his body and screaming red.
Like a serpent devouring the sky. Like the writhing of a dream unfulfilled as a dragon.
「Make the myriad demons tremble in fear. Do that, and you'll gain what you've so desired. A you that fears nothing.」
He surpasses.
Even himself.
Heavenly Blood Sword's Ultimate Technique.
Blood Heaven Sword: Black Fang Majestic Wings.
"I am...!"
The gripped sword devours all.
Swallowing the enemy whole.
And crumbling this vast cavern.
"The Blood Demon!"
The decades hidden coiled in Ak-min's depths...
Become a serpent that failed to become a dragon, now aspiring to the heavens.
...
The ragdoll that Black Dan-hwa had become spat out hair from his mouth.
All his myriad silver threads were severed. The formation had collapsed too.
...But.
He had obtained the result.
"How... could I... fall to mere fledglings...?"
Schemes and plots.
He had poured in everything that could deceive.
Of course, at the center was Ju Ling-ling. A master who had surpassed the Transcendent Realm mid-battle.
The woman who had infused her incompatible aura swept back her hair.
"Thought I was really done for... Hey. You useful?"
"This one is already done for... Ahh... My silver spirit threads... all hundred strands brought are severed...? This... this can't be... What the...?"
"Why's he like that?"
"He's always like that. Leave him."
Now, just snap the neck of the martial artist before them. But just before closing in, the utterly wrecked right-hand man raised his head.
He looked to the sky. A voice exploded in an instant, shaking the building.
"Blood Demon Blood Heaven! Blood Demon Eternal Glory! Long live!"
"What?"
"It descends! Behold, world!"
Amid the panting, Black Dan-hwa caught the whiff of madness.
"Behold the crimson rain gathering!!!!!!"
The blood fragrance.
"Wha...?!"
---Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Black Dan-hwa was swept into the erupting storm. Only after rolling once did he barely halt his body.
"This...?!"
Crimson light.
The red light bursting from Ak-min's heart pierces the sky. Devouring clouds, ascending triumphantly, dyeing everything red.
"What... is that...?"
The rushing winds make the forest wail. Structures partially crumble, fluttering everywhere.
Blood scent fills the air. Thickly. Everything around dyes in blood fragrance.
The world turns red.
All visible things scream.
An absurd vortex of energy. Faintly, a human shadow forms within.
"What in the world... is happening...?!"
No.
Not the time to gawk at that.
He gauges the red light's position. Instantly recognizes where it is.
Red Cloud. Red Cloud's place.
The place he had left.
"Ah..."
No way.
No way...!
"We have to go back! Now!"
"What...? What's happening?!"
"No time to explain! Hurry!"
A bewildered voice erupted from the collapsed building.
"Go... back...?"
Panting, the corpse-like right-hand man rose.
A tattered hand propped up the mangled body. The suddenly erupting red light enveloped him entirely.
Black Dan-hwa flinched. That's...
The extreme technique that burns even one's core energy.
"With Blood Heaven... descended... where is there to return to...!"
The blood-soaked Blood Cultist rose once more.
Surrendering his body to madness.
"This right-hand man will serve the vice leader to the end! World, remember this right arm of our nameless cult! I shall not halt my steps until this final flame fades! A single bloom in persecution! That is the Blood Cult!"
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