Chapter 33
Chapter 33
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 33
Chapter Title: The Debt from 200 Years Ago (4)
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"Ye who have entered eternal slumber, former Hall Leaders. For the sake of Blazing Flower Hall..."
As Elder Eul Seung-je, the eldest and most respected figure in the Elders' Hall, continued reciting the ceremonial text...
"Uwaaah! Uwaaaaaah!"
Suddenly, an unexpected incident erupted.
A bizarre scream pierced the sky high above, and soon after!
Kwaaaaang!
Someone came plummeting down from midair, crashing to the ground.
"What is this?!"
"What's going on? What the hell?"
During the sacred rite of ancestor worship—an important event for any sect or clan—even the frail elders and the young warriors of Blazing Flower Hall were thrown into panic.
No matter the enmity, even with foes one could not wear the same sky with, such rites were always avoided.
It was a matter of respect, but more practically, holding the ceremony meant every ounce of the sect's strength—from retired masters to the youngest experts—was gathered in one place. No one dared attack.
Yet someone had hurled another person straight at that very gathering.
"Heavens! No way!"
"That's... the Vice Hall Leader?"
The figure who had soared high into the sky before crashing down, gravely injured and unconscious, was none other than Blazing Flower Hall's Vice Hall Leader, Tae In-geol—a peak expert renowned across the land.
Tae In-geol, who had earned respect through his meticulous and impeccable work, now lay sprawled on the ground, teetering on the brink of death.
What in the world had happened?
"Vice Hall Leader Tae!"
Hall Leader Chu Jeong-yong, the Extreme Flame Lord of Blazing Flower Hall, rushed to the unconscious Tae In-geol and checked his condition.
Swoosh!
Scanning his body for wounds just in case, he found no deep gashes or slashes—only injuries from the fall itself.
"What on earth happened?"
Chu Jeong-yong asked while examining him.
"M-mon... monster..."
Tae In-geol had been lifted helplessly into the air before plummeting sharply, unable to brace properly. He barely managed those words before blacking out from the impact.
Naturally, Chu Jeong-yong and the others turned their gazes toward the direction from which Tae In-geol had fallen.
That is, high up into the sky.
"Monster? A monster?"
"You mean a monster appeared in the sky?"
As everyone looked up...
Thud... thud...
Taking advantage of the massive chaos and uproar, a young man entered with calm, serene steps.
He was, of course, the Heavenly Demon, Gunryong.
"Gasp! Who are you?"
"Who the hell is this guy?"
His attire wasn't the battle garb emblazoned with blazing flame patterns—it was casual, like some fortunate young master out for a village stroll. Friend or foe was instantly clear.
"Where is the Blazing Flower Hall Leader?"
The Heavenly Demon asked.
In truth, this wasn't his first visit to Blazing Flower Hall.
In the past, while supporting the founding Hall Leader, Flame Flower Divine Lord Eul Baek-hyeon, he had accompanied him here.
Back then, there were no grand, ornate pavilions or buildings, no abundant wealth or food.
'That humble place has grown this prosperous?'
All of it owed to the Heavenly Demon and the Demonic Cult's support. From his perspective, it was enough to stoke his anger.
"Could you be..."
Sensing the Heavenly Demon's ominous aura and presence, Chu Jeong-yong stepped forward.
"The one who sent that bizarre letter?"
Blazing Flower Hall, with no true enemies or rivals in the peaceful Henan martial world...
The only ones they needed to watch were the sender of the recent letter demanding repayment of a 200-year-old debt.
"Yes."
"You mad bastard! You look like a Demonic Cult survivor—get lost!"
Hall Leader Chu Jeong-yong raised his voice.
He wanted nothing more than to crush this young warrior who had ruined their sect's vital ceremony.
But as Blazing Flower Hall's leader, he recalled the previous Hall Leader's dying words.
They were to show utmost mercy to Demonic Cult members or those from its ranks.
"What? Demonic Cult? The Demonic Cult?"
"You mean that Demonic Cult?"
"No way! A Demonic Cultist in this day and age."
"And such a young one at that. What a shame."
The moment the Demonic Cult was mentioned, Blazing Flower Hall's warriors clicked their tongues, each muttering their piece.
"......"
The Heavenly Demon's mood soured as he heard their unfiltered words.
Just 200 years ago, the Demonic Cult's name inspired terror, fear, and awe among those pursuing transcendence.
Now, it evoked pity beyond mockery.
It wasn't mere generational shift—it was a profound shock.
"I'll tolerate this once. And only because you're not Demonic Cult."
Chu Jeong-yong was getting heated.
Whoosh!
Flames and heat surged behind him, the air scorching hot.
True to Blazing Flower Hall's reputation alongside the Solar Sect for the hottest extreme yang arts in the Central Plains, Extreme Flame Lord Chu Jeong-yong displayed fitting prowess.
If the Heavenly Demon showed the slightest rudeness, he'd incinerate him without mercy.
"Wait! Demonic Cult...?"
Eul Seung-je, Blazing Flower Hall's supreme elder, who had overheard from afar, looked up in shock.
Even to him, over a century old, the Demonic Cult was a faded legend tinged with regret.
"Mercy is given once, so when I say nicely..."
As Chu Jeong-yong waved his hand toward the Heavenly Demon in contempt—
-Central Plains Supremacy Step!
In a flash, the Heavenly Demon shot forward at blinding speed.
He seized Chu Jeong-yong's face with one hand, squeezing like he was about to burst a watermelon barehanded.
Krunch!
Chu Jeong-yong's head turned beet red, forcing a scream of agony.
"Aaaak! Aaaaaah!"
More than the pain, he couldn't comprehend how a momentary lapse let a transcendent expert like himself yield his face so easily.
Since mastering martial arts and rising in Blazing Flower Hall, he'd never been unilaterally overwhelmed like this.
Not even Shaolin's Abbot would treat him so.
"What was that? What did you just say?"
More terrifying than bodily pain was—
Shwaaaaa!
The Heavenly Demon's horrifying aura, gripping his face with one bare hand and exerting force.
That is, killing intent.
The Heavenly Demon was utterly enraged.
"Heavens! B-breath... breath!"
"Gah... gack! Sp-spare... me!"
"Kkh."
His fury-born killing intent pressed like formless blades, seizing the throats of lesser experts in ultimate terror.
For proof, every young disciple gathered for the rite clutched their necks and writhed on the ground.
"Who is showing mercy to whom?"
The Heavenly Demon was genuinely furious.
He had opposed Sama Hee's view and chosen Flame Flower Divine Lord Eul Baek-hyeon himself, and now this frustration boiled over.
For the guilty to speak of mercy made his blood boil in reverse.
"Disciples!"
"The children... the children can't breathe!"
Those kids were Blazing Flower Hall's future.
Seeing them—sons and disciples to the leaders and experts—turn pale and collapse threw the warriors into frenzy.
The very Hall Leader meant to control the chaos, Chu Jeong-yong, was pinned like a ringed pig, unable to move.
"Kwaaaaaak!"
Unable to endure longer, with his face about to burst, Chu Jeong-yong screamed.
"We must save the Hall Leader first!"
"Attack!"
At his cry, the Five-Colored Flames moved first.
The Five-Colored Flames wielded arts of five distinct flames—azure, yellow, red, white, black—serving as the Hall Leader's closest guards.
"Haaap!"
Blue Flame Lord Bi Deung, the first of the Five-Colored Flames, charged with a mighty shout.
Not to be outdone, the rest united as one and surged forward.
Roar!
Behold their disciplined assault, spewing multicolored flames in perfect harmony upon the Heavenly Demon.
When united, even transcendent experts struggled against the Five-Colored Flames.
Yet inexplicably, the Heavenly Demon stood unfazed by their combined attack.
"Five colors dazzling—flashy, but empty."
The Heavenly Demon tsked in scorn.
After 200 years, Blazing Flower Hall had risen from fledgling to Henan powerhouse, but its arts had regressed, not advanced, in his eyes.
"W-what?"
Chu Jeong-yong, immobilized by the grip on his face, asked.
"Those five flashy ones, even with you their Hall Leader, couldn't match Flame Flower Divine Lord alone."
"......!!"
At the young upstart critiquing the founding Hall Leader, Chu Jeong-yong gaped in shock.
He wondered if the man was mad, but the Heavenly Demon's tone rang familiar, oddly convincing.
In truth, the Heavenly Demon held Flame Flower Divine Lord Eul Baek-hyeon in high regard.
'At least he had skill, talent, and the guts to speak before me.'
Not a fool, the Heavenly Demon hadn't backed Blazing Flower Hall on whim.
Rather, to counter Shaolin—the polestar of the Nine Great Sects—he sought promising sects. Eul Baek-hyeon had caught his eye as a once-in-a-generation talent.
'And I thought he'd honor the promise!'
Recalling the betrayal by the trusted Flame Flower Divine Lord reignited his rage, and at last—
-Yama's Hook Prison!
He drew the Heavenly Lord Demon Dragon Sword and unleashed Yama Sword Art.
The Heavenly Demon's wrath was just beginning. As he drew his blade, events escalated beyond mere face-grabbing and killing intent.
Kwarung!
The Five-Colored Flames, said to fell even transcendent masters united...
All five collapsed like lightning-struck pines, unconscious on the spot.
Astonishingly, the Heavenly Demon achieved this miracle with a single stroke of his sword.
"Five-Colored Flames! Bi Deung! Gun Hwa!"
In moments, seeing his trusted guards foam at the mouth and faint, Chu Jeong-yong felt reality crumbling, on the verge of fainting himself.
Oooh! Ooooooh!
Blazing Flower Hall's members gasped in awe as well.
Who said the Demonic Cult's fall led to oblivion?
No one knew this young man's status in the Demonic Cult, but one thing was clear.
Blazing Flower Hall couldn't defeat him.
"You... surely you're..."
At this point, Hall Leader Chu Jeong-yong voiced what he'd only hypothesized, never believing it true.
"The revived lord of the Demonic Cult?"