Chapter 72
Chapter 72
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: Eternal Divine Thief (7)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"The sword hanging at your waist is resonating with the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor!"
"That's the Heavenly Lord Demon Dragon Sword! Then you really are... the Heavenly Demon—no, the First Heavenly Demon?"
"The First Heavenly Demon?!"
The twin brothers of the Eternal Divine Thief, finally realizing the full truth, cried out in horror.
Raised as Eternal Divine Thieves, they had mastered knowledge of every divine relic and treasure in the world.
Thus, they knew well about the Heavenly Lord Demon Dragon Sword—a blade even more temperamental in choosing its master than a wild crimson stallion. Throughout history, only one person had ever wielded it so effortlessly and freely.
They realized he was the First Heavenly Demon.
"So you've figured out my identity. In that case, I have no choice but to... kill you."
The Heavenly Demon had no desire for his secret as the First Heavenly Demon to leak out.
Of course, no secret lasted forever, and word was already spreading among a few, but there was no need to take unnecessary risks by sparing them.
"H-heek!"
"P-please spare us! We beg you!"
Suddenly facing death, which would end the lineage of the Eternal Divine Thief, the brothers Yi-sin and Yi-yeong pleaded desperately in terror.
"We swear we will never breathe a word about Your Excellency being the First Heavenly Demon."
"Your Excellency knows the truth about us, the Eternal Divine Thieves, doesn't he?"
They argued that since they shared each other's secrets, there was no room for betrayal, pleading for their lives.
"How can I trust the words of mere thieves?"
Smooth!
The Heavenly Demon drew the Heavenly Lord Demon Dragon Sword as if he had been waiting, advancing to execute them.
"W-wait a moment!"
"That's right! You still don't know the location of Lord Seok Myeongju of Seok Manor, do you?"
Of the two things the Heavenly Demon sought, one of the Demonic Cult's three great treasures—the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor—had been taken all too easily.
But they still hadn't returned the Seok Myeongju.
Thus, the brothers' only hope for survival lay in stalling with it, but their opponent was the Heavenly Demon.
"Didn't you say Lord Seok is here? No matter how vast his chambers, I can find him with my senses!"
Were Yi-sin and Yi-yeong simply too flustered?
They had overlooked the Heavenly Demon's extraordinary martial prowess and perception.
Whoosh!
To their shock, the Heavenly Demon levitated the unconscious Lord Seok Myeongju—hidden inside a massive decorative vase in the lord's chambers—high into the air.
This feat was possible only because his internal energy transcended human limits.
Lord Seok Myeongju wasn't in danger or poisoned.
He had merely been put to sleep with a sedative, and the Heavenly Demon could tell at a glance that he was unharmed.
"Not difficult at all. Or... would you like to try taking Lord Seok from me?"
Sneer!
The Heavenly Demon smiled.
From the brothers' perspective, that smile wasn't mere amusement—it instilled a fear more overwhelming and terrifying than any threat or curse.
'Take the Seok Myeongju from him?'
'Impossible! Even if every Eternal Divine Thief in history gathered here, it couldn't be done!'
Now, not just Yi-sin but Yi-yeong too fully grasped the Heavenly Demon's might.
Yi-yeong had struggled against the shadow bindings but barely regained control of his body when the Heavenly Demon slightly loosened them.
"You threatened my friend, Lord Seok Myeongju of Seok Manor, and even stole a treasure of my cult. Even summary execution for those crimes wouldn't be unjust, would it?"
Above all, the Heavenly Demon wasn't killing them on a whim—the original sins belonged entirely to the Eternal Divine Thieves.
Of course, the Demonic Cult's treasure hadn't been stolen by Yi-sin and Yi-yeong themselves but by a previous Eternal Divine Thief, yet they bore the title.
In other words, they inherited not only the legendary feats and renown but also the crimes and karma.
"Still, having been legends alongside this Heavenly Demon for ages! I'll grant you a chance to leave last words. Speak if there's anything you wish to say before departing this world."
The Heavenly Demon showed mercy, but the twin brothers of the Eternal Divine Thief were caught in a dilemma.
Before the Heavenly Demon, neither the world's greatest lightness skill, disguise, nor deception worked.
Was there truly no way to survive?
'Think! Please come up with a way to live!'
The elder twin, Yi-sin, racked his brains and finally recalled an old tale related to the Demonic Cult and the Heavenly Demon.
It was quite an ancient joke.
—The way to handle encountering the First Heavenly Demon is the same as meeting a mountain lord.
Lie flat and swear absolute submission.
Mountain lord meant the tiger ruling the mountains, implying that facing a tiger in the wild or the First Heavenly Demon in the martial world was equally perilous.
Smooth!
In that brief moment where life hung in the balance, the twins exchanged glances.
And resolved themselves.
"We surrender to the First Heavenly Demon."
"We swear submission—please take us as your subordinates."
The aforementioned joke wasn't born from mere amusement.
It embodied the life's truth: if you can't beat them, join them.
Thus, Yi-sin and Yi-yeong of the Eternal Divine Thief prostrated themselves before the Heavenly Demon, swearing absolute submission.
The way to survive before the Heavenly Demon.
It was to join the Demonic Cult and become his subordinate.
"You wish to join my cult?"
"We will follow Your Excellency's will in anything."
"Anything."
Yi-sin and Yi-yeong exerted every effort to survive.
Of course, their inner thoughts differed.
'Just get through this crisis somehow!'
'Once we escape here, will we ever meet the First Heavenly Demon again?'
Though twins, they were Eternal Divine Thieves, possessing lightness skills and disguise techniques no one but the First Heavenly Demon could counter.
Thus, their plan was to join the Demonic Cult to save their lives, then avoid the Heavenly Demon and hole up in the mountains for a while.
Even if they could never set foot in the martial world afterward, it was fine.
Hiding in the mountains to train successors and continue the Eternal Divine Thief lineage would be a fine life.
"Do you swear sincerely?"
As the two schemed desperately to survive,
The Heavenly Demon asked with unprecedented solemnity.
His weighted voice and piercing gaze, as if seeing through their hearts, made them
Shiver!
forget even their resolve to deceive him and survive, their bodies trembling.
"Of course."
"We swear!"
Water's depth can be known, but a person's heart cannot.
Even revered sages were fooled by a child's lies, showing how elusive human hearts truly are.
Thus, the twin Eternal Divine Thieves tried to deceive the Heavenly Demon.
"Heh heh heh heh."
Suddenly, the Heavenly Demon chuckled softly.
'Did he see through our intent to escape later?'
'Did our lie show?'
Yi-sin and Yi-yeong panicked but struggled to maintain their expressions.
"You're putting on quite a convincing show."
"It's true, Your Excellency."
"Please believe us!"
They bowed their heads as if truly wronged.
Then, side by side, they smirked faintly, feeling a thrill at fooling even the Heavenly Demon.
But they didn't know.
The Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor they had long possessed held another hidden ability.
—Mark!
The Heavenly Demon activated another power of the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor.
Flash!
Suddenly, a dark haze emanated from the Heavenly Demon's body, clad in the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor, and like a comet, it seeped into Yi-sin and Yi-yeong.
"Heup!"
"Kuhk!"
In the blink of an eye, it wriggled like a living monster and clung to them, making the brothers jump in horror.
But the dark haze was neither alive nor capable of independent movement.
"Your Excellency."
"What is this?"
Flustered, the twins spoke in unison, as was their habit.
Even they, masters of supreme lightness skills, couldn't resist it.
"One of the wondrous abilities of the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor. It literally imprints a mark on a person, allowing precise tracking of its bearer's location anywhere in the Central Plains."
The Heavenly Demon stated confidently.
His words held no exaggeration or falsehood.
Some might doubt its plausibility, but the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor was one of the Demonic Cult's three great treasures.
Moreover, with his boundless internal energy, the Heavenly Demon fully unleashed all its powers.
"N-no way!"
"Really?"
"Indeed. In the past, my cult would use ancient poisons, providing periodic antidotes to bind subordinates."
As the Heavenly Demon said, that had been the old way of the Demonic Cult.
But now, such poisons and the capable subordinates to manage them were gone, making it impossible.
Instead, he had imprinted the far more efficient mark of the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor—no need for worry.
"No need to feed you poison, right?"
"Kuh ugh."
Yi-sin and Yi-yeong realized once more.
They had underestimated the Demonic Cult and the Heavenly Demon, harboring naive thoughts.
In the end, half by will and half by force, they prostrated themselves and submitted.
"Don't feel too aggrieved. I am the Heavenly Demon. I neither covet your collection nor threaten you with your lives as bait."
"...?!"
Yi-sin and Yi-yeong had expected all their possessions—the entirety of the Eternal Divine Thieves' collection—to be confiscated upon joining the Demonic Cult.
But hearing otherwise sparked a glimmer of hope.
"Simply submit to me, live your days as usual, and occasionally aid my endeavors."
Reflecting on it, following the resurrected First Heavenly Demon and helping him didn't seem so bad.
No, they rationalized it as legends meeting legends.
Thoroughly broken, they swore sincere submission.
"We will follow only Your Excellency from now on."
"No matter what, we submit."
Thus, through this, the Heavenly Demon acquired the Ghost Soul Shadowless Armor, one of the Demonic Cult's three great treasures, rescued the Seok Myeongju and Seok Manor.
Not only that, but he uncovered the hidden secrets of the Eternal Divine Thieves and even secured their loyalty—there couldn't have been a better outcome.
"Good. As my subordinates, abandon any plans to steal from Seok Manor or the Unbreakable Jade Hall."
"How could we?"
"Of course, Your Excellency."
They prostrated once more, swearing loyalty anew.
In this situation, rather than mutual enmity and threats, it was better for both the Demonic Cult and Eternal Divine Thieves—both shunned and pursued by the world—to join forces.
'I've gained the Eternal Divine Thief brothers, masters of supreme lightness skills and disguise.'
The Heavenly Demon was equally satisfied.
He didn't need their strength immediately, but as the Demonic Cult revived and he ventured fully into the martial world, their abilities would prove invaluable someday.
No, even now, there was a way to use their knowledge and information right away.
"Oh, right. Do you perhaps know where the last of the Demonic Cult's three great treasures, the Heavenly Roar Golden Bell, is located?"