The Heavenly Demon Does Not Retreat
“The Heavenly Demon must never retreat.” No matter what heaven blocks one’s path, one must never harbor thoughts of escape. Defeat must never be feared. The only thing to consider is how to shatter the heavens.
“Yet you have already been defeated.” Do you still think it makes sense to call yourself the Heavenly Demon? I cannot accept it. Even if what you do is nothing more than a child’s play, once you claim the name of Heavenly Demon, you must show something worthy of it.
“Choose. Will you abandon the name of Heavenly Demon, or will you try to become one by breaking me, the heavens?” Whichever you pick, I will respect your choice.
3… 2… 1…
Game Start
“Come.” Prove your tyranny to me. Show me why you dare call yourself the Heavenly Demon. Quickly. Do not tremble like a lamb before a wolf—think of clashing with me!
“Will you not choose?” Then so be it. If you hesitate to choose, I shall choose your will in your stead. Once you kneel beneath the heavens, you are no Heavenly Demon. I will help you surrender.
After Hwaryeong and Dang So-il left the training ground, Decay dragged Gwon-jon over from the corner where he had been chatting with WhipLover and sat him down beside her.
“Why me?!”
“It’d be boring if I commentated alone. Let’s do it together.”
“I’m asking why it has to be me!”
Everyone gathered here had already proven their skill. Any one of them would have been qualified to commentate. Yet Gwon-jon pressed Decay on why she had specifically brought him.
“Because you’re the best at explaining the Heavenly Demon mirror match. If Hwaryeong-nim had picked Whip Master, I would’ve brought WhipLover instead of you.”
“There’s MeowFist besides me. She’s better with Heavenly Demon than I am!”
As Gwon-jon said, MeowFist would have been the ideal commentator. She had years of experience with murim games, deep knowledge of martial arts, and had reached Challenger rank playing only Heavenly Demon, so her understanding of the character was exceptional. She would have suited this seat far better than Gwon-jon, who only played Fist King.
“MeowFist would be biased.”
“She’s been streaming for years—she’d control herself.”
“Even so, when you like someone, it shows.”
No matter how hard MeowFist tried to stay neutral, as a human being she would inevitably reveal her bias. If Hwaryeong had been the underdog, Decay would gladly have called MeowFist. People are generous toward those who root for the weak. But Hwaryeong was the strong one. Decay was certain she would overwhelm Dang So-il without much trouble. Cheering for Hwaryeong in that situation would be problematic.
“You’re already here. Might as well commentate a bit before you go.”
“Fine. But I’m only doing this one match, got it?”
“Sure. Though if you get eliminated later, I can always drag you back, right?”
“Would that even work?!”
Not commentating would be a waste of talent. Gwon-jon had a good eye for games, a pleasant voice, clean pronunciation, and decent speaking skills. He was practically born to commentate. Decay secretly hoped Gwon-jon would crash out in the round of sixteen. Then she could drag him over to commentate whenever she wanted.
“Alright! The match is ready! Heavenly Demon and Heavenly Demon are facing off in the training ground!”
“We’re just jumping straight in like this?”
“You’re commentating, so use polite speech. Now then, Gwon-jon-nim! What are your thoughts on this matchup?”
Having the mic thrust upon him without warning, Gwon-jon sighed. This guy always got way too hyped the moment he entered a tournament. If he was going to be like this, he should just apply to be an official commentator. While glaring at Decay with his eyes, Gwon-jon continued.
“As everyone knows, Dang So-il-nim is considered the best among amateur Heavenly Demons. He’s proven that skill by placing in multiple tournaments. However, his opponent is no pushover either. Hwaryeong-nim is one of the rising monsters in Apis lately.”
“Is Hwaryeong-nim really that strong?!”
“You of all people should know best, Decay-nim. I believe you got flattened by ten consecutive hits not long ago.”
Gwon-jon took revenge on Decay by making an unnecessary remark.
“And in the end, you got finished in three seconds.”
“Hwaryeong-nim is approaching Dang So-il-nim! I wonder what she’s going to say?”
Gwon-jon had been about to continue his indifferent commentary when Decay’s energy crushed him into silence. Maybe that was enough. The match had already begun, so he should focus on the game for now. Gwon-jon’s gaze returned to the match.
Hwaryeong, standing before Dang So-il, abruptly asked him what a Heavenly Demon was.
“What is she doing?”
Pre-match conversations between players followed a set pattern: wishing each other luck, trash-talking, or saying nothing at all. Suddenly asking what a Heavenly Demon was? What meaning did that have? Even though he bore the name Gwon-jon, he had zero interest in murim and could not understand Hwaryeong’s action.
“It’s a Seon question.”
“What’s that?”
“Think of it as a question meant to grant the opponent enlightenment. In this case, asking what a Heavenly Demon is serves as provocation.”
Teaching presupposes the other party’s ignorance. By posing the Seon question of what a Heavenly Demon was, she had essentially declared that Dang So-il knew nothing about it.
“She’s calling him a Heavenly Demon noob.”
“She’s seizing the initiative. Let’s hear Dang So-il-nim’s answer.”
Giving a strange answer here would be the same as declaring himself a noob. He needed to give an answer everyone could accept. The reply Dang So-il offered was clichéd and familiar: the strongest, the cult leader of the Demonic Cult—words anyone would associate with “Heavenly Demon.” Upon hearing it, Hwaryeong stated without the slightest hesitation that his answer was wrong. Her voice was so chillingly decisive that Dang So-il’s shoulders shrank.
“He’s completely overwhelmed in presence.”
“Because Dang So-il-nim is a petty man.”
After having his answer denied, Dang So-il flared up and demanded whether she herself knew what a Heavenly Demon was. Hwaryeong answered far too confidently that she did not. There was not a single tremor in her expression, to the point that the word “I don’t know” sounded like the correct answer to the question. In the silence where even the two commentators were at a loss for words, Hwaryeong smiled.
“A Heavenly Demon is one who practices Pacheon.”
Hwaryeong explained that a Heavenly Demon was an existence that broke the oppression called heaven. If something weighed one down, one shattered it and stood above it. Then she rebuked Dang So-il, who had already lost his spirit before the fight even began. Dang So-il could not say a word. Already crushed by Hwaryeong, he seemed unable to even think of making excuses. Hwaryeong, telling him to choose whether to abandon the name of Heavenly Demon or prove it by defeating her, had already become Dang So-il’s heaven.
“Haha. Hwaryeong-nim is really serious about the Heavenly Demon concept.”
“That was cool.”
Following Decay’s admiration came Gwon-jon’s genuinely impressed voice. At a glance it could have seemed arrogant. Complaints might have arisen about who she thought she was, speaking that way. Some might have wondered why someone who was also role-playing had to talk like that. Yet both the chat and the commentators could only express admiration. Hwaryeong’s commanding figure looked so natural and inevitable that nothing but awe was possible.
“I think I understand WhipLover-hyung’s feelings a little now.”
“Has WhipLover-nim become a follower too?”
“It’s no joke. These days that hyung only talks about Hwaryeong-nim.”
WhipLover had been so moved after watching Hwaryeong’s Whip Master play that he now had “Hwaryeong” permanently attached to his speech. He had been so enthusiastic that he looked ready to pray to Hwaryeong before every meal. Gwon-jon had thought it excessive at the time, and honestly still did, yet he could now understand a little of WhipLover’s heart. Hwaryeong possessed a talent for captivating people.
Chatting time was over. The match had begun. Hwaryeong stood still in place and offered to give Dang So-il a few moves. Yet Dang So-il did not move. He merely watched Hwaryeong’s movements.
“Even after being offered moves, Dang So-il-nim isn’t moving! Why is that?!”
“Considering Dang So-il-nim’s usual style, he’s probably doubting Hwaryeong-nim’s words. He can’t rule out the possibility that the offer is a trap.”
“From my perspective, having been beaten by Hwaryeong-nim plenty of times, that was sincere. No matter what Dang So-il-nim does, she’ll just accept it. He can’t afford to miss this chance!”
If he let the opportunity Hwaryeong offered slip away, another chance might never come. When someone yielded the initiative, one had to seize it and launch the best possible attack. Dang So-il did not know this. He stuck to his usual defensive playstyle. A stagnant standoff continued. In the end, the one who moved first was Hwaryeong. Unable to wait any longer, she took a step forward. Hwaryeong’s figure vanished from sight.
“Don’t try to follow that movement with your eyes! You’ll only get mesmerized! Focus on your five senses!”
But Dang So-il, facing Hwaryeong for the first time, tried to track her body with his eyes as usual. He failed. Chasing after an afterimage that had disappeared in an instant was as meaningless as chasing a ghost.
Thud. Hwaryeong appeared behind Dang So-il and pushed him over. Falling forward and scrambling back up, Dang So-il looked up at Hwaryeong with dazed eyes. He could not understand why Hwaryeong had appeared behind him.
“It’s over.”
His skill was clearly inferior, but an even bigger problem was that he had been completely crushed in spirit. In a tournament, spirit was not some metaphysical concept. It was a very real factor. Once the mind broke, it affected one’s play. A person became passive, and eventually defeatism took root in the heart, preventing even a decent resistance. Learned despair gnawed at the mind. Right now, Dang So-il had been perfectly robbed of his spirit. With no chance of turning the tables in either skill or heart, he had lost.
“It’s over.”
Though the game had only just begun, it was already as good as finished. Dang So-il had been defeated.