Cyberpunk in the Heavenly Demon (7)
In the peaceful branch of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
In this cyberpunk-saturated world, the Heavenly Demon Cult could truly be seen as a mysterious organization.
A fanatic group that revered the occult traditions of the past. Though their name had become the Demonic Cult rather than the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, they still worshipped the Heavenly Demon, and the Cult Leader reigned supreme over them all.
One of the Demonic Cult’s business properties located in Sleepless City.
A luxurious sixty-six-story Heavenly Demon Hotel where the upper crust of society resided.
Today, as usual, the hotel had been peacefully sucking money from the elite—until its front entrance was smashed to pieces.
A motorcycle engraved with the words Heavenly Demon had spectacularly shattered the gate as it made its entrance.
“Uwaaaaaaaaah—!!”
“What the hell is this—!!”
Amid the guests’ screams, the motorcycle left long tire marks across the center of the hotel lobby before coming to a stop.
The man who leaped lightly from the bike extended his hand, and the motorcycle transformed into a small cube. He slipped it into his robe, then stood with his hands clasped behind his back, black robes fluttering.
The hotel’s security forces instantly surrounded him.
They were all martial artists carrying blades at their waists. The security captain stepped forward with a deeply furrowed brow.
“Do you even know where you are, to cause such a disturbance?”
“How could this seat not know?”
It was a famous sixty-six-floor Heavenly Demon hotel in Sleepless City. Only a madman would ram a motorcycle into it without knowing exactly where he was.
The man—Myeong-yun—continued.
“Bring the branch leader.”
Myeong-yun had ridden the Myeongwangryong straight into the front gate of the Heavenly Demon Hotel.
The bike’s solid frame shattered the entrance, and using the resulting deceleration, Myeong-yun skillfully turned and brought the motorcycle to a clean stop.
While the viewers cheered the cinematic scene, the assaulted hotel quickly surrounded him.
“Bring the branch leader? Haha, this is a hotel! We have a manager! Just how far back in time did you crawl out from?”
“How rude. If you knew who this seat is, you should be dropping to your knees immediately...”
“Hah, what nonsense. Who cares who you are? Die!”
The security captain drew a massive podao from his waist and swung it at Myeong-yun.
A reddish aura burst from his chest, amplifying the blade’s power. The strike carried enough force to easily split a human skull.
“Drop dead!”
The podao slashed down at terrifying speed.
A huge shockwave spread across the lobby floor, creating a spiderweb of cracks.
The captain laughed, certain Myeong-yun was dead—until a hand shot out from the cloud of dust and slammed into his throat.
Myeong-yun emerged from the thick dust, black robes fluttering.
“You left the door wide open. The breeze is quite refreshing.”
The captain clutched his throat and coughed violently before pointing at Myeong-yun and screaming.
“Kill him! Kill him now!”
At his shout, the security guards drew their blades in unison and charged.
A storm of swords poured in from every direction.
The situation resembled the one at the Jeon Sword Gate, yet the momentum was completely different.
If the Jeon Sword Gate had been nothing more than trained thugs, the guards of the Heavenly Demon Hotel were at least two levels above them.
They’re certainly better than those pathetic Jeon Sword Gate fools.
If the Heavenly Demon Cult had been weaker than them, Myeong-yun would have been truly furious.
After all, those men flaunted their so-called righteous path while wielding pitiful martial arts.
Myeong-yun walked leisurely toward the charging guards.
It was as if the world had been put on fast-forward while he alone moved at 0.25x speed.
His impossibly slow pace made the viewers certain blades would soon pierce his body.
How could anyone survive in a world where only he was moving in slow motion? Yet the result defied imagination.
The guards’ blades seemed to bend away from Myeong-yun of their own accord.
Even though he moved slower than everyone else, he evaded every single attack as if he had foreseen their entire sword paths.
Not a single drop of sweat, perfectly composed—the overwhelming dignity of a supreme master.
The moment Myeong-yun took one step forward after dodging their assault, the situation reversed.
He slapped the flat of an incoming guard’s blade with his palm, sending it ricocheting into another guard.
The sudden panic of those two men threw the entire encirclement into chaos.
Myeong-yun moved.
The Heavenly Demon’s martial arts, having reached the pinnacle, unfolded through extremely simple motions without any unnecessary flair.
He advanced, he pushed.
Using only his palms, he punched a hole through the encirclement and approached the security captain.
The captain quickly channeled his inner energy and swung his podao, but Myeong-yun stepped on the flat of the massive blade, leaped, and stomped the man’s face, slamming him to the ground.
In mere seconds he had broken the encirclement and felled the captain. Myeong-yun spoke again.
“Did this seat not tell you to bring the branch leader? Why are you so eager to fight?”
“What fight? This seat merely gave a light greeting to his juniors. It is the martial world’s way of saying hello.”
Myeong-yun looked at the guards.
Even with their captain lying beneath his foot, his gaze asked if they wished to continue. The guards dropped their weapons.
The highest-ranking guard among them stepped forward.
“Wise decision. This seat has no intention of killing you. Is the branch leader absent?”
“…May we first retrieve the captain?”
“Take him.”
Myeong-yun stepped off the captain’s head.
One guard hurriedly dragged the captain away. The remaining guard continued.
“Thank you. The manager is currently out and cannot meet you.”
“Everyone seems to be ‘out’ these days. This seat shall wait inside.”
“…I will escort you to the reception room. Whom shall I say is visiting?”
“Tell him the Heavenly Demon has come.”
Myeong-yun was guided to the reception room reserved exclusively for VIPs of the Heavenly Demon Hotel.
Sitting in the reception room, he enjoyed green tea and refreshments while chatting briefly with the viewers.
“Have I learned martial arts, you ask? What foolish words are these? Everything this seat has shown you is martial arts—born from martial techniques.”
Some viewers were trying to dig up information about his wife.
Myeong-yun sipped his green tea and skillfully deflected their questions.
“Have you heard of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art? It is divided into mental techniques and martial techniques, yet both are collectively called the Heavenly Demon Divine Art. Having crossed dimensions, this seat has lost most of its inner energy for now. Still, the day may come when this seat can show it to you.”
“Hmm.”
Myeong-yun briefly calculated the power he could currently exert.
Due to the limits of New World, he was still at less than two-tenths of his previous life’s strength.
When he first began it had been less than one-tenth. The New World optimization settings had raised it somewhat.
Even that felt like a generous estimate.
Having finished his precise calculations, Myeong-yun spoke.
“It would be exactly one-tenth and four parts.”
“When this seat could use its full original power, a single gesture could split seas and mountains. Looking at this seat now, can you not feel how much weaker I have become?”
Although many unfamiliar terms had appeared, Myeong-yun simply smiled softly and let them pass without concern.
As the conversation continued, the sound of frantic running approached.
“He has finally arrived. How slow.”
The reception room door burst open. A man slid in on his knees and immediately pressed his forehead to the floor.
“The Heavenly Demon has returned—ten thousand demons pay homage! The Heavenly Demon has returned—ten thousand demons pay homage!! For what reason has the Heavenly Demon graced this humble place—”
“Is there a problem with the cult leader coming to see the faces of his own followers?”
“Of course there is no problem at all! However… why is the lobby in that condition…”
“Tsk.”
“This subordinate begs for mercy!! Spare my life, please!!”
“Enough. Dismiss the security captain who could not recognize the Heavenly Demon. Among the guards there was one clever fellow. Appoint him as the new captain.”
“Your command shall be obeyed! If there is anything else you wish to order, please command me!”
“Hmm. Very well. Summon the current leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”
“…Pardon?”
The manager let out a dumbfounded sound at the utterly bizarre order.
The Heavenly Demon stood right before him, yet he was being told to summon the Heavenly Demon.
Only then did the manager slowly raise his head and meet Myeong-yun’s eyes.
“Who—who the hell are you—?!”
Myeong-yun answered.
“This seat is the 8th Heavenly Demon of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, Myeong-yun.”