The Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword
Step. Step.
“You’re here.”
The Blood Demon, who had been sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed, slowly opened them. Crimson light began to pour from his gaze.
Skin as pale as any vampire’s, long hair cascading all the way to his waist. Cracked lips stained with blood, and a skeletal body so emaciated the ribs stood out in stark relief. The sight was grotesque beyond measure.
“Well, this is a place fit for a Blood Demon, all right.”
Do-ha glanced around, brow furrowed.
Originally the Blood Emperor Pit was dry earth except for the blood filling the holes. Here, though, blood had been poured until it overflowed the pits, so that every step sank into it like shallow water. Sticky. Filthy. If the blood had only risen as high as his ankles, he would have blasted the entire area to pieces the moment he arrived.
Ssshhk.
Still cross-legged, the Blood Demon rose in a strangely fluid motion and turned his back. He did not simply stand; he moved as though drifting through water.
“So you are the Absolute One. I have long wished to meet you.”
“I never wanted to meet a Blood Demon.”
“The blood karma you have amassed… I have always respected it.”
“Wow… hearing a Blood Demon bastard say he respects me makes me feel like my entire life is being denied.”
Watching the Blood Demon’s sickening smile, Do-ha let out a dry laugh.
He would never claim to be pure. Before he ever faced the Demon God he had cut down countless enemies. But he had never chased evil so far that a creature like the Blood Demon would respect him for it.
“I know. Everything you killed was pure evil. You yourself may not be pure good, yet you have always slain every evil that tormented the good.”
“Am I supposed to thank you for understanding?”
“But tell me… who decides right and wrong? Can the wicked you have slain truly be called evil? To them, were you not the greater evil?”
“Wow, this guy’s a hopeless lunatic. Cheolsan-gi used to spout the same crap. So it was all your fault, huh?”
“Not my fault. They simply shared my thoughts.”
“Hey, cut the bullshit. Save the philosopher act for the Underworld.”
Crack.
Whoosh!
The instant the words left his mouth, Do-ha’s irritation flared. He unfolded the Lightning Spirit Step and closed the distance in a single heartbeat.
Baek-bo Myeol-hwang Gong, Fourth Step: Extreme Demon Thunder Fist.
The moment the Blood Demon’s eyelids began to close, Do-ha was already there.
Thud!
Ssshhk.
“?”
The Blood Demon flew into the wall under the Extreme Demon Thunder Fist. Do-ha scowled and stared at his own fist.
What the hell was that?
His fist had clearly slammed into the Blood Demon’s face, yet the sensation was wrong. Like punching jelly? No—softer still, like striking paper. Something between soft and solid.
This isn’t the principle of softness overcoming hardness.
Martial arts that embodied that principle usually redirected force; they did not turn the body itself into something soft and yielding.
“I don’t know what you did to your body, but if punches won’t work, I’ll just cut you.”
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
Shiiing.
Do-ha swung Un-jeop-bi-jang toward the Blood Demon still embedded in the wall.
Myeol-hwang Sword Technique, Second Form: Sovereign Command.
Whoosh!
“….”
Do-ha closed his mouth after the swing.
It was exactly the same as the punch.
The blade didn’t cut through flesh—it just scraped.
Like dragging a blunt club across damp leather. What in the world was this? What had the Blood Demon done to his body to become like this?
Even a kraken wouldn’t feel like this under my sword.
Mollusks still parted cleanly beneath his blade. How could the Blood Demon be any different?
Ssshhk.
Thud.
“Feeling better now? I would like to talk.”
“Ah… now I get it.”
At the Blood Demon’s request for conversation, Do-ha snorted and nodded.
He had wondered how the Blood Cult had swollen to such numbers in so short a time. He had last crushed them more than fifteen years ago; even so, growing this large should have been impossible.
“So you just wagged that snake tongue of yours and brainwashed people.”
“I never brainwashed anyone. I merely drew out their desires and greed.”
“That’s exactly what brainwashing is, you maggot. Cult leaders say the same damn thing.”
“Haa… I only wanted conversation, yet you come at me so aggressively.”
“Trying to drag me into that brainwashing too? Your mouth will tear open first.”
“It seems I have no choice. I will have to educate you.”
“See? ‘Educate.’ Cultists always say that.”
Gurgle-gurgle.
Fwoooooosh!
While Do-ha jabbed a finger and ranted, a foul surge of blood qi erupted from the Blood Demon. He might be a cultist, but he was no weakling to be taken lightly.
“Rumor has it you are stronger than I… shall I finally see that power?”
“Whether it’s rumor or not… you’ll find out soon enough.”
KRAAAAAASH!
Do-ha and the Blood Demon collided.
Whirl.
Clang!
Crunch!
Do-ha blocked the Blood Demon’s arm; his brow twitched.
Anyone who fought this bastard must have felt it was completely unfair.
The Blood Demon’s attacks landed. Yet the reverse was never true. More precisely, that soft, mollusk-like body simply refused to take impact.
Of course, I’ve already found the counter.
“Truly… worthy of the Absolute One. No one has ever lasted this long.”
Ssshhk.
Thud!
The Blood Demon’s arm, moving like a serpent, slammed into Do-ha’s side. At the same instant Do-ha’s fist crashed into the Blood Demon’s jaw.
Clack!
“?”
His vision shook for a split second; the Blood Demon tilted his head.
What was that just now?
Baek Do-ha’s power, though slight, had pierced through his jaw.
Coincidence…?
Whoosh!
Eyes narrowed, the Blood Demon drove another fist toward Do-ha’s solar plexus.
Thud!
Whoosh!
Thud!
“….”
Feeling a faint throb in his side, the Blood Demon opened distance.
No doubt now. The moment he struck the solar plexus, Do-ha had extended his fist in perfect counter. Normally Baek Do-ha’s fist should have bounced off with a light tong; this time a dull, solid impact had sounded.
“Hey, mollusk. You’ve gone quiet all of a sudden.”
Do-ha wore a thin, mocking smile.
A few solid hits and the mouth that had been running nonstop finally shut.
“Surprised, huh? I figured even if you gave up eating you’d never stop talking.”
No matter how soft and yielding the body, no matter how thoroughly it deflected every martial art and every spell, it still had a flaw.
The instant he attacks, that bizarre flesh returns to normal.
Therefore, the moment the Blood Demon struck, a simultaneous counter was enough. Someone watching might ask why not simply dodge and then hit; but unless the Blood Demon’s force actually exploded against something, the soft body remained intact.
“I wish to praise you. To discover the counter to my Blood Demon Divine Art… yet you learned the truth far too late.”
Ssshhk.
The Blood Demon pointed at Do-ha.
“How long do you think that body of yours can last?”
“….”
Do-ha’s eyebrow twitched. The words were true enough. He had spent considerable time uncovering the Blood Demon’s nature. In the process his insides had been wrecked—bones cracked, organs torn, muscles ruptured in places. Since the battle against the Demon God, he had never been this badly injured.
“So what?”
Zaaang.
Restoration.
Piiing.
Highest-tier healing magic bloomed; Do-ha’s body mended in an instant.
“Injuries mean nothing to me. I can heal as much as I want.”
“Heh heh. But the mana required for magic is not infinite.”
The Blood Demon smiled at him. He was no fool; he would not be swayed by empty words. If unlimited healing were possible, why had Baek Do-ha ever lost to the Demon God? He had already heard from the Demon God Cult. Baek Do-ha had been defeated. How he still lived was a mystery, yet the defeat itself was certain.
“And even if you keep healing… your attacks hold little meaning against me.”
The Blood Demon indicated his own body. Each time he attacked, Do-ha stacked damage with counters, yet Baek Do-ha’s stamina was draining far faster.
“Try recovering that fading stamina as well.”
The Blood Demon sneered. Do-ha, however, simply began to draw something out.
Whoosh.
Thud.
“That…?!”
It was the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword. He had stored it in subspace before coming here; only now did he retrieve it.
“Well? Recognize it?”
“…It is genuine.”
Eyes that had seemed as free of desire as a sage’s now flooded with greed darker than any Demon King’s. To the Blood Demon that sword was the final key.
The counter Do-ha had found was a flaw, true enough. While he remained still, no attack could touch him; yet every time he struck, those traits vanished. In simple terms, the switch flipped off and the body returned to normal.
But with the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword, I can complete it.
Whether standing still or attacking, he would maintain that mysterious flesh forever. Then he would become invincible—the one and only being no one could touch. Even if the one attacking him were not Baek Do-ha but the Demon God himself.
“When Heo Won-sa claimed he held the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword, I thought it nonsense… yet it truly was the real thing.”
He had never held high hopes. The fakes brought to him claiming to be the sword would have filled more than ten carts.
“Hand it over.”
“You’ve lost your mind. You think I’ll just give it to you because you hold out your hand?”
“Tell me… what you desire. If you wish me to stand at your side and destroy the Demon God Cult, I shall. If you order me to slaughter every remaining Blood Cultist, I will gladly obey. Only give me that sword…”
“Wow… this is really something else…”
Do-ha’s mouth fell open at the Blood Demon’s words. How could a person sink so low? Moments ago he had spouted philosophy; now greed had blinded him into making the worst possible judgment.
“Well, even if your mind were clear I was going to give you the sword anyway.”
Whoosh.
“?”
Thud.
Do-ha casually tossed the sword; the Blood Demon caught the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword with a blank expression.
What…?
He asked for it and it was simply given? Without demanding anything, just handed over so easily?
Shiiing.
“It is genuine, right?”
“…You… what in the world…”
The Blood Demon drew the blade and reeled in shock. He had half expected a fake, yet the moment it left the scabbard he knew. The sharp killing intent, the murderous aura, and above all the densest blood qi. Even if he were not the Blood Demon, he would have recognized it at once.
“Now that you’ve got the sword, does that complete your Blood Demon Divine Art?”
“Don’t tell me… you wanted to confirm it?”
“I’m curious what a completed Blood Demon Divine Art looks like.”
“Keuk… Kuhahahaha! Absolute One Baek Do-ha. I truly like you!”
KRAAAAAAASH!
The Blood Demon unleashed his power; earth within a two-hundred-meter radius flipped over, sand grains scattering in every direction. Simply gripping the sword had transformed his aura so completely. Watching him, Do-ha smiled.
“Hey, Blood Demon.”
“?”
“How does it feel now that it’s changed?”
“Need I even say?! Kuhahaha!”
“That so?”
Crack-crack.
Whoosh!
Do-ha unfolded the Lightning Spirit Step and closed the distance.
Wooooong!
Baek-bo Myeol-hwang Gong, Fourth Step: Extreme Demon Thunder Fist.
Crack-crack-crack!
The exact same attack as the first.
“You said it felt good once it changed, right?”
“?”
BOOOOOOM!
For the first time a proper impact landed. The Blood Demon’s neck snapped backward and he was hurled far away.
“I’ve used that sword myself, so I know. It’s the complete opposite of your Blood Demon Divine Art.”
Possessing the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword would complete the Blood Demon Divine Art? Where had he heard such ridiculous nonsense? That demonic blade was the absolute counter to the Blood Demon’s martial art. The moment he gripped it, every one of the Blood Demon’s special traits vanished.
“Well… after centuries of failing to find the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword, wild rumors and fantasies were bound to spread.”
Do-ha shook his head and walked toward the Blood Demon.