Chapter 277
Chapter 277
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 277
>Chapter Title: Thunder Emperor Cheon Ji-ah
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In Delrock, she stood out in every way.
Her rank of 7th already spoke volumes, but her presence went beyond that.
She was the only martial artist among the single-digit rankers.
-Who plays a trash class like martial artist?
-Late-game class? Please. Isn't it just a one-trick Thunder Dragon Descent? What happens when Thunder Dragon falls off?
-It's mediocre even at mid-range DPS, can't tank, only fun for solo play—what good is that?
A job unlucky enough to be outclassed by other classes in every role.
A one-trick Thunder Dragon Descent job that boasted pathetic performance once that skill fell off.
A job whose only merit was "Isn't the romance awesome?"
That was the perception of martial artists.
Until the Thunder Emperor appeared.
"The woman who changed martial artists' image. The first to master Thunder Dragon Descent to its limits."
The martial artist's sole advantage amid its unreasonable drawbacks—speed.
She exploited it to the extreme, pressuring foes with speed literally like lightning, becoming the Thunder Dragon incarnate.
At least in terms of speed, she had no equal in Delrock.
She dominated the battlefield with control so precise it seemed impossible at that speed, a disaster unto herself.
"If the formation breaks, it breaks. If it's aggro, it's aggro. If it's DPS, it's DPS."
From a job that couldn't do anything properly, she transformed it into an all-purpose class that handled every role.
Perfectly reborn, she was a woman more suited to war than anyone, earning the moniker Incarnation of the Battlefield—and universal dread.
The polar opposite of Ast, who bet everything on one shot.
"Meeting her as an enemy was a real pain."
But that was back when she was the Thunder Emperor.
When Delrock shut down and God of Ose launched, she was no longer the Thunder Emperor.
She returned as the Heavenly Demon, wielder solely of the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
A unique Mythic God's job, but her strength lay in speed.
"Honestly, I thought she couldn't match her old self..."
No matter the job, she had handled Thunder Dragon Descent better than anyone, so I figured she'd be weaker.
Clang! Boom!
"That crazy bitch...!"
"Block her! How can't you block one person!"
"Does that bitch have eyes in the back of her head or what? Why doesn't she ever get hit even on ambushes?"
"What kind of speed is that! Does that even make sense?"
Ast smirked as he watched the Heavenly Demon leap into the center and rampage wildly.
"My mistake."
Weaker than her Thunder Emperor days?
If Delrock's rankers saw this, they'd never spout such nonsense.
Compared to her Thunder Emperor era, she wasn't inferior...
No, she was even stronger.
Crunch—crack!
Even hordes of Beyond Heaven guild members couldn't handle her alone.
She showed no hesitation against the waves crashing in.
She simply advanced with dignified poise.
Thud.
Each time, two or three guild members collapsed like scarecrows, their solar plexuses and faces pierced.
"Kill her!"
"Uwaaaah!"
Even when swarmed from all sides, it was the same.
She lowered her stance and thrust her fist at the swords flying in to blind her vision, and blood fountains erupted.
The guild members watching from right behind paled.
"M-Monster!"
"Is that a martial artist? How is that a fist—it's a sword!"
"The hand blade."
Her body itself was a weapon.
Her hand blade was sharp as a keen sword, her fist heavy as a blunt weapon, her kick fierce as a spear.
"Her speed isn't quite what it was... but it's definitely fast. Did she invest everything in speed?"
That speed paired with such precision and near-omnipotent fist techniques.
Her base attack power seemed low from prioritizing speed, but when the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon fully activated, it unleashed damage surpassing her deficits.
She'd maximized her strengths while achieving balance.
[Unique ability 'Heavenly Demon' confirmed.]
[Signature skill Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon activated.]
[Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon realm confirmed at 7 Stars.]
[7-Star Heavenly Demon Divine Fist activated.]
Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
The signature skill usable only by those who gained the Mythic God Arrogant Overlord's unique ability, Heavenly Demon.
"Fighting her now, I'm not sure it'd end in a draw like before."
The Heavenly Demon Divine Fist executed with a 7-Star divine art was that destructive.
"Damn it, what are the White Horse Troops doing! Just trample her flat!"
"We're already heading there, you punk!"
"Cavalry enters first, we link up with the holy knights."
Whinny—!
Realizing close combat was hopeless, they switched to cavalry tactics and fell back.
No matter how strong, she wouldn't fist-fight a massive wave of white horse-mounted knights charging in.
They aimed to buy time and crush her with the holy knights.
"How laughable. Every single thought of yours is so foolish and petty..."
"Shut up. Winner takes all."
"You're just scared, that's why you're talking big. Let's see if your mouth survives after tasting defeat."
"Taste defeat? Who?"
But in that moment.
The Heavenly Demon stepped forward with a chilling smile.
The ground compressed beneath her.
Step, step.
As if gravity had multiplied several times.
Each step crushed with overwhelming aura, shaking the earth.
[Heavenly Demon Dominion Step activated.]
[Executing the footwork that reigns over all.]
A destructive footwork utterly different from ordinary steps.
This, meant to lord over all, was barely even called footwork.
Despite its grandiose name, it lacked evasion techniques or flashy maneuvers.
[Realm higher than opponent.]
[Damage dealt exceeds damage received.]
[Heavenly Demon Dominion Step succeeds.]
[Next form of Heavenly Demon Dominion Step available.]
A technique existing solely to advance and crush with overwhelming momentum.
Fail and die; succeed and earn qualification—an arrogantly ruthless footwork.
Thus, the most threatening of all.
[Second form: Coiling Dragon Piercing Fist activated.]
[Shoot forward in a straight line at high speed, ignoring 80% of defense with a single strike.]
[Cannot adjust direction.]
[On successfully piercing target's body, unleash explosive shockwave from behind proportional to pierce size.]
Ta-at!
She shot like a bullet, her figure blurring.
When she reappeared, her fist met the lead white horse's head.
Kwaaang!!
[Successfully pierced target's body, applying shockwave.]
[Those swept by shockwave suffer unavoidable knockback and gain mark.]
[While marked, damage taken increases by 50%, movement speed decreases by 50%.]
A form combining burst damage and wide-area debuff.
No form suited the moment better.
Whinny—
"Uwaaak!"
"I-It's falling!"
The fiercely charging White Horse Troops lost balance from the unavoidable knockback, toppling like dominoes.
Dozens of cavalry instantly neutered.
Slash-slash-slash—
Shadows sprang out as if waiting, tearing through the fallen riders.
They were the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's demonic cultists.
Even with swords thrust at them, they charged headlong, necks first—beasts in human form.
"Damn it, block them! We can't lose ground here!"
"Tie down the Ten Star Knight Order! That's our role!"
"Yes!!"
"You damned...!!"
Holy knights rushed in desperately, but the tide had already turned.
Unlike the start when they were tied down, now the Ten Star Knight Order was pinned by Babylon, offering no real aid.
Ta-at, kwang!!!
Ast leaped ferociously, swinging the Great Dragon Slayer's mace.
The fallen riders, not even regaining balance, were swept by another shockwave, fluttering like paper.
"Wow, first time seeing you fight up close... Kkukku that solo army punk would be jealous."
"The Empress, you mean."
The Heavenly Demon smirked as Ast landed beside her and quipped.
"The Heavenly Demon must reign supreme over all. Without lording over someone, its power doesn't manifest."
"...? Doesn't that mean you need a faction?"
"Indeed."
Then just say it straight—why twist words like that.
Ast clicked his tongue at her needless gravitas but understood.
"That guy's job for sure."
Imagining the one-man army Kkukku building a faction was impossible.
Then, a shocked voice from the side.
"Th-This can't be... How...?"
"Hm? Oh, that girl's here too."
It was Xiao.
She gaped, utterly unable to accept it.
"Just dozens of them. We have way more forces—why are we losing?"
Two masters?
Even accounting for that, getting pushed this hard made no sense.
Their forces overwhelmingly outnumbered, with the Ten Star Knight Order to boot. The Heavenly Demon brought barely dozens.
Losing with nearly double the troops left one possibility.
'...Am I this much weaker than those guys?'
Overwhelmingly so.
Crunch.
Xiao's eyes trembled.
Deep down, she knew.
Hated to admit it even on death's door, but purely in combat prowess, she was far below Ast.
No, even without Ast, she was weak among the Top 10 Guilds.
'...But this is too much.'
Still, she hadn't thought the gap this wide.
Guts twisting, she whisper-bombed Damian, but no reply.
Leon, Arthur—same.
'No, why no responses! What the hell are you doing!'
It made no sense.
Sure, their side had the Heavenly Demon intervening, but theirs had three masters—why no word from anyone!
They should've wrapped up and sent support by now.
'Did they abandon me? No, impossible. Ditching me now hurts them too?'
Then what the hell.
Are they losing? To just Kaiser and the Empress?
Ignorance of the battlefield drove her mad.
As her anxiety peaked, fist clenched tight—
"Not the time to space out."
"She's lost the will to fight. Best to end it swiftly."
"...Ast."
Ast and the Heavenly Demon loomed right before her.
Behind them, her shadow minions and Babylon guild members.
Swoosh.
Glancing back, no one.
Some due to all forces shifting there, but...
'Put another way, no guild members that loyal.'
Even with their masters facing two Top 10 Guild masters, they didn't care.
Her clenched fist loosened in futility.
'...It's over.'
Everything was done.
This mess meant war had begun.
Defeat in war wasn't mere loss—it was the abyss.
All her hard-won position vanishing into nothing.
"Aah..."
As Xiao squeezed her eyes shut—
Ding—
A faint alert in the pitch-black world mirroring her future.
Not a whisper reply.
"Hm?"
"Huh?"
Messages appeared before Ast and the Heavenly Demon too.
"...What is this."
"Hah, what the hell. What just popped up?"
Their rattled voices made Xiao cautiously open her eyes.
Her eyes bulged.
'This is...!?'
A message utterly unexpected.