〈 Heavenly Demon (4) 〉
A sword filled with unprecedented power tore through the space.
Dark red scales blocking the way.
Kagagak! Sigh—!
Immediately after, fresh blood sprayed out along with a loud friction sound like metal grinding.
The armor-like scales were torn off at once, the arms were tattered, and several fingers were cut off and floated in the air.
“Hahaha! “This is hot!”
The injuries were serious enough that an ordinary person would have died of shock at once, but Harley dug deeper, bursting into laughter without even blinking at the sight of her own blood.
As if he had been consumed by madness and completely lost his senses, he had a wild appearance that would not back down no matter what damage he received.
However, the principle of nothingness embedded in each of his gestures showed that he was using his power more efficiently than before.
Quaaaang!
The fingertips, engulfed in dark red energy and flying as if tearing through space, collided head-on once again with the magic sword that seemed to have concentrated all the darkness in the world.
In the atmosphere screaming with shock and the surrounding landscape shattering in its aftermath.
The two beings looked into each other’s eyes and distorted their faces fiercely.
“Ugh! I think it’s about time we reached this point. “You’re such a persistent guy!”
“This is what I’m going to say about this monster… No matter how youkai is, there are limits. What on earth happened to you? “Are you even the legitimate son of the Dragon God?”
“Kahaha! well? “Is it because I ate a lot of healthy foods?”
“There is no way a youkai as big as you can move alone. Can we think of this as the meaning of the entire Geumo Island? “I’m just going to quietly hide like I did until now, but the monsters are urging me to do so.”
The Heavenly Demon touched his demon sword against the nail that flew into his face and let out a low growl.
The corner of Harley’s mouth twitched slightly at the information contained in those confident words.
‘Geumodo?’
His eyes shone sharply.
From what I’m saying, it seems like he’s convinced that he’s a member of that faction…
‘Well, that’s right. As expected, there was a separate organization made up of monsters.’
Doesn’t it seem like it’s a fairly large force that most youkai belong to?
That was information that I had not come across even though I had been in this Ganghwan world for a considerable amount of time.
In addition to collecting data on Earth, they were even conducting a detailed investigation into local forces with the help of Zhuge Shiga, a prominent family among the noble families!
‘No, maybe the Zhuge family knew about it. From what he said, it seems like Geumo-do hasn’t been out in the world for quite some time.’
If you think about it, the data he requested was also about the power that dominates each region.
Because there were so many forces spread across this vast land, it was impossible to look at them all one by one.
‘Okay, thanks to you, I have more to find out. ‘Golden island…’
Regardless of how he would use it in the future, what he would say in the current situation had already been decided.
“Hahaha! Then how long did you think we would just watch you guys? “We will never sit idly by and watch your plots!”
“You are dreaming in vain. No matter how much you struggle now, it is already too late. “Our plan is already going smoothly.”
I just picked up whatever I could, depending on the situation, and I got another piece of information.
I don’t know if it was because he was confident that there was no turning back now, as he said, or because he thought they would already know.
‘…So you’re saying this attack isn’t the only trick of these Demonic Cult bastards?’
It seems that Beoncheonhoeju’s aim against Kang Hwan-gye did not end with ripping off his dragon heart and drying up his energy.
As I was aware of the situation going on like that, I began to feel anxious that if I handled things as calmly as I had done so far, I might end up doing something wrong.
‘…As expected, we need to increase the resources invested in this area.’
When he made that decision internally, he decided to change his future actions and take a more active role.
“Amitabha Buddha—don’t forget that there is also a benefactor of the Heavenly Demon.”
Ambassador Mujin of Shaolin, who had briefly left to collect himself, rejoined and the fight began to become increasingly fierce.
Rumbling—
A heavy yet pure Buddhist energy spread from the body of the monk, who opened the verse and fixed one arm, colliding with the demonic energy of the Heavenly Demon that was encroaching on all directions.
His fighting power was not as good as the first time due to his energy fading and the loss of a part of his body, but thanks to Tank Harley’s tenacious cling to Cheonma despite his body being torn apart, conditions were created for him to concentrate on his attacks more comfortably.
“Every one of them… is annoying.”
As the situation progressed like that, the Heavenly Demon’s brow furrowed even more than before.
In fact, if it had gone according to the original plan, it wouldn’t have dragged on like this.
But after that monster suddenly popped out, didn’t everything start to go wrong?
As he cut Harley’s clinging chest again, he slowly turned his head to look at the situation on the battlefield.
The situation was the same when we ran into an unexpected reef.
“Aaaah—! Come on, you dirty demon cult bastards! This body was Gwangma… Ugh! You son of a bitch! die! “Die!”
“Stop it!”
Kwaddeuk—kwaaaang—!
In the center, a madman was rampaging around, digging into the gap between the demons, as if to vent his anger.
It was a risky act in which one’s head would fall off in an instant, but the problem was that the madman was a warrior on the edge of disaster.
In fact, it was said that in this place, he was an expert who had no one to compete with other than the Heavenly Demon and Demonic Sword Demon Emperor.
Of course, there is no expert of Hwagyeong belonging to Shingyo here, and there is even a secret technique that disrupts the opponent’s internal power, so this may not last long….
“Now is the opportunity! Push on!”
The warriors of the political faction were not easy enough to overlook the gap created by this.
It may be true that they are flowers in a greenhouse that have never experienced actual combat, but those who are here now are elites who have developed their individual capabilities through constant conflict and conflict.
‘This is bad.’
Cheonma calmed down and calmly assessed the situation.
This is Shaolin Temple, the center of Buddhist literature.
Of course, this place was also full of methods and techniques centered on Buddhism.
Until now, we had been able to defeat him to some extent through surprise attacks and thorough preparations, but there was nothing good about staying in a place like this for a long time, which was the polar opposite of the devil.
[“Sir, we have secured the dragon child.”]
Just as his mind was leaning towards one direction, a message came from his subordinate that drove a wedge into him.
[“Currently, the transport unit has overtaken Geumgangbul and left the battlefield to begin transport.”]
In fact, it was said that the biggest purpose of their coming here had been achieved.
He nodded slowly at his subordinate’s message and looked around the audience again.
Ambassador Mujin, a Shinseung, is attacking him while blocking his path, and an unidentified monster who suddenly appears and disrupts his plan.
The Heavenly Demon’s gaze, which passed by him and headed towards the fierce battlefield in the shambles of the Shaolin Temple grounds, was fixed on one of them.
A young man who, based on his advanced knowledge, fights against many demons and plays a part in disrupting their work.
To a person from another world who came from outside this dimension.
“Whoa.”
A small sigh escaped his mouth.
It was the first event held by Protestantism, which had been silent for a long time, and took full action.
So, while securing the dragon child, he planned to step forward himself and wipe out the members of the political faction all at once.
‘After all, not everything goes as expected. It’s a pity right now, but there’s nothing we can do.’
Although I was faced with an unexpected situation and went awry, it was just something I did for the sake of it.
It will take a considerable amount of time to reliably deal with this monster whose vitality is so strangely strong, and in the meantime, the damage to the doctrine will also snowball.
That wasn’t a very good choice considering the future.
“Well, that’s good. “It’s unfortunate, but we’ll end it here for today.”
When he finally made his decision, his voice rang out everywhere, carrying enormous intimidation.
And right after that.
The movements of the demonic cultists who had been rushing forward blindly, disregarding their own lives, stopped at once and formed a line as if they were measuring it with a ruler and began to retreat in an instant.
“Don’t follow me! “Stay in line!”
“Stay alert and collect the wounded!”
The warriors of the political faction, who were perplexed and wondering what kind of trick he was trying to pull, raised their weapons and raised their guard, but the demonic cultists, who retreated all at once, did not even pay attention to them.
A chilling tension hovers over the battlefield, which has suddenly entered a lull.
“Don’t think I came today to say hello. It was quite a bit better than I expected. “Even if it’s rotten, it’s enough to bring up the name of the Murim Alliance.”
The voice of the Heavenly Demon continued, echoing as if shaking the hall.
In the meantime, he cut off one of Harley’s arms that was clinging to him persistently.
“Of course, if there had been no obstruction, it would have ended here… but I guess that could also be considered luck. “I don’t know how long that luck will last.”
His gaze turned to Harley, who was reattaching her severed forearm.
No matter how you looked at him, he was a disgusting guy.
“H- Anyway, you can be happy that you survived now. It remains to be seen how long that will last. Hehehe—.”
The Heavenly Demon, who left meaningful words as if he had something to say until the end, glanced at Hugo one last time and floated higher and higher.
And as if keeping pace with him, the Demonic Cult’s combat troops began to flow away like the ebb and flow.
“…ha.”
“Huu huu…”
But the remaining people could not bear to chase after them even as they watched them retreat.
While the battle was in full swing, I was so excited that I swung my weapon recklessly, but as I became more relaxed, I was able to slowly become aware of my surroundings.
“Keueuuuu—.”
“Save me… Save me…”
“….”
Those who are bleeding and moaning, their comrades who are so weak that they cannot even do anything, and….
They are cold and have already lost their breath. Even the cooling bodies of my acquaintances.
In the end, they survived and defeated their enemies, but no one here considered that a victory.
“Move quickly!”
“The lawmakers?!”
As soon as all the enemies retreated, those who remained hurriedly took care of the casualties and assessed the damage.
Among those who participated in the battle, not a single one was healthy.
The injuries were minor and there were numerous injuries.
…Still, it’s better than losing your life altogether.
However, among the casualties that occurred, there was one person who did not fall under either minor injuries or death due to injuries.
Immediately after a small commotion broke out among the high-ranking officials of the Shaolin Temple, several people began to move busily.
Joo Kang-in, a descendant of the royal family who trusted the Shaolin Temple.
He was the only missing person in this mess.
And there was another person who was not missing, but who suddenly disappeared not long after the fight ended…
“No, where did this bastard go again!”
The cries of former Gwangma Mok In-kwang, who was awkwardly left alone among strangers, rang out in emptiness.
***
A mountainous area quite far away from the Shaolin Temple.
“Tsk.”
The Heavenly Demon standing at the top spat out spit mixed with blood.
He did not allow a single effective hit throughout the fight, but this was the price he paid for excessively using an alien power called ‘sacred power’ that does not exist in this world.
Of course, compared to the effect, this was only very small.
“So you followed me all the way here. “You mean you want to put an end to it.”
The Cheonma stretched out his hand and massaged the back of his neck, then slowly turned his body and looked behind him.
There, a monster that had made him tremble a moment ago was quietly looking at him with his arms crossed.
“Pahaha! yes! “I don’t like ending a fight that has just started in such a bad way!”
“Huh, do you think I backed out because I didn’t have enough strength?”
The Heavenly Demon burst into laughter at that sly response.
If the place where they fought in the first place was not inside the Shaolin Temple, if they did not care about the loss of useful subordinates, they would not have retreated like this.
Shinseung, who was annoying with that tough life, must have definitely cut off the supply and demand.
“You’re visiting my grave. Yes, if you want to die like that. Since this has come to an end, I will at least make sure that you are dealt with.”
The Heavenly Demon drew out his demon sword again.
In fact, the reason he came here was on purpose because he knew the other person was chasing him.
I retreated to reduce my men’s losses, but I couldn’t let that monster go to waste.
“Kahaha! Just wait a moment, friend! “I’m not stupid enough to break down like that and attack myself!”
Cheonma, who was about to leave, paused for a moment at the other person’s calm answer.
Yes, no matter how thoughtless the opponent may seem, if he had a brain, there was no way he would attack him alone like this.
But no matter who else you bring here, there is no one in this world who can compete with you…
Creepy—
Then suddenly.
Something touched his instincts.
A familiar yet unfamiliar energy.
‘…Magi?’
His stiff face slowly turned to the side.
Immediately after, he was able to face that face directly.
A middle-aged man with a cold face, black hair, black eyes, and a short black beard was looking at me with a twisted sneer.
“Keut—you are the devil of heaven.”
“…Who are you?”
That monster was freezing the entire space just by being there.
The corner of the Heavenly Demon’s mouth twitched as if convulsing.
The opponent’s magical energy was clearly something he was familiar with, but…
‘No, no. completely different. That…’
The fur on my entire body stood up along with my instinctive alertness.
It was a change in my body that I had never experienced since reaching the level and inheriting the name of the Heavenly Demon… no, I had only experienced it once.
Yes, this is—.
‘…fear? Fear? ‘Is this me?’
Gritting his teeth, he glared at the monster in front of him.
And I immediately denied the thought that briefly occurred to me.
This is just nervousness due to the sudden appearance of an enemy.
First of all, there is no doubt that the other person is unusual, so isn’t it natural to be cautious and nervous?
“Who am I?… Hmm, okay. “I guess I need an introduction. Hehehe.”
However, the monster just burst out laughing, as if he didn’t care at all about the other person’s reaction.
An eerie sound of laughter resounding quietly in the momentary silence.
His next words were when Cheonma’s patience was almost at its limit.
“I am the ruler of ten thousand demons and—.”
Without realizing it, the Heavenly Demon’s grip on the sword handle began to gradually gain strength.
“It is a despair that spreads fear on earth—.”
His gaze was already fixed on the other person and he was not moving.
“It is the end that declares the end of the world—.”
In a space where even time seemed to be frozen, the corners of the monster’s eyes were bent and the corners of its mouth were twisted.
A laugh that somehow feels odd.
“—I am the devil.”
On that day, the King of Demons descended in front of the man who claimed to be the Demon of Heaven.