Chapter 254: Even If You Try to Tear Us Apart (1)
"Uratchaaa!"
-KUOOOOO!
A massive blade clashed against an even more massive horn.
KWA-GWANG-GWANG!
The Saber King's slash split the horn, which was the size of a human, cleanly in half.
Without stopping there, the Saber King's blade went on to cleave straight through the entire body of the awakened beast, which resembled a rhinoceros.
THUD!
Landing in front of the fallen awakened beast, the Saber King took a moment to catch his breath.
"Hoo! Damn thing should’ve just died instead of flailing around pointlessly."
Each of these monsters was several times larger than a human.
Even the Saber King of the martial world had to put in a considerable amount of effort to deal with them.
Wang Cheongeol, who had been fighting nearby, gave a quiet warning.
"Saber King, you need to fight more efficiently. You're using too much strength."
Ptoo!
The Saber King spat lightly and responded.
"I know. But there's no way it should be this hard to take down a mere beast. These bastards were brought here with the intent of wearing us down from the start. They're different from the ones we fought over the past five days."
In fact, most of those who had underestimated these creatures during the initial clash were already dead.
Their raw attack power was on par with an average Master Level martial artist.
But unless one decapitated them in a single strike, they would regenerate from almost any wound in the blink of an eye—a monstrous level of recovery.
And even making a wound wasn't easy unless the attack contained exceptional sword qi.
‘Even a peak-level expert wouldn’t be able to deal with them easily.’
The Saber King thought so inwardly.
"We're barely holding on because the Young Cult Leader has been adjusting our positions in real time. But if this continues, we won’t last."
"Saber King. That is…"
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, Wang Cheongeol's expression turned grave.
"It’s already been one hour since we last received instructions from the Young Cult Leader."
“…What?”
Until now, Cheon Yura's commands had never gone longer than half an hour at most.
They had all been so caught up in the fighting that they hadn’t noticed.
If the commands had suddenly stopped, there was only one reason.
"Something must’ve happened to the Young Cult Leader’s safety."
FLASH!
Cheon Yura’s sword slashed a dark crimson line through the air.
The moment she heard the name "Grand Heavenly Lord," she had acted on instinct.
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA!
-KRAAAAH!
The crimson sword strike slammed into the ground, and several of the charging awakened beasts were wounded and screamed in pain from the impact.
However, nothing happened to the young man who had introduced himself as the Grand Heavenly Lord.
"A bit hot-tempered, aren’t you?"
"……."
"Apologies, but I’m a bit special. Normal sword qi attacks won’t leave a scratch on me."
"Is that so? Then how about this?"
Extending her sword horizontally, she focused her consciousness.
The crimson demonic energy covering the blade weakened, and then "something" began to flow along the sword’s body.
As the Grand Heavenly Lord realized that it was Willpower Qi, his expression subtly stiffened.
Myeongra Sword (明羅劍)
Cheon Yura unleashed her strongest secret technique, the Myeongra Sword, directly at the Grand Heavenly Lord.
He looked at the strike aimed at his heart with satisfaction.
"A Heart Sword… As expected, I like it."
Just as the Myeongra Sword was about to pierce the Grand Heavenly Lord’s heart—
His figure crumbled like a mirage.
“…What!?”
KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA!
Cheon Yura’s attack sliced clean through where his heart should’ve been and instead harmlessly split open the earth.
Her eyes narrowed.
"…An illusion technique?"
"Ah, not quite. I just dodged it."
The Grand Heavenly Lord reappeared in front of her and spoke again.
"A Heart Sword capable of damaging the spiritual veins isn’t something even I want to face directly. It’d be like burning through my savings."
"……."
"But tell me, are you sure this is okay? If you waste time fighting me, you may have to give up your life for real."
Cheon Yura let out a snort.
"Don’t make me laugh. You expect me to believe you right now?"
Believe the words of the one who led the group responsible for all this?
Her open distrust made the Grand Heavenly Lord click his tongue.
"On my honor, I swear I had nothing to do with this incident. It’s nothing more than Hwan Pyeong throwing a tantrum after squandering his foundation."
"And do you have any proof that you didn’t guide him to that tantrum?"
"Hmm."
The Grand Heavenly Lord shrugged at her unyielding stance.
"Well then, I suppose I’ll just stand by and watch your subordinates die. I had offered you my goodwill, but it’s a shame you dismissed it."
"…Kuh!"
She clenched her teeth at his blunt remark.
Whether these were failed experiments or not, if she didn’t withdraw now, she couldn’t guarantee the safety of her subordinates.
The inevitable conclusion of this situation would be mutual destruction.
‘But…’
Even though the right path was clear, she couldn’t make the decision so easily.
There was someone on the opposite side—someone unknown to her, whom the Grand Heavenly Lord had deliberately not accounted for.
‘If I retreat in the direction he suggested, I can’t guarantee the survival of whoever is still fighting over there.’
That massive shockwave she saw earlier with the naked eye.
And since then, she could still sense intermittent clashes of qi in the distance—clearly a battle between peak-level martial artists.
‘What if the one fighting there is Jin Yeomyung?’
Her choice might become a lifelong regret.
She didn’t even want to entertain that possibility.
It was then—
"Young Cult Leader!"
"…You are?"
The young man with a sleek and polished look approached her—no matter how many times she saw him, he looked the same.
He was one of Jin Yeomyung’s attendants, entrusted as a mid-level contact.
"Gu Chil, is that you?"
"Yes, Young Cult Leader."
With a slightly clouded expression, Gu Chil knelt before her.
"I bring a message from the Young Master."
"…!!"
Her emotions surged uncontrollably.
"He says the southwestern passage is open, and advises you to retreat that way—"
"What is Jin Yeomyung doing right now?!"
Cheon Yura cut off Gu Chil mid-sentence.
His safety was far more important than any message.
"Th-that is…"
"You can't even say it right now?!"
Flustered by her rising anger, Gu Chil hurriedly opened his mouth.
"He's currently fighting the Lord of the Evil Path Castle, the Conqueror King, who claims to command the Third Heavenly Lord Forces of the Heaven-Defying Society."
"…!"
SWISH!
Her expression contorted like that of a vengeful ghost.
But even at her twisted look, the Grand Heavenly Lord remained utterly composed.
"Oh? That Hwan Pyeong fellow. I didn’t expect him to drag out that reclusive bastard as well. Impressive maneuvering."
"And you still claim you’re not the mastermind behind this?"
"That's right. I’ve said it repeatedly—I’m a laissez-faire type. Unless it’s something truly special, I try not to intervene before the time is right."
She still couldn't see his face, hidden behind some artificial darkness.
But Cheon Yura felt, somehow, that he was smiling.
"And right now happens to be one of those special cases—where your life is in danger."
Her frown deepened at the Grand Heavenly Lord’s words.
"You, worried about my life?"
"At least for now, yes. Well, it seems our conversation isn’t getting us anywhere. I’ll exercise my right to remain silent from here on out."
"……."
He gave a casual shrug and then really did shut his mouth.
She wanted nothing more than to beat him into talking, but how could she deal with someone who wasn’t even fazed by her Myeongra Sword?
‘I…’
Clench.
Cheon Yura tightened her fist.
‘What should I do?’
Should she retreat toward the escape path, as both Jin Yeomyung and the Grand Heavenly Lord suggested?
Or should she ignore everything and go save Jin Yeomyung?
As she struggled with her choice, Gu Chil cautiously spoke up.
"Young Cult Leader."
"What is it?"
"Th-the Young Master also said…"
"……."
After hearing what Gu Chil had to say, Cheon Yura finally made up her mind.
***
‘What just happened?’
It took me a few seconds to realize I had been thrown into a riverside embankment.
I remembered trying to deflect Conqueror King’s strike.
But everything after that was a blank.
‘Did I black out for a second…?’
The moment my mind cleared, a pain beyond words radiated from my right arm.
‘Ghhhaaa…!’
Focusing my senses, I found my muscles torn and bones shattered.
Not just my arm—my whole body’s nervous system was screaming.
‘D-damn it!’
The pain spread throughout my body, making my lips tremble uncontrollably.
Should I at least be thankful I was still conscious enough to feel the pain?
I hastily began circulating Tyrant Asura King Divine Art to suppress it.
‘For external injuries, this is more effective than Hyuncheon Divine Art.’
The Jin Clan’s internal art, which had ties to external body training, was enhanced by its demonic nature, making it exceptional for regeneration and recovery.
Once I calmed the pain down to some extent—
I finished recovering underwater and made up my mind.
‘Now’s not the time to hold anything back. Even though it was just one strike, that guy’s strength isn’t at the level of the Five Kings of the Central Plains.’
Normally, his base power might be comparable to the Five Kings.
But the moment he drew upon the awakened beast, his strength leapt at least two stages.
It was an unmistakable instinct.
‘I didn’t want to use this again… but I have no choice.’
Without hesitation, I jabbed my thumb into the area near my heart.
TSUTSUTSU!
A previously sealed "passage" reopened.
From my heart, a torrent of energy began to roar and surge.
The equilibrium I had stabilized through hellish training with the Heavenly Demon Founder distorted again in an instant.
The second boon from my past life—Vitality—was originally the divine power of a goddess from my first life.
The divine power I’d barely refined into my own strength through training with the Founder—if I opened the gate again, there was no guarantee what might happen.
But—
SPLASH!
Gam Unbi looked at me, now emerging from the water, and grinned.
"Oh ho, felt like I landed a good hit, but you’re sturdier than I thought?"
"You damn bastard scammer…"
Climbing out from the riverside, I ground my teeth and glared at Gam Unbi.
"You say you didn’t use the awakened beast? Maybe you didn’t change forms, but you were definitely drawing strength from it."
"Hohoho, you noticed?"
Gam Unbi scratched his cheek sheepishly, looking a bit bashful.
It was similar—but not the same—as what the disciples of the Wudang Sect had shown.
He was definitely…
"Sorry about that. But it can’t be helped. The thicker the blood, the harder it is to control."
So it was because he couldn’t control the power.
"I was born with the thickest blood among the current generation of the Third Heavenly Lord. Calming that blood consciously is a nightmare."
As expected, with the exception of the Grand Heavenly Lord or my Master, Gam Unbi—one of the Ten Heavenly Lord Forces—must have inherited the most potent bloodline from the mythic era.
That statement only solidified my resolve.
"As I thought, there’s no way I’m letting you anywhere near Yura."
As Gam Unbi and I glared at each other, Gu Chil tossed me the sword strapped to his back.
"Young Master, use this."
"…This is."
"In terms of pure durability, it's better than the one you were using."
The sword Gu Chil handed me was the Demonic Sould First Sword, the standard issue weapon of the Demonic Emperor Ghost Execution Squad.
Though it was standard issue, its quality rivaled that of most treasured swords.
I smirked and accepted the Demonic Sould First Sword.
"Well, the Jade Green Heavenly Net Divine Sword would be better, but this’ll do."
Gu Chil pouted and voiced his complaint.
"…You think weapons of that caliber grow on trees?"
I ignored his grumbling.
"Gu Chil, while I’m fighting, go to Yura and deliver this message."
Flinch.
"What message?"
"Tell her the southwestern passage is open and she should retreat that way."
"……!"
It was something I’d managed to confirm in the instant I was sent flying from Gam Unbi’s strike.
Whether it was a trap or not, that path was the only viable escape route right now.
"If Yura hesitates to choose, tell her this as well: I’ll definitely come back, so trust me."
Gu Chil responded with a very reluctant expression.
"That's on the same level as something you'd hear in a pulp novel—you know, like ‘If I make it back alive from this battlefield, I’ll propose to her.’"
I didn’t really know why such lines were common in pulp stories.
But I grinned and slung the Demonic Sould First Sword over my shoulder.
"That actually sounds pretty good. If I make it back alive, I’ll go propose to her."
Gu Chil’s expression contorted even further.
"No, see, when someone says that, they usually die!"
"I’m not going to die. So go tell her."
I waved a hand toward Gu Chil.
"Tell her to trust me and escape, because I’m going to propose in grand style once I return to the Ten Thousand Mountain."
"……."
Gu Chil glared at me briefly before sighing.
"Come back quick, or else… if you die, I’ll seriously become a wandering ghost of the nine heavens and hunt you down."
"With your nickname, that doesn’t even sound like a joke. So don’t worry—I believe you."
Gu Chil pursed his lips for a moment, hesitating as if unsure what to say.
But soon enough, it seemed he had made up his mind, and he quickly withdrew from the battlefield.
After confirming that Gu Chil’s presence was growing distant, I turned my gaze to Gam Unbi.
"Unintentionally delayed things for a moment. I hope you’ll overlook it."
"……."
But then—
"…‘I won’t die,’ huh?"
For some reason, Gam Unbi, who I thought would charge at me again with bravado, suddenly wore a strange expression.
"While you two were whispering over there, I received an oracle from the Grand Heavenly Lord."
"……!"
From the Grand Heavenly Lord?
"The plan of the Heavenly Generals to kill the Young Cult Leader of the Demonic Cult has been completely scrapped. We're to let the currently deployed agents handle the pursuit, and the rest of us are to withdraw."
He said that? The Grand Heavenly Lord?
"Instead…"
That Cheon Yura’s safety was now ensured was certainly good news.
And yet—
Why did it feel like the reaper’s scythe had now turned toward me?
"All forces of the Heaven-Defying Society gathered here are to concentrate their strength."
That ominous feeling—
Became reality with his next words.
"The one who poses the greatest threat to his plan—Demonic Heaven Dragon Jin Yeomyung—must be killed, no matter what."
Gam Unbi slowly shook his head, wearing a slightly regretful expression.
"Sorry, but you’re going to die here. No matter what."