Chapter 276: Heavenly Demonic Divine Art (2)
When the Blood Demon Goddess, Ma Seoyeon, was born, the Central Plains had yet to be unified, and the land was engulfed in chaos.
It was a time when anyone with even a little power played the part of a warlord, oppressing the common people.
The streets overflowed with beggars, and parents abandoning their children out of sheer poverty was not considered unusual.
Above all, born with the Heaven-Slaying Star, she had been abandoned at birth by her parents, who felt a sense of dread at her distinctively red eyes.
Had an old retired courtesan not taken pity on her and taken her in, Ma Seoyeon would have starved to death on the streets before ever knowing the light of the world.
However, though she barely saw the light of day, she had to commit all sorts of deeds just to survive.
Her earliest memory was being beaten to the brink of death after getting caught stealing dumplings from a street stall.
“Are you alright?”
The one who saved her back then was the young Heavenly Demon Founder and his First Disciple, Yoo Jeon.
“You little bastards, what do you think you’re—ugh! Aaaaargh!”
The stall owner, who had dared to lay hands on Yoo Jeon, was swiftly thrown to the ground with his arm twisted.
The Heavenly Demon Founder gently parted Ma Seoyeon’s eyelids with his fingers and sighed.
“Heaven-Slaying Star… That makes the third one.”
Yoo Jeon, cradling the battered and bloodied young Ma Seoyeon in his arms, asked the Heavenly Demon Founder.
“Is this… what you spoke of before, Master?”
“Yes. With the times in chaos, Heaven must be sending seeds of evil into the world with ease.”
The lands, once divided into a dozen or so states, were beginning to show signs of reunification.
But that only signaled the end of an era of war, and naturally, the suffering of the common people had reached its peak over the long years.
“Still, unlike the previous two, this one is just a child, is she not?”
“Hmmm…”
Indeed, the two previous Heaven-Slaying Stars had both lost their lives at the hands of the Heavenly Demon Founder.
Of course, they had committed enough evil to deserve that end.
The Heavenly Demon Founder, together with his disciple, had been wandering the world, eradicating such seeds of evil wherever they appeared.
Originally, this Heaven-Slaying Star should have been eliminated early on as well.
“The only crime this child has committed is stealing food. That is a crime that can be settled with compensation. There is no need to take her life…”
Yoo Jeon held Ma Seoyeon tightly with sorrowful eyes.
“……”
After silently looking back and forth between Yoo Jeon and Ma Seoyeon for a while, the Heavenly Demon Founder let out a deep sigh.
“Very well. It’s not such a bad thing to have a new youngest disciple.”
He had already taken in six disciples.
One more would not make much of a difference.
“However, if this child ever loses control in the future, you and Gwanchun must be the ones to stop her. Only you and Gwanchun, with his Immovable Body, can stop the rampage of a Heaven-Slaying Star without suffering great injury.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“Let’s go.”
The Heavenly Demon Founder paid the retired courtesan an appropriate price and took Ma Seoyeon in.
Humans often do not remember things from when they were very young.
But when a moment leaves a powerful impression, it tends to be remembered for a lifetime.
For Ma Seoyeon, this was that moment, and the image of Yoo Jeon holding her had remained engraved in her heart for the rest of her life.
***
It was coming.
A wave of sword qi unleashed through the Blood Demon Dragon Heaven Sword Art that even the Heaven and Earth Formation could not completely block.
‘That’s just the first stage?’
If that was the case, then the Heaven-Slaying Star had a second and even a third stage as well.
Just looking at her current presence, she already seemed to surpass the Sword Demon. It was hard to imagine how monstrous she would become if she went beyond this stage.
‘Damn it, are all the Six Great Demonic Clans made up of monsters like this?!’
But that didn’t mean I planned on sitting idly by.
To counter that seemingly infinite power, I either had to respond with the same kind of infinity…
Or withstand it with absolute defense, something that wouldn’t crack even after a thousand years.
Heavenly Demonic Asura Divine Art
Asura Blood Body
Red steam began to pour out from all the pores of my body.
“Oh?”
A glint of intrigue appeared in Ma Seoyeon’s eyes.
At that moment, I threw myself headlong into the blood-colored wave.
Kuwaaaang!
A massive shockwave exploded in all directions.
The essence of the wave Ma Seoyeon had unleashed was, at its core, sword qi.
It was fundamentally different from ordinary waves in terms of resistance.
‘Tch! This is tougher than I thought!’
But I pushed forward, ignoring my wounds.
This was a place where death did not exist.
I could endure any amount of pain!
Kwaang!
At last, I managed to break through Ma Seoyeon’s wave with my Asura form.
Just as I attempted to switch to the offensive after breaking through the wave…
I locked eyes with Ma Seoyeon, who was grinning eerily.
“You used your head well. But you see…”
Swoosh!
Ma Seoyeon pointed her sword at me.
“I racked my brain for so long because of that damn Senior Brother Jin, who used to charge in like a brainless brute, ignoring everything.”
Blood Demon Dragon Heaven Sword Art
Dragon Coil Blood Wave
“Even if you use a similar tactic, you’re not Senior Brother Jin.”
The surrounding waves instantly transformed into a massive vortex, binding my movements.
‘This is insane!’
Even with the Asura form, I couldn’t break free!
Unless one had reached the legendary realm of the Natural Sword, how could anyone freely control such massive, shaped energy?!
“Alright, let’s start by killing you once.”
Until now, Ma Seoyeon had wielded her sword with one hand, but suddenly she gripped the hilt with both hands and took a firm stance.
With an expression entirely different from the playful one she had worn before, she looked up at me.
In that instant.
Something entirely different, mixed with a hint of silver, began to gather on her sword.
Demonic Sword Qi
Temporal Strike Flash
Huh?
It was just for a fleeting moment, but I definitely felt it.
The sword qi that had just flowed from her blade wasn’t from the Blood Demon Dragon Heaven Sword Art.
The moment I realized that…
My head flew clean off.
***
My blurred vision flickered in and out.
As my consciousness began to settle, I kept replaying the final strike Ma Seoyeon had unleashed.
‘What was that just now?’
Though it was only for the briefest instant, I had sensed a transcendence in Ma Seoyeon’s sword that didn’t belong to this world.
Its essence felt similar to the flames of karmic retribution that the Venerable Buddha had once revealed for just a moment.
But I couldn’t afford to think too deeply about it.
Perhaps it was the aftershock of being beheaded, but my consciousness kept cutting out in disjointed snaps.
By the time I came to my senses, a considerable amount of time had passed.
“You’re awake?”
“…!”
Barely opening my eyes, I saw Ma Seoyeon sitting in front of a campfire.
Rubbing my forehead, I sat up.
Fortunately, my head was still attached.
“So there’s night here too.”
“Of course. I’ve seen it so often it’s gotten boring, but it’s still quite beautiful. Almost as much as Daesan.”
“……”
Crackle! Crackle!
For a while, the only sounds that filled the silence were the crackling of burning firewood.
“I have a question.”
“Go ahead.”
“After spending a thousand years here, don’t you get bored?”
Normally, thought-forms shouldn’t experience feelings like boredom.
But these beings were nothing like ordinary thought-forms.
Thought-forms were essentially highly advanced artificial intelligences that existed only to fulfill their purpose. Yet these beings clearly expressed emotions like joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure.
“Not at all.”
Ma Seoyeon chuckled softly as she tossed more wood into the fire.
“In fact, I actually like how things are now. Honestly, I could live like this for not just a thousand years, but ten thousand.”
“…!”
“Did you know? Our relationships as fellow disciples weren’t exactly good to begin with.”
I noticed the faint hint of regret in her eyes.
“Second Senior Brother, Pa Senior Brother, was always jealous of First Senior Brother. And Hwan Senior Brother, who could have mediated things, was often away dealing with external problems.”
That cheerful Pa Gooncheong had such a side?
“Jin Senior Brother was so obsessed with physical training that he barely socialized with us. And Sa Senior Brother was always wandering outside, claiming it was for fundraising. Then he got into trouble with another man’s woman.”
That “man” turned out to be none other than the emperor of the Northern Qi, a nation that once rivaled the other two great powers of the time.
…No matter how much of a Gold Demon he was, it was a miracle he survived that.
“……”
“As for So Senior Brother… well, you can see for yourself.”
“That… does seem obvious.”
From the way he wrapped his entire body in something and smiled eerily, there wasn’t a hint of sociability about him.
“As for me, the youngest… hmm…”
Ma Seoyeon hesitated for a moment, then blushed and lowered her head.
“Honestly, I was the biggest troublemaker. Yeah, I’ll admit it. That’s the truth.”
“……”
“I caused all sorts of trouble until I overcame the demonic nature of the Heaven-Slaying Star. Though time has softened things, I still remember clearly how the other Senior Brothers used to look at me with nothing but contempt.”
Ma Seoyeon, known as the Blood Demon Goddess, once said to be the strongest among the Six Great Demonic Clans in pure strength.
She must have endured countless insults and scorn on her path to that position.
As if recalling those times, Ma Seoyeon buried her face in her folded knees.
“Only First Senior Brother… from beginning to end… treated me the same, without ever changing.”
Originally, the feelings Ma Seoyeon had for Yoo Jeon were like those of a daughter toward a father.
But as she grew older and went through countless incidents and trials, those feelings had slowly transformed into romantic affection.
After a long moment of embarrassed silence, she suddenly scowled and lifted her head sharply.
“Consider yourself lucky, you brat. If we’d met out there, I never would’ve told you any of this.”
“…There’s one more thing I’m curious about.”
“Damn it, how can you have so many damn questions?”
Though she scrunched her face in irritation, I pressed on regardless.
“Why didn’t you confess to First Senior Brother?”
Her expression froze in an instant.
“This place is a branch of possibility that deviated from the future that was meant to happen. If so, couldn’t you have confessed your feelings to First Senior Brother without any burden here?”
“…How could I do that?”
Her voice trembled faintly with moisture.
“I heard… that I’m the one who killed the woman who was First Senior Brother’s lover.”
“……!!”
I parted my lips slightly at the unexpected truth from the past.
“First Senior Brother told me not to worry about it, that it wouldn’t happen to us here… but…”
I understood.
How could anyone not worry about something like that?
Especially since the outcome had driven Yoo Jeon to declare rebellion against the Heavenly Demon Founder, and it had irreparably destroyed his relationships with the other Senior Brothers.
Knowing that, even I wouldn’t have been able to confess my feelings so easily if I were Ma Seoyeon.
“……”
“……”
I was left speechless for a while.
Ma Seoyeon also sat in silence, looking dejected.
Just when I started to feel guilty for ruining the mood…
As if trying to forcibly change the atmosphere, Ma Seoyeon shifted the topic.
“Alright, enough of the depressing talk. I’ll tell you anything else you’re curious about after you pass my test.”
“…Understood.”
“Do you have any idea why your head got cut off at the end?”
“I’m not entirely sure.”
I was certain I had maintained the Asura Form until the very end.
Among the three stages of the Asura Form—Blood Body (血身), Diamond Body (金剛身), and Demonic Heavenly Body (魔天身)—granted, I had only reached the first stage.
Even so, not even a Mind Sword user should have gone down so easily.
“I once fought an expert who had set foot in a realm comparable to the Supreme Demon Realm.”
“You mean the Divine Ascension Realm. There were only a couple of such experts even in my time. You’re lucky you survived.”
“I was very fortunate.”
Of course, the Venerable Buddha hadn’t truly reached that realm. He had only imitated it for a brief moment.
“From your sword earlier, I felt the same transcendence I felt from that master’s strike back then.”
To be honest, it didn’t make any sense.
While the current Ma Seoyeon was certainly destined to be known as the Blood Demon Goddess in the future…
It was clear that she and the other senior brothers had been separated before they reached the peak of their martial paths.
“You’re right. That actually makes it easier to explain.”
Hwa-reuk!
A crimson Blood Demon Qi flared in her hand as if burning.
I had experienced the energy of the Heaven-Slaying Star many times before.
But then…
Suddenly, her Blood Demon Qi began to purify itself, the red fading away, transforming into a dazzling silver flame!
“…!”
“The Heaven-Slaying Star is, literally, the power of a star that kills the heavens. But if you completely surpass its demonic nature (超魔), you can handle nothing but the pure power of the star itself.”
Originally, this was power she couldn’t fully control in her current state.
But like the Venerable Buddha, if she pushed the Heaven-Slaying Star’s power to its extreme limit, she could just barely graze its essence.
“After being separated from my true body, I could no longer progress in martial realms, but refining this power into a technique was just a matter of time.”
After all, what she had in abundance after being separated from her original body was time.
“With the help of Master and our senior brothers, I was able to complete it. I call this the Demonic Sword.”
Could it be… that the ‘Yoo’ from Yoo Jeon and the ‘Ma’ from Ma Seoyeon were combined to name it?
“During this trial, I’ll teach it to you.”
Ma Seoyeon spoke with a serious expression.
“If you can master it properly, it will give your Heaven-Breaking Destruction a whole new potential.”