Chapter 442: The Overturned Heavens (3)
Heavenly Demon Seal, and the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword.
Why were these in the hands of Wang Garak?
In the end, the reason boiled down to one thing.
“From the beginning… you were a double agent.”
“Kekeke! Indeed, Grand Duke.”
For a fleeting moment, Wang Garak’s expression wavered.
That kind of shift usually appeared in liars, but...
‘Since the result is clear...’
I slowly drew the blade of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword.
Then a very familiar demonic qi transmitted through my palm.
The madness and potential stored within it clearly surpassed the Heavenly Record Immortal Sword.
‘A genuine article, without even a sliver of doubt.’
Wang Garak slightly lowered his head as he saw my reaction.
“Now that I’ve delivered the item, I shall take my leave.”
“…Where are you going?”
It was now confirmed that Wang Garak had always been on our side.
But from here on, shouldn't he act together with us? Why was he moving separately again?
“Lady Mae… has begun the final act for victory.”
If he referred to Lady Mae, he must have meant Gwang Rahi Yeo Jin.
“The final act?”
“Lady Mae heard from the former Cult Leader that there is a medium binding the Grand Heavenly Lord to this world.”
…Could it be?
Wang Garak turned away, self-mocking bitterness tinging his voice.
“Whatever the form, we likely won’t meet again.”
There was a firm resolve in Wang Garak’s words that left me unable to hide my surprise.
“I didn’t know you were someone with such deep loyalty to the Cult.”
I had grasped a general idea of what kind of life Nine Yin Blood Claw Wang Garak had lived.
From what I understood, he wasn’t someone likely to be loyal to the Divine Cult.
Wang Garak let out a quiet laugh.
“Kuhuhu! Of course not. I simply acted in accordance with Lady Mae’s wishes.”
Was that what had caused the initial change in his expression?
“To be honest, you and I, Grand Duke, are fairly similar types of people.”
Similar types, he said...
“Frankly, whether the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult is destroyed or not, it doesn’t matter to you, does it?”
“……”
“So long as the Cult Leader is safe.”
“That’s right.”
I agreed to his words without resistance.
Some around us sent disbelieving gazes, but I had no intention of denying it.
“And if the Cult Leader sets a direction, you will follow it to the end.”
“Of course.”
“And I am the same.”
My eyes met Wang Garak’s.
“She wished to protect the Cult, and so I simply did the same.”
“…Is that so.”
As if further words were unnecessary, Wang Garak turned to leave.
“Has your heart... been rewarded?”
Twitch!
Apparently not expecting such words from me, Wang Garak’s body halted for a moment.
He stayed silent briefly, then answered my question.
“Enough.”
“Was that reward… satisfying?”
“If you press the matter, then no. However…”
He turned his body and smiled warmly.
“Still, at the final moment, she chose me. Even if I must cross the River of Hell, I can smile and go with her to the end.”
It was a smile unlike the mocking ones before—one that radiated genuine happiness.
And so, Wang Garak departed.
I stood quietly for a while, gazing at the spot where Wang Garak had vanished.
Yeo Jin and Wang Garak would most likely die—nine out of ten, perhaps.
Even if they survived, they would never return to the Cult again.
‘A little... envious.’
Even if one were to board the boat heading to the Netherworld, to have someone to hold hands with while crossing—that would truly be a happy life.
At least, both Wang Garak and I thought so.
I gripped the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword and the Heavenly Demon Seal tightly.
Then I infused the demonic qi of the Heavenly Demonic Divine Art into both relics, resonating with them.
Tsssss!
The remnants of the previous owner lingered in these artifacts.
Based on those remnants, the location of the previous owners of the artifacts clearly flowed into my mind.
‘There you are.’
The faint qi resonating with my Heavenly Demonic Divine Art from far away could only belong to Cheon Yura.
Only then did I decide to move.
“Nung Jahyeon.”
“Y-yes, Grand Duke.”
The Heavenly Scholar Cheon Myeosaeng, Nung Jahyeon, responded, unable to hide his confusion.
His bewilderment stemmed from the information Wang Garak had passed on at the last moment.
“That the Head of the Cheon Clan… is dead...”
“……”
Indeed, the death of Cheon Jumyeong was unexpected even for me.
It was hard to believe that he would sacrifice himself for someone else.
But he had died by the hand of Gwang Rahi Yeo Jin, and thanks to that, the Heavenly Demon Seal and the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword had come into my hands.
I strapped the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword to the opposite side of my waist.
‘It has been a while since I wielded two swords.’
Before reaching Transcendent Demon Realm, I used two swords to channel Resonance Qi. But after reaching a level where I could merge them into one, I had only used a single sword.
The two swords spiraled around me.
‘I’m coming soon, just wait a little longer.’
Blood flowed endlessly across Soaring Demon Peak and the surrounding territory.
The Heaven-Defying Society, including the Ten Heavenly Lords, had begun to collapse under the massive counterattack of the Six Great Clan.
From the beginning, the current Heavenly Demon Divine Cult was in its greatest prime in all history.
If this power gathered in one place, there was no force in the Central Plains that could withstand it.
“North, near Western King Peak, has been cleared.”
“And the remnants?”
“The assassins of the So Clan are pursuing them.”
“What about the evacuation of the Cult members?”
“We are steadily forcing them outward. The subordinate clans are putting in great effort.”
A little distance away from Soaring Demon Peak.
Pa Seolyeong, the acting Clan Head of the current Extreme Pa Clan, was receiving real-time reports from various locations.
“Keep your eyes on when the asymmetric forces will be deployed. This isn’t something numbers can handle. Share immediately with the other clans if they appear.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
This was Ten Thousand Great Mountain—their home turf.
They say even a dog is strong in its own house.
No matter how powerful the enemy was, this was Ten Thousand Great Mountain—their home.
However—
“It’s about time...”
Just as Pa Seolyeong tapped the map—
“D-Demonic Beast!”
“Monstrous Creatures have appeared!”
A scream rang from outside, and a faint tremor began to be felt.
A twisted smile formed on Pa Seolyeong’s lips.
“As expected, they won’t just sit there and take it.”
At this point, none among the higher ranks were unaware that the movements of the Demonic Beasts were connected to them.
Pa Seolyeong asked her subordinate,
“How many of them have appeared?”
“They emerged from all directions, so we can’t get an accurate count.”
“…Of course.”
She hadn’t expected to get precise numbers from the beginning.
No matter how many appeared, they would all be slain anyway.
“Even when the Cult Leader was alive, these things were never a significant threat. Slaughter every last one that appears.”
“Understood.”
Each of them might be beyond the reach of ordinary first-rate masters.
But here, in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, warriors beyond first-rate were plentiful.
Just as the subordinate who received the command was about to step outside—
“Enemy assault! Enemy assault!”
“……!”
Deng! Deng! Deng! Deng!
From afar, the perimeter guards struck the alarm bell in unison, signaling an attack.
And before long—
“Acting Clan Head! You must evacuate!”
“…What?”
“The defensive line has been breached. The enemy will soon be upon us!”
Though much of their force had been diverted outside, the guard protecting Acting Clan Head Pa Seolyeong was by no means weak.
For such a defense to suddenly be breached?
And there wasn’t even the usual loud chaos that would accompany a battle with Demonic Beasts.
It wasn’t the Cheon Clan. Their command structure was currently in disarray.
The Ten Heavenly Lords? There was no way they, thrown into chaos by the large-scale counteroffensive, could easily locate this place right now.
Then, what variable could be predicted in this situation...
‘Assassins!’
And among hostile assassin groups capable of launching a surprise attack here, there was only one.
“Could it be... the Demonic Ghost Execution Squad?!”
“Indeed, Acting Clan Head Pa Seolyeong.”
Splat!
“Keugh!”
Suddenly, something pierced through her subordinate’s neck.
Her subordinate, a promising new master expected to lead the next generation of the Pa Clan, someone at the threshold of Peak Master Level, had been taken down pathetically in a surprise strike by the enemy.
Pa Seolyeong glared at the white-masked figure before her.
“White Ghost... Jeolyeong!”
“Hm, you know well.”
The former Vice-Captain of the Demonic Ghost Execution Squad. Now the current Captain of the Demonic Ghost Execution Squad, acting on behalf of Cheon Jumun, he had come to kill Pa Seolyeong.
“…And where did you leave that arm of yours?”
“That’s none of your business.”
Pa Seolyeong’s attempt to buy time was brushed off lightly.
When Jeolyeong raised his remaining arm, the end of his fist began to morph into something sharp like tendrils.
Seeing that, Pa Seolyeong’s face slightly shifted.
“Awakened Body? I heard that wasn't possible during the day...”
“You know us well. Well, after fighting so often, I guess that much would be known.”
Jeolyeong’s lips twisted beneath the white mask.
“But circumstances have changed. Now, we Awakened Bodies, including the Ten Heavenly Lords, can transform freely even in daylight.”
“……”
“All thanks to an incompetent former subordinate.”
Despite now being able to transform even under the sun, the severed arm had not regenerated.
“Apologies, but among the Six Great Clan’s high command, your neck is the easiest to take.”
Pa Seolyeong currently served as the commander coordinating the entire Six Great Clan’s movements.
Her sudden death would certainly bring massive disruption to the Six Great Clan as a whole.
Feeling a sense of danger, Pa Seolyeong retreated slightly.
However—
Splat!
The tent around her was violently torn apart, and before she knew it, the assassins of the Demonic Ghost Execution Squad had surrounded her in a tight formation.
‘Is this the end...’
Glancing sideways, all her guards had been taken out.
They were all Peak Masters or higher, but under certain conditions, the Demonic Ghost Execution Squad could rival even the top tiers of the Thirty-Four Demon Squads.
She bitterly regretted underestimating the enemy’s additional forces.
Jeolyeong extended his elongated arm toward Pa Seolyeong and grinned lewdly.
No—he tried to.
“Quietly offer up your neck—”
Zap!
With a crackling sound like thunder,
Jeolyeong’s remaining arm was severed on the spot!
“Keugh!”
Jeolyeong desperately endured, forcing his assassin’s discipline to keep the pain from escaping his mouth.
“Who... are you?!”
A master capable of deceiving a top-class assassin’s senses and successfully landing a sneak attack—there were fewer than twenty such people in the entire Cult.
And one of those twenty now appeared before Jeolyeong.
“It’s me.”
“……!”
Though his face looked like a man entering middle age, the now thickly grown hair had changed his appearance completely.
But no matter the changes, Jeolyeong couldn’t fail to recognize him.
“Byeok... Cheon-un!”
“That’s right.”
Papapapat!
In an instant, assassins from the Underworld King Unit, including So Soryu, appeared around the Demonic Ghost Execution Squad.
In one hand, Gu Chil held the Gucheon Fist, and in the other, the Demonic Soul’s First Sword of Cheon Jumun, glaring at Jeolyeong.
“Today, I will take your wretched life.”
***
Cheon Yura was dreaming.
The Underworld Net Sword she had fired with all her might clashed with the opponent’s sword, devastating the entire Heavenly Demon Pavilion.
But even amid that destructive storm, her sword steadily pushed forward to shatter the opponent’s Sword Intent.
‘I could have won.’
As the battle intensified, she could see the movements of that white monstrosity called Chaos beginning to slow.
Seeing the Sword Intent waver and the Sword Unification fail to properly take hold, it was clear this battle had not begun by her own will.
However, in the final moment when their ultimate techniques clashed—
‘Grand Heavenly Lord…’
Due to her precise intervention, the Underworld Net Sword faltered, and Cheon Yura was defeated.
Then, as her consciousness sank beneath the surface, a long dream began.
Her mind suddenly awakened when, from far away, the qi of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword resonated with her Heavenly Demonic Divine Art.
“Jin Yeomyung...”
Just as she called out her husband’s name and was about to open her eyes—
“No, you mustn't.”
A soft palm covered her face.
“It’s not time for you to awaken yet.”
With a face devoid of warmth, Grand Heavenly Lord Han Seon suppressed Cheon Yura’s rising consciousness once more.
“Until we become one, you must not wake.”
At her gesture, Cheon Yura’s awareness sank again beneath the surface.
But then—
At the very last moment—
Smile.
Cheon Yura’s lips curved ever so slightly at the corners.
“……”
Did she hear him?
Or was she perhaps dreaming a pleasant dream?
Whatever the reason, the moment he saw that faint smile—
Crack.
A deep wrinkle appeared on Grand Heavenly Lord’s face.