Chapter 118

The King of Fists, Reading the Technique

The Sword Demon warned the Young Princess.

“Young Princess, you’re playing along with the Blood Lord’s words. It doesn’t matter much. But if a fight breaks out, I’ll make one promise: you die.”

The young princess felt a chill when the blind man looked at her and quietly stepped aside.

It was as if she were trying to avoid the Sword Demon’s gaze.

The Sword Demon then shifted his head slightly, gazing at the Young Palace Master through the pitch-black void where his eyes should have been.

The Sword Demon spoke.

“Young Princess, you shouldn’t rely on Baekmyo and act so boldly more than once or twice. Among those present here, there is no one who can break my Sword of Invincibility. Baekmyo is no exception.”

The young lady asked.

“Lord Yeon, what do you mean?”

The Sword Demon pointed at the Young Palace Master with his finger.

“You take Baekmyo back to the Ten Thousand Horses Palace. After all, you are the Young Palace Master of the Ten Thousand Horses Palace; it’s best you don’t get involved in any fight. The Blood Lord, Hwanma, and I have never gotten along well from the start. We’ll settle our score. You, as the Young Palace Master of the Ten Thousand Horses Palace, need only know the outcome of the fight. Isn’t that what you’ve always done anyway?”

The Young Palace Master stroked Baekmyo, then looked at Hyeoljon and said with opportunistic detachment.

“Is that acceptable to you, Blood Lord? After all, this is a battle between two individuals.”

Blood Lord felt uneasy because he lacked confidence.

The Light Demon is difficult, and the Sword Demon is difficult. And the fact that I’ve never seen the Illusion Demon fight properly was also a problem.

Blood Lord sighed and said.

“Young Palace Master, are you trying to capture the criminal or not? Why did you chase him all the way here? Don’t be swayed by the Sword Demon’s words. If the Sword Demon and the Heavenly Demon grow stronger, the Ten Thousand Demons Palace won’t survive either. Don’t you understand? What kind of creatures these two are? They don’t give the slightest thought to the Ten Thousand Demons Palace’s kindness. That is the truth.”

Hwanma finally interjected with a single sentence.

“Young Palace Master, join us.”

The young master swallowed hard. Though younger than them and lacking much martial experience, he was agonizing like a worthless man.

Then the Sword Demon warned him once more.

“I made myself clear. If a fight breaks out, Young Master, you will die by my hand.”

Blood Lord spoke.

“He’ll do it again later. That’s why we should kill him now to prevent it. Opportunities like this are rare. If Baekmyo just handles Gwangma, the three of us can subdue Geommma. Immunity to blades? It’s nothing special. People are destined to die somehow. Just like Geommma, with his blade-proof body, ended up blind.”

At that moment, the Mad Demon, displeased with the argument, lunged at the Illusion Demon first.

In response, the Demon King leapt high into the air, stretching both hands toward the void. As the onlookers’ gazes focused on him, he unleashed the Illusory Battlefield’s Mountain of Swords and Forest of Blades.

Then, swords and blades suddenly shot up from the ground around the young princess, plunging the area into darkness in an instant. Simultaneously, swords and blades floated in the air, trapping all those facing off here within the battlefield.

Even knowing it was an illusion, they couldn’t move rashly.

A man of the Demon King’s caliber would never threaten with mere illusions.

After halting his advance, the Demon King muttered.

“What the hell is this? You crazy bastard, Illusion Demon.”

At that moment, the white cat on the young princess’s shoulder opened its mouth wide and let out a shrill, piercing cry. It seemed to be reacting to the swords and daggers surrounding them.

The young master reassured the white cat.

“It’s fine. It’s fine. It’s just an illusion.”

After the Demon King vanished into the illusory battlefield he had created, he conveyed his opinion clearly, as if speaking through ventriloquism.

“Young Mistress, release Baekmyo first. As the Blood Lord said, the Mad Demon and Sword Demon are not men who live by others’ words.”

Then, as if expanding the width and breadth of the illusory battlefield, it grew larger, completely covering the ordinary landscape with swords and roads.

In an instant, the Blood Lord, the Young Palace Master, the Sword Demon, and the Mad Demon found themselves trapped in a place where nothing could be seen but swords and blades.

When the Young Palace Mistress remained silent, the Mad Demon threatened her.

“If you don’t produce the White Cat, I won’t be able to help myself. With the master gone, I’ll have no choice but to unleash it directly.”

Then, the swords and daggers suspended in the air simultaneously shifted their direction, aiming at the Young Palace Master.

Amidst this, the Sword Demon breathed quietly.

‘These worthless bastards…’

This kind of illusory battlefield never worked on the Sword Demon in the first place.

He had already pinpointed the Demon King’s location through the Abyss Technique, and being blind, he couldn’t see any illusions. Only spiderweb-like energy hung tangled in all directions.

Even amidst this, the Sword Demon intended to absorb only one of the masters present.

The Young Palace Master spoke.

“Demon Lord, calm yourself. I shall release the White Cat. Once the White Cat moves, whoever dies—it shall not be my fault.”

The young princess grasped the white cat perched on her shoulder with both hands and set it down on the ground. The cat then wandered around the welcome battlefield, meandering about. Naturally, the white cat’s gaze immediately fixed on the Mad Warrior it had clashed with last time.

The young palace master said to the white cat.

“Subdue that Madman. Killing him is fine too.”

Amidst this, the Sword Demon finally drew his sword.

Swish…

Blood Lord drew forth an aura thick with blood, as if congealed in both hands, while Madman simultaneously prepared, swelling his muscles like a protective armor.

The Mad Demon chuckled as he looked at Baekmyo.

“Come on, you little cat.”

The Demon King spoke.

“Young Master, stay where you are. I’ll pull you out.”

Then, the swords and blades filling the Demon King’s battlefield simultaneously changed direction and surged toward the Mad Demon and Sword Demon all at once.

Whoooooosh!

Then, the Mad Demon slammed both hands down as if shattering the earth. A deafening roar erupted as the bursting energy waves and shockwaves intermingled, flinging hundreds of swords and daggers away.

The Sword Demon took the full brunt of the charging blades and swords with his entire body while preparing his one-hit-kill technique, the Demon General’s Sword Ultimate Art.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The swords and blades, now in the form of energy, collided with the Sword Demon’s body and flew away in vain.

Amidst the chaos, the Sword Demon condensed the essence of his sword technique into a single point at the tip of his blade, then swung it toward the empty air.

Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

Kwaaaaaaaaaaang!

The Demon King, who had been concealed, lunged forward with his twin blades crossed, unleashing a deafening roar.

Then, the Demon Battlefield shattered as the White Tiger and the Mad Demon locked onto each other. The White Tiger leapt up, instantly transforming into the form of a massive white tiger, and fiercely struck the charging Mad Demon with its front paws.

Thud!

The Mad Demon was knocked down with a single blow…

Blood God extended his hand, unleashing the Blood God Finger toward the blinded Sword Demon. As the Sword Demon swung his sword in place, deflecting the blood-shaped finger technique like striking away petals, the blood scattered and splattered in all directions. A hissing sound spread, accompanied by the sound of something melting.

Baekmyo was relentlessly driving the Mad Demon around like a mouse playing with its prey. However, the Mad Demon, having fought him before, darted about while biding its time.

His entire body was already being torn apart by Baekmyo’s claws, but each time, he unleashed a burst of energy, using the Hui Jue Jin Ma Gong to recover.

‘This damn cat cub······!’

Blood Lord drew his crimson longsword and began clashing with the Sword Demon.

The young princess, seemingly frightened, slipped back slightly and moved to check on the demonic beast that had been knocked down by the sword demon’s strike.

.

.

.

Danwooseong, dragging the Heavenly Demon’s corpse along, kept watch behind him to ensure no one was following. Far off, a man clad in a purple robe, the Heavenly Demon, was closing the distance in an instant, moving alone with his lightness skill. It was truly swift movement.

‘Celestial Demon…’

As Woo-sa thrashed wildly below, Dan Woo-sung injected his brain energy with his right hand before mercilessly smashing Woo-sa’s skull with his left foot.

Thud!

The moment Cheonma arrived, the breath of the man whose head had been crushed ceased instantly.

Only then did Dan Wooseong release Usa’s arm and observe Cheonma’s expression. Cheonma watched Dan Wooseong with his mouth agape before looking down at Usa, whose life had ended.

‘Damn…’

Dan Wooseong watched for a moment to see how Cheonma would proceed.

He thought the Sword Demon would struggle to pursue them blinded, and the Mad Demon would be fighting those who emerged from the Ten Thousand Demon Palace.

He had secured enough time to face Cheonma.

Cheonma was genuinely curious about Danwooseong’s true identity.

‘Who the hell is this guy?’

He also doubted whether he could kill him immediately. Because he had witnessed him facing the Mad Demon without so much as a hair on his head being harmed.

Danwooseong asked.

“You’re the Heavenly Demon.”

Cheonma nodded.

“The nickname ‘Kwonma’ is news to me. Doesn’t seem like a demonic path.”

As the two faced off, they walked in a circle, then briefly conversed as if meeting an old friend.

Cheonma is a sharp man.

But no matter how hard he tried to gauge Dan Woosung’s skill, he couldn’t discern anything. The atmosphere was strikingly similar to conversing with the Lord of Ten Thousand Horses. That meant Dan Woosung was an opponent he shouldn’t fight. It meant he was at least equal to him, or even superior.

He had built his power by absorbing the Overlord and taking countless lives long before that. Yet, to think this young man was on his level left even Cheonma dumbfounded.

Heavenly Demon was a cautious man to begin with; he had no intention of charging into battle like a madman.

Moreover, it was laughable to fight alone when his comrades from the Ten Thousand Horses Palace were clearly nearby.

Cheonma raised both hands as if to say, “Let’s call it quits.”

“Kwonma, let’s have a drink another time. Today doesn’t seem like the day to settle this. The dead are dead; there’s nothing we can do about it.”

Danwooseong advanced a step and said.

“Who said they’d send it?”

Cheonma retreated a step and retorted.

“Oh my, my friend. You’re quite impatient.”

Cheonma slowly retreated backward, smiling.

Dan Woo-sung stared intently at Cheonma’s expression.

How could he wear such a relaxed expression?

He thought there must be a reason for that expression.

At that moment, Danwooseong resolved to verify Cheonma’s technique, then unleashed his brain fist like a bolt of lightning.

It was a Thunder Fist deliberately restrained in power, focusing solely on the external form created by his qi.

Thus, it was essentially a weakened version of the original technique.

However, the process of its release and its outward appearance were nothing short of spectacular.

As a massive white fist grew larger and surged toward Cheonma’s front…

Startled, the Heavenly Demon thrust his left foot against the ground. As soon as he wrapped both hands in a reverse Taiji stance, he blocked the Thunder Fist with the Reverse Heaven Mirror.

The full force of the thunder fist Danwooseong had unleashed rebounded directly back at him.

Clang!

Then Danwooseong pulled out the brain wall with his twin blades, cleanly countering the brain fist rushing toward him. He then extended his right hand and grabbed the white snake formed from brain energy, hurling it away.

Sssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss

As Cheonma retreated with a light, curving motion, the white snake stretched out long and fast, pursuing Cheonma to the very end.

‘Damn brat.’

His ultimate counterattack had been exposed in vain, leaving him nothing but displeasure.

The Heavenly Demon thrust off the ground, soaring into the air. He spun his body once, then unleashed the Sun-Moon Radiant Heaven Palm Force onto the spot where Danwoo-seong stood.

The energies of extreme yin and yang coalesced and spun violently, then a colossal sphere, too massive to evade, surged toward Danwoo-seong.

This attack contained the true intent of the Heavenly Demon.

Dan Woosung wrapped his entire body in the Black Bullet Rebound Fist of the Five Elements Divine Art before launching his fist toward the massive sphere. It was neither a Thunder Fist nor a Thunder Qi. It was simply a fist thrust with the intent to shatter, driving straight into the center of the enormous sphere.

In that instant, a gaping hole pierced through the center of the massive sphere. As the sphere disintegrated, the resulting shockwave sent both Dan Woosung and Cheonma flying simultaneously.

Cheonma spun midair, then the moment he landed, he fled using his lightness skill…

By the time Dan Woosung regained his stance, the landscape before him lay desolately transformed by the aftermath of the Sun-Moon Light Heavenly Force. Only a straight path remained intact where Dan Woosung stood, while the surrounding area was gouged out on either side, as if half-moons had been torn away.

As Dan Wooseong craned his neck this way and that, a cracking sound echoed.

He quietly moved back toward the place where the Mado had caused the internal strife. He planned to wait for an opportunity, kill a few more of them, and then retreat. If that proved difficult, he intended to at least observe the Mado’s characteristics and strength with his own eyes.