“Stop!”
Halt.
Hong Wi-moon, who had squeezed his eyes shut, slowly opened them.
Drip.
Blood flowed from the sword mark carved into his left neck, piercing through the cold sword energy. His head hadn’t been severed.
“Further conflict is forbidden! Third Young Master, put down your sword immediately!”
Seo Ryang’s eyes deepened.
The energy presence from behind him was beyond expectations. He had sensed it from quite far away, but it had instantly reached this point.
Not bad.
Without turning around, he spoke.
“Who might you be?”
“Third Guard Commander of the Criminal Court’s Black Watchers!”
“Ah? You people again?”
“I’ll say it once more! Third Young Master, put down your sword and step back immediately! No further conflict is permitted!”
“I don’t want to.”
“W-what did you say?”
“This is a matter between successor candidates. The Criminal Court has no business interfering. I’ll finish up here shortly, so handle things accordingly and leave.”
“That’s impossible!”
“Oh?”
“Even if you are the Third Young Master, we cannot continue to overlook your disregard for the Criminal Court’s authority!”
“…Oh really?”
“I’ll tell you one final time! Put down your sword immediately…”
At that moment, Seo Ryang slightly turned his head.
The Third Guard Commander’s mouth closed involuntarily.
“Since when did the Criminal Court have the authority to interfere in disputes between candidates?”
“…!”
“Tell me.”
“But this area falls under the Criminal Court’s jurisdiction…”
“Why should I particularly care about an area under the cult’s jurisdiction? And wasn’t the Criminal Court’s jurisdiction supposed to include both internal and external halls in the first place?”
“…”
“I can show respect, but I have no intention of turning a blind eye to overstepping your authority. I don’t understand why you keep making things uninteresting.”
“Third Young Master!”
“Or what? Do you only feel satisfied when demonic cult members tremble before you regardless of their status?”
“Your words are too harsh!”
Suddenly Seo Ryang’s sword flashed.
Rumble!
The Third Guard Commander’s mouth fell open. Though hidden behind a mask, his face was marked with shock. Even Hong Wi-moon, who had been sweating profusely, was equally dumbfounded.
A massive sword mark thirty feet long had somehow appeared before the Third Guard Commander’s feet.
“…Gulp.”
The ground had split from a single sword strike. The area around the sword mark, whose depth couldn’t even be determined, was blackened and charred. The ground had been burned by the extreme yang demonic energy.
The Third Guard Commander, who had been staring blankly at the sword mark, raised his head to look at Seo Ryang.
Hup!
Flash!
It was like lightning striking in his eyes. Those eyes, transparent and emotionless yet somehow filled with unspeakable ferocity, were indescribably terrifying.
Not as Seo Ryang, the Third Young Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, but as Cheon Hajin, the King of Assassins.
In his eyes, which had drawn out the identity of Death God for the first time in a long while, no trace of demonic energy could be found anymore.
“I also hate things getting complicated. So I can tolerate quite a bit.”
As he muttered one word at a time in a low voice, it seemed as if misty fog was being expelled with his flowing breath.
“But don’t ask for patience, even in jest, when I’m in front of prey I’ve marked.”
Crack!
The red lightning flowing along the blade climbed up his hand, then rushed through his entire body.
“If you don’t want things to get really difficult, that is.”
He was a Death God wearing the energy of defying heaven like a cloak. He who had stimulated the fear of death that all living beings possess was now emanating the energy of hell itself, the peak of the inhuman realm.
Who would dare even open their mouth properly before him? The Third Guard Commander couldn’t bring himself to look at Seo Ryang.
Whoosh.
The red lightning that had been creating an oppressive atmosphere suddenly subsided.
Seo Ryang smiled at Hong Wi-moon.
“The interruption made the finish less clean than I’d like. I apologize.”
“…!”
“Let’s see, you said you had no last words, right?”
Hong Wi-moon’s cheeks trembled.
Seo Ryang raised his sword again.
That’s when it happened.
Flinch!
“…Hmm.”
Irritation showed on Seo Ryang’s face. The killing intent he had carefully suppressed was trying to rear its head again.
“Why are there so many troublesome meddlers?”
Woong!
The veins on the back of his hand bulged prominently.
This time, it wasn’t that he didn’t strike down – he couldn’t. A massive energy had blocked his blade like iron chains.
The ability to control a person’s movements with formless energy. It deserved to be called another Void Object Control.
Seo Ryang’s pupils turned red.
Crack!
Now it completely resembled lightning. The patterns of brilliant flames and gloomy mist he had shown before could no longer be seen.
“Don’t block me. There’ll be a real accident.”
Crack!
The blade swung down sharply.
The unnamed master who had been wielding energy chains in the void was startled.
Void Object Control itself requires extreme enlightenment. Without establishing an equal realm, it’s difficult to resist with force.
Yet the Third Young Master was shattering that enlightenment with innate mighty strength and overwhelming demonic energy.
Woong!
The energy chains grew stronger.
Now he could barely move not just his arm but his entire body. The unnamed master was also using all his strength.
Flutter!
Seo Ryang’s body swelled slightly. It was evidence that he was using his muscles to their limit throughout his body.
A battle between a physical sword and invisible energy.
“…Fine.”
He had been stopped not once, but twice. It was like pouring oil on his already blazing killing intent.
Slide.
Seo Ryang relaxed his hand.
He even contained his demonic energy that had been blazing with lightning sparks. Naturally, the energy chains also disappeared.
But Seo Ryang hadn’t given up.
He had just decided to do it properly.
Zing!
Several lightning strands, thin as capillaries and long as chains, flickered around his body.
A terribly dangerous energy wave. Like looking at a bomb about to explode.
When the unnamed master, realizing this, quickly drew up his energy…
Bang!
An explosion rang out in the void.
Hup!
The unnamed master flinched. In his surprise, he couldn’t even deploy the art of Void Object Control.
A technique that disrupts energy flow by exploding hidden force in the void.
In other words, it was an Interference Energy Wave[1]. Though not as much as Void Object Control, it was dazzlingly impressive as a counter method.
Swoosh!
Seo Ryang’s sword, not missing that momentary opportunity, rushed toward Hong Wi-moon again.
Not there!
The unnamed master also drew up his energy again.
At that moment, Seo Ryang’s eyes flashed.
Pa-ak!
Just as the energy chains were about to bind him, Seo Ryang’s body vanished.
…!
A movement so fast he disappeared from sight in an instant.
But he wasn’t skilled enough to panic just because he lost visual tracking. Isn’t a master’s energy sense faster and more accurate than the eye?
That energy sense was telling him.
Where Seo Ryang had disappeared to, where he was running toward.
Surely not?
His eyes widened.
Crack!
Seo Ryang, emanating crimson lightning, advanced at a terrifying speed.
At the end of that path was himself.
Flash! Bang!
The warehouse wall, standing alone, was swept away by the tremendous sword wind.
The unnamed master, Go Gu, shouted.
“Third Young Master!”
Whoosh!
Seo Ryang’s form stood before Go Gu.
Fast!
Though the depth of his demonic energy was worthy of being called a transcendent master, his skill didn’t match up. That was Go Gu’s assessment of Seo Ryang’s martial arts.
But this lightness technique was different. At least in terms of movement art, he seemed no inferior to himself.
Seo Ryang swung his sword.
Whoosh!
The Death God’s martial art that had rendered Hong Wi-moon combat and movement incapable with a single chain technique.
It was the Nine Abyss Subduing Calamity Sword Arts[2], which could only be entered after mastering the basic technique of Heaven-Severing Three Blades to the level of twelve stars.
Go Gu swung his fist. Even if he was the Third Young Master, he couldn’t stand still before such a threatening sword technique that could endanger his life.
Pa-pa-pa-pa-pang!
The air screamed with countless explosions.
The six forms of the Six-Chain Hell Wind[3], the first chapter of the Nine Abyss Subduing Calamity Sword Arts, were deployed in an instant.
Slash!
The end of his sleeve was cut away.
Though it was only two inches, he couldn’t remember the last time his clothing had been damaged by another’s martial art.
Go Gu’s hands moved chaotically. It was a martial art aimed at subduing rather than attacking the opponent.
That was his mistake.
The Nine Abyss Subduing Calamity Sword Arts was divided into five chapters, and was simultaneously a single martial art.
The connection between forms was extremely smooth, giving opponents no chance to retreat, and naturally, its power increased as it progressed.
Whoosh!
Powerful heat took the place where the hell sword wind had disappeared. Seo Ryang’s sword glowed red-hot as if it had been pulled from a furnace.
Go Gu’s eyes shook.
The Ultimate Endless Path[4], containing the flames of the Eight Heat Hells, the second chapter of the Nine Abyss Subduing Calamity Sword Arts, revealed itself.
Whoosh!
The world seemed to be dyed dark red. He had the illusion that massive pillars of fire surging from all directions were rushing at him.
Bang!
Wispy smoke rose from Go Gu’s body as he flew far away.
Hot!
Though he hadn’t received cuts thanks to raising his energy shield to the extreme, if his internal energy had been even slightly lacking, not even a bone fragment would have remained from the merciless blade that burned wounds.
Still, it was fortunate he hadn’t taken a loss.
Would another attack come?
When Go Gu raised his head.
…!
Pung!
Seo Ryang, who had vanished with the explosion, was rushing toward Hong Wi-moon.
No!
Only after confirming he couldn’t block with Void Object Control did he try to kill. Go Gu felt chills down his spine at Seo Ryang’s manic obsession with his target.
“Third Young Master! Stop…!”
Pung!
Go Gu’s face stiffened. The startled Third Guard Commander also opened his eyes wide.
Drip.
With eyes bulging as if about to tear, red blood flowed from Hong Wi-moon’s nose and mouth as he looked up at Seo Ryang with a shocked face.
A moment later.
“Uweeek!”
Hong Wi-moon’s face turned pale as he vomited a bowl of blood. He had already lost a lot of blood, and now he spewed another large amount of fresh blood.
But that wasn’t the real problem.
Bubble bubble.
Purple poison energy flowed from his entire body along with a fishy smell.
Breathing heavily but with cold eyes, Seo Ryang looked down at him and spoke.
“I was thinking…”
Puk!
The sword that had pierced his abdomen was pulled out. It was right above the danjeon, where the core of the snake poison Hong Wi-moon had accumulated until now was located.
“Kuhek!”
“When I think about how refreshing it’ll be later, the burden of killing you seems quite bearable…”
Seo Ryang grinned. It was an expression more demonic than any evil spirit’s on a human face.
“But I thought of an even more satisfying and better method?”
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Demon for demon, despair for despair.
“You should also experience losing everything you had?”
Whoosh!
Hong Wi-moon’s hair became dry and brittle.
That wasn’t all. His perfectly trained body gradually became diminutive.
He had maintained his muscles through energy work rather than physical training. When his poison core and danjeon were destroyed, it immediately affected his physical foundation.
This was the limitation of Hong Wi-moon, who had only built up power through empty visualization for years.
“You won’t die right away, but you’ll have to lie sick for years with poisoning symptoms. Of course, even if you fix your body after a few years, you’ll have to start over from the beginning.”
Hong Wi-moon looked up at Seo Ryang, trembling.
“Ra…”
“Hm? What did you say?”
“Ra-rather kill me!”
Seo Ryang smiled, showing his white teeth. He had heard the sincerity in his voice asking for death.
How terrible must it be to watch everything you’ve built up until now crumble? It wasn’t unreasonable for Hong Wi-moon to scream to be killed.
“I’ll send medicine occasionally. Sorry that’s all your senior brother can do for you?”
The transformation of Seo Ryang, who had been cold but not cruel, tyrannical but not evil.
Puk!
Hong Wi-moon, kicked hard, fell back helplessly. Weak blood trickled from his abdomen as he lost consciousness.
Pa-ra-ra-rak!
Right on cue, Criminal Court members rushed in from all directions.
Looking around, Seo Ryang smiled and raised both hands.
“Haven’t been out of prison long, but… do as you please this time too.”