As Yi Cheonsang stepped into the Panmajeong, the surrounding scenery transformed into a desolate cliff edge. The gloomy weather hung heavy in the air. Though it wasn’t raining, the sun hadn’t risen either. The sky, filled with dark clouds, moved at a surprisingly fast pace.
Sitting in the desolate pavilion, Yi Cheonsang sipped Fenjiu, his eyes suddenly gleaming.
Flash! Boom!
Blue lightning streaked across the dark clouds.
Clink.
He set down his cup and looked up at the sky.
How would this ominous sky appear in the eyes of the absolute being of the Divine Sect?
“Chailang?”
What Yi Cheonsang was looking at wasn’t the sky. Beyond the sky, piercing through this maddeningly realistic illusion, he traced the heavens of Gojukrim, one of the Divine Sect’s three great secret realms. A deep interest flickered across his face.
“Has the Lord of Gojukrim abandoned the spiritual land?”
In the history of the Divine Sect, the number of times Chailang had left the spiritual land could be counted on one hand. Chailang was not a being that should ever leave the spiritual land. The maintenance of Gojukrim depended on Chailang’s spiritual energy regulation.
Conversely, though Chailang had left a few times in the past, Gojukrim had managed to survive until now. So, while it was unexpected, it wasn’t a major issue.
What intrigued him was this:
“Why?”
Yi Cheonsang closed his eyes.
A moment later.
“I can’t figure out the reason.”
Among the three great secret realms, only Panmajeong was under his control. The same was true for the previous sect leaders. Unless one had reached the realm of being called a Heavenly Demon, they wouldn’t even be able to glimpse the situation in Gojukrim.
Of course, even if one had reached such a realm, it would be absurd to know what was happening in such a distant place.
The reason he, and the previous Heavenly Demons, could glimpse the other two secret realms…
Thump, thump.
Yi Cheonsang placed his hand on his chest.
The Yujin Diagram engraved on his vigorously beating heart shifted the formation of Panmajeong at his will.
“It’s always so mysterious.”
The formations spread across Panmajeong and the other secret realm were fake, based on the formation created by Gojukrim. That’s why they could only glimpse the gaps, not see the whole picture in detail.
As he listened to the sound of his heartbeat with his hand on his chest, he picked up the wine bottle again.
Glug, glug.
The cup slowly filled.
Yi Cheonsang’s face turned indifferent once more.
“The third one.”
The third.
Officially the third, unofficially the fourth disciple he had taken, overflowing with blood energy.
He had thought he was taking in a dragon, but the disciple had degenerated into a mere snake, worse than a venomous serpent, corrupted by filthy power.
However, after miraculously surviving a Qi Deviation, the disciple’s eyes had changed.
To be more precise…
“It’s like he became a different person.”
The same disciple, yet not the same.
To understand a person, rumors or testimonies are unnecessary. You just need to look into their eyes.
“It was a good decision to call him to Panmajeong.”
There was only one reason he had summoned the third disciple to Panmajeong. He had hoped his eyes were mistaken.
The third disciple in his youth reminded him of his own past. The disciple resembled him too much—his demeanor, thoughts, desires, and even his problem-solving methods were eerily similar.
That was why he had been particularly disappointed by the third disciple’s corruption. The corruption of the disciple who resembled him the most suggested that it could be one of his many possible futures. He couldn’t accept that.
So, he had hoped his eyes were wrong.
And the third disciple had astonishingly fulfilled his modest wish.
Well, half of it. The disciple was no longer the disappointing one he had seen, but neither was he the past disciple who resembled him.
“Death, huh…”
Yi Cheonsang emptied his cup.
“Did he return from the underworld or something?”
Though he showed some pitiful behavior and occasionally spouted surprisingly affectionate words, the disciple’s essence was still this:
Death.
Hidden deep within his chest was an explosive killing intent, as if he could kill anyone in the world if he wished.
Eight months had passed since he sent that disciple to Gojukrim.
The disciple was still alive and hadn’t practiced the demonic arts he had taught.
Even Chailang had left the spiritual land. The timing was too perfect to be a coincidence.
“Did Chailang see something in the third disciple?”
Glug, glug.
The cup filled once more.
As Yi Cheonsang looked down at the cup, an unbelievably warm smile spread across his face.
A smile of pure joy. But within that smile lurked thick blood, utter destruction, and an unfathomable death.
“I hope this is a good omen.”
Chailang.
Unlike the rare treasures created by the ancient beings who formed Gojukrim, Chailang was a true spirit being that had repeatedly died and been reborn.
When it shed its old body and returned to being a cub, it absorbed all the life force around it. Because of this, it gained the infamy of being one of the most notorious demons in the world.
But the real reason Chailang was pointed at as a demon was something else.
When Chailang appeared, war broke out in the land.
The curse of life absorption and the legend of causing wars were why Chailang was treated as the worst calamity on earth.
“What exactly is going to happen to our sect?”
“Huff! Huff!”
By the time Ma Dongpil reached the entrance of Gojukrim, he was gasping for breath as he looked back.
“Young Master!”
Splat!
Thick blood painted the air.
Thud, thud, thud!
Even as he charged forward, Seoryang’s swordplay, which cut down all the flying beasts in the sky, was truly an art.
Crash!
With a single kick, he shattered a bamboo tree and caught the falling tree with his hand.
Crack, crack, crack!
With just his grip, the thick bamboo split into dozens of pieces.
Seoryang took a big step forward.
Boom!
With a vigorous stomp, bamboo fragments shot into the sky.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Not a single bamboo fragment missed, piercing through the bodies of the beasts.
As the beasts screamed and fell to the ground, Ma Dongpil’s eyes widened in shock.
‘Incredible hidden techniques!’
It was like watching the pinnacle of hidden techniques, the Falling Leaves Flying Flowers. He couldn’t believe how every single bamboo fragment had been used without waste.
But that wasn’t all.
“Damn it!”
Crack!
A bandit’s head exploded.
It was the Whirlwind Kick, a technique even ordinary people with some training could perform, but the timing and power were impeccable.
Seoryang pulled out a piece of paper with tea leaves from his pocket and tore off the end.
Whoosh!
The tea leaves flew to the left like a hidden weapon.
The strong aroma stimulated the bandits’ sense of smell.
The bandits hesitated in panic.
Behind them, a group of green beasts and star beasts charged.
Boom, boom, boom!
The bodies of over a dozen bandits exploded. They couldn’t withstand the green beasts’ kicks and the weight of the star beasts.
Seoryang cursed.
“You bastards! Have you lost your sense of smell?!”
Whoosh!
He threw a bandit’s corpse at the green beasts to block their movement, but they shattered it with a powerful kick.
Watching the green beasts commit atrocities even the legendary Heavenly Demons wouldn’t dare, Seoryang was speechless.
“You cruel bastards! How can you call yourselves spirit beings?”
Ah, they’re called rare treasures.
“You know what? I’ve chewed, torn, tasted, and enjoyed every single one of you bastards!”
Whoosh!
Suddenly, a fierce beast charged through the green beasts. Its fangs and sharp claws looked strong enough to tear through steel.
Seoryang’s eyes wavered.
“I don’t think I can handle you.”
Screech!
‘Ugh!’
A single kick sent him flying three meters back.
His joints creaked, his thigh muscles ached as if they were tearing, and his vision slightly blurred. Blood seeped from his torn clothes.
Seoryang was dumbfounded.
‘Why is it so strong?’
If he hadn’t instinctively raised his sword to block, his upper body would have been torn off by that strike.
Yet, the fierce beast’s paw, which had been slashed by his sword, only had a small cut. Even though it was a sword imbued with demonic energy, the wound was barely noticeable.
“You big cat bastard!”
Whoosh!
Ma Dongpil’s face filled with shock.
In a situation where they needed to create distance, the Young Master had jumped into the fierce beast’s embrace. He had been admiring the Young Master’s tireless stamina when he was suddenly startled by the unexpected turn of events.
“Young Master!”
Sizzle!
The fierce beast’s claws raked across Seoryang’s back, staining it with blood.
Sparks flew from Seoryang’s eyes. His bones weren’t injured, so that was enough.
‘That’s it!’
Boom!
With a stomp, his left hand struck the fierce beast’s chest.
Whoosh!
The fierce beast flew back, colliding with the green beasts and falling.
It was a display of monstrous strength. The sight of the massive leopard, weighing at least two hundred pounds, flying through the air and collapsing was truly spectacular.
But Seoryang’s expression was grim.
“That damn bastard!”
Growl!
The fierce beast tore through the green beasts’ bodies and stood up as if nothing had happened.
Blood dripped from its nose and mouth, making it look truly ferocious. The murderous intent in its eyes reminded one of the hatred of an only daughter avenging her father’s death.
Seoryang bit his lip.
‘It’s still fine after taking the Exploding Mountain Force?’
The Exploding Mountain Force was one of the ultimate techniques of internal martial arts, maximizing the subtlety of hidden energy. It was a technique that could kill instantly unless one’s internal organs were protected by Qi.
Even rare treasures shouldn’t have the ability to protect their internal organs. The green beasts he had previously slaughtered had their meridians burst from a single strike of the Exploding Mountain Force and died.
In that moment, Seoryang realized the reason.
‘Damn it, it’s because of the spirit bamboo.’
He had hastily consumed the spirit bamboo’s energy but hadn’t yet converted it into demonic energy. The unconverted pure spirit energy was lowering the potency and concentration of his demonic energy.
‘I can’t do anything about it right now. I need to find another way.’
His sword didn’t work, and his internal martial arts didn’t work either. Of course, a flick on the forehead wouldn’t knock it out.
Then what?
“Ahhh! This is cheating!”
Whoosh!
Seoryang ran toward Ma Dongpil.
“Dongpil! Run!”
“Yes, yes!”
Ma Dongpil immediately ran. In that brief moment, he seemed to have regained his breath and was using a vigorous movement technique.
Boom!
The ground shook.
Led by the fierce beast, the remaining green beasts and dozens of star beasts charged. From the distant sky, another beast flew in.
“Huff, huff!”
Seoryang’s breathing also grew slightly ragged.
He had been pouring out explosive killing intent, mixing in all sorts of curses. Though his body had been greatly strengthened by the spirit energy, it wasn’t something he could endure with just eight months of training.
Yet, seeing him running side by side with Ma Dongpil, it was clear that his stamina and movement techniques were among the best of his time.
Seoryang’s eyes gleamed.
“We’re almost there!”
The entrance to Gojukrim.
The area where the concentration of spirit energy noticeably weakened. Just one step out of the bamboo forest, and those beasts wouldn’t be able to move.
At that moment.
Whoosh!
Seoryang’s eyes wavered.
The bamboo trees near the entrance had withered. The bamboo, drained of moisture, swayed precariously as if it would break at any moment.
‘Damn it!’
He placed his hand on Ma Dongpil’s back.
Ma Dongpil’s eyes filled with confusion.
‘Young Master?’
Seoryang took a short breath.
“Huff!”
Whoosh!
Ma Dongpil’s speed doubled. Without the internal energy to create a wind blast, Seoryang had directly thrown him.
In an instant, Ma Dongpil passed through the entrance.
At the same time, five or six snakes leaped at Seoryang from the sides.
Whoosh!
Though their movement speed was slow, their hunting speed was three times faster than the fierce beast’s charge.
“Young Master!”
“It’s do or die!!”
In that critical moment when the snakes’ fangs were about to pierce Seoryang’s body.
Whoosh!
Seoryang’s body spun, creating a crimson whirlwind.