Chapter 29: The Awakened Demon
Is that the demon the old woman spoke of?
Its horns are jagged, its cheekbones protrude, and its teeth are sharp as blades. To make matters worse, it glows with a blood-red light, creating an even more chilling atmosphere.
It is no wonder the mercenaries, who were so full of bravado, have lost their tongues and are staring blankly at the stone gate.
"Ugh... what is this?"
"Is it a ghost? Why is something like this depicted here?"
"That thing. Is it closing its eyes?"
Just as the mercenary said, the demon on the stone gate had its eyes closed.
Yang Jin tilted his head at this, then immediately drew his sword and struck the neck of one of the mercenaries.
*Slash!*
"Huck!"
"C-Captain! What are you doing!"
Blood erupted like a fountain from the headless neck.
Yang Jin reached out his hand.
The mercenary’s blood sprayed over Yang Jin, soaking the Blood Jade he held in his hand.
*Grrr...*
"W-what is that?"
"Damn... it..."
A sound like a beast howling from the bottomless abyss echoed through the secret cave.
The mercenaries trembled like aspen leaves.
Even I felt a shiver run down my spine.
And then.
"Oh!"
Yang Jin raised both arms high.
The demon slowly opened its eyes.
"......!"
"......!"
The demon’s crimson pupils turned downward.
Two of the mercenaries collapsed, as if possessed by something.
*Rumble, rumble, rumble.*
The massive stone gate began to open slowly with a thunderous roar.
"Let's go, you idiots."
Yang Jin grabbed the two mercenaries by their necks and disappeared inside.
As the door opened, the blood-red demon vanished.
I dashed out from the darkness and ran quickly toward the gate.
*Rumble, rumble, rumble.*
Sure enough, the gate that had opened began to close again.
*Whoosh!*
Just before the door shut, I twisted my body and barely managed to slip inside.
At the same time, I wrapped myself in the Black Panther hide and rolled to the side.
I did this because I feared Yang Jin, who had entered first, might launch a surprise attack.
"......?"
However, Yang Jin had no interest in what was behind him.
He only walked forward, dragging the two mercenaries along.
The place where they stopped was the center of a vast cavern.
It was in front of an altar about two people high.
'What is this place?'
I quickly hid my body behind a large pillar.
The space was as large as a grand training ground, filled with countless pillars that looked like the towering ancient trees of Yunnan. Even the walls and pillars, not to mention the floor and ceiling, were densely covered in intricate carvings.
"Uh...?"
"Captain...?"
The two mercenaries were completely dazed, looking around in every direction.
This is the Secret Cave of the Fighting God?
Well, it looks like a space that would take an emperor over a decade of grinding down his people to even begin to construct.
It seemed the Secret Cave of the Fighting God was not the work of the Fighting God himself.
'I suppose he just died here.'
Then, for what purpose was this massive cavern originally built?
I quickly scanned the carvings on the pillars and walls.
Swords and spears, the screams of humans, and something hunting them.
I looked up at the ceiling.
'That is...'
The hemispherical ceiling was densely packed with various constellations, and for some reason, it looked like the sky one sees while in a state of Internal Energy Circulation.
"Huck! What is that?"
"Is that a skeleton?"
A skeleton sat cross-legged on the altar.
It had been dead for ages, so it couldn't possibly be the Fighting God.
What was peculiar was that the bones were pitch black, giving off a somewhat eerie aura.
"Captain! Say something! Where on earth are we?"
"It’s a strange place, but there must be some valuable items here. Captain! We should split everything fairly among the three of us!"
Perhaps starting to adapt, the mercenaries stood up and began to flap their mouths.
Yang Jin just stared blankly at the skeleton on the altar.
*Rumble.*
That was when it happened.
The stone gate on the far opposite side opened with a roar.
Four men entered the space anew.
"Huh? Those bastards!"
"How did they get here!"
The mercenaries recognized the opponents first and drew their swords.
"You wretches! How dare you betray the main family!"
One of the newly appeared group let out a roar filled with rage.
And behind him.
A young man, handsome but looking like a complete wreck, was furrowing his brows deeply.
'Dang Cheon-u.'
Seeing that he arrived on time, it seemed Dang Cheon-u had given up on searching for me and moved to the secret cave.
For someone to whom every second was critical, it was the right choice.
"You. You are Yang Jin."
Dang Cheon-u stepped forward and glared at Yang Jin.
Yang Jin also turned his gaze from the altar to face Dang Cheon-u.
"It has been a while, Young Master."
"What is the meaning of this?"
"Meaning? I have simply carried out my mission."
Yang Jin chuckled.
It was a bizarre sound, not quite human.
"Your mission was supposed to be waiting for me."
"I merely cleared the path in advance to escort the Young Master safely. How is it? Thanks to that, you have arrived here safely, have you not?"
"You wretch! Do you know how many people died just to get here!"
*Whoosh!*
Consumed by rage, Dang Cheon-u flung his hidden weapons.
Surprisingly, Yang Jin made the Shadow of Poisonous Mist attack futile by simply shaking his head lightly.
"......!"
Perhaps quite shocked, Dang Cheon-u’s eyes widened.
Seeing that, Yang Jin smirked.
"Why make such a fuss over a few deaths? Do you know how much we have bled? The number exceeds two hundred. So many innocent natives died because of your greed. How do you intend to bear that grudge and fury?"
"You... crazy... bastard..."
Dang Cheon-u’s lips trembled.
He was a Young Master who seemed cold-blooded in any situation.
But perhaps because he had sacrificed his comrades to get here, he looked more emotionally unstable than usual.
"I will make you wish you were dead."
"My, my. For the Young Master of the Tang Clan to say such a thing. I am so terrified my knees are shaking."
"Kneel down this instant! Then I will make your end less painful!"
"Kekeke. Kneel?"
As Yang Jin giggled, the two mercenaries followed suit for no reason.
"Wahahaha!"
"Hahahaha!"
"Hehehehe!"
The giggling soon turned into manic laughter that rang through the cavern.
Then, suddenly.
As if it were a lie, Yang Jin’s laughter stopped.
"Hahaha, huh?"
"Hehe... ah, are you done laughing?"
The two mercenaries looked back at Yang Jin.
Yang Jin, with a smile on his face, brought his hands over the heads of the two mercenaries.
While the two mercenaries were sending looks of confusion to Yang Jin, asking what he was doing.
*Splat! Splat!*
"......!"
Yang Jin ripped their heads right off.
Dang Cheon-u and his three guards’ mouths fell wide open.
It wasn't cut with a sword; he had pulled a person's head off with his bare hands.
It was a feat of strength that would be unthinkable for anyone with ordinary power.
"How many thousands of years has it been since I knelt before you?"
Yang Jin held the dripping heads in both hands and muttered words that could not be understood.
"Are you... insane?"
"Wahahaha! Insane? Yes! Absolutely insane!"
Yang Jin leaped up onto the altar.
The strength to rip off heads, and even the Movement Technique he displayed.
This was not martial prowess that would be found in a mere mercenary.
Realizing this, Dang Cheon-u’s complexion darkened.
"Young Master. Consider it an honor. Through your blood, a change will begin in this corrupt Murim."
"What kind of nonsense have you been spouting since earlier!"
Yang Jin stood behind the black skeleton.
Then he reached out both hands, letting the red blood soak the skeleton.
"As the red blood flows to dye the Golden River, the era of blood shall now begin. Ten thousand years, ten thousand years, the Blood Heaven Era!"
After spouting such incomprehensible words, Yang Jin tossed the heads he held in his hands off the altar.
Instead, he pulled the Blood Jade from his robes and slammed it directly into the skeleton's head.
*Wooooooong!*
An overwhelming shockwave spread out in concentric circles from the altar.
"Ugh!"
"Young Master!"
Dust rose from the floor like a cloud.
Dang Cheon-u and his guards staggered.
I hid my body behind a pillar to avoid the impact.
*Click-clack. Click-clack. Click-clack.*
At that moment, a small sound struck my ears.
I looked down at my arm.
Against my will, goosebumps had risen all over.
"W-what is that!"
"Young Master! The skeleton is moving!"
I was startled and watched the altar.
The skeleton was slowly raising its body.
Perhaps because it had absorbed so much blood, the black skeleton was emitting a red aura.
The skeleton standing on the altar stared down at Dang Cheon-u.
Yang Jin knelt down.
"Oh, Protector! These are the descendants of those who harmed Him! Punish them and restore righteousness!"
Protector? Him?
It was certain that Yang Jin was a pawn of the faction that had orchestrated the conspiracy, but he had been speaking nonsense since earlier.
On top of that, his eyes were glowing red like the skeleton's, perhaps because his capillaries had burst.
*Click-clack. Click-clack. Click-clack.*
Was it trying to say something?
The skeleton’s lower jaw shook up and down.
But no matter how much it moved, could sound possibly come from a skeleton's mouth? Realizing this belatedly, the skeleton brushed its own jaw.
And then.
*Whoosh!*
"Huck!"
"No!"
Moving its body with a technique akin to "shifting form and changing position," the skeleton pierced Dang Cheon-u’s Dantian.
"Kuh-ack!"
Shadow of Poisonous Mist.
A poison expert of the Sichuan Tang Clan, even more formidable than the Poison King.
A rising star of the Tang Clan, who was said to have no equal among his peers, had suffered a fatal wound without being able to mount a proper defense.
"Young Master!"
"You wretch!"
The three guards swung their swords simultaneously.
The skeleton remained motionless, its hand still embedded in Dang Cheon-u’s abdomen.
*Clang! Clang! Clang!*
It was an attack with all their might.
But the three blades couldn't even leave a scratch on the skeleton.
"T-this!"
"Damn it!"
The skeleton flicked its right hand.
Dang Cheon-u was sent flying toward the wall and slammed into it with a *thud*.
"Young Master!!"
The Guard Leader ran toward the Young Master.
No, he tried to run.
*Splat!*
"Argh!"
"Leader!"
The skeleton, having pierced the Guard Leader’s chest, immediately ripped out his heart and tossed it aside.
Then, it struck the heads of the remaining two guards with both hands.
With a *thwack* sound, the heads of the two elite guards burst like firecrackers.
"Wahahaha! Truly magnificent!"
Yang Jin laughed triumphantly from atop the altar.
*Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.*
The skeleton approached Dang Cheon-u.
As his internal energy dissipated, Dang Cheon-u struggled to rise, perhaps intending to use his final trump card.
"Yang Jin... I will definitely..."
"Kwahahaha! Definitely what? Young Master! You will die right here! That is your fate, huh?"
*Whoosh! Clang!*
I ran with all my might. I swung my sword.
This time, the skeleton was sent flying far away.
*Boom!*
"Who is that?"
"Brother!"
Dang Cheon-u shouted in delight.
However, this was no time for pleasantries.
I left Dang Cheon-u behind and took a stance against the skeleton.
*Thud. Thud. Thud.*
The skeleton shook the debris from its body and slowly rose to its feet.
It lifted its head.
In an instant, a red flash pierced my mind, and every nerve in my body screamed of danger.
Without even looking, I arched my back.
*Whoosh!*
*Shift of Form and Position.*
I don't know when it had moved, but the skeleton's hand was already outstretched right above me.
I kicked its knee to create some distance.
The skeleton lunged at me.
*Clang-clang-clang-clang!*
I deflected its successive attacks using the techniques of the Supreme Ultimate Wisdom Sword.
Even so, my hand holding the sword trembled as if it were about to tear apart.
It was a terrifying power; had it not been for the Supreme Ultimate Wisdom Sword, I would not have lasted even a few moves.
"Where the hell did you crawl out from!"
Yang Jin bellowed at the top of his lungs.
I didn't even have the time to retort.
I retreated continuously, swinging my sword.
My eyes could not track the skeleton's attacks. I was barely managing to deflect them by mobilizing every single sense I possessed.
Just as I was struggling to find even a moment to counterattack, I locked eyes with it.
Though a skeleton has no eyes, a red dot was shining clearly within those black, empty sockets.
"What the f*ck!"
It was merely a red dot, yet I could feel it mocking me.
Unlike me, who was giving my all, the bastard skeleton was merely enjoying the amusement of waking up after such a long time.
When had I ever suffered such humiliation?
I felt my blood boiling in reverse.
"Fine! Let's do this, you bastard!"
I drew upon every ounce of strength I had.
My senses pushed past their limits and began to process an overwhelming amount of information.
Perhaps because of that, the skeleton's attacks, which I hadn't been able to see properly, began to come into focus.
It was as if I were watching a slow-motion video.
*Sizzle!*
I heard a burning sound from somewhere. My head felt like it was boiling over.
At this rate, my brain would burst before long.
Damn it.
Whether I die this way or that, it makes no difference.
Even if I were to die here, I was determined to smash that insufferable skeleton to pieces, and with that single-minded focus, I activated my Heavenly Perceptive Saint Body to its absolute limit.
But then.
'Huh?'
The carvings inside the cave began to move as if they were alive.
Just like the old Taoist of Sambong Island.
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