WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Chen
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ The Martial Genius who Remembers Everything ◈
Chapter 352: Escape (2)
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The Seven Great Monstrous Arts.
Even within the Demonic Cult, a place full of madmen, they were considered demonic arts among demonic arts.
The fact that that bastard had mastered the Aberrant Fiend Demon Art told me he was an even bigger bastard than most of those fucking bastards.
Of course, finding someone in the Demonic Cult who was not a fucking bastard would probably be harder.
Still, his unusual appearance and his damned habit of eating people let me recall his identity.
Demon Lord Naeng Okhwan.
Figuring out who he was was not good news.
It was horrifying enough that I had encountered him in Heavenly Cave.
Now that lunatic had come with plans to wipe us out. There was no way that could be good news.
‘But...’
Je Geumhak's rampant innate qi had filled my dantian and entire body until I felt like I was about to burst. At that point, nothing could stop me.
No, more accurately, I had no time to think.
If I did not vent this energy first, I felt like I would die.
Boom! Boom-boom-boom!
As I pushed the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand to its limit, my hands shone so brightly that I could no longer see their shape.
Then I poured everything I had into him.
Fwoosh.
Flames spread easily through his long, inhuman fur, which gave off a foul stench.
The fur itself might not have felt anything, but once it caught fire, the heat quickly traveled into his skin.
“Gahhhhh!”
Who told you to grow your fur like some animal?
While he screamed in pain, I poured internal energy into the Scarlet Radiance Sword.
Three White Moon Heaven-Subduing Forms
First Form
Extreme Swiftness
My sword cut through him without mercy.
Swoosh!
A long diagonal line of blood appeared across his body, followed by the sound of the blade cutting through the air.
Riiip.
“Guhk!”
He spewed dark red blood and began to fall backward.
Just as I swung my sword again to finish him off...
A long strip of red cloth flew in and swiftly wrapped itself around Naeng Okhwan.
His pained cries gradually grew quieter.
His entire body was now covered in red cloth, making him look like a bizarre woman dressed in crimson.
“Ghk... You bastard. I let my guard down for a moment...”
Rumble.
I prepared the Mad Heaven Divine Palm while he spoke.
Then...
“Hm?”
Before he could finish speaking, I unleashed it.
Kwakakakakakabang!
The earth shook beneath the enormous energy clash and the palm force sweeping across the ground.
“Gah! W-wait...”
I still had plenty of internal energy to spare, so I prepared the Mad Heaven Divine Palm again and fired it.
Kwakakakakakabang!
After two consecutive Mad Heaven Divine Palms swept through the area, not a trace of the red cloth around Naeng Okhwan remained.
Chunks of flesh had been torn from his entire body, blood flowing freely, and bone showed through in several places.
Yet...
“This is insane...”
Nam Hwaseong could not help groaning at the sight.
Saaaah.
The wound that had split Naeng Okhwan's body was already healing.
“What the hell is that?!”
The wounds he had suffered after taking the Mad Heaven Divine Palm head-on were also beginning to mend.
“Unit Commander Jin...”
“Unit Commander...”
Those facing Naeng Okhwan could not hide their stunned expressions.
An existence that would not die no matter how many times you killed it.
It felt like confronting that tiresome Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear again.
That thing had been a pain to cut apart too. But so what?
I answered flatly.
“So what do you expect me to do about it?”
Had I not already learned this while fighting the Ten-Thousand-Year Earth Bear?
If the enemy's head did not break, all I had to do was keep hitting it until it did.
Besides, I had just restored all my internal energy through that man who was good for my body(?), and even expanded my dantian.
For some reason, every injury on my body had healed as well.
“Let's see how tough you really are, you son of a bitch!”
I used the Taeul Eighty Thousand Divine Steps and charged at him.
He took an attacking stance, prepared to counterattack at any moment.
He was attacking even in this state?
These lunatics.
The Aberrant Fiend Demon Art was not simply a demonic art that altered one's appearance or granted monstrous recovery and stubborn vitality.
‘Though that alone is already ridiculous.’
The most terrifying part of the Aberrant Fiend Demon Art was that it made up for the weaknesses of the Demonic Cult's attack-focused martial arts while strengthening their advantages even further.
Crack.
The original Demon Spirit Divine Fist displayed clearer, more definite forms of attack, but the Demon Spirit Divine Fist he used instead made its presence harder to perceive.
Boom! Bam-bam-bam!
I narrowly dodged the exploding energy clashes and pressed forward, only for beastly Naeng Okhwan to unleash the Ninefold Thunder-Splitting Demon Fist.
They were clearly different martial arts, yet they flowed together as naturally as a chained fist technique.
Faint sparks trailed behind his fists, and black lightning poured out along their paths.
Kwang!
I raised the Devouring Gauntlet to block it, but the current burrowed inside, trying to burn out the optic nerves throughout my body.
I drove out the lightning with even more overwhelming internal energy and counterattacked at the same time.
Rumble.
Had he predicted what I would do?
A cry of admiration escaped his lips.
“This crazy son of...”
Without hesitation, I unleashed the Mad Heaven Divine Palm.
Kwakakakakakakabang!
Then I released the Twin Heavens Sword Art at him as he barely evaded the Mad Heaven Divine Palm.
“Damn it!!!”
His face twisted again after he had relaxed upon evading it, and dozens of sword qi rained down over his head.
Papapapapapapak!
An ordinary person would have been reduced to minced meat by that attack, but he escaped its range as though it were nothing.
Bang!
He kicked off the ground with such force that a one-jang-wide swath of earth was violently torn open around him.
“...”
I fired the Flying Dragon Claw and dragged him back toward me.
“Gah!”
The moment I was about to drive the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand into him as he was pulled helplessly closer...
Swoosh!
Red qi force slipped into the gap like a snake.
At the same time, the Academy students who had been fighting the Ice Flower Witch screamed.
“Unit Commander! Watch out...!”
Before they could finish, the red qi force struck Naeng Okhwan's body and exploded.
Could she not even aim properly?
Boom!
But I had underestimated these lunatics.
The aftermath of the red qi force exploding directly between Naeng Okhwan and me reached me as well.
Wow, these lunatics...
She attacked her comrade just to attack me.
‘Does she think it's fine because the Aberrant Fiend Demon Art can heal him? Hah, even so...’
It was still chilling beyond comprehension, no matter how many times I experienced it.
I checked what she had spread around with such an attack.
“Urgh...”
Pain swept over me as though my skin were burning.
‘Blood venom.’
The blood venom, one of the Ice Flower Witch's martial arts, would spread throughout the body and melt every organ if the poisoning was not stopped.
I quickly gathered the poisoned energy into my hands and urgently unleashed the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand.
Fwoosh.
As the energy burned, black, acrid smoke rose into the air.
Only after using the martial art at full power for quite some time was I able to burn away the poisonous energy.
The Ice Flower Witch, who had drawn close at some point, spoke in a clear voice.
“Oh? You overcame the Fiend-Exterminating Blood Venom. Are you perhaps from Sichuan?”
When I looked at the Academy students who had been facing the Ice Flower Witch, their complexions had already turned pale from suffering under the blood venom.
Cheol Sunjik and Dang Gihan were running toward us, but neither looked to be in good condition.
Even considering the difference in skill, the reason we were being pushed back this badly had to be because their martial arts were more grotesque than anything I could imagine.
There was no obvious way to respond.
Nor could I think of a way to turn the battle around.
The mad bitch in front of me was still letting out that bizarre laugh.
These perverts were truly beyond imagination. Fuck.
“Your friend got his ass kicked too, you crazy bitch.”
As my thoughts grew tangled, a curse slipped out.
The Ice Flower Witch looked blank for a moment, as though she had not expected to be cursed at, then began cackling again.
“Interesting. You're a truly interesting one.”
Then she abruptly stopped laughing.
“Hm.”
She looked me over as if measuring something.
“I thought you had learned an unusual martial art, but that wasn't it. Hehe.”
The Ice Flower Witch tapped her cheek with a long finger, and her eyes flashed.
“...!”
She stared directly into my eyes and curled her lips.
“You were the one who consumed the Fire Purification.”
“What?!”
Naeng Okhwan, who had been suffering beside us from the Fiend-Exterminating Blood Venom, suddenly raised his head with a shocked expression.
“Ghk! What kind of bullshit is that... There is no way a White Path bastard could absorb... Cough!”
Before he could finish, I rushed at him with the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand once more.
If Naeng Okhwan had truly been poisoned by the blood venom...
I had to kill him before the Fiend-Exterminating Blood Venom was neutralized.
Even the Aberrant Fiend Demon Art would need time to detoxify it.
Ting.
The Ice Flower Witch did not stand by and wait.
She snapped her fingers and fired another stream of red qi force.
I deliberately accelerated and ran forward.
If I could not block it anyway, it was better to dodge it.
I pushed my qi force to its limit and thrust forward.
Then I twisted my sword toward the red qi force, imbuing it with the principle of Lotus as much as possible.
Srrrng.
With a strange sound cutting through the air, the path of the red qi force twisted and passed beside my ear.
The recoil threw the Scarlet Radiance Sword from my hand, but I did not bother picking it up again.
Right now, the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand was more effective than the Scarlet Radiance Sword.
Boom.
The instant I heard an explosion behind me, I rushed at Naeng Okhwan even faster.
“Y-you damned bastard...!”
Naeng Okhwan, still not fully recovered, threw out a hurried fist.
Instead of blocking or deflecting it, I focused on attacking.
I had not wanted to, but it was time to test the effect of the Vajra Elixir.
At that moment...
Boom!
The impact felt powerful enough to break every one of my ribs.
For an instant, I felt like I could not breathe.
It even felt as though my body had been pierced straight through.
But...
‘It held?’
My ribs had not broken.
I had really endured it. Someone would be very happy to hear that. Anyway.
“Hoo...”
Both of my hands were still intact.
I rolled my wrists once.
“Now it's my turn, you son of a bitch!”
Then I returned the favor.
Of course, my attack had far more destructive power.
Boom! Boom-boom!
A fierce explosion erupted, and Naeng Okhwan's entire body was engulfed in flames.
Dang Gihan and Cheol Sunjik stepped in to stop the Ice Flower Witch as she tried to approach me.
‘They need to be careful...’
I soon dismissed my concern for the others.
There was no way we would return alive unless I dealt with these two here.
“Guhk!”
Naeng Okhwan had been forced into danger by the Ice Flower Witch's blunder.
I could not let this golden opportunity pass.
I extended the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand with all my strength.
Boom! Boom-boom!
His fur burned, and chunks of flesh exploded.
I threw the Flying Dragon Claw and retrieved the Scarlet Radiance Sword.
Sword force rose from the Scarlet Radiance Sword once it returned to my hand.
I immediately swung it, leaving a long sword wound across his body.
Slash, slash.
“Oh?”
Amazingly, by the time I made the fourth sword wound, the first was already healing.
His recovery was astonishing even while poisoned by the Fiend-Exterminating Blood Venom.
“So that's how it is?”
After that, I used the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand on the places where I had cut him.
Boom!
“Gahhhhhhh!”
Flames touched his split flesh, then spread like poison as they drove out the demonic qi within him, making him suffer even more.
“I'll kill you...! I'll kill you!!!!”
Despite wounds that would have killed any ordinary person long ago, he still displayed the same level of skill as before.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a shining bald head.
“Catch him!”
At my shout, Ilgak released a golden radiance and grabbed Naeng Okhwan from behind.
While Naeng Okhwan tried to throw Ilgak off, I shoved the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand into his mouth.
“Gahhhk!”
Naeng Okhwan's throat literally began to burn. He tried to bite my arm off with his tremendous, beastlike jaw strength, but...
Wooooong.
I immediately activated the Azure Dragon Bangle.
“G-g-g-g-guhhhk!”
Naeng Okhwan's body began shaking as though he had suffered a stroke.
His wounds visibly began to heal more slowly.
Then, in his final moment, I drove the Scarlet Radiance Sword into his heart.
Stab!
Ghk...
The strength drained from the jaws that had been clenched as if they would bite off my arm.
His enormous body fell backward.
Thud.
I ignited the Sacred Flame Demon-Extinguishing Hand again, driving it into his torn heart while making flames rise over his head.
“Huff, huff, huff.”
I stared at the crackling flames and struggled to catch my breath.
I got him. I had even killed that damned Demon Lord.
“...You.”
For the first time, the Ice Flower Witch's expression stiffened completely.
She looked much better that way.
Her ugly face had been bothering me for a while.
I pointed my chin toward Naeng Okhwan's burning body, now little more than kindling.
“He died because of you. You know that, right? Your idiotic poison killed him.”
The reply to my mockery was a masterpiece.
“His level was simply trash compared to what I expected.”
“...Right. You people have always been like this.”
I slowly walked toward the Ice Flower Witch.
Then...
Rumble.
I immediately fired the Mad Heaven Divine Palm.
Kwakakakakakabang!
But the Ice Flower Witch had vanished without a trace.
Then a voice full of coldness reached me.
“The master of this world has already been decided. The only question is whether you will die in agony before them or not.”
The voice had come from where Naeng Okhwan had been.
When had she moved there?
Her skill was enough to surprise even masters of movement arts.
I had thought her understanding of martial arts seemed deep even apart from her demonic arts.
“He's already dead.”
The Ice Flower Witch showed an ominous smile at my cold laugh.
“You do not know what martial art he learned.”
“What?”
“Heh.”
What was so funny?
Everything they had wanted from this operation had failed.
“Do not worry. The Little Demon will like hearing about this even more.”
She showed neither grief at losing a comrade nor anger at failing her mission.
It was as if one task had simply ended.
That calm attitude was even more chilling.
The red cloth extended from the Ice Flower Witch's hand and began wrapping itself around Naeng Okhwan's corpse.
The Academy students and I fired throwing knives and sword qi at her, but not one of them reached her.
By the time I released my final stream of qi force, that ugly bitch had already climbed to the top of the cliff with Naeng Okhwan's body.
“That was fun, Black Flame Dragon. See you next time.”
Black Flame Dragon... Fuck.
With those chilling words, the Ice Flower Witch disappeared beyond the cliff.
“Ha, fun...”
As I repeated the words she had left behind, Ilgak asked me.
“Black Flame... No, Unit Commander Jin... What will you do? Are you thinking of pursuing them?”
I glared at the top of the cliff.
When it came to movement arts, I was second to none.
If Ilgak, a few others, and I worked together, we could certainly chase them.
But I shook my head.
“No. We run.”
“Run?”
I looked into the distance.
“I think the people who attacked us are coming.”
The amount of unpleasant demonic qi I could sense from afar was steadily increasing.
Seeing that the Ice Flower Witch was also moving in that direction, I was probably right.
I turned toward the Academy students.
“Take care of your comrades! We're moving again!”
“Yes!”
“Understood!”
Behind the Academy students, who hurriedly tended to the injured and began moving...
I looked once more toward where the Ice Flower Witch had vanished and made a vow.
Someday, the way they treated us would no longer feel like entertainment.
I would make it that way.
I etched that vow deep into my unforgettable memories.
Footnotes:
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