The Demon God’s Secret (6)
The Demon God’s Secret wasn’t just a manual for a single martial art.
Swordsmanship, saber techniques, fist techniques, spear techniques… it encompassed a wide array of martial arts. However, they weren’t divided into separate sections.
The first two-thirds of the manual detailed the overall system and operational methods of the Demon God’s Secret.
The remaining third explained each martial art, connecting them to the teachings outlined earlier. In simpler terms, you first learn the common foundation and then choose a martial art to specialize in. It was an incredibly rational approach to crafting a manual.
My gaze returned to the inscription above the door.
<Once you have chosen your path, the door will open before you.>
Choosing a path likely meant deciding which martial art to pursue.
I chose swordsmanship. The martial arts I was most proficient in were swordsmanship and fist techniques. Originally, my main focus was the Soul-Reaping Asura Swordsmanship, but after learning the Celestial Crane Techniques, I had two specialties.
Despite my recent obsession with the Celestial Crane Techniques, I couldn’t let go of the allure of swordsmanship.
Standing before the door, I declared my choice: swordsmanship.
But the door didn’t open. Choosing a path wasn’t as simple as deciding, “I will learn swordsmanship.”
Just like with the Demon God’s Wind Steps, I needed to master the swordsmanship from the Demon God’s Secret before standing before that door.
Fortunately, there were no difficult terms or cryptic phrases. I had already grasped the new vocabulary and differences in the martial arts system from the Demon God’s Wind Steps commentary.
Yet, the martial arts in the Demon God’s Secret were profoundly deep.
The greatness of it was evident just from the mental cultivation techniques. The Demon God’s Secret could be executed based on the Blood Thunder Heart Method, but its nature and capabilities were entirely different from the Heavenly Demon’s martial art, the Blood Thunder Heavenly Fire Technique. It was a far superior martial art.
This wasn’t to belittle the Blood Thunder Heavenly Fire Technique. The Demon God’s Secret was simply an exceptional martial art, incomparable to my own or the Heavenly Demon’s.
After reading the Demon God’s Secret from start to finish, I closed the book and said to myself, “This is truly incredible.”
The Heavenly Demon shared a similar sentiment.
“It’s truly astounding.”
And then we both said simultaneously, “How do we even learn this?”
It was difficult. Really difficult. It wasn’t that I couldn’t understand it; I did. But the way it was executed was so challenging that I couldn’t even imagine attempting it. It was far more difficult than the Demon God’s Wind Steps I had learned before.
“I think I gave up at this point too,” admitted the Heavenly Demon.
I laughed and replied, “Haha, I bet you didn’t even pass the first trial.”
“Don’t underestimate me! I could pass that much.”
“Did you open all the rooms and find the study, and then discover the commentary there?”
”…No. Damn it! I probably failed at the first stage. Who would have imagined there’d be a commentary in such a place?”
If I hadn’t been certain the answer lay outside, I wouldn’t have found it either.
The Heavenly Demon spoke in a slightly subdued voice, “Well, you passed, didn’t you? So don’t give up.”
“It’s not just the difficulty; there’s a bigger problem.”
“Inner power?”
“Yes, how do I solve the issue of inner power?”
The Demon God’s Secret stated that to truly master its martial arts, one needed the inner power of eight cycles.
“Eight cycles. Who names their dog ‘Eight Cycles’?”
“How much inner power do you have now?”
“Four cycles.”
“Exactly half.”
Even reaching four cycles of inner power required considerable effort, luck, and money. But eight cycles?
“You have a lot of money, right? Let’s buy some elixirs.”
“Elixirs? You know they barely have any effect now. To increase my inner power by four cycles with money, it would cost hundreds of millions of nyang. And even then, it might not be enough.”
“Don’t you have that much money?”
“I just said hundreds of millions of nyang.”
“So you don’t have that much?”
“Of course not.”
Even if I did, I would seriously question whether it was worth spending such a fortune to increase my inner power.
Suddenly, a thought struck me.
“Could it be that only the rich can become a Demon God?”
“What? What nonsense is that?”
In the next moment, I jumped to my feet.
“Right! That can’t be true, can it?”
“Why are you suddenly like this?”
“Isn’t there a way to increase inner power here?”
“Here?”
“Yes, in this Demon God’s Castle. I admit this place is extraordinary. Not to mention the Demon God’s Wind Steps and the Demon God’s Secret are both incredible martial arts. If this is a test to see if one is worthy of learning such great martial arts, wouldn’t there be a provision for inner power?”
“Hmm, maybe.”
The Heavenly Demon somewhat agreed with me. But the problem was this:
“But you’ve already explored everything here, haven’t you?”
I sat back down.
”…Yes, I’ve looked everywhere.”
I hadn’t searched every nook and cranny, but at a glance, there didn’t seem to be any place where elixirs might be stored.
“Anyway, let’s head out.”
At least one thing was clear: this wasn’t a test that could be solved within this room.
The answer was definitely outside.
I meticulously examined every building again, checking for secret vaults or storerooms.
After thoroughly searching one building, I stopped my search. The Heavenly Demon asked, “Why are you giving up so soon? That’s not like you.”
“I suddenly felt this wasn’t the right method.”
“What do you mean?”
“In the first trial, you had to thoroughly search the room to find the commentary, right?”
“Yes.”
“But would they prepare the second trial in the exact same way?”
“Hmm.”
I felt it wasn’t the case. The Demon God’s Castle, the Demon God’s Wind Steps, and the Demon God’s Secret all had a certain dignity and class beyond their excellence.
The trial of the Demon God’s Secret would be no different.
So there must be another way to solve the inner power issue.
Not simply buying elixirs with money or searching for secret rooms or vaults, but some other method.
What could it possibly be?
＊＊＊
Tension filled the Leader’s Hall.
The news that had arrived was dire. In just one day, thirty-seven members of the Demon Slayer Squad were killed by an unknown man, and the leader of the squad was slain by Cheon So-seon in a single day.
“How could this happen?”
Ma Cheol-gun had repeated this question countless times.
Losing thirty or forty men in a confrontation wasn’t necessarily a huge issue. But hearing the eyewitness accounts of those present, this was the greatest crisis since he became the leader.
The heads of the important organizations lined up on either side remained silent. Most of them had been swayed by the forces behind the scenes following the death of the Iron Cavalry Leader, Joo Cheol-ryong.
But with Joo Cheol-ryong dead and contact with the forces behind the scenes severed, they had returned to Ma Cheol-gun.
Yet, before the ink of their betrayal had even dried, the forces behind the scenes reappeared, displaying unprecedented divine power.
Everyone was trembling with fear.
At that moment, the Chief Military Advisor, Old Master No, spoke up.
“The enemy has hinted that they will come directly. We must prepare for this. We need to alert the Martial Alliance and seek help from the masters of the Central Plains.”
Ma Cheol-gun’s expression hardened slightly. Seeking external help was not something he wanted to do, but Old Master No’s judgment was correct.
“Very well, do as you suggest.”
Then came a somber voice.
“Will that really be enough?”
All eyes turned to the speaker. It was Ma Cheol-gun’s younger brother and the leader of the Heavenly Path Sect, Ma Ryeong-in.
“Perhaps we need a different strategy?”
Old Master No responded to his words.
“Such as?”
“Surrendering, perhaps?”
“What an outrageous suggestion!”
Old Master No raised his voice in anger.
“No matter if you are the leader’s kin, I cannot forgive words that undermine the dignity of the Alliance and the leader!”
He spoke more forcefully to boost morale.
Ma Ryeong-in shrugged his shoulders.
“I was just saying, don’t get too worked up and just ignore it.”
It was at that moment.
Boom!
The door to the Leader’s Hall shattered and flew off its hinges.
Ma Ryeong-in frowned and muttered under his breath, “Ignoring it might be a big mistake…”
Through the shattered door, two figures walked in. They were Cheon Wang-gun and Cheon So-seon.
As they strode in with an imposing presence, the martial artists of the Tiger Squad blocked their path.
“Stop right there!”
Of course, Cheon Wang-gun and Cheon So-seon didn’t stop.
As they continued to stride forward, the Tiger Squad martial artists simultaneously drew their swords and attacked.
Cheon Wang-gun waved his hand once.
In that instant, the Tiger Squad martial artists froze in place. It was as if an invisible force had seized them. That force did something it shouldn’t have.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
The bodies of the Tiger Squad martial artists burst and fell to the ground.
Some had the vital points in their heads burst, while others had the pressure points in their necks or hearts explode.
Twenty or so masters fell simultaneously. Even the Tiger Squad Leader, Im Joong-tae, was no exception. That formidable master was rendered powerless without even a chance to fight back.
The horrific sight left everyone in shock. It felt surreal, like something out of a nightmare. No one could comprehend what technique had been used.
Cheon Wang-gun continued to walk toward the dais.
“Stop,” said the White Tiger Squad Leader, blocking his path.
But those were his last words.
Thud!
As Cheon Wang-gun waved his hand again, the White Tiger Squad Leader’s eyes burst, spraying blood. He died in a gruesome manner.
Cheon Wang-gun walked up to the dais.
Even then, Ma Cheol-gun remained seated. The fear of death weighed heavily on him.
Cheon Wang-gun asked, “Do you think that seat belongs to you?”
Ma Cheol-gun’s eyes trembled. He couldn’t decide what to do.
At that moment, down below, Master Noh shook his head, signaling not to be stubborn.
“No, I won’t.”
Ma Cheol-gun stood up and descended the steps.
Cheonwang-gun took his seat at the head of the table, with Cheon So-seon standing beside him, ready to assist.
Cheonwang-gun wasted no time. After leaving the safe house, he swiftly consolidated his existing followers and took control of the Martial Alliance with lightning speed.
There was no need for elaborate plans or deliberation. His martial prowess was simply too overwhelming.
The leaders of each faction gathered in the grand hall knelt before him.
“We greet the new leader!”
Ma Cheol-gun clenched his teeth. Despite the circumstances, he couldn’t believe how quickly they betrayed him, right in front of his eyes.
Ma Ryeong-in was the first to kneel, and finally, even Master Noh bent his knee. With a glance, Master Noh urged Ma Cheol-gun to do the same.
“We greet the new leader.”
Without further hesitation, Ma Cheol-gun knelt.
Just a few days ago, such a scene in the leader’s hall would have been unimaginable.
Cheonwang-gun spoke lazily.
“Doesn’t a new leader need new followers?”
Understanding the implication, those kneeling trembled. Cheonwang-gun smiled, showing his white teeth, relishing their fear.
＊＊＊
Ten days had passed since the second trial began.
I still hadn’t solved the internal energy problem.
But I wasn’t drowning my sorrows in alcohol or wallowing in despair.
Often, the solution to a problem comes unexpectedly while engaged in unrelated activities.
What I did was immerse myself in mastering the Demonic Wind Step. From the start, I was completely captivated by this martial art.
As time went on, I moved faster and soared higher.
Whoosh.
Even now, I was using the Demonic Wind Step to ascend as high as possible.
I had never been this high before. Not only because I hadn’t mastered the Demonic Wind Step, but also because I never had a reason to.
Reaching such heights felt liberating.
Just as I was about to descend back to the ground, something caught my eye.
During my initial flights, I had noticed that the buildings of the Demonic Fortress were shaped like a demon’s face.
But now, having ascended even higher with the Demonic Wind Step, I discovered something else.
It wasn’t just a face; there was a body too. The winding walls formed the shape of shoulders and arms.
And I could see it.
There was something at the spot where the waist extended, near the dantian. Whether it was a separate building or a marker, I couldn’t tell from here.
In any case, I would never have noticed it without reaching such heights with the Demonic Wind Step.
I realized why the Demonic Wind Step was part of the first trial. It was the key to solving the second trial.
Turning my body in the air, I began a rapid descent toward the dantian area.