Episode 578: Return to the Demon Sect
Sabikang smirked, his lips curling up in a mocking grin.
“Did you think I was an easy target?”
“Silence, you human insect!”
Whoosh!
Once again, Lucidal’s form dissolved into smoke, and in the blink of an eye, he lunged at Sabikang.
The next moment—
Thud!
A dull sound echoed as Lucidal’s fist connected with Sabikang’s face.
Yet, Lucidal’s expression twisted in surprise.
Astonishingly, Sabikang had caught Lucidal’s punch with his hand.
“You little…!”
Whoosh!
Lucidal retreated, transforming back into smoke, and drew his sword from his waist. As the blade materialized, it exuded a chilling aura.
Meanwhile, five guardians charged at Baritan.
Baritan sneered coldly.
“You underestimate me.”
Swoosh!
His form shot forward like lightning, colliding with the five guardians.
Clang! Clang!
Sparks flew.
The guardians pushed their magic to the limit to withstand the assault.
Crash! Clang!
Amidst the flurry of sparks, one guardian was flung back as their sword clashed violently.
In that opening, another guardian managed to slash Baritan’s shoulder with their blade.
Splat!
Blood spurted from the wound, and Baritan’s brow furrowed slightly.
“These insolent…”
The guardians could hold their ground against Baritan only because they were using every ounce of their magic. For them, there was no tomorrow. Their sole mission was to protect their master at this moment, so they poured all their power into the fight.
Then, suddenly—
Whoosh.
Baritan’s form split and transformed into five identical guardians. This was another power granted by the demon of allure.
“Ha!”
In an instant, the five Baritans, each in the guise of a guardian, charged with a battle cry.
Clang! Clang!
A chaotic melee ensued as the five guardians clashed with their doppelgangers.
As time passed, it became impossible to distinguish friend from foe.
Eventually, the guardians began fighting those who looked just like them, trusting only in themselves.
But no matter how much magic they summoned, Baritan was a formidable opponent, even among the nobility.
As the battle dragged on, more guardians were injured, and finally, three of them fell.
The reason they could be sure the fallen were guardians was that their bodies remained as corpses.
As the fight continued, the two remaining guardians naturally ended up back-to-back.
One guardian spoke to the other behind him.
“For the Duke, let’s use our last resort.”
“Agreed.”
They were in accord.
Blast Mana.
In other words, a self-destructive explosion.
If they unleashed their magic simultaneously, the area would be obliterated.
This was a last-ditch tactic used by guardians to protect their master.
Traditionally, only guardians learned Blast Mana, and even the most powerful demons would be reduced to ashes before it.
The guardian who spoke first began to gather all his magic into his heart.
His face turned a deep red, as if it might explode at any moment.
But then—
”……!”
He caught sight of a body lying in the bushes.
It was the guardian who had been standing back-to-back with him.
‘Then the one behind me is…’
In that instant—
Slash!
He felt as if he were floating in the air.
But it wasn’t his body that was rising; it was his head.
Thud, roll…
His head hit the ground, blinking as it looked at his still-standing body.
Thud!
Finally, a sword pierced through his body, stabbing through his heart.
Swoosh!
As the sword was withdrawn, the headless body collapsed.
Behind the fallen corpse, the figure of a guardian shimmered and then transformed back into Baritan.
The last thing the guardian saw was Baritan’s form before he died completely.
Whoosh.
The remaining doppelgangers, still in the guise of guardians, merged back into Baritan.
Seeing the five guardians sprawled lifelessly around him, Baritan turned to check on Sabikang and Lucidal.
The two were still locked in combat.
“Perhaps I should join in?”
Flash!
In an instant, Baritan’s form shot towards Lucidal.
**
The surroundings were utter chaos.
Demons and monsters summoned from the portal clashed fiercely with the demon hunters, fighting desperately.
Among them were the forces Baritan had brought with him.
Helmut led his knights, ensuring no one could escape.
Mu Lang had cast a spell, turning the forest near the portal into a maze, so even if anyone survived, they would inevitably return to the same spot.
“Not a single one must escape.”
“Understood!”
Zeke, standing beside him, nodded and charged towards the enemy.
Helmut, too, threw himself into the fray, swinging his weapon wildly at the resisting demons.
“There’s the traitor!”
“Kill him first!”
Recognizing Helmut, the demons swarmed around him.
Helmut surveyed them with a cold gaze.
About twenty demons surrounded him.
“Do you think you can defeat me with just this?”
“Hah! You, who bowed to humans, dare to speak so boldly!”
“Enough talk. Face my blade!”
Whoosh!
The demons lunged at Helmut all at once.
In that instant, a reddish aura burst from Helmut’s body, and his form vanished like a mirage.
“What the…!”
The startled demons quickly scanned their surroundings.
Meanwhile—
Splat! Splat!
Blood spurted from the necks of the demons standing awkwardly, and they began to fall one by one.
Though Helmut hadn’t received the demon god’s blessing, he had gained a unique ability when he became the official captain of the knights, favored by the demon king.
When enemies entered a certain range, he could absorb their magic to enhance his speed.
In this state, his opponents slowed down while he moved faster.
In a way, it was like creating a time-lag attack opportunity by absorbing their magic.
However, the effect didn’t last long, and it consumed a lot of magic, so he could only use it twice a day.
Moreover, it was limited to absorbing magic, which was a drawback.
Thus, he couldn’t use this ability when fighting someone like Sabikang, who used internal energy.
Thanks to this ability, the twenty demons fell in an instant.
For them, it was a mere moment, but to Helmut, their movements seemed sluggish.
Once the twenty demons lay defeated, the red aura dissipated slowly.
Just as Helmut was about to move—
Boom!
A loud noise and tremor erupted from one side of the forest.
Helmut instinctively knew that Sabikang was there.
He could also faintly sense the presence of Baritan and Lucidal.
He immediately dashed towards the source of the sound.
**
Lucidal alternated his gaze between Sabikang and Baritan, trying to catch his breath.
His expression was grim.
All the guardians who had protected him were now lifeless bodies scattered around.
Facing Sabikang alone had been daunting enough.
But with Baritan joining in, the fight had become even more challenging.
He had tried to escape several times, but each attempt was thwarted by either Baritan or Sabikang.
However, Sabikang and Baritan’s teamwork was far from perfect.
Though they were both fighting the same enemy, their motives differed.
Baritan aimed to eliminate Lucidal himself to absorb the demon god’s power, while Sabikang’s goal was to prevent that.
Sharpening a blade too much can cut the wielder.
Baritan’s strength was just right as it was.
If he grew any stronger, it would become problematic.
There needed to be a balance with the Cloud Sect.
Thus, even as Sabikang fought Lucidal, he subtly kept Baritan in check.
Baritan was no different.
To absorb the demon god’s power, he couldn’t let Sabikang take Lucidal.
So, the two pretended to attack Lucidal while secretly hindering each other.
This was why Lucidal had managed to survive so far.
But he realized the situation was becoming increasingly unfavorable.
His magic was gradually depleting.
‘Damn it! Being tied down by these two is dangerous…!’
Yet, he couldn’t afford to conserve his magic against such formidable foes.
‘I shouldn’t have wasted time on those small fry!’
He thought of the Heavenly Destruction Squad and the Newborn Order.
But he quickly realized that shaking them off wouldn’t have been easy either.
Ultimately, it was because of them that he was now low on magic.
There was no choice left.
He had to make a decisive move.
‘No other way.’
Dragging this out would lead nowhere.
Resolute, Lucidal focused his energy, his body dissolving into smoke.
Whoosh!
Swoosh! Clang!
Vertas swung his sword diagonally upward, slicing through the smoke, while Baritan brought his blade down in a slant, clashing with Vertas’s weapon.
A heavy vibration traveled up their wrists.
Bang!
In an instant, the smoke erupted in an explosion.
The force sent both of them skidding backward.
To an observer, it might have seemed like a simple mistake, their swords colliding by chance. But even in that brief moment, they were testing each other, their inner strength and magic clashing.
Had Savigang’s internal energy not been as profound as it was, he would have suffered internal injuries and coughed up blood.
Meanwhile, Lucidal, who had transformed into smoke, triggered the explosion and then darted away like the wind.
Breaking through the encirclement of Savigang and Baritan, he revealed his true form and sprinted away at high speed.
But then—
“Where do you think you’re going?”
A shadow suddenly dropped from the sky, bringing a sword down vertically.
“Gah!”
Lucidal swallowed a gasp and turned back into smoke.
Thud!
The sword sliced through the smoke, embedding itself in the ground.
The attacker was none other than Neungunpa.
Momentarily held up by ten guardians, he had managed to escape the summoning circle and track down Lucidal.
Swish, swish, swish!
Neungunpa unleashed a relentless barrage of sword strikes.
Thwack, thwack, thwack!
Each time his blade touched Lucidal’s form, that part disintegrated into ash, slicing through empty air.
Yet Neungunpa did not relent.
Unlike ordinary demons, he could wield both internal energy and magic simultaneously.
Thus, when his magic was depleted, he could replenish it with his internal energy.
“I’ll keep cutting until your magic is completely drained!”
Swish, swish, swish!
Neungunpa attacked Lucidal with unyielding ferocity.
Finally, Lucidal let out a roar, summoning all his remaining magic.
“You fools! If it comes to this, I’ll obliterate you all!”
Boom, boom, boom!
Lucidal, in his smoke form, triggered a series of explosions.
It was a desperate attempt to fight back, squeezing out every last drop of his magic.
Neungunpa spread his wings wide and retreated.
The sheer explosive force prevented him from getting any closer.
Just as Lucidal’s form began to solidify,
Whoosh!
Vertas shot through the air like a beam of light, driving his sword into Lucidal’s neck.
“Gah!”
As Lucidal staggered,
Flash!
A figure appeared behind him.
It was Baritan.
And then—
Thud!
“Aaargh!”
“Bon appétit.”
Baritan’s voice whispered in Lucidal’s ear.
Rip!
Without hesitation, Baritan tore out Lucidal’s heart.
He had been waiting for this moment.
As Lucidal made his final stand, Savigang would deal him a fatal blow, and Baritan would seize the heart to absorb the power of the dark god!
Baritan gazed at the pulsating heart with satisfaction.