Episode 598: Return of the Demon Sect Leader
“The absence of Sabikang is indeed significant,” murmured Neung Un-pa, narrowing his eyes as he gazed down at the Demonic Palace from the hilltop.
Beside him, Gu Yoon furrowed his brow and asked, “Are you just going to stand by and watch?”
“And if I do?”
“My plan hinges on the Demonic Palace holding its ground. If it falls, everything we’ve worked for will be in vain.”
“Then there’s nothing to be done.”
“Leader!”
At Gu Yoon’s shout, Neung Un-pa turned his gaze, his eyes still narrowed. Gu Yoon found the face before him strangely unfamiliar. The features were the same, yet something was different. The cold, emotionless expression was one he had never seen on the leader he had served so faithfully. It was as if he were looking at a stranger.
Neung Un-pa chuckled softly. “How long will you keep calling me ‘Leader’? I am no longer tied to this world.”
“I understand. But for the sake of your ambitions, we must use the Demonic Palace to its fullest.”
“You speak well. Perhaps you’re right. But I’ve never wielded a dull blade, and if Sabikang is not as sharp as I thought, there’s no need to pick it up.”
“Are you really going to just watch?”
Gu Yoon pressed, but Neung Un-pa simply shifted his gaze back to the Demonic Palace. The scene was one of utter chaos, smoke rising and the acrid smell reaching even their vantage point. The outer palace was already a charred wasteland, and only the inner palace remained intact, thanks to the mechanisms set by Jo Shin-ryang and the formations laid by Mu Rang-do.
Yet, even those defenses seemed on the verge of collapse.
“Whatever training Sabikang is undergoing, if he can’t withstand this, then it’s his fate.”
“But…!”
“If I intervene against the demon army and Sabikang still fails, what then?”
”…”
“This is Sabikang’s trial. If he overcomes this, I can trust your plan more fully.”
Gu Yoon bit his lip. It was clear from Neung Un-pa’s expression that further persuasion was futile. Everything now depended on Sabikang.
Gu Yoon’s gaze turned towards the distant Demonic Palace. ‘Master, time is running out. Hurry!’
**
BOOM!
With a deafening explosion, Yeon Woo-gyeong was sent flying, crashing into part of a pavilion and rolling roughly across the ground.
“Damn it…!”
Injured, he struggled to rise, only to collapse again, coughing up blood.
“Ugh!”
As he spat out the dark blood, his consciousness began to fade. Around him, the members of the Celestial Destruction Squad and the Newborn Unit lay scattered like ragged dolls, all severely injured and unable to move. The only solace was that they were still alive.
“Tch!”
Yeon Woo-gyeong wiped the blood from his lips with his sleeve and stared intently through the rising dust.
Footsteps echoed, calm yet somehow dry, a sound too orderly for the chaos of the battlefield.
Through the dust, a shadow emerged, revealing the figure of a demon—Duke Trajan.
He glanced around before muttering to Yeon Woo-gyeong, “Are you the only rat left?”
Yeon Woo-gyeong slowly assumed a defensive stance, wary of Trajan. The demon was an insurmountable wall. The Celestial Destruction Squad and the Newborn Unit had attacked together, yet now they lay defeated. It was a miracle he was still standing.
A suffocating pressure emanated from Trajan, and Yeon Woo-gyeong struggled to speak as he gathered his energy.
“Why?”
“What are you curious about, primitive creature?” Trajan’s gaze was indifferent as he looked at Yeon Woo-gyeong.
Meeting that chilling stare, Yeon Woo-gyeong pressed on, “With your power, you could have killed us all. Why spare us?”
“I will kill you.”
”…!”
“But only after instilling sufficient fear. That is the Emperor’s command.”
Gritting his teeth, Yeon Woo-gyeong seethed with anger at the arrogant response, yet he couldn’t dismiss the confidence behind it.
“Do you think I’ll feel fear from the likes of you?”
With a burst of energy, Yeon Woo-gyeong launched himself forward for a final strike. But perhaps due to his depleted strength, his attack was easily deflected.
SNAP!
With a mere flick of his fingers, Trajan sent a wave of energy that struck Yeon Woo-gyeong’s sword and hit five points on his body. They weren’t vital points, just random strikes, yet the force was undeniable. For Yeon Woo-gyeong, already exhausted, even these blows were life-threatening.
CRASH!
Yeon Woo-gyeong skidded across the ground, trying to rise but collapsing again.
Footsteps echoed once more, and this time, survival seemed impossible.
Yeon Woo-gyeong lifted his head with difficulty. Trajan looked down at him, muttering, “I don’t like that look in your eyes.”
He raised his hand. In the next moment, as the energy surged towards Yeon Woo-gyeong, he would no longer be of this world.
Yeon Woo-gyeong smirked. “Tell them I couldn’t fulfill the command. That I couldn’t instill fear.”
In that instant—
WHOOSH!
Something sliced through the air, heading straight for Trajan. His hand twisted, catching the arrow that had suddenly appeared.
Then—
WHOOSH!
Spinning, he sent the arrow back in the direction it had come from.
WHOOSH!
The arrow flew to the top of the palace roof, targeting Dan Lijeong.
“Block it!”
Baek Mi-ryeong and Min Yu-hyang quickly moved, shouting as they did.
“Haah!”
BOOM!
Despite the clash of arrow and sword, an explosion resounded. The moment the arrow detonated, energy waves erupted, engulfing the three and causing the roof to collapse.
“Ugh!”
“Ahh!”
It was as if the arrow had unleashed a torrent of energy, overwhelming them before they could properly defend. The three plummeted to the ground, crashing down.
CRASH!
“Ugh…!”
The pain from the fall was nothing compared to the agony from the energy that had struck them. They had faced demons and monsters before, but this was the first time they encountered such an alien force. Their bodies were paralyzed, unable to move.
Trajan tilted his head slightly, then smirked.
“So, there are still more of you?”
A voice called out from somewhere, “Looks like the ambush failed.”
“We never expected it to work anyway.”
Two figures emerged behind Trajan—Jeok Mu-rin and Seo Rae-hyang.
Then—
“Now that it’s come to this, we’ll hold out until the master arrives.”
“Indeed.”
Mu-cheon and Tang Yi-hyeop appeared from the left.
And—
“If I die here, tell my master I died heroically trying to protect him.”
“Don’t worry. You won’t die.”
From the right came Chu Ryang and Mae Seol-ran.
Finally, two more approached from behind Yeon Woo-gyeong.
“I’ll do my best to atone for past mistakes here.”
“Of course you should.”
The two, Ja Un-ryong and Wi Geom-jong, exuded contrasting auras.
With eight people surrounding him, Trajan nodded, a smirk playing on his lips.
“Indeed. It seems one thing that rat said was true.”
His gaze fell on the fallen Yeon Woo-gyeong.
“At least you won’t feel fear. I must apologize to the Emperor, for that was an impossible task. How could ants know fear when crushed under a beast’s paw?”
“Hmph! You’re quite the chatterbox!”
Chu Ryang shouted, charging forward. At his signal, the eight rushed Trajan together.
From Chu Ryang’s arms, a creature leaped to the ground, roaring as it grew in size.
Simultaneously, the energy of the eight surged dramatically.
WHOOSH!
Though they numbered eight, the energy they unleashed split into dozens of streams. Their skills had improved, and they had all consumed the elixirs crafted by Jin Baek.
The battle was far from over.
In an instant, Trajan’s body seemed to split into dozens of pieces as he twisted and turned, deftly evading the powerful energy aimed at him.
“Banmyo!”
Churyang shouted as he swung his mana-infused sword, and Banmyo let out another earth-shaking roar, casting his gaze skyward.
Trajan felt a sudden drain of energy, as if his strength was being sapped away.
‘Ah, I see. That creature is a buffer!’
It dawned on him that the one casting debuffs on him was none other than the beast called Banmyo. At first, he had mistaken it for a common animal from the central lands, but now he realized it was undoubtedly a rare magical beast.
Though it seemed a waste to kill such a creature, it was a hindrance that needed to be dealt with.
With a swift movement, he darted towards Banmyo.
In that fleeting moment, the eight warriors exchanged knowing glances, as if they had been waiting for this very opportunity. From the start, they had come with a single strategy in mind. They had delayed engaging the enemy with their main forces, the Celestial Annihilation Squad and the Newborn Division, to buy time to perfect their plan.
Fortunately, the enemy had not rushed. Whether it was to instill fear as per the Demon King’s orders or not, their arrogance had inadvertently granted these eight warriors the time they needed.
After much deliberation, their strategy turned out to be surprisingly simple. They concluded that the only way to possibly defeat the demons was through straightforward combat.
And now was the moment to execute that strategy.
As Trajan moved to eliminate Banmyo, the source of the buffs, they unleashed their full assault in that split second.
If it worked, they would survive; if not, they would perish.
Sssshhh!
As Trajan’s sword aimed directly for Banmyo’s forehead, Churyang stepped in, blocking his path with a mana shield.
“Not so fast!”
The shield was larger and thicker than any he had conjured before. It had to be, for his mission was to use all his strength to block Trajan’s attack.
Each warrior was to pour every ounce of their power into a single strike.
That was the sole strategy they had chosen.