Episode 622: Return to the Demon Realm
Adler’s face twisted into a grotesque grin, his lips curling beneath the long, sharp spikes protruding from his skin. He leered at Maesalan, who was bound to a pillar, his laughter dripping with malice.
“You’ve got quite the body. Maybe I’ll have some fun before I end you.”
His chilling laughter echoed as he licked his lips, and suddenly, tendrils slithered out from the pillars, ceiling, and floor, snaking towards Maesalan.
The tendrils wrapped around her, tightening their grip. Adler, blessed by the evil god of demonic flora and parasites, was one with this underground chamber. He could feel every sensation the tendrils experienced.
“Heh, human skin is so delightfully soft.”
The tendrils coiled around Maesalan’s smooth legs, creeping upwards.
“Stop this, you fiend!” Chulyang shouted, lunging forward.
But more tendrils shot out, ensnaring him before he could reach her.
“Damn it…!”
He gritted his teeth, trying to muster his inner strength, but it was no use. Nearby, Banmyo was also trapped, unable to move.
“Ugh…!”
“You still don’t understand your situation, do you?” Adler sneered coldly.
Just then, a calm voice cut through the tension.
“Seems like you’re the one who doesn’t understand the situation.”
Adler frowned, turning his gaze to Maesalan, who was smiling faintly despite her predicament.
“What…?”
“The spikes are too crude; they must have dulled your senses.”
”…!”
Realization dawned on Adler, his eyes widening in shock.
“You… how…?”
The tendrils that had been coiled around Maesalan suddenly moved, tearing part of her clothing.
Beneath the torn fabric, something glimmered—a scale-like armor that was invisible to the untrained eye but unmistakable to Adler.
‘Dragon scales…!’
Indeed, Maesalan was wearing the dragon scale armor gifted to her by Sabikang, which the spikes had failed to penetrate. A cold smirk played on her lips.
“Do you understand now?”
In the next moment, she let out a sharp battle cry, swinging two swords simultaneously.
The blades sliced through the air, their energy like two serpents striking out.
At the same time, Banmyo roared mightily.
The energy transformed into two dragons, surging forward.
“Ugh!”
Adler gritted his teeth, summoning all the tendrils to shield himself.
The dragons tore through the tendrils, vanishing into the air.
Thinking he had barely managed to defend himself, Adler’s eyes widened again as more dragons appeared, doubling in number each time.
“Damn it…!”
As he struggled, Banmyo roared once more.
The sound was like the dragons’ cries, echoing towards Adler.
Finally.
“Noooo!”
The dragons’ energy slashed through Adler’s body mercilessly.
“Aaaagh!”
With a final scream, the tendrils shattered and crumbled.
Maesalan landed on the ground, momentarily losing her balance. Chulyang rushed to her side.
“Are you alright, Commander?”
“I’m fine… cough!”
Maesalan coughed up blood, the internal injuries from Adler’s spikes taking their toll despite the dragon scale armor’s protection.
Meanwhile, Adler, struck by the deadly sword technique, fell from the pillar with a thud.
Suddenly, the ground, walls, and ceiling began to tremble violently.
Adler’s fall had triggered a change in the demonic flora.
Chulyang quickly supported Maesalan, helping her to her feet.
“We need to get out of here!”
Just then, something bulged from the ground, lunging at Maesalan.
In an instant, Banmyo roared, stepping in front of her.
“Ugh! You wretched creature!”
It was Adler, still clinging to life, his body fused with the ground. He struggled to shake off Banmyo, who had latched onto his arm.
Chulyang seized the moment, slashing with his mana-infused sword.
“Die already!”
The blade pierced through Adler, his eyes widening in shock.
“You…!”
His grotesque face twisted further as spikes grew, reaching for Chulyang.
But a flash of light sliced through Adler’s neck.
Blood spurted like a fountain, and his head rolled to the ground.
“Phew!”
Maesalan exhaled deeply, her shoulders sagging. It had taken every last ounce of her strength.
Chulyang retrieved his sword from Adler’s chest.
Finally, Adler’s body melted into the ground, bubbling away.
Watching the gruesome sight, Maesalan muttered with a grimace.
“He’s definitely dead now, right?”
“Yes, let’s get out of here. This place is falling apart.”
The two hurriedly made their way out of the collapsing chamber.
**
A massive explosion shook the earth, as if a meteor had crashed down.
The colossal Tarant unleashed a relentless assault.
From a distance, the martial artists and warriors could only watch in awe, their mouths agape.
It was a scene of pure shock and terror.
Was this what it looked like when gods fought humans?
Or was it more like a god crushing a mere mortal?
Yet, Tarant seemed excessively enraged, shouting in an incomprehensible language, his attacks repeatedly thwarted by Sabikang.
Finally, Tarant leaped into the air, his massive form defying reality.
He descended like a comet, roaring.
“Insignificant!”
As his magical sword struck down, the space itself seemed to warp, a deafening noise erupting as dust filled the air.
Sabikang was flung back, crashing into a cliff.
The cliff crumbled, burying him beneath the rubble.
As the dust settled, Sabikang emerged, standing atop the fallen rocks.
“Had enough fun?”
He asked with a cold smile.
Tarant, momentarily angered, regained his composure.
“Have you… eliminated your weakness?”
“Weakness, you say…”
“The greatest weakness of you humans is your emotions, swaying like reeds. You hope easily, and despair just as quickly. Look at them, they had a glimmer of hope, and now they’re drowning in despair. Humans are a self-destructive species.”
Tarant glanced at the battlefield, where countless warriors fought desperately against the demonic creatures.
Indeed, they were losing hope, floundering in despair.
Tarant’s gaze returned to Sabikang.
“But you seem to have cast aside those emotions.”
Sabikang chuckled.
Tarant’s brow furrowed.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Because you’re mistaken.”
“Mistaken?”
“Yes. As a human, I can’t be without emotions. I’m just focused right now.”
“Focus… but that won’t change anything…”
“Let me show you what changes.”
Sabikang interrupted, a sly grin on his face.
He spread his hands wide, and Berthas and Ghost floated into the air.
The two swords began to glow brightly, spinning and rising as if they had a will of their own.
The energy emanating from the two swords was unlike anything else—neither the force of qi nor the aura of magic.
Sabikang had named it “Taechonwonki,” the primordial energy that had condensed to create the world itself.
He was one with this ancient force.
How does one wield Taechonwonki?
He didn’t know. Or rather, it was difficult to put into words.
If he had to explain, it was unlike any conventional martial arts technique, and it flowed through his veins in a way that defied description.
In some respects, it was a state beyond the confines of any method or form.
Sabikang had transcended human limitations.
For him, wielding Taechonwonki was as natural as breathing.
“Now, I’ll engrave the terror of humanity into your very bones.”
His voice was as cold as ice.
Tarrant narrowed his eyes.
Sabikang continued, his voice low and steady.
“You said emotions make humans weak? But it’s that very weakness that forges strength.”
With a wave of his hand, the two swords, one glowing red and the other black, shot into the air.
Whoosh!
The swords soared higher and higher until they vanished from sight.
Tarrant watched them disappear, a frown creasing his brow.
“What is he doing?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.”
Sabikang’s voice was almost a whisper.
“This is the martial art born from the depths of despair you spoke of. The first move: Chaos Form.”
With that, Sabikang slammed his palm into the ground.
Boom!
A deafening roar shook the heavens and the earth.
And then—
Crack! Crack!
The ground split open as if an earthquake had struck, and Taechonwonki surged upward like a geyser.
Boom!
This was what they meant by “a cataclysmic upheaval.”
As the earth trembled and split, the primordial energy erupted, and the clouds above quivered, releasing a torrential downpour.
Whoosh!
The ground beneath Tarrant’s feet cracked open, revealing a bottomless chasm.
“What in the world…!”
From the depths of the fissure, Taechonwonki rose like a giant, razor-sharp blade, and the ground continued to crumble away.
Tarrant’s face began to show signs of bewilderment.