Almighty God of War - Chapter 128
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
128
The next morning, Guyang Cheongang bid brief farewells to Hanjo and Pung Socheong.
Hanjo to the Imperial Palace, Pung Socheong to Haomun.
After watching their departing figures for a moment as they each went their separate ways, Guyang Cheongang immediately turned around.
Guyang Cheongang had not said a single word to them about the Heavenly Death Division.
It wasn’t something to confide in people who had merely traveled together briefly.
He removed the Human Skin Mask of Hahou Gang that he had been using and disguised his face as a man in his thirties.
This was to avoid pursuit by the Heavenly Death Division.
It wasn’t that he feared them, but now was not the time for a direct confrontation.
As Guyang Cheongang walked with the cloth-wrapped Supreme Sword strapped to his back, Cheon Ungi’s warning lingered in his mind.
‘Heavenly Death Division…’
The oppressive weight that name carried was considerable.
One of the Five Great Evils that had conquered the Evil Path Martial World of this era.
A massive force whose scale and power remained unknown.
However, Guyang Cheongang did not cower before the oppressive weight of that name.
‘I must become stronger and learn more. If they are opponents I must inevitably fight, that day will come eventually.’
He headed toward Shandong Province.
His destination was the salt field managed by Shangguan Wana, Dongryeong Salt Field.
Operating across dozens of li along the coastline of southern Shandong Province and northern Jiangsu Province, it was one of the important business foundations that would be responsible for the Guyang Family Estate’s future.
And there, descendants of branch families—over three hundred warriors he had named the Self-Strengthening Corps—were being trained by Jupyo.
Guyang Cheongang had no leisure to leisurely hole up in some deep mountain valley and focus solely on secluded cultivation.
He had to protect Dongryeong Salt Field from the threat of Golden Tower Manor, and he also had to personally help train the warriors who risked their lives for the family’s revival.
So Dongryeong Salt Field was both a training ground for him and simultaneously a front line he absolutely had to defend.
Having left Hebei Province and entered northern Shandong Province, he deployed his Light Body Technique in a southwestern direction.
With each step he advanced two to three zhang, and the surrounding scenery rushed past behind him.
The Phantom Shadowless Divine Method, which had reached the realm of complete mastery, was as fast as the wind.
Still, the distance to Dongryeong Salt Field was over a thousand li, so it would take more than ten days.
Akasha’s voice rang in Guyang Cheongang’s mind.
[Doctor, I have completed the system reconstruction.]
After the death struggle with the Necromantic Demon Lord, using his Internal Energy that had reached the realm of three cycles as a power source, she had been constantly exploring new possibilities.
‘Tell me.’
[All of my functions have improved dramatically to match the increased total amount of Internal Energy.]
Akasha’s voice was calm as usual, but he could sense her satisfaction with the performance improvements.
[The Surveillance Detection range through nanobots has expanded to a radius of 100 zhang (300 meters), and the total amount of nanobots that can be released externally has also increased to 30,000 units. The still image data transmission speed has also improved six-fold, from 1 image per minute to 1 image per 10 seconds.]
Guyang Cheongang closed his eyes and savored the expanded world he felt through Akasha.
A flood of information incomparable to before filled his senses.
[But above all, the greatest change is the acquisition of ‘Matter Reconstruction’ ability.]
There was a faint excitement mixed in Akasha’s voice as she explained the new ability.
[Thanks to this, I was finally able to implement the ‘Automatic Defense and Attack System’ that was previously only possible in theory.]
‘Automatic Defense and Attack System?’
[Yes. It’s a system where I protect you and attack enemies under independent judgment, separate from your consciousness, Doctor. It will automatically respond to ambushes from blind spots you haven’t noticed or attacks you can’t block in time.]
Guyang Cheongang’s eyes changed.
Her words meant he could fight alongside an invisible ally from now on.
[Of course, you can exercise control whenever you wish, Doctor. And I’ve set the system’s form as dagger-type hidden weapons.]
As soon as she finished speaking, ten three-inch long daggers, black as pitch and razor-sharp, materialized above Guyang Cheongang’s head as he ran like the wind.
Floating in midair, they looked like hungry hunting hawks waiting for their master’s command.
It was the perfect fusion of Guyang Cheongang’s martial arts and Akasha’s abilities.
The ten ‘fragments of death’ floating in midair felt like the most reliable oath.
Guyang Cheongang named them Flying Star Cloud Sword.
The Flying Star Cloud Sword disappeared.
On the afternoon of the fifth day after leaving the Imperial Capital, Guyang Cheongang, who had been racing in a straight line while avoiding inhabited villages, entered treacherous mountains.
At a glance, it was a massive mountain over five hundred zhang high and dozens of li long.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh-
Guyang Cheongang frowned as he raced up the mountainside.
A familiar smell carried by the wind brushed past his nose.
‘A burning smell? Is there a forest fire somewhere?’
At first he didn’t think much of it, but soon Guyang Cheongang’s face hardened.
Something familiar was mixed in with the increasingly strong burning smell.
It was the smell of burning flesh.
Guyang Cheongang raised his head.
He could see smoke rising above the nearby forest.
He headed there without hesitation.
It wasn’t far off his route to his destination, but more than that, it was because of an ominous premonition.
‘Surely not…’
His premonition was not wrong.
What he saw there was a scene from hell.
Less than a dozen houses had all turned to ash, and charred corpses were scattered everywhere.
It appeared to be a slash-and-burn village.
The final home of people who had lived in poverty but peace.
‘What bastards…’
Guyang Cheongang’s eyes turned cold.
Then, a strange sound came from the distance.
Thunk… thunk… thunk…
Guyang Cheongang approached in the direction of the sound.
He muffled his footsteps as much as possible and concealed his presence.
He had to be cautious until he understood the situation.
The scene that entered his eyes when he stopped was unbelievable.
On a small hill outside the village, a boy was digging a pit with a shovel.
It was a youthful face that looked to be only around thirteen or fourteen years old.
His clothes were stained with soot and blood, and dried tear tracks remained on his face.
Around him were about ten small stone graves in a row that the boy appeared to have made.
Each one was carefully built by stacking stones one by one.
Guyang Cheongang, who grasped the situation at a glance, felt his heart grow heavy.
‘That child, all alone…’
The boy dug the ground without rest.
The shovel seemed too burdensome for his small body, and his hands were bleeding from burst blisters.
Still, the boy did not stop digging.
He was making graves for his dead family and neighbors.
Guyang Cheongang hid behind a tree and watched the boy.
It wasn’t so much out of worry that the child might be startled, but because he felt awe at his willpower.
Before long, the sunset began to set, but the boy was still digging graves without rest.
That small back looked even more desolate silhouetted against the evening glow.
Guyang Cheongang slowly walked toward the boy.
Step by step…
Sensing the presence, the boy stopped digging and turned his head.
The boy’s eyes that met Guyang Cheongang’s were completely empty.
No emotions like fear, anger, or sadness could be read there.
It was a strange emptiness that couldn’t be seen in a child of that age.
Perhaps he judged that Guyang Cheongang wasn’t someone who would cause harm.
The boy silently turned his head and began digging again.
Thud, thud, thud…
‘What an unusual child.’
Guyang Cheongang asked.
“What happened here?”
Thud…
The boy’s thin shoulders trembled slightly as he stopped digging.
“Bandits… came. And this is what happened.”
His voice, slightly hoarse perhaps from puberty, was so calm it felt emotionally worn down and indifferent.
Guyang Cheongang felt a strange sense of unease from the boy’s tone.
For a thirteen or fourteen-year-old child to remain so composed after experiencing such a tragedy was clearly not normal.
“Do you know where those bandits are?”
The boy turned his head toward Guyang Cheongang.
His eyes were still completely empty.
“Why?”
“Because they seem like people who shouldn’t be left alive.”
“Are you a martial artist, mister?”
The word “mister” caught him off guard.
But his current appearance wearing the Human Skin Face Mask was difficult to describe any other way.
He nodded his head.
“That’s right.”
The boy spoke as if spitting out the words.
“If you want to commit suicide, I won’t stop you.”
At those words, Guyang Cheongang’s gaze intensified.
It was too cold and realistic a judgment to come from a child’s mouth.
“I have no such intention at all.”
“The number of bandits in Nine Mountain Stronghold exceeds a hundred.”
“Even if it were a thousand, it wouldn’t matter.”
That was the moment.
Emotion rose in the boy’s previously empty eyes.
It was surprise and anticipation, and a terrifying killing intent.
Guyang Cheongang’s gaze changed as he felt the killing intent flowing from the boy’s eyes.
‘What kind of killing intent is this… It’s killing intent that rivals the Necromantic Demon Lord. How is this possible?’
To be precise, the killing intent the boy emitted wasn’t stronger than that of the Blood Spirit Demon or Necromantic Demon Lord.
But it had a strangely different quality, and was actually more chilling.
If their killing intent was obtained through learned martial arts and slaughter, the boy’s didn’t feel artificially created.
It was closer to something instinctual.
As if he were a being born to handle death by nature.
Akasha’s voice could be heard.
[An unusual temperament is detected. For a boy of that age to emit this level of innate killing intent is abnormal. It seems like an uncommon constitution.]
A legendary constitution passed down in Murim came to Guyang Cheongang’s mind.
‘Heavenly Killing Star…’
The malevolent star hidden in the deepest part of heaven, the Heavenly Killing Star.
According to legend, when that star aligns with earthly fate, there is a child born fully embracing its energy.
People called that child the Great Killing Star, a ‘walking disaster.’
For them, killing intent isn’t an emotion but a natural instinct like breathing.
They know the way of the sword without learning martial arts, and see through the flow of life and death without studying martial arts training.
But heaven’s most dangerous talent was also its most terrible curse.
If they cannot control themselves, they eventually go mad with their own power and become monsters that destroy the world—a tragic fate.
[The possibility that he was born under the Heavenly Killing Star, as Doctor thinks, cannot be ruled out. If so, you must approach very carefully. The Heavenly Killing Star is like a double-edged sword.]
Guyang Cheongang nodded.
‘I suppose I should.’
He looked around the boy’s surroundings.
Beyond the child’s small back, dozens of corpses that had not yet been buried were scattered in the ashes.
Guyang Cheongang asked nothing more and approached, silently rolling up his sleeves.
And just as the boy had been doing, he quietly began digging the ground.
He did not use his internal energy.
He could not dare to imitate the weight of sorrow this small child bore alone.
He simply wanted to respect that desperate will by sweating together with him.
Though they didn’t use Internal Energy, the burial speed was incomparably faster than when the Boy did it alone.
—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE
