Appearance of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 46

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 46
Am Young Ma Gun scratched the nape of his neck.
“How is it?”
His lips curved into a smile so deep they could bend no further.
“Flawless. Perfect.”
He walked toward Yun Hyeon’s side.
“It’s astonishing.”
No—astonishing hardly covered it.
Am Young Ma Gun looked down at his own hands.
“She isn’t just drawing in Demonic Energy. She’s devouring it. And that’s not all. Everything she swallows…”
She was making it entirely her own.
Without even needing to circulate it.
“Is such a thing even possible?”
Am Young Ma Gun laughed softly.
No—the laughter simply spilled out of him unbidden.
“Do you know? In Demonic Martial Arts, the greatest enemy is Demonic Energy itself. Controlling its ferocity—that’s the fundamental problem.”
In Orthodox Martial Arts, the Internal Energy drawn in through a Heart Method prioritizes harmony above all; though it takes time to accumulate, the foundation is solid and the power stable.
Demonic Energy, by contrast, pursues strength alone. Built quickly, but the higher one’s level, the more precarious it becomes.
It’s the difference between a tower built stone by stone and one thrown together haphazardly.
A haphazard tower rises fast, but its foundation is weak—the risk of collapse is great.
And the consequences are these.
Physically, the blood vessels reverse or surge, and in severe cases, the body itself becomes deformed.
But the true danger lies in the mind.
Growing vicious is merely the starting point—madness, emotional erosion, hallucinations and delusions, or worst of all, falling into Obsession Demon Entry itself.
“I cannot fathom why anyone would desire such a dangerous power.”
“Why? Because you can attain strength worth every risk it entails.”
Among martial artists of equal level, those trained in Demonic Martial Arts surpass those trained in Orthodox Martial Arts.
Though the comparison becomes different if one speaks of the ‘end’ each path seeks to reach.
In the Martial World, there are far more warriors scrambling their whole lives just to reach the first rank than there are those like Yun Hyeon or Am Young Ma Gun who pursue the Ultimate Meaning.
So the allure of Demonic Martial Arts—to grasp power more easily, more swiftly—is something they wish to seize, consequences be damned.
“And there are countermeasures against the backlash of Demonic Energy, yes?”
Heart Methods that govern one’s qi.
Reversing Pills that quell madness and surges.
Elixirs that aid bodily harmony.
The study of mastering Demonic Energy’s ferocity has continued long alongside the history of Demonic Martial Arts itself.
“Ma Ryong Gwan would certainly teach both the cultivation and mastery of Demonic Martial Arts and Demonic Energy together…”
Am Young Ma Gun turned his gaze toward the room where Yeon Woo slept.
“But that child won’t need any of it.”
No surges, no madness, no ferocity.
A body that no Demonic Energy’s wildness can ever stain.
Five years ago, she was a blank slate easily dyed—but now she is so completely saturated with white that even black poured in would be transformed back to white.
A body that makes possible what should be impossible: the coexistence of Orthodox and Demonic principles.
In other words, a body has been completed that builds a sturdy tower even when haphazardly constructed.
“Do you know what that means to our school?”
Yun Hyeon’s brow twitched slightly as he turned toward Am Young Ma Gun to hear the unspoken answer.
The violet eyes glinting with desire were fixed with relentless intensity on the child’s room.
Despite the half-mask, his excitement, anticipation, and barely concealed elation were laid bare.
A deep violet aura bloomed around Am Young Ma Gun.
“One who can touch the Extreme Demon.”
A realm most warriors cannot even dream of, unable to overcome the darkness of Demonic Energy.
Beyond the Transformed Demon—the limit spoken of as the boundary of Demonic Martial Arts—lies an ideal yet higher still.
And at least one of the conditions needed to reach that seemingly impossible Extreme has already been met.
“Frankly, it’s terrifying.”
How strong would that child become once she began training in Demonic Martial Arts?
If Demonic Energy, which pursues only strength, were to accumulate in a body with harmony already woven into its foundation…
A chill ran through him.
Am Young Ma Gun’s lips curved in a smile that trembled with tension.
“The preparations are complete.”
The body is finished.
“And…”
Am Young Ma Gun turned to look at Yun Hyeon.
“You’re ready too, then?”
“…Yes.”
Five years ago, after the affair with Pa Do Mun, Yun Hyeon had begun preparing to return to the Central Plains.
Through the Guang Can Dao, he had learned that the Je Gal Clan was connected to the Blacklist—and that knowledge became the starting point for his counterattack.
Not knowing whom to trust or who his true enemies were, each step forward was treacherous beyond measure, yet forward he had to go.
To set right the twisted world and restore the lost martial realm of the Central Plains.
To fulfill the vow he had ground out with clenched teeth that day five years ago.
“I’m grateful. I wouldn’t have come this far without your help.”
Finding forces untainted by evil and forging alliances to establish a foundation for his return—Am Young Ma Gun’s assistance had been invaluable.
Without the intelligence network he had cultivated throughout the Central Plains, none of it would have been possible.
“Well, I’ve developed something of an interest in this myself.”
That Reversing Pill Technique that Guang Can Dao had supposedly used.
After hearing about the Reversing Pill that drew forth Innate True Energy, Am Young Ma Gun had lent his strength.
In exchange, once Yun Hyeon returned to the Central Plains and gathered information related to the technique, he had promised to share what he found.
“But are you sure it’ll be all right? You’re still listed as dead in the Central Plains. If the new Martial Alliance leader learns you’ve returned—”
“No, I have no intention of revealing it just yet.”
Yun Hyeon’s gaze grew cold.
“Just as they drove me to the brink by exploiting my weaknesses, I too must strike at theirs. That alone would be fair.”
“Hmm.”
Am Young Ma Gun’s lips curved with interest.
“You’ve grown quite ruthless, Emperor’s Sword.”
“When poison floods the world, one must harbor poison to survive it.”
“That girl will be lonely. She gets lonely easily, you know.”
Even for all appearances, she was prone to solitude.
Both men’s gazes naturally drifted toward the room where Yeon Woo slept.
A wistful expression crossed Yun Hyeon’s face.
“She seems to sense something already.”
The way she had reacted this afternoon when she discovered the Hundred Circulation—she hadn’t been joyful.
That response seemed to suggest she understood something.
“Well, I’ve taught her so thoroughly that her intuition is remarkably sharp.”
She might already sense that parting would come soon.
“I don’t want to leave her here like this either.”
Am Young Ma Gun looked back at Yun Hyeon.
Yun Hyeon appeared bitter. And somewhat sorrowful.
“But I won’t drag a child into a place saturated with poison.”
That place is hell.
How could one lead a child’s hand into such darkness?
“At least, I hope the Central Plains that Yeon Woo will someday face is cleaner than it is now.”
To reclaim that peace, he had to go back.
“Though this place isn’t exactly paradise either.”
* * *
Whoooosh—
At the downstream of the stream, where the Waterfall poured and poured its waters into the flowing current.
Gripping an Axe in both hands, Yeon Woo stared at a wooden barrel submerged in the streambed.
“…”
Yeon Woo closed her eyes.
The moment her eyes shut, other senses awakened as though by magic, and everything surrounding her became palpable in exquisite detail.
The wind blowing from behind and the water rippling past her waist.
The murmuring sound flowing with the ripples and the insect songs interwoven within.
The flutter of wings, the movement of fish swimming upstream, and the falling leaves.
Plink—
A single leaf, carried on the wind, fell upon the water’s surface.
It pressed down on the water so softly, so delicately, hushing the sounds of the flowing current beneath it.
Yeon Woo focused on that muted sound.
The more she concentrated, the more it felt as though the vital force within her body was gradually turning in spirals.
Swirrrr—
A faint haze rose around the girl.
Or perhaps it was mist, or the shimmer of heat rising from summer stone.
Surrounded by that shimmer, nerves drawn taut, focused wholly on the descending leaf in that instant.
“…!”
Slash!
Yeon Woo’s eyes opened as she brought the axe down in a powerful arc.
Yet even as her body moved, the girl never lost her concentration.
Shhhhhhhhh—
The axe descended toward the log, neither hurried nor slow.
The blade, swung from above her head, met water in an instant.
But the water did not splash.
The axe and arm passed through as though they had always been there, gliding smoothly onward with the current.
Shhhhhhhhh—!
The axe, now completely submerged in water, did not stop—it descended further. And then.
Crack!
The log where the blade struck began to split.
Shrieeeek—
The waterlogged wood, which should have resisted the blade, split cleanly in two as though it were dry timber.
Splash!
As Yeon Woo knelt down, water erupted around her.
The log was already split, but greed had driven her to bury the axe head completely in the wood.
In the end, the axe cleaved through the log and struck the streambed with a heavy thud.
Water rose to her chin. Yeon Woo shut her eyes tight against the cold stream soaking her face.
“Ptooey, ptooey.”
Whoosh—
Yeon Woo rose to her feet and wiped the water from her face with one hand.
Got greedy for nothing.
I should have just split it halfway.
But today I just had to split it clean through.
Squelch.
“Better get dry.”
She was about to wade out of the water to dry her clothes when—
“Getting stronger, I see.”
“Huh? Grandfather!”
Color bloomed in Yeon Woo’s cheeks.
“When did you get here?”
Splash, splash—
Yeon Woo bounded through the water and up onto the stone where Yun Hyeon stood watching her.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————