Appearance of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 83

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 83
* * *
The stronghold of the Gwi-hon Demonic Sect.
Upon the highest tower built atop Mang-hon Mountain, where the dead are said to wander restlessly.
Two figures gazed down from the tower toward Gui-rim, the site where the second examination of Maryong Hall would take place.
They were Gwi-hon Majun, patriarch of the Gwi-hon Demonic Sect, and Hwan-yeong Majun, sovereign of Hwan-yeong Palace.
“Simply proceed as you normally would. It shouldn’t take very long at all.”
At the thin, fractured voice drifting softly through the air, Gwi-hon Majun turned to regard the speaker.
Though Gwi-hon Majun was the patriarch who commanded Ghost Energy, there was something in the appearance of Hwan-yeong Majun, draped in a black hooded cloak, that seemed even more intimately aligned with that spectral force.
It made sense, given how impeccably composed Gwi-hon Majun appeared.
Not a single strand of hair lay out of place, and he wore fine robes of expensive silk, tailored to perfection.
The silver outer robe draped over them further reinforced Gwi-hon Majun’s imposing, dignified bearing.
His appearance rivaled even Sa-ma Majun’s, who was known for his fastidiousness.
“What is your reason?”
“My reason?”
“Why go to such lengths merely to kill a single examinee.”
Gwi-hon Majun’s question went unanswered at first.
Only the purple lips beneath the black hood curved upward in a smile of unmistakable delight.
“I am not the sort to bear being disrespected.”
“Did the examinee show you disrespect? Because of the first examination’s outcome?”
Gwan Yeon-woo.
According to the information obtained, he was a beggar child purchased by the Gwan Clan and sent to Maryong Hall in place of one of their own blood.
That’s right—merely a beggar.
Everyone among the Majun knew that this beggar had seen through Hwan-yeong Majun’s Illusion Formation and passed through untouched.
It was impossible not to know, having witnessed it firsthand.
“Cheon-geom Majun disagreed. He said there was nothing wrong with the examinee’s examination.”
“Have you forgotten who protects that whelp?”
……
That much could hardly be unknown.
Am-yeong Majun.
A whelp who had suddenly been elevated to the rank of Majun by the Examination Proctor’s own choosing, and who now strutted about the sect with unparalleled arrogance.
Yes. That was what one meant by a whelp.
A creature of uncertain origin and unclear station, presiding over everything on nothing but the Examination Proctor’s favor.
“Surely that wretch’s influence was at work. And then he slanders my Illusion Formation as crude, spreading falsehood! You expect me to simply endure such an insult?!”
Sticky strands of violet energy radiated violently from Hwan-yeong Majun’s form.
“Both this creature and that one dare mock the supreme one?! I shall kill them! I’ll carve the lesson deep into those arrogant skulls of theirs!”
None among them should forget that Hwan-yeong Majun was no easy opponent.
……
Gwi-hon Majun’s expression, as he regarded the rage-consumed Hwan-yeong Majun, remained utterly unmoved.
He appeared almost serene, as though existing in another realm entirely.
Though they were both Majun, they were not allies.
Yet neither were they enemies—far too distant to rage together over each other’s grievances.
Such was the nature of relations among the Majun.
In this moment, however, Gwi-hon Majun found himself in a degree of agreement with the other’s sentiment.
Not because of his pitiable circumstances, but because of the opportunity to humble Am-yeong Majun’s arrogance.
‘A beggar sheltered by a nobody.’
When one thought about it, there seemed no reason not to kill him.
It was pride that should have been broken long ago.
That whelp needed to learn.
That not everything within the sect would bend to his will.
‘How much could a mere beggar child matter to him, after all.’
And that made it all the more worthwhile.
The child’s death was not an offense worth great wrath.
Nor significant enough to provoke true anger—merely the nagging discomfort of losing a card one had held.
And that discomfort was reason enough.
‘Besides…’
Gwi-hon Majun’s detached gaze turned toward Hwan-yeong Majun.
‘If she wishes to handle the matter herself, there is no reason to refuse.’
Trouble might arise, but weighing the cost against the gain, the proposal was not without merit.
Thus concluding, Gwi-hon Majun gave a brief, measured nod.
“So, what do you propose to do? You can’t simply lay hands on an examinee during the examination.”
The examination proctors were one thing, but the real problem was the master of Maryong Hall.
How could one possibly evade that spirit’s gaze?
Hwan-yeong Majun’s mouth curved into a deep smile.
“Have no fear. The preparations are already complete. It will be the Monster Bird’s claws that kill the child.”
“…!”
The Monster Bird’s claws!
‘So that was the plan—to lure the child to the Monster Bird’s nest. That’s why they made such a request of me.’
The Monster Bird’s nest was surrounded by countless formations.
But most of those formations were designed to prevent exit, not entry.
There was only one formation related to entry—one that prevented more than a single person from entering the nest.
The Monster Bird was a creature of profound strangeness.
Its temperament was filthy, grotesquely so.
So vicious that few masters could lay a scratch upon it, yet if some foolish rabble came crowding in and offended the creature’s sensibilities, matters became troublesome.
The Monster Bird might simply refuse to lay eggs at all.
Since there were few in this sect capable of dealing with the Monster Bird directly, it had posed no problem thus far.
‘That formation will ensnare anyone attempting to save the child.’
The moment the child stepped into the formation, none could enter to rescue them—not unless the child died or escaped of their own accord.
Of course, there was the method of breaking the formation, but that would only happen after someone realized the child had entered it.
The Gwi-hon Demonic Sect controlled that formation, and that was precisely why Hwan-yeong Majun had sought out Gwi-hon Majun.
“When the formation’s gate closes, simply feign ignorance. You don’t check it every day anyway, so merely claim you discovered it late—surely that suffices?”
“That may be so, but…”
“The Monster Bird does not spare those who set foot in its domain. Even the demonic beasts our sect raises abide by the Law of the Strong. Is this not a marvel?”
Hwan-yeong Majun’s laughter spilled forth in a fractured, clicking sound.
And indeed, the Monster Bird would never let anyone weaker than itself leave alive.
It was not only humans who fell into madness when consumed by demonic energy.
“But how will you lure the child to the Monster Bird’s nest? I hear the Sect Master drew the boundary quite generously.”
Ten li from the center of Gui-rim, where the Monster Bird’s nest lay.
That was where the red flags marked the boundary’s edge.
“Do not worry.”
Beneath the black robe, sinister lips curved into a smile.
“There is a certain way to draw him in without fail.”
* * *
“Go.”
Late evening, as the sun began its descent.
Yeon-woo, pushed forward by the force behind her, turned to look back.
One examination proctor and the examinees not yet summoned were watching her.
Since arriving at Gui-rim, the examinees had been divided into twelve groups of ten, one proctor per group.
Each group then split the territory among themselves, staggering their entry into the forest one person at a time.
In this way, they had scattered the examinees by sending each from a different starting point.
The intent was to prevent the examinees from clustering together and relying on mutual survival from the trial’s outset.
One by one, one by one.
At last it was Yeon-woo’s turn, and she stepped into the forest.
Rustle—
“Hiss—”
The moment Yeon-woo entered the forest, she drew a long, deep breath.
The familiar scent of grass and trees filled her lungs completely.
It felt good.
Yeon-woo looked up at the sky between the trees.
The sun would be setting soon.
“Mm…”
What should she do?
Find a place to sleep? Or search for food first?
She shook her head sharply.
“No.”
There were only twelve Monster Bird Eggs in total. If she didn’t hurry, none might remain.
Some examinees had already entered the forest ahead of her.
Snap—crackle, rustle—
Having reached that conclusion, the child immediately began running toward the forest’s heart.
Her keen senses remained sharp even as darkness descended, lighting her path forward.
The forest was the child’s home.
Yeon-woo sprinted toward the forest’s heart without pause.
* * *
Two full days had passed since entering the forest.
Most examinees had spent that first night near the forest’s entrance, choosing caution over rash movement.
No one knew how long the examination would last.
There was no squandering stamina on the first day.
Crackle—
Baek Yeol-han pushed through the undergrowth, emerging into view.
Gui-rim, where anything might spring forth at any moment.
He was still beyond the Green Boundary, so there was no great danger yet, but the real problem was the Ghost Energy that suffused the forest.
The spectral essence scattered through the air scattered the examinees’ minds and pressed down upon their spirits.
At least here, in the outer reaches of Gui-rim, the Ghost Energy was thin enough to bear.
“Haah…”
Baek Yeol-han wiped away the sweat streaming down his face.
‘It drains you. Steals your will.’
The urge to give up welled up inside him again and again.
Was it all because of the Ghost Energy?
‘Right—this could never be just a simple survival test in the forest.’
Or rather, survival it was, but the difficulty was something else entirely.
In all his years, Baek Yeol-han had never known a forest from which he wanted so desperately to flee.
‘And yet…’
A grin twisted across Baek Yeol-han’s lips.
‘Now this feels like a true Maryong Hall examination.’
Paradoxically, the very hardship and anguish set his fighting spirit ablaze.
He wanted to endure, no matter the cost.
‘I’ll get the Maryong Spirit Stone this time—no matter what.’
To do that, he had to press forward.
The instant that resolve took hold, a green boundary line materialized before his eyes.
Baek Yeol-han swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry.
‘If I cross that line…’
Danger would be waiting.
This was Gui-rim, after all—the Gwi-hon Demonic Sect’s domain.
Of course there would be things like corpse demons…
Crackle—
“What brings you here, examinee?”
“Aaahhhhh!”

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