Obtaining Heavenly Demon Martial Arts in the Magic Era - Chapter 40

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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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40
“Damn it, this is a total waste.”
The empty underground corridors of Seoul Station. The hunting dogs who had divided their forces in half on orders from Cheolhyul Jangga and raided this place spat out curses tinged with irritation. There had been strong intelligence suggesting this might be the headquarters of Gaebang, but not a single rat was in sight.
Then, over the radio came a crackling sound followed by an urgent voice.
[Target spotted! Target spotted! Cheon Do-hyeon has appeared in the underground bunker at Yongsan Station!]
“What? Yongsan Station?”
“Of all places, he crawled into that one. Tsk, the poor bastard.”
A team leader-class sorcerer leading the hunting dogs clicked his tongue. The news that the target had headed toward the main force directly commanded by Kim Ki-beom meant one thing for them: the operation was over.
“Walking straight into the Director’s location on his own two feet. What cruel fate.”
“Indeed. Isn’t he the one they call the ‘sharpest blade of Cheolhyul Jangga’?”
Kim Ki-beom. Within Cheolhyul Jangga itself, he was an unmatched specialist in the art of slaughter—a master of one-on-one combat without peer.
In an age where broad-area bombardment slathered in magical engineering was the norm, his Unique Magic—honed solely for inflicting agonizing death upon individuals—was terror incarnate to Cheolhyul’s enemies.
The team leaders, sensing that the end was near, began preparations for withdrawal at their leisure. At least for one second, not a single one of them imagined that Kim Ki-beom could possibly lose.
#
“Ugh…”
In the underground bunker at Yongsan Station, amid a scene reeking of blood, Seon Young-hoon, the leader of Gaebang, lay sprawled in a pool of his own blood. Kim Ki-beom, on the verge of severing the leader’s last breath, turned his gaze toward the sudden intruder.
A boy staring at him with eyes as deep as pitch-black night. It was Cheon Do-hyeon.
Do-hyeon’s gaze fell upon Seon Young-hoon’s mangled form on the floor. In that instant, unbearable memories crashed over his mind like a tidal wave. The image of Gwak Cheol collapsing, bleeding. The sacrifices of those who had gladly thrown down their lives to protect him.
“Nngh…”
A low groan escaped from Seon Young-hoon’s lips.
Good. He was still alive.
“Huh…”
Cheon Do-hyeon took a deep breath, forcing down the roiling fury. His breath came hot and heavy from between his lips.
His mind went ice-cold.
‘There’s still time. Finish this quickly.’
Having decided he needed to dispatch the enemy before him and rescue Seon Young-hoon, Cheon Do-hyeon prepared for battle.
Whoooooosh—
From his Danjeon, the fierce vortex of Taeheo Hwonyuan Simgong began to surge with violent energy.
Kim Ki-beom, sensing the savage aura radiating from Cheon Do-hyeon, spoke.
“Are you Cheon Do-hyeon?”
The man standing in the midst of the battlefield, Kim Ki-beom, regarded Do-hyeon with arrogant eyes.
“Are you the dog sent by Cheolhyul Jangga?”
“…”
At Do-hyeon’s blatant provocation, Kim Ki-beom’s face flushed crimson with contempt. He gnashed his teeth, struggling to suppress the surging killing intent.
“So you beat that bloodstain Jang Ki-han and now you’re full of yourself, running your mouth? How pathetic. Today, you’ll experience the true power of Cheolhyul Jangga.”
Kim Ki-beom chanted the incantation, and a deep violet Magical Power bloomed in both his hands.
His Unique Magic, specialized in one-on-one lethal combat—the very thing that created the current Iron Security.
In his hands, a deadly Madok rose like a heat shimmer.
The ultimate technique of Kim Ki-beom, who had reached the realm of Abyss, the fifth circle.
The fusion magic known as Cold Silence.
“Feel it. My magic operates on a different level from child’s play.”
A horrifying fusion of freezing magic and deadly poison. Named for the eternal silence it bestowed—upon contact, it simultaneously inflicted extreme frostbite and fatal poisoning on its target.
Even without understanding the detailed principles, one could instinctively sense from the Magical Power alone that Kim Ki-beom’s magic was perilous beyond measure.
Without knowing the precise mechanics of the incantation, the malevolent Magical Power wavelength radiating from Kim Ki-beom alone made it clear how sinister and dangerous the technique before him was. Where Jang Ki-han’s magic—empowered by his Unique Armament to touch the realm of Abyss—had specialized in wide-area firepower projection, Kim Ki-beom’s magic compressed all that lethal force into a single point.
Yet Cheon Do-hyeon’s response was lukewarm.
“You talk too much.”
Jang Ki-han was undoubtedly an irredeemable villain in Do-hyeon’s eyes, one neither could forgive nor be forgiven. Yet at the same time, he was also Do-hyeon’s equal match.
Do-hyeon found Kim Ki-beom’s dismissive tone toward Jang Ki-han distasteful.
Clang—
He raised the Three-section Staff clasped in one hand.
In the moment Kim Ki-beom’s gaze lingered on the well-maintained dark metal rod.
Cheon Do-hyeon’s form exploded forward.
Whoooosh—
As the Cheonma Hwanyeong Step unfolded, Do-hyeon’s approaching silhouette scattered into afterimages.
“How dare you!”
Kim Ki-beom let out a scornful laugh and crossed both hands.
Venom Spider Web.
Refining the deadly poison in both hands, he wove it into a massive spider web of venom and hurled it forward.
Shhhhhhk—
The densely latticed web of venomous thread blanketed the underground bunker’s space without gaps. Where the Venom Spider Web touched the ground, acrid smoke billowed forth and the floor corroded away, transforming the area into a swamp of death through which one could not even draw breath. A poison most vicious—contact with the skin alone would cause tissue to rot and the nervous system to collapse.
‘There’s nowhere to run.’
Kim Ki-beom, who knew the potency of his own poison better than anyone, watched Do-hyeon throw himself willingly into that toxic abyss and felt certain of a cruel victory.
Sure enough, when Do-hyeon abandoned all attempt to dodge the Spider Web that left no blind spots, his form materialized directly in front of Kim Ki-beom. He had resolved to shatter the deadly curtain of venom bearing down on him through sheer force.
Do-hyeon’s fist, launched forward with minimal setup, collided head-on with the web of poison.
Boom—!
Cheon Do-hyeon’s punch carried no ordinary force; it tore a gaping hole through the center of the web, unleashing a massive shockwave. But in doing so, he soaked his entire body in poison.
“Kekehe! Fool! My magic accumulates poison in the body with each impact—!”
Kim Ki-beom’s voice, trembling with elation, cut off abruptly. His eyes widened in disbelief.
“…What?”
Every time his Unique Magic, Cold Silence, had touched someone before, their skin discolored in an instant. But now, Cheon Do-hyeon stood before him, not poisoned at all—the deadly venom was simply dissolving and being absorbed into his body.
All Rivers Return to the Sea, and Receive the Breath, Return to the Origin.
The Taeheo Hwonyuan Simgong was a divine art that indiscriminately devoured all energy in the world and made it its own source.
A Danjeon that had even consumed Jang Ki-han’s explosive Magical Power.
The poison’s Magical Power, requiring no effort to infiltrate his body, was merely the finest nourishment for the Taeheo Hwonyuan Simgong.
As far as matchups went, this was the absolute worst scenario Kim Ki-beom could have faced.
“This, this can’t be—! It’s impossible!”
Confronted with a phenomenon he had never experienced in his life, Kim Ki-beom fell into complete panic. Without so much as calculating the depletion of his Magical Power, he began spewing toxic magic like a madman.
Poison Blast, Toxic Arrow!
Dozens of poison spells bloomed in a vicious Dance of Toxins!
Yet Do-hyeon, struck directly by the magic, didn’t so much as blink; he simply devoured all that energy and pressed forward.
“Ngh—ngh, ngh, ngh—!”
In a flash—
A jet-black Blade Energy coalesced on Do-hyeon’s Three-section Staff, now hovering mere inches from Kim Ki-beom’s face.
“Shriek—!”
Kim Ki-beom conjured a solid ice barrier in desperation.
Cheonma Geomgong, Third Form—Heavenly River Strike
Crackle—
The Cheonma Geomgong’s blow not only sliced cleanly through the defensive magic; it carved a deep wound stretching from Kim Ki-beom’s right shoulder down to his thigh.
“Scream—!”
His barrier shredded like paper, fountaining blood, Kim Ki-beom crashed to the floor.
The man once known as the sharp assassin of Cheolhyul Jangga bore no resemblance to himself now. He clutched his dangling right arm and crawled backward like a worm, whimpering.
“P-please, p-spare me…!”
The moment Kim Ki-beom realized his every technique had failed against this opponent, his will to fight shattered.
Seized by terror, the ugly, craven nature that had hidden behind the hollow honor of “Iron Security Representative” clawed its way to the surface. Kim Ki-beom begged for his life, drool and tears streaming down his face.
Do-hyeon looked down at him with cold eyes.
“Jang Ki-han’s just a blood clot? Child’s play magic?”
Black energy coalesced once more on the Three-section Staff in Cheon Do-hyeon’s grip.
“At least that bastard was a hundred times stronger than you, and he never begged for his life.”
“W-wait…! Scream—!”
Kim Ki-beom tried to call out to Cheon Do-hyeon, sensing the grim momentum,
Flash—! Slice—
The merciless Heukpa Ilseom came crashing down. No voice came from Kim Ki-beom after that.
When body and head are separated, none can speak.
A terrible silence settled over the underground bunker. Then it came.
Buzz—buzz—
A Mobile Phone vibrated in the pocket of Kim Ki-beom’s ownerless corpse. Do-hyeon fished it out from inside his bloodstained combat suit. The caller’s name displayed on the screen.
[Jang Jae-young]
Do-hyeon’s eyes grew sharp and cold. Without hesitation, he pressed the answer button.
—”Is it finished?”
An emotionless, arrogant, high-handed voice. Jang Jae-young, who believed beyond doubt that his son’s enemy had been securely eliminated.
Do-hyeon’s blood-stained lips twitched. When he spoke, his voice was quiet but unmistakably clear.
“Yes. It’s finished.”
Through the receiver came a sharp intake of breath.
A brief silence.
Then Jang Jae-young’s breathing grew noticeably rough.
—”…Who are you?”
Do-hyeon gazed dispassionately at Kim Ki-beom’s sprawled corpse, twisting the corners of his mouth into a smile.
“Is this all you’ve prepared? Disappointing.”
—”…Cheon Do-hyeon.”
Jang Jae-young’s voice seemed to emit a thick Killing Intent. Yet Do-hyeon’s momentum was not crushed by that shallow bloodlust. If anything, an even deeper and darker Killing Intent poured back through the line.
“I always repay what I’ve suffered. The blood of my people spilled today—I’ll return it tenfold. Don’t fool yourself into thinking the name MadoMyeongga will protect you. Wait. I will tear it down with these hands.”
Cheon Do-hyeon’s voice came out like a growl.
On the other end of the line, Jang Jae-young fell silent for a moment after hearing those words.
Then, after a pause, a cold, mocking voice came through the receiver.
— [I look forward to that day.]

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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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