Obtaining Heavenly Demon Martial Arts in the Magic Era - Chapter 45

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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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45
Inside a refined residential district, state-of-the-art Mana Training Equipment whirred ceaselessly.
“More, more!”
There, Kim Jun-pyo unleashed his Magic, sweat flinging from his body.
His training had been so intense that his clothes were soaked through, and his ragged breathing carried the tang of exhaustion.
He’d drawn his Mana to its limit, and a dull ache radiated through his chest. Yet his Incantation never faltered.
‘I need strength. Stronger power….’
The sickening helplessness of being unable to aid Cheon Do-hyeon when he threw himself into the fight had gnawed at him for days.
He checked and refined his Spell Formulas without pause, repeating the cycle again and again.
Then a shrill ringtone pierced the air. The caller ID was blocked, but he knew instinctively who it was.
‘Do-hyeon…?’
#
In a darkened room, Kim Seung-yeon sat alone on her bed, hugging her knees to her chest.
Click—
The sound of her father returning home from work came from the entrance. Normally she would have thrown open her door and rushed to embrace him, but tonight she simply called out a greeting.
“Welcome home.”
Hearing the lifeless tone in his daughter’s voice, Kim Seon-hong paused as he hung up his coat, lost in thought.
His only daughter, Seung-yeon, had been behaving oddly for several days now. The pattern was unmistakable:
“She’s not greeting her father…?”
The instincts of a man holding the position of Director of the Magical Information Bureau sounded an alarm.
‘There could be a serious problem with external relations. Or perhaps something has happened to her personally.’
In any crisis, swift action was paramount.
He’d dispatch the Bureau immediately to investigate—
He was reaching for his work phone when an urgent voice suddenly came through the closed door as she answered a call,
Bang—!
“Dad, I’m going out for a bit!”
Seung-yeon hurriedly threw on her coat and bolted. But as she reached for the front door, she abruptly froze, then dashed back to her room with equal urgency.
Tap-tap-tap-tap-tap— Tap-tap-tap—!
“Ugh, why does he have to call so suddenly! Really!”
From inside the room came the loud, frantic sound of her tapping her compact mirror foundation at impressive speed.
Moments later, Seung-yeon emerged with her face flawlessly made up. Kim Seon-hong watched her in silence before asking in a dazed voice.
“Daughter… do you have a boyfriend…?”
The information he’d gathered moments ago pointed to one unmistakable conclusion, but Kim Seon-hong couldn’t bring himself to accept it.
He asked, his voice trembling.
But Seung-yeon had already vanished like a whirlwind, leaving only the unanswered question echoing in empty air.
#
“As you both know, I’m going to have to fight not just the Iron-Blooded Jang Family, but the entire Demonic Martial Clan.”
In a quiet corner of a secluded café, Cheon Do-hyeon laid bare his true heart to Kim Jun-pyo and Kim Seung-yeon, who sat across from him.
“There will be dangerous moments where lives hang in the balance. That’s why I pushed you away. But… I’ve come to realize that was wrong of me—to judge your intentions and make decisions for you on my own. I came to apologize.”
In the way his hands fidgeted and his eyes wouldn’t meet theirs directly, genuine remorse was evident.
The Cheon Do-hyeon they knew was not someone who cowed to others’ opinions or lost his nerve.
This apology came purely from the heart.
That thought settled on them, and without warning, both wore warm smiles.
“Someone told me once: don’t carry your burdens alone. For those left behind, that becomes an even heavier weight on their hearts. …I won’t force you. But if you feel the desire to help, contact me whenever you can. I won’t be able to keep my phone on freely since I’ll be on the run.”
The moment Do-hyeon finished speaking, Seung-yeon shot back with a slight smirk.
“Why are you only asking this now?”
Jun-pyo too nodded heartily with a booming laugh.
“Right, Do-hyeon. We can give you our answer right now.”
Their two voices overlapped with unwavering conviction.
“”We’ll do whatever we can to help.””
At their unhesitating response, Cheon Do-hyeon hung his head and spoke.
“…Thank you.”
“What was that? Didn’t hear you.”
“Good that you didn’t.”
With that banter, they cleared the misunderstanding and healed the wound between them. But the warmth of that reconciliation had barely begun to fade when
a single unfamiliar message appeared on the screen of Do-hyeon’s old-style mobile phone, which he’d left on briefly.
[Cooperate in striking down my father, Jang Jae-young. I’m proposing an alliance. -Jang Ki-jun-]
Upon reading the message, Do-hyeon could not mask his expression. His face went cold and rigid in an instant.
#
Seung-yeon and Jun-pyo, having accepted Do-hyeon’s proposal, converged at the Cheongun-jang conference room on the weekend.
Seon Young-hun, Lee Sang-won, and Lee Ye-rim offered no particular comment upon seeing the two of them—they simply welcomed them in.
“Good to see you.”
“We look forward to working with you.”
As the meeting Cheon Do-hyeon had most dreaded passed without incident, he exhaled quietly in relief.
They had gathered in Cheongun-jang’s conference room to discuss a matter of great importance.
Though Cheon Do-hyeon already knew the contents, he shared the message he’d received from Jang Ki-jun with everyone present once more.
Even as he reviewed the message again, his eyes grew cold with anger.
“It looks like a trap to anyone with eyes, doesn’t it?”
Lee Ye-rim, who trusted her instincts, was the first to speak.
Seon Young-hun and Lee Sang-won, in apparent agreement, nodded slightly instead of answering.
Cheon Do-hyeon found it difficult to judge hastily.
An enemy who had pursued them relentlessly using the media and state authority had now suddenly proposed an alliance.
Why would he choose to retreat from such favorable ground?
Surely time remained on the side of the Iron-Blooded Jang Family?
Such thoughts swirled, unresolved, troubling his mind—until Kim Seung-yeon spoke.
“I don’t think we need to reject the alliance.”
“Hmm?”
“What are you saying?”
Kim Seung-yeon pushed her glasses up as she answered.
“Even if we never reach a substantive alliance with that madman, we can at least buy ourselves time to move while we’re pretending to negotiate.”
She swept her sharp gaze across everyone in the room.
“You all have an original plan you wanted to carry out, don’t you?”
“…That’s right.”
“Recruiting forces to establish the Great Martial Alliance.”
They nodded as though entranced by her words.
“The nearest place is China, and there’s a power called the Jegyal Clan, you said, Lord Kim?”
“Yes, well, that’s… correct.”
Kim Seung-yeon turned the laptop screen in front of her toward the others.
A massive world map was displayed there.
“With my father’s help—though Father Kim Seon-hong doesn’t know about it—I’ve analyzed everything: the Jegyal Clan, China’s key figures and finances, and the movements of the Demonic Martial Clan’s Hwan-un dan-ga based in China. All of it.”
As Kim Seung-yeon manipulated a few filters with her mouse, a sharp red dot appeared at a location in China.
“JG Investment. An investment company that operates astronomical hedge funds every year. Their representative is named Jegyal Gyeong. And a portion of their massive capital flows periodically into shell companies established by Hwan-un dan-ga.”
The red dot she marked at a specific location blinked.
“JG, Jegyal Gyeong, and the connection to the Demonic Martial Clan… you’re getting the picture now, aren’t you?”
Seon Young-hun clapped and exclaimed aloud.
“Exactly! If we approach JG Investment, we’ll…”
“…be able to meet the Jegyal Clan.”
Even Lee Sang-won, stroking his chin, spoke as though genuinely impressed.
“Impressive indeed.”
Lee Ye-rim, as Kim Seung-yeon took the stage, folded her arms and glared at her with a sidelong expression.
Cheon Do-hyeon inwardly congratulated himself on bringing her into the fold as he spoke.
“What if we proceed with a Two-track Strategy? While one group buys time by appearing to negotiate with Jang Ki-jun, the rest goes to negotiate an alliance with the Jegyal Clan.”
After a relatively brief meeting, the plan was decided: Cheon Do-hyeon, Lee Ye-rim, and Lee Dae-gwang, the final member of the Three Dragons, would depart for China to bring the Jegyal Clan into their fold.
Seon Young-hun and Lee Sang-won, both injured, along with Kim Seung-yeon, who would handle hacking and public opinion warfare, and Kim Jun-pyo, would remain in Korea to rebuild Gaepung’s intelligence network and prepare for negotiations with Jang Ki-jun.
That night, Cheon Do-hyeon dreamed. In the dream, someone stroked his head gently.
Warm touch. The pleasant scent of grass. Though he could not see the face, Cheon Do-hyeon could feel it.
‘Father…’
His father, Cheon Song-gyeong, appeared in his dream for the first time.

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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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