Obtaining Heavenly Demon Martial Arts in the Magic Era - Chapter 58

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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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58
Let us turn back the clock a moment,
to the Hwan-un Dan-ga Base Camp.
“Haaaugh!”
Dan Cheon-woo, who had been unconscious, gasped sharply as he came to.
He patted himself down uncertainly.
Finding his body intact, he exhaled in relief.
“Pfft—”
He heard the sound of laughter leaking through from someone holding it back.
……
Only then did Dan Cheon-woo notice the Hwan-un Dan-ga hired men gathered around him, and his face flushed crimson with shame and rage.
“You bastards……! What are you staring at? Get back to work!”
“Young Master. My apologies, but the entire infrastructure has been destroyed. For the time being…….”
“What? What kind of nonsense is that…….”
Only then did Dan Cheon-woo notice the half-ruined buildings and key equipment.
Workers clearing away debris for repairs.
“What in the world happened while I had my eyes closed……!”
Dan Cheon-woo recalled the scene he’d witnessed before losing consciousness.
He’d seen that monster of a man tear buildings apart with his bare hands (well, not entirely bare).
He’d completely reduced the base camp itself to rubble.
“Wait—could it be?”
A sudden foreboding seized Dan Cheon-woo, and he rushed urgently toward his tent.
Inside lay the Cheonma Sinjiao treasure he’d spent weeks searching for—the treasure—!
Gone.
It had vanished without a trace.
He searched the same spot over and over, as though unable to believe his eyes.
“I hid it in the deepest part…. How could—how could—aaaaagh!”
At Dan Cheon-woo’s wail, the nearby hired men quietly withdrew.
“You know the young master’s got a rotten temperament.”
“Better not catch his attention wrong. Everyone out of the way…….”
After howling for some time, he suddenly burst out of his tent.
“Get all combat-ready troops armed and assembled. This instant!”
His eyes, bloodshot and intense, blazed with fury.
“How dare they lay hands on the Hwan-un Dan-ga? What is our family creed!”
He grabbed a hapless hired man passing by and questioned him.
“I—I don’t know, sir.”
“Remember this well. We may forget kindness, but we never forget vengeance…….”
As he muttered this vow to himself, hired men who had served the Hwan-un Dan-ga for quite some time exchanged murmurs at a distance.
“……Has anyone ever heard that before?”
“I’ve never heard it myself.”
#
Dan Cheon-woo deployed Tracking Magic to pursue Cheon Do-hyeon and his company.
Treacherous terrain and demonic beasts barred their path, but he overcame them all and finally arrived at the headquarters of Cheonma Sinjiao.
It was an achievement born entirely of his fury and hatred for Cheon Do-hyeon.
“Of course—the coward had a bolt-hole here. This rat of a man!”
He blew apart the stone gate with brute force,
and a section of Cheonma Sinjiao, sealed for centuries, finally revealed itself.
Dan Cheon-woo, intoxicated by a rush of triumph in that moment, momentarily forgot his pursuit of Cheon Do-hyeon.
“Seize everything in sight! Move it all!”
“Yes, Young Master!”
The exhilarated Hwan-un Dan-ga forces set about their work.
As Cheon Do-hyeon watched the place—ancient and rich with history—trampled beneath demonic plunderers,
he felt something hot and terrible roiling within his chest.
“Those bastards…….”
Yet, indifferent to his rage,
『…the Inner Citadel lies this way.』
the Spirit Demons guided Cheon Do-hyeon’s party forward with unshakeable composure.
“This place… isn’t it almost like a homeland for you Spirit Demons? Doesn’t it anger you?”
Seo-rin asked, her tone uncertain, and the Spirit Demons answered without concern.
『Those who guard this place are separate entities…』
“Intruders shall receive their proper punishment…”
They seemed confident in that assurance.
When Cheon Do-hyeon pressed for more details, one of the Spirit Demons displayed urgency for the first time.
“I would strongly recommend you leave at once….”
The Spirit Demons behind it echoed the warning.
“It will awaken…”
“They will come…”
“What do you mean something’s coming? We’ve just infiltrated Cheonma Sinjiao—”
A deep, rumbling growl tore through the air.
Before his words even finished,
massive surges of Demonic Energy rose from both sides of the Outer Citadel’s outermost perimeter.
A chill ran through him.
Those who couldn’t properly sense Demonic Energy wouldn’t understand, but
Cheon Do-hyeon could feel it.
For just a moment, the Demonic Energy rising before them matched the sheer force radiating from the Cheonma Divine Art itself.
“What in the world…?”
Before Cheon Do-hyeon could question the Spirit Demons,
his companions were all staring at the same spot,
their faces painted with disbelief.
“Is… is that a giant?”
“An illusion?”
Their gazes were fixed precisely on the source of that Demonic Energy.
When Cheon Do-hyeon turned to follow his companions’ line of sight,
A tremendous roar echoed across the grounds—
A massive shape, easily over twenty meters tall, was rising to its feet.
Upon closer inspection, it did indeed have the form of a person, just as Lee Ye-rim had said.
Lee Dae-gwang, who had gained the ability to discern the true nature of things through his Heartseeing Mirror, spoke with precision.
“No, that’s… a Spirit Demon—a mass of spectral form consumed by Demonic Energy.”
“But Spirit Demons are…”
supposed to be tiny and compact like the ones they’d seen?
“It is a matter of rank…. Those are the Left Guardian Dharma and Right Guardian Dharma of the temple…. Among the strongest the sect has to offer….”
“They have lost their reason…”
“They cannot distinguish friend from foe.”
“You must flee.”
So these were the entities the Spirit Demons had spoken of—the instruments of punishment for intruders.
Cheon Do-hyeon finally understood the Spirit Demons’ frantic demeanor.
A deafening shriek tore through the Outer Citadel—
“Ahhh! What are these giants?!”
“Intercept them!”
“M-magic isn’t working!”
While the forces of Hwan-un Dan-ga clashed with the towering Spirit Demons, Cheon Do-hyeon’s party pressed forward into the Inner Citadel.
The iron gate groaned as it swung open—
The iron door leading to the inner sanctum,
just as the stone gate at the Outer Citadel had done, recognized Cheon Do-hyeon and opened of its own accord.
“At this rate, you’re basically a walking key, aren’t you?”
……
“Ah, sorry—I just mean it’s incredibly convenient.”
The atmosphere of the Inner Citadel was starkly different from the Outer.
Streets paved meticulously with black stone,
and between the flagstones long abandoned, a deep darkness seemed to pool and gather.
The eaves from which lanterns once hung, now colorless with age, cast a gloomy, ominous light.
Precisely because it was so carefully maintained, the unease felt all the more acute.
“It’s suffocating…”
“It really is.”
“…The Demonic Energy concentration here is incredibly dense.”
As Lee Dae-gwang said, the Demonic Energy density of the Inner Citadel was incomparably thicker than the Outer.
Lingering here too long would corrupt anyone without resistance to such Demonic Energy.
Sensing the unease among his companions, the Spirit Demons spoke encouragement.
“The Cheonma Divine Temple can only be reached by passing through the Inner Citadel.”
“Simply continue running forward.”
Even those who couldn’t see or properly sense the Demonic Energy felt the oppressive weight,
so Cheon Do-hyeon could only imagine what he was enduring.
The moment he entered the Inner Citadel, the Demonic Energy pressing down on his entire body had already left him gasping for breath.
‘Is the source over there?’
Cheon Do-hyeon noticed the symptoms worsening as he moved forward.
He turned his gaze toward the source.
The place emanating the most overwhelming presence.
“That’s….”
『That is the Cheonma Divine Temple. The tall structure visible behind it is the Cheonma Divine Palace.』
The black stone statues stationed at every intersection all faced the same direction.
As if in reverence.
Beyond the black mist, a palace was dimly visible.
“The Cheonma… Divine Palace.”
It looked as though it had existed in that spot since ancient times.
Rather than being artificially constructed, it seemed the mountain range itself had taken the form of a palace.
Atop towering cliffs,
spires thrust skyward like sharpened spears,
their peaks lost beyond the clouds.
The palace radiated massive waves of Demonic Energy outward, as magnificent as its appearance was awe-inspiring.
Thrum—thrum—thrum—
“It’s almost like….”
From Cheon Do-hyeon’s perspective, able to see the waves themselves, the Cheonma Divine Palace was….
‘A machine generating waves of Demonic Energy in real time.’
Then it happened.
Thrum—thrum—
‘The Cheonma Divine Art is… resonating.’
The Cheonma Divine Art in his possession trembled as though recognizing its ancient home.
Meanwhile,
Patter-patter-patter—
The group running quietly through the streets of the Inner Citadel was growing uneasy, each in their own way.
“It’s way too quiet.”
“Right… the atmosphere feels like something could leap out at any second.”
“Tsk, Seo-rin. Don’t you know not to tempt fate like that?”
“I… I’m sorry.”
Seo-rin’s spirit deflated under Lee Ye-rim’s rebuke.
That’s when it happened.
Lee Dae-gwang, who had sensed the disturbance with the Heartseeing Mirror, shouted.
“Pick up the pace, everyone! Seo-rin, your words just came true!”
“Why, why, why?”
As those words left his mouth, crimson-drenched corpses poured from both sides of the street.
Screeeeeech—
“Gaaaaaah!”
“What—what is that thing! Kyaaaah!”
The group fled at a speed they’d never managed before, screams tearing from their throats.
“Whoa! Damn, that scared me!”
Crunch!
Splatter—
Cheon Do-hyeon reflexively crushed the head of one that had lunged at him with its maw gaping, and lifted his hand. Sticky blood clung to his fingers.
『Those are Corpse Soldiers. It appears they’ve identified the new master as an intruder.』
“How is that…!”
Boom—
A massive armored figure crashed down in front of the group leading the charge.
Groooooaarrr—
It roared menacingly, making clear it had no intention of letting them pass.
Standing roughly two meters tall.
Violet skin.
Sunken, desiccated eyes.
Prominent veins standing out like cords.
Jet-black Demonic Energy streamed out in torrents between the gaps of its armor.
Not a trace of vitality emanated from it.
There existed only the killing intent born of hunger—nothing else.
“Let me handle this!”
[White-knot Divine Fist 5-Form — White-knot Mountain Crushing Pressure]
Boom—
It was a single strike driven forward with the resolve to clear away all obstacles in one breath.
The weighty force of the fist burrowed deep into the belly of the unidentifiable creature blocking their path.
Screech?
“…….”
Yet the thing didn’t budge an inch.
“Ha… haha….”
Lee Ye-rim forced an awkward smile, tilting her gaze upward.
The creature fixed her with a savage stare.
Whoosh— thud—
It immediately swung its grotesquely swollen arm in a counterattack. The force was so tremendous that Lee Ye-rim, even bracing it with both arms, was hurled through the air.
“Ugh! This thing is incredibly strong!”
“I’ve got you!”
“Let me help.”
Lee Ye-rim’s airborne form was caught by a comrade’s hands and finally arrested.
『That is a Corpse Soldier.』
『The Corpse Soldiers are creatures born from apex-level warriors transformed into undead.』
“You should’ve told us that from the start!”
Thud—
Thud—
Thud—!
Before Ma-ryeong could finish the explanation, three more Corpse Soldiers emerged before them.
“Something feels very wrong about this.”
An instant later, a deafening noise erupted that easily drowned out all their voices.
Grrraaarrrarr—
The Corpse Soldiers began roaring in unison.
And as if that were a signal—
Screeeee!
Blood Demons that had been lurking burst forth from the buildings all at once.
Shrieeek!
Reduced to bloody masses, they lunged toward any living target.
“There are too many of them!”
“We can’t win a frontal engagement.”
『We flee. We flee.』
“But you said the Spirit Demons were guiding us? Why are these things acting like this?”
Cheon Do-hyeon found himself asking the same question.
“Exactly. Why are they like this!”
『Those who possess only flesh have no reasoning… they exist only to repel intruders.』
What mattered was that the Cheonma Divine Temple stood at the far end of the passage these creatures were guarding.
“Ma-ryeong! What changes if we get inside the Cheonma Divine Temple?”
『Hmm. I cannot be certain, but I suspect they have not been given complex orders by their controller….』
『It is likely they are troops stationed only to defend the Inner Citadel….』
“Right then, let’s just break through.”
As Cheon Do-hyeon drew closer to the Cheonma Divine Palace, his stomach churned and his limbs grew heavy,
yet this was no moment where he could afford to stop on account of poor condition.
‘Push through quickly.’
Shing—
The Cloud-hand Sword drew free with a smooth whisper.
With the Three-Section Staff, he had needed to concentrate on manifesting “sharpness” through Inner Force Energy,
but the Cloud-hand Sword was a cold weapon whose blade had already been honed to a razor edge from the start.
Because of that, all his Internal Power could be focused solely on “force.”
He adopted the foundational stance of the Cheonma Sword Art 6-Form.
Center of gravity lowered and settling.
Muscles drawn taut and trembling.
[Cheonma Sword Art 6-Form — Cheonma Consecutive Strike Stance]
[Black Wave Triple Flash]
A technique that unleashed the Black Wave Flash three times in rapid succession.
Screech—
A black slash burning like flame erased the Hyeol-si before his eyes in a single stroke.
Ahhhhh!
Seeing the Hyeol-si vanish, the panicked Gwi-jang-si charged forward to block with his own body,
Screech—
The black armor that seemed utterly impenetrable split without a sound,
and Gwi-jang-si’s body tilted sideways.
His upper and lower halves had been severed cleanly.
“Run!”
Seizing the momentary opening, the company bolted across the boundary of the Inner Citadel like arrows.
Roaaaaarrr!
The Gwi-jang-si, arriving late, surged forward to capture Cheon Do-hyeon and his group.
Screech—
Cheon Do-hyeon unleashed another black slash toward them, and the distance between them widened drastically as they could not follow.
After much struggle, he had escaped the Inner Citadel.
“This is the Cheonma Divine Temple—”
Thud-thud-thud—
The moment Cheon Do-hyeon’s foot touched the Cheonma Divine Temple after crossing the Inner Citadel’s boundary, his body collapsed helplessly.
#
The reason Cheon Do-hyeon fell.
It was because the moment he entered the Cheonma Divine Temple, presences of overwhelming power forcibly extracted his consciousness.
Thus, Cheon Do-hyeon was summoned by force before an entity of unknown nature.
‘Look at this one—can’t even get his wits about him?’
Still reeling from the shock of separation from his body,
a person with a coarse manner of speech was reproaching him.
“Who…?”
Do-hyeon saw the being standing before him.
Or had he seen it at all?
He was certain it was a youth,
yet it was a woman, no—an old man, no—a small child—
…
Ah, so it was—the being before him could not be defined as a single entity.
It was one and many at once,
both an age and a we,
‘Still dazed, are you? Why not greet your forebears properly?’
introducing itself as his ancestor.

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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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