Obtaining Heavenly Demon Martial Arts in the Magic Era - Chapter 62

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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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62
Escorted by the Blood Clan warriors and guards, Cheon Do-hyeon stepped into Cheonma Sinkyo Palace.
The interior unfurled before him, pristine and unblemished by even a trace of dust.
It looked as though it had just been swept clean.
……
Whatever mystique governed this place, he couldn’t quite sense it.
Throughout the interior, golden Demon Statues stood at various points.
So meticulously crafted, so lifelike, that they seemed ready to animate at any moment.
Jegal Seo-rin, who had ample opportunity to study rare treasures from the Jegal family, gazed upon Cheonma Sinkyo Palace with genuine wonder.
“Such exquisite craftsmanship in this age….”
The Demon Statues, wrought with the artisan’s very soul, numbered in the dozens from what the eye could see.
Every one of them knelt in reverence toward the Jade Throne.
And in the place toward which ten thousand demons gazed upward,
there stood an enormous Jade Throne.
……
Gazing upon that seat, he felt an inexplicable solemnity settle over him.
That was when Lee Dae-gwang jabbed Do-hyeon sharply in the ribs.
“What are you doing? Anyone can see that’s the master’s chair.”
As Do-hyeon hesitated, Lee Ye-rim added a word.
“We’ll be here until sunset at this rate.”
Faltering, Cheon Do-hyeon approached and sat upon the Jade Throne.
Whoooom—
The moment he took his seat, just as when the Cheonma Divine Art had once transmitted martial knowledge into his mind,
a surge of Demonic Energy rose up and forcibly poured information about all the Cheonma Sinkyo facilities on Shipman Great Mountain directly into his consciousness.
‘A legacy left by my predecessors….’
Now that he had gained the ability to perceive Demonic Energy and obtained what he called Cheonma Energy,
he could finally grasp, at least in outline, the mysterious mechanics by which the Cheonma Divine Art had operated.
And then it came.
‘Ho, something like this….’
As the information etched itself into him in real time, there appeared a passage that piqued Cheon Do-hyeon’s interest.
‘A secret chamber accessible only with the Cheonma’s approval….’
It was truly a place where items worthy of being called the Cheonma Sinkyo’s greatest treasures lay dormant.
He would have to visit it before descending Shipman Great Mountain.
But then, all at once,
descending….
as the thought of leaving the mountain crossed his mind,
an unwelcome visitor blocking the mountain’s entrance came back to him.
He had completely forgotten.
Dan Cheon-woo.
The man who had led troops and stormed the inner sanctuary,
and whom he had watched as Jwa Ho-beop and U Ho-beop awoke from their slumber and rushed forward to intercept….
Yet those two now waited quietly outside Cheonma Sinkyo Palace.
Which meant
“Where is Dan Cheon-woo?”
A flicker of alarm crossed Do-hyeon’s face.
#
Dan Cheon-woo, third son of the Hwanwun Dan family.
On the surface, his life gleamed with brilliance.
— A young master of a Demonic Path family….
— I’d like to be close to him.
— He’s handsome.
— There’s something different about his aura….
Born bearing the name of the Hwanwun Dan family upon his shoulders, he was already among the highest echelons of society.
Yet within his own household, his position was the very opposite.
— Still stuck at Circle 2….
— Young Master still hasn’t awakened the Bloodline Secret Art, I hear….
— Don’t worry, brother. Even if I become family head, I’ll protect you to the end.
An endlessly insufficient man.
An incomplete person.
A being who disappointed expectations.
Within the Hwanwun Dan family, that person was Dan Cheon-woo.
The gap between his public persona and his private reality tormented him.
Unlike the image he projected outward, he had spent his entire life struggling for recognition within the Hwanwun Dan family,
which was why his hand had reached toward the forbidden territory of Shipman Great Mountain.
And that was the meager arc of his existence.
“Why… why is this happening!”
It was a desperate cry.
That anguished plea.
Not long after setting foot in the headquarters of Cheonma Sinkyo,
the forces under his command encountered two colossal Guardians.
He knew Guardians well enough.
A magical weapon that mages—vulnerable in close combat—often carried for self-defense.
Fundamentally low in intellect,
and necessarily possessing a weakness called the Core.
Once the Core was destroyed, they ceased functioning immediately.
“Does this Dan Cheon-woo face some antiquated Guardian? It’s nothing but brute size! Don’t be afraid!”
And precisely thirty minutes later.
“Why… why won’t it work!”
Magic was useless.
Illusion spells did nothing either.
This wasn’t the Guardian he knew.
What in the world was the thing before him?
Something that defied any magical understanding,
‘calamity itself.’
When struck by the giant’s attacks, no physical damage occurred.
Yet equally severe destruction seemed to unfold in some other way.
Hrrrrgh—
A person convulsing across his entire body, foaming at the mouth.
Save me save me save me save me save me save me save me—
A person burying his head in both hands, repeating the same words endlessly.
Hehehehe—
Thud thud thud thud—
A person laughing while continuously smashing his own head against the ground, self-inflicting wounds.
The symptoms varied, but every soldier he had brought fell into a state of total combat incapacity.
And now.
The cause that had brought about this catastrophe—
the giant’s hand was descending toward Dan Cheon-woo.
“No… no!!!!!”
#
“So… they’re all in this state…”
Following Jwa Ho-beop’s guidance, they moved outside the Cheonma Sinkyo grounds, where members of the Hwanwun Dan family lay scattered about as though cast out.
“He’s here. Dan Cheon-woo!”
Jegal Seo-rin picked him out precisely from among them.
“Hehehehe… hehehehe.”
Sure enough, there was a man with silver-gray hair proving his bloodline to the Hwanwun Dan family.
But his condition was drastically different from how he had appeared at the base camp.
His eyes were rolled back, drool streaming from his mouth. Not a trace of rationality remained.
“If time passes, he’ll return to his senses, yes?”
When she asked the Spirit Demons, they urged her to lower her voice instead of answering.
“Ahem… will he return to normal as time goes on?”
Only when she used a more deferential tone did the Spirit Demons deign to respond.
『The opponent was formidable. Having sustained Spiritual Damage from the most powerful Spirit Demons within Cheonma Sinkyo… recovery seems unlikely.』
“…….”
“This… this bastard just wet himself.”
Lee Dae-gwang cried out in shock.
Turning around, she could see Dan Cheon-woo’s trousers growing damp.
“Isn’t it better for us if he stays like this? At least he won’t be bothersome about seeking revenge.”
“Mm…”
At Lee Ye-rim’s words, Jegal Seo-rin paused briefly before raising a different concern.
“That’s a problem in itself… The Hwanwun Dan family must have records of tracking Cheon Do-hyeon all the way to the vicinity of Shipman Great Mountain. If the third son returns to the main house in this condition…”
“They’ll certainly suspect me.”
“…….”
It was then that the Spirit Demon ventured a careful suggestion.
『What if we were to use these humans’ bodies instead, sir?』
『It’s not mere greed! Of course we’ve wanted living flesh for ourselves, but…』
『Since you say these humans are causing trouble…』
『We’ll pretend flawlessly!』
The Spirit Demons offered excuses and various justifications, but Cheon Do-hyeon didn’t catch a word of it.
“Is that actually possible? I mean, can you do that?”
『Of course. Though we shall require the Cheonma’s assistance.』
It seemed that Cheon Do-hyeon, who had legitimately ascended as the fifty-eighth Cheonma, possessed an ability that had awakened without his knowledge.
Following the Spirit Demons’ request, he would use only the Demonic Energy flowing through his body.
More specifically, the Cheonma Energy that flowed from the deepest place within him.
A single Spirit Demon slowly coalesced above Cheon Do-hyeon’s palm.
A tendril of black mist. Not in human form, nor beast form—merely a wisp of Spirit Body.
“……Enter him. Take control of his flesh.”
『We heed your command!』
The voice held a tremor of excitement.
Whoosh—
Soon the Spirit Demon seeped slowly into Dan Cheon-woo through his mouth and nose.
Screeeee—
And then
Dan Cheon-woo’s body convulsed violently, as if a fierce struggle were raging within his flesh.
Shudder-shudder-shudder—
“This isn’t going wrong, is it?”
“How could it go more wrong?”
“…….”
After spasming for some time, his body suddenly went still.
Cheon Do-hyeon stared at Dan Cheon-woo.
At that moment, he felt a familiar presence emanate from the man’s body—the flow of Demonic Energy that had radiated from the Spirit Demon.
“……Stand.”
A single, quiet command.
Snap—
Dan Cheon-woo’s body rose rigidly at the word, without any preliminaries.
Flash—
His eyes gleamed grey for an instant, then slowly shifted to Dan Cheon-woo’s original silver-grey irises.
Outwardly, he looked entirely like Dan Cheon-woo. But
『……Master.』
The Spirit Demon occupying his body bowed its head deeply to its new lord.
It had succeeded.
He had made one of the bloodline members of the Demonic Way’s great house his subordinate.
A chill ran down his spine.
It was a mixture of the guilt that came from committing an unspeakable crime, and the pride of achieving what he had deemed impossible—emotions caught somewhere between.
“……This man was the third son of the Hwanwun Dan family, wasn’t he?”
Lee Dae-gwang adjusted his glasses.
Through the lenses of the Mystic Eye Glasses, the form of the Spirit Demon now inhabiting Dan Cheon-woo’s body became visible.
“……Hm.”
A heavy sound escaped Lee Dae-gwang’s lips.
“……So the day has come when I command one of the Demonic Way’s great house as my tool…. Indeed, one lives long enough to see wonders.”
Cheon Do-hyeon repeated what he had done with Dan Cheon-woo, installing the Spirit Demons into the bodies of the key figures.
Though he wished to give Jwa Ho-beop and U Ho-beop new bodies as well, the two who had lost all reason seemed incapable of even pretending to be human.
“When they regain their original minds someday, I’ll find them suitable bodies. I promise.”
With that vow, Cheon Do-hyeon turned away.
At his feet, Dan Cheon-woo of the Hwanwun Dan family knelt with bowed head. Behind him, all the forces of the Cheonma Sinkyo’s headquarters were arrayed in formation. Beside him, Jegal Seo-rin, heir of the Jegal family, watched over him quietly.
“……I still can’t believe it.”
“Three great powers from China now fit in the palm of your hand.”
It was true.
All the forces that existed at the Cheonma Sinkyo’s headquarters.
Resources and troops he could mobilize through Dan Cheon-woo as a medium from the Hwanwun Dan family.
The financial strength of the Jegal family, promised through Jegal Seo-rin.
Three massive currents of power had flowed into Cheon Do-hyeon’s grasp.
The achievement far exceeded what he’d come to China to accomplish.
“Now we return. To Korea.”
“……Now, how shall we return, sir? Korea is so far away.”
At Cheon Do-hyeon’s words, Dan Cheon-woo bowed his head swiftly.
“……From China to Korea. I shall guide you by the safest route.”
Cheon Do-hyeon’s party gathered a few more sacred artifacts from Cheonma Sinkyo, then hastened down from Shipman Great Mountain for their return home.
Then
Behind the departing Cheon Do-hyeon, hazy spirit forms undulated.
As if to bid him farewell.
They watched him for a long while, but the moment his party completely descended Shipman Great Mountain, they vanished without a trace, as though they had never been there to begin with.

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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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