Reincarnation of the Blood Demon - Chapter 12

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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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Blood Demon Reborn
Chapter 12
I can’t believe this is working.
That gaze—blood dripping steadily from the eyes.
Was it courage, or merely the human mind’s defense mechanism when confronted with absolute terror?
“Aaaahhh!”
A few of the sect members rushed forward screaming, but there was no need for Jeok Unhwi to intervene.
“Haha! Please stand back, Master! I shall protect you!”
The Heugwol-mun disciples, brimming with excitement, couldn’t even dodge Ju Igyeom’s blade as it swept lazily through the air.
Ju Igyeom alone was delighted to be playing bodyguard after so long, his face splitting into a broad grin.
From that point, events unfolded at breathtaking speed.
“Chase them all down! Don’t let a single one escape!”
“Ah, aah! Please—save us—”
The ones fleeing in panic, their morale shattered, were hunted down one by one as the Jeok Sabang disciples joined the fray, and soon every last soul was on their knees, trembling on the ground.
Of the roughly forty who had come, their numbers had dwindled sharply. Now only eight remained.
“Is this all of you?”
“S-sir, aside from the Master’s personal guard, yes—we are all that’s left.”
“A guard detail? So they do know about my karma.”
“He was a masterless wanderer of considerable skill who only recently pledged himself to our sect’s domain. The Heugwol-mun Master paid handsomely to recruit him, and he goes by the alias Wolf Fang.”
The last remark was Ma Hyeoljin’s addition.
“What crime brought him running here?”
“He murdered his principal and fled with stolen goods. For that deed, the Murim League has put a bounty on his head.”
“Birds of a feather flock together.”
From what he knew, the territories of the Blood Cult and the Demonic Sect in this era harbored quite a few criminals who had fled after committing grave sins elsewhere.
It made sense—the demonic factions had little qualm about such things.
Indeed, there were those who had risen to high positions despite being public enemies of Murim.
‘That said, while it does boost combat strength to some degree…’
He couldn’t help but question whether this was truly sound policy.
Presently, Jeok Unhwi brushed himself off and rose to his feet.
“Fine. Let’s go.”
Their destination was, of course, Heugwol-mun. By now they had grown accustomed to it—none of the Jeok Sabang disciples raised objections. Truth be told, they couldn’t have.
“What shall we do with these ones, sir?”
At Ma Hyeoljin’s question, Jeok Unhwi drew his blade without hesitation and slashed horizontally.
Whoosh—crack!
In a single instant, eight heads flew into the air simultaneously.
Snuffing out eight lives took only one Sword Strike.
The corpses of the Heugwol-mun disciples, unable even to scream, tumbled pitifully across the ground.
“They were too wicked to be of any use.”
From the moment Ma Hyeoljin had told him their crimes, Jeok Unhwi had never intended to spare them. Heugwol-mun had already crossed the point of no return.
At his curt, decisive handling of the matter, Ma Hyeoljin and the Jeok Sabang disciples felt their napes prickle cold, and they hunched their shoulders.
‘If only we had resisted back then…’
Surely their end would have been no different.
As they swallowed nervously, Jeok Unhwi pointed to Ma Hyeoljin and spoke.
“Pick one or two strong men and follow me. The rest—clean up here.”
“Will that be sufficient, sir?”
“It’s not like we’re going anywhere important. I hate needless complications.”
“I see…”
Still, the Heugwol-mun Master was a master-level fighter, and his guard Wolf Fang was even more formidable.
With such a small force, it would prove inadequate—or so Ma Hyeoljin might have thought. Yet he harbored no such worries now.
A deep, unshakeable belief had taken root: this monster of a Third Young Master would see it through, no matter what transpired.
‘Well, it’ll work out one way or another.’
And indeed, before long they had arrived at their destination.
A grand, imposing gate of polished black wood, towering quite high.
The main hall of Heugwol-mun.
“These bastards are loaded.”
Jeok Unhwi glanced up briefly at the gate, then rapped his knuckles against it.
“Gatekeeper, gatekeeper—open the door.”
Though he made the request, the silence from within was absolute.
What followed next was simple enough.
Crash—!!
“No key? Then smash it in.”
Wood fragments scattered across the ground. The result of a few kicks.
Jeok Unhwi trampled through the shattered main gate of Heugwol-mun without hesitation.
“How dare you……!”
Two figures emerged at the commotion, their young faces flushed with indignation. The Heugwol-mun Master and his guard.
The Heugwol-mun Master bore the typical appearance of a nouveau riche—greed plastered across his features—while his guard, Nangah-geom, had eyes so dark and murky that wickedness practically radiated from him.
The Heugwol-mun Master flinched upon spotting Jeok Unhwi, drenched in blood.
“The Third Son—how did you……!”
“You said to bring the breach-price. I came to discuss it.”
Third Son again. These Namhwa District fools had no respect for the true bloodline of the Blood Cult.
“Why come to me with a grievance from a dead man’s deal? Do I look like a fool to you?”
“……What happened to Bu Munju?”
“What happened? He’s probably having a pleasant conversation with the Jeok Sabang Master about their shared business ventures.”
“So it’s true—you overwhelmed the Jeok Sabang Master……!”
“I told you to believe it. Instead, all your innocent subordinates died because of your doubt.”
Jeok Unhwi’s lips curved in a smile, but his eyes had grown glacially cold.
From those eyes flowed an aura of lethal intent so overwhelming it seemed to fill the air.
‘What manner of presence is this…….’
That this Third Son could project such an oppressive force had never crossed the Heugwol-mun Master’s mind.
The Heugwol-mun Master spoke, beads of cold sweat rolling down his face.
“……It seems a grave misunderstanding has arisen between us.”
“Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding? That you came to me and tried to extort money? That you laid hands on my subordinates? Or perhaps that you dared insult the bloodline of the Cult Master?”
“That was all Bu Munju’s rash decision. I never ordered such a thing.”
That much was true. Even the Heugwol-mun Master would not have dared to overstep against the Cult Master’s own child.
His original plan had been merely to squeeze out a modest share through mutual benefit.
‘I only meant to throw him some scraps, show him proper respect, and win him over……!’
Yet Bu Munju, trusted and sent on this errand, had provoked the Third Son in ways the Heugwol-mun Master had never foreseen.
‘That cursed Bu Munju! What in hell did he do……!’
His naturally reckless temperament had always been his weakness, but he’d never imagined the fool would blunder at such a critical moment.
Since he couldn’t kill a dead man twice, he could only grind his teeth in frustration.
Of course, whether any of this was true scarcely mattered to Jeok Unhwi at all.
“Put your mind at ease. Whatever that idiot did changes nothing.”
Now that he’d confirmed their viciousness, he’d decided to crush Heugwol-mun entirely.
“Surely you don’t mean to go that far……!”
Unable to misread the emotion in those eyes, the Heugwol-mun Master clenched his jaw and turned his gaze aside.
“……Nangah-geom. I’m counting on you.”
“An assignment of this caliber comes with a premium. You’re prepared for that?”
“Money is no concern. I’ll pay whatever you ask.”
Cursing Bu Munju under his breath, the Heugwol-mun Master called out urgently.
“Kill him!”
As if he’d been waiting for those words, Nangah-geom drew a Mystical Weapon shaped like a wolf’s fang, his smile turning sinister.
“Never thought I’d be slitting the blood-heir of the Cult Master. I’d best ensure my payment is substantial.”
Once he’d killed the Third Son, there’d be no staying tied to the Blood Cult.
Not that it mattered.
One good score like this, and he could carve out a place for himself whether in the Demonic Sect or beyond.
“I hold no personal grudge against you.”
Between Jeok Unhwi, Straight Sword in hand, and Nangah-geom, the air crackled with imminent confrontation.
Jeok Unhwi’s eyes gleamed with calm appraisal.
‘Not entirely useless, then.’
Now that they faced each other directly, he could feel the man’s considerable presence.
Worthy of the hefty sum the Heugwol-mun Master had paid for him, this guard proved at least a tier above his employer and even superior to the Jeok Sabang Master he’d faced earlier.
Of course, given his current strength, Jeok Unhwi could handle him without difficulty.
‘Though it would be tedious and drag on.’
And if he took even a minor wound in the process, everything would become all the more troublesome.
‘Should I use that?’
A moment’s temptation flickered across his mind, but he dismissed it.
That technique wasn’t refined enough yet to be considered a true art.
Beyond that, it would be wasted on someone like Nangah-geom.
Apart from that option, roughly seventeen hundred methods came to mind.
Jeok Unhwi selected one of them.
‘There’s no need to hold back.’
If victory was the goal, there were plenty of ways to achieve it beyond simply rolling around on the ground.
A strange smile played across Jeok Unhwi’s lips.
Nangah-geom had maintained his composure and focus until then, but he couldn’t help but be taken aback by what came next.
“You’re the one who slit your escort’s throat and ran off with the valuables, aren’t you?”
“……!”
“Impressive cunning. Did you really think that if you hid yourself away in some corner of Namhwa District to avoid the Murim League’s bounty, our sect would welcome you with open arms?”
Nangah-geom’s pupils trembled. Jeok Unhwi smiled and took a step forward, tilting his chin upward.
“The Gwibhyul-dae has surrounded Namhwa District to capture you. And I’m leading the vanguard.”
“……What did you say?”
The Gwibhyul-dae was the Blood Cult’s elite force, the unit that mobilized during internal rebellions or conflicts between external powers.
Its reputation was so fearsome throughout the Murim that even those unfamiliar with the Blood Cult knew of the Gwibhyul-dae.
And now he was being hunted by such ghostly beings?
“This can’t be……”
“You believe such nonsense? We don’t need to fall for these pointless tricks!”
The Heugwol-mun Master cried out urgently, but Jeok Unhwi let out a scoff.
“Tricks? Do you know anything about internal sect politics? Do you think our organization would cause friction with the Orthodox Sect over trash like him? The higher-ups have already agreed to chop him up and hand him over to the Murim League.”
“……!”
“The sect’s policy has changed. Parasites like you are no longer needed.”
The threat was both stern and specific. Even the Heugwol-mun Master was thrown into confusion, and Nangah-geom, who had only recently pledged himself to the Blood Cult, was far worse off.
‘Am I actually priority number one on the Blood Cult’s elimination list?’
A bone-deep fear crept over him, incomparable to anything the Murim League’s bounty could inspire.
‘The Murim League would at worst throw me in a prison tower……’
But if the Blood Cult got hold of him, it wouldn’t be strange if they tore him limb from limb and threw his corpse to the dogs.
The Heugwol-mun Master was equally panicked.
At first he’d dismissed it as lies, but now the possibility that it might be true was beginning to take root in his mind.
‘Leading the Gwibhyul-dae? The Third Prodigy was hiding his true strength all along?’
A few days ago he would have laughed such a thing off as absurd, but now he couldn’t.
‘He definitely was hiding his strength, at least.’
Otherwise there was no way a man wasting away as a cripple could have killed Jeok Sabang Master, a first-rate master.
The Heugwol-mun Master’s mind began working rapidly, spinning out possibilities.
‘If the Third Prodigy is an agent secretly cultivated by the Patriarch, and his purpose is internal inspection……’
It was entirely possible given the current Patriarch’s temperament, even likely.
Wasn’t he waging a war against the sect’s elders single-handedly?
Somehow the pieces seemed to be falling into place.
‘Could it be that everything up to now was nothing but an act, a pretense of being a cripple?’
He’d known it was a lie, of course, yet the explanation carried surprising conviction.
Meanwhile, the Third Prodigy’s escort was furrowing his brow with an odd expression, though even that seemed laden with meaning now.
‘If what he’s saying is true, then what in the world can I……!’
While the Heugwol-mun Master was frozen in a trap of his own making, Jeok Unhwi spoke to Nangah-geom, who was sweating profusely.
“So what’ll it be? Keep mouthing off and get cut down here, or bolt outside and get shredded by the Gwibhyul-dae?”
“I, I……”
“Drop your weapon now and bow your head, and I’ll let you live. I’ll even have the Murim League’s bounty erased in the Patriarch’s name. But from now on, you’ll have to crawl like a dog under my feet.”
Before Nangah-geom could even respond, Jeok Unhwi closed his eyes and crossed his arms as if to say he could wait.
Such audacious composure.
‘Standing right in front of an enemy, and yet……’
Nangah-geom and the Heugwol-mun Master’s faces were swept by countless emotions as they looked at him.
‘Should I just attack now?’
It seemed like he would react anyway.
And even if he didn’t, there was no way to stop the Gwibhyul-dae when they arrived.
‘What if I just threw everything away and ran?’
If the Gwibhyul-dae really were coming, he’d eventually be caught.
After a brief moment, Jeok Unhwi opened his eyes again.
Snap.
His left index finger pointed at Nangah-geom’s brow, as if prodding him to decide.
“Decided? I’ll count to three. One, two.”
“I, I surrender──”
The moment Nangah-geom lowered his sword and opened his mouth desperately.
──Thud!
A Black Projectile shot from Jeok Unhwi’s index finger pierced Nangah-geom’s forehead without a shred of mercy.
Crash!
Nangah-geom’s corpse, stripped of life so anticlimactically, crumpled to the ground. Dark crimson blood streamed from the hole punched clean through his forehead.
Jeok Unhwi withdrew the hand he’d leveled like an accusing finger, his smile turning glacial.
“And he believed it. Stupid bastard.”

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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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