The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 120

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 120.
Nam Goong Woon’s expression grew tense.
Having experienced fierce combat with assassins before, he understood all too well how terrifying forest warfare could be.
Whoosh!
At that moment, flames erupted from below—a signal flare fired by Heuk Pyo.
“You’ve learned from our previous encounter, I trust.”
Bu Eunseol, her gaze fixed on the forest, spoke in a low voice.
“In a place like this, martial prowess alone means nothing. You must sever their momentum and fight with your senses.”
“Of course.”
Nam Goong Woon, taut with tension, took a deep breath at her words and nodded.
“Fortunately, it’s not the dead of night!”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
The Yin Sword Division and the ronin waiting behind surged forward, shaking the forest with their approach.
At last, the true battle between Eum Sa Gok and the ronin had begun.
“Ronin vanguard! Forward!”
Moon Gwang, standing at the head of the formation, bellowed with solemn authority.
He was a master of considerable experience in the Gangho.
As the forest opened before them, anticipating chaos, he held back the Yin Sword Division and committed the ronin—seasoned in mountain combat—to the front lines.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
As hidden weapons rained down from the forest, the ronin skillfully evaded using the terrain or drew their weapons to counterattack.
Watching this display, Nam Goong Woon let out an exclamation of admiration.
“I see. The terrain itself can be an advantage for me as well.”
While he marveled, Bu Eunseol burst forward.
Swoosh.
I navigated the terrain far more deftly than the ronin rushing ahead, advancing with fluid grace.
Boom! Crash!
I pinpointed the assassins’ hiding places with precision and unleashed a palm strike.
Though Eum Sa Gok’s assassins were hardened by countless forest skirmishes, none could withstand my strike.
‘What manner of palm technique carries such weight?’
Nam Goong Woon, following in my wake, gasped.
What appeared to be a casual extension of my palm shattered boulders and trees into fragments in an instant.
“Attack from above.”
As I swept across the battlefield with unrestrained momentum, the assassins shifted their tactics.
They climbed into the trees to evade my attacks while hurling hidden weapons down upon me.
Whistle!
I deftly dodged the cascade of weapons raining from above and extended both arms.
Between my hands, razor-sharp flying blades erupted forth. With each flash of their keen light, hidden assassins tumbled to the ground.
Seeing their comrades plummet from above, the remaining assassins lost their will to fight and descended back to earth.
‘Does Seol not use the sword he carries on his back?’
Nam Goong Woon himself was a master swordsman.
He continuously employed fist techniques and secret arts, yet his right hand remained perpetually poised to draw the sword from his back.
Merely observing Bu Eunseol’s stance was enough for Nam Goong Woon to discern that he was a master swordsman of extraordinary caliber.
“That bastard….”
As the battle’s momentum shifted in Bu Eunseol’s favor, the leader of the assassins pointed at him and roared.
“Strike that one first!”
In truth, the strength of the ronin band and the assassins had been evenly matched.
But as Bu Eunseol swept across the battlefield, felling assassins like sheaves of grain, the tide of battle turned swiftly against them.
‘Was he not merely a high-tier ronin?’
Moon Gwang, locked in fierce combat with the assassins, sensed it as well.
Bu Eunseol’s martial prowess far transcended that of a high-tier ronin. What he displayed now was not even the full extent of his capabilities.
‘Fortune smiled upon us.’
Moon Gwang inwardly heaved a sigh of relief.
Had Bu Eunseol and his companions not been present, the assault on Woong Ga San Jang would have ended in certain failure.
“Eunseol, please slow down just a bit!”
Nam Goong Woon, struggling to keep pace and support him, felt his spirit being torn asunder.
“We’ve penetrated too deeply! The enemies are being funneled toward us!”
“All the better.”
Bu Eunseol smiled coldly.
“This is a golden opportunity to gain real combat experience. Watch carefully.”
Bu Eunseol doubled his movement technique and surged forward with renewed ferocity.
His movements were remarkably economical, adapting fluidly to each enemy attack. They were not rigid, formulaic techniques.
Rather, they resembled a flood dragon swimming freely through water, cleaving the currents with natural grace.
“Your hiding places are all too predictable.”
Moving like a phantom, Bu Eunseol unleashed a palm strike at assassins concealed beneath a boulder.
Boom!
With each palm strike, the earth trembled and blood and flesh erupted skyward.
Whenever Bu Eunseol discovered a hidden assassin, he poured his palm force downward from above. It was as though boulders were falling from the heavens, crushing the assassins beneath their weight.
“What manner of fist technique is this?”
The Fist Demon’s martial art differed fundamentally from the countless techniques scattered throughout the Murim.
Because the force that should originate and extend from the fist instead poured forth freely in all directions, even masters of considerable skill could not withstand it.
“He cannot be opposed directly! Conceal yourselves and deploy secret techniques!”
Recognizing that Bu Eunseol was an insurmountable opponent, the assassins attempted concealment and assassination arts.
But Bu Eunseol, who had spread the senses of the Beast Path in all directions, was the natural predator of such assassins.
Wherever they hid or whatever they attempted, they remained within his grasp.
“To call them assassins is to insult the profession.”
Bu Eunseol, who had experienced the killing methods of Geuk Sal Mil Gak on Hell Island.
In his eyes, the secret techniques and concealment arts of the Eum Sa Gok assassins seemed like child’s play.
“He is the Grim Reaper himself.”
Assassins who slew as casually as they ate possessed no fear by nature.
Yet Bu Eunseol’s ability to pinpoint them with precision as they lurked in shadow was utterly terrifying, like death itself made manifest.
Moreover, wasn’t this their own front yard?
“The forest we created as our final bastion is now strangling us instead.”
The assassins of Eum Sa Gok had transformed the interior of Woong Ga San Jang into a forest, turning it into a deadly trap.
Because of this, even if they broke through the formation at the gate, blocking the retreat would make escape absolutely impossible.
But as the battle turned against them and enemies sealed the entrance, they had become rats trapped in poison.
“That damnable bastard.”
Heuk Sal, the First Killing Ghost of Eum Sa Gok, who had been commanding the assassins from the most concealed depths of Woong Ga San Jang, ground his teeth.
Everything he had prepared had crumbled because of Bu Eunseol and her companions’ sudden appearance.
“I will kill that wretch without fail.”
Regardless of anything else, I must eliminate that pale-faced fool wielding that martial technique.
Crunch, crunch, crunch.
The ground around Heuk Sal caved inward, and his body vanished as if being sucked into the earth.
He had deployed the Yin Zero Hundred Killing Earth Escape Technique, one of Eum Sa Gok’s secret assassination arts.
Earth escape techniques allowed one to move freely beneath the soil in secrecy, but they were extremely difficult to cultivate.
Heuk Sal was the only one in Eum Sa Gok who had mastered the Yin Zero Hundred Killing Earth Escape Technique.
Crunch, crunch, crunch.
Heuk Sal, who had approached silently beneath where Bu Eunseol stood, carefully raised a small tube-like object above the ground.
It was a Corpse Poison Needle Tube, prepared to assassinate any master from Jin Cheon Moon who might strike from above.
‘It’s wasteful to use this on such a person.’
Just as he brought the tube to his lips to fire the corpse poison needles at Bu Eunseol,
“You’ve come.”
Bu Eunseol looked down at the ground and smiled coldly.
“I’ve been waiting for you.”
When assassins participate in large-scale combat rather than alone, the most crucial element is the commander.
Without strict command over assassins with such strong individual characteristics, they become nothing but a disorganized rabble.
For this reason, when assassins engage in mass combat, the commander does not step onto the battlefield but remains hidden in secrecy.
‘This ghostly wretch!’
Realizing he had been discovered, Heuk Sal quickly tried to deploy his earth escape technique, but Bu Eunseol’s movements were faster.
Boom!
As Bu Eunseol’s fist struck the ground with a low vibration,
Whoosh.
With the sound of air rushing out, the ground nearby turned crimson with blood.
With that single punch, Heuk Sal was literally buried in the earth, dead.
“Kneel at once!”
In the meantime, the Wanderer Corps and the Yin Sword Division had completely surrounded the remaining assassins.
Assassins were creatures similar to military soldiers.
Kill the commander, and the battle ends easily. They simply act and fight as they have been trained.
“It’s over.”
Heuk Pyo, standing behind Bu Eunseol, murmured softly. Nam Goong Woon also sheathed his sword and surveyed Woong Ga San Jang.
The Wanderer Corps and Yin Sword Division had not escaped without casualties, but thanks to Bu Eunseol and her companions’ efforts, losses were minimal.
“Thank you.”
Moon Gwang approached Bu Eunseol’s group and spoke with conviction.
“Victory was only possible because of you all.”
“Master!”
A lean young scholar hurried toward Moon Gwang from the rear.
“Disaster has struck.”
“Disaster?”
“While we fought here, Pae Do Moon led the remaining assassins of Eum Sa Gok and invaded our main sect.”
“Our main sect?”
Moon Gwang’s eyes grew urgent.
The Jin Cheon Moon’s greatest strength lay in three battle divisions—Heaven, Earth, and Man. With himself and the Yin Sword Division absent, there was no way to withstand Pae Do Moon’s forces.
“Everyone….”
Moon Gwang cried out in alarm.
“Return to the main sect!”
* * *
Jin Cheon Moon.
Originally, this place had been a small martial hall that taught the Jin Cheon Sword Technique throughout the Sang Yang Region for generations.
But as the martial artists produced by Jin Cheon Moon made names for themselves in merchant guilds and constabularies across the land, the sect’s influence grew steadily.
As the small martial hall evolved into a mid-tier faction within the Murim, Pae Do Moon’s position in the Sang Yang borderlands—where they conducted smuggling operations—became precarious.
Though Jin Cheon Moon was a legitimate sect, its roots remained those of a martial hall teaching the righteous path. Most disciples walked the way of virtue, which meant constant friction with Pae Do Moon.
―Let us settle once and for all who dominates Sang Yang!
The struggle for supremacy between Jin Cheon Moon and Pae Do Moon had reached its final act.
The moment Yin Sword Division Master Moon Gwang departed for Ham Chwi San to deal with Eum Sa Gok’s assassins, Pae Do Moon seized the opportunity and descended upon Jin Cheon Moon with overwhelming force.
―Waaaaaah!
With fierce battle cries, Pae Do Moon’s masters poured into Jin Cheon Moon like a flood, wielding their blades with savage abandon.
Each time a blade flashed through the air, Jin Cheon Moon disciples fell with anguished screams.
“Tch.”
Gwak Cheon, master of the Heaven Sword Division fighting at the front lines, ground his teeth.
Originally, Jin Cheon Moon’s strength slightly overwhelmed Pae Do Moon. Such a sudden invasion should have been impossible to succeed.
But now Jin Cheon Moon lacked the Yin Sword Division, which formed one pillar of the three battle divisions.
Worse, Pae Do Moon had filled their ranks with Eum Sa Gok assassins who harassed them from all directions with ambushes and disruption, making the tide of battle increasingly unfavorable.
‘They’ve hired all of Eum Sa Gok’s assassins.’
I had thought Pae Do Moon hired only some assassins to launch a surprise attack on Ham Chwi San.
But now it was clear they had employed Eum Sa Gok’s entire force to execute a pincer strategy.
‘Information has been leaked.’
The moment the Yin Sword Division hired mercenaries and departed for Ham Chwi San, Pae Do Moon launched their invasion immediately.
In the end, Jin Cheon Moon had been defeated by Pae Do Moon in both wealth and intelligence.
‘How did those smugglers suddenly acquire such resources?’
To hire all of Eum Sa Gok—where elite assassins swarmed—would require nearly a million silver taels at minimum.
The question that tormented Gwak Cheon was how Pae Do Moon, with their poor financial situation, could possibly afford to purchase Eum Sa Gok entirely.
“Ahhhhh!”
The screams of Jin Cheon Moon disciples erupted in succession.
In a melee, momentum was everything.
As the assassins of Eum Sa Gok swept across the battlefield with unrestrained ferocity, even the relatively weaker fighters of Pae Do Moon were overwhelming the disciples of Jin Cheon Moon.
A leaden weight of despair tightened around Gwak Cheon’s neck.
There was simply no way to reverse the tide of battle in this situation.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————