The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 160
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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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Chapter 160.
Ah Yeon regarded Bu Eunseol with a gaze as cold as winter frost.
“I haven’t come to strike you down. I’ve come to issue a warning.”
“A warning?”
“Swear that you will not harm the master cultivators. If you do, I will not raise my hand against you.”
A low, mirthless chuckle escaped her lips.
Bu Eunseol laughed as if the very notion were absurd.
“A warning, you say. Now I see—the disciples of Geom Gak are remarkably merciful.”
Though her words mocked the arrogance of Geom Gak, she pressed her palms together in reverence.
“Even a butcher may become a Buddha if he sets down his blade.”
The nun-like woman seemed genuinely convinced she could awaken Bu Eunseol’s conscience.
‘Yet something feels amiss.’
The successor descended from Geom Gak—Ah Yeon’s eyes were as cold and crystalline as ice, yet they harbored no malice.
That gaze stirred an inexplicable sense of discord within her.
“If I refrain from slaying the master cultivators, might I too become a Buddha?”
To Bu Eunseol’s question, Ah Yeon replied with glacial precision.
“Do I strike you as one who plays with words?”
Her previously emotionless voice and gaze grew sharp as a blade.
Yet Bu Eunseol continued with unshakeable composure.
“I spoke merely because Geom Gak’s attitude amuses me.”
“You find our pavilion’s stance amusing?”
“It was no cowardly ambush—a fair and open contest. Three victories, nothing more. Yet Geom Gak deigns to intervene over such trifles…”
Bu Eunseol’s lips curved upward in a smile.
“How could it not be amusing?”
The chill in Ah Yeon’s eyes deepened further.
“You call it merely three, but from our pavilion’s perspective, you have eliminated three pillars of talent—future leaders who would have upheld the Orthodox Sects.”
“Master cultivators are talents meant to uphold the Orthodox Sects?”
“Or are they talents meant to uphold the Demonic Path?”
In that moment, Bu Eunseol grasped a singular truth.
‘She knows nothing of the true situation between the Ten Demon Immortals and the master cultivators.’
The Ten Demon Immortals and the master cultivators were merely pawns—tools for the Demonic Path and Orthodox Sects to measure and counter each other’s strength.
Yet it was abundantly clear that Geom Gak believed the Ten Demon Immortals were indiscriminately assassinating the master cultivators without cause.
‘One of three possibilities, then.’
Though Geom Gak belonged to the Orthodox Sects, it maintained no contact with any faction or sect save the Murim Alliance Lord.
Thus they either remained ignorant of the circumstances of each sect…
‘Or the Murim Alliance Lord deliberately concealed this truth.’
The Murim Alliance had sought to establish the master cultivators as a shared resource, a cornerstone upon which to build the Orthodox Sects’ foundation.
Yet when the scheme was unveiled, it became instead a spark igniting discord among the factions.
The Murim Alliance Lord may well have chosen not to inform Geom Gak—clinging to mere survival on the Isolated Island of Namhae—of these circumstances.
‘Yet the most probable truth is that she alone remains ignorant of it.’
Geom Gak was a sect with roots stretching back generations throughout the Murim.
No matter how isolated on the Isolated Island, their intelligence network was not something to dismiss.
Then the highest probability was that the sect master had deliberately withheld this information from the successor before me, Ah Yeon.
‘Yet even so, something remains strange.’
She was Geom Gak’s legitimate successor, not some figurehead master.
Why would he need to hide such facts and entrust her with dealing with Bu Eunseol?
‘What is certain is that she knows nothing.’
Bu Eunseol exhaled the doubts weighing on her chest and opened her mouth.
“Go ask the Murim Alliance Master directly. Why must a Ten Demon Immortal fight against a master cultivator.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Or ask the Geom Gak Master again. I have nothing more to say.”
“The sect master is in closed cultivation. There’s no way to ask him.”
“That is not my concern.”
As Bu Eunseol spoke with finality, coldness flashed across Ah Yeon’s eyes.
“Then you intend to slaughter again?”
“It is not slaughter but destiny. You simply cannot comprehend it.”
She blinked for a moment.
She could not possibly understand this situation.
“Then I have no choice.”
Drawing a deep breath, her eyes blazed with icy coldness.
“I, Ah Yeon of Geom Gak, challenge you.”
“I refuse.”
“What?”
At the unexpected response, Ah Yeon’s eyes widened.
“What did you just say?”
“I said I refuse.”
And with that, Bu Eunseol immediately walked out of the Inn.
Ah Yeon stood frozen like a statue, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
A sharp intake of breath.
Regaining her senses, she burst from the Inn and blocked the path of Bu Eunseol, who was leaving the village.
A metallic ring.
Drawing the white sword from her waist, she spoke coldly to Bu Eunseol.
“Draw your blade now.”
“No.”
Bu Eunseol passed through her as though brushing past an annoying insect.
“How dare you!”
Enraged, she immediately swung her sword to sever his shoulder.
Yet Bu Eunseol simply watched and continued walking without pause.
A sharp whistle.
The white sword that should have severed his shoulder stopped mere strands of hair away from his robes.
“Are you truly prepared to abandon your life like this?”
Rather than answer, I fixed my gaze upon Ah Yeon’s eyes, visible above the cloth mask.
“Is Geom Gak not a guardian of the Orthodox Sects, but merely a place that meddles recklessly in the Murim?”
Turning my body once more, I spoke with glacial coldness.
“If you wish to sever my neck, do so. You will gain the magnificent honor of having slaughtered a Ten Demon Immortal who offered no resistance—the successor of Geom Gak.”
Within the mask, white frost seemed to crystallize in Ah Yeon’s eyes.
Since birth, she had immersed herself solely in the way of the blade.
Having lived with the austere discipline of a high monk devoted to the Dao, she found it difficult to respond immediately to my sudden actions.
“Hah.”
Yet she was the next Sword Queen, destined to shoulder the future of Geom Gak.
Sensing a fracture in her spirit, she drew a deep breath and immediately summoned her profound inner cultivation to restore her composure.
In an instant, her scattered mind regained its tranquility, and her thoughts accelerated with clarity.
“Did I say that Geom Gak knows nothing?”
Ah Yeon, her gaze fixed upon me, spoke with cutting precision.
“Then I shall observe. I shall see what you truly wish to convey.”
I no longer felt the necessity to continue this conversation.
Tap.
Stepping outside the inn, I unfurled my movement technique and swiftly departed the village.
Whoooosh!
With a thunderous crack splitting the air, Ah Yeon suddenly closed the distance, her form pressing close behind mine.
“Your movement technique is quite formidable. But you cannot shake me off.”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.
Doubling my inner force, I traversed a ravine in an instant, passing through the forest with blinding speed.
Yet Ah Yeon too deployed her lightness technique with equal fervor, pursuing me with relentless determination.
‘Impressive.’
My movement technique had reached the pinnacle, allowing me to evade even a master cultivator despite my injuries.
Of course, the sacrifice of the Fengyun Corps members had contributed, but… it was the supreme and ultimate shadow-stepping technique—Extreme Speed Without Shadow—that none could match.
Whoooosh.
Yet Ah Yeon continued to follow my trail with remarkable precision.
Though not employing her full strength, her lightness technique was clearly of the highest caliber in the Murim.
Rustle. Tap.
As we ventured deeper into the forest, I ceased my movement technique.
Ah Yeon likewise halted beside me in an instant.
“Have you abandoned your escape?”
“Escape?”
I allowed a cold smile to grace my lips.
“Running blindly through such terrain invites ambush.”
I gazed toward the distant sky and closed my eyes.
Whoooosh.
From the darkening heavens, thick raindrops suddenly began to fall.
Whoooosh!
In that instant, hundreds of razor-sharp objects began pouring through the rain.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
Each time the torrent of light struck the ground, it left behind sharp, tiny punctures.
Tss, tss, tss, tss.
Deploying Extreme Speed Shadow Form once more, I evaded the cascading barrage and sought refuge between the tree stumps.
Whoooosh!
Hundreds of elongated forms pierced through the trees, burrowing toward my body.
‘White Horse Whip?’
My pupils dilated.
What covered the forest like a spider’s web, piercing through the trees, was none other than a whip gleaming with white radiance.
It was the White Horse Whip of the White Horse Sect.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!
The White Horse Whip, piercing through solid wood as if it were tofu, pursued my body relentlessly like a living serpent.
Whoosh!
As I spun my body through the air like a dragon, evading the assault, the whip’s shadow vanished without a trace.
Thud.
In that moment, Ah Yeon descended beside me and asked.
“Why is the White Horse Sect attacking you?”
“Leave.”
A crimson glow had already kindled in my eyes.
“The path ahead will be drenched entirely in blood.”
With those brief words, I unfurled my movement technique and rushed toward the epicenter where the White Horse Whips were falling.
Tss, tss, tss, tss.
The moment I arrived stealthily near the forest where those who had shattered the trees were hiding,
Swish. Swish.
Black shadows emerged one after another between the dense trees surrounding me.
They all wore deep gray martial robes and carried gleaming whips at their waists.
“From the White Horse Sect, I see.”
At my words, a middle-aged man with a mustache stepped forward.
“Master of Hyeonok Pavilion, Eum Wi.”
One of my eyebrows rose sharply.
Hyeonok Pavilion.
Among the White Horse Sect’s military forces comprised of the Six Halls Eight Pavilions, it was the place of cruel assassins.
An assassination unit tasked with eliminating the White Horse Sect’s sworn enemies now blocked my path?
“Is this the road to the Demon Palace?”
“It is.”
“Unfortunately, you cannot proceed to the Demon Palace.”
Eum Wi spoke as if hauling in a fish already caught.
“You will die here.”
“Since I can no longer hold Kang Mu Ryun’s death against you… are you saying you’ll dispose of me here and now?”
Eum Wi did not answer that remark. Instead, he said something else.
“Killing you on the way to the Demon Palace would not earn Ma Cheon Je’s displeasure.”
The road to the Demon Palace.
I wondered if this might be the trial Ma Cheon Je had given me.
As if on cue, countless enemies came pouring out.
“Quite the gathering.”
Bu Eunseol surveyed the forest around her, her brow furrowing.
What was immediately visible were merely dozens of figures, yet the entire forest was blanketed in a razor-sharp killing intent.
“Did you bring every last member of Hyeonok Pavilion?”
“Hehehehe. Your perception is quite keen.”
Eum Wi smiled, baring his white teeth.
“This is the first time our sect has brought this many people just to kill a mere stripling.”
“They seem no different from the rabble I saw back in Guizhou.”
“Hehehehe. You mean the Hell Blood Castle Blood Ghost Party? Do not compare those poison-tainted wretches with the masters of our sect.”
Eum Wi, smiling coldly, gripped his white horse sword.
“I know you possess considerable skill. But you were born in the wrong era.”
Tap-tap-tap-tap.
The Hyeonok Pavilion disciples arrayed behind Eum Wi formed a circular enclosure around Bu Eunseol.
In an instant, the rain-soaked forest was engulfed in a piercing killing intent.
Just as Bu Eunseol and the White Horse Sect’s Hyeonok Pavilion masters were about to clash in a decisive battle,
“Who is this woman!”
Suddenly, cries erupted from the rear ranks of the Hyeonok Pavilion disciples.
Whip-crack! Blade-ring!
The sounds of whips and swords being wielded echoed out.
It seemed Ah Yeon and the Hyeonok Pavilion disciples had begun their own battle at the rear.
‘So it comes to this after all.’
Recalling Ah Yeon’s face, I clicked my tongue.
She, who had followed me all this while, had now become entangled in the White Horse Sect’s assault as well.
“You had companions?”
Eum Wi’s eyes narrowed.
Though he had tracked Bu Eunseol’s movements all along, he had found no allies to provide support.
“It matters not.”
Eum Wi’s eyes grew thin slits.
“I need only deal with you.”
Flash!
In that instant, two brilliant streams of light erupted from Bu Eunseol’s sleeves.
Using the techniques mastered from the Secret Manual of Flying Blades, I unleashed the projectiles.
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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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