The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 488

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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 488.
“I simply cannot comprehend this.”
Bu Eunseol stared at Gong Son Dan Gyeong with a bewildered expression.
“The Chief Inspector has the power to command the Ben Maeng’s finest masters and formidable forces.”
“….”
“Regardless of how formidable the factions targeting the Chief Inspector may be, why take such unnecessary risks? Why test someone like me, merely a second-tier Lord?”
Bu Eunseol continued, her face flushed with agitation.
“Moreover, I am not even affiliated with the Chief Inspector Division.”
―Why do you test me?
This was what she was truly asking.
Within Gong Son Dan Gyeong’s meticulous scheme, there was clearly an intention to test Bu Eunseol.
And if this were Seon Woo Jin, she would absolutely have to press this point.
“Seon Woo Lord, you do not understand the nature of the Murim Alliance—or rather, organizations in general. You were born as the successor to a merchant guild, after all.”
Gong Son Dan Gyeong smiled faintly.
“When you occupy a lower position, organizations appear quite simple.”
Her eyes deepened as she continued speaking.
“But once you ascend, you witness an entirely different landscape than what you saw from below.”
Gong Son Dan Gyeong fixed her gaze directly upon Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
“What seemed simple is actually intricately entangled, and the organization you once gazed up at from below was merely the tip of an iceberg.”
Her words aligned perfectly with the emotions I had felt upon becoming the head of the Demon Palace.
I had believed the Demon Palace to be a place where subordinates offered absolute obedience, centered around Ma Cheon Je, the foremost figure of the Demonic Path.
Yet upon ascending within the Demon Palace, I discovered that each individual harbored their own hidden agendas and pursued different objectives.
A colossal beast that churned forward, driven by the desires each person possessed—that was the true nature of the Demon Palace.
And the Murim Alliance appeared to be no different.
“Above all, the higher one’s position, the more one requires trustworthy individuals.”
Gong Son Dan Gyeong fixed her gaze upon Bu Eunseol.
“Those possessing both exceptional ability and loyalty are all the more difficult to find.”
This was something Bu Eunseol herself could appreciate.
The higher one’s position, the greater the scale and importance of the tasks one must handle.
Therefore, one cannot trust just anyone or employ them carelessly—and even if one desires a loyal and capable subordinate, one cannot simply obtain one.
Bu Eunseol herself did not deliberately expand her subordinates partly due to her personal objective of revenge.
But it was equally because finding someone truly loyal and trustworthy was so difficult.
“Are you considering bringing me into the Chief Inspector Division?”
At Bu Eunseol’s question, Gong Son Dan Gyeong’s eyes sparkled with an enigmatic smile.
“Well, I haven’t entertained such thoughts thus far.”
Even in this situation, she continued to conceal her true intentions.
‘Whether it’s the Demon Palace or the Murim Alliance… they’re the same.’
Bu Eunseol exhaled a sigh and shook her head.
“Complicated. The Murim Alliance is as well.”
“The Murim Alliance is as well, you say.”
Realizing her slip of the tongue, Bu Eunseol collected herself and spoke calmly.
“The Merchant Guild faces similar circumstances.”
“Surely the Merchant Realm isn’t quite as severe, is it?”
Gong Son Dan Gyeong smiled.
“At least it’s not a matter of life and death like in Murim, right?”
“You couldn’t be more mistaken. The Merchant Realm is precisely where all manner of filthy schemes and conspiracies flourish.”
Bu Eunseol sighed deliberately as she spoke.
“If warriors of Murim stake their lives on honor, merchants stake theirs on mere coins. That’s why the dealings are far more sordid and convoluted.”
It was the truth.
During my time with Yeomsa, the merchants and moneylenders were the ones I saw meet the most untimely deaths.
“It seems Lord Seon Woo understands the lives of the common folk well. Most children of the wealthy would know nothing of such matters.”
“Our guild educates its heirs from the ground up. One must understand both the lowest and highest to command people effectively.”
“Now that you mention it, the guild must….”
Just as Gong Son Dan Gyeong was about to continue,
A deep rumbling echoed.
Suddenly, a sound of collapse came from above.
It was as if some massive metal structure was trembling violently—someone was forcefully shattering the Yeok Cheon Woon Ran Mi Ri Jin with tremendous power.
“The formation.”
Seeing the formation being forcibly broken, the enemies had clearly discovered that Gong Son Dan Gyeong was underground.
“This is strange.”
Gong Son Dan Gyeong was alarmed.
“There shouldn’t be a master capable of breaking the Yeok Cheon Woon Ran Mi Ri Jin so quickly with brute force.”
Until now, the plan had proceeded without a single flaw.
Yet in less than two hours, the formation was already collapsing?
Either far more troops had arrived than anticipated,
Or an entirely unexpected master had appeared.
A heavy boom resonated.
As the sounds drew closer, Gong Son Dan Gyeong’s complexion darkened.
The perfectly interlocking gears of her plan were now grinding out of alignment.
“This shouldn’t be happening.”
For some reason, she had calculated that the probability of a master capable of breaking the formation arriving was zero.
‘Which means I know exactly who the enemy is.’
Bu Eunseol didn’t even have the luxury of shock like Gong Son Dan Gyeong.
She had to stop the forces descending through the broken formation.
Even if Sungwi Unit arrived, it would take at least half an hour or more.
If enemies breached the underground warehouse in that time, Gong Son Dan Gyeong would die instantly.
“Chief. Let me go out and buy us time.”
As if having made a decision, Bu Eunseol gestured toward the items in the warehouse.
“In the meantime, Chief, deploy the formation. With the items here, we might hold out until Sungwi Unit arrives.”
Gong Son Dan Gyeong nodded reluctantly.
“I understand.”
She was the Chief Inspector of the Murim Alliance.
Even if dozens of Lords of her rank were sacrificed, she had to survive by any means necessary.
Gong Son Dan Gyeong nodded as she watched Bu Eunseol step forward with unwavering resolve.
“I will not forget your sacrifice.”
There was no choice in the matter.
As long as enemies were attempting to shatter the formation array and descend underground in one fell swoop, at least one person had to survive.
Boom.
As Bu Eunseol pushed open the thick Iron Gate and emerged outside, her brow furrowed deeply.
In truth, even if twice the current forces attacked, there was no scenario where she would perish.
The problem was that with Seon Woo Jin’s abilities, he could absolutely not survive this situation.
If he did survive?
He would only be dragged to the Murim Alliance headquarters for thorough interrogation.
No matter how exceptional his potential or how skilled a master at the Transcendent Realm he was, he could not survive against nearly a thousand soldiers.
‘First, I must reduce my power.’
Having refined the Elixir Secret through training against the Unnamed Elder, I had perfectly mastered the technique of compressing and reducing my martial power.
And now I intended to diminish my power first as a precaution.
‘By more than half.’
As I continuously compressed my formidable inner energy into my dantian, a spherical form like an inner elixir took shape.
When I secretly relocated it elsewhere, my true martial power vanished by half in an instant.
Using this secret method, I could suppress my power even unconsciously.
Even if a master of the Limitless Realm conducted a pulse diagnosis, they could not discern my true level of inner strength.
Whoosh!
With my power reduced, I ascended through the corridor above.
The Yeok Cheon Woon Ran Mi Ri Jin was already nearly destroyed, and all the mist surrounding the area had dissipated.
Since the energy that had confused the senses was completely gone, it seemed the enemies would arrive shortly.
Rumble!
As if on cue, the moment Bu Eunseol emerged outside, dozens of assassins revealed themselves.
‘Holding the line is the priority!’
Whoosh whoosh!
I immediately unleashed flying blades, striking down the assassins nearby.
Swish swish swish.
The assassins then widened their formation and began to encircle Bu Eunseol immediately.
‘Surely not.’
The assassins’ black pupils were greatly dilated, and a chilling aura flowed from their entire bodies.
‘It was Sam Gye after all.’
Without needing to think deeply, only Sam Gye possessed the power to touch the Chief Inspector of the Murim Alliance.
But why?
What possible reason could they have for attempting to kill her?
No matter how cleanly one severed loose ends, killing a figure of such supreme status as the Chief Inspector would not be easily concealed.
‘So that means….’
As Bu Eunseol fell into deep contemplation,
Swish, swish, swish!
In that instant, the assassins unleashed a bizarre sword technique all at once.
Though their movements lacked sharpness, the swordplay was remarkably profound, and escape routes were sealed off in a heartbeat.
“Ha-yah!”
Bu Eunseol deliberately let out a clear battle cry and cut through the assassins.
And she faced them using exclusively Moo Ae Ja’s martial techniques.
Clang!
She refrained from throwing her hidden blades as much as possible, unfolding the Thirteen Forms of the Iron Sword while weaving between the warehouse shelves.
No matter how many enemies there were, only a limited number could attack simultaneously.
Bu Eunseol exploited this advantage, using the terrain to adequately block the assassins’ attacks.
Whoosh! Clang, clang, clang!
She mixed the Thirteen Forms of the Iron Sword with hidden blade techniques skillfully, disrupting their formation.
Crash!
Attacks she couldn’t block, she either deflected with Flower Petal Jade Technique or redirected them, stubbornly evading fatal blows.
This strategy proved remarkably effective.
Their objective was ultimately Gong Son Dan Gyeong.
But as Bu Eunseol darted between the warehouse shelves like a squirrel, persistently guarding the passage to the underground and launching annoying attacks,
they were repeatedly held back and unable to advance.
Rumble!
As the fight dragged on, the assassins changed tactics.
They completely surrounded the warehouse, intending to eliminate Bu Eunseol first.
As the assassins in their dark garments encircled her, the entire world seemed to turn pitch black.
“It’s already too late.”
Bu Eunseol smirked.
The reason she had fought while moving around the warehouse. It was partly to obstruct their advance, but
she had also used scattered objects around the warehouse to unfold the Yeok Cheon Woon Ran Mi Ri Jin once more, which she had learned from Gong Son Dan Gyeong.
Whoosh!
Though the objects were scattered and the directions imprecise, the formation was crudely laid out.
Yet even this faint mist was enough to make the assassins hesitate once more.
Boom.
But then a tremendous vibration echoed from inside the warehouse.
Boom!
Another violent tremor rang out, and a powerful shockwave rippled outward in all directions.
Simultaneously, the formation Bu Eunseol had unfolded shattered instantly,
and footsteps echoed.
A black shadow walked out from among the assassins.
Wearing a masked face with an eerie luster, internal energy shockwaves flowed across his entire body.
His momentum was so formidable that the warehouse interior seemed to become a vacuum the moment he appeared.
‘The Samgye Emissary.’
The very messenger who conveyed the will of Sam Gye itself, wielding formidable martial prowess.
He came to an abrupt halt.
The Samgye Emissary stopped directly before me.
Each time his gaze swept across my skin, it felt as though my flesh was being flayed away.
With merely a pause in his steps, the heavens seemed to resound, and the earth appeared to split asunder.
‘Different.’
My pupils dilated sharply.
The Samgye Emissary before me emanated an entirely different aura than any of the other emissaries I had encountered thus far.
“What is your true identity?”
I gripped the iron blade tightly, my expression tense as I posed the question.
“What do you truly seek?”
Had I revealed my original identity, I would have engaged in combat immediately, subdued him, and interrogated him without hesitation.
But under the guise of Seon Woo Jin, I might find myself in a situation where I must stake my very life.
Therefore, I needed to extract as much information as possible first.
“…”
The Samgye Emissary merely surveyed his surroundings with gleaming eyes, offering me not even a glance.
It seemed he was expanding his senses to locate Gong Son Dan Gyeong.
“Do you truly believe you can survive in Murim after making an enemy of Ben Maeng?”
Even at my cry, the Samgye Emissary’s gaze remained unmoved.
His expression was as though he had heard a stray dog barking in passing.
‘Useless.’
The Samgye Emissary was utterly ignoring me.
Then no matter how many questions I hurled at him, no answers would return.
Whoosh!
Understanding the situation, I immediately unleashed my flying blade with explosive speed.
From Seon Woo Jin’s perspective, the Samgye Emissary was a master I could not easily contend with.
Then the principle held true: the one who strikes first seizes victory. The aggressor held the higher probability of triumph.
Yet the Samgye Emissary did not evade the blade.
Whoosh.
The flying blade that had lodged between his brows simply vanished, as though it had evaporated.
It was not deflected by any force, but rather seemed to have disappeared into some unknowable dimension.
Swiftly.
The Samgye Emissary, having erased my blade, drew closer.
His eyes resembled those of a dead fish, devoid of all emotion.
Though his appearance was terrifying, I did not retreat.
With my blade gone, I now had to meet him with pure martial force.
In truth, without abandoning my guise as Seon Woo Jin and unleashing my true martial arts, a direct collision with the Samgye Emissary was impossible.
Yet I stood fearless, lowering my stance into a defensive posture.
For I still possessed one final trump card.
‘If I’ve handled things properly, he will definitely come here.’
Click.
In Bu Eunseol’s eyes, as she twisted her grip on the sword, fierce determination blazed like fire.
‘I’ll endure until then.’
A deep, resonant hum.
Suddenly, a massive vortex of power erupted from directly in front of Sa Ja’s body,
Boom!
An invisible, colossal pressure crashed down upon Bu Eunseol’s frame.
Screech.
In that instant, Bu Eunseol was driven back five paces, white smoke rising from her chest.
As the fiercely rotating force burrowed into my body, I unleashed Flower Butterfly Jade to deflect it.
Even so, I sustained minor internal injuries, and the fabric across my chest had dissolved away as if melted.
‘This is…’
I could not hide my astonishment.
The techniques Sa Ja displayed transcended the ordinary bounds of martial arts—they were extraordinarily unique and bizarre.
Much like the martial arts of the Eight Emperors and Three Stars.
Whoosh.
Yet when I resumed my stance with unwavering eyes, a flicker of surprise crossed Sa Ja’s gaze.
Boom!
Another tremor erupted, and I was driven back a dozen paces this time.
Even with my power reduced to half, it amounted to two hundred and fifty years of cultivation.
Enough power to be called a master of the younger generation who had reached the Transcendent Realm.
Yet before Sa Ja’s mysterious and formidable martial arts, I was like a mantis before a carriage.
Screech.
White smoke rose from my entire body, yet I remained standing firm.
[Hmm.]
As I withstood Sa Ja’s attacks twice, his eyes shifted slightly.
From complete indifference, he now seemed to regard me as merely an annoying fly.
Boom!
When Sa Ja opened his hand, my body should have been sent flying backward. Should have been.
Whirl.
But I anticipated his technique, deployed Flower Butterfly Jade to deflect the attack, and thrust my iron sword forward.
Clang.
The iron sword touched the end of Sa Ja’s neck.
But it would advance no further.
Hum.
From Sa Ja’s hand flowed an invisible yet overwhelmingly powerful force.
No matter how hard I exerted myself, the iron sword refused to advance.
Screech screech!
I drew a semicircle with the iron sword, attempting once more to dissipate the formless power.
Crack.
Yet the cascading force grew even more formidable, and spider-web-like fractures began spreading across the blade of the iron sword forged from white lotus essence steel.
Boom!
In that same instant, I was sent flying back roughly five paces.
Thud.
I tried to rise immediately, but ultimately dropped to one knee.
The impact had been so devastating that my body refused to obey my commands.
‘The gap in inner power is far too great.’
Sa Ja was overwhelming me not through the subtleties of martial technique, but through sheer superiority of inner power.
Crack.
I clenched my fists tightly.
My true inner power was nearly at the pinnacle of this era. If I wished, I could crush that arrogant Sa Ja beneath my force.
‘So he viewed me as insignificant enough to contend with through inner power superiority alone.’
Yet the moment the word “inner power” crossed my mind, Hyul Geum Gang’s solemn visage suddenly surfaced in my consciousness.
And that face transformed once more into the mysterious palm technique variations Hyul Geum Gang had displayed while dealing with the assassins of Sam Gye.
‘The subtleties of martial technique can bridge the gap in inner power.’
As I recalled the battle where I had fought alongside Hyul Geum Gang against Sam Gye’s assassins, brilliance flashed across my eyes.
Though Hyul Geum Gang had not unleashed his inner power dramatically, the Great Celestial Dragon Seal he had deployed possessed the might of thunder and lightning.
This was not because Hyul Geum Gang’s inner power was extraordinary, but because he had amplified its force through mysterious technique variations.
‘Perhaps Flower Petal Touching Jade likewise requires the proper application of force.’
Having gained this insight in a fleeting moment, I unfolded my sword technique once more.
Screech! Slash slash slash!
This time, I did not dissolve Sa Ja’s overwhelming force through Flower Petal Touching Jade alone.
Instead, I resisted with my sword technique to the fullest extent, and when the formidable invisible force pressed forward, I seized that critical instant to unfold the subtleties of Flower Petal Touching Jade.
One hand pushes while the other pulls. When the opponent retreats, I disrupt their center; when overwhelming force arrives, I employ rotational momentum to redirect it.
The more I mimicked Hyul Geum Gang, who had unleashed the Great Celestial Dragon Seal, the more I could grasp the profound mysteries of Flower Petal Touching Jade.
Conversely, Sa Ja appeared somewhat flustered as no matter how much overwhelming force he poured forth, he could not touch even a single hair on my body.
He stepped back.
Finally, Sa Ja retreated and ceased his assault.
It seemed he had not anticipated that I would have refined Flower Petal Touching Jade to such a degree, rendering his attacks futile.
[Hmph.]
Sa Ja snorted derisively and extended both hands.
Boom.
In that instant, I found myself unable to move at all, as though I had fallen into a vat brimming with thick glue.
It felt as though the gravity of the very space where I stood had been magnified tenfold.
‘Tch.’
No matter how sublime Flower Petal Touching Jade might be, it was difficult to dissolve the pressure cascading across the entire space.
In the end, Sa Ja had shattered the subtleties of my Flower Petal Touching Jade not through inner power superiority, but through the profound mysteries of martial technique itself.
Step step.
As I remained completely immobilized, Sa Ja slowly approached and extended his finger.
In one breath, he sought to crush my skull to pulp.
‘Indeed. Is Seon Woo Jin insufficient?’
Even as Sa Ja unleashed his final assault, I smiled faintly.
I was a strategist who surpassed Gong Son Dan Gyeong.
And whenever I initiated any endeavor, I had never failed to anticipate the circumstances that would unfold thereafter.
From the moment Gong Son Dan Gyeong said she would discreetly handle matters between herself and the Man Hwa Antique Shop alone,
I had already discerned that she had meticulously planned countless contingencies, and that I myself was woven into those designs.
―What if a crisis arose that Seon Woo Jin’s abilities could not withstand?
If one targeted the Chief Inspector of the Murim Alliance, there was no guarantee that forces like Sam Gye would not emerge.
Therefore, I needed a safety mechanism of my own.
One that would never arouse suspicion, and could repel formidable adversaries like Sam Gye without revealing my full strength.
A perfect safeguard, in other words.
‘He has arrived.’
As I detected the faint sound reaching my ears and smiled,
A deafening rumble!
Thunder roared across the distant sky.
Simultaneously, a piercing, otherworldly shriek erupted from beyond the warehouse, tearing through heaven and earth.
A soul-rending wail!
As the sound drew nearer, it grew ever sharper, as though it would tear the very soul asunder, and even the impassive assassins covered their ears in agony.
A tremendous crash!
At last, accompanied by a vibration that shook heaven and earth anew, a brilliant white light descended directly before me.
Crackling and sparking!
The light gradually expanded, beginning to take form.
“Hehehehe.”
With a laugh tinged with madness, a shadow coalesced into a perfect human silhouette, revealing itself with unmistakable clarity.
The Thunder God.
One of the Sasin who wielded the pure and tyrannical force of thunder essence throughout Tianxia—the Thunder Spirit Qi.
Neung Bi Hon had arrived.

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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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