The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 591

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

Chapter 591.
A flash of light streaked across Bu Eunseol’s eyes.
Those who could conjure mist over a perfectly clear river were no ordinary beings.
It seemed they possessed some concealed mechanism or surveillance apparatus that even my heightened senses could not detect.
“Heh heh heh, this is real. This is truly real.”
As I flipped through the secret manual page after page, laughter erupted from my lips—a sound brimming with exhilaration.
And then I began to genuinely read the secret manual.
After devouring the manual with intense focus for quite some time, a faint luminescence kindled in my eyes.
‘Yet this swordsmanship does not suit me.’
The Ascending Sword Technique necessarily contained secrets for amplifying power or altering one’s spirit according to the sword’s essence.
The Wol Young Sword Manual likewise possessed secrets capable of generating tremendous killing intent, as well as the mysterious Moonlit Shadow Step.
‘No, if I were to master it, I would actually regress.’
The mental formulas accompanying the Ascending Martial Arts—if they did not align with the temperament of the one seeking to master them—
No amount of effort would lead to mastery, and one could even destroy their own body in the attempt.
‘Still, I should at least grasp the framework.’
I possessed a sharp mind and a quick understanding of martial arts.
If I desired it, regardless of temperament, I could comprehend the various subtleties of the Ascending Martial Arts.
‘So it was a modified swordsmanship.’
Wol Young Ma Joon—a master renowned for dominating Murim and defining an entire era.
Yet the sword techniques recorded in this manual were not the ancient methods of the past.
Someone had modified them anew.
‘How intriguing.’
I spent an entire day researching the sword manual.
Yet I could make no progress beyond memorizing the sword formulas.
Considering my ability to absorb any martial art into my mind in less than a day—
This was utterly absurd.
‘Something is wrong.’
Even Gwang Seong Ja’s Sword Searching for the Origin—which lacked the final formula and was impossible to master—I had memorized in just two days.
Yet I could not even comprehend, let alone execute, the sword techniques of Wol Young Ma Joon?
‘This makes no sense.’
For example, the first move of Moonlit Sunken Mirror was a defensive technique that precisely captured the enemy’s weakness and seized the instant for counterattack.
Yet the absurd part was that it was not the right hand gripping the sword, but rather the first move was to execute an immediate counterattack from the left flank?
‘Is this the technique of mutual destruction?’
Moreover, Moonlit Sunken Mirror could be called a preparatory form for executing Moonlit Dust Flower.
But the moment Moonlit Sunken Mirror is executed, the heart and vital points would already be struck—a fatal state.
Unless one were a corpse demon, the Moonlit Dust Flower technique could not be executed.
‘I understand nothing. Is there some other secret principle?’
Shaking my head, I tried to swallow, but my mouth had gone completely dry.
Looking outside the window, dawn was breaking once more in a hazy veil.
Another day had passed without my notice.
‘This sword manual is a demonic artifact.’
Any martial artist who laid eyes upon it would lose their mind.
To possess such overwhelming power capable of shattering any technique, yet be forced to die before an enemy with such glaring flaws exposed—how could one not go mad?
How could anyone maintain their sanity?
Gulp, gulp.
I rushed outside and drank deeply from the stream flowing through the ravine, the cool water refreshing against my parched throat.
‘I must cast this aside.’
If I became consumed by this sword manual, my mind would shatter.
I tucked the secret manual back into my robes and headed toward the village. Enough time had passed—it was time to cease my practice and explore the settlement.
‘It seems I was not the only one who came here. Where could everyone have gone?’
The Stone Chamber assigned to me bore clear traces of previous inhabitants.
Countless individuals must have undergone this same ordeal.
Then where had they all disappeared to?
‘Having spent this much time here, I should be able to wander the village without arousing suspicion.’
I quickened my pace and emerged swiftly from the Forest.
The village at midday possessed a serene tranquility.
Women drew water while children scampered about in groups, darting here and there.
Peddlers spread their wares in the alleys, hawking their goods with raised voices.
Though their faces were unsightly, they all wore the same relaxed smiles.
‘They are no ordinary villagers.’
Yet I could sense it clearly.
Just as So Dong and Dae Bo had been.
These were not simple villagers at all. They were merely acting the part.
“Hmm.”
I deliberately dulled my gaze and pushed open the door to the Inn standing in the center of Market Street.
Since it was well past mealtime, the interior stood nearly empty.
Well, there was one patron.
Gulp, gulp.
A Large Built Man sat in a shadowed corner, drinking heavily.
His hair hung in wild tangles, his face covered in thick stubble, and from the stench of vinegar wafting even from a distance, it was clear he had not bathed in ages.
Countless empty bottles lay scattered across the floor in disarray, suggesting he had been drinking continuously since morning.
‘At least there is one normal person here.’
Though his drinking manner was crude and slovenly, his face at least appeared normal.
Perhaps this man, like me—
Had obtained a demonic sword, confirmed the characters inscribed upon its blade, and come to this place.
Gulp, gulp.
The man continued drinking with unfocused eyes, even as he noticed my entrance.
“Hmph.”
I deliberately let out a scoff.
Xiao Zhen Tian was a hot-tempered and combative individual.
There was no way I could ignore such a man without picking a fight.
“You’re ruining the taste of the drink. Why haven’t you thrown that bastard out?”
“Hehehehe.”
The Disheveled Man looked at me and laughed.
“Another corpse has arrived.”
“What?”
I narrowed my eyes sharply and frowned.
“What did you just say?”
“Have you already mastered the secret technique?”
“What do you mean?”
I suddenly understood, my eyes flashing as I nodded.
“So you also brought a demonic blade and received the secret technique.”
Grasping the hilt of the demonic blade, my eyes gleamed with intensity.
“Then you must be ready.”
The Disheveled Man chuckled and shook his head.
“There’s no need to be so eager already.”
He staggered past me with unsteady steps.
“You’ll end up like me anyway.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You have to make a choice.”
The man left those cryptic words and stumbled to his feet.
Then he waved his hand dismissively.
“Do your best.”
Shing!
With a cold expression, I immediately drew the demonic blade and pressed it against the throat of the man who had turned around.
If it were Xiao Zhen Tian with his vicious nature, he would surely have launched a surprise attack like this.
“You. Do you want your head to roll off?”
And I spoke with an utterly sinister expression.
“Speak. What choice must I make? What exactly are you doing on this island?”
“I already told you.”
The man placed his middle finger against the Wol Young Ma Blade that was aimed at his trembling throat.
“Research it diligently on your own.”
Thump.
The moment his fingertip touched the Wol Young Ma Blade, an indescribable pressure rippled outward.
Whoooosh!
The blade hummed with a resonant sound for a long while.
At the same time, my entire body felt paralyzed.
The counter-force contained in his fingertip was so overwhelming that my entire body trembled ceaselessly, just like the vibrating blade.
“Impressive.”
The Disheveled Man looked surprised, snorted softly, and gazed down at his own fingers.
The man’s middle finger was as white and translucent as a beautiful woman’s hand.
“To not lose the sword flicked by the Crimson Blood Demonic Finger.”
“Crimson Blood Demonic Finger?”
Wasn’t the Crimson Blood Demonic Finger the secret technique of the Demonic Being from three hundred years ago, the Crimson Blood Demon Lord?
This drunken man was using it so naturally? Then did that mean he had mastered the secret martial arts of the Crimson Blood Demon Lord?
“You wretch, you’ve obtained the secret techniques of the Crimson Blood Demon Lord.”
I let out a fierce laugh and extended my sword once more.
“Hand over the secret techniques.”
Pfft.
The man flashed his white teeth and laughed hollowly, then simply turned his body and walked away.
“Stop!”
I unleashed a thunderous barrage of sword techniques.
But the Disheveled Man, as if unwilling to engage, immediately deployed his movement technique and exited the Inn.
“You coward!”
Crash!
I smashed through the Inn’s door and tried to pursue the man.
But he had already vanished without a trace.
It was a movement technique as elusive and ghostlike as a phantom.
“Rat-like bastard.”
I shouted through gritted teeth.
“You’ll stay on this Island anyway. I will definitely find you and cut off every last one of your fingers!”
When I returned to the Inn, the Tavern Servant approached and spoke to me.
“What will you have?”
An ordinary servant would have trembled in fear witnessing my violent behavior.
But the Tavern Servant, whose face was puffy and drooping, wore an expression of perfect gentleness.
“You’ve ruined my appetite for drink.”
Meeting his gaze, I twisted my face into a scowl.
Stride by stride.
Rising from my seat, I headed toward the kitchen.
There, a Plump Cook was busily roasting meat, and his face too was drooping as if ravaged by leprosy.
“Never mind.”
Returning, I waved my hand with an expression of complete disgust.
“Bring me a barrel of liquor. I’ll take it with me.”
After receiving a barrel of liquor from the Inn, I headed back toward the Stone Chamber.
But I noticed people gathered in a circle in the center of the Village, tending a fire.
They had lit charcoal and were eagerly roasting something to eat.
But as I approached.
They stopped eating and gazed at me with eyes full of curiosity.
It was the expression of someone observing a curious animal.
“What are you staring at?”
When Bu Eunseol raised his voice at Xiao Zhen Tian’s face, he looked every bit the fearsome demon incarnate.
Yet the villagers smiled broadly, their expressions warm and welcoming.
“Please, do try this.”
A middle-aged man withdrew a wooden skewer from the charcoal fire and offered it to Bu Eunseol.
The skewer was laden with succulent, tender meat that glistened appetizingly from the flames.
“It makes perfect accompaniment to drink.”
“Are you hoping I’ll share your liquor?”
“We have plenty of spirits ourselves.”
The middle-aged man laughed, gesturing toward a large earthenware jug resting nearby.
“Come now, do taste it.”
He wrapped the charcoal-grilled meat in oil paper and extended it toward Bu Eunseol.
“Sprinkle salt on it and the flavor becomes absolutely exquisite. Please, take it with you.”
Though Xiao Zhen Tian was said to be ferocious, he was hardly the sort to rage at someone offering delicious charcoal-grilled meat.
“You know your craft.”
Bu Eunseol nodded with a satisfied smile.
“I’ll enjoy it.”
Taking the meat piled in oil paper from the middle-aged man, Bu Eunseol returned to the Stone Chamber.
He retrieved a jug of spirits and began to drink.
And the moment he caught the scent of the meat in the oil paper,
“…!”
Bu Eunseol’s expression turned rigid.
The meat on the skewers appeared to be beef or mutton, charred to perfection.
Yet Bu Eunseol detected a distinctive aroma rising from the grilled flesh.
‘Human flesh.’
Astonishingly, the meat these villagers had grilled over charcoal was human flesh.
During my time at the Pyeong-an Funeral House, I had performed countless cremations.
Bodies consumed by the Fire Demon.
I had inhaled the scent of burnt human flesh countless times.
‘They know, yet they eat it anyway.’
Human flesh carries a distinctive odor—no one without a fool’s mind could fail to notice the wrongness.
These seemingly innocent villagers were laughing while consuming human meat?
‘Then it was not leprosy after all.’
Leprosy patients develop skin lesions, and their extremities—arms, legs, even the tip of the nose—rot and decay.
Yet none of the villagers showed any amputated limbs; their skin alone bore the marks of disease.
‘Could the rotted skin be connected to consuming human flesh?’
Throughout history, famine has driven men to cannibalism countless times.
Yet Lengyue Island appeared abundant with food.
Their consumption of human flesh must stem from another reason entirely—perhaps it relates to whatever grand technique they practice. It may be connected to their cultivation method.
‘Then that man is certainly an outsider.’
Bu Eunseol recalled the Disheveled Man from the Inn.
He had casually unfurled the secret techniques of the Crimson Blood Demonic Lord without hesitation, drinking alone without any accompaniments.
Perhaps he refrained from ordering food because he knew that all the meat served in this place was human flesh.
‘What in the world is this man?’
Despite having achieved considerable martial prowess in his own right, the man’s eyes and expression conveyed the appearance of one who had abandoned all worldly concerns.
―Have you mastered all the secret techniques?
Moreover, he posed this question while wearing a mysterious smile.
As if he already knew full well that the secret techniques could not be properly mastered.
‘If that is the case…’
Sensing something, Bu Eunseol stepped outside and examined the other stone chambers.
Upon entering, the interior appeared meticulously organized.
It seemed the chambers had been cleaned so that those who possessed a Demonic Blade, like Bu Eunseol, could enter at any time.
Zing.
White light flowed from his eyes as he examined the interior.
He was drawing upon his Hollow Heart Penetrating Vision to scrutinize every corner of the space.
‘So that was it.’
Bu Eunseol finally understood.
Why this Mo Wok had been prepared, and why he had been observing him in secret.
‘I was meant to suffer.’
Within the stone chamber lay vivid traces of countless martial artists’ rage and anguish.
And that was likely because…
…they had received martial secret techniques so overwhelmingly powerful yet impossible to master, much like the Wol Young Blade Scripture.
Despair and rage.
All who possessed a Demonic Blade were born with the Hollow Spirit Constitution.
Despite having prided themselves on their exceptional talents until now, failing to master even a single martial secret technique…
…they must have felt unbearable despair and fury.
And Bu Eunseol now understood what he must do.
‘I will do it.’
To advance to the next stage…
…just as those who had carried the Demonic Blade before him had done, I must writhe in agony.
It had been nine days since Bu Eunseol arrived at Lengyue Island.
Wielding the Demonic Blade, Bu Eunseol trembled before Mo Wok and cried out.
“Aaaahhhhh!”
It was the anguished wail of a martial artist desperately striving to master the techniques, yet ultimately failing to grasp them at all, descending into despair.
“How is this even a swordsmanship technique?!”
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
With fury blazing across his face, he wielded the Demonic Blade like a madman.
His lips were parched, and madness gleamed in his eyes.
“This technique is utterly! Utterly nonsensical!”
Bu Eunseol wailed.
Xiao Zhen Tian must have always believed his talent was exceptional.
I have reached this point without experiencing a single setback until now.
However, the Wol Young Ma Joon’s Sword Manual has inflicted a frustration I had never felt before.
Bu Eunseol was now.
Vividly performing the despair of a genius who had belatedly discovered their own limitations.
Thud, thud.
A soft footstep sounded before Bu Eunseol, who knelt in despair.
When I lifted my head, I saw a boy with a bright smile.
It was Dae Bo.
“My lord, you seem to be struggling greatly.”
“You wretch! What kind of Wol Young Ma Joon’s Sword Manual is this!”
Bu Eunseol cried out with a vacant expression.
“This is a fake! Bring me the real manual!”
“My lord.”
Dae Bo spoke with regret.
“You know well that this is the authentic Wol Young Ma Joon’s Sword Manual.”
“Nonsense! How am I supposed to unfold this at all?”
Bu Eunseol cried out, gazing toward the distant sky.
“It is impossible for a human body to unfold it—how could I possibly do so!”
“There is a way.”
Dae Bo spoke in a subdued voice as he watched Bu Eunseol’s anguished cry.
“However, that method requires you to stake your life.”
“What do you mean? What is this method?”
“I cannot tell you that. However.”
Dae Bo’s eyes were narrowed like a crescent moon.
“If my lord makes the resolve to stake your life, I can teach you the Wol Young Ma Joon’s Sword Manual.”
“If I stake my life, I can master the sword manual?”
“That is correct.”
“Isn’t venturing into Gangho itself already staking one’s life?”
Bu Eunseol cried out, drooling slightly.
“Tell me at once!”
“Very well.”
Dae Bo immediately led Bu Eunseol.
“Follow me.”
‘Excellent.’
Bu Eunseol harbored a faint smile within.
At last, I would be able to confirm the true nature of Sam Gye that was secretly established on this island.
The place where Dae Bo led Bu Eunseol was a cliff overlooking the coastline.
There stood a small stone chamber made of stone.
It showed no significant difference from the stone chamber that had been assigned to Bu Eunseol.
“What is this place?”
At Bu Eunseol’s words, Dae Bo opened the door to the Stone Chamber without answering.
Upon stepping inside, rather than an interior room, another door came into view.
Creak.
When he opened that door, a passage descending further underground revealed itself.
Remarkably, the Stone Chamber itself was a secret passage leading downward into the depths.
‘Sam Gye certainly has a fondness for underground spaces.’
All of Sam Gye’s facilities thus far had been located underground. The same held true for the Gwi Il Gye installation here on Lengyue Island.
Since the true body had to remain hidden and concealed from view, such a structure was perhaps inevitable by necessity.
Thud, thud.
As I descended endlessly through the lengthy corridor, a vast expanse with a height reaching dozens of zhang opened before me.
It was more than twice the size of the Infinite Realm’s Underground Fortress I had witnessed in Sichuan in the past.
‘No Ren Hua cultivation here.’
Fortunately, this place showed no signs of being a cultivation ground for Ren Hua.
Yet throughout this expansive space, not a single person could be seen passing through.
Like a ghost town, only silence permeated the air.
“Please come this way.”
Dae Bo led the way once more, entering a certain building.
Upon entering, a massive Great Hall revealed itself—its ceiling reaching five zhang in height and its interior spanning roughly a thousand square meters.
Throughout the space, enormous pillars so massive that three grown men linking hands could not encircle them supported the ceiling.
Their surfaces bore engraved images of demonic forms carved in bas-relief.
The interior was neither particularly dark nor bright, and across the way stood a large door.
“Nari. You have always wished to live as a strong one. And going forward, you wish to become a strong one who never tastes defeat.”
Remarkably, Dae Bo spoke as though he had thoroughly investigated Xiao Zhen Tian’s entire life, just as Bu Eunseol had.
“Of course.”
Bu Eunseol spoke with bloodshot eyes, as if frustrated by the delay.
“So speak of the method quickly.”
“Very well.”
Clap.
As Dae Bo clapped his palms together, a deep rumbling sound accompanied the opening of the Great Hall’s floor, from which a massive glass chamber rose.
‘What is this.’
Beneath the Seven Calamities Night Luminous Pearl, brilliant light emanated from below the glass chamber, and its interior was filled with transparent liquid.
Within that liquid lay a corpse with all skin removed except for the face.
In some places, muscle was visible as if the flesh had been meticulously stripped away, while in other areas, bone and blood vessels were completely exposed.
No matter how courageous a person might be, witnessing such a grotesque spectacle would inevitably shock them.
“What… what is this?”
As Bu Eunseol recoiled in great shock, Dae Bo spoke with an unconcerned expression.
“It is Wol Young Ma Jon.”

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