The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 533

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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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The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 533
Moments after the Reaper fled from the Sword Emperor’s assault, the atmosphere in the devastated space had grown unsettled.
Some barely managed to rise from the shock, while others lay swept away by death in the aftermath.
It was Paeng Dojin who reacted first in that chaos.
Though he seemed barely conscious from the impact that struck him, he had already risen and was staring intently at the Sword Emperor.
“…Surely… not really.”
It wasn’t just Paeng Dojin. Yoo Yeon and Woon-ryong felt the same. Dok-ryong had already lost consciousness and hadn’t awakened yet.
Psssss-
As the sword energy slowly dissipated, the Sword Emperor sheathed his blade.
Thunk.
After sliding the sword into his belt, he surveyed the surroundings with a cold gaze—utterly different from his expression when he was a mere servant.
Perhaps this was the face more familiar to me.
Seeing that, I asked.
“Did you miss him?”
“Yes.”
He answered flatly. The Sword Emperor, who had disappeared to pursue the Reaper, returned without any spoils. His expression showed no regret.
“He was fast.”
“….”
Was it a speed even the Sword Emperor couldn’t catch? Or had the Reaper simply taken the bait as intended?
‘Targeting me.’
He had escaped in that opening. The Sword Emperor regretted that.
-My disciple.
That single phrase he had spoken lingered in my ears. Before I could deliberately mention it.
“Clean this up. I’ll go ahead.”
The Sword Emperor left again without further words.
Clean what up? This place? How was I supposed to clean this?
I glanced at the branch. I could see the dead, but I also noticed those trying to slip away. Seeing that, I sighed and spoke.
“Grab those ones.”
No one objected to my words. My allies had already sprung into action.
“Gasp!”
“Argh!”
Those fleeing were caught and forced to kneel. The Branch Leader was dead and the Reaper had escaped. With no other strong fighters present, subduing them was instantaneous.
“Not sure if there’s anything worth identifying though….”
The problem was that the Branch Leader had died.
I tilted my head. I could see his head rolling on the ground. Looking at it, I moved.
Whoosh.
I picked up the head. His eyes were still open—he had died without even closing them.
‘Hmm.’
A head alone is somewhat insufficient. But could this work?
I tilted my head in consideration.
I couldn’t avoid trying. Since it had caught my attention, I had to give it a shot.
“Just a moment.”
“Hm? Where are you going?”
“I’ll take a quick look inside. Please gather all the subdued people in one place.”
I carried the Branch Leader’s head into the interior.
The house was silent. I had chosen this place specifically because it would contain the most traces of the Branch Leader.
I entered, closed the door, and sealed it with my energy.
In the now-quiet space, I placed the Branch Leader’s head on the table. By this point, all the blood had already drained away.
Looking at it, I pressed my hand against his forehead.
That was when it happened.
Shhhhhhh—!!!
Black energy rose up from the forehead. It was the aura of Patcheon Gung. Since I needed to erase this first, I exerted my power with effort.
Whoosh! Crackle!
Karmic flames erupted.
The flames consumed the aura of Patcheon Gung.
Sizzle.
The black entity burned away and vanished.
‘Look at that? I can erase even Patcheon Gung’s aura like this?’
I stared in fascination.
‘This is convenient.’
If it could consume even Patcheon Gung’s aura, that made things much easier.
After burning that away, I extracted something from the corpse. It was the soul.
-Grrgh… Grraaagh!! Aaahhh!!!!
The soul that burst forth screamed. The spectral form was still relatively distinct. It hadn’t been long since death.
-Gasp! Huff…! What is…!?
The soul of Branch Leader Seomdo appeared, clutching at his neck. I gazed at the creature before me. It stared back at me with eyes wide in shock.
-What is… How… How is this possible?
“Now, I’m going to ask you some questions.”
Ignoring its reaction, I reached out and seized the soul.
-Gack!? W-Wol-hyeop?
“I don’t feel like explaining, and there’s no point anyway. Let’s move quickly.”
Crunch crunch crunch!
I seized the soul and tore through its interior.
-Grraaahhh!!!
Screams echoed out. I paid them no mind. Looking at it, I spoke.
“I’m going to ask you several questions now. Just answer them.”
I didn’t bother with empty promises about sparing it or anything like that. After all, I had no intention of letting it live.

* * *
Creak, click.
I closed the door behind me and stepped out, dusting off my hands. The outside was already in order.
“What? You’re back already?”
“Yes. There wasn’t much there, surprisingly.”
I brushed my hands clean. Having touched something filthy, I needed to shake it off.
Not that it would actually cleanse anything.
‘Tsk.’
I clicked my tongue sharply.
Everything I’d heard was disappointing. Still, I’d learned why the Jade Stone was sought and what it truly was.
‘…It’s been absorbed into my body.’
The contents of the Jade Stone had entered my body. That was incredibly irritating. But what could I do? I’d already obtained it.
Setting that aside, I looked at those I’d subdued.
“What should we do with them? Torture them?”
“…No. I don’t think that’s necessary.”
I glanced around casually. I could see the fear in their eyes. They were clearly from Patcheon Gung. But leaving them as they were wouldn’t change anything, and torture wouldn’t help either.
‘Patcheon Gung’s aura would capture them quickly anyway.’
There was a high chance their very souls would be incinerated. As for me.
‘If I used Karmic Flames, there’s nothing I couldn’t do.’
But there was no need to go that far.
The choice was simple.
“Let’s leave them. We need to send them to the Martial Arts Alliance disciples anyway.”
“You’re just sending them like that?”
“There’s nothing for us to interrogate them about.”
There was nothing to gain from touching them. It would be tedious to deal with individually, so I’d leave it to the Alliance. Besides, I’d already extracted the information from Seomdo.
“Hmm…. Alright.”
Paeng Dojin didn’t seem fully convinced by my words, but he didn’t object. This matter probably wasn’t that important to him anyway.
What mattered to him now was something else.
“Bangseong-yeon.”
“Yes.”
“…Is it really true that… the Old Man, no, that person is the Sword Emperor?”
“Yes.”
At the mention of the Sword Emperor’s existence, Paeng Dojin’s body trembled slightly.
“Really… so it was true? I sensed something different about him, but….”
“Different? We didn’t sense anything and just treated him like a servant.”
What was there to sense?
Even Paeng Dojin’s Cheonmu Jiche hadn’t detected the Sword Emperor hiding his presence.
That showed how well he controlled himself.
“…The Sword Emperor of the Celestial Demon… for such a person to appear so….”
“Frail, you mean?”
“I never said anything like that.”
‘Just hide your eyes and speak.’
I was so exasperated that my expression gave everything away.
“Anyway, let’s just leave them be.”
“What if they escape?”
“There are other Meng Clan Martial Artists here.”
The ones I hadn’t bound—those I deliberately left alone. Other beings who belonged to the Martial Arts Alliance.
“Keep watch over them. If word comes down from Hanam, I’ll offer them better positions.”
“…! Ah, understood!”
The moment I mentioned promotions, their eyes gleamed with enthusiasm. Advancement truly was the greatest motivator.
‘Besides, I’ve already sealed their pressure points.’
I’d thoroughly suppressed their ability to move, so this should suffice.
I left with my people. Normally, I would have taken more time to gather information.
‘But I’m too exhausted for that now.’
I’d already extracted information from Seomdo. There was nothing more to gain. The very existence of Okseok consumed my entire mind.
‘…The Pacheon Gungju. No—the Heretic Leader.’
What was that madman trying to do? What could he possibly be attempting?
‘He’s gathering a soul and constructing a vessel for it?’
Okseok was a soul, and he was reconstructing a physical body to contain it.
And thus.
‘Is he trying to become a Deity?’
He sought to create something entirely new. Okseok was merely the foundation for that.

* * *
When I returned to the quarters, the Sword Emperor was there.
He was tending to the horses in the stable, looking exactly as he always did.
“….”
“….”
My companions exchanged glances, their lips pressed tight. There was simply nothing to say.
Should I pretend to know what was happening? I was caught in that dilemma when.
“…Ugh….”
Dok-ryong, who had been carried back, finally opened his eyes.
“Wh… long….”
“You’re awake. It’s all over. Get your head straight.”
“Ugh!”
Dok-ryong stumbled and collapsed to the ground.
“Is… is it all finished?”
“Yeah, it’s done.”
“Is this… hell…?”
“What nonsense. It’s just over. The enemy fled.”
“Ah…!”
Had he thought he was dead?
Bewildered, I watched as Dok-ryong finally released a breath of relief.
Then.
“No…! I told you not to do it that way…!?”
Before he could fully regain his senses, Dok-ryong spotted the Sword Emperor in the stable and sprang to his feet, shouting at him who was grooming the horse.
“Elder, I told you the colt gets angry when you groom it like that. Please be more gentle….”
As Dok-ryong spoke, he suddenly fell silent and turned to look at us.
“…Why are you all looking at me like that?”
“….”
“….”
Both Paeng Dojin and Woon-ryong had their mouths shut tight. I could see cold sweat trickling down their faces.
As no one dared speak.
“What’s wrong with everyone?”
Only Dok-ryong failed to understand, and the day passed like that.

* * *
With the matter of Patcheon Gung resolved, I needed to reorganize the Maeng Disciples.
I had bound them and locked them away in prison. Their dantians were sealed through acupuncture points, so there would be no problems.
I decided to leave them be until the main sect sent people. That was my judgment.
Besides, our own path was too urgent to spare any further attention to them.
“Let’s go.”
The next day, we set out on the road. They had said we needed permits and such to enter Xinjiang, but that Branch Leader had caused an incident and died.
Such things were no longer necessary. Thanks to that, we left the village and took to the road, our path to Xinjiang now clear.
What had changed from before was this:
“…Why… why are you telling me this now…!”
Dok-ryong had learned the Sword Emperor’s true identity.
“But why are you still…!”
The Sword Emperor was still driving the horse. This man—even with his identity exposed, he continued driving. At this point, it seemed he simply enjoyed driving horses.
‘…Well, that’s fine.’
If he wanted to do it, then so be it. I decided to think of it that way. I had grown too tired to worry about other matters.
What mattered now was the next objective.
‘Once we reach Xinjiang like this.’
I would need to find someone.
A being the Young Master had spoken of to me.
That name was probably.
‘Pamuyeon.’
Marin Pamuyeon.
An existence of the Demonic Sect, and.
‘An Elder, he said.’
This being called an Elder.
It was time I faced him.

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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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