Third-rate Martial Family Becomes the Best Under Heaven - Chapter 47

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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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Third-rate Martial Arts Family, Greatest Under Heaven – Episode 047
Screeeech—!
‘I didn’t even use sword energy. Why is the demon appearing…?’
Gwi-no Baek-ma’s demon can only be dissipated with sword energy.
Yet it vanished from just a single sword strike?
Could it be that twenty-five years ago, Gwi-no Baek-ma’s cultivation was lower… No, that can’t be it.
Sword energy isn’t required to dissipate a bodiless demon due to cultivation level.
‘Then there’s only one possibility.’
That was when it happened.
Screeeech screeeech screeeech!
Screeeech screeeech screeeech!
Gwigok Fortress surged forward. Simultaneously, a gloomy voice pierced my eardrums.
“You who severed my ear, come forth.”
Though it was a quiet voice, it resonated throughout the entire manor.
Of course, Gu Ak heard the voice too.
“Damn it.”
-Little brother, hide for now and try to scheme. I’ll go out.
‘Oh, showing loyalty in a situation like this. That’s actually touching.’
I had planned to subdue Gwi-no Baek-ma from some angle and extract information.
But getting exposed like this from the start wasn’t part of the plan.
I pondered for a moment on how to proceed, then made a decision.
-Elder Brother, let’s just go together.
-Huh? Why would you do something so foolish?
-I have a plan, sir. Follow me.
Yang Hwi walked forward with a casual gait.
The surging demons followed, forming an encirclement.
Shortly after arriving at the front of the manor, Yang Hwi furrowed his brow.
‘They’ve killed quite a lot already.’
It seemed about a third of the manor’s guards and the gathered warriors had been slain.
Those still alive were all subdued.
‘It’s only been four days since the rumors spread. There wasn’t a single master-level expert among them, it seems.’
The moment I had that thought.
“Who are you? Who killed this body’s ear?”
A gloomy voice, thick with phlegm.
Gu Ak stepped forward.
“Look at me. Obviously, it was me.”
Gwi-no Baek-ma nodded.
Logically, it was impossible for a child to have dissipated the demon.
“I see. Try once more.”
As Gwi-no Baek-ma flicked his finger, one of the floating demons rushed toward Gu Ak.
Crack, crack, crack!
“Kugh!”
Gu Ak swung one of his twin axes, cleaving through the demon.
The demon that had been split in half immediately returned to its original form.
“So it wasn’t you. You haven’t reached the pinnacle realm. You lied.”
“….”
Focusing on their exchange, I assessed the situation.
‘There are roughly thirty demons in total.’
It had been twenty-five years since I last encountered Gwi-no Baek-ma in my past life.
Naturally, his realm would be lower, so the number of demons he could command would be limited.
‘Since subduing the other warriors requires effort, I can probably handle about ten demons at once.’
Moreover, none of the greater demons that Gwi-no Baek-ma had commanded in my past life were visible.
Four powerful demons created and controlled by tainting the souls of masters with demonic and murderous qi.
Without those creatures….
This should be manageable.
-Elder Brother, I’ll count to three and charge. I’ll eliminate all the demons, so please subdue that bastard.
-What, what? Do we have a chance?
-We do. One, two, three!
I immediately deployed the Qi Heaven Step.
As if prepared for a surprise attack, Gwi-no Baek-ma snapped his fingers instantly.
Crack, crack, crack!
The demons surged forward, trailing wisps of black qi.
But.
As I swung my blade infused with abundant true energy, the demon at the front simply vanished.
Crack-crack-crack!
‘So I can annihilate demons thanks to the celestial qi.’
The celestial qi that emerged after my regression and greatly increased after consuming the spirit pill recently.
I had named it celestial qi because of its noble and pure nature, but I never knew it possessed such an ability.
Looking at it now, it seems to carry the power of demon-slaying and spirit-destruction.
Could this actually be genuine celestial qi?
‘Well, at least it makes things easier.’
“So it was you!”
As Gwi-no Baek-ma was caught off guard, I closed nearly half the distance between us.
“Elder Brother!”
“Got it!”
Gu Ak immediately deployed his movement technique, following close behind me.
I swung my blade once more.
Gae-cheon-bak-pal-geom, Fifth Form, First Variation.
Hawk Feather Scatter, Fifth Form, Second Variation.
Hawk Feather Scatter—a technique that spreads sword qi in all directions, cleaving through nine demons.
Screeeech—!
Screeeech—!
Screeeech—!
The demons, which had been spewing forth malevolent and sinister energy, vanished in an instant.
“What?! How is this possible?!”
Gwi-no Baek-ma was caught off guard and couldn’t mount any proper defense.
He had no choice but to be.
Until now, he had never lost a single demon except when facing masters at the pinnacle of cultivation.
Yet now, the demons he had so carefully nurtured were vanishing one after another.
“Elder Brother! Now!”
I thrust forward following the subtle principles of Sauguanwam’s technique toward the last remaining demon.
Screeeech!
Black energy dispersed as the demon dissipated.
Gu Ak charged through the energy and buried his axe into Gwi-no Baek-ma’s shoulder.
“Aaahhh!”
Before his scream could end, I severed both of his arms.
“Gack, aaahhh! My arms! My arms!”
“Shut your mouth, bastard.”
Gwi-no Baek-ma commanded demons through hand seals.
With both arms severed, he was essentially neutralized.
We had subdued Gwi-no Baek-ma—the one who would massacre countless warriors in the distant future and become a figure of terror—with just the two of us.
‘The celestial energy… I’m not sure what happened, but…’
I’d save my questions for later.
What mattered now was Gwi-no Baek-ma.
“Listen here, beast. Summon all your demons before me.”
“Gack, how dare you, kra—!”
As Gu Ak’s axe buried itself into his other shoulder, Gwi-no Baek-ma’s words turned into another scream.
“Will you obey, or become a rag?”
…
The demons that had been subduing the warriors slowly gathered before us.
I annihilated every single demon with my sword brimming with celestial energy.
Screeeech!
Screeeech!
Screeeech!
With this, Gwi-no Baek-ma had lost all means of resistance.
His sorcery was fearsome, but his personal martial prowess was virtually nonexistent.
“Elder Brother, well done.”
“Ah, that was splendid teamwork.”
-But, younger brother. How were you able to destroy the spirits?
Rather than mention the celestial energy, I gave a vague answer.
“I’m not entirely sure either. I suspect it might be the lingering effects of the Spirit Pill I consumed not long ago.”
“I see. That makes sense.”
Watching Gu Ak nod in agreement, I began moving through the surroundings, checking the pressure points of the warriors.
Most of them remained unconscious, their bodies still saturated with the demon’s aura, so it wasn’t particularly difficult.
‘This way, we won’t have to worry about another disturbance occurring before we leave.’
Next, I scanned the area and found someone.
A middle-aged man with a greedy expression and a plump, well-fed appearance.
Dressed in expensive silk robes, he was unmistakably the South Gold Guild Master.
“You are the South Gold Guild Master, correct?”
“Y-yes, that’s right. I’m truly grateful, Namgung Cheon-yeong.”
Receiving his thanks left me feeling oddly uncomfortable.
After all, the Namgeum Trading Company’s calamity was entirely my doing.
‘Well, I’m not sorry about it—the man bled his people dry to fatten his own belly.’
“I intend to interrogate that bastard. Could you provide me with a quiet, secluded location?”
“O-of course.”
‘It would be better to interrogate him alone.’
I needed to ask why he was here and what happened to Hyeol-gyo, but if Gu Ak overheard, he’d question how I knew such things.
“Elder Brother, the other warriors might awaken. I’d appreciate it if you could keep watch here.”
“And the interrogation?”
“I’ll handle it alone.”
“Won’t that be dangerous?”
“You saw me eliminate the demons. Whatever that bastard tries, it won’t matter.”
Seizing Gwi-no Baek-ma by the collar, I dragged him to the deepest part of the manor and hurled him to the ground.
Then I got straight to business.
“Why are you here when you should be in the Hyeol-gyo hideout?”
“W-what…!”
Gwi-no Baek-ma’s eyes bulged wide as he gasped in pain.
“H-how did you…?”
“Questions are the victor’s privilege. Shut up and answer what I ask. Why are you here?”
“…”
Gwi-no Baek-ma remained silent. Why did these bastards always have to complicate things?
Thunk! Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!
I drove my blade through his abdomen and severed the tendons in his limbs.
“Kugh…!”
“Hurts, doesn’t it? Talk, and I’ll let you go peacefully. What do you say?”
“…”
Gwi-no Baek-ma still refused to speak. He seemed to have more endurance than the assassins of Mumyeong Musalgok, at least.
At this rate, even using bone-breaking techniques would prove meaningless.
‘If only I had someone from the Dang Clan here right now.’
The Dang Clan’s poisons included interrogation toxins that maximized pain sensation.
In my past life, during the era of the Hyeol-gyo, only the Dang Clan’s torture poison could pry open a prisoner’s mouth.
‘Ah, wait.’
Gwi-no Baek-ma. A sorcerer who commands demons through dark arts.
Unlike ordinary martial techniques, sorcery is rooted in the Sang-dan-jeon.
The Baek-hoe, the gateway that communes with heaven, and the In-dang, which holds divine essence.
I could see sinister and murky energy coiled around his entire head, concentrated at these two vital points.
‘Perhaps it’s possible.’
I placed my index and middle fingers on the space between Gwi-no Baek-ma’s brows.
For the first time, Gwi-no Baek-ma, who had remained silent until now, opened his mouth.
“You bastard! What are you trying to do!”
“You’ll see!”
I stimulated the celestial core residing in my dantian.
I couldn’t draw out all the celestial energy I’d absorbed into my spirit core, but far denser celestial qi than usual flowed through my true energy.
“Aaaahhhhh! Aaaahhhhh!”
Piercing screams echoed out. My heavenly transformation energy, saturated with celestial qi, poured into his Sang-dan-jeon, beginning to dismantle his sinister power.
“Does it hurt? Promise to answer my questions, and I’ll stop.”
“Aaaahhhhh! Ugh, hack, cough!”
“Quite resilient, aren’t you?”
Touching the In-dang and Baek-hoe carelessly could render him an idiot.
I didn’t care and forced more heavenly transformation energy into him.
Whether he went mad or not, what did it matter to me?
Besides, there seemed no other way to make him talk.
“Stop! Please stop! I’ll talk!”
“Hmm.”
As I withdrew my hand, Gwi-no Baek-ma gasped frantically like a madman.
“I’ll ask again. Why is someone who should be in your lair wandering outside?”
“…I received orders.”
This bastard still hadn’t come to his senses.
“From the next question onward, tell me everything in detail.”
“Wait, wait! I understand, I understand, aaaahhhhh!”
I kneaded his brain with celestial energy once more before withdrawing my fingers.
“Now, shall we continue?”
“I received orders from the Sect Leader. The purpose is to find or establish forces willing to cooperate with our sect in preparation for a purge that will occur in the future.”
Ah, so these bastards had already spread their roots everywhere.
No wonder the Hyeol-gyo suffered surprisingly easy defeats back then.
“How many came out?”
“Dozens of us, including myself.”
“Are there any forces that have been subverted or established?”
“In my case, there are none. We operate in a cell structure for security, so I don’t know what the others have accomplished.”
This bastard doesn’t know anything useful, does he?
This is just wasting time at this point.
“What’s the current state of Hyeol-gyo? What is your sect leader doing?”
“I don’t know.”
“Damn bastard. You still haven’t come to your senses.”
“N-no, I really don’t know! Before leaving the sect, I received the Grand Dharma and had my memories erased! I can only recover them by returning to the sect’s headquarters!”
This is precisely what makes heretical sects like Hyeol-gyo so troublesome.
Since they dabble in all manner of sinister and unorthodox techniques, they’re capable of the most bizarre and unfathomable acts.
‘Interrogation is essentially meaningless at this point.’
Still, I decided to ask one final question.
In a sense, the most important one.
“Do you know anything about Singyeo?”
Singyeo. Its formal name is Yeokcheon Singyeo.
Yang Hwi unconsciously recalled a moment from my past life.
‘If only I could know beforehand… I must kill them without fail.’

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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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