Chapter 253: Battle of Akyang (3)

It was Si Okhyeol, the Grand Elder of the Evil Path Castle.

Having reached the pinnacle of the Peak Master Level, he was an old monster who, even when compared to most top-tier Transformation Realm experts, lacked very little.

Had his opponent appeared to be at least of mature age—say, around thirty—instead of such a youthful brat, he would never have been this careless.

But the moment he saw the opponent’s appearance, he became certain: no matter what he did, he would never surpass him.

That certainty was what brought about the end of Si Okhyeol, the old monster over the age of sixty.

Thud!

Except for two individuals present, no one would have imagined that Si Okhyeol would be taken down in a single instant.

One of those exceptions, Gu Chil, clicked his tongue as he stared at Si Okhyeol’s lifeless body, his eyes wide open.

“Tsk, there’s a limit to how much one can underestimate our young master.”

If he hadn’t let his guard down so thoroughly, he might’ve lasted about fifty seconds.

“…….”

“…….”

A suffocating silence descended.

Though the number of warriors mobilized for this operation from the Ten Thousand Fury Command Corps was small, each one of them was of Master Level—comparable to Ten Captains.

Even so, none of them dared move easily when confronted with the inexplicable sight of their superior, the Grand Elder, beheaded before them.

Then suddenly—

“Impressive.”

A large middle-aged man at the front took a step forward.

“To think you killed Hyeol-ra in one blow. At the very least, you’ve earned the right to speak arrogantly in my presence.”

Despite the fact that one of his subordinates had been slain, the man showed no signs of regret.

He was a man with an exceptionally composed demeanor.

If one had to compare, his presence was reminiscent of the Sword Demon.

Of course, that didn’t mean he was exactly like the Sword Demon.

Given his hefty build, similar to that of Gu Cheon-gun, he gave off a menacing pressure distinct from the Sword Demon.

“Certainly, unless I overcome you, I won’t be able to go after the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult.”

“…….”

“State your name.”

The fact that he was a sword of the Heaven-Defying Society was secondary. Since he had asked with such formality, I figured I should return the courtesy.

Facing someone who was surely an absolute master, I respectfully cupped my fist in a martial salute.

“I am Jin Yeomyung, direct descendant of the Demonic Heaven’s Jin Clan of the Heavenly Demon Cult.”

At my words, a faint smile appeared on his face.

“Demonic Heaven’s Jin Clan, eh? I had a feeling your body was something exceptional, and it turns out I was right.”

“Since I’ve introduced myself, could you also share your name, senior?”

“Indeed.”

Shff!

The man pulled out a giant sword from his back—nearly the same size as his own body.

It was more like a club than a sword, crude and brutal in its design—a true greatsword.

For a moment, I forgot the gravity of the situation and was captivated by a strange sense of nostalgia.

‘How nostalgic.’

That was the very kind of weapon I’d used in my first life.

Back then, it was a necessary choice—I had to cut down more monsters than men.

The greatsword now revealed before my eyes was a rare masterpiece, even back in that first life.

“Impressive.”

At those words, a gleam appeared in his eyes.

“Oh? You really think so?”

“I do. If one is born a man, then wielding a sword of that caliber is a must.”

“Pwahahaha!”

For some reason, the man burst into hearty laughter.

“Hehehe, how amusing. The fact that you genuinely mean that is what makes it entertaining. In honor of you, I swear none of my subordinates will interfere until our fight is settled.”

“…That’s appreciated.”

“Ah, I suppose it’s time for me to introduce myself?”

Whoooosh!

The man lightly swung the greatsword once and revealed his identity.

“I am the Lord of Evil Path Castle, Gam Unbi.”

“…….”

One of the Five Kings of the Central Plains—Gam Unbi, the Conqueror King.

Also known as the King of Domination, he was effectively the ruler of the southern regions of the current Central Plains.

“But I suppose that’s not the identity the young brother wanted to know.”

With a grin, he revealed his true affiliation.

“I’m Gam Unbi, one of the Ten Heavenly Lords of the Heaven-Defying Society. A pleasure to meet you.”

…Damn it.

This was seriously the worst.

***

To be honest, I’d had my doubts for a while.

While it made sense that the Evil Overlords of Heaven—those backed by the Three-Spirits Azure Star Sect—would emerge victorious in my past life…

No one had expected the Evil Path Castle, which had remained quiet all this time, to support the creation of the Murim Alliance without protest.

‘I understand the reason now.’

With someone like a Three Thousand Lord standing firm at the top of the Evil Path Castle, their support for the Murim Alliance’s formation was the natural result—an inevitable consequence.

Gam Unbi spoke to me.

“To tell the truth, I had no intention of getting involved in this incident.”

“You had no intention?”

“Even though I’m one of the Ten Heavenly Lords, there are only two others who know my true identity. I’ve kept things quiet until now, and I had planned to keep it that way.”

Those two were likely the Grand Heavenly Lord and the Fourth Heavenly Lord—Illusion Demon—who had summoned him here.

“Then why did you leave your castle?”

“Hmm, there are two reasons.”

He stroked his long beard, which gave him the air of Guan Yu.

“Originally, the one who was supposed to take part in this incident was the Second Heavenly Lord, but he suddenly decided to withdraw from the Society, causing a commotion. That chaos spilled over to me. That’s the first reason…”

“…….”

I couldn’t help but be flabbergasted at that.

…Was it Master again?

My damned Master.

Even if he hadn’t intended it, the butterfly effect he triggered was simply outrageous.

The problem was that the butterfly effect always seemed to screw over his disciple.

“And the other reason is that the Fourth Lord assured me—at the cost of his own life—that this would be entertaining.”

Grit!

…Hwan Pyeong!

So he pulled in a Three Thousand Lord by staking his own life?

While I was swallowing down my rage, Gam Unbi spoke with a face full of boredom.

“The fighting pit inside the castle’s been dull lately, so I was getting bored. I figured I’d get some fresh air, so here I am.”

Come to think of it, I had heard that Evil Path Castle had some sort of round coliseum where a bloody festival raged all twelve hours of the day.

‘He might look normal on the outside, but this bastard’s twisted on the inside too.’

Well, if he were normal, he wouldn’t have joined a place like the Heaven-Defying Society in the first place.

“Well then, our little chat went on too long. Shall we begin?”

Gam Unbi’s greatsword cut heavily through the air.

“I won’t even bother showing my awakened form. Let’s settle this with martial arts alone.”

“That’s fine by me, but are you sure about that? You might regret holding back.”

I tried provoking him just in case.

Surprisingly, Gam Unbi really didn’t seem to have any hidden agenda.

“I have no intention of listening to someone ranked lower than me. I only came out here because of his request to kill the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Cult, and I just happened to run into an obstacle along the way.”

“…….”

There was nothing in his words but apparent honesty, spoken with utter calm.

‘But… is that really true?’

For some reason, I felt uneasy.

A strange instinct told me he was reluctant to bring out his awakened form.

My instincts, honed by experience, were telling me there was another reason.

‘No—even if that’s true, now isn’t the time to dwell on it.’

Right now, I needed to focus solely on defeating my opponent.

Even if the Heavenly Demonic Divine Art was the natural nemesis of the Heaven-Defying Society’s essence, this opponent stood just beneath my Master in their hierarchy.

He was certainly someone who could pose a real threat to Cheon Yura.

I absolutely couldn’t let him pass.

Gam Unbi took a stance with both hands on his sword and said,

“You look like you’ve got a sturdy body. Hopefully, you won’t die in a single blow.”

BOOM!

With those words, Gam Unbi’s greatsword came flying toward my waist at a monstrous speed.

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

Even the shockwaves from the swing of the blade exploded with incomprehensible divine power.

I calmly covered my blade with qi, trying to deflect the strike.

‘I blocked the strike of the Immortal Lord. Even if this guy’s a Three Thousand Lord…’

I should be able to stop it—should be…

CRACK!

‘…Huh?’

The moment my sword met his strike—

My treasured sword, covered in qi, began to shatter under the pressure.

It was as if a massive iron boulder was crushing my entire body. Gam Unbi’s strike ignored the natural flow of my redirection and overwhelmed me entirely.

An overwhelming violence that ignored the essence of “Flow.”

At that moment, I felt the bones in my arm break.

KWAAAANG!

The instant I lost grip on my sword, I was hurled into a tributary of Dongjeong Lake.

***

“Do not break formation! Even if you die, maintain the formation!”

Cheon Yura shouted as she commanded the Guardian Lions, locked in a bloody struggle against the Heaven-Defying Society’s awakened forms.

The ones Hwan Pyeong brought this time were on a different level altogether.

In terms of pure strength alone, each of them could be considered beyond Peak Master Level, closer to the level of Extreme Demonic Beasts.

Already, more than a dozen Guardian Lions had fallen. Most of the elites from the Black Lotus Union were either dead or critically wounded beyond combat.

If the previous awakened forms had been humanoid, these ones were mostly animalistic—beasts reminiscent of legendary evil spirits.

“Hahahaha! Let’s slaughter to our heart’s content today!”

“Don’t go too far ahead, Saber King!”

If not for the efforts of the Saber King and Wang Cheongeol at the frontlines, the delegation would’ve been annihilated long ago.

KRAAAK!

Cheon Yura cut down a charging awakened form with the Heaven-Slaying Demonic Sword and glanced around with a grim expression.

‘Damn it. There’s just too many.’

No matter how hard she fought, at this rate everyone except the top-tier warriors would be wiped out before dawn.

‘I have to do something—before that blade Hwan Pyeong spoke of reaches me…’

Then, it happened.

BOOM!

A blast echoed from afar as part of the river exploded.

At that moment, Cheon Yura instinctively called out a name.

“…Jin Yeomyung?”

She didn’t know why, but she felt Jin Yeomyung was there.

And that he was in danger.

‘No!’

Clench!

She fought back the desperate urge to run straight toward the source.

Abandoning her post would be desertion—leaving her subordinates to die.

She bit her lip and barely turned her head away.

‘If this keeps up, the formation will collapse. What can I do to break through this and go save Jin Yeomyung?’

A person’s internal energy isn’t infinite.

Though each Guardian Lion had powerful internal qi surpassing their level, Cheon Yura knew their limits were nearing.

Just then—

“Fighting them head-on is suicide. I recommend retreat.”

“…!!”

Startled, Cheon Yura snapped her head around instinctively.

‘He bypassed my perception!?’

She hadn’t let her guard down for a moment since the battle started.

And yet, not only had the man approached her without her noticing—he even spoke first!

“…Who are you?”

She turned her gaze toward the voice and saw someone sitting on a rock, his back facing her.

Without turning his face toward her, the man continued.

“Those things you’re fighting now—they’re failures.”

“…Failures?”

“In simple terms, they’re those who failed to become ‘Orders.’ They met the qualifications but lacked the talent, lost their minds, and became beasts. Pathetic things… though their combat power is useful—more than most awakened forms.”

Cheon Yura frowned and pointed her sword at the man’s back.

“…I’ll ask again. Who are you?”

“There’s no need for you to know my identity just yet.”

Slip.

The mysterious man rose from his seat and pointed somewhere.

“Regroup and head that way. There are no enemies in that direction. You should be able to cross the river safely.”

“……”

“No need to worry about pursuit either. I can guarantee these awakened ones here won’t chase you.”

Cheon Yura had the strange feeling that he was telling the truth.

But could someone who could guarantee that really not be an enemy?

More importantly, if she listened to him, she’d be retreating—leaving Jin Yeomyung behind.

“You’d best decide quickly—before more of your subordinates die.”

The way he said it sounded like he was forcing a one-sided decision.

Cheon Yura was just beginning to feel irritated when—

“Well, if it’s hard to trust me, I’ll give you a bit more credibility.”

Smirk.

She saw his mouth twist into a smile, even though his back was turned.

“I’m the Grand Heavenly Lord of the Heaven-Defying Society. Will that suffice?”

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