Chapter 348: Heavenly Demon (2)

She had memories.

She couldn’t dare call them recollections, so she simply referred to them as memories (記憶).

It was an early night of the full moon.

While others gradually stopped caring about how long it had been since they fell here,

She, however, remembered each day.

It couldn’t be helped, really; she never forgot anything she saw once.

She had no choice but to remember the passage of days.

Two years and a bit more.

This was the time she had lived in this place called the Demonic Realm (魔境).

The sky was red.

The rising moon was also an ominous color, no less. Because the sky was the same day and night. She had to judge whether it was day or night by looking at the moon.

[….]

Truly an ominous world.

This was the thought that crossed her mind as she sat perched on a rock, looking at the sky.

The colors too. A world where all the dead, withered trees and dried-up land had lost their vitality.

How could such a world not be ominous?

[Hah.]

She often thought, breathing out white puffs of breath, different from the red world.

Why this world, which seemed only ominous, felt somehow sad.

Was it perhaps because there was something different about this world?

Something was twisted.

She instinctively realized something was wrong with this world, but

She was confused, not knowing the answer.

[…]

She opened her eyes and faced the moon.

Was it an illusion?

She often felt as if the rising red moon was speaking to her.

Should she answer? What? Should she even offer a greeting?

She pondered for a long time, but

She never opened her mouth to speak.

Just then.

“Finally found you.”

A voice came from below the hill where she was sitting.

Most martial artists currently in the Demonic Realm use telepathy,

but few speak out loud like that.

Moreover, the only one who spoke to her in such a rough voice was him.

Black hair.

Black eyes like his, with pupils that held just a hint of red.

A fierce-looking young man wearing a red martial uniform, torn and covered in dust.

[…]

He was the man she hated the most.

Looking down at those fierce eyes, she said.

“I told you speaking out loud is dangerous.”

Her voice was telepathic.

“What the hell are you playing at, you crazy bastard?”

His was spoken aloud.

“Do you think I don’t do it because I don’t want to?”

“Then you should try harder.”

“You often spout bullshit, but today is particularly bad.”

The man smirked, a smile creeping onto his face.

At that expression, she frowned, a rare sight.

He was the only one.

To her, who always maintained a poker face and suppressed her emotions to the utmost.

He was like her only flaw. He had a talent for getting under her skin every time they met.

-What did you say, you insignificant pest? How dare you shove that filth near me!

Their very first meeting when she was young was just like that.

It was also the reason she eventually took up the sword.

Though that incompetent man probably didn’t remember it.

“Anyway, what is it…?”

“What do you mean, ‘what is it’? I came because it’s time for the guard duty change.”

The man spat out the words with a flick of his tongue, glanced around, and spoke to her with annoyance.

“I told you last time. If you’re going to stand guard, stay near the barracks. Don’t bother climbing the mountain.”

“…It’s more efficient to keep watch from a high place.”

“That might be true for you. I just can’t be bothered to climb up and down this high place, you know?”

“In that case, I told you to light a fire, didn’t I? So I could see you and come down.”

[…]

Hearing her words, the man frowned and turned his head.

This was something she had said before.

Her level of mastery made it more efficient for her to keep watch from a high place.

That’s why she would find higher ground than the barracks where others gathered.

And this man was next in line for guard duty after her.

She had said she’d come down after seeing a fire from the barracks.

Yet this man often climbed the mountain to talk to her.

She couldn’t understand.

They weren’t exactly on good terms, were they?

She shook her head slightly at the thought and scanned the area below the hill.

“…Looks like your noisy friend came along too.”

She saw another man climbing up there.

Unlike his nickname, he was a noisy man.

He’d approach and talk to her constantly, urging her to talk to people she disliked.

She wasn’t particularly fond of him.

Of course, he was a hundred times better than the fierce man in front of her.

“Ah, you were here?”

It was the man known as the Sleeping Dragon.

“Flame-ah. Come on, let’s go together when you leave.”

“What the hell are you talking about, you crazy bastard? You’re next after me.”

“It’d be nice to chat together. It’ll keep Flame-ah from being bored too.”

“And you won’t sleep during my turn either?”

“…Heh heh.”

“Heh heh my ass… Get lost, will you?”

It was a conversation that made her sigh just watching. She couldn’t understand this either.

She believed all humans were dignified and equal in value.

Yet, paradoxically, she thought not everyone was on the same level.

It wasn’t because she herself was a descendant of the great Sword Master (劍尊).

Nor was it about the bloodlines of the great families like the Four Great Clans (四大世家) or the Nine Sects (九派).

That man was a twisted human.

Not only did he lack any gentle aspect in his personality,

but he would bare his fangs without gauging the other person’s level.

If you thought about it, what was the difference between him and a demonic beast (魔物)? It reached the point where she thought so.

Furthermore, he had no talent for martial arts and didn’t put in any effort.

It was a completely different path compared to others who desperately cultivated their skills to overcome barriers just to survive in this Demonic Realm. Why would the man called Sleeping Dragon stick to someone like that?

In her eyes, he…

Seemed like he had given up on everything.

The reason he bared his fangs even at someone he could never defeat.

Was because it wouldn’t matter if he died right then and there.

Or perhaps, he actually desired it.

Why?

Why would he wish for death?

If he wanted to die that badly, he could just end his own life.

[…]

She realized she had conjured a chilling thought.

She tried hard to erase it from her mind.

She had to exclude such cold thoughts whenever possible.

Because every time she thought them, she felt her humanity crumbling.

No, that’s not right.

More accurately, it was about trying not to break the humanity she had painstakingly built from scratch.

“…I’ll head down first.”

She intended to go down to the barracks after saying that. She didn’t need much sleep,

but she felt the need to rest her tired mind.

Grip.

At that moment, Sleeping Dragon grabbed her wrist.

“Hey, why are you trying to leave already?”

[…!]

“You won’t be sleeping anyway, even if you go back. How about we chat a bit before heading back?”

Why was that?

She had long known that the man called Sleeping Dragon was willful.

She wouldn’t have gotten angry even if he did something like this.

But.

For some reason, she felt angry then.

“…Hm?”

Sleeping Dragon flinched.

“Little Sword Saint (小劍聖)?”

Why was that?

She shouldn’t have gotten angry over something like this.

But for some reason, anger surged through her then.

She didn’t know if it was because of the accumulation of incomprehensible situations happening constantly, or for some other reason.

It was just.

The feeling of a primitive being touching her body was intensely repulsive.

“Stop it.”

And it was ‘that’ man who separated her and Sleeping Dragon.

“Why are you holding onto someone who wants to leave?”

“No, I…”

“And while you’re at it, you get lost too.”

Words spat out like a growl.

“Ah, that’s a bit…”

Sleeping Dragon tried to brush it off with a silly grin. Leaving them behind, she moved her feet again.

As she walked, she suddenly looked back at the two.

Sleeping Dragon started chattering excitedly next to the man.

The man sat on the rock where she had been sitting, offering no response at all.

She looked at his back.

His not-so-broad back looked particularly dim.

The man’s gaze, not looking this way, remained the same.

She was the same. She didn’t bother trying to read the emotions contained in that back.

Yet, for some reason, she felt the intense emotions that had been surging suddenly subside.

Although she was curious about the reason, she prioritized calming her heated thoughts, even if just for a moment.

She walked down towards the barracks.

Her pounding heart was unusually hot, but conversely, her chest felt cold.

Wasn’t this what she called memory at first?

She had to correct that.

This is regret.

Regret over what might have been if things had been just a little different.

That’s why she kept recalling it incessantly even now.

Even knowing she couldn’t go back to that time.

Regret that she couldn’t help but keep recalling.

It was like an excuse to console herself, saying she had no choice back then.

And so, for her.

No, what remained for me?

To be able to watch him, even from afar.

Or perhaps, to be able to watch him up close?

Is she satisfied with taking on the karma that would have fallen upon him?

Should she be happy that she’s forcibly piecing together a soul that should have shattered and vanished long ago, just to resolve her lingering attachment?

She knew nothing.

“Take your hands off.”

Even so, there was only one thing she had to do.

“How dare you touch him with those filthy hands.”

I protect him.

Everything was for that.

Thud thud thud.

The ground, which was a pillar of the great mountain, crumbled.

The long, stretched-out trace widened, creating new space.

One swing.

The aftermath it created was beyond imagination.

“Hah… Huk…”

The resonance of demonic energy (魔氣) surging up to her chin momentarily subsided.

Gu Yangcheon was barely managing to expel the pressure, catching his breath,

but he couldn’t calm his trembling eyes.

Even when facing the Heavenly Demon (天魔), or when the demonic energy began to rage at that moment.

He hadn’t felt this kind of emotion.

Kuuung.

A sound came from the place where the ground had been shattered.

As dust swirled, the Heavenly Demon reappeared.

Tuduk.

The Heavenly Demon, shaking off the dust accumulated on his body, was completely unharmed.

“…Even if the timing is early, is he truly the Heavenly Demon after all?”

The young appearance he had met back then.

The appearance, who seemed barely over ten years old, now looked like someone around my age after a few years had passed.

It meant his growth rate was different.

“…”

The Heavenly Demon, emerging from the dust, calmly gazed at Wi Seol-ah.

The Heavenly Demon watched Wi Seol-ah holding her sword,

Srrrruk.

and formed black energy into the shape of a sword in one hand.

As if trying to imitate her.

Upon seeing that, Wi Seol-ah’s expression contorted.

Immediately after, Wi Seol-ah’s body shot towards the Heavenly Demon.

Kwahng-! Geugeugeuk!

Their energies clashed.

The resulting damage spread in all directions.

The recoil hit Gu Yangcheon’s exhausted body fully. At this point, his best was just holding on so he wouldn’t be blown away.

“It’s strange.”

I’m not talking about the Heavenly Demon appearing at this time.

While that was indeed strange,

the important thing was Wi Seol-ah.

As far as I know, Wi Seol-ah was at the peak (of her cultivation).

If I had to be precise, I’d call it a mature peak,

meaning she shouldn’t be able to display that much power.

I can see it.

Kugugugung-!

The Heavenly Demon being pushed back little by little by Wi Seol-ah’s sword path.

Is this even possible?

Could the Heavenly Demon’s cultivation level be shallow?

That could be the case.

Since I don’t know what position the current Heavenly Demon holds or what level he has reached.

Thick demonic energy spread out in all directions.

It was rough, following the Heavenly Demon’s gestures, but orderly.

Wi Seol-ah advanced, slicing through the demonic energy.

Every time her sword cut through the air, a pure white trace remained.

It was the trace of the energy Wi Seol-ah currently enveloped herself in.

That was the problem.

The black demonic energy withered powerlessly before Wi Seol-ah’s energy.

A white energy, surpassing gold.

It was the reason the past Wi Seol-ah could exert overwhelming dominance against demonic beings (魔人),

and the power that ultimately allowed her to stop the Heavenly Demon.

“How can she…”

This wasn’t the power the current Wi Seol-ah should be able to unleash.

To say it was the Sword Master’s (劍尊) technique would be difficult, considering even the Sword Master was helplessly defeated by the Heavenly Demon.

It could be seen as a power Wi Seol-ah personally discovered through enlightenment.

A power that Wi Seol-ah only mastered towards the very end in her past life.

How was the current Wi Seol-ah using it?

What could be the reason?

Ironically, that felt more important to me than the Heavenly Demon’s appearance.

My back tingled.

Strange sounds echoed in my ears as if filled with tinnitus,

and my breathing grew rough.

Why?

Is it because the backlash from the demonic energy is still present?

That was also true.

The backlash from the demonic energy was still there.

The pain from it was such that I felt like I could lose consciousness at any moment,

“Why.”

but my focus wasn’t there; it was on Wi Seol-ah.

Enveloped in white energy all over her body.

Specifically, on the back of the woman wielding her sword towards the Heavenly Demon.

The current Wi Seol-ah is also strong.

Her talent is so exceptional that she would be called the Divine Sword (神劍) in her past life.

This is evident from her reaching the peak level just a few years after we parted.

So, the fact that Wi Seol-ah is strong is certain,

but her current state was different.

“Why…?”

Her current state…

Wasn’t like the her who would approach me with a silly grin,

or the her who reveled in eating with gusto,

but rather the her who rarely showed her emotions,

endured sadness and pain, holding only the conviction to save the world.

Kugugugugung-!

As the white energy and demonic energy repeatedly clashed,

it became clearly visible that the demonic energy was gradually gaining the upper hand.

Just moments before, the white energy had been pushing forward, eliminating the demonic energy.

My gaze turned towards the Heavenly Demon.

The Heavenly Demon’s face was just as expressionless as before.

He had shown a slight look of surprise when he was being pushed back,

but that was only for a moment.

The demonic energy steadily gained strength.

While it was still being consumed and scattered,

the amount of demonic energy he emitted had increased.

As if saying, if it gets consumed, he’ll just spew out more.

Truly a monstrous way of dealing with things.

“Ugh…!”

As the demonic energy surged, Wi Seol-ah let out a groan.

Energy that couldn’t be fully blocked grazed her, leaving scratches. Meanwhile, she was even diverting energy to prevent any damage from reaching me.

“No.”

I didn’t want to see that.

Because I didn’t want to see her confronting the Heavenly Demon again.

That’s why I rolled around, striving to accumulate strength.

Whether a blood calamity descends.

Or whether countless people would be killed from now on.

None of that matters much to me.

Only one thing.

That she wouldn’t have to live carrying such a burden again.

My life was for that.

But.

Must I stand by powerlessly and watch this again?

What did I climb to the Hua Jing (化境) realm for?

I can’t even protect that small woman and am instead being protected.

“What should I do?”

I wanted to move immediately and pull her out. And I wanted to stop the Heavenly Demon right here, right now.

If I did that, many things would change.

“Then I have to move, don’t I?”

So stop being uselessly stuck here and move now.

“Kkeueu….”

I tried to push myself up on my knees, but the pain felt in my lower abdomen made me collapse again.

How? What should I do?

I recalled with bloodshot eyes.

How I could escape.

Calming the demonic energy that rampaged as if seeking its master upon seeing the Heavenly Demon.

A way to stand up.

“…”

It came to me quickly. It was a method I already knew, so it was bound to be fast.

Around the time I felt dizzy from the resonance emitted by the demonic energy.

I thought of the only way to find relief here.

Because of it, my current life would become a little closer to my past life,

but for now, I had found a way to ease the burden.

What followed was hesitation.

Because of that, my life might be thrown back into hell,

and finding peace after everything is over might become even more distant.

Or it might disappear altogether.

I lifted my head and looked straight ahead.

“Ugh…!”

I looked at the woman wielding her sword, blocking the demonic energy as if to protect me.

Is future peace more important than this?

It wasn’t.

My deliberation ended.

It was a deliberation I didn’t need to have in the first place.

Kku-uk.

I released the strength I was using to hold back the rampaging demonic energy.

Immediately after.

Instead, I drew in the demonic energy fully.