CHAPTER 516: EPILOGUE EARTH DEMON (13)

“Ha-at!”

“Haa-ap!”

Papatapat.

With a shout, the overwhelming number of people surrounding him charged all at once towards his side.

Hundreds of blades flashed coldly under the moonlight.

Even for a martial artist somewhat skilled in martial arts, it was a fearsome display of force.

“Form a defensive formation!”

Nevertheless, Yeo-woon, the captain of the guards, did not even blink.

He first scattered a deep blue sword qi in all directions, pushing back the enemies at the front, and simultaneously gave orders to his subordinates.

“Yes!”

“Understood!”

The other guards also moved swiftly in response to his actions.

They formed the defensive formation they had trained countless times to resist the charging enemies.

Bang! Kwakuakang! Kwak!

Clashes of internal qi erupted everywhere, and the sounds of buildings breaking echoed like thunder.

Gugugukung!

Tiles scattered like fragments, and stone walls crumbled into dust before his eyes.

The fierce assault of hundreds of enemies was intimidating, but those who stood against them were no less formidable.

his guards formed a trained defensive formation honed over a thousand times, blocking their assault like an iron wall.

“Though the subordinates may buy some time, your situation is different.”

One of the group directly ahead sneered at him.

The large giant’s voice was full of arrogance, confident of victory.

“No, I’ll go first.”

At that moment, a slender man wearing an eye patch stepped forward to stop him.

His expression was calm, and his steps carried a subtle internal energy.

“Very well.”

When he stepped forward, the giant wielding a great sword readily agreed and stepped back.

They seemed to trust each other.

“Huh?”

Seol-Hwi looked curiously at the eye-patched man approaching confidently.

More precisely, it was his scabbard.

Click.

The eye-patched man’s scabbard began to shake violently, then the sword suddenly shot upward.

Then it was drawn back into his slender hand like lightning.

“Ho. Look at this guy?”

Void Item Control.

A high-level technique that requires at least the rank of Peak Demon.

But usually, the movement is not natural enough to control speed smoothly.

However, the eye-patched man controlled speed and force so effortlessly, like flowing water.

It was a movement that seemed only possible at the Supreme Demon level.

‘Come to think of it, that’s not an ordinary sword.’

Ornate carvings of a snake and an unknown animal adorned the hilt.

Covered in pure gold, it shone brilliantly under the moonlight.

It was a treasured sword that gave off a chilling and cold aura.

“Then, shall I we see the power of Heavenly Killing Star?”

The confident actions of the eye-patched man drew his attention.

And his fighting style was unexpected.

Seol-Hwi thought he would shoot internal qi from afar, but he was slowly closing the distance like a predator stalking prey.

Sasasasasak.

Then suddenly, his movements sped up and illusions began to appear.

There were more than ten, causing confusion.

“You’ve never seen anything like this, I hope!”

The eye-patched man seemed confident.

He believed he could kill him with a martial arts technique that made it impossible to distinguish illusions from reality.

Seol-Hwi could tell by the smile spreading on his lips.

Swish!Swish!

The eye-patched man brushed past him and vanished, but that was the first illusion.

The second passed by his waist, but it was also an illusion.

Despite the horrible killing intent and wind sounds, they were all illusions.

When the third illusion approached, Seol-Hwi moved his body.

Bang!

“…!”

“…!”

With the sound of the ground breaking, the fight ended.

His footwork was immediately countered by his hand.

Shaa–

The force was enough to sink the ground like the footprint of a giant.

A cloud of dust rose, and the eye-patched man lay motionless in a deep pit in the ground.

“One down for now.”

Seol-Hwi brushed his hands and raised his head.

Then Seol-Hwi shrugged and looked at the remaining enemies.

‘Huh?’

But they did not move. Seol-Hwi looked down at the ground with a puzzled gaze.

Right then.

Seol-Hwi felt a cold sword aura aiming to cut his waist.

Slash!

Seol-Hwi hurriedly stepped back.

A silver trail that would have cut him in half flashed before his eyes.

“This…”

The eye-patched man was already standing up.

Seol-Hwi thought he had crossed the boundary between life and death, crushed on the ground.

His ghostlike rising made him feel puzzled.

Though confused about what happened, what disturbed him more was his miserable state.

“Ugh ugh.”

Half of his face was completely crushed.

Broken bones protruded through his face, and one eye was gone without a trace.

Then a strange sight unfolded.

Crack, crack.

Broken bones and flesh were connected by thin red threads like spider webs.

Flying flesh pieces returned to their places, and broken bones reconnected, as if undergoing a miraculous transformation.

“Ah… so that’s what it was.”

Now Seol-Hwi understood the whole situation.

The strange red thread-like mist from the sword enveloped his body, regenerating his shattered flesh.

The sword pulsed like a living creature; it was clearly the source.

“It’s a divine weapon.”

The revived eye-patched man smirked at his words.

“An immortal sword.”

“Immortal huh…”

Seol-Hwi tilted his head slightly.

If it was a divine weapon, that might be possible.

Perhaps provoked by his words, he suddenly lunged.

For a moment, Seol-Hwi gathered some internal qi and unleashed it.

The flame of pure fire.

It was said even an Supreme Demon warrior could be killed instantly by it.

Kwaaaang!

Seol-Hwi unleashed it towards the eye-patched man’s body with a tremendous roar.

No form could remain before such overwhelming force.

Half of his upper body that charged at him was blown away instantly.

“Now it’s quiet.”

Seol-Hwi slowly lowered his hand and glanced around.

But the other two still looked at him with serious expressions.

There was neither surprise nor fear in their eyes; they remained calm as if expected.

“Ha…”

Seol-Hwi turned around just in case and felt a slight irritation.

He was alive.

His shattered upper body was slowly regenerating.

Soon he regained his complete form; his momentum and strength remained.

It was like watching a spirit with infinite regenerative power.

“Ah, now I see, this guy isn’t the host.”

Seol-Hwi carefully observed his transformation and made a judgment.

The red aura emanating from the sword surrounded his body.

Like threads controlling a puppet, the divine weapon seemed to sustain his life.

The relationship between the sword and the man became clear.

“Indeed, there are many unique weapons here.”

Seol-Hwi gave a bitter smile.

Thinking about it, there were probably many divine weapons at the main cult that Seol-Hwi didn’t know about.

Among them were many unique ones, each with extraordinary history and power.

So it was no surprise to see a divine weapon that could regenerate the body.

“I have an immortal body. Eventually, you will have to activate the Heavenly Killing Star.”

The eye-patched man was full of confidence.

Perhaps because he wielded what could be called a divine sword, his confidence reached the skies.

Just as he fully restored his original body and took an attack stance again.

“…Huh!”

Seol-Hwi heard his startled breath.

Because Seol-Hwi grabbed his sword barehanded in the blink of an eye.

“You’re not immortal.”

“…”

“Without this sword, you will just return to being ordinary.”

“…!”

Fear finally began to seep into the eye-patched man’s face.

Without hesitation, Seol-Hwi applied force to the blade that was his lifeline.

Clang!

With a sharp metallic sound, the blade snapped.

Seeing the eye-patched man staring blankly, Seol-Hwi grabbed his collar again and said,

“Try coming back to life this time.”

“Aaaah!”

His scream of despair and fear tore through the night air.

Pow!

With a loud bang, his fist pierced his face.

That was the end.

His blood and flesh splattered everywhere, but this time they did not reassemble.

“…”

Suddenly, silence enveloped the surroundings.

No more red mist-like aura rose from the broken sword; its power was completely gone.

“Ah…”

The other two watching finally showed signs of agitation.

Especially the blind man in the scholar’s robes, though his eyes were closed, his expression clearly showed shock and surprise.

Among divine weapons, swords that trade life for power are the greatest treasures.

For them, a sword breaking was nearly impossible.

Moreover, with Heavenly Killing Star not even activated, their comrade died like that, making it hard to accept.

“I will somehow force out the Heavenly Killing Star’s strength, Captain.”

This time, the giant wielding the great sword stepped forward.

His deep, thick voice carried anger and determination.

The blind man nodded slightly without a word.

That brief gesture contained both permission and command.

“Don’t be overconfident.”

The giant glared at his warning.

His pupils began to move strangely.

Seol-Hwi tilted his head and said mockingly.

“What’s wrong with his eyes now?”

His eyes moved unfocused like a cross-eyed person.

He scanned the ground and air as if searching for something, then bared yellow teeth and spoke confidently.

“I have identified all your weaknesses.”

“…?”

“Now, I will make you experience hell.”

Before Seol-Hwi could respond, the giant charged, shaking the ground.

Each step caused slight tremors and dust rose into the air.

At a distance of about 9 meters, he stomped and slammed his great sword onto the ground.

A dull metallic sound echoed as fine cracks spread around the sword.

“Such a simple… huh?”

Seol-Hwi tried to easily dodge his attack, but his body shook unexpectedly.

A strange vibration felt beneath his feet.

Only then did Seol-Hwi realize.

His recent attack was not visible but a hidden wave beneath the ground.

“Got you, rat!”

Seeing him stagger, a smile spread on his lips.

He lightly pushed off the ground and ran, despite his huge frame.

Then he raised his great sword high above his head and shouted.

“Die!”

Kuwaaang!

With a massive earth-shaking sound, the great sword came down halfway, leaving a scratch.

But at a certain point, it stopped descending.

Because Seol-Hwi blocked it with his bare hands.

“There sure are many unique guys here.”

Seol-Hwi grabbed the great sword with one hand and spoke leisurely.

The giant’s expression went beyond shock to terror.

Honestly, Seol-Hwi wanted to praise him for being smart despite his huge, fat body.

Moreover, the ground wave was an unexpected attack method.

“Stop playing around and finish this quickly… huh?”

While speaking, his gaze was drawn to the giant’s eyes.

Because his pupils were shaking wildly.

Unlike before, his eyes pointed in different directions and flickered simultaneously.

Seol-Hwi instantly realized what this meant.

“Ah, it was a death pact then?”

As soon as Seol-Hwi finished speaking, the giant’s body began to glow like a furnace.

With the sound of his meridians bursting, a massive explosion erupted from his body.