Chapter 22: Short Fuse (1)

Nearly two months have already passed since I was dragged into this godforsaken cult.

Thanks to that, I've already finished reading through the Secret Record of the Heavenly Demon and recently I've been studying their historical records.

Anyone who has experience with intense studying, whether as a student or while preparing for exams, probably knows this:

Even within the same field of study, the methods vary depending on the subject or focus.

As both a scripture and a doctrine, the Secret Record of the Heavenly Demon demanded not just memorization, but also understanding.

To be precise, I needed to know the way those lunatics’ brain works. Understanding their deranged way of thinking came as an unwanted bonus.

However, the historical records I'm currently studying, and the law books I'll soon learn, were slightly different. While some understanding was necessary, they required much more simple memorization.

But I wasn't worried.

‘If it’s just memorization, this is basically the civil service exam all over again.’

I’d already crammed Korean history and a bunch of administrative law for that thing, and this was pretty much the same deal.

Thanks to years of being a student and then an exam prepper, I had a whole arsenal of memorization tricks.

Everything from memory palaces and visualization to the good old-fashioned acronym method I used back in high school.

Most high school students in South Korea would probably have used the simple acronym method.

Liberal arts students used acronyms to memorize the Joseon Dynasty kings, while science students used them for the periodic table.

'Ah, I heard they don't separate liberal arts and sciences anymore these days?'

I chuckled at my outdated thinking and shook my head.

Either way, since I was already sick and tired of memorization, the 'studying' part was progressing smoothly without any particular issues.

So how about martial arts?

'Never thought I'd have a body like this in my lifetime.'

Thanks to having been put through the wringer by Jin Hayeon for two months, muscles were finally starting to show.

It was truly remarkable.

I'd heard somewhere that it takes at least half a year to really see exercise results and build muscle, yet here I was already showing visible changes.

'Is this what they call overwhelming talent?'

I could understand why Master had been so eager to force me to be his disciple.

My internal energy had also grown considerably.

I was now at a level where if I controlled my output appropriately, I could sustain my technique rotation for roughly half an hour.

Since I’d memorized all the moves and energy control for the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword, so lately we’d moved on to a new kind of training.

Clang!

Using the Soul-Departing Sword, I use my sword to block Jin Hayeon’s palm strike.

A cold energy gradually penetrated through her palm where it met my sword.

Since my internal energy couldn't yet withstand that force, I stepped back once using lightness skill while deflecting her hand away.

As if reading my movements, she stepped forward in response and struck again, but this time, with her left hand.

This time, instead of blocking her attack, I countered by thrusting my sword toward her heart.

‘A sword has greater reach than a hand!’

And as expected of a graduate from the Hall of the Demonic Way, Jin Hayeon adeptly adjusted her attacking left hand in an attempt to seize my sword by coating her fingers with her Demonic Art.

Knowing the nature of her Demonic Art, I retracted my sword slightly, just barely enough to avoid her grasp, then…

Shhhwing!

I thrust again in a different direction.

This was something I'd learned after several sparring matches with her.

The sword is a great weapon for both thrusting and slashing techniques. While inherently having a shorter reach than the spear, it offered a greater reach advantage against unarmed opponents. Against a martial master like Jin Hayeon, who had mastered ice-attributed Demonic Art, swift and rapid thrusts were more effective than powerful slashes.

Swoosh!

Clang!

A barrage of swift and accurate thrusts assaulted her and Jin Hayeon either deflected or dodged my attacks with minimal movement while constantly looking for a gap in my movements.

Sweat dripped down from my forehead as I focused on regulating my breath and energy circulation while maintaining my attacks.

In that split second when a drop of sweat fell and blocked my right eye...

Pat!

"!!!"

She had instantly moved to my blind spot and was already striking toward my abdomen with her right hand.

Clang!!

"Ugh..."

Even though I managed to block the attack, my stance crumbled, forcing me back two steps.

"Control your internal energy, Young Master. You risk internal injury."

Even without her reminder, I immediately sat cross-legged and began to regulate my energy circulation.

She must have pulled her punch at the last second, because I wasn’t seriously hurt. It didn’t take long to get my energy back under control.

"Whew."

“You have become more proficient in executing the Soul-Cutting Flash and Soul-Capturing Sword, Young Master.”

As if she had not a single shred of concern for my injuries, she began the post-spar review the moment I opened my eyes.

Soul-Cutting Flash and Soul-Capturing Sword, the fourth and eleventh forms of the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword, were the thrusting techniques I had been using.

Though I had been thrusting at various angles, in essence, I had only been using these two forms.

Fundamentally, all forms of the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword all worked that way. All of them contained basic forms and movements that served as the foundations of the technique and can be applied in various ways.

As expected from an aspiring psychopath, she opened her analysis with praises before raining me down with criticism and coldly listed my faults.

"However, you're relying too heavily on just those two forms. While thrusting is effective against my Demonic Art, limiting your options to those two techniques causes you to become too predictable. You need to expand your repertoire.”

"I'll keep that in mind."

"Also, it's disappointing that you lost track of me at the end when your vision was blocked by sweat. You were born with excellent eyes and reflexes, Young Master, so you have the bad habit of relying on visual cues from your opponent. You should always be predicting your opponent's next move."

"I-I see."

"Lastly, you're too cautious. If you had aimed for my neck with your sword instead of blocking my strike at the end, you might not have won, but you could have achieved a draw."

"..."

She had an exceptional talent for grinding people down.

'If Third Brother had been taught by Jin Hayeon in his childhood, he might have hanged himself long ago.'

Truly, a highly competent aspiring psychopath.

"Me too! I want to try!"

Little Seon-ah, now much more cheerful, chimed in, waving her hand excitedly.

This was supposed to be our designated break time, a time for Seon-ah and me to relax.

However, thanks to a certain ice block who disapproved our leisurely time, it had transformed into a joint study and training session.

We sparred, reviewed our morning studies, and so on.

"Here I come!!"

Seon-ah shouted and instantly closed the distance between us using her lightness skill. Her fingernails glowed crimson as she coated them with her energy.

The redness in her hair and eyes seemed to be a manifestation of the Blood Fox Crimson Claw Art she was practicing.

Clang!

The moment her energy-infused nails clashed with my sword, a metallic sound of metal colliding against metal rang out.

Sparring with Seon-ah was also very helpful for me.

Unlike Jin Hayeon who used minimal and precise movements that were imbued with cold energy, Seon-ah's Blood Fox Crimson Claw Art boasted sharp and unpredictable forms, requiring me to use a different approach to face her.

Moreover, unlike Jin Hayeon who was far more skilled than me, Seon-ah's level wasn't too far from mine.

Since Seon-ah had been learning the Blood Fox Crimson Claw Art for over a year, she had the advantage in internal energy and forms.

Clang!!

However, with a three-year age gap during the crucial growth period, I had far superior physical abilities.

'Since Seon-ah is learning claw art, maintaining distance with thrusts should be effective, but...'

After a brief exchange of strikes, I decided to implement Jin Hayeon's advice.

Just as Seon-ah was getting used to my pattern, I abruptly changed the trajectory of my strike and executing a horizontal slash.

Clang!!

She managed to block my surprise attack, but the force of the blow sent her flying backward.

Thud!

She landed gracefully like a cat, but she was clearly on the defensive now.

"Hahaha. As expected of the youngest brother, you learn quickly and manage to incorporate Miss Jin’s advice at once.”

Just then, a familiar voice reached my ears.

When I turned my head, Third Brother was standing there since who knows how long.

"Greetings, Third Brother."

As I bowed, a disturbing thought occurred to me. 'He knew about Jin Hayeon's advice… which means he was here the whole time?'

He was truly a senior brother with an incredibly lacking presence.

And that presence-lacking senior brother showed a twisted smile that I now recognized as genuine happiness.

"Haha. It's beneficial for you to spar with various opponents, youngest brother. Since both Miss Jin and the Young Lady of the Hyeokryeon Family practice close-combat martial arts, how about facing an opponent who uses a sword this time?”

"A sword... Are you offering to spar with me, Senior Brother?"

He nodded at my question.

"To think that my most respected senior brother would spar with me, I'm truly honored!"

My rainbow fart is truly effective on Third Brother as he let out a hearty laugh that didn’t suit his gloomy appearance.

“Hahahaha! Oh, it’s not that big of an honor.”

Third Brother was in an exceptionally good mood.

Seon-ah pouted, probably because her playtime with me had been taken away and Jin Hayeon remained impassive with her usual expressionless face.

'...Somehow, I feel like the number of people keeps growing.'

I had an ominous feeling that it wouldn't stop here.

* * *

Late that night, in a secluded corner of the vast Heavenly Demon Divine Cult compound, three figures met under the cover of darkness, their faces hidden by the shadows cast by the clouded moon.

They exchanged information about the cult's affairs.

Then, the man on the left brought up information about Il-mok.

"Speaking of which, I've been hearing quite a bit about the youngest disciple that Heavenly Demon recently took in."

"Hmm. I heard that the idea for the school program that the Heavenly Demon is pushing forward also came from that youngest disciple's mouth."

"Tsk. That youngster is doing unnecessary things."

He was the kind of old-fashioned man who believed that uneducated commoners should just focus on their livelihoods and bring offerings of money or food. Educating them would only make them harder to control.

"How about we clean up that youngest disciple before he does more unnecessary things?"

There were countless ways to kill him such as disguising his death as an accident, inducing him into the state of Qi Deviation, or setting up a trap by leaking his information to the unbelievers of the Central Plains.

However, the man seated in the central position shook his head at the suggestion from the man on the right.

“The Heavenly Demon has lived for over a hundred years. The day of his ascension isn’t that far off. There's no need to take such risks."

No matter how high the realm the current Heavenly Demon, Hyeokryeon Il-hwi, had reached by mastering even the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts, and maintained a young appearance compared to his actual age, he could not do anything about his natural lifespan.

History has proven this time and again. While Hyeokryeon Il-hwi had reached an exceptional level of mastery, he wasn't the first in history to do so.

"He has ten years at most. And in ten years, the only obstacle to our claim on the leadership will be his First Disciple, Wi Jin-hak."

Though Seo Wan-pyeong had reached the next highest level after Wi Jin-hak, he was nothing compared to those gathered here.

From their perspective, Seo Wan-pyeong was still just a youngster struggling in the Extremity stage.

Wi Jin-hak, however, was nearing Transcendence. He posed a threat, but…

"Even if Wi Jin-hak achieves Transcendence, there's no need to worry. He's dull-witted. We can easily manipulate him." The man in the center spoke with absolute confidence. The others nodded in agreement.

Then, the man on the left asked, "But what if, in those ten years, the youngest one sides with Wi Jin-hak instead of forging his own path? He seems quite clever."

A sinister smile spread across the face of the man in the center, his teeth flashing white in the shadows. "Then, we'll simply have to take a slight risk and eliminate him before he grows stronger."