Chapter 85
Chapter 86: Grand Extermination Demon
With a deafening crash, Ya Hyeoljeok’s body was propelled backwards.
“Damn…!”
Ya Hyeoljeok struggled to regain his balance, wielding his blade.
Whoosh!
My Taoist Qi surged violently, scattering in all directions, yet the person I should touch effortlessly evaded.
A brief step back, followed by a leap.
Ya Hyeoljeok’s weapon sliced through the air ceaselessly.
With innate strength and the body of a top-tier martial artist, his sword strikes were undeniably quick.
Yet, they were merely slicing through empty space.
A fist burrowed deep into Ya Hyeoljeok’s abdomen once more.
“Ugh…!”
The solid muscle seemed no match as a fiery surge erupted from the impact.
Flame Burst!
“Ughhh!”
Caught off guard by the unimaginable pain, Ya Hyeoljeok frantically swatted at the air to push me away.
But the distance had already widened.
“Whew… whew…!”
Ya Hyeoljeok gasped harshly.
“…You brat….”
Clutching his abdomen, he clearly felt the pain he was experiencing.
“I heard you’re from the Gu Clan, so why are you interfering?”
I didn’t bother to respond to his question.
Boom-!
I activated the Technique of the Flame Wheel, unleashing flames all around.
He swung his massive sword to defend, but he couldn’t block it all.
The relentless flames, hungry for destruction, devoured everything.
Seizing the opportunity through the gaps made, I grabbed Ya Hyeoljeok by the neck.
I was ready to set his hair ablaze.
Just then, Ya Hyeoljeok suddenly unleashed a burst of energy, creating distance between us.
Feeling the heat rising along his neck, he grasped it with his hands.
“Whew… whew….”
Maybe it was due to staying in the flames for too long, but my body was shrouded in steam.
‘…I missed.’
[Calm down…!]
Shin Noya’s urgent voice echoed repeatedly in my mind.
‘I’m calm.’
[How can you say you’re calm when you can feel the boiling inside you!]
That was puzzling.
I genuinely felt calm.
I could still feel the sensation of his neck in my grasp.
I should have burned him.
He seemed to have more to him than I expected.
Ya Hyeoljeok.
The man wielding the great sword, looking this way.
I knew him well.
The Deputy Lord of the Heavenly Demon’s elite unit, the Cheon-ra Heuk-rang.
With a mask covering his mouth and one eye obscured by a blindfold, he looked more like a zombie following orders than a fierce warrior.
He seemed very different from how he was now.
‘Was he from the Black Night Palace?’
His past was filled with many stories, so I’d never tried to care.
Why would I focus on others when my survival was my priority?
I shook off my hands.
‘Nangong Bi-ah….’
Fortunately, when I checked the spot where she had been lying earlier, she was no longer there.
When I first arrived, Nangong Bi-ah had been on the floor.
That sight reminded me of the last moments of the Demon Sword Queen.
When she quietly drew her last breath in my arms.
If I had been a moment late, I might have seen a scene just like that.
Flame Burst.
Was my body swaying due to the emotional turmoil?
[…You brat!]
I took a step toward him.
Instantly, the Technique of the Flame Wheel began spinning rapidly.
I focused strength into my toes and leaped.
Sparks scattered everywhere.
Ya Hyeoljeok swung his great sword as if to counter.
His innate strength and top-tier body imparted a speed unimaginable for something so heavy.
I channeled my energy into my body, accelerating my moves.
I obscured his vision with flames.
It was evident that his great sword was insufficient to cut through mere fire; it swung fiercely yet found many openings due to the haphazardness of his sword path.
If there weren’t any, I could just forcefully create them.
I felt a shallow cut grazed against my skin.
That much was a small price to pay.
Crack-!
“Gahhh!”
If only his solid body could break an arm or something, it would be challenging.
But I targeted one specific spot.
[…Focus…!]
His sword brushed against my clothing.
With my side exposed, I let the flames envelop me and struck.
“Kuack!”
Ya Hyeoljeok staggered heavily.
Taking advantage of his faltering stance, I stomped down on his leg joint, toppling him.
Thud! One knee hit the ground.
He swung violently with his arm, trying to push me away, but I was quicker.
Bam!
His solid, thick head spun violently.
I didn’t stop there—I struck again.
Bam!
Could it be that he was seeing red after taking such hits?
Seemingly gathering energy in his body, Ya Hyeoljeok aimed to reshift the balance.
“This… you brat…!”
Boom!
Blasted from his body, my energy sent him flying.
Was it purely to increase the distance between us? I felt no impact.
I merely shook my body and faced Ya Hyeoljeok again.
‘…How much do I have left?’
[.’]
I meant my energy.
Noya didn’t respond.
My energy felt almost depleted, perhaps due to the chaos of my own martial arts methods.
Ya Hyeoljeok pushed himself up and spat something out.
Rolling on the ground was Ya Hyeoljeok’s molar.
Seeing that, his face contorted in fury.
Feeling humiliated at being pummeled by a mere brat.
The Grand Extermination Demon himself.
‘…This fucking bullshit…!’
Crack-crack!
How hard had he bitten down for me to hear that crunching sound clearly?
I tightened my grip on the weapon’s handle.
Time was running short.
Despite that, I wanted to kill him no matter what.
The fact that he was a member of the Nangong Clan didn’t matter now.
Ya Hyeoljeok wrapped his feet with my energy and lunged at me.
Seeing this, I quickly cloaked myself in flames once more.
In that moment, I felt a sharp pain from my lower Dantian, but I ignored it.
My head felt as if it were shrouded in mist.
Right now, I needed to focus solely on destruction.
I twisted the flames, targeting his head with incoming sword strikes.
Taking advantage of his disturbed posture, I struck deeply into his solar plexus.
I felt the sharp sensation of bone breaking.
He immediately coughed up blood.
As his giant hand reached to grab me, I retaliated with another blow to push him back.
The spinning ring of fire around us grew faster.
Simultaneously, the agony originating from my lower Dantian intensified.
The pain radiating through my body felt just like when I was on the way to Hwasan.
Back then, I could hardly breathe and performed martial arts, but now, I could move just fine.
What was the difference?
I didn’t know, but somehow, I felt lucky.
It meant that my movements weren’t hindered.
[…Huh….]
Just then, a voice echoed in my head, causing my eyes to flutter open.
‘Noya?’
It was Shin Noya, whose voice I hadn’t heard previously.
In this situation, the only one who could possibly speak to me was Shin Noya.
[…Eat….]
But that wasn’t Noya’s voice.
It sounded childish, and in a way, also like the voice of an experienced elder.
The pain that had risen from my lower Dantian to the top of my head vanished with that voice.
[…I’m hungry.]
A weak voice.
‘You…’
I intended to ask who it was, but couldn’t speak.
In an instant, my consciousness cut off.
Nangong Bi-ah was leaning against a tree trunk, gasping for breath.
Due to the blood loss and my broken arm, I became utterly drained.
‘…I need to go help….’
I had seen Gu Yangcheong fight.
I had witnessed him easily best my own brother and overpowering the sword master, either Yeongpung or Yongpung.
He was likely stronger than me.
Nangong Bi-ah was no longer guessing; it was a certainty.
‘…But this is different.’
Still, this was another matter entirely.
The vicious stench and the overwhelming presence from the giant made it clear he couldn’t be dealt with easily.
I had to hold off until someone came from Hwasan.
-Thud! Boom!
The piercing noise of their ferocious combat didn’t cease.
It felt like an eternity, though only a short time had passed for Nangong Bi-ah.
Finally getting to her feet, she reached the source of the noise.
“…Ugh!”
The abhorrent stench brutally assaulted her senses.
Was this all emanating from that giant?
This wasn’t what it had seemed like.
‘…It’s too much.’
She had never encountered such a foul odor before.
It was so unbearable, everything around her seemed to sway.
Bam!
Nangong Bi-ah staggered until she finally came to the noisy spot.
“.…!”
What she saw was beyond belief.
What had happened, she had no idea, but everything around her was a wreck, as if a monstrous demon had gone on a rampage.
In the center of the chaos, Gu Yangcheong continued to rain down blows on Ya Hyeoljeok with a tightly clenched fist.
Bam!
With each contact, blood splattered.
His face had long lost its shape.
‘Ugh… the stench.’
The foul smell that had accompanied the giant had long dissipated.
A corpse doesn’t have a scent, after all.
Then what filled the air was…
“…No…”
Upon hearing Nangong Bi-ah’s voice, Gu Yangcheong ceased his movements.
He slowly turned his head to gaze at her.
“.…!”
When Nangong Bi-ah met his gaze, she screamed silently.
Gu Yangcheong’s eyes had turned a sinister purple.
It was undoubtedly a beautiful color, but meeting that gaze left Nangong Bi-ah feeling chills all over her body.
Those eyes were ominously foreboding.
Gu Yangcheong glanced at Nangong Bi-ah for a moment, then resumed hanging punches on the fallen figure.
He was still hitting the lifeless body.
“Please…! It’s already… dead…!”
Was he listening to her frantic cries?
Gu Yangcheong’s body, which had moved without a word, finally came to a stop.
Then, he crumbled like a puppet with its strings cut.
Nangong Bi-ah caught him as he fell, her trembling hands wrapped around him.
“Hah… hah….”
