Chapter 146: No Matter How Desperate

TL: FoodieMonster007

The Yama Sage unfurled the Hell Mansion.

He then took out a small container of blood, dipped a brush in it, and wrote my name beside the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's.

The Yama Sage's gaze, which had seemed half-mad, changed. He looked normal again, yet his eyes also belonged to a complete lunatic.

"Since our names are written side by side, I suppose we'll die together if we die," I said.

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon laughed at my words.

Seeing our composure, the eldest of the Bloody Road Trio roared in anger as he examined the Bewitching Nirvana Princess's corpse.

"You bastards! Stop laughing!"

He rose and glared at me coldly.

"The Bewitching Nirvana Princess has never failed her soul-bewitching art until now. So what happened?"

"It seems my dear sister saw this younger brother's inner arts were lacking and wanted to supplement them."

"Cut the crap!"

He was genuinely enraged, and I could feel it. The anger was extremely personal. It seemed the second and third brothers of the Bloody Road Trio were meant to call the Bewitching Nirvana Princess their sister-in-law.

The eldest looked at the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon.

"You knew, didn't you? That the Second Young Lord wouldn't fall for it."

Of course, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon trusted me.

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon looked at me. Our gazes met, and we exchanged telepathy.

[Now, confess with your own mouth. That you killed the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme.]

[I have never done such a thing.]

[I will hear it from you someday.]

Behind the mask's eyeholes, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's eyes were smiling. Seeing us leisurely exchange glances and smiles, the eldest of the Bloody Road Trio revealed his fury.

"Fine, laugh. Go on and laugh like that on your way to hell."

I spoke to the eldest of the Bloody Road Trio.

"Did that man send you to your deaths after telling you this? That the Smiling Demon and I killed the Sword Emperor Baek Manggi."

"What?"

Not just the eldest, but the other villains there were also startled. They knew they couldn't guarantee killing the Sword Emperor Baek Manggi even if they all attacked together. Moreover, the Bewitching Nirvana Princess was now dead.

"That man wouldn't have believed you could kill us. He merely used you to injure us or make us expend our inner arts."

The remaining men looked at each other. This time, I didn't give them a chance to devise a plan through telepathy.

I spoke to the Blood Wolf Blade.

"Blood Wolf Blade, this is a life-and-death duel."

I threw back the same words he had said to the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon.

"You said you've wandered your whole life searching for the strong, didn't you? Well, the person you were looking for is here."

I drew the Black Demon Sword and spoke to the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon.

"Please kill anyone who interferes with this duel."

Normally, I should have yielded this fight to the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon. However, this situation allowed for no variables. I had to deal with them with minimal injuries and get out of here. The real enemy waited for us outside.

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon must have guessed my intentions, as he readily yielded the fight to me.

"I will do so."

Even with four others besides the Blood Wolf Blade, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon answered confidently.

Instead, the Blood Wolf Blade was the most flustered person in this situation. He must have felt an inward fear after seeing me absorb the Bewitching Nirvana Princess's inner arts in reverse. The momentum was in my favor. I pressed him even harder.

"If you truly set out to find the strong, could you have possibly survived this long? If you really had such a heart, why didn't you seek out the Murim Alliance Chairman? Why didn't you come looking for Father?"

"……"

"You don't want to fight me, do you? But you've spent your whole life forcing duels on people who didn't want to fight. Now, it's your turn to experience the same."

The moment my words ended, I rushed toward the Blood Wolf Blade.

The Blood Wolf Blade drew his straight blade.

Although his momentum was pushed back at the start, the Blood Wolf Blade was not a man with a false reputation. His blade techniques were fast, precise, and powerful.

His blade flew at me with enough force to break my sword.

When the sword and blade clashed, there was no CLANG CLANG, but a thunderous BOOM BOOM. They had imbued their weapons with inner arts, turning it into a true battle of qi. The shame of having his sore spot poked was embedded in his blade.

He struck, and struck, and struck again.

He pressed forward like a madman. Any other martial artist would have had their sword or wrist broken by now.

But I blocked, and blocked, and blocked again.

Beyond our clashing weapons, I saw his expression change. The composure he had when he thought he had seized the momentum gradually turned to anxiety. His wrist was probably the one starting to ache.

Now, the tables slowly began to turn.

I became the one striking. The Black Demon Sword began to slam down on his blade. It wasn't a battle of flashy techniques, but I was cornering him with the battle of qi that he himself had intended.

I struck down so quickly that he could neither dodge nor execute another technique.

KWANG! KWANG! KWANG! KWANG!

As the heavy sounds of impact continued, a wretched scream mixed in.

"Keuaaah!"

Overpowered in qi, his wrist had broken.

But my sword did not stop.

On the next move, his blade, no longer infused with qi, broke. On the move after that, his body was sliced vertically down the middle.

"Isn't this the life you wanted? To die fighting someone stronger."

However, I saw the resentment and regret in his eyes at the last moment. Yes, it's easy to say, but truly living such a life is no simple task.

The Blood Wolf Blade spewed blood in a line from his head to his navel as he collapsed. He, who had forced duels on others his entire life, ultimately died by having his own methods turned back on him.

The Yama Sage and the Bloody Road Trio watched this scene in silence. It was partly because of the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, but also because they couldn't find an opportunity to intervene in the brutal power struggle.

They probably never expected the Blood Wolf Blade to lose to me. After all, a battle of inner arts, pushing forward with brute force, was the Blood Wolf Blade's specialty.

I spoke to the Yama Sage again.

"Did you write it down? The name of the Blood Wolf Blade, too?"

Even though the Blood Wolf Blade died right before his eyes, he wasn't scared at all.

"After writing your name, there was no room left, so I couldn't."

As he stepped toward me, the eldest of the Bloody Road Trio stopped him.

"You madman. Your opponent is over there."

The eldest of the Bloody Road Trio intended to kill me to avenge the Bewitching Nirvana Princess.

I walked toward them, my blood-dripping sword lowered. Naturally, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon then faced the Yama Sage.

"Did you write your own name down in advance?" the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon asked.

The Yama Sage shouted in a booming voice.

"I am the emissary sent by King Yama. King Yama is looking for you!"

PWAAANG! KWAAANG!

A palm strike from the Yama Sage collided with the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's Extremely Savage Demonic Palm.

The aftermath sent a fierce wind rushing toward us, and with it, the fight between me and the Bloody Road Trio began.

The three men surged toward me simultaneously.

The eldest's sword aimed for my face, the second brother's for my chest, and the third's for my legs.

CHAENG! CHAENG! CHAEENG!

I parried the incoming swords almost simultaneously. I was fast. No, I had to be fast. Their attacks were so quick that if I wasn't fast enough, I would definitely be stabbed somewhere.

The direction of their thrusts kept changing. This time, the eldest aimed for my chest, the second brother for my stomach, and the third for my face. The next time, it changed again.

Their attack sequence seemed predetermined through tens, or even hundreds, of practices and experiences. This coordinated attack was a perfect joint assault that had thoroughly studied an opponent's psychology. Truly, if it hadn't been me, it was a merciless attack that would have landed several stabs.

CHAENGCHAENGCHAENGCHAENGCHAENG!

I was continuously pushed back as I parried their attacks.

Then, seizing an opportunity, I launched an attack.

When the Black Demon Sword thrust at the eldest, the second brother defended alongside him, and the third stabbed at me.

Because they were men who had fought together their entire lives, they fought as if they had three bodies but one mind. It was a battle against a monster with three heads and six arms. They were a much more difficult opponent than the Blood Wolf Blade. I was certain they were the most troublesome of the four villains who came today.

Four swords intertwined, moving up and down. The offense and defense continued, allowing not even the slightest mistake.

I had no intention of dragging this fight out. That's why I recalled a certain method I had never used before.

At that moment, as they were cornering me.

"……"

The startled second brother frantically looked around. Suddenly, the eldest and the third had disappeared, and he stood alone with me in a field.

I had used the Spacetime Manipulation Technique to move us to a new space, taking only the second brother with me.

To the eldest and third who remained, it must have looked as if our figures had vanished in an instant.

The second brother shouted at me.

"Is this an illusionary art? You coward!"

"Right, by your standards, a one-on-one fight is cowardly, isn't it?"

I surged toward him. They couldn't kill me with all three of them, so there was no way he could face me alone.

Outside, the eldest and the third looked around in surprise.

It would have been one thing if only their opponent had disappeared, but the second brother had vanished along with me.

Just then, the second brother's corpse appeared as if dropped from the sky. At that moment, the third brother was flustered by the corpse that suddenly appeared before him.

SHWIIK! PUUK!

The Black Demon Sword pierced through from under the corpse's armpit and stabbed the third brother's heart. Considering their skill, it was an absurdly futile death, but their opponent was me, who had incorporated the Spacetime Manipulation Technique into actual combat.

Unable to even scream, the third brother also collapsed.

I thought the eldest would lose his reason and charge at me like a madman.

However, he chose to flee. He tried to break through an inn wall to escape, but I blocked his path in a flash with the Vanishing Step.

Startled, he turned and fled again. He threw the corpse of the Bewitching Nirvana Princess at me. This was the man who had tried to kill me to avenge her.

"No matter how desperate you are, this is just wrong, isn't it?"

"Shut up! You bastard!"

Perhaps thinking the fight was already lost, he went on a rampage to muster his killing intent. He screamed and swung his sword like a madman. However, it was a futile struggle with no chance of working.

Before even five moves had passed.

PUK!

The Black Demon Sword stabbed his heart, and even faster, it slashed his wrist.

TUK.

The fallen hand held a pouch. It was a poison pouch he had intended to throw at me. The moment the sword stabbed him, he had tried to sprinkle poison on me to take me down with him.

I knew from the beginning that they were such vicious bastards. I just felt their end had come too late. For them to die only in their later years after committing all sorts of evil deeds. What's more, if I hadn't regressed, they wouldn't even have died here.

Isn't this too unfair? That's why everyone laments that the heavens are indifferent.

When my fight ended, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's fight was also over.

The Yama Sage was already dead. His forehead was pierced by the Blood Calamity Finger, his face smashed into his own Hell Mansion. The blood that flowed out soaked it.

"You spent your life pretending to be King Yama's emissary, but King Yama himself would probably look at you and say, 'Who are you? When did I ever send you?'"

At my words, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon laughed and asked.

"Are you injured anywhere?"

"I'm fine, and you, Smiling Demon?"

"I am fine as well."

It might seem like we won easily, but they were formidable enemies. It wouldn't have been strange at all if either of us had died.

But we handled it well and once again safely overcame a crisis. Unintentionally, he and I keep crossing the threshold of life and death together like this.

"Your skills have improved again since I last saw you. Just how strong are you planning to become?"

"I plan to go all the way to the end."

"You're already this strong, but if you also master the Nine Calamities Demonic Art, you'll have no match under the heavens."

I really hope so. I truly, sincerely hope that no one will be a match for me.

Before going outside, I placed some money on the counter at the inn's entrance. It was enough to repair the damaged inn and buy new furniture. The money was for the inn's owner, who must have fled somewhere. After all, today's events were forced upon him.

"This side of you doesn't seem strange anymore."

"As you know, the demonic path I pursue is one that doesn't break tables."

"Second Young Lord, do you believe we can become good people?"

"I don't wish for us to become good people."

"Then?"

"I'm just trying to protect the bare minimum that should be protected. We must at least be human first. On top of that, there is the demonic path, the righteous path, and the evil path, isn't there? That is all I wish for."

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon stared at me silently for a moment. I couldn't tell what he was thinking, but one thing was certain. He was gradually getting used to the person I am.

"Let's go out."

"Let's."

We walked out of the inn together.

Outside, there were no passersby. It was a completely empty street.

A man in a white mask stood there.

He was just standing there, but I could feel an immense presence, one on par with the Sword Emperor Baek Manggi.

I could tell. This man was the fake who had impersonated the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon and the mastermind behind this trap.

"Have you forgotten your manners now that you're hanging out with demonic practitioners?"

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon stared at him with a complicated gaze for a moment before speaking in a calm tone.

"Greetings, Senior Brother."

He was someone I knew as well. It was Yang Cheogi, the Senior Brother of the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's Master. Before my regression, when I had a relationship with the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, he had told me about this Senior Brother.

Yang Cheogi spoke to the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon in a commanding tone.

"Take off your mask."