Chapter 148: If It Seems I'm Going to Die

TL: FoodieMonster007

I calmed my mind.

With a powerful enemy before me, I ignored the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon. I needed to focus on my own fight and trust him. However, I still had to watch Yang Cheogi.

He could launch a surprise attack at any moment.

The Weird Demon donned bladed gloves, each blade splitting like a finger. They were his unique weapon, the Sky Falling Claws. A menacing blue glint flowed along the chilling blades.

"Let's see if your sword skills can keep up with that mouth of yours."

The fight began the moment the Weird Demon finished speaking.

KAAK! KAK! KAAAAK!

The Sky Falling Claws whistled eerily as they tore through the air. A mere graze would rip flesh and bone.

I used the Shadow Step to move and launch an attack.

CLANG! CLANG! CLAAANG! CLANG!

My sword clashed with the Sky Falling Claws countless times. I tried to create distance, but he stuck close to me. Since the Sky Falling Claws were shorter than a sword, he had the advantage at close range.

During the nerve-wracking exchange, I reached that moment.

Just like with Baek Manggi, I could only see the Weird Demon.

My surroundings grew quiet. I heard only my movements and the Weird Demon's. I had the illusion that time itself was slowing, but time wasn't slowing at all. My concentration had just heightened to that degree.

A short scream suddenly tore through the silence.

"Keuk!"

The scream belonged to the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon.

"……"

I instinctively used the Vanishing Step. An instant later, I appeared behind the Chainman and thrust my sword.

SHWIIIIK.

The chain heading for the staggering Extremely Evil Smiling Demon whipped toward me instead.

SHWIIIIIIIK!

TAAANG!

My sword struck the Chainman's chain and deflected. I felt a force rush from behind and twisted away.

The Weird Demon's Sky Falling Claws, which had followed me, tore through the empty space.

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, saved by my help, shot the Blood Calamity Finger at the Weird Demon as he launched a second attack.

SHWIIING.

The Weird Demon twisted his body and dodged the Blood Calamity Finger.

I took the opportunity to leap away with the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, creating distance from the two men. If I hadn't intervened, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon would have been injured.

The Chainman's martial arts are stronger than I thought.

Yang Cheogi laughed out loud during the brief lull in the fight. He was confident of his victory. The Weird Demon and the Chainman were also brimming with confidence.

I caught my breath and asked Yang Cheogi.

"Are you the Heavenly Enlightenment Society Chairman?"

I tried to uncover his secrets while he was triumphant and arrogant.

"I'm not the Heavenly Enlightenment Society Chairman."

"Then are you the Evil Valley Lord?"

"I'm not the Evil Valley Lord either."

"Those two must be top masters in the Valley of Evil. How on earth did you get them to come out?"

Yang Cheogi didn't answer, so I guessed.

"Then the Heavenly Enlightenment Society Chairman must've joined hands with the Evil Valley Lord, just like he recruited you."

Admiration flickered in Yang Cheogi's eyes. His reaction confirmed my guess. This was a secret even the All-Knowing Hall hadn't uncovered.

I already knew the Heavenly Enlightenment Society was no ordinary organization, but it was far more formidable than I had realized.

In the past, the mission would have just ended in failure. A situation like this never would have occurred in the first place, since the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's restrictions hadn't been lifted.

One thing was certain, however. Seeing how they were plotting things now, the Heavenly Enlightenment Society must have been active in the shadows back then as well.

Before we fought again, I looked at the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon. He nodded silently, his eyes telling me not to worry.

The fight began again.

The Sky Falling Claws tore space to shreds, and the Chainman's chain reared its head like a living snake and lunged.

The Sky Falling Claws grazed the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's arm and side. The Blood Calamity Finger grazed the Chainman's forehead.

At close range, sword qi flew, finger qi bullets were fired, chains imbued with enhanced qi soared, and the Sky Falling Claws created dozens of claw marks. It was a flurry of secret techniques.

The fight was neck and neck. The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon and I had only fought together once, but we synchronized perfectly, as if we had practiced our entire lives. Strangely, I felt at ease fighting with the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, and our coordination was perfect.

Then, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon screamed a second time.

He collapsed backward as the chain flew toward him.

I rushed forward and blocked the chain with my back.

THUD!

I endured the impact with my protective enhanced qi, but it felt like my shoulder was being torn off.

THUUD! THUD!

The chain struck repeatedly.

The chain slammed into my body, but my protective enhanced qi deflected it. This consumed an immense amount of inner arts.

Yang Cheogi watched and exclaimed in surprise.

"To generate protective enhanced qi at your age, you're truly an incredible bastard."

But we had planned this situation. A moment ago, I sent a telepathy message to the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, telling him to pretend to get hit again.

With my back to them, I split my sword in front of me.

I was unleashing the Ominous Sky Strike, the Soaring Sky Sword Art's Seventh Technique.

CHWARAK!

I only split it twice, right in front of my chest where they couldn't see.

The moment the sword-shaped sword qi formed!

SHWIIING! SHWING!

The two sword qi shot out behind me as if alive.

PUAAAK!

One pierced the off-guard Weird Demon's shoulder, while the other sliced the chain in half and flew on.

"Damn it!"

The Weird Demon pressed the blood point on his shoulder and grimaced. If he hadn't twisted away reflexively, it would have pierced his neck.

The Chainman dropped the severed chain and gripped the remaining section.

"Damn it!"

We sighed. Our decisive attack had failed to kill them. Fortunately, it pierced the Weird Demon's shoulder and damaged the Chainman's weapon.

I offered a hand to the seated Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, and he took it to stand. The look in the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's eyes grew even more intense. We were both burning with passion for this fight.

The Weird Demon and the Chainman opted for a long battle. They judged their inner arts superior and intended to wear us down. They also fought more cautiously with an injured shoulder and a damaged weapon.

As a result, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon, who used finger qi and palm techniques, was the first to run out of inner arts.

At that moment of crisis, his inner arts depleted and his movements slowed drastically.

SEUSEUT.

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon stared at me, shocked.

We were inside the world of the Spacetime Manipulation Technique.

"This is the space within the Spacetime Manipulation Technique."

"The Spacetime Manipulation Technique too!"

"There's no time to explain. This is an Explosive Qi Pill. Please take it and recover your inner arts first."

I gave him the Explosive Qi Pill from the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.

"You should take it, Second Young Lord."

"I still have some inner arts left. There's no time. Hurry up, take it, and recover. My qi is being consumed as we speak."

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon immediately took the Explosive Qi Pill and circulated his true qi.

I could hear their voices from outside.

"It's an illusion technique."

"The young brat can even use illusion techniques? He really keeps surprising us."

"A top-tier illusion technique like this must consume a lot of qi, so he won't be able to maintain it for long before showing himself. In other words, it's a suicidal act."

Truly, if I hadn't reverse-absorbed the Bewitching Nirvana Princess's inner arts, I couldn't have used the Spacetime Manipulation Technique right now.

A moment later, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon opened his eyes and stood up, his inner arts rapidly recovered.

"We have to end this in a hundred moves."

"Yes! Let's go!"

I held out my sword, and the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon flicked it again.

"……"

The Spacetime Manipulation Technique released with a clear metallic sound.

The moment we emerged, I charged the Chainman like a madman.

CHANGCHANGCHANGCHANGCHANGCHANGCHANG!

I unleashed my utmost concentration.

My surroundings vanished. I could only see the Chainman and his chain.

Soon, even the Chainman disappeared. Only the brilliantly moving chain remained.

I heard nothing but my sword clashing with the chain.

If I'm struggling, you must be struggling too. If it seems like I'm going to die, it must seem like you're going to die too.

I don't believe it. That you've worked harder than me. I believed in myself, and I believed in all my efforts.

Then I had another amazing experience.

I fought at my absolute limit, yet my sword's speed increased even more. It was a result born of desperation, a miracle created by my desperate wish to save the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon.

I felt the chain's movements become frantic.

Pushed into a corner, he unleashed a hidden technique. He trapped my sword between his chains. Instantly, like a coiled snake, the chain wrapped around the blade and snatched the Black Demon Sword away.

I saw the Chainman's joyful expression.

SHWIK! PUUK!

The next moment, a throwing knife embedded itself in the Chainman's neck.

He had played his trump card, but so had I. I had thrown the knife in the fleeting moment he let his guard down.

"Keueuk."

The throwing knife in the Chainman's neck was made of ten-thousand-year cold steel. He couldn't block the unexpected attack because I hadn't used my knife throwing arts once during the fight.

The Chainman pulled the throwing knife from his neck, like someone who absolutely must scratch an itch.

The moment he pulled out the knife, blood spewed like a waterfall, and he collapsed. I didn't want to waste inner arts on telekinesis, so I ran and picked up the Black Demon Sword, still wrapped in the chain.

Without hesitation, I charged the Weird Demon.

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon faced the stronger Weird Demon with extreme concentration.

We fought as we had against Baek Manggi.

The two of us relentlessly pushed him. I was wary of Yang Cheogi intervening, but he didn't join the fight for some reason.

As we pressed him, the tide of battle turned instantly. These two were strong, but not as strong as the Sword Emperor, Baek Manggi. Our joint attack was even more synchronized than before.

The Weird Demon shouted to Yang Cheogi for help.

My sword passed between the slightly faltering blades of the Sky Falling Claws.

PUUK!

My sword embedded itself in the Weird Demon's shoulder.

PIING! PEOOK!

Simultaneously, the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's Blood Calamity Finger pierced the Weird Demon's forehead.

The Weird Demon fell backward, his eyes wide with injustice and rage.

"Haa, haa."

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon and I gasped for breath. The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon had exhausted his inner arts, and I had little left.

"You're really tenacious bastards!"

I responded to Yang Cheogi's exclamation.

"You're the tenacious one. How could you just watch without helping them?"

"Why should I interfere? I can kill you more safely once your inner arts are depleted."

I felt that wasn't the real reason. Being left alone to face us was just as dangerous.

He didn't stop those two masters from dying? It's as if he wanted them to die. Why?

Then a thought struck me like lightning.

"Did the Heavenly Enlightenment Society Chairman promise you the position of Evil Valley Lord by any chance?"

"!"

He wanted to be the Demon Supreme, the Sect Leader, and the Chairman, so I wondered if he also wanted to be the Valley Leader.

Yang Cheogi's eyes seemed to ask how I knew, confirming my guess. He must have used this chance to cut off the Evil Valley Lord's limbs to take over the Valley of Evil more easily. The villains were gathered, backstabbing one another.

"You're a man who only dreams of things you can never achieve."

"That mouth of yours is the root of all your trouble."

"You're trash."

"Fine, you can curse me all you want in hell."

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon blocked my path. [Second Young Lord, now is the time to show off your running skills. I can hold him off for a few moves.]

He believed we couldn't defeat Yang Cheogi. His own inner arts were depleted. He judged it impossible to face him with my remaining inner arts.

[I should save those running skills for my rematch with the Smiling Demon.]

[Don't be needlessly stubborn and go!]

[My demonic path may not break tables, but it also doesn't abandon a friend in danger.]

[!]

I felt the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon was deeply moved by the word 'friend'.

[What kind of Extremely Evil Smiling Demon is so affectionate?]

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's gaze shifted from me to Yang Cheogi. Then he said something I never expected.

"Please let the Second Young Lord go, Martial Uncle."

He made a request he never wanted to make, all to save me.

Yang Cheogi said with a mocking gaze.

"Take off your mask and kneel, and I'll let him live."

I could see the conflict in the Extremely Evil Smiling Demon's back.

Ah! Even if the whole world calls him evil, I never could.

I quickly went to him and grabbed his arm.

"He won't spare him even if you do that."

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon removed my hand from his arm.

"I had no intention of kneeling. I know better than anyone what kind of person Martial Uncle is."

"But why?"

"I was trying to buy a little more time. I thought since you're so clever, Second Young Lord, you might find a way out."

The Extremely Evil Smiling Demon laughed silently. A deep regret for our lack of time flickered in his eyes. He was anticipating his end.

Yang Cheogi gathered qi in one hand. I injected qi into the Black Demon Sword.

How many moves can I last? Can I kill him with this much inner arts?

"Have a nice trip together!"

He unleashed the Extremely Savage Demonic Palm, filled with his complete inner arts.

Just as I was about to release my sword qi to block it.

KWAAANG!

The incoming Extremely Savage Demonic Palm shattered and disappeared.

I hadn't blocked it. Something flew in from somewhere and stopped Yang Cheogi's attack.

It was a single dao. A giant dao imbued with enhanced qi stuck in the ground before us like a shield.

To my surprise, it was the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's Heaven Destroying Dao.

I lifted my head and saw the Blood Heaven Blade Demon descending from the sky on the wind.

"I knew this would happen."