Chapter 798: You Picked the Wrong Opponent

TL: FoodieMonster007

It was unmistakably the smell of alcohol.

The Black Elder and the Dark Elder exchanged a look and nodded at the same time. They immediately unleashed their palm techniques.

SWOOSH!

Two tremendous streams of palm energy flew toward the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme. They attacked without restraint, knowing the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman would die if the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme dodged.

As they expected, the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme held her ground in front of the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman until the very end.

"No!" the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman screamed.

BANG! KABOOM!

A series of heavy roars echoed.

The Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman squeezed her eyes shut. When she opened them again, the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme stood before her, perfectly fine. Two streams of palm energy had flown from somewhere else and neutralized the attack.

Their eyes and noses told them who had helped. A golden wave flowed through the dark mist, and the smell of alcohol grew stronger. Two men stepped into the space.

An undeniable surge of emotion crossed the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme's face. Just a moment ago, she had been prepared for death.

Even if I die carrying out the Young Cult Leader's orders, how can I not fear death at such a young age?

The Demonic Buddha entered first and spoke to her. "You've worked hard, Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme."

Has the Demonic Buddha's face ever looked so welcoming?

The Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme bowed her head respectfully to show her gratitude. "You saved my life. Thank you."

"You would've blocked it just fine on your own," the Demonic Buddha said, looking up at the gaping hole in the ceiling. "Why didn't I think of this? We should've come down this way too."

Earlier, the Black Elder had searched for a stronger dark energy, smashing through the floor and falling to the level where the Drunken Demon and the Demonic Buddha were.

"Wouldn't that have been less elegant?"

The Drunken Demon followed, reeking of alcohol. He glanced at Ga Ye in the corner, then strode toward the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme.

The expressions of the Black Elder and the Dark Elder hardened completely at the two men's appearance. The Demonic Buddha and the Drunken Demon's presence meant the Dark Black Painted Spirit was already defeated. The skills of these damn Demon Supremes were truly running wild.

The Drunken Demon stopped before the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme. Seeing the bloodstain on her mouth, he took a small liquor bottle from his robes and handed it to her. "Have a drink."

The Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme looked at him, and he nodded with his intoxicated eyes. She opened the bottle without a second word. The scent of potent liquor spread as she drank it all.

This was no ordinary alcohol. It was the Drunken Demon's special medicinal liquor, highly effective for treating internal injuries.

She knew the moment she drank it.

This is a valuable liquor.

Indeed it was. The alcohol entered her body and began to soothe her twisted and injured qi and blood. She had not expected him to so generously offer such a precious drink.

"I'll treat you to a drink later."

It was a liquor too valuable to be repaid with a single drink, but she expressed her gratitude that way for now.

The Drunken Demon smiled pleasantly. "My popularity is skyrocketing these days! There's a line of people wanting to buy me drinks. Young Cult Leader, this is the kind of man I am!"

He looked like he could not wait to find Geom Mugeuk and brag.

The two old men watched, displeased with the Drunken Demon. His relaxed attitude in front of them was a clear sign of disrespect.

Meanwhile, tears finally streamed down the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman's face. She had truly thought the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme was going to die. She felt an immense sense of gratitude and reassurance that the two Demon Supremes had appeared in time.

She bowed her head respectfully to the two Demon Supremes, thanking them not for saving her, but for saving the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme.

Thank you both, truly.

The Drunken Demon and the Demonic Buddha said nothing to the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman. The Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme had saved her today. That credit belonged entirely to her.

The Drunken Demon thought she was truly amazing. The final attack was dangerous enough to be fatal, yet she had not dodged, protecting the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman instead. That was why he had willingly given her his prized internal medicine.

After tending to her, the Drunken Demon finally turned to the Black Elder and the Dark Elder.

"You fought two against one, so three against two should be fine, right?"

The Black Elder and the Dark Elder had nothing to say.

The Dark Elder radiated a cold aura. "Not just three, four is also possible. No, it wouldn't matter if all eight of you came."

The Drunken Demon sneered openly. "Eight, you say? When you were too scared to face even one of us alone? I'd love to line up all the Demon Supremes for you. Only after big fists smash your heads, a finger qi bullet pokes holes in your eyeballs, and deadly poison shreds your organs will you finally cry and snivel, 'Oh my, I was spouting nonsense because I'm old, please spare me!'"

Although he acted dismissive, he did not let his guard down. The Greedy Annihilation Art spreading through the ship was reaching its peak. The opponent's Pitch Black Demonic Art would unleash its most powerful force. They had a numerical advantage, but they also had to protect the Thousand Flower Palace Chairwoman. No one knew how this fight would unfold.

He asked the Demonic Buddha, "Which one will you take?"

"Anyone is fine with me."

"As expected! The composure of the strong!"

He then asked the two old men directly. "Who's stronger between you two? The weaker one can fight me."

It seemed like a flippant question, but it was meant to break their harmony, assuming each secretly believed he was the stronger one.

"A trick to divide us." The Dark Elder immediately saw through his intention.

The Drunken Demon then said to the Demonic Buddha, "Please take care of that one. He seems more cautious, so his skills are likely superior."

With this, he identified the more cautious one and also wounded the Black Elder's pride by treating him as inferior.

"Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme, please support me."

He readily admitted his disadvantage in martial arts compatibility for this fight. He was not ashamed to admit he was weaker.

The Black Elder spoke to the Drunken Demon with cold eyes. "There's no need to pair up. Your opponent isn't me."

He unleashed a new dark summoning art, the Wild Beast Summoning Art. Beast-shaped monsters materialized, baring massive teeth. They were soulless summons, immune to the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme's soul-stealing.

The Drunken Demon drew his throwing knife, showing no fear as he faced the terrifying summons. "You could've at least summoned something I could have a drink with."

The moment he finished speaking, he charged the beasts.

In all his long years mastering summoning demonic art, the Black Elder had never seen an opponent charge in so recklessly, let alone a Demon Supreme.

The beasts rushed toward the Drunken Demon.

As their fight began, the Dark Elder walked toward the Demonic Buddha. "Can that light from your body truly protect you?"

The Demonic Buddha quietly put his palms together. "This light has not been protecting me. I have been protecting this light."

WHOOSH.

The dark energy from the Dark Elder's body swirled around them like a gale, and they both vanished instantly.

STAB! SHUNK! STAB! STAB!

The Drunken Demon's throwing knife stabbed the beasts repeatedly. It looked like a chaotic brawl where he relied only on his protective enhanced qi, but his movement technique displayed incredible divine prowess.

He had raised the level of his martial studies while breaking through the Myriad Styles Renaissance, the whirlwind martial arts of the Blue Sea Lord he fought outside. The results were showing now.

Beasts rushed in from all sides, seemingly tearing at his body, but he narrowly deflected their attacks. Only his clothing tore, while the beasts' bodies were blown apart by his attacks. He stabbed and kicked the beasts rushing at him, stomped on a fallen one, and even choked another.

The Black Elder tried to summon more beasts.

But the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme did not stand by and watch.

SWOOSH! SWISH! SWOOSH!

The Black Elder stopped his summoning and threw himself backward to dodge the incoming palm technique.

When did she recover from her internal injuries?

Before he knew it, the Drunken Demon was charging through the beasts. Surrounded by them, he looked like a beast himself. He had actually bitten a dark beast's neck and torn it open.

The Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme understood why he was fighting like this. He should have chosen the stronger opponent, the Dark Elder, since he was fighting alongside her. Instead, he chose the relatively weaker Black Elder.

His intention was to finish the Black Elder quickly and help the Demonic Buddha. That was why she actively supported him.

The Black Elder hid his body in the darkness as the Drunken Demon charged. He had deployed the Dark Shadow Stealth Art. The more time he bought, the better. The Dark Elder would surely kill the Demonic Buddha and return.

"Are you going to be a coward about this?" The Drunken Demon tried to find him by raising his qi, but the dark energy was too strong.

SHHHHK!

Just then, a symbol of a human eye inside a circle appeared in the air above the Drunken Demon's throwing knife. This technique was called the Dark Night Opens Its Eyes, and it was the Soul-Stealing Demon Supreme's unique demonic art for finding those hidden in darkness.

SHIMMER…

The symbol seemed to temporarily imbue the Drunken Demon's throwing knife. The symbol's eye flashed open.

The Demonic Buddha stood in an empty space. An unknown force held his body tight, and he could not move. He realized that when the dark energy swirled around him, some form of the Pitch Black Demonic Art had been cast.

The Dark Elder slowly walked toward him. "Is there any need for us to fight like low-level thugs, smashing everything like a drunkard?"

The Demonic Buddha replied calmly, "I was hoping for a fight where we smash everything."

"Then you've picked the wrong opponent."

The Dark Elder slowly circled the Demonic Buddha once, then looked behind him. "A shadow contains a person's dark side."

The Demonic Buddha realized his own shadow was holding him. His opponent was a user of the Pitch Black Demonic Art that utilized shadows.

He calmly looked for the Dark Elder's shadow. "Where is your shadow?"

The Dark Elder had no shadow. "There should be no shadows here. This is a place where the shadow devours its master. Just as you are being devoured now."

The Pitch Black Demonic Art cast on the Demonic Buddha was the one the Dark Elder was most confident in. The Soul-Shattering Destruction Art.

"The wounds in your heart will be your undoing."

"What a common and boring demonic art."

A sneer formed on the Dark Elder's face. "Is that so? A single wound will be amplified a hundredfold. No human can withstand that pain."

It was a demonic art with a set method of defeat. If one endured, it would be broken. If one could not, one would be broken.

"The Demonic Buddha, you will die here."

Originally, he had not intended to use the Soul-Shattering Destruction Art on the Demonic Buddha. "It was a demonic art I was going to use on the Young Cult Leader, but it seems I'll be using it on you first."

It worked better on more skilled opponents because strong people often harbored deep darkness.

"Then why don't you save it for the Young Cult Leader?"

"Let's see how long you can afford to be so relaxed."

SHHHHH…

In that moment, the Demonic Buddha found himself in a different space. It was the small cave from his childhood, the place he always hid to escape others' teasing.

Just as the wound should have surfaced, a smile appeared on his lips.

If this demonic art had hit him for the first time, this place could have plunged him into deep inner demons. As the man said, if the wound from that time was amplified a hundredfold, his mind might not have withstood it.

That is, if it were the old him.

"Someone already brought me here before."

He walked out of the cave on his own. Not even a small wound remained here to be amplified.

SHHHHH…

As the cave disappeared, the Heavenly Wind Cult Leader appeared, his face full of disappointment. "I thought we were friends, but you threw away our friendship for mere power. That's the kind of person you are."

Though the words were meant to provoke, the Demonic Buddha answered calmly, "We've already reconciled."

The Heavenly Wind Cult Leader wore a bewildered expression for a moment, then slowly faded away.

SHHHH…

The Demonic Buddha murmured to himself, "I suppose the First Young Lord will appear now."

As if on cue, Geom Muyang appeared. "I couldn't become the successor because of you! And even then, you were contemplating whether to tell Mugeuk. Even now, you hide that heart with a detestable…"

The Demonic Buddha strode toward Geom Muyang and said nothing. He simply hugged him tightly. "I'm sorry, First Young Lord. It's all my fault."

He gently patted Geom Muyang's back. In that moment, he was an adult guiding Geom Muyang, and also a small giant.

SHHHHH…

Geom Muyang disappeared from his arms.

Even though he thought he had overcome these things, seeing them as a test made him realize that a wound once inflicted on the heart never truly disappears, but he confirmed that he had certainly overcome those wounds.

No, he felt fortunate to have these wounds. They were traces of having lived as a human, not a heartless Demon Supreme. They were precious wounds.

And so, he could now say these words: Wounds, they do not fade.

The next moment, the Dark Elder stood before him with a horrified look, blood gushing from his mouth. The demonic art had been broken in an instant, causing him a severe internal injury.

"How could the Soul-Shattering Destruction Art be broken so easily?" The Dark Elder looked utterly disbelieving. "How can this be?"

"That's because those wounds of the soul have already become scars."

"!"

"You were right. You picked the wrong opponent."

Of all people, he had cast the Soul-Shattering Destruction Art on the one Demon Supreme who had worked most diligently to overcome the wounds of his heart.

The Demonic Buddha quietly brought his fingers together into a hand seal. "Did you say this is a place where the shadow devours its master?"

A brilliant radiance began to shine from his body. The light shot out, pushing back the dark energy that had dominated the space.

"Then let's see… shall I find your shadow?"