Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1196

Kwaddeudeuk!

A sound of a neck breaking echoed instantly.

“Kkeureureureuk.”

Tsukikage couldn’t come to his senses from the powerful force constricting his neck. It was as if a giant machine was squeezing his neck. It was a power that was unimaginable for a human.

“Kkeureureuk.”

A question arose momentarily.

Who?

But that question was foolish even to himself. If it wasn’t Kang Jin-ho, then who else could it be?

With his vision blurring from the lack of blood flow, Tsukikage desperately followed Kang Jin-ho with his eyes.

Kang Jin-ho, with his teeth bared and bloodied, was smiling as he gripped his neck.

“Kkeu….”

He was a gruesome sight. Half of his hair was burnt, and his skin was burned or cut in places, revealing bone. His clothes, blackened and stuck to his skin, and the blood flowing over his dark body made one doubt how Kang Jin-ho was still alive.

But Kang Jin-ho had survived.

In that explosion.

‘A mo, monster….’

The method was evident from Kang Jin-ho’s body. Considering his body was covered in dirt and that he had burst from the ground, it was obvious.

‘In that short time….’

Kang Jin-ho had avoided the explosion by burrowing into the ground. Of course, that method couldn’t completely negate the impact of the explosion. But the important thing was that Kang Jin-ho had survived.

No matter how severe the injuries, if one survives, it’s not over.

Kang Jin-ho was proving that fact right now.

“…I almost died.”

Kang Jin-ho grinned, revealing his teeth.

To Tsukikage, that smile felt incredibly eerie. Even if he fell into hell and encountered a demon, he wouldn’t feel like this.

How could he have survived that?

How!

This man avoids death. No, he controls death.

He inflicts unavoidable death on others, and pushes away death that approaches him. No, perhaps he is death itself.

Then….

Tsukikage’s fate, caught in the hands of death, was all too obvious.

“I’ll give you praise.”

Unintelligible words.

But the meaning of those words was conveyed all too clearly.

“There are very few who have pushed me this far, no matter the method. You can be proud.”

“Keureuk….”

“In return….”

Kang Jin-ho smiled brightly.

“I’ll keep my promise.”

It was that moment.

A tremendous amount of demonic energy surged into Tsukikage’s body.

Every single cell in his body felt like it was being pierced with red-hot iron skewers, a feeling of his body burning from the inside, causing Tsukikage to let out an unbearable scream.

“Kkyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaak!”

The sight of an individual, trained never to open his mouth under any torture, screaming like he was in hell, as if he would never hear again, froze those who were watching the situation blankly.

“Uwaaaaaaaaaaak! Aaaaaaaaah! Aaaah!”

The sound coming from Tsukikage’s throat suddenly diminished.

It wasn’t that Kang Jin-ho had done something.

It was because he had screamed so much that his vocal cords burst, and no more sound could come out.

“Kkulruk….”

But just because the sound couldn’t be heard didn’t mean that Tsukikage’s pain couldn’t be felt.

The face, swollen as if it would burst, the constant flow of bloody foam, and the blood tears flowing from his torn eyes all spoke of Tsukikage’s pain.

Not to mention his whole body convulsing non-stop as if he was having a seizure.

Kang Jin-ho smiled as he looked at Tsukikage.

“You better keep your wits about you. If you know when you’re going to die, you’ve won.”

Kang Jin-ho let his arm, which was gripping Tsukikage’s neck, drop.

Tsukikage’s body slumped and trembled. Kang Jin-ho dragged Tsukikage towards the Tsukihas [a group of warriors].

“Shall we continue?”

He smiled.

Kang Jin-ho smiled, revealing his teeth.

And those who looked at that smile all felt a chilling dread, as if their hearts were being squeezed.

Kang Jin-ho’s appearance was not that of a human.

The continuous explosions had completely shattered Kang Jin-ho’s body. The last massive explosion had pushed him to the brink of death.

One of his ankles was broken and dangling, and there wasn’t a single part of his body that was unscathed. An ordinary person… no, even a decent martial artist would have died instantly from shock or excessive bleeding if they had suffered such injuries.

But Kang Jin-ho was moving.

With Tsukikage’s neck in one hand, he was dragging his broken leg and coming towards them.

Blood was flowing from his nose and mouth, and blood was also streaming from one of his closed eyes, as if he was injured there. Even though his blackened body was being soaked red again by the flowing blood, Kang Jin-ho was not running away but was instead coming towards them.

The desperate look in his one remaining eye.

There would be no one in the world who could maintain their composure while facing that gaze head-on.

Kang Jin-ho laughed heartily, as if he was enjoying himself to death.

“I told you….”

Kang Jin-ho raised his hand.

“You’re going to die anyway.”

Woo woo woong.

A sound like something resonating came from behind them, and then Jeokru [Kang Jin-ho’s sword] flew towards Kang Jin-ho’s hand.

Thud.

Kang Jin-ho, gripping Jeokru, took one step, then another, towards the warriors.

A resolve to risk one’s life?

A will to kill?

‘No….’

He sensed it.

Throwing away one’s life was nothing. At least compared to fighting even in such a state, throwing one’s life away was something even a kindergartener could do.

In an instant, Kang Jin-ho’s aura overwhelmed everyone.

“It’s good to give it your all. It’s good to try every means possible.”

Few understood.

But whether they understood or not was not important. There are things in the world that are conveyed even without language.

“But the real thing comes after that.”

Drag, drag, drag.

Kang Jin-ho slowly approached the warriors, squeezing the neck of the convulsing Tsukikage.

“The real thing is….”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes gleamed eerily.

“It appears when even that collapses. Prove it, that you are truly warriors.”

Kang Jin-ho sprinted at light speed and plunged into the middle of the Tsukihas. The Tsukihas, now less than half their original number, were terrified and retreated.

“Fo, formation….”

The throat of the one who opened his mouth was the first to fall.

The cleanly severed neck soared into the air. Before the shock could even disappear from the face separated from the body, Kang Jin-ho kicked the rising head away.

“A, aaaaaaak!”

The one who caught the head that fell into his arms was horrified, threw the head away, and retreated, falling on his backside.

That is what momentum is.

The higher the boiling momentum, the greater the backlash. It was the same principle as someone addicted to drugs feeling an unparalleled sense of anxiety and fear when the effects wore off after experiencing extreme euphoria.

The heat cooled down as quickly as it had risen. And fear seeped into their cooled heads and bodies.

Quickly, and even more quickly.

Fear was contagious.

Paah! Paaang!

The sword simultaneously severed the necks of three people.

Then, it was swung again, cutting off the waist of the one who was trying to retreat.

Kwaduk!

But Kang Jin-ho’s strength had also reached its limit, as he couldn’t cleanly cut through the waist. Jeokru, caught on the spine, stopped moving.

Sseuseut!

At that moment, a shadow leaped up and rushed towards Kang Jin-ho.

Kang Jin-ho looked at the scene and smiled coldly, then lifted Tsukikage, who was held in his other hand.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!

The explosion engulfed Tsukikage.

Kang Jin-ho didn’t even check Tsukikage’s condition and swung his sword.

“Heu… Heuaaaaaaaaaa!”

The reactions of those who were terrified were varied. Some ran away, some stepped back, and some sat down.

“Die! You monster!”

The bravest ones, unable to hide their trembling legs, swung their swords at Kang Jin-ho.

Thwack! Thwack!

The sound of swords, not properly imbued with sword energy, piercing flesh was similar to the sound of hitting a tire with a baseball bat. The unfortunate thing was that the flesh was not Kang Jin-ho’s, but Tsukikage’s.

Shudder, shudder.

Tsukikage, who had taken more than ten blades into his body, convulsed.

What was he seeing right now?

What was certain was that he was having a rather rare experience right now. Being able to experience the scenery that Kang Jin-ho saw as a warrior was definitely an amazing thing.

Because no one in the world could see Kang Jin-ho’s battlefield with their own eyes.

This sensation of all hatred, malice, and fear rushing in at the same time.

Of course, whether Tsukikage would welcome this experience was another matter.

“Not yet. I still have to see more.”

Because he had said it.

That he would kill them without them even knowing how they died.

Kang Jin-ho bared his bloodied teeth.

His sword cut through the air.

Cutting through space, cutting through humans.

‘It’s blurry.’

It was dark.

His vision, which could see even at night as if it were daytime, could no longer pierce through the darkness.

“Aaaaaaaak!”

Poook.

A sensation of something piercing his back was felt.

Kang Jin-ho swung Jeokru without even looking back.

The sensation of bone being cut, felt at his fingertips.

That was enough.

Another step.

There was something right in front of him. A feeling of something trembling, touching his feet, was conveyed. Kang Jin-ho nonchalantly stabbed Jeokru to clear away whatever was in front of his feet and continued to advance.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!

He used Tsukikage as a shield against the explosion that was felt momentarily. But the explosion was so close that he couldn’t withstand the backlash and was slammed into the ground.

‘It’s been a while.’

It was a sensation he had experienced before.

That’s right.

Before….

It was like this when he killed Cheongma [a powerful enemy he fought before].

Ah, he remembered.

This was the sensation of death approaching.

Kang Jin-ho smiled brightly.

No matter how many times he experienced this sensation, he could never get used to it.

The feeling of a blade piercing his back. He no longer felt any pain.

Kang Jin-ho swung Jeokru.

Did he cut it?

He didn’t know.

The sensation at his fingertips had also dulled.

He couldn’t see, couldn’t hear, couldn’t feel.

But not yet.

Eudeuk.

He bit his tongue, and with the sharp pain, his vision cleared for a moment.

Faces filled with fear.

Those who were sitting down and trembling.

The swords in their hands were trembling like aspen leaves.

Pathetic.

Those who stand on the battlefield must not tremble. The resolve, painted over with shallow words like patriotism, is easily peeled away.

Then….

What was Kang Jin-ho’s resolve?

Kang Jin-ho put strength into his hand and pulled Tsukikage closer.

Tsukikage had already been dead for a long time. Thanks to taking the explosions and attacks with his whole body, he was already in a state where his form could not even be recognized.

Thud.

Kang Jin-ho let go of the hand that was holding Tsukikage.

He probably died without even knowing how he died. So, it could be said that he had kept his promise.

What was left….

Kang Jin-ho gripped Jeokru with both hands and straightened his back.

Then, he looked at everyone with a desperate gaze.

“Show me.”

A ghost, driven mad by madness, trampled through the darkness and advanced.