Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2064

The Black King silently stared at Baek Yeon-hong.

Looking at his grinning face, anger surged from deep within.

“What’s so funny…?”

The Black King hesitated, as if unable to speak, then bit his lip slightly before opening his mouth again.

“What’s so funny that you’re grinning like that?”

“Hahaha!”

Baek Yeon-hong chuckled.

“Did you see it?”

“Wasn’t it awesome?”

The Black King looked at Baek Yeon-hong with blatant bewilderment.

“…You’re insane.”

Who wouldn’t know that this guy was out of his mind? Anyone who knew the name Baek Yeon-hong would know that.

But Baek Yeon-hong’s attitude now went beyond that.

Seeing him with a black, charred stump on one shoulder, something that could no longer be called an arm, grinning foolishly, was so absurd that it didn’t even make him angry.

“You went out there saying you’d win.”

“Well, I didn’t lose, did I?”

“And it’s only because it was me that I managed to draw against that monster. Do you think anyone else could have even stood a chance?”

The Black King couldn’t even argue with that.

The destructive power that Wiggins had momentarily gained was beyond words. Even the Black King himself couldn’t match that level of ‘output’.

No matter how much martial arts wasn’t just about destructive power, it was an overwhelming force that would crush most transcendents before they could even try to use their techniques.

He should be praised for coming back alive after facing that power…

‘If he had come back alive, that is.’

The Black King bit his lip.

“Anyway…”

Baek Yeon-hong shrugged. With one arm gone and the other lost, his shrug looked ridiculous, but no one who saw it could laugh.

Because everyone could see that his life was fading fast.

“Didn’t I keep my promise to let you continue the fight?”

“…You sure did.”

The Black King’s face twisted in annoyance. Seeing that, Baek Yeon-hong chuckled again.

How could he not laugh?

The Black King, who held the world in his hands, was making such a face while looking at him. How many people had ever managed to make him so agitated, from the past until now?

For Baek Yeon-hong, this might have been an achievement greater than experiencing the pinnacle of martial arts.

In a strange sense of satisfaction, Baek Yeon-hong looked directly at the Black King.

“Black King.”

“Did you see it?”

“…Of course, I saw it. Yes, it was amazing.”

“No. I’m not talking about me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m asking if you saw what he accomplished.”

The Black King closed his mouth. His gaze shifted past Baek Yeon-hong towards the General Assembly’s camp. The fading figure of Wiggins entered his eyes.

“What did you think?”

The Black King hesitated to answer.

The proper answer to this question was, of course, ‘It was amazing.’

It was a sight that would astound even the Black King, who had an unparalleled understanding of martial arts. Someone who could never reach that realm through normal means, transcending humanity in a way the Black King had never imagined.

It was awe-inspiring.

But the reason the Black King couldn’t readily give that answer wasn’t just because he didn’t want to admit it. It was because he could guess what Baek Yeon-hong would say next.

“I also…”

Baek Yeon-hong turned his head to look at Wiggins.

“I didn’t think much of him. I thought I would win, of course.”

“But the result I faced was this, Black King.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Are martial artists really that weak?”

The Black King closed his mouth.

Then, Baek Yeon-hong smiled wryly.

“I thought so too. They’re pathetic and weak. We, who weren’t born with such great talent, have reached this level, but they couldn’t even bring out what they had.”

The Black King slowly nodded.

That distrust of them.

That was why the Black King had started this plan.

“We were given three lives, so we could correct our mistakes. But they were only given one life. That’s why they’re unreliable and insecure.”

“…I see.”

“But Black King.”

Baek Yeon-hong spoke with an uncharacteristic seriousness.

“Is that really true?”

The Black King couldn’t answer.

Because he understood what Baek Yeon-hong was implying.

A long battle.

This battle, which had finally reached its end, hadn’t gone as he had expected from the beginning. When he first started the fight, could he have imagined being pushed this far?

In terms of power, he should have won overwhelmingly. But now, thanks to Baek Yeon-hong’s efforts, he was barely clinging to the edge of a cliff, given one last chance.

How did it come to this?

Was it because they were careless?

Would those who had watched their comrades fall one after another really have entered the fight with such a complacent attitude?

Or was it?

Was it because the strategy was wrong?

There was no such thing as strategy in a one-on-one fight. Even if you brought up compatibility, everything could be overcome with skill.

Then…

Why had this fight come this far?

“You must know now, Black King. We underestimated them. Because their methods were different from ours, we thought they could never reach the same level as us.”

“But is that really true?”

The Black King frowned.

“What are you trying to say?”

“See them as they are, Black King.”

Baek Yeon-hong smiled gently.

“They are strong.”

“They are strong in their own right, even without you leading them, even without the existence of the Demon Lord. You and the Demon Lord might be able to pull them along a little faster, but…”

Baek Yeon-hong’s smile gradually turned into a sneer.

“You cannot be their saviors.”

Baek Yeon-hong shrugged and turned to look at Kang Jin-ho.

“I confess, I found that man frustrating. You told me not to underestimate him, but to me, the Demon Lord was a fool. If he had wanted to, he could have taken control of the martial world before you, and more decisively than you.”

Baek Yeon-hong stared at Kang Jin-ho for a long time before turning back to the Black King.

“But… the reason he didn’t… it doesn’t seem to be because he lacked decisiveness. Perhaps he knew.”

“…Knew what?”

“That other martial artists were no less than him.”

“That he was just a little ahead.”

The Black King’s face twisted again.

“So?”

“Black King.”

Baek Yeon-hong looked at the Black King with sincere eyes.

“You are too perfect.”

“You are more outstanding than anyone, stronger than anyone. And you are more meticulous, more patient than anyone. That’s why you were able to seize this opportunity. This is something no one else in the world can do. Only you can do it.”

The Black King bit his lip.

Baek Yeon-hong’s calm voice reached his ears.

“But… that’s why you can’t trust others. You can’t accept that someone might surpass you. You can’t accept that even if they are lacking in every other aspect, they might surpass you in one, and that if there are many such people, they can create something greater than what you can create alone.”

“It’s possible.”

The Black King retorted coldly.

“You’re right. It might be possible someday. But when is that? Can you tell a child with a knife to their throat to develop the strength to defeat a robber?”

“I’m not arrogant. I’m being realistic. I can’t gamble on something as uncertain as potential.”

“I know, Black King. But…”

Baek Yeon-hong gestured behind him with his chin. It was an awkward movement, but the Black King knew who Baek Yeon-hong was pointing at.

“That man bet everything on that uncertain gamble.”

“The only difference is whether you believe or not.”

The Black King’s arms, which were crossed, tightened around his own arms.

“Do you know the price of belief?”

“Black King, that man was also betrayed by his belief.”

Those words stabbed at the Black King like a dagger.

“But that man believed in humanity again. He believed in those weaker than himself, and he believed in the potential of those who couldn’t match him. But you pushed everything away.”

“That’s why you are strong, Black King. Maybe even stronger than that Demon Lord. But…”

Baek Yeon-hong smiled gently.

“If I were given another life, I would want to fight alongside that man, not you.”

“You…”

The Black King glared at Baek Yeon-hong with a horribly distorted face.

“You’re just saying annoying things until the very end…”

“Hahahaha! That’s just who I am, what can I do?”

The Black King sighed.

This was the Baek Yeon-hong he knew. But it was also a Baek Yeon-hong he didn’t know.

The level he had reached seemed to have shown him more. The way his playful tone was tinged with a profound understanding showed that.

“So what do you want me to do? Are you telling me to back down now?”

“Of course not.”

Baek Yeon-hong looked directly at the Black King and said,

“Stick to your own way, Black King.”

“But don’t believe that only you are right. And… don’t mix unnecessary impurities into this fight.”

“…What do you mean?”

“Have your final fight with the Demon Lord.”

Seeing the Black King’s stiff face, Baek Yeon-hong smiled gently.

“Isn’t that reason enough to fight?”

The Black King slowly nodded.

Whether he agreed with those words or not. This was the only answer he could give Baek Yeon-hong right now.

“I’ve reached my limit.”

Baek Yeon-hong smiled and looked at everyone.

As everyone looked at him with slightly reddened eyes, Baek Yeon-hong opened his mouth with a warm smile.

“You stupid bastards. If you had just won one more, I wouldn’t have had to go through all this… Useless until the very end.”

“That damn bastard?”

“Of course, that’s him!”

Curses burst from the mouths of the Twelve Blades. Hearing that, Baek Yeon-hong chuckled.

“I guess we don’t need farewells. Then everyone…”

His upright head slowly lowered.

“See you in hell…”

His body froze.

The Black King, who had been quietly watching Baek Yeon-hong, slowly approached him. Then, without a word, he placed his hand on his shoulder.

“…You’ve done well.” My…

Sharpest sword.