Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2076

“……What is that?”

The ground flips over in an instant.

Each time a hand reaches out, something ominous and black surges up. Concrete melts and flows, unable to withstand the heat and pressure, twisting into grotesque shapes.

Nowhere has anyone ever seen such a sight.

No one ever imagined such a scene could unfold in reality.

KWA-BOOM!

But even more threatening than the unbelievable sight is the terrifying force that crashes down on them with a deafening roar.

Their hearts instinctively clench, and their entire bodies tremble as if in a seizure.

“What the hell…”

The martial artists guarding the base doubted their own eyes.

Of course, they had also seen the broadcasted video. Even though they were outdoors, the battle taking place underground was being transmitted through all media, and there was no reason for even martial artists not to carry a smartphone.

But… it’s different.

The match they watched on a crude screen and this terrifying battle unfolding before their eyes were incomparable.

Whether modern technology failed to capture this match, or whether the battle between the two people unfolding before their eyes was on a different level from any battle they had ever seen, something was definitely different.

The overwhelming violence.

Even for those who have devoted themselves to martial arts, yearning for strength, this sight was so overwhelming that they could only describe it as terrifying.

KWA-BOOM!

Each time something collides, an enormous shockwave, as if a missile had fallen in front of them, washes over them.

“F-Fall back! We’ll all die!”

If they get caught up in that battle, they will surely be reduced to nothing more than bone fragments. The martial arts they have learned? It means nothing. At least to those engaged in that battle, there would be no difference between them and ordinary humans.

“Back! Damn it, get back!”

Those retreating become entangled with each other. Those in front pushed those behind with pale faces.

Behind them, tanks were guarding the area.

The gun barrels of the tanks that had surrounded this place, until just a moment ago, felt like a powerful threat to them. If it weren’t for the presence of those standing beside them, they wouldn’t have been able to endure here.

But now, they felt no fear from those threatening tanks.

It’s only natural. When a tiger is charging at you from the front, there’s no reason to be afraid of a dog behind you.

KWA-BOOOOOOM!

Those who saw fragments of demonic energy flying towards them were terrified and began to run back with all their might.

And that fear was equally applied to the soldiers watching the scene from behind.

“Pull back the troops!”

At the order given, the tactical staff shouted.

“B-But if we pull back the troops now, the encirclement will loosen!”

“You bastards! What difference does it make if we maintain the encirclement!”

The commander yelled, pointing forward.

“Do you think you can do anything with these pieces of tanks? Why? Are you going to try to block that with a tank? You idiots!”

It was a statement that was tactically useless, but its effect was certain.

Those who glanced back and saw the battle unfolding above the base bit their lips.

That’s close to a disaster.

No, it’s a sight so terrible that no ordinary disaster can compare. Soldiers exist to fight against enemies, not to fight against disasters.

“Issue the retreat order now! Now!”

“Yes!”

“Damn it…”

The commander, with trembling hands, put a cigarette in his mouth, his eyes filled with unavoidable fear.

“…What are we supposed to do by keeping those things alive?”

The only consolation is that this place is a space where civilians cannot enter. It’s terrible that a nuclear missile base has been occupied, but if those people had clashed in the middle of a city, the damage would be unimaginable.

If this place were in the middle of downtown Shanghai, the damage they would have to endure would be more than immense.

“What the hell are those higher-ups thinking!” Is it really possible to coexist with such things?

With those monsters?

Can they really walk the same streets, live in the same places, and sit down to eat together with monsters who can obliterate the surrounding area in just one second if they feel like it?

Do they really think that’s possible?

Coexistence comes from understanding the other party. The reason why discrimination against race and origin is disappearing is because humanity has begun to understand different races.

But is it really possible to understand them?

For ordinary humans?

At that moment, the sight of two monsters soaring into the sky clearly entered his eyes.

“…We have to eradicate them.”

Humanity has overcome everything so far.

Early humans waged war against wild animals, and after that, they waged war against each other. At the end of that long war, what they barely achieved was still imperfect ‘equality’ and a ‘coexistence’ that only had a name left.

How many lives has humanity sacrificed to achieve those hollow concepts? It was imperfect and inadequate, but it was definitely an achievement of humanity.

But their existence is more than enough to undo everything they have achieved. The proposition that all humans are equal will completely lose its meaning in the face of their existence.

This is not a problem he can decide.

That’s why he was anxious.

The fact that those who would only see this scene on a screen from afar, those who would not understand the terrifying fear that this scene gives, would make all the decisions.

Liang Ru-ao bit his lip tightly as he watched the two people destroying everything.

Buildings are flying away whole.

Buildings made of concrete are shattered like pieces of paper, and before the fragments can even fly away, they are crushed and disappear.

But the Black King and the Demonic Lord didn’t even know that the buildings had disappeared. All their nerves were focused solely on each other.

The Black King twisted his lips as he saw the flames of demonic energy flying towards him.

That terrible demonic energy.

Once the object of his admiration, and once the symbol of omnipotence that seemed to lead everything in the world as he wished. That symbol is now flying to kill him.

With more power than in the past, no, with power that cannot even be compared to that time.

‘Leader!’

The sight of Kang Jin-ho flying in with murderous intent boiling in his eyes was clearly visible in his eyes.

It’s a funny thing.

He and Kang Jin-ho had spent their entire lives together.

After they had grown up and reached an age where they had to take responsibility for themselves, until the moment both of their lives ended, they were colleagues, friends, and companions.

But…

‘Has there ever been a moment when we tried so hard to understand each other as we are right now?’

Confrontation is a ridiculous concept.

To defeat an opponent with all your might is not so different from understanding an opponent with all your might. To completely defeat an enemy, you must not miss even a single breath of the enemy.

That’s why it’s ridiculous.

The fact that they, who had spent their entire lives together… at least believed that they were moving towards the same goal, are now struggling to understand each other only after becoming enemies.

‘It’s terrible.’

Fate is always ironic.

He believed that Kang Jin-ho would understand him. And Kang Jin-ho probably believed that he would understand him.

There was not a single basis for that blind faith.

It’s like a child’s tantrum.

A child doesn’t try to make others understand them. They just want others to understand them.

Funny, isn’t it?

The leader of the Demonic Cult, who plunged the entire Central Plains into fear.

And the second-in-command of the Demonic Cult who assisted him.

The fact that what those two people are doing is ultimately nothing more than a child’s tantrum.

KWA-BOOM!

The Black King’s body was thrown backward after being struck by Kang Jin-ho’s blow.

‘Leader.’

In the shock that made his mind dizzy, the Black King smiled, baring his teeth.

‘You’re right.’

Kang Jin-ho’s boiling demonic energy broke, tore, and ripped apart his demonic energy. The demonic energy that penetrated his body, the searing pain, made the Black King’s eyes flash open.

“KANG JIN-HOOOOOOOOO!”

The Black King, who had rushed in as if folding space itself, slammed his elbow into Kang Jin-ho’s side.

CRUNCH!

With a dull sound as if all his ribs were crushed, blood gushed from Kang Jin-ho’s mouth.

“OOOOOOOO!”

The Black King’s hands unleashed a series of terrifying blows.

‘I regretted it.’

It would be a lie to say that he was indifferent.

At first, he resented Kang Jin-ho. And as time passed, he cursed himself, and later, he regretted everything.

When he found out that Kang Jin-ho had appeared in this world, what he felt was not anger or hatred.

‘No, it was only regret!’

He failed, failed, and failed again.

He had devoted everything to a single purpose, but he had never achieved his goal even once. It was a life of nothing but failure.

That’s why he can’t fail this time.

He knows.

Why Kang Jin-ho asked him if he had ever been happy.

“I KNOWWWWWWWWW!”

What is the reason why humans live?

What is the reason for enduring this terrible pain?

He knows it clearly.

But so what? What does he want him to do?

Forget everything? Give up?

Forget the eyes of his dying father, forget the faces of his dying comrades, forget everyone who was persecuted, and even forget his younger self crying in that time?

‘What meaning does happiness gained that way have?’

He cannot stop.

No, he will never stop.

He knows.

That the only things that will remain at his fingertips on the day he gets everything he wants are pain and regret.

But…

Even if it’s an empty ice throne, he has to get it.

Because he has already come too far.

So, Leader!

“Azure Demon!”

WHAM!

Kang Jin-ho’s fist pierces through his aura and strikes the Black King’s jaw.

Blood spurts out, and the Black King’s eyes, as he flies backward, clearly see it.

Kang Jin-ho.

The one he has been waiting for his entire life, his whole body wrapped in demonic energy, raising wings of black flames to the end of the sky.

‘Like a grim reaper.’

An overwhelming sight that makes him laugh in disbelief.

Perhaps the name Kang Jin-ho means his final destination.

But…

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The Black King, who had slammed his hand into the ground, stopped his flying body and let out a rough breath.

“…Not yet.”

A blood-red glow emanates from the Black King’s eyes.

Slightly cold, slightly lonely.

“Not yet, not yet…”

He cannot die now.

If he dies here, he will really become a fool. Because he will not be able to leave anything behind.

So…

“You’re right, Leader.”

The Black King smiled faintly.

“Maybe I’m just afraid of regretting it again.”

So he has to win.

If the ending given to him is a fate where he has to die lonely in regret anyway, then even if it’s just to hold something in his hand.

So…

“This time… you’re going to have to die.”

Demonic energy gathers at the Black King’s fingertips. The demonic energy that stretched out from his fingertips drew the shape of a clear sword.