Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1185

Creak, creeeeak.

The chair groaned under his weight.

‘I need to replace this thing.’

Chai Ke-chang pressed his fingers into his eye sockets. He hadn’t been sleeping well lately, and the fatigue was relentless. His vision was constantly blurry, and his skin felt rough. Looking at him, no one would guess he was a martial artist.

He could usually dispel most physical fatigue with a quick circulation of his internal energy, but lately, even that wasn’t enough. Chai Ke-chang had reached a point where he couldn’t recover.

‘It must be a mental issue.’

The stress was constant.

While awake, all his senses were on high alert. The Changwang faction was constantly provoking them, and recently, they had even detected movement from the usually dormant Black King.

‘The Black King, of all people…’

That lazy bum had to start moving at a time like this.

Chai Ke-chang knew this was bad news.

To look at it positively, the Black King had been holding back for a long time, so it was natural he would start moving now. It was just a coincidence that the timing was so precise, and there were no signs of an all-out attack.

But that was only if you looked at it in the best possible light.

Realistically, the reason the Changwang faction was provoking them and the Black King had started moving was obvious.

‘They must see that we’re caught in a trap.’

Just as the Hongwang faction was monitoring the Changwang and Black King factions, they were also being monitored. Their spies would have infiltrated the Hongwang faction, and they would know that Kang Jin-ho had them by the throat and they couldn’t move properly.

That’s why they were acting so recklessly.

Chai Ke-chang rubbed his temples. Every time he thought about Kang Jin-ho, he got an unbearable headache. It was laughable for a martial artist to suffer from migraines, but what could he do when it was the truth?

Chai Ke-chang sighed deeply.

Click.

Chai Ke-chang took out a cigarette, lit it, and stared at it with a bitter expression.

‘It’s gotten too much.’

He used to smoke about three cigarettes a day, but recently, he was smoking more than two packs a day. It felt like he always had a cigarette in his mouth while he was awake.

This stick of weed couldn’t possibly be a comfort, but strangely, the more stressed he was, the more he couldn’t let go of it.

Chai Ke-chang stared at the cigarette for a moment, then chuckled.

There was no need to try to quit. If what he was doing went well, he wouldn’t need to look for cigarettes for a while.

But…

Chai Ke-chang glanced at the monitor. A map of South Korea filled the screen, with various colored lines drawn on it.

“Those morons.”

The Japanese martial arts world was more incompetent than he had thought.

It wasn’t that they lacked martial prowess. Compared to the Hongwang faction, everyone was weak.

The important thing wasn’t martial prowess, but how they used it.

The word ‘Galapagos’ suited them perfectly. [Galapagos refers to a unique ecosystem where species evolve in isolation, often leading to unusual traits.] From the moment they were born, they focused solely on developing their martial prowess, without thinking about how to use it.

They simply relied on the obvious fact that the stronger one wins.

Giving them a brain wasn’t a bad choice. However…

‘The calories I’ve burned thinking should at least be worth something.’

If he could use all their power, if Chai Ke-chang could directly train them and use them like his own limbs, then catching Kang Jin-ho wouldn’t be a dream.

But unfortunately, it was impossible to expect that level of command and organization from them.

Therefore, this was in the realm of luck.

Kang Jin-ho didn’t know how to retreat. Even when he fought the Hongwang, he never once thought of running away. That recklessness made Kang Jin-ho strong. It was definitely Kang Jin-ho’s strength. But conversely…

‘It’s also Kang Jin-ho’s weakness.’

It was ironic.

A normal person would run away if the opponent’s power was strong.

A wise person would retreat and wait for the next opportunity.

But what about a strong person?

A strong person doesn’t back down.

Chai Ke-chang thought that the word ‘strong’ was synonymous with ‘survivor.’

Those born with talent like Kang Jin-ho or the Hongwang?

There would probably be over a hundred of them in this era if you searched the entire world.

Is a hundred too many?

Not at all.

That was the minimum estimate. If you based it on the time since the Hongwang was born, there would definitely be more than a hundred people who had the potential to reach that level.

But the number of people who had reached the level of the Hongwang or Kang Jin-ho could be counted on one hand, even if you searched the entire world.

What was the reason for that?

“Because they’re all dead.”

Chai Ke-chang chuckled.

This wasn’t to belittle the Hongwang or Kang Jin-ho. Rather, it was closer to praising and extolling them.

Talent was just talent, and potential was just potential.

To reach the level of Kang Jin-ho and the Hongwang, one had to fight and fight, win and win, even with that talent. One had to survive hundreds of fierce battles where one’s life was on the line, even with just one defeat, to finally reach that level.

That’s why it was ironic.

A wise person avoids fighting. But those who avoid fighting can never become strong. Martial artists grow in life-or-death battles. But the more battles they experience, the higher the chance of death.

To obtain ultimate strength, one had to have both the tendency to not avoid even battles where death was obvious, and the luck to return alive from that hell.

What if that luck didn’t smile upon him?

“Then that’s the end.”

This wasn’t a strategy or anything. He had simply pushed a massive amount of troops, at the cost of tremendous sacrifice, into Kang Jin-ho’s path.

Strategically speaking, Kang Jin-ho could just avoid them. And then, he could join up with the other martial artists of the General Assembly and slowly pick off the foreigners who had come deep inland, like a wolf hunting a deer.

But…

“That’s why he’s strong, and that’s why he’s Kang Jin-ho.”

What if the Hongwang was in the same situation?

He wouldn’t run away either, and he would try to break the sky with his two fists.

It was a strategy that Chai Ke-chang, who had served the Hongwang for a long time, could devise. The Japanese fools didn’t understand it.

‘I’ve done everything I can.’

Man proposes, God disposes. [A common saying meaning that humans can make plans, but ultimately, the outcome is determined by fate or a higher power.]

If he had done everything he could, then all that was left was to leave it to fate. If their blades could reach Kang Jin-ho, then the Hongwang faction could pull their feet out of the mud and fly into the sky.

He didn’t want to admit it, but it was also true that the existence of Kang Jin-ho and the General Assembly had made the Hongwang faction and the Hongwang grow.

At that moment, Chai Ke-chang’s phone rang. Chai Ke-chang glanced at it and reached out to answer the call.

“What is it?”

[We’ve received word. They’ve arrived at their destination.]

“Oh, my. How kind of them. They didn’t have to go to the trouble of contacting us.”

Chai Ke-chang replied in a languid voice.

[You insolent bastard.]

“I’m sorry if you felt that way. But please understand. The person I serve is who he is, so I don’t feel respect or reverence for anyone else. Especially not for someone as mediocre as you.”

[……]

A low groan was heard.

Chai Ke-chang chuckled softly. It might sound like a provocation, but it was actually a rather considerate remark. If he had mentioned not only the Hongwang but also Kang Jin-ho as an example, the conversation wouldn’t have continued.

[It would be better to boast after the job is done. Just because they’ve arrived doesn’t mean Kang Jin-ho is there. I still can’t trust your plan.]

“That’s your limitation.”

Chai Ke-chang put a new cigarette in his mouth and lit it.

He didn’t feel like explaining. This leader wouldn’t understand what he meant even if he explained for three days and nights.

‘But it’s not like he’s wrong either.’

Thinking that way was normal and typical. From their perspective, Chai Ke-chang must look like a madman.

Still, what he had to acknowledge was that even though he didn’t understand, he was still pushing forward with Chai Ke-chang’s strategy. That was why he had risen to that position.

His vessel was small. [A metaphor for someone’s capacity or potential.]

But those with small vessels had their own way of fighting.

“There’s no need to trust it. You can’t trust something you can’t understand. Just watch the results. If things go well, you’ll be grateful to me. Oh, and I’ll pass on the gifts. There are too many eyes watching me.”

[You’ve been polite enough. You should be careful with your neck when we meet again.]

“You’re not strong enough…”

Chai Ke-chang frowned slightly at the sound of the call ending.

“Oh, my. He’s so impatient.”

Chai Ke-chang chuckled and put down the phone.

“Be careful with my neck…”

Even after all that he had said, they still didn’t understand.

The day they could threaten Chai Ke-chang would never come.

Even if they killed Kang Jin-ho, the damage would be immense. And if the wrath of the General Assembly, who had lost Kang Jin-ho, was unleashed, even if they conquered Korea, both sides would suffer irreparable damage.

Then Chai Ke-chang could leisurely swallow up the ownerless Japan and Korea.

It was human nature not to understand even such a simple principle.

‘Well, I’m the same.’

If Chai Ke-chang was so great, he wouldn’t have missed Kang Jin-ho when he entered China. What right did he have to criticize the leader when he had missed Kang Jin-ho at the most perfect opportunity, even with the absolute being, the Hongwang, by his side?

What made him better than the leader was that he had been beaten by Kang Jin-ho so many times that he had developed some resistance. If the situation was reversed, it might be Chai Ke-chang who was being ridiculed now.

Knock knock.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door.

“Come in.”

The door opened slightly, and the person who entered bowed.

“The Hongwang is looking for you.”

“The Hongwang?”

“Yes. He has asked for you to be brought to him.”

“Hmm…”

Chai Ke-chang got up from his seat.

‘I wanted to report after hearing the results…’

It seemed that the Hongwang had heard about what Chai Ke-chang had done.

“I’ll go now.”

“Yes.”

Chai Ke-chang quickly tidied up his desk, took a deep breath, and left the room.

‘I’m curious.’

If he caught Kang Jin-ho with his strategy, what kind of reaction would the Hongwang have?

Would he praise him for successfully eliminating the enemy?

Or would he be angry that he had dared to defeat his rival with such a cowardly method?

If it was the Hongwang of the past, it would have been the former. He would walk the path of righteousness, but not be swayed by reputation. That was the Hongwang.

But what about the Hongwang now?

‘Perhaps…’

The Hongwang might be even more obsessed with Kang Jin-ho than Chai Ke-chang was. The reason why the Hongwang was leaving Chai Ke-chang alone was because he was confident that no matter what he did, he couldn’t harm Kang Jin-ho.

The arrogance that only the absolute strongest could have.

‘I don’t like it.’

The fact that the Hongwang acknowledged Kang Jin-ho as an equal made Chai Ke-chang uncomfortable.

Chai Ke-chang smoothed out his slightly changed expression and walked quickly towards the Hongwang’s palace.