Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1581

Wavering (2)

– You tried so hard to deny me.

Even pity was now evident in the Red Demonic Celestial’s eyes.

He looked directly at Kang Jin-ho and spoke.

– You arbitrarily denied me, tried to accept me, and tried to control me.

“…You’re just me.”

– Yes, I am you. But can the current you be me?

– Oh, me who has lost myself. You just wanted to be comfortable. You just wanted to let go, indulging in the comfort of the modern world. You’ve become stronger? You’ve become stronger? Hahahaha!

The Red Demonic Celestial burst into a fit of laughter.

– You call yourself strong?

The Red Demonic Celestial abruptly changed his demeanor, unleashing a deafening roar that seemed to tear the very air. The whole world trembled and held its breath at the force of it. Even the sky seemed to cover its eyes and turn away.

– Since when did you judge strength by the level of martial arts? I have fought and defeated countless opponents stronger than myself. The reason I can boast of my strength is that there are no more beings left who can be called my enemies. Look, you weakling. If you have eyes, look at me with those eyes. Do you dare compare yourself to me! You, who have become complacent in peace and have even let go of what you had, do you think you can be my match!

“I…”

– Is this where you’ve arrived after desperately turning away and turning away again? If so, then your end is obvious. So, the conclusion you reached after running away so much is that you cannot become strong alone? Is that why you gather trash from all over the place to use as your shield?

“I…”

Kang Jin-ho trembled.

He couldn’t refute anything.

Anyone else might have had something to say. But Kang Jin-ho alone could not refute those words.

Because he is Kang Jin-ho, because he is the Red Demonic Celestial.

He is the one who knows better than anyone how he became strong and how he has lived.

– You’re doing things no different from those you despised. Making my enemies everyone’s enemies and using them as shields is no different from what the righteous sects did. How far do you plan to rot?

“That’s not true!”

Kang Jin-ho shouted vehemently. That was not it.

Kang Jin-ho had never once used them as shields. Everything was just to survive, to protect their lives and Kang Jin-ho’s life.

– ‘It couldn’t be helped’…

The Red Demonic Celestial chuckled softly.

That laughter pierced Kang Jin-ho’s heart like a dagger.

– A good excuse. An excuse you would never have made in the past. Listen, you who have forgotten the past. No, you who have abandoned the past. I will let you hear the voice of the past, you who have become complacent in the comfort of the past.

The Red Demonic Celestial spoke as if grinding his teeth.

– Prove yourself with your strength.

– The words of the strong are right. No matter what kind of strength it is… Your weak words are just powerless echoes. Can you claim to be right before me? How dare you stand before me, you wretch?

It was utterly violent.

Trampling logic and reason with force, mocking laws and norms.

Yes.

That’s how it was.

That was the Red Demonic Celestial.

That’s why he tried to discard it.

That’s why he tried to turn away from it.

Even if that was the only way Kang Jin-ho could survive in the harsh and inhumane land of the Central Plains, the Red Demonic Celestial’s way was simply not suitable for the modern world.

But what he had discarded was now returning like a boomerang.

– You will be defeated.

Kang Jin-ho’s body trembled slightly.

– You already know, don’t you, that you can’t defeat them with such childish games.

“I…”

– If you were me, you wouldn’t even hesitate. You would just go to the Central Plains and tear apart those trash called the Three Kings. Then everything would be peaceful. But you gave up that most obvious and simple path.

Kang Jin-ho closed his eyes.

Enough.

He had heard enough now.

‘Is this my true intention?’

The Red Demonic Celestial, who was cornering him in front of him now, was just a mental image he had created.

The anxiety he had pushed into the deepest corner of his heart had merely materialized into the form he feared most.

In other words…

All this conversation was between Kang Jin-ho and Kang Jin-ho. Kang Jin-ho, who wanted to blend into reality, and Kang Jin-ho, who wanted to protect himself as a martial artist. It was a fierce battle between the two.

“Are you done spouting nonsense?”

– Hmm?

The Red Demonic Celestial looked at Kang Jin-ho with interest.

Before he knew it, Kang Jin-ho’s expression had changed to resemble his.

– It seems you’ve understood a little.

“It’s all just sophistry anyway.”

Kang Jin-ho raised his head and met the Red Demonic Celestial’s gaze.

“However, one thing is certain. Things can’t continue like this.”

Kang Jin-ho was finally acknowledging the anxiety he had been suppressing.

They were powerful.

No matter how much he borrowed the power of the United States, drew on the power of Japan, created new martial arts, and even extracted the last bit of power from the shattered Demonic Cult…

‘I can’t win.’ No. It might be possible.

If he had another ten years and the seeds he had sown all sprouted and became giant trees.

But there was no way they would give Kang Jin-ho that much time. Absolutely not.

Then there was only one conclusion.

He had to become stronger.

Just like in the past, when he, as the Red Demonic Celestial, led the Demonic Cult and crushed all the righteous sects that seemed impossible to defeat, the current Kang Jin-ho also had to obtain overwhelming strength that the Three Kings would not dare to approach.

No matter what it took.

To do that, first…

Thud.

Kang Jin-ho gripped Red Dew and Azure Dew [his twin swords].

“I understand one thing.”

Kang Jin-ho bared his teeth.

“It’s that I’m lacking something right now. In your eyes, that is.”

– You talk big for a weakling.

“Maybe so.”

Kang Jin-ho readily nodded.

Looking at the Red Demonic Celestial again, he understood what he had lost.

‘There’s no ruthlessness.’

He could dress it up with all sorts of words, but if he simply looked at the conclusion, that was it. He was no longer living as fiercely as the Red Demonic Celestial of the past.

He couldn’t stop just because he couldn’t move forward. He had to sharpen his sword in that spot. That’s what the Red Demonic Celestial of the past did. Rather than searching for higher realms, he sharpened what he could use right away and defeated even the stronger ones.

That ferocity was missing from the current Kang Jin-ho.

“If you know, then half the battle is won.”

It was enough to fill it in.

And the way to fill it in was too simple.

Because in front of him now was the embodiment of tyranny and a living embodiment of battle.

“I’ll tear your throat out.”

– Hahahahahaha!

The Red Demonic Celestial burst into a fit of laughter. But soon, that laughter vanished as if washed away, and an unbelievable force surged towards Kang Jin-ho like a storm.

– You weakling, you’re all talk.

Kang Jin-ho’s whole body tingled with that tyrannical force, and he bared his teeth and smiled without realizing it.

‘This is it.’

It was here.

The absolute powerhouse he had been searching for so desperately in the modern world.

An overwhelming power that seemed impossible to even touch.

All of that was originally within Kang Jin-ho.

‘If something is lost…’

Kang Jin-ho took a step forward, his whole body receiving the storm of fighting spirit that felt like it was tearing his flesh apart.

‘I just have to get it back!’

With a coolly composed gaze, Kang Jin-ho charged towards the Red Demonic Celestial.

The Red Demonic Celestial, who had been staring at Kang Jin-ho with an arrogant expression, raised both hands with a sneer.

– If you want to know so badly, I’ll show you just how weak you’ve become!

* * *

“This is a headache.”

Lee Hyun-soo scratched his head vigorously.

Only the monitor was shining brightly in the darkened conference room.

Normally, Lee Hyun-soo would handle his work in his own office, but now he needed Kang Jin-ho’s ideas. It was a side effect of systematizing the system.

Well, it wasn’t a big problem. He just had to put up with a minor inconvenience. Kang Jin-ho also understood Lee Hyun-soo’s situation and allowed him to freely use his PC.

“Haa.”

Lee Hyun-soo sighed deeply.

“There’s so much to do, this is…”

He wished he had two bodies.

It wasn’t that there was a lot to do. It was a little different from having a lot to do. What really bothered Lee Hyun-soo was that he had to take a long detour, spending time on things that could be handled in an instant.

“Ugh. My head is really buzzing.”

Creating joint ventures, forming alliances with the political world, and so on.

Each one required considering the other party’s circumstances, respecting their face, and creating a suitable justification.

Things that could be resolved with a single word, ‘Let’s do it,’ at the General Assembly took weeks to complete in the outside world. Having to check every situation one by one was enough to make his head spin.

‘Conversely, it means that the decision-making process at the General Assembly is that much simpler.’

Originally, you don’t realize the benefits of an advanced system when you’re in it. It’s when you step out of that system and into a backward one that it hits you all at once.

It’s like when your familiar PC breaks down and you have to use an old PC you used years ago.

“Anyway, this side…”

That’s when it happened.

Bang!

The conference room door suddenly burst open. Lee Hyun-soo was startled and raised his head.

‘The smell of blood?’

The moment the door opened, a strong scent of blood wafted in, and Lee Hyun-soo was horrified and jumped up from his seat.

“C-Chief, Chief.”

His eyes caught sight of Kang Jin-ho entering the conference room.

“W-What’s going on?”

Lee Hyun-soo was shocked and rushed forward.

Kang Jin-ho, who was entering the conference room, was covered in blood. His clothes were torn to shreds, and blood was dripping from his hair, showing how much blood he had been drenched in.

Was it an enemy attack?

Lee Hyun-soo rushed over, but Kang Jin-ho casually raised his hand to stop him, looking unconcerned.

“…Chief?”

“It’s nothing.”

Kang Jin-ho said those words and strode forward. Then he slumped down on the sofa and rummaged through his pocket for a cigarette.

Click, click, click.

The lighter wouldn’t light properly, perhaps because of his blood-soaked hands. Kang Jin-ho placed the lighter on the table and snapped his fingers, creating a flame.

“Hoo…”

Kang Jin-ho slowly exhaled a long stream of cigarette smoke, his eyes gradually calming down.

“…May I ask what happened?”

Lee Hyun-soo cautiously asked, and Kang Jin-ho slowly turned his gaze. His eyes stared directly at Lee Hyun-soo.

Flint.

Lee Hyun-soo took a step back without realizing it.

‘W-What is it?’

Lee Hyun-soo didn’t understand why he had stepped back. He knew that even if the world were to collapse, Kang Jin-ho would never attack him, yet his instincts made him retreat.

A sense of déjà vu.

A strange sense of déjà vu.

Yes, it was like…

It felt like he was seeing Kang Jin-ho, who had pressured him like a beast in Yeongnam, again.

“It’s nothing.”

“I’m just…”

The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s mouth twisted upwards.

Kang Jin-ho, wearing a smile that was rarely seen these days, spoke slowly in a low, calm voice.

“I’m in the process of finding what I’ve lost.”

Lee Hyun-soo swallowed hard without realizing it.