Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1587

“Weak.”

Kang Jin-ho’s face showed a slight hint of displeasure.

Lee Hyun-soo, noticing this, tried to soothe Kang Jin-ho a little.

“You saw them before, didn’t you?”

“They were just weak back then.”

“Then how are they now?”

“Now they’re pathetic.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s brow furrowed slightly.

He had never thought his Korean was lacking, but catching the nuances of this difference wasn’t easy.

“So… before, they were just weak in terms of skill, but now you’re saying they’re also lacking mentally and physically?”

“Yeah.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded slowly.

‘Man, his way of speaking is subtly mixed.’

It felt like Kang Jin-ho’s current way of speaking and his old way of speaking were mixed half and half. Lee Hyun-soo chuckled at the sight.

“They look decent enough on the outside.”

“Their basic physical strength seems high, but it doesn’t seem like they’ve ever used it.”

“That means they’ve lived comfortably.”

“Looks like it.”

A bitter smile came out involuntarily.

Reggie Mercer, who had been listening to their conversation from the side, subtly glanced at Lee Hyun-soo.

“Oops, I was having a conversation in Korean with an American sitting next to me. Sorry. It’s a habit.”

“Ah, no, it’s okay. It’s right for me to learn Korean. But, could you tell me what you were talking about just now…”

After hearing Lee Hyun-soo’s explanation, Reggie Mercer tilted his head as if he didn’t understand.

“I heard it earlier, but I still don’t understand. Are you saying their physical strength is declining?”

Even before the training started, most of the trainees had taken tests during the selection process. And the results of those tests were enough to make Reggie’s jaw drop.

But you’re saying that’s not enough?

“It’s not that simple. To put it simply, um…”

Lee Hyun-soo shrugged.

“People break down the more they’re hammered.”

“That’s right.”

“But martial artists become stronger.”

“Simply put, the amount of pressure a martial artist and an ordinary person can withstand is completely different. If you make an ordinary person run laps until they pass out, they won’t be able to do anything the next day. Their body won’t move. But those guys aren’t like that. They’ll be fine tomorrow morning.”

“…So you have to take that into account.”

“That’s what martial arts is about. It’s about breaking your limits every day. Martial arts is ultimately a fight against yourself. There are those who can do it, and those who can’t.

That’s where the levels are divided…”

Lee Hyun-soo sighed.

“From the start, those guys have only been stopping before they even reached their limits for the past ten years.”

Reggie Mercer was speechless.

‘Is this not just about willpower?’

At this point, it goes into the realm of methodology.

Simply put, the recovery power of martial artists as understood in the East is completely different from the recovery power they understand.

‘No, that’s…’

When you think about it, it’s obvious.

There’s no way they could push them to their limits to see how much they can recover in the US. That’s almost in the realm of human rights violations.

But in the East, they’ve been doing this for hundreds, no, thousands of years.

“So, you’re saying they can endure this level of training as a matter of course?”

“You really don’t know. What we did today wasn’t even training. It was just a taste.”

“……Excuse me?”

“It was just a warm-up. We’ll have to really push them starting tomorrow. Ah, the Clan Lord won’t be able to come in person tomorrow.”

“Oh…”

Reggie Mercer nodded.

“And there’s one more thing I want to ask…”

“Yes?”

“…Even if you leave them like that, they won’t die, right?”

Lee Hyun-soo slowly turned his head. In his eyes, he saw a large iron pillar stuck in the middle of the parade ground. And now, three soldiers were hanging upside down on that iron pillar, slumped over.

“Hey, don’t underestimate the vitality of a martial artist.”

“…They look like they’re going to die.”

“They won’t die. They absolutely won’t die.” Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

“We saved those guys who were supposed to die, so it’d be unfair if they died now.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s gaze reached those who were half-fainted.

Those guys were the ones who had questioned Kang Jin-ho, saying they couldn’t understand this kind of training. If it had stopped there, it would have been understandable, but they had lost their minds and even bared their teeth, threatening Kang Jin-ho.

And yet, this was all that happened to them.

“They’re lucky, those bastards. If this were the main clan, the Clan Lord would have been dragged away and buried.”

“It seems the Clan Lord is stricter in the main clan.”

“No. He’d be beaten to death by the other clan members.”

“I’m not joking.”

Lee Hyun-soo said coldly.

“Such a situation wouldn’t even be possible in the first place, but if it did happen, there would be more than one or two people who would try to kill them. I, for one, wouldn’t let such a bastard live.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s demeanor changed.

“I’m holding back a lot because of the Division Commander’s reputation. If I had my way, I’d cut off their heads and roll them away.”

Lee Hyun-soo bared his teeth.

“Calm down.”

“Ha, thinking about it makes me even more angry. Clan Lord, I’ll take charge of the training tomorrow.”

“No.”

“Why not? I’ll go easy on them.”

“You’re weaker than them.”

“Your head will become a soccer ball.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s shoulders slumped. No, did the Division Commander really have to hear that in English?

This guy’s personality has gotten really bad.

Kang Jin-ho quietly got up from his seat.

“Division Commander.”

“Yes, Clan Lord.”

“It seems like it’s going to take a little longer.”

“Hmm, is that so?”

“Let’s change the method. We’ll increase the training time, and others besides me will come and train them in shifts. For a while, they’ll just repeat pushing themselves to their limits.”

Reggie Mercer nodded.

He had already decided to entrust all of this training to Kang Jin-ho. So, there was nothing else he could say.

“And…”

“Yes?”

“Division Commander, you participate too.”

Reggie Mercer’s eyes widened.

“M-Me, you mean?”

“Yeah.”

“B-But I’m not a martial artist.”

“Wasn’t it the Division Commander who said that a commander needs to know the system?”

“That’s true, but… that just meant I wanted to know the system, and I wanted to increase my understanding of martial artists. It didn’t mean I wanted to become a martial artist.”

“I know.”

“Th-Then why?”

“The best way to understand your opponent is to become them.”

Kang Jin-ho said, staring intently at Reggie Mercer.

“Can you command martial artists without experiencing their training and feeling what kind of beings they are?”

Reggie Mercer’s back straightened up.

Since the word ‘command’ had been mentioned, this was no longer a personal matter. It was about his capabilities and duties as a commander.

“I will participate.”

The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s mouth curled up.

“Good.”

That’s why Kang Jin-ho liked Reggie Mercer. He was a man who at least knew what his role was and didn’t avoid what he had to do.

“Let’s go back.”

“Yes!”

Kang Jin-ho put a cigarette in his mouth and lit it.

Then, exhaling cigarette smoke, he walked out of the command tent and headed towards the helicopter.

In doing so, he naturally had to pass by the soldiers’ military tents.

“Ah… Ahh… My legs…”

“That crazy bastard, calling this training…”

“I don’t even have the strength to go wash up.”

His sensitive hearing picked up all the conversations coming from inside the tents, even without trying to listen.

Kang Jin-ho chuckled and stopped walking.

“C-Clan Lord.”

Reggie Mercer, who was following behind, looked at Kang Jin-ho with slightly worried eyes, but Lee Hyun-soo, who was next to him, reached out and stopped Reggie Mercer.

“Just watch.”

Kang Jin-ho strode towards the tent. He pulled back the cloth door, and as Kang Jin-ho entered, those who were resting inside the tent were startled and tried to get up.

Some tried to get up but their legs gave way and they collapsed back down.

“H-Hey, wake them up!”

“It’s okay.”

Kang Jin-ho waved his hand, stopping the person who was going to wake up the sleeping soldiers.

“Sit down.”

“Yes!”

Perhaps because they were soldiers, they didn’t say a word. As soon as Kang Jin-ho spoke, everyone took their seats.

Kang Jin-ho looked around at everyone.

Although they didn’t say anything, most of their eyes were full of dissatisfaction.

“Don’t whine.”

“Don’t even show that you’re having a hard time.”

The soldiers looked at Kang Jin-ho with slightly challenging eyes.

“Is there anyone who was forced to come here?”

“…No, sir.”

“If you don’t like this, go back. I’ll tell you now. Anyone who wants to can be sent back to America that day.”

The soldiers lowered their heads.

“Even in the moments when you were living comfortably, there were people here who endured several times that amount of training. It’s ridiculous to try to find an easy way while trying to catch up to them.”

As Kang Jin-ho finished speaking and took a drag of his cigarette, a soldier raised his hand.

“Speak.”

“It’s not that we’re dissatisfied with the harshness of the training. It’s just that we’re wondering if this kind of training method will be effective.”

“Wondering?”

Kang Jin-ho tilted his head as if he was puzzled.

“Then what did you think you would learn?”

“New martial arts… or skills that would make us stronger faster.”

Kang Jin-ho laughed.

“We’re doing that right now.”

“…I don’t quite understand.”

“What we’re doing now is the fastest way to get stronger. And it will be a new training method for you.”

Kang Jin-ho said, looking around at everyone.

“I won’t tell you to understand. And you don’t need to understand.”

Questioning eyes were focused on him.

“Ten days.”

“Just endure for ten days from now. I’ll make you understand with your bodies. After that, if you still think this method is meaningless, then either don’t follow my words and train on your own, or go back to America, do whatever you want.”

“Will you really show us the results?”

“I promise.”

“We’ll believe you!”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled and turned his body. Then the soldiers exchanged glances with each other.

They were probably thinking of enduring for about ten days.

This would soon spread throughout the entire division.

Lee Hyun-soo followed Kang Jin-ho as he walked towards the helicopter.

“Are you sure about this? Even if it’s ten days, there aren’t many days when the Clan Lord will come in person. To show results in ten days, the intensity of the training has to be high, but with the Chevaliers…”

“It’s okay.”

Kang Jin-ho said nonchalantly.

“It’s not like my training intensity is always high. I just need to roll one of the guys who’s just playing around.”

“Who?”

“Tell Bator to come tomorrow.”

“And Jang Min the day after.”

Lee Hyun-soo slowly turned his head.

Was he saying that the person who throws people into the air to play catch and the person who makes the Demonic Cult members break each other’s bones while fighting in the name of practical training were coming here?

‘I’m sorry, guys.’

I don’t have the power to stop it.

Man, they should have good memories of visiting Korea…

Lee Hyun-soo was now willing to bet his entire fortune that ‘after those guys go back from here, they won’t even pee in the direction of Korea for the rest of their lives.’