Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1999

Thud!

He kicks off the floor, moving forward like a flash of light. But Kang Jin-ho knows.

Even if his blood boils, even if his heart pounds as if it will burst…

Even if the murderous intent he thought he could control now surges out of control, like it did in the past…

‘This isn’t the place.’

This isn’t his battlefield.

The only one he has to fight is Cheongma [a mythical horse known for its speed and power]. And those facing them now are clearly not Cheongma.

The Twelve Flying Blades.

They are called the Black King’s hands and feet.

If you exclude the dead Pa Kwon and Nang Gon, the Blood King, and the rogue Gwe Bul who defected from the Twelve Flying Blades, there are exactly eight remaining here.

The moment he faced those eight, Kang Jin-ho stopped in his tracks.

If it were the old him, he would never have stopped. He would have killed anyone who stood in his way, without thinking about the consequences.

But he stopped after all.

And…

That might be proof that Kang Jin-ho is no longer stuck in the past. Whether it’s growth or regression, Kang Jin-ho can no longer be the person he was before.

“Demon Lord.”

A chilling voice comes from Gongryeong’s mouth. Kang Jin-ho, meeting his gaze, curls the corners of his lips.

“You dare show your face before me again.”

Gongryeong bites his lip.

The other Twelve Flying Blades don’t know. Or maybe Baek Yeon-hong barely knows.

Who exactly is standing before them right now.

‘Those who haven’t experienced it can’t possibly know. Absolutely not.’

The image of Kang Jin-ho still coming at him to kill him is vivid in his mind. If the Black King hadn’t used a scheme back then, Gongryeong wouldn’t be here right now.

He wouldn’t have died as miserably as the Blood King, but for Gongryeong at that time, death was an inevitable, certain outcome.

“Courage? Or recklessness?”

“Neither.”

Gongryeong looks straight at Kang Jin-ho and spits out the words.

“It’s just that there are unavoidable moments for people.”

Kang Jin-ho smiles as if he likes the answer.

“That’s right.”

That’s why he stood here too.

Kang Jin-ho looked at those blocking his path.

Familiar faces.

Baek Yeon-hong, Gongryeong, and even Shin-chang, whom he had only felt the energy of.

“Where’s the monk?”

“…He said it was all in vain.”

“At least one smart person among them.”

The moment Gongryeong was about to retort, Kang Jin-ho chuckled and continued.

“Including this side, I mean.”

Shin-chang glared at Hongwang with a face that was twice as sharp as before.

“You came after all.”

“Hmm.”

“Don’t think that’s the end, Hongwang. I’ll finish you for good this time.”

«Ugh.»

“o’ •”

Hongwang frowned slightly.

“I’m not interested in a match that’s already over. Is there no one stronger than you?”

Shin-chang gritted his teeth.

The previous match was clearly his defeat.

But that wasn’t a match with his full strength. If he can’t avenge that defeat, he can’t take a single step forward.

“Baek Yeon-hong.”

A murderous voice flowed from Bator’s mouth.

Baek Yeon-hong gives them a strange smile.

“It seems you haven’t been just playing around. You’ve gotten quite strong.”

“But it’s still insignificant. Step aside. What I want is the Demon Lord’s head.”

“You arrogant bastard!”

It was Jang Min who reacted to those words.

“I should tear that mouth of yours and feed it to the dogs to bring you to your senses!”

Baek Yeon-hong didn’t show any particular reaction to Jang Min’s anger. He just kept his eyes on Kang Jin-ho.

He knew Baek Yeon-hong, Shin-chang, and Gongryeong, but the others were strangers.

But the energy emanating from them was no less than the others.

‘Of course.’

These are the ones that Cheongma carefully selected. There’s no way there would be anyone clumsy among them.

But…

Kang Jin-ho quietly clenched his fist.

It was at that very moment that his eyes turned cold.

“No, no. That’s cheating.”

A cheerful voice came from the end of the corridor.

Kang Jin-ho silently turned his head and looked in the direction of the voice. A person was walking leisurely from the corner of the corridor where deep darkness had settled.

“Cheongma.”

“It’s been a while, Cult Leader. No… we’ve been calling each other quite often, so it’s strange to say it’s been a while.”

Cheongma shook his head.

“You’re someone you can’t let your guard down around.”

Cheongma, who had walked over leisurely, reached out and patted Baek Yeon-hong’s shoulder.

“How does it feel to come back from the gates of hell?”

“…What do you mean?”

“If I had been just a little late, that guy would have torn you all to pieces right here.”

The eyes of the Twelve Flying Blades sink at those words.

“Even if he had to use up his strength killing you, it would have been a profitable calculation considering the number of people who would survive on the other side. Ha… this is really sad. That guy wasn’t this harsh originally. Now he doesn’t even give you time to pee.”

Cheongma, no, the Black King, shook his head.

“I guess it can’t be helped. We’ve fallen into an era without romance.”

At those words, the Twelve Flying Blades and the council directors simultaneously looked at Kang Jin-ho. Kang Jin-ho didn’t deny or affirm anything. But those who saw his calm reaction knew that what the Black King had just said was absolutely not a lie.

“Are you done talking?”

The Black King turned to Kang Jin-ho and smiled brightly.

“Why are you in such a hurry? It’s not like we can’t have a conversation like this.”

Kang Jin-ho’s cold eyes stared at the Black King.

Then, the Black King slowly walked and stood right in front of Kang Jin-ho.

The eyes of the two people standing close to each other collided in the air. A distance that could be reached by stretching out a hand. A distance that was close not only for martial artists but also for ordinary people.

Everyone fell silent.

The Demon King and the Black King.

And the Red Demon and the Blue Horse.

The fact that those two were confronting each other so closely made the council directors and the Twelve Flying Blades tremble with a pressure that made it hard to breathe. Even Hongwang himself just clenched his fist with his mouth shut.

It wasn’t like they were emitting a great aura. It wasn’t like they were suppressing the surroundings with force.

Just people and people.

The presence they possessed made even these great people unable to breathe.

“Hmm.”

The Black King made a short nasal sound and put his hand into his pocket. Then, he took out a cigarette from his pocket and offered it to Kang Jin-ho.

“It seems this guy is lacking nicotine. I knew it, so I prepared it in advance.”

“Here, I prepared it for you to smoke. I’ve been a professional at this kind of thing since a long time ago.”

Kang Jin-ho stared at Cheongma for a moment, then chuckled.

Cheongma, who had put a cigarette in Kang Jin-ho’s mouth, lightly flicked his fingers to create a flame.

The end of the cigarette that Kang Jin-ho was holding crackled and burned.

Cheongma, who extinguished the fire by waving his fingers, smiled brightly.

“I know, I know. It’s a harsh era now.”

“But even Cult Leader, you must sometimes miss the past, right? That time, that barbaric era. But that era, as barbaric as it was, was also full of romance.”

Kang Jin-ho, who slowly exhaled cigarette smoke, looked at the Black King with sunken eyes.

“What do you want to say?”

“So!”

The Black King smiled brightly.

“If we’re going to set up a stage, let’s do it properly.

Come, follow me.”

“This way.”

Cheongma turned his body and walked down the corridor.

Then, the other Twelve Flying Blades also turned their bodies without hesitation and began to walk after the Black King.

“Lord.”

When Wiggins spoke as if he was slightly uncomfortable, Kang Jin-ho slowly shook his head.

“He’s not the type to dig a trap now.”

“Let’s go. I wonder what he’s prepared.”

Kang Jin-ho slowly walked and began to follow them.

After all, this is an underground area with only one entrance. There’s no way for them to escape either.

No.

Escaping itself is admitting defeat.

They would rather fight and die than turn their backs and run away on their own.

They must be hungry too.

Cheongma, who was walking at the front, slowly slowed down. Cheongma, who had sent the other Twelve Flying Blades ahead, came right next to Kang Jin-ho and began to walk in step with him.

“It’s good. We used to walk like this a lot in the past. Originally, my place was one step behind you. You gave me the authority to stand next to you, Cult Leader, didn’t you?”

“You deserved it back then.”

“Then how about now? Do I still deserve it now?”

“You have the qualifications.”

Kang Jin-ho twisted the corners of his lips.

“It’s just that we can’t walk together anymore. Isn’t that right?”

At Kang Jin-ho’s words, Cheongma smiled with a face that resembled Kang Jin-ho.

“What do you want to do?”

“It’s nothing special. I just think that everything has a fitting end.”

Cheongma nodded.

“This is the final stop, where we can’t go any further. The work I’ve done, the Cult Leader’s will, and the long relationship we’ve had will all end here.”

Kang Jin-ho didn’t bother to answer.

But his thoughts were no different from the Black King’s.

“So, we need a stage that is fitting for it.”

The moment Kang Jin-ho reached the end of the corridor and turned the corner, a different scene unfolded before his eyes.

A large window.

A large window that took up an entire wall. Beyond that window, a large open space that was hard to imagine being underground revealed itself.

“Here it is.”

The Black King smiled.

“It’s originally one of the hangars for storing missiles, but it’s not used now. How is it? Isn’t it just right?”

“…What do you mean by ‘just right’?”

“Oh, you still don’t understand. You’ll understand when you see that.”

At the Black King’s words, Kang Jin-ho turned his head and looked at the hangar again. Only then did Kang Jin-ho see what the Black King was talking about.

Cameras.

At the end of the large space, more than ten cameras were installed. The cameras were pointed at the center of the open space.

“You…”

The Black King twisted the corners of his lips.

“You said it, Cult Leader, to prove your worth.”

“But if you think about it, it’s a funny thing to say. After we fight each other in this underground place, and I shout that I won, there’s no way that worth will be proven.”

Kang Jin-ho’s eyes distorted.

“If we’re going to do it, let’s do it properly, let’s set up a proper stage. Let’s decide who will be the last one standing in front of everyone. This is romance. A worn-out romance that only existed in the past and doesn’t exist in this world!”

The Black King bared his teeth.

“A romance called a martial arts contest.”

“It’s the most concise and intuitive. There’s no more certain way to compete to see who is stronger. Decide the method as you please. I’ll follow whatever it is.”

A twisted smile escaped from Kang Jin-ho’s mouth.

“So… you want us to act like clowns in front of everyone?”

“We’ll show the world.”

“Who the people they’re dealing with are, who they have to coexist with, and that we’re not just beings that should disappear into the darkness!”

The Black King’s expression hardened coldly.

“What we have accomplished.”

“What do you think?”

Crack.

The end of the cigarette burned red.

Kang Jin-ho, who slowly exhaled smoke, roughly twisted the corners of his mouth.

“Do as you please.”

“If you’re going to die in front of the world, there’s no reason to stop you.”