Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2115

Jang Min and Bator stared blankly at Kang Jin-ho.

“Uh…”

It was when Bator was about to say something, something definitely not good.

“…Is that guy crazy?”

Bator’s head turned sharply to the side. Jang Min seemed not to even know what he had just said, staring at Kang Jin-ho with a blank look.

What was even more absurd was that Bator had momentarily thought, ‘It’s understandable.’ That’s how ridiculous what Kang Jin-ho had just said was.

“He’s going to make martial arts public?”

Bator turned to Lee Hyun-soo. His gaze held both the question, ‘Did I hear that right?’ and ‘Did you know about this?’ at the same time.

And Lee Hyun-soo, receiving that gaze, silently nodded.

“No…”

Even the great Bator was speechless at this situation, staring at Kang Jin-ho.

‘Is he out of his mind?’

Murtial arts are not something that can be shared. The Martial Arts Association, which has bound all martial artists within the nation of South Korea into one sect, is a unique case. In most cases, they are divided into countless small sects.

And it is absolutely forbidden to leak or pass on one’s martial arts to other sects. That is the basis of a martial artist, a law that has been followed for thousands of years.

But at this moment, Kang Jin-ho was rebelling against the history of martial artists.

“…How is he going to handle it? The backlash will be enormous.”

“Who?”

“Huh?”

Lee Hyun-soo gave a twisted smile.

“Who is going to object? The Crimson King and the Round Table have already pledged their full support. What can they do?”

“Backlash requires a focal point. And right now, in the thousands of years of martial arts history, only now has the martial arts world achieved complete unity.”

Lee Hyun-soo’s smile deepened.

“So, how are they going to object? How?”

He wanted to laugh.

If this wasn’t a press conference, he might have already burst out laughing. It felt like something that had been stuck in his chest had been cleared away at once.

“And it doesn’t matter if they object. The Association already has a global surveillance system in place. They will be suppressed immediately if they object. In any country where martial artists can make a meaningful move, and if the international cooperation proposed by the Chairman is completed, objection will be impossible anywhere.”

“This is crazy…”

Bator laughed in disbelief.

To think that the organization created to prevent crimes by martial artists and strengthen control over them would be used in this way.

“What are you thinking?”

“I’m eliminating them.”

“What?”

“The boundaries.”

Lee Hyun-soo chuckled.

“Martial artists will eventually lose to science. Someday, we will be defeated by them. So, all that’s left is to wait for the massacre that will happen someday, or to endure the discrimination given outside the lines they’ve drawn.”

“So, we’re eliminating the boundaries between martial artists and ordinary people. If anyone can become a martial artist, and anyone can become ordinary, then boundaries will be meaningless.”

“Do you think that makes any sense?”

“Why not?”

“What?”

“Why not?”

Lee Hyun-soo turned to Bator.

He was someone who was called a half-martial artist from the start. Therefore, he could understand Kang Jin-ho’s thoughts more clearly than others. He was truly one of the few boundary-crossers in this world.

“From the beginning, being a martial artist isn’t something you’re born with. You become a martial artist from the moment you build up internal energy [qi or life force] and learn martial arts. So why should there be limits on who can become a martial artist?”

“Do you know what that’s called?”

“What is it?”

“Privilege.”

Lee Hyun-soo continued, chuckling as if he couldn’t hold back his laughter.

“Martial artists are really a funny bunch. They act like victims to the outside world, but they don’t want to give up the tiny bit of privilege they hold.”

“If a fair world is achieved while martial artists maintain their own privileges, that’s not equality. It’s a world where only martial artists are superior.”

Bator’s face hardened.

Lee Hyun-soo’s words, like sharp needles, were piercing his heart.

“If you want something, you have to give something up. That’s the basis of a deal. Right now, the Chairman is saying he’ll give up the most powerful card that martial artists have.”

“No…”

“Maybe it’s already too late. If the Chairman had achieved this five hundred years ago, the boundary between martial artists and ordinary people would have disappeared a long time ago. Then, martial artists wouldn’t have had to go into hiding.

In the end, the only reason for everything is that they didn’t want to give up the meager martial arts they held in their hands.”

Bator bared his teeth.

“That sounds good. But do you know what that means? Are you saying you don’t know what kind of chaos will occur if martial arts spread to the world?”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“…What?”

“Aren’t we already forcing that on them? We’re saying we’ll mix in with you, so you have to endure the chaos.”

“What’s so wrong with sharing that chaos equally?”

“Chief Lee…”

Seeing Bator at a loss for words, Lee Hyun-soo finally burst out laughing. It wasn’t because Bator was funny. It was a feeling he couldn’t hold back without laughing.

The subtle sense of incongruity that he couldn’t quite shake off, even while working for Kang Jin-ho and the Association. He had finally figured out the nature of that incongruity.

And that reckless man had confronted it head-on. Without a moment’s hesitation.

‘That’s Kang Jin-ho for you.’

The moment borders are created, wars do not disappear. People distinguish between allies and enemies by drawing lines.

If you truly want peace, there is only one thing to do. Eliminate the lines, eliminate the boundaries, and make everything equal.

‘The Crimson King knew it.’

That there was only one answer to everything.

But that answer was something the Black King could not give. The Black King alone could not choose that option. He was a revenger, not a harmonizer.

That’s why the Crimson King chose Kang Jin-ho as the one to carry out his will.

Kang Jin-ho is different from the Crimson King. He is someone who can fight for harmony, not to struggle.

And now, Kang Jin-ho had finally thrown himself into that great war. A choice that might turn both the outside world and the martial arts world against him.

Lee Hyun-soo looked at Bator and Jang Min’s faces.

Even they, who could be called Kang Jin-ho’s most loyal subordinates, couldn’t hide their bewilderment. So, what would be the shock to others?

Martial artists were people who had endured all the inconveniences and dangers with the pride that they alone were martial artists. But Kang Jin-ho had denied all of that, so how could they not feel shocked?

But Lee Hyun-soo knew.

‘The moment the world changes is always like this.’

The only way to move a world that has become firmly fixed is to break it.

Lee Hyun-soo took a deep breath and looked at Kang Jin-ho.

The most powerful martial artist he knew, and the strongest person he knew.

‘Good luck, Chairman.’

His eyes, with his fist clenched tightly, clearly captured Kang Jin-ho’s figure.

“I-Is that possible?”

Kang Jin-ho nodded at the question from a reporter who hadn’t even revealed their identity.

“Of course, it’s possible.”

“Is martial arts something that anyone can learn?”

“Yes. From the beginning, the concept of martial arts isn’t that different from the martial arts you are familiar with. It’s just a little more advanced, with some special elements added.”

“But…”

“There’s no need to think of it as difficult.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

“Of course, it would be impossible for you to become like the martial artists you see in the media right away.”

The reporters all nodded as if they were mesmerized.

“But that’s just saying it’s difficult, not impossible. Think of it like sports. Anyone can play soccer with just a ball, but only a limited number of people become professionals.”

“But you don’t need any qualifications to learn soccer. I’m going to make martial arts like that.”

The reporters froze.

It wasn’t because the words themselves were shocking. It was because it was hard to understand what these words meant, and they didn’t know what to say first.

“W-Wait a minute, Mr. Kang Jin-ho.”

A reporter jumped up from their seat.

“So, to summarize, you’re saying that the martial arts world is not only going to make the martial arts they’ve monopolized public, but also provide guidance so that it can be easily learned?”

“Yes.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded.

“I won’t make a show of it with third-rate martial arts. The martial arts I will make public will be the basic skills that have been stabilized after a long period of verification by the Korean Martial Arts Association. And following that, I will sequentially release the martial arts that advanced practitioners learn.”

“Then, what benefit do martial artists get from that?”

“Didn’t I tell you?”

Kang Jin-ho said calmly.

“What we want to achieve through all of this is to stand on the same starting line.”

“This one decision won’t make everything equal. There will still be walls between each other. But please remember. At this moment, we have broken down one wall.”

The sound of someone swallowing hard was clearly heard by everyone.

“One by one, as we break down the remaining walls, there will come a day when it won’t be strange for us to live in the same world. What I want… what we want is only that.”

Kang Jin-ho smiled brightly and looked at the camera, or rather, at everyone watching him from beyond it.

“At this moment, you just need to remember one thing.”

“We extended our hand first.”

There was no one here who didn’t understand the meaning of those words.

“It is your right not to take that hand.

But we will continue to extend our hand. If no one extends their hand first, the day when different people hold hands will never come.”

A splendid, too splendid smile bloomed on Kang Jin-ho’s lips.

Perhaps he had returned to this world to say these words.

“So, I dare to ask you. Please take this hand we have extended. Then, we can open a world where everyone can be happy.”

Kang Jin-ho, looking back at the silent reporters, quietly but firmly concluded.

“That’s all.”

Kang Jin-ho, who bowed deeply and reverently, left the press conference hall. Toward his back, the reporters’ shouts and the dazzling flashes poured down like stars filling the night sky.