Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 478

Yearning (6)

2. Captured (1)

Anger.

Anger is quite a unique emotion. It’s perhaps the only emotion that can affect others simply by being held within oneself.

Someone’s sadness or joy doesn’t usually have a significant impact on others.

However, if someone near you is experiencing extreme anger, people tend to be wary of them.

Anger clouds judgment and makes people lose their composure. And even that anger varies in intensity depending on who is feeling it.

Cold sweat trickled down.

The sweat that had beaded on his forehead flowed down his nose and dripped to the floor. The sweat from the back of his neck flowed down his jawline.

Chai Ke-chang watched as the carpet beneath his feet became damp with his sweat.

If an ordinary person were to sweat this much, they would need to go to the hospital. For a martial artist like him, it was even more unusual.

But it was understandable.

He was currently facing the full force of the Hong King’s anger.

For most people, the moment the Hong King’s anger washed over them, their hearts would have stopped. Even a martial artist trained in combat would have lost consciousness from the intense emotion directed at him.

Chai Ke-chang bit his lip hard. His lip tore, and the metallic taste of blood filled his mouth. The pain helped clear his mind a little.

“Chai Ke-chang.”

A booming voice.

The voice, which seemed to crush his very soul, made Chai Ke-chang slam his head to the ground without a second thought.

“Speak, Hong King.”

“I have given you ample opportunities.”

“…That is correct.”

“Yet, you always disappoint me.”

Chai Ke-chang pressed his head further into the floor.

He had no excuse, not even if he had ten mouths to speak with.

‘Damn it, how did things get this far?’

It wasn’t that he lacked vigilance.

He served the Hong King. He had to be perfect in everything. He feared nothing more than ruining a major task with a careless mistake.

That’s why he had been so thorough in everything.

He wasn’t the type to just test the waters before crossing a bridge; he would build a new bridge next to it and cross that instead. That was how cautious he was in his work.

‘That was the wrong approach.’

No, it wasn’t wrong.

Objectively speaking, Chai Ke-chang’s method wasn’t bad. There was no better way to slowly gain control without disrupting the delicate balance of power in China.

His methods had been spot-on, and thanks to them, the Hong King’s faction, which had been at a disadvantage, had managed to gain some control.

That is, until that man appeared.

‘Kang Jin-ho!’

His appearance had thrown all of Chai Ke-chang’s plans into disarray.

‘Damn it.’

If he had made a mistake, it was in judging Kang Jin-ho within the realm of common sense. Logically, he shouldn’t have been that strong or that unconventional.

However, Kang Jin-ho had turned all the basic assumptions he had about martial artists into mere prejudices. Kang Jin-ho was someone who exceeded his imagination.

A deep sense of defeat.

He had to admit that he had failed to control Kang Jin-ho with tactics, not martial arts.

“I have nothing to say. Punish me as you see fit.”

The Hong King looked down at Chai Ke-chang without a word.

That gaze made Chai Ke-chang shrink even further.

He would have been less tormented if the Hong King had criticized and punished him. Sometimes, silence and inaction can be more painful than sharp words.

“Did I overestimate you?”

“I think not.”

The Hong King’s voice was filled with certainty.

“It must be that you and I underestimated Kang Jin-ho. Thanks to that, Kang Jin-ho unified Korea, overcame Japan’s interference, and established his own power base. Furthermore, he is now making connections with those foolish Westerners.”

“Please, kill me.”

“Kang Jin-ho is no longer someone we can simply assassinate. We should have cut him down before he grew this big. But now, it’s too late to cut him down.”

Chai Ke-chang agreed.

Kang Jin-ho had already completely taken control of the Korean martial arts world. Dealing with such a person was different from dealing with Kang Jin-ho when he was just a wild card.

Even if the Korean martial arts world was weak…

‘Their numbers cannot be ignored.’

The only way to deal with someone entrenched behind a wall of people is to tear down that wall. And that means war.

Killing so many people just to kill Kang Jin-ho was a burden no matter how he looked at it. They had overwhelming power, but there was no way they wouldn’t run into problems if they went to war with so many people.

He now understood the Hong King’s foresight in saying that they had to kill Kang Jin-ho, even if it meant sacrificing their power.

‘What did he see in Kang Jin-ho?’

Ten out of ten, a hundred out of a hundred, everyone would have thought the same as Chai Ke-chang. No matter how threatening Kang Jin-ho was, he wasn’t someone they had to eliminate at the cost of exposing their weaknesses to other kings.

And they thought that the Korean martial artists would be able to eliminate Kang Jin-ho on their own.

They should have listened to the Hong King’s concerns back then. If they had, things wouldn’t have come to this.

“You said the demons are stirring.”

“Yes.”

“What is the probability that the demons’ movements are related to Kang Jin-ho?”

“I don’t think it’s that likely…”

The Hong King frowned.

“You fool.”

“Please enlighten me, ignorant as I am.”

“Kang Jin-ho is a demon. And a powerful one, unlike any we’ve seen before. He might even possess the lost secrets of the Demonic Cult [a fictional, often villainous, martial arts sect]. The fact that such a person has appeared at the same time as the demons are stirring, and you haven’t even considered the connection!”

Chai Ke-chang slammed his head on the floor.

“I apologize.”

“Haa…”

The Hong King let out a low sigh. The emotion that dominated him now was frustration rather than anger.

Having the power to overturn the world was useless if he couldn’t act. He wanted to fly to Korea right now and kill Kang Jin-ho, but the moment he left his position, the other two kings would start to run wild.

Moreover, every time he was about to make a decision out of frustration and impulse, the Chang King was subtly making moves. It was as if he was trying to stop him from going to Kang Jin-ho.

‘It’s probably just my imagination…’

The Chang King’s antics were nothing new, so it was probably just a series of coincidences.

The problem was that these overlapping coincidences were making the situation strange. Thanks to them, Kang Jin-ho was establishing his own firm territory between the great powers of China and Japan. And now, even Europe was jumping into East Asia, so it was no wonder the Hong King had a headache.

“We can’t afford to delay any longer.”

“Yes.”

“We must eliminate Kang Jin-ho, even if it means some sacrifices.”

“H-However, Hong King.”

Chai Ke-chang hurriedly raised his head.

“Eliminating Kang Jin-ho is not difficult. But the sacrifices we would have to make to eliminate him are too great.”

“If there is no other way, we must accept the sacrifices.”

“Rather…”

Chai Ke-chang trailed off.

He hesitated because he knew his words would provoke the Hong King’s anger. But he was an advisor. He had to speak his mind, even if it meant incurring anger and insults.

“Rather, wouldn’t it be better to try to make peace with him?”

“…Did you just say make peace?”

“Yes.”

When the Hong King’s anger didn’t immediately erupt, Chai Ke-chang licked his lips.

“We cannot deny Kang Jin-ho’s abilities. In a short amount of time, he unified the Korean martial arts world and brought it completely under his control. He completely erased the influence of those who had previously held sway over the Korean martial arts world, leaving only his name behind.”

“…That’s bad news.”

“Thanks to that, the Korean martial arts world is more prosperous than ever. Opposing them will only create numerous problems. We would have to worry about the gap in our forces, the intervention of Japan, and the movements of the demons. Even insects can kill people if they swarm together.”

“So, you want to make peace?”

“If possible, I believe that would be the best course of action. It’s not just about suppressing the problem. The Korean martial arts world has already become a force to be reckoned with.

Bringing them over to our side…”

“Chai Ke-chang.”

The Hong King rested his chin on his throne and spoke softly.

“Have you forgotten? He is a demon.”

“Alright, let’s put aside the old-fashioned talk. It doesn’t matter if he’s a demon. Even if he is a demon, we should join hands if necessary. Even though I am a descendant of the righteous path, I know that in this era, we shouldn’t treat demons as mortal enemies and grind our teeth at them. This is a world where practicality is everything.”

Chai Ke-chang nodded vigorously.

This was what made him loyal to the Hong King. The Hong King’s power reached the heavens. Therefore, the Hong King was fully entitled to be arrogant.

However, the Hong King never easily fell into the trap of arrogance. He tried not to fall behind in the changing times, and he didn’t ignore the words of Chai Ke-chang, who was insignificant compared to him.

From that high position, Chai Ke-chang’s words might have seemed like the twitching of an ant’s antennae, but he always tried to pay attention to even the smallest movements.

“Even so, the problem is that he is a demon. Demons who have reached a certain level are extremely arrogant. Even if they haven’t reached that level, they are unlikely to have the cooperative spirit to join hands with others.”

“…Ah!”

“We might be able to lure him with bait for now, but we can’t have someone who might betray us at any moment at our backs.”

Chai Ke-chang lowered his head silently.

His thoughts were slightly different, but ultimately, the choice was the Hong King’s. He was just there to offer his opinion and advice. Once the Hong King had made his choice, it was best not to argue.

“Then we need another way.”

“I suppose so.”

The Hong King said bitterly.

“Summon Bator.”

“B-Bator…”

Chai Ke-chang’s eyes widened as if they would tear.

“Are you talking about Bator?”

“He’s the only force we can spare right now.”

“H-However, Bator…”

“I, too, am reluctant. But if more time passes, a situation will arise that even Bator cannot resolve. If that’s the case, we must resolve it before that happens. If we hesitate and miss our chance, we might be destroyed by Kang Jin-ho.”

Chai Ke-chang bit his lip hard.

This decisive judgment was the difference between him and the Hong King.

“I will carry out your orders, Hong King.”

The Hong King nodded slowly.

A weary fatigue settled on his face as he leaned back on his throne.

‘It’s getting tough.’

Even the giant who led the world was slowly being swallowed by the flow of time.