Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 692

“My Lord, how can I ever atone for this sin…?”

“Stop talking like you’re in a historical drama.”

“I cannot bear the weight of my sin. Please, kill me!”

“I said stop it.”

Ju Gang was kneeling in front of Kang Jin-ho, his head bowed to the ground in a gesture of deepest apology.

Kang Jin-ho sighed deeply as he looked at him.

“…Thinking about it, I’m partly to blame, so let’s just stop.”

“My Lord!”

“I said stop it!”

Kang Jin-ho yelled out in frustration.

Seriously, why do these guys all act like they’re in a historical drama? Every single one of them who utters the words ‘Demon Lord’ turns into a loyal subject of a fallen kingdom, wailing with all their might.

Anyone would think an enemy was invading.

“This won’t do, Chief.”

“Hmm…”

Jang Da-jing, who had lowered the hood of his jacket, shook his head. White smoke billowed out from the closed hood.

“I don’t know what happened. We need a professional.”

“I see.”

Kang Jin-ho looked around with a slightly troubled expression.

‘But where am I supposed to find a professional?’

The car had stopped in the middle of a national highway.

It wasn’t exactly an accident. It was just the price they had to pay for pushing the car too hard in their rush to get to Beijing as soon as possible.

“Jang Da-jing.”

Batoru frowned slightly.

“Why didn’t you rent a better car?”

“Batoru, it’s hard to find a van like this. And you shouldn’t forget that this is China.”

“Hmm…”

Batoru reluctantly nodded.

It wasn’t easy to rent a van, let alone a regular car. It was a miracle that they even managed to get this one. Considering that, they should have treated the car like royalty, but the problem was that they had stepped on the accelerator without thinking.

“So, what do we do?”

“They said they can’t provide service right now. They told us to wait until morning.”

“Morning?”

“Yes. But they say that, they’ll probably come after lunch. Like they always do.”

“Ugh.”

Batoru groaned.

China’s high-tech industry was developing day by day, but the service industry just didn’t seem to be improving. Especially emergency services like this.

Considering that China was so vast, it was understandable that it took time to arrive, but even taking all that into account, the quality of service was still low.

“So, what should we do? Does this mean we have to wait here until morning? No, did they say lunch?”

Batoru turned his head towards Kang Jin-ho, as if he didn’t like the idea.

“Master, wouldn’t it be faster to just run?”

“Hmm?”

“We can just carry the luggage.”

“Can Jang Da-jing run that far?”

“If it comes to it, I’ll carry him on my shoulders.”

Jang Da-jing’s face turned pale.

“…I think I’d rather die.”

“Why?”

“I can’t do it!”

Jang Da-jing vehemently protested. As an adult man, being carried on another man’s shoulders was an utter humiliation. Especially when he wasn’t even injured.

“Hmm, then what should we do?”

Kang Jin-ho looked around.

There weren’t many lights. This was common when driving on China’s national highways. There were many people living there, but because the land was so vast, you could find complete forests or grasslands once you left the city.

“Do you think there are any houses around?”

“If we look, we might find one or two.”

Kang Jin-ho, who had been pondering at Jang Da-jing’s words, shook his head.

“Let’s not bother looking for a house.”

“Why not?”

“Even if we find one, I don’t have the confidence to bring this guy in.”

“…I understand.”

Jang Da-jing nodded without hesitation after seeing Batoru’s massive physique.

Finding a house in this darkness and going inside?

People who saw Batoru would be lucky not to die of a heart attack. It would be better if a goblin came instead.

No matter how nicely you explained it, those who met Batoru in a remote place would seriously consider whether they could survive if they offered him an arm to eat.

“But we can’t just stay here…”

Batoru scratched his head.

“Master! I’ve got a great idea.”

“Huh?”

“Let’s hitchhike.”

“There’s no way a car that you can fit in will pass by.”

“Hehehe, foolish. You sometimes have a bad habit of not thinking. There are plenty of cars here that I can ride in.”

Kang Jin-ho nodded as if he understood.

It didn’t have to be a passenger car. They had taken a van to avoid attention, but for Batoru, a truck bed would be better. Besides, it was late at night. If they could get to Beijing before sunrise, they wouldn’t have to worry about other people’s eyes.

“You’re smart.”

“Hehe, you caught on faster than I thought. Excellent.”

Jang Da-jing opened his mouth as he watched the two of them praising each other.

“Um, I was hesitant to say this…”

“Huh?”

“Why?”

Jang Da-jing opened his mouth weakly.

“No cars have passed by here for the last 30 minutes.”

A deep despair descended.

‘I wish I could just eat a cup of ramen.’ It feels kind of cold.

Even though it was autumn, there was no way that Jang Da-jing, who was a martial artist, would feel cold in this weather. If so, this wasn’t a physical cold, but a cold in his heart.

To be sleeping on the street with these people.

Of course, it wasn’t exactly sleeping on the street. They had a large car that could be used as a camper if necessary. It would be perfect if it wasn’t for the fact that the car had broken down and wouldn’t start.

“I don’t want to say this…”

Batoru opened his mouth quietly.

“Isn’t this kind of… atmospheric?”

Jang Da-jing flinched at Batoru’s words, which accurately pierced his inner thoughts.

“Batoru, you must have a lot of experience with this, right?”

“Hmm, why do you think so?”

“Because you’re a warrior of the grasslands. You must always have the wonderful experience of lying in the vast grasslands and looking at the stars.”

“Yeah.”

“What does it feel like?”

“Hmm, how should I explain it?”

Batoru seemed to ponder for a moment before opening his mouth.

“The grasslands get dark early. When the sun sets, I usually go into the ger [a traditional Mongolian tent] to sleep, but there are days when I can’t sleep even late at night.”

Everyone focused on Batoru’s words. It was an experience they had never had.

“On those days, I come out of the ger and go out to the grasslands. If you lie down on the vast grasslands and look at the sky, you can see the Milky Way, which looks like it’s about to pour down. Every time I see it, I think, ‘Were there always this many stars in the sky?’”

“Ah!”

It was a beautiful sight, even just imagining it.

Jang Da-jing asked in a slightly raised voice.

“What do you feel when you see that sight?”

“Hmm, when I see that sight…”

“Yes.”

Batoru chuckled as he looked at the excited Jang Da-jing.

“It’s cold.”

“…Yes?”

“And it smells.”

“And there are bugs. Ugh, just thinking about it makes me sick.”

Jang Da-jing’s fantasy shattered and scattered to the floor.

“Isn’t this usually the time for a romantic line?”

“Romantic, my ass.” Batoru said with a sneer.

“You guys only see it on TV or imagine it, so you think it’s beautiful, but do you think the people who actually live there like it? Go to Ulaanbaatar. There are endless apartments. If gers are so great, why would they sell all their possessions and move into apartments?”

Batoru’s barrage of facts was endless.

“Don’t say that to Mongolians. You’ll get hit with a dried cow’s head.”

“But Batoru, you’re a martial artist, so it must be bearable for you, right?”

“You’re kidding me.”

“Aren’t you?”

“There are some good things about being a martial artist. For one, I’m less sensitive to the cold. The nights in the grasslands are deadly. Normal people can’t handle it.”

Batoru shook his head as if he was disgusted.

“But there are more bad things. First of all, martial artists have more sensitive senses than ordinary people, so they suffer from the hellish smells.”

“Ah…”

“Starting with the dung of livestock, and since it’s hard to find water, it’s common to go around for about fifteen days without washing. Even the smell of people is terrible. And do you know how many bugs there are in the grasslands? I can chase away animals and people, but bugs… Ugh…”

“You can just blow them away with your energy.”

“I’m not a fan, I can’t keep emitting energy 24 hours a day. If I’m going to do that to live in the grasslands, I might as well live in an apartment.”

Jang Da-jing looked very wronged.

“Why don’t you have any romance, Batoru! Romance!”

“If I throw you into the grasslands and make you live there for a month, you’ll never say the word romance again, you idiot.”

Kang Jin-ho laughed heartily for the first time in a while after hearing Batoru’s words.

‘That’s definitely true.’

The life of the grasslands may look romantic on TV, but in reality, it’s just a continuation of life from hundreds of years ago.

‘It was terrible.’

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“It seems like you’re remembering something from your reaction, Master.”

“Hmm.”

Kang Jin-ho chuckled.

“I can tolerate everything else, but there are a few things I really hate, and one of them was hygiene.”

“Hmm, I understand what you mean.”

“It was a time when not taking a bath for a month was normal.”

“A month?”

Jang Da-jing’s eyes widened.

“How can a person not take a bath for a month?”

“It’s possible.”

Kang Jin-ho shook his head.

“If you live with people who don’t think it’s strange, it doesn’t become strange. There were many people who only took a bath twice a year. On the Double Ninth Festival [a traditional Chinese holiday] and New Year’s, they took a bath exactly twice.”

“Oh my god!”

“And one thing you need to know is… you shouldn’t think of a month in the current sense.”

“Why?”

“Because the environment is different. Nowadays, the streets are clean and there’s less dust. And clothes can be washed. But back then…”

Kang Jin-ho shuddered.

“It was an era when clothes were washed once a month, and livestock excrement was rolling around everywhere. Even if you just went outside for a day, your whole body would become dry and rough. You’d just rub it off roughly. No, if you even rubbed it off, you were lucky.”

Jang Da-jing trembled as if he was horrified.

“That’s terrible.”

Jang Da-jing was Chinese. He didn’t think he lacked a sense of hygiene, but after living in Korea for a few years, he sometimes thought that Chinese people were too indifferent to hygiene.

He thought that even when he saw modern people who didn’t have much difference in their concept of cleanliness, so what would a normal modern person think if they fell into that era?

‘Ugh, I don’t know.’

“But that was better.”

“Yes?”

“The real pain because of hygiene wasn’t about washing. If you didn’t encounter it, it was fine. But… you can’t avoid eating, you can’t.”

Kang Jin-ho’s body shrank.

Nothing in the world could oppress him, but those memories were still giving him pain, like a trauma.

“That… ugh, when I first saw how the food I was eating was made… ugh…”

“P-please stop, please stop!”

Jang Da-jing, who had recalled something he shouldn’t have, grabbed his mouth. His stomach was churning.

“Besides…”

Kang Jin-ho began to tell his story as if he was excited.