Descent of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 987

From Kang Jin-ho, who had taken a stance with swords in both hands, a savage aura began to emanate. It was different from a typical aura. A thick, chilling murderous intent. Just facing it made the hair on their entire bodies stand on end, and their hearts began to race out of control. ‘It’s like looking at a beast.’ Rather than a beast, a wild animal would be a more appropriate term. And not just any wild animal. “It’s as if Fenrir [a monstrous wolf in Norse mythology] has descended upon the world.” “Then does that mean it’s Ragnarok [the end of the world in Norse mythology] now?” “That’s unlikely. We are not gods, after all. But… it’s certain that he shows signs of becoming a beast of destruction.” Now, the duty of the Round Table felt insignificant. He was dangerous. Too dangerous. The Elder Knights were instinctively feeling it. He wasn’t just a threat to the Round Table. Considering the demonic energy he exuded, if they failed to stop him here, the whole world would groan under the claws of that beast. “We must kill him.” “There’s no room for disagreement.” The knights channeled their mana. The mana emanating from their hearts made their armor glow. Then, a change occurred. Rust fell from the old, worn armor, and a radiance emanated. Then, the shape of the armor began to change gradually. “Hmm?” Kang Jin-ho’s eyes widened slightly. Even for him, who had experienced countless sorceries in the Central Plains, this was a strange phenomenon he had never seen before. ‘Is this magic?’ The armor was changing. And not all of them were changing in the same way. Ordinary-looking armor was transforming into different shapes. Some of their armor turned into dazzling white plate armor, while others transformed into heavy-looking full plate armor. Among them, some had their armor completely disappear, replaced by light robes. ‘Interesting.’ The more he learned about magic, the more fascinating it seemed. It was to the point where he felt like learning it himself. But that was just a thought. There was no need to waste time on such trivial skills. It was just a convenient and interesting technique. It was far from the strength that Kang Jin-ho pursued. The cumbersome helmets disappeared, and the faces that were finally revealed were younger than expected. If the older knights had become Elder Knights, most of them should have been old men, but even the oldest among them didn’t look older than middle-aged. Whether this was also the effect of magic, or whether they had become Elder Knights without aging. ‘It doesn’t matter.’ They were going to die anyway. He could feel it. Their power. It was different from the grandeur of the Crimson King, which surged like a majestic mountain. It was closer to holiness. Stronger than expected, stronger than anticipated. Just by changing their armor, they felt like they had become different people. The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s lips curled up involuntarily. The fine hairs on the back of his hand were standing on end. His body was also feeling it. The ones he had to face from now on were ‘real’. ‘It’s a shame.’ He thought that conquering the Central Plains was the same as defeating all the strong in the world. But that wasn’t the case. Even when Kang Jin-ho ruled the Central Plains, these people must have existed in Europe. Although their appearances might have been slightly different from now, the Elder Knights certainly existed. Then how many strong people existed in the world even in that era? The Central Plains, which had felt endlessly vast at the time, now felt like a narrow well. “I am Gawain.” The Elder Knight at the front, holding a long spear. The one who introduced himself as Gawain pointed his spear at Kang Jin-ho. “You’d better be nervous, you Eastern demon. We will now do our best to defeat you.” “…But you can be proud.” The Elder Knight with a long sword stood next to Gawain and continued. “This is the first time our Knights of the Round Table have attacked a single person. And it will be the last. So you can die with pride.” Kang Jin-ho chuckled. They must have pride. They must have pride in themselves. They had never met anyone stronger than themselves in their time. That’s why they were chosen by the Round Table and became guardians of the Round Table. But…. ‘They’re doomed.’ They were not martial artists. Whether it was the difference between East and West, their feelings upon meeting an opponent across time were completely different from Kang Jin-ho. While Kang Jin-ho was feeling the joy of meeting another strong person across time, they were overconfident in their own power. Then he had to show them. How narrow the world they knew was. How pathetic it was to act like kings in that narrow world. And…. What it meant to be strong. Kang Jin-ho’s hand gripped Red Dew tightly. “You can keep talking.” Kang Jin-ho grinned, baring his teeth. Black demonic energy began to seep out from under his feet. The demonic energy, which had initially swirled around his feet like a current, surged explosively and enveloped Kang Jin-ho’s entire body. Then, it began to burn black like flames. “Because you won’t be able to talk again.” A voice like scraping metal. Even the Elder Knights of the world flinched and trembled at the sight. “…Is he really a demon?” “At least he looks the part. To meet a demon as the first opponent after waking up in three hundred years.” They felt tension. But they didn’t feel fear. True to their reputation, the Elder Knights did not lose their fighting spirit even after seeing Kang Jin-ho’s appearance. “Death to the enemy.” “Death to the enemy!” With a resounding cry that echoed through the hall, the Elder Knights charged towards Kang Jin-ho. The corners of Kang Jin-ho’s mouth, which had been emitting streaks of blood-red light, rippled. With a chilling smile, Kang Jin-ho also ran towards them. Clang! Gawain, gripping his long spear, poured in as much mana as he could. His spear emitted a white glow. “Uooooooo!” Gawain’s spear rotated and extended forward. Whoosh! At the same time, a huge current was created in front of the long spear. The swirling current exploded forward. The white vortex flew towards Kang Jin-ho as if it would sweep everything away. Kang Jin-ho’s eyes twitched. Red Dew sliced through the incoming vortex vertically. The current split to the left and right, striking the walls of the hall. Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! With a sound like gravel being sucked into a screw, the vortex pierced through the walls of the hall. Even the walls reinforced with magic could not withstand the current created by Gawain. A dark hole was created in the wall. It was impossible to see how far it had penetrated. “Oooooh!” Gawain thrust his spear again. Each thrust created a vortex. A dozen vortices flew towards Kang Jin-ho’s entire body. The flames surrounding Red Dew and Blue Dew flared explosively. Whoooom! Red Dew and Blue Dew, which had been resonating, slashed through the space erratically. A wall of burning black flames swallowed all of Gawain’s vortices. ‘Swallowed?’ It wasn’t just blocked. It literally swallowed them. With overwhelming energy, he literally annihilated the opponent’s energy. “Huu!” Gawain gasped. It wasn’t that no one had ever blocked his Vortex. There were quite a few Elder Knights here who could block it without taking damage. But he had never seen the Vortex itself being absorbed like that. And that wasn’t the end of it. Whoosh! At the same time as a clear shout was heard, Kang Jin-ho’s body appeared, piercing through the wall of flames. Gawain, momentarily flustered, was exposed defenselessly in front of Kang Jin-ho’s sword. “This!” Kang Jin-ho’s Red Dew tore through the air and descended towards Gawain. Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! But Gawain’s body did not split. A heavily armored knight, holding a huge shield, had blocked Kang Jin-ho’s attack with his shield. “Hmm?” Even Kang Jin-ho let out a groan for a moment. His Red Dew, which had been splitting everything, could not penetrate the opponent’s shield. Although it left a long mark along the shield, the fact that the attack was blocked did not change. “Brunor!” “Uwaaaaaaa!” The huge knight called Brunor shouted and pushed his shield forward. ‘Bator?’ The name Bator flashed through Kang Jin-ho’s mind for a moment. Of course, he was not comparable to Bator. This man’s physique was still within the realm of a normal person, and his strength was not even close to Bator’s. But just because he was not comparable to Bator did not mean he was not strong. In terms of pure strength, he might not be comparable to Bator, but the technique combined with the shield was making up for that lack of power. Kang Jin-ho’s body was pushed back. “Shoot!” Brunor pushed his shield forward and then leaped backward. The flames covering Kang Jin-ho’s face flickered. His vision was filled with arrows of light covering the ceiling. Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! A rain of light descended. If those arrows of light were real arrows, they would have obscured even the sun. That many arrows of light, carrying dozens of times the power of ordinary arrows, poured down towards Kang Jin-ho’s body. Red Dew and Blue Dew quickly created a burning sword wall above Kang Jin-ho’s head. Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! The arrows that collided with the black burning sword wall bounced off in all directions, making a sound like bullets hitting an iron wall. “Fire!” Then, a hot heat enveloped Kang Jin-ho. ‘What is this?’ Kang Jin-ho’s eyes narrowed. He could see it. Behind the arrows of light pouring into the sword wall, a huge flame was burning. A torrent of flames, so powerful that it looked like a river overflowing its banks, covered Kang Jin-ho’s body. Whoooosh! “Uooooooo!” Gawain grabbed his spear again and launched a vortex. Gawain, who had launched dozens of vortices at Kang Jin-ho, who was engulfed in flames and could not even be seen, stopped in his place, breathing heavily. “Did we get him?” “Ptooey!” Brunor, who spat on the floor, straightened his shield and opened his mouth. “Don’t talk nonsense.” “…Kuh.” “He’s not someone who would be defeated by that. Today, we really have to risk our lives.” Brunor’s eyes turned to his hand. The hand holding the shield was trembling. Just one collision. There had only been one exchange of pushing Kang Jin-ho back with the shield, but his hand was trembling, unable to withstand the momentary reverse force. ‘He’s a monster.’ His strength and power. It wasn’t just that he had the form of a demon. He was truly a monster. Today, their fate would be one of two things. Either they would capture the demon and save this world, or they would be torn to pieces by the demon’s hands. Brunor stared at the burning flames with tense eyes. And finally…. Whoosh! From within the red burning flames, a black flame emerged, and then swallowed all the burning flames. The black demonic flame, like wings, slowly walked out from within, like a demon. Brunor’s teeth clenched tightly.