Ch 32
#Heavenly Demon Jin Woo-gwang (3)
Jang Yi-seo silently offered his gratitude to Jeon-in in his heart.
To think a place he’d stumbled into by chance held such treasures.
Was this a dream or reality?
It was too soon to let himself get carried away.
‘Huhu.’
Laughter kept spilling from within him, but it was mere instinct. Now wasn’t the time to laugh aloud.
He needed to investigate. As he’d sensed earlier, someone was managing this place.
‘But all the Demon Sect bastards’ loot is mine now. Huhu.’
Jang Yi-seo grinned darkly. At any rate, he’d confirmed the entrance—now he needed to find the exit.
‘Left or right? Which way?’
Jang Yi-seo pressed flat against the floor, scrutinizing it. His sharp vision captured the scattered sand grains like a painted tableau.
As expected. This was definitely inhabited.
‘Loose dirt means someone tracked it in from outside. And the trail thins further inward. That means the exit connecting to the outside lies ahead.’
With heightened senses, Jang Yi-seo advanced without hesitation. At the next fork, he boldly swerved right.
A red carpet unfurled before him. Glass display cases filled with ornaments lined the pristine hallway.
‘This place…’
An obsessively tidy corridor.
What kind of facility was this?
He stood dumbfounded, soul nearly leaving his body—
Ping!
From the shadowed end of the distant path, a hidden weapon shrieked through the air at impossible speeds.
A formless blade of wind!
Thud! Whirr!
With a piercing shriek, Jang Yi-seo’s body spun like a top before crashing down.
He barely caught himself in a low stance, palm slapping the floor.
The fluttering hem of his robe now bore a small hole.
“Hurt?”
Jang Yi-seo’s head jerked up at the unfamiliar voice.
He realized:
He’d stepped where he should never have trespassed.
“What an amusing child.”
The seductive beauty with crimson lips smiled faintly, alternating glances between his wind-projecting finger and Jang Yi-seo.
‘Heavenly…Demon…!’
Heavenly Demon Jin Woo-gwang.
Correct.
This was the Heavenly Demon Hall.
He’d walked straight into hell’s furnace.
Nineteen years had passed since the era of peace began.
Yet to Jang Yi-seo, the Heavenly Demon remained history’s greatest traitor and most vile figure.
The reasons were countless. His hands had annihilated countless families and sects, forcing others to seal their gates.
But from the orthodox factions’ perspective. Personally, Jang Yi-seo had three reasons.
First: Thirty years prior, the decade-long War of Tearing Skies began with Jin Woo-gwang’s invasion of the central plains.
The death toll—innocents and soldiers alike—reached tens of thousands.
Jang Yi-seo became war’s orphan.
Second: The cursed Loneliness embedded in his heart.
Originally a relic of the fallen Blood Sect, revived by the Demon Sect’s Sixth Elder, the Poisonous Demon Doctor (毒産魔醫).
Naturally under Jin Woo-gwang’s orders.
No direct connection to Jang Yi-seo. Yet had that Loneliness not been resurrected, Zhuge Sang wouldn’t have needed to save him.
Moreover, the Loneliness in his chest was a modified new strain even the Sixth Elder couldn’t recognize.
How could he not resent this?
Third…he’d witnessed it firsthand.
Dozens of spies captured by counterintelligence—drained through the Star-Devouring Demon Art, then stripped of life force via occult arts.
As a grunt then, Jang Yi-seo had cremated spies reduced to instant skeletons.
In that moment, he knew:
This bastard was truly a devil.
Yet.
“Hurt?”
To meet him like this—a rat caught sneaking into the master’s house.
Fight? Or…
“What an amusing child.”
Jang Yi-seo froze like ice, then threw himself prostrate at the voice’s return.
“Heavenly Demon Supreme, May Ten Thousand Demons Serve! Jang Yi-seo, aide to the Seventh Prince, pays respects to the Sect Leader!”
Fight? Bullshit. A tenth of the Demon’s power meant instant death. Charging meant dog’s death. Jang Yi-seo dry-swallowed, awaiting response while preparing for worst-case scenarios.
‘Distance: ten paces. Thunderbolt Strike hit chance here? Not 10%. Needs 30%—must close within three paces.’
Countless defeat scenarios flashed through his mind. The Sect Leader’s calm made such thoughts absurd.
“So you’re the destined one Mao spoke of.”
“Y-yes…?”
“Rise.”
“Ah…”
Jang Yi-seo stood slowly, bewildered, then cautiously studied Jin Woo-gwang.
White-haired yet peerlessly beautiful. Who knew he could smile so?
Far kinder than remembered.
More strikingly—
His eyes brimmed with void. Like one who’d achieved all, leaving no regrets.
“What? Do I fascinate you?”
“M-my apologies!”
Jang Yi-seo hastily bowed. He’d stared too openly. As he lowered his head—
Gasp!
He nearly screamed and rolled aside. Because of the shadow beneath him when he looked down.
When had he moved? Jin Wookwang, who had been standing ten paces ahead, suddenly materialized right behind him. Then, exuding a chilling aura, he seized Jang I-seo's wrist and checked his pulse.
"Your energy sense is passable, but the energy stored in your dantian is murky and insubstantial."
Why did he have to hear this from his mortal enemy, the Heavenly Demon? Jang I-seo felt an inexplicable pang of shame, his brow furrowing in frustration.
But then.
"It must have been hard. Your mind had already scaled the peak and set its sights on the next mountain, but your body couldn’t keep pace. Frustrating, wasn’t it?"
Jang I-seo couldn’t believe his ears. What was this? These gentle, empathetic words—was this truly the Heavenly Demon, Jin Wookwang?
The first words of comfort about his body had come from none other than the Heavenly Demon.
Jin Wookwang released Jang I-seo’s hand and placed it back in its original position. Then, with his hands clasped behind his back, he strode forward and continued speaking.
"My child is indebted to you. As a father, I cannot simply overlook it. Tell me what you desire."
Thud! His mind jolted awake.
What was happening? Was the Heavenly Demon truly offering to grant him any wish?
Thump, thump.
His breathing quickened, and his blood grew hot. To claim he wasn’t tempted would be an outright lie.
But.
"I desire nothing," Jang I-seo replied firmly. He was a spy, and his opponent was the Heavenly Demon, Jin Wookwang. A careless request would leave him vulnerable.
"Truly? Nothing?" Jin Wookwang asked, eyes widening in surprise. Jang I-seo met his gaze squarely and nodded.
"Yes. Nothing."
"Is that so... Then die."
What?! A murderous aura erupted from the Heavenly Demon’s body. Jang I-seo panicked and shouted.
"Why all of a sudden—?"
"Because I do not spare those who lack desire."
What ruthless logic was this? Killing someone for having no desires? And his face remained disturbingly cheerful.
"Do you know why?"
"I have no idea."
"Those without desires have nothing to lose. They do not yield. They do not truly follow. Even if they bow today, they’ll rise tomorrow to stab you in the back. That is why I eliminate them. This sect exists for one alone—my will is absolute."
Was he serious? Jang I-seo protested, indignation rising.
"I would never betray the sect leader or this sect!"
A lie, of course—he’d never believed in them. But Jin Wookwang’s convictions ran deeper than he’d imagined.
"Words are cheap."
"Then how can I prove myself?"
"Create a desire. Simple, no? If you fall ill, you’ll crave health. Lose something precious, like family, and you’ll yearn to reclaim it."
Jang I-seo gaped, speechless. This twisted reasoning—how was it different from demanding he fabricate hostages?
But then.
Jin Wookwang’s eyes glinted with mischief.
"But you need no such contrivances."
"What do you mean...?"
"You already desire something from me."
Jang I-seo bowed his head to hide his turmoil. But Jin Wookwang’s next words snapped it back up.
"Nine Orifices Body."
Gasp!
Jang I-seo’s eyes nearly bulged from their sockets. No one—save the Murim Alliance’s elder, the Life and Death Divine Physician Wei Ziliang—had ever named his cursed constitution aloud.
"Nine holes in your dantian. Even mastering the greatest techniques would make you mediocre. Ten thousand-year herbs? Sky-clear Stone Milk? Useless. Your energy leaks like a sieve. Effort yields no reward—how that must torment you."
As Jang I-seo stared, dumbstruck, Jin Wookwang grinned.
"Surprised?"
"Yes," he admitted hoarsely.
The shock wasn’t that Jin Wookwang knew—it was that the Heavenly Demon defied all expectations. Erudite, playful, even... comforting.
This was no demon. This was a man.
Whoosh!
As Jang I-seo’s thoughts scattered, torrents of demonic energy erupted from Jin Wookwang.
Swish—
Dark tendrils cascaded over his shoulders like heat haze, weaving a shadowy mantle. An oppressive force, as if the heavens themselves bent under its weight.
This was the aura of the world’s strongest!
Jin Wookwang extended a hand, his smile icy.
Black energy surged—a thousand venomous snakes coalescing into a miasma.
"This is my gift to you."
And—
Crash!
It flew straight and plunged into Jang I-seo’s lower abdomen like a dagger. The demonic energy seeped into him without pause.
“Guhk!”
Pain erupted, stealing his breath. The whites of his eyes darkened to pitch black, while his veins transformed into inky threads, as though black blood now coursed through them.
These were the effects of the Heavenly Demon’s energy, which had invaded his dantian and ravaged his meridians.
Why?
Clutching his last thread of reason, Jang I-seo glared at the man responsible.
Jin Wu-guang smiled warmly, as though discussing the weather.
“Consider it homework. Find the key to curing your body. Though I doubt you have much time left.”
Thud.
Jang I-seo collapsed, unconscious.
Soon, the swollen black veins receded, restoring his skin to its normal hue.
Jin Wu-guang observed this with mild interest, murmuring to himself:
“A Nine-Aperture Body… They say sealing all nine orifices would let one dominate the world, but not even gods can achieve it. I’d thought this mountain held no more intriguing children.”
His lips curved like a child delighted by a new toy.
Yet his next words carried frost:
“Fail to find the cure, and your body will rot within a month. Consider this punishment for trespassing.”
He turned toward the shadows ahead and barked:
[Fetch him.]
Moments later,
Mao—who’d been waiting at the Heavenly Demon Hall’s gates to recover his strength—stumbled over in panic. After a startled glance, he slung Jang I-seo over his shoulder and fled.
Jin Wu-guang watched their retreat with amusement before turning away.
He smiled, already anticipating how their return might relieve the tedium of his endless days.
