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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Chaos
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The Head Administrator didn’t give them time to react.
He moved like a wild beast, a wave of potent poison preceding his every step.
The intruders scattered, desperately trying to evade his grasp, but only he truly knew the layout of the Heavenly Demon Palace.
One of the Azure Dragon Unit members, narrowly dodging the Head Administrator’s attack, stumbled and was caught.
Before he could even scream, his neck snapped, and his body crumpled to the ground, lifeless. Purple splotches began to appear on his skin.
Whether it was mercy or rage that had led the Head Administrator to kill him before the poison could take hold, no one could say.
He moved with terrifying speed, weaving between pillars, using the walls as springboards to launch himself at the intruders from impossible angles.
Li Hang and the remaining three Azure Dragon Unit members could only dodge and parry, desperately trying to keep up.
They struggled to expel the poison seeping into their bodies from the air while simultaneously evading his deadly attacks.
Their skills were simply not enough to launch a proper counteroffensive.
“Stop him!” Li Hang shouted, deflecting a blow aimed at his face.
The Azure Dragon Unit members behind him hurled hidden weapons.
Daggers and shuriken flew through the air.
The Poison Demon twisted and contorted his body, dodging them all. The brief respite created some distance between him and Li Hang.
“You’re not bad, Poison Demon!”
In the momentary lull, Li Hang and the others reformed their ranks, assuming a defensive formation designed to withstand even attacks from opponents with superior martial arts skills.
They had been caught off guard by the initial onslaught, but now, in formation, they were confident they could hold him off.
“You think you can stop me with a formation like that?”
The Poison Demon walked towards them, his eyes scanning their ranks.
“This formation isn’t meant to kill you. It’s meant to buy time. I know your martial arts consumes you. If we just hold out…”
“No, what I meant was… do you really think you can withstand my attacks with something like this?”
A heavy pressure descended upon them, as if the very air of the Heavenly Demon Palace was crushing them.
“W-what is this?!”
They struggled to even lift their heads under the immense pressure.
“You think you can hold me back with such a flimsy formation?”
Death emanated from the Poison Demon’s feet, spreading outwards like a purple tide, slowly but surely engulfing the intruders.
“C-Captain!”
“Damn it… where’s Lightning Sword?!” Li Hang muttered while retreating with his unit.
The Poison Demon didn’t rush. He advanced slowly, steadily increasing the pressure.
Like a snake toying with its prey, he smiled cruelly, each step bringing him closer.
“Aaaaagh!”
Even a cornered rat will bite, won’t it?
One of the Azure Dragon Unit members, overwhelmed by fear, broke ranks and charged, spear in hand.
Li Hang called out to him, but his voice was lost in the chaos.
As the warrior ran across the surface of the poisonous swamp created by the Poison Demon, his body began to dissolve, piece by piece.
One step.
Another step.
His body crumbled and his balance faltered.
He tried to steady himself with his spear, but the shaft, rotted by the poison, snapped with a sickening crack.
He fell into the swamp and dissolved completely.
The fate of prey that dared to attack its predator was a grim one.
“If he won’t come to me, then I’ll go to him.”
With those words, the execution began.
The Poison Demon’s momentum shifted, and he shot forward, his hand aimed at Li Hang’s heart.
Li Hang raised his sword to block, but the metal hissed and corroded as it came into contact with the Poison Demon’s hand.
“Gah!”
His sword snapped, and the Poison Demon’s hand pierced his heart.
Li Hang stared at the Poison Demon, his eyes wide with shock, terror, and disbelief.
The Poison Demon ripped out his heart.
It was black and lifeless, no longer beating, just a lump of rotting flesh.
-Thud
Upon seeing their leader fall, the remaining Azure Dragon Unit members charged blindly at the Poison Demon, their fates already sealed.
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Jegal Hwi surveyed the ravaged Heavenly Demon Palace.
Extensive damage. Corpses littering the floor.
“It’ll take… quite a few people to clean this up.”
He thought of the servants who would have to deal with the mess and covered his eyes with his hand.
Tears seeped through his fingers.
“I’m sorry.”
He repeated the apology, each word bringing to mind the faces of the Cult members he had killed.
He mourned them, apologizing over and over again.
And as his mourning came to an end…
“My, my… what a mess. Does the Heavenly Demon live in such a barbaric place?”
Jegal Hwi turned his head when a cheerful voice broke the somber silence.
-Swish
A strange sensation, accompanied by an unfamiliar sound.
“?!”
His left arm was gone, severed cleanly at the shoulder.
Blood spurted from the wound. He calmly pressed on the pressure point to stop the bleeding.
“You’re… the Poison Demon, aren’t you? I’ve fought the Shadow Demon and the Horse Demon many times, but this is the first time I’ve seen you. Nice to meet you. I’m Namgung So-yeon.”
She smiled brightly, holding his severed arm in her hand.
‘I didn’t even feel it.’
When had she taken his arm? This wasn’t a mere sneak attack.
It was an overwhelming difference in skill.
He realized, with a chilling certainty, that she could toy with him just as he had toyed with the Azure Dragon Unit members.
“I have a question for you. If you answer truthfully… well, I might let you live.”
“Where’s my Young Master Kang?”
A chilling madness emanated from her, a potent mix of obsession and determination.
He hesitated, unsure how to respond.
“Never mind. I’ll find him myself. Silly me, asking such a question. I can hear him calling for me.”
She stuck out her tongue playfully and then smiled, with a predatory glint in her eyes.
“Ah… I’m hungry.”
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