novelraw Chapter 240 : Mad Sword Demon (2)
Chapter 240 : Mad Sword Demon (2)
Chapter 240: Mad Sword Demon (2)
In Seo Ryeom’s eyes, Jang Woo-hyun had been expressionless.
A lifeless face. Only eyes glistening with rage and madness.
Mechanically—or as if carrying out an assigned task—Jang Woo-hyun had smashed the Cultivators and the Shamans to pieces.
It had not been long, but the Captain Seo Ryeom knew was not this kind of man. So he stepped forward, hoping somehow he would come to his senses.
“Let go of me.”
Perhaps he had not completely lost his mind, for Jang Woo-hyun spoke to Seo Ryeom and Mak Ya-wol.
“This doesn’t seem right.”
“I think you’ve gone too far as well. Let’s stop here.”
At their serious expressions, Jang Woo-hyun furrowed his brow. He tried to pull his arm away, but he could not easily shake off Mak Ya-wol’s strength.
“If you don’t let go, I’ll break through by force.”
When his single remaining eye turned toward them, Seo Ryeom and Mak Ya-wol tensed. They knew what kind of power Jang Woo-hyun possessed.
“That’s enough. Both of you, move.”
While the two struggled with him, Wind-Passing Great Sage quickly closed the distance and stood before Jang Woo-hyun. Without hesitation, he threw a punch.
It was a sudden attack, but Jang Woo-hyun reacted at once. Twisting his body, he swung Dragon King’s Scale.
Slash!
“……!”
Jang Woo-hyun’s eyes widened. Wind-Passing Great Sage had not avoided the attack.
In that fleeting moment of confusion, Wind-Passing Great Sage did not miss his chance. He grabbed Jang Woo-hyun’s arm and slammed his head forward.
Boom!
“Ugh!”
The impact crushed Jang Woo-hyun’s face.
Having already transcended humanity, such a crude attack should not have worked. Yet the Beastkin’s strike had been different.
That simple headbutt shook his very origin.
With Dragon King’s Scale embedded in his chest, Wind-Passing Great Sage struck Jang Woo-hyun once more.
Bang!
His fist shattered as it collided with the energy wrapped around Jang Woo-hyun’s body. Yet he paid it no mind and pressed forward.
With a thunderous roar, Jang Woo-hyun was sent flying, and Wind-Passing Great Sage immediately pursued.
As the lone remaining eye fixed on the figure rushing through the air, the Will-Form Qi that filled the surroundings became invisible blades and poured forth.
Though he wrapped his body in wind, Wind-Passing Great Sage’s body was sliced in several places. Even so, he closed the distance and ultimately drove his torso into Jang Woo-hyun.
Jang Woo-hyun was slammed into the ground once more. In the past, he would have avoided it—but now his reactions and judgment were slightly slower than usual.
“Look around you!”
Bang!
Wind-Passing Great Sage’s fist collided with Black Wilds Sword. The shock sent violent gusts in all directions.
Thunderous crashes continued, and with each one, the environment changed.
The Shamans and Cultivators who had been crawling away with severed limbs were blown apart by the shockwaves.
“Look at what’s happening right now!”
“What am I supposed to look at?!”
Wind-Passing Great Sage shouted in frustration.
“Look around you! The people fighting alongside you!”
Charging forward without regard for his own injuries, Wind-Passing Great Sage ultimately had one arm severed. But in exchange, he closed the distance and smashed his fist into Jang Woo-hyun’s face.
Boom!
His head snapped to the side from the impact, and Jang Woo-hyun was pushed back.
As he steadied himself again, Jang Woo-hyun’s gaze fell upon the warriors of the Extermination Squad. He had been driven back all the way to where his comrades stood by the previous strike.
They were men who fought with laughter—but now every one of their expressions had hardened.
“…….”
Some looked frightened. Others seemed utterly drained.
Turning his head, he saw Maeng Ye-ju with a grave expression and Jin Ha-un, whose face looked on the verge of tears. Yong Seo-hee’s face was filled with worry as well.
Cho-su was not in front of him now, but he would likely be wearing a similar expression.
“Ah….”
Only after meeting the faces and eyes of his comrades did Jang Woo-hyun realize what he had been doing all this time.
This had been nothing more than venting his anger. It would not bring the dead back to life, nor would it avenge them.
It had been self-satisfaction. Thinking only of himself.
‘What have I done?’
He had killed without thought. As if he had to. As if it were some kind of answer.
Jang Woo-hyun slowly breathed and contemplated his inner self, trying to calm his negative thoughts and anger.
He had thought that after killing Ban Geum-yang and shaking off the Black Flame, it was over.
But it was not.
The remnants of the Black Flame, which damaged the human soul and origin and inflicted endless pain, had been gnawing at Jang Woo-hyun’s mind.
That was why he had moved as if possessed by something.
Jang Woo-hyun closed his eyes, trying to cast off the chaos.
He exhaled slowly, as if expelling the rage filling his body.
The frenzied emotions nearly seized him again—
-You are not a sword.
The words engraved deep in his heart and mind resurfaced. No—he heard them once more.
Zhang Sanfeng’s advice stopped Jang Woo-hyun.
In an instant, it felt as though cold water had been poured over his head. His mind cleared.
When he opened his eyes again—
The flames of rage and madness had vanished from his single remaining eye.
“Now that’s better.”
“Thanks, monke—”
Boom!
Before he could finish his gratitude, Wind-Passing Great Sage approached with a grin and punched him in the face.
Regardless of regaining his senses, a hit deserved was a hit received.
“I’m sorry!”
Jang Woo-hyun gathered the entire Extermination Squad and bowed his head.
“And thank you for helping me.”
He lifted his head and looked at Wind-Passing Great Sage.
“I owe you this time.”
“Just this time? I helped you last time too.”
“Last time? When you helped in the Lower Realm? I repaid that by summoning you.”
“Not that. When you were recovering your lost memories.”
“Ah, right. Then I’ve owed you twice. Thanks for helping me.”
“It’s enough that you’ve come to your senses. Now let’s hear it—why were you rampaging like that?”
At Wind-Passing Great Sage’s question, everyone listened intently.
Jang Woo-hyun’s aura had been far too strange, so until now no one had asked why he had acted that way.
“You remember what you said before. Human oil.”
“Yeah. Why?”
Jang Woo-hyun told them about what he had seen.
The countless kidnapped people and the massive structure. And inside it, the sight of people being crushed and turned into oil.
“What Ban Geum-yang used was that horrific oil. The aftereffects were still lingering until just now, so my mind was a bit unstable.”
When he finished speaking, curses burst out from all around.
“These crazy bastards.”
“Have they completely lost their minds?”
“Disgusting filth.”
All the warriors of the Extermination Squad revealed killing intent. Those Cultivators were not in their right minds.
And now they understood why Jang Woo-hyun had rampaged like that. Anyone who witnessed such a scene would lose their sanity. They might even go mad.
Perhaps it had ended at this only because it was Jang Woo-hyun.
“Who’s human and who’s Beastkin anymore?”
Before the legendary era when human heroes began to make their names—
In the age of myth, beings with divinity and Monsters had freely traveled between realms.
It had been a disastrous era for humanity. Humans had been no different from livestock or beasts.
Even in those days, when strange beings killed humans for amusement and devoured human flesh, it had been exceedingly rare to turn humans into oil.
Yet the Cultivators were doing such things without hesitation.
As Wind-Passing Great Sage had said, it was impossible to tell who was human and who was a Monster. The Monsters who killed and ate humans almost seemed purer by comparison.
“Where are those bastards now?”
Even Seo Ryeom, who was usually the most playful, had hardened his face and released killing intent.
It was so intense that those nearby let out low groans and instinctively stepped back.
“First, I plan to find that grotesque Dharma Treasure and destroy it. Something like that should not exist. After that, we’ll find the Cult of Ascension and crush them.”
When Jang Woo-hyun stated his plan, everyone’s gaze turned to Cho-su. Among them, only he had the ability to locate such a horrific Dharma Treasure.
“To create something like that… they’re completely insane.”
After hearing the story, Cho-su was furious as well. He intended to use every method available to him and would find the horrific Dharma Treasure that crushed humans and destroy it without fail.
“It won’t be easy to locate the Dharma Treasure itself. We don’t know what kind of power it has or how it functions.”
“Brother Cho, does that mean you can’t find it?”
“As if there’s something I can’t find.”
Cho-su took out a half-destroyed Silver Bell from his Inner Robe.
An item he had secured after the battle with Ban Geum-yang. The bell that had once contained the power of a True Immortal had now exhausted its strength, but it would still serve a purpose.
“It’s no longer functional as a Dharma Treasure, but faint traces remain. We can use this to track them. Even if it’s not directly connected to that disgusting Dharma Treasure, this will guide us to where the Cult of Ascension is.”
Once they reached the Cult of Ascension, they could capture them and interrogate them about the location of the horrific Dharma Treasure that crushed humans.
Now that they had a way to track the enemy, everyone’s eyes changed.
Seo Ryeom was the first to raise his fist.
“Let’s go!”
At his shout, the heated atmosphere erupted like a volcano.
“Uoooo!”
“Let’s go!”
“Kill the Cultivators!”
“Kill them all!”
The warriors of the Extermination Squad raised their weapons and shouted after Seo Ryeom. The heat of their excitement spread outward as, under Seo Ryeom’s command, all the warriors rushed toward Thunder Fortress.
Watching their backs, Seon Tae-gyeong carefully voiced his concern.
“We’ve pushed too far inside. Is that really alright? The Five Elements Cult has expressed concerns as well.”
The original plan had been to ravage the frontline where the Five Elements Cult and the Radiant Light Sect were clashing, but now they had advanced deep into Radiant Light Sect territory. Because Jang Woo-hyun had rampaged without restraint, things had unfolded this way.
“So what? If we run into anyone on the way, we just beat them all down. If we run into their leader, we beat him down too.”
Wind-Passing Great Sage solved Seon Tae-gyeong’s concerns simply.
“Captain! Hurry up!”
“Great Sage, you too!”
Those who had run ahead called out to Jang Woo-hyun and Wind-Passing Great Sage.
Their leader Jang Woo-hyun had returned to normal, and with that, the subdued atmosphere had lifted. This was the true departure of the Extermination Squad.
“Do not worry. I have already contacted the Sect Leader, and we have completed our preparations.”
One of the Ten Lords of the Radiant Light Sect. Geok-su could not understand the man standing before him.
‘With such ability, yet so cowardly.’
Je Yeong-jeong was one of the high-ranking members of the Cult of Ascension, a Cultivator with outstanding crafting ability.
Everything he created was exceptional.
From a Dharma Treasure that automatically produced an army of puppets, to attaching Dharma Tools to the bodies of Monsters, even fusing Automatic Puppets and Monsters to enhance combat power. He had even sliced off a portion of a Floating Continent and turned it into a mobile Floating Stronghold.
He had created the Dharma Treasure that crushed humans into oil. He had also constructed a ‘Tower’ that amplified sorcery.
Especially the ‘Tower’ located nearby—it was astonishing.
Even Geok-su, who had seen countless Dharma Tools as one of the Ten Lords of the Radiant Light Sect, had never seen a Dharma Treasure of that caliber. And with that ‘Tower,’ he was confident he could defeat any opponent.
“If they appear, I will personally step forward. Do not worry.”
Even at Geok-su’s words, Je Yeong-jeong’s expression did not brighten.
‘Fool. They are not such easy opponents.’
Contact with Ban Geum-yang had been lost. When it was Yeo Gong-baek, he had thought perhaps it was because he had not been alone. But this time was different. Ban Geum-yang had possessed New Oil. Yet he had still failed to deal with Jang Woo-hyun.
‘They are far stronger than we anticipated.’
Otherwise, Ban Geum-yang’s defeat made no sense.
“When did the Sect Leader say he would arrive?”
“Do not worry. He will be here soon. And even if the Sect Leader does not arrive, it will not be a major problem. With this level of preparation, what is there to fear?”
Ignoring Je Yeong-jeong’s concerns, Geok-su pointed at the table before them. His face was filled with confidence—and looking at what they had prepared, it was understandable.
On the table lay a wide board, above which hundreds of green-glowing orbs floated.
Each orb represented the forces of the Radiant Light Sect and the Cult of Ascension, as well as traps formed through Spell Formations and Dharma Tools.
It was an entire battle formation expressed through orbs.
If the Extermination Squad attacked, all forces and traps would move simultaneously to encircle and annihilate them.
“When they enter, we’ll strike all at once and capture them. They won’t easily pinpoint our location, so there’s no need to worry. After all, we have so many layers in place.”
Geok-su raised his hand and gestured toward the hundreds of orbs.
At that moment, the color of the outermost orb turned red.
“Huh?”
Not long after, another orb behind it changed color.
Tick. Tick. Tt-tick.
Before anyone could speak, several more orbs changed color.
When an orb shifted from green to red, it meant that the trap there had been destroyed—or the forces had been annihilated.
The colors kept changing rapidly.
If one followed the red orbs that had changed so far, their path led straight to the very place where Geok-su and Je Yeong-jeong stood.
“What is this…?”
The Extermination Squad was destroying everything at an absurd speed and advancing toward this location.