C142
Relentless black smoke rose from the body of the Heavenly Demon.
The darkness continued to emanate until one wondered where it would end.
The onlookers were filled with fear.
Blood Cult
The fact that its existence had implanted something so horrendous in the supreme Demon Cult Leader, the Heavenly Demon, was astonishing and terrifying.
However, those emotions soon faded.
Rrr-
The sky roared once more.
No matter how hard the darkness fought to taint the bright day with its own color and break through the formation wall.
Kwaaaah--!
The reddish-golden ray descended from the sky to the earth, completely consuming the darkness in its path.
"Is this... Is this the power of humans?"
One of the leaders of the Justice Faction, Byuk Sun, was so absorbed in the sight that he didn't even notice his voice trembling.
"Yes, it seems so."
Ho Songyi, the Elder of the Beggar's Band, replied with difficulty, stumbling over his words.
"This is the true power of Young Master Kim-"
As he spoke, Elder Ho's eyes never wavered from the reddish-golden ray that relentlessly consumed the darkness.
Beautiful.
Originally, lightning bolts were wild and unpredictable, able to strike in any direction.
Fire, too, was wild, aggressive, and devouring, consuming everything relentlessly.
However, the reddish-golden fire ray he saw now was incredibly beautiful.
It was terrifying in its ferocity and fearsome in its endless greed to consume the darkness.
It was astonishing and dazzling in its beauty.
"Brain Demon, people are approaching."
The Brain Demon frowned slightly upon hearing his subordinate's report.
"You surely told them not to approach, didn't you?"
He had given instructions not to get closer just in case.
"They are mainly ordinary people, elders, and children."
The Brain Demon relaxed his furrowed brow and sighed lightly.
"Yes, even I can't tear my eyes away from this. It's understandable that others can't either. But don't let them get any closer."
"Yes."
The subordinate retreated again. The Brain Demon watched as even his loyal subordinate moved away, barely able to look away from the flames.
"The Heavenly Demon said Young Master Kim didn't learn Martial Arts but had another kind of power."
That power was so astonishing.
Fire and lightning.
It was a power that embraced nature itself but was not natural in itself.
After all, the reddish-golden lightning was not a natural entity in the world.
So, he could clearly feel that this was the power of Young Master Kim.
"Ah."
Suddenly, a large amount of black smoke began to rise from the body of the Heavenly Demon.
It rose like a black sword ascending to the sky, emerging unrestrained.
The immense black smoke rushed toward the formation.
Upon seeing this scene, only one word came to the Brain Demon's mind.
"The final effort..."
And he knew how that effort would end.
Kwaang-----!
With a deafening roar, the reddish-golden ray descended from the sky once again and completely consumed the black smoke.
And the black smoke no longer rose from the body of the Heavenly Demon.
The reddish-golden ray enveloped Young Master Kim and fluttered around him.
Stillness returned.
But no one dared to move hastily.
Crack.
Crack.
Crack!
The eight pillars broke in half simultaneously.
Passt.
The translucent barrier that had surrounded the formation disappeared along with the collapse.
"It doesn't seem like we need a shield. For now, let's observe."
The Brain Demon nodded silently as he listened to the words of the dark blue-eyed being.
He didn't even notice that Raon had disappeared.
He was simply amazed that no one was injured despite the formation collapsing.
"Brain Demon, regain your composure."
The Right Guardian approached and spoke.
"Don't you realize that what comes next is important?"
"Yes."
The Brain Demon regained his composure.
'The first stage is over.'
Now they would enter the second stage.
And this stage would be more important and require more concentration.
"I'll be on guard."
"I'll block access as well."
The Right Guardian and the Brain Demon set their respective roles and, in doing so, watched Cale and the Heavenly Demon with tense eyes.
The formation had collapsed, but Cale still sat in the center of the circle.
He didn't seem concerned about the reddish-golden ray enveloping him.
He tightened his grip on the Sacred Object that the God had given him.
The Heater burned hotter than ever.
-You're okay, right?
Cale nodded in response to Cheapskate's words.
-I'm fine too. I still have plenty of margin.
The combination of the Sacred Object and the Fire of Destruction, now with a 72% seal unlocked, was amazing.
The ability to respond to Dead Mana was quite powerful.
It was as if the Sacred Object considered Dead Mana a Natural Resource of Heaven and Earth. (Note: Natural Resources of Heaven and Earth are the elixirs that Cale takes, among others, which help increase the Inner Energy of the body.)
"Hey!"
Cale spoke to the Heavenly Demon.
"Guide me."
The hand on the Heavenly Demon's back. Cale closed his eyes and focused on the sensation of his hands.
Then he felt an energy, different from the Dead Mana he had felt before.
It was not unfamiliar.
It was the dark red energy that the Heavenly Demon was wielding.
-I'm going.
The reddish-golden ray descended down his shoulder, arm, and finally clung to his hand.
And it penetrated the Heavenly Demon's body.
Even though Cale had his eyes closed, he could see a flash.
A line drawn.
It was a line created by the dark red energy that held the reddish-golden ray together.
'Are these the Meridians?'
The Meridians that moved Inner Energy, something he had heard of but had never personally experienced.
Cale was intrigued but quickly dismissed it.
'Wow...'
The Heavenly Demon's energy attracting the reddish-golden ray seemed weaker than expected.
Then Cale remembered something. The contact he had with his hand was wet.
And the body of the Heavenly Demon, touching his hand, was cold. Seriously cold.
It was so serious that he was worried.
'You've overexerted yourself.'
It seemed the Heavenly Demon had used more energy than Cale had thought.
Although neither Cale nor the Heavenly Demon had expected the Heavenly Demon to have so much Dead Mana in his body.
Not just any Dead Mana, but modified Dead Mana.
'Should we continue like this?'
Cale wondered as the Heavenly Demon's energy seemed weak.
At that moment, Cheapskate spoke.
-Cale, try channeling more energy into the Sacred Object.
Sacred Object?
-It's the Fire of Purification, right? If it's essentially purification, wouldn't it be like giving energy to a tired body?
Wow, that made sense.
-And it's Divine Energy(?), I don't think it will cause problems for the kid called the Heavenly Demon. And if it does, you can simply take it back.
That made sense too.
'Why do you always have such smart answers?'
-Cough, cough. I'm pretty smart, you know.
Cale immediately infused more power from the Fire of Destruction into the Sacred Object.
Crack, crackl-e.
Electricity flowed from the Sacred Object.
Smoke rose from the Heater, now red.
It was red smoke.
It was the same smoke that had been used in purifying the Jiangshi, now rising along Cale's arm and moving to the other arm.
"Mmm."
-Good!
Cale directed the red smoke towards the Heavenly Demon.
Finally, the red smoke flowed into the Heavenly Demon's body along Cale's hand.
Even though he had his eyes closed, Cale could feel it clearly.
The red energy was mixing with the dark red energy of the Heavenly Demon.
Then...
"!"
Cale froze.
-What?
Cheapskate was also surprised.
The line created by the Heavenly Demon's dark red energy.
The line that was supposed to be the Meridian suddenly began overflowing with power.
To be precise, the lines became sharper and clearer.
-So that's it!
Cheapskate exclaimed.
-There's still Dead Mana in this kid's body. Even if we eliminated it 99.9% with the black smoke, there were still traces of impure energy in his body.
If the black smoke eliminated 99.9% of the Dead Mana, there was still something left in the Heavenly Demon's body.
-That's why this kid couldn't use his energy properly. The traces of impurities and residual mana clogged and constricted his Meridians.
There was not enough space for Cale's power to enter either.
-And in the midst of that, the Purification Power of the Sacred Object burned those impurities and contaminants, and now his energy flows freely. Cale, this is great! A path is finally opening up!
Cheapskate was excited as he spoke, but then he suddenly stopped.
-Eh?
And then he panicked.
-Eh? Wait, this shouldn't be happening!
Damn it!
Cale's face contorted.
-Why is this kid absorbing so much power?!
Cale couldn't pay attention to Cheapskate's voice as he was overwhelmed by what was happening.
'Why is this happening all of a sudden?!'
The Heavenly Demon's body was attracting the red smoke and reddish-golden energy with tremendous force.
No, it was practically absorbing them.
This is insane!
The problem was that the source of all this power was Cale himself.
-I can't believe this is happening all of a sudden!
Me neither.
Cale had not anticipated this either.
That the Heavenly Demon's body would be so desperately absorbing his energy.
But the worst part was that Cale couldn't stop it.
The Heavenly Demon's body trembled slightly, but Cale felt warmth where they were touching.
And with his eyes closed, Cale could see clearly.
To be precise, he could feel it.
Lines were being drawn all over the Heavenly Demon's body at high speed, or, to be precise, the Meridians were being restored.
It was like Cale was riding a horseless carriage that was getting faster and faster, galloping downhill at a dizzying speed.
The Heavenly Demon's dark red energy at the forefront was guiding Cale's energy to every part of his body.
The more purified his Meridians were, the more effort Cale had to put in.
But it seemed he was finally on the right path and couldn't stop.
'Slow down a bit!'
It would have been nice if it were a bit slower.
Damn it, the Heavenly Demon couldn't speak.
'I can't open my mouth now!'
Cale wasn't in a position to speak either.
Because it was taking more and more concentration and energy from him as well.
'Could this be a big problem?'
Cale was feeling growing anxiety.
Even though this was worth a try, he felt like he might vomit blood at any moment.
The situation seemed even worse than when he had used a large amount of energy to purify the Living Jiangshi, Namgung Taewi, in the past.
'Wait, if I'm suffering like this to purify just one Heavenly Demon, how do I purify the other Living Jiangshi?'
Even though he wanted to keep thinking, he couldn't even maintain that thought.
"Ugh!"
Finally, Cale's energy reached the Heavenly Demon's Lower Dantian.
So far, he had only felt lines, but now it began to take shape, an outline.
However, that outline was filled with bumps and roughness.
At that moment, Cale realized that those were the remnants that remained.
"!"
-Be careful, Cale.
Once again, Cale's energy was drawn into the Heavenly Demon's body.
And it began to consume the remnants within the outline.
-Looking at this, it seems that even that kid, the Heavenly Demon, is in a state where he can't stop!
Cale could feel it too.
It seemed the Heavenly Demon was controlling his speed as best he could right now.
It was probably just his body doing this instinctively to survive.
The tremors in his body might have been an effort to control that speed.
The problem was that even the controlled speed was too fast.
"Darn it!"
The energy purifying the Lower Dantian was reaching a peak.
That energy was heading towards the heart.
Cale could sense it.
"It must be the heart!"
The place where the modified Dead Mana was first planted, and the cause of the Heavenly Demon's transformation into a Living Jiangshi.
A formidable energy was heading towards its ultimate foe.
-Be careful, Cale. It's not just a problem that you're using too much force, but there's also a possibility that the Heavenly Demon's body can't withstand your overwhelming power. He might explode! He might shatter into pieces!
Stop saying terrible things!
Cale wanted to cover Cheapskate's mouth. But he didn't have the energy or concentration to do so.
He had to focus on what was happening inside the Heavenly Demon's body at that moment.
"It's moving."
Finally, the immense energy was heading for the heart.
Even at this moment, the reddish-golden energy and red smoke were still tirelessly being absorbed by the Heavenly Demon's body.
A massive accumulation of energy headed for the heart, incomparable to the previous black smoke purification.
Cale felt as if he could truly see the Heavenly Demon's heart, which was blackened and beating horribly.
"Ugh!"
A groan escaped the Heavenly Demon's mouth.
-Cale, it seems this is his last resistance.
Although the heart trembled in fear and fought against the approaching energy, it was not enough.
-Haha! But this immense energy might even scare away the World Tree!
Although Cheapskate's words were nonsensical, that small resistance was no match for such power.
Cale was certain.
"This will work."
All Meridians, including the Dantian, had been cleansed and purified in a very healthy manner.
Even this heart could be subdued and purified.
The experiment could not have been more successful.
The results were obvious.
But for the first time in a long time, Cale was afraid.
"Will I be okay?"
But there was no one to answer him.
-.......
Even Cheapskate fell silent, and the powerful energy showed no intention of listening to its owner's small worries.
The immense energy rushed toward the heart.
"Ugh!"
"Argh!"
Both Cale and the Heavenly Demon groaned simultaneously.
Crack, crackle.
The ground began to crack, centered on the spot where they were both seated.
Although the ground was made of the hardest stone from the Central Plains, it was cracking around them like a broken egg.
The Heavenly Demon's body trembled.
The heart was the center and source of the body.
The modified Dead Mana residing there rebelled furiously, as if refusing to disappear.
But the reddish-golden energy pressed down on the dark and malevolent energy, subduing it.
The red smoke did not overlook the gap and seeped in.
It moved in the direction indicated by the Heavenly Demon's dark red energy, devouring the dark and malevolent energy.
For both Cale and the Heavenly Demon.
This moment, these minutes, these seconds, felt like dozens of times.
After some time had passed...
"Ah."
The Heavenly Demon involuntarily opened his mouth in a gasp.
"Argh!"
A grayish liquid came out of his mouth.
After several attempts, he slowly opened his eyes and looked at his hand.
It was over.
And he was still alive.
In fact, he felt...
"I feel healthier."
All of his Meridians and his heart were pulsating strongly.
In particular, some of the remaining reddish-golden energy in the heart was constantly lurking as if escorting the heart.
The moment he felt this reddish-golden energy, the Heavenly Demon quickly looked back.
"Human!!"
At that moment, he heard a child's cry.
The Heavenly Demon could see it.
The body of a man, white and pale, slanting to one side.
And his eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. Dark red blood was dripping from every part of his face.
Especially from his mouth, blood flowed so profusely that he could barely breathe.
"Kim Haeil!"
The Heavenly Demon reached out his hand towards the person who was falling.
The body he grabbed was extremely cold.
-
