Chapter 108: Three Calamities, Heavenly Demon (3)

No amount of effort could ever claim a seat among the Ten Wings. One had to be born with the talent.

To rank at the top in Lake City, they needed a peerless genius that outshone even the word “exceptional”—a once-in-a-generation prodigy who dominated an era.

Poison Master, Illusion Master, Bow Master.

These three were all blessed with extraordinary innate talent. As a result, they rarely experienced the emotions of the weak. Even primal feelings like fear or terror were anomalies to them.

Yet here they were, gathered together.

And all three trembled in terror, overwhelmed by someone’s arrival.

Rooooaaar…

As the air’s density increased, their intracranial pressure spiked accordingly. Poison Master, who had been fidgeting, clutched his temple and groaned.

Illusion Master froze rigid in a dazed stupor, while Bow Master tried to draw his bowstring but lost strength in his fingers, letting it slip.

The sky split in two. Between the cracks oozed a viscous oil-black hue. No need to mention who accompanied such an ominous phenomenon.

“…Fuck.”

Bow Master spat the curse and whipped his head toward Illusion Master. The bisected sky let out a chilling breath.

“Hey, you pig bastard. If someone’s asking you, answer them! Are you seriously saying the Heavenly Demon is the one I should hold accountable?!”

“I… I don’t know anything about it.”

“We’re family. And you’re supposed to be her left arm—how could you not know the Heavenly Demon’s intentions?!”

Illusion Master muttered with a pale face.

“I… I’m just her lackey.”

“Ugh, that guy’s broken. Totally shattered.”

Bow Master shook his head exaggeratedly. Though he scolded, he knew well the nature of the relationship between the Heavenly Demon and Illusion Master.

Left Luminary sounded grand, but to the Heavenly Demon, he was just a replaceable left arm. If anything, liken him to a cybernetic prosthetic.

Even worse treatment, really. At least cybernetic prosthetics were rare items.

From the Heavenly Demon’s lofty perspective, replacements for a mere “Left Luminary” were probably a dime a dozen. That much was evident from the perpetual boredom in her eyes.

“…Speak of the devil, and she appears.”

A silhouette began descending slowly to the ground. Hands clasped behind her back, gazing down upon the world with infinite arrogance.

He wanted nothing more than to plant an arrow right between those eyes—but his own head would fly first.

“Heavenly Demon Reincarnation, Ten Thousand Demons Submit.”

At that moment, Illusion Master raised both hands high and prostrated himself flat. Bow Master squinted at the sight, then feigned composure and shouted.

“Heavenly Demon! Long time no see!”

“……”

The Heavenly Demon touched down simultaneously. She swept her indifferent gaze across the ruins.

“It’s been a while.”

The one who spoke wasn’t Bow Master.

“First time since the martial world, I believe.”

“Indeed…”

Poison Master wiped his cheek with the back of his hand.

“How could a man once called Dark Master become so obsessed with poison? It’s merely a petty trick.”

“In my eyes, the ‘magic’ you burn your internal energy for is no different. How dare you reinterpret the essence of the martial world on your whim.”

“Times change, and only those who adapt survive. That’s the law of the universe. A mere insect like me can only follow.”

Poison Master nearly let out a hollow laugh inwardly.

The being furthest from Homo sapiens was spouting excessive humility.

Yet there wasn’t a shred of deceit in her words.

It was a matter of “perspective.”

Her viewpoint differed from his, that of a mere exceptional mortal.

“Heavenly Demon—!!”

Only then did she deign to turn her gaze at Bow Master’s sharp shout. He was fuming.

“When someone greets you, shouldn’t you respond? We even clashed briefly in the old days. How can you—”

“A beast howls.”

Snap. Something razor-sharp whistled past Bow Master’s cheek. His ear burned, and soon something hit the ground.

“…Huh?”

It was his ear. None other than Bow Master’s.

Poison Master had strained himself just to scratch his arm in attack. Yet the Heavenly Demon severed a Ten Wing’s body part with a mere gesture.

Bow Master gaped blankly, alternating his gaze between the ground and her. A beat late, he unleashed a shrill scream.

“Y-You bitch! How dare you cut off my ear! My ear!”

“Keep talking if you want to become completely deaf.”

“…Y-You.”

The Heavenly Demon remained expressionless.

“For your information, my control over magic is still imperfect.”

“……”

“I don’t even know if the next ‘slash’ will take your other ear or your head.”

“……”

Blood trickled thickly down Bow Master’s jaw.

Even that shameless Bow Master swallowed his rage, his fists trembling.

His ear was severed, yet Poison Master’s lips were parched too. He replayed that “slash” in his mind.

The Heavenly Demon’s unique magic was [Heart-Sure-Hit Sword].

A spell blending mind sword—shaping intent into a blade—with sure-hit sword—the art of inevitably striking the foe.

True to the conqueror of the martial world, she had mastered swordsmanship’s pinnacle decades ago. An instant-kill technique that annihilated enemies in one strike.

Yet in this universe, nothing was flawless. Even the near-perfect Heart-Sure-Hit Sword had weaknesses.

“Single-shot.”

Heart-Sure-Hit Sword ended in one strike.

No chaining. Of course, that one shot usually sent foes to the afterlife…

Gulp.

Poison Master eyed the Heavenly Demon.

“Her standards are different.”

She wouldn’t be satisfied with that.

So she abandoned it—the absolute art of felling foes with invisible slashes. She imposed restrictions.

Discarding the “sure” (必). He’d barely wielded a single-edged sword, but abandoning “inevitability” had monstrous ripple effects.

Thus, the single-shot became continuous. One cast unleashed roughly a thousand slashes in an AoE barrage.

The Heavenly Demon didn’t stop there.

She abandoned “hit” (中). Power dropped sharply, but speed skyrocketed.

Her slashes mocked the speed of sound. Such were the boundless uses of restrictions.

“She didn’t just abandon them.”

No.

She sought to monopolize everything, even defying cosmic law.

Those two discarded characters—she restored “sure” and “hit” through proficiency.

One must give to take, by rule.

“Sharper.”

And she adjusted the angle precisely to sever only Bow Master’s ear. The Heavenly Demon was personally dismantling Heaven-Defying walls.

The turbulent clearing fell into lull as she turned to Illusion Master.

“Left Guardian.”

“Y-Yes…!”

“What did I command you?”

“To… to dispose of Hwaryeon.”

The Heavenly Demon stepped forward deliberately.

“Do those two look like Hwaryeon to you?”

“…Grant me permission to speak.”

“Speak.”

She nodded up close. A chill ran down Illusion Master’s hunched back.

“I arrived at the target to dispose of the traitor Hwaryeon. But then these interlopers appeared. I inquired about Hwaryeon’s whereabouts as ordered, and that one drew his blade first.”

“Was he stronger than you?”

“N-No… he wasn’t.”

“Then why don’t you hold his head in your hands?”

“Th-That… that’s!”

“Pitiful. The one claiming to be second only to me in our Magic Tower, fumbling against a mere interloper. And failing to gain the upper hand even against a monkey and a chicken.”

Illusion Master unwittingly lifted his head. Their eyes met, and he sensed it. In those stony pupils, he was no longer a “living being.”

“You’ve sullied the value of the insignia our cult bestowed. You’re no different from a traitor. Thus, you must be culled.”

“Cult Leader—!”

“Farewell, Left Guardian.”

The Heavenly Demon snapped her fingers.

Snap. Illusion Master’s form began pulverizing from the base. Shredded into particles finer than green onions.

He vanished from the world without a drop of blood. Despite the fierce battle beforehand.

For the death of a Ten Wing pillar, it was pathetically mundane. Her eyes turned to Bow Master.

“Why were you clashing with the Left Guardian? I know your grudge with Poison Master, but you and the Left Guardian had no real connection.”

“…I thought he was linked to my release from Siesta… Though now it seems irrelevant…”

Bow Master’s tone grew markedly deferential. The Heavenly Demon tilted her chin.

“Explain.”

“He held periodic secret meetings with Siesta, leaders in cyber space expansion.”

“I see.”

“You knew.”

The Heavenly Demon glanced at the now-empty void.

“It’s no surprise when one reliant on illusions harbors ulterior motives.”

“Well, managing your subordinates isn’t my concern.”

“……”

“I was reckless.”

Bow Master gauged her mood before continuing.

“During that, the Left Guardian said something odd. Mentioned someone else. The name was unique… Li… Tae… something.”

“Lee Taebaek.”

“Yes! That name.”

Bow Master’s face hardened immediately.

“…But why does the Cult Leader know that name?”

“He sent me here.”

…What?

Bow Master and Poison Master doubted their ears. Sent her? The wording felt off.

Who dispatches the Heavenly Demon to a scene? As the two gaped, she added casually.

“I skipped ahead. We made a deal.”

“…The Cult Leader makes deals with someone?”

Poison Master interjected.

“Why not, if the price is right? No one worthy had appeared until now. But that’s the past.”

“Wh-What is this Lee Taebaek guy?”

The Heavenly Demon’s brow furrowed.

Even Poison Master was stunned. Because she looked troubled.

“I can’t tell you, nor am I obligated to.”

“Just this once, as a fellow party to the incident. By the way of the jianghu, surely?”

“Very well.”

“Was the deal item perhaps the Left Guardian’s life?”

The Heavenly Demon turned silently.

To her, silence meant affirmation. Whatever the price, it equaled a Ten Wing’s life!

As Poison Master etched those three characters deep, her body floated ethereally, and she spoke from above.

“I won’t stop your fight, but my client prefers you settle personal grudges later.”

“……”

“……”

“Just a suggestion—ignore if you wish.”

The Heavenly Demon ascended slowly into the sky.

“That said—”

Moments later, just before her form was fully swallowed by the rift, a transmission echoed.

“One of the ten has fallen from those who endured until now.”

For some reason, Poison Master and Bow Master felt that voice sounded like laughter.

“Filling the vacancy isn’t a bad idea.”