Chapter 181 – The Great War Begins (4)

*Sssrrrk.*

Yu-jin, who had been sitting with his eyes closed, slowly opened them, his brow furrowing.

“Perhaps it’s because he’s lived for hundreds of years, but his tenacity is astonishing. To think he’s been living as a parasite within Yong-hoon. And I never imagined his supposedly brilliant younger brother could be so foolish.”

Kang Yong-hoon believed that Kang Yu-hyeon’s lingering will had been completely absorbed into his soul and vanished, but Yu-jin realized that was not the case.

Kang Yu-hyeon’s lingering will hadn’t been absorbed; it had merely fallen into a deep slumber in the recesses of Kang Yong-hoon’s soul—a place so deep that Yu-jin, a mere illusion, could never hope to awaken it.

“Are you planning to slowly recover your strength and take over Yong-hoon’s body? You should know full well that even if you were to be revived, you couldn’t possibly defeat me.”

Having been robbed of nearly everything by Yu-jin, Kang Yu-hyeon no longer had the strength to seize Kang Yong-hoon’s body. That was why he had managed to take root within him under the pretext of granting him power.

Had Kang Yu-hyeon tried to forcibly take over Kang Yong-hoon’s body, his last remaining trace of will would have been extinguished. But his choice had been a clever one, and as a result, it had only become a nuisance for Yu-jin himself.

“No matter what you do, you can’t defeat me, but I suppose I can’t just sit idly by.”

As Kang Yong-hoon had entered the battlefield to grow accustomed to the power of the Profound Realm, he was certain to become even stronger.

Yu-jin’s own strength had already reached a state of perfection, and it was unclear if there was even room for further growth. He decided to step onto the battlefield himself to limber up a body that had grown stiff from handling paperwork. And as it happened, a stage was already set for him.

“Clan Lord! The Alliance Lord has summoned you. It seems to be urgent!”

At the warrior’s cry, Yu-jin rose from his seat. He knew exactly why he was being summoned.

* * *

Once the True Dragon Sword Clan, the Nine Great Sects, and the Five Great Clans unleashed their full military might, the forces of the Demonic Cult could no longer advance into Hubei Province.

However, the Demonic Cult did not yield. They revealed all the living corpses they had created, and as a result, the Martial Alliance could not push them out of Hubei. In fact, they were the ones being pushed back.

Already dead, the living corpses would not fall to ordinary attacks, and even if they were shattered, they would quickly regenerate. They were invincible.

It was these living corpses that inflicted the most damage on the warriors of the Central Plains. Like immortals who knew no death, they recovered instantly no matter how grievous their wounds, and they fought all day without a hint of fatigue.

There seemed to be no way to fight against these immortal monsters that neither died nor were wounded.

In addition to the living corpses, countless warriors lost their lives to the ferocious attacks of the cultists. The Demonic Cult swept in relentlessly, like a tidal wave.

The warriors of the Central Plains desperately tried to stop them, risking their lives, but it was not enough to halt the Demonic Cult’s warriors, whose morale was at its peak. In the end, the front lines collapsed in various places, and the survivors had to retreat to the Martial Alliance headquarters.

Meanwhile, from the east and north of Hubei, the Demonic Cult’s Vice-Lords, who had reached the Profound Realm, advanced without pause.

Reinforcements constantly gathered at the Martial Alliance headquarters to stop them, but their strength was not enough to overcome the living corpses.

As the situation turned so disadvantageous for the Martial Alliance, the absolute masters of the Central Plains, who had been waiting at the headquarters, finally began to move.

The first two to move were Kang Yu-jin, the Clan Lord of the True Dragon Sword Clan and the strongest in the Central Plains, and Great Master Gak-won, a legend of Shaolin.

“There was no need for you to step forward, Great Master…”

Great Master Gak-won gave a slight smile at Yu-jin’s words.

“Amitabha. Shaolin’s martial arts are well-suited for dealing with unnatural beings like these corpses. In fact, this humble monk believes there was no need for the Clan Lord to act so soon. You are the hope of the Central Plains. You must preserve your strength until the Heavenly Demon makes his move.”

“I am not the type to stay in the back. In any case, I’ll be counting on you.”

“This monk will be counting on you as well.”

Behind Yu-jin stood the newly reorganized Divine Sword Brigade, which had become the True Dragon Sword Clan’s elite combat unit, and five female masters.

Behind Great Master Gak-won were warrior monks skilled in the arts of shattering evil and vanquishing demons.

They had gathered to annihilate the living corpses, the greatest headache for the Martial Alliance.

“Kyaooooo!”

Five living corpses charged toward Yu-jin and Great Master Gak-won at the vanguard. But when Yu-jin lightly swung his sword and Gak-won threw a punch, a brilliant light erupted, and the living corpses were annihilated without a chance to resist.

“I truly despise it when the dead rise again, or when near-dead humans try to defy me. I’ll make sure to crush them completely.”

Yu-jin declared, gazing at the living corpses before him.

* * *

After annihilating the living corpses that were marching toward the Martial Alliance headquarters, Yu-jin and Great Master Gak-won split up, heading north and south. They had received news that living corpses were on the move in both directions.

Yu-jin moved south with the warriors under his command, while Great Master Gak-won headed north with the Shaolin warrior monks.

“You will deal with the Demonic Cult’s cultists. Fighting the living corpses will only get you killed.”

“Yes! Understood, Clan Lord!”

The warriors answered Yu-jin’s command with a loud cry. Each and every one of them was a first-rate master overflowing with pride, but they knew all too well that it meant nothing against the living corpses.

Satisfied with their response, Yu-jin looked at Eun Seol-rin, Na Ye-jin, and Ran.

“I want you three to support them. We need to minimize casualties.”

“Leave it to us, Master.”

“You can count on me, Yu-jin.”

The reason for excluding not just Ran, a peak master, but also Eun Seol-rin and Na Ye-jin, masters of the Transformation Realm, was simple. They too lacked the power to properly deal with the living corpses.

The power of a single living corpse was comparable to a master of the Transformation Realm. If they were caught in the chaos of battle, their lives could be in danger.

That was why Yu-jin allowed only Bukri Eun and Han So-un, masters of the Profound Realm, to fight the living corpses. It was the safest and most efficient method.

“There can’t be many living corpses left. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say this will be the final cleanup.”

They had already annihilated well over a hundred of them. No matter how many the Demonic Cult mass-produced, there had to be a limit.

Once he and Great Master Gak-won dealt with the rest, the living corpses, which had played the largest role for the Demonic Cult, would no longer be a factor.

With that thought, Yu-jin attacked the Demonic Cult’s cultists and living corpses marching toward the Martial Alliance headquarters from the south.

*Chwaaaaak!*

Thirteen Wings of Light unfurled, and soon, hundreds of feathers of light became projectiles that struck the corpses.

*Kwakwakwang!*

“Kieeeek!”

“Kioooooo!”

Caught in Yu-jin’s surprise attack, the living corpses were unable to react properly. Even if they had, it was their fate to melt away before the Wings of Light that destroyed darkness.

Meanwhile, Han So-un brandished a whip made of black energy. Each time her whip pierced them, the demonic energy comprising the living corpses’ bodies was siphoned away, and they collapsed to the ground as simple corpses.

“Simply looking at them is unpleasant.”

Bukri Eun scowled and waved her hand. Instantly, massive pillars of ice erupted from the bare ground, swallowing five living corpses.

Seeing the corpses trapped, Bukri Eun clenched her fist, and the ice pillars shattered on the spot. Of course, the bodies of the living corpses swallowed by the pillars were also smashed beyond any hope of regeneration.

“Wh-what is this!”

As their prized living corpses were annihilated without putting up a fight, Hyeon-yang of the Demonic Cult’s Hall of Life and Death could not hide his panic.

Yu-jin glanced at him and flicked his hand. A single feather pierced through Hyeon-yang’s chest.

“Kyaaaaah!”

With Hyeon-yang’s death, the living corpses broke free from control and began to run rampant.

“Kraaaak!”

“Aaaack!”

The uncontrolled living corpses turned on the Demonic Cult’s own cultists behind them, who were cut down without a chance to defend themselves.

Watching the scene, Yu-jin drew his sword with a sneer.

“What a pathetic sight. I can’t bear to watch any longer. I’ll erase you all.”

*Kuuuuooooh!*

An inky energy began to gather around Yu-jin’s Ink Dragon Sword. The energy was so intense that even the living corpses, who had been slaughtering the cultists, all turned their gazes toward Yu-jin.

Exhibiting extreme caution, the living corpses charged at Yu-jin. But their time had already run out.

“Begone, you wraiths!”

*Kwakwakwakwang!*

As Yu-jin swung his sword down, an inky torrent powerful enough to easily shatter a hill swallowed the living corpses and the cultists behind them.

The inky torrent didn’t just swallow them; it consumed everything on the ground. And when it dissipated, nothing was left standing.

“Cleaning’s done.”

Yu-jin muttered with a slight smile and sheathed his sword.

“Waaaaaah!”

The warriors of the Divine Sword Brigade roared in celebration at Yu-jin’s overwhelming divine might, and he gave them a resigned wave.

As he waved to the warriors, Yu-jin suddenly felt an intense aura. It was a domineering and ominous energy that he knew all too well.

“It can’t be!”

Yu-jin couldn’t help but show his astonishment. Someone who should not have moved yet had made their move.

“Eun and So-un, you two follow me! Ye-jin, you return to the Martial Alliance headquarters with the others! And inform them that the Heavenly Demon has appeared! Now, Eun, So-un, let’s go!”

With those words, Yu-jin began to run at an incredible speed, and Eun and So-un followed him, clueless as to what was happening.

* * *

Great Master Gak-won, who had gone to deal with the living corpses, came face to face with a presence whose power was incomparable to theirs.

That presence was none other than the Demonic Fist King, Gu Yang-geuk. The Demonic Cult’s greatest pugilist, who had reached the Profound Realm through the Heavenly Demon, was there with the living corpses.

When Great Master Gak-won appeared, the surrounding atmosphere began to churn violently. It was caused by the alien energy emanating from the living corpses as they reacted to his aura.

These beings, who had become living corpses through the forced infusion of the dead’s resentment, energy, and demonic qi, were neither dead nor alive.

To such creatures, the pure aura of a monk like Great Master Gak-won was a natural enemy.

Gu Yang-geuk stood before the living corpses and opened his mouth.

“Shaolin?”