Chronicles of the Demonic Cult Conversion Chapter 30

“If you don't come out at once, I will burn your entire house down! You disciple of Jang Guk-pyeong! Can't you come out at once!”

It seemed the reason he came with a torch in broad daylight was to commit arson.

"Team Leader Jang! What in the world are you doing……."

"Brother Dan, I'll handle this."

Jin Yeong-in pulled Danmok Cheong back and stepped forward.

"You called for me?"

"Oh, you crawled out quickly enough. Hmph!"

Jang In-geol threw down the torch and drew his saber as if he had been waiting.

"The day before yesterday, the Fourth Young Master interfered, so I couldn't settle my grudge, but today will be different."

"Yes, it should be."

Jin Yeong-in nodded his head.

After all, it would be easier for both parties to settle a grudge as quickly as possible.

"Young Master Jin, will you be alright?"

"Of course I will."

Jin Yeong-in showed a faint smile.

"Could you lend me a sword? I will settle this one-on-one."

"Don't tell me you intend to have a life-or-death duel with Team Leader Jang?"

"Yes, well. Something like that."

"It's too dangerous. Team Leader Jang is……."

Danmok Cheong's words were cut off.

Because Jin Yeong-in held out his palm with a faint smile and without a word.

"…Here you go."

Danmok Cheong untied his sword and handed it to Jin Yeong-in.

To a martial artist, their weapon was like their life.

But Danmok Cheong had no hesitation.

Because Danmok Cheong and Jin Yeong-in were comrades-in-arms who had fought back-to-back against the enemy at the Yangtze River.

Besides, Jin Yeong-in's sword had been broken during the battle at the Yangtze River, so he was in a position where he had no choice but to borrow a sword.

‘He might have a chance.’

Danmok Cheong thought that Jin Yeong-in might have a chance of winning.

Having achieved the Small Heavenly Cycle of the Reverse Heaven Heart Art last night, he should have a handful of internal energy.

Recalling the divine martial prowess Jin Yeong-in had shown during the battle at the Yangtze River, it seemed that even a veteran like Jang In-geol could not easily guarantee victory.

Hadn't he also cut down a Scaled Dragon Sword Master of the Hainan Sect while limping?

"One-on-one, how about it."

"Hehehe! Do you think I would mobilize my subordinates to deal with a puppy like you?"

"Then why did you bring your subordinates?"

"Th-that is."

"That's the characteristic of insignificant guys. They can't do anything on their own, so they just know how to gang up and push with numbers."

"Shut up!"

Jang In-geol, at a loss for words, shouted.

"My subordinates just wanted to watch my revenge and followed me! Isn't that right!"

"Yes! Team Leader!"

The Ghost Soldier Corps members answered loudly as if they had been waiting.

"Did you hear that loud and clear?"

"I'm not deaf."

"One eye won't be enough for you. I'll pull out your three-inch tongue as well."

Jang In-geol's eyes gradually turned crimson.

It seemed that his body was heating up and his demonic qi was already boiling at the thought of catching and killing his enemy's disciple.

"Then what should I pull out."

Jin Yeong-in chuckled and drew his sword.

"I'll think about it later, I guess."

"How dare this brat who only knows how to run his mouth!"

Jang In-geol rushed towards Jin Yeong-in.

* * *

"Try running away like a rat again! You won't be able to get out alive today!"

Jang In-geol's momentum was still fierce.

His characteristic unrestrained power and aggressive offense made up for a significant portion of his rough movements due to a lack of fundamentals.

But that was just the story from two days ago.

Jin Yeong-in, who had mastered the Reverse Heaven Heart Art, was not the same Jin Yeong-in who had only been running away and looking for an opportunity.

"Does it itch here?"

"...!"

Puk!

Jin Yeong-in's sword pierced Jang In-geol's thigh.

It was a move that perfectly exploited the blind spot of Jang In-geol, who was missing one eye.

"Kraaah!"

"Where else does it itch?"

"You son of a bitch!"

"Here?"

"Aack!"

Jin Yeong-in, who had avoided Jang In-geol's counterattack, this time had his sword slash across his other calf.

"Th-th-this…!!!"

Enraged, Jang In-geol ground his teeth as if they would break.

"I'll… kill… you… disciple… of Jang Guk-pyeong… Grrr!"

As his demonic qi had boiled up to its peak, a beast-like growl flowed from Jang In-geol's mouth.

"Young Master Jin! It's dangerous! Be careful!"

"Yes!"

Danmok Cheong urgently warned him, but Jin Yeong-in only answered with a cheerful voice, showing not a hint of tension.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaak!"

Jang In-geol, letting out a monstrous scream, swung his saber wildly.

As his demonification was gradually progressing, his distorted face was now dyed a deep purple.

"Kyaaaak, kyaaaaaak!"

"My, my."

"Gyaaaaaaaak!"

"To lose his mind on top of not being able to control his own body."

Jin Yeong-in sneered.

"That's a beast, not a martial artist."

Chwararak!

Jin Yeong-in's sword slashed the heel of Jang In-geol, who was charging forward aggressively.

Thud!

"Kyak, kyaaaaaaaak!"

Jang In-geol, who had fallen disgracefully, continued to scream and struggle, but with the tendon in his ankle cut, there was no way he could move properly.

It was said that when demonified, one wouldn't even bat an eye at most injuries, but that was only possible for true demonic practitioners who had learned advanced demonic arts.

For a low-level martial artist like Jang In-geol, simply cutting the tendon was enough to neutralize him.

In fact, the Righteous Heavenly Alliance had a history of developing martial arts that specifically targeted the tendons of the arms and legs to deal with the demonified martial artists of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

"Kyaaak, kyaaaak!"

Even while limping, Jang In-geol stubbornly rushed towards Jin Yeong-in.

Having lost his reason, all that remained in Jang In-geol was the instinct to attack only Jin Yeong-in.

"Brother Dan! A wooden sword, please!"

"Pardon?"

"Hurry!"

"Understood!"

Danmok Cheong hastily brought a wooden sword and threw it towards Jin Yeong-in.

"A beast that doesn't know to fear humans."

"Kyaaaaaak!"

"Wait. I'll make you human."

Jin Yeong-in swung the wooden sword and began to beat Jang In-geol mercilessly.

Thwack, thwack, crack, crack, thwack, thwack!

The wooden sword seemed to have no eyes, striking Jang In-geol's arms, legs, shoulders, waist, head, and neck without discrimination.

"Kyaaaaaaaaaak!"

A scream filled with pain erupted from Jang In-geol's mouth.

Although he had lost his reason, it seemed he still felt the pain fully.

"Uh."

Jin Yeong-in looked at the broken wooden sword with a troubled expression.

"Young Master Jin! There's more here!"

"Thank you!"

Danmok Cheong timely threw a spare wooden sword.

"Kyak, kyaaaak!"

"You still endure?"

"Kyaaaaaak!"

The toughness of the demonified Jang In-geol was truly beyond imagination.

If he hadn't cut the ankle tendon, it would have been clearly difficult to stop him.

"Brother Dan! It broke again!"

"There are still a few more!"

"Thank you!"

Each time a wooden sword broke, Jin Yeong-in replaced it with a new one and continued to flog Jang In-geol.

"Here you go!"

"Thank you every time!"

It was when Jin Yeong-in held the fourth wooden sword in his hand.

"S-stop! Kkeueueuk! Please stooooop!"

Jang In-geol, whose demonification had worn off, begged Jin Yeong-in.

"What did you say?"

"Uwaaaaaah! S-stooooop! Uwaaaaaah!"

"Is it because you're not fully human yet? I can't quite understand what you're saying."

"Uwaaaaaaaaaah!"

Jang In-geol screamed and rolled on the ground.

Jin Yeong-in persistently chased after Jang In-geol and did not stop the beating.

"Speak, speak. You have to speak human words for me to understand."

"Uwaaaaaah! Please! Please stop hitting me! Uwaaaaaah!"

Jang In-geol had to desperately think about how he could become human.

* * *

“Stop!”

“Hey, you son of a bitch! Stop hitting him! Are you trying to kill him!”

“You devil-like bastard!”

The Ghost Soldier Corps members, unable to watch any longer, rushed towards Jin Yeong-in.

"Stop! This is a life-or-death duel between Young Master Jin and Team Leader Jang! Do you have no honor as members of the Ghost Soldier Corps!"

The Ghost Soldier Corps members flinched for a moment at Danmok Cheong's shout, but it was only for a moment.

"Shut up! How dare a bat bastard! We don't abandon our comrades!"

"How would a bat bastard like you know about camaraderie!"

"If you're a bat bastard, then act like a bat bastard and suck honey in the Central Plains!"

'Bat bastard' was an expression used within the cult to belittle members of the Bat Squad.

It was a derogatory term derived from the prejudice against intelligence agencies, that they were a non-combat unit that only carried out comfortable missions in the Central Plains.

"Have you… finished speaking?"

As if their mockery had touched a raw nerve, Danmok Cheong's eyes turned crimson.

"What do you know to be blabbering like that. Have you ever thought about the toil and sacrifice of our brothers who died nameless in the land of the Central Plains, thousands of li away? Our dedication, working in the darkest places… did that look like sucking honey to you?"

As he spoke, Danmok Cheong's voice was filled with an unprecedented anger.

How many brothers had he lost during the Jin Yeong-in escort mission?

Although they were a non-combat unit, the Bat Squad was by no means a group that played around.

As they conducted espionage activities in the Central Plains, the role of the Bat Squad could by no means be considered light compared to other armed groups.

"I swear, after today, I will make sure you can never talk like that again."

Just as Danmok Cheong, radiating killing intent, drew his sword.

"Well now~"

The Blood Qilin stepped into the yard over the broken main gate.

Holding a parasol and even wearing dark spectacles, it seemed he really disliked the sun.

"You all must have a lot of energy, huh? Making such a fuss in the middle of the night?"

It was unclear why he was calling this the middle of the night, but no one dared to question the Blood Qilin's statement.

The faces of the Ghost Soldier Corps members turned pale.

From their perspective, they had run into the worst possible person they should never have encountered.

Wasn't it just yesterday that the Three Fiends of Eastern Expanse were torn to shreds?

Of course, if they had the sense to worry about that, they wouldn't have attacked Jin Yeong-in's house, which was right in front of the Sacred Blood Clan's estate.

"We greet the Sixth Young Master!"

The startled Ghost Soldier Corps members shouted in unison towards the Blood Qilin.

"Ugh, so loud."

The Blood Qilin frowned.

"I was just about to fall asleep and you guys woke me up. Are you performing a ritual to make me stay up all night?"

"N-no, sir."

"Get lost before I kill you all. I'll count to three. On—"

Rumble!

Before the Blood Qilin could even finish counting to one, the Ghost Soldier Corps members scrambled to run away as if their lives depended on it.

It went without saying, but the Ghost Soldier Corps members did not take Jang In-geol with them.

"…I was an idiot to get angry at guys like that."

Danmok Cheong was so dumbfounded by the behavior of the Ghost Soldier Corps members that he was at a loss for words.

To think that the same guys who were just talking about camaraderie and how the Ghost Soldier Corps doesn't abandon its comrades would actually abandon Jang In-geol.

"Hey! Younger brother!"

The Blood Qilin called out to Jin Yeong-in.

"Let me get some sleep! Let me sleep! What's with all this racket in the middle of the night? Don't you have any consideration for your neighbors, younger brother? Even if you're mine, this is troublesome, you know?"

"You've arrived."

Jin Yeong-in replied while continuing to beat Jang In-geol.

"Could you wait just a moment? I need to finish what I was doing."

"Are you very busy?"

"Yes, I'm a bit busy right now."

"Then finish it quickly. I'll wait."

"By the way, why are you calling me younger brother?"

"Didn't we agree to be sworn brothers?"

"Pardon? When…?"

"Right now!"

The Blood Qilin, who had at some point sat down on the wooden floor under the eaves, answered forcefully.

‘How old is he to be calling me younger brother?’

Jin Yeong-in suddenly became curious about the Blood Qilin's age, but for now, he decided to make Jang In-geol human first.

"You, become human quickly. The Sixth Young Master is waiting."

"Wh-what kind of bullsh— Kkuweeeek!"

"You're still far from it. What am I going to do with you."

Jin Yeong-in lamented as he struck Jang In-geol on the head.