Chapter 141: A Changed Future
“Y-You defeated Sa Eumryeong...?”
Yeom Yuhwa spoke in a trembling voice.
It was understandable that she was shocked.
Phantom Demon Musician Sa Eumryeong.
If you judged her by martial prowess alone, she wasn't considered especially exceptional among the Ten Demons.
In a straightforward fight with blades drawn, there were plenty of martial artists in the martial world stronger than her.
Sa Eumryeong's true terror lay elsewhere.
Her unparalleled illusion arts.
No matter how formidable someone's martial arts were, once their mind collapsed, it was over.
Even famous masters of the martial world had fallen helplessly before Sa Eumryeong's illusions.
With that one overwhelming ability alone, she'd earned her position among the Ten Demons.
But—
I'm different.
If I had to choose the easiest opponent for me among the Ten Demons...
it would unquestionably be Sa Eumryeong.
The illusion arts every martial artist feared weren't that threatening to me.
The reality I'd endured as a test subject in my previous life...
was far more horrific and brutal than anything Sa Eumryeong could show me through illusion.
To someone like me, her illusions were almost laughable.
Of course...
experience alone wasn't the reason I could resist them.
There was a more fundamental reason.
The Soul-Dissolving Pill.
Blood Physician Butcher Baek Cheongu.
The cursed pill that crushed the souls of Shadow Corps test subjects and turned them into puppets without wills of their own.
The Soul-Dissolving Pill shackled the soul of whoever swallowed it.
But ironically...
that horrible medicine had an unintended effect.
Anyone who had taken a Soul-Dissolving Pill once became highly resistant to ordinary illusions and mental interference for several years afterward.
Neither the Chaotic Soul Lust Incense nor Sa Eumryeong's illusion arts could easily affect someone under its lingering influence.
And in this life...
I'd already swallowed the Soul-Dissolving Pill once.
That bastard Baek Cheongu had disguised it as an elixir and fed it to the participants of the Elders' Lecture Gathering.
Should I thank that dead Blood Physician Butcher bastard?
The horrifying connection that had ruined me in my previous life...
had ended up saving me in this one.
The irony twisted the corner of my mouth.
“Ahem.”
Yeom Yuhwa cleared her throat in front of me.
Only then did I look up.
She was staring at me with a stiff expression.
But the moment our eyes met...
she subtly looked away.
“I-I didn't expect you to deal with her so decisively....”
Her voice trembled.
“As expected of the Heavenly Demon's Kindred Spirit.”
Only then did I realize what she was thinking.
Ah.
I suppose I do look a little disturbing right now.
I'd driven my sword straight through Sa Eumryeong's heart.
Blood from her chest had splashed all over my face, neck, and body.
And afterward...
I'd stood over her corpse smiling to myself.
She probably thinks I'm some blood-crazed murderer.
Well...
that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
When dealing with members of the Demonic Cult, it might be better to appear a little excessive than weak.
I spoke calmly.
“I only made sure she was really dead.”
Yeom Yuhwa glanced at me.
“What?”
“There was no way to know whether that corpse itself was another illusion.”
I looked down at Sa Eumryeong's body.
“People who use illusion arts can deceive others even after they stop breathing.”
Yeom Yuhwa nodded as though forcing herself to understand.
“...Yes.”
A pause.
“I suppose... that could happen.”
Her face clearly said she didn't really believe me.
Then—
BOOOOM!
The door to the room exploded inward.
A figure charged inside.
The moment I saw him...
I nodded slightly.
He's here.
The person I'd been waiting for.
A huge man carrying an enormous saber in one hand.
Overwhelming, domineering qi poured from his entire body.
Overlord Saber Ghost Demon.
Muk Jincheol shouted in a thunderous voice while breathing heavily.
“Cult Leader! I have arrived!”
“Overlord Saber Ghost Demon has come to protect the Cult Leader!”
His appearance was a complete mess.
Blood and sweat soaked his entire body.
His clothes were torn in several places.
Thick blood coated the massive blade in his hand.
There was no need to ask how fierce a battle he'd fought to reach this room.
Enemies like Phantom Sound Pavilion must have been especially troublesome for someone like Muk Jincheol.
A straightforward battle was one thing.
Fighting enemies who used illusion and sound arts was another entirely.
Muk Jincheol swept his gaze across the room while breathing hard.
Then his eyes immediately landed on me.
“Is the Cult Leader safe?”
His expression was tense.
“And where are those treacherous bastards who plotted rebellion?”
He stepped forward.
Then his gaze suddenly shifted to the corpse lying on one side of the room.
“P-Phantom Demon Musician Sa Eumryeong...?”
Muk Jincheol's face froze.
His eyes moved between me and Yeom Yuhwa.
Then he asked urgently,
“What happened?”
“Did the Cult Leader deal with her?”
Before I could answer, Yeom Yuhwa spoke first.
“The Heavenly Demon's Kindred Spirit did.”
Muk Jincheol's head snapped toward me.
“Mujin personally delivered the punishment the traitor deserved.”
“The Heavenly Demon's Kindred Spirit?”
He stared at me in shock.
“Y-You did?”
He was so surprised that even his thick lips trembled.
He clearly hadn't imagined for even a moment that I could defeat Sa Eumryeong.
Then again...
that made sense.
Only yesterday, Muk Jincheol had warned me that Sa Eumryeong was plotting rebellion.
He'd told me to escape from the Heavenly Demon Palace with the Cult Leader.
That alone showed how dangerous he considered her.
So hearing that I'd gone into the lair of Phantom Demon Musician Sa Eumryeong and killed her myself...
of course he was shocked.
But his surprise didn't last long.
“Hmm... yes.”
Muk Jincheol quickly composed himself.
Then he muttered,
“If you are the Heavenly Demon's Kindred Spirit chosen by the Cult Leader, then perhaps defeating Phantom Demon Musician isn't impossible.”
He nodded to himself.
