Descent of the Demon Master

'Don't stop, dammit!'

Zhu Gang desperately flailed his limbs in the water. Tears flowed nonstop from his wide-open eyes, but he didn't stop to wipe his face. He thought he could vaguely hear someone shouting at him from a distance.

Even then, Zhu Gang didn't stop swimming.

He didn't care whose voice that was. The only thing he cared about right now was to keep moving forward.

His blurred vision made it harder to differentiate what was what. All he could make out in front of him were waves larger than most houses constantly surging toward him. As the waves continued to buffet him, Zhu Gang kept swimming forward. And forward!

Was this even the right direction, though? Was he going the right way?

Obviously, finding the correct heading in an ocean devoid of a single buoy would never be easy. Whenever he felt lost, Zhu Gang looked up at the night sky.

'It's that way!'

The best he could do was use the constellation the elders told him as his signpost and swim as fast as humanly possible. He didn't have enough spare energy to ponder how much further he had to swim or calculate whether he could reach his destination with the remaining stamina or not. So, he simply focused on swimming.

Zhu Gang desperately held on to his fading consciousness and extended his arms again and again. His broken arm flopped about, but he didn't care. Pain no longer registered in his brain, anyway.

He suddenly found this situation somewhat laughable. Had he ever tried something so desperately in his life before? Sure, he used to think he always tried his absolute best to ensure his continued survival, but... Now that he looked back, it was too embarrassing to even think that way.

Zhu Gang avoided mastering the demonic arts in fear of demonic qi taking over his mind. And he never thought about utilizing his power to its fullest potential, either. No, he... He simply wallowed in his current life and whined about it constantly.

He naively believed the demon emperor's appearance could take care of everything. Yet the demon emperor, their supposed savior... cast the demonic cultivators into the pits of Hell with a smile on his face. And now, Zhu Gang found himself swimming on the precipice of life and death!

Death was waiting for him. If Zhu Gang failed to reach the destination, he'd die. If he swam the wrong way, he'd also die. Even if he did arrive at the coordinates... He'd still die if the other side had made a mistake somewhere!

Indeed, death was waiting for him everywhere.

Zhu Gang sneakily turned his head back. He couldn't see the coastline anymore. Before he had realized it, Zhu Gang had swam too far away from the dry land. Even so, turning around now could be the right call here.

He was rapidly losing what little stamina still left in his system. His temperature was also rapidly falling. As for the intense battle on the pier, its ripples contained enough power to turn this ocean into Hell in an instant.

'Right. Going back now is the right thing to do!'

Even if Zhu Gang decided to keep going like this, he must swim the same distance to reach his destination. If he was unlucky, maybe even further than that! But there was no guarantee his future, his survival, awaited him at the end of all this swimming.

However, if he turned around and swam back to the coast... At least the odds of his survival should be higher. In that case, wouldn't the right thing to do here be... Going back?

Should he really risk his life like this for an uncertain future?

“Kuh-heuh...!”

Zhu Gang spat out a low sigh-like chuckle before shoving his head under the water. And then, he resumed swimming forward.

'No, I'm not going back. Never!'

The demon emperor had ordered them, after all. He told them to get a move on. To keep going forward.

The demon emperor wasn't simply ordering them to jump into the sea and swim. No, the real meaning behind his words was for them to keep moving forward in their lives!

Those who didn't challenge anything and never tried their best were stuck in their spot, even if they thought they were walking forward. Zhu Gang had enough of a life like that. And no, it wasn't because the demon emperor stayed behind to guard their rear.

Risking his life to repay the demon emperor's belief in them? What a laughable notion that was.

Zhu Gang's reason for not stopping was to resist. To resist the fate handed down to him, to resist against himself who had been so lackadaisical and lazy until now!

If he turned around and headed back to the coast, he'd never regain the confidence to crawl back up again for the rest of his life. Zhu Gang knew he'd become a stinking rat in a sewer, pathetically surviving on scraps of food found in trash cans.

That kind of life was no life at all.

Zhu Gang slapped away the waves trying to hit him in the face before roaring loudly. “I... I am...!”

The rest of the sentence never made out of his lips. The waves covered his mouth and blocked his throat. Still, wasn't it obvious what he wanted to declare to the world?

He was going to live. He wanted to keep living!

Zhu Gang washed his tears away with the salty water of the ocean and continued to swim forward.

His arms were getting tired. His legs were cramping up. He was no longer conscious of his body floating in the water. Although, that happened quite a while ago.

How long had he been swimming for, though? And how much further was he supposed to swim?

'Was it impossible after all?'

When he tried to think about it rationally, he realized reaching the destination had always been an impossible task for someone like him.

There wasn't much to get disappointed about here, though. This was the story of Zhu Gang's life, after all. During his time on this Earth, had he ever reached the goal he set for himself? No. Not even once.

So, this journey had always been impossible for him. A man who never succeeded once wouldn't suddenly see a change in his fortune during the most critical moments of his life. Something that dramatic shouldn't be a part of Zhu Gang's life story.

Even then...

Even then!

'Even then, I still challenged this damn thing, you... You sons of b*tches!'

At the very least, his final moments in life were better than that of an insect. That knowledge blew away all the regret and sorrow in Zhu Gang's heart. With that, he slowly sank deeper.

Slowly and silently... Toward the depths of the ocean.

His death brightly illuminated his sinking figure. That light was so bright and mesmerizing, and...

Zhu Gang's eyes suddenly shot open.

'There's light?!'

***

Kang Jin-Ho was getting faster. That was the feeling washing over the Crimson King.

'How can a man like this exist?'

But it wasn't just his feelings. Kang Jin-Ho's attacks were indeed getting faster. And no, he wasn't sacrificing power to increase his speed, either! Not only his speed, but the weight behind each sword strike was getting heavier, too.

However, such a thing should be impossible. All humans required stamina to move. The more one moved, the more they would exhaust their stamina. So, how could Kang Jin-Ho get stronger the more he exhausted his stamina?

That should not happen in reality. However, it was happening. Right in front of the Crimson King's eyes, no less!

The Crimson King's brow rose higher, his teeth tightly clenched.

'Am I... Am I being scared? Scared of a weakling like him?!'

This was just as unthinkable as Kang Jin-Ho getting stronger.

Wasn't he overpowering Kang Jin-Ho right now? To other observers, Kang Jin-Ho must look like he held the upper hand with all these crazy attacks, but that was only on the surface.

The Crimson King was ably defending against all of Kang Jin-Ho's attacks, but Kang Jin-Ho couldn't perfectly deal with the Crimson King's counterattacks. In terms of accumulated damage, Kang Jin-Ho was obviously far worse off. The Crimson King wouldn't have to do anything and just drag things out, and Kang Jin-Ho would most likely collapse on his own soon enough. Even a blind could see that he was pushing himself beyond his limits to try to overcome the Crimson King here.

At least, that was what the Crimson King's head told him. But his heart was saying something else.

Behold! Behold how Kang Jin-Ho was charging at the Crimson King while bleeding profusely to resemble a terrifying evil monster! Even though his body was basically a pile of mush now, Kang Jin-Ho was still pounding away at his enemy, his expression a chaotic mixture of murderous intent and hatred.

Unless one experienced this first-hand... They would never understand the unimaginable creepy chill the Crimson King felt!

'Just what is the meaning of this?!'

The Crimson King finally gave up on his initial plan. Subduing Kang Jin-Ho without getting injured himself was impossible even for the Crimson King. No, that wasn't right. He was already injured severely by now. And he had tasted enough humiliation, too.

Since that was the case, the Crimson King must definitely... kill Kang Jin-Ho here. Even if he had to discard what little remained of his pride and honor!

The Crimson King's right hand grabbed Kang Jin-Ho's Crimson Destiny. He felt the flesh and bone tearing apart, but no pain registered in his mind. Just like his opponent, the Crimson King was too agitated to even feel pain right now.

“Kang, Jin, Hooooo!”

The Crimson King's strike landed on target, causing Kang Jin-Ho's chest to explode. The sensation he got in return was heavy. Familiar and... complete.

However, fulfillment or satisfaction was the furthest thing in his mind. Instead, it was relief washing over his body. Relief at finally defeating a scary monster!

The Crimson King sensed his strength quickly abandoning him as his eyes chased after Kang Jin-Ho's figure flying away like a kite with its strings cut.

Trickle...

At the same time, blood began trickling out of the Crimson King's nose. He quickly realized that his innards failed to endure his agitation and ended up blowing apart. He wordlessly wiped the trickling blood off his face with his sleeve.

'What a pathetic showing this is!'

The Crimson King scanned the state of his body and... It was a mess. Bad enough for him to chuckle hollowly.

His robe was a tattered rag now. His previously neat topknot was ruthlessly sliced off, leaving his hair in a disheveled state. His beard was cut and gouged out in various places, no longer boasting its predator-like grandeur.

“Huh... Huhuh.” The Crimson King chuckled bitterly.

Had he ever experienced a humiliation like this before in his entire life? Not even once did he end up looking this wretched, regardless of who his opponents were. He used to think not even the other two Kings could injure him to this degree, yet...

“I've been too arrogant, it seems.”

As it turned out, another expert was strong enough to truly challenge him. The Crimson King felt relieved by this knowledge. And a little rueful as well.

'You foolish man...'

What if Kang Jin-Ho had willingly joined the Crimson King? What if he hadn't tried to enter China? Kang Jin-Ho could've eventually changed the title of the rulers of Earth from "Three Kings" to "Four Kings".

As one of the Three Kings, the Crimson King was relieved to have nipped the buds ahead of time. As a martial artist, though... He was rueful. Because he could clearly sense it during their fight.

That couldn't have been the extent of Kang Jin-Ho's strength. If only he had a little more time, he could have become strong enough to thrust a sword deep into the Crimson King's throat!

The Crimson King's thoughts became complicated, knowing he had ended Kang Jin-Ho's life before that future could become a reality.

'Now I'm being foolish here...'

If Kang Jin-Ho was given enough time to grow, the Crimson King might have acquired a powerful enemy he must dedicate his all to fight. In the meantime, the world would've fallen into a state of unprecedented chaos.

No one should threaten the stability of the world just for their amusement. And so, the Crimson King chose to forego his 'entertainment' for the sake of the bigger picture.

Now that he had made up his mind, only one thing remained for him to do in this battle. The Crimson King's gaze shifted over to the ocean's surface.

The ocean covered in darkness was still chaotic with all the waves crazily tumbling around. Even so, the Crimson King's sharp eyes didn't miss tiny bubbles on the surface. That was where Kang Jin-Ho must be.

He'd die on his own sooner or later, but... The Crimson King chose to make sure of it.

“Fuu-woo...!”

Splash, splash...

The Crimson King's legs were already submerged underwater. He no longer had enough energy left to float on the water and survey his surroundings like a king. Unrelenting fatigue he had never felt before was mercilessly tormenting him.

His pathetic state reawakened his rage once more. However, he was also awestruck by what happened.

The other two Kings probably didn't have the tenacity to tangle with the Crimson King and keep fighting to this degree. No, their battles would've been clean-cut and decisive. Only Kang Jin-Ho would have been capable of pushing the Crimson King to a corner like this.

That was why the Crimson King was awestruck. But he was also fuming at the fact that he allowed someone far, far below him in cultivation to push him this far.

This man named Kang Jin-Ho... He seemed to possess this special something that roused contradictory feelings in the Crimson King's heart. However, that would end tonight. For good.

Rumble, wuoooong...

Qi began gathering in and around the Crimson King's injured right hand. The light from his fist prompted the ocean to discard the cover of inky-black darkness and reveal its surface. And now, the seawater glistened coldly under the bright fist light. Kang Jin-Ho... was somewhere under the surface.

With this strike, his life would be finished for good!

“This is the end, Kang Jin-Ho!”

The Crimson King unhesitantly unleashed his strike. He had been hesitant for too long. But that would not be the case anymore.

The blinding rays of fist light flew toward the figure of Kang Jin-Ho trapped underwater. But then...!

The ocean suddenly split apart. The Crimson King momentarily failed to figure out what happened. Why would the ocean... split open like that?

Why?

Rather than his head, though, the Crimson King's body figured out what was happening first.

Splaaaaaat!

A lengthy diagonal wound suddenly opened up from his gut to his shoulder. A fountain of blood gushed out from the stunned Crimson King's chest.

The Crimson King trembled in sheer shock. His new injury was grave. Perhaps fatal. However, he didn't dare divert his attention to stem the bleeding or look after the wound.

Because... Something far graver had suddenly revealed itself before his eyes!

Demonic qi was shoving the seawater aside like Moses splitting the Red Sea. The arrogant ocean that begrudgingly split open just that one time under God's command desperately tried to flee in fear as the devil ascended to the realm of mortals.

This devil from Hell raised itself from the center of the split ocean.

Was that... Kang Jin-Ho? No.

No, it couldn't be him. That couldn't be Kang Jin-Ho!

The Crimson King instinctively realized it. That figure was not Kang Jin-Ho. Indeed, that creature was not even human!

It was indescribably ominous and... And beyond evil!

An unknown creature beyond the scope of human language to describe! And then, an eerie crimson hue spread on the sky as if the fear of the ascending demon had contaminated the heavens.

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