So? Did Someone Force You to Become the Heavenly Demon?

With ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍his message delivered, the man turned and walked away.

‘You'd ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍think he was the Emperor himself with that attitude.’

He ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍was the commanding officer of this unit. If he had his way, he would have tossed this errand to a grunt rather than playing messenger boy for that old freak, but direct orders from the brass meant he had to stomach the indignity and handle the monster personally.

The ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍order dictated that he was to personally manage every single movement of the old monster known as the Divine Monk and submit reports to the high command on a regular basis.

This ‍​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‍was because the moment they seized victory in this war, it would be necessary to lure the old monster into a trap and dispose of him. If they let him live, he'd become a massive thorn in the Imperial Family's side sooner or later.

***

Right around that same time. 

After half a day of continuous travel, Il-mok and his maids spotted a camp with the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's banners flying at every post. They rode through the gates soon after, and the guards quickly ushered them straight to the command tent.

"Welcome, Left Guardian."

Inside, Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang greeted Il-mok and his maids warmly.

After exchanging greetings with Il-mok first, Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang turned to Jin Hayeon with a look of mild surprise. "Miss Jin. It seems you've made some real progress since I last saw you."

"Only thanks to the Left Guardian's generosity."

Seeing Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang's raised eyebrow, Il-mok stepped in to quickly smooth over the details.

"We happened to hunt a Spirit Beast up north. Because the beast’s Inner Core contained too much of Yin Qi, I decided to split it with Miss Jin and we each absorbed part of it."

"Incredible. You really are generous to a fault, Left Guardian."

Il-mok offered a sheepish smile at Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang’s praise.

Il-mok scratched the back of his head at the praise, a little awkward about it.       

In truth, he had given her the core with the intention of returning the Yin Qi he had previously taken from her. But almost nobody knew about what had happened between him and Jin Hayeon, and there was no reason to broadcast it. So he kept it vague.

"The Inner Core was just a small nudge. It's Miss Jin's own insight that pushed her to a higher level."

And that was the truth.

The core had simply filled in the gap in her internal energy that had been lagging behind her actual realm. The real growth had come from the countless battles she'd fought throughout this war, especially her experience against Yangmuja who had been a full level above her.

She had evolved to the point where even if Yangmuja crawled out of his grave for a rematch, he wouldn't have an easy time putting her down.

‘If I had to put a label on it, I'd say she's officially cemented herself at the entry stage.’

Il-mok ran through the masters of the Realm of Truth that he knew.

Although they were all broadly grouped into the Realm of Truth, the actual disparities in their martial prowess were vast.

‘It's hard to put an exact number on it, but if I had to rank them on a scale of one to nine...’

Those who had just barely broken into the Realm of Truth, like the Qingcheng Sect's Cheongmok or the previous Jin Hayeon, could be considered rank one.

Then you had the early-stage masters sitting at two and three like the current Jin Hayeon, Hwangbo Ak, Yangmuja, Baek Un-hak, and Yeom Ga-hwi.

Moving past the entry phase, the mid-tier powerhouses sitting comfortably at ranks four, five, and six were the likes of Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang, Dokgo Ryong, Cheok Pae-myeong, and Namgung Jin.

And at the far end of the Realm of Truth sat the Cult Leader himself.

‘If I'm being precise, Eldest Brother is probably not a nine yet. More like at seven or eight.’

But as Il-mok kept running the numbers, he realized how pointless it was. Trying to slap a neat numerical value on people utilizing radically different martial arts was a fool's errand. 

Even between fighters who were evenly matched or separated by a tier or two, the outcome of a fight was always a coin toss.

Jin Hayeon killing Yangmuja while being a rank lower proved that.

And Wi Jin-hak had been more or less on equal footing with Dokgo Ryong before mastering the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts and still won their duel and became the Cult Leader.

Rankings like this were nothing more than rough estimates.

‘Come to think of it, where would I even fall in this system?’

The path he walked was nothing like that of a normal martial artist at the Realm of Truth.

He was essentially forcing himself to wield power beyond his current realm. It was basically a cheat code that would likely cost him his life if he wasn’t careful.

While Il-mok was clearing away those stray thoughts, Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang exchanged brief greetings with the others, and Hyeokryeon Hwan was already beaming with relief at the sight of his daughter.

"Seon-ah! Thank goodness you're safe!"

Practically speaking, everyone else in the room ceased to exist for him the moment he saw her.

Hyeokryeon Seon-ah, on the other hand, greeted her father with a completely deadpan expression after all this time apart.

"I'm glad you're well, Father."

Once all the pleasantries were out of the way, Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang got down to business.

"The Cult Leader gave strict orders to fall back without engaging if the enemy reached us before you did, Left Guardian."

This meant Wi Jin-hak had left Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang as the sole heavy hitter holding this line until Il-mok and his maids arrived.

"I can't tell you how glad I am you made it in time. Turning tail and running without throwing a single punch was starting to leave a really bad taste in my mouth."

Dokgo Ryong might have had the worst case of it, but most of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's warriors had absolutely no love for retreating. The doctrine they believed in was rooted in the idea of setting the world right through martial might, so turning tail felt like a violation of everything they stood for.

"The imperial army has pitched its camp about a half-day's march from here. I'd expect them to move sometime tomorrow morning."

Il-mok nodded at the briefing and asked, "What's the enemy force looking like? Are they mostly forced conscripts?"

"It certainly appeared that way."

"Their morale must be terrible."

Il-mok already knew this from the few skirmishes he'd fought against conscript forces before heading north.

"Can't blame them when they were dragged out here at sword point. From our perspective, what matters more than the conscripts is who's running things on their end."

Il-mok nodded at Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang's point, but his mind was already working through something else.

‘Forced conscripts, huh...’

***

By late morning the next day, the Divine Cult's forward scouts rushed into the command tent with an update.

"The imperial army has broken camp and is heading straight for us."

"What's the next step, Head of the Hyeokryeon Family?"

"Now that we've got proper reinforcements, there's no reason to tuck tail and run, is there?"

Rather than putting on false modesty at the remark praising him and Jin Hayeon, Il-mok simply replied. "Then there's no reason to wait around here. Let's march out and give them a proper welcome."

It was as good as saying they'd fight a full-scale pitched battle.

Drums began to sound from the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's formation not long after, and the force set out toward the enemy.

After roughly half an hour of marching, the enemy came into view in the distance.

Drums rang out from both sides, and the two forces came to a halt to face each other across a gap of about half a mile.

In the tense stillness, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's formation parted and Il-mok walked through the gap.

This was to execute a plan he'd had brewing ever since he heard that most of the enemy force was made up of conscripts.

Il-mok and his attendants came to a stop roughly at the midpoint between the two armies, though calling it the midpoint was generous given they were still a good 200 meters from the enemy line.

Il-mok channeled his internal energy to sharpen his vision and studied the enemy's front rank.

Most of them had sloppy stances and visibly tense faces.

Scattered among those sorry excuses for shieldbearers were a small number of fighters who radiated a sharp discipline.

Strangely enough, those sharp-eyed ones weren't looking at Il-mok or the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's formation at all. Their eyes were fixed on the conscripts around them.

They were there to keep watch on their own side, not the enemy.

After scanning the enemy's condition, Il-mok filled his voice with internal energy and shouted.

"I am Il-mok, the Left Guardian of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult! I am here to give you one last chance to walk away alive!"

The sudden call for surrender threw the enemy formation into an uneasy stir.

As confusion and murmurs rippled through the imperial ranks, Il-mok instantly began circulating the internal energy across all three of his dantians.

In an instant, different energies coalesced in each of his palms, and when he brought them together, a massive sphere of Qi took shape between his hands. But instead of chucking the sphere straight into the enemy lines like the usual, Il-mok launched it far off to a completely empty patch of dirt to their right.

The orb streaked through the air and detonated dozens of meters away, unleashing a blinding flash of light and a thunderous explosion.

BOOM!!!!

It was a show of force designed to coerce their surrender.

It was a tactic he never could have attempted back when his Yin Qi was too limited.

Before this, he could only form the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm once, so throwing it at empty ground instead of into the enemy would've been an extreme waste of energy.

However, he now possessed enough reserves to employ such a method.

And the fact that most of the enemy was a ragtag mob of conscripts made it all the more worthwhile.

"Hrk!"

"They want us to fight that...?"

The show of force worked.

Most of the soldiers in the enemy's front rank had gone pale as corpses. More than a few were so rattled that they wet themselves and dropped their shields.

‘If I can save even a few of the innocent ones...’

Il-mok was hoping the frightened ones would just give themselves up voluntarily. The overseers mixed in among the conscripts were a problem, but he could deal with them fast enough.

He was watching the chaos ripple through the enemy formation and thinking he just needed to wrap things up now when a thunderous roar erupted from the heart of the enemy ranks.

"SILENCE!!"

It carried enormous internal energy, and the voice itself was an unpleasant to listen to.

A silhouette shot into the air from the middle of the enemy formation and crossed the open sky by using the Sky Walk.

It was an old man draped in the iconic vermillion robes of a Shaolin monk

The old man who had cleared the distance with that extraordinary display let out another earthshaking roar packed with internal energy.

"You dare try to beguile these poor souls with your venomous tongue, you Demonic Cult filth?!"

The bellow felt completely unnatural coming from a man so emaciated that he looked like a walking skeleton, but that skeletal frame made it incredibly easy for Il-mok to figure out exactly who he was dealing with. 

The Shaolin's old monster. The one they called the Divine Monk.

It had to be Hyeon Am.

In a way, this was a stroke of luck for the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult's side. They'd managed to pinpoint the Divine Monk's location before the battle had even started.

By the standard rules of engagement, the right call would've been to signal the other units and fall back immediately.

But Il-mok had no intention of doing that.

He'd come back from the north precisely to kill the Divine Monk and the Supreme Eunuch.

Il-mok circulates all three of his energies again at once, and a familiar orb of energy coalesced between his palms.

Seeing that, Hyeon Am launched himself toward Il-mok.

The old monk’s movements weren’t fast by Il-mok’s standard, yet the dozens of meters gap between them was shrinking at an alarming rate.

But Il-mok, Il-mok's mastery over his Yin and Yang Qis had leveled up significantly. He finished casting the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm before the monk could close the distance completely and flung the orb straight at him.

What happened next was remarkable.

Without breaking his stride, Hyeon Am drew his right hand back and then thrust it forward in a straight punch. From his fist, a shockwave of energy shot straight for the flying orb from a distance of dozens of meters.

The Hundred-Step Divine Fist, one of the Seventy-Two Arts of Shaolin.

A moment later, the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm and the Hundred-Step Divine Fist collided at the midpoint between Il-mok and Hyeon Am.

The Hundred-Step Divine Fist was a legendary technique, but it was nowhere near as powerful as the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm.

What it did have was more than enough force to crack the unstable equilibrium holding the orb together.

BOOM!!!!

Against Il-mok's intentions, the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm detonated ahead of schedule, and another violent flash of light and shockwave tore through the air.

Whoosh!

Before the dust could even settle, Hyeon Am shot right out of the explosion with golden colored Qi coating his body from head to toe.

He'd been on the outer edge of the explosion rather than at the center, which was the only reason that charge was possible.

Behind him, a much stronger Jin Hayeon summoned a massive glacier of Yin Qi to block the shockwave from sweeping over their army.

Seeing Hyeon Am barrel through the explosion like a madman, Il-mok couldn't help but let out a dry scoff.

"They weren't kidding about your nasty temper."

A thin line of blood was already running from the corner of his mouth as he muttered to himself. It was a minor internal injury from the unintended early detonation of the technique.

But the laugh wasn't just because of the injury.

By now, another orb of energy had already formed in Il-mok's hands.

It was a rapid-fire, mini version of the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm.

By injecting exactly half the usual dose of Yin and Yang Qis, the blast radius was reduced, but the speed at which he could form it was much faster.

Whoosh!

Through the swirling sandstorm of debris, Il-mok hurled the orb without a telltale sign. It flew at Hyeon Am faster than the standard version.

Watching the orb close the gap in a heartbeat, Hyeon Am threw another Hundred-Step Divine Fist to intercept it.

But just as the fist was about to touch the flying orb—

"Only an idiot falls for the same trick twice."

Il-mok manually triggered the detonation himself.

BOOM!!!

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