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

Soul-Annihilating ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍Primordial Sword Thunder.

It ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍was a technique Il-mok had been turning over in his mind ever since he first unleashed the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm.

At ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍the same time, it was a technique he'd thought up in theory but never quite had the nerve to actually attempt.

The ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍martial theory behind it was simple enough, not all that different from the Sword Thunder he'd used before.

You ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍forcefully pack highly volatile and clashing energies to condense and form Sword Force, then turn that repulsion back on itself to amplify the destructive output. That was the entirety of the concept, and Il-mok had previously formed Sword Thunder using rampaging Blood Qi or Demonic Qi.

But ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍no matter how volatile that Blood Qi or Demonic Qi got, it couldn't hold a candle to the World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm. The repulsive force packed into that technique was enough to reduce dozens of meters of surrounding terrain to ash.

And to make it worse, the scorching Yang Qi and the frigid Yin Qi were no longer in a separated state.

If the two energies remained divided, no repulsive force would be generated at all.

He had to deliberately force the two opposing energies to collide and repel each other, while simultaneously suppressing them to prevent an outright explosion. 

From the outset, it was an impossible thing to do.

But making the impossible happen was exactly what Will and Intent were for.

The power to impose a human will on the world. To overwrite the rules of reality with your own.

Il-mok went ahead and tried that madness, and now he had to pay the price.

Maybe it was because his current level still wasn't enough to handle a force like that. Just forming the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder was enough to make his brain feel like it was melting. And on top of that, blood was already seeping out from his nose and mouth.

Even so, Il-mok kept the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder in place and drove the Ascension Sword straight at the Divine Monk's head.

The Divine Monk instantly recognized the destructive potential of that strike in an instant and contorted his face in fury as he lashed out with his left palm, even while battling Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang and Jin Hayeon in an internal energy contest.

His left palm met the Ascension Sword head-on.

KABOOM!!

A deafening shockwave rang out as Ascension Sword and the Divine Monk's left palm clashed against each other.

BZZZZTTTT!

Maybe it was the result of drawing out power far beyond his mortal limits, but  Il-mok held the upper hand.

Every time the Divine Monk's tremendous energy made contact with the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder, it was shredded apart and scattered.

The monk poured more energy back in each time to compensate, but his left palm was being driven back inch by inch, and the damage to his hand was steadily accumulating.

However, the Divine Monk didn't despair.

‘That face. He's about to die.’

Il-mok was bleeding from all seven orifices now, not just his nose and mouth but his eyes and ears as well. The internal damage layered throughout his body had his blood surging back up through his stomach in a constant stream, and the price of pushing his will and intent past their limit had left his brain feeling like pulped mush.

His head was swimming, and he was right on the edge of blacking out, but Il-mok clenched his teeth and held the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder together through sheer stubbornness.

‘I have to keep them alive.’

If he lost control of the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder right now, it would be a disaster.

If the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder went out of control and exploded right now, there was no doubt that Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang and Jin Hayeon would be blown to pieces right alongside him.

'I have to save them. Even if it's just one more life.'

Worse still, the shockwave would instantly vaporize all of the nearby people.

On the other side, the Divine Monk was holding his ground just as stubbornly.

‘I'll kill every last one of those demonic scum. I'll send them all to the Eight Great Hells myself!’

The will of a fanatic and the will of a monk collided, and the explosion between them never stopped.

The terrifying tug-of-war between their colossal energies raged on, but the first person to notice a crack in the stalemate was Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang.

Only a few seconds into his internal energy contest with the Divine Monk, and he'd been taking on internal damage at a frightening rate even after burning his Innate Life Force.

But right now, the strain in his body actually lightened.

The reason for that was that the Divine Monk decided to throw that portion of power into holding back the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder.

The moment Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang realized that, he moved without hesitation. With his right palm pressed against the Divine Monk's, he twisted his body and swung his free left fist hard into the monk's side.

Bam!

And an instant after that dull impact landed on the monk's ribs, another one followed right behind it.

Bam!

Jin Hayeon had reached the same conclusion as Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang and launched her own attack.

The ribs on his side and the bones of his back shattered at nearly the same moment, the jagged ends punching into his lungs and organs. Caught completely off guard in the middle of the energy clash, the Divine Monk spat up a mouthful of blood.

"Kugh..."

His willpower and Qi might have transcended mortal limits, but his aging body simply couldn't keep up anymore. The mouthful of blood he coughed up broke the Divine Monk's concentration.

And with that single lapse, Il-mok held onto his stubborn will and finally pushed the Ascension Sword completely through the Divine Monk's defenses, splitting the Divine Monk in two.

SLASH!

"This... cannot be..." The Divine Monk murmured in a disbelieving voice.

And then his body fell open to either side and crumpled to the ground.

Thud.

Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang stared at the bisected corpse of the Divine Monk with stunned eyes. He was still unable to believe they had actually killed him.

Then, belatedly, Jin Hayeon's shout pulled him back to himself.

"Left Guardian!!"

He wasn't sure why, but Jin Hayeon was looking at Il-mok like she was about to cry.

Only then did Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang take in Il-mok's condition.

He looked like a corpse.

Moreover, even when the Divine Monk was already dead, Il-mok was still holding that terrifying technique together.

The Ascension Sword was at its limit too. The sword was practically screaming like it could shatter at any second.

Right at that moment, Jin Hayeon’s scream managed to pull Il-mok's fading mind back from the brink, and he stared down at the trembling sword in his hand.

'If I let this thing explode here, we all die for nothing.'

But he couldn't absorb the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder back into himself either. The three energies were already tangled together, and pulling them back into his body at this point would mean certain death from the inside out.

He weighed it for a fraction of a second, then forced himself to hold the sword up despite the protests screaming from his body.

With the tip aimed squarely at the sky, he fired the terrifying mass of the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder straight into the atmosphere just like he was launching a World-Destroying Primordial Jade Palm.

And he had to do it all while holding onto his will and intent by a thread to keep the damn thing from blowing up in his face.

Blood forced its way up his throat again and a searing pain was melting the inside of his skull.

‘Just a little more. Just a little more.’

The farther that tangled mass of energy got, the more violent the pain in his head became.

Right as he hit his breaking point and was on the verge of blacking out—

KABOOM!!!!

A titanic explosion ripped across dozens of meters above the battlefield.

The detonation was violent enough to bring the chaotic battle below to a sudden halt.

Everyone on the field was staring up at the sky with dazed faces when a very small sound reached them.

Thump.

Jin Hayeon spun toward Il-mok with a startled look. Il-mok had completely collapsed onto the ground at some point.

She immediately moved to help him, but stopped in her steps when the battered man stubbornly dragged his broken body together and forced himself into a seated lotus position.

Seeing that, she turned and stood her ground in front of him like a guardian.

She realized he was desperately trying to circulate his Qi to suppress his injuries.

Her assumption was spot on.

Although Il-mok wants nothing more than to black out right now, he knows he has to regulate his Qi to stabilize his body above all else. He knew on an instinctive level that if he passed out right now, he would never wake up again.

The internal injuries weren’t even the biggest problem for him right now.

Like sharks smelling blood, the Yin and Yang Qi of his new Demonic Arts were running amok. Even the Qi of the Soul-Stealing Heartless Sword was throwing tantrums inside his meridians too right now.

With all of this Qis rampaging inside, he couldn't afford to fall asleep until he'd at least gotten them under control.

Standing guard over the cross-legged Il-mok, Jin Hayeon spoke to Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang. "The Left Guardian's internal injuries are severe. I need to stay and protect him. Please conclude the rest of this battle."

"I will."

Hyeokryeon Cheon-gang gave a nod and reached out to retrieve his sword via Sword Kinesis.

With sword in hand, he poured his internal energy into his voice.

"The vile monk Hyeon Am is dead!!! You have no chance of victory! If you wish to live, throw down your weapons and surrender!!!" 

Despite having burned away chunks of his own Innate Life Force recently, his voice still rang out with considerable vigor. In truth, he had only tapped into his Innate Life Force for barely a minute. He might have shaved a few years off the end of his life, but he certainly wasn't going to drop dead tomorrow.

The apocalyptic explosion of Il-mok’s Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder lighting up the sky and the hopeless news that the Divine Monk was dead were more than enough to break the enemy’s morale. Most of the enemy forces had been conscripted and dragged there against their will to begin with, so their morale collapsed in an instant.

Because of that, the battle didn't drag on much longer.

After eliminating the last bits of resistance and rounding up the fleeing soldiers, the chaotic battlefield was brought to heel. 

By the time the fighting was fully wrapped up, Jin Hayeon was still standing guard beside Il-mok. And she wasn't the only one. The other three maids had found their way back to her side as well, watching Il-mok with worried looks on their faces.

Then, finally, Il-mok's eyes fluttered open.

"Left Guardian!"

"A-Are you okay?!"

Il-mok had to squeeze his eyes shut at their voices; his head was still pounding.

"Ugh. The runaway energies are more or less settled. As for my internal injuries... I'll need to see a physician separately for those."

Meaning the internal damage was too severe to be fixed by Qi circulation alone.

Hyeokryeon Seon-ah bit her lip in frustration. Jeong Hyeon went pale. And Jin Hayeon couldn't hide the heavy distress written all over her face.

Ignoring their panic, Il-mok slowly turned his head and swept his eyes over the surroundings.

He took in that the battlefield had been nearly fully cleared, and let out a faint smile.

"Good. That's a relief. I'll leave the rest to you, then."

With those words, Il-mok crumpled backward and hit the ground.

"!!!"

The maids startled and rushed to his side.

They checked his condition and let out a collective breath of relief a moment later.

He was breathing fine; he'd just passed out from exhaustion.

***

Il-mok woke to a dull pain radiating through his entire body.

"Are you awake?"

"A-Are you okay, Left Guardian?"

The first thing he saw when his vision finally cleared was the trio of Jin Hayeon, Jeong Hyeon, and Hyeokryeon Seon-ah staring down at him like anxious hens.

He also noticed the ceiling looked oddly low.

"Where are we?"

"A carriage, sir."

"Because your internal damage was so severe, we decided to evacuate you to Xi'an to get you proper medical care." 

"J-Ju Seo-yeon is d-driving the carriage."

"I kept feeling vibrations against my back. So that wasn't just me."

He'd felt so awful that he'd genuinely assumed the shaking was simply a symptom of extreme vertigo.

"Hah."

Il-mok exhaled softly from the pain, then gently let his lifted head drop back against the floor of the carriage.

Any nonsense about immediately heading back to the front because the war wasn't over yet didn't even enter his brain.

‘I can't even move a finger.’

A throbbing ache ran through every muscle and joint in his body. Ironically, his external injuries were the least of his worries. All things considered, it just felt like he had been running through a series of spars.

The real problem was what was going on inside. He'd managed to rein in the three warring energies, but his organs and meridians were in complete disarray.

'Haa... I guess pulling off the Soul-Annihilating Primordial Sword Thunder really was biting off more than I could chew.'

Still, the gamble had paid off. They'd taken out the Divine Monk, so it had been worth it.

Once his mind cleared enough, Il-mok turned his head slightly to look at Jin Hayeon.

"Miss Jin."

"Yes, Left Guardian."

"Since I am heading toward the rear, would you mind heading back to the front lines for me? If both of us are away from the front at the same time, it's going to undercut what we accomplished by killing the Divine Monk."

Killing the Divine Monk was a massive victory, but the Supreme Eunuch was still very much alive. And with the momentum they'd seized, they needed to press the advantage to the fullest.

The moment Il-mok finished speaking, Hyeokryeon Seon-ah and Jeong Hyeon both turned their eyes to Jin Hayeon.

With the attention suddenly on her, Jin Hayeon was quiet for a moment.

"Understood. I'll go."

Then she turned to look at the other two women.

"While I'm gone, the two of you are to take care of the Left Guardian by any means necessary."

"Of course we will."

"Y-yes, understood."

Jin Hayeon held her gaze for a moment, then turned around to sprint in the opposite direction at full speed with her lightness skill.

Another day passed after that.

 Il-mok spent the time lying flat in the carriage, being tended to by the two maids, and eventually arrived in Xi'an.

The carriage passed through the city gates and kept going, and Ju Seo-yeon's voice soon came from outside.

"We've arrived, Left Guardian."

With the support of the two maids, Il-mok climbed out of the carriage.

Before him stood a colossal manor that had been repurposed into a medical facility to treat the wounded soldiers sent to the rear.

The moment Il-mok made his appearance there, a massive uproar naturally broke out.

"T-The Envoy of God is here!!"

"The Heavenly Demon Descends!!"

"Ten Thousand Demons Obeys!!"

The patients in the compound ignore their wounds and start chanting the Divine Cult’s doctrine as one.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!