Myst, Might, Mayhem

Chapter 397 – Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul (2)

“Master, I sense the demonic energy of Hundred-Faced King, known as the worst among the Six Demons, from that human.”

‘!?’

Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul furrowed his brow at the serious warning from the Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok.

Hundred-Faced King?

He suddenly recalled a long-forgotten memory from long ago.

***

[…Why? Why can’t I subdue it?]

Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul muttered with a disappointed expression as his spell of Forgetting One’s Will failed to work.

He had barely managed to subdue it with His help and quite a few sacrifices.

Yet the spell he had so carefully prepared didn’t work at all.

Even though it was said to be the leader among Spiritual Beasts, this spell had subdued even Spiritual Beasts of the same rank, so why?

To his puzzlement, the battered White-Flaming Dokgok said:

“Thanks to that monstrous being, you may have subdued me, but the Six Demons are completely different from ordinary Spiritual Beasts like us.”

[I acknowledge they’re stronger than ordinary Spiritual Beasts, but how can a subdued being have such a strong will?]

“Their strength transcends Spiritual Beasts and is infinitely close to divine beasts.”

[Divine beasts don’t exist.]

“They do exist. It’s just that the world can’t withstand their power.”

[The world can’t withstand it?]

“At the point of reaching divine beast status, their existence completely deviates from the natural order.”

[Natural order?]

“The natural order is what sustains this world.”

[…Is it like the principle of providence?]

“Similar. However, providence is not in the realm of principles, but in the realm of fundamentals and laws. The natural order is more like a flow.”

At these words from White-Flaming Dokgok, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul clicked his tongue.

He had thought he had reached the highest realm of sorcery, having subdued a Spiritual Beast as a familiar and achieved numerous feats as a diviner, but there was still much he didn’t know.

Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul grabbed the golden mane of the fallen being and said:

[In any case, it seems impossible to use it as a familiar. Well, it doesn’t matter. Even without that, this has plenty of uses.]

“……”

[White-Flaming Dokgok. If you know of any other Six Demons, tell me.]

To this demand, White-Flaming Dokgok spoke as if troubled:

“Do you think such luck will work again, even though that monster helped?”

[Luck?]

“We were barely able to capture Lion-Grasping King[1] because it was weakened from a battle with White Phoenix Demon King[2] long ago. But a Six Demon in its full state is completely different.”

[A Six Demon in its full state?]

“Yes. Their power is beyond what you can imagine, Master. And among such Six Demons, there are two beings that must never be touched.”

[Beings that must never be touched?]

“Even though the other Six Demons are in a position that ordinary Spiritual Beasts cannot handle, those two are completely different.”

Puzzled by this serious warning, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul asked:

[What are those two?]

“Great Strength King[3] and Hundred-Faced King. If you ever encounter those beings, abandon any sliver of hope, any ‘what if’, ‘maybe’, or ‘perhaps’.”

***

It was a conversation from quite a long time ago.

Since then, he hadn’t had the chance to encounter beings called the Six Demons, so he had completely forgotten about it, but now he remembered.

The great nine-tailed golden-furred fox monster. Hundred-Faced King, or Golden Nine-Tailed Fox.

It was said to be even worse than Great Strength King, known as the oldest of the Six Demons, and its malice was said to have led numerous countries and humans to destruction.

The most notable examples were the Shang and Zhou dynasties.

‘…Hundred-Faced King. Golden Nine-Tailed Fox.’

He senses that being’s demonic energy from Mok Gyeong-un?

What on earth does that mean?

Puzzled, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul asked:

“What do you mean by the Hundred-Faced King’s demonic energy? Surely you’re not saying that guy is the Hundred-Faced King?”

“That’s not it. But he has something imbued with strong remnants of its demonic energy.”

“Remnants of demonic energy?”

At their conversation, Mok Gyeong-un smirked.

It must be referring to the accessory made from the tail that Golden Nine-Tailed Fox had given him.

Even though a Spiritual Beast would be just below the Six Demons, seeing how even such a being was so wary and conscious of Golden Nine-Tailed Fox, it seemed their levels were indeed different.

Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul clicked his tongue and said:

“So it’s not the Hundred-Faced King itself, just remnants of its demonic energy or whatever?”

“It’s not such a simple matter, Master.”

“What?”

“…For him to possess an object so strongly imbued with remnants of demonic energy means he might be owned by the Hundred-Faced King or related to it.”

“So what are you saying we should do?”

“If we carelessly touch that human, we might incur the wrath of the Hundred-Faced King.”

Despite the Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok’s warning, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul soon sneered.

“This is even better.”

“Better…?”

“He needs more cards anyway. We can’t miss this chance to draw out another of the Six Demons.”

“Master… The Hundred-Faced King is completely…”

“Enough. In any case, things are different now from back then. And we can’t avoid fighting that guy anyway. So fulfill your duty as a familiar.”

“……”

Realizing he couldn’t persuade his master, the Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok closed his mouth and looked at Mok Gyeong-un.

‘Aah.’

If he weren’t in the position of a familiar, he would want to flee this place immediately.

However, he had no choice.

In any case, if Myeong-ryul forcefully gave an order through their karmic bond, he would have to obey, and if he decided to sever the bond, he could even take his life.

In the end, he had to follow orders one way or another.

“Devour hi—”

Before those words could finish.

White-Flaming Dokgok’s tail, flickering with white flames, moved like a whip and struck at something.

-Bang!

At the same time, Mok Gyeong-un landed in a stance as if he had blocked something with the demonic Evil Commandment Sword about ten steps away.

Seeing this, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul inwardly clicked his tongue.

‘He’s not one to be careless with.’

He hadn’t even noticed the guy move.

It seemed certain that, as Eldest Young Master Na Yul-ryang had said, he had indeed reached a realm comparable to the Six Heavens, surpassing the wall of walls.

Though he too had learned martial arts for self-protection, this opponent was difficult to handle with martial arts alone.

However,

“I’ll show you how a diviner with the title of Divine Diviner fights.”

With those words, he formed a hand seal with his left hand and softly chanted a spell.

Then, with the sound of one of the wooden dolls at his waist breaking, strong demonic energy rose and something appeared.

-Pop!

That being wasn’t particularly large.

It was similar to a human form, but more precisely, it resembled a monkey.

It had two red spots on its forehead and was covered in floral patterns and small spines all over its body.

Interestingly, its mouth was so large it reached to both ears, and it wore a smiling expression.

Seeing this, Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue and said:

“To carry around a monster-class monster sealed like that…”

“…Is it a Diabolic Beast?”

The aura of demonic energy it emitted was not ordinary.

“It’s a Yual (Youyan)[4].”

The Diabolic Beast Yual.

It was a monster that lived in Mount Bianchun north of Mount Danxun, known for its movements being so fast that it was difficult to spot its actual form.

Due to its habit of eating fruits and leaves, unlike other monsters, it didn’t greatly harm humans, but it wasn’t called a Diabolic Beast for nothing, as the demonic energy it emitted was tremendous.

Though not as much as the Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok, which was a level higher, a monster with this much demonic energy was dangerous all the same.

Then Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul spread his arms wide.

At this, the Diabolic Beast Yual did a backflip and climbed onto Myeong-ryul’s shoulders, then clung to his back as if being piggybacked.

-Pop!

At this, thinking he was about to do something, Mok Gyeong-un was about to move when,

-Roar!

The Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok roared and opened its mouth towards Mok Gyeong-un, spewing flames.

-Whoosh!

The released flames spread out in a fan shape, instantly engulfing Mok Gyeong-un and the entire area around him.

Riding the momentum, White-Flaming Dokgok drew out even more demonic energy.

Then the flames it was spewing gradually changed from scarlet to blue, and then to white.

As the color of the flames changed, with a thunderous roar, the ground of the rear garden went beyond burning and began to turn to ash and disappear upon contact.

‘Is he dead?’

White-Flaming Dokgok, who had been continuously spewing white flames, thought Mok Gyeong-un might be dead when it couldn’t sense anything within the flames.

But then,

-Swish!

At that moment, the flames parted and Mok Gyeong-un flew through the gap, attempting to slash White-Flaming Dokgok’s neck.

“Not there!”

However, in an instant, White-Flaming Dokgok swung its huge front paw and struck Mok Gyeong-un away.

-Clang!

Of course, Mok Gyeong-un blocked White-Flaming Dokgok’s front paw claws with Evil Commandment Sword.

But the force behind it was extraordinary, sending him flying in the direction the front paw had swung.

After being flung back about ten zhang, Mok Gyeong-un kicked off the air midway, trying to fly back towards White-Flaming Dokgok.

But then,

-Swish!

Someone appeared behind Mok Gyeong-un.

That being tried to strike down on Mok Gyeong-un’s head with both hands clasped together.

However, Mok Gyeong-un, sensing the presence,

-Clang!

Raised the demonic Evil Commandment Sword upwards to block it.

Mok Gyeong-un’s eyes gleamed as he blocked the attack with Evil Commandment Sword’s blade.

And for good reason, as the being attacking him was Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul, but his entire body was covered in armor-like floral patterns.

Tremendous demonic energy along with spiritual power could be felt from Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul.

‘This is?’

“Human-Monster Unity.”

-Bang!

No sooner had those words ended than Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul’s kick targeted Mok Gyeong-un’s face like lightning.

It was so fast and powerful that the air seemed to rip with a sound, creating an enormous wind pressure.

Moreover,

-Rip!

Mok Gyeong-un’s form was indeed torn apart by the kick.

But Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul’s brow twitched.

-Swish!

It was because it was an afterimage of Mok Gyeong-un left behind due to the technique of Shifting Form and Position.

‘He dodged this?’

As Yual was a Diabolic Beast known for its incredibly fast movements, his speed had increased after achieving Human-Monster Unity.

Yet he had lost track of Mok Gyeong-un’s movements for an instant.

Then Mok Gyeong-un appeared about ten steps away from him.

“You dodge well.”

“Is that the Diabolic Beast Yual covering your body?”

Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul’s ears perked up at Mok Gyeong-un’s question.

Even experienced diviners didn’t know all monsters.

Yet seeing him recognize it at a glance, he thought inwardly that his knowledge of sorcery must be beyond that of ordinary diviners.

“Quite unusual.”

To Mok Gyeong-un’s words showing interest, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul shrugged and replied:

“The Diabolic Beast Yual is capable of Human-Monster Unity by transforming its own body, even among monsters.”

That’s why he had gone all the way to Mount Bianchun to barely capture it.

Thanks to the technique of Human-Monster Unity, his body, now covered in Yual’s form like armor, combined spiritual power and demonic energy to the point where it was no exaggeration to say he could match a master of the Profound Realm who had surpassed the wall of walls.

And then,

“White-Flaming Dokgok. White Fire Form.”

-Roar!

As soon as his command fell, the Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok let out a roar, and its body, which had been as large as a house, began to shrink.

Then, becoming about the size of a tiger, its entire body was covered in white flames.

-Whoosh!

Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul raised the corner of his mouth and said:

“You’d better be tense.”

Though its size had decreased, the demonic energy of the Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok in White Fire Form was more condensed, increasing its power, and its speed had also increased several times.

“Even a great master who has reached the Profound Realm couldn’t handle the combined attack of White-Flaming Dokgok and myself.”

-Swish!

Just as Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul exchanged glances with White-Flaming Dokgok and was about to move,

Mok Gyeong-un suddenly sheathed the demonic Evil Commandment Sword.

Myeong-ryul, sensitive to sound, found this puzzling.

“Don’t tell me you’re giving up?”

“Yes.”

At Mok Gyeong-un’s answer, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul inwardly sneered.

It seems he’s underestimating me.

Having achieved Human-Monster Unity with Yual, his ability to sense energy and aura had become even more sensitive.

It seems like he’s withdrawing his energy, but something feels like the air is seething.

He’s probably trying to induce carelessness and then attack, but that’s a deception only those with eyes would fall for.

But then,

“Let’s stop holding back, shall we?”

“What?”

What nonsense is he…

-Woong!

At that moment, Grand Divination Master Myeong-ryul felt chills run down his spine from the sharp sword energy rushing in from all directions.

What on earth is this?

He sheathed the sword, so why does the sword feel so clearly present?

As he was puzzling over this,

-Swish!

-Roar!

The Spiritual Beast White-Flaming Dokgok’s roar, so loud it felt like it could rupture eardrums, rang out.

‘!?’

But no matter how he listened, this didn’t seem like a roar.

It was closer to a scream mixed with pain.

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