The Demonic Supreme Sword Novel - Chapter 84

Chapter 84
### Chapter 84: Reverse Scale (2)

“I truly had no knowledge of this. You must believe me.”

Gu Jong offered his words like a man desperate to explain himself.

“I do believe you. You claimed it was mere chance, did you not?”

“Y-yes, that is the truth.”

“And as I mentioned before—it is a deeply piteous situation.”

Sima Geon spoke with a hollow expression, clearly aware that there was no path to reconciliation left.

“I offer my apologies. Regardless of our intent, we committed a grave error. To atone for this and seek your pardon, I will surrender my own life. However, I beg of you to show lenience and let the lad go unharmed, if only for the sake of our past. We were once brothers who faced death side by side.”

Gu Jong gestured toward Gu Cheon Myeong as he made his plea.

Sima Geon remained stony and silent. As the silence stretched, Gu Jong grew frantic and prepared to beg further, but he was interrupted.

“What nonsense are you spouting, Uncle? We cannot simply discard the young master’s life. He is coming with us.”

Gu Cheon Myeong stepped forward, his voice raised in defiance.

The reputation of the Divine Demon Leader had been hammered into his mind since youth. Yet, the abstract terror he should have felt was currently drowned out by a stubborn compulsion to rescue his younger brother.

“Hold your tongue!”

Gu Jong’s complexion turned bloodless as he roared like a clap of thunder.

“Good grief, what a fool. Your uncle is literally offering up his head to buy you a chance at life, and you throw it away.”

Cheol Woo cast a look of pure pity at Gu Cheon Myeong, who seemed utterly blind to the reality of their predicament.

Before the young man had intervened, Cheol Woo suspected Sima Geon might have actually accepted Gu Jong’s sacrifice. He had hoped for it, seeing the sincerity in the older man’s eyes. But Gu Cheon Myeong had just shattered that possibility.

Gu Cheon Myeong ignored his uncle’s fury and Cheol Woo’s disdain alike.

“It matters not what my uncle says; I am taking him. I will pay any price. My brother’s life will be saved.”

“How absurd. Since when did you have the authority to decide my brother’s destiny?”

At the sound of Sima Geon’s detached voice, Gu Jong felt a wave of impending doom. Gu Cheon Myeong felt the shift as well, unsheathing his blade and shouting.

“Because I am the one who purchased him!”

Sima Geon’s mouth twitched into a grimace at that statement, and a crimson light began to pulse deep within his pupils.

Cheol Woo knew that look instantly—it was the harbinger of Sima Geon’s absolute rage—but Gu Cheon Myeong was oblivious.

“My apologies, Senior Brother. I cannot honor your request.”

Gu Jong let out a hollow, tired laugh at Sima Geon’s declaration.

“I understand perfectly. It is a tragedy, just as you said. It will be a steep climb, but I shall give you everything I have.”

Gu Jong slowly brought his sword to bear. In unison, Gu Cheon Myeong and the Water Guard Escorts shifted into hostile stances.

“I have never been one to favor outnumbering a single opponent, but against a man of your caliber, I have no luxury of choice today.”

“It is of no consequence.”

Gu Jong saw Sima Geon’s confidence as a natural byproduct of his power, but Gu Cheon Myeong saw only intolerable arrogance. To him, it was a slight against his family and the entire Crimson Dragon Hall. He felt a surge of reckless curiosity, wondering just how much strength was required to act with such disdain.

That curiosity smothered his survival instincts, and he was the first to lunge.

Sima Geon pivoted his frame with fluid grace, letting the blade slide past him, before whipping his arm toward Gu Cheon Myeong’s side—though his true target was different.

A sharp ring of metal on metal echoed, accompanied by a burst of sparks.

Gu Jong, who had moved the split second his nephew attacked, had successfully intercepted the counterstrike meant for the boy.

The Water Guard Escorts, with Chang Wi at the fore, launched their synchronized assault.

Individually, they were no match for the likes of Gu Cheon Myeong, but years of shared battles made them move as a single entity. The flaw in their plan was that Sima Geon was not a man to be hindered by mere numbers.

Just as Sima Geon lunged left to bypass Chang Wi’s formation, his shadow had already rematerialized on the opposite flank.

Chang Wi ground his teeth in frustration as he saw Sima Geon neutralize their coordination in a heartbeat, closing the distance.

Even with their flawless teamwork, facing a master of this level was suicide. Yet they fought on, hoping to create a window for Gu Jong and Gu Cheon Myeong to strike.

Matching Chang Wi’s grim determination, the Water Guard Escorts poured their entire being into their final techniques.

A sharp whistle tore through the air as Sima Geon’s blade cut through the void.

A sickening sound followed, and the warrior standing beside Chang Wi crumpled to the earth.

Chang Wi swung his sword out of pure reflex.

There was no time to mourn his shattered weapon or his comrade, who had been sliced through diagonally. The same blade that had claimed his ally was now coming for him.

“Agh!”

A truncated shriek left Chang Wi’s throat as he was thrown backward.

With every staggering step, a trail of scarlet erupted from his chest.

The remaining escorts scrambled to intervene, but their efforts were agonizingly futile.

Each motion of Sima Geon’s sword resulted in a fallen guard. His strikes appeared slow and deliberate, yet they were impossible to evade.

“Perish!”

Gu Cheon Myeong arrived a moment too late, unleashing the ultimate form of the Victorious Dragon Sword Art: Twin Dragons Emerge.

His face was a mask of demonic fury; he was channeling his grief for the fallen escorts into this single, devastating strike.

*Boom!*

In the wake of the violent collision, Gu Cheon Myeong’s frame shuddered.

He spat blood as he was forced back several paces.

He had charged with overwhelming force, yet he had taken massive internal damage from a single clash of blades.

Sima Geon lunged at the reeling Gu Cheon Myeong.

Seeing the concentrated energy gathering at the point of the sword, Gu Jong threw himself into the fray.

“Ha!”

With a guttural shout, he executed Mad Dragon Spits Flame—the very heart of the Victorious Dragon Sword Art—meeting Sima Geon’s power head-on.

Gu Cheon Myeong found his footing and added his strength to his uncle’s defense.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

The highest arts of the Crimson Dragon Hall collided with Sima Geon’s relentless blows, sending shockwaves through the air.

Gu Jong was one of the three pillars of the Crimson Dragon Hall and a vital asset to the Heavenly Demon Cult. Gu Cheon Myeong, despite his youth, was an elite talent groomed for leadership. Their combined, desperate offensive seemed to shake the very foundations of the earth.

Yet Sima Geon parried their frantic sequence with unsettling ease, eventually stepping back to watch them with a steady gaze. He showed no sign of duress—only a terrifying, quiet calm.

When Sima Geon allowed a faint, icy smile to touch his lips, Gu Cheon Myeong felt a chill race across his skin.

Cold perspiration ran down his back.

He bit his lip until the skin broke, using the pain to anchor himself against the rising tide of terror.

The sting of the wound and the copper taste of blood cleared his mind.

He could not falter. The prestige of the Crimson Dragon Hall and his brother’s survival rested entirely on his shoulders.

Gu Cheon Myeong tightened his grip on his hilt.

The sword began to hum, as if responding to its wielder’s resolve.

Emptying his mind of fear, Gu Cheon Myeong sharpened his focus, tracking every infinitesimal movement Sima Geon made.

He began the final movement of the Victorious Dragon Sword Art: Cloud Dragon Stealthy Advance.

A shroud of energy bloomed from his blade, encasing him.

Sima Geon moved forward without a hint of doubt. In that second, Gu Cheon Myeong’s eyes turned cold and sharp.

This ten-foot radius was his territory. Within this circle, he was certain he could rend anything to pieces.

No matter the speed or resilience of the enemy—once they entered this space, their destruction was an absolute certainty.

*‘I will end him.’*

With total conviction, Gu Cheon Myeong funneled his entire reservoir of internal energy into a single sweep.

A strike more sudden than a lightning bolt and heavier than a mountain flew toward Sima Geon.

Simultaneously, Gu Jong struck from the rear, unleashing his own ultimate blow.

Devastating energy converged on Sima Geon from two sides.

To any observer, it was an inescapable death trap.

A dark, triumphant grin touched Gu Cheon Myeong’s face, certain of his success.

He had preserved the honor of his clan and saved his brother, even at a terrible cost. A surge of pride warmed his chest.

In that exact heartbeat, Sima Geon’s sword ignited like a flash of lightning.

“Ugh!”

A pained grunt escaped Gu Cheon Myeong.

Agony flared in his sword hand. In the same moment, he watched in horror as his own blade—the one that had just met Sima Geon’s—disintegrated into metal dust.

His body was tossed through the air like a broken toy, his expression twisting into a mask of shock.

The strike he believed would pierce through reality itself had been stopped dead. He couldn’t fathom how.

But the nightmare was just beginning.

A vortex of wind erupted around Sima Geon, growing into a titanic tempest that tore the landscape apart.

Raging Fury—a force that obliterated everything in its wake.

This was the pinnacle of the Thunderbolt Violent Blood Sword, the legacy of the Blood Sea Demon Lord—one of the Three Great Demon Lords, a man whose genius was second only to the Heavenly Demon of his time. It had returned to the world once more.

Blood poured from Gu Jong’s lips as he stood alone against this world-ending power.

He stared into the heart of Sima Geon’s storm with a sense of wonder.

Even as the weight of the pressure and the proximity of death closed in, he felt no fear.

*‘Yes… this is the truth of it.’*

His heart beat with a strange, new rhythm.

His perceptions shifted; the world was suddenly vibrant and clear.

The final, hidden essence of the Victorious Dragon Sword Art, which had always eluded him, finally revealed itself.

Gu Jong’s blade began to move of its own accord, guided by something deeper than thought.

From Twin Dragons Emerge to Mad Dragon Spits Flame—the very soul of his art.

The technique he performed now was a perfect, transcendent version of anything he had ever achieved before.

*Kaboom! Boom!*

The violent impact created a localized hurricane that swallowed them both, sending out shards of energy like claws that shredded the earth.

“Aaaaaagh!”

Gu Cheon Myeong, who had thrown himself into the chaos to save his uncle, screamed as he was flung away.

His garments were reduced to rags, and his limbs hung uselessly—every bone in his body had been pulverized.

The torrent of blood and the fragments of internal organs he coughed up made it clear his wounds were beyond any healing.

Gu Cheon Myeong’s dying eyes searched the dust for Gu Jong.

The storm died down, and the sounds of battle ceased as if they had never existed.

In his blurring vision, he saw Gu Jong’s back.

*‘U-Uncle…’*

He had no voice left to speak. But as if he had heard the plea, Gu Jong turned his head very slowly.

In those few moments of burning his life force, his raven hair had turned entirely white. He wore a faint, bittersweet smile.

That was the last thing Gu Cheon Myeong ever saw—and the final expression Gu Jong ever made.

“What a shame. It had to end this way.”

Cheol Woo clicked his tongue as he walked over, carrying Sima Jin in his arms.

He absentmindedly stepped on the chest of Chang Wi—who was still clinging to a sliver of life—finishing him off. He then looked at Gu Jong’s standing corpse with a grimace.

“That foolish nephew of yours got your senior brother killed for nothing. The old man wasn’t bad, though.”

Sima Geon looked over the battlefield in silence. Man Chu approached him, his eyes filled with a new level of reverence.

“Those Red Blood Squad cowards bolted before the dust even settled. Pathetic, running like that.”

“They were wise to do so. If they had stayed, they would have been wiped out to the last man.”

Cheol Woo scoffed and looked toward the horizon.

“I thought about hunting them down, but I decided to let them go.”

“A sound decision.”

Sima Geon walked over and softly stroked Sima Jin’s hair as she lay in Cheol Woo’s arms.

“Are you waking her?”

“Not yet. Later, in a place that isn’t littered with corpses.”

“Fair enough. But where are the other two?”

Before Cheol Woo could finish his sentence, Noe Jeon and Ha Hu Yeon arrived, out of breath. They came from opposite paths but arrived at the same moment.

“Are you injured?”

Cheol Woo looked at Noe Jeon, who was covered in blood.

“Just some surface cuts. Nothing that won’t heal.”

“And you?”

“I’m alright—no deep wounds.”

Despite her claim, blood was seeping from numerous gashes across Ha Hu Yeon’s body.

“How embarrassing. You look like that after dealing with simple human traffickers?”

“There were hundreds of them. Once they were backed into a corner, they fought like rabid dogs—much fiercer than we expected. It was a struggle.”

“Hah! Trash is still trash, regardless of how many there are. Once their masters were dealt with, the rest should have been easy. Did you clear them all out?”

Ha Hu Yeon caught her breath and shook her head.

“No. They scattered in every direction—a good number of them got away.”

“More importantly, the primary targets escaped us.”

Sima Geon cast a freezing look in the direction the survivors of Hong Ik Hall had fled. Then, he turned his back on the scene without another thought.

“Let’s leave this island. We need to wake Jin and get your wounds tended to.”

“What do we do with this?”

Man Chu pointed toward the crates overflowing with gold bars and currency. Cheol Woo barked a laugh.

“Why are you even asking? Take every single coin, obviously.”

Ha Hu Yeon leaned in and whispered to Man Chu.

“We just dismantled nearly seventy percent of the slave trade in Sungmyeong Province. There will be stashes like this all over the place. Make sure your men search thoroughly.”

Man Chu grinned and nodded vigorously. He then shot a sharp look at a Beggar Clan spy who was eavesdropping from the shadows.

The look was clear: *What are you waiting for? Get to work.*