Descent of the Demon Master

“What is so amazing about overcoming a heart demon?” Lee Hyeon-Su asked, obviously puzzled about this situation.

Wiggins casually shrugged back at his disciple. “Don’t look at me. I also have no idea.”

“Why not, Master?”

“What are you implying? I can't possibly know everything in this world, now can I? Besides, the branch of martial arts on our side is markedly different from this side. I'll be honest, I've no idea what the walls or epiphanies often talked about in Eastern martial arts are. I've never experienced such things before, you see?”

“Oh.”

An unreadable smile crept up on Wiggins’ face. “It's possible to brush this phenomenon aside as one of the many mysteries of Eastern martial arts. However, I personally disagree with that view.”

Lee Hyeon-Su tilted his head. “What do you mean, master?”

Wiggins sneaked a quick glance in Vator's way before explaining himself. “Encountering a problem while cultivating a martial art can only mean there's a serious flaw in your chosen martial art. That's the only logical conclusion you can draw, wouldn't you say?”

“Hoh-oh?” Vator’s brows quivered ominously. “How about we find out how great your logical martial art is, then?”

Vator frowned a little after realizing Wiggins' attitude had subtly changed. In the past, Wiggins would've latched on to an opportunity like this and tried to provoke Vator a little more with his sophistry.

But he didn’t do that this time. Which meant…?

Vator leaned forward, his expression solemn yet still unreadable. “You… Did you get beaten up by my master?”

When Wiggins didn’t answer and just looked away, Vator broke into a raucous cackle. “Kekeke! I knew you’d get into trouble sooner or later!”

“...Please, let's not do this when you and I are no different,” Wiggins sourly muttered.

“Say what? Have you ever seen me getting beaten up by…” Vator's voice petered off, and then he sneakily glanced at Kang Jin-Ho next.

He just remembered. He also got beaten up by Kang Jin-Ho. And pretty regularly, as well!

Vator instantly became depressed, his lips pouting a little.

Lee Hyeon-Su ruefully smacked his lips while listening to this… ‘conversation’ that only left scars behind.

‘Huh. These men shouldn’t be subjected to this kind of treatment, though…’

When such respected individuals were brought together, the correct thing to do would be to foster team spirit and synergy among the members. They should be encouraging each other, yet these so-called men among men were busy trying to tear each other down!

Unfortunately for them, Kang Jin-Ho was sitting pretty right in the middle of everything, which had this effect of... Making everyone in the room look a bit insignificant in comparison!

“Now, now, everyone. Let’s get this party on the road already. We’re here for a meeting, so why all this unnecessary banter?” Bang Jin-Hun raised his voice to bring the situation back under control. His years of experience as the Assembly’s director had come in handy this time. “Assembly Master, sir?”

Kang Jin-Ho turned his head slightly when Bang Jin-Hun called out to him.

“Since overcoming this heart demon or whatever it is called is supposed to be a good thing, please accept my congratulations. That’s that, but what about the future, sir? What are your plans?”

Kang Jin-Ho nodded. “I was thinking of passing down the demonic cultivation.”

“Passing down…?”

Kang Jin-Ho glanced at Lee Hyeon-Su. “You said around two months, didn’t you?”

He was asking about the estimated time until the construction’s completion. Lee Hyeon-Su quickly nodded. “Yes, sir.”

“There shouldn’t be any issues with their living conditions within those two months, right?”

“Mm, please wait…” Lee Hyeon-Su pondered something for a bit, then nodded away. “The cult believers are already making do with what they have, sir. Without beating around the bush… Yes, the issue of the place to sleep has been solved, more or less. However, the current arrangement still isn't adequate enough to call humane. We need to resolve this situation as soon as possible.”

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly glanced at Chang Min next.

Chang Min shrugged after listening to the translated version of Lee Hyeon-Su's report. “My liege. We can start right away. There aren't any problems on our side.”

“Mm… Will it be fine, though?”

“My liege, you are far too generous toward us. No hurdle will slow those children down in their quest to become stronger, and they won't care whether they have a proper place to sleep or not. You don't have to worry about them.”

“I see,” Kang Jin-Ho nodded, then looked back at Lee Hyeon-Su. “What about a suitable training ground? Has it been secured yet?”

“Sir. We’re still building it as we speak. It’s just that accommodating so many people indoors is extremely tricky. But an outdoor training ground runs the risk of exposure…”

“Mm? Even though we're on private land?”

“Sir, it's impossible to monitor every inch of our land. We have fences around the perimeter and placards saying this is private land, but obstinate people will still jump over the fences to pick wild mushrooms. Keeping those people out completely will be impossible. Not only that, but…”

Lee Hyeon-Su turned his head and glanced outside the windows.

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“The skies are a lot more open these days, as well. We’ve been able to exert enough pressure now and then to prevent helicopters from flying past this area. However, with the proliferation of privately-owned drones, it’s getting progressively harder to do so.”

“I see…” Kang Jin-Ho nodded, then rested his chin on his fist.

Lee Hyeon-Su was right. Building an indoor training area for nearly ten thousand people was next to impossible.

‘And the problem is compounded by the fact that they are trying to master demonic arts.’

Compared to the orthodox cultivation methods, demonic arts boasted a far greater destructive power. Even a simple training regime could potentially destroy the building.

People were already complaining about the Assembly buildings potentially crumbling down from the one-hundred-or-so Demon Flames’ training. So, imagine what it would be like with ten thousand demonic cultivators.

It'd be a miracle if the building wasn't blown away to smithereens in the blink of an eye!

Kang Jin-Ho quickly made his decision. “Lee Hyeon-Su. Let’s go with the outdoor training area.”

“What about the risks, sir?"

“Ignore them.”

“Understood.”

Lee Hyeon-Su didn't argue and backed off immediately. Since Kang Jin-Ho made his decision, that was the end of the discussion. As for any potential problems arising from this decision… It was up to Lee Hyeon-Su to prepare as many countermeasures as possible. If problems did rear their heads, it was also up to him to resolve them as smoothly as possible.

It wouldn't be easy, but… Lee Hyeon-Su's job was never supposed to be easy, anyway.

“Okay, that’s settled, then. Vator?” Kang Jin-Ho shifted his attention to Vator next.

“Yes, I’m listening, master.”

“How is your side of training going?”

“The Demon Flames haven’t reached a level where they can receive personal guidance. They aren’t improving as quickly as we thought.”

“I’m sure that’s the case.”

Kang Jin-Ho had more or less expected this outcome. The first demonic art the Demon Flames mastered was specially chosen for them as it was easy to learn. However, the current demonic art was not. As such, it made sense the Demon Flames would require more time to master even the basics.

“On top of that, my own attainment isn’t deep enough yet,” said Vator.

“Hmm…” Kang Jin-Ho narrowed his eyes and peered at the big man. His gaze might be locked on Vator, but what Kang Jin-Ho was actually looking at was the demonic qi flowing through the big man's meridians.

‘It’s… slow.’

Objectively speaking, Vator’s rate of progress should be seen as fast. It hadn’t been that long since he started on the path of demonic cultivation, so his ability to refine demonic qi to such purity was fully deserving of all the praises in the world.

Unfortunately, this was Vator they were talking about.

Kang Jin-Ho withdrew his probing gaze and asked, “Is it still difficult?”

“...Urgh. I should be too ashamed to say this after making such bold claims before, but… Yes, it's not as easy as I thought, master. My progress is slow as I must focus on suppressing the conflict in my body.”

Kang Jin-Ho wordlessly nodded away.

Vator’s martial art was orthodox in nature. It might not seem that way since he projected the image of a proud Mongolian warrior mastering the martial arts of the great plains, but the qi flowing within him was as orthodox as it could get.

The orthodox cultivation technique was diametrically opposed to the demonic cultivation. Even someone like Kang Jin-Ho had to reach the current realm before being able to utilize both to a certain degree.

Using one cultivation method as the foundation and using another to climb higher was a completely different prospect from forcing two disparate cultivation techniques to co-exist.

Pour oil and water into a single container, and they would eventually settle into two separate layers. At least they were sharing the space in that state. However, what Vator was attempting to do wasn’t keep his ‘oil’ and ‘water’ separate in horizontal layers, but have them side-by-side. Such a thing would never be easy.

“Allow me to apologize first. According to your plan, I should be making far more headway than this. Only then would you be able to pass down even more to those brats…”

“It’s fine,” Kang Jin-Ho nonchalantly shrugged.

Vator frowned a little. “Maybe we should think of another way to…”

“No,” Kang Jin-Ho resolutely shook his head. “I’ve already thought of something. You don’t have to worry about it.”

Kang Jin-Ho had already thought of a plan? Vator was puzzled but chose to accept that explanation and move on. Since Kang Jin-Ho said so, it must be true.

After all, one of the good points of Kang Jin-Ho was that he never bluffed or put on airs despite his position or the power he possessed.

“Director Bang?” Kang Jin-Ho looked at Bang Jin-Hun next.

“Yes, Assembly Master, sir.”

“How is your creation of a new martial art going?”

Bang Jin-Hun groaned loudly. “I think I’ve underestimated the difficulty of this assignment, sir. I figured my job would be done by producing a passable cultivation technique, but… The more I try, the more I get greedy about adding more stuff. Eventually, everything turns into an unrecognizable mess. I need to set a clear criterion, but my abilities aren’t quite good enough to do so.”

Bang Jin-Hun’s eyes began burning a little more intensely as he stared at Kang Jin-Ho.

“Like the last time, I require your help again, sir. However, we must exclude anything and everything even remotely resembling demonic cultivation.”

“But, demonic cultivation is not…”

“Please wait, sir. Listen, Assembly Master…” Bang Jin-Hun abruptly interrupted Kang Jin-Ho. “I know what you're trying to say. And I agree with you. Demonic cultivation shouldn't simply be ostracized as it's not all impure and evil. Yes, I know all that.”

Kang Jin-Ho curiously stared back at Bang Jin-Hun, his interest piqued. “I see. Then, why?”

“I've been wondering about this, sir. Am I being too greedy about this? If we're being brutally honest here, Korea's martial arts are originally from China, anyway. What would be the point of preserving Korea's traditional martial arts, in that case? Let me tell you, I've been racking my brain over this for a while. And I finally got my answer.”

Bang Jin-Hun stopped talking there and grabbed a cup of cold water. He gulped the liquid down in one go as if a dastardly thirst had been bothering him for a while.

“Sir, the martial art being created for the Martial Assembly must be completely orthodox in nature. It must not contain a single trace of demonic cultivation. However, it's not because I wanted to protect our traditions, which never had ties to demonic arts. No, it's because… We have people in the Assembly who can't master demonic arts.”

“Ah…!” Lee Hyeon-Su gasped in exclamation.

“Assembly Master, what I'm trying to conceive is a standard cultivation method. A base, a foundation. Anyone affiliated with the Assembly should be able to master it. For that purpose, it needs to be as flexible as possible. Demonic arts are strong, but not everyone can master them, never mind use them properly.

“Even if my decision means the new martial art's overall power will be lower, I will not change my mind about this, sir. We need a martial art that everyone and anyone can master. If someone wishes to pursue strength, they can always master this foundational martial art first before moving on to what they want, whether it's the demonic art or whatever. So, what I'm saying is…!”

Bang Jin-Hun’s voice grew more booming, more passionate.

“A martial art represents the identity of that particular sect or the school, sir. And I wish to create a martial art that represents the Martial Assembly. Yes, I know it won’t be easy. That’s why I’m asking for your help. Please.”

Bang Jin-Hun bowed his head.

Kang Jin-Ho chuckled slightly as he observed Bang Jin-Hun.

‘Only he has not changed, huh…’

Everyone seemed to have changed, but not Bang Jin-Hun. He seemed to have remained largely the same. In the past, when Bang Jin-Hun first sought Kang Jin-Ho out… He was also like this. His concern always had been about the future of the Assembly.

Kang Jin-Ho nodded. “Of course, I’ll help.”

“Thank you, sir!”

“I also thought the same as you. Let’s be honest, shall we…?” Kang Jin-Ho scratched his cheek. “If I teach everyone here the demonic arts, wouldn’t this place turn into yet another demon cult? If you want to learn demonic arts, you can always join the already-existing cult, anyway.”

Chang Min couldn’t remain silent and decided to butt in. “We always welcome new members. Our demon cult does not discriminate against races or former affiliations, so we…”

“Chang Min. Save your missionary work for another day.”

“Yes, my liege.” Chang Min ruefully smacked his lips and backed off.

Kang Jin-Ho addressed Bang Jin-Hun again. “Actually, I've been thinking about this topic as well.”

“Oh, I see. In that case…”

“Clear your schedule for the evening after this meeting, Director Bang.”

“Understood, sir!”

Kang Jin-Ho turned his head and stared at Wiggins next. “What about that thing we've talked about?”

“Apologies, my lord. It's still too early in the proceedings. I'll give you an in-depth report once everything has been nailed down.”

“Okay, got it.” Kang Jin-Ho nodded, then got up. “Looks like we took too long to get here.”

Kang Jin-Ho wasn’t saying this to the people inside the conference room. No, he was declaring to himself.

“We’ve encountered several headwinds along the way, but now… Our path forward has become clearer. Things will gradually improve as we solve our problems one by one. I’m going to start anew, so I pray that you all stay on course and follow me.”

“Yes, sir!”

As everyone energetically replied in unison, Lee Hyeon-Su’s eyes flickered in anticipation.

‘He wants us to stay on course and follow him?’

Kang Jin-Ho wouldn’t have said that in the past.

‘Hah. Looks like things will get really interesting soon…?’

Unfortunately, Lee Hyeon-Su had no idea. Maybe things could get interesting for other people, but not him. Such things were not on the menu for poor Lee Hyeon-Su.

How very unfortunate of him, then.