"The carrier pigeon has not yet arrived. How about granting the subordinates rest until the target is decided,
would that be satisfactory?"
"Kekeke, that sounds good. See to it."
"As you command."
Watching the person in black bowing respectfully, Dokgo Seong silently cast his gaze to the sky. From around him,
he took in the sight of the figures in black dispersing nimbly. They were precisely the ones under his own command—
the Guardian Demon King Army. Raised strictly as an independent unit, they were specialists who
were the Baegyo's supreme elite warriors in charge solely of surprise attacks.
To raise them, the Baegyo's Martial Chief Sajunhwan had arranged a long-term plan spanning over
twenty years. After selecting children of outstanding aptitude and performing body modification procedures, investing all manner of elixirs,
and nurturing them through over twenty years of grueling training, these were the supreme elite warriors.
Over fifteen hundred children entered the training, but those who safely completed all the processes
numbered barely over five hundred. Having endured such devastating training, these Guardian Demon King soldiers
came to possess strength sufficient to readily handle the direct disciples of the righteous sects of the same age. And
currently, it was Dokgo Seong who personally commanded them.
"Huhuhu, it truly feels like a dream."
Dokgo Seong, who had been resting, let out a low, sinister laugh. Just ten years ago, he had been nothing more than a commoner ignorant of
the basics of martial arts. But now, he was different. He possessed fearsome martial prowess sufficient to effortlessly slay peak-level righteous faction
experts. This was something he might not have achieved
had he not possessed the greatest aptitude and comprehension.
The cultivation of the Celestial Blood Demon Art. Each day was an unbroken chain of unbearable agony. Every single day,
he would absorb pure blood milked from lambs (Dokgo Seong thoroughly believed it to be so), while mastering the Celestial Blood Demon Art through principles entirely unlike
those of ordinary martial cultivation methods.
This continued for a thousand days without a single day's absence. After that period ended, to fully internalize the Celestial Blood Demon Art,
training followed. It would be no exaggeration to say Dokgo Seong had
literally staked his life on cultivating the Celestial Blood Demon Art. His wish was but one: against the righteous faction members who had murdered the Shaolin
Saints, and on all who had scorned him.
That was his goal.
This was precisely the reason he staked his life on cultivating martial arts. It was also a vow never again
to suffer such scorn. Because he needed power to do so,
he staked everything on martial arts training. As a result, within a mere ten years, he had refined the Celestial Blood Demon Art
to its pinnacle.
"Congratulations on your great achievement."
Sajunhwan welcomed Dokgo Seong most warmly as he emerged from the training chamber after his practice. And
he began explaining to him the overall situation of the martial world as it currently stood.
"Currently, the martial world is engulfed in an atmosphere where conflict could erupt at any moment. Localized skirmishes between the righteous and demonic factions
are breaking out ceaselessly everywhere, and it is certain that a full-scale war will erupt before long.
It is believed. Our Baegyo has already formed the Demonic Alliance by allying with the Demon Cult and various heretical sects
to oppose the Martial Alliance. Therefore, young cult lord, your tasks going forward
will be many."
"Keuheuheu. What is it that I must do?"
Already somewhat enthralled by the demonic nature of the Celestial Blood Demon Art, Dokgo Seong was starved for blood.
Glancing at such a Dokgo Seong, Sajunhwan continued speaking.
"Please take command of the Guardian Demon King Army. These are warriors I raised in advance in preparation for this time.
They are warriors. I shall take charge of the overall battle command. Therefore, young cult lord,
lead the Guardian Demon King Army to raid and annihilate the strongholds of the righteous faction scum that I inform you of.
Please. They are a kind of independent unit."
"That is what I wished for. Leave it to me."
Dokgo Seong's mission was thus decided. The mission of commanding and leading the small elite force, the Guardian Demon King Army, to eliminate
important strongholds of the white path. For this, Dokgo Seong was the most suitable person.
With powerful martial arts based on the Celestial Blood Demon Art, and senses like those of a wild beast, he was able to
faithfully carry out his missions. At first, he suffered some difficulties due to his lack of practical experience,
but as time went on, his martial arts were gradually being completed. Through countless skirmishes,
practical combat experience began to steadily accumulate.
And today, Dokgo Seong had finally succeeded in his revenge. Among those he had targeted,
it was against one. Moyong Jin, the eldest son of the Moyong family, who had heaped countless humiliations upon him in his youth.
Moyong Jin. Though time had passed, the grudge branded into Dokgo Seong's mind had not faded in the slightest.
"Kekeke, the others won't be able to escape my hands either."
Dokgo Seong muttered lowly, his bloodshot eyes rolling about. Then someone
hastily approached his side.
"The carrier pigeon has arrived. The next target has been decided."
"Just as I wished. Assemble the subordinates."
"As you command."
The Guardian Demon King Army, led by Dokgo Seong, departed with nimble movements.
In the prison shrouded in darkness, Dokgo Seong was lost in silent thought. In his extraordinarily
tragic life, recalling a time that could be called his prime, his heart fluttered without him realizing it.
Even though it had been a time when, intoxicated by the demonic energy of the Celestial Blood Demon Art, he had committed slaughter
mindlessly.
Beneath the banner of dominating the world through the Demonic Path, with five hundred Guardian Demon King soldiers roaming the battlefield
like a fierce tiger.
The more his thoughts deepened, the faces of his dead subordinates surfaced vividly in Dokgo Seong's mind. They were
before anything else his closest comrades, and also benefactors who had watched over one another.
Originally, the members of the Guardian Demon King Army were warriors selected and raised by Sajunhwan. From a young age,
selected and subjected to nearly twenty years of hellish training, they were arbitrarily assigned under
Dokgo Seong's command. But they kept their loyalty to him in the final moments. Before their eyes,
spurning the wealth and glory laid before them, they unhesitatingly chose to save their commander,
who had roamed battlefields together with them.
To allow him to escape the main stronghold, they laid down their lives blocking the enemy's advance, and while he was
circulating his qi, all the warriors under Vice Commander Jongri Ryeong died heroic deaths to protect him.
The backdrop of their deaths was none other than Sajunhwan. A frenzied light suddenly
blazed in Dokgo Seong's eyes.
"Even if I die trying, I shall surely avenge you."
He had vowed this repeatedly, but he well knew it was a difficult thing to achieve. First of all,
he had no power whatsoever. Even though this place was unimaginably distant from the Central Plains,
he had now become someone unable to handle even a single ordinary martial artist.
With his dantian destroyed, it was impossible to newly cultivate inner qi. Moreover,
he had little talent in techniques or external martial arts, so learning new martial arts was out of the
question. All that remained for him now was the countless practical combat experience gained on the battlefield
and nothing more than his instincts.
"I must find a way, somehow."
Dokgo Seong recalled something. It was a thought regarding the magic used in this place.
He had already heard a general overview of the concept of magic through Shrekheimer.
"The first thing I can consider is magic. According to Shrekheimer, magic is
something one can sufficiently wield even after losing the dantian."
But the most pressing problem before him was passing the final test. Only
by surviving that test could he think about what came after.
"Did he say ogre? I wonder what kind of monster it will be."
Dokgo Seong began contemplating his final opponent that he would soon fight. Because he had to
mobilize every ability remaining to him to subdue his opponent in order to have any hope for the future. He
fell into deep thought to face the unknown entity—the ogre—whom he had never once seen
before.
"Krrrrr."
With the sound of heavy iron chains, a massive iron gate of steel grate slowly rose. A gigantic gate that
seemed impossible to break through with human strength. However, in this place, besides the gate currently
rising, there were three more gates installed. With a thunderous roar, as the first
iron gate firmly fixed to the ceiling, the next gate began to slowly open.
Dokgo Seong gazed at the gates rising one by one and swallowed dryly. To face the opponent who would
decide his life or death—no, his destiny henceforth—he had his entire body's senses
honed to the extreme.
"Thud."
With only the last iron gate remaining, the other gates were all fixed to the ceiling. Then,
the bizarre screams coming from inside the gate grew even louder.
"Kyaaaaooh."
A beastly roar that only an enraged ferocious beast could produce. Dokgo Seong knew well that it was the ogre, a being he had never
once seen. For this final battle, he had already entered the underground prison,
having undergone tests twice.
"Stay calm, Dokgo Seong."
He muttered lowly and gently stroked the spiked gauntlet worn on his right hand.
Since it was the final match, he had been given the right to choose any weapon he desired.
Heavy armor, maces—every kind of equipment. But Dokgo Seong refused
everything. He had chosen only the spiked gauntlet—something at least akin to a tiger claw—that he had used
in the fierce battle against the troll.
The soldiers who had entered with weapons repeatedly recommended he wear heavy armor and use a shield, but Dokgo Seong
did not so much as glance. He had already instinctively realized through the battle with the troll that armor and shields were of little
use.
"They said the one he would face this time was far stronger than the troll. If so, evasion would be easier than
blocking."
Although he had lost all martial arts, only the reflexes and senses gained through countless fierce battles
still remained. Though he was completely devoid of internal energy to utilize movement techniques, his physical agility
was far superior to an ordinary person's.
Trusting solely in that, Dokgo Seong had entered the arena without even selecting proper armor.
Perhaps finding this strange, the soldiers each wore puzzled expressions. According to their common sense, one would have to
wear at least plate mail over chain mail to barely be able to face an ogre.
They thought. Of course, it was obvious they wouldn't last long and would become a meal for the ogre,
but Dokgo Seong's thoughts were different.
"Wearing such things would only slow my movements."
He lowered his gaze and looked at the spiked gauntlet in his hand. Strangely, unlike the one from his duel with the troll,
the gauntlet's shape differed greatly. Originally, it had four thin blades
attached, but now they had all been cut away; instead, a single, extremely stout iron spike
was firmly fixed at the knuckle joint of the middle finger. The left gauntlet was
the same.
This was a weapon he had specially commissioned from Benites. It had also been crafted to suit
the solution Dokgo Seong had devised in advance for facing the ogre.
"I cannot understand. Four blades would be better than one spike……."
Though he found it odd, Benites granted his request without much fuss. It is
customary to grant a death row inmate a somewhat burdensome request.
As soon as the weapon was completed, Dokgo Seong was immediately thrown into the arena and was waiting for
the imminent clash with the ogre. While he was tightly wound with tension, the final iron gate
finally began to slowly open. As if it had been waiting, a massive form faintly visible beyond the gate
violently crashed into it.
"Boom."
The grate gate shook with thick dust. The heavy iron gate swayed as if it would
fall off at any moment from the impact. Seeing that, he could roughly gauge the monster's strength.
"If I take one hit, I'll meet the Yama King himself."
Muttering lowly, Dokgo Seong silently waited with bated breath for the ogre to enter the cell.
The unknown entity, the ogre, finally displayed its massive physique before Dokgo Seong.
"Kwaoooo."
Upon witnessing the ogre's appearance, Dokgo Seong's eyes widened in shock.
"Heavens……."
The ogre's appearance was so grotesque one might wonder if such a creature could exist on earth. At a single
glance, the ogre possessed a fearsome visage.
The first thing Dokgo Seong couldn't comprehend was that the ogre had two heads.
Any animal should have but one head containing a brain. Yet, as if to
shatter such a universal concept, the ogre possessed two heads.
Judging by how the eyeballs in each moved independently, it was clear that the two heads could each
think and judge for themselves.
The ogre that had leaped in looked around the arena with flaming eyes. As its bloodshot eyeballs
swept over his entire body, Dokgo Seong felt a chill run down his spine involuntarily. Realizing there
was nothing else in the prison besides Dokgo Seong, a bloody light abruptly blazed in the ogre's eyes.
It was nothing other than hunger.
The ogre had been starved for a full week for this match. Because of that, the creature was
unavoidably ferocious. Upon discovering prey, it charged without a second thought,
at an incredible speed unbefitting its massive frame.
The giant club the ogre wielded—a prodigious weapon that could only be described as a building's pillar—
targeted Dokgo Seong's body accompanied by a tremendous tearing of the air.