When Siu returned to the dwelling in Maryeonggok with a wild boar the size of a house slung over his shoulder, Baekhui was sitting as usual, leaning against a boulder and lightly waving a silk fan.
Her gaze came to rest at Siu’s feet. A smooth landing that raised not a speck of dust, and breathing that did not waver even under the weight of that enormous beast.
“I have returned, Master. I caught quite a big one today.”
When Siu set the boar down on the ground, dust rose with a heavy tremor.
Baekhui nodded in satisfaction and rose from her seat.
As she approached, her dense fragrance covered the bloody stench of the hunt in an instant.
“Well done. It seems you’ve finally begun to properly engrain the principles of the Heavenly Demon Moon Shadow Steps into your body.”
Baekhui’s white fingers softly traced across Siu’s hardened chest.
But soon her gaze sank coldly, and weight settled into her voice.
“But Siu, do not forget. Footwork is merely a means to approach an enemy or avoid them. A true Heavenly Demon does not defeat foes with his feet; by his very existence, he tears the heavens and brings the earth to heel.”
When Baekhui reached her hand into the air, the surrounding atmosphere twisted grotesquely, and black currents swirled.
“The vessel is now ready. From this point on, I will fill it with the ‘Heavenly Demon Divine Art (天魔神功),’ the source of the ten thousand demons, and engrave into your soul the ‘Heaven-Rending Sword Art (破天劍法),’ which can cut down even the sky itself.”
Siu’s heart thrashed violently.
That despairing power he had seen in his mindscape, cleaving a mountain range with a single swing.
“The Heavenly Demon Divine Art is not simply a method of fighting by wielding forms. It is a taboo (禁忌) that converts your obsession and fighting spirit toward the world into demonic qi, stealing the authority of a god; and the Heaven-Rending Sword Art is the only path to give that authority form.”
Baekhui pointed to the rusted dagger hanging at Siu’s waist.
“It is time for that scrap of iron to become a demonic sword (魔劍) that pierces the heavens. Are you ready, Siu?”
Instead of answering, Siu bent at the waist and met Baekhui’s gaze head-on.
Within his burning red eyes already dwelled the thirst of heaven-rending (破天), to cut down the world itself.
“First, let us fill our bellies, Siu. More importantly, if this master eats boar again tomorrow, I feel my whole body will start smelling gamy……”
As if the Baekhui who had been exuding a momentum capable of cutting down the world just moments ago had vanished, she slightly wrinkled her nose and looked down at the hunted boar with feigned dissatisfaction.
It seemed that even for the Heavenly Demon standing at the pinnacle of the demonic path, eating nothing but tough mountain beast meat for an entire month was an ordeal.
At her sudden complaint, Siu gave an awkward cough.
“Ahem……! Ah, I apologize. Tomorrow, I will try catching some fish, Master.”
“Fish…… Yes, that would be good. If it is grilled fish, would it not at least have a more delicate fragrance?”
Only then did Baekhui smile in satisfaction and accept a piece of meat Siu offered her.
With their simple bickering conversation near the campfire, the chilly night of Maryeonggok drew to a close.
The next morning.
When Siu opened his eyes after finishing his qi circulation while breathing in the cold spiritual energy of dawn, Baekhui was already waiting for him.
There was no trace of her playful demeanor from yesterday. At the sight of her standing there cloaked in a majestic aura, Siu instinctively straightened his posture and walked toward her.
“Come, Siu.”
Baekhui’s voice shook the air of Maryeonggok.
Her eyes had sunk like a deep abyss, and the surrounding air was frozen taut, like the eve of a colossal storm.
“Starting today, I will pass on the Heavenly Demon Divine Art (天魔神功) and the Heaven-Rending Sword Art (破天劍法).”
As Baekhui took a step forward, black demonic qi surged from beneath her feet and swept toward Siu like a wave.
It was not merely a declaration that she would teach him martial arts. It was like an inescapable oracle (神託), declaring that she would carve the fate of the Heavenly Demon into Siu’s soul.
Baekhui drew in the cold dawn air and steadied her breathing.
Around her, barely visible black thunder qi sparked ferociously, twisting the atmosphere grotesquely.
Each time a crackling, shattering sound rang out, the surrounding blades of grass were scorched black.
“The Heavenly Demon Divine Art follows a path different from other martial arts. Unlike such peripheral techniques as palm arts or fist arts, it is an authority (權能) in and of itself. This black thunder qi, based upon the Heavenly Demon Black Thunder Heart Art you have cultivated, is an authority that mocks the heavens, and destruction itself.”
The playfulness that usually colored Baekhui’s voice had vanished, leaving only the cold dignity of the First Heavenly Demon who had driven the world into terror a thousand years ago.
She stared at Siu as if seeing through his eyes and continued.
“At present, this master’s martial power is sealed and incomplete, so rather than in reality, I will show you its true meaning directly within my mindscape (心象). Sit in the lotus position, Siu.”
Instead of answering, Siu proved his will through action.
His body, tempered by a month of harsh training, folded into the most stable lotus posture without hesitation.
Beyond Siu’s eyelids as they slowly closed, the morning sunlight of Maryeonggok receded, and once again the gate to an endless pitch-black abyss began to open.
When the pitch-black darkness lifted and Siu opened his eyes again, it was no longer the dawn of Maryeonggok.
The sky was stained with an eerie crimson, as though sprayed with fresh blood, and across the endlessly stretching wasteland, broken weapons that had lost their masters stood embedded like tombstones.
Corpses lay uncleared beneath every step, piling into mountains—a scene no different from a living hell.
Siu silently looked around.
The sharp metallic stench pricking his nose, and the suffocating silence. This was the form of the thousand years Baekhui had borne alone and crossed.
“Master.”
Siu slowly opened his mouth.
Baekhui, who had been standing beside him and gazing at the wasteland with cold eyes, turned to look at him.
“You told me that a mindscape is a person’s heart shaped into an environment. ……I want to transform this mindscape of yours, Master, into a blue sky, sprouting shoots, and a cool, flowing river.”
Baekhui’s eyes trembled greatly.
Over the long span of a thousand years, countless people had feared or worshiped her, but no one had ever said they would heal her ruined inner world.
“……!”
In an instant, Baekhui’s face flushed red. Flustered, she averted her gaze and placed a hand over her pounding chest.
Her heart, which had long gone cold, began to beat wildly at a single sentence from Siu.
“You certainly…… have a way with words, disciple. May this master truly look forward to it?”
Baekhui’s voice trembled faintly.
Siu answered with a bright smile that held no pretense, only sincerity.
Facing that spotless smile, Baekhui could no longer maintain her composure.
As if trying to hide the uncontrollably quickening beat of her heart, she hurriedly took her stance to demonstrate the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
“A-ahem! Enough idle talk. Focus, Siu. What I am about to show you is the essence of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, and the beginning of destruction!”
Baekhui’s form began to ripple grotesquely.
Her appearance beneath the crimson sky gradually changed. The aura that had been somewhat suppressed in the aftermath of the seal erupted like a tidal wave, and her long silver-white hair whipped fiercely through the air like a living demonic dragon.
It was the true body (眞身) of the First Heavenly Demon, who a thousand years ago had driven the Central Plains martial world into terror and awe.
“Watch closely, Siu. This is the authority with which I brought the ten thousand demons to heel.”
Along with Baekhui’s declaration, black thunder qi exploded from her fingertips.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art (天魔神功)
First Form: Black Thunder Flash (黑雷一閃) Baekhui lightly flicked her finger. In that instant, a single thin streak of black lightning cut through the air. It was so fast that before the eye could even perceive it, the sound of space being torn apart rang out, and a giant boulder in the distance was silently pierced through and carbonized black. It was, quite literally, absolute speed that passed through space itself.
Second Form: Black Thunder Net (黑雷雷網) When she spread both hands wide, dozens of strands of black thunder stretched out in all directions like a net. With a crackling noise, the black lightning web spread across the wasteland and constricted the earth; the piles of corpses and broken weapons that touched the net triggered chain explosions and vanished into powder. It was a meticulous binding that seemed as though it would imprison even the soul once caught.
Third Form: Black Thunder Heavenly Bulwark (黑雷天罡) A black storm rose at Baekhui’s feet. Centered on her, the earth within a radius of several dozen jang transformed into a storm zone of black lightning. The Heavenly Demon’s force took the form of lightning and crushed everything around her, and Baekhui, standing at the center of the storm, looked like a demon god (魔神) commanding thunder.
Siu felt a suffocating pressure from that force alone.
Fourth Form: Demonic Thunder Chain (魔雷連環) Within the storm, Baekhui’s form moved, leaving afterimages behind. Black Thunder Flash and the Thunder Net poured down in endless intersection. A single attack did not end there; its recoil doubled the power of the next form in a chain reaction of destruction. It was a merciless barrage that allowed the enemy not the slightest opening.
Fifth Form: Descent of Demonic Thunder (魔雷降臨) Baekhui raised her hand toward the sky. Then the crimson heavens were dyed black in an instant, and dozens of gigantic black lightning bolts plunged down into the earth like thunderclaps. It was a tyrannical authority that forcibly subdued even the energy of the heavens and wielded it as a weapon. Where the lightning fell, black flames lingered for a long time, corroding the ground.
Sixth Form: Black Thunder Dragon Slayer (黑雷龍殺) The scattered thunder qi gathered in one place according to Baekhui’s will. Soon, an enormous black thunder dragon (黑雷龍) took form and roared. The thunder dragon, so vivid it seemed alive, crossed the wasteland and devoured everything; every existence that touched the dragon’s maw had its internal energy burned away and even its mind destroyed.
Seventh Form: Heavenly Demon Black Thunder Palm (天魔黑雷掌) Baekhui thrust a palm (掌) toward the air. Then a black lightning palm vast enough to cover the sky appeared and struck down upon the earth.
Rumble, rumble, rumble! The ground split as if an earthquake had struck, and where the palm strike landed, black thunder spread along the cracks in the earth like blood through veins, annihilating all life force.
Eighth Form: Black Thunder Soul Extinction (黑雷滅魂) The aura of rage and destruction subsided, and an extremely condensed black thunderbolt formed at Baekhui’s fingertip. When she pierced the air, black thunder flashed without sound or vibration. It was a flame that burned not the body, but the soul itself. The one struck would suffer from visions of black lightning for the rest of their life even without external wounds, until they destroyed themselves—the cruelest form of mental annihilation.
Ninth Form: Heavenly Demon Black Thunder Annihilation (天魔黑雷滅) — Ultimate Technique (絶技) Lastly, Baekhui gathered all the internal energy in her body into a single point. Above her head formed a gigantic sphere of black lightning that seemed ready to swallow even the sun. The moment Baekhui burst that sphere, the entire mindscape transformed into a hell of complete darkness and black lightning. Absolute destruction that cut, tore, and erased all things. It was a realm of nothingness (無), where everything existing within that space vanished without a trace.
When the black lightning that had filled his vision cleared, Baekhui returned to her original appearance and let out a ragged breath.
Though it had been within the mindscape, reproducing the martial power of her prime had been a great strain even for her.
Siu stared at the sight in a daze.
In his red eyes, the nine streaks of lightning he had just witnessed were engraved as vividly as brands.
“……This is the Heavenly Demon?”
Siu’s voice trembled. It was not fear. It was a shudder at an absolute power he too would soon reach—no, a power beyond which he would have to go.