Chapter 3 : Mastery
Chapter 3: Mastery
The interior of the Demonic Cave remained pitch black.
“Huff, huff.”
Currently, Dan Woojin was supporting his entire body weight with only his arm strength while standing on his hands.
Sweat trickled down his hair and dripped onto the floor.
In the past, moving in this position was not difficult at all.
To function as an assassin, one must be able to conceal themselves in any situation.
As such, hanging from a ledge with a single arm or even a single finger was a daily routine.
The moment one rouses inner Qi, the probability of being detected by an enemy increases; therefore, to hide without using inner Qi, one had to develop forearm strength and grip.
At first, even simply standing on his hands was difficult.
One hour was more than enough time to realize that this was a body so unconditioned that physical strength was virtually nonexistent.
He came to feel how difficult it was to hold a handstand after such a long time.
Thus, Dan Woojin started by supporting himself with both arms, then moved to one arm, and then gradually tried to build strength to support himself with four fingers, three, two, and finally one.
His arms trembled violently, but Dan Woojin endured with sheer grit.
‘Endure, Dan Woojin.’
The first rule for survival.
No matter what happens, endure until the end.
The one who survives until the end becomes the strong and the victor.
Seven days and nights passed before he could stand on a single finger for fifteen minutes.
He had invested an entire week just into building grip strength.
It was almost mysterious that a body that had never been trained could show this much progress in such a short time.
“My physical stamina isn't as bad as I thought.”
Having sweated profusely, Dan Woojin stretched, feeling his body become much lighter.
Despite eating nothing but fasting pills and water, he did not feel as hungry as expected.
It could be due to operating the Soul Killing Art merged with the Asura Demonic Art, or perhaps because he could finally immerse himself solely in martial arts training after a long time.
“With this growth rate…”
He felt it might even be possible to become stronger than he was during his time as Am Yeong.
Perhaps because he had eaten only the best things since childhood, the paths for his inner Qi were wide open, and for a body that had neglected training, his stamina was quite good.
Swish!
As he stepped into Am Yeong’s signature footwork, the Steps of the Killing Soul, Dan Woojin’s figure flickered instantly.
“This body feels like a better fit for martial arts as well.”
What was the difference?
What made Am Yeong and Dan Woojin different?
The contemplation was brief, but the answer came quickly.
He felt it more as he moved his muscles until his body screamed, activating his senses.
This body, Dan Woojin’s body, possessed not only great bones and muscles but also an incredibly brilliant comprehension.
In short,
“So a body inheriting the bloodline of the Heavenly Demon really is different huh.”
To check how far he could perform martial arts, he personally executed various techniques he knew from his previous life.
Surprisingly, Dan Woojin could perform any martial art in a way that suited his body.
Despite possessing such martial talent, the Seventh Young Master had lived like a scoundrel.
Why he did so remained a mystery.
‘I have some suspicions, but…’
It wasn't certain.
Regardless, the Seventh Young Master was able to live like a scoundrel thanks to the advantage of being the youngest.
“I will avenge you.”
Returning to the past and taking over the Seventh Young Master’s body was akin to a blessing.
To utilize that blessing properly, he first had to pass through the Demonic Cave.
“The footwork is settled since I can naturally perform the Steps of the Killing Soul.”
He had also finished assessing his physical stamina.
Inner Qi based on the Asura Demonic Art was also surging through his entire body.
He felt he had adapted to this body to some extent.
Therefore, it seemed time to take on the challenge.
The first trial of the Demonic Cave.
The Mechanical Array.
Countless traps would rush in to kill Dan Woojin.
“I know the way to break it.”
Dan Woojin’s pupils began to be dyed red.
As he stared toward the location of the first trial in that state, the places where traps were installed were identified one by one.
Within the Soul Killing Art that Am Yeong had learned, the Ten Eye Arts were integrated.
The eye art Dan Woojin used now was a technique called Red Eyes, which raises the senses of the eyes to their peak to identify where energy is concentrated in an opponent.
Along with the Far Sight Eyes used to identify distant targets, it was an eye art Am Yeong had used frequently.
In the past, as a common disciple of the Nine Sect Alliance, he had received martial arts from ten masters, but he had not been taught their secret techniques.
This was because they could not teach techniques whose power increased only when executed based on the pure inner Qi of the Orthodox Faction to Am Yeong, who would infiltrate the Demonic Cult as an assassin.
Instead, the martial art passed down to Am Yeong was the Soul Killing Art of the Slayer King.
Of course, the masters of the Nine Great Sects were not assassins, so they could not properly teach Am Yeong the Soul Killing Art.
Instead, they taught Am Yeong how to survive.
They believed that only one who survives under extreme circumstances could survive in the Demonic Cult, kill the Young Cult Leader, and sever the cult's lineage.
The reason the Murim Alliance raised a common disciple to carry out assassinations in this manner was clear.
It was because the goal of the Orthodox Murim Alliance was to sever the lineage of the Demonic Cult.
A hundred years ago, the Murim had been conquered by the Demonic Cult once.
The Heavenly Demon Cult, which established a world of the Demonic Way, intended to rule the Central Plains with the Orthodox and Unorthodox sects under its command.
The legendary masters who fought against them were the group of ten known as the Ten Emperors.
The Ten Emperors succeeded in defeating the Heavenly Demon and reclaiming the Central Plains.
The Nine Sect Alliance that currently constitute the Murim Alliance were the descendants of the Ten Emperors.
To defeat the Alliance Leader, Cheong Wol, and the Strategist, Zhuge Taek, he would inevitably have to encounter the descendants of the Ten Emperors.
Of course, that was still a far off matter.
For now, becoming the Young Cult Leader was the priority.
“The remaining time is twenty-three days.”
To break through the Demonic Cave within that time, it seemed he had to challenge the first trial soon.
“Then, shall I push myself to the limit?”
Dan Woojin imagined the traps that would spring out in this space where nothing could be seen.
Numerous weapons that would burst out from the cave just by stepping on or touching something could turn Dan Woojin into a skewer in an instant.
Therefore, he had to move constantly to break through the first trial.
Applying strength to the soles of his feet, Dan Woojin began to sprint at full power toward the inner part of the Demonic Cave to overcome the first trial, the Mechanical Array.
Whish!
Rumble.
As Dan Woojin began to run, the mechanisms installed in the Demonic Cave activated one by one.
He had already identified where the traps would trigger using his Red Eyes.
Avoiding the first incoming arrows with his superior kinetic vision, Dan Woojin contracted his entire body.
If he did not maintain a proper level of tension, he would die.
Am Yeong was a man who had lived with such thoughts in every moment.
Dan Woojin was no different.
Swish, swish, swish!
Starting with arrows, the traps escalated into the indiscriminate flight of the eighteen types of weapons, including spears, sabers, and swords; he navigated through them using the Steps of the Killing Soul.
“I was empty handed, so thank you.”
Snatching a sword among the flying weapons, Dan Woojin ran again while striking down other armaments.
His speed did not decrease at all but grew even faster.
Throb.
‘With just this much…’
Striking down weapons fired at high speeds felt like his palms were going to tear, but he did not lose his grip on the sword.
It was thanks to the grip strength he had trained for a week.
Less than fifteen minutes had passed since he began swinging the sword while running.
He felt the muscles of his entire body screaming.
‘But it is still bearable.’
Even if his breath reached the tip of his throat, he endured with persistence.
Clang!
He struck down an arrow aimed at his eye.
If he stopped moving even for a moment, he would become a beehive.
The first trial of the Demonic Cave was to break through the cave where numerous mechanisms were installed.
‘I can do it.’
In his previous life, he had endured things worse than this.
Am Yeong was able to be chosen as the common disciple and raised as an assassin because he was the only one who survived among many kidnapped children.
He had jumped into ponds full of poison, and there were times when the masters from the Nine Great Sects, each a powerhouse in their own right, rushed in to kill Am Yeong.
The times he was pushed to the extreme, to the point where he couldn't even sleep, were also countless.
‘Compared to that, something like this is,’
Slash—
A weapon grazing his arm created a wound, but Dan Woojin advanced regardless.
Since he had entered another person's body, he had to develop a sense for this kind of pain as well.
He had thought it would take a very long time to revive the senses he once possessed.
But,
“…It’s strange.”
The incoming weapons appeared slow.
Even during the times when his activation of senses was at its peak, he had never experienced this.
He felt he hadn't even properly drawn out the senses of this body yet, and yet it was like this.
‘With this body…’
He felt he could surpass the realms of his previous life and become even stronger.
Clang, clang, clang!
Once again, numerous weapons flew in, and Dan Woojin struck down what needed to be struck and dodged what needed to be dodged.
“Huff, huff.”
As he exhaled sharply and looked forward again,
‘Why aren't any more flying?’
No more weapons were being fired.
The moment he realized that fact, Dan Woojin knew he had broken through the first trial.
Looking back, he saw a staggering number of weapons rolling on the floor.
“I did it…”
No matter how much Am Yeong had spent ten years infiltrating the Demonic Cult as an assassin, this was his first time entering the Demonic Cave.
He had moved frantically just to test the condition of the Seventh Young Master's body, and by the time he regained his senses, he had passed the first trial.
It was a somewhat dazed yet fascinating feeling.
‘What incredible physical ability…’
Am Yeong’s goal had always been to kill the Young Cult Leader.
Eventually, the assassination he had prepared for twenty years ended successfully, but what he gained afterward was nothing but emptiness.
That emptiness was simply unforgettable.
A life lived to carry out someone else’s orders is not a complete life.
To the other children of the Heavenly Demon, breaking through the first trial of the Demonic Cave might be a truly trivial matter.
However, to the current Dan Woojin, this single achievement felt like a total sense of accomplishment.
Unlike his time as Am Yeong, he could live his life as Dan Woojin according to his choices and initiative.
He was so grateful for that fact.
He was out of breath, but his mood was refreshing.
Though he hadn't realized it, it seemed he had run a considerable distance.
“I passed the first trial easily, and next is…”
He had heard that the Demonic Cave was a place that did not let the challenger rest.
That meant it was obvious the second trial would begin immediately.
Rumble.
Looking straight ahead again, he saw giant stone statues turning their heads toward Dan Woojin.
“Are the second trial stone statues?”
If the first trial of the Demonic Cave was the Mechanical Array, it seemed the second trial was to defeat those stone statues.
All nine statues were each holding a sword.
Gulp.
As Dan Woojin, having swallowed hard, tried to move,
Rumble.
Though at a slow speed, the statues began to raise their swords.
It seemed he had to defeat those statues to move on to the next trial.
When Dan Woojin also raised his sword in response to the statues.
Flash!
He saw the eyes of the statues open.
The statues, holding nine swords flashing with a dark light, were glaring at Dan Woojin.
“This won't be easy.”
The assassination arts Am Yeong had learned could not defeat those statues.
Therefore, it seemed he had to master sword techniques rather than assassination arts from now on.