The Return of the Crazy Demon-Chapter 278: I Didn’t Stop Talking

I stared at the Thundercry Gate Lord, who was sobbing.

Why the hell is this lunatic crying? As far as I know, Dark Path warriors don’t cry. Dumbfounded, I jumped down and walked over to him.

Squatting in front of the Thundercry Gate Lord, I was met with the glare of a bearded boar. I slapped him across the face.

"Why are you crying? Are you insane?"

I turned to the Mansang Gate Lord and asked for help.

"Why is this boar bastard crying?"

"I have no idea either."

Someone from the Thundercry Gate answered.

"The Gate Lord had a son recently."

"Oh, really?"

I grabbed the Thundercry Gate Lord’s shoulders.

"Congratulations. A son? That’s good news."

"......."

Even with a smile on my face, the Thundercry Gate Lord continued to glare. I stared right back at him and said,

"Even a bastard who extorts money from the poor can’t help but adore his own child. It’s something to celebrate. What’s with those eyes?"

The Thundercry Gate Lord answered,

"I can accept losing in a fight. But must you insult me by bringing up my child?"

"Insult? Since when did you give a damn about anyone else’s child when collecting tributes? This is the first time I’ve seen a Dark Path warrior living in luxury. The way you’re doing so well makes it obvious you didn’t build this wealth by showing mercy in Makseong. Anyway, for a war, your face doesn’t suit a defeated general..."

This time I struck him across the face with real emotion. With a loud thud, the Thundercry Gate Lord collapsed, seemingly unconscious.

"Your child is your child. You still have to live your own life."

I stood up and told the Mansang Gate Lord,

"We’ll send him to the Martial Alliance later. Tie him up. If he’s innocent, he’ll get a warning. If not, prison. If it’s serious, he’ll die, right?"

"Yes, understood."

"The Alliance will handle it fairly after their inspection. I won’t judge. Until then, he stays confined."

"Understood."

I looked around and said,

"The Thundercry Gate will be absorbed by the Mansang Gate. If anyone else thinks they deserve a beating, speak up now. I have to head to Cheonungbang next, so I’m busy. Anyone here heard of the Great Rakshasa?"

All of Mansang Gate’s officers raised their hands.

"We’ve heard of him."

"I’m not here to talk about the Great Rakshasa. I’m saying he had disciples. One was beaten to death by me. One’s about to get married. Don’t dance on the edge of life and death like fools. Now that I’m here, Makseong’s Dark Path needs a new structure."

At that moment, thirty men from the Thundercry Gate walked out, swords in hand. One stepped forward to introduce himself.

"Gate Lord, I’m Seol Gyeong-deok, Deputy Gate Lord of Thundercry Gate."

Just from his face, I could tell he was the type who liked to take charge. It made me uneasy.

"Deputy Gyeong-deok, what is it?"

"If you’re heading to Cheonungbang, I’ll join you with our forces."

"What for? To help me? Or some other reason? I could massacre Cheonungbang on my own—do I look like an idiot to you?"

"Not at all."

"Then what? Hoping to claim a position for yourself while the timing’s good?"

"That’s not it. It’s just... since the Gate Lord recently had a son, I hoped you might show some leniency if I helped..."

"Leniency? If you’d ever shown leniency collecting tribute from merchants, maybe I’d consider it. I wouldn’t know, but the Mansang Gate Lord might. What do you think?"

With a hard expression, the Mansang Gate Lord replied,

"They were ruthless."

"Ruthless, huh. And now you want me to go easy? Not happening. Honestly, not killing him already shows more leniency than he deserves. At least he’s still breathing. Do I look like a long-haired monk to you?"

The Deputy Gate Lord said firmly,

"Gate Lord, I don’t care. I’m not asking for leniency. I just want to fight. I always intended to."

"Deputy Gate Lord."

"Yes."

"I find that decision disappointing. If you play smart at Cheonungbang, you’ll die there. There won’t be a second chance."

"I’ve already seen your strength. I’m not stupid enough to try anything."

"What about you, Mansang Gate Lord?"

After a brief pause, he replied,

"Let him join. Not all of Makseong’s Dark Path is rotten. He’s always been a man of resolve."

I looked Seol Gyeong-deok up and down.

"...Do as you like. Bring your men. Let’s all go watch. Before dawn breaks, someone will die, and we’ll know who."

Deputy Gate Lord Seol Gyeong-deok gave me a respectful bow.

"I’ll do that."

The Mansang Gate Lord then asked,

"The Thundercry Gate Lord might try to escape—should we drag him along?"

"What a pain. Just chop off one of his legs."

"Excuse me?"

I patted the startled Mansang Gate Lord on the shoulder and walked outside.

"Kidding... We’ll bring him. Bring the Thundercry Gate."

We moved toward Cheonungbang, a strange mixture of Mansang Gate’s officers and Thundercry Gate’s soldiers.

It was a bizarre group.

Since we were still outnumbered, it felt like we were being dragged to Cheonungbang by the Thundercry Gate.

***

The gates of Cheonungbang were wide open.

I couldn’t help but gape.

"Wow. What the hell? They were ready."

Lights were lit as if they had set up a field camp. I could feel killing intent rising from within, like smoke from a campfire. Warriors were climbing up the walls with weapons in hand when a voice called out.

"...Welcome."

To me, it looked like Zhuge Liang’s arrogant bluff, opening the gates to Sima Yi. Whether the gate was open or not meant nothing to me.

A man who looked like an officer appeared on the wall and spoke.

"I thought it might be a bluff, but it’s real. Is the Haomun Lord here?"

"That’s me."

He looked at me and asked,

"Why did you suddenly get involved in Makseong’s Dark Path conflict?"

"Take your bullshit to the Martial Alliance. First, tell your leader to come out—the one who slapped the messenger. That messenger’s the grandson of my maternal aunt’s neighbor."

Seol Gyeong-deok stepped forward.

"Gate Lord, let me lead the charge."

"Stay back. Still, is my reputation really this weak?"

If the Cult Leader or Scholar Cheonak had shown up, the entire Dark Path of Makseong would be on its knees ready to be slapped. Clearly, my craziness wasn’t enough. I wrapped madness in my right hand and lunacy in my left.

"..."

The moment a strange vibration burst from my hands, everyone—including Thundercry Gate and even the Mansang Gate Lord—recoiled. A grotesque light spread out, and soon, no one was near me.

I compressed the cold of the full moon and wrapped it in the lightning energy of Hundred Battles Tenfold Force.

Not using the Heaven-Piercing Sun-Moon Radiance was my mercy. What I made was a nameless, terrifying combination of Moonlight Cold Heart and Hundred Battles Tenfold Force.

It was too unclean to call it pure white. More like a disgusting white blob with slimy white eels clinging to it.

I planned to drop it first, see how it worked, and name it later.

Ice arts and lightning energy—what a combination.

A technique that never existed before.

It consumed a third of my internal energy in one go.

Afraid it might reduce a person to dust, I threw it far into Cheonungbang’s headquarters. The violently spinning white orb flew like a star lighting up the night sky—and exploded.

KWA-AAAAAANG! 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The boom wasn’t as loud as Heaven-Piercing Sun-Moon Radiance, but the spectacle was just as stunning. White beams shot through the night sky like shattered lightning. Screams echoed briefly, then silence.

I said to the Mansang Gate Lord in a flat tone,

"Go in."

"Yes."

The warriors on the wall had been blasted away. I wasn’t sure exactly how it happened, so I followed the Dark Path fighters through the main gate.

The sight inside made me flinch.

How to describe it... It looked like a painting of midwinter descending suddenly on a spring day. Everything visible had frozen, as if white lightning had struck and clung to every surface.

A disaster of lunatic proportions.

Those who went in first—Mansang Gate officers and Thundercry Gate warriors—watched me enter late. Their expressions were nothing like before.

It was the moment they realized I wasn’t bluffing.

I told the Mansang Gate Lord and Seol Gyeong-deok,

"Go capture the Cheonungbang Lord."

"Yes."

At my words, the officers and Thundercry warriors charged into the shattered headquarters.

Hands behind my back, I inspected the damage caused by my new technique. The whole scene looked like abstract art—early spring consumed by sudden midwinter. As I watched, some Thundercry warriors passed me with swords drawn.

Sounds of weapons clashing and Dark Path warriors killing each other echoed inside.

I had no intention of saving them all.

I’m no charity worker.

Those who die, die. The survivors I’ll leave to the Mansang Gate Lord.

Eventually, those who had carried the Thundercry Gate Lord came through the entrance. As soon as he woke and saw the state of Cheonungbang, his face turned ghostly.

I greeted him.

"Welcome, Thundercry Gate Lord. You didn’t expect this, did you?"

"......."

"They say the Cheonungbang Lord slapped a messenger. This is the price for that. Even if he’s your enemy, you don’t lay a hand on a messenger. That’s basic wartime etiquette, no?"

The Thundercry Gate Lord couldn’t speak.

Then a second-story wall exploded, and someone spewing blood flew through the air, rolling past me. He still had some strength, so I gave him a light kick to the face.

The Thundercry Gate Lord seemed too stunned even to think of escaping. He looked like a broken man. I turned to see a middle-aged man emerging from the broken wall, swinging his sword fiercely. A kick sent him flying.

As he twisted in midair and landed, he immediately charged toward me.

"..."

The Mansang Gate Lord shouted as he stepped through the broken wall.

"That’s the Cheonungbang Lord!"

This was my first time seeing him. As he approached, sword in hand, I greeted him.

"Bangju, I’m the Haomun Lord. Why’d you slap the messenger?"

"......."

He assumed a stance to cut me down but then froze, lost in thought. I could guess what that thought was.

"If you swing that, you’ll die, right?"

He held the sword toward me. Its tip trembled.

I pinched the blade lightly between thumb and forefinger. A white cold spread down the blade toward him.

He widened his eyes and poured energy into it to resist the Moonlight Cold Heart. He could’ve surrendered, but he was responding like a true Dark Path warrior.

Suddenly, we found ourselves in a classic internal energy battle. As his sword, frozen and bent, lost its resilience, I injected energy and snapped it with a flick of the wrist.

The blade split in two.

Finally, the Cheonungbang Lord dropped the broken sword and sighed, glancing around.

"...Stop. We’ve lost."

I looked at the Thundercry Gate Lord, then up at the Mansang Gate Lord who had come down from the second floor.

"Leaders, let’s talk."

I gestured for the Thundercry and Mansang Gate Lords to sit. The bound Thundercry Gate Lord sat to my left, the Mansang Gate Lord to my right.

The Cheonungbang Lord, saying nothing, came and sat heavily in front of me.

While I gathered my thoughts, Seol Gyeong-deok naturally sat nearby.

I told him,

"You’re dismissed."

"Yes."

He stood, clicked his tongue, and returned to his men. I looked at the three leaders and said,

"...You should be grateful you’re alive."

Only the Mansang Gate Lord answered.

"That’s true."

"It would’ve been better if you’d just shown up when I called the meeting at Suwol Pavilion. What the hell is this chaos in the dead of night? Thundercry, Cheonung—do you have powerful backers? Say so now. Don’t let it come out later and start a mess."

The Cheonungbang Lord said,

"No."

The Thundercry Gate Lord shook his head.

"Neither do I."

I looked between them and finally said what should’ve been said at Suwol Pavilion.

"The Makseong Dark Path will be led by the Mansang Gate Lord, Sun Woo-jin."

"Yes."

Neither of the other two responded. I went on.

"The Mansang Gate will not collect tribute during the recovery period. Announce that publicly. Send a messenger to the Martial Alliance, inform them of what happened, and request an inspector."

"Understood."

"If either of you is dissatisfied with my decision, commit suicide right here. I don’t want to bother cleaning up. The survivors will handle it. Don’t worry. Die with pride. You’re all older than me by at least ten years. Losing like this—how are you going to continue in the Dark Path? If it were me, I’d run straight into a wall."

"......."

Some people lose their temper suddenly when they’re being scolded. I’m one of them. I sat there with the three of them, arms crossed, chanting my words like a monk.

"Why’d you slap the messenger?"

"...That was..."

I slapped the Cheonungbang Lord across the face and said,

"Explain yourself."

I listened to them speak. They told me about the # Nоvеlight # founding of Makseong’s Dark Path, the first Gate Lord of Thundercry, the first Lord of Cheonungbang, and even about their hometowns.

Eventually, dawn began to break. Their subordinates, scattered around, started dozing off—but I wasn’t done talking.

Now and then, the Cheonungbang and Thundercry Lords got another slap.

I sat through the breaking dawn with them, still talking.

"...So keep going. What did you do with all those excessive tribute collections?"

As the day brightened, the Thundercry Gate Lord cautiously asked,

"Gate Lord, could you untie me...?"

I drew my Flash Dagger and cut his restraints. The three of them seemed to finally relax, their eyelids growing heavy.

I drove the dagger into the ground and said,

"Bunch of lunatics. If you want to die, close your eyes. Now, keep talking."

I don’t know what was going through their minds, but I kept listening to their stories seriously, scolding them, hitting them—and welcomed the midday sun.

I listened to the stories of these Dark Path men.

They still didn’t seem to realize I was spending all night trying not to kill them.

So I didn’t stop talking.