Chapter 1592. Rocking (2)

—You have been trying your hardest to deny my existence.

Pity now seeped into Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor’s eyes. He stared straight at Kang Jin-Ho.

—Driven by your whims, you tried to reject me, accept me, and even rule over me.

“But... You’re merely a part of me.”

—Indeed, I am you. However, do you think the current you is me?

“...”

—My other self that has lost me. You merely wanted a peaceful, convenient life. Yes, you wanted to get lost in the convenience of modern life. That is all. You think you’ve become stronger? Really? Hah. Hahahahaha!

Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor guffawed raucously.

—You? Do you really think you’re strong?!

However, his attitude shifted in the blink of an eye. He now began roaring loudly enough to almost tear Kang Jin-Ho’s eardrums. The entire world shuddered from his explosive aura and held its breath. It was as if the heavens themselves covered their eyes and urgently turned their heads away.

—Since when did you start judging the strength of others based on their martial realm? I’ve battled against countless experts far stronger than I am and won! I proudly boasted about my strength because no one was worthy of being my enemy anymore.

—Now, behold, you weakling. If you have functioning eyes, you should be able to see me. In that case... How dare you compare yourself to me! A weakling stained by peace like you thinks he can match my strength?!

“I...”

—After all that rejection and denial, this is where you’ve reached? If so, your end seems easy enough to predict. So? All that running away only got you to a point where you’re finally forced to accept the inevitable truth? That you can’t become stronger by yourself? Is that why you’ve surrounded yourself with all the trash? As your human shields?

“I... I...!”

Kang Jin-Ho shuddered, unable to refute what his other self had said.

Maybe he could have shot back had he been talking to a different person. But not this time. After all, the one saying all these things was Kang Jin-Ho. He was Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor.

He knew better than anyone how he had attained his strength, and what kind of life he had led.

—Here you are, doing the exact same thing as all those people you’ve despised. Turning my enemies into everyone else’s enemies, then using said everyone else as your meat shield? Isn’t that what those orthodox faction bastards used to do? Just how far are you thinking of falling, my other self?

“That’s not true!”

Kang Jin-Ho roared back. That was definitely not true. He had never asked them or even thought about using them as his meat shields. Everything he had done was to ensure their survival. Not just his, but theirs, too!

—It couldn’t be helped? Is that it?

Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor cackled softly. And that cackling stabbed Kang Jin-Ho’s heart like an icy dagger.

—That’s a nice-sounding excuse, something I would’ve never muttered. Now listen, my other self who has forgotten about his past. No, let me rephrase that. You who have thrown your past away, allow me to help you. Let me help you hear your voice from the past, oh you weakling who has become stained by indolence and comfort.

Crimson Demon spoke through clenched teeth.

—Prove your worth through your strength!

“...!”

—The strong are always right. Might makes right! Regardless of the form this might comes in... You, a weakling, are nothing more than a mere weak echo. Do you think you can argue about what’s right or wrong with me? A mere weakling like you?!

Merciless. Truly vicious! He used force to trample on logic and laughed in the faces of what was fair and what was lawful.

Yes, that’s right. That is Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor, isn’t it?

And that was exactly why Kang Jin-Ho tried to throw that part of him away. That was why he wanted to look away from it.

Back then, being a monster like that was the only way to survive in the perilous and inhumane land called Zhongyuan. But Crimson Demon’s methods were simply not suitable for a life in the modern era. That was why he abandoned his old self, but to think that it’d come back to him like a deadly boomerang!

—You will lose.

Kang Jin-Ho shuddered again.

—You already know this, don’t you? That you can never win against them with these childish tricks.

“I...”

—If you were still me, you wouldn’t have wasted your time racking your brain. No, you’d have traveled to Zhongyuan already and ripped apart those pieces of trash called the Three Kings or whatever by now! That would’ve made everything peaceful. However, you’ve given up on the clearest and simplest way.

Kang Jin-Ho closed his eyes. He had heard enough.

So, this is my true desire?

Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor before him and biting his head off was undoubtedly a fragment of Kang Jin-Ho’s imagination, a manifestation of his own thoughts. Indeed, it was his anxiety, hidden in the deepest corner of his heart, manifesting as the figure he feared the most. In other words...

This conversation was between Kang Jin-Ho and Kang Jin-Ho. One wished to become even more acclimatized to the modern era, while the other wished to protect himself as a martial artist!

These two were waging a fierce battle.

“Are you done running your mouth off?”

—Hmm?

Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor stared at Kang Jin-Ho in mild interest. By then, Kang Jin-Ho’s own expression resembled his counterpart’s.

—It seems I’ve gotten through to you. At least by a little.

“It’s all sophistry in the end.”

Kang Jin-Ho raised his head and stared straight into Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor’s eyes.

“Still, one thing is certain now. What we have now isn’t enough.”

Kang Jin-Ho finally acknowledged the anxiety he had been suppressing until now.

Without a doubt, his enemies were powerful. Even if Kang Jin-Ho had borrowed America’s power, absorbed Japan’s strength as his own, established new martial arts, and squeezed out every drop of strength from the scattered, disorganized Demon Cult...

...We still won’t win.

Maybe they had a chance. If they had another ten years for all the seeds they had planted to bloom into gigantic trees, that was.

However, there was simply no way his enemies would give him the time he needed. Never!

That meant there could be only one way. Kang Jin-Ho had to get even stronger!

Like how he had led the Demon Cult and trampled on the orthodox faction, once feared as an insurmountable foe, the present-day Kang Jin-Ho must acquire the power too overwhelming for even the Three Kings to deal with.

No matter what! And to do that...

Grab!

Kang Jin-Ho gripped the Crimson Destiny and Azuremourne even tighter.

“I finally understand something now.”

He bared his fangs.

“You... think I still lack something. Isn’t that right?”

—For a weakling, you sure know how to run your mouth off, don’t you?

“That might be true.”

Kang Jin-Ho nodded along. Confronting Crimson Demon once more helped him remember what he had lost. And that was...

Yes, I’ve lost my intensity. My viciousness.

He could use various flowery words to dress it up, but if he was being strict about it, this was the only evaluation he could come up with. Kang Jin-Ho’s current life was not as fierce as Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor’s in the past.

He couldn’t let himself stagnate just because he couldn’t keep advancing. Indeed, he must keep doing something for the time being, such as sharpening his swords. That was what Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor used to do back then.

Rather than blindly seeking even higher, even loftier heights, he focused on polishing what he could use right now. That was how he had defeated experts far stronger than him.

But such intensity, such driven-ness, was missing from the current Kang Jin-Ho.

“Knowing is half the battle, isn’t it?”

If something was missing, all he had to do was fill it back up. And the method of doing that was extremely simple, at least for this time.

After all, the figure standing before him was the embodiment of war and tyranny, wasn’t it!

“I’m going to tear your head off.”

—Hah. Hahahaha!

Crimson Demon guffawed like a madman. But the laughter stopped abruptly, and waves of unbelievable aura flooded out from his body like a storm.

—A pathetic weakling still dares to speak?

Kang Jin-Ho bared his fangs reflexively as this tyrannical aura sent shivers down his entire body.

Yes, this is it!

Here stood the absolute powerhouse Kang Jin-Ho had been searching for in the modern era. This absolute power, so stupendous that even he couldn’t rival... It had always been sleeping deep inside him.

If I’ve lost something...

Kang Jin-Ho stepped forward even as the storm of fighting spirit slammed into his body and threatened his rip his flesh open.

Then, all I have to do is... Regain it!

Kang Jin-Ho’s eyes grew colder than ice as he suddenly charged toward Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor.

The sheer arrogance in Heavenly Crimson Demon Emperor’s expression morphed into a sneer of ridicule as he raised his hands.

—If that’s what you wish... Let me show you how much weaker you’ve gotten!

***

“This is troublesome...”

Lee Hyeon-Su roughly scratched his head.

Inside the Assembly Master’s office with its lights turned off, only the computer monitor acted as the source of illumination.

Lee Hyeon-Su usually used his office during work, but today, he needed Kang Jin-Ho’s ideas, too. This was one of the inevitable side effects of restructuring the organization that they must deal with.

Of course, it wasn’t a big problem. All Lee Hyeon-Su had to do was deal with some minor inconveniences, after all. Kang Jin-Ho was sympathetic, and that was why he allowed Lee Hyeon-Su to use his PC anytime.

“Hah-ah...” Lee Hyeon-Su groaned deeply. “All this work, it’s just...”

How wonderful would it be if he had two bodies?

It wasn’t as if he was overwhelmed by the workload. In fact, his situation wasn’t like that. What tormented him was that he had to waste so much time taking the long way around while handling the work that could be dealt with in the figurative blink of an eye.

“Uh-whew... This is all so annoying.”

Stuff like setting up a joint venture or building bridges with the politicians... These types of “work” required him to consider other sides’ situations and respect their pride. And he had to create the “correct” type of pretexts on top of that first.

Matters that could be resolved on the spot with a simple “Yeah, let’s do that” in the Assembly required ten days or more to proceed in the surface world. And it was up to Lee Hyeon-Su to stay on top of everything, too. No wonder he felt so annoyed right now.

However, if we look at this situation from a different perspective, it means we’re much more streamlined with our processes.

Since time immemorial, those operating within an advanced system of governance couldn’t appreciate how good they had it. Only after leaving this system and dipping their toes in the old ways of doing things would they start appreciating what they had.

It’d be a similar feeling to using a computer with a spec that was a few years old after your favorite PC broke down.

“In any case, this side needs... Mm?”

Clunk!

The doorway to the Assembly Master’s office was suddenly shoved open, causing Lee Hyeon-Su’s head to shoot up in surprise.

Is that the stench of blood?

Lee Hyeon-Su freaked out at the thick stench of blood wafting into the office from the open doorway and got up.

“A-Assembly Master?”

That was when he noticed the state Kang Jin-Ho was in.

“W-what happened to you?!”

Lee Hyeon-Su rushed around the desk and toward Kang Jin-Ho. But that was because Kang Jin-Ho’s entire figure was soaked in blood. His clothes were ripped and shredded in various places. Meanwhile, blood dripped from his hair as if to prove he had shed a lot of blood.

Was there an enemy ambush?

Kang Jin-Ho disinterestedly raised his hand and stopped Lee Hyeon-Su from getting closer.

“...? Sir?”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”

After saying those words, Kang Jin-Ho strode into the office, then plopped casually down on the couch. He rummaged through his pockets and eventually pulled out a packet of cigarettes.

Click. Click, click...

Maybe because his fingers were too wet from all the blood, he couldn’t operate his lighter properly. He put the ruined lighter down on the coffee table, then snapped his fingers to generate a spark of flame.

“Fuu-woo...”

Kang Jin-Ho puffed in silence, the look in his eyes growing more distant, colder.

Lee Hyeon-Su cautiously asked, “Sir... If you don’t mind me asking, what happened?”

Kang Jin-Ho slowly turned his head and stared directly into Lee Hyeon-Su’s eyes.

Flinch!

Lee Hyeon-Su reflexively stepped up. What was that?

He couldn’t figure out why he had done that. Despite knowing that Kang Jin-Ho would never attack him even if it was the end of the world, his instincts still made him back away.

Was this déjà vu? Indeed, it felt like a déjà vu, albeit a weird one.

R-right. It’s like back then...!

It felt as if Lee Hyeon-Su was looking at the “Kang Jin-Ho” during the Yeongnam Group’s destruction, the one who ruthlessly pressured him like a hungry beast!

“It’s nothing to worry about,” said Kang Jin-Ho.

“...”

“It’s just, well...”

The corners of Kang Jin-Ho’s lips curled up weirdly. While making a smirk that he hadn’t made in a long, long time, he muttered in a cold, withdrawn voice.

“I’m simply regaining what I’ve lost. That’s all.”

Lee Hyeon-Su nervously swallowed his saliva.