<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 151>
Just as there is no result without a cause, every action has a purpose.
If someone is taking extreme actions — actions that are simply incomprehensible by common sense — one should first question the purpose behind them.
More often than not, that purpose is highly extreme as well.
Like this object on the table.
“Fascinating.”
An upside-down cross emblem.
At a glance, it doesn’t seem like much, but it is, without a doubt, an artifact — and quite a high-level one at that.
This artifact was embedded in the center of the brain of fanatics.
At first glance, I thought it was a common type of fanatic control, something like ‘brainwashing’ or ‘suggestive control.’ When it proved impossible to extract memories from their souls, I was certain of this.
But now, seeing this upside-down cross emblem inside the skull of the high priest, my thoughts changed.
“So, this is an artifact that extracts ‘faith,’ huh…”
I mentioned it once before. Humans themselves possess immense power, and the faith of humans can even turn nameless entities into gods.
The high priest’s upside-down cross is connected to the lower priests’ crosses, and this cross extracts and stores the faith from the lower priests.
All without their consent — forcibly.
“Wow, now I understand. This nonsense about ‘miracles’ wasn’t just giving people supernatural abilities… It was extracting every last ounce of life force from them.”
The so-called ‘miracle’ allows users to utilize supernatural abilities but in the process, they unknowingly reduce their own lifespan while happily doing so.
The people in question are unaware and become living energy sources, providing the purest form of ‘faith’ burned with their lifeforce.
The more the followers d*e, the more faith they extract.
This is now certain.
The Demon Lord didn’t plan to conquer Japan — they planned to turn it into an offering. An offering to elevate their own ‘godhood.’ Nothing more, nothing less.
Which means he…
“Intended to k*ll them all from the start.”
He planned to exterminate every single human in Tokyo.
…
But then.
Something I’ve been sensing all this while now — why does there smell of ‘Gigant’?
Top floor of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building.
Gato is briefing the current situation while both Archangel and Pope Celutis are present.
“With the intervention of Five Sisters along the coastal base, the Self-Defense Force has effectively been rendered powerless…”
“Forty percent of our defenses have collapsed due to the attackers’ actions, and this is still ongoing…”
“The identity of the attackers remains unclear, but given the fact that Korea’s Optimum is aggressively mobilizing, and that Jin-ryong and the Sword Master are located at the front line, it’s likely that the attackers are related to the Sword Master family…”
“As of the reported number of casualties among the martyrs…”
As Gato continued his briefing, Archangel stared at the upside-down cross necklace.
His expression remained consistently disinterested.
The Pope, too, seemed indifferent, engrossed in his book.
Frankly speaking, Gato’s briefing was no different. It was overly dry, and despite using words like ‘unfortunate’ when mentioning the martyrs, there was hardly any genuine emotion.
After all, these three were the masterminds of the chaos causing so many deaths.
Yet they observed it as if it were a story from another world.
There was, however, something that did bother Archangel.
The upside-down cross pendant reflected in his eyes. Specifically, the fact that it lacked sufficient ‘faith.’
“Gato.”
“Yes, Archangel.”
“Down there.”
Through the panoramic window lay a view of Tokyo, its streets bustling with moving people.
Boiling like ants, the crowd thronged.
Archangel tilted his head, perplexed, and muttered,
“Too many.”
“I apologize, but…”
“Quiet.”
They were beings destined to d*e and fuel his power. According to the plan, at least half of them should have been ‘martyred’ by now.
So why were they still alive?
Archangel didn’t elaborate further but gave a succinct order.
“Reduce.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Now.”
Neither Archangel nor the others cared how many humans below would d*e.
These humans were already deemed dead, human batteries whose life force would fuel Archangel.
When they received their ‘miracles,’ their deaths were already predetermined.
With a bow, Gato left the room.
Moments later, a large crowd started evacuating Tokyo.
Now, Celutis’s goal is clear.
Godhood. They planned to grant Archangel ‘godhood’ by sacrificing the entire country of Japan as an offering.
A massacre on an unprecedented scale.
There’s no time to waste. Archangel must be eliminated quickly. Park Ki-hyuk and his companions swiftly dismantled Celutis’ defenses.
“Count on me, bro.”
“Don’t worry.”
The strategy was simple.
Park Su-hyeok charged at the front, with Park Ki-hyuk and the Skeleton army, wearing the Dragon Armor ‘Comrades,’ following behind.
The spearhead naturally became the focus of all enemy attacks.
But the one leading the charge was Park Su-hyeok — the flawless swordsman.
And with the Dragon Armor ‘Crown’ now in possession, Park Su-hyeck is effectively immune to magic from anyone weaker than himself.
“Warp.”
The absurd ability that dictates all laws within the domain of the King. Thanks to the Dragon Armor ‘Crown,’ every spell and trap has become powerless.
Meanwhile, as Park Su-hyeok drew all the aggression, Park Ki-hyuk and the Skeleton army launched an assault at the established defensive walls, colliding against magical alloy barriers reinforced by various magic arrays.
It resembled a black flood rushing forward.
“Crush!”
BOOM!
“Break through!”
KWAANG!
“Push!”
KOOOAAANG!!!
If once didn’t work, they tried twice. If twice didn’t work, they tried thrice.
On the first attempt, they broke the magic arrays. On the second attempt, they cracked the magical alloy. On the third attempt, they finally shattered the defensive walls with a final shoulder charge.
With such overwhelming destructive force and numbers, Celutis’ defensive line steadily crumbled. Park Min-ji, meanwhile, executed her unique swift task.
Disabling the command center.
“Hands up! Any funny business, and I’ll cut you.”
“…No… please…!”
“Next, your right arm.”
Thanks to the Dragon Armor ‘Talaria,’ she had warped into the command center and swiftly captured its occupants.
Though not immediately noticeable, this was the most critical role.
Currently, Celutis — that is, Archangel — plans to ‘martyr’ every single novice priest. Their deaths will serve as the finest ingredients to achieve ‘godhood.’
In other words, if we were to k*ll all these people, it would only be aiding Archangel further.
Therefore, by kidnapping and disabling the command personnel, the novice priests who followed their directives could be neutralized, creating confusion.
“We don’t intend to hurt anyone. Drop your weapons.”
“Kneel if you want to live.”
“I’ll only say this once. Don’t move.”
Though facing a crowd of thousands, they were quickly subdued by only three individuals, and soon handed over to the dispatched Optimum agents.
There was one more tactic Park Ki-hyuk prepared.
“So, this is the magic array that cuts off the connection with Archangel?”
“If the connection is cut off, will those ‘miracles’ they talk about disappear?”
“Yes, everything will return to normal. Among them, those who overused their lifeforce might begin aging rapidly, so don’t be alarmed.”
“Understood.”
“It’s been made fairly simple, so it shouldn’t be difficult. What do you think? Can it be done?”
“From the look of it, it seems feasible. Impressive work done in such a short time.”
“But how do we use it? Is there a spell? An artifact?”
“No time for that. Just inscribe it on your body.”
“……!!”
“…On our bodies?!”
“Yes, like tattoos.”
“…I feel quite revolted by this.”
“Not my problem. If you’ve sinned, you must pay the price.”
“A scarlet letter, huh? Cruel.”
“Hmph. Cruel? Consider yourself lucky to be alive.”
They devised a method to sever the connection by deconstructing the upside-down cross artifact extracted from the high priest’s head.
Though it’s not permanent; it’s a one-month magic array to block the connection.
Without removing the root of the problem — the ‘upside-down cross’ — the connection cannot be completely severed.
But who cares?
Neither Park Ki-hyuk, Park Su-hyeok, Park Min-ji, nor anyone else involved in this event planned to let this situation drag on for more than a month.
“Father.”
“Dad.”
“Hahahahaha! My children, your dear papa is here!”
“Akasama Uncle Do-ha, Uncle Do-min, you’re all here.”
“How could I sit idly while someone else does the heavy lifting?”
“Now we, the Woon-ryong Corps, will join you.”
Sword Master Park Geon, Dragon Lord Jin Do-ha, and Jin Do-min, along with the Woon-ryong Corps.
Effectively, all top-tier forces gathered in one place. Naturally, Celutis’ defensive line began breaking apart effortlessly.
What do they think stacking their defenses will accomplish?
No matter what defenses are built, the content within is ultimately a one-year expiration date superhuman.
“That thing, that black wave….”
“Y-you! It’s a dragon! A dragon!”
“I-It’s time to flee. This is a d*ath sentence!”
“Hold on! Sing the song we’ve learned and Archangel will surely protect us!”
“Reinforcements will come! Just hold them off for a bit… ughk!”
Yet, something was peculiar.
Throughout the entire time of wiping out almost all of Tokyo’s defenses, not a single elite force could be found.
Were these people stupid enough to think a defense line made of novice priests could hold back such power?
Just as this doubt arose,
Park Ki-hyuk and the others came face-to-face with a horrifying sight.
“Wha…”
“Insanity.”
“What in the world…”
A bloody sea, a mountain of corpses.
A terrifying scene where bodies pile up into mountains, and bl**d fills the rivers.
The mana gate glowing with a crimson light, bathing in bl**d.
Red Gate.
And emerging from it, accompanied by a chilling cold breath, were the figures.
Twin Yeti.
Beast-type monsters classified as medium-sized monsters, the Twin Yeti breathes out a frosty wind.
Woo-woo! Woooo!!
The final defense line planned by Celutis — the Red Gate — was now spewing out monsters.
*
As Twin Yeti appeared, I quickly moved my body to another area, sensing there’d be no end to their attacks.
They had no intention of holding back, and I assumed there would be more than just one wave.
My assumptions were soon confirmed.
“d*mn lunatics.”
Earlier, they had stacked a mountain of corpses, and now they’d erected a cross adorned with dead bodies.
A spectacle so cruel that even the devil would recoil in horror. And there, too, the Red Gate faintly glowed with ominous light.
The monsters spewing forth from here were medium-sized Minotaur.
As they exhaled hot breath, they spotted the nearby corpses, then greedily devoured them.
“Even Satan would weep and leave.”
If this were the end, we’d consider ourselves lucky, but there was still one more magical disturbance sensed by my senses.
Off I go again.
As the magic array enveloped my body and broke the sound barrier, I dashed through the air rapidly and soon saw an ominous flame.
There was no horrifying pile of corpses here, only raging fires.
Fire Bugs.
3-meter-long fiery flies moved around spewing flames, turning the ground below into an inferno.
“You bastards.”
Three Red Gates.
Spewing monsters.
Instinctively, they will seek out places densely populated by humans.
And the most densely populated place nearby is…
Tokyo.
These guys plan to turn Tokyo into a massive grave.
“…They’ve crossed the line.”
