The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Episode 96
This is the story of when Park Geon first chased after Celutis.
Generally, unless there’s a special support request from the state, Guardians have free time. Naturally, Park Geon was at home doing nothing but lazing around.
He would have conversations (sparring) with his children using the Geomho-ryu technique, or play Captain Tiger games with his precious daughter Spring. And when he got bored, sometimes he’d visit his beloved wife’s company.
While Park Geon was enjoying these peaceful times with his family, a call came in.
“Geon-ah, it’s me, Seong-cheol. Are you free tonight?”
Ji Seong-cheol, the Head of the Executive Department, was an old, close friend he’d known since his Guardian days.
“I’m planning to completely eradicate Celutis this time. Could you lend a hand? Please.”
A battle? Well, that was interesting. Park Geon’s heart wavered, but he didn’t decide immediately.
Why? Because all of Park Geon’s external activities had to be approved by his wife.
“Celutis? Celutis… Hah! That’s funny. So, you went straight for this without even mentioning it to me? Seong-cheol-oppa, you’ve gotten soft since becoming Head of the Executive Department.”
“Wait a minute, let me just make a call… Oppa Seong-cheol, are you serious? What exactly do you need me for? Tell me properly. If you keep talking like this, I can’t cooperate.”
Park Geon can be overly moody, emotional, and spontaneous when making decisions. This was something even he admitted.
So unpredictable, Kim Yeon-hee always had to back him up (in her words, clean up after him).
Anyway, thanks to Kim Yeon-hee and Ji Seong-cheol’s good coordination, support was smoothly approved.
Now Geon was free!
Carrying only one sword, he leisurely set off on his journey.
When he arrived, it was Harbin, China, within the sphere of influence of the infamous Triad dark society.
“Will doing away with these guys be enough?”
“Yes, they all supply magic gems to Celutis. Some were involved in domestic incidents with Celutis and went missing during investigations…”
“Ah, stop. I hate trouble, so I’ll do it my way.”
Actually, there was a reason why Ji Seong-cheol had specifically asked Park Geon instead of other Guardians.
A solo operation right in the heart of enemy territory, without any special support since it was foreign soil – in such conditions, who could shine the brightest?
There was only one person in Ji Seong-cheol’s mind.
Assassination, espionage, bombing, kidnapping, disruption… The undisputed top-tier specialist capable of all special warfare: Park Geon.
This was the man’s true self.
What? Park Geon?
Emotional, smiling like an idiot, shouting about justice and righteousness – this clueless man?
It’s hard to believe, but it’s true.
White Night.
A contradictory term, a dual-sided expression.
This was Park Geon’s essence, his instinct.
When Park Geon’s eyes lit up white, he transformed into the strongest special warfare specialist.
Park Geon obliterated the targets thoroughly.
Assassination while they sleep? Basic.
Pssshh – !
“!”
Even in the heart of the bustling downtown, assassinations continued without fail.
“!”
“Shh. Quiet. It’ll be over soon.”
Other times he gathered information while simultaneously spreading misinformation.
He created chaos and drove his blade into the weakest points.
As if turning Ji Seong-cheol’s worry into nothing but paranoia, Park Geon erased every name on the list without leaving a trace.
It was during this time that he acquired the Archangel’s feather. Alongside this, he also came across much information: recreation, revelations, salvation, and securing resources, and so on while cutting off the supply lines.
Around the time the operation was wrapping up, when they launched a surprise raid on a Celutis religious facility, they stumbled upon shocking information.
“Temple?”
The Archangel – or what they called “Salvation” – planned to establish a temple.
And this temple was…
“It’s the Red Gate, isn’t it?”
Yes.
Celutis planned to open the Red Gate – by force.
Numerous sacrifices were offered at the altar.
Limbs tangled chaotically, and from the dead eyes flowed tear drops of bl**d.
This gathered bl**d formed a river, and in the center of this river of bl**d, Lim Mi-ryung knelt with her hands clasped in prayer.
She prayed.
This is the offering for you.
Oh Lord, please grant us our desire.
Lim Mi-ryung shouted towards the heavens.
“As per His will!”
Behind her, many Celutis priests echoed her cry.
“As per His will!!”
The accumulated divine energy was sucked into the Gate.
The Purple Gate darkened, intensifying its hue.
Lim Mi-ryung pleaded towards the sky.
“As per His will!”
His will!!
Once more.
“As per His will!!”
His will!!
Again.
“As per His will!!”
His will!!
Madness spread.
The ones who burn themselves to seek a god.
This is the meaning of fanatical devotion.
Finally, when the nameless deity received a name,
the false belief bore a corrupted holiness.
Crackle – !
A shining flash.
“Ah… Lord.”
The Purple Gate was gone.
Now before them stood only a red Gate, red like bl**d.
“Brothers, let us go to the ‘Temple’.”
Many anthropologists have mentioned,
if the world were to end, it would be because of the ‘Red Gate’.
Red Gate (Red Gate).
The greatest catastrophe for humanity.
Now before Park Ki-hyuk lay the identity of this disaster.
Running through the forest, Park Ki-hyuk spotted shadows among the trees. The faithful ‘Choir’ of Celutis surrounded him, slowly narrowing the distance.
The chilling intent behind their steady movements was clear – strike him if an opening appeared.
Focusing on their movements, Park Ki-hyuk gripped his demon power just as he sensed an unexpected preemptive strike – from above?
Whoosh – !
Spiraling ice boomerangs sliced through the air like they were cutting through trees. Their flight path was unpredictable. It felt like their experience kept growing the more he fought them.
Park Ki-hyuk groaned in frustration as he deployed his magic circle.
Shield up. And charge forward.
As the boomerangs hit the shield, they ricocheted off and made a loop around in the air before chasing after Park Ki-hyuk.
Upon closer inspection, the boomerangs had transformed into birds.
Adaptations of manifested abilities.
This was a technique only available at a high level of mastery of concrete abilities. Apparently, this “Ice Shift” was truly worthy of its “Manifested” classification, finally showing its true colors.
Suddenly, an ice bird slashed through the air above Park Ki-hyuk’s head.
This movement reminded Park Ki-hyuk of something. It was like when he went on a picnic with Spring and a flock of pigeons took off in a flutter.
Just as he appreciated the moment,
“… What?!
The wave of mana he perceived?
This is…?
Reacting instantly, Park Ki-hyuk stopped in his tracks. As soon as six layers of magic circles enveloped his body,
the ice birds exploded.
Shrapnel scattered in every direction.
And whatever the shards touched—
froze.
Crackling!
Status effect activated: Freezing.
The surroundings turned into a field of frost-covered flowers. The only place untouched was where Park Ki-hyuk stood.
“Phew, this is ridiculous.”
The real owner of ‘Ice Shift,’ Chandler Murray couldn’t even access half of what the “monsters” could, which made him seem incompetent, but perhaps the Archangel’s forces were incredible instead?
“Anyway.”
He had successfully drawn their attention. Now all that was left was entangling these opponents.
A magic circle was inscribed beneath Park Ki-hyuk.
The Hexagram, a star constructed from six lines.
Out of the six lines, darkness began to emerge.
Darkness fueled by the sacrifices imprisoned within Park Ki-hyuk’s inner world.
Black Magic Control
Entangle (Modified)
Entangle
Crackling!
The six lines broke through the circle and extended outward. Around those lines, additional hexagrams formed, filling the battlefield with hundreds of hexagrams.
There’s no escape.
And no retreat.
This place is now Park Ki-hyuk’s domain.
With no way out thanks to Entangle—
Isn’t it funny?
“You are the ones surrounded.”
The counter-attack begins.
Ranks of d*ath burst through the dimensions.
Skeletons appeared sporadically, charging out as space shattered around them.
And the punctuation mark of this counter-offensive—
Tatatatata-!
An agile figure came rushing in like a streak of lightning.
The figure turned white and became a beam that tore through the battlefield.
Once, twice… six times, the streak of light crossed the battlefield, zipping past the Archangels in the sky.
On the seventh streak, finally revealed—
Park Min-ji, Swift Swordsman.
Swift Geomho-ryu
Great Dipper (Big Dipper)
Crack-!
One cut, two cuts… the enemies hit by the streaks were sliced cleanly in two, bl**d spraying everywhere.
As Park Min-ji landed, Park Ki-hyuk stood behind her,
guarding each other’s backs.
Still, you’d know.
“Got it, right? Seventeen.”
“Not yet, sister. The bet starts now.”
“Tricky, huh.”
They were swordmasters, after all.
They preferred destruction over protection.
The black streak and the white streak tore through the battlefield.
Meanwhile, as Park Ki-hyuk and Park Min-ji, siblings, fought like possessed warriors, a large-scale battle was also breaking out on the other side.
“All units, maintain the line!”
Silvernaga organized the lines and summoned mana.
Strings appeared in the air—46 mana-based strings in total—and Silvernaga activated them.
Angel’s March
A strong melody rang out, spreading vigor through the whole team.
Fatigue was eliminated, replaced with energy.
Their movements became noticeably more agile and effective.
If the team fails to comprehend these buffs now, they can complain when they are smacked around, can’t they?
Silvernaga began their thorough nagging.
“I’ve told you how many times to maintain balance!”
“B Team! C Team! Retreat a half step to the rear! No, D Team, advance by one step. One step, I said one step! What’s that? Not maintaining the line?”
“Alright, this is it! We’re at the perfect formation! Keep holding! Remember, our role is the anvil – we take hits with style! Easy, right? Let’s keep it up, everyone!”
With the frontline stabilized, Silvernaga got ready to call the next step.
“Hmmph…”
Silvernaga’s trembling hand. The excitement was not subsiding.
Still incredulous. Commanding Sword Masters? No less than three Sword Masters?
The thought alone made her ecstatic.
My goodness, this is happening to me now?
Silvernaga felt tears of inner joy flowing in her heart.
“Mom, Mom. I’ve succeeded.”
Phew, phew. She took deep breaths, calming herself, then picked up the communication device.
“Sector C, how’s the situation?”
– White Tiger, it’s smooth.
– Black Tiger, I… uh… Oppa…! Dammit…!
– What? Did you swear at me?
– So unfair!!
There was something noticeably different in Park Min-ji’s voice. It was much more agitated compared to her usually calm tone.
Silvernaga, who had worked closely with her for years, immediately noticed the change.
She’s enjoying it.
Of course, enjoyment comes from matching opponents.
Even with Silvernaga’s coordination, the skill gap between the White Tiger faction and Park Min-ji was vast. She’d always had to hold back during combat, but now, she had found peers on a similar level.
And these peers were none other than family, completely akin to her own.
So, of course, she’s thrilled. She’s truly enjoying this life-and-d*ath war with gusto.
“This side seems okay.”
Silvernaga, who knew firsthand just how strong an exhilarated Sword Master could be, was confident. She had witnessed their growth from close proximity, even directly commanded them.
“Alright, the final round.”
Deep breaths, deep breaths.
Silvernaga calmed her mind again
And sent out the final transmission.
“Hey, Ace. Have you detected it?”
– This is Ace…
“Seems we found it.”
A red, circular mana field.
The Red Gate was there.
“Confirming the location. Returning soon.”
Park Geon’s cloak billowed behind him, dissolving into the darkness as Park Geon himself vanished without a trace.
