Chapter 1590. Regaining (5)

How surprising.

Kang Jin-Ho glanced back at Bang Jin-Hun’s office.

He hadn’t lied back there. He genuinely believed Bang Jin-Hun had the potential to become even stronger in the future.

What surprised him this time, though, wasn’t Bang Jin-Hun’s martial prowess but what he had created.

He’s gotten this far without anyone’s help, too...

People like that could be found every now and then; people who had more talent in creating, not mastering, martial arts.

Back in ancient Zhongyuan, the so-called divine technique inventors didn’t boast particularly high martial realms but still created era-defining heavenly cultivation techniques. And whenever the rumors of a divine technique inventor’s martial art circulating in the wild made rounds, those wanting to get their hands on it would wage blood-soaked wars with their competition.

Right. He definitely has a talent for this.

Actually, it was odd that Kang Jin-Ho had noticed it only now. When he thought about it, shouldn’t it have been obvious back when Bang Jin-Hun first created the standard martial art for the Assembly? Yes, it was true that Kang Jin-Ho had to help out a little during its creation, but still.

Creating a new martial art was definitely not a simple matter. Especially when this martial art branched off in a different direction and was even more advanced than what had come before.

Kang Jin-Ho probably didn’t realize it back then because his own martial realm wasn’t high enough.

“I think he’ll come up with something useful.”

Kang Jin-Ho grinned deeply. Whatever the case might be, the Assembly’s martial art receiving an upgrade was a good thing. He hoped that Bang Jin-Hun would also rekindle his passion through this opportunity.

Because his life as a martial artist would continue on well into the future, too.

The thing was, though, Kang Jin-Ho wasn’t planning to use Bang Jin-Hun’s completed martial art as-was.

“Our situation is urgent, after all.”

Kang Jin-Ho would fix it just a little. Only by a tiny bit. However, that should still be enough to produce an interesting result.

Kang Jin-Ho cocked his head from side to side, then headed to his next destination. It was time to inspect other areas of the Assembly.

***

“Uwaaaaaahk!”

“Die! Die already, you piece of sh*t! Kuwaaaaaahk!”

“Aaaahk! My arm! My aaaarm!”

“...?”

Kang Jin-Ho dazedly stared at a certain spectacle unfolding before his eyes. Which eerily resembled utter pandemonium for some reason.

What was going on here? Did he mistakenly step into an active war zone?

Hundreds of Demon Cult believers had divided into two opposing sides to attack each other. Thankfully, none of them were wielding real weapons. However, even wooden swords in the hands of martial artists were still enough to rupture flesh and break bones even with the lightest of all light contact.

And these people were mercilessly swinging such wooden swords laden with destructive qi at their opponents!

Hold on, won’t someone really die at this rate?

Even Kang Jin-Ho, whose mantra was “All training should be as intense as a real battle, while real battles should be even more intense!” flinched nastily at the intensity of this extreme training session.

He couldn’t help but worry here. Could these people even be able to fight with such injuries if a war broke out tomorrow?

“Uh-hut?! H-hold it, man! Look!”

Smaaaack!

A Cult believer, who had discovered Kang Jin-Ho and shouted at his counterpart to stop attacking, crumbled like a bale of rotting hay when a wooden sword smacked him in the forehead.

Kang Jin-Ho grimaced deeply just then. Oops. Sorry about that. ℯℯ𝘭.

My bad for showing up like this. That must’ve hurt.

“It... It’s our liege, the demon emperor!”

“Our liege has come! You stinking sons of b*tches, halt! Right now!”

Everyone else had discovered Kang Jin-Ho’s presence by then and began kowtowing on the floor.

“We ten thousand demons kowtow in exaltation at the descending demon emperor!”

Kang Jin-Ho grimaced again. “...Sure thing.”

The sight of all these people kowtowing in unison like this, when they had been engaged in a bloody melee only a second ago, was somewhat... How should he put this? Not spectacular, but...

Whatever it is, it’s weird.

He was getting a little weirded out right now.

Just as his thoughts reached that far, the Cult elders shot up to their feet and rushed toward Kang Jin-Ho.

“My liege!”

“What brings your noble self to this shabby little place, my liege! We committed a grave sin by not anticipating your arrival earlier and failing to make adequate preparations. Please punish us!”

Kang Jin-Ho’s grimace deepened. “...?”

Did these people learn from Chang Min? They weren’t this uptight in the past, so why...?

Kang Jin-Ho helplessly shook his head a little, then used his chin to point at the kowtowing Cult members.

“What kind of training is this?”

“We were tempering the Cult members to prepare for the upcoming battles, my liege! We believed that most of our future battles would be many versus many.”

Their guess sounded logical. However, why did such a logical guess lead to a reckless training session like this one?

“What’s the point if the believers are too injured to fight?”

“My liege! We shall stop the training right away!”

Kang Jin-Ho groaned. Why were they jumping to the conclusion already? Trying to converse with them was such a pain.

“Can you at least explain the reason behind this type of training?”

“Yes, my liege!” One of the elders stepped up and tried to explain. “Honorable Elder Chang... Uh, should I omit honorable...? Elder Chang has!”

“Just say what feels easier for you,” Kang Jin-Ho muttered. Your honorifics are all over the place, anyway. So why bother?[1]

“Understood! We’re following the opinion of Elder Chang Min! The Cult believers are still not at the level where they can fight the enemy one on one. Since that’s the case, Elder Chang Min posited that they need to be tempered rigorously until we can count them as actual combatants. Even if some of them get injured and have to drop out in the process.”

Another elder next to him took over the explanation.

“Every believer of the Cult exists for your sake, my liege! If they can’t serve you, their lives are meaningless!”

Kang Jin-Ho scowled. Loyalty was good, but excessive loyalty tended to blind people too much.

The elders cautiously studied Kang Jin-Ho’s reaction, wondering what to do next, only for their expressions to brighten upon spotting something in the distance behind their demon emperor.

“Elder Chang Min!”

“Mm?” Kang Jin-Ho looked behind him.

Sure enough, there was Chang Min, rushing toward this very spot at full steam. However, he suddenly kowtowed some distance away and slid all the way to the front of Kang Jin-Ho in one smooth motion.

“I pay my respects to the one and only demon emperor!”

“...”

Did Chang Min put on kneepads or something? Kang Jin-Ho almost spotted steam rising from below the kowtowing Chang Min.

What made Kang Jin-Ho grimace even more, though, were the Demon Cult elders busy making faces that said, “Ohh, so that’s how we’re supposed to behave. Yes, we still have a long way to go.”

“Get up.”

“Yes, my liege!”

Chang Min shot up to his feet and politely stood before Kang Jin-Ho.

“Don’t you think this training method is a bit too hardcore?”

“My liege? Do you mean this particular training?”

“Mm!”

Chang Min tilted his head ever so slightly, but his expression soon stiffened, and he bowed deeply. “We shall adjust the intensity accordingly, my liege!”

“Stop trying to jump to conclusions every time, okay? Explain to me first, will you?”

“Understood, my liege! The reason for this training is very simple!”

“Okay, so what is it?”

“It’s to survive!”

“...?” Kang Jin-Ho cocked his brow, feeling slightly puzzled now. That wasn’t what the elders had told him a few seconds ago. But this one felt more right to him. “Be more specific.”

“My liege. No one knows about the true strength of Zhongyuan’s Three Kings and their factions better than the believers of the Cult.”

“...I guess so.”

So far, the Martial Assembly members hadn’t really experienced the Three Kings’ factions until now. But the Cult members weren’t like that. They used to be a part of the Chinese martial society and had plenty of experience interacting with those factions, so the depth of their knowledge would be that much greater.

“My liege, they are powerful. And also cruel. But what is even more frightening is their exclusionary mindset. In their minds, Sinocentrism is the only thing that matters. Nothing else is permitted to exist. The Demon Cult has only survived until this era because it was a part of this Sinocentric ideal.”

“Mm...”

“However, that is no longer the case. Now that the Cult has abandoned China and relocated to South Korea to raise its flag alongside the Assembly, they will try to exterminate us as thoroughly as possible.”

“So, that’s the reason?”

“Our people getting injured during training is unfortunate, yes. However, if we lose the upcoming war, everyone here will die. I believe that getting injured is preferable to getting killed, my liege.”

Kang Jin-Ho slowly nodded. Chang Min wasn’t wrong in his assessment. It seemed he had put some thought into this seemingly chaotic training regime, after all.

“Any dissatisfaction among the Cult members?”

Chang Min replied politely. “They all know how difficult it is to survive, my liege. Today’s pain is a cheap price to pay for securing their tomorrow.”

“Mm...!”

Kang Jin-Ho studied Chang Min in a renewed light.

Despite putting a nice-sounding spin on it just now, how many people would willingly torture themselves to prepare for an uncertain future?

Making all these people understand what was at stake and having them obey without question must’ve been incredibly difficult. Chang Min’s leadership capabilities should take all the credit in this situation.

Chang Min bowed again. “However, if you’re unhappy with this training method, we will switch to something else, my liege.”

“No.” Kang Jin-Ho shook his head. “This isn’t a matter of whether I like it or not. I’ll leave the decision about training methods up to you. Even I can tell you are better suited to this than me.”

Kang Jin-Ho might be the Demon Cult’s undisputed leader, but Chang Min had spent his entire life for the sake of the Cult. That made him so much more qualified than everyone else when it came to figuring out the most efficient method to bring out the best from the Cult believers.

“However, let’s keep the number of the injured to an absolute minimum.”

“Understood, my liege. We’ve been using the Cult’s secret healing method to treat their injuries. Please do not worry. Even if they want to laze around using their injuries as an excuse, they will not get that chance.”

“...”

That wasn’t what Kang Jin-Ho meant, though? But it should be fine, no?

Kang Jin-Ho sneakily glanced at the Cult believers. Sure enough, they were silently pleading with him, their eyes filled with desperation.

Kang Jin-Ho gently smiled at them, then looked away.

“Ah...!”

Kang Jin-Ho could hear someone’s gasp of lament, but ignored that and addressed Chang Min instead. “Do carry on, then.”

“Yes, my liege!”

Kang Jin-Ho walked away from there, his hands resting behind his back. That was when he felt this inexplicable déjà vu from this situation.

There was a time when the division commander showed up at the army base Kang Jin-Ho was in for an inspection during a series of unreasonably tough training regimes.

Kang Jin-Ho’s peers in the army hoped to see the inhuman training regime’s immediate termination at the division commander’s arrival, but no!

Unfortunately for them, the division commander would look at all the trainees, gently chuckle at how much they resembled rain-soaked mice, and go about his merry ways after distributing stuff like Choco Pies as a sign of his encouragement!

Kang Jin-Ho finally realized something. So, it wasn’t as if the division commander had failed to notice it. No, he was simply looking the other way!

Back then, Kang Jin-Ho was at the receiving end of this treatment, but now, he was the one dishing it out.

While suppressing a rather bitter taste in his mouth, Kang Jin-Ho whistled casually, his gaze scanning the skies above.

“When will it rain, I wonder?”

The super-bright sunlight from the clear skies stabbed into his eyes painfully.

“Assembly Master! Sir!”

Kang Jin-Ho looked away from the sky at the familiar voice calling out to him from some distance away.

“There you are!”

“What’s the matter?”

Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head while watching Lee Hyeon-Su rush toward him.

Why is he looking for me this time?

“Sir, the Japanese warriors have arrived. Don’t you want to inspect them?”

“Mm?”

Kang Jin-Ho’s expression grew unreadable. Indeed, the Japanese were scheduled to arrive today, weren’t they? However...

“Do I have to?”

“No, not really. Even so, today is the first time they have gathered in one spot, so I thought you might have something to tell them...”

“No, well, I don’t... Mm?” Kang Jin-Ho stopped mid-sentence, then cocked his brow. “So, they’ve just arrived, eh?”

“Yes, sir.”

“That means they need to prepare themselves mentally, right?”

“I... Sorry?”

When Lee Hyeon-Su blinked his eyes, Kang Jin-Ho casually pointed behind him with his chin.

“Tell the Japanese to gather at the spot over there.”

“...”

“I’m sure this sight will sober them up right away.”

Lee Hyeon-Su dazedly stared at the pandemonium unfolding behind Kang Jin-Ho, then nodded weightily. “Understood. For sure, they will get a wake-up call after watching that carnage. In various ways.”

“You think so, too?”

“However, I’m not... quite sure if it’s safe to show something like this so soon. I mean, isn’t that verging on the R18 territory?”

“But that’s how kids grow up, right?”

Kang Jin-Ho casually shrugged, then began walking away.

Now, everyone can pull their weight without me getting involved.

This was what he had been aiming for.

In the past, these people repeated pointless training regimes, never thinking about finding ways to improve themselves on their own. But now, they did that by themselves without Kang Jin-Ho ordering them to.

Not only that, but they took their current situation into consideration and searched for the best methods available. This proved that the Assembly had undoubtedly changed. And it’d continue changing into the future, too.

In that case, what should Kang Jin-Ho do?

He glanced back at Lee Hyeon-Su. “The training schedule for the Americans has been set, right?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. Cancel all my engagements except that one.”

“...? Sorry? Why, sir?”

“So that I can improve myself, too.”

“...! Understood.”

Kang Jin-Ho briefly closed his eyes.

Everyone was improving, so he shouldn’t let himself get left behind here. It was about time he looked at himself thoroughly as well.

...So that he could trample on the Three Kings when the time came!

1. The previous line of dialog from the Demon Cult elder had a series of wordplay on Korean honorifics that, quite frankly, was impossible to translate to English. In the end, I made a conscious decision not to include the joke. My bad. ☜