RDK 10

Chapter 10

“This is the Cheonyang Magaksa. The Cheonyang Magaksa (天養魔角蛇) is, as the name implies—’nurtured by the heavens’—a demonic beast with an absurdly tenacious vitality.”

“What an arrogant name. It fits perfectly with the arrogance of whoever—or whatever—raised these snakes.”

“According to the ancient texts I’ve seen, the Cheonyang Magaksa that appears in Purgatory Realm is said to be the size of five or six grown men. Its horn is supposedly larger than a man’s torso, so considering the size of this one, it’s definitely a juvenile.”

“Still, if it’s just a juvenile, it shouldn’t be too hard to deal with. I’ll let you know what you’ll need.”

A few days ago—Mu Pungdaeju recalled his conversation with Cheon Mujin and slowly curled his lips into a grim smile.

Whoever was behind it, the number of Magaksas had recently been increasing rapidly.

What could be the reason for such a thing by an unknown group?

A provocation.

“You’re bold enough to abduct one of ours? Then how about this?”

The intention was all too clear.

Otherwise, there was no way so many Magaksas would show up just near Mu Pungdae’s patrol range, even in the vast expanse of the Demon Sea.

If Cheon Mujin’s predictions were right—

“Daeju!”

The urgent voice of Oh Jiyeon rang out as she ran up. Mu Pungdaeju’s eyes gleamed coldly.

“I hope it’s good news, Budaeju.”
—

After the 13th unit’s first training session.

“…Ugh.”

“Here, medicine.”

“Th-thanks.”

Yoo Hyunhwa, who had been lying on the ground, finally managed to sit up and applied the golden salve Baekwoo had handed over, her expression dazed.

“…How do we not even graze him?”

“Grr…”

At her words, Do Woojin winced and clenched his jaw.

His participation had shifted the dynamics of the sparring.

Cheon Mujin had fought centered around him.

But that was all.

Cheon Mujin had slipped through Baekwoo and Hyunhwa’s attacks like a ghost and pummeled Do Woojin.

And in between, he didn’t forget to beat Baekwoo and Hyunhwa as well.

Is this even possible?

Isn’t he second-rate?

He’s twenty, sure, but before coming here, wasn’t he a soft scholar buried in books?

Woojin’s head throbbed.

Not from the beating, but from the sheer disbelief.

“…We’re supposed to work under someone like this?”

Every hero walks a path of their own.

Mediocre talents like him trying to follow behind would tear themselves apart.

Could they really keep up with Cheon Mujin, who pulled off such impossible feats?

“Damn it.”

As Do Woojin clutched his pounding head—

Baekwoo got up.

Then—

“Hup!”

He began swinging his sword through the air.

He would flinch occasionally, then stop to think.

Once he was done, he moved again—repeating the process.

“…Are you reviewing the fight?”

“If I don’t, I’ll get hit even harder next time. He’s like a ghost. He hit almost the exact same spots as before.”

“Next… ah…”

Hyunhwa’s face instantly turned pale.

Oh. Next time.

Right.

This was just training.

And their unit’s training would continue.

“…Let’s review.”

“Yes!”

Swallowing dryly, Woojin stood and took the lead.

“I’ll start with what I observed from the outside.”
—

“Graaah! Why?! Why can’t I win?!”

“Skill.”

Cheon Mujin smirked as he watched Baekwoo pant heavily, contorting his body in frustration.

Honestly, it was admirable.

Mujin had enforced only one sparring session per day with the team.

The basic training of Mupungdae was grueling enough—one spar per day was sufficient, and the rest was left to their own discipline.

Naturally, Do Woojin and Hyunhwa didn’t ask for another round after completing their daily match.

Mujin appreciated that.

Sparring isn’t the end. True training involves reviewing, understanding the situation where you got hit, and learning to respond to it.

He gave higher marks to those who trained steadily without overexerting.

“That’s it for today.”

“What?! Why?!”

“We’re on patrol soon. Go prepare.”

“…Ah.”

Baekwoo, now rarely passing out, rose clumsily to his feet.

Mujin chuckled.

The kid had guts.

He recovered fast, too.

Was he the secret child of some great master?

Baekwoo’s physique was so promising it made one wonder.

He seemed to have reached one of the fundamental principles of “Gakyeong” (각영) already—intuition.

The boy was personally brought by the Mupungdaeju, and apparently, he was more exceptional than expected.

Though by coincidence he’d ended up under Mujin before the Daeju could train him, it wasn’t bad.

Not sure why he went astray in his past life, Mujin thought, but this one’s worth raising.

Back at the barracks, Mujin sat for a moment to circulate his energy.

His internal energy was gathering—slowly, but steadily.

Same with his body.

He wasn’t getting significantly faster or stronger yet, but it was enough.

“I need to build the inner muscles first.”

Bulk comes later.

The key is the deep core muscles—the internal pillars of the body. Without strengthening those, one can never build a tall, grand structure.

He might remain “second-rate” during that phase, but cultivation ranks meant little to him.

There was no visible growth yet—but within, he was laying a solid foundation.
—

When the time came, Mujin headed to the patrol departure point and saw the others already gathered.

Do Woojin was among them, having arrived early.

“Looks like setting the tone from day one paid off.”

Even as a descendant of the Heavenly Demon, if the team leader were truly second-rate, he’d be looked down on.

You could always assert authority with force, but it’s different when others bow their heads on their own.

He was glad he’d asked Baekwoo to help establish dominance early on.

“Anything to report?”

“No, sir.”

“Good. Let’s move out.”

The patrol began like usual.

They’d done this dozens of times.

Everyone moved fluidly along their assigned route, keeping watch.

Nothing out of the ordinary.

“I think the number of Cheonyang Magaksas has decreased lately.”

Hyunhwa’s voice came from behind.

Mujin nodded.

“Definitely. Some idiots have gotten lazy and stopped wearing leg guards because of that—but I trust you’re not among them.”

The leg guards were laced with herbs that Magaksas hated.

It was a countermeasure Mujin had passed on to the Mupungdaeju.

“Of course! They keep us from getting bitten—why would anyone take them off? Right?”

“Only idiots would do that.”

Hyunhwa’s tone, now much softer than before, made Mujin smile faintly.

She was usually so cold—this was a pleasant change.

Even her timid side, shown for the first time in this life, was oddly endearing.

“This time, I’ll help you live a proper life.”

Not one of sacrifice—where she gave up everything to protect others like a tattered rag.

But a life lived with someone she chose.

In the name of the Demon King.

Mujin shook off the memories of his past life that flashed across his mind as he looked at her.

They were things that no longer had a place in this world.

This was not the time to lose focus.

Knowing what he needed to do was enough.

As they continued walking, Mujin suddenly stopped.

“What is it?”

The others immediately reacted and drew their weapons.

The 13th unit’s readiness for combat was impressive.

But Mujin had no time to compliment them.

“Some lunatic…”

His energy flared violently.

At that moment—

Second-rate? The others could hardly believe it.

Cheon Mujin clenched his fist and punched the air.

Why punch at nothing?

Before the thought could finish—

CRACK!!

A thunderous boom like something shattering echoed, and a shockwave tore through the air.

The team spread out instinctively, assuming formation and scanning the surroundings.

They moved without hesitation—to support Mujin.

But—

“Don’t interfere with my fight. Secure the perimeter.”

At his command, they immediately pivoted.

Beasts—clearly demonic—were approaching from all sides.

“…How?”

Their patrol had been relaxed, sure—but they hadn’t let down their guard.

With Do Woojin and Baekwoo’s sensitivity, they should have noticed such numbers long before.

How had they been completely surrounded?

“The three of you—hold your ground without me!”

Hold the line.

If Mujin had to say that, then things were bad.

Baekwoo’s eyes scanned through the settling dust—his gaze locked on Mujin.

“…What the hell?”

As soon as he spotted Mujin’s opponent, his face twisted in shock.

A beast with a tiger’s head, bulging with muscles, bear-like forearms, and standing on two legs like some unknown creature.

He had seen strange hybrids at the front lines before, but nothing this monstrous.

Not just its form—

Its size.

Mujin’s head barely reached its waist.

How could something that size even move?

ROOOOOOOAR!!

A massive bellow reverberated in their guts as the beast lunged.

“Hup!”

Mujin responded with a quick stance—arms close, legs split.

Then—

A clean, precise punch.

Crack!

It hit the joint.

The beast’s elbow twisted unnaturally with a grotesque sound.

But Mujin wasn’t satisfied.

“Still not enough power.”

He’d aimed for the biggest bone but couldn’t dislodge it.

Even the smaller bone had only slightly shifted.

“I’ll have to change tactics.”

No shortage of options.

He exhaled, muscles loosening, as the enraged beast surged forward.

Mujin knew this rhythm well.

It was like the fights he had when he first fell into this world.

Against the demons with monstrous strength—

Every strike meant broken bones or torn muscle.

But in the face of that overwhelming force, he had discovered the way to win.

Since then, he’d never been scratched by a brute-force demon.

The beast’s fist fell—

Mujin caught it.

Drew a small circle.

Something wavered.

And in the next moment—

BAM!!

The beast’s fist slammed into the ground.

At the same time—

SLASH!

A sharp sting at its chin.

Irritating.

The beast wrenched its arm free and lashed out.

To swat away the annoying human.

But again—

It missed.

Its side was wide open.

Another sting.

Frustrated, the beast swung both arms—

If it kept missing, it would just grab and rip him in two.

It lunged—and caught him.

…Or did it?

He was gone.

It had definitely grasped him.

“Brute-force idiots are the same everywhere—no brains, no tactics.”

The voice came from its shoulder.

The beast bared its fangs.

It would bite him off—

“Same stupid moves too.”

Just as it opened wide, a stinging pain shot inside its mouth.

It instinctively clamped down.

Now it could finally see him—

But it didn’t realize—

Cheon Mujin wasn’t even looking at it anymore.

In his mind—

Its fate was already sealed.