The Hero Returns

* * *

Guu-ooong, craaaack—

The ground rocked violently and eventually began splitting apart.

Clouds that drifted from afar were torn to shreds to scatter in the skies. The trees in the forest were either pulled straight out of the ground—with their roots and all—or were broken in half to roll around on the ground.

"W—what the heck was that?" Roused up from sleep by the shockwaves, Sun Wukong forced himself to sit up. The injury-induced slumber left him drowsy, but he could still tell quite clearly what was going down right now. "Big Brother?"

The aura he felt belonged to the Bull Demon King.

There was no mistaking it. The impact force capable of rending the heaven and earth and the Dao energy that drew from nature itself belonged to no other.

As for his opponent...

"But why with the last brother...?"

It was none other than Su-hyeun.

As soon as Sun Wukong had woken up, he knew that something seemed to have happened, so he hurriedly shot up from his bedding.

Even though Sun Wukong's injuries from his fight against Master Subhuti were not fully healed, and the mental fatigue built up from abusing the golden fillet for too long was still there, Sun Wukong forced himself to move.

Step, step...

Creeeak...

Every step he took was arduous, but eventually, he opened the door to exit. When he did, though...

"Where are you going?" the Roc Demon King, who was sitting on the roof, asked while looking at Sun Wukong.

The latter stopped for a moment and looked up at his Second Brother. The Roc Demon King was perched up on the roof, his wings neatly tucked away.

Sun Wukong pointed at some distance, "Can't you tell by looking? Big brother is currently fighting against our little brother over there, right?!"

"I also have eyes, you know."

"Then why?"

"Don't butt in. That's what First Brother wanted."

Sun Wukong faltered at what the Roc Demon King said, but his train of thought didn't trail off for long, "I dunno what's what, but I still have to go over there and try to stop them, Second Brother."

"Is that so?"

Just as Sun Wukong got going again...

Whoosh—

Craaash—!

The Roc Demon King leaped off from the roof, grabbed Sun Wukong's head, and slammed it straight into the ground.

Such a thing wouldn't crack Sun Wukong's head open; even if it did crack, he possessed the Godhood of Immortality, so he wouldn't die at the hands of the Roc Demon King.

Crack, crunch...

The Roc Demon King's hand continued to crush Sun Wukong's head to the ground. The latter couldn't shake off his Second Brother's grip; he only barely managed to turn his head slightly so that he could ask something, "What...do you think you're doing?!"

"First Brother asked me this favor. He said, you'll definitely act recklessly like this, so I must stop you no matter what."

Ruuuumble—!

The Roc Demon King used his whole body to press Sun Wukong down to the ground, then looked up at the storm clouds amassing in the skies some distance away, "That's why you should behave yourself and stay here."

"Why are you... doing this...?!" Sun Wukong tried to struggle free in his rage, but his body didn't want to listen to his commands.

Now, usually, he would never be suppressed by the Roc Demon King like this. The gap between their individual physical strength had widened far considerably by now, after all.

But at this moment, at least...

"What can you do with your current body, anyway?"

Griiip—

The Roc Demon King was well aware of Sun Wukong's current physical condition.

"And who told you to overuse the golden fillet in the first place?"

"Eeeeek!" Sun Wukong continued to struggle for a while longer.

Sun Wukong tried so hard to escape from the Roc Demon King's grasp, but he just didn't have enough in the tank right now. At his current healing rate, he probably would need another half a day for his body to sufficiently recover and use his strength to free himself.

Eventually, Sun Wukong was drained of his strength, and he sagged to the ground. "Just why are those two fighting, anyway?"

The Roc Demon King heard that spiritless question coming from below him, then replied while still sitting on his little brother, "It's time to let our First Brother go."

Sun Wukong's whole body flinched at that.

He was well aware of how his First Brother couldn't let go of that single lingering attachment that held him back for a very long time and caused him to be stuck here for far too long. Both Yogoes also had a vague idea that such an attachment was deeply connected to them.

"But will our littlest be enough, Second Brother?"

"No choice but to believe in him, I guess."

From this exchange, Sun Wukong finally understood how the fight had started in the first place.

And if the Bull Demon King indeed asked the Roc Demon King to hold Sun Wukong down here, then it could only mean that their First Brother was really determined this time.

"Dang it," Sun Wukong gritted his teeth, "Gimme a break. I can't even tell who to cheer for here."

A part of him didn't want the Bull Demon King to leave, while the other part wanted his big brother's wish to come true and get rid of his lingering regret. These two parts of Sun Wukong got tangled up messily in his mind.

On the one hand, if Su-hyeun managed to win here, then the Bull Demon King should be able to rid himself of his attachment. On the other hand, the latter's victory would mean he would have to keep staying next to their side.

To put that in another way, Su-hyeun's victory would prompt the Bull Demon King to leave their side, but the latter's victory would leave him still bound to his attachment.

"It's the same for me, too."

It wasn't just Sun Wukong who had that dilemma, however.

"I also can't tell what I am supposed to do here." While saying that, the Roc Demon King strengthened his grip suppressing Sun Wukong below him.

He did that to hide the trembling of his hand.

And so, the two of them continued to struggle while spectating the battle between Su-hyeun and the Bull Demon King taking place far away.

* * *

[Thunderbolt]

RUMBLE—!

A Thunderbolt fired straight out of Su-hyeun's hand brushed past the Bull Demon King's head. That wasn't the only one, however.

Su-hyeun gripped several more Thunderbolts and continued to fire one after another with all of his power.

Flash—!

Shu-wuu...

The Bull Demon King's figure darted to the left and right.

Rumble—!

Ka-zzzzzzik—!

Thunderclaps resounded belatedly.

The explosion noises of the Thunderbolts could be heard a bit after that. In the middle of throwing the lightning spears, Su-hyeun realized that there was no point in persisting with this type of attack anymore.

"He's using Insight to see ahead, isn't he?"

The Bull Demon King's Insight was truly exceptional. He probably saw a few seconds into the future that involved him and with a startling level of clarity, too.

No matter how fast Su-hyeun threw the Thunderbolts, his attacks would all be useless in the end if the Bull Demon King already knew when, where, and in which trajectory they would be flying in.

Pazzzzik—!

So, Su-hyeun decided to change his tactic.

[Thunder Sword - Earth Divider]

Su-hyeun went with the basic swordsmanship that he knew intimately. Instead of throwing spears, he dashed straight in and powerfully swung his sword down.

Flash—!

Kwa-dudududu...

A mountain some distance away was split apart in half to follow the trajectory of Su-hyeun's blade. Still, his weapon couldn't complete its downward swing like how he had envisioned it.

It was all because the blade got stopped midway.

Grip—

The Bull Demon King's bare hand had caught the blade mid-swing. However, Su-hyeun had no time to get stunned because...

Smack—!

The Bull Demon King's other hand, now rolled into a fist, crashed straight into Su-hyeun's side.

"Kkeuk..."

Su-hyeun wasn't flung away, however; he strengthened his abdomen and legs to withstand the impact force. At the same time, his hand that was not holding the sword thrust forward to throw a punch.

Rumble—!

Smaaaash—!

His fist, now transformed into flames, slammed into the Bull Demon King's chest. The exchange of blows forced Su-hyeun to stagger back. The Yogoe had to take a step back as well.

The intense heat charred the Bull Demon King's skin. While dusting his scorched body nonchalantly, the Bull Demon King said, "My hand is somewhat numb after hitting you."

"I'm confident of my toughness, actually."

The "Dragon Blood"—one of the "abilities" Su-hyeun acquired after felling Fafnir—was a skill that halved the damage from both physical and magical attacks.

Not only that, but Su-hyeun wore "Kali's Blood Armor" under his current external armor set. That particular piece of equipment featured an ability to heal the wearer.

The overall level of his defenses at the moment meant that he wouldn't be shaken around by some average impact forces. Even if the Bull Demon King enjoyed monstrous physical strength, Su-hyeun was certain of withstanding one or two body blows without too much trouble.

"Very good. In that case..." The Bull Demon King suddenly pulled out a fan.

And right at that moment...

"Blow away—"

"Arise—!" Su-hyeun hurriedly called out to his summoned creature.

"Palm Leaf."

"Gyges!"

Pu-haaaa-ahk—!

Powerful winds viciously blew toward Su-hyeun. The winds were as sharp as a treasure blade, and their nature meant that it was utterly impossible to dodge them all.

Splat, splasssh—!

The harsh winds were everywhere, ripping apart some flesh and crushing some bones under their pressure.

The Bull Demon King finished waving his fan, then stopped moving for a while to stare at a giant creature standing before his eyes. There was no mistaking it; he had definitely seen this creature back when they were wreaking havoc across the Dark Realm.

"Is that your summoned creature?"

Drip, tumble...

It was Gyges, a humongous giant that possessed 50 heads and hundreds of arms and legs. This summoned creature suffered the attacks, its bones visible under ripped flesh.

Once the winds stopped blowing, Su-hyeun jumped up and landed on top of Gyges. Those winds were impossible to evade, and he couldn't think of any other way to protect himself. In the end, he had to summon Gyges to act as a meat shield.

"Excellent. Truly excellent," the Bull Demon King smirked deeply.

Summoned creatures could be used not only as weapons during a battle involving great numbers but also as shields during critical moments. A creature like Gyges with a tough physical body and humongous size would present the summoner with near-infinite possibilities depending on how it was utilized.

The Bull Demon King went beyond complimenting Su-hyeun's ability; he was feeling genuinely pleased right now.

The better Su-hyeun's skills were, the greater the odds were of the Bull Demon King finally ridding himself of his lingering attachment.

"Well, then. Now..."

Crunch, crack, ku-dududu—

Power seeped into the Bull Demon King's legs, and the ground below began cracking and splitting apart. He assumed a standard punching stance, then opened his mouth once more, "Here I come again."

Baaaang—!

The Bull Demon King's figure seemingly vanished from the spot.

Right at that moment...

Su-hyeun's eyes saw a certain scene.

"AH!!!"

BANG—!

A loud explosion of air came from right next to Su-hyeun's head as he tilted it out of the way. The Bull Demon King's fist had missed him by a hair's breadth.

"If it wasn't for Insight...!"

Su-hyeun would've been struck square in the face.

For an instant there, he saw himself getting hit in the head by the Bull Demon King's punch and flying away helplessly.

Su-hyeun twisted his body and punched when the Bull Demon King closed in fearlessly for close-quarter combat.

[Heavenly Demon's Hundred Steps Fist]

Smaaack—!

Crunch, bang—!

Physical combat was now taking place. Its participants were facing each other at an even closer distance than when one used swords to fight.

Pow—!

A mountain's summit some distance away from them was blown away; the storm clouds of the Somersault hovering in the skies were ripped to shreds, and the explosion noises reminiscent of thunderclaps continued to rock the surroundings.

Rumble—!

Su-hyeun's figure was instantly enveloped in flames. His fist, burning in purple-colored flame, stretched toward the Bull Demon King.

But right at that moment...!

POW—!

The Bull Demon King's fist landed on Su-hyeun's head first.

The latter's body that had transformed into flames scattered instantly, but the flames quickly wrapped around the Bull Demon King, and their purple color became even more intense.

Bang! Boom! Ka-boom—!

Flames exploded in a row. The Bull Demon King raised his hand and cocooned himself in Dao energy.

Fwhoooosh—!

Su-hyeun took some distance away then stared at the Bull Demon King.

"It wasn't all that effective, was it?"

He relied on his transformation to land that sneak attack, yet his target didn't even get singed at the end of it all. The Bull Demon King had deployed Dao energy all around himself as a protective barrier. Even though that was as basic as a technique could get, there was no doubting its effectiveness.

Clack...

Su-hyeun glanced at the sword he held in his hand. "Why did it have to be now, of all times?"

He couldn't help but feel rueful at the fact that Palm Leaf wasn't with him right now.

He could substitute the effects of the Armor of Hades with Dragon Blood, but he didn't have anything to replace the cutting power or the sturdiness of the Palm Leaf Sword on him.

Sure, he had already surpassed the realm where he needed to rely on his weapons to fight many moons ago. Still, he could do nothing about missing his sword in an urgent situation like this one.

"Well, there's no helping it, I guess."

Squeeze...

Pazzzzik—!

While gripping his sword tightly, Su-hyeun began directing lightning energy into the blade.

[Thunder Sword]

Baaaang—!

Su-hyeun gripped the Thunder Sword and dashed straight at the Bull Demon King.

The latter watched on, then, for some reason, put away the fan in his hand, "So, you wish to rely on weapons to fight now?"

Right at that moment...

Fwhooooosh—!

"Huh?!" Su-hyeun hurriedly retracted the sword he was about to swing down at the Bull Demon King, then urgently leaped back.

Gu-wuuuung...

Craaaaaack—!

The land the Bull Demon King stood on was spectacularly overturned and shot up in the air. Su-hyeun stared at the jutting landscape before slicing it clean horizontally.

Slice...

Kugugugu...

The jutting landmass followed along the cut surface and fell to the side, allowing him to take in the Bull Demon King's figure beyond the crumbling rocks.

"So, that was it."

The cause of the warning bell that suddenly went off in his head...

A slender black rod was currently slung over the Bull Demon King's shoulder.

[Mixed Iron Rod]