Blood Demon's Awakening

🕐 A Timely Interruption

The tension in the memorial hall had reached a breaking point. Jin-ho's power continued to build, red lightning crackling around his clenched fists, while Jin Nae-mu's disciples shifted nervously, unsure whether to retreat or press their advantage. It was at this moment of volatile uncertainty that an unexpected voice cut through the charged atmosphere.

"Enough."

The single word, spoken with quiet authority, seemed to drain some of the electric tension from the air. All eyes turned toward the entrance, where a middle-aged Thunder Gate elder stood silhouetted against the storm-lit doorway.

Noe Cheong-woon stepped forward, his weathered face grave with purpose. In his hands, he carried an ancient scroll case—ornate, clearly valuable, and radiating an aura of significant power.

"Elder Blue Cloud?" Jin Nae-mu's voice carried a note of warning. "This is not your concern. Return to your quarters."

But Noe Cheong-woon ignored the Grand Elder's command entirely, focusing instead on Jin-ho with eyes that held both sympathy and determination.

"Young master," he said formally, "there are truths about your friend's death that you deserve to know. Truths that certain people would prefer remained buried."

🔥 Jin Nae-mu's Desperation

The blood drained from Jin Nae-mu's face as he realized what Noe Cheong-woon intended to reveal. For sixty years, he had guarded the secret of the Thunder Gate's most shameful practice. Now, with his carefully laid plans crumbling around him, that secret was about to be exposed.

"Blue Cloud," Jin Nae-mu said, his voice low and dangerous, "you forget yourself. Some knowledge is too dangerous for outsiders."

"Outsiders?" Noe Cheong-woon's voice carried bitter amusement. "This young man carries Jin-woon's lightning within him. He is more a son of our sect than some who claim leadership through blood alone."

The insult was clear, and several of Jin Nae-mu's supporters moved forward threateningly. But Noe Cheong-woon stood his ground, protected by his own faction of Thunder Gate disciples who had quietly entered the hall behind him.

『Something's changing』 the Blood Heaven Emperor observed. 『The political balance is shifting.』

『Good』 the Thunder King replied grimly. 『Let them tear each other apart over their lies. Truth serves justice better than unity.』

⚡ The Schism Revealed

"You see," Noe Cheong-woon continued, addressing Jin-ho directly while keeping his eyes fixed on Jin Nae-mu, "our sect has been divided for years. There are those of us who believe in the old ways—honor, loyalty, the protection of our disciples. And then there are those who see our young people as nothing more than... investments."

The word hung in the air like a physical presence. Jin-ho felt both demon spirits stir within him, their attention sharply focused on the unfolding revelation.

"Investments?" Blood Scribe inquired, his scholarly instincts immediately engaged despite the dangerous situation.

"Resources to be cultivated and harvested," Noe Cheong-woon said bluntly. "Jin-woon was not the first promising disciple to die under... convenient circumstances. Nor, I fear, would he have been the last."

🔮 Ancient Secrets Exposed

With deliberate ceremony, Noe Cheong-woon opened the scroll case and withdrew a document that seemed to pulse with its own inner lightning. The parchment was clearly ancient, inscribed with characters that seemed to move and dance in the flickering light.

"The Thunder Succession Prophecy," he announced, holding it so that Jin-ho could see the elegant, archaic script. "Written by the Thunder King himself, three millennia ago."

Jin-ho's breath caught as he recognized some of the characters—not through his own knowledge, but through the Thunder King's memories stirring within him.

『My own words』 the Thunder King whispered, his mental voice filled with a mixture of pride and sorrow. 『I wrote that during the final days before the Splitting. I wanted to ensure my power would find worthy successors.』

Noe Cheong-woon began to read, his voice taking on the cadence of ritual recitation:

"When the heir of thunder falls in battle, their power shall not be lost to the void. Instead, it shall seek the one most worthy—the soul with the strongest will, the heart most true to justice, regardless of bloodline or station. This is the Thunder Legacy Method: through sacrifice, strength is preserved and passed to those who will use it wisely."

💀 The Perversion of Sacred Law

"Beautiful words," Jin Nae-mu said with bitter sarcasm. "And completely meaningless in practice. You think the power chooses based on virtue? Naive fool."

But Noe Cheong-woon wasn't finished. He turned to a second section of the prophecy, his voice growing heavier with each word:

"Yet let those who would manipulate this sacred trust beware: the deliberate sacrifice of the innocent for power's sake shall bring only corruption and ruin. The thunder recognizes the difference between honorable death and calculated murder. Those who orchestrate the latter shall find themselves bypassed, their ambitions turned to ash."

The implications hit Jin-ho like a physical blow. Jin-woon's death hadn't been an accident or even a result of the dangerous mission. It had been planned, orchestrated, designed to transfer his power to someone else.

"You..." Jin-ho's voice was barely a whisper. "You killed him deliberately."

🎭 Jin Nae-mu's Mask Falls

For sixty years, Jin Nae-mu had maintained the facade of a loyal elder, a devoted servant of the Thunder Gate's traditions. Now, faced with exposure and the collapse of his decades-long plan, that mask finally slipped away entirely.

"Killed him?" Jin Nae-mu laughed, the sound harsh and bitter. "I cultivated him! I shaped him into the perfect vessel for power that was rightfully mine! Do you have any idea how long I waited for a thunder heir to mature properly?"

The admission sent ripples of shock through the assembled disciples. Even those loyal to Jin Nae-mu seemed stunned by his casual confession of murder.

"Jin-woon was nothing but a container," the Grand Elder continued, his voice rising with decades of suppressed frustration. "A means to an end! I spent years ensuring he would reach the proper level of development before orchestrating his death. I calculated every variable, planned every detail!"

『Monster』 the Thunder King snarled within Jin-ho's mind. 『He speaks of my heir as if he were livestock to be slaughtered.』

『The boy trusted them』 the Blood Heaven Emperor added, his own anger building. 『He died believing he was among friends.』

🔢 Sixty Years of Preparation

"You want to know the truth?" Jin Nae-mu was beyond caring about consequences now, his voice filled with the manic energy of a man who had finally stopped pretending. "I've been preparing for this moment since I was twenty years old! I studied the prophecy, researched the bloodlines, calculated the optimal timing!"

He gestured wildly at Jin-ho, his eyes blazing with frustrated ambition. "I chose Jin-woon personally! Guided his training, shaped his development, ensured he would reach the proper cultivation level at precisely the right age! Everything was perfect!"

"Everything except your heart," Noe Cheong-woon said quietly. "The prophecy speaks of the strongest will, not the most calculating mind. It seeks virtue, not ambition."

"Virtue!" Jin Nae-mu spat. "What use is virtue against power? I had the strongest will! I waited sixty years! Sixty years of planning, of patience, of perfect execution!"

⚡ The Thunder's Judgment

"And yet," Jin-ho said, his voice growing stronger with each word, "the power went to me instead."

The simple statement hit Jin Nae-mu like a lightning bolt. For a moment, the old man seemed to shrink in on himself, the weight of his failure crushing down upon him.

"That's impossible," he whispered. "I had the strongest will. I planned everything perfectly. The power should have come to me. It should have been mine!"

『He still doesn't understand』 the Thunder King observed with something like pity. 『After all these years, he still thinks strength of will means the willingness to commit murder.』

"The prophecy chooses based on justice," Noe Cheong-woon explained, his voice gentle despite the horrific revelations. "Jin-ho received the power because he was willing to risk everything to save Jin-woon, not to profit from his death."

🔥 The Weight of Truth

As the full scope of Jin Nae-mu's betrayal sank in, Jin-ho felt something fundamental shift within him. The guilt he had carried since Jin-woon's death—the crushing sense that he had failed his friend—began to transform into something else entirely.

This hadn't been his failure. Jin-woon's death hadn't been the result of Jin-ho's weakness or abandonment. It had been cold-blooded murder, planned and executed by the very people Jin-woon had trusted most.

"He looked up to you," Jin-ho said, his voice barely controlled. "Jin-woon respected the Thunder Gate. He believed in your teachings, your traditions. He died thinking he was serving something noble."

"He was serving something noble," Jin Nae-mu replied with breathtaking callousness. "He was serving my ascension to true power. His sacrifice would have been meaningful if that power had gone where it belonged!"

⚡ Power Unleashed

The red glow around Jin-ho's hands intensified dramatically, no longer just blood energy or pure lightning but something entirely new—a fusion that shouldn't have been possible. The very air in the memorial hall began to vibrate with barely contained force.

『Now you understand』 the Blood Heaven Emperor said, his voice filled with dark satisfaction. 『The rage you feel—this is righteous fury. This is the anger of justice denied.』

『Yes』 the Thunder King agreed, his own power flowing freely into the fusion. 『Let them see what they have awakened. Let them understand the price of their betrayal.』

"Sixty years," Jin-ho said, his voice carrying a note of power that made even the strongest Thunder Gate disciples step back. "Sixty years you planned to murder your own student. Sixty years you waited to steal power that was never meant for you."

The red lightning around him began to pulse in rhythm with his heartbeat, and cracks appeared in the stone floor beneath his feet.

⚡ The Reckoning Begins

"Jin-woon trusted you," Jin-ho continued, taking a step forward. Jin Nae-mu and his supporters involuntarily retreated. "He believed in the Thunder Gate's honor. He died thinking he was protecting something sacred."

Another step forward, and the red lightning intensified.

"But you're not sacred. You're not honorable. You're just a murderer who got greedy."

The fusion of blood and lightning energy was beginning to affect the very structure of the memorial hall. Ancient stone cracked, and the memorial tablets themselves seemed to vibrate in sympathy with Jin-ho's power.

"I won't let you dishonor his memory any longer," Jin-ho declared, his voice carrying the authority of both demon spirits. "And I won't let you hurt anyone else the way you hurt him."

🔥 The Promise of Justice

Jin Nae-mu, faced with power beyond his ability to control and truth beyond his ability to deny, made one last desperate attempt to regain the initiative.

"You think you're righteous?" he snarled. "You carry demon power! You're more monster than man! How dare you judge me?"

But Jin-ho's response was calm, controlled, and infinitely more terrifying for its restraint:

"You're right. I do carry demon power. And that power is telling me exactly what kind of justice you deserve."

The red lightning around him began to take shape, forming into something that looked almost like a sword—but larger, more substantial, crackling with the combined authority of two ancient demon kings.

"The Thunder King wrote that prophecy to protect people like Jin-woon from people like you," Jin-ho continued, his voice deadly quiet. "I think it's time to honor that intention."

🌩️ Choosing Sides

The revelation of Jin Nae-mu's crimes had shattered the unity of the Thunder Gate disciples present. Some still stood with their Grand Elder, either out of loyalty or fear, but others had clearly been shaken by his casual admission of murder.

Noe Cheong-woon and his faction moved to stand behind Jin-ho, their choice clear. But it was the younger disciples—those who had known and respected Jin-woon—whose betrayal hit Jin Nae-mu hardest.

"Senior Brother was right," one of them said, his voice shaking with emotion. "Jin-woon was a good person. He didn't deserve what happened to him."

"None of them deserved it," another added, referring to Jin Nae-mu's earlier admission that Jin-woon hadn't been his first victim.

⚡ The Gauntlet Thrown

Jin Nae-mu, seeing his support crumbling and his sixty-year plan in ruins, made the choice that would define the rest of this confrontation. Rather than retreat or attempt negotiation, he decided to double down on violence.

"If I can't have that power through the prophecy," he declared, electrical energy beginning to build around him as well, "then I'll take it by force! Sixty years of preparation won't be wasted on the likes of you!"

The challenge was unmistakable, and Jin-ho felt both demon spirits respond with eager anticipation.

『Finally』 the Blood Heaven Emperor said with satisfaction. 『Let's show him what real power looks like.』

『For Jin-woon』 the Thunder King added grimly. 『For all of them he sacrificed to his ambition.』

Jin-ho raised his head, meeting Jin Nae-mu's gaze directly. When he spoke, his voice carried the authority of three thousand years of accumulated wisdom and power:

"You want my power? You want Jin-woon's legacy? Then come and take it."

The red lightning around him flared brighter, and the memorial hall itself seemed to hold its breath in anticipation of the storm to come.