Chapter 70 -----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 70
Chapter Title: Man-Killing Feng Shui Interior (2)
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A few days later, in front of Jang Chaewon's hanok house, the headquarters of Bokbok Interiors.
The eyes of the Heavenly Demon, gripping his brush, gleamed with an utterly wicked light.
A purple haze enveloped him, mist rolling in around as if eerie screams echoed from somewhere distant.
Swish. Swish.
With each effortless stroke of the brush, incomprehensible drawings and diagrams densely filled the yellowed paper.
The Heavenly Demon, pouring his full concentration into the brush, finally spat out a sigh of completion and set it down.
"Whew…"
He lifted his head, a white cloth wrapped around his forehead. Etched upon it in red letters were the words Evil Spirit Exorcism.
Gazing down at the dozens of talismans laid out on the reception table, the Heavenly Demon nodded in satisfaction.
"Not bad."
"Not bad my ass."
Jang Chaewon, arms crossed as she watched him from across the way, spoke with a dissatisfied expression.
"Why are you doing this crap in my front yard? Go do it at your own place."
The Heavenly Demon turned his head and replied shamelessly.
"My home's foundation isn't all that great."
"What?"
"But the proprietor's house is brimming with intensely sacred energy. And the earth here bubbles over with spiritual qi."
He picked up one of the talismans from the table and grinned.
"It's perfect for crafting Evil-Warding Divine Talismans using the Supreme Spirit Subduing Ritual of the Blood Sect and the Absolute Death Soul Binding techniques of the Yin-Yang School."
"W-what did you say?"
"Didn't hear me? Evil-Warding Divine Talismans made with the Supreme Spirit Subduing Ritual and Absolute Death Soul Binding techniques."
Jang Chaewon's jaw dropped. Just hearing the names sent a sinister chill lingering in her ears.
"So these Evil-Warding Divine Talismans… they're just talismans, right?"
The Heavenly Demon, arms crossed, replied with utter confidence.
"They're no ordinary talismans."
"Still talismans all the same."
"Indeed."
As their conversation dragged on with no progress, Jang Chaewon let out a sigh.
"What the hell does any of this have to do with feng shui interiors?"
"Hm. Allow me to explain simply."
The Heavenly Demon pointed to one of the talismans.
"This Evil-Warding Divine Talisman shifts the positions of the Eight Gates of Geography and transforms the flow of yin and yang energy between heaven and earth. In other words, it aligns perfectly with feng shui principles for altering the energy of mountains, rivers, and waterways."
Not easy to grasp. No, she couldn't understand a single word.
The Heavenly Demon droning on with his bizarre jargon looked every bit the cult leader.
"F-fine, whatever. So how exactly are these talismans supposed to solve the problem?"
"All the solutions are written right on the Evil-Warding Divine Talismans. Just secretly hide them in the man's bedroom."
"What? That's it?"
The Heavenly Demon, arms crossed, nodded confidently.
"That's it."
* * *
Kim Sang-jae emerged from Seo Eun-ji's apartment—not his mistress, but a coworker—and waved.
"I'm off."
"Okay, get home safe."
As Seo Eun-ji watched Kim Sang-jae head to the elevator, she called out again.
"Sang-jae."
"Yeah?"
"When exactly are you divorcing your wife?"
The thought of his wife's face made Kim Sang-jae grimace.
Always obedient, gazing only at him, yet never voicing her true feelings.
Even knowing he was cheating, she showed no sign of it, treating him with the same calm demeanor.
Kim Sang-jae, ever passionate and outgoing, felt suffocated by his wife's attitude.
"If only she'd picked a fight or something… maybe it would've been better."
Pointless excuse. Truth was, Kim Sang-jae was addicted to the thrill of one-night stands.
Right now, he needed Seo Eun-ji's fiery nights more than his wise and virtuous wife.
"Soon. I'll wrap it up soon."
Seo Eun-ji wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Can't you stay the night? It's my birthday."
"No. Not yet."
Kim Sang-jae caressed her cheek lightly and sighed.
The thought of returning to that house with his wife made his chest tighten.
"You're back?"
Always the same reaction, the same expression.
His wife approached with a faint smile as he opened the door, taking his bag and asking if he'd eaten.
Kim Sang-jae barely acknowledged her as he headed inside, washed up, and crashed.
"Hm?"
Entering his bedroom, Kim Sang-jae's eyes widened.
The familiar master bedroom looked somehow different.
"Did you… redecorate?"
"Yes. Just changed the wallpaper a bit."
The plainly white-toned room now felt oddly gloomy.
"Usually interiors make things brighter, no?"
The once-bright atmosphere now seemed a shade dimmer, mirroring his wife's somber expression.
"Whatever."
He'd be leaving after the divorce anyway.
After showering in the bathroom and changing into pajamas, Kim Sang-jae flopped onto the bed.
"Haa."
Having spent time at Seo Eun-ji's before coming home, he was always exhausted.
Flopped on the bed, Kim Sang-jae soon fell into a deep sleep.
*-Your stamina's holding out, so you're letting idle thoughts creep in!*
A strange echo resounded in the deeply sleeping Kim Sang-jae's mind. At the same time, a scorching heat enveloped him, as if he lay in a steaming pot.
"Hot!"
Bolting upright, Kim Sang-jae gaped as he looked around.
"What the—how did this happen?"
Before his eyes stretched a hellscape straight out of nightmares.
The sky blazed red, and crimson lava bubbled from cracks in the ground.
Feeling an eerie gaze, Kim Sang-jae looked around to find blood-soaked demons encircling him, baring sharp fangs.
*-Now, let the game begin.*
A demon with yellow eyes and red skin descended from the air before Kim Sang-jae.
Broken horns protruded near its temples as it flicked a long tongue at him.
*-You're a frail human, so I've put you up front as a special treat.*
"W-what are you talking about?"
*-Get ready. Push past the demons behind you and grab first place at the flag, or it loops forever.*
"What flag?"
As flustered Kim Sang-jae blinked in confusion.
*-Go!*
The demon blew the whistle without hesitation.
With a shrill tweet, the demons behind Kim Sang-jae surged forward.
"W-what's going on?"
Standing dazed, Kim Sang-jae bolted in panic as the demons charged from behind.
But as he ran barefoot, sharp spikes erupted beneath his feet.
Pffft.
His sole pierced, he tumbled rolling across the ground.
"Argh!"
Dozens of demons trampled over him in the meantime.
As his squid-like body was pummeled under their heavy feet and his consciousness faded into the void.
*-Now, let the game begin.*
Regaining his senses, Kim Sang-jae saw the airborne demon curving its yellow eyes like crescent moons.
*-Then…*
"W-wait! What's going on? I definitely died just now!"
*-I know. That's why we restart.*
"Huh? What does that…"
Sweat beading on his brow, Kim Sang-jae watched the demon flick its serpentine tongue.
*-Dying in hell's no big deal. We keep going till you take first.*
Before Kim Sang-jae could speak, the shrill tweet rang out again, and the demons behind charged en masse.
"Uwaaah!"
Kim Sang-jae awoke gasping for breath.
"Huff. Huff."
Panting heavily, he wiped his forehead.
He'd sweated so much the bedsheet was soaked.
Staggering up, he slumped on the bed clutching his head.
"Two hundred times…"
He'd raced those demons to death two hundred times.
Too vivid for mere dreams.
Bones crushed under heavy feet, skin melted by hot lava, body skewered by spikes.
The pain lingered in his flesh.
"Lately, I've been overdoing it."
Months of nonstop steamy nights with Seo Eun-ji.
Dismissing his brutal nightmares as mere fatigue, Kim Sang-jae wearily prepared for work.
One week later.
"F-fuck…"
Parking in front of his house, Kim Sang-jae trembled at his white-haired reflection in the rearview mirror.
The same nightmare every night for a full week.
"Why do I keep having these dreams…"
Wiping cold sweat, he gripped his hair.
He'd tried everything to stop them: therapy, sleeping over at Seo Eun-ji's or hotels.
But sleep brought the red-skinned, yellow-eyed demon without fail.
Desperate, he popped stimulants to fight sleep, but come midnight, drugs or no, he passed out.
"Fine… if this is how it is, today…"
Steel-jawed with resolve, Kim Sang-jae gritted his teeth.
Ding, clunk.
Opening the door, his wife rose from the sofa and approached.
"Honey. You okay?"
Seeing his pale face and sprouting white hair lately, Sim Jin-kyung worried endlessly.
"Come wash up and eat."
"I'm fine."
"You look unwell these days. Even if you're not hungry, eat a little."
"No need—!"
About to snap in irritation, Kim Sang-jae's eyes flashed as an idea struck.
"Right. Stamina's the issue…"
Deep in thought, he nodded.
"Got it. Set the table."
Cleaned up, Kim Sang-jae sat at the table.
As Sim Jin-kyung placed dish after dish, his eyes widened.
"What's this? So many side dishes."
"You said you've lost your appetite and feel bad lately."
Sim Jin-kyung smiled shyly, setting down the stew.
Watching her lay out her handmade dishes, guilt suddenly stabbed Kim Sang-jae.
"She knows I'm cheating and still…"
With nightmares killing their sex life, Seo Eun-ji grew snappish, but wife Sim Jin-kyung remained steadfast.
As physical and mental torment dragged on, his patient wife became his true pillar over the demanding mistress.
"Pointless thoughts."
It was over anyway. He'd shove divorce papers at her once this ended.
"Good."
Stuffed full and rested at home, Kim Sang-jae returned to bed, teeth clenched.
*-Let the game begin.*
Hellscape and demon appearing, Kim Sang-jae charged ahead.
Hundreds, thousands of deaths taught him every spike, every split path.
"No time for starts—I gotta reach first!"
He couldn't win because the demons outran him.
*-Oho, using your head, eh.*
The demon cheered his cheating gleefully.
*-Fine! You lot, charge!*
Hundreds of demons thundering forward shook the ground.
Kim Sang-jae sprinted without looking back. Just before their claws grazed him.
"Got it!"
He snatched the flag at hell's road's end.
"Got it! I got it!"
Clutching the flag, tears streaming, he roared in triumph.
"I finally took first!"
The yellow-eyed demon clapped heartily, nodding.
*-Well, well, a real contender.*
"I took first!"
Kneeling in ecstasy, Kim Sang-jae approached, the demon nodding resignedly.
*-Yes. You're first.*
"Hnng."
Rising tearfully, Kim Sang-jae asked.
"So it's over now?"
*-Yes.*
"No more races?"
*-Of course.*
Sighing in relief, Kim Sang-jae clasped his hands.
Finally escaping this week-long nightmare.
*-Now, let's start the second game.*
Rising from the ground, Kim Sang-jae bulged his eyes at the demon's words.
"…You said it's over."
*-Yes. The first game. Hell Race is done.*
"First game? What do you…"
*-Never heard of the 108 Hells?*
"108… no way."
*-Yep. You just cleared one.*
The demon's innocent grin widened Kim Sang-jae's pupils in horror.
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