Chapter 66: Gu Poison (2)
'Is it the difference in grade?'
Mok Gyeong-un's eyes gleamed with interest at the pale white hands returning to the water after just one warning.
Indeed, with her grade reaching the level of a blue spirit, even her overwhelming presence alone dominates ordinary vengeful spirits.
"You're truly amazing as expected."
At Mok Gyeong-un's praise, Cheong-ryeong, who had chased away the water vengeful spirits, spoke in an annoyed voice:
– Do you think I said it was dangerous because of these low-grade ones?
"Of course not."
Mok Gyeong-un shrugged his shoulders.
Naturally, if they were just red spirits or vermilion spirits, she wouldn't have warned him.
What she was warning about was that thing transforming into the worst gu poison by devouring each other.
Gooooooo!
The area about forty jang away was covered in a thick fog.
It was so dark that the inside was barely visible.
If it were a simple fog, it would be better, but a pitch-black fog was swirling like a huge torrent, and just looking at it felt extremely ominous.
– That's not the only problem.
"… Are you also talking about those?"
Besides that thing that had engulfed an entire space, there were also smaller ones.
Those also formed small fogs and were chaotically entangled, and something seemed amiss about them.
Cheong-ryeong spoke while looking at those:
– Low-grade vengeful spirits that are no match for me will feel fear and hasten to flee like those just now. But those are different.
"What do you mean by different?"
– Vengeful spirits that have coveted and devoured each other see nothing.
"What does that mean?"
– They are devouring each other to survive and become stronger. Those things see nothing right now. They only have the thought that they must devour.
That's why Cheong-ryeong advised not to approach them closely.
No matter how much lower their grade is and how weak they are compared to her, if those that have gone mad and turned into hungry ghosts rush at them all at once with determination, it becomes difficult to protect.
– Hey, kid. Do you think you can penetrate through those and absorb that?
"I'll have to try."
– You reckless bastard.
That was too dangerous.
Rather, there was a possibility of being devoured, so she wanted to forcibly pull him up even now.
While she was thinking that, Mok Gyeong-un looked around.
There was only an ominous feeling, and not a trace of human presence could be felt at all.
Thus, Mok Gyeong-un muttered:
"I think it'll be fine here."
– What are you saying?
At Cheong-ryeong's question, Mok Gyeong-un suddenly fumbled around the back of his waist near his spine and placed his palm there.
Then he pressed down at a spot with his finger.
"Phew."
– … What are you trying to do now?
"Should I say I'm half-believing and half-doubting since it was something I had been contemplating whether to try or not?"
– What?
As she questioned back.
Mok Gyeong-un's back curved, and then he slightly furrowed his brows.
He was someone who wouldn't even blink an eye at ordinary pain, so how much pain must it be for him to act like this?
– Just what are you…!?
Cheong-ryeong's eyes gleamed with interest.
It was none other than the needle, about the size of a finger joint, dangling from Mok Gyeong-un's finger.
– Ha!
The end of this needle, shaped like a hook, was none other than the Golden Gate Lock.
It was used to seal meridians and restrict internal energy.
Originally, this Golden Gate Lock could only be removed using a special tool with strong magnetism, but Mok Gyeong-un removed it using the Art of Binding.
'To utilize the Art of Binding in this way…'
The meridian near the spine where the Golden Gate Lock was inserted was extremely dangerous.
Therefore, even though it could be risky, he removed it by adjusting the Art of Binding without any hesitation.
It could be called bold.
– You really are…
"Wait a moment. I need to remove the remaining two first."
– …
Mok Gyeong-un removed the remaining two Golden Gate Lock just like he had done earlier.
Inserting the Golden Gate Lock into the acupoints of the spine is painful, but removing it is even more agonizing, yet there was no change in his expression even the second time.
It could be called tremendous endurance.
Puck!
The moment Mok Gyeong-un completely removed the inserted Golden Gate Lock,
Swoosh!
The sealed meridians opened, and the restriction was lifted.
The death qi he had gathered until now circulated throughout his body, and his energy became abundant.
'Look at this.'
Cheong-ryeong's eyes narrowed.
When his meridians were closed, the qi wasn't manifested, so she couldn't estimate how much death qi he had gathered, but this exceeded her expectations.
It had already surpassed twice the amount of death qi he originally possessed.
If he could digest that, his internal energy alone would reach the beginning of the peak stage.
'It's almost miraculous.'
Death qi differs from ordinary qi.
It could be said to be almost the opposite, and Mok Gyeong-un would be the only human possessing that much of the qi of death.
No, was that guy really human?
In the first place, it was strange for him to be fine while possessing such an enormous amount of the qi of death.
Flinch!
Cheong-ryeong looked around and smirked.
The low-grade vengeful spirits nearby were feeling fear from the tremendous death qi emanating from Mok Gyeong-un.
Mok Gyeong-un stretched and said:
"It feels refreshing. It was suffocating to keep this damn thing inserted."
– Did you endure it on purpose?
"Yes. Just in case."
He had heard that highly skilled experts could sense the qi of inferiors.
That's why Mok Gyeong-un had thought of this method from the moment the Golden Gate Lock was first inserted, but he had been enduring it.
Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue and said:
– So you didn't come down here recklessly.
With this much, apart from that huge one, there were only a few entities here that could directly threaten Mok Gyeong-un.
Of course, those devouring each other would indiscriminately target him.
"Risking one's life and committing suicide are different."
– You're good with words. But it's still dangerous nonetheless. Even if it's not complete yet, that thing may be more dangerous than me in some sense.
Its purpose wasn't possession.
It was to indiscriminately devour and complete its transformation.
It would try to devour him in any way possible.
– Will you deal with the surrounding ones first?
Cheong-ryeong asked, pointing her head towards the small whirlpools.
At this, Mok Gyeong-un shook his head.
Then, looking at the huge whirlpool, he said:
"When eating fish, you should start with the head."
– You crazy bastard. Is that a fish?
To call that thing "eating fish starting with the head".
It's a saying that the head of a fish is the most delicious part.
If he was indirectly expressing his opinion to go after the strongest one first, it was typical of him.
– Excessive greed is overambition. But if you can make that yours as you said, it could cut down ten years.
"Can you help me?"
– Before being a supreme-ruler of gluttony, do you think I'll let my disciple die?
At those words, Mok Gyeong-un smiled brightly and said:
"Because if that disciple dies, Cheong-ryeong the master will also die."
– … Cut the unpleasant talk.
"Yes, yes."
– Phew.
Cheong-ryeong took a long puff from her pipe, exhaled smoke, and pointed at the huge whirlpool of fog, saying:
– I'll gather their attention here. Just focus on running forward.
"I'll be counting on you."
– Eat to your heart's content.
As soon as those words ended, Cheong-ryeong struck the ground with her pipe.
Then, with her blood-red eyes glinting, she opened her mouth.
– Blood Realm.
Gooooooo!
At that moment, blood began to form on the ground centered around her palm.
Drip drip!
Blood droplets rising as if falling in reverse.
The blood droplets shot up towards the sky, dyeing the surroundings red.
Seeing this, Mok Gyeong-un thought to himself:
'Ghost Realm.'
A barrier created by a high-grade vengeful spirit.
That could be called the Ghost Realm.
Unlike the barriers deployed by sorcerers, this Ghost Realm was constructed by the vengeful spirit's resentment and madness converging into a space.
'Was it to this extent?'
Nearly several dozen jang around were dyed in a bloody color.
The low-grade vengeful spirits nearby trembled their spirit bodies at her resentment spreading and creating this Ghost Realm.
Some even scattered, unable to endure it.
Sizzle sizzle!
Puck! Puck!
Just then, the small whirlpools that had been busy devouring the surrounding vengeful spirits suddenly moved.
Wooooo!
Their target was none other than Cheong-ryeong.
By intentionally opening her realm and revealing her power, the transformed vengeful spirits that had been focused on devouring showed intense interest.
Go.
Poof!
At Cheong-ryeong's words, Mok Gyeong-un turned to the side.
Even if the attention of the transformed vengeful spirits was focused on Cheong-ryeong, if he passed right in front of them, they might change their target.
Therefore, he had no choice but to go around from the side.
Tap tap tap tap!
When he used lightness skill, the speed was tremendous.
The surroundings swiftly passed by, and before long, he reached the front of the huge whirlpool.
The bloody realm exquisitely didn't reach here.
If it had, this too would have turned its attention to Cheong-ryeong.
'It's amazing.'
Swoooosh!
Mok Gyeong-un inwardly exclaimed at the sight of the black fog swirling like rough waves.
It evoked a fear that if swept away by it, one might never return.
Most people, no, even considerable sorcerers would never dare to enter this.
However, Mok Gyeong-un had one other thing.
He had no emotion called fear.
Poof!
Mok Gyeong-un stepped into the violently raging torrent of vengeful spirits.
The moment he entered, a scream that seemed to tear his eardrums echoed.
Kyaaaaaaaa!
And a stench of rotting corpses vibrated from all directions as if to numb his nose.
It was as if his entire flesh would peel off, and it was painful to move even slightly.
"Phew."
So this was why Cheong-ryeong had warned him.
It felt as if he would be swept away by the evil and brutal qi far beyond his expectations.
However, to avoid being swept away by this, Mok Gyeong-un circulated the death qi throughout his body using reverse cycling.
Right at that moment.
Clank!
Suddenly, a chain flew out from somewhere and coiled around Mok Gyeong-un's waist.
At this, Mok Gyeong-un focused death qi into his hand and struck down.
Chiiing!
The chain was severed.
'Huh?'
But this wasn't the end.
Swoooosh!
Countless chains flew in and instantly restrained Mok Gyeong-un's limbs.
It happened in an instant, so he couldn't even avoid or resist.
Grip!
'This… strength…'
The chains coiled around his entire body except for his head.
The binding force of these chains was so strong that no matter how much strength he used or pulled out death qi, they wouldn't budge at all.
Swoooosh!
The chains that had restrained Mok Gyeong-un like this began to drag him towards the center of the black fog whirlpool.
It wasn't something he could resist with strength.
As he was being dragged, another scream was heard from somewhere.
Aaaaaargh!
Save me!
Please! Please!
It was a scream close to pleading.
But as that sound got closer, something began to appear in his blurry vision.
Crunch! Crunch!
The sound of something being eaten was heard from there.
Wondering what it was eating,
'!?'
The lower half of a vengeful spirit in human form was seen kicking upside down.
But its upper body was inside the wide-open mouth of a bizarre entity covered in chains.
It was a sight that made one shudder just by looking at it.
Glub! Glub!
The sound of the vengeful spirit being eaten came from inside the mouth, and it didn't last long.
Because the lower half was also sucked into the mouth in an instant.
Devouring wasn't a euphemism.
It was literal.
Uooooooooh!
The bizarre entity covered in chains that had devoured a vengeful spirit whole let out a roar.
The surroundings shook as if an earthquake had occurred.
Save me!
Please!
The vengeful spirits held by chains screamed and pleaded even more at this.
They were insanely terrified.
At that moment.
Tremble tremble!
Mok Gyeong-un's entire body began to tremble.
Was he feeling the emotion of fear for the first time in his life?
At this, the bizarre entity covered in chains that had been roaring slowly turned its gaze.
Woooooo!
Two eyes visible through the gaps in the chains emitted a gaze.
-I'll eat. You.
An eerie voice echoed in all directions.
Then, Mok Gyeong-un, who had been trembling, raised his head.
But his face didn't have an expression of being consumed by fear.
As if all of this was exciting, his lips twitched, and soon the corners of his mouth spread to his ears.
-!?
The pale white eyes gleamed with interest.
Mok Gyeong-un spoke to that bizarre entity covered in chains:
"Seems like our opinions coincide."
68: Chapter 67: Gu Poison (3)
It was on the verge of completing its transformation, so it was gradually regaining its reason.
Of course, even though reason had returned, it was still consumed by madness, so it couldn't help but feel endless hunger.
That's why it indiscriminately devoured whatever it encountered.
The only thing it could devour was the vengeful spirits in the same predicament as itself.
For over a decade, it ate and ate these vengeful spirits trapped under this cliff, screaming and suffering.
It wasn't like this from the beginning.
When the vengeful spirits were devouring each other, it only ran away and hid out of the desire to survive.
However, the desire to live eventually led to an explosion of resentment and madness.
Consumed by madness, it had been devouring indiscriminately for over a decade, but amidst that repetitive cycle, something different intervened.
It looked at the entity bound by chains as if puzzled.
'Human?'
Could it be a living being?
For a long time, this place had been filled only with vengeful spirits.
Periodically, new vengeful spirits would be added, but never had any living being appeared.
But for a living being to appear in this hell-like place?
Tremble tremble!
It couldn't contain its excitement.
This ravenous hunger born from madness couldn't be quelled with just dead vengeful spirits.
But a living being appearing like this was enough to stimulate its curiosity.
'Be afraid.'
Thus, it tried to bestow fear and terror upon him.
The fear and dread emanating from a living being was a great source of nourishment for a vengeful spirit.
However,
"It seems like our opinions coincide."
what the …. was this human?
He was smiling in this situation.
And that smile contained enough malice to be quite unpleasant.
If even a little force was applied, his limbs bound by chains would be torn off, yet his relaxed attitude was utterly unpleasant.
Haha, if that's the case, I shall enjoy the sight of you suffering as I tear off your limbs one by one and devour you.
Clang!
Mok Gyeong-un, who had been bound by chains, was forcibly dragged by its gesture.
Knowing that strength was useless anyway, Mok Gyeong-un didn't resist at all.
In the process, he still had a smile on his lips.
It became even more enraged because he was so nonchalant.
Thus, it pulled the chains right in front of it and said:
– I will tear off all your skin, peel your flesh one by one, and devour you down to the bones.
At its threat, Mok Gyeong-un smirked and said:
"You have quite a noble hobby."
– Noble?
Impudent human.
To act relaxed right in front of it.
Fine. Then let's see if you can still do that after experiencing pain.
Puck! Swooosh!
In an instant, one of the chains pierced into Mok Gyeong-un's left shoulder.
Whether his liver was sticking out or he was numb to fear didn't matter.
If he experienced pain, it would eventually be different.
However,
"Is this all?"
His expression didn't change at all, and he was still smirking.
If this wasn't enough, fine.
As it gestured, the chains filling the ground like wriggling snakes moved as if alive.
Clang! Swooosh!
Puck puck!
One chain pierced Mok Gyeong-un's right shoulder, and two others pierced his thighs.
As if that wasn't enough, one dug into his abdomen.
Puck!
It wouldn't be pain that could be endured with just willpower.
The chains felt extremely cold and hot, accompanied by pain that seemed to burn and freeze the moment they touched flesh and organs.
Everything originated from the mind.
This human would be tasting the worst pain he could experience…
'!?'
What was with this bastard?
His expression still hadn't changed at all.
Rather, he was staring intently at it while snorting.
How could a living being bound by the shackles of flesh endure this pain so nonchalantly?
As it was astonished, Mok Gyeong-un opened his mouth.
"Do you think I'll be afraid or in pain from something like this?"
– …
"You're doing something pointless."
– Grrrrrr!
As soon as Mok Gyeong-un's mocking words ended, the entire space violently shook as if an earthquake had occurred.
It was greatly enraged.
How dare a lowly being ridicule it?
Fine. Then as you wish, I shall devour you alive.
Swooosh!
The chains pulled, and Mok Gyeong-un's body with his limbs bound was dragged right in front of it.
Then it opened its mouth wide.
The mouth that opened between the gaps in the chains was far from human.
Having been transformed by devouring countless vengeful spirits, hundreds of sharp thorns protruded, and violet smoke flowed from inside its mouth.
Grrraaargh!
Its mouth widened enough to swallow Mok Gyeong-un whole.
Swooosh!
The chains piercing his body loosened one by one.
With a clank, Mok Gyeong-un's body approached the inside of the creature's mouth.
Swooosh!
It was around the time when his head to his shoulders nearly reached the gaping mouth.
At that moment, something foreign fell from Mok Gyeong-un.
Plop!
It thought it was just blood or flesh falling off and didn't pay much attention.
But the moment it passed through its throat,
Sizzle!
Its throat felt like it was burning with pain.
Kuk! You! What did you!
"You shouldn't let your guard down just because you caught everything."
The ring on Mok Gyeong-un's finger was no longer visible.
That's right.
What had entered through its throat was the ring containing the spell made by diviner Jo Ui-gong.
At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un made a hand seal with one hand and shouted loudly.
Crack crack crack!
"Commanding the Ink supreme-ruler's Mantra, the Divine Obscurity Responds to the Spirit, Forming the Myriad Phenomena, the Divine Obscurity Subdues Demons Like a Thunderbolt, Urgent Urgent As Commanded!"
It was the Imperial Ink Divine Spell.
The moment that shout resounded, a bright light burst out from inside its mouth.
Woooo!
It was a spell that invoked a supreme-ruler into the ring containing the spell and caused a strong force to explode, subjugating the vengeful spirit.
Since it was a ring containing a spell and it exploded from the inside, its power was,
Aaaaaargh!
Enough to make even it, who had been endlessly transformed, suffer from the exploding spell power.
However, this wasn't enough to subdue it, whose grade was high.
Its body, which had been suffering, temporarily distorted but still retained its form.
Swooosh!
But thanks to being momentarily weakened, the chains binding its body scattered and disappeared.
At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un launched his body towards its mouth that was opening in pain.
– !?
what the …. was this?
Jumping into its mouth with his own feet?
It tried to chew up Mok Gyeong-un, who had jumped in, without missing this opportunity.
Just then, Mok Gyeong-un reached out his hand towards its throat.
Puck!
And,
'The mortals are not eternal, and the two forms are like a dream. The five aggregates are all empty, and the myriad phenomena are like an illusion.'
He chanted the mnemonic of the Art of Binding.
It was a gamble.
The most direct way to absorb the death qi of this huge lump of resentment.
It was targeting the inside of its body.
From the outside, there was no other way because he was bound by chains.
However,
Swoosh!
Mok Gyeong-un's body, performing the Art of Binding, was sucked deep into its mouth as if pushed by weight rather than absorbing its qi.
As if there was a hidden space inside its mouth, Mok Gyeong-un's body fell deep inside.
Swoooosh!
Into the darkness like a bottomless pit.
Mok Gyeong-un's body was sucked towards its origin.
In the process, fragments of its memories flowed in like a montage.
[Big brother! Big brother! I will always be with you.]
[I will support our family as your right-hand man. Don't worry.]
A brightly smiling younger brother following him.
And a strict father.
[This is for the long-cherished wish of our society. The successors of the other Five Kings have all agreed to participate, so you must also take the lead and join.]
[I will keep that in mind.]
Soon, a familiar place appeared in the memories.
As if repeated numerous times, this place visible in the darkness was the valley where the steel marble competition took place.
[Huff huff… Big brother…]
[Take it.]
[But isn't this the one you found?]
[You go ahead first. I can find another one quickly.]
[Big brother…]
And another memory continued, crawling.
Someone strikes the back of his head with a sharp rock.
Gasping for breath, he turns his head, and there, the younger brother who had been brightly following him was looking down at him with a cold gaze.
[Y-you… How…]
[Damn bastard. If only you die, everything will be solved.]
[You… You…]
[You always acted superior, pretending to sympathize with me just because you had everything…]
[I… I wasn't…]
[You were just born before me, that's all.]
With those words, the younger brother struck its face with the rock.
As if not satisfied with just once, he struck several times and then disappeared.
Along with it, a surging emotion of anger was felt.
Soon, the following vision was quite different.
It seemed to be a memory continuing after death rather than a memory from when it was alive.
Let me eat. Let me eat you.
Die! Die!
I said die!
Vengeful spirits rushing in like crazy.
Feelings of extreme fear and despair were felt.
It gradually intensified.
Why… Why me? Why do I have to be eaten like this even after dying?
Did I live just to suffer this much?
Am I meant to be eaten?
I…
I… can't… be… eaten…
I… will… devour… everything!
Its madness exploded as it was being bitten and eaten by those vengeful spirits.
Uwaaaaaa!!!!
The resentment of madness was so strong that it felt like it would be devoured in an instant.
At the same time, an unimaginable amount of death qi rushed in through his palm, and the screams of countless resentments echoed in his head.
I will devour you too!
Its madness was conveyed.
Mok Gyeong-un felt like his head would shatter from the heart-wrenching wails, but he didn't stop the Art of Binding.
'The mortals are not eternal, and the two forms are like a dream. The five aggregates are all empty, and the myriad phenomena are like an illusion.'
...
Crunch! Swooosh!
The vengeful spirit's head was crushed and eventually incinerated into ashes in the air.
The owner of the hand holding the crushed head was none other than Cheong-ryeong.
Cheong-ryeong, emitting a blood-red gaze, shouted at the whirlpools narrowing in as if to surround her:
– If you're desperate to be annihilated, come at me as much as you want. You young ones.
At her shout, the whirlpools stopped moving as if hesitating.
She thought they were finally feeling fear after she had annihilated about seven entities equivalent to the yellow spirit level, but,
Swooosh!
At that moment, a tremendous amount of death qi spread in all directions.
At this, she frowned and looked.
'Could it be?'
The origin of this was none other than the huge whirlpool.
Cracks suddenly appeared in that whirlpool nearing the end of its transformation, and all the power it had been condensing burst out.
These whirlpools had stopped moving in response to this.
And they all moved towards that thing trying to reveal its form as the cracks widened and split.
– shit!
She had barely diverted their attention, but it was quite troublesome.
If it was like this, there was no point in deliberately deploying the Ghost Realm, the Blood Boundary.
At that very moment.
Swooosh!
Swooosh!
Countless chains emerged from the split cracks and indiscriminately restrained the whirlpools approaching it and the numerous vengeful spirits nearby.
Their strength was so great that the vengeful spirits undergoing transformation couldn't move an inch.
Even the few entities reaching the green spirit level were the same.
Aaaaah!
Kuk!
Even they couldn't resist the chains and soon,
Swoosh!
They were sucked into the place where the cracks had opened while still bound.
She could instinctively guess why this phenomenon occurred.
'Is it trying to be completed?'
Finally, the gu poison was about to be born.
It was trying to fill in the lacking parts by devouring whatever it encountered and transform into the most ideal, no, the worst form.
Just then, a thick chain flew towards her.
Not satisfied with devouring the whirlpools, it was targeting Cheong-ryeong.
– In the end, it failed?
She muttered while looking at the flying chain.
The red thread connecting them was shaking violently.
This was a phenomenon indicating that the life of the master was in a critical state.
If the red thread kept shaking like this and incinerated, she would also be annihilated in the same way.
Swooosh!
The chain tried to coil around her body.
Then she swung her long pipe.
At that moment, the tip of the chain that was about to touch her crumbled and started burning up.
Poof!
Cheong-ryeong's body also followed the crumbling chain and launched towards the whirlpool where the cracks were opening.
Swooosh!
Swooosh!
Numerous chains spewed out to catch her, but,
Puck! Puck!
They were all repelled by the long pipe she swung.
Eventually, she passed through the place where the cracks had opened and entered inside.
In the center of the place where the qi of resentment was swirling like a torrent as if a storm was raging, an entity covered in chains was visible.
The screams of the resentments that had been dragged in first echoed in her ears like a resonance.
Run away. Run away. Run away.
The resentment has reached its end.
A being with deep despair's blue malice is being born.
Green malice.
It meant that its grade had reached the green spirit level.
Originally, it was the worst vengeful spirit that could only be born after a hundred years or when that deep resentment continued, but it was artificially being completed into a gu poison by making them devour each other.
Swoosh!
As even the screaming vengeful spirits were sucked in, the chains covering the entity became thicker.
At this, she snorted and muttered:
– The young one is being presumptuous. As if someone hasn't experienced that.
Along with that, as Cheong-ryeong set foot on the ground, blood droplets surged upward from the center.
With each step, it spread in all directions.
Then, as it collided with the realm of the chained entity, the space rippled here and there, and blue flames rose like tree roots burning.
Crack crack crack!
Cheong-ryeong's blood-red eyes gradually deepened.
– If you don't hand over that kid, you will be annihilated here the moment you are born. You young one.
Goooooo!
The qi greatly intensified.
Right at that moment. As Cheong-ryeong was about to take another step, the chained entity suddenly twisted its body back and forth.
Condensed qi of resentment was strongly spewing out through the gaps.
Clang! Clang!
Was it doing that because the gu poison was about to be completed?
As she was thinking that.
The chains surrounding the creature tightened around itself.
As if strangling itself.
'What?'
The process of transformation was exceedingly bizarre.
As she wondered, cracks suddenly appeared on the chains that had been constricting.
– Crack!
A single crack.
It became two and slowly, rapidly multiplied.
Soon, the cracks reached the point where the chains shattered and clattered to the ground.
Was the completed gu poison finally revealing itself?
– Swoosh!
Cheong-ryeong raised her long pipe and prepared to face it.
At that moment, as all the chains fell off, a figure revealed itself.
It was none other than,
– Kid!?
Mok Gyeong-un.
Her eyes narrowed.
– Gooooooo!
The tremendous death qi emanating from his body was condensed as if it would explode at any moment.
Could it be that the completed gu poison had taken over his body?
Cheong-ryeong spoke with a voice tinged with anger, aiming her long pipe.
– Foolish thing. Were you finally devoured?
At that question, Mok Gyeong-un's lips twitched, then he opened his mouth while looking at Cheong-ryeong.
"I wasn't devoured, I devoured it."
'!!!!!!'
69: Chapter 68: Gu Poison (4)
Mok Gyeong-un, revealing himself from the chains.
Gooooooo!
His appearance was not ordinary.
Could it be that he was devoured by the completed gu poison?
Cheong-ryeong spoke with a voice tinged with anger, aiming her long pipe.
– Foolish thing. Were you finally devoured?
At that question, Mok Gyeong-un's lips twitched, then he opened his mouth while looking at Cheong-ryeong.
"I wasn't devoured, I devoured it."
– !?
At those words, Cheong-ryeong's expression momentarily went blank.
Just by hearing his distinct way of speaking, she could clearly tell that his body hadn't been taken over and it was Mok Gyeong-un himself.
"Why are you like that?"
– … Did you really devour that thing?
At her question, Mok Gyeong-un shrugged and replied:
"As you can see."
– Ha!
Truly astounding.
Even if he had multiple lives, the probability of failure was higher.
But this ignorant kid finally managed to do it.
"It's just that I feel like my stomach will burst from overeating."
– Your stomach will burst?
"Yes. I think I ate a bit too much."
Somehow, after pushing and pulling with the creature, he succeeded in absorbing its qi.
But a problem arose here.
He clearly absorbed the qi, but the resentment and death qi the creature possessed was incomparable to the amount he had received until now.
At Mok Gyeong-un's words, she frowned.
'Come to think of it, this guy is human.'
Cheong-ryeong realized her mistake.
Having been a vengeful spirit for over 100 years, her thinking from when she was human must have become rigid.
The human body could be considered a type of vessel.
Vessels have a limit to what they can handle.
'More important than accepting internal energy is expanding the size of that vessel through enlightenment.'
However, Mok Gyeong-un lacked enlightenment.
He hadn't grasped the method of utilizing qi as a top expert, and even though he had learned the secret of the Moon Sword Technique, which could be called the secret of the peerless swordless technique, his understanding of the sword was low.
If he had gained enlightenment step by step through the normal path, the limit of internal energy he could accept would have naturally increased as well.
But now, Mok Gyeong-un was not like that at all.
Cheong-ryeong spoke with a somewhat serious voice:
– Expel the qi you can't handle right now.
"Pardon?"
– Too much is as bad as too little. If you accept qi to a level your body can't handle, it will instead become poison to you, kid.
"Ah. Is that so?"
– Yes.
"Then it would be better to pass on the excess qi."
– What?
As she was puzzled, Mok Gyeong-un bent his waist and searched for something on the ground.
She wondered what he was looking for, and Mok Gyeong-un exclaimed "oh" and lifted up what he found.
It was none other than a skull with the face and forehead area shattered and in a mess.
Strangely, an old talisman was attached to the skull's head, and although it seemed quite old, it was curious how it was maintained without damage.
'It must be because of the spell power.'
She guessed it was probably that.
Of course, that guess was correct.
Mok Gyeong-un removed the old talisman with the word "chain" written on it from the skull he was holding.
And.
Wooooo!
– What are you doing now?
No. Not only is he not expelling it, but why is he infusing qi into that thing?
In her ghostly eyes, she saw an entity crouching inside that skull.
It was a vengeful spirit hiding in fear.
– Why are you giving qi to that…
Before Cheong-ryeong could finish her words.
As death qi was already injected into the skull, the vengeful spirit inside reacted.
Gooooooo!
Like dried seafood regaining vitality when water is added, the crouching vengeful spirit absorbed the death qi and soon revealed itself.
It was none other than,
Clank clank!
A girl with a cold impression, wearing thin chains like clothes all over her body, revealed herself.
Judging from her youthful face, she looked to be at most around 15 years old.
A peculiar thing was that half of her hair had turned white, making it truly half-white.
Seeing her appearance, Cheong-ryeong frowned and said:
– What? It was a wench?
Hearing those words, the girl bit her lips tightly, then suddenly shouted:
– Who are you calling a wench? This young master is a man.
– … What?
At the girl's words, Cheong-ryeong raised an eyebrow.
Then she muttered in a tone of disbelief:
– You're joking, right?
No matter how she looked at it, it was a wench.
However,
– This young master is a man!
The girl, who was getting heated claiming to be a man, was stared at intently by Cheong-ryeong, who then reached out her hand.
Then the girl's body was forcibly sucked into Cheong-ryeong's hand.
Swish!
– Uh?
Puck!
Cheong-ryeong, grasping the girl's neck, spoke in a somewhat chilly voice:
– How dare a young thing raise her voice to an adult. Do you want to die so badly?
– !!!!!!!
The girl was momentarily speechless at Cheong-ryeong's tremendous overwhelming presence.
It seemed that vengeful spirits could sense each other's rough grade, and the girl could also guess it from the qi emanating from Cheong-ryeong.
However, she didn't seem to be the type to yield easily as expected,
– E-even if I look like this, it's been about fifteen years since I died, so in age, I'm thirty-three… Kuk.
Cheong-ryeong's hand tightened.
She pulled the girl close and said,
– If you don't want to hear "young thing" from me, come back after living a hundred more years.
At Cheong-ryeong's words, the girl's expression stiffened.
Just from what she said, the girl could guess how many years she had lived and what her grade was.
Cheong-ryeong turned her head towards Mok Gyeong-un and said:
– Why did you revive this one by giving her qi? You should have just killed her.
"She seemed useful."
– Useful?
At Mok Gyeong-un's words, the girl frowned.
Then she said to Mok Gyeong-un:
– Who are you calling useful right now? A mere human…
Grip!
Kuk!
– Who told you to open your mouth.
The girl, who couldn't speak while being suppressed by Cheong-ryeong's grip, wasn't actually suffocating, but it felt like it.
At this, Mok Gyeong-un held the skull he was holding with both hands.
Then, showing it to the girl, he said:
"This is your head, right?"
The girl glanced at Cheong-ryeong.
At this, Cheong-ryeong nodded with a displeased expression.
Then the girl answered:
– … Yes. It is, so just leave it alone.
"Why?"
– What's there to gain by messing with a dead person's bones.
"Something to gain? There is."
– What?
Crack!
At that moment, cracks appeared on the girl's skull.
Seeing this, the girl panicked and reached out her hand, shouting:
– S-stop!
"Why?"
– No. Why are you trying to break that?
Unlike the girl who was desperately trying to stop him, Cheong-ryeong was enjoying it with twitching lips.
She had wondered why this kid revived this wench, but it seemed he did it to torment her again in this way.
That skull could be considered the origin of that wench.
If it was shattered, she would suffer tremendous pain.
'Anyway, he's a vicious one.'
While that was happening, the girl shook off Cheong-ryeong's hand and tried to rush at Mok Gyeong-un.
However, she couldn't shake it off because she was outmatched in grade.
Rather, by Mok Gyeong-un's hand, the skull,
Crack!
– Aaaaaargh!
The girl let out a heart-wrenching scream.
The pain of having one's living body shattered was hard to describe in words.
But here, she witnessed a sight that was not only painful but also shocking.
Sizzle sizzle!
Mok Gyeong-un finely crushed her skull with his hand and put the powder into his mouth, not just holding it.
Even Cheong-ryeong didn't expect this, and her eyes widened.
Who would have thought he would put bone powder into his mouth?
– Y-youuuu!
The girl screamed.
Mok Gyeong-un didn't care and rubbed the shattered skull fragments with both palms, crushing them even finer and putting all the remaining powder into his mouth.
– You bast… Aaaaaargh!
At that moment, something strange happened.
The girl's spirit body shook violently as if she was having a seizure.
Then, a red thread-like thing appeared from the girl's body and connected to Mok Gyeong-un.
– !?
Seeing this, Cheong-ryeong was dumbfounded.
'This guy…'
He ate the origin of the vengeful spirit and forcibly made it his supreme-ruler of gluttony.
It was just a simple act, but the result was not simple at all.
How could something like this happen?
It was unbelievable even after seeing it.
On the other hand, Mok Gyeong-un's mouth curled up bitterly as he saw that the attempt he had made on a whim really worked.
'It worked.'
If given the chance, he wanted to test it out.
To see if his guess was correct.
But it really worked.
– This… This is…
The girl couldn't hide her bewilderment as she looked at the red thread.
Having been a vengeful spirit for a long time, she naturally came to know everything without anyone teaching her.
So she could immediately tell that this was the thread of a supreme-ruler of gluttony, establishing a master-servant relationship.
– How can this…
The girl tried to grab the red thread with a flushed face.
But there was no way it could be grasped.
Swish swish!
– This young master! How can this young master become a lowly human's supreme-ruler of gluttony!
Mok Gyeong-un asked the girl who was frantically waving her hands:
"What's your name?"
– Shut up! You bastard, what are you to this young ma…
"What's your name?"
The girl, who was about to get fiercely angry, suddenly softened her expression at Mok Gyeong-un's repeated question.
Then, her lips twitched, and she soon spoke to Mok Gyeong-un with a much gentler face:
– It's Gyu Soha. Master.
'This one?'
Cheong-ryeong was inwardly surprised.
Even if they become a supreme-ruler of gluttony, vengeful spirits don't readily reveal their own names.
The reason was because of the power that names hold.
When one becomes a spirit body, they approach the realm of supreme-rulers, and then they become bound by their true name.
So vengeful spirits don't reveal their names.
But as if completely submitting, even her expression changed and she revealed her true name.
Mok Gyeong-un looked at the girl and said:
"It's a good name."
– Thank you. Master.
"Soha. Can you become my loyal dog?"
– Ah! That is my utmost desire.
At Mok Gyeong-un's words, the girl showed an intense expression as if moved, and Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue as if it was unbelievable.
This was even more than a demonic beast.
In the end, even though she didn't reach it, a green spirit who almost became a blue spirit grade was submitting to this extent.
It was a sight of submission almost down to the roots of her mind.
'… Is it the influence of the strengthened death qi?'
Gooooooo!
It was clearly visible to her ghostly eyes.
Mok Gyeong-un's death qi had become incomparably stronger than before.
But even after infusing enough qi to restore this Gyu Soha to this extent, it was still overflowing like this?
Moreover, she had been feeling strange from earlier, and the qi seemed to be subtly overlapping.
So she asked:
– You… Your qi is a bit strange. Why does it seem to be overlapping?
"Ah. Can Cheong-ryeong see it?"
– See what?
"A new mnemonic came to my mind anyway."
– A new mnemonic?
"The Eight Forms of Thought Destruction."
– What?
She couldn't hide her surprise.
In the midst of that, he came up with a new mnemonic for the Eight Forms of Thought Destruction?
So Cheong-ryeong asked:
– What mnemonic did you come up with?
At her question, Mok Gyeong-un gestured to Soha and said:
"The myriad phenomena are like an illusion, the acupoints have no extremes, the two forms are like a dream, the five aggregates are all empty, the myriad phenomena are an illusion, the five aggregates are all empty."
'!?'
Hearing this, Cheong-ryeong's pupils shook.
'This guy… He realized a mnemonic I didn't know.'
The reason Cheong-ryeong was surprised was exactly that.
What Mok Gyeong-un said was a mnemonic she had never known before.
Even she, who possessed a natural talent, had only grasped four forms in the Eight Forms of Thought Destruction.
But this mnemonic was something she didn't know.
She asked, hiding her inwardly excited heart:
– Ahem… This is a form I haven't mastered. What profound principle does it hold?
"I became able to disperse the danjeon into two places."
– What?
"I could disperse the qi near the Baihui acupoint in the head and near the center close to the heart."
'!!!!!!'
At Mok Gyeong-un's words, she showed an expression of disbelief.
Right now, Mok Gyeong-un wouldn't know what he was talking about.
'Ha.'
Until they surpass the wall, all martial artists cannot escape the shackles of the lower danjeon.
But the moment they gain enlightenment and surpass the wall, they open the middle danjeon.
Those who have opened the middle danjeon like this could be said to be extremely few even in the martial world.
But this kid, without enlightenment, says that his middle danjeon has opened due to the profound principle of the Eight Forms of Thought Destruction.
70: Chapter 69: True Meaning (1)
Inside a room with walls covered in talismans and numerous ritual instruments.
A white-haired Taoist priest who had been meditating with his eyes closed inside a formation of candles arranged in the direction of the five elements opened his eyes.
'!?'
Shaking pupils.
The sharp-featured white-haired Taoist priest couldn't hide his bewilderment.
'It can't be.'
The white-haired Taoist priest, gripped by a bad feeling, got up from his seat.
Then he left the room and walked down the corridor.
The feeling just now was the backlash that should have returned when the spell he had set up was broken.
But that couldn't be.
'Even if the gu poison was completed, it couldn't have broken this chief's technique.'
Eventually, the white-haired Taoist priest stood in front of a door.
The priest opened the door.
The expression of the priest who opened the door stiffened.
On the floor of the room was drawn what seemed to be a formation for a barrier, and inside it was a thick jar with a talisman attached and chains tied to it.
However,
Tremble tremble!
As if anger had surged, the white-haired old man's beard trembled violently.
And for good reason, as the talisman attached to the candle was torn off and the chains were severed.
The old man approached closely and grabbed the severed chains with trembling hands.
Then he closed his eyes and chanted a spell.
"Connecting the origin to the profound realm, the supreme beings without masters, urgent urgent as commanded."
Tremble tremble!
The chains shook violently.
'Just what happened? Show me the reason.'
Swish swish!
Something was drawn in the mind of the old man with his eyes closed.
It was the process of countless vengeful spirits devouring each other and transforming.
On the days when the Corpse Blood Valley was conducted, he checked this periodically two or three times a day to see if there were any problems.
Wasn't it just like that until now?
But what on earth happened?
At that moment, something completely black was seen approaching the gu poison that was being completed.
"The supreme beings without masters, urgent urgent as commanded!"
'Show me. Just what is it?'
He needed to know what variable had occurred.
As he infused more spell power through the incantation like that,
Crack!
At that moment, blood flowed from the old man's left eye, and the broken chains he was holding completely turned to powder and scattered.
The old man momentarily staggered and was pushed back.
'…'
What was that just now?
Something vicious covered in the qi of death intervened with the gu poison that was being completed.
It definitely wasn't an oddity in the form of a dead soul like a vengeful spirit.
In that case,
'Did a man-eating beast break through the talisman barrier of the cliff and enter?'
The old man wiped the blood tears flowing down with his sleeve.
If it was a man-eating beast that could break the talisman of the cliff and touch a vengeful spirit that had transformed and risen in grade to that extent, even though it wasn't complete, it would surpass a monstrous beast.
'Could it be that a demonic beast or a devil beast appeared?'
No.
A devil beast was too much.
If it had reached that level, he would have noticed it right away no matter how far the distance was.
If a devil beast appeared here, even if it was a martial sect, the sacrifice would have been considerable.
Grr!
But even if it wasn't that level of grade, he couldn't contain his anger.
The gu poison that he had been trying to slowly complete over a span of 15 years had turned to foam in an instant.
Bang!
The old man roughly pushed open the door and left the building, passing through the corridor.
Someone was seen kneeling there.
It was none other than diviner Jo Ui-gong.
As the old man emerged, Jo Ui-gong raised his head with a delighted face.
"Master, no, Pavilion Master!"
The sharp-featured white-haired old man.
He was In Seo-ok, the master of the Primal Killing, which was in charge of sorcery consultation under the Heaven and Earth Society.
And he was also Jo Ui-gong's master and a Sun-level, one of only fourteen sorcerers who had reached the highest level of sorcery.
Excluding the Six Directions supreme-ruler, who was called the pinnacle among the Divine Sun Moon Technique, he was a skilled practitioner who was unrivaled by anyone in sorcery.
"Pavilion Master. Are you reporting this to the sect leader?"
At Jo Ui-gong's question, Pavilion Master In Seo-ok shook his head with a terrifyingly stiff face.
At this, Jo Ui-gong couldn't hide his disappointment.
Among the talents he had seen so far, that guy was the best.
That's why he was trying to get him out of the Corpse Blood Valley no matter what, even by requesting the pavilion master.
But it wasn't that his mind had changed.
'Ahh…'
While that was happening, In Seo-ok said:
"That's not the problem right now."
"… What do you mean by that?"
"A high-grade man-eating beast sprinkled ashes on the fully cooked rice."
"Don't tell me…"
"This chief's Spirit supreme-ruler Gu Poison Technique has been broken."
'!!!!'
Diviner Jo Ui-gong couldn't hide his shock.
The Spirit supreme-ruler Gu Poison Technique was something his master and chief In Seo-ok had devoted himself to for a whole 15 years, wasn't it?
"How can such a thing happen? No matter how much of a man-eating beast it is, breaking through the Chief's barrier and entering…"
"It means it's above a demonic beast."
"A demonic beast!"
A man-eating beast that surpasses the grade of a vicious beast and a monstrous beast.
Even a monstrous beast requires at least sorcery to deal with, but if it's a demonic beast beyond that, it would be difficult to handle even for a sorcerer who has received the title of Bangwol, depending on the type.
'Wait a moment, the cliff valley where the Spirit supreme-ruler Gu Poison Technique is being performed…'
It was adjacent to the Corpse Blood Valley.
Even if the Spirit supreme-ruler Gu Poison Technique wasn't broken, if a demonic beast appeared on that mountain, it was a situation that couldn't be left unchecked.
Pavilion Master In Seo-ok clicked his tongue and said:
"Immediately prepare talismans and ritual instruments and get ready to go to the Corpse Blood Valley."
At his master's order, diviner Jo Ui-gong thought to himself that it was fortunate.
Although his master was upset because the Spirit supreme-ruler Gu Poison Technique was broken, this could be used as a justification to stop the barriers of the Corpse Blood Valley.
...
Mok Gyeong-un entered reverse cycling to absorb the remaining death qi here.
Seeing him like this, the eyes of Gyu Soha, who had become his new supreme-ruler of gluttony, gleamed with interest.
And for good reason, as in Gyu Soha's ghostly eyes, Mok Gyeong-un's qi was not circulating normally but in reverse.
Not only that, he was circulating the qi of death, not the qi of yang or life.
'Is the Master really a living human?'
That had been a question all along anyway.
It was a strange thing for a human to accept that tremendous death qi and still be fine like this.
Gyu Soha glanced to the side.
Cheong-ryeong was sitting leisurely on a large rock, smoking a long pipe.
At this, Gyu Soha carefully approached and opened her mouth.
– Ahem. Excuse me…
– Excuse me? Hmph! Call me Eo…
As she was about to tell the girl to call her "–Eoreushin" (respectful term for an elder), Cheong-ryeong stared intently at Soha and snorted, saying:
Just call me -Eonni (older sister).
Whether she was a green spirit or whatever, it was quite embarrassing to be called "Eoreushin" by that young wench.
Of course, even calling her "Eonni" had a huge gap in years and grade.
However,
– This…
– This what? Are you going to impudently blurt out "This young master" again?
– This one is a man… -yo.
– … If you keep spouting nonsense, I'll just annihilate you whether that guy made you his supreme-ruler of gluttony or not.
– No. This one is…
Cheong-ryeong raised her long pipe with a snap.
At this, Gyu Soha tightly closed her eyes and raised both hands upward.
Although her half-white hair was peculiar, anyone would see her as a girl of about fifteen.
– Don't talk nonsense in front of me. Tsk! If you utter one more word about being a man or whatever, I won't show any mercy.
Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue and waved her hand as if telling her to scram.
In the end, Soha couldn't even ask what she wanted to ask and couldn't regain her pride.
At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un opened his eyes as if he had finished absorbing all the qi.
"Phew."
– Did you absorb everything?
"Yes. Gathering the remaining qi was quite a lot."
Gathering all the death qi remaining on the cliff, he was able to collect at least as much as killing about fifty people.
It could be said to be much more efficient than hunting around the entire mountain.
'The qi has stabilized to some extent.'
Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue inwardly while looking at Mok Gyeong-un.
He finally made that much death qi his own through reverse cycling.
The level of his middle and lower danjeon had almost reached the perfection of the peak in terms of internal energy, surpassing it to reach the extreme.
'It's absurd.'
The order was completely messed up.
He had almost no understanding or enlightenment about qi, so he didn't even know how to handle sword qi or explosive force, but his internal energy level had reached the extreme of the peak.
This was also due to the strange profound principle of the Eight Forms of Thought Destruction.
'… It's like having the internal energy of the extreme peak doubled. However, in the case of the middle danjeon, since it can only be obtained after surpassing the wall, its potential is also unknown.'
Right now, even she had difficulty definitively determining Mok Gyeong-un's exact level.
She was certainly curious.
Just how high-level experts this guy could handle.
While that was happening, Mok Gyeong-un asked:
"How much time has passed?"
– Uh… Since the Master has been here…
– If you're asking how much time is left until dawn, there's not even an hour left. At most, about three-quarters?
Interrupting Gyu Soha's words, Cheong-ryeong spoke.
At her words, Mok Gyeong-un looked up at the night sky.
Indeed, the sky that had been completely dark had somehow changed to a pale indigo color.
"Hmm."
Contrary to the plan, it seemed he had wasted a lot of time here.
Of course, even so, it wasn't a loss.
He had collected several times more death qi than killing the boys searching for flags, and he had even gained a green spirit with powerful strength.
However, there wasn't much time left now.
Mok Gyeong-un licked his lips.
"It's unfortunate."
– What is?
"I was trying to leave only seven, but three quarters of an hour is too tight."
At Mok Gyeong-un's words, Cheong-ryeong clicked her tongue.
Anyway, his ideas were different.
Originally, the purpose was to secure more death qi, but now it seemed that it wasn't just that, but also to drastically reduce the total number of people.
Cheong-ryeong, who had been clicking her tongue, said:
– Instead of that, you should find the flag and teammates first.
If he was simply looking for a flag, it would be fine, but he had to find the one with the other half of the sword technique mnemonic written on it.
If he was unlucky, he might only find flags with the same mnemonics.
And he also needed guys who were worth accepting as teammates.
So he had to hurry.
At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un took something out of his bosom.
– What are you doing when you're busy?
"I have to insert it again."
What Mok Gyeong-un took out was none other than the needles of the Golden Gate Lock that he had removed from the acupoints of his spine.
If he didn't insert them again, it would arouse suspicion.
– I can do that for you.
"Pardon?"
Whoosh!
As soon as the questioning ended, Cheong-ryeong lightly waved her hand.
Then the needles of the Golden Gate Lock on Mok Gyeong-un's palm flew and simultaneously pierced the meridian points on his spine.
Puck puck puck!
"Hiss."
Inserting the needles was painful, just like removing them.
It hurts to insert even one, but inserting them simultaneously like this, even Mok Gyeong-un, who had strong endurance for pain, couldn't help but let out a loud breath.
Seeing this, Cheong-ryeong spoke with a satisfied expression:
– I can do this much for you, although a tool is needed to remove them. But you…
Cheong-ryeong's gaze turned towards Mok Gyeong-un's chest.
That was near where his middle danjeon was located.
Unlike the lower danjeon that was cut off and scattered when the meridians were blocked, the middle danjeon was still alive.
...
Like that, after quarter an hour,
Mok Gyeong-un discovered a group that had secured a flag.
There were exactly eight of them, and they seemed to have successfully defended the flag a couple of times, as the corpses of nine boys were scattered around.
A boy who recognized Mok Gyeong-un immediately laughed and said upon discovering him:
"Hey. Where did you sell your teammates and why are you wandering alone?"
"Hahahahaha."
"That's right."
At his question, the teammates with him all sneered in unison.
They showed this attitude because they were confident that Mok Gyeong-un alone couldn't handle them as dawn was not far away.
After laughing together like that, the boy who provoked Mok Gyeong-un waved his hands and said:
"We're full here, so get lost."
"You're full here."
"Are you deaf? I said get lost quickly. Ah, right. There's only about two ke left until dawn, so I don't know if you can even find a group worth accepting…"
Thud!
"Urk!"
Thump!
At that moment, the boy collapsed in the middle of his speech.
Mok Gyeong-un was in a posture of having thrown something, and a rock was embedded in the center of the boy's face.
He seemed to have died instantly after being hit by it.
"Wh-what is this…"
"How is this possible when we can't even use internal energy?"
The boys who were the boy's teammates couldn't hide their bewilderment.
Who would have imagined that he would kill a teammate just by throwing a mere rock?
While that was happening, Mok Gyeong-un raised the corners of his mouth and smirked.
"Oh dear… A spot opened up in your group."
71: Chapter 70: True Meaning (2)
Killing Valley → Vermilion Slaughter Valley
Esoteric Gate → Esoteric Realm Gate
Also, I noticed some terms being mistranslated in chapter 67. In fact, Gyu Soha is a green spirit (4th-level), whose strength almost reaches to a Blue spirit. And, as you all know, Cheong-ryeon is a Blue spirit (5th-level).
To remind everyone about the spirit levels, here's a recap, from lowest to highest (at this point).
Red
Orange
Yellow
Green
Blue
***
"Ah...There's an empty spot in that garden."
The boys were dumbfounded by Mok Gyeong-un's mocking words.
Who could have predicted that someone would throw a rock and kill a teammate in such an urgent situation?
Mok Gyeong-un spoke again to the shocked boys.
"What will you do?"
"...…"
The boys were at a loss for words at this question.
At most, there were only two hours left until sunrise.
If they were lucky and someone showed up, they could replace the dead boy. But if no one appeared…
"shit."
"What should we do?"
The boys muttered softly.
They were angry that a boy who had shared life and death with them had died, but they had to think rationally.
They couldn't fully blame him, as he too had made what he thought was the right decision.
"There are still two hours left."
"That's true, but what if no one comes?"
"...…"
"He's right. Let's just accept him."
"But..."
"Do you think that guy will give up?"
"Still, even if it's just this once, we have a sense of loyalty to this guy who's been with us….."
At that moment, they saw Mok Gyeong-un picking up another rock.
He wasn't just picking up one, but grabbing as many as he could hold.
The boy who was speaking swallowed dryly and said,
"...Let's accept him. That bastard picked up rocks."
"That crazy bastard."
If they didn't accept him, he looked ready to throw rocks at the other boys too.
In the end, they had no choice but to accept Mok Gyeong-un as a teammate.
Mok Gyeong-un smiled brightly as if nothing had happened and said,
"Thanks everyone. You're all so kind."
'Son of a bitch.'
They all cursed Mok Gyeong-un inwardly.
If only he hadn't shown up now, they could have gotten a result satisfactory to everyone.
They had learned what teamwork was by uniting as one.
But now, they had to begrudgingly accept this crazy bastard in order to pass the gate.
-Swoosh!
At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un placed his hand on the flagpole.
One boy suppressed his emotions as much as possible and said,
"Be careful. Even with two hours left, the flag must remain intact."
"I know."
"If you know, then don't touch it."
Despite the boy's words, Mok Gyeong-un didn't stop touching the flag.
The boy was angry but couldn't say anything more.
Seeing the monstrous strength Mok Gyeong-un displayed in the steel bead competition and how he almost pierced someone's face with a rock just now, the boy didn't have the confidence to pick a fight.
'....Let's see what happens once the Golden Gate Lock are released.'
According to the information, the Golden Gate Lock would be removed once they got past the initial part of the gate.
When that happened, he was determined to deal with this guy one way or another.
As he was thinking this, Mok Gyeong-un opened his mouth.
"By the way, did you find any other flags besides this one?"
"Other flags?"
The boy shook his head at Mok Gyeong-un's question.
They had been lucky.
After finding this flag, two teams had attacked them, but they had defended it to the end.
"We never lost and protected this flag."
The boy spoke with pride in his voice.
At this, Mok Gyeong-un sighed.
"Whew."
"What? What's with that sigh? You lost not only your flag but also your teammates."
One boy finally couldn't hold back and confronted Mok Gyeong-un about this.
Then Mok Gyeong-un shook his head and approached the boy.
The boy flinched for a moment but then stood his ground.
"What! What are you trying to do? Are you in a bad mood? But it's the truth. And although we had no choice but to accept you, to pass the gate, fighting is unnecessary, at least…"
-Smack! Crack!
At that moment, the boy's neck was twisted.
Without finishing his words, the boy collapsed with his life extinguished.
'!!!!!'
The other boys were stunned.
"T-This crazy bastard, is he really insane?"
"No matter what, this is too much. The sun will rise soon, so what will we do if you kill a teammate like this? Are you in your right mind…"
-Thwack! Crack!
At that moment, Mok Gyeong-un's hand struck the neck of the shouting boy.
With the sound of muscles and bones snapping, the boy's neck was bent at an angle as he let out a dying groan and passed away.
Having already killed two, the boys couldn't hide their consternation.
'H-He's lost it.'
'what the …. is he doing?'
Did he really have no intention of passing the gate?
As they were thinking this, Mok Gyeong-un reached out towards another one of them.
-Smack!
"Eek!"
One boy was caught, unable to dodge in time.
The other boys' minds went blank.
The only thought in their heads was that in order to survive, they had to run away no matter what.
So without helping the captured boy, they fled.
Mok Gyeong-un threw a rock with all his might at one of the fleeing boys.
-Thwack!
"Urk!"
The flying rock pierced through the back of the head of one of the running boys.
Naturally, the boy who was hit in the head died and collapsed on the spot.
-Thud!
Mok Gyeong-un picked up another rock, but the remaining three had already scattered and entered the bushes.
'Getting all of them will be tough. Then…'
"Just deal with two of them for me."
With those words, Mok Gyeong-un threw a rock with full force towards the bushes.
From within the bushes, a scream of anguish was heard, followed by the sound of someone collapsing.
It seemed he had hit his mark.
The captured boy, trembling with fear, said,
"W-Why are you doing this? You know what will happen if we can't pass the gate. If you kill teammates like this…"
"You guys won't be able to pass anyway."
"What?"
"I said you won't pass."
"W-What kind of nonsense is that? If only you hadn't done this…"
"You were so focused on protecting it that you didn't properly examine the flag."
"What are you…"
-Smack!
Mok Gyeong-un grabbed the confused boy's head with both hands.
The boy begged for his life,
"S-Spare…"
-Crack!
But Mok Gyeong-un snapped his neck without changing his expression.
Then, grabbing the pole of the flag stuck in the ground, he crumpled it with one hand and muttered,
-Crunch!
"Things have gotten a bit pressing."
There was only one hour left.
In that time, he had to find a different type of flag.
The characters engraved on this flag were identical to the ones Mok Gyeong-un had memorized.
...
Same time, halfway up the mountain.
With not much time left until sunrise, two teams were facing off in a battle.
"Huff…Huff…"
Rough breathing could be heard from all around, as everyone seemed exhausted.
Peculiarly, this confrontation was particularly different from other typical flag defense battles.
That's because both sides had flags.
One side had firmly planted their flag into the blocked mountain wall and formed a semicircular formation to protect it, while the other side had two people guarding their flag as they carried it around, with the remaining six targeting the semicircular formation.
'This isn't good.'
On the defending side were Mo Ha-rang of the Demon Fire Hall and Mok Yu-cheon, the youngest of the Yeon Mok Sword Manor.
Mo Ha-rang, who had set out to find a new flag, somehow ended up joining Mok Yu-cheon's team and had been defending the flag until now.
Seeing how bright the sky had gotten, there wasn't much time left until sunrise.
If they were lucky and someone showed up, they could replace the dead boy. But if no one came…
"Shit."
Mok Yu-cheon cursed inwardly as he glared at the opposing team.
The shirtless boy wielding a stone ax with unique patterns all over his body was Yeom Ga of the Vermillion Slaughter Cave.
'That bastard.'
Mok Yu-cheon glared at him and cursed inwardly.
He didn't understand why they were targeting the flag.
Because one of the boys guarding the flag had a broken flagpole tucked into his belt.
That meant…
'They already found both types, so why are they doing this?'
It was completely incomprehensible.
If they kept fighting like this and even one teammate was taken out, they would fail the gate.
Taking on such a risk just to reduce their numbers by one seemed like a foolish decision.
Mok Yu-cheon whispered quietly to the boys next to him and Mo Ha-rang.
"Let's hold out just a little longer."
At those words, the boys and Mo Ha-rang nodded.
Once the sun rose, this kind of behavior would become meaningless.
However, Yeom Ga of the Vermillion Slaughter Cave faction sneered at their strategy.
'You think you can just hold out?'
If that's what they thought, it was a miscalculation.
They had a surefire strategy.
It had already been proven effective by wiping out three teams using this giant wolf monster.
Yeom Ga raised his left hand.
Then…
"Waaaaaaaahhhh!"
"Yaaaaaaaahhh!"
The two boys guarding the flag suddenly began screaming loudly.
Not only them, but the boys who were fighting also raised their voices and shouted even louder.
'What the?'
'Crazy! Why are they suddenly doing that?'
The defending side couldn't understand why they were acting this way.
They were screaming way too loudly.
Since they were halfway up the mountain, their shouts echoed through the surroundings.
'What kind of ploy is this?'
Mo Ha-rang of the Demon Fire Hall glared at Yeom Ga of the Vermillion Slaughter Cave, who was smirking.
As soon as that scrawny bastard raised his hand, they started doing this.
There had to be an ulterior motive behind it.
'...…'
In the end, she decided she couldn't just leave them be.
Rather than simply focusing on defending the flag, she thought it would be better to kill one or two of them.
That would make them back off.
She gripped her sharply honed stone dagger tightly and said in a low voice,
"Don't any of you step outside the semicircular formation, no matter what."
"What, you can't mean…"
Mok Yu-cheon urgently tried to dissuade her, but…
-Swoosh!
Mo Ha-rang had already dashed towards one of the boys.
Although her energy points were blocked, everyone knew of her incredible dagger skills that defied imagination for a woman.
So when she made her move, they stepped back to maintain distance.
This was the moment.
'I've been waiting for this!'
Yeom Ga of the Vermillion Slaughter Cave didn't miss this opening and charged at the boys forming the semicircular formation.
Mo Ha-rang changed directions in response.
'I knew it.'
She had also anticipated this.
She was the strongest one among them.
She figured someone like Yeom Ga would try to lure her away before targeting the semicircular formation.
-Whoosh!
Mo Ha-rang threw her sharply honed stone dagger at Yeom Ga's back as he was running.
Then one of the boys from Yeom Ga's team threw himself to block it.
-Stab!
"Urk!"
The stone dagger lodged between the boy's left chest and shoulder.
But thanks to this, Yeom Ga was able to swing his stone ax down at the head of one of the boys in the semicircular formation without hindrance.
"No!"
At that moment, Mok Yu-cheon slid and aimed for Yeom Ga's legs.
Yeom Ga chuckled at this and threw his body to the side, hurling the stone ax.
'Huh?'
Yeom Ga's real target wasn't the boys.
'This is bad!'
It was none other than the flag they were protecting.
The hurled stone ax spun as it flew towards the flagpole.
It was sheer luck.
The stone ax grazed the flagpole and bounced off.
Although it got a little nicked, thankfully the flagpole didn't break because it was only grazed.
Seeing this, the boys felt relieved.
"Phew."
If that had snapped, they would have had to switch from defending the flag to trying to take the flag from them at all costs.
'I'll kill him!'
-Swoosh! Tap tap tap!
Mo Ha-rang of the Demon Fire Hall dashed towards Yeom Ga.
Compared to the other guys, this one in particular had to die now.
He was the most troublesome, using his wits and not hesitating to resort to any means necessary.
"Demon Fire Hall girl. Are you saying you want to take me on?"
Yeom Ga, who had rolled and gotten back up after throwing the ax, took a fighting stance as Mo Ha-rang charged at him.
Putting aside the fact that she was a girl, she was one of the opponents he most wanted to face off against.
Right at that moment…
-Thump! Thump!
A strange sound was heard from somewhere.
The two people who were charging at each other stopped in their tracks.
The boys from the two sides who had been confronting and fighting also stopped.
-Thud! Thud!
The sound of the ground shaking.
It felt like something massive was approaching.
The day had brightened considerably, so they could see a giant shadow forming between the bushes.
Then the boys on Yeom Ga's side moved in unison as if they had been waiting for this.
They ran towards the two boys who had the flag, as if taking shelter.
-Rustle rustle!
At that moment, a massive creature appeared from behind them.
'!!!!!!'
Everyone's faces stiffened.
-Slurp!
The creature that appeared, drooling profusely.
It had blue fur on its head, pointed ears, and sharp hook-shaped claws.
Its appearance resembled a wolf, but its size…
"W-What is that?"
"what the …. is this?"
It looked nearly three times larger than an ordinary wolf.
It was a monster that seemed like it could swallow even an ox whole in one bite, emanating a tremendous pressure.
Seeing this, Mok Yu-cheon broke out in a cold sweat.
'It…It got even bigger.'
While wandering the mountain and struggling, he had encountered that monster.
He was lucky to survive it, but compared to when he saw it then, it had gotten much bigger.
What is happened happened in the meantime?
"T-That's the monster wolf."
Another boy who had been on the same team as Mok Yu-cheon spoke in a voice filled with fear.
Two of their teammates had fallen victim to that thing, so they knew better than anyone how dangerous it was.
-Tap tap tap!
At that moment, Yeom Ga ran and stuck close to where their flag was.
Seeing this, the boys forming the semicircular formation on Mo Ha-rang's side had puzzled expressions.
They were closer to that monster than Mo Ha-rang's team.
In this situation where they should abandon the flag and flee for their lives, they were sticking close to the flag as if determined to defend it at all costs.
'What's going on?'
As they were finding this strange, the unthinkable happened.
-Swoosh!
The monster wolf, which they thought would attack Yeom Ga's team first, avoided them and moved.
And then, it approached not Mo Ha-rang and the boys forming the semicircular formation in front of the mountain wall, but Mok Yu-cheon and the boys?
'What the?'
'Why?'
They couldn't fathom the reason.
Why was that monster passing them by and targeting Mo Ha-rang's team?
Was it discriminating between people?
'The flag?'
But there was one person who roughly guessed the reason.
It was none other than Mo Ha-rang.
Mo Ha-rang found it odd that despite the appearance of such a monster, they weren't on guard and instead stuck close to their flag.
So on a hunch, she shouted,
"Stick close to the flag!"
At that moment, the monster wolf charged at them, who were backing up towards the flag, at a tremendous speed that didn't match its massive body.
"Ahhh!"
"Eek!"
"R-Run!"
Everyone frantically threw themselves aside as the monster wolf charged, regardless of whether they were close to the flag or not. However, one boy ended up getting trampled by the monster wolf.
-Thud!
"Ack!"
Blood spewed from the trampled boy's mouth. Not only was the weight of that giant body a factor, but the hook-shaped claws dug into his back and tore his internal organs.
"Shit!"
Seeing this, Mok Yu-cheon twisted his body, stopping mid-escape. His instincts were telling his legs to run away, but that boy had accepted him as a teammate and they had shared life and death together. That's why he couldn't just abandon him and flee.
-Smack!
Mok Yu-cheon picked up a rock from the ground and threw it at the monster's face.
-Thwack!
The monster wolf, hit in the face with the rock, jerked its head around.
-Kwueeeek! Kwueeeeek!
It let out a pig-like squeal, and the moment they heard it, goosebumps shot up all over their bodies. The monster wolf stared directly at Mok Yu-cheon.
'shit.'
Had he done something foolish? Should he have just run away instead?
Right as he was thinking this…
-Swoosh!
At that moment, someone leaped high, landed on the monster wolf's back, climbed up to its neck, and tried to drive a sharply honed stone dagger into its eye. It was none other than Mo Ha-rang.
However…
-Swipe!
Before Mo Ha-rang's dagger could pierce its eye, the monster wolf violently swiped at the area above its head with the opposite front paw. She tried to jump off and dodge, but it grazed her back. Flesh was torn from her back where it was caught by the hook-shaped claws, and blood instantly soaked her back.
And then…
-Thud thud thud!
She tumbled several times.
"Ha-rang!"
After tumbling, Mo Ha-rang staggered and tried to get up. But having suffered such an injury with her energy points sealed and no protection, it was nearly impossible for her to easily get back on her feet.
-Thud!
One of her knees sank to the ground. Seeing this, Yeom Ga's teammates huddled around their flag and laughed mockingly, feeling elated. Was this what they called borrowed murder? They had already turned three teams into food for that monster wolf using this method.
'Don't feel too resentful, Demon Fire Hall wench.'
Yeom Ga of the Vermillion Slaughter Cave curled his lips into a cruel smile. Here, there was no such thing as being fair and square. The true winner was the one who survived till the end by any means necessary and eliminated their rivals.
-Growl growl!
The monster wolf walked towards her, baring its fangs. It wasn't a simple beast. As if intending to fill her with terror, this monster wolf was slowly taking one step at a time.
"Huff…huff…"
'The sun will rise soon.'
Mo Ha-rang bit her lower lip as she looked up at the sky. With only about an hour left, was she going to lose her life like this without passing the gate? Her vision was blurring from the blood loss from her back.
-Thud!
-Thud!
-Thud!
The monster wolf approached right in front of her. Mok Yu-cheon and another boy could be seen shouting and desperately trying to distract it, but it was too late. This monster wolf's next prey was her.
'Do I…look…tasty to you?'
-Grit!
Mo Ha-rang clenched her teeth and tried to stand up. Even if she died, she thought she had to stab this monster wolf's flesh at least once so she wouldn't die feeling resentful.
Right at that moment… As if it had been waiting, the monster wolf tried to throw itself at her.
-Swoosh!
'Come!'
That's when it happened.
-Smack!
The monster wolf's body suddenly stopped mid-lunge.
'!?'
Rather than stopping of its own will, it was as if it was bound by something, with its two front paws lifted and fixed in place. She had no idea what was going on.
"W-What?"
"What's happening to it?"
As everyone looked on in bewilderment, something bizarre appeared in Mo Ha-rang's blurring vision. Numerous chains had burst out from the ground and were restraining the monster wolf's entire body.
-Clang! Clang!
-Kwueeeeeeek!
The monster wolf howled and tried to break free, but the chains constricted it even more tightly, preventing it from moving.
'What the?'
What is happened were these chains? As she was wondering this, a voice was heard from somewhere.
"Ahhh. What a relief. To think everything I need is gathered here."
At that voice, she turned her head. There, she saw someone walking over with the corners of his mouth turned up.
'That guy is…'
It was none other than Mok Gyeong-un. But right next to him, what was that transparent yet blurry figure?
-Shudder!
It was a girl with chains wrapped around her entire body and half her hair white. The moment their eyes met, goosebumps shot up all over Mo Ha-rang's body.