Chapter 85. Bloodsucking
The direction Mamorota was sent flying in was naturally the side he had come from, where Kaiji was.
Using the momentum of being blown away, he swiftly climbed back onto Kaiji's back.
On the other hand, Dong Bong-su was sent flying far away, over the battlefield. He flew like a bird and mercilessly swung the wanderer sword at several Gray Wolf Squadron members who lay along his flight path. Adding the momentum of his flight and skill power, his sword was viciously sharp.
Chwa-jwa-jwak!
Could old rags really be torn so easily? The Gray Wolf Squadron members were instantly shredded into pieces.
"Uaaah!"
A few Gray Wolf Squadron members who did not know their place rushed at Dong Bong-su as he landed, but they soon turned into more scraps of rags.
When no more Gray Wolf Squadron members rushed at him, Dong Bong-su turned his body and charged again toward Mamorota and Kaiji. From over there as well, they were already charging fiercely toward Dong Bong-su.
Bang! Chwararang—!
On the surface, Dong Bong-su and Mamorota were almost evenly matched. However, Mamorota had Kaiji on his side. Dong Bong-su could no longer use [movement technique], and the duration of [circulating energy and performing the technique] was also steadily decreasing, so in reality, he was clearly at a disadvantage.
The only reason Dong Bong-su could endure was because of the Inventory Divine Art. Strange weapons were constantly popping out from between his torn clothes, making it difficult for Mamorota and Kaiji to respond.
However, such unorthodox methods did not last long before collapsing.
Bang—!
Kaiji's claw struck Dong Bong-su's left thigh squarely.
While Mamorota blocked the wanderer sword and the sword fragments fired from Dong Bong-su's mouth, Kaiji precisely exploited Dong Bong-su's opening.
Dong Bong-su hurriedly used the tear in his pants to summon a defensive steel plate (steel plate), but from the start it was impossible to completely neutralize the terrifying power of Kaiji's claws.
"Kgh!"
The steel plate was completely crumpled, and Dong Bong-su was shoved violently backward. Although the steel plate was quite thick, the area of objects that could be brought out through the torn pants was limited. Moreover, since it was Kaiji's forepaw that could easily tear even a tiger's hide, it would have been stranger if there were no damage.
"Kraang! Kang!"
Kaiji did not miss the chance and pressed the attack on Dong Bong-su. Red liquid was still flowing from its mouth, but its momentum was no less than that of a fierce tiger.
It raised the claws of its right foreleg high and swung them as if scratching from right to left.
Dong Bong-su hurriedly twisted the wanderer sword into a reverse grip and blocked the claws.
Puk—!
A dull sound rang out. At the same time, an equally heavy sensation swept over Dong Bong-su's entire body. Every bone in his body rang. Terrible pain squeezed all the way to the tips of his fingers and toes and the ends of his hair, but his eyes instead grew even more indifferent.
"Die!"
Blocking Kaiji's attack, Dong Bong-su was flung to the left, and from the opposite direction Mamorota's thunder blade drew a crescent arc as it swung in.
Dong Bong-su immediately retrieved the wanderer sword in his left hand into the inventory, then pulled it out into his right hand.
Kwang—!
He managed to block Mamorota's spinning thunder blade by a hair's breadth, but he could not fully deflect its power. The force of being pushed back by Kaiji's attack and Mamorota's blade energy combined into something overwhelmingly strong.
"Kuk—!"
A stifled groan escaped. But this time, it did not end with just a short groan like before.
Chwak—.
Streams of blood sprayed from Dong Bong-su's mouth. Earlier he had bathed in the enemy's blood; now he was showering in his own.
"Kahaha! I don't know how you fight, but this ends here! Euryaat!"
Mamorota and Kaiji attacked again to finish him off completely.
But...
They did not see it. Dong Bong-su's eyes, which still maintained indifference even while suffering internal injuries. The veil of blood covering them made it even harder for them to notice, which was their misfortune.
"...It's done now. Kek."
Puh-beobeong—!
Another thunderous boom rang out, and Dong Bong-su was sent flying backward like a kite with its string cut. Mamorota was no longer listening to Dong Bong-su's muttering. Even if he did not die from this attack, he was almost certain he would never get up again.
At the place where Dong Bong-su was flying like a corpse, the Gray Wolf Squadron members were massacring mercenaries and whirlwind gunners. Some of them spotted Dong Bong-su flying toward them.
"It's him! He's flying this way!"
"Kill him—!"
"Die!"
"Ugh! Ugh!"
With their eyes bloodshot, they lay in wait to kill Dong Bong-su, and the gray wolves licked their lips.
The savage curses of the Gray Wolf Squadron drew closer, but Dong Bong-su was still smiling.
"Blood. I lost too much blood. I need blood."
Dong Bong-su muttered in a low voice. Of course, no one could hear him.
The altitude kept dropping.
4 meters, 3 meters, 2 meters...…
What had been wrapping Dong Bong-su's body, which seemed to have lost all strength, began to change one by one as the distance between him and the ground decreased.
Blood-red shoulder guard, blood-red leather boots, and a blood-red bamboo hat.
Lastly, the blood-red wanderer sword that had become even redder from drinking his own blood.
Dong Bong-su gripped the sword and raised [sword energy], then swung it down with all his might toward below.
Puh-beobeong!
Hudududuk.
A rain of blood, chunks of flesh fly.
Everyone at the spot where Dong Bong-su fell was slaughtered in an instant. Dong Bong-su had gathered all his remaining strength and detonated [sword energy].
Dong Bong-su slowly rose while being splashed with blood and flesh.
If the battlefield had a soul, it was as if it had blanked out for a moment and frozen. But that time did not last long.
"Kill him!"
"Kill that bastard!"
"That attack just now was his last! He won't even have the strength to hold a sword anymore! Attack all at once!"
However, that was their mistake.
Sseuseuk.
Dong Bong-su became even faster,
[Wanderer's Leather Boots]
Additional effect: when equipped, movement speed increases by 1%.
He became even less concerned about protecting himself,
[Wanderer's Shoulder Guard]
Additional effect: returns 1% of the damage received from an enemy back to the same enemy.
And he used even more merciless techniques,
[Wanderer's Bamboo Hat]
Additional effect: converts 1% of the damage received from an enemy into JP.
Above all...
He became more vivid. The more he swung his sword, the more he killed, the more the blood energy in his body returned.
[Wanderer's Sword]
Additional effect: on a successful attack, absorbs 1% of the damage dealt as the player's HP.
He became stronger. Clearly, Dong Bong-su's sword had grown stronger.
[Survival Instinct (passive) Lv.2 Proficiency: 0.00%]
To survive in the ruthless martial world, the wanderer clenches his teeth and fights all the more desperately the more difficult the situation becomes.
When HP falls below a certain level, all stats except HP rise due to a strong desire for survival.
Current HP: 26 / 100 (%)
When HP falls below 50%, all stats increase by 5%. (Lv.1 activated) When HP falls below 20%, all stats increase by 10%. (Lv.2 activated)
※ Even if HP falls and then recovers above the threshold again, the effect of Survival Instinct continues for 1 minute.
His HP had fallen below 50%, and was now rapidly recovering.
To others it looked absurd, but the more people he killed, the more his wounds and damage disappeared.
"…What... is that guy...?"
Mamorota was so dumbfounded that he could not move for a moment.
A sword art that became more lively the more it killed.
He had heard that something called the Absorbing Star Great Method was passed down in the Central Plains, but this did not look like that kind of martial art.
What Dong Bong-su was absorbing was not cultivation power, but blood itself.
However, he could not let this continue. If he stayed like this, the Gray Wolf Squadron might suffer devastating losses. He had to attack and finish it while Dong Bong-su had not yet fully recovered. If he dragged it out any longer, he might end up being the one killed instead.
"Kiiyaa!"
Mamorota struck Kaiji's reins and tried to charge at Dong Bong-su.
But for some reason, Kaiji did not move.
When he lowered his head to look at Kaiji, Kaiji's eyes were dead. The eyes that had been flashing with ferocity were half-closed, and the fur that had been standing on end was completely limp.
The only wounds Kaiji had were the 'two' he had gotten when he bit Dong Bong-su's thigh earlier. Two wounds that were not even that deep. Just that alone could not possibly bring down Kaiji, the Great Gray Wolf.
'Poison?'
That was the only thing Mamorota could think of.
But it was not poison.
On successful 2-hit combo, inflicts 'Bleeding' on the enemy.
It was one of the effects of the skill [Chain Strike Lv.1].
If afflicted with the status ailment [Bleeding], the target slowly dies. If there were a healer and it were treated immediately, it would be nothing serious, but unfortunately, there was no healer here.
Plop.
In the end, Kaiji's HP was completely depleted and it collapsed to the ground.
"..."
Mamorota could only stare at Dong Bong-su, who was ruthlessly killing the Gray Wolf Squadron members.
He could not grasp it at all. Bizarre throwing techniques and poison arts, unimaginable unorthodox arts, unpredictable swordsmanship, and above all, monstrous stamina that grew stronger the more he fought.
'If Asura were to descend, would it look like that?'
Mamorota turned his head and looked toward the direction where Lee Ja-song's main force was advancing. It was clearly closer than before. If they were delayed like this for about one more quarter hour, their retreat would be cut off and they would be surrounded and annihilated.
"Kkiaaak!"
The screams did not stop. The remaining Gray Wolf Squadron members had already started gathering around Mamorota while avoiding Dong Bong-su.
"Sir! Y-you must retreat!"
The Gray Wolf Squadron members were stuttering. There was no need to say who it was because of.
"Everyone, retreat."
Mamorota's order fell.
"Retreat! All Gray Wolf Squadron, retreat!"
"Let's go back to the fortress! Kkiya!"
Repeating orders is a fairly efficient means of communication on the battlefield. Soon, one by one, the Gray Wolf Squadron members began retreating to Guisui Fortress.
However, the one who had given the order, Mamorota, did not leave.
"Sir! You must leave quick—!"
Puk.
Mamorota raised his huge hand and smashed the head of the Gray Wolf Squadron member who was shouting beside him.
"Damn, you're noisy as hell. You can just go by yourselves. Isn't that right?"
With that one move, the remaining Gray Wolf Squadron members also hurriedly left the battlefield. They had guessed what Mamorota was thinking.
Splash, splash.
Dong Bong-su approached. Because of the short but fierce battle, blood was pooled everywhere. Even his footsteps had become thick and wet.
He walked up to within about one zhang of Mamorota and spoke.
"There are only a few seconds left now."
Still talking in riddles until the end.
"Kekekek."
Mamorota let out a dry laugh.
Then he bent down to pick up his signature weapon, the iron staff, which had fallen at his feet. The cold sensation of the iron staff traveled from his palm through his entire body.
"There are a few things I want to ask—"
Puk.
Especially in the neck.
"I clearly said there were only a few seconds left."
Mamorota probably wondered even as he died.
What were those seconds...? He would never know.
"You, your experience is less than I expected."
What is experience...?
Plop.
And so, War Giant Mamorota died so futilely.
The only consolation for him might have been that he had destroyed most of the trebuchets, but in his dead pupils, a large device with many legs suddenly came into view. It was a trebuchet.
Mamorota did not know it, but one trebuchet had been perfectly preserved inside Dong Bong-su's inventory.
Dong Bong-su's turn was not over yet.
Appendix: Summary of Skills and Rules
◆New Murim Online Rules
–New Murim Online Rule 1: The inventory is not a slot system but a space system. The space is a cube of one hundred square meters with equal width, length, and height.
–(Revised) New Murim Online Rule 2: Any object that is in direct contact with any part of the body (addition: regardless of inside or outside the body) can be put into the inventory. (However, it must be smaller than the inventory and must not be a living creature.)
Addition: It is not limited to putting in and taking out only one at a time; the number can increase through training.
–New Murim Online Rule 3: Insects and animals (this is not yet certain. Experiments with animals other than mice are needed) do not give experience, and killing humans gives experience. (Need to verify the difference according to strength and weakness.)
–New Murim Online Rule 4: When taking items out of the inventory, Dong Bong-su can pull them out through any part of his body.
–(Revised) New Murim Online Rule 5: When you level up, white light bursts out from your body in all directions, and all wounds on your body are healed. At the same time, all stats increase slightly. That is, you become stronger, more agile, and more intelligent.
Addition: What is restored at this time includes not only wounds but also even lost body parts.
–New Murim Online Rule 6: Skills have a proficiency system. That is, the more you use a skill, the more proficient you become.
–(Revised) New Murim Online Rule 7: The tester passive skill spiritual vision detects dangerous factors that approach within a radius of 20 meters of Dong Bong-su and informs him. The standard is a level difference of 10.
Addition: Spiritual vision targets only the single person who is closest to Dong Bong-su among those whose level differs by 10 or more. If there is one person at 10 meters and another at 5 meters, the target that spiritual vision can sense is only the one at 5 meters.
–New Murim Online Rule 8: When multiple people kill one person, the amount of experience Dong Bong-su gains is proportional to the damage he dealt to the deceased. (Further research is needed on the efficiency of first hit and last hit.)
–New Murim Online Rule 9: Items given as gifts by the system are not indestructible. They can melt, break, or wear down.
Addition 1: Except for Dong Bong-su, who is the player, no one else can feel or benefit from the effects of the items.
Addition 2: Items cannot be equipped in duplicate.
ex) Even if you put Wanderer's Leather Boots over the Novice's Shoes, the equipment window will only show the Novice's Shoes as equipped.
※ All of these rules may still not be fixed or certain.
***
◆Skill Types (Active) – Skills below the dotted line are those after class change.
[Lightness Skill Lv.8 Proficiency: 55.77%]
A martial art that lightens the body. By learning Lightness Skill, you can jump higher and run faster.
Current applied level: Lv.8 (The player can adjust the level of this skill.)
Jump bonus: 80%
Movement speed bonus: 80%
True energy consumption per second: 8 JP
[Three Talents Sword Art 1st form Sweeping the Thousand Armies Lv.9 Proficiency: 28.91%]
A very common sword art in the martial world. Even ordinary people without internal energy can learn it.
Sweeping the Thousand Armies is an enhanced version of horizontal slash.
All action bonuses of this skill are related to the proficiency of the related skill and whether sword energy / sword force is used.
Current applied level: Lv.9 (The player can adjust the level of this skill.)
Horizontal Slash range bonus: 9%
Horizontal Slash attack power bonus: 9%
Horizontal Slash casting speed bonus: -8%
True energy consumption per use: 110 JP
[Three Talents Sword Art 2nd form Straight Piercing the Yellow Dragon Lv.9 Proficiency: 5.88%]
A very common sword art in the martial world. Even ordinary people without internal energy can learn it.
Straight Piercing the Yellow Dragon is an enhanced version of thrust.
All action bonuses of this skill are related to the proficiency of the related skill and whether sword energy / sword force is used.
Current applied level: Lv.9 (The player can adjust the level of this skill.)
Thrust range bonus: 9%
Thrust attack power bonus: 9%
Thrust casting speed bonus: -8%
True energy consumption per use: 110 JP
[Three Talents Sword Art 3rd form Great Mountain Pressing the Summit Lv.7 Proficiency: 95.99%]
A very common sword art in the martial world. Even ordinary people without internal energy can learn it.
Great Mountain Pressing the Summit is an enhanced version of vertical strike.
All action bonuses of this skill are related to the proficiency of the related skill and whether sword energy / sword force is used.
Current applied level: Lv.7 (The player can adjust the level of this skill.)
Vertical strike range bonus: 7%
Vertical strike attack power bonus: 7%
Vertical strike casting speed bonus: -6%
True energy consumption per use: 90 JP
[Circulating Energy and Performing the Technique Lv.3 Proficiency: 56.23%]
A training method that artificially guides the energy accumulated in the dantian through the meridians distributed throughout the body.
When activated, attack power and defense temporarily increase.
Duration / cooldown: 5 / 10 (minutes)
True energy consumption per use: 300 JP
Current skill bonus: attack power / defense increase 90%
..............................................
[Sword Energy Lv.3 Proficiency: 1.68%]
A technique that coats the sword with energy to increase destructive power. It greatly increases attack power, but maintaining sword energy requires a lot of cultivation power.
Due to the projection effect of sword energy, the range increases slightly.
Attack power bonus: 150%
Range bonus: 3%
True energy consumption per second: 50 JP
[Movement Technique Lv.4 Proficiency: 15.77%]
A mysterious walking method designed to efficiently avoid the opponent's attacks.
When activated, instantly moves once in one of four directions: front, back, left, or right.
Cooldown: 5 minutes
Current applied level: Lv.4 (The player can adjust the level of this skill.)
Movement distance: 4 m
True energy consumption per use: 1000 JP
◆Skill Types (Passive) – Skills below the dotted line are those after class change.
[Slash (passive) Lv.Max Proficiency: 0%]
A technique of swinging a weapon.
Moving the weapon up, down, left, and right to annihilate enemies is one of the most basic attacks.
Current action bonus: 50%
[Thrust (passive) Lv.Max Proficiency: 0%]
A technique of thrusting a weapon.
Moving the weapon back and forth to inflict piercing wounds on the enemy is one of the most basic attack techniques.
Current action bonus: 50%
[Throw (passive) Lv.Max Proficiency: 0%]
A technique of throwing a weapon.
Throwing sharp or blunt objects at the enemy to injure them is one of the basic attack techniques passed down since ancient times.
Current action bonus: 50%
[Block (passive) Lv.Max Proficiency: 0%]
A technique of blocking by raising a weapon.
Block the enemy's attack by holding the weapon vertically or horizontally.
Current action bonus: 50%
[Spiritual Vision (tester passive) Lv.1 Proficiency: 0%]
Tester-only skill.
Current action bonus: 0%
* Refer to New Murim Online Rule 7
................................
[Chain Slash (conditional passive) Lv.2 Proficiency: 60.05%]
Humans have a tendency to grow frenzied the more blood they see. Especially, the wanderer shows this tendency more strongly due to a strong desire for survival.
Duration: 5 minutes
When 5-chain slash is successful, all stats increase by 5%. (Lv.1 activated) When 10-chain slash is successful, all stats increase by 10%. (Lv.2 activated)
※ To maintain the kill count, you must cut down the next enemy before the effect of Chain Slash ends.
[Chain Strike (passive) Lv.1 Proficiency: 17.74%]
The wanderer's sword strikes, learned only through real combat without any forms, are crude but unpredictable and thus frightening. Above all, even if the enemy is not hit directly by his sword, the wanderer never gives up and persistently clings on. If he cannot cut them down in one strike, then two, three, or even more than a hundred times, he will swing until he kills the enemy.
Enemies who receive consecutive attacks from the player suffer a special status ailment.
On successful 2-hit combo, inflicts 'Bleeding (出血)' on the enemy. On failure of 2-hit combo, knocks the enemy back. (Lv.1 activated)
※ For consecutive attacks to be recognized as a chain strike, the attack and the next attack must occur within 1 second. The effects of the status ailment differ according to level.
[Iron Shirt (passive) Lv.1 Proficiency: 91.45%]
An external cultivation that makes the skin of the body extremely hard.
Permanently increases HP and defense.
HP / defense bonus: 5%
[Survival Instinct (passive) Lv.2 Proficiency: 0.00%]
To survive in the ruthless martial world, the wanderer clenches his teeth and fights all the more desperately the more difficult the situation becomes.
When HP falls below a certain level, all stats except HP rise due to a strong desire for survival.
Current HP: 100 / 100 (%)
When HP falls below 50%, all stats increase by 5%. (Lv.1 activated) When HP falls below 20%, all stats increase by 10%. (Lv.2 activated)
※ Even if HP falls and then recovers above the threshold again, the effect of Survival Instinct continues for 1 minute.
※ More skills may be added as you level up.
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