IRL Clash (1)
Kkobong's manhunt kicked off, but it wrapped up pretty quick. The guy hadn't planned some elaborate escape—he'd just gone berserk and rampaged around in a frenzy. After a lifetime of seeing the world all blurry, suddenly everything snaps into crystal-clear focus. No wonder he freaked out. For someone born with crap eyesight who'd finally get to see the world properly with his own two eyes, it was like stepping into a whole new reality—hell, a straight-up miracle.
"You're doing a real bang-up job there. How long ago did I give you those glasses, and you're already smashing 'em?"
"……."
The decisive factor in catching Kkobong? His glasses got wrecked—in the dumbest way possible. Even without mana, a gorilla's a gorilla. Way stronger than any human. And glasses? Fragile as hell if you put even a little pressure on 'em. Throw in the excitement, and breaking them was inevitable.
Lucky the frame's the only thing busted.
I alternated glances between the glasses snapped clean in half and Kkobong's dejected face. The guy who usually scowled like a thug looked downright pitiful now. Guess regaining his sight had made him that happy. For the brief time it lasted, anyway.
"Hang tight. I'll fix 'em up good as new."
"……."
Kkobong stared at me, his expression a mix of desperation and hope—like, can you really pull this off? I chuckled at his face, then hopped into the Gallery right away.
[YasaengGrill: Hey teach, those glasses you gave me earlier?]
[SunForever: What's up? Wrong prescription?]
[YasaengGrill: Nah, Kkobong broke 'em. Think he got too hyped.]
[SunForever: How'd it break? Gotta make a whole new pair?]
[YasaengGrill: No, just snapped in the middle.]
[SunForever: Easy fix then. Gimme a sec—hand 'em over.]
I passed the glasses back, and SunForever fixed them up in no time. He tossed in a joke about charging repair fees next time. If Kkobong pulls this again, we'll have to pay market rate, I guess.
"Here ya go. Break 'em again, and I'm slapping a padlock on you."
"Yes yes."
Close enough to "thank you." Kkobong slapped the glasses on immediately. Maybe 'cause of the super thick lenses, but his vibe softened way up from before. Without 'em, he's a raging gorilla; with 'em, total opposite. His eyes looked smaller too, highlighting that classic ape doofus energy.
Surprisingly good fit. Weird.
Gorillas basically have no nose bridge, so I worried they'd slide off. Nope. His freakishly big head made it like wearing goggles—stayed put even during roughhousing.
That's what happened earlier—kept taking 'em on and off till they snapped.
With Kkobong's eyesight sorted, I pulled up the questionnaire one last time. Next up after Rice Kraone: a question he might not love. Could be super personal for him.
"Kkobong. Take a look at this?"
"Ooh."
Maybe 'cause his vision was fixed and the glasses repaired, he read the questionnaire without his usual scowl.
"……."
Scratch that. His face crumpled the second he read it. Pure disgust. Expected, since it's a sensitive topic.
I'd hate it too.
The question was about his presumed brother, the leader gorilla. Did they both train under this Wi Ho Chang guy? And why'd Kkobong leave the troop? The boss gorilla's got a rep for being one of the nicer beasts out there, but I wanted the full story.
"……#%@!%"
Kkobong mulled it over, then spilled. Guess the glasses earned me that much. I recorded the whole thing and sent it straight to Cheonma. Wanted to post it on the Gallery, but it'd stir up too much noise, so I held off.
[Cheonma: Quite the entertaining tale. Seems one day this Wi Ho Chang shows up, and the troop's leader changes.]
[YasaengGrill: Killed the old boss and took over?]
[Cheonma: Something like that. More shocking: looks like the Blood Demon actually reached the Saengsa-gyeong and underwent u-hwa-deung-seon.]
[YasaengGrill: Saengsa-gyeong? U-hwa-deung-seon? What's that?]
Sounds familiar, but no clue. Cheonma's shocked too, so probably some insanely high realm.
[Cheonma: Saengsa-gyeong is this lady's current realm—the stage after Manifest Realm. Grants qualification for u-hwa-deung-seon, where one can do all with mere intent.]
[YasaengGrill: And u-hwa-deung-seon?]
[Cheonma: Shedding the mortal body to become an immortal. But odd. Blood Demon's arts are far from Taoism, and he had plenty of worldly attachments. Did living in this forest turn him into some hermit sage?]
Cheonma hammered me with questions on whether the Blood Demon really pulled off u-hwa-deung-seon. No idea myself, but I asked Kkobong as requested. He didn't know the term—just said he went up to the sky. Added "every now and then," too. Said the troop panicked and grabbed his pant legs each time.
[Cheonma: Hmm. Hard to say if that's true u-hwa-deung-seon from words alone. But high chance the Blood Demon did ascend.]
[YasaengGrill: Yeah? Boss gorilla was wearing clothes, after all.]
Ascension or whatever, Blood Demon Wi Ho Chang ain't in this forest anymore. Wild life, by the sound of it.
"#$%%!!"
Talking post-ascension, Kkobong blew up. Translation: right after Blood Demon vanished, he got booted from the troop. Backlash was huge; even his brother Wiheuk—the boss gorilla—had no choice. Explains the bad blood with his old crew.
Had to for survival, but still...>
Kkobong's an albino gorilla—stands out anywhere. Could endanger the others, so exile made sense. Backlash that bad? He'd have been gone sooner, but Blood Demon protected him. Even after killing the old boss—on Blood Demon's say-so—they still tried to exile Kkobong.
Trauma from that kinda rejection?>
Massacred a whole ethnic group out of revenge, shielded Kkobong... Maybe he was a persecuted minority himself, sensitive to that shit. Just my theory, though—not confirmed. To dig deeper, gotta track down the boss gorilla, Wiheuk. Might've written a book or left traces.
[Cheonma: Post this story to the Gallery.]
[YasaengGrill: Huh? Won't that rile up the weirdos?]
Cheonma dropped a wild suggestion mid-chat. U-hwa-deung-seon means becoming an immortal. Basically "ascension." Blood Cult's scattered and raging in the Gallery 'cause Blood Demon vanished. But if he ascended? Boom—legitimacy. Martyr status, no problem.
Earth's got terrorists pulling all kinds of crap; this place is worse.
Cheonma playing dumb? Nah. She's got a plan.
[Cheonma: No worries. Chance to crush all the vermin at once.]
[YasaengGrill: Vermin?]
[Cheonma: As you've seen, Blood Cult scum run rampant even here.]
Gallery's full of assholes. But Blood Cult's the worst—mana's most toxic. Worship a mass-murderer, pull copycat crimes for fun. Posts vanish 'cause Judaek and Cheonma delete and ban hard. But non-fixed nics? Anonymous posts slip through. Floaters bounce back fast post-ban.
Some theory: different mana absorption. Water ain't identical every sip; same with mana. Bans don't stick on floaters. Fixed nics? Treated like dantian cultivation. All hypotheses—solid, but don't bet the farm.
...Kinda rings a bell.
Seen it online tons. Users you swear are unhinged for real. Some roleplay, but others? Chilling logic. Sucking off a decades-old figure weird? Pfft.
Hitler fanboys exist; Blood Demon's small fry.
Internet speeds info... and bad ideologies. Distorts slyly too. Most "idols"? Lame in truth. Cheonma's probably baiting 'em out—like roaches.
Good bait, but who's exterminating?>
Problem. Cheonma mentioned it, so she's got backup. Me? I'd post and dip—guilt-free thrill. Post-Immortal King mess made me cautious, but I'm always ground zero.
[YasaengGrill: Fine to post, but can you handle fallout? Feels like real-world drama incoming.]
[Cheonma: This lady will manage. No need to fret.]
Gallery not enough action for her boredom? I pondered, then decided.
[YasaengGrill: Asking Judaek first. Don't wanna get on her bad side.]
[Cheonma: Do so.]
Ban risk sucks. Told Judaek straight up.
[Don'tAbandonHero: That's fine!! Not incitement!]
[YasaengGrill: Isn't inter-nation tension banned?]
[Don'tAbandonHero: Anyone taking a gorilla at face value is a dummy~!]
[YasaengGrill: Uh...]
Fair. With approval, I uploaded the recording raw.
Title) Blood Demon ascended or something?
YasaengGrill
(Video of Kkobong spilling on Blood Demon's ascension)
(Video of Kkobong raging about his past)
Guy says Blood Demon already ascended? Keeps mentioning going to the sky.
Does that mean Wi Ho Chang's alive? Or what?
ㄴSwordTasteStar) Ascended? How strong we talking?
ㄴYasaengGrill) Cheonma says Saengsa-gyeong. What's West call it?
ㄴSwordTasteStar) No specific term. They ascend, no worldly impact.
ㄴSo Blood Demon's official heirs those two gorillas?
ㄴLmao heirs are gorillas rofl
ㄴBlood Cult simps hyped Blood Demon just to get outdone by gorillas lmao
ㄴBoss gorilla was crazy strong?? Used that heavy weight technique.
ㄴNah those gorillas just beasts;;
ㄴYeah Blood Cult scrubs shaking? Still below gorilla tier.
ㄴTheir precious Ho-Chang gone now lol
Dice rolled. I quietly closed the Gallery. Comments and posts about to explode. Dinner time anyway—wrapped up work.
"Kkobong. Head up to the river with me. Everyone else too."
"Kyuu!"
"……."
Up to the river for dinner with the animal pals. Normally solo trap haul, but now Kkobong's here. Showed him once; he nailed it easy.
This is why you need workers.
Extra hands? Game-changer. Fine work like cleaning/cooking still on me, though.
"Kyeing!"
"What herb you bring today?"
Dad Raccoon hooked us up too—big batch this time. White flowers stood out; gotta ask effects later.
Post-dinner cleanup done, I checked Gallery. Betting Blood Cult's losing it.
Spot on.
Blood Cult vs. randos in epic shitstorm. Cult's trash rep dulled the impact, but their troll game's fire.
[Yeah still gorilla tier lololol]
One line, whole swarm quaking. Fact-based roast—no counter.
Cheonma got this?>
Checked concepts board. Eye-catching title sucked me in.
Title) Off to kill the gorilla brats.
BloodDemonRebirthFullBloodVengeance
(Blood-red palm pic)
(Blood Cult symbol pic)
(Blood Cult secret manual pic)
This one refuses to accept those dumb beasts as heirs. Will hunt them down personally, take their heads. And woe to any who mock the Blood Demon.
Troll or real? Floater maybe, but nic check bumped credibility.
More crazies than expected... whatever.
Shrugged. Come at me then. About to comment—
ㄴCheonma) Thought you were all talk, but nice coloring skills.
ㄴBloodDemonRebirthFullBloodVengeance) Who're you calling talk? Scared of this one? Show your face.
ㄴCheonma) Hold on. Sending via message.
Cheonma's reply slapped on top.
This a real IRL PK request?>
Something huge brewing. Epic.