The Price of Entry
Whoooooosh!
"Ugh!"
The sandstorm grew even fiercer.
It raged with the force of a typhoon.
While everyone struggled to keep their footing in the howling gale—
Step. Step. Step.
Step. Step. Step.
Soldiers marching in perfect formation began to advance.
A thick stench of blood trailed behind every step they took.
"Blood magic..." Han Sion muttered, his face contorted in disgust.
"What exactly is blood magic?" I asked.
"To put it simply, think of them as golems created by mixing the caster's own blood," Sion explained.
"Ah."
"However, blood magic has no limits. Because the caster sacrifices their own blood to create them, they are viciously efficient."
"To make that many soldiers, it must take more than just a drop or two of blood..."
"Exactly. That is why it is so terrifying."
"..."
"It means they possess enough power to control every single one of those soldiers."
In other words, the very existence of these blood soldiers was a display of power.
"But they don't have intelligence, right?"
"...No, they don't. They simply carry out their master's orders to the end."
"Then this is much easier."
Before I could even finish my sentence, Han Sion stared at me with a look of utter disbelief.
"Hunter Lee Taepyeong, blood magic is..."
But just as Han Sion was about to launch into a lecture on the dangers of blood magic—
Clack! Clack! Clack! Clack!
The soldiers drew their swords from their waists in unison.
"Shall we go?"
Ban Haeyeong stepped forward, immediately drawing her dual axes.
Fwoosh!
The moment Ban Haeyeong gripped her axes, not only the weapons but her entire body erupted in crimson flames.
Oh. Impressive.
"First time seeing the Blessing of Ifrit?" she asked with a grin.
"Watch closely."
Ban Haeyeong shot forward like an explosion.
Thud! Crash! Smash!
She swung her axes like a madwoman, shattering the blood soldiers.
She drew all the aggro in an instant.
The soldiers swarmed and began to attack her from all sides.
Thwack! Thud!
The soldiers exploded under her assault.
However, since they were not living creatures but constructs animated by blood magic, they kept moving even with shattered heads and severed limbs.
Shring. Shring. Shring. Shring. Shring.
Choi Muryeong immediately leveled his sword.
It was a sleek, black blade.
The unusual part was that, in addition to the one in his hand, four more swords materialized behind his back.
The black swords, identical to the one he held, gleamed with cold, sharp edges.
Slash! Screech! Slice!
Every time Choi Muryeong swung his sword toward the soldiers, the telekinetically controlled blades began to slash and pierce different targets on their own.
That was Choi Muryeong's ability, the Sword Emperor.
It was the power to perfectly control five swords imbued with the power of the stars.
Seeing it in person was quite something.
The swords moved as if they possessed lives of their own.
Squish! Thud!
While Choi Muryeong and Ban Haeyeong dominated the front lines, Han Sion quietly prepared a spell from the rear.
Flash...
A ring of light rose above Han Sion's head, resembling a halo.
Crackle...
The light gathered above him before shooting toward the soldiers in a blinding flash.
Without any need for slashing or stabbing, the enemies struck by the magic dissolved into dust all at once.
As expected of top-tier hunters. They're impressive.
Watching them fight firsthand, I couldn't help but be impressed.
Being in a party like this would definitely make fighting feel worthwhile.
But...
My priority is comfort.
I only felt more resolved to raise my own party well.
I tightened my grip on my crescent sword.
Then, as smoothly as slicing through butter—
Slash!
I began to slaughter the blood soldiers.
It was easy. Unlike the others, I could see their weaknesses clearly thanks to Execution Eye.
The weakness indicated on the blood soldiers was their dantian.
However, I couldn't just shatter their dantians from the start. The soldiers were actively blocking any attacks aimed at that area.
To destroy them completely, one had to disable their limbs, pierce the dantian, and crush the core inside.
Slash! Slice!
Leaving the glaring weaknesses alone for a moment, I systematically sliced off the soldiers' limbs.
Slash! Slice! Slash! Slice!
It was like chopping radishes during kimchi-making season.
Even with their limbs severed, the soldiers kept moving. Some even tried to reattach their lost parts.
"What on earth are you doing?!"
One of the Chinese hunters—whether it was Wang Ruoxin or Jin Tianhui—shouted at me in frustration.
Naturally, I didn't even pretend to listen.
Because Choi Muryeong was already finishing off the soldiers I had dismembered.
As the soldiers crawled toward their severed limbs—
Thud! Stab! Squish!
Five swords instantly impaled their dantians.
Once the dantians were pierced and the cores exposed—
Crackle!
Han Sion's magic incinerated them completely.
They caught on fast.
They were all sharp.
Ban Haeyeong gathered the soldiers with aggro, I severed their limbs, Choi Muryeong pierced their dantians, and Han Sion destroyed the cores.
Though we stumbled slightly at first, our coordination clicked after just a few tries.
Before long, we were massacring the soldiers.
Optimized division of labor! Assembly-line slaughter!
Easy, so easy. This didn't even qualify as a warm-up.
By the way...
The Chinese hunters were much slower than we expected.
Since they said they had already cleared this place, I thought it would be a breeze for them.
But they were sluggish. With zero coordination, they were just fighting individual battles...
"Tsk, tsk."
I clicked my tongue without realizing it.
The only soldiers left were on the right side, which the Chinese hunters were supposed to handle.
"Let's go," Choi Muryeong said, stepping forward first.
Sigh. Considering how arrogant they had been, I didn't really want to help them. But it was better to get the job done quickly.
I guess I really am from the nation of 'hurry-hurry'...
I adjusted my grip on my crescent sword.
And dashing forward—
Slash! Slice! Stab! Crackle!
Efficient division of labor! Quick and easy slaughter!
In terms of overall contribution, we probably handled about eighty percent while they took care of twenty.
Well, it wasn't a competition. No need to keep score, right?
"..."
Actually, even without keeping score, the Chinese hunters were already chugging potions with sour faces.
They had no choice but to feel it. The clear difference in skill.
No, actually, it wasn't a matter of skill. The Chinese hunters were outstanding if you looked at their individual abilities. It was just...
Never mind. I'll stop here.
After a brief rest, we entered the Chinese-style pavilion.
"Oh, this is nice."
I only expressed admiration because the interior was quite lavish, but the Chinese hunters glared at me.
Wow, they're so sensitive... If you guys had done better in the first place, you'd have the leisure to look around too!
...I kept those thoughts to myself.
"Ahem."
We cautiously moved deeper inside.
The interior was magnificent. Moreover, it felt lively, as if people had been here just moments ago.
Strange...
It felt as if the 'people' had simply been scooped out of this place. What on earth had happened here?
"Watch your step," Choi Muryeong caught me.
"Whoops."
I had been so busy looking around that I hadn't noticed the cracked floor.
"This must be it," Jang Wonryong muttered after inspecting the floor, then began to lead the way.
Following Jang Wonryong, we arrived at a massive gate.
Bongma Dojo
Atop the gate, a snake sculpture was slithering around as if it were alive.
Sensing our presence, the snake sculpture slid down to the doorknob.
The snake sculpture, possessing red eyes that looked identical to the cores in the blood soldiers' dantians, coiled itself around the handle.
It reared its head and opened its mouth wide.
Jang Wonryong glanced at the monk after looking at the sculpture.
"Tenjin, step forward."
At Jang Wonryong's command, the monk stepped forward.
"Offer your blood."
The monk silently rolled up his sleeve.
"Wait," Choi Muryeong spoke up.
"Weren't we all supposed to offer our blood?"
Jang Wonryong smirked at Choi Muryeong's question.
"That is a method only fools would use."
"The report said..."
"'If everyone offers their blood, they can enter the Bongma Dojo.' Yes, it was written that way."
"..."
"However, the price is half of one's blood."
"..."
"If we enter after offering that much blood, we won't have the strength left to face the boss."
"..."
"Do you still want to offer it?"
"..."
"Even the World No. 3 is just a human in the end."
Jang Wonryong smiled confidently.
"Even so, losing half your blood will make things difficult for you as well."
"Regardless, we cannot let a single person bear all the suffering."
"Hmm."
"Is there another way..."
"Then will you do it?"
Choi Muryeong stared silently at Jang Wonryong.
And just as Choi Muryeong was about to roll up his sleeve, resolved to do it—
The monk, Tenjin, caught Choi Muryeong's arm and pulled it down.
Tenjin slowly shook his head, indicating it was fine.
His attitude suggested he had known this would happen all along.
Tenjin slowly approached the sculpture.
As if it had been waiting for Tenjin for a very long time, the sculpture bit down hard on his thin arm.
Sharp fangs sank deep into his flesh.
Soon, Tenjin's blood began to be drained.
And slowly, the gate began to creak open.
"The gate is opening!"
"Go in!"
As soon as the gate opened wide enough for a single person to pass, Jang Wonryong and the Chinese hunters rushed inside.
Tenjin's face turned pale in an instant. The color drained from his body just as quickly.
Tenjin was chanting something under his breath.
He's self-healing.
Indeed. Even as his blood was being drained, Tenjin was keeping himself alive with self-healing.
But his blood was being sucked out much faster and in greater quantities than expected.
How long could Tenjin hold out? Would he even be able to pass through this gate himself? And if he couldn't... what would happen to him?
"..."
"..."
I locked eyes with Choi Muryeong. It seemed I wasn't the only one thinking this.
"Are we really just going to leave it like this?" Ban Haeyeong asked.
"...The Chinese hunters have already gone inside," Han Sion said.
Choi Muryeong looked back at Tenjin.
"What are you doing?!"
"Hurry up and get in here!"
"Do you plan on dying out there?!"
The Chinese hunters shouted from inside the gate.
"..."
Just as Choi Muryeong was about to say something—
I drew my crescent sword.
And then—*shuck!*
I drove the sharp crescent blade straight into the head of the snake sculpture.