Blood Rock Valley (1)
Why Majuron's plans had gone so awry.
Why she hadn't targeted the Ghostly Vessel sooner before his regression.
Why the Constellations remained silent.
Nothing was clear.
Yet, not everything was shrouded in mystery.
"Krrrh..."
"W-what are these things?"
"How dare you commit such... sacrilege!"
Using his Truth-Seeking Eye to trace the remnants of the failed experiments, Jin-hyuk slowly exposed the old monks of the Potala Palace.
They shared a few distinct commonalities.
"Ugly bastards," Jin-hyuk muttered.
"I couldn't agree more," Russell replied.
First, as the term "old monks" suggested, they were all advanced in age.
But instead of accepting a natural death, they chose to artificially prolong their lives.
Jin-hyuk could understand that much.
One couldn't blame a human for fearing death or craving more life.
The problem lay in their method.
"The more clues we uncover, the more nauseating it gets," Russell growled.
"And these guys claim to worship Buddha? Ha... Jin-hyuk, let me crush these bastards myself."
Russell cracked his knuckles.
"I told you. The Blood Sect bastards aren't worth leaving alive."
"You're right," Jin-hyuk agreed.
The monks of the Potala Palace had chosen a depraved path.
They were extending their lifespans and gaining strength through the blood of humans—specifically, children under the age of fifteen.
This makes it certain. The Potala Palace and the Blood Sect didn't just ally with the witches.
Jin-hyuk clenched his fist.
Their factions have been completely consumed.
It had started with the monks of the Potala Palace.
They desperately sought to reach nirvana.
The issue was that they had accepted Majuron's twisted teachings in the process.
They perceived the Banished Constellation worshipped by Majuron as the Buddha who would lead them to nirvana.
And the doctrine of that Banished Constellation was simple: survive at all costs, even if it meant sacrificing others.
If they gathered sacrifices to fuel its power, the Constellation promised to discard their decrepit vessels and grant them new ones.
"And Majuron acts as the cult leader, preaching this middleman doctrine," Jin-hyuk murmured.
"The Blood Sect manages the sacrifices and conducts experiments on blood and flesh."
"While the corrupted Potala Palace gathers the sacrifices from all over. They call them 'sacrifices,' but they're just kidnapping children, divine beasts, and animals indiscriminately."
According to the information gathered from raiding and destroying several temples, creating a vessel required an immense amount of materials.
Furthermore, Majuron's coven graded the quality and quantity of the sacrifices brought by the Potala Palace monks.
The higher the grade, the better the vessel they received, and the faster they got it.
With such a clear reward on the line, the land of Tibet had transformed into a living hell.
Even just crossing from Sichuan into Tibet... no, people are still being kidnapped right at the borders of Sichuan.
To stop this atrocious behavior, and to thwart the conspiracy of Majuron and her coven as quickly as possible, they had to move fast.
Somewhere in Tibet.
"..."
A witch was working on a magic circle with intense concentration.
In the center of the circle lay what appeared to be a naked female body. She poured all her focus into ensuring this body remained undamaged.
Dozens of tentacles surrounding her acted as her hands and feet, adjusting the magic circle.
Considering she had to manipulate each tentacle as if it were an arm or a leg, it was clear how extraordinary her multitasking abilities were.
"O Witch of Binding..."
"..."
"..."
"I believe I told you not to disturb me while I am working unless it is of the utmost importance?"
The Witch of Binding, Chardis.
Currently the second-in-command of the coven and known as Majuron's eldest daughter, she let out a soft sigh.
The fact that someone dared to interrupt her work despite knowing her temper meant something major had occurred.
Though she loathed stopping her work, she had no choice.
"Report."
"...A sacrificial temple has been destroyed."
"What?"
The sacrificial temples of the Potala Palace.
They were rooted in Tibet, serving as crucial hubs that gathered the materials to create vessels for the coven.
They were guarded by countless failed experiments.
"Did they run into Rankers from Sichuan or elsewhere? Ordinary people shouldn't even be able to perceive their existence."
"..."
"Why the long face?"
From beneath Chardis's robe, several tentacles slithered out and brushed against the reporting witch's skin.
"T-that is..."
The witch trembled in fear.
In that moment, Chardis realized something was very wrong.
"How many?"
"Fifteen locations have already been destroyed..."
Chardis's face contorted in rage.
It wasn't intentional. It was a natural reaction to hearing such an absurd, yet devastating, piece of news.
"Is that the truth?"
"I-it is the tr—"
Swoosh!
"Gah, ack...!"
Before the messenger could finish her sentence, numerous tentacles erupted from the ground, binding her tightly.
"If the sacrificial temples were destroyed, it means you failed to manage them properly, doesn't it?"
"...! ...!!!"
The bound witch tried to speak, but Chardis showed no mercy.
"I told you. If you sit in a position of authority without the ability to back it up, you must take responsibility when things fail."
Soon, the tentacles forced their way into the reporting witch's orifices.
Squelch!
With a sickening sound, the witch's body was completely enveloped by tentacles and vanished from sight.
"Next."
Without even glancing back, Chardis returned her gaze to the magic circle she was repairing.
Watching her continue her work as if nothing had happened, another witch trembled violently and prostrated herself.
"W-we are pursuing them. We are tracking their location in real-time."
"...Is that so? How many enemies?"
"Two."
"Two? Just two people destroyed fifteen sacrificial temples?"
Chardis sighed, looking at the other witches as if no further words were necessary.
If it's just two, they must be Rankers at the very least. In the worst-case scenario, they could be High Rankers.
But why would a High Ranker—one of only a hundred in the entire Tower—suddenly come here?
Even I am only a high-tier Ranker, not yet a High Ranker. Did we stretch ourselves too thin?
This was going to complicate things.
I even went out of my way to erect a barrier to block the intervention of the Constellations... Hmmm... Still, the probability of them being High Rankers is slim.
Mulling it over, Chardis looked at the subordinate witch.
"Their path."
"Yes!"
How could anyone dare refuse a direct order from Majuron's eldest daughter?
The witches quickly combined their powers to project a three-dimensional map.
*Flicker.*
A 3D map made of magic circles appeared, looking just like a holographic window.
"Hmm..."
Though there were a few deviations, Chardis was certain.
"They are heading straight here, aren't they?"
"...Yes."
"From what we can see..."
"It seems the enemy possesses significant tracking capabilities. And they are fast."
Looking at the detailed breakdown of their breakthrough times and the scale of the damage, Chardis let out a soft sigh.
"Of all times, this has to happen while Mother is away at the Heavenly Demon Cult. It was my mistake to trust you brainless fools."
"..."
"..."
"Pack up."
She stood up.
"We will take every available force and wait at that point."
Chardis pointed to a specific location on the map.
It was a canyon they had to pass through to reach this place.
"Let us lay that famous Heaven and Earth Net, witch-style."
"Understood!"
"Understood!"
Unlike their usual cackling demeanor, the atmosphere was frozen solid.
The witches bowed their heads in unison.
"Failed experiments, wraiths, Wailing Ghosts... we probably won't have any Ice-Sinking Ghosts. Since they've stepped into our domain, we shall fight on our terms. Chant the moonlight. Oh, and..."
She smirked.
"Contact my sister Lunetta... no, So-wol. It seems it is about time for her to return."
Under a blood-red sky, only the ruins of a temple lay beneath the feet of Jin-hyuk and Russell.
Even amidst the wreckage, the blood-stained mandala pattern refused to fade.
"Persistent bastards," Russell grunted.
*Boom!*
Thanks to the power of the Bulgasari, Russell now possessed fists of steel.
Iron Fist
"Is this the eighteenth one?" Russell asked.
"Around there," Jin-hyuk replied, his eyes gleaming.
Tracing the remnants, he knew they were close.
An oddly familiar energy was wafting from deep within.
He could even see it.
"Ha. I don't know what kind of bastard is in charge of this place," Russell said, brushing off a clump of coagulated blood from his shoulder. "But they better not expect an easy death."
"I don't think it'll be easy for us to get there either," Jin-hyuk remarked.
"Hahaha! What does that matter, Jin-hyuk? I'll just break through like I always do."
Jin-hyuk chuckled at the simple yet effective strategy.
Russell had always been this way.
Whether the opponent was a Ranker, a High Ranker, a floor boss, or even a Constellation, he simply charged forward and broke through.
"Let's go."
Jin-hyuk stepped over the magic circle drawn on the collapsed wall.
As the temple, littered with the remains of failed experiments, crumbled into dust, the magic circle maintaining it was naturally destroyed.
As they moved past it, the walls split open, and blood gushed out.
A hidden area has been revealed.
Blood split the rocks and flowed into the canyon, and letters began to rise one by one from the crimson stream.
"A hidden dungeon, huh?"
A dungeon.
Usually, it was a space within the Tower that could only be cleared by meeting specific conditions.
The fact that they could construct a 'dungeon' inside the Tower meant the witch managing this place was no pushover.
"A canyon?"
"Yeah. It's a canyon."
Narrow crevices split the rocky cliffs.
Through those gaps, a bizarre mixture of blood-colored mana and demonic energy drifted, rising in dark red plumes.
Truth-Seeking Eye
The moment they stepped into Blood Rock Valley, Jin-hyuk could see it.
"Do you feel it?"
"I do."
And Russell could feel it too.
This was, without a doubt, a trap.
But...
The vessel the coven was creating was definitely inside.
It was a very obvious bait.
Since this place was a dungeon, there would be no way to sneak in.
Under these circumstances, the only answer was a frontal breakthrough.
"What are you standing around for? Scared?"
"Watch your mouth."
Grinning at each other, Russell dashed forward first.
"Russseeeelll!"
*Boom!*
"Mighty!!!"
It's not a fist. It's a hammer.
Russell surrendered himself to the sensation of his fingertips turning to iron.
This was no longer muscle. It was real metal.
*Squish. Splat.*
Thanks to this, the failed experiments filling the canyon were ruthlessly obliterated.
Russell's bones and skin tissue transformed into high-purity steel, displaying a destructive power incomparable to his usual state.
Seeing this, Jin-hyuk also summoned his Holy Fire.
*Whoosh!*
As the white flames spread in all directions, the failed experiments Russell had smashed were instantly incinerated.
Before anyone could notice, Jin-hyuk's body rose into the air.
"Huh?"
"How? How did he...?"
Floating in the sky, what met Jin-hyuk's eyes were countless witches riding brooms.
"How, you ask?"
Jin-hyuk's golden eyes flashed.
"I can just see everything."
Before the witches could even react, wings of pure white fire unfurled from Jin-hyuk's back.
But...
We hid everything with our spells.
The witches couldn't comprehend it.
They had clearly concealed their entire presence using the spells of the Banished Constellation.
How could this man pinpoint their exact locations?
Not only that, but the moment the white wings sprouted on his back, the flow of all mana in the area ground to a halt.
"There's no need..."
Jin-hyuk swung his sword, spreading his wings even wider.
"...for words."
*Roar!*
You have defeated the Low-grade Witch, Luna. The spell power possessed by the target has been stored in the Truth-Seeking Eye.
You have defeated the Mid-grade Witch, Selene. The spell power possessed by the target has been stored in the Truth-Seeking Eye.
Jin-hyuk's sword slashed at a speed that could not be followed by the naked eye.
In an instant, the low- and mid-grade witches were sliced apart or incinerated without even a chance to resist.
"Oh..."
Jin-hyuk in the sky.
Russell on the ground.
Watching the two of them wreak havoc upon entering Blood Rock Valley, Chardis's eyes gleamed.
"They aren't High Rankers."
Sitting on a throne made of tentacles, sipping blood-red wine, Chardis smiled.
"This makes things a bit easier. Though..."
*Squirm.*
"...I still shouldn't let my guard down."
As Chardis raised her wine glass, countless tentacles began to erupt from the earth.