Chapter 111
Chapter 111
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 111
Chapter Title: 20. Showcase (6)
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One hundred days in the stat training ground.
From that point on, no further stat increases occurred.
For Kang San, it meant embracing a new challenge: mastery through experience. He delved deeper into the fundamentals amid the repeating scenarios. React swiftly, respond cleverly, counter efficiently. Drilling the basics of combat was important, but Kang San's greatest weapon was the Blood Demon Art.
A tangle of crimson threads.
That was his target.
Ignoring attacks entirely, he faced the killing intent head-on.
As the werewolves charged ferociously, Kang San focused solely on evasion.
He could see the patterns in the killing intent.
Even in the relentless onslaught, there was always a sequence, and he distinguished them to deflect the first strike. Attacks grazed past him by a hair's breadth. After over a hundred days of such repetitive training, just as the killing intent became familiar, Kang San posed a new question to himself.
'If my past self and my current self wield the same martial art, surely there's something I can learn from my past incarnation.'
He prioritized practicality.
Not dwelling on what the Blood Demon Art truly was, but seeking lessons from how his past self employed it.
His past self.
The Blood Demon's version of the Blood Demon Art was entirely different.
It was destructive, a ferocious force that butchered enemies.
A new day began.
Sensing the werewolves approaching, Kang San closed his eyes and recalled a moment from his past life.
'The moment the Blood Demon Art manifested most powerfully.'
He sifted through his memories.
When had that been?
Most of his past life's recollections revolved around training, but there were instances where his presence erupted intensely.
The incident at the Baek Clan.
When the Nangong Clan's pursuers caught his tail, the Blood Demon—his stamina utterly depleted—did not evade their killing intent. It swelled overwhelmingly. The world in the Blood Demon's vision drowned in red as the Nangong Clan's swift and mighty swordsmanship threatened to devour him whole.
At that moment.
The Blood Demon advanced.
Burrowing through the space thick with killing intent, he demonstrated the true nature of the Blood Demon Art.
Kang San revived that memory.
Another monotonous day in the training ground.
When Kang San opened his eyes again.
"You vile demon, fiend of utmost depravity. You can run no longer!"
"Die—!"
Before him stood not werewolves, but the Nangong Clan warriors who had assaulted the Blood Demon.
Flash—
It was fast.
In an instant, the vampire closed the distance and swung a sword rippling with murderous intent.
It felt familiar.
Among the Nangong Clan warriors, none were slower than this vampire. They had hounded the Blood Demon with swift, ambush footwork. In that moment, the Blood Demon had been audacious. Pinpointing the direction of the killing intent in his sight, he disrupted the enemy's momentum and severed a Nangong warrior's neck in one stroke.
Clang—
Kang San mirrored it.
Not retreating to block, but thrusting his head toward the descending killing intent.
By preempting the space, denying the enemy full power, he deflected the vampire's strike.
At the same time.
"Berserker."
Stamina consumption: 90%.
Attack power and speed surged dramatically.
And with health dropping below 10%, a new effect triggered.
He transcended rank limitations.
Kang San's stats were solidly C-Rank, but chaining Berserker with Guardian's Will yielded B-Rank equivalent power. That was enough. The vampire's next attack motion appeared slower to his eyes.
Clang—!
Clang-clang-clang!
They exchanged fierce blows.
Caught off guard by the counterattack, the vampire's eyes flashed ferociously.
Flash.
Boom—!
Kang San was hurled backward.
As black mana exploded, he anticipated the killing intent's path and blocked with his shield.
The impact alone churned his insides, but Kang San planted his feet, minimized the recoil, and immediately kicked off the ground. From the moment their stats evened out, there was no reason to avoid close quarters. Detecting killing intent from all directions was actually an advantage in chaotic melee.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh.
Strikes rained down from every side.
Kang San dodged or parried them, seizing the gaps between assaults.
"Blood Demon Sword Art, Second Form."
Flash.
Slashhh.
The blade coiled like a serpent.
This was different from before.
No longer just activating the skill—Kang San envisioned the Blood Demon's pursuit strike in his mind.
"Pursuit Slaughter—!"
Thud!
The sword pierced flesh.
Crimson-black blood sprayed from the vampire's chest, and Kang San exploited the stagger.
"Blood Demon Sword Art, Third Form: Explosive Slaughter."
Boom.
Rumble-rumble-rumble.
A massive explosion erupted.
The vampire was engulfed in the violent shockwave.
This combo could fell a typical B-Rank monster, but even after pouring his power into it, Kang San showed no complacency. Amid the thick dust cloud rose rippling killing intent. A surviving lifeform exuded viscous murderous resolve to kill him.
Flash—
The vampire lunged.
Its face smeared in dark blood, but its madness-glinting eyes burned with rage toward Kang San.
Boom—!
Clang-clang-clang!
He desperately parried the onslaught.
Each vampire strike threatened to upend his guts; its destructive power overwhelmed him. Without Guardian's Will boosting his defense, he wouldn't have lasted a few exchanges before vomiting his insides. Yet now, Kang San felt he could hold. This was a top-tier B-Rank monster, but its attacks were visible, its power within expectations.
The corner of his mouth twitched.
He was thrilled.
He had grown.
The looming trial was dire, but this proved his efforts weren't in vain.
Rumble-rumble-rumble.
The vampire detonated its mana.
As the black-killing-intent sword plunged down, Kang San stared it straight on.
A moment from his past life.
The Blood Demon had faced something similar.
In what seemed a certain-death instant, the eerily calm Blood Demon reversed the tide in a flash.
At that time.
The Blood Demon had surely...
'Fourth Form: Lure Slaughter.'
He followed the flow.
Beyond mere skill activation—into the realm of body and experience.
He drew in the attack.
Finding the sole path of life amid the surging killing intent, he boldly pierced that space.
And just as the Blood Demon had.
Thud—
In their fleeting cross, he decapitated the foe.
It was a gamble.
Mimicking form alone didn't yield perfect results, but Kang San's bold bet paid off meaningfully.
Thud.
Roll-roll-roll.
The head tumbled across the floor.
Thrills coursed through his body.
He had felled a top-tier B-Rank monster.
With roughly six months until the S-Rank outbreak, Kang San had proven his potential for further growth.
'It's not over yet.'
He refused to surrender his life.
As always, he would overcome the trial.
Then.
Im Chan-young's urgent voice rang out.
"O-over there!"
Im Chan-young's eyes widened.
Where he pointed.
The vampire's severed head stared their way.
Even separated from its body, those vivid eyes signified lingering life.
Its voice cracked harshly.
Life ebbed rapidly as its face blackened.
Crack.
It opened its maw.
Killing intent exploded outward.
Kang San instinctively knew.
The vampire was attempting something by staking its life force.
As expected.
Boom—
Boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!
Dark mana detonated.
The explosive mana from the vampire's mouth tore through space, targeting Im Chan-young in a sneak attack. This wasn't something to block. Even as Kang San reacted swiftly, the mana dispersed and reached its mark.
Flash.
Fizzle...
"Urgh."
Im Chan-young swallowed a groan.
Dark mana enveloped him.
But then.
At the mysterious voice, Im Chan-young looked at Kang San in shock.
"Urk."
Kang San slammed his head into the ground.
His face flushed red, betraying the surging agony.
Grind.
He gnashed his teeth.
Strange memories flooded his mind.
At first, a lush meadow.
Fresh greenery captivating the eyes, where a family gazed at their sheep.
They picnicked happily on the grass, a border collie diligently herding the flock. A serene, heartwarming scene. Kang San felt an emotional warmth of happiness.
A new vision appeared.
The grasses withered.
Alone now—family, sheep, collie gone—the man collapsed, sobbing pitifully.
Memories surged again.
The man stood beneath a tree.
And.
Thud.
He kicked away the chair supporting him, thrashing against the noose tightening around his neck.
Face paling, breath choking, yet his gaze locked precisely on Kang San 'beyond the memory.' As if beckoning him to die together. To choose death as he had.
It imposed emotions.
Dragging Kang San's spirit into the abyss.
A profound grudge spirit.
Had Im Chan-young endured this directly, he would have unleashed magic on his own head.
But.
"......Urghhh. Cut the crap."
Kang San was different.
Mental attacks typically required a priest's blessing, but Kang San had weathered countless through the Blood Demon Art. Experiences of qi deviation. Those memories resurfaced. He had witnessed his parents' deaths before his eyes yet regained sanity and returned to reality.
Such a man.
Wouldn't crumble here.
Moreover, Kang San's divine power not only amplified damage against vampires but shielded his mind.
Whoosh—
His mind cleared.
The clogged haze lifted, vivid memories fading as his head returned to normal.
Kang San staggered.
It had been grueling.
But there was no time to dwell.
The test wasn't over, nor the trial.
Crunch.
He stomped the vampire's head to pulp.
Then, eyeing the writhing monsters, he let his sword hang limply, exhaustion etched on his face.
"......Let's wrap this up."
He trudged forward.
The monsters before him no longer felt threatening at all.