Chapter 312: Fight of the Dead (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 312: Fight of the Dead (1)
The number of Blood Jiangshi reached into the triple digits.
There were as many as fifteen Yin-Yang Jiangshi, which required at least five peak-level masters working together to barely hold back.
On top of that, there were even Asura Heavenly Slaughter Jiangshi, of which just two were said to be enough to match a transcendent-level master.
It was a massive force, easily worthy of being called an army.
And right in the middle of it all...
A figure clad in pitch-black robes could be seen.
Shimmasaryong.
A master highly skilled in hidden weapons, not to mention jiangshi and sorcery.
His strength was indisputable, as he held the fourth rank even within the Heavenly Demon Cult, a place where only the strongest gathered.
"Damn it. Why is there never a single peaceful day? Do I not even get to sleep properly when I'm with you?"
Cheon Yu-seong, reacting a step late, growled.
His eyes were still half-closed, looking as though his sweet slumber had been thoroughly disrupted.
They say medical students don't sleep more than three hours a day, but I have no idea why this guy is such a sleepyhead.
"Oh my goodness..."
"J-Jiangshi... so many of them..."
"Ugh..."
"There are just too many of them. All our escape routes are blocked."
Shadows fell over the faces of the villagers, who had just been basking in the relief of survival.
Since several times more jiangshi had appeared compared to the ones they first faced...
...it was only natural for them to feel utterly despondent.
"M-My lord."
The village chief also called out to Jinhyuk in a trembling voice.
'Impressive. I set up a triple-layered alarm barrier on the path leading here, and he bypassed all of them.'
Numerous jiangshi were also stationed around the cabin where Alice and Teresa were.
Seeing that Shimmasaryong had come in person, he must have anticipated we would be here.
Targeting the civilians, too.
And reading our moves ahead of time.
It felt like we were having a pretty rough time in this opening battle of wits.
'I wanted to start without losing a single base, but looking at this, I should assume the other areas have already fallen into their hands.'
He was the most troublesome enemy during the twenty-seven wars between the Orthodox and Unorthodox factions.
I had a hard time because he deployed new tactics to fit every situation.
Thanks to him, I failed to clear the floors quite a few times.
'I won't have to worry about being bored this time either.'
Jinhyuk's lips curled up slightly.
The thrilling tension of defying predictions and turning expectations into scrap paper.
It was a feeling he hadn't felt in a long time.
"Ho. Quite a few big fish have been caught in the net. The greenhorns of the Wudang Sect, the disciple of the Dark Emperor..."
As Shimmasaryong slowly scanned the cabin, his pupils shook violently.
"Huh? What on earth is this?"
His gaze landed on a haggard-looking man.
"Puhahaha! Well, if it isn't the great Heavenly Demon! What a pathetic sight! Anyone would think some beggar was standing here."
"Shimmasaryong..."
The Heavenly Demon spoke slowly.
His voice was low and subdued, but it carried no weight.
"So it is true that you lost your internal energy. I was skeptical when the Left Guardian told me, but now I believe it completely. It proves that choosing him was the right decision."
"Samaja does not have the caliber to be the Heavenly Demon."
"No, he is precisely the one with the caliber to achieve the dream of unifying the Murim. He is far too great a figure for a toothless tiger to speak of so carelessly."
No matter how much the law of the jungle ruled...
Could someone really speak this way to the person they had once sworn loyalty to?
Jinhyuk smacked his lips bitterly.
'I need to quickly find a way for him to regain his internal energy.'
He didn't want to see a bastard like Samaja rise to power while someone like the Heavenly Demon fell.
If he just stood by and watched such an absurd ending unfold, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.
Besides, it was something he had to resolve anyway if he wanted to copy the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Right then.
Shimmasaryong waved his hand.
"Sweeping away pests like you is an easy task, but to demonstrate the greatness of the reborn Heavenly Demon Cult, I shall host a small ball."
The jiangshi parted to the left and right.
The layered walls of monsters opened up, revealing the cabin where Alice, Teresa, and So Se-ryung were staying.
The three of them had also been awakened by the sudden attack and were now standing outside.
"Speak. Who among you is the strongest?"
He would kill the strongest to prove that his jiangshi sorcery was a martial art that transcended the heavens.
No matter how profound the mental cultivation methods of the Orthodox factions were, and no matter how much the Players from outside the Tower ran wild.
He would etch it deeply into their minds that before the Demonic Cult's reign, such power was nothing but trivial.
"It certainly wouldn't be the leftovers of the Wudang Sect..."
Shimmasaryong's gaze shifted to the side.
"Tch!"
Sparks flew from the eyes of So Yu-myeong, who had been singled out.
If he stayed quiet after hearing such a provocation, he wouldn't be a Daoist of Wudang.
"How dare those wicked scoundrels of the Demonic Path... insult Wudang!"
"Senior brother! Just give the word. I'll go right now and strike them all down!"
So Young-ho and So Wun-gun also yelled, the veins on their necks bulging.
But So Yu-myeong could not step forward so easily.
Because the strongest person here was not him.
When So Yu-myeong didn't step forward, the haughty queen made her move.
"Fufu. Naturally, that would be the great and noble me..."
Alice gently brushed back her black hair.
"Alice."
"Huh?"
"Wait."
Jinhyuk stopped Alice just as she was about to raise her hand high.
And instead, he took a step forward.
"As expected, it is you. The disciple of the Dark Emperor."
Shimmasaryong looked at Jinhyuk as if he had anticipated this.
Indeed. That monster who subdued me, a first-generation disciple of the Wudang Sect, must be the strongest among us.
Mmm... Yeah. Well, since he's my contractor, I'll be helping him anyway, so in terms of overall combat power, he really is the strongest!
Jinhyuk... Please leave the rear to me.
Everyone's eyes turned to Jinhyuk.
However...
"Actually, there's someone stronger than me."
"Someone stronger than you?"
"Yeah."
Before anyone could stop him, Jinhyuk shoved Cheon Yu-seong's back.
"Huh?"
Cheon Yu-seong stumbled forward a few steps.
Since Jinhyuk had pushed him with quite a bit of force, he ended up right in front of the jiangshi's noses.
Whoosh.
The stench of rotting corpses wafted into Cheon Yu-seong's nose.
"He's the disciple of the Soul-Chasing Shadow. Honestly, even if the rest of us, including me, teamed up against him, we wouldn't stand a chance."
"Ho. The successor of the Soul-Chasing Sword? How interesting."
"Hey! You! What the hell are you thinking—gasp!"
Cheon Yu-seong hastily swung his sword.
Boom!
Even though he had channeled his sword force, his balance was shattered in a single blow.
The Asura Heavenly Slaughter Jiangshi swung its claws with terrifying momentum.
Clang! Clang! Crash!
The neck, the heart, the chest.
Every single strike was a deadly move aiming for vital spots.
"Ugh!"
A tense look appeared on Cheon Yu-seong's face as he activated 'Song of the Sword'.
He was somehow parrying with the Soul-Chasing Sword Dance, but that was his limit.
No matter how skilled Cheon Yu-seong was, he couldn't guarantee victory against such a monster.
At least, not in an open area like this, unless it was a place where he could restrict the opponent's movements...
His hesitation didn't last long.
Cheon Yu-seong kicked off the ground and bolted.
"You! I will definitely remember this! Even if I... die, I won't... forget this! Mark my words! Aaaaah!"
Cheon Yu-seong screamed at the top of his lungs at Jinhyuk even as he fled into the forest.
Hmm.
He really is a fast runner.
A true master must have fast legs, after all.
Now that the most troublesome high-grade jiangshi had been lured away, things felt much more manageable.
* * *
Once Cheon Yu-seong disappeared, the tension in the air began to tighten once more.
"So you used one of your companions as a sacrificial pawn."
"Oh? You knew?"
"My eyes aren't useless. I know that brat is strong, but I also know he isn't stronger than you."
Ho.
So he's not a complete idiot.
"Then why did you play along with my tune?"
At Jinhyuk's question, a sinister smile played on Shimmasaryong's lips.
"If the absence of a single jiangshi meant I couldn't deal with you... I wouldn't have come all this way in the first place."
The pinnacle of tactics is a surprise attack.
To move a large force without being detected by anyone, he had used spatial teleportation magic through a formation.
The sacrifices required for this alone numbered in the hundreds, men and women alike.
And...
All of it was to fulfill the grand premise of success.
"Behold. What it truly means to rule over the jiangshi."
Shimmasaryong let a single drop of blood fall from his fingertip.
Vroooooom!
An energy tinged with a crimson glow surged along the ground.
"Grrr... Graaaah!"
"Groooar!"
"Screeech!"
The 'Blood-Realm Sorcery' using blood as a medium.
An incredibly ominous energy seeped into the bodies of the jiangshi.
[Shimmasaryong activates his unique ability, 'Death-Spirit's Retinue'!]
[The stats of the dead increase by 30%!]
[The stats of the living decrease by 30%!]
Blood vessels bulged in the jiangshi's eyes.
Their muscles rapidly expanded, and their claws grew to nearly twice their usual length.
Drip... drip.
The clear liquid dripping from their black claws was a deadly poison obtained from the Blood Cult.
On top of that...
[You have been afflicted with a status condition.]
[Your vision and sense of touch are dulled.]
[Your sense of balance decreases by 10%.]
Just being inside the formation caused red status windows to pop up frantically.
Indeed.
There was a reason Shimmasaryong was so confident.
Under these conditions, unless one was a jiangshi, fighting inside this area was practically suicide.
However...
"You aren't the only one who has the power to command the dead."
"Khahaha! Ridiculous. Are you saying you've manufactured a few jiangshi in the meantime?"
"No, they are far more reliable than mere jiangshi."
The category of the dead didn't necessarily include only jiangshi.
"Come forth."
A subspace opened behind Jinhyuk's back.
Crackle!
Beyond the massive rift, a snow-white blizzard raged.
A spine-chilling cold began to spill over.
Clack. Clack.
It was then that the sound of hooves echoed.
A Death Knight clad in pitch-black armor.
T-Bone.
And behind him were the Ancient Soldiers holding spears inscribed with runic words.
The sight of them all lined up on phantom steeds created the illusion of the Demon King's army invading the mortal realm.
"Master."
T-Bone bowed deeply.
Since Jinhyuk had poured in all the mana he usually allocated elsewhere, T-Bone had assumed his complete Death Knight form, just as he had shown in the Fantasy Lost Paradise.
"While I deal with that guy, make sure no one interferes."
The target was only one: the leader.
The remaining small fry would be left to T-Bone and the Ancient Soldiers.
"Leave it to me."
T-Bone drew his sword horizontally from atop his steed.
Then...
Thud!
Thump!
The ground shook.
The dead buried here long ago began to rise.
White bones burst through the earth.
Those killed by bandits.
And the vengeful spirits trampled by the Demonic Cult.
They answered the call of their new master.
With this, their numbers were equal.
'If we lack quality... we just have to make up for it.'
Jinhyuk summoned another ability from the 'Memory of the World'.
[Unique ability 'Core of the Legion' is activated!]
Along the ground...
Sssss!
Blue mana flared up.
As if countering Shimmasaryong's ability.
Energies of different colors clashed in midair.
Amidst the black sparks flying...
"Now, let's get started."
In Jinhyuk's left hand was 'Fang'.
And in his right hand, he held the 'Twin Dragon Sword'.