Blood Demon of the Past Life – Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Blood Demon Art （1）

Returning home, Kang San checked his skills with a somewhat hardened expression.

『Growth-type Skill』

『Blood Demon Art First Stage』

1. Attack power temporarily increases by 1% each time an enemy is killed. （Can be stacked.）

2. Blood Demon Art’s level increases after taking 100 lives. （0/100）

3. Attack power increased by 10%.

『Conditional Skill （★★）』

『Blood Demon Sword Technique, First Style: Blade Kill 』

1. Only those who have mastered the Blood Demon Art can use the Blood Demon Sword Technique.

2. Uses a powerful strike. Temporarily increases attack power by 30%, and attack power increases further by the amount of attack power stat accumulated through Blood Demon Art. If the target is ‘exposed to blood’ by this attack, bleeding effect makes it impossible to stop the bleeding for a certain period of time. （Cooldown: 5 minutes）

Two skills.

Their power was immense.

Especially the Growth-type Skill, a very rare skill that even B-rank or higher Hunters rarely possess, and this was already Kang San’s second one after Guardian’s Will. Simply looking at the effects of the skills, it was a situation where Kang San should be happy.

This battle.

Kang San clearly felt the lack of attack power.

The rewards bestowed by Azmoon were mostly for defense, and thanks to that, he was able to withstand the attacks of the D-rank Dullahan, but his counterattacks were not effective. If it weren’t for the gamble of linking Berserker and Guardian’s Will, Kang San would have been killed by the Dullahan after defending all day.

Blood Demon Art’s 10% increase in attack power.

Blood Demon Sword Technique, First Style’s 30% increase in attack power.

Even excluding the additional effects, Kang San’s strikes now contained power that opponents of the same rank couldn’t block.

However.

Kang San wasn’t happy at all.

Despite gaining definite power, Kang San’s expression hardened as he looked at Blood Demon Art.

“So it really was a murderer.”

The memories of his past life were indeed Pandora’s Box.

The life of the Blood Demon he briefly saw was so shocking that the rewards of Blood Demon Art and Blood Demon Sword Technique didn’t even catch his eye.

Innocent people.

The Blood Demon killed them for no reason. The people who came to protect their families risked their lives to fight against the Blood Demon, but the Blood Demon’s powerful force slaughtered them in an instant. People collapsing while spraying blood. Looking at the righteous Murim uniforms stained with blood, Kang San felt like he was going to vomit even though it was the ‘Observer’s perspective.’

It was disgusting.

Kang San couldn’t accept the fact that such a guy was his past life.

‘I prayed that it wouldn’t be true.’

There was a glimmer of hope before checking the memories.

The hope that maybe the Blood Demon, contrary to what people knew, might not be a bad person.

But that was completely shattered.

The Blood Demon was clearly evil.

The Blood Demon lived a beastly life, enough to convince Kang San that the trials of Azmoon and Luca Bellino were justified. And if such a monster was his past life, then his misfortunes so far were a natural consequence.

Karma.

A person’s karma is tied to their soul.

Kang San hadn’t committed any sins worth mentioning in his entire life, but the karma of his past life dragged him down to the abyss.

“……What am I supposed to do?”

He felt drained of energy.

A mix of feelings, including frustration and disgust, washed over him.

It seemed he wouldn’t be able to sleep properly tonight.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Kang San didn’t leave the house for over a week.

Helplessness.

He felt disillusioned with life.

Even though he lost his parents at a young age, Kang San lived diligently with the belief that he should live righteously.

Why don’t famous people say things like this?

“Even though those who work hard don’t always succeed, most successful people have reaped the fruits of their labor. To seize the opportunity when it’s given to you, get up and work hard right now.”

It’s an inspiring quote.

The reason Kang San worked tirelessly to achieve something was to be ready to seize the opportunity whenever it came.

But now, it was all for nothing.

A demon in human form.

The fact that the Blood Demon was his past life made Kang San lose his motivation. As he was blankly watching TV, it happened to be covering a recent issue.

『Song Chang-yeon, the culprit of the Other World serial murder case, is currently being transferred to prison. Song Chang-yeon, a C-rank Hunter, ran a Hunter academy that taught beginners and was sentenced to death for murdering a total of 12 Hunters over the past five years. Initially denying the crimes, Song Chang-yeon confessed when decisive evidence was revealed…….』

Song Chang-yeon.

He was a typical case of a murderer who reappeared every now and then.

Kang San clearly remembered Song Chang-yeon’s case.

Because the way he killed was so brutal, Kang San remembered criticizing him harshly when he first heard about the case.

“Ugh, that trash. Born as a human, he killed other humans. That bastard shouldn’t just be executed, he should be subjected to Lingchi . Where is God? Why isn’t he taking that murderer bastard away?”

That’s what he said at the time.

Kang San hates criminals.

It was a normal reaction for ordinary people, and Kang San was just an ordinary person who didn’t deviate from that category.

But not anymore.

To think that his past life was the same as that trash.

It was the reason he lost his will to live, and Kang San couldn’t do anything despite the great rewards.

Song Chang-yeon?

Frankly, he was nothing compared to his past life. Even in the short time he experienced it, he killed countless people, and considering he was called the Blood Demon, he couldn’t even imagine how many he had killed before that. Blood Demon. Blood and Demon. The 25-year-old Kang San couldn’t possibly not know what it meant for a human to be called that.

Thump-thump.

His heart raced.

He felt like he was going crazy.

The reason Kang San was so out of it was because of the image of the Blood Demon reflected in Do Jang-hyun’s dying eyes.

‘It was the same as my appearance.’

My past self.

The Blood Demon had the same appearance as Kang San.

It was clearly the same face, but the Blood Demon was covered in blood and smiled, making him seem like a completely different person. That was inevitably shocking to Kang San. He wanted to separate his past self and his present self, but every time the Blood Demon’s smile came to mind, Kang San squeezed his eyes shut to erase the image.

“Fuck, this is so fucked up.”

Luca Bellino.

He was right.

He deserved to be punished.

Just like ordinary people want someone who committed a crime to be punished even after death, if his past life was so wicked, then the misfortunes and trials he faced weren’t wrong. It was a reality he could fully understand. That’s why it was even more despairing. Strictly speaking, he could say that Kang San and the Blood Demon were unrelated, but the problem was that he had to accept this disgusting reality.

His thoughts were all over the place.

He would accept the reality of his past life’s sins, then suddenly have an outburst and deny it.

“No, but it wasn’t a sin I committed. Why do I have to bear the karma of that trash?”

He was angry.

He was so frustrated he felt like he was going crazy.

‘I think I need some fresh air.’

He felt like he was going to lose it if he stayed like this.

He looked in the mirror and saw a wreck.

His beard, which he hadn’t trimmed, had grown thick and messy, and his haggard appearance was different from his usual self.

This was really bad.

To escape reality, Kang San grabbed some clothes and left the house for the first time in a week.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

The past month.

It was a time of great upheaval in Kang San’s life.

He became Azmoon’s apostle, and Kang San was emotionally drained by the bittersweet moments of rewards and trials.

‘What should I do from now on?’

Honestly, he didn’t know.

The past was the past.

If he could sever the connection with his past life, he could live comfortably, but the incident was so shocking that Kang San couldn’t pull himself together. The moral boundaries set by a human. Kang San was living well within that category, but the Blood Demon’s life went far beyond it.

Kang San walked aimlessly.

He wanted to do that.

Clear his head and follow his instincts.

Around the time the sun in the sky began to set.

Kang San, who was wandering around the neighborhood without any thoughts, was startled by the loud ringing of his phone.

Brrr! Brrr!

『Emergency situation. An E-rank Link has been generated. Civilians are advised to evacuate to a safe place until the situation is resolved.』

The content of the message.

It was an emergency disaster message.

As Link incidents became more frequent, people created a warning system to respond to them.

‘If it’s an E-rank Link, it’ll be taken care of quickly.’

It was fortunate amidst the misfortune.

The Link’s rank indicated the danger level of the appearing monsters, and there was no need to worry too much about a Link where E-rank monsters appeared at most. When a Link occurred, military forces or Ranger teams stationed nearby would arrive at the scene within 5 minutes at the latest. The problem was that civilians were exposed to danger during that time, but the mortality rate due to Links dropped sharply after establishing this level of response system.

A situation where he had to get out of the way.

That’s when it happened.

“Whoa!”

He heard a woman’s scream.

When he looked in that direction, he saw a woman who had fallen on the ground among the people who were hurriedly running away.

And right behind her.

A grotesque creature approached the woman.

The identity of the bipedal creature, flicking its snake-like tongue, was a Lizardman, known as an E-rank monster.

‘A Link occurred right nearby.’

People screamed.

The Lizardman trying to attack the woman was just the beginning, and countless Lizardmen were spreading out in all directions.

Links occur without warning.

No matter how strong the Hunters have become, they can’t immediately respond to Links that occur anytime and anywhere.

About 5 minutes at the latest.

That meant a well-established response system, but it also implied an avoidance of responsibility, as if they couldn’t do anything about civilian casualties. Therefore, no one thought of saving the woman. In a world where death had become commonplace, unnecessary meddling was a shortcut to shortening one’s life.

Kyaak!

“Gyaaaah!”

The Lizardman trying to attack the woman.

Kang San’s expression contorted.

Suddenly, the image of the woman killed by the Blood Demon flashed through his mind.

‘Damn it.’

Ordinary Hunters have no obligation to save people.

But Kang San kicked off the ground.

Even though no one told him to and it wasn’t something he had to do, he instinctively ran towards the Lizardman.

Kang!

Just in time.

He blocked the Lizardman’s attack.

And the moment the enraged Lizardman raised its head, a blood-stained sword cut through its head.

‘Blood Demon Sword Technique, First Style: Blade Kill ‘

Slice!

Swish!

Blood splattered.

The Lizardman roared.

The Lizardman, not killed instantly, lunged frantically, but Kang San’s swift follow-up attacks quickly hacked it to pieces. Blood droplets fell. Kang San looked down at the woman with cold eyes. The terrified woman, trembling, looked up at Kang San with a blank expression, unable to even thank the person who saved her.

“Run away quickly.”

He said coldly.

His life so far.

He had been far from crime, but he hadn’t been this meddlesome either.

He turned a blind eye and compromised moderately.

That was Kang San’s life.

But now he couldn’t do that.

After confirming the memories of his past life, a signal from deep within his heart urged him to prove that he was different.

“You’re not pushing me away at a time like this.”

Azmoon didn’t respond.

Save people.

Stop the Link.

He didn’t make any suggestions.

He was truly a devilish god.

It seemed he was watching the current situation with a smile, as if he wanted to see what choices Kang San would make without any reward.

‘I’m different from my past life.’

It wasn’t someone else’s demand.

It was his own will.

A choice to prove his present self.

Kang San moved.

The starting point of the Link.

Kang San stepped into that starting point.