Blood Demon of the Past Life – Chapter 55

Chapter 55: Step Up （5）

Kugugugung.

It was an overwhelming sight.

Looking at the monsters pouring in like a waterfall, Kang San raised his shield at the forefront.

‘Trial’s Shield.’

Whoosh━

Creak.

Kyaeeeeeek!

The ants spewed red glows from their eyes.

The Trial’s Shield focused all aggro with a single skill, and Kang San, its target, was swept away by the black wave.

Kwaang━!

Kang, Kang, Kang!

They crashed violently from all sides.

As he raised his shield to block the attack aimed at his head, attacks from both sides, emitting a red aura, wrapped around Kang San’s body. Kang San reacted swiftly in an instant. Whoong, immediately after deflecting the attack from the left that was swinging with the wind, he changed the direction of the attack from the right with his sword.

Kaang━!

There was no time to breathe.

Even if he blocked the continuous attacks, the sight that was being sucked into his vision was still teeming with a black swarm.

‘Dummy.’

Passss.

He summoned a clone.

Its position was right behind him.

It was a temporary measure to block the front and prevent being completely surrounded.

The dummy, which perfectly replicated Kang San’s form, showed the ability to immediately block the ants, even though it only had 50% of his power. It was like a kind of A.I. If Kang San gave a specific command, it would carry it out, but following Kang San’s basic thought process, the clone made the most appropriate judgment for the situation at hand.

Meanwhile.

Kwaang, Kwaang!

Kwadddeuk.

Kang San was still struggling.

In a situation where counterattacking was not easy, all Kang San could do was breathlessly block the attacks.

Glancing.

‘Chan-woo is holding on for now…’

The situation in the rear.

It wasn’t bad.

Jeong Chan-woo, with his improved skills, was blocking the ants despite struggling, and Jo Han-byeol was helping him by firing arrows non-stop. During the time they were buying, Yeon Woo-bin was preparing something. The magical power swirling around him seemed to be carrying out the ‘one strategy’ they had agreed upon before entering the ant den.

He needed more time.

Kang San checked the front.

The red aura, tangled like a thread, made it difficult to find a path with the naked eye.

Nevertheless.

Tap.

He kicked the ground.

He jumped into the fray.

Killing intent poured down from all sides, warning him not to do it, but Kang San dodged what he could and took the attacks he couldn’t. The Blood Demon’s teachings are not omnipotent. It could be that Kang San’s abilities were lacking, but from the beginning, he accepted that the role of the frontline meant he couldn’t return unscathed.

Kwadeuk━!

His flesh was torn away by a giant foreleg.

An attack he thought he had clearly dodged hit him late, striking his leg hard enough to break it.

“Keuk.”

A hundred enemies.

If it weren’t for the Guardian’s Will dramatically increasing his defense, the accumulating attacks would have been enough to threaten Kang San’s life. His whole body was stained with blood. He felt dizzy. Even though only 1 or 2 minutes had passed, he had reached his limit to the point where he felt he couldn’t hold on any longer. It wasn’t just because of the fatigue from the previous battle. No matter how hard Kang San struggled, it proved that he was still just an E-rank Hunter.

Kyaaak!

Puck!

He was thrown backward.

At that moment, unable to hold on any longer, he was pushed back.

『Guardian’s Will has been activated.』

『Your health is fully restored, and your defense is temporarily doubled.』

Whoosh━

Light rose from his body.

With his health restored in an instant, he immediately blocked the soldier ants that were rushing in as if to finish him off.

Kwaang!

It was intentional.

What he needed now was time, and he deliberately took on all the risks, even to an excessive degree, to ensure the rear was safe. Because Kang San had the unparalleled cheat skill, Guardian’s Will. No matter how dangerous the situation became, he believed that Guardian’s Will would give him the strength to endure. Kang San quickly regained his composure. A hundred ants, and his doubled defense applied in layers, granted him the defense to block this absurd offensive, albeit temporarily.

‘Endure.’

Grit.

He clenched his teeth.

Even though he was drenched in his own blood, Kang San expressed his determination not to allow them to pass.

It was actually a short time.

While Kang San was desperately struggling, Yeon Woo-bin finally finished his preparations.

“Now!”

Eyes widening.

As Yeon Woo-bin’s magical power exploded, Kang San took something out of his pocket and threw it with all his might.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

The strategy was clear.

The moment they encountered the Queen Ant, Yeon Woo-bin immediately prepared the most powerful magic he could use.

Magic Eye.

Berserk.

And Salamander’s Breath.

Actually, if it had been just that, he could have used the magic a little faster, but he manifested an additional magic spell instead of ending it with just one. 3rd circle’s Gust Of Wind. Yeon Woo-bin showed terrifying concentration. As soon as he finished preparing the magic, he signaled to Jo Han-byeol and Kang San.

“Now!”

It was a prearranged play.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Kang San took something out of his pocket and threw it with all his might into the space teeming with ants.

Whoosh━!

It was a small glass bottle.

Inside it was a liquid called ‘Red Tears’.

It was a weapon that boasted tremendous flammability, spreading flames terrifyingly when exposed to a certain level of heat. In fact, the flames based on Red Tears didn’t go out easily. Kang San’s party had prepared for the situation perfectly from the beginning, and an arrow struck the small glass bottle floating in the air.

Clang━!

It was simultaneous.

As the crimson liquid scattered in the wind, Yeon Woo-bin’s magic also activated.

“Salamander’s Breath, Gust Of Wind.”

Hwaruk.

Hwarurururuk.

Wheeeeeeeng!

The form of a Salamander spewed out fierce flames.

The flames that spread like a dragon’s breath were scattered in all directions by the wind caused by Gust Of Wind.

It was a chain reaction.

As the Red Tears were engulfed in heat, the flames spread rapidly in all directions before the ants could react.

Hwarurururuk.

Kyaeeeek!

The ants screamed.

Dozens of them were burned in the flames in an instant, and no matter how much they struggled, there was no way for them to extinguish the flames. It was the terror of magic. It was the reason why they were highly valued against large numbers. The ants, lacking intelligence, thrashed and clung to nearby comrades, and as their bodies collided, the flames spread in turn. Kang San blocked all the struggling ants that rushed in right in front of him.

Kwakwakwakwak!

“Kkeuk.”

A C-rank ant den.

It was infamous among Hunters for its large numbers, but the Queen Ant itself wasn’t that powerful as a single entity. The spreading flames reached the Queen Ant. The Queen Ant’s exoskeleton, which was screaming as if the world was tearing apart, couldn’t withstand the flames fueled by Red Tears.

And then finally.

Puck!

Jo Han-byeol’s arrow pierced its head.

The ant den, which was an insurmountable hardship at first.

『You have passed the ninth hardship and trial.』

『The promised reward will be given.』

It was finally the moment of its downfall.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Kang San, who came outside, immediately checked his stats.

『Kang San』

━ Strength: 45

━ Agility: 53

━ Divine Power: 28

━ Reaction Speed: 20

━ Toughness: 18

━ Mental Strength: 25

Mental Strength increased as a reward.

In fact, Mental Strength itself seems like an abstract concept, but Kang San knew that Mental Strength was quite important now that he was manifesting the unknown power of Blood Demon Art. Come to think of it, when his Mental Strength stat wasn’t properly built, hadn’t Kang San been completely consumed by the Blood Demon Art’s primal instinct?

And.

『Growth-type Skill』

『Blood Demon Art 3-Star』

1. Attack power temporarily increases by 3% each time an enemy is killed. （Can be stacked.）

2. When a thousand lives are taken, the rank of Blood Demon Art increases. （0/1000）

3. Attack power increased by 30%

『Conditional Skill（★★）』

『Blood Demon Sword Technique, Second Style: Pursuit Kill』

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

2. Uses a strike that inevitably pursues the enemy. The speed of the attack is temporarily doubled, and attack power increases by the amount of attack power stats accumulated through Blood Demon Art. Targets that have ‘bled’ from this attack cannot be healed for a certain period due to the bleeding effect. （Cooldown: 5 minutes）

Blood Demon Art and Blood Demon Sword Technique.

Both entered a new realm.

Blood Demon Art’s stats increased, and in the case of Blood Demon Sword Technique, the second style was created.

In terms of attack power alone, it doesn’t show a higher increase rate than the first style, Blade Kill, but the part about the strike inevitably pursuing the enemy was very impressive. In fact, this confirmed that Blood Demon Art doesn’t follow the ‘system’s rules’. The superficial figures say that killing increases the power of Blood Demon Art, but whenever Kang San experienced special situations, those conditions were ignored and the rank increased.

Lastly.

『Extrasensory Perception』

━ Can identify the energy of Blood Demon Art as a ‘tangible’ something.

It was a reward obtained with a question mark.

It meant that he had unlocked a skill in a new realm that the system couldn’t express. Blood Demon Art is a technique from a completely different world. Until now, he had to approach it as an abstract concept, but with the creation of Extrasensory Perception, it seemed like he would be able to handle killing intent more freely. It was a bountiful reward for Kang San in many ways.

While he was checking the rewards.

Jeong Chan-woo made a fuss.

“We’re really crazy. Even Cheonsang’s manager said it would be impossible to clear the ant den with our power, but we did it so perfectly? Kang San-hyung, Han-byeol-hyung, Woo-bin. Let’s be together forever, please.”

He was making a scene.

It was understandable.

He had played a major role himself, so his face was flushed with excitement.

Kang San said.

“With this raid, we’ve met the conditions for a group promotion test. Since Woo-bin is currently D-rank, we can all advance one rank at a time through the C-rank test. I don’t think we’ll fail with our power. What do you guys think?”

“It’s easy peasy.”

Jeong Chan-woo’s response.

“I agree too.”

“I’ll do whatever hyung says.”

Jo Han-byeol and Yeon Woo-bin’s responses followed in turn.

Trust in each other had built up.

Now, it seemed like they would follow Kang San unconditionally, no matter what he did, even if it wasn’t common sense.

Group promotion test.

It won’t be easy.

In fact, the difficulty of the group promotion test was known to be much more extreme than the individual promotion test.

But he didn’t mind.

Now that they had conquered the C-rank ant den, it felt like they could do anything.

“Then, let’s say two weeks from now. We’ll finish reorganizing and take the test.”

✦✦✦✦✦✦

There was a reason why Kang San had given them plenty of time.

He needed to reset his skills’ cooldowns, but above all, he needed time to check the new skills he had acquired.

The next day.

He visited the training ground alone.

He manifested his skills against the test monsters.

‘Blood Demon Sword Technique, Second Style: Pursuit Kill.’

Whirrr.

The sword curved like a snake.

It drew a strange movement, and even if the monster ran away, it chased its movement and pierced its vital point.

Puck!

It was exactly as described.

Pursuit Kill was a martial art that chased the opponent, changing even the movement of a fixed object that Kang San couldn’t control. In reality, the sword didn’t bend like a snake. To be precise, it was the red aura that made it look that way, but since it inflicted damage in the direction it bent, it could be said to exist.

‘It’ll be useful in its own way.’

It was suitable for surprise attacks.

When facing someone one-on-one, the suddenness of Pursuit Kill would instantly end their life.

After that, he checked Extrasensory Perception.

Until now, he had only been able to detect the red aura when the effects of Blood Demon Art were activated, but with the creation of Extrasensory Perception, he could raise Blood Demon Art at will. That is to say, it meant that he could grasp and react to the opponent’s killing intent with Blood Demon Art even without killing a single one. Of course, the manipulation of the energy wasn’t completely free. Extrasensory Perception was just a more convenient method for Kang San, and how to utilize the energy was a matter of proficiency.

That’s why he set aside two weeks.

He knew that the newly acquired powers wouldn’t be perfectly mastered in a short time.

‘Two weeks is a short time, but it’s still different whether you have time to train alone or not.’

A few days passed since then.

Kang San visited the training ground every day.

Today was the same.

Kang San, who came back drenched in sweat, heard a voice coming from the TV on his way out after taking a shower.

『Breaking news. A blacksmith in Korea has reportedly succeeded in reinforcing a weapon for the first time. Until now, items were known to be an area that humans couldn’t influence, but with this opportunity………….』

Upright.

He stopped walking.

The story coming from the TV.

He knew what it meant.

And at that moment, he confirmed that a missed call and a text message had arrived on his phone.

『Kang San-nim. I finally succeeded in weapon reinforcement, but the situation seems to have become a bit complicated.』

The other party was none other than.

The blacksmith who had made a contract with Kang San, Yu Jeong-yeong.