Blood Demon of the Past Life – Chapter 90

Chapter 90: Countdown （5）

『Kang San』

━ Strength: 75

━ Agility: 88

━ Divine Power: 41

━ Reaction Speed: 42

━ Endurance: 40

━ Mental Strength: 48

“……This is possible?”

Kang San showed a surprised expression.

Even before he fell into Qi Deviation and was consumed, Kang San had stats at the average level of a D-rank Hunter.

However, in just one day, by slaughtering countless Werewolves, he achieved the tremendous feat of increasing his stats by 1 to 20 overall. It was truly a growth that was no different from a cheat key. Ordinary Hunters make painstaking efforts and investments to raise their stats by just 1, but Kang San skipped everyone else’s efforts in one fell swoop. As if he was receiving all the rewards for the time he had spent as an F-rank Hunter at once.

“The minimum stat for a C-rank is over 100. What if I could develop quickly by using the penalty of the Blood Demon Art?”

One year later.

The disaster that must be stopped is an S-rank Outbreak.

Even with the nonsensical growth rate, it was such an absurd ordeal that Kang San was tempted by the results in front of him. It was an isolated space, at least for the time being. If it was a situation where he didn’t have to worry about harming innocent people, then even if it meant walking on a tightrope, he needed to actively utilize the opportunity given to him.

However.

“No. My escape from Qi Deviation this time was just a fluke. The fact that I couldn’t come to my senses while my stats increased this much means it’s not simply a matter to be happy about the rewards. If I fall into the abyss beyond consciousness and never regain my senses, the me in reality will become a monster like the Blood Demon.”

A repeating cycle.

Kang San at that time was miserable.

He didn’t care for his own wounds and was blinded only by the need to save his parents by dealing with the monsters in front of him.

Even if his wounds worsened and he could no longer fight, if Kang San’s mind was still trapped somewhere in the past, he wouldn’t stop fighting, even if it meant his death. A situation where he could eventually face death. It was a double-edged sword. No, it was a power that had to be excluded. Kang San had to prioritize figuring out the appropriate level of the Blood Demon Art this time, and it was right to accept the dramatically increased stats as “a one-time stroke of luck.”

No more.

He will not test Qi Deviation again.

Kang San accepted that the situation of rummaging through his own memories, not the Blood Demon’s memories, was a realm he could not handle.

That was the end of his thoughts.

Beyond the darkness.

Growl.

“I’m tired.”

At the sudden smell of a beast, Kang San struggled to get up.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Time flew by quickly.

Exactly 30 days out of 900.

A month had passed.

The stats that were rising steeply at the beginning reached a plateau at some point.

『Kang San』

━ Strength: 101

━ Agility: 108

━ Divine Power: 45

━ Reaction Speed: 48

━ Endurance: 50

━ Mental Strength: 55

Breaking through 100 stats.

That was the starting point.

From the moment he finally surpassed the minimum stat for C-rank, no matter how many Werewolves he slaughtered, he no longer heard the voice saying that “Burning Time” had been activated. It was a natural phenomenon when he thought about it. Since the opponent’s strength was also a basic condition for Burning Time, the C-rank Werewolves were opponents that sufficiently met the conditions for Kang San when he was a D-rank.

Then what about now?

They were the same rank.

Azmoon did not accept this situation as a trial, and there was no reward even after slaughtering more than thirty.

“A plateau already? This isn’t good.”

870 days left.

There was a lot of time left.

However, he couldn’t choose monsters stronger than Werewolves from the beginning.

Even at the beginning, there were countless times when Kang San was on the verge of death, so he would have already died before reaching this level. And the fact he found out through repeated battles was that Kang San’s “Mental Strength” stat roughly determined the level of the Blood Demon Art he could handle. In other words, if his Mental Strength stat was currently 55, it would determine whether or not the Blood Demon Art would reach its limit around that point.

It was a good achievement.

At least below 50, it meant that he could appropriately utilize the advantages of the Blood Demon Art.

Although the Blood Demon Art was a dangerous power, thinking back to the time when he fought the Werewolf Lord, there would be times when he would have to use it. The state of his body reaching its limit. That chilling sensation was a hidden weapon that would save Kang San from danger. Of course, since he couldn’t be 100% sure, he couldn’t overuse it.

Growl.

Growl.

A familiar sound was heard in the distance.

He calmly picked up his sword.

In fact, if his stats were at the same level, it should be difficult to handle multiple Werewolves, but Kang San possessed a strength that could not be measured by stats alone. The Guardian’s Will, which offset the difference in numbers, the Blood Demon Art, which increased his attack power every time he killed one, and lastly…

Fizzle.

Killing intent intertwined.

Through battles that were repeated dozens of times a day, Kang San gradually learned how to handle killing intent skillfully.

Thud.

Thud, thud, thud, thud.

Killing intent shot towards him.

Kang San activated his extrasensory perception and dug into the space where the killing intent was attacking, then without a moment’s hesitation, he blew off the head of the Werewolf rushing in from the front. Blood spurted out like a fountain. The voice announcing that the Blood Demon Art’s stats had increased was the beginning.

Screech!

The massacre began.

He cut down every single one he encountered.

Even if Burning Time wasn’t activated, he believed there was something he could gain through repeated battles.

Skillfully handling killing intent.

Training to deal with multiple opponents.

Sometimes, he imagined the premise that there were virtual companions.

He would not spend 900 days meaninglessly.

Perhaps Azmoon, who intentionally tried to utilize the trials, had given Kang San the trial of ending Burning Time after only 30 days. In the boring flow of time, he was being tempted to cross the line. If he crossed the line again and the Blood Demon Art reached its limit, he would fall into Qi Deviation in exchange for sweet rewards.

He gritted his teeth at those times.

While deflecting the Werewolf’s attacks, he cut down the Werewolf’s vital point, which was now visible at a glance.

Thwack.

Kyaaaack!

That was when it happened.

『You have met the Blood Demon Art stat requirement of 1000.』

『Memories are being replayed.』

Whoosh-

Suddenly being sucked into memories.

Kang San opened his eyes wide and faced a new world once again.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

He saw an old man.

The atmosphere was different than usual.

The old man’s face, which sometimes looked at him indifferently, sometimes laughed cruelly, and always drove the man into trials, was now flushed red. His trembling beard revealed his disappointment towards the man.

“What in the world were you thinking?”

“…….”

Silence.

No answer came back.

As if waiting for his punishment, the man kept his head down and did not meet the old man’s gaze.

“When I heard the news that you killed Namgung Baek, I was happy. Your efforts so far were not in vain, and you proved that you had the qualities to succeed me. That’s why I was thinking of passing on everything I know to you if you came back alive. So that you could become a true Blood Demon, so that you could burn down the entire Central Plains Murim and kill all the wicked humans if you wanted to. But…”

Swish.

Killing intent rose.

The old man had now put the man’s life on the chopping block.

“Why did you intervene in the Baek family’s affairs? On the surface, some people say that you massacred the Geumho Merchant Guild during a clash with the Namgung family’s Pursuit Squad, but the truth behind it is completely different. You went there yourself. You intervened in the affairs of people you had never met and put yourself in danger of falling into the abyss. Do you still have feelings left? Did you feel sorry for others and want to take revenge on their behalf, or did you want to show off your meager power? Say something, quickly!”

Beep-

He heard ringing in his ears.

Blood flowed from the man’s ears due to the old man’s strong internal energy.

He did not make excuses.

The man calmly looked up.

“I just… felt like it.”

“You felt like it? Even if it meant death?”

“Didn’t I survive in the end? Why are you scolding me? Master, you gave me the mission to kill Namgung Baek, and I perfectly carried it out and even slaughtered the Pursuit Squad. If you go out to the streets now, everyone will think of the Blood Demon. They say a new devil has appeared. Isn’t that enough?”

The old man’s eyebrows twitched.

Killing intent boiled.

If it had been him in the past, he would have already blown off the man’s head, but for some reason, the old man curled the corners of his lips.

“Indeed. If the guy who received the Blood Demon Art obediently listened, that wouldn’t make sense either. But I can’t pass on the martial arts to you now. From now on, you will be constantly tested to see if you are worthy of the name Blood Demon.”

He turned around.

“Follow me.”

The old man walked ahead.

The man started walking.

In his trudging footsteps, there was no longer any fear of the old man.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

It was a village.

The old man looked at the village from afar and said in a calm voice.

“They are ordinary people. Born in the countryside, they plow the fields from morning, and in the evening, they gather with their families and eat together. People who have lived their whole lives like that. The only evil deeds they have committed are probably petty crimes like stealing from other people’s fields when they were starving during famines. So…”

He turned around.

The old man smiled.

“Massacre the villagers. Everyone, adults and children alike. If that’s too difficult, you can run away from here, and I won’t stop you.”

It was a test.

The man knew.

If he ran away from the judgment.

The old man would never let him live.

But aside from that, the man had no intention of escaping the old man’s grasp in the first place.

“I understand.”

He started walking.

He went down the hill and headed towards the village.

It was a familiar feeling.

When he was with the boy who called himself Baekhyun, he slowly walked towards a place teeming with people.

A small village in the mountains where about a dozen households lived.

Visitors were unfamiliar to them.

After spotting the man, a child who was playing with a group of other children ran towards him.

“Mister, mister. Will you play with us?”

The child’s eyes sparkled.

There was no fear of strangers.

Perhaps he hadn’t experienced the hardships of the world.

The man stared at the child.

He was pretty.

It was the face of a country boy, tanned from rolling around in the dirt and being exposed to the sun, but looking at the child’s innocent face, it felt like the burden on his heart was melting away. This boy’s parents would be kind. The child, resembling his parents, possessed kindness and showed innocence by reaching out to a stranger.

That was really…

Thwack.

Foolish.

He blew off the child’s head in an instant.

The children, who were just blinking their eyes in surprise at the boy’s head floating in the air, screamed belatedly.

“Kyaaa!”

“Uwaaaack!”

The children ran away.

The man walked steadily.

He was the foolish one.

His life had already crossed a line of no return, but like the old man said, what was he thinking when he helped the boy named Baekhyun? He had lost his innocence. He had already experienced too much to go back to those days, and he didn’t want to live like those stupid people who readily accepted strangers.

He…

Had given up on being human.

In the dripping blood from his sword, he saw adults rushing in after hearing the children’s screams.

Some were holding pickaxes.

Some were holding logging axes.

He could tell at a glance from their crude weapons how beautifully they had lived their lives.

He heard strange noises.

The adults screamed and shouted something.

He didn’t care.

He could no longer hear human words properly.

Thump, thump.

The man walked and did not stop.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Kang San opened his eyes.

To be precise, the scenery of the world he had been watching changed.

And…

『The Blood Demon Art has risen to 4 stars.』

『You have acquired the Blood Demon Sword Technique, Third Style: Explosive Kill .』

A familiar voice was heard.