The Path of Blood (1)
Cheon So-seon failed to become the Blood God.
To achieve that ultimate transformation, she needed to absorb the blood energy from the hundred thousand Blood Warriors emerging from Cheonran. But not a single warrior appeared. It was so unbelievable that she wanted to go back inside and check again.
But that was impossible. The gateway connecting the world to the place where the Blood Warriors emerged had vanished.
“He must be using some trickery.”
It was a natural conclusion. Killing a hundred thousand ordinary people was no small feat, let alone the Blood Warriors, the subordinates of the Blood God.
No matter how skilled one was, they would exhaust their inner strength and perish. A thousand might be conceivable, but a hundred thousand?
Moreover, Byeok Lidan appeared unscathed. How could someone who supposedly killed a hundred thousand Blood Warriors look so untouched?
“Damn it!”
She had failed to change the world’s balance of good and evil. That too required the Blood Warriors to dominate the world, but everything had fallen apart.
She was engulfed in a whirlwind of shock, confusion, and anger.
Song Hwa-rin hadn’t taken her eyes off Byeok Lidan since he appeared. Her gaze wasn’t one of relief at being saved.
It was a much deeper affection. It wasn’t just joy at seeing him again; it was the thought that they could die together. It was beyond happiness at being together; it was joy at the prospect of dying together.
Swoosh.
Yang Sa-hwi pointed a sword at Song Hwa-rin’s neck.
“Put down your sword. Otherwise, your woman will lose her head in front of everyone.”
Song Woo-gyeong, standing nearby, was startled.
“You scoundrel! Put down that sword!”
Byeok Do-jun stopped him from rushing in. He understood Song Woo-gyeong’s shock better than anyone, but with Byeok Lidan present, he thought it best to leave it to his son.
Byeok Lidan spoke calmly.
“You didn’t seem like the kind of person who would take a subdued woman hostage.”
The past tense in his words made Yang Sa-hwi bristle.
“Yes, I wasn’t. But because of you, I’ve ended up like this. Do you know how much effort I put into executing the grand plan on you? I succeeded in disturbing your mind, so how did you stop the Blood God’s descent?”
Byeok Do-jun and Im Ye-hwa exchanged surprised glances. They nodded at each other, finally understanding why their son had changed so suddenly and then reverted back.
Yang Sa-hwi had tried to destroy their son’s spirit, and when that failed, he returned to his original self.
They looked at Byeok Lidan with deeper understanding and affection in their eyes.
Yang Sa-hwi glared at Byeok Lidan.
“Ultimately, it’s because of you that the Blood God couldn’t manifest.”
“Is it really because of me?”
“Yes, it’s because of you.”
“Then why haven’t you killed her?”
Yang Sa-hwi was momentarily speechless.
“You haven’t given up yet.”
“Yes, it’s not too late. There must be another way to summon the Blood God. I’ve lived my entire life for that one purpose.”
Byeok Lidan recalled the words of an old man.
“There will always be those who look in the opposite direction of where you gaze.”
Yang Sa-hwi was likely one of those people.
He couldn’t forgive the ideals or the methods Yang Sa-hwi pursued, but at least the determination to achieve that goal was something he could understand.
“I understand.”
At that moment.
Swish!
Slice!
Yang Sa-hwi’s head rolled to the ground as his neck was severed. His body collapsed forward. He had threatened to decapitate Song Hwa-rin, and now he met the same fate.
The one who struck him down was Cheonma.
“I don’t understand!”
Cheonma had been hiding to save Song Hwa-rin.
While Yang Sa-hwi was lost in his fervor, Cheonma swiftly cut him down.
Cheonma looked down at Yang Sa-hwi’s corpse and spoke.
“You fool. The reason your Blood God couldn’t manifest is because of you. You must have botched the job like an idiot. Don’t blame others!”
At that moment, Cheon So-seon angrily unleashed a gust of energy. She had intended to kill Yang Sa-hwi herself, but someone else did it, which infuriated her. Her target was not Cheonma but Song Hwa-rin. She decided to kill the woman Yang Sa-hwi had intended to kill first, and then deal with Cheonma.
Whoosh!
Boom!
Someone blocked the gust of energy Cheon So-seon sent.
This time, it was Gwangdu who intervened. He too had been hiding nearby to save Song Hwa-rin. The stealth techniques he learned for protection in the Mengho Clan proved their worth.
“Are you alright, Gwangdanju?”
“I’m fine.”
Cough.
Despite his words, Gwangdu coughed up blood. Fortunately, it wasn’t a severe injury.
Byeok Lidan deliberately didn’t intervene to block the attack. He believed Gwangdu’s skills were sufficient to avoid a fatal blow.
He hoped the relationship between Gwangdu and Song Hwa-rin would progress further. For their sake, and for his own.
Byeok Lidan spoke to Gwangdu.
“Thank you, Gwangdu.”
This time, he addressed him as Gwangdu, not as the leader of the Mengho Clan, in a friendly manner.
Gwangdu spat out the blood in his mouth and replied.
“I finally feel like a true sword-bearer.”
“Sorry, but that’s not it.”
“What?”
“You agreed to be my sword-bearer, didn’t you?”
“Do I have to do this again? Oh, it hurts. Please don’t joke about that.”
Despite the lighthearted banter, Gwangdu’s eyes were filled with boundless respect and joy for Byeok Lidan.
Cheonma, standing behind them, spoke with a pout.
“Why don’t you thank me? I was the first to save your woman.”
“Isn’t it natural to save a friend’s woman?”
“Haha.”
Cheonma shook his head in disbelief.
But even amidst this, Byeok Lidan and Cheonma exchanged smiles.
“Welcome back.”
“Yes, it’s good to see you again.”
Byeok Lidan then turned to Baekpyo.
“You were also preparing to save Hwa-rin, weren’t you?”
“How did you know?”
“It’s obvious. Tend to your internal injuries first.”
“Yes, Leader.”
Baekpyo finally felt relieved.
Song Hwa-rin, with tears in her eyes, spoke to everyone.
“Thank you, I don’t know what to say.”
Cheonma, Gwangdu, and even Baekpyo had tried to save her.
Her gaze returned to Byeok Lidan. As they exchanged looks filled with affection, Cheon So-seon reacted again.
Whoosh.
Once more, Cheon So-seon launched a surprise attack with a gust of energy. It was faster and more powerful than before.
Bang!
But it vanished in mid-air.
In a flash, Byeok Lidan moved in front of Song Hwa-rin, swinging his sword to dispel the attack.
Gwangdu shouted from behind.
“Why do you keep targeting Miss Song? Are you jealous because she’s prettier than you?”
Song Hwa-rin’s face turned red at that comment.
Byeok Lidan chuckled, and Cheonma shook his head.
All these exchanges of emotions continued to provoke Cheon So-seon.
“Even if I didn’t become the Blood God, I can still crush insects like you.”
She was at the level of a demigod.
Byeok Lidan remained calm, but he didn’t underestimate her abilities.
“You almost became a god? Well, so did I.”
Her eyes hardened.
Everyone listening to Byeok Lidan was taken aback. Cheonma nodded silently. They could infer from his words that Byeok Lidan hadn’t become a demon. Or perhaps he had chosen to give it up.
“Shall we have a dignified fight?”
Byeok Lidan glanced up at the sky.
A cold smile appeared on Cheon So-seon’s lips.
“I’ll kill you and wipe out all of them.”
“Yes, but you’ll have to kill me first.”
“Follow me.”
Whoosh.
Cheon So-seon soared into the sky.
Cheonma and Galsaryang nodded at Byeok Lidan. Their expressions conveyed that he should fight without worrying about what was happening below.
With a light heart, Byeok Lidan ascended into the sky.
The sky was clear, not a cloud in sight.
It was a day so bright it seemed impossible.
In the middle of that vast sky, Byeok Lidan faced Cheon So-seon. His inner strength was unending, allowing him to live in the sky forever. Of course, he still needed to eat and attend to bodily functions, so that wasn’t truly possible.
He had no intention of dragging out the fight with Cheon So-seon. Even with inexhaustible inner strength, he was still human.
Cheon So-seon, on the other hand, was in a demigod state. There was a skill gap that couldn’t be bridged by inner strength alone. If that gap existed between them, he would die here.
The most certain way to eliminate her was with the Heart Sword.
But he hesitated to use it.
His hesitation was for the opposite reason from when he faced the Dark God.
When facing the Dark God, he couldn’t sense any emotion.
But now, he could clearly feel her emotions.
Her heart was filled with venomous anger. It was so vivid that he could split it in half right now.
And that made him hesitate.
Could he truly win by cutting through that heart? Was he only severing the human part of a demigod, not the divine?
When facing a person, the Heart Sword could only be used once. It was a move that guaranteed a kill.
Could cutting through Cheon So-seon’s heart truly end everything?
“Why do I keep seeing only a woman’s form? Is that the form you prefer?”
“Don’t provoke me with such nonsense.”
Her demeanor was already the same as when she appeared as a man.
“Provoke? If I wanted to provoke you, I wouldn’t have asked so politely.”
“You bastard! I’ll kill you!”
Her fury finally erupted.
I was the first to unleash my sword energy.
Whoosh!
At that moment, a crimson mist enveloped her, tiny droplets of blood swirling around her.
Swish, swish, swish.
The droplets wrapped around her like a suit of armor—an armor of blood.
Clang!
As if to flaunt the power of her blood armor, she didn’t even attempt to dodge my attack.
Clang!
My sword energy bounced off her. Even though it struck her directly, she seemed unfazed.
Now it was her turn. She unleashed a gust of wind, the same deadly wind she had used before.
Swoosh.
Boom.
I swung my sword to block the attack. Her wind gusts were something I could now handle, though they were still too powerful to block with just my body.
The wind, already formidable, was growing stronger. Fortunately, she couldn’t use it in rapid succession… or so I thought.
Right then.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Three gusts came at me in quick succession. I twisted my body to evade her attack.
The winds barely grazed past me.
“Damn it!”
She could now unleash those gusts consecutively.
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Five more gusts came flying at me.
I dodged two and blocked the remaining three with my sword.
Boom! Crash! Boom!
My wrist throbbed with the effort. Her attacks were growing stronger, especially after the blood armor appeared.
She curled her fingers forward.
“How boring.”
In the next instant, I vanished from her sight. I couldn’t let her complacency go unpunished.
Talking about boredom in the middle of a fight with me?
Flash.
I appeared behind her, slashing down with my sword. It was the Demon Shadow Strike, one of the techniques from the Demon God’s Art.
Whoosh! Clang!
My sword couldn’t cut through her blood armor and was deflected.
Slash!
She spun around swiftly, swinging her hand.
Flash.
I attempted the Demon Shadow Strike again, aiming for her back.
Thud!
She had already turned, blocking my sword with her hand. She matched the speed of my attack, stopping it cold. Even her palm was protected by those blood droplets.
I looked at her through the blade and spoke with a hint of irony.
“Seems like you’re having fun.”
She gripped my sword tightly and replied.
“Now it’s really going to get interesting.”