—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Loudly resounding music.
It was Arein, the largest club in Gangnam and one of the top clubs in all of Asia.
“So noisy,” Lee Rowoon said, as if annoyed.
“……!”
Soon, silence fell.
However, the other people in the club were still dancing enthusiastically.
‘Aura Membrane!’
Kim Eun-tae, the manager of Pier, a bar in Dongdaemun-gu and one of the Black Market’s Seoul branches, unconsciously broke into a cold sweat.
Aura Membrane.
It was a technique used by warriors to block out noise by creating a membrane using internal energy.
Aura Membranes weren’t that strange.
Of course, it was considered a refined skill used by masters reaching the Hyeongyeong realm, but wasn’t he also a master of the Hyeongyeong realm if he was considered a warrior?
But as a merchant who deals with information, he knew.
‘While moving like this, and completely avoiding the people, he covered only him with an Aura Membrane.’
That level of internal energy manipulation was by no means something anyone could do.
The club was full of people, and those passing by couldn’t feel any strangeness at all.
‘Is he really the Blood Demon?’
He still couldn’t believe that story.
It was only the other day that he came to the Black Market and received a request, and now this man, who had reappeared, had become the Blood Demon and was going to meet the Black Market King.
“Haaaahm.”
“……”
Kim Eun-tae broke into a cold sweat once again.
‘Doesn’t he know who he’s going to meet right now?’
That face, as if he was annoyed and tired.
It was a huge gap from the appearance he had shown at Pier a while ago, so much so that it was unimaginable.
Moreover, he was now going to meet none other than the Black Market King.
‘Black Market King.’
Who was he?
He was the king of the Black Market, who ruled the darkness throughout Asia and divided half of the underworld.
The number of people who had ever heard his voice could be counted on one hand, and the number of people who had seen his face could be counted on one hand.
The Black Market King was someone that even he, as the branch manager in charge of one of the Black Market’s branches, had never seen.
‘Isn’t he even nervous?’
Is it because he is the Blood Demon?
If so, he was making a big mistake.
The Black Market’s Seoul branch had maintained a close relationship with the Blood Cult for a long time, according to the Black Market King’s orders.
In the world of the hidden, the Blood Cult was portrayed as a group of extreme villains and a force of evil that could not be ignored, but in reality, what Kim Eun-tae understood was that it was one of the dying worlds.
Of course, he also knew about the Blood Demon.
‘The Blood Demon is definitely a strong person.’
But compared to the Black Market King…
‘An insignificant existence.’
Kim Eun-tae couldn’t even imagine why the Black Market King was meeting this person directly.
Swoosh.
People blocked the path of Kim Eun-tae and Lee Rowoon.
“You cannot go any further.”
Men wearing well-tailored suits.
The aura felt from them was by no means below Kim Eun-tae’s.
“It seems this is as far as I can go.”
Kim Eun-tae bowed deeply to Lee Rowoon.
“Please come this way.”
The guards began to take Lee Rowoon upwards.
A glass staircase shining with dazzling lights and magic lamps that confused the eyes.
“You can go up from here.”
Guards stood packed on either side of the staircase.
Each and every one of them was exuding the aura of a strong person that could not be ignored.
Tak, tak.
Lee Rowoon passed them and headed up the glass staircase without hesitation.
Then, at some point.
“……”
The music that had been loudly ringing outside the Aura Membrane stopped.
“Welcome.”
A changed location even though he hadn’t crossed the door.
There was a luxurious sofa in front of the window, where the entire view of the club could be seen.
In the center of it, a handsome man wearing a suit that looked expensive at a glance was sitting.
He was in his early twenties.
The tie inside the suit was disheveled, and his hair was wet.
“I am the Black Market King.”
That man, who would have made countless women cry with just his gaze, was the Black Market King.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Black Market King.
He was the owner of the Black Market, which was located in the darkness throughout the Asian continent.
According to rumors, his wealth was unimaginable, and his assets were said to be equal to the budget of a country for several years.
Countless tycoons and Asian overlords had desperately wanted to meet him in person, but it was said that only a handful of them had actually met the Black Market King.
An existence that Lee Rowoon of the past could never have met.
“It’s quite a good liquor, would you like some?”
He was offering a glass of liquor to Lee Rowoon.
“No thanks. It wouldn’t even get me drunk if I drank it.”
“Haha. If that’s the case.”
Ttaat.
As his fingers snapped, the bottles and glasses that had been full on the table disappeared.
Black Market King.
He looked at Lee Rowoon with gentle eyes and said,
“The Blood Demon wanted to see me.”
He didn’t seem like the one who dominated half of the darkness of Asia.
“If it’s the Blood Demon’s request, I must gladly listen.”
“You’ve been continuously helping the Blood Cult, haven’t you?”
“It’s just repaying the grace of the previous generation. You know, don’t you? What kind of place the world of the hidden is.”
The warriors of the hidden.
They value favors and grudges.
They repay favors and avenge enemies.
“What a joke.”
Lee Rowoon laughed as if amused.
“You guys repay favors over several generations?”
“Aren’t we people too?”
“It must be because there’s a benefit.”
Smirk.
The Black Market King smiled without answering.
“The replacement of the Blood Demon, it was quite a beneficial piece of information. There were many strange parts, but the puzzle has been put together.”
The Black Market King continued to speak.
“Kang Hangcheol took over the Blood Cult?”
“Are there more rats left?”
The Black Market King shook his head.
“That can’t be. Didn’t Elder One die?”
“That bastard was a rat.”
“Well, let’s just say they are close friends who exchange necessary information with each other.”
Once again, Lee Rowoon laughed as if amused.
“Kang Eun-ha took on the full authority of the outer world and established the Galaxy Guild to expand her power. To give the full authority to her, a young woman who is also a priestess, was a groundbreaking personnel decision. Then what does she want…”
The Black Market King’s eyes deepened.
“Change.”
“……”
“The people of the Blood Cult have been stagnant and rotten for a long time, and their heads are stiff.
They were just fools who couldn’t even entrust themselves to the flow of the changing era.”
“You’re saying anything in front of the Blood Demon.”
“If you want change, Kang Hangcheol, who has accumulated experience and insight in the outer world to some extent, is suitable to lead the Blood Cult. If he hadn’t taken over the Blood Cult, Kang Eun-ha wouldn’t have been able to take full authority of the outer world either.”
Lee Rowoon looked at the Black Market King.
“Then,”
The Black Market King’s eyes changed.
The desire that had been well hidden until now seemed to be wavering.
“Can I think that the Blood Demon and the Blood Cult Leader coexist?”
Black Market King.
Indeed, his reputation was not in vain.
The information he had about the Blood Cult was deeper than he thought.
“Are you…”
He seemed to flinch.
“Are you the real Blood Demon?”
Real.
He knew that what he was saying was not referring to the position of the Blood Demon.
The existence that the Blood Cult members have been hoping for and waiting for.
‘Blood Demon God.’
The Black Market King was asking that.
“Well,”
Lee Rowoon smiled as he looked at him.
“Isn’t it the Black Market’s principle that information requires a price?”
The Black Market King’s eyes curved like a half-moon.
“That’s right. I have many things I’m curious about about you, Lee Rowoon.”
This bastard.
Lee Rowoon looked at the Black Market King.
He realized that the name he had just said was not the name Lee Rowoon that the Black Market had sold to Kang Eun-ha.
‘Me.’
He was talking about Lee Ro-woon who was a player.
Two transformations had left little of Lee Ro-woon’s former appearance.
Or rather, his aura and feeling had changed so much that he couldn’t be recognized even if it remained.
Even so, he knew.
“Kim Shin-hong, a squad leader of the Hwasan Guild, died at the monster corpse processing plant.”
“……”
“He had gone there after hearing that the slave he cared about, Lee Rowoon, had died. Most of Hwasan’s slaves were freed that day.”
The Black Market King’s voice rose as if amused.
“In the meantime, there is someone who came to a branch of the Black Market and received a request by saying the password from 5 years ago. Did you know that? The passwords of the Black Market are different for every ten people, and we keep a record of who took that password.”
A satisfied smile spread across the Black Market King’s face, as if he had cornered Lee Ro-woon.
“Is all of this just a coincidence, Mr. Lee Rowoon?”
“Well. What do you think?”
Lee Rowoon’s eyes looked at the Black Market King.
“More than I thought…”
The Black Market King said, straightening his body.
“You are a more interesting person.”
The Black Market King was convinced.
“You deliberately leaked it.”
“That’s right.”
Lee Rowoon said as if he wasn’t hiding anything great.
“In order to meet the Black Market King, I needed to attract some attention. For a while, the Black Market King was a burdensome big shot to me. It would be dangerous to touch the Black Market King with something half-assed.”
“For a while, huh…”
Clap!
The Black Market King clapped his hands together.
“Hahahahahahaha!”
Laughter that could be called madness filled the room.
“Good! Good! It seems like it will be a very good deal.”
The Black Market King, with a changed expression, looked at Lee Rowoon with eyes full of desire and said.
“What do you want?”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Black Market King.
He was the world’s powerful figure who ruled half of the darkness of Asia.
Even the Assembly could not meet him if they wanted to, and even the president would have a hard time conveying a message to the Black Market King.
Such an existence was bowing his head in a submissive manner, just as the Blood Cult members did to Lee Rowoon.
Anyone who saw this sight would be speechless in amazement.
Even the Assembly Leader would not receive such reverence from the Black Market King.
Moreover.
“Grant all his wishes.”
If they knew that the target was a kid who was less than half the Black Market King’s age, they would be even more unable to believe it.
“I will obey your command.”
“How was he?”
The kid, whose gender was unknown, spoke to the Black Market King.
“That man. The Blood Demon.”
“I can certainly see why you were interested. He is an unusual human being. I didn’t know how he, who used to be a player, gained the power of a warrior, or how he became the Blood Demon.”
The kid quietly listened to the Black Market King’s voice.
“Moreover, I couldn’t even read his internal energy. I don’t even know if he’s really that legendary Blood Demon God…”
Who was the Black Market King?
He was an existence who could confidently say that he was among the top 30 strongest in Asia.
But such a person couldn’t read Lee Rowoon’s internal energy.
“I couldn’t know what was in those eyes, and his confident attitude didn’t have even a hint of awkwardness.”
The Black Market King continued to speak without raising his head.
“Originally, this Lee Rowoon was not such a person.
Five years of slavery, there are many parts that are insufficient to explain it. I thought maybe it was Hwasan’s doing, but…”
The Black Market King quietly raised his head.
“Hwasan doesn’t even know about Lee Rowoon’s existence, and they haven’t had any success in creating a Dantian for players.”
The kid nodded.
The Black Market King said to such a kid in a trembling voice.
“What did Master see?”
He knew that he shouldn’t dare to say such a thing.
But the Black Market King couldn’t hold back his curiosity.
‘Blood Cult.’
Why, in the world, did his master not erase her interest in that dying world?
Why, in the world, did she continue to help the Blood Cult?
Why did she move directly to see someone like the Blood Demon?
“Human?”
The Black Market King said.
The Blood Demon was an exceptional human.
But the kid said.
“That’s simply a monster.”
Trembling, the kid quietly closed his eyes.
The Black Market King, who divided the darkness of Asia, and that ruler.
‘The current Leader of the Underworld Gate, Ha Jin.’
That was her identity.
The only ruler who truly controlled the Black Market.
What she saw in Lee Ro-woon was a fear that was truly indescribable.
‘Finally…’
She said without even paying attention to the Black Market King.
“Has that person come?”
“……”
The Black Market King couldn’t dare to ask anything.
Because the unknown energy felt from Ha Jin seemed as if it would not forgive the Black Market King if he opened his mouth.
“We need to invest a little in the Blood Cult. You move directly.”
“I obey…”
The Black Market King said in a trembling voice.
“I will receive your command.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
