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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Wjin
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The werewolf horde led by Razaka was of a different caliber than the monsters I had previously hunted. Having endured countless battles, the werewolves exuded a menacing aura, a privilege reserved for predators.
Normally, just facing them would have been intimidating. But the hunters’ eyes showed no fear. In fact, they were smiling.
“We’re done once we clean these guys up.”
“What do you think? Wouldn’t you say we’ve cleared a sufficient path?”
At Oh Kyung-hyun’s question, a whirlwind erupted, and Lee Seong-joon appeared.
“Good work. I’ll join the battle now.”
As Lee Seong-joon lightly warmed up, a smile on his face…
Rumble—!
The gray wave of werewolves shook the ground and instantly closed the distance with the hunters.
“They’re coming!!”
Lee Ye-rin shouted, gripping her staff. A hexagram magic circle appeared on the empty ground, and a massive storm of flames erupted.
Kaboom—!
It was Hell Dust, her signature SS-rank skill. The charging werewolf horde was engulfed in the storm, and chaos ensued.
“Let’s go wild!”
“Waaah—!”
At Oh Kyung-hyun’s shout, the hunters cheered, drew their weapons, and charged. The werewolves, caught in the chaotic situation, couldn’t react properly.
Faced with the hunters’ relentless assault, the werewolves, who had been exuding a menacing aura, faltered, and the front line began to be pushed back. Given the situation, it seemed they could win even without my intervention, but I had no intention of just standing by.
I turned my gaze to the rear of the werewolf horde, towards the being exuding a powerful aura.
“I should start my work too.”
I kicked off the ground and charged past the werewolves, quickly closing the distance with the king. The werewolves tried to block my path, but…
“Grrr—”
A strong sense of duty shone in their eyes.
‘They’re determined to stop me, no matter what.’
Dealing with a few werewolves wasn’t difficult, but I didn’t want to get bogged down here before an important fight.
“Come out.”
Woong—!
Hyeok Cheon-man appeared from the void and charged at the werewolves blocking the way.
Slash—!
With every swing of his crimson dagger, the werewolves were pushed back, and the blocked path opened. My expression hardened as I ran towards the king.
“Graaagh—!”
As I got closer, the werewolves lunged at me, trying to block my path, but I scoffed.
‘Taeseon Sprint.’
Enveloped in wind, I slipped through the gaps in the werewolves and broke through. At the same time, a silver orb, like a sharp spear, shot towards me from a distance, aiming for my forehead.
“True Energy…?”
It wasn’t a refined, controlled power, but the pure concentration of energy was worthy of being called True Energy. On this battlefield, besides myself, there was only one other being who could wield such power. The king of monsters.
‘Razaka.’
Recalling his name, I reached out and snatched the silver orb. But the orb in my hand wasn’t a werewolf’s attack.
‘A spiderweb?’
Though it was a bewildering situation, I didn’t hesitate. I pulled the spiderweb with all my might.
Whoosh—!
With a roar of wind, a large figure was lifted into the air and flew towards me. I had succeeded in reaching the king of monsters, just as I had intended. But my expression was one of bewilderment, not joy.
“What?”
The energy I felt was certainly that of a powerful monster, worthy of being called a king. But the name floating above its head wasn’t ‘Razaka.’
“Lyudmia.”
Although covered in gray fur like Razaka, its eight legs and somewhat round body were clearly not that of a werewolf. My expression hardened.
‘What happened?’
There was no reason for Lyudmia, known as the queen of the Great Spiders, to be with werewolves. In an instant, countless hypotheses flashed through my mind, trying to create confusion.
But my experience and memories as the Blood Demon and Demon God quickly sorted out the situation.
‘Come to think of it, it was strange from the beginning.’
I smiled wryly and narrowed my eyes, retracing my memories. With my vision cleared by the previous situations, I began to see things I hadn’t noticed before.
‘I was foolish.’
I had been so focused on my anticipation for the battle with Razaka that I had failed to look around. How the werewolf horde had been able to move south so quickly, and why the werewolves had been so desperate to block my approach—it all made sense now.
‘It was all a smokescreen to hide the truth.’
This whole situation was Razaka’s trick, his ploy.
‘Razaka… a more cunning monster than I thought.’
The king of monsters who could lead an army. If I let him live, he could cause trouble anytime, anywhere. I had to eliminate him completely to avoid any future problems. I frowned and my mind raced.
‘Where is Razaka now… no, what is Razaka’s real objective?’
With no information, it was difficult to find an answer. Of course, I wouldn’t show any impatience. In times like these, it was best to act calmly.
‘…First, let’s look around slowly.’
According to the report from the Association, Razaka had fought a war with Lyudmia.
‘Then there must be traces of it somewhere.’
I quickly scanned Lyudmia’s body.
‘There are many wounds all over her body.’
The battle with Razaka must have been difficult. Lyudmia’s body was covered in wounds, big and small, and red blood stained her thick fur and skin. They might have been simple wounds, but to me, the Blood Demon who controlled blood, they were significant clues.
‘The blood is mixed.’
As the supreme Blood Demon, who prided himself on his unparalleled ability to control blood, I couldn’t be fooled. The red bloodstains on the gray fur weren’t all Lyudmia’s. There was also the blood of a beast, a wolf.
‘…I don’t know the details, but thanks to this, it’ll be easier to find Razaka’s location than I thought.’
Most of the Blood Demon’s martial arts were destructive and powerful. In other words, not all of them were focused on destructive power. Like the Blood Shadow Flash I had used before, some of the Blood Demon’s martial arts were specialized for tracking and searching.
‘Tracking Blood Veins.’
As the name suggested, it had the ability to track the owner of a blood trail. The ability itself was simple, but its utility was excellent.
‘Especially in a situation like this, where I have to track an enemy, it’s the best martial art.’
Of course, Lyudmia wouldn’t just hand over Razaka’s blood.
“Kieeek—!”
Lyudmia shrieked and leaped into the air, about to shoot a spiderweb net at me. It was an attempt to bind me, not to attack. Sensing an instinctive threat from my aura, it was trying to avoid a fight.
It was an excellent judgment, but the situation and the opponent were not in its favor. Lyudmia was covered in blood. There was no way it could escape my attack.
“Die.”
I said coldly, my eyes turning a seductive red. The red blood flowing from Lyudmia’s body rose into the air, following my will.
‘Ten Thousand Blood Demon Realm, Asura Slaughter.’
The moment one of the Blood Demon’s representative martial arts, which used blood to slaughter, was unleashed, the blood droplets in the air transformed into sharp blades.
“Kieeek?!”
Lyudmia, its eyes widening at the sudden appearance of the red blades, frantically tried to find an escape route, but it was too late. The Blood Demon’s execution had already begun.
Slash—!
The blades in the air drew red trajectories, slicing Lyudmia’s body to pieces. The first blow might not have inflicted much damage. But the blood that gushed from the wound created more blades, continuously increasing their number.
“Kieeek!”
Lyudmia, in a panic, frantically looked around, trying to find a way out.
Slash—! Slash—! Slash—!
But the Asura Slaughter, now consisting of dozens of blades, relentlessly cut through its body. Its body, once harder than steel, was torn and sliced. Its eight legs were gone. Its once majestic, gray-furred body was also gone.
Everything was being cut into pieces.
“Kieeek—!”
With a final, pain-filled shriek, Lyudmia’s body split into dozens of pieces and fell to the ground, a rain of blood pouring from the sky.
Thud—! Thud—!
The thunderous sound of Lyudmia’s dismembered body hitting the ground drew the attention of everyone in the area.
“Wh-What is this…?”
“Oh my god.”
Since the battle with the werewolves had been ongoing, they hadn’t seen the exact fight. But the result was clear. Hunter Lee Seong-joon had won. And he hadn’t even been scratched.
It was an overwhelming victory. The hunters were stunned, but as renowned hunters, their shock didn’t last long.
“Hunter Lee Seong-joon has defeated the king!”
“Push forward!”
Unlike the hunters, whose morale soared, the werewolves, terrified by Lyudmia’s death, trembled.
“Grrr…”
The hunters’ morale was sky-high, in complete contrast to the werewolves’, whose morale had hit rock bottom. The tide of the battle had turned.
The only variable would be the appearance of another overwhelmingly strong opponent, but there were no other monster kings nearby. There were no variables.
‘…I don’t have to worry about this anymore.’
I turned my gaze and reached out to Lyudmia.
Whoosh—
Some of the red bloodstains on Lyudmia’s dismembered body were drawn into my hand. I had obtained the medium to use Tracking Blood Veins, Razaka’s blood. Having achieved my objectives, there was no reason to stay.
I immediately started walking towards the subjugation headquarters, where the military demarcation line used to be.
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