Chapter 543: Sword Demon (Sword Demon)

It was the time when the sun had set, and night had fallen.

Pushing through the bushes, countless individuals were moving rapidly.

“Run faster!”

“Form ranks! Don’t break formation!”

Though their appearances varied, the expression on each and every face was the same.

Tension.

Their faces were filled with tension.

Tak-!

Their speed gradually increased.

From the sight of them pushing through the forest path, it was clear they were all martial artists.

Their martial uniforms fluttered as if swept along. The insignia embedded there was clear even in the night.

That emblem signified only one thing.

The Murim Alliance.

The identities of those running through the night were martial artists belonging to the Murim Alliance.

Among those carrying such deep tension, a man stood at the forefront.

Seo Dong, the Unit Leader of the Flying Dragon Unit of the Murim Alliance’s Guangdong Branch, rolled his eyes.

‘Damn it.’

One hand held the sword hilt.

He focused power in his dantian, using all his internal energy as ki sense.

His energy spread out, enveloping the surrounding forest.

His internal energy was full of power.

To manifest ki sense of that level, one had to overcome a barrier as a martial artist.

This suggested that Seo Dong’s cultivation had surpassed the Peak.

In other words…

A powerhouse of that caliber was this tense.

‘Why now? When the numbers are so few…!’

Currently, the total number of personnel was seven.

The personnel brought along were all martial artists who had surpassed the Second-rate, reaching First-rate level, but it was still a problem.

With the current numbers, it was woefully insufficient.

‘A Red-grade….’

That is, to hunt a Red-grade monster.

One Peak-level expert and six First-rate martial artists.

Just a few years ago, this would have been sufficient force to hunt monsters.

Seo Dong, at the Peak level, could slaughter Blue-grade monsters alone.

The appearance of monsters wasn’t that dangerous back then.

‘Damn it all.’

But it wasn’t like that now.

Just three years ago.

Starting with Sichuan, new grades of Demonic Gates began to open.

No, it wasn’t right to call them new.

It was simply that grades that had existed from the beginning had reappeared.

However.

The changes that had befallen the world were far from simple to explain.

“Warm up your bodies beforehand! Don’t let your guard down!”

At the shout, the martial artists behind them flinched and raised their internal energy.

The martial artists’ internal energy mixed with the air, and heat began to spread.

A grade that hadn’t appeared for centuries.

The Red-grade Demonic Gate.

Gates of a grade unfamiliar to the people of this era had begun appearing a few years ago.

Monsters incomparably stronger than Blue-grade monsters.

They possessed barriers that could block internal energy, and grips strong enough to crush the bodies of Peak-level martial artists.

Furthermore, they were incredibly ferocious, turning the surroundings into a wasteland every time they appeared.

This was enough to be called another disaster.

The only fortunate thing was that, proportionally to the difference in grades…

Their appearance frequency was significantly lower.

Of course, even so, the appearance of a Red-grade monster was still a disaster.

Seo Dong raised his head.

“…Kkeudeuk…!”

Looking beyond the void, his teeth clenched involuntarily.

He saw light.

A very red light, specifically.

That signified only one thing.

‘Just before appearing.’

It meant a monster was about to burst forth from the Red-grade Demonic Gate.

The best time to hunt them was right after they emerged from the Demonic Gate.

A few seconds of fumbling as they failed to adapt to the new environment.

That moment determined the course of the battle.

Especially with this small number of personnel, a direct assault would be tantamount to a dog’s death, so they had to hunt at that precise moment, but…

‘It’s too late.’

The timing was now far too late.

Not only was the report of the Demonic Gate’s appearance delayed, but preparations took far too long.

If things continued like this, the monster would burst forth from the Demonic Gate.

And if that happened…

‘There are many civilian homes nearby.’

If things went wrong, a tremendous slaughter would occur.

It was a situation that absolutely had to be prevented.

‘Why?’

Even as he increased speed, Seo Dong pondered the question.

‘The frequency seems to be increasing.’

For some reason, the thought occurred to him that the number of reported Red-grade Demonic Gates had been steadily increasing lately.

In the year it was first discovered, the number was at most twenty per year.

Yet now, in spring, mere months into the new year, it had already surpassed twenty.

It was increasing.

The man felt a sudden dread, a sensation he suspected most Sword Unit members felt as well.

At that moment.

Kuuuung-!

“…!”

The roar from the other side made the man’s eyes widen.

He bit his lip.

That sound was definitely…

‘A monster has appeared.’

The roar signaling the appearance of a Red-grade monster.

It meant a Red-grade monster had appeared below where the light was visible.

Kkadeudeuk.

Seo Dong clenched his teeth and drew his sword.

Chwiak-!

The moment Seo Dong drew his sword, the martial artists behind him also unsheathed theirs without hesitation.

They had probably all sensed it.

That they could die from this mission if things went wrong.

‘…Why did it have to be when the Commanders were gone…!’

If even one Commander-level martial artist had been present, things wouldn’t have turned out like this.

But now, all such individuals were away on assignment.

The incident of the Nine-Sovereign Demonic Emperor, Do Mun-gang, dying.

It was an assignment to investigate that matter. Since the Four Demonic Emperors were involved, the Commanders had taken the lead.

Who knew that would become a problem.

They should have had at least two seasoned Peak-level experts, but they had to go out with such a meager force.

‘This is nothing short of a dog’s death.’

I should have retired earlier.

Was it my fault for not doing so?

Seo Dong had to force himself to regain his composure, feeling a sense of emptiness.

Leaving it as it was would clearly turn the surroundings into a wasteland, and he couldn’t just stand by and let that happen.

“We’re… arriving soon.”

Seo Dong’s voice, which had been clear until just moments before, sounded somewhat uneasy.

“I’ll take the lead. You all provide support from behind.”

“Unit Leader-nim…!”

One of the martial artists uttered words of concern at Seo Dong’s statement, but…

There were no further words to follow.

Everyone knew there was no other way.

Ttik-!

Finally, all the personnel arrived at the source of the light.

Seo Dong gripped his sword, his tension fully heightened.

Woong-! Sword energy surged into the blade.

He extended his ki sense far out to assess the situation.

‘Where is it?’

The location where the light was visible was clearly here.

So the monster should also be visible in this vicinity.

Moreover, since Red-grade monsters are mostly enormous, it shouldn’t be difficult to spot them.

‘What is it?’

Seo Dong felt something was amiss.

‘Why is it so quiet?’

A suffocating silence permeated the air.

A Red-grade monster should be roaring and tearing everything apart right now; that would be normal.

The surroundings they had arrived at were eerily quiet.

The problem here was that it wasn’t even detected by ki sense.

“…”

Seo Dong raised his hand and gestured low.

It was a signal to advance.

The man advanced, suppressing his presence, and the martial artists followed behind.

They moved like that for a few minutes.

Then.

…Deudeuk-!

“…?”

A low sound echoed from afar.

Kkeudeuk…. Udeudeuk… Ujeok…!

As if crushing and grinding something.

Just hearing it sent chills down his spine.

Hearing the sound, Seo Dong felt the hair on his entire body stand on end.

Tseureup… Eudeudeuk.

The sound grew louder with each step they took.

It was probably right in front of them.

Dudeuk-!

It was certain.

The sound was coming from just beyond the darkness, nearby.

Consequently, his breathing grew ragged with tension.

His heart pounded faster, and cold sweat trickled down.

Was it a Red-grade monster? Was the monster doing something?

Thinking thus, the moment Seo Dong took a step forward with trembling legs.

“…Heop…?!”

At the sight that met his eyes, Seo Dong involuntarily gasped.

Something appeared beyond the thick darkness.

Tududuk-.

The first thing he saw was a blue glint.

Following that was a massive body.

Something with a large, seemingly flexible build was chewing and eating a monster with red hide.

Kkadeudeuk-!

Along with the sound of bones snapping, he saw the monster’s head being crushed.

Jureureuk-! Blood flowed, soaking the ground.

Seo Dong’s eyes widened like saucers as he watched.

Though it was too mangled to recognize its form, the monster being devoured appeared to resemble a tiger.

‘…That is definitely…’

A beast incomparably stronger than the lower-grade Blue monsters, requiring a martial artist at the seasoned Peak level to contend with.

And that monster was being eaten alive right before his eyes.

Seeing that there was no other significant damage around suggested it couldn’t even resist properly.

‘What is… that, what in the world is it?’

The unknown entity chewing on that Red-grade monster.

It looked like a monster, but its grade was unknown.

At first glance, it seemed to have a blue glow, but upon closer inspection, it was closer to black.

‘…So, is it a Blue-grade monster?’

That couldn’t be right. A Blue-grade monster couldn’t possibly do that.

Then what is that…?

Kreu….

‘Oh no…!’

As if finishing its meal, the monster’s blue glint turned towards Seo Dong.

Seo Dong immediately tried to channel power into his sword, but…

Uttuk-!

“Kkeueu…!”

The moment his gaze met the creature’s, his body stiffened completely.

This was bad.

Like this…!

“Excuse me.”

“!!”

Seo Dong, whose body was frozen, flinched at a voice that suddenly sounded near his ear.

Simultaneously, he felt an arm wrap around his shoulder.

Someone had put an arm around Seo Dong’s shoulder, as if in a friendly gesture.

“I have something I need to ask.”

It was a voice that sounded like a high-pitched, clear tone, yet slightly subdued.

It was a voice he had never heard before.

Seo Dong forced his stiffened neck to turn and look at the person.

The first thing he saw was…

‘The eyes…?’

Blue glints, similar to the unknown monster’s, were before him.

Those pupils shone so clearly even in the darkness.

Though it was difficult to discern his face properly as it wasn’t clearly visible,

judging by his voice, he didn’t seem very old.

Meanwhile, the one thing Seo Dong could clearly ascertain was…

‘I cannot win.’

It was the intuition of a loser.

He knew it the moment he saw the eyes.

He realized the reason the forest was so quiet wasn’t the monster ahead, but the presence emanating from this person.

He said, looking at Seo Dong, who had begun to tremble.

“I’m looking for someone. I was wondering if you might know them.”

His tone held a hint of amusement.

Seo Dong trembled involuntarily at the profound presence contained within that tone.

He forced words out through his constricted throat.

“…Who… who are you…?”

“Hmm. I’ve heard that question twice today already.”

Sweat dripped.

It felt like his mind was being crushed at any moment.

“Just someone whose hobby is traveling. Isn’t that enough? It should be.”

“…”

This clearly meant he didn’t want to reveal his identity.

Even knowing that, Seo Dong couldn’t retort.

He could vaguely guess what would happen if he said no.

“If it’s not enough, things get a bit troublesome.”

He could vaguely guess.

Krrrrrr.

The massive monster growling lowly in front.

It seemed to be waiting for a command.

That meant this person was taming that monster?

‘Unbelievable.’

A human taming a monster – that was impossible.

However.

“…Hooook… Hoo….”

Even though questions arose and he couldn’t understand…

This wasn’t a situation where he could ask about it.

“Who… who are you looking for?”

At Seo Dong’s reply, the person smiled.

Though it wasn’t clearly visible due to the night, Seo Dong inferred he was smiling from the way his blue glints curved like crescent moons.

Afterward, the person asked Seo Dong.

“Sword Demon (劍魔)… No, what was this guy’s name again? I think it was two characters…”

He spoke, then paused in thought.

“I don’t know the name, but…”

Then, as if remembering, he spoke again.

“He’s male, around my age… and he uses a sword.”

Ah.

“His eyes are uniquely yellow, you see?”

“…!”

Hearing this, Seo Dong froze.

Seeing that reaction, the person asked with a smile.

“Do you know him?”

“…”

Whether it was fortunate or not,

Seo Dong also knew the description.

It was information about someone who had recently become infamous for all the wrong reasons.