Ch.11338. Soso and the Hell Blood Demon (2)

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

A massive explosion shook the entire forest. The group narrowly managed to dodge the blast.

“W-what just happened… If it weren’t for the Vice President, that explosion would have gotten us!”

Pyo Sunghoon cried out in shock. If I hadn’t shouted a warning, they might have been caught in the explosion. No wonder he was terrified.

‘That pungent scent of blood…’

It was a rainy night. The rain was washing away both visibility and surrounding scents.

But in the aftermath of the explosion, a new odor had enveloped the area. It was unmistakably the stench of blood.

I spoke to the group.

“It seems the Hell Blood Demon has used sorcery.”

At my words, Pyo Sunghoon looked around.

The nighttime forest offered poor visibility. I could summon a fireball for light, but that would only reveal our position to enemies, so I refrained.

However, Awakened ones can perceive their surroundings to some extent even in darkness. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have led the group into the forest.

Soon, Pyo Sunghoon’s gaze scanned through the darkness.

“Not just rain, but blood scattered everywhere. As you said, Vice President, this must be sorcery.”

I nodded. There was a reason Lee Sunwoo was called the Hell Blood Demon.

Though Sunwoo had trained in Cheonma Divine Sect’s martial arts, he hit a wall. Consumed by intense inferiority toward Yeon Sehwi, he turned to forbidden dark arts that disciples of Cheonma Divine Sect should never touch.

‘That dark art that Cheonma Divine Sect had sealed away.’

Hell Blood Technique—a sorcery that increases one’s mana by using human corpses and blood.

Through this forbidden art, the Hell Blood Demon had caused trouble at Cheonma Divine Sect and stolen sacred items. Then he joined under Soul-Stealing Demon Seo Munyeom, becoming a notorious villain.

“The Hell Blood Demon is an extremely vicious villain. Though his name is overshadowed by Soul-Stealing Demon Seo Munyeom, he’s easily worthy of being ranked among the top 50 villains. We must be extremely careful.”

At my words, Pyo Sunghoon’s expression hardened further. As the dust from the explosion settled, we could see the gruesome sight of shattered corpses strewn about.

“Those must have been caught in the explosion…”

“No. He used those corpses to create his sorcery.”

As we walked a bit further, a severed head rolled under my feet. Jung Yuha turned away at the sight.

Pyo Sunghoon’s expression tightened, but he calmly examined the face.

“Wait. This is definitely an executive of Dead Arms…”

The moment he saw the face, even Pyo Sunghoon, who had been trying to maintain composure, was horrified. I said:

“It seems he used both Hell Blood Technique and the Domain of Sacrifice simultaneously. The stronger the sacrifice, the more magical energy can be extracted. He likely killed Dead Arms hunters and placed his sorcery on them.”

Lee Sunwoo must have already made a contract with a demon.

Because of this, the effect of extracting magical energy is doubled when he kills with his own hands rather than using demons to do the killing.

“How… how could someone who once wore human skin do such a thing!”

“He’s likely no longer human. So both Guild Master and Team Leader Jung should prepare themselves thoroughly.”

I could see tension coloring both their expressions.

They were S-class and A-class hunters with formidable skills, but the opponent was too powerful. Yet I wasn’t afraid.

‘Setting aside the novel’s force compelling Soso to meet the Hell Blood Demon, with this team, we should be able to capture him.’

The magical energy filling the forest and the terrible sorcery using corpses.

For ordinary hunters, such hellish scenes would instantly push their MCI to the limit. But these two had mastered Cheonma Divine Arts.

When the user’s will is firm, Cheonma Divine Arts keeps the mind perfectly clear.

‘The strong shall not be swayed by delusions.’

That’s the core tenet of Cheonma Divine Arts. Indeed, even during the recent crisis, their MCI remained fortunately stable.

‘And the Cheonma Divine Sword’s only weakness is another Cheonma Divine Sword.’

Though he learned dark arts, Lee Sunwoo’s foundation is still Cheonma Divine Sect’s martial arts. So these two, who have steadily focused on swordsmanship without wavering, should have enough skill to support Soso.

‘Yes. Soso will be the main damage dealer against Lee Sunwoo.’

I checked Soso’s expression. She must have been secretly glancing at my face, as our eyes met.

‘This should work out fine.’

As long as I remain unharmed, Soso should be able to demonstrate her full abilities.

I gave further instructions to the group.

“Let’s move on. The Dead Arms executives are probably all dead. Be careful, as corpses will be scattered throughout this forest!”

The group swiftly moved according to my words.

***

Finally, the group reached the edge of the island.

BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!

Another explosion sounded. A severed arm on the ground had detonated.

“Vice President! Look out!”

The sword that arm had been holding flew toward me, trailing blood-colored mana.

WHOOSH-

Just before the sword reached me, I detonated blue flames to deflect it.

“I’m fine.”

Pyo Sunghoon looked at me with an astonished expression as I spoke calmly.

“That corpse just now was definitely Dead Arms Guild Master Seong Taeseok. How did you deflect his sword so easily… Actually, I suppose it’s possible for you, Vice President.”

As he said, the corpse belonged to the Dead Arms Guild Master. The Hell Blood Demon’s sorcery partially recreated the original owner’s abilities when the corpse exploded.

So just now, I had deflected an S-class hunter swordsman’s technique with a flame spell.

“You’re skilled at fighting against swordsmen and close-combat demons, Vice President. No need for unnecessary concern.”

“No need to praise me. It was just a corpse, after all.”

Saying that, I examined Seong Taeseok’s corpse again. Pyo Sunghoon continued:

“Still, I never imagined he would use even Seong Taeseok as a demonic offering. I thought he would just use him, but to kill even the Guild Master like this… No matter how much of a villain he’s become, the Hell Blood Demon has truly gone insane.”

I nodded. Once someone becomes a villain, they become completely different from normal Awakened ones.

With their mana heart corrupted, they become dangerous beings who act solely on desire-driven thoughts. And the desire I had confirmed in Lee Sunwoo while traversing this forest was clear.

‘He wants only power, regardless of the means.’

The Domain of Sacrifice. That sorcery isn’t omnipotent. The demon provides power to the contractor who offers sacrifices.

In exchange, the demon constantly demands more offerings.

The contractor must therefore commit ceaseless slaughter like this. If they fail to kill someone within the time limit, they must offer themselves as sacrifice.

‘Well, since villains consistently kill people anyway, it’s not really an issue for them.’

Still, killing people indiscriminately makes one a target for hunters, so they usually summon demons to kill people instead.

But the current Lee Sunwoo doesn’t seem to care about such precautions. He might be planning to kill everyone on Yeongdo Island.

‘No, that’s definitely his plan.’

And the Red Lake leadership is surely encouraging this terrorism. Red Lake has already turned the world against them.

Their ultimate goal—the resurrection of the Evil God—also requires sacrifices, just like the Domain of Sacrifice.

After all, the Domain of Sacrifice itself was modeled after the Evil God resurrection ritual. If the maximum range of the Domain of Sacrifice is just this island,

then the ritual for the Evil God’s resurrection operates on a world scale.

So Lee Sunwoo is performing his role as a Red Lake member perfectly.

‘I must stop this.’

I’m not exactly a champion of justice like Siwoo, but I have no intention of letting Red Lake have their way.

However, dealing with Lee Sunwoo, who has absorbed power by turning an entire district into his domain, won’t be easy at all.

‘So think. What’s the best strategy?’

I had long abandoned the option of retreating and calling for reinforcements. Lee Sunwoo hasn’t yet killed everyone on Yeongdo.

Not only the four of us here, but elite united hunters are also fighting the demons he summoned.

If we’re going to capture him, now is actually the best time.

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[Creating Main Quest.]

[Flame’s Expansion of Power (SS) – Busan Arc]

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[Sub-Quest – Eliminate Hell Blood Demon Lee Sunwoo]

[Additional rewards available if you eliminate him without leaving Yeongdo.]

[Additional reward – ?@#$@#$]

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Damn status window. It seemed to be saying that I must defeat the Hell Blood Demon right here, right now.

‘I don’t like following the status window’s instructions, but now that Soso and Lee Sunwoo are destined to meet, we must eliminate him.’

And I had already been working behind the scenes through hunters who had entered Yeongdo.

At the very least, I knew the method to break the Domain of Sacrifice sorcery through the Suspicious Dark Demon.

I hurried forward while continuing to think. Finally, our group reached the coastal cliff at the edge of Yeongdo.

There stood the Hell Blood Demon.

***

CRACK-BOOM!

Lightning struck the vast sea. Rain that had been falling all day without stopping. The lightning illuminated the surroundings amid the storm.

A dizzying rocky cliff meeting the sea. Rugged rocks spread across the area.

And on the roof of an observation deck near that cliff stood a man. Despite the raging storm and the sheer drop beyond the roof,

the man stood there without the slightest movement, looking at me.

“I wondered why the magical energy flowing to me was decreasing. So there were unwelcome guests after all.”

His attire wasn’t modern. It was traditional clothing I had seen in the Martial Nation.

The man with an intensely cold expression met my eyes.

“Not a swordsman, I see. How boring.”

His calm voice didn’t match his reputation as a villain called the Hell Blood Demon. His appearance gave the impression not of a martial artist but of a scholar or nobleman.

He somewhat resembled Soso’s father, Yeon Sehwi, whom I had seen in the Martial Nation.

‘He was sworn brothers with Soso’s father.’

But his eyes were completely different. While Yeon Sehwi’s eyes were deep and transparent like an unfathomably deep lake,

Lee Sunwoo’s eyes were like the sea beyond the cliff—the eyes of a madman, filled with roaring waves.

“Wait. On second thought, I should retract my ‘unwelcome guests’ comment. I don’t care about the other rats, but I’ve been waiting for you to come here, Soso. Isn’t that right, Soso?”

Soso bit her lip hard. The Hell Blood Demon had recognized her immediately.

“I came to Busan on urgent business, but coincidentally received the happy news that you were in Busan too. It’s been well over ten years since I left Cheonma Divine Sect. This uncle has missed you terribly.”

His voice was so gentle it was hard to believe he was a madman and villain. It even sounded nostalgic.

“You’ve grown so much. And you’ve grown beautiful. You look just like your mother, Yuhwa.”

“Don’t you dare speak of my mother with that filthy mouth!”

At that moment, Soso shouted. The Hell Blood Demon was responsible for injuring her mother, which led to her death.

Her cry was filled with rage—something I had never heard from her before.

“My, how it saddens this uncle to hear you speak that way. Yuhwa… yes, Yuhwa was the woman I adored. You were too young to know then, but now that you’re grown, you should understand my feelings.”

The Hell Blood Demon, who had been speaking calmly, suddenly laughed maniacally.

“Haha…!! Yes… your father… my sworn brother… that detestable Yeon Sehwi, if he hadn’t stolen Yuhwa from me, I would never have left Cheonma Divine Sect! It’s all… all because of Yeon Sehwi that Yuhwa died!”

“Stop spouting nonsense!”

“No, that is the truth! Yuhwa loved me! He stole her from me! That abominable Yeon Sehwi! And to take revenge on him, I sold even my soul! Haha… yes…”

His eyes grew cold as he continued laughing.

“Yes… Soso. Come with your uncle. Yeon Sehwi should also… experience the feeling of having something precious stolen from him. Otherwise, that shameless man will never know his sin for the rest of his life.”

“Stop talking crazy!”

Soso screamed as if in agony. I quickly moved her behind me.

“Stay calm. There’s no need to fall for his words.”

I spoke calmly, but inside I was anxious. I didn’t know about the complicated relationship between the Hell Blood Demon and Soso’s parents.

‘Damn. This wasn’t mentioned in the original work.’

And this backstory I just learned was similar to the complicated relationship between Soso, myself, and Yuri.

The more Soso was shaken by the Hell Blood Demon’s words, the more she heard about this tragic love triangle, the worse the situation would become.

Villains are like demons. They can create curses and confusion in others the same way demons do.

So I had to help Soso regain her composure. The Hell Blood Demon spoke:

“Unwelcome guest, you’d better step aside. Soso and I still have much to discuss.”

“No. I have no intention of stepping aside.”

At my answer, the Hell Blood Demon’s expression filled with rage.

“Insignificant fool who doesn’t know his place! I could cut off your head right now.”

“That’s irrelevant. I know my place very well. That very distinguished place.”

“What nonsense—”

At that moment, my eyes met the Hell Blood Demon’s. I shouted:

“I am Soso’s boyfriend. So I will someday inherit the Cheonma Divine Sect.”

At those words, the Hell Blood Demon’s eyes turned ice cold.