Chapter 533: Curse of the Dragon’s Blood.

The room felt unusually dark.

It was even more so because I hadn’t turned on the lights before falling asleep.

I strained my eyes to brighten my vision.

Only then did the room seem a little brighter.

At the same time, cold sweat trickled down.

Thump… thump…

My startled heart wouldn’t calm down easily, pounding away in my chest.

It was only natural.

How could I not be startled when I suddenly woke up to find an assassin right in front of me?

Especially if that assassin happened to be the esteemed King of Assassins.

No, honestly, I wouldn’t have been this surprised if he had just come for a visit.

The problem was.

“…What are you doing there…?”

The human called the King of Assassins was kneeling before me.

Directly in front of me the moment I opened my eyes.

Knees planted rigidly, as if perfectly angled.

His head was bowed moderately, his gaze slightly lowered.

I could see the King of Assassins maintaining a posture of near-perfect etiquette.

He was in such a pristine state, it made me wonder if he was trying too hard to be polite.

If a junior disciple were like that, I’d think, ‘Wow, they really had a solid upbringing!’

‘This is driving me nuts.’

The problem was that the one acting like this was the King of Assassins, the master of the night.

‘Why the hell is this guy showing up again?’

I thought he’d been quiet lately.

I’d been so swamped with things that I’d completely forgotten a fact.

‘That… the King of Assassins was also around.’

Right, that guy was here too.

I had momentarily forgotten that the King of Assassins was part of our group, having changed his appearance to follow the Sword Saint.

‘Is this place really okay?’

Looking at the King of Assassins, a thought suddenly struck me.

The value of a single martial artist who reached the Huajing realm is immense.

Even reaching the peak level would have prestigious sword schools vying to recruit you, let alone reaching the Huajing realm.

Just look at the elders of the major families; they’re all Huajing masters.

Reaching the Huajing realm alone signifies enough worth to attain such a position.

‘How many are here alone?’

How many Huajing martial artists have gathered at the Tang Clan?

Even excluding those affiliated with the Tang Clan.

The White Lotus Sword, the Eccentric Immortal… just counting the ones that come to mind, there were five.

‘…This is practically a den of human weapons.’

It feels like I dragged them all here, but setting that aside.

Speaking of the individuals of such high caliber, the man standing before me, the King of Assassins.

‘A being capable of killing anyone.’

That’s how I could describe him.

The King of Assassins, reputed to be able to kill even the Three Venerables if he wished.

He’s the master of the foremost assassination squad, the Midnight Killing Squad.

And he’s someone whose identity nobody knows.

Of course….

‘I don’t know his identity, but I know a little bit more than that.’

I don’t know how many people have seen the King of Assassins directly and lived to tell the tale, but…

From my perspective, I know slightly more.

‘A descendant of the Yeon family.’

Specifically, that the King of Assassins is actually the descendant of that damned Yeon Ilcheon.

I don’t know who else might know this, but seeing as I didn’t know it in my past life, it’s probably not common knowledge.

‘…Did he come because of that?’

Did he come to silence me because I know it?

I know the preceding events don’t quite fit that scenario, but the thought crossed my mind.

Meanwhile, the reason I could barely convince myself otherwise was thanks to the King of Assassins’ actions.

‘Why?’

Why was he kneeling in my room?

Even my sleep-addled brain felt chilled.

I couldn’t sense any killing intent.

However, at the King of Assassins’ level, he could easily conceal killing intent, so that wasn’t important.

So let’s consider something else.

‘Since when.’

Since when had the King of Assassins been here?

I had set up barriers to wake me if anyone approached, even while asleep….

Ah.

‘It doesn’t matter. That too.’

If the opponent is the King of Assassins, even that would be useless.

Ah, this is really a damn shame.

‘It’s damn hard just to survive.’

No matter what measures I take, there are too many powerful individuals who can break through them.

This shitty reality briefly intruded.

Perhaps thanks to that? I felt slightly more alert.

‘It must mean not to let my guard down even slightly in comfortable situations.’

It was fortunate that I was reminded of a fact I’d momentarily forgotten.

As I was racking my brain to gradually grasp the situation.

[It’s been about two hours.]

Shin Noyang informed me from within.

‘…Is that the time the King of Assassins entered the room?’

[Yes. I tried everything to wake you, but you wouldn’t wake up even if your life depended on it.]

Two hours.

Setting aside the fact that the King of Assassins had been here for that long.

‘He came the moment I fell asleep.’

If we consider the timing, it’s safe to say the King of Assassins waited until I fell asleep to arrive.

Recalling that, I asked the King of Assassins.

“…Do you have business with me?”

Fortunately, my voice didn’t tremble.

If it had, I would have looked pathetic. That was the most fortunate part.

In response to my question, the King of Assassins finally lifted his head and looked at me.

His white hair shimmered.

Even in the darkness, that hair seemed to strangely glow.

The King of Assassins usually wears a mask or travels in disguise, but…

I had a feeling this was his true appearance.

And what about the white eyes contained within?

Despite their unusually white color, they felt dark, as if conveying nothing.

A gaze that felt like it could suck you somewhere.

Those eyes, which had felt particularly frightening the first time I saw them.

‘What is this?’

Strangely, they didn’t seem that scary now.

As I quietly stared into the King of Assassins’ eyes.

Whoosh-!

“…!”

Suddenly, a change occurred in the King of Assassins’ eyes.

His pupils narrowed vertically.

Seeing that, goosebumps rose on my arm.

Was it because they were grotesque? No.

It was because they were eyes I felt I had seen somewhere before.

Where could I have seen them?

I didn’t have to try hard to recall.

The moment I saw them, it came to me.

‘The Blood Demon’s eyes.’

The gaze I saw during the last orthodox sect summit.

The Blood Demon’s blood-red pupils, looking at me while using Jang Seonyeon’s body, were somehow the same as the King of Assassins’ eyes.

That wasn’t the only change.

Vwoom-!

Seeing those eyes, I felt a vibration within my body.

My blood heated up.

Is it reacting?

A heat unrelated to my will began to fill my body.

It eventually surged up to my eyes.

I could feel it without seeing it directly.

That my own pupils were likely no different from the King of Assassins’ eyes right now.

Instantly.

-Swoosh!

Ddol-ddol-i, who had been hiding in the drawer, emerged.

Fwoosh-!

It instantly wrapped my body in azure flames.

The flames burned and disappeared quickly, but what remained after the azure flames vanished was not the body of a thin snake, but the form of a colossal monster.

Its size was so large it made the cramped room feel even smaller.

Ddol-ddol-i, coiled protectively around me, bared its fangs.

-Grrrrrr…!

Ddol-ddol-i trembled its lips, unleashing its hostility towards the King of Assassins.

The King of Assassins’ gaze also turned towards Ddol-ddol-i.

Perhaps seeing that.

The King of Assassins’ mouth finally opened.

“As expected, it seems you were correct.”

Looking at Ddol-ddol-i showing hostility, contrary to my tension that the King of Assassins might make a move.

The King of Assassins merely nodded, as if he had expected this.

What the?

Then, the King of Assassins’ gaze shifted to me.

Swoosh.

The moment the King of Assassins moved, I prepared to react, thinking it might be an attack, but…

“Huh…?”

I stiffened completely at the action the King of Assassins took.

He suddenly bowed his head, offering a formal greeting to me.

Just as I was about to speak in surprise, asking why he was doing that.

“…A guardian born of the Yeon family pays respects to the great Dragon (龍).”

I faltered at the words that came out of the King of Assassins’ mouth.

Dragon (龍).

I couldn’t help but choke on that word.

A momentary hesitation.

Breaking through it, I barely managed to ask the King of Assassins.

“…Senior. Why are you acting like this?”

Is it the Three Disasters these days?

Or have the old folks around me been cursed somehow? They’re all acting crazy towards me.

This was the scariest situation yet.

Seeing the King of Assassins, not someone else, acting like this towards me.

‘Am I already dead?’

Such a ridiculous thought flashed through my mind.

Even as I hurried to help the bowing King of Assassins stand up, I replayed his words in my head.

‘A Dragon (龍).’

It was a word that sent a chill down my spine.

It was the term used to collectively refer to the White-grade monsters.

The form I saw while fighting the manifestation of blood energy in the past.

I recalled thinking of a dragon when I saw its form.

Considering that Ddol-ddol-i’s transformed body and the manifestation of blood energy resembled it.

‘…A dragon.’

I think I understood why this unfamiliar word didn’t feel entirely strange.

‘Am I a dragon?’

That unknown species.

Could the body I transformed into truly be that of a dragon?

Were the scales that sprouted on my arm and my transformed body its form?

Let’s assume that much.

‘Dragon or whatever… let’s put that aside for now.’

Whatever I transformed into, I could think about that later.

Right now, I needed to figure out why the person in front of me was acting like this.

Seeing that terrifying man change his way of speaking like this made the fear I had barely suppressed resurface.

“First, Senior… please get up….”

“I implore you, having witnessed such a great being.”

I tried to free myself from Ddol-ddol-i and help the King of Assassins stand, but…

The King of Assassins continued speaking.

“Take pity on this lowly blood.”

My hand touched his shoulder.

Sssshhh….

“…!”

As my hand touched the King of Assassins’ body, his skin changed.

Startled by the sight, I pulled my hand away.

I quickly distanced myself, but the change didn’t subside; it continued to spread.

His skin had changed.

Just like the King of Assassins’ pupils had changed, his skin was undergoing a transformation.

It was dense.

The bumpy skin felt just like my right arm.

The only difference was that his skin was golden, unlike my blue.

As I looked at the King of Assassins with trembling eyes.

Whoosh-!

A change occurred within my body too.

My heart began to pound violently.

My blood felt hotter than ever before.

How should I describe this?

As I struggled to define it clearly.

-It’s instinct.

For some reason, the words the Blood Demon spoke in the past came to mind.

He said this when we faced off, looking at me losing my senses from his boiling blood.

-It’s only natural.

-It’s an arrogant creature that doesn’t want any other equal beings under the same sky.

He definitely said that while looking at me.

So, is the feeling I have towards the King of Assassins now hostility?

‘No.’

It definitely wasn’t.

This isn’t hostility.

It was rather a lower, colder emotion.

If I had to put it into words.

‘Contempt…?’

Yes, contempt.

I was feeling contempt towards a martial artist several times stronger than me.

Why was I feeling this way?

It’s a fucking emotion I want to rip out of my insides.

Furthermore, if I consider the Blood Demon’s words coming to mind now.

‘He knew from the moment he saw me.’

Or rather, it meant the Blood Demon knew I would become like this.

Meaning, even before I fully molted, the Blood Demon knew I would become a dragon.

That means…

‘Is it the blood energy?’

Seeing my flames turn into the azure flames of blood energy, it certainly seems so, but…

Amidst this, the Blood Demon’s words caught my attention.

-You are not my fragment, yet how did you begin to bloom?

These words meant that my transformation was not part of his intention.

I can’t believe everything the Blood Demon said, so I’m just keeping it in mind, but…

Looking at this.

‘The Blood Demon… is also a dragon?’

Meaning that guy was also of the unknown species called dragon.

Yes, if that’s the case, the Blood Demon’s words also make sense.

-I am the seed of the Dragon Emperor (龍帝).

If the blood energy originated from the Blood Demon, then his words also became understandable.

That statement was like proof that the Blood Demon was indeed a dragon.

‘…Wait. Then….’

My eyes widened as the words began to connect.

In the first place.

What were the beings originally associated with the word ‘dragon’?

They were the White-grade monsters.

In the past, people imitated their appearance and power, calling them dragons.

Now, ‘dragon’ refers to imaginary beings, or White-grade demonic beasts that exuded immense presence in the past.

The problem is that after the Blood Demon disappeared, such demonic beasts, the White-grade monsters, stopped appearing in the Central Plains.

Red-grade monsters started appearing in my previous life, but I never saw a White-grade one until the moment I died.

This was a positive development for peace, but…

Was this also just a coincidence?

Then why are Red-grade monsters appearing now, unlike in my previous life?

Does this also indicate some kind of problem?

The more I thought about it, the more my breathing grew ragged.

The hazy events began to take shape.

However, the outline of the story I so desperately wanted to understand somehow seemed much larger than I had anticipated.

Just as my mind began to spark as the pieces gradually fell into place.

“…Please…”

The King of Assassins’ dry voice was heard.

Only then did I stop thinking and look at the King of Assassins.

Looking at him, my brow furrowed involuntarily.

It wasn’t because of his grotesque appearance.

It was simply because I couldn’t understand.

The heroes saved the world.

They couldn’t kill the Blood Demon, but they managed to seal him, saving the world.

Setting aside the fact that he viewed me as a disaster, I respected his achievements in my own way.

A man who even tried to turn back time to save the world.

My perception of Yeon Ilcheon was clearly that, yet…

‘Why.’

Just why.

“Please release the curse bound to my blood….”

How could the descendant of Yeon Ilcheon, who stood at the forefront, end up like this?

For some reason, it made me feel quite disgusted.