Chapter 148
Chapter 148: Let's Fight (1)
[Kim Tae-yang's Memory]
"Oh! 4 minutes and 58 seconds. A new Samcheolli record?"
Kang Hae-san stopped the stopwatch on his smartphone and praised me as I came running up, gasping for breath.
"Huh?"
"You made it in under 5 minutes. New record for fetching bread from the snack bar!"
"……"
I'd run so hard my mouth tasted sweet.
Me, drenched in sweat from head to toe in the middle of summer.
……A new record.
‘What does that even mean?’
I was so dumbfounded my eyes went blank—and then.
Whoosh—!
Kang Hae-san snatched the bread out of my hands.
Then he distributed the bread among Park Je-hwang and his crew.
Crinkle—.
He tore open the bread wrapper and shoved a fistful into his mouth.
And then.
"Samcheolli. What's with that look in your eyes?"
Scrape—.
Park Je-hwang, who had been watching me, shoved his chair back and stood up.
"Huh?"
"That's a look that says you're fed up. You little idiot."
"……"
I turned my head and avoided his gaze.
Thump thump thump—.
My heart beat fast.
Faster than when I'd sprinted to the snack bar and back to the classroom.
"I can't have that, you. Starting today, you need some special training."
My heart sank.
That evening.
Park Je-hwang dragged me somewhere.
We arrived at a shadowy alley.
There was another idiot already there, seemingly dragged in from somewhere.
Standing there, frightened out of his mind.
"Je-hwang……. Why?"
Park Je-hwang smirked at my question, crossed his arms, and leaned his back against the wall.
"Samcheolli. Fight that guy."
"What?"
"I said fight."
"I, why would I……?"
Then Kim Do-han came up and smacked the back of my head.
Thwack—!
"This little bastard, when Je-hwang tells you to do something, you do it right away!"
Kim Do-han roughly yanked the bag off my shoulder and threw it carelessly on the ground.
I looked at the idiot once, then back at Park Je-hwang.
"I…… Don't want to fight."
"Ha!"
Park Je-hwang snorted and walked toward me.
"Hey, you spineless little scrub."
"……"
"That look you gave me earlier—I saw all of it."
I turned away again.
Crack!
Park Je-hwang grabbed my jaw and forced me to meet his eyes.
"You don't like the situation you're in right now, do you?"
"……"
"That's exactly why I'm giving you an opportunity. An op-por-tun-i-ty."
He put emphasis on each syllable of that last word.
"Hey! Have I been bullying you all this time? Haven't I been looking out for you so you'd grow? A spineless weakling like you has gotten way stronger than before."
"You even shaved your bread run down to under 5 minutes!"
Kim Do-han snickered and added that.
Park Je-hwang grabbed my jaw hard and shook it as he spoke.
"Fight. If you win, Samcheolli……"
Gulp.
"I'll let you go."
Pak!
He shoved me toward the idiot.
The idiot looked back and forth between me and Park Je-hwang.
‘This guy's pitiful too. Just like me.’
I felt sympathy for him.
I said to the idiot.
"H, hey. How about we don't—"
Thwack—!
Before I could even finish, the idiot slammed his fist into my nose.
Trickle—.
Blood dripped from my nose, and.
"Ugh!"
I swung my fist back in a surge of anger.
Thud thud thud!
The two of us tangled and rolled around, and after a moment I climbed on top of him and drove my fist into his face.
"Aaargh! S, stop! Please!"
The idiot declared surrender, his face soaked with tears.
……I won.
The brief rush of achievement that washed over me in that moment.
[Fight. If you win, I'll let you go.]
The reward I'd earned!
In nearly a whole year.
Had there ever been a day this joyful!
I sprang to my feet with a bright expression.
"Je-hwang! I won. So now—"
Thwack! Crack—!
Instead of an answer, what flew at me was Park Je-hwang's kick.
"Guhh!"
I was sent sprawling with a kick to the chest and slammed the back of my head hard against the alley wall.
My head went spinning, and my scalp felt hot for a moment.
Through blurring eyes I could see Park Je-hwang shrugging off his school jacket.
"This little bastard is making up his own misunderstandings again."
"Huh?"
"Who said if you beat that idiot I'd let you go?"
"……!"
Crack crack crack.
Park Je-hwang rolled his knuckles until they cracked.
"Fight me. Samcheolli."
* * *
The ten-day deadline had arrived.
The day we were to enter 38th floor.
The Silver Key had been used once on 37th floor, so it was restricted and couldn't be used.
I had no choice but to sneak into the Murim Tower a day in advance.
The 38th floor assault was such an important matter.
At the government level, entry on the day itself had been prohibited.
Like that, I spent a full twenty-four hours wearing the Dark Moon Mask and circulating my energy—
And waited for Park Je-hwang.
[Kim Tae-yang asks, ‘Is Park Je-hwang really going to show up?’ +1 Happiness]
"Look over there."
Thud, thud.
Park Je-hwang entered the tower wearing his old golden armor.
It had become even more splendid than before.
He was even wearing a golden helmet now.
A full-face one at that, covering his entire face.
Something like that—even back in Gangho, only royalty used to wear them.
"Waaah!"
From behind him came cheers—and.
"The fake Ghost can go to hell!"
Curses rang out simultaneously.
Whether cheers or insults.
‘Quite the flashy fellow, aren't you. Park Je-hwang.’
"Huuu. Huu—!"
He took a few deep breaths in front of the door leading into the Murim Tower's interior, then entered with a hardened expression.
"Let's go."
I entered immediately after.
[Entering 38th floor of Murim Tower (Republic of Korea).]
[Mission (38th floor): Eliminate 50 combatants guarding the second manor of Poison Valley.
—Time Limit: 3 days
—Upon Success: 500,000 Happiness Points awarded]
The mission was exactly as expected.
Break through while eliminating enemies up to the entrance of Poison Valley's underground chamber.
The distance was about 300 meters.
About 3 to 4 minutes at an adult man's walking pace.
38th floor's manor was long and narrow.
There were even windbreaker walls in between sections of the manor.
Even if one broke through the gate, it was the perfect place to be wiped out if poison vials were set off inside.
"But……"
Looking more carefully, the windbreaker walls were peculiar.
"Skulls?"
They were windbreaker walls built from the bones of those the Poison Valley people had captured, killed, and dissected.
"……Vile creatures."
In my past life I'd been too tense to notice properly, but now I could see it clearly.
"Anyway, the bonus mission?"
[A bonus mission is given for first-time entry.]
[Bonus Mission: Reach the target point without taking even a single step outside the designated line.
—Time Limit: 3 minutes
—Upon Success:
① 38th floor mission counted as cleared
② Happiness Points tripled (×3)
—Upon Failure: The Poison Valley combatants blocking the gate will double in number.]
"Damn, 3 minutes."
‘That's way too harsh!’
The bonus mission was to travel to the destination without ever leaving the line drawn on the floor.
The faintly glowing line on the ground was narrow.
About 25 centimeters wide at most.
Barely enough to stand with both feet together.
And there were windbreaker walls blocking the straight path in the middle.
This couldn't be done by simply walking through.
‘I'll have to smash through them.’
[Kim Tae-yang mutters, ‘My movements are going to be way too restricted, I'm worried’. +1 Happiness]
‘No. This is actually great.’
"It just means I'm allowed to kill to my heart's content this time."
Without hesitation, I walked straight along the line.
Park Je-hwang was hesitating up ahead.
Understandably so.
The Poison Valley people hadn't spotted us yet—but.
Fifty Poison Valley combatants were gathered ahead.
"Ah!"
Park Je-hwang glanced my way, startled, and quickly bowed his head.
[The moment Park Je-hwang sees you, he is seized with dread. +100,000 Despair]
‘Playing it cool on the surface—but not on the inside, it seems.’
I had put on the Human Skin Mask of the White-Faced Scholar that I'd used on Floor 37.
On top of that, to look like the White-Faced Scholar, I'd dressed in the white robe he always wore.
A robe I'd brought back from Demon Wind Manor.
I'd also placed a crown on my head and pinned it with a hairpin, and.
To imitate the White-Faced Scholar's signature weapon.
The White Blood Fan—I'd even brought a pure white folding fan.
Bought it on a discount app.
56% off, 12,900 won.
Free shipping.
The spitting image of the White-Faced Scholar's appearance had been born.
There was just one difference.
At my waist hung the Iron Instrument God's Sword.
'Ro-dam', which I carried on me.
Park Je-hwang snuck a sideways glance at my outfit, and his eyes lit up when he spotted 'Ro-dam'.
I ignored him and stepped in front of him.
Park Je-hwang flinched for a moment, then greeted me with thanks first.
"Ghost, last time you saved me, I am grateful—"
Whoosh. Thunk.
I roughly yanked off the helmet he was wearing and tossed it aside.
Crunch—.
I immediately grabbed his jaw, pried his mouth open, and pressed the Crimson Violet Poison-Warding Bead between his teeth.
"Mmph!"
"Keep it in your mouth. If you don't want to die."
Park Je-hwang looked like he had no idea what was going on, but there was no need to explain.
"Follow me."
No questions needed.
There was no time to waste exchanging words with him.
As I walked, the Poison Valley men who recognized the White-Faced Scholar's appearance went pale as sheets.
Some of them called out,
"Eighth Emperor!" and bent at the waist, and, others looked baffled, muttering
"Why is the Eighth Emperor here all of a sudden?"
I kept walking.
Eventually the Poison Valley men blocked my path.
"We pay our respects to the Eighth Emperor!"
"……"
"U, um! But what brings you here so suddenly?"
The Poison Valley men were standing on the line I needed to walk.
The distance was steadily shrinking, and.
As I walked toward them without a word.
My eyes caught the Poison Valley men's poisoned hands creeping sneakily toward the poison vials at their waists.
Kim Tae-yang's urgent message came flying in.
[Kim Tae-yang urgently asks, ‘What are you going to do?’ +1 Happiness]
‘What am I going to do.’
‘I need to show Park Je-hwang properly.’
‘Just how strong I am.’
Wuuung—!
Dozens of Storm Pear Blossom Needles rose from within my robes.
Telekinesis—without moving a single hand.
I fired them out in all directions.
Thud thud thud thud thud thud thud!
The Poison Valley men's heads and hearts were pierced through and burst open.
"H, heavens above!"
Park Je-hwang was aghast.
I warned him.
"Follow my every step exactly as I take them. Not a single step outside."
"What? O, okay!"
Park Je-hwang's shocked face chased after me, stepping exactly where I had stepped.
Of course, the bonus mission only applied to me, so there was no need for Park Je-hwang to follow my instructions.
But I had to keep Park Je-hwang off-balance.
To make the plan succeed.
Even though I'd risen to the extreme of the Transcendent Peak and my Telekinesis had reached a higher level than before—
Directing dozens of Storm Pear Blossom Needles simultaneously in different directions was another matter entirely.
[Kim Tae-yang exclaims, ‘All that training in Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin has finally paid off!’ +10 Happiness]
That's right.
The supreme art of hidden weapon retrieval.
Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin.
In my past life, my father had never taught me Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin.
So this was my first time learning it as well.
Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin, obtained through the chocolate master mission with Min-jeong, was the pinnacle of precise Telekinesis and energy manipulation.
You draw out threads of internal energy, attach them to hidden weapons, and make them move like extensions of your hands and feet within a permitted range.
At its highest level, I'd heard one could control hundreds of energy threads within a range of ten jang.
What I could currently use was a mere 10 threads.
Range of 3 jang.
It felt as if ten extra fingers that could move freely had sprouted from my body.
The fundamental principle of Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin I roughly understood, and until now I'd been substituting it with Yama's Life-Chasing Threads attached to my hidden weapons.
"No need for that anymore!"
In other words.
From wired to wireless!
Most importantly, it was far more efficient than using Yama's Life-Chasing Threads, which consumed enormous amounts of internal energy.
On top of that, in this Poison Valley, my internal energy was being replenished far beyond what was being expended.
[Poison becomes medicine.]
[Internal energy increases.]
[Internal energy increases.]
…….
Swiiiish!
Each time the Storm Pear Blossom Needles rushed toward the Poison Valley men as if they had eyes of their own—
Blood and gray matter splattered.
"Aaaargh!"
"G, get down! Ugggh—!"
Screams of mercy erupted one after another, but those sounds were cut short in an instant.
It was my first time using it in actual combat, and even I was astonished by the power.
So Park Je-hwang went without saying.
Boom boom boom—!
The windbreaker walls blocking the path I crushed with the Soul-Crushing Drum. The lone spirits that had clung to the shattered bone fragments scattered like gray smoke.
Shudder shudder shudder—.
As Park Je-hwang followed my footsteps, his face went white.
[Park Je-hwang feels his chest collapse as he realizes he is absolutely no match for this. +500,000 Despair]
Following the art of Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin, the hidden weapons changed direction at every point they'd struck and launched into fresh slaughter once more.
Thud thud! Crack crack crack!
Every moment the piercing needles swept through the air, blood gushed like fountains from the enemies' necks and chests.
The hidden weapons moved like living creatures, like beasts.
They pierced the spines of those who fled, skewered the temples of those who tried to hide.
Ten Thousand Streams Return to Origin.
All hidden weapons ultimately returned to me and continued their trail of slaughter once more.
The hidden weapons hanging from threads of energy were supple as serpents and swift as lightning.
At one point they crossed each other in midair and tore the enemies' limbs completely apart.
"Guhh……!"
The screams that rang out amid the spray of blood soon turned to silence, and all that remained was the stench of blood and death.
With each step I took, puddles of blood formed underfoot, and.
I walked over them with perfect composure, without the slightest tremor.
At that moment!
More than ten Poison Valley combatants came charging from behind.
Not targeting me—targeting Park Je-hwang.
"Mmph!"
Park Je-hwang's pupils widened and he tried to draw his sword, but.
The Poison Valley man's poisoned hands were faster.
The moment the Poison Valley man's blackened hand touched the area around Park Je-hwang's neck!
Flutter—!
I twisted my body like lightning and swept the folding fan horizontally through the air.
As the fan cut through empty space, the wind sharpened like a single blade.
In a split second.
The airstream that scattered from the fan's edge was like an invisible blade, and it cleaved through the Poison Valley masters who had been blocking the way in a single stroke.
Thud!
Not even a sound.
Only after the wind had passed—the upper halves of their torsos vanished as if dissolved.
Before blood could even spurt, as if their very existence had been erased.
They disappeared into red mist.
What remained were only their lower halves, staggering a few steps in midair.
Thud, thud, thud—.
Only the sound of them collapsing one after another.
Rustle—.
I quietly folded the tattered fan closed.
Only the billowing hem of my robes bore witness that the slaughter just now had been real.
Their blood rose on the wind—
Shhhhh—.
And came pouring down as a rain of blood.
My collar and Park Je-hwang's golden armor were stained crimson, and.
Only one step remained to the target point.
Thud.
[Bonus Mission Cleared]
—38th floor Mission counted as cleared!
—Happiness Points + 1,500,000!
[Time elapsed to complete mission: 2 minutes 41 seconds]
[OVERWHELMING CLEAR (GOLD)!]
[38th floor of the Murim Tower turns golden.]
[The entire world turns its eyes to the Republic of Korea's Tower.]
Park Je-hwang, the Crimson Violet Poison-Warding Bead still between his teeth, was drooling from the corner of his mouth—
Trembling uncontrollably.
It seemed that the mission success message had reached him too.
With his tension broken, Park Je-hwang let his shoulders sag and looked up at me.
"……"
Then he turned his head and looked back at the path we had come through.
What met his eyes was a field of corpses and a sea of blood—like a garden of crimson flowers.
The only people standing on two feet in this place.
Were only me and Park Je-hwang.
[Park Je-hwang groans, ‘Without drawing a sword even once and clearing it…… I can't even begin to imagine how much stronger Ghost would be with the Iron Instrument God's Sword in hand’. +10,000,000 Despair]
Realizing it was all over, Park Je-hwang lifted the Poison-Warding Bead from his mouth and held it out to me.
"G, Ghost……"
I regarded him with an indifferent gaze—and then.
With a sound that tore through the air, my front kick drove precisely into Park Je-hwang's chest.
Bang—!
A deafening boom erupted, and Park Je-hwang's body flew backward like a puppet launched into the air.
He rolled for several meters and stopped with a thud against the windbreaker wall.
Clatter clatter clatter—.
Shattered skulls and bone fragments came raining down on top of him.
A single strike that carved in an overwhelming gap—the way a predator subdues its prey!
The chest of his golden armor was caved inward as if struck by a great hammer, and the sound of him gasping for breath was rough, like iron shards grinding against each other.
"W, what is the meaning of this—?!"
Park Je-hwang clutched his chest and stared at me with wide eyes.
I simply drew my foot back in silence, then slowly walked toward him.
"Ghost! Why, why are you doing this!"
Park Je-hwang called out in desperation.
I stood before him.
Shing—.
As I drew 'Ro-dam', I said.
"Let's fight. Park Je-hwang."
[Park Je-hwang's mind goes blank. +10,000,000 Despair]