“Is this the place?”
Ho Cheon-an asked the bandit head who looked like a beggar.
The bandits and their leader, covered in sweat and dirt, nodded desperately.
“Yes, yes it is.”
Ever since Blood Ancestor, the head of the Blood Sect, was assassinated by the Martial Forest Alliance’s elite squad, the Blood Sect had splintered into factions. Its influence scattered throughout the world, and these fragments possessed enough power to dominate the regions they settled in.
Ho Cheon-an read the sign that said [Southern Blood Sect] and turned his gaze away.
The Southern Blood Sect’s stronghold was massive. With more than ten buildings established on this vast land and a palace hall housing over a hundred rooms, few sects in the world could compare to its grandeur.
It was a clear indication of how dominant the Blood Sect currently was in the Martial World.
“They live extravagantly for a mere remnant, huh?”
The bandit head swallowed hard.
Ho Cheon-an muttered loudly enough for the gatekeepers, who had been watching him and the bandits curiously, to hear.
Just as expected.
The gatekeepers guarding the main gate of the Southern Blood Sect exuded a killing intent.
“Old man, what did you just say?”
“I said they were remnants!”
“Have you gone senile?”
The Southern Blood Sect.
While Ho Cheon-an scornfully dismissed them as remnants, the truth was that the Southern Blood Sect’s authority in Yunnan was absolute.
Yunnan, where Yoo Gyeong’s wrath was concentrated, had no proper sect left, and the remnants of the Blood Sect fully seized control of the now-empty land.
To defame the Southern Blood Sect in front of its ruler.
After Blood Ancestor’s assassination, it was utterly taboo in the Martial World to call the newly formed factions remnants while accurately stating facts.
“Our Northern Blood Sect, inheriting the authentic blood arts…”
One of the gatekeepers went flying after being kicked by Ho Cheon-an. They were merely remnants that would be cleaned up by today.
Ho Cheon-an didn’t have the time to listen to the gatekeepers, who had never even learned blood arts, prattling on about nobility.
The gatekeepers drew their weapons and charged at Ho Cheon-an.
“This punk… Ugh!”
“Martial arts… Ack!”
In an instant, they were subdued and sprawled out on the ground.
Ho Cheon-an turned to the bandits and said,
“You guys stay here and don’t move.”
Seeing the bandits nodding their heads furiously, Ho Cheon-an clenched his fist.
Rumble!!!
At that moment, the heavens themselves trembled with the sound of thunder. The bandits swallowed their dry gulps at the sight.
How can such a sound come from a person’s body?
But it was still too early to be shocked.
Boom!
The moment Ho Cheon-an’s fist made contact, the Southern Blood Sect’s gate exploded. The door was at least three spans wide and five spans tall, completely shattered into pieces.
The sign that once read Southern Blood Sect shattered, soaring high into the sky before crashing down.
The unexpected uproar turned the Southern Blood Sect upside down.
Martial artists poured out from all directions, quickly surrounding Ho Cheon-an.
Ho Cheon-an glanced around the area with his heavy-set eyes.
The smell of blood.
As soon as he entered the grounds, he sensed a faint yet lingering odor of blood. It felt as though the very earth had absorbed the scent of blood continuously spilled upon it, like incense clinging to the paper that holds it.
Just how many people had perished here?
Ho Cheon-an continued to watch the pouring martial artists. Rather than examining their form or posture, he looked into their eyes.
Each one possessed the same yellowed, tarnished gaze, the kind that bore the marks of having slaughtered countless lives.
“What’s all this commotion?”
Had the Blood Ancestor finally appeared?
Ho Cheon-an thought as he gazed at the Blood Person. The Blood Person’s bright red eyes widened in disbelief as they stared at Ho Cheon-an and the shattered sign, before their face twisted into rage.
“What are you doing! Tear that guy’s limbs apart and bring him to me now!”
“Understood!”
It was as if they had been waiting for those words, the martial artists surged forward.
Almost a hundred martial artists swarmed, and with overwhelming numbers, they revealed an unflinching killing intent as Ho Cheon-an raised two fingers.
Since they were the kind who slaughtered folks like they were a meal, there was no need to show mercy.
From the tips of Ho Cheon-an’s fingers, yellow flashes erupted.
Lightning Dragon Technique.
Three streams of light dashed forward, piercing through the bodies of the martial artists charging from three directions. Though they each confidently threw themselves into the fray, believing they could summon their might against Ho Cheon-an’s Lightning Dragon Technique, they were unable to withstand its brilliance.
The martial artists’ energy was abruptly shattered by the flashes, which pierced through their bodies and weapons all at once.
The sight of the three peak stage martial artists collapsing in an instant caused the rest of the marauders to halt in shock.
Yet, the flashes did not cease.
The three streams of light spiraled like dancing lightning, sharply bending to pierce the next targets. The flashes pierced through the martial artists without so much as a moment’s pause.
The Blood Person who had issued the orders stared in a daze at the spectacle.
One person wielded three streams of brilliant yellow light that darted through the martial artists, and with each flash that bent, another body fell to the ground with a hole through it.
“It… can’t be…!”
As dozens of martial artists fell in an instant, one word filled their minds.
Absolute Expert.
Even peak stage experts couldn’t contend with those beams; they must have been Gang-hwan. But the fact that the Gang-hwan changed direction willy-nilly in midair was something that defied understanding.
It was unfolding before their very eyes—what even the most baseless rumors would cause the Hwa-gyeong martial artists to laugh in disbelief.
Of course, the individuals within the Southern Blood Sect had no concept of what kind of high-level technique Ho Cheon-an was employing.
But even if they didn’t understand, they certainly felt his absolute power.
“Ru-Run…!”
The martial artists hastily turned to flee, but it was all in vain.
Even if they turned their backs and ran, there was no way to evade the flashes.
The time it took for the panicked martial artists to all collapse to the ground was fleeting.
“He-Hey…!”
The Blood Person who locked eyes with Ho Cheon-an suddenly panicked and fled.
Ho Cheon-an pursued the retreating figure.
Despite a decent number of martial artists appearing due to the unexpected uproar, there was no way that the entirety of the vast estate could emerge at once.
Especially the higher-ups, who would instinctively hide when a commotion broke out.
Surely, the Blood Person would serve as a guide to find those high-ranking individuals.
Ho Cheon-an followed the Blood Person as they dashed towards the grandest and most magnificent building.
Perhaps it was because of the surprising circumstances.
Even as Ho Cheon-an displayed his true prowess outside, those martial artists and Blood Persons did not fully grasp the situation.
Ho Cheon-an’s steps halted as he continued to take down the sporadic Blood Persons and martial artists.
Before him stood a grand arena.
The Blood Persons and martial artists had gathered, waiting for Ho Cheon-an. Ho Cheon-an instinctively recognized that the Blood Person in the center was the leader here.
“Are you the leader of these remnants?”
“Heh heh… Remnants, you say? How foolish. I am Hwang Sa-min, the Blood Lord of the Southern Blood Sect.”
The leader of the Blood Sect’s eyes sparkled as he interrogated Ho Cheon-an.
“Who sent you? If you speak honestly, I shall grant you a painless death.”
“I’ve merely come to clean up the remnants of the Blood Sect.”
“Hahahahaha!!”
At those words, Hwang Sa-min ridiculed Ho Cheon-an. Not just Hwang Sa-min, everyone gathered there wore the same attitude.
“Are you an old fool who just crawled out of the mountains? With your strength to wipe out the lowly folks outside, you must be feeling confident.”
Ding!
As Hwang Sa-min rang a small bell, the Blood Persons behind the throne opened the door of an iron cage hidden behind the seat.
Kyaaaaaah.
Kyaah!
Half human, half beast.
With the body and limbs bearing resemblance to a human but sporting a head akin to a rat, and claws that were thick and sharp. A monstrous form featuring a tail that was neither here nor there.
They were the Blood Monsters that Se-in referred to.
Ho Cheon-an’s face scrunched as he beheld five Blood Monsters.
“Hahahaha! How do you like this? This is the pride of the Southern Blood Sect!”
“I’ve heard that rumor before. That these Blood Monsters were once human?”
“Heh heh heh! You foolish one, to come here knowing that. Yes, that’s correct! They are the masterpieces of the Blood Sect, infused with the qi of entities.”
“Disgusting.”
Ho Cheon-an’s voice sank low, but Hwang Sa-min continued to speak unfazed.
“Hmph… Enough of this insolence. You will regret ever coming to the Southern Blood Sect, ruled by me, Hwang Sa-min, whose expertise lies with Blood Monsters!”
Ding!
“For smashing the sign of the Southern Blood Sect, become a Blood Monster in return! Hahahaha!!”
Ho Cheon-an observed the five Blood Monsters charging at him. They were utterly devoid of reason.
Moving his body, Ho Cheon-an evaded the Blood Monsters’ assaults. The strength felt in their attacks bore the kind of power that would trouble even a decent expert.
Crash!
A Blood Monster’s wild swing dented a supporting beam.
Ho Cheon-an carefully analyzed the chaotic movements of the blood monsters.
In their actions, even traces of martial arts could not be found, leading Ho Cheon-an to arrive at a conclusion. He would have no choice but to grant them eternal rest.
Towards one of the Blood Monsters, the Lightning Dragon Technique was unleashed. The Blood Monster flinched and tried to dodge, but there was no escaping the Lightning Dragon’s curve in the air.
Bam!
Kyaaaaah!!
Ho Cheon-an’s eyebrows twitched.
The Blood Monster struck by the Lightning Dragon writhed in pain before suddenly springing back to its feet.
“Hahaha! How do you like this? You’re bewildered, struggling against my might! This is the power of a Blood Monster infused with entity blood!”
‘What a simple way to think, expecting to take on a Hwa-gyeong expert in that manner.’
Each Blood Monster was practically like a fragment of an entity, so capturing this one would require multiple people working together.
Yet Ho Cheon-an was alone.
It was then that he began to grasp Hwang Sa-min’s confidence.
No matter how strong an expert may be, a single person’s internal power has its limits, thus it was impossible to defeat a Blood Monster alone.
Even if he had managed to gather internal energy equal to that of a combined group to take down a single monster, there were still four left.
That was the calculation behind Hwang Sa-min’s arrogance.
Fwoosh!
A massive wave of internal energy began to erupt from Ho Cheon-an’s entire body. The sheer force of his internal power was enough to make it difficult to keep his eyes open, a tremor shaking the ground beneath.
Even someone as supremely confident as Hwang Sa-min felt his face harden at the display.
The Blood Monsters, seemingly petrified by the sheer magnitude of Ho Cheon-an’s internal energy, halted their attacks.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
“Attack! Attack!”
Hwang Sa-min swung his bell wildly, barking orders. The Blood Monsters emitted their terrifying howls and charged at Ho Cheon-an once more.
Ho Cheon-an considered the scene before him.
It was established knowledge that there was a limit to the internal power the martial artists could possess.
Especially once a person mastered a heart technique that builds internal power, their time to harness that energy is limited, and the efficiency of spiritual medicines decreases sharply the more one consumes them.
However, the internal energy pouring out of Ho Cheon-an far exceeded those limitations.
Gathered before his chest, the magnitude of energy was so great that it caused objects to warp before his eyes.
After defeating Jeong Cheol, the only thing sustaining Ho Cheon-an was a single phrase from Hyeok Gi-rin, asking him to look after Yoo Gyeong.
Yet Ho Cheon-an couldn’t rely solely on Hyeok Gi-rin’s dying wish for survival.
That’s why he had become mechanically powerful.
The guilt of thinking he could have perhaps protected his friends haunted him constantly.
He had searched for chances, collecting secret texts and honing his skills, gathering spiritual medicines and spirit herbs.
Thus, he spent decades of his life.
Even for someone who had taken spiritual medicines for many years, his internal energy continued to grow.
According to the conventions of the Martial World, this was impossible.
Typically, it was established that taking multiple spiritual medicines drastically reduces their efficacy.
However, while consuming these medicines, Ho Cheon-an consistently felt the benefits of increasing his internal power.
Having an unmatched understanding of all the Heavenly Inspirations and spiritual medicines, he carefully stacked them with foresight of their properties and combinations.
For regular martial artists, even taking a single spiritual medicine could be seen as a life goal.
Even the most renowned sect or talents would find it arduous to gather well-known spiritual medicines or Inner Dan, gathering just ten types would be almost impossible.
Simply gathering ten was close to an unreachable feat, let alone factoring in their compatibility and efficiency.
Yet for Ho Cheon-an, it was entirely feasible.
Fwoosh!!!
The vast internal power he had accumulated over decades, painstakingly cultivated by the veteran of the Martial World, transformed into five Gang-hwan, hovering in his hands.
“Huuh!”
And he unleashed it.
Boom!!!
The five beams shot forth, shaking the arena and shattering the ground as the support beams broke apart. Debris rained down, and those relatively near to Ho Cheon-an, whether Blood Persons or the weak martial artists, were swept away by the pressure and knocked to the floor.
“Ah… ah…”
“How, how can this be…?”
The remaining members of the Southern Blood Sect, barely managing to stabilize themselves against the aftereffects, trembled all over. How could a single person wield such power?
Their gazes shifted downwards.
With the arena transformed into chaos and the buildings suffering extensive damage, the five Blood Monsters lay slain on the ground, wounds and all.
They had merely perished without any sign of external injury.
The final moments of those who had turned from human to monster were disregarded, as if they were tenderly considered. The will to resist evaporated from the minds of the Blood Persons and martial artists.
How could they possibly oppose someone who wielded such immense power while simultaneously demonstrating such control?
An absolute being!
To Ho Cheon-an, the fighting spirit disappeared entirely from the Blood Persons and martial artists.
At that moment, Ho Cheon-an opened his mouth.
“You ran away, huh?”
Only then did the dazed Blood Persons and martial artists come to the realization that Hwang Sa-min had vanished.
Ho Cheon-an leaped and stomped down on the backrest of the throne where Hwang Sa-min had sat. With one kick, the concealed entrance below shattered open, revealing a passage leading under the ground.
Running away was their forte.
With such thoughts, Ho Cheon-an’s hands once again moved.
Smash!!!
“Ahh!!”
“Aahh!!”
With a piercing scream, the dantians of the Blood Persons and martial artists shattered in an instant.
“No! My internal power… my internal power!”
As their dantians broke, immense pain coursed through them, and those rolling on the ground screamed in anguish. Ho Cheon-an, ignoring the cries of those whose life-long internal energies scattered, made his way underground.
The underground was structured like a dungeon.
Instinctively, Ho Cheon-an realized that this was where the Blood Monsters were created.
The pungent odor of blood wafting from the prison wrinkled Ho Cheon-an’s face once more. Just how many people had perished here that it reeked so foul?
He moved deeper in, sensing the presence of two beings.
“Did you think you could escape to a dead end?”
“Ha-ha! Your indulgence stops here! After all that nonsense, I bet you’ve exhausted all your internal energy. In such a state, do you think you can handle an entity? This is your grave!”
Ho Cheon-an’s gaze shifted from the delusional Hwang Sa-min to the enormous rat entity beside him.
While it was undeniably a being of immense size, resembling an entity, its state was deplorable.
Its body was emaciated, lacking any flesh, its fur dull and matted, with clumps missing.
Despite the intense commotion, it lay with its eyes closed, slowly gasping, as if poised to take its last breath.
Ho Cheon-an’s gaze fell upon the numerous wounds above its hind leg. It didn’t take long for him to realize where the blood that fueled the creation of these Blood Monsters originated.
Hwang Sa-min kicked the rat entity, muttering incomprehensible words.
“Get up! You useless wretch! Live up to the name of Iron Blood Rat!”
The creature, referred to as Iron Blood Rat, barely opened its eyes and staggered to its feet. It wobbled towards Ho Cheon-an.
“Exactly! Go and crush him!”
Ho Cheon-an ignored Hwang Sa-min’s rampage and focused on the Iron Blood Rat before him.
Hiss…
It emitted a weak cry.
Ho Cheon-an silently held back tears as he gazed at the weeping Iron Blood Rat, which approached him, rubbing its head against Ho Cheon-an.
Ho Cheon-an reflected on the companions who had sought him out.
Black Cat. Miss Yeo Il-ye. Hyeok Gi-rin. Tang Do-yeon. Tang So-yeol.
Those moments were brief yet intense, serving as the driving force for resurgence. Every conversation he shared with them remained meticulously etched into his memory.
He recalled the bright and cheerful words of Hyeok Gi-rin.
– “It would have been nice if Seo Gong had come along too.”
– “Oh dear, we agreed not to say such things, didn’t we? We can’t predict what impact it may have on a different world.”
– “Oh, I’m sorry. I just felt a bit regretful…”
He vividly remembered Hyeok Gi-rin’s hand that would fidget as if stroking something.
Seo Gong.
Despite being his first encounter with an entity, Iron Blood Rat sent him emotions so deep, they felt almost sorrowful.
Ho Cheon-an couldn’t shake the feeling that this Iron Blood Rat was indeed the Seo Gong Hyeok Gi-rin had described.
Ho Cheon-an reached out his hand, lightly stroking the head of Iron Blood Rat, which then rubbed against his hand as if relishing the touch.
Ho Cheon-an decided to take in the Iron Blood Rat.
A spiritual entity favored by Hyeok Gi-rin. That alone was a good enough reason to take it in.
“What are you doing! Hurry and—”
Hwang Sa-min’s words trailed off abruptly.
Because Ho Cheon-an’s Lightning Dragon Technique had pierced between Hwang Sa-min’s eyes.
Ho Cheon-an’s gaze swept across the space where Iron Blood Rat had stayed. A glance suggested that the remnants of some plant matter were scattered around.
If he fed it plenty of spirit herbs, perhaps it would regain some strength.
Once he returned to the surface, he’d need to interrogate those whose dantians had shattered.
Thus, with those thoughts, Ho Cheon-an continued to stroke Iron Blood Rat.
“Can you move?”
Hiss. Hiss.
Though its response was weak, Ho Cheon-an could read the strength of desire embedded in it.
“Then let’s go together.”
Ho Cheon-an walked slowly, and Iron Blood Rat staggered behind him, clinging on.
This was the first step of Thunder Name Zhonja, marking a significant incident within the Southern Blood Sect.
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