The main reason demons don’t descend in their true form is due to the Ares Church.
With divine power as their primary weapon, the Ares Church exerts formidable force against demons, who are considered evil.
However, this is mostly based on people’s speculations and expectations.
While it’s true that demons fear the Ares Church, there’s another reason for their hesitation.
Among humans, there are those known as legends.
They are powerful.
Long ago, during the Great War between humans and demons, the demons believed they would easily conquer the human realm but failed, proving the strength of these legends.
Humans are weak.
But legends are not.
Grout also knows that “humans associate according to their ranks.”
The strong become friends, and the weak band together.
So where does Hyun-soo fit?
He’s neither strong nor weak.
Grout pondered this.
‘If his friends were to come…,’ he thought, ‘I’d tear them apart, showing my strength like a human squashing a mosquito with a finger.’
But then, Grout’s body trembled.
[Sword King’s Killing Intent]
[The Sword King’s killing intent dominates the battlefield.]
[You have been afflicted with the status ailment: Fear.]
Seeing the first legend standing beside Hyun-soo, supporting him, Grout doubted the current situation.
[Wrath of the Spear Heaven]
[The wrath of the spear is revealed. A tremendous pressure chokes the enemies.]
[You have been afflicted with the status ailment: Shortness of Breath.]
When he saw the second legend, Grout took a step back, sweat running down his back.
‘This can’t be happening…’
To summarize: the average level of demonic beings is between 400 and 450.
On the other hand, the average level of demons from the demon world is between 700 and 800.
This situation is akin to demonic beings calling for demons as if to say, ‘Friend, help me!’
And the demons have rushed to protect mere demonic beings.
“Are you the one who did this to my friend Hyun-soo?” asked the person called Spear Heaven.
Grout almost answered, ‘No?’ denying and trying to flee.
It would be a disgrace as a demon, but he had no choice.
[Sword King Barad Lv.478]
[Spear Heaven Ben Lv.488]
Grout, who had descended in his true form, was at the level of 500.
The effect of the tiger’s strength had already worn off.
‘Am I being overwhelmed by their momentum?’
This inability to resist the status ailments was proof.
The legends’ status ailment abilities were the best in Ares, and the demons’ resistance to status ailments had weakened due to descending in their true form.
He held his breath in tension.
Finally, Sword King Barad moved.
Grout watched his face twisted with rage, and purely questioned, ‘Why?’
Could this be happening just because of that guy?
Furthermore, the distinction between the strong and the weak is clear.
The weak spoil battles with anger and excitement, while the strong use them as catalysts to fight more calmly.
Grout tried to prepare himself.
At that moment, Barad had already slashed through Grout.
[You have taken 33,301 damage.]
The damage Hyun-soo previously inflicted ranged from 10,000 to 17,000.
On average, it was between 10,000 and 12,000, reaching 17,000 on critical hits.
But Barad was different.
With a single normal attack, he dealt 33,000 damage.
The key point is this: at the time, Hyun-soo’s sword attack power had increased by over 200% due to the mastery of the rampaging sword.
For NPCs, this is a concept of training, and for players, it’s a skill.
[Sword King’s Sword Mastery Lv.7]
Swordsmen possess sword mastery: beginner, intermediate, advanced, and ultimate.
Among players, none have yet surpassed the ultimate level.
But even if they do, they can’t achieve the Sword King’s Sword Mastery.
The Sword King’s Sword Mastery exceeds the ultimate level by one tier.
Furthermore, while ordinary sword mastery increases sword attack power and cutting power by 3% each, Barad’s has increased by 4.5%.
He is the greatest swordsman in Ares, far surpassing ordinary swordsmen.
Kwa-Jaaak-
He struck Grout upwards.
Soaring into the sky, Grout prepared to respond.
But he was above him.
“Sword King’s Swordsmanship.”
Krrr-!
A red haze arose.
One of the powers within the Sword King’s Swordsmanship.
The Sword of Turbulence.
Recently, Hyun-soo leveled up the Sword King’s Swordsmanship once.
As a result, Hyun-soo’s Sword of Turbulence within the Sword King’s Swordsmanship increased to 150% additional damage, and critical hits deal 200% additional damage.
However.
[When attacking, it deals 400% additional damage, and critical hits apply 600% additional damage.]
Barad’s far surpassed this.
Instinctively, Grout tried to protect his vital points.
But the sword of the greatest swordsman cannot be blocked, even if desired.
Puuuuk-!
[You have taken 157,875 damage.]
“Krhaaaak, Uaaaaak!”
Grout felt the sensation of the blade piercing his flesh. Instinctively, he grabbed the sword with both hands and screamed.
Damage beyond common sense.
“…How dare you touch my sword.”
And as the price for daring to grab the Sword King’s sword, he was slashed in the air.
Sgagagagagak-
More than three quick slashes per second cut through Grout.
[You have taken 36,313 damage.]
[A critical hit has occurred.]
[You have taken 47,971 damage.]
[You have taken 31,041 damage.]
Of course, Grout did not just suffer.
Grout’s sticky blood gushed out and splashed all over Barad’s body.
For Grout, blood is the source of strength.
Although he couldn’t match Barad in swordsmanship, he could overwhelm him with this.
The blood sprayed on Barad’s body triggered a chain of explosions.
Kwaaaaang-
Bang, Kwakwakwa, Kwang-!
[Barad’s HP has fallen below 70%.]
Grout could deal more damage than Barad.
A groan escaped from Barad’s mouth as he was engulfed in the chain explosion in the air.
“Khh…”
Meanwhile.
Sgagagagagak-!
‘This crazy human…!’
Enduring the explosions, Barad continued to slash Grout.
At that moment.
Tch-tch-tch…
An old man’s clicking tongue was heard.
“This is why swordsmen are no good, flashy on the outside but hollow inside.”
Swordsmen?
Grout couldn’t believe his ears. Speaking like that to such a strong person?
Soon, something unidentified soared up and grabbed Barad’s arm, throwing him to the ground.
“Take a rest.”
Though he called him a swordsman, his voice held affection.
An old man with a head full of white hair held a spear and looked at Grout.
And, what he meant by hollow inside was revealed.
Puk-!
[You have taken 45,031 damage.]
A spear that pierced Grout in an instant.
The spear’s normal damage overwhelmingly surpassed Barad’s.
People mainly use swords because they are the easiest weapon to handle.
The range is adequate, and simply swinging it can harm the enemy.
Spears are different.
Due to their long range, spears take 30% more time to attack compared to swords, making them difficult to handle.
However, spears allow fighting from a distance and are effective for piercing vital points.
Of course, the advantage of piercing vital points only applies if successful, but Spear Heaven saw them all.
Hundreds of vital points in the human body.
Ultimately, demons share the same body structure as humans.
Pu, Pupupupupu, Pupupupupuk-!
Relentless attacks on vital points.
Exponential critical damage rise.
[A critical hit has occurred.]
[You have taken 64,805 damage.]
[A critical hit has occurred.]
[You have taken 56,319 damage.]
As he said, Ben was a person who made the spear practical.
But this was only a small part of him.
“Extreme Spear.”
The power that made the current Spear Heaven.
A secret technique he had even before creating the Ghost Step.
All of Spear Heaven’s stats and attack power increase to a transcendent level.
Kuhooo-
The old man’s lush white hair fluttered as attacks swirled from all directions.
[You have taken 74,805 damage.]
[You have taken 68,319 damage.]
Grout couldn’t comprehend it.
It had only been 30 seconds since the battle started.
In that time, his HP had inexplicably plummeted.
[Grout’s HP has fallen below 50%.]
Grout suffered as he watched his blood continuously gush out.
Soon, thousands of blood droplets from him gathered together.
What condensed below Ben soon unleashed immense power.
[Bloodstorm]
Kwarrrrk-
Sweeping everything around it, it even pulled in Spear Heaven.
But then…
Grab-
The old man being sucked into the storm grabbed his collar.
The caster of the Bloodstorm does not take damage.
Karrarrak-
The old man, his body being torn apart inside the storm, spoke calmly.
“Hoho, not bad?”
“…!?”
The old man showed extraordinary mental strength, falling endlessly while stabbing himself.
Pupupupu, Pupupuk-!
[Grout’s HP has fallen below 45%.]
And the two crashed to the ground together.
Kuwoooom-!
“I must be getting old; this is tiring.”
Ben glanced over his bleeding body.
He felt dizzy for a moment and staggered.
Grout saw this as an opportunity.
If Ben and Barad attacked simultaneously, it would be hard to withstand.
With that judgment, Grout moved, a smirk forming on his lips.
“…?”
Insects he deemed insignificant had surrounded him.
He thought they were mere small fry outsiders.
At that moment.
Fwoooosh-
“Arrow of Perfection.”
Ian’s Joo Mong’s Bow absorbed scorching flames.
“Dragon’s Cry.”
Wriggle wriggle-
The dragon inside Dragon Knight Liesel’s Dragonfire Sword moved.
“Wave of Frost.”
A freezing chill emanated from a shield, enveloping Grout.
“Bloodsteel Arrow.”
“Bloodsteel Sword Slash.”
“Bloodsteel Kick.”
Han-ul, Hye-ji, Tae-hoon—three prodigies ignited shimmering heat waves.
Then all at once.
Piyuong
Kwazazazak-
Thud
Jjjeojeojeojeok-
Kiheeeek!
[You have taken 73,319 damage.]
The moment the arrow pierced him, Grout’s mind went blank.
Those he thought insignificant.
Their single attack defied common sense, akin to the Sword King and Spear Heaven.
[You have taken 71,001 damage.]
[You have taken 63,578 damage.]
[You have taken 58,010 damage.]
The onslaught from all directions left him dazed.
Pu, pupupupung-
Then, Tae-hoon’s kick landed, pushing him back.
[Grout’s HP has fallen below 15%.]
Grout felt fear. He had never experienced his HP dropping this low.
Of course, individually, Grout would win.
But the unique strength of Hyun-soo’s friends was overwhelming him.
Soon, Grout regained his composure.
Just like named NPCs, demons have their own traits.
The characteristics that represent the 72 demons are powerful and astonishing.
These traits are why they became demons in the first place.
[Demon of Blood]
Suhooooooong-
The blood scattered around—his own and that of his enemies—was absorbed into Grout’s body.
[You can continuously recover as long as there is blood around.]
[HP recovers by 15%.]
[HP recovers by 13%.]
[HP recovers by 16%.]
[Grout’s HP recovers up to 75%.]
This is the characteristic of the Demon of Blood.
Infinite regeneration.
Chiiiiik-
As his writhing wounds healed, Grout took a refreshing breath.
“Haah, are you done?”
He had forgotten due to the status ailment Fear.
Who he was and what power he possessed.
And he realized that they would be shocked and terrified by his unimaginable strength.
But they were wrong.
“Ho? That’s good.”
“…You think the same, spearman.”
Barad and Ben, now recovered, conversed.
“I haven’t met a worthy opponent recently, so I was curious about how much damage I could inflict if I went all out.”
“Me too.”
“So, you’re saying we can keep pounding on him?”
“Exactly, we can keep pounding on him. It’d be a waste to kill him outright. I want to pound him more.”
“….”
Grout was taken aback.
Their expressions were sincere, without a hint of deceit.
And they had the skill to back it up.
‘I… a demon…!’
Demon Grout had become a damage gauge.
A very efficient one.
Meanwhile, Hyun-soo, receiving treatment from Belia, realized.
‘This is dangerous….’
Barad, Ben, and the Guild Bright Future.
If they all combined their efforts, they could overpower Grout.
The problem is that Grout’s regeneration is infinite, while their strength is finite.
Both players and NPCs have cooldown times for their skills after one use.
Furthermore, Grout’s infinite regeneration prevents him from tiring, but humans do tire.
‘There’s only one way.’
Kill him without giving him a chance to recover.
The problem was this.
Seeing Grout’s trait activation earlier, Hyun-soo felt fear.
‘Too fast.’
Just by absorbing blood, he recovered in less than two seconds.
Their strongest forces had to bring Grout down in one fell swoop.
At this point, Hyun-soo needed damage comparable to Sword King Barad and Spear Heaven Ben.
‘But I don’t have that kind of power….’
Then.
[Skill creation is complete.]
The custom skill inspired by “Friend, help me.”
[You have unlocked the skill Destiny.]
[Legendary grade.]
Hyun-soo was astonished upon reading it.
‘An attack skill….’
Hyun-soo marveled.
With this power, he could be as strong as the Sword King and Spear Heaven, even if only for a moment.
Hyun-soo’s heart burned with excitement.
“I’ll join too.”
The thought of the reward for killing a demon with his own hands made his heart race.
Cliche Novel 