The Ghost Step, unlike the Sword King’s swordsmanship, is a singular skill.
Hyun-soo was curious.
Could the Ghost Step, which could only be performed once, surpass the advantage of the three-chapter technique?
How many attacks per second could the real Spear Heaven deliver?
[Grout’s HP is at 61%.]
For a moment, Hyun-soo’s body was controlled by the system.
Two true ghosts began to walk.
Towards a single demon ahead.
Ben was the first to leave an afterimage and disappear.
Moving at a speed Grout couldn’t respond to, Ben stabbed his side.
Thud-!
[You have taken 43,031 damage.]
In intense pain, Grout became calm.
‘I managed to block 10 out of 12 of that guy’s attacks before.’
Grout’s reflexes were beyond common sense.
After Ben passed by, Hyun-soo tried to block the sword aimed at Grout’s back.
But Hyun-soo was one step faster.
Sshing-
“……!?”
The speed surpassed the Ghost Step Hyun-soo had previously exhibited.
Furthermore, Grout had only received minor damage when he allowed Hyun-soo’s Ghost Step before.
But now, he received damage far beyond that time.
[You have taken 37,963 damage.]
Though it was less damage than Spear Heaven, it was still enough to threaten Grout.
Additionally, the disadvantage of continuous attack skills, which apply multiple hits in one attack, was that they couldn’t trigger a critical hit.
But Hyun-soo was different.
[A critical hit has occurred.]
[You have taken 54,003 damage.]
This was thanks to the passive skill, “Swordsmanship’s Subtlety,” which compensated for the inability to trigger critical hits.
Grout became urgent.
“Kraaahhhh!”
He judged that he couldn’t block the attacks of the two ghosts.
As a result, he focused on absorbing all the blood-red orbs around him to recover.
Sshing
Thud-
Crash
Thud-!
Soon, Grout’s eyes widened.
His HP was dropping faster than the sword’s rampage.
[Grout’s HP falls below 43%.]
[Grout’s HP falls below 41%.]
[Grout’s HP recovers to 52%.]
[Grout’s HP falls below 49%…]
[Grout’s HP falls below 47%…]
‘This is insane…’
Hyun-soo was impressed. Until now, he had walked in a hurry while performing the Ghost Step.
In contrast, the old man who passed by occasionally was full of composure.
Finally, he realized.
The Ghost Step, when properly manifested, had a power that was by no means inferior to the Sword King’s swordsmanship with its three chapters.
It transcended any power when properly displayed.
In an instant, it exceeded 26 times.
At this point, the bodies of both individuals began to overload.
But the two ghosts did not stop.
[Grout’s HP falls below 4%.]
The strength of their bodies, which had begun to refuse orders, was dramatically elevated.
To kill him and save Arte.
Thud
Slash
[Grout’s HP falls below 2%.]
“Ugh!”
“Urrgh!”
Already at their limits, the muscles in their calves felt like they were about to burst, and their arms were swollen tight with tension.
The final blow.
Ben’s spear pierced the demon’s abdomen, and Hyun-soo’s sword struck down on its shoulder.
“Haah… haah…”
“Huff… huff…”
Hyun-soo panted heavily alongside Ben, filled with admiration.
Thirty-three times.
That was the number of attacks Ben had delivered in one second.
[Grout’s HP drops to 0%.]
Hyun-soo anticipated the notification that the demon Grout had been slain.
Then it came.
[The Immortal Demon]
Hyun-soo and Ben’s faces twisted.
Grout, impaled through the abdomen and struck on the shoulder, still hadn’t vanished.
“No way…”
Hyun-soo’s face turned pale.
The demon Grout’s trait was infinite regeneration using blood as a medium.
Some named monsters possessed multiple traits.
[Grout does not die and is resurrected.]
[HP is restored to 80%.]
[The Immortal Demon can no longer be used.]
[Due to the use of the Immortal Demon, the Blood Demon cannot be used.]
Because of Grout’s trait, he lost the power of infinite regeneration.
“This is dangerous…”
Hyun-soo knew.
Barad and Ben’s HP had dropped below 40%, and the same went for the members of the Guild Bright Future.
Additionally, what they had feared from the beginning was coming true.
Grout was recovering and becoming more solid, but as the first, second, and third battles progressed, they were becoming more exhausted and weaker.
‘Do we have any means left to kill the fully recovered Grout now…?’
No.
NPCs also had skill cooldown times.
When extreme mana was consumed, skills couldn’t be activated until it was restored.
Ben and Hyun-soo quickly withdrew their weapons.
“To have pushed me this far, I must commend you.”
Grout was genuinely surprised.
In hundreds of years, the Immortal Demon had never been activated.
Before they could take cover, Grout exploded the blood around him.
Boom-
Ben and Hyun-soo’s HP plummeted as they were blown away.
Especially Ben, who seemed to have sustained severe injuries.
At that moment, Hyun-soo’s mind raced.
‘We need to use the demon’s power that primarily uses blood against him.’
What method could there be?
Soon, Hyun-soo recalled an artifact.
It was something very familiar to the public.
***
“Urgh!”
“Ugh…”
Nel’s face turned pale.
Ben and Hyun-soo, embedded in the ground, appeared to have suffered quite critical blows.
[Hyun-soo’s HP drops below 50%.]
[Ben’s HP drops below 16%.]
Especially, Ben’s condition seemed worse.
Belia summoned her final strength and offered a prayer of the saint to Ben.
[Ben’s HP is restored to 30%.]
“It’s over now, I’ve exhausted all my divine power.”
At that moment, Hyun-soo saw the guild chat.
Nel, after confirming it, issued an order via guild chat.
[Nel: We will now focus all our efforts not on hunting demons but on protecting Barad, Ben, and Bella. Unlike us, their lives are finite, and we must bear that in mind. If necessary, we must throw ourselves in harm’s way to save them.]
It was a bleak order coming from Nel.
The situation wasn’t good to that extent.
Furthermore, as Hyun-soo issued additional orders based on what he had said, he suddenly saw Grout approaching.
[30 seconds until the end of summoning.]
There was no function to forcibly send them back.
They could only return once the summoning time expired.
“Sword Master.”
Barad turned his head at the voice calling him.
Spear Heaven Ben smirked.
“Do not die.”
“Likewise.”
And in the Guild Bright Future, Bark took the lead.
“Let’s go.”
And Grout, confident of victory, released a roar.
“Hahaha!!”
Barad, Spear Heaven Ben, Bella, and the members of the Guild Bright Future all rushed forward simultaneously.
Crash
Clang
Thud-thud-thud-
A fierce battle ensued.
The face of Grout, who had been laughing confidently, turned fierce.
Though they were all seemingly dying, somehow they didn’t fall.
Especially remarkable was the unyielding bodies and mental strength of Barad and Ben.
They were currently in critical condition.
Barad’s wrist didn’t move well, and Ben had several broken ribs, making movement difficult.
Boom-
Crash
Even in that situation, Ben pierced his abdomen, and Barad struck down on his shoulder.
At the same time, the members of the Guild Bright Future surged forward.
Slash
Thud-thud-thud-thud-thud
Roar
[Grout’s HP drops below 60%.]
“Woooo!”
“Argh!”
But Grout knew. They were like beacons in the wind.
Flickering dangerously as if they would go out if a strong wind blew.
Grout targeted Ben as the first target to kill.
An explosion occurred.
Once.
Boom-
Twice.
Boom-
Thrice.
Boom-
Boom-
Boom-
Boom-
[Grout’s HP drops below 60%.]
Boom-
4th time, 5th time.
Thunk!
“Ugh…!”
[Ben’s HP drops below 10%.]
Ben’s body, now a mess of wounds, was stained with blood.
Grout hurriedly approached, aiming for his neck.
Ben felt dizzy.
‘…I’m going to die.’
This one attack would surely kill him.
Then, someone pushed Ben aside and stood in his place.
It was Bark.
“Gah…!”
Bark grabbed Grout’s sword, which had completely shattered his shoulder, with both hands.
[Indomitable Tank]
[Exhausts life force to hold down enemies.]
[Can last for 6 seconds.]
“This is it, hurry!”
Steam rose from Bark’s body as it burned bright red.
Eventually, the final group attack came from the surroundings.
Thunk!
Clang-clang-clang-thunk!
Boom!
And Bark was literally burning up his own life force.
The penalty for activating this skill was forced logout.
“These insects until the end!”
[Grout’s HP drops below 55%.]
And Bark slowly felt himself dispersing.
Leveling down due to the forced logout of a high-ranker is lethal.
But.
‘Ben, Barad, and Bella mean too much to Hyun-soo.’
Bark completely dispersed.
[Guild member Bark has fallen.]
After that dreadful notification, Grout truly became enraged.
“You don’t want to play along anymore, do you?”
He wanted to torment them one by one and cut off their breath.
But now, he no longer felt the need, knowing there was no time.
It was time to kill them, who had tormented him so much.
[6 seconds remaining until the end of summoning.]
All the blood shed began to float in the air.
Ben, Barad, Bella, and the other members of the Guild Bright Future.
Even the blood shed by Grout and the blood that had seeped into the ground.
All that blood floated around them like fist-sized droplets.
The power of approximately 786 drops of blood was the pinnacle of Grout’s blood power.
[Bloodfest]
[A massive explosion covering a radius of 60m occurs.]
[Unleashes a power of 800% additional attack power.]
It was a single occasion. This one time would kill everyone in this place.
Nel’s face turned pale.
Ben and Barad desperately tried to stop the spell.
[Attacks against Grout are impossible in the Bloodfest situation.]
Ben and Barad already felt it was too late.
“You shall die.”
The droplets of blood swelled up.
It was the harbinger of an explosion.
Then.
“What’s this?”
The droplets of blood did not explode.
No, instead, they suddenly moved somewhere slowly.
Grout sensed something unusual.
What he discovered at the end of the fierce battle.
“Why are they gathered here?”
They didn’t gather.
They knew that if they gathered and were attacked, they would all die.
[1 second remaining until the end of summoning.]
Grout realized.
They were wrapping, hiding something.
Ben let out a small laugh.
“This is the true form of my friend Hyun-soo.”
Barad said.
“Yes, the power of a master craftsman.”
They, who had been hiding something, took a few steps back and cleared the way.
One user who had been hiding inside emerged.
A single sword, completed through emergency crafting, was handed over.
The sword slowly descended into Hyun-soo’s hand.
Sshk.
A sword with a black blade and grip, entirely made of darkness.
Seeing that sword, Grout recalled another sword.
“A demon sword…?”
***
From ancient times, demon swords were known to be blood-stained.
The system acknowledges its power if it is crafted perfectly.
[‘Help me, Friend’ summoning is coming to an end.]
Guild Bright Future’s members, now turning into light, were observed.
When Hyun-soo wielded the sword, all the blood droplets Grout had created moved to the demon sword Hyun-soo had crafted.
Effect placed on this sword.
[Absorbs all blood.]
The mysterious demon sword began to absorb even the blood inherent in Grout.
[Grout is weakened.]
[Grout is weakened.]
An interesting fact was that he was rapidly absorbing blood, and both his level and HP were weakening simultaneously.
[Grout’s HP drops below 30%.]
“A… A demon sword…? How can a human make a demon sword! What’s more, what on earth is that demon sword!”
[Fiend Grout Lv.378]
“People call this sword by this name.”
Swoosh!
Grout’s eyes shook.
The blood droplets he was emitting. And the power of blood contained in his own body.
“Tyrving.”
Those powers were sucked into the demon sword and became the source of its power.
A tremendous power erupted from the demon sword.
Kuhooooo!
The ground shook, and the heavens and earth were in turmoil.
[The eighth legend is written.]
Yi Yi Jie (以夷制夷).
Defeat the enemy with the enemy’s power.
Cliche Novel 