Episode 16: Sihyeolgok (4)
Just in case Mok Gyeong-un stretched out his arms out into the air in the direction from which the spirit was flowing and memorized the phrase in his head.
It was a formality.
[Can you feel it? That is the trick of the consciousness of good deeds. You can make anything stick by pulling it. Even if it is energy it is no exception.]
The young man certainly said so.
Although the distance was far away so many boys died that the energy of death filled the area.
I didn’t know that this might be possible.
‘Without hopelessness Ihyeongwisimyang Muojeongeosang Musanghyeongwijeon Magaryanghaegeo Haemugeukhyeol.’
Even though the Qi gate is sealed with a gold seal the ceremony of wearing it is not a concept of unfolding through internal energy.
This is a special power that comes only from the structure itself.
A hand stretched out into empty space.
The corner of Mo Kyung-un’s mouth twitched as he concentrated.
-Suuuuuu!
A confirmation that started with a light heart that if it doesn’t work out there’s nothing we can do.
Luckily it fit.
Frauds everywhere began to be sucked into Mok Gyeong-un’s hands.
It was a tremendous amount of morale.
‘It’s absorbing.’
Originally I thought only the frauds nearby would be sucked in.
But something unfortunate happened.
As the morale around Mok Gyeong-un was sucked in things that were spreading in all directions caught up with the unique flow that was created.
It seemed like I could probably get more morale than the Yeonmok Sword.
Mo Kyung-un said to himself as he looked at the boys who were still engaged in a bloody battle.
‘Kill more kill more.’
The more they killed each other the more they gained.
There was a puzzled look in his eyes as he looked at Mo Kyung-un like this.
It was a demon mask.
‘…What are you doing?’
Most eyes were on the side of the valley where the battle was taking place.
One evil spirit mask looked in front of the incense burner without thinking and saw Mok Gyeong-un stretching out his hand towards the valley alone.
‘hmm.’
I don’t know what the hell he’s doing.
So I raised my spirits and looked at Mo Gyeong-un.
But I don’t feel anything.
‘Is this an overreaction?’
Well the spiracles were sealed with gold seals but there was no way anything could be done.
Even luck was impossible.
However I couldn’t help but feel quite concerned about his behavior.
While I was doing that the warrior next to me spoke.
“The scented candles are almost gone.”
Now time is running out.
The number of boys who came in during that time was just over 400.
The number of boys who still died fighting among themselves was close to 200 and the remaining 200 or so were engaged in bloody fighting.
-Chiii!
The scented candle was burning down to the bottom line.
The demon mask raised its hand.
Then the warriors in red belts waiting around the edge of the valley pulled out their weapons from their belts.
-Sreung! Sreung!
Seeing this scene the boys who were competing for the iron ball became even more impatient.
If you don’t hurry you will die.
It awakened the boys’ inner grit and strong desire to live.
“Die die!”
-Kwasik! Kwasik!
“Get out of the way!”
-closely!
“Ahh! Are you biting this bastard?”
They hit their heads with stones and if that doesn’t work they even use their teeth to bite them.
It was even gruesome.
Those watching also fought desperately to sit in front of the incense burner but they could not just look at this as if it were someone else’s business.
This was just the beginning.
But among these people one boy stood out.
“Aaaah!”
-Wood!
“Oops!”
He was Mok Yu-cheon who had been unnoticed until now and was killing the boys around him at random as if he had awakened.
Mu Yu-cheon who could not understand why they would kill each other even though they did not enmity each other aimed only to somehow find the iron ball and stand in front of the incense burner.
However the situation pushed Mok Yu-cheon to the cliff.
“Haa…haa….”
From the moment he found the iron ball the boys tried to kill him to steal it and the scented candle that was almost burned out.
This situation eventually made Mo Yu-cheon the same as them.
‘Damn it! ‘Damn it!’
I don’t know how many people he killed but in the end Mo Yu-cheon was able to reach the incense burner after defeating all the boys who were aiming for his iron ball.
Arriving at the incense burner he lifted the blood-stained bead upward.
“passing!”
The moment I heard that shout all tension disappeared and I collapsed to the floor.
This was Mo Yu-cheon’s first thought as he sat down.
‘I survived….I survived.’
A feeling of relief that hurts.
I barely survived this hellish moment.
The fear that he might die made him desperately want to live.
But eventually he felt a sense of shame as he looked at his blood-stained palms.
‘…What…did I…..do?’
He clearly says this is something he wants to live for.
He feels like he has suddenly become an animal instead of a human being.
As I was doing that I heard the demon mask shouting.
“All the scented candles were burned. “Kill him.”
“insect!!!!”
Not long after the name fell screams continued to erupt from the water in the valley.
Boys who were prohibited from using dantian could not even protest.
* * *
The warriors counted the number of boys sitting in front of the incense burner.
And the number was figured out.
The total number of surviving boys was 468.
It could be said that nearly 40% had died.
‘60%…not bad.’
However the demon mask did not have much interest in the dead.
Rather he thought that if only 60% survived the first gate it was not bad for the first thinning out.
After finishing figuring out the numbers the demon mask spoke to the boys in front of the incense burner.
“We sincerely congratulate those who passed the exam.”
“…”
The boys just listened quietly.
Although he was only a stray he was exhausted from doing everything he could to survive.
Looking at them the demon mask continued his words.
“I probably found out because I got the iron ball. The numbers written on the iron beads are different. Be aware of it. “That is your title here.”
“…..”
“Then we will begin the transfer gate immediately.”
-Roaring!
The boys who were taking a breath were agitated by the words of the demon mask.
They wondered if they could get some rest now.
But as soon as the first gate is over you immediately proceed to the second gate?
In particular those who passed late when the scented candles were almost completely burned out were bound to suffer.
‘Damn it.’
The same was true for Mok Yu-cheon.
Aside from the feeling of self-destruction I haven’t even recovered my stamina yet. How long can I endure if I have to do something like this again?
Without caring about these people’s reactions the demon mask pointed to the mountain beyond the valley with his hand and said.
“Lee Gwan-mun will hold out on that mountain from now until dawn.”
‘Until dawn?’
It’s late at night now.
The sun was setting when they left here.
After walking non-stop for about three o’clock I held the main gate for two hours.
Considering this it could be said that there were approximately three o’clock left until dawn.
‘Can I just hold on this time?’
In that case it could be said to be easier than finding an iron ball.
Even though there are people who are crazy about the competition if you just find a suitable place and hide you will be able to preserve your stamina and rest.
It was possible because the gold seal was still in place so it would not be possible to utilize the spirit.
Most people seemed to have similar thoughts and looked relieved.
But it couldn’t possibly be this simple.
The demon mask said.
“It refers to the constraints that come with it.”
‘Constraints?’
What does that mean?
“Forty flags are planted on the mountain. A total of eight people can be on the flag. “Exactly eight people must be there by dawn.”
-Roaring!
Everyone was excited again at these words.
It was as expected.
There was no way it would go easily.
“It should not be reduced to more than eight people. “If that happens you die.”
“…”
There was silence.
After hearing the constraints everyone was wondering what the point of this gateway was.
This was the same for Mok Yu-cheon.
‘There are about 500 people here alone. But if there are forty flags only three hundred and twenty people can survive.’
Another bloody competition was predicted.
However there were differences.
Once the flag is found eight people must work together for about three minutes to protect it.
‘Group cooperation!’
Everyone has figured out the gist of this gateway.
Of course there are many variables but depending on how we cooperate we were able to create conditions that would allow us to survive efficiently.
-Sigh!
When this happened everyone’s eyes naturally turned to each other and not to the demon mask.
There was no need to find a flag and create a group from it.
If we could find the strongest and most useful members here and unite we might be able to get through this gateway easily.
‘then…..’
Their gaze was directed to those at the front of the incense burner.
He is the first to pass through the main gate and is full of stamina.
Only by going under their control or recruiting them can you gain the most advantage.
‘hmm.’
It wasn’t just those who passed the exam late who were worried about this.
Those who passed first were also making their own calculations.
The boy from Jusalgok who passed the exam for the second time also looked around and thought about it.
‘I passed the first gate quickly and succeeded in distributing my stamina but the second gate follows right away. If you follow the constraints it becomes a situation where you can’t relax even for a moment.’
If that happens you may not be able to rest all night.
The number of flags was small and various troublesome situations were sure to arise in order to maintain the number of people.
‘I’m in a situation where I have to stay up all night.’
However if the Three Gates were to proceed directly the key was to preserve physical strength.
In a situation where we couldn’t have breakfast that was a big deal.
If inner strength had not been banned we could have regained our stamina by taking turns performing fortune telling but now it was almost an extreme situation.
‘….Maybe we should avoid situations where we have to fight needlessly.’
Only then could I fully preserve my physical strength.
From that perspective it was better to have a side with the most useful people.
The boy from Jusalgok looked at his sides.
A boy with neck cultivation and muscular nasal passages.
‘hmm.’
These are the people who passed through the consistent gate first along with me.
Rather than searching from afar it was more efficient to band together with those with the most stamina and easily pass through this gate.
‘I thought I’d finish at this gate first but…’
It seemed like it would be better to hold hands this time.
The boy from Jusalgok glanced at Mok Gyeong-un on his left.
The first step was to reach out and build a cooperative relationship.
however
‘!?’
Mo Kyung-un was seen twitching his lips.
The interesting look in his eyes made it seem as if he was enjoying this situation.
The sight was so unpleasant that it seemed unpleasant.
‘…It won’t work.’
I just didn’t want to reach out to this guy.
Strangely enough his instincts were speaking.
He’s the one here that needs to be eliminated first he says.
As I was doing so Mok Gyeong-un spoke first whispering.
“Would you like to join me?”
what?
Did this guy decide that it would be advantageous to be on his side?
But when I saw that face just now my desire to be with him disappeared.
“…I don’t like it.”
In response Mok Kyung-un shrugged his shoulders and quenched his appetite.
‘It’s a shame.’
I wanted to kill him first.
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