The Heaven and Earth Society. Two men walked side by side along a path enclosed by walls, heading toward the main building. They were the Underworld Blade King, Son Yun, one of the eight executives of the Heaven and Earth Society and one of the Five Kings, and the Occultist Jo Ui-gong.
As they walked, Jo Ui-gong spoke with frustration.
“You should have told the Vice-Lord that I had taken him as a disciple.”
At his words, the Underworld Blade King, Son Yun, clicked his tongue and replied.
“It would have been useless.”
“Why is that?”
“Have you ever seen the Lord retract an order he has given?”
“..........”
At this, Occultist Jo Ui-gong could not part his lips. Just as Son Yun said, the Lord never took back an order once it was given, and in fact, would sometimes inflict severe punishment if it was not carried out. Considering that, there was no way persuasion would work.
“Damn it...... Just when I thought I’d finally found a decent one.”
“Is he just decent?”
He was the first to read that cursed secret manual. How many had died trying to read it? Moreover, he had learned the sword seal of the Moon Vein, which had been lost for a hundred years, yet he was sent to Corpse Blood Valley without even a glance at his face.
This was a decision that made no sense, even if it came from the Lord. Corpse Blood Valley was a place where, even when they drafted moderately useful youths from each faction, nearly eighty or ninety percent ended up dead. It wasn't named after corpses and blood for no reason.
“For now, I’ll have to ask the Valley Master to look after him. I can’t let such a promising boy die like this.”
At these words, Son Yun looked at Jo Ui-gong with a curious gleam in his eyes. He wouldn’t be acting like this unless he was exceptionally fond of the boy. He himself also found the boy to be a waste.
It would have been good to persuade him to become an ally, or perhaps extract the sword seal from his mind to revive the Moon Vein, so why not do that? Why send him to Corpse Blood Valley, which could be called the worst of selection processes…
‘Could it be?’
The Underworld Blade King, Son Yun’s, eyes narrowed. Could that be the reason he was sent to Corpse Blood Valley?
‘Is he trying to test him?’
Corpse Blood Valley.
“The allotted time is two incenses. Inside the valley stream, there is a steel bead that looks similar to this one. Find it and come before this great incense burner. Those who fail to find one will die.” -Murmur, murmur!
At the words of the man wearing a demon mask, the boys began to stir. It was the middle of the night. Although guards wearing red sashes were positioned here and there holding torches, there was no way they could see clearly into the stream.
To find a small steel bead in this dark place filled with countless pebbles? It was truly like finding a needle in a haystack. Just then, a boy who looked about seventeen, standing in the front row, raised his hand and spoke.
“Isn't killing us for failing to find a single steel bead too harsh? Everyone here has been drafted from their respective factions, so no matter how you look at it....”
“Do you not wish to do it?” the demon mask asked, cutting him off.
At this, the boy hesitated with a tense expression before finally speaking.
“The selection process doesn’t seem to be about finding a steel bead or not....” -Thwack!
Thud!
“Gah!”
In that moment, before he could finish his words, the boy let out a final scream and collapsed to the ground.
‘!!!!!!’
Those standing next to him could not hide their bewilderment. And for good reason. A steel bead was deeply embedded in the boy’s forehead, and it seemed to have killed him instantly.
As they stood there in shock, the demon mask said in a loud voice.
“Those who question my orders or give up will also die.”
The murmuring instantly turned to silence. As one person lost their life, everyone was forced to face reality.
‘This is insane.’
Mok Yu-cheon cursed inwardly. It was absurd enough to be ordered to do something like this out of the blue, but to be killed for not finding a steel bead? He had come here as a hostage for his family.
He didn't understand why they were doing this to him.
‘If only they hadn’t sealed my Qi gates.....’
If he could at least focus his vision, it might have been easier to find. But since his internal energy was sealed, this was truly a self-inflicted ordeal. As he was thinking, the demon mask spoke again.
“For your information, there are not enough steel beads in the stream for everyone here. So you’d best hurry.”
‘!?’
There aren't enough steel beads for everyone? Everyone was unable to hide their shock. Didn't that mean that some of them were guaranteed to die?
“Two incenses is the time it takes for this incense stick to burn out. Light it.”
At the demon mask's command, one of the red-sashed guards waiting by the large incense burner lit an incense stick. -Sssss! At that, the boys, who had been murmuring and unsure of what to do, all rushed toward the stream in a torrent. With over eight hundred people running at once, the ground seemed to shake for a moment.
Since everyone’s Qi gates were sealed, not a single one of them used a light body technique. For now, it could be called an even playing field.
“Damn it!”
At this sight, Mok Yu-cheon glared at Mok Gyeong-un before running like the other boys. -Splash!
Splash!
There was no other way in this situation. He had to find a steel bead first. Otherwise, he would die.
Following the other boys into the stream, Mok Yu-cheon looked down.
‘Dammit......’
How am I supposed to find it? It was dark. No, he could barely see the ripples in the water, let alone what was in it.
Finding it with the naked eye was impossible. -Scrabble, scrabble, scrabble!
“Ugh! Where in the world is it?”
“Aaargh!”
The frustrated voices of boys could be heard from all around. They too couldn't see into the water, so it seemed they were digging through the pebbles in the stream with their hands, searching. Naturally, as a result, “Ugh!”
"My, my hand....."
Their hands were bound to get injured. There were even a few whose fingernails broke as they frantically overturned stones. If they could protect their hands with internal energy, such things might be rare, but with bare hands, getting hurt was inevitable. -Scrape!
Mok Yu-cheon's fingers also ached as they were scratched by sharp stones and pebbles. But there was no other way. Other than using his hands, there was no way to find the steel bead.
What if I can’t find one within an incense’s time? -Thump, thump! As his mind grew anxious, his heart began to beat rapidly. He had never experienced such tension in his life.
Then, Mok Yu-cheon turned his head slightly and made a dumbfounded expression.
‘What is that guy doing?’
Everyone was busy searching, having jumped into the stream. But that bastard Mok Gyeong-un was just standing there with his arms crossed, watching. He was acting as if it were someone else's problem.
‘Crazy bastard.’
It wasn’t as if he was in the stream, surveying the situation. What was he doing over there? Was he that eager to die?
Finding it absurd, Mok Yu-cheon turned his gaze away. Half-brother or not, if he couldn't find his own steel bead right now, he would die. -Scrabble, scrabble, scrabble! As everyone frantically dug through the stream, the incense stick had already burned down by nearly half.
Almost one incense of time had passed. Now, only half the time remained. It was then.
“Put them out.”
With the shout, the red-sashed guards who had been holding torches between the streams plunged their flames into the water, extinguishing them. It was already dark, but with the torches above the water gone, it became difficult to even make out the people nearby.
“Damn it!”
“How are we supposed to find anything?”
Complaints erupted from all over. But even as they screamed in frustration, they did not take their hands out of the water. Because if they didn't find one, they would lose their lives.
“Valley Master. It seems more than half may be culled this time.”
A middle-aged guard standing next to the demon mask whispered. It was understandable, as not a single person had found one even after an incense of time had passed. Until now, in the first gate, there had always been one or two who found a steel bead within an incense’s time, but not this time.
“It seems there are no tenacious ones this time,” the demon mask, called the Valley Master, nodded in agreement.
This might be the smallest number of people ever to be selected. By now, one or two should have found a steel bead and brought it back, which would make the rest anxious and focus their senses even more frantically. This was a gateway designed to stimulate the five senses and survival instincts.
Those who failed here were not worthy of survival.
‘They said the Secret Mirror Sect, the Killing Curse Valley, and the Ensnaring Flower Room sent their talents, but were they nothing more than chaff?’
As he was thinking, “I found it!” Finally, the first person from this batch to find a steel bead emerged. He was an eighteen-year-old boy.
The hand holding the bead was a bloody mess, but he was smiling brightly, so great was his joy. The sight of this boy made those around him unable to hold back their envy. Then, realizing they were running out of time, they searched through the pebbles in the water even more furiously. -Splash!
Splash!
“Pant... pant...”
Somewhat exhausted, the boy who found the steel bead let out a ragged breath and began to walk out of the water.
‘I did it. I did it.’
To be blessed with such luck. Not only did he survive, but he was the very first to find it. With this, he could make a good impression.
Just as he was feeling pleased, -Splash, splash! He heard the sound of something rushing up from behind. When he looked back, a boy with a burly build and a rough face was running toward him.
“Hand it over!”
He was so brazen about it. It seemed his plan was to snatch it before he could get out of the water. He had expected there might be at least one person like this.
‘Damn it!’
The boy was exhausted, but he ran like mad. Even after he got out of the water, the burly-faced boy showed no signs of giving up, running and shouting.
“You son of a bitch! If I catch you, I’ll beat you to a pulp!” -Patter, patter, patter!
For a big guy, he was too fast. He hadn’t expected him to close the distance so much. If he was really caught, the steel bead he had worked so hard to find would be taken by that guy.
The boy glanced back, then turned his head forward again and tried to run with all his might.
But, ‘!?’ What?
When did this guy get in front of him? Was there someone who hadn't even entered the stream? The bewildered boy tried to change direction, but, -Thwack!
In that moment, the boy in front of him lunged at him with incredible speed. He was so fast that he was caught before he could even turn.
‘You dog-like bastard!’
His internal energy should have been sealed, so how could he be so fast? It was literally a situation with a wolf at the back and a tiger at the front. With no way out, the boy made an unexpected choice.
‘You think I’d let bastards like you take this?’
The boy, right there on the spot, put the steel bead he was holding into his mouth and swallowed it with a gulp. Seeing this from behind, the burly boy was so irritated that he yelled.
“You son of a bitch!”
Now there was no way to take it. The boy grinned mockingly. But then, “You’re being quite a nuisance.” -Grab!
“Huh?”
The boy’s head was caught between two hands. And then, -Crack! In that instant, his neck was twisted completely around.
The boy with the broken neck couldn't even scream before he died on the spot.
‘!?’
The burly-faced boy, who had chased him to within five steps, couldn't hide his shock. Although he had intended to steal the steel bead, he had not planned on killing the boy before him. But now, such a thing had happened right before his eyes.
But then, something even more horrifying occurred, -Rip!
‘!!!!!!!!’
As if killing the boy wasn't enough, he tore out the boy's throat with his bare hands. Then, he forced his hand down into the neck, and— -Gouge! Tear! —he pulled out the steel bead that the dead boy had swallowed.
A hand and a steel bead, both drenched in blood. -Drip, drip! Blood soaked the ground.
‘Th... this crazy......’
The moment he saw this, the burly-faced boy was at a loss for words. What kind of person was this? As he stood there in shock, the fair-skinned boy, no, Mok Gyeong-un, turned his head, flicked the blood-soaked hand once at the ground, and opened his mouth.
“What? Do you want it?” -Chill!
At that question, the burly-faced boy shook his head frantically. He had met the boy's eyes, and it felt like his heart would explode. The strength left his legs, and it felt as though he would collapse at any moment.