Chapter 139: The Emergence of Bingje
5843/10000 . . .
"Almost 2,000 players have been eliminated between yesterday and today." Seo-woon smiled upon hearing LiLingwei's words after verifying the survivors.
"Looks like they're finally making a move. It's a good thing they didn't wait too long." Such a rapid and significant drop in numbers meant that the Martial Arts Alliance and the Four Clans were making their move.
"It would be good if we could learn the movements of the two groups." Hearing Ki-chan's words, Limmin looked at Jin-ryong and Li Ling-wei. Hearing Ki-chan's words, he asked if there was a way to contact the sect.
Most martial arts sects usually had one or two ways to secretly contact their masters. They'd leave a beacon in a specific location or send a message to a secret location. In a place where communication was even more difficult from Earth, these were indispensable tools for quickly transmitting information.
"There is a way, but… If we continue like this, we'll have to go to the capital and enter Daejin City." That was the most information Jinryong could offer this group on this deserted island.
"If we go to Daejin City, I can contact my family." Seo-woon, who was looking at the map, nodded at the two men's words. And so, after arriving, the group set off for the first time, following Seongdo towards the city.
Traveling along a well-paved road wide enough for even a few horse-drawn carriages, they came across a high city gate that stood firmly closed. The moment Jin-ryong stepped forward to speak to the soldiers glaring at them from atop the city wall, an arrow flew toward him.
"Kill them!"
—Ting!
Jin-ryong easily dodged the powerless, inferior arrows; Nam-sa-gwang, however, reached out slightly behind him, and the arrows they had fired were suddenly blown aside by a gust of wind. The arrow-shooting soldiers were so shocked to see the arrows fly and fall to the side that they forgot to draw their bows back and stared blankly at the arrows on the ground.
"Call in reinforcements! Keep shooting! Don't stop!"
"Hey! We're not your enemy!"
No matter what Jin-ryong said, the soldiers were so panicked that they wouldn't stop firing arrows, leaving him helpless.
"It seems like a misunderstanding." The misunderstanding seemed to stem from the appearance of the aircraft some of the team members were riding in. Their alertness was somewhat reassuring, but it was also a difficult situation.
—Kakakang!
Dump, who was protecting Ryle and Juriell from the flying arrows, nodded from behind a massive shield.
"This is tough. We can't get in by force." Dump drooled as he stared at the massive, iron-forged city gate. He was certain he could shatter such a gate with a single blow, but he knew that wouldn't help the situation at all.
"Wait a minute. I must know one or two people in the Castle Guard." At Jin-ryong's words, for a while, they easily blocked the rain of arrows, and then dozens of warriors jumped down from the city wall and surrounded the group. Seo-woon's eyes lit up when he sensed their solid, formidable aura. Jin-ryong quickly scanned the men surrounding them, who looked as if they might attack at any moment, and smiled brightly when he spotted one of them.
"Jichun!"
"Huh? You... Ryung? No, what are you doing here?"
Jin-ryong sheathed his sword when he recognized the man, barely recognizable after fighting relentlessly without proper rest.
"It's come to this. There seems to be a misunderstanding, let's calm down first." When the blue-armored man called Jichun sheathed his sword and raised his hands, the pressure on the group dissipated as if magically removed.
—Crack!
The sound of dozens of swords being drawn simultaneously echoed out, unmistakable.
"The situation is urgent, what are you doing here?"
"It's a long story. Let's go inside and we'll talk."
Jichun nodded, looked at the castle gate, and shouted. "We're friends! Open the gate!"
Upon entering the gate, which opened at his words, Dump, Juriell, and Ryle were greeted by countless stares. Their unusual appearances and attire were so foreign that the gazes directed at them couldn't possibly be positive. Despite the obvious stares, Ryle continued to look around, his eyes shining. The sight of a city in another world seemed extremely intriguing to him.
As he walked inside, Jichun's expression turned serious as he explained the situation as briefly as possible.
"What?! So, you were the first to report it?"
"Exactly."
"Does such a world really exist?" Jin-ryong looked back, glanced at Dump, and then answered Jichun's question. "You don't understand even after seeing it?"
"Well… I was ordered to come and guard this place, but I can't believe it. Don't misunderstand. I don't doubt Master's words."
"I understand. It's hard to believe. It's hard to grasp without experiencing it yourself." Jichun nodded and opened his mouth. "If only we could face those enemies once, we'd know for sure… But we don't have that chance. I wish I'd been assigned to the reconnaissance squad instead of the defense squad…"
Before he could finish, Seo-woon's brows furrowed.
— I feel someone's dirty gaze on me.
— He realized what Hamit had warned him about had come true. Hamit's sharp eyes caught the hostile gaze. Although there were many eyes on him, the fact that Hamit only reacted now meant that there were hidden eyes that saw them as enemies, signaling the player's presence.
At that moment, Seo-woon's left eye turned blood-red and stopped walking.
"Huh?"
When the process suddenly stopped because of him, Jin-ryong and Jichun naturally turned to look at Seo-woon.
"What's that?" Sensing a strange aura from Seo-woon, whose one eye was bloodred, Jichun asked in surprise.
"Wait and see."
Seo-woon, who had closed his right eye and only opened his left, suddenly looked up. The moment his gaze found the source of the focused hostility, he moved toward a few people hiding in the crowd gathered around him.
The moment he confirmed their identities, his eyes widened.
— 180 degrees. 100 meters. Enemy!
The team members naturally began to walk again at his command.
— There are too many civilians around.
Seo-woon nodded slightly at Lee Min's words.
— Sagwang and I will move. The rest of you, move once we've tied up the enemy.
Sa-hyung, inform the enemy of the situation telepathically.
—Understood.
Seo-woon and Nam Sa-gwang, who were moving with dozens of unarmed men, seemed to stagger for a moment, then the two separated from the group.
"Aaaah!"
The crowd flinched at the sight of a person's head being severed, blood gushing out.
Except for Sa-gwang and Seo-woon, the enemy team was naturally surrounded, leaving a circular gap in the middle. The enemies were caught off guard by the sudden surprise attack and seemed confused about what to do after losing two team members.
At that moment, Seo-woon's team members and Lightning Wall surrounded them.
"Don't let them escape!" At the enemy commander's command, Lightning Wall drew its swords and emitted a dense aura. In an instant, Juriell, surrounded by the enemies, reacted by spewing flames accompanied by a surge of mana.
"Mana Scatter!" When he cast the spell, the fireball violently trembled and shrank, while Ki-chan used Ice Snake to neutralize the enemy's magic.
A giant ice snake appeared from the air and hurled itself towards the enemy with a fierce momentum; the icy air that spread around surrounded the wide-eyed warriors.
Among them was Jichun. Seeing this incredible, otherworldly magic, Jin-ryong and the other team members acted in his stead.
Seo-woon, who had momentarily neutralized him, was about to kill the last remaining enemy when Jin-ryong stopped him.
"Priest! Leave him alive!"
At his words, Seowoon's five fingers extended, about to pierce the enemy's face.
—Suk!
Five strands of energy grazed the enemy's face and sank into the ground. When Seo-woon's hand closed like the hero in Scissorhands, the enemy, unable to move a single finger for fear his face would be blown to pieces, cast his eyes wide in all directions.
He saw the corpses of his dead teammates. The sight of the corpses, which would turn into boxes if they died, cleared his mind.
"That's it for this round. How did you know? We changed our hair color and even wore a mask to hide our face." Instead of answering the enemy's nonchalant question, Seo-woon slowly clenched his fingers.
"Ugh!" The powerful energy that pierced his face cut into his skin like a knife cutting tofu; the fear of the unfamiliar feeling outweighed the pain.
Jin-ryong approached him and opened his mouth. "Are you with the Guild?"
"No, I'm not. I don't belong to the Guild." Jin-ryong was relieved by his answer.
"How many people have you killed?"
The man hesitated to answer the second question. He felt he would have to endure considerable pain if he answered incorrectly. Seo-woon's thumb moved toward his collarbone as the man hesitated to answer.
The powerful energy shooting from the tip of his thumb cut into his collarbone like tofu, and the man's eyes widened in surprise at the unfamiliar pain.
"Stop! Stop already!" The thumb, which had drilled holes in his collarbone and peeled back the thin skin, moved very carefully.
"What would happen if I removed the collarbone entirely?" The knight lying on the ground was horrified by the calm voice asking such a question. Even the Thunder Wall warriors watching Seo-woon's movements frowned. Seeing such unimaginable torture being carried out openly, in broad daylight, in the middle of the castle was like watching a demon.
"I'll tell you everything. I'll tell you everything, just stop."
"You better talk quick. After I've peeled off all the skin, I'll tear that off too." His thumb slowly cut into the skin covering his collarbone and continued to peel it off.
"About a hundred of them. They were hiding in the city and secretly killing outcasts! Our team couldn't even make a decent living!"
—Crack!
"Aaaahhhhhhh!" No sooner had he finished "they couldn't even make a decent living," than the man's collarbone was torn from his body, blood gushing out.
—Crackle.
And then the severed head.
The Byeolryeongdae warriors, dazzled by the gruesome sight, stared at the lifeless body with cold eyes. Only Jichun looked at Seo-woon with a calm gaze.
"You said you were Ryung's disciple, but you did a good job. Actually, I think you let him go too easily. He was that great a warrior." Jichun thought that someone who could only express himself like that by killing nearly a hundred ordinary people deserved to suffer even more.
"First, we need to talk in private, away from prying eyes." Seeing Seo-woon's distress, Jin-ryong pulled Jichun aside. Seo-woon headed towards the large guesthouse where Byukryong was staying and spoke to Jin-ryong.
"Brother. I'm going to rest for a while."
"You need to replenish your energy."
"Okay." Seo-woon found an empty room and went upstairs.
Li-ling-wei handed the inn owner a coin and asked, "Can you prepare water for two people to wash?"
"Yes, I'll do it right away."
"And prepare a hearty meal for the people behind me."
"Yes!" Tearing her eyes away from the rushing servant, Lii Ling-wei looked at Juriell. "You haven't washed in a long time. What if you smell?" She whispered the last words in her ear. Juriell blushed and carefully lifted her arm, bringing it close to her nose. When the two went upstairs to take a bath, Ryle fidgeted, as if his ass were itching.
Unable to concentrate on their meal, Ri-min smiled. "Do you want to watch?" Instead of answering, Ryle looked up with eager eyes, and Ri-min put down her chopsticks.
"Let's go. It'll take Seo-woon a while to finish this anyway." Hearing Limmin say this, Dump put down the pork leg he was pulling with both hands and asked, "Aren't you going to eat any more?"
"I'm full. I'm used to this kind of food anyway." With that, he left with Ryle, and Dump returned his attention to his meal. Looking at the simple man, Namsa-gwang took a sip of his tea and nodded.
He gaped in surprise at the silence surrounding him in Jichun's room.
"That's strange. It's cast with an energy completely different from the Bet's."
"It's something called a silencing spell. When you breathe energy into this necklace, it activates."
"No sound actually leaks out. I can't hear any sounds from outside." Seeing Jin-ryong nod, Jichun looked directly at him and asked, "Why are you so careful when you speak?"
"I need to know the Martial Arts Alliance's reconnaissance squad's route. We need to operate efficiently without conflicting with them."
"Ah! If that's the case..." Finishing his sentence, he pulled the mission out of his pocket and handed it to Jin-ryong. "It contains all the routes agreed upon with Saryun, so you'll be able to decipher Saryun's route as well. It's top secret, but I'm sure you'll be fine."
"Good."
"But what's going on? When did this start happening to you?"
Jin-ryong began to tell his long story in response to Jichun's question. As he listened, Jichun's expression changed moment by moment, becoming increasingly serious.
***
Despite the chaotic atmosphere and chaos in the castle, the ordinary people actively went about their daily lives to earn their living. This allowed Ryle to see many things and satisfy a child's naive curiosity.
With a piece of candy in one hand and a mask worn by children to ward off evil spirits, Ryle enjoyed himself, but his happy memory was shattered.
—Clink!
A small piece of ice suddenly flew towards him, breaking the barrier he had maintained, and the innocent expression on his face was instantly replaced by that of a hardened player.
As Limmin blocked his path with a familiar stance and drew his sword, the ordinary people going about their daily lives suddenly vanished. The fact that even a small commotion and the sound of sword-drawing was enough to send them fleeing without a backward glance demonstrated their familiarity with the warriors' fighting.
Limmin, glancing intently in the direction the ice had come from, spoke up when he saw the warriors approaching with relaxed steps.
"We are not your enemies! There seems to be a misunderstanding!"
"If it's a misunderstanding, it'll be cleared up, if not, you'll have to give your life."
Limmin's face froze when he heard the cold voice that permeated the entire area.
When he saw the women appearing in flowing sky blue robes, he immediately recognized them. They were warriors of Bingje Castle, who hadn't left the castle for the past 30 years.
Seeing them all with their faces covered with masks, he immediately used his team voice.
"We're in trouble. We encountered Bingje Castle warriors at the market near the north gate! Jin-ryong, please come quickly."
The moment he finished using his team voice, the cold air the woman gave off as she walked towards him made Limmin take a step back and frown.
"Child. Are you killing innocent people at such a young age?" Ryle nodded at her question.
"I've never done anything like that."
"So why do you cover your face with a mask and hide your hair color with those strange clothes?"
Realizing the reason for such a misunderstanding, Limmin opened his mouth to speak, but the woman's hand lightly slashed the air.
—Whoosh!
Limmin drew his sword to block the intense cold wind, and his arms froze.
—Whoosh!
Seeing this, Ryle spread a flame barrier in front of Limmin, and the woman's eyes narrowed. Just as she was about to move, a child fell from the sky with a tremendous momentum.
—Bang!
Namsa-gwang landed on the castle's well-polished floor and stood up, looking at the woman from Bingje Castle.
"Old woman, it's been a long time." At those words, the woman's beautiful face contorted in anger.