The leaves of the Blood Spot Grass are a deep red, reminiscent of blood. The stem and roots are also said to be the same, but that is not yet clear.
The smell is also said to be similar to the blood shed by a living person, and the Blood Spot Grass is said to bloom by using human blood as nourishment.
The book he had seen in Cha Yul-ryeong's office had certainly described the Blood Spot Grass as such.
A flower identical to that was now placed there.
Not only the leaves, but the stem and roots were all a deep red.
It was a color very similar to the blood currently flowing from Namgung Il's body.
'So... the Blood Spot Grass really did exist.'
Of course, Namgung Il had begun to believe in its existence due to various circumstances.
However, it was undeniable that a slight disbelief still remained in a corner of his heart.
An herb that could save a person's life; wouldn't it be strange to believe such a thing at face value?
But now that he had confirmed it with his own two eyes, he had no choice but to believe in its existence.
"..."
The grass that eats blood. Blood Spot Grass.
As soon as Namgung Il saw it, he could understand why it had been given such a name.
"Ooh...!"
As the Blood Spot Grass revealed itself, Gok I-hyeon's eyes flashed and he slowly approached it.
A careful movement, as if he were in front of a rare treasure.
With just that, the Blood Demon could be resurrected, so to Gok I-hyeon, the Blood Spot Grass felt no different from the Blood Demon's life.
"O noble one... Please wait just a little longer. Your servant will now perform the ritual of resurrection!"
"...!"
At that moment, Namgung Il, hearing Gok I-hyeon's monologue, snapped to his senses.
If he stayed like this, wouldn't the Blood Spot Grass fall into the hands of the Blood Dragon Cult?
He had to somehow prevent the peace that had been barely regained through the sacrifice of himself and his comrades from being taken away by the Blood Demon again.
"Kuk...!"
The moment he tried to approach Gok I-hyeon, the wounds all over his body flared up again.
If he moved recklessly in this state, his life could be in danger due to the blood flowing from his entire body, but Namgung Il had no leisure to leisurely treat his wounds.
'I will offer my life.'
If he could prevent the Blood Demon's resurrection with that, it was a very cheap price.
In the past, hadn't he taken countless lives?
Perhaps this was the very reason he had been given a second life as Namgung Il.
Swoosh—.
Gok I-hyeon stood in front of the Blood Spot Grass and placed the weapons he was holding in both hands on the floor.
From now on, that Blood Spot Grass was an existence to be used for the Blood Demon's resurrection.
Since it was an existence that would soon become a part of the Blood Demon, Gok I-hyeon put down his weapons and was showing a posture of worship to the Blood Spot Grass.
"Your servant asks for your permission to touch your body for a moment."
"..."
"I will pay the price with my blood later."
Gok I-hyeon was speaking as if the Blood Demon were standing right in front of him.
Only after bowing his head and asking for permission did Gok I-hyeon get up from his seat and carefully extend both hands towards the Blood Spot Grass.
Kururu— Kwang—!
It was then.
As a loud roar was suddenly heard from behind, Gok I-hyeon had no choice but to stop the hand he was extending forward.
"...?"
What on earth was that sound?
As if a thunderbolt had struck from the sky, Gok I-hyeon hurriedly turned his head to where the sound had come from.
"...!"
Soon, Gok I-hyeon's two eyes widened in astonishment.
But due to the brilliance pouring from the front, his widened eyes narrowed again, and Gok I-hyeon barely confirmed the identity of that light through his narrowed eyes.
'...Namgung Il?'
Gok I-hyeon could barely recognize that Namgung Il was standing at the center of that brilliance.
But what on earth was that appearance?
Gok I-hyeon couldn't understand why a light as intense as the sun was pouring out of Namgung Il's body.
Pajijik—.
Around Namgung Il's body, a much larger amount of electric light was being generated than before.
As if a thunderbolt had just struck Namgung Il from the sky.
The appearance of Namgung Il, whose entire body was glowing with a blue light, felt like thunder itself in a way.
"...?"
Just then, Gok I-hyeon belatedly realized that another anomaly had also occurred in Namgung Il's body.
Until just a moment ago, blood had been dripping from the wounds all over his body... but at some point, the blood had completely stopped.
'Did the blood clot?'
No, that couldn't be.
No matter how good the medicine, wouldn't it take some time to stop the bleeding?
But Namgung Il hadn't even applied medicine, and the wounds were not at a level that could be called one or two.
For the blood to stop so quickly in such a situation... Gok I-hyeon could not understand this phenomenon at all.
Pajijik—.
Just then, the brilliance that had been generated from Namgung Il's body gradually disappeared.
It was just that the light had weakened compared to the beginning; the electric light was still being generated roughly around him.
"...What on earth is that appearance?"
"..."
"How did you stop the bleeding? What trick did you pull while I had my back turned!"
When a person encounters an unknown phenomenon they do not know, they inevitably become urgent without realizing it.
Gok I-hyeon was in the same situation right now.
Although Gok I-hyeon asked, getting angry, Namgung Il just answered calmly.
"Thunder God (雷神)."
"...?"
"That's what they call this."
Thunder God...?
Gok I-hyeon was momentarily at a loss for words, but he soon shouted again with an angry voice.
"Thunder God? Are you perhaps calling yourself that?"
"..."
"Unspeakable! The only being in this world who can call himself a god is Him, and only Him!"
Gok I-hyeon was now enraged by that fact.
In his heart, there was only one god.
If there was anyone who called himself a god, even as a joke, besides the Blood Demon, he would immediately tear their mouth apart with both hands.
"There is no god."
"...?"
"Neither I nor the Blood Demon are anything more than mere humans."
"Ugh... Insolent!"
He could no longer just stand by and watch this blasphemy.
The moment Gok I-hyeon picked up the sword he had placed on the floor to tear Namgung Il's mouth apart, the unidentifiable roar he had heard earlier filled the interior.
Kururung—!
As if the entire world were covered in snow, everything was dyed white.
It was the same for his hearing.
Just as his vision was dyed white for a moment and he couldn't see anything, his ears also became deaf with the sound of thunder and he couldn't hear anything.
"...!"
In that state, there was nothing Gok I-hyeon could distinguish.
He didn't know where he was looking, or even where he was.
As if he were dreaming, he couldn't feel any sensation, so he didn't even know if he was alive.
'Where... am I now?'
It was then.
At the sensation felt in his side, Gok I-hyeon was finally able to escape from that white space.
Chwaak—.
Just as one pinches their own cheek to distinguish between dream and reality, Gok I-hyeon also knew he was in reality through the pain.
However, the pain Gok I-hyeon was feeling now was on a level that couldn't even be compared to simply pinching his cheek.
How on earth should he describe this... It felt as if countless insects were gnawing at his flesh from the inside.
"...!"
His right side was gouged out to the point where it felt hollow.
A very strange-shaped mark to be called simply cut by a sword.
Normally, if one were cut by a sword, blood should flow from there, and if he had been cut that deeply, Gok I-hyeon's blood and internal organs would have poured out like a waterfall onto the floor.
However, no blood flowed from Gok I-hyeon's wound, to the point where it felt clean, and instead, it was blackened as if it had been burned by something.
"Kuaaak—!"
It felt as if his side had been cut by a sword and then immediately seared with something of high heat.
Even just burning the flesh from the outside would be accompanied by tremendous pain, so how painful would it be if that were done from the inside?
The scream that escaped Gok I-hyeon's mouth gave a slight hint of that pain.
"Kuuuuh...!"
Gok I-hyeon bit down on the dagger in his left hand like a gag.
If he didn't, it seemed he would continue to scream and then faint.
In that state, Gok I-hyeon barely got up and glared at the person who had done that to him.
Pajijik—.
There, Namgung Il was standing with his sword.
Rough electric light was still being generated from his entire body, and the sword's blade was flashing with a scarlet light.
That scarlet light was proof that Namgung Il's Thunder Emperor Divine Art had reached the 6th star.
And when the Thunder Emperor Divine Art reached the 6th star, there was a secret technique that could finally be used.
"..."
That was what Namgung Il had called the Thunder God earlier.
To be precise, it was Thunder God Unification.
The essence of the Thunder Emperor Divine Art, and at the same time, a poison that gnawed at one's own bones.
'...I have to end this quickly.'
Thunder God Unification. As the name suggests, a martial artist's physical abilities would increase dramatically, as if they had become the Thunder God themselves.
However, as mentioned before, Namgung Il was only a human body.
For a human body to accept a god could be called an act that went against balance.
In exchange for gaining dramatic strength, the price was also not insignificant.
"..."
The secret manual stated that one should avoid using Thunder God Unification as much as possible.
Although it could be used from the 6th star, the level at which it could be used as a technique was from the 9th star.
In other words, the secret manual was warning to only dip a hand in just before reaching great completion.
Of course, it was clearly written there that one's life could not be guaranteed even after reaching the 9th star, or even great completion, so in fact, it was a technique no different from a mutual destruction move.
Pajijik—.
So, if Namgung Il, who had not even reached the 9th star, used the secret technique of the Thunder Emperor Divine Art, the result was already predictable.
Namgung Il, of course, was prepared for that.
Namgung Il had already sworn that he would prevent the Blood Demon's resurrection, even if it meant sacrificing his own life.
Kururung— Kwang—!
Just then, the interior was dyed white again and the sound of thunder echoed.
Just like before, Gok I-hyeon could not resist that power at all, and when he came to his senses, he could not feel his left arm.
Tuk—.
No, he was feeling intense pain.
It was just that he couldn't feel the sensation that should have been there.
At some point, Gok I-hyeon's left arm had been separated from his body and had fallen to the floor.
"Tsk—."
Seeing that, Namgung Il clicked his tongue.
He had definitely aimed for the heart, but his left arm had been cut off.
Since Namgung Il himself was not yet accustomed to this incomplete power, such an error was bound to occur.
'I'll end it this time.'
Gok I-hyeon was already in a sufficiently helpless state.
But he was not yet dead.
Since he couldn't predict what would happen to him as time passed, Namgung Il was trying to end it completely while he could still move.
Pajijik—!
It was then.
The moment he was about to deliver the final blow to Gok I-hyeon, a tremendous amount of energy exploded from Namgung Il's body.
"Keoheok—!"
Simultaneously, Namgung Il, who was vomiting dark red blood, collapsed.
That indicated that Namgung Il had returned from being a god to an ordinary human.
'Already... is it over?'
He had expected it to some extent, but to think the duration would be this short.
The time he spent taking a dump would be much longer than this.
Thud—.
His body no longer moved.
As if all his strength had been poured out in that one moment, his dantian felt completely empty.
Just then, Gok I-hyeon's scream was heard from the other side.
"Uuuuugh—!"
The dagger he had been biting on fell to the floor.
Although he was feeling pain to the point of his mind going blank, Gok I-hyeon was somehow enduring it with sheer will.
"Namgung Il... I will kill you with my own hands!"
Gok I-hyeon shouted, glaring at the collapsed Namgung Il.
A voice mixed with resentment and madness.
If blood had flowed from his severed left arm, it could have been a dangerous situation, but rather, the fact that the flesh was completely burned and cauterized was keeping Gok I-hyeon alive.
Swoosh—.
A life exchanged for tremendous pain.
Only madness was making Gok I-hyeon stand.
Flinch—.
It was then.
Gok I-hyeon, for a moment, confirmed what Namgung Il was holding in his hand and stopped walking.
"W-wait..."
"..."
"You...! What are you trying to do now!"
The killing intent that had been felt so strongly just before was no longer felt in Gok I-hyeon's tone.
Instead, what was felt was tremendous bewilderment.
The Blood Spot Grass currently held in Namgung Il's hand was making Gok I-hyeon so.
"This? It looks very delicious."
"N-no... Stop!"
"Too late."
Hwik—.
Saying so, Namgung Il put the Blood Spot Grass he was holding straight into his mouth.
(End of Chapter)