Disciple of The Three Kings [EN]: Chapter 14

The Three Kings’ Disciple (15)

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Inside the darkened room, now a training chamber, Rowoon sat cross-legged, eyes closed, shirtless.

He, who had become a disciple of the Three Kings through a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

‘The teachings of the Three Kings were from their lifetimes, yet not from their lifetimes.’

In the case of the Martial King, it was the Blood Demon Divine Art and the Heavenly Demon Divine Art he had used in his lifetime.

‘They were something he created anew after becoming a king and transcending the world.’

He had gone beyond that realm and created something new.

The Sword King and the Demonic King were the same.

Instead of something they had perfected when they ruled the world, they created something new in the chaotic dimension.

The purpose was singular.

‘To create a finished product.’

Things that were great enough to make one a king in a world had been reduced to mere parts to create a single, complete whole.

The three masters each divided their enlightenment and power, striving to create the best.

A finished product would be born from the teachings of the three masters, meshing together like gears.

In other words.

‘Each of the masters’ teachings is just an incomplete part.’

Also, if the order was different, the gears would not mesh and would break down.

That’s why Rowoon received the teachings in the order the masters had created them.

First was the Martial King.

‘First is the Blood Demon Divine Art. You will learn to observe your inner self and how to use everything within your body.’

Teachings focused solely on observing and changing the inner self.

Therefore, he did not learn any sword techniques or blade techniques derived from the Blood Demon Divine Art.

‘You won’t be able to use martial arts.’

If he didn’t complete the Blood Demon Divine Art and move on to the next stage, he wouldn’t be able to use martial arts.

The Blood Demon Divine Art, one of the absolute divine arts that had shaken the world of Eun, was just a part.

The reason he couldn’t use weapons was the same.

He couldn’t use weapons until he had surpassed all of the Martial King’s teachings and moved on to the Sword King’s teachings.

‘If I fail to keep this…’

He still remembered that eerie face.

‘Something worse than death will happen. You won’t die here anyway, so do you want to try?’

So he tried.

And he realized that his master’s words were right.

Pain worse than death, and side effects.

He had to build everything anew.

Now, he was facing the final stage of the Blood Demon Divine Art.

The Blood Demon Divine Art was divided into four stages.

Red Blood, Purple Blood, Black Blood, and finally.

‘True Blood.’

The blood of the Cinder Dragon he had absorbed at the Hwasan Guild’s corpse disposal site was truly amazing, allowing him to surpass the Purple Blood stage and reach the final stage of Black Blood in one go.

Not only that, but the Cinder Dragon’s blood was still circulating throughout Rowoon’s body.

‘I haven’t fully absorbed it.’

If he could fully absorb this Cinder Dragon’s blood, he would be able to enter the final stage of the Blood Demon Divine Art, True Blood, immediately.

Saaaah.

Black mist began to emanate from Rowoon’s body as he sat cross-legged.

Discarding the useless parts accumulated in the blood, and absorbing only the life force within.

From now on, only one thing was needed.

‘Time.’

He had enough enlightenment and resources to move on to the next stage.

If only he had time.

Flash!

He would reach the stage of True Blood.

* * *

“Haa.”

Kang Eun-ha, sitting on the sofa, sighed.

Her eyes were fixed on a secret room in one corner.

It had already been a week.

Since Rowoon had not come out of that room.

‘What on earth is he doing?’

Seeing that he was holed up in the training chamber and not coming out, it was clear that he was training in the Blood Demon Art, no, the Blood Demon Divine Art.

But as far as she knew, training in the Blood Demon Art required special materials.

High-purity blood, and special drugs and rituals to help absorb that blood.

It wasn’t something that could be trained in an empty training chamber like that.

“Haa.”

In fact, she had begun to doubt at some point.

‘Is he really a Blood Demon?’

Although she had seen it with her own eyes, she had never heard of a black blood barrier.

‘Could he be a spy sent by the Heavenly Demon Church?’

It was an old story from the past that the Heavenly Demon Church had been trying to research and imitate the Blood Demon Art.

Could it be that they had succeeded and were trying to establish a new Blood Demon?

‘No.’

If the Heavenly Demon Church was behind it, they would never have moved in this way.

‘No, that’s not it.’

They might have been trying to cause division….

No, in the first place, there was no possibility that the Heavenly Demon Church had succeeded in researching the Blood Demon Art.

In the first place, there was no way her grandfather would confuse the real and the fake.

In the first place, if they had succeeded in reproducing the Blood Demon Art, the Heavenly Demon would have mastered it, not a human from Earth, let alone a player.

In the first place, in the first place, in the first place….

“Ugh!”

As a priestess, she had been confined to the Blood Cult for nineteen years, and it was true that she had dreamed of a new life, but she had never imagined that such a radical and urgent event would occur.

“No!”

That person is the real Blood Demon.

Not because of the black blood barrier, nor because of the existence of the Blood Demon Divine Art.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The heart that beats rapidly when she thinks of Rowoon.

A certain image that comes to mind when she sees those red eyes.

Her intuition as a priestess was telling her that he was the real Blood Demon.

Clap!

Kang Eun-ha slapped her cheeks with both hands.

‘Let’s get a grip, Kang Eun-ha.’

It was already irreversible.

Her grandfather had already contacted some of the other elders and revealed this fact.

If Rowoon was not the real Blood Demon, her grandfather would be beheaded for treason.

Moreover, wasn’t she the one who brought him here?

If things went wrong, it would ultimately be her fault.

Causing division in the Blood Cult, inciting rebellion, and even her grandfather being beheaded.

‘Let’s believe. Kang Eun-ha.’

This intuition that she was feeling for the first time as a priestess.

If he was the real Blood Demon.

Gulp.

Imagining all the changes that would come.

“Food.”

“……Hic! Hiccup!”

Kang Eun-ha gasped and quickly stood up at the sudden voice.

“B-Blood Demon…! Hiccup!”

“I told you not to do that.”

Rowoon, who had been holed up in the training chamber for a week, was behind her.

‘When…?’

Kang Eun-ha was so surprised that she hiccuped as she looked at Rowoon.

Rowoon was naturally rummaging through the refrigerator.

Even though she was lost in thought, she hadn’t noticed him leaving the training chamber and getting behind her.

If Rowoon had had even a little bit of hostility, she would have been cut in half and died.

“Hiccup!”

Moreover, Rowoon’s presence was even more faint than before.

“Do you want to eat too?”

The moment she saw Rowoon’s eyes looking at her, Kang Eun-ha could realize it.

‘H-He’s grown?’

Just a week.

In that time, Rowoon had advanced again.

It was because of a sudden enlightenment that the realm of a martial artist could rise, and that was why martial artists were rated higher than players.

Players could only grow by hunting monsters or hunting something to gain experience.

But martial artists grew even during battles, and if enlightenment came, they could unleash a different level of combat power.

So, Rowoon’s growth in a week was not strange.

‘But is the Blood Demon Art like that?’

And the timing was also coincidental.

It was as if Rowoon knew that a week was enough for him to grow and entered the training chamber.

He could get stronger as he wanted if he was given time?

Was that….

“Hiccup!”

Possible?

“Aren’t you going to eat?”

Only then did Kang Eun-ha come to her senses and use her inner energy to stop her hiccups.

“I-I will! Prepare it!”

“What are you talking about? I’ve already prepared it.”

Rowoon had already filled a large bowl with side dishes and was mixing them with rice.

“S-Sorry… This lowly one deserves to die….”

“Your way of speaking. I told you not to do that?”

“That’s….”

Kang Eun-ha couldn’t get her mind straight.

It felt like her head was spinning.

Kang Eun-ha quickly sat down and picked up a spoon.

“Do you guys want to eat too?”

“……!”

Kang Eun-ha’s eyes widened at Rowoon’s voice.

“Can you feel the Dark Blood Unit?”

“I knew about them from the start.”

“……!”

The Dark Blood Unit, who were they?

They were the elite assassination squad that Left Protector Kang Han-cheol had created with all his might.

They were all masters of the transcendent realm, and the leader of the Dark Blood Unit was a master who had reached the extreme realm.

It was said that three members could assassinate a master of the Hwagyung realm [a high level of martial arts mastery], and six members could assassinate even a master at the peak of the Hwagyung realm with a 50% chance.

But the most terrifying thing was their stealth ability.

Their stealth ability was known to be comparable to the most famous assassination group in Eun, the Ghost Valley.

Moreover, this villa was a place where the Dark Blood Unit could always reside and perform the best stealth.

And yet.

‘He knew?’

Rowoon put down his spoon.

“Are you going to disturb my meal by unnecessarily leaking your presence? Or are you going to come out and eat with me?”

Leaking their presence?

Kang Eun-ha sweated as she spoke to Rowoon.

“They have the mission to guard the Blood Demon….”

“What kind of guard are those weaker than me? Don’t do useless things and come out and eat.”

With those words, Rowoon held out his index finger.

A drop of blood spurted out.

What was unusual was that it was not as dark black as before, but a light crimson color was mixed in.

But Kang Eun-ha almost fainted at the sight that followed.

Fwoosh!

The drop of blood burst out and turned into small needles, covering all directions.

Thud.

The needles floating in the air were aimed at.

Gulp.

The places where the Dark Blood Unit was hiding while concealing their presence.

“I’m the Blood Demon. If I tell you to come out and eat, then eat.”

As Rowoon bent his index finger again, the blood droplets that had turned into needles gathered and disappeared into Rowoon’s hand.

Swoosh.

Only then did the members of the Dark Blood Unit timidly reveal themselves.

* * *

He was in a good mood.

‘I’ve entered the True Blood stage.’

He had secluded himself in Kang Han-cheol’s villa and entered the final stage of the Blood Demon Divine Art, the True Blood stage.

It was because he had succeeded in absorbing almost all of the Cinder Dragon’s blood that had been flowing in his blood vessels.

Now, all that was left was to absorb the remaining blood and change the parts that were still Black Blood into True Blood.

To make the True Blood flowing from the Blood Dantian [an energy center in the body] even denser and complete it.

And if he completed even the True Blood.

‘I can finally move on to the next stage.’

The second gear.

The problem was the timing.

When a new gear starts to mesh, the beginning is bound to be shaky.

In other words.

‘It weakens for a moment.’

But at some point, when the two gears start to mesh properly, they can generate even greater power than before.

Therefore, the timing of creating the second gear was quite important.

‘I need to complete the True Blood first, though.’

Today, as usual, Rowoon was heading to the dining table after leaving the training chamber.

“Blood Demon! The meal is ready!”

Kang Eun-ha, wearing an apron, shouted in a cheerful voice.

It was a meal that was ambiguous to call prepared, just a bowl of rice mixed with side dishes.

In the first place, since his existence was a secret, he couldn’t hire servants, and it was also ambiguous to keep the servants he had originally hired here.

‘Because my existence is a secret.’

Only those who could be truly trusted were in this villa now, and since the Dark Blood Unit only ate bigu pills [pills that allow one to abstain from eating], Kang Eun-ha naturally had to prepare the meals.

The problem was….

“I told you I would make the meals.”

“But for the Blood Demon to make the meals….”

She was a priestess of the Blood Cult who had never gotten her hands wet.

Moreover, her hometown was Eun, not South Korea or Earth.

Even her taste was different, so the ratio of gochujang [Korean chili paste] was not right.

Twitch.

Kang Eun-ha was about to lower her head and apologize, flustered by Rowoon’s frowning face.

“A guest has arrived.”

The reason Rowoon frowned was not because of Kang Eun-ha.

Kwaaang!

There was a commotion outside.