Chapter 485

There’s a custom where the winner shows respect to the loser.

It’s an important ritual to soothe the restless spirits of the dead.

A noble act that continues the wishes of the deceased.

It’s all about trophy hunting!

Hardly anyone enters this kind of place bringing gold and silver, but the considerable amount of jerky and rice balls here makes Qing smile.

And then it happened.

As I shoved my hand deep into the backpack strapped to the corpse, I felt something big and hard.

The feel of waterproof oily stuff.

Oh, what’s this? Could it be gourmet snacks?

Qing quickly unwrapped it, but her shoulders slumped in disappointment.

Ugh, it’s just a secret manual.

Gourmet snacks, my foot.

Then the Martial Arts Inventory started to twinkle.

The secret manual shone like a certificate proving it was the real deal.

If left unopened, the Martial Arts Inventory would keep shining in a corner, begging to be opened.

Qing opened it, touched it, and saw the Martial Arts Dispersing technique—yet to be physically registered manual techniques awaiting activation.

Mount Tai Blood Technique. A claw technique with a red border.

Qing felt disappointed, hoping for something purple or gold but getting stuck with a red one.

Thinking about it, it felt somewhat unfair.

If they were going to mimic that, shouldn’t they just compound all these useless mediocre skills (though red ones are certainly worthy enough to be considered divine skills) into something better?

Or at least use these random techniques as materials to enhance something?

Moon Lady Sword Technique plus something. How cool would that be?

If upgraded, the sword would shine—well, it shines already, but how badass would it be with a golden glow?

Qing was impatiently contemplating this absurdity.

After all, Qing had the best martial arts in the industry when it came to ripping things apart with her fingers.

Quickly losing interest, she started tearing the intact clothing off the corpse.

Qing is fairly adept with the sword, but that doesn’t mean she completely disregards the way of the swordsman.

If just cutting up drained and cleaned pork with a knife makes it greasy, just imagine slicing up fresh meat!

Thus, she needed a cloth to clean the knife.

“Alright, Jang Myung, clean the knife too.”

Taking action, she distributed a few rations to her companions, then sat down and started wiping the blade.

But that was as far as it went.

Normally, after getting rid of blood and clotted fat, you’d re-oil it with a greased cloth.

But oil is oil, whether it’s cooking oil or, you know, body oil, right? Just keeping it clean should be good enough!

Qing boldly skipped the latter part and glanced around.

Over there, some guys using two swords were busy polishing their blades.

Using two swords always comes with a big downside.

If you’re using two swords, you also double the hassle!

In reality, leaving one hand free is primarily for distance management.

With one hand on a weapon and the other for hand-to-hand combat, you can handle attackers whether they’re close or far.

That’s why dual-wielding isn’t mainstream in the Martial World.

But Qing didn’t really care.

She had no desire to use an extra sword, considering she already had powerful range attacks from the Buddha’s Physical Body or Heavenly Demon techniques.

Since lunch was a bit lacking, while her companions polished their swords, Qing munched contentedly on the rice balls she had collected as spoils.

After resting a bit, it would be nice to relax a bit longer, but can people really live like that?

Finally getting ready to leave, she noticed Lee Hye-hye squishing a man in the corner without a care in the world.

Lee Hye-hye didn’t seem to be in a hurry to go anywhere.

It didn’t matter to Qing if she left or not.

But what if she suddenly came up from behind and wanted to fight? That could be a hassle.

“We’re leaving now, but are you not going, Brother Jo?”

“I’m not Jo. Well, Jo Ah-yo is just my alias!”

“Somehow it sticks to the tongue, doesn’t it? So, how about Jo Ah-yo?”

“No, we’re talking about blood consumption, and honestly, I shouldn’t have even come here in the first place. I’d rather head back, but the way is blocked, so I might as well just rest a bit and go later. This chaos will probably settle down in a day or so.”

Lee Hye-hye’s expression genuinely showed fatigue.

To which Qing responded.

“Then just go back now. I tried pushing the door in when we came in, and it touched the other side, but it just moved as a whole, so you can just cut and leave.”

“Oh? Really?”

“But there might be traps on the way. There could be traps we missed while coming in, right?”

“Whatever traps they are…”

“They might collapse, so you could just break them and dash out. Besides, there are five exits, so losing just one won’t matter.”

“Why tell me this? But then again, it’d be better for you to get rid of a competitor.”

Lee Hye-hye shrugged.

“I won’t say thanks. If you just get lost quietly, it’s not a bad deal, is it? You wouldn’t want anyone trailing behind you either.”

But the three slaves had different thoughts, it seemed.

“We thank you for your kindness.”

The three slaves, led by Il-No, bowed politely to express their gratitude.

“Hey, if you do that, what does that make me? I’m just the rude one here!”

“Hehe. Did I act out of line? If so, just punish me. I’ll gladly accept any punishment, including whipping today.”

“Then me too.”

“Hmm. Sounds good.”

At that, Lee Hye-hye’s expression twisted.

“Damn it, why are these annoying people clinging to me? Can’t you just leave me alone?”

“Are you angry? Then go ahead and beat me up if you want. Do as you please.”

“No, you guys… that would just, argh, my fate…”

Despite Lee Hye-hye’s genuinely displeased look, the three slaves could only respond with affectionate sparkling eyes.

After a moment of contemplation, Qing produced the Mount Tai Blood secret manual to offer it.

“Here, it’s the secret manual that had belonged to a henchman of Mount Tai Demon Lord. Interested?”

According to the teacher, claw techniques are innately cruel, but not too demonic.

Just a mere red technique, what a letdown.

Checking the characters attached to the shell of the secret manual, Lee Hye-hye’s eyes widened.

For Qing, it was just a mere red manual, but for the wandering swordsmen in the realm, a red border level like this would be the divine technique they dream of for a lifetime.

For instance, Lee Hye-hye, even knowing it’s a death sentence, still peeked because of the heart consumption technique.

“Oh? Mount Tai Blood? What do I have to do?”

“I’ll give it to you, but be a good girl. It’s a bit over the top, but I’ll let it go for the others’ sake. You said you use claw techniques, right? Here you go.”

Lee Hye-hye wore a really sour expression.

“You seem to not know, but among claw techniques, there’s no skill as divine as this one! It’s a skill that produced an upper master in the Realm of Transformation!”

Her explanation, as she refrained from immediately gobbling it up, was a sign that she was a real person.

Qing smiled brightly.

“I’m a swordsman, so claw techniques aren’t for me.”

“No, pronounce it properly. Claw technique. Claw technique!”

“It’s a combat variant, so why not just call it claw technique? It’s still a claw technique, right? The claw technique should go to a claw user, not me! I won’t even be able to use it. It’s better to just share and live decently. I mean, there are people over there shooting me looks asking me to take them with me.”

Qing gestured towards a warrior keeping watch over an injured comrade.

Lee Hye-hye scratched her head, seemingly confused, but eventually snatched the secret manual.

“I’m Lee Hye-hye. I don’t owe anybody anything. I’ll pay off this debt later, so let me know when you’re not using your pseudonym. Now, let’s go! Hey, if you’re thinking of going back, don’t just stand around—come closer!”

As such, she sent off Jo Ah-yo’s group, while Qing grabbed the leash.

“Alright, we have to go now, Miss An. What are you doing?”

“Um, if you could just send me back…”

“Miss An can’t go.”

“Why only me…?”

“If I let Miss An go, who’s going to trigger the traps? Come on, you’re fine now. Let’s go.”

Because the limit was exceeded significantly.

There’s no way someone’s going to suddenly become a nice person just because they’re set free.

Thus, leading Miss An, they passed the stone door that had been opened long ago and began strolling down the hallway—

“Lady. Miss An. Could you not go so slowly?”

“W-well, there might be traps…”

“People have gone through, so what traps? I just led you to believe it might be there.”

“That ‘might’ is the problem…”

“You’ve got a leash; what’s with the worry? I’ve saved you from death multiple times already.”

For a brief moment, the pace quickened.

As Qing urged her to walk faster, she thought maybe she’d finally pick up the speed. But slowly, she began dawdling again.

“That’s it. I’m getting the knife. Once you get in range, I’ll stab you!”

“Oh dear, where anything could leap out, my legs are shaking…”

“Lady, traps need to be triggered by stepping on something, right? Where’s the trap that just goes off out of nowhere?”

As Qing berated Miss An, she suddenly went quiet.

There was, indeed, a trap that triggered out of nowhere!

Suddenly, Qing’s form sunk below, and from all directions came various screams: “Sister! Young Lady! Kid! Swordmaster!”

Frantically, they all called out as if in a panic.

All that was left in place of Qing were the gaping floor and four people urgently peering down.

On top of the sharply protruding steel spikes, wasn’t Qing just sitting there with an upset face looking up?

“Oh, sister…? You okay?”

“I’m fine. Just peachy.”

To that, Jin Jangmyung let out a sigh of relief.

Qing had already survived the harsh winter, partially naked, crawling through the wilds while completing her self-protection technique.

Automatically, dangerous signals instantly flared up inside her, meaning she could kick back her instincts at once.

Adding the body built beyond a human’s, she could easily withstand this primitive trap relying on gravitational force.

If it was dug a few meters deep, maybe then it’d become an issue but, really, a fall from just about head-height?

“Come on, stay alert!”

“Lady, what trap just goes off without a warning?”

Then, are there traps that do warn you before activating?

Spouting nonsense still in a normal state.

Cheon Yu-hak lowered a rope, and Qing calmly climbed back up.

Qing casually presented her rear to Jin Jangmyung.

“Look at me. No bleeding, right?”

“Hmm. A bit. Just a bit.”

“Lady, makes sense why I felt a sting.”

Qing rubbed the part of her rear that got stabbed on the spear tip.

On her white fabric pants, little red dots appeared like ladybird spots.

Unless one was protected by the Supreme Hand-to-Hand Combat elbow, or had thick skin, if you’re gonna land on that spear, a little scratch is bound to happen.

“If you’re bleeding, doesn’t that mean your pants got a hole?”

To which Jin Jangmyung grabbed Qing’s pants, stretching them side to side.

“No holes at least. Just a tad bit of redness.”

Miss An looked at Qing as if questioning her human status.

What’s up with this? Was the spear blunt? Why is she fine? I kind of wish she’d get hurt a little…

Qing twisted her waist to peek behind her.

Suddenly, her white fabric pants had transformed into spotted pants.

It’s a bit inconvenient to change, though.

Just wearing them is a problem too.

“Lady. This feels kinda sticky. What kind of trap makes something so gross? Can’t even catch a rat with this!”

Meanwhile, someone was observing the situation—a Blood Sect Technician.

The technician saw this and was utterly baffled.

What? Why is she completely unharmed?

Though a cheap trap, it was a frightful one with iron spikes scattered everywhere.

Even if one had reached a high realm, could this even remotely make sense?

Was her body made of steel or something?

In any case, she was a person of interest.

That’s why someone stayed back to activate the traps on her, wasn’t it?

-What kind of trap doesn’t work? Can’t even catch a rat!

The technician’s forehead bulged with veins upon hearing the grumbling echoing through the sound system.

What do you mean “cheap traps”? Couldn’t catch a rat?

This trap was painstakingly crafted, stitch by stitch, with care.

It wasn’t just thrown together; an impressive twenty years of one’s life was invested into creating this trap.

Wouldn’t it be more lethal this way?

How could one come up with something more horrifically disastrous with such careful planning?

Hearing their words felt like a mockery of their entire life’s effort.

Crack.

As the grinding sound echoed, a venomous intent glinted in the technician’s eyes.

Fine, let’s see just how long that bizarre girl can endure my cheap try at a trap!

---