Chapter 427: The Scent of Blood and Wine is Ours Alone

TL: FoodieMonster007

Two powerful auras clashed, locked in a tense standoff.

Had anyone stood between them, even a master would have struggled to endure. It wasn't merely the immense power of the two men's qi that made it so. It was the very nature of their qi.

Simply being in its presence induced dizziness, nausea, and even a dulling of the mind.

On top of that, an unbearable, pungent scent of blood and a potent aroma of wine permeated the air.

"This is too much. I can't keep this up."

The Drunken Demon was the first to withdraw his alcohol qi. He had already expended considerable inner arts dealing with the Northern Blood Sect's subordinates. Though not severe, he had sustained injuries from the Self Destruction Art. He was at a distinct disadvantage.

He thus decided there was no need to continue this qi clash and waste more inner arts in such a situation.

With a look that declared his complete defeat in the qi clash, the Drunken Demon drank his 'defeat wine'.

"Ugh, it's bitter. So bitter."

In contrast, the Blood King did not withdraw his blood qi, leaving the surroundings saturated with it.

The thick, suffocating scent of blood qi filled the air, yet the Drunken Demon inhaled deeply, savoring the smell.

"Does your blood taste like this too?"

The Blood King glared at the Drunken Demon, his eyes questioning the meaning behind the words.

"My blood tastes of wine, you know. Does yours have this pungent flavor?"

Perhaps because the question concerned blood, the Blood King answered, "No one will ever know the taste of my blood. No one."

At that, the Drunken Demon provoked him. He clenched and unclenched his fist before his chest. He mimicked the explosive burst of the Self Destruction Art.

It was a clear declaration that he would taste the Blood King's blood then. This was no mere provocation. It was a powerful challenge.

The provocation sent a chill through the Blood King's veins. Mimicking the Self Destruction Art to mock him? A surge of unfamiliar emotion accompanied his rising fury.

No one had ever dared to be so insolent towards him. He knew it was a provocation, yet it was one he couldn't help but fall for.

Who, exactly, had forced him to abandon his grand technique and come out here?

The Drunken Demon's provocation didn't end there. He opened his robes, revealing the Top-Quality Heavenly Silk tied around his chest, stained with blood.

"Your blood will stain this too, won't it? I'll have to wash it clean before returning it."

The Blood King recognized the item the Drunken Demon wore as something given by the Young Cult Leader.

"You accepted such a trivial item and became the Young Cult Leader's dog?"

This was a counter-provocation to the previous one. However, when it came to Geom Mugeuk, the provocation had no effect.

"The dog is the Young Cult Leader."

To the Blood King's questioning gaze, the Drunken Demon uttered words that remained incomprehensible.

"You might not believe it, but the Young Cult Leader became a dog for our sake."

After all, everyone in the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult knew Geom Mugeuk had barked alongside the Poison King in the training grounds for his sake.

The Drunken Demon offered no further explanation. He wasn't confident he could make the Blood King understand in such a short time. No, even if he explained all day, the Blood King wouldn't believe him. One could never truly understand Geom Mugeuk without experiencing him firsthand.

"But can you really afford to be so relaxed? Do you believe your subordinates will arrive first?"

Red smoke still billowed in various places far in the distance.

"Then our Young Cult Leader will come too."

"Are you worried? Worried your Young Cult Leader will come here and die?"

"He won't die. The Young Cult Leader won't."

The Drunken Demon was certain. Yet, the reason he wished he wouldn't come was different.

"It's just that I don't want him to fight people like us."

"People like us?"

"Yes, people like us."

Without explaining what kind of people he meant, the Drunken Demon gulped down his wine. Around his body, his alcohol qi flickered like flames.

"So, let's keep this pungent scent of blood and wine just between us."

SWISH!

A thick mist rose around the two men, and the Drunken Demon vanished into his alcohol qi.

The Blood King raised a hand, touching the alcohol qi that obscured his vision. It looked like mere mist, but it was potent alcohol qi, strong enough to induce intoxication just by touching it.

Throughout the Northern Blood Sect martial artists' battle, the Blood King had only one thought.

How will he fight within this alcohol qi? How will he break through it?

And he devised a method.

The Blood King extended one hand forward, all his senses on high alert, preparing for the Drunken Demon's ambush. From his fingertips, a scorching heat began to emanate.

His solution was to burn away all the alcohol qi with his Extreme Yang Qi. Given the nature of alcohol qi, it was easily flammable. The Drunken Demon's current alcohol qi was so potent it would burn even more readily.

Flames erupted from the Blood King's Extreme Yang Qi.

FLICKER!

As the alcohol qi ignited from his fingertips, a flicker of satisfaction crossed the Blood King's eyes, but it was only for a moment.

The flames that had erupted quickly extinguished. He had expected the fire to spread everywhere, but it only burned where his Extreme Yang Qi was unleashed before dying out instantly.

This time, he unleashed his Extreme Yang Qi with even greater force.

FLICKER!

Yet, it only burned a little more than before before quickly extinguishing. The alcohol qi gathered back in its place.

Then, from within the mist, the Drunken Demon's drunken voice echoed. "If you play with fire, you'll wet the bed at night."

The Blood King ignored him, raising his hand to grasp at the flowing alcohol qi around him. It felt as if it should all burn away, so why wasn't it?

"You can try for a hundred days, it won't burn. My alcohol qi isn't passionate enough to ignite like fire, just like its master."

SWISH.

The Blood King irritably unleashed a palm strike towards the source of the voice.

CRASH!

The sound of a distant wall crumbling echoed, but no scream from the Drunken Demon followed.

SWISH!

The Blood King spun around, catching something that flew at him from behind. It was a stone, hurtling with terrifying speed.

CRUMBLE.

The stone crumbled to dust in the Blood King's hand. Both the incoming qi and the qi that blocked it were so powerful that the stone couldn't withstand the impact.

"Do you think a mere stone like this can kill me?"

"That's why I prepared something bigger."

WHIZZ!

What flew at him was a large stone lantern that had stood in the courtyard.

CRASH!

The moment the stone lantern shattered and broke apart from the Blood King's palm strike, the Drunken Demon appeared from behind, unleashing a dagger.

SWISH!

The stone lantern hadn't been the only thing flying at him.

Dodging the Drunken Demon's dagger, which aimed for his heart, the Blood King unleashed a palm strike.

BOOM!

Palm technique clashed with palm technique, and pushed back by the force, the Drunken Demon vanished into the mist once more.

The Blood King's expression hardened. The Drunken Demon's recent ambush had been truly fierce. He realized that if he had harbored any arrogance, thinking 'Could a mere stone lantern kill me?', he would surely have been pierced by the Drunken Demon's dagger.

The fight, which had begun like a stroll, now turned truly violent.

This time, the Blood King sensed the Drunken Demon first, then charged forward, unleashing his blood qi.

CRACK!

Fist met fist. Both men slid back, an equal number of steps. Their skills were truly evenly matched.

Next, palm met palm, their palm techniques colliding. Again, they were pushed back the exact same number of steps.

It was at this moment that the Blood King unleashed his unique martial art first. As he slid back, blood orbs had already appeared on the Blood King's other palm.

Astonishingly, in that brief moment of collision and retreat, he had unleashed the Flying Dagger Blood Rain from the Infinite Evil Blood Art. In an instant, the blood orbs transformed into tiny throwing knives. They swept through the spot where the Drunken Demon had been.

Its power was incomparable to the Flying Dagger Blood Rain that his disciple, Ha Jyeol, had used. Dozens of holes were punched into the wall behind. The holes were tightly packed, leaving marks that confirmed no one could have escaped if they had been in that area.

Yet, there was no trace of the Drunken Demon's blood anywhere on the wall.

WHOOSH.

The alcohol qi briefly receded, revealing the Drunken Demon.

"Hold on! Just let me catch my breath." With a look that showed he had barely escaped danger, the Drunken Demon drank his wine. "Let's take it easy. I thought I'd never get to drink this good stuff again."

The Blood King also paused, catching his breath.

Neither had time to recover their inner arts through meditation. Even in this brief respite, they never took their eyes off each other.

"I feel bad drinking alone." The Drunken Demon looked at the Blood King and extended his wine bottle. "Just one drink."

The very moment those words ended.

CRACKLE!

A bolt of enhanced qi, like lightning, struck down towards the Blood King's crown.

The Blood King twisted his body in an instant, barely dodging, his face contorted. A deep hole had been gouged where he stood, and smoke billowed from it. His head had almost been pierced clean through.

The Drunken Demon's ambush was no ordinary attack. It was the Drunken Demon's unique martial art, the Wine God Art.

Specifically, it was the second cup, the Wine God's Drinks Alone. A single stream of enhanced qi fell from the sky, named for its resemblance to a god drinking alone.

"Do you really hate accepting a drink from me that much?"

With a grin, the Drunken Demon vanished into the rising alcohol qi.

The blood qi emanating from the Blood King's body intensified, and a crimson aura began to seep from his eyes. Fury surged within him at the thought that he had almost died.

As if aware or unaware of his rage, the Drunken Demon reappeared behind him, launching another ambush.

SWISH! SWISH!

The Drunken Demon's throwing knives sliced through the air, and the Blood King, spinning quickly, unleashed a palm strike that exploded in the void.

"That's going to hurt, you drunkard."

The Drunken Demon looked down at his trembling arm. A crimson aura swirled around it. He roused his qi, shaking off the crimson aura. The Blood King's attack had been that heavy.

"Wipe your blood first, then talk."

The Blood King also looked down at his arm. Blood flowed from a cut. The Blood King put his mouth to the wound.

The moment he sucked at the blood, as if drinking it, veins bulged across his face. His eyes stretched long and demonic, and blood qi surged forth. The Blood King's appearance and aura at that moment were terrifying, enough to make one afraid to even face him.

Of course, it had no effect on the Drunken Demon. Instead, it only provoked him further.

"Why are you so desperately searching for the Extreme Cold Body Constitution?"

The Blood King's eye twitched menacingly. Truly, his opponent was deliberately targeting the very things that infuriated him most.

"What do you plan to do after extracting the Extreme Cold Body Constitution? Become resistant to cold and settle down in this North Sea?"

The Drunken Demon's slurred voice only angered the Blood King more. The Extreme Cold Body Constitution was not something to be carelessly blabbed about while drunk.

"As you know, I took the man with the Extreme Cold Body Constitution. Should I buy you a padded coat as an apology?"

The Drunken Demon seemed to be rambling whatever came to mind, but every single word was calculated.

"So, if you were going to come, you should have come to us in the first place. Ah, or perhaps your skill is the weakest? Is that why you were pushed all the way to this North Sea?"

Ultimately, an expletive burst from the Blood King's lips. "Shut up! You drunken bastard!"

He could tolerate other insults, but not the insinuation that he was inferior within the organization. He prided himself on being the most formidable. That was why he could defy the order to return.

The alcohol qi also contributed to his agitation. Fighting within the alcohol qi, the Blood King had unknowingly become intoxicated by its fumes.

STAB!

Not missing this opportunity presented by his opponent's agitation, the Drunken Demon launched an ambush. His dagger appeared from the mist, stabbing into the Blood King's side.

THWACK!

As he stabbed his side and tried to vanish again, the Drunken Demon was struck hard on the shoulder by the Blood King's blow.

It was then that the Drunken Demon saw. The Blood King's eyes were utterly cold. While the Blood King had been hot with rage when he cursed, his counter-attack was cold. It was almost as if his earlier agitation had been half-intentional.

Throwing knives flew. Fists struck. Blood qi and alcohol qi clashed again.

They struck. They parried. They rolled. Truly, the two men engaged in a fierce battle. It was like a dragon and a tiger locked in combat.

Every move, every strike, was imbued with emotion. They fought as if facing a mortal enemy.

For both men, it was their first time engaging in such a tense life-or-death battle against an evenly matched opponent.

After a round of close-quarters combat, the Drunken Demon vanished into the mist once more. He had expected it, but the Blood King was proving far more difficult to deal with than anticipated.

Moving through his alcohol qi, drinking as he went, the Drunken Demon suddenly stopped. A single crimson line had been drawn before him.

The Drunken Demon looked to his side. There was a line there too. Crimson lines began to appear one by one, everywhere.

These lines began to draw a pattern, using the mist-like alcohol qi as their canvas. The Drunken Demon picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at one of the lines.

SLICE!

The stone was sliced in half, as if cut by a treasured sword. More and more crimson lines appeared around him, encircling him like a spiderweb. It was the Clone Blood Net, unleashed by the Blood King.

The Drunken Demon withdrew his alcohol qi. The mist-like alcohol qi vanished, clearly revealing dozens of crimson lines spread out around him.

Too many lines had already been drawn, making movement impossible. The only way out was to break through with protective enhanced qi, but that would mean risking severe injury.

Beyond the crimson lines, the Blood King's figure became visible. Though unleashing the Clone Blood Net had severely depleted his inner arts, he was smiling. He was confident that this move would surely kill the Drunken Demon.

He's truly trapped. There's no escape.

As if alive, the crimson lines began to tighten around the Drunken Demon.

The Drunken Demon drew the unique weapon, Blood Tear, from his waist. "You don't know, do you?"

As he infused his unique inner arts into Blood Tear, it vibrated once and emitted a pure white light. The final cup of his Wine God Art, the Drunken Wine God.

The Drunken Demon uncorked Blood Tear and gulped down the wine within. As he did, the purple alcohol qi flickering around the Drunken Demon's body turned black. A pure white, crazed intoxication flowed from his eyes. That madness translated into action.

The Drunken Demon seized a crimson thread with his bare hand. "When we get drunk, we don't see anything."