WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Chapter 7: Blood-Nurturing Valley (1)

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Blue flames rose, forming dots that resembled the Big Dipper.

I was certain those dots were connected to the Secret Records of the Sword Sage.

Come to think of it, when Mo YongSoo's sword killed me, blue flames had engulfed my body and sent me back ten years.

What secret could the Secret Records of the Sword Sage possibly hold?

No one would have discovered it at this point, so I would have to look for it if the chance arose.

It had already been nearly fifteen days since I began living in the cargo wagon.

We should have arrived before fifteen days had passed, but something must have happened along the way, delaying us by around two days.

Judging from the sounds outside, we seemed to have encountered bandits.

Thinking back on my old memories, I vaguely recalled a squad arriving late at the Blood Cult's hideout.

Rattle! Creak!

The cargo wagon's door opened.

A faint light streamed in, making me frown.

Boys and girls around fifteen or sixteen, bound with ropes, trembled in fear.

Swish!

A figure stood at the entrance of the wagon with the light behind him.

It was Squad Leader Oh of the Demoni Tiger Squad.

Squad Leader Oh glared at me with a fearsome expression.

'He really has it in for me.'

That could cause trouble.

Still, it did not matter for now.

From here on, his superiors would be controlling us instead.

'Have we arrived? I can't see anything.'

The SoDam Sword tucked inside my clothes nagged at me to take it out.

'This isn't the time.'

'It's stifling.'

'Bear with it.'

Why would I take the Short Sword out now and invite suspicion?

That was out of the question.

Squad Leader Oh slowly swept his gaze over the boys and girls in the wagon before speaking.

"Get out. Now."

At his command, the boys and girls hesitated and watched one another.

I was the first to step out of the wagon.

Once outside, I saw a space enclosed on all sides by walls of towering mountain peaks.

'It's been a while.'

The instant I saw this place, goosebumps rose all over my body, as though it had been branded into my soul.

I had spent a truly hellish time here.

This was Blood-Nurturing Valley, a Blood Cult hideout for training new Blood Cult members.

After losing the War Between Justice and Evil to the martial artists' alliance, the Blood Cult had scattered all its forces throughout the Central Plains.

It would not be wrong to say they operated like a network of cells.

"Hey, So WoonHwi."

Squad Leader Oh called me.

"Yes, sir!"

I bowed to avoid giving him anything to hold against me.

Then he warned me in a low voice.

"I'll be watching you."

He really did have it in for me.

Meanwhile, the boys and girls in the cargo wagon were forcibly dragged out.

The twin brothers, Song JwaBaek and Song WooHyun, were among them.

They had spent nearly all their time unconscious except during meals, and they looked dazed.

Rumble!

Besides the cargo wagon we had ridden in, there were two more wagons. Boys and girls emerged from them as well, their faces filled with fear.

One face among them caught my eye.

'Ah!'

She still had the youthful face of a child, but I knew it well.

That girl, with her paper-white face and delicate features, was Dam YeHwa, who would become the disciple of the notorious Blood-Hand Witch.

The Blood-Hand Witch was the Sixth Blood Star, ranked sixth among the Seven Blood Stars.

Born with an innately cold constitution, Dam YeHwa was destined to catch the Blood-Hand Witch's eye and be chosen as her disciple.

'Lucky, aren't you?'

While I had died as a third-rate Spy.

Then again, it was difficult to judge whether that fate was fortunate or not.

Even being chosen as that person's disciple had nothing to do with Dam YeHwa's own will.

"Do you see that place?"

Squad Leader Oh pointed somewhere.

There was a platform where he pointed, and a man in gray martial garb stood upon it with his hands behind his back.

"I'll give you five counts. Run."

At the sudden command, everyone hesitated, unsure what to do.

I was the first to run toward the platform.

"W-What?"

The twins, Song JwaBaek and Song WooHyun, had been watching the others. They hurried after me without thinking.

After suffering once, they had become rather quick at reading the situation.

"Run if you don't want to die!"

Squad Leader Oh barked from behind us.

That was why I had run first.

Rumble!

Only then did the boys and girls rush toward the platform.

As soon as I reached it first, I dropped to one knee and assumed the form.

"Oh?"

The man on the platform, still standing with his hands behind his back, looked intrigued.

This was the basic Blood Cult form one learned first here.

"Damn it. What are we even doing?"

"Yeah. What are we doing?"

The twins stood there blankly before copying my form.

For now, they copied whatever I did.

It was the right choice.

The boys and girls rushing over watched us, then assumed the same form as the three of us.

"That is a first."

The man on the platform muttered.

I knew who he was.

'Tyrannical Blood Brigade Leader Gu SangWoong.'

Above the position of Squad leader was that of Brigade leader.

Each Brigade leader commanded five squads.

Tyrannical Blood Brigade Leader Gu SangWoong selected and trained new Blood Cult members.

Tap!

Four men and a woman appeared beside the platform.

The boys and girls flinched at the intimidating presence of people who looked high-ranking even at a glance.

The woman curled up the corner of her mouth.

"That is a first. They have assumed the form on their own before we even taught them."

You should thank me.

I saved you the trouble of threatening and making examples out of a few people first.

'Do you feel proud over something like that?'

The SoDam Sword mocked me.

'I merely did what had become a habit.'

'Yes, yes. Of course you did.'

Right. It was not something to be proud of.

While I bickered with the SoDam Sword, Blood Cult members gathered around us as though encircling us.

They were preventing us from escaping.

"What do we do?"

"They might kill us."

The boys and girls anxiously exchanged glances and whispered among themselves.

"Silence!"

At Gu SangWoong's shout, everyone clapped their hands over their ears.

It was so thunderous that my eardrums rang with pain.

When silence fell, Tyrannical Blood Brigade Leader Gu SangWoong smiled arrogantly and spoke.

"Rejoice. You have been chosen."

Chosen, my ass.

Since when was kidnapping a choice?

"The will of the great Blood Demon has led you to become loyal Blood Cult members."

"T-The Blood Cult?"

The moment they heard the words Blood Cult, the boys and girls became noisy, forgetting the warning to stay quiet.

Even those outside the martial world knew of the Blood Cult.

The word that best represented them was ruthless cruelty.

Stab!

"Ghk!"

Silence fell again at someone's scream.

It was the boy who had reacted most strongly to the mention of the Blood Cult.

"Didn't I tell you to be quiet?"

The man who killed the boy was Squad Leader Oh.

As he pulled his sword from the dead boy's neck with a sick smile, everyone around him turned pale.

'What? Someone died?'

Though it could not see, the SoDam Sword somehow noticed that someone had died.

'He was made an example of.'

'Wow. Brutal. Who kills someone just to make an example?'

This was the Blood Cult's way.

Their goal was to sort the worthwhile ones from the worthless among those they had kidnapped.

Of course, the most basic requirement was absolute loyalty to the Blood Cult.

'How did you survive in a place like this for ten years?'

'By obeying like a dog.'

'...Good grief. As if being trash was not enough, you lived like a dog. You're dog trash.'

'Pray for someone to break you.'

This was driving me mad.

Its ability to assemble words strangely was evolving by the day.

Then several Blood Cult members brought over a wooden case and set it down in front of the platform.

Thud!

Ah. It had finally come.

Everyone looked at the wooden case in confusion.

At Gu SangWoong's gesture, one of the Blood Cult members opened its lid.

The moment it opened, something red wriggled inside.

"Eek!"

"B-Bugs?"

The disgusting red worms filling the wooden case were Blood Worms.

They were the Blood Cult's means of controlling its members.

Seeing Blood Worms again after ten years made me frown.

I had kept such things inside my body for ten whole years.

"Hey, you. Yes, you."

Tyrannical Blood Brigade Leader Gu SangWoong called to me.

He grinned and asked me a question.

"What do you think that is?"

"...A Blood Worm."

"Oh? As expected of a descendant bearing the blood of the main cult."

At Gu SangWoong's praise, everyone's attention focused on me.

With that single statement, I had become a Blood Cult member from the very beginning.

I had planted the seed myself, but the consequences were considerable.

Everyone looked at me as though I were the child of some demon.

"I knew there was something off about him."

Song JwaBaek, standing beside me, widened his eyes and muttered as if he had known all along.

There was no use crying over spilled water.

If this could benefit me in even the slightest way, I had no choice but to make full use of it.

Gu SangWoong looked at everyone again and spoke.

"Chosen ones, listen. If you wish to become true Blood Cult members, accept those Blood Worms of your own accord."

As though their ominous premonition had come true, everyone's eyes shook.

They could neither run nor scream.

I understood their feelings better than anyone.

Then someone quietly raised a hand.

'Ah...'

A soft sigh escaped my lips.

It had been the same ten years ago.

When there were many people, one was bound to fail to grasp the situation.

"I-If we refuse?"

As expected, it did not stray from my prediction.

The moment those words left the boy's mouth, a nearby Blood Cult member strode over and brought a dao down on his head.

The effect was immediate.

No one dared to voice another objection.

Who would speak here if they did not want to die?

'At this rate, they'll kill everyone while making examples.'

'...There are still plenty left.'

Two had died, but there were still around fifty people remaining.

It was cruel, but from their perspective, killing two people to effectively subdue the rest was never a losing deal.

'It is impressive that you endured in a place like this.'

'This is only the beginning.'

Blood Worms were merely a basic means of control.

After being indoctrinated and subjected to hellish training, people gradually became the loyal Blood Cult members they wanted.

"Now, who will accept one first?"

Gu SangWoong pointed to the wooden case.

Everyone hesitated.

They were afraid, but who could readily eat such a disgusting venomous creature?

'Ha...'

Whatever else happened, I could not avoid eating a Blood Worm right now.

Better to take the first blow.

I rose from my place.

Everyone's attention focused on me again.

"Please grant me that honor first."

Gu SangWoong looked pleased when I volunteered.

"Oh. As expected."

In contrast, Squad Leader Oh glared at me with displeasure.

Keep suspecting me. Do I look like I have any openings?

Swish!

A Blood Cult member approached me with a Blood Worm held between long chopsticks.

The Blood Worm struggled between them.

"Open your mouth."

"Could I have some water with it..."

"Open your mouth."

I really did not want to.

That was why I had asked whether I could swallow it with water. I hated this damned sensation.

Pop!

The wriggling Blood Worm slipped into my mouth with a fishy taste.

Gulp!

As though it had been waiting, the Blood Worm crawled over my tongue and down my throat.

I wanted to make a horrible face at the foreign sensation moving down my esophagus, but I forced myself to remain calm and raised a fist.

"Indeed, courage befitting a descendant bearing the main cult's blood. Did you see... Hm?"

Gu SangWoong was praising me when he stared at me strangely.

He was not the only one.

The Blood Cult member who had fed me the Blood Worm reacted similarly.

"Why are you... Urgh!"

Suddenly, a burning pain rose in my chest.

It felt as though something inside my body was in an uproar.

When they saw something was wrong with me, the female Squad leader rushed over from beside the platform.

"Why is this one's face turning blue? Did you squeeze the Blood Worm too hard with the chopsticks?"

"N-No. I held it gently, as I always do..."

The moment I heard them, despair washed over me.

Could there be something wrong with the Blood Worm?

The pain in my chest made it hard even to breathe.

"Huff... huff..."

It felt as though I were being seared by fire.

"Tch!"

The female Squad leader urgently placed both hands on my back.

She seemed to be sending life energy into me to prevent the poison from spreading.

Warm energy flowed in through the spot where her hands rested.

"Urgh!"

But something was strange.

The fiery pain in my chest gradually moved downward.

It traveled down through my abdomen.

This... could it be...

"What's wrong? Does it hurt here instead?"

"Ugh... Squad Leader! Please, wait a moment..."

Ignoring my attempt to stop her, the female Squad leader sent her energy toward my abdomen.

I tried desperately to hold it in, but...

Prrrraaaap!

"Gasp!"

The female Squad leader, who had been sending life energy into me, urgently pulled back her hands and covered her nose.

"Bwahahahahahaha!"

The SoDam Sword laughed so hard it seemed about to lose its voice.

"Y-You!"

The female Squad leader, struck at point-blank range, turned red in the face and glared at me sharply.

Since I had farted right in front of her, I had nothing to say.

Ah... I had completely humiliated myself.

'Hm?'

Yet after the fart burst out, the pain that had traveled down into my abdomen subsided, and my insides felt comfortable.

Instead, it felt as though my vitality had increased.

'What is this?'

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