Chapter 405

Ssssk!

Ghost Fang slithered up Pyo Wol’s chest and settled around his neck.

The man and the snake glared at the massive, charging Horned Dragon.

Its enormous maw, which looked as if it could swallow a boulder, was filled with thorn-like teeth. If bitten by those teeth, not even an immortal could escape.

Kwaduk!

The rock Pyo Wol had been standing on was crushed to powder between the Horned Dragon’s teeth.

It was a sight that would make even the great Pyo Wol’s hair stand on end.

Chwareureuk!

Every time the massive Horned Dragon changed direction with complete freedom, its scales scraped together, letting out a strange sound.

It held a temptation so powerful that it could instantly steal the soul of anyone with a weak will.

Bang! Ppo-eong!

The Horned Dragon attacked Pyo Wol with unbelievable speed.

Its massive body moved like a whip.

A sound exploded every time the Horned Dragon moved. It was the sound a whip makes when it reaches its maximum speed, and it was coming from the Horned Dragon’s body.

Pyo Wol used his Serpentine Steps to evade the Horned Dragon’s attacks. But he couldn’t keep dodging like this forever.

Pyo Wol looked directly into the Horned Dragon’s eyes.

Pyo Wol’s reflection was perfectly formed in those giant eyes.

The inorganic pupils, devoid of any emotion, had the power to instill fear in anyone who looked at them.

That was why so many people disliked and avoided snakes.

Because there was nothing more dangerous than a beast whose inner thoughts you couldn’t read.

Pyo Wol was different.

Having lived with snakes, he could read their thoughts and understand their emotions better than anyone.

The Horned Dragon was grieving.

If it had pulled itself together and continued its training after failing its Ascension, a second chance might have come. Though it would have taken much longer, of course. But by being subdued by Gyeong Musaeng, all of the Horned Dragon’s chances had vanished.

The heavens do not accept a Mystical Creature that has been touched by human hands.

Even if the Horned Dragon got a second chance and continued its training, the opportunity for Ascension would never come.

All that was left for the Horned Dragon was to accumulate evil karma as Gyeong Musaeng’s pawn until it died.

The Horned Dragon did not want such a life.

But the Horned Dragon had no choice. It was completely subjugated by Gyeong Musaeng.

It couldn’t even die of its own will, even if it wanted to. Until Gyeong Musaeng released it, the Horned Dragon had to live like this forever.

That was why it was attacking Pyo Wol now, against its own will.

Kwaaaa!

It opened its massive maw and charged at Pyo Wol at full speed. But the Horned Dragon bit down on nothing but empty air. There was no sensation in its mouth at all.

Pyo Wol unleashed his Black Lightning, heightening his body’s reaction speed to its peak.

Kwang!

His fist struck the Horned Dragon’s torso.

It held enough power to shatter a boulder, but the Horned Dragon’s body merely jolted for a moment, taking no damage.

The Horned Dragon’s scales were harder than steel and possessed great elasticity, allowing them to absorb any impact.

Kwang!

Pyo Wol threw another punch.

Again, he only felt a strong repulsive force from his fist and failed to inflict any damage on the Horned Dragon.

The martial art Pyo Wol favored most was the Soul Restraining Thread. But the Soul Restraining Thread could neither bind nor damage that massive Horned Dragon.

Even if he bound it tightly, the Horned Dragon would instantly snap the threads with a single twist of its body.

All that was left was the Silken Serpent Strong Energy.

Pyo Wol created the Silken Serpent Strong Energy and attacked the Horned Dragon.

Chwareureuk!

The moment the Silken Serpent Strong Energy was about to strike, the Horned Dragon vibrated its scales violently. The minute but intense vibrations deflected the Silken Serpent Strong Energy.

Gyeong Musaeng, who was dealing with the Ghost King, shouted.

“Do you think you can take down the Horned Dragon with just that? It may have failed its Ascension, but its abilities are no different from a Dragon’s.”

“A Horned Dragon is not a Dragon. This creature lost its chance to become a Dragon because of you.”

“Hmph! What are you talking about? I gave a second life to a dying creature. It is grateful to me.”

A madness flickered in Gyeong Musaeng’s eyes.

He genuinely believed the Horned Dragon was grateful to him.

Gyeong Musaeng shouted at the Horned Dragon.

“What are you doing? Kill him already. Don’t leave a single bone fragment and digest him in your stomach.”

Kuwoaar!

At Gyeong Musaeng’s command, a ferocious light once again filled the Horned Dragon’s eyes.

The Horned Dragon attacked Pyo Wol with terrifying momentum.

The forest was destroyed every time its massive body thrashed about.

Pyo Wol’s gaze turned toward the black earth.

The black earth was just a little further now.

If the Horned Dragon reached the black earth, Hong Ye-seol would be in great danger.

‘There must be a Taboo landmine.’

Although it had failed to become a Dragon, the Horned Dragon still possessed a Dragon’s characteristics.

Pyo Wol observed the Horned Dragon carefully while dodging its attacks.

Its body was so massive that it took a long time to examine it all over.

He faced several crises in the meantime.

Each time, Pyo Wol overcame the crisis by mixing his Serpentine Steps and Black Lightning.

‘There’s no Taboo landmine on its back or jaw. Then is the only place left its belly?’

The only part Pyo Wol hadn’t examined was its belly.

The Horned Dragon’s belly was in contact with the ground, so there was no way to see it.

Under no circumstances did the Horned Dragon lift its belly from the ground.

To see the Horned Dragon’s belly, Pyo Wol had to take a risk.

His thoughts were fast, and his actions were even faster.

Pat!

Pyo Wol suddenly changed direction and rushed head-on toward the Horned Dragon.

The Horned Dragon also opened its maw wide and lunged at Pyo Wol.

The instant he could clearly see not only the Horned Dragon’s teeth but also the inside of its throat, Pyo Wol suddenly kicked off the ground and soared into the sky.

Chwareureureuk!

The Horned Dragon’s body bent at a right angle, chasing after Pyo Wol, who was suspended in the air.

Pyo Wol glanced down at his feet.

He could clearly see the Horned Dragon, maw agape, trying to swallow him whole.

Even someone with nerves of steel would find their knees buckling at such a sight.

In that moment, Pyo Wol shot his Soul Restraining Thread toward a large tree below him.

As the Soul Restraining Thread wrapped around a branch, Pyo Wol’s body came to an abrupt halt in mid-air. Then, his body plummeted at a terrifying speed, crossing paths with the Horned Dragon in the air.

In that fleeting moment, Pyo Wol’s eyes scanned the Horned Dragon’s belly.

‘Found it.’

He saw a scale the size of an adult’s fist on the lower part of its belly.

Unlike the other dark red scales, this one was a particularly vivid red. Even the direction it grew in was different.

It was definitely the Taboo landmine.

Pyo Wol rushed toward the Taboo landmine.

The Horned Dragon belatedly realized what Pyo Wol was aiming for and sharply changed direction in mid-air, but by then, Pyo Wol had already reached the Taboo landmine.

Pyo Wol unleashed Jade Destruction toward the Taboo landmine.

Kwang!

Kuwoaaar!

The Horned Dragon instantly let out a scream of agony.

It was a completely different reaction from before.

The Horned Dragon writhed and fell to the ground.

In that time, Pyo Wol struck the Taboo landmine with Jade Destruction once more.

Kwang!

At the same time, the Horned Dragon crashed to the ground.

The Horned Dragon twisted its body in the intense pain it was feeling for the first time in its life.

Pyo Wol held onto the Horned Dragon’s scales and stood firm on its belly. The Horned Dragon tried to coil its massive body around Pyo Wol.

No matter how great Pyo Wol’s Martial Arts were, if he were coiled by the Horned Dragon’s body, he would be crushed like herbs in a mortar.

Even amidst the immense threat, Pyo Wol, without a hint of wavering, struck the Horned Dragon’s Taboo landmine with his fist once more.

Pasak!

The hard scale shattered to pieces, revealing the bare flesh beneath.

Toward the flesh that looked exceptionally soft, Pyo Wol unleashed the Black Lightning Silk Serpent Force.

Puk!

The Black Lightning Silk Serpent Force dug deep, piercing the bare flesh.

As if struck by lightning, the Horned Dragon’s massive body trembled violently.

Pyo Wol came down from the Horned Dragon’s belly and approached its head.

The Horned Dragon’s face was so peaceful it was hard to believe it had been so ferocious just moments ago.

The thread of the mystic art connecting it to Gyeong Musaeng was fading.

“N-No!”

Gyeong Musaeng screamed in horror.

He, too, had felt the connection to the Horned Dragon being severed.

Gyeong Musaeng tried to run frantically toward the Horned Dragon.

He intended to revive it somehow and subjugate it again with his mystic art. But this time, the Ghost King tenaciously blocked his path.

“Get out of my way!”

Gyeong Musaeng used all sorts of mystic arts, but the Ghost King silently blocked all his attacks, obstructing him.

Thanks to this, Pyo Wol could focus on the Horned Dragon without worrying about Gyeong Musaeng.

The Horned Dragon was gasping for breath as if it would die at any moment.

The ferocity and madness that had filled its two eyes were gone, revealing its clear pupils.

The Horned Dragon looked at Pyo Wol with a gentle gaze.

Although its life was on the line because of Pyo Wol, there was no fear or resentment. Instead, it stuck out its massive tongue and licked Pyo Wol’s body as if to say thank you.

“Hoo!”

Pyo Wol let out a sigh and caressed the Horned Dragon’s face.

The Horned Dragon’s feelings were transmitted through his hand.

The Horned Dragon was genuinely grateful to Pyo Wol.

Although it had failed to ascend and its life was ending here, the fact that it no longer had to accumulate evil karma brought the Horned Dragon a sense of relief.

It was then.

Ghost Fang, which had been on Pyo Wol’s shoulder, slithered down and climbed onto the head of the gasping Horned Dragon.

The way Ghost Fang circled the Horned Dragon’s eye area looked as if it were comforting it.

The Horned Dragon rolled its large pupils to look at Ghost Fang, who was comforting it.

Their sizes were incomparable, but the two snakes shared a deep connection.

Krrrr!

The Horned Dragon’s body trembled greatly.

It was on the verge of its last breath.

Ulkuk!

Just then, the Horned Dragon gathered its last strength and coughed something up.

It was a small bead.

The color of the bead, smaller than a child’s fist, was incredibly brilliant.

Pyo Wol recognized it as a type of Inner Core.

It had failed to ascend, and most of the Yongcheng it had accumulated was gone.

All that was left was an Inner Core barely the size of a child’s fist.

Originally, it should have used this small Inner Core as a primer to grow it larger. But after being subjugated by Gyeong Musaeng, its growth had stopped, and the Inner Core had also lost most of its power.

The Horned Dragon looked back and forth between the Inner Core and Ghost Fang.

Pyo Wol understood what the Horned Dragon was trying to say.

“You want me to give the Inner Core to Ghost Fang?”

The Horned Dragon flicked its tongue as if to say yes.

Although it had failed to ascend, it hoped that its little friend who had comforted it at the end would not experience the same failure.

Pyo Wol placed his hand on the Horned Dragon’s face and answered.

“I will do so.”

The next moment, the Horned Dragon closed its eyes.

The Horned Dragon no longer writhed in pain.

It was liberated from everything that had oppressed it.

It was a peaceful death.

Ghost Fang remained motionless on the Horned Dragon’s corpse like a statue.

It looked as if it were mourning the Horned Dragon’s death.

Pyo Wol said to Ghost Fang.

“Take this. It’s a gift from your friend.”

Ghost Fang looked at its dead friend’s face for a moment before climbing onto Pyo Wol’s hand. Then, it coiled around the Inner Core left by the Horned Dragon, as if a bird were incubating an egg.

“You bastard!”

At that moment, Gyeong Musaeng’s roar erupted from behind him.

When Pyo Wol turned around, he saw Gyeong Musaeng approaching with terrifying momentum.

“How dare you kill the Horned Dragon? I will never forgive you.”

Gyeong Musaeng was like a demon.

His distorted face and the aura he emitted were truly dreadful.

Pyo Wol looked at the Ghost King.

The Ghost King’s body was frozen, unable to move, as if he had been struck by Gyeong Musaeng’s mystic art.

The Ghost King possessed formidable skills that allowed him to reign over all with terror, but they were ineffective against one person: Gyeong Musaeng.

His Soul was bound by the Soul Binding Technique, preventing him from exerting his full power.

They were, in a way, natural enemies.

It was remarkable that the Ghost King had fought so well until now.

Seeing the Horned Dragon fall, Gyeong Musaeng had sacrificed all the mystic treasures on his arms to unleash a powerful mystic art.

The more powerful the mystic art, the more severe the backlash.

That was why he had been careful not to cross the line until now, but at the death of the Horned Dragon, Gyeong Musaeng lost his reason.

He unleashed a powerful mystic art by sacrificing his mystic treasures, and suffered a great internal injury from the backlash. But he paid no mind to the pain and walked toward Pyo Wol.

Gyeong Musaeng’s gaze was fixed on Ghost Fang and the Inner Core in Pyo Wol’s hand.

“You took away my most precious thing, so I, too, will take away your precious thing.”

His eyes, looking at Ghost Fang, were filled with greed.

He had lost the Horned Dragon, but he thought that obtaining Ghost Fang, which had absorbed the Inner Core, would not be such a loss.

Although it was small, Ghost Fang’s potential was limitless.

If, after many years, Ghost Fang were to ascend, he could become a mystic art user who commanded a Dragon.