NSE-Chapter 055

Chapter 55

[The detailed rules are being announced.]

[Please look at the ‘map’ at the top here.]

[You are marked by a red circle.]

In the right corner.

A map that looked like a minimap appeared, along with a red circle.

[Points held: 1 point]

His points were displayed as well.

[When you defeat an opponent, all of that opponent’s points are transferred to you.]

[For every 1 point, all Stats increase by 10%.]

[The more points you hold, the higher the probability that your location will be shown on opponents’ maps.]

[At set intervals, certain zones will turn into non-survivable zones. They will be marked on the map.]

[Rankings are tallied and displayed every 30 minutes.]

[Well then, good luck.]

“Interesting.”

The rules were extremely malicious.

The more you killed, the stronger you got, but it was a format where your location was shown accordingly and the risk of getting mobbed went up as well.

‘But…….’

Even if he swept up the points, it seemed it wouldn’t be as dangerous as expected.

Because the candidates were weak?

No.

The 30 best performers in the Martial World had been gathered. Even if just 5 of them ganged up, he couldn’t easily guarantee a win.

But…….

‘The rules will hold them back.’

Human selfishness often carried an impact beyond imagination.

Kill an opponent, and you take all their points.

It wasn’t an equal split.

In that case, when someone exceptionally strong showed up, could the guys ganging up on him attack with 1 mind?

And in a structure where only 3 could survive, no less?

‘They absolutely couldn’t.’

Eyes rolling back in the fight over last hits, hands and feet all tangled up, and getting eaten by the lion.

That was exactly the picture that formed.

‘Then there’s only 1 thing to do.’

Sweeping up kills.

Kill everyone and grow strongest, fastest. The objective was set.

Summoning Cedric, he began to move.

Whether he found Seo Ye-rim.

Or found a candidate passing along the way.

Anything would do.

After about 10 minutes of walking.

He came face to face with a familiar face.

Second Young Lord, Baek Cheol-yong.

The candidate who had taken 4th place with 9,700 points. They held each other’s gaze for a moment.

Baek Cheol-yong said,

“So-cheon! Good that you’re alive. At times like this, shouldn’t brothers band together?”

“Shall we?”

Smiling at each other, they closed the distance.

Soon Baek Cheol-yong leapt in all at once. With eyes gone wild, he thrust his sword.

A sword thrust aimed precisely at the head.

He leaned his head back.

Baek Cheol-yong’s eyes flashed.

Carrying the momentum, he tried to bring his sword down in 1 go.

At that instant, Cedric beside him thrust his spear out with a whoosh.

At him, who twisted his body in a hurry, Kim Min-woo and Cedric launched a joint attack.

Sparks flew as the swords and the spear clashed.

Su-heon or whatever his name was.

This Second one was far better than the Fourth.

He was one who had the basics.

But he hadn’t made it into the advanced course.

‘Then he has to die.’

Before even 20 exchanges had passed.

A sword stabbed deep into Baek Cheol-yong’s chest.

A momentary stiffness.

Thwack-thwack-thwack!

Cedric’s spear pierced through his whole body.

Guh!

Baek Cheol-yong spat blood.

The fellow, looking at Cedric and then at himself as if he couldn’t believe it, moved his lips.

“M-Monster…….”

He cut off the head.

[Level increases by 2!]

[Someone has died.]

[Participants remaining: 29]

Messages appeared over the map.

[Points held: 2 points]

His body felt much lighter.

* * *

[30 minutes have passed. Rankings are being tallied.]

[1st, Baek So-cheon, 4 points]

[2nd, Choi Aeng-aeng, Seok Won-cho, 3 points]

[3rd, Namgung Hye-ji, Baek Mu-han, Choi Mu-baek, 2 points]

.

.

“Amitabha…….”

Gong-sim, a warrior monk of Shaolin Temple, recited a Buddhist chant. A fight in which they had to kill and be killed until only 3 remained.

This test was uncommonly cruel.

If there was any silver lining, it was that the Martial Alliance personnel here had at least formed a group.

The number was 4.

The headcount was meager, but they were in a situation where they should be grateful just to have banded together.

Had it not been so, the points of those in the top ranks might have risen even higher by now.

“……Shouldn’t we also accumulate points quickly?”

At the question from Jin Cheon-myeong, a First-Generation Disciple of the Mount Hua Sect, everyone fell silent.

They had been lucky to meet only Martial Alliance personnel and join up. Because of that, all 4 had 1 point.

10 had died in only 30 minutes.

What would happen if time kept passing like this was plain as day.

They would be eaten by those who had accumulated points.

“……Yes. Benefactor Cheon-myeong is right. We should move quickly as well.”

That was when.

[‘Baek So-cheon’ is displayed on the map.]

[Duration: 5 minutes]

A red circle appeared on the picture called the ‘map’.

It was a distance they could reach within 5 minutes if they ran diligently.

Moreover, he wasn’t even a Martial Alliance comrade who ate from the same pot.

There was nothing to hold them back from dealing with him.

The 4 pairs of eyes flashed.

“4 points…….”

“With this, we can make up for our points all at once.”

“Likely so. But this person’s skill must be considerable. He might even belong to the very top among our candidates.”

Everyone nodded.

He was someone who had killed 3 in just 30 minutes.

He surely possessed frightening skill.

“Will you go?”

At Jin Cheon-myeong’s question, the faces of the other 3 deepened with worry.

Then.

Gong-sim raised a hand and said,

“We must face a strong opponent. Coordination matters more than anything. So I think we should decide beforehand. Who will kill this person.”

“…….”

A reasonable point.

Certainly it was content they could understand with their heads. But strangely, their hearts pounded wildly.

A suffocating silence continued.

Only 3 people could live.

But the number gathered here totaled 4. In the end, if they went all the way to the end, 1 of them would have to die.

But the person who killed Baek So-cheon would very probably survive the test.

For that reason, no one could easily open their mouth.

“……Amitabha. I’ll step out. Please decide among the 3 of you.”

The remaining 3 exchanged opinions.

Only after even hurriedly drawing lots was the lucky one decided.

Jin Cheon-myeong of the Mount Hua Sect.

He would take the points.

“It’s merely a slight detour. Afterward, with Benefactor Cheon-myeong’s strength, we too will be able to raise our points quickly.”

At Gong-sim’s words, the 2 nodded.

But the reluctance lurking beneath could not be entirely dispelled.

‘……It can’t be helped.’

Gong-sim sighed inwardly.

In preparation for this very thing, he had meant to take only up to 3 to begin with.

It was the maximum number that could move while trusting one another to the end.

But he had kept meeting only Martial Alliance personnel.

It wasn’t as if he could abandon the remaining person outright because 3 had been filled.

In the end they became 4, and an uneasy air drifting about was unavoidable. Even if everyone here survived to the very end, one of them was bound to die.

A cruel reality.

And so the 4 began moving toward where Baek So-cheon was.

Before long his figure came into view.

The Martial Alliance personnel who saw the dead standing around him narrowed their eyes.

‘A Necromancer?’

Necromancers, who mainly handled the dead, were weak in close combat. If they merely closed the distance, it was a fight they couldn’t lose.

The killing intent of the 4 eroded the surroundings.

Then.

Baek So-cheon, turning around, grinned.

“4? Gathered like that to kill someone later?”

“Kaah!”

Gong-sim, who had shouted the Lion’s Roar, lunged in like lightning.

Pure internal energy gathered in both palms, and before long the Shaolin Martial Arts he had trained in all his life poured down like rain.

The remaining 3 lunged in as well.

Each one’s signature Arts poured out, pressing Baek So-cheon.

Then.

The dead holding a spear began to take action.

‘A master!’

Wariness settled in the eyes of the 4. They had thought they needn’t worry much about the dead, but it was nothing of the kind.

“Benefactor Geum! Please handle that dead one!”

Geum Nak-cheol, who had a gloomy impression, nodded and began a 1-on-1 duel with the spear-wielding dead.

The remaining 3 launched a fierce assault on Baek So-cheon.

Under the joint attack of 3 masters, Baek So-cheon was gradually pushed back. Small wounds appearing all over his body were a bonus.

Then.

Seeing Jin Cheon-myeong boldly unleash killing moves, Baek So-cheon smiled slyly.

Looking at the plum blossom pattern embroidered on his clothes, he said,

“Oh, so the Mount Hua guy is the one who’s taking the points? Lucky you.”

“Everyone, do not be misled by his wicked words!”

Gong-sim shouted urgently.

He intended to finish as fast as possible.

The problem was that Baek So-cheon held out far, far too well.

To the point that he had the leisure to run his mouth even amid a joint attack.

“Not ending as fast as you expected, is it? This is the power of points. And you’re giving this up? Really?”

No matter how hard they tried to ignore it, they couldn’t shut their ears.

Greed began to settle, very slightly, in the eyes of those mounting the joint attack. Until now, all of them had 1 point, so they hadn’t gotten a feel for exactly how much the efficacy of points was.

But looking at Baek So-cheon, they could roughly tell. Seeing him withstand the joint attack of the Martial Alliance’s top candidates to this degree…….

“If you catch me, the Mount Hua side will survive for certain. So who’ll you kill? The gloomy-looking one over there? Or you, the old-looking one?”

2 held him in check, and 1 aimed for an opening to launch a killing move.

The joint attack that had been so precise began to grow slightly disordered. Baek So-cheon, who had gained quite some leeway, kept his mouth open.

“Neither of them? You there, rogue monk! Then have you all agreed that you’ll be the one to sacrifice yourself?”

“…….”

Gong-sim’s words were blocked in an instant.

Sacrifice?

What nonsense was that?

He was a warrior monk, not a Taoist. He had trained in Martial Arts to gain fame and enjoy wealth and glory.

He hadn’t trained all his life to die a dog’s death in a place like this.

Still, he couldn’t deny it outright. Doing so would obviously shatter morale.

But…….

Sometimes silence itself is the answer. Everyone’s attacks gradually began turning into killing moves.

All 3 grew more and more impatient.

A slightly more lethal attack.

A slightly sharper attack.

An attack that could kill in 1 blow.

All of these inevitably had to involve large motions.

For a moment, the sharp checking disappeared entirely.

The price of exposing an opening was dire.

In an instant, a head flew off.

Lee Je-hyeong, who had an aged look.

The master who had served as a pillar of the Lee Family died in 1 go.

“……!”

“Ah, now I feel somewhat alive.”

Baek So-cheon’s points leapt to 5 at once.

Gong-sim and Jin Cheon-myeong.

A chill ran down both their spines.

Even with the 3 of them attacking jointly, all they had managed was to push him back a little.

But now only 2 remained.

Moreover, the enemy had grown far stronger than a moment ago.

Geum Nak-cheol with the gloomy impression was still locked in a fierce exchange with the dead. He was even being pushed back little by little.

Chance of winning?

Not the slightest.

The 2’s judgment was swift, as befitting masters.

The speed at which they turned their bodies was an art.

But unfortunately, the 5-point Baek So-cheon was far faster.

Jin Cheon-myeong’s head flew through the sky.

And.

A blade shot up into Gong-sim’s heart.

“Cough…….”

“Why did you go around with people you can’t trust? Idiot.”

“Y-You, dev…il…….”

The blade was yanked out.

Gong-sim collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Geum Nak-cheol, the last one left, also met his death in the same way.

[Level increases by 3!]

A Level rising by 2 or 3 with every battle.

It was a truly insane speed.

It was also proof that the average Level of those taking part in the Dragon-Phoenix Gathering was that high. Looking at the corpse, Kim Min-woo turned around.

If the 3 had kept up the joint attack with 1 heart and 1 mind, it might have been him lying there as a corpse right now.

‘Well, if it were that kind of structure, they wouldn’t have fought in the first place.’

Like points being divided equally.

Or killing someone with lots of points giving the same 1 point regardless.

With a structure like that, he would have collected a fitting number of kills and hidden.

After getting about 8 points like that, he realized 1 pleasant fact.

Kim Min-woo looked at his own body. The speed at which he grew stronger with each kill was beyond imagination.

8 points.

If it were additive, his Stats should have risen about 1.8 times, but the feel was nothing like that.

‘It feels like nearly 2.1 times?’

The result of checking the Status Window was the same.

“This is multiplicative, huh?”

Well, this was.

A level that pushed him to go on an outright rampage.