Chapter 61
"But... it's hard for me to just blindly trust you, a villain."
S-rank villain Yoon Gi-seong was not only skilled at concealing his presence, but also accurately pinpointing the location of the Wind Thunder Step technique. His abilities were quite impressive.
'Talking to him directly, I can see he's quite perceptive as well.'
Moreover, he was a high-ranking villain well-versed in the underworld's information.
'He could be quite useful in many ways.'
Of course, as mentioned earlier, I couldn't give unconditional trust to Yoon Gi-seong, a villain, without any conditions or restrictions.
That's why I intended to impose definite constraints, even if it meant being somewhat harsh.
Whoosh-!
With the sound of wind, Lee Seong-jun's figure, standing right in front, vanished in an instant.
"...?"
While Yoon Gi-seong was looking around with wide eyes at the sudden movement,
A large palm firmly grasped the top of his head.
Simultaneously, a sensation of hot energy penetrating his entire head was felt.
"Hup-!"
Yoon Gi-seong tried to move his feet quickly after swallowing empty air, but his body wouldn't move as he wished.
To be precise, he couldn't exert any strength at all.
His body was slumping down like a puppet with its strings cut.
'What on earth is this...?'
Yoon Gi-seong's eyes trembled like an earthquake in this sudden and terrifying situation.
"There's no need to worry, I'm not trying to take your life."
As a relaxed smile spread across Lee Seong-jun's face reflected in Yoon Gi-seong's eyes,
The blood energy that had penetrated from his brain began to gather around his heart all at once.
Wooong-!
The moment a resonating sound was heard, the blood energy that had finally gathered around his heart intertwined and mixed, taking the shape of a ring.
Then, as the blood energy that had penetrated his body became a huge ring encircling Yoon Gi-seong's entire heart,
Lee Seong-jun's eyes, which had been as dark as the night sky, changed to a deep blood-red color.
'True Blood Subjugation.'
This was the fundamental reason why the Blood Sect members had to swear allegiance to the Blood Demon to an extent that even others considered excessive.
Naturally, its effects were truly outstanding.
By restraining the heart through the blood energy injected into the body, it forcibly subjugated the target. If they told a lie or harbored even the slightest killing intent, it would immediately send a signal to the caster of the True Blood Subjugation, the Blood Demon.
Of course, sending a signal wasn't all it did.
It could inflict terrible pain by causing the blood energy to go berserk, and if desired, it could even burst the heart itself.
In other words, it had completely seized control over life and death.
This meant that the most certain safety measure possible had been successfully put in place.
"Let's go over the conversation we just had again, from the beginning."
Unlike Lee Seong-jun, who spoke with a relaxed smile, Yoon Gi-seong, sprawled right in front of him, had turned deathly pale.
* * *
The ability of True Blood Subjugation to discern lies had completely nullified Yoon Gi-seong's strategy of concealing falsehoods within truths.
However, there was no need to use the ability of True Blood Subjugation.
Unlike before, Yoon Gi-seong, now under the True Blood Subjugation, immediately gave only truthful answers to the questions asked.
'He really changed his attitude in the blink of an eye.'
Recalling the situation from just moments ago, how Yoon Gi-seong's demeanor had changed so rapidly, a wry smile crossed Lee Seong-jun's lips.
'...At first, I thought the conversation was going smoothly just because he was quick-witted.'
That wasn't it.
Clearly, Yoon Gi-seong didn't know about True Blood Subjugation.
No, there was no way he could have known.
But Yoon Gi-seong spoke without a single lie, as if he knew the abilities of True Blood Subjugation.
He undoubtedly possessed a skill related to instinctive sensory perception.
Although it was somewhat surprising at first due to this unexpected ability, it could actually be seen as a favorable situation.
As with Yoon Gi-seong earlier, those with developed sensory abilities tend to clearly recognize what they need to do without needing hints or direct instructions, and handle things faster than others.
In fact, didn't Yoon Gi-seong immediately spill all the true information without even visually confirming the abilities of True Blood Subjugation?
'The Scavenger Crew's domination of the underworld...'
A curve formed on Lee Seong-jun's lips as he walked alone after sending Yoon Gi-seong away.
'Not a bad plan.'
Villains, already criminals who have committed crimes, have nothing to fear. As long as they're paid an appropriate amount, they'll commit any crime without hesitation.
Of course, it would be difficult to directly harm Lee Seong-jun, who has been recognized as a Super Rookie for his remarkable achievements.
But it was a different story for his family members, who could be considered ordinary people.
Even though the association provided secret protection, they could still be in danger if villains were determined to cause trouble.
'Although the probability itself is extremely low.'
When it comes to family matters, even a one-in-a-million chance can't be disregarded.
In that sense, Yoon Gi-seong's plan could be called truly excellent.
By having the strongest crew among the villains' guilds, which could be considered their guild, under his control, he could completely eliminate the possibility of his family being threatened.
'Yoon Gi-seong... he'll be more useful than I thought.'
In the light, Lee Seong-jun himself would operate directly, while in the dark world of the underworld, he would use Yoon Gi-seong and his crew, the Scavengers, to take control.
Of course, being a lawless and rough world, there would be some troublesome issues, but he was confident he could handle them easily.
'...Well, the beginning is always the hardest.'
In the past, before dominating the Thousand Continent as the Blood Demon.
Since the Blood Sect itself was marked as an enemy of the martial arts world, they couldn't openly operate in the light.
Therefore, they had no choice but to hide in the dark and engage in dirty squabbles with groups from the evil factions, who could be considered villains.
Fighting in the dark was something he had already done countless times.
Of course, it wasn't going to be entirely comfortable.
'This means... I'll have to move quite busily for a while.'
With a curve on his lips, Lee Seong-jun began to methodically organize his future plans in his mind.
* * *
Through contact with Yoon Gi-seong, he had obtained a large amount of unexpected information.
But among them, the most important was the information about Cho Se-hyeok, the SS-rank villain known as the Rookie Slayer.
An SS-rank villain alone would be a troublesome opponent, but there were also groups of villains, crews, helping Cho Se-hyeok.
'Considering the nature of the guy I heard about from Yoon Gi-seong...'
There was a high probability he would target his family.
Although the elite members of the association, the Royal Guard, were providing protection, if Cho Se-hyeok and his group of villains decided to move, it couldn't be guaranteed that the current number of personnel could fully prevent their attack.
'Additional security personnel need to be deployed.'
Furthermore, the family needs to be informed about the possibility of an attack, and if possible, close protection personnel should be assigned.
All possible scenarios need to be blocked.
'I need to create a stage where I can focus solely on the fight with Cho Se-hyeok.'
He wasn't considering defeat, but given the high rank of SS for the villain, he couldn't take it lightly.
Therefore, Lee Seong-jun informed not only the association but also his family about Cho Se-hyeok.
Of course, the process wasn't entirely smooth.
It took considerable time and mental energy to convince his worried family.
The one fortunate point was that unlike his somewhat exhausted family, the association readily accepted his proposal.
Whether it was to wash away past humiliation or not, despite the sudden request, they took the bold step of postponing all pre-existing schedules.
They even assigned team leader-level personnel, who could be considered the core strength of the Royal Guard, investing all available forces into capturing Cho Se-hyeok.
'Thanks to that, I've been able to ease the concerns about protection.'
Two days after establishing what could be called a foolproof security system,
'He's taken the bait.'
Lee Seong-jun, who was heading home after finishing his hunt, suddenly stopped in his tracks.
His eyes were colder than ice in midwinter.
There was good reason for this - in the dark alley, there was a figure emitting intense hostility.
To be precise, it was strong killing intent tinged with madness.
This blatant killing intent was so sharp that merely sensing it felt like it could cut the skin.
'At least a master-level martial artist.'
In Earth terms, an S-rank hunter or above. Among them, there was only one person who would make contact in this way.
'The Rookie Slayer, Cho Se-hyeok.'
The villain he had been waiting for days had finally made a move.
Lee Seong-jun, with a curve on his lips, immediately kicked off the ground and deployed the Wind Thunder Step.
Whoosh-!
With the sound of wind, Lee Seong-jun shot forward, instantly widening the distance between him and Cho Se-hyeok.
Even a decent S-rank hunter wouldn't dare to chase, but the opponent was an SS-rank villain.
He wouldn't fall behind so easily.
'As expected...'
Cho Se-hyeok was maintaining a constant distance while chasing behind.
No, he was even showing the composure to always maintain a certain distance.
It was as if he could catch up anytime he wanted.
'His movements are better than I thought.'
Although he hadn't gone all out, Lee Seong-jun had never thought the Wind Thunder Step would be outpaced in terms of speed.
'This should be interesting.'
He wanted to increase his speed a bit more to gauge Cho Se-hyeok's abilities.
But unfortunately, he had already arrived at his original destination, an abandoned construction site.
"How long do you plan to just follow behind?"
At Lee Seong-jun's question, the figure hiding its presence in the dark alley slowly revealed itself.
Long hair like a beast's mane, and between it, eyes brimming with killing intent.
"...Super Rookie, Lee Seong-jun."
As Lee Seong-jun nodded, Cho Se-hyeok narrowed his eyes and furrowed his brow.
"It seems you knew I was following... why didn't you run away?"
"A wolf has no reason to fear a dog."
"What...?"
Cho Se-hyeok's expression hardened, but soon after, he burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! To think you actually believe you can beat me! What excellent confidence! Truly worthy of being called a Super Rookie!"
Instead of answering, Lee Seong-jun just maintained a relaxed smile, causing madness to surge in Cho Se-hyeok's eyes.
"...It looks like I'll be able to enjoy a proper hunt after a long time."