A massive shadow, far larger than even the enormous ship that could carry hundreds of people, reflected ominously on the river below.

“Shit.”

The curse slipped out of my mouth the moment I saw it.

Why the hell is that thing appearing here?

“What is that…?”

“Report to the head immediately!”

“What the hell is that…!!”

I wasn’t the only one panicking. The others gathered around were just as bewildered, some running around in confusion, unsure of what to do.

Amidst the chaos, I shot a glare at Tang Deok and sent him a mental message.

-Is that thing something you prepared?

“…”

Tang Deok didn’t respond, but I could see the slight tremble in his eyes. I wasn’t entirely sure, so I asked again to confirm.

-It’s an order. Answer clearly.

-I… don’t know anything… about this.

Tang Deok claimed he didn’t know? I had assumed that this was all part of his plan to capture the Poison King. But surprisingly, it wasn’t.

Then…

“What the hell is this…?”

It was clearly submerged deep within the river, but its massive size made even the slightest movement visible above the water.

As it moved, the Blue-Rank demonic beasts followed it, as if guarding it. Seeing this, I became certain.

That massive thing… it had to be a Crimson-Rank demonic beast.

Even in my past life, I had witnessed this.

Unlike Green-Rank and Blue-Rank demonic beasts, which constantly fought and devoured one another, the Crimson-Rank monsters had a unique trait—they dominated the lesser-ranked creatures around them.

Their sheer power alone was enough to rival a martial artist at the Hwagyeong level.

And considering how they commanded other demonic beasts, it was easy to imagine how difficult they were to hunt.

But that wasn’t the only problem.

Crack.

I clenched my fists, a thought flashing through my mind.

‘Why.’

Why is this thing already showing up?

‘It’s not time yet.’

The resurgence of Crimson-Rank demonic beasts was supposed to occur only after the descent of the Heavenly Demon. The return of these beasts was meant to coincide with the moment she claimed the title of Heavenly Demon and fully revealed herself to the world.

That’s when the reappearance of Crimson-Rank demonic beasts was supposed to begin.

“It’s not time yet. Damn it…”

How could a creature like that be freely roaming the river right now?

To make matters worse, I glanced at the belts of the guards and soldiers around me.

The Demon-Sealing Talismans they wore, which were supposed to activate in the presence of a Demon Gate, remained silent and unaffected.

This meant—

‘That thing didn’t just appear now.’

The Crimson Abyss Gate must have opened quite some time ago.

But when? When did the Crimson Abyss Gate begin to open?

I had no idea. No such news had reached the central plains as far as I knew.

While I was deep in thought, surveying the state of the demonic beast, the Poison King appeared, scanning the situation.

“What’s going on?”

The Poison King also noticed the massive presence beneath the water and widened his eyes.

“That’s…?”

“It appears to be a Crimson-Rank demonic beast.”

That was my response to him.

Upon hearing my words, the Poison King flinched, his movements becoming larger as he absorbed the gravity of the situation.

Around us, others also began reacting with disbelief.

“Crimson? Are you serious…?! A Crimson-Rank demonic beast? That’s something out of legends from centuries ago!”

“What nonsense is So Yeom-ra talking about?”

The murmurs grew louder.

Considering that such creatures were thought to be long extinct, their reactions were understandable.

Despite the noise, I kept my eyes trained on the river.

While the appearance of a Crimson-Rank demonic beast was shocking, understanding the situation was more important right now.

‘Of all places, why on the river?’

The more I assessed the situation, the more frustrating it became. This was one of the worst-case scenarios for a hunt.

Our movements were limited, and the water made us far more vulnerable.

‘It’s not overly dangerous, but…’

I glanced behind me, searching for Paejon and Amwang.

Paejon appeared shocked by the appearance of the Crimson-Rank demonic beast, while Amwang observed with a hint of intrigue.

‘We have more than enough strength…’

We had more than enough power to deal with a Crimson-Rank demonic beast. With numerous Absolute Peak and Hwagyeong-level martial artists on board, it wouldn’t be too difficult.

The problem, however—

‘Is that this is an era where no one knows how to deal with Crimson-Rank demonic beasts.’

Even though records existed, the methods for hunting these creatures had been lost over the centuries.

The other issue was that Crimson-Rank demonic beasts required a specific approach to defeat.

As I was starting to feel a headache coming on from the unexpected situation—

Rumble… Rumble…!!

Splash!

The once-calm surface of the river began to churn violently, creating waves strong enough to rock the massive ship.

“Hold on tight!”

“Ahhhh!”

Most of the martial artists managed to maintain their balance, but a few who weren’t fast enough fell overboard into the river.

Normally, this wouldn’t be a problem, and they would have quickly climbed back on board.

But the Green-Rank and Blue-Rank demonic beasts, sensing prey, lunged at them with vicious speed, leaving the fallen martial artists helpless.

“Aaah! Help… Help me!”

In the confines of the water, even highly skilled martial artists found their abilities suppressed.

Their immobilized bodies quickly became nothing more than food for the beasts.

Watching them get torn apart in an instant, everyone’s nerves went on edge.

Rather than cowering in fear, the remaining martial artists drew their swords, preparing for battle.

They gathered their inner energy, creating a palpable tension in the air as their energy began to merge into one powerful flow.

‘Damn it…!’

Seeing this, I felt a chill.

This was dangerous.

I was about to shout for them to stop gathering their energy when—

Woooooong…!

It was too late.

The massive creature beneath the water must have been provoked, as it began to stir.

With each movement, the waves grew stronger.

Before long, its shadow darkened even more, and the enormous beast finally broke through the surface beside the ship.

Splashhhhh!

As its massive head emerged from the water, waves crashed violently around us, shaking the ship.

Everyone on board went silent, holding their breath.

The energy that had been gathering in the air dissipated as if it had never existed.

The beast, easily comparable in size to the massive ship, towered over us.

Its long, slender body was covered in gleaming red scales, and its forked tongue flicked out from its mouth as it turned its eyes toward the ship.

Someone nearby spoke in a trembling voice.

“…A… snake?”

Yes.

The creature resembled a serpent.

The only difference was that it was impossibly massive.

   ******************
   

The Crimson-Rank demonic beast.

The last recorded sighting of such a creature dates back approximately four to five hundred years.

It was said to possess power and size incomparable to the Green or Blue-Rank beasts.

If a White-Rank beast could turn vast plains into expansive rivers or cause snow to fall on tropical nights—altering landscapes and ecosystems—

Then a Crimson-Rank beast, one rank below, was powerful enough to reign as the king of an entire region.

As long as they inhabited a place, it was said that no one, without their permission, could live or even set foot there due to their overwhelming might.

The records, absurd as they sounded for a mere beast, had always seemed too exaggerated.

When Poison King read these records, he dismissed them as mere fantasies.

Anyone who had reached the level of First-Class would find Green-Rank beasts nothing more than playthings, and Blue-Rank beasts were only a bit more challenging.

How much more dangerous could a beast be, just one rank higher?

Besides, even if such creatures had existed, they had long since disappeared from history, never to return.

Because of this, the Poison King never thought of Crimson-Rank beasts as a real threat.

And this sentiment wasn’t unique to him.

It was a common belief throughout the martial world.

After all, it was a rank that would never reappear. It was just inflated legend.

That’s all the Crimson-Rank was—until now.

Now, the Poison King had no choice but to change his mind.

“This is…”

The records hadn’t been entirely wrong.

“It’s… an unbelievable size…”

With such evidence before him, how could he think otherwise?

Shiiiiiiii…

A snake. An enormous, terrifying snake.

Fitting for a Crimson-Rank demonic beast, the snake with its red scales was as large as the ship itself.

Its yellow, glowing eyes moved around as it scrutinized the people on the deck.

The weight of its gaze made the people nearby tremble in fear.

Most of them were First-Class martial artists or lower, and some of the more vulnerable ones even foamed at the mouth and collapsed unconscious.

Seeing this, the Poison King scowled deeply.

‘Why…!’

The sudden appearance of a Crimson-Rank beast—what sort of disaster was this? And what were all these other beasts swarming around it?

No matter how he looked at it, the situation was bad. Very bad.

And the beast’s eyes…

The Poison King instantly realized something: there was hunger in those eyes.

It was clear the beast saw them as food.

With no hesitation, the Poison King shouted an order.

“Turn the ship around!”

They had to escape. The Poison King was no fool—he wasn’t about to sit still and wait to be devoured by such a monster.

But just as the ship began to turn—

Shhhhaaaaaaaa!

The monster wasn’t going to let them go so easily.

As soon as the ship began to shift direction, the beast’s eyes flared, and it lunged toward them.

Seeing this, the Poison King leaped from the deck, charging straight for the monster.

A dagger appeared in his hand, filled with powerful inner energy. Without hesitation, he hurled it at the beast’s head.

The dagger, imbued with the might of a Hwagyeong-level martial artist, flew swiftly toward the beast’s crown.

Normally, such a weapon would pierce through steel with ease.

Ping!

“…What?!”

But just before the dagger could strike, it bounced off as if it had hit an invisible wall.

Startled by the unexpected turn of events, the Poison King hesitated for a moment.

In that instant, the beast diverted its path from the ship and charged directly at him, jaws wide open, ready to swallow him whole.

Then—

Someone grabbed the Poison King by the back of his neck and flung him aside.

Thanks to that, the Poison King barely avoided being swallowed by the massive serpent.

“Wow, that thing’s insane! How is it so fast?”

The person who had thrown him aside was none other than Baekryeongeom. The Poison King landed on the water’s surface, using the Water-Walking Technique, a skill only Hwagyeong-level martial artists could use.

Baekryeongeom soon joined him, and the Poison King gave her a brief nod of gratitude.

“Thank you. You saved my life.”

“No need for thanks… but what was that? It looked like your energy got deflected.”

“…That’s exactly what happened.”

The Poison King frowned as he responded. He, too, had seen it—the way his energy attack had been effortlessly repelled.

For a creature to deflect such a powerful technique… it was unheard of.

As he tried to make sense of the situation, another person appeared beside him—Pae Do-yeol, the head of the Pae Family and one of the Hundred Great Masters.

“I will join you.”

The Poison King nodded in agreement.

Now, three Hwagyeong-level masters stood side by side on the water.

The ship continued to turn, slowly picking up speed, but the monster was no longer focused on it. Its gaze was fixed on the three martial artists in front of it.

It knew. The monster understood that it couldn’t reach the ship unless it dealt with these three first.

Watching this, the Poison King couldn’t help but feel a strange sense of unease.

‘Could it be… the ship is its target?’

It seemed almost as if the creature’s real objective was the ship itself.

But no—that couldn’t be it. Shaking his head, the Poison King dismissed the thought.

No matter what had brought this Crimson-Rank beast here, right now, they needed to focus on protecting the ship.

As he prepared another dagger, taking a deep breath, Baekryeongeom spoke up again.

“Wow… that thing’s huge. Really disgustingly huge.”

The Poison King couldn’t help but feel slightly exasperated by her words, but he couldn’t deny the truth in them.

She was right.

Compared to any other beast they had encountered, this monster was unimaginably massive.

What if such a creature had appeared on land instead of in the water?

And what if it wasn’t just one, but several of them?

The mere thought sent a shiver down the Poison King’s spine as he gripped his dagger tightly.

The serpent, however, wasn’t attacking immediately. It seemed to be observing, as if calculating its next move.

Normally, demonic beasts acted purely on instinct, charging in without a second thought. Yet, this one was being cautious.

The Poison King found it odd.

And he was, of course, doing the same—carefully considering his next move.

‘I need to figure out what just happened.’

He replayed the moment when his dagger had been deflected.

The energy surrounding the weapon had been perfect. The trajectory was flawless.

So why had the attack been repelled?

As he was deep in thought, Baekryeongeom suddenly unleashed a swift energy slash at the serpent.

Shing!

The bluish-green energy raced toward the serpent, aiming to cut it down.

Crack!

But just like the Poison King’s attack, the energy slash shattered against an invisible barrier before it could reach the monster.

“Yup, doesn’t work.”

Baekryeongeom muttered in disappointment, while the Poison King was left in shock.

“Baekryeongeom…! What are you doing?!”

“What? I just wanted to see if it worked. We can’t just stand here doing nothing, can we?”

She added nonchalantly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. She had a point—eventually, they would have to fight the beast anyway.

Though startled by her sudden move, the Poison King couldn’t help but acknowledge that her actions weren’t entirely without merit.

They had now confirmed that conventional energy attacks didn’t work on the beast.

With this realization, the Poison King quickly began to analyze the situation, trying to find a solution.

And then, a thought struck him.

‘Could it be… that Crimson-Rank beasts are immune to inner energy?’

The chilling thought made the Poison King swallow hard.

This wasn’t mentioned in any of the records, but it was a possibility he couldn’t ignore.

What if Crimson-Rank beasts couldn’t be harmed by energy-based attacks?

The implications were terrifying.

If inner energy could no longer be used to kill these beasts, the entire martial world would face ruin.

Though it seemed like a far-fetched idea, the thought alone sent a shiver down the Poison King’s spine.

Just as he was pondering this grim possibility, the serpent began to move again.

Shhhhhhhhh!

The snake bared its fangs and lunged at the three martial artists.

Shing! Boom!

Suddenly, a violent bolt of lightning struck the serpent’s head from out of nowhere.

Ssssssaaaaaah!

With a deafening screech, the serpent’s head was thrown back, and the massive creature collapsed into the river with a splash, sending towering waves into the air.

Water rained down from the sky as the waves receded.

The Poison King’s eyes widened in shock.

How could this be? He had just witnessed firsthand that energy-based attacks didn’t work, so what was this?

He turned to see who had launched the attack.

And when he saw the figure standing there, the Poison King could only mutter in disbelief.

“What… why are they…?”

He couldn’t believe it.

Before he could fully comprehend what he was seeing, the serpent resurfaced, roaring in anger, and charged again.

The three Hwagyeong-level martial artists prepared themselves, but then they heard a voice behind them.

“Left eye, four feet back.”

At the command, three more figures darted forward, their swords slicing through the air with precision.

The strikes landed right behind the serpent’s left eye, where a barely visible crack had formed on the invisible barrier.

Bam!

Sssssshhh!

The serpent’s head reeled once again as the barrier weakened further.

The Poison King watched in astonishment as these seemingly Supreme-Class martial artists easily landed blows on the serpent, where even Hwagyeong-level warriors had struggled.

“Next, five feet under the chin. Slash upwards.”

The voice continued issuing commands, and with each one, the attackers followed through without hesitation.

Golden energy flowed from their blades as they struck the serpent’s chin, sending shockwaves rippling through the air.

Twang!

Once again, the serpent’s head was thrown back as more cracks appeared in the invisible barrier.

And just like that, a slight opening was created.

“Woo-hyuk.”

At the call of his name, the handsome young man raised his sword and, with a single motion, drove it into the opening.

For the first time, an attack pierced the serpent’s defenses, slicing into its flesh.

Spurt!

A gash opened up on the serpent’s neck, spraying blue-green blood into the river.

Ssssssshhhh!

Wounded, the serpent let out a shriek and pulled back, coiling defensively.

In the blink of an eye, the tide of battle had shifted.

The Poison King was left speechless, his jaw hanging open.

The three martial artists who had just overwhelmed the serpent leaped back, landing gracefully on the surface of the water.

With a splash, they rejoined the young man who had been giving the orders all along.

As they returned, the Poison King couldn’t help but stare at the young man standing in the center of it all.

“…So Yeom-ra?”

At the sound of his name, Gu Yangcheon’s eyebrow twitched, a faint irritation crossing his face.

But that wasn’t the issue here.

Who exactly were these people?

Even Hwagyeong-level masters like himself had been racking their brains trying to figure out how to deal with this creature.

And yet, here were these three Supreme-Class martial artists, effortlessly overpowering the serpent.

The Sword Dancer of the Namgung Family, the Swordmaster’s descendant, and the Dormant Dragon of Wudang.

Each of them sheathed their swords as they stood around So Yeom-ra, as if waiting for his next command.

Their blades shimmered with energy of various colors, exuding an intimidating presence.

And to think that these three had yet to reach the Hwagyeong level, yet they stood on the water as if it were solid ground.

The Poison King was completely baffled by the scene unfolding before him.

And then, So Yeom-ra turned to the group of Hwagyeong masters and spoke.

“From now on, I will be giving the orders.”

“…What? Young Master Gu, what are you talking about all of a sudden…?”

“I will not be accepting any objections. If you don’t like it, stay out of the way, and don’t interfere.”

The Poison King was about to protest, but—

Ssssss…!

The serpent stirred once more, its massive form writhing beneath the river’s surface.

Clearly, the battle was far from over.

Sensing this, Gu Yangcheon glanced around and gave a single order.

“Prepare yourselves.”

Shing.

With that brief command, the three Supreme-Class martial artists drew their swords once more, their energy flaring sharply.

They moved with the precision of a well-trained unit, ready to strike at a moment’s notice.

Even more surprising than their synchronization, however, was the authority with which Gu Yangcheon issued his commands.

The Poison King couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something different about this young man.

Something powerful.