Published at 27th of August 2026 7:13 pm

Chapter 1090: The World of Ascension (20)

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

On top of a not very high mountain range, the season clearly marked by autumn as the fallen leaves filled the air, changing the colors of the surroundings.

Originally, this mountain range was located in Hanam, a place where the sects of the martial world coexisted in prosperity and peace.

Even in the present era, when demonic beasts ran rampant, it was one of the few places where herb gatherers could legally come and go.

Because of this, a serene tranquility should have settled over the mountain range.

Krrrrrr—!!!

But for some reason, the sound of demonic beasts could be heard echoing from the mountains.

Krrrrrrr—!!!

The beasts around them froze in place, stunned by the harsh and aggressive howls.

Why were the demonic beasts suddenly rampant here? The reason for this was simple.

"I intentionally set them loose."

A mountain range of this size was likely being managed by the sect itself.

If it were truly peaceful, the Sword Division would have taken immediate action to deal with the beasts as soon as the Magyeong Gate opened.

Especially at this point in time, it would most likely only be green or blue beasts, so dealing with them wouldn't have been very difficult.

Yet, the fact that there were still demonic beasts present meant that the sect itself had not dealt with them.

"It looks like they’ve left them here for almost seven days," one of the senior members said.

This was probably done as part of today’s training.

However, there was a problem.

"Doesn't it seem like there are fewer demonic beasts than usual?"

It was about the number of beasts.

"Right? Normally, it would be strange if they weren’t scattered all over the place... why are there so few today?"

"Maybe the Magyeong Gate hasn’t opened as many times?"

"That can’t be it. The last time the Black Dragon Division checked, they said there were more than usual."

The senior members of the Blue Dragon Division moved ahead, using their air walking techniques as they pondered the strange sight. If they had restricted access to the mountains for up to seven days and allowed the beasts to thrive, there should have been a significant number of beasts, but today, despite running around, they had only encountered and dealt with three.

It was odd.

"...What’s going on? Are the Red Dragon Division moving faster than we thought?"

"That can’t be. They operate in a different area. If we’re really going to work together, we’ve got at least another hour before that happens."

"Then how can there be so few beasts... Soi, do you feel anything?"

The senior member asked Soi, who was following behind, but she simply shook her head in response.

"I don’t feel anything."

"...Huh, this is really weird."

The senior members were baffled. Even the recruits behind them were starting to get confused.

‘...Ah, this is bad.’

I, who had been following at the very back, was starting to sweat coldly. The reason was simple.

‘Damn, I didn’t think I’d end up in a situation like this.’

The reason why there were so few demonic beasts in the mountains right now was entirely my fault.

‘...No wonder there were so many earlier.’

On the first day I arrived in this world, I had eliminated some demonic beasts to clear a place to sleep.

At that time, I had wondered why there were so many beasts in Hanam.

‘So this was the reason.’

The abundance of demonic beasts had been caused by this. I had left them unchecked for almost five days, allowing them to spread.

‘I ended up clearing them all out.’

Since I needed money, I had killed all the demonic beasts in the area, which was why there were so few left in the mountains now.

‘Ugh...’

It was an incredibly awkward situation. I had to swallow my discomfort and follow the team members.

I had unknowingly interfered.

‘It’ll probably be fine, right...?'

Since they probably wouldn’t notice, it wasn’t a huge deal. It would be a relief if this issue simply passed without further incident.

‘...But it’s not likely.’

I didn’t have high hopes for that.

Even though they called this a joint training exercise, it was fundamentally a competition.

‘Training to see how many demonic beasts you can hunt.’

They had set up a competitive structure under the guise of joint training. While they claimed there would be collaboration with other squads to handle strong beasts, I knew very well that such cooperation was never going to happen.

It was just a show.

What’s more, the fact that there were fewer beasts than expected?

‘This is definitely going to cause trouble.’

Trouble was bound to erupt soon.

And—

‘It’s probably going to be a problem between people, not with the beasts.’

It wasn’t going to be an issue with the demonic beasts, but rather with people.

Not long after I made this judgment, a problem, almost like a ghostly presence, occurred.

*******

Krrraaaahhh---!!!

With a rough roar, a demonic beast fell. It was a green beast in the shape of a bear. While technically a demonic beast, it was of a low grade and was roughly the same size as a real bear.

Koooom—!!

A large, bulky demonic beast fell to the ground.

"I got it."

One of the Blue Dragon Division warriors grinned as he looked at the fallen beast. He approached it.

"Hey. Don't touch it."

A voice from across the way interrupted.

"What?"

The senior’s expression twisted as he responded, and the one who appeared in front of him sneered.

"We killed it. Don’t touch it."

It seemed to be a warrior from the Red Dragon Division. As he approached and spoke, the senior's eyebrows shot up.

"What nonsense are you talking about? Anyone can see we were the ones who killed it."

"Check the back."

Looking down, something was lodged in the beast's back.

A sword and a dagger.

The sword had been thrown by the senior. The dagger beside it was—

"We threw this one to kill it. The location is close to the vital points, so it must be ours, right?"

The warrior pointed somewhere with his finger. Following his gaze, a young man was staring over here with a blank expression.

I recognized the young man.

‘...Poison Dragon?’

It was Tang Cheongi, the owner of the dagger.

"Heh. What nonsense. I know for a fact there was nothing when our kid threw the sword. Who do you think you’re fooling?"

The "kid" he referred to was Soi.

She had thrown the sword as soon as she saw the demonic beast.

"Moreover, this is Blue Dragon Division territory. This is not your place to be."

Each group had their assigned locations. They were supposed to hunt demonic beasts only in their designated areas. That was the rule for this joint training.

"It’s already been over an hour. What you’re saying doesn’t make sense now."

It was based on a one-hour condition, and after that time, they could hunt in each other’s territories.

It seemed like it had been over an hour already. However—

"Even so, our attack reached it first. If you weren’t blind, you’d know that."

This was true. In fact, the Blue Dragon Division had been the first to strike the beast.

Had they not seen it? That was just an excuse and proof of their incompetence.

The Red Dragon Division must have known this, so they didn’t bring it up.

Instead, they pointed out something else.

"But, we attacked the vital points. We’re the ones who cut off its breath, so it’s our kill, right?"

"Nonsense...!"

‘Ugh.’

As expected, they didn’t seem to be backing down easily. I could feel the heat between the two sides intensifying.

‘I knew this would happen.’

I sighed quietly as I observed from behind. This was inevitable.

Such friction was something even the planners of the training had likely expected. However, with the beasts being so few, they never anticipated a clash like this over it.

"What? You wanna try something?"

"Why? Do you think I’ll be scared if you talk like that? Ha."

Swoosh—!

Clang—!

Both sides drew their swords. At the sight of this, others also unsheathed their weapons.

A sudden battle between the Blue Dragon and Red Dragon Divisions.

As internal friction was about to break out, the newly arrived recruits grew confused.

‘What should I do?’

I pondered.

‘Should I just run away now?’

It seemed to be just a simple retaliation because of the green beasts, but with emotions running high, it was also a matter of pride.

There was no way it would end easily. It was clear this would escalate into something bigger.

It was obvious that things would get messy, so sneaking off to watch seemed like the better option.

‘Sounds good.’

Yeah, I’ll do that.

Nodding to myself with certainty, I quietly gathered my energy. Though I kept my sensations and energy locked to avoid being detected—

To use my stealth technique, I had no choice but to exert some energy.

Suuuu—!!

I focused my energy on my heart, causing it to surge. As a result, my senses, which had been blocked, were heightened.

In that moment—

Krrrrrrrrr—!

"......!"

I flinched.

I stopped gathering my energy and opened my eyes wide.

‘Huh?’

I turned my head in the direction of the sensation.

‘What is that?’

What’s going on?

Krrrrrrrrr---!!

I heard the faint sound of a demonic beast’s roar. Of course, that was expected. Even with fewer beasts, my senses could easily detect any presence across the entire mountain range.

The problem was—

‘Why is this thing here?’

It was a presence that shouldn’t be here in the present time.

Clarity-!

I immediately moved my feet.

In an instant, my vision shifted. While the others were still preparing to fight each other, I headed toward the source of the sensation.

Krrrrrrrrr---!!!

Soon, I confirmed the presence of the beast that was radiating its energy.

"......Hah."

Near the center of the mountain range.

Inside a large cave with a massive hole in it, something could be seen.

It looked like the same type of beast I had just killed, a bear-shaped demonic beast.

Though it wasn’t much different in appearance—

Grrrung.

Its size was massive enough to fill the cave completely.

Unlike the green beast, this one had bright red fur.

‘Red demonic beast...?’

This wasn’t a green or blue grade.

It was a demonic beast with a red grade.

"Why is it here...?"

This was a beast that absolutely shouldn’t be here in this time.

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