After hearing the news, KangWoo went to the Red Rose Guild with Echidna and Han Seol-ah.
"Hey, can't you move faster?!"
"Call China and check on the location of the Demon Cult!"
"Where is the meeting taking place? Plane! Get a plane first!"
The Red Rose Guild was in chaos.
People were running in the lobby and offices, trying to figure out the situation.
As he opened the office door, KangWoo saw Chae YeonJoo buried under a pile of documents.
"Hey."
Chae YeonJoo lifted her head. Unlike her usual self, she had a stiff expression.
KangWoo approached her.
"I saw it on the news, but what's the current situation?"
"A massive summoning took place in Vladivostok."
"A massive summoning? Then…"
She nodded with a heavy expression on her face.
"We aren't sure about the exact number, but it seems like they've summoned almost a hundred demons. A huge number of demonic monsters were also summoned."
"Hundreds…"
The tips of his mouth were about to go up when he heard that number, but he managed to control himself.
'Well done!'
He was wondering how he was going to investigate a big country like Russia, but in that desperate situation, they'd solved the issue for him.
He wanted to hug them for having succeeded in managing to perform the large-scale summoning.
Satisfied, KangWoo sat in the chair.
"What are the losses?"
"Not much. There weren't many people living in Vladivostok in the first place, but the problem is…"
"Demonic monsters are moving."
Chae YeonJoo nodded with a serious expression.
"They're also very fast. They're so strong that they swept away all of the SS-rank monsters around the gate."
The second thing was what worried him the most.
The SS-rank gate…
Even though five years had passed since the Cataclysmic Day, the areas around that gate had yet to recover.
Monsters that couldn't be compared to those in other gates had made that place their nest.
Thankfully, they hadn't expanded to other areas, but the place surrounding the gate was still forbidden for most people.
But those demonic monsters were able to wipe out the SS-rank monsters.
It was easy to see how strong the demons and demonic monsters that the Demon Cult had summoned were.
'But…'
KangWoo gulped and licked his lips.
He felt hungry.
To him, the army of demons just looked like a nutritious lunch box
'Although demonic monsters have no meaning…'
Reaper of Souls only applied to demon souls.
The souls of those that couldn't control their cravings, lost their egos, and became demonic monsters weren't worth absorbing.
'Maybe if it's a demonic monster like a halcyon…'
A halcyon…
It was one of the few demonic monsters that was self-conscious.
Demonic monsters with intelligence were so strong that they could defeat an average demon, and some could even use Authorities. Those demonic monsters were worth devouring using the Authority of Predation.
But that was if there was a demonic monster like a halcyon there.
'Most of the demonic monsters shown in the video belonged to the 3rd hell or lower.'
There probably weren't any variants with intelligence among them.
Most of the demonic monsters with a variant lived in the 8th hell or higher.
'Then I should target demons.'
He didn't intend to let a single one live.
To check the effect of his new attribute, 'Reaper of Souls,' he had to devour as many demons as possible.
"In what direction are the demonic monsters moving?"
"Toward Manchuria. They might move toward China, but they could also change their direction toward Korea."
Vladivostok was an area that was close to North Korea and China.
Five years before, during the Cataclysmic Day, North Korea's government fell. That's why a large-scale war would occur if they changed their direction toward Korea.
"Hmm."
KangWoo narrowed his eyes.
A large-scale war could happen in either China or Korea, depending on the direction in which the demonic monsters moved.
There was only one reasonable thing to do in that situation…
"Did the Chinese make contact?"
"They asked for an alliance with Korea. They're thinking of solving this issue in Manchuria before they can get closer to civilians."
"As expected."
He nodded.
They didn't know in which direction the demons would move. If one side was attacked, there was a chance they could face damage that could be hard to handle.
…Then joining forces and erasing them all at once was the best possible decision.
'Although it will be unbalanced.'
China was the strongest country in Asia.
Since they had a large population, the number of players was also high. Was it because of the characteristics of the country? There were also many players who had the unique stat 'Qi,' so their forces were quite strong.
Even if Korea and Japan joined forces, they wouldn't be able to face China.
'Well, since I'm here, the outcome would probably be different.'
KangWoo smirked.
It was ridiculous to think that a single person could make a difference in the strength of a country, but he wasn't being delusional.
With KangWoo's presence, Korea should be able to compete with the U.S.A in terms of strength.
"So, what did you arrange?"
"They said that a meeting is going to take place in Harbin, and they asked us to participate in it. We're trying to get a place with the Hwarang Squad and another big guild, and then we're going to go toward Harbin."
"I see."
"KangWoo, you're coming, right?"
There was no need to ask. KangWoo nodded without hesitating.
"Of course."
A deep smile appeared on his face.
The time for the feast was drawing near.
* * *
Soon, Cheon SooYeon joined them. KangWoo and the rest took a plane that the Red Rose Guild had prepared and took off to Harbin.
"I could've taken you," Echidna said while pulling his collar.
KangWoo patted her.
"It isn't a situation where we could've done anything by arriving first, anyways."
Other big guilds had also sent reinforcements toward Harbin.
The meeting would probably take place after all the forces had reached the place.
"Oof. To think something like this would happen when my dad isn't here."
Cheon SooYeon sighed. You could see the worry in her expression.
"Why, did something happen?"
"Since my dad isn't here, my uncle will probably lead the meeting… but my uncle doesn't like Korea that much."
"Uncle?"
"Yes. Have you heard about Cheon MooHyeon?"
"No."
KangWoo shook his head.
"He hasn't become that famous because of my father, but still, he's one of China's strongest martial artists. He's, after all, the vice-leader of the Thousand Sword Gate."
"Hmm. Then is his influence in the Thousand Sword Gate bigger than yours?"
"I'm ashamed to say it… But yes."
Cheon SooYeon bit her lips. The empty place left by Cheon MooJin felt too big.
"I guess things will be okay in the end."
KangWoo leaned down on the chair. He wasn't worried.
If things didn't work out, he had to make them work. It was as simple as that.
* * *
The flight to Harbin didn't take long.
After descending from the plane, KangWoo and the rest got in the car that was provided by the Chinese and went toward the Chinese player administration center.
'This place is quite big as well.'
KangWoo exclaimed in surprise.
As expected from Asia's biggest country, the player administration center was quite massive.
It reminded him of the Forbidden City located in Beijing.
It was a massive construction that made him wonder if he was in the middle of a Chinese martial art novel.
KangWoo walked into the player administration center while looking around.
"Hmm?"
"What's everyone doing there?"
They were walking toward the reunion room when they saw a group of people gathered in front of a giant door.
Chae YeonJoo quickly looked at their faces.
"They're the Onuri and Sanare guilds."
After the Hanul and Mir guilds were disbanded, they were the other guilds that became part of the big three.
Chae YeonJoo approached a middle-aged woman who was angrily pacing.
"HyeonJoo, ma'am, what's going on?"
"Who are you calling ma'am? Ah, it's you, YeonJoo."
Jeong HyunJoo, she was the leader of Sanare, a guild made of high-quality healers.
The generous-looking woman spoke while frowning.
"These guys are out of their minds. I don't know what they're trying to do after calling us here."
"What did they say?"
"They said we can't participate in the reunion and that we should move as they order."
"What?"
Chae YeonJoo laughed in disbelief.
To say they should only follow orders…
To put it bluntly, they were saying that, even if Koreans were on the front line, they should follow their orders.
"Are these bastards crazy?"
They weren't their superiors, yet they were saying they should follow their orders. What kind of nonsense was that?
Chae YeonJoo walked toward the meeting room while emitting strong killing intent.
Two Chinese players blocked Chae YeonJoo.
"Move."
"Mr. Cheon MooHyun is in the middle of a meeting. You cannot enter. We'll inform you of the meeting results later on," the Chinese player said in bad Korean.
"Didn't you hear me? Move."
"Cheon MooHyun said that, if you don't follow the orders, he will rethink China’s & Korea's relationship."
"These bastards…"
Intense mana flew out of Chae YeonJoo's body, and immense tension weighed down on their surroundings.
"Damn…"
Chae YeonJoo cursed.
In the end, she stopped.
China… they weren't the strongest country in Asia for nothing. It wasn't an opponent she could beat up without thinking of it twice.
Instead of Chae YeonJoo, Cheon SooYeon walked to the front.
"What are you doing? These people came all the way here to help us stop the invasion of the Demon Cult. Move."
"I'm sorry. Mr. Cheon MooHyeon had said we couldn’t let them enter until the meeting ended, no matter what."
"Ha. Are you kidding? If my father hears this…"
"In the absence of Mr. Cheon MooJin, Cheon MooHyun's orders are more important."
"…"
Cheon SooYeon remained silent. What she was worried about had ended up becoming a reality.
She turned around and spoke to KangWoo.
"I'm sorry. I'll use the emergency system and call my father imm—"
"Ah, don't worry."
KangWoo stopped her in a relaxed manner.
Chae YeonJoo and Cheon SooYeon looked at him in surprise.
"Then… are you going to wait?"
"No way."
"Yes? Then how…"
He smirked and began walking.
There was only one thing he could do in that situation.
As KangWoo got close to the door, the Chinese players that were blocking the entrance took their weapons out.
"If you go any farther…"
KangWoo moved his hands.
He grabbed their heads and threw the two toward the meeting room door.
Slam-!
The door was destroyed, and the meeting room became visible.
There were many big Chinese guilds gathered around the Thousand Sword Gate.
"What the…?"
The people inside the meeting room frowned.
A muscular guy that was near the entrance stood up.
"What kind of fool dares to interrupt the meeting?"
He walked toward KangWoo with strong killing intent.
He swung a fist about the size of a normal person's head.
It was a fist that was covered with a physical form of mana—something that proved he was a ranker.
Tap-
"Huh?"
KangWoo easily grabbed his fist.
A confused voice came out of the giant's mouth.
KangWoo pulled on the fist.
The giant's body leaned forward as if he were falling.
KangWoo tried to grab his head, but his hands slipped because the man was bald.
'As expected, baldies have a high survivability.'
They gained strength by giving up on their hair.
Instead of his hair, KangWoo grabbed the man’s neck.
SLAM!
He slammed the man’s head onto the table.
The table made of hardwood was destroyed.
KangWoo sat in the place where the man had just stood up from.
"…"
There was a heavy silence.
They looked at KangWoo with their mouths wide open.
"What are you doing?"
KangWoo crossed his legs while sitting on the chair.
"Aren't you going to proceed with the meeting?"
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