Botis was almost as powerful as high-level demon lords, yet it was helpless against Gi-Gyu. Or, more accurately, helpless against the Lou possessing Gi-Gyu’s body.

“Kyaaa!”

Botis couldn’t even speak anymore because Lou had crushed his jaw. Such an injury should have healed quickly, but the one who broke the jaw was the Lord of Death, or maybe even death itself. Being nearly as strong as a high-level demon was no help, as death was here to take him, and he could only tremble with his head bowed now.

Showing his teeth, which were covered in blood and flesh, Gi-Gyu whispered, “Botis.”

“P…l…e…a…s…e…” Botis replied with his crushed jaw. Many feared Botis in hell, but everyone, including Botis, feared Lou in hell.

“Why are you obeying Andras?” asked Gi-Gyu. Noticing Gi-Gyu’s curiosity, Botis’ eyes brightened a little. The demon king wanted information, which meant Botis might still survive this.

“T…h…a…t’s…” Botis began to stammer when suddenly…

Crack!

Gi-Gyu ripped Botis’ head off. Grinning widely, Gi-Gyu murmured, “It was really hard to understand you, Botis.”

Lou didn’t really have to wait for Botis’ answer because much of his old powers, the ones he had as the King of Hell, had returned.

All he had to do was…

Munch!

Gi-Gyu’s teeth tore into Botis’ flesh, filling his mouth with even more demon blood and flesh. The crunching sounds echoed inside the cocoon for a long time.

***

Plop!

Gi-Gyu jumped out of the cocoon and landed on the ground. The other players just watched him silently; after a while, Choi Chang-Yong asked, “Is it… over?”

Gi-Gyu slowly turned toward Choi Chang-Yong. The way Gi-Gyu looked at him made him gasp. “Huh…?!”

Choi Chang-Yong could barely breathe as he noticed the hunger in Gi-Gyu’s eyes, indicating Gi-Gyu saw him as food.

The lich approached Gi-Gyu and murmured, “Master…”

Gi-Gyu looked at Hart with interest as he replied, "Just 'master', huh?"

“Where is the grandmaster?” When Hart asked, Gi-Gyu grabbed the lich’s neck, smirked, and said, “How dare you address me so disrespectfully?”

Gi-Gyu was strangling Hart, but Hart’s reply came out clearly. “I can see that you have already lost your sanity.”

Icy blue-black Death flowed from Gi-Gyu’s hand as he asked, “Are you feeling brave because your Life Vessel is inside your gate?”

Liches could only be killed by destroying their Life Vessels, but that became redundant if you lorded over death itself.

“Grrrr.” Suddenly, Bi, in its wolf form, appeared and began growling at Gi-Gyu. And that was just the start. Soon, every one of Gi-Gyu’s creatures surrounded and closed in on him. The other players could only stare in shock and confusion.

Michael joined Gi-Gyu’s creatures and ordered, “Give him his body back now, Demon.”

Michael looked tense as he glared. He could feel that Gi-Gyu—no, the demon possessing Gi-Gyu’s body, was too powerful for anyone in this gate to defeat. After all, he had just witnessed Botis, a powerful demon in its own right, being crushed like a twig.

‘Holy Grail…’ Michael joined his hands as if to pray. One wrong move and they would be out of the frying pan, into the fire. Micheal wondered if he would even survive if he fought Gi-Gyu now. Would the Holy Grail give him enough power?

Hal plunged his halberd into the ground and asked respectfully, “Please give us our Grandmaster back, Master.”

“Demon, you must return this body to Grandmaster.” Raising El in her sword form, Hamiel glared at Gi-Gyu.

The tension in the air was palpable and hot. Right now, the other players, including the world-renowned high rankers and the ones from the two top ten guilds, were just useless extras.

“Kekekekekekeh!” Gi-Gyu burst into laughter. He roared, “How amusing! Very interesting! I had no idea how many enemies I had until now!”

Gi-Gyu slowly showed off his teeth again as he continued, “And here I thought I wouldn’t have anything more to eat!”

Kaboom!

Suddenly, explosions took place all around them. And before anyone could make heads or tails of the situation, many summoned creatures exploded. Half of Hal’s body was gone, but he held himself up using his halberd and begged, “Give us back our grandmaster.”

"Insolent bugs…” Gi-Gyu didn’t open his eyes the entire time he fought Botis, but they were opening slowly now, and there was nothing but calm in them. He held back when he attacked the creatures just now. He didn’t know why, but he didn’t want to hurt them. It was an unpleasant realization.

What was happening?

Why did he feel this way?

Staring in the air blankly, Gi-Gyu mumbled, “What am I?”

“Ugh!” Everyone around him collapsed to the ground from the painful pressure. This included Hal, Hamiel, the rest of Gi-Gyu’s creatures, Michael, and Tao Chen. No one could look into his eyes.

Tao Chen whispered, “W-what’s happening?”

Tao Chen was a high ranker seasoned by countless battles, some life-threatening even, but he still hadn’t felt such pressure before. It was as if…

“Who”—Gi-Gyu finally moved and grabbed the handle of the sword still stuck in his gut—“am I?”

Schwing.

The sword that ate so much blood and flesh, was finally out of Gi-Gyu’s body.

***

Contrary to the intense battle that just took place, the final result seemed insignificant. With Botis’ death, the territory war ended. Leaving an unconscious Gi-Gyu on the ground, the Cain Guild members went to pull out Yoo Suk-Woo from the cocoon. Suk-Woo was wrapped in threads and also unconscious like Gi-Gyu.

The battle was over, yet no one spoke. No one was transferred to the reward chamber even after they rescued Yoo Suk-Woo. They couldn’t even leave because they were stuck on the battlefield. Everyone stared at the battlefield’s center where Gi-Gyu was lying. They surrounded him, but no one approached Gi-Gyu since his summoned had formed a circle around him, protecting him.

“Should we kill him?” Choi Chang-Yong mumbled. He still hadn’t recovered from the shock of what had just happened. Had the perpetrator of the last event been a powerful monster, they could have come to terms with it. However, the one responsible for that impossibly gruesome event was…

“Kim Gi-Gyu! Is he even human? Maybe he’s a demon… But that can’t be.” Choi Chang-Yong smirked. None of the demons he knew were this strong. None of them could have crushed Botis like a piece of paper.

Sung-Hoon glared at Choi Chang-Yong and declared, “He’s definitely human.”

“Gosh, there is no need to look at me like that… This is so frustrating,” murmured Choi Chang-Yong.

Lee Bum-Jun, who was dazed till a moment ago, finally looked up and announced, “We have to leave this gate as soon as possible. Our guild master is in grave condition.”

Tao Chen stated hesitantly, “I agree with the guild master of the Blue Dragon Guild. About Ranker Kim Gi-Gyu… Are you certain he’s human? I just can’t understand what happened here.”

Tao Chen had been nothing but friendly to Gi-Gyu the entire time, but the last event even made him uncomfortable. Unfortunately, most players were feeling the same way. They were all scared by the alarming and vicious power Gi-Gyu showed earlier, leaving them trembling. And all that happened after he stabbed himself.

Tao Chen asked Michael, “Michael, what do you think?”

Other than Gi-Gyu, Michael was the strongest player in the party.

Michael didn’t reply, seemingly confused as well.

The confusing situation dictated that someone had to try something. So, someone rose slowly.

“Grandmother!” Shin Yoo-Bin shouted as Lim Hye-Sook, the Gypsophila Guild advisor, stood up. She was a retired high ranker and an acquaintance of Oh Tae-Gu. Despite Shin Yoo-Bin’s protest, Lim Hye-Sook approached Hart and asked, “May I have a look at him?”

Hart contemplated before nodding. “I don’t feel any hostility from you. But the Grandmaster…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll only look and nothing more,” promised Lim Hye-Sook. After getting permission from Hart, she walked to Gi-Gyu. Like Oh Tae-Gu, her steps were filled with vigor and confidence despite her advanced age.

“Hmm…” Lim Hye-Sook crouched beside Gi-Gyu and examined his body. Hal and the rest of Gi-Gyu’s creatures tensed, but nothing happened. Lim Hye-Sook touched him with her hands gently. The stab wound had already healed, his breathing was normal, and even his heart was beating well. The most likely reason for his unconsciousness was the mental shock.

Lim Hye-Sook ordered, “Bring me that woman.”

The other players’ eyes widened in confusion, but Gi-Gyu’s creatures nodded. Hart glanced at Hamiel, who nodded and brought El, the sword.

“His shell is shattered. Why would he go through with such a dangerous process? Tsk,” Lim Hye-Sook muttered.

Hamiel asked, “His shell is shattered?”

“That’s right. The balance is gone, and so are the boundaries. It makes sense since such destructive energy swallowed him. It’s a miracle he’s still breathing,” Lim Hye-Sook answered with a smile. “At this rate, your master will die.”

A heavy silence fell among Gi-Gyu’s creatures. If their grandmaster didn’t wake up, what would they do?

“How about this? I have a solution, so will you let me try it? Can you trust me?” Lim Hye-Sook’s voice turned playful, but her eyes remained serious. The gravity in her eyes was enough to make some shudder.

When no one answered, Lim Hye-Sook announced, “Well, you guys can think about it for a moment. Meanwhile, I need you two over here.”

Lim Hye-Sook pointed at Sung-Hoon and Michael. The two players hesitated before walking up to the elderly woman.

Lim Hye-Sook first turned toward Sung-Hoon and asked, “You’re the one Oh Tae-Gu assigned to spy on this man, aren’t you?”

Sung-Hoon jolted before nodding. “That was the case initially, but I’m just Ranker Kim Gi-Gyu’s colleague now.”

“What does that matter?” Lim Hye-Sook chuckled.

Then…

-Is this man Kim Se-Jin’s[1] son?

Only Sung-Hoon could hear this question in his head; his eyes widened in shock. Lim Hye-Sook’s voice sounded so much younger and crisp in his head.

1. Kim Gi-Gyu dad’s name was Kim Gi-Yeul in Ch 124, and the publisher had confirmed that the name should be Kim Se-Jin. The previous instance in Ch 124 has also been updated. ☜