Chapter 165

When it came to combat in a dream, people often said that one’s imagination was the determining factor; but that wasn’t true. Regardless of how much power one’s imagination bestowed on someone or something, it was still ultimately an illusion. Without the experience to firmly support it, it could easily be shaken or swallowed by another illusion.

So since someone by his side had that experience, there was zero reason for Se-Hoon to fight the enemies with complicated plans. Instead, he just assisted Jin-Hyun in recalling his past experiences and completing a dream transformation.

Rumble-

And the result of that was the Jin-Hyun’s current state.

“...”

The four mentors broke out into a cold sweat and froze, seeing Jin-Hyun’s familiar past self towering before them. They had all completely forgotten that they were in a dream. After all, even after decades had passed, every single feature of his was still vivid to them, from his gaze and stance to the waves of mana emanating from him.

Their memories of how they sincerely believed in and followed him in their youth resurfaced, though he could see the contempt and envy currently in their eyes.

Right now, all the mentors could do was look at him with wavering eyes.

“My hand feels... empty.”

Looking down at his blood-soaked hands, Jin-Hyun clenched and unclenched them. After a few times, he looked at Se-Hoon.

“Can you recreate a weapon for me?”

“Since we’re still in a dream, you can create one yourself. You just need to imagine its rough shape.”

“Hmm...”

Taking Se-Hoon’s advice, Jin-Hyun visualized his weapon and lightly swung his hand toward the air.

Thwack-

He naturally caught the red spear that appeared like someone had thrown it at him. Jin-Hyun curiously observed it. It was indeed Sun Shooter, the spear he once used like a part of his body.

“This looks the same as I remembered.”

Satisfied, he lightly spun the spear. And when its tip drew a circle, a wave of mana was shot toward the edge of the clearing. Timed perfectly, the moment that wave reached the forest, the tip of Sun Shooter scraped the ground and sparked a flame.

Boom!

Their surroundings were dyed red by the deafening explosion and resulting massive wall of fire. Jin-Hyun, who had casually instantly incinerated the monsters surrounding them, examined his work.

“Okay, they’re all cleaned up.”

Nobody was left besides the four mentors, who had survived by a hair’s breadth, and Makif, who lay on the ground with his limbs severed.

In an instant, the situation which had been in their favor had reversed, leaving Kwon Jang-Woon bewildered staring at the burning forest.

So this... is an S-rank...

It was a level of strength he couldn’t even glimpse through the Synesthetic Mindscape Projection Device. Clutching their spears, the throats of the mentors all grew dry upon seeing the overwhelming power that they couldn’t even dream of surpassing.

At that moment, Jin-Hyun called out to all of them.

“Kwon Jang-Woon.”

“...Yes.”

“Lee Baek-In.”

Mentor Lee Baek-In, who stood next to Kwon Jang-woon, stiffened.

“Kim An-Jin.”

“...”

“An Sung-Cheol.”

They were all once comrades of Jin-Hyun, people who had fought together and were taught the Inferno Ring by him. Though they were currently in a pathetic state, for a moment, they felt like they had returned to the past as they silently watched their old teacher.

Unfortunately, everything had already fallen apart. It was too late; they couldn’t amend the situation with just a few words. And Jin-Hyun knew that as well.

“You guys said you reached enlightenment.”

Gazing at the tip of his spear, Jin-Hyun, who had kept Sun Shooter lowered toward the ground, raised it until he met the mentor’s eyes.

“Show me.”

At his brief command, the mentors furrowed their brows and clutched their spears, drawing out their full strength.

Crack, snap!

Imagining their image of themselves, which was further corrupted by the Synesthetic Mindscape Projection Device, they turned completely into demons. Their muscles had grotesquely swollen, and flames sprouted all over their bodies.

Quietly observing them, Jin-Hyun called out to his young disciple who was watching in a daze.

“Sung-Ha.”

“Y—Yes, sir!”

Startled by Jin-Hyun’s call, Sung-Ha had inadvertently answered in a dazed voice. He still couldn’t fathom that his master in his prime had appeared before him; it was something he had only heard about in stories.

Jin-Hyun brimming with power was too surreal.

“This may be the only time I get to show you... so watch closely.”

Having realized this was an opportunity to show what he couldn't before, Jin-Hyun summoned his past strength and lightly spun Sun Shooter.

“This is what you call the

true

Inferno Ring.”

Whoosh!

Flames trailed behind the spinning spear tip, forming a giant ring of flames with multiple layers around Jin-Hyun.

The ring of flames, created by condensing countless sparks, swirled and gathered at the tip of Sun Shooter before coiling up Jin-Hyun's entire right arm. Sun Shooter, now heated by the flames and transformed into a burning comet, displayed its fearsome power.

Ready, Jin-Hyun faced the mentors who had summoned all their mana and had begun to charge. Their human reason had vanished entirely, leaving only murderous intent and survival instinct. Seeing their utterly deteriorated states, Jin-Hyun gripped the spear shaft so tightly that it seemed to be on the verge of shattering.

Inferno Ring, Ultimate Move: Scorching Heaven

He thrust the red spear, burning fiercely like the sun, straight ahead.

Woosh-

Neither the fully reinforced spears nor the bodies of the demonized mentors could withstand the force of Sun Shooter—everything turned into ash. Yet Sun Shooter continued its course, reaching far toward a distant mountain.

BOOOOM!

A gigantic pillar of fire erupted, scorching even the sky; the belated roar and terrifying heatwave arrived a moment later.

Rumble-

Gazing at the pillar of fire that burned the huge mountain like kindling, Sung-Ha’s jaws dropped.

The pure strength and skill contained in the attack were both overwhelmingly superior to even anything he could imagine possibly mustering.

This is... the Flame Demon, Yeom Jin-Hyun.

His master’s prime, forgotten by all but certainly existent, was now an unforgettable sight for Sung-Ha.

Fwoosh-

Turning to his master, Sung-Ha watched as dream flames began to sprout all over Jin-Hyun's body. Sun Shooter had disappeared, and the Flame Demon was reverting to his original state. Startled, Sung-Ha hurried to his master's side to support him.

“Master...!”

“It’s alright. I’m just returning to what I am...”

Calming Sung-Ha, Jin-Hyun turned his head toward him.

“Did you etch it in your memory?”

“...Yes.”

“Good. Now don’t forget it.”

Tired, Jin-Hyun leaned on Sung-Ha, his body now fully returned to its original state.

Fwoosh-

With Jin-Hyun’s reversion, the flames burning the forest also began to subside, and the chaos gradually came to an end.

Have all the stupid mentors died? If so, I can now choose the best option of escaping alone.

Realizing everything had ended, Makif, who had been lying limp like a corpse, closed his eyes and assessed the situation.

Jin-Hyun had reverted to his original form, but he wasn’t sure what would happen if that guy, Se-Hoon, intervened again.

Since that was the case, Makif began his quick getaway. However...

“Where do you think you're going?”

Thud!

He was stopped by Se-Hoon’s hand piercing through his back.

Crunch!

“

Ugh...

!”

Twisting his hand, Se-Hoon clutched Makif’s heart, and at that moment, the entire dream they were in began to shake.

Rumble!

The dark sky turned to daylight, and the forest and clearing transformed into a bustling city street. In the blink of an eye, the surroundings completely changed. Stunned into silence, Makif even forgot the pain coming from his heart.

Did he reverse the spell by force and take control...? What kind of brutish method is this?

The act of reversing the spell itself was exceedingly crude, meaning stabilizing his control afterward should have been incredibly difficult. It was extremely aggressive and inefficient, yet his opponent had somehow succeeded effortlessly.

Something... something has seriously gone wrong...

Realizing that the current situation and the investigation results about Se-Hoon were beyond his expectations, Makif tried to muster his dream mana to escape.

“Hey.”

Again, however, he was stopped by Se-Hoon, who had swiftly dug his hand deeper into Makif’s body and grasped his mana source.

Crunch!

Using dream transformation, Se-Hoon once again blocked Makif’s spellcasting by making him writhe in pain and scream in agony. Unlike how Makif neatly transformed things into butterflies before in the car, the madman behind him was transforming everything he could into pure pain and stuffing it directly into him.

How... is he pulling... off something like this? Gah-

Just how accustomed to pain must he be to recreate it so easily? Realizing his opponent was no ordinary lunatic, Makif hastily tried to end his agony by speaking.

“Stop... no more...”

“Yeah, yeah. I don’t want to waste more energy on you either, so let’s get straight to the point.”

Looking down at Makif, Se-Hoon activated Ethereal Vision and began his questioning.

“What did the Pleasure District commission from the Barmuth family?”

“That...”

Seeing Makif hesitate, Se-Hoon squeezed his heart again.

“

Urgh...

!”

The pain from reversing his blood flow filled Makif’s head instantly, dimming his consciousness and making his vision go white.

𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Crunch.

But when his heart was squeezed again, his consciousness instantly snapped back.

Se-Hoon looked down at him and coldly declared, “Next time, I’ll reverse your blood flow for ten minutes.”

In reality, he would die from that, but they were in a dream. Terrified by Se-Hoon’s threat, Makif’s eyes trembled and he bit his lip.

Giving in, he hurriedly answered, “Expansion! They’re commissioning the Expansion project!”

“Expansion project?”

“Yes. It’s a project to expand the entire Pleasure District. They outsourced some of it to the Barmuths.”

The explanation fascinated Se-Hoon.

An expansion at this time... how unexpected.

Even the Pleasure District, an illusory city built on the boundary of dreams and reality, couldn’t expand without the proper materials. Se-Hoon remembered several attempts to expand the Pleasure District before the regression, but they had all been much later.

The Mirror of Demons was for material acquisition, then.

The best material for the Dream Demon to expand with was living beings with demonic auras inside them. More specifically, it was their dreams. And since the Mirror of Demons increased demons, it wasn’t hard to connect the dots.

But demons are known to be inefficient compared to their usefulness in battle, so they usually used monsters back then.... What's going on?

Did they have an urgent reason to expand? Putting aside his questions for now, Se-Hoon continued the interrogation and asked, “Is there any other project the Pleasure District is preparing besides the Expansion?”

“I... I don’t know... I was quickly selected as a district chief just for the expansion...”

“I’m already aware of that, seeing as how you were assigned to a two-digit district. What I’m asking is if you noticed anything unusual.”

Looking down at the intimidated Makif, Se-Hoon changed his approach and became more gentle.

“As a district chief, you must have seen or heard

something

. What do you think is happening?”

“...”

“Think carefully. Depending on the situation, you and I could be on good terms for now.”

Feeling hope, Makif bit his lip and thought deeply.

Then, upon recalling something, he cautiously said, “Come to think of it, the supply of hero prosthetics on the market suddenly increased one day.”

“Hero prosthetics?”

“Yes. They seemed to have been imported from outside and supplied to the upper districts, but I don’t know where they’re used—”

Makif’s words suddenly cut off, and an ominous force began to stir within him. The swelling power, which was thicker and more alien than usual dream mana, belonged to the Dream Demon who bestowed it upon him when he became a district chief. It seemed she realized the situation.

“Tsk.”

Se-Hoon swiftly pulled his hand out.

Crunch!

Along with his hand, Se-Hoon had extracted the power of the Dream Demon from Makif, causing the swelling force to recoil in surprise. But Se-Hoon wasn’t one to give a chance to act; he immediately summoned his Dream Flame and incinerated it cleanly.

Fwoosh!

Most would have reacted too slowly, giving the Dream Demon a chance to pull a trick. However, Se-Hoon had been watching from the start with Ethereal Vision, so he could respond immediately.

This one’s... done for.

Makif’s expression, which had been normal until a moment ago, turned blank. From how he looked like his soul had been drained, it seemed that he was deeply connected to the power of the Dream Demon.

Well, it can’t be helped.

He had achieved his primary goal, so Se-Hoon promptly incinerated Makif’s body with his Dream Flame.

Fwoosh!

Engulfed in violet flames, Makif turned to ash and vanished. With the caster of the dream spell gone, the dream began to shake.

Se-Hoon could maintain it a bit longer if he wished, but there was no reason to.

He immediately approached Jin-Hyun and Sung-Ha.

“We’re going back to reality now, so stay calm, okay?”

“Got it.”

Answering in place of the exhausted Jin-Hyun, Sung-Ha watched the roads split and reveal an overt display of violet energy.

They all now knew they were in a dream, so the boundary collapsed.

Whoosh!

Their surroundings reverted to the backseat of the car.

“Phew...”

Se-Hoon, the first to recover, looked to his side.

The dream mana flowing from Jin-Hyun’s body had completely disappeared, and fortunately, he seemed to have no physical illness.

It should take a little longer for them to wake up.

Confirming that there were no problems with the two, Se-Hoon opened the backseat door and stepped outside.

“...Wow.”

There weren’t any traces of the original road. Except for the spot where the car was, there was no sign of asphalt, and the surroundings were thoroughly ravaged. The smell of blood wafted through the air.

Looks like he used Celestial Night.

He could see the distinct marks carved on the ground that indicated a downpour of sword aura. If he had used that, there had to be a few A-ranks, if not S-ranks, among the demons that ambushed them.

Scanning the traces of the battle, his eyes naturally looked toward the front of the car.

“...”

There, Kwang-Soo sat on the car bonnet with a long wooden box on his lap. And a beat later, he sensed Se-Hoon’s presence and turned his head to look at him.

But after just a glance, Kwang-Soo furrowed his brows and looked forward again.

“You know, I’m going to start charging you for security personality fees from now on.”

His grumbling contained a hint of discontent.