At close range, the physique of the blue tiger was much bigger than the toothless tiger. Grid, who was 183 centimeters tall, had to tilt his head back completely to get a glimpse of the âkingâ character on the blue tigerâs forehead.
Nevertheless, Grid wasnât overwhelmed by the blue tiger and was fascinated.
The blue tiger was beautiful.
The blue fur that shone with a white light seemed to make the jewels embedded in Gridâs crown seem frivolous. The iconic black tiger stripes, which gave off a complex sense of aesthetics that couldnât be reproduced with Gridâs hand technique, blended with the blue fur.
âPagma!â
The blue tiger suddenly arrived in front of Grid and stretched out his arms.
All the twitching majestic muscles and the blue fur was menacing.
However, Grid didnât swing his sword.
The blue petals of sword energy fluttering with the falling leaves lost their purpose and dispersed.
Against the beautiful backdrop, Grid stared into the blue tigerâs eyes.
They were familiar eyes.
Khan had always greeted him with such eyes when he reunited with Khan after a few months.
There was longing and joy in the blue tigerâs eyes, who had watched the mountain and rivers change dozens, hundreds, of times.
âPagma!â
The distance narrowed as the blue tiger jumped and hugged Grid.
Grid almost collapsed from the weight of the blue tiger but he used all his strength to keep standing. He waited until the blue tiger finishing rubbing against his cheeks.
âPagma! Youâre alive!!â
The blue tiger cried.
The black eyes, which usually held the depths of time, were teary and the pink nose was runny.
The shoulders that were three times wider than Gridâs shoulders were trembling.
Then after a moment...
âSniff sniff! Sniff sniff? Hyaaack!
â
The blue tiger that was crying, biting, breathing in, and rubbing against Grid suddenly became frightened.
He had belatedly noticed...
âY-You! You arenât Pagma!
Aheung!
â
â...Iâm afraid you canât threaten me with those eyes now.â
Grid hurriedly stood back on his feet and stared at the now roaring blue tiger. Scars that couldnât be seen from up close covered the blue tigerâs body.
They were one-sided scarsâdeep wounds that wouldnât be erased for the rest of the blue tigerâs life.
The blue tigerâs shoulders slumped.
âReally... you really arenât Pagma.â
It was natural to think this person was Pagma.
Unlike the other yangbans who acted harshly and in a vulgar manner, Pagma showed a quiet dancing posture. This temporarily overlapped with the person in front of the blue tiger.
However, this human in front of him wasnât Pagma.
The blue tiger couldnât distinguish between human appearances but he quickly noticed it.
He remembered it vividlyâPagmaâs sweet voice and the warm sunshine-like smell as Pagma reached out to him, who was crying in a cage. The blue tiger had been longing for it for hundreds of years.
âHuman, why do you have Pagmaâs dances?â the snarling blue tiger finally asked a question.
âI inherited the skills that Pagma left behind after his death,â Grid answered honestly. Lies were a deception rather than a consolation.
â
Aheung...
I see. Pagma is dead.â
Surprisingly, the blue tiger didnât seem shocked.
He reacted calmly like he heard news he already expected.
Nevertheless, he couldnât conceal his rising sorrow.
His round face that was unlike his burly physique trembled.
âS-Shall we return to our cave?â
âY-Yes,
aheung
. We should go and eat garlic.â
The atmosphere turned strange and the toothless tigers started to retreat. They were afraid of the blue tiger because of their experience of having their teeth removed.
The blue tigerâs ears pricked and he called out to them, â
Aheung!
Garlic? How can you chew on garlic when youâre missing teeth?â
The blue tigerâs eyes widened and the cuteness immediately disappeared from his face. The majesty of a king that he showed when he first appeared returned and even Grid was on edge.
The tigers were deadly pale.
â
H-Hiccup!
D-Dentures! We chew with dentures!â
âDentures?â
The blue tiger was distracted by Grid and only belatedly discovered the tigersâ teeth.
â
Aheung!
Where did you get dentures from?â
â
U-Uh
, a human! He gave it to us out of pity,
aheung!
â
â...!â
The blue tiger was very surprised.
He had full control of the Bukdu Mountain area and could easily detect any visitors.
He had no idea someone had appeared and gave the tigers dentures.
There was only one human who could deceive the blue tigerâs senses.
â
Aheung
. Was the human perhaps in a bamboo hat?â
âT-Thatâs correct. He was carrying a large bundle but there was nothing inside,
aheung
.â
âThat idiot Hwang Gildong...â
âHwang Gildong!â
Years ago, Kraugel had revealed the identity of the big hero who saved Pangea from a crisis.
Grid focused on the tigersâ conversation.
âTake them out.
Aheung
.â
âWhat do you mean?â
âDentures, confiscate.
Aheung
.â
â......â
The blue tiger took away the dentures of all 10 tigers.
Thanks to this, the tigers became toothless tigers and scattered in a depressed manner.
Grid watched this scene and asked, âWhy is removing the tigerâs teeth related to garlic?â
Maybe it was because he was Pagmaâs Descendant, the blue tiger willingly answered Gridâs question, âTo be exact, it is mugwort and garlic. Around 10 years ago, a wicked daoist sprinkled mugwort and garlic around Bukdu Mountain and ran away. I pulled out the tigerâs teeth so they wouldnât eat them.
Aheung
.â
âMugwort and garlic?â Grid asked as he recalled a story that every Korean would know.  [1]
âWill they turn into humans if they eat it for 100 days?â
â
Aheung
. No. If they eat it for 10 years, they will become daoist immortals.â
âD-Daoist immortals? What? Daoist immortals are artificially made?â
âIt is a story that applies only to spiritual beings. For humans to become daoist immortals, they have to train steadily and rise.â
Gridâs head became more complicated with the new information.
âI heard that the evil daoist turned the animals around Pangea into ferocious monsters. Then why is he trying to make daoist immortals? Arenât daoist immortals good? Why would the evil daoist that harmed so many people be trying to make daoist immortals...?â
There were two evil daoists.
One was the unidentified figure who was beaten by the great hero, Hwang Gildong.
He was the one who turned the wild animals around Pangea into monsters and sprinkled mugwort and garlic over Bukdu Mountain.
The other person, Arube, was the one who hid in Pangea Castleâs underground dungeon.
Arube was an evil daoist who had the desire to take control of Pangea.
Grid had believed the unknown daoist to be a mercenary hired by Arube.
Now it seemed that wasnât the case.
The unidentified daoist was aiming for a bigger picture and Arube was likely to be the puppet used in the process.
The blue tiger revealed a shocking fact.
âIt is true that daoist immortals are good beings. However, daoist immortals will become dependent on the society of gods, regardless of whether they are human or spiritual creatures. They are always exposed to the godsâ sight and find it hard to disobey the godsâ will.
Aheung
. In particular, spiritual beings often have less intelligence than humans and canât disobey the gods.â
â...Then a daoist immortal being good is meaningless unless the god who commands them is also good?â
âThatâs right.
Aheung
. Incidentally, it so happens that the gods arenât very good.â
Grid knew this as well.
In particular, the gods of the East Continent were yangbans who treated humans as dogs.
At least, from a human point of view, they couldnât be considered good.
â
Aheung
. The identity of the evil daoist must be a minion of the Hwan Kingdom. There mustâve been a plan to turn wild animals into monsters to block people from accessing this area, allowing the tigers to become daoist immortals under the command of the gods.â
It was the right guess.
The gods of the East Continent wanted revenge on the gods of the West Continent and had to grow their army.
It seemed clear that they intended to cultivate daoist immortals and make an army.
However, there was something strange...
âDidnât the evil daoist steal the Red Phoenix Bow...?â
The weapons of the sacred creatures on the East Continent, including the Red Phoenix Bow, were a type of barrier that blocked the emergence of great demons.
One of the reasons why the yangbans were revered as gods was due to this barrier.
The loss of the Red Phoenix Bow was a severe blow to the deification of the yangbans. They should be obsessed with the weapons of the sacred creatures.
Then why did the servant of the Hwan Kingdom steal the Red Phoenix Bow?
It was misleading.
The blue tiger shook his head.
â
Aheung?
I stole the Red Phoenix Bow.â
â...!â
âIt seems that after the Red Phoenix Bow suddenly disappeared, the panicked people thought an evil daoist did it.â
The blue tiger rummaged around his voluminous belly and pulled out an orange bow that was like blazing fire.
It was a large longbow but it looked like nothing in the big hand of the blue tiger.
âT-The Red Phoenix Bow!â
Grid was astonished when he peeked at the bowâs information using Pagmaâs Eyes.
The Red Phoenix Bow was found in this place?
The blue tiger stared at the dumbfounded Grid and asked, âHuman, Pagma rescued me when I was captured and abused by the yangban. Then he crossed the Red Sea.
Aheung
. Honestly, I thought Pagma wouldâve died in the Red Sea. Yet Pagma crossed the Red Sea and arrived on the West Continent?â
âYes.â
âThere... how did Pagma live? Was he ridiculed by people for melting iron in fire and hitting it with a hammer?â
âPagma...â
There was a lot to say about Pagma.
He was a traitor to someone and a villain to someone else.
However, he was also a hero.
âPagma was revered by many. He also saved the world.â
âI... see.â
The blue tigerâs eyes filled with tears.
His figure was so sad and adorable that Grid hurriedly summoned Noe.
It was due to a strange anxiety that Noeâs position as the cutest was likely to weaken.
â
Nyahahat!
Hellâs best demonic beast is heâŠ
nyaaaang!
â
Noe, who appeared with his short limbs wide open, felt his hair rise and he hid behind Grid.
Considering that the only ones Noe had been scared of so far were great demons and dragons, it meant that the descendant of a sacred creature, the blue tiger, was no less than them.
â
Ah
, I didnât expect you to be so surprised.â
Grid stroked the Noeâs small head as Noe trembled in his arms.
Then the blue tiger asked a new question, âWhy did you cross to the East Continent?
Aheung
.â
His eyes were glued on Noe but Grid didnât know the reason.
Grid answered honestly, âIn order to become stronger. Become strong enough to kill Garam.â
He couldnât forget itâthe wicked man who called all the blacksmiths of the West Continent to Pangea just for the sake of catching Grid.
Such a fellow was aiming for him.
Grid had to get rid of Garam.
He would be killed if he didnât get rid of Garam.
He would really be crushed.
â...It looks similar.â
The blue tiger was filled with emotions when he read the willpower in Gridâs eyes.
The blue tiger recalled the old image of Pagma, who had always remained strong and shouted that he would return to his country. He couldnât help wondering if it was Pagma who sent Grid.
After some contemplation, he handed the Red Phoenix Bow to Grid.
âHumans think that making a barrier out of the weapons of the sacred creatures is to prevent the great demons from invading. The truth is that it is a barrier to block all sides. If you release the seal on the weapons of the four sacred creatures then they will give you the strength to confront the yangbans...
Aheung!
â
[The myth grade âRed Phoenix Bow where the Spirit of a Sacred Creature Residesâ has been acquired!]
A mythical item with the power of the gods.
Grid was feeling confused about receiving the Red Phoenix Bow with no strings attached when the blue tiger roared.
Then there was an unforgettable voice.
â
Hahahat
, welcomed faces are gathered side by side.â
Long black hair and blue robes fluttered in the wind.
The man who appeared in the sky exuded the energy of the blue dragon and shook the forest. He was a familiar face to Grid.
âGaram!â
âR-Run, Overgeared King...â
There was a hunchback with a strange appearance.
Nobuldam, who inspected players coming from the West Continent in Pangea, barely spoke before he turned to ash.
Garam held Nobuldamâs neck with one hand and broke his neck.
Garam shook off the blood on his hand like it was dirty and laughed.
âGrid, my eyes encompass the sky and earth and there is no place in the north, east, west, and north that they donât cover. Your death was inevitable the moment you crossed the Red Sea. Maybe it was due to his connection to Han Seokbong but he was trying to help you. The Cho Kingdom, who failed to guide him down the right path, will perish in the near future.â
âYou bastard!â
Grid activated Lightning Speed attached to the Blue Dragon Boots.
âThe power of the blue dragon?â
Garam frowned and Grid was about to use Blacksmith's Rage, Blackening, and Quick Movements.
However, the blue tiger was faster.
âPagma's Descendant, unseal the Red Phoenix Bow first.â
The blue tiger caught Gridâs ankle and threw Grid into the middle of the forest.
â
Ugh...!
â
A terrifying strength.
Unlike what he wanted, Grid flew hundreds of meters away into the middle of the forest.
In the distance, the blue tiger and Garam were engaged in battle.
The toothless tigers came and pushed him.
âI will repay you for the rice cake you gave!â
âW-What? Wait!â
Grid was nowhere to be seen.
The place where the blue tiger had thrown Grid was reminiscent of a stone ruin. Then the moment the tigers pushed Grid to a certain place there, Grid suddenly warped to a new location.
[1] The story of Ungnyeo, a bear who transformed into a woman after eating only garlic and mugwort for 100 days.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ungnyeo
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