I Became the Successor of the Martial God
Chapter 40.
<The Great Invasion> Event.
Literally, a great invasion occurs.
Where? Seoul.
By whom? Beings from another world.
The so-called ‘Demons.’
‘What was sealed in that altar was an artifact.’
An artifact that creates a passage connecting to another world—in other words, a gate.
It was known as the Demon God’s Jar (마신로).
An artifact that summons demons from another world into this one.
‘It was something that people once tried to destroy, but no matter what they did, they couldn’t break it, so they sealed it instead.’
The problem is that over time, the fact that such an artifact even existed was forgotten.
The administrators disappeared, and it was left abandoned on a remote island for a long time before sinking into the sea.
It was the Treasure Hunters who found it.
“This is one of those damned ‘no-win scenario’ events…”
Why stand by and watch the Treasure Hunters take such a dangerous artifact?
Because unnecessary interference would only complicate things further.
At this point in the story, no protagonist— Newbie or veteran—can conquer that dungeon.
‘Whether you’re a veteran or not, it’s impossible.’
The monsters have been strengthened.
Due to the weakening seal, the artifact was leaking demonic energy, which made the surrounding monsters stronger.
‘Add to that the unfamiliar environment of the open sea.’
The monsters guarding the ruins are aquatic monsters. In their home territory, they go completely berserk.
‘The only way to undo that strengthening is to use the artifact in possession of the Treasure Hunters…’
But that means finding the Treasure Hunters’ headquarters. Because their Guild leader has it.
The problem is that this guild’s location changes every time. Finding it would take quite a while.
“This really is a no-win scenario.”
Normally, by that time, the artifact’s seal would be completely undone.
Then, the monsters nearby would also be corrupted by the demonic energy and go berserk.
The entire Pacific Ocean would become a monster den.
“Honestly… letting Seoul burn is the better option. That’s my conclusion.”
And besides, calling it a ‘sea of flames’ is mostly just a metaphor.
If the situation is isolated to just Seoul, there are actually quite a few ways to respond.
‘And those guys who took the artifact? They’re sticking around Seoul for the rest of the month.’
We’ll have to strike before they leave.
Vroom!
Inside the helicopter heading back to the family estate, Yoo Baek-jun pondered what lay ahead.
* * *
After returning to the family estate, Yoo Baek-jun decided to spend the remaining time before the meeting on training.
—Huff, pant, huff!
He either ran laps around the training grounds to build stamina or climbed Seoraksan Mountain with Seol-yeong.
“Young Master, your focus is remarkable. I never expected you to maintain your mental discipline for over half a day.”
He devoted himself to self-improvement, such as accumulating magical power.
With B-rank stats, there’s a limit to what he could do. He wanted to reach at least B+ rank.
“Guh-huhk!”
“Ugh… ugh…”
What took up most of Yoo Baek-jun’s training time was sparring.
The Book of the Martial God frequently gave sparring quests, and there was another reason too.
“Youngest Master, may I request a spar?”
“Can we join as well?”
Whenever he stayed in the training grounds, disciples kept flocking to him, asking for matches.
—I heard he defeated Instructor Han Seong-ah.
—They say he uses spear techniques too, not just martial arts. Should we call him the prodigy of the Sword Saint family?
—Sparring with him would be a valuable experience. Should I request a match…?
He defeated Yoo Kang-ho.
Among the direct descendants, he closed the hardest gate and returned the fastest.
And he even beat Han Seong-ah.
Many wanted to personally experience just how strong Yoo Baek-jun was.
“Sure, why not?”
Yoo Baek-jun readily agreed.
He had to keep sparring to complete quests anyway. This worked out perfectly.
Clang! Crash!
Wham!
“Guhhh!”
Taking down one disciple wasn’t too difficult.
But the number waiting was overwhelming.
Yoo Baek-jun hesitated for a moment.
‘No choice.’
At this rate, he’d spend the whole day sparring. So he decided on another approach.
“Come at me all at once.”
“All at once? Youngest Master, even for you, that’s a bit too much…”
“You’re hesitating because you know you’ll lose.”
“Ugh…!”
His provocative tone made the disciples’ expressions stiffen.
The gathered disciples exchanged glances.
Five of them stepped forward.
“…Will this be enough?”
“Two more.”
Two more disciples joined, making it seven in total.
The disciples’ faces were tense.
“Those disciples look pissed.”
“Can you blame them? Telling them to gang up on him is basically saying they can’t win even seven against one. It’s a huge blow to their pride.”
Choi Seung-min and Han Seong-ah watched the match.
If she were in their position, her pride would’ve been hurt too.
But,
“The Young Master will win.”
Han Seong-ah answered with complete confidence.
And just as she predicted—
“Urk!”
“Kuh-huk!”
The moment the match began, Yoo Baek-jun closed the distance using Lightness technique and Swift steps.
A precise punch to one disciple’s jaw.
A Gale kick to another, instantly taking down two.
“So fast—!”
The remaining disciples rushed him.
Yoo Baek-jun immediately swept the ground with a Ground kick, kicking up dust to obscure their vision.
The disciples faltered.
Thud!
A wooden spear struck one in the abdomen.
The dull impact sent the disciple crumpling, clutching his stomach.
Yoo Baek-jun burst through the dust, snatched the spear mid-air, and unleashed a flurry of strikes.
“Argh—!”
That was the last one.
His rapid spear techniques precisely targeted vital points, incapacitating them all.
Yoo Baek-jun tossed the spear aside.
“To take down seven so easily…”
The onlookers were stunned.
It was like watching Yoo Tae-rang in his prime—the prodigy praised since childhood.
He still couldn’t match that level, but at least he seemed on par with the direct descendants of other families.
“Hmm.”
Yoo Baek-jun also sensed the gazes around him.
Leaving an impression on the family members like this wasn’t a bad idea.
He didn’t stop there and engaged in conversations about martial arts with the disciples who had sparred with him.
“Your earlier movements weren’t bad. The only thing lacking was…”
“I see… That helps.”
In this way, he repeated sparring sessions, built relationships with the disciples, and completed several quests.
A week passed like that.
[Yoo Baek-jun]
Strength: B+ (2/100)
Agility: B+ (1/100)
Stamina: B+ (1/100)
Magic Power: B+ (39/100)
[Unique Ability: The Book of the Martial God (EX, 3★)]
[Traits: Heavenly Martial Body (S), Energizer (C), One Invited to the Spirit Realm (C), Master of the Extreme Cold (A)]
Finally, all his stats had reached B+ rank.
Yoo Baek-jun moved his body lightly. Compared to when he was F-rank, his body felt incredibly
light. And the overflowing vitality on top of that.
‘So this is why people keep talking about Hunters, Hunters…’
Yoo Baek-jun opened the Book of the Martial God.
Should he learn a skill, or should he learn a trait? There were so many things he wanted to learn that it made the decision harder.
Then, something suddenly occurred to him.
‘…Why not just do both?’
What did he need most right now?
A skill related to martial arts? Sure, that’d be nice. He also knew of plenty of useful traits in that category.
But there was something even more urgent.
“It’s embarrassing to say it out loud, but… charisma.”
A supernatural power to captivate others and, at times, force them into submission.
If he wanted to suppress Yoo Tae-rang and become the head of the Sword Saint family, this was an ability he absolutely needed.
‘Actually, Yoo Tae-rang has a related trait, doesn’t he?’
The reason he became a strong successor was precisely because he possessed a charisma that set him apart from others.
That was what he needed right now.
“Something related to charisma that allows me to learn both a trait and a skill at the same time.”
There was one.
Yoo Baek-jun opened the Book of the Martial God and searched through the A-rank traits.
Only one stood out.
[King’s Dignity (A)]
―An innate talent for ruling people. Easily gains favor and always commands respect.
―Boosts morale and enhances the abilities of allies who follow you, while instilling a sense of intimidation in enemies.
It was a trait that provided an area-of-effect buff to allies. The intimidation effect couldn’t exactly be called a debuff, but it was still useful.
Moreover, since it was a trait, it had the advantage of being a passive that was always active.
“This trait belongs to that bastard…”
Sooner or later, whether he liked it or not, he would have to face that guy.
He was the one leading one of the most notorious villain organizations in the world, and this was his trait.
Yoo Baek-jun learned King’s Dignity.
[You have spent 1,500P to acquire King’s Dignity (A). Due to the trait’s effect, an additional skill has been acquired…]
[You have learned Overwhelm (A).]
Overwhelm.
Yoo Baek-jun checked the skill’s effect.
[Overwhelm (A)]
―Overpowers the opponent with innate charisma. Instills a stronger sense of intimidation, weakening the enemy’s abilities.
Overwhelm was a skill without proficiency.
Instead, its rank increased as the trait’s rank increased. The problem was that raising the rank of an A-rank trait was ridiculously difficult.
‘For buffs, there’s Berserker, and for debuffs, there’s Overwhelm. Well, this should be enough…’
He now had the foundation to stand his ground against enemies stronger than him.
Yoo Baek-jun closed the Book of the Martial God.
“The meeting is tomorrow, right?”
It was the day when heirs of renowned guilds and prestigious families in Korea would gather for a specific agenda.
Jin Seo-yeon probably wouldn’t come. But other named characters would attend.
One of them.
‘Ryu Il-woo.’
Yoo Baek-jun fell into brief thought.
He was the young guild master of a flashily named guild called Crimson Crusade.
He had inherited the guild from his mother not long ago and was thus acting fervently.
‘Ryu Il-woo discovers the signs of the Great Invasion.’
The seal of the Demon God’s Jar was already almost undone.
Artifacts were now spawning gates, one after another.
Demons scattered across other worlds would be summoned into this world, one by one.
Ryu Il-woo would discover one of them and propose at the meeting that they should act, sensing something ominous.
“The problem is, everyone ignores him.”
There was a guild called Golden Lion.
It was the guild where Yoon Song-ha, the original owner of the Elemental manifestation skill he had learned, belonged.
As a child, she received help from the guild master, Song Dae-san, and joined Golden Lion out of gratitude.
“The problem is, Song Dae-san’s been in and out of it due to an injury, so his son is effectively in charge.”
And another thing.
Song Dae-san’s son—the heir to the Golden Lion guild, is an absolute menace, arguably worse than Yoo Kang-ho.
Song Dae-san wouldn’t last much longer, and his son would ruin the Golden Lion guild.
“Hmm, first, I’ll have to crush that son.”
It was another reason he had learned King’s Dignity.
The Golden Lion guild would dismiss Ryu Il-woo’s proposal as useless, and others would agree.
He intended to stop that.
“If I want to save Ryu Il-woo…”
If he didn’t stop it, Ryu Il-woo would lead his guild members into the gate.
They would fail spectacularly and be wiped out.
Ryu Il-woo couldn’t die.
‘With those people, the damage during the Great Invasion can be greatly reduced. I have to save them.’
Yoo Baek-jun finished his thoughts.
Now, all that was left was to wait for the meeting to begin.
