Biol had always loved fighting and was not easily defeated, but when it came to insects with a disgusting appearance, he ignored everything and moved away or got rid of them extremely quickly. However, because of his current physical condition, that was difficult.
But before the idea of escape could fully form in his mind, a sword flashed. Kyun was holding a wooden box and threw it directly into the worm's mouth. Lang Biol was astonished by Ming Kyun's swift skill, but he suddenly felt that something was wrong. Kyun had taken the Crystal Ball from him and shattered it, throwing it into the worm's mouth as well. Biol watched in shock as his Solar Crystal Ball disappeared inside the worm's stomach. He stood completely helpless, staring in disbelief.
Then an explosion happened. The air filled with dust that spread like clouds, which slowly began to fade.
"Cough… cough."
After the dust cleared, the five appeared sitting on the ground.
"Are you all alright?"
Everyone looked at one another to make sure the others were safe. When Nining Muyon looked at Lang Biol, he froze in place while the others tried to stand. Ryong Shin noticed Nining Muyon staring at Lang Biol and felt some panic, thinking he was injured.
"Biol, are you alright?"
But there was no response from the other side. Cho Zin went to see what had happened, and when he looked at Lang Biol, he was shocked. Biol's eyes were wide and round, making him look like an innocent and delicate child, especially when he was frightened or shocked. His eyes widened to show the extent of his fear and shock. He lowered his head, then opened his mouth and spoke in an angry and rough tone that completely contradicted his terrified appearance.
"You idiot! Do you know how much the thing you threw into that filthy worm's mouth costs?! Do you know?!"
"..."
"Pay me its price, you bastard!"
Ming Kyun looked at him with a blank expression, and he was not alone. Everyone else did the same. Meanwhile, Nining Muyon took out another crystal ball. Cho Zin had no choice but to explain the matter.
"Hey, if it were not for Ming Kyun, you would be inside the worm's stomach instead of that crystal ball and…"
Lang Biol interrupted him with an angry face, as if he was about to kill him.
"So what?! Do you know how much it costs?!"
"..."
Before Cho Zin could open his mouth to answer Lang Biol and correct his shocked expression, Nining Muyon appeared with a gentle smile, like a morning breeze with fragrant flowers that make your day beautiful. In a soft voice, he said,
"I apologize on behalf of Ming Kyun. Here, you can take this. It is exactly identical."
Lang Biol fell silent. Then a mixed expression of sadness and happiness appeared on his face, along with a fake tear.
"Oh, Muyou… Muyou, you are an angel among monsters. How did someone as beautiful as you end up here?"
Nining Muyon almost felt as if he could hear thunder behind him from the people who had just been described as monsters. He fell completely silent and could not even thank Lang Biol for the compliment that would make his team curse him.
"Who are the monsters?"
Lang Biol looked toward the source of the voice, which was none other than Ryong Shin. But Lang Biol looked down at the crystal that Muyon had given him to make sure there were no scratches. There were none. It looked completely new.
"Are you stupid? Of course I mean you and the rest."
Ryong Shin could not endure it. He thought Lang Biol would avoid the question, but instead he answered and even insulted him. Ryong Shin clenched his teeth and could only say,
"You… you really…"
But Ming Kyun's voice interrupted them.
"I found something here."
When they reached Ming Kyun's location, they were stunned. The cave, which had been nothing but rocks, now revealed a space that was completely clean and organized. There were scrolls and books, and on the other side there were boxes. The five stood before all these things, and a name appeared on the wall, clearly written.
"Lexing Shrine."
After five minutes of staring at the name, Lang Biol entered without caring about the possibility of traps, even though Cho Zin warned him about entering in case there were traps. Lang Biol ignored him. When he reached a table covered with scrolls, he smiled and said in a calm and audible voice, with a smile hiding a greedy intention,
"I will take this scroll."
There were many scrolls, but one of them had been placed separately, tied with a red ribbon. Biol's hand reached toward it, touched it gently, then took it completely. He placed it in a small bag, tightened the strings firmly, and closed it. He looked at his team with a gentle smile, but this time it was free of greed. His eyes were narrow, like a warning that anyone who spoke should choose their words carefully.
Everyone remained silent for a while. Then they ignored him and went inside, each to see what he wanted.
"Alright, it does not matter. I came for those boxes," Ryong Shin had already told them that he was searching for the healing pills inside the boxes.
Then Cho Zin spoke, reassuring them that he was here only to take some ordinary scrolls so as not to attract attention. As for Muyon and Kyun, they chose silence, which meant they did not care about what Lang Biol had taken.
After three seconds, Lang Biol returned to his cheerful and mischievous expression. Ming Kyun could not help but mock him internally.
"Great, that was a quick transformation."
Then he moved toward the books, while Muyon looked around. Something on the wall caught his attention.
"Guys, look there. There is writing on the wall."
Everyone gathered to look after placing some items in their bags. The language was unfamiliar to them except for Cho Zin, who muttered some incomprehensible words, so everyone looked at him. Cho Zin felt nervous under their gazes and quickly explained.
"Ahem. Well, it is just ancient writing."
He took out a green necklace and directed it toward the writing. It glowed like a laser, translating the text. When it glowed, it emitted a green light, and the writing on the wall gained a green shadow that clarified the words. They began to read.
"Today, I decided to write notes in this place before my death, to pass them to the next generation, the person who managed to defeat the worm. I have placed all the knowledge and items I gathered throughout my life here…"
"What is this? Is he going to write his life story? Get to the point directly," Biol said.
Everyone looked at Lang Biol, the person who took the map from a dead man and did not even want to hear his story. Words like vulgarity and shamelessness barely described him. He was a swordsman from a family of swordsmen, yet he was closer to a thief or a bandit.
They ignored him and continued reading.
"Since I grew up in the Sun Sect, they called me the genius of the sect. Although it is a great honor that everyone desires, placing such a burden on a child who has not reached fifteen is the worst. I carried out many missions: going to war, negotiating with sect leaders, killing ghosts and demons, imprisoning criminals. I did all this while the members of the sect leader's family danced with concubines, slept for long periods, and did nothing but play, even though the sect leader is the same age as me and went through the same experience, as he also became a sect leader at the age of fifteen. Yet he was truly useless. He did not want to pressure his family and allowed them to take a lot of money and enjoy luxury instead of stopping them. Even his younger brother has more money than the sect leader himself. When the sect leader runs out of money, he begs his family to give him some money to feed the poor and tells them he will repay them, even though the money is his from the beginning.
I truly became tired of him. But when I turned nineteen, I had to join the secondary Ghost Killing Team. Even so, I was very worried about leaving him with his family, but I had no other choice, so I went."
"…"
Lang Biol was thinking. Before returning in time, every year one person from each sect goes to kill ghosts around the Forest of Death to make sure that there are no ghosts of the Intelligent Ghost stage or the Human Ghost stage.
Lang Biol stopped thinking when a sound of breaking echoed. It was loud. Everyone looked toward the source of the noise and saw cracks forming.
The cave was collapsing.
It seemed that the shrine had begun rejecting its visitors.