You Have Been Invited to the Auction House of the Gods - Chapter 160

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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160

 

As we entered the interior of Musinryeong, the air changed.

 

The stuffiness and musty smell characteristic of unventilated air stung my nose.

 

Dust was thick on the stone stairs leading into the burial mound.

 

It wasn’t just the air that had changed.

 

‘This is the real thing.’

 

A subtle presence I could feel from inside the burial mound.

 

The smugglers hadn’t noticed it, but I could sense it.

 

‘This really might be the tomb of a martial god.’

 

I began to think that the owner of this burial mound might truly be a martial god, not just a name the city government attached for branding purposes.

 

The smugglers who had gone ahead seemed to read the atmosphere as well, naturally becoming quieter.

 

“Senior Brother, I can really feel that we’ve entered the tomb of a master.”

 

One of the smugglers spoke in a low voice.

 

There was slight excitement and anticipation mixed with the tension.

 

“If the world were a martial arts realm, righteous, evil, and demonic factions would all rush here to find this legacy.”

 

The man called Senior Brother nodded.

 

“That’s right.”

 

He continued speaking calmly as he descended the stairs.

 

“To obtain the martial god’s legacy, one must prove their worthiness. That’s why the Sect Leader sent us here.”

 

At the leader’s words, the other smugglers nodded with solemn expressions.

 

The staircase wasn’t very long.

 

When we reached the end, our view opened up.

 

A wide cavern appeared, and in its center, training dummies were lined up densely in rows and columns.

 

‘Familiar appearance.’

 

It was the same type of training dummy I often saw in training manuals.

 

The training dummy appearance was just a disguise; in reality, they were closer to combat robots.

 

And as if to prove my thoughts, sharp swords were held in both hands of the training dummies planted in the ground.

 

Whether Golden Fragrance sold them as ready-made products, the aura they emanated from their innocent faces was formidable.

 

Beyond the forest of training dummies, on the opposite side, I could see what appeared to be an exit door.

 

According to the smuggler leader, breaking through the Forest of Scarecrows and reaching the opposite side would probably be the martial god’s first trial for those who proved their qualifications.

 

“The first trial.”

 

The smuggler leader stepped forward and drew his sword.

 

“I’ll take the lead and clear the path. Follow closely behind me.”

 

The moment he said that and entered the Forest of Scarecrows.

 

Clang―!

 

The training dummies all moved in unison.

 

Sword strikes poured toward the leader smuggler from all directions.

 

They weren’t simple slashes.

 

Tactics that filled blind spots and pressed relentlessly without gaps.

 

The leader smuggler was somehow twisting his body and swinging his sword, but blood began to seep through his clothes.

 

The only fortunate thing was that the Smuggler Siblings were forming ranks together and defending on all sides.

 

‘Should I call this fortunate?’

 

The death of the smuggler leader who had the map could be somewhat unfortunate for me.

 

There was no need to abandon a convenient mine detector… no, guide.

 

‘The killing intent is definitely alive.’

 

The swords held by the training dummies weren’t ordinary.

 

Despite being a dungeon that had been abandoned for quite some time, the blades were sharp, and each movement had intention.

 

However―

 

‘It’s questionable to call this the martial god’s tactics.’

 

According to the materials I received from Geumja, the martial god here was called the Sword Master of the Goryeo period, a swordsman who could face a hundred enemies alone.

 

If that were the case, rather than this method, proving one’s overwhelming individual strength would be more suitable for a trial.

 

The organic movements the training dummies had shown so far were closer to the way soldiers fight in formation rather than individual strength.

 

And there was another strange point.

 

‘They’re more suited for spears than swords.’

 

The spacing of the training dummies in formation was awkward.

 

It felt like the training dummies’ spacing had become denser due to the reduced reach from changing weapons from spears to swords.

 

As I surveyed the entire battlefield like that, my gaze stopped at the ceiling.

 

“There’s too much space left.”

 

If passing through the Forest of Scarecrows was the true meaning of the trial, why would they need to leave so much space between the ceiling?

 

Rather, it would be more rational to lower the ceiling and eliminate the option of escaping upward.

 

‘There’s no real need to pass through the Forest of Scarecrows.’

 

Once my thoughts were organized, Karmic Fire pushed against the ground and my body rose into the air.

 

As I flew through the gap between the ceiling, a few training dummies turned their gazes, but soon lost interest.

 

Their target was still the smugglers.

 

‘Is this really the correct answer?’

 

Below, urgent conversations were taking place.

 

“Senior Brother! The attacks are getting fiercer!”

 

“We just need to go a little further. Pull yourself together and keep up!”

 

“Block the left side!”

 

“Damn! They’re coming from behind too!”

 

The sound of sword clashing against sword, breathing that had grown rough.

 

I could feel that urgency even from here.

 

‘They don’t seem like they’ll die.’

 

The training dummies were pressing them hard, but there were no fatal attacks.

 

‘It’s unclear whether the training dummies are masters or the smugglers are holding out well.’

 

I slowly drifted out of the Forest of Scarecrows and waited for the smugglers to emerge.

 

There was no reason to go ahead first.

 

As I said, when they were going to detect traps on their own, there was no reason for me to go ahead.

 

Only after a brief moment passed did the smugglers, led by their leader, come running out of the Forest of Scarecrows, gasping for breath.

 

They all sat down and caught their ragged breathing.

 

“Haa… As expected of Goryeo’s martial god.”

 

The martial god hadn’t even shown his nose yet.

 

“To think this is the first trial… It’s definitely not easy.”

 

“Still, it seems we’ve cultivated quite a bit.”

 

The leader smuggler wore a proud expression.

 

“…”

 

I looked at them silently.

 

‘Those guys… could they really just be smugglers?’

 

Honestly, I found myself thinking once more about their true identity.

 

***

 

After passing through the corridor, the scenery changed.

 

The texture was similar.

 

The musty smell of mold and moss remained the same.

 

However, a massive labyrinth with no visible end was greeting me.

 

‘A labyrinth made of plants…’

 

This time, as if to block aerial passage from the start, plant walls had grown all the way to the ceiling.

 

“A new trial.”

 

The smuggler leader spoke up.

 

But this time, confidence rather than solemnity showed on his expression.

 

“I’ll take the lead again this time.”

 

With that, he confidently stepped into the labyrinth made of bushes.

 

‘He said he had a map.’

 

Before I knew it, the leader was holding an old map in his hand.

 

That was the source of the smuggler leader’s confidence.

 

I also followed behind them while maintaining my distance.

 

It was a typical labyrinth.

 

There were traps here and there, and monsters jumped out.

 

Spike traps, rusty spears rising from the floor, flying crossbow arrows.

 

“As expected of the Martial God’s tomb, it’s no joke.”

 

“Damn it, how long will the Martial God put us through trials!”

 

Every time that happened, the trial-obsessed Smuggler Quintuplets would swing their swords while constantly mentioning trials.

 

However, there was one thing I still couldn’t understand.

 

‘Why are they wandering around when they have a map?’

 

I was creating a map in my head while following behind them.

 

According to that map, the Smuggler Quintuplets were definitely going around the same spot several times.

 

‘Is there something I don’t know?’

 

Just as I was having that thought, the leader suddenly changed direction.

 

Then he even started running while using movement techniques.

 

Looking at the expressions of the other smugglers, it seemed like an unexplained sudden action.

 

I followed behind them while maintaining distance without being detected.

 

Then, for a moment when the distance grew, the leader stuck his hand toward the wall.

 

With a creaking sound, he pulled something.

 

At the same time—

 

Thud!

 

Between me and them, a wooden wall rose up.

 

The leader’s voice came from beyond the wall.

 

“Did you think we wouldn’t notice we were being followed?”

 

‘Was the foolish act all acting?’

 

If so, it was method acting that could rival a great actor.

 

Just when I thought I had misjudged my opponent, the leader’s voice came again.

 

“Let’s see how quickly you can get out of the labyrinth without a map.”

 

Leaving those words behind, the footsteps of the leader and the smuggler group grew distant.

 

I was genuinely flustered at the thought that I had been outsmarted, but that thought soon disappeared.

 

The direction the smuggler leader had shouted toward was the complete opposite of where I was.

 

‘It was just a lucky guess.’

 

I stood there for a moment and let out a deep breath.

 

‘I need to deal with these things first and then catch up.’

 

I looked at the monsters approaching me and drew Galmu.

 

From now on, it was time to conquer the dungeon without a trap detector.

 

***

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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