The Shaman Desires Transcendence

---

The Rampaging Magic was a very familiar spell to Park Jinseong.

He had seen it every time he faced Chinese treasure hunters in the ruins.

‘Whenever someone is killed or incapacitated, that spell is always used…’

It was as if he had trained his companions to see people as ‘sacrificial materials.’

When Park Jinseong killed someone, he would quickly dismember the body and use the blood for magic, and if he didn’t kill but subdued them, he would cut their throat directly and use that blood for the spell.

If it was used as a last resort in a hopeless situation, perhaps one could understand it as a life-saving measure.

However, the enemies Park Jinseong faced always seemed ready to do that as long as the conditions were met.

The sight of them consuming their incapacitated companions and using the Rampaging Magic was truly….

It was so infuriating that Park Jinseong once shouted, “Are you guys a bunch of vampires that see each other as blood pouches, waiting to eat each other?!”

‘Moreover, they evolved further later on.’

Of course, Park Jinseong wouldn’t just sit idle.

He used methods to contaminate the blood inside his body to prevent himself from being stained with blood, and when blood was applied to him, he used magic to draw tattoos that meant his bodily blood was a sacrifice for his spells. He even cursed those who attacked him, preventing them from easily beheading their companions to use the Rampaging Magic….

He employed various methods to thwart the Rampaging Magic.

But these treasure hunters, when faced with the nullification of their Rampaging Magic, did not give in; instead, they improved it and attacked Park Jinseong directly.

To dodge the curse spells he set as traps, they set up bombs that would detonate automatically when subdued, implanted machines in their bodies to create holes and spray blood when their companions signaled, and had learned poisonous techniques to allow their blood to transform into deadly toxins, which also aided in the drawing of patterns….

It was like a constant battle between spear and shield focused on the Rampaging Magic.

The fight only ended when the excessive overuse of magic resulted in costs that piled up like a mountain.

When it became not a life-saving measure but rather a method for self-detonation or a joint demise, the treasure hunters finally ceased using the Rampaging Magic, resorting instead to invoking spells with others as sacrifices, which only irritated Park Jinseong further.

‘Political prisoners, criminals, dissenters, third-class citizens…’

China had no qualms about using those they deemed a hindrance to maintaining their regime, those they thought were useless, or ‘racially inferior’ people. They were ruthlessly utilized as expendables, leading countless individuals to disappear as experimental materials or offerings for magical rituals….

‘But it wasn’t entirely a bad thing. It sparked an inspiration within me.’

Looking back, it felt like a memory and though it wasn’t pleasant, it was something that provided him with valuable insights.

Through the ways they exploited the worthless, Park Jinseong gained a single inspiration from which he dealt a significant blow to the treasure hunters….

‘Yeah… nostalgia rises…’

As he observed the actions of soldiers in military uniforms, he felt a pang of nostalgia.

A nostalgia soaked in the smell of blood.
Broken ruins, blazing flames, scattered corpses, and swarming flies.

What had been his daily life before he rewound time, now came back to him even with the time-bending—

‘Truly taught well. No hesitation, no hesitation at all…’

The soldiers, with fingers dipped in the blood of the Bioweapons, drew lines on themselves and applied blood all over their palms, smearing it across their bodies.

‘The key in that spell is in the patterns drawn with lines. And the quantity of blood smeared on the body.’

Lines that seemed to be clawed by talons.
Lines as if cut by a sword.
A circle indicating their vital spots.
A net-patterned design drawn across their faces.
And all of it was drenched in blood as if to overpower everything….

The soldiers, with skill far too familiar, completed their preparations for unleashing the Rampaging Magic.

“WOOOAAAAAH-!!!”
“WOOOAAAAAH-!!!”

They began to let out shrieks after finishing their markings on their bodies.
Their faces contorted in rage, stuffing the flesh or blood of their companions into their mouths.
And they continued to shriek, driven by fury, until their insides were crushed and they could no longer produce sounds.

Drip.
Drip.

And just like that, the Rampaging Magic was invoked so simply.

The blood applied to their bodies became symbols, the materials they used were sacrifices, and their howling turned into invocations that infused madness into their forms.
Muscles swelled wildly, and the pain vanished from their bodies.
Blood circulated chaotically from their limbs to their hearts, raising their body temperature, causing their mouths to drool uncontrollably.
An insatiable hunger erupted as if they hadn’t eaten for three days, and soon transformed into a desire for destruction.
Their concentration surged madly, their heads emptied, and their senses expanded uncontrollably, reading their surroundings….

It was as if they had consumed a performance-enhancing drug based on narcotics.
But that was not the end.

Their Qi also began to mutate, affected by the Rampaging Magic.
The impure Qi absorbed while casting spells blended with their innate energy, clouding their Qi and strengthening their bodies, causing the life force they spilled to leak out—the warriors’ innate energy, known as True Qi, was mixed uncooked, creating a unique property.
What that reflected in their blades was a Qi reminiscent of bright red blood.
A thick and sticky feeling pervaded their energy.
‘They called that Violent Blood Qi.’

Because it resembled blood.
Because it was based on blood.
Because it was power procured through sacrificing Bioweapons.
Because it was energy gained from exploding their potential.
And because it was exceedingly effective for killing people.

Thus, they named that energy **Violent Blood Qi**….

‘And it has another advantage.’

The reason they used the Rampaging Magic when encountering people while digging was.

‘Using this Rampaging Magic makes detecting people easy.’

Because that spell was effective for murder and silencing witnesses.

‘The Chinese government was amazed by the abilities of the Rampaging Magic once they acquired it.’

Was it for physical enhancement?
Was it for the sheer simplicity of using the worthless as sacrifices?
Of course, that was part of it.

But if it was only about enhancement, the Chinese government would not have actively utilized the Rampaging Magic to this extent. Physical enhancement or pain relief could simply be managed with a dose of simple drugs, and if more powerful effects were needed, a procedure could do the trick. Even those methods were neither difficult nor expensive, so if they put their mind to it, the Chinese government could very efficiently create biological weapons.

Unlike the Rampaging Magic, which required sacrificing a person and going through a troublesome ritual, they could just click a button or swallow a pill—a much more convenient method.

So why would they abandon such convenience in favor of the Rampaging Magic?
Is the Chinese government foolish?

Far from it.

That Rampaging Magic….

‘Not only does it expand the senses, but it also allows detection of living beings around them with almost instinctual perception.’

To a level more advanced than usual methods could evade.

‘It’s practically no different than a superpower….’

It’s not just about utilizing senses.
It’s akin to extricating and obtaining information about someone’s existence around them, producing detectable outcomes without legitimate processes. Simply hiding one’s body from sight or surpassing boundaries wouldn’t be enough to escape that sensory detection, and even those daring enough would easily be caught unless they demonstrated the techniques to blend their energies—

Yeah.
Naturally, it was something beloved.

Whether dealing with hidden remnants, capturing individuals that needed to be killed, situations requiring extermination, or even now, when seeking the location of a dangerous individual—

“It’s time to find him-!!!”
“The Fire Sorcerer, Ashtosh Singh, who burned the city!”
“The Sorcerer, Pierre Martin, who devastated the city!!!”
“Even that bastard wizard who dared to commit terrorism against the People’s Republic of China-!!!”

The soldiers began to scour the city armed with their swords.
The expanded senses whispered to them.
In this city, there were the sleeping ones, the ones that had taken their own lives.
The sixth sense acquired through magic whispered to them.
In this city, there are individuals behaving differently from the masses, they are the ones you seek.
And their scent was unlike that of mere mortals, which made them easily detectable.

They surrendered their bodies to that whisper.
Their bodies moved as desired, pouring out the energy emitted through their swords, not hesitating to demolish buildings or slice through anything in their path.
And before long….

“I found the flames-!!!”
“I felt a presence in the sewers-!!!”
“I sensed the wizard’s aura!!!”

They succeeded in locating the true culprits who had turned the city into this state.
‘Ah. The hunting dogs have found their prey.’
Park Jinseong watched them while currently dismantled into insects.
Their shouting and celebration upon finding their target reminded him of hunting dogs barking excitedly at a wild boar.

If they were the hounds, naturally, there must be a hunter commanding them.
‘Now the hunter prepares to aim his gun.’
Park Jinseong thought as he gazed at the sky.

[ Coordinate confirmed. ]
[ Commencing precision strike. ]

What lit up the sky was the flames cutting through the night sky.
The tail of a meteor crafted by mankind.

A rain of missiles was about to pour down onto the city once again.

---