Return of the Sword God-Rank Civil Servant-Chapter 168
Su-ho wasn’t seeing things.
It was real.
[Skill information has been updated.]
[New Blood’s Harmony effect has activated.]
[New Blood’s Refinement effect has activated.]
[New Blood’s Qualification effect has activated.]
[You have acquired the Giant’s Bloodline.]
[Due to acquiring the Giant’s Bloodline, some of your stats have changed.]
[Strength and Stamina have merged into a new stat: Colossal Strength.]
[Colossal Strength will inherit the higher value between Strength and Stamina.]
[You are the first to obtain the Colossal Strength stat.]
[For achieving a great feat, the system rewards you with 10 bonus stats.]
Su-ho’s eyes widened.
“Colossal Strength?”
A completely new stat.
Su-ho had encountered giants frequently in his past life, especially midway through the Cataclysm.
And he had seen many powers related to them.
But he had never heard of this stat before.
Immediately, Su-ho pulled up the stat details.
[Colossal Strength]
Grade: S# Only those with the pure blood of a Giant can wield this innate power.# One point of Colossal Strength equals one point of Strength and one point of Stamina combined.“What the hell...?”
His eyes widened even further.
Each point of Colossal Strength counted as BOTH Strength and Stamina?!
Did that mean...?
Su-ho hurriedly opened his status window.
[An Su-ho]
Level: 117Class: CrusaderTraits: <New Blood> <Hercules Candidate>Colossal Strength (O): 39Magic (O): 28Perception (O): 28Bonus Stats: 10It was true.
As the system message had stated, his Strength and Stamina had disappeared.
In their place, Colossal Strength had taken over—and it had inherited the higher value between the two.
Su-ho swallowed dryly.
Then, he used one of his bonus stats on Colossal Strength.
[Colossal Strength has increased by 1.]
“...!!”
It worked.
And his eyes grew even wider.
“This is insane.”
This meant that one stat point now gave him the power of two.
‘And on top of that... my stats are Orange-tier.
Just how much efficiency am I getting out of this?’
For Su-ho, stats were more valuable than any skill or item.
In the late game, what mattered most wasn’t skills or equipment—
It was how much raw stat power you had accumulated.
And now, he had acquired an absurdly broken stat.
A stat where one investment yielded double the return.
He couldn’t stop smiling.
His lips stretched so wide they nearly reached his ears.
Next, Su-ho checked the details of his Giant’s Bloodline.
[Giant’s Bloodline]
Grade: S+# The pure bloodline of the Primordial Giants.# Level 1 – Giant’s Strength: Colossal Strength (S)
# Level 2 – [ ??? ]
Locked└ Unlock Requirements: ① Reach Level 200.② Unknown.‘Primordial Giants?’
That phrase caught his attention.
‘I’ve encountered a lot of different giants before...
But I’ve never heard of anything called the Primordial Giants.’
For a moment, he was puzzled.
But then, he grinned.
‘If there’s something I don’t know...
That just means there are still more mysteries to uncover in this world.’
And most of the time—
The unknown held incredible power.
His Level 2 Authority required him to reach Level 200.
The second requirement was still a mystery.
But Su-ho wasn’t worried.
Just like before, he was sure a quest would appear when the time was right.
‘For now, I just need to focus on leveling up.’
A huge win.
This first anomaly had given him far more than he expected.
Su-ho lifted his head.
Goliath’s lifeless body was still twisted in an unnatural position.
Even though he had killed a pure-blooded Giant, there were no system messages about leveling up.
Of course.
Goliath wasn’t a true monster.
He was more like a summoned entity from a player’s ability.
Just to check, Su-ho tried to absorb Goliath’s blood with the Shadow Spear.
Nothing.
No absorption effect.
‘Makes sense. This isn’t a real Gate, after all.’
But...
The blood itself?
That, he could take.
Su-ho activated his ability.
[True Blood Drain has been activated.]
SHWOOOOOOO—!
The giant’s blood flowed into his palm, draining into his Blood Reservoir.
Goliath’s corpse turned pale—
As if every last drop of life had been sucked out.
Su-ho smirked.
Then, he turned and walked toward the exit portal.
A crimson glow still flickering in his eyes.
***
As soon as Goliath died, the sealed gateway of the painting world opened.
Su-ho stepped through the portal, reentering the real world.
And right before him—
Martin Park was waiting.
“So, you actually killed my Goliath.”
Su-ho smirked.
“I had to.”
“Hah! That makes it sound like you can kill anything you set your mind to.”
“Well... It might take some time, but I don’t see why not.”
Martin Park didn’t think Su-ho was bluffing.
While Su-ho had been inside the painting, Martin had done some research.
A few searches on his phone had been enough to show just how much of a big deal Su-ho was in Korea.
Martin nodded.
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“I see. So, are we done here?”
“My first objective is complete.”
“First?”
“Of course. Do you really think I would come all this way to meet someone like you with only a single goal in mind?”
It was true.
Martin Park wasn’t just anyone.
Su-ho wouldn’t have traveled all the way to Samcheok for just one thing.
If possible, he wanted to keep Martin close and gain his help long-term.
Martin stared at Su-ho, then suddenly burst out laughing.
“Hahaha! Damn... You really have a way of saying the most shameless things.”
“That’s just how government employees are.”
“Fine, fine. What’s your next request?”
“I’d like to commission a painting.”
“A painting?”
“Yes.”
At that, Martin’s expression stiffened.
“You really are a fan of mine?”
“I am.”
“Then you should know—I’ve never taken a commission. I only paint what I want to paint.”
“I know. But I also believe that nothing in this world is absolute.”
“Shameless bastard.”
Despite his words, Martin Park grinned.
“Alright, let’s hear it. What do you want me to paint?”
“The moon.”
“...The moon?”
“Yes. I need something that can only be obtained under the full moon.”
“A full moon, huh...? You could just wait a month. Why the rush?”
“There are a lot of things I need to collect. I don’t have time to wait for each full moon.”
Martin shook his head, laughing.
“You’re telling me... you want me to paint the moon just for that?”
What Su-ho wanted was a full moon painting.
He needed a full moon to enter Seo Go-pyeong’s domain.
‘I can’t afford to waste time waiting for the full moon every month.
And I can’t just go around looking for Gates where the full moon is visible.’**
Time is money.
And Martin Park was a magician capable of creating entire worlds with his art.
Why take the long ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) way around when the shortcut was right here?
Martin gazed up at the cloudy night sky.
Since the Cataclysm, nature had become purer, making the moon and stars more visible.
But even then—
A moon hidden behind clouds couldn’t be seen.
One corner of Martin’s lips curled up.
“Alright. Let’s say I agree. How will you pay?”
“Name your price.”
“You sure? You don’t even know what I’ll ask for.”
“You’re not exactly short on money, are you?”
“Haha... You got me there.
But I already got my black pigment from you.
So, why don’t you stop stalling and show me what else you’ve got?”
Martin didn’t believe for a second that Su-ho had walked into this empty-handed.
And he was right.
Su-ho spoke calmly.
“How about red this time?”
“Red?”
“I have pure Giant’s blood.
A crimson pigment drawn from a true Giant’s essence—
What could be purer than that?”
Martin grinned.
He couldn’t argue.
“Let me guess. That blood came from my Goliath?”
“Yes.”
“You sure know how to recycle.”
“I simply did what you couldn’t.”
“Damn it, you’re good with words.”
Su-ho took out an empty bottle and began pouring out the blood he had stored in the Blood Reservoir.
There was no risk of mixing it with other blood.
The Blood Reservoir was exceptionally good at storing and separating different types of blood.
Martin took the bottle, uncorked it, and sniffed.
“The smell of blood and mana is thick.”
“This isn’t just any Giant’s blood.
It’s pure Giant’s blood.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I gained a skill from it.
And it’s clearly labeled as ‘pure Giant’s blood.’
If you took it to any ingredient market, it’d be worth a fortune.”
Martin checked the item’s information.
It was exactly as Su-ho had said.
A rare, genuine red pigment.
“Damn... I came here looking for black pigment and ended up with two rare colors instead.”
Su-ho smirked.
“So, do we have a deal?”
“Yeah. A full moon painting is simple enough.
How many do you need?”
“Ten, for now.”
“For now?”
“I might need more later. Or I might not need them all.
If there are any extras, I’ll return them.”
Martin waved him off.
“No need. Once I’ve sold a painting, I don’t take it back.”
“Understood.”
“Alright, let’s get started.”
“Do you need anything for your work?”
“Not really. It’s just a moon, after all.”
Then, Martin paused.
A thought struck him.
“Wait... If you need the painting for its effects, doesn’t that mean you’ll need me to let you inside again?”
Su-ho nodded.
“Then instead of meeting up every time, I might as well stay with you for a while.”
Su-ho immediately made an offer.
“Would you like to stay at my place in Seoul?
It’s private, secure, and I can ensure your comfort.”
Martin raised a brow.
“You live alone?”
“I have a roommate.
But I can kick them out.”
“Hah! As long as they don’t bother me, it’s fine.
I could use someone to take care of minor tasks, anyway.”
“Understood. I’ll drive you there.”
“Alright. Let’s go.”
With that—
Su-ho and Martin Park headed for Seoul.
