Chapter 54 - Turning Point (1)
“You...!”
Baek San-hu widened his eyes.
Kim Sun-woo, who had landed on the ground, confirmed the ogre's breath had ceased before slowly lifting his head.
“Long time no see, Elder Baek.”
Had the Huashan Sect come as reinforcements too?
Behind him stood a line of warriors clad in the same martial robes.
“...It's been a few weeks. You seem vastly different from back then.”
“Elder Baek still looks as hale and hearty as ever.”
Kim Sun-woo grinned as he spoke.
Back during the rank exam, the elder had seemed untouchably lofty.
Now, they felt evenly matched.
Baek San-hu seemed to share the sentiment, letting out an admiring sigh.
“I've heard the rumors from afar. Just a few days ago, you even saved our Huashan disciples. My deepest thanks.”
“Didn't I receive your guidance during the rank exam? This was just me repaying that favor. ...I'd love to chat more, but we should deal with that first.”
Thud. Thud. Thud.
They'd just felled an elite troll and ogre moments ago, yet more monsters emerged from the portal beyond.
-Roooaaarrr!!!
A Twin-Headed Ogre, its two heads roaring in threat at the gathered hunters, bellowed deafeningly.
“Urgh...!”
“...Ngh.”
It wasn't just a roar.
Elite monsters were on a whole different level from regulars.
The sheer pressure they exuded froze weaker hunters in terror.
In truth, many hunters lacking boss fight experience fell victim to this fear effect, their minds going blank, vision blurring, limbs numbing, bodies no longer their own.
If they didn't snap out of it fast, they'd be defenseless fodder for the boss's attacks.
“It's practically boss-tier.”
As an F-rank hunter, he'd once glimpsed a boss from afar.
Any closer, and he'd have felt certain death.
Seeing hunters charge bravely without fleeing had filled him with awe.
Of course, neither then nor now did a mere fear effect intimidate him.
Baek San-hu and the Huashan warriors behind him showed only faint ripples of unease but endured the Twin-Headed Ogre's pressure without flinching.
“That bulk will make it tough to topple. Shall I assist?”
“Of course. Oh, right—I just got promoted to B-rank a few days ago. We're the same rank now, Elder Baek.”
“...Haha.”
Baek San-hu let out a hollow chuckle at being caught up in mere weeks.
If not for this chaos, he'd have loved a deeper conversation.
But alas, no time for that now.
—Boom!
The Twin-Headed Ogre burst from the portal, slamming the ground and launching its massive bulk into a charge.
It targeted the strongest aura in the area.
Sensing the enormous shadow looming overhead, Baek San-hu barked sharply.
“Scatter! This one and Hunter Kim Sun-woo will handle it—you hold your positions and fight your best!”
“Understood!”
The Huashan swordsmen responded vigorously and dispersed.
Thud.
A heavy impact followed as the beast, towering at least 10 meters, landed before them.
-Grrr...
Sinews writhed beneath its pitch-black skin.
With two heads, it radiated a clear flow of mana, unlike regular ogres.
Baek San-hu, sensing the anomaly, hardened his expression and slowly reached for his sword hilt.
“...Looks like a variant among Twins. Might be too much for your B-rank promotion fireworks.”
“All the better. Plenty of weak spots to hit.”
Regular monsters fell to a casual swing.
Something this scale at least offered a satisfying fight.
Grinning, Baek San-hu drew his sword slowly.
“I'll open the path. The follow-up's yours.”
“Got it.”
That was exactly what Kim Sun-woo wanted.
Why?
'Perfect chance to witness Elder Baek's martial arts up close.'
Sparring briefly during the rank exam had helped immensely.
Without this dungeon break mess, he'd be exchanging techniques freely with other warriors, absorbing their arts.
Blindly studying manuals and videos had hit its limit.
Witnessing a superior master's techniques firsthand would accelerate his growth far more.
Whoosh!
As Baek San-hu swung his sword, the familiar plum blossom scent began to waft.
The sword-fragrance realm, manifesting at a certain mastery of Plum Blossom Sword Technique.
The thicker aroma suggested progress since last time.
Slash slash slash!
Blooms showered down, lacerating the Twin-Headed Ogre's body.
Its black hide cracked open, spewing green fluids.
-...Grrr.
The ogre crouched low, hoisted its iron club, and exploded forward.
Whoooosh!
It felt like a house-sized shell hurtling at them.
Baek San-hu leaped skyward to evade, but the ogre, glaring up, bent its legs to pursue.
“Not today.”
Kim Sun-woo, hidden via Dark Flow Step, struck from a blind spot with a savage swing.
A white flash erupted, smashing the leaping ogre back to earth.
But its greater size and toughness prevented a one-shot split like before.
Swoooosh!
Pinkish sword aura rained from above.
As the ogre struggled to rise from the asphalt crater, razor-sharp air pressure bore down.
Clang!
The ogre parried Baek San-hu's strike with its club.
Using the recoil, Baek San-hu flipped midair, landing gracefully and resuming his stance, sword tip gleaming.
Every motion flowed seamlessly, honed by grueling training and countless battles into perfection.
From behind, Kim Sun-woo observed, absorbing it all.
'...But it doesn't hit as hard as before.'
His own growth?
Unlike the shocking impact of each strike back then, now it just registered as “Huashan arts, huh.”
White Flow Divine Art matched or even edged out in raw power.
And that proved true when...
Shlick—!
Flying Thunder Flash severed the club-wielding arm.
“Well done.”
With the club's pressure eased, Baek San-hu dashed in, eyes alight, unleashing a flurry that shredded the ogre. One head lopped off, it collapsed fatally.
“Hm.”
Kim Sun-woo eyed Baek San-hu with a subtle expression.
B-rank power was still hard to gauge.
Stronger than C-rank, sure, but compared to Lee Sang-hoon from Gangwon-do, it felt ambiguous.
'Sang-hoon could at least clash with Fire Dragon.'
Straining, yes, but his golem had pinned it admirably.
Recovering from backlash now, rehabbing, and bored—texting Kim Sun-woo multiple times daily.
Comparing him to Baek San-hu...
'Honestly, a bit lacking.'
Gaps within B-rank too?
Wider than other tiers—how much bigger at A-rank?
Kim Sun-woo masked his disappointment.
Interest in Baek San-hu had waned.
Huashan arts intrigued him; the elder's achievements were now mapped out.
'A real fight? I'd win handily.'
Comprehension and realm might favor Baek San-hu, but raw combat and power? His edge was vast.
And growing.
Baek San-hu was complete; he was still filling his vessel.
“Good work. Tough bastard.”
Baek San-hu mercilessly ended the twitching, regenerating ogre.
The portal's turbulent ripples calmed, fading.
“So this was the boss.”
“Twin-Headed Ogre? Fitting. Lucky we got it before berserk—otherwise, it'd ignore wounds, rampaging through the city.”
Splat.
Shaking ogre fluids from his blade, Baek San-hu eyed the remaining urban monsters fiercely.
“Now, let's clean up.”
Time flew.
Four weeks since the dungeon breaks began.
Endless outbreaks strained the city—no, the nation.
Seoul minimized civilian casualties, but provinces worsened.
Hunters fatigued; lives crumbled.
Association's deadline with Magic Tower loomed.
Then, a breaking news flash:
Dungeons and portals vibrated at specific frequencies upon emergence.
The Association detected and ID'd them; breaks spiked the frequency.
Researchers fired counter-vibrations to neutralize, restoring normalcy—no break, no monster outflow.
Tech spread instantly, slashing breaks nationwide, restoring normalcy.
“Overseas lines are flooded too. Association servers crashing.”
Night Team office.
Han Su-ah, back from dispatch, slumped into a chair.
With breaks down, minimal forces confirmed closures and withdrew.
Kim Sun-woo, verifying three today, eyed the news.
“Never thought I'd live to see the Association this popular.”
“No choice. Frequency control boosted Korean hunters' prestige. And our grind's over—gotta praise 'em. With dungeons proliferating, failure would've...”
Seoul would've burned long ago.
Bzzz bzzz.
Kim Sun-woo's phone buzzed.
Robert's team? No—different name.
“...Gonna head upstairs quick.”
“What for?”
“Guild master's summons.”
Han Kang-seok, off conquering an A-rank in the provinces, was back.