Chapter 113
Chapter 113
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 113
Chapter Title: Northern Land (3)
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“Load the cargo properly!”
Even though the Ice Dragon had appeared, the Chinese superhumans showed no signs of panic. Everyone had braced themselves for at least one fight with the beast.
At Liu Xin’s shout, the Chinese formed up to protect Dmitri. At the same time, they keenly scanned for an opening to escape.
Though they’d been suddenly dubbed “cargo,” none of the researchers complained. Given the circumstances, they simply prayed for a chance to slip away this time and followed orders.
Thwack!
Ivan’s Russian team struck first. A ferocious attack targeted the Ice Dragon’s head. In that instant, the beast staggered, shaking its head. Suhyun realized there was a shockwave user among the Russians.
Boom boom thwack!
Half of its icy head shattered. Against an ordinary monster, this would’ve been enough to claim victory, but Ivan’s face was filled only with tension. The fight had only just begun.
Whish—
“It’s coming that way!”
To counter the Ice Dragon, each team had kept a considerable distance from the others. Even with its head half-destroyed, the beast moved without restoring it. Its whip-like tail lashed out toward Uncle Jo Company, prompting Ivan’s urgent cry.
“Hup!”
Gorgan shielded himself with his altaranium shield while raising his shotgun and firing at it. The incendiary rounds ignited in midair, slamming into the tail.
Boom!
But the Ice Dragon’s tail ignored the attack and struck straight down on Gorgan. He gritted his teeth against the impact transmitted through his shield.
“Well done, Gorgan!”
His role was bait. Suhyun held Gorgan in high regard for volunteering. Superhumans weren’t the only ones who could shine. Ordinary people could contribute plenty with the right skills.
While the Ice Dragon paused to attack Gorgan, Uncle Jo Company stepped up. Kim Chang-sik landed a flame arrow squarely on the beast’s torso—not his fake flames superpower, but a real attack via artifact.
At the same time, the black beast summoned by Shaena charged in. The Ice Dragon shook its body irritably, trying to create distance.
‘If the head’s not working...’
A heavy rupturing sound echoed. Then, something unbelievable happened. Everyone’s eyes widened, and someone muttered, “No way.”
The Ice Dragon’s torso had burst open in a single blow.
‘How?!’
All eyes turned to Suhyun. Suhyun was a healer. The only way he could pull off such a feat was with an artifact. He’d openly extended his hand, aiming straight at the Ice Dragon. A crude copper ring on his finger stood out prominently.
‘To think Korea had an artifact that powerful!’
A superhuman’s power could grow with the individual, but an artifact’s output was fixed, no matter how much the user improved. That’s why top-tier artifacts commanded such premiums.
And the telekinesis Suhyun had just unleashed defied imagination. An artifact with that level of telekinesis would be designated a national asset in any country.
The Russians and Chinese alike looked at Suhyun with complicated expressions. Knowing he possessed such an artifact muddled their thoughts.
‘More impressive than I thought?’
“What do we do?”
“Luiril. Don’t freak out and listen.”
“?”
“That vessel you have. Seems like that’s why it’s targeting you.”
“......”
Luiril fixed Suhyun with a cold stare. She looked ready to hand over the grinder right then and there.
“I’m just saying be aware. Hold onto it a bit longer. You’re not even joining the fight anyway.”
“That’s a bit harsh, don’t you think?!”
Suhyun used his solo skill to brew a potent compound poison. Alone, he’d have guided poison bullets into its body with telekinesis, but not now. There were too many eyes watching.
The telekinesis artifact alone was shocking enough, but revealing its output wasn’t fixed and had high versatility would multiply the astonishment several times over. He had no intention of dealing with the Korean government groveling for a peek afterward.
“Not as strong as I thought?”
“Watch your mouth. You think the Russians are idiots?”
Liu Xin scolded his muttering subordinate. Suhyun, reading his lips from afar, thought to himself.
‘They’ve got their own Kim Chang-sik types too.’
As if it had overheard, the Ice Dragon began reconstituting its main body. Frigid mist swirled up from the ground like fog. It reformed near Uncle Jo Company.
“Good! Move the cargo out!”
Regardless of the Ice Dragon, their top priority was rescuing Dmitri and the researchers. A gap had opened in the blocked passageway while the beast chased Luiril. Ivan seized the chance and gave the order.
“Don’t look back—run! We’ll hold its feet!”
“Yes, sir!”
Dmitri’s group quickly withdrew from the battlefield. Ivan breathed a silent sigh of relief. For some reason, the beast wasn’t pursuing as relentlessly as last time. Previously, it had doggedly chased Dmitri’s team regardless of attacks, making things hell.
One objective down, at least. Now they just needed to take it down or escape.
“Uh... Captain. That thing...”
The Ice Dragon wasn’t merely regenerating the damage. It was reconstituting its main body and spawning clones elsewhere.
“It can make clones too?”
“No such ability last time!”
The beast roared, blocking the path solidly. Its icy eyes seemed to glare straight at Suhyun.
‘...Not because of me, right?’
Maybe the Ice Dragon was going all out because Suhyun had shown such overwhelming power. Otherwise, why reveal a new tactic now, after not using it against the Russians?
“It’s coming! Dodge!”
Though now three Ice Dragons, the countermeasures remained the same. They couldn’t coordinate perfectly, but their forces were still intact.
“Haven’t done this in a while...”
Suhyun dashed forward, closing in on an Ice Dragon. With healing and telekinesis, melee wasn’t too risky. His target: poisoning. Injecting toxin directly into its body.
A cascade of bone-chilling cold poured down, capable of freezing any living thing solid. Suhyun formed a telekinetic shield to deflect it upward.
‘One down first.’
Suhyun thrust his hand at the Ice Dragon’s leg, striking it. The icy limb blackened from the point of contact.
The Ice Dragon sprayed cold while staggering, then dropped to one knee. For a beast that had shrugged off physical blows earlier, this seemed excessively frail.
“Weak resistance for a monster. Gorgan, use these rounds next time.”
“Got it!”
Suhyun had no intention of wasting superpowers in this unclear situation with the Chinese. Telekinesis had poor cost-efficiency. He drew his pistol, injected poison into the rounds, and scanned the surroundings.
Flames sparked from the Ice Dragon’s neck.
Liu Xin leaped high into the air and cleaved the Ice Dragon’s neck. The strike had enough power to bisect it outright, enhanced by his artifact—flames erupted from the wound.
The Russians handled theirs well too. The Ice Dragon charging with blasts of cold had already lost a third of its body.
‘Even with clones, there must be limits.’
No ability came free. Even phantom beasts couldn’t endlessly spawn clones and regenerate. Keep hitting, and the limit would come.
The problem was their side consisted of humans. Superpowers weren’t infinite, and exhaustion hit faster than for monsters.
“Let’s take out one more, then link up and break through.”
“Wait, Dmitri’s team...”
“After one more, we’ll have time. Any longer, and we’ll take casualties.”
Ivan hesitated at Suhyun’s words but nodded. Suhyun was right. They fought to avoid Dmitri getting hurt—for Ivan’s own sake—but survival came first. Dead men had no tomorrows.
“Annoying bastard!”
After firing a shockwave with cupped hands, the Russian fell back. His shoulder was bruised purple from a glancing ice spear.
“Well done. Now link up and retreat.”
“Auto-cauterized—nice.”
“Joking in this situation?”
The frozen wound had stanched the bleeding. Ivan shook his head in disbelief at his joking subordinate.
“Goddamn pest...”
The Ice Dragon’s true strength emerged when its foes tired. It endured hits until superhumans flagged, then struck fiercely.
Mist rose again, snow whipping through the air.
“Run!”
The three teams merged swiftly. Suhyun glimpsed two blue glows flashing in the distance. The beast was surely targeting them.
‘Wonder how much it’ll take.’
The poison worked on clones, but the main body? Who knew. Suhyun conjured a vicious poison mist and scattered it where the beast regenerated.
“Luiril, hand over the vessel. I’ll carry it.”
“You sure?”
“Monster’s fine. Just be careful during inspections later.”
“Move out! Move! Put distance before it recovers!”
“Why’s it acting like that?”
From afar, the Ice Dragon halted, writhing. Suhyun figured the poison had hit true.
“Doesn’t matter if it can’t chase. Step on it! Unless you wanna get buried here!”
As vehicles sped off, the Ice Dragon began recovering and pursuing again. Seeing it slam its head into the ground, Suhyun said.
“When I signal, swerve.”
“Huh?”
“One, two, three... Now!”
Kim Chang-sik gritted his teeth and veered. Simultaneously, the Ice Dragon burst from the earth, jaws agape. Catching its gaze, Kim instinctively unleashed his power.
“Raaargh!”
A blaze without true heat. The Russian and Chinese teams marveled as they fled. Still that strong?
But Kim Chang-sik inwardly cursed. Should’ve gotten Suhyun’s permission...
“Good work, Kim Chang-sik.”
It wasn’t immune to poison, yet it chased swiftly despite the dose. For a beast splitting itself into clones, it should’ve taken more damage. Suhyun’s poison wasn’t child’s play.
And when Kim had panicked, spewing fake flames everywhere, the beast hadn’t dodged—it lunged into the fire. Regeneration aside, that was odd.
One conclusion.
Suhyun leaped to the ground and slammed the terrain with full force. A thunderous crack split the earth, shards flying.
‘Damn, only now I figure it out.’
The main body was separate. The massive ice dragon was a clone from the start. That explained the freakish recovery.
In that instant, the Ice Dragon shattered. Fragments scattered, reflecting light endlessly. Suhyun frowned at the thick blue liquid oozing from the cracked ground below.
* * *
Amid praise for uncovering the beast’s secret, Suhyun rejoined the group. Unlike the clones, the pint-sized main body was mangled beyond recognition by his attack.
‘Should’ve held back...’
He’d gone all-out fearing a miss, which proved fatal. The corpse wasn’t essential, but better than nothing. Curious about a monster that tracked the grinder like a bloodhound.
“You’ve been through a lot. Truly.”
“No, we didn’t do much.”
“Nonsense. Just coming this far was more than enough.”
Ivan said as much, but he foresaw the aftermath. Handing mining rights to Korea over local rivals was obvious. Suhyun had even handed him the perfect excuse—icing on the cake.
Still, aid was aid. He expressed maximum gratitude to Liu Xin.
“Keep going straight, and you’ll hit Smirnov Base. Our forces will be waiting from there.”
‘What?’
* * *