Chapter 177
I Became the Successor of the Martial God
Chapter 177.
—Kyaaaah!
—For...master...!
The undead were locked in a fierce battle.
The high-tier undead summoned by Liao Wei and the necromancers were split into two factions, slaughtering each other.
This was not the scenario Liao Wei—or, by extension, Vincent—had envisioned.
"Why?! Why are you defying my orders?!"
Liao Wei shrieked.
Half of the high-tier undead he had painstakingly prepared had been stolen from him.
Summoning them again would require an enormous amount of energy, and there was no time left to gather it.
Kwaaaaang!
The number of undead he had lost was exactly half.
One might assume that with equal numbers, the battle would be evenly matched, but there was another variable at play.
"That monstrous bastard!"
It was the presence of Yoo Baek-jun.
He advanced alongside the undead, not even swinging his weapon—merely walking.
"Ugh... ughhh..."
"Huff...!"
Yet, the pressure he exuded was anything but ordinary.
With each step Yoo Baek-jun took, with each narrowing of the distance, their knees trembled. If they let their guard down even slightly, it felt as though they would kneel before him like subjects bowing to a king.
"M-Magic! Use dark magic to stop him—!"
"No... you lot... do nothing."
"Ghk!"
The necromancers who had tried to muster their energy froze in place. It was due to Yoo Baek-jun’s command.
An overwhelming pressure bore down on their shoulders, rendering them utterly powerless.
"Kneel."
"...!"
Liao Wei staggered for a moment.
His instincts screamed at him to obey this man. He clenched his eyes shut, forcing himself to ignore them.
But that was only possible because Liao Wei was an exceptional necromancer.
Unfortunately, the others were not so capable.
Thud!
"Y-You fools!"
The necromancers knelt.
Only Liao Wei remained standing. Gritting his teeth, he commanded his undead.
The highest-tier undead moved to block Yoo Baek-jun’s path.
But without the undead of the other necromancers, they were now outnumbered.
—Groooowl...
—Do not... obstruct... our master's path...!
The undead Yoo Baek-jun had stolen pushed Liao Wei’s undead aside, clearing a path.
A straight road stretched before him.
He walked down it slowly.
‘How...what should I do...?! Do I fight? No, even if I do, can I even win?’
Liao Wei’s mind spiraled into chaos.
His thoughts grew increasingly tangled, and without realizing it, his feet began to retreat.
Whoosh!
"Kuh—!"
Yoo Baek-jun would not let that slide.
A vicious chill shot from his hand, freezing Liao Wei’s legs in place.
"W-Wait... stop! Don’t come any closer!"
Yoo Baek-jun stood before Liao Wei.
The pressure intensified.
With his legs frozen, Liao Wei’s strength gave out, and he knelt.
At the same time, Yoo Baek-jun raised his sword.
"Your undead were impressive."
"Wha—?!"
Swiish!
The blade severed Liao Wei’s head. His decapitated body collapsed lifelessly.
Yoo Baek-jun turned his gaze to the other necromancers.
Not a single one showed any will to resist.
"Noel, it’s time to get to work."
Yoo Baek-jun tore a scroll.
It was a teleportation scroll, capable of summoning those nearby.
The torn paper emitted a brilliant light, transporting those who had been far away to this very spot.
"Y-You...!"
Noel and his companions.
The necromancers’ eyes widened in shock.
"J-Jerome’s most prized...!"
"What are you doing here?!"
They had all trained in necromancy together, so they recognized each other. They also knew how highly Jerome had praised Noel’s talent while belittling them in comparison.
But Noel paid them no mind.
He merely bowed his head slightly to Yoo Baek-jun.
"What should we do?"
"Restrain these guys and summon your own undead to secure the area. If you can clean up the surroundings before reinforcements arrive, even better."
"Understood."
Noel nodded, then raised his staff alongside his comrades.
"Arise, O dead."
No lengthy incantation was needed.
Just a simple command.
Uuuuu...
Groooan...
At his words, the dead scattered across the area began to rise as undead.
Their numbers were beyond counting.
And not just ordinary undead—highest-tier undead as well.
"Defend this area."
The undead summoned by Noel and his comrades moved to block the enemy’s advance.
On top of that, they employed the necromancers’ specialties—curses and dark magic.
It seemed safe to leave things in their hands.
"Good. In the meantime, I’ll..."
Yoo Baek-jun decided to leave this place to Noel and step away for a while.
Amidst the chaos, there was someone else he needed to deal with.
"Choi Gun-woo, lure Im Woo-do out."
Yoo Baek-jun began to move, leading the undead now under his command.
It was time to recall those zombie movies he’d watched.
***
"......"
Choi Gun-woo heard Yoo Baek-jun’s voice in his ear. Without hesitation, he nodded.
He and Im Woo-do were still at the Busan branch, with Im Woo-do still in a state of panic.
"Yoo Tae-rang! Above all else, we must prioritize Yoo Tae-rang! Send troops to his location! And fix this damn communication network already! Damn it, what the hell happened that even phones aren’t working?!"
"Im Woo-do."
"What is it?! Make it quick, I’m busy!"
"About the plan you mentioned earlier."
"...!"
Im Woo-do, who had been venting his anger at the unresponsive screen, finally turned to look at Choi Gun-woo.
His expression changed.
"What plan?"
"You know. About Yoo Baek-jun..."
"Keep your voice down. Someone might hear."
Choi Gun-woo leaned in and whispered into Im Woo-do’s ear.
"We’ve successfully lured Yoo Baek-jun. He’s heading to the location where you set up the traps."
"That’s...!"
Im Woo-do’s face brightened.
"Now that’s welcome news. But how did you find out? The comms are down."
"I checked the CCTV."
Choi Gun-woo showed him the footage.
Yoo Baek-jun and his subordinates were heading straight for the trapped area, pursued by an overwhelming number of undead. Im Woo-do smirked.
"Did that bastard not foresee this either? He looks completely panicked."
"Yes, it doesn’t seem like he was trying to deceive us. Maybe his foresight wasn’t wrong after all..."
"What an infuriatingly incompetent fool."
Im Woo-do stood up.
"Last time, I told Yoo Baek-jun that the defensive facilities at the target location were sturdy and that he could use them if things got dangerous. He’s probably planning to form a defensive line there."
"Little does he know it’ll be his grave."
"Im Woo-do, what’s your plan?"
"Is that even a question?"
Im Woo-do scoffed.
"I’m going there right now."
He led the Busan branch’s prosecutors toward the target location.
Though the area was swarming with undead, now was not the time to engage them.
After some time—
Kyaaaah!
—Flesh... give us flesh...!
The roars of undead echoed.
Ahead, at a large intersection, undead surrounded the area, their voices merging into a cacophony.
And there, in the middle of the intersection, stood Yoo Baek-jun.
Boom! Thud!
Whooosh!
Tall barriers surrounded the intersection on all sides. These magical barriers burned any enemies that approached.
Undead collided with the barriers, writhing in agony as they were consumed by flames.
"Phew... Without this, we’d have been done for."
"Indeed, young master."
This was one of the defensive facilities Choi Gun-woo had prepared.
Various other magical devices indiscriminately attacked the undead.
Yoo Baek-jun and his subordinates were using this respite to catch their breath.
"......"
Watching this scene from a distance, Im Woo-do’s lips curled into a vicious smile.
"Gun-woo."
"Yes, everything is ready. Just give the word."
Yoo Baek-jun was relieved, believing the barriers and defenses were protecting him.
"Stupid fool."
Im Woo-do sneered.
He didn’t even realize the true purpose of those walls.
"They weren’t built to protect you from enemies. They were built..."
Im Woo-do flicked his finger.
"...to trap you."
A change immediately took place.
First, the barriers blocking the undead flickered before turning transparent.
Then—
"W-What is that?!"
A massive ring appeared, encircling the barriers.
The ring glowed intensely.
"Ugh... ughhh!"
"Young master... agh!"
A blue energy—magical power—began to seep out of Yoo Baek-jun and his subordinates.
They weren’t voluntarily releasing it. The ring was forcibly draining them.
Siphoning every last drop.
"D-Destroy that ring! Now!"
"Y-Yes! But...!"
When Yoo Baek-jun tried to move, he froze in horror.
His magical flow was completely disrupted. He couldn’t use skills, and even moving his body was a struggle.
Worse, his strength was rapidly fading.
"A Magical suppression device...!"
Yoo Baek-jun realized the trap too late.
Groooan!
Kyaaah!
The undead, sensing their prey’s weakness, lunged en masse.
The transparent barriers offered no resistance.
The undead swarmed Yoo Baek-jun.
—Kyaaaah!
Crunch! Squelsh!
Horrific screams.
The sound of something being chewed apart.
Im Woo-do watched the scene with satisfaction.
—Groooowl...
—Uuuu...
Some time passed.
The undead, having finished their feast, stood and wandered off in search of more prey.
Im Woo-do used the remaining defensive facilities to eliminate the stragglers before descending.
"Ended more anticlimactically than I expected. This bastard... maybe he really was just an idiot who got lucky with his foresight."
"......"
Beyond the barrier, amidst the corpses of undead, lay the remains of those who had been devoured.
Yoo Baek-jun should be among them.
I’ll confirm the corpse myself.
To earn Yoo Tae-rang’s approval, he needed to bring back the body.
Im Woo-do began digging through the corpses.
And then—
"...?!"
He found nothing.
Beneath the undead’s remains, there was nothing.
No Yoo Baek-jun, no subordinates, nothing.
"What the hell? Where’s Yoo Baek-jun’s— Gah!"
As Im Woo-do turned in confusion, something kicked him squarely in the back.
He tumbled into the pile of undead corpses.
"Who the hell—?!"
"Me, you bastard."
Im Woo-do hurriedly looked up.
Standing before him was Yoo Baek-jun—completely unharmed, as if he’d never been attacked by undead.
And beside him, standing naturally—
"You... you..."
—was Choi Gun-woo.
Yoo Baek-jun patted Choi Gun-woo’s shoulder.
"Good work. Ended more easily than I thought."
"Yes, it’s fortunate he was so stupid."
"W-What the hell? Choi Gun-woo, you—!"
Im Woo-do’s jaw dropped.
The mocking tone of their conversation was one thing, but this sight—
Choi Gun-woo’s demeanor—
"Choi Gun-woo, you betrayed me?!"
"Yes."
Choi Gun-woo nodded indifferently.
Im Woo-do was speechless.
"No, ‘betrayal’ isn’t quite the right word."
Choi Gun-woo’s expression turned icy.
"I’m here for revenge."
"What?!"
At those words, the Magical Suppression device reappeared.
Im Woo-do’s pupils trembled.