The Dragon's Gaze
Park Daecheol immediately replied that he would come find them, and with that, the matter of the Gangnam organizations was settled.
The three of them had only been responsible for destroying the organizations. The rest of the cleanup was left to the Returnee Union.
“Whew! It’s so convenient not having to worry about the Awakened Crime Investigation Bureau even after causing trouble.”
Go Wonjin stretched his arms and spoke.
Normally, the Awakened Crime Investigation Bureau would show up the moment anything suspicious happened.
“They’ve got that team leader with psychometry, don’t they? No matter how well you hide things, she finds out everything. It’s annoying as hell.”
Go Wonjin frowned as if he had been caught by her many times before.
Her ability was nearly perfect when it came to investigations.
That’s true.
Lim Dojun had also gone to great lengths to erase his traces whenever he wiped out an organization in Jongno in the past, always mindful of her.
But this time, there was no need to worry.
“Since we’re working with the government from the start, it’s reassuring.”
This operation had been a joint effort between the Returnee Union and the government from the beginning. There was no reason to fear the investigation bureau getting involved.
Go Wonjin grumbled.
“Still, those government bastards. I don’t like them. They’re always ordering us around with this and that.”
“We can’t just overthrow them either.”
“Yeah, that would be even more of a hassle.”
The balance between the government’s authority, the Returnee Union, and the Awakener Association.
On the surface, it looked like a balance, but in reality, power was heavily skewed toward the Returnee Union.
If the returnees banded together, they could even establish a dictatorship.
But they didn’t.
There were many reasons, one of which was the international situation.
The United States, which championed democracy, had absurdly powerful returnees.
There were others like them outside the U.S. as well. Since Korea was an ally, America would intervene if any problems arose.
The same applied to external invasions, not just internal coups.
Korea’s returnee forces were relatively weak, making it an easy target for stronger nations like China and Japan. The alliance with democratic countries, including the U.S., was what kept them safe.
If Korea became a dictatorship, those alliances would vanish, and other authoritarian states might openly invade.
“It’s a shame our population is so small. The number of returnees and Awakeners is just too low.”
Go Wonjin clicked his tongue.
Returnees and Awakeners appeared in extremely small proportions, so countries with larger populations naturally had the advantage.
Places like China and India had quite a few returnees, and among them, the chances of powerful individuals emerging were naturally higher.
“Well, enough pointless talk. Little brother. Sehan. Are you tired?”
Both shook their heads at Go Wonjin’s question.
“Tired? On the contrary, my body feels stiff because I haven’t moved enough.”
“Our clan leader wants us to head to China. Should we go now instead of dragging it out?”
“Sounds good.”
The Cheongryong Clan’s first official external operation had begun.
* * *
The three of them moved immediately.
Even though they were heading overseas rather than staying domestic, there was no hesitation.
The method was simple.
They used the intermediate magic Fly, casting it on all three before taking off.
…He’s insane. Just how much mana does he have?
No… Dojun-nim. What exactly did you do in Astelgard? Even a Tower Master shouldn’t be able to do something like this…
Maintaining flight continuously, not just for a short burst, consumed an enormous amount of mana.
Especially when carrying two other people along with himself?
It was impossible.
At least, that was what their common sense told them. Lim Dojun shattered that common sense.
“It’s manageable.”
Lim Dojun shrugged as he flew at the front.
The Dragon Heart fragments continuously supplied him with mana, so there was no strain.
Unless he exceeded his output, this much was nothing.
On top of that, Lim Dojun also used concealment magic, allowing them to arrive in Shenyang, Manchuria, without being detected.
One of China’s major cities, boasting an enormous population.
The traces of Wang Chen that he had felt when striking him last time were here.
“So the Ghost Daoist’s base was in Shenyang.”
Lee Sehan muttered.
On the way, Lim Dojun had told them he was going to capture Wang Chen, one of the Ten Venerables and the Ghost Daoist.
He had said it was a target of revenge and that he had to catch him, but neither of them was intimidated by the title of Ten Venerables.
That wasn’t the kind of people they were.
The Ten Venerables were impressive, but you wouldn’t know until you fought them!
They carried that confidence.
“Do we need to move inside the city?”
“No. It seems to be on the outskirts.”
The presence he had felt back then was in the outskirts of Shenyang, in the mountainous region toward Tieling.
“Let’s go. I’ll cast Fly on you again.”
They had stopped by Shenyang to check if anyone had noticed them, but nothing happened while they ate and had coffee in the city.
With their stamina replenished, they could head straight in.
They arrived at the mountainous outskirts.
“…This is. The defenses are terrifying.”
Go Wonjin was the first to speak weakly, his face pale.
The spells covering the entire mountain range were overwhelming in both scale and power.
Even Go Wonjin could see that much.
If they charged in recklessly, they wouldn’t last long before dying. That much was clear.
“As expected… Overseas returnees are much stronger than ours. I understand now.”
Lee Sehan nodded beside him.
When it came to the strength of Awakeners and returnees alone, Korea didn’t rank among the advanced nations.
With a small population, the number of Awakeners and returnees was low, which drastically reduced the chances of powerful individuals appearing.
In that regard, China and India, with populations exceeding a billion, were strong, followed by countries like the United States and Russia.
“Hmm… What do we do about this?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle it.”
Lim Dojun stepped forward.
He focused his mind and drew upon his power.
The dragon’s will, heart, and body all surged at once as dragon soul magic activated.
Lim Dojun’s pupils split vertically and turned a brilliant blue.
Dragon’s Eye, which could discern the essence of all magic and spells.
The spells spread across the mountain range were vast, intricate, and complex, but once he opened this eye, their structure became clear at a glance.
Even though spells operated on an entirely different system, they couldn’t escape the Dragon’s Eye.
Crack!
Shatter!
When Lim Dojun lightly touched the air with his hand, the spells shattered and broke around him, creating a passage wide enough for several people to enter.
“…Good grief.”
“Our clan leader… is a monster.”
They had felt it when they stormed the Ghost Temple last time, but Lim Dojun’s mastery of magic was beyond comprehension.
Yet the one who had displayed such power showed no sign of fatigue.
“Let’s go.”
Lim Dojun walked in first.
* * *
China’s Ten Venerables maintained an outward alliance but were always ready to tear into each other at any moment.
The Ten Venerable who ruled the northern region of Hebei Province, the Northern Thousand Eyes, was no exception.
Wang Chen is acting strange. The information has changed slightly. Did that bastard suffer internal injuries while training? Go check it out.
With the alias Northern Thousand Eyes, he possessed a powerful authority over information.
Moreover, since Wang Chen’s territory was right next door and their forces constantly clashed, he had been especially vigilant and noticed the anomaly.
That was why he had dispatched a subordinate.
Tap tap tap tap!
Zhang Hao, dressed in black, skin-tight clothing with a mask and carrying a sword, sprinted across the mountain range like the wind.
He was extremely tense inside.
Soon I’ll reach Wang Chen’s Minghu Tower.
Wang Chen’s base, deep within the mountains, was called Minghu Tower.
A massive eight-story pavilion, a fortress covered in countless spells Wang Chen had maintained for a long time.
Of course, entering meant death, so he had planned to scout from afar. But as Zhang Hao drew closer, he felt something was wrong.
The concealment spell isn’t active?
He knew the outermost layer had a concealment spell to block ordinary people, and while he wouldn’t be affected since he knew the location, it was strange that he couldn’t even sense the spell’s traces.
Anyway, he ran quickly and reached his destination.
“!”
Zhang Hao was shocked.
The spells… are broken?
The spells that should have tightly covered the entire mountain range were destroyed in some areas.
Zhang Hao carefully stepped through the gaping holes in the spells.
One layer, two layers, three layers, four layers…
Traces of a total of six layers of spells were visible.
Concealment spells, bewilderment spells that would break an intruder’s mind, detection spells that would locate intruders and allow attacks from within, spirit guardians that would come to repel intruders, and various other traps…
Even from the traces alone, they were immense spells, and all of them had been destroyed.
The boss was right to be suspicious! Wang Chen became strange because he was attacked by someone!
Shaken by the shocking truth, Zhang Hao wanted to turn back immediately.
What kind of monster could destroy the domain of one of the Ten Venerables and break in?
But after swallowing hard, Zhang Hao gathered his courage.
If he returned empty-handed, he would lose the boss’s trust.
At the very least, he had to confirm what had happened inside.
Zhang Hao carefully made his way in through the gaps in the broken spells.
“……!”
And what he saw inside was Minghu Tower, completely wrecked.
The massive, imposing eight-story pavilion was split in half, one side collapsed and the other on the verge of falling.
Even Minghu Tower was in relatively better shape.
The well-maintained garden near Minghu Tower and the surrounding buildings had been completely destroyed.
Who… who could have done this…?!
The meaning of Wang Chen’s base being in this state was simple.
It meant that the Ten Venerable Wang Chen and his subordinates had been defeated by an enemy!
One of China’s ten strongest returnees had fallen. This foreshadowed a coming storm of blood.
Who would claim the empty territory of Wang Chen?
How would the culprit move?
How should the other Ten Venerables act?
A chaotic world was about to unfold.
That was when it happened.
In front of Minghu Tower, Zhang Hao spotted a figure wearing a blue robe.
Wondering if that person was the culprit, Zhang Hao stared at him. The robed figure turned his head.
“Guh…!?”
The moment their eyes met those vertically split, reptilian pupils, Zhang Hao felt as if lightning had pierced through his mind.