Chapter 480
Chapter 480
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 480
Chapter Title: Hunting the Mastermind (1)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“Hey, hey! Have a drink and spill it all out!”
A familiar voice urged him to drink from across the table in the pub.
It was the voice of Kang Taesan, his lifelong friend and childhood companion whose nagging he’d grown thoroughly sick of over the past decade.
“I know it’s late to say this, but honestly, you’re the one I feel sorrier for. Come on! What does Han Seonghyeon, the great one, lack that he’s groveling after one woman? I never said anything, but watching you like that always made me so frustrated...”
I silently accepted the drink my friend poured and downed it in one gulp.
A sense of familiarity mingled with unfamiliarity.
But I, drowning the pain of heartbreak in alcohol’s haze, had no spare attention for anything else.
-Not long ago, there was explosive news that rocked the world: the leader of a transnational terrorist group active across the globe was finally captured in the United States. Additional reports confirm that the ‘■■■’ has been sentenced to death. This unusually swift judgment...
I let the news from the pub’s corner drone past one ear while guzzling booze until I was plastered.
Eventually, I ended up hugging the toilet, wailing for my lost love, making a fool of myself, and had to be dragged out by my friend as he apologized profusely to everyone around...
Well, these things happen in life, right?
It was just an ordinary heartbreak anyone could go through.
...Or so I thought upon reflection, but maybe not.
I really shouldn’t have made that call.
For some lingering attachment, I hadn’t deleted her number—a mistake for the ages.
Now that I was blocked, it was all water under the bridge anyway.
With her personality, she’s probably gossiping about it to everyone. She might’ve even recorded it.
My job was a freelance video editor.
It started as a high school hobby, but before I knew it, I’d abandoned my grades and college entrance exams to dive in fully.
Luckily, I had a knack for it and gained recognition early on, earning a decent income while others were in university. No real complaints there.
...Until the female streamer I met through work—who I’d given everything for—suddenly dumped me.
Aaah... I don’t want to live. I wish the world would just end.
Slumped in the corner of my room like a slime, I let out a deep sigh.
Of course, it was just idle griping.
If the world ended every time I complained like this, Earth would’ve vanished long ago.
[■■■■■—!]
But then.
The world really did end.
“......”
I lay there staring at the ceiling for a long while even after opening my eyes.
“...What kind of ridiculous dream is this?”
Muttering softly, I slowly sat up and looked around.
The bedroom of a house on the outskirts of Seoul, now familiar to me.
Frowning, I rubbed my temples.
“Jeez. Of all things.”
It felt eerily similar to a dream I’d had not long ago.
Even ending with the descent of some unknowable entity destroying the world.
But the circumstances leading up to it were vastly different from before.
Video editing... Never even crossed my mind.
In the previous dream, I’d entered university ordinarily and enjoyed campus life.
It was just a dream anyway, so no big meaning, but it piqued my interest nonetheless.
And that pathetic sight after being dumped...
“Ahem, ahem! Of course, the truly important part is the end, right?”
The unidentified divine being appearing again in my dream.
This confirmed it.
I’d definitely cross paths with that thing someday, somehow.
“Tch, the Reverse Heaven Leader alone gives me a headache.”
Clicking my tongue lightly, I sipped my morning coffee and sank into thought.
This repeated dream after the last one felt like a whip urging me to act more decisively.
Come to think of it, Hoon’s been in Saba Heaven for quite a while now.
He hadn’t planned to stay that long originally.
Back then, awakening Ramyu was all he’d focused on.
But circumstances tied his feet there unexpectedly, leading to a longer stay than planned...
“Well, it wasn’t all bad.”
Hoon acquiring the useful ability called chakra was one gain, and the new possibilities it opened were another solid achievement.
All his avatars were his most precious assets, after all.
The one issue?
Saba Heaven was plunging into real-time chaos where not even the next inch was predictable.
I hadn’t planned to intervene so actively.
Signs pointed to a massive war breaking out any moment.
When that happened, even the Yun Family of Seongcheon—self-proclaimed guardians of peace—would get swept up and teeter on the brink of destruction.
Balance and neutrality? They were bats through and through.
I owe them a debt, and I can’t just abandon them knowing they’ll be in peril.
The conclusion was already set.
“Sigh, no helping it. Things always end up like this.”
Perhaps it was destined from the moment he arrived in Saba Heaven following Ramyu.
A professional multiversal troll—no, world savior like him couldn’t ignore such an evil plot!
Right, crush them swiftly and clean up fast. With the info Hoon got this time, we can use that as a base...
Fortunately, the issues constraining his actions so far were all resolved.
The reason Hoon came to Saba Heaven and got stuck—the culprit keeping him there.
Ramyu, lost in long slumber, had finally awakened.
***
The new lodging moved to after the old room was wrecked in the fight with Anton.
“I can’t move to other dimensions.”
“......”
Hoon blinked his bloodshot eyes—from the Demon Eye’s backlash—as he eyed Ramyu hesitating and glancing at him.
“It feels like some kind of lock is on it. Not permanent, and I think it can be undone somehow... but it’s vague. I’ll need a bit more time to figure it out for sure.”
That was what came up while exchanging info with the now-awake Ramyu.
Meaning they’d be stuck in Saba Heaven a while longer.
Still, escaping a completely defenseless, unconscious state was a blessing.
At least no worries about kidnappings or such while he was away.
I wasn’t planning to bail right away anyway.
He’d expected more time for her to recover.
But the battle with Anton stimulated the covenant link, waking her far sooner than anticipated.
As a bonus, Hoon’s chakra reached the upper layer.
The real hurdles were cleared long ago, so this growth isn’t surprising.
Chakra cultivation hinged on understanding the element and the mental fortitude to embody it.
Things he already possessed in abundance.
All Hoon lacked was basic proficiency in the mystic art of chakra.
And back-to-back real combats against strong foes—with all his growth buffs—sufficed to fill that gap.
The deep layer probably needs some special enlightenment beyond this.
This much was plenty for now.
He’d toppled deep-layer experts effortlessly even at lower layer.
Now at upper layer, his chronic chakra output issue was fixed too...
“...Your aura’s changed a lot. I wasn’t asleep that long, was I?”
Sensing the subtle pressure emanating from Hoon, Ramyu tilted her head.
Then, shrugging it off, she looked around slowly before continuing.
“So, what’s the plan going forward? From what you said, this place is getting dangerous too. Don’t we need countermeasures?”
“Don’t worry about that. I’ve got something in mind.”
Hoon shrugged and turned to the window, watching the Seongcheon Yun Family servants busy with cleanup.
The raid didn’t last long, but the damage was astronomical.
Word was, not just the main house but branches everywhere were hit simultaneously. They’d likely lock the gates and focus inward for a while, no external activities.
And they haven’t rooted out all spies yet. They’re identifying the barrier-breakers somehow, but pinpointing high-level traitors won’t be easy.
The Seongcheon Yun Family, a major pillar in Saba Heaven, was starting to creak and fall silent.
That vacuum was precisely what the culprits behind this craved.
He didn’t grasp their full scheme yet, but no matter.
Time to find out.
Rubbing his sore eyes, Hoon shot to his feet.
He strode toward the door but paused.
“Oh right, forgot to ask something important.”
“...Yes?”
He turned to Ramyu, blankly gazing out the window, and posed his question.
About her unique skill, which he hadn’t asked due to her passing out right after awakening.
Her original powers might be restricted temporarily, but the system-granted unique skill should work.
While here, it was her sole self-defense, so he needed details.
“Ah, that?”
Ramyu nodded readily at his query.
She had no intent to hide from Hoon, her protector, unlike others.
“「Spacetime Control」. It seems similar to my original ability... but I’ll know for sure once I try it.”
***
“Ah! You’re out.”
As Hoon entered the lodging lobby, Miyart—the Earthling from Myanmar—greeted him.
Alone in the empty lobby, she quietly smoked, watching the bustle outside.
“I heard the kid you had woke up. But are you okay, Hoon? Mr. Mac Morris still won’t leave his bed.”
She’d been at the training grounds for night practice, missing the commotion here.
The grounds got hit too, but those attackers were no match for her, an upper-layer cultivator.
“I’m fine. Is Mr. Mac Morris’s condition serious?”
“Nah, not really. He’s tough as nails. Just some mild PTSD, so a few days’ rest and he’ll shake it off.”
Normally, it should’ve been worse.
Deep-layer terror chakra inflicted severe mental trauma just from proximity to lower cultivators.
Thanks to Hoon’s swift response on-site.
“Whew— Anyway, you’re incredible. I knew you grew fast, but this?”
Exhaling smoke, Miyart chuckled in disbelief, eyeing Hoon.
Reaching upper layer mere months after starting chakra?
This wasn’t just fast growth.
A monster. Or a madman? What kind of life has he lived...
Even if chakra defied time with the right conditions, there were limits.
Who’d believe less than a month from novice to upper layer?
Lucky not to get cursed out.
“Haha! Thanks for the praise. By the way, Miyart, have you heard about Anton?”
Hoon, with nothing to say on his growth, changed topics.
Explaining it as a side character after maxing mains was awkward.
“Whew— Yeah. Never thought he’d go that far. He seemed shady and twisted, but still...”
She gave a wry smile, flicking ash from her cigarette.
Unlike newbie Hoon, she’d known Anton for years.
Seeing him jailed with the captured raiders must sting.
“You seem worried.”
“Yeah. Not a total stranger, after all.”
“Then why’d you do it?”
The sudden question.
Miyart paused mid-drag and slowly turned to Hoon.
He watched her calmly, faint smile on his lips.
His bloodshot eyes gleamed, as if blood might drip any second.
“Huh? What’re you talking about?”
“Hmm, playing dumb?”
“No, I have no idea what you...”
“I get it. Even Anton doesn’t know why he did it, so digging it out is near impossible. ...But you see?”
Miyart silently met his gaze.
Hoon held it, voice laced with amusement.
“Nothing’s impossible in this world.”
A declaration brimming with certainty.
“......”
Whoosh—
The instant he finished, darkness swallowed the lobby, devouring even the cigarette’s ember.
Pitch black, without a single point of light.
Darkness chakra?
Hoon glanced around with interest.
Not mere light blockage.
Unfolding a barrier this size silently in seconds.
She’d sensed from his words and prepared covertly.
[...This is tricky. Didn’t expect someone could restore and check erased memories.]
Then, Miyart’s voice reverberated, shaking the space from all directions.
[But your arrogance goes further. Coming alone even knowing that.]
“Hahaha— Well, if you’ve got the skills, it’s not arrogance, it’s confidence, right?”
Hoon grinned.
He’d already hunted two deep-layer cultivators.
Even bagged an upper-layer one without frenzy overload. No needless tension now.
Though her unique skill was unknown, so not fully relaxed.
[Heh heh, true. And if the fight drags and draws people, it’s my loss.]
“Exactly? So surrender quietly...”
[No choice then. Sorry, but I’ll take my leave here.]
Hoon, bracing for battle, scowled.
This was inside Yun territory.
Barriers repaired and reinforced.
No way Miyart could escape such odds...
[You said it earlier, Hoon. Same goes for me.]
Her voice whispered in his ear as he heightened chakra and scanned.
[Nothing’s impossible.]
“Wait—!”
[See ya.]
Whoooosh—
A storm raged in the darkness.
A vortex sucking inward from outside to center.
Gritting his teeth, he surged chakra and pierced the dark—but by then, it was over.
“......”
The lobby back to normal, as if never shrouded.
Hoon stood alone in the center, face hardened, scanning around.
No trace of Miyart anywhere.
“...Gone?”
Only he remained.
Confirming once more, his lips twitched upward.
“Good. Then...”
Clapping lightly, he rubbed his palms with a sly grin.
“Shall we start the real hunt?”
Hoping the guide would climb as high as possible.