Chapter 77: How a Veteran Plays Defense (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 77: How a Veteran Plays Defense (2)
After giving them a brief warning, Jinhyuk glanced up at the empty air.
It should be about time for it to appear...
The moment that thought crossed his mind—
Ding!
[Your 'Solar Energy' for the first wave is being calculated.]
As expected, it appeared right on cue.
A satisfied smile spread across Jinhyuk's face.
[You have acquired a total of 1,500 'Solar Energy'.]
The solar power obtained from killing the zombies.
Using this, he could cultivate a wider variety of more powerful defensive plants.
I can't rely solely on projectile plants to get through to the end.
The projectile plants that had blocked the first wave were powerful, but their delay made them insufficient for stopping a massive breakthrough.
As the waves progressed, zombies with drastically enhanced physical abilities, and even special zombies falling from the sky, would appear.
Naturally, he had to diversify his plants accordingly.
Walking the tightrope between the zombies and the plants was the key to conquering this floor.
[You have acquired an astonishing amount of energy, earning you the title 'Botanist'.]
[Botanist]
Acquisition Difficulty: SS (Limited to the 4th floor)
Effect: The performance of all plant defense towers increases by 10%. While ordinary plants are commonly believed to lack intelligence and emotion, this is incorrect. Plants will sympathize and resonate with the Botanist's heart, annihilating his enemies.
Normally, the Solar Energy obtainable from the first wave was only about 300.
This was due to the slow blooming speed of the plants and the difficulty of cultivating them.
Because of this, most players didn't even look at plants, which boasted an atrocious level of difficulty.
However, Jinhyuk had chosen a massive base—the Sangam Stadium—and had wiped out an immense number of zombies, allowing him to secure a whopping five times the usual amount of Solar Energy.
With this, the story changed completely.
[Melee Plant / Destruction Type / Required Solar Energy: 300]
[Freezing Plant / Ice Type / Required Solar Energy: 350]
[Rock Plant / Defense Type / Required Solar Energy: 250]
[Rampage Plant / Frenzy Type / Required Solar Energy: 600]
There were a total of four types of plants available for the second wave.
Of course, he had already decided which plants to place where.
"I'll plant one Melee Plant each in the east and south, and place a Freezing Plant in the center. One Rock Plant in the west will be enough."
Finally, he took the seed for the Rampage Plant separately and slipped it into his pocket.
Great. Now, next is...
Jinhyuk purchased additional necessary items from the Coin Exchange.
'10kg of Dried Highland Cow Dung', '5 sacks of Last Fallen Leaves', '100 Pentelas dung beetles', and '100 Gray Earthworms'.
These were all ingredients to make fertilizer.
Naturally, not all fertilizers were created equal.
Finding the optimal combination out of countless possibilities was a privilege reserved only for veterans.
[The cotyledons of the plants tremble.]
[They smack their lips at the sweetness they are tasting for the first time in their lives.]
Hearing the plants' inner thoughts must be an effect of the Botanist title.
"Yes, yes. Eat up and grow big and strong," Jinhyuk muttered as he generously scattered the fertilizer.
On the other hand, the faces of the others watching Jinhyuk chuckle turned darker than ever.
"Noona. I think Hyung has finally lost his mind," Lee Tae-min swallowed hard.
"I'm watching too. Just how long do you have to be cooped up in the Tower to end up like that?"
"I-I'm scared too. Doesn't it look like Jinhyuk-ssi is actually communicating with the plants? Surely, it's just my imagination, right? Please tell me it's just my imagination."
Yu Yeon-hwa and Teresa shook their heads as if denying reality.
"If it's him, it might actually be possible. He's... completely unpredictable, after all."
Even Cheon Yu-seong frowned, looking somewhat intimidated.
Whether he knew how they felt or not, Jinhyuk lovingly stroked the plants.
"Hehehe. Anastasia. Yes, yes, chew it well before you swallow. Christina."
* * *
About five minutes later, leaving the base in the hands of the other four, Jinhyuk immediately headed outside the stadium.
"Grab the food first. We need to sweep every single convenience store in the alleys. Got it? Food and water are top priority."
"We'll handle the medicine and essential goods. It'll get harder and harder to come outside as time goes on, so we have to secure as much as possible in the beginning."
"Avoid fighting other guilds if possible, but if you think it won't work out, just take them all out."
The streets were quite crowded with players.
Since there was still time before the next wave, they were trying to prepare by farming on the streets.
Tsk, tsk. This is no time to be preparing for that...
Jinhyuk clicked his tongue as he strolled leisurely through the crowd.
They had come here completely unprepared in the first place, so did they really think preparing for a long-term war made sense?
The chances of their bases falling before they even reached the late game were much higher.
It would be far better to pour all their coins into strengthening their respective defense towers; that was the only way to survive even one wave longer.
Then again, if they were smart enough to know that, they wouldn't have struggled so much on the 3rd floor in the first place.
For most players, there was simply too little information about the Tower.
It was practically their first time facing something like this.
So, they had no choice but to make such foolish moves.
I keep forgetting that I shouldn't judge things by my own standards.
Jinhyuk let out a smirk.
As he looked around, he soon arrived in front of the building right next to the supermarket.
Unlike the supermarket guarded by the Murim and the Triad, no one had claimed this place as a base.
It offered no defensive advantages, nor was it rich in resources, so the building was completely deserted.
Jinhyuk walked inside.
[You have entered the base 'Eccentric's Antique Vault'.]
Iron medieval armor, porcelain, and various other antiques were lined up in rows.
Most of the display cases were smashed, and the floor was covered in a thick layer of dust, showing that no one had entered for a long time.
A place where a ruined modern world and lost history overlapped.
It's been a really long time.
Was it almost eight years ago?
He had stumbled upon this place while wandering around to test how long he could run away from tens of thousands of zombies.
Jinhyuk looked at the dozens of paintings hanging on the wall.
Faded landscapes decorating a corner of the gallery.
Back then, cornered at a dead end without even a weapon and on the verge of death, he had reached out to rip off a picture frame to smash a zombie's head.
Jinhyuk reached out toward the frame, just as he had back then.
Then—
Hummmmm!
His hand passed right through the painting.
The wall, which had looked perfectly solid on the outside, transformed into a passage leading to the supermarket next door.
I knew it.
The corners of Jinhyuk's mouth curled upward.
A kind of bug.
A bug that had never been patched in the game was reproduced in reality.
Jinhyuk quickly crossed over to the other side.
No one is standing guard.
Just as expected.
Since zombies and intruders would all come through the entrance, they naturally had to concentrate all their forces there.
They probably couldn't even dream that there was a hidden passage back here.
Jinhyuk looked at the mountain of food and supplies.
This was enough for at least a few hundred people to survive for two or three weeks.
This was why supermarkets were so great.
"Thanks to this, my little cutie is going to eat until its stomach bursts."
The last plant he had brought along instead of planting at the base.
[Rampage Plant]
It had the disadvantage of requiring an enormous amount of energy, but wasn't there more than enough food piled up here?
Since it wasn't his anyway, there was no reason to feel even a shred of regret.
[The Rampage Plant smacks its lips.]
Deep inside the food warehouse, where no one was paying attention—
Chomp! Munch! Gobble!
The reddish plant began to rapidly balloon in size.
* * *
"Aaaargh! That miserable bastard. I'm going to chew him up and swallow him alive. I can't let him live!"
Jegal Cheon spat out a curse filled with rage.
His face, still bruised black and blue, looked quite painful.
Crash!
A water bottle tore apart, splashing water in all directions.
"I think Cheon is right. No matter how much we need to climb the Tower, we don't need to keep someone around who is so hard to manage, do we?"
Tang So-ha chimed in, agreeing with Jegal Cheon.
"..."
Hwangbo Gun-ak kept his mouth shut.
Then, he casually asked Namgung Hyun, who was standing next to him.
"Hyun. Do you think so too?"
"I... I..."
Namgung Hyun trailed off.
At that, Hwangbo Gun-ak's eyebrows furrowed.
"What is it? Don't tell me you're scared?"
"M-Me, scared?"
"Yes. You've completely tucked your tail. How are you any different from a frightened jackal?"
Hwangbo Gun-ak deliberately spoke with provocation and irritation.
If Namgung Hyun got angry, he might at least overcome his fear.
But Namgung Hyun didn't even offer a proper retort.
He was completely frozen.
All because of the man named Kang Jinhyuk.
Was it really that bad?
A wall that could only be felt by the party fighting him, not by a third-party observer.
Perhaps they were trying to drag in a player they couldn't possibly handle.
"Everyone..."
Just as Hwangbo Gun-ak opened his mouth—
Rumbleeeee!
Suddenly, with a massive roar, the entire supermarket shook.
"Aaaargh!"
"Aaaack!"
"Help... Help me!"
At the same time, horrific screams erupted from all over.
"What's going on?!"
Hwangbo Gun-ak drew his sword and kicked the door open.
There should still be time left before the second wave.
Therefore, this impact was not caused by zombies.
Furthermore, now that the highlight video had been released, no sane person would dare raid this place.
Everyone must have seen clearly where the sturdiest base on the 4th floor was.
No.
There was exactly one person.
Someone with guts big enough to pull off such a stunt.
"Could it be..."
Tang So-ha's brow furrowed.
"A-A giant plant... an incredibly massive plant has appeared in the warehouse!"
"The players are all being eaten! Ugh... we can't handle this. We can't!"
There was no mistake.
It was him.
"Damn it! My base!"
Hwangbo Gun-ak screamed, his face filled with despair.
There was very little time left before the second wave hit.
If they lost their base now, they had to prepare for the absolute worst-case scenario.
They had to prevent losing this place at all costs.
But it was already too late.
Rumble, rumble, rumble!
The ceiling collapsed, and the pillars shattered.
The entire supermarket began to cave in.
And through the debris—
"Hmm. I brought a little housewarming gift, but our Aengdu has quite an appetite. I'm really sorry about this."
Jinhyuk was scratching his head with an innocent smile.