Chapter 112
Chapter 112
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 112
Chapter Title: Illuminate the Dawn on This Land, Final Battle Against the 'Exalted One' (5)
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13.
“I heard you raised him like a son.”
Biltanter responded in a haughty tone.
“I’ve personally witnessed the friendship between those two. Back when ‘he’ hadn’t yet been stripped of his name, when he was by the rock of Yotiatos.”
“That’s intriguing. Karlren, is that why you’re so delighted?”
“The son-like existence of ‘him’ being hunted? That would certainly make for splendid entertainment.”
Karlren covered her mouth with the long sleeve of her holy robes and let out a demure laugh.
“But what delights me is something else.”
“Don’t keep us in suspense—tell us.”
“Kim Baek-jun and Do Ye-jin. In my humble opinion, those two haven’t yet awakened as proper vessels.”
A brief silence.
Raisabera asked in a bewildered tone.
“……What? Then how did they make it all the way to the ‘Exalted One’ subjugation battle?”
“It seems they had some unknown assistance we couldn’t see. In any case, it worked out perfectly for us.”
“…………?”
“You’re so slow on the uptake, Raisabera. Did you set aside your intellect once your ‘Exalted One’ hunt was over?”
At that moment, realization dawned…… and Biltanter burst into a majestic laugh like a star.
“If the Mother of Truth permits it, I’m tempted to head there myself.”
As Raisabera squinted one eye, Karlren soothed her with a detailed explanation.
“Imagine those two driven to the brink of death. Do you think ‘they’ would stay silent?”
“…………Ah?”
“Exactly. Unless they’re willing to abandon one of the vessels, one of ‘them’ is bound to appear.”
Tantereska closed her eyes.
“Unless the vessels pull off some fluke luck.”
Karlren’s eyes curved like crescent moons as she spoke in her signature sultry tone.
“Would that even happen? In any case, what reactions will the stars show when that moment comes……? With it so close at hand, how could I not be thrilled?”
Laughter from the Star Messengers.
Soon, as always, their gathering concluded with these words.
“Aritabeyr. May the Mother of Truth guide you.”
14.
“……Jin!”
Chaotic visions of despair intertwined.
“Mom’s funeral.”
“Dad’s prickly beard.”
Into that swamp of despair.
“……Hey, Do Ye-jin!”
A voice pierced through like a flash of light.
The next instant, Do Ye-jin’s eyes fluttered half-open.
Blurred vision.
Gradually sharpening into focus there was…… a boy with blond ponytail hair.
“Shin…… Shin Tae-yeop?”
“Yeah. It’s me.”
Shin Tae-yeop sighed and plopped down beside Do Ye-jin.
“You little punk…… making people worry like this.”
“What happened to…… Ahh.”
“Stay still. The rooftop’s safe. For now. See your body glowing? I injected you with stellar fluid. Just wait till it heals you up.”
Shin Tae-yeop flashed a grin.
*He came right away again……* she thought.
“You need to lose some weight. I nearly died dragging you out of Ari-Shel’rap’s husk.”
A chill ran down her spine.
“Wait. The ‘Exalted One’…… the ‘Exalted One’ is……?”
“That thing? It’s being hunted right now.”
Shin Tae-yeop dusted off his butt as he stood and jerked his chin toward the rooftop below.
“No need to worry that much. The Association all-stars are all here. I’m heading back down too.”
*Association all-stars?*
That day. Facing the ‘Exalted One’—a being whose mere presence made an entire world tremble—were the Association’s seven strongest.
Command Trooper Chief Choi Uk.
Command Trooper Deputy Chief Shin Tae-yeop.
Recon Trooper Chief Lee Seong-mi.
Hunting Trooper Chief Yoo Seong-deok.
Logistics Trooper Chief Seo Hwa-yoon.
Subjugation Troopers Im Yong-gon. Do Su-jin.
The second subjugation battle.
Seven key figures who had been active since the old town battle in Gyonam-dong were gathered in one place.
“Thanks to you, we minimized the casualties. You can be proud.”
“……Me?”
“Yeah. I told you before. Ari-Shel’rap’s presence seemed to be drawing in the other subordinates.”
She certainly had.
In the underground library of Cheonun Hyoja-dong.
Shin Tae-yeop had pointed toward the inner Paradise Zone.
“Look over there. Hardly any damage, right?”
“……!”
“The ‘Exalted One’ fixated on you for some reason and didn’t attack the evacuees.”
*It’s really, really true.*
Her eyes suddenly welled up with heat.
“My fight…… it wasn’t meaningless…….”
Shin Tae-yeop smirked, took off his uniform coat, and draped it over her.
“Newbie, just sit back and watch now. It’s the veterans’ time.”
He leaped down from the rooftop.
Into the cityscape that had completely crumbled into wasteland.
It truly was the veterans’ time.
That day, the artistry of the seven’s linked maneuvers was unprecedented before and never seen after.
Ruuuumble…….
The earth’s rumbling suddenly quieted.
Ambush…… Barpakh’Tika had entered stealth mode.
“Watch out!”
The moment someone shouted that, Choi Uk’s eyes flashed.
“All units, hold position.”
The next instant, he fired a grenade launcher off to the side.
*What’s he doing……?*
The shell obliterated empty ground…… and Yoo Seong-deok hurled his chain sickle right there.
That very moment.
Barpakh’Tika burst up from underground.
She learned later.
Choi Uk had completely seen through the ‘Exalted One’s’ movements with his unique skill, 《Insight》.
“Bind it and double-team!”
There, Yoo Seong-deok.
His unique skill, 《Spirit-Flesh Separation》, shone.
《Spirit-Flesh Separation》.
It rips the target’s soul into fragments and draws them to the user.
An utterly incredible skill.
Every attack on those fragments.
Deals corresponding half-damage to the main body.
──Shhhrrrrrrk!
That’s why he used a chain sickle with such long range.
“Tae-yeop…… jab it with a burst of flame.”
And there.
The subjugation troopers stepped up to handle the striker role individually.
Shin Tae-yeop’s 《Flame Radiance Thunder》.
Do Su-jin’s 《Black River Cascade》.
Im Yong-gon’s 《Flame Essence Strike》.
*Amazing…… incredible!*
Immense damage inflicted on Barpakh’Tika’s soul in an instant.
「HHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAKKKKKKK!」
The main body let out a agonized scream.
Of course, Barpakh’Tika wasn’t just sitting idle.
It ascended like it was reaching for heaven.
Then dove at blinding speed toward the seven.
An unavoidable killing blow.
A strike backed by overwhelming bulk and unreal power.
“Seong-mi!”
“Yes!”
But people who made it miss existed: Seo Hwa-yoon and Lee Seong-mi.
The two women clasped their hands in unison.
Radiant light poured from their palms…… but their roles differed.
Lee Seong-mi’s 《Lotus Blossom Cloud》.
Starflowers bloomed in an instant, enveloping the seven like mist.
The pinnacle barrier unique skill.
For its 0.5-second duration, it reduces all damage by 99%.
- 0.5 seconds is short.
Shin Tae-yeop had once said.
- But that 99% damage reduction is no joke. Its true value shines based on the user’s proficiency.
The very next instant.
A world-shattering roar echoed as Barpakh’Tika’s body slammed down on the plaza where the seven stood.
A furious dust storm whipped up.
Debris scattered in all directions, pouring down like rain.
But…….
*Impossible to believe…….*
When the storm cleared.
The seven stood exactly where they had been. The ground that had clearly collapsed was intact?
That was Seo Hwa-yoon’s doing.
Her unique skill, 《Form Memory》. It remembered and restored the ground’s shape in that split second.
Her heart pounded with exhilaration.
*We can win…… we can win…… The Association is strong……!*
Do Ye-jin thought that.
Until Barpakh’Tika’s phase 2 began.
At first, it was the same as before.
Its ambush.
Choi Uk’s 《Insight》.
Yoo Seong-deok’s 《Spirit-Flesh Separation》.
But…… that was the moment.
Barpakh’Tika’s body, leaping from underground, began ultra-high-speed fission in midair.
“……What?”
“……Phase 2?”
“……All units, disengage! Disengage! Get out of there!”
Into a total of seven bodies.
The problem: even shrunk to 1/7th size, each was subordinate-scale massive.
──KABOOM!
The first body crashed onto the seven.
──KABOOOOOM!
The second body crashed onto the seven.
──KABOOOOOOOOM!
The third body crashed onto the seven.
Then BOOM…… BOOM…… BOOM…… fourth, fifth…… sixth…….
“No…… no…….”
Do Ye-jin screamed loudly as she forced herself up.
*It’s a pro at hunting.*
*Not phase 2…… It read our combo in just two tries and countered…… piercing Lee Seong-mi’s 0.5-second defense.*
Despair etched into her retinas.
A storm of dirt and collapsing debris.
Floating in that storm: Choi Uk…… Do Su-jin…… Lee Seong-mi…… Seo Hwa-yoon…… and what had been Yoo Seong-deok, reduced to a bloody pulp…….
“Sisiiiiiiiiiiister!”
About two seconds passed.
She saw them collapse limply to the ground. One small mercy in the despair…… they hadn’t fallen into a pit.
Only Im Yong-gon remained intact.
The giant had Choi Uk and Seo Hwa-yoon slung over his shoulders…… and now charged toward Do Su-jin and Lee Seong-mi.
Then, a massive shadow loomed over his head.
Im Yong-gon flinched and looked up.
Witnessing the nightmare leader’s seventh clone.
Do Ye-jin’s heart raced.
*She’ll die…… Sister Do Su-jin…… She’ll die like this…….*
In that moment of despair.
In the corner of her vision, a spark of hope flashed.
At invisible speed.
Leaving trails of dawn, two nightmare hunters appeared in the center of her view, where the seven had stood.
*Ah…… Ah…….*
Do Ye-jin nearly burst into tears in that instant.
In the Association—no, in all of New Seodaemun-gu—no one didn’t know those two.
[Lv : 199].
[Lv : 98].
Overwhelming levels.
The Lead Hunter and inaugural Association President. And his combo partner, the secretary.
Kim Baek-jun and Jeong Ha-kyeong.
Having come together via 《Super Acceleration》, Jeong Ha-kyeong was carrying Kim Baek-jun in her arms.
The next moment.
Kim Baek-jun dropped to the ground.
“Pierce through───!”
He thrust his dawn greatsword, swirling with blood-red radiance, into the diving calamity.
“─────Sacred!”
A blinding flash that seared her retinas.
Crimson sword ki pierced the snake’s body, ignited, and raged fiercely.
*Truly, truly overwhelming power.*
The sword ki didn’t vanish until it had reduced the seventh clone completely to ash.
But did such immense power come with a price?
In that instant, Kim Baek-jun broke out in cold sweat and dropped to one knee. He said urgently.
“Yong-gon and Ha-kyeong, take the survivors…… for now…… retreat from here.”
At that moment, Do Ye-jin’s heart turned ice-cold.
「UUUUUHAAAAAAAAAAAHAAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA…….」
Laughter shaking the underground.
Then, perhaps the six clones merging back…… a sudden violent earthquake struck.
“Uncle……!”
Thanks to Ari-Shel’rap’s power, perhaps.
Do Ye-jin’s stellar fluid recovery speed was several times faster than other hunters’.
“I’m here! I’m right here!”
So.
She leaped from the rooftop, staggering but desperately charging into the dawn light.
“My God.”
At that moment.
Kim Baek-jun’s eyes flew wide.
“Ye-jin…… you’re alive!”
The next instant, he rushed over, hugged her tight, and trembled as if sobbing.
“Thank goodness…… When I saw Ari-Shel’rap’s corpse…… Uncle…… for a moment…… really, thank goodness…… really…….”
That instant.
The moment their heartbeats synced.
The moment they confirmed each other’s lives with all five senses.
“Yeah…… yeah…… Uncle too……!”
Do Ye-jin tried to sound calm, but her voice kept choking with sobs.
“When they said you were missing…… I said you had to be alive……!”
“I heard…… Thank you, Ye-jin. Truly.”
Kim Baek-jun grinned and swiftly hoisted Do Ye-jin onto his shoulder.
“For now, let’s pull back! Strategic retreat!”
[The Dull Serpent, Barpakh’Tika]
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