Condensed Lightning (4)
The fatigue meter read 90.
You are approaching the brink of death. Rest immediately.
The warnings kept piling up, filling his vision until it blurred.
Jang Lee-hyun drew in a deep, ragged breath.
The gap between 89 and 90 was massive.
His sight swam. If he pushed any further, he would black out for real.
Even so, he kept staring at the message window, searching for something.
But it never appeared.
It's not here.
The resistance he had been hoping for refused to show itself.
Should he raise his fatigue even higher? Or look for another condition?
Sun Wukong, who had been watching in silence until now, finally exploded.
In the end, Jang Lee-hyun took a step back.
I'll end the first attempt here and wait for the next opportunity.
Sun Wukong wasn't wrong. Any more fatigue and the magic circuits that had only just begun to recover would shatter completely. That would be irreversible.
Only then did Jang Lee-hyun drink the potion he had been holding back.
Recovery Potion ingested.
The Relic: Ruyi Jingu Bang reacts and greatly enhances restorative power.
The scars covering his body began to close. His fatigue meter dropped rapidly, and his vision cleared.
“Hoo…”
“Thanks to that, I was able to climb this far this quickly. I’ve raised my combat power to the point where I could wipe out an entire raid team.”
Sun Wukong was clearly displeased with how Jang Lee-hyun kept twisting his words.
Jang Lee-hyun let out a small chuckle and pulled out his axe again, approaching Heo Se-un’s corpse.
“Why would I bother with something so petty?”
Jang Lee-hyun smiled.
“If I fought hard, I should loot hard.”
「……?」
Sun Wukong tilted his head, not quite understanding.
“I’m extremely poor. I’ll take everything I can get.”
Jang Lee-hyun stripped every piece of equipment from Heo Se-un and the rest of the raid team, storing it all neatly in his inventory.
I thought the Myeongga Guild Master’s younger brother might have something decent, but this is way better than I expected.
◈ Ancient Celtic heroes were said to carry small bags that could hold anything. This item is often depicted as jewelry or ornaments.
◈ Origin: Folk tale The Secret Pouch of Tara
Inventory-type subspace items were ridiculously expensive. They lightened the body and made storing dungeon byproducts easy. But their complicated crafting process meant even large guilds only entrusted them to professional porters.
Most hunters could only dream of owning one. Even if they scraped together the money, they could usually only store one or two items.
But Heo Se-un’s was high-capacity. Thanks to it, Jang Lee-hyun could comfortably store everything he had looted.
Most of it will have to be sold on the black market, but there are a few pieces I can use right away.
One item in particular caught his attention.
◈ A fossil of unknown origin.
◈ It seems to hold some kind of secret.
It looked nothing like an ordinary stone. It was as large as a human torso and shaped like an ostrich egg. He wondered if it might be a divine beast’s egg, but it had weathered too long to tell. Even the Hwaan Geumjeong couldn’t identify it.
Still, the fact that Heo Se-un had gone to the trouble of protecting it suggested it was valuable. Jang Lee-hyun decided to keep it for now.
He turned his attention to the loot he had been eyeing most eagerly—the Yellow Wind Monster.
Jang Lee-hyun drew a small dagger.
Slice. Slice.
The corpse of his old enemy was being meticulously dismantled. Sun Wukong watched with a slightly sour expression before asking.
“Do you know what the most annoying thing about being in the military is?”
“The higher-ups always skimp on supplies.”
「…….」
“So what can you do? You learn to be self-sufficient.”
Jang Lee-hyun carefully separated the fingers and staff that had activated the various skills.
“In that sense, a boss monster’s corpse is the most profitable loot of all. Something of this level will make Elder Docheol very happy.”
While Sun Wukong grumbled, Jang Lee-hyun finished his work and dusted off his hands.
“All done. Let’s go.”
Jang Lee-hyun arrived at the dungeon’s final area—the oasis—with Sun Wukong.
A vast lake that seemed completely out of place in the dry desert.
He scooped up water with both hands and drank.
His mind cleared instantly. Fatigue melted away. His magic power surged.
This is spiritual water.
It was a type of elixir—natural magic power condensed into liquid form. This was the first time he had seen spiritual water on such a massive scale.
He was about to drink more when—
All dungeon quests successfully cleared.
📍 Reward: Massive amount of ■■■■’s Karma
The main quest reward hit him. He felt power surge through his body once again.
Crack. Crunch.
The core that had absorbed the spiritual water grew larger and harder—about 1.5 times its previous size. The flow of magic power became far more intense.
If I had been greedier, it would have been dangerous. This is just right.
But the dungeon’s rewards weren’t over yet.
If this dungeon really contains the legacy of the monkeys of Mt. Hwagua…!
You have claimed 99.6% of the strategy contribution.
📍 Overwhelming first place achieved.
Additional reward: Samhae Divine Wind Skill Book
As expected!
Jang Lee-hyun turned to look at Sun Wukong.
The monkey was standing with his arms crossed, snorting with a smug grin.
In other words, he would only receive these rewards if he continued to dominate the myths with overwhelming results. The difficulty would rise, but so would the quality of the rewards. It was excellent motivation.
The power of the main gods, combined with the techniques of Sun Wukong’s old enemies… I really can grow endlessly stronger.
There was nothing that made Jang Lee-hyun happier.
I didn’t get the resistance I wanted, but I can figure out the conditions later. For now, I’ll focus on the myth of the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.
Sun Wukong looked grumpy on the surface, but the corner of his mouth was slightly, subtly upturned.
Connection with the Ruyi Jingu Bang has deepened significantly.
Greater control over the Hwaan Geumjeong has been unlocked.
Rumble!
The dungeon began to collapse.
“Great Sage.”
Sun Wukong, who had been gazing around with nostalgic eyes, turned his head.
[10]
[9]
“Even so, don’t you think I did well enough as a temporary apostle?”
Sun Wukong crossed his arms and snorted.
“If you’d just give me a little praise—”
Before Jang Lee-hyun could grumble, Sun Wukong tossed out one more line.
“……!”
[3]
Jang Lee-hyun’s eyes widened slightly.
[2]
“Yes.”
Jang Lee-hyun smiled.
[1]
[0]
Countdown complete.
The dungeon is now closed.
Jang Lee-hyun returned to the hospital looking like a beggar.
It was so late that he tried to slip quietly into his room, but the moment he turned on the light—
“……J-Jin-woo hyung?”
Go Jin-woo was sitting on the bed with his arms crossed.
He looked like a ghost.
“What time do you think it is?”
“Hyung, weren’t you supposed to be off—?”
“I was supposed to be off, yes. But some bastard living somewhere decided to keep me from clocking out. You wanna die?”
Only then did Jang Lee-hyun notice that Go Jin-woo was wearing casual clothes, not his usual work attire.
There was nothing worse than preventing a working man from going home.
Jang Lee-hyun immediately bowed his head.
“I’m sorry!”
“I don’t know where you’ve been playing to come back looking like that, but maybe I should break both your legs so you can’t go out again…”
Jang Lee-hyun shouted urgently.
“I’m fully healed.”
“What kind of nonsense—!”
“It’s true. The curse is completely gone.”
“……!?”
“My magic circuits have recovered too.”
“Give me your hand.”
Go Jin-woo quickly grabbed Jang Lee-hyun’s wrist and checked his pulse.
Thump. Thump.
A powerful, vigorous heartbeat. Rich, abundant magic power flowed within it.
“How the hell did you…!”
Go Jin-woo had already noticed that the curse had begun to lift during the dungeon exploration. But only a single day had passed since then.
The change was far too drastic.
He examined Jang Lee-hyun’s physique. Even through the ragged clothes, he could see a solidly built frame. He had trained consistently before, but the impression was completely different now.
Before, it had felt like a sick man hiding his pain. Now it felt like a warrior who had been forged in battle.
It smelled like the Cheongroe unit days…
“I went to check my body. I can use magic freely now, and my legs are completely healed.”
“……!”
Go Jin-woo held onto Jang Lee-hyun’s wrist as he lightly hopped in place without any discomfort.
“This won’t do. You need to get a full detailed examination right—!”
“No. That’s not possible.”
Jang Lee-hyun gently pushed Go Jin-woo’s hand away.
“Why not? We have to make sure there are no lingering side effects first!”
“And if you confirm it? Are you going to spread the news that Jet is back?”
“You missed your Cheongroe days, didn’t you? You could go back! Even if not, there are plenty of old comrades who would want to know you’re okay. We could—”
“What if Na Ye-bin or Seo Chang-woo finds out?”
Go Jin-woo shut his mouth instantly.
Na Ye-bin. Seo Chang-woo.
Names they could never forget.
The ones who had taken a friend from him and a brother from Jang Lee-hyun.
“I have to catch those bastards. But if they find out I’m healed, I won’t be able to. Or rather, they’ll come after me instead.”
Go Jin-woo couldn’t argue.
Na Ye-bin had vanished without a trace, but Seo Chang-woo was still openly active. No—his name was now Xu Changyou. It had already been over three years since he naturalized in China.
As the apostle of the Jade Emperor, he was said to enjoy tremendous popularity in the Chinese-speaking world.
“Even though I’m healed, I haven’t recovered my stats from my Jet days yet. And even if I did, I’m not sure I could take him down immediately.”
Seo Chang-woo, who had shown explosive growth thanks to the relic from the Snow Queen, was now one of the top High-Rankers in China. Rumors said he would soon challenge the Top Ranker 9000 list. Jang Lee-hyun had to be cautious.
Go Jin-woo let out a long sigh.
“So you’re going to hide as much as possible and rebuild your body from scratch?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you even have a suitable place? You know better than anyone how narrow this industry is despite its size.”
The number of dungeons needed to awaken outstanding abilities was limited. And those places were usually controlled by large guilds.
That meant rumors about Jang Lee-hyun would inevitably spread someday.
For now, Na Ye-bin and Seo Chang-woo probably wouldn’t pay attention to this side. But what if they happened to glance this way? Or if the name Jet suddenly rose again?
Could he stop their interference then?
But—
“Hyung, I’m Jang Lee-hyun. I’m Jet. Do you really think I’d move so clumsily?”
Go Jin-woo let out a helpless laugh at Jang Lee-hyun’s confident attitude. He remembered exactly what kind of person Jang Lee-hyun was.
“So those bastards won’t be able to sleep soundly for much longer?”
“Obviously.”
After thinking it over, Go Jin-woo finally made up his mind.
“Fine. If you’re this determined, Su-chan would throw a fit if I didn’t help. Besides, I want to see those sons of bitches get their faces smashed too. So, what do you need me to do first?”
Jang Lee-hyun smiled when he saw the sharp glint return to Go Jin-woo’s eyes. He handed over the inventory brooch.
“What’s this?”
“Black market goods. Sell them quietly for me. I need a large sum of money. Have you still not reconnected with ‘that side’?”
Go Jin-woo’s expression turned strange.
“I can if I try, but it’s been a while… Let me try reopening the channel first. I can’t promise anything right now.”
He didn’t ask where the goods came from even while complaining it would be difficult.
Jang Lee-hyun had always been grateful for that kind of consideration.
“Tell them I’ll supply twenty A-grade magic stones and five S-grade magic stones every month. They’ll come running with their tongues hanging out like mad dogs.”
“Are you insane? How are you going to keep up with that kind of schedule…!”
Go Jin-woo started to argue but closed his mouth when he saw the look in Jang Lee-hyun’s eyes.
In the end, he slipped the brooch into his inner pocket.
“Ugh, whatever. I’ll do it since you asked. Looks urgent, so I’ll get on it right away.”
Go Jin-woo pulled his cap down low and left the hospital room first.
Alone in the room, Jang Lee-hyun opened a drawer and took out the note he had set aside that morning.
—Contact me once you’re healed.
Beneath the dry, businesslike handwriting was a hidden business card.
Lim Won-young
White Burn │ Dungeon Strategy Division, Team A Leader
010-2XXX-XXXX
Jang Lee-hyun quietly took out his phone.