Jang Lee-hyun the Pathfinder (3)
The raid team was thrilled the moment they saw the boss room decorated like a temple.
Excavating a holy relic imbued with divine power was an incredible career achievement, after all.
If they got lucky and the relic chose them?
It could completely turn their lives around.
However,
Jang Lee-hyun knew this was a deliberate trick arranged by the room’s creator.
‘This isn’t a temple. It’s a tomb—a royal tomb where a dead king is buried.’
Three clear clues had led him to that conclusion.
The Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong has successfully discovered what is hidden here through the clues identified by its owner and found partial answers.
1. The Eight Statues Surrounding the Altar
The eight statues appear to be paying homage to a god, yet they are actually grotesque figures covering their eyes, noses, and mouths with both hands while prostrating.
This means the king has departed to a place where he can neither see, speak, nor hear, and they mourn him.
2. Murals Without a God
The murals seem to depict great deeds honoring a god. However, upon closer inspection, the central figure is missing from every scene.
This carries the meaning of resurrection—he will soon return and lead them as before.
Because there is no death for a god, the true master of this space must be a mortal king.
3. Brazier Without Offerings
A brazier burns beside the altar that holds no sacrifices.
This is a clue honoring the king who will one day resurrect, praying for his eternal life.
Solving the puzzle was a tremendous feat.
It meant they had come to ‘understand’ the dungeon’s master.
Therefore, the greater the master’s stature, the greater the reward.
You have glimpsed part of the secret this place holds.
You have interpreted the myth of ■■■■. You have acquired a portion of the karma.
Your rank increases.
Your rank increases.
■■■■’s karma has been confirmed to have a deep connection with the Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong.
All acquired karma from ■■■■ is absorbed into your body without loss.
Thud! Thud-thud-thud!
Jang Lee-hyun’s body had been changing nonstop since a few moments ago.
The magic circuits frozen by the curse were slowly thawing. Power was returning to his ruined muscles.
A refreshing sensation he hadn’t felt in four years.
His magic power had not fully returned yet, but simply regaining some vitality was an enormous gain.
‘At this level… I can run for a little while.’
You have succeeded in releasing part of the curse binding your body!
This was proof that the dungeon was deeply connected to the true form of the Hwaan Geumjeong and Sun Wukong.
It was why he had to solve the boss room’s riddle and meet its hidden owner, Sun Wukong.
‘If all these monkeys are the ones from Mount Hwagua who followed Sun Wukong, and Sun Wukong himself is buried inside this royal tomb, then it’s entirely possible.’
The only question was why a tomb would exist for Sun Wukong, who had become a Buddha in Journey to the West…
‘I’ll think about that part later.’
Organizing his thoughts, Jang Lee-hyun spoke to Lim Won-young.
“All right. I’ll accept the team leader’s proposal. However, I have conditions.”
“Go ahead.”
“Until we finish clearing the boss room, everyone must obey my orders without question.”
Lim Won-young nodded.
“Of course. Don’t worry.”
“Then I’ll do my best to save the remaining people.”
If anyone else had said those words, they would have sounded like empty bravado.
Yet when Jang Lee-hyun said it, it somehow felt like it had already been decided.
“I’m counting on you.”
Jang Lee-hyun sensed that Lim Won-young possessed a different caliber.
Even in an emergency, most people clung desperately to the power in their hands. Yet she could judge the situation coldly and boldly entrust the lead to someone she deemed superior.
It was a temperament completely unlike his own, forged through a lifetime of living like a fighting dog.
The bright future of White Burn seemed visible.
“Then hand it over. The brooch.”
Jang Lee-hyun accepted the brooch Lim Won-young offered.
It was shaped like a donkey’s ear.
◈ If you whisper a secret you don’t want others to know into a bamboo forest, only those you wish to hear it will receive the message.
◈ Origin: Fairy tale “The King’s Ears Are Donkey Ears”
◈ Standard communication device issued to all White Burn members.
Jang Lee-hyun listened to a brief explanation of how to use it, then brought his mouth to the brooch.
“Testing, testing. Can everyone hear my voice?”
The hunters scattered throughout the boss room all turned their gazes toward Jang Lee-hyun and Lim Won-young.
Only then did they realize he was armed with a submachine gun.
“……I hear you.”
“I hear you.”
“I hear you.”
Jang Lee-hyun continued.
“I have just received command authority from the team leader. From now on, move according to my instructions. Even the slightest hesitation could lead to your comrades’ deaths. All responses will be unified as ‘Order confirmed.’”
The hunters looked at Lim Won-young.
She nodded, signaling them to obey.
Answers came immediately.
“Order confirmed.”
“Order confirmed.”
“Since the situation is urgent, I will drop all formal speech from now on.”
For a brief moment, old memories flashed through Jang Lee-hyun’s mind—four years ago, when he ran operations with his comrades.
“Look around. You should see white cloths hanging in various places.”
The hunters quickly scanned their surroundings.
Sure enough, white cloths were tied to stone monuments and statues everywhere.
“When I give the signal, run with all your strength to the nearest white cloth and cover your heads with it.”
Signal?
Question marks appeared on every hunter’s face.
Jang Lee-hyun pulled a flash grenade from his right belt pouch and hurled it high into the air.
Whiiiing—!
“……!”
“……!!”
The world turned pure white.
The hunters were momentarily blinded, but they didn’t hesitate. They sprinted to the spots they had already marked.
Tap-tap!
Thanks to the collective training they had received at White Burn, they had experienced various curses and could still move.
The monkeys, however, were different.
“Kiiik!”
“Kiik!”
It was their first time facing such a flash, so they were thrown into confusion.
The karma from ■■■■ causes the Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong to evolve. A new function has been added.
New Function: Weak Point Detection.
The Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong has begun identifying enemy weak points!
Jang Lee-hyun seized that exact moment.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The silver-mixed bullets he had personally manufactured pierced straight through the monkey soldiers’ foreheads.
If he could land every shot on the weak points indicated by the Hwaan Geumjeong, he could easily pull his own weight as a hunter.
Of course, his standard for “one person’s worth” was the level of the Cheongroe unit.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The muzzle flashed without pause. Even with a suppressor, every deafening roar sent another monkey soldier’s head exploding.
‘Firearms can be this powerful?!’
‘W-what kind of magic did he use…?’
The hunters ran forward with their mouths agape, watching the monkeys topple behind them.
Most hunters preferred cold weapons that were easy to imbue with magic power, yet Jang Lee-hyun was overturning that common sense with ridiculous ease.
Baaang!
In that time, the hunters reached their destinations without taking significant damage.
The moment they tore down the white cloths and covered their heads as ordered, they understood why Jang Lee-hyun had given the command.
◈ Contains exorcistic meaning to repel evil. Sometimes used to cover corpses during funeral processions.
◈ The moment it is worn, the user is recognized as one of the dead.
‘We’re being recognized as the dead…!’
‘Then this place really is a tomb, not a temple?’
‘Which means these monkeys are like grave keepers protecting the tomb…’
‘Wait, then that would mean—’
The more experienced hunters glanced back at the monkey soldiers that had been chasing them.
The monkeys were hesitating.
They looked confused, as if they could no longer perceive the hunters.
‘They can’t find us!’
Baaang!
Another monkey soldier’s head exploded.
‘How did he figure this out?!’
‘In that short amount of time…!’
Jang Lee-hyun wasn’t simply good at finding paths. He possessed both intuition and insight that allowed him to discover the ‘correct answer.’
Congratulations! You have successfully solved the first riddle.
You are now priests assisting the royal tomb’s ritual. Complete the ceremony.
The phrase discovered in the message.
‘Ritual!’
The boss room’s secret had finally been revealed.
The moment everyone’s eyes widened,
“If you’re wearing the white cloth, then next…!”
A new order came through.
Form teams of three and move to designated positions.
Just as the hunters were focusing their ears,
“Kiiiiiiik!”
With an enraged monkey’s cry, five ancient chariots charged forward.
Clatter-clatter—
They were aiming for Jang Lee-hyun, who had yet to cover himself with a white cloth.
It seemed they had no intention of letting the mastermind behind this situation escape.
“Danger…!”
“Do not leave your assigned positions. I repeat, do not leave your assigned positions.”
The hunters flinched, but Jang Lee-hyun remained perfectly calm.
Both of his eyes now glowed entirely golden, with no distinction between pupil and sclera.
It was proof that the karma of Sun Wukong he had gained from solving the riddle was evolving the Hwaan Geumjeong by the second.
You have claimed 98% of the contribution for solving the first riddle. You have acquired a significant amount of ■■■■’s karma.
Some of the sealed functions of the Relic: Hwaan Geumjeong have been unlocked. Performance has increased dramatically.
Your body’s movements have become slightly more agile!
“Kiiik!”
One of the chariots charged straight at him. It looked like it intended to trample him beneath the horses’ hooves.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Yet Jang Lee-hyun calmly pulled the trigger.
The heads of three horses shattered in succession, causing the chariot to flip over.
At that exact moment, Jang Lee-hyun moved. He hurled the submachine gun far away and leaped high into the air.
The horse corpses and overturned chariot barely missed the spot where he had been standing. Using them as a platform, he somersaulted and landed directly in front of a monkey warrior.
“Kiiiiik!”
The monkey warrior thrust its sword at him with a face twisted in rage.
At the same time as his descent, Jang Lee-hyun drew the kukri from his left belt pouch with his right hand and slashed downward.
The movement was so fluid it bordered on acrobatic.
Slice!
The kukri not only severed the monkey warrior’s sword but also cut diagonally across its neck in a single breath.
It was the result of accurately identifying the striking point with the Hwaan Geumjeong.
Whoosh!
The warrior’s head flew off as blood sprayed like a fountain.
Simultaneously, Jang Lee-hyun reached with his left hand for the Glock 26 holstered at his chest.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
The eyeballs of the other monkey warriors burst simultaneously.
No matter how tough a monster’s hide might be, its eyes were never equally durable.
The driverless chariots flipped over everywhere, turning the battlefield into chaos.
“……!”
“……!”
“……!”
It was an utterly impossible scene.
The hunters could only stare with their mouths hanging open.
‘That kind of action is actually possible…?’
‘No, can a person without magic power really move like that? With a crippled leg, no less… What kind of training would you even need…!’
Even Lim Won-young, who had asked him to take command, was equally shocked.
Even as a ranker herself, she could not say with certainty that she could display such overwhelming skill.
‘So this is the last leader of Cheongroe… Jet…!’
Without realizing it, Lim Won-young clenched her fists tightly.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
She wasn’t sure whether her heart was racing because she was witnessing a legend before her eyes or because of the heat of the battlefield.
Her face had grown flushed.
The other hunters felt the same.
Jang Lee-hyun approached the nearest chariot.
A white cloth was tied there as well. However, this cloth was stained a dull red from the blood and dust of dead warriors.
He untied it and draped it over his shoulders.
Flutter!
A wind blew past.
You are now the high priest who will officiate the ritual. Complete the ceremony and meet the hidden master.
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
Jang Lee-hyun’s overwhelming presence filled the entire boss room.
‘We’re almost there. Right here, right now,’
His golden eyes shone brightly.
‘I will summon Sun Wukong.’