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chapter 130
30 Minutes Earlier
In a recovery room specially prepared inside the central base, Xu Changyou sat shirtless, tending to his injuries.
“Chairman Peng, that dog bastard… how dare he put this thing inside my body?”
His complexion was pale—paler than usual. It was the color of the dead.
Meanwhile, the places where he had deliberately cut himself to remove the Three Corpses Parasite—his left chest, right abdomen, and nape—were black and rotten, reeking of decay like a corpse. Pus oozed from the wounds, and if left alone, flies and maggots would surely infest them.
It was the side effect of forcefully extracting the parasites. He had lowered his body temperature to the minimum in order to reduce aftereffects, but it hadn’t been perfect.
[The Jade Emperor gazes indifferently at your body.]
[The Jade Emperor advises that one must master death as well in order to earn the right to wear the crown.]
Xu Changyou twisted his lips at the floating message.
“If it bothers you so much, why don’t you hand me an elixir of immortality instead of nagging? I’m about sick of listening to you.”
[The Jade Emperor clicks his tongue, calling you frivolous for one who seeks to wear the crown.]
He only glared at the message with sharp eyes. The Jade Emperor was always like this—pressuring him to climb higher, mocking him for achieving so little.
Even back in the Thunder Corps, when he had lived under Lee Hyun’s command, half-friendly but filled with inferiority, it had been the Jade Emperor who whispered into his ear, stoking him.
That was why the incident at the Ice Palace had happened.
When he saw Lee Hyun clashing with the Snow Queen, the Jade Emperor had whispered sweetly like a devil:
Now. This is your chance. The man who always stood above you—you can drag him down.
Click.
Something inside him had shifted then. He had stolen the relic and fled to China, living however he pleased.
[The Jade Emperor sneers, saying if you had finished Lee Hyun off four years ago, you wouldn’t be in this predicament now.]
[The Jade Emperor says weeds must be torn up by the roots.]
A sneer?
Xu Changyou’s eyebrow twitched, and he sneered right back.
“So you failed when you tried to recruit Jang Lee-hyun through Feng Dawei and now you’re taking it out on me? Is that it?”
[The Jade Emperor fixes you with a cold stare.]
“Or maybe… you’re unsettled because one of the Logoi you thought dead has awakened recently?”
[The Jade Emperor’s eyes flare with rage.]
Xu Changyou laughed in his face.
“You think I don’t know? Thanks to your so-called radiance, plenty of people here have been telling me things. At the Central Heroes’ Committee, people treat me well just because I’m your apostle.”
Fools. Don’t they realize an apostle is nothing but a slave?
His sneer deepened, nearly self-mocking.
“So don’t look at me like that. You struck first, Jade Emperor.”
[The Jade Emperor curtly declares that a ruler must be without sentiment, and banishes you.]
The messages ended abruptly. Xu Changyou ignored it—any longer and they’d only quarrel.
I never trusted him anyway. In the end, the world is a place where you stand alone.
He understood why the usually indifferent Jade Emperor suddenly fixated on Lee Hyun:
The Great Sage Equal to Heaven… he’s awakened recently, hasn’t he? With the matter of the Demon King on Ulleung Island too… He wants to confirm some connection between Jang Lee-hyun and the Great Sage. Ha! Over my dead body.
Xu Changyou’s eyes blazed. Lee Hyun was his prey, not anyone else’s.
And soon, Hyun would come for him. For now, he would focus on healing.
“Only about ten pills left? I’ll need to go back for more soon.”
He took out the elixirs he had received from Lu Wuchen when they parted—handmade gifts said to carry the aura of an immortal healer.
And indeed, they were effective.
[Shepherd’s Healing Pill]
A recovery elixir imbued with the touch of the Barefoot Immortal who aided the sick and troubled. It purifies wounds and even heals mental anguish.
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Type: Medicine
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Source: Water Margin
Still, it couldn’t completely undo the side effects of the parasites, nor resolve his Attribute Domination backlash. But that was fine—he had found a way to use it.
Crunch!
Xu Changyou angrily chewed and swallowed two pills.
[You consumed Shepherd’s Healing Pill!]
[‘Authority: Attribute Domination’ activates, using the clash of medicine and poison to attempt bodily transformation.]
Crackle! Crack-crack!!
The poison was expelled, wounds healed.
“Haa…”
He let out a long sigh, as if expelling every trace of miasma that tormented him.
The rotten wounds began to visibly close, tough muscle fibers tightening so hard even a blade might not pierce. Color returned to his pale face, his mana flowing smoothly again.
Just then—
BOOM!
The base shook violently, explosions roaring outside.
“…What the hell?”
He frowned, heading for the window—
WEEEEEE-OOO!!
A deafening alarm blared.
Rattle!
“Emergency, Captain! Outside—Qinglei and Astra are attacking! Hhhk!!”
The subordinate who rushed in gagged and covered his nose and mouth. The room was thick with frost, toxic mist, and stench—it was impossible to breathe safely.
From the fog, Xu Changyou’s eyes gleamed coldly.
“Qinglei… they’ve come?”
“Y-Yes! At least four days earlier than the MSS intelligence warned—we couldn’t prepare in time!”
“Korea couldn’t manage this. Must be the U.S. They fooled us well.”
“Korea did mobilize White Burn in large numbers, and we were watching them… but we didn’t expect such a small strike force. Forgive us.”
“No need. This is just one of Lee Hyun’s tactics.”
He laughed, pulling on his shirt. He recognized it instantly—this was the Thunder Corps’ favorite decapitation tactic. With fewer numbers, they would strike swiftly and lethally, minimizing losses.
Lee Hyun always led such assaults, sharp as a needle and deadly as a blade.
“That guy was cunning long before the mission even began.”
The subordinate swallowed dryly, chilled by how terrifying Xu Changyou had become.
Because Xu hadn’t only been healing—he had been weaponizing the poison. Just as Peng Jinghao had strengthened his body with the parasites, Xu used Attribute Domination to fuse their toxins with his Shepherd’s Healing Pills, creating something even deadlier.
[The ‘Ring of Permafrost’ evolves with the essence of the Three Corpses and Healing Pill!]
[The ‘Ring of Permafrost’ has advanced to ‘Dominion of Permafrost’!]
Shhhh—
His aura grew even colder, sharper. His lifespan was shortened drastically, but he didn’t care.
Once I become a top ranker, lifespan won’t matter. That’s why I must devour Lee Hyun.
The sudden attack thrilled him—his target had arrived sooner than expected.
“Where are the Qinglei? Old comrades have come—it’d be rude not to greet them.”
Before the subordinate could reply, two men entered.
Step, step.
“Captain, shouldn’t we talk business first?”
“Yeah. Best to settle accounts before we’re gone. Otherwise, what’s the point of us being here?”
One wore a black robe and leaned on a skull-topped staff; the other looked like an old-school mafioso, cigar and fedora.
They were Artyom Vahodan of the Abyssal Order and Lucas Montenegro of the City Cartel—both high-ranking representatives, here for dealings with the Central Heroes’ Committee.
Tap!
Artyom struck his staff on the floor.
“Our Order requires the Mountain Spirit’s fur. We heard that Jet inherited the Tiger King’s feast from it. Therefore, we demand custody of that man.”
Lucas sneered.
“The Cartel believes Jet is tied to Guilei, who closed the Goblin Market. We already have proof. He disgraced our name—we want retribution.”
He smirked.
“We’ve already agreed with the Order. Once Jet is executed, his corpse will go to them. The Cartel only wants Guilei’s whereabouts.”
“Both our factions will support this crusade. But Captain, you’ve been so absorbed in recovery that negotiations are long overdue.”
BOOM!
Another explosion rocked the base—Z Team was hitting harder than expected. Without the Order and Cartel, their defenses might collapse.
Both groups wanted Lee Hyun dead—for faith, or for honor.
Xu Changyou didn’t like being dictated to, but a sly grin crossed his face.
Actually… this could be fun.
“Fine. If you can, then by all means.”
“…Hm.”
Lucas eyed him suspiciously—it was too easy a concession. Xu just laughed.
“What? Not confident? You Cartel guys got your asses kicked by Jet once, didn’t you? Afraid you’ll end up with your faces in the muck again?”
Lucas’s face twisted. He ground out his cigar underfoot.
“Normally, I’d blow your skull off for that remark… but take it as agreement. We’re done here.”
He turned away. Artyom gave a curt nod and left with him.
“Captain, are you sure about this?” the nervous subordinate asked.
Xu Changyou laughed.
“Of course. They’ll never catch Jet anyway. We’ll do what we must.”
His eyes gleamed dangerously.
“Bring me the Sky Furnace. I’ve just thought of a delightful reunion gift for our old friends. First, though—we’ll make a stop.”
“A stop…? Where?”
“Where else?” Xu’s voice was ice.
“To pay respects to Wu Yongwang.”
“…!!”
* * *
Xu Changyou moved with only his most trusted men.
Which is why he failed to notice…
That behind him, trailing like a shadow of frost, a silent figure followed.
[The Ice Guard ‘Sa Mi-in’ is tailing the target.]
