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chapter 134
KUUUUUUUUNG!!
The central base of the Pingxin headquarters exploded, sending a pillar of fire shooting into the sky.
Thick black smoke and a thunderous roar spread through the heavens. Fallout and burning embers rained down to the ground.
“Wh-what is this…?!”
“T-the base!!”
“Let me go! Yuan! Yuan is still inside!!”
The Pingxin soldiers froze in horror. Many of the troops who had gone into the central base hadn’t made it back out.
Cries rang out—pleas to save their comrades at all costs. But as second and third explosions went off, even they had no choice but to drop flat to the ground.
Chhhhk.
『G… get down…!! If you… get caught in…!!』
The Z-Team was no exception. Urgent voices crackled from the radio, but most of the words were scrambled by magical interference.
And then… amid the catastrophe—
SWWWWHHHH!!
A man shot out, piercing through the dark smoke.
“Team Leader!!”
The members spotted Lee Hyun. The fire was bursting so brilliantly that the darkness of night was meaningless now.
And Lee Hyun himself was radiating a storm of wrath, no less intense than the blaze.
BZZZZT!
The teeth of Dochul, wrenched to the limit of his mana circuits, tore free from his grip at furious speed.
Whiiiir—
CRRRRAAASH!!
[The Fury of the Dokkebi King erupts!]
Its target: Han Chul-woo, who was skimming low across the ground like a blazing bird.
His body bore a human face, but his form was that of a bird wrapped in golden flames—his inherited power, Gajo.
[Gajo]
The human-faced bird, a type of bird-spirit.
In ancient times, it was an omen of drought, war, and calamity. Later, it became seen as an auspicious creature that devoured grave-miasma. Some legends even claimed it could devour dragons.
-Origin: Tomb mural of Muyongchong.
Han Chul-woo used this to burn enemies with searing flames, or to reshape his form wherever embers spread.
“You’re fast, as expected. And stronger. Before, your mana usage was sloppy. Seems you’ve patched those flaws while I wasn’t looking?”
Twisting midair, he dodged.
“Even your once straight-line attacks now have rhythm. Looks like you picked up martial arts somewhere, too.”
Then—lightning struck the spot he had been a heartbeat ago.
KR-KRRAAACK!!
The shockwave hurled him away. Flames burst skyward, only to vanish. But Han Chul-woo himself had disappeared.
Lee Hyun instantly pulled out Gyo-hyeol and sharpened his senses.
[Combat Sense (S+) scans the surroundings!]
Han Chul-woo could move freely wherever the golden flames spread.
‘He blew up the central base on purpose. Not just to wipe out any nearby Z-Team in one strike, but to turn this whole area into a stage for his movements.’
Indeed, golden flames now filled the battlefield. Smoke choked vision, the heat dulled demonic senses.
Meanwhile, Han Chul-woo could appear wherever he wished. Countless Pingxin soldiers had perished in the process, but he didn’t care.
‘Yes… that’s the kind of man he’s always been. So long as the mission succeeds, he never cares how many allies are lost.’
It was the very reason Lee Hyun and his friends had been chosen to replace the former executives.
[Combat Sense (S+) detects enemy movement!]
Lee Hyun pivoted toward the direction indicated—
CLANG-CLANG!
Chains burst from the flames, coiling around his arm.
Not just one.
CLANG! CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!!
Fiery chains shot from everywhere, snaring his limbs.
“Got him!!”
“Strike before he can unleash lightning!”
[‘Sacred Relic: Fiery Golden Chains’ illuminate through the flames!]
A hulking man laughed triumphantly in the distance—Choi Young-ho.
He bore the legacy of the Earth-Tunneling King, famed for his monstrous strength. Once he grabbed hold, he never let go.
Since Lee Hyun moved like a phantom, the plan was to restrain him first.
He wore a gas mask, moving unfazed through smoke and flame.
[Haechi’s Guardian Mask]
A mask infused with the qi of Haechi, guardian of justice and fire-preventer. Grants immunity to heat, flame, and smoke while worn.
-Type: Armor. Mask.
-Origin: Folklore of Haechi.
FOOSH!
Two more hunters emerged through the fire, both wearing the same guardian mask: Oh Tae-gyun and Yoon Sang-pil—elite rankers who fought alongside Han Chul-woo.
Yoon Sang-pil bore the legacy of the Eastern Azure Dragon, manipulating storm winds. The smoke and fiery blasts clouding the battlefield were his doing.
Seeing Lee Hyun’s arms and legs bound, they assumed his axes were neutralized.
But—
Whip!
Instead, Lee Hyun dropped both axes, grabbed the chains with bare hands, and—
CRUNCH!!
“……!?”
Choi Young-ho was stunned. Lee Hyun had never been known for raw strength—his fearsome power was in destructive strikes, not muscle.
Yet now, Lee Hyun invoked Blood-Soul Strength, yanking the chains with terrifying force.
“No—! What strength is this…?! Aaargh!!”
Dragged forward, Choi Young-ho crashed into his comrades.
“Damn it!”
“Shit!!”
Oh Tae-gyun and Yoon Sang-pil barely dodged aside.
But—
“He’s gone!!”
Yoon Sang-pil realized too late that Lee Hyun had vanished.
“Behind you!!”
“……!?”
Choi Young-ho screamed as he rose from a tumble. A shadow rippled behind Yoon Sang-pil—the goblin of night.
[Shadow Step activates, emerging from a blind spot!]
No time to evade.
Yoon Sang-pil hastily invoked a defense—the Azure Dragon’s scales bristling.
But—
KR-CRRAAASH!!
[Hellfire Lightning strikes down!]
Lee Hyun had drawn Flame Demon Blade instead of axes.
CRACK!!
Fwoooosh!!
Yoon Sang-pil’s skull shattered in a spray of gore. Ruthless. Unfazed that this was a senior of Cheongroe.
“Sang-pil!!”
Lee Hyun grinned, fangs bared like a demon shrouded in hellfire.
This time, he was a fire goblin.
“Why assume lightning is all I command?”
“You bastard…!!”
“JANG IIHYUUUUUUN!!”
BOOOM!
Oh Tae-gyun lunged. His legacy: the Dragon Horse of Baekma River—renowned for speed.
But—
[Shadow Step again cloaks his form!]
Lee Hyun vanished into the flames. The same tactic Han Chul-woo had relied on.
“Oh no… Where is he?! Stop running and fight—”
CLANG-CRRUNCH!
“Ghhhk!!”
His words cut off. From the ground, the chained mace Yeouisoe shot up like a spear, impaling his chest and launching his body skyward like a skewered doll.
“What the hell…!!”
Choi Young-ho’s eyes bulged—two comrades slain in the blink of an eye.
They’d prepared carefully, knowing Lee Hyun had grown stronger since four years ago—setting traps, crafting an environment to negate his senses and lightning.
And yet, he turned every plan against them—fighting as if he could read their thoughts.
BOOOOM!!
Suddenly, a thunderous strike fell on Choi Young-ho—only to be stopped midway.
Han Chul-woo had appeared, blocking with his flaming hand.
“…I can’t let my guard down for an instant.”
“……!!”
Choi Young-ho went pale. Without Han Chul-woo’s intervention, his head would’ve been pulverized.
“Where did you learn such techniques? Chang-woo never mentioned anything like this.”
“Who knows? Maybe he kept it from you on purpose.”
Lee Hyun replied coldly, retreating back into shadow.
“Not this time!”
Han Chul-woo spread blazing wings, chasing close.
WHOOSH!
He burned away shadows, chopping a knife-hand strike at Lee Hyun’s chin.
CLAAANG!
The Flame Demon Blade deflected it aside.
A fierce exchange erupted.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!!
Like a hawk clawing prey, Han Chul-woo slashed and jabbed with talon-like hands.
Lee Hyun countered with his blade in one hand, Dochul’s Teeth in the other—parrying every blow while striking for openings.
Half his body burned black with flame, the other half surged with white-blue lightning—wings of fire and thunder clashing against golden blaze.
BOOOM!
RUMMMMBLE!!
The two soared higher, cutting through firestorms, until—
BANG!!
Lee Hyun unleashed a colossal force, slamming Han Chul-woo back.
[Grotesque Pressure (S) forcibly expels the enemy!]
Invisible giant hands hurled him down toward the fiery wasteland.
“Ghkk!!”
Han Chul-woo twisted desperately mid-fall, wings straining.
But before he could regain flight—
Lee Hyun hurled the Flame Demon Blade.
“……!!”
Barely, Han Chul-woo kicked himself back up, pulling in golden flames from all around.
Lee Hyun’s power had exceeded his expectations, but with the battlefield aflame, time was still on his side—or so he thought.
He didn’t know Lee Hyun still had another hidden card.
“Sahun.”
Lee Hyun gazed at the Flame Demon Blade lodged in the ground.
“It’s time to wake up.”
A whisper like an incantation.
Above him, Gingoa appeared, spinning violently.
WHIIIIRRR!!
[Gingoa blazes as it restores the link to ‘Sacred Relic: Flame Demon Blade’!]
[The ‘Cradle of the Flame Dragon’ in your inventory responds.]
[The <Sahun> epic awakens!]
FWOOSH!!
The Flame Demon Blade quaked violently. Black flames poured from the blade, swirling into a vortex that devoured golden fire.
The golden blaze melted away, feeding an even greater inferno.
It was like… the breath of a legendary fire dragon.
“……!!!”
Han Chul-woo felt a chill rip down his spine, dread gripping him. As though he himself would be dragged into that maelstrom.
