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Chapter 16
The red mist would turn anyone into a zombie the moment they touched it.
Even so, Jang Sun-nam ignored the haze and charged at the zombies.
Whoosh—Thud!
Thanks to the +1 enhancement of <Body and Mind Training> (S), Jang Sun-nam’s movements had become sharper. He kicked a nearby goblin zombie with such force that its neck snapped, killing it instantly.
“Since you never know when extreme misfortune will strike, I need to finish this quickly.”
Spinning around, he hurled his axe at another goblin zombie sneaking in from the blind spot.
Whirr—Crunch!
The spinning axe embedded itself directly in the creature’s skull, dropping it instantly.
The zombie’s own momentum carried its corpse sliding right up to Sun-nam’s feet.
“I don’t know how many lives the hunters still have left…”
Sun-nam yanked the axe free, then spun his body in place. The sudden movement made a zombie hunter’s attack miss, throwing the creature off balance.
“I’ll just restrain the hunters.”
Wham!!
The zombie hunter collapsed with a loud crack as Sun-nam smashed its spine using the flat of his axe like a hammer.
It was a crippling blow, but still treatable if the victim had healing potions left.
That was why Sun-nam’s hand showed no hesitation.
Swish! Slam!
Whoosh! Slice!
He restrained the hunters, and he killed the goblins.
Methodical and ruthless, he cut through the horde and quickly cleared the inside of the building.
「Krrrr… Kyaaaa!!」
The Zombie Lord, watching this, roared in fury. Raising both arms, he unleashed serpentine streams of red mist toward Sun-nam.
“Kh…!”
Engulfed in an instant, Sun-nam groaned as pain wracked his body.
His eyes flushed red, his expression twisted, showing the classic signs of zombification.
Unlike the other hunters who had fallen instantly, however, Sun-nam barely clung to his sanity.
‘It’s tough… but it’s not unbearable!’
The boost from <Body and Mind Training> (S) +1 was the only reason he could endure.
‘The average infection time is thirty seconds.’
He pulled from his inventory a glass vial filled with golden powder—
the zombie virus cure he had acquired at the Seongshimdan Tower.
‘If I can endure this… I might gain something good!’
[<Polarity of Extremes> Misfortune has activated.]
His heart sank.
‘…No. Not now of all times.’
“Ughhh!!”
An overwhelming surge of the virus invaded his body—worse than anything he had faced before.
His knees buckled, vision blurred.
He even began hearing whispers, urging him to give in and walk the path of the dead.
‘Damn it…!’
His mind frayed, his body staggered, until he hovered at the very edge of total zombification.
But…
Even as his consciousness crumbled, Sun-nam clung to one thing—
time.
‘29… 30…’
With a snap, he crushed the vial in his grip.
Crash! Fsssshh—
Golden powder burst out, swirling into the crimson haze.
The mixture shimmered as it purified the virus, transforming the red fog into harmless mist.
Sun-nam’s body rapidly returned to its original state.
[Hidden Achievement Unlocked: ‘Indomitable Will.’]
[New Skill Acquired: <Disease Immunity> (S)]
┗ Grants immunity to all forms of disease.
“<Disease Immunity>…?!”
He had expected <Disease Resistance> (A) at best.
Instead, he had gained something far greater.
‘So the misfortune event doesn’t necessarily affect rewards… I survived it, and came out even stronger!’
His grin widened.
“Misfortune doesn’t always mean a bad ending.”
Sun-nam’s eyes locked onto the Zombie Lord.
“Your power no longer works on me.”
The boss flinched at his expression, then leapt back.
「Kyaaak!!」
It raised its arms again, this time directing the red mist toward the hunters outside.
If infection wouldn’t work on Sun-nam, then it would simply increase its numbers.
“As if I’d let that happen.”
He hurled his axe with renewed vigor.
The weapon lodged itself into the boss’s right arm.
「Kkhh!”
Its muscle tore, forcing it to drop the crimson gem it had been holding—
the very artifact that controlled the red mist.
As the jewel hit the ground, the spreading haze dissipated.
‘Now’s my chance!’
Sun-nam sprinted forward, scooping up the fallen staff the boss had dropped.
“Rrrrraah!!”
He swung it like a golf club.
WHAM!!
The staff struck the fallen crimson gem, sending it flying straight into the boss’s forehead.
「Kyaagh?!!」
CRACK!
The jewel shattered into pieces, leaving the Zombie Lord unable to command the mist ever again.
‘All that’s left is curing the existing zombies… and testing out a new weapon.’
The boss roared, furious, and ripped Sun-nam’s axe out of its own arm, hurling it across the room.
Whishhh!! BOOM!
The weapon smashed into a pillar, snapping apart.
Sun-nam calmly picked up the axe head and jammed it into the end of the staff.
“Interaction: Synthesis.”
[Ice Goblin Lord’s Staff can be synthesized.]
[Conditions met. Synthesizing…]
[New Weapon Acquired: <Goblin Lord’s Ice Halberd> (F+)+1]
A massive halberd—part axe, part spear—solidified in his grip.
‘Perfect. Time to test it out.’
The Zombie Lord, wary now, snatched a fallen sword and brandished it.
「Krrraaahhh!!」
“Sorry, but my reach is a bit longer.”
Sun-nam’s body moved with practiced ease.
Though skills should be lost upon regression, memories of them remained.
And with <Body and Mind Training>, he could withstand the strain of recalling them.
He lunged.
“Lightning King Spearmanship, First Form.”
The halberd moved in a blur, feinting as if bending unnaturally, striking twice as fast as the eye could follow.
The technique, once taught by the only master Sun-nam had ever acknowledged, had returned.
「Ghhhaaaghhh?!」
The Zombie Lord staggered as wounds riddled its body faster than it could react.
“This ends now.”
With a final twist of his body, Sun-nam unleashed his strongest thrust yet—
swift as lightning.
BOOM!!
The halberd pierced the boss’s skull, detonating it in an instant.
The body collapsed lifelessly.
[Hidden Achievement Unlocked: ‘Savior of the Zombie Apocalypse.’]
[New Title Acquired: <Indomitable Body>]
┗ Greatly increases all forms of physical defense.
‘I did it.’
This was the very achievement he had been aiming for.
With this new title, the physical strain of advanced techniques like Lightning King Spearmanship would lessen.
Now he was ready for the higher zones where E-rank monsters awaited.
Cheers erupted outside.
““Uwoooaaahhh!!””
The hunters had finished wiping out the White Authority guards.
‘Their plan is ruined.’
The zombie outbreak still lingered, but with vaccines distributed, it could be contained.
“Meow~ I finished off all the guards, nya.”
Jelly, once more in cat form, trotted over and dropped a pile of loot—
1,030 coins and 10 healing potions.
“Good work, Jelly.”
Sun-nam stored the items and patted the slime-cat’s head.
“Prrr~”
“What’s next, nya?”
“The next step is obvious.”
To mass-produce vaccines, they needed White Authority’s research facilities.
And with the exposure of their crimes, angry hunters would soon be storming those headquarters anyway.
Sun-nam’s task was different.
“I’ll leave the guards to the hunters. My target is Pi-gwangseok.”
From him, Sun-nam would extract the truth about the cult known as the Seeds of the Evil God.
Only by erasing them completely could he finally reach a true happy ending.
