Chapter 13
Part 12
Among all the techniques he had recovered, one of the most important was Primordial Limitless Art.
It was the Inner Energy cultivation method that had made Yugeon strong in the monster-filled ruined world.
Mana released from dying monsters gets pulled into my dantian.
In his previous life, Yugeon had created this method by modifying an energy-absorbing martial art.
Clank.
Creeeak.
“Now let's go fill up my Inner Energy.”
After finishing his business in the safe zone, Yugeon reopened the entrance and left.
SLASH!
SLASH SLASH SLASH!
“SKREE!”
“Human! Die!”
“SKREEEEE!”
SLASH.
After leaving the safe zone, Yugeon swung his sword and cut down Goblin Spearmen.
Dozens rushed him with their spears.
Not one managed to leave even a small scratch on his body.
Ding!
[Accumulated growth has been reflected in your stats.]
Inner Energy +1
Inner Energy +1
Inner Energy +1
Inner Energy +1
Inner Energy +1
Inner Energy +1
...
“Hahaha.”
Yugeon laughed as his Inner Energy continued increasing.
He kept circulating Primordial Limitless Art while cutting down Goblins.
His Inner Energy was accumulating at a ridiculous speed.
About five minutes later...
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
A gigantic Goblin appeared in the distance.
A black spear rested in its hands.
“Grrrr... Human... How dare you slaughter my kin.”
It was the Hero Monster waiting at the end of Floor 7.
Since this floor had no boss, the creature was effectively the boss itself.
“I will kill you and soothe the souls of my people!”
BOOM!
WHOOOOOSH!
The gigantic Goblin hurled its spear.
It cut through the air with tremendous force.
“Then who's going to soothe the souls of the humans your people killed?”
Yugeon's sword moved gently.
Swish.
BOOM!
“?!”
His sword redirected the gigantic spear.
The Goblin's eyes widened.
Ding!
[You have activated Taiji Wisdom Sword.]
It doesn't show every individual form in detail.
That was better.
Otherwise his Status Window would become far too cluttered.
Swish.
SLASH!
Yugeon shot forward.
The giant Goblin's head flew from its shoulders.
“Impossible...”
BOOM.
Ding!
[Accumulated growth has been reflected in your stats.]
Strength +1
Agility +1
Senses +1
[Level Up.]
Level +1
“Moving is definitely becoming easier.”
Yugeon smiled.
He shook the blood from his sword and immediately headed for the next floor.
Sector 2, Floor 11.
[Purple Spore Forest]
Every spore floating through the air contained a hallucinogenic poison.
Yugeon circulated Great Void Immaculate Art and burned away the poison as quickly as possible.
Monsters attacked him.
He ignored them and passed through like the wind.
Floor 12.
Floor 13.
Floor 14.
He cut through thorn bushes.
He crossed sticky swamps using lightness techniques.
By the time he reached Floor 15, [Queen's Nest], the Queen Mantis had already been defeated by other Awakeners.
It did not matter.
That was not Yugeon's destination.
Floor 16.
Floor 17.
Spiderwebs.
Nests of insects.
Yugeon performed Sword Dance as he cleared away obstacles and quickly passed through those floors as well.
Finally...
Floor 18.
[Centipede Valley]
Rustle.
Rustle.
Rustle.
A disgusting sound echoed around him.
It sounded like countless creatures gnawing on something.
The dark valley floor was completely covered by tens of thousands of centipedes.
Not even the soil was visible.
An ordinary person might faint just by looking at it.
There was not a single gap in the sea of insects.
“There are way too many of them.”
Yugeon frowned.
Still, he stepped forward without hesitation.
Crunch.
Crack.
Centipedes burst beneath his feet with every step.
Over there.
His gaze moved toward the deepest part of the valley.
A waterfall of black water flowed there.
Normally, Awakeners cleared the field before fighting the boss.
But Yugeon's goal was not the boss itself.
Beside the waterfall...
A gigantic rotten tree stood.
That's my destination.
SLASH!
CRACK!
Yugeon cut the rotten tree in half.
A hidden path appeared.
[Thousand-Year Nest]
When he entered, he found a damp and gloomy cave.
There you are.
Deep inside...
Two red eyes shone from the darkness.
[Lv. 60] Thousand-Poison Earth King
A giant centipede said to have lived for a thousand years.
Its body was as thick as a barrel.
It stretched more than ten meters long.
Its shell gleamed purple.
Hundreds of legs were as sharp as razor blades.
The true ruler of this hidden place.
And a boss that would never respawn after being killed.
“SKREEEEEE!”
The instant it noticed the intruder...
It released a thick purple poison cloud.
A deadly breath attack capable of melting stone.
Inside a closed cave, poison like this should have been fatal.
Yugeon was not worried.
“Nice seeing you again. Now die.”
Ding!
[You have activated Heaven-Annihilating One Sword.]
SLAAAAASH!
BOOOOOOOM!
“K-Krrrk...”
BOOM.
The Thousand-Poison Earth King was cut in half before it could resist.
Its body twitched several times.
Then it stopped moving.
“Convenient. You split open exactly where I need you.”
Yugeon approached.
He pushed his hand inside the monster's body.
Between the twitching organs and poison sacs...
Pull.
He extracted a strange but beautiful pearl.
[Item: Five-Colored Poison Pearl]
Grade: Legendary
Type: Consumable
A pearl containing five swirling colors.
It is the essence of poison accumulated by the Thousand-Poison Earth King over one thousand years.
A crystallized deadly toxin so powerful that merely touching it causes flesh to rot.
HISSSSS.
The skin of Yugeon's fingers began turning black.
The smell of burning flesh rose into the air.
An ordinary person would have screamed and thrown it away.
Yugeon remained calm.
“Poison...”
He needed to visit Japan soon.
More precisely...
Sapporo.
At present, even the air there had become poisonous.
A land of death.
During the Second Monster Wave, Sapporo had been reduced to ruins.
During the Fourth Wave, the same thing happened to Incheon.
That was why he needed to prepare himself against poison in advance.
Yugeon smiled.
“Instead of avoiding poison, I should eat it.”
He opened his mouth.
Then he tossed the fist-sized lump of poison inside.
Gulp.
The instant he swallowed...
Pain tore through his throat.
It felt as though his esophagus were burning.
No...
Melting.
As if boiling lava had been poured into his stomach.
At the same time, freezing poison spread through his blood vessels.
Extreme heat.
Extreme cold.
Both consumed his body at once.
Yugeon did not know how much time passed.
Eventually...
Five-colored smoke began rising from the top of his head.
At the same time, his blackened skin peeled away like a snake shedding its old skin.
Beneath it...
New skin appeared.
Smooth.
White.
Almost like polished jade.
“Haa...”
Yugeon slowly opened his eyes.
Five-colored light briefly flashed deep within them.
Then they returned to calm black.
Immunity to Ten Thousand Poisons.
No.
It was something beyond simple poison immunity.
He had not merely gained a body that could resist poison.
After Primordial Limitless Art absorbed the Five-Colored Poison Pearl...
His body had changed.
Now, drinking poison increased his Inner Energy.
Even breathing inside poison clouds would feel more comfortable to him.
Yugeon looked at his hand.
His skin was so clean it almost looked transparent.
The minor impurities that had remained inside his body had been expelled together with the poison.
He had not yet reached full Body Reformation.
But his physical condition had improved considerably.
“The preparations are finished.”
Yugeon stood.
His body felt as light as a feather.
Tomorrow.
Let's go immediately.
Sapporo.
The forbidden land.
To everyone else, it was a deadly ruin.
To Han Yugeon...
It was now a gigantic treasure vault untouched by anyone.
CREEEEEAK.
A rusted fence screamed as it was torn away.
Signs rattled in the wind.
Everything around them clearly showed that this place had become a forbidden zone abandoned by humanity.
[DANGER: TOXIC AREA]
[ENTRY PROHIBITED. SURVIVAL CANNOT BE GUARANTEED.]
Red warning signs written in Japanese, English, and Korean lay half-buried beneath the snow.
Beyond them...
The scenery was strange.
The entire world was covered in white snow.
But the fog floating above it was an unreal shade of purple.
Beautiful.
Yet the moment someone touched it...
Their lungs could melt.
“Hyung... There really isn't anyone here.”
Mincheol looked around.
They stood at a checkpoint outside Sapporo.
Barricades and guard posts remained.
Not a single guard was present.
“Of course not. Keeping people stationed here would be a waste.”
When the disaster first happened, people had guarded the area.
After several years...
They all left.
No one wanted to enter.
And no living creature ever came out.
“The poison gas concentration here is dozens of times above the lethal level. Immediately after the Second Wave, the Japanese government sent a large number of Awakeners to try sealing the area.”
“What happened?”
“Even the highest-grade protective suits couldn't stop the poison from entering through microscopic gaps. The Awakeners couldn't survive more than a few hours. They coughed up blood and died. The poison was so severe that even their bodies couldn't be recovered.”
“...”
Mincheol's face turned pale.
That meant they were about to enter a gigantic graveyard.
Sapporo had not merely been sealed.
It had been completely abandoned.
A land of death no one dared enter.
“Here. Wear this.”
Yugeon tossed something from his bag.
Mincheol caught it.
It was a rough-looking black mask made with leather.
Instead of the filter found on an ordinary gas mask...
A small herb pouch was attached to it.
