Episode 89. [Alchemy Factory, Blood Magic, Plague – 4]
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Located on the banks of the Han River in Gangdong-gu Reporters were gathered around the country’s best alchemy research complex .
As the situation was serious, an order was issued to prohibit access to the site, and access to high-rise buildings in the area was also restricted, but they somehow managed to secure a spot.
“Reporter Kim, don’t you think this is not normal? There seems to be a conspiracy brewing over there?”
“yes? I can feel it too. Otherwise, why would they occupy the laboratory?”
However, nothing much happened in the hours that followed, and
the police authorities only repeated that they were “negotiating.”
How long has it been since the incident was stagnant like that?…
“—Uh! Look over there!”
Troops of the 999th Special Mission Battalion, who had been hiding around the hostage scene, finally began a suppression operation.
The operation must have been successful, as hundreds of hostages began to stream out of the building.
But then an unexpected name came out of their mouths.
“Senior Seo . ! “They said all the terrorists were killed… That’s what Hyunwook Lee did!”
They said that Lee Hyun-wook had subdued the terrorists.
“-what? Is it Lee Hyun-wook again? “Oh no, but why is he here?”
This was the moment when the world became aware of the fact that he,
a hero who is more famous than anyone else today but has never been active, was secretly deployed in this operation.
So…….
[Breaking News] Circumstances captured at Gangdong-gu hostage scene, ‘Savior of Seoul’ Lee Hyun-wook, deployed (1st report)
[Breaking News] Hostages rescued in Gangdong-gu “Lee Hyun-wook appeared and saved them.”
[Breaking News] Gangdong-gu terrorist’s weapon neutralized in front of ‘manipulator of steel’ Lee Hyun-wook (step 1)
The world once again brought his name to the surface and began to discuss it.
“Hehe… I hope you stop writing speculative articles and show your true side this time.”
In fact, to reporters, Lee Hyun-wook was like a villain. They couldn’t help but take advantage of the issues he was driving around, but since he didn’t reveal the reality, they had to rely on ‘assumptions’ when writing articles. “But for that to happen, a bigger incident needs to happen
. Shouldn’t we? “You’re in a mood to finish now, right?”
“Ah, well… If this continues, I won’t be able to see that person in action again…”
That was then.
Thump—thump—thump—thump—
“What is this?”
A loud noise rang out from somewhere underground beneath our feet, the earth shook, and
soon the laboratory building, Building B, the center of the incident, began to collapse.
Ku—gu—gu—gu—gu——!
“Uh! What!”
“The building is collapsing! “Avoid everyone!”
In a somewhat sudden development, they had no choice but to forget about the issue of Lee Hyun-wook.
***
After a while, a man stood in front of the broadcasting station camera.
“Yes, I am reporter Lee Jeong-hoon, who is at the scene of the KAC hostage situation!”
Jeong-Hoon Lee was a reporter specializing in players for the MBS news department.
Behind him, the half-collapsed building B of the laboratory was visible.
“…I can see the laboratory building behind me collapsed due to an unexplained impact.”
Soon, the dust that had risen from the collapse faded and a huge pit appeared.
And the broadcasting station’s microphone picked up the scream that came out from within.
Keueeee——!
A strange tangle of voices… It seemed as if the black pit itself was howling.
“…….”
At this, the expression of Lee Jeong-hoon, who was holding the microphone on the screen, hardened in real time.
“Ah, what kind of strange sound is coming from inside the hole at the site of the collapse of the building…”
Strangely enough, my tongue was twisted.
‘What the fuck!’
His subconscious was screaming that he had to get out of here right now.
However, he pushed back the urge and opened his mouth again.
“Ah, it seems like something… and a lot… is about to pour out.”
In line with his comments, the broadcast screen switched to a drone camera in the sky and showed a close-up of the inside of the pit.
At that moment, not only Lee Jeong-hoon but also the studio anchors had no choice but to remain silent.
“…….”
There was a sinkhole tens of meters deep . Unidentified monsters with red eye lights,
human upper bodies and reptile tails, densely embroidered like the red Milky Way, were climbing up the inside walls of the pit, densely embroidered. There were at least hundreds, if not thousands, of them. ….
It was a gross and disgusting scene, as if a miniature camera had been inserted into a termite burrow.
Or, it looked as if hell was about to overflow.
Kueeee——Keueeee——
followed by urgent shouts from government agents. The broadcasting station’s microphone picked up the message:
“Leave this scene right now! “A wide-area curse debuff will spread here!”
Then military transport planes flew in, shaking the sky, and
even the reporters who had stubbornly held on began to leave in a hurry.
“We will move to a safe place and then keep you updated on the situation!”
Even as Lee Jeong-hoon was moving from place to place, the drone camera continued to focus on the sinkhole.
But then,
the camera captured a rather strange scene:
a monster—someone standing tall in front of the pit where anglerfish were crawling.
“. ..uh?”
Lee Jung-hoon also checked the scene and added his voice to the screen:
“Uh! look over there! “There’s someone standing right in front of the pit!”
As a reporter, Lee Jeong-hoon immediately recognized the person’s identity.
“Oh my god! It’s Lee Hyun-wook, the savior of Seoul! He’s blocking the hole!”
He then remembered that Lee Hyun-wook was at this scene.
“It’s standing alone too! “Are you really going to stop those monsters by yourself?”
This one scene alone was a hit, but the subsequent scenes were all equally amazing.
Woo-woo–!
A huge white object magically appeared above his head.
It was an airship with a long oval white body and four streamlined, gently curved wings.
“Gasp! It’s an airship! Maybe it’s a new airship that hasn’t been known until now!”
It was the first appearance of the fourth entity, an item-type airship known to be of only three in the world.
Woo-woo—
Then, the rear of it opened, and black ‘cubes’ began to fly in a row, and
the surface of the ‘cubes’ The mana circuits lined up behind Lee Hyun-wook’s back, emitting a faint light.
“Now he has started something! It’s clear he intends to stop the monsters!”
A man stood alone to block a horde of monsters pouring out of a black hole,
and the cube-shaped mechanical devices lined up behind the man
were even elegant as they reflected the sunlight and sparkled.
‘This picture is really amazing! If the results are good, it will be a cut that will go down in history!’
Lee Jeong-hoon, who has been a player reporter for 7 years, understood the tremendous meaning contained in this scene.
‘Yes… That’s what happens when a hero who has been building his skills in the dark finally makes his real debut.’
Soon, Lee Hyun-wook made his first historic move by raising his left hand.
Teo—the—the—the—the—dong——!
Something had begun to hit the bottom of the cube-shaped flying vehicle.
It was shaped like a flag, and there was a huge leaf hanging from the end of a long pole.
The leaf began to emit a somewhat green aura.
– [Divine Tree Area] is applied to the area.
* All ‘Dark type’ attribute monsters are weakened. (-15%)
* Damage of all ‘Holy series’ properties increases. (+20%)
This was a kind of ‘holy relic’ made from the leaves of the World Tree.
In general, things called holy relics are semi-permanent ‘objects’, and the process of production, installation, and preservation was quite difficult. However, this [Realm of the Sacred Tree] was a sacred object in the form of a ‘consumer item’.
To put it simply, installation was very simple, but the effect was ‘temporary’.
“As if he’s been waiting for those monsters, calmly ‘deploys’ something!”
Lee Jeong-hoon continued to broadcast from the scene in a voice that had regained his sense of stability:
“As of now, we don’t know why he came out alone and why no one is helping him.”
Everyone here was confused and confused about this situation, not knowing what to do, but
Lee Hyun-wook was responding with a light hand gesture without the slightest change in expression.
And finally the first line of monkfish crawled out of the pit.
Keueeee——!
The disgusting appearance was fully captured on camera.
Then—
the cubes formed a hemispherical formation as if surrounding a pit, and a long ‘tube’ protruded from the center of the body. And the moment Lee Hyun-wook stretched out his left hand, the ‘tubes’ ejected metal projectiles.
To—do—do—do—do—do——!
Dozens of anglerfish were caught in
the tight fire net created by the volley of fire .
Bur—bur—bur—bur—bur—bur——
Their bodies were torn to pieces and scattered here and there.
“Look! Lee Hyun-wook’s skills are working properly! All the monsters are defeated!”
But black smoke began to rise from their corpses.
“A strange phenomenon is happening!”
Pooh—woo—woo—woo——
– Caution! ‘Demon’s Breath’ spreads in the area.
The unpleasant smoke covered Lee Hyun-wook’s body, but he didn’t care.
It was the same with anglers.
Keueeee——!
They never stopped despite Lee Hyun-wook’s offensive and continued to push forward.
They were violent beasts that simply followed the scent of their prey without any emotion.
However, Lee Hyun-wook did not allow them to walk outside the pit.
The moment he grabbed his left hand, hundreds of iron balls exploded.
Yea-that-that-that-jeong——!
Dozens who had just escaped the pit were swept away as they scattered debris in all directions.
That wasn’t the end.
The fragments rotated along the periphery of the hole, forming a ‘iron whirlwind’.
Coo—o—o—o—o—o——
Storm of Blades The whirlwind rages around the pit.
“Wow… it’s like—this technology reminds me of a giant blender!”
As a result, the advance of the anglerfish swarm had no choice but to be blocked.
“He is really blocking that horde of monsters! That’s a lot of firepower!”
Lee Hyun-wook was walking towards the pit, pushing away like that.
“He… isn’t just blocking that monster’s onslaught, he’s breaking through it!”
The world witnessed that scene.
***
When this moment came, Lee Hyun-wook thought that it would be possible to block the hordes of anglerfish if he could protect the narrow passage. However, he predicted that it would be a very difficult fight and did not let go of his tension.
But now I realize that that prediction was wrong.
‘This is easier than you think, right?’
Every time he stretched out his hand, dozens of anglerfish turned into chunks of meat and piled up one by one.
‘As expected, I’m growing much faster than I expected.’
– Current controllable metal weight: 491kg
* Transcendent sense (+30%) is in effect.
* Steel bone (+10%) is being applied.
* World Boss Monster Slayer (+5%) is being applied.
* Savior of Seoul (+100%) is in effect. : Overlaps with the top additional effect.
This was largely due to the effect of [Savior of Seoul].
Doubles metal control, including all previous effects.
‘Now it has more firepower than anyone else in Seoul.’
And there was enough ‘mana’ to control that huge number of metals.
– Mana: 67441/74459
* Mana recovery speed per second: 199
In the meantime, by steadily swallowing the ‘Gnome-made small mana generator’ obtained from Gnome Ruins A3, not only the total amount of mana, but also the speed of mana recovery has increased dramatically.
This was the benefit of growth characteristics other than level.
It is upgraded step by step every moment without any battle or training.
‘And at this level, we can go in directly instead of protesting outside.’
The person responsible for causing this situation is deep in the underground research facility below.
Lee Hyun-wook’s original plan was to somehow prevent the flood of anglerfish hordes.
‘If I do that, he’ll crawl out on his own…’
But now, it seemed like I could go in and kill him before he plots another plan.
‘He’s probably embarrassed and will quickly make another plan…’ If
Lee Hyun-wook chose to move forward here, his plan would go awry once again.
Jump— Jump—
So he walked forward,
clank— and
put the [Black Rhino] shotgun, which he had not felt the need to use yet, behind his back.
And then he stretched out both his free hands forward.
As a result, the ‘metal storm’ surrounding the pit began to move again.
Awesome—awesome—
Lee Hyun-wook ‘metal-transformed’ them and tangled them together, creating a kind of ‘ring’.
Of course, it was no ordinary ring.
It was shaped like a crown of thorns with sharp blades sticking out fiercely.
‘Fall—’
The moment Lee Hyun-wook dropped his hand, the ring fell at high speed.
Qua—de—de—de—de——!
It fell through the pit and scraped off the anglers that were climbing up the walls.
And under it, once again ‘crushing’, it crushed everything inside the narrow passage.
Qua—ah—ah—ah—ang——
Acrid smoke rose from inside the pit.
Although it was invisible to the eye, it would have killed a huge number of people at once.
As if to prove it, a line of system messages came to mind.
– congratulations! You have achieved a special achievement.
[List of Achievements]
4) Demon Slayer
– Condition: Hunt more than 999 demon-type monsters
– Effect: Increases damage dealt to demon-type monsters (+20%)
This was an achievement that he had achieved in his previous life as well.
‘It is a weapon more necessary than anything else when dealing with the devil.’
Until now, the devil could only be encountered at very special events.
‘But later on, the gap in the dimension became more and more loose, so they descended directly.’
Until such a time comes, it was necessary to increase the level of this demon slayer.
The first button was put on quite early.
Lee Hyun-wook threw himself into the pit and fell in free fall.
‘It’s disgusting…’
The stench stinging my nose made me dizzy.
Just before falling to the floor, the rigid body was lifted into the air.
Ugh——
Instead of landing on the floor where the corpses were piled up, he threw himself into the hole in the wall.
That was a hallway. Looking at the floor sign on the wall, it was the 6th underground floor, and all kinds of slime were smeared along the long passage. It’s probably a sign that a flock of angler fish passed through this place
. ‘I guess I can just follow this road.’
The underground research building here was a very large facility with up to 10 underground floors.
Therefore, it would not be easy to find the way unless you are an official.
Even more so if the shape of the building itself was torn apart by a swarm of anglerfish…
But…
‘…there is movement.’
The ‘moving metal’ was captured within his senses.
‘A flock of anglerfish would not have metal on their bodies…’
In other words, it would be the movement of a living human being.
***
“…Damn it! “This makes sense!”
A middle-aged man wearing glasses and a white robe shouted that.
He was Dr. Taejun Choi, the person in charge of the ‘Silver Line’, a secret facility on the 9th floor underground.
The name of the project he was in charge of was ‘Shinhwa’, which literally meant becoming a god.
In other words, the purpose of his research was to find a way for humans to live eternal life using the system.
Today, the first experiment of that cause was being carried out…
“What the fuck is this all of a sudden!”
This was a bad experiment result.
And now, 11 researchers were standing in front of him with their heads bowed.
“Well… [the offering project] was carried out flawlessly, but there was an external variable.”
That variable was only one. It was Lee Hyun-wook, a player in the 1980s.
“I had no idea that guy would show up here and that he would be so strong.”
That was a fact Choi Tae-joon could not deny.
He never dreamed it would be like this…
“Damn, now that this has happened… I will take that woman and escape with numbers 1 and 2.”
He said that and pointed to a woman tied to a chair.
“Oh, then we…”
When someone asked that, Choi Tae-jun’s eyes widened sharply.
“Of course, shouldn’t we protect this place for the greater good?”
At that one word, the researcher’s eyes, which had been distorted in confusion, changed into firm conviction.
“Yes, I understand.”
They had already been seduced by the power of the devil and followed orders without the slightest doubt. It
was then.
“—Doctor! “Someone is coming this way.”
“What? There are no survivors in this building, right?”
“It… I think it was probably an external infiltration… I haven’t identified the face yet.”
He checked the CCTV footage.
Indeed, a man was walking strides down a darkened hallway.
But somehow, I was able to find my way very well.
“Huh? What is that crazy guy? What is he walking around here leisurely?”
“Perhaps that person, Lee Hyun-wook, came in.”
“Why are you coming in here alone? If you do this, shit… my escape plan will be ruined!”
He tousled his hair. Another variable arose in the perfect plan.
“Huh…….”
“Lee Hwa-jun, your team has one thing for you.”
“Say yes.”
“You say there is another survivor and lead that man to the biowaste incinerator.”
In other words, they told us to go into the incinerator together and burn to death.
However, the man who was called nodded with a stern face.
They were already ready to throw away their lives.
“Doctor, that guy just entered the corridor that lines our lab. ”
At this, a shadow fell on Choi Tae-joon’s face. And his eyes drooped as if in despair.
“Hehe… We’re holding out here at the safety gate. Just be nice and don’t show anything.”
His words also made other researchers make tired faces.
Then, when he gestured, the tightly closed ‘safety door’ opened.
And a female researcher came out hesitantly.
“Ouch! There! “Who are you?”
She played the baffled researcher well enough.
“…Are you a survivor?”
Lee Hyun-wook, the man in the dark, asked that question.
‘Okay, that’s the natural reaction. Now all you have to do is reassure the scared woman and let your guard down.’
Choi Tae-joon thought so.
No matter what that human was thinking when he came here, he had no choice but to let his guard down in front of the female survivor.
“Yes Ma, that’s right! Are you a rescue worker?”
“Yes, that’s right. “Well, how did you avoid this situation?”
“Yes… there’s a thick safety gate here. We got lucky.”
The woman even whimpered while saying that.
Choi Tae-jun was delighted with his considerable acting ability even though he was not asked to do so.
“So how many people are inside?”
“Hmm… ah now… there are 13 people.”
“This situation has been somewhat controlled. You can rest assured now.”
“Yes, thank you. I was really scared. Hehehehehe—”
He
came a little closer. That meant he had let down his guard.
“I guess…”
“Yes?”
“I will ask you one more question.”
“Say yes.”
“Is Chief Researcher Taejun Choi there?”
“Oh right—yes?”
“…….”
“Uh, just now…who are you talking about?”
There was a heavy silence for a moment.
And what broke the silence was a single sound.
