Part 1 Chapter 9 18

The conversation with Bonghyo and Baek Cheongyeong yielded quite a significant gain.

I firmly disciplined my unruly subordinate, secured one of Xiaolin’s secret videos, and learned the whereabouts of one Cube.

‘If it were up to me, I’d tell Hwanryong to go get it right away.’

If Mao Zeping were to fly all the way to Switzerland and visit a bank, it would undoubtedly become a huge issue. The director of China’s Monster Management Bureau has no reason to visit Switzerland, and to find the whereabouts of other Cubes, they inevitably had to be stored in a bank.

‘Then, it’s practically all over now.’

My business in China concluded in just one night and two days. Including the time spent on the plane, in less than 30 hours, I awakened Hwanryong, subdued Mao Zeping, and obtained two Cubes available in China.

‘What about that Hulao bastard from Hulao Pass?’

The reason it’s an S-rank creature is nothing else. A strange ghost possessed the body of a young man living in a civilian house east of Luoyang City, and this ghost was a monster that changed hosts as casually as eating.

That’s why it’s not an S-rank monster, but an S-rank ‘creature’. It’s someone who lives thoroughly hidden within Chinese territory. Even so, it’s still S-rank.

‘Let’s rest for now.’

Since departing from Gimhae Airport, the distance I traveled by running or flying across China easily exceeded 10,000 km. I’ve put out all the urgent fires, so I deserve a good rest.

“Bonghyo.”

“Yes.”

“Go buy this for me.”

“……Um.”

Bonghyo looked displeased at the items I had noted. Perhaps his pride was a little hurt by being treated like an errand boy, as he stared at the memo for a long time.

“Why? Is buying Tanghulu difficult?”

“No, that’s easy, but… Yes, I’ll buy it. But why only strawberries?”

“Nothing but strawberries is worth it.”

“…I see. Hehe.”

Baek Cheongyeong first covered his lower face. His subtly curved eye-corners seemed to be smiling at me. I was tempted not to give him money out of annoyance, but I’m not so malicious as to throw him a 100-won coin and tell him to buy bread.

“Take it. Handle the exchange yourself.”

I casually threw him a B-rank Core from my pocket. Baek Cheongyeong hastily caught the Core with both hands as it arced through the air.

“Th-this is?”

“Candy money.”

“Huh?”

“Use what’s left over to eat with the Hwanryongdan members later. Or use it for a group dinner with the Hwanryeong.”

A B-rank Core sold at its proper price would be worth at least 1 billion won, so it would be more than enough for the meal expenses of about 520 people.

“Are you sure you can give me such a large sum?”

“It’s pocket change. Originally, you would have had to go around hunting those scorpions to get S-rank Cores.”

Starting today, when S-rank Cores flood the market, their price will drop significantly. Hwanryong will strongly request foreign support, so thousands of Cores will spread across the world and be put to good use everywhere.

“It’s a shame. We got one Branch Dragon Core, but couldn’t get the Black Scorpion Cores.”

“……It can’t be helped. The Hwanryongdan will be satisfied with that.”

“Yes. Then go on. I’ll be watching TV.”

Baek Cheongyeong quickly turned into a spirit body and vanished. I comfortably reclined on the sofa and flipped through TV channels. Almost all channels were filming the movements of monsters, and about half of them were broadcasting the monster clash at the Huai River.

[Kuaaaah!]

[Kieeeek!]

The Black Flame Dragon still circled in the air, spewing breath, while the Water Keeper repeatedly dove in and out of the water, throwing water projectiles.

“Hmm. As expected.”

The Black Flame Dragon was struggling considerably. While I leisurely flew from the desert after stealing the Cube, assigned individual missions, and conversed with Baek Cheongyeong, the Black Flame Dragon failed to catch the Water Keeper.

Contrary to its boasts, the Black Flame Dragon seemed to be having significant difficulty due to the difference in elemental compatibility.

“Should I help….?”

Should I directly help my struggling subordinate, or trust in his strength and leave it to him? Whichever I chose, difficulties would arise, but for now, I decided to entrust the battle to the Black Flame Dragon.

“It’s not like the world can’t be saved without the Water Keeper’s Core….”

“I’ve bought it.”

Just then, Baek Cheongyeong handed me a box of Tanghulu. The Tanghulu, with only strawberries skewered on sticks, was thoroughly coated in glossy sugar.

“Thank you. Would you like a bite?”

“I’m fine. I bought my own separately.”

Baek Cheongyeong pulled out a skewer with green grapes. Just in case green grapes were Changyeom’s preference, I attempted a one-for-one exchange with Baek Cheongyeong.

“Let’s trade one each.”

“…Should I have just bought one of each kind instead?”

“No, no need to go that far. Sit down and watch too. See how people hunt monsters.”

I split the screen into four. Two live broadcasts of the Black Flame Dragon and the Water Keeper fighting, and two videos showing the movements of the Black Scorpions. Four in total.

“Shall I tell you something interesting?”

“What is it?”

“The viewership for the Black Flame Dragon and Water Keeper’s fight is dropping. Why do you think that is?”

“Is this a test too? Very well. Please wait a moment.”

Baek Cheongyeong licked the green grape and glared at the screen. In the meantime, I observed the movement of the Black Scorpions. They were heading towards Beijing at a fairly fast pace and would reach the city in about a full day.

Two monsters fighting in real-time.

And thousands of scorpions that would arrive in Beijing in about a day.

It was unfortunate for the Black Flame Dragon, but the public’s attention was gradually shifting towards the scorpions.

“Ah, I understand.”

“What is it?”

“Isn’t it because people feel more fear towards the Black Scorpions?”

“10 points.”

I bit hard into a strawberry. I accidentally bit into the wooden skewer too, which annoyed me slightly.

“Out of how many points?”

“Out of 17 points.”

Baek Cheongyeong’s answer was a bit disappointing. While I could have an interesting conversation with him about Hwanryong, it seemed non-combatants lacked a bit of insight when it came to observing battles.

“That’s enough. Go assist Hwanryong.”

“……Excuse me.”

“I’ll tell you the correct answer later, in Hwanryong’s presence.”

Baek Cheongyeong’s face flushed as he vanished. He seemed to feel humiliated, having been openly rebuked by me when he sought approval, but truly, Baek Cheongyeong’s answer was only a 10 out of 17 points.

“Then, next up.”

I threw a Core onto the spot where Baek Cheongyeong had disappeared. The brown Core quickly burst into flames, forming a body, and a bald giant, gleaming in the light of the TV screen, appeared.

“What the hell? Why’d you call me again? Weren’t I supposed to stay in Core form until we got back to Korea?”

“It’s a question to celebrate your promotion to B-rank.”

I asked Deokbae the same question I had asked Baek Cheongyeong. Deokbae watched the Black Flame Dragon and Water Keeper’s battle intently before muttering.

“It’s just super boring, isn’t it?”

“Why? It’s so spectacular and cool when S-rank monsters fight.”

“What’s so cool about those guys who look like they’ve got a temper, just cautiously pecking at each other from a distance?”

“17 points.”

I praised Deokbae and pointed out the Black Flame Dragon’s limitations.

“Perhaps because it’s a case of a human becoming a monster, its way of thinking is still human-like. It’s also a side effect of forcibly awakening its Core to S-rank. Its body might be S-rank, but its mind is A-rank.”

“I understand that. I use the Flame Giant too, after all.”

From Deokbae’s perspective, having used the power of an A-rank Flame Giant since his C-rank days, he would understand the Black Flame Dragon’s current state better. Just as he couldn’t fully unleash the Spirit Stone’s power, the Black Flame Dragon also can’t properly utilize the full strength of its body.

“There’s one more thing. Building on what you said, Deokbae-haksaeng. What is it?”

“……Fighting like a human?”

“You may descend from the mountain, Deokbae-haksaeng.”

Perhaps because they were comrades who used power beyond their station, Deokbae quickly realized what the Black Flame Dragon lacked. I pointed out the Black Flame Dragon’s combat style.

“Breath from the air. Breath while descending. Breath while intercepting water projectiles. With that, its specs are crying. Its specs.”

“So what are you going to do? Are you just going to keep watching that?”

“No. So I’m going to conduct an experiment.”

“You motherfucker?!”

Deokbae gasped in dismay and stood up. He might have been fed up with the word ‘experiment,’ but my number one guinea pig for experiments had always been subordinate number two, Jo Deokbae.

“Then let’s go to the Huai River. It’s alright. You’ll be the main event.”

“What the hell are you talking about! Even as a Flame Giant, I’m only A-rank… Hey. Wait a minute. Is what you’re thinking… this?”

Whisper, whisper.

Deokbae whispered softly into my ear, and I was so surprised that I froze.

“How did you know?”

“It’s obvious if you just look. Hehe, yeah. So that’s how it is, huh?”

The guinea pig showed considerable enthusiasm. Unlike previous experiments, this battle would feature Deokbae as the main event, so he was exuding significant confidence.

“Alright. But if you lose, you’re a shoe for a while.”

“What, you shoe?”

“Speak nicely!”

“I didn’t curse!”

It felt unpleasant to hear. I turned Deokbae back into a Core and soared into the sky again.

It was slowly becoming the time for the sun to set beyond the mountains, but I flew at full speed towards the river to satisfy my curiosity and end the stagnant battle.

* * *

Kyaaaah!

The Black Flame Dragon spewed breath again. The Water Keeper quickly rolled its body sideways to dodge the breath, without even a moment to launch a water projectile.

Kuuuung!

The Black Flame Dragon’s breath struck the innocent water surface. Huge streams of water burst in all directions, and the Black Flame Dragon frowned as it soared back into the sky.

Pabababat-!

The high-pressure water projectile launched by the Water Keeper pierced the spot where the Black Flame Dragon had been. The Water Keeper used its long arms, which reached its knees, to splash water and launch projectiles, and their speed and destructive power were as if it were a professional knuckleball pitcher from the Major League.

[This can’t go on forever.]

The Black Flame Dragon stopped in mid-air and gathered mana. Thanks to being forcibly expanded to S-rank, its mana was overflowing, but it still couldn’t properly utilize the S-rank power it possessed.

Kigigik!

In contrast, its opponent, the S-rank monster Water Keeper, was perfectly wielding its power. Even though it was at a disadvantage in elemental compatibility, the Black Flame Dragon hadn’t expected the fight to drag on for so long.

[At this rate, I won’t be able to face that person.]

“Right?”

[……God?]

The Black Flame Dragon was startled to see Phoenix riding on its back. Before it could even think ‘When did he get there?’, Phoenix patted the Black Flame Dragon’s back.

“You’ve worked hard. From now on, it’s a baton pass.”

[God! I still have the victory-]

“Reflect. And think about why you kept getting pushed back.”

I turned the Black Flame Dragon into a Core in mid-air. Those who had been filming the clash of the two monsters were startled and began gathering their equipment and fleeing.

Kieeeek!!

The Water Keeper let out a triumphant roar and began throwing water projectiles in all directions. Since the dragon that had annoyed it was gone, it was a struggle to show that this territory, the Huai River, was still its own. It seemed to have no idea that this would be its last.

“Then, let the experiment begin.”

Chagachagak.

I shook the Cores in both my hands up and down. In one hand, I held Jo Deokbae’s Core and Spirit Stone, and in the other, the Black Flame Dragon’s Core, forcibly expanded after consuming a Spirit Stone.

“If I drag this out too long, they’ll really think I ran away.”

Kigigik?!

The rampaging Water Keeper felt my mana and froze. It seemed surprised to suddenly see a being above an S-rank opponent.

“Rest assured. I am not the one who will face you.”

Gwanggeom, Xiaolin, Chaos Hwanryong. Having faced countless SS-rank powerhouses, I had become a body that couldn’t be satisfied unless it was SS-rank. So, no matter how disadvantaged the Water Keeper was in terms of compatibility, if I were to step in directly, it would be nothing more than a weakling that couldn’t even withstand a single punch.

Hwareureuk!

A gigantic sphere of flame formed around my body. The ten-meter-diameter sphere of flame took on an ‘egg-like’ shape, becoming a harbinger of new life’s birth.

“Jo Deokbae, awaken!”

Hwareuk.

Jo Deokbae was resurrected. Without a single word, Deokbae took his Spirit Stone in front of me and slammed it into his heart.

Gugung, gugung.

The Core pulsed strongly, causing mana to surge. Deokbae’s body engulfed itself in blue flames and grew enormous, becoming the blue Flame Giant that once rampaged through Seoul.

“You evolved to B-rank, and your transformation speed got faster, didn’t it?”

[But it’s still A-rank, though.]

“Then I’ll give you S-rank armor. Puhuhu.”

The Black Flame Dragon was forcibly turned into a monster, but its foundation is that of a monstrous human.

Therefore, just like a Core Weapon, it should be able to be transformed into a ‘weapon’.

“Experiment Phase 2!”

I manipulated mana to stimulate the Black Flame Dragon’s Core. And then I connected that mana to Deokbae’s body.

GRRRRRR!!

Along with an indescribable battle cry, black scales began to sprout from the Flame Giant’s body. The design motif was none other than my own ‘monsterification’ as Phoenix. Of course, unlike me, who resembles a phoenix, the armor surrounding the Flame Giant was the Black Flame Dragon’s outer skin.

“Shall we watch from first class, then?”

I landed on the Flame Giant’s shoulder. People, surprised by the sudden appearance of the gigantic flame egg, were turning their cameras back towards us.

“Three, two, one.”

Snap.

As soon as I snapped my fingers, the flame barrier disappeared. The Flame Giant, which had been crouching in mid-air, was pulled by gravity and fell onto the water surface.

Kuuung–!

The Flame Giant landed on the water surface, radiating mana. The Water Keeper recoiled from the Flame Giant’s ominous and formidable aura.

“Subordinate No. 2.”

[Why?]

“I’ll give you 3 minutes.”

[…That’s enough!]

The Flame Giant, clad in dragon armor, ran across the water surface.

Indeed, battles are best watched live.

Kieeeek!!

[Shut your mouth, your breath stinks!]

The Flame Giant’s gauntlet struck the Water Keeper’s lower jaw.

…I wonder why that stings.