Chapter 52: Going Beyond (2)

Chapter 52: Going Beyond (2)

"Wh-What's that?"

The Awakeners that were facing off against the demon beasts looked up at Choi Jungchul who turned into a demon beast.

A demon beast with a hideous mouth that split into eight sections, mantis arms, and the lower body of a snake. Its size itself wasn't all that big, but a cold energy incomparable to other demon beasts was violently gushing out.

"Kugh! A-A person turned into a demon beast!"

"What is this?!!"

With a heavy grimace, the Awakeners raised their weapons. They surrounded Choi Jungchul in a circle.

"Take that thing out first!!"

"That's probably the boss!"

The Awakeners charged at the demon beast, Choi Jungchul.

They were Awakeners that had experience and skill as personnel who were picked to participate in the subjugation operation, but...

"Are? You? Trying? To? Interrupt?"

Choi Jungchul's eyes swivelled towards the Awakeners.

Craaaaaaaack!!!—

"Ahhhhhh!!!"

His snake tail extended to dozens of meters and swept forward like a whip. The Awakeners hit by the whip were flung away as they screamed.

"Don't? Interrupt? Anyone? Anyone? Anyone?"

Snap!—

He snatched an Awakener that was in mid-air after being flung away. Using the tip of the snake tail, he stabbed the Awakener's left chest.

"Kugk! Kuk!"

"You will? Help me? Yes? I need to? Kill? That bastard?"

Choi Jungchul's mouth twisted.

Owooong!—

The black energy that coiled around his body ran down his tail and flowed into the Awakener.

"Argh! Kahk! Kurrrrk!!"

As the Awakener's body puffed up like a balloon, spikes started to sprout out all around his body.

"Krrru! Kuraaaak!!"

In less than ten seconds, the Awakener that was caught by Choi Jungchul turned into a demon beast.

"Uaaaaaaaaah!!!"

"Wh-What!!! H-How did that...!"

With expressions full of shock, the Awakeners trembled.

A demon beast that made demon beasts out of humans—it was a strange phenomenon they had never heard of.

"Kuaaaaaaaah!!"

"M-Mincheol!! Get yourself together!!"

The Awakener who became a demon beast attacked the other Awakeners. It seemed that some of them knew who the demon beast had been, as the Awakeners attacked by it panicked, not knowing what to do.

Whish!!—

"Kugh! Kuk!!"

A spurting fountain of blood...

The sound of horrifying screams echoed out.

"S-Shit!"

"A-Avoid it!! You mustn't let yourself be caught by that tail!!"

They screamed out in urgency.

However—

Whishhh!!—

—His snake tail aimed for the Awakeners that split apart into five different directions. As time passed by, the number of Awakeners caught by Choi Jungchul's tail started to increase one by one.

One, two, three...

The number of Awakeners decreased, and the number of demon beasts increased.

'Damn it.'

Looking at the increasing number of demon beasts, Ohjin chewed his lips.

'This isn't good.'

If time continued to pass on without change, the number of demon beasts would go out of control.

In the current situation, Choi Jungchul needed to be killed as fast as possible.

However...

"...Goddammit."

Ohjin looked down on his body that no longer had the blessing in effect.

He couldn't feel the sense of omnipotence he had felt before.

"Fuu."

Still, it wasn't like he could run away.

No. When taking Choi Jungchul's mobility into account, he would catch up in an instant anyways. After all, Choi Jungchul was aiming for Ohjin in the first place.

'I need to kill him here.'

But how?

"..."

Ohjin's eyes shone as he observed Choi Jungchul, who was driving the other Awakeners into a corner.

He noticed something about the black energy that flowed out of Choi Jungchul's body.

'Not all of it is from the black marble.'

Facing the other direction, he looked at the center of the city where the black cylinder soared up. At where the center of the destruction took place, black vapor was slowly rising up; the black energy rose from that place...

'It's flowing into Choi Jungchul.'

For Ohjin, who could sense the power of 'Black Stars', he could see that the rising energy at the center of the city was flowing into Choi Jungchul.

'If that's the case.'

Ohjin tightened the grip on his spear.

"O-Ohjin!" shouted out Ha-eun in a hurry.

"We need to kill that thing quick—!"

"Ha-eun."

He held onto her shoulder as she was about to head in Choi Jungchul's direction.

"There's a favor I have to ask."

"What? Is this the time for a favor?!"

Ha-eun bit her lips with a nervous expression.

"You see that thing over there that looks like black vapor, yeah? Head over there right now and destroy the thing that's emitting it for me."

"...Ohjin, what about you?"

"I'll have to obstruct that bastard." said Ohjin as he looked at Choi Jungchul violently rampaging around.

Choi Jungchul was really only aiming for him. Even if she escaped from that place, he wouldn't chase after her.

"..."

Ha-eun clenched her fists.

A light of hesitation could be seen on the surface of the dragon's pupil.

Ohjin knew that if she had it her way, she wouldn't leave him alone to head off somewhere else.

However, if it was her...

If it was the girl named Song Ha-eun who he knew well...

"Okay."

'That's the Ha-eun I know.'

"I'll leave it to you."

When taking solely firepower into account, Ha-eun would have an overwhelming edge over Ohjin in his current state since his blessing had disappeared.

If she wasn't able to get rid of that black vapor, it was right to think of it as something that couldn't be removed in the first place.

"You remember your promise with me, right? I'll be really mad if you break it again!"

Ha-eun turned around and gradually became more distant.

"Promise, huh..."

'Yeah. I should keep my promise when it's with Ha-eun of all people.'

Ohjin chuckled as he slowly walked closer and closer to Choi Jungchul.

"Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?"

Creak—

Choi Jungchul's eyes headed over to Ohjin.

The frightening killing intent sent shivers down his spine.

"Why do you have so many things that you're curious about?"

Raising his middle finger, he taunted Choi Jungchul.

"How should I know when not even your mother knows why she gave birth to you?

"Ah, ahh, ahhhhhhhhhh!!"

Bang!—

Choi Jungchul kicked off and flew towards him.

His snake tail stretched out as it swung like a whip.

'It's faint, but there's still signs of intelligence left.'

If there was no intelligence remaining, there was no reason for him to react to the taunt.

Swoosh!—

The tip of the sharp tail aimed at his head as if it were a spear.

He tilted his head and narrowly avoided the attack.

'He's fast.'

Choi Jungchul's attack was so fast and powerful that it was hard to keep track with his naked eye.

'But...'

It was amusing when compared to Riak.

* * *

Baaaaaaang! —

His tail struck down on the floor.

Fragments of rock scattered.

Ohjin focused his mana into his legs.

Bzzt! Bzzzzzt!—

Lightning coiled around from his calf down to the tip of his toes.

"Hmpf!"

He took a short breath in.

Lowering his body close to the ground, he sprinted forwards.

The distance between him and Choi Jungchul rapidly shortened.

The snake tail that was struck on the ground shot back up, aiming for his back. Avoiding the tail by rolling forward, he used the shaft of his spear to push down on the ground and vaulted up high.

Moving behind Choi Jungchul in an instant, he thrusted the sharp tip of the spear at Choi Jungchul's back.

Ting!—

'Damn it.'

Unable to pierce the skin, the spear bounced off.

Radiating pain rode up from his palms.

Swish!—

Choi Jungchul's arm that was in the shape of a massive scythe swung down like a pickaxe.

'I can't block this.'

Ohjin's face stiffened.

There was no gap to direct mana onto his arms when he was already focused on his legs. If they clashed, he would get pushed back from his comparably lower strength.

Bzzzzzt!—

"Kugh!!"

Ohjin exploded a Lightning Charge right in front of him.

His body shot back from the recoil.

"You're? Trying? To? Run? Again?"

Choi Jungchul stuck close to him once again with frightening speed.

Even before Ohjin's body was able to fall to the ground, his mouth split into eight sections and attacked Ohjin.

"Fuck!"

Shouting out a curse, he stretched out his hand.

Bang!—

Using the wire shooter, he was narrowly able to avoid the mouth.

"There? Is? No? Use? You? Know?"

Swoosh!—

The snake tail struck his body that was being pulled away by the wire.

Bam!—

"Argh!!"

Intense pain shook his body.

In the instant he blinked his eyes, the tail started to wrap around his body.

'Lightning Charge!!'

The moment the tail wrapped his body, he focused mana into both of his arms and activated Lightning Charge.

Crackleeeee!!—

"Kyaaaaaaak!!"

Using the moment Choi Jungchul's tail loosened when his body was shocked, Ohjin slipped out of its grasp.

"Haa! Haa!"

His breath became ragged.

'Attacks don't work at all.'

He appeared to be in pain, but that was all.

There wasn't even a scratch on Choi Jungchul's skin after he had been hit directly by Lightning Charge.

"It? Hurts?"

Choi Jungchul's eyes fiercely shook.

"I? Said? It hurrrrrrrrrrrrts!!"

Swish! Swish!—

Throwing a tantrum, he swung his arms.

His arms that were in the shape of a scythe split into dozens of appendages and rained down on Ohjin.

'It wasn't only his tail that could transform!'

Ohjin used Lightning Feathers to shoot at the split scythes.

Ting, ting, ting, ting!—

The feathers composed of lightning deflected the scythes.

"Kugh!"

Ohjin tried to roll under an attack.

A scythe that the feathers of lightning weren't able to deflect narrowly grazed him.

Swish!—

Blood flowed out from his grazed side.

'I don't have enough firepower.'

A head-on collision would mean absolute defeat. Even if he managed to avoid an attack and hit a vital point, it wouldn't cause large amounts of damage.

'Whatever I do with the maximum amount of mana I can use at once, I won't be able to kill that bastard.'

Though he didn't have mana to spare, he still had quite a lot of it remaining. The problem was that it was impossible to use all that mana at once.

It was impossible to have sufficient firepower when he was doing the same thing as using a narrow hose to empty the water out of a massive water tank.

'How can I...'

His mind was crowded with thoughts.

Baaang!!—

"What? Are? You? Thinking? So? Deeply?"

"Ughhh!"

A sudden attack.

He didn't have the space to arrange his thoughts as rapid attacks rained down.

"Goddammit!!"

There was a limit to dodging by narrow margins.

Whether it was strength or speed, he couldn't match up to Choi Jungchul.

'If only I had the blessing! I wouldn't be done in so powerle—'

"..."

Ohjin, who was continuing his thoughts, suddenly stopped.

'Since when did I start having these fucking idiotic thoughts?'

The first thing that came to mind every time he was backed up against a corner was relying on someone else's power.

Wasn't it truly a pathetic display?

"Ha."

A chuckle flowed out.

'Don't expect a miracle.'

Hadn't he known already?

Starting from the far-away past he didn't even remember anymore, hadn't he felt it to the bone?

'Focus.'

He only had to think about what he could do in the moment, only on what had to be done.

"He? Hehe? Slowly? Reaching? The limit?"

Choi Jungchul's mockery was heard.

Ignoring it—

"Haa."

—he exhaled out a rough breath.

'There's a limited amount of mana I can use at once.'

Unless his stigma's 'star' was promoted, it wouldn't increase any further.

'The only way to increase the power of my mana in this state—'

"Ah."

A short exclamation.

Ohjin's eyes shone.

If the pressure of water flowing out of the hose wasn't satisfactory...

'I just need to constrict the end of the hose.'

Forcefully putting pressure down on the circuits where his mana flowed through would make it possible to increase the mana's power without changing the amount.

Forcefully pressing down on mana circuits... Other Awakeners would express their astonishment by asking what kind of bullshit he was on about, but...

'Since when have I ever cared about stuff like that?'

The edges of his mouth tilted up.

"Fuu."

Taking in a deep breath—

Crack! Crakleeeeee!!—

—he wrapped lightning around his left chest where his mana circuits were concentrated. As if constricting the end of a hose, he forcefully pressed down on those mana circuits.

Boom!!—

He felt a sensation as if a massive blunt object had struck down on his chest.

His back curved like a shrimp as he trembled.

"Urgk! Uuuurek!!!"

Intense pain.

His body twisted as he threw up dark-red clots of blood.

'It hurts.'

It was a feeling similar to shoving a thick hose into a body with flesh wounds all around and turning the tap as far as it could go.

...A sensation as if scorching hot oil was flowing through his body instead of blood.

His mind went blank from the horrifying pain.

'It hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts!'

It hurt so bad he thought he was going to lose his mind.

It was a dreadful pain that was several times worse than when he died tens of times in succession during the fight with Riak.

"Cough! Kugh! Ku!"

He didn't stop.

Pain could be ignored.

Pain could be endured.

If it was a problem that could be solved with endurance...

It was nothing.

'Since until now...'

There were mountains of problems that could not be solved with endurance.

Bzzt! Bzzzzzzzzzzzzztt!!!!—

He increased the pressure on his heart.

'It's not enough.'

Concentrating pressure in only one location would destroy the balance.

'Not my heart, but my whole body.'

He began constricting every mana circuit that flowed in his body.

Mana that accelerated through the narrow circuits started to run wild like a beast.

"What? What? Again? What?"

Choi Jungchul shuddered as he took steps back.

"Cough! Cough!"

Throwing up more blood, Ohjin grasped his spear.

His consciousness flickered.

The gruesome pain didn't stop but instead increased.

Bzzzzt!—

One step more.

Forward.

-Ring!

[ has been acquired.]

[Warning! The current state of your body has not met the standards required to use Exceed!]

[You have entered the state 'Overload'.]

[Cancellation of the skill is advised!]

A red warning box appeared in front of his eyes.

Smirk—

Ohjin smiled brightly.

"Fuck off."

Violent currents of blue lightning swept through the surroundings.