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Chapter 223

Sizzle! Sizzle!

The scorching heat was melting the surrounding sand.

The molten sand flowed down like lava.

“Ugh!”

“Chwit!”

The Awakeneds and Orcs recoiled in shock, stepping back from the intense heat that resembled a hellish inferno.

Even after retreating dozens of meters, it still felt like their bodies were being cooked.

Each breath they took scalded the mucous membranes in their noses, throats, and lungs, and all their hair, including fine body hair, was burnt away.

The overwhelming heat threatened both the Awakeneds and the Orcs without discrimination.

“Move back even further.”

“Damn it!”

“Chwiit!”

With no other choice, they retreated again.

Both the Awakeneds and Orcs had completely forgotten they were fierce enemies just moments ago.

Right now, escaping from the deadly heat was their only concern.

Eventually, they managed to get a hundred meters away and finally escaped the hellish heat that could incinerate everything.

“Hooah!”

“Hah! Hah!”

“Chwiit! What about the Great Chieftain?”

“We must rescue the Great Chieftain…”

The Orcs, finally regaining their senses, looked toward the core of the inferno.

Whooosh!

In that spot, a sandstorm still raged, holding onto the hellish heat.

The difference now was that the sandstorm had condensed, shrinking to just the size needed to trap a single Orc.

Though it was now only a fraction of its previous size, its power had multiplied several times over.

Gaaaang!

The terrifying sound of the wind caused both Awakeneds and Orcs to shrink back, unable to approach.

The sandstorm, which had seemed endless, finally dissipated.

The sandstorm that had been swirling with unimaginable heat vanished without leaving a trace, as if it had never existed.

In the spot where the sandstorm disappeared, there was a massive object presumed to be the Orc Great Chieftain.

Orca looked like a melted, blackened lump of rock.

Even the battle axe in his hand had melted in the overwhelming heat, making it difficult to recognize its shape.

Zeon walked toward Orca.

As he got closer—

“Graaagh!”

Orca let out a hideous scream and swung his fist at Zeon.

Despite his eyes, skin, and organs having melted away, he was still alive.

It was truly a terrifying display of vitality.

Orca had endured and endured, holding on until the very end.

It was all for the sake of killing Zeon.

This was his final attack.

Zeon effortlessly dodged Orca’s strike and delivered a blow to his chest.

Thunk!

The mana infused in the Inferno Gauntlet pierced through Orca’s thick chest and reached his heart.

His heart shattered like glass, and Orca finally coughed up the blood he had been holding back.

“Gahh!”

At last, Orca fell to his knees.

No matter how powerful a being was, it couldn’t survive with a shattered heart.

Orca was no different.

Though he had endured the hellish heat of the sandstorm, the moment his heart broke, he lost all his strength and collapsed to the ground.

Orca barely lifted his head to look at Zeon.

Though his eyes had burnt away and he couldn’t see, he still accurately focused on where Zeon stood.

“Krkk! Foe of the Orcs… you possess a power too overwhelming for me to handle. Because of you, the Orc tribe will scatter like grains of sand once more, but you too will be abandoned by humans. Your power is too dangerous for humans to accept.”

It was more of a prophecy than a statement.

Even though his eyes couldn’t see, it was as if Orca could clearly envision Zeon’s future.

Unlike the Orcs, who blindly worship the strong, humans reject those who hold power beyond their understanding.

Moreover, Zeon’s power was too alien and threatening.

There was no way humans would accept someone with such power.

Zeon silently gazed at the dying Orca.

With his eyes lowered and his mouth tightly shut, it was impossible to tell what Zeon was thinking.

Thud!

Orca finally collapsed.

His breath had completely stopped.

“The Great Chieftain!”

“Uwoooaargh!”

The Orcs who witnessed the scene cried out in despair.

Orca was the Great Chieftain who was supposed to fulfill the Orc tribe’s aspirations. Now that such a chieftain had fallen, it was natural for the Orcs to grieve.

At that moment—

Boom!

Another explosion rang out.

The Awakeneds and Orcs turned in shock to see the sight of a giant corpse golem exploding.

The corpse golem created by the Orc Shaman had been blown apart by Jang Yong-beom.

Jang Yong-beom pierced through the corpse golem and lunged toward the Shaman.

“No!”

The Shaman frantically unleashed magic to stop Jang Yong-beom. But Jang Yong-beom ignored all the attacks.

Boom! Boom!

Magic exploded right in front of Jang Yong-beom, but it did no damage to him.

A soft light shimmered around Jang Yong-beom’s body.

Giselle and Aiden, recognizing the source of the light, shouted in surprise.

“It’s… Aura Shield.”

“No way! Did his rank go up?”

Jang Yong-beom’s rank had been A-rank.

Even as an A-rank, he hadn’t been able to deploy an Aura Shield.

Being able to use an Aura Shield meant that Jang Yong-beom’s rank had increased.

Indeed, seven clear stripes glowed on his right wristband.

It was proof that he had ascended to S-rank.

Facing the corpse golem, he must have awakened something within.

Thunk!

Jang Yong-beom, deflecting all the magic, instantly closed in on the Shaman.

Their eyes briefly met.

Pshook!

A massive claymore pierced the Shaman’s chest and jutted out from his back.

“Gahk!”

The Shaman’s body trembled violently from the immense pain.

Jang Yong-beom, holding the Shaman close, pushed the claymore in deeper.

The Shaman spat blood onto Jang Yong-beom’s chest.

Jang Yong-beom, still holding the Shaman, spoke.

“I should thank you. Because of you, I was able to break through my limits.”

The massive barrier that had blocked him all this time.

While fighting the corpse golem, he had gained an insight that shattered the enormous wall standing between A-rank and S-rank.

The realization was small, but its impact was enormous.

The once-imposing wall crumbled instantly.

In this way, Jang Yong-beom finally shed the shackles of A-rank and became an S-rank Awakened.

“Hu… man!”

“That’s why you should follow your leader and head to hell.”

Crunch!

Jang Yong-beom twisted the claymore that had penetrated the Shaman’s chest.

The Shaman’s heart was completely crushed, just like Orca’s.

When Jang Yong-beom withdrew the claymore, the Shaman’s body collapsed to the ground.

With both Orca and the Shaman dead, the Orcs scattered in all directions.

Despite still vastly outnumbering the others, they dispersed the moment they lost their focal point.

It was as if the thought of revenge didn’t even cross their minds.

Thanks to this, the surviving Awakeneds were finally able to catch their breath.

The number of surviving Awakeneds was extremely small.

There were only Zeon’s group, Jang Yong-beom’s party, and five other Awakeneds from different parties.

At that moment, Jang Yong-beom signaled to Aiden, Giselle, and the others.

Though no words were spoken, they immediately understood Jang Yong-beom’s intent.

They launched a surprise attack on the unsuspecting Awakeneds.

“Graaagh!”

“Why are you… Ugh!”

The Awakeneds, caught off guard, had no chance to defend themselves.

Zeon frowned as he watched the scene, then spoke to Jang Yong-beom.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“It’s to protect you.”

“What?”

“Your identity as a Sand Mage is no longer a secret. All the powers in Neo Seoul now know you’re a Sand Mage.”

“So what?”

“But they still don’t know how strong you really are. They’re only assessing your strength within the bounds of their common sense. But what do you think they’ll do once they realize you’re this far beyond common sense?”

“…”

Zeon didn’t respond. But Jang Yong-beom continued as if he had heard Zeon’s answer.

“Humans instinctively reject beings that are beyond their understanding. I feel the same way, actually.”

“So you killed them to keep my secret?”

“That’s right.”

“I’m not exactly grateful.”

“You don’t need to be. I didn’t do it purely for your sake.”

“So you also want to keep your own secret.”

“Exactly! I’m not ready to reveal that I’ve reached S-rank yet.”

Jang Yong-beom confessed honestly.

If it became known in Neo Seoul that he had ascended to S-rank, it was certain he’d face opposition from many factions.

There was a clear difference between A-rank and S-rank.

To lower-ranked Awakeneds, both were like unreachable heights, but to the power players in Neo Seoul, the level of threat was entirely different.

An A-rank was considered a potential threat, while an S-rank was like a knife held to their throat.

If they couldn’t recruit him to their side, they might decide it was better to eliminate him.

If he had a massive force like Lee Ji-ryung backing him, they wouldn’t dare act rashly, but with Jang Yong-beom’s small group, they could attackat any time.

Jang Yong-beom needed time to prepare for the future. That’s why he attacked the other Awakeneds to keep them silent.

In this way, Jang Yong-beom completely eliminated any evidence.

He felt no guilt for his actions.

Zeon didn’t criticize or blame him either.

There was no reason for Zeon to turn Jang Yong-beom into an enemy in this situation.

“We’re all exhausted, so let’s take a break.”

“That’s a good idea.”

Jang Yong-beom nodded at Zeon\'s words.

They moved to a spot a fair distance away from the battlefield, where the corpses of Orcs and Awakeneds lay scattered.

Jang Yong-beom’s group settled down a bit further away from Zeon’s group.

Laughter and conversation soon broke out among them, as if they were celebrating Jang Yong-beom’s advancement to S-rank.

Now that Jang Yong-beom had truly become an S-rank, the status of their party would also rise significantly.

Their excitement was understandable.

Zeon turned his gaze away from them and looked at his companions.

Eloy collapsed to the ground, exhausted.

“We almost died back there.”

“Are you okay?”

“Other than a few injuries, I’m fine.”

“That’s a relief.”

“But man, Jang Yong-beom reaching S-rank? Neo Seoul will go crazy when they find out. Tch! We went through hell just to make someone else look good.”

“It’s not just their side that leveled up, so it’s fine.”

“What do you mean? Don’t tell me…”

Eloy’s eyes widened in surprise.

At that moment, Zeon looked over at Levin.

Levin gave a shy smile and showed the rank insignia on his wrist. Five stripes were shining brightly.

It was proof that he had reached B-rank.

While fighting against the Orcs, Levin had somehow leveled up to B-rank.

Although it wasn’t as impressive as Jang Yong-beom’s S-rank advancement, reaching B-rank was still a significant achievement.

Especially considering how recently Levin had awakened.

His rate of advancement was unparalleled, far faster than Jang Yong-beom’s.

Moreover, Levin’s abilities were quite special.

He had both phasing skills and electric-type magic.

For now, Jang Yong-beom was stronger, but no one could predict what the situation would be like in ten years.

Eloy and Brielle smiled warmly as they congratulated him.

“Congratulations on your advancement.”

“Congrats, Levin!”

“Thanks, everyone!”

Levin beamed, but his eyes were fixed on Zeon.

He knew that he wouldn’t be where he was today without Zeon.

If Zeon hadn’t guided him, he wouldn’t have been able to level up so quickly.

Once again, he confirmed to himself how important Zeon was.

‘No matter what happens, I’ll follow hyung to the end.’

Even if following Zeon led straight to hell.