By Zephyria They walked and walked endlessly. Yohan, having become a High-level Awakener, thought he had considerable confidence in his stamina, but the field was unbelievably vast and wide. Only after walking like that could they barely secure a dwelling.
It was a giant ancient tree that looked as if it had just ‘died’. Birds, perched on the giant tree that looked like it belonged in a movie, were enjoying a feast by pecking at the wailing Fruits, and they threatened them by opening their beaks. However, when lightning struck a few times from the sky, they fled quickly, wailing sorrowfully. A few of them were pierced by Yoon Seung-ryong and Joo Ho-young’s weapons and died.
“The tree is quite hard. I like it.”
Lee Hyun-muk’s lips curled up after he tapped the ancient tree a few times with force, making a ‘kang kang’ sound. Yohan also tapped the tree with force out of curiosity, then cradled his tingling hand. This wasn’t just hard. No wonder it made a ‘kang kang’ sound when tapped.
“It would be perfect if we could hollow out the inside.”
“It’s this hard?”
“It will take some effort, but…”
Lee Hyun-muk placed his hand on the trunk of the tree. Then, with a gentle push, his fingers slowly dug into the wood. He gripped it, and with a dull thud, a chunk broke off. Yohan’s jaw dropped. He tossed it back, and Joo Ho-young eagerly caught it with a grin.
“Score, firewood.”
Handful-sized pieces of firewood fell out continuously. Yohan also tried to pick up firewood, but he couldn’t keep up with Joo Ho-young’s speed. Yoon Seung-ryong was clearing away the grass with his spear, which resembled a Qinglong Yanyue saber. He seemed to be aiming to clear the field of vision to prevent surprise attacks from potential enemies. Yohan, watching his companions work, clasped his hands politely and asked Lee Hyun-muk,
“Team leader, what should I do?”
“Ah, yes. Yohan has an important task.”
Lee Hyun-muk, throwing a bundle of firewood as hard as iron, led Yohan to a tree root with a suitably curved shape. He sat Yohan on the root and gently stroked him from head to cheek.
“Sit here and rest.”
“Uh… but…”
Everyone else is working, and I’m told to rest? Awkwardly unable to do anything, Joo Ho-young approached and piled up firewood, then started a fire. A moment later, Yoon Seung-ryong handed Yohan roasted potatoes and corn and returned to his weeding.
Yohan, feeling very sheepish, nibbled on the nicely browned root vegetables and diligently spread purification light. In truth, his body was stiff from being tense while trapped in Black Mountain, and he was tired from constantly purifying without proper sleep. As he basked in the warm campfire, his head naturally drooped.
How many times did he doze off and wake up? A voice calling his name, “Yohan-ah,” jolted the drowsy Yohan awake. Rubbing his heavy eyes and looking around, he was surprised. All the work was finished.
“Whoa, it’s already done?”
“Yes. Let’s go inside and get some proper sleep now.”
Even though he had dozed off so much, Yohan was still overwhelmingly sleepy. As he followed Lee Hyun-muk towards the ancient tree, he looked at Yoon Seung-ryong and Joo Ho-young. The two settled near the campfire and said,
“Go in and sleep first. Hyung-deul have some things to talk about.”
“Yes…”
As he answered, Yohan thought to himself, Hyung-deul…? Ho-young isn’t a hyung… But perhaps because he had been dozing off and waking up, the power of sleep was overwhelming. Putting his thoughts aside, Yohan crawled into the giant ancient tree and exclaimed,
“Wow. This is nice…”
The tree, having undergone purification once, emitted a faint woody scent. Yohan, who had desperately missed the mattress and sleeping bag Yoon Seung-ryong had taken out and laid down, rushed over. Lying down on the soft mattress and covering himself with the soft sleeping bag felt like the ultimate luxury. Yawning from exhaustion, Yohan surveyed his surroundings with his vision blurring.
Inside the comfortable dwelling, the sleeping bag was plush, and outside, Yoon Seung-ryong and Joo Ho-young were stirring the campfire, talking in low voices. Most importantly, Lee Hyun-muk was nearby. The tension, like a tightly drawn rubber band, slowly loosened. The relief of finally being in a safe place filled his trembling chest.
Soon, his eyelids began to fall. Yohan mumbled a goodnight wish to Lee Hyun-muk and fell asleep as if he had fainted.
The moment Yohan disappeared into the ground with only a single scream, Yoon Seung-ryong and Joo Ho-young were terrified. For two reasons: the fear of having missed a unique miracle in this hell, and the fear of the Team leader who was so close.
“Ah.”
Lee Hyun-muk let out a very short exclamation. And then…
The first to flee were the birds, who, without fear, had fiercely charged at Seo Yakrin’s command. They scattered in all directions, letting out distinctly human screams. But even faster was the black shadow flowing from Lee Hyun-muk’s body.
No, it wasn’t a shadow, but darkness. A blackness devoid of even a single speck of light, as Yohan had described when he saw illusions in the jungle. An unreal darkness, as if a drop of paint had been spilled in the air, burst forth. It spread in all directions faster than Joo Ho-young could move.
“Aack, aack!”
Joo Ho-young screamed convulsively and fell to the ground. Trembling with fear, he couldn’t even lift his head. Yoon Seung-ryong was barely holding on, but he was just as terrified. The pitch-black shadow that surged from Lee Hyun-muk’s center first headed towards Black Mountain.
As the shadow seeped in, Black Mountain began to shake violently. It caused continuous earthquakes as if it were being slashed by the shadow. Lee Hyun-muk, looking up at the sky, slowly turned his head to the side.
“Missed it.”
Red eyes shot up towards the sky. Seo Yakrin, the Monstrous Bird, felt its gaze and flapped its wings, flying away in a hurry. In an instant, one of its giant wings was twisted. Lee Hyun-muk had severed its muscle in a flash. Watching Seo Yakrin flee, stumbling, Lee Hyun-muk muttered,
“It’s okay, Yohan has a part of me. I know where he is.”
Kyaruk, kyaruruk! The birds that had touched the distant black shadow flapped their wings, trying to escape, but unlike Seo Yakrin, they couldn’t. They were swallowed whole and soon could make no sound. Lee Hyun-muk, having swallowed hundreds of birds at once, encouraged the trembling Yoon Seung-ryong in a gentle voice.
“Seung-ryong-ah, you need to move.”
As soon as he heard the words, Yoon Seung-ryong plunged into Black Mountain, which had been softened by Lee Hyun-muk’s efforts. Almost simultaneously, his body twisted and expanded with a roar, but he was buried and disappeared into Black Mountain, obscured by the dust and dirt kicked up. Then, Lee Hyun-muk urged Joo Ho-young.
“Ho-young, you too.”
Joo Ho-young, who had been vomiting on the ground, immediately turned and ran in the direction Yoon Seung-ryong had dug. He froze the black mountain as it burst open, creating a cave, and then closed again. Hard ice crystals, as solid as rock, froze Black Mountain to a halt. He ran along the cave, freezing everything with ice so it wouldn’t move.
Yoon Seung-ryong desperately dug to find Yohan. He too possessed a powerful body, but it wasn’t as hard as Black Mountain, so his body continuously wore down and became raw. However, he overcame it with the regenerative power he had regained from Yohan’s purification. In truth, he didn’t even know he was in pain.
I have to find Yohan. Yohan, I must find him.*
Muttering blindly, he dug everywhere when a shadow seeped into his ear and whispered, “Down, down. You must go down.” Yoon Seung-ryong immediately changed direction and began to dig downwards. He felt a chilling coldness behind him. Or was it just goosebumps, not the coldness of a comrade?
“Right.” The voice whispered again in his ear. Yoon Seung-ryong turned right without hesitation. “Down. Down again. Deeper down…” A long shadow extending from beneath his front legs first softened Black Mountain further. As a giant, elongated centipede burrowed into its core, Black Mountain rumbled and trembled. As if it were in pain.
“Left, down, and then left again.”
“Go further left.” “Find him as quickly as possible.”
“You’re doing so well…” “Let’s try moving a bit faster. You can do it, right?”
Yoon Seung-ryong moved as if possessed, following the whispering voice by his ear.
This pursuit continued for several persistent days, and neither of the three would give up until their breath was cut short. Black Mountain tried to collapse the caves or crush them, but all attempts were in vain. Lee Hyun-muk’s darkness, pooling on the ground even darker than Black Mountain, was more tenacious, causing it to emit a silent scream.
In the end, Black Mountain was defeated. It tried its best to swallow the precious thing to the very end and not spit it out, but finally, it gave up and revealed what it had hidden in the most secret and deepest place. Finally, when the whispering voice in his ear ceased, Yoon Seung-ryong stretched out his tattered body.
A black shape that had approached within arm’s reach gently stroked the heads of his teammates, who were barely breathing, having exhausted almost all their strength. Yoon Seung-ryong barely raised his trembling gaze to look at the Team leader. This terrifying being could even take on a human form, which was even more horrifying. And then, he leaped into a space where light was seeping out, crushing the ground.
At that moment, as light and darkness mingled like a haze, Yoon Seung-ryong…