By Zephyria “Ugh, the smell.”
Yoon Seung-ryong, covered in blood and slime after thoroughly chopping and finishing off the gobies, scowled. Yohan, who had been watching from behind Lee Hyun-muk, quickly ran over and purified it cleanly. As he did, he glanced at the spot where the gobies had emerged. Water with a terrible fishy smell was slowly filling the area. Now that he saw it, it wasn’t just a muddy field.
“Seeing the gobies come out, it looks like this used to be a tidal flat.”
“We need to be careful. It wasn’t this messy before.”
Lee Hyun-muk approached and examined the spot where the gobies had sprung out. After purifying the gobies, Yohan showed interest in the puddle of water. In the Abyss, drinking water was always the most precious resource. Yoon Seung-ryong scooped up a basin full of the dirty water. Yohan grimaced at the water, which had a foul, oily sheen floating on top.
“Then I’ll purify this too.”
It was water like wastewater, but as soon as Yohan’s light touched it, it immediately cleared. However, for some reason, the salty smell didn’t dissipate. Yohan, half-believing and half-doubting, poked it with his finger to taste it and his eyes widened.
“It’s saltwater?”
“Huh? Let me see… Wow, it’s salty. Seawater is springing up here. Is it connected to a lake?”
Yohan poured his light onto the water again. He concentrated so hard his brow furrowed, trying to remove the saltiness, but no matter how much he purified it, it remained saltwater. Joo Ho-young comforted Yohan, who looked disappointed.
“Hyung, it’s not difficult to find drinking water here because the humidity is so high. Look at this.”
It was as Joo Ho-young said. With just a gesture, chunks of ice materialized out of thin air, so there was no worry about finding drinking water. Seo Yakrin, seeing Yohan’s disappointed expression after trying to ‘purify’ the saltwater, fell into deep thought and then spoke.
“Perhaps the components that make up the body are not easily ‘purified’?”
“Components that make up the body?”
“Yes. It would be quite problematic if sodium were removed from the body, wouldn’t it?”
Hearing Seo Yakrin’s words, Yohan was reminded of the time he suffered from hallucinations in the jungle. Back then, he couldn’t purify a certain substance for days, which was said to have beneficial effects on Yohan’s body. Giving up on purifying the saltwater, Yohan retreated and thought.
‘So, is the standard for purification my own body? Seeing as things like plastic or metal aren’t purified, perhaps the standard is Earth’s materials. …No, no, it feels like a more complex ability than that to define it simply. And….’
Yohan pondered the concept of ‘purification’ anew. Until now, he had only thought of his ‘purification’ ability as a way to provide beneficial effects to allies. But now that he thought about it, this ability was more than just maintaining a clean and sanitary environment and restoring a maddened ally to their senses.
From the perspective of the Abyss, Corruption, and Flood, ‘purification’ was a very aggressive and exclusive ability. Wasn’t it almost equivalent to ‘deletion’ or ‘annihilation’? Only then did he begin to understand why the Flood had chased him so relentlessly.
A Purifier was, in essence, the antithesis of the Abyss. The moment the Abyss swallowed Yohan, it was like swallowing poison.
The goby meat was chewy and delicious. It was fortunate that Yohan’s ‘purification’ targets included foul odors like the fishy smell.
After finishing their meal and digesting it to some extent, Yohan retracted his purification field. This was due to Lee Hyun-muk’s instruction that it was better not to waste his ability purifying mere smells. The terrible stench flooded back, but everyone endured it, scowling until their noses grew accustomed to it.
Since the surroundings were all mudflats, their temporary shelter wasn’t particularly splendid. They spread the skins of the gobies they had killed earlier across the soggy ground and placed their mattresses on top. The fog grew thicker, making it impossible to discern the lake’s shape.
“I wish we could go back to the Reed Sea.”
Seo Yakrin muttered, glaring at the Black Mountain for no reason. Yohan agreed a hundred times over. Thanks to the purification surrounding his body, he hadn’t noticed the stench much, but when the fishy smell occasionally hit him, it was enough to give him a headache. Joo Ho-young sighed deeply while playing a game and grumbled.
“Even in the Abyss, this kind of stench is a bit much, isn’t it?”
“I’m sure something is rotting alive in the lake. Let’s hurry up and finish our work and get out of here. Settling in the Russian sector would be perfect.”
Yoon Seung-ryong grumbled, worried that the cooking ingredients and food would absorb the stench. Just then, a mournful howl echoed from beyond the fog. It sounded like the cry of a whale, or perhaps someone’s wail, sending shivers down their spines. Lee Hyun-muk pulled Yohan into his embrace and murmured.
“Whatever it is, it seems to be a considerably large entity.”
Even as he said it, his voice was calm, with no trace of anxiety or fear. Yohan found comfort in his warm and dependable embrace. As long as Lee Hyun-muk was by his side, he felt he could endure even this terrible Abyss.
After a night of uncomfortable rest, the group moved on again. As they approached the Black Mountain, keeping a good distance from the lake, Lee Hyun-muk took Yohan’s hand and intertwined their fingers. It was a bit embarrassing, but holding hands like this meant he wouldn’t be separated, even if buried alive in the Black Mountain. Yohan squeezed Lee Hyun-muk’s hand back.
“Should we just tie Yohan up with a rope?”
Even the others suggested it with serious faces, not teasing him at all. Yoon Seung-ryong even took action. He pulled out a carabiner and metal chain he had found and kept, and connected them to Lee Hyun-muk. This was because a normal rope would likely break during combat.
Except for Yohan’s embarrassment, everyone seemed quite satisfied. After they had traveled for some time, a nearby Black Mountain suddenly vibrated. As everyone watched tensely, the closest Black Mountain split open. It was a dark, shadowy cave, its entrance adorned with dazzling Eternal Stones like crystals.
“Team leader, what do we do?”
Everyone looked at their Team leader, awaiting instructions. Lee Hyun-muk approached the entrance and stood there. As he peered into the darkness, something dark and vast seemed to brush past their feet and dart inside, making Yohan jump in surprise. For some reason, the cave seemed to rumble in response.
‘What is it?’
As Yohan looked down at his feet in bewilderment, Lee Hyun-muk, who had been staring intently into the cave, slowly nodded.
“We’ll go in. I’ll take the lead. Then Seungryong, Yohan, Yakrin, and Ho-young in that order.”
Following their leader’s instructions, everyone drew their weapons and entered the cave. Yohan also scattered Light Particles all around to illuminate the dark interior. The Eternal Stones touched by the Light Particles glowed with a soft light.
The slope of the cave created by the Black Mountain was quite steep. What lay at the end of this passage? All sorts of ominous and frightening thoughts arose, along with a faint yearning that perhaps there might be an exit from this place.
As they descended deeper, the air grew heavier. Yohan could see faint sweat on the nape of Yoon Seung-ryong’s neck, who was walking ahead of him. He too was tense. Yohan’s palm, clutching his spear tightly, was also damp. After walking in single file for about an hour, Lee Hyun-muk stopped.
“…The end of the passage.”
“It really looks like they broke through that rock layer, just like Yohan said.”
Yoon Seung-ryong muttered, looking at the Eternal Stones scattered on the ground. Before them were the traces of countless Eternal Stones, which had continuously eroded the rock layer over the ages, creating a hole. But beyond it was an unfathomably dark abyss, so dark that nothing could be seen. Yohan, trying to appear resolute despite trembling, asked Lee Hyun-muk.
“Shall I send some light?”
“Yes. Don’t get any closer, just send the light.”
With permission granted, Yohan swallowed dryly and created a beam of light that extended in all directions. He unfolded it like a paper airplane and sent it flying over Lee Hyun-muk’s shoulder. The paper airplane Yohan created flew into the dark beyond, scattering brilliant light.
Only then could they see what was inside.
Beyond that lay a vast, round space, encased like an eggshell by a solid rock layer. Inside this space, a deep pit spiraled downwards like an ammonite fossil. Within each spiral, countless monsters existed. Without killing each other, they writhed and tangled together, and all turned their heads towards them simultaneously.
“…!”
Yohan covered his mouth. The monsters that the Black Mountain had swallowed over countless ages were piled up there like a mountain. They were grotesque and disgusting forms, like a clump of maggots. The gazes of tens of thousands of monsters, terrifying enough to appear in nightmares, followed the shining paper airplane. Then, they let out roars and extended their limbs and tentacles. In their clamor, the light flickered precariously.
“What is this.”
Seo Yakrin, watching the entire scene, ground his teeth and muttered.
“Is this damned bastard deliberately sending us here to mess with us?”
He’s trying to bury us alive and kill us. Thinking this, Seo Yakrin’s body emitted a faint golden mist, fueled by rage. Yohan, who had been concentrating with all his might to maintain the light despite the severe shock, opened his eyes wide.
“Among the monsters, there was something! Something….”
There was something very ominous and unsettling. The heart, or brain, or perhaps something even more crucial, like a core. It was something that looked like a grotesque and terrifying amalgamation of wriggling worms, maggots, decaying matter, clumps of mud, pus, boils, brains, and tentacles, all oozing a sticky, Flood-like liquid…!