Chapter 154

Chapter 154

“A dungeon, you say?”

“Yes, a dungeon.”

Zeon looked puzzled.

Lee Ji-ryeong was the man who led the Pegasus Raid Team, which numbered three hundred people in total.

The Pegasus Raid Team possessed one of the most outstanding forces among all the raid teams in Neo Seoul.

There was no dungeon they had failed to clear.

They had even astonished everyone by clearing impregnable dungeons that other raid teams had given up on.

At the center of all that stood Lee Ji-ryeong.

With powerful charisma and tremendous martial force, he led the Pegasus Raid Team from the front.

This was the first time someone like Lee Ji-ryeong had reached out to another person.

“What kind of dungeon is it for you to do this?”

“I don’t know either.”

“What?”

“An exploration team discovered a dungeon four hundred kilometers away from Neo Seoul.”

The Pegasus Raid Team independently operated an exploration team that excavated dungeons.

They periodically went out into the desert and discovered dungeons.

Based on the dungeons and information they found, the Pegasus Raid Team planned and executed their dungeon clearing.

Zeon spoke with an interested expression.

“Four hundred kilometers. That is quite far.”

“It’s probably the dungeon discovered farthest away from Neo Seoul so far. Thanks to that, the exploration team nearly died several times.”

The farther one went from Neo Seoul, the stronger the monsters that inhabited those places became.

If it was four hundred kilometers away, there was a high chance that it was the habitat of extremely powerful monsters.

“If you discovered the dungeon, you can just clear it, can’t you? What is the problem?”

“There is a big problem. It is deep beneath the sand. According to the exploration team’s report, it seems to be at least one to two hundred meters underground.”

“Hmm!”

Only then did Zeon realize why Lee Ji-ryeong had come to find him.

For a dungeon beneath the sand, even finding the entrance was not easy.

Some might say they could just dig through the sand and find it, but that was something only someone who did not understand the nature of sand would say.

No matter how much sand one scooped out, the surrounding sand collapsed and filled the space again. If the area covered in sand were narrow, it would not matter, but digging through sand in the middle of the desert to clear a dungeon buried underground was close to impossible.

That was why Lee Ji-ryeong was asking Zeon for help.

The exploration team had Awakened who specialized only in detecting dungeons.

They detected the abnormal trends and flow of mana that occurred when a dungeon appeared.

However, the area they could detect was not very wide. Moreover, detecting a dungeon deep underground was even more difficult.

They had discovered the dungeon buried deep beneath the sand not because their abilities were extraordinary. On the contrary, it was because the abnormal mana trends generated by the dungeon were so powerful that they could detect it.

If it possessed mana strong enough to be felt from the ground hundreds of meters above, there was a high chance that it was an equally dangerous dungeon.

“The more dangerous the dungeon, the greater the reward. What do you think? Doesn’t it interest you?”

“It does interest me a little.”

“All you have to do is secure a path to the dungeon. Our raid team will handle the rest.”

“Hmm!”

“I’ll treat that as repayment for the debt of killing my younger brother.”

“I believe you said last time that you would let that go.”

“The situation is different now. What will you do?”

Lee Ji-ryeong looked at Zeon with eyes full of heat.

His golden eyes looked as though they held lava.

It was a gaze full of certainty, one that would not tolerate refusal.

It even felt as though the enormous ambition he carried was radiating through his eyes.

“Understood. I’ll participate.”

“You made the right choice. The reward that returns to you will not be small either.”

“When do we depart?”

“It will take at least a month to prepare for the clearing.”

Naturally, the more dangerous a dungeon was, the longer the preparation period became.

Even a month was the minimum estimate.

“Can I bring a few more people?”

“Who? Ah, these kids?”

Lee Ji-ryeong immediately noticed who Zeon intended to bring.

Levin and Briel.

“Yes!”

“I don’t mind.”

“Then let them come with us.”

“Fine. I’ll understand it that way.”

Thud!

Lee Ji-ryeong placed the cost of the food on the table and stood up.

“I ate well, old man! Your food is quite good.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll come again next time.”

“Hehe! Please come by anytime.”

Old Man Kleksi bowed his head deeply to Lee Ji-ryeong.

Lee Ji-ryeong glanced at Old Man Kleksi, then left.

Once he disappeared, Levin asked,

“Will this be all right, Brother?”

“What?”

“He said it’s a dungeon four hundred kilometers away from Neo Seoul. If a large group of more than three hundred people moves, monsters will definitely gather.”

“There probably won’t be any problem getting there. The problem comes after that.”

“If it’s a dungeon located hundreds of meters underground, it will be dangerous, won’t it?”

“It will be dangerous. But that also means there will be that much to gain.”

Levin had also grown greatly after entering a dungeon once.

The difference between an Awakened who had experienced a dungeon and one who had not was that great.

That was why the Pegasus Raid Team was strong.

They had cleared countless dungeons as naturally as eating meals, so they had no choice but to grow strong.

That was why Zeon intended to take Briel and Levin with him.

The two still needed to grow further. They also still had room to grow.

It was then.

Thud!

Old Man Kleksi placed food in front of Zeon and Levin.

It was the same food Lee Ji-ryeong had eaten.

“Eat.”

“Yes!”

“Still, Lee Ji-ryeong of the Pegasus Raid Team. You’ve gotten involved with quite a big figure.”

“It just happened that way.”

“Hehe! Since your ability is anything but ordinary, only dangerous bastards get drawn to you. Be careful. Lee Ji-ryeong is far more frightening than he seems.”

“I know.”

“He may be much more terrifying than you have grasped.”

“I’ll be careful.”

“Good! Well, I suppose you’ll handle it somehow. You’re just as sly and even more dangerous than he is.”

“Where would you find someone as transparent as me?”

“Says the bastard who hid the fact that he was a Sandmancer so completely?”

“Well, everyone has one or two small secrets.”

“Is that a small secret, you damned brat?”

“Why are you cursing at a customer? You’re ruining my appetite.”

“Hey! You bastard.”

Old Man Kleksi shouted, but Zeon pretended not to hear and began eating.

Levin also chuckled and ate.

Watching the two of them, Old Man Kleksi let out a quiet sigh.

“I must be old. I don’t even get angry after seeing that.”

---

After finishing their meal, Levin said he would rest and went home, while Zeon walked through the street alone.

The sunlight was beating down hotly.

The faces of the people outside were flushed red from the fierce heat.

Because electricity was lacking in the slums, running air conditioning was not easy. No, even owning an air conditioner was rare.

That was why resting in the shade like this was the only way to cool off.

This was the ordinary daily sight of the slums.

If Zeon had not awakened, he too would probably have spent his time looking just like them.

“Hm?”

Suddenly, Zeon stopped and frowned.

It was then.

SHWAAAK!

People suddenly sprang out from all over the street.

An old man who had been fanning himself in the shade charged at him with a blade, and a woman brushing past Zeon pulled a dagger from her thigh and stabbed at him.

Everyone on the street became an assassin and attacked Zeon.

Zeon did not panic and slipped backward.

The dagger and blade passed by him by a hair’s breadth.

“Yaaah!”

“Die!”

Even though their surprise attack had failed, the assassins did not give up and persistently attacked Zeon.

Zeon used Sand Walk to avoid their attacks while closely observing their movements.

‘Are they all martial-type Awakened?’

Only martial-type Awakened could display such movements.

And they were Awakened specialized in assassination at that.

Extremely refined, efficient movements.

Silent agility like cats.

And finally, even Skills specialized for assassination.

More than a dozen assassins attacked Zeon while interlocking like gears.

SWISH!

The dagger held by the woman flew toward him threateningly.

Zeon stopped dodging and sent out the fist wearing the Gauntlet of Extreme Heat to meet it.

CLANG!

With a single punch, the dagger snapped cleanly.

As the woman panicked after losing her weapon, Zeon’s kick struck her face.

BOOM!

“Kyaaak!”

The woman screamed and flew backward.

“Seo-ryeong!”

“You bastard.”

Seeing the woman roll across the ground while spraying blood, the assassins grew furious.

They attacked Zeon even more sharply. But Zeon’s movements were even quicker than theirs.

He avoided the assassins’ attacks by a hair’s breadth and threw his fists.

THUD! THUD!

“Kuhk!”

“Kek!”

Each time, an assassin was sent flying.

The assassins were no match for Zeon.

He had no need to use sand or flame Skills.

Zeon’s physical ability was far faster and stronger than that of the assassins, who were martial-type Awakened.

“Kuh!”

“Huegh!”

The assassins, subdued in an instant, collapsed to the ground and groaned.

It was then.

Clap, clap, clap!

“Impressive. These children are considered fairly capable in South District, yet you subdued them this easily.”

Someone appeared while clapping.

The man who emerged from the shaded part of the street wore a black suit, which did not suit the slums at all.

Zeon recognized him at a glance.

“Pan Cheng-tian?”

“So you recognize me after all.”

The man in the suit was Pan Cheng-tian.

He was the trusted aide of Xiao Lun, the ruler of South District.

Zeon recognized him because he had seen him at the White Bear Caravan.

When Damian held the auction, Pan Cheng-tian had also participated. And he had won Astro’s Flame Sword, the Crown of the Old Serpent, and the Shield of the Fallen Star.

Although they had been overshadowed by the Spirit King’s Crown, the items he had won were extraordinary.

Looking at the fallen assassins, Pan Cheng-tian spoke coldly.

“Useless things. I hate the sight of you, so get lost.”

“Yes!”

“Kuh!”

The assassins endured their pain and left.

It was fortunate that none had died because Zeon had gone easy on them. Perhaps unaware of that fact, the assassins glared at Zeon with murderous eyes even as they struggled away.

Zeon said to Pan Cheng-tian,

“What about you?”

“What do you mean?”

“Shouldn’t you get lost too?”

“How insolent!”

Pan Cheng-tian’s eyebrow twitched.

But unlike his fierce tone, he did not attack Zeon.

That was because he knew Zeon’s ability, having defeated the Balrog.

‘If I go all out, I will win, but there is no harm in being careful.’

The reason he had confidence was because of class compatibility.

He was a martial-type Awakened specialized in interpersonal combat.

Zeon might be far more advantageous when hunting monsters, but when dealing with humans, he could not surpass a martial-type Awakened.

Moreover, Pan Cheng-tian was not a simple martial-type Awakened.

His grandfather, who had come to Korea to study a hundred years ago, had been a master of martial arts. That martial art had been passed down to Pan Cheng-tian, his descendant, and combined with his awakened ability.

His terrifying physical ability and martial arts combined to create an enormous synergistic effect.

Because of that, he was confident he could fight and defeat Awakened ranked above him.

He said,

“Enter Neo Seoul with me. Lord Xiao Lun is calling you.”