Chapter 272

Chapter 272

ROOOOAR!

It was not Archelon’s cry.

It was the sound made by the sandstorm covering Archelon.

A sound like the cry of a supergiant monster resounded from within the sandstorm.

In truth, the sandstorm was displaying power like that of a supergiant monster.

RUMBLE—!

Lightning flashed endlessly inside the sandstorm.

Blue and red lightning struck the ground like rain.

The lightning bolts that stabbed into the ground blackened the area and spread outward like waves.

Kieeek!

Kyaaak!

Each time, monsters hiding beneath the sand burst out with screams.

It was common sense that sand did not conduct electricity well. Yet the lightning that appeared with the sandstorm was powerful enough to ignore even that common sense.

“What is this?”

Lee Jung-ho’s unfocused pupils swayed left and right like a pendulum.

That was how shaken he was.

CRASH, CRASH, CRASH—! FLASH!

A lightning downpour continued without pause.

Unless one was a lightning-type Awakened, there seemed to be no way to survive beneath those terrifying bundles of lightning.

If it had only been that much, Lee Jung-ho would not have been so shocked.

ROOOOOAR!

The terrifying sandstorm that raged while covering the entire world in darkness was a disaster in itself.

Nothing could be seen except the lightning.

Countless monsters were swept up by the sandstorm and vanished without leaving a trace.

They had not simply been swept away. They had been ground away by sand.

In truth, a giant scorpion hiding underground not far from Lee Jung-ho was being ground down in real time by the terrifyingly raging sand.

The sight of its shell, harder than steel, being ground as fine as grains of sand and scattered was enough to send chills down his spine.

The sandstorms Lee Jung-ho had experienced until now were not even on the level of newborns compared to this.

Only then did Lee Jung-ho realize just how comfortably and safely he had lived under Neo Seoul’s protection.

RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE!

Archelon’s enormous body was shaking as though it might be blown away.

Even though it had pulled all its legs and its head into its shell and was bracing with all its might.

If it had been Archelon in its usual state, it would have unfolded a force field to protect itself. But after suffering such a grievous wound, it did not have the strength to unfold a force field. Because of that, it had no choice but to face the storm with its bare body.

It was only because it was Archelon that it could endure to this degree. If it had been any other monster, it would already have been blown away or erased without a trace.

FLASH! RUMBLE—!

Bundles of lightning stabbed endlessly into Archelon’s enormous body as well.

WOOOOR!

Archelon let out a pained groan.

No matter how specialized in defense it was, it was still hard to endure lightning attacks that struck without pause.

If Archelon had been unharmed, it would have detected the danger early and avoided the sandstorm’s path entirely.
But after being attacked by the black sea anemone, Archelon’s detection range had shrunk greatly.

Because of that, it had no choice but to helplessly take the lightning attacks.

With a face gone deathly pale, Claire looked at Pabilsa.

“Still, Zeon is there......”

Zeon was standing on top of Archelon’s shell.

No matter how much of a Zeon he was, he could not block the lightning striking Archelon. But he could protect Archelon from the ultra-high-speed sandstorm that was grinding away countless monsters.

WHIRRRR!

A sandstorm was raging around Zeon and Archelon.

It was not the naturally formed monstrous sandstorm.

It was a sandstorm summoned by Zeon’s authority.

It could not compare to the monstrous sandstorm, but the sandstorm Zeon had raised also possessed considerable force.

‘What matters is rotation.’

He had to match the speed of his sandstorm precisely to the rotational speed of the monstrous sandstorm.

If the monstrous sandstorm possessed a speed of ten, then his sandstorm also had to produce a speed of ten.

It was the same principle as setting a backfire when a forest fire broke out.

Just as one set a counterfire in advance to prevent a forest fire from crossing over, Zeon created a sandstorm so that the monstrous sandstorm could not directly strike Archelon.

Large beads of sweat flowed endlessly down Zeon’s face.

No matter how powerful Zeon’s sand control was, it could not compare to the true force of nature.

The same was true for other Awakened.

No matter how much power mages who handled lightning and gravity possessed, compared to the true force of nature, they were no different from ants.

What mattered was not the size of power, but efficiency.

Even a small amount of power could display great ability if handled efficiently.

That was Zeon’s current state.

Facing a power larger than oneself head-on was foolish.

Rather than oppose it, he had to comply with it, disperse its destructive power, and let it flow away.

Zeon concentrated and adjusted the flow.

His senses rode the sand and stretched out in every direction.

At some point, he felt a sense of exhilaration, as though he had become the sand itself.

It felt as if he had become a god of sand.

ROOOOOAR!

The monstrous sandstorm no longer frightened him.

The roar of the sandstorm felt like a scream.

Like that, time flowed as though it were eternity.

---

RUMBLE......

The sandstorm that had covered the sky in darkness was slowly disappearing as if it had been a lie.

As if the mad force it had shown until now had been false, it scattered sand and thinned away.

The lightning that had poured down like rain inside the sandstorm had long since vanished.

If the blackened sand had not covered the ground, no one would have believed that such vicious bundles of lightning had struck the earth only moments ago.

Claire wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and murmured,

“That was a sandstorm?”

“That was a real sandstorm. A monstrous sandstorm that appears only occasionally in the middle of the desert. We call it CD.”

“CD?”

“Crazy Dragon. A mad dragon’s fucking rampage? You can understand it as something like that.”

It was not an existing term.

It was their own slang, known only to people who had lived in the desert for a long time, like Pabilsa and Kaylee.

“Are CD-class sandstorms common?”

“Absolutely not. If they were, there wouldn’t be any living creatures left on Earth.”

It was a sandstorm powerful enough to shake the enormous Archelon they were riding.

Most monsters would be sucked into the sky and torn to pieces.

It had only ended at this level because Zeon had used his authority to offset the sandstorm’s power. If Archelon had been exposed to the sandstorm directly with its bare body, even Archelon would have suffered a fatal wound.

Lee Jung-ho’s unfocused pupils turned toward Zeon, who stood atop Archelon’s shell.

Zeon was catching his rough breath after overusing his authority.

His entire body was drenched in sweat, and his face was deathly pale. He was staggering, looking so precarious that he might collapse at any moment.

‘Perhaps now is the only chance I will ever have to kill him.’

He had confirmed it with his own eyes.

He had seen just how terrifyingly powerful Zeon could become once he entered the desert.

The image of Zeon not retreating even against a sandstorm, a disaster of nature, would not leave his mind.

‘Is it right to continue the mission like this? Would it not be better to eliminate him now while he is exhausted?’

Without realizing it, Lee Jung-ho gripped the hilt of his sword.

Right now, Zeon had exhausted all his strength and was in no condition to move even a finger. Killing him would be easier than flipping over his palm.

Even so, the reason Lee Jung-ho hesitated was because of Jin Geum-ho’s mission.

‘Perhaps I will regret this decision forever.’

Click.

He quietly pushed the sword he had drawn slightly back into its sheath.

In the end, he had chosen to follow Jin Geum-ho’s order rather than his own judgment.

WOOOOR!

At that moment, Archelon, which had tucked its body inside its shell to avoid the sandstorm, stuck its head out.

After confirming that the sandstorm had completely vanished, Archelon extended all its legs.

Traces of being struck by lightning still remained on its shell. But because Zeon had protected it from the sandstorm, the greatest threat, its main body was safe.

Archelon stretched its head out long and looked at Zeon.

The way it blinked its large eyes seemed like it was thanking Zeon.

Tap, tap!

Zeon tapped Archelon’s nose bridge a couple of times. Then Archelon snorted loudly and began walking.

THUD! THUD!

Heavy footfalls rang out loudly.

Pabilsa hurriedly supported Zeon as he entered the shell.

“Are you all right?”

“I need to rest for a while.”

“Yes! You must be tired after using so much power, so hurry and rest.”

“Yes!”

Zeon nodded and headed toward an empty house.

His steps stopped briefly in front of Lee Jung-ho.

“As you can see, I won’t be able to use my strength for a while. Please protect Archelon.”

“Understood.”

Lee Jung-ho answered with a stiff expression.

Zeon stared quietly at Lee Jung-ho, then soon entered the empty house.

THUD!

After confirming that the door had closed, Lee Jung-ho climbed onto Archelon’s head.

A gentle breeze blew.

The wind was so soft that it was hard to believe such a terrifying sandstorm had raged only moments earlier.

“Hoo!”

Lee Jung-ho let out a faint sigh and stared ahead.

A sandstorm was not something he could do anything about.

Not only him, but no Awakened would be able to show such a sight against a sandstorm. Therefore, he had no need to feel cowed or belittle his own ability.

He only had to do what he could.

For example, the swarm of scorpions poking their heads out from the overturned earth after the sandstorm had passed.

They were Ghost Scorpions, which hid in the sand and attacked with venomous stingers.

Among the monsters inhabiting the desert, they belonged to the lower ranks.

They hid in the sand without any presence and launched surprise attacks, making them extremely dangerous if they were not detected in advance.

This area was a Ghost Scorpion habitat.

A considerable number of Ghost Scorpions had been torn apart and killed by the CD-class sandstorm. But many still remained.

The ones that had hidden deep underground reacted to Archelon’s footfalls and revealed themselves.

Ghost Scorpions were monsters that moved by instinct rather than reason.

They instinctively realized that Archelon was wounded and could not unfold a force field.

Normally, they would not have dared to attack, but a wounded old monster was prey worth challenging.

Rustle, rustle, rustle!

Countless Ghost Scorpions emerged from deep within the sand.

They surged toward Archelon like a tidal wave.

WOOOOR!

Archelon roared and stomped the Ghost Scorpions, bursting them apart.

Dozens of Ghost Scorpions exploded at once. If they had been ordinary creatures, they would have felt fear and fled, but Ghost Scorpions had no such emotion.

The most important thing to them was appetite.

Since many of their kind had died, they had to reproduce.

To reproduce quickly, they had to eat their fill. That was why the Ghost Scorpions were madly charging at Archelon.

If they could bring down a single Archelon, they could feast to their hearts’ content for at least a year without worrying about food.

The Ghost Scorpion swarm was climbing up Archelon’s legs toward its main body.

The moment Pabilsa, Kaylee, and Claire’s faces turned white, Lee Jung-ho drew his sword.

SLASH—!

When he swung his sword, the Ghost Scorpions that had nearly climbed onto the main body were split in two and fell in droves.

“Yes! I only need to do what I can.”

Lee Jung-ho swung his sword with an indifferent expression.

Each time, the Ghost Scorpions that had covered Archelon in black died in masses.

The Ghost Scorpions changed targets and attacked Lee Jung-ho, but it was useless. Instead, the Ghost Scorpions that attacked were cut apart chunk by chunk.

Their hard shells, the stingers launched from their tails, and their enormous pincers were all useless.

Lee Jung-ho’s sword mercilessly cut down the Ghost Scorpions again and again.

Seeing that, Pabilsa’s mouth fell open.

Goosebumps were rising along his forearms.

“That is nothing less than a sword dance of death. Should I be grateful that he is on our side?”

WHOOSH—!

Each time Lee Jung-ho swung his sword, sword wind whirled like a typhoon.

He was venting the frustration of having been unable to do anything against the sandstorm on the Ghost Scorpions.