Chapter 58: Star, Overwhelmingness (1)

Thud!

[The Player ‘Yang Sang-Won’ has died!]

Lab Director Sang-Won died extremely suddenly. After passing through the Ghost Soldier depository, he had reached a cleverly-hidden door. All he needed to do was reach out his hand to open the door, but his head slumped down, and he was unable to do so.

[The door is securely locked!]

[Enter a pattern or a password to unlock the door.]

The door seemed to be locked with a more advanced security system than the Ghost Soldier depository.

‘Will it work again?’?

Chang-Sun wondered.

As there was a precedent, he simply brought his hand to the touch screen without worrying much about it. Then, [Peter’s Key] trembled lightly against his neck, and the touch screen shone brightly once again.

[Master ID has been confirmed.]

Click!

Zing―!

The tightly-shut door opened wide, as if it were encouraging Chang-Sun to enter.

‘It seems… This key specializes in opening locked devices or doors,’?

Chang-Sun thought.

Did the key have any requirements apart from the object having to be ‘locked’? Thinking he had to test it out properly later, he went inside. Unlike the Ghost Soldier depository outside, the inside of the chamber was much narrower. It was thirty-three square meters wide; in the center, there was an altar of the sort used to pray to a deity.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ looks at you in surprise for successfully locating this place.]

The altar consisted of two parts: A main platform upon which sacrificial offerings would be prepared, and a smaller platform placed in front of it.

However, what caught Chang-Sun’s attention was a woman, lying on the altar with her eyes closed as if she were sound asleep. He was not even sure whether she was alive; she was extremely pale, and her breaths were shallow. On top of that, she was connected to a complicated series of glass tubes protruding from the walls.

‘This woman is…?’?

Chang-Sun thought. He was familiar with her. What was her name?

‘Was it… Shin Eun-Seo? I think it was something like that.’

She was the woman who had spoken to Chang-Sun during the tests, telling him she was a long-time fan of his. From what Chang-Sun remembered, she had acted very frivolously and had a twin brother… He had had his eye on her because he could sense her exceptional talent at the start of the training session, but he had not expected to see her here. It looked as if Lab Director Sang-Won had also thought so, and thus kidnapped her for her talent.

‘Did she become a Ghost Soldier?’?

Chang-Sun wondered as he carefully felt Shin Eun-Seo’s pulse.

When he used [Viper Eyes], he could not find any protective devices; thus, he was able to analyze the situation without any hindrance.

[Analyzing the subject!]

[Foreign energy detected.]

[The Hohwan Mama is on alert.]

Chang-Sun squinted, searching for a [Dream Sphere] and signs of magic being used to turn Eun-Seo into a Ghost Soldier.

‘No, she isn’t becoming a Ghost Soldier. The magic in use is more intense and fundamental.’

While the Hohwan Mama in a [Dream Sphere] could ‘reset’ a soul, the magic being used here was transforming the soul into an entirely different being. The ones responsible were not simply infusing ghost energy into her; they were also changing her soul’s energy into ghost energy. In that case, she would become a being that could no longer be considered human; people usually called such beings Aberrations.

The word Aberration was used to refer to irrational and mysterious beings that could not be understood through human logic. Among them were monsters left only with their violent natures,; bizarre-looking yokai; Mōryōs, creatures that only wandered hidden planes… Every sort of indescribable being could be classified as an Aberration. In a sense, the Jigwis Chang-Sun had killed were also Aberrations.

‘This was what Executive Director Oh tried to hide,’?

Chang-Sun thought.

?

It seemed the Ghost Soldiers were merely the prototypes for creating an Aberration, but Executive Director Oh had covered up the existence of the Aberration in order to use it as his hidden weapon.

‘He called her… Gildal,’?

Chang-Sun thought, recalling the word Lab Director Sang-Won had muttered to himself while heading toward the door.

He had been unsure what the director meant by ‘Gildal’, but Eun-Seo had to be it. After thinking for a while, Chang-Sun remembered an old folktale that talked about Gildal, the leader of the Dokkaebi; the director had to have named the Aberration after him.

[The Hohwan Mama’s manifestation is in progress… 41% complete.]

‘41%? The number’s a bit vague,’?

Chang-Sun thought.

The Hohwan Mama’s manifestation had not progressed enough for Eun-Seo to be called a Ghost Soldier or a Gildal, but her muscles and bones had become far sturdier than ordinary people’s; her muscle fibers were so tough that a knife would sooner shatter than pierce through her flesh. If she woke up, she would be so strong she could easily take on most Players.

[The Skill ‘Beast Senses’ has been used to analyze the subject’s condition in detail!]

While examining Eun-Seo’s mind to see whether her ego was intact, Chang-Sun checked to see whether removing the glass tubes would affect her badly.

‘Fortunately, they haven’t even begun to hypnotize or brainwash her,’?

Chang-Sun concluded.

It seemed brainwashing was the last step in Gildalization. Eun-Seo could potentially suffer from mild amnesia after she woke up, but her ego would be intact. There would be no issues removing the glass tubes either; although she could potentially have some negative reactions, Chang-Sun could deal with those.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ watches what you are going to do with great interest.]

[The Celestial ‘Twilight-Piercing Owl’ asks you to quickly save the poor woman in front of you.]

A message implying that Heoju seemed to be having fun appeared. He assumed that Chang-Sun was going to steal Shin Eun-Seo after the Gildalization process concluded; he thought that, having already encountered the Ghost Soldiers, Chang-Sun would want a Gildal, which would be much stronger.

However, even after seeing the messages, Chang-Sun pulled out the glass tubes one by one without hesitation.

[You have removed the glass tubes!]

[The Gildalization process has been forced to stop.]

[The forced cessation of the process has left the Hohwan Mama raging.]

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ is very surprised by your choice.]

[The Celestial ‘Twilight-Piercing Owl’ says she knew you would do that; she nods, asking you to quickly get the woman to safety and give her first aid.]

𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Just as he had while saving Gyeo-Ul, Chang-Sun infused his magic into Shin Eun-Seo and called forth the Eon Fire; she was instantly engulfed in flames.

[The Eon Fire of the Eight Trigrams Brazier is blazing!]

[The process of destruction has begun.]

[The fire is eliminating all toxins.]

[The fire is eradicating all impure energies.]

…

[The Hohwan Mama is strongly resisting the Eon Fire.]

[The Hohwan Mama attempts to resist.]

[The Eon Fire has suppressed the Hohwan Mama’s resistance!]

[The Hohwan Mama tries to defy the Eon Fire.]

[The Eon Fire has crushed the Hohwan Mama’s defiance!]

…

[The Eon Fire is regenerating and healing the subject. While blocking all external stimuli, the fire is healing the subject’s wounds.]

Although the attribute of the [Single Eon Fire] was ‘doom’, not ‘regeneration’ like the [Fire of the Eight Trigram Brazier], its original attribute had not completely disappeared. Rather, the Eon Fire destroyed the Hohwan Mama inside Eun-Seo’s body, which would surely have tormented her for her entire life, and thus purified her body. Chang-Sun controlled the fire to destroy all the negative effects of Gildalization and only leave behind the positive effects.

[The Single Eon Fire and the Hohwan Mama are clashing fiercely!]

Naturally, it took a while for the Eon Fire to finish its restorative process. However, as with Baek Gyeo-Ul, Eun-Seo would have to undergo part of the process herself without Chang-Sun’s help. Eventually, all Chang-Sun could do was wait. He let go of Eun-Seo's wrist, then headed over to the small platform to see what was on it while the Jigwi’s Eon Fire burned the Hohwan Mama.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ asks what has happened to your ambition of taking everything!]

Chang-Sun chuckled dryly; he could see what trick Heoju was trying to pull; it was an attempt to make him interested in Gildals and Ghost Soldiers, thus leading him to do what Heoju wanted. Just as everyone in the White Tiger Clan had been blindly manufacturing the pawns Heoju wanted, he wished for Chang-Sun to do the same.

He muttered, “I didn’t say I wasn’t going to take anything.”

.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ tilts his head in confusion, unable to understand you.]

Thinking it would be better to show Heoju what he meant to dismiss any doubts, Chang-Sun activated his Authority on the spot.

[The Authority ‘Soul Exploitation’ has been activated, exploiting the ashes of all the beings you have killed over the past 24 hours!]

Oooo!

Kieeeh―!

In a flash, ghostly wails filled the room with Chang-Sun at their center; several gloomy gray whirlpools raged, filled with distorted specters and their ashes. They all belonged to the deceased people and monsters Chang-Sun had killed over the past day, including the dead Ghost Soldiers and the Hohwan Mamas within them.

[Absorbing the ashes.]

[Strength has increased by 0.01!]

[Absorbing the ashes.]

[Agility has increased by 0.02!]

…

[The Hohwan Mama mixed into the ashes attempts to avoid being absorbed.]

[The Authority’s power stops the Hohwan Mama’s attempts and tries to integrate it by force!]

[Successfully integrated.]

…

[Successfully purified and used the integrated Hohwan Mama as fuel for the Eon Fire.]

[Magic has increased by 0.02!]

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ bursts into laughter, dumbstruck.]

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ shakes the shrine with his loud, manic laughter!]

Just like the Jigwis, the Hohwan Mamas originated from spirits; seeing as all the spirits Chang-Sun encountered had ended up belonging indefinitely to him so far, it was natural that every Hohwan Mama in the Secret Tiger Lab would likewise be absorbed into him.

Click!

Click!

An immense amount of magic flowed into Chang-Sun like a flooding river, the way it had when he absorbed the Jigwis’ fire. Seemingly already used to the process, his magic integrated circuit absorbed the flow without any difficulty by installing additional shunts.

[Magic: 325 (+60)]

As he watched his Magic stat increase by 40, Chang-Sun smiled in satisfaction.

[The Celestial ‘Calamity Tiger’ cannot stop his manic laughter!]

Heoju continued to laugh strangely. Chang-Sun stopped walking, feeling nervous for some reason; he recalled what Lab Director Sang-Won had said.

While he lay dying, the director had said two things: He had mentioned the ‘Gildal’, but the other phrase had been ‘Before they come…!’ When Chang-Sun had pressed him for information on who was coming, the director had answered ‘Inspection Department’.

‘If my previous investigation into the White Tiger Clan was right, the Inspection Department is on the side of Director Gwon Hyo-Hae, Executive Director Oh’s rival… but Executive Director Oh didn’t do anything even though he heard that they were coming,’?

Chang-Sun thought, analyzing the situation.

Of course, Executive Director Oh could have attempted to stop Director Gwon and the Inspection Department on the outside without Chang-Sun knowing about it. However, the Inspection Department members making a move meant they had detected something suspicious from the lab; thus, Executive Director Oh would not have been able to smooth things over without making a very attractive offer.

The problem was that Executive Director Oh had personally asked Chang-Sun to close the ‘Black Blood Mountain Range’, even making his asset Song Yoo-Jun tail Chang-Sun. However, those efforts would never be enough to avoid Director Gwon’s terrifying inspection—no, how could Executive Director Oh be sure that Chang-Sun would be able to close the Dungeon before Director Gwon arrived?

‘The Dungeon Closure is a separate matter, so it must mean he can get rid of all the evidence related to him before the Dungeon closes…’

Executive Director Oh just needed the Dungeon to be closed ‘naturally’ to erase any evidence he might have left behind by accident. That sly fox of a man would definitely have taken action to make sure everything would be fine even without a Dungeon Closure.

In truth, a question had been bothering Chang-Sun the whole time. If his conjecture about how Executive Director Oh’s weakness was hidden in the Black Blood Mountain Range was right, would he have simply relied on Chang-Sun to take care of everything? For a moment, Chang-Sun had thought that Executive Director Oh simply had no weaknesses, but finding the Gildal had forced him to discard that conjecture.

Then, why had Executive Director Oh not used the method he had to destroy the evidence, even though he had it? He should have destroyed, hidden, or at least done something about the Gildal.

It did not take long for Chang-Sun to come up with the answer—Director Hyo-Hae. Executive Director Oh was waiting for his rival to visit the Secret Tiger Lab. If Chang-Sun’s guess was right, was Heoju laughing madly because he knew what was going on and having fun watching Chang-Sun?

‘…Wait!’?

Chang-Sun thought urgently, quickly coming back to reality.

He had no time to sit idly. He quickly threw everything on the platform into his inventory without checking. Carrying the still-recovering Eun-Seo on his back, he ignited the Eon Fire.

[The Title ‘Jigwi’s Phantom Body’ has been applied!]

[The Skill ’Windstalking Tiger’ has been activated. Escape from your current location as soon as possible!]

Pah!

Quickly breaking the ceiling, Chang-Sun escaped the interior of the research wing.

* * *

Shortly afterward…

“Why isn’t anyone coming out?”

“Didn’t the Inspection Department members enter the Dungeon? The Lab Director should have gotten out quickly, but why isn’t he…?”

The researchers stomped the ground anxiously as they watched the explosions in the research wing grow larger.

Tumble…!

Deep underground, the ground began to shake. However, no one on the surface felt it due to the explosions in the research wing. In the end, however, disaster struck.

“Do you feel…?!” someone eventually began, but it was too late. Their voice was drowned out by an explosion that overturned the earth.

It was as if a volcano had erupted: Pillars of fire soared wildly into the air, eating away the remaining research wings and manufacturing facilities.

Boom!

Rumble, rumble―!

Tumble…!

1. In mythology, these refer to the spirits of mountains, rivers, trees, rocks, and the like.