Episode 9: Shackles of Judgment / Chapter 154: Collapse (6)

TL: emptycube / ED: Oer

When did they have time to resent?

They would rip the monsters’ mouths baring teeth dripping with saliva, slash monsters’ necks with their blades, and smash their foreheads against the monsters’ heads. Or they would be smashed instead and turn into tatters and thrown into the sky by the monsters’ curved tails piercing their sides.

Both monsters and warriors burst and were crushed like tomatoes.

“Kuah! Kuaaah!!”

Fear? It wasn’t an intact emotion like that. They were simply devoured by the battlefield. As though they were flailing in water, they struggled and shouted. There was no sense of self. Since they had lost themselves, there was no need to talk about emotions. There were only endlessly swelling senses, obsessions, impulses and struggles.

“Ke… Keheck… Kehaa… Uh…”

A monster’s hand pierced into Keusaero’s chest, a high-ranked warrior. Swept up by a destructive karma, the wound didn’t recover. Keusaero flailed his arms as he tried to push the monster away, but his strength was already below that of a child’s.

Crunch!

Cruunch!

“Kuah! Kah! Krrr…. Huh…”

The sound of being bitten, his throat being ripped out, blood foaming at his mouth, and his last breath.

As soon as Keusaero lost his strength, other monsters rushed towards him. They bit off Keusaero’s fingers, ripped into his wide mouth that followed his jawline, and clawed his neck until all traces of Keusaero were completely erased from the world.

Strong warriors against strong monsters, weak warriors against weak monsters, they fought and killed each other. There were also instances where they were killed by opponents much weaker than them when they lost their stamina while fighting in this free-for-all.

“Why am I here…? Why am I here…? Just why…?”

Whenever the warriors, who had never experienced such a desperate battle, momentarily regained their senses, they wanted to reject reality. However, this was only momentary. Not long after, they were swallowed by the battlefield again.

Besides a few exceptions, all the troops Choi Hyuk dispatched this time were considered well-off.

There were troops who amassed wealth and influence by profiting immensely under the guise of planet defense like Keusaero. There were also rising stars, like Whirlwind Fire and Black Snow, who were from powerful tribes or family clans and accumulated fame and karma by only fighting winning battles. Either way, they had never experienced a gruesome free-for-all where no one knew who would live or die.

Among them were Nasir and his clan members dispatched by Choi Hyuk.

“Clan Leader Nasir! Clan Leader Nasir! This is different from what you said! You said Choi Hyuk wouldn’t drive us into a corner! But this… Look at this! Oh, my god! That’s Keusaero over there! He’s the high-ranked warrior we saw last time, right? He died!”

The Sovereign of Opportunity Nasir had promised that he would fight whenever Choi Hyuk wanted him to. Only, he added the condition that they couldn’t fight like the Berserkers. Yet, this battle… It was way beyond his expectations, but there was nothing he could do.

He grabbed his subordinate next to him by his hair and shouted,

“Stop whining! Fight! Fight with your eyes wide open! Think about the rest after you live!”

They had no place to retreat to and the only option towards survival was advancing by following the flow of warriors who pushed forward to destroy the Kahur Kabkuns and pushing away the monsters rushing at them from every direction.

“But Clan Leader Nasir! They! They! They are coming at us!”

The monsters that had completely devoured Keusaero were rushing towards them. Although they didn’t know whether the high-ranked monster that had killed Keusaero was amongst them, what was certain was that numerous middle-ranked monsters were in that group. Nasir couldn’t block them on his own.

“Haa…”

Nasir sighed. There was no other way. They could only hope to be saved. He aimed his long spear in front of him and ordered,

“Shield division forward. You take the brunt of the attack and I’ll stab them. Everyone take out your long-ranged weapons. We fire at three. We’ll deal as much damage as we can before they come close. Remember! I want to flee too. But there is nowhere to flee to!”

“Ahh…”

There wasn’t any place that wasn’t pouring with monsters. Middle-ranked monsters were common and high-ranked monsters would appear once in a while. They were lucky to have not encountered any middle-ranked monsters until now. Even if they fled, they would be temporarily mixed in with other troops before being inevitably pushed out in front of a more terrifying monster.

“I didn’t think I’d ever say these words, but… Don’t think about how to survive. Only watch the monsters in front of you.”

With a grim determination he had never possessed before in his life, Nasir tightly grasped his long spear.

“Three, two, one. Fire!”

**

The fragments of teeth were smashed and scattered. Waists were cut. Arms were sliced off. Black and red blood splattered.

Choi Hyuk was forging a path at the very front.

-!

When his sword swung by, it silently sliced the monsters in front of him in two. Like how thunder would roar a few seconds after a lightning flashed, a rumble would be heard a few seconds after his sword flashed by, leaving only monster corpses behind.

Warriors followed behind Choi Hyuk while getting hit by the various limbs falling from above them. Choi Hyuk was making a path in front, and the warriors behind him were to secure the path and protect his back. Their charge was like a comet. They flew towards the black hole while leaving a trail of sliced monster pieces behind them.

It was a fearless comet. However, the closer they got to the black hole, the fiercer the monsters’ resistance became.

Even the enormous larva monsters began targeting the warriors charging towards the black hole rather than the warriors targeting them.

Kwakwakwa!

The monsters they vomited out smashed the side of the charging party.

“Kaaaah! Daaamn it! We can’t go any further!!!”

Whirlwind Fire, who was following Choi Hyuk, cut down a high-ranked monster after an intense battle. However, as soon as he cut the monster down, two more high-ranked monsters attacked him. The gigantic hand of one of the monsters grabbed his face.

{How laughable. I’ll kill you. Invader.}

The high-ranked monster pushed Whirlwind Fire back, maintaining its charging speed. It attempted to burst Whirlwind Fire’s head by strengthening its grip.

Baang! Blaaaze!

Whirlwind Fire’s flames erupted blindingly. This explosion shook the monster’s body, but Whirlwind wasn’t able to shake its grip on his face. To make matters worse, the other high-ranked monster grabbed both his arms and attempted to rip them out completely.

Brrrkk!

“Aaaahck!”

Whirlwind Fire almost lost consciousness from the pain of his arms being pulled. He felt that he might burst into tears. If he lost his mind for even the slightest moment, his body would be pitifully ripped apart and his head would be crushed like a watermelon. However, no matter how much he kept his mind intact, he would be ripped and crushed in the end. He didn’t have the slightest chance of counterattacking. Even though he crazily resisted by creating explosions, it was only a matter of time before he would be killed.

Not caring for his pride, Whirlwind Fire desperately requested help,

“Help me! Someone help me!”

However, there were only seven high-ranked warriors amongst the Berserkers, Black Snow and Mack’s troops. Facing the increasingly fierce counterattack by the monsters, there were no high-ranked warriors who had the leisure to help him. Knowing this, Whirlwind still sorrowfully requested for help.

Bang!

Just then someone jumped at the monster gripping his head. Although the person couldn’t completely pull the monster away from him, the monster revealed a momentary opening and Whirlwind Fire didn’t miss that opportunity.

Baaang! Blaaze!

Flame wings sprouted from his back. The monster grabbing his face let go due to the abrupt, enormous explosion. However, the other monster endured and still held both his arms. The monster tried to rip his arms out while Whirlwind Fire struggled and his large flame wings flapped violently. The two twisted in the air.

Extremely exhausted, Whirlwind Fire slowly lost his concentration. He couldn’t maintain his gaze on the monster in front of him as his gaze kept looking towards the battlefield.

‘… They are?’

He saw silhouettes as he was turning in the air. Now that he saw them, the ones who saved him wasn’t any of the other high-ranked warriors or his subordinates. Whirlwind Fire jolted to his senses.

‘They are reckless…! While they are middle-ranked warriors?’

The middle-ranked warriors following behind Choi Hyuk were the ones who saved him. They were blocking the high-ranked monster that had been pulled away from him. No, they weren’t obstructing it to buy time but were rushing at it in order to kill it.

Lee Jinhee ran in front of the monster, bewildering it, and every time her short sword ‘Lee Jinhee’s Dream’ shined, her body became gradually faster and her attacks became sharper. ‘Bae Jinman’s Harmony’, which covered his eyes, boosted her abilities and healed her wounds while ‘Handke’s Watch’, an artillery-style weapon, fired powerful attacks whenever the monster showed an opening. ‘Leah’s Tuning’, which looked like a lunar halo around her, penetrated the monster’s karma and reduced its abilities. ‘Zero’s Silence’, a pair of daggers, continuously targeted the back of the monster’s head. Baek Seoin held his shield ‘Baek Seoin’s Premonition’ and protected everyone while reading the monster’s movements and calling out orders.

Weapons of Calling and Weapons of Sentiment. Even though it hadn’t been long since they obtained them, the executives of the Berserkers could already use their weapons as if they were a part of their body. Their close battle continued tensely.

‘Damn it…! I can’t lose!’

Whirlwind Fire, who had been struggling with the other monster due to exhaustion, gritted his teeth.

However, danger came from all directions.

“Aahck!”

This time, it was Black Snow. She had been fighting well against a high-ranked monster but quickly collapsed when another monster started attacking her as well. She was in danger and her subordinates were being slaughtered by a sudden onslaught of middle-ranked monsters.

‘Our formation will be ripped apart if this continues!’

This thought filled everyone’s minds.

“Choi Hyuk! We need to retreat!”

Commander Mack shouted while skillfully fighting against two high-ranked monsters. If Black Snow was taken out, then the formation would collapse uncontrollably. If that happened, then annihilation would be at their doorstep.

Hearing Mack’s voice, Choi Hyuk glanced behind him. Maybe it was because of the excitement of battle, but his eyes flashed with madness. Unsure why, but, while all the other high-ranked warriors were being held back by monsters, he was continuing forward without any decrease in speed.

‘Now that I think about it… What’s going on? How is he so fast by himself? Are high-ranked monsters not attacking him?’

About the time Mack was questioning this, Choi Hyuk’s heated eyes instantly became calm. The madness of battle and even his interest in the black hole seemed to have disappeared somewhere as his eyes became calm.

Gulp.

Blaaaze!

‘… Huh?’

That moment, Mack, Black Snow, Whirlwind Fire and everyone else saw it. They saw Choi Hyuk approach them.

No, it wasn’t that he approached them. Only, the space between him and them had completely disappeared. Like the universe before the Big Bang, everything existing between them crumbled into a single point.

Slice-

‘Choi Hyuk’s Imprint’ swiped past them. The compressed universe was sliced by his blade.

Flutter…

The monsters disappeared like dust in the wind. The approximately 10 high-ranked monsters and the countless monsters invading their formation had been annihilated in an instant.

When they regained their senses, Choi Hyuk was in his original spot at the very front.

“Ha… This is…?”

The high-ranked warriors were at a loss for words.

“This… Isn’t the strength of a high-ranked warrior… Don’t tell me he’s a highest-ranked warrior? No, that’s not it…?”

Black Snow’s confused gaze followed Choi Hyuk’s back.

{Kyaaah!}

{Gueehhh-!}

Sensing danger from Choi Hyuk’s move just now, the larva monsters simultaneously turned their gazes towards him. They vomited monsters towards Choi Hyuk. The monsters shot out by the hundreds of larva monsters all rushed forward, targeting only Choi Hyuk.

‘This.. isn’t good.’

Choi Hyuk frowned. There was a limit to his stamina. Unless he could use that strike just now limitlessly, it would be dangerous if the monsters’ attack focused on him.

‘Tsk.’

But what could he do? He prepared another attack. However, the warriors following Choi Hyuk shot out to his left and right.

“Block them!!”

“Protect the leader! We can’t get out alive without the leader!!”

The Berserkers, Commander Mack, even Whirlwind Fire and Black Snow, they all madly rushed towards Choi Hyuk and blocked in front of him. They couldn’t return without Choi Hyuk. However, this logical judgment wasn’t all.

‘He’s strong!’

‘That man is our leader!’

The pure strength Choi Hyuk had displayed in this intense free-for-all moved their hearts.

‘As long as he’s here, we won’t die easily.’

‘I want to be of some help!’

Even Whirlwind Fire and Black Snow, who had been wrapped up in their pride, felt an unknown sense of self-esteem and passion tickle their hearts.

They blocked the monsters pouring at Choi Hyuk with all their might.

‘This… is good.’

A smile appeared on Choi Hyuk’s lips. Since the other warriors were backing him, he could run amok more freely.

After advancing spiritedly, he was soon in front of the black hole.

The enormous black hole and the lumps of flesh around it filled his vision.

He felt a clear sense of hostility, killing intent and unreasonable karma from the lumps of flesh.

Naro, who had analyzed what Choi Hyuk was seeing and feeling through telepathy, reported.

{That hole! It’s a Kahur Kabkun! Oh, my god… This enormous space is, in fact, a single Kahur Kabkun! Although it’s not complete yet… If it was, it’ll be a powerful Kahur Kabkun never recorded before!}

Naro’s report contained pure astonishment.

{It-it seems those lumps of flesh are there to create some sort of monster. A monster strong beyond imagination… So powerful it needs such an enormous Kahur Kabkun to cross over to our universe…}

Choi Hyuk brushed the goosebumps on his arms. He could understand Naro’s report. Even though it had yet to be born, its vigor was powerful enough to make his hair stand on end just by getting close and looking at it… If that monster was born, there was no doubt it would be a catastrophe to their universe.

Choi Hyuk recalled a name.

‘Demise…’

A demise-ranked monster had killed Flame-Sky, Flame-Rain’s father. Perhaps one of those was being created.

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