Chapter 73 (1/2)
Episode 5: Citizens.h.i.+p / Chapter 73: Advancement Evaluation (7)
TL: emptycube
Editor: Obelisk
The Berserkers fell. The dimensional wasps spread their wings, which rippled like a haze, and flew towards the Berserkers. The wasps gathered into a dark cloud, making the thousands of falling Berserkers look insignificant.
Pssshh.
Whoos.h.!.+
The sound of their flapping wings was irritating. The sound was like a sudden rain shower, then a waterfall, and then a landslide. The sound grew louder, becoming unbearable.
The number of dimensional wasps overwhelmed their vision, and the sound of their flapping wings was unbearable. Although they looked similar to the wasps they had seen until now, they were different. The onlookers trembled at the wasps' explosive vigor. They were only watching from above, but the beginner warriors were already frozen with fear, unable to move their arms or legs.
Yet, the Berserkers were not the least bit afraid. There were even some who looked cheerful as if they were enjoying an extreme sport.
An unhesitant freefall.
But, Choi Hyuk felt strangely uneasy. His eyes were locked onto the incoming dimensional wasps. The vigor of the dimensional wasps looked fierce but felt somewhat light. Choi Hyuk thought that they were inflating their vigor like balloons.
He activated his karma trait, Mind's Eye. With his eyes dyed blue, he was able to clearly see the flow and structure of the dimensional wasps' karma. When he saw this, he was able to figure out the reason behind his unease.
He shouted,
”Prepare for impact!”
At the same time, the Berserkers' second-in-command, Baek Seoin, shouted. Like Choi Hyuk, his eyes were dyed blue.
”d.a.m.n! They are fireworks! Deploy the Karma Barriers!”
Cras.h.!.+
Booom!!
The dimensional wasps, which were gathered together in a black cloud, simultaneously turned white. Their crazily flapping energy wings had started to explode. They were white fireworks. A cl.u.s.ter of stars, which s.h.i.+ned bright as the Sun, formed inside the dimensional rift and created to prevent mutual interference between the dimensional wedges and the dimensional wasps' nest.
Even as this cl.u.s.ter filled their vision, the Berserkers didn't bat an eye.
Bang, bang, bang!
Karma Barriers surged out of their bodies like deployed parachutes. The Karma Barriers and Karma Blades they personally learned from Choi Hyuk were reputed to be the best amongst colonizers.
Each person's karma color was different, and different colored marbles, formed by karma, fell into the cl.u.s.ter of stars below, which expanded with explosions.
The beginner warriors who watched this gulped down their saliva.
”Oh, my G.o.d… What is that…”
The explosion had been created by the self-destruction of the black cloud of wasps. They could almost feel the heat from the blast from where they were standing.
”They said the first team to infiltrate would face the most danger…”
They never thought it would be to this degree.
They had fought in the wasp rooms individually until now, but to suddenly change to a group battle… Just this fact scared them, but they suddenly had to face self-destructing wasps? Wasn't the level of difficulty too different?
As the explosion hadn't yet ceased, they couldn't see the Berserkers who were within.
”Are they alive…?”
'No way.'
The beginner warriors could not imagine someone surviving that blast. Until yesterday, they had lived in a peaceful world as non-awakenees. Although they knew that awakenees had superhuman power and had heard they were fighting a gruesome war against monsters, that was all. Seeing with their eyes was completely different from their imagination.
The aftermath of the explosion subsided.
Someone shouted,
”They are alive!”
”They are fighting!”
While the people above were distracted by the explosion, the Berserkers were already in a b.l.o.o.d.y battle against the guardian wasps within the dimensional wasps' nest.
The exterior appearance of the guardian wasps was identical to the wasps they had fought until now. However, they were stronger as if they were completely different existences, only their appearances were identical. Even if they compared them to the self-destructing wasps, their vigor was on another level.
”Gahk!”
A Berserker was flung away after being hit by a wasp's tail. The poison spread and his face became pale. Even though he saw this clearly, Ryu Hyunsung was unable to help him immediately.
”d.a.m.n… Late 2-star or early 3-star… This isn't good.”
Ryu Hyunsung wielded his saber as he examined the wasps. A Karma Blade erupted out of his saber. His saber exquisitely sliced off the wasp's legs, tail, and mandibles before slicing its neck. Considering his stats, which were approaching 4-star, these late 2-star to early 3-star level wasps weren't a problem for him at all. The problem was the dimensional wasps' nest itself.
Ryu Hyunsung tried to pa.s.s through the semi-transparent dimensional wall between the rooms in order to help the Berserkers who were being pushed back. The moment he tried to pa.s.s through, his body slowed down as if he was moving in slow motion.
”Keuak! This thing!”
Ryu Hyunsung let out a tantrum and exploded the karma within his body, only then did the purplish wall ripple and subside, allowing him to pa.s.s through smoothly.
”To do this every time…”
Since it was able to annoy Ryu Hyunsung, who was heralded as a top expert amongst the Berserkers, it wasn't easy for regular Berserkers to pa.s.s through these dimensional walls. The consumption of stamina was enormous.
The dimensional wasps' nest was sectioned into countless rooms, each divided by purplish semi-transparent walls. They called these walls, dimensional walls. When humans pa.s.sed through these walls, their movements would become extremely slow, and to offset this slowness, they would have to use up a significant amount of karma.
Yet, the guardian wasps weren't affected. The wasps flew around as if the walls didn't exist. It was an indisputably disadvantageous battleground. The wasps were highly mobile while the Berserkers' mobility was bogged down.
On top of that, the Berserkers were scattered amongst the countless rooms.
This was due to the self-destruction of the wasps at the start that was not only dangerous but also had the effect of scattering the members of the infiltrating team. The Berserkers were spread out into different rooms, and it was impossible for the Berserkers to fight as a group, leading them to face the risk of being defeated one after the other by the guardian wasps, that could easily pa.s.s through the walls.
What made the situation even worse was that each guardian wasp was at the level of veteran colonizers, and if they compared their stats, they would either be equal or above normal Berserkers.
The Berserkers were forced to fight these enemies by themselves, unable to support each other.