Chapter 48 (1/2)

Episode 48

Outside the crack, the public’s anticipation was similar to that of a national sporting event.

People were all tuned in to the broadcasts, waiting for news about the Dive.

-Exactly 20 minutes have passed since the rush team entered the crack. The wait for Oh Yoo-seong has begun.-

Those outside their homes and away from the television kept up with the news through their car radios and their phones. Even at social media sites, Yoo-seong’s solo Dive was placed third on the trending topics.

Everyone was looking forward to the results.

-Can Oh Yoo-seong return safely?-

-What sort of remarkable findings could he return with?-

Jin Wei-baek was also tuned in to the news as he ate his breakfast.

Chu Seo-jin sat across him, with the expression of someone who wanted to say something. The disciple chose his words carefully.

“What Master mentioned last night… is it true that Yoo-seong now has possession of the Golden Pill?”

“He does,” Wei-baek responded between bites.

“Although it is true that it is not as valuable as it used to be… it is still a priceless artifact.”

The Golden Pill.

It was known to be the last of the Great Pills that still existed. Only an influential company such as Tenz could have gotten hold of it.

A single piece contained an estimated 20,000 units of CE.

Even by today’s standards, where a CE injection was limited to around 5,000 CE per year, it was a valuable asset. The costs of CE they require, and over four years’ worth of CE – all of it could be taken care of by a single pill.

“Even if an average person takes it, he would be able to achieve great heights,” Seo-jin said slowly.

“Would he?”

“Yes?” Seo-jin was visibly flustered at the unexpected response.

“Hey, you aren’t the only one who misunderstands its function, don’t worry,” the old man chuckled.

“Master, what do you mean?”

“It is true that when the Golden Pill is absorbed into the body, it releases a great amount of energy. But would you think that the Buddhist monks would have taken decades to create a pill with such simple function?”

Chu Seo-jin was speechless as he thought of an answer.

Jin Wei-baek watched him for a few moments before continuing his explanation.

“The energy contained within the Golden Pill is just a stimulant. A fuel to initiate change. The amount of CE in the user’s core would remain the same.”

“If so, what exactly changes?”

The old man shrugged. “I can’t say for sure.”

Chu Seo-jin was stunned. It was an answer he had never heard from his Master in the past.

“I believe it strengthens whatever the user lacks in the past. The first time I ate one, my Aura control had improved significantly. The second time, I suffered for a while as my bones and muscles underwent a complete metamorphosis.”

“So, if an average person who had no CE takes it in…”

“The pill would be useless,” Jin Wei-baek’s eyes sparkled as he brought his attention back to the TV screen.

There were more questions in Seo-jin’s thoughts, but he pressed them down and focused on the news. He hoped Oh Yoo-seong would not return from the Dive.

…

Zhang Liu widened his distance from Yoo-seong as soon as he saw the Aura rising from him.

‘This guy…’ he thought.

Then, he whispered through the communicator of the Anonymous suit.

-Get into formation. The one we trained for.

The leader of Team Quartz protested with a trembling voice.

-What do you mean?

-Cooperate. To defeat him.

-Wait, we didn’t agree to this. Our mission was to bring you inside the rift with us.

-Have you forgotten who you’re speaking to?

-Uh…

The team leader bit his lips.

Then, he spoke to the communicator and gave the command to the team.

-Formation!

The team leader had goosebumps. The times had changed for them.

A few years ago, they were a team that stood out, even reaching the status of one of the 4T.

However, soon enough, they had to hold the hand of the devil from across the continent.

‘We had no choice,‘ he thought, as he took his place in the formation.

Zhang Liu had trained them for it. It was a position where the Chinese hunter’s Ki could raise the skill level of each Quartz member to the fullest.

‘With this, your team could go further,’ they were told.

The team leader swallowed as he realized what they were about to do. Not only him, but every member of the team felt it.

‘If we don’t want to be left behind in the industry… we have to cooperate.’

Soon, the rising Ki in each of the members manifested. This was the Demon Slayer Array formation.

It was based on an ancient technique, which had been improved upon by their master, Zhang Liu.

In the past, the formation was only limited to seven people.

The formation allowed them to supplement each other’s shortcomings under the direction of their head. Now, there were eleven people in that formation, including Zhang Liu – an asymmetrical attack that was enclosing Yoo-seong.

We should not be too confident against this person, Zhang Liu thought.

He watched his videos. He saw how this man fought against the Habaek. More impressive was the CCTV footage he watched, where Yoo-seong was able to make contact with Jin Wei-baek’s face.

For Zhang Liu, two things were certain.

First, they were going against an unusual talent. And second, an individual didn’t have a 3333th chance against a full-strength Demon Slayer Array.

Yoo-seong did not move away.

He was crouching as if he was tying his shoelaces.

-Attack!

Zhang Liu then gave the order.