Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 282: Star, Doomsday City (2)

James Smith was the vice president of the Jaynix Company, while Peter Mason was the regional manager at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Meanwhile, Sophia Allen was the Counter-Terrorism Bureau director of the United States branch of the Council.

Now, they were all gathered in one place. Although they were all big shots in their respective organizations, they stood quietly with sharp gazes.

“…The Tyrant must be classified as one of the Nine Evils.”

“Don’t worry. I already finished talking with Interpol. Once we officially file a request, Interpol will put out a Red Notice on the Tyrant. Considering his ability, classifying him as one of the Nine Evils is essential, but the problem is…” Peter began confidently, but he stopped and glanced in another direction.

James and Sophia also looked in the same direction, toward Cha Ye-Eun, who had a cigarette in her mouth as she talked to Jin Seok-Tae.

“...whether or not we can do it without the Iron Witch noticing,” Peter continued.

“Hmm!”

“Phew…!”

James and Sophia’s expressions also darkened, and Peter gritted his teeth. Until a few hours prior, their plan to designate Chang-Sun as a demonic being had been going smoothly.

The Jaynix Company was the biggest clan in the US. The Clan was technically the biggest among the Five Great Clans, so they had ties to many people in American politics, including the White House.

As such, it had not been difficult to frame Chang-Sun as the main culprit behind the serial terror attacks that had turned Chicago upside down. The FBI and the United States branch of the Council could just make an announcement that they had conducted a joint investigation and traced the attacks back to Chang-Sun.

However, they had run into a problem after Ye-Eun arrived. Although she did not say much, her presence alone was enough to pressure the others, as her status in the Council was indescribably high. On top of that, she clearly appeared to be investigating something, so it was hard for the three to not show any reaction.

‘Why did she have to show up right now?!’

‘Shit, we can’t do anything in this case.’

‘We already spent a lot of money… If she manages to find our trail, it’s all over!’

Up until the present, Ye-Eun had been behind the termination of several people from their jobs. Even if the three wanted to silence her for good, she was a Duke-Class Player, so they were unsure of their victory. They had the option of recruiting her to their side, but they were terrified of the consequences if they failed.

“In the end, our only option is…” Sophia began, breaking the long silence.

She was the only woman among the three and was technically Ye-Eun’s superior, but she was displeased by the way she felt pressured by Ye-Eun.

She concluded after a moment, “...to pray the Tyrant gets out of there as soon as possible.”

James and Peter nodded in agreement. If Chang-Sun attempted to break through their siege before Ye-Eun found something, it would cause some casualties, ensuring their plan would work out.

“If we send in our units…!”

“No, that would be the worst choice. It’ll give the media an excuse to write articles about law enforcement brutality, and we won’t be able to find a justification to brand him as one of the Nine Evils.”

“Shit! You’re basically saying we have no other option than sitting on our hands!”

“We already received a report about how the White Tiger Clan members were annihilated, and we’ve waited until now, so let’s hold on a little more. Even if he’s the famous Tyrant, he can’t hold out there forever,” James said.

The other two had no choice but to nod in agreement.

‘Chang-Sun. Let’s wait, if only until Chang-Sun comes out.’

They continued to wish desperately that Chang-Sun would emerge, although he had long since left for ‘Doomsday City’ using a portal.

For a long time, they would keep waiting for a future that would never come true.

* * *

[You have entered the Dungeon ‘Doomsday City’!]

As Chang-Sun looked up, the pool of light disappeared, revealing a gray sky.

An eerie city made entirely of gray concrete sprawled before his eyes. It looked as if no one had been there for a long time. Its asphalt roads were covered in cracks where weeds grew, leaving them extremely uneven and messy. Buildings large and small lined the wide roads, but their windows were all broken and the window frames were rusty. It was a wonder that they had not yet crumbled.

In the distance, across the city, there was a big river with a bridge leading across it; however, the bridge was already broken, no longer able to serve its purpose.

Whoosh…!

No one appeared to be present in the ghost city. It resembled a scene out of a post-apocalyptic movie, but…

‘…It somehow looks familiar,’ Chang-Sun thought.

It was definitely his first time entering this Dungeon, but he had a strong sense of deja vu. The buildings, roads, location… He had a feeling he had seen them all from somewhere, but the problem was that he was unable to remember where.

‘It’s not Arcadia. There’s nothing like this there.’

Although Arcadia’s civilization was advanced as Earth’s, it had developed through magic rather than technology. As a result, the scenery in Arcadia was totally different due to the different ways the people of both worlds had made advancements and built their cultures.

‘Where could I have possibly seen this sight?’

Nevertheless, the question continued to bother Chang-Sun, convincing him he had to find out why. Suddenly, however, his eyes narrowed.

[Commencing the Dungeon Quest!]

The message that announced the Dungeon Quest’s start appeared before Chang-Sun.

[Quest Theme: Search.]

[‘Doomsday City’ is a city on a planet that once had a magnificent civilization. However, the very scale of their civilization led to division, and they faced doom in the end. The air is filled with poison, and smog covers the sky. No living creature can survive more than 72 hours in this place, and to this day, poison continues to seep out from a certain location.]

[The city is made up of four sectors—A, B, C, and D. Each sector has distinct characteristics. Search all these sectors to find and solve the problems that make this city deadly.]

[To complete the quest, every participant has been granted access to the <Inventory>, <Status Window>, and <Skill Window>.]

Chang-Sun inhaled briefly, and felt his cells stinging due to the invisible poison, which was clearly the same one mentioned in the Dungeon Quest description. It was a poison among poisons, which had led an entire city—no, civilization—to <Extinction>.

[Warning! The unknown poison hidden in the air has entered your system through your lungs. The poison has been found to be lethal. Exit the area quickly and attempt to detoxify yourself.]

[You are about to enter the ‘Poisoned’ state.]

[Attempt to detoxify yourself within 72 hours. If you fail, you might die.]

…

[The Effect ‘Hundred Toxin Immunity’ has been applied, building immunity to the poison!]

[The poison has been neutralized.]

…

[The amount of time you can stay in the Dungeon has increased significantly.]

[96 hours.]

[120 hours.]

…

[720 hours.]

…

It took a while, but Chang-Sun quickly eliminated the poison using [Hundred Toxin Immunity].

“Are… you okay?” Nain asked.

Seeing how cautiously Nain approached him, Chang-Sun chuckled inadvertently.

It seemed that Nain and the other Gray Elves were having trouble breathing. As they had been born from a Divine Tree, their talents lay in purification, but nevertheless, the air in the city was just too poisonous, causing them pain.

‘Well, that must be why I had a time limit of 72 hours even though my level is almost 100.’

This Dungeon was clearly so dangerous that an ordinary person would have to leave in less than half a day, let alone one whole day. That was likely why the United States had failed to clear the Dungeon for a long time, as the lethality of the poison in the air alone was quite problematic.

[The Celestial ‘Twilight-Piercing Owl’ says it is very unpleasant!]

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ says that the poison filling up this Dungeon is comparable to his own, giving him mixed emotions.]

[The Celestial ‘Twilight-Piercing Owl’ asks the Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ if the poison in the air is demonic poison.]

[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ answers that the poison is similar but different, shaking his head.]

‘A poison that even Celestials don’t understand in detail, huh?’

Chang-Sun had a rough idea as to what it was, but that was not his main priority. Thus, he decided to focus on something else. He had to complete two tasks in ‘Doomsday City’. One was to stop Heoju, and the other was…

‘...Get the [Tricolored Brilliant Light], one of the ingredients to becoming the <Supreme Light’s Face>,’ Chang-Sun thought quickly. ‘The [Tricolored Brilliant Light] is made up of distinct components. If I get the components in the wrong order, I’ll die.’

Sixth Elder had died and ended up in the abyss of the <Underworld> before he could even put up a fight for a reason.

‘I guess I need to get the [Vermilion Brilliant Light] first.’

The [Tricolored Brilliant Light] was made up of distinct vermillion, jade, and azure lights. Among those colors, vermilion symbolized fire.

“You said you’d change your fire into lightning energy, didn’t you? Then make your fire as large as possible,” Sixth Elder said.

Sixth Elder had recommended that Chang-Sun acquire [Tricolored Brilliant Light] in the order of vermilion, azure, and jade.

“Azure and jade are the ones that change properties, so why not those?” Chang-Sun asked.

“The strength of fire is proportional to the intensity of light. Once the intensity is fixed, it’s hard to increase it afterward. Light stinks,” Sixth Elder said.

“Hmm,” Chang-Sun mused.

“Besides, the strength of fire is proportional to the stamina of one’s soul… so if you start with the property change, kek! You get what I mean,” Sixth Elder continued, making a choking noise.

In other words, Chang-Sun had to get the [Vermilion Brilliant Light] first in order to upgrade his power safely, but he could not get to work right away.

“Hmm!”

Heoju, or the [Vermilion Brilliant Light].... Chang-Sun had not decided which one to prioritize. On one hand, he wanted to attack Heoju first. However, Heoju knew that Chang-Sun was coming after him, and was undoubtedly making every possible preparation. As Chang-Sun lacked information about Heoju’s actions, he could not rush in and attack Heoju without a good plan. Even Executive Director Oh did not know what Heoju was doing.

‘The <Troop> guys must be sharpening their axes,’ Chang-Sun thought, his gaze turning sharp. ‘If only I could figure out Heoju’s location…’

At that moment, however…

“Heoju is in Sector D,” Nain suddenly said, looking much better than before.

Chang-Sun had shared his Divinity with Nain and the other Gray Elves some time beforehand. Through that Divinity, they had gotten used to the air in the city.

Chang-Sun had definitely not expected to hear such a thing; his eyes widened as he asked, “How do you know that?”

Nain smiled enigmatically and replied, “Have you forgotten that we’ve been fighting against the White Tiger Clan and <Purple Star Astrology> for a while?”

“…Did you receive intel from someone or something?” Chang-Sun asked.

“Many of my siblings made sacrifices to find out this information. Heoju is in Sector D Building 14-231. The Source’s vein has been found there, and the excavation process is in progress.”

“Then it must be correct,” Chang-Sun said, nodding.

“Thank you,” Nain said with all his heart, bowing deeply. As the Gray Elves had risked their lives to acquire the information, he had been worried about wasting it, but those fears were laid to rest.

‘My siblings, your sacrifices weren’t meaningless…!’ Nain thought, trying not to reveal his reddening eyes. Still, he was grateful to Chang-Sun for trusting the Gray Elves’ ability without a single doubt.

Meanwhile, Chang-Sun’s gaze became colder as he thought, ‘Sector D, huh? The [Vermilion Brilliant Light] is in the outskirts, Sector A Building 72-843. It’s on the way to Sector D.’

This Dungeon was a circular space that was divided into four sectors, which meant Sector A and D were right next to each other.

‘This is for the best. Instead of getting affected by a power I’m not used to by getting azure or jade first, I’ll follow the plan and make my fire stronger, then quickly take out Heoju.’

As it was on the way, it would be a good idea to get the [Vermilion Brilliant Light] first. On top of that, the Gray Elves had been monitoring the White Tiger Clan, so Chang-Sun could prepare for any possible traps.

‘I wonder what Atra Fulmen will be like after upgrading it with the [Vermilion Brilliant Light],’ Chang-Sun thought with a faint smile, taking a look around.

Perhaps it would be different if he moved alone, but what would be the best way for this many people to get to where the [Vermilion Brilliant Light] was as fast as possible? While trying to figure out the answer, Chang-Sun observed the surroundings. A car showroom in the distance caught his eye.

* * *

Vroom!

[A ‘Ferrari 488 Spider installed with a mana engine’ is traveling down the road!]

Dozens of sports cars crossed the ruined roads in a pack. Their engines roared loudly, the sound spreading to every corner of the quiet, ruined city. Chang-Sun held the wheel at the front of the pack, wearing sunglasses.

‘It’s nice,’ he thought. He had glimpsed Ye-Eun’s sports car in the past, and after seeing hers, he had wanted to drive one himself…

He felt that the sensation of wind blowing across his face was quite nice, and Nain and the other Gray Elves were right behind him. Although they tried to maintain their composure, their cheeks were all rosy, making him smile inadvertently.

As the scenery quickly passed by, however, Chang-Sun narrowed his eyes and thought, ‘Come to think of it, this is…‘

He was finally able to tell why he had felt a sense of deja vu after arriving at ‘Doomsday City’. Of course he was bound to be familiar with it. Beyond the hazy smog, he saw a tall, sharp building. It was Lotte World Tower 2 in Jamsil, the first place he had arrived at as soon as he returned from Arcadia.

‘It’s Seoul,’ Chang-Sun thought, frowning slightly.