Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 30

Leo was not someone who should’ve died like that.

In fact, he was the most important figure in the hunt for Dyoden.

His ability to snipe from a distance was absolute, and even the mayor of Neo Seoul had reluctantly sent him after careful consideration. However, they lost him even before the full-scale battle began.

Jang Yong-beom glared at Dyoden.

Dyoden stood in the middle of the desert, laughing.

There was no trace of impact from the bullet anywhere on his body.

Not even the specially enchanted bullets for hunting Awakened individuals left a mark on him.

“That’s right! It has to be at least this much for the hunt to be enjoyable.”

Seven other parties, besides his own, participated in this quest.

All of them were experts in hunting Awakened individuals.

Although there were no S-rank strategic weapons, there were numerous A-rank and B-rank Awakened.

Numerous Awakened parties existed around Neo Seoul and the slums.

They found dungeons that posed a threat to Neo Seoul and exterminated them. However, among them, there were those who did not hunt monsters, rather they hunted other Awakened individuals. It was much easier to earn a large sum of money that way.

They were cautious about getting entangled with each other.

They knew each other too well.

The fact that they gathered for this quest indicated the significant reward involved. It was a mission directly commissioned by the most powerful figure in Neo Seoul, the mayor.

“We’re going to hunt him down.”

“We can finally claim the head of the Slaughterer. Keke!”

The Awakened individuals riding in other sand buggies ignited their fighting spirit.

The legends surrounding Dyoden were countless.

The Slaughterer.

The Madman of the Desert.

The Living Catastrophe.

There were numerous words used to describe him, but the problem was that all those words were overwhelmingly negative.

Yet, they were not discouraged; instead, they were excited.

Hunting the legendary Dyoden presented a golden opportunity.

The one who hunted Dyoden would take all the glory and become a new legend.

“We have to be the first to arrive. Hurry up and step on it.”

“Don’t let others snatch it away.”

The buggies carrying the Awakened rushed ahead.

“Hey, you bastards!”

Jang Yong-beom scowled at them.

Even if they joined forces, it was uncertain whether they could be a match, and starting with such arrogance was not a good sign.

Aiden spoke.

“Captain, let’s fall back a bit.”

“Damn it!!”

“You need to stay calm.”

These were the words of Aiden, who could be said to be the brains of Jang Yong-beom’s party.

It was thanks to him that they discovered Dyoden in the vast desert. Without him, they would still be wandering the desert in search of Dyoden.

Jang Yong-beom nodded.

“Okay! We’ll take the rearmost position.”

“Yes!”

Aiden slightly slowed down their speed, and then other buggies rushed past them.

“Old man! Surrender your life!”

The Awakened in the lead vehicle leaped toward Dyoden.

In his hand, a giant axe gleamed.

A powerful aura radiated from the axe.

When he swung the axe, an ax-shaped energy flew towards Dyoden.

He believed that with this strike, he could inflict a significant wound on Dyoden.

Dyoden was unarmed.

Blocking his skills without a weapon would be impossible.

At that moment, Dyoden swung his fist.

Bang!

At that moment, the axe-shaped energy that the Awakened shot toward Dyoden vanished instantly.

“What?”

The Awakened, who was charging aggressively, widened his eyes.

Dyoden had disappeared from his sight.

Then Dyoden reappeared right in front of his nose.

It was as if he had teleported through space in the blink of an eye, using the blink skill.

Crack!

Dyoden’s large hand covered the Awakened’s face.

“Ugh!”

The Awakened attempted to attack Dyoden’s torso with the axe, but Dyoden was much quicker to tighten the hand holding his face.

Splat!

The head of the Awakened with the axe was crushed like a cookie.

His fresh blood and brain matter flowed through between Dyoden’s fingers.

“Hehe! Were these guys sent by Jin Geum-ho?”

Jin Geum-ho was the mayor of Neo Seoul.

He was a living giant who had, like Dyoden, survived through the turbulent times.

He greatly contributed in making Neo Seoul into what it was today, eventually becoming its mayor.

The most powerful individual standing at the top of Neo Seoul was none other than Jin Geum-ho himself.

Once a comrade of Dyoden, they traveled the same path and were friends.

However, the passage of a hundred years had separated them, and now they were worse than enemies.

“Shut up, monster!”

“Open fire!”

The Awakened individuals jumped out of the buggies, opening fire.

Rat-a-tat-tat!

The skills of the Awakened individuals stirred up the desert sands.

However, by the time their skills erupted, Dyoden was no longer in that spot.

He reappeared in the midst of the group of Awakened individuals.

Crunch!

With a punch, Dyoden shattered the head of a B-rank Awakened.

The next victim was a female Awakened who used magic.

She hadn’t even had a chance to unleash the skill she was so proud of, Flame Wind.

The last thing she saw was Dyoden’s eyes filled with madness.

“Ah, no…”

Bang!

In an instant, her torso exploded.

“Kwaak!”

“Everyone, don’t panic…”

“Monster!”

Screams and panicked voices echoed through the desert sky.

‘This can’t go on like this!’

At that moment, an Awakened individual named No Ji-gwang stepped forward.

“Flame Lance.”

Several spears of flame manifested in the air.

At No Ji-gwang’s gesture, the spear-like flames flew toward Dyoden.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Boom!

With a deafening explosion, Dyoden was engulfed in flames.

Seizing the opportunity, the other Awakened unleashed their skills one after another.

The Martial Artists unleashed their aura while rushing forward, while the magic users bombarded from a distance.

Flames and sand covered the desert.

Someone muttered, swallowing dry saliva.

“That should be enough to kill him, right?”

That’s when it happened.

Swooosh!

Suddenly, a chilling sonic boom reverberated across the area.

Startled, they turned around to see a giant greatsword flying in from afar.

It was the Kreion that Dyoden had thrown.

Spinning fiercely, Kreion swept through the Awakened.

Crunch!

“Kwaaaah!”

“Save me!”

Everything caught in Kreion’s path was severed.

Awakened and weapons alike.

Regardless of their rank—A-rank, B-rank, or C-rank—they were torn apart indiscriminately.

In an instant, half of the Awakened participating in the assault force had died.

“Oh my goodness!”

“Is this… a massacre?”

The faces of the surviving Awakened turned pale with horror.

Kreion, which had slaughtered the Awakened, landed in Dyoden’s hand.

Despite their concerted efforts, Dyoden remained unscathed, without a single scratch.

“Hehehe!”

Dyoden’s crazed laughter sent shivers down the spines of the Awakened.

Now they understood why Dyoden was called the living catastrophe and was known as The Slaughterer.

Dyoden was formidable.

He wasn’t just strong, he was terrifyingly strong.

Ranking him seemed meaningless.

Now they realized why there were no S-rank Awakened in this assault force.

Even an S-rank Awakened couldn’t guarantee their own survival in front of Dyoden.

It was clear that the Mayor of Neo Seoul must have considered this assault force more likely to fail than succeed.

“But why did he send us?”

“Damn that Mayor bastard!”

They resented Jin Geum-ho, the mayor who had commissioned this assault force.

Dyoden, seemingly indifferent to the bewildered assault force, spoke.

“See that?”

“Being called an idiot by you, it’s not an insult to my eyes.”

The blunt reply came from Zeon.

“They’re all people who boast about being something in Neo Seoul, having fun and leisuring around.”

“So what?”

“With your skills, you’d be treated as well as those guys in Neo Seoul.”

“So what?”

“If you follow me, you will never be able to return to a normal life again. So if you want to go back to Neo Seoul, go now. This is your last chance. Idiot!”

“A normal life?”

“Yes! A life just like everyone else.”

“Damn it! Are you kidding me?”

“What?”

“Do you think I can lead a normal life now? You’re talking nonsense. You damn old man!”

From the moment Zeon met Dyoden, or rather, Awakened as a Sand Mage, a normal life was no longer suitable for him.

With a burning desire to become stronger in his heart, how could he just follow them back to Neo Seoul? Returning would only make him a tool for the powerful or be thoroughly dissected.

Returning to Neo Seoul for him was just another way of saying death.

Dyoden laughed.

“Hehe! This idiot has finally lost his mind. Congratulations on becoming a true idiot.”

“Thank you very much for the compliment.”

Zeon raised his middle finger towards Dyoden.

“Hehe!”

Laughing, Dyoden leaped into the midst of the Awakened.

Even while he was unarmed, Zeon did not dare to stop Dyoden, so there was no way he could stop him with Kreion in his hands.

Dyoden was like a lion charging into a herd of sheep.

Crack!

With every swing of Kreion, the Awakened broke, tore apart, and crumbled.

In an instant, the desert was bathed in the Awakeneds’ crimson blood.

“Fuck! How can that be a human?”

“It’d be better to retreat. Before we become targets for that guy.”

Jang Yong-beom’s party, with a foreboding heart, fortunately escaped the massacre orchestrated by Dyoden.

Mountain, with his colossal stature and immense strength, who had been fearless of anything in the world, had a visibly pale face. Aiden and Giselle were no different.

Jang Yong-beom looked at Dyoden in disbelief.

“He wants us to hunt down a guy like that? The Mayor must be absolutely insane.”

There were many tales about Dyoden, but this was their first time seeing him in person.

He was Jang Yong-beom, an A-rank Awakened.

None of the Awakened within Neo Seoul had made him fearful.

Perhaps an S-rank Awakened might give him some jitters, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t dare to put up a fight.

However, facing Dyoden, who was slaughtering the Awakened from a distance, there was simply no courage to confront him.

Even from this far away, a chill ran down his spine.

Giselle spoke up.

“Captain, if this continues, we’ll also become part of that massacre. Let’s get out of here.”

There was a desperate look on her face.

The distance between Dyoden and them was one kilometer.

It might seem far, but to an Awakened like Dyoden, it was meaningless.

If he decided, he could appear there in the blink of an eye.

Jang Yong-beom said.

“Let’s head back to Neo Seoul. And never accept any mission from the Mayor ever again.”

“Understood.”

“Let’s go quickly.”

Aiden swiftly turned the steering wheel.

The vehicle moved away from Dyoden’s location at a high speed. Yet, Jang Yong-beom couldn’t take his eyes off the battlefield.

Suddenly, his gaze shifted from Dyoden’s direction to the hooded figure behind him. He couldn’t see the face, since the hood was obscuring it.

‘Who’s that? If they’re accompanying Dyoden, they’re definitely not an ordinary person.’