Chapter 182
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[To Busan (3) – On the way through]
A dark red combat truck was roaring across the devastated desert.
Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
The sandstorm that followed its tail awakened the quiet desert.
A frightened lizard hid under a rock, and beasts and monsters that had adapted to desertification watched them from afar.
A city once called ‘Daegu’.
Choi Seong-min, who was temporarily employed as a truck driver, spoke into the radio as he passed through a land that has now turned into a desert.
“Vice President. If I maintain my current speed, I think I can reach my destination before nightfall. “By the way…”
There was no answer from Daein, but Seongmin Choi continued speaking quickly out of urgency.
It was because of a very difficult obstacle ahead on the road.
“There is a forest of man-eating cacti in front of here. Wouldn’t it be better to turn around and go there? …Vice President?”
This time there was no answer.
Seongmin Choi looked at the huge cactus forest in front with a nervous expression.
[Man-Eating Cactus Forest]
This is an area where tens of thousands of man-eating cacti trees, tens to hundreds of meters tall, have taken root and were the main culprits that turned Daegu into a desert.
‘Every single cactus is a monster.’
gulp.
Seongmin Choi swallowed his saliva as he looked at the vast forest.
The man-eating cactus was a monster that absorbed nutrients from the ground, dried it out, and, when necessary, moved around and ate its prey.
Since that forest took root, Daegu has turned into an uninhabitable desert.
‘It’s crazy to go through that. If I go back, it will take a few more hours to reach my destination, but…’
Normally, it was an area where I would have to return at all costs. That’s a place where large monsters don’t come near.
“Vice President. “I think it would be better to turn around and go there.”
No matter how many unhuman warriors from the Heavenly Demon Church were riding in this truck, Seongmin Choi wanted to avoid that forest.
‘Besides, those people must have been tired from fighting all the time.’
In Choi Seong-min’s eyes, the warriors of the Heavenly Demon Church seemed like a race born for battle.
However, they clearly had limitations in terms of physical strength.
“Vice President. What should I do?”
The cactus forest was getting closer. But there was still no answer from Daein.
“…Vice President?”
Why is there no answer?
Choi Seong-min, who was puzzled, suddenly had an idea.
‘Are you perhaps testing my courage?’
Before leaving, Daein’s request to Choi Seongmin was simple.
Get to your destination quickly by the shortest route.
Other requirements included, for example, safe driving.
‘…It’s a test.’
Yes. This is the test given to Choi Seong-min by the landlord. It was a question asking if you were willing to continue to go with him.
If you choose to go back and forth between here and that forest, the lessor will find a new driver to share the future with.
Daein simply did not answer the question, but Choi Seongmin came to that conclusion in an instant.
Then, you have no choice but to choose.
“…shit.”
Seongmin Choi stepped on the accelerator hard.
Buwaaaaaaa!
The battle truck accelerated toward the cactus forest. The distance suddenly shortened.
Seongmin Choi shouted with firm resolve.
“My life! “I’ll bet on the Vice President!”
It was then that Lily’s voice came over the radio.
[Are you sleeping now?]
“Oh my XX XXXXXX!”
The battle truck had already entered the cactus forest at the moment when Choi Seong-min’s mouth poured out six words that could not be put into words.
Deukdeukdeuk!
Deukdeukdeuk!
Cacti tens of meters high leaned toward the truck. Some were approaching, pulling their roots out of the ground.
And only then did Daein wake up and mumble in a sleepy voice over the radio.
[Uhm…. kid. why? Are we there already?]
“There’s still a long way to go!!”
[…is it so? Oh, there it is. Aloe farm….]
With a sleepy voice that burst the driver’s suit, the merciless attack of the monster cacti began.
Whoa!
Whoa!
Huge stems with thorns as big as forearms flew in from all directions like whips. Choi Seong-min gripped the steering wheel tightly and prepared for impact.
Sigh!
At that moment, two lines were drawn in the air and all the cactus stems were cut off.
“We will stop it.”
“Keep going.”
They were Blood Gisura and Yeomragwi. The warriors of the Heavenly Demon Church who followed them onto the trailer brandished their weapons.
Wow! Wow!
As they had done so far, the warriors of the Heavenly Demon Church blocked all attacks on the flying truck and cut down the enemy.
The eyes of Blood Gisura and Yeomragwi met for a moment.
“Don’t disturb me.”
“That way.”
The two warriors, who turned their heads in opposite directions, cut down more enemies than anyone else.
However, the cactus forest was much more difficult than the path they had overcome so far.
bang! bang! Quang!
The attacks that the Heavenly Demon Church’s warriors were unable to block began to fall on the truck one by one. The truck shook and slowed down.
At that time, a slightly less sleepy voice than before came over the radio.
[kid. Do you want to do it this time?]
[Yes!]
With a cheerful answer
– Burbububububbung!
The cactus stems that were flying toward the truck exploded all at once in the air. Fragments from the exploded stem fell on the truck like hail.
“omg…!”
In front of Choi Seong-min, who was startled, he suddenly saw the back of Lily, who had flown ahead of the truck.
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!
Flames of red, yellow, white, and blue bloom as if to protect the girl.
With her red hair blowing wildly in the wind, Lily looked back at Choi Seong-min with a bright expression.
“Driver! “I will protect you, so don’t worry!”
Kyaaa!
The soft animal wrapped around Lily’s neck like a scarf roared.
“Oh yes…”
Even though she was a child much younger than him, Choi Seong-min did not dare to speak informally to Lily.
Lily raised her finger and pointed to the cactus forest on the left.
“Red flame.”
Grumble!
The prominence flew to the left and burned the cacti.
“Yellow flame.”
When Lily’s finger pointed to the right, the yellow flames that bloomed countless times flew to the right and exploded.
“And a white flame.”
Lily’s fingers drew a circle toward the front. White flame poured out in front of the girl’s fingers and swept across the front like a breath.
-Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
A combat truck sped along the open road. Lily continued to create flames that burned any enemies that got in her way.
Choi Seong-min, who was watching the scene in real time from the front, had an ecstatic expression on his face.
“Oh my god….”
Lily.
White House’s youngest superhuman and cute-looking mascot. Here is a rare person with natural attribute abilities.
However, few people, even within the Whitehouse Guild, knew the extent of its capabilities.
No, there was no one.
Except for one person.
“It’s been a while since I paid for chicken.”
The man who climbed onto the trailer whistled as he watched the scene Lily was creating.
Certainly a disaster is a disaster. Although it was only for a moment, I could see the past turning Seoul into a sea of fire.
“Mazdashi….”
“That is the true fire magic….”
Thanks to Lily, the warriors of the Heavenly Demon Church who were able to take a breather also watched the inferno created by the girl in fascination.
Pow! Burbububbung!
Grrrrrrrrrrrrr!
A series of explosions erupted and the fire spread throughout the forest. The cacti were in pain, screaming with their whole bodies instead of their non-existent mouths.
Deukdeukdeuk!
Deukdeukdeuk!
To put out the fire on the stem, they hit the ground with the stem and pulled out roots from the ground to escape the flames and ran away. Then, some people collided with each other and fell down.
However, not all cacti chose to run away from the flames.
-Kugugugugugugung!
From the center of the forest, an overwhelmingly large monster cactus approached, digging into the ground.
It’s hundreds of meters long. It was a monster made up of dozens of colonies. Just that shadow made the surroundings dark.
The great man muttered as he looked up at that distant height.
“long time no see.”
The main attraction was that huge cactus and the sphere.
A monster that would have been recorded as a ‘disaster’ if it had fallen in Seoul.
‘It was about 6 years later. Participating in the subjugation operation here… I had a really hard time at that time.’
Well, in the old days, was there ever a day when you didn’t suffer?
The great man shook his head and asked Lily.
“kid. “If you’re having a hard time, can I help you?”
“no! “I can do it alone!”
Lily looked a little flushed, perhaps because she had exerted herself for the first time in a long time. The girl’s eyes glowed redder than usual.
“There’s still a blue flame left!”
As Lily raised her arms to the sky, blue flames bloomed in all kinds of shapes across the sky.
Mainly with my favorite foods.
Grumble! Grumble! Grumble!
Grumble! Grumble! Grumble!
Lily sent it all flying towards the monster cactus. In the air, the stem of the monster cactus collided with the flames and exploded one after another.
Pow! Pow! Bubble bubbling!
The air heated up in the aftermath of the explosion.
Every time the trunk of a giant cactus hits the ground, an earthquake occurs and the battle truck floats in the air and falls to the ground several times.
The winner of that terrifying battle has been determined.
The monster cactus, which had lost most of its huge body, slowly collapsed.
-Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwak!
The ground shook and a huge cloud of dust rose.
“I won!”
Wow!
Daein shook his head at the sight of Lily lovingly rubbing the soft ball against her cheek.
‘Sometimes I don’t know what I’m growing.’
The great man looked around at the burning cactus forest.
At this level, recovery is impossible.
The cactus forests will disappear and Daegu will become habitable again.
‘As long as I finish well.’
Daein said to Seongmin Choi.
“CEO Choi. “I’ll get off here briefly, so go first.”
“…yes? Oh yes. All right.”
Choi Seong-min, who had lost his mind for a moment, managed to regain his composure and answered.
Whick!
When the great man jumped to the ground, Lily flew to him and said.
“Where are you going, uncle?”
“Let me do some business for a moment. “You go first.”
Lily narrowed her eyes as if she felt something was suspicious.
“What? “Can’t I go with you?”
The great man said while pretending to pull down his pants.
“I’m going to poop. Do you want to take a look?”
“dirty! “You bastard!”
Terrified, Lily flew away as if running away.
“…….”
The great man waited until Lily’s figure became smaller. He muttered, watching the red dot move away.
“It’s not a very nice sight for a little boy.”
The great man walked towards the center of the forest.
To the place where the biggest monster cactus that Lily had defeated was rooted.
“I think it was roughly like this.”
The great man who arrived there stamped his foot.
Coo!
Although it was a light movement, the energy used in the movement was anything but light.
A powerful vibration spread around Daein. The vibration soon grew uncontrollably.
-Kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa-kwa!
As the dirt was pushed away, the scene beneath was gradually revealed. The great man looked at the basement with indifferent eyes.
“…….”
There were countless piles of white bones, both human and animal.
All living creatures that were taken by monster cacti and became food.
And even further down,
Kyaaaaa!
There was a huge leech, hundreds of meters long, coiled like a snake.
“It looks so big even now.”
That guy was the real owner of this forest.
A monster that grows cacti, turns cities into deserts, and captures humans to suck out their nutrients.
Contrary to his appearance, he was quite a smart guy, and in his previous life, the subjugation team failed twice.
“I just happen to be passing by today.”
Kiyaaaaa!
The leech raised its head and screamed as if it was displeased with its body being exposed to sunlight.
“There’s something I want to experiment with.”
The leech seemed to have sensed no particular threat from the great man, soaring its huge body to the ground. In an instant, the sky was covered.
“It’s land whose price will rise later, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to organize it in advance before buying.”
When the great man snapped his fingers, the three swords hanging from his waist rose into the air at the same time.
Kiyaaaaa!
The leech finally seemed to sense something ominous and tried to go back into the ground.
The great man grinned and snapped his fingers.
“And since I had a hard time because of you in the past, I need to vent some of my anger.”
According to his will, three swords shot out like lightning.
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That night, the rescue team arrived safely in Busan.
[ To Busan (3) – On the way ] End
ⓒ Ganjjajang