Chapter 77

Chapter 76: How a Veteran Defends (1)

"Kraaaaaa!"

"Keek!"

The appearance of the zombies, with their skin peeling and blood oozing, was horrifying.

A massive number of zombies, who only craved human flesh, surged forward.

Moreover, their speed was incredibly fast, and in no time, they reached the entrance of the stadium.

"Bro, can we really stop them with this?"

Lee Taemin looked at the plants sprouting at the entrance of the stadium with a worried expression.

The 'Solar Plants,' modeled after the sun, were quite large, but they didn't seem suitable for combat.

"Bro, don't tell me you chose something strange just for the thrill, like you used to?"

Yoo Yeon-hwa added.

Even these two veterans had never used plants as the main defense on the fourth floor.

It was a completely unknown territory.

"Don't worry. These guys are more useful than they look."

Jin-hyuk smiled confidently.

Right at that moment.

"They're coming!"

Swish!

Cheon Yuseong drew his sword.

At the same time.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ground shook as the zombies' attack began.

The zombies tried to enter the stadium, climbing over the vines.

However, the moment the first zombie stepped on the ground,

[Solar Plant launches Level 1 'Sunlight'!]

The plant, which had swollen to a large size, fired a sphere about 2 meters in diameter.

Kwaah!

The massive clump of magical energy, filled with the power of the sun, struck the densely packed zombies.

"Kieeee!"

"Kraaaak!"

The zombies, set ablaze, staggered and fell.

"Huh?"

"What, what kind of power...!"

"This is stronger than Flame Towers or Ice Towers, isn't it?"

"..."

The pupils of the four onlookers dilated in shock.

Over fifty zombies had been vaporized in a single shot, leaving no room for doubt.

"That's why I said it doesn't matter if we choose the stadium as our base."

Although there was a difficult condition of having to defeat the boss on the third floor and be the first to reach the fourth floor,

Once the preparations were solid, these plant-type towers would unleash their full power.

'Of course, no one else could use this properly except me.'

To understand the characteristics of the plants and use them effectively, experience, not luck, was necessary.

In fact, countless practical experiences were required.

"To use the next 'Sunlight,' we need about a minute."

"During that time, you need to hold off the zombies."

Cheon Yuseong gripped his sword, as if he had no more to say.

At least, he was quick to catch on, which was a good thing.

"Don't overexert yourself and get bitten by a zombie. It would be a hassle to clean up if you get infected and turn."

"Unbelievable. Do you think I'll be defeated by a mere zombie?"

"Didn't you just get wrecked when you said you'd take care of the martial arts kids?"

You said you'd wipe them all out.

You barely managed to survive for three minutes, and your life was hanging by a thread... I saw it all.

I should have recorded that scene and held a monthly screening, but now I just feel regretful.

"T-That! It was because I was fighting the guys below and my stamina dropped. Didn't you see how many I took on by myself!"

"Ah, of course. I hope you manage your stamina well this time."

"Grk."

Cheon Yuseong swallowed his angry groan.

He felt that any words he said would only be pathetic excuses.

He turned his body with a pouting face.

"…I'll do it properly this time."

He didn't forget to maintain his pride until the end.

"Bro, I'll take the center."

With the 'Mechanical Sovereign's' ability, Lee Taemin, who had a wide field of view, could control the overall situation from the center.

After all, the ability to launch drones was a cheat in itself.

"Sure, I'll leave it to you."

"Hmm, then should I go to the north?"

"I'll take the south entrance."

Yoo Yeon-hwa and Teresa also moved to support the plants.

Now, only the east remained.

'Finally, I can practice my skills properly.'

Jin-hyuk took out the 'Twin Dragon Sword' he received from Yoo Cheonyeong.

The blade, clear enough to blind the eyes, emitted a sharp aura.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

His heart beat quietly.

This was the first time he was using a relic-level item in reality.

It was time to test its power.

'First, the Sword Grave...'

Jin-hyuk manifested black energy.

Whirr!

The rough and difficult-to-handle energy was overlaid on the sword with surprising smoothness.

'Indeed...'

To perfectly accept such an alien and unpredictable ability.

The sword and the energy formed a single shape, as if they had been one from the beginning.

"Kraaaaaa!"

"Keek!"

The zombies opened their mouths to eat human flesh.

Saliva mixed with blood dripped.

"You must be very hungry, so I'll let you eat to your heart's content."

Although it wasn't the flesh they wanted, once they ate the energy, they wouldn't want to eat anything again.

Thus,

Above the stadium, which had become a polluted land,

[Black Moon Night is activated!]

A black crescent moon covered the sky.

***

[The first wave has been blocked.]

[The second wave will start in 3 hours.]

[Remaining time: 2h:59m:59s]

With a short status window, a message announcing the victory appeared.

Players in different bases panted heavily.

"Huff. Huff. Huff."

"Damn, the first wave was unexpectedly tough."

"From what I hear, it might be dangerous even to reach the middle, let alone the final wave."

"Grind through it. We need to earn the additional rewards."

On the fourth floor, not only did they have to block the waves, but they also received additional rewards for achieving certain achievements.

The most zombies killed, or the highest kill count reward per base.

The popularity reward, determined by a global vote on how diversely and spectacularly they defended.

These were the two rewards.

A chance to obtain A-grade random boxes and rare items and materials that sold for high prices on the coin exchange!

To stay ahead of others, they had to achieve at least one of these two.

But right then,

[A highlight video is being broadcast.]

Another message appeared.

A 3-minute video, edited to showcase the performance of each base, was shown for the subscribers' popularity vote.

"Sure enough, the Chinese side is strong."

The highlight that stood out was the supermarket where the Chinese guild, the Triad, was located.

A combination of main Flame Towers and auxiliary Holy Towers.

With hundreds of members and powerful players, they blocked the first wave quite smoothly.

Given the smooth choreography and the impressive skills based on their inner strength, they were sure to score high in the popularity vote.

A few seconds later, the screen changed.

This time, it was the 'Sangam Stadium,' the widest and hardest to defend among the bases.

"Are they really going to block that wide area with just five people?"

"I thought some idiots chose this place, but they really exist. Empty-headed fools."

"I bet they'll be wiped out in the next wave."

"Haha. Look at the defense towers they chose. Plants. And they don't even have auxiliary towers."

Immediately, the players burst into laughter.

It was inevitable.

In a defense game, it was common sense to choose powerful Flame Towers or Ice Towers that had both attack power and crowd control.

Plants, which were difficult to grow and only restrained the enemy, were ignored by everyone.

However,

As the video continued, the laughter turned into amazement.

"What, what is this?"

"How can this be..."

The amazement soon turned to shock.

"Are you kidding me? Did the plants take some kind of elixir? How can they be so strong?"

"I can't believe it. I heard they were hard to grow, so what method did they use?"

They were strong.

Too strong. It was as if they were mocking the players who chose other towers.

Most astonishingly, the skills of the five players.

"Five... they're blocking it."

One person is defending an entrance.

It would be impossible without the necessary skills.

And the most eye-catching was the Eastern Asian with black hair at the east entrance.

"To control energy so freely..."

"Thankfully, he's a player. If he were an enemy, just thinking about it would be terrifying. Ugh."

His ability to sweep away the zombies was enough to make the viewers' skin crawl.

A different level of power and appropriate distribution of strength.

Even facing such a large number, his breathing didn't waver.

It was beyond human.

"Who is he?"

"Seems like a ranker..."

"Probably from China or Japan. I heard the large guilds there are doing great lately."

As speculations and guesses flew, a man shouted.

"Ah! That player is Kang Jin-hyuk. The Korean ranker, Kang Jin-hyuk!"

"The one who got an S-grade this time?"

"I remember they said a large rookie appeared in Korea."

"He deserves the S-grade. He's that strong."

In a situation where large rookies were emerging one after another, it was not easy to remember a player from another country.

However, at this moment, one name was firmly etched in the minds of the players on the fourth floor.

The player named Kang Jin-hyuk in Korea.

And the special qualities of that player.

***

At the same time.

Jin-hyuk was explaining the plants to the others.

"This is 'Repotting' and 'Pruning.' I have special soil, so just repot them here, and for pruning, just cut the 6th and 7th branches for now. The 14th... um, in an hour. If you do that, they'll grow well on their own after that."

To strengthen the base, the plants needed to be grown.

Using this method, they could increase the number of plants while removing parts that unnecessarily consumed nutrients, maximizing their growth speed.

"How about it? Simple, right?"

"Simple? This?"

Yoo Yeon-hwa sighed, exasperated by Jin-hyuk's casual tone.

"Bro, were you really a botanist?"

"Bro, what did you do when you played [Tower of Trials] before? You could almost write a thesis on the tower with this level..."

"Jin-hyuk, you're really amazing. Wow."

"It's no wonder I had a hard time competing. Competing with someone who defies common sense was a mistake."

Hmm?

There's something strange mixed in with the compliments.

That last statement.

It's really hurtful.

"Anyway, if you do it this way. Take good care of the plants until the next wave."

"Take good care of them? What do you mean? Where are you going?"

Cheon Yuseong's eyes widened.

His expression showed that he couldn't understand why the core force in this important defense was leaving.

"I'm going to take a little trip to the neighboring base."

From the highlight video, they seemed to be doing a good job.

If this continued, they might have to compete for the highest kill reward.

I can't let that happen.

Of course, rivals on the fourth floor were unnecessary.

This wasn't a cooperative game.

And the martial arts guys just annoyed me by existing.

Most importantly, the ones who raised weapons against me and my comrades needed to pay the price.

So that they would never dare to touch us again.