Chapter 94

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Numerous events occurred around the world today.

Among them, the one that drew the most attention was undoubtedly the incident that took place in the Republic of Korea.

And this incident was still ongoing.

Following the bizarre news that Dr. Choi Tae-joon had transformed into a monster and kidnapped the granddaughter of the Koo Kwang Group, the event entered its second act when the AMT Special Warfare Command revealed that Lee Hyun-wook was a key figure in the pursuit team.

– The Lee Hyun-wook nickname series! Will “Sword Saint Beater” be added to “Steel Rain” and “Sword Saint Killer”?

"If he pulls this off, today will truly be Lee Hyun-wook's day."

That's why all the reporters were on high alert, and as soon as any signs were detected in Mapo District, they swarmed in.

"Damn it, why are they setting up a 3km blockade!"

While the AMT authorities blocked access for safety reasons, the camera lenses of today were incredibly advanced, and the reporters set up cameras on buildings several kilometers outside the restricted area.

Thus, they captured a scene from a certain old town where Lee Hyun-wook was battling a massive bull monster—presumably Dr. Choi Tae-joon.

"Wow..."

Actually, the term "battle" might not be entirely appropriate.

"—Can you see it? It's a perfect raid in itself! Lee Hyun-wook is restraining that incredibly large monster with electrical wires and pounding it with one-sided attacks! It's truly amazing!"

Lee Jung-hoon, a player-specialized reporter for MBS, was providing commentary over the live broadcast titled "Lee Hyun-wook's Raid."

Thus, player-specialized reporters had to be skilled at providing live commentary to vividly convey the battle situation.

Through his earphones, he heard the voice of the "desk."

– Lee Jung-hoon, you're doing great! The ratings are skyrocketing!

Lee Jung-hoon had captured Lee Hyun-wook's battle scenes accurately and in a timely manner all day, securing several exclusive stories. The video footage he obtained was superior to any other broadcaster, monopolizing the ratings.

He continued his commentary with enthusiasm.

"How Lee Hyun-wook managed to track down Dr. Choi Tae-joon, whom the police's player tracking team couldn't find, is currently unknown, but it's certain that he's putting on another spectacular battle that will stir the nation! Ah! Look there! Wow!"

At that moment,

Boom—

A plume of black smoke emerged from a motel building that had been destroyed by Lee Hyun-wook, briefly appearing in the corner of the live broadcast. Lee Jung-hoon, a seasoned reporter, did not miss this.

"Huh? Hey, what was that just now?"

He sensed that the scene was not ordinary.

"Hey, Tae-soo! Focus on that, over there!"

Following his request, the cameraman adjusted the frame.

"Ah!"

At the spot where the black smoke landed, two men were standing in an alley entrance. And they were... very famous villains.

"Oh, Okita Kaito! The Sword Saint Killer has appeared!"

Okita Kaito, known as the "Sword Saint Killer" or simply "Sword Saint,"

and Lee Hyun-wook, who was rumored to have beaten him and was known as the "Sword Saint Beater"...

These two players were now in the same frame.

'Unbelievable, is this real? How can so many events keep exploding?'

And the ratings were about to explode as well.

Lee Jung-hoon swallowed hard.

"Perhaps today, we might confirm the rumor known as the 'Sword Saint Beater'—the story that Lee Hyun-wook beat the Sword Saint!"

***

– Metal absorption complete. (Orihalcon)

* Controllable metal weight increased: 4,181g

* Magic resistance slightly increased.

‘...Good, it’s done.’

Lee Hyun-wook wiped the sweat from his forehead.

By running his internal furnace at maximum efficiency, he quickly absorbed 100g of Orihalcon, gaining 4kg of ability increase. Thanks to various 'ability enhancement effects,' this value increased by an additional 95%, resulting in a total increase of 8kg.

Thus...

– Current controllable metal weight: 501kg

He barely surpassed the 500kg mark.

Right then,

Boom—

A plume of black smoke flew in from somewhere and landed a short distance away. Two figures emerged from it.

‘...Shadow Baron, as expected, you came.’

The appearance of the villain forces was within Lee Hyun-wook's expectations.

After this period, Dr. Choi Tae-joon would be known as 'Doctor Bull' and rise to become a core member of the villains. Therefore, it was highly likely that they would take an interest and approach the situation.

His prediction was spot on.

"Hey—Mr. Steel Rain! How have you been?"

Mr. Steel Rain, what is this...

"However, I'm sorry, but we need to take Dr. Choi!"

The Shadow Baron shouted, and behind him, Okita Kaito glared at Lee Hyun-wook with a menacing expression, as if he wanted to rush forward and cut his throat but was holding back.

Lee Hyun-wook shook his head.

"No, this steak is already being cooked by us."

The steak, Moloch's avatar, was still being electrocuted.

"Ugh..."

But Park Jun-mo seemed to have reached his limit.

"What? Hahaha! That's a funny joke, right? Actually, I came here after smelling the delicious steak! But it's still too bloody, isn't it? Can you cook it to medium-rare like that?"

Lee Hyun-wook had no intention of responding to the guy's excessive cheerfulness.

"Hey! Since you can't kill it anyway, why don't you just hand it over to us? I watched from above, and even if you try your hardest, it doesn't work, right? How long do you think you can keep it restrained with electricity? Before it starts rampaging, we'll take it to another place!"

The Shadow Baron said this with a sneer.

"Well, it was definitely like that until just now..."

Lee Hyun-wook slowly raised his left hand,

gripping the hilt of the greatsword, Mogulay.

– Name: Mogulay (Hero)

– Effects:

1) Mass Liberation (1-5): Unseals the 'mass' and grants the user 'Strong Bones.'

2) Shockwave: Generates a powerful shockwave. The destructive power is proportional to the level of Mass Liberation.

"...Now, the situation has changed a bit."

"Huh? What did you say?"

Lee Hyun-wook focused on the first effect, Mass Liberation.

‘Mass Liberation—’

Then...

– Mogulay's mass is liberated to level 2!

* Strong Bones value increased by (+20%)

This greatsword, Mogulay, has its actual mass sealed. It can be 'liberated' when the user has the 'strength' to lift the next level of mass. Now, Lee Hyun-wook had reached level 2.

Thump—

The massive blade vibrated as if it had a heartbeat.

Then it began to sink into the ground, piercing the asphalt.

Rumble...

From 55kg to 500kg, the weight had increased tenfold, causing it to sink into the soft ground due to gravity.

Lee Hyun-wook, holding it and applying metal control, pulled it out.

Roar—

He slowly tilted it and aimed it at Moloch's avatar.

"I'm not sharing this at all, so get lost—"

At that moment, AD-1s hidden on nearby rooftops took to the air, opening their magic launchers and firing projectiles at the villains.

Whizz—whizz—whizz—whizz—

"Ugh! So, you want to try this, huh?"

The Shadow Baron liquefied his body to dodge in the air,

and Okita Kaito, looking annoyed, drew his sword and deflected all the projectiles.

However, that was to draw their attention.

"—Park Jun-mo, move back!"

Lee Hyun-wook shouted and ran forward with Mogulay.

"—Lee Hyun-wook!"

"Lee, Lee Hyun-wook, what are you going to do..."

Seo Eun-ha and Park Jun-mo shouted simultaneously.

They couldn't understand what Lee Hyun-wook was planning to do.

‘In terms of destructive power, mass is absolute.’

In his previous life, Lee Hyun-wook had liberated Mogulay's mass to level 3, wielding a greatsword weighing 3 tons.

At that time, he dropped the greatsword from thousands of feet in the air, piercing a dragon's head.

While not to that extent now, 500kg is still an enormous weight.

Especially with the 'Strong Bones' effect at level 2, it became even stronger.

‘And I’ve enchanted it with divine power temporarily.’

Lee Hyun-wook had just asked Seo Eun-ha to 'grant divine power.'

In other words, all the options were ready.

There was no shortage to cut through the demon's avatar.

Swoosh—

He applied full-body hardening and, with the enhanced 'Strong Bones' power, swung the greatsword with all his might, containing the overwhelming mass.

Whoosh—Roar—

An unreal sword wind arose,

Snap—

A clear cutting sound echoed.

"—What, what is this!"

Everyone present was stunned by the scene.

Thud—

No matter how much they attacked, they couldn't bring down Moloch's avatar, but its thick legs were cleanly severed.

Thus, it lost balance and fell to the side.

Crash—

Lee Hyun-wook struck the avatar's head with the tip of Mogulay.

Thud—

The greatsword, which couldn't penetrate the thick skull even with a shot from the Black Rhino's 'Destructive Spray,' easily pierced it.

"—No way!"

He left the sword embedded and stepped back.

Then...

‘Shockwave—!’

The second skill of this greatsword, Shockwave,

becomes more powerful with Mogulay's mass.

And just now, Mogulay's mass had increased tenfold.

Thus, the shockwave was more than ten times stronger.

Crack—

The blade vibrated, and a shockwave rippled.

First, the air exploded,

second, the asphalt cracked like a spider web,

and third, the motel building, which had been struggling to stand, collapsed.

Rumble—

And Moloch's avatar's head burst like a watermelon.

"Damn—this son of a bitch!"

The Shadow Baron screamed and clutched his head.

"Damn—why does everything go wrong when I meet this guy!"

Okita Kaito also trembled, baring his golden teeth.

"Lee Hyun-wook..."

Then the Shadow Baron grabbed his shoulder.

"Damn! Sword Saint, no! Control your competitiveness!"

"Phew—I know I'm angry, but we need to escape from here first!"

He said this and snapped his fingers.

Then, the shadow beneath his feet began to bubble.

However...

Thud—

Something pierced his trademark 'Shadow Link.'

It looked like a... small 'dart'...

Sssss—

From there, a white, translucent root-like thing spread out, consuming the Shadow Link and closing it.

"...What, what is this! You destroyed my pocket dimension?"

This was the first time the Shadow Baron had experienced this. He looked bewildered and stared in the direction the dart came from—towards Lee Hyun-wook.

"You, what the hell did you do!"

Lee Hyun-wook smirked.

"Why? Did you think your technique was invincible forever?"

The Shadow Baron was the key figure in the rampant activities of player criminal forces.

His main skill, 'Shadow Link,' made it difficult to prevent crimes like illegal entry, assassination, and terrorism.

‘But a method to counter his technique was finally discovered.’

The answer, once again, was the 'World Tree.'

The 'roots' of the World Tree, combined with the 'blessing' of the Holy Maiden, created a 'Sanctuary Field' in a certain area temporarily. However, it only lasted for 10 seconds—too short to be practically useful.

However, it was discovered that this brief Sanctuary Field could 'neutralize' other 'spatial magic,' especially dark magic.

‘So I made it into a dart to catch him.’

Lee Hyun-wook had secured this item from the Holy Maiden.

"...Just for this moment."

Lee Hyun-wook smiled and placed Mogulay on the ground.

Crash—

Amid the loud noise, the Shadow Baron said to Okita Kaito.

"Sword Saint... cooldown, 5 minutes."

Shadow Link also had a 'cooldown' period.

Okita Kaito nodded and stepped forward.

"Lee Hyun-wook... I'll kill you within 5 minutes."

Lee Hyun-wook smiled back at him.

"When we first met, you said you'd kill me in one strike, but you've become much more humble, haven't you?"

"...I'll kill you."

"Have you heard the rumor... the one about the 'Sword Saint Beater'?"

"..."

"I didn't intend to prove it, but..."

Then, the smile disappeared from Lee Hyun-wook's face.

"Sorry, but today, you're going to be even more miserable."