Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 545 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

A gigantic crater had formed where Zeon had been standing.

The cracks in the ground were smooth, like glass.

The sand had melted into glass under an overwhelming ultra-high temperature.

It looked as if a meteor had been summoned.

The intense heat and aftershock swept across the area and slammed into Neo Seoul.

Neo Seoul itself, protected by a powerful barrier, was unharmed, but the slums were directly exposed to the aftershock.

At that moment, people stepped forward.

“Ghk!”

“Aaaargh!”

The ones unleashing their skills at full power with feral cries were the Awakened of the slums, including those from the Goblin Market.

They had stepped up to protect their home.

Magic-type Awakened cast spells to neutralize the aftershock, while martial-type Awakened poured mana into their weapons and swung them.

Thanks to the thousands of Awakened who stood up, the aftershock and heat weakened.

Because of that, the slums were able to endure without being destroyed.

There were some casualties, but at least they were kept to a minimum.

“Gkh!”

“Urgh!”

On the other hand, the damage to the Awakened was enormous.

Those who had overexerted themselves to block the aftershock collapsed on the ground, coughing up blood.

Even those with high ranks who managed to endure had gone pale.

Among them was Yoo Se-hee, the owner of the Goblin Market.

“How can a monster like that even exist?”

It was impossible not to notice a ten-meter-tall monster fighting the Numbers.

Since the battle was taking place on the outskirts of Sinchon, Yoo Se-hee had led the Awakened out herself.

The might of Tridgion she saw with her own eyes far exceeded her imagination.

Even though the Numbers and Zeon were pressing Tridgion together, Yoo Se-hee didn’t let her guard down.

Because of that, the damage to the slums was minimized.

At her side, Black Lion, who had been blocking the aftershock with her, spoke.

“Do you think Lord Zeon is dead?”

“He’s not a man who would die that easily.”

“But that attack…”

“He’s still alive. Trust me.”

“Miss…”

Black Lion was skeptical.

That was how shocking the magic Tridgion had unleashed was.

It didn’t seem possible for a human to take such an attack head-on and survive.

That was when it happened.

Srrk!

Something rose from the glass-crystallized crater.

The one who stood up, white steam rising from his entire body, was Zeon.

Yoo Se-hee said,

“See? He’s alive. It’s Zeon!”

“Mmm…”

Black Lion let out a low groan at the unbelievable sight.

Zeon wiped his face with his hand. Black ash and bits of flesh came away on his palm.

The flesh exposed to the jet-black beam had melted.

Ordinarily, Zeon wasn’t affected at all by common fire.

For even his flesh to melt, Tridgion’s magic had been that powerful.

It was to the point that it felt like this must be what it was like when a nuclear bomb went off in the old days.

At that moment, Zeon’s super-regeneration activated.

New flesh rose beneath the melted tissue, restoring him to his original state.

“Haah…”

Only then did Zeon let out a breath and raise his head.

—Y-You? How…?

Tridgion looked at Zeon with eyes full of disbelief.

Zeon didn’t answer. Instead, he looked toward the slums.

He could see the Awakened protecting them.

If it hadn’t been for them, the entire slum district would have collapsed.

A chill ran down his spine.

At the same time, rage surged up.

They were people who lived gathered on the outskirts because they couldn’t enter Neo Seoul.

For those at the very bottom, the slums were their last refuge.

If that refuge had been destroyed, they would have been slaughtered without any way to escape.

There were surely people Zeon knew among them.

Zeon’s gaze sank deeply.

The three members of the Numbers were incapacitated.

It would take time for others to arrive as support.

He had to eliminate Tridgion before the bastard caused any more damage to the slums.

By himself.

In an instant, Zeon’s eyes changed.

Unlike before, they became utterly emotionless.

The moment Tridgion saw that gaze, his chest turned cold.

—You…?

Kwaaah!

At that moment, lava burst up from beneath Tridgion’s feet.

Zeon had used Eruption.

Like an active volcano exploding, the surging lava swallowed Tridgion.

Zeon’s attack didn’t end there.

“Summon! Sand Soldiers!”

The moment Zeon finished speaking, Sand Soldiers rose up from the sand.

More than several hundred enhanced Sand Soldiers.

“Attack!”

At his command, the Sand Soldiers rushed Tridgion.

Boom! Kwaang!

They mercilessly attacked Tridgion, who was floundering in the lava.

—With summons like these, you can’t do anything to me.

Kwaaang!

With Tridgion’s roar, a shockwave burst out.

He had unleashed Shock Wave.

The shockwave instantly destroyed the rock-formed Sand Soldiers.

But Zeon wasn’t disappointed or shaken at all.

The desert was full of sand.

And he had mana to spare.

As long as he had mana and sand, he could produce Sand Soldiers infinitely.

Srrrk!

Countless Sand Soldiers rose from the sand again.

Following Zeon’s will, they attacked Tridgion.

Like moths to a flame, they surrounded him and threw punches and kicks.

Taking their relentless assault head-on, Tridgion shouted,

—Didn’t I tell you it’s useless? No matter how many of these you make, you can’t even scratch my body.

“Did you know? Even sand can destroy rock and metal.”

—What nonsense is that?

“I’ll show you it’s not nonsense. Claymore!”

Kwa-kwa-kwa-boom!

The moment he finished speaking, all the Sand Soldiers exploded at once.

Countless wounds appeared on Tridgion’s torso as he was hit head-on.

The fine grains of sand had ground away at the metal surface.

Zeon raised Sand Soldiers again.

Those that rose from the sand carried out another suicide attack.

Boom! Kwaaang!

—Ghk!

Tridgion couldn’t get his bearings from the consecutive self-destruction attacks.

The shock had shaken his insides.

With the lava and the Sand Soldiers’ explosions combined, cracks formed even in Tridgion’s hard body.

For a moment, Tridgion’s eyes wavered with fear.

The trauma of what Zeon had done to him before surfaced.

—Escape…

He had to get out of here first.

Through Triox Five, he had already grasped everything about Neo Seoul, so planning again would be easy.

Tridgion shook off the Sand Soldiers and launched himself into the air.

He used flight magic.

When he’d been in the ten-meter-tall body, it was hard to lift even a few meters off the ground.

But now he could soar high into the sky.

But waiting for him in the air was Zeon.

“Sand Tornado.”

A whirlwind rose and swallowed Tridgion.

The Sand Tornado, rising like a serpent, changed direction and slammed down into the ground.

Boom!

With a thunderous crash, Tridgion’s body was driven into the lava plain.

Under Zeon’s relentless attacks, Tridgion couldn’t regain his composure at all.

In the end, he gave up on escaping and decided to settle things with Zeon.

Whiiing!

Countless magic circles engraved on Tridgion’s body began to glow and spin.

Crack!

Suddenly, red metal burst out through his chest.

—What is this?!

Tridgion gasped in shock.

His body was as hard as adamantium.

He couldn’t believe another metal had pierced it.

Zeon looked at him and said coldly,

“Diamond Spear. A skill I newly realized.”

If you melt sand, it becomes like lava.

If you rapidly cool that lava under high pressure, it crystallizes.

Like diamond.

It wasn’t actual diamond, but it gained comparable strength.

Normally, that would be impossible.

But because Zeon, the Sand Mage, carried dragon mana within his authority, it was possible.

Crack! Boom!

Diamond Spears surged up from underground and consecutively pierced Tridgion’s torso.

Tridgion’s body had tremendous durability, but the Diamond Spears were stronger—and sharper.

—Kgh… This can’t be…

Tridgion’s bewildered voice echoed across the desert.

A golem shouldn’t feel pain.

And yet, he felt pain as if his very soul were being pierced.

He didn’t know whether it was just illusion, or fear of Zeon.

Because it was the first pain he had ever felt, he couldn’t think straight.

—Kwaaah!

With a scream, Tridgion smashed at the Diamond Spears piercing his body with both fists.

Boom! Boom! Kwaang!

The Diamond Spears shook as if they might break at any moment.

But true to their name, they endured without breaking.

In the end, Tridgion gave up on destroying the Diamond Spears and fired magic at Zeon.

If he killed Zeon, the caster, the Diamond Spears would naturally crumble.

Shoo-shoo-shoo-shoo!

Hundreds of Magic Missiles flew toward Zeon.

Even a simple spell’s power depends on who casts it.

That was the case now.

Magic Missile was the most basic skill any mage could use.

Yet the Magic Missiles Tridgion cast had the power to blow away an entire small mountain.

Zeon didn’t dodge.

“Sand Blaster!”

The moment he spoke, the sand around him writhed and fired hundreds of Sand Blasters.

Puh-buh-buh-buh-boom!

Right in front of Zeon, the Magic Missiles and Sand Blasters collided.

The Magic Missiles exploded under the Sand Blasters’ interception.

No matter how powerful a skill was, if it didn’t hit the body, it couldn’t deal damage.

That was exactly what happened to Tridgion’s Magic Missiles.

Watching them explode so brilliantly, Tridgion’s anger shot through the roof.

His cold reason vanished, replaced by seething rage.

Anger stole his calm judgment.

Just moments ago, he’d wanted to fully seize Neo Seoul and make it his kingdom.

But the rage consuming his mind drove his desire for destruction to the extreme.

—If I can’t have it, I’ll destroy everything.

A huge black sphere formed in his hand.

From the jet-black orb, as if it swallowed darkness itself, enormous mana radiated.

It was the total mana Tridgion possessed, condensed.

Crackle!

So much mana was concentrated that it pulsed violently, as if it would explode at any moment, releasing tremendous energy.

—Regret standing in my way atop the ashes.

Tridgion hurled the black sphere straight toward Neo Seoul.

“No!”

“We have to stop it!”

Sensing the danger, Sung Huyun and Grain used their skills to try to erase the black sphere.

But the black sphere erased all of their skills, shattered even the barrier Old Go created in front of it like glass, and flew toward Neo Seoul.

Old Go’s face went white.

Even the barrier he’d created with all his might couldn’t stop that attack.

Neo Seoul’s barrier was much stronger, so it might not suffer too much damage.

The problem was the slums on the outskirts of Neo Seoul.

If Tridgion’s attack hit the barrier like this, most of the slums would be vaporized.

Along with the ten million people living there.

Zeon also unleashed Fire Rain to intercept the black sphere, but it didn’t even flinch.

The black sphere flew at terrifying speed and was almost upon the slums.

Then suddenly, from the slums, a pure white beam shot out.

A dazzling ray pierced straight through the black sphere.

Kwaaaang!

The black sphere exploded in midair.