Chapter 158

Become Overpowered CEO of Hero Clan – 158

The strength of the parasitic species, as confessed by the leader, was far more formidable than what was publicly known.
In addition to Master Cheongun, the leader of the rebels, and Divine Spear Yeongwol, even the S-rank hero Sosumahu, who had been infected by the parasitic species, was emitting Emperor-level negative energy.
Faced with the three parasitic species releasing the energy of their hosts and demanding surrender, Woo Hwa-jin had no choice but to offer the spiritual essence of the awakened beings to ensure the safety of his country.
“If I had known how powerful you were, Isaac, I wouldn’t have been swayed by them. Please, scold and humiliate me for my incompetence and cowardice!”
Incompetence aside, he was certainly one of the most cunning individuals in the world.
‘From China’s perspective, he’s the best leader.’
Facing the imminent threat of national overthrow, he had made a bold bet. Upon realizing Isaac’s unparalleled strength, he immediately switched allegiances.
It was a situation where I could have justifiably beheaded him on the spot.
“Why should I help you?”
“…I will do anything. Please, just this once, help us. I will mobilize the entire nation’s resources to fulfill your wishes.”
“Then, first, procure a root of Purple Spirit Root, and the herbs Earth Spirit Herb, Water Spirit Herb, and Fire Spirit Herb.”
Purple Spirit Root was a purple divine ginseng, the main ingredient for the elixir ‘Roaring Pride,’ which helped break through the limits of awakening. Earth Spirit Herb, Water Spirit Herb, and Fire Spirit Herb were auxiliary ingredients for the elixir.
“Those… Yes. I understand. It may take several years, but I will definitely procure them.”
“Several years? Don’t talk nonsense. Get them within a year.”
In response to my demand, Woo Hwa-jin finally nodded. With China’s vast resources, gathering the ingredients for the elixir ‘Roaring Pride’ within a year was not an unreasonable request.
I left the secure room in the government building and explained the Martial Arts Alliance leader’s vile scheme to the Sword Emperor and God Hand.
The two heroes were furious and vowed to establish a new strategy and formally demand an apology during the strategy meeting in the afternoon.
However, they never got the chance to confront Woo Hwa-jin.
“The leader… has passed away.”
“What?! Jincheon Noeje, what do you mean? How could someone who was perfectly fine yesterday suddenly meet such a fate?”
“He confessed all his sins to you, Isaac, and then coughed up blood before dying. The Heavenly Martial King said that he violated the oath of the Heart Demon and succumbed to inner demons, leading to his demise.”
“Haha…”
Woo Hwa-jin had made an oath to Master Cheongun, promising not to reveal the plan to use Isaac as bait. By breaking this oath, he lost his life.
The Heavenly Martial King revealed that Woo Hwa-jin had been using special methods to suppress his seizures until the inevitable happened.
“This information must not be leaked. If the rebels’ spies get wind of this, the opportunity gained at the cost of the leader’s life will be wasted.”
After discussing with the Heavenly Martial King and the strategist of the Martial Arts Alliance, Jincheon Noeje, we decided to turn the tables using the plan that intended to sacrifice Isaac.
We called it the Isaac Bait Strategy.
“We will annihilate them at the gathering of their forces. With Isaac on our side, we have nothing to fear.”
“More importantly, are you okay? You seemed to be in a lot of pain earlier.”
“Sword Emperor, who do you think I am? The durability of the Diamond Dragon Body is unmatched. Hahaha! Ugh, cough.”
The Heavenly Martial King, who had been laughing heartily, clutched his waist. It seemed to be the aftereffect of the shadow slap.
“Hmph. Stop pretending to be tough.”
“Ahem, do you think you’re any different? I saw the footage; you were knocked out in one hit. You probably spent a week bedridden.”
“Haha, why bring that up now? At least I didn’t put on a brave face like you.”
The two old men, who had experienced similar pain, exchanged playful banter.
The people gathered on the top floor of the government building must have known. They were making efforts to lift the gloomy atmosphere.
I later heard that the Heavenly Martial King mourned his old friend’s soul for three days and nights, crying like a child.
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In a place shrouded in long-standing negativeness, the deathly silence pervaded the desolate land beneath the black earth.
The barren and bleak land, where even the light of hope seemed lost, was devoid of any vegetation.
The endless negativeness and silence ruled the wasteland, with a colorless sky stretching above, and the air was dry as if even the wind had held its breath.
It seemed that not even a single blade of grass could grow on the lifeless, desolate ground.
However, even in a corner of the blackened, dead land, there existed a civilization that had survived the harsh environment.
From one corner to another, and then spreading across the vast valley below, traces of this civilization were widespread, showcasing the remarkable adaptability of life.
Their city was covered in black stone and iron. It was a mysterious metropolis that seemed to combine ancient Chinese architecture with the decayed technology of a fallen futuristic city, intermittently emitting black smoke.
In the streets, beings with human forms and creatures with horns on their heads and wings on their backs roamed, heavily armed with unique weapons and armor.
Statues of these creatures adorned every street, commemorating the history and mythology of their civilization, while a massive black fortress floated in the center of the city, exuding a rough grandeur.
From the pavilions of the fortress, the crude laughter of creatures mingling with women echoed, and a sphere hanging beneath the floating fortress illuminated the city shrouded in negativeness.
On the main roads, carriages and bizarre-looking beasts bustled about, with ordinary humans, horned and winged creatures, and grotesque beasts moving around as if it were a normal day, without any signs of mutual distrust.
Occasionally, enormous black birds, their size immeasurable, flew across the sky, casting large shadows over the desolate land.
Flash!
Deep within the fortress, in a hidden sanctuary, a half-human, half-beast monster sitting on a throne suddenly flashed his red eyes.
Before him, a human male with a vicious expression, clad in blue armor, knelt on one knee in a respectful manner.
“The time has ripened once more. The Bone Wind Demons that were sown thousands of years ago have awakened and begun their ritual. Nakhal, prepare to march with my avatar.”
“I obey the command of the great Uma King.”
“For some reason, there exists a 6-star human in this small world. He is the one who destroyed my thought form that had been researching fusion beasts for fifty years. Capture him alive and make him suffer a fate worse than death.”
“A 6-star… He must not be a native of this small world. Likely a guide planted by a sect or ascendant.”
“Indeed. But do not worry. I will personally bestow upon you the Divine Wind Fan to ensure there are no setbacks in this expedition. If the amount of sacrifices is less than that of the Dragon Demon King at the upcoming Millennial Demon Assembly… I will hold you accountable and make an example of you.”
“I will remember and heed your words.”
The young man in blue armor, known as Nakhal, vanished like a mirage.
Soon, the half-human, half-beast creature, now alone on the throne, gazed into the distant sky with a wicked smile on his lips.
From the far side of the dry, cloudless sky, pitch-black storm clouds began to gather.
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Swoosh—
Heavy rain poured down from the overcast sky.
Three days had passed since the start of the Sino-Korean joint operation.
We had managed to repel the rebels who had taken over Changchun and Jilin cities within a day each, and now, after pushing through relentless missile bombardments and showers of bullets, we reached the Saint Sophia Cathedral in Harbin.
‘They sure do love their fortresses.’
The rebel commanders had hidden in fortresses in both Changchun and Jilin, and once again, they were using a fortress.
The host responsible for the massacre in Harbin was an A-rank hero, which, according to the Martial Arts Alliance’s ranking system, was equivalent to a first-rate martial artist known as ‘Falling Sun Sword’.
“Are those heroes infected too?”
“Yes. They are no longer human, so cut them down without mercy.”
“Understood!”
Leading the second-rate martial artists, Falling Sun Sword formed a sword formation and surrendered within ten minutes of the confrontation.
Boom—
Boom!
Hwang Man-deuk, transformed into a hybrid of a bear and a wolf, surrounded his entire body with black lightning and fearlessly turned the attacking martial artists into charred corpses.
Swish—
Slash, slash, slash!
Jin-soo’s gleaming dawn blade emitted a white flash, slicing the infected hosts cleanly in half.
Zing—
Pew, pew, pew!
Gil Seong, flying through the air with an aviation jet, unleashed indiscriminate laser fire, piercing and slicing through the remaining members of the sword formation.
Swoosh—
As the second-rate martial artists were annihilated, the negative red aura surrounding the bodies of the team members dissipated.
Seo Eun-ha, wielding the Holy Sword of Purity, was casting a negative energy buff that doubled the attack power of the dealers.
“Are you alright?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Never mind.”
Seo Eun-ha’s personality had become more composed after switching to the negative energy convert build. She no longer felt any particular emotions even in the midst of a gruesome scene filled with blood and entrails.
Of course, the same applied to the rest of the team members. Hero work inherently involved emotional wear and tear.
The nauseating smell of blood numbed their sense of smell, and even if people were dying right before their eyes, they carried out their missions with stoic detachment.
‘Worrying about them is pointless.’
These kids were heroes by nature. Their exceptional combat skills and strong mental fortitude would protect them.
Clank.
Creak—
Any lingering bitterness vanished the moment I saw the pile of civilian corpses loaded in the van.
Using the combat skill ‘Mind Manipulation,’ I tormented the parasitic species inside the mind of the kneeling Falling Sun Sword before me.
“Ugh, ugh, aaaaah!”
Swoosh—
A translucent, octopus-like creature emerged from the top of Falling Sun Sword’s head.
I handed it over to Ifrit, who slowly burned it to death. The charred parasitic species was then devoured by Gunggi.
Gunggi seemed to find the roasted parasitic species quite tasty and begged for more.
“Wait.”
I burned the bodies of the martial artists with blue flames to honor their spirits and roasted the dozens of parasitic species hiding in their heads, feeding them to Gunggi as snacks.
I repeated this process every time we encountered infected hosts. The rebels were relentlessly massacring civilians and transporting their bodies.
‘These lunatics.’
They didn’t discriminate between the elderly, women, or men, gathering all the corpses.
As the sun set and two more days passed, we had incinerated over a thousand parasitic species and evacuated more than ten thousand civilians to underground shelters.
The underground shelters were stocked with six months’ worth of water and food, and we had installed discs all around to deploy triple-layered protective shields.
Unless it was an Emperor-level monster, no one could penetrate the magical engineering shields I had personally created.
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It had already been a week since we arrived in Harbin.
There were no more signs of parasitic species near the city. The number of civilians we had rescued exceeded 50,000.
‘Harbin was supposed to be the hotspot.’
I felt uneasy.
The late leader of the Martial Arts Alliance, Woo Hwa-jin, had designated this place, Harbin, as the location to send Isaac.
So why hadn’t the rebels launched their full-scale offensive yet? Had the operation been compromised? Even if that were the case, was it right for them to just sit back and take it?
The parasitic species were known to be highly intelligent.
“Continue the rescue operations.”
“Yes!”
Regardless, there were still many people we needed to save. Families hiding in their homes in fear, office workers barricading building entrances with furniture, and apartment residents trembling in cramped underground facilities.
We evacuated thousands of people to safe shelters each day, installing protective wards to prevent further casualties.
‘I have a bad feeling about this.’
There was still no significant communication from the main force.
God Hand reported that the enemy’s main forces were still forming a front line near Beijing.
In the meantime, I practiced the Deep Pool Tranquility Technique and the Heavenly Wood Lotus Technique to consolidate my magical power, while also engaging in actions that would likely infuriate the parasitic species.
Rumble…
Five days later, in the early dawn, I sensed a formidable wave of negative energy from the west.
‘What is this?’
It seemed like something major had happened with the main force.
―Isaac! The enemy has launched a full-scale offensive. Please return immediately!
A frantic communication requesting Isaac’s support came through shortly after.
I quickly woke the children and summoned the lever.