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[Translator - Night]
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Tongliao.
A city in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, and the next destination recommended by Dalian Swordmaster, Tian Zhulin, the guardian of Dalian City, to Yeongwoo.
The reason she advised him to visit Tongliao was simple—it was an extremely dangerous area.
Tongliao, where 50% of the population was Mongolian, was a place where anti-government protests demanding independence from China occurred even right up to the Reset.
This meant that the atmosphere was already tense before the Reset.
Then, with the advent of the Reset and countless swords falling from the sky, one can only imagine what kind of chaos unfolded in Tongliao.At the very least, the Han Chinese didn't even attempt to approach Tongliao, and as a result, only eerie rumors circulated about the place.
Some said the Mongolians occupying Tongliao were preparing to march on Beijing, while others claimed that even the beggars lying by the roadside in Tongliao were at the level of elite swordsmen from other cities.
"……."
Of course, Yeongwoo knew nothing of this background, and merely thought that Tongliao would be stronger than other cities.
After all, from Dalian City's perspective, they would have picked a city capable of adequately dealing with a troublesome guy from the Korean Peninsula.
‘How strong could a place like Tongliao be? If it's such a troublesome city that Dalian City knows about it, Im Dupyeong must have considered it a potential threat as well.’
If that was the case, wouldn’t Im Dupyeong have sent an even stronger collection team to Tongliao?
So far, Yeongwoo had dealt with two collection teams: one led by Zhang Jinshan, the 6th Standing Committee member, and another by Baek Gangryang, the 4th Standing Committee member.
Assuming the Standing Committee was still composed of six members like before the Reset, four members, including Im Dupyeong, the 1st Standing Committee member, remained.
‘Well, if you look at it positively, I’ve already dealt with a third of the Standing Committee, who were only six in number.’
This would have severely disrupted Im Dupyeong's collection operations.
As Yeongwoo had felt yesterday, China was too vast a land.
Now, Im Dupyeong had only three collection teams left.
Perhaps Im Dupyeong himself was directly involved in the collection operations.
‘Where is he spending all that money? Whether he invests it in equipment or abilities, he’s surely become an enormous monster by now.’
While Yeongwoo pondered various things, Negwig carrying him was speeding down a path of light.
On the ground, Yeongwoo and the creature would have appeared as a rapidly moving shooting star.
However, Yeongwoo wasn’t even aware that he was moving at such a high speed.
He was calmly investing in his abilities in preparation for a battle with Im Dupyeong.
* Available Karma: 85,212,500
* Available Defense Funds: 78,967,105
‘Hmm. My balance is more than enough.’
The top number represented his personal assets, while the bottom one was akin to a national treasury.
Using national funds required keeping a separate ledger and disclosing the usage to the public.
In contrast, personal assets could be freely used as before.
So Yeongwoo decided to increase his abilities using his personal funds first.
‘Anyway, when the mutants appear this afternoon, I’ll need to visit the shop, so I’ll spend a clean 60 million.’
[Strength] 7,700 (19+7,681)
[Endurance] 6,348 (21+6,327)
[Durability] 7,498 (13+7,485)
[Sensitivity] 3,500 (24+3,476)
There were a total of four basic abilities.
Yeongwoo evenly invested 10 million in each ability and hesitated momentarily before adding an extra 20 million to Sensitivity.
This was to ensure the effect of the ring "Agility."
「Agility」 - Mutant Ring
【When Sensitivity is the highest ability, gain 10% damage reduction.】
Currently, Yeongwoo's ability boosting mechanism consisted of two main components.
The first was the "Masochism" effect from the epic jewel attached to the Fearful Cat.
【When bleeding, Strength increases by 25%.】
The second was the Sensitivity stealing from the Golden Flash.
However, with Strength now so high, the Agility effect was hard to trigger unless it was a one-against-many fight.
‘Damage reduction is a rare and valuable effect. It’s best to trigger all of them if possible.’
This was a kind of big data Yeongwoo had gathered from handling far more equipment than others. As a result, his final abilities were:
[Strength] 8,700 (19+8,681)
[Endurance] 7,348 (21+7,327)
[Durability] 8,498 (13+8,485)
[Sensitivity] 6,500 (24+6,476)
‘Even with this setup, I need a Sensitivity steal of about 4,400 for Agility to trigger. Not easy at all.’
Of course, he was already a sufficient monster with a total ability score of 31,000.
But would it be enough to face Im Dupyeong, who had been on an extraordinary path since the first day of the Reset?
Shhhhooo!
Meanwhile, Negwig continued to carry Yeongwoo at incredible speed, and soon an alarm appeared in Yeongwoo’s vision, indicating that they were about to reach their destination, Tongliao.
Paht!
The alarm showed Yeongwoo his exact position on the route in real-time.
‘What the heck? Did these guys build a tower right in the middle of Tongliao?’
Yeongwoo’s mouth fell open when he saw that the next tower, or stop, on the route was located right in the middle of Tongliao on the map.
It seemed that the overly zealous brothers had built stations in every major city in China.
This, of course, meant that.
‘The tower must already be surrounded.’
As soon as Yeongwoo came to this conclusion, Negwig’s movement across the sky ceased.
Swaat!
This indicated that they had finally arrived at the station unlawfully set up in Tongliao.
However, they were still 800 meters above ground in a booth, so neither Yeongwoo nor the citizens of Tongliao could see each other yet.
‘Have the experts in Tongliao already come out early?’
Since China had different title systems in each city, it was hard to predict the next opponent's title.
Some cities had Swordmasters, others had Five Heroes, and some had Twin Evils...
‘Is it because the land is so vast?’
Clang!
Yeongwoo jumped down from the creature’s back and stood in front of the round table in the center of the room.
Then, an interface appeared, asking whether he wanted to resume his journey or descend. Without hesitation, Yeongwoo chose to descend.
‘This is the first time I’m using the path for its original purpose.’
Of course, this "original purpose" was something Yeongwoo had decided on his own.
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[Translator - Night]
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But since it was Dogo who provided the design plans for this road, Yeongwoo figured that anyone in that crazy company would have used it just like he was about to.
Thump!
Shortly after, the entire room Yeongwoo was in briefly vibrated, and bright light filled the walls and floor.
Swaaaah!
Then...
Paht!
In an instant, Yeongwoo’s body blurred, and in the blink of an eye, he was transported down to the ground floor.
‘…This is incredible. But does this mean they’ll soon use this technology to remodel the entire Earth…?’
However, what Yeongwoo needed to focus on right now wasn't the astonishing technology of Dogo.
Clank!
The tower's walls on the ground level suddenly opened, creating an entrance.
Beyond it, just as expected, a throng of Tongliao’s residents had gathered, blackening the area with their sheer numbers.
“…Huh?”
“They’re walking out?”
“What is that?”
Not a single one of them was without a weapon, and about 30% of the visible residents were heavily armed.
There were a significant number of people wearing grade equipment, not just standard-issue gear.
“Oh dear, it’s nice to meet you all.”
As Yeongwoo slowly led his mount, Negwig, out of the tower, the citizens who had surrounded the strange structure took a few steps back.
Even so, they didn’t forget to shout threats, pointing their weapons at him bravely.
“St-stop!”
“Don’t move!”
But it seemed they couldn’t quite believe that the person emerging from the alien-looking ‘tower’ was one of their own, a fellow human from Earth.
“It really does look like a person.”
“Is that a person?”
“It… looks similar to a person?”
Although some in the crowd were uttering words like ‘human’ and ‘person,’ they were always accompanied by qualifiers like ‘almost’ or ‘similar.’
And in the meantime—
Clang, bang!
From the opposite side of where Yeongwoo was facing off against the citizens, sounds of people striking the tower with their weapons could be heard.
‘Good thing I tested it yesterday.’
Hearing those sounds, Yeongwoo nodded in satisfaction.
Then, thinking he should stir things up a bit more, he deliberately took a big step forward.
Thump!
The hundred or so citizens who had been watching him screamed as if they had just encountered a wild beast.
“D-don’t move!”
“Are you crazy? Move again, and we’ll consider it an invasion!”
Despite their threatening words, their swords wavered weakly.
“……”
Knowing that he could handle everyone present without so much as a scratch, Yeongwoo silently waited for the next move.
Finally—
“H-hurry, get to City Hall!”
“Quickly!”
The words Yeongwoo had been waiting for reached his ears.
At last, they were calling upon the real strongmen of this city.
But the truth was, those strongmen were already—
Whoosh!
Swoosh!
—rapidly approaching the tower from different directions, each emanating a distinct aura.
‘Two… no, three?’
The ominous presences closing in from three sides made Yeongwoo realize that these people were different from those in other cities.
Because—
Screeeech!
—their first response to this strange and suspicious visitor was none other than a preemptive strike.
This could be seen as reckless, but on the other hand, it could also mean they were strong enough to be so reckless.
And in most cases, their strength was indeed the latter.
「Your sense stat has temporarily increased from 6,500 to 8,134.」
「Your sense stat has temporarily increased from 8,134 to 10,511.」
「Your sense stat has temporarily increased from 10,511 to 12,008.」
‘What? Who are these guys?’
Indeed, the abilities of the three swordsmen were overwhelming, and Yeongwoo, startled, quickly assumed a defensive stance.
He directed the golden trail that had been waiting behind him to the left to handle one of them, while he himself drew a dagger from his coat.
Then, he blocked the incoming blade from the front with his dagger.
Ping!
He had taken this action to avoid accidentally killing his opponent if he had used his full power.
Only then did the opponent’s face and the title attached to it come into view.
『Tongliao’s Three Swords』
‘Ah, this is the Three Swords system.’
It was probably something like First Sword, Second Sword, and so on.
And the opponent currently crossing blades with Yeongwoo—
“The First Sword…?”
『First Sword』
The title simply read ‘First Sword,’ and the opponent’s eyes were filled with unease.
But wasn’t there supposed to be one more swordsman?
Counting the man currently locked in a power struggle with the golden trail and the woman who had just crossed blades with Yeongwoo, that made two.
‘So, the one coming from behind now must be…’
Sensing the reappearance of the aura that had disappeared earlier, Yeongwoo deliberately turned his body slightly.
Just like in Shandong, he planned to let the third swordsman pierce his heart and leave a lasting impression on them.
However—
Ping!
The blade of the surprise attacker from behind didn’t even reach Yeongwoo’s skin, let alone his heart.
The armor he wore, ‘Legitimacy,’ effortlessly deflected the blade that should have pierced his heart.
“Damn it. I was supposed to put on a heart-stopping show.”
As his planned scenario fell apart from the start, Yeongwoo glanced around, slightly flustered.
What he saw were the frightened faces of the citizens of Tongliao.
And no wonder—they had just witnessed someone emerge from an alien structure and simultaneously take on all three of Tongliao’s Three Swords.
So, Yeongwoo quickly changed his approach.
Whoosh!
He grabbed the arm of the female swordsman who had first crossed blades with him and swiftly brought his dagger to her neck.
Whoosh!
“Wha…?”
Yeongwoo’s movement was so fast that it was unbelievable, leaving the opponent—Tongliao’s Second Sword, Huang Shengli—too shocked even to think of attempting anything.
“W-who the hell are you?”
As Huang Shengli asked in a disbelieving voice, Yeongwoo pressed the dagger closer to her neck and spoke to the surrounding citizens.
“Bring me money right now. Or I’ll kill all of Tongliao’s Three Swords.”
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[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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