Chapter 272
Kuuwooooh!
It was not Arkelon’s cry.
It was the sound made by the sandstorm engulfing Arkelon.
A roar like the bellow of a super-giant magical beast echoed throughout the sandstorm.
In truth, the sandstorm itself possessed power comparable to a super-giant magical beast.
Kwarrrrmmm!
Lightning flashed continuously within the storm.
Blue and red bolts exploded upon the earth like rain.
The lightning that struck the ground spread outward like waves, scorching the entire area black.
Kkueeek!
Kkieeek!
Each time, magical beasts hiding beneath the sand burst out screaming.
Common sense dictated that electricity did not conduct well through sand. Yet the lightning appearing with this sandstorm was powerful enough to ignore even such logic.
“What the hell is this?”
Lee Jeongho’s unfocused eyes swung left and right like pendulums.
That was how shaken he was.
Kwakwakwakwang! Flash!
A torrential rain of lightning continued crashing down without pause.
Unless one was a lightning-type awakened, surviving beneath such terrifying clusters of lightning seemed impossible.
But if that were all, Lee Jeongho would not have been this horrified.
Kuwaaaaang!
The monstrous sandstorm sweeping across the world while blackening the entire sky was itself a disaster.
Nothing could be seen except the lightning.
Countless magical beasts were swept away by the sandstorm and vanished without leaving even a trace.
They had not simply been carried away—they had been ground apart by the sand itself.
In fact, Lee Jeongho watched in real time as a giant scorpion hiding underground not far away was shredded apart by the terrifyingly raging sand.
Its shell, harder than steel, was ground down as finely as grains of sand themselves and scattered away.
The sight was enough to send chills down his spine.
Compared to this, every sandstorm Lee Jeongho had experienced until now was not even at the level of a newborn.
Only then did he realize just how comfortably protected he had lived within Neo Seoul.
Kukukukuku!
Arkelon’s massive body shook violently as if it might be blown away.
Even though it had pulled in all four legs and its head into the shell while tensing with all its strength.
If Arkelon had been in normal condition, it would have deployed its force field to protect itself. But after suffering severe injuries, it no longer possessed the strength to create one.
So it had no choice but to face the storm bare-bodied.
Only because it was Arkelon could it endure this much. Any other magical beast would already have been blown away or erased without a trace.
Flash! Kwarrrrmmm!
Bundles of lightning struck Arkelon’s enormous body relentlessly.
Kuuwooooh!
Arkelon let out a pained groan.
No matter how specialized a magical beast was in defense, enduring endless lightning strikes was difficult.
If Arkelon had been healthy, it would have sensed the danger early and avoided the sandstorm’s path entirely.
But after being attacked by the black sea anemone, Arkelon’s detection range had drastically diminished.
Because of that, it was forced to endure the lightning strikes helplessly.
Claire looked toward Pabilsa with a pale expression.
“Still… we have Zeon…”
Zeon stood atop Arkelon’s shell.
No matter how powerful Zeon was, he could not block every lightning strike hitting Arkelon.
But he could protect Arkelon from the ultra-high-speed sandstorm capable of grinding countless magical beasts to dust.
Gaaaaang!
A sandstorm swirled around Zeon and Arkelon.
It was not the naturally occurring monstrous sandstorm.
It was a sandstorm summoned by Zeon’s authority.
Though incomparable to the monstrous sandstorm, the sandstorm Zeon created still possessed tremendous power.
‘The important thing is the rotation.’
He had to precisely match the rotational speed of his sandstorm to that of the monstrous sandstorm.
If the monstrous sandstorm rotated at a speed of ten, then his own sandstorm also had to rotate at exactly ten.
It was the same principle as setting a backfire during a wildfire.
Just as a controlled fire was set beforehand to stop the wildfire from crossing over, Zeon was creating his own sandstorm to prevent the monstrous sandstorm from directly striking Arkelon.
Large beads of sweat continuously streamed down Zeon’s face.
No matter how powerful Zeon’s sand control was, it could not compare to the true power of nature.
The same applied to other awakened.
No matter how strong mages who controlled lightning or gravity became, compared to the true power of nature, they were no different from ants.
What mattered was not the magnitude of power, but efficiency.
Even a small amount of power, when handled efficiently, could unleash tremendous capability.
That was precisely Zeon’s current state.
To oppose a force greater than oneself head-on was foolish.
Rather than resisting it, one had to flow with it, dispersing and redirecting its destructive power.
Zeon focused and adjusted the flow.
His senses spread in every direction through the sand.
At some point, an exhilarating sensation overtook him, as though he himself had become the sand.
It felt as though he had become the god of sand.
Kuwaaaaaa!
He no longer feared the monstrous sandstorm.
The roar of the sandstorm sounded like a scream.
And so, time that felt eternal passed.
***
Kuuuuuu!
The sandstorm that had blackened the entire sky slowly began to disappear as if it had all been a lie.
The insane force it had displayed until now faded away as it scattered sand into the air.
The lightning that had once poured down like rain within the storm had long since vanished as well.
If not for the blackened sand covering the ground, no one would have believed such savage clusters of lightning had battered the earth moments ago.
Claire wiped the cold sweat from her forehead and muttered,
“That was a sandstorm?”
“A real sandstorm. A monstrous sandstorm that only occasionally appears deep in the desert. We call it a CD.”
“CD?”
“Crazy Dragon. The berserk rampage of a mad dragon? Well, something like that.”
It was not an existing term.
It was slang known only among those who had lived in the desert for a long time, like Pabilsa and Kaylie.
“Are CD-rank sandstorms common?”
“Absolutely not. If they were common, there wouldn’t be a single living creature left on Earth.”
It was a sandstorm powerful enough to shake the gigantic Arkelon they were riding.
Ordinary magical beasts would have been sucked into the sky and torn to pieces.
Only because Zeon used his authority to offset the sandstorm’s power had things ended at this level. Had Arkelon been exposed directly to the storm bare-bodied, even he would have suffered fatal injuries.
Lee Jeongho’s unfocused eyes turned toward Zeon, who stood atop Arkelon’s shell.
Zeon was steadying his rough breathing after excessively using his authority.
His entire body was drenched in sweat, and his face had turned deathly pale. He staggered as though he might collapse at any moment.
‘This may be the only chance to kill him.’
He had witnessed it with his own eyes.
Just how terrifyingly powerful Zeon became once he entered the desert.
The image of Zeon refusing to back down even against a natural disaster like the sandstorm would not leave his mind.
‘Is it really right to continue the mission like this? Wouldn’t it be better to eliminate him now while he’s exhausted?’
Without realizing it, Lee Jeongho gripped the hilt of his sword.
At the moment, Zeon had exhausted all his power and likely lacked even the strength to move a finger. Killing him would be easier than turning over one’s palm.
Yet Lee Jeongho hesitated because of the mission Jin Geumho had given him.
‘Perhaps I’ll regret this decision forever.’
Tak!
He quietly slid the sword he had slightly drawn back into its sheath.
In the end, he chose to obey Jin Geumho’s orders rather than his own judgment.
Kuuwooor!
At that moment, Arkelon, who had hidden his body inside his shell to avoid the sandstorm, stuck his head back out.
After confirming the sandstorm had completely vanished, Arkelon extended all four legs again.
The shell still bore traces of lightning strikes.
But thanks to Zeon protecting him from the sandstorm—the greatest threat—his main body remained unharmed.
Arkelon stretched out his head and looked at Zeon.
The way his large eyes blinked made it seem as though he was expressing gratitude.
Tap, tap!
Zeon lightly patted Arkelon’s snout a couple of times.
At that, Arkelon snorted loudly before beginning to walk again.
Thud! Thud!
Heavy footsteps echoed loudly across the desert.
Pabilsa hurriedly supported Zeon as he entered the shell.
“Are you alright?”
“I think I need some rest.”
“Of course! You must be exhausted after using so much power. Hurry and rest.”
“Yes.”
Zeon nodded and headed toward an empty house.
His steps paused briefly in front of Lee Jeongho.
“As you can see, I won’t be able to use my power for a while. Please protect Arkelon.”
“Understood.”
Lee Jeongho answered with a stiff expression.
Zeon quietly stared at him for a moment before entering the empty house.
Thud!
After confirming the door had closed, Lee Jeongho climbed up onto Arkelon’s head.
A gentle breeze blew by.
The wind was so soft that it felt unbelievable such a terrifying sandstorm had raged moments ago.
“Hoo…”
Lee Jeongho let out a faint sigh as he stared ahead.
The sandstorm was not something he could do anything about.
Not only him—no awakened could have displayed what Zeon had shown against that storm.
So there was no need for him to feel intimidated or belittle his own abilities.
He simply needed to do what he could.
For example, the scorpion swarm cautiously poking their heads out from the overturned earth after the sandstorm passed.
They were Ghost Scorpions, which hid beneath the sand and attacked with poisonous stingers.
Among the magical beasts inhabiting the desert, they belonged to the lower ranks.
Because they concealed themselves in the sand without a trace before ambushing their prey, they were extremely dangerous if not detected beforehand.
This area happened to be a habitat for Ghost Scorpions.
Many of them had been shredded apart and killed by the CD-rank sandstorm.
But countless Ghost Scorpions still remained.
The ones hiding deep underground emerged in response to Arkelon’s footsteps.
Ghost Scorpions were magical beasts that acted on instinct rather than reason.
Instinctively, they realized Arkelon was wounded and unable to deploy his force field.
Normally they would never have dared approach him, but a wounded old magical beast looked like prey worth challenging.
Sasasasak!
Countless Ghost Scorpions surged up from deep beneath the sand.
Like a tidal wave, they rushed toward Arkelon.
Kuuwooooh!
Arkelon roared and crushed the Ghost Scorpions beneath his feet.
Dozens exploded at once.
Ordinary creatures would have felt fear and fled, but Ghost Scorpions possessed no such emotion.
To them, the most important thing was appetite.
So many of their kind had died that they needed to reproduce.
And to reproduce quickly, they needed to feed themselves well.
That was why the Ghost Scorpions crazedly charged at Arkelon.
If they could bring down a single Arkelon, they would be able to feast freely for at least an entire year without worrying about food.
The Ghost Scorpion swarm began climbing up Arkelon’s legs toward his main body.
At the moment Pabilsa, Kaylie, and Claire’s faces turned pale, Lee Jeongho drew his sword.
Shigak!
The instant he swung his blade, the Ghost Scorpions that had nearly reached Arkelon’s body were sliced in half and rained down.
“Right. I only need to do what I can.”
Lee Jeongho swung his sword with an indifferent expression.
Each time he did, the Ghost Scorpions covering Arkelon like a black tide died in droves.
The Ghost Scorpions switched targets and attacked Lee Jeongho instead, but it was useless.
Rather, the attacking Ghost Scorpions were cleanly chopped apart.
Their tough shells, venomous stingers, and giant pincers were all meaningless.
Lee Jeongho’s sword mercilessly cut down the Ghost Scorpions again and again.
Seeing that, Pabilsa’s jaw dropped open.
Goosebumps rose all across his arms.
“This is no different from a dance of death. Maybe we’re fortunate he’s on our side.”
Fwhooosh!
Every time Lee Jeongho swung his sword, sword winds roared like a typhoon.
He was venting the frustration of being powerless against the sandstorm onto the Ghost Scorpions instead.