The Scorched Desert's Sand Mage (Novel) - Chapter 117

Chapter 117

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Translated by Pratt

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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“Why? Even after awakening such a rare ability, you have no ambition? What a disappointment.”

Contempt appeared on Lee Ji-ryeong’s face.

The kind of people he hated most were those who lived day by day meaninglessly, without ambition.

If they had no ability, then that was one thing, but for someone with ability to waste their time like that was truly the worst.

Seen from that angle, Zeon was the worst kind.

At least by Lee Ji-ryeong’s standards.

And yet the reason he could not let go of his lingering attachment was because Zeon’s awakened ability was just that fraudulent.

‘An ability that can control sand at will.’

Most of the world was covered in sand.

Because of the sand, human territory could no longer expand.

Neo Seoul itself was like that.

It was barely holding onto the land of old Seoul, and had not even dared make a proper move outward.

On this little patch of land no bigger than a palm, people were fighting like beasts over who was superior and who was not.

Lee Ji-ryeong hated this reality to the point it gave him chills.

But because he had no means, he had merely looked on until now.

However, the situation had changed.

Because of the man standing right before his eyes.

If only he had Zeon, he could expand Neo Seoul’s territory as much as he wanted.

That meant there was a possibility humans could become the masters of Earth once more.

That was why he could not give up on Zeon.

“My offer still stands.”

“My answer still stands as well.”

“You really do disappoint me to the very end, Zeon. Then I’ll force you into submission with power.”

Before he could even finish his sentence, the Lightning Field expanded further.

Now lightning flashed within a fifty-meter radius centered on him.

No matter where one looked, lightning was flashing around them.

“Hyaaat! Giga Lightning Spear!”

A bolt of lightning so thick it could not even be compared to his previous attacks came crashing down toward Zeon.

Zeon used Sand Step and dodged Lee Ji-ryeong’s attack.

In the very place where he had been standing a moment earlier, a massive lightning strike exploded.

Sand burst apart, and a huge crater more than five meters deep was formed.

It was truly terrifying power.

But Zeon did not change expression in the slightest and merely flicked a finger.

Then the sand in the area shot toward Lee Ji-ryeong like a stream of water.

It was a high-pressure Sand Blaster.

Puh-buh-buh-boom!

But Sand Blaster could not pass through the curtain of flickering lightning around Lee Ji-ryeong, and instead burst apart.

“No use. Your ability really is impressive, but with that level of attack power, you won’t be able to do anything to me.”

Lee Ji-ryeong sneered at Zeon.

Zeon smiled as well.

“Then shall I raise the power a little?”

“What?”

Gaaaaang!

At that instant, the sand around where Lee Ji-ryeong stood began spinning at terrifying speed.

One of Zeon’s skills, Sand Mixer, had been unleashed.

The sand, spinning so fast it could not even be seen with the naked eye, swallowed Lee Ji-ryeong in an instant.

Lee Ji-ryeong hurriedly tried to break free from the sand, but the enormous pressure crushing him prevented him from exerting any strength.

“Damn it!”

Kwa-ga-ga-gak!

All he could see was sand.

A dizzying sense of isolation and danger, as though he had been thrown whole into a blender, assaulted Lee Ji-ryeong.

If one were trapped inside sand spinning like this, even a giant demonic beast would clearly have its flesh ground away and its bones pulverized.

But Lee Ji-ryeong was no demonic beast.

Nor was he an ordinary Awakened.

He was an existence closest to a thunder god.

“Huaaah! Lightning Wave!”

With a shout, lightning surged like waves around his body.

The first wave of lightning struck Sand Mixer, and then the second, third, and fourth waves swept through it one after another.

The sand that had been rotating at such a terrifying speed was all scorched away and scattered, and Lee Ji-ryeong regained his freedom.

The moment he escaped the sand, Lee Ji-ryeong tried to counterattack.

What he saw then was sand soldiers rising up around Zeon.

Zeon had summoned Sand Soldiers.

At the sight of more than dozens of Sand Soldiers, Lee Ji-ryeong let out a hollow laugh.

“Ha! Isn’t this cheating? You can even make soldiers out of sand?”

“Your ability is fraudulent enough as it is, I’d say.”

“Then that means you can overwhelm people by sheer numbers too. This is really way too tempting.”

Lee Ji-ryeong licked his lips with his tongue.

If he wanted to bring Zeon down, he would have to go all out.

And if that happened, one of them would definitely die.

It would be a problem if he died, but it would also be a problem if Zeon died.

“Fine. We’ll end it here for today.”

“Weren’t we supposed to settle it once and for all?”

“It’s not like we’re mortal enemies, so why bother?”

“I’m the one who killed your younger brother, though.”

“That bastard was trash. The kind that couldn’t even be recycled. I barely covered up the huge mess he made in Neo Seoul and told him to lie low. But he couldn’t hold back and made another mess, and then he got himself killed. He was always like that. Constantly causing trouble, and I cleaned it up. Just because we happened to share blood. I’ve done more than enough. I don’t feel like making a scene now over avenging that idiot bastard.”

“You’re cold.”

“It’s the kind of world where you have to be cold to survive. Ability comes before blood, and keeping good relations with strong Awakened is what lets you survive longer.”

Lee Ji-ryeong withdrew Lightning Field.

The lightning that had blanketed the whole area disappeared without leaving a trace.

No hostility could be felt from Lee Ji-ryeong anymore.

There was no way to know whether his words were sincere or not, but at the very least, it was clear he was no longer treating Zeon as an enemy here and now.

Lee Ji-ryeong spoke.

“Zeon.”

“Go ahead.”

“I’ll forget my grudge over my younger brother’s death. I won’t come looking to kill you anymore.”

“That’s kind of you.”

“You owe me now. Don’t forget that.”

“Can that really be called a debt? If anything, I think you’re the one who owes me.”

“Think of it however you like. Just make sure you remember that our relationship is no longer hostile.”

Lee Ji-ryeong was thoroughly self-centered.

Zeon found his attitude absurd, but he did not say anything further.

He did not want to tear open a wound that had only just been stitched shut.

Crackle!

Lightning flashed beneath Lee Ji-ryeong’s feet.

“The one who told me about you was Johan.”

“So it really was him.”

“That’s right. He tried to provoke me into killing you. Be careful. That old man can do anything for the sake of his purpose.”

“I know.”

“Then we’ll meet again another time.”

Boom!

At that moment, the lightning flashing beneath Lee Ji-ryeong’s feet exploded.

With the force of the explosion propelling him, Lee Ji-ryeong flew far up into the sky in an instant.

Watching Lee Ji-ryeong disappear like a flash of lightning, Zeon muttered, “He looks like a thunder god.”

* * *

“Are you okay?”

When he returned home, Brielle was the first to greet him.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Really?”

Brielle circled around Zeon in disbelief.

Only after confirming with her own eyes that Zeon had not suffered even a single wound did Brielle let out a sigh of relief.

“Whew. That’s a relief.”

At that moment, Levin asked carefully, “How was he, hyung?”

“He was strong.”

“Compared to me?”

Levin’s eyes were shining more intensely than ever.

Zeon immediately realized that the emotion in his eyes was competitiveness.

“You’re not even in the same category yet.”

“Is… he really that far ahead?”

“He is.”

“Kuh!”

Levin’s face twisted.

It was something he had already felt himself, but hearing it directly from Zeon made it feel even more miserable.

“But if you were the same rank, you would be far stronger than he is.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Because you have an ability he doesn’t.”

“You mean Specter, ghostification?”

“That’s right. If you cultivate that ability well, you’ll definitely be able to surpass Lee Ji-ryeong someday.”

“Got it.”

Levin nodded.

‘I’m still young. I have plenty of room left to grow.’

He had realized it clearly while facing the vampire bats.

That his ability was fraudulent.

And that depending on how hard he worked, he could grow even further.

He had only just reached C-rank.

When he reached B-rank or A-rank later, things would be different from now.

At that point, he expected he would be able to properly fight Lee Ji-ryeong, the one who had filled him with despair.

Zeon thought it was a good thing.

That was because Levin now had a clear motivation.

There was nothing that helped growth more than having a target one wanted to surpass.

After today, Levin would grow faster.

Zeon took off his robe and sat down on the sofa.

Quite a lot had happened in just a few days.

It had not been physically exhausting, but it had been mentally tiring.

Levin sat down on the sofa and rested.

Neither Levin nor Brielle bothered Zeon.

Levin went out saying he had something to do, and Brielle went into her room and laid out the ingredients she had bought today.

‘This time, I’ll definitely succeed.’

Brielle threw herself straight into alchemy.

* * *

“So Zeon returned safely?”

“He did.”

“Are you sure? You’re not mistaken?”

“I confirmed it with my own eyes.”

At Kim Jae-gyeong’s report, Johan frowned deeply.

Right now Neo Seoul was in a festive mood because of the fact that a caravan had made contact for the first time in years.

The same was true not only of Neo Seoul, but of the people in the slum as well.

Caravans brought goods that could only be found in their own regions and came to trade.

Their cargo compartments would surely be full of things one could never see in Neo Seoul.

“How valuable are the goods they brought?”

“We haven’t assessed that yet. The mammoth refused to enter Neo Seoul and stopped outside….”

“Because of the anti-demonic force.”

“It’s only because it was such a huge mammoth that it got that close. If it had been a smaller species, it would have stopped dozens of kilometers away.”

“Hmm. That makes sense.”

Pushing up the glasses slipping down to the tip of his nose, Johan looked out the window.

Beyond that tall wall, City Hall could be seen.

“By now, they must have entered City Hall.”

“Yes.”

“This is a meeting that has happened for the first time in decades. If it were an ordinary caravan, it would never have made it this far. They’re definitely carrying a great many valuable things.”

Johan’s eyes behind his glasses shone ominously.

Whatever goods the caravan had brought, none of them would flow into the slum.

Even if they did, it would be a long time later.

Johan wanted to inspect the things they had brought right now.

If possible, he wanted to make them his own.

“Find a way to make contact with the caravan.”

“Understood.”

“If possible, brainwash someone at the level of the person in charge.”

“Yes.”

Kim Jae-gyeong nodded.

Johan muttered, “An unexpected variable has appeared at a moment I never predicted.”

Johan liked situations that were firmly under control.

He hated it when unexpected variables like this appeared.

“The other men will be moving busily as well.”

This was a meeting with another colony for the first time in decades.

It was obvious that not only Mayor Jin Geum-ho, but also the rulers of Neo Seoul’s districts, would be moving busily.

Not only the goods the caravan had brought, but also the route they had taken, the state of the desert, the distribution of demonic beasts, all of that information would become power.

And that power was strong enough to overturn Neo Seoul’s entire balance of authority.

Any ruler within Neo Seoul would never let this opportunity slip away.

‘If I fall behind here, I’ll never catch up to them. In order to advance into Neo Seoul, I have to get the caravan into my hands no matter what.’