Almighty God of War - Chapter 68

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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068

The peaceful journey of Guyang Cheongang and Du Jinseong entered its third day.

When the two men entered an unnamed low mountain path about one hundred and fifty li before the Guyang Family Estate.

With a rustling sound, a boy in ragged clothes staggered out from the forest a dozen zhang ahead.

Guyang Cheongang’s expression hardened.

The boy’s appearance was too horrific.

The child’s skin was an unnatural black color as if corpse spots had formed, and his terror-stricken eyes wandered aimlessly through the air.

“Save… me…”

The boy desperately reached out toward them and ran a few steps before suddenly collapsing about ten zhang away.

Thud.

Guyang Cheongang realized the boy’s breath had stopped even before his body hit the ground.

Just as he was about to leap from his horse using body movement to rush to the boy.

Kieeeeeek!

Golden King on his shoulder raised all his fur and let out a piercing shriek.

Then he quickly jumped from Guyang Cheongang’s shoulder to the horse’s head, spread his arms, and blocked his path.

“…!”

Guyang Cheongang knew well that Golden King wouldn’t block him without reason.

“Golden Brother, are you telling me not to go to that boy?”

Golden King nodded vigorously.

Guyang Cheongang stopped moving and jumped down from his horse to block Du Jinseong, who was about to rush to the boy.

“Brother Du, stop. Don’t go near him.”

Though the Guyang Family Estate and Du Family had restored their relationship as main family and vassal family, Guyang Cheongang spoke respectfully to Du Jinseong.

It was a clear indication that the two families were allies rather than master and servant, and because Du Jinseong was one year older than him.

‘Akasha, Golden King’s attitude is too different from usual. He seems to sense something dangerous from that boy… Please perform a precision scan of the child’s body.’

[Understood, Doctor.]

Akasha deployed one nanobot into the boy’s corpse for detailed examination.

After a moment, her voice carried an unprecedented sense of crisis.

[Doctor, you must leave this area immediately. Yersinia pestis bacteria has been detected in the subject’s blood and tissues. What killed this boy was septicemic plague.]

“Plague…”

Guyang Cheongang’s complexion changed dramatically.

Though he hadn’t majored in medicine, he knew well how terrifying a plague had been throughout human history.

Even in the Life and Death Medical Classic, plague was recorded under the name epidemic disease, described as a disaster that could devour an entire nation once it began to spread.

‘If it’s septicemic plague… it won’t spread through air unless it mutates to pneumonic form. But…’

His gaze turned toward the dark forest path from which the boy had emerged.

‘Beyond that forest… what on earth is happening?’

Chills ran through his entire body as he intuited that he had encountered the plague, called humanity’s worst disaster.

‘Akasha, execute preventive measures immediately.’

[Understood, Doctor. From now on, I will release nanobots around Doctor and Du Jinseong’s bodies to form a ‘nano-aerosol filter.’]

Akasha’s voice echoed in his mind.

[This filter will physically block pathogens floating in the air or infection vectors like fleas from approaching within a one-meter radius. Please note that internal energy will be continuously consumed while maintaining the filter.]

As soon as Akasha finished speaking, Guyang Cheongang felt hair-thin streams of internal energy steadily flowing out from his dantian.

Hundreds of nanobots were being released, beginning to form and maintain an invisible barrier.

Guyang Cheongang spoke to Du Jinseong, who was looking at him with a bewildered expression.

“Brother Du, that child is already dead. And he was afflicted with a terrible epidemic disease, so absolutely do not go near him.”

“An epidemic disease…!”

Shock and confusion mixed on Du Jinseong’s face.

He couldn’t understand at all how Guyang Cheongang had noticed the boy was already dead from ten zhang away, and even knew he had contracted an epidemic disease without taking his pulse.

Regardless, Guyang Cheongang continued speaking.

“Brother Du, please gather some dry branches.”

And he too began collecting dry branches from the surroundings.

Du Jinseong didn’t understand what was happening but immediately followed his instructions.

His martial arts barely reached first-rate level. Still, he was far stronger and faster than ordinary people.

In less than half an hour, branches as tall as a person had been piled up.

Only then did Guyang Cheongang slowly approach the boy’s corpse.

Du Jinseong, realizing what he intended to do, asked urgently.

“Grand Young Master, didn’t you say it was an epidemic disease? Approaching is dangerous.”

“I’ve taken preventive measures, so it’s fine.”

Du Jinseong became anxiously frustrated since he couldn’t know what preventive measures had been taken.

Regardless, Guyang Cheongang continued walking toward the child.

Du Jinseong sighed inwardly and asked.

“Are you going to cremate him? The child must have family. Shouldn’t we bury him first and notify his family?”

Guyang Cheongang looked back at him.

“Brother Du, the toxic qi of this epidemic disease remains in corpses, contaminating the ground, and can easily spread to others through rats or small insects.”

His voice was calm as he continued.

“With this era’s hygiene concepts, safe burial is difficult to expect. Purifying everything with high-temperature fire to prevent further victims is the best path for both that child and all of us living, and our final courtesy.”

Du Jinseong was left speechless by his explanation.

‘He identifies diseases without taking pulses, and even predicts transmission through ground and insects. The Grand Young Master’s actions are beyond Gangho’s common sense. But there’s not a hint of hesitation or wavering in his eyes. How can this be…?’

Guyang Cheongang continued with a bitter expression.

“And if that child reached this state, there’s a high possibility that not only his family but the entire village has already met with disaster.”

Deep knowledge and consideration he didn’t understand.

Du Jinseong could no longer say anything and closed his mouth.

[Doctor, nano bio-protective film has been activated. It will block 100% of direct contact with pathogens.]

Invisible nanobots formed a thin membrane over Guyang Cheongang’s skin and clothes.

He was now perfectly protected from the risk of infection by plague bacteria even if he directly touched the corpse.

He carefully lifted the boy’s corpse and laid it on the pre-stacked wood pile. Then he took out a fire starter.

Samadhi True Fire, which creates fire with true energy, is the exclusive domain of masters who have reached supreme levels.

Guyang Cheongang had not yet reached that realm.

After a moment, small sparks transferred to the dry branches.

Whoooosh-

The flames instantly intensified, beginning to fiercely burn the boy’s corpse along with traces of the plague.

Du Jinseong broke the silence and spoke.

His voice was full of worry.

“Grand Young Master, what do you plan to do now? Shouldn’t we return to the Family Estate as quickly as possible to inform the Family Head about this terrible epidemic disease?”

His words were extremely rational and natural.

But Guyang Cheongang seemed to have no intention of returning, staring at the dark forest path from which the boy had emerged.

“There’s something to do before returning to the Family Estate.”

“What? What do you mean…?”

“We must go where the dead boy came from.”

Du Jinseong’s expression hardened.

“Grand Young Master, didn’t you say that place would already be dead from the epidemic disease? Going there is too dangerous.”

Guyang Cheongang looked back at Du Jinseong with calm eyes and asked.

“Brother Du, do you know what’s most important when facing an enemy? It’s ‘knowing’ the enemy.”

His eyes as he continued were like a still lake without a ripple of wavering.

“This epidemic disease is the same. Right now we know nothing about this thing. How it started, how quickly it spreads, and what weaknesses it has. If we just run away like this, it’s only a matter of time before this disaster engulfs Nanchang.”

His gaze turned toward the forest once more.

“We must go to the boy’s village. After gathering as much information as possible there, we’ll return to the Family Estate.”

Du Jinseong trembled at his words.

It wasn’t from fear.

It was because of the awe he felt toward the Grand Young Master, who would not avoid the disaster before his eyes but instead walk into its very heart to face it head-on.

Guyang Cheongang commanded Akasha.

‘Akasha, from now on we’re going to enter where the boy came from. Since we don’t know what might be there, deploy the nanobots to protect us.’

[Understood, Doctor.]

Guyang Cheongang stepped into the forest without hesitation.

Du Jinseong also followed behind him with a stern expression.

The two men advanced along the forest path, relying on Akasha’s nanobot reconnaissance and protection.

Of course, Du Jinseong could never have imagined this.

About two hours had passed when it happened.

A small village revealed itself beyond the forest.

Small fields carved into the mountainside, medicinal herbs hanging from house eaves, and dozens of people lying dead scattered throughout…

The village that had been poor but peaceful was now a perfect space of death where not a trace of life could be felt.

Du Jinseong, standing at the village entrance, was left speechless by the devastation.

However, he felt even greater shock and strangeness seeing Guyang Cheongang, who was a year younger than himself, observing the village with cold analysis instead of grieving or being frightened.

‘To be able to maintain composure even before such disaster… I’m starting to doubt whether the Grand Young Master is even human…’

Completely unaware of what Du Jinseong was thinking, Guyang Cheongang was conversing with Akasha.

[Doctor, judging by the structure of this village’s houses and the form of the surrounding farmland, these people were slash-and-burn farmers who cleared mountains to create fields. Also, considering the large amount of medicinal herbs and gathering tools scattered outside several houses, there’s a high possibility they also worked as herb gatherers.]

‘I need to accurately understand the characteristics of this plague. Akasha, conduct a detailed analysis of the corpses to secure data.’

[Understood.]

Following his command, invisible nanobots began infiltrating the victims’ corpses to collect plague data.

After a while, Akasha’s voice resonated in Guyang Cheongang’s mind.

[Data acquisition complete. Due to contamination possibilities, recovery of the units (nanobots) deployed for analysis is impossible. I will now execute the self-destruct sequence to incinerate them along with all pathogens using high heat.]

‘It can’t be helped. What’s the scale of the loss?’

[50 nanobots.]

Leaving the Slash-and-Burn Village, Guyang Cheongang searched the surrounding area with Du Jinseong.

He wanted to confirm how far the plague had spread.

They were able to find three more villages spaced about twenty li apart.

The result was the same as the first village they had seen.

Complete annihilation.

In Guyang Cheongang’s mental image, a map analyzed by Akasha appeared.

[Doctor, I’ve marked the locations of the four villages confirmed so far on the map. Based on the current transmission pattern, while we cannot pinpoint the plague’s origin, it’s estimated to be spreading rapidly from north to southeast.]

‘How much time do you think remains before it reaches Nanchang?’

Akasha’s answer was devastating.

[Considering the current transmission speed and Nanchang’s geographical location, there’s a 91% probability that the plague will reach Namchang Outskirts within 72 hours.]

Three days.

That was the time remaining before a major city with hundreds of thousands of people would transform into hell.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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