Broken Ranker Devours Myths - Chapter 81

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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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The Broken Ranker

Devours Myths

 

Chapter 81

Jet (1)

 

 

 

In front of Lee Gun-san’s mansion was a familiar face.

“Senior?”

It was Kim Min-jeong.

She was pacing in front of the door, unable to press the doorbell.

“Why are you here?”

Lee Hyeon also had a puzzled expression.

“Well, the Lieutenant General called me… No, more than that, Senior, were you still in contact with the Lieutenant General?”

“It just happened recently. What about you?”

“It was only you who couldn’t be reached, Senior. All the Blue Thunder alumni have been keeping in good contact with the Lieutenant General.”

Lee Hyeon thought of Lee Gun-san, who still wielded tremendous influence in the military, and understood.

“But Senior, why did you really… No, more than that,”

Her eyes showed surprise.

Lee Hyeon tensed his shoulders with strength.

It seemed his junior was the first to recognize Jet’s return…

“Why does it smell so bad? It’s not like you fell into a maggot pit or something?”

“……”

Kim Min-jeong covered her nose and waved her hand dismissively.

Lee Hyeon quickly sniffed his clothes.

A sour smell stung his nostrils.

It seemed that taking elixirs consecutively had caused his body to expel waste, creating the foul odor…

Only then did Lee Hyeon realize that the clothes he was wearing had turned pitch black like rags.

“……”

Kim Min-jeong quietly distanced herself from him.

Lee Hyeon was left speechless.

 

* * *

 

[Cleansing and Purification]

A term used in both Buddhism and Taoism, referring to the act of fundamentally purifying body and mind through practice or cultivation.

Through great inner enlightenment, all impurities and waste accumulated in the body are expelled along with worldly troubles.

-Type: Trait.

-Origin: Literature ‘Zhuangzi’

 

“Puhahahat!”

“……”

“Puhahahahat!!”

“……Stop laughing, will you?”

“Puhahahahahahahat!!”

“I said stop laughing!!”

Go Jin-woo clutched his stomach and rolled around on the ground.

Lee Hyeon seriously considered driving this guy out to the outer yard,

“……Ahem!”

“Puhup.”

But seeing Lee Gun-san quietly turning his head and coughing, and Kim Min-jeong giggling, he clenched his fists.

「Kekekekek. Who would have thought our always meticulous apostle would have such a human side!」

「Keuhup.」

Sha Wujing and Son Wukong were laughing just the same.

Lee Hyeon felt all the strength drain from his body.

How long had he been in the bathroom after asking Lee Gun-san for permission?

The clothes he was wearing had become rags and had to be thrown away, and it took washing his body three or four times before the stench finally disappeared.

However, Lee Hyeon regained his confidence seeing his changed appearance in the mirror.

Not only had the various scars that had covered his upper body faded, but his muscles had also become much firmer.

Especially in his mana circuits, there was no longer anything bothersome.

Magic power flowed smoothly as if a highway had been laid, and the width had also expanded, greatly increasing the maximum amount of magic power he could operate at once.

At this level, he was definitely stronger than when he was Jet… no, stronger than back then.

The sacred relics, skills, or additional functions he possessed were of much higher quality.

‘The experience is different too.’

So he wanted to confidently inform Lee Gun-san and Go Jin-woo about his condition, but,

“Hey, what about that unmanned taxi then? There must have been another passenger waiting, right?”

“……I already contacted the company to explain the situation and agreed to pay for cleaning fees.”

“Cleaning fees aren’t the problem. That taxi lost a whole day’s business, didn’t it? Tsk, what a nuisance.”

“I agreed to compensate for that too.”

“Good. At least you have some conscience, you bastard.”

Lee Hyeon briefly considered

whether to throw his axe at this annoying guy.

“Look at those eyes narrowing, bastard. Now you’re going to devour your hyung too.”

“……”

“Still, it’s good to see you wearing the Dokgakgwi Set after so long?”

Go Jin-woo put a lollipop in his mouth and chuckled.

“Congratulations. On coming back. You’ve been through a lot.”

Apparently,

Go Jin-woo was the first to recognize Jet’s return.

With just those words, all the resentment toward him disappeared completely.

No, it was more than that.

All the emotions that had unknowingly built up in his chest over the past four years,

all the frustrating feelings seemed to wash away at once.

Still, he didn’t want to admit it and pouted his lips.

“……Do you think I’ll go easy on you just because you say that?”

“Oh my, is that so? How scary.”

Go Jin-woo, who had been giggling, had his eyes curve into crescents.

Then he looked at Kim Min-jeong as well and said,

“Isn’t it amazing how this combination comes together like this? If only Su-chan was here, the four musketeers would be complete. Right?”

“……Right.”

The group of four who had caused crazy trouble since their academy days.

Today, Lee Hyeon felt Moon Su-chan’s absence particularly keenly.

What would he have said to congratulate him if he had been here?

Kim Min-jeong felt strange watching Lee Hyeon like this.

‘We definitely parted just a few hours ago… What kind of experience did he go through in the meantime?’

Now she found Lee Hyeon’s growth rate terrifyingly fast.

How long has it been since he returned as a Ranker, and yet he’s already shown such growth again.

It felt like the saying “changing day by day” was an understatement.

On one hand, her heart raced at the thought that she might soon see his appearance from four years ago.

Thump!

Thump thump……

“General, may we now ask why you summoned us?”

Kim Min-jeong suppressed her excited feelings and turned to look at Lee Gun-san.

Lee Hyeon and Go Jin-woo’s gazes also turned toward Lee Gun-san.

“Shall we? I was actually waiting, wondering when you and Lee Hyeon would be able to join us.”

Lee Gun-san lightly flicked his finger.

Then the crystal orb that had been placed on the floor floated into the air and projected an image into space.

It was the [Essence of Broken Time].

Whirrrr!

 

[Playing stored memories.]

 

“Min-jeong, you roughly know what kind of operations the military is conducting in various places right now, don’t you?”

Kim Min-jeong glanced at Lee Hyeon and nodded.

“I only know that we detected a scheme the Central Hero Committee of China was planning and are currently eliminating it. And……”

Kim Min-jeong took a breath before continuing.

“I also know they tried to cause a Dungeon Break on Ulleungdo.”

Killing intent dripped down.

Anger toward the Committee.

She too was someone who had taken off her military uniform in disappointment over the sudden dissolution of the Thunder Unit.

Therefore, she vaguely knew that the Committee was behind the sudden disbandment of Blue Thunder.

“That’s right. Fortunately, the elimination operation was successful and we prevented the Break.”

The image showed Ulleungdo with its impressive blue sea.

Helicopter units moving in groups.

Special forces members attempting air strikes while deploying parachutes.

However, Lee Hyeon somehow felt that the eyes of the leader leading the White Night Unit at the front looked familiar.

‘Could it be?’

Thud thud thud-

Leaving Lee Hyeon’s doubts behind, the image continued.

A battle taking place in a forest densely grown with trees.

Images of enemy soldiers being killed or captured appeared in sequence.

The characters ‘氷新 (Ping Xin)’ were embedded on their shoulder patches.

In that moment, Lee Hyeon’s eyes flashed.

 

[ detects a similar legend to her own from those shown in the image.]

[ expresses doubt.]

 

“That’s the White Night Unit. It’s a newly created Awakened unit formed after Blue Thunder was disbanded.”

Lee Gun-san said while looking at the soldiers monitoring Ping Xin with their faces covered by masks.

“Although they haven’t achieved as many military accomplishments as Blue Thunder yet, they’re still proud sons of South Korea. Thanks to them, we were able to subdue most of those bastards before the Break occurred, but……”

The image showed a different location.

Halfway up a mountain.

A very large, open Dungeon Gate was visible.

“You couldn’t prevent the Gate from opening.”

At Lee Hyeon’s words, Lee Gun-san nodded bitterly.

“It seems the dungeon search was faster than we expected. According to reports, they had already finished preparing to open the Gate before the military was deployed.”

Lee Hyeon, Go Jin-woo, and Kim Min-jeong all pressed their lips tightly together.

The fact that the Gate had opened.

It meant the danger of a Break wasn’t over yet.

“The total number of enemy soldiers presumed to have successfully entered the dungeon is twelve. Among them,”

Beep-

The image changed and this time showed one person’s face.

「Kekeke. A familiar face indeed.」

Sha Wujing laughed heartily.

It was someone Lee Hyeon knew well too.

‘Qing Xiao.’

An apostle of Prince Nezha.

He had encountered her in the Dungeon and wondered why he hadn’t seen her since.

It seemed she had actually been active here.

“As you can see, the Lotus Fire King is there too. But it’s not just her.”

Beep.

New faces appeared.

A man and woman with quite fierce eyes.

Their similar appearance revealed they were siblings.

In that moment, the three people’s expressions also changed.

“You know these faces too, don’t you?”

“I never thought the Twin Disasters would appear here.”

The Twin Disasters were famous Rankers belonging to the Central Hero Committee along with Lotus Fire King Qing Xiao.

Twin siblings notorious for causing much trouble in various places around the world.

“There are already three confirmed Rankers inside the dungeon. We’re quickly investigating how many more there might be. However,”

“You’re being cautious about elimination because you haven’t clearly grasped the enemy’s exact strength yet.”

“That’s right.”

At Lee Hyeon’s words, Lee Gun-san nodded heavily.

“We expected they would deploy considerable forces since they’re planning a Break on the scale of the Gangneung incident, but…… we didn’t know it would be to this extent.”

“Chairman Peng always makes surprisingly bold moves that even surprise his opponents when he throws down the gauntlet. Perhaps,”

Lee Hyeon’s eyes looking at the image grew deeper.

“There might be other Rankers, or even High Rankers.”

Go Jin-woo and Kim Min-jeong swallowed dryly.

High Rankers.

If national-level forces had moved, this matter really couldn’t be taken lightly.

“So the military is currently reorganizing its forces. But…… time is of the essence.”

“That’s why you called not only me but Min-jeong as well. Jin-woo hyung is also heavily armed.”

Lee Hyeon estimated how much help he, Kim Min-jeong, and Go Jin-woo could provide when deployed as reinforcements.

‘The currently identified number of enemies is twelve…… If we add those we haven’t identified yet, roughly around fifteen. Among them, the minimum number of Rankers is three, and there might even be High Rankers.’

 

[‘Sacred Relic: Golden Headband’ activates, accelerating thought speed.]

 

Whirrrrr.

A sound like something spinning could be heard in his head.

Something like afterimages quickly passed over Lee Hyeon’s pupils.

‘I don’t know how much force the currently deployed White Night Unit has, but assuming they can handle two or three Rankers sufficiently…… The level we three can handle is one High Ranker. It’s almost evenly matched.’

Lee Hyeon narrowed his eyes.

‘No good. This isn’t enough. We need to push them with overwhelming force to prevent them from doing anything else.’

Even though his own strength had changed, Lee Hyeon never overestimated himself.

‘Moreover, they’re definitely looking for the Collapse Demon King too…… I need to secure time to move separately by myself. It’ll take more time for other reinforcements to be organized. Should I request support from White Burn then?’

However, the Lee Gun-san that Lee Hyeon knew wasn’t someone who would reach out to private companies if possible.

It wasn’t because he was ignoring White Burn.

Rather, it was because of his pride and duty as a soldier.

No matter how great White Burn was, the duty to protect the citizens of South Korea that they had to uphold……

Then a thought flashed through Lee Hyeon’s mind.

There was exactly one way to resolve this matter without requesting support from White Burn.

‘Come to think of it…… this current situation is just like an operation briefing……’

In that moment, Lee Hyeon realized something and turned to look at Go Jin-woo.

Go Jin-woo’s current equipment was the same as it had been four years ago.

His appearance from before discharge.

From his Blue Thunder days……

And the clothes Lee Gun-san was wearing were the same.

Not the attire of a reservist, but the uniform from his lieutenant general days.

At first, he thought it was because of the situation—that he was preparing to personally take the field at any moment.

But it seemed that wasn’t the case.

“Lieutenant General, could it be?”

Heh.

Lee Gun-san smiled lightly.

“You’re just now catching on? Really, you can be so slow to notice sometimes.”

Lee Hyeon’s eyes widened.

Conversely, Lee Gun-san’s eyes grew deeper.

“That’s right. Temporarily, but I’m thinking of reviving Blue Thunder. A considerable number of former unit members are already armed and standing by on Ulleungdo.”

“……!”

“Being a reserve general and a High Ranker, I just received an official support request. Blue Thunder will be deployed starting right now as a mercenary unit.”

In that moment, the corners of Lee Hyeon’s eyes trembled.

Lee Gun-san spoke with emphasis.

“And I want you to lead them again.”

“……!!”

Lee Gun-san asked.

“Can you do it?”

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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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