Infinite Evolution Hunter - Chapter 61

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

61
“Gate Break? Three at once?”
Yang Sang-heon’s face went pale as he read the Hunter alert on his app.
“Grab only what’s essential. We’re leaving now.”
At my command, the Oh Brothers and Yang Sang-heon threw their belongings into the vehicle with a clatter, and I tossed mine in without bothering to organize anything.
Thud! Thud!
“Let’s go!”
I hung from the back and rapped on the vehicle’s body.
I opened the app to assess the situation in detail. Two Gates near the Temporary Command Post and one near New North Korea had all ruptured simultaneously. This was the first time three Gates had broken at once since Gates first appeared. In my previous life, nothing like this happened during this period—it seemed the future had changed due to Korea’s North Korean territory reclamation project.
The saving grace was that many Hunters were concentrated in this area. With this many gathered, we could probably contain the Breaks. However, with three rupturing simultaneously, casualties were inevitable. And that assumed New North Korea could handle theirs without issue.
“Brother! Can you see it?!”
“Yeah. I’m watching.”
Monsters were already pouring out of the Gates and advancing southward. Unlike those that had bred on Earth or wild animals that had transformed into monsters, those emerging directly from Gates had an uncanny ability to track human scent.
I hung from the back of the vehicle, then jumped down and ran alongside it, eliminating monsters in our path.
“Chang-hee! Get up here and provide covering fire!”
Chang-hee shot at the distant ones while I fired my aura to take them down, but the sheer numbers spreading widely southward felt like trying to bail out the ocean with a cup. Even compressed as my aura was, I couldn’t use it indefinitely. My life force would be depleted before I could eliminate all those monsters.
Just like during the Troll Gate Break before, I didn’t have the stamina to pursue them all. I had to seal the entrance first. I could only hope the remaining Hunters in Korea would stop the ones advancing southward.
After thirty minutes of driving, I arrived at the nearest Gate. It was already hell. Modern weapons and Hunters were unleashing attacks from the front, but they couldn’t contain all the emerging monsters—creatures were pouring out in every direction.
“You all stay in the rear! Don’t overextend!”
I gave the order to Yang Sang-heon and the Oh Brothers, then charged into the center of the battlefield.
“Lee Ji-seok! Thank goodness you’re here!”
Leaving the Commander’s greeting behind, I immediately enlarged myself and charged to the front of the Hunter unit.
As I, now the size of a Troll, swept away all the smaller creatures, the defense became easier, and we could redirect forces to the perimeter to contain those trying to escape.
“An A-rank Hunter has arrived! Push forward!”
The morale of the Hunters soared as they watched me enlarge and crush the monsters.
Everyone began taking their positions, and now we could actually hold the line. The fact that the Gate causing the Break was D-rank helped considerably. The highest-tier monsters were C-rank creatures like Minotaurs and Hellhounds. There were many, but not so many that our forces couldn’t handle them.
If it had been a C-rank or B-rank Gate, containment would have been far more difficult.
I was thinking we just needed to hold out a bit longer until reinforcements arrived from Korea.
“C-Commander! Monsters are approaching from the flank!”
“What? From the side? Are the ones that escaped coming back?”
“N-No, sir. They’re coming down from the north. From the New North Korea Gate direction!”
“Damn it, they couldn’t contain it… Reorganize the troops! Reinforce the flank defense! Machine guns, mortars, missiles—use everything we have!”
At the Commander’s order, modern weapons incinerated the smaller creatures, but the larger ones burst through the flames and smoke.
“Here they come!!”
I moved to where the monsters from the Gate and those descending from the north converged, striking with my body and fists. But as Hellhounds—mid-sized monsters smaller than me but still formidable—swarmed like a pack, I couldn’t repel them all, and many slipped past me.
Even the B-rank Hunters fought desperately, but it was just as difficult. With the overwhelming numbers—three more appearing for every one defeated—we were steadily pushed into a defensive position.
“If we lose this position, those bastards reach Korea! Hold the line!”
“Stop shouting and fire another round, you fool!”
The soldiers cursed and fired their machine guns and mortars. Every minor monster they eliminated reduced the burden on the Hunters.
“Healer! Healer!”
The Hunters in the front lines were being wounded one by one, retreating backward. The monsters kept multiplying while our numbers dwindled. I found myself wishing Bae Na-young were here, but there was no point dwelling on someone who wasn’t present.
That’s when a Troll emerged from the Gate. Since it was a D-rank Gate, multiple wouldn’t pour out, but this single creature was threatening enough.
“Damn it… Are you trying to kill us all?!”
I heard the Hunters’ cries of despair, but to me, it looked like an opportunity to gain loot.
I broke from formation and charged at the creature.
“Lee… Lee Ji-seok! Where are you going?!”
The Hunter beside me, who had been fighting with a spear, shouted as I withdrew. My departure made his position more dangerous.
“Don’t stop him! If Lee Ji-seok can’t take down that Troll, we’re all dead! Keep your eyes forward!”
Another Hunter pushed back an Orc with his shield while speaking.
Seeing me charge forward, trampling and kicking through monsters, the Troll swung its massive club horizontally.
I accelerated and dove into its embrace before the club could complete its swing. Then I hooked my arm over its shoulder and twisted, slamming it face-first to the ground.
“Grraaaaahhh!”
The creature shrieked as its arm bent backward.
I pinned its neck to the ground and, infusing my fists with aura, rained down a barrage of rapid punches on its head. My fists, wrapped in armor and surrounded by aura, easily shattered the Troll’s skull.
I had crushed the Troll’s head with ease—something I’d struggled with before—but there was no time to savor the victory. I immediately wedged its two legs against my sides.
“What… What are you trying to do?”
“Could it be… Get back!!”
I spun. A giant swing, just like you’d see in wrestling.
Whirling around, I used the creature’s body as a weapon, lashing out at the monsters pouring from the Gate.
“The monsters are retreating! All ranged Hunters, unleash everything!”
Then I hurled the creature toward the densest cluster of monsters. As the Troll flew through the air, a massive shadow formed, and it crashed down with a deafening boom. The dozens of tons of Troll didn’t stop—it rolled, flattening every monster beneath it.
I picked up the Troll’s club. I normally don’t use weapons, and when I enlarge myself, it becomes even harder to wield them. But the wooden club the Troll had brought from the Gate was large enough for me to handle. And despite being wood, since it came from the Gate, its durability exceeded that of steel.
I swung the club, batting and pushing back the surrounding monsters.
“That’s it! Crush them all!”
“Damn it! You think you’re the only ones with a Troll?! We have Giant Lee Ji-seok!”
Some Hunters, in their extreme excitement, were shouting embarrassing things.
With monsters advancing from the flanks, blocking the Gate entrance became meaningless. The Hunters shifted their formation into a lateral line. Thanks to that, I darted left and right, taking down and eliminating the stronger monsters. But as the front line extended, I couldn’t cover everything.
“Hold the line!”
A warrior pushing back monsters with his shield.
“Potion… Potion!”
A Hunter bleeding heavily from his abdomen, searching for a potion.
“Healer! Where’s the Healer!”
Those holding fallen comrades and searching for the Healer turned the battlefield into chaos.
“Damn… I can’t die here!”
Several Hunters began backing away, trying to flee.
Pppppppboom!!!
Rain of fire fell from the sky, and countless monsters turned to ash.
“R… Reinforcements!”
Looking up, I saw a Hunter in a helicopter wielding a wand, pouring flames down to the ground.
More helicopters carrying Hunters approached in succession. They were backup.
Boom!
The moment the Hunters jumped from the helicopter without landing, using ropes, a massive arrow pierced through the aircraft.
“Huh?”
Before the pilot and nearby Hunters could even comprehend what was happening, the helicopter exploded. The falling Hunters were caught in the blast and crashed to the ground.
“What… what is this?!”
As arrows were fired at the following helicopter, the trailing aircraft hastily changed direction.
“What is it! A monster?!”
“No! It’s being fired from the mountain!”
Whoosh.
Sensing danger, I tilted my head back just as an arrow passed through where my head had been. The speed and force were such that a direct hit would have been catastrophic.
Boom!
The arrow that grazed past me pierced through all the monsters in its path and embedded itself in the ground.
I immediately sprinted toward the direction the arrow came from. Since my enlarged form made me a bigger target, I released the transformation and ran with my arms raised to protect my head.
With my heightened senses, I scanned the distant mountain several kilometers away. When I deflected another incoming arrow with my armor’s gauntlet, I gained a clearer direction. In the middle of a densely wooded mountain, I spotted someone drawing the string of a bow as tall as a person. Though their face was hidden behind a mask, I recognized them from the massive bow, the arrows, and their eyes. I wondered why they were here now, but there was no time to dwell on it. Regardless of their reasons, I had to stop whoever was attacking us.
Arrows came in succession. Relying on my keen senses, I deflected them with my armor while charging forward. Some grazed my body, but I didn’t worry since I regenerated immediately.
Even as I closed the distance, the figure showed no sign of fleeing.
“Hah!”
The Axe Wielder burst out from the side, letting out a battle cry as he swung his axe at me.
I rolled to dodge and created distance.
As the Axe Wielder raised his hand, the one behind him who had been aiming the bow at me loosened the string and lowered the weapon.
“Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be guarding the Gate in New North Korea?”
“Ah, you didn’t know? I caused these Breaks.”
The figure spoke with boastful arrogance.
“What?”
“I pushed useless people up to the Gate’s capacity limit and killed them.”
“You insane bastard… do you want to die? If monsters spread like this, what makes you think you’ll be safe?”
“Of course I’ll be safe. How do you think I’ve survived on North Korean soil until now? If you Koreans get pushed back by monsters, we can return to our original lives.”
“Is that why you brought Tian Fei here?”
I gestured with my chin toward the figure behind them.
“…How did you know?”
The archer is Tian Fei, a Chinese Hunter. He’s not particularly famous in Korea right now, but he’ll become a Chinese S-rank Hunter in the future. Or perhaps, judging by the arrow’s power, he’s already at the early S-rank level.
“Well, I don’t know how you know Tian Fei, but either way, all the Korean Hunters here will die. And afterward, China agreed to sweep away the monsters with missiles like before.”
I had wondered why China was so quiet while we were restoring North Korean Territory, but they were scheming like this behind the scenes. China didn’t have the manpower to occupy and restore the land themselves, but they also resented us Koreans claiming it.
“Was this your plan all along when you sold the rights to North Korean Territory to Korea for a pittance? You never intended to coexist from the start.”
“Coexist? If anything, I’d be lucky if you captured me and put me on trial later. If I let Korean bastards near me, I’d be assassinated without a trace. Why would I want to coexist?”
“You do such filthy things, so of course you can’t sleep soundly. You bandit scum.”
“Let’s see if you can still run your mouth even after I cut off your limbs.”
The figure, veins bulging from their head, infused a blood-red aura into their axe and charged at me.

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