Murim Login - Chapter 406
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 406
The age of upheaval that began with Demon King Asmodeus’s descent was grim and chaotic, yet humanity, having overcome the crisis, swiftly repaired the damage and achieved a civilization more advanced than before.
However, for some, there existed things far more important than Elevators powered by mana stones or healing potions.
“It’s that the internet got faster, you see.”
The man murmured in a reverent tone, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
The current time was 11:30 AM. Behind him, freshly added ramen bubbled away with a gentle sizzle, while the dining table held cold rice and aged kimchi.
All preparations were complete. In exactly three minutes, after deliberating during a supermarket sale, he would add one—no, two—premium grade A eggs, then wait another two minutes for the perfect lunch to be finished.
And until then, the tedium would be dispelled by that marvel of modern civilization: the smartphone.
“Let’s see what’s on the news today….”
The man hummed as he scrolled through his smartphone screen.
On the main page of the large forum site he frequented, the Hunter Academy, new best posts were being updated according to their rankings.
1st. [Consecutive victories, the monster army already as good as annihilated? UN Security Council issues official statement. “Humanity is strong. However, the war is not yet over. Vigilance until the very end is essential.”]
2nd. [The miracle of Sichuan Province. That day, Jin Tae-kyung stood at the center of it all.]
3rd. [Rising national prestige day by day, the birth of a new hero. K-POP, kimchi sales surge.]
4th. [Scheduled Korea-US summit proceeds… US President Trump makes unprecedented remarks at official event, “Is this the country of Jin Tae-kyung? He is my idol.”]
5th. [The Ares Guild continues its winning streak. Truly living up to its reputation.]
6th. [Chinese President Xiao Yang, “They are all heroes.”]
7th. [Maesaengi.com translation, overseas netizens’ reactions to the current situation. “Who exactly is this Jumo that Koreans keep killing whenever they get the chance?”]
8th. [Japanese Prime Minister Maigumi Shinjiro, “Monster waves must be dealt with in a fun, cool, and sexy manner.” When a reporter asked what he meant, he grinned and said, “Explaining that itself wouldn’t be sexy.”]
9th. [Russian President Putin, “To me, Shinjiro is like quantum mechanics. No matter how much I look at him, I cannot understand.”]
10th. [Web novelist turned prophet, Zero Big exclusive interview. “How do I feel now? Bewildered. Might as well take a hiatus today.” During the interview, his furious editor-in-chief barges in, resulting in twelve weeks of injuries. An unintended hiatus. Yet Zero Big laughs, saying he’s happy to finally rest while bleeding, as his editor-in-chief Lee Mo weeps, “He’s not even human.”]
.
.
.
“Wow. It’s absolute chaos. Complete chaos.”
A smile played at the corners of the man’s lips as he murmured. No matter how far he scrolled, everything was about Jin Tae-kyung.
Though there seemed to be some oddly-worded articles mixed in between, simply watching filled his chest with a deep sense of pride.
The comment section was already on the verge of exploding.
The firepower these days is insane. I’ve been on Hunter Academy since elementary school, but I’ve never seen it heat up like this;;;
└ The real crazy one is Jin Tae-kyung. He slaughtered ten thousand monsters single-handedly. Even thinking about it again, it’s absurd. How is that even possible?
└ It’s impressive, but let’s be accurate with our words. It wasn’t ten thousand, more like a few thousand.
Haha, isn’t that just as crazy though?
Lol, the kind of guy who’d be like “Ow ow please let go” if a goblin’s poison needle hit his ass; aren’t you the same guy who was casting Aura Blade with your keyboard last time?
But at this level, Jin Tae-kyung doesn’t seem like just an S-rank Hunter anymore? Are all the other S-rank Hunters like this too?
└ Even during the upheaval, feats like this were rare; excluding Cheon Tae-min since he’s beyond comparison… Just look at the records from the upheaval and Lee Jung-yong has similar feats to his name, right?
└ Hmm. So he’s still not at Lee Jung-yong’s level? That’s disappointing.
└ ?? Does Lee Jung-yong look like some old man at a mountain spring to you? He’s just overshadowed by Cheon Tae-min, but judging by his feats so far, the power he’s demonstrated, and his influence, he’s among the top tier in the entire world;
└ 222. Just look at a week ago and you have your answer. Across all five battle fronts, the Northern Front destroyed the monster army with the least casualties. Jin Tae-kyung is impressive, but Lee Jung-yong and the Ares Guild are also incredible. The advance speed of the Northern Front is a bit faster too.
└ Comments like this make me anxious for some reason. I’m worried thoughtless kids will come rushing in and start versus wars.
└ They’ll get IP-banned hard anyway. But at this level, isn’t the crisis basically over? They’re absolutely crushing the monsters in mobile warfare right now.
└ Undefeated for a whole week lol
└ Even the Arch Lich must’ve been caught off guard. He launched a surprise attack a week ago with full force, but got completely wiped out. The Death Knight Lord is dead too, and the ones who survived and fled are getting hunted down as we speak. It’s hopeless.
At this point, shouldn’t the Arch Lich step in? It’s been too quiet, which is weird.
└ I had the same thought, so I sent him a KakaoTalk yesterday to check in.
└ ? To who?
└ The Arch Lich. He said he’s busy with his promotion matches right now. He was excited saying if he wins this round, he’s going to Gold.
└ The guy above is insane.
└ The real lunatic is Zero Big. Why did that author suddenly go on hiatus? You gotta row when the tide comes in, this is ridiculous.
└ Stop spouting nonsense. What matters now is that if things continue like this, we can suppress this monster wave without further major casualties. Let’s pray for a swift resolution and observe a moment of silence for those who lost their lives.
└ Hmm… I don’t hate China, but yeah. Every country has both idiots and decent people coexisting. Respect to all the Hunters and soldiers.
└ Fighting.
The overall atmosphere among netizens was cheerful.
What had initially been perceived as a grave crisis—the monster wave—was now being used as material for national pride, and in the comments mourning the victims while offering encouragement, hope replaced fear.
‘Come to think of it, I’ve been hearing a lot of good news lately.’
The man nodded. It made sense. According to the situation reports from the UN Security Council, victory was clearly within reach.
A week ago, the surprise assault launched simultaneously against five battle fronts had caused significant casualties, but reinforcements far exceeding the losses were dispatched, and since then it had been one victory after another.
‘At this pace, it might all be over in a few days.’
Truly unstoppable momentum. Among them, the most striking were the Western Front under Jin Tae-kyung’s command and the Northern Front led by Lee Jung-yong.
‘That bastard. I was really worried at first, but he’s doing better than I expected.’
After a moment’s thought, the man logged into the site and left a comment.
Jin Tae-kyung’s Roommate
: Is that really the loser Jin Tae-kyung? The real Jin Tae-kyung is a legend. Back in the day we used to eat ramen together all the time, but seeing him become an S-rank Hunter like a king and turn into a world-class legendary hero, I’m genuinely moved….
The moment he posted, replies started pouring in like a downpour.
Sung Jin-ho, who had been gazing at his phone with a satisfied expression, suddenly realized he’d forgotten something important.
“No! My ramen!”
* * *
“Man, I’m craving ramen.”
At my murmur, Choi Team Leader beside me asked. Having finished his recovery, he’d joined the front lines by jet last night.
“Did you say something, sir?”
“Yeah, it’s strange.”
“Given the circumstances, Jin Tae-kyung seems even more impressive.”
Slash!
The [Hero’s Soul] swung like a beam of light, severing both the Lizard Man’s weapon and body simultaneously.
Gushing green blood and a stench that assaulted the nostrils. I felt my appetite vanish as I hurled myself forward.
Screeeech, Boom!
Extinction Flame Divine Fist.
Terrible heat engulfed dozens of Lizard Men, burning them to ash. The monsters faltering at that sight were already indistinguishable from a defeated army.
Reading the momentum, Shao Shen rushed forward at the vanguard and shouted.
「Charge! Charge forward!」
「Waaaaaaah-!」
「Winds of blade, heed my call! Wind Cutter!」
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whirrr!
Clang! Screech!
– Shrieeeek!
– Screech, hack!
Against the relentless tide of human assault, the monsters crumbled helplessly.
Though their numbers were comparable, they were utterly outmatched in morale and the quality of their forces.
As the front lines collapsed like a sandcastle, several terrified creatures turned and began to flee.
‘And collapse comes in an instant.’
Fear is contagious.
When one flees, ten follow, and soon an unstoppable rout ensues.
As expected, my prediction proved accurate, and moments later came the triumphant cries of assured victory.
「Pursue them! Not a single one must escape!」
「Apply speed buffs, quickly!」
「Long-range units! Ready, fire!」
Whoosh, whoosh, whirr! Boom!
The Hunters, riding high on momentum, abandoned all formation and began slaughtering the fleeing monsters.
It didn’t take long for the six-lane asphalt highway, which just a month ago had been choked with vehicles, to become clogged with monster corpses.
“Another victory.”
After the battle ended, I shrugged at Choi Team Leader as he approached while I was checking my equipment.
“For someone delivering good news, your expression seems rather off.”
“That’s strange. I was just thinking the same thing while looking at Jin Tae-kyung.”
“…Hmm.”
It seemed we were thinking along similar lines.
True to his words, despite our victory, I felt no joy whatsoever.
This sense of unease began on the second day after we launched our mobile operations for the full-scale counteroffensive.
“What are your thoughts, Choi Team Leader?”
“Which aspect are you referring to? The significant reduction in the number and quality of monsters? Or the dozens of victories we’ve achieved over the past week?”
“Both.”
“I suspect it’s the same concern Jin Tae-kyung is harboring. Certainly, the current battle situation is encouraging, but… something feels off.”
Choi Team Leader gazed at the cheering soldiers.
Exhausted faces brightened with smiles—hopeful expressions of those who believed they would soon end this war and return to their loved ones.
“I understand the reasoning. There were simply too many high-tier monsters at the beginning of the war. If we’d suffered losses among our elite forces, a situation like this could certainly occur. However….”
“The Arch Lich. That creature wouldn’t be this docile. Wouldn’t you agree, Choi Team Leader?”
Choi Team Leader nodded slightly and asked.
“Does the upper command share our concerns?”
“Likely. While I can’t speak for the other S-rank Hunters, Defense Minister Wei Penghu certainly understands the situation clearly.”
“Then that’s fortunate, but….”
Choi Team Leader trailed off. He was probably arriving at the same conclusion I had.
Now we were nearly at our destination—Suining City was within reach.
Throughout the entire war, the Arch Lich had never once revealed himself. What in the world could he possibly be doing now?
– Hmm. By now, it would be time to oil the bones. Maintaining proper care is essential to becoming a magnificent undead.
“….”
Shut up.
* * *
A tremendous rushing sound echoed through the void.
An expansive space. The swirling darkness was drawn inward toward some distant point.
The pitch-black darkness vanished, and the crimson glow of sunset streaming through shattered windowpanes touched upon a singular being.
– Come forth, my adversary.
A voice as cool as winter wind. The Arch Lich, having gathered his magical power, blazed with ethereal light in his eyes.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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