Player of a Ruined World - Chapter 129

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

Player of the Ruined World – Episode 129
There had been times in the past when Kang Haneul spoke as much as he did now.
When we encountered the Liquefaction Type at the Haengdang-dong Safe House.
Thanks to that, we discovered how to neutralize the Liquefaction Type, and Park Sangil stepped forward to eliminate it.
Since the rest of the group knew this, they began focusing intently on Kang Haneul’s explanation.
“You said the Mutant is using some kind of magnetic field barrier, right? If we use that to our advantage… wouldn’t that still generate pushing force?”
When Kim Heejoo asked, Kang Haneul scratched his eyebrow and answered.
“I was about to mention that. If it’s not ultrasound itself, but rather a medium collapse attack that destroys the air itself…”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“What I mean is, if ultra-high-output ultrasound causes localized air density to fluctuate rapidly and micro shockwaves occur, then distortions or rebounds that appear ‘as if it were blown away’ could manifest.”
Then Lee Kwanghyun, who had been sitting quietly listening, raised his eyes and spoke.
“It wasn’t just appearing to be blown away—it was actually blown away. Like it was bouncing back.”
…
“Now that I think about it… the surroundings did seem to distort when that thing attacked. Though it happened so fast I didn’t see it clearly.”
“Or it could be plasma resonance ultrasound.”
“What’s that supposed to be?”
“Ultrasound ionizes the air and forms a micro plasma layer. Then the magnetic field fixes and shapes the plasma.”
In these moments, Kang Haneul had spoken far more than he had in the past three days combined.
Most of the group was astonished by Kang Haneul’s demeanor.
Their expressions seemed to ask: was he always this talkative?
Lee Kwanghyun didn’t understand Kang Haneul’s words, but he asked with a slight cough.
“So… what happens then?”
“The plasma barrier can be maintained. When you were attacked by that thing, did you feel any heat?”
“I don’t know. I was so out of it that my pain sensation was numbed.”
“Hmm… if no high-temperature heat was generated, then something scientifically inexplicable seems to have been added.”
…
“Since reality is like fantasy, as Hyeri said, I don’t know any further.”
“How do we neutralize it?”
“Neutralize it?”
“The barrier enveloping the Mutant’s body.”
At Lee Kwanghyun’s question, Kang Haneul opened his mouth with his arms crossed.
“I’m not sure exactly what’s enveloping the Mutant’s body, but based on my hypothesis… neutralization is impossible.”
“Why?”
“Because that thing uses shockwaves based on ultrasound and magnetic fields, right?”
“…Is that how it works?”
…
Silence descended for a moment.
Everyone’s expression was not much different from Lee Kwanghyun’s.
It was Kang Haneul who broke the silence and spoke first.
“In any case, if what’s enveloping that thing’s body is a type of shockwave, there’s no way to neutralize it.”
“So why not?”
“Because another Shockwave would pierce through it, or it would grow larger, or everything would turn into chaos.”
“Ugh… I’m sorry, but please explain this more simply.”
As Lee Kwanghyun sighed, Kang Haneul scratched his head.
He’d explained it as simply as possible, but his expression suggested he had no idea how to make it any simpler.
“In simple terms… Shockwave versus Shockwave isn’t cancellation—it’s a ‘dominance battle.'”
“Dominance?”
“When two Shockwaves collide, pressure spikes, temperature rises, and irregular turbulence forms. What happens then?”
“What happens?”
“It explodes. Sound waves can cancel each other out, but Shockwaves have pressure, density, and temperature all spike simultaneously.”
“…”
“Unlike sound, which is a linear wave, Shockwaves are nonlinear waves. So the concept of ‘erasing pressure with pressure’ doesn’t apply. Instead, ‘explosion’ is what occurs.”
As Kang Haneul explained, Han Hye-ri rubbed the bridge of her nose with her fingers, lost in thought.
She was straining to understand his explanation.
“So… are you saying I need to hit it with a stronger Shockwave? Since you called it a dominance battle, that’s what you mean, right?”
“Exactly. If the peak pressure and front velocity of the incoming Shockwave are greater, then it’s definitely possible…”
“Yes or no. Just answer with those two.”
When Han Hye-ri wore an expression of resignation, Kang Haneul smacked his lips and continued.
“Yes. You just need to hit it with a stronger Shockwave.”
“…”
“One powerful enough to absorb and collapse the first Shockwave. You need a Shockwave that can instantly tear through the pressure layer and create a turbulent passage.”
“Then I can win?”
“If two Shockwaves collide head-on, an explosion will happen like I mentioned. That’s extremely dangerous, so we need to be careful.”
“How dangerous?”
“An ordinary person would die instantly, and structures would be pulverized.”
“That dangerous?”
“Of course. Shockwaves reflect, refract, and bend themselves. When forces like that collide with zero margin for error…”
Han Hye-ri glared at him, and Kang Haneul stopped mid-sentence and cleared his throat.
“…Yes.”
“What do you mean ‘yes’?”
“Yes or no—you said to answer with just those two.”
“Finish what you were saying.”
“You’re staring so intensely…”
“It’s just because you’re using your head for once, so don’t worry about it. I’m concentrating to understand.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course, it would be even better if you summed it up in one sentence.”
Kang Haneul stared blankly at the ceiling with his mouth open, then after a moment, he snapped his fingers and spoke.
“Let me put it this way… how should I phrase this?”
“…”
“In other words… if the Mutant uses a Shockwave based on ultrasound, air collapse, and fixed plasma magnetic fields, there’s no way to stop it except by attacking with an even stronger Shockwave.”
“A stronger Shockwave….”
“The problem is, we don’t have that kind of power.”
“That’s right, we don’t. But there’s someone who does have that power, isn’t there?”
“There is?”
Han Hye-ri patted Kang Haneul on the shoulder and looked toward Kim Miyeon.
“Miyeon. Can you contact Team 1 right now?”
“Should I call Baek Doyun?”
“Yes, I can’t think of any other way.”
Han Hye-ri knew.
That Baek Doyun possessed a Skill called ‘Shockwave’.
Whenever Baek Doyun learned a Skill or raised his stats, she’d occasionally catch a glimpse of his Player information out of curiosity.
Though she didn’t understand the mechanics of the Skill, Baek Doyun’s power was necessary to face this mysterious Mutant.
Kim Miyeon closed her eyes tightly and activated Whisper’s ability.
Regardless of what situation Team 1 was in, Baek Doyun was needed to save Kim Hanna.

* * *
“Kiiik… Kik.”
“It’s tough.”
The Mutant’s hair wrapped around my curved blade.
I tried to prevent the bridge of my nose from being pierced at all costs, but it was impossible to stop myself in a Frenzy state against the Seventh Mutant’s strength.
Crack— Snap—! Splurt!
I severed the hair and drove straight through the Seventh Mutant’s bridge of the nose.
Ting—!
[You have eliminated the Seventh Mutant.]
[40,000 Points awarded.]
After eliminating the last Seventh Mutant remaining in the Brain Research Institute, I wiped the Mutant’s blood from my blade.
In the process of hunting the final one, I had dealt with a Level 3 Water Demon, a Level 4 Resonance Species, and a Level 3 Severing Type.
Just as the system described, and just as I knew from No Way Home’s information, the Brain Research Institute was nothing but a den of all manner of Mutants.
Should I be grateful that there were no Mimicry Species or Liquefaction Types?
If there had been those, the building wouldn’t have remained intact.
—Baek Doyun.
At that moment, a familiar voice echoed in my mind.
It was Kim Miyeon’s voice from the Shelter.
The fact that Kim Miyeon had contacted me directly… Could something have happened at the Shelter?
—We have information about a new Mutant. Kim Hanna is currently facing it near Ansim Station.
“Kim Hanna alone?”
Startled, I responded to the voice in my mind.
Though she wouldn’t be able to hear my voice.
But more importantly—a new Mutant?
Could it be… that an Eighth Mutant has appeared?
During the twelfth episode, I had only confirmed L Tower among the three given locations.
I had hoped that by skipping the twelfth and thirteenth episodes, I could prevent the Eighth Mutant’s appearance——.
-I heard you have a Skill called Shockwave. According to Haneul, you need to attack with Shockwave to penetrate the enemy’s shield and deal impact damage.
Shockwave?
Since I didn’t understand the situation, I focused on Kim Miyeon’s voice.
-The problem is that if you attack a Mutant with Shockwave, an explosion occurs, and you could be in danger too….
After hearing this much, I immediately left the Brain Research Institute.
What mattered to me was one thing.
It meant only I could handle this.
With Frenzy and Balhwa still active, I had nothing to fear.
How long is the cooldown on Shockwave?
“Shockwave cooldown.”
[Shockwave: Time remaining 3 minutes 24 seconds]
Good, I just need to wait a bit longer to use Shockwave.
I had confirmed the location of Ansim Station on the way, so there was no problem.
“Sangil’s Hyung!”
As I stepped outside and called Park Sangil, he lifted his head while shouldering his rifle.
“There should be an emergency generator in the Brain Research Institute! Please find it with Bae Hyeonseok!”
“An emergency generator?”
“We need to find it and activate it to complete the main episode!”
After finishing my explanation and moving toward Ansim Station, I heard Park Sangil’s voice from behind me.
“Where are you going!”
“I have somewhere to visit briefly! Call me if anything happens!”
Since Park Sanghun was with them, there would be no problem with communication.
With no time to explain everything, I opened my player information while moving toward Ansim Station.
“Tell me my current points.”
[Current Points: 490,196]
[Current Coins: 8]
They had said Shockwave was necessary to deal with the Eighth Mutant.
Shockwave was currently level 3.
To be certain, it would be better to raise Shockwave’s level.
“How many points do I need to enhance Shockwave?”
[The enhancement cost is 480,000 points.]
After checking the message, I invested all the points I had acquired today into Shockwave.
“Enhance Shockwave.”
[Will you consume 480,000 points to enhance Shockwave?]
“Yes.”
[Enhancing Skill ‘Shockwave’.]
Ding—!
[Shockwave Lv.4: Shockwave is added to attacks directed at enemies.]
[Applicable to all weapons, and the range of Shockwave varies depending on the weapon used.]
[Barehanded Attack: Delivers a cone-shaped Shockwave in the direction of the attack. The Shockwave transmits up to a maximum distance of 20m.]
[Bladed Weapons: Delivers a Shockwave that gradually expands in range as the blade is swung. In exchange for the wider range, the Shockwave distance is limited to 12m.]
[Projectiles: Upon projectile impact, a cone-shaped Shockwave up to 4m is generated. This effect possesses piercing properties.]
-All Shockwaves can be used 50 times per hour, and the count is shared across all variants.
-Shockwave damage increases by 1.5x.
Shockwave is a pricier Skill than Frenzy.
The range remains unchanged, but the usage count has increased from 30 to 50 times, and a damage amplification effect has been added.
Shockwave damage multiplied by 1.5x.
With Frenzy and Balhwa still active, if I use Shockwave now….
Confidence surged through me that I could definitely defeat even the Eighth Mutant.
‘Wait, I have 8 coins left.’
Now that I thought about it, I’d obtained 4 coins by skipping the twelfth and thirteenth episodes.
In that case.
“Coin Shop, purchase Skill Book.”
[You consume 5 coins to purchase a Skill Book.]
[There are no Skills currently available to learn.]
[The acquired Skill Book is converted into a Skill Enhancement Coupon.]
[Skill Enhancement Coupon X 1]
As expected, Skills that can be learned from legendary Skill Books cannot be learned from ordinary Skill Books.
But that’s fine.
I never intended to purchase the Skill Book to learn a new Skill in the first place.
“Use Skill Enhancement Coupon. Enhance Skill Shockwave.”
[You use the Skill Enhancement Coupon to enhance ‘Shockwave’.]
Could I really enhance a Skill learned from a legendary Skill Book using an ordinary Skill Enhancement Coupon?
Please….
Ding—!
[Congratulations! Skill ‘Shockwave’ has reached maximum level!]
No way, this actually worked?
Ding—!
[Shockwave Lv.5: Shockwave is added to attacks directed at enemies.]
[Applicable to all weapons, and the range of Shockwave varies depending on the weapon used.]
[Barehanded Attack: Delivers a cone-shaped Shockwave in the direction of the attack. The Shockwave transmits up to a maximum distance of 25m.]
[Bladed Weapons: Delivers a Shockwave that gradually expands in range as the blade is swung. In exchange for the wider range, the Shockwave distance is limited to 15m.]
[Projectiles: Upon projectile impact, a cone-shaped Shockwave up to 5m is generated. This effect possesses piercing properties.]
-All Shockwaves can be used 100 times per hour, and the count is shared across all variants.
-Shockwave damage increases by 2x.

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