The All-Time Best Talent was F-Class Purification - Chapter 56

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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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56
Chapter 56 – An Elite Talent Awakened as an F-Rank Purifier
4 AM. Inside the dilapidated Repair Shop serving as our temporary base, I sat before a tablet PC, hammering out the final terms of our agreement.
[I’m departing. But there are conditions.]
The reply came instantly.
[Blue Tower Control Center: Conditions? We’ve already issued the first supply shipment. Your greed is showing.]
I snorted derisively and typed my response.
[That was the advance payment. This is hazard compensation. Unlike the intelligence you provided, the site access route is a disaster. Vehicle entry is impossible—foot travel only. The risk is substantially higher.]
It was the truth. After analyzing the map, I’d discovered the Processing Plant’s perimeter sat atop a swamp area where the ground had turned to mush.
[Additional requirements: 1. Grade A antibiotics and detoxification kits. 2. Ten kilograms of beef. 3. Portable mana charger. Refuse, and I’m packing up right now.]
A moment of silence followed. I could picture the researchers on the other end, practically frothing at the mouth with indignation at demands from a “lower-class” operative. But they couldn’t refuse. Not after seeing the sample of purified mana stones I’d demonstrated.
[Blue Tower Control Center: …Fine. Upon successful sample recovery, we’ll drop the supplies via drone at your extraction point.]
“Phew…”
I closed the tablet and exhaled in relief. I’d bluffed my way through, but my palms were slick with cold sweat. Ten kilograms of beef. At least now I had justification to present to my team.
“How did it go?”
Park Jae-jung approached and asked.
“Secured the meat. We’ll need to succeed, though…”
“Ha, well then it’s worth risking our lives for.”
We gathered our gear in the center of the Repair Shop. The massive Moon Rover loomed before us. But this operation, it would remain behind.
“We’re leaving the vehicle.”
Lee Chung-hyung patted the chassis reluctantly and asked.
“Really? We’d feel a lot safer with this thing.”
“We can’t take it. The front axle got bent when we forced through the shutter last time. We’d need parts to repair it, and we don’t have any on hand.”
I pointed to the map.
“Besides, our destination is a swamp area. If we drag this heavy tank through there, we’ll sink into the mud pit, get stuck, and become monster food.”
“So… we’re walking?”
Ju Mi-sung’s face darkened. Five kilometers through toxin-saturated streets lay ahead of us.
“Yes. We move on foot. These filters are our lifeline.”
I tapped the mana stone filter gas mask hanging around my neck.
“Everyone put yours on.”
Screeeech—thud.
I tore away the corner of the welded shutter and stepped outside. Zone 99 at dawn lay submerged in a thick purple haze. It wasn’t high tide when the gas surged upward, but the residual toxins blanketing the ground obscured visibility.
Shhhhh—only the sound of air flowing through my gas mask broke the silence.
“Maintain formation. Park Jae-jung takes point.”
We left the Abandoned Factory District behind and began walking along the Sewer Line. The ground beneath my feet felt treacherous. Damp, sticky filth clung to the soles of my combat boots.
Thud, thud.
Throughout the walk, I repeatedly checked my mask’s filter gauge.
‘Can we make it? Theoretically it’s flawless, but… there are always unforeseen variables in the field.’
Anxiety gnawed at me. Ten lives depended on this crude filter I’d constructed. If it cracked mid-journey or the mana stone powder burned out completely? We’d all cough up blood and die right there. The weight of leadership pressed down on my shoulders.
After about an hour of walking, the landscape began to shift. The collapsed concrete structures vanished, replaced by an open expanse where melted rebar jutted up like skeletal fingers.
“From here on,” Lee Seung-ryong said, coming to a halt.
Lee Seung-ryong stopped in his tracks.
The ground beneath us was no longer solid asphalt. Dark crimson mud squelched underfoot in a vast swamp, and beyond it, towering heaps of drums rose like mountains in the haze.
“It’s a Waste Disposal Facility—the stench is completely different.”
Seo Eun-ha grimaced behind her gas mask.
Even with the filter working, a faint metallic tang seeped through to my nostrils—a telltale sign that the toxin concentration was far higher than anticipated.
“Be careful. One wrong step and you’ll sink.”
Lee Seung-ryong probed the ground ahead with a long iron pipe, feeling for solid footing. I followed in his wake, but with each step came a sickening screech—the acidic mud burning through the soles of my boots.
‘Damn it. My boots are getting eaten away.’
We picked our way forward like crossing a stream on stepping stones, treading only on the more solid-looking garbage heaps. That’s when it happened.
Glub, glub. Massive bubbles erupted from a puddle beside us.
“Captain. Three o’clock.”
Lee Chung-hyung’s shout. In the same instant, black mud exploded upward.
[Mutant: Toxic Slime – Swarm Type]
[Rank: C-]
These were no ordinary gelatinous slimes. They were grotesque masses of filth with shattered glass and scrap metal embedded throughout their bodies.
“Five of them. We’re surrounded.”
“Don’t panic! Ju Mi-sung, forward!”
I shouted, but my voice cracked. Damn it.
“Come on!”
Ju Mi-sung bellowed and charged ahead, gripping the spear I’d modified for him. But the environment was our enemy. The moment he planted his foot to thrust, the garbage heap beneath him gave way.
“Whoa?!”
He stumbled. Seizing the opening, one of the slimes whipped its body like a lash and came crashing down on him.
“No!”
I tried to rush forward, but my feet were trapped in the mud. I was outside my Purification range.
‘This is it.’
I watched in slow motion as Ju Mi-sung began to dissolve.
Then.
Thunk!
A dull explosion sent the slime’s body reeling backward. It was Lee Chung-hyung. An arrow from his crossbow had pierced the creature and detonated it.
[Skill: Power Shot]
“Get up!”
Lee Seung-ryong charged in like a madman and grabbed Ju Mi-sung by the collar, yanking him free.
Screech! Ju Mi-sung’s shoulder guard sizzled and melted where the slime’s acid touched it, but mercifully, his skin remained intact.
“Hah… hah…!”
“Snap out of it. This isn’t over.”
My mind cleared instantly. While I’d stood there dazed, they’d saved themselves. Shame washed over me, followed by an exhilarating realization. That’s right—I’m not playing the hero alone. We’re a team.
“Target the core. We need to sever the mana flow.”
I channeled my mana into my dagger. If my feet were bound by this mud pit, I’d cut them down from a distance.
As I swung the blade, a crescent of white light streaked through the air. Shaaaack—the slime charging at me split like tofu, burning white-hot as it fell.
“Now! Ju Mi-sung!”
“Uooooh—.”
Ju Mi-sung rose again, lowering his stance as he spun his spear. The rotating blade pierced directly through the slime’s exposed core.
Crack! With the sound of crystal shattering, the slime collapsed like melting water.
We fought huddled together in the middle of the Mud Pit. Someone fell, someone else got them back up. While Park Jae-jung blocked the acidic spray with his shield, Seo Eun-ha incinerated them with flames.
Ten minutes of combat ended.
“Huff… huff….”
We sprawled across the Garbage Heap. Our gas mask filter gauges had plummeted to half capacity.
“Are you all right? Any injuries?”
I asked, gasping for breath.
“Lost one shoulder guard.”
Ju Mi-sung peeled away melted plastic fragments and grinned.
“But the spear’s intact, thanks to you fixing it, Captain.”
“I thought you were falling, Captain. Nearly gave me a heart attack.”
Lee Chung-hyung chuckled.
“…Quiet. The ground was just slippery.”
I chided them for show, but inwardly, I felt relief. They were no longer a burden.
“There… I see it.”
Where Lee Seung-ryong pointed. Beyond the Swamp Area where the Mist had cleared, massive black drums stacked like a mountain appeared alongside rusted barbed wire.
[Warning: Approaching high-concentration Contaminated Zone.]
[Filter remaining: 40%.]
“We’re almost there. That’s our payday.”
I forced strength into my trembling legs and stood again. This was the real test now. Buried within lay secrets far more sinister than slimes.
Squelch, crunch.
Each step produced a sticky sound. After the battle with the slimes, we advanced into the heart of the Waste Disposal Facility, where black drums towered like mountains.
“Ugh… the stench is absolutely insane.”
Even through her gas mask, Seo Eun-ha patted her chest, fighting back nausea.
This place was literally a tomb of death. Thousands upon thousands of drums lay carelessly scattered within the rusted barbed wire. Some were crushed, their contents leaking steadily, while others were half-submerged in the Swamp.
“Be careful. What you’re stepping on isn’t ground—it’s solidified waste.”
Park Jae-jung led the way with his massive Tower Shield at the front. Without his sturdy back, we would have slipped into the Swamp countless times already.
“Ji-young, do you see anything?”
I called to Lee Ji-young in the middle of our formation. She had removed her glasses and was staring at this horrific sight with her bare eyes.
[Skill: Eye of Truth]
Blue circuits swirled in her pupils. She wasn’t analyzing the locks on the crushed drums physically. She was seeing through the essence of their contents and the flow of mana within.
“…Something’s wrong.”
Lee Ji-young spoke, her voice trembling.
“What is it? Aren’t they just toxic waste?”
“No… it’s different. The ones stacked here are just chemical waste, but….”
She pointed with her finger to the innermost section of the Waste Disposal Facility, covered by a massive waterproof tarp.
“Those black drums over there… their mana patterns show biological responses. And they’re… suffering.”
“A biometric signature?”
A chill ran down my spine. A biometric signature at the Waste Disposal Facility? Did that mean what Dominion had pumped up from Basement Level 3 wasn’t merely residual magical energy?
“Park Jae-jung, Seo Eun-ha. I’m heading over there. Stay alert.”
“Understood.”
Park Jae-jung adjusted his shield and took point. Seo Eun-ha conjured flames at the tip of her staff, scanning the surroundings. The Lee Seung-ryong Party positioned themselves at the rear, ready for any surprise assault.
As we pulled back the tarp, dozens of meticulously maintained, glossy black drums emerged. Their surfaces bore the stark warning [Class S – Danger] alongside Dominion’s unmistakable logo.
“This must be it. What those Blue Tower bastards were searching for.”
Seo Eun-ha tapped one of the drums.
“Ji-young, can you see inside?”
Lee Ji-young placed her hand against the drum and narrowed her eyes. Her brow furrowed deeply.
“…Good God.”
“What is it?”
“People… or rather, monsters? They’re mixed together inside.”
She covered her mouth.
“These are… experimental subjects. They look like the corpses of chimeras—failed after being forcibly injected with Core Energy and melted away.”
The revelation was staggering. Dominion hadn’t merely harvested energy. They’d conducted experiments using that concentrated energy to enhance humans or create new biological weapons, then discarded their failures here.
“These insane bastards…”
Park Jae-jung ground his teeth, unable to continue.
“So that’s why Blue Tower wanted samples. Conclusive evidence that Dominion conducted human experimentation.”
I clenched my fists. Each of these drums was a coffin for the wrongfully dead.
“Take one. The one in the best condition.”
The moment I tilted one of the drums—
Kugugugugu—
The ground beneath our feet convulsed. The mud of the Swamp Area bubbled and churned, and the pile of drums collapsed inward.
“Get back!!”
Park Jae-jung shouted, shoving Lee Ji-young and me aside.
Crash! A massive shadow crashed down where we’d been standing—a colossal monstrosity formed from the scrap metal, drums, and mud scattered throughout the site.
[Mutant: Toxic Golem – Collective]
[Rank: B-]
Four meters tall. Its torso bristled with scrap iron and embedded drums, while caustic green liquid dripped from the gaps between its joints. It wasn’t a mere monster. It was a specter born from the vengeful spirits abandoned here and corrupted magical energy.
“Grrroooaaahhh!”
The golem roared and brought its fist crashing down—a weapon with an entire drum embedded in it.
“Park Jae-jung!”
“I’ve got this!!”
Park Jae-jung drove his Tower Shield into the ground and bellowed.
[Skill: Steel Bastion]
His shield blazed with azure light and expanded. Boom—!!
A tremendous shockwave erupted. Park Jae-jung’s feet sank into the mud up to his knees, but he held his ground.
“Nngh…!”
Yet the caustic liquid flowing from the golem’s body was scorching the shield’s surface. Sizzzzle—
“Move! It’s my turn!”
Seo Eun-ha vaulted from behind Park Jae-jung. A crimson magic circle unfurled at the tip of her staff.
“Filth must burn. Fire Blast!”
A roaring inferno slammed into the Golem’s face. The oil residue and waste clinging to its body ignited in a chain reaction of explosions.
“Grraaah”
The Golem staggered.
“Now! Lee Seung-ryong, the legs!”
“On it.”
Lee Seung-ryong and Ju Mi-sung split left and right, assaulting the Golem’s legs. The weapons I’d modified tore into its hardened exterior.
But it refused to fall. It was drawing the surrounding garbage toward itself like a magnet, regenerating its shattered form. Its regenerative power was insane.
“It’s useless! We have to destroy the core or it’ll keep reviving!”
Lee Ji-young cried out.
“Where’s the core? Can you see it?”
Seo Eun-ha fired flames as she asked.
Lee Ji-young’s eyes snapped wide open. Her Eye of Truth pierced through the Golem’s filth-caked shell, peering into its interior.
“The chest! Deep in the left chest cavity. It’s inside a black drum.”
Its heart was the very experimental specimen drum we’d been searching for. The vengeful spirit within was animating this hunk of scrap metal.
“I’ll go. Jae-jung, hold it back one more time.”
“I have faith in you. Go!”

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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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