The All-Time Best Talent was F-Class Purification - Chapter 72

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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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72
Chapter 72 – An Elite Talent Awakened as an F-Rank Purifier
I bypassed the Metal Eaters entirely, launching myself directly toward Iron Shell with explosive force.
The creature’s composure shattered. It hadn’t anticipated such madness—charging straight for the main force while ignoring its subordinates.
Naturally. Sound tactics demanded eliminating the minions first, then confronting the boss. A headlong charge into the strongest enemy while surrounded was suicide.
But I understood something crucial: those twelve creatures couldn’t move with any coordination without Iron Shell’s commands. Decapitate the head, and the body would collapse into chaos.
Crash!
I hurled myself directly at Iron Shell’s face. It reflexively raised its pincers to block, but this time I moved first.
“Open.”
I extended my left hand, seizing the joint of its right pincer. The smooth black-iron carapace offered no natural grip, so I crushed it with raw grip strength, forcing a handhold into existence.
Crunch!
Screech?!
The creature panicked and tried to wrench its limb free, but my A-rank strength held it immobile as stone.
“Stay still. This will be over soon.”
I used its own arm as a lever, hoisting my body upward to mount its back. To pierce the thick carapace and reach the core, I needed to target the thinnest point—the seam where head and torso connected.
But Iron Shell was no easy prey.
Whoosh—Splat!
Its back panel burst open, releasing a barrage of barbed tentacles that lashed toward me. Spines erupted in all directions like a porcupine’s defense.
Clang! Clang!
I batted the incoming spines away with my fists. Sparks ignited where my gauntlet collided with the black-iron barbs. My bare right knuckles split open again—fresh wounds layering over old ones.
‘This is genuinely infuriating.’
If I possessed the White Fang, I could have shattered these spines while simultaneously cleaving through them and pressing forward. Without that tool, I couldn’t defend and attack simultaneously. I had to parry, dodge, and carve out openings one by one.
Then—
Shriek!
A Metal Eater lunged at my back, exploiting the moment my attention was consumed by Iron Shell.
‘Damn.’
I couldn’t afford to turn around. Both hands were locked in combat against Iron Shell’s spines.
The creature’s fangs were mere inches from my back.
“Hah!”
I detonated a purification wave from my entire body.
Brilliant light erupted—!
Sanctuary. A new skill acquired upon reaching A-rank. A defensive technique that forcibly purifies all corrupted energy within a 3-meter radius centered on my body.
The Metal Eater charging from behind was engulfed in radiance and scattered into dust. Iron Shell’s body convulsed from the wave’s impact. At C+ rank, it wasn’t completely purified, but its movements became sluggish for a critical instant.
That moment was all I needed.
The recoil from Sanctuary sent Iron Shell sliding backward slightly—and I vaulted onto its back. The creature thrashed its head wildly beneath me, movements violent as a bucking bronco. Yet my feet clung to its crown like magnets, refusing to slip.
“There.”
My gaze fixed on the nape of its neck. The microscopic gap between the helmet-like head carapace and the torso carapace—the only opening where the dark-crimson core energy’s wavelength leaked through.
I dropped to my knees and drove the fingers of my left hand into that crevice.
Screech!
The grinding sound of steel resisting my intrusion. I maxed out the gauntlet’s output.
“Open.”
Whiiiiing!
A-rank mana surged through my body, converting into raw physical force. The veins in my forearms bulged as if ready to burst, and the steel encasing the creature shrieked as it began to peel apart left and right.
Screeeech!
The beast convulsed in agony, releasing a grotesque wail. The Metal Eaters around it descended into chaos. With their commander suffering, the command structure crumbled entirely.
But it was already too late. Through the widening gap, I glimpsed it—the core, writhing beneath a coating of black mucus. The source of corrupted energy.
I thrust my right hand forward without hesitation.
Squelch!
Wet heat engulfed my palm. The vile pulse of corrupted core energy tried to sear my skin, but the purification mana within my body immediately repelled the contamination.
I clenched the creature’s core in my grip.
“Return.”
Fwoooosh!
Pure white purification flames erupted from my fingertips. Like dawn breaking through darkness, the white fire spread from the core throughout the creature’s entire body.
Kieeeee….
The creature’s screams faded. The corrupted biological tissue began decomposing into white dust the moment it touched the light. Each cell, each muscle fiber—forced back to its fundamental essence. The contaminated life force scattered into nature, leaving only unchanging matter behind.
Fsssssh.
The massive three-meter monstrosity vanished in an instant.
Thud. Clang.
Only an empty husk remained, clattering to the ground beneath my feet.
Leaderless, the Metal Eaters descended into panic. Some fled, others froze in place. I descended from the shell and snapped my fingers.
“Hey, you lot still here.”
The frozen Metal Eaters trembled as they looked up at me.
“I’ll give you a choice. Run, or become dust.”
It didn’t even take a second. They bolted without looking back, disappearing between the Garbage Heaps.
“Wise decision.”
I tapped the empty black iron carapace with my foot. My breathing was slightly ragged. My right arm’s wound had already stopped bleeding with mana, scabs beginning to form, but it still throbbed.
“Haa….”
It was harder than expected. I hadn’t realized a C+ rank would be this taxing. No—it wasn’t about rank. The problem was efficiency without proper tools.
I turned my gaze toward the container the creature had been guarding. A heavy-duty material warehouse embedded in the center of the Black Puddle.
I waded through the black water toward the container. Up close, I could see the mana coating on its surface was still intact. Despite being buried in this contaminated zone for fifteen days, it hadn’t corroded. That was when my hope transformed into certainty.
Screeeeak—Clang.
The lock was already broken. I wedged my gauntlet into the gap of the dented door and pulled with all my strength.
Grrrunch… Clang!
The heavy steel door swung open. From the darkness within, a faint but crystalline mana light seeped out. I stepped inside.
And there, I found what I had been searching for.
“…Bingo.”
Inside the container lay dozens of metal bars, neatly stacked. Length: 1.5 meters. Thickness: 5 centimeters. The surface gleamed with a bluish-silver hue.
‘Mithril/Titanium alloy. A-rank.’
Not pure Mithril, but a special alloy blended with titanium for durability. Its mana conductivity fell short of pure Mithril, but its resilience surpassed even diamond. Most importantly, this quantity was enough to forge not just a short sword, but a greatsword—or even a spear with material to spare.
I picked up one of the bars in the best condition. It was heavy. The satisfying weight settling into my palm felt wonderful.
Wait. I set down the bar and scanned the container again. How many bars were there in total? One, two, three… thirty-two.
My mental calculator whirred to life.
Mithril/titanium alloy. In its current state, impurities muddied the market price, but if I purified it to 100% purity, everything changed. Roughly five million won per kilogram. If each bar weighed about fifteen kilograms, that meant seventy-five million won per bar. Thirty-two bars meant…
I held my breath. Right before my eyes lay materials worth 2.4 billion won—if I purified them.
Of course, I couldn’t take them all. At most, I could carry three or four. But if I remembered this container’s location and arranged transportation later, I could return…
‘Wait. What if someone else takes them first?’
Anxiety suddenly gripped me. I’d captured Iron Shell, but I might not be the only one who knew this location. What if another Hunter group or Blue Tower had their eyes on this container?
‘Should I mark it somehow?’
Or should I tell Kim Seok-hun about this location and have him keep watch? But what if he got greedy? No, given his personality, that wouldn’t happen, but…
I shook my head. Worrying about it now wouldn’t yield answers.
‘For now, I’ll just take what I need.’
I suppressed my greed and grabbed three bars. Then I closed the container door again. It didn’t shut perfectly, but from a distance, it would look locked.
I stepped outside and gazed at Iron Shell’s black-iron carapace. It seemed wasteful to leave that behind.
‘Rough calculation…’
The black-iron exoskeleton probably weighed around one hundred kilograms. Pure black iron fetched about five hundred thousand won per kilogram, so… fifty million won?
But this was a mutant Iron Shell’s carapace, so it would command a premium. High mana conductivity and easy to work with. Somewhere between eighty million and one hundred million won?
‘Not bad.’
Three alloy bars and one carapace. Today’s earnings came to roughly… three hundred million?
Three hundred million for defeating one C+-rank monster. Was that decent hourly pay? No, considering the arm wound and stamina drain, it felt like I’d taken a loss…
I shook my head. There was no point calculating profit and loss now.
I picked up a thick iron chain lying on the ground and bound the black-iron carapace. Heavy, but with A-rank strength, I could drag it.
Scrape, scrape, scrape.
I emerged from the Junkyard with three Mithril alloy bars in one hand and the house-sized black-iron carapace in the other, dragging behind me. My steps back felt far lighter than when I’d arrived.
On the way back to Block 9, I spotted a silhouette waiting for me in the distance. It was Kim Seok-hun. He’d grown restless at my delay and come to the Entrance to meet me.
“Lee Tae-hyun!”
The moment he spotted me, he rushed over. Then he saw the enormous black-iron carapace being dragged behind me and his jaw dropped.
“…What is that?”
“Iron Shell carapace.”
“Iron Shell?! A C+-rank mutant?!”
His voice cracked.
“You defeated that? Alone?”
“There were about a dozen Metal Eater subordinates around it, but I managed somehow.”
I answered calmly and held up an alloy bar before his eyes. Kim Seok-hun reached out with trembling hands to touch it, then swallowed hard.
“This is… Mithril alloy? Where on earth did you…”
“There was a Tower materials container scattered in 15 Block. There are about thirty more besides this one.”
“Th-thirty?!”
Kim Seok-hun’s face drained of color, then flushed crimson. His expression mixed excitement and fear.
“How much would all of that be worth…”
“Roughly over two billion won, but transportation is the problem. For now, I’ve just memorized the location.”
“Tw-twenty…”
Kim Seok-hun stumbled. I caught his shoulder and steadied him.
“Kim Seok-hun, are you alright?”
“Oh, no… I just got dizzy all of a sudden…”
He exhaled deeply and muttered to himself.
“I’ve lost my mind. Completely lost it. Someone who solo hunted an Iron Shell, discovered a mithril vein, and then just casually said ‘it’ll work out somehow’… such a person exists…”
“It’s not a vein, just a fallen container.”
“That’s not the point!”
Kim Seok-hun shouted. Then, seeming embarrassed, he lowered his voice.
“…Ah, sorry. I got excited.”
“It’s fine. More importantly, Kim Seok-hun.”
I cut myself off and got to the main point.
“There’s a junk shop nearby, right? That old man Choi you mentioned earlier.”
“Huh? Oh, yeah, there is. But why?”
“Does that old man have any broken or damaged Hunter weapons in his warehouse? Around C-rank or B-rank?”
At my question, Kim Seok-hun tilted his head. He seemed puzzled why I would search for scrap weapons when I had such excellent materials.
“He probably has some. He collects broken swords and spear blades discarded from the Middle District. But those would just be useless scrap metal…”
“That’s enough.”
My lips curved upward. Without a forge or furnace in this place, crafting a blade from scratch would be impossible. But with a base to work from, everything changes. If I purify the mana circuits of a weapon with an established form and then synchronize this mithril alloy over it…
“Will you show me? I’d like to see if there’s anything usable.”
I gestured to Kim Seok-hun.
“Follow me. Old Man Choi’s shop is this way.”
Kim Seok-hun led the way. I dragged the black iron shell behind me.
Thud—!
I dropped the enormous Iron Shell casing I’d been dragging into the center of the junk shop’s yard. The heavy impact sent dust billowing up from the ground.
“What’s all this commotion!”
Old Man Choi rushed out from inside, startled by the noise. Oil-stained tank top, magnifying glasses perched on his forehead—he started to frown at me, then his jaw fell open at the sight of the massive black iron shell filling the entire yard.
“This… this is an Iron Shell, isn’t it? Where on earth did you get something this precious?”
Kim Seok-hun beside me shrugged, his voice now tinged with a hint of pride.
“Where else? This guy went all the way to 15 Block and tore it apart with his bare hands. Pretty impressive, right old man?”
“Tore it apart? This? With his bare hands?”
Old Man Choi reached out with trembling hands to caress the black iron shell. His touch was reverent, as if handling a precious jewel. In the Lower District, this was top-grade material—something most people would never see in a lifetime.
“It’s payment for the work.”
I spoke matter-of-factly.
“I’ll give you this shell. In exchange, let me have the broken weapons from your warehouse. And could I borrow some workspace?”
“Workspace? For what?”
“I need to forge a blade.”
Old Man Choi stared at me, then let out a hollow laugh and waved his hand.
“A blade without a furnace or hammer? Well, fine. With that hunk of scrap metal, you could strip my entire shop and still come out ahead. Do whatever you want.”
His attention fixed on the black iron shell, he tossed me the warehouse key.

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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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