The Soul-Harvesting Puppeteer - 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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Episode 56
Collecting the Dead
Chapter 1
Han Eol had arrived at the Secret Platform under Han River, situated between Yeouido and Mapo.
So far, Han Eol had explored the Highland a total of five times.
Excluding the experience in Chiang Mai, the remaining four occasions were when Han Eol used the Secret Platform under Han River to venture into and return from the Highland.
Thanks to this, Han Eol remembered clearly not only the structure of the platform beneath the river, but also the exact distribution and density of the Blue Mist.
‘It seems like this place is below the Blue Mist.’
That was Han Eol’s assessment.
Originally, Ability Users belonging to the Shinseong Group would enter through the Secret Platform, then dive down into the Highland from above the Blue Mist.
By contrast, Ju Hyung-seon appeared to have arrived below the Blue Mist via a tube connected to his private residence, then jumped upward to cross into the Highland.
‘If this approach remains accessible going forward, I could move freely between the Highland and Midland without being subject to the Shinseong Group’s control, couldn’t I?’
The same held true when Han Eol returned from the Highland to Midland. He could simply bypass the Shinseong Group’s inspection stations, dive down through the lower reaches of the Blue Mist as if submerged, then board the tube and disappear into the Jangchung-dong Residence.
‘Though somehow I doubt the Shinseong Group is unaware of this tube’s existence.’
Han Eol scratched at his temple with his index finger.
It was possible that the Shinseong Group itself was the one who had installed the tube connecting Ju Hyung-seon’s Jangchung-dong Residence to the Secret Platform under Han River.
If that were the case, it meant the Shinseong Group could block this covert route whenever it pleased.
‘Still, it seems they’ll pretend not to know about it for now.’
With this vague speculation, Han Eol gazed upward at the rippling Blue Mist above his head.
Well, in time, he’d learn what the Group truly intended. Honestly, he could worry about that later.
‘Not now, though.’
Han Eol shook his head to cast aside the idle thoughts, stepped out of the tube, and launched himself into the Blue Mist.
Thus began Han Eol’s sixth exploration of the Highland, born of pure impulse.
It was during his return to Midland after completing his fifth Highland exploration. He had noticed that the vertigo accompanying the transmission was notably weaker.
Ordinarily, whenever any Ability User crossed between Midland and the Highland, they would experience severe vertigo and briefly lose consciousness.
Even Pioneers who had awakened formidable abilities were not exempt from this symptom.
But Han Eol’s had been diminished.
‘Could it be thanks to the Twelve Constellations Grand Magic from the Spirit Race? Or perhaps from absorbing the Top-tier Dragon Scale into my skin? It almost feels like once I become more accustomed, I might be able to maintain full consciousness even during Highland transmission.’
Han Eol harbored this hope as he leaped into the Blue Mist.
His hope was vindicated this time as well.
Within the Blue Mist, thousands upon thousands of strands resembling blue threads—the Current Streams—surged toward him like a tide, coiling around him in every direction.
Since this was not the sea, calling it “Current Stream” might be a misnomer, but Han Eol perceived the flow this way nonetheless.
‘Whoa, whoa, whoa?’
In an instant, Han Eol was seized by the powerful Current and sucked helplessly in some direction.
When Han Eol had been guided into transmission to the Highland before, this identical phenomenon must have occurred.
But at the time, the terrible vertigo had caused him to lose his mental grip for a moment. So he had simply flailed about, unable to sense the Current Stream at all.
This time was different. Han Eol deliberately kept his eyes wide open, striving to comprehend the phenomena that occurred during guided transmission.
Then came a single decisive moment.
The area around Han Eol’s wrist suddenly brightened.
The Current Stream reacted to the radiance bursting from Han Eol’s wrist and shifted direction.
As Han Eol kept his eyes wide and watched, destinations far ahead, each linked to separate Current flows, became perceptible to him.
Among nearly ten Current strands, one was connected to the very pinnacle of a sheer cliff.
The remaining nine were scattered and anchored at various points around the cliff.
‘There it is.’
Han Eol identified the Current flow leading to the cliff’s summit, not to any of the other nine locations.
Now, if he simply held fast to this flow, he would arrive precisely at the clifftop ruins of the 5th Continent.
According to what had been learned from cities across Midland, the accuracy of guided transmission was within one hundred kilometers.
For instance, if Ability Users from the 1st Division of Shinseong Group attempted guided transmission targeting the First Base Camp, their probability of arriving at the exact destination—that is, within dozens of meters of the target—was quite slim.
Most Ability Users would randomly land several kilometers or even dozens of kilometers away from the Base Camp.
Of course, those particularly unlucky would occasionally arrive beyond the hundred-kilometer outer boundary.
Worse still, transmission could fail entirely.
But Han Eol had now gained the ability to actively control this transmission deviation.
From now on, should he choose to, he was confident he could read the Current flow and select the path leading to his precise destination.
Bang—directly above where the Mother Metal lay buried.
‘But the 5th Continent isn’t my destination right now.’
Han Eol forcibly tore himself away from that particular Current flow.
He dampened the radiance emanating from his wrist and instead focused his consciousness on Ju Hyung-seon’s Watch.
‘If my guess is correct, this watch will take me to the place where he died.’
Even as Han Eol surrendered himself to the Current’s flow, he kept his mind fixed on this thought.
Chapter 2
Moments later, the Current Stream that had failed to connect with Han Eol’s wrist wound around his body again and dragged him along a different path.
At that instant, radiance poured forth from Ju Hyung-seon’s Watch.
The Current Stream merged with the radiance of the watch’s hands, creating a new flow.
This time too, ten strands of current finally seized and pulled at Han Eol.
‘So, now it begins?’
Han Eol narrowed his eyes to slits, then sharpened his mind and examined each strand of the current’s flow with meticulous care.
At the same moment, Han Eol summoned the All-Natural Colored Hand.
Remarkably, the hand from his mental imagery appeared immediately beside him as he underwent Guided Transmission to Highland.
‘This actually works?’
Han Eol found the hand from his mental imagery both remarkable and pleasing.
Click.
The eye bulging from that palm’s surface rapidly scanned the surroundings of the destination in accordance with Han Eol’s will.
Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.
The sound of eyelids blinking rang out with an eerie quality.
Shortly after, Han Eol succeeded in pinpointing a location where many Girift souls appeared densely concentrated.
Strictly speaking, this was an achievement accomplished not by Han Eol himself, but by Akin’s eye.
‘Well, that amounts to my ability anyway.’
Han Eol shrugged his shoulders once.
His reason for seeking out the location where Girift souls were densely gathered was clear.
From what Han Eol had overheard, Ju Hyung-seon had met with disaster while exploring the nest of a fearsome Demon Beast called the Girift.
“The Girift species is still a mystery—its characteristics haven’t been properly understood yet. Why the lord would attempt something so reckless. Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
The night before, Lee Myung-woo had let slip these words while conversing with his wife.
Thanks to the Twelve Constellations Grand Magic, all of Han Eol’s physical abilities had been enhanced, and this included his senses—hearing among them.
Consequently, Han Eol had overheard Lee Myung-woo’s remarks and decided to search for the Girift nest himself, which was why he had visited Highland today.
‘Found it. The probability that it’s that location is quite high.’
Han Eol selected one of the ten strands of current and grasped it firmly.
Soon after, that Current Stream seized Han Eol powerfully and drove him into a region of Highland like a bolt of lightning.
Crash!
Blue Mist plummeted like a bomb beneath Han Eol’s feet.
Before Han Eol had seen the Current Stream’s flow, he hadn’t realized that the Blue Mist connected to the end of the strand-like flow was anchoring itself to Highland in a way that felt like a mystical tentacle driving deep into the earth.
Han Eol’s body slid down this tentacle—this flow—and suddenly burst forth from the Blue Mist that had appeared abruptly on Highland.
Han Eol remained vigilant.
‘This is the habitat of mature Girift, so I need to be careful.’
The Girift were an extremely dangerous demon race. Though to the eyes of the Spirit Race on the 5th Continent, Girift might appear as contemptible slave species, and though Han Eol was a newly recognized Constellation among those Spirit Race Constellations and had further upgraded his body to transcendent-tier by coating it with Top-tier Dragon Scales beneath his skin, he still could not afford to be careless.
‘For instance, places like my eyes probably aren’t coated with dragon scales. So I need to be cautious in all things.’
Han Eol steeled his resolve repeatedly.
But this was needless worry.
Han Eol’s Quadruple Defense System was set to activate at all times.
Therefore, the moment an enemy attack came flying, a blood-red energy barrier would unfold, and the 108 Asura—upgraded versions of malevolent spirits—adorning the outer walls of Han Eol’s Soul Fortress would leap out to protect him.
This alone would be sufficient, but in addition to that, Han Eol had fused Top-tier Dragon Scales and Girift Skin to his body’s surface.
Moreover, he possessed the Pyros Ring, the final puzzle piece of the Quadruple Defense System.
Though the matching pair of rings had melted away by now, the options granted to them remained intact in Han Eol’s fingers.
Therefore, Han Eol could walk freely through a habitat teeming with thousands of Girift without sustaining a single wound.
Han Eol was not unaware of this fact.
‘Still, I mustn’t let it. The habit of carelessness is what’s truly terrifying.’
Han Eol rebuked his weakening resolve and summoned the All-Natural Colored Hand into this world.
Chapter 3
The All-Natural Colored Hand descended from a higher dimension, spreading across the sky above this region.
Three eyes bulging convexly from the palm of the All-Natural Colored Hand rolled their pupils vigilantly, surveying all directions.
In particular, Akin’s eye scanned deep underground, inside thickets, and behind rocks—any enclosed or concealed space—to see if there was anything that might harm Han Eol.
The information read by those three eyes flowed directly into Han Eol’s field of vision.
‘That nest ahead isn’t terribly large. Roughly a hundred mature Girift, it seems, with juvenile Girift making up about half that number.’
On the 7th Continent, encountering even a single mature Girift was no simple matter.
But the 6th Continent was different. Here, mature Three-Eyes Eight-Tails Girift crawled about—creatures with three eyes and eight tails.
According to information Han Eol had acquired from the Blood Drop Library, the Spirit Race on the 5th Continent would occasionally descend to the 6th Continent and capture Girift or Cape Race in bulk, bringing them back as slaves.
In the Girift nests these Spirit Race attacked, there would typically be thousands, even tens of thousands of mature Girift swarming about.
‘A nest of that scale would be different, but a hundred or so shouldn’t pose much difficulty.’
Han Eol murmured words that would make other Pioneers lose consciousness, approaching the Girift nest without concern.
As Han Eol closed the distance, new information became apparent.
First, sharp metallic sounds mixed with screams began to reach Han Eol’s ears.
Then other souls came into Han Eol’s view—not Girift, but creatures of a different kind altogether.
‘What is this? Did another race raid the Girift nest?’
Han Eol’s legs, coiled with spring-like elasticity, propelled him forward in a single bound, driving deep into the interior of the Girift nest.
What Han Eol witnessed there was, astonishingly, human.
The Puppeteer Who Harvests Souls
Author |
Zhuuon
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Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
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Editorial Department
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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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