Chapter 408

Chapter 408

There were sewers beneath Neo Seoul as well.

And of course, alligators lived in those sewers. That was why the place was called the Alligator Den.

On the surface, Neo Seoul and the slums were cut off by towering walls. But underground, the Alligator Den connected them together.

Hearing that, one might assume anyone could travel back and forth between Neo Seoul and the slums through the sewers. But the reality was far from it.

Neo Seoul had blocked every passage that led outside, sealing them with barricades, traps, magic circles, and wards.

Because of that, even those born and raised in the Alligator Den dared not even dream of slipping into Neo Seoul. Still, as in all things, a loophole always existed.

It had been over a hundred years since Neo Seoul was built.

With so much time passing, some of the wards had inevitably weakened. The alligators focused their assaults on those weakened points. In the end, they managed to open up a small breach into Neo Seoul.

However, only a select few knew of its existence.

One such figure had been Croker—the very same who had died at Zeon’s hand.

Croker had used this breach to smuggle items out of Neo Seoul and flood the black market with them.

After Croker’s death, the breach had all but been abandoned.

Now, after being left unattended for so long, someone was sticking their head through it.

“No one’s here.”

It was Deng Zhuping, peering out into the sewer toward the slums. After confirming the coast was clear, he slipped through first. Behind him came Jang Woo-hang, Mo Yong-han, and Heuk-no.

Heuk-no grimaced and muttered in disgust.

“Urgh! The stench here is unbearable.”

“What are you complaining about? This is no different from the Underworld.”

Mo Yong-han chided him.

“Heh, true. It does smell like home.”

“Now that we’ve secured this little thing, our home will surely change into a place like Neo Seoul.”

Mo Yong-han tapped his chest.

Inside his robes was Van Gogh’s Eye, containing the complete blueprint of the magic-stone power plant.

At that moment, Jang Woo-hang’s expression hardened.

“Damn it.”

“What’s wrong, Captain?”

“Can you feel any explosion?”

“No!”

Heuk-no shook his head.

Jang Woo-hang’s face grew tense.

“If the bomb made with the core of a Volcanic Mole had detonated, we’d be feeling the aftershocks down here. But there’s not a single tremor.”

“Then the bomb didn’t go off?”

“Once it’s triggered, it’s impossible to stop. How could that be…?”

His expression was full of doubt.

The Volcanic Mole was a beast that lived in the volcanic zones near the Underworld.

As its name suggested, it burrowed into the volcanic ground. Strangely enough, its core held the fiery heat of the volcano itself.

That blazing core was already a formidable weapon, but when refined with the Underworld’s secret techniques, it became an incredibly destructive bomb.

Once triggered, it was unstoppable, with enough power to obliterate an entire mountain.

Had it exploded inside Neo Seoul, the shockwave should have been felt all the way down here. But with no sign at all, the only explanation was that it hadn’t gone off.

Jang Woo-hang turned to Deng Zhuping.

“Do you know the full layout of the sewers?”

“No! But finding our way won’t be hard.”

Deng Zhuping possessed a very special ability.

Click, click!

The sound of his teeth clacking echoed through the tunnels.

The sound waves bounced off walls, water, and other obstacles, returning or fading.

For an ordinary person, sensing such subtle changes would be impossible. But to Deng Zhuping’s ears, every variation was crystal clear.

This was none other than echolocation.

Just like bats navigating in darkness, Deng Zhuping could chart his surroundings using those echoes.

He had been born with an extraordinarily sensitive sense of hearing.

With only the changes in sound, his mind could form a complete three-dimensional map of the area.

His echolocation could cover a range of over a hundred meters. In the dark, there was no chance of him losing his way.

“Everyone stick close behind me. If you lose your way in here, you’ll never find your way out again.”

Click, click!

Using echolocation, Deng Zhuping led the way.

Jang Woo-hang, following behind, spoke.

“I don’t like saying this, but we’d better move faster. That thing will be on our trail soon.”

“I’m already going as fast as I can—huh?”

Deng Zhuping suddenly stopped.

“What is it?”

“There are people gathered up ahead.”

“How many?”

“About a hundred in one group… and another the same.”

“Two hundred?”

“Seems like humans living underground. They call them alligators, right?”

“Perfect.”

A sinister smile spread across Jang Woo-hang’s face in the darkness.

＊＊＊

“You bastards! If I catch you, I’ll make you pay for this!”

Eloy ground her teeth as she squeezed through the breach.

Chasing the Wolf Pack had left her covered in all manner of filth. The stench clung to her, and no matter how much she scrubbed, it wouldn’t come off. It was enough to make her gag.

The sheer fury at being dragged into such a foul place clouded her reason.

“You think coming down here means I’ll let you get away?”

Eloy was a half-elf.

Her senses were far sharper than a human’s—sight, smell, and hearing all several times keener.

Because of that, the stench tormented her many times worse. But it also made following their trail in the dark much easier.

Any living being left traces as it passed.

The ripples in the sewage, the moss crushed under their steps—such signs were all she needed.

Impossible for humans, but not for Eloy.

She pursued the Wolf Pack with terrifying speed.

The damp smell and vibrations in the air told her they weren’t far.

Then—

Bzzzzzz!

The fluttering of insect wings filled the dark.

She knew immediately what that meant.

“Damn bugs!”

It was clear Heuk-no had unleashed the Spawn of the Exploding Demon once more.

The darkness ahead writhed.

The Spawn of the Exploding Demon swarmed the tunnel, filling it black as they hurtled toward her.

At that instant, Eloy thrust her Mad Fox toward them with all her strength and shouted:

“Rain Spear!”

A phantom spear of mana shot forth at incredible speed.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The mana spear slammed into the swarms, setting off chain explosions.

The tunnel shook as if it would collapse entirely.

Chunks of stone rained down from the ceiling.

It didn’t collapse, but it was enough to make Eloy’s heart pound in fright.

“Bastards!”

Cursing, she charged down the passage where the explosions had erupted.

Because of the spawn’s nature—detonating in chain reactions when one blew up—none remained.

Thanks to that, Eloy pushed forward at full speed.

Up ahead, she spotted what looked like a dead end.

But it was only a sharp corner that gave that illusion.

Instead of slowing down, she kicked off the wall, turning her body. Suddenly, a vast underground space opened before her eyes.

A crowd of half-naked people huddled together inside.

“What…?”

Eloy’s eyes widened.

She had heard of the Alligator Den’s existence, but seeing it firsthand shocked her.

The residents of the Alligator Den stared back at her in terror.

The reason was immediately clear.

Many of them were bleeding on the ground.

It was obvious the Wolf Pack had attacked.

The wounded lay groaning, their lives hanging by a thread.

“Shit!”

Eloy cursed, rushing toward them—

“Wait, sis!”

A familiar voice called out.

She stopped and turned toward it. A ghostly figure flew in her direction.

It was Levin—carrying Lemura.

“Levin?”

“Don’t touch them, sis! Something’s wrong.”

At his words, Eloy examined the villagers carefully. Then she spotted it—something familiar hanging on one man’s chest.

“That bomb…?”

It was identical to the bomb Zeon had found on the defense tower.

Worse, thin silver threads extended from it, like spiderwebs, attaching themselves to all the other villagers.

Had Eloy rushed in carelessly, she would have snapped those threads and triggered the explosion.

“Those vicious bastards! Do they think human lives are toys…?”

Eloy trembled with rage at the Wolf Pack’s cruelty.

Levin landed with Lemura and asked:

“Their handiwork, right?”

“Yeah! If we touch this, it’ll blow instantly.”

“Damn it! Those lunatics!”

They had strapped the bomb to a child, then webbed the others to it with silver threads.

To make it worse, the ones closest to the center were badly wounded and would certainly die if left untreated.

But treating them risked setting off the bomb.

As the group struggled in despair, Lemura stepped forward.

“I’ll heal them. Don’t worry about me—just focus on the bomb.”

“Okay!”

Levin answered, then turned to Eloy.

“Sis.”

“What?”

“You know Lemura, right?”

“Of course.”

“She’ll heal the injured. Stay with her and protect them for a while. Reinforcements will be here soon.”

Jeto and the other Awakeners were already racing their way.

“And you?”

“I don’t know how to defuse it. So I’ll just take it and fly as far as I can.”

“Damn it… You’re just like Zeon.”

“My brother did the same?”

“Yeah.”

“Heh. Guess he wasn’t invincible either. Somehow, that makes me feel better.”

“What does?”

“Knowing he’s human like me.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

Eloy let out a short laugh.

But deep down, she understood.

She too sometimes felt an uncanny distance when looking at Zeon—like he wasn’t even the same species anymore.

It was only in moments like this, when their humanity showed, that the bond returned.

Just then—

BEEP-BEEP-BEEP!

The bomb strapped to the child’s chest began to flash and beep urgently.

The countdown had started.

Without hesitation, Levin ghosted through the threads, reaching the child in an instant.

He gently spoke:

“You’ll be fine. Just close your eyes.”

“Okay!”

The child obeyed, squeezing their eyes shut.

Levin ripped the bomb free and shot straight upward.

He pierced the ground in a heartbeat, soaring high above the slums. In the blink of an eye, he reached the upper sky and hurled the bomb with all his strength.

BOOOOM!

A massive explosion tore the air apart.

“Urgh!”

Levin was flung back by the blast.

Luckily, in his ghost form, he survived unscathed.

At that moment, someone else rode a sandstorm to his side.

“You okay?”

It was Zeon’s voice.

“Brother?”

“Those bastards… They really mean to wipe Neo Seoul off the map.”

Zeon’s eyes swept across the vast desert.

Even in the heavy darkness before dawn, he caught faint movements.

“There.”

He had found them—those moving in secret, far from the slums.