Chapter 150 : True Colors
Chapter 150: True Colors
However, that speed was clearly slower than usual.
The physical changes from [Perfect Being] were extremely noticeable, which was why he was deliberately suppressing it.
That’s why the targeted agent was able to react with a stiff expression, as if he hadn’t been exchanging jokes just moments ago.
Additionally, the fact that he was a veteran agent with considerable experience played a part in this.
“[Steel Curtain]!”
A wall of steel unfolded in an instant!
If it had been Baek Woohyun under normal circumstances, he would have torn through it and charged forward, but currently he was extremely conserving his strength.
This meant that even a single [Steel Curtain] felt like an insurmountable Wailing Wall to his current self.
That said, it didn’t mean he was completely blocked.
When abilities are limited, one simply changes their fighting style accordingly. Having been through countless battlefields, he instinctively understood this fact.
The action of stepping forward powerfully and stomping his foot in front of the [Steel Curtain]—performing a stomping while thrusting his fist—was an action based on that understanding.
“—!”
Thwoong-!
When Baek Woohyun’s fist made contact with the [Steel Curtain], a majestic sound rang out as if striking a temple bell.
The vibration that shook the entire body possessed destructive power on its own, but what was even more terrifying was that it didn’t end there.
Through the technique created by movements following proper form, the impact generated where fist met steel didn’t dissipate but was transmitted directly behind.
For the Otherworld Management Bureau agent who thought he’d be safe protected by his defensive technique, it was like a bolt from the blue.
Pueok!
“Kueok!”
The agent gasped and tumbled backward.
On his combat uniform top, the shape of a fist was clearly imprinted.
It was truly a miraculous sight—a body beyond human limits meeting a technique that utilized it perfectly.
“…C-could that be Gyeoksantau (隔山打牛)?”
Another agent muttered unconsciously. He seemed to have read quite a few martial arts novels.
Indeed, as he said, the current scene certainly looked like Gyeoksantau, the martial arts technique of striking a mountain (隔山) to hit a cow (打牛).
After all, he’d struck the [Steel Curtain] head-on to damage the agent hiding behind it.
“Seu, huu—”
As such, it wasn’t particularly strange that Baek Woohyun, who stepped back and returned to his original stance, seemed like the protagonist of a martial arts film.
The faces of the Otherworld Management Bureau agents, who at first had been looking down on him with thoughts of ‘what kind of stance is that?’, became even more serious.
—What are they LOL Gyeoksantau seriously LOL
—Why is it like thisLOL
—What’s with the dormitory LOL shouldn’t they at least give him personal quarters LOL
—Hey! At the Management Bureau, even a dormitory is good welfare!
“What is Gyeoksantau?”
“My, you don’t know Gyeoksantau? Then I simply must explain. Gyeoksantau is a technique that appears in martial arts novels, commonly referring to a method of striking an object in front to transmit the impact to an object behind.”
“Oh, how fascinating!”
“Haha! To elaborate further, Gyeoksantau in martial arts novels usually appears as part of internal destruction techniques that leave the exterior intact while destroying only the interior, or like Hackphysical just did, depicted as striking a wall while damaging the enemy behind it.”
“I-I see.”
“While the underlying principle is the same for both methods, of course—”
—Emergency! Old martial arts geek appeared!
—A community specter AND a martial arts geek AND a foreigner; seriously it’s chaos LOL
—And on top of that there’s Hackphysical too
—LOL this is Hack Tour alright LMAO
***
“Looks like a supernatural ability based on physical enhancement.”
“Did he really strike the [Steel Curtain] to transmit only the impact backward? Could it be a trick using abilities?”
“Who knows. For now, fight thinking defensive techniques are meaningless!”
The Otherworld Management Bureau agents who quickly exchanged opinions launched a counterattack in unison. It was a counterattack that actively utilized the fact that they had superior numbers anyway.
If they unleashed ability techniques all at once, an Awakener—who was assumed to be—a physical enhancement type ability user wouldn’t be able to resist.
Various ability techniques like [Flame Spear], [Wave Cannon], [Ice Spike] and others targeted Baek Woohyun, but he stood still as if he couldn’t even think of dodging.
Just as it seemed their decision to pour everything out at once was proven correct.
“Hmm.”
Huuuuung-!
The person the Otherworld Management Bureau agents had carelessly overlooked, Kim Hana, stepped forward.
The wind originating from her formed a massive dome shape that enveloped Baek Woohyun, protecting him from the various ability techniques.
Amazingly, the [Eye of the Storm] she used remained intact even after withstanding all the agents’ ability techniques. It was a scene that revealed an overwhelming difference in power.
“No way…!”
“She blocked all that by herself?!”
Taat!
Baek Woohyun instantly pierced through the opening of the agents crying out in shock. It was a charge executed by precisely cutting off their breathing rhythm.
Some agents who saw him arrive right before their eyes in an instant quickly retreated, while others used defensive techniques, but Baek Woohyun didn’t target them.
There was no need to deliberately take the hard path when the easy path of catching other agents standing defenseless was available.
It was unfortunate for the agent initially targeted by him, but what could be done? In combat, ultimately the weakest falls first.
Kuwoong!
“Ku-heuk!”
Charge,震脚, and from there the Cheolsango (鉄山靠)!
The agent couldn’t even think to dodge the attack that flowed like water and ended up taking the hit.
Struck by the body tackle filled with heavy power, he gasped and flew through the air, soon falling to the ground and rolling several times before stopping.
Judging by his squirming appearance he wasn’t dead, but it seemed unlikely he could rejoin this fight immediately.
But even this was Baek Woohyun being extremely considerate of his opponent.
If he had wanted, an Awakener without physical enhancement could have their entire body, inside and outside, completely shattered with a single Cheolsango.
The fact that he merely tumbled away, and was alive despite perhaps being knocked unconscious from the shock, meant he had held back.
“Juyong-ah!”
“Dammit! Did you hate the dormitory that much!”
Of course, the Otherworld Management Bureau agents didn’t accept Baek Woohyun’s consideration with thoughts of ‘He didn’t kill him so he let him off! Thanks so much!’
Just as a criminal who stabbed a police officer wouldn’t be thanked for being considerate enough to only insert the knife halfway so they wouldn’t die, it was natural.
Instead, they rushed at Baek Woohyun and Kim Hana with all their might—
“Keuheuk!”
“Why is he so strong!”
“To think I’d see Saryang-balcheongeun (四兩撥千斤) in reality….”
—And fell one by one with only death-cry-like shouts, rolling on the ground.
No matter how much he suppressed himself to hide his identity, he couldn’t match the second-in-command of the Otherworld Management Bureau who succeeded Kim Cheol, and a true ‘Superhuman’ in name and reality.
Those who came here were merely ordinary Otherworld Management Bureau agents after all.
The group that had numbered eleven rapidly dwindled until finally only three remained.
What was even more disturbing from their perspective was that even as eight people fell, they hadn’t managed to inflict a single wound on Baek Woohyun or Kim Hana.
Setting aside Kim Hana who had endured while being solidly protected, they hadn’t even managed to wound Baek Woohyun who had rampaged using bizarre martial arts.
“……”
“……”
A situation where an overwhelming gap could be felt.
It was in a way an inevitable conclusion that the three remaining agents exchanged strange glances among themselves.
To break through the current situation required special means, and they happened to have one suitable item.
An item that could only be used now that all their other comrades had fallen.
‘Now, reveal your true colors.’
Baek Woohyun watched them with sunken eyes.
Why would he have deliberately chosen to leave only those three?
He had left those who had thick killing intent in their attacks yet hesitated to step forward until the very end, in order to obtain proper evidence.
Evidence that they were tendrils and traitors of the research facility and Corporate Alliance who had infiltrated the Otherworld Management Bureau.
Kim Hana also seemed to have noticed something midway and matched his pace.
“There’s no choice. Let’s use it.”
“Kill them and bury them.”
Thus, under the tacit permission of Baek Woohyun and Kim Hana, the traitors who remained until the end finally stepped into ruin.
They pulled out a medicine storage container from their pockets, picked out a pill from inside, and gulped it down.
The fact that it was TL-01 could be confirmed by the changes that occurred in the traitors.
Their eyes, enveloped in a blue light that clearly felt ominous, were completely dyed purple without any gaps.
‘Everyone and their dog has one.’
“The traitors have revealed their true colors, Senior.”
“That’s…”
“It’s TL-01. The drug used by the hunting dog that attacked me last time.”
Baek Woohyun kindly explained about TL-01 to Kim Hana who looked puzzled.
“It’s a kind of doping drug; if you take it, you gain temporary enhancement effects.”
“There must be side effects too, Junior?”
“Correct. During the duration you transform into something inhuman, and when it ends you either die or reach a state equivalent to death.”
“Why on earth would they use such a dangerous drug…”
“They might not know, or they have no choice, well, there are various reasons.”
Baek Woohyun shrugged.
No matter what excuses the traitors spouted, the only thing that came to his mind was ‘there’s no grave without an excuse.’
After all, even taking TL-01 now was their choice.
“It’s not really that important.”
“In the end they’re just traitors, and they’ll die when the duration effect ends anyway?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
It was an extremely cold response, but Kim Hana quietly nodded in agreement. She too knew well that Baek Woohyun’s attitude was correct.
She had seen all sorts of dirty sights while working as a special agent. Among them were those who sold out their colleagues for a few coins.
It was revealed later that their daughter’s hospital bills were insufficient and they had been blackmailed by the research facility, but that couldn’t serve as an indulgence for selling out colleagues.
They may have their own circumstances, but it’s not a soft enough world to consider each one individually. What needs to be cut off must be cut off decisively.
“…Let’s not kill them directly ourselves.”
“Shall we just defend until the drug effect ends?”
“Yes. The corpse needs to remain intact for people to notice something is strange. They might even be able to discover the drug called TL-01 through autopsy.”
“Understood.”
As Baek Woohyun, who answered briefly, stepped forward, the traitors dominated by TL-01 reacted in unison.
Like those who had taken TL-01 before, the ability techniques the three unleashed simultaneously formed a concentrated fire as if shot by one person, targeting him.
Though the numbers had decreased compared to when there were about fifteen, it was an attack coordinated even more sharply. Depending on the person, it might have been perceived as even more threatening.
“Seu—!”
Of course, this wasn’t a story that applied to Baek Woohyun, who had once been called a ‘Superhuman’ on ‘that side’ and slaughtered numerous strong opponents.
A clear flow arose around him as he drew large circles consecutively with both hands. This too was a technique created by movements following proper form interlocking.
Simultaneously stepping forward once more, the Taegeuk [TL/N:Taegeuk (태극) in English is usually translated as “Great Ultimate” or “Supreme Ultimate.”]he created transformed into an undeniable attractive force that pulled in the ability techniques.
What happened to the ability techniques whose trajectories were arbitrarily twisted was obvious.
Kwagagang!
“Huu…!”
Ignoring the ability techniques that shattered the surroundings, Baek Woohyun returned to his original stance and calmly exhaled.
It was a sight far too mystical to have been accomplished merely by moving his body, yet his expression was extremely calm.
For him who had mastered numerous ‘proper forms,’ this degree was no longer particularly surprising.
‘I just need to hold out like this.’
And so it was.
Before the wall called Baek Woohyun, the three traitors collapsed helplessly. It was a miserable defeat where they still hadn’t managed to inflict a single wound on his body.
It merely proved once again that ordinary Awakener agents, not Hellhounds, taking TL-01 wouldn’t make any difference.
“What is this…” “N-no-” “……”
Kim Hana looked with sunken eyes at the traitors pouring blood from their eyes, nose, and mouth as the drug effect ended. Her expression showed she had much on her mind.
For her, who had been part of the Otherworld Management Bureau since right after awakening and worked as a special agent, it would be an unwelcome matter in various ways, so it was understandable.
Considering the fact that their deaths would increase the burden on other agents even more.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, let’s go, Junior.”
Baek Woohyun and Kim Hana, turning their backs on the corpses of the three traitors, immediately moved their steps.
Toward the safe house prepared for special agents.