Chapter 34 – Collaboration (3)
— Qiongqi is one of the Four Perils, just like Taotie. It was also a monster that Emperor Shun banished.
One of the Constellations in the chat began explaining the Qiongqi that had appeared on the ground.
— The other Four Perils are vicious too, but Qiongqi is probably the most evil among them. If there is a good person and an evil person, it eats the good person and rewards the evil one. If Taotie represents gluttony or greed, then Qiongqi could be called the embodiment of absolute evil that encourages wickedness.
— Mister Constellation Who Loves Explaining Things, doesn't that thing have some kind of weakness? Tell us that first.
— I don't know either! There aren't many records about ancient beings like that!
Geumgak bit his lip as he watched the conversation in the chat.
If it had only been one Taotie, he thought they would somehow manage.
That was how much he trusted Kang Yujin, and his companions were quite capable as well.
But now another one of the Four Perils, Qiongqi, had appeared too.
— This looks a little dangerous.
— One Taotie alone would've been difficult enough, but now Qiongqi appears too?
— There are stories saying Emperor Shun banished the Four Perils, but there aren't any legends saying they were actually killed, right?
— Not as far as I know.
— I'm suddenly starting to feel nervous.
— Kang Yujin and the others… will they be okay?
The mood in the chat suddenly changed.
Until just a moment ago, everyone had been relaxed.
Now they were beginning to worry about Kang Yujin's group.
That was how serious the current situation looked.
“What the hell are you doing, you bastard?!”
The first person to rush toward Kang Yujin after he lost his weapon was Lee Jukhun, who possessed far superior speed.
Lee Jukhun swung his sword to keep the two monsters in check, giving Kang Yujin time to retreat.
“Serves you right! You charged in alone acting all cool, and look what happened!”
“Move.”
“You bastard! I just helped you and—!”
Ignoring Lee Jukhun, Kang Yujin moved his arm.
Taotie had eaten the iron ball of his flail, but the chain was still intact.
Using its extension function, he lengthened the chain and swung it toward the monster flying through the air.
“Kiyaak!”
The chain wrapped around part of Qiongqi's wing, causing the monster to struggle wildly.
While restricting its movements, Kang Yujin avoided Taotie as it charged at him.
“You saw it just now. That thing even eats weapons. Fighting it head-on is dangerous.”
“I-I already know that!”
“Didn't you say you went two hundred million into debt to buy that sword? It'd hurt if it became useless in less than a week.”
“Stop talking nonsense!”
“Why are you getting angry? Isn't it true?”
Kang Yujin tried to fight together with Lee Jukhun while exchanging words, but the two monsters were anything but easy opponents.
Then Seok Taejun and Joo Minha arrived and joined them.
“Kang Yujin! That winged tiger is probably a monster called Qiongqi, one of the Four Perils just like Taotie!”
“Taotie alone was already dangerous, and now another monster of the same class has appeared…!”
[D-Rank Constellation ‘Ghost Who Burned the Tower’ senses overwhelming demonic energy and trembles in fear.]
[C-Rank Constellation ‘Prince Who Killed His Father’ shudders at the might of the unfamiliar monsters.]
[B-Rank Constellation ‘General Faster Than the Red Hare’ recommends a tactical retreat.]
Even the Constellation messages had changed in tone.
After checking them, Kang Yujin spoke.
“Seok Taejun.”
“Yes?”
“Doesn't that monster called Qiongqi look a little like your Chimera?”
“Well… the Chimera also has a lion's body and wings, so they do look a little similar…”
“Handle it with the Chimera.”
“W-What?”
“I'll take care of the one on the ground while you do that.”
“Wait, what are you—?!”
Seok Taejun looked dumbfounded, but soon wore an expression of resignation.
“Ah, seriously. Fine! But I can't hold it off for long!”
“Then I'll go with you. I'll keep it in check with magic, so Seok Taejun, please control the Chimera and maintain enough distance from it.”
Joo Minha climbed onto the Chimera as well.
Seok Taejun immediately gave the Chimera an order, and it soared high into the sky.
“You seriously want the two of us to fight this thing?”
“If you're scared, back off.”
“I never said I was scared!”
Leaving Qiongqi to Seok Taejun and Joo Minha, Kang Yujin faced Taotie together with Lee Jukhun.
Taotie opened its enormous mouth with what looked like a grin.
“That thing… its mouth suddenly got bigger earlier, right?”
“Yeah.”
“If we're not careful, we'll become bite-sized snacks too.”
The moment Lee Jukhun muttered nervously—
Taotie kicked off the ground and charged.
“Those primordial anomalies are different from ordinary monsters.”
Jason's voice reached me as I watched the Observation Device.
“They're beings from an ancient age when even the laws of the world hadn't been fully established. Because of that, they have weaker characteristics as living creatures and stronger characteristics as conceptual beings.”
He continued.
“For example… its mouth suddenly became huge earlier, right? That's not because it's an animal with a skeletal structure that allows it to open its mouth that wide. It's because Taotie itself symbolizes greedy appetite.”
“So it can swallow anything it wants?”
“Exactly.”
In that case, even if Kang Yujin had prepared a weapon stronger than his previous flail, there was a good chance Taotie would've simply swallowed it whole.
“Well, considering its size isn't that enormous, it isn't a natural-disaster-level threat like Behemoth or Leviathan… but fighting two of them at the same time is still extremely difficult.”
“……”
“What do you want to do? Wouldn't it be better to make a tactical retreat for now?”
Jason asked for my opinion.
“The Constellations watching will be disappointed, of course, but that's still better than letting all your Contractors get wiped out. You can prepare properly and challenge them again later. If you package it well on ConstellationTube, the reaction probably won't be too bad.”
“No. There's no need.”
“What?”
“There's no need to retreat.”
There was no need to run.
That was my judgment.
“Expedition Leader, between that Taotie and Baphomet, which one is stronger? I'm talking purely about physical ability.”
“Hmm. If we ignore Baphomet's magic and commanding ability and compare only their close-combat ability, Taotie is far stronger. Its attack power is incredible, but its defense is ridiculous too. None of their attacks are working right now.”
Even I could see that Taotie was strong.
It wasn't an enemy that could easily be defeated through normal methods.
Even if Kang Yujin somehow won after a desperate battle, there would be no chance of victory if he had to fight Qiongqi immediately afterward.
“But it isn't completely immune to physical attacks like Baphomet was.”
“That's… true. It's extremely tough, though.”
“Then that's enough.”
“What?”
As long as physical attacks worked, that was enough.
“Lee Jukhun's current attack power probably isn't enough to deal proper damage… Are you planning to give Kang Yujin a new weapon? Something stronger than that flail?”
“No.”
“……”
