chapter 37
Lee Hyun’s destination was an abandoned building on the outskirts of Seoul, in Uijeongbu.
It looked like it hadn’t been touched by human hands for over ten years, yet this was the gateway that led to the black market.
Swish!
Lee Hyun appeared right in front of the decrepit structure.
He was wearing a white coat and a black goblin mask.
From this moment on, I am no longer Jang Lee Hyun, but the Apostle of Zeus. Arrogant, extravagant, violent, and brutal—that’s how I must act.
On his way here, Lee Hyun had been pondering how he could rescue Ko Jin-woo.
First of all, he had no intention of revealing his true identity as Jang Lee Hyun.
Unlike in White Burn, here his identity could easily be exposed.
And not just because of Seo Chang-woo’s group—crossing the black market itself would be far more troublesome.
The [Drug King], who monopolizes more than 70% of the world’s black markets, would never tolerate anyone sullying his territory.
The Drug King, one of the Nine Thousand, could privatize nearly all the black markets in the world thanks to his ruthless law enforcement.
He never allowed conflict within his domain.
Even petty quarrels were punished, and if a murder occurred, he sent assassins under the pretext that someone had “stained his name.”
Because of that obsessive nature, most people avoided trouble in the black market.
Even those fearless underworld figures trembled at the Drug King’s wrath.
That’s also why I felt it was safe to send Jin-woo here in the first place.
But if necessary, Lee Hyun was prepared to turn the black market upside down.
Since South Korea, with its strict law enforcement, wasn’t one of the Drug King’s primary zones of interest, the quality of its administrators was poor.
And no one could predict how large-scale a clash might erupt between the Myung Family Guild and the black market.
If it really was the Myung Family who kidnapped Jin-woo, then there must be some covert connection between them and the Korean branch of the black market.
That meant even if he dealt with the Myung Family and rescued Jin-woo, he would still have to prepare for the black market’s relentless pursuit.
That’s why he decided to resurrect the identity he thought he’d use just once and discard: “the Apostle of Zeus.”
By now, rumors of the Apostle of Zeus must have already spread little by little among the high-rankers. Diverting everyone’s attention in that direction would be best.
Of course, for this plan to work, a few conditions had to be met:
-
No link must remain between “the Apostle of Zeus” and Ko Jin-woo.
-
Any conflict between “the Apostle of Zeus” and the Myung Family must appear to arise for other reasons.
-
The Apostle of Zeus’s arrogance and overwhelming violence must be displayed without restraint.
And most importantly—
There must never be a link to Jang Lee Hyun.
Fortunately, “Jang Lee Hyun of White Burn” was still considered a newcomer who had only recently returned after being injured.
Meanwhile, the Apostle of Zeus was known as the powerhouse who had defeated India’s famous ranker, Mukesh Ambani, in a single strike.
So, connecting the two identities right away would be difficult.
Still, caution never hurts. The Drug King is nothing if not persistent.
The only real problem was that, unlike during the Mukesh fight, there was no cursed battlefield already prepared this time.
Well, if it doesn’t exist, I’ll just make one.
Lee Hyun was a fighter who knew how to lure opponents into terrain advantageous to himself.
“Fuuu.”
He exhaled slowly, then opened his eyes.
They gleamed gold, and white lightning—the symbol of Zeus, Keraunos—crackled forth.
The mask made it easier for him to immerse himself in this new persona.
He forced open the building’s door. Inside lay a hidden dungeon.
Fwoooosh!
[You have entered the dungeon!]
[Dungeon: Goblin Market]
[Across the world, there are tales of ghost markets that open only at specific times and vanish without a trace.]
[The goods sold here carry the touch of fairies and other non-humans, and thus bear strange, mysterious qualities. Their sense of value differs greatly from humans.]
[Choose wisely what you purchase. Depending on your choice, the fairies may curse you—or bless you.]
[Success: purchased goods.]
[Failure: purchased goods.]
Chatter filled the air.
Lee Hyun found himself in a bustling market overflowing with people.
“Come, choose! Pick anything you like!”
“Buy fruit! These are nail-fruits grown on the pinky branches of a human-faced beast! Juicy and fresh!”
“Exchange anything for anything! Fortune-telling, divination, luck or misfortune—come find out your fate!”
Half the crowd were humans, the other half beings classified as monsters.
They wandered down the lanes, inspecting the goods on display, haggling noisily with vendors, filling the atmosphere with lively chaos.
It’s been a while since I’ve been here.
Monkey King surveyed the scene with interest.
Sha Wujing chuckled.
「Kakaka. There’s a poem this monk likes—Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti. I wouldn’t be surprised if this dungeon was inspired by that.」
「Humans and non-humans gathering from all over, ignoring each other and focusing solely on trade… Clever. This way it’s hard to tell locals from outsiders, making it the perfect setting for moving about in disguise.」
Sun Wukong instantly grasped the structure of the black market.
“This dungeon’s gates appear sporadically in many places.”
「Ah, so all the administrators need to do is control those gates strictly.」
“Exactly.”
Lee Hyun hurried through the crowded marketplace—past a flower shop selling gem-blooms, a fruit vendor with obsidian-shining apples, a textile stall offering monster-hide cloth, and more.
Finally, he reached the butcher’s block in one corner.
The stench of rotting flesh mixed with the aroma of cooking meat.
This is it.
He entered the deepest butcher stall, where human and demi-human body parts hung for sale.
Outwardly it looked gruesome, as if run by non-humans—but it was only camouflage.
In reality, it was a fencing shop, one Lee Hyun had visited a few times with Jin-woo.
“Well, well! A rare human customer. What’ll it be? Liver, lungs, intestines, heart—we have everything. Just say the word.”
A tattooed butcher greeted him with a booming laugh.
[You activate the Holy Relic: Mask of the Golden Arhat.]
[Curses ‘Voice Distortion’ and ‘Cold Infection’ are applied.]
“I came for parts.”
A distorted voice, unlike Lee Hyun’s, slipped out through the mask—unnerving and oppressive.
“…Do you have any particular parts in mind?”
The butcher’s brow twitched, but he forced a smile.
“Kidneys and spleen. Something good for circulation.”
“What kind…?”
“Shadow fae and volcanic dwarves. Mix them at a 3.5 to 6.5 ratio. Total weight, 31.7 kilograms.”
“…”
“Don’t have it?”
“O-of course we do! I was just surprised. Those are rare items, hardly ever requested. Please wait while I check our stock.”
He hurried inside, then returned with a troubled look.
“Ah, this is unfortunate. Our stock is too low. You’ll have to come again another time. My apologies, sir.”
Heh.
A sneer escaped from under the mask.
“Funny. Seems there are plenty of shoppers down here. Don’t tell me it’s just inconvenient to fetch the goods.”
Arrogant tone.
Lee Hyun stomped the ground.
Boom…!
The butcher flinched as the building itself seemed ready to collapse.
And then came the terrifying energy radiating from Lee Hyun.
Crackle!
White lightning leapt across his shoulders.
Bolts spiraled in the air, compressing into solid spheres of crackling energy.
More than a dozen Thunder Orbs, each growling with destructive potential.
Originally drills for controlling lightning, but now weapons in their own right.
The guard at the shop’s entrance had no way to handle this.
“Sir, that’s—!”
“Enough games. Tell President Yang this: Chairman Peng vouched for you, said you were trustworthy. If this is how you treat me, I won’t be amused.”
The butcher didn’t know who Chairman Peng was, but being spoken down to so casually while invoking his boss left him pale and speechless.
Just as Lee Hyun guessed, the boss was in the basement meeting important guests.
The code phrase he used was reserved for VIP customers—but right now, even those were being turned away due to a major deal.
Yet this man clearly didn’t care.
“You’re hesitating.”
Lee Hyun’s eyes narrowed coldly.
“Let me ease your hesitation.”
“…!”
He thrust out his hand.
Surely not? Was he about to cause havoc here, in the black market itself?
The butcher scrambled to protest—
But flash!
BOOOM!
One thunder orb shot forward and exploded.
Hurricane winds and lightning bolts tore through the room.
More than enough to obliterate a single butcher stall.
“There it is.”
A hidden trapdoor beneath the wrecked storage room was revealed.
Hands in his pockets, Lee Hyun strolled toward it.
With each step, another orb launched, raining lightning upon the underground lair.
BOOM! BOOM!
KRRAAA-KOOM!
Lee Hyun had decided on the traits the Apostle of Zeus must embody.
It can’t just be arrogance and offense. It must be overwhelming destruction, paired with a distinct fighting style—completely unlike Jang Lee Hyun.
Thus, he crafted a new persona: the Lightning Warlock.
Where Jang Lee Hyun was rough and aggressive, the Apostle of Zeus must be overwhelming yet flamboyant, arrogant yet elegant.
A magician who specialized solely in destructive lightning magic—what could fit Zeus’s Apostle better?
Luckily, Lee Hyun had plenty of tools at his disposal.
[You infuse the wrath emitted from Deep Breath of the Dokkebi with the thunders of Zeus and Indra.]
[Curses ‘Attribute Lock,’ ‘Range Compression,’ and ‘Exhaustion Induction’ are applied.]
‘Attribute Lock’ forced a mage to wield only one element.
‘Range Compression’ prevented attacks from spreading too wide.
‘Exhaustion Induction’ burned mana wastefully, driving the target to collapse.
Each curse was designed to torment hunters—yet when creatively combined, they birthed a terrifying new spell.
A lightning explosion spell, compressing thunder to the limit before detonating it with a storm’s fury.
[A new spell has been created.]
[It has been named “Thunder Orb.”]
[Congratulations! By fusing curses into magic, your mastery of the lightning attribute has deepened.]
[Dexterity +2.]
[Mana +1.]
…
During detonation, fragments of lightning linked together, chaining into further explosions.
Like a torrential downpour, the lightning devoured everything in its path.
“Stop him! Block it!”
“We can’t! His firepower’s too strong!”
“Who the hell is this guy?! How can he unleash so much lightning—Gyaaaah!”
“Where’s the black market?! Why aren’t they stopping this?! Hurry and—urk!”
The first floor was obliterated in an instant.
The storerooms stocked with all sorts of meat—gone.
And the henchmen rushing from the basement fared no better.
Most didn’t escape with minor wounds; many suffered third-degree burns or died on the spot.
Dust and smoke filled the air. The stench of charred flesh spread everywhere.
By now, Lee Hyun had resolved to wipe out the “Blue Dog” syndicate entirely.
They betrayed Jin-woo and sold him to the Myung Family. Let them pay the price themselves.
He had already confirmed their involvement in Ko Jin-woo’s kidnapping—
Right before unleashing the thunder orbs, he had overheard their basement conversation using [Golden Eyes] and [Combat Sense].
—“About that doctor we handed over…”
—“I suggest you remember that unnecessary curiosity only hastens death.”
—“No, I mean…”
—“If you’re worried about the cartel, don’t be. They’ll look the other way.”
—“That’s not it!”
—“Hm?”
—“There’s something about his identity I haven’t yet mentioned…”
—“Something you haven’t said?”
A conversation unmistakably tied to Ko Jin-woo—and the guests speaking were clearly from the Myung Family.
Therefore, Lee Hyun resolved not only to annihilate this group but also to seize the Myung Family by its tail.
