Chapter 2604 – 2604. Eternal Eden

I led the troops and moved towards Jecheon City.

From the entrance, Jecheon pasqueflowers blocked our path.

Giant flowers reaching 2 meters in height. Their purple petals were striking. If they were ordinary plants, even at 2 meters, they could be ignored. But the Jecheon pasqueflowers before us were not ordinary. If you got too close, they would spit sap or lash out with their stems. For a plant, their stem strength was stronger than that of an average human.

‘Seeing them in person, they’re even more vivid than in the videos.’

The most powerful attack of the Jecheon pasqueflowers was the sap that instantly melted flesh. However, it couldn’t melt metal. The combat helmet didn’t melt at all, and the combat suit was specially coated with metal for this occasion. It meant that even if we were hit by the sap, it wouldn’t matter.

‘Well, killing monsters is nothing new.’

I moved forward. The Jecheon pasqueflowers, which had been photosynthesizing, began to move. The flowers turned towards me and shot out sap.

‘If they sense movement, they just shoot sap first, huh?’

The speed at which the sap was shot wasn’t fast. It was at a level where I could dodge by observing the movements of the Jecheon pasqueflowers.

I took a step back.

*Swoosh*

The sap that fell on the ground splashed in all directions, and some of it landed on my body. The combat suit was metal, so it didn’t melt.

‘It retains the characteristics of a liquid. If I hadn’t been armored in metal, it would have been quite troublesome.’

As soon as the Jecheon pasqueflower realized that the sap wasn’t working, it lashed out with its stem. The stem extended and whipped out like a whip.

I swung the ultra-vibrating blade I was holding. It cut through the stem without any resistance. As the distance closed, the purple petals moved to strike me. I, who had been watching the creature without letting my guard down, ducked my head to avoid the attack.

‘A new pattern that wasn’t previously identified. It’s not a difficult attack.’

*Swoosh*

I cut through the central stem. A transparent liquid-like substance flowed from the cross-section of the stem. The stem seemed to collapse, but suddenly it whipped towards my legs. I lightly jumped to avoid it and then cut the base of the stem. Only then did the Jecheon pasqueflower fall completely silent.

“Did you see that? If you get close, they hit you with their petals. Don’t underestimate the petals. If you touch them, you’ll see that, unlike their soft surface, they’re quite thick and hard. And to make sure they’re dead, cut the base of the stem.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I grabbed the fallen Jecheon pasqueflower. If I left it as it was, it would definitely be an obstacle, so I had to clear them away promptly.

‘About 70kg, I guess. It’s heavier than I thought.’

I threw the cut Jecheon pasqueflower behind me. The soldiers in charge of disposal rushed over and loaded the Jecheon pasqueflower onto a truck. Some of the Jecheon pasqueflowers would be sent to the research lab to be used as specimens, and the majority would go into the decomposer to become resources.

“Start the operation.”

The 30 members of the Holy Guard moved in perfect unison. These were the real elite soldiers who had experienced death several times in actual training, so they weren’t afraid even if their opponents were plant monsters. They approached the Jecheon pasqueflowers and sliced through their stems with ultra-vibrating blades. Their movements were like machines, without a single flaw.

Even if a variable occurred, it didn’t matter. All members of the Holy Guard could use the neural accelerator ‘Lightning Dance Mk.1’. If they felt it was dangerous, they used the neural accelerator to respond.

Due to the overwhelming difference in skill, it was more like a work operation than a battle. Well, I had expected it.

‘If they were going to struggle with these things, I wouldn’t have created the Holy Guard.’

Leaving the Holy Guard, who were doing well, behind, I looked at Choi Hye-jin and Irina.

Irina was doing well. She cut only the stems with arrows that had longer blades than usual. Since she was attacking from a distance, the Jecheon pasqueflowers couldn’t even react and died. The downside was that it wasn’t easy to retrieve the arrows she shot. Still, she was fighting well in cooperation with the Holy Guard.

‘Lee Yeon-hee has powerful abilities, but they come at a high cost. It’s best to save her strength for important moments.’

Choi Hye-jin was the problem. She was holding a sword instead of the metal bat she usually used, and she wasn’t using it well at all.

“Ugh! Why won’t this cut?!”

It was an ultra-vibrating blade, but she wasn’t using the ultra-vibration. It wasn’t difficult to use. All she had to do was press the button on the hilt.

‘She has a pretty face and body, but her brain is a brick.’

“Ms. Choi Hye-jin. You need to press the button on the hilt for the blade to vibrate and increase its cutting power.”

One of the guards, unable to watch any longer, gave her advice.

“I know!”

Choi Hye-jin frowned and shouted. She was a brick and had a bad temper. Still, she somehow managed to use the ultra-vibrating blade.

“Oh. This is fun?”

She swung the sword clumsily with a clumsy stance. Nevertheless, she was clearing out the Jecheon pasqueflowers faster than the guards.

‘Physical prowess that overwhelms the guards and instinctive movements that put even beasts to shame. 5-star potential isn’t just for show.’

The operation continued.

We moved deeper inside. It was around that time that a change occurred. A giant Jecheon pasqueflower, over 5 meters tall, attached to a building, spread its petals wide and began to scatter pollen.

-An unknown substance has been detected in the air. Automatically switching to gas mask mode.

An AI voice was heard from the combat helmet. Thanks to that, we weren’t affected by the pollen.

“Is it some kind of poison? Collect a sample.”

“Sample collected.”

“The pollen makes the view a bit hazy, but it’s not like we can’t see. Keep going.”

We advanced for two hours without rest. Just as we were getting too used to the battle and our tension was easing, a change occurred.

A screen appeared on the combat helmet display, showing the camera view from a drone flying in the sky.

‘The Jecheon pasqueflowers in other directions of Jecheon City are moving behind us. Are they trying to surround us? Even if there are rear troops, they won’t be able to stop them. If we stay like this, we’ll end up trapped in Jecheon City.’

The intention of the Jecheon pasqueflowers was simple. To overwhelm us with numbers.

I checked the map that appeared on the display. We hadn’t even reached half of our destination. I looked around. The Holy Guard was exhausted.

‘The Holy Guard are ordinary people who have been trained to their limits. They’re bound to have physical limits.’

I came to a conclusion.

“Retreat.”

This was the first attempt. We got what we needed.

“Lee Yeon-hee. Open a path for retreat.”

I said to Lee Yeon-hee, who had been quietly following us.

“Yes, I will.”

We retreated. Before we could get out of Jecheon City, the Jecheon pasqueflowers gathered and blocked our way. Lee Yeon-hee drew a line in the air with her hand. Space was severed, and the stems of about 20 Jecheon pasqueflowers were cut, falling to the ground.

‘Spatial severance. It looks terrifying, but it takes some time to cast. And the gesture of waving her hand. Is it to increase her concentration?’

Lee Yeon-hee’s breathing became slightly rough.

‘Just using it once is this much. Her ability’s cost is high after all. She can only use it 2-3 times in a row, maybe.’

But it was a powerful ability nonetheless. Spatial severance. It was an attack that couldn’t be blocked no matter what equipment you brought.

• • •

Three days had passed since we came to Jecheon City.

The progress of the restoration of Jecheon City… wasn’t even 5%. Even if we managed to get in by killing the Jecheon pasqueflowers, we would be surrounded after a little time. To avoid being surrounded, we had to retreat. And when we tried again, the Jecheon pasqueflowers had already reproduced.

‘At this rate, it’ll be stagnant even after three months. Should I just use bombers for precision strikes? I want to secure the source of the Jecheon pasqueflowers….’

After much deliberation, I came to a conclusion.

“Call the helicopter. We’ll make an aerial assault on the source and target only the origin.”

“It could be dangerous even if we retreat using helicopters and drones. Especially the pollen is a problem. According to the investigation, the pollen itself is a toxic substance, and it sticks to machines in large quantities, causing problems. In the past three days, 13 drones have crashed due to the pollen.”

Lee Yeon-hee suggested using bombers instead.

“Bionics expert Yoo Seo-jung and the biologists requested the source of the Jecheon pasqueflowers. The Jecheon pasqueflowers we’ve captured so far are all duds and don’t help much with research. And if we can capture the source in a relatively intact state… they’ve asserted that bioengineering could advance significantly.”

“…Then, only the Holy Guard should move. There’s no need for you, Eugene, to step in.”

“No. I’ll move myself. I’ve been stepping back to let the guards gain experience, but… this time, I’ll finish it for sure.”

I didn’t allow any objections.

After that, we moved to the center of Jecheon City by helicopter. Did they notice the presence of the helicopter? The Jecheon pasqueflowers began to spew pollen. In an instant, the entire city of Jecheon became hazy.

‘These guys. Their reaction is faster than it was three days ago. It’s not just us who are gaining experience. It was right to finish this quickly.’

The helicopter increased its altitude to a height where the pollen couldn’t reach. The guards descended below using fast ropes towards the destination. It was a rooftop of a building.

‘One of the three destinations. If it’s not here, we’ll have to get back on the helicopter and go to another place.’

The guards who had descended first were subduing the Jecheon pasqueflowers by swinging their ultra-vibrating blades in all directions. A Jecheon pasqueflower, over 10 meters tall, attached to the wall of the building, swung its huge stem. Lee Yeon-hee, who was still in the helicopter, cut the giant Jecheon pasqueflower with spatial severance.

I, who had landed on the rooftop, frowned as I looked around. They all looked so similar that it was hard to figure out what the source was.

‘We shouldn’t forget the possibility that the source isn’t a flower.’

Brain Heaven Style Electromagnetic Wave.

A 30-meter electromagnetic wave spread out from me. Information from the rooftop, inside the building below the rooftop, came in.

‘Roots are also going into the building. But there isn’t a particularly special individual. Is this a bust?’

Electromagnetic wave exploration wasn’t omnipotent. If the source was disguised as a normal individual, I could be fooled.

‘We need to be able to distinguish between normal individuals and the source. It seems difficult to distinguish with electromagnetic waves… another method is….’

I looked at the floor of the rooftop. The roots that were half-buried in the floor were visible. Looking at them like this, they looked like wires.

“…Wires?”

I immediately squatted down and cut a root to check. The root was a root. Not a wire.

‘Originally, plants don’t have nerve cells. But this one is different. Looking at its battle methods so far, it has absorbed experience and grown. In other words, it has a brain.’

And it was found that normal individuals received orders through their roots and moved.

I grabbed a root and concentrated. Then, I could feel the subtle bioelectricity flowing through the root.

‘Heh heh. This makes it easy.’

I sent a subtle electric current into the root and reverse-tracked the location.

I found it.

The source was very close.

It was a normal-sized pasqueflower attached to the railing below the rooftop. I quickly ran over and pulled the source Jecheon pasqueflower. It looked normal on the outside. That’s why it didn’t get caught by the electromagnetic waves.

“The source looks the most ordinary.”

Perhaps because it was forcibly pulled out, it wriggled in my grasp and then stopped. It was dead.

It didn’t matter. Now that I had the corpse, I could just revive it. I ordered the guards.

“The objective has been achieved. Retreat.”