Cha Jun Sung encountered countless mutants while going through the virtual version of Life Mission. It was the same while going through the virtual version. However, he is going through the same experience again while remaining in the mission since Public Underground.
Bang bang bang bang!
2 mutants fight. One looks like a human like the Caicus but it is almost 60 meters tall, and the other is small at about 5 or 6 meters.
There is no way to imagine just from size, but the 2 mutants are at neck and neck. It is a battle of monsters. The aftermath is a mess of collapsed buildings.
“Metal Giant and Twister! It’s fun to watch such vigorous guys going at it!”
Cha Jun Sung could not take his eyes off of the battle. They are both level 7s. Metal Giant is also called Iron Giant. Like its name and appearance, it uses its enormous size and strength to smash everything.
Boom!
Even now, a 15-story building goes down under its fist.
The dusty area swirls and creates a sandstorm. It moves around as though alive. It must be alive from the way it goes at Metal Giant. That is Twister’s combat style.
Twister has large and small spiral blades all over its body. It rotates its body and approaches the enemy to grind it up.
“Looks like Metal Giant will win.”
[The situation isn’t good and you can’t ignore each of their weaknesses and strengths.]
There is no way to deny their strength as level 7s, but Twister’s blades are not having an impact on Metal Giant. Among level 7s, Metal Giant is among the top 10 while Twister is on the weaker side. They are on separate poles. Even as part of the same level, there are bound to be a distinction between the weak and strong.
“Twister’s side?”
[Metal Giant is big, so it’ll take time to take over its body. Twister is better if you want to end it quickly.]
Over several days, Cha Jun Sung and Oriax exchanged opinions and consulted on finding out about Public Underground through humans and mutants. They even talked about Oriax’s abilities. It is a parasitic type. As long as the conditions are right, it could take over high level mutants as well.
Though it does not kill the host, it takes over the mind so that the information that the host has is handed over. This is how they are trying to get information.
It cannot be parasitic indefinitely. As its nutrient and energy consumption were extreme, it needs to leave enough time. That is why they came up with high level parasitism.
Level 7s have low activity levels compared to their wide area. These are conditions in which they can win on quality rather than quantity. Oriax made the suggestion and Cha Jun Sung accepted it positively. They tried it once and it was a success.
Unfortunately, they did not get the information that they wanted. They just absorbed a mutant at random.
Metal Giant brings its left hand down on Twister.
It might be thought of as slow, but it is not. Its attack range is wide as well, so one needs to be cautious.
Papat!
Twister moved to the side to avoid the left hand. Blocking it is too much. If it gets hit, it will be crushed so that its head is next to its foot.
Metal Giant predicted that Twister would avoid the left hand and calculated Twister’s route to bring down its right hand.
Bang bang bang!
Blood splatters and bones break. Twister is injured and embedded in the ground. Metal Giant’s hand is also severely ripped up from the force of the tornado, but there is no danger to its life.
“It’s over. Let’s go.”
Bang!
As soon as Cha Jun Sung awakens, his inner demon shows itself. He rushes at the back of Metal Giant’s head. He cannot leave Twister to die. It could have information that he needs.
[Ugh! A surprise attack from a level 8 to a level 7. How embarrassing. Let’s end it quickly.]
Both of Cha Jun Sung’s arms change into great swords. He put his palms together to fuse them, making it an even bigger sword. It became nearly half of Metal Giant’s size.
“I’m pushing through! Sword blow!”
Metal Giant sensed him coming and turned around, but it was too late. The scene that filled its view when it turned was the Grim Reaper, that had come all the way to its forehead.
It is split from the head down to the back. It had resistance, but this was nothing compared to Cha Jun Sung’s force. The image of a 60 meter giant splitting with its organs spilling out to the sides is inexpressibly heinous.
[Sword blow? Is that a technique you used in Life Mission? Don’t do stuff like this from now on. It’s so embarrassing I can’t lift my head.]
Cha Jun Sung scratches his cheek. He had just shouted in excitement, but the feedback is critical. It must not be something he should do past the age of 30.
Cha Jun Sung looked at Metal Giant’s corpse and then his wrist.
“Whew! If I had the PDA, I would’ve gathered millions of points by now.”
Since he does not have the PDA now, the points will not be added on even when he goes back to reality. He does not know whether the helpers are watching him or not.
He is not always in attack mode and there is no way to predict his changes, but the helpers have a position on unique mutants as a base. If they could not get the location, they would not have been able to establish the mission in the first place.
‘Hang on.’
Cha Jun Sung looks into the past. A memory that comes back all of a sudden. It is what Odin and the other helpers said at the same time a long time ago when Red Eye appeared.
[Variable occurrence. Satellite program activation. Estimated 3 hours until confirmation.]
He had ignored it subconsciously, but he is sure that they said this. It might even be possible with the helpers’ super science that allows them to bring them back and forth between dimensions so easily.
Cha Jun Sung looks up at the wide sky. Space, which is not visible even with level 8 abilities. Could the fruit of the most advanced science be up there?
‘I’m sure I’ll find out once I find my PDA and meet Odin.’
If Odin is watching his every move, it will know in detail all of the changes that have gone through his body because of the Oriax.
[If you really look at it, you all who are hunting mutants are also pieces on this chessboard.]
“I can’t refute that.”
It looks like Lifers are the hunters at a glance so it looks better, but he was getting the sense that that is not so much the case as time went on.
Who are the helpers and why was Life Mission created? What is the mutant world and what is the reality where Cha Jun Sung lives?
There is nothing he knows, so he cannot even find an association point. Even still, there has been a lot of development compared to the beginning. Back then, he did not even have doubts.
Cha Jun Sung stopped thinking about it and went to the collapsed Twister. It is in its awakened state. Twister gave up its life as soon as it saw Cha Jun Sung.
It realized that he is a predator it cannot handle. It does not have the confidence even if its body were normal. There is no need for words to describe how it is now when its body is a mess.
“What do you think?”
[It lost its will to fight. It’s easy to take over a collapsed mind.]
[Shall I start?]
“Yeah.”
There is a chill in the surroundings following Metal Giant and Twister’s battle. All mutants have run away. It seems to be safe.
[I’m saying this just in case, but be careful. If I die, you become weak too.]
The Oriax leaves Cha Jun Sung’s body. A great power that had dominated his entire body scatters like smoke and he becomes helpless. He has become a human.
The time it takes to absorb is a few hours at the least and a day at most. For that time, Cha Jun Sung is defenseless. He is as good as dead if he is discovered by a mutant.