Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert Chapter 573
Previously on Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert...
Chapter 573
Kwagagagak!
Tiny sand grains whirled violently, shredding every organ deep within Behemoth’s body.
Those massive organs, each the size of regular buildings, got pulverized by the relentless spinning particles.
Right now, Behemoth’s incredible regeneration proved worthless.
Giga Lightning from Levin had paralyzed his body completely, blocking any chance for super regeneration to kick in.
“Die!”
Flash! Flash!
Levin unleashed Giga Lightning one after another.
As a result, Behemoth remained frozen, helplessly taking hits from both inside and out.
Kwagak!
Finally, the sand particles assaulted Behemoth’s heart.
—How can this happen! My mission remains unfulfilled.
Behemoth tried to teleport away from there.
His body housed a special organ for teleportation.
This organ featured clusters of round jewels dangling like ripe grapes.
Infusing it with mana enabled teleportation to any chosen spot.
Zeon detected this organ’s presence.
The vast influx of sand into Behemoth’s body made it possible.
On instinct, Zeon knew its activation would let Behemoth warp through space and escape.
Allowing Behemoth to flee meant no one could predict his power upon return.
Zeon had to stop the nightmare of Behemoth consuming other magical beasts to heal.
“Sand Soldier!”
Zeon called forth Sand Soldiers within Behemoth’s body.
A few Sand Soldiers detached from the Sand Mixer.
These Sand Soldiers ripped away the grape-like jewels, which had started glowing, from Behemoth’s body.
—N-No!
Behemoth cried out as his last escape route vanished.
A Sand Soldier carrying the stolen jewels moved toward Zeon.
“So this is the teleport item.”
Upon touching it, Zeon instantly understood the jewel’s function.
Zeon quickly stored the teleport item in his subspace.
Fierce malice flared in Behemoth’s eyes now that teleportation was lost.
He sensed his doom approaching.
—Think I’ll die alone? My mission gets done even in death.
Behemoth’s pupils burned red, launching a devastating beam.
Kwaaaah!
The enormously thick destructive beam barely missed Zeon, streaking toward the distant horizon.
“Don’t tell me…?”
Zeon whipped around in alarm.
Neo Seoul lay in the path of that destructive beam.
Over one hundred kilometers separated this spot from Neo Seoul.
Even Zeon couldn’t be sure if the beam would strike Neo Seoul from so far.
Kuuung!
After that desperate final act, Behemoth’s enormous body crashed down.
His life finally ended.
Upon Behemoth’s demise, disbelief filled the Awakened’s faces.
They never dreamed they’d defeat such a huge magical beast themselves.
Zeon undoubtedly carried the main burden, yet everyone there had chipped in meaningfully.
“Waaah!”
“We got him!”
As reality sank in, the Awakened exploded into deafening cheers.
Their shouts lifted surrounding sand high into the air.
Accomplishing the impossible filled the Awakened with triumph.
Even witnessing it anew, belief was hard.
Hunting a hundred-meter-tall gigantic magical beast.
“Ha ha! This is insane….”
“We actually killed that.”
They shook heads in utter disbelief.
“Hoo!”
Zeon exhaled deeply, landing on the ground.
Levin came up beside him.
“Hyung! Are you okay?”
“I’m dying. You?”
“I think I’m dying too.”
Levin slumped to the ground, shaking his head.
To support Zeon, Levin had pushed his strength to the absolute brink.
He couldn’t even twitch a finger, with his body feeling shattered everywhere.
No mana left made it even tougher.
“You worked hard.”
“You worked harder. We really killed that monster. Haah!”
Levin shook his head, still unable to fully grasp it.
Even dead, Behemoth radiated crushing pressure.
Just then—
Pasasasa!
Suddenly, Behemoth’s huge body started crumbling to dust.
“What?”
“Why is it…?”
Bewilderment crossed the Awakened’s faces.
A hundred-meter-long colossal body dissolving into wind-blown powder felt impossibly surreal.
“Fuck!”
“No!”
Strike captains yelled in rage.
Countless Awakened died and gear got wrecked slaying Behemoth. Still, they stayed calm knowing his corpse would repay losses many times over back in Neo Seoul.
But with Behemoth powdering away, recovery became impossible. Their screams made sense.
Seong Hoyeon, Numbers leader, shook his head.
“Damn magical beast! Even dying, it denies humans any benefit.”
“Intact corpse would’ve been trouble too. How to haul it to Neo Seoul? How to split it?”
Grain remarked, looking relieved it happened this way.
Seong Hoyeon chuckled softly.
“True. Districts would’ve fought fiercely over shares.”
“Yet the biggest contributor wants nothing.”
Their eyes shifted to Zeon chatting with Levin.
Zeon watched Behemoth’s body powder and fade calmly, unsurprised.
As if he’d foreseen it all along.
Then Grain recalled Behemoth’s death-beam aimed at Neo Seoul.
“Will Neo Seoul be alright?”
“It will be fine. Neo Seoul has a protective barrier.”
“The slums…?”
“That I cannot guarantee.”
Silence hung briefly between them.
It was then.
“Neo Seoul will be fine.”
A voice cut into their talk.
Looking over, they spotted a stunning woman approaching.
It was Tesserina.
Her words left the two men confused.
“What do you mean?”
“I saw the destructive beam disappear midway.”
“Is that true?”
Seong Hoyeon asked skeptically, but Tesserina smiled back.
“I saw it clearly with my own eyes. The destructive beam definitely vanished midway.”
“That’s a relief.”
Seong Hoyeon finally sighed in relief.
He didn’t know Tesserina’s secrets, but knew she traveled with Zeon.
No reason for Zeon’s ally to lie, so he trusted her.
Tesserina walked past Seong Hoyeon to Zeon.
“You worked hard.”
“You said the destructive beam vanished?”
“Yes.”
“How? Because of causality, you and Behemoth cannot interfere directly in each other’s acts.”
Zeon knew Tesserina stopped the beam. Nothing else explained its sudden end.
Tesserina smiled.
“I cannot intervene directly, but indirect interference is possible.”
“Then how?”
“I captured a mid-sized magical beast and placed it in the path of the destructive beam.”
“Ah!”
“Exactly. I didn’t use my power directly. It collided with the mid-sized magical beast and was extinguished.”
“Smart.”
“If my timing had been even slightly later, I might not have been able to stop it. I was lucky.”
Zeon nodded.
Fortune had smiled on them.
Zeon suddenly gazed westward.
“By the way, I wonder what happened to the Iron Fortress.”
“Indeed.”
Tesserina nodded, peering the same way.
＊＊＊
“Khuhuhu! You damned….”
Bloody Refo glared ahead with crimson eyes.
Countless beastmen corpses littered the ground.
All his followers.
Iron Fortress Awakened under Urtian had slain them.
Iron Fortress Awakened took heavy losses too, but ultimately wiped out the beastmen.
Urtian stood at the center.
Urtian looked as battered as Refo.
Scarcely an unscathed inch remained, yet he held steady.
Refo gnashed his teeth.
“You elf bastard! How can you do this to us? To those who crossed from Kurayan together….”
“You idiot tiger-head. Of course I can. You expect me to let home-invaders harm my family?”
Urtian grinned through bloody teeth.
He’d poured every ounce into the fight.
When his shamshir broke, he grabbed another from the dirt. When that snapped, he tore throats with teeth.
No battle in his life matched this ferocity.
Scavenger fights stole scraps; this defended loved ones and home.
Protecting ignited desperate fury.
Urtian and Iron Fortress Awakened battled full throttle.
Retreat meant family death, so they fought savagely.
One fell, two replaced. Comrade died, vengeance followed.
Even fearless beastmen shrank back terrified.
Refo’s face contorted.
Urtian’s wound burned agonizingly.
His side gaped open, guts spilling.
Beastmen toughness and regen kept him up; any normal Awakened would’ve died.
Refo sensed his body locking up.
Physical limits hit.
Standing strained him now.
Urtian’s strike scarred body and soul irreparably.
He clung to life by threads; death loomed inevitable.
“Damn… it!”
“You shouldn’t have coveted this place from the start.”
“Bullshit! What’s wrong with wanting livable land? That’s survival.”
“Even so, we didn’t drag magical beasts into the fight just so our own race could live.”
“Fuck! That plan should have succeeded….”
“I’ve heard enough.”
Slash!
Urtian swung at Refo’s neck after shaking his head.
Refo’s head tumbled across the ground.
“Haah! Haah!”
Urtian then crumpled, panting hard.
His wounds, though milder than Refo’s, were severe.
Willpower alone sustained him; body had quit long ago.
Thud!
Suddenly, a heavy thud sounded.
He turned to see a massive giant warrior down.
Two women stood before the giant’s corpse.
Liala and Hera.
The fallen giant commander was Lamor.
Together, the women felled Lamor.
Liala pumped her fist skyward, yelling,
“It is our victory!”
“Waaah!”
Awakened cheered back.