Chapter 27: The Womb of Poison
The core of the Baekjin Industrial Zone was no longer a place—it was a living nightmare.
Toxic clouds oozed like mist through twisted metal scaffolding. Crimson lights blinked in rhythm with the sound of shrieking, somewhere deep inside. A decaying heartbeat of death echoed through the structure.
Ji-ho walked forward slowly, his steps unshaken. The Destructive Aura around him rippled like smoke caught in a storm. His Eye of Evil flickered—every surface, every angle, every threat shown in lines of crimson possibility.
Ahead stood Kang Min-joon, the Third Guardian of the Poison Monarch.
A-rank Awakened.
Code Name: Skin-Taker.
Special Trait: Psychological Poison Induction.
The man wasn't just a killer—he was an artist of madness.
"Welcome," Kang Min-joon whispered, stepping out from the shadow of a broken steel reactor. His face was pale, thin, and his smile too wide to be human. Needles floated in the air around him, dripping with swirling black venom. "You've killed my brothers. I'm honored to be the next."
Ji-ho didn't waste words.
BOOM!
A pulse of energy exploded outward from his body, sending rust and metal flying. The Destructive Ray ignited in mid-air, forming a long blade that shimmered with poison and pure hatred.
Min-joon laughed. "Ah… you're already in pain, aren't you? Let's make it worse."
He snapped his fingers.
Suddenly, the world shifted.
---
Inside Ji-ho's Mind
The walls around him cracked. The air twisted. He was no longer in Baekjin.
He stood in the burning remains of the clinic. Seo-oh's screams echoed.
His brother lay dying. Again.
He couldn't move.
He couldn't speak.
He just watched as the fourth target stood laughing, stabbing Seo-oh again and again.
"No!" Ji-ho roared, but the voice came from his heart—not his mouth.
He couldn't wake up.
---
Reality – Poison Induction
Kang Min-joon stood calmly, watching Ji-ho tremble, caught in the illusion.
"This poison… it breaks the soul before the body. Even your evolution trait won't stop it."
Ji-ho dropped to one knee.
Blood leaked from his eyes.
His body shivered violently, muscles tearing from within.
But suddenly…
Willpower Trait: Activated.
Within his mind, Ji-ho screamed—not in fear, but in rage. The pendant around his neck pulsed, glowing faintly, resisting the manipulation.
"I am not yours."
His Willpower burned through the illusion, shattering the clinic's memory like glass.
Back in reality, Ji-ho stood up.
Kang Min-joon's smile vanished.
"You broke it?"
Ji-ho didn't reply. The Destructive Ray flared again—but now, it had evolved. Its tip split open, forming a wide edge, crackling with corrosive aura. His shield reformed—Destruction and Poison fused into a living wall.
"I remember you," Ji-ho said coldly, walking forward. "You were the one who smiled while Seo-oh screamed."
Kang Min-joon panicked. All his needles launched forward, spinning with lethal speed.
Ji-ho didn't dodge.
He raised one hand—telekinetically stopped every single needle mid-air, then turned them around with his mind.
Min-joon's body was impaled in the blink of an eye.
He fell to his knees, vomiting blood, staring in disbelief.
"This isn't evolution… it's vengeance."
Ji-ho lifted the Destructive Ray.
Min-joon screamed. "Wait, I—I can help you! I know where Geon-Rak is—"
But Ji-ho's eyes had already turned red.
SLASH!
The ray sliced through flesh and bone like wet paper.
Kang Min-joon's head fell silently into the toxin-filled dirt.
The fog around the zone trembled for a moment—before settling again into silence.
Ji-ho looked up. His Eye of Evil activated again.
Target Count Remaining: 6.
---