Indian Relief Operation (2)
[Weapon Master – Wire.]
And Arachne Thread.
Chrrrrrrrrrk!
Threads and wires wrapped simultaneously around Liu Chen’s torso, which had already gone halfway into the entrance.
“…!”
He reflexively tried to activate Wind Leap… but it was already too late.
[Absolute Space Entrance Closed.]
Ziiing, thud.
At the exact moment the entrance shut, Liu Chen’s body was pulled completely into the Absolute Space.
Absolute Space, combat zone.
BOOM!
Liu Chen fell straight from midair to the ground.
“Ghk…!”
He rolled and tried to get up… then froze.
Air.
Space.
Nothing was flowing.
‘…What is this?’
Instinctively, Liu Chen activated Wind Leap.
“Wind Le–”
Thud.
His body lifted about 10 cm… then dropped back to the same spot.
He tried again, in another direction.
Thud.
Same result.
It was like trying to jump in a place with no “coordinates”; the very directionality of his ability flailed uselessly in space.
“This is…”
“Absolute Space.”
A voice from behind.
Liu Chen quickly turned.
Seon Yul was walking in through the entrance.
A space with stable lighting, air, and temperature… comfortable, yet completely alien.
“A place where your wind loses its way.”
Liu Chen clenched his teeth.
“This is impossible… this is like another world…”
“Not far off.”
Seon Yul rolled up his sleeves.
“Outside, you were definitely troublesome.
But in here, you’re just ‘a really fast guy’ that got nerfed.”
With one hand, he summoned the Spear of Death.
Shuuuuuk.
A spear condensed with black energy took form in his hand.
The moment Liu Chen saw it, a chilling sensation crawled across his entire body.
“…That spear feels terrible.”
“Everyone who’s been stabbed says that.”
Seon Yul lightly struck the spear against the ground.
Thud.
The entire Absolute Space trembled slightly.
“Alright. Now let’s see how fast you are… and how long you can endure.”
Liu Chen gritted his teeth and spread both hands.
“I understand this is your home ground… but don’t think I’m completely helpless.”
Wind gathered around him again.
Even in Absolute Space, mana wasn’t completely cut off.
He drew upon his internal mana, forming localized whirlwinds and shockwaves.
Bwoooooong!
Compressed wind scattered in all directions.
But…
“Yeah. That’s not enough.”
Seon Yul stepped forward.
One step, two, three.
He instantly closed the distance.
Liu Chen instinctively tried Wind Leap again… but once more, it failed uselessly in empty space.
Thud!
The spear in Seon Yul’s hand swung sideways.
Swoosh!
Blood splattered.
Liu Chen’s left arm spun half a turn in the air before falling.
“AAARGH!!”
“Relax. With the Pure White Brand, you can handle this much, right?”
Seon Yul spoke calmly.
“After all, you can’t ‘run’ here.”
Liu Chen breathed heavily.
The Pure White Brand is activated, trying to reconstruct his body.
But this wasn’t a place directly touched by the Emperor’s authority.
The regeneration was slow and incomplete.
“You… intend to defy the Emperor and the Empire’s power…?”
“Rather than defy, it’s more like ‘cleaning up something annoying.’”
Seon Yul raised the spear straight.
“Even if I erase you here, the Empire will just create another tool. But at least, the things rampaging on Earth–104 right now need to be dealt with one by one.”
He activated Powerful Strike.
[Powerful Strike – Activated.]
Black light condensed at the spear’s tip.
Liu Chen tried to turn his body one last time… then stopped.
“…The wind… won’t move.”
“That’s why I lured you here.”
Seon Yul’s spear thrusts straight forward.
Thud.
In that instant… a black curse exploded from the spear tip, piercing Liu Chen’s chest.
“U—AAAAAAAHHHHH!!”
The Pure White Brand resisted, emitting white light in retaliation… but…
This was a space with no mana circuits constructed by the Empire’s forces.
A space belonging entirely to Seon Yul.
The white light was swallowed by the black curse.
And…
Crack.
Liu Chen’s body slowly began to break apart in midair.
Like wind scattering.
“…His Majesty… will not… let this…”
“I’ll pass along the message.”
Seon Yul spoke briefly.
“That you disappeared from this world.”
As Liu Chen’s body completely dispersed, a system message rang out.
[You have eliminated China’s Pure White mana user ‘Heavenly Wind’ Liu Chen.]
[You have gained a significant amount of experience.]
“One wind, cleared.”
Seon Yul casually dismissed the spear.
Outside Absolute Space, southern Delhi.
The entrance trembled slightly… then opened again.
Seon Yul stepped out.
Cheon Li Yu stood in front of him with her arms crossed.
“Done?”
“Yeah. Ended faster than expected.”
“Faster than expected?”
“I thought he’d last a bit longer. Seems like he couldn’t fight while directly connected to the Emperor.”
Seon Yul rolled his shoulders.
“Now, as far as India goes, Chinese interference via the Pure White Brand is basically gone.”
“What’s left is cleaning up the internal pro-Imperial faction… and Russia.”
Cheon Li Yu smirked.
“That’s good news for Mahavar. We should tell him that ‘that annoying flying guy’ is gone for good.”
“Before that.”
Seon Yul looked toward Delhi, the sky still marked by flames and barrier remnants.
“Let’s clean this up first. The Indian civil war line. At the very least, no more cities getting burned down completely.”
Cheon Li Yu nodded.
“Okay. Indian Relief Operation Phase 1: ‘Wind Removal’ complete.”
“At least the wind’s been shut down.”
Seon Yul lightly dusted his hands.
Cheon Li Yu expanded her Clairvoyance again, scanning all of India.
“But ground forces are still the same. Ashan’s pro-Imperial faction is still pushing along the Delhi–Chandigarh–Mumbai axis.”
“That’s fine. There’s no one left who can suddenly descend from above and stir things up.”
Seon Yul turned his gaze toward Delhi.
“Now Phase 2. Let’s cut off the Brand.”
Mahavar approached. His armor was scratched and scorched in multiple places, but his eyes were still alive.
“The one who appeared above… has he been dealt with?”
“Yeah. The one rampaging in Manila is gone now.”
Seon Yul answered calmly.
“Now all that remains is the Empire’s shadow standing on this land. What we need to do is make sure that shadow can no longer take root.”
Mahavar took a deep breath in, then slowly exhaled.
“Please help us. So that India… will no longer be a toy for other nations.”
“That’s why we’re here.”
After reassuring Mahavar, Seon Yul immediately moved with Cheon Li Yu into the Absolute Space.
Inside Absolute Space, India war-status hologram.
Seon Yul raised his hand.
“Alright, let’s take a look at the map first.”
A massive map of India floated in the center.
Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Kolkata…
Red and blue dots blinked densely over major cities.
“Red is pro-Imperial, blue is sovereignty faction?”
Cheon Li Yu asked.
“Yeah. And these yellow dots… are Brand facilities.”
Seon Yul tapped several locations with his finger.
“Originally, the Empire would’ve sent technicians directly. But these days, with the BRICS–Kanon Empire package spreading the know-how… India’s been producing them locally too.”
“How do you know?”
“Earlier, at Beijing, I picked up some leftover logs from the Imperial communication hub I destroyed.
After analyzing them inside Absolute Space, the coordinates of India’s Brand facilities were all organized there too.”
Cheon Li Yu let out a small impressed sound.
“Wow, you really dig into everything thoroughly.”
“Safety-first mindset.”
Seon Yul shrugged.
“Anyway, Phase 2 has two objectives. First, stop new Brands from being applied. Second, among those already branded, restore as many ‘reversible ones’ as possible and cut the strings the Empire is holding.”
“But is that even possible? From what I heard before, Brands are basically impossible to remove.”
What they had heard when they captured a magic engineer.
The Brand was essentially a fragment of the Emperor’s authority engraved into someone… and especially for artificial mana users, it meant near-total enslavement.
“Right. ‘Basically.’”
Seon Yul continued.
“But he said it, remember? For irregular-level users or high-tier mana users with stable awakenings, the Brand’s effect isn’t perfect.
Which means… there’s obviously a ‘gap.’”
Cheon Li Yu’s eyes lit up.
“So with Absolute Space + Curse Spear combo, you can target that gap separately?”
“We’ll have to test it first.”
Seon Yul brushed his hand across the map.
“First, we clear the Brand facilities. Then we capture a representative sample and run a test.”
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