Sand Mage of the Burnt Desert

Chapter 216

"Gurrk?"

"The... sand is moving."

The Orcs were bewildered as the Sand Soldiers charged at them.

It was strange enough to see sand moving like people, and the sheer oddity of it made them forget they needed to react.

The consequence of their inaction was swift and brutal.

Wham!

Crack!

The fists and knees of the Sand Soldiers struck the Orcs with immense force, unimaginable from beings made of sand.

The Orcs staggered, unable to withstand the power of the Sand Soldiers, and soon fell to the ground.

The Sand Soldiers, with no mercy, continued their assault on the fallen Orcs.

“Kweek!”

“Kkuek!”

The Orcs cried out in agony as they were mercilessly killed.

"The human is using strange magic."

"Kill the mage!"

A few sharp Orcs quickly realized that Zeon was the source of this magic.

They knew that most spells would dissipate if the caster was killed, and even the dumbest Orc understood this.

The Orcs shifted their focus to Zeon, targeting him for an attack.

"Kill the human!"

"Raaagh!"

With a roar, the Orcs charged at Zeon, but their axes and swords never reached him.

Ssshh!

A dozen Sand Vipers erupted from the ground, striking the Orcs.

Although the vipers couldn\'t pierce the Orcs\' tough, armor-like skin, they did cause the Orcs to hesitate momentarily.

But that brief pause was all that was needed.

The Sand Soldiers quickly took advantage of the momentary stop in the Orcs\' momentum and launched their own attacks.

Thwack!

Relentless violence followed.

The Sand Soldiers were like puppets moving according to Zeon\'s will.

Unlike human Awakeneds, they couldn’t use any skills.

Their only weapon was their dense, compacted sand bodies.

One might think that getting hit by sand wouldn\'t hurt much, but the Sand Soldiers\' density was on par with stone, making their blows devastatingly effective.

Smash!

"Urrgh!"

An Orc\'s head was crushed, spraying blood and brains everywhere.

The Orc\'s body twitched for a moment before going completely still, instantly killed.

The Sand Soldiers moved on to their next target, emotionless and unyielding, executing Zeon\'s commands with blind obedience.

The Awakeneds witnessing this were horrified.

"He\'s controlling sand warriors."

"Could he be the Sand Mage from the rumors?"

Since they hadn\'t heard the conversation between Jang Yong-beom and Zeon, they didn\'t know who Zeon was.

However, seeing how even the usually arrogant Jang Yong-beom treated him with caution, they suspected that Zeon was no ordinary Awakened. Still, they hadn\'t imagined that he was the infamous Sand Mage.

Now, seeing the power of the Sand Mage firsthand, they were overwhelmed.

The sand had become soldiers, annihilating the enemies of the Sand Mage.

They felt relieved that there were only a few dozen Sand Soldiers in front of Zeon.

\'If that guy could command hundreds of these sand soldiers, he\'d be an army unto himself.\'

Fortunately, it seemed like he could only control a few dozen at most.

Moreover, Zeon hadn’t moved a single step while controlling the Sand Soldiers.

\'Of course! It’d be too broken if he could move while commanding so many summons.\'

They thought they had identified a weakness in Zeon’s powers.

The ability to control sand was incredible, but while commanding the Sand Soldiers, Zeon couldn\'t move.

That meant if they targeted him from a distance, they might stand a chance.

Having figured out how to exploit this, the Awakeneds felt somewhat reassured.

With the Sand Soldiers easing the pressure on them, it was time to focus on killing the Orcs.

"Die!"

"Take this!"

With shouts, the Awakeneds renewed their attack on the Orcs.

Meanwhile, Gangkara, locked in a fierce battle with Jang Yong-beom, frowned deeply.

He realized that his Iron Orc Tribe was being pushed back by the humans.

"Furrrgh! To think that mere humans…"

"This is the power of humans, you filthy pig!"

Jang Yong-beom smiled confidently.

Time was now on his side.

There was no need to rush; he could take his time to defeat Gangkara.

Gangkara was strong, but not beyond what Jang Yong-beom could handle.

With his A-rank abilities, Jang Yong-beom felt he could eventually win.

Slash!

His claymore sliced through Gangkara’s side, causing blood to pour out, but Gangkara didn’t show any signs of pain.

Instead, the wound only seemed to fuel his rage.

Gangkara swung his massive sword, roaring.

"Kuughh! Unleash the black wings!"

Jang Yong-beom and the other Awakeneds were puzzled by Gangkara\'s sudden command.

Orcs didn’t have wings, and there wasn’t any sign of wings on Gangkara or his warriors.

But the Orcs reacted differently.

"Graargh!"

"Raaaah!"

The Orcs raised their heads and howled, unleashing an intense aura.

Suddenly, black patterns resembling wings appeared on their backs.

The wing-shaped tattoos were unmistakable.

"What, those tattoos are supposed to be wings?"

"These pig bastards have gone completely insane."

The Awakeneds mocked the Orcs, but their expressions quickly turned to stone.

The Orcs\' bloodlust surged, and their combat power increased several-fold.

"Ugh!"

"Argh!"

Awakeneds who had been evenly matched were suddenly overwhelmed, their bodies crushed and flung aside by the Orcs’ enhanced strength.

Only then did they realize that the tattoos on the Orcs\' backs were no ordinary markings.

"Damn it!"

"Those are buff tattoos."

"The tattoos are boosting their strength. Be careful!"

Just as they guessed, the black wing tattoos provided a buff.

The tattoos, called "Berserker Tattoos," allowed the Orcs to unleash several times their normal combat strength, albeit temporarily.

Only an Orc Shaman could inscribe these powerful tattoos.

However, once used, the tattoos left the Orcs with severe aftereffects, rendering them immobile for two or three days. This was why they hadn’t used them until now. But with their backs against the wall, they had no choice but to unleash their full power.

Boom!

"Ugh!"

Gangkara’s attack forced a grimace onto Jang Yong-beom\'s face.

His grip on the claymore was ripped open, and his shoulder twisted back.

The sheer force of the blow tore the ligaments in his shoulder, though his bones miraculously remained intact.

Had the attack been any stronger, his shoulder might have been ripped off entirely.

"Damn it!"

Jang Yong-beom gritted his teeth and stepped back, but Gangkara didn’t let up.

Despite his massive size, Gangkara moved with terrifying speed, closing in on Jang Yong-beom.

Swoosh!

The large sword sliced through the air, aiming for Jang Yong-beom’s weakened shoulder.

Once an Orc found a weak spot, they relentlessly targeted it.

"You damn pig! You’re really pissing me off…"

Jang Yong-beom\'s face twisted in fury.

He had always hidden about thirty percent of his power.

In this hellish world, the only ones he could trust were himself and his party members.

To everyone else, he kept his full strength a secret.

But the Orc in front of him wasn’t someone he could defeat while holding back.

This was an opponent who required his all just to match.

A formidable foe.

Whoosh!

His claymore burst into intense flames.

The red flames quickly enveloped the claymore and solidified into a bright aura blade.

"Blade of Punishment!"

As Jang Yong-beom swung his claymore with full force, the aura blade shot forward at terrifying speed.

Gangkara, charging at Jang Yong-beom at full speed, couldn’t avoid the Blade of Punishment.

"I’ll destroy you!"

Gangkara mustered all his strength and swung his large sword.

The energy-infused sword clashed with the Blade of Punishment.

Clang!

A massive explosion of light and shockwaves erupted.

"Argh!"

"Ugh!"

Both the Awakeneds and the Orcs were thrown to the ground by the shockwave.

When they finally managed to lift their heads, the battle between Jang Yong-beom and Gangkara had reached its conclusion.

Drip, drip.

Blood flowed from Jang Yong-beom’s shoulder.

His left arm had been completely severed from the shoulder.

Gangkara’s energy had blown his arm off like a firecracker.

He leaned on his claymore, barely standing.

Giselle, her face pale, screamed.

"Captain!"

She tried to run to Jang Yong-beom, but the Orcs blocked her way.

"You damn bastards. Frozen Orb!"

She fired an ice orb from her staff.

The orb spun violently among the Orcs, unleashing a barrage of ice shards.

Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!

"Argh!"

"Kueek!"

Orcs, pierced by the ice shards, collapsed.

Giselle hurriedly trampled over the Orcs to reach Jang Yong-beom.

"Are you okay, Captain?"

"I’m not dead, so stop fussing."

Jang Yong-beom straightened his bent back and spoke coldly.

His face was covered in blood, and he was gravely wounded, but his eyes were colder than ever.

His gaze was fixed on Gangkara.

Gangkara stood tall, glaring at Jang Yong-beom as if he would devour him.

Gangkara spoke.

"Human… you are strong."

Ssshhk!

Suddenly, Gangkara\'s upper body slid off his lower half.

Thud!

His torso hit the ground, and a fountain of blood erupted from his severed lower half.

That was the end of Gangkara, the War Chief of the Iron Orc Tribe.

“Keukk!”

Only after confirming Gangkara\'s death, Jang Yong-beom vomited blood and knelt on one knee.

His life was hanging by a thread, and it was no surprise that it could end at any moment.

“Captain!”

As Giselle panicked, Brielle approached.

“Give him this.”

Brielle handed over a healing potion he had made himself.

Giselle, without a moment to check the authenticity of the potion, immediately administered it to Jang Yong-beom. Shortly after, color began to return to his face.

“It’s not a complete cure, so you need to take good care of him.”

“Thank you. Kid.”

“My name is Brielle.”

“Right, Brielle.”

Giselle corrected herself right away, showing just how much help Brielle had been.

Realizing that Jang Yong-beom had survived the crisis, Giselle snapped back to her senses.

“What about the other Orcs?”

“Don’t worry about them.”

“What?”

“Zeon will take care of it.”

Giselle looked at Zeon as if in a trance.

Zeon was still standing there.

He spoke.

“Everyone, step back. As far away as possible.”

The Awakeneds, who had been fighting fiercely with the Orcs, felt an ominous sensation that couldn’t be explained in words.

It felt as if something terrible would happen if they didn’t listen to him.

“Damn it!”

“Everyone, retreat.”

They stepped back dozens of meters.

The Orcs, suddenly left without their opponents, looked puzzled.

“Grrk?”

As if to answer the Orcs\' confusion, the surrounding sand began to writhe.

Zeon commanded the sand.

“Sand Mixer!”

Grrraahhh!