Translator: miraclerifle
Baaaaang!
The large broadleaf tree was split into two along with the Hwandudaedo's fierce screech. The tree was so thick that thirty adults stretching their arms out would not be enough to surround it.
It seemed unbelievable that such a tree was split into two by a blade that was only as long as Ju-Heon's forearm, but it was possible because this was an A-Grade artifact!
The tree that was split along with the screech started to scream. Well, it was not the tree that was screaming. It was the artifact that had been hiding behind the tree that was screaming.
[You motherf*cking human!]
As a paper-based artifact, the artifact must have been connected to the tree as it was in a lot of pain.
[How can you be so violent while looking for an item?!]
Ju-Heon just had a twisted smile on his face.
"Why? Is there a problem? The only rule was that I needed to find you.”
‘Even if that is the case!’
[Don’t come any closer! Human! I cannot accept this as passing the trial! Normally, you would need to sincerely pray in front of me, but to be so merciless...!]
‘Pray my ass.’
Ju-Heon didn’t care whether the artifact was grumbling or not as he told Jaeha to stop the boat and headed toward the tree.
The scared artifact started to shout as Ju-Heon got closer.
[Aigoo, you tricked me earlier and now you’re trying to rape me!]
‘Ho, rape?’
Ju-Heon pointed the Hwandudaedo at the artifact and snorted.
“Don’t say such things that might cause misunderstandings. I'm not interested in screwing an artifact.”
[Then be more gentle with me, you human bastard!]
Ju-Heon then started to scoff.
“This is already being gentle based on my standards. You are a precious artifact I need to use for business reasons.”
That was the truth. Ju-Heon would forcibly make it submit or teach it a lesson as he did to the Egyptian trio if he was going to use it for himself.
“Anyway, I met the conditions because I found you. Why don't you be good and become mine?”
[Damn it, you violent human bastard! You just wait!]
Blocks of wood that were scattered around started to flash. No matter how violent he had been, the artifact seemed to be quietly submitting to Ju-Heon and returning to its original form as Ju-Heon had met the conditions.
Yoo Jaeha let out a sigh of relief.
“Then will it turn into its artifact form now...”
However, both Yoo Jaeha and Ju-Heon’s expressions soon changed once the artifact appeared.
Why?
What appeared in front of them was a parchment map, no, maps.
It was fine until there, but...
“.........This punk.”
Could you believe it, there was more than one map! Every block of wood that was scattered around had turned into maps. Yoo Jaeha could only scoff in disbelief.
“Umm. There’s no chance there are twenty identical maps...right?”
Of course not.
Ju-Heon started to smile viciously.
That was indeed the case.
This was the artifact messing with them. In simple terms, it was messing with Ju-Heon by telling him to find its true body among these clones. It seemed to be rebelling because it did not want to go with Ju-Heon.
The artifact started to laugh as if this was all going according to plan.
[Now then, find me if you can! I will follow you if you find me but you will need to kneel in front of me and praise my name if you can't.]
Ju-Heon sighed.
‘I was planning on being nice because I needed to use it for the Monarch of Destitution's situation, but...’
It was asking for a beating.
Yoo Jaeha was about to get off the boat as if there was nothing else they could do about it.
“I will gather every piece. Why don’t we leave with all of them since there are only about 20 of them?”
“No, we can't leave with all of them. The exit will only open if we find the real one and clear the tomb.”
“Then should we appraise them one by one?”
“No. We don’t have the time.”
“Then how?!”
“There is a way.”
“Excuse me?”
Ju-Heon did something completely beyond anyone's imagination at that moment.
Riiiiiiiip!
“?!”
Ju-Heon was ruthlessly ripping the different maps on the grounds. Yoo Jaeha screamed in response.
“Ahhh! What are you doing?!”
‘What am I doing?’
“Ripping things.”
The slightly annoyed Ju-Heon calmly ripped the artifact then ripped another, and another, and another!
Riiip, riiiip, riiiiiip!
“Ahhh!”
‘How can he destroy an artifact in front of a restorer!’
However, the real one did not seem to be there as the fake ones turned into light and disappeared as soon as he ripped them. This was probably how he planned on finding the real one.
But Yoo Jaeha was pulling at his hair as he watched.
It was true that this method would leave only one in the end, but...
“Aigoo! What are you planning to do! What if you destroy the artifact in the process?!”
“No idea. Fixing it is your job.”
“What did you say?!”
‘This punk is treating artifacts like recycled goods because he has a restorer with him!
It’s true I can restore most of it if it is not completely destroyed, but...!
That's hard as hell to do...’
Even though he was saying that, Ju-Heon was starting to get a feel for it. It was hard at first, but he could tell which was real as he picked up one after another.
Ju-Heon smiled once there were only a few maps left.
‘It’s this one.’
That was why Ju-Heon gave his restorer some hope.
“Don't worry. It looks like you won’t need to slave away to fix it.”
Yoo Jaeha's face lit up after hearing that comment.
“Huh? Is it that one? Is that the real artifact?”
“Yes, even I wouldn’t handle an artifact that is related to Irene’s artifact harsh...”
But it was at that moment.
[You damn human bastard who deserves to be cursed for life! You will die a terrible death in the end! I hope you get sick and die!]
‘Sick...’
That word seemed to touch Ju-Heon's reverse scale as he started to smile viciously.
‘Like hell I won't handle it harshly.
You really do need to make artifacts suffer.’
At the same time...riiiiiip! That heart piercing noise echoed in the air.
[#*$#(#($#)$)!]
The artifact felt like dying as its body ripped apart. Both the artifact and Yoo Jaeha started to cry. The tomb started to shake violently as the artifact was in pain while Yoo Jaeha gasped and shouted toward Ju-Heon.
“I can't believe it! You really destroyed it!”
“Whatever. Fix it. Two thirds of it is still fine. They even let you trade your dollar bills into new ones as long as half of it is fine.”
Yoo Jaeha almost vomited blood after hearing that logic.
‘Are dollar bills and artifacts the same?!’
“You motherf*cking Captain! I really won't let you get away with this!”
However, Ju-Heon was smiling.
Maybe he was thinking that things were easy having a talented restorer by his side.
It happened at that moment.
The artifact that was in pain flashed before it returned to its true artifact appearance.
[Zheng He's Pearl of the West (Ship for collecting the treasures of the West) Navigation Map (A-Grade:Treasure-Grade/Consumable Artifact)]
- Remaining Uses (2/500)
It looked like a carpet with a map on it.
‘Zheng He’s map.’
He had expected after seeing the conditions to get inside the tomb, but it really seemed to be the artifact of Zheng He, the man known as the Eastern Columbus. Unlike Columbus who headed out with only three ships, Zheng He was the famous Chinese explorer who led 20,000 crew members and sixty large ships.
Unfortunately, he is not talked about much in history because China halted all oceanic exploration for a while and World History tended to favor the West and drown him out for the European explorers.
Either way, Ju-Heon was quite curious about this artifact. China had kept it tightly guarded in his past life that even he did not know about its abilities or how to use it.
It was able to help China revive in the past so it shouldn’t be a simple artifact.
‘I think China used this to locate the Western artifacts in the past.’
Different map-type artifacts showed locations of tombs, inheritance, soldiers, lucky and unlucky areas, and even the distribution of beauties and hunks.
‘I'll need to use it to understand what kind of map-type artifact this is.’
He started to hear boats at the distance at that moment. Yoo Jaeha shouted in shock.
"Are they the yankee bastards from earlier?”
“No, I think the brothers of the continent are here too.”
And lo and behold, the CIA and the Chinese soldiers were charging toward Ju-Heon's location on boats. Tens of motorboats cutting through the water looked like a great spectacle, but the situation was different.
Yoo Jaeha started to shake.
“We’ll end up having to hand the artifact over to the Chinese excavation team like this. What do you plan on doing?”
Ju-Heon shook the remaining clone artifacts and smirked instead of responding.
“You idiots!”
The CIA agents flinched after hearing their supervisor's loud voice.
That was indeed the case. They were currently being scolded in a hotel nearby the Macao tomb after managing to get out.
Honestly speaking, it was not difficult to get out of the tomb. The tomb was cleared as soon as someone got their hands on the artifact and the fog covering Macao island disappeared. The traffic outside returned to normal as well.
Macao regained its peace after the tomb’s domination was over, but the problem was...
‘Forget the tomb disappearing or not, we did not manage to get the important artifact.’
And lo and behold.
“We sent the two of you but you came back empty-handed?”
“I, I'm sorry.”
Thomas and Linda lowered their heads after hearing their supervisor’s thundering voice. Morgan, their supervisor, pushed on his temples as if he had a headache.
“General Keira had high expectations for all of you.”
“We are ashamed. However, there was an unexpected artifact user...”
“That’s why you had your artifacts stolen?! Just who the hell is that unexpected artifact user?!”
“Ugh! That!”
"That is a problem too, but do you two have any thoughts in your damn heads to allow China to get their hands on a map-type artifact?”
“I'm sorry sir!”
It was at that moment.
[It’s fine about the map. Edward said he procured it.]
They heard a voice from a phone. It was an overbearing young woman's voice. This woman was none other than the Monarch of War Keira Clark, the US General who sent the artifact excavation team this time.
Her voice was very young but the people listening to her voice knew that her young sounding voice had nothing to do with her real age.
Morgan looked confused at the unexpected statement.
“Umm, did you say Edward procured the map? He really managed to procure it?”
Thomas and Linda shouted in disbelief.
“I thought China already took it!”
[Apparently Edward's person swiped the artifact before that. We are going to make the deal today.]
“Edward’s person, just who...?!”
[You two should know him very well.]
“Excuse me?”
[I'm sure it's the person who took your artifacts.]
Thomas and Linda almost foamed at the mouth in response.
‘There’s no way it was that Asian guy, right?!
That punk was Edward’s person?!’
“Wait, hold on. That punk!”
[He seems to be quite the talented artifact user if he can steal the artifacts from the two of you. I'm quite interested now.]
Thomas and Linda’s jaws dropped after hearing that.
‘Interested?
Why him?!’
Regardless of what they were thinking, there was another person who was shaking in fear.
It was none other than the restorer, no, the scammer artist who was the core player in this crime.
“Captain-nim! Is this really going to be okay?”
“Yes. Why wouldn’t it?”
They had given China one of the artifact’s clones and had received the monetary reward. That was fine, but the problem was!
“You're going to give Edward a counterfeit. Am I really going to be okay? You're not going to give me up like a lizard getting rid of its tail, are you?”
Ju-Heon started to laugh at that question.
That was indeed the case.
Ju-Heon had Yoo Jaeha give Edward Zheng He’s map.
Of course, it was an identical counterfeit.
Yoo Jaeha had used his skills to create that perfect replica. That was why Yoo Jaeha could not help but sigh even though he was the one to make the fake in the first place.
He wondered if it would really happen, but how could he know Ju-Heon would really do it?!
‘Edward and General Keira should be completing their deal right now. What is he thinking?’
Ju-Heon just responded as if it was nothing.
“I have a plan so just shut up and follow me.”
Yoo Jaeha just decided to let it be and nodded his head. He just looked toward Irene who flew all the way to Macao because she was worried about them with concern.
“Will you really be okay?”
Ju-Heon just chuckled.
“Don’t worry. I will keep my promise with you.”
‘No, that’s not the issue, captain!’
Ju-Heon just looked at his phone as if he was waiting for a call.
“He should be calling around now. Edward should call soon.”
Soon, there was an urgent call from Edward as he predicted.
