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Reincarnator – Chapter 312 : Clash (1)

In this hell.

For what must they live for?

We need someone to lead us.

.........................

'Sign…I envy the previous generations.'

—cough—

The adventurer, Niclouse, looked into the sky above the crumbling war fortress and puked out blood.

Although the previous generation needed to go through difficult situations without any knowledge, at least they'd had a leader.

To him, there was no Kang Hansoo.

Only an evil Dark King who pretended to be him.

Niclouse thought back to the words the Dark King had always mumbled in the past.

'F***ing maniac.'

Niclouse cursed that man as he forcibly raised his body up.

At this rate, he would get squashed to death by the rubble.

He started to slowly climb up.

Away from the battlefield.

.....................…

—boooom!—

"Hahahaha!"

The Dark King laughed as he felt the overflowing power inside him.

He didn't feel the same glee and joy of the past when he'd become a transcendent; another feeling now filled him.

When he'd first become a transcendent, it was as if he'd become a brand new bowl.

A weak sauce tray being broken apart and being born anew as a large, strong bowl.

And how it felt as if that exact bowl had been filled to the brim.

To the point that the water inside it could overflow at any moment.

Tens of thousands of crystals exploded, giving him strength.

It changed his body and gave him enough power to smash apart the world.

"Hahaha! Try catching this!"

A bright orb appeared in the hands of the Dark King.

[Triple Demonic Bullets]

A regular skill which could be acquired with ease, even in the old Red Zone.

It had a speedy reload time and was easy to fire, but it could only fire in a straight line and didn't do much damage.

It was good enough to use as a probe, but not to deal fatal damage to a person.

Usually, at least.

If a normal person used it, that is.

—rumble!—

Thunder and lightning exploded out from the orb.

Then—

—booom!—

The orb shot out from the Dark King's hands, the ruins of the fortress were lifted into the air, and the space around them trembled.

Dust flew apart in all directions as if a bomb had exploded.

And through the dust—

—boom! boom! boom! boom!—

The bright orb smashed apart everything in its path as it continued to rush towards Hansoo.

It created gales in its wake and turned the stone below it into a river of lava.

And as the orb made contact with Hansoo's spear—

—booom!—

A blinding light exploded outwards.

The surrounding ruins of the War Fortress turned into dust from the shock wave, and the ground nearby began to sizzle.

And the Dark King laughed coldly at this scene.

'Mmm. That spear definitely suits me.'

He could clearly see it during the explosion.

The golden spear that was trying its best to disperse the energy.

Although it had met the wrong owner—in his opinion, anyway—the fact that it could withstand his overflowing energy was something to compliment.

The Dark King stared at the golden spear in Hansoo's hands and then looked at the imitation in his own hands with a dissatisfied expression.

Then—

—crunch—

He split the spear into two.

Though it was a good spear, it was a spear that could be found anywhere and then merely covered in gold.

It was too weak to withstand the strength of a transcendent like himself.

Though he had broken his own weapon during battle, his expression was still bright.

Since a spear like that wouldn't help him much in a fight anyway.

And soon he would be able to gain the real thing.

'Strength really is the best.'

In the past.

He had revered Hansoo.

The man who had succeeded in terraforming the previous zones into a livable space.

Though he hadn't seen Hansoo's actions in person, he was part of the group that followed right behind Hansoo and Mihee.

Though he hadn't seen them personally, Hansoo's footprints could be felt all over his body as he climbed his way up.

He felt the might of the World Tree Hansoo had revived in the Red Zone.

The giant Gragos that Hansoo had succeeded in taming in the Orange Zone.

Countless Satellite Fortresses that covered the skies in the Yellow Zone.

And in the Green Zone, he had fought to help Hansoo during the Battle of the War Fortress.

He had personally seen the hole appear in the sky as the elevators descended and the world transformed.

He reveled in the footprints of this giant and respected them.

Respect towards the being that had done things he could not.

He remembered the stories of those who had seen Hansoo up close, and remembered them during the hard times to keep himself going.

He'd kept going until the day he could meet the man in his dreams.

But now.

With his strength.

His thoughts had changed.

'If I had strength, I could've done that as well.'

Kang Hansoo.

He was stronger than anyone else and had succeeded against any enemy.

There were some who'd helped him, and those beside him were also quite strong, but in the end, his individual strength had played the biggest role.

If Hansoo had done it.

Couldn't he, who was now even stronger than Hansoo, do it as well?

'Just wait. I will be the one to lead you guys now.'

There was a reason why he had spared a group of people, despite having been able to turn them into crystals as well.

How could a king be a king by himself?

He needed subjects.

And the people at his side would now serve the strongest king in history.

Even stronger than this living legend.

"Hahaha!"

The Dark King laughed maniacally and jumped down.

He could only win.

There was a clear difference in power.

The energy absorbed from the sacrifice of tens of thousands of Kang-Kions transformed into skills.

A skill useful in dealing with small fry, but not really those of similar levels—an immolation type of skill—exploded out from his body.

[Dark Sun].

—rumble—

A dark sun which set everything nearby ablaze rose up from the Dark King's body.

"F***!"

"Run!"

The screams of countless adventurers were heard by the Dark King, but he merely ignored them.

Since those who ran away didn't have the qualifications anyway.

Then—

Hansoo, surrounded by golden light, walked out from the dust clouds.

Though he was covered in dust and minor injuries, he was mostly fine.

And the Dark King's expression darkened at this unexpected turn.

'Though it was just a probe…'

As the Dark King frowned.

Hansoo also frowned as he spat out—

"I've waited two years, you guys can't only be at this level right?"

The Dark King almost cried at Hansoo's look of contempt, as if he was not worthy.

It was similar to those eyes he had seen in the past.

The eyes of the being that had given him this strength.

Hansoo was showing him the exact same expression.

But even before the tears could come out from the Dark King's eyes—

Hansoo moved first.

He needed to teach a lesson to the Dark King who had fearlessly approached him.

'You should've kept your distance…'

Then—

—boom!—

The sound of a huge explosion blasted out from Hansoo's position as the entire area around him crashed down.

Using the tremendous earthquake-like shockwaves as momentum, Hansoo's body shot out like lightning.

And now dark-gold energy surrounded Hansoo's body.

The Reinforcement skill covering Hansoo's body was no longer translucent.

It had been compressed to the point of resembling silk.

Hansoo, covered in the Demonic Dragon Reinforcement, dashed towards the Dark King.

'…I can block it!'

The Dark King was shocked for a moment, but then relaxed.

Since he could clearly see his movements.

It wasn't at a level where he couldn't catch up.

Not at a level he couldn't react to.

Actually, he could even move faster.

'I shall show you my strength.'

He wanted to show off.

The strength he had gained.

He wanted to smash his opponent apart.

The Dark King started to burn the Dark Sun around his body with even more fervour.

Then—

—whoosh—

The Dark King swung his fist with all his might—

Towards the tip of Hansoo's spear.

'I will show you the difference in our strength!'

And as his fist swung out—

—booooooom!—

A fist covered in black flames, and a spear covered in dark-gold silk collided.

And the Dark King smiled at this scene.

'I…I can win!'

His Dark Sun was burning the silk-like reinforcement on the spear.

Though his opponent's reinforcement was more compressed than his own, his endless flames still managed to burn through it.

But as the Dark King's smile broadened at the sight of the spear bending more and more.

A change occurred.

—swoosh!—

The silk covering Hansoo's entire body started to sway and move about.

Then—

—whoosh!—

The Demonic Dragon Reinforcement covering Hansoo's entire body started to condense into a single point.

Towards the the tip of his spear.

And as the thin silk-like reinforcement focused onto a single point—

The Reinforcement started to let out a blinding light in all directions.

Then—

—booom!—

"Uwaaaa!"

The Dark King freaked out at the scene of his Dark Sun being instantly shredded apart, and quickly retreated.

Blood gushed out from the fist that had collided with the spear.

'No…NO! NO WAY'

The Dark King was extremely confused.

His opponent was merely a relic of the past.

He had clearly been lazing around.

Since the man should've been far above in the upper zones.

With the amount of work he himself had gone through, he couldn't lose like this.

Then—

—boom!—

A tremendous amount of energy exploded out from the Dark King's body.

He had a dream.

He couldn't fall here.

Though it was a person he'd revered, he could not allow Hansoo to block his path.

'I…WILL…NOT…LOSE!'

—rumble—

The still-burning remains of the Dark Sun disappeared.

As well as every other skill in his body.

Every ounce of power in his body turned into a single skill.

A skill that the man who had given him this strength had left behind.

...

Ten thousand mediocre skills could not defeat a single mastered skill.

That was why the transcended needed to know how to focus on a single skill.

Reincarnator – Chapter 313 : Clash (2)

—rumble—

From the fortress Hansoo had come from.

The change occurring inside it was finishing up.

"Ha…"

Taesang landed on the ground, letting out a deep breath.

And then made an expression full of glee.

'This was it, huh?'

He knew now.

As to why the transcendents were so much stronger than normal people.

It was because they could manipulate and use the eight different types of runes in any way they wanted.

And Akran had asked Taesang with a nervous expression at this point.

"What…what's changed exactly?"

Though Akran had asked the question, Taesang's comrades were looking at him with curious expressions as well.

Then—

—booom!—

"Damn! Run! They're rushing in here!"

One of the adventurers standing guard outside shouted a warning as he blocked the Kang-Kions from rushing through the main door.

'Oh, right!'

Akran had forgotten about their current situation due to the scene that had been unfolding in front of him.

Forgotten that their current situation was not that great.

'We have to run now!'

Then—

"It's alright."

Taesang spoke out confidently.

A calm, resolute voice.

'He-up!'

Taesang breathed in deeply and then reached out with his fist.

Very, very slowly.

Like a martial expert practicing a stance.

But the changes occurring inside him weren't as simple.

—whoooosh—

The numbers that determined his strength skyrocketed as everything changed.

To fit the needs of Taesang's every movement.

For one objective and one objective only.

Destruction of the enemy.

The slowly extended fist accelerated and by the time his arm was fully extended, it was so fast that no one could catch sight of it.

And within that short span where one couldn't even blink an eye.

—booom!—

Moving faster than the speed of sound, his fists created a sonic boom.

Then—

Roaar!

Kuooo!

The Kang-Kions that had been rushing towards them had all disintegrated.

The shockwave was so powerful that not only were the Kang-Kions destroyed, the storage area—so sturdily built that normal people could spend ages trying to dent its walls—began to break apart as well.

—rumble—

"Oh…"

"Woah…"

Akran and Taesang's comrades' jaws dropped in disbelief.

Taesang had been the same as them until just a while ago.

But after this short change—

He had risen to a new existence.

'…Will it be okay?'

Akran made a worried expression.

If a person's mental state couldn't accept the increase in strength, there were bound to be issues.

And Taesang's situation was just that; his strength had exponentially increased in a short amount of time.

To achieve powers that one had never dealt with before in an instant.

'This is not fair. This is the same as cheating.'

If there really was a God, He must be a perverse one.

Akran realized the possible dangers of this change.

Since as far as he knew, humans weren't the most benevolent of species.

And Akran frowned.

Misun then asked Taesang with a curious expression.

"Have you…really become a transcendent?"

Taesang frowned at the damage he'd wrought and shook his head.

"No, sadly I'm not."

He knew it instinctively.

That he had not gone past the wall.

Other transcendents would've long since destroyed the boundaries between all eight runes and restructured them.

He knew that having limits in his control of the numbers was a clear answer.

Though he was many times stronger than a normal fighter, a stronger person would be able to control all the numbers that represented their strength with ease.

'I wish there had been a bit more crystals…'

And in Taesang's eyes, the crystals of the Kang-Kions appeared.

His expression brightened up when he saw the crystals littered on the floor.

'Will it work?'

Taesang extended his hands towards a crystal on the ground.

And to his surprise, the crystal turned into violet smoke as it entered his body.

—whooosh—

It was weak, but he felt himself getting stronger.

And as he felt this—

'Good!'

Taesang smiled.

There were still a lot of crystals to be collected.

"I'll head out first then!"

—whoosh!—

The quicker he moved, the more people would be able to survive.

As Taesang flew out, he absorbed every single crystal he came across.

And Akran made a gloomy expression as he watched this.

"…I don't feel good about this."

He didn't know if Taesang was aware of it, but he had directly broken the rules.

Everyone had agreed that the precious crystals would be distributed and watched over.

And Taesang had devoured all of them.

Though the ones he had killed himself weren't the issue.

'…What about the crystals that were absorbed inside you?'

Though the man from before had forcibly shoved them into Taesang's body, there was no doubt that Taesang was the one who ate thousands of crystals—crystals that had been collected over the years by everyone's contributions, all with their lives on the line.

If he had some sense of responsibility, he wouldn't have done such a thing.

And it was at this moment that a thought appeared in his head.

'The Dark King… had he been insane in the beginning?'

That guy should have also been quite normal at the start…

Akran's expression suddenly turned grim.

.....................….

—boom!—

A different type of energy surrounded the Dark King's fist.

And seven, vicious-looking claws extended out from his fist.

Seven black claws that let out a vicious aura.

[Claws of Loongken]

A skill which focused solely on offensive power from the Loongken race, a powerful abyssal race.

This was the skill the man who had turned him into a transcendent from a normal human being living in the [Oasis] had given him.

He had practiced madly because of those words in the beginning, but soon realized.

He had realized that there was nothing that could threaten him anymore.

Any random skill could wipe out the other humans, whereas most of the other transcendents were located near the [Oasis] in the west and had no reason to cross paths with him.

So instead of this skill, he had used random weak skills.

Since he had been proud of the fact that he could rule over everyone with such skills.

But now he had started to regret doing so.

'Will this work?'

—whooosh!—

A dark orb of light was shining vigorously to the point of exploding on the tip of Hansoo's spear, which was quickly approaching him.

But he soon shook his head and focused on his hand.

He had no reason to lose, right?

'I WILL win.

He was stronger.

He had beaten Hansoo back with even those puny skills.

With this skill, with the claws of Loongken, he could easily annihilate Hansoo in just an instant.

'I will erase you and show the world!'

His new strength.

He would show them what he had done.

He would show the owner of the Oasis.

"Die!"

—boooooom!—

The numbers inside the Dark King were running rampant because of the [Claws of Loongken]

His fist accelerated as it ripped through space towards the spear.

Then—

Kuududududuk!

The dark orb on the tip of the spear and the claws collided.

'I'm winning…!'

But then—

A horrifying scene occurred.

Kuduk!

'…Huh?'

The Dark King's expression darkened.

Hansoo's spear, which should've long been destroyed, continued to approach him.

The claws, which could even break mountains apart, were shattering one-by-one as his fist started to also break apart.

'No…NO!'

But even before the Dark King could make a shocked expression.

—BOOM!—

The spear had pushed through all obstructions and smashed into his body.

The power that had been granted to him by the Abyssal Crystals had tried to defend him, but it was all futile.

"Ahhhhh!"

The Dark King screamed in pain.

His four limbs twisted into strange angles as his intestines got compressed to a degree of implosion.

His muscles blew apart, and his bones disintegrated.

'…No way…how…how could…I…'

He was definitely stronger.

He had the stronger skill.

But the result was the exact opposite.

The Dark King stared at Hansoo with disbelief as his body flew back and smashed into the walls of the War Fortress.

—boom!—

"Ugh…Why…?"

The Dark King barely managed to ask as he watched Hansoo walk towards him.

He wanted to know why he had lost even in the last seconds of his life.

But sadly, Hansoo did not answer him.

"Why are you asking?"

"…h-huh?"

"There's no need for you to know anymore."

It was the first time he had felt fearful of this voice.

And it was at this moment that the countless vicious things he had done to his defeated opponents flashed past his eyes.

Though he'd always said that the loser surrenders everything.

And now that he was in the same situation, he wanted to beat up his past self for saying so.

"Arrgh…"

The Dark King felt regret as he stared at Hansoo's cold eyes and the red energy on his hands.

'I should not have left the city…'

The city that was located in the middle of the tundra.

The city that had protected them against the abyssal race and the other transcendent beings, like an oasis would in a desert.

'Ekidu…Karhal.'

The Dark King made a regretful expression as he looked towards the city in the west that those two transcendents had created, and were defending with all their might.

.....................…

—rumble—

"Did it finish already?"

Taesang mumbled quietly as he dashed towards the War Fortress.

A tremendously loud noise could be heard in the distance.

And the silence that followed after it.

This had told him that the fight had ended.

'But why did he tell me to come?'

He actually pondered if he should go or not.

Since he felt like he didn't really need to listen to the man's commands.

Since he'd been quite rude the entire time.

'He should at least tell me what's going on…'

But a sense of expectation drove Taesang.

Since that man might give him another reward.

That man was like an angel that had descended from heaven.

An angel that had opened up a whole new world for him.

'Hopefully this time as well…'

Taesang quickly dashed towards the War Fortress.

Reincarnator – Chapter 314 : Beast (1)

—rumble—

'What…What is this?'

Taesang was at a loss as he looked at the scene unfolding in front of him.

The giant War Fortress had been the main residence for those who'd first arrived at the Green Zone since it was capable of hosting hundreds of thousands of people.

This very fortress was now being demolished.

It was already very unstable due to that giant hole appearing beneath it.

How could it withstand a mountain falling on top of it?

—rumble—

Taesang realized that there was still a long way for him to go.

He'd felt like he'd gained everything in the world after setting on the path to becoming a transcendent; he'd been able to smash apart all the Kang-Kions that had come his way like ants.

That he might be closer to the level of the Dark King and the man who had given him this strength.

But that was only because he'd never fought them—that feeling of being their equal had merely been a delusion of his.

'I'm still too far-off, huh…'

These thoughts ran through his mind as he looked at the scene of their battle.

But Taesang's expression soon brightened.

'Yeah, I'm just starting out.'

This was just the beginning.

Since there were no dangerous abyssal[a][b] races nearby, he could slowly raise his strength by killing them, and one day reach that level.

'But…but then, what about the others?'

His thoughts became complex as he thought of his comrades.

Should he share the crystals?

How should he share them?

'…but is there really any benefit to me sharing them?'

He flinched at the greedy thoughts going through his mind.

How could he think such a thing?

These were people he'd fought with, comrades he'd risked his life for day-by-day, same as they did for him.

He suppressed the raging greed inside him and continued onwards.

'…my mind is in chaos. Let's meet that man, first.'

He focused on the reason why he'd come here.

He was easy to locate with his newly heightened senses.

'…I just need to go in this direction, but should I really do it?'

If the man who had given him this strength had won, there would be no issues.

But what if the Dark King won?

Though he'd become strong, he was nowhere near the level of causing a scene like this.

He started to lose confidence.

'The Dark King might be perfectly fine…'

He sensed that one of them had a much more powerful aura, and sadly, its owner seemed to be the Dark King.

Taesang pondered for a moment, and then decided to retreat.

'Yeah, I'm not ready yet.'

He possessed unlimited potential.

He didn't want to waste this new opportunity by dying.

He also had comrades.

If he met the enraged Dark King after heading into that place, then it would be a worthless death.

But as he was about to retreat—

…chhh…chchch…

—in the distance.

From where he was now heading towards.

A vicious aura was seeping out.

A terrifying aura that made him feel goosebumps all over.

An aura that penetrated deep into his body and mind.

He had felt this before.

Twice actually.

'…my god. He won.'

Taesang gulped.

This was the same aura as before.

The aura he'd felt when he'd first met that man and had tried to resist.

And when the man released his aura in the storage area.

'…it's that red light.'

When Misun had tried to resist.

And when he was finding a candidate to become the transcendent.

A terrifying aura radiated out from the man's hand.

And that aura was the same as what he was feeling right now.

There was only one reason why he would be able to feel this aura.

It meant that the man had won.

Though the threat of the Dark King was gone, Taesang's worries did not.

'Damn…should I have just run away?'

The vicious aura kept striking the surface of his skin.

To the point of making him think that the Dark King might've been better.

Taesang pondered if he should continue or not, but soon shook his head.

If that man wanted him dead, he would've been killed already.

And he had told him to come after digesting this new strength.

He didn't dare go against those words.

'…f*** it, I'll go. Who knows, right? He might give me more gifts.'

Taesang thought positively as he dashed towards the origin of the vicious aura.

And soon.

A scene unfolded before his eyes.

—shshshshsh—

Dark red smoke was coming out from the man's eyes and into the seven orifices of the Dark King, who was kneeling on the ground before the man.

"Ahh….."

Taesang exclaimed out loud when he saw this scene.

....................

"Ughh…."

"You know, I pondered for a long time about how to use you."

The Dark King grit his teeth while resisting the blood-colored smoke that was invading his body.

'…Damn it! Just kill me!'

But he could not speak those words.

The blood-colored smoke entering his body felt like it was gnawing away at his insides.

Hansoo continued:

"When a transcendent is born…it is hard to be a righteous person. It's not a bad thing to become evil. It's actually quite normal."

It was hard to survive alone, so groups were naturally formed.

Since maintaining the group was the only way to survive, they made rules and laws for everyone to abide by.

They respected each other since they needed each other.

Even if one made another unhappy, they held back for the greater good of the group.

That was the only way.

If they fought the minute they disliked something, a group would never have been made in the first place.

But a transcendent realizes the moment that they are born that they can escape from those bindings.

"Those with strength can easily become childish. Like you."

"Ughh…"

Transcendents were different from humans.

Maybe because they were born anew, they acted like babies.

So at first, they would carefully and slowly experiment.

They would test how their newfound strength impacted their surroundings, then wait for feedback.

And surprisingly.

There was no resistance.

Even if a transcendent did something to make the other party unhappy, they did nothing to harm him.

Social bindings?

Laughable.

This is the main point that all transcendents will eventually realize.

Even if their relationships worsened or crumbled apart, the result was the same.

Because they had become a transcendent, all their relationships would change.

The people they had fought with so far were no longer comrades, they were merely weights holding them back.

Since the transcendents were that much more powerful.

At this point, greed rises up inside one's mind.

Since I'm working this hard to protect you, shouldn't you return the favor?

And this mindset slowly changes.

From a feeling of want to a desire.

And everyone around the transcendent, as well as the transcendent themselves, start to realize.

That one side had to fear the other.

"Ugh…"

Hansoo continued to speak towards the Dark King in front of him.

"I was thinking about whether I should take you or not. But I feel like I should at least make one before I go."

Once he unifies and colonizes the 4th zone, the number of people coming up through the elevator will rise, as well as the number of new transcendents being born.

Without a figure to fear, chaos would reign once again.

Those cancer-creating bastards were all settled in the west, and his comrades were fighting against them with their lives on the line.

Hansoo did not have time to oversee the others, nor could he afford the potential casualties.

So he needed to make one.

A symbol of fear.

He needed to show them.

Show them what would happen if they thrashed about just because they'd acquired power.

'Look closely.'

Hansoo muttered, looking at Taesang.

Then—

—crunch—

"Ahh…AHHHHHH!!!!"

A tremendous scream of pain and misery roared out from the mouth of the Dark King.

..................…..

"KUAAAAAAAAA!!!"

Taesang looked in horror at the scene.

It wasn't just the screaming.

"AHH!…AHHHH!!!"

It was so painful that the Dark King was screaming while rolling around on the ground.

While all his limbs were smashed apart and his muscles had been shredded.

'What the f***… What did he do!?'

Taesang frowned.

With a body like that, even lying down would still be painful.

And even more so if one rolled around like that.

But the Dark King didn't seem to be bothered by that, as he literally thrashed around while he howled.

—boom!—

—booom!—

The Dark King's transcendent body caused the surrounding rubble to break apart.

And then the man approached the Dark King, whispering something into his ears.

'…what did he say to him?'

"Ugh…AHH!"

And then shockingly—

—the Dark King clenched his teeth and stood up, wearing a horrible expression filled with pain and misery.

With a hint of hope mixed in.

Then—

"Ahhhh!"

The Dark King stumbled as he started to move.

Towards the Kang-Kions in the distance.

This scene caused Taesang to feel sorry for the Dark King, despite the horrible things he'd done.

Hansoo slowly approached Taesang.

"…what did you do?"

Hansoo replied with a laugh as he looked at the Dark King dashing away, screaming as he did so.

"You'll see."

Reincarnator – Chapter 315 : Beast (2)

I want to live.

....................

In the outer parts of the War Fortress.

Roaaar!

Kuoo!

The screams of both beasts and humans resonated endlessly.

"Damn it!"

"Maintain the formation! They're rushing in!"

"What do you mean?! We need to leave before everything collapses!"

The adventurers that were fighting against the Kang-Kions were looking quite frantic.

It was obvious, actually.

In a battle between two powerhouses, they would easily be crushed apart.

It might be calm now, but it might start up again at any moment.

And since the Kang-Kions were charging towards them at a time like this, how could they not feel uneasy?

'Damn…I need to get as far away as possible.'

—crunch—

Niclouse mumbled, smashing his fist into the mouth of the Kang-Kion that had dashed towards him.

It might count as suicidal to leave the other humans and then go out into the open field where countless abyssal beings swarmed, but this was not the time to consider such a thing.

Since anywhere else in the 4th zone was better than this place.

He needed to get as far away as possible while the Dark King was distracted.

—rumble—

'F***…It's another earthquake.'

The already weakened land was breaking apart by the Kang-Kions, revealing the shadowed abyss of a maze below.

Though he wouldn't die by falling, it was easy to see what would happen if one were to fall inside there.

Niclouse smashed the Kang-Kion in front of him as he started to get even more desperate.

—boom!—

"F***…Go away, you bastard! Get lost!"

—roaar!—

But sadly, the Kang-Kion continued to charge towards him with its half-destroyed mouth.

'God…dammit!'

Niclouse made a decision right then.

If he wasted time here, then he would die.

Since the Dark King could arrive at any moment.

'I'll give this to you then!'

Niclouse decided to sacrifice his right arm.

But as he was about to shove his arm into the Kang-Kion's mouth.

—boom!—

The Kang-Kion's head suddenly blew apart.

'…Huh?'

While Niclouse was at a loss—

—a firm and pretty female's voice could be heard.

"Hey, mister! Don't just feed those things! Run!"

"…? Who?"

Nicloused asked where the voice had come from.

A face that didn't belong in a battlefield like this.

With such beauty and strength like her's, he should've seen her before or at least have heard of her once.

The female who had blown apart the head of the Kang-Kion gave a short answer.

"I'm sorry I'm late."

The female, Misun, looked at Niclouse with a sorry expression.

A mangled body.

Even his right leg was broken.

'…we must save as many as possible.'

—booom!—

—boom!—

Countless sounds of explosions could be heard all around them.

Through the path Taesang had cleared on the way over to the War Fortress, Akran and the other comrades of the refugee's fortress had charged over.

"Rescue everyone as quickly as possible!"

"Move the injured! While the 2nd division relocates them, division 1 and 2 will fight the Kang-Kions!"

Kyaaaooo!

—crunch!—

Misun extended her hand towards Niclouse amidst the screams of their comrades and those of the Kang-Kions.

"Let's go. I'll help since you'll be slow with that leg."

"Uh…yes…thank you."

Niclouse realized that he wasn't in a situation where he could object, and leaned on Misun.

As she held up Niclouse, Misun carefully observed the surroundings.

She had to find a path of escape.

But her expression quickly darkened.

'Damn…there's too many.'

Though there were quite a lot of Kang-Kions that had attacked the refugee's fortress, the War Fortress was another story in itself.

Despite numerous Kang-Kions having been shredded from the giant explosion, countless Kang-Kions still remained as they were jumping around to devour the humans.

—crunch!—

'Damn…I knew that our numbers would increase on the way out but…'

Misun slashed apart a Kang-Kion rushing towards them.

The number of survivors would increase if they kept going, but at this rate, one out of every three were bound to die.

Maybe even two out of the three.

'Taesang…you bastard! Where did you go?!'

Misun clenched her teeth at the thought of her comrade—they desperately needed him right now.

—rumble—

The earthquake beneath their feet started to get stronger and stronger.

'This…!'

Misun's expression brightened up.

This was not an actual earthquake.

It was a shockwave created from a powerful being stomping on the ground.

A force that a normal human needed all their might to create was continuously being repeated as it approached them.

'Is it Taesang?'

But as Misun raised her head with a bright expression—

—Niclouse, who was standing next to her, made an expression of despair.

Full of terror.

"F***…run! Quickly, run! Run the hell away!"

"Huh?"

Misun was shocked at Niclouse's reaction, who was struggling to run away, and then also cursed after figuring out the identity behind the stomps.

"SHIT!"

—tatatata—

Niclouse and Misun both started to dash away with all the strength in their bodies.

And towards them—

—boom! boom! boom! boom! Boom!—

"UAHHH!!!…AHHHHH!!!"

The Dark King, a demon in their hearts, was charging towards them with a horrifying expression.

'F***…! He lost? He went there so confidently!'

Misun cursed inwardly as she ran.

Though all his limbs were broken and he was bleeding from all over his body, his aura alone told them.

That he was still much more powerful than them.

If they got caught, they would die.

No, they wouldn't simply just die.

They would be ripped apart.

Though Misun and Niclouse ran away in fright, it was futile.

—boom! boom! boom!—

The distance between them and the Dark King was only getting shorter and shorter.

Though they ran as fast as they could, the Dark King seemed to be even more desperate than them for some reason.

And to make matters worse.

Roaaar!

The nearby Kang-Kions were charging over to them as well.

The Kang-Kions wouldn't let go of this chance; their defenses were lowered, and they were busy running away with everything they had.

"Ahh!"

—crunch!—

Uduk!

Though Misun and Niclouse screamed as they attacked the Kang-Kions in front of them, the Kang-Kions were not weak enough that they'd be defeated by their desperate attempts.

'God…'

Misun's expression darkened as she got bitten on both her left arm and her right thigh.

Though it hadn't been cut off, there wasn't much difference.

Since the vicious aura behind them had now drawn close.

'To become minced meat alongside these beasts…'

Misun gave up all resistance as she sensed the terrifying attack coming in from behind her.

She could not dodge it.

Then—

—boooom!—

A huge explosion occurred, with Misun as the center.

'…?'

Misun, who had her eyes closed, opened them when she felt her limbs becoming lighter.

And was at a loss for words.

Grr…

Kyrk…

The Kang-Kions, who had been biting onto her arm and leg had turned to dust.

And shockingly—

"AHHH!!!…UHAAAAAA!!!"

The Dark King roared his lungs out as he charged past them.

Towards the Kang-Kions in the distance.

Soon—

—booom!—

—boom!—

Roooaaar!

—boom!—

Watching this scene, Misun's legs gave out and she fell onto the floor.

"…what the…"

They watched the Dark King, who simply ignored them and was solely focused on killing the Kang-Kions.

..................................

UAHHHHHHHH!!!

—boom!—

Taesang gulped as he heard the roars and the sounds of explosions from the distance.

"…will he have to live his entire life like that?"

Taesang asked while he stared at the Dark King in the distance.

The Dark King was literally fighting like a crazy dog.

Swinging around his broken limbs.

Squeezing out every ounce of strength he could from his torn muscles.

But shockingly, his expression didn't seem all that painful.

Quite the opposite, really.

Every time he managed to kill a Kang-Kion, his expression would brighten up a bit.

A very small amount at a time.

UAAAHHH!!!

The slightly brightened expression quickly turned gruesome, and he soon jumped fervently towards the other Kang-Kions.

As if he couldn't even be bothered with the nearby humans.

The Dark King was clearing away the Kang-Kions way faster than Taesang could ever accomplish, and thankfully the adventurers were able to catch their breath.

To the point where his help was not needed.

And Hansoo nodded.

"Yes. Forever."

Until he released him.

Or until he died.

He would not be able to stop this act.

Since the moment he stopped, the pain that was many times worse than being tortured in hell and all of eternity would rise up again.

His entire life would now be devoted to that.

His nose will smell the Abyss.

And his eyes will look for their traces.

His hands will smash their hearts, and his legs will constantly be forced to move to find them.

And as the Dark King flew, the Abyssal beasts were smashed apart.

Gulp.

As he stared at the crystals that were littered on the ground, Taesang asked Hansoo—

"Uh…What if he absorbs those crystals? Couldn't he overpower this pain once he gets stronger?"

He didn't know what Hansoo had done, but there was an unspoken rule in the Abyss.

A skill set by a weaker party would not have much effect.

Though he was like this for now, things might change if the Dark King actually grew stronger.

Those bindings might break.

But Hansoo just chuckled.

"He can't."

"…Pardon?"

"I made it so he wouldn't be able to. From now on, he'll only be a janitor."

Taesang fell into silence.

'…a janitor, huh?'

He was only a janitor in name.

Taesang felt like this incident with the Dark King was a warning to him and any other future transcendents. He hesitantly asked—

"Are you going to go up now? There is no reason for you to remain here…"

This man had no more opponents since the Dark King had been dealt with, at least in his opinion he didn't.

There was no real reason for this man to stay here, right?

Though Taesang had only been in this damned world for two years, he knew one thing for sure.

To quickly become stronger, one needed to be at the appropriate location.

The strong would need to go higher.

The elevator had been created for that reason.

But Hansoo shook his head.

He would leave.

But to the west.

He wouldn't go up yet.

He would only go up after becoming a 2-star transcendent.

'There's a lot of powerful guys left, still a lot to do.'

Hansoo controlled the bloody energy inside his body as he mumbled.

The world will always try to keep the balance.

And slightly disadvantageously to humans.

'Where could they be? It shouldn't stop at grade 3 and 4s.'

—rumble—

Hansoo looked towards the War Fortress; the commotion was now dying down.

And then towards the distance.

Towards the vast Green Zone before his eyes.

..................................

—rumble—

Below the ground, in the Great Maze.

Deep down where the Ains lived in the past.

—squirm—

Something black moved about.

Grrrr…

And behind the mysterious creature, a giant tunnel that the creature seemed to have dug out could be seen.

As the mysterious creature slowly made its way towards the War Fortress, the surface shook with vibrations again.

…rumble…

The vibrations above stopped.

[…]

The mysterious black creature, after realizing the vibrations had stopped, pondered for a moment, and then turned around as if it had lost interest.

This wasn't the only place where there was food.

Soon—

—rumble—

The mysterious creature then started to head towards another direction.

Towards the west.

Reincarnator – Chapter 316 : Bait (1)

Darkness had fallen over the War Fortress.

Akran and countless others were gathered in this location.

"Ugh…"

"Thanks, but… can't you be a bit more gentler?"

The adventurers had set up a temporary camp where they rested their bodies, and helped out those who were wounded.

They had no way of going up anymore because Taesang had taken all the crystals. Either way, the injuries of those who'd been held hostage in the War Fortress were too severe.

These people had been wounded from the collision between the mysterious man and the Dark King.

Even now, there were people still being rescued from the rubble and debris within the War Fortress.

Thankfully, there were quite a lot of survivors due to their individual fortitude.

Though their conditions weren't the best, they would heal quickly after a brief respite.

'…those two can't even be considered human anymore.'

Akran frowned as he looked at this scene.

A brief collision had caused all this.

Though there was a reason to hate the man who had caused this, Akran did not.

Since the Dark King's tyranny would've continued without that man.

In the end, the mysterious man hadn't been at fault.

It was all because of the Dark King; he's the one that should be cursed.

'…wait. Maybe he really did get cursed?'

UAAAAAAHH!

Akran shuddered as he heard the screams of the Dark King in the distance.

In all honesty, the reason why everyone had been able to take a breather and heal up their injuries so soon was because of the Dark King.

They would've had to set up a defensive perimeter and keep watch in case of more attacks, but the Dark King had been dealing with all of that for now.

For some reason, the Dark King was going around massacring every abyssal beast in the nearby area.

Not even taking the crystals that dropped from the beasts.

'Crystals…'

With a grim expression, Akran looked to the group of three sitting by a fire in the distance.

Taesang, Misun, and Lauren Bell.

The mysterious man had turned the Dark King like that, and had just simply left.

Which meant that there was nobody here that could handle Taesang.

But what the man had said to Taesang before he left was weighing on Akran's mind.

'What did they talk about at the end…?'

Akran stared at Taesang with a heavy expression.

........................…..

Taesang and his comrades were sitting by a fire.

Though they wouldn't feel the cold with their current grade of strength, this was the easiest way to get rid of the disgusting darkness.

Darkness inspired fear in everyone; even the very strong feared the darkness.

'Well, this brings back memories.'

As she looked at Taesang, Misun thought back to her days back on earth when she'd gone camping with her friends. He was busy chewing on a piece of monster meat that they'd roasted over the fire.

He seemed to be having a lot of different thoughts.

Chewing on a piece of meat, Misun carefully asked Taesang:

"So…did that man just leave? He didn't want anything from us?"

Taesang had been the only one who had talked to the man before he left.

Since the man just disappeared after making the Dark King act like that.

Taesang looked at Misun, and then quietly nodded.

"Yeah, he just left."

"…Does he really not want anything from us? We should still be quite useful."

Though becoming an underling wasn't great in any sense, the fact that such a powerful being had left them behind…

Taesang smiled bitterly as he replied:

"Do you really think that?"

"…"

Misun was at a loss for words.

In all honesty, she didn't really want to ask about Hansoo.

What could they do for him in a fight between transcendents?

Misun then looked at Taesang again.

'…What's going to happen with you now, Taesang?'

Taesang's eyes had been glued to the crystals on the ground for a while now.

The countless crystals that the Dark King had left behind.

Misun frowned at this.

Seeing Taesang devouring all those crystals kept bothering her.

As well as his strength that was now vastly superior than average.

Maybe…

Maybe this was the last chance for him to become a transcendent.

A monster who was about to take flight.

But unlike Misun's worries, Taesang was having different thoughts.

Thoughts about the conversation he had with the man about the crystals.

'…A stupid question, really.'

Taesang smiled bitterly.

He was still embarrassed about what he'd asked.

Taesang had stared at Hansoo with anticipation.

If he followed what the Dark King did, then he would obviously end up like him.

But what if he ate the crystals and used his power righteously?

He was embarrassed because this question had shown the man the greed that was burning inside him, yet he was still curious.

But the man looked towards the west and only said one thing.

Then the man disappeared towards the west.

'Ugh…'

Taesang laughed at himself as he thought back to that moment.

His expression had been extremely hopeful back then.

He felt like he had been accepted by the man.

He thought that he had received the rights to all the crystals.

Since devouring the crystals was the better option for him instead of letting everyone use it to climb up.

But after thinking for a while, he came to a different conclusion.

Taesang finished his thoughts and got up.

"Where are you going?"

Taesang smiled as he pointed towards the crystals.

"Gotta pick those up, right? Can't leave them rolling around like that."

Though Taesang had said it cheerfully, the expression of the others froze.

"What…what are you going to do with them?"

Taesang smiled bitterly at Lauren's question.

'Everyone fears me already…'

This wasn't what he wanted.

He wanted to become strong.

But he didn't want to be distanced from those who loved him, and whom he loved in return.

But he'd come to a realization.

That if you didn't look around yourself in your charge towards the top, there would be no one left once you looked down from the peak.

'Maybe that's why all the transcendents act alone.'

Even if they wanted to be with other people, or wish to protect their loved ones, all their relationships would eventually end up so twisted.

And he didn't want to become like that.

Thankfully, there was still a chance for him.

Taesang looked at the three, and spoke carefully.

"Well, we'll need to talk to everyone about that. After we replenish the amount of crystals I ate."

Whether they decided that he should eat them to protect them, or to use them to go up, he would agree to the wants of the others.

Maybe they might try to raise another transcendent.

No matter what, they still needed a lot of crystals.

It would take a long time, but it wouldn't matter.

'…This is the right path, right?'

Taesang mumbled, thinking of the man who had left.

Though he might become greedy, since he was a human as well.

UAAAAAAAHH!

The Dark King in the distance would help steel his mind from straying to that path.

Since that man could return at any moment.

Maybe even stronger than before.

Taesang then looked towards the west.

...........................…..

—rumble—

Surprisingly, Hansoo hadn't gone far.

He had something he needed to do.

'…They took the flail, huh?'

Hansoo thought to himself, after visiting the center of the War Fortress before he left for the west.

He searched around a bit in case the Dark King had hidden it, but couldn't find it in the end.

It was probably now in someone else's hands.

Though a normal person would be burnt to a crisp once they touched the flail that was located on the mana node, there were existences that could safely grasp it.

Since he had made it possible.

'It was probably one of the transcendents.'

Hansoo decided to forget about the flail for now.

Since there was no reason to find it nor was there a method for him to track it down.

There was something else he had to deal with at this moment.

'We've arrived.'

—rumble—

Hansoo stopped to look at the castle in front of him.

It was the Keil Kingdom's refugee fortress, where Taesang, Misun, and the other refugees had previously lived.

The attack of the Kang-Kions had turned it into ruins, but he had a reason for his return.

'…It's getting on my mind.'

As to why the abyssal beasts, who went everywhere the humans could be found, had not tried to approach this area.

Even before the Kang-Kions attacked, a lot of them had hesitated.

Which meant that there was something deterring them in this place.

If that wasn't the case, then even more Kang-Kions would've attacked, which would have resulted in even more casualties.

'I must check.'

—boom!—

Hansoo rose high up into the sky and headed towards the center of the fortress.

—chijijijik!—

He gathered a tremendous amount of energy around his spear.

The Nine Dragons Spear.

—sssss—

Six dragons converged almost instantly and crept to the tip of his spear.

Then—

—BOOOOOM!—

The dark orb that Hansoo created smashed into the ground of the fortress and made a huge noise.

—rummmblee—

A single strike was all that needed to break down the fortress that had barely held on after the attack of the Kang-Kions.

But its collapse wasn't entirely due to Hansoo.

'Cave?'

There was a giant cave right beneath the fortress.

Kyaaaaak!

Suddenly, something that had been sitting below popped out, rising into the air.

A snake-like creature that seemed to have been created from a convergence of darkness.

'An Evil Suction Beast.'

They were a solitary-type race.

If one didn't know how to deal with them, then it was a grade 6.

If one knew how to, then it would only be at grade 4.

A race that sucked energy out of beings to empower themselves and to reproduce.

The reason why the cave could not be sensed was because the bodies of these things had been filling up the entirety of the cave, leaving no gaps.

'…For them to be living right on top of these guys and still survive….they were really lucky.'

But soon Hansoo realized that it hadn't been entirely due to luck.

These things had been sitting underground without coming up because they hadn't finished eating.

As the dark snakes moved out, he could see what they had been eating.

'…Jang Oh? He died?'

Clementine's underling that had run from him.

And the godly artifact he held, Arham's shield.

Though the artifact was on his wrist, his entire body looked mummified after being sucked out by the Evil Suction Beasts.

Kyaaak!

The snakes all started to rush towards Hansoo.

Reincarnator – Chapter 317 : Bait (2)

—rumble—

Kyaaak!

The snakes that popped out from the darkness dashed forward to surround him.

Hansoo looked at the translucent snakes as he retrieved his spear, striking them with it.

—papapapapa!—

Though his attacks could easily erase a normal person without leaving behind a single trace, the snakes merely turned to smoke, which then converged back into a snake again.

And Hansoo frowned at this.

'…They ate a lot, huh?'

Evil Suction Beasts grew stronger the more energy they consumed.

And they were from a solitary-type race, which meant their individual strengths were far higher than races which acted in groups.

—crunch!—

—crack!—

Hansoo laughed coldly as he looked at the snakes who dodged his spears and were now chomping on his Thousand Soldiers Armor.

'How presumptuous.'

Though they were hard to deal with, they were merely at grade 4.

And with just this many, he could easily crush them with his strength.

Then—

—swooosh—

One of the snakes biting into Hansoo started to shrivel up.

The energy that it had sucked out, but had yet to digest, had instead been sucked back by Hansoo.

Well, the spirit inside Hansoo was the one that had done it.

And soon Hansoo's skin began to darken as he absorbed the energy from the shadowy snakes.

But then—

Kyaaak!

The snakes continued to charge towards him.

Though their energy was being sucked out, it wasn't to the point where they could die from it.

They just needed to crush him and suck the energy back.

—rumble!—

The snakes that had been surrounding the godly artifact, Arham's shield, all rose into the air and started to soar towards him.

—kuduk—

—kududuk—

Soon, dozens and dozens of shadowy strands started to surround him.

Then—

The energy Hansoo had sucked out from the snakes merged alongside the energy from the mana jade located in his heart.

Compressed and transformed, it soon turned into a much more destructive form.

—rumble!—

The silk-like Demonic Dragon's Reinforcement, the skill that he'd used in the fight against the Dark King, covered his body.

And as the silk stacked on top of each other to their limits.

—booom!—

An extremely bright light exploded out from the darkness surrounding Hansoo.

Kyaaak!

Roaar!

The snakes all started to disappear from the explosion caused by the Demonic Dragon's Reinforcement.

Like shadows that were lit up by light.

Like ink that was being washed away by water.

And soon—

—whoosh—

The light faded away as Hansoo started to slowly float down.

Hansoo checked his slightly dented armor, scanning his light injuries, and shrugged.

He wasn't satisfied with the amount of damage he had taken, despite having dealt with the situation quickly.

The Evil Suction Beasts were a grade 4.

They weren't strong enough to damage him like this.

If he'd been prepared, that is.

'I guess I'll need to take a break and set up some countermeasures…'

Moving about without taking the proper precautions made it annoying to deal with the solitary-type races because of their unique characteristics.

This was why the existence of other normal adventurers were important.

'Strength isn't everything.'

Hansoo talked to himself.

Though the transcendents and the normal adventurers thought that they didn't need each other, that was only when the two groups were by themselves.

Once the abyssal beasts came into the equation, the whole situation changed.

The transcendents were strong.

But the abyssal race were also ridiculously strong, and if they didn't know the methods of dealing with the peculiar solitary-type race, it could be dangerous.

And the other normal adventures were important necessities, as they helped to discover and produce the special items needed to deal with such things.

No matter how strong the transcendents were, they could not produce thousands of items by themselves.

'Well, the situation here was a bit different.'

Things might've ended up differently if there were beings that threatened the lives of transcendents nearby, but there were only guppies around here.

'It might be different in the west.'

If the humans had settled in the west, they would have made preparations for the solitary-type race as well.

But that was a story for another day.

—tatata—

Hansoo landed on the ground, collected the abyssal crystals littered around the ground and then looked towards the dried-up corpse.

Not only had his energy been sucked out by the snakes, his body was crushed in many places from the sheer weight of the beasts.

The Evil Suction Beasts had treated his body carefully by slowly sucking out as much as they could, but he'd still ended up like this.

'…Maybe it's Jang Oh. Maybe not.'

Hansoo picked up the shield from the corpse.

—kiiiing—

—kiing—

As he poured mana into the Arham's Shield, the light emitted from it was weak, unlike other godly artifacts.

'At least you protected the people above.'

—clank—

Hansoo mumbled as he equipped the shield on his wrist, which had started to crazily suck in mana as if it had been starving for days.

If the Evil Suction Beasts hadn't been busy sucking out the energy from the shield, they would've long left the cave and attacked the humans above.

Hansoo gently caressed the shield and looked around for any other possible clues, but soon shook his head.

Any other traces had long been destroyed by the snakes.

If not for the Arham's Shield on the corpse's wrist, he wouldn't have even thought of Jang Oh's name.

'If this really is Jang Oh… who's the one causing trouble in the west?'

Hansoo thought for a bit, but then shook his head.

No matter what, nothing had changed.

Since his job hadn't changed overall.

'Well, let's go back and see if he bit the bait.'

After gently touching the shield, Hansoo then jumped out from the cave.

And soon only the corpse was left inside.

..................…..

In a hill a distance away from the fortress Hansoo had just left—

—a man was standing at its peak.

The man wore a frown on his face.

"…What is this? What happened here?"

The man was gnawing on something as he looked towards the War Fortress in the distance.

The now broken-down War Fortress.

With small dots of campfire here and there.

That place should be the territory of that Dark Knight.

Not only was he imitating Hansoo, he had even settled near the elevator.

Though he had charged over here after seeing the Kang-Kions' strange behavior, but for things to have turned out like this…

'…Hmm. Did he fight with someone? Was there another transcendent we didn't know about?'

Those were clearly traces of a battle between transcendents.

The man frowned.

He knew about most transcendents.

And he had recruited most of them to their side.

Since the ones that didn't join them were pretending to be heroes as they tried to stand up to them.

He was going to deal with them all sooner or later, but he had never heard of somebody who could deal with the Dark King.

'…I guess I'll need to look into it.'

The man frowned.

It wouldn't be hard to figure out.

Since he could just squeeze it out of the ones sitting by their campfires in the distance.

'Well, it wouldn't matter much if they didn't, either.'

Though there was only a fifty-fifty chance, it wouldn't matter.

It would just be a form of stress relief.

But as he was about to charge towards the War Fortress.

KUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!

A horrendous scream could be heard.

'…the f***?'

The man turned his head towards the direction of the scream, but then was at a loss for words.

A familiar face.

'…Why is that retarded f***er doing that?'

The man frowned as he looked at the Dark King roaring loudly as he rolled around the ground.

Then the man stopped.

'…Wait. This guy seems to be quite strong now.'

They had ignored him before, because the Dark King hadn't even trained his skill despite having such strength, but looking at the man now, the Dark King seemed to be quite strong.

Apparently, he had been successful with his nursery.

But he'd still turned out like this.

Which meant that the one who had beaten him was much stronger.

'This makes it a bit inconvenient…'

And he could hear laughter from around the War Fortress in the distance.

Yo! Hahaha! Look at that bastard! How satisfying!

Haa…Life is great without that f***er, huh?

Though the echo was very quiet, the man could still hear them.

'…F***ing insects. They dare to look down on transcendents?'

The man felt like he himself had been insulted, and veins started popping out on his forehead.

But anger could be poisonous.

The man looked between the War Fortress and the Dark King, and then backed away.

Since the one who had destroyed the Dark King could still be within the War Fortress.

With his strength, only joy was left for him in this world.

He did not want to risk his life.

'I must report it first, and we'll decide afterwards… you should all consider yourself lucky.'

If it weren't for some other transcendents getting in their way, he would've long brought his comrades and destroyed this place.

The existence of transcendents was not something some bugs could look down on.

Even if it was the Dark King, the bugs only wanted one thing.

Someone they could respect.

A leader.

'…How dare he.'

The man clenched his fist.

Dealing with the man inside the War Fortress would be a bit troublesome.

But seeing the Dark King become a laughingstock really pissed him off.

'…F***ing bastard…You should be thankful.'

He gathered energy within his hands; the man decided to kill off the Dark King instead of letting him bring shame to the name of transcendents.

—chzchchchzzzch—

A streak of lightning rose up from the tip of the man's hand.

It gathered the most violent energy in the world, that of lightning, to strike down upon the enemy.

Even stronger when used by a transcendent.

A force thousands of times stronger than a normal bolt of lightning gathered around his hand.

And this skill was even more powerful than the that the Dark King had used in the past.

But in that moment, the Dark King sensed the killing aura.

"Kuuu..Kuaaaahh!"

The Dark King looked towards the man with venomous eyes.

But the man merely chuckled.

"How dare a mere r*tard—no, you're just a beast now."

The Dark King hadn't even trained himself, had let himself be injured and had even been suppressed.

He would be able to kill him with a single strike.

The problem was that being that was possibly inside the War Fortress.

But the man, whose entire focus was on the War Fortress as he prepared the skill, soon realized something was wrong.

Because the Dark King's gaze was not directed towards him, but slightly behind him.

Then—

—boooom!—

'….Huh?!'

The man frowned at the mysterious object that had started to fly towards him from behind, and not from the War Fortress where he had put all his attention on.

........................

"They're biting well."

'When will I have time to search the entire vast western region?'

—boom!boom!boom!boom!—

Hansoo laughed coldy as he dashed towards the powerful shockwaves in the distance.

Reincarnator – Chapter 318 : Bait (3)

While he was beating up the Dark King, Hansoo thought of something.

What if the mysterious being only created the transcendents, but didn't control them?

What were those transcendents doing now?

And what would they do once they realized that there was a being stronger than them out there?

The answer was obvious.

Humans would naturally group together if there was somebody stronger than them.

.....................…

—rumble—

Hansoo continued dashing forward, keeping his eye on the man collecting the lightning in the distance.

After two years of being asleep, the world was not exactly in great condition.

His friends were fighting battles, while the transcendents were causing a ruckus.

And the biggest issue was the lack of information.

To fix this all, he'd need to take down the people causing the ruckus in this changed world.

'You first.'

Then—

The Demonic Dragon's Reinforcement started to surround Hansoo's spear.

The man collecting the lightning was not a simple enemy.

Though his strength alone was a bit weaker than the Dark King's, he would be harder to deal with.

Since he seemed to have completed his .[a]

The man who had been preparing the was at a loss.

'Wait… did I just fall into a trap?'

The man smirked.

'How dare he?'

He'd been slightly wary of the man, since he'd managed to beat down the Dark King.

But the moment he saw the person's identity, he came to a realization.

'I guess it was a very close win.'

Though there was still a difference in strength between him and the Dark King, it didn't seem to be that much.

That was more than enough to kill the Dark King.

But he himself wasn't that weak.

'Good, I'll just deal with this kid, kill the Dark King and then leave after destroying the War Fortress.'

Then—

—pajijijijijik!—

The spear-shaped lightning gathering around his hand dispersed and reformed around his body, like a suit of armor made of lightning.

This form was much more efficient in a longer battle, unlike the spear which was a one-time skill.

It would be a waste of energy to probe with such a powerful attack.

Then—

—booom!—

Hansoo and the man collided.

—kaddddududuk!—

Hansoo's Demonic Dragon's Reinforcement, which had previously smashed apart the Dark King's Claws of Loongken, started to drive into the man's lightning armor.

'Hmm.'

The man smirked.

He could easily defend from this amount of strength with his own armor.

And as soon as this kid showed a weak spot, he could just kill him off with a single blow.

But of course, there was no real need for him to block the opponent's attack with his armor.

For example, he could just block it with his weapon, or just simply dodge it.

But the man decided to retaliate instead.

'I'll destroy you!'

The most violent energy of the world, the power of lightning.

Of course, it had the highest potential when it came to offensive power.

The man laughed as his hand moved to the weapon on his waist.

"Hahaha! With just this?!"

—boom!—

The man slashed out with a dagger he'd kept by his side, which then collided with Hansoo's spear.

Sparks and mana flew out in all directions from the collision.

'Let's see…'

—kadududuk!—

The man smiled as he pushed back the spear.

His opponent was not stupid.

No, he was very smart indeed.

He probably knew that his personal strength was lower, but he'd still come to fight.

Which meant that he had something up his sleeves.

And as the man expected—

—the man's dagger pushed back Hansoo's spear, the energy surrounding the spear exploded, forcing away the man's dagger, and even erasing the wave of lightning.

It was similar to when Hansoo's spear had destroyed the Dark King's .

"Uuuu…."

The Dark King made a pained expression, and he groaned at the memory of his past loss, but the man simply laughed.

"Hahahaha! Amazing! How much have you refined!?! Such concentration!"

Refining.

A.k.a. Sharpening.[b]

A step for the transcendents to prepare for before going up to the next level.

Though the total amount of strength was important, refining was even more so.

'Yeah, much more important.'

The man smiled as he thought back to the past, releasing out another sea of lightning from his body.

The past.

The mysterious being that had given him this strength and skill had left after leaving behind a single message.

Focus on a single skill.

He didn't understand back then.

Since according to common logic, it was better the more skills one had.

Though one's mastery of each individual skill would be a bit lacking, no one knew what could pop out in this damned world.

This was why it was a good thing to learn a bit of everything for every situation.

But he knew that such a powerful being had no reason to trick him, so he had listened to their words.

And soon he realized the core reason for the strength behind the transcendents.

"Look, you dumbass! Hahaha! This is how you do it properly!"

The man laughed out maniacally as he let out even more copious amounts of lightning.

Then—

—rummmble!—

—rumble!—

Thunder roared out as it smashed into Hansoo's body.

It was more than enough energy to go through Hansoo's Thousand Soldiers Armor, past his Reinforcement, and burn his body.

—chiiiiiiik—

The Dark King, who had been watching the fight while pondering as to which side to take, was shocked at this sight.

"Ughh…."

'…How can he be so strong?'

He had thought that strength was the most important thing, so he had continued to collect the crystals.

And the amount he had collected was much higher compared to this man fighting Hansoo, the man called .

But for some reason, Hansoo and Zeus's strength seemed to be much, much stronger than his own.

'…Which side do I take? Damn.'

And as the Dark King continued to ponder—

—boooooom!—

—Hansoo charged through the sea of lightning and smashed his spear towards the man's head.

'How dare you…'

Though the Dark King was weak because he hadn't been refining properly, he himself was different.

As Zeus scoffed and was about to attack again with his dagger, —

—shudder—

Chills ran down his back as his entire bodily senses started to scream out in danger.

Zeus then realized the black marble that was heading towards him.

'That's…dangerous!'

If he were attacked by that black orb, together with Hangsoo's reinforcement, then even he himself wouldn't remain unscathed.

Then—

Right as both attacks closed in, a strange powdered metal appeared around the man's body.

'Let's go.'

Thunder King's Strike.

A power that allowed one to become the king of thunder.

It allowed the user to freely control metal and lightning, and even turn their body into lightning itself when fully mastered.

He still had a long way to go on this path, but he could still easily control a few mere pieces of metal.

—cracklecrackle—

Around his semi-formed lightning armor, seven circular metal orbs floated.

Then—

—tatatatatat!

The orbs embedded themselves in a straight line between the spear and his armor.

And soon—

—booooooom!—

Hs metal orbs and the spear collided.

The black orb on the tip of the spear exploded and started to devour everything in the vicinity.

'Dammit! I knew this would happen!'

The spear and the metal orbs continued to clash against each other while emitting a tremendous amount of light into the surrounding area.

Zeus grit his teeth as he continued to inject more and more energy into the metal orbs.

—kajajajak!—

—crack!—

The first three orbs were destroyed almost instantly.

But starting from the fourth orb, the speed of the spear had started to slow down.

And by the time the spear broke through the fifth and sixth orbs, it had already lost all its momentum.

The spear smashed into the seventh and final orb, but could not go through it.

And Zeus didn't miss this chance as he swung his towards Hansoo.

—boom!—

Again, the spear and the dagger collided together again with a tremendous sound.

—pssss—

Zeus made a content expression as he watched Hansoo being pushed back. The broken metal orbs turned back into powder and swirled around his body again.

'…Damn, that's strong. Did he just refine his attacking skill or something? These metal orbs aren't easy to make.'

Zeus frowned as he calculated the amount of metal left around his body.

A single strike was all that was needed to go through almost half of his metal powder.

Though it didn't seem like a lot, the amount of metal lost was what he'd gained after three months of slaving away the adventurers who had lived near him.

It was hard to get because the material for this metal belonged to the horns of the 8th-grade race, the .

He wanted to beat up this new kid for a bit, but in the end he was the one who'd lost out.

'Should I take him? We're lacking a bit of manpower these days.'

Though he didn't like any of his so-called 'allies', it was better to be friends with somebody powerful than being enemies with them.

But Zeus decided not to after a while.

'Let's just kill him. Or take him back half-dead.'

The fact that his group hadn't known about this person's existence up till now was a little disconcerting.

And for some reason, he had an ominous feeling about this man.

—rumble—

Zeus walked forward as he focused on the dagger in his hand.

Then—

—sssshhhss—

The Roranoa powders started to align themselves onto the dagger.

Soon the dagger, which was barely the length of two fingers or so, became a longsword over a meter long.

—kiiiiing!—

Then—

—whoooosh!—

Zeus swung his sword against the man who was charging towards him again.

'I'll…smash you apart!'

—zzzzzchchzzch!—

From the previous collision, he figured out that he would be able to win.

As long as he focused and used the Roranoa powders, he could easily defeat this man.

—booom!—

His sword and the spear collided again as he created another loud noise.

And as Zeus expected—

—c-c-crack—

The silk-like reinforcement around the man started to make crackling noises as it began to crack apart.

'Good!'

—crunch!—

Zeus smirked as he continued to push the man.

And he looked up to see the man's face.

He wanted to see his expression of fear.

'How dare you lay a trap…'

But then—

Zeus realized that something was terribly wrong.

What he'd seen was not a face stricken with fear.

But rather a pair of cold, cold eyes staring back at him.

Then—

—booooooooom!—

Hansoo's spear withdrew as he pulled back his arm.

—boooom!—

Hansoo's left arm flashed out as it blocked Silveril's path.

A small shield on his left hand had blocked it.

And in that instant—

—boooom!—

'The hell is this!?'

A yellow light exploded out from the man's shield and swept around their surroundings.

And the power of lightning surrounding his body became noticeably weaker.

pssss…

The Roranoa powders he'd held in place with the lightning immediately dispersed as his Silveril turned back from a longsword to a dagger.

'Damn!'

—clank!—

Zeus barely managed to guard against the charging shield with Silveril, all while shouting at his back.

Towards the Dark King behind him.

"You bastard! Are you just going to watch!? Come help me! Then this kid is dead!"

"Uuhgg….UAAA!"

And these words of Zeus allowed the Dark King, who had been deep in thought while still suffering from pain, to make a decision and run into the fight.

Reincarnator – Chapter 319 : Darkness (1)

The Dark King pondered as he looked at the scene in front of him.

As to which side was the correct one to take.

If he took Zeus's side and suppressed Hansoo, he would gain a chance to escape from this pain.

After all, life was the most important thing everyone had, and he would just need to threaten Hansoo to release his suffering.

But something bugged his mind.

If he helped Zeus and they still lost?

What would that man do then?

…

'…That would be terrifying.'

But the Dark King soon decided.

He could not live in eternal pain like this.

He wanted to eat delicacies, sleep with beautiful woman, and enjoy everything a powerhouse like him deserved.

Claws started extending out from the Dark King's hand.

'Kill.'

One could still get used to pain after a while.

Though he couldn't withstand the pain in his body, he'd gotten used to one thing during the past few days.

Fighting amidst the pain.

'Good.'

Zeus smiled as he saw the Dark King bring out his claws.

He didn't like being injured, he prefered to completely dominate the other party.

And of course, having another person to fight with was always a plus.

—rumble!—

The Silveril lengthened once again.

—then—

—booooom!—

Zeus pounced off the ground and swung his blade against Hansoo.

—crackle!—

Lightning followed the path of the blade as it smashed into the nearby area.

The sword clashed with the shield, creating sparks, and Hansoo saw the Dark King charging towards him past the shield.

Hansoo chuckled.

Of course anyone would want to escape such eternal pain.

But they should also use their brains.

Hansoo flicked his fingers and mumbled.

"Maybe you can't think properly because you're in pain. Shall I help you?'

Then—

—kwadddddddk!—

"Ah…Ahh…AHHHHHH!"

The Dark King fell mid-dash, and started to scream as all his skills dispersed.

—ssssssh—

Zeus grit his teeth as he looked at the Dark King rolling around the floor.

'F***… I thought as much, but still.'

Of course the person who'd put on such a suppression method wouldn't allow any forms of retaliation.

He'd tried to convince the Dark King just in case, but it seemed it wasn't very useful.

Well, the one in pain was the Dark King anyway, and not him.

'This is good, at least I created an opening.'

The slight opening that was caused by the finger flick.

Normal adventurers wouldn't be able to notice and utilize this, but he could.

A tiny, tiny opening.

—crackle!—

His Silveril slid past the shield and charged towards Hansoo's right arm.

—crack!—

A satisfying sound could be heard from his right shoulder, and Zeus smiled at this.

'This should be good enough.'

—chzzzchchzchz!—

The tremendous flow of current surged through the Silveril.

Even though Hansoo was a transcendent, he was still a human.

If his nerves burned up and his heart stopped, he would still die.

'I'll make you suffer a bit more.'

Zeus didn't focus on his heart, but rather on the nerves all over Hansoo's body.

This would cause the pain to intensify several times more, and could even cause paralysis.

But at that moment—

'What the…what is this?!'

The lightning that he had poured into the other party's body was no longer in his control.

Instead it was moving according to Hansoo's will.

'What the fuck?… Is this a Spirit?'

He had heard many stories about Spirits before.

But he had never heard of a Spirit that could suck out the energy of the opponent however one willed.

'Damn… no!'

In the opening that was created when he lost control over his lightning, Hansoo smashed his spear towards his body.

Right above his heart.

—kuddduduk—

"Kuhuk!"

They were too close to each other.

The spear that penetrated through the lightning armor and his ribs continued to dig into his body.

Right into his heart.

"Huaaa…."

Zeus breathed out; somehow he was still alive, but only just barely.

—zzchchczhzz—

Hansoo, who had been electrocuted, spoke with a cold expression.

"Release this before things turn nastier."

"…"

Even he would die if his heart were penetrated.

Zeus slowly nodded and sat on the ground.

...........................…

'What is this bastard?'

Zeus frowned as he looked at the man who was rapidly healing in front of him.

This man had been hit by an attack that could have easily burned any normal transcendent countless times over.

Even if he had a Spirit, the body should not be able to heal back this quickly.

The healing rate was so fast that it was visible to the eye, and his right shoulder was basically completed mended already.

'…Is he a lizard or something?'

Zeus looked at the man that had defeated him.

He'd assumed that he was pushing that man back, but as he thought about it, that didn't seem to be the case.

That man's expression hadn't changed a single time during the whole fight, and he still seemed to have many things hidden up his sleeves.

Though the man had received a lot more injuries, it now seemed that this was just his style of fighting.

Since even he would use his shield to fight if he had a cheat-like healing ability as this man's.

'And it even seems like he grew stronger during our fight…'

Zeus shook his head.

That wasn't the important part.

'What do I do now? The situation is really bad.'

At first, he'd been really worried.

Of being turned like the Dark King.

But thankfully, the man had only suppressed his mana, and hadn't turned him like the Dark King.

Well, the spear was placed right outside his heart too.

'Thankfully…wait, why am I thankful…?'

Zeus mocked himself for having such thoughts.

Even if one dodged the worst case scenario, they would still be in deep shit.

Like now.

Then—

After almost healing up, the man stood and spoke to him.

"So, how many of you guys were out there again?"

Zeus pondered for a moment.

'How should I answer so it's in my favor?…'

A very short moment of thought.

But Hansoo didn't miss this.

"Yeah…things kept inside don't really come out on their own, do they?'

'Gotta squeeze them out as always.'

Hansoo smiled coldly as he started to gather a dark-red-colored energy in his hand.

The sight immediately caused Zeus to panic.

Since that was the same vicious energy currently inside the Dark King's body.

"Ahh! No!"

"Don't worry, it's slightly different."

Even before Zeus could react, the dark-red energy had penetrated into his body.

But soon Zeus realized that it wasn't doing anything, and was now confused.

'Huh?'

Hansoo continued to smile coldly.

"I need to use you. How will I be able to use you if I turn you into that thing over there? Don't worry. This is just… well, let's just say that if I die, you'll die, too."

"What!? You crazy bastard!"

Zeus flew into a rage.

He'd thought that he was already in one of the worst possible situations, but apparently that wasn't the case.

And he knew that what the man had said was true.

The dark-red energy squirming around his heart and his brain proved it.

Hansoo laughed at Zeus.

"How about it? Have your thoughts changed since we're now in the same boat?"

"F***ing hell…"

Zeus sighed.

'Crazy bastard… I don't know what he's thinking, but I hope he lives a calm life…'

"What are your goals? I need to know your goals to answer your question. I should at least know what you want since we're in the same boat, right?'

Hansoo nodded at these words.

"Simple. I need a lot of people like you. As many as possible."

Hansoo was planning to fish out every last one of them.

And if this guy told him their locations, things would become even easier.

And the moment Zeus heard this, he grit his teeth.

'F***, this one is going to be trouble.'

Out of the eleven out there, none of them were easy targets.

He grit his teeth as he predicted a future of himself becoming a meat shield for this bastard.

He would need to do his best in that case.

Since his comrades, no, they were his enemies now, weren't easy to deal with.

'What the hell is this guy's identity?'

Then—

Something flashed through his mind.

The mumbles of the being that had given him and his allies their strength.

'…Their sizes are completely different. Were they the same person?'

But for some reason he felt suspicious.

Someone who had appeared out of nowhere.

A similar outfit.

And the golden spear in his hand did not look simple.

Zeus cautiously asked just in case.

"…Are you perhaps that Kang Hansoo?"

Hansoo didn't reply to his question, but Zeus knew.

That he was Kang Hansoo.

And the moment he realized this—

'F***ing hell…'

The one who had turned him into a transcendent seemed to be half crazy, but one thing was clear.

They felt an Intense amount of rage towards Hansoo.

And he was sure that the being had ways of finding out if Hansoo had come back or not.

Then—

Zeus's eyes turned to the War Fortress.

'…Was that the reason why he put the Dark King around this area?'

Zeus grit his teeth.

......................

The normal adventurers in the War Fortress were gossiping amongst themselves.

They couldn't handle this intense feeling of unease.

"F***…What exploded this time?"

"…Why are those guys not climbing up if they're that strong already? Why are they causing chaos around this area?"

They thought that everything would end after the Dark King had finally been dealt with, but something else had occurred just a few days after.

Though they were quite a long distance apart from the battle, the shockwaves from the thunderstorm could be felt in their area.

Though the man had won again, there were no guarantees that the man would continue to win.

Of course they couldn't bear this constant lingering sense of danger.

One of the people asked Akran.

"…Can't we just go up or something? Damn it all."

Akran scoffed.

"Does anything change if we go up?"

"…"

The man fell into silence.

It was true.

No matter where you go, if you yourself weren't strong, nothing would change.

Akran spoke to the man who had fallen silent.

"This is a chance for us to raise our strength, remember? That man is not our enemy."

The man turned around with a grim expression.

'Though he's not a enemy…'

That man was not like the Dark King.

He had given them a chance to become stronger.

But that didn't help his fears from going away.

'…That man is actually more fearsome.'

Though the transcendents, who they could not handle, were terrifying.

That man was even more so, since he was hunting those very transcendents.

Any power that wasn't under one's control was a symbol of fear.

Then—

Somebody approached Akran and spoke.

"Uh…I think you'll need to come over for a bit."

"What's up?"

The adventurer spoke carefully.

"…One of the captured underlings of the Dark King escaped."

"What? How?"

Akran frowned.

Reincarnator – Chapter 320 : Darkness (2)

"Haa…haa…"

—rumble—

Garp mumbled as he ran; he was one of the underlings of the Dark King who'd been held captive in the depths of the War Fortress.

'Damn…didn't expect it to be this strong.'

Garp stared at the smoking piece of gem he held in his hand.

chiiiiii…

With just a single use, he was able to blast a hole from the jail cell to the maze underground.

His mana was sealed and the jail cell was sturdy, so he had no means of escaping it normally.

This gem was a result of vastly advanced alchemy.

Garp thought of the being who had given him this gem.

This was why he'd stayed by the Dark King.

Since he had nothing to lose.

It was better to act like the Dark King's lackey than going about randomly and getting killed anyway.

And in a corner of his mind, he slightly wished that Kang Hansoo wouldn't come.

But he really did.

From the crazed shouts of the Dark King, there was a strong chance that Kang Hansoo really had arrived.

And soon he reached the .

'Good.'

After he sent this off, then everything would be over.

He knew a lot would happen once he carried it out, but that did not matter to him.

—clank—

Garp picked up the abyssal crystal he'd hidden next to the Flier.

Just enough to send one person up.

He just needed to use this and get on the elevator.

That being had told him:

—flutter—

Garp smiled as he looked at the Flier soaring through the air.

.......................

'Damn, that guy is also half mad.'

Zeus frowned.

He started to calculate at a rapid pace.

'…If that being comes into play, then things will get very dangerous.'

It was dangerous since he didn't know the true identity of the being.

He didn't know how and when that being would strike at them.

Which meant that he needed to direct Hansoo towards victories for now.

Since he'd also die if Hansoo were killed.

And to win?

The answer was simple.

Hansoo getting stronger.

And he himself getting stronger.

Zeus thought up to this point, and then asked Hansoo.

"…By the way, why didn't you squeeze them dry?"

"Huh?"

Zeus asked, his expression confused.

"I mean, think about it, those things are very useful."

Him and the other eleven had formed an alliance to gain and increase the amount of slaves they had.

A person with a large territory could get stronger at a rapid pace.

From creating materials to going against the peculiar races, as well as collecting the abyssal crystals, they could rule over other people and force them to do so.

'Yeah… we are Gods.'

That was why they'd thrown away their past names and renamed themselves.

It was a bit cringey, but they had followed the words one of them had said.

The normal adventurers paid them tribute, and the transcendents protected them.

A win-win for both sides.

Then Zeus realized that this could be a chance for him.

'…Yeah. There's no better place to gain more slaves than here.'

This location, where the abyssal race and the newcomers continuously poured out, was the best place to raise their individual strength in the most efficient manner.

Zeus spoke to Hansoo.

"Group them up and control them. Why are you busying yourself? You can just make them into your slaves and make your life easier."

In this world, strength was basically the law.

The reason why he and the other eleven struggled so hard to get stronger was because they had already encountered even stronger beings.

But Hansoo merely scoffed at Zeus.

'Crystals… they're a convenient item.'

A convenient item, indeed.

And he wanted other people to use them to get stronger.

He was different than them.

He, who had already gained the rights.

And they, who needed the crystals to climb higher.

Of course he would also get stronger much faster if he used that spear.

He could probably go up through the Blue and Indigo zones faster as well.

But that wouldn't do.

If he did this, the final barrier would block him.

'You should know how lucky you are.'

If he needed crystals, Zeus would've long been dead.

Since they'd need to fight over the crystals anyway.

—crack—

"Ugh…"

Zeus cried out as he felt the grasp on his throat tighten.

'This maniac.'

Though Zeus also preferred to think with his fists more often than not, this Hansoo guy was just too much.

Weren't they in the same boat?

"Hey… even if you did win, aren't you being too unreasonable? Damned bastard…"

Hansoo had clearly said that he was useful.

If Hansoo really needed him, then shouldn't he at least treat him like a human being?

Then—

Hansoo tightened his grip even more.

"Maybe there's a misunderstanding. We aren't equals just because we're in the same boat."

—crash—

"Huhuuk! Haa…Haa."

"I steer the boat, you row it. Got it?"

Zeus attempted to retaliate by using the Thunder King's Road, but then realized he couldn't due to the red energy surrounding his heart and his brain.

His rage instantly died down as he felt the energy surrounding his heart.

'…I'm in some deep sh*t now. Damnit.'

Hansoo looked at Zeus's eyes and realized that it was the right time to speak.

Hansoo sat next to Zeus and asked.

"…You seem to be in a hurry. Why?"

Zeus' attitude was not that of an attacker.

But rather that of a defender.

Hansoo was curious at Zeus's actions—he acted like something was bound to come chasing after them.

"…"

"You know, it's possible that I could slow down, too. What do you know?"

Zeus frowned, but told Hansoo all he knew.

.....................…

'…Who could it be?'

Hansoo frowned.

He wondered which one of his enemies would want him dead that badly, but he couldn't quite put a finger on it.

Someone that strong would've left an impression on Hansoo if they'd ever met.

'Is it Jang Oh? If I hadn't just seen that corpse, it wouldn't be this confusing.'

He was puzzled by the mysterious corpse that could've been Jang Oh.

At this moment, Zeus spoke out carefully.

"…Let's just go up, man. Damn it, it's not that hard to go up."

Zeus mumbled.

Though he had his own territory here, it wasn't as important as his own life.

Though he didn't know what lay above, two transcendents should be able to survive.

The Abyssal Crystals—the tickets for the way up—they were a joke to acquire anyway.

But Hansoo only chuckled.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Hmm?"

"I have friends who I know will help me."

"What? Who?"

Zeus asked in shock.

'…He had friends?'

That changed everything.

"Who? Can you bring them?"

Hansoo shrugged at Zeus's words.

"Depends on how you do."

"…F***."

Zeus grit his teeth as he realized who Hansoo's 'friends' were—they were his own allies.

Hansoo continued to speak with a smile.

"Come on, say who your allies are."

These guys knew each other for sure, and Hansoo wanted to know everything about them.

Where they lived.

Which skills they used.

What their weaknesses were.

What they did with their territories.

"I'll add your friends if you do. I told you, I'm only steering the boat and you would be rowing… Isn't it better to row together with your friends rather than alone?"

"…"

Zeus's expression turned nasty.

And after a short period of thought, he spoke.

"F***…fine! I'll tell you everything! I'll tell you, but… let's use those guys over there at least!"

He started out calm, but he was shouting by the time his sentence ended.

Hansoo continued to just stare at him, so he started pointing at the War Fortress and shouted:

"Why! Why aren't you using them!? You have to live, right? Huh? Look how useful they are! They can be laborers, scouts and…and even meat shields! Shouldn't you utilize everything at your disposal to win!?"

Their opponents wouldn't be easy.

No, his allies, all eleven of them, were tough nuts on their own.

He didn't want to die yet.

'Meat shield…'

Hansoo chuckled.

"This is why I like you guys."

'Eres, you told me before. That… that I should not kill them.'

But a small voice came out from the depths of his mind.

Hansoo chuckled at the whispers of the Pandemic Blade's seed.

'This is all because of you anyway, it's basically all done. Besides… who could it be?'

Hansoo looked to the west.

....................

The Flier flew through the air and continued to head west.

Past a city with humans.

Past a village with a small population.

Towards the far west.

The capital of the Empire.

—rumble—

A man was standing where the Empire's Capital had once been.

In the middle of the White Dragon Arena, where Tiamet had stood and absorbed the enemy.

—flutter—

The moment the flier landed, the stone-like expression of the man altered slightly.

'What is this?'

The man walked up to the paper and read it.

Then—

The man's expression brightened up.

"…Finally."

'Where have you been sleeping, Kang Hansoo?'

He had found him.

Finally…

'Good, it seems that I'll be able to avenge you, Jang Oh.'

—crack!—

The man smiled as he smashed the white Rangkom's Stake into the ground.

And then—

D-D-D-D-Diii

The mana node which flowed through the entire continent started to reverberate.