Chapter 193: The First Universe Quest (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 193: The First Universe Quest (3)
“That’s my line! I’m going to crush you!”
Tuvalt roared, throwing his arms wide. Demonic energy surged from his body, coalescing into physical forms. Spears, swords, daggers, and axes—a literal arsenal of weapons materialized in the air and hurtled toward Kang Jun-hyeok.
Swoosh!
The weapons blurred through the air with lethal velocity. Kang Jun-hyeok’s expression hardened. He kicked off the ground, weaving through the onslaught. Behind him, the tavern’s tables shattered into splinters, and wooden floorboards were uprooted, flying in every direction. The Players watching from the balcony above screamed and recoiled.
Rumble!
A relentless barrage of demonic steel rained down on Kang Jun-hyeok all at once.
Taking a steadying breath, Kang Jun-hyeok drew his sword.
Clang! Clang! Screech!
He parried, deflected, and blocked with fluid precision. It was a display of technique that even the most gifted martial artist could not hope to achieve in a lifetime of devotion. Having neutralized every projectile, he lunged forward.
Kang Jun-hyeok closed the distance in a flash. But the moment he tightened his grip to deliver a finishing thrust, a shield of condensed demonic energy manifested before Tuvalt.
Claaaaang!
A violent metallic ring reverberated through the tavern. The Players on the upper floor instinctively covered their ears. Tuvalt bared his teeth in a savage grin.
“Is this all you’ve got?!”
Sh-sh-sh-shak!
The shield instantly morphed, sprouting hundreds of jagged spikes that shot out simultaneously. Kang Jun-hyeok contorted his body mid-air, narrowly evading the spikes aimed at his vitals.
“Hmph!”
Tuvalt clenched his fist. The spikes began to rotate frantically, homing in on Kang Jun-hyeok like a drill. It was an unavoidable attack that seemed to swallow the very space around them. With no room to dodge, Kang Jun-hyeok planted his feet and regulated his breathing. He channeled immense strength into his fist and threw a direct punch.
Crrraaaaack!
The demonic spikes crumpled and shattered instantly upon impact with his knuckles.
Kang Jun-hyeok casually shook out his hand, while Tuvalt clicked his tongue in annoyance.
“So you can at least block that much. You’re certainly talkative for someone of your caliber.”
“...W-Wait.”
“What was that?”
Yoo Jin-ha watched the exchange, utterly aghast.
Who was Kang Jun-hyeok? He was the man who had toyed with Trey Dice—the strongest Player in Korea—as if he were a mere child. His power was already far beyond human comprehension. To be honest, it was hard to even think of him as human anymore.
Yet Tuvalt was standing his ground against such a monster.
The bizarre black magic he wielded was so overwhelming that it was impossible to look away.
It wasn't just the Earth Players who were shocked; the Players from Volanta felt the same. Ariana’s jaw dropped in disbelief.
Could she have survived Tuvalt’s attack?
Absolutely not. There was only one reason they followed Tuvalt despite his childish and stubborn personality: he possessed the raw power to suppress everything in his path.
Even though their floor difference wasn't vast, there was an unreachable chasm in strength between them. Even if ten experts of her level banded together, they wouldn't stand a chance.
Yet here was Kang Jun-hyeok, fighting Tuvalt on equal terms.
Eyes filled with shock and wonder remained fixed on the two combatants. Tuvalt lightly flicked his fingers. The weapons scattered across the room dissolved into mist and were absorbed back into his body.
The Master of All Weapons and Eldiria were also watching with keen interest.
[Absorbing materialized demonic energy? There’s almost no loss of power. This is remarkable.]
[He is exceptional. In terms of raw talent, tens of thousands of my successors combined couldn't match him.]
Kang Jun-hyeok didn't disagree.
Tuvalt’s black magic—the materialization of weapons—was formidable. He gave form to demonic energy, shaping it into armaments. Since they were forged from pure energy, each one was a powerful weapon comparable to a high-grade artifact.
The only drawback was the massive consumption of demonic energy, but for Tuvalt, that was irrelevant. He could reabsorb the materialized energy with near-perfect efficiency. As long as his total capacity allowed it, he could literally fight forever.
It was a violent dominance over demonic energy that no one else in the universe had achieved. Tuvalt was undoubtedly a once-in-ten-thousand-years talent.
Such power placed him at the lower end of the Second Rank. He was in the same rank as Kang Jun-hyeok.
“Impressive. You’re strong. You have every right to be overconfident,” Kang Jun-hyeok remarked.
Tuvalt flinched for a moment, but a joyful, arrogant smile soon spread across his face.
“Hahaha! You finally understand my greatness after facing me directly! If you bow your head and beg for forgiveness now, I shall personally show you mercy!”
“I have no intention of doing that. I was just curious about something.” Kang Jun-hyeok tilted his head slightly. “You... you only use black magic, don't you?”
Throughout their series of exchanges, Tuvalt hadn't used a single skill. The same could be said for Kang Jun-hyeok, but he was intentionally suppressing his power. Tuvalt, however, showed no sign of holding back.
Tuvalt replied as if the question were beneath him. “Why would I use some mysterious power like a skill? I am a black mage! Black magic alone is enough!”
“Is that so?”
Kang Jun-hyeok’s eyes grew cold. A smirk played on his lips.
“So you’re a black mage, then? I just had a fun idea. In that case, I’ll face you as a Player.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s quite simple.”
Magic, internal energy, divine power, esper abilities—Kang Jun-hyeok possessed countless forms of power.
“I won’t use any of those. I’ll defeat you using nothing but skills.”
“...How dare you! Against me! You’ll hold back your strength?! You won’t give your all?!” Tuvalt’s face contorted in a mask of rage. “I’ll kill you!”
Rumble!
Demonic energy erupted like a volcano. Countless weapons materialized, threatening to consume the entire tavern. It was a powerful area-of-effect attack with no room to escape.
Kang Jun-hyeok took a light step forward.
[Rift Movement]
Kang Jun-hyeok vanished, reappearing instantly behind Tuvalt’s back. Tuvalt’s eyes widened in shock.
How?!
He hadn't felt a single ripple in the air!
But the shock was brief. His body moved instinctively, summoning demonic energy to form a protective shield.
[Thrust]
Crrraaaaack!
“Ugh!”
A heavy impact surged through the shield. The effect of the [Thrust] skill had amplified the strike’s power exponentially. Kang Jun-hyeok immediately pressed the advantage, closing in.
[Instant Acceleration]
Slash-slash-slash!
His dagger moved at a blinding speed, scraping and tearing at the shield, digging into the microscopic gaps in the energy. Tuvalt clenched his fist.
Boom!
The shield exploded like a bomb, a shockwave sweeping through the surroundings. Kang Jun-hyeok retreated to evade the blast. The moment Tuvalt tried to catch his breath, Kang Jun-hyeok activated another skill.
[Single Point Penetration]
With the sound of air shattering, Kang Jun-hyeok charged. Tuvalt reflexively brought up his shield again.
Claaaaaaaang!
The shield buckled and groaned, threatening to shatter under the intense, focused force. As he was pushed back, Tuvalt’s eyes filled with horror.
What... what is this power?!
It was becoming impossible to withstand. A shield of this level wasn't enough. Tuvalt had to quickly reclaim the demonic energy from his scattered weapons and reinforce his defense just to barely stay standing.
Sh-sh-sh-shak!
He then detonated all the reclaimed demonic energy at once. Hundreds of weapons overlapped and fused, swallowing the space itself in a black void. Kang Jun-hyeok quickly widened the distance and vanished.
[Stealth]
Tuvalt’s eyes bulged. Even though he knew Kang Jun-hyeok was right there, he couldn't sense a single trace of his presence.
In that case!
He released his power in all directions. The weapons exploded simultaneously, and the fragments shook the entire tavern to its foundations. The Players on the upper floor screamed and dove for cover. Although the duel’s system prevented collateral damage to outsiders, the sheer force was enough to make anyone’s survival instincts scream.
However, Kang Jun-hyeok remained completely unharmed. He had approached Tuvalt while shrouded in a translucent veil.
“How...?”
“[Anti-Field]. It’s one of the skill powers you look down on.”
[Sword Ki and Sword Wind]
Sword ki erupted in every direction. Tuvalt hurriedly reclaimed his weapons to protect himself, but unlike his concentrated shield, they couldn't perfectly cover his body. His health plummeted in an instant.
What kind of damage is this...?!
The attack power of the weapon Kang Jun-hyeok held was nearly 100. On top of that, his Strength stat exceeded 100. It was a level of raw power even Tuvalt had never experienced.
“Eeeek!”
Tuvalt tried to quickly reclaim his demonic energy for a final protection. But in the end, that was a power of the universe. There was an inevitable delay in the manipulation, and for someone like Kang Jun-hyeok, it was an opening as wide as a canyon.
Even if they were both in the Second Rank, Tuvalt was at the bottom of the tier. In contrast, Kang Jun-hyeok belonged to the middle tier. The difference was clear.
It might have been tricky if he had even one or two high-rank skills.
But Tuvalt had focused solely on black magic. Overconfident in his own talent, he had ignored everything else. He judged skills to be unnecessary and hadn't bothered to purchase any. Fundamentally, he was more of a black mage than a Player.
That was why he was bound to hit a wall.
[Thousand-Pound Weight]
Thump!
An intense, crushing weight pressed down on Tuvalt. He desperately tried to reclaim his demonic energy, but the pressure made it difficult to even think. Kang Jun-hyeok leaned in, whispering to the reddening Tuvalt.
“The reason we are climbing the Tower is because the beings of the universe lost the Great War. Do you know what that means?”
It meant that those who, like Tuvalt, focused on only one power of the universe were ultimately defeated.
“You are certainly special. But you aren't that special.”
“Bullshit...!”
The Master of All Weapons, Pixie, and Eldiria—even those with talent equal to or greater than Tuvalt’s—couldn't overcome the Tower's logic. Without the abilities of a Player, they stood no chance.
This wasn't unique to Tuvalt. Most talented individuals trusted their own innate abilities and ignored the gifts of the Tower. And most of them died before reaching the end. The only reason Tuvalt had survived this long was because he had yielded the Book of Lemegeton. It was nothing more, nothing less.
He was just another miserable failure.
Kang Jun-hyeok’s eyes turned blood-red.
[Enhanced True Ancestor Awakening]
An absolute dominance over blood surged. The proficiency of the enhanced skill was Rank C.
Tuvalt was horrified. “The power of a vampire!”
Screech!
Streams of blood rose up, shaking the tavern. Tuvalt hurriedly summoned his demonic energy. The pitch-black weapons and the crimson blood collided, creating a momentary stalemate.
And it was the blood that was being pushed back.
His True Ancestor Awakening proficiency was only C. Due to Tuvalt's overwhelming talent and the difference in proficiency, the blood was being crushed. Demonic energy began to consume the space once more.
He really is strong.
But that was all.
[Rift Movement]
Kang Jun-hyeok shifted behind Tuvalt’s back again.
“What kind of crazy...!”
[Reset]. [Single Point Penetration].
Tuvalt spat out a curse and tried to respond, but [Single Point Penetration] activated at point-blank range. It instantly pierced through his defense and struck his chest. Kang Jun-hyeok then placed his finger on Tuvalt’s forehead.
[Sixth Sense Exclusion]
Tuvalt’s senses were instantly severed. He froze, paralyzed by a sensation of total void he had never experienced before. In that split second, Kang Jun-hyeok grabbed him by the neck.
“Goodbye.”
Sh-sh-sh-shak!
Blood tore through Tuvalt’s body from the inside out. The moment the duration of [Sixth Sense Exclusion] ended...
“...Cough!”
Tuvalt coughed violently. He couldn't actually vomit blood—a Player’s body didn't suffer physical wounds in that manner—but the system's protection made it appear that way to signify critical damage.
His health had hit zero.
“Ah.”
“This... is...”
Groans of disbelief escaped the crowd. Amidst the silence, a system window appeared.
[Duel Ended.]
[Winner: Kang Jun-hyeok.]
[Final Representative of Volanta and Earth: Kang Jun-hyeok.]
[Great work, everyone.]