Chapter 65: 11th Floor. True Ancestor (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 65: 11th Floor. True Ancestor (2)
Kashan murmured playfully as he stepped into the altar.
“To think I could enter, even if by force. I suppose a half-breed is still a True Ancestor. Those werewolves... no matter how hard those beasts tried, they could never set foot in here.”
“...Uncle!”
Eldiria couldn't contain herself; she screamed, her eyes filled with a desperate, shattering denial.
“Just why?!”
It was certain now. Her uncle had betrayed their kin. He had conspired with the werewolves to orchestrate the total destruction of their race.
“Why would you do such a thing?!”
“That is something you don't need to know.”
Kashan coldly dismissed her cry, which was a tangled mess of rage and resentment.
“All you need to know is that I betrayed you all and intended to kill you. That is everything.”
“...”
Eldiria’s body swayed as if she were about to collapse. Kang Jun-hyeok caught her by the shoulder.
“Get a grip, Princess. Remember why you came here.”
“...To perform the Coming-of-Age Ceremony and avenge my people...”
“Your purpose hasn't changed one bit.”
Kang Jun-hyeok pointed toward the inner sanctum of the altar.
“Go, Princess. Perform the ritual and achieve your goal. I will stop him.”
“...My uncle is strong. No matter how powerful you are, you cannot win. You will die. I should be the one to—”
“Princess.”
Kang Jun-hyeok calmly squeezed her shoulder, his grip firm.
“What are you worrying about? You are the one who will become Queen. You will walk this world as a solitary, noble, and complete existence.”
“...”
“Go, Princess. Go and fulfill your will.”
Eldiria bit her lip and stood tall.
“Do not die. If you die, I will turn you into a vampire.”
“Now that’s terrifying,” Jun-hyeok remarked with a smirk.
Eldiria headed inside. Watching her retreating back, Kang Jun-hyeok stood his ground.
“I didn't expect you to just stand by and watch.”
“I should at least watch my cute niece’s final struggle,” Kashan said nonchalantly. His tone suggested that killing Kang Jun-hyeok would be no trouble at all.
It wasn't mere arrogance; Kashan possessed the power to back it up. He looked at Kang Jun-hyeok with genuine interest.
“You wield a rather peculiar power. Instead of meeting a pointless death here, why not come under my wing?”
“I can’t exactly trust someone who betrayed his own kin.”
“Kin?”
Kashan let out a scoff as if the word were hilarious. Soon, his face twisted with sudden, violent rage.
“Those things that ignored me as a mongrel just because I’m half-human? Those things that raised me in a cage—they’re my kin? Those who despised me, mocked me, and refused to treat me as a fellow vampire are my kin? Don't make me laugh! They aren't my kin! They’re just vermin steeped in arrogance! How dare they...”
“Shut up.”
Kang Jun-hyeok cut him off, sounding thoroughly annoyed.
“I don't give a damn about your reasons for betraying them.”
Kashan’s long-winded sob story didn't help him clear the floor at all.
“Just shut up and come at me.”
“...I’ll kill you!”
Blood surged violently, hardening into spikes that whistled through the air toward him. Kang Jun-hyeok drew his weapon and took a stance.
Clang!
Unable to withstand the sheer force of the spikes he blocked, Kang Jun-hyeok was pushed back. Kashan flicked his fingers sharply. The spikes split into fragments, raining down to target his entire body.
Crunch!
He barely managed to twist his body and evade. Kashan stomped his foot. Blood erupted through the floor, causing the stone to collapse. He intended to impale Kang Jun-hyeok the moment he lost his balance.
[Balancing.]
Jun-hyeok’s collapsing form righted itself instantly, and he swatted away the blood spikes.
However, he couldn't defend against everything. Some of the shards pierced his body, the impact slamming him into the wall. Watching this, Kashan frowned.
“To think you don't have a single scratch even after that. You truly are bizarre.”
Clang!
Kang Jun-hyeok snapped the spikes embedded in his body and charged.
[Judgment of the Law.]
In an instant, Kashan’s body staggered. He was horrified to realize his movements had suddenly slowed to a crawl.
“Interference-type magic?”
[Air Jump.]
Jun-hyeok kicked off the empty air to dodge an incoming counterattack. He closed the distance to Kashan and thrust his sword. Kashan manipulated his blood into a shield to easily defend himself.
[Thrust.]
The initial thrust was blocked, but the skill’s effect triggered a second, more powerful strike.
Even so, he couldn't break through the defense. Kashan flicked his finger as if he were bored.
Swish!
Blood rose in a chaotic swirl, attempting to ensnare his body.
[Stealth.]
His body vanished. Kashan’s eyes widened. In an instant, he completely lost track of Kang Jun-hyeok’s presence. Jun-hyeok attempted to drive his sword into the back of Kashan’s neck.
At that moment, droplets of blood formed a perimeter around Kashan’s body.
They all burst simultaneously, creating a powerful explosion.
Stealth only hid the body; it was still vulnerable to area-of-effect attacks. Kang Jun-hyeok hurriedly swung his sword.
[Sword Ki and Sword Wind.]
Sword Ki rose and collided with the blood explosion. Kang Jun-hyeok’s body was sent flying back. Barely catching his balance, he let out a dry laugh.
“He’s damn strong.”
A formidable foe, difficult to face even now. And this was despite the significant loss of power Kashan must have suffered from forcing open the altar doors.
How on earth did Eldiria win in my past life?
“...You truly wield strange powers.”
Kashan was genuinely surprised. The power Kang Jun-hyeok was using was something entirely unknown to him.
“But it is not enough to defeat me.”
Kang Jun-hyeok didn't deny it.
Active Skills were certainly powerful. Bestowed by the Master of the Universe, they transcended common sense. But it was impossible to win against every enemy with those alone.
Active Skills were ultimately closer to jokers in a deck. They were special and alien, but that was their limit. Their significance diminished once the opponent’s raw power exceeded a certain level.
He might be able to find an opening and inflict a wound, but he couldn't secure a victory. The person who had purchased every single low-rank Active Skill in his past life had ultimately met his end for that very reason.
Then, what was needed against an opponent like Kashan, who was purely strong and possessed near-omnipotent adaptability?
The answer was simple.
Not a joker, but what he had built up himself. The things he had steadily accumulated and raised while climbing the tower—his inner strength.
Stats. Equipment. And Passive Skills.
Kang Jun-hyeok gripped his sword tightly and lunged. Kashan flicked his finger lightly, and streams of blood rose to target Jun-hyeok’s body.
Kang Jun-hyeok exhaled.
Deeply and quickly. Quietly yet violently.
The internal energy dwelling in his Dantian began to circulate through his body.
Clang!
The blood that collided with his sword shattered into pieces. Kashan was shocked.
“...Aura!”
What was currently dwelling in Kang Jun-hyeok’s body was unmistakably Aura.
Was he not a mage?!
Seeing the strange powers he used, Kashan had assumed he was a mage who focused on physical enhancement. But to suddenly manifest Aura...
How can such a person exist?
Kashan couldn't hide his astonishment.
But that was as far as it went. It was impossible to reach the pinnacle of both paths. He believed Jun-hyeok was still overmatched. Streams of blood rose and flew toward him like lines of death.
Kang Jun-hyeok exhaled and put strength into the hand holding his sword.
Clang!
A violent, beast-like sword technique unfolded. He collided with the blood and redirected that force to imbue his own strikes with even greater power. Like falling dominoes, that power grew larger and larger, shattering the lines of blood.
In an instant, he closed the distance to Kashan.
Terrified, Kashan manifested droplets of blood and detonated them like bombs. Kang Jun-hyeok didn't block or dodge. Instead, he lowered his stance and utilized the recoil.
BOOM!
The sword, imbued with intense power, collided with Kashan’s defense.
And for the first time, Kashan’s defense shattered. Kang Jun-hyeok closed in instantly.
“You!”
Kashan hurriedly manifested a sword of blood.
Clang!
Sword met sword.
Kang Jun-hyeok didn't stop. Using the recoil from the block, he spun his body. Imbuing the strike with repulsion, acceleration, and rotational force, he thrust his sword.
CLANG!
Unable to withstand the force, Kashan’s body staggered. He barely managed to block the successive attacks.
What?!
Kashan was old. He had traveled the world and gained much experience, which was why he could recognize what Kang Jun-hyeok was performing.
It was a sword technique.
But he had never heard of such a technique. To continuously link the flow of power and amplify it... he couldn't even begin to understand the concept behind it.
That was only natural. The sword technique Kang Jun-hyeok was performing was no ordinary feat. It was the Divine Art of one who boasted that all martial arts in the world were beneath him. It was a technique belonging to one of the strongest beings in the universe.
Even if Jun-hyeok was so unskilled and clumsy that he couldn't even perform a single form properly, its inherent value remained. The Master of All Weapons murmured playfully.
[A fine sight.]
He had dragged the opponent down to his level. And in this situation, the joker cards finally became meaningful.
[Rift Movement.]
He moved through the rift and reappeared behind Kashan’s back. Kashan hurriedly defended, but Jun-hyeok twisted his waist to add even more power to the strike.
[Shock.]
The moment his blade struck the blood sword, a powerful shock was transmitted through Kashan’s weapon. Kashan momentarily lost his grip.
“Ugh!”
Kashan barely managed to twist his body, but a long laceration opened across his chest. At that moment, Kashan was shocked once again.
...The damage!
He was a vampire. Even if he was only a half-breed, he was still a True Ancestor. He wouldn't die from simple attacks even if his heart was pierced or his head blown off.
Yet, even though the previous attack had only caused a laceration, a massive chunk of his life force had been shaved away. It was the power of the Attack and Strength stats.
Furthermore, no matter how much he attacked, not a single wound appeared on Kang Jun-hyeok’s body. Although his stamina was steadily being consumed, from Kashan’s perspective—not knowing the mechanics—it was nothing short of bewildering.
“Eek!”
Blood rose violently, devastating and collapsing the surrounding area.
[Block.]
Screech!
He blocked what could be blocked and ignored what couldn't. With a sword in one hand and a greatsword in the other, he drove forward like a beast. Lacerations began to appear on Kashan’s body one by one.
Kashan gnashed his teeth. His eyes turned blood-red.
A single drop of blood bloomed. It wasn't scarlet like fresh gore, but closer to black.
The True Blood (Royal Blood) of a vampire.
Kang Jun-hyeok’s eyes widened as he recognized what it was, and he hurriedly protected his body. The True Blood exploded.
RUMBLE!
The altar shook violently. An incredibly intense explosion tore through the corridor and spread all the way outside.
“Huff... huff...”
Kashan clutched his heart.
The pure and noble blood possessed only by a True Ancestor. True Blood. It was truly powerful, but the burden was equally great. Moreover, since he was half-human, he had to consume a significant amount of his life force to manipulate it.
But this was the end. No matter how strong or strange that human was, he couldn't withstand the power of True Blood.
It was just as he was about to stagger into the inner altar.
[Grace of Benevolence.]
Kang Jun-hyeok appeared, piercing through the smoke of the explosion.
Astonishment flooded Kashan’s eyes. He tried to react, but his movements were too slow. The sword was driven deep into his heart.