Chapter 69
Chapter 69
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Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 69
Chapter Title: Finals 1-3 (12)
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Watching Regeneration collapse, his body completely stripped of defense and hacked to pieces, the Monster turned away as if the hunt was finally over.
That image of the Monster turning its back marked the end.
The two fighters who had delivered the most brutal match of the finals were instantly teleported away and vanished.
The arena around them fell into a brief silence after they disappeared.
But soon enough,
as if it had been a spectacular fight that fully met the crowd's expectations,
the spectator seats exploded with the hottest reactions of any match yet.
"An all-time classic. So this is the true power of the rankers..."
"Rank 7 is already this strong—what the hell must the ones above be like?"
"That explosion really caught me off guard. The shockwave reached all the way here..."
"The Monster had the edge overall, but it was still a pretty close fight."
The overwhelming strength of the Monster, who had pushed so hard right up to the end.
Regrets over Regeneration's defeat, and more—the lingering aftertaste of the battle kept the crowd from snapping out of it easily.
I was no different, lost in thought over this memorable match that gave me plenty to analyze.
'Both of them poured almost everything they had into each other. The Monster won in the end, but it burned through so much that its next fight won't be easy.'
Regeneration's explosion trap had been undeniably powerful. Had the rankings been even one spot apart, the Monster might not have reacted in time and gotten finished right there—a hidden trump card.
In the end, Regeneration had landed a serious blow on the Monster.
Its next opponent could count themselves lucky.
Even so.
Even if other abilities were unknown, psychokinesis was definitely the Monster's unique ability.
Given how variable unique abilities could be, the next opponent would still need to stay cautious.
At that moment, a system message went out to everyone.
I quickly turned my attention to it.
The match right before mine was starting:
Rank 5, the Lord, versus Rank 35.
The Lord.
Rumors had it the Lord had never once fought directly, always commanding ranks of imposing soldiers standing in perfect formation.
That endless, unbreakable display of power had quickly made him famous on the community boards.
And the other one's nickname was Descent, I think?
Compared to the Lord, Rank 35 Descent had never trended on the boards, and there wasn't much info on him to begin with.
Objectively speaking,
Rank 35 was at an overwhelming disadvantage and clearly about to drop out.
I didn't think much of Descent.
'Time to check the caliber of soldiers the Lord summons.'
The two combatants were already in the arena.
The Lord stood there arms crossed, his expression brimming with leisure and zero tension. Descent glared at him stone-faced.
The middle-aged Lord looked down on his foe like some green rookie, his attitude bordering on outright disdain.
A gap of a whopping 30 ranks that wasn't even comparable—so I could understand his demeanor. Right then,
either fearless of the vast difference in strength or just that confident, Rank 35 Descent charged straight at the Lord first.
The Lord responded casually, flicking a finger without a hint of tension.
The next instant,
A simple counter, but could Descent break through it?
"That armor's got a nice sheen."
"Bet it'll end with just that one."
"Lord! Show us what you got!"
The crowd seemed to know the absolute gap in their levels—chatting idly or focusing solely on the Lord's performance.
In the meantime,
Descent's hand had turned pitch black before anyone noticed.
He dodged the approaching soldier's sword with pinpoint precision—some skill or other—and then,
[Heavenly Thunder 2nd Grade]
His hand flashed brilliantly for an instant, stiffening the soldier's body.
Descent's black hand plunged ferociously into the paralyzed soldier.
Thung!
The soldier's defense held for only a moment.
Kwaduduk!
Chiiik...
With a dull rupturing sound, the soldier's sturdy iron armor melted away, and the hand burrowed deep into its solar plexus.
Descent even effortlessly evaded the soldier's horizontal sword slash in retaliation.
The soldier, body pierced, staggered back but didn't fall.
However, seconds later,
mist formed on the ground beneath it and then vanished into the floor entirely.
Descent dispatched the soldier with flawless, hesitation-free movements.
The Lord's leisurely expression hardened.
In that instant,
the man who felled the Lord's soldier—
Kim Hyuk thought:
'If even one soldier takes this much effort...'
Kim Hyuk clearly felt that not just the Lord, but even his soldiers outclassed him in stats.
He'd merely flipped the mood.
He hadn't actually turned the tide of battle.
Realizing he'd only taken down a single one, Kim Hyuk—
'Should I use that? Can I even win?'
—was plunged into deep turmoil.
And I, watching the guy who had just shown strength beyond his stats, thought:
Kim Hyuk, overwhelming the soldier with shocking power.
As I recalled,
he'd stood out during self-introductions, giving off a different vibe.
He hadn't reached the finals at Rank 35 for nothing.
And in that situation,
as if refusing to lose even one soldier,
the Lord summoned his full forces to confront him properly.
Dozens of soldiers lined up in formation, forming an impenetrable barrier no one could breach.
But Descent, having apparently finished his deliberations, charged at the wall of soldiers without flinching.
Soon after,
something even the Lord sensed as deeply ominous began forming in Descent's palm,
his black hand writhing and swelling grotesquely.
The tip of the increasingly monstrous black hand brimmed with foreboding energy.
As the ominous aura poured from his hand, the surrounding space filled with darkness,
but thankfully, Descent's relatively high agility made it barely affect the Lord.
Right then, the approaching Descent vanished from sight.
And in the next moment,
he appeared behind the Lord.
The Lord's startled expression lasted only an instant before he immediately ordered his soldiers.
But the soldiers' response was a beat too slow—Descent's ambush struck first.
The attack extended so fast it was impossible to discern its form.
Kwang!
The powerful impact slammed into the Lord's back, but he barely budged. No visible wounds either.
The Lord, sensing immense malice in that blow, tried to counter with a skill right away, but—
"I forfeit."
Descent uttered the words curtly,
and per his declaration, the system—
—ended the duel due to his sudden forfeit.
In the meantime,
the Lord, Bafut, forcibly teleported out by the system, thought:
'Most of my defenses got pierced. If it had continued, even I might've had to brace for injury...'
'How is Rank 35 this strong...'
No one had predicted his power—not even Oh Heon.
'That guy's dangerous.'
Among everyone he'd seen so far, no one had output strength so far beyond their stats.
Those with abundant potential were always targets for caution, but no irregular quite like this one.
'I want to kill him.'
As intense killing intent welled up,
I received a message that I'd be teleported in 10 seconds.
My match now?
Gazing at the massive arena, I was transported to its center.
As the two appeared in the arena,
the crowd's anticipation for the Rank 1 match boiled over into massive cheers.
"The one with the dagger's Rank 1?"
"No! It's the other way around!"
More and more were realizing Oh Heon was Rank 1.
The pinnacle of the Transcendence World and Rank 1 contender, the Assassin, eyed the hooded Oh Heon and thought:
'That guy... I've seen him before. The one hurling crystals. Probably a mage. Favorable matchup for me. Might actually have a shot.'
His fighting style matched his nickname perfectly: a true assassin.
That had been a mistake.
The "Assassin" nickname was something he'd slapped on back on Day 1, clueless about how much the community mattered.
The Assassin observed me cautiously, but I—already knowing the match's outcome—felt no tension whatsoever.
Considering Rank 22's caliber, he could've been beaten with just the Starlight Ring or King's Presence alone. A given.
But now that Rank 1 status was out, it would be even simpler.
Then.
The Assassin triggered his ambush-specialized movement ability,
but the target he meant to slash had suddenly vanished.
Frantically piecing together the absurd situation, the Assassin thought:
'Teleport?!'
But that was the Assassin's misconception.
To Oh Heon, it was simple movement.
Far faster than the skill's activation, he'd circled behind instead.
'He's behind me...'
In that instant, his instincts screamed mortal danger, sharpening to an extreme.
Thanks to that, the Assassin realized it.
The next moment would bring,
something terrifying crashing into his back.
And that he absolutely couldn't dodge it.
As expected, Oh Heon thrust out his fist.
A simple punch from Oh Heon,
but one the Assassin's body could never withstand.
Death arrived in a fraction of a second,
and the strike his body couldn't endure smashed into him!
Kwaaaang!!!!
Among all finals matches so far,
the one that shook the arena hardest
had been Rank 8 Regeneration's massive explosion trap.
But this impact—pure physical force—surpassed even that in sheer vibration.
Without the system, not even dust would've remained.
With the match ending like that,
the Assassin, summoned outside the arena in the blink of an eye—
"Hah... hah..."
—was gripped by utter terror, as if he'd stared death in the face, unable to regain his senses for a long while.