Chapter 284
Chapter 284
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 284
Chapter Title: Battlefield Intervention
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Seo Woo-jin arrived on the battlefield, and the first sight that greeted him was Juda-in swinging his sword toward Diarok.
The aura formed of demonic energy radiated overwhelming power at a glance.
Diarok's barrier, conjured by magic, must have boasted incredible strength as well, but sadly, it couldn't match the aura.
Craaaack!
The translucent mana barrier shattered mercilessly.
It was eighteen layers thick, but it clearly wouldn't hold for even a single second like this.
'He's done for.'
He wouldn't die, though.
Seo Woo-jin could see him leaping backward while casting his spell.
But Juda-in's movements were far too fast.
The sword would reach him before he could fully evade.
At least one arm.
If luck was bad, it would be a near-fatal wound.
Without thinking, Seo Woo-jin kicked off the ground.
Was it thanks to pushing his chaos energy to its limits?
He shot forward like a bullet, exploding ahead in explosive speed.
KABOOM!
The ground couldn't withstand the force in his feet and burst apart.
But no one paid it any mind.
Seo Woo-jin reached the center of the battlefield before the sound even arrived.
'The sword first!'
Without hesitation, he lashed out with his foot toward Juda-in's hand.
Since it was infused with chaos energy, his attack carried the force to shatter a mountain.
Juda-in noticed too late and hastily altered his sword path.
But it was too late.
The top of Seo Woo-jin's foot struck Juda-in's wrist.
KAAAAAANNNNG!
"Urk!"
An unbelievable explosion erupted from what should have been a clash of human flesh, followed by a groan of agony.
'Hmm...'
Seo Woo-jin's brow furrowed slightly.
One layer of Diarok's mana barrier remained.
Fortunately, he'd blocked it just in time.
But Seo Woo-jin's expression wasn't good.
'He didn't drop the sword.'
His attack had been simple but packed with tremendous power.
It was a full-force strike loaded with chaos energy, after all.
The claim that it held mountain-shattering force was no exaggeration.
Yet even with an impact that could have sent an arm flying, the bastard hadn't let go of his sword.
There was only one thing that meant.
'This guy's... strong.'
He couldn't gauge exactly how strong.
But he was clearly at a level that could withstand Seo Woo-jin's average attacks.
'This is a hassle.'
Since he'd never even heard of the guy before, he'd honestly underestimated him a bit.
He'd thought facing Diarok would be far more of a headache than this Juda-in.
But that had been a miscalculation.
'I might get seriously hurt if I'm not careful.'
Of course, he didn't think he'd lose.
He had the cheat skill 'Demon King Transformation,' and even without it, the 'Chaos World' and 'Celestial Wing' combo he'd used against Baron.
Unless Juda-in had some unexpected ability or magic power, there was no way Seo Woo-jin would be defeated.
Still, the fight was turning out harder than expected.
Seo Woo-jin heightened his tension and blocked Diarok's path.
"...Who are you?"
Diarok's voice came from behind.
He'd suddenly appeared and saved him, so it was natural to be curious.
But Seo Woo-jin didn't answer.
No, it was more accurate to say he couldn't.
All his focus was on Juda-in right now.
"Didn't you hear me? I asked who you—"
"A hero?"
Juda-in cut off the irritated Diarok and asked.
'Ugh.'
Even a single word felt like sticky demonic energy clinging to him.
'If we're just talking quantity, he doesn't match Xenonia or Baron, but the purity is insane.'
It was denser than anyone Seo Woo-jin had encountered so far.
Unless one had reached the transcendent realm, just hearing that voice would render them combat-ineffective.
Of course, it had no effect on Seo Woo-jin.
He'd already attained transcendence, and demonic energy couldn't harm him anyway.
"I'm Seo Woo-jin."
He stated his name.
Juda-in nodded as if he'd expected that.
"I didn't believe Mardetain was killed by Freya. It was you."
"Yeah. I cut off his head."
"...Baron was there too."
Doubt flickered in Juda-in's eyes.
The Seo Woo-jin he'd seen was certainly strong.
But not strong enough to take on Mardetain and Baron at the same time.
That's why he was curious.
How had he killed Mardetain, and where was Baron?
"Ah, that beastly bastard? Couldn't kill him. He wouldn't die."
Seo Woo-jin smirked as he spoke.
"So I tore him to pieces and buried him in the ground. So he can never come back."
"...Impossible. You couldn't have done that with your skills."
Juda-in's eyes narrowed.
He seemed to think Seo Woo-jin was lying.
"True or not, does it matter?"
Shing—
He drew 'Karaniel.'
Then continued in a chilling voice.
"You're dying here anyway."
What he needed to worry about right now wasn't Baron.
Who worries about whom when your own neck is on the line?
Seo Woo-jin had no intention of letting Juda-in leave peacefully.
"...Is that so?"
Agreeing there was merit to the words, Juda-in rolled his wrist and regripped his sword.
Of course, he had no intention of dying.
"I'll capture you and ask."
Demonic energy surged.
No special techniques.
He was simply concentrating all his power into that one sword.
If Baron felt like fighting an unpredictable wild beast, Juda-in was the polar opposite.
'A swordsman who's honed himself to the absolute limit.'
It was palpable that he'd staked everything on that single blade and lived for it.
That's why it made him even more tense.
Seo Woo-jin knew someone similar.
'Van Slane.'
A figure called the Sword Ghost by every powerhouse on the continent.
How obsessed with the sword did he have to be to earn that moniker?
Juda-in was the same as Van Slane.
The levels might differ, but his mindset was no less.
Seo Woo-jin hardened his face and raised 'Karaniel.'
'This might end up harder than I thought.'
He steeled his resolve.
Not a shred of carelessness allowed.
That was when the taut tension between them hung in the air.
"You bastards think I'm some pushover dogshit just 'cause you caught me slippin'."
A scorching heat, blazing fiercely, erupted from behind.
Startled, Seo Woo-jin whipped his head around.
At the same time, a fist-sized fireball grazed past his temple.
Fwoooosh!
The heat singed a few strands of his hair.
KAAAAAANNNNG!
The fireball he'd dodged flew straight at Juda-in and exploded.
"You dodged that?"
Only then did Seo Woo-jin look at Diarok's face.
His eyes gleamed maniacally.
No matter how he looked, it screamed pure madness.
'...Isn't this guy actually the Apostle?'
Diarok's face was that of a deranged killer.
Juda-in's stoic expression seemed far more likable by comparison.
If not for the difference between mana and demonic energy, Seo Woo-jin would have pegged Diarok as the Apostle.
"What the hell?"
Before facing Juda-in, he didn't want to leave such an unstable factor at his back.
Especially a madman from the same side launching unprovoked attacks.
"What? 'What the hell'? Ha!"
Diarok's eyes narrowed.
It evoked the image of a snake.
"That one's mine to kill. So butt out."
The killing intent stung his skin.
And it wasn't aimed solely at Juda-in.
'He's saying he'll kill me if I get in the way?'
It was absurd.
He seemed to have forgotten that Seo Woo-jin had just saved his ass.
No, maybe he saw it as a blow to his pride.
"Like you could."
Fair words beget fair responses.
Seo Woo-jin spat it out like courtesy was for dogs.
"I just saved your sorry hide from dying, and you're still not right in the head."
He turned to face Diarok squarely.
Of course, he kept his guard up against Juda-in.
Staring Diarok down with heavy, sunken eyes, he spoke coldly.
"You fight that guy, you lose."
Not provocation—fact.
The gap between them was huge, as far as Seo Woo-jin could tell.
Diarok had more mana, but Juda-in's demonic energy purity and realm were incomparable.
If Seo Woo-jin stepped aside now, Diarok's head would roll in under ten minutes.
"So butt out. Don't get cocky and die pointlessly."
Diarok shut his mouth at Seo Woo-jin's sharp words.
He seemed aware he was outmatched by Juda-in.
But he showed no intention of backing down.
"I'll die if I have to. This is between me and Juda-in, so you're the one who should leave."
'They know each other from before?'
Seo Woo-jin got that vibe from Diarok's words.
The atmosphere felt off for just an Apostle fight.
There was some backstory he didn't know.
"I refuse."
Still, he couldn't back off.
He couldn't let a transcendent being fall pointlessly to an Apostle.
"Step back. I'll handle him."
This time, he said it more earnestly.
Not quite a plea, but not rude either.
"I can't. I have to stop that bastard—"
"Haa—"
A sigh escaped him.
Finally, Seo Woo-jin scowled and said,
"I don't know what your deal is or what happened before. Don't care either. All I want right now is to take an Apostle's head and gain even a slight edge in the Great Descent War. That's it, so stop getting in the way."
Bonus of leveling up too.
"If you're thinking of interfering, I'd advise you to quit. If you keep acting like this..."
Seo Woo-jin's chaos energy began to leak out.
Before the unprecedented aura, their demonic energy and mana shrank back.
Chaos energy swiftly dominated the surroundings, crushing down.
Ruuuumble!
Diarok's knees buckled slightly.
His body simply couldn't endure the overwhelming pressure.
He was barely holding on through pride alone, cold sweat beading on his face.
"Just come at me together. I'll handle both at once."
Juda-in was no easy opponent, and Diarok was a loose cannon.
He didn't have the spare attention for someone whose allegiance was questionable when full focus was needed.
Better to deal with both at once.
'Have to put him in his place anyway.'
"So come on, you bastards."