Chapter 255
Chapter 255
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 255
Chapter Title: Reflection (2)
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I was furious.
The power of the abyssal being, now truly unleashing its might, was on a cosmic scale. If I'd been calmer or more rational, I might have despaired and given up everything.
But I was no different from a madman at the time, acting with the reckless abandon only a lunatic could muster. I poured every ounce of my rage at that absurdly immense entity.
I threw all my mana, every ounce of skill as a wizard, and every resource I could muster to block its "attack."
Looking back now, it's laughable.
I was probably the only one there who thought I'd blocked its "attack."
It wasn't an attack at all.
The [Predator of the Mountains] had merely approached a little closer. It hadn't launched any real assault yet.
Is the Earth's gravity pulling me down an attack?
If I jump off a tall building and splatter on the ground, can I say I "died from the Earth's attack"?
The thing was just that massive and heavy, generating gravity like a planet, and it had simply moved toward where I was.
What I'd done was like a mantis puffing up its body to threaten an oncoming car.
The gap was so ridiculous that the fight itself couldn't even be called a fight, let alone attack or defense.
Yet I kept bloating myself up in fury, and that tantrum must have amused the [Predator of the Mountains].
Probably.
The [Predator of the Mountains]'s real attack came after that.
Maybe it wasn't even an attack, but I don't want to think that far.
That horrific sight still hasn't fully faded from my mind.
Even after four days, just recalling that dreadful gaze makes my body tremble slightly. Even under the protection of [Abyssal Madness].
This wasn't about madness. It was something more primal and fundamental—pure terror.
A ring of enormous eyeballs floating in the sky.
An horrifying number of them, horrifyingly huge, blanketing the heavens, all turning to stare at me at once.
In that instant, my mind shattered again, and for a moment, I thought I was dead.
A message announced the activation of [Abyssal Madness], and I came back to my senses.
Maybe I actually died once and was revived by some inexplicable force. I don't have any resurrection traits, so I probably didn't really die.
Anyway, that's what I thought then.
If the future me reading this doesn't remember that scene, just know it was that traumatizing.
The important part was the aftermath of its "gaze."
This was the ripple from an attack by an abyssal being in its true form. To reiterate, the [Predator of the Mountains] ranks mid-to-low among abyssal entities.
This is important data, so pay close attention to what follows.
Its gaze? Or its power?
Or perhaps its gesture manifested in abstract form—it surged toward me in an invisible, conceptual way, impossible to dodge or counter.
I don't think I took a direct hit.
Since [Abyssal Madness] restored my mind, I must have just been shocked into temporary insanity.
However, its attack obliterated the area behind me—Yangju City entirely.
Yangju didn't burn or explode.
It vanished.
The map, NPCs, and all data making up Yangju were erased in an instant. Behind me stretched a gray void, like an unimplemented area without polygons or objects.
Its attack came in a form impossible to anticipate or defend against, powerful enough to wipe out a whole city as mere collateral.
It didn't even seem like a special technique. That was probably just a normal attack—a basic one.
Is there even a way to fight things like this?
Maybe the answer lies in what happened to me afterward.
It was a desperate crisis, yet the thought that crossed my mind was oddly absurd.
"Ah, so it really is a game after all."
That glitchy sight was straight out of a game suffering a major bug, and that familiarity brought me an odd sense of calm.
That paradoxical calm caused me to lose focus, and as it wished, my body began rising into the sky.
As flight began, [Abyssal Madness], which had been restoring my mind, lost its power.
Delirium followed as a matter of course.
Complete breakdown, accompanied by an overwhelming surge of pleasure.
"I can't resist anymore."
Was it that?
"I don't need to resist anymore."
No.
"I don't need to struggle to stay sane anymore."
I can't recall exactly which thought it was. Probably one of those, or all three.
The [Predator of the Mountains] extended something toward me that felt incredibly gentle and kind, and at the time, I thought it was reaching out a hand.
The [Predator of the Mountains] marks prey it fancies, turning them into pets.
It plays with them as it pleases, sipping their blood, emotions, and soul bit by bit. When it tires of them, it discards them into some abyss like trash.
That was the touch it extended. Brazenly offering forgiveness and mercy, and in my delirium of breakdown, madness, and ecstasy, I nearly accepted it without resistance.
If Jang Hyun-deok hadn't appeared then, I probably would have.
No.
No, wait a second.
It wasn't some ridiculous plot where Jang Hyun-deok's bond or friendship gave me courage.
I just felt puzzled seeing him.
"Why is that guy fine?"
Jang Hyun-deok was screaming "Uwaaaah!" and thrashing while clinging to the [Portable Barrier Generator], but he was clearly unharmed.
He hadn't suffered data erasure like Yangju City, nor had his head exploded like the Blood Hou or other cultists.
Jang Hyun-deok was merely delirious.
Why was Jang Hyun-deok fine?
I still haven't fully figured out the exact reason.
But at the time, I was convinced it was due to the item beside him, not him.
The [Portable Barrier Generator].
I'd layered the mana of the [One Who Waits Silently], then the [Sangdubul]'s mana on top, followed by the [Drinker of Fear]'s mana, and finally combined it with the [Predator of the Mountains]'s mana secured from Paju's Three Tombs.
Add the [Blood Demon King]'s mana, and that thing was stacked with the [Predator of the Mountains] and all its avatars' mana in layers, right?
The [Blood Demon King]'s mana?
It was scattered around Cheontae-dong.
Seeing the unexpected effect from the [Portable Barrier Generator], the one thought that hit me was this:
"I've found a weapon to swing at that bastard."
With no evidence, no calculations, no certainty, I was captivated by the idea and regained my temporarily crumbled rage.
Hit it. Bash that artifact full of its mana right into it. Whether it works or not doesn't matter. Just hit it. It'll make me feel better. I want to smash it. Even if I die doing it, attacking and dying with that would leave no regrets.
With those thoughts, I mustered all my mana to resist and soon escaped its grasp.
I was just thrilled at the time, but someone must have helped me.
Otherwise, I couldn't have broken free so easily in that situation.
At that moment, rocks "coincidentally" scattered in Cheontae-dong were flying nearby, drawn by its gravity, and the fact they "happened" to be infused with [Blood Demon King] mana should be considered in the same vein.
I finally reached Jang Hyun-deok and the [Portable Barrier Generator].
Jang Hyun-deok was still deep in uncontrollable delirium, but the moment I arrived, I felt my movements free up.
It seemed the [Portable Barrier Generator] really did provide resistance to the [Predator of the Mountains]'s influence.
If I'd been cooler-headed and rational, I surely would have found a better way to use the [Portable Barrier Generator].
But I wasn't in a state to think of that then.
Right after, did a message window cover my eyes? Or was it not? I don't remember well.
If a message really appeared, it was probably something like this.
[What do you intend to do?]
Maybe delirious Jang Hyun-deok asked me what I planned to do.
Considering what I said next, someone did question me.
To that unknown entity, I replied:
"Of course, a massive explosion."
In a state where I didn't even know what or how I was doing it, I fused rocks infused with [Blood Demon King] mana into the [Portable Barrier Generator] and manipulated more mana than I could normally control.
Come to think of it, it's weird that the [Predator of the Mountains] didn't react to my actions at all.
Did it just think something like, "What can a worm like you do?"
Or maybe it tried to stop me, but something even more transcendent than the [Predator of the Mountains] protected me.
The whole situation arose from sky-flipping delirium, uncontrollable rage, and mad inspiration—everything's unclear.
But definitely, the next moment.
That is, when I converted everything in the [Portable Barrier Generator] into explosive and propulsive force and launched it.
The area behind me—Gwangtan-dong and Bongilcheon—had "already" vanished, so maybe it did attack then.
But I ignored that, fixated only on attacking it.
It was a grand flight fueled by all the rage and madness I'd built up.
At the same time, I realized I no longer feared flying.
But that was it.
My rage rocketed forward like a missile, undoubtedly shocking or damaging it.
But it was no different from an ant baring its tiny teeth and nicking a human fingertip.
The human, surprised by the unexpected bite, might get a slight swell or draw a single drop of blood.
To repeat, that was the extent of the damage.
No matter how much an ant thrashes, its attack can't kill a human or cause irreparable harm.
Still, I was satisfied.
I'd blown a colossal artifact—maybe my only lifeline—on something like a magic stone bomb, but I'd landed a hit square on the face of that arrogant abyssal being, in its full true form, a cosmic entity.
"Hahaha, serves you right!"
Was it that?
"As if I'd submit to the likes of you!"
Maybe something like that. I vaguely remember making a grand declaration in my madness-induced high.
Reeling in excessive excitement and hallucinations like a drunk, I kept babbling nonsense, feeling Jang Hyun-deok supporting me as I awaited the coming death or erasure.
The enraged [Predator of the Mountains] seemed intent on finally unleashing a proper "attack" this time.
I wasn't the only one who sensed it; I could feel the Earth itself shuddering in dread at the abyssal being's impending brutality.
But what returned wasn't fatal, irreversible destruction—it was a chilling voice from Jang Hyun-deok's mouth.
"Truly an astonishing feat."
It was a surreal voice, like silk brushing polished jade after years of refinement.
No way it was Jang Hyun-deok's. Some transcendent being had possessed his body.
"You've struck a manifested abyssal being. Regardless of the damage's significance, conceiving such an idea and acting on it makes you worthy of praise among humans."
No need for further deduction.
That tone and content made it clear who had possessed Jang Hyun-deok's body.