Chapter 16
Translator: uly
Chapter: 16
Chapter Title: Erhil (4)
Reverse Heaven defies every established principle of the natural world.
Abilities, magic, sword aura, protective barriers... it systematically nullifies everything fueled by mana or its derivatives. The established powers and laws of this world simply cannot withstand the absolute rejection of Reverse Heaven.
However, that does not mean Reverse Heaven is an omnipotent solution to every problem.
Once an opponent reaches the stage known as the "Upper Realm," Reverse Heaven's raw energy alone is no longer enough to resolve the conflict. Those who reach the Upper Realm can dye the world with laws drawn from their own mental imagery, effectively overwriting the world's natural laws with their own.
The Black Vigor is the specific power designed to drag those transcendent beings back down to the reality of death. It is a force that gathers Reverse Heaven energy into a single, localized point and shakes it with such violent frequency that it destroys the target from within.
A black, impure power coalesced around my fist as the Shadow Snake thrashed wildly in its bindings. Erhil Merhen’s mana threads were snapping one by one, unable to contain the beast's desperate struggle.
Kim Ara was likely immobile for the moment; she had only recently awakened her true power, and wielding primordial force for the first time was an exhausting, tricky feat. But it didn't matter now.
It was over.
I stirred the Nian deep within my core and infused the concept of Reverse Heaven into my legs. I leaped with every ounce of my might.
The Shadow Snake twisted its massive body in a frantic attempt to evade, but I had already slammed into its torso. My hand made contact with its cold, dark scales.
Thunk.
A deceptively light sound rang out. But the power packed inside that touch was anything but light. The Black Vigor, compressed by the conceptual weight of Reverse Heaven, pierced straight through the snake’s hide and burrowed into its very heart.
A violent rampage erupted from the inside. Reverse Heaven began to reverse every biological process. As if it alone were the absolute truth of the universe, it rejected the snake's mana-based existence. That is the core of why it is called Reverse Heaven.
Main Quest Chapter 1.5: Shadow Snake Subjugation — Complete!
Reward: 5,000P has been awarded.
Hidden Achievement: Shadow Snake subjugated in a single strike! An unbelievable record has been achieved!
Rewards have been upgraded: Additional 2,000P awarded!
Bonus: 5,000P Technique Exclusive Creation Ticket has been granted!
The Shadow Snake let out a final, agonizing scream that echoed through the cavern. Kim Ara and Erhil instinctively tensed up, expecting a new phase of the battle. But I stayed exactly where I was. I knew this was the end.
The violent reaction the snake was having was nothing more than its final death throes.
‘Ridiculous power.’
I gazed at the massive creature. It had taken just one strike to destroy a proto-Imoogi. I had expected a positive result, but seeing the absolute devastation firsthand was sobering.
[Shadow Snake Defeated]
System: Final Burst of Energy Detected
The Shadow Snake, writhing and shrieking in its final moments, spewed a torrent of black, foul blood before finally collapsing. It was a massive release of its remaining life force. With a final thunk, the snake hit the ground, kicking up clouds of dust that filled the chamber.
I looked at the corpse fondly. Earlier, when I had appraised a single scale, it was D- grade. With a carcass of this size and quality, if I were to skin it and have armor crafted, the resulting gear would easily reach C grade.
More importantly, a Shadow Snake of this age always contains an inner core. I couldn't use it myself due to my constitution, but I could trade it to the alchemy guild for something far more valuable to me.
And above all, there was the real prize: the system points. I checked the total with a sense of immense satisfaction. Lately, my point income had been slowing down, but this hunt had changed everything.
[Total Points: 15,500P]
‘...Wait, what?’
I paused, double-checking the numbers. I had gained way more than I had calculated. Where had the extra points come from? I decided I would look into the logs later. I glanced at the Technique Exclusive Creation Ticket. This was the reward that truly satisfied me.
‘My progress in learning traditional sword techniques has been painfully slow, but this ticket will tide me over until my stats catch up.’
“Status window.”
◈ Talents
「Appraisal(-)」, 「Inexplicable Talent(A-)」, 「Dexterity(B+)」
◈ Techniques
「Black God Martial Art(?)」, 「Icar's Advanced Spirit Control(C)」, 「Black Flash Sword Art(D)」
◈ Physique
「Reverse Heaven Body(S-)」
Compared to the last time I checked, my status window had become significantly more cluttered with high-tier additions. I eyed the Black God Martial Art(?) entry under the Techniques section. The slot where a rank should have been was replaced by a mysterious question mark.
‘This rank...’
I remembered that Epic World featured hidden ranks like this. It was the exact same classification as the Thousand-Year Martial Vein that Kim Seo-hyun wielded—a power that belonged to a figure on the level of a world-threatening "mid-boss."
I stared at the question mark for a moment before turning away. I could feel heavy eyes on me from behind.
“...Lee Seo-ha, what exactly was that power just now?”
Erhil’s expression was uncharacteristically serious. Her star-shaped pupils were trembling, but the emotion I read in them wasn't simple fear. Taking down that snake in a single hit was a feat that clearly defied her understanding of "first-year" capabilities. It was closer to profound shock.
She seemed to have grasped a vague idea of the nature of my power.
‘Did her mentor, Melani, tell her something?’ I wondered. Did the various transcendents have some kind of interdimensional network? I knew Melani lived in a dimension entirely separate from the Heavenly Demon, but knowledge was a fluid thing for beings like them.
“It's just my power. More importantly, Erhil, help me move this thing. We need to get it out of the cavern.”
“Eek, no way. It’s gross and covered in black slime!”
If Erhil refused to help, then either I or Kim Ara would have to carry the massive carcass ourselves. I looked at the Shadow Snake. It was truly an eyesore, currently leaking foul-smelling black blood all over the floor.
“I guess we have no choice but to call for reinforcements then.”
I reached into my pocket and crushed the emergency gem the instructor had given us earlier.
“Oh? You're actually calling the instructors?”
“Yeah. Shadow snakes are highly valuable for specialized materials. It’ll be better to give the school a cut of the harvest in exchange for them handling the logistics.”
Erhil looked genuinely apologetic after hearing my reasoning.
“Then I’ll take the school's cut out of my share of the reward. I didn't really do much in the fight anyway,” she offered.
“Me too... I should contribute from my share,” Kim Ara chimed in.
I shook my head immediately. In a professional party, these things needed to be clear-cut to avoid future resentment.
“No, I’ll cover the cost from my own share. I was the one who made the decision to call them.”
“R-Really? You'd do that?”
A faint, relieved smile touched Erhil’s lips. It made perfect sense for them to worry; shadow-attribute monsters were incredibly rare and hard to obtain, serving as prized magic reagents. Giving up a portion was a painful trade for most students.
I smiled back at my teammates. ‘I haven't even begun to squeeze the true value out of you two yet,’ I thought. This gesture effectively cleared any immediate debts of gratitude they felt. Erhil and Kim Ara were reliable, high-tier allies. Wiping the slate clean now would make them far more willing to help me when the stakes were even higher later on.
The snake's corpse might fetch a high price today, but in the long run, I would eventually get bones for scraps. By then, it would be too late for them to have regrets.
Suddenly, a mechanical noise came from the crevice above. The instructors had finally arrived.
I let out a quiet sigh of relief.
“This is... unbelievable...”
Instructor Seo Woo-ju muttered under his breath as he stared at the massive Shadow Snake carcass. Even for a seasoned hero, the sight of the dying beast was grotesque and impressive.
“How on earth did you three take it down?”
“It was teamwork, Instructor. Kim Ara held the Shadow Snake's attention at the front, Erhil used her grimoire to restrict its movements, and I stepped in to deliver the finishing blow,” I explained calmly.
Seo Woo-ju looked between Kim Ara and Erhil. Both girls gave a firm nod. No one looked like they were being coerced into lying. He turned back to the snake, examining the chilling mana still radiating from its dead blood.
Nothing about this situation was ordinary. He knew that even if he had fought this specific beast himself while in peak condition, he might still lose five out of ten encounters.
‘To think they took down a high-tier beast like this right out of the gate.’ He was shaken. Even in his own student days, such a feat would have been deemed impossible for a group of freshmen.
“So, Instructor, what kind of score will we be receiving for this?” Erhil asked with a hopeful look.
“Full marks, obviously,” the assistant instructor replied before Seo Woo-ju could speak. “This is a Shadow Snake on the verge of becoming an Imoogi. Once we report this to the principal, you three are likely to receive a significant commendation.”
“For real? A commendation from the principal?”
“Yes. It's a major contribution to academy safety.”
The assistant, who was an expert in monster ecology, sounded very convincing. However, he noted that the corpse would first need to be handed over to the research department for a formal inspection.
Seo Woo-ju turned back to the group.
“He's right. Do any of you have a problem with that? Or perhaps any of the assistants want to purchase some scales?”
“Are you planning on selling them, Seo-ha?” one of the assistants asked.
“Yeah, eventually. But we're completely exhausted. I was actually going to ask if you guys could help us move the carcass to the lab.”
“...I see. I’ll speak to the professor of monster ecology about it. They have a very talented graduate student there who specializes in preserving high-tier bodies intact.”
“Ah, then giving him a few scales as payment for the preservation should do just fine.”
“...Giving a direct cut to the professor is never a bad choice either,” Seo Woo-ju added with a wink.
I gave the instructor a briefly exasperated look before speaking up one last time.
“So, just to be clear... what is our official score for this specific exam?”
“Well, the monster hunting exam uses a comprehensive scoring system,” Seo Woo-ju pondered for a moment. What they had demonstrated in that cavern had far exceeded any passing threshold he had ever set. He looked up and chuckled.
“Let's call it 30 out of 10.”