Chapter 162
Chapter 162
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 162
Chapter Title: The Third Night (13)
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Zone 2.
When he confirmed the race inhabiting that place, Park Chan-woo couldn't help but frown.
Creatures that resembled serpents but vaguely looked like dragons at a glance.
Even if their size was no match, they were a race known in records as incredibly powerful.
He had a rough idea of what that race was.
"Naga?"
"...Seems like it. I've heard of them too."
Kankun agreed.
Naga were a powerful magic race, just like the dragonkin.
Moreover, they were beings revered as sacred half-human, half-snake entities.
But they rarely showed themselves.
Every one of them had the personality of a hermit.
"The Abyss records said they were all wiped out..."
They were victims of the racial wars too.
He had seen records related to the 'racial wars' created by the demons.
They hadn't ranked well and eventually went extinct.
The dragonkin, who looked similar, hadn't left them alone, but mainly because their numbers were few, they lacked unity, and they kept hitting rock bottom.
However, each one's power was said to shake heaven and earth.
Of course, if they were just giant snakes, the dragonkin wouldn't have bothered.
Who would have thought the souls of naga were in this temple.
Sssssssss!
But they were far from the sacred treatment they once received.
The souls had merged, forming entirely new shapes.
'Like Medusa.'
Several snake heads sprouted from a single body.
Whoosh!
Roooar!
Kaboom!
They opened their mouths and spat out magic of all attributes.
The spells they unleashed began destroying the area where the orcs were.
"...I hate magic."
Kankun muttered, clicking his tongue softly.
He had overcome death and gained resistance to magic, but it still made him shudder.
Yet despite his words, Kankun charged into the battlefield without hesitation.
Slash!
He swung his reinforced greatsword, swiftly severing a naga's neck.
'I can't just stand by either.'
Now that Anubis had appeared, it was a race against time.
Aheta was dead serious about shortening this 'third night' as much as possible.
He had probably not only summoned Anubis but granted him all of Anubis's authorities.
If he summoned the legion of death and started a war... even with Gula joining, it wouldn't be easy.
'While Gula holds them off, I need to purify the entire temple.'
Would purifying the temple come first, or would Anubis end the war first?
Everything would change depending on the outcome.
"Regeneration? You magic races have all the tricks."
Kankun said with disgust.
It was due to the naga's trait of rapidly regenerating even when decapitated.
Moreover, with countless naga souls merged, their regeneration seemed amplified.
Their numbers were few, but this would drag things out.
Park Chan-woo gripped the World Tree Staff.
Fortunately, magic was his specialty.
The Arc Warriors must have cleared all factions' trials.
Thanks to that, he acquired overwhelming 'additional stats'.
A whopping 200.
He pondered briefly where to invest them.
With the orcs taking the front, he didn't need to play the warrior role himself.
Shrrr!
His magic power neared 300.
It wasn't pure magic power, but the sheer volume was suffocating.
Magic power surged with every breath.
He had maxed a single stat to 300.
A level 99 mage at the peak of magic power alone could achieve this.
Even if possible, no mage would do it.
It was endlessly inefficient and unbalanced folly.
Even if magic power was the most important stat for mages, the 'backlash' from using it couldn't be ignored.
To minimize magic power backlash, 'intelligence' needed to be high.
Moreover, this sudden surge of power.
Be cautious.
Use magic with care.
Intelligence too low compared to magic power.
Uncontrolled magic power may rampage.
It was bad enough to trigger warning messages.
But it was fine.
He couldn't wield it shadowlessly like before.
But if he carefully unraveled the threads of magic power one by one—
"Strike precisely. Pierce down."
He aimed the magic power's focal point.
His vision shook wildly for an instant.
Uncontrollable magic power crashed like a tsunami.
His muscles and bones felt like melting.
His heart seemed to have burst long ago.
Casting magic would intensify these symptoms.
But Park Chan-woo didn't stop.
Stopping now would make the stray magic power explode instead.
"Heavenly Punishment."
Kwaaaaaaaaang!
Aheta was impatient.
Thus, he entrusted all authority to Anubis.
Originally, Anubis alone would appear and battle the participants.
But he changed the rules to allow summoning the 'legion of death'.
To let it fully unleash the power that led countless worlds and races to ruin.
Therefore.
'There's no chance of Anubis losing.'
Anubis's victory was certain.
100%.
The issue was time.
Gula was leading the humans better than expected.
At this rate, it would take at least two days.
'Two days. If the Archmage purifies the entire temple in that time...'
Grind!
His teeth ground involuntarily.
The Archmage who saw through all his plans and entered the temple.
Normally, purifying the 'temple' was impossible, but somehow, that guy didn't seem incapable.
He couldn't predict what outlandish method he'd use to breakthrough.
However.
'...He can't do it alone.'
Death overflowed inside.
Not bringing soldiers and knights in wasn't wrong, but the temple wasn't easy enough for one person to handle.
But.
What if.
What if the Archmage succeeded in purifying all zones?
And the 'Eternal Temple' revealed itself, and the 'Outer God' appeared?
"......No."
Aheta's wish would come to nothing.
All his preparations would be for naught.
He planned to unveil the ultimate lifeform in the 'racial war' afterward.
If successful, Moon Lord Aheta could surpass the 'Demon King' and aim for 'Demon God' status.
They had ignored him all this time.
No matter the 'night' administrator, he was just a middling lord, neither Demon King nor Demon God.
He lacked influence over the entire Abyss.
Aheta's own power wasn't comparable to a Demon King.
He was merely the 'night' manager.
However... if he could create the 'thirteenth race' beyond the twelve races, Aheta's status would change instantly.
"I can't let you interfere with my wish."
It was right around the corner.
His wish would come true soon.
The 'Temple of Death' existed solely for that.
Aheta had waged countless wars to birth the ultimate race.
Two days wasn't enough.
One day.
He had to end it within that.
"Anubis. Unleash your full power."
Aheta continuously poured in coins.
Messages that appeared after hunting the chimera naga queen in Zone 2.
Park Chan-woo nodded upon checking them, while Kankun watched him with a strange look.
'...He succeeded in controlling all that magic power.'
Park Chan-woo had suddenly powered up.
Magic power churned with every breath.
Proof of instability.
Evidence he couldn't handle the explosive surge.
But that worry lasted only a moment.
Park Chan-woo instantly tamed all that magic power.
And not only that.
'Used Heavenly Punishment to incinerate the naga.'
Burned them with Heavenly Punishment so they couldn't regenerate.
Thanks to that, Kankun could easily kill the naga.
He had grown beyond comparison to before.
'...A monster.'
His own growth paled in comparison.
More than anything, controlling that magic power meant he had the skill to match.
He was curious—no, fearful—of where his limits lay.
"...Shouldn't you rest a bit?"
Kankun said reluctantly.
Park Chan-woo was already leading at the front.
Moving to the next zone right after the battle ended.
"No time to rest."
Now that he understood the temple's meaning, he had to reach the outer god as quickly as possible.
Aheta hadn't called only Anubis.
He had summoned the legion of death under his command.
And it didn't stop there.
"Father. Anubis is gradually transforming into a more beast-like form."
Signus was sharing the battlefield situation in real-time.
...If that was true, time was running out.
'Aheta is unsealing Anubis.'
Turning Anubis into a true monster.
Intending to end the war as quickly as possible.
Summoning the ultimate death, stripped to pure death instincts.
Hurk!
Suddenly, Park Chan-woo vomited black, dead blood, staining the floor.
Even if he succeeded in controlling the magic, wielding such vast, unfamiliar power all at once had consequences.
Kankun said with concern.
"...Push too hard, and you'll die, comrade."
"One of us has to die anyway for it to end."
But Park Chan-woo ignored it.
Either Aheta goes bankrupt and dies, or he dies.
One of them dying ends the war.