Chapter 205
Chapter 205
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 205
Chapter Title: Reverse Heaven Society Leader (2)
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A soft, beautiful sunset unfurled before his eyes.
It was a captivating vista that could steal anyone's gaze, but Hans couldn't savor it leisurely.
Kwaduduk!
After all, that sunset glow was tightening around his throat with every passing moment.
'This is dizzying.'
He lightly clicked his newly regenerated jawbone to check if it meshed properly, then twisted his neck joints this way and that.
'Without the "Undying Heart", even an undead like me would've been obliterated long ago.'
His upper jaw had been blasted away by a holy power attack, shattering his mask in the process.
The bare skull thus revealed blended with the pitch-black aura emanating from his body, exuding an indescribably menacing air.
"You're still hiding your other undead, huh? Got some leeway left? Or are there restrictions holding you back?"
[Kekeke, no need for that now. Why don't you show me what else you've got?]
His appearance was far too ragged to bluff, but Hans nonchalantly retorted with the same boldness as before, unperturbed.
As long as his heart remained intact, his immortal body was fine.
No big deal if his whole form got torn apart or smashed—it was just minor damage.
"Pfft, so confident."
The leader hovering midair, his wings of shimmering light fluttering, let out a scoff of disbelief at the response.
A pair of enormous, snow-white wings and a radiant halo glowing behind his head.
Combined with eyes blazing as if piercing the darkness and a holy aura flowing over his entire body, he looked every bit the righteous judge descended to purge evil.
Especially with the skull-headed monster Hans, radiating malevolent energy from every pore, right in front of him...
'Hmm... no matter how I look at it, I seem like the bad guy here.'
The reality was the complete opposite!
For Hans, it was an utterly unjust situation, but even he had to admit this setup screamed a clear clash of good versus evil, with no room for defense.
Back on Earth, he was treated like a dark hero, at least.
"I wanted to wrap this up quickly, but your constant regeneration is a hassle. Shall I pick up the pace?"
As that thought crossed his mind,
Holy power surged fiercely alongside the leader's low voice.
At the same time, crumpled space began pressing in from all directions like a tidal wave.
Kururung—!
Hans calmly stabilized the space as before, searching for an escape route.
Now laced with holy power, the spatial erosion was trickier to counter, but his magic prowess wasn't lacking enough to make it impossible.
Still, it inevitably took time.
By the time he thought he'd broken free to safety, hundreds of crimson holy swords were raining down from the sky like arrows.
'Not a moment's rest.'
And the spatial erosion resumed without pause.
In such conditions, steady damage accumulation was unavoidable.
'First time I've been this battered since becoming the Immortal King.'
His body breaking wasn't a huge issue, but repeated exposure to high concentrations of holy power was straining his energy flow—a serious problem.
If this dragged on, even protecting his heart would hit its limit soon.
'I've done about all I can for now. Time to bail when it gets really dicey.'
Seemed like it was time to cut the dance short with this guy and retreat.
***
Kururung—
In one corner of the space resounding with ceaseless explosions,
"Hmm, hmm! Fascinating, truly fascinating!"
The disheveled middle-aged man known as Doctor nodded eagerly inside the safe zone the leader had created, scrutinizing Hans through his "Eye of Truth".
"Kya~ But disappointing, oh so disappointing! I'd need to dissect him for a closer look! Capturing him alive doesn't seem easy, though!"
Even the "Eye of Truth", capable of unraveling all techniques and mysteries, had its limits.
He'd specialized it for research, so analyzing a distant target shrouded in turbulent energy flows left much to be desired.
In short, proper study required the subject's cooperation—willing or otherwise.
"As expected, Ruler, I need your help!"
"...Me?"
At the abrupt conclusion, the Ruler—who'd been silently glaring at the smile mask—turned to him with a troubled expression.
"As you've seen, that smile mask revives endlessly unless its heart core is destroyed. But smashing the heart outright would ruin a precious specimen. That's a global loss! Unacceptable! We must capture it alive!"
"But under those conditions, I don't see a way."
"Why not? You've got the perfect candidate right here!"
Doctor beamed at him with pleased eyes.
Cold sweat trickled down the Ruler's back.
Mind control and restraints were his specialty, sure—but he'd already failed once against the smile mask.
Recalling that, he calmly protested without panic, keeping it simple and firm for the madman.
"As you know, my current state is because I fought and lost in its mental world. The spirit damage from then hasn't fully healed, leaving my body in ruins. You, who examined me, know that best."
He glanced down at his body with a frown as he continued.
His blinded eyes now sported mechanical implants, his once-sturdy legs were withered, confining him to a wheelchair, and organ damage caused occasional vomiting of blood.
Ordering him to invade the smile mask's mind again in this state was as good as a death sentence!
"Mm! I understand! Completely! But Ruler, that's exactly why you must step up!"
His measured explanation didn't seem to sway the lunatic.
But Doctor hadn't spoken recklessly...
"Revenge, don't you want it?"
The man with desire-glazed eyes whispered sweetly, devilish smile and all.
"I'll help you. I've got a feel for it from what we've gleaned. Even prepped something in advance! Uhahaha!"
Hearing that, the Ruler examined the smile mask closely once more—
And nodded resolutely as he accepted the item from Doctor.
***
Mid-battle,
"Oh? Got a plan?"
Hans tilted his head at the leader's sudden mutter.
It didn't seem directed at him.
"That works too. Go ahead and do as you wish, Ruler."
The opponent ignored his reaction, saying his piece.
Only after a brief pause did Hans realize who it was meant for.
Susuk—
Just like when the middle-aged Westerner had intruded earlier, thirty-some men emerged from thin air without warning.
In a wheelchair, due to leg issues.
Evidently, the leader had tampered with space again—Hans hadn't detected the arrival in advance.
'...Frustrating. My senses are dulled like a blind man's. And he's the Ruler?'
A title he'd heard while gathering intel.
In charge of all East Asia.
'That's the Ruler? Odd eyes. A returnee from a high-tech dimension? ...Wait, this presence feels familiar...'
As Hans raised his guard toward the newcomer,
His empty eye sockets met the man's gaze head-on—
Hwaaak—!
Suddenly, he faced a being from a darkness-filled space he'd met once before.
-Long time no see, Smile Mask. You've been thriving, I see. Every day since has been agony for me.
A ragged, green-glowing humanoid form, legs torn away leaving stumps, wounds everywhere.
'Who was it? Oh, that pervert from back then.'
The one who'd hidden in a Bancheon Society underling's mind during the Blood Alliance hardliner purge, spying on him.
[Kehuhut! Indeed, quite a while. Still clinging to life, huh? Thought you might've croaked.]
In a way, a grateful foe.
Thanks to the spirit fragment he'd left behind, Hans acquired "Path of the Death Sorcerer" and grew stronger.
'Figured he was executive-level from that ability. Who'd have thought he was East Asia's branch head.'
The impression of barely fleeing the Fragment of the Immortal King had been too strong to recall immediately, but retrospect showed he was no ordinary foe.
Plenty dangerous until Hans turned the fragment against him.
And now, invading the mental world just by eye contact was no small feat.
He'd poured excessive energy to breach Hans' barriers—outer time nearly frozen, and even that wouldn't last long.
[Didn't expect you'd slink away then come crawling back. Wasn't one loss enough?]
Perfect timing—Hans had felt uneasy just fleeing, and here came takeout delivered to his door.
A two-birds-one-stone chance: more growth and taking out a high Bancheon exec.
Hans gathered his mental power, swelling his spirit form, and slowly approached.
-Back then, I thought you'd sealed a demon inside. 'World's Death,' huh... Not much difference. And you've grown leagues stronger since.
But the Ruler gazed calmly up at the abyss-coalesced giant Hans, sighing in quiet admiration.
No trace of crisis in his demeanor, despite the danger.
[Hah! You've got something up your sleeve, after all.]
Hans halted his advance, slowly drawing forth the death dwelling within.
No need to go this far now that he was far stronger, but better safe.
Of course, he readied for unsummoning in true emergencies.
-Tch, just a few words and I'm hitting limits already. Forced intrusion is tough, but this is excessive. You're one hell of a monster, Smile Mask.
Still, letting him yap unchecked wouldn't do.
Hans infused sharpened mental power with death and struck the foe's spirit.
-No chance I'd win head-on.
But the opponent wasn't pushover either.
Even battered and facing death-laced attacks, shattering his fortified mental shield took more than a few blows...
-Doctor's impressive, alright. Who knew he'd craft tools for mental worlds.
He murmured admiringly at the orb drawn from his body.
-Let's see how long you last.
Immediately, radiant green light burst from the orb in his hand, flooding everywhere.
Paaa—
Every corner of 'Hans'' mental world, down to the depths.
Had he once likened mental battles to wars?
Similarly, what followed could be summed up simply:
The enemy shattered the rebel camp gates via internal sabotage.
Then supplied the escapees with endless munitions.
***
"...Tch, what the hell is this?"
Watching Hans' side, I hurriedly reinforced my Mind Hub and grimaced.
I massaged my temples lightly against the mild headache, sighed softly, and reassessed.
The info surge felt like a bomb blast, disorienting at first, but my unique skill—pumped with massive karma—and mental stats weren't frail enough to crumble.
'Obviously. After all that karma invested!'
Still, facing the Bancheon leader like this was impossible.
Might even be their aim.
"Tsk, call it here. Thought I might squeeze more out."
I unsummoned Hans without hesitation and pressed my temples again.
His mental world hadn't fully collapsed, but the storm left it needing rest.
He'd recuperate in the Immortal Citadel in Outerica for a while.
'The intruder won't be unscathed either. Won't pull this again anytime soon.'
The Ruler who'd invaded and wreaked havoc.
Seemed he'd planned to slip out amid the chaos...
But half-success meant he didn't escape intact.
He slithered away, but left his right arm—orb in hand—behind.
Doubtless unpleasant for him.
'That orb looked no joke. Check it out leisurely in Outerica?'
Thought briefly of lingering Bancheon foes in Japan, but dealing with them was long-term.
Plenty of time—methodically prepare using this intel.
Thus, Hans took the Ruler's spirit fragment as nourishment, plus the mysterious gift left behind, and hopped off to the Immortal Citadel in the other world.
Caring not a whit for the baffled reactions of those Bancheon executives.