Chapter 157
Chapter 157
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 157
Chapter Title: Necromancer of the Sword Clan
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"I subjugated it to myself. It's the privilege of a necromancer."
"Y-Yes? Huh?"
Lee Ji-hyun wore a thoroughly baffled expression at Shin Yu-hyun's words.
A skeleton dragon... subjugated?
What on earth was he talking about?
Shouldn't the direct heir of the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan be a swordsman?
"The privilege of a necromancer..."
Lee Ji-hyun muttered in a daze, and Shin Yu-hyun simply smiled in response.
'Not bad at all.'
In fact, it was great.
He had saved Lee Ji-young, who would have died in his previous life, and Lee Ji-hyun had awakened her unique trait, Guardian.
On top of that, Shin Yu-hyun had claimed a 5-star boss skeleton dragon for himself.
All things considered, the outcome was far from poor.
But the situation wasn't over yet.
Rooooaaar!
"This is..."
"The magic beasts are still..."
The elders and children paled at the distant roars of the 5-star magic beasts.
The skeleton dragon Shin Yu-hyun had just felled was merely one of several bosses, and hundreds of magic beasts were still rampaging freely.
"Don't worry."
Shin Yu-hyun smiled reassuringly at the survivors.
"The superhumans of the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan are on their way here. And the Clan Leader is with them."
"Th-The Sword King!"
One of the elders cried out in astonishment at Shin Yu-hyun's words.
The Clan Leader of the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan and its master, Sword King Shin Sung-il.
He was renowned to the world by his title of Sword King.
"If the Sword King's here, we've got nothing to fear."
"I hope this mess ends soon..."
The elders sighed in relief at the news of the Sword King's arrival.
Moreover, to contain the magic beasts spreading across the Chilseong Mountain region, elite forces from each of the Heaven-Splitting Sword Clan's sword halls had been dispatched.
They were battling the magic beasts pouring out of the invasion gate.
And the swordsmen of Black Tortoise Hall had prioritized evacuating the residents.
Shin Yu-hyun himself had been fighting magic beasts when he sensed the presence of a 5-star boss skeleton dragon nearby and rushed over.
'I got lucky.'
When he followed the overwhelming aura, he found the Fist King's granddaughters facing off against the skeleton dragon.
Thanks to that, he secured the skeleton dragon and earned a debt from the Spiral Fist Clan by saving the Fist King's granddaughters.
'It might come in handy someday.'
Shin Yu-hyun glanced at Lee Ji-hyun tending to Lee Ji-young and smiled faintly.
Rooooaaar!
Then the distant roar suddenly exploded right nearby.
"Here they come."
[5-star Magic Beast: Elite Ghoul]
A magic beast enhanced even beyond a standard ghoul.
Its boosted stats across the board made it a tricky opponent.
At least twenty of the things had appeared at the mouth of the alleyway.
"Master. Shall I handle them?"
As they emerged, Shuv spoke from Shin Yu-hyun's right in a languid yet gentle tone.
"No, leave this to me this time."
Luber followed from his left, her voice elegant yet brimming with passion.
The two hooked their arms through Shin Yu-hyun's, subtly vying for position.
"Master! Me too!"
As Shuv and Luber clung to Shin Yu-hyun, Dia came toddling over proudly and latched onto his back.
Though with Dia, it was less about fighting magic beasts and more about just clinging to Shin Yu-hyun like the others.
Grrr?
Even Fluffy waddled up to Shin Yu-hyun's side and nuzzled his leg.
"You two handle them. Dia and Fluffy, protect the survivors. Oh, and send one over here."
"Yes."
"Got it."
Shuv and Luber nodded and stepped back at Shin Yu-hyun's command.
Luber shot Shuv a smile.
Ever since the era of the original Immortal King, Luber had harbored a rivalry with Shuv.
She competed with him over everything.
This time was no different.
And so Shuv and Luber advanced to confront the elite ghouls.
Dia and Fluffy headed toward the survivors.
"Aww, our little cutie's back."
"How can she be this adorable?"
Dia monopolized the elders' affections.
"Ride on my back this time!"
"Let me see your fluffy fur!"
Fluffy was a hit with the kids.
They hugged him or clambered onto his back.
"Lee Ji-hyun."
"Y-Yes? Yes!"
Lee Ji-hyun, who had been caring for the still-unconscious Lee Ji-young, jumped and looked up at Shin Yu-hyun's call.
"Get ready."
"Ready? For what?"
"One magic beast is coming this way soon. You'll fight it."
"Me? Me?!"
Lee Ji-hyun paled at his words. Even one magic beast was a 5-star elite ghoul.
Weak 5-star magic beasts could be handled by 4-star superhumans.
But elite ghouls ranked among the strongest of 5-stars.
And Lee Ji-hyun had only just entered 3-star.
Impressive for her age—most her age topped out at 2-star.
True to her blood as the Fist King's granddaughter.
Still, taking on a 5-star elite ghoul was no small feat.
Kraaaargh!
Just then, Luber herded one elite ghoul toward Shin Yu-hyun and Lee Ji-hyun.
She turned back to flash Shin Yu-hyun a smile before smugly glancing at Shuv.
Shuv just shook his head at Luber's display.
"N-No way, that's impossible!"
Lee Ji-hyun waved her hands frantically as the elite ghoul charged toward her.
The elite ghoul was repulsive on sight.
Like a zombie reanimated from a corpse, its body was covered in patchwork stitch marks as if crudely sewn together from rags.
Utterly grotesque.
"Bring out Guardian's Shield."
"P-Pardon? The shield?"
Lee Ji-hyun quickly summoned Guardian's Shield.
A rectangular green barrier materialized in front of her.
'Totally different from what I remember.'
Shin Yu-hyun clicked his tongue inwardly.
In his previous life, Lee Ji-hyun's Guardian's Shield had been like an impregnable fortress wall.
Its size and thickness dwarfed this version.
And its form had been a sleek shield, not this crude, flat slab.
'Well, can't be helped.'
Shin Yu-hyun gave a wry internal smile.
Lee Ji-hyun had only just awakened her unique trait, Guardian.
She hadn't yet mastered wielding Guardian's Shield.
"Block that thing's attacks."
"Huh?"
Lee Ji-hyun blinked blankly at his instruction.
But only for a moment.
Kraaaargh!
The elite ghoul roared and lunged at her, and Lee Ji-hyun screamed.
"Kyaaah!"
Zzzzing!
She layered multiple shields on top of each other—three green barriers blocking the elite ghoul's path.
But...
Crack!
A crack spiderwebbed across the first shield from the ghoul's fist.
Kraaaargh!
Bam-bam-bam!
The elite ghoul unleashed a barrage of punches.
Kwachak!
Spiderweb cracks multiplied across the first shield until it shattered moments later.
"Eek!"
Lee Ji-hyun recoiled in shock and stumbled back.
"Don't retreat! Want to see your sister die again?!"
Shin Yu-hyun barked from behind her.
Lee Ji-hyun froze mid-step.
Her sister dying?
She adored her kind, gentle sister.
Even when she turned into a demon instructor during fist training, Lee Ji-hyun knew it was for her own good.
And she always loved the cup of ice cream that came with words of encouragement after practice.
Deep down, she truly loved her sister, Lee Ji-young.
But her dying?
Lee Ji-hyun recalled Lee Ji-young charging alone against the skeleton dragon.
And how close she'd come to death under its assaults.
'N-No!'
Vmmm!
As if mirroring her resolve, an intense green glow emanated from Guardian's Shield blocking the elite ghoul.
The barrier visibly strengthened beyond its prior state.
"Guardian's Shield relies on imagery. Imagine an unbreakable shield."
'An unbreakable shield...'
Shin Yu-hyun's words from behind sparked something in her mind.
Imagery for Guardian's Shield echoed in her thoughts.
Kwachak!
Meanwhile, the second shield shattered under the ghoul's blows.
"Your will is still too weak. Guardian's Shield doesn't break so easily."
Strong willpower.
The word "willpower" lodged in Lee Ji-hyun's mind.
Truthfully, with her current power, even awakened Guardian's Shield couldn't withstand an elite ghoul indefinitely.
But it could buy time.
Even fresh from awakening, maxing out the shield's output would hold the ghoul at bay for quite a while.
Indeed, the second shield lasted longer than the first.
'Then...'
Lee Ji-hyun gritted her teeth.
What if she imagined an unbreakable shield forged from ironclad willpower?
Flash!
A burst of green light exploded from the last remaining third shield.
Revealing the shield Lee Ji-hyun had manifested.
Its size had shrunk a bit.
But the form had changed dramatically.
From a plain translucent green rectangle to an elongated inverted triangular kite shield.
And noticeably thicker too.
'Good. It's working.'
Shin Yu-hyun smiled inwardly at the sight.
In his previous life, Lee Ji-hyun had been shattered by her sister Lee Ji-young's death, driving her to desperately protect others.
But this life was different.
He had saved Lee Ji-young.
The future had shifted.
So he gave Lee Ji-hyun some basic pointers on handling Guardian's Shield.
That it could be shaped by the user's will and imagery.
According to her past self, it had taken over a year to realize this, as it was a power only she could wield.
'Of course, that's not all there is to it.'
Shin Yu-hyun smiled to himself.
Guardian's Shield had immense versatility.
Especially for Lee Ji-hyun, who used the Fist King's Spiral Fist techniques.
The shield could freely adjust size, shape, and strength via the user's will.
Sometimes a protective wall for people, other times a weapon to slaughter magic beasts.
'The rest is up to her.'
With the basics imparted, Lee Ji-hyun would grow quickly.
And her strength would aid Shin Yu-hyun in turn.
She would help him in the coming war against Getia, after all.
'Alright.'
Having finished his advice, Shin Yu-hyun charged at the elite ghoul.