Chapter 287
Chapter 287
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 287
Chapter Title: Heart-Eating Demon (1)
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‘Something’s off…….’
Rokan couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling even after finishing off Kyarus.
If the bastard had stuck to his usual fighting style, it would’ve been a tough battle. Instead, he’d charged straight at the unicorn and handed Rokan an anticlimactic victory.
He’d won, sure, but the nagging sense that he hadn’t really earned it left a bad taste in his mouth.
“……Huh?”
Still, spoils were spoils.
Setting aside his discomfort, Rokan’s eyes caught something as he gathered the loot.
[Heart-Eating Demon][Legend]
A dagger known as the sacred treasure of the troll race.
It devours the target’s heart, transferring its power to the user. Absorption efficiency increases when consuming a heart from a living target.
-Attack Power: 10
-Durability: Indestructible
-Pierce the target’s heart to absorb abilities
-Absorption efficiency increases when piercing a living target’s heart
-Sacrifice your own heart to double all stats for 5 minutes
-Current absorbable hearts: 0 / 5
“This was the sacred treasure?”
Kyarus had dropped three items—a bow, a dagger, and armor—but surprisingly, the troll’s famed sacred treasure wasn’t the bow. It was the dagger he’d desperately wielded, a legend-grade item no less.
“What kind of options are these?”
The effects were downright bizarre. Piercing hearts to steal abilities?
Suddenly, it clicked why Kyarus had pushed himself so hard.
If Rokan hadn’t combined Blink with a full-body charge, he might’ve lost the unicorn’s heart to the troll.
In a fight that was already dragging on, absorbing the unicorn’s power would’ve made the outcome anyone’s guess.
‘I still had an ace up my sleeve…….’
Not to mention, losing the irreplaceable unicorn would’ve hurt bad.
“Guess the unicorn looked too tempting.”
Makes sense. Unicorns were revered even in the heavens, so of course it’d catch his eye. When was the last time he’d seen one down here?
That greed had been his undoing.
“I see.”
The other two items were nothing special. Epic-grade, sure, but not suited for Rokan.
With the loot check done, Rokan gripped the Heart-Eating Demon.
Stab!
Before the corpse vanished, he plunged it into Kyarus’s dead heart.
It favored living hearts for better efficiency, but a powerhouse like Kyarus—the strongest on the surface—should suffice.
As the dagger pierced the cooled heart, Kyarus’s power flowed in, resonating with Rokan.
[The Heart-Eating Demon devours the heart of the legendary hunter, Kyarus.]
[Absorbing the power dwelling in the target’s heart and soul.]
[Piercing Power of the Engraved Soul (Growth) has reached max rank.]
[Piercing Power of the Engraved Soul][Legend]
Engraves tattoo-like marks on the body, granting the deadly technique to pierce souls.
-Critical hit chance +30%
-Critical damage +300%
-All attacks gain 30% armor penetration
The engraving power from Kyarus had evolved.
It was a skill that grew by absorbing corrupt energies, but devouring Kyarus’s own heart shot it straight to max rank.
A legend-grade engraving in his hands.
“……Whoa.”
Armor penetration on top of crits!
Even Rokan hadn’t expected this much. He stared in stunned satisfaction despite the lost heart slot.
One down, four to go—and if he picked wisely, the power boost could be insane.
He mulled it over, then slipped away.
Trolls might swarm once word spread of the fight’s end.
And so, after sparking a massive upheaval on the surface, Rokan vanished.
“Hmm, this’ll do just fine as is.”
Hiding out until the Storm Incarnation cooldown ended, Rokan inspected the Heart-Eating Demon again.
Its heart-devouring gimmick was intriguing, but the item’s base performance was solid too.
Especially that measly 10 attack power.
Trash to most, but Rokan had a use for it.
Blood Focus.
Perfect sub-weapon for the self-harm skill that snapped him out of debuffs via awakening.
A satisfied smile crossed his face as he returned to the imperial palace.
He mobilized every intel resource to monitor the Black Dragon Legion’s movements.
“The trolls are in total chaos right now. Forward-deployed forces have been pulled back, and Kyarus’s disciples are turning on each other to claim leadership.”
“Thanks to that, the goblins, orcs, and undead are all lying low.”
“Good.”
Trolls were the Black Dragon Legion’s strongest race by reputation.
Rumors of Kyarus acquiring a “sacred treasure” had spread among them, so his fall sent shockwaves.
The undead, their race quest already failed, were starting from scratch in submission. Goblins, despite summoning their high priest, couldn’t flex under Rokan’s pressure.
Orcs might shift the balance if they snagged a sacred treasure, but this would make them think twice about rash moves.
“No more business on the surface, huh.”
Watching the fallout, Rokan felt a strange sense of closure. With Kyarus down, no one could match him unless a cataclysmic update hit.
Time to collect gold was the only reason left to visit.
Black Dragon Legion? Users plotting a coup in his absence? If they wanted death, who was he to stop them.
Team Ragnarok, once a rival, was gone, and their pursuers were rising fast—but by the time they hit High Master, Rokan would be a full Grand Master.
“Return to the heavens.”
Gathering everything, Rokan piled his inventory with mountains of gold and ascended.
He hit the exchange first, converting the haul into coins.
“Whew, enough to buy a city.”
If cities were for sale, absolutely.
He’d swept every last gold coin from the surface.
He almost worried about deflation, but that wasn’t his problem.
Unlike real economies, The Lord had gold-spawning geese—or monsters.
Most was taxed anyway, so circulation wouldn’t tank.
“Right, what next.”
Eyeing his bulging purse, Rokan pondered his to-do list.
The heavens ran on bounty quests, no filler stuff. Without a goal, it was easy to drift—like punching dojos endlessly.
And with pockets full, idleness loomed.
Not on his watch. Rokan whipped up a list.
1. Bounty quests and level up
2. Titan hunt
3. Track Heavenly God’s Arrangement
4. Track Demon God’s Arrangement
Four items.
Hitting Lv400 would unlock more, and finishing the Titan for Storm Chains’ seal release—and meeting Gale—promised big gains.
Tracking the Heavenly God’s Arrangement he’d lucked into seemed promising. Surely there were more.
The Demon God, a Heavenly God knockoff, likely had his own.
No leads yet, but searching might yield something. Demon Realm loved coin solutions.
“Hmm, Titan first, then.”
After deliberation, Rokan chose Titan.
Leveling was grindy, long-term. Titans let him hunt en route, and seal release alone was a power spike.
Bonus if he found divine clues, but not required.
Titan it was.
He spent coins freely on intel.
“Hmm, got it.”
Titan info came easy.
Surface demigods of corruption and ruin, but here among Grand Masters, just top-tier transcendents.
Not pushovers, though.
Even transcendents rarely sought them out.
Their raw power from massive, durable frames overwhelmed most.
“Not a cakewalk.”
Rokan’s Frost Titan kill was sheer luck.
Fresh from glacial prison, barely recovered—weak as could be.
Even then, tough. Without Transcendent Awakening, victory doubtful.
But Rokan wouldn’t delay.
He’d devised a plan.
“First up……Killemone Mountains?”
He headed for the nearest Titan habitat.
No heavenly rune saved, but neutral zone meant public Green Wyverns—quick trip.
Not straight to the mountains, but close enough. Unicorn or Kai would cover the rest.
He picked Kai.
Unicorn avoided for air mob aggro, but Titan turf meant even sky packs feared the boss.
Hunting discreetly, and spotting behemoths? Sky view best.
Air pack attack? Dive into Titan territory.
Confident in speed, bold move.
“There it is.”
Circling high on Kai over Killemone Mountains, Rokan spotted it quick.
Massive frame visible from afar, pure presence.
The mountain lord, leisurely feeding, looked skyward.
Locking eyes with Rokan—reeking of kin—it roared.