Chapter 83
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 83
Chapter Title: Phase Skip
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"Anyway, there's no point in cursing humans who are doomed to die anyway."
Hah... hah... heuk.
Her entire body had gone ice-cold, but every breath she drew filled her lungs with scorching air.
'I can hear that bastard's words, which means I'm still clinging to life.'
It had all happened in an instant. The True Chronos's Avatar had suddenly swung its scythe, unleashing orbs of flame. Before the unquenchable blaze that wouldn't die until the creature vanished could swallow her whole, she'd pulled Ego's trigger and summoned a shield. The flames roared fiercely beyond the thick barrier, but thankfully, it held firm.
Agh, it's hot!
No matter how thick she made the shield, the heat seeped through her palm. Any longer, and blisters would have erupted across her entire hand. She released the shield and immediately leaped upward.
'First things first—clear this smoke.'
Woooong—
Raising Ego, she aimed at the thick haze and pulled the trigger. A wave of pure white sonic energy rippled through the air like crashing waves. Moments later, with a resounding thwoom, the air vibrated, and the ashen smoke vanished in a blink.
Kehok! Kholok!
Finally able to open her eyes, she looked down. There was the True Chronos's Avatar, bound by thick tree roots, with the occasional whisper of Sky Breeze stirring the air.
But where is everyone?
She landed swiftly on the ground and scanned her surroundings. Thick tree trunks sprouted everywhere, catching her eye.
Ha Mi-jun Hunter! Are you okay?!
Yeah! Shin Ji-ui Hunter!
Ha Mi-jun Hunter burst out from behind one of the trunks, looking just as composed as ever. Aside from a minor scratch on his face, he was unscathed.
He glanced at her briefly but kept yanking at the tree roots with his hands. Yet the black flames swirling around the True Chronos's Avatar turned them to ash almost instantly.
Thung—
A severed thick branch came hurtling toward them viciously. She immediately pulled the trigger in its direction, reducing it to powder. Ha Mi-jun Hunter brushed the debris from her hair and flashed a grin.
That was close. Anywhere hurt?
I'm fine. Have you seen Se-bin or Cha Do-yun Hunter by any chance?
Cha Do-yun Hunter's by Zeus. I saw Kang Se-bin Hunter slice that thing's ankle right before the explosion, but nothing after.
She'd slipped into the shadows for a strike and landed a solid hit.
Black lava oozed from the True Chronos's Avatar's ankle.
'But why hasn't she shown up?!'
Immunity to mental skills was one thing, but at some point, it seemed to have lost all sense of fear. The thought that she'd let her guard down and taken a hit gnawed at her.
Don't worry. Kang Se-bin Hunter has a stealth skill among her uniques.
...Huh?
Ah.
Ha Mi-jun Hunter clamped his mouth shut. His unusually flustered face turned away from her gaze, and she stood on tiptoe to peer closely at him.
Kang Se-bin Hunter told me not to tell you. Damn.
One of Se-bin's three unique skills is stealth? Why tell me not to say?
Kwaduduk.
At that moment, the True Chronos's Avatar began ripping at the roots. It swung the arm holding the scythe, slicing through its bindings, and the trunks fell limply to the ground.
Anyway, Kang Se-bin Hunter will be fine.
'This timeline's Kang Se-bin is seriously worrying me in all sorts of ways...'
Yeah, Se-bin was probably fine somewhere. Right now, nothing mattered more than ending the True Chronos's Avatar.
―Transmission is unstable due to True Chronos's Avatar's wide-area attack. We apologize for the inconvenience. You are currently watching Day 2 of the Greece S-Rank Dungeon Time Attack battle.
―Ah! It's back! They seem safe! But Kang Se-bin Hunter is nowhere to be seen!
―The camera only caught Kang Se-bin Hunter severing True Chronos's Avatar's ankle. Let's check the footage.
The screen, which had been showing the dungeon, split in two. On the right, with the caption '1 Minute Ago,' footage from a distance showed Se-bin's figure.
While True Chronos's Avatar was talking to Zeus, Se-bin had moved behind its shadow. As it set the area ablaze, dozens of shadow hands erupted from its own shadow.
The shadow hands struck the Achilles tendon precisely, and as its balance tipped forward, Se-bin slashed the ankle in one clean stroke.
With a mosaic-covered spray of blood, Se-bin vanished, and the screen switched back to the current view.
Holy shit
Why does my ankle hurt?
Brutal AF
―Wow... incredible.
―With Kang Se-bin Hunter's whereabouts still unknown, True Chronos's Avatar is unleashing fire orbs again!
―Remember, once ignited, these flames won't extinguish until True Chronos's Avatar vanishes!
Kwagwagwang!
The screen filled with thick black smoke. Ji-ui dodged the meteor-like fireballs and leaped upward, while Mi-jun sidestepped and slammed another wooden spike into the already-slashed ankle.
―Ha Mi-jun Hunter suppresses again, and Shin Ji-ui Hunter takes the offense!
―Meanwhile, Cha Do-yun Hunter emerges from hiding!
Do-yun leaped from the bushes and released the string of Morning Glory. The green arrow gathered every gust of wind around it, blowing away the flames in one go. The fire orbs veered off course, arcing back toward True Chronos's Avatar.
He nocked another arrow skyward, and it split into dozens, all homing in on the creature's head.
―Classic wind attribute! Nothing counters fire like wind!
―As Cha Do-yun Hunter's wind arrows strike, lightning crashes down!
Steady DPS incarnate fr
No burst but damage is just pouring in somehow
Drizzle damage lmao
Lmao drizzle damage kkkkkk
Do-yun's so pretty
The screen shifted to Ji-ui. Darting around busily with Bird That Listens to Daytime Words, she hammered bullets from Ego into it. True Chronos's Avatar scowled in annoyance and swung its scythe forward again.
―You're now experiencing True Chronos's Avatar Phase 1.
―It has three phases total: Phase 1 fire orbs, Phase 2 lava floor, and Phase 3 fighting its dragon form.
The chat filled with concern at Soksapo's explanation.
How much time's passed?
Time attack screwed? Dread
Ha Mi-jun's there, he'll carry
So embarrassing ffs, DF ranks 1 and 3 are there
True Chronos's Avatar appeared on screen, swinging its great scythe wildly and demolishing everything around it.
Ji-ui defended with her shield and Bird That Listens to Daytime Words, but no real attack opportunities arose.
―Ah... Phase 1 is taking way longer than expected.
―Ha Mi-jun Hunter and Cha Do-yun Hunter are chipping away steadily, but without a decisive blow from Shin Ji-ui Hunter, the time attack might be just a bit tough!
―True Chronos's Avatar has gotten much more agile, making close-range attacks like before nearly impossible.
A few bullets embedded in its body, but they barely made holes.
The screen briefly showed Ji-ui channeling her voice into Ego. She chewed her lower lip before curling the corner of her mouth into a smirk.
???
She's smiling
What is she on?
Gave up?
Ji-ui fighting!!! 😭😭😭
―Oh, Shin Ji-ui Hunter looks like she's made up her mind!
―Passing Phase 1 is the key right now!
Kugung.
A massive tree trunk twisted around True Chronos's Avatar's limbs. As it flinched in surprise and shifted to tear it free, black shadow hands suddenly strangled its neck.
―Kang Se-bin Hunter's shadow hands! She's safe! Thank goodness!
―Wait, but Shin Ji-ui Hunter is...!
The announcer's attention snagged on Se-bin, but Soksapo shouted urgently.
The camera panned to Ji-ui, and the chat flooded with question marks.
She threw her weapon!!
Ji-ui hurled Ego toward True Chronos's Avatar. It streaked through the air in a white trail, suddenly expanding and assembling into a pedestal-mounted mortar barrel.
Third form: mortar.
Kwagwagwagwang!!
Ego, now in mortar form, fired point-blank at the creature's forehead. Every camera covering the scene shook violently.
The broadcast team blanked out for a moment, forgetting to narrate. When the feed stabilized, True Chronos's Avatar's entire body was crumbling to dust.
The great scythe signaling its defeat floated lazily before drifting toward the temple in the sky.
Ph, Pha...
Phase Skip!!
Phase Skip!!
The announcer and Soksapo screamed near-hysterically.
Phase Skip—skipping all remaining phases outright. An ultra-rare phenomenon when dumping overwhelming burst damage on a phased boss.
It occasionally happened when S-Rank Hunters cleared C- or D-Rank dungeons, but from B-Rank onward, it was practically unheard of.
For real???
Insane
Wtf she's nuts
Did I just witness a phase skip???
Real shit
Real real
god jiui
We are Shin Ji-ui's homeland.
S-Rank dungeon? Mid-boss? Phase skip??? Gotta remeasure DF ♡♡
God Ji-ui
SAVIORRRRR!!!!!!!
The live chat scrolled faster than ever. The overheated frenzy showed no signs of dying down, with a few hyped users even getting chat banned.
Ji-ui on screen panted while staring at the sky. Oblivious to the adoring gazes locked on her, she was solely focused on mapping out the next fight in her mind.