The Final Altar
The sky was blanketed in dark clouds. At the heart of the pitch-black clouds that resembled smoke stood the final altar.
“It seems they no longer care about hiding their presence,” Nyx said, furrowing her brow.
Dark mana rippled like waves. It was an environment favorable to the black mages.
Dark mana concentration has risen abnormally.
Physical abilities reduced by 10%.
Mana consumption increased by 20%.
Those who serve a demonic constellation as their guardian or wield dark mana are exempt from penalties.
Dark mana. I would master that power someday as well. But not now.
Mana and dark mana were opposing forces. Even if I accepted dark mana, the immense mana flowing from the Dragon Heart would uproot it.
“It’s hard to breathe, Master,” Jiyoung said, steadying her slightly roughened breathing.
Karla remained silent, but a hint of discomfort showed on her face. Surprisingly, it was Ping Lei who spoke next.
“Hmph. This much is nothing. I have mastered the great martial arts of the Middle Kingdom.”
Among the team members, Ping Lei had the best stamina after me, and he pretended to be relaxed.
“How truly vile.”
The unexpected one was Nyx. She only wrinkled her nose, showing no sign of being affected by the dark mana.
“Are you all right?”
“Such foul energy cannot reach me.”
“So you can’t do anything about the smell, then.”
Immunity to dark mana… I wondered if the same would hold true for other anomalies.
I glanced at Karla and Ping Lei.
“Even if you withdraw now, the rewards should still be decent. Are you still coming?”
Sending the rescued hostages through the inner passage of the base camp would end the mission. Would they push for more, or be satisfied with what they had and retreat?
“I will follow the team leader’s orders,” Karla answered briefly.
“We’ve come this far. Of course we have to see it through……yo.”
Ping Lei still used his odd speech pattern, but their intentions were the same.
“Customer, the final altar is heavily guarded. Would you like to use this item?”
“You be quiet.”
“Huuu. I shouldn’t have made an exclusive contract.”
Mors was trying to peddle his wares again. He grumbled, but he was making a tidy profit by refining monster corpses I asked him to handle and reselling ambiguous rewards to me at a markup. Even without me buying, he was earning handsomely by supplying the Tower with goods he received from me at a premium.
“You. That’s no fun.”
“Jinho-nim is a man without blood or tears.”
I left the pouting Mors behind and headed for the final altar.
The twelfth altar, wrapped in dark clouds. As we closed the distance, the structure that had been only a vague silhouette gradually came into focus.
Jiyoung’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Is this a pyramid?”
“It’s closer to a ziggurat than a pyramid.”
It was a massive temple known in world history as the prototype of the Tower of Babel—a structure resembling the ziggurats of Mesopotamian civilization. It was an act fitting for Klyphoth, which inverted the concepts of good and evil by summoning demons through the reversal of the oldest myths.
“Look at them.”
“Punish those who turn their backs on the truth of this world.”
“We must reclaim the offerings and corrupt the world with evil.”
The black mages glared at us with blood-red eyes.
“Team leader, sir. There are quite a lot of enemies,” Ping Lei said, swallowing hard.
Hundreds of chimeras were stationed below the altar, and several black mages in dark robes waited on the tiered levels above. Beyond the chimera army, a purple barrier protected the black mages on the altar. Approaching recklessly would expose us to indiscriminate magical attacks.
“I have a way.”
“What is it?”
“I’m an all-rounder, remember?”
Ping Lei’s nostrils flared. He looked like he had a lot to say, but he held it in well.
“What? Got a problem?”
“No, sir.”
“Right. You’ve never seen me use magic before.”
I had used Demonic Power only once during the promotion match. At the time, Ping Lei had been eliminated from the battlefield after receiving a death judgment, so he would have only heard stories about my magic from the Chinese players.
“Hohoho, that one underestimates you,” Nyx said with a peculiar smile.
Ping Lei pressed his lips together.
Good. If he wanted to taste it for himself, I would oblige.
“Maintain defensive formation for one minute.”
Demonic Power activated.
All stats converted to Magic Power.
I had just learned a new spell, and I had also figured out a new way to use the Blessing of Greed. It was time to put them to proper use in real combat.
My body grew languid, but my mind became clearer than ever. Mana rearranged itself in an instant. White crystals began to form on the magic circle that appeared in the air.
Ice Spear, a 2-star skill. It had a narrower range than Fireball but superior piercing power.
Blessing of Greed activated.
I wrapped the Ice Spears in dark-red mana from the Blessing of Greed, then cast Ice Spear again. More and more spears of ice formed in the air.
“The vile ones are using tricks.”
“Stop them.”
“Tear that vile one to pieces!”
The black mages issued attack orders first.
“Greeeeh!”
“Greeet!”
The chimeras charged forward, emitting grotesque cries. At that moment, part of the space twisted. Using compression and release, Karla turned the space behind her into propulsion and took the lead, bisecting the foremost chimera with her scythe. The blade vibrated—an empowered strike using her unique ability, Spatial Manipulation. The chimera had no chance to use its regeneration and was split cleanly in two.
“Such imperfect creatures. I shall ease your suffering.”
When Nyx waved her hand, the power of Polar Night swallowed an entire chimera whole.
Crack!
The chimera, crushed within Polar Night, turned into a lump of meat along with the others that had been leading the charge.
“Ping Lei, don’t get too far ahead.”
I gave the order while rearranging my mana. Our coordination was starting to mesh. Even without my direct intervention, they no longer interfered with each other’s movements.
Jiyoung did not simply stand by and watch either.
Vibration Barrier activated.
A hexagonal barrier restricted the chimeras’ paths. When a wall appeared before them, their instinct was to go around rather than break through. Colliding with the Vibration Barrier bought time, and circling around allowed us to guide their movements as intended.
“This is convenient.”
“You can control enemy movement like this with a barrier?!”
Karla and Ping Lei exclaimed in admiration. It was their first time teaming up with Jiyoung, so they might not have known.
“I’m just doing what Master taught me,” Jiyoung said, giving all the credit to me. Her ability to handle barriers was exceptional, but her battlefield awareness had indeed been learned from me, so I did not deny it.
About twenty seconds after activating Demonic Power, ten Ice Spears bound by the Blessing of Greed hovered in the air, ready to be launched.
“This should be enough.”
Blessing of Greed activated.
I fired all the accumulated Ice Spears at once. The razor-sharp spears of ice flew in curving trajectories like guided missiles, piercing into various parts of the altar.
“Why are the Ice Spears moving like that?!”
Ping Lei, who had just beheaded a chimera, let out a startled cry. Normally, Ice Spears flew in straight lines, but the ones I launched curved and burrowed into the altar from all directions.
The Blessing of Greed did more than simply enhance. Baal had used it to erode a swamp and then shape it freely according to his will. I had also transformed water during my fight with Ness. The downside was the high mana and mental strain, but converting all stats to magic power with Demonic Power reduced the burden.
Boom! Kaboom!
The Ice Spears pierced through the purple barrier and embedded themselves inside the altar. A spell focused on penetration, it was far more effective at breaching the wide barrier than Fireball, despite its narrower range.
“Master, that just now……?”
“You’ll see.”
Demonic Power lasted one minute. I had spent a third of that time on this maneuver.
A moment later, the altar shook as if an earthquake had struck, and the barrier surrounding it began to collapse.
“No need to overpower the barrier head-on.”
Using Thousand Eyes, I read the flow of mana and located the barrier’s core. I then deployed a large number of piercing-focused Ice Spears to strike the nucleus. Without the Blessing of Greed to enhance and guide them, I would not have been able to bring the barrier down. It was the result of using my abilities in the right places at the right times.
Flame Ring — Embedded Skill: Fireball activated.
Against the lined-up black mages, this spell was perfect. The fireballs that flew toward the altar exploded.
“Aaaagh!!”
“Fire, it’s fire!”
“Is this what hellfire feels like?”
The black mages caught in the explosions screamed. Look at them overacting. Mages inherently had higher elemental resistance than ordinary people. If they had taken a direct hit from Fireball, maybe, but they were writhing in pain just from the aftershock of the flames.
“Master, they really look like they’re in pain,” Jiyoung said, pointing at a black mage whose arm had turned into black ash. He had only been grazed by the Fireball, yet half his body was crippled.
Ah, right. I was currently using Demonic Power.
“Guess it wasn’t an act.”
I took back what I said earlier. Just wait a little. I’ll free you from that pain.
Ice Spear activated.
An Ice Spear flew in a straight line and pierced the heart of the screaming black mage, who slumped forward. I alternated between Fireball and Ice Spear from a distance. The team could handle the chimeras. My role was to keep the ranged enemies in check.
Black Ice
Crystal Curse
Glacies
Distorted spells blending darkness with ice rained down.
“Master, focus on attacking!”
A hexagonal barrier appeared in front of us. The spells cast by dozens of black mages shattered Jiyoung’s barrier in an instant.
“Tch.”
She generated layers of barriers. Since there was a limit to how many she could manifest at once, she immediately reconstructed the Vibration Barrier the moment one was destroyed. Jiyoung’s barrier held firm against the black mages’ successive attacks without yielding an inch. Her concentration had sharpened considerably.
I trusted Jiyoung and focused on attacking. The black mages deployed defensive magic, but I crushed them with overwhelming magic power.
Demonic Power has ended.
All stats returned to normal.
When one minute had passed, more than half the black mages on the altar were dead. It was thanks to overwhelming firepower and Jiyoung’s cover. With the black mages’ firepower diminished, the team fighting the chimeras also found it much easier.
Soon after, the chimera army surrounding the altar was annihilated. The remaining black mages looked at me with pale faces.
“Kekeke, the first to reach the altar is me!”
Ping Lei stepped onto the stairs with overflowing confidence. At that moment—
A thunderous voice rang out, and a black bolt of lightning fell from the sky.