Chapter 72
Chapter 72
Chapter 72: Special Arena: Nature's Fall (3)
Translation: godtl
-What the hell?
-No way, did it actually stop?
-What is this lololol.
-Seriously, someone just stopped an elf with words?
-I've never seen magic like this before.......
Soon after.
She trembled ceaselessly, as if her bare body had been exposed to the biting cold of winter.
To be precise.
Pssst.
It would be more accurate to say that the half-human, half-scaled body of the High Elf was shaking uncontrollably.
Si-mun smirked in satisfaction.
'As expected, it works.'
From his previous battles with the Naga and the Cockatrice, he had roughly grasped how to wield the Death Eye.
And unlike back then, he was now channeling Dragon Power as well.
So subduing her with a single command wasn't particularly difficult.
However—
"Ugh... Uuugh!"
Perhaps because the Dragon Power corrupting the High Elf was of a considerable level?
Despite her entire body trembling violently, the High Elf slowly began to rise.
Before she could fully break free, Si-mun concentrated his Dragon Power into the Death Eye once more and spoke.
"Hand over the Spirit Body of the World Tree you possess."
As if entranced,
the High Elf straightened her chest and brought both hands forward.
At the same time, something shrouded in dark green smoke materialized above her palms.
'So this is the Spirit Body of the World Tree? Looks just like a bonsai.'
A small, ancient bonsai.
A dark green spirit body, perfectly resembling that shape, was now presented before Si-mun.
Even as this happened—
Pssst!
"Uuugh!"
Her scaled lower half emitted a faint glow as it continued to resist Si-mun's command.
"I should wrap this up quickly."
The moment Si-mun's fist, infused with Demonic Energy, touched the spirit body—
[High-level Dragon Power detected.]
[Attempting to absorb Dragon Power.]
[High-level Dragon Power fiercely resists.]
Black sparks crackled, delivering a sharp, static-like sting.
'Oh? You wanna fight?'
Si-mun slightly furrowed his brow and ruthlessly crushed the resisting Dragon Power.
Crackle-crackle!
The sparks grew increasingly violent.
But this tug-of-war with the arrogant Dragon Power didn't last long.
[High-level Dragon Power has submitted.]
As if signaled by the message—
Crack!
Like shattered porcelain,
the corrupted Spirit Body of the World Tree broke apart.
The fragments of dark green Dragon Power swirled in the air for a moment before seeping into Si-mun's hand.
[Large amount of high-level Dragon Power absorbed.]
[Dragon Power increased by 50.]
[Converted into Bound Stats for Transmutation Power. Transmutation Power increased by 25.]
"W-what the—?!"
Si-mun was startled by the staggering stat bonus.
And for good reason.
'Fifty?!'
Even by simple calculation, that was equivalent to reaching level 50.
Though only half of it—25—was converted into Transmutation Power due to Bound Stats,
that was still by no means a small number.
'Well, considering it's the Dragon Power that corrupted the World Tree, this much is expected.'
Frankly, it would've been stranger if it were any lower.
Having accepted this, Si-mun reached out toward the collapsed High Elf.
'Philosopher's Stone.'
-Mm!
Perhaps because his Transmutation Power had increased by 25?
[The Philosopher's Stone requires 10,000 Achievement Points to compensate for the insufficient Equivalent Exchange.]
[Do you accept? (Yes / No)]
Along with the Philosopher's Stone's bright voice, a familiar message window appeared.
'10,000 points. That's reasonable.'
After checking the cost, Si-mun selected "Yes" without hesitation.
Vwoom.
The Achievement Points filling the deficit gathered at his fingertips.
With a flick of his wrist—
Plink.
A small seed fragment dropped onto Si-mun's palm.
[World Tree Seed Fragment]
Grade: Mythic
A seed of the World Tree.
Though fragmented, its class remains unchanged.
Unlike the faded entry item, the Broken World Tree Seed Fragment,
this was a clear, radiant green seed fragment.
[Constellation Zeus and Black Goat's eyes sparkle with interest.]
[Constellation Heavenly Demon casts an intrigued gaze.]
Upon seeing it, the Constellations poured out their attention in unison.
Especially—
[Constellation Odin and the gods of Asgard show great interest.]
'Why are they so worked up?'
Si-mun felt a brief moment of curiosity at Odin and Asgard's unusually intense interest, but that was all.
"Aah......"
At the sound of a hoarse voice right in front of him, he turned his gaze.
Like a puppet with its strings cut—
The high elf, who had been slumped limply, had awakened.
Her previously vacant, unfocused eyes now gleamed with vitality.
"Aah!"
With only half her body functional, she struggled toward him.
"Hey. Don't push yourself—just stay there......"
Just as Si-mun was about to approach her—
Goosebumps.
His dragon-transformed body prickled with a chilling warning.
Si-mun instantly twisted his body and flicked his fingers.
Thwack.
In an instant, earthen spikes surged forth.
His Transmutation Power, which had risen by 25 in one go.
And the new 5% potency boost from his recently upgraded title, Pioneer of Alchemy—
Crash!
A near-tidal wave of earthen spikes swallowed the ambusher whole.
Yet Si-mun's brow remained unfurrowed.
Of course it would.
"So this is why Nidhogg-nim's Dragon Power suddenly vanished..."
Through the thick dust—
The black-haired woman emerged completely unscathed, without so much as a scratch.
She looked at Si-mun and smiled deeply.
"Well, well. Something interesting's been happening here."
[Due to special circumstances, all dialogue broadcasted will be muted.]
The sudden message that flashed across the broadcast screen.
Because of it, the black-haired woman's words were inaudible.
-What the hell? Again?
-Is it just me, or can no one hear her?
-Nah, me neither.
-This room's always cutting out lol.
-Aaaah!! Why's the audio gone when this gorgeous noona shows up?!
Si-mun's chat exploded instantly.
But—
-This happened last time too, newbies.
-Calm down, everyone. The sound effects still work, so focus on those.
-"Sound effects" lol. Fair.
-The fact they're censoring this selectively makes me really curious what kind of skills she has.
Viewers who had experienced this before quickly quelled the flaming chat.
Of course, unaware of the chat's chaos, Si-mun could only—
'Tch. Nothing ever goes smoothly for me.'
He let out a dry laugh and kept his eyes fixed on the black-haired woman before him.
"How dare a human be here? More importantly, how did that pitiful body of yours even reach this place?"
Arrogance.
The woman, brimming with that signature draconic pride, lifted her chin haughtily as she questioned him.
Then—
"Wait. You—that eye!"
Her reptilian pupils narrowed further.
She stared at Si-mun, her face a picture of disbelief.
To be precise—
"H-how can a human possess the King's Eye?!"
It was Si-mun's left eye, where the Death Eye had activated.
And Si-mun—
Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Strike: Tyrant Emperor Break.
He didn't let the opening slip.
CRACK!
The woman's massive spear clashed against Si-mun's leg, charged with the Tyrant Emperor Break.
A brief contest of strength ensued—but only for a moment.
"Kgh!"
Unable to fully withstand the force—
The woman was sent skidding backward, leaving deep furrows in the ground with both feet.
"You! You're no ordinary bastard!"
"You're not half bad yourself?"
Mutual surprise flickered between them.
Naturally.
'She blocked my Tyrant Emperor Breakthat cleanly?'
Few could withstand even the basic techniques of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, a martial art of the Constellations—let alone emerge unscathed.
Especially since Si-mun's Tyrant Emperor Break, far surpassing the specs of a Gold-rank, exceeded even the attack power of high-tier Golds.
Yet the woman before him had blocked it with just her spear.
Sure, she'd been pushed back quite a distance—
But the fact that she hadn't taken a single scratch left no room for argument.
The woman glared at Si-mun with murderous eyes.
"Human. You dare refuse to answer me?"
"I don't see why I should."
"Hah! The audacity of a lowly race like yours."
She scoffed.
Then—
"To think I waited for an answer from a mere human..."
Crack.
Her body twisted.
Not just her body.
[How foolish of me!]
A voice utterly unlike anything human.
Simultaneously.
Crunch, craaack.
Her body, which had been nearly 2 meters tall, was now rapidly expanding beyond 4, then 5 meters—and still growing.
Most strikingly—
'Four legs?'
Her once-slender legs had split cleanly in half, dividing into front and rear pairs.
Then—
[I'll carve your limbs to pieces!]
Like a centaur.
A massive form emerged—four-legged lower body, two-armed upper torso.
Her previously soft skin was now covered in jet-black scales.
[Hidden Boss 'General Dranis' has appeared.]
The sudden notification of a hidden boss.
Yet Si-mun remained unfazed, calmly observing the enlarged dragonkin.
"So you're an evolutionary dragonkin."
[Oh? A human who knows of evolutionary species?]
Dragonkin, whose ranks were determined by their innate grade at birth.
Yet even within their rigid hierarchy, exceptions existed.
The prime example: evolutionary dragonkin.
Regardless of their born rank,
evolutionary types could transcend their class through sheer capability.
Naturally, most evolutionary dragonkin wielded power at least on par with upper-level dragonkin.
"Judging by your form, you must be a Dvali evolutionary."
Dvali.
A mid-tier dragonkin species renowned for their quadrupedal mobility and physical prowess.
At his immediate identification of her lineage, General Dranis' sharply slitted eyes gleamed.
[Now I'm growing ever more curious about what's inside that tiny head of yours. Even more so—]
And that gleaming gaze twisted into murderous intent.
[I'll just have to dissect you and find out!!]
With speed belying her massive frame,
Dranis charged forward.
A fitting display for an evolutionary Dvali, hailed as the dragonkin cavalry.
Yet even against this reckless assault—
'I hadn't expected an evolutionary type, but...'
Si-mun remained composed.
Hadn't he already captured a supreme-tier Naga before?
Let alone now, when he'd grown even stronger since then.
'This shouldn't be difficult at all.'
Kiiiiing—!
Channeling Dragon Power into his Death Eye, Si-mun began manifesting Astrapē.
Or rather, he tried to.
Zzzzt—CRACK!
[Kyaaaaagh!]
But before he could complete it, ashen sparks violently restrained Dranis.
The cause wasn't hard to discern.
[Constellation Odin expresses displeasure:"Are you joking right now? Huh?"]
[Constellation Black Goat roars:"You motherf*ckers! Try continuing like this. I'll show you what real suffering looks like!"]
[Constellations Zeus and Heavenly Demon glare in profound distaste.]
Four high-ranking Constellations observing Si-mun.
All radiating palpable displeasure.
As if to prove it—
Zzzt-CRACK!
[W-what is this?! Since when does the Arena penalize players?!]
Even Dranis, bound by the ashen sparks, roared furiously.
At this, Si-mun's eyes widened slightly.
'Player? Did she just say player??'
A fact more shocking than her being an evolutionary dragonkin.
But his surprise was short-lived.
'Well, Marnel was a player too.'
The dwarf girl he'd rescued, Marnel.
Hadn't she also been a participant in the Galaxy Arena?
Even in his past life on Earth, before the official Arena began and other races appeared,
humanity had assumed only Earthlings could join the Galaxy Arena.
But once the regular Arena commenced and multiple species emerged,
the shock of realizing humanity had merely taken its first steps was staggering.
Following this train of thought—
'I see why the Constellations are furious.'
Si-mun quickly grasped the situation.
'An advanced race already in the regular Arena has intruded—of course they'd protest.'
And Dranis' rank likely wasn't Gold either.
As expected.
[Constellation Zeus growls:"We cannot tolerate a Platinum player interfering so directly."]
[Constellation Heavenly Demon smiles lethally:"Moreover, didn't that dragonkin bypass proper entry protocols? I expect wise handling of this."]
The Constellations emphasized Dranis' Platinum status, escalating their demands.
Truthfully, Si-mun could've handled Dranis without their intervention, but—
'This is getting interesting.'
A faint smirk tugged at his lips as he quietly took a step back.