Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Translation: godtl
KWAZAZAZAZAK!
A deafening thunderbolt.
And a blinding white flash.
It was a phenomenon unimaginable from a single streak of light.
The aftermath left by the beam was equally beyond comprehension.
Yet, as if still unsatisfied—
PAZIK!
The lingering lightning crackled, white Lightning Qi licking across the devastated terrain like a serpent's tongue.
"Fucking hell..."
A voice mingled with awe and horror.
Go Mal-suk gaped at the scene as if witnessing a miracle.
In stark contrast—
"N-no way..."
A trembling voice.
Sing stared blankly at the cataclysmic sight before her.
She couldn't help it.
'Our guild members...!'
Every one of them Gold-rank.
Not just any Gold-rank players, but those who had dominated the upper echelons.
They had even maximized their lightning resistance based on Kim Si-mun's intel.
Their magic resistance was also tuned to a considerable level.
They were practically immune to lightning-based magic among Gold-rankers.
A spec even Platinum-rank lightning mages would find troublesome to deal with.
And yet—
'To vanish without a trace from a single lightning spell?!'
They had all been "erased."
As if brushed away by an indifferent stroke of an ink-laden brush.
Chiii—
Over the scorched black earth, only pale wisps of smoke danced mournfully.
"This... this is impossible..."
Sing stood in stunned disbelief.
Then, into her ear—
"Tell me about it."
A voice carrying similar disbelief whispered.
"Eek!"
Sing immediately swung her arm in response.
Tzutzut—
A heat haze infused with mana sliced through the air, intercepting the incoming kick.
"Damn it! When did you—?!"
Regaining her senses, Sing hastily executed a backstep to widen the distance between her and Go Mal-suk.
"'When did I' what? You're the one who spaced out in the middle of a fight."
"You treacherous bitch! How dare you talk after sneaking up on me!"
"Ha. Are you seriously insane?"
Go Mal-suk stared at Sing with utter disbelief at her enraged outburst.
"Treacherous? Sneaking up? That's rich coming from you assassins who tried to ambush us!"
Since when did ambushers who appeared from behind get to lecture others about treachery?
Disgust crept onto Go Mal-suk's previously dumbfounded face.
"Talk about double standards. Oh wait, you're Chinese—guess I should say 'the pot calling the kettle black' for you to understand?"
"Shut your mouth!"
A barrage of mana spheres flew with her shout.
Go Mal-suk strolled through them as casually as someone on a leisurely walk.
Had there been a broadcast, viewers might have remarked how her evasion resembled Kim Si-mun's movements against the Cockatrice—flawlessly clean.
"Tch!"
Sing's eyes burned with fury as she roughly swung her arms, weaving spells midair.
True to her Platinum-rank mage status—
"Let's see you dodge this! I'll roast you whole!"
In an instant, she completed a 5-star fire-attribute spell.
"Flame Bu—"
The moment she tried to activate it—
Piiing!
A dark beam pierced through the blazing magic circle with a faint hum.
"Guh—hk!"
Sing vomited a mouthful of blood.
Despite her Platinum-rank reflexes—
Twisting her body at the last moment saved her from being impaled, but—
'Damn it! Mana backlash—!'
She couldn't prevent the violent recoil from her spell being disrupted right before activation.
"Pfft—HA! That look suits you perfectly."
"You fucking bitch!"
Go Mal-suk had already closed the distance with a smirk.
Sing wildly swung her arms, unleashing torrents of flame.
Whooosh—!
A cascade of 4-star spells fired without incantation.
Yet even within the deadly rain of fire—
"Oh right. Mages have 'Memorize,' don't they?"
Go Mal-suk moved with such ease—her agility defying any belief she was merely Silver-rank.
"You bitch! You're no Bronze-Silver-Gold trash!"
Sing glared at Go Mal-suk with eyes brimming with suspicion and fury.
"What're you on about? I am Silver."
"Enough of this!"
"And you seem to be under some kind of delusion..."
As Go Mal-suk raised her leg high and stomped down—
BOOM.
"Ghk—!"
Sing's spindly legs wobbled under the crushing weight of Formless Qi pressing down on her entire body.
Then—
"You're the last one who should be raising your voice right now."
Go Mal-suk's fist shot straight for Sing's skull.
"I am."
CRACK!
A deafening explosion of sound.
But what followed wasn't Sing's scream—
"What the hell is this now?"
—but Go Mal-suk's irritation.
Her gaze locked onto the bizarre bracelet coiled around Sing's outstretched right arm.
A barrier had flowed out from it, blocking her punch.
"What do you think? An S-rank defensive artifact—something bottom-feeders like you could never even dream of getting your hands on!"
Sing's voice was bold, but her hands moved frantically.
"Just wait. I'll burn you to ashes with a 6-star spell—not even a trace left!"
"Honestly, this is just ridiculous."
Go Mal-suk let out a dry laugh, unfazed by the razor-sharp threat.
And why wouldn't she be?
'Compared to that bastard Kim Si-mun, this magic is nothing. And she's even chanting every single time...'
That monster who could unleash firepower beyond comparison to this pathetic magic just by flicking his fingers.
Compared to a player like Kim Si-mun—
"Platinum's not so impressive after all. I'll climb up in no time."
"W-what?!"
The Sing before her was far too laughable an opponent.
'Well, he uses alchemy, not magic.'
But in the end, weren't they both Magic Class, manifesting supernatural abilities?
Go Mal-suk smirked and clenched her fist.
Then—
WHOOSH.
Her pupils dyed crimson like fresh blood.
A dark, ink-like energy condensed around her fist.
And so—
Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Strike: Tyrant Emperor Break.
The Heavenly Demon Divine Art, infused with celestial slaughter, crashed into the translucent barrier.
CRACK!
"You've got to be kidding me!"
The S-rank artifact's barrier fractured instantly.
Sing bit her lip hard.
'This barrier can withstand even 5-star magic with ease!'
And yet, it cracked from a single punch?
This wasn't an attack power any mere Silver could possess—
'Are you telling me a damn fist mixed with some Fist Energy is stronger than 5-star magic?!'
That ink-black fist surpassed the might of 5-star spells.
For Sing, a mage, this was a reality she could scarcely believe.
But—
"Tch. Still not enough."
Even after displaying such unreal destructive force—
"If it were him, he'd have shattered it in one hit and turned her into paste by now..."
Go Mal-suk's expression remained grim.
She glanced at Si-mun, locked in fierce combat with Gong Geol-ryun.
Was he really just Gold?
KABOOOOOM!
With earth-shaking explosions, Si-mun was fighting evenly against Gong Geol-ryun—a Diamond.
Shaking her head at the absurd sight, Go Mal-suk turned back to Sing, who was still chanting furiously.
A pitiful sight for someone supposedly of the same Magic Class as Si-mun.
'Right. He's the monster. It's not that I'm weak.'
Snorting, Go Mal-suk—
"Hey. You—Sing, was it?"
—raised her ink-black fist, her eyes burning even redder.
From that moment, all Sing could see was—
"Let's see what comes first—your precious 6-star magic finishing..."
CRACK!
SHATTER.
Not some insignificant Silver trash battering her barrier—
"...or my fist smashing into your face."
—but a reaper, knocking on the gates of hell.
KWA-BOOOM!
A deafening explosion that made their eardrums throb.
Every time Kim Si-mun's Astrapē clashed with Gong Geol-ryun's claws, thunderous blasts erupted without pause.
Amid that fierce exchange.
Si-mun calmly observed Gong Geol-ryun, who was gritting his teeth in frustration.
'So that earlier moment really was a one-time thing?'
Gong Geol-ryun had pierced through Astrapē's lightning.
It had been a sight so astonishing it could make anyone gasp in shock.
But Si-mun hadn't missed the slight flicker of instability in Gong Geol-ryun's movements back then.
And now.
"Cry for me."
Crackle—
Instead of charging forward like before, Gong Geol-ryun dodged the relentless bolts of lightning from Astrapē.
"Tch!"
He chose evasion, widening the distance between them.
"You keep dodging. I take it that immunity of yours was a one-time deal?"
"......"
Gong Geol-ryun remained silent, focused solely on evasion.
Si-mun smirked.
"No, not immunity—a single-use nullification artifact, right? Too bad. Your perfect ambush missed."
"Shut your mouth!"
Gong Geol-ryun ground his teeth at Si-mun's taunting.
But he didn't dare attempt another reckless charge like before.
It wasn't just because he had lost his one-time nullification artifact.
'Against him, lightning resistance is meaningless.'
He had deliberately lowered the performance of his usual equipment just to stack lightning resistance as high as possible.
He had even adjusted his magic resistance to a considerable level.
And yet, what was the result?
'If I'd known it'd be like this, I should've just stuck with my original gear!'
Useless.
He didn't know what that white rod truly was,
but it was mocking all the high-tier resistance he had painstakingly built, delivering violent surges of Lightning Qi instead.
And worse—
'That beam earlier... If I take a direct hit, even I'm in danger.'
He wasn't a tank, but he was a Diamond-rank combat specialist.
By no means should he feel threatened by a mere Gold-rank Magic Class who had just entered the tier.
And yet, this Kim Si-mun possessed firepower that could make even a Diamond-rank combatant's blood run cold.
In fact—
Sssss—
The charred earth and the white smoke rising from his incinerated subordinates were proof enough, weren't they?
Considering their resistance gear wasn't far below his own...
"How long are you going to keep running? You're the one who came here to assassinate me."
Bzzzt!
That white beam from earlier—even a Diamond-rank couldn't guarantee survival against it.
So.
'I have to drag this into a battle of attrition and wait for an opening.'
At the end of the day, the only difference was in firepower.
The fundamental specs separating Diamond from Gold remained unchanged.
So.
'If he keeps spamming lightning magic at that level, his mana will drain soon enough.'
All he had to do was wait for Kim Si-mun's mana to run dry.
And then—
Zzt!
A tiny gap appeared amidst the downpour of lightning.
A gap just large enough to thrust a sword through.
But for a Diamond-rank combat specialist, it was more than enough.
'Just as I thought—his mana's running out.'
Gong Geol-ryun, who had been dodging until now, boldly stepped forward, channeling his Aura throughout his entire body.
SHIIING!
His figure shot through the storm of lightning.
'This is it—'
The distance closed in an instant, and Gong Geol-ryun's eyes gleamed.
"Did you think that was the end?"
Si-mun recited his thoughts aloud as if reading his mind.
Then—
Snap.
A flick of his fingers.
Gong Geol-ryun twisted his body in midair.
CRACK!
A massive stone pillar erupted from the ground, grazing his side.
At the same time, a chilling realization flashed through his mind.
'Don't tell me... he left that gap on purpose?'
An illusion.
And a mere Gold-rank Magic Class, not even a combat specialist, had pulled it off?
But it was too late to turn back now.
"There's no retreat now!"
The only option left was to see this battle through to the end.
Taat.
Gong Geol-ryun twisted his body mid-air, using the erupting stone pillar as a foothold.
"Got you! Thought it was over, didn't you?!"
Abandoning all defense, he focused solely on delivering a single, lethal strike.
Crackle.
Though Astrapē's Lightning Qi struck his body multiple times—
"Haaahhh!"
—he endured it through his full-body lightning resistance and Diamond-rank resilience, then swung his claws, now shimmering with Sword Qi, with all his might.
However.
Kiiing!
With an eerie metallic hum,
layers of golden magic circles rose and spun rapidly in Si-mun's left eye.
Crunch.
His once-slender body became sleeker, harder, and sprouted scales in places.
'What the—?!'
Before Gong Geol-ryun could react to Si-mun's sudden transformation—
Heavenly Demon Divine Art.
Strike: Tyrant Emperor Break.
Si-mun thrust forward the hand gripping Astrapē without hesitation.
Kwa-chuk!
Perhaps due to his abrupt physical change,
the Lightning Qi Si-mun unleashed now burned so intensely it stung the skin.
And so—
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzt!
A deafening metallic roar shook the very earth.
The collision of their forces tore through the air and shattered the ground beneath them.
Oom.
Even the S-rank Mirror Illusion's barrier trembled faintly.
Then—
"This can't be..."
The outcome of this monstrous clash slowly became clear.
'My Sword Qi... is being pushed back by a Gold-rank?!'
Gong Geol-ryun's Sword Qi gradually gave way.
His disbelief was the last thing he felt before—
Kwaaaaaaaang!
A colossal explosion swallowed them both.
Thick dust filled the air.
"Huu."
Si-mun exhaled deeply, flicking his hand lightly as he gazed ahead.
Kiiing.
A brilliant golden magic circle.
Even in the dense dust, Odin's Eye granted him perfect vision.
'Seems he's not dead.'
Like an infrared camera,
Si-mun observed the fallen man through Odin's Eye.
'Well, he is a Diamond-rank combat specialist. No way he'd go down this easily.'
His grotesquely layered lightning and magic resistance aside,
combat-types had the highest stamina of all classes.
But "not dead" didn't mean unscathed.
"As expected... Keugh! You're no ordinary bastard."
Gong Geol-ryun struggled to rise, his right arm now completely gone.
"You... Cough! You're the next Sword Saint in the making..."
Even as he spat mouthfuls of blood, he refused to stop moving.
Si-mun flicked his fingers expressionlessly.
Krrrrrrum.
Lightning crashed down into his palm.
Gong Geol-ryun's face twisted instantly.
'You madman! That technique again?!'
He'd sacrificed an entire arm to nullify that Lightning Spear,
and now Si-mun summoned it with a mere finger flick?
His despair was short-lived.
"Im Wi-jeong! Release the test subjects!"
Gong Geol-ryun snarled viciously.
Then—
"Uuugh!"
"Aaaargh!"
Screams erupted from all directions.
The civilians who had been trapped inside the barrier with them.
Crunch.
Snap.
Their limbs grotesquely swelled,
their heads and torsos stretched unnaturally,
twisting into monstrous forms.
"GRAAAAH!"
"Grrrrrlk!"
Now teetering between human and something else, they turned their menacing growls toward Si-mun.
The irony?
'Those are...'
The twisted civilians felt eerily familiar to him.
"Grrrr!"
"KYAAAAH!"
The mutants charged at Si-mun with threatening howls.
He simply watched them in silence.
"Heh heh... Kim Si-mun, this is your end."
Perhaps mistaking his stillness for fear,
Gong Geol-ryun smirked through bloodied lips, channeling Sword Qi into his remaining claw.
"I'll make sure you pay for this arm!"
Just as the mutants lunged at Si-mun—
Sluice.
The silent man's left pupil split vertically.
"All of you—"
His next words froze them mid-motion.
"Stop.Moving."
Thud.
The charging mutants halted as if time itself had stopped.