Chapter 58
Chapter 58
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 58
Chapter Title: The All Master Who Regressed to Bronze
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'Perfect Shot, Concentrated Barrage, Mastery of Clarity.'
Three skills embedded in Chungmugong's bow.
A single arrow fired with those three united as one.
The Great Slayer arrow sliced through air and space alike.
The moment he saw it,
Tarkhan instantly realized this wasn't the kind of attack one could dodge.
"Hup!"
Kwaaaaang!
That was why Tarkhan, mid-charge toward Shin-hyeok,
swung his glaive through the air to smack the Great Slayer aside.
The impact was so ferocious it was hard to believe the glaive had clashed with an arrow. Tarkhan's body, barreling forward like a cannonball, was hurled backward instead.
Kwarrr rumble—
The shock was immense. As Tarkhan skidded back across the colosseum floor, carving furrows into the solid stone, he winced at the humming glaive and the stinging pain in his palms.
Screeeeech!
"What? Already?"
Startled by the sudden whoosh of incoming air, he whipped his head forward.
An impossible speed.
Bows normally required time to nock another arrow.
That was why he'd anticipated Shin-hyeok choosing the bow for his opening attack.
But a second shot this soon? Unthinkable—yet Tarkhan quickly figured it out.
How an archer's attack could be incoming already.
"...Ha, throwing the bow? A move only a warrior who wields multiple weapons could pull off."
Because Shin-hyeok had truly 'used' the bow to attack.
Tarkhan let out a hollow laugh at the sight of the massive bow hurtling toward him, but he reacted instantly.
Force Imbuement Throw
The bow's weight amplified manifold
"Urk! A throw infused with force imbuement. Incredible weight for a bow."
Even that was no joke.
Force Imbuement.
A technique that poured his power into the weapon itself, multiplying the bow's inherent mass.
Feeling himself shoved back even further from where the first arrow had pushed him, Tarkhan converted the pain into fighting spirit the moment he did.
"True Black Demonic Flame, Throw Enhancement, Enhancement, Lethal Strike."
Whoosh!
Kiiiiing!
Kurrrr rumble!
Shin-hyeok hurled the demonic spear with fluid grace, the weapon vibrating as if eager to pulverize anything in its path.
───────!!!
A silent black streak arced through the air.
The instant Tarkhan saw it, he abandoned thought and instinctively shielded himself with his glaive.
Creeeeeeang!
A monstrous shock launched Tarkhan flying backward.
Not just farther than his starting point—he slammed into the colosseum wall.
Kwarrr—
Tarkhan emerged unscathed from the crumbling stone wall and moved at once.
"Return, Thunderhoof Step."
Boom!
Shin-hyeok had already recalled his demonic spear and was charging on Thunderhoof Step.
A speed no ordinary eyes could track—but to an orc great warrior like Tarkhan, the movements were clear.
"Raaargh!"
Kiiiiing!
Crimson battle spirit materialized along the glaive, condensing further.
Sword Aura.
The moment the technique capable of cleaving steel like tofu unfolded,
Shin-hyeok closed the gap on Thunderhoof Step and swung his demonic spear.
Creeeeeang!
The moment Tarkhan met the savage black arc with his glaive and felt the massive rebound,
instead of retreating, he surged forward with a roar.
"Power of the earth, rise!"
"...!"
Kwadududuk!
Thick vines erupted from the colosseum floor, ensnaring Shin-hyeok.
In an instant, the vines wrapped him so tightly he vanished from sight. Tarkhan swung his glaive.
"Earth Shatter!"
Kwaaaaang!
Shockwaves crack the arena floor
The colossal impact rippled from the glaive across the entire colosseum floor, spawning hairline fractures.
A catastrophe born from mere residual force after striking Shin-hyeok. No one could imagine him emerging unscathed—
"Shock Release."
"...Urk!"
Creeeeeang!
From the vines—shattered to powder by the shock—a massive shockwave exploded, sweeping Tarkhan away.
Shock Release, a new skill from the Armor of Absorption's unique-grade evolution.
It had absorbed the power of Earth Shatter via Shock Absorption, then unleashed it. The might was undeniable.
With Tarkhan momentarily repelled, Shin-hyeok emerged from the dust cloud relatively intact and spoke.
"Shamanism. So the orc great warrior is also a shaman."
"Keh, I was once hailed as rivaling a grand shaman. Not bad, eh?"
"Impressive indeed. A dual class of shaman and warrior. A tough combination to face."
In the brief lull, as Shin-hyeok commented on what he'd observed, Tarkhan wiped blood from his mouth and grinned.
His rugged features and sturdy build screamed warrior to anyone.
And Tarkhan was indeed a peerless warrior at the great warrior realm.
But beneath that lay shamanic prowess rivaling a grand shaman.
Combining them made him trickier than facing an orc great warrior and grand shaman separately.
Kiiiiing!
No longer hiding his hand now that shamanism was revealed, Tarkhan activated the tattoos covering his body.
Shamanic tattoos were typically weaker than a true shaman's spells, etched onto a warrior's body.
But Tarkhan was a realm-attained shaman.
Extracting their full power was child's play.
Kwadududuk!
A chilling rupture echoed from Tarkhan's flesh.
As Shin-hyeok tightened his stance against the intensified battle spirit radiating from Tarkhan's empowered body,
"Blessing of the Earth Demon God."
Fwaaaah!
Tarkhan went further.
The blessing of the orcs' god, the Earth Demon God.
With his body doubly enhanced, Tarkhan moved.
Kwaaaaang!
Not leaping from his spot—he exploded it.
Breaking the sound barrier in an instant, his speed was so blinding even Shin-hyeok nearly lost him. But Shin-hyeok quickly activated a skill: Super Sense.
Kiiiiing!
A burning heat flooded his brain as his senses expanded endlessly.
At their peak,
'I see it.'
Capturing Tarkhan's trajectory, Shin-hyeok thrust his demonic spear into empty air.
"Phantom Demon."
"...!"
The moment Shin-hyeok struck, Tarkhan arrived—facing the spear aimed right at him.
Not just tracking him, but predicting his next position. A masterful strike.
Yet Tarkhan didn't stop.
Didadadadak!
The bone necklace at Tarkhan's neck morphed into carapace, instantly sheathing his upper body.
A protective item shamans used for defense—but Tarkhan wielded it purely for offense.
Kadududuk!
Phantom Demon failed to pierce the exoskeleton forged by a realm-attained grand shaman's full power, emitting only a horrific screech.
With the spear half-stuck, Tarkhan's glaive rocketed skyward.
"Tree Splitter."
Kwadudududuk!
A downward smash.
Another overhead like Earth Shatter, but Shin-hyeok sensed its power matched or exceeded the prior strike.
Feeling that, he circulated the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, wrapping his body in demonic energy.
Creeeeeang!
The glaive crashed onto his protective demonic aura, unleashing a deafening boom.
Caught in the shockwave, Shin-hyeok tumbled like a bowling pin before slamming back.
Chrrrrr—
Yet he regained balance, stabbing his demonic spear and holy sword into the ground to brake. What he saw was Tarkhan charging, teeth bared.
"...Nice chompers. No dentist visits for you."
Admiring the orc's pristine white teeth in a playful mutter, Shin-hyeok swung his holy sword and demonic spear.
Kaang! Kang! Kak! Kaang! Kaaaang!
Tarkhan's glaive met them in perfect sync.
In the frenzy of sparks flying wildly, the two closed to breathing distance and accelerated further.
"How far do you plan to keep up?"
"So far, so good."
"...Heh, fun. Come on then."
Kaduk!
Amid the relentless barrage, they traded brief banter before gritting their teeth and shifting their bodies into overdrive.
Kwagagagak!
A mad flurry of blows.
As if their prior exchanges were child's play, they pressed to devour even a sliver more of each other.
"Rising Shackles."
Chrrrrruk!
Tarkhan unleashed ankle-vines from the floor to hinder Shin-hyeok.
Once snagged, they'd coil up the leg entirely.
Of course, only if they caught him.
But as a distraction? Perfect.
Shin-hyeok countered in kind.
Kwaaaaang! Fwoooosh!
The demonic mana-infused fireball detonated, turning the area into a black inferno.
Tarkhan's shackle-vines burned away with screams.
Demonic Flame.
No match for True Black Demonic Flame in quality, but its area coverage was plenty useful.
And the firepower? Surprisingly solid.
Mana-mixed flames synergized well with demonic energy.
Tarkhan was stunned.
"Magic! Dual class? Heh, not content with multiple weapons—you've got magic talent too? I suspected demonic energy from the spear, and with that holy sword, holy power as well. Earth Demon God forbid—what kind of nonsense is this...?"
Mage-warrior dual class.
Tarkhan, with his own shaman-warrior duality, was all the more shocked.
Harmonizing incompatibles wasn't easy.
But Shin-hyeok shook his head.
"Dual class? No way. I'm no dual classer."
"Trying to fool me? Human, the power you've shown is clearly—"
"I can only handle two at most."
"...What?"
"Orc great warrior Tarkhan. You're strong, no doubt. Diamond tier pinnacle, maybe beyond. So I'll get serious too."
"... "
Tarkhan's face had hardened, suspecting deception—but Shin-hyeok's calm demeanor rang true. Alarm bells screamed in his mind.
And he soon learned they were right.
"Rise."
Drdrdrdr!
"Manifest."
In moments, Shin-hyeok filled the colosseum with his undead legion and spirit horde.
He slammed his demonic spear into the ground, leaning casually against the shaft with a smile.
"Know what an All Master is?"
"...!!!"
The All Master's battle—no, war—had manifested in the colosseum.