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Chapter 76
“Huu…that was close.”
I exhaled as I looked down at the body that had been split in half.
My mana was exhausted after winning by the skin of my teeth.
I haven’t reached the Transformation Realm of A-Rank yet, so in order to use qi intent, I had no choice but to pour out my mana inefficiently.
If he had regenerated his body a few more times, I wouldn’t have been able to maintain my qi intent and collapsed.
But fortunately, thanks to Elizabeth and Jane’s wit, I was able to finish him off.
I didn’t know how on earth they had found his weakness, but they had succeeded in seizing the relic that was hidden somewhere here.
In fact, until now I didn’t expect anything from them. But unexpectedly they had given me a commendable assist.
I’ll have to praise them when we return.
It had been almost six months since I started the second round.
I felt as if my plan to form a team with useful party members and not solo play in this round was somewhat taking shape.
As I had felt in the last round, no matter how strong I was by myself, I couldn’t deal with all the demons alone.
In the first place, it didn’t seem like the content was designed to be done solo.
The moment when I was enjoying the lingering feeling after a battle, suddenly I felt something out of place.
Why wasn’t there a level up message yet?
After defeating such a strong opponent, at worst I should have gone up one level.
Don’t tell me…he still had a breath of life?
In order to make it a little more certain, the body which had been split in half, was cut finely into smaller pieces. Now it was hard to even recognize that this had been a person.
But despite that, no experience came.
What was this…?
The moment I questioned it, suddenly, the red crystals spreading in the cave began to emit light and melt to the ground.
Soon, the corpse of Old Drakedog that had been chopped also melted into a pulp and was absorbed into the ground.
And…
Rumble–!
The inside of the cave shook loudly, then from the walls around me, gruesome blood and lumps of flesh flowed down.
Blood and flesh clung to the walls little by little and solidified as the size of the cave shrunk rapidly.
Shit!
I tried to cut down the walls, but it was hard to do with just a sword in this spacious cave.
Did a spell trigger when Old Drakedog died?
At this rate, even the entrance to the boundary will disappear.
It was a pity to leave here without having gained any experience from killing Old Drakedog, but it was better than being trapped in here.
I ran straight to the entrance of the boundary.
With the feeling of my body passing through something, the surrounding landscape changed again.
The sight of the construction site scene with a tent cast over it. It was the underground passage where I had first walked in to find a red crystal.
But if there was one thing that had changed since then, where the boundary originally existed, there was a dark vortex there.
“That’s…the hell.”
The vortex that I couldn’t see through continued to spin and increase in size.
Rumble–!
As a result of the quickly expanding vortex, the spacious underground shook violently as if there was an earthquake.
And finally, the inner walls that couldn’t overcome the pressure broke and lumps of cement began to fall from the ceiling.
Boom–!
Boom–!
I quickly transformed into gas and moved between the falling structures.
Boom—! Boom–!
I continued upward as I avoided the series of collapses.
After some time, I was finally able to move above ground.
As thick dust soared and settled, a large bottomless sinkhole appeared.
The underground was completely destroyed.
Such a sight of devastation seemed as if a 9.0 magnitude earthquake had occurred.
I would have liked Old Drakedog to have died along with it, but I was sure I would have leveled up if it was going to end so easily.
Sure enough, Red Velvet Curse was vibrating like crazy. And then…
He was coming.
From the bottomless pit, something with an overwhelming presence was ascending.
Bang–!
Soon, from the collapsed sinkhole, a red giant burst through.
As soon as he landed on the ground on all fours, the ground shook so hard that it was hard to keep my balance.
Boom–!
And when I caught sight of him, I became at a loss for words.
“…”
I looked at the guy I had just killed.
Lustrous scales flowing down and two menacing horns on his forehead. A strange creature that seemed to be a mix of half dog and half lizard.
He was about 300 meters tall? It felt as if I was standing in front of a large cruise ship.
Around his neck, bright red flames swelled like a mane.
Although he didn’t have wings, his appearance was really similar to a dragon found in many games.
“What…the.”
A vain laugh leaked out.
Did this make sense? A guy who looked like a kobold suddenly became a dragon?
In some versions of D&D, kobolds were classified as dragon type, but this seemed a little ridiculous no matter how I looked at it.
“Keuruuu–”
Growling under his breath, a cloud of dust around him fluttered.
“How dare you push me this far…”
My body trembled unconsciously at the killing intent he emitted.
A phenomenon that happens regardless of one’s will.
I had felt his killing intent from the first moment I saw him, but now my body was pressed several times further than it was then.
His existence was something that stimulated the instinctive fear in humans.
Was this the Dragon Fear from legends?
“I ended up pushing my luck because I prolonged the fun. I didn’t expect to make such a mistake.”
He said with an air of contempt. There was no more playfulness in his voice.
“Now it’s really over for you.”
An enormous amount of mana was drawn around him. Bright red flames surged and leaked between the slight gap of his mouth.
“There won’t even be a corpse left.”
As he said, if I get hit by that attack, I’ll die without even leaving any ash behind.
Even with the skill to regenerate, it would be impossible to recover from such an attack.
That was…If I had to guess, he was almost S-Rank.
Like the Elf King who used to control a vast forest in the past, his existence itself was a natural disaster.
As such, the destructive flame erupted towards me.
The enormous flame that dyed the whole world red. It felt as if the sun was coming increasingly closer.
Everything in its path disappeared and the surrounding asphalt melted like butter.
Along with the overwhelming heat, the surrounding landscape became distorted like an abstract painting.
But…
“Who is to say it’s really over?”
I kept Red Velvet Curse on my waist as I took out Dragon Sword Gram.
[ You’ve encountered a Villain. ]
[ You’ve encountered a Giant. ]
[ You’ve encountered a Dragon. ]
I infused all my remaining mana to increase Gram’s size to its limit.
The sword that obstructed in front of me was like a giant barrier.
And when the sword and the flame collided, all the flames that seemed to burn the world were sucked into Gram.
“H-how…?”
He looked at me with a puzzled look.
“I’ll use it well. Ahjussi.”
I swung Gram at such a guy. The giant sword, extending to tens of meters in size, cut through the air as it fell.
And finally, the moment the giant blade arrived,
Bang–!
The gigantic figure was engulfed in a pillar of fire that soared to the sky.
* * * * * * * * * *
Old Drakedog was a man who had everything from birth.
Not only was he the successor of the Kowloon Group, Hong Kong’s No. 1 company, he was a genius who had an overwhelming talent in martial arts.
He became proficient in the Kowloon’s breathing method that was passed down from generation to generation by the ripe age of 10, and by the time he had become like the Daeheungsa at 20 years old he had developed his skills to the extent that there were no traces of the original breathing method…
(T/N: Daeheungsa means Buddhist Grandmaster.)
“Son, you’re the pride of our Kowloon.”
His father cherished him and had high hopes for him.
Although they had come to a new world called Earth and had formed such a group from nothing, there was still a feeling of inferiority compared to when they were originally called the Underworld Alliance in murim.
And his son, who was born with such talent, was like an irreplaceable treasure.
His father who had such a distinguished son could only live with regret each day.
“Son. I’m ashamed to say this, but I’m sorry that father has no talent.”
“Father. Don’t say things like that. For me, this life is enough.”
“No. I just gave you a few pennies. I couldn’t even give you a decent martial art. Still, you grew up so well.”
“…”
“Son, you’re a dragon. You’re too outstanding for this father to carry. So I’m going to hand over the power worthy of you from now on.”
“What do you mean…?”
“You will reign over the scattered murim clans in the local areas. Therefore, I intend to build a castle and have you inherit it. If Kowloon Tower is completed here…No one will be able to ignore you in the future.”
As such, his father purchased vast lands and began to build a castle for his son’s future.
He respected his father.
In spite of him not having talent in martial arts, to create such a large company in an unfamiliar land, he thought it was a feat no other from murim could have ever accomplished.
So in order to fulfill his father’s dream, he trained day and night.
For the day when Kowloon Tower was completed.
To be an outstanding son worthy of the castle built by his father.
But…
His hope was broken in an unexpected way.
“…Fuck! What is that supposed to mean? That’s all lip-service, but in the end, you’re telling us to die to clean up your mess!”
A man suddenly appeared one day. He introduced himself as someone from the World Government.
“Hoho, don’t take it the wrong way. This is simply a request for ‘cooperation for the sake of world peace.”
“Fuck! It’s no different! You…What do you think Kowloon is to make such a request?!”
“Rather, I’m making this proposal out of respect for you. In fact, we haven’t contacted you because until now you were at the level of a neighborhood gangster. So you should be proud.”
“Wh-what! A-are you looking down on me, you son of a bitch?!”
“Hmm…Well, you don’t have to accept the offer if you don’t want to. However, I guess you don’t know because you’re a first generation immigrant and it hasn’t been long since you came here…You best learn this one thing. So far, anyone who has gone against ‘us’ has never been left intact.”
“Don’t think you can threaten me, get lost!”
After the man’s visit, the Kowloon Group began to collapse as if it had been planned.
The factory workers suddenly declared a strike, and every time a hero and a villain fought, coincidentally, facilities operated by Kowloon Group would suffer damage.
In addition, as the media spread the fact that the Kowloon Group was formed from the once Underworld Alliance, all the funds of the company were blocked…
The Kowloon Group, once called Hong Kong’s No. 1 company, in less than a few years, rapidly declined.
“It’s the company I started…I can’t lose everything like this…”
“Don’t give up, father. Didn’t father survive even in the Underworld Alliance? There’s no way you would fall like this.”
“R-right! How have I lived my life?! I can’t die like this! I’ll tenaciously live and have my revenge against them!”
But some time after that.
His father took his own life after leaving a will to give all his assets to the government.
A sudden death. He found it difficult to accept.
Father…didn’t kill himself.
The very father who had vowed revenge just a few days ago. He refused to believe such a father would give up everything.
He thought all of this was a plot by the World Government.
In particular, he became convinced when no media outlet properly reported on such a big event.
All relevant information was concealed and on the Internet, all pages related to the Kowloon Group were either locked or deleted.
From then on, he did everything he could to uncover the truth.
He abandoned his pride and asked for help from acquaintances he knew in the past, and visited courts and media outlets to voice his injustice.
But no one gave him a hand.
Occasionally, those who sympathize with him promised help, but even they changed their attitude shortly after.
“O-old man! I-Isn’t this different from what you had promised?”
“I’m sorry…In order for me to live, I had no choice.”
“What the hell are you so afraid of?! No…Please tell me just that! What threats have you received from the World Government?!”
“I can’t tell you that either…I’m so sorry.”
It was like fighting a ghost.
He was already sure who had done this, but he couldn’t find any evidence.
After fighting such an invisible enemy, he grew tired day by day.
After some time, a man appeared in front of him.
A man wearing armor engraved with sacred patterns. It was a powerful man he wasn’t confident dealing with.
The man was certainly someone with no good intentions who was sent by the World Government, and sure enough. Drawing his sword out of the blue, the man spoke.
“Everything is according to God’s will. Don’t resent it too much.”
“Keuk!”
After stabbing his heart as was, the man left without looking back.
Ah…wh-why…
In an increasingly blurred consciousness, he thought.
He had more talent than anyone else, but in the end, he couldn’t protect anything.
If only he was a little stronger, he thought he wouldn’t have failed to get revenge and died like this…
And at that moment, like an illusion, he heard someone’s voice in his head.
“Huh? This is a pretty good vessel.”
“Human, pledge your whole self to me.”
“If you do, you’ll be able to achieve your goal.”
Just from listening to the voice full of malice made him dizzy.
He could see that this existence that had approached him had no good intentions. It used honeyed words, but waiting at the end was definitely only destruction.
However, he asked it.
What…can…you give…me?
“I can give you unlimited power.”
Power. It was what he wished for more than anything else.
Upon hearing that, he accepted the offer.
From now on…I’ll follow your wishes.
And from that day on, with his soul in a new body, he became an Apostle of Angra Mainyu.
A body resembling his own spirit.
Although he was of humble birth like a dog, he dreamed of becoming a dragon more than anything else, so as a mixture of dog and dragon, his body had become like Kowloon(dragon).
But he didn’t care how he looked.
Angra Mainyu will be resurrected one day and this world that had taken everything from  him will perish.
When that happens, he will be reborn as a true dragon.
And so, he worked hard in the dark underground for many years to revive Angra Mainyu.
But…
The power he had gained by giving everything was losing to a simple child.
And, it was a very disastrous one-sided battle.
The flames wrapping his body was melting his scales that were tougher than steel. He squirmed in pain.
“Kueueuruu!”
How many times has this been?
Every time he spewed flames at the boy, he would absorb it and return it.
Keuk…breath won’t work. I have to attack him.
He endured the pain and spun his huge body.
Woom–!
The tail as large as a ship swung at the boy. The wind pressure created by the overwhelming mass and speed created a small typhoon in the area.
“Diiieee!!”
From above the tail, a giant sword as big as a building, rotated and came down.
Bang–!
The surrounding buildings were destroyed as the blade struck.
Swiik–
“Keeuaak!”
The neatly cut tail fell to the ground and smashed the nearby buildings.
While screaming in pain, he heard the boy’s voice full of playfulness.
“Tail cut!”
A smile as if just having fun.
Just as he had played with the boy earlier, now, on the contrary, the boy was mocking him.
A large amount of blood poured from the cut tail.
The surrounding area became flooded with bright red blood as if a dam had collapsed.
He forced the bleeding to stop by blowing flames on the severed section.
“Keuek…”
He felt his head spin. When has he ever felt this kind of pain?
Without the help of the relic, he had no choice but to feel all the pain vividly.
Soon, the sword of overwhelming size came down again.
Wuung–!
D-dangerous!
He hurriedly twisted and lowered his head.
However, it was impossible to be as nimble as before because of his enormous size.
“N-no!”
Bang–!
The head that couldn’t escape was hit directly from the side by the sword.
A pair of large, sharp horns fell, scattering debris in all directions.
“Kueaaak!”
He couldn’t understand. His scales and horns were harder than any metal in the world, so why did it break so easily as if it was a toy when it touched the blade?
What ability was it?
“Hehe…let’s stop destroying the place. I can kill you now, right?”
He heard the boy’s murmur in his ears.
As if it was the end of a game. The boy held the giant sword and stood as if he was about to swing.
Th-this is dangerous!
He couldn’t die here. In order to get revenge, he had to survive somehow.
I-I have to get out of here!
He dragged his limp legs and ran for his life.
“I guess it’s an unwritten rule to run away when you’re on the verge of dying. There’s no place to hide, so how far can you go?”
The boy’s presence behind his back drew near like a messenger of death as he wielded his sword playfully, destroying buildings around him.
Bang–!
Bang–!
The sound was getting closer and closer.
N-no…! I’m going to die at this rate.
His head was filled with the fear of death that he had long forgotten. The moment when he felt the end of his life,
Huh?!
He saw the women from earlier hiding in one corner. These were the thieves who had stolen the relic.
They still held the relic in their hands, frozen by the Dragon Fear he was emitting.
Y-yes!
He would be able to regenerate his body again if he regained the relic that connected to Angra Mainyu.
“Keuruu!”
With a feeling of holding onto his last hope, his giant mouth came down.
And at that moment,
“Shit! My reward!”
Noah suddenly appeared, pushing Jane far away and taking her place instead.
And…
Crunch–!
The dragon’s teeth, which were harder than steel, ripped the asphalt in its entirety and Noah was swallowed whole.
Gulp–!
Everything had happened in an instant, so he couldn’t easily grasp what had just happened.
Wh-what the hell…?
There were only deep teeth marks when he looked down at the ground.
The fearful boy was nowhere to be seen.
“I…I won…?”
He uttered in a stunned voice. A moment later,
“I won…I won! Keuahaha!!!”
At last when he finally accepted reality, he burst into laughter to the point where the air resonated.
One of the women who saw it screamed.
“N-nooooo!!!”
Such a voice was like music to his ears right now.
“Good…Very good! Now that I have dealt with the nuisance, all I have to do is take back the relic.”
Having regained his composure, he looked down at the two women as his mouth tore open.
“But before that…I’ll give you two an especially painful death. Keuheu.”
* * * * * * * * * *
“Hmm…”
Things had become complicated. Of all things, Elizabeth and Jane had to be there and get caught in the battle.
This was why games could be ruined if there was a troll on the team.
“Haa…”
I didn’t think my second round would end like this.
However, when I thought the Challenge I had been working so hard on might disappear, my body instinctively reacted.
“…I’m glad I’m still alive at least. But, where the hell am I?”
There was only darkness all around me.
It was a place where even I, who had gained night vision through gene awakening, cannot see a single light.
< Twin Fire Eggs >
I summoned Buldol and Alsun to light up the surroundings.
Soon, a vast space, reminiscent of an olympic stadium, appeared in front of my eyes.
“What’s this place…?”
There was flesh all around me. And for some reason, the structure looked familiar.
It was like the cave inside the boundary earlier.
Perhaps the cave was somewhere in his body.
However, if there was one difference from the previous situation, there was no way out of here now.
While there was an entrance to the boundary earlier, now all the walls were covered with flesh with no end in sight.
In addition, since there was not much mana left in the current situation, it seemed it would be difficult to force myself out.
“Hmm…what the hell am I supposed to do?”
At that moment, a breeze came from the depths of the cave.
There was still wind even in this closed space?
I looked in the direction with hope. Soon, there came a voice that resembled a tortoise.
Grruu—!
What?
When I had such a question, the sound that came closer and closer finally revealed its true nature.
Woosh–!
As if a floodgate had opened, turbid colored liquids flushed in without reserve.
?!
The contaminated liquid hit my body. Immediately, the flesh it had touched began to melt as if I was thrown into lava.
“Keuk!”
Transcendent Regeneration was activated. Although my melted body was recovering rapidly, I couldn’t hold out for long as my mana would run out at this rate and I would die.
“Damn it! I need an answer…”
The recovery rate was getting slower and slower.
As the incoming liquid melted the top layer of my skin and penetrated the layer beneath, there was only one thing on my mind.
…I needed mana.
I instinctively put my hands on the walls and activated Vampiric Touch.
Then, at that moment, along with the vast mana, like the people I had absorbed in the past, a notification appeared.
[ Found xxx’s genetic factor. ]
[ Value will increase if you consume the same gene. (However, please be careful because the vitality of the absorbed target will permanently be reduced.) ]
“This…?”
Was it what I thought it was? This gene was also dormant in my blood?
I accepted it without needing to think twice.
And as if my guess was right, once the hidden gene was uncovered, < Gene Awakening > was activated.
[ Dragon genetic value has increased. ]
And then…
When I saw it, I shouted without hiding my smile.
“Hehe…Buldol, Alsun. Don’t leave anything here and eat it all! This is good for your growth!”
And so, I became a parasite in the belly of a dragon and began to absorb its mana.
____