novelburst-info
Chapter 199
Chapter 199
2.
[Story mode]
The Mountain of Hardship.
There are three ways to cross it.
- Cross the cloud bridge that leads over the mountains.
- Pass through the massive underground tunnel.
- Directly traverse the rugged mountainous terrain.
Avoid the giants of the mountain and climb onto the cloud bridge.
Solve the riddle of the sphinx, the guardian of the cloud bridge.
Those who failed at either of these choices were forced to choose between the tunnel and the mountainside.
Some chose the tunnel.
Others chose the mountainside.
And most disappeared without a trace.
It wasn’t because they escaped the Mountain of Hardship.
It was because they died.
[Fallen demons guarding the mountainside.]
[The King of the Abyss lurking in the underground tunnel.]
[Anyone who comes to the Mountain of Hardship—no matter where, the eyes of the Abyss cannot be avoided.]
[If you choose the ground, hope still remains.]
[If you fight with all your might, you can at least save your life.]
[Those who chose the underground.]
[Extinguish the flames.]
[For your nightmare has awakened in the dark.]
[Nightmare, his name is the King of the Abyss.]
[The King of all the fallen and the strongest of the defeated.]
[He has risen.]
[Player mode]
An ominous narration.
Endlessly discordant background music.
The Mole-humans, holding torches to light the dark underground tunnel, screamed in high-pitched terror.
“Tongue—vein!”
“Here too!”
“There! Over there!”
Dutta and the porter hugged each other and trembled.
“This place is so scary!”
“D-Dutta! D-Don’t walk so fast! The monster might hear our footsteps!”
“Ugh! Don’t think such scary thoughts alone!”
Thud. Thud.
The sound of veins pulsing in the walls echoed, and it wasn’t just Dutta or the Mole-humans who were terrified.
The thousand-strong undead soldiers felt the same fear.
[Fallen Demon Army]
[Commander – Right Hand of Great Strength]
[Army – 14,467 fallen demons]
[Condition – Fear, lowered morale, desire to flee]
[Undead Army]
[Commander – Knight]
[Army – 823 undead, 200 cavalry, 22 giant undead]
[Condition – Fear]
[Mole-humans]
[Commander – Dutta]
[Army – 2,055 mole-humans]
[Condition – Fear, lowered morale, desire to dig]
Among those feeling fear, only the undead army, which had achieved many victories with the Massacre Swordsman, managed to hold onto their morale.
The rest, however, were just cannon fodder, thinking only of fleeing.
‘It makes sense. With such a terrifying atmosphere, they’d instinctively want to run.’
A huge, dark barrier of pure darkness formed into a monstrous shape.
[Can you feel your fear?]
[Didn’t you come to me willingly?]
[Why do you regret so late?]
The deep, resonant echo reverberated throughout the tunnel.
The army’s fear reached a new peak.
‘At this rate, I can’t even make a move before the army falls apart.’
Ha Eung Eung jumped off the giant’s shoulder, grabbed a torch from a nearby mole-human, and moved toward the King of the Abyss alone.
Clang! Ka-Kang! Ka-Kang!
Dark strikes aimed at the torch flew toward her.
Attempts to break her forward assault were stopped by sharp counterattacks and solid defenses.
‘Heavy.’
The typical defensive style, deflecting strikes by reading their points of impact.
Her footwork, swordsmanship, and mental discipline worked in harmony, absorbing only about 1% of the shock.
Even that 1% of the shock sent a numbing jolt through her arm.
[An army that knows no fear.]
[Half-demons defying death.]
[That annoying foundation of faith—you are the source of it.]
The bloodthirsty shadows of the darkness grew even more sinister.
[Your arm strength is weak.]
[Your legs aren’t that strong either.]
[Your weight isn’t heavy.]
[You’re not even that large.]
[So, why are you still able to endure?]
The King of the Abyss pondered.
And then he found his answer.
[Faith. Absolute confidence in oneself.]
[That is what is making you strong.]
[You’ve gathered those insignificant beings with confidence.]
[You believe you can handle this.]
[You think you can lead them.]
The shadow of the King of the Abyss grew larger.
[Then let me show you.]
[Let me show you how arrogant your faith is.]
[Let me show you how worthless theirs are.]
The darkness spilled into the tunnel.
Countless tentacles of shadows swarmed and attacked indiscriminately, not sparing the undead, fallen demons, or mole-humans.
“Hold on! The master will seize the opportunity!”
“It’s too late to run. Fight with all your strength!”
<King of the Abyss>
<Phase 1, Shadow Assault>
The King was clever.
Realizing Ha Eung Eung was not someone easily defeated, he turned his attention to the army he had brought with him.
As the army was pushed back, fearful and retreating, hundreds of casualties started to pile up.
‘But it was foolish. Who did he think he was distracting himself from?’
The darkness thinned as it dispersed.
That thin barrier was torn apart by Ha Eung Eung’s <Disruption of Power> sword technique.
[The ability to disrupt the energy of the dimension in an instant. Is this the power of a monster?]
What would he do now?
Ha Eung Eung’s Massacre Blade vibrated in her hand, filling the air with a deadly hum.
Before the vibrations of the blade dissipated, a similar reverberation echoed from beyond the thin barrier.
Whoo—whoo—
“!!”
[Now I get it. This kind of sword, huh?]
The King of the Abyss held a dark sword in his hands.
The shadowy blade clashed with Ha Eung Eung’s Massacre Blade.
Whooosh!
Whooosh!
Like a brush cutting through the air, Ha Eung Eung’s Massacre Blade left thick crimson trails in the air.
The dark sword of the King of the Abyss mirrored that movement, leaving dark trails through the air.
[A will of massacre forged through tremendous killing.]
[Do you think the King of the Abyss lacks that kind of will?]
As the Massacre Blade and the dark sword collided, the clash of the blades grew more intense.
It wasn’t just the sound increasing.
The size of the dark sword also grew in real time.
What started as a short sword, suitable to be wielded in one hand, had now grown into a sword so large and long that it required two hands to swing it.
‘A weapon made not of steel but of shadow. The size of the sword is changing according to the magnitude of the energy contained within it.’
The battle had escalated.
Ha Eung Eung’s blow was deflected.
Beyond that, the King of the Abyss pushed back, utilizing incredible strength and speed, deflecting her attacks while maintaining dominance.
He displayed a strength that seemed to surpass all the enemies Ha Eung Eung had faced in Half-Demon Mountain.
‘The Demon Lord of the Abyss... He’s on a level that makes even the Demon Generals seem fleeting.’
It was true that the King of the Abyss was a powerful being—once the strongest demon in the Abyss.
But in this realm, the true test of power came when both the Abyss and the Mortal Realm collided.
The strength of the King of the Abyss was unmatched by any that had come before him.
[Strange energy distribution.]
[He risks an uncontrollable danger, adjusting the flow of power by managing the cycle’s boundaries.]
[???? ????]
[I can’t imitate this.]
[But there’s no need to imitate.]
[If I can exert the same speed and power without taking the risk, there’s no reason to keep gambling on self-destruction.]
Indeed.
Ha Eung Eung was gambling with her own body, using techniques so dangerous that failure would tear her apart.
The King of the Abyss, however, only needed to raise his strength and speed to keep up with her.
‘A battle of attrition won’t work against him. Is it my forces that will wear down first?’
Between the flashing lights of their swords, Ha Eung Eung’s Massacre Blade vibrated with an immense force.
The very blade and Ha Eung Eung’s body seemed to erode in real-time.
‘I understand that speed and continuous attacks won’t work. Then I’ll settle this with a decisive strike.’
The continuous, torrential attacks stopped abruptly.
Instead, a slow-moving great sword began its advance.
[That’s a strange move.]
The dark sword, which had been swinging at the same speed and power, shattered like a paper torn by a grinder.
It left no trace, disintegrating completely.
What seemed like a sluggish blade in appearance was in fact a great sword carrying an amplified frequency of vibration.
No matter how fast or strong the quick attacks had been, they couldn’t avoid or block the single strike that came next.
[It forces its path.]
[If you try to dodge, you’ll take massive damage. Even if you block, you can’t avoid the damage.]
[This is truly heavy.]
[So it’s a great sword.]
The King of the Abyss’s body was ripped apart beneath the massive weight of Ha Eung Eung’s sword.
His darkness veil shattered, piece by piece, like a rainbow scattering in the light.
The King of the Abyss’s true form finally revealed itself beneath the layers of darkness.
[Then, I won’t hold back.]
The shadow tentacles that covered the entire tunnel rained down, covered in the blood of the fallen demons and undead.
<The King of the Abyss>
<Phase 2, Blood Memory>
The fallen demons who had just been defeated now imitated the shapes of their previous forms, recreating the techniques and movements of the King of the Abyss’s servants.
Though their strength and speed were diminished compared to when they were in full control, the residual energy from the blood they had taken returned to the King of the Abyss, quickly regenerating his dark veil.
Clang!!
The dark veil of the King of the Abyss regenerated faster than it could be destroyed.