Chapter 806

There’s an old saying that’s been passed down in the Murim for ages.

A Third Rate swordsman gets beaten to death by street thugs. A Peak master dies fighting a master like himself. But the only things that can kill a Supreme Peak master are his own arrogance and carelessness.

That was how martial artists saw Supreme Peak masters.

Beings to be marveled at and feared.

While everyone else wandered Murim’s treacherous mountains, they stood on the highest peaks and looked down on them all.

But there was no such thing as invincible in this world.

Even among those who reach the chosen realm, there are clear differences in strength.

People looking up from below couldn’t tell. Those who stood on peaks of their own could see and feel someone else beyond the thick fog—standing higher or lower than they were.

I was no different.

Shwaa!

A sharp gust burst from the spearhead as I slashed down at an angle.

It tore apart the limbs of monsters unlucky enough to cross its path and shot toward its target, only to die away amid a tremendous roar.

—Kyaaaaa!

The shockwave imbued with magical power faded along with the wind.

I stared at the monster that had canceled out my spear strike with a single roar.

Strong.

Magical power boiled all around me, prickling my skin. The air tasted bitter and stale with every breath.

Manticore Lord.

A monster straight out of myth. A leader strong enough to be called a Lord even among its own kind.

Step.

The moment its lion-like forepaw touched the blood-soaked sand, it vanished from where it stood and tore through space.

Boom!

As fast as the wind. Faster, even.

In some ways, it was far more troublesome than Leviathan, the last named monster I’d taken down.

Leviathan had possessed far more magical power. But the strength I’d felt from this thing earlier, together with the speed it was showing now and the size of its body, made it better suited to one-on-one combat than mass slaughter.

And there’s the Lycanthrope Champion, too.

I couldn’t afford to let my guard down.

I watched the two S-rank monsters and kicked off the ground at just the right moment, sending a Sound Transmission to the Skeleton King.

—Don’t lose and embarrass yourself.

No answer came.

The Death Knight Legion Commander had summoned a Nightmare—a ghost horse that was an A-rank monster in its own right—and was leaping high into the air to come crashing down on the Skeleton King.

BOOM!

A thunderous crash erupted behind me, already far off in the distance. The Skeleton King’s voice rang across the battlefield.

“A mere legion commander dares challenge me? Kneel before your king!”

It would have been ideal if the Death Knight Legion Commander had knelt and sworn allegiance. But reality wasn’t so accommodating.

They already served another master, and right now a tail and claws brimming with magical power were bearing down on me.

BANG!

The spearhead of White Flame shuddered as I held it upright to block the attack.

But unlike our earlier clash, this time they were the ones who had to back off.

Whoosh! Slice!

I brought the spearhead down without hesitation. It sliced through the half-man, half-beast Lycanthrope Champion’s huge, hook-like claw as easily as tofu.

Not a difficult opponent.

If it were the only one.

—Grr?

The Lycanthrope Champion let out a startled growl and stumbled backward. I was about to cut it in two when the Manticore Lord’s tail—knocked aside by my spear—writhed like a snake and lunged for my face.

Whoom!

The wind pressure brushing past my neck felt as heavy as a block of iron.

But I’d already seen that move once.

If I’d been facing all three of them alone, I would have been in real trouble. Now, things were different.

One at a time.

Fwoosh.

The Lycanthrope Champion saw the flames gathering in my hand and twisted away, but it was half a beat too late.

No. I was faster.

BOOM!

The Flame Divine Palm struck it dead-on and sent it sliding backward. It clutched its blackened arm and let out a roar that sounded almost like a scream.

—GRAAAAAH!

Too bad.

It was the weakest of the three, but an S-rank monster was still an S-rank monster. My strike had missed its intended target—its chest—by a hair.

One strike. One more will finish it.

But the Manticore Lord was every bit as cunning as it was strong.

Just as I moved to swing my spear and finish off the Lycanthrope, it came for my back faster than it had moved at any point so far.

BOOM!

I blocked the claw that crashed down like lightning.

The spear shaft shook under the tremendous pressure, and my legs—usually free to move even in the desert—sank deep into the sand.

That, too, was part of its plan.

Shwaa! Thud!

Its tail slammed into my side with more weight and force than a battering ram.

The stinger on its tip couldn’t pierce all the way through my Fire Dragon Armor, but I had to bear the full force of the tremendous impact it delivered.

“Ugh…!”

My vision went hazy. Something hot surged up through my chest.

I swallowed the blood rising in my throat and reached out through the blur.

Open Inventory. Summon.

As one hand left the spear shaft, the pressure on it grew heavier. I drew a dagger from my Inventory and swung it in a flash.

Shhk, slice!

There was only one sound of cutting, but three thin lines appeared across the iron-hard tail.

The Manticore Lord’s eyes widened as it tried to crush me beneath its two massive forepaws.

FWOOSH!

Blood belatedly sprayed from the faint lines like a fountain.

Its jaws gaped wide in pain, releasing the stench of countless deaths.

—GRAAAAAAAH!

The lion-like roar it unleashed right in my face left my ears ringing.

No. My eardrums had to have burst.

You son of a bitch.

I clenched my teeth, feeling hot blood run from my ears.

As the force bearing down on me briefly eased, I drove the dagger still in my hand into its ribs.

Thud!

The Force on the dagger came from Scorching Yang Qi.

Its lava-like heat cut through tough hide and flesh, broke bone, and burned through what lay inside.

Sssss!

—GRAAAAH!

—Kyaaaaa!

The Manticore Lord’s cry seemed to come twice, the sounds overlapping like audio from broken earbuds. Maybe it was because my eardrums had burst.

But my instincts told me I wasn’t imagining it.

This…

They were different cries. I hadn’t misheard.

The first was a scream of pain. The second was a roar of rage.

And my bad feelings were never wrong.

Lycanthrope Champion.

As its name came to mind, the half-man, half-beast monster I’d briefly forgotten lunged at me from behind.

Shwaa!

Its speed was dazzling—every bit worthy of an S-rank monster.

One arm swung at its side as though it might crumble to ash at any moment. The other was still sound, and when it swept that arm toward me, its hooked claws flashed.

Too late to pull out the dagger and swing it.

Countless movements and possible futures flashed through my mind in that instant.

In the end, only one choice remained.

As the world seemed to slow around me, I let go of the dagger lodged in the Manticore Lord’s ribs and thrust out my palm.

Fwoosh—crack!

The internal energy I’d hurriedly drawn up scattered. Flames burst apart.

Dizzying pain shot through my hand. I stared at the silver claw that had pierced my palm and emerged from the back of it.

…Fuck.

It had stopped just short of my face. I couldn’t help swearing.

But that wasn’t the end of the pain waiting for me.

Crack. Crunch!

Bones shifted, and a neck stretched out like a turtle’s.

With my life hanging in the balance, the Manticore Lord finally used the ability it had cunningly kept hidden. Its neck shot over the spear shaft between us, bringing its jaws straight at me.

—GRAAH!

Its mouth gaped all the way to its ears like a ghost from a horror story, reeking of rotting corpses. At the sight of its huge, saw-toothed teeth, every hair on my body seemed to stand on end.

“…!”

A chill ran down my spine.

If those jaws closed on me, I was dead.

I twisted with all my strength. The teeth that had been about to swallow my head whole brushed my hair and sank into my collarbone.

Or rather, into the red armor covering it.

CRUNCH!

Beep. Beep-beep!

System

Part of your Fire Dragon Armor has been damaged!

The durability of your Fire Dragon Armor has dropped significantly!

Danger! Danger! If you are exposed to another attack like that, your Fire Dragon Armor may be automatically returned to your Inventory!

Manticore Lord’s Venom has entered through a gap in the damaged armor!

Status abnormality Poisoned has been applied!

Detoxify as soon as possible! If you do not detoxify within the time limit, your condition may worsen!

Damn it. What the hell is this now?

I’d thought my collarbone felt a little prickly. Now, out of nowhere, it was venom?

All I’d been born with was a pair of balls. This bastard was named-monster level, and it had more damn abilities than I could count.

“…Human!”

Even in the middle of his own fight, the Skeleton King had somehow seen what happened. His urgent shout came from far behind me.

But despite his worry, I had no intention of dying here. Not even the slightest.

If anything, I was almost glad that being Poisoned had dulled my senses.

At least now I wouldn’t feel much pain from what I was about to do.

“Thanks for the help, you son of a bitch.”

At my barely audible whisper, the Manticore Lord’s eyes widened.

I dropped White Flame from my free hand and slammed that hand into what I guessed was its throat.

Thwack!

A heavy blow.

The Manticore Lord caught its breath, malice filling its eyes.

Thud!

Its teeth drove in harder than before, prying open the gap in my Fire Dragon Armor and sinking deep into my collarbone.

Beep. Beep-beep. The warnings rang in my ears, but the pain had faded even further. I could move my hand without a care, though its palm was little more than raw flesh caught on a hook.

Crack.

The Lycanthrope Champion’s claw was still lodged through my palm. It bared its teeth at me in a sneer.

Pure contempt.

The sneer lasted only an instant.

—Grr?

Its face filled with surprise. No matter how hard it strained, it couldn’t make me budge. As it blinked at me, I spoke calmly.

“You think I can’t beat you, you little shit, just because I’m in bad shape?”

On Strength stats alone, I had seniority over an ogre’s dad.

Even with all my stats drastically reduced by the special debuff, my physical abilities were still comparable to—or better than—those of most S-rank monsters.

And the Lycanthrope Champion was built for Agility, not Strength. I could slam it into the ground with one hand.

“Now, you little punk… Attention!”

Whack! Crunch!

I kicked its knee joint, shattering it in an instant.

As the strongest of the half-man, half-beast warriors let out a mournful cry, I kept a firm grip on its claw and slammed the monster into the ground.

Whoom—BANG!

The impact raised a cloud of dust. At the same time, blood spurted from my palm as the claw tore free.

But only one thing mattered.

At last, I had a free hand.

Open Inventory. Summon.

A sharp dagger flashed. Above it, blazing hellfire surged and flew toward the Manticore Lord’s head.

—…!

The Lycanthrope Champion realized my plan and threw itself forward.

Too late.

Thud—KRAAAAAASH!

The blade cut through hide and shattered flesh and bone. Flames exploded.

Ding.

Just as the clear chime I’d been waiting for rang in my ears, a flash of light suddenly swept in from somewhere and cut through the Lycanthrope Champion’s neck as it charged at me.

Slice!

“I’m here, Jin Sama¹!”

“…”

This son of a bitch stole my kill.