Ascension Through Skills C.242: Fourth Return, Earth (9)

The battle went on for a whole week.

Monsters kept appearing, and they erased the rifts. Some had died, but not many.

They believed they could win.

And after a week, the creation of rifts suddenly stopped.

People believed they had won. They celebrated the festival with simple ingredients.

But Taesan knew it wasn’t over yet.

He quietly waited for the right time.

Three days later.

Taesan, who had been sitting in the room, stood up.

“Master?”

[Oh ho. Finally here.]

Minerva and Barkaza, sensing something odd, also stood up.

Taesan left the room and went outside.

A tremendous force was felt from the east.

People seemed to have felt it too, as they looked towards the east. Taesan arrived at the source of the power first.

There was a rift there.

But its color was not purple.

It was a crimson red, like scarlet.

And the shape of the rift itself was strange. While rifts had been concentrations of power before, this one was quivering like mucus.

“Hmm.”

Minerva swung her arm.

The wind turned into a blade and charged towards the rift.

Ka-a-a-ang!

The blade bounced off the rift.

“…It doesn’t work.”

Even the attack Minerva sincerely launched had no effect.

Taesan approached the rift and raised his hand.

The rift was pulsing like a heart.

Taesan exerted force with his hand.

Kooooong!

A massive wave surged. He hadn’t used Apostle Transformation or King’s Vessel, but he still gathered his might and struck.

But the rift did not even flinch.

“Is it preparation time?”

［Quest Start］

[In one hour, the last rift will open.]

[Fight and seize victory.]

[Condition: Defeat the monsters that appear from the rift.]

[If you return to the Labyrinth, rewards will be duly given.]

The quest appeared before them. People who realized something was wrong began to gather one by one.

“Ah. Brother.”

Kim Junggeun, who came, reacted upon seeing Taesan. Kim Hwiyeon, Lee Taeyeon, and Kang Junhyeok also showed up.

They swallowed as they looked at the rift.

“It’s dangerous…”

“What will you guys do?”

“It seems like it’s not something we can handle, but…”

The people of Seoul, having experienced this before, knew what to expect. At the end of the return, an insurmountable monster always appeared, and it was Taesan who faced it.

Kim Hwiyeon spoke calmly.

“We don’t know what will happen, so let’s prepare here.”

“Do as you wish.”

Kim Hwiyeon quickly gave orders to the people. They lined up and surrounded the rift at a distance.

They gulped.

The rift began to expand.

And then, the passage opened.

Beyond the red-lit passage was a space as dark as pitch.

From there, the monster began to show itself.

“Ah…”

Even though the monster hadn’t fully revealed itself yet, people groaned. Chills ran through their bodies, and cold sweat began to flow. Instinct sounded the alarm.

Gruuung.

The monster squeezed its body through the narrow passage.

The passage was the size of a house, but still too small for the monster to pass through. The monster’s body began to be crushed.

Yet, the monster kept forcing its body through.

Splat.

Finally, the monster fully emerged outside the rift.

Its form was that of a sphere, and it was damaged.

As it passed through the passage, half of its body was crushed and damaged. Its very essence seemed to be distorted beyond repair.

Yet, despite this, an overwhelming presence enveloped them.

“Ah, ah…”

People’s teeth chattered. Goosebumps arose.

Whirl.

The monster’s gaze turned toward them.

Instantly, they held their breath.

[Instant Death Judgement in progress...]

“Ha, haah!”

“0,0 o ughj”

People suffered. Their souls and bodies seemed to be separating.

“Minerva.”

“Got it. This is going to be tough.”

Minerva, with a serious expression, manifested her power. The power of the Spirit King enveloped the people.

[Judgement successful!]

“Haaah!”

“Huff! Huff!”

Thanks to Minerva’s power, those who succeeded in the judgement gasped for breath.

“Aah…”

Fear was etched on the faces of the people.

Instant Death Judgment. If the judgment failed, one would die immediately. Neither defense nor health mattered.

And such a monster was of S-rank or higher.

[Monster 10 has appeared.]

“Ho.”

Taesan lifted the corners of his mouth.

To think it was really an S-rank. This was beyond his expectations.

[What... is that?]

The ghost swallowed its saliva.

“It’s something like what we encountered during the trial of the god of despair.”

[But it's incomparable to that time.]

“That’s because not even the power of a god can perfectly manifest those things.”

“One of the best toys of the high gods.”

Minerva narrowed her eyes.

“An entity capable of crushing the world on its own. Merely facing it can make any mortal collapse without divine protection, capable of destroying the world.”

Minerva’s assessment was no exaggeration. Indeed, no one except Taesan and Lee Taeyeon had managed to survive the instant death judgment.

Players who had cleared Hard Mode were monstrously strong. That they couldn’t withstand the judgment meant that for most beings, responding was utterly impossible.

Dire.

Even in his past life, it was an entity he had to stake his life on to defeat.

Now he was weaker than before. There was no way he could win in a fight.

But there was no fear on Taesan’s face.

“Seems like you really wanted to kill it, sending down such a half-ruined creature.”

The monster had emerged from the rift severely damaged, having been crushed as it passed through. This meant that despite the risk of damage, it had been deliberately sent down.

This meant that the S-rank monster was in a weakened state. If it had been in its normal condition, even Minerva’s power would not have been able to block the instant death judgment entirely.

Then, Taesan also might have a chance.

[You have activated Reconnaissance.]

[You have activated Essence Detection.]

[Monster 10]

[Summon Type, Special Type.]

[The Great Being's Tenth Toy.]

[Damaged from passing through a narrow place.]

“Keep guard.”

“Okay. Hang in there.”

[Understood.]

Squeeze.

Taesan gripped his sword and leapt.

[You have activated Acceleration.]

The ground shattered, sending debris flying toward the people. Minerva erected a barrier to protect them.

In an instant, Taesan was before the monster.

People gasped at the astonishing speed.

Taesan’s sword struck down.

Craaash!

The monster’s body shook violently. Black sap flowed from the damaged area.

[Monster 10 takes 3403 damage.]

Due to the difference in strength, the damage was halved.

However, effective damage was still being inflicted. If it had been a normal S-rank, the difference in level might have prevented any damage at all.

The sphere shook.

Monsters emerged from it. Dozens of creatures in the form of tentacles, beasts, and more charged at Taesan all at once.

‘Summon type, indeed.’

Taesan’s sword moved.

He fended off the monsters, attacking their heads. He launched frost arrows to blow them away and used the Ability Sword to deflect their advance.

Kagagagak!

Dozens of monsters simultaneously collapsed.

Those watching burst into admiration.

“Wow!”

“As expected!”

Overwhelmed by their display, they were convinced of victory.

However, Taesan’s expression was not bright.

There was no monster he couldn’t overcome. If there were, the gods would not have remained silent.

But this was too weak.

The summoned monsters were at most B-grade. Even thousands of them could not land an effective hit on Taesan.

Taesan realized.

This monster was not meant to kill him.

It was meant to hold him.

Crack.

The mouth of the spherical monster opened.

[Inner World has been activated.]

Endless darkness flowed out from the mouth. The darkness quickly enveloped the earth, turning everything around it black.

The scattered darkness pulled at Taesan.

Taesan exerted force through his feet, gathering his strength to resist the suction.

But the darkness overpowered his resistance, attempting to engulf him.

‘As expected.’

He could maintain his stance using Apostle Transformation, but it was a losing battle against time.

Despite the monster being damaged and weakened, its suction power remained at a formidable S-grade level.

“Taesan!”

Kim Hwiyeon gasped, running towards him as she witnessed Taesan being pulled in.

As he was engulfed by the darkness, Taesan declared,

“Take care of the rest.”

The darkness enveloped Taesan completely.

First, Taesan checked his senses. Finding them intact, he surveyed his surroundings.

Nothing but endless darkness greeted him.

A truly eternal darkness, its boundary unseen.

“It’s my first time being inside a monster like this.”

[Are you okay?]

“What?”

[I mean mentally. You've entered the interior of a high god's entity; it might affect your mind... but you seem fine.]

The pressure was minimal and easily dismissed. Taesan pressed his hand against the floor.

It was solid.

He attempted to strike it with his sword, but it left no mark.

[Monster 10 takes 1 damage.]

“As expected.”

The monster had sustained more damage than necessary while squeezing through the narrow passage.

Likely, it had sacrificed its external parts to protect its core.

To capture Taesan.

Taesan shifted his focus.

Beyond the darkness, thousands of monsters emerged.

He stomped his foot, ready for battle.

Outside, chaos reigned.

“Uh, what?”

Taesan had vanished.

The crowd was stunned by this development. Minerva frowned.

“Aha. So this was their strategy? Not bad.”

“Minerva? What exactly is happening?”

“It’s simple.”

Minerva gestured towards the monster, now anchored to the earth like a colossal pillar.

“They realized they couldn’t defeat my master. So, they opted for a simpler strategy.”

Swoosh.

Small monsters began to emerge from the larger one en masse.

Their numbers quickly soared into the hundreds, causing the onlookers’ faces to blanch.

“So they plan to hold the master inside them and kill you all in the meantime.”

The monsters moved.

Minerva and Barkaza manifested their powers. Light and wind rose simultaneously, sweeping away the monsters.

Just as hundreds were swept away, a massive monster charged.

The monster swung its heavy arms.

Craaash!

The powerful collision scattered the wind and light.

The massive monster glared menacingly.

Minerva whistled at the formidable power she felt.

“This will be interesting.”

Even the current Minerva couldn’t underestimate the power emanating from this monster.

“Can you handle it? Barkaza and I might have to step away for a moment.”

[We will join you. My King.]

Barkaza and Minerva flew towards the giant monster.

Taesan, Minerva, and Barkaza had disappeared. The panic that enveloped everyone was palpable.

“Ah, aaaaah!”

“Save us!”

“Everyone, calm down!”

Kim Hwiyeon shouted as she charged at the monster. The monster’s attack swung towards her.

Crack!

She groaned as she was pushed back.

‘So strong.’

It was stronger than any monster she had encountered before.

Hundreds of such beings existed.

Her eyes wavered momentarily, but then she steeled her resolve and shouted.

“We can win this!”

Kim Junggeun stepped forward. Lee Taeyeon and Kang Junhyeok also quickly attacked the monsters.

Crack!

Unlike Kim Hwiyeon, they were not pushed back. Their pressure on the monsters slightly alleviated the people’s panic.

In that situation, Kim Hwiyeon shouted powerfully.

“Everyone, hold the line!”

“Yes, yes!”

People moved frantically. Kim Hwiyeon bit her lip.

Taesan had entrusted her with this. She couldn’t disappoint his expectations.

“Taesan will come out soon to help us! Just hold on until then!”

“Yes!”

People calmly held their weapons. Kim Hwiyeon tensely gathered strength in her body.

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

She charged forward. The people followed her.

“Watch over me!”

“Lend me strength!”

They charged at the monsters, shouting like people praying to a god, like knights conducting a holy war.

Their faith transformed into a power that enveloped someone.

[Proficiency in Divine Power has increased by 1%.]