Chapter 258
The silence was brief.
Whoosh!
An intense wave of mana burst out in all directions in an instant.
He hurriedly raised his sword, split the incoming wave of mana, and lifted his head.
Swoosh!
Brilliant golden light flashed as armament covered the woman’s entire body.
In the blink of an eye, she was clad in armor from head to toe and had already gripped her sword.
Clang!
It was an attack that allowed no argument.
She appeared as if tearing through space itself and swung her sword, but it was not Park Chan-woo who blocked it.
“Successor. Are you alright?”
It was Chiwoo, who had followed after him.
He had sensed the distortion during the warp and chased after the path Park Chan-woo had taken.
After her attack was blocked once, the woman leaped back and widened the distance between them.
Though it had only been a single clash, she had already realized that Chiwoo’s skill was no ordinary thing.
“You people, how did you enter this space?”
The woman spoke from afar, her voice heavy.
This was a place thoroughly hidden even within the Mountain of Practitioners.
It was the first time anyone other than her had ever entered.
Moreover—
‘Shameless…!’
She tried to act calm, but he had clearly seen her naked body.
And on top of that, he had shamelessly admired it while shining a bright light on her.
A shameless man who deserved to die a thousand times over.
As she glared at him with killing intent, Park Chan-woo raised the [Radiant Sage’s Stone] in his hand.
At the same time, the light from the stone began to shine on her once more.
‘It seems my guess was right after all.’
That gem embedded in her ear and forehead.
The light emitted by the [Radiant Sage’s Stone] matched it exactly.
There was only one explanation that fit all of these conditions.
“Are you the last survivor of the Pandarian tribe?”
“…So what if I am?”
It was not a denial, but an affirmation.
And yet her attitude made it seem like it meant nothing.
That was understandable.
In the upper levels of the mountain, there was no one who did not know that she was the last survivor of the Pandarian tribe.
Park Chan-woo spoke calmly.
“Don’t you recognize it? This is the Sage’s Stone made from the Gem of Wisdom that belonged to the Pandarian King.”
He continued holding up the [Radiant Sage’s Stone] before her.
The Pandarian King he had met in the Temple of Death.
The [Radiant Sage’s Ston] had been made from the Gem of Wisdom he possessed.
The Pandarian tribe were born and died with a Gem of Wisdom embedded in their foreheads.
It was said they could identify one another through their Gems of Wisdom.
Likewise, she too was a Pandarian.
He had been sure she would recognize the stone, but…
“……”
Contrary to his expectations, the woman did not lower her guard.
There was no other reaction either.
‘Strange.’
The gem embedded in the woman’s forehead had faded to a grayish color, but it was undoubtedly a Gem of Wisdom.
Park Chan-woo recalled the Pandarian King’s final words.
If possible… could you grant me just one request?
Speak.
In the Mountain of Practitioners, where the Arahan are gathered, there will be the last survivor of the Pandarian. Please deliver just one message to her.
Just as he had said, she was clearly the last survivor.
And if she truly was the last survivor, then she should normally have recognized the Gem of Wisdom that had belonged to their king.
Even if it had been processed into a Sage’s Stone, its essence should not have changed.
That attitude. That reaction.
Putting it all together, he arrived at one conclusion.
“Could it be… have you lost your memory?”
Perhaps she had lost her memory.
If that were the case, then no matter what message he delivered, it would be meaningless.
“I am Han Mir. I am not a Pandarian.”
(T/N: Ooooookay, so Han Mir is a woman)
…As expected, the ‘perhaps’ had become reality.
More than that, she was outright denying that she was a Pandarian.
This was more serious than simple memory loss.
His promise to the Pandarian King had only been to deliver a single message.
Even if the other party did not understand it, fulfilling the promise itself would still count as keeping it.
‘It doesn’t sit right with me.’
But he did not like that.
What meaning was there in delivering a message to someone who could not even understand it?
The message the Pandarian King wanted to pass on to Han Mir was simple.
Just that one phrase: you were right.
But right about what? To someone who did not even remember what the Pandarian King had been wrong about, conveying the words alone would accomplish nothing.
– “Taebaek’s gaze is searching for us. We must leave this place quickly.”
Chronos spoke urgently.
It was only a matter of time before Taebaek, who had taken a detour, found them.
No matter how hidden this place was, it was still ultimately within the Mountain of Practitioners.
A place within Taebaek’s reach.
‘It’s a place connected to outside warps.’
A side path accessible through a warp.
It was also connected to other external warps.
Which meant they could move to the Land of Valhalla.
They had to leave before Taebaek found them and made a move.
‘…The timing is terrible.’
Of all times, to meet the last survivor of the Pandarian now.
Rumbleeeee!
That was when it happened.
With a deafening roar, heaven and earth shook.
– “…We’ve been found. Hurry!”
Chronos urged him.
The very next instant, the surroundings turned pitch-black.
Instinctively, Park Chan-woo looked up at the sky.
‘……!’
An unimaginably gigantic palm, large enough to cover the entire sky, was descending toward this place.
With a force that seemed intent on crushing and erasing everything.
“Taebaek…!”
Chiwoo shouted.
He had recognized the owner of that hand.
It was [One-Step Divine Fist], unleashed by Taebaek.
The ultimate fist technique capable of striking an enemy ten thousand li away with a single step and a single punch.
And it was far larger than he remembered.
Which meant Taebaek had become incomparably stronger than before.
Park Chan-woo tried to open a warp leading to the Land of Valhalla.
At that moment—
[Ding!]
[A powerful Mana Interference is occurring.]
[The warp leading to the ‘Land of Valhalla’ will not open.]
That massive palm had twisted all the mana in the surrounding area into chaos.
It was a level of disorder that truly deserved to be called Mana Interference.
“What… is that? That palm……”
Even Han Mir muttered blankly.
Her body trembled before the overwhelming mana.
There was no escape.
And there was no way to block it either.
How could one possibly stop an attack that had already reached the realm of a god?
…There was one way.
They could go back through the warp that had already been opened behind them.
It was only that they could not open a new warp. The one already connected and open was unaffected.
In other words—
“…We have to go back.”
Chiwoo bit his lip as he said it.
The reason Taebaek had used [One-Step Divine Fist] to wipe out this entire area.
It meant ‘come back.’
Return to the warp on the mountainside and head to the Immortal Realm.
Even as he said they had to go back, Chiwoo could not keep despair from seeping into his heart.
‘He’s truly become a monster, Taebaek!’
Chiwoo, who had escaped Avici Hell, had grown stronger.
But Taebaek had become even stronger.
To a degree that could not even be compared to before.
Even in the past, Taebaek had possessed Authority that was close to godhood…
…and Chiwoo, who specialized in assassination, had no means of blocking such a wide-area attack.
Even if he poured out all his energy to strike it down, at best he could only protect himself.
At most, ten or so seconds.
After that, this entire area would be annihilated.
Not even a single blade of grass would remain.
“Han Mir! Get a hold of yourself!”
“……”
Park Chan-woo shouted, but Han Mir remained frozen, unable to move.
The attack was so far beyond common sense that she had lost all composure.
Even if they went back, if she stayed here, Han Mir would surely die.
Rumbleeeee!
As the giant palm drew closer, the ground warped beneath the overwhelming pressure of the wind.
The earth split apart and rose, widening the distance between them and Han Mir.
“It’s already too late, Successor!”
Realizing what Park Chan-woo intended to do, Chiwoo urgently stepped in front of him.
What was encroaching on the area now was not just wind pressure.
The flow of mana itself had begun to reverse.
If he rushed in recklessly, he might be dragged in and fail to make it back.
They had to abandon her.
But—
‘…Since when have I ever run away?’
Had he not always faced everything head-on ever since his regression?
He had become numb to death, living as though there were no tomorrow.
But after several realizations, he had come to understand something.
It was not that he had never cherished his own life.
Would running away here truly mean he was cherishing himself?
He might survive, but in the end, it would only mean bowing his head before Taebaek.
Even if he returned to the mountainside and headed to the Immortal Realm, the outcome would not be good.
Above all else… he had not yet fulfilled his promise to the Pandarian King.
‘Chronos. Is it possible?’
– “…Are you sure? Only two chances remain now.”
‘I don’t care.’
– “As expected, you are a splendid fellow. I knew you wouldn’t run.”
Chronos gave a small laugh.
Two summoning opportunities remained.
And he intended to use one of them.
Swoooooosh!
The Grim Reaper emerged from Park Chan-woo’s shadow and leaped out.
Chronos had materialized.
Hehe!
Hehehehe!
The moment he was summoned, Chronos led five evil spirits.
In an instant, the five evil spirits joined hands, laughing and dancing.
It was clearly different from how they had looked when facing Arcana.
‘I’ve wandered the Abyss countless times, but this is the first time I’ve seen such divine might.’
Even Chronos was tense.
Taebaek’s attack was on an entirely different level from Arcana’s.
This was truly power that had transcended even the realm of gods.
During the countless eons he had spent wandering the Abyss, he had faced many monsters.
Among them had been beings who displayed divine power, but never something with such overwhelming divine might.
It seemed to surpass even a Demon God.
‘Perhaps it is on the level of the Great Nine Lords…’
That was how astonishing this divine might was.
No matter that Chronos was an ancient shadow spirit and a Grim Reaper, he still could not reach the level of the Great Nine Lords.
However—
He could probably block a single attack.
‘The chance to kill is only once.’
Not only that, there was even a possibility that he could kill Taebaek.
Merely blocking the attack would not satisfy him.
Taebaek was far too dangerous a being to leave alive.
If left alone, he would surely come after Park Chan-woo again.
There was a way.
If he used the strongest Authority he possessed.
Chronos cleared his thoughts.
He intended to give everything from the very beginning.
The curse of absolute death.
“Thanatos.”
Hehehehehehe!
The black evil spirits formed a circle.
Soon, the evil spirits transformed into a black sun.
From within that black sun, red blood poured down.
Rumbleeeeeee!
Before long, the gigantic hand crashed into the black sun.
Then—
Kwaaaaaaa!
The hand was sucked into the black sun.
An Authority that absorbed both mana and life, pushing the target closer and closer to death.
Soon, the black sun gradually turned blood-red.
Once the blood-red color filled the entire black sun, the target whose mana had been absorbed would surely die.
This was the strongest and most dreadful curse Chronos could use: [Thanatos].
Soon, the sun turned red.
“Die, you unworthy existence.”