Chapter 341
Taesan had grown even stronger than when he faced the Spirit King. He dodged and blocked the relentless spells, constantly moving.
[Shayan has activated Magic Liberation.]
Condensed magic exploded, engulfing the surroundings. Taesan activated [Naberius’s Golden Sword], slashing diagonally to create a rift in the wave of power and slipping through the gap.
“Tsk.”
Shayan clicked his tongue. His expression was far from pleased.
‘This isn’t as effective as I expected.’
He had analyzed Taesan’s records and prepared counters for all his abilities. As a result, he managed to suppress Taesan’s movements, preventing him from even approaching.
Originally, he had planned to force Taesan to expend all three [Absolute Attack Nullifications] here.
However, Taesan had only used one nullification and [Greed of Destruction]. Just those two.
Taesan was faster than expected and reacted even more swiftly.
‘Those skills he used must have duration limits…’
[Apostle Transformation], [King’s Vessel], [Avatar of Nature].
Skills that momentarily amplified one’s rank and strength. There was no way he could maintain them for long. At most, they would wear off in an hour or two.
But Shayan was no different. The magic circle he had deployed was overwhelmingly powerful, yet its duration wasn’t long either. Dragging out the fight wouldn’t be beneficial for him.
It was time to decide.
Shayan swung his staff, intensifying his assault on Taesan. Taesan barely managed to defend against the barrage.
‘He’s not using Partial World Alteration.’
[Partial World Alteration]—a skill designed to counter [King’s World] by altering reality itself to establish advantageous rules.
Shayan remained wary of that skill.
But Taesan’s situation wasn’t looking good.
Though he was holding out, he couldn’t even get close.
Meanwhile, Shayan’s mana was being fully restored by the magic circle, whereas Taesan wasn’t benefiting from such regeneration. It was an inherently losing battle.
There was no reason for Taesan to hold back [Partial World Alteration] in this scenario.
Either its cooldown hadn’t refreshed yet, or he hadn’t prepared the necessary cost.
That was Shayan’s conclusion.
If so, it was time to unleash the trump card he had prepared to counter [Partial World Alteration] and end this.
Kiiiiiing.
Shayan’s equipment began to glow.
Since the attack had briefly paused, Taesan stood still, watching him.
Shayan was an adventurer of the Deep Floors. He also possessed Deep Floor artifacts.
“Witness the true power of magic.”
[Shayan has activated Target-Locking Immutable Magic Circle.]
Kuuuuung!
A massive, dormant magic circle roared to life with a deafening sound.
Power surged from the ring on Shayan’s hand.
[Shayan has activated Five Arrows of Ruin.]
[The first arrow has been loaded.]
A transparent arrow of light formed at the tip of Shayan’s staff.
Its power warped space itself.
It was an attack designed to erase anything that stood in its way.
Even Taesan, as he was now, could fall to its might. He immediately recognized it as Shayan’s trump card.
[Shayan has activated Target Designation.]
Power flowed from Shayan’s bracelet, locking onto Taesan.
[Shayan has activated Savage Spatial Compression.]
Power surged from his robe, swallowing the space around them.
[Shayan has activated Mana Acceleration.]
His staff gleamed with radiant energy.
The combination of multiple Deep Floor artifacts unleashed tremendous power. Taesan tightened his grip on his sword, bracing for the attack.
Then, Shayan slammed his staff down.
[Shayan has fired the first arrow.]
Just as Taesan moved to react—
Time suddenly reversed.
A moment of confusion struck him before he realized—
[Your second Absolute Attack Nullification has been activated.]
He had already been hit.
The nullification triggered, rewinding time to just before the impact.
‘I didn’t even see it.’
[Shayan has loaded the second arrow.]
Kiiiiing.
Once again, the transparent arrow took form on Shayan’s staff.
It was invisible. Unavoidable.
That meant he had to observe.
Taesan quickly made his decision.
[You have activated Mental Acceleration.]
[You have activated Essence Identification.]
[You have activated Reconnaissance.]
Trying to block an unseen attack was meaningless. He had one more [Absolute Attack Nullification] left—he was willing to sacrifice it to analyze the attack.
“What a pointless struggle.”
Shayan sneered at Taesan and flicked his staff.
[Shayan has fired the second arrow.]
Taesan focused his will and strength into his gaze.
For a moment, the world seemed to slow to a halt.
And then, he saw it.
The instant the transparent arrow was fired, it bypassed space entirely, appearing directly in front of him.
The arrow touched Taesan.
[Your third Absolute Attack Nullification has been activated.]
All of his attack nullifications were now used up. But he had gained the crucial information he needed.
‘The arrow bypasses space itself.’
It wasn’t simply fast—it was compressed within space. The moment it was fired, it arrived at its destination. That was why he couldn’t see it flying toward him.
Would continuously moving allow him to dodge?
Taesan shook his head.
Among Shayan’s activated skills was [Target Designation]. Though its exact effects were unclear, it likely locked onto Taesan as a specific target. No matter how he moved, the attack would land.
An inescapable arrow.
There was only one way to counter it—overwhelming it with sheer force.
Taesan stepped back, positioning Minerva and Varkaza behind him.
[Shayan has loaded the third arrow.]
[Shayan has fired the third arrow.]
Taesan did nothing.
The arrow bypassed space, arriving directly in front of him.
And then, Taesan moved.
[Your Last Opportunity has been activated.]
“What?!”
Shayan watched in shock.
Kagagagagak!
Taesan’s sword blocked the arrow. The immense clash of power distorted the space around them. The force within the arrow traveled along the blade.
Kak!
He twisted the sword’s edge.
The trajectory of the arrow warped and crashed into the wall.
Kuuuuuuung!
A deafening roar echoed through the labyrinth walls. Taesan glanced at the impact and let out a hollow chuckle.
The labyrinth wall had cracked.
‘So, this is how powerful it is.’
[Last Opportunity] was a skill that guaranteed the defense against a fatal attack. In other words, the arrow carried enough power to deplete over a hundred thousand health points.
“Th-This…”
Shayan stared at Taesan with a face full of shock.
“How…?”
The Five Arrows of Ruin.
For those who reached the Deep Floors, blacksmiths sold extremely valuable equipment.
Among them, one ring had caught Shayan’s eye.
A ring sealed with Primal Magic.
As a mage, Shayan could feel the overwhelming force contained within it. Even while sealed, it radiated a power far superior to any magic he had ever wielded.
Shayan was a mage. He would sacrifice anything to obtain higher-tier magic.
So, he decided to purchase the ring.
Its price was incomparably higher than any other piece of equipment.
But that didn’t matter.
He spent all the gold he had amassed from conquering the Deep Floors.
Yet even after purchasing it, he was unable to use it for a long time.
For one reason—he couldn’t break the seal on the ring.
He had tried to dispel it through magic, sought help from other Guides, but the seal refused to be undone. As if mocking him, it declared: This power is beyond your reach.
But Shayan refused to give up.
From the moment he acquired the ring, all his efforts had been dedicated to breaking that seal.
He experimented with thousands of spells, even leveraging floor-clear conditions to aid in the unsealing. He spent an immeasurable amount of time.
And finally—
He managed to break the seal on the ring.
Thus, he obtained the Five Arrows of Ruin—a supreme-tier spell.
Shayan’s mind had been utterly consumed. Despite dedicating his entire life to magic, he had never surpassed mid-tier spells. And now, he had acquired a high-tier spell. A power beyond mortals.
Overwhelmed with joy, he immediately cast the magic.
And nearly died.
Had the Fire Spirit King not instinctively deployed [King’s World], he would have perished on the spot.
The force contained within high-tier magic was far beyond what he could handle.
But Shayan didn’t give up.
He devised ways to wield the ring’s power—integrating numerous Deep Floor artifacts, developing magic arrays that fixed his state and granted temporary immunity.
After decades of research, he finally learned to wield the high-tier spell.
Even then, properly casting it required days of preparation to construct a magic array, which was why he had never fully utilized it before.
But its power was undeniable.
The arrows carried a force beyond mortality itself.
And now, Taesan had blocked it.
‘…No.’
Shayan quickly regained his composure.
[Last Opportunity] had activated. That was likely a skill that blocked fatal attacks. He couldn’t possibly have multiple skills like that.
Which meant—
He wouldn’t be able to block any more arrows.
Shayan firmly believed this.
And so, he nocked the next arrow.
[Shayan has fired the fourth arrow.]
Taesan’s sword turned black.
Then, golden light enveloped it, and the color shifted to gray.
For the past three attacks, the arrow had consistently targeted his chest. No deviation whatsoever—Shayan didn’t appear to have the ability to adjust its trajectory.
Knowing the attack’s exact location simplified the countermeasure. He merely had to swing his sword at the designated spot.
Taesan slashed.
Kwooooong!
The arrow clashed against the Boundary Line, letting out an eerie shriek as it shattered. The Arrow of Ruin was being overwhelmed.
Taesan pressed his attack and swung his sword with full force.
Kuguguguguung!
A gray light cut through the air.
Shayan frantically twisted his body to evade.
“…You’re destroying it with raw power?”
Shayan murmured in disbelief as he stared blankly.
Taesan merely shook his sword.
“I suppose this is as far as it goes.”
This battle confirmed it.
He had tested how much he could wield the Boundary Line without repercussions.
Even an attack surpassing mortality could be blocked by it.
With a single strike, he could now fully neutralize even the Will of the Fallen World, unleashed by Haphran.
Though he needed significant time before using it again, the fact that he could stabilize its use was a major advantage.
“This is good.”
And to verify such things, he needed a suitable opponent.
Shayan fit the role perfectly.
“No.”
Shayan muttered, his pupils shaking in denial.
“No! This power cannot be stopped!”
He gripped his staff tightly.
This ring was something he had obtained after pouring everything into it.
It was his pride.
And now, Taesan had shattered it.
He refused to accept it.
Once more, a transparent arrow formed at the tip of his staff.
Taesan readied his sword.
He could withstand it. Even if he simply rushed forward and ignored the attack, he could endure it.
But there was still something he wanted to test.
He had confirmed that the Boundary Line could block it.
Now, he needed to see—
Could he block it with his own strength alone?
Through both [Last Opportunity] and [Boundary Line], he had gauged the sheer power behind the arrow.
The possibility was there.
“Assist me.”
“As you command, Master.”
[Understood.]
Taesan touched his wristguard.
A full-fledged [Partial World Alteration] was beyond his reach at the moment.
But—
For a few seconds, he had enough resources to amplify himself.
[You have activated Partial World Alteration.]
Taesan and the spirits’ power swelled momentarily.
Shayan, his eyes bloodshot, snarled.
“Die.”
[Shayan has fired the fifth arrow.]
As the system notification appeared, Taesan swung his sword.
Kagagagagak!
Power clashed. The sheer impact threatened to collapse the space itself.
A crushing force bore down on Taesan.
Shayan clenched his teeth.
“You can’t block it! It’s impossible!”
“Urgh…!”
Minerva gritted her teeth, drawing upon even more power.
She was the Spirit King. And by infusing her essence with the force of nature, her strength surged further.
Varkaza also lent his support.
The power of nature reached its peak, standing firm against the force within the arrow.
[You have activated Naberius’s Golden Sword.]
[You have activated Starlight Arrow.]
[You have activated Amon’s Jet-Black Spike.]
Magic and black magic were unleashed in succession. The effects of consecutive casting amplified their potency.
“Gather.”
[You have activated Declaration of Concentration.]
Willpower converged, and Taesan infused all his strength into his sword.
The arrow began to warp.
A force surpassing mortals began to overwhelm that of a mere mortal.
“This is… absurd…”
A hollow murmur echoed. Taesan pressed harder, stepping forward and swinging his sword.
[You have activated Blade of Fighting Spirit.]
Kuuuuuuuuung!
A thunderous explosion erupted. The shockwave spread in all directions, engulfing Taesan.
[You have received 53,432 damage.]
His arm trembled. Minerva and Varkaza, unable to withstand the force, had been forcibly unsummoned.
But—
He had endured.
Taesan pulled out a potion and drank it. It left an opening, but Shayan did nothing.
Kiiiiiiiing.
With a resounding crash, the Immutable Magic Circle shattered.
“This… can’t be…”
Shayan muttered blankly.
High-tier magic.
The absolute power he could never reach.
And now, it had been destroyed.
“This… this is impossible! It’s high-tier magic! A force beyond reach!”
Hearing his desperate cries, Taesan scoffed.
“You set your own limits.
You don’t deserve to call yourself an Archmage.”
He had convinced himself that high-tier magic was beyond his reach.
That he was forever bound to mid-tier magic.
Shayan had already decided his fate.
Now fully recovered in health and mana, Taesan manifested his power. Mana condensed within him.
“Akysha. You know the name, don’t you?”
Shayan flinched at Taesan’s words.
“So it’s true. The name was different, so I thought you were someone else.”
A quest Taesan had received on the 45th floor from an NPC named Akysha.
The target of that quest—Mantejac.
And yet, the one before him now was Shayan.
To erase his shameful past and be reborn, Mantejac had abandoned his name and taken on a new one—Shayan.
“But a person’s essence never changes.”
Shayan was a traitor, driven by inferiority, making the wrong choices.
That was his true nature.
“This is Akysha’s gift to you, Mantejac.”
[You have activated One-Sided Mana Barrier.]
