Chapter 359
The Guides resisted the surging frost. The Black and White Twins canceled [Two Become One] and grasped each other’s hands.
[The Black Twin has activated Unchanging Bond.]
[The White Twin has activated Unchanging Bond.]
A powerful wave burst from the Twins. It was an overwhelming emotion—something that only [Two Become One] could release—a force that crushed and trampled everything in its path.
“Hup!”
Altair took a firm stance and threw a straight punch.
[Altair has activated Origin of Nothingness.]
It was a seemingly ordinary punch, but it held a power that could not be underestimated by anyone.
Contained within it was the essence of all the martial techniques Altair had gained before and after becoming a Fist Saint. Everything, into one fist.
Helia hardened the blue blood covering her entire body.
The skills they activated now were the culmination of everything they had built up in the Labyrinth. They were the very symbols of who they were.
Kwa-duk.
But the moment they clashed with the frost, they shattered.
“Kyahhh!”
The brutal cold consumed their emotions. The punch, which contained everything Altair had, broke apart as the frost engulfed him.
Zzzzzzt!
And the blue blood enveloping Helia’s entire body was being destroyed.
“This can’t be! This can’t—!”
He shouted in denial, but the frost calmly swallowed him whole.
Zzeok.
The raging frost settled, and silence blanketed the room. Taesan let out a breath.
[Apostle Transformation] and [Partial World Alteration] ended simultaneously. The immense power and aura that had filled his entire body drained away, leaving a wave of exhaustion behind.
The frost covering the world began to prick at Taesan’s body.
[What power was that…]
The ghost groaned. All of his domain’s power had been invested into [Frozen World]. He had summoned strength from beyond mortality through [Beyond the Boundary] and elevated it even further through [Magic Stacking] and [Forced Amplification].
As a result, the Guides of Sin who had been swallowed by [Frozen World] were now on the verge of death.
Zzzzt.
The ice cracked as the Black and White Twins came into view. They collapsed with pale faces. Further battle seemed impossible.
“Heh… hehehe…”
Altair, whose entire lower half was frozen solid, let out a hollow laugh.
He was in no better shape than the Twins. Fighting any further was impossible. He was, in truth, slowly dying.
“You’re a monster. Truly a monster.”
He had defeated all eight Guides of Sin alone.
Though he had used [Forced Duel] to force one-on-one scenarios, the victory was still thanks to Taesan’s overwhelming strength.
“To lose so completely… I have nothing more to say. This is your win, adventurer.”
Altair accepted it calmly and closed his eyes.
Taesan pierced his chest with his sword.
[You have defeated Altair.]
The Black and White Twins didn’t resist either. Accepting their defeat, they quietly met death by Taesan’s hand.
“Now, only one remains.”
The noblest of them all—Helia.
She was in a far more pitiful state than Altair or the Twins. The blue blood covering her body had gone berserk, and her limbs were shattered.
“…I can’t accept this.”
Staring blankly into space, she finally spoke.
“I won’t accept this! I am! I am—!”
She shouted in denial.
“I carry the blood of a god!”
She was fundamentally different from mere mortals.
She screamed out the pride she had deeply believed in.
“Someone like you! Someone like you could never defeat me!”
Taesan raised his sword.
“You’ve lost. Accept it and die quietly.”
“No! I haven’t lost!
I—!”
Even as she died, Helia continued to deny it.
Taesan’s sword pierced her chest.
“I didn’t lose…”
That was how she died.
“This is the first time I’ve seen someone refuse to accept it to the very end.”
[She was arrogant. More than any other Guide. Even more than me.]
The final Guide was dead.
Taesan had won.
From beyond space, a sound like a satisfied laugh echoed.
[You have reached your optimal state.]
All restrictions on recovery vanished. The exhaustion and fatigue weighing on his body disappeared in an instant.
Taesan leaned back against the wall.
Leveling up restored all physical and mental fatigue.
And yet, somehow, he still felt tired. Taesan closed his eyes and allowed himself a brief rest.
[All done?]
“Roughly.”
Taesan opened his eyes. The ghost smiled faintly.
[If I recall, there were about twenty Guides. You’ve taken down eleven of them.]
More than half had died by Taesan’s hand.
[In truth, the group known as the Guides of Sin is finished.]
An absolute organization that had occupied the Labyrinth for countless years, controlling and managing the adventurers who entered—it had now been crushed by Taesan’s hand.
The rest would either flee or find their own paths.
[I hope she doesn’t choose to flee.]
The ghost muttered.
Taesan had triumphed over the Guides. Not just one—eight of them.
The reward for that was not small.
[Level: 155]
[Shield: 15,800 / 15,800]
[Health: 173,277 / 173,277]
[Mana: 18,641 / 18,641]
[Magi: 1,528 / 1,528]
[Strength: 33,245]
[Agility: 34,685]
[Intelligence: 30,141]
[Attack +8,695]
[Defense +6,052]
[Target is in optimal state.]
“Ha.”
Taesan couldn’t help but laugh.
All of his stats now exceeded 30,000.
He raised his sword and swung. The blade tore through the air with a sharper, faster whistle than ever before.
At this point, it would be difficult to find anyone faster or stronger than him.
With physical abilities alone, it was unlikely anyone could overpower him. His stat values were just that high.
Of course, that didn’t mean he was the strongest.
Raw stats could always be overturned by other variables in battle. If there was a significant gap in class, no matter how high his stats were, it would mean little.
Class would become increasingly important, so it was hard to say he had become purely stronger just because his stats had risen.
Even so, stats were undeniably important. As the foundation of one’s physical capabilities, the higher they were, the more advantageous one was in battle.
And more important than stats were the skills gained from his spiritual rank increase.
He had defeated eight opponents.
Each spiritual rank increase granted one skill—for a total of eight new skills.
[Special Activation Skill: Mark Designation]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[Mana Cost: 50]
[Designates a mark at a specified location. Currently, a maximum of three marks can be set. Once designated, a mark cannot be reset until a day has passed, and there are distance limitations.]
As a standalone skill, it seemed useless. But when linked with other skills, its value increased exponentially.
[Special Activation Skill: Designated Mark Acceleration]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[Mana Cost: 5]
[Accelerates the body toward a designated mark using Mark Designation. You can select any of the marks for movement. Has a cooldown of 1 minute after each use.]
He had acquired [Designated Mark Acceleration], the skill Floria had used.
Taesan tested it himself. He designated marks at three locations and activated the skill.
[You have activated Designated Mark Acceleration.]
His body accelerated.
In an instant, Taesan moved to the marked location.
“It’s pretty fast.”
Even at just 1% proficiency, the speed was beyond what Taesan could normally follow. Against low-level enemies, they’d think he had teleported.
And with only a 1-minute cooldown, it was extremely efficient. Very useful in many ways.
Of course, it had its downsides. Unlike [Random Blink] or [Restricted Blink], this was movement—not spatial leaping. So if the path itself was blocked, he couldn’t move. But even considering that, it was a solid skill.
[Special Passive Skill: Deeper Than Any Faith]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[A gathering of near-mad devotion. Continuously restores one’s own divine power.]
Gained by defeating the Warrior of the Great Saint, Gloria.
The effect was divine power recovery. What Taesan possessed wasn’t true divine power, so it was questionable if it would work—but upon testing, it recovered just fine.
“It’s recovering pretty quickly.”
Despite his large reserve of divine power, it was regenerating at a rapid pace.
At this rate, even without dedicated faith, he could wield divine power more frequently.
Divine power was essential for battles ahead. Once depleted, it took a long time to recover. A skill that supported it was incredibly valuable to Taesan now.
[Special Passive Skill: Bastard of Annihilation]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[A fragment of annihilation obtained by devouring its remnants. Allows freer control over the power of annihilation.]
Taesan’s annihilation-related skills included [Embers of Calamity] and [Call of Ruin].
Both had immense power, but he couldn’t wield them properly, so they hadn’t shown their full potential.
This skill allowed him to handle them more freely and with greater strength. That was the best way to see it.
Next was a skill obtained by defeating Esteban.
[Special Activation Skill: Forced Return of All Summons]
[Mana Cost: 1,000]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[Forces all summons within a certain range to return. It doesn’t distinguish between friend or foe. If the summon is strong enough, it can resist.]
The skill Esteban had used to forcibly unsummon Minerva at the end.
Right now, at only 1% proficiency, it wouldn’t have a big impact. But considering it once recalled even a Spirit King, it was certainly worth investing in.
[Special Activation Skill: Mental Burden Substitution]
[Mana Cost: 30]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[For 30 minutes, converts part of the mental burden into physical strain.]
An easy-to-understand effect. Both black magic and divine power caused physical stress, but the mental toll was greater.
In critical moments, activating this would be a huge help.
Considering the level of skills used by the core of the Guides of Sin, this was definitely not a low-tier skill.
‘As expected.’
The skills of adventurers in the Abyss were each exceptionally useful.
Satisfied, Taesan checked the remaining skills.
[Special Activation Skill: Two Become One]
[Mana Cost: 1,000]
[Proficiency: 1%]
[Fuses two equal entities into one.]
A short description.
But that alone told Taesan enough. It was a skill he couldn’t use.
The Twins had used it to fuse into one being.
Despite not using any other skills, their strength and speed rose to the point they could match Taesan.
No cooldown, no risk, no duration limit.
As a pure enhancement, it was nearly perfect.
It was certainly a powerful skill, but the condition was too strict. Creating two equal entities—unless you were born like the Twins, it was practically impossible.
Still, Taesan quietly examined the skill.
Two equal entities.
That was the only requirement.
Which meant… it wasn’t impossible.
