Murim Login - Chapter 422

*Ding. Ding. Ding.*

– In the midst of crisis, there is opportunity. You have gained new enlightenment in the life-or-death battle!

– [Middle Dantian] has been unlocked!

– With the opening of [Middle Dantian], all your stats have increased by 20!

– The effect of [Breathing and Circulating Energy ] has greatly improved!

– Your ability to sense and manipulate the flow of qi has dramatically improved!

– Your muscles and tendons have strengthened!

The system notifications rang continuously in my ears.

A breeze stirred my sweat-soaked hair, and I felt new power and changes seeping into my entire body.

Even the final chime that echoed…

*Ding.*

– You have gained a large amount of experience points as a reward for your enlightenment!

– You have received 50 points as a reward for your enlightenment!

– Level up!

– As a result of the level up, all status ailments, fatigue, and some injuries have been healed!

– The status ailment [Curse] has been lifted!

– All temporarily decreased stats have been restored to their original state!

And I wasn’t the only one who felt these changes.

Just as a master cannot be unaware of their own hand’s movements, the Arch Lich, realizing his curse magic had been broken, asked in a voice filled with disbelief.

– How…?

That one word, filled with all the doubts the Arch Lich currently had, made me shrug.

“Well.”

– Well?

“Yes, well.”

– Do you think that explains anything?

“Of course not. But do I really have to explain everything to you?”

The faint flicker in the Arch Lich’s glowing eyes conveyed his incredulity.

– You’re not even a mage, are you?

“I wanted to be one. They get better pay, you know. But I had no talent for it. Not very smart, either.”

– Even the humans you call Great Mages could not dispel my magic so easily.

“Well, they didn’t, but I did.”

– This is absurd!

I’ll admit it.

The Arch Lich’s magic—no, his abilities—were clearly superior to mine.

Even I, who had surpassed the limits of an ordinary hunter, couldn’t avoid his curse magic, and his large-scale illusion magic using bone spears was truly dangerous.

Had I not gained enlightenment, I might not be standing here now.

But…

“So, what are you going to do about it?”

I had the system, and I simply did my best with the power and effort I had to overcome the crisis.

If you’re upset, why don’t you try using a system yourself?

“That’s just how life is. Even if it pisses you off and frustrates you, you’ve got to suck it up and move on. What else can you do? It’s already happened, hasn’t it? Right?”

The Skeleton Warlord, who had been screaming just moments ago, muttered quietly.

– Wow, you really have a way with words.

I tend to be like that.

– Foul human… it doesn’t seem like that one over there is planning on moving on.

The Skeleton Warlord was right.

The next moment, an eerie voice echoed alongside a surge of immense magic power.

– Burst. Sonic Buster!

And simultaneously—

*Whoosh, boom!*

A highly concentrated wind exploded outward in an instant.

The wind ball, fired at the speed of sound, turned concrete to dust and snapped steel beams just by brushing against them.

The high-rise building’s windows, unable to withstand the shockwave, shattered all at once, and countless shards of glass were caught in the wind.

In just the blink of an eye, the massive gust of wind reached right in front of my nose.

– Human!

The Skeleton Warlord’s scream echoed from within the inventory.

Was he worried about his own safety, or was he concerned about me?

Either way, it didn’t really matter.

The difference between who I was a few minutes ago and who I am now is significant.

“Ah.”

A burning heat surged up from my chest. The place martial artists call the **Danjeonghyeol** or the **Middle Dantian** had fully opened.

It allowed me to perceive everything happening around me, to feel it on my skin and see it with my eyes.

“So that’s how it is.”

The world slowed down, and everything became clearer and easier to read.

The massive sphere of raging wind, and the flow of magic that made it possible.

*Swish, swish, swish, swish!*

Everything has a center. Magic is no exception. And now, I could see the center.

“Now.”

In the slowed-down world, I swung my spear. The massive wind ball that seemed ready to sweep everything away split in half along the white flame’s blade.

The wind, which had splintered into hundreds and thousands of sharp blades, lost its control and scattered in all directions.

*Slash! Boom, boom, boom!*

The swirling wind sent my clothes and hair flying. With a faint smile, I looked up at the Arch Lich.

“Come down. My neck hurts.”

– You…!

“If you don’t want to, I’ll come to you.”

*Crack, boom!*

With just one step.

The ground caved in, and I shot up into the ashen sky.

*Boom!*

The moment Jin Taekyung soared from the ground, the Arch Lich realized what he had to do.

‘I can’t let that human get close.’

Avoiding close combat—that was a basic fact all mages knew, but for the Arch Lich, it had a deeper meaning.

‘How can I, in this body, feel threatened by a mere human?’

He had prided himself on reaching the pinnacle of black magic.

Though he had lost a significant portion of his power during the process of being reborn as an Arch Lich, even now, his magic surpassed that of any Great Mage.

Yet the human rushing toward him now…

…was dangerous.

‘Yes, just like him.’

It was a memory he didn’t want to recall. Gritting his teeth, the Arch Lich cast his magic.

– Gravity!

This time, his shout carried more force than before, and an invisible pressure descended over a radius of dozens of meters.

Even an S-rank hunter wouldn’t be able to withstand the overwhelming pressure that was about to envelop Jin Taekyung.

*Bang!*

Compressed air exploded from Jin Taekyung’s feet. His form blurred as he evaded the gravity magic by stepping through the air, using **Air-Walking** to escape the range of the spell, and then stepped through the air again.

His agile movements resembled a hawk, but his speed was far beyond that of any bird.

What…?

Flying rapidly through the air, Jin Taekyung’s figure approached, and the light in the Arch Lich’s eyes darkened.

Not only had Jin Taekyung pinpointed the exact range of the gravity spell, but he had also evaded it using an extraordinary technique.

‘As I thought. He didn’t dispel my illusion magic by mere luck. In that case…’

*Swoosh…*

The magic flowing from the Arch Lich’s body shook the very air.

– Gravity. Gravity. Gravity.

High-level magic that even most advanced mages would have to chant for a long time flowed endlessly from him. This time, the Arch Lich was certain he could bring Jin Taekyung down.

‘Fall, human.’

Instead of focusing on the power of the gravity magic, he expanded its range. There was no way a human could escape the pressure covering a radius of hundreds of meters…

*Slice!*

The light in the Arch Lich’s eyes flickered.

At the same time, the gravity magic pressing down on Jin Taekyung scattered, and the connection between his magic and himself was severed like a snapped thread.

Realizing that his magic had been dispelled, the Arch Lich momentarily froze.

Jin Taekyung, who had stepped through the air again like a missile, charged toward the Arch Lich.

*Boom! Swoosh!*

With a roar, Jin Taekyung leaped forward—no, just one step higher—and swung his white flame spear.

*Fwoosh!*

A streak of blue flame shot toward the Arch Lich.

*Crash!*

In the slowed-down world, the invisible barrier surrounding the Arch Lich shattered into pieces.

The fierce energy contained within the blazing qi, powered by the three suns of energy, broke through the overlapping defensive magic and moved toward the Arch Lich’s body.

– Great Bone Wall!

With a chilling cry, a wall of black bones surged up from the air.

The highest-tier defensive magic manifested just a few centimeters away from the Arch Lich, and the flame-imbued spear collided with it.

High in the sky, where the ash-colored sky met the ground, a massive shockwave and thunderous roar echoed as the two forces clashed.

*Boom!*

Compressed air exploded. The clouds that had been swirling in the dark sky scattered. The buildings that had barely maintained their structure collapsed, and half-decayed corpses were swept away by the wind.

But the two beings responsible for all of this remained unfazed as they stared at each other across the bone barrier.

“That was close, wasn’t it?”

– Yes, it was impressive. Or rather…

The Arch Lich looked at the transparent spear blade that had pierced through the center of the bone wall and continued.

– It was dangerous.

Though only the tip of the spear had made it through, the energy it contained had nearly reached his face.

For the Arch Lich, it was a fortunate outcome. For Jin Taekyung, it was a disappointment.

“Lucky you.”

– Arrogant human. But I will acknowledge it.

“What?”

Taken aback, Jin Taekyung asked, and the Arch Lich slowly responded.

– You are worthy of it. If you are truly the adversary.

“…Adversary?”

– Yes. The adversary of the king. The eternal nemesis, entangled in the whims of gods. I am not yet certain… but perhaps this is why I was able to rise again from the river of death.

Jin Taekyung frowned. What nonsense was this about being the adversary of a king or the whims of gods?

“Are you having a delusion? Show me your right hand, let me see if you have some black dragon mark or something.”

The Arch Lich shook his head.

– This is something neither you nor I can fully understand. But one thing is certain.

The deep red light in the Arch Lich’s eyes blazed fiercely.

At first, he had thought Jin Taekyung was just a strong and unusual human, but now he knew otherwise.

He recalled the memories from decades ago, when he had served the king and ravaged this world.

And on the day when he lost everything and fell into the river of death, the memory of the one human he had faced for the first and last time.

‘Adversary.’

The human who killed him and even murdered the king.

He had tried to stop him but couldn’t. He had tried to approach him but couldn’t get near. The only human he had ever feared.

And today, in the battle with Jin Taekyung, the Arch Lich recalled those memories.

– You… will die here today.

The Arch Lich’s voice, though eerie, was firmer than ever before.

And Jin Taekyung’s response was simple.

“What are you babbling about, idiot?”

Then, in the next moment—

“Take this.”

*Fwoosh, boom!*

With a low voice, a punch imbued with blue fire shot forward, erasing everything in its path.

It collided with the black bone wall.

**Flame-Extinguishing Divine Fist.**

*Crack!*

The seemingly impenetrable bone wall crumbled.

As the countless bone fragments scattered, Jin Taekyung, with a blank expression, stared at the Arch Lich.

“Isn’t this better? Now I don’t have to strain my neck looking up.”

“Come down.”

*Crack!*

In an instant, Jin Taekyung’s fist shot forward like a beam of light, smashing into the Arch Lich’s jaw.