Chapter 541
The flames resembled the fires of hell.
However, Jinhyuk had already withdrawn before the explosion occurred.
He completely erased his presence within the blizzard, then added [Shadowstep: Mortal Slash].
Two swords aimed for Pendragon’s ankles.
Kaaang!
He had clearly swung to sever the ankles completely.
But what rang out was a sharp metallic clang.
A stinging sensation crept up his fingertips.
“Using shadows to teleport was quite fresh, but did you forget to suppress the faint killing intent? At this rate, it’s obvious where you’re going to strike, isn’t it?”
“…You’re sharper than I thought.”
He was oddly adept at close combat for a dragon.
No, not just adept—it came to him as naturally as breathing.
Still, Jinhyuk had only just begun to warm up.
He hadn’t shown anything serious yet.
[Unique Ability ‘Grave of Swords’ is activating!]
[Unique Ability ‘Blessing of the Stars’ is activating!]
Lights of different attributes burst from the daggers.
And when the forms of the [Heavenly Divine Art] unfolded, the aura turned into a fierce dance.
Slash!
Snowflakes were severed as sword strikes exploded forth.
Countless fragmented blades targeted Pendragon’s entire body.
Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!
The blades hidden in the snowstorm were vicious.
Even Pendragon couldn’t help but change his expression.
“Urgh!”
Though he was somewhat skilled with the sword, he wasn’t capable of taking on the [Heavenly Divine Art] head-on.
In that case…
[Pendragon activates ‘Dragon Fear’!]
The authority of a dragon that targets all lifeforms in sight.
“…!!”
Jinhyuk’s strikes dulled slightly due to the ability that dragged out the deep-rooted fear within.
And during that gap—
“Got you!”
Pendragon didn’t miss the opening.
[Coordinates fixed.]
[‘10th Circle Meteor Strike’ is descending!]
The snow-covered sky parted.
Soon, massive meteors cloaked in blazing fire revealed themselves.
Damn it.
Jinhyuk clicked his tongue bitterly.
He had tried to interrupt any large-scale magic above the 10th Circle at all costs.
A small mistake had resulted in a costly consequence.
There was no avoiding this.
If it hit the ground directly, it would destroy the entire mental world constructed with the [Unique Holy Spear].
Jinhyuk reverse-summoned the two daggers back into the subspace inventory.
Instead—
A new weapon emerged from the distorted space.
A blade large enough to split even a mountain.
The unique mana and murderous aura exuding from the entire greatsword were unlike any other weapon.
“That sword…”
Pendragon’s eyes narrowed.
Of course he would recognize it.
How could he not?
A legendary holy relic known for being the strongest counter to dragons, which beheaded even an Ancient-grade demonic dragon.
[Recognizing the existence of an ancient dragon, a superior species of dragon!]
[Basic stats receive a 30% additional effect!]
[Gain a permanent 2% stat boost for each dragon slain.]
Status windows stacked up in succession.
The hilt of [Balmung] in both hands grew hotter.
It was like holding a chunk of iron heated in fire.
With this…
It was possible.
Jinhyuk took his stance.
The [Right Arm of Tombgrave] firmly supported the weight and might of the sword.
Muscles screamed under the strain of using consecutive [Unique Abilities] and [Skills].
But the mana radiating from Jinhyuk’s body overcame the pain and only sharpened further.
At the same time—
Rumble rumble rumble!
The fully revealed meteors began to fall toward the ground.
Just a few seconds remained.
Balmung swept across the ground horizontally.
There were no fancy forms.
No graceful sword dance to marvel at.
It simply moved in a horizontal arc, fulfilling the true essence of a sword.
That alone was enough.
Krrrk!
The sight of meteors, dozens of meters in diameter, being cleaved in two was not just awe-inspiring—it bordered on grotesque.
A brief silence followed.
The sight was so outrageous that it brought a lull to the fight.
“Hoo…”
Jinhyuk lightly swung Balmung.
Dust on the blade scattered and fell.
“Unbelievable…”
Pendragon ground his teeth.
He had been certain there would be no unexpected outcomes once he activated [Meteor Strike].
But that response just now shattered that certainty completely.
And it wasn’t just that.
Now that Jinhyuk had Balmung in his hands, the risk had risen to an absurd level.
He could no longer think of him as an easy opponent to toy with.
“…There’s no helping it.”
Going back on one’s word was a matter of pride.
Even more so when the opponent was a human.
However, now that he realized he couldn’t win at this rate, he had no choice but to go all out.
“From this point on, I’ll stop taking it easy. I recognize you as an enemy, not prey.”
Fsssshh!
A menacing aura of an entirely different scale.
The ancient dragon who ruled black flames released his polymorph.
⁕⁕⁕
“Rroaaaar!”
Just his roar made the air quake.
Cracks formed in the barrier created with the [Unique Holy Spear].
‘Seeing it again… it really is terrifying.’
Shiver…! Shiver…!
Every hair stood on end, and his skin tingled.
Is this what it feels like to face the strongest creature alive?
Truly befitting of a being far beyond a dragon.
[Black Flame Dragon ‘Pendragon’ manifests!]
Snowflakes darkened to crimson under the black flames.
Just his manifestation redistributed the mana dissolved in the atmosphere.
“How’s this? This is my true form.”
Now that he had returned to his dragon form, he could no longer wield sword and magic simultaneously, but the mana he gained surpassed that limitation.
The quality of [Dragon Tongue]. The number of magic circles he could cast with it.
He was on a whole different level.
Pendragon raised a finger.
A light formed at his fingertip and flickered.
Thud!
“…!?”
Just a few centimeters from his heart.
A small hole appeared.
He had predicted the direction based on the finger’s motion. But he didn’t even perceive the trajectory of the light.
Cough.
A thick stream of blood trickled from Jinhyuk’s mouth.
[Blessing of the Stars] immediately began to heal the wound, but that single blow had drained a massive chunk of mana.
There was no time to catch his breath before another beam of light flickered again.
KWAANG!
Jinhyuk struck upward with Balmung.
The beam that touched the sword shot back up into the sky.
It was another narrow escape.
[‘Eye of Gluttony’ is active.]
[Next target: ‘Head’.]
He had anticipated the next strike would aim for his heart, which allowed him to react in time.
This was the moment where the game-breaking ability of [Eye of Gluttony] shone.
More precisely, it was thanks to the combination of [Eye of Gluttony], [Gap], and his [Luck] stat.
‘It’s been a while since I fought an ancient dragon. The thrill’s enough to stop my heart.’
Now that Pendragon had manifested in his true form, all restrictions were gone.
A magic battle with a dragon was practically suicide.
Unless you knew the correct strategy.
[Unique Ability ‘Triple Magic’ is activating!]
Magic calculation speed rose exponentially as radiant elements began to manifest.
“Foolish. You dare challenge me, the creator of magic, in a magic battle?”
“I’m not trying to win.”
Jinhyuk drew bolts of blue lightning from the completed magic circle.
Bolts resembling Zeus’ Astrafe radiated dazzling light.
“I just think I can annoy you enough.”
“With that half-baked magic?”
“Let’s see if it really is half-baked. But seriously, I don’t get why you’re so confident in your magic. Aren’t you leagues below Destia?”
Jinhyuk casually dropped the remark.
But that one offhand comment completely changed Pendragon’s mood.
“…What did you just say? That I’m leagues below… Destia?”
It didn’t matter how a human knew about Destia on the 48th floor.
Only one sentence repeated in his mind.
“Oh, was I too blunt? My bad. I’m just the type who can’t hold things in.”
“That mouth.”
“Hm?”
“I’ll shut that foul mouth of yours first.”
Black blades materialized around Pendragon.
Shaa sha sha sha!
Lightning and blades clashed head-on.
But only for a moment.
The blades pierced through the lightning and shot toward Jinhyuk’s face.
But—
Fssst!
Instead of being slashed, Jinhyuk had disappeared.
He had even set up a distortion field to prevent teleportation, yet Jinhyuk had bypassed it.
Impossible.
There was no sign anyone had interfered with the technique…
While Pendragon was caught off guard, Jinhyuk kicked up the speed another notch.
‘He has no choice but to find it strange.’
Because it wasn’t magic.
It was [Dimensional Phantom Step].
Though it was a short-range teleport like [Blink], the way it manifested was entirely different.
Pendragon, who was used to tracking mana flow, couldn’t help but find it unfamiliar.
Still, it only bought a few seconds.
Ancient dragons must’ve fought opponents with various skills, including martial artists.
Slash!
“Graaaagh!”
Balmung pierced through the shield and carved a deep wound into Pendragon.
Red blood sprayed like a fountain.
…Damn it.
Too shallow.
He had tried to drive it in as deep as possible, but he couldn’t inflict a critical hit in that brief window.
“Graaaaagh! My body… you dare, you rodent!”
Blinded by rage, Pendragon raised his massive leg.
Forget magic.
He was planning to crush him with sheer brute force.
With such a wide movement of the greatsword, evading was no easy feat.
Especially with a [Gravitational Field] pressing down, keeping balance became even harder.
“Urgh!”
Jinhyuk activated [Blessing of the Stars] and [Mandala], taking the strongest defensive stance possible.
KWAANG!
An unimaginable impact crushed his entire body.
It felt like all his bones had shattered.
Pendragon raised his leg again.
If he took another hit like that…
But just then—
[Nanoleaf activates ‘Nanotechnology’ – Sealing Transfer!]
Finally, Nanoleaf’s support kicked in.
Chrrrkk!
Thick chains whirled and wrapped around Pendragon’s massive body.
“Took you long enough.”
Like rain in a drought.
Nanoleaf had finally finished redistributing his mana.
Jinhyuk exhaled.
“This crap!”
Pendragon tried to shatter the chains in one go.
But the more strength he used, the tighter the chains held him.
Whrrrng!
Runes glowed and created cracks in the magic circle Pendragon was trying to activate.
Tiny cracks. So small they were invisible to the naked eye.
But in the world of perfect magic, even a small flaw was fatal.
Pendragon stopped forcibly breaking the chains.
“…Fine. I see you prepared some thick ropes. But what do you plan to do with them? Nanoleaf’s mana isn’t infinite.”
Even with time bought, there was nothing else they could do.
[Mana is depleting rapidly!]
“Hurry…! I can’t hold much longer!”
Nanoleaf shouted.
Yes, he knew.
Something like this was meaningless.
Which is why—
He just needed someone prepared.
Another rival that could go toe-to-toe with an ancient dragon.
And in that very moment—
“Mogiiiii!”
A new ancient dragon’s roar echoed thunderously.