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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Hestia]
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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Chapter 8: The Ancient Trial Grounds (2)
Whoosh!
Magical flames flickered from the walls, illuminating the interior.
Yoojin's eyes darted around a few times before settling.
'Just as I heard.'
A curved, crescent-shaped cavity. In the center was a circular magic circle.
'A trial hidden within a specific gate.'
A rare place, with only a few like it in the entire world.
"Groooan."
The zombies, swept along by the flash of light, had been transported as well.
They looked around, drool dripping from their half-open mouths.
[Welcome to the Ancient Trial Grounds Ⅰ.]
[This trial can only be attempted alone.]
[Prove your courage and potential in the Trial Grounds.]
'Summons are treated as part of my abilities, so they aren't affected by the personnel restriction.'
Heh.
The information he had heard in his past life was accurate.
'By the time the secret of this gate was revealed, I had already surpassed 2 Stars.'
He couldn't describe how disappointed he had been when he heard about the secret hidden within the Ancient Garden.
A gate accessible only to 1 Star hunters.
With Yoojin's skills, he could have obtained the Ancient Garden's reward, but...
What was the point if he couldn't even enter?
'There's also an Ancient Trial Ground in France, but...'
Powerful guilds were already fighting over ownership of that one, and it was in another country, so he hadn't even dreamed of going there.
For Yoojin, this was his first challenge, both before and after his return.
[After 60 seconds, a Draconian will descend. Survive for the allotted time.]
[Time limit - 10:00]
[If you do not wish to proceed with the challenge, return through the passage at the end of the Ancient Trial Grounds. You will be able to return to your original location.]
Draconian.
A half-human, half-dragon monster with the blood of dragons.
The trial's objective was a powerful monster classified as at least 6 Star.
A being capable of freely emitting aura from any part of its body and proficient in magic.
〔Facing a Draconian? At your level, you won't last even 10 seconds.〕
'I heard that even though it's a dragonkin, its power is adjusted to match the level of a 1 Star gate.'
This was a gate with an entry restriction of 1 Star.
It wouldn't be balanced if a 6 Star monster suddenly appeared, right?
The Draconian summoned for the trial would have its stats restricted due to the gate's influence.
'But that doesn't mean I can underestimate it.'
According to the information from his past life, the Draconian's combat power was at the peak of 2 Star.
An overwhelmingly powerful opponent that Yoojin couldn't handle with his current abilities.
'Well then, shall we begin?'
Rubbing his hands together, he called over a nearby zombie.
"Groooan?"
"Stay still."
He placed his right hand on the zombie's forehead and observed every nook and cranny of its body with the essence of death.
[Zombie]
Race: Undead
Rank: ★
Enhancement Level: 100%
A zombie that has gained double the strength by reinforcing its bones, muscles, etc., with the essence of death.
'Let's make use of that enhancement level.'
Yoojin was an expert in the structure of the undead.
By diverting the Spirit Power that permeated the body during strengthening, he could modify even a completed undead.
'First, let's try diverting the strength.'
He converted the doubled strength stat into poison.
Crackle, Crackle.
The zombie's body convulsed.
"I told you to stay still. You're messing with my concentration."
After needlessly scolding the zombie, he also poured the increased agility stat into the poison.
Concave spores bubbled up all over its skin, making the zombie's appearance even more hideous.
[Poison → Plague Blood]
[Undead modification successful.]
[The target has transformed into a Plague Zombie.]
[When using Raise Undead, targets that meet the conditions will be created as Plague Zombies.]
Although its strength and agility stats decreased, it now possessed a stronger poison.
His trump card for defeating the Draconian.
The pocket watch buzzed loudly.
〔Modifying the dead on the spot?〕
'Don't be surprised by every little thing. I was a 9 Star Necromancer, you know.'
The amount of death essence consumed for modification wasn't much.
However, it required a deep understanding of the structure of the undead...
And to prevent power loss during the modification process, one had to perfectly control the death essence, demanding extreme concentration.
An ordinary necromancer would have taken at least 10 minutes to modify one.
'Extreme? For just modifying a zombie?'
Yoojin completed this difficult task in 25 seconds.
After modifying one more, he had 10 seconds left.
He positioned the zombie horde at regular intervals, and then light seeped out from the circle at the center of the cavity.
Flash!
A bright light surged from the summoning circle, and a 3-meter tall Draconian emerged through the white beam of light.
[The Draconian has descended.]
[Survive for 10 minutes.]
"Kraaaaa!"
The Draconian roared.
＊ ＊ ＊
The Ancient Trial Grounds.
A space created by the Dragon Legion at the behest of the Pantheon's constellations to select outstanding hunters.
Those who presided over the trials were members of the Dragon Legion under the command of the Dragon Lord.
The Dragonian, Zercaden, as soon as he finished his descent, twitched his nose and frowned.
『You control a foul-smelling race.』
The second [Ancient Trial Grounds Ⅰ] to open, following the one in France.
He had faced dozens of hunters so far, but this was the first time he had encountered a sorcerer who commanded the dead.
"I don't like being called smelly by a race that doesn't bathe their entire lives."
Yoojin replied with a smirk.
A single line of ridicule escaped his lips, echoing through the cavity.
Was he serious?
Of course.
It was useless trivia he had learned while hunting dragons that appeared in higher-level gates.
See? That Dragonian couldn't even refute him.
『Not only do you control the dead, but you are also frivolous.』
Zercaden gritted his teeth.
Anger welled up inside him.
However, as a dragon who couldn't lie, he couldn't respond to Yoojin's insult.
『You are the most vulgar one I have ever seen in the Trial Grounds.』
The Ancient Trial Grounds Ⅰ connected to the same place regardless of which gate you entered from.
Zercaden had tested dozens of hunters.
All of them were promising talents from powerful guilds, including the German Ranker, Michael Dryst, and the French prospect, Guillaume Schneider.
『I will watch with my own eyes whether you can endure the 10 minutes like they did.』
Probably not, though.
Adding the last part under his breath, Zercaden stepped forward.
Thump- Thump—
A heavy sound echoed with each step.
In response, Yoojin positioned the zombies in a U-shape with himself as the axis.
A formation with wings spread out on both sides.
Zercaden narrowed his eyes.
'I will play along with your little trick.'
If he went straight, the zombies lined up on both sides would cling to him.
Walking right into their encirclement.
It was a very transparent tactic, but Zercaden didn't think of turning back.
No matter how many there were, they were just 1 Star zombies.
A Draconian's tough scales were harder than well-forged iron armor.
『The pain will not last long, mortal.』
"Yours will be a bit longer, though. My apologies."
『I will watch how long you can keep running your mouth.』
As Zercaden entered the middle of the U-shaped zombie formation, a sharp snapping sound echoed, and the zombies rushed at him.
Crack, Crack.
He clenched his fist, muscles bulging as his forearm swelled.
With a powerful swing of his right arm, the upper body of the zombie that was rushing at him exploded.
『Just a mere zombie...?』
Strange.
The impact was too light. For shattering a zombie suffering from rigor mortis in a single blow, the shock transmitted to his fist was minimal.
By the time an ominous premonition crossed Zercaden's mind...
"It's already too late."
Splash!
The poisonous liquid contained within the Plague Zombie's body exploded, splattering his forearm, shoulder, and parts of his torso.
Toxic substances from a corpse.
The acidic liquid, created by maximizing what was known as corpse poison, began to melt the Draconian's tough scales.
[Acid Poison Lv 12]
『Huh.』
His right arm trembled intermittently.
'I can't put any strength into it.'
An attack that wouldn't have fazed him in his true form.
But now, his physical abilities were weakened to match the level of the [Ancient Trial Grounds] test.
White smoke billowed from the area where the acidic liquid had touched him.
Sizzle.
His scales melted one by one.
"Grrrr!"
『You're resorting to petty tricks!』
Instead of his right arm, dulled by the corpse poison, he swung his left arm, which he had pulled back, with all his might, crushing the zombie's body.
With parts of his body paralyzed, his movements became larger.
Snap!
Yoojin didn't miss that opening and quickly moved the zombies forward, closing the distance.
『What will you do when you've used up all your zombies?』
"Well, I never said I was going to hold out."
Giving instructions to the zombies, Yoojin kicked off the ground and sprinted with all his might.
『Mortal, don't tell me...』
"You're just realizing it now?"
『You, you dare entertain the absurd notion of defeating me?!』
[Ground Slam]
Zercaden raised his left foot and slammed it into the ground with all his might.
He released mana at the moment his foot made contact with the ground.
A shockwave spread, shaking the zombies' bodies.
『I, Zercaden, am not weak enough to be defeated by such lowly zombies.』
"Yes, you are."
Zercaden twisted his body with all his might, trying to shake off the zombies.
Even though the zombies were strengthened twofold, their stats were still lacking compared to the materialized Draconian.
'If I move a little more, I can escape.'
Just as a glimmer of hope appeared in Zercaden's eyes...
BOOM!
The second Plague Zombie Yoojin had prepared exploded at close range.
The poisonous liquid showered Zercaden's body.
His scales, having lost their original color and turned a murky black, had softened to the point where they could no longer protect him.
"What? Something not going your way?"
[Bone Control activated.]
A whitish aura enveloped the Staff of Resentment.
Crack!
Yoojin raised the sharp tip of the staff and tore through the softened scales.
'Even weakened by restrictions, to think I'm overwhelming a Dragonian...'
Kronos gasped.
He was once the King of the Titans, reigning supreme.
He could understand how unfair this fight was without Yoojin's explanation.
The difference in their mana capacity.
The disparity in their physical abilities.
Yoojin wasn't ahead in any of them.
'It should be difficult to harm a Dragonian's body with such crude undead.'
Kronos' warning to Yoojin had been sincere.
Even though he had become a constellation by exploiting a domain that no one governed, he wasn't officially recognized by the Pantheon.
This meant he didn't have a designated constellation of his own, making his existence precarious.
If Yoojin were to die here, Chronos wouldn't simply become a Fallen Star—he would be completely erased from existence.
That was why he had just made such a lengthy speech out of worry.
'It was unnecessary.'
Kronos watched the battle with a relaxed mind.
"Uwaaaagh!"
Zercaden thrashed about with bloodshot eyes.
Half of his body was paralyzed from repeated exposure to the poison, but...
He exerted superhuman mental strength and aimed for Yoojin, but what came back was the staff, piercing his blind spot.
"Keugh."
As the staff shattered his scales and inflicted additional damage, Zercaden's stamina rapidly declined.
Confirming that his movements had dulled, Yoojin retrieved the Staff of Resentment.
Without hesitation, he reached out his hand.
[Mana → Divine Power]
[Life Drain activated.]
The Draconian's life force was sucked in.
Yoojin intended to plunder everything Zercaden had.
The sensation of his life force being ripped away whole.
"Ku, Kuuuh."
Zercaden's movements gradually slowed, and finally, his head dropped.
[You have passed the Ancient Trial Grounds Ⅰ.]
[The Rune of Endurance is engraved.]
◎ Rune of Endurance
Type: Rune
Reduces stiffness and increases concentration even when suffering pain.
* Stiffness effect reduced by 40%
* Mana recover speed increased by 20%
A permanent buff, different from a constellation's blessing or auxiliary magic.
It was a powerful ability, considered top-tier among runes, as it was effective for both martial and magic-type hunters.
〔It's a different mechanism from a blessing.〕
'It's a blessing from the system.'
〔The Pantheon, and the system. Concepts that did not exist when I ruled the world.〕
Kronos muttered in a puzzled tone.
Instead of responding, Yoojin glanced at the fallen Draconian's corpse.
'The real reward is separate.'
The Dragonian's corpse.
An irresistible, powerful material that would make any Necromancer's eyes sparkle with greed.
'A Dragonian corpse with almost no damage...'
Really...
He couldn't resist.
Yoojin's eyes gleamed with greed.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Hestia
[Proofreader - Kaya]
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