Chapter 124
[The Irregular Polyhedron of Plunderers: Devour one equipment to specialize in the unique abilities of that equipment. It can only be done once per equipment, and when devouring a new equipment, the effects of the previous equipment’s specialization are lost.]
‘What’s this?’
A new trait acquired after absorbing Muriel’s essence.It was a type never seen before and did not exist.
‘Absorbing equipment abilities?’
Although the ability gained from the fluid period was a trait not obtained in the game, this was completely different.
“It’s a trait that completely goes beyond Amorph’s common sense.”
Amorph, Outspacer, and Metallic Gremlin, while having excellent physical abilities or powerful utility skills, had the handicap of not being able to wear equipment.
Even if one could use equipment abilities after some preparation, it was impossible for unique-grade equipment, limiting its utilization to regular equipment or consumables.
But with this trait, even though it’s only one, it becomes possible to specialize and use unique-grade equipment.
‘This is unprecedented.’
In the game, killing players never resulted in gaining new traits.
For genetically modified humans, obtaining the essence of biological genes within them and, in the case of cultists, obtaining traits related to psychic powers, were the only outcomes.
Despite consuming numerous players, obtaining a trait of this caliber was a first.
I checked the semi-transparent text box again.
[Nest-related Fusion Trait: Symbiotic Bio-Spores
Mark of Formidable Foe*: Irregular Polyhedron of Plunderers (X)]
Under the list of possessed traits, a new category and asterisk called “Mark of Formidable Foe” appeared.
‘Mark of Formidable Foe?’
When I shifted my gaze to the asterisk, a new message popped up.
[‘Mark of Formidable Foe’: A mark obtained after preying on a formidable foe. If there is a trait that resonates with the unique benefits possessed by the prey, it will be reconstructed into the Mark of Formidable Foe trait. Traits classified under the Mark of Formidable Foe cannot be used as fusion or transcendence system materials.]
From the explanation alone, the ‘Mark of Formidable Foe’ trait, which is part of the ‘Irregular Polyhedron of Plunderers,’ seemed to be a new classification different from general traits related to physical and psychic abilities.
‘The formidable foe mentioned here is probably referring to players.’
When interrogating Muriel, I asked her if there were other players besides us.According to her, there were two players collaborating with her.
The players she knew included seven, including Mother of the Sky and me.
‘There used to be more, but…’
It’s unclear how many more are left now. Many died in the war among players that erupted a long time ago.
‘The fact that killing other players grants special rewards must have spread during that time.’
When Muriel came to this world, the war had already ended, and the remaining players had formed factions.
While some tried to adapt and live in this world, others aimed to obtain traits by targeting other players, treating this place as a game and ruling like tyrants.
‘It’s different because we arrived at different times.’
Muriel came three years ago, and Mother of the Sky had been here for at least over ten years. Among the players Muriel knew, there were even those who had lived for more than a hundred years.
‘They’ve survived in different ways, so it’s not surprising that factions diverge.’
The only puzzling thing is that, despite being here for so long, no one who had seen the ending was found.
‘The war that happened in the past was probably fought among players trying to see the ending.’
‘If Amorph’s ending is ascension, then it is said that other races also have unique endings of a similar classification.’
And to witness that ending, one must engage in battles against players of competing races at a similar level.
‘To be precise, it involves assassinating the leaders of other races.’
For example, MegaCorp and StarUnion each have conditions in their respective ending triggers that include eliminating each other’s leaders.
To witness the ending, a player who ascends to the position of MegaCorp CEO must fight and eliminate the Grandmaster of StarUnion.
Since players usually take control of the positions of CEOs or Grandmasters of each race in the game, the ultimate goal is undoubtedly to encourage conflict among players. Therefore, during the past war, someone undoubtedly achieved these conditions. However, based on Muriel’s words and other sources, it seemed that someone who had witnessed the ending had not yet appeared.
‘Is there something I don’t know?’
Since this is reality, it cannot be ruled out that players have not reached high enough positions to unlock the ending triggers.
Unlike the game, here, once you die, it’s over. Even if you are a player with a strong heart, you can only move by controlling your body.
‘I need to ask Mother of the Sky about this.’
Since she has survived much longer than Muriel, she might know something.
‘Regardless, there is a high probability of becoming hostile to other players in the future.’
Muriel sent a distress signal to her colleagues before I captured her. So, at least, it was confirmed that her colleagues would be hostile to me. Also, players in a hostile relationship with Muriel’s colleagues will somehow learn about my actions.
Depending on their faction, they may either oppose me or try to exploit me.
*Note: You are death, the destroyer of the universe. But beware, the entire universe will pay attention to you.”
As the note says, the entire universe will watch me. How players will approach me is unknown for now.
‘In any case, I need to become stronger.’
That way, I can survive and avoid being used by someone. Upgrading to the transcendence system and even hunting players. It is ultimately necessary to understand the intentions and reasons of the one who sent me here to survive.
Finally, I checked if there were any new messages, but there was no additional explanation other than the note. Continuing to ponder with insufficient information would be a waste of time. Right now, it would be more productive to consider how to use the newly acquired abilities.
‘The Irregular Polyhedron of Plunderers allows me to create abilities or traits from any equipment.’
And I can only specialize in the abilities of each equipment once. If it’s a common-grade equipment, I can use its abilities multiple times, but not for unique-grade equipment.
‘If it’s Muriel’s equipment….’ I picked up the Priest’s Golden Spear and the Harmonizer lying on the ground. In addition to these, the Brainshin and Blood River are at the campsite. I don’t know how the unique abilities of the equipment will function when specialized.
At least, judging from the abilities of the equipment, all of them will be beneficial to me. The Golden Spear will greatly enhance my strength, and the Harmonizer will provide an absolute evasion ability up to five times.
The Brainshin can complement my lacking long-range and anti-air capabilities, while the Blood River will significantly enhance my battlefield domination abilities.
‘Should I experiment with other equipment first?’
I need to confirm how they will be applied by consuming any equipment available at the campsite. I was about to leave with the spear and the harmonizer when a sudden thought crossed my mind.
‘….’
I picked up a nearby rock and built a small stone mound in the spot where I had stood a while ago.
***
The sacred star of the cult, the ‘Leader.’
This place is the spiritual homeland of the cults scattered throughout the galaxy. In reality, the leader is not in a livable place, as the entire planet turned into a desert a long time ago. If it weren’t for the cult’s exceptional psychic power technology, it would have been abandoned long ago.
On the red sands spread across the entire planet, there were ancient cities. Among these cities was one called the ‘Prophet’s Stone.’ The Prophet’s Stone, with ivory-colored outer walls adorned with violet decorations, was the oldest city, having stood for tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of years. Passing through buildings adorned with violet decorations along the road, a giant tower stood at the center of the city. The top floor of the tower, where the noblest members of the cult resided.
A male cultist with deer antlers walked through the long corridor and opened the door to the prayer room. Inside the prayer room, numerous diamond-shaped monuments connected by cables lay scattered on the floor.
“….”
The male cultist silently flicked his fingers. Upon doing so, light emerged from two of the diamond monuments that were lying there, and they floated into the air.
“Long time no see, everyone!”
A girl’s voice flowed from one of the monuments. The voice resembled that of an animated character, bright and lively, not fitting the somber atmosphere of the prayer room.
“We’re busy over here, so get to the point quickly, Jason.”
On the other hand, the voice from this side conjured an image of a dignified middle-aged man. Jason waited for another monument to activate, but even after a few more seconds, there was no movement. Faced with only two active monuments, Jason, the male cultist, sighed.
“…I said it was urgent, and only two people showed up?”
“It’s because Oppa spoke like an idiot. If he had explained properly, more people would have come.”
“This idiot… No, wait a minute. Why didn’t the one with middle school syndrome come in? He’s the most important one.”
“Oppa is busy these days because of the internal conflicts. I haven’t contacted him for a long time either.”
“Fuck. I should have joined MegaCorp at the end. It’s too boring here, just fooling around with married women for a day or two.”
When Jason only conversed with the monument where the girl’s voice came from, the voice of the middle-aged man intervened.
“I don’t have time. So stop chattering and explain in detail. Has a new player arrived?”
“Yes. Tell us in detail. Muriel, why did she die so suddenly? There shouldn’t be anyone wandering around to hunt players besides us.”
“She was killed by a player we all know. The Amorph.”
When the word ‘Amorph’ came out of Jason’s mouth, the chattering monuments quieted down.
“…Jason Oppa, that joke is not funny.”
“Tsk, we wasted time for nothing, and the speech is coming up soon. Fuck, I hope it’s a lie.”
“Shit, I wish it were a lie.”
“Really? Is it really Amorph?”
“It’s ridiculous. Amorph is extinct.”
“She said that before losing contact with Muriel. That the Wolf player and the Amorph player were targeting her.”
Jason transmitted recorded communication logs to the figures beyond the monuments. After a while, their anger erupted from the monuments as they examined the communication logs.
“Fuck, this is unbelievable! Why did the bastards who became extinct ten years ago show up now?”
“… Who was the last one to clean up? Probably Beom-Ho.”
“Beom-ho, that son of a bitch, will never give up, so I told you to kill him in advance!”
“Shut the fuck up! It’s already too late to blame anyone. Check who killed Muriel. If the one who killed her is Amorph, then the answer is clear.”
“Alright. Since there’s only one Amorph up to rank 40, it must be the Amorph with the skills to capture Muriel in the first place.”
In response to Jason’s words, light emerged from the monument where the girl’s voice came from.
“Wait a minute! Th…that means, the 5th rank, b…but that guy has no friends. There’s no way such a person would be with Seoa Unni…”
“Agreed. The possibility of an Amorph having a companion is close to zero.”
“Muriel commissioned me to capture Choi Seoa. Perhaps that Amorph interfered while they were fighting?”
“Indeed. A typical Amorph move. A plausible explanation.”
“Sigh… Is this for real? I thought my luck was good lately because equipment development has been going well.”
Only now could the people beyond the monument understand why Jason had called them.
“Are you planning to punish him?”
“Of course. If we leave that guy alone, we’ll all die.”
“What if it’s not me, but Beom-Ho? I don’t count towards Amorph evolution conditions because I’m a Gaju.”
“Did Muriel not talk about you before she died? If I were Amorph, wouldn’t I try to catch you no matter what?”
“Ugh, that useless bitch Muriel… Quiet! So what’s the plan?”
“How about we all go together and catch him? Sending subordinates is not preferable, and besides…”
Jason pondered. The people present here were truly individuals who could manipulate the universe in real-time. Calling them gods wouldn’t be an exaggeration. Would it really be challenging for these individuals to catch one Amorph?
However, the thoughts of the people beyond the monument were quite different from Jason’s.
“Are you crazy, Oppa? Going together to face that guy? Except for Beom-Ho, if only we go, we’ll all get wiped out.”
“I also oppose. If I die, Star Union will collapse as it is.”
“Hey, both of you are talking nonsense. It’s not like I want to be the only one to survive. With our power, we can easily…”
“Stop the bullshit. You might not know Oppa well, but do you know about the Amorph? He used to break the heads of Rankers while he was just a Pre-Saint.”
“I heard that because of him, there were many cultists who couldn’t see the ending, there are plenty of them. Jason, you must know. That’s why. I don’t plan on paying tribute to the wall of weeping.”
“That’s right. I absolutely have no intention of paying tribute to the wall of weeping. If you want to die, go ahead alone. If you want to leave a will, record it now. You won’t be able to leave a will if you go there. That’s for sure.”
Jason’s words were interrupted by the emerging monuments. Faced with their reactions, which seemed like people haunted by trauma, Jason could no longer say anything.
