Chapter 75: Who Are You? (5)

Pop!

The sound of something bursting.

Before others could even be shocked, it revealed its true form.

- Hehehe.

Ssss.

An unpleasant sound. As Yoo Eunchae's head burst, it turned into a shadow.

Shadow.

It seemed to be a being that embodied something like a human body.

"Doppelgänger…"

"A place where doppelgängers appear? It must be very dangerous."

"But how did you know? You acted so decisively, without hesitation. If this is a labyrinth where doppelgängers appear, we need a way to distinguish them. Can you tell us?"

Thor's knight asked politely.

"Because its face was annoying."

"…"

A moment of silence passed.

Perhaps they thought I didn't want to teach them.

'But it's true.'

Usually, Yoo Eunchae was annoying, but she at least treated me with a certain degree of respect.

Because I disciplined her with a few hits.

'Such a person wouldn't treat me respectfully?'

Yet, she reacted as if seeing my power, Soul Origin Qi, for the first time.

There was no way she would act like that.

She saw my Heaven-Surrendering Godly Technique.

And from the front.

Someone who saw that power clearly wouldn't react like that.

After I explained roughly, she finally understood and nodded.

"…Come to think of it, we haven't introduced ourselves yet. My name is Zeronis."

"Han Seojin."

I walked forward.

This labyrinth needed to be cleared quickly.

"Professor Han Seojin, you seem worried about the students. It's dangerous to go alone."

"It's fine."

Really, it's fine.

I actually prefer being alone.

If I use that technique, they would just be a hindrance.

But they could also be a useful force…

[The Labyrinth of Illusions assesses the levels of the intruders.]

[The Labyrinth of Illusions confirms that the intruders' levels are higher than the current state of the labyrinth, activating the power, Paradox.]

[The grade of the Labyrinth of Illusions increases.]

[The grade of the monsters inside the Labyrinth of Illusions rises.]

[The illusions the Labyrinth of Illusions unleashes on the intruders become more realistic.]

"…We need to hurry."

We began to increase our speed.

The Labyrinth of Illusions.

The dungeon appeared after peeling away the black veil.

Zeronis, to be honest, thought he had underestimated it a bit.

-Roar!!

The monsters that appeared here.

The labyrinth, spewing out monsters seemingly made of shadows, was quite overwhelming.

'A-grade level dungeon.'

A dungeon that requires several highly skilled individuals to be fully prepared, with a 70% chance of success.

This dungeon was disadvantageous in many ways.

They were not prepared for the strategy, and there were only three highly skilled individuals, including himself.

There were some mid-tier individuals, but they came hastily as well.

As soon as he realized this, they were the ones in danger.

'But it wasn't.'

The reason the strategy was going smoothly was because of one man.

Zeronis looked at Han Seojin.

A spear he practically snatched from the party members.

'The spear…'

He wielded it very simply as if using basic spear techniques.

Yet, from just that, he exerted overwhelming pressure.

One could tell how refined his spear techniques were just from its presence.

'It's absurd.'

The knights who handled divine power.

They were different from martial artists.

They didn't handle weapons deeply or efficiently.

While martial artists delved into the essence of basic swordsmanship—Strength, Swiftness, Illusion, Transformation, Heavy, and Defeat, they only learned swordsmanship to kill their enemies quickly.

That phenomenon appears because their true power stems from Outlaws and divine artifacts.

He never once envied their martial arts.

Crack.

Han Seojin, swinging his spear effortlessly, slaughtered the monsters.

"Hey."

"Yes?"

Han Seojin squinted his eyes and looked ahead.

Though the labyrinth obscures vision, his Heavenly Eyes are unaffected.

"How long can you hold out here?"

"We can hold out for a week."

"Really?"

Han Seojin looked surprised, but thinking about it, it was natural.

Those who handle divine power have survival skills higher than cockroaches.

Their extremely high defense and recovery are formidable weapons in themselves.

There was a reason why some people considered divine power a level above martial arts and magic.

'Well, that's inevitable.'

In his days as the Blue-eyed Martial Emperor.

And the Purple Magic Tower Master,

During that time, the martial and magic worlds suffered tremendous losses.

Many martial arts and magic were lost, but the greater loss was in humans and other resources.

「Do you know Purple Tower Master? Our royal family is descended from dragons. But for that price, we cannot live long. So, I entrust this dragon's heart to you. Will you break our short-lived curse?」

Han Seojin squinted his eyes.

Memories he tried hard to forget resurfaced.

Illusions.

Stimulating bad memories or traumas in the opponent.

Han Seojin closed his eyes.

"Are you okay, Head Professor Han Seojin?"

"I'm fine. I'll go ahead first."

"Wait! It's not that I doubt your abilities…! No, you must be thinking about the students more than yourself."

"...What?"

"I understand. We'll take care of things here."

Zeronis said and took something out from his bosom.

A golden pendant.

Han Seojin realized it was a divine artifact.

"The Compass of the Sage. With this, you can create a hiding space for a day and heal any injured students."

Han Seojin took the pendant without a word.

He wasn't really worried about them.

'How did I teach them?'

They were talented individuals who met an excellent teacher.

They could last at least three days if they aimed to survive here.

The variable would be the students from the Holy Empire Academy.

But with Yoo Eunchae, she will control them somehow.

'Still, I'm moving urgently.'

My senses kept warning me about something.

Like smoke slowly rising.

It was okay for now, but it felt like an irreversible threat was coming.

'If it's what I think it is.'

It could be very dangerous.

That was why I had to move.

"I'll go ahead."

Wind God's Steps.

Han Seojin stepped forward.

Swoosh.

The wind moved

Wind Path.

And the wind guided the way.

Projection.

Infusing magic into the wind to sense the surroundings. The endlessly enchanting footwork led him.

'Should I say it's fortunate?'

This labyrinth wasn't as complex as I thought.

The walls are endlessly high and solid, which is a problem.

Han Seojin stopped as he followed the wind.

With projection, he roughly grasped the labyrinth's terrain.

Actually, this labyrinth is complicated.

If others were here, they would likely get lost.

'If I can't break through here, I have to go around in circles.'

I took the wrong path.

If I didn't break this, I would have to face the group again.

But.

Those standards didn't apply to me.

Whoosh.

A gray energy enveloped my fist.

When I first saw this labyrinth's walls, I read it.

A property of being indestructible.

When I saw it, I couldn't help but laugh.

'Indestructible?'

Ridiculous.

Heaven-Surrendering Godly Technique destroyed the indestructible.

It shattered the opponent's will and destroyed the indestructible.

That was Heaven-Surrendering Godly Technique.

It destroyed everything, breaking the unbreakable and creating a new beginning.

That's why it's called Heaven-Surrendering.

And it is good at breaking such things.

Heaven-Surrendering Godly Technique.

Soul Crushing Strike.

The gray mass thickened.

The gray flash that destroys everything hits the labyrinth wall.

Boom!!

With a loud noise, the wall shattered.

'Let's go.'

The wind conveyed information.

The most secluded place in this labyrinth.

A place where everything can be observed and controlled.

'Just wait a bit.'

The labyrinth started to move.

It seemed to be flustered by the broken wall.

'What a foolish person.'

The labyrinth's designer didn't consider someone like me.

If it were me, I would have made it more troublesome.

If the walls were destroyed, I would encircle the walls and cause disorientation.

Therefore, it's understandable why I'm so bewildered.

Han Seojin laughed.

I wanted to see their reaction, but there was something more urgent now.

My senses kept warning of danger.

I needed to find the source.

Mirror of Yata, a divine artifact of immeasurable grade.

It was a divine artifact only the Celestial Gods could use and held the highest power among all divine artifacts.

Zeus's Astrapē from Greek and Roman mythology or the Longinus's spear, which was said to have killed Jesus.

It was on a similar level.

The reason was because it was created to be used only three times—a consumable.

'Although only one use is left.'

Two chances had already been used.

So, this was the last chance to use Yata's Mirror.

'And the time is.'

About a day.

But that was more than enough.

Because countless corpses of heroes will pile up.

Just one day.

During that time, with the absence of heroes, this place will be engulfed in chaos.

And with that.

I will kill them, accumulate karma, and become the Demon King.

'Hehehe.'

A white-haired girl laughed quietly.

A being who realized the past life of the White-faced Golden Fur and was proficient in magic.

'Almost there.'

Dorothy.

Really, almost there.

What I had to do to achieve my dream.

The Eternal Demon King?

The resurrecting Insect Dragon King?

None of them can be revived.

The vessel to become the Eternal Demon King had awakened the memories of its past life and was corrupted.

The Insect Dragon King's resurrection was far from complete.

「It's promising. You will become a new Demon King with your karma.」

The certainty she gained when she faced the previous Demon King.

The karma I possess.

It was something even the Demon King didn't have.

And a guest arrived.

"Found you."

A slender woman's voice.

It seemed fitting for some amusement before the slaughter.