Leveling with the Gods

C281

It was as fleeting as a blink.

The Envoys found themselves engulfed in a Black Lightning that had taken hold of their bodies.

Death was approaching.

In the moment their vision turned dark, in that moment of wondering if they had truly died.

Poof!

The Black Lightning covering their sight dispersed, revealing a bright landscape.

Crack, crack-.

Behind the Black Lightning, YuWon appeared. The Envoys turned around and looked at each other.

Their facial expressions questioned who had stopped him. They all had the same expression. None of the three Envoys had been the one to halt YuWon's attack.

"The second Trial has also ended."

A defiant voice.

The Envoys turned their heads toward the figure casting a shadow over their bodies.

There stood the Administrator, a bearded figure covering his face.

"A-Administrator-nim?"

"Your role is finished. Leave now."

A stern voice.

They wanted the chance to plead for another opportunity, but they couldn't do it.

They wanted to try fighting again, but they lacked confidence in stopping an attack like before.

"I'm sorry."

The Envoys bowed their heads and withdrew. At the same time, in the vacant spot where the Envoys disappeared, the Administrator looked at YuWon, who had been observing the whole time.

"Isn't this too much? What kind of Trial is this?"

A sigh escaped YuWon's lips.

He had imagined that something like this could happen, but seeing an Administrator in front of him was shocking.

He wondered if the Administrators were truly in their right minds.

"This is more of an event than a Trial. It's more for enjoyment, you know?"

"Only you guys enjoy it."

"That's right. Only us. Since the stage has shifted here, others can't see anything from the outside."

The Administrator burst into laughter.

"Thanks to that, the fools are furious. I wanted to promote Muspellheim with this Trial, but now it has turned into a disaster."

Originally, this Trial had been planned by the director of the 65th floor to gather the other directors.

More than a Trial, it was a kind of event. Like the Martial Arts Tournament of the Murim, this Trial also provided free entertainment for the Rankers and Hugadores.

"Anyway, it's really fun."

Tremble, tremble~

The massive castle shook.

An ecstasy shone in the Administrator's expression.

"Just a few years ago, this guy who acted so restless in my Tutorial, now he's facing a Trial like this in front of me."

The first time YuWon saw the Tutorial Administrator was when he revealed the relationship between the Envoys and Olympus.

At that time, YuWon's declaration angered the Administrator, who quickly confronted the Envoys.

Back then, the Administrator seemed like a distant and lofty figure in YuWon's eyes.

He didn't dare to even consider approaching him, as he seemed so unattainable and far away.

But now the situation was different.

"A little... I can see it."

Administrator.

The figures that dominated this Tower, beings no different from Gods.

In fact, they truly possessed divine abilities in this Tower.

However, that didn't mean they were invincible.

In fact, there was an incident in the past where a High-Ranker from a top-ranking class ended the life of an Administrator.

"Don't get too tense."

Crack, crack-.

The Administrator's fist charged with Arcane Power.

"I am the Tutorial Administrator, so I don't have impressive abilities apart from this. I don't have great talents due to my simplicity and lack of learning."

His hand extended forward.

Without special abilities, it was just a fist charged with Arcane Power.

He had no great talents. Undoubtedly, he was the Tutorial Administrator.

However, that didn't mean he could be ignored.

'I don't know if he's unable to use abilities or simply doesn't use them...'

Crack-.

YuWon's grip on the sword tightened.

'The opponent is now an Administrator.'

No matter how high or measurable his power was, he was still a being that was beyond his reach.

If his abilities were limited to physical and magical capabilities, that only increased the need for caution.

If he had special abilities, he might find a way to evade them, but without any tricks up his sleeve, there was no way to avoid his power.

And right at that moment...

Swish-.

The Administrator's slow fist extended forward.

"Let's begin."

An unusually slow fist that reached out into the empty air.

In that instant, as he observed that.

A chill ran down his spine.

He felt a strange sense of danger that had already filled the room.

Crack-!

Using the Steps of Hermes, YuWon jumped high backwards and looked at the hole that had formed behind where he stood.

Straight from the fist.

The wall was cleanly and effortlessly pierced through.

And in the next moment...

Shoo-.

Within his Golden Cinder Eyes, the Administrator moved swiftly.

"As you said, let's begin..."

YuWon's body, which had jumped high, turned upwards.

"This is not a surprise attack."

Just before those words echoed.

[The power of a Giant adheres to your body]

Woosh-.

Arcane Power spread throughout YuWon's body, and the power of a Giant clung to his being.

Almost at the same time...

Kwaaang-!

The Administrator's fist crashed down on YuWon from above.

Kwaaang-!

It smashed through the floor and sank deeply into the earth. YuWon couldn't withstand the Administrator's power.

[The 'Blessing of the Sea' adheres to your body]

[The 'Blessing of the Sea' protects your body]

[The 'Blessing of the Sea' is broken]

[The defense has partially failed]

Ting, ting-.

Despite using the Giant transformation and believing he had blocked it, it wasn't so.

The ability that protected YuWon's body broke with a single blow. Furthermore, the impact clearly persisted in his arms, which had blocked the fist.

What kind of absurd power was this?

"Hercules is supposed to have the strongest body in the Tower..."

That's when he realized.

This Tower was truly vast and filled with all sorts of things.

"Maybe that's not true."

The 'Blessing of the Sea' had been broken.

No matter how giant he became with the transformation, it was impossible to block something like that head-on.

He had to deflect and avoid it as much as possible.

YuWon considered that he was facing Hercules.

"What are you thinking?"

The Administrator, who had been waiting for YuWon, raised his fist once again.

"I have no intention of waiting any longer."

Boom-.

Kwaaang, swoosh, thud-.

The Administrator's fist split the ground with a powerful strike. Furniture fell and the entire building shook.

Bang, bang, bang, bang!

The punches continued one after another.

The Director, who had been throwing punches with force, suddenly felt something strange and stopped for a moment.

A piercing pain in his hand.

Kugh-.

When he looked at his hand, he saw a burn mark. Soon, a column of fire rose from deep within the earth.

Aaaah!

The fire soared high.

It was small, but hot enough to burn the Director.

"So this is the Fire that Surt had been gathering so painstakingly."

Surt was an existence with a power threatening enough even for the Administrators.

Naturally, what he was doing was reason enough for the Administrators to be on guard, and they had some knowledge of his movements and actions.

The 'Fire.'

It was a massive concentration of Arcane Power that Surt had accumulated over the centuries.

That was what resided within YuWon's body.

"I still don't handle it properly, it seems." (YuWon)

Fwoosh, fwoosh-.

YuWon, who had been buried in the earth, wrapped his body with the 'Fire' and emerged.

Kwang-!

The sound of an explosion resounded behind them.

When he turned his head, the Administrator saw YuWon with his Golden Cinder Eyes activated, wielding his sword and attacking.

Swoosh-!

The Administrator raised his arm to block YuWon's sword. At the same time, purple flames turned into waves and rushed towards the Administrator.

Kak!

Whoosh-!

Against the explosive flames, the Administrator, protecting his head with both hands, slowly looked up.

He couldn't find YuWon anywhere.

"As I thought..."

Boom-.

Pain~

He felt pain in the arm he had reflexively raised. A wound opened up, and blood began to flow.

"You have impressive combat skills, I must admit."

Bang, bang-bang-.

Bang-!

The sword struck his body, making a sound as if a piece of iron collided. It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep up with his speed, and in terms of strength, YuWon was gradually catching up to the Administrator.

The Administrator looked at YuWon.

Crackle~.

Whoosh-.

Darkness, Lightning, Fire.

Three magical attributes mixed and enveloped the body. When the most prominent destructive attributes mixed, the degree of physical strengthening was not normal.

'Furthermore, even to the point of resisting that Arcane Power with his giant form...'

It was too harmonious to be simply a skill gathered by chance.

A power that could become a mess became his home even with Gigantification active.

Although it still seemed a bit small and messy.

"Complete."

Boom!

Crash-!

The fist and the sword collided.

Rumble-.

The high ceiling shook, and the castle tilted slightly.

YuWon's eyes shone again.

The distance rapidly widened.

Whoosh-.

Only a small spark remained in front of the Administrator.

Boom-!

It exploded. The Administrator, engulfed in giant flames, looked at YuWon with fiery eyes.

"How insolent..."

Crash-!

The Administrator leaped toward YuWon, jumping from the ground.

The distance that had suddenly opened narrowed in the blink of an eye. YuWon did not dodge and collided head-on.

Flash-.

Kwang-!

The clash between the two shook the castle once again. Debris from the building fell to the ground, and cracks formed on the walls.

'It's resilient.'

Sweat began to appear on YuWon's forehead as he swung his sword at the Administrator.

YuWon's stamina was quickly running out.

Thump-, thump-.

His heart beat violently.

It was as if it were screaming desperately for a break. The power that was too much for his body to bear spread from the center of his heart throughout his entire body.

But...

'There's no way to fight the director without pushing myself a little.'

The Administrator was an opponent who could make YuWon fight with all his might, and in this fight, YuWon could show how far he had come.

It was a unique opportunity.

Moreover, the outcome of this trial would determine the reward.

First of all, the trial was not about defeating the Administrator.

'He said, 'This is an event. A spectacle for the Players, for the Rankers, and for the Administrators'.'

And the star of the show was himself (YuWon).

In this trial, the rewards were determined based on the "process" rather than the outcome.

Thump-.

That was the reason. Why he was pushing so hard in a fight against an opponent he didn't necessarily have to win against.

But that didn't last long either.

Whoosh-.

Thump-!

Unusual movement was noticed in YuWon's movements, as if his heart was burning.

"Guh-".

It was as if his heart was melting.

From the violently beating heart, an overwhelming amount of magic that couldn't be compared to the present was released.

It was the power that the heart, which had devoured the 'Fire,' was drawing out.

'I can't last more than a few minutes.'

The duration was shorter than expected.

The Fire being released from the heart was much more intense than anticipated.

In fact, it was an absurd amount.

'Is that why Surt was so interested in this?'

Even now, not all the limits had been revealed.

It was undoubtedly a power difficult to control. Especially because the power source was embedded in the heart, the more the power was forced to be used, the more burden was placed on the heart.

"But thanks to this..."

YuWon gritted his teeth at the Fire burning in his heart.

One last strike remained.

He had one devastating blow left.

'Maybe I can land a decent blow.'