The Max Level Hero Has Returned!-Novel

Several hours before laying the groundwork using Perserque and the two Avenger Squadron golem dolls, Anabelle and Dirro…

The Black Tortoise’s extrmasochistic tendencies were apparent in the way it was silently looking down at Davey.

He had learned from Woochi that it was the first born among the Divine Beasts. Not only did this creature possess a distinct appearance that set it apart from the rest, but it also had the ability to control water and ice.

"From now on, your nshall be Rainmaker."

Without a word, Rainmaker turned its head as if it had thought of something. It then approached Yun Hee-Ryeong, who was nearby.

"Uh... uh-uh?"

It extended its long neck and bit her head.

"What?" Perserque had a stunned look on her face as a gasp of astonishment escaped from her lips.

"Argh!!!" Yun Hee-Ryeong instinctively gathered her qi as an attempt to resist, while her hands slapped the Black Tortoise's cheeks repeatedly.

But no matter how much she tried, the qi and the energy she used to have was no longer there to respond to her will.The power she had emitted when facing the Ak Rim Sect was pure, and yet, at the stime, it was also strangely similar to the power of the Abyss, and felt quite familiar. That was the essence of Yun Hee-Ryeong, or rather, Isildi.

But Davey incapacitated her with Versha's Curse, putting her into an irreversible state and extracting the source of power residing within her. The Princess of the Abyss was a being born from countless negative thoughts; through Versha, Davey had learned that the Abyssal power had a source, and he could steal that power for himself.

Isild had lost her power, so even if she awakened, Davey no longer had to fight against what could have been his greatest enemy of all time. However, Davey could not use her power, despite stealing it from her.

"It's not as easy as it was with Versha."

Using one of Rho Aias’ curses, Flow Rejection, Davey could suppress and counteract the backlash of Versha’s power every the used Versha’s Curse. Thanks to that, Davey could use her power easily, but the powers of the other Princesses of the Abyss were no different from poisoned apples.

Watching Yun Hee-Ryeong struggle to break free from the Black Tortoise's clutches, Davey extended his mana long and far.

A sharp sound echoed, and Rainmaker's eyes widened as if its eyeballs were about to fall off from their sockets. Finally, it opened its jaws wide, freeing Yun Hee-Ryeong from its firm bite.

"Do you want to be hit?"

- Gooooooo!!

Two of Rainmaker’s heads turned in frantic eagerness. It was a response that brimmed with craving, exposing the Divine Beast’s penchant for extrmasochism.

Such a creature would likely grow more unmanageable the more indulged it got. So Davey needed to use the carrot and stick approach.But to this beast, the 4th-Circle attribute-less mana whip that Davey held was actually the carrot! So then, what would truly work as a stick for this creature?

"If you bite random people again, then I’ll make sure to take proper care of you. There are a lot of ways to do that."

- Gooooooo!!

The beast collapsed on the ground as if it was hit by great terror and shock that made its legs suddenly weak. Still, its eyes gazed at Davey with longing.

"Does that mean you'll be obedient?"

When it nodded all of its heads, Davey wordlessly rewarded the creature by lightly hitting its back with the mana whip.

- Goooooo!

The strike made the creature tremble with excitement while making strange noises.

"I've seen a lot in my life... but this is really something else," Perserque commented.

[To see such a wondrous creature adept at handling water acting like that...]

Yun Hee-Ryeong, who had just been bitten by Rainmaker, looked displeased as well.

"I... I hate this creature." Her voice was laced with mockery, and it was devoid of any hint of regard for the Divine Beast.

"Rainmaker, stay still. I have a simple task for you.”

Davey frowned as he lightly struck the creature's back. He may have hobbies involving physical violence, but this kind of hitting was not one of them.

-Goooooo.

"Create a lot of dark clouds, but don’t make them rain. It shouldn't be difficult for you."

Although the Black Tortoise was not like Elliam, it was still very familiar with water and could easily wield its own power within its domain.

Davey got closer to Rainmaker, which was moving around as if floating. He whispered into its ear, “If you do the job well. I'll hit you all you want.”

A chill ran down Davey’s spine at the sight of the creature's dark green skin reddening, but he chose to ignore it, opting to ensure instead that the Black Tortoise was dutifully executing its task. Davey then told the other three Divine Beasts to take a break while he took care of something else.

"Ah, Lord Davey. Please join us.”

Princess Jadeflower was with those she could trust, seemingly preparing ssort of altar. It was nothing complicated; all they had to do was put together the pattern according to the note that Davey had given her.

"Welcome. I might not be adept enough at magic to check on my own, but I have received a little help from Jegal, the great minister, who was proficient in it."

"Pleased to meet you. My nis Jegal Muk. I am the grandfather of the military consultant of the martial alliance, Jegal Hwan."

"Davey O’Rowane at your service. I would never have guessed that Jegal Hwan’s grandfather would be such a loyal subject."

"Heh, even if that wretch is quite ambitious, his loyalty is not less than mine."

As Davey responded in kind to his formal bow, Jegal Muk looked at Davey with a satisfied but expectant gaze.

"I've heard that you saved the princess. For that, I owe you a great debt."

"Saving her was for mutual benefit, so please don't stress yourself over it."

"Then I'll only extend my gratitude up to this point," he responded with an unabashed smile, flipping his feather fan and turning his head away.

"This is the paper imbued with sorcery that you asked for. The princess was racking her brain alone, so I was ordered to apply my insufficient knowledge of sorcery."

"It looks well made."

"But while I understand that this is a piece of sorcery, I still don’t understand what exactly it does."

"It wouldn’t be easy to grasp the concept.”.

"But something does seem rather familiar."

"Yes, it's the Jegal Clan's technique."

The Heavenly Central Plains were not Woochi's homeland. The sorcery of this place belonged solely here, so using the techniques of the Jegal Clan, which was renowned for their sorcery, made perfect sense.

However, even for the head of the Jegal Clan...

This was a unique spell devised by King Ju of the Jegal line at the tof the Heavenly Destroyer. The king had dedicated the remaining years of his life to creating this spell.

"What do you mean?"

"During the Heavenly Destroyer’s era, that king from the Jegal lineage created this spell at his request. It seems simple but it's not easy to operate."

"So…this was made by King Ju himself?!"

"Yes. It's a Sealing Formation. More accurately, it’s a formation made to seal the passage connecting the Spirit Realm and this Lower Realm."

Davey paused briefly to allow Jegal Muk to digest his words before further explaining, "Well, actually, it’s not the original Sealing Formation, but one that’s a little modified. Specifically, it’s modified to make a hole in the seal."

Although it was made by the king, Woochi immediately understood its contents when he saw it.

[Oh ho, you drunkard. You know an interesting thing, don't you? Let's see. Are you trying to seal something? Davey, from today on, you are tasked with analyzing this. Dispel, bypass, and circumvent it, all of it. Until you're done, there will be no other lessons.]

Woochi’s words as a sorcery master remained vivid in Davey’s memory.

"Spi... Spirit Realm?!"

Davey left the surprised man behind and drew upon his qi to activate the formation. He then reached out his hand to Su-Yoon, who offered hers without any qualms.

"It might sting a bit."

Davey swiftly pricked the tip of her finger with a needle, drawing a drop of blood.

"Ah!"

"Wha... What are you doing!" Jegal Muk yelled indignantly.

The loyal followers of the princess also tensed, ready to pounce at any moment, but they all settled down with just one command from Su-Yoon.

"Enough! Stop the commotion right this instant!Does a single drop of blood really warrant such an uproar?"

"Princess! Hurting the one destined to rule this country warrants severe punishment! It is only right for him to get punished."

"This is not the tfor such old-fashioned traditions, minister," she chided tersely. She then turned to Davey and said, "You dare put a wound on a lady’s body; you truly have no fear."

"I needed a bit of your blood. Watch carefully." As Davey spoke, the paper inscribed with the formation began to glow red.

"What...?!"

It was a Sealing Formation that operated by the will of human blood, and it caused Jegal Muk's face to fill with immense shock. Dokgo Jun once told Davey that when creating the Sealing Formation, one of the founding ancestors of the Country of Yu had given their blood.

"You have to gently pick the lock. Because if you knock too hard, they will all cover in droves."

So Davey proceeded calmly, taking out the Shamanic Rattle and a handheld fan. He then stood on the paper with the Sealing Formation that lay on the ground. Everyone watched closely as Davey silently threw a talisman and began chanting, causing a flurry of enchanting glitter to scatter and swirl around him. It blended with the red-stained formation paper and produced a magnificent display of lights.

"How beautiful," Perserque muttered under her breath.

Quietly chanting and waving the Shamanic Rattle several times, Davey stepped away from the paper once it started to activate. He then began summoning the beings beyond the crack in the seal that blocked the pathway.

A massive, shapeless power shot up into the sky, and what followed after was three mystical figures appearing around the paper with the Sealing Formation. Their appearance was ordinary, but the clothes they wore were like those of legendary Celestial Maidens.

"The gateway to the Lower Realm has opened, Princess."

“This is indeed quite unexpected.”

The most ornately dressed girl was apparently a princess, and the other two beside her were her attendants. The sight of the three celestial beings rendered everyone speechless. After all, they were considered nothing more than rumors, as no one could prove that they’d ever seen one.

But they did exist, and this issue that could have fueled controversy for an age was resolved in just a snap.While everybody else continued to gawk in bewilderment, Davey approached the three celestial beings with a smile.

"Welcome, Celestial Maidens of the Spirit Realm."

"Was it a human from the Lower Realm who summoned us?" The princess looked at Davey sternly.

"That’s right."

"So you think you can just break off relations whenever you want and then call upon us at your convenience?"

"The boundary has been closed for over a hundred fifty years. It would be nice if we could be amicable. In truth, there is a grave matter that concerns both the Spirit Realm and the Lower Realm.That is why we called you."

"So, you are saying you need our help?"

"You could take it that way."

The princess frowned slightly, feeling as though something was off.

"Princess, we must return quickly. The Lower Realm is dirty and dangerous."

"Oh, con. Don’t you want to cooperate? You know, you may have entered as you wished, but…” Davey trailed off, and a cheeky smile appeared on his face. “Leaving isn’t quite as easy.”

Instantly, a vast magic formation covered the entire area. Before the Celestial Maidens could express their confusion or use their power, the entire space folded over in a spatial shift.

An instant later, they were no longer in the palace garden; instead, they were in the middle of an unknown forest. The maidens were bewildered, and they looked around in alarm.

"What exactly are you planning to do?!" the princess screamed at Davey in panic.

"I need your help."

"That again?! I don't even understand what you’re saying, why should we—"

Davey interrupted her by pointing at the black, corrupted swamp. He then took a small twig, which he enveloped in his blade energy and struck the back of the princess’s head with it.

"If you don't want to help, you can just lend us your clothes. People should help each other out, right? It’s because you act so shamelessly and pettily that the drunkard sealed the passage to your world."

He tossed the twig aside and dusted off his hands before skillfully beginning to undress them.

"Davey... What are you doing?"

"What am I doing? They said they don't want to help. So what else am I supposed to do? I just need to borrow their clothes. That’s all."

The Spirit Realm could never be amicable with the Lower Realm.

Those living in the Spirit Realm were hostile, invaders, and not the sacred beings the people of the Lower Realm imagined them to be.They were not divine beings, but merely another form of existence. To reveal the truth that the sacred beings were actually intruders that looked down on the humans of the Lower Realm would devastate the people here

Besides, the Celestial Maidens' feathered robes were enough to convince most of the people here.

"I’ll deal with the stage effects, with the Divine Beasts. Since these guys haven’t seen Perserque, she’ll take the lead role."