TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 122
[Episode 122 includes additional illustrations. It is recommended to disable Dark Mode and view in vertical mode.]
The moment the Black Flame Storm swept through the plaza, the entire area shook as if struck by an earthquake.
The members of the Twin Sprout, who directly witnessed its tremendous destructive force, gaped in shock.
Even though they were aware of Kraush’s abilities, the opponent was an Erosion Species on the verge of reaching the 7th Rank.
Everyone was uncertain whether it could truly be taken down in a single strike.
However, upon seeing that power firsthand, they realized—
just how extraordinary Kraush was.
He truly possessed the strength to kill Decarabia in one blow.
Everyone once again felt the weight of what it meant to be the top of the Martial Arts Department’s Second Year Students.
“You’ve turned into a monster.”
While Aniks let out a hollow laugh, Kraush and Haring simultaneously plummeted through the Black Flames.
Towards the two of them, Elphin leaped.
As tall as Kraush himself, she caught both Haring and Kraush, landing as lightly as a feather.
And then, she flinched.
Even a brief touch of Kraush’s body radiated intense heat.
Had he endured such a state while launching his attack?
It was an unbelievable display of willpower.
Moreover, Haring was no exception.
She too had been continuously exposed to Kraush’s heat, leaving her skin covered in burns.
It was evident how much these two had struggled, just as much as anyone else.
“Put me down.”
Kraush, struggling even to catch his breath, spoke, and Elphin gently set him and Haring down.
Supported by Haring, Kraush barely managed to stay on his feet without collapsing.
His body radiated intense heat.
It seemed the price of using the Red Tiger Pill was beginning to show.
Kraush barely held onto his slipping consciousness as he lifted his head.
And there, he saw Aniks.
Though not as bad as Kraush, Aniks was still in a disheveled state.
And that Aniks was a sight Kraush had never seen before.
Of course, it was only natural.
Aniks had never fought with all his strength until now.
For some reason, watching him brought a sense of relief.
It felt as though old, lingering emotions were swept away, disappearing into the depths of his mind.
This was not the world he had once lived in.
A world that constantly changed, and one that could indeed be changed.
If that were the case, his task was simple.
He wouldn’t let all of these changes be for nothing.
It was the moment Kraush barely managed to hold onto his fading consciousness.
[Stay focused. It’s not over yet.]
The warning from Crimson Garden echoed.
Kraush hesitated for a moment but immediately raised his head.
There stood Decarabia, charred black by the Sky-Thundering Annihilation.
Its body had clearly been struck head-on by the Sky-Thundering Annihilation and was frozen in place.
The destructive power of the Sky-Thundering Annihilation, condensed to its limit, was beyond even Decarabia’s ability to withstand.
At that moment, with a sharp cracking sound, Decarabia’s face began to split apart.
When the scorched, fractured pieces of its face fell away—
Crack!
Something emerged from the shattered fragments of its face.
It was a shrunken form of Decarabia.
Its face, with a protruding snout, was more grotesque than its original monkey-like visage, and thick liquid dripped from the tentacles sprouting across its body.
At that moment, Kraush felt a chill run down his spine.
This was the result of Decarabia’s final struggle, condensing World Erosion within the Black Flames.
And the realm it had reached was clear.
The 7th Rank.
The new domain that Decarabia had achieved.
“————–!”
At that moment, its roar echoed throughout.
The noise, inaudible to humans, filled the plaza with a deafening sound that made their ears ring.
Only then did the others notice Decarabia’s abnormal state.
As everyone’s gaze turned in that direction, their faces stiffened.
The overwhelming aura emanating from Decarabia gripped their throats in an instant.
It was a sight that could shatter the determination of those who had fought valiantly against Decarabia just moments ago.
Thud—
“…This is just too much.”
Someone among the Twin Sprout members collapsed to their knees.
Despair filled his face.
“We… we’re all going to die.”
When someone murmured those words blankly, no one could refute them.
No one except one.
Kraush, who once again gripped the Rain Thunder Prime.
“Aniks.”
Kraush called out to Aniks.
Upon witnessing Decarabia’s awakening, Aniks turned to Kraush, his face pale as a sheet.
And soon, Aniks’s eyes widened.
Black Flames were once again gathering around Kraush’s sword.
Aniks realized what that meant.
He hadn’t given up yet.
“Let me face that thing.”
Smoke escaped from Kraush’s lips.
His body was in such a wrecked state that even moving was nearly impossible.
But if it was just one last strike, he could swing his sword.
“…I’ll send you there.”
Without further questions, Aniks placed his hand on the ground.
He too was at his limit, but his determination to send Kraush there was unshaken.
Kraush hadn’t given up yet.
If that was the case, neither would he.
That was Aniks.
“Kraush, I’ll go with you.”
“I’ll help you on the way as well.”
Haring and Elphin immediately joined his side.
Upon seeing Kraush and Aniks refuse to give up, the two quickly steeled their resolve.
Unknowingly,
Kraush’s determination was gradually spreading to everyone.
And that determination was beginning to form a singular path.
The members of the Twin Sprout stared blankly at the four of them.
Leaving them behind, Kraush clenched the Rain Thunder Prime tightly, swallowing his breath.
“Launch me.”
As those words left him, a tremor spread beneath the three’s feet.
Crash! Crash! Crash! Crash! Crash!
And soon, a tree erupted violently from beneath their feet.
The tree, growing at an incredible speed, revealed just how much Recovery Aniks had poured into it.
In that moment, Decarabia also became aware of them.
It yanked out the two arms embedded in its original head.
As soon as Kraush saw it, he realized.
Decarabia had reached the 7th Rank.
However, its condition was far from normal.
Since the awakening had been rushed, Decarabia had forcefully driven World Erosion into itself.
As a result, it hadn’t completely absorbed the World Erosion from its original body.
Thus, it couldn’t separate from its original body just yet.
Moreover, even its new body couldn’t escape the effects of Sky-Thundering Annihilation.
As proof, its new body clearly displayed signs of abnormality.
This was a definite opportunity.
Recognizing this, Kraush exhaled smoke from his mouth.
His body had already reached its limit long ago.
He had operated Annihilation Asura while battling the Night God.
Then, to land a blow on Decarabia, he had squeezed out even more by using the Red Tiger Packet.
Now, warning signals burst forth from all over his body.
Thanks to those signals, Kraush was physically incapable of taking even one more step.
Yet, he still couldn’t rest.
Because the enemy still stood before him.
Kraush’s mind raced.
His body, at its limit, could no longer re-output Annihilation Erosion.
The opponent, though incomplete, was still a 7th Rank Erosion Species.
This alone wasn’t enough to suffocate it.
‘If that’s the case.’
Kraush realized he would have to use a new skill.
If he pushed himself further, it might become unbearable, but there was no other choice.
High atop the rapidly growing tree,
Kraush’s eyes briefly closed.
And within those shut eyes,
the night dwelling inside Kraush’s body began to stir.
It was the moment Nox cast its shadow within him.
Tick!
A faint sound echoed, as if something had been severed.
The sound came from one of the stars Kraush had been suppressing with Doll’s Eye until now.
Thrum! Thrum! Thrum!
Though it couldn’t be heard outside, Kraush felt an immense vibration surging from deep inside him.
And that presence began to reach up, as if it would devour everything in an instant.
Heavenly Slaughter Star.
As the Doll’s Eye was severed, an uncontrollable bloodlust surged upward.
For a moment, Kraush almost lost his mind.
The bloodlust of the Heavenly Slaughter Star was unimaginable.
Indeed, even the old monster Blavi had gone mad because of it.
The Heavenly Slaughter Star ravenously gnawed at Kraush’s psyche, intent on consuming him whole.
Exploding impulses of bloodlust unleashed black flames wildly into the surroundings.
Despite his body reaching its limit, the Heavenly Slaughter Star forcibly dragged it higher, demanding to unleash its bloodlust upon the world.
‘Hey.’
Amidst that bloodlust,
Kraush’s eyes glowed a deep crimson.
‘What you’re going to devour isn’t me.’
Before the Heavenly Slaughter Star could swallow Kraush, the Veil of Night began to descend upon it.
The descending night enveloped the rampaging Heavenly Slaughter Star.
After all, the role of the night was to embrace the stars.
One by one, the seven rampaging stars of the Heavenly Slaughter Star began to settle within the night.
And soon, when all the stars had nestled within the night,
the seven stars simultaneously erupted with brilliant light.
Originally, Kraush could only wield three stars: the Heavenly Jade Star, the Heavenly Authority Star, and the Shaking Light Star.
However, in this fleeting moment, Nox allowed him to draw out the full power of the Heavenly Slaughter Star.
The first star, the Heavenly Pivot Star.
The second star, the Heavenly Jade Star.
The third star, the Heavenly Geomancer Star.
The fourth star, the Heavenly Authority Star.
The fifth star, the Jade Balance Star.
The sixth star, the Open Sun Star.
The seventh star, the Shaking Light Star.
All seven stars merged into Kraush’s body.
For the briefest moment that Nox could endure,
Whoosh!
Kraush’s black flames, meeting the true power of the Heavenly Slaughter Star, flared even more intensely than before.
Crunch!
At that moment, Decarabia’s arm reached out.
The tentacle clusters extending from its arm swelled and cascaded forward.
Kraush was in no condition to dodge.
Just as he clenched his teeth, knowing he needed more time, Elphin leapt in front of him.
Elphin’s sword, radiating a violet aura, was thrust toward the tentacle clusters.
Her blade danced with incredible speed.
A torrent of sword strikes shredded through the tentacle clusters, almost too fast to see.
However, Elphin, who had fought relentlessly until now,
began to suffer injuries as some of the tentacles tore through her body.
“Keep… going!”
Despite the pain, Elphin bit her lip hard and shouted.
The tree beneath Kraush’s feet continued to surge forward.
Now, Decarabia, its rage palpable, opened its mouth as it drew closer.
Once again, light began to gather within its maw.
It was the same flash as before.
The problem was that it was faster than last time.
At that moment, Haring darted forward, ahead of Kraush.
She crossed the two daggers she had drawn from her waist.
Then, a sharp crunching sound echoed from her mouth.
She had swallowed the only item stored in her poison pouch.
In a fleeting instant, so swift that even Kraush barely noticed, Haring surged forward.
Her daggers, infused with venom, slashed simultaneously.
Slash!
The twin daggers embedded themselves in Decarabia’s jaw, forcing its head upward.
The light gathering in its closed mouth scattered and shattered.
Bang!
Simultaneously, the displaced flash exploded inside its body.
“Graaaaaaagh!”
Wracked with pain, Decarabia lashed out and struck Haring fiercely with another arm.
Unable to dodge due to embedding her daggers, Haring was sent flying through the air by the blow.
In an instant, she was rendered out of action.
However, the opening she created—
That gap was undoubtedly directed toward Kraush.
As Haring disappeared, only then did Kraush reflect in both of Decarabia’s eyes.
By that time, he had already reached right in front of him.
Though his body could not move a single step, Aniks’s tree had stubbornly delivered Kraush to Decarabia’s front.
The black flame imbued in his sword no longer raged wildly as it usually did.
Instead, it was meticulously controlled, painting the blade of the Rain Thunder Prime pitch-black.
Like the tranquil stillness of the Heavenly Slaughter Star draped over the night.
A silence now lingered over Kraush’s sword, a stillness unlike anything before.
However, the heat emanating from the blade was on an entirely different level than ever before.
[Annihilation Erosion.]
[Fourth Form.]
[Annihilation Night Slash.]
Swish!
As the spinning head of the creature soared into the sky—
The black flame surged from where its head and neck once were, consuming it entirely.
Crash! Crackle! Boom!
Seeing this, Kraush immediately mustered the last of his strength to leap.
It was because Haring, knocked unconscious by Decarabia’s strike, was plummeting downward.
The moment Kraush caught Haring, Aniks instantly exerted his power.
It was to catch Kraush.
As Aniks’s tree extended toward Kraush—
Thud! Boom! Boom!
Decarabia’s shattered body, already broken, crashed down, destroying Aniks’s tree in the process.
Because of this, the tree Aniks had extended could not reach Kraush.
“Kraush!”
It was at that moment, as Kraush and Decarabia fell together, that he heard Aniks’s desperate cry.