Chapter 214: Hunger
“Gegegek!”
I quickly scanned the battlefield.
“Awoo!”
A swordsman attempted to strike Chillang directly, but as soon as a shield of frost materialized, it sank its teeth into his neck.
With Baekrang navigating the battlefield and supporting the allies, there was no need to worry about safety.
Poison, spider webs, frost.
I focused all my strength on defense against these forces.
“Polygamyyyy!”
“Polyyy...gamy... one wiiiife…”
For some reason, the Igaksu seemed a little timid now.
Although its voice had grown quieter, its combat ability had not diminished in the slightest.
It rampaged across the battlefield, leading the Igaksu. If I were an enemy, my knees would have buckled in fear.
Could anyone survive being headbutted by that?
Some Igaksu tried to fumble over the Ilgaksu’s body during the fight, but fortunately, their attempts seemed to have failed.
“P-polyyy…gamy…”
“Polygamy… heh…”
I wasn’t sure what they were saying, but it was probably just their version of a battle cry.
There was no need to worry about the Ilgaksu and Igaksu anymore.
“You cowardly trickster!”
I saw Cheoldu-ryong shouting.
He was fighting the Ceratosaurus but seemed to be struggling.
It made sense, given that most of the power of the Snowy Mountain was redirected toward defense.
“Kraaaaargh!”
Though it bore the name Ceratosaurus, its green skin and mastery of controlling the void made it look more like a spiritual beast.
Its manipulation of the void was so powerful that it could lift even Cheoldu-ryong into the air.
Boom!
Look at that—it’s lying on the ground again.
“Graaaaah!”
Cheoldu-ryong shook his head left and right as he stood up.
If the Ceratosaurus continued using its void manipulation, Cheoldu-ryong wouldn’t even be able to get close.
However, it wasn’t Cheoldu-ryong who was growing desperate, but the Ceratosaurus.
Boom!
It was because it couldn’t inflict any damage on Cheoldu-ryong, who possessed an indestructible body.
To harm him, it would have to penetrate his defense or counter his headbutt—but that seemed impossible with the Ceratosaurus’s void manipulation.
It would take someone like me to figure out how to take it down.
“Dae-hyeop! I’ll handle this, so don’t worry and…”
Why should I worry?
“Gegegek!”
I immediately passed by Cheoldu-ryong.
“D-Dae-hyeop?”
Why, didn’t you tell me to go?
Although he seemed to be struggling a little, I firmly believed Cheoldu-ryong would win.
I could clearly see the Ceratosaurus losing stamina.
And when our eyes met, I could tell that it was feeling fear.
I wasn’t sure why, but the moment our eyes locked, its confidence faltered.
I could leave this to Cheoldu-ryong.
Even if he just endured, the Igaksu or Ilgaksu would eventually come to his aid.
Swoosh!
So far, we hadn’t suffered any casualties.
We had practiced endlessly for this moment.
How to coordinate so that everyone could survive.
I assessed the enemy’s forces while wreaking havoc and decided who should face whom.
I planned how to use our resources effectively.
Our efforts were finally paying off.
But we couldn’t let our guard down.
A great obstacle still loomed ahead.
Yongsaengguja, Hunger.
If we couldn’t take it down, the tide of battle could shift against us.
Boom!
In the distance, I saw a massive rock snake slowly approaching.
It was so enormous that it made even the Snake Queen look small in comparison.
It truly seemed as if an entire rocky mountain was walking toward us.
“Keegigigik!”
“Sssssaaat!”
The small fragments and dust falling from its body transformed into smaller rock snakes in an instant.
Crack-crack-crack!
Although the storm summoned by the Bird King shredded them into pieces, Hunger remained unfazed, steadily advancing.
Boom!
The Snake Queen’s destructive beam struck its head.
Its power was enough to instantly reduce most creatures to dust, yet Hunger merely swayed slightly.
If even the Snake Queen couldn’t pierce through it, it must be unimaginably durable.
It wasn’t just any ordinary rock.
It was dragonscale, refined to the utmost hardness.
That was the source of its overwhelming defense.
“Grrrrr…”
But it’s fine.
I had been gathering my strength for this very moment.
“My partner. You arrived sooner than expected.”
The Snake Queen’s tail gently brushed against me.
Although I wanted to embrace the Snake Queen, who had rushed here for me, now wasn’t the time.
“My son-in-law made an absurd request. If I had known, I would’ve sent Old Soaring Dragon instead of myself.”
Kompi Elder and Argentarvis.
I could only hire one of the two.
We needed a spiritual beast to take care of Shikshik, Jjaekjjaek, and the smaller beings.
Looking at the current situation, choosing Argentarvis seemed to be the right decision.
Although Kompi Elder was strong, with his size, he wouldn’t be able to harm Hunger.
It was better to have Argentarvis summon storms to block its approach.
Hunger stared at me silently with its hollow eyes.
Wooong.
The Fox Bead trembled faintly.
“I thought it was a creature without emotion, but it seems intrigued by my mate.”
Zzzzeong!
The Snake Queen and Argentarvis launched simultaneous attacks to stop Hunger’s movements.
Now it was my turn to step in.
[“Releasing Miniaturization LV5.”]
[Status: Gigantification applied.]
Having maintained Miniaturization for a month, my body had grown considerably.
Even so, I was still smaller than Hunger.
But this size was enough to take it on.
The first attack would be…
Zzzzzzeeeong!
The Gecko Death Beam, of course.
Boom!
A blue beam struck Hunger’s body with great force.
“Grrrr…”
Hunger, who hadn’t made a single sound until now, groaned.
There were no visible injuries, but it must have taken damage.
Crrrack!
Hunger abandoned its attempt to approach.
The surrounding rocks began flying around chaotically.
It was using the power of the Dragon Gate.
“As expected of my mate. It seems that thing is feeling some pain now.”
“Our daughter has good taste in picking a husband! Son-in-law, the Snake Queen and I will intercept—get in close!”
The Snake Queen didn’t seem pleased with Argentarvis’s comment, but she continued her assault.
Crash!
Boom!
Storms and beams rained down on the massive rock, intercepting it.
While they supported me, I had to settle things with it.
“Grrrr…”
【Hunger LV???】
Its level was so high it couldn’t even be measured.
Even claws wrapped in Sword Qi might not pierce its scales.
But its strength was of Earth.
My strength was of Wood.
In terms of elemental compatibility, I had the upper hand.
I focused my mind, and plants began to run wild.
Thud!
Boom!
Massive vines, acting as if they had their own will, surged like a tidal wave.
Crack!
The minions created by Hunger disintegrated the moment they touched the plants.
Hunger’s empty eyes stared straight at me.
“Graaagh…”
Whether it lacked the ability to speak or its intelligence had regressed due to prolonged possession of the Dragon Gate, I didn’t know.
But it made only beastly cries, never speaking words.
No matter how strong it was, if its intelligence was low, I had a chance.
Swoosh!
I rushed toward Hunger, both hands imbued with the energy of Wood.
Hunger’s expression changed.
Even if it was dull, it must have realized that this energy was its natural nemesis.
Crack!
The ground twisted under its will, and the earth began to quake.
Rumble!
A thunderous sound rose from deep within the ground.
Crack-crack-crack!
The earth split, and the entire mountain shook.
Its power made it impossible to even stand still.
It was similar to the instinctive force I had used when fighting the Red Dragon.
Boom!
This phenomenon could only be called an earthquake.
Plants, after all, require soil to grow.
By shattering the earth, it neutralized the power of Wood.
It had effectively blocked my approach.
Without standing on the ground, I wouldn’t be able to reach it.
But that was only true if I were an ordinary lizard.
Using the profound technique of Soaring Dragon’s Ascension Step, I launched myself into the air.
Swoosh!
I stepped on falling rocks, leaping higher into the sky.
It must have been a phenomenon that defied the laws of physics.
Given my size and weight, such movements shouldn’t have been possible.
But since when has this world adhered to such explanations?
I drew up all the internal energy from the depths of my dantian.
There was no way it could use a massive technique like the earthquake repeatedly.
Now that I was this close.
I needed to deliver my strongest blow.
I concentrated blue sword energy and the energy of Wood into a single point.
Sssaaah!
In that moment, its tail lashed out at me like a whip.
Fwooom!
The speed was as if it were tearing through the air.
Even though it was just swinging its tail, I could feel the surrounding air heat up rapidly.
But that attack felt familiar.
It was similar to the technique used by the Titanoboa’s offspring, whom I fought in the Silver Dragon Cave.
Of course, if I tried to grab that tail with my hand, like I did with the baby snake, my arm would be torn off instantly.
This one was a foe far stronger than that baby snake.
And I was no longer the same young lizard from back then.
[“Activating Reverse Scale LV5.”]
[“Temporarily acquiring Great Heaven and Earth Shift.”]
Zzzzzzak!
I raised my left hand to meet the incoming tail and shifted the axis of force.
Even though I used Great Heaven and Earth Shift, I couldn’t disperse that force to an external source.
I was mid-air after leaping, after all.
Since I wasn’t connected to the ground, I couldn’t redirect that energy externally.
But that’s fine.
Externally, at least.
Crraaaack!
The place where I redirected the force of Great Heaven and Earth Shift wasn’t the outside, but the inside.
Specifically, my right hand.
The overwhelming energy, enough to break bones and tear muscles, gathered in a single hand.
Even the slightest mistake would result in my arm being blown off.
Fwoosh!
All my internal energy focused into a single point.
The dragon scales rebelled violently, becoming sharper and more ferocious, and my claws turned into pure weapons for attack.
Great Heaven and Earth Shift was a martial art deserving of being called a divine skill.
If mastered to the extreme, it could alter the axis of force at will.
But for someone like me, it was a technique fraught with great risk.
It required all my resources just to barely execute it, and the success rate wasn’t particularly high.
But I couldn’t afford not to use it.
Everything was prepared.
I swung my dangerously unstable claw in a trajectory that was all too familiar.
It was my own technique, the one I used to defeat the Inmyeonjo.
Gecko Divine Claws.
Zzzzzzeeeoooong!
My claw, infused with the profundity of the gecko and the energy of Wood, struck its head with tremendous force.
Boom!
Its body was flung several meters backward.
Zzzzzzak!
Crraaaack!
The Snake Queen and Argentarvis launched their attacks.
“Guhhh... kuh-haaah!”
I exhaled harshly.
I had succeeded in the attack, but the pain in my arm was unbearable, as if it were about to shatter.
Rock dust crumbled off in heaps.
Given the state of my arm, its condition must have been obvious.
That attack must have inflicted a fatal wound.
I could feel the energy of Wood seeping into its insides.
On top of that, the Snake Queen and Argentarvis had assisted me, so its condition must have been dire.
Although my arm felt like it was breaking, I could still endure it somehow.
I slowly walked toward the place it had been flung to.
“Grrrr…”
As I expected, its body was in shambles.
I had reversed its strength, used an opposing energy, and struck it with my strongest technique.
It wasn’t surprising that this result came from a single exchange.
However, it seemed it hadn’t stopped breathing yet.
“Grrr…”
It made an incomprehensible sound and stared at me.
Now it was time to finish everything.
I swung my arm once more.
Thud!
But my claw couldn’t pierce its shattered skin.
Zzeong!
The Snake Queen hurriedly fired her beam, but it had no effect either.
“Grrr…”
It was as if an invisible barrier was protecting it, preventing any attack from landing.
Hunger’s eyes began to glow with a silver light.
“…O True Dragon, why have you come to see a sinner?”
Instead of a beastly growl, a voice imbued with the majesty of a sacred spiritual creature emerged.
Crraaaack.
I instinctively knew.
Something was going terribly wrong.
Its origin was clearly the earth and rock. It had to be the power of Earth.
But how could it still emit such energy?
“Is this your will?”
It looked at me but spoke to someone else entirely.
“R-run!”
I heard the Snake Queen’s voice shouting from afar.
“To show such a thing to a sinner who failed to produce the elixir…”
I felt the urge to flee.
But I didn’t have the strength to do so.
“Very well.”
Something was different.
“If this is your will, then I will simply obey.”
It had only spoken, yet I could feel the internal energy of everyone in this space violently trembling.
Zzeoong!
The Snake Queen’s destructive beam shot forth again, and Argentarvis’s storm pushed me aside.
“This… this can’t be….”
Argentarvis muttered in disbelief as it rescued me.
“My mate. We need to revise our plan.”
The Snake Queen swallowed dryly as she stared at Hunger.
Hunger’s silver eyes stared at me for a long time before it slowly opened its enormous mouth.
“Steel, imbue my body.”
It wasn’t an ordinary language.
It wasn’t human speech, nor was it the language of spiritual creatures.
Yet I understood its meaning instantly.
Boom!
Hunger’s form began to change.
Its essence remained the same, but something new emerged, replacing its rocky scales.
“…To think it can use Dragon Words.”
The Snake Queen muttered in disbelief.
A voice imbued with magic.
A power that could enact its will through mere words—the authority of dragons.
Dragon Words.
My hands trembled.
I had miscalculated.
The only reason I could fight Hunger was that I had crafted a plan to exploit its elemental weakness.
That was the only way to deal effective blows to it.
Up until moments ago, I believed I had the advantage.
But I was wrong.
My attacks hadn’t caused it significant harm.
The power Hunger wielded wasn’t Earth but Metal.
Metal was steel, and Wood was merely trees.
And steel cuts through wood.
Even the elemental advantage was on its side.
In every aspect, it was superior.
“Father, I will surpass you.”
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…Except for the fact that it clearly wasn’t in its right mind.