Chapter 181: One-Sided Massacre - (3)

‘Is he really going to be okay?’

Even though Sanghyun kept giving reassurance that he was fine, Do Kyunghye’s eyes still wavered.

Idraine Hole had launched!

True to its notorious name, everything around was being sucked into it.

Even a boulder that looked to weigh over 100 kilograms was eventually pulled in!

‘If I want to make it more dramatic.’

Sanghyun gave an unseen smile. Then he started with the obvious response.

With Perfect Sword, the absolute invincible shield that covered his body, Sanghyun moved to circle around Idraine Hole.

To anyone watching, it looked exactly like the desperate struggle of a swordsman who did not want to get caught up in that hole.

Whump! Thud!

In the meantime, several large and small stones flew in and collided with Sanghyun.

Considering the speed, they should have caused some injuries, but Perfect Sword blocked them flawlessly.

Once he confirmed Sanghyun’s position, Idraine didn’t hesitate and immediately conjured the next sphere.

Because he had an ample amount of mana, using this level of magic posed no burden to him.

Moreover, from Idraine’s perspective, since Sanghyun had used a critical card—invincibility—it seemed like a great opportunity.

KWAANG!

‘He added more force.’

Sanghyun could feel the increased size and power of the enhanced Idraine Hole.

Though he had used slightly more mana than before, it was still within the range Sanghyun had calculated.

Papapat!

Sanghyun dashed forward.

Even with just a single push off the ground, he had already gotten close to Idraine.

Of course, Idraine was completely relaxed. Could anyone really endure this overwhelming suction?

Just like no one can stand against an incoming tidal wave, the same went for Idraine Hole.

Only the caster was immune to the suction, and Idraine had already envisioned Sanghyun’s end.

KWAHHHH!

Eventually, the massive black hole engulfed Sanghyun.

It was large enough to completely block Idraine’s vision, and he didn’t doubt for a second that Sanghyun was dead.

But then, at that very moment—

Psshhh.

An utterly absurd and unexpected sound was heard. Out of nowhere, a deflating noise?

At the source of the sound, where the fearsome Idraine Hole should’ve still been raging, there was nothing.

Not just partially weakened or diminished—it was completely gone!

“……?”

Sanghyun naturally stepped into the vacant space left by the burst Idraine Hole.

“Ah.”

The single syllable that burst from Idraine’s mouth was more than enough to express his current state.

The beginning of the lethal combo.

By the time Idraine was surprised, Sanghyun’s unnamed sword was already at his chest.

From the start, Sanghyun closing the distance was not in Idraine’s calculations. Because it was impossible. No one had ever done it!

By the time regret kicked in, it was too late, and the price he paid, unfortunately, was his life.

Shlunk! Crackle!

At the moment of impact, a burst of thunder erupted.

The power of the lightning strike from the sky violently slammed into the armor Idraine wore.

No matter how high-quality his equipment was, it couldn’t withstand a blow of such destructive power.

But it didn’t stop there.

Slash! Slash!

With Weakness Amplification activated, Sanghyun slashed Idraine relentlessly, and before even three seconds had passed—

He finished with a clean combo by amplifying all the accumulated damage at once using the finishing skill.

It had been a long time since he executed a full combo cycle like this. Usually, they died before it finished.

The next moment—

BOOM!

“……Holy crap.”

Do Kyunghye, who had been watching the situation, stood frozen in place, her jaw completely dropped.

Both arms and legs hung limp toward the ground as if time had stopped.

Because Idraine had exploded. Like a balloon, his entire body had burst into pieces.

It felt so real, as if a human body had actually turned into a firework.

“This was a bit unexpected.”

Even Sanghyun himself, the one responsible, expressed surprise.

Of course, since he had gone all out, he had a rough idea of how powerful the attack would be.

In other words, he was confident that at the very least, it would leave Idraine seriously wounded. Usually, that meant death.

But he had never thought that a human body made of flesh and bone wouldn’t withstand the impact and would just burst apart.

‘Wow, so this title had a recipe. Which absurd Constellation came up with this recipe?’

How many players around the world could take down a mid-boss monster in a single blow?

And not just any monster—one that was officially recognized as being of a higher level than the player.

The mechanics were simple.

If the player applied the title effect of "Transcendental Amplification" to a designated skill—

Then that skill would deal triple the damage compared to its original effect.

In that case, there was no need to hesitate in choosing. Right now, Sanghyun’s ultimate skill was the Blade of Ruin.

‘The Blade of Ruin’s damage is already broken as is, and if I stack Transcendental Amplification on top of that, it’s just insane.’

No other word came to mind more fitting than “insane.”

Anyway, according to the detailed tooltip on how to obtain the title, the recipe was limited to only twenty players.

It was only visible immediately after obtaining the title, and once all twenty were claimed, the opportunity would be gone forever.

The tooltip told Sanghyun that he was the sixth person to obtain it.

That meant at least five players before him had already demonstrated such monstrous strength.

Considering Sanghyun had received a buff from Do Kyunghye’s Rampage Frenzy—

If any of them had done it on their own, then they were without a doubt among the world’s most renowned players.

‘Is this like a certified mark of fame?’

Sanghyun laughed.

It felt like definitive proof of his power and destructive force, even if it sounded like self-praise.

Sure, the effect was amplified by Kyunghye’s buff, but even without it, that one blow would have still been decisive.

In any case, thanks to the buff she provided!

The mid-boss monster Idraine had crossed the River Jordan in one blow. The entire battle ended in just ten seconds.

Due to the rapid growth title effect, his level jumped instantly to 215.

It was clear that since this Gate hadn’t been cleared before, the monsters granted a significant amount of experience.

That’s why high-level players who enjoyed challenges always sought out places that gave special first-time clear bonuses.

Sanghyun was no different.

If there was a first-clear bonus guaranteed, he’d make time to go there no matter what.

Thanks to that, he was reaping the benefits again today.

Dungeons and Gates with first-clear bonuses guaranteed at least three times more experience than others.

If you were confident in your ability to clear them, they were lands flowing with milk and honey.

“It’s been a while since I’ve seen an Essence reward. It’s rare.”

“Right? I also like Essence rewards since I don’t have to equip or carry them like Artifacts.”

Sanghyun lifted three Essences from the shredded remains of Idraine’s corpse.

Two Essences of Strength. One Essence of Mana.

Each Essence was an absorption-type Artifact that permanently increased a stat by 100 points.

With them tightly gripped in hand, he let mana flow through and, after about a minute of synchronization—

The stats would be absorbed permanently by the player, with no need to worry about them afterward.

“If it’s alright with you, I’ll just take the one Essence of Mana.”

“Are you okay with the count being uneven?”

“You told me during the briefing not to give in for no reason. So yeah… it’s a bold request.”

“Then I’ll take the two Strength ones.”

“Sure. I’m grateful just for getting one.”

“Don’t think that way. Buffers don’t just coast through battles. They’re more like strategists who shape the battlefield.”

“You flatter me.”

“In that sense, you really take after your brother way too little. Hah.”

Sanghyun laughed.

At first, he had thought Do Kyunghye was rather cold, aloof, proud, and a little brazen.

But as they got closer, he realized that wasn’t the case.

In fact, she held back what she wanted to say, even when she had every right to assert herself.

Was it because of the burden of being the sister of a celebrity? Or was it a complex about being a buffer?

Her older brother, Do Kyungsoo, probably knew her personality well enough.

But even someone hailed as a public icon might have been a clueless brother to his own sister.

Maybe that’s why he had never given her proper advice.

“Well then, let’s wrap this up. There’s not much left. How long has it been since we started?”

“Excluding breaks, it hasn’t even been two hours. The estimated clear time was two days without breaks.”

“Then let’s finish it in under four hours. Looks like we’re nearly there. We just need to get past that monster cluster.”

Sanghyun pointed toward the distant edge of the horizon, where the figures had started to multiply.

There was no doubt—they were silhouettes of monsters.

They were moving about busily and rhythmically.

And they were getting bigger. In other words, they were approaching.

Sanghyun, still not fully warmed up from the too-quick battle, stretched his body here and there.

Then he turned and smiled at Do Kyunghye following behind him.

“Now you believe in me, right?”

“Of course.”

She smiled as she answered.

He was the kind of person you couldn’t help but believe in, even if you didn’t want to.

That was Sanghyun.

These were Sanghyun’s total stats, tallied just before tackling the Gate’s final boss monster.

Now, unless he enlarged his status window, some of the stats would be cut off and hidden.

‘If I can just push Agility and Evasion past 1,000, I’ll be in the All-Thousands group. That’s basically the mark of a name-brand player.’

Sanghyun smacked his lips as he looked at the 200 to 300 points still needed in those lacking stats.

The All-Thousands group.

Just as the name implies, having every stat over 1,000 held significant meaning.

Even in his previous life, all players with stats above 1,000 were unconditionally considered name-brand players.

Even those specialized in a single field eventually brought every stat past 1,000.

That was inevitable due to equipping so many Artifacts and stacking titles like crazy.

Naturally, all stats would be raised, and hitting 1,000 across the board became a feasible goal.

And once that happened—

There was an SSS-rank title that activated only when all stats exceeded 1,000.

That was the title recipe Sanghyun was aiming for.

A special title that could only be obtained by reaching the All-Thousands threshold!