novelStar of the Absolute (8)
| ← Ch.083 | Ch.085 → |
Translation: Yoni
Editor: Obelisk
That wasn't the end.
The Art of Death skill, that stagnated after it had reached C rank, rose a rank.
By having one of the sovereigns of Asura Path come out, the conquest rate greatly increased.
However, there was definitely something strange.
Even though he used the Art of Death skill to create him, orders didn't work on it.
It was also surprising that he could develop on his own and become a sovereign. However, although he might've had a slight goodwill towards Muyoung, he didn't seem like he would forever follow him.
"A king is an independent entity."
As if he answered Muyoung's question, the Evil Spirit Predator spoke.
Now that he looked at him, it seemed like he could talk.
"I do thank you for releasing me. In return, I will help you with one thing. However, you cannot tie me down."
It meant that he wasn't planning to follow him from the beginning,
Simply looking at their stats, the level difference between the Evil Spirit Predator and Muyoung was like the difference between heaven and earth.
It would be illogical to attack.
Even if Muyoung had a lot of experience and avoided a face-to-face confrontation with him, he wouldn't be able to do anything.
However...
The Evil Spirit Predator knew one thing but not the other.
He didn't seem to know that Muyoung held his life in the palm of his hand. Since he had earned a physical body in this life through Muyoung.
The black soul appeared above the Evil Spirit Predator.
It was an indicator that 'Soul Exploitation' was possible.
"I don't need an undead that doesn't follow me."
As Muyoung coldly spoke, the Evil Spirit Predator smashed the ground once with his sword.
"Then, what are you going to do? A king doesn't follow anyone. I have escaped the Abyss and am now going to be a king in this world."
He consistently showed a domineering attitude as if he was weary of Muyoung.
Muyoung stretched his hand.
As he held the black soul in his hand, the expression of the Evil Spirit Predator hardened.
"...Wait. How can a human see my soul and hold it?"
"If I want to, I can get rid of it."
"Impossible. Unless your soul is a higher rank than mine, it would be impossible."
"We can check if it is impossible or not."
He was a bit curious.
If he were to exploit the soul of an undead at the level of a death knight, how fast would his development be?
The Evil Spirit Predator became serious.
Something that couldn't happen transpired almost naturally.
A sovereign that ruled over a few thousand specters.
There was no way for a human's soul to be of a higher level than his soul.
However, it was a situation where one challenge could end everything.
It meant that the Death Lord's existence was at a level higher than the Evil Spirit Predator and since Soul Exploitation was active, if Muyoung made his mind, he could get rid of Evil Spirit Predator's soul.
After realizing this, the Evil Spirit Predator changed his attitude.
"I will help you. For taking me out of the Abyss, I will volunteer to help you for 30 days."
He changed his words from a single help to 30 days of volunteering.
He did yield a bit in this matter.
If Muyoung was to take advantage of him forever, he would resist from the start.
But, it wasn't like he was going to just accept his conditions.
Muyoung shook his head.
"90 days."
"60 days. No longer than that. I need to quickly raise my power as soon as possible. I need to show dignity in order to prove my qualifications to be the sovereign of few thousand souls."
It seemed like he had reasons of his own.
Muyoung decided to accept his offer.
If the Evil Spirit Predator was truly planning on becoming a king, it wasn't bad to strengthen his relationship with him.
If he could control a top ranked entity for 60 days, it would be a great help to his development.
Since it wasn't like there were any limitations like he had with the Hellhorse.
"Okay. However, you must listen to what I say."
"I understand."
The Evil Spirit Predator agreed.
As Muyoung started to move, someone all of a sudden stopped in front of him.
Kalmooh.
With a flushed expression, he came up and alternately looked at Muyoung and Evil Spirit Predator.
"Wh, what happened to Oloness?"
"He's dead."
"However, he is..."
"It's a different soul in charge of Oloness's body."
Kalmooh's eyes widened.
However, he didn't seem to fully believe in this truth.
Muyoung took out and held Oloness's soul that was absorbed into Asura Path.
"This is Oloness's soul. If you want it, I will give it to you."
It would be possible to trap him in some kind of equipment and make him suffer for eternity.
Kalmooh's gulped his saliva and then spoke.
"Th, then, is it possible to free my boy's soul?"
"Free?"
"My boy died by Oloness and is suffering as he can't be freed even after his death."
Kalmooh's expression seemed desperate.
However, Muyoung didn't really have a way.
After a bit of thought, he moved his gaze to the Evil Spirit Predator who nodded his head.
"I guess you're talking about the souls that that devil guy used as slaves. Find him yourself."
The Evil Spirit Predator stomped his foot.
Thump!
With that sound, the ground split and a few thousand souls from below soared upwards.
In time, those souls then took form.
With their appearance from when they were alive, with no focus, they stood behind the Evil Spirit Predator.
That was the authority of the Evil Spirit Predator.
It seemed like he could grant forms to their souls and make them fight.
'Amazing. '
Muyoung inwardly admired him.
The Death Lord's existence might be higher than the Evil Spirit Predator, but Muyoung couldn't completely use his strength.
For now, he was far behind the Evil Spirit Predator in terms of handling the undead and specters.
Kalmooh looked around to find his son.
How long has it been?
"Ah...!"
With an exclamation, Kalmooh ran.
And he wailed in front of a dwarf child.
"Waawaawaah! Kalamo, my child. Why are you here being all cold? Hmm?"
Kalmooh held both shoulders of the child and sighed while he kneeled.
"Your father is at fault. I shouldn't have entered this place even if it was out of curiosity. Think ill of me..."
Self-blame was mixed in.
The Evil Spirit Predator who just watched them started to speak.
"If you want, I can place his soul in a new body."
Kalmooh pricked his ears.
It was no different than the devil's whisper.
However, in time he shook his head.
"I'm okay. I don't want my child to suffer any more than this."
He didn't act irrationally after being blinded by affection.
Kalmooh would also know.
That it would be impossible without a price.
And it wasn't like his son would come back to life just because his soul was placed inside a new body.
A completely different result would appear.
Since the soul and body were interlinked.
A side effect might appear or an emotionless puppet might be created when a soul was place inside another body.
In sense, Kalmooh's current decision was wise.
"Release him."
As Muyoung spoke, the Evil Spirit Predator shook his hand.
Then, the appearance of the child started to become blurry.
The soul returned to the place where it was supposed to be.
"Kalamo. Ahh, Kalamo...!"
Thump!
A moment later, due to the complete disappearance of the child, Kalmooh's body fell to the ground.
Muyoung suddenly became curious and asked.
"Do you know where the souls go?"
"No one knows besides the creator. They say that they are reborn."
Reborn.
It didn't seem like the Evil Spirit Predator knew the details.
'I did die. '
After getting rid of the Forest of Death, Muyoung died once.
Afterwards, he traveled back in time, but in this world, there was clearly the existence of 'souls'.
After his death, his soul definitely left his body.
Although he wasn't self-aware, wouldn't there have been another process for him to return to the past?
Muyoung shrugged his shoulders.
It was something he couldn't know unless he became a God.
After Kalmooh blankly stared into the distance, being lost in thought, he regained his mind and walked up to Muyoung.
After wiping his tears with his hands, he bit his lips before he spoke.
"Thank you. Until I die, I will forever follow you."
Fortunately, Kalmooh wasn't just suicidal.
He was clearly remembering their promise.
"Please do."
Muyoung nodded his head before leaving the arena.
*
Since he no longer needed a strategy to defeat the cerberus, it was useless for him to collect more onz.
That was why Muyoung used the rest of his onz to get all sorts of slaves.
Of course, he had a standard.
He only chose the species that had rationality and could use their head.
This was how he was able to get close to 2, 000 slaves until he became the final winner of the 1st floor.
At the same time, he logged the most wins.
227 wins 0 draw 0 loss!
It was the result of him stealing the continuous wins from Victor Effect.
Muyoung (No-name) - 227 wins
Lucian - 201 wins
Ohohsuki Yuka - 167 wins
Lucian and Ohohsuki Yuka.
Both were people Muyoung was familiar with.
Fighting King Lucian and the Queen of Ninjas, Ohohsuki Yuka, there was no way that Muyoung would not know them.
Moments later, a different message appeared in front of him.
A huge door was behind the 1st-floor arena.
Afterwards, the door opened and a huge three-headed monster showed itself.
Gwwwaaang!
Its size was well above 10m.
Each of the three heads had a different ability.
Normally, he wouldn't have chosen to fight.
However, with the existence of the Evil Spirit Predator, conditions allowed him to fight.
"It's quite a decent mount."
The Evil Spirit Predator looked at the cerberus and rubbed his chin.
Muyoung knitted his eyebrows for a moment before he relented.
'It's harder to suppress it than to kill it. '
The trial was made to receive an assessment depending on the context.
If he was to suppress it, he would receive a good assessment.
"Let's begin."
Swoosh!
Anguish and the Wicked God's Sword rang.
*
Woohee was very excited as she flapped her wings in the air.
"Look look! Woohee said so, right? My husband will take care of e~~verything."
"Argh..."
The fat fairy Pantpant groaned.
His first intention was to show Woohee a reputable trial to win her heart, but Woohee was already in love with another person.
That was why he tried to interfere by placing a bounty on his head but that dokkaebi didn't stop and continued to crazily advance.
On top of that, he made a death knight and was now attacking cerberus.
"Wooheeheehee. My husband is so amazing. He isn't using the strategy Woohee told him and is just attacking it."
"The strategy you told him?"
Instantly, Woohee realized her mistake and pretended she didn't hear him.
"Husband! Win!"
While looking at her, Pantpant let out a deep sigh.
A dokkaebi and a fairy could never be a good match but what could he do when she is already this into him.
It didn't seem like there was a way to turn her heart around.
That was why he looked at cerberus with a bit of hope.
'How could a dokkaebi win against a cerberus?'
He instead wanted the dokkaebi to die in his fight with cerberus.
He believed that Woohee would then regain her senses and look at him.
However, it was all a mere false hope.
Instead of the dokkaebi, the death knight that the dokkaebi made was the problem.
He really did fly around and trample on cerberus.
In the end, he even succeeded in 'taming' cerberus.
"Pant Pant! Impossible! Taming works on a cerberus?"
Pantpant let out a scream.
It was impossible for a monster like cerberus to be tamed.
However, that death knight succeeded.
The death knight got on cerberus's back and started to use it however he wanted.
The natural ability of the death knight to find a 'mount' and the authority of the Evil Spirit Predator combined allowed even the taming of a cerberus to be possible.
Pantpant's chin naturally dropped and as Muyoung chose a reward past the door, the arena started to collapse.
Rumble!
It meant that the trial of the arena had ended.
Afterwards, as everything collapsed, the box of trial distorted and the original world became visible.
"Hmm? What is that?"
Woohee, who returned back to the original world, tilted her head as she looked up the sky.
A particularly red star was in the sky.
The combination of a few hundred or even a few thousand stars wouldn't have been brighter than that star.
A totally pure star that shined as if it would swallow up everything.
Woohee who was carried away by the purity blankly stared at the star and then moved her gaze back to Muyoung.
It was because the red star gave her a similar feeling to Muyoung for some reason.
And Woohee's thoughts were somewhat true.
A red star that appeared in the highest place.
That was the Star of the Absolute.
| ← Ch. 083 | Ch. 085 → |