novelThe Judge's Continent Part I
| ← Ch.242 | Ch.244 → |
Translator: HunterW
Editor: RED
I was back at home, on the terrace garden, petting the Dungeon Mole in my hand. I also had the Achilles Tendon summoned and on the table beside me. The Dungeon Mole squeaked for more candy while the Tendon kept saying that it liked the outside more. I even tried giving the Tendon a piece of candy, but it didn't seem to care for it.
"Hmm...forty Stores have closed now...that should give Store 72 about three months before it has to close as well." All guilds and organizations were keeping track of all the Stores around the world. Everyone knew that once the last Store closed, the Judge's Continent would finally arrive, marking the end of this era and the start of a new one. It would be just like July 17th, 2023; the day that Earth, or World #1455, entered the Otadolon stage.
All past feuds were ended as well. We all had to work together in the coming battle if we wanted Earth to survive. All everyone was doing was hunt and train. Everyone wanted to get as strong as they could before the Continent arrived. I was no different, but I was taking it easy like this because of the Death's Harrier ability. It was thanks to it that I got my base AGI up to 22k. My base STR was also way past 24k now.
It all seemed perfect, except for the fact that I could only have one Predation Scroll in my inventory at a time. If I met a strong opponent, I would use it on Death's Achilles Tendon and activate Critical Weakness. But what could I do then, if that wasn't enough? There was probably no way that could happen, but what if?
Consuming Shaman Ko instead increased my Stats by tenfold and pretty much turned me into a monster. That was evident from the video I watched of Shaman Ko possessing my body and completely destroying the Reaper. But if I could do that now, I would become more than a monster; I would become a demon.
"..." My mouth dropped just thinking about it. I knew that it was something that had happened outside of my will, and it had never truly sat well with me, but I did feel safer having a failsafe as strong as that. But I could only have one Predation Scroll with me at a time. I couldn't Consume Shaman Ko for 24 hours after Consuming the Tendon. I doubted it would ever come to that, but I just couldn't help but feel anxious about it. But as if answering my prayers, the unthinkable happened.
==[You have received a Scroll of Predation. ]==
I had already received one five days ago since I used one to Consume the Tendon. I should have received 3 SK points like every other time, but I got another Scroll the next day instead. It ended with two Scrolls, but that was enough.
"Perfect. I guess I'll get back to hunting then." I got up from my sofa and sent the Dungeon Mole and the Tendon away. I was going to hunt like normal, but I didn't need to hunt with my life on the line like everyone else. I was fully prepared for the advent of the Continent. I just needed to make sure I was in good shape.
——
Twenty-five days later...
"Today's the day." The Tendon's Predation was finally off cooldown. I could get back to power leveling again, and frankly, its timing couldn't have been more perfect. Two more Stores had closed over the past month and at the same time, at that. The change was starting to speed up, meaning the day was drawing ever closer. I wasn't afraid or nervous though; I was thoroughly prepared and would continue to prepare.
"Alright. It's time." I had hunted every day over the past twenty-five days and managed to raise my level by 20.
Once I left my house, I saw a group of my clan members waiting for me."Let us depart, Mr. Lee."
"Yes, let's go." I could only use Death's Harrier once every thirty days. I had a couple of things to investigate to find the best hunting ground. First, it needed to have a lot of monsters. I needed to kill countless monsters in twenty-four hours to get the most out of the drained Stat points. They didn't even need to be strong. Second, they needed to be an aggressive type, meaning that they had to attack first when they noticed my presence. That way, I didn't have to waste time moving from horde to horde.
That was it. Those were the only two requirements I needed. I could have carried out the investigation on my own, but I needed it done in a timely manner and thankfully, it wasn't hard to find helpers. The Myth Guild was very forward about it as well, since they controlled all of Egypt, as well as a good chunk of the Sahara. With their help, I decided on the Sokht Oasis close to the Libya-Egypt border.
The monsters there were aggressive-type Sand Lizards. They weren't even that big either; standing only around a meter tall. And so, with the Myth Guild escort, we headed to Cairo via the Seoul Teleporter. I had already notified the main guild to set up a Warp Zone connecting Cairo and the Sokht Oasis, so it only took us less than a minute to get to the Oasis from Seoul.
"I'll be relying on you, " I said to Ebonene as I shook his hand.
"It's not a problem. We can at least do this much for you, " Ebonene said before turning to the three hundred guild members."Lure the monsters as planned!"
"Yes sir!" The three hundred soldiers spread out in five-man teams across the Oasis at Ebonene's order. About ten minutes later, several teams were running my way with hordes of Sand Lizards behind them.
"I'll be taking my leave now."
"Thank you again." The Myth Guild didn't once question my sudden request and just accepted it right away. Once I saw that Ebonene was gone, I activated my necessary skills.
"Summon: Death's Achilles Tendon." I Consumed it right away."Activate: Death's Harrier. Mana Conversion - Ice. Warrior's Brave Spirit. Howl of the Wolf."
==[Death's Harrier has been activated.
Your attacks now carry a deathly energy and have a chance to drain your enemies' stat points.
Time applied: 24 hours
Cooldown: 30 days. ]==
I didn't feel the need to activate Critical Weakness since the average level of the monsters here was level 400. I just needed to use Fissure and Judge's Gavel as much as I could to level them up.
What followed was complete annihilation. Just touching the Lizards was enough to kill them. And thanks to the hundreds of Lizards the Myth Guild members were luring, I was even able to kill several at a time with one swing of my spear.
==[You have obtained 3 Stat points from a Sand Lizard cursed by Death. ]==
==[You have obtained 1 Stat points from a Sand Lizard cursed by Death. ]==
==[You have obtained 4 Stat points from a Sand Lizard cursed by Death. ]==
I smiled as the messages popped up one after the other."I'll be relying on all of you for the entire day! In return, drinks are on me tomorrow!"
"Yes, sir!"
"We'll hold you to that!"
—
Twenty four hours later...
==[Death's Harrier has now deactivated.
The power of Death's Harrier will be lowered for weakening Death's Achilles Tendon twice in a row.
You are unable to use Death's Harrier for the next 30 days. ]==
"Huh?" I get that Death's Harrier wasn't the Tendon's original ability and was only granted when Death possessed it, but I couldn't help but feel my strength leave my body when I learned that it was being weakened."Open Stats Menu."
==[Name: Lee Jiwon
Level: 929 Death Count: 0
Title: Earth's First Deva
HP: 16, 090, 700/16, 090, 700 MP: 602, 800/602, 800
Strength: 36, 521 + 5, 961 Agility: 26, 901 Vitality: 28, 001
Willpower: 5, 968 Intelligence: 5, 228
Unassigned Stat Points: 2082]==
I had gained 2, 082 Stat points in a single day. I should be jumping with joy, but I was now too worried about what it would cost me. I didn't let it show since it was an ability only I knew about and instead shouted to the Myth Guild."Let's go! It's time to have some fun!"
"Yeaah!"
—
Thirty days later...
Once Death's Harrier's cooldown was up, I used it for a third time and hunted like before with the Myth Guild. This time, I gained 1, 650 Stat points in twenty four hours. That was still a considerable amount, but it was also much less than before. I knew that Death's Harrier was weakened, but it sucked to actually see it with my own eyes.
==[Death's Harrier has now deactivated.
The power of Death's Harrier will be lowered for weakening Death's Achilles Tendon three times in a row.
You are unable to use Death's Harrier for the next 30 days. ]==
It was weakened again, as well. I would probably get even less points the next time I used it. A 400 point difference was big enough as is. I couldn't complain just yet, however. No one else knew about this ability, and no one needed to know how many Stat points I had. There was no reason to be depressed, not after all I had gotten from it. At least, there was nothing about Critical Weakness.
——
Another twenty days passed, and only Store 72 remained.
——
Anton's office...
"Tomorrow's the day."
"Already?" I was having tea with Anton.
"Yup. It's arriving tomorrow."
This was it. I was completely in the dark now.
"Well, I'm sure you'll do great."
"Thanks."
"No, thank you."
After a few more words, I bid my final farewells to Anton and Marie and wished them the best of luck in the future.
When I got home, I notified all of the Empire's factions that the Judge's Continent was arriving.
The day after, the same voice from July 17th, 2023 rang across the sky.
-Ah. Ah. Can you all hear me?-
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