Ascension Through Skills

The wind enveloped the monster’s entire body.

Unable to resist, the monster charged forward. Taesan dodged the swinging forelimbs and continued to spread the wind.

This spirit skill was not originally intended for attack.

Unlike magic, spirit skills expanded the senses themselves.

It was used to gather information about the monster.

Information about the monster’s entire body flowed through the wind to Taesan.

He could now understand what he had not known before.

Seams covered the monster’s entire body.

They were too small to be seen with the naked eye, but the seams densely covered the monster’s body.

‘Were they formed by combining several creatures?’

The pitch-black mantis was made up of dozens, if not hundreds, of monsters fused together.

Despite this, its size was not much different from the monsters before the fusion. They had been forcibly condensed during the fusion.

That seemed to have created the seams.

Taesan kept thinking.

Having been forcibly given a rank, the monster moved awkwardly and seemed about to fall at any moment. It was likely that it could not maintain the defense of its rank, particularly at its joints.

Targeting these seams was the only way to deliver a strong impact to the monster.

But the seams were too small to be seen with the naked eye. Even though the monster’s rank had weakened, there was no room to target them with a sword.

Neither sword nor magic could target the seams.

The same was true for black magic.

Then, an idea struck him.

[You have activated a small spark.]

The spreading wind carried the flames.

Taesan charged at the monster. As the monster’s forelimb swung down to split Taesan’s head, he raised his sword.

Clang!

Two legs collided with Taesan’s sword. In the midst of their struggle, Taesan brought his free hand to the monster’s seam.

Whoosh.

A flame-imbued wind flowed from his fingertips, racing along the seam and beginning to burn the monster’s entire body.

The monster’s body shuddered.

[Monster 999 takes 504 damage.]

The increase in the spirit skill’s rank through Apostle Transformation made this possible.

Identifying the weakness, Taesan moved. He dodged attacks and pressed his hand against the monster’s body, releasing flame wind through the seams.

The monster trembled in pain and resisted. Since Taesan needed to touch the monster’s body, he couldn’t evade all the attacks.

But that was acceptable.

[Your First Attack Nullification has been activated.]

He touched the monster’s body again, and the flame followed the seam, invading its interior.

The monster’s body trembled once more, and at that moment, the rank protecting the joints of its forelimbs wavered.

Taesan didn’t miss the opportunity. He swiftly moved his sword, driving it into the joint. The sword pierced through with a crunching sound.

Then he pulled at the forelimb’s end. Ignoring the monster’s thrashing, he applied more strength to his hand.

Crack!

[Monster 999 takes 2045 damage.]

The monster’s leg came off. It twisted its body in agony.

Taesan thrust his hand into the wound, now oozing black fluid, and spread the flame directly inside the monster’s body.

The insectoid monster had weak joints and soft flesh despite its hard outer shell. This one seemed no exception, thrashing madly.

Perhaps the pain overwhelmed its mind, causing the ranks protecting the joints to shake unsteadily.

After that, Taesan took over the flow of battle.

He thrust his sword into the remaining forelimb joints and yanked them out.

Crack.

The remaining forelimbs were ripped off.

With the enemy unable to attack, there was no longer anything to fear.

Taesan proceeded to shatter each of the remaining legs. Soon, the monster was writhing on the ground, incapable of rising.

Taesan thrust his sword into the monster’s mouth. The thrashing monster’s body stiffened for a moment.

He sent flames through the sword, burning the monster’s entire body. Thousands of damage points appeared, and before long, the monster collapsed.

[You have defeated Monster 999.] [You have perfectly understood the essence and weakness of your opponent and have achieved victory. You have learned the special activation skill [Essence Understanding].] [Your Soul Ascension has been activated. The proficiency of ??? has increased by 1%.] [Your Soul Ascension has been activated. You have learned the special continuous activation skill [Twisted Soul Tuning].]

Taesan pulled out his sword.

The monster had been created merely to delay time, so there was no joy in the victory.

Instead, he was concerned about how much time he had spent and what might have happened to the others.

Just as Taesan was about to close the system window and run to his companions…

Space split open, and darkness burst forth.

Taesan halted his steps.

A vast darkness planted itself on the ground.

[Hello?]

A young girl appeared.

“Hello.”

The Demon God, Lucifer.

Her appearance was not too surprising. In their previous encounter, she had mentioned that it would be her turn next time.

The Demon God looked at Taesan with a gaze filled with goodwill.

[You did wonderfully this time, too, Kang Taesan.]

“I’m sorry, but I have something else I need to attend to first.”

People were still fighting the monsters. He needed to address that before he could converse with her.

Taesan braced himself.

[There's no need for that.]

The Demon God murmured and clapped her hands.

With the sound of the clap, darkness spread out.

People who had been gritting their teeth and fighting monsters stopped instinctively.

“What’s happening?”

The vast darkness enveloped the whole world like shadows absorbing the remaining light.

And the monsters, consumed by that force, vanished without a trace.

People, suddenly without their adversaries, looked bewildered and stared blankly into the void. The Demon God smiled thinly.

[I've taken care of everything. You don't need to go now.]

“Is this really okay?”

The Demon God had directly eliminated the monsters. Considering that previously, Lakiratas descended only after all quests were completed, this was clearly not normal.

“It wasn’t right.”

[It doesn't matter. They also used tricks.]

The Demon God twisted her lips.

[They're trying to cross the line with such tricks. Seems like they really don't like you, huh?]

“Seems so.”

The cohesion of the monsters was unexpected.

And the enormous rank imbued in the monster was too much for it to handle.

It was clear that this was not a normal course of events. If they couldn’t kill Taesan, they seemed determined to kill everyone else.

[You've overcome it brilliantly. I'm very satisfied.]

The Demon God extended her hand, and darkness began to spread from her, branching out.

[So, I should give you a reward.]

Darkness engulfed the world.

People gasped as the light suddenly disappeared. Some thought monsters were reappearing and grabbed their weapons, while others screamed.

[Manifestation of God's Authority.] [Blessings descend.]

“Huh?”

The Demon God beamed a smile at Taesan.

[You can be proud. I've never given such a blessing to mortals, especially not to so many, other than to demons.] [You have received the divine blessing [Lamb Entering the Darkness].] [And this is a bonus for you.]

Darkness enveloped Taesan.

[You have learned the basic black magic [Seir's Black Wind].] [You have learned the intermediate black magic [Marbas' Pitch-Black Wave].] [You have learned the intermediate black magic [Leraje's Territory Detection].] [You have acquired the title [Saint of the Demon God's Second Seat].] [Your magical power has increased by 100.]

A basic black magic spell, two intermediate black magic spells, a title, and a 100-point increase in magical power were bestowed upon him. Taesan bowed his head.

“Thank you.”

[No need to thank me. It's a fair trade.]

The Demon God chuckled.

[Now, it'll be even harder for them to kill you. What will they risk, and what burdens will they bear? The more they struggle, the stronger you become.]

She seemed very pleased.

[I wonder what their faces look like now? Just thinking about it brings me joy.]

There was a deeper emotion than mere pleasure at outsmarting the high gods.

[Well, that's enough about the rewards. Don't you have something to ask me?]

“Yes.”

Taesan nodded.

The separated labyrinth and the Guides of Sin that existed there.

He believed the gods would know the answer.

Just as Taesan was about to ask, the Demon God’s body began to shake unstably.

As if she couldn’t stay here any longer, a tremendous force began to drive her away.

[This is as far as I can go.]

The Demon God clicked her tongue.

[They crossed the line, but they make a fuss when I try. Hypocrites, aren't they?]

She grumbled and began to sink into the darkness.

[Sorry, but it looks like you'll have to get the details from someone else.]

“Understood.”

It wasn’t urgent, so Taesan nodded.

Returning to the labyrinth meant he would encounter another god waiting for him.

[Ah. One last thing.]

The departing lady spoke.

[The Guides of Sin will target you again.]

Taesan nodded. With his strength, conquering the 40th floor would be quick. He expected there would be another move.

The Demon God wore an ambiguous expression.

[Sorry, but next time, I won't be able to involve myself as deeply as before. That child is also one of my unfortunate children. According to the laws of the labyrinth, the winner takes all.]

Her words were cryptic.

Without saying more, she submerged into the darkness.

[Then, I'll wait for our next meeting. Let's have a more leisurely chat next time.]

With those words, she disappeared.

The darkness that engulfed the world faded, and light returned.

Taesan headed toward where the people were.

Kim Hwiyeon approached with a pale face.

“Ta, Taesan. That power just now…”

She instinctively felt it. The transcendent being that had descended earlier resembled the one she had seen before.

An entity that shrouded the entire world in darkness.

A being that could, if it wished, annihilate the Earth in an instant.

“At least it’s not hostile to us, so don’t worry.”

Taesan calmed her anxiety and looked towards the others.

There were injured people. Though some writhed in pain, there seemed to be few deaths.

“It looks like we fared well here.”

“Ah, yes.”

Kim Hwiyeon, having just regained her composure, nodded.

“People fought without descending into panic. We managed to hold them off… it would have been perilous if it had lasted any longer.”

It had been a narrow escape. Her strength had nearly run out, pushing her to the brink of danger.

But they had triumphed.

[Special Quest Success] [Return to the Labyrinth in two days.]

They assessed the damage.

Eighty-five thousand in total had returned.

Twenty thousand had perished.

Just sixty-five thousand had survived.

The loss of life was substantial. But they accepted it with composure. They grieved for the deceased, laid them to rest, and prepared to advance.

“What about the other areas…”

“They must have survived, too. In the end, we took care of everything.”

The darkness, unleashed by the Demon God, had exterminated the monsters.

It had not only enveloped Seoul but had spread across the entire globe.

Likely, all the monsters worldwide had been obliterated at that moment.

“…That was a god of the labyrinth, wasn’t it?”

Kim Hwiyeon had learned about the being that descended upon Earth. They were the architects of the labyrinth, adversaries of the invaders of Earth.

“Yes. This time it was the Demon God.”

“Wow.”

Kim Hwiyeon shook her head in amazement. Entities beyond her imagination continued to emerge, causing her head to throb.

“But at least they’re not our enemies. Right? If there are those who wish to kill us, there should be those who assist us.”

Her face did not betray any darkness.

Nor did the faces of all who had survived.

The reason was simple: the skill bestowed by the Demon God affected their very survival.

Lamb Entering the Darkness.

The effect was straightforward.

Everyone had gained magical power.

“I never imagined gaining such power…”

“Nor did I.”

Taesan also wore an ambiguous expression. He had not expected the Demon God to bestow magical power upon humanity. She had always favored demons over humans.

Nor had he anticipated receiving such authority.

“What does she expect from me?”

[Title: Saint of the Demon God's Second Seat] [This position is granted by the Demon God to those she acknowledges. Possessing magical power allows one to exert significant influence over humans with magic, and additional rewards are granted as they grow stronger.]