Second Life Ranker

Nemesis burst out laughing. He hadn’t expected to hear that. 『Pfft! I guess that’s right, although I can’t understand since I don’t have siblings.』 Nemesis’ large body materialized behind Yeon-woo. 『But I guess it’s similar to how I don’t want to lose to that guy.』  He glared at the Mythical Beast looming behind Jeong-woo’s simulation, whose long orange body had a golden sheen. It was his past self, Mirne.  

Since all the secrets of the shadows were being revealed in this stage, even his brother’s Mythical Beast had appeared. Mirne and Nemesis glared at each other and soared up to the sky. Below them, Yeon-woo and his brother’s shadow clashed together. 

Boom! It was like the powers of different dragons crashing against each other. They were like beasts fighting for dominance. To the Draconic species, territory was extremely important, and it was instinctive for them to use it to dominate a battlefield. However, since their territories or authorities didn’t work on each other, they could only win through physical strength.

Since both Yeon-woo and his brother had the bodies of Draconic species, their two territories would only damage their surroundings when they collided. Since the simulation’s power was higher than Yeon-woo’s, Yeon-woo found his movements restricted.

Draconic Pressure was similar to Dragon Fear in that it made opponents feel threatened. However, Dragon Fear only worked on beings with souls while Draconic Pressure exerted its influence on everything thanks to the power of the Draconic species. It was like an element of the Consciousness that Yeon-woo had developed on the twentieth floor, only it was more powerful because it belonged to the Draconic species. 

As soon as Yeon-woo’s blade clashed against the shadow’s, he felt immense pressure, as though millions of needles were piercing his skin as Draconic Pressure pushed his beginner Dragon Body down.

[You have been afflicted with the status ‘Stun’.]

[Your trait, Cold-blooded, has helped you maintain composure.]

[The status 'Stun' has been removed. You have developed resistance to ‘Draconic Pressure’.]  

[The trait, Dragon Body, has been applied. You have developed resistance to ‘Draconic Pressure.’]

Just as his brother possessed the cheat trait called Perfect Adaptability, Yeon-woo had the Cold Blooded trait, which provided the highest level of resistance. However, after he endured the attack of Draconic Pressure, Yeon-woo was flung to the side. The options activated.

[Sword Purification]

[Goddess’ Spearsword]

Vigrid grew stronger as it reflected the power of its opponent. With Aegis’s options added to it, its attack power multiplied, and a power that was comparable to that of Draconic Pressure repelled the shadow’s attack.

What Yeon-woo couldn’t do with his power, he could still carry out with the options of the artifacts. He kicked off the ground and followed the shadow. Aura, Holy Fire, and black energy flowed out of Vigrid and flew towards the shadow’s chest. 

The shadow quickly flapped his wings, barely managing to steady himself. The Sky Wings spread open, and they seemed to be two meters long. The shadow’s attack power felt sharper, as though it were reacting to Yeon-woo just like a cat whose fur was standing on end.

Four magic circles popped up in front of the shadow, and magic suddenly rained down with a fancy artifact.

<Random Fire>

It was a skill his brother had been proud of. With the support of Dragon’s Knowledge, the magic he’d memorized would activate one after the other, and he wouldn’t have to worry about making any mistakes as the magic was cast. Anyone exposed to this would be severely injured. The speed of the magic was so fast that it was impossible to even defend against it.

Although Yeon-woo had the Magic Armor that Henova had given him and Aegis, he simply used Blink. The Random Fire shot past powerlessly, creating a deep crater in the ground with a loud explosion.

The shadow had to turn around quickly as Yeon-woo appeared behind him and tried to slash his throat with Vigrid. The shadow barely managed to block the attack, and his face hardened. He’d protected himself with the Sky Wings and his sword, but his arm felt as though it were about to fall off.

The white Sky Wings were already damaged and charred. It was possible to fix them with magic power, but the shadow hadn’t expected them to be ruined so badly. Yeon-woo activated Haste to follow the shadow. He couldn’t give him an opportunity to cast magic. 

The Eight Extreme Swords clanged against the shadow’s blade. Yeon-woo occasionally incorporated it with the Bian, and the shadow was in danger of losing his life several times. However, he calmly fought Vigrid, aware that he wouldn’t be able to defeat Yeon-woo with a sword. Instead, he used the skills Valdebich had taught him only to defend himself, and he blocked what he missed with the Sky Wings or activated defensive magic. 

As soon as his Draconic Eyes caught a weakness, he would use Random Fire to put some distance between them. Yeon-woo’s forehead wrinkled as he looked at the shadow. ‘It’s a crazy collection of skills, no matter how many times I look at it.’

Yeon-woo knew that he possessed items that a lower-level player couldn’t dream of having, but his brother’s equipment didn’t fall short, either. They were all treasures that the ancient dragon Kalatus had collected or masterpieces that Henova had made. The sword that the shadow held was the result of a collaboration between Kalatus and Henova: Dragon Slayer.

It possessed magic effects that Kalatus had created, and Henova had worked on it for three months. It was the same rank as Vigrid, if not even higher. With just Dragon Slayer and Sky Wings, the shadow could endure Yeon-woo’s attacks and even fight back. 

Yeon-woo realized that the shadow had the ability to learn, and it already familiarized itself with Yeon-woo’s fighting style. There were times when it got too close for comfort.

The two fought fiercely, almost to a ridiculous extent. From what Yeon-woo knew, his brother didn’t have a skill that would help him make assessments and pick the right choice. Even with Dragon’s Knowledge, his thinking ought to be slower than Yeon-woo’s, but everything happened so quickly. Sometimes, the shadow even used similar movements as Yeon-woo’s Eight Extreme Swords, which meant that he was picking up and learning Yeon-woo’s techniques as the fight continued.

If Yeon-woo didn’t put a stop to this, he would be at a disadvantage. ‘This is why people who are naturally talented are…’ Yeon-woo was a bit annoyed. He couldn’t help thinking of their childhood. Even though his brother hadn’t tried very hard at anything, he was good at school thanks to his natural intelligence and good memory.

Although his brother had to stay inside a lot because of his weak body, even the physically fit Yeon-woo sometimes felt envious of his little brother. Whenever his brother brought his report card home with a smirk, Yeon-woo’s frustration couldn’t be expressed in words. 

Of course, after that, he bothered him with things like games. Things hadn’t changed, and Yeon-woo imagined his brother’s smirking face overlapping with the shadow’s expressionless face. ‘I can’t give him a chance.’ Yeon-woo pushed against the shadow harder, without any mercy. 

The Magic Circuit spun until the 360 Cores were overheated. His Fire Wings grew twice their regular size, and he became faster with Magic Equip. He gained the upper hand once more, and the shadow was pushed back in a jumble of feet and hands. However, he continued looking for an imperfection with his Draconic Eyes. Even though the speed had changed, the style remained the same, and he knew he would find his chance.

Yeon-woo turned and slashed the shadow’s abdomen with Vigrid. The shadow thought he’d found an opportunity and quickly pulled Sky Wings around him. Boom! The Sky Wings shattered, its pieces scattering like sparkling jewels, and he burst out with the skill that he had been hiding. 

<Wave of Light>

While Yeon-woo specialized in the fire element, his brother had put everything into the light element, which had a destructive effect on dark properties. Wave of Light was a skill that made condensed magic power explode, and it was so destructive that it could sweep everything away.

However, it was so strong that it even injured its user. Jeong-woo would be able to use it without any limits once he progressed further, but at this stage, he couldn’t use it properly even though it was a skill he’d created himself along with Sky Wings. It was crazy to think that a player on the twenty-first floor had created something like this.

Yellow and white lighting spread across the territory, sparking against each other as they destroyed everything in their path. If they weren’t in an area built for fighting, the entire surroundings would have been completely annihilated.

A horrendous explosion blasted in Yeon-woo’s ears, and he quickly blocked his hearing, using Haste and Blink to remove himself. He grew Fire Wings and used Aegis to protect himself.

But with all that, he couldn’t avoid being injured, and even a section of his armor was damaged. He steadied himself and used Cold-blooded to calm down. He activated Time Difference and quickly assessed his surroundings. 

Dragon Blood circulated in his body to heal his injuries, but many of his scales were peeling off, and his injuries were so severe that his bones were exposed. Thankfully, his Magic Circuit and Cores were intact. They were a bit scratched but they were quickly repaired. Yeon-woo could finally move and look down at the broken stage that was full of burning embers.

Yeon-woo almost called his brother a psycho. He knew of his brother’s powers but seeing them with his own eyes left him speechless. He cursed his brother’s power, clucking his tongue that the shadow had used a skill even though he couldn’t control it.

However, simulations had the same personality as the real beings, and this was a gamble that Jeong-woo never would have attempted. Had he remembered something and copied it?

‘Did he…?’ It suddenly occurred to Yeon-woo that the shadow had copied him. It seemed like he had remembered something from their younger days, when Yeon-woo had been more emotional and impulsive. 

He always acted before he thought, and because of this, caused several incidents. Jeong-woo had always cleaned up after his mess, nagging Yeon-woo about his immaturity despite being an older brother. Jeong-woo often reminded him to think before doing something.

In fact, Yeon-woo planned things out so carefully in the Tower because of his little brother’s nagging. However, the simulation was showing a more impulsive side that didn’t seem to worry about consequences. Yeon-woo had a strange sensation that his own younger self was in the simulation. Was it because he and Jeong-woo were so similar?

Yeon-woo scoffed and turned his head. He felt a presence above him and quickly got ready. The simulation had recovered his Sky Wings and was blasting his Wave of Light again. It was even more powerful than the previous explosion since Jeong-woo used Triple Casting to blast out multiple Waves of Light in one go. A blinding light filled the sky. 

Yeon-woo couldn’t believe that the shadow was running straight to the finish line without a care for the consequences.

[Time Difference]

As time slowed down for him, Yeon-woo got ready to fight back. This time, he didn’t plan to avoid the Wave of Light. He wouldn’t be able to even if he wanted, and it was clear that another Wave of Light would blast out right at its heels.

He had no choice but to use an attack that was equal to the Wave of Light. Although he didn’t have a similar skill, he thought of something that was just as destructive. Nike had blasted out magic power strong enough to almost break through his defenses. If he mixed Aura, black energy, and Fire rain to this, what would happen?

Hanryeong had said that he would feel threatened, even at his peak. However, he’d advised Yeon-woo against using a power he couldn’t control. Yeon-woo thought over other ways of attacking and found a solution: Hon and Swe. The two Bian might help him make something that surpassed the Wave of Light.

Although he would be in danger from throwing together a skill so suddenly, Yeon-woo didn’t have any other choice. He couldn’t think of any other solution. The slowed time returned to normal, and he used Haste and Blink, speeding himself up with Shunpo, and flung Aura, Fire Rain, and black energy at the shadow. ‘Swe.’

Boom! The world was engulfed in a blinding light. At that moment, Yeon-woo thought to himself that even though he might die, it was truly fun being with his brother like this.