Part 2, Episode 209.
At first, there was no particular reaction.
What could there be? Lol. I’m just cracking a joke.
I call it a nickname because they call me sandbag all the time.
Do I really have to explain this? Are you an in-game novice? It’s to the point where there isn’t a single person who plays God of Savior who doesn’t know about it.
-LOL
Just think of it as a comfort doll lol
-Cheonma-nuna’s comfort doll… … Maybe it’s not a bad life… … ?
You’re a bit… … no.
-What? Tell me the end.
I thought it was just a routine joke.
The atmosphere changed because of the meaningful comment that followed shortly after.
-Haha;; What attachment doll?
I heard and saw something, haha.
Everyone who knows, knows.
A cryptic comment that suddenly appeared in the chat window.
Since it was done by several people, not just one, the weight doubled.
Is there something going on between the two of you?
-I don’t know?
What’s up? That reaction is a bit strange.
– You mean this wasn’t WWE?
What is the secret between a man and a woman who are famous for fighting whenever they meet?
And to think that both of them are big names, being masters of top 10 guilds?
Naturally, attention was bound to be drawn to it, regardless of whether it was gossip or not.
What is it, what is it?
What’s the relationship between the two of you?
What kind of relationship do you think they have? Lol. They’re the type to immediately trash talk the moment they meet. Pet names my ass. They’re just an attention seeker trying to stir up trouble. Just shut them up.
-LOL lol How did you fall for this?
But don’t the two of them look a bit close? Like there is unusually little distance between them.
Yeah, honestly, I did find it a bit meaningful, too. I’ve never seen the Heavenly Demon smile, but the fact that he only smiles when he’s with the Armory owner… it’s kind of that typical childhood friends vibe who bicker but secretly like each other?
Oh… come to think of it, that’s true.
Oh, bullshit. Just write a novel.
The atmosphere in the chat room, which was seething with such untimely rumors, was fifty-fifty.
Reactions to the suggestion that there is something between the two include “Huh? Is that so? Come to think of it, maybe?” and dismissing it as nonsense.
Back when the forces were divided into exactly two, fighting amongst themselves over who was right and who was wrong.
No, listen. I’m telling you, it’s actually more convincing than you’d think. I can’t say who it was, but apparently, our Guild Master once badmouthed Ast in front of the Heavenly Demon. But then, the Heavenly Demon suddenly walked over with a deadpan expression, picked a fight by calling him a lowly nobody who didn’t know his place, and they ended up getting into a brawl.
-Oh… … So who won?
Of course our guild leader got absolutely destroyed lol. He got beaten so badly he couldn’t even breathe.
-lol
Anyway, the executive next to me at the time is an acquaintance of mine, and he said her expression was really, really menacing. He said it had the exact vibe of a girlfriend in a secret relationship who had just run into her boyfriend’s enemy.
The decisive blow that would tip the taut scales has arrived.
-What? Is that for real? What is going on? But why do the two of you only fight whenever you meet?
That doesn’t mean Ast was anything special, though. If they were in a secret relationship, there’s no way that simple-minded middle-aged man wouldn’t give it away.
Given his personality, if he actually liked someone, he probably wouldn’t be able to do that kind of trash talk lol
-What, what? Then surely… … it’s not unrequited love?
Fuck off about unrequited love. Why would Cheonma-nee be interested in dating some ordinary neighborhood guy like that?
His physique is truly monstrous, not exactly common. I heard the bodybuilding world lost a star after seeing AST’s physique.
Yeah, he’s even a capable guy. He looks like at least a second-generation chaebol lol
-… … Don’t mess with me. There is no way the Heavenly Demon would do that.
Why are you so shocked?
Looks like you’re a fan of Cheonma lol. She is popular because she’s pretty, you know. Though I heard Cheonma actually looks down on every guy who approaches her like a bug.
That’s the charm, you f***er.
Ugh… I wasn’t curious about your taste at all.
└I… … am… … 50… … and my peers… … all… … like Cheonma… … .
No, so is it true? What is it?
I saw some troll posts linking the two of them a while ago, but is this for real?
Just as the atmosphere was becoming increasingly strange.
KWAaaaaaaang!!!!
Just before it overheated, an explosion erupted from beyond the screen.
The topic shifted instantly at the violent sounds that were incomparable to anything before.
There was no other choice.
Wow, what is that?
– OMG;;;
Is this for real?
Hey, man, does that really look like “that kind of relationship” to you guys? It looks like the kind of relationship that would make you think that way.
Wow, Cheonma is a lunatic;;;
Because a massive blow burst from the Heavenly Demon’s fist that would end the battle, which had been unfolding in a similar manner.
A huge crater formed on the stage floor.
From there, the Heavenly Horse stood like a noble black crane, looking down with cold, sunken eyes.
“Ugh…….”
Beneath her, there was Ast, sprawled out on the ground coughing and spitting up blood.
* * *
“?”
What is this?
“What? Why is the armory owner lying unconscious?”
“Did anyone just see that? Can someone explain?”
Ast, who had been charging forward recklessly all along, is lying collapsed spitting blood?
At the completely unexpected event, the audience in the stands was stunned, unable to even cheer.
[Ah! What is going on! It happened in the blink of an eye.]
[Huh, what on earth is going on.]
The commentators were no different.
Because he was showing a reluctant reaction and couldn’t explain it properly.
The unexpected result was surprising, but what was even more baffling was that it was difficult to figure out what on earth had happened even after seeing it with my own eyes.
“It looks like the Heavenly Demon did something, but…….”
Was it a power thrust?
“I think I might have tripped you…”
“That’s strange. I’m sure I was dodging the mace Ast was swinging, but suddenly there was a loud bang and Ast collapsed.”
There were no issues like dust winds rising and obscuring visibility as before.
It is simply that the thought process purely failed to understand what was seen with the eyes.
Just like how you cannot properly grasp the exchanges in a boxing match unless you watch it in slow motion.
One, a small number of people among these.
‘… … Heavenly Demon, was it really that bad?’
Huh. You’ve returned as a monster.
“It wasn’t just Ast; anyone would have been defeated. To think such a movement was possible. Is that the Heavenly Demon Divine Art that has reached the 10th level?”
I thought it only recently reached 10 stars… …to think it’s already capable of that level of utilization.
You’re showing us something interesting, Heavenly Demon.
The guild executives and the 10th Guild Masters who serve as the core of the NPC.
Or, some high-ranking players of comparable standing could grasp the situation at a glance.
And Dohyeon was included in that as well.
“Wow, you’re really hitting the mark!”
-Hmph, that was a tremendous move, my lord.
– Lizari? Liza?
What? I didn’t see that. What just happened?
Charlie, who purely admires and agrees with Dohyun’s admiration that borders on a monologue, and the two Guardians who do not understand.
At that, Dohyeon looked at Charlie with a surprised expression.
Look at this?
It seems like you weren’t paying much attention to the game, but to think you could grasp it accurately just from a quick glance.
Perhaps because he was a former Knight Commander, his eye for spotting movements was sharp.
“Well, Charlie reached 3 stars on the Sword of Light, too.”
After training steadily all this time, before he knew it, he had surpassed the 3rd star of the Sword of Light and was now on the verge of the 4th star.
A level where one can reach 4 stars with just the slightest trigger.
Considering that 5 stars is the final level, Charlie’s current skill level could be seen as surpassing that of an ordinary knight commander.
Especially when facing the Abyss, all stats are enhanced, so it must be a top-tier asset.
-Lizari! Liza!
Dohyeon snapped out of his thoughts at the sight of Eliza hopping about as if demanding an explanation, and stroked her head with his index finger as he spoke.
It’s footwork.
“Footwork? What footwork… Ah! By any chance, that Heavenly Demon Reign… whatever it was called back then?”
-Liza! Lizariza!
Jihad, who had been bewildered, suddenly lets out a cry as if he has realized something.
Eliza, jumping up beside him as if she had also been reminded of him.
The only footwork used by the Heavenly Demon.
Cheonmagunrimbo.
Its next move.
[Second Technique, Bung Kwon Piercing the Imugi.]
A technique that can be activated upon successfully overwhelming a target with the Heavenly Demon’s Reign Step, firing a strike that ignores 80% of the target’s defense in a straight line like a flash.
Even if he was an old man decked out in armor that ignored 70% of all damage, and accessories and skills with all sorts of defensive effects, he wouldn’t be able to ignore that technique.
but,
It’s different from what I saw last time.
Previously, the Heavenly Demon Reign Step was simply about walking forward, based on radiating a commanding aura that crushed the opponent.
Is it because that Heavenly Demon’s Domination has reached its peak and changed to be more free and dazzling?
The second move also seemed to have changed a lot.
There is no casting time.
No, to be precise… … I’d say it’s closer to a counter.
Reacting precisely to Ast swinging the mace, he uses the Heavenly Demon Reign Step to dive inward and unleashes a zero-distance blunt punch.
Kwaaaaang!!
A structure in which the shock wave that would normally spread backward starting from the point of impact disappears, and instead the explosion is concentrated inside the area of impact.
It has been changed to a single skill and the range has been shortened to an extreme degree, but the casting time has become faster and the damage has been amplified accordingly.
The result was the scene you see right now… but indeed, he was just an old man.
[Your HP is 60% or less.]
“Cough. Gulp. Ow… fuck. I almost died.”
You’re really making a fuss. To think your life force hasn’t even been depleted by half after taking that hit—isn’t that beyond tough—it’s just stupid?
After all, he only lost 40% of his health even after taking that head-on.
No, considering what had accumulated up until then, it should be seen as having worn down only a little over 30%.
“If I had been hit, I think Tears of God would have activated immediately.”
It was truly a phenomenal defense.
At the Heavenly Horse’s high praise that carried such meaning, Ast chuckled and tapped his armor.
“If I hadn’t brought this, even I would have been in big trouble. This ignores damage, and it reduces damage that ignores defense as well. Though the defense ignore effect is applied at half the rate.”
“…….”
Since the previous attack ignored 80% of the defense, it means that half of that, or 40%, was applied.
It was truly an incredible piece of armor.
It is truly the epitome of relying on gear.
It was enough to make one feel despondent when thinking that the attack just now was almost a top-tier strike… but the Heavenly Demon instead smirked as if he were enjoying it.
“Right, a sandbag needs to be sturdy. There is still plenty to test, so hold out well.”
After all, there are still plenty of skills left that I haven’t been able to use yet.
but.
I’m sorry, but I’m thinking of stopping taking hits now.
Oh?
“Let’s wrap this up. People must be getting bored.”
What an attention seeker.
“Could you please stop using words like that in that kind of tone?”
“Tsk. You’re such an old fogey.”
Sigh.
Ast shook his head and did not answer any further.
He simply gripped a mace as big as a telephone pole tightly with both hands and exerted enough force in his legs to make his thighs taut.
The moment the muscles swell up, starting from the soles of the feet pushing off the ground, traveling up the calves and thighs to the buttocks.
Bang!
The massive figure sprang up into the air like a spring.
The height alone reaches a whopping 10 meters.
Usually, if you float in the air, you just become an immobile target, but for Ast, it was an exception.
[Activates the special effect of ‘The Hammer of the Destroyer Who Never Backs Down’.]
[You are immune to any status effects and knockbacks while preparing an attack with the effect of ‘Destruction King’s Toughness’.]
[The energy of the ‘Stone of Rebellion’ residing in the armor, along with Celestial Mithril and ‘Heavenly Light Silver Crystal,’ absorbs 70% of the damage.]
[Ignores some mana-based attacks due to the effect of ‘Guardian’s Mithril Gem Earrings’.]
… …
[Use the Legendary Skill ‘Soaring Warrior’s Pride’ to temporarily increase Defense by 100%.]
Cannot be knocked back, cannot be affected by status ailments.
Even a collaboration of overwhelming defense and attack-ignoring effects.
[Player ‘Ast’ activates the Legendary Skill, ‘Blessing of the God of Destruction’.]
[Unleashes a powerful ‘Strike of Destruction’ every 5 hits for 90 seconds, with damage proportional to weapon attack power.]
[The first attack after skill activation applies ‘Destructive Strike’.]
[Activating Transcendence Unique Ability ‘Limit Release’.]
[Remove the limit to temporarily use the weapon upgrade effect to the extreme.]
[‘+20 The Iron Mace of the Destroyer Who Never Backs Down’ is completed.]
[Use destroys weapon and disables ability for 50 minutes.]
[‘+20 The second effect ‘Overcome’ of ‘Unwavering Destroyer’s Mace’ blocks weapon destruction effects. (Remaining uses (2 / 3)]
Ooooooh-!!
Even with the unreal energies gathering on the mace right before their eyes, there was no way to stop him.
This is the ultimate strategy prepared by Ast.
Ast curled the corners of his mouth in a cheerful smile as he looked up at the black woman, who was looking up with an uncharacteristically stiff face.
It’s going to sting.
