I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 173

173. I Saw a Demon, and Hell

Kruud was riding high until the Paralysis Necklace thrown by Shinwha touched him.

He could clearly smell the thick stench of fear and dread coming from this human.

That’s why he pushed more aggressively, and even though the human showed signs of attacking, he met him head-on.

After all, countless others had risked their lives challenging him.

But.

Crack!

The moment the Paralysis Necklace touched him, all thoughts in Kruud’s head flipped upside down.

Paralysis.

It was an irresistible status ailment that could never be overcome with will, fighting spirit, or confidence alone.

Unlike Shinwha, Kruud, who didn’t know the ‘solution’ to the necklace, was completely paralyzed.

That’s when hell began.

Of course, he didn’t just take it.

“Kuh-ugh!”

Just before the paralysis took hold, he barely managed to stab one of his legs into Shinwha’s left thigh.

That was the last of it, though.

‘Reckless? Foolish? In the end, the principles of the world and battles are all about results. If you win, even recklessness becomes a stroke of genius.’

Shinwha meticulously used the approximately 3 seconds he was given, dividing it into fractions of a second.

First, he unleashed attacks in reverse order, from the 7th to the 1st form of Explosion Fist, on Kruud, who had been prepped with True Authority.

Boom! Bang! Boom! Bang!

Each strike sounded like a bomb exploding, and blood fountains erupted from Kruud’s head and chest.

Shinwha’s attention was solely focused on Kruud’s single eye.

His goal was to completely neutralize the sense of sight, which accounted for an absolute portion of the monster’s perception.

Kruud’s attack that pierced his leg was painful, but he didn’t even glance at it. There was nothing that would change by looking.

Bang! Bang! Splurt!

Kruuuooo!

Thanks to the debuff of weakened defense piled on, the outer membrane protecting the single eye finally burst.

Which meant.

Kruud could no longer see anything with his eight single eyes.

In that fleeting moment of one second, Shinwha’s internal magic power and the magic power of his heart were completely exhausted.

It was truly a destructive attack poured out without holding back.

Swoosh! Swish!

Shinwha summoned Wilson and immediately absorbed the magic power stored in him.

Thanks to Wilson, who played the role of an auxiliary battery, Shinwha was able to fully recover his magic power right away.

The next moment.

“Ptooey!”

It felt like a long time since he’d done this.

Shinwha spat venomous saliva into Kruud’s blood-filled wound.

He hadn’t had the opportunity to use his saliva for a while, but that didn’t mean he’d excluded it from his repertoire of attacks.

Kkeueeek!

Shinwha’s saliva, which had penetrated into his bloodstream while Kruud was being relentlessly beaten, was truly the last straw.

The muscles throughout his paralyzed body, which still couldn’t move, began to move erratically.

This was because the ‘toxicity’ of Shinwha’s saliva manifested as an uncontrollable form of sensory disruption for Kruud.

“Haaaah!”

Regardless of Kruud’s reaction, Shinwha continued to unleash Explosion Fist into Kruud’s wide-open wound.

The reason he didn’t transform his right arm into a weapon was simple.

Explosion Fist was the perfect choice to send shockwaves to deeper areas and inflict greater damage.

‘Add the pinnacle of Devastating Strike to the terrifying destructive power that the Instant Death Strike will create.’

Shinwha set his sights.

Of course, the Instant Death Strike was a near suicidal attack, and if it failed, he would be in great danger.

However, since he had decided to exclude risks from the start of the battle, this was no longer a consideration.

“Here I go!”

Shinwha leaped into the air.

Devastating Strike is a fist technique that has almost no effect when struck up close.

However, if the distance is adjusted fantastically, it can become a powerful weapon that can break even the hardest things in the world.

Kruuuuh…….!

Kruud, unable to do anything but groan due to his paralyzed state, made a moaning sound.

There was only about 1 second left.

Since the paralysis wouldn’t be immediately released, including the effects of the venomous saliva, there were 2 to 3 seconds left.

There was too much magic power to recharge to reuse the Paralysis Necklace to induce paralysis.

Repeating the same repertoire was impossible. Shinwha’s magic power also had to be replenished with rest once it was depleted this time.

‘The power to shatter a mountain, Devastating Strike.’

Shinwha’s two eyes, which had reached their peak in the sky, glowed red.

Mukcheol.

A colleague who came alone from the Mugang Continent and taught him martial arts without refusing his earnest request.

Of course, he ‘received’ a hefty price for it!

Anyway, he was a grateful colleague who trusted him and taught him all his martial arts.

‘He said that the 8th, 9th, and 10th forms contain the mysteries that your late father researched throughout his life. Never use them carelessly.’

Mukcheol’s words suddenly came to mind.

So, as he said.

He was finally using Devastating Strike to catch the most important boss monster since his regression.

Flash!

And then, the very moment Shinwha’s Devastating Strike was about to fly towards Kruud’s staggering single eye!

Boom boom boom boom!

A massive explosion erupted near Kruud’s head and chest, where blood was flowing down.

Blood Burn!

It was the blossoming of Choi Jihyuk’s new talent that Shinwha hadn’t anticipated.

Kkeuwaaaaa!

As the explosion occurred using blood as a medium, Kruud let out a painful scream.

The best meal Choi Jihyuk had prepared! Now it was time to lift the spoon and dig in.

“Haaaah!”

A roar!

At the same time, an intangible, colorless, and silent shockwave flew towards Kruud.

* * *

At the same time.

Han Sojun was amazed by Choi Jihyuk’s dazzling growth, who had awakened a new talent and used it immediately.

At the same time, he was admiring Shinwha’s appearance as he reached his peak in the air and poured out a fierce attack on Kruud.

However, that last strike was a mystery.

He had clearly stretched out his fist with all his might and launched something, but there was no change in Kruud.

Kruuruluk!

Was that why?

Kruud, who had recovered his body condition to some extent, bent his legs with all his might and began to prepare to leap.

It seemed like he intended to pounce on Shinwha, who couldn’t maneuver in the air, and devour him or tear him apart in an instant.

‘Ah, Instant Death Strike!’

Han Sojun, who immediately recognized Shinwha’s condition, prepared to link up.

It seemed that he had linked the Devastating Strike, which he had practiced the day before, to the Instant Death Strike.

This was because Shinwha’s body, which was slowly falling, was limp.

It was an excessive state of exhaustion that only appeared when using the Instant Death Strike.

‘Overhealing.’

Han Sojun deployed a large-scale heal on Shinwha, consuming 90% of his remaining magic power without hesitation.

Overhealing.

A healing technique that causes the recipient to feel ‘joy’ because too much healing comes in at once.

At that moment.

A blue light of vitality swirled throughout Shinwha’s body, which was filled with the energy of overhealing.

And.

Faaaaaang……!

A massive explosion occurred.

“Ah…….”

“Wow…….”

“T, this is…….”

Han Sojun, Choi Jihyuk, and Yoonbyeol, who witnessed the scene, opened their mouths almost simultaneously as if they had made a promise.

An unbelievable thing had happened.

Numerous holes appeared in Kruud’s body, which had been regarded as an impregnable, walking, invincible shield.

It wasn’t just a concept of piercing through a part of the body.

It was as if someone inside his body had stabbed him here and there with numerous spears and swords, creating holes.

The shockwave of the Devastating Strike, which exploded deep inside Kruud’s body, turned Kruud’s body into a honeycomb.

Kkeugeuk. Kkeugeuk.

Pshushushu!

Fountains of blood gushed from dozens of wounds that had formed regardless of the area.

The most serious were the single eye and the area where the brain was located on Kruud’s head and chest.

That place had been swept away to the point where only ‘traces’ remained.

In terms of humans, it was as if his head had been blown off, so it was virtually a death sentence.

At that time.

“I’ll finish it!”

Yoonbyeol, who had joined with her baby spiders at the right time, stimulated the monsters to induce self-destruction.

And.

Kihit! Kihit!

Boom! Kaboom! Boom!

Following Yoonbyeol’s lead, the baby spiders, who had repeatedly leaped, did so.

Foolishly, they burrowed into the wounds of their mother, who had given birth to them and raised them, and died exploding.

It was a heroic end.

“Yeah, that’s it. Haaaah.”

Shinwha gasped for breath and lay down on the ground where he had barely landed.

Swish.

Meanwhile.

The orange energy flowing out of Kruud’s dead body enveloped Shinwha and his companions.

“Buff?”

It was unexpected.

This was because buffs are given based on ‘unexpectedness,’ which is difficult to predict even with future knowledge.

In other words, it was like winning the lottery.

Of course, there are buffs that can be acquired with a deliberate strategy, but today’s case was truly unexpected.

It seemed like things were going well.

[Resolution – Transcendental Patience]

[If your health drops below 3% but the target does not die,

Creates an invincible barrier that protects the entire body for about 5 seconds.

It is a one-time buff and disappears after activation.]

[Experience – Meaningful Enlightenment]

[Growth appropriate to each level is achieved. The rank may not change. One-time buff]

‘Good, this buff? It’s not quite the Flower of Rebirth, but it’s definitely close to that! Besides, if it’s an experience buff, the others will probably get a rank up, even if I don’t!’

He hadn’t even checked the main rewards yet, but the buff was already substantial. He really liked it.

It was an invaluable buff for his teammates, whose survival was important, as well as for himself.

Of course, the real meal starts now!

Flash!

Shinwha, who had recovered his health to the point of overflowing thanks to Han Sojun’s overhealing, headed towards Kruud.

And he took out the monster’s heart from near Kruud’s chest, where blood was pouring out.

Tear! Crunch! Crunch!

The sight of chewing on the raw heart as it was, without grilling or boiling it, was truly grotesque.

However, since it was Shinwha’s usual appearance, none of his companions were flustered.

‘If I can get stronger quickly, what can’t I eat?’

How many times had he chewed it to make it easier to swallow rather than savoring the taste, and swallowed it down.

“……!”

A cool and clear feeling suddenly began to be felt near Shinwha’s heart.

[Judgment Grade: A]

A two-step rise was achieved, jumping from B+ to A- and then directly to A rank.

‘Kruud’s Red Heart,’ which had been maximized with spiritual energy after eating a special recipe, was a magic power storage as expected!

A rank.

It was a realm he had reached long after meeting Nicholas in 2025 in his previous life.

But in his regressed life, it only took about two months.

Moreover, it was a rapid growth from the bottom F rank to A rank, going through all the intermediate stages of E, D, C, and B!

‘I feel great, really.’

Only shortcuts!

The time he had spent obsessively pursuing extremely fast paths to grow had not been in vain.

Now, the moment he overcomes S, SS, SSS, and EX and reaches the end!

Money and power.

All the conditions for a retirement that are absolutely not interfered with by anyone are completed.

And.

“Finally…….”

Shinwha’s gaze turned to the loot that was smoldering above Kruud’s head and chest.

The Flower of Transcendence.

To re-stimulate the brain with transcendent talent, allowing for more precise and accurate combat than now!

It was the beginning of a ‘software’ upgrade.