I’M A Max-Level Regressor [EN]: Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Crack! Crunch! Snap!

The only sounds echoing where Shin-hwa passed were those of shattering and breaking.

And that was indeed the reality.

Especially smaller monsters like the Enhanced Goblins; most of them became Shin-hwa’s punching bags.

The method of ‘defeating’ them was simple.

He would grab a goblin’s neck with his greatly enhanced arm, lift it high, and then unleash a fist.

In truth, even for an Awakened [a person with superhuman abilities] with immense strength, bursting a goblin’s head was no easy feat.

But what made this possible was Shin-hwa’s masterful control of mana [a supernatural energy or power].

He condensed his internal mana precisely where it was needed, maximizing the efficiency of his destructive power.

Moreover, as his mana capacity increased.

The influence of being taught the Exploding Fist by Mook-cheol in his past life, now able to effortlessly execute up to the third form, was significant.

[Exploding Fist, First Form – Violence (暴)]

[Exploding Fist, Second Form – Pressure (壓)]

[Exploding Fist, Third Form – Frenzy (狂)]

The nature of the Exploding Fist changes as the stages advance.

If the first form felt like shaking the opponent, the second form felt like pressing down heavily.

And the third form was not a single attack, but closer to a flurry of blows poured out in rapid succession.

While overwhelming D-rank monsters in one-on-one combat, Shin-hwa was able to assess his power to some extent.

In fact, the best measure of one’s strength is not a device, but a monster.

‘For now, the judged rank is D-. But if I properly utilize Transformation abilities, it becomes C-. And if I add extreme damage skills like the Exploding Fist combo, the instantaneous firepower can reach B-.’

A cold diagnosis was completed.

In other words, his power was on average one rank higher than what an outsider could judge.

And in some cases, he could exert power that exceeded even two ranks higher.

Usually, Awakened ones exhibit combat abilities that match their rank. They are specialized in that amount of mana.

But Shin-hwa was truly a veteran among veterans, having seen the pinnacle of Enhancement and Transformation abilities in his past life.

Combining a solid foundation with future knowledge, he was capable of an over-power that far exceeded expectations.

“Kiyaaaaak!”

Meanwhile, one fearless Enhanced Goblin, wielding an axe, charged towards Shin-hwa.

“Keuk!”

The goblin, whose throat was grabbed just like its kin who had crossed the River Styx [a reference to Greek mythology, the river that separates the world of the living from the underworld] earlier, struggled in Shin-hwa’s grasp.

“You guys are just appetizers.”

The next moment.

Snap!

“Kkeuheok…….”

The goblin’s neck snapped, and soon it drooped to one side like a stretched taffy.

It was dead.

Confirming that the goblin’s breath had ceased, Shin-hwa used a sharp dagger he took out from his pocket to cut open the goblin’s chest.

Sizzle!

Then, a sparkling dimension stone revealed itself.

“Oh! A low-grade dimension stone? Usually, even Enhanced Goblins don’t drop dimension stones often. What a windfall?”

A smile spread across Shin-hwa’s face.

Low-grade dimension stones are usually traded for 1 million won [approximately $750 USD] at the Korea Awakened Exchange, abbreviated as KSX.

Even after deducting 10% for taxes, 900,000 won remains, enough to cover a day’s wages.

This is the reality of the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer, deeply rooted in the world of Awakened ones.

An F-rank Awakened one can’t even catch a D-rank monster and barely makes a daily wage.

But a D-rank Awakened one easily takes down this guy and can divide the spoils of war into N shares.

Sometimes, when an Awakened one in the party feels generous and throws even a lowest-grade dimension stone.

It’s all for this reason that the porters fawn over them as if they would give up their souls.

They lick their boots with the hope that some more crumbs will fall later.

“I hope exactly three come out, no more, no less. As top-grade dimension stones.”

Shin-hwa smacked his lips.

Top-grade dimension stones are priced at a whopping 1 billion won each.

The ‘Rampaging Magus’ he is looking for is a primordial monster that has never encountered an Awakened one before.

In other words, it contains the most dimensional energy and holds dimension stones with high purity and grade within its body.

Usually, one dimension stone is dropped per monster, but sometimes they have two or three.

“…….”

Meanwhile, Shin-hwa looked back at the path he had walked so far.

Certainly, because he had walked a maze-like path, he was slightly confused about the way back.

Of course, once he killed the Magus, the exit dimension gate would open, so it wouldn’t matter.

“Because the path is so complicated and there isn’t anyone with the eye to spot the crack, they must have wandered and wandered.”

Unlike Shin-hwa, who knew all the paths, the agents dispatched from the KSA [Korea Superhuman Association] in his past life unfortunately failed to find the Magus.

They had to find the crack that was divided into a double dungeon in the form of the K-848 dungeon, but they never found it.

In the end, that became the root cause, and in 2030, they faced the Rampaging Magus as a great disaster.

It was one of the great tragedies in which hundreds of top-tier Awakened ones died.

Shin-hwa headed deeper into the dungeon.

It had been a long time since he had deviated from the official route, and he continued to enter along increasingly narrow side paths.

Therefore, from a certain point on, he could no longer see properly ahead.

‘Vision Conversion.’

Shin-hwa immediately concentrated 100% of his eye’s capabilities in the form of night vision.

There was no need to prepare for illusions or distortions.

It was clear.

The world seen with infrared was quite different from the world seen with visible light.

How long had he walked like that?

Ten paths appeared.

It was that crossroads that had greatly troubled the KSA agents who were exploring the dungeon.

The problem is that this crossroads splits into ten more paths inside, so the actual choices amount to 100.

‘Eight, and two.’

But there was nothing that would be a problem for Shin-hwa, who still had his memories intact.

This was information revealed by the agents who investigated the ruins after the Magus’s manifestation in his past life.

According to the known answer.

Shin-hwa leisurely whistled and quickly disappeared into the deeper parts of the dungeon.

* * *

One hour later.

“Hoo! Even though I know the definite answer, finding the gap is still difficult. No wonder first-timers can’t find it even if they want to!”

I was dusting off my entire dusty coat and adapting to the feeling of the new space.

It was the inner double dungeon that I had entered by squeezing through a unique space called the ‘Deformed Gap.’

The Magus is in a space that can only be reached through a complicated process.

That’s why it couldn’t be found even after waiting for a long time, a full ten years, while crouching.

The Magus grows steadily while receiving dimensional energy within the double dungeon in this state.

Ten years later, it becomes a huge disaster.

From my point of view, I actually came to make money, but somehow I ended up preparing for a future disaster as well. I didn’t particularly intend to do that.

“It seems like I’ve got the right address.”

The special space where the Magus seemed to be was visible in front.

It was a huge stadium-shaped space surrounded by a blue barrier.

It seems close at first glance, but it’s a space that requires at least 5km of running even on a straight course.

The air quality is very bad.

The refreshingness of oxygen that can be felt on Earth has disappeared, and a pungent smell wafts around.

If an Awakened one with ordinary lungs came, it would not be strange to show symptoms of respiratory distress and poisoning immediately.

But the modified ‘Mana Lungs’ appropriately filtered and accepted the air. This is the power of modification.

There was a slight tingling sensation in the nose and esophagus, which had not yet been modified, but there was no toxicity.

“……Huh?”

As I was walking towards the barrier, I could see a skeleton lying next to a withered old tree.

It looked like the skeleton of a deceased person whose time had passed a long time ago.

There was no face shape or identification card that could identify who it was.

However, one ring worn on the finger particularly caught my eye.

I carefully took out the ring and examined the information.

[Invisible Ring]

[Judgement Rank: C]

[This is an artifact with short-term, brief invisibility abilities.

The wearer’s appearance cannot be detected by ordinary vision. However, it cannot hide the presence and body temperature.]

“It would be good for sneaking into places with lax security. But it would be immediately exposed if there were infrared CCTVs [closed-circuit television].”

I silently took the ring.

Possession is nine-tenths of the law.

There is no point in thinking about finding the owner. Isn’t the original owner already dead?

A C-rank artifact usually trades for 1 billion won.

The ability to become invisible is an ability that many would drool over, so the sales value was sufficient.

However, the sale is on hold.

I was thinking of wearing it for now, as I don’t know when I might need the invisibility ability.

Of course, invisibility only occurs when activated. Otherwise, it’s just a ring in normal times.

There are many uses.

It seemed like it would be fun to beat up Park Do-won again later in an invisible place.

But right then.

“Kuwoooo! Kuwoooo!”

A guy crouching about 500m ahead revealed his huge body with all his might.

At first glance, it looked exactly like an Asiatic black bear.

‘It seems like the gatekeeper that the Magus brought with him, Mad Bear?’

Mad Bear.

A monster with a special heart that grants the ability to maximize muscle strength more than three times the existing strength for a limited time when its heart is consumed.

“I was only thinking about the Magus, but you were here too? Oh, Lee Ha-sung took your heart in my past life, right? Nicholas was going to get it for me, but… I missed it.”

Lee Ha-sung.

The man who is currently the head of the Korea Awakened Association.

He will be an SSS-rank Awakened one at this point, and he is also thirty-nine, approaching forty.

“You must have enjoyed it to the fullest in your past life, so let’s use it in this life, Mr. Lee Ha-sung?”

I was heading towards Mad Bear, muttering a joke to myself that he wouldn’t even recognize.

Obtaining the enhancement ability that he possesses is like putting wings on a running horse.

There was no reason to kick away a bag of good fortune. I had to subdue him first to meet the Magus anyway.

“Hoo.”

I narrowed the distance to some extent, then stopped in place and took a deep breath.

Mad Bear is a monster that becomes more and more frenzied as time passes, and its combat ability increases exponentially.

In other words, the best thing to do is to cut off his breath at the same time as the start of the battle. A prolonged battle is unconditionally disadvantageous to me.

“Kyaak……!”

It’s a little dirty, but I gathered as much phlegm as possible in my mouth.

And when I changed its properties with mana, the ordinary phlegm instantly turned into poisonous phlegm.

Then.

I began to gather all the mana in my right hand and compress it to a high intensity.

It was a compression that gathered even the soul, without leaving even 1% of mana.

“Kuoooo!”

Mad Bear, who had met my gaze, began to swing his huge arms and run towards me.

The sight of a giant bear, reaching 4m in height, running fiercely was threatening enough to make my liver cold.

“Come on. Let’s finish this quickly.”

I waited a little longer.

And the moment Mad Bear rushed up to the point I was aiming for!