Raided The God’S Warehouse [EN]: Chapter 148

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The first thing I saw were two eyes as black as obsidian.

The ‘owner,’ appearing with a tool on his head, glanced at Se-un for a moment before leaping into the air and settling over the swamp.

Thump!

The heavy body fell onto the swamp, creating ripples.

You’d expect such a large mass to sink, but the swamp firmly supported the owner’s body as if it were rock solid.

Moving freely within the swamp, landing on it—it was as if he controlled the swamp at will.

“Welcome, child of man.”

“…Greetings.”

The owner of the swamp resembled a giant toad.

However, everything was different from the monsters occasionally encountered in the swamp, including his appearance and the aura he exuded.

His wrinkled skin and gentle face made him look like an old man… no, a scholar.

The aura he radiated was far purer and denser than the mana Se-un knew well.

Before his regression, Se-un had felt a similar aura while climbing the Tower.

A sacred beast.

This refers to an auspicious animal that has lived for at least hundreds, if not thousands, of years, gaining pure power and wisdom.

The toad before him was such a being.

Perhaps, he had lived in this swamp for countless years, accumulating mystical power.

Thus, he naturally became a sacred beast and the owner of the swamp.

Just by looking into the owner’s round eyes, Se-un could feel his heart inexplicably at ease.

“I must first express my gratitude. Thanks to you, I was able to protect the swamp.”

“With that much power, couldn’t you have done it without my help?”

Se-un asked.

It wasn’t a joke; he was serious.

The power of a sacred beast is incomparably stronger than that of ordinary monsters. Even those called boss monsters wouldn’t dare to raise their heads before a sacred beast.

That’s what a sacred beast is.

If he was the owner of the swamp, he could easily deal with the Corpse Flower or the demonic beasts.

So why hadn’t he stepped forward?

Se-un soon heard the answer.

“Due to a long-standing contract, I am unable to directly interfere with this swamp. The title of ‘owner’ no longer suits me…”

“No! You are the eternal owner! Forever!”

“Heh heh, thank you.”

The toad wore a forlorn expression.

A long-standing contract, he said.

Se-un inquired further to understand the meaning of his words, but that was all he would say.

“I’m sorry, but I cannot answer that either. This is also due to the contract, so I hope you understand.”

“…I see.”

“However, a bright child like you might understand a little.”

The toad gazed intently at Se-un.

In truth, he wasn’t entirely without a guess.

The Tower’s system.

Within the trials, the only entity capable of imposing a contract on such a sacred beast was something like that.

Of course, judging by his reaction, it seemed he wouldn’t reveal any details.

‘Then the trial is…’

He reread the system message, but the objective only stated to meet the owner of the swamp, with no clear goal specified.

This was Se-un’s first time encountering such a trial, so he couldn’t help but feel perplexed.

As he was pondering, the toad, who had been watching him, spoke first.

“You don’t need to worry about the trial. You’ve already achieved the objective by meeting me, so you can pass at any time according to my will.”

“You know about the trial…?”

“I think this is the limit of the hint I can give.”

A sacred beast mentioning the trial.

Se-un could be certain about his thoughts upon hearing those words.

Due to a contract with the Tower’s system, he was the owner of the swamp but unable to interfere with it.

He felt like he was gradually understanding how the Tower was structured.

“Of course, I could let you pass right away, but I’d like to give you a reward of my own. It’s been a while since I’ve seen an outsider.”

“I already received a reward from the swamp’s guardian clan.”

“So it seems. To perform a purification ritual for an outsider, you must have pleased them quite a bit.”

The toad gazed intently at the tool [likely a ceremonial or magical item].

As expected, the ritual that caused the pollen of purity to bloom was no ordinary ritual.

“However, there’s no need to refuse.”

Glug!

The swamp right in front of Se-un swelled up.

Green mud fell away, and a clear, transparent bubble floated up from within.

Before he could react, the bubble enveloped Se-un’s body.

“The realm of the 5th Circle… and you even have a dantian [energy center in the body]. Judging by this, it seems it was created at the same time as the tutorial started. Impressive.”

The bubble covered even his respiratory system, but he had no trouble breathing.

Rather, the air felt purified through the bubble, and cool, clear air filled his lungs.

Along with it, the air spread throughout his body, bringing a refreshing sensation.

“The way you draw in and accumulate mana is excellent. However, it was created too hastily, so the path is too rough and rugged.”

The bubble that had spread throughout his body began to refine Se-un’s path.

Not only the mana circle around his heart but also the mana roads that spread out from the circle.

The dantian, too, had all the blood points through which internal energy flowed, cleansed and refined.

It felt similar to when the impurities in his body were removed by the pollen of purity.

Because the circle and dantian were made with Mamon’s treasures, he had never thought the path was rough.

But now that the path was being refined, he realized how rough the path he had been using to circulate mana and internal energy had been.

‘With this much power, the name sacred beast is not enough; it should be divine beast.’

The power of the swamp’s owner was that immense.

To be able to manipulate another’s energy at will without even touching them.

What if this power were used in reverse?

It would be possible to make an opponent’s energy flow backward at will, causing them to self-destruct without even laying a hand on them.

Even Se-un, with the powers of the three demon gods, would have fallen without even swinging his sword if he had fought the owner of the swamp.

It was only a question why such a being had made a contract with the Tower’s system and become restricted.

“I’ve refined all the paths. How do you feel?”

“…Refreshed.”

In a very brief moment, he moved the circle and dantian.

The energy within circulated through his body at an astonishing speed and returned to its place.

Incredible speed.

The amount of mana lost while flowing through the body approached zero, and the amount even increased slightly by absorbing mana through breathing.

If he were to use magic or martial arts in this state?

The speed and destructive power would naturally increase, and the number of uses could be increased by a few times, or even more than ten times in some cases.

“But there’s one strange thing.”

“Yes?”

“You seem to be drawing in mana from each attribute and seeking balance, is that correct?”

“That is correct.”

It seemed he was referring to the training method Se-un had learned.

So far, Se-un had learned a total of four training methods from the Magic Towers.

Each representing the Blue Tower, Black Tower, Yellow Tower, and Green Tower, Se-un’s circle was particularly strong in these four attributes.

When using magic, spells of these four attributes also showed greater power.

“But for some reason, the dark energy is showing particularly strong power. If it’s not intentional, I can help you…”

“Really?”

Although he maintained balance with the mysteries of the Blue Tower, Yellow Tower, and Green Tower, Se-un’s circle had one fatal flaw.

That was the two dark circles.

Originally, Se-un had planned to create a balanced circle using the training methods of each Magic Tower.

However, after creating the second circle with the Black Tower’s training method, the sudden acquisition of a large amount of mana through the Authority of Gluttony caused the third circle to be created as a dark circle before he could do anything about it.

He couldn’t change the attribute of an already created circle even with his knowledge, so he had no choice but to leave it as it was.

He was already worried that the balance would be broken if he learned the Red Tower’s training method, which would be even more powerful…

If possible, he wanted to change the attribute of the circle right away.

“Of course. I’ll extract the attribute of the circle, and I’ll hold the other circles in place so they don’t shake. You can inject a new attribute into the circle in the meantime.”

“If that’s possible, I’d like to ask for your help.”

“If you need time to prepare…”

“I’m fine to start right away.”

“Heh heh, I understand. Then let’s start right away. It might be a slightly unfamiliar sensation, but you’ll get used to it soon.”

Glug!

Once again, a clear, transparent bubble rose from the swamp.

However, the bubble that rose this time was incomparably larger and more numerous than the first one.

It didn’t just envelop Se-un’s body but completely surrounded him.

In an instant, it felt like the world had changed. The energy within his body became as peaceful as if it had returned home.

“Now, let’s begin.”

Right after the swamp owner’s voice echoed from within the bubble, Se-un’s circle began to react.

The second and third circles created with the Black Tower’s training method. Among them, the mana of the third circle began to drain, washing away the energy of the Black Tower.

The feeling of mana leaving his body wasn’t pleasant, but Se-un didn’t miss this moment.

– The Treasure Vault of Gluttony has been opened.

[ Purple Mana Circle ]

– An elite training method said to have been taught only to combat mages of outstanding skill in the Purple Tower, one of the Empire’s Seven Great Magic Towers.

Pajik!

Purple electricity spread around Se-un.

Immediately after the dark circle was created, he had already thought about which training method to use if he ever had the chance, with a sense of regret.

The Purple Tower.

This would suit the current circle well enough.

Although it didn’t suit the surrounding environment, he believed that if he reached the realm of the 5th Circle, he could draw in mana regardless of the surrounding environment.

Besides…

“Heh heh, the energy of lightning, how unique. It’s faint, but I’ll help too.”

Pajijik!

With the help of the swamp owner, a faint current was created inside the bubble.

It was naturally absorbed into Se-un, and the energy of lightning settled into the third circle, which was empty as the attribute of the Black Tower drained away.

Although the foundation was already faintly laid, Se-un did not stop and absorbed all the lightning in the bubble.

At that moment, the third circle began to glow with a clear purple light.

– Successfully modified the third mana circle through the training method of the Purple Tower.

– The casting speed of magic becomes faster according to the mysteries of the Purple Tower’s training method.

– Achieved a great feat.

– Acquired 200,000 points as a reward.

By creating the Purple Mana Circle, he was able to balance the circle.

‘Three more to go.’

Now, only the training methods of the Red Tower, White Tower, and Colorless Tower among the Seven Great Magic Towers, excluding the Black Tower, remained.

If he mastered all the training methods of the Seven Great Magic Towers, he could create the ‘Rainbow Circle’ that he had only heard rumors of.

If that happened.

‘I’ll be able to use the Dragon Heart.’

Through the Dragon Heart, he would be able to reach the 9th Circle, called the realm of transcendence.

The 9th Circle, known as a realm not allowed to humans, only reachable by gods and dragons.