The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 100

Part 434

Part 100.

It wasn’t just about blocking the sunlight to keep the light out.

The sun had literally disappeared.

Or rather, it felt like it had disappeared.

[The owner of this place, Raon, is changing the theme from ‘Lush Forest’ to ‘Shadow Forest’.]

A massive shadow, like a curtain, descended, enveloping the entire forest.

It was a bizarre feeling.

Clearly, the entire forest was submerged in darkness, yet everything ahead was clearly visible.

-W, what is this!?

-Rizari!

-……I don’t know what it is, but it’s clear we can’t let it continue like this.

“I agree.”

Following Charlie, who took a stance and leaped, Ast also leaped, wielding a mace enhanced with ‘Weapon Upgrade’.

Endlessly deepening purple and an absurdly massive energy.

[Would you like to activate the Transcendent Unique Ability ‘Limit Release’?]

It was the effect of Limit Release, Ast’s signature move, which had even damaged a god during an incomplete descent.

“How about we burn this too?”

Ast, floating in the air with a smirk, gripping the mace with both hands, was like a giant himself.

Perhaps it was because of his immense presence.

Raon, who had been full of confidence, retreated without bothering to confront him.

Or rather, there was no reason to.

“Sorry, but I have no intention of dealing with something that crude.”

Snap.

Raon lightly flicked his fingers, and poof! A spark ignited, and Ast, who had been exuding an absurd presence, disappeared like a mirage.

It wasn’t just Ast.

All the Guardians, including Ast, had vanished, leaving only Raon and Dohyun.

No, they hadn’t disappeared.

“What the, why am I here? I was just about to unleash a blow.”

-Damn it, I can’t move! Master!

-Rizariza!

-Kuh…… Do I have to just stand by and watch again!

They were merely moved to the nearby trees, looking down at the two.

“Did you forget? Owner of the Armory. This is my abode. Everything on this stage is determined by my will. Even… choosing the actors to appear on the stage.”

“……Is this some kind of forced one-on-one duel?”

“You could say it’s similar.”

“Damn it, so I have to sit here twiddling my thumbs again? I’m just an observer all day long. You acted like we were going to have a real fight, but you’re resorting to such petty tactics?”

“There’s no need to create unnecessary variables. Just like you said, Owner of the Armory.”

“Ugh, those villainous bastards are always like that.”

“So… what do you think? Do you still think you have the advantage, Kaiser?”

Anyone would be confident in their own territory.

Especially if they could control their territory to their advantage, it was natural to show such confidence.

But it was his delusion that this stage would only be advantageous to him.

“It seems like a one-on-one duel is only possible in the Shadow Forest… I quite like the darkness too, you know.”

“……?”

Even in the face of a sudden situation, Dohyun wore a faint smile instead of bewilderment.

[The effect of the title ‘Destroyer of Darkness’ is activated.]

[All stats increase by 10%.]

In this darkness, which would feel ominous to any human, Dohyun only grew stronger.

This wasn’t the end.

[A barrier (帳幕) [Japanese: tobari, a curtain or screen] has been activated.]

[A dark barrier is created that only the caster and those permitted by the caster can enter.]

[Permitted targets]

-Raon

-Ast

-Jihad Black

-Charlie de Lavion

-Eliza

Unlike the fake darkness where the forest’s form was still visible, this was a pitch-black darkness where nothing could be seen except for those who were permitted.

“……What is this?”

Raon, for once, let out a bewildered voice as his stage changed into something eerie.

But only for a moment.

-My lord!

-Rizariza!

-Heeik, it’s too dark. I won’t be able to find you like this. I’m here. Be careful where you step, everyone.

Raon, confirming that his companions were still stuck on the trees, chuckled.

“I don’t know what tricks you’re playing, but nothing will change. Kai…”

“Bullshit.”

“……What?”

“What do you mean nothing will change?”

The light in Dohyun’s eyes, shining fiercely, wasn’t directed at Raon.

It was directed at a line of messages floating between him and himself.

[Condition met.]

[The second option of the Black Knight’s Dark Armor can be used inside the barrier (帳幕) [Japanese: tobari, a curtain or screen].]

‘It’s been a while since I’ve used this.’

Dohyun smirked and gripped Cheonbyeon tightly.

“Since it’s come to this, let’s have a proper fight.”

Black Nightmare, Raon.

Finally, it was the moment to clash head-on with him.

* * *

A pitch-black stage.

Clang- clang!

Small sparks flew in the darkness, where nothing could be seen, like a canvas dropped in black paint.

[Reverse Heaven Style First Form, Beginning (始) [Chinese: Shǐ, meaning start/beginning] is activated.]

[Bairan Swordsmanship Second Form, ‘Rain of Blades’ (雨비를 施베풀) [Korean: U-bi-reul Be-pool, meaning to unleash rain] is activated.]

Whirring-!

It was the sparks created by the collision of the pure white blade and the black flames.

The ceaseless sounds of collision and the large and small sparks that adorned the darkness like splattered paint showed how fierce the battle was.

And those who were looking down at this spectacle from above.

“……It’s more intense than I thought?”

-L, Lord, can Master win?

“Sigh, I don’t know either. Kaiser is fighting well, but… he’s at too much of a disadvantage in terms of compatibility. Raon, that guy’s traits are too broken.”

Their expressions weren’t good.

-Rizariza…….

-No. Master will do it. He always has.

-Rizariza!

Charlie also said that, but he couldn’t take his eyes off the battle, looking anxious.

It couldn’t be helped.

[Authority of Darkness – Two Pairs of Wings is activated.]

[Darkness-related abilities are greatly increased, and physical abilities are enhanced while the black wings are spread.]

[The instantaneous acceleration of a straight-line trajectory is explosively amplified, and you can stay in the air for a certain amount of time.]

[The ability is amplified by the title ‘Destroyer of Darkness’.]

[All effects are increased by 20%.]

Clang! Clang!

At first glance, it seemed like a fierce battle, but those who were looking down from above could feel it.

Dohyun wasn’t able to mount a proper counterattack at all.

He was barely managing to cope with it after spreading his wings.

Until then, he had shown many dangerous moments.

The reason Dohyun was being pushed back so much was one thing.

[The ‘Black Flame that Burns Everything’ burns everything it touches.]

[The white lion of ‘Song of the True White Lion’ melts and disappears.]

Krrr…….

‘……That’s more tricky than I thought.’

His black flame.

The White Lion, the Blizzard, and various other attacks.

[Sword Aura melts and disappears in the ‘Black Flame that Burns Everything’.]

Even Sword Aura was swallowed the moment it touched that flame.

‘It burns everything it touches, what kind of broken ability is that?’

The most broken thing was that it was presumed to be a ‘trait.’

He was using such a fraudulent flame without any cooldown, so projectile skills couldn’t even inflict a speck of damage on him.

‘That’s the signature trait he got for achieving top-tier results in the Tower.’

It wasn’t for nothing that he was infamous as the Black Nightmare.

It was one of the worst abilities he had ever seen.

Of course, that flame didn’t really burn everything.

‘From what I’ve seen so far, it can’t burn the sword or my body itself.’

Perhaps it didn’t have a proper influence on things with a material form.

Well, that was only natural.

Almost all skills take the form of projectiles.

It was already absurd to burn projectiles in an instant, but if it burned even the sword, there would be no destruction of balance like that.

‘It’s a shame Ahjussi [Korean: term for a middle-aged man] dropped out.’

Smash wouldn’t work at all, but Smash was just an ability for Ahjussi to compensate for his slowness.

Ahjussi’s true strength lies in his crude, powerful blow.

‘If that flame can’t burn material things, then Ahjussi is the true hard counter.’

If he was determined to run away, it could end up like the fight with the Thunder Emperor, but if he could tie him down well, he might be able to end it in one blow.

But that was already gone.

Clang! Clang!

For now, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and clash swords with him.

Sizzle-

Tap.

But even this wasn’t smooth.

If he kept the sword in contact for too long, he could hear the sound of the blade melting.

The weapon wouldn’t be destroyed, but perhaps its durability would be completely exhausted, and it wouldn’t be able to exert its effect.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

As Dohyun retreated, Raon roughly reached out his hand.

Black flames flickered from his arm for a moment.

Dohyun mechanically shifted his steps to the side and tried to deflect it with his sword, but he quickly tilted his head back to avoid it.

‘Damn it…….’

The principle of parrying is to offset the pattern the moment it is activated.

That’s why projectile patterns can also be covered by predicting them, but the flame was judged to be constantly activated the moment it was wrapped around the body.

In other words, even if the attack was parried, he wouldn’t have been able to deflect the flame.

‘If I had parried, the flame would have spread to my body in an instant.’

It would have been a fatal wound.

If he was hit by that flame, it would deal damage while ignoring fixed damage and recovery power.

“Is that the parrying you’re so proud of? Too bad. It doesn’t work on me. Is that unique gauntlet also on cooldown now?”

At least Vergina’s Magic Gauntlet worked, but the gauntlet had a long cooldown.

He had already used it once, so he wouldn’t be able to deflect it for the time being.

Without realizing it, he glanced up at the trees, and Raon let out a sly voice mixed with laughter.

“It would have been easy if the Owner of the Armory was here. Is that what you’re thinking?”

“…….”

“That’s not wrong. The Owner of the Armory’s blow is threatening. No one, not even me, would avoid that guy’s crude mace. But…….”

Raon, flashing red eyes and smirking, raised his left hand high.

Then, flames bloomed from his fingertips.

Whoosh,

Not black flames, but blue flames.

[Trait ‘Ruler of Fire’ is activated.]

[All effects related to manipulating fire are greatly increased, and fire can be freely spread in the desired direction.]

[Unique ability ‘Hellfire’ is activated.]

[Deals with the blue flames that exist in hell. The ‘Hellfire’ attribute is added to all fire-related effects.]

[Hellfire is a fire that chases and burns sinners to the end. It chases the designated target to the end and inflicts damage that ignores 40% of defense.]

“Forget the idea that I only deal with black flames. Before I was called the Black Nightmare, my alias was the Ruler of Fire. As long as there is Hellfire, your death will not change.”

The blue flames that bloomed around Raon as he said that were very large and ferocious, as if they would swallow the entire forest at any moment.

Black flames if he got close, and a wide range of Hellfire if he fell back.

‘It’s the worst combination.’

Even that Hellfire chases after him.

His stats are inferior, his compatibility is unfavorable… It was an infinitely unfavorable fight, but Dohyun gripped Cheonbyeon.

“I know that nothing will work… Are you trying to make a last-ditch effort? Disappointing. I expected so much because the rumors were so widespread, but you’re worse than Laihas, that guy.”

“Laihas… Did you meet that person?”

“Yes, he was full of resentment, wondering what he was so dissatisfied with. The strongest magic spearman or something… He was a guy who couldn’t even penetrate my flames. Were you close to him? Good. You’ll soon be in the same position as him.”

It seemed that Raon was the villain Laihas was chasing.

Dohyun, who briefly recalled his meeting with him, gripped Cheonbyeon with cold, sunken eyes.

His eyes were not those of a rat dreaming of a last-ditch effort before death.

“Seeing that Hellfire has come out, I guess everything that could come out has come out now?”

“Yes, more than enough for you.”

“I see…….”

Rather, it was the opposite.

It was the eyes of a hunter who had endured and waited until the very end.

“Yeah, I’ve roughly figured it out now. I can use this.”

“……Are you bluffing until the very end?”

“Whether it’s a bluff or not, you can see for yourself. It seems like the duration will be shorter, so let’s end it quickly.”

It was then that a message appeared above Dohyun’s head, who had taken a stance like a sharply honed sword.

Ding-

[The Holy King’s Mark is used.]

[All cooldowns are reduced by 65%.]

…….

[Thunder Dragon Descent is used.]

[Darkness Coating is used on Thunder Dragon Descent.]

[Accessing the power of the Black Dragon through an abnormal route.]

[The additional 부여 [Korean: bu-yeo, meaning grant/bestow] granting ability ‘Thunder Dragon (雷龍) [Japanese: Rai-ryu, meaning Thunder Dragon]’ of Thunder Dragon Descent reacts to abnormal power.]

A cheerful notification rang,

—–!

Soon, a huge black Thunder Dragon plunged down, and black sparks flew around Dohyun.