The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 224

224.

And at that moment, in front of the monument at Hayden Castle.

“What are you all doing!? Hurry and get the articles out!”

“The rumors are spreading like wildfire in the community! Now! Hurry up and come!”

“Wow, look at all the people gathered. It looks like over 100.”

“Hundreds are flocking here, what’s the big deal about 100? This is insane.”

The *God of Creation Online* community was buzzing with excitement over an unprecedented third early acceptance of a user.

It was, after all, a first-ever achievement.

Not only users but even NPCs were seeing an achievement for the first time since the Sword Emperor, so it was impossible for rumors not to spread.

And the person who achieved this feat was none other than Kaiser.

“What the heck is Kaiser? Is there any day he doesn’t cause an incident?”

“The first hidden raid boss kidnapping in Fratel, single-handedly crippling the Hero Guild, and now the first third early acceptance in the Great Lion King’s Trial? Is he even human?”

“Damn it, I can’t get a day off these days because of Kaiser.”

“Kaiser or whatever, please just stay quiet. I want to go on a date.”

“Oh, so you have a girlfriend? This guy’s hopeless. Kaiser, please keep up the good work! I’ll sacrifice my freedom for you!”

“Hey!”

Since Kaiser was the hottest topic right now, all sorts of media outlets, reporters, and guild officials were bound to be busy.

And that’s not all.

“Hello, everyone! This is Hayden Castle, where Kaiser entered to take the Lion King’s Trial. I’ve heard some truly shocking news, so I rushed here…….”

“Yes, Mung-kkungies! Your Mung Hyorin is here~ I have amazing news today! It’s about Kaiser…….”

Now, any broadcast related to Kaiser saw an explosive increase in viewership, so streamers were also flocking to the scene.

In that narrow space in front of the monument, countless people were bustling about.

Many were making excited guesses about this unprecedented situation.

“They said it’s been about 40 minutes, right? At this rate, he might clear it in 2 hours.”

“Come on, even if the Limit Test is randomly generated to suit the person, they say it’s unbelievably difficult from stage 9 onwards. Can he really clear it in 2 hours?”

“Well, the Sword Emperor cleared it in 2 hours, right? Kaiser is keeping up with that record, so it might be possible?”

“……Is that so? If he does, it’ll be legendary.”

“Whatever happens, I hope he comes out soon. If I can get even a word from him in an interview, today will be a success.”

“Ah! I want Kaiser’s autograph!”

“Damn Kaiser! My overtime!!”

Among the people talking about breaking records and being legendary, there were even those who sincerely hoped they wouldn’t have to work overtime.

Everyone was excitedly chattering away when suddenly-

Flash-

“Eek!?”

“Wh, what!?”

The people standing at the front were startled by the sudden burst of brilliant light and stumbled backward.

In the silence that followed.

The monument looked different from before.

Instead of silver, a brilliant golden light was enveloping the monument.

“Crazy…… Fourth early acceptance……?”

“No, should we even call this early acceptance? At this point, it’s not just early acceptance, it’s like he cleared the entire trial!”

“What the heck is going on…… Huh?”

“What!?”

But that wasn’t the end of it.

The golden light that had been illuminating the surroundings suddenly darkened, and then abruptly began to emit a pitch-black aura.

It happened so quickly that those who arrived late didn’t even see the golden light.

“Huh? What’s wrong? Why is the monument that color?”

“……Black?”

“Was there ever a color like that?”

“They said it was golden, right? Where did the gold go, and why is it black?”

“No, more than that, isn’t the color after gold supposed to be red? I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a color like that…….”

A dark, ominous black light.

It was the first time such a light had been seen since the Great Lion King’s Trial began.

At that moment, reporters, scouts, industry insiders, streamers, and even casual onlookers were all stunned.

“……Is this good? Or bad?”

“Is something going wrong? How can this be happening?”

“And of all colors, it had to be an ominous black.”

“Damn it, why isn’t the live stream on? I’m dying of curiosity, seriously.”

Everyone’s minds were filled with questions at the sight of the monument’s unprecedented appearance.

“……Could it be a new Hidden Piece?”

Someone muttered.

Strangely, the voice was clearly audible, and everyone paused, startled.

“……Huh?”

“Hidden Piece……?”

“Huh?”

But that was only for a moment.

They were quick to grasp the situation, and even quicker to act.

“Crazy, it’s a new Hidden Piece!”

“Damn it, move quickly!! You won’t be going home if you’re late!!”

“Wow, everyone!!!! Our Kaiser is causing trouble again!!!!”

It was the moment when an unprecedented anomaly occurred in the Great Lion King’s Trial.

* * *

Meanwhile, at that moment…….

[Hidden Stage, the Forgotten King, is opening.]

[Warning! Overwhelming difference in power. You may lose your life.]

‘What’s going on?’

Do Hyun, unaware of the situation outside, was simply bewildered.

What was this hidden condition, and what was this Hidden Stage?

No, he knew about the existence of Hidden Stages.

‘……That’s originally opened when you get perfect scores on all the trials, right?’

But the method wasn’t like this.

He had never heard of deleting all the trials, let alone getting perfect scores on all of them.

More than anything, the content of the Hidden Stage was too different.

Kugugugu-

-Wow, what’s that? Look at the size.

-Lizardon…… [Likely a reference to a large, imposing creature, possibly from another franchise].

-It’s like looking at a giant’s gate.

The Hidden Stage that the Sword Emperor was known to have cleared was called the King’s Trial.

It was a stage where a king, presumed to be the Lion King, would give trials.

That was no exception for high-rankers like the Apostle of Annihilation, the Empress, or the Sword Saint.

Although the content of the trials varied slightly from person to person, none of their accounts mentioned seeing such a massive gate.

At this point, Do Hyun couldn’t help but realize, even if he was an idiot.

‘A new Hidden Stage…….’

That he had opened a different route, another Hidden Stage, from them.

The Hidden Stage for those who received perfect scores on all trials, and

The Hidden Stage for those who deleted all trials.

‘……The latter is better, right?’

Both were Hidden Pieces, and it was ambiguous since there was nothing to compare it to.

Since the existing Hidden Stage had suddenly disappeared, it had to be better.

‘Still, it’s the first time, so wouldn’t it be better?’

He was trying to think positively, feeling uneasy, when suddenly-

Ding-

[The Eye of Truth is activated.]

The Eye of Truth was activated out of nowhere.

Instinctively, Do Hyun stared at the massive gate that had just appeared, his eyes widening.

‘Red!’

Red light was leaking from beyond the gate.

A very small but distinct light.

‘Could it be a fragment of destiny? Or another Hidden Piece?’

Perhaps it was a quest item like during the Brion incident.

Whatever it was, it was definitely a Hidden Piece since it hadn’t existed before and had appeared with the emergence of that massive gate.

He wanted to open the gate and go inside right away, but he couldn’t.

Saaa-

-……I sense an ominous energy, Master.

-Ugh, the energy is strange. It’s creepy.

-Lizard……!!

An eerie, ominous energy was emanating from that place.

An energy that would instinctively make any living being frown.

It was the energy of the dead.

Even considering it was virtual reality, the realism was so intense that he got goosebumps.

[Thousand Transformations (千變) is transformed into ‘The Scythe of a Terrible Nightmare’.]

Do Hyun immediately gripped Thousand Transformations.

‘Let’s focus.’

He was curious about the identity of that red light, but he had to focus now.

The massive gate was slowly opening.

The more it opened, the stronger the ominous energy became, and soon Charlie and Jihad were also ready for battle.

-We will help you, Master.

-My children, awaken.

Seeing Jihad summoning the undead and Charlie holding his sword, Do Hyun also prepared to activate his skills at any moment.

It seemed best to unleash their full power from the start.

……Tadak, tak.

Even the summoned Legion Commander Agony quickly assessed the situation, sensing the ominous energy, and commanded the legion to take positions without any special orders.

He was indeed worthy of being the king of a race.

‘Good, let’s go all out from the start.’

The greater the difference in power, the more effective a preemptive strike is.

He was planning to ambush whatever that energy was as soon as it appeared, but that plan was completely shattered from the start.

Kkiiik-

[The Forgotten King, ‘The Rotted Corpse of ?? King,’ reveals itself.]

The moment the silhouette of a knight appeared as the gate opened.

[You have encountered an Eternal Knight.]

[This is an Eternal Knight who uses the body of a knight who has reached the realm of supremacy.]

[Due to its high rank, it can use some of its power from when it was alive, even though it is only at the entry level.]

[Warning! You may lose your life.]

A barrage of messages greeted Do Hyun.

“Crazy…….”

He couldn’t help but curse.

Speak of the devil, he had been talking about Eternal Knights, and one really appeared.

But the reason Do Hyun was so surprised wasn’t just because an Eternal Knight had appeared.

‘It can use its power from when it was alive? How is that even entry-level!’

Even though it was only some of its power, that alone meant it wasn’t entry-level.

This was a realm that only Eternal Knights of at least mid-tier could reach.

Not low-tier, but mid-tier.

There was a difference of two whole ranks from entry-level, so the balance was completely broken.

Paat-

At the same time, the shapes of a shield and a sword floated above the heads of the monster and Do Hyun.

‘……What’s this?’

Do Hyun knew the effect well.

It was the effect of the skill he had used during the battle with Verze.

[The Forgotten King, ‘The Rotted Corpse of ?? King,’ uses the Protection of the Guardian.]

[You have been designated as the target.]

[Only you can inflict damage on the target.]

[While engaged in battle with you, the opponent’s defense, magic resistance, and health are greatly increased, and skill cooldowns are reduced by 20%.]

[The opponent is immune to knockback while under the Protection of the Guardian.]

The Protection of the Guardian.

It had been activated on Do Hyun.

-Oh my god…….

-What the heck, isn’t this cheating!

-Lizard, Lizard!

Tta, ttadak-

With this, Agony and the undead legion, Charlie, and Eliza could not provide any assistance.

Only a bloody battle between Do Hyun and that monster was possible.

“This is driving me crazy.”

Do Hyun sighed at the unexpected forced duel.

He had wondered why things were going so smoothly, but it turned out this big pile of crap was waiting for him.

Jeobeok, jeobeok.

‘Yeah, well, what else is new? I didn’t expect anything anyway.’

Do Hyun clicked his tongue, aiming Thousand Transformations at the red undead knight who was approaching with an unpleasant stench.

[The Protection of the Guardian is activated.]

[Designating the Forgotten King, the Rotted Corpse of ?? King, as the target.]

[Summoning of the Thunder Dragon (雷龍降臨) is used.]

—-!

At the same time, the shapes of a shield and a sword floated above the heads of the two people.

And above them, the shape of a blue thunder dragon fell.

Kwaaang-!

Pajik- Pajijik-

“Talk about tough.”

Do Hyun smirked, seeing the red eyes staring at him even after being directly hit by the thunder dragon without flinching.

In a duel, you have to meet a duel head-on.

This wasn’t the end.

[Thousand Transformations (千變) is transformed into ‘The Azure Sword of Radiant Taxinel’.]

[Striking is used.]

[Darkness Coating is used on Thousand Transformations (千變).]

[Ice Stream (氷氣流) is used.]

At the end of all the buffs, Do Hyun used the final buff.

[Fierce Strike (猛擊斬) is used.]

[The energy of Fierce Strike (猛擊) gathers on the sword.]

Do Hyun smirked, looking at the faint energy gathered on the sword, and then spat out.

“Let’s do this.”

As if understanding those words, the monster moved, and at the same time, Do Hyun reached out his sword forward.

Kwaang!

A heavy roar echoed from the clash.

It wouldn’t have been strange if either of them had been knocked back, but neither of them was pushed back, and the sword fight continued.

[You are not knocked back due to the effect of the Protection of the Guardian.]

It was because neither of them could be knocked back due to the Protection of the Guardian.

A single inch of retreat.

The moment a duel began that would only end when one of them died.