Chapter 113

Editor: Ytho, LaidBackGuy

It crashed through the Doppelganger’s Defense Aura like it was nothing . Lightning Annihilation required a combination of strength and power . The Lightning Annihilation of his subconscious was one of the most burdensome techniques to perform using Lee Sungmin’s real body . He had pierced through his Poisonous Vein, breaking through to the next level . His body had become incomparably powerful as compared to before, but it was still burdensome to perform all of the Nine Heavenly Spear techniques .

But not now . His body, now additionally supported by Heoju’s powers, was enough to reach the level of martial arts that he had in the world of his subconscious .

The Doppelganger’s body was greatly pushed back . It did not vomit blood or groan in pain . The monster moved forward to counterattack despite suffering a blow that would have been fatal had it been a human . It was a desperate attempt of an attack, with all thoughts of safety abandoned .

‘My arms…!’

He could feel his muscles rupture from the Lightning Attack just now . His weak hand tried to release the spear, but Lee Sungmin tightened his hold on it while biting his lip . While recovering the outstretched spear, he attacked and moved back . The Doppelganger, with a gaping hole on its chest, spread out its arms .

Kwakwakwa!

A black force swirled around the Doppelganger, making it look more calamitous than the person . The turbulent torrent of power swept through the surroundings . Lee Sungmin resisted using his inner strength and Heoju’s power .

[Amazing . That bitch… It isn’t even the real person and can still wield that much power? Is she really human?]

Heoju smiled and said . Lee Sungmin could feel Heoju’s powers coursing through his veins . His heart beat like crazy, and he gasped for air . He felt his stiff arms healing and strength returning to his legs .

‘Can I win?’

[It depends on what you do . I’m just lending you my power . or… Are you willing to hand over your body?]

Asked Heoju .

[If you pass your body over to me, I can even turn a ha’penny into a meatball . I can win even if the original person herself comes . What will you choose?]

He kept asking . It seemed like he was tempting him, but also it seemed like he was testing him at the same time . Lee Sungmin couldn’t tell what Heoju was trying to achieve from his question .

But the answer had been fixed from the beginning .

‘I have to do it . ’

[Hahaha! You’re going to do it relying solely on your power? In the end, what use is there for that pointless pride?]

‘That’s right . It’s because of my pride . My body is too weak . I could give it to you, but there is something I want to do . I can’t give you my body yet . ’

Lee Sungmin thought while gritting his teeth . The Doppelganger’s strength and Wijihoyeon’s strength would be different . However, he was sure of one thing . The 2100 years he spent practicing in his subconscious were not meaningless . It was vague, but he could see a way to fight the transcendental strength that Wijihoyeon had reached .

He knew because he had already experienced it . He would not have to struggle in this way if he could reach the level of martial arts that he had reached in his subconscious . Lee Sungmin was sure about that . At the same time, he felt a sense of anticipation and accomplishment .

The 2100 years were not meaningless .

[What a peculiar… fellow . ]

Heoju was sympathetic to Lee Sungmin’s feelings . Heoju had no body, but was tied to a huge mass of power . It was now that those powers entered Lee Sungmin’s body from the armor . Heoju, who was partially assimilated to Lee Sungmin, had not possessed Lee Sungmin’s body, but even then, he could tell what Lee Sungmin was feeling with no need for words .

[Fine . I’ll lend you some more . ]

Heoju could not understand the feeling of anticipation that Lee Sungmin felt . However, he knew that Lee Sungmin saying he had to do it was not without reason .

[Will you be able to hold out?]

The remark sounded quite vague because Heoju couldn’t be sure of it . At the same time, Lee Sungmin’s body was filled with an unparalleled huge force . He felt like his Dantian was being smashed . The power surging into his Dantian, flowed out into the meridians, forcing them to expand . He felt a lot of pain on the left side of his chest . The Black Heart was beating like crazy as it took in all of the energy .

He wanted to scream . It was his first time feeling such terrible pain . However, he couldn’t submit to the pain . Torrents of inner force, driven by the Doppelganger, swept through Lee Sungmin . He looked for his spear amidst the dizzying pain . The spear was already in his hands .

Nine Dragon Spirits .

A storm of nine dragons and inner force struck the Doppelganger . His Dantian was already filled to the brim . It was not necessary to replenish his inner force by taking the pills that he had remaining . The newly received inner force rushed in to restore his meridians . The nine dragons twisted around ominously, opening their mouths to swallow the dark storm unleashed by the Doppelganger .

The space where the forces had collided disappeared . The Doppelganger staggered slightly, using more strength than before . The monster’s martial arts had already surpassed humans . Heoju exclaimed, and Lee Sungmin walked forward . The spear in his hand was vibrating greatly . As he glanced down, the spear was dented, and the spearhead had cracked .

‘It hasn’t been that long since I got it repaired . ’

He would have to see Selgerus again . Lee Sungmin smiled bitterly and opened up his Dantian and repaired his broken meridians . The pain continued to get worse, but Lee Sungmin continued to move . He had to move .

ㅡ Whooong!

A swirl of purple colors wrapped around the entire spear . The black aura covering the Doppelganger’s body gathered in her hands . This was the finale . Lee Sungmin could feel it intuitively . It wasn’t the Doppelganger’s last attack, rather it was Lee Sungmin’s last chance . Although his Black Heart was pumping with power, it was far from over if he couldn’t end it with this blow .

No . Lee Sungmin convinced himself that he could finish it . He began to perform with confidence . It would not be possible to do it using Shadowless, Lightning Strike, or Skill Stealing . He could not match up to the Doppelganger using Nine Dragon Spirit, and there was no guarantee that he could pierce through that dense black aura using Lighting Annihilation . Then he thought of the others . He should choose from the martial arts he hadn’t used yet .

The sixth move of the Nine Heavenly Spears technique .

Even in his subconscious, he was barely able to reach that level with harsh practices after a long period of time . It was impossible with his current body . If so, then when?

‘I can do it . ’

Nine Heavenly Spears technique’s sixth move . Void Rendering .

(T/N: 空道 literally translates to Path Clearing move, but it sounds like an extreme form of it)

The purple aura surrounding his spear swelled greatly . Lee Sungmin aimed the spear forward with both hands and threw . At that moment, Doppelganger’s attack exploded and hit him . The moment it touched him, a large hole ripped through the wave . The Void Rendering move shook off the Doppelganger’s attacks and scattered it all over the place . Lee Sungmin endured the pressure on his hands and flew forward .

ㅡKwaaaaang!

The walls made of flesh exploded . It couldn’t stand the assault of the falling debris . Lee Sungmin looked for the way through the destruction . He had to go to the place where he had thrown his spear . He pierced through the debris-covered path with his stiff and tattered body . At the end, there stood a pale-faced Doppelganger .

That face .

ㅡPoooong!

“Euk-”

That was the last sound it made . The aftermath of the force ricocheted all over the place and scattered after becoming mist . The purple and black fog spread out and dissolved . As the fog scattered, Lee Sungmin looked down at the Doppelganger that had Wijihoyeon’s face .

With half of its body destroyed, the Doppelganger couldn’t move even if it wanted to . Lee Sungmin opened his mouth to say something while looking at the Doppelganger’s blinking eyes . However, he ended up closing his mouth without saying anything . Saying anything would be meaningless . It had Wijihoyeon’s face, but it was not Wijihoyeon .

Lee Sungmin pursed his lips and looked at his hand . The spear no longer had any hint of its former shape . It was unable to handle the influx of power . Lee Sungmin sighed and hung the spear behind his back .

Meanwhile, the Doppelganger closed its eyes .

It was completely dead .

[You win . ]

Heoju murmured .

[How do you feel? Logically, it was not an opponent you could win against . You knocked that opponent down using my strength, not your own . Are you proud?]

“I don’t really have any feelings about it . ”

Lee Sungmin muttered while leaning down . He reached out and rummaged through the carcass of the Doppelganger . He was worried that it might have disappeared because of the highway attack, but there was still something in its body . It was a fist-sized ore . It was not a Mana Stone . Lee Sungmin tilted his head and put it in his interdimensional pocket .

[Be prepared . ]

Heoju said .

“What should I prepare for?”

[I am going to take back the power I poured into your body . There might be a severe backlash . If you don’t keep it together, you will die . ]

It hurt so much that he felt like he was dying when receiving the power, and now it would happen again? Lee Sungmin was dumbfounded for a moment but sat down while nodding . It was strange that he used so much power without anything in return . Lee Sungmin replied while clenching his jaw .

‘I’m ready . ’

[Hahaha!]

Along with the sound of his laughter, Heoju’s power, which was in his body, was sucked away . The power emanating from his body hovered in the air and then went into the armor worn by Lee Sungmin .

He nearly lost his mind .

Although Lee Sungmin was accustomed to various kinds of pains, all of the pain he had felt so far felt like a joke in comparison . He felt like his Dantian was being cracked and meridians torn apart, and his muscles felt like they were going to burst . His bones felt like they were being chilled with ice and burned by fire at the same time, and his blood seemed to flow in reverse . Lee Sungmin opened his mouth and made a croaking sound .

[Can you stand up?]

Heoju’s voice sounded like it was far away . Lee Sungmin writhed in pain for a long time . If he couldn’t hold it together, he would die . What Heoju said was true . The pain was so terrible that he almost could not stand it and would rather choose to die .

Much time had passed . The pain that felt like it lasted an eternity finally ended . Lee Sungmin opened his closed eyes . His whole body was soaked with cold sweat, and his lips were bloody from being bitten . He tried to stand up, but his body refused to cooperate .

“You, are you okay?”

Rubia was standing nearby . She was stomping down with her feet on the side, and as she saw Lee Sungmin regain consciousness, she came up to him in a hurry . Lee Sungmin, who barely managed to prop up half of his body, took a deep breath and looked at Rubia .

“Why didn’t you do anything?”

“I’ve been working hard – wiping your sweat and your blood away . ”

“You don’t know how to perform healing magic?”

“Nope . ”

Rubia replied while pouting . Still, it didn’t seem she had not done anything at all . Rubia’s robes were wet with blood and sweat . There was nothing to wipe him with, so it seemed like she used her own robes to do it .

“The time… How long has it been?”

“About an hour…”

Was he in pain for an hour? Lee Sungmin laughed and stood up using a cane . There was no strength in his legs, but he had to move .

“What, what are you doing?”

“I have to go . ”

Lee Sungmin replied, taking a deep breath . Although the throbbing was severe, his bones were not actually damaged . His muscles hurt, but he could tolerate this much .

Lee Sungmin looked at the mini-map at the edge of his field of vision . During the fight against the Doppelganger, he didn’t care . There was only one other person left in the dungeon, except Lee Sungmin . So he had to check .

Lee Sungmin went back the way he had come while dragging his feet . The surroundings were very messy, but finding the way was not difficult, thanks to the mini-map . He had confirmed that the Doppelgangers were all dead, so even if he was in poor shape, there was no reluctance in his actions .

He could see Crimson Elder’s corpse . Traces of axe marks and intestines spilling out could be seen clearly on the horribly mangled body . Lee Sungmin looked around, breathing hard .

“This… There are traces of magic . ”

Rubia said while looking at Lee Sungmin’s eyes .

“… Magic? What magic?”

“I’m not sure… Wait . ”

Complex magical formations appeared around her . Rubia, who had closed her eyes for a moment, hesitated and glanced at Lee Sungmin .

“It’s all right . ”

Lee Sungmin nodded at her to go ahead . Rubia sighed at the remark and said .

“… A type of movement magic was used here . It could have been used to escape the dungeon . ”

Baek Sogo, Jang Deuksu, and Chwigeol could not perform such high magic . It was probably a scroll .

“… Can you tell me in more detail?”

“Ah… Yes . Three people have moved from here using the spell . I don’t know exactly who went out though . ”

“Okay . ”

That was enough .

Baek Sogo did not die . She got out of the dungeon along with Chiwgeol and Jang Deuksu . That would do . He was satisfied . He had entered this dungeon to save Baek Sogo . It was no exaggeration to say that he had come so far to stop Baek Sogo’s death .

He had achieved it .

“… Then…”

Lee Sungmin began to move again while panting . Seeing him move again, Rubia became alarmed and clung to him .

“Wh-where are you going?”

“Forward . ”

Lee Sungmin responded as he swallowed in response to the pain in his body .

“I have to move forward . ”

He looked at the mini-map .

There was a yellow dot at the end of the dungeon .