Chapter 78

CHAPTER 78: WIND SHAMAN Status

RaceGoblinLevel72ClassLord; Horde ChiefPossessed SkillsRuler of the Horde; Defiant Soul; Overpowering Howl; Swordsmanship B+; Insatiable Desire; King’s Soul; Ruler’s Wisdom I; One-Eyed Snake’s Evil Eye; Dance at Death’s Border; Magic Manipulation; Soul of a Crazed Warrior; Third Impact (The Third Chant); Instinct; Ruler’s Wisdom II;Divine ProtectionGoddess of the UnderworldAttributesDarkness; DeathSuboridnate BeastsHigh Kobold Hasu; (Lv1) Gastra (Lv20) Cynthia (Lv20) Orc King Bui; (Lv40)

After Gi Za evolved into a shaman, we ran for the ogre lord who was howling mad .

“Can we win?” He asked .

“Leave it to me,” I said back .

Using the [Skill] > I searched for the ogre lord’s weakness . I don’t know if it’s because of the four treasures or because of my newly learned >, but the ogre lord’s howls no longer canceled my spells .

The ogre lord’s weakness lay at the soles of its feet .

No wonder we couldn’t scratch it .

Now that we know, we’ll have to find a way to topple it . But it won’t be easy . That giant axe has a long reach, getting past it will take a lot of effort .

It’s a pity I’ve lost my great sword . If I still had it with me, receiving a blow from that axe might’ve been possible .

“The soles of its feet are its weakness . We’ll have to topple it over, then attack . What do you think?”

“I think we’re gonna have to send him off with a bang . ” Gi Za smiled fearlessly . How reliable, but then the ogre lord’s axe came swinging .

“Earth, tremble for me!Grand Slam”

The earth trembled, toppling us as cracks extended from where the giant axe struck .

“Sky, tremble for meRu Grand Slam!”

Then the air trembled, and a ball of wind shot forth .

“I’ll take that as a challenge . ” Gi Za smiled fearlessly as he stood back up and chanted a spell . “O exalted one, hear my callKryz . O God of Wind, let thy strength manifest unto this world, a spearCastor Lance! ”

That last chant was longer than usual, but he spoke the words quickly .

A large amount of ether gathered in Gi Za’s right hand, condensing into a spear of wind . Gi Za used that spear to meet the ogre lord’s ball of wind head on .

A cyclone erupted as the two forces clashed, and clouds of dust whirled as small stones shot from time to time . Narrowing my eyes, I pushed onward toward the ogre lord .

“You little!!” The ogre lord was visibly irritated .

“Now, who told you I was done?” Using the whirling wind, Gi Za chanted another spell . “Rise sickle-neckStorm . ”

The whirling wind turned at Gi Za’s command, toward the ogre lord . Clouds of dust rose with it, and they moved as one . I walked under the cover of their veil, unseen by all .

When the ogre lord swept the wind away with its axe, I was right at its chest .

The ether I’d taken from Verid coursed through my right arm, but the ogre lord noticed me, and it bellowed out a howl, scattering the ether I’d gathered .

“GouuRURUuuAA!”

As I thought, point blank is too close . LIke this I can’t use my ether .

In that case…

—I’ll just have to burn my ether from within!

I still remember Gi Za’s words, but there’s no other choice . I have to gamble it .

Inner control isn’t easy, I know that .

To bolster strength with ether, for example, one would have to infuse the ether into his muscles, carefully directing the flow, making sure it doesn’t go out of control .

One step wrong, and it wouldn’t end simply with the spell fizzling out like it does with a fire ball . The affected part would get ripped apart, and in my case, that would mean my right arm would become useless again .

But there’s no other choice . Nothing else can move this hulking creature . Not to mention I don’t even have my great sword with me .

So I let the ether flow into my right arm . Carefully, making sure not a drop leaks out . And I have to do so with resolve . If I hesitate for even a moment, that axe will come swinging at me .

“Gu…”

A little ether leaked out, and I felt some of the veins underneath my flesh burst . But I gritted on, and I slammed my fist against the ogre lord’s flank .

It felt like hitting a tire as the ogre lord’s flank sank .

“GU, GoaAAa!” The ogre lord let out a cry from the pain .

Of course, that wasn’t actually enough to wound it . At most, it would just push it back .

“Eat this!” Again, I infused ether into my right fist, and I slammed it against the gore .

My shoddy ether control made the blood burst out of my right arm . The ogre lord squirmed in pain, but the bloodied one was me .

“Damn you!”

The ogre seethed in rage as it swung its axe down toward me . > burned in full fervor, bringing my strength and defense to the limits .

I can’t retreat . If I falter here, the ogre lord won’t let me near it again .

I looked up the descending axe .

Ether coursed into my fist as it brimmed with power .

I’ll have to meet it head on!

In that same moment, > activated, increasing both the damage I dealt and received .

I don’t know how it’ll interact with my skill that enhances defense, but if I don’t use this now, I’ll just get crushed by that axe .

“GURUuaaAA!”

As I activated my skill, I controlled the ether within . My body screamed abuse, as vessels and veins burst one after another, bloodying me .

But in that sea of blood, black flames began to crawl beneath my skin .

One of the effects of > .

The power to steal power from the god one represents .

The ether I’d taken from Verid crept into my body, burning my wounds . The ether within my arm was dense . It felt like it could burst at any moment, but I desperately kept in under wraps .

Then when the axe finally descended, I met it with my fist .

The sound of something getting crushed resounded .

My arm was dead again, but in exchange, the giant axe was no more .

“GouRUAA!?” The ogre lord looked on wide-eyed, unable to believe what had just transpired .

But I wasn’t kind enough to wait for it to regain its senses . I immediately set off for its head .

“—Goa!?”

At the same time, Gi Za struck the ogre lord with his wind spear, toppling the ogre lord onto its back .

And I slammed my fists burning with ether onto the sole of its foot, to vanquish it once and for all .

It seemed so strong, and yet, here it was now, on its back, blood spurting out of its mouth as a blow to its feet rendered it incapacitated .

“D-Damn… you…”

The ogre lord gazed at me with that muddied eye of it . My right arm was no more, but it’s a small price to pay for victory .

And just like that, the ogre lord breathed its last .

“We won,” Gi Za said .

I nodded . “Gather the living, and we’ll go knock on that door . ”

Gi Za nodded, and he went off to check every goblin one by one .

Meanwhile, I looked up the door leading to the Lord of Decay .

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“Verid? Explain yourself . ” The goddess of the underworld’s golden gaze was cold as frost .

“It seems the demonic children of chaosGoblins have won . ” The one-eyed snake said as he looked through the evil mirror .

“Did I not instruct you not to lend your strength?” The goddess asked .

“Master, you know me your faithful servant . I have not gone against your word nor sought to plot around it . ” Verid shook his head .

“Hmm… It’s fine if that’s the case . ”

The goblins had won . The brilliance of the king’s soul had returned, and with it, took victory by the reins .

It was the result she’d wanted in the first place, but for some reason, the goddess still seemed troubled .

“How much did he take?”

“A tenth, Master . ”

A tenth, only a tenth . But that was the tenth of one of the four snakes that once challenged the world . The power behind that mere tenth was nothing to scoff at .

“…Interesting . ” A bewitching smile rose on the underworld goddess’ lips . “I’ve been treating it a pet all this time, but… I’ve changed my mind . I’ll grant him my blessings earnestly . ”

“As you command . ”

At the goddess’ behest, the snake left the realm . And the snake thought to himself .

Right now that goblin cannot control that power . But, he’ll have to in the future . Otherwise, there won’t be any point in receiving that power in the first place .

He would support him for as long as his master ordered him to . So it would be troubling if he couldn’t meet expectations .

“Grow stronger, little brother . ” Verid muttered despite knowing it would reach none .

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Level has risen .

72 → 89

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