100 Floors All Master - Chapter 234
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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All Master of 100 Floors Episode 234
Floor 51: Elf Forest (6)
‘No. That can’t be right.’
Ultira erased the possibility that had surfaced in her mind. A contract with a Spirit without any affinity for nature? It was impossible.
‘…That must be it.’
Suppressing a hint of doubt, the two of them entered the Hidden Side of the Spirit Realm.
As Kang Jun-hyeok ventured deeper into the inner recesses, Ultira grew puzzled.
[Where are you going?]
Kang Jun-hyeok pressed forward without sparing a glance at the Spirits of the Back Chamber. His footsteps were deliberate, as though he had predetermined his destination from the start.
At the end of that path, he arrived.
‘Found it.’
In the Hidden Side of the Spirit Realm.
Even here, there existed a separated space.
A translucent barrier the size of a small room came into view. It resembled a prison meant to confine something.
And within that prison, something dark and undulating existed.
[Wait.]
Ultira’s voice hardened for the first time.
[You. Was that your objective?]
“Sharp instincts. You’ve got it right.”
[This is madness. That thing is dangerous. It’s a different kind of entity than ordinary Spirits.]
“What makes it different?”
[…That is a Shadow Spirit.]
“Just from the name, it doesn’t sound particularly dangerous.”
[No. That is extremely dangerous. It’s a Shadow with consciousness.]
Ultira spoke with utmost gravity.
[Shadows are meant to follow the original—they’re little more than counterfeits clinging to one’s feet. But this shadow became a Spirit and gained consciousness. As a result, it developed a singular obsession.]
The Shadow Spirit harbored a desire to become the original.
[It devours life itself to become real.]
It had developed a desire to consume all things in existence and become the true one.
An extraordinarily dangerous Spirit—even the Spirit King could not control it and had imprisoned it instead.
And this was precisely why Kang Jun-hyeok had sought out the Spirit Realm.
“I keep my promises, Ultira.”
[Wait….]
Ultira, who had been about to stop Kang Jun-hyeok as he approached the Shadow Spirit, froze.
The prison confining the Shadow Spirit was one the King had created himself.
An absolute barrier that blocked any external interference whatsoever.
It was impossible to breach without power comparable to the King’s. Such was her thought in that moment.
[Crack Movement.]
Whoosh.
Kang Jun-hyeok’s body shifted into the prison.
The Victors’ power does not follow the laws of the Universe.
Barriers were no obstacle. Ultira gasped in shock.
[What—what is this!]
“It’s good to meet you.”
Kang Jun-hyeok greeted lightly. The Shadow Spirit responded.
A rippling black aura surged forth, engulfing Kang Jun-hyeok entirely.
There was only one emotion visible within it.
An endless greed to become real.
Crunch, crunch, crunch!
The aura burrowed and clawed into Kang Jun-hyeok’s body. Moments later, he succeeded in absorbing all of it. Outwardly, there appeared to be no problem whatsoever.
[Damn it!]
Yet Ultira gnashed her teeth.
The Shadow Spirit’s power itself was not particularly formidable. Even Ultira could absorb it without difficulty.
The problem was the Shadow Spirit’s very nature.
It was shadow.
A concept that living beings could never cast off.
It clung to life and tormented endlessly. It sought to plunder the physical body and lusted to become real itself.
Even the King could not suppress that greed and had to imprison it.
There was no way a mortal could overcome such an entity.
[Damn. I have no choice.]
Ultira made her decision.
She would summon the King.
The great King who had imprisoned the Shadow Spirit could surely save Kang Jun-hyeok.
The problem was that in doing so, it would be discovered that he had ignored the King’s orders and allowed Kang Jun-hyeok inside. He would likely face considerable punishment. His mouth turned bitter, but he could not simply let him die.
Just as Ultira was about to move, she noticed something strange.
[Hm?]
All beings possessed by the Shadow Spirit fell into madness and thrashed about wildly.
But Kang Jun-hyeok simply stood with his eyes closed.
As if he were controlling the Shadow Spirit.
[…Surely not.]
Even their King could not do such a thing.
It was impossible.
And yet.
Ultira stopped in her tracks and stared at Kang Jun-hyeok as if entranced.
* * *
Kuguguguguguuu….
The Shadow Spirit sought to devour everything within Kang Jun-hyeok.
It hungered to consume him, to become the true Kang Jun-hyeok in his stead.
This was the greed inherent to shadow’s very nature—a hunger so boundless that even the Spirit King could only suppress and confine it.
Kang Jun-hyeok laughed.
‘You want to take it all?’
Then take it.
He opened himself completely. His aura, his memories, his experiences, everything he had accumulated—all of it lay bare. The Shadow Spirit exulted.
At last, I become real! The Shadow Spirit rejoiced beyond measure and began to consume it all.
But it wasn’t long before the Shadow Spirit realized something was terribly wrong.
It couldn’t consume it.
There was far too much.
Far too deep.
And far too heavy.
Something that even the Shadow Spirit’s endless greed could not devour in its entirety.
For the first time in its existence, the Shadow Spirit felt fear.
‘The Shadow Spirit is confined because its greed cannot be restrained.’
The solution was simple.
Make it recognize what it could not bear, and it would break.
And for Kang Jun-hyeok, this was far from difficult.
“This is my memory.”
The immeasurable power and battles accumulated by his former self. Those memories.
“This is my failure.”
The countless failures he had committed in his previous life.
“This is my despair.”
The endless emotions of despair born from those failures.
Try to bear it if you can.
Kuguguguguguuu….
All of it crashed down upon the Shadow Spirit. The Shadow Spirit screamed.
Stop!
Endless battles and despair, with the very fate of the Universe hanging in the balance.
It could not consume them. For the first time, the Shadow Spirit felt the emotion of not wanting to become real. It desperately tried to flee, but having already taken root within Kang Jun-hyeok’s body, there was nowhere to escape.
Now came the conclusion. Kang Jun-hyeok made his proposal.
‘Let us make a contract.’
…A contract?
‘I will give you will. I will give you consciousness. I will grant you the opportunity to advance into the world, to become truly real. In exchange, dwell within me as a spirit.’
….
The Shadow Spirit seemed to deliberate. It was a wish it had yearned for since its birth, yet Kang Jun-hyeok was far too terrifying to accept so readily.
But its deliberation did not last long.
Give me a name.
Kang Jun-hyeok laughed.
‘Muu. That’s your name.’
Muu. I like it. Keep your promise.
With those words, the Spirit’s aura settled stably upon Kang Jun-hyeok’s body.
[Spirit Contract: Shadow Spirit. You have contracted with Muu.]
Kang Jun-hyeok’s expression turned satisfied.
‘It was far easier than in my previous life.’
In my previous life, I had suffered considerably in suppressing the Shadow Spirit’s greed.
Only through coaxing, cajoling, and coercive means had I barely managed to forge the contract.
But this time, having accumulated far more experience, it proved remarkably smooth.
[You did it.]
[Success.]
Eldyria and Manbyeonggi murmured.
Kang Jun-hyeok had perfectly subjugated the Shadow Spirit’s greed—something even the Spirit King could not suppress.
That fact was hardly surprising. After all, both of them had experienced Kang Jun-hyeok’s emotions before. An absolute despair so overwhelming that even Transcendents struggled to endure it. No Shadow Spirit, however formidable, could withstand such a thing.
[So you endured all that hardship to save this one. Is it truly worth such effort?]
“Abundantly so.”
The Shadow Spirit was extraordinarily special. Considering its uniqueness, its value was no less than that of a Spirit King.
Kang Jun-hyeok emerged outside through Crack Movement. Ultira, who had been watching blankly, belatedly regained her senses.
[H-how did you manage that!]
“I subjugated it and forged a contract.”
[Unbelievable!]
Ultira caught her breath. A spirit that even the Spirit King could not control—how was this possible! Yet she could not deny what had transpired.
[At least that’s a relief. To be honest, I’ve always felt uneasy whenever I saw the Shadow Spirit.]
When you think about it, the Shadow Spirit had done nothing wrong. It was simply born with such a nature. Though it caused harm to those around it, I couldn’t help but feel pity for its plight.
Kang Jun-hyeok had freed it from that burden. Ultira bowed her head lightly.
[I offer my gratitude. Thank you for saving one of our kinfolk.]
“Don’t mention it. You haven’t forgotten our wager, have you?”
[Our wager?]
Ultira tilted her head in momentary confusion, then froze.
Despite being a Spirit of blazing flame, her face suddenly drained of color.
Kang Jun-hyeok smiled wickedly.
“I look forward to working with you from now on, Ultira.”
* * *
[Floor 51 Quest Clear.]
[Your reward will be determined based on your achievements.]
[Checking achievement rate…]
[Verification complete.]
[Achievement Rate: 100%]
[Perfect Clear. Congratulations! Additional rewards are being granted.]
[The effect of Title: Perfect Player has been added.]
[8,934 Gold has been awarded.]
[Perfect Clear Reward [Spirit Contract: Shadow Spirit. Muu] has been obtained.]
[Perfect Clear Reward [Spirit Contract: High-Grade Flame Spirit: Ultira] has been obtained.]
[Players who have Perfect Cleared Floor 51: 1.]
[You alone!]
[Universal Announcement.]
[Please celebrate! Everyone across the Universe! A Perfect Player of Floor 51 has emerged. An achievement no one has accomplished until now!]
[Achievement + 5]
Upon returning to Earth, Kang Jun-hyeok moved to the Underground Training Ground he had fashioned using the Mothership control device and examined the spirits he had obtained.
[Spirit Contract: Shadow Spirit]
[Grade: None]
[An essence-less shadow spirit. When summoned, it copies the appearance of its contractor. The degree of replication is proportional to the natural affinity consumed.]
[Hmm?]
[What is this?]
Both Eldyria and Manbyeonggi, who had been observing, were astonished. Manbyeonggi muttered something quietly, as if grasping at an understanding.
[Copy you? To what extent can it do that?]
“Stats and Passive Skills through Active Skills. As for Unique Skills or Unique Skills, that’s impossible. You could say it only copies regular-grade skills.”
[What?]
Manbyeonggi swallowed hard.
What Kang Jun-hyeok was saying now essentially meant he could summon another version of himself. Yet it didn’t make sense to him.
[That’s a spirit. A being of nature. It’s not a Tower entity, so how can it use skills?]
“But it has contracted with a Player.”
The Shadow Spirit was special in that it copied the very essence itself, and the Tower System was even more special than that. Since it was essentially bound to Kang Jun-hyeok, there was nothing strange about it being judged by a Player’s abilities.
In his previous life, Kang Jun-hyeok had heard rumors about the Shadow Spirit. Judging it to be useful, he had approached it and formed a contract. He had planned to summon a suitable clone and have it move about.
But the power of the Shadow Spirit he had obtained far exceeded his expectations.
“The problem, if there is one, is that I can’t use it immediately.”
Summoning the Shadow Spirit required natural affinity.
And quite a substantial amount at that. If natural affinity was low, it would only reach the level of an ordinary commoner. To achieve even fifty percent of his own power would require an astronomical amount of natural affinity.
As time passed, its value would increase, but for now, it held no practical meaning.
Still, it was acceptable.
He had successfully contracted with another spirit as well.
“I never thought I’d obtain this too.”
Kang Jun-hyeok raised his hand. Upon the back of it was inscribed a delicate flame emblem.
[Spirit Summon. High Grade Flame Spirit Ultira.]
A flame lizard emerged with a fierce, primal presence.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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