100 Floors All Master - Chapter 290

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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 290
66th Floor. Wind Spirit King. Minerva (3)
As time passed, Kang Jun-hyeok methodically dismantled the prison’s structure, layer by layer. The oppressive pressure that had been bearing down on them noticeably weakened. Minerva watched him with an expression of satisfaction.
‘I didn’t expect much, but he’s handling this beautifully.’
It was a shame he lacked Nature Affinity, yet he was still proving more than capable. Even if he were nothing more than a human-sized cockroach, why should that matter if he could save her from danger?
‘I’ll have to give him a proper reward once we’re out of here.’
What would suit him best?
She could gather the Essence of Wind and present it to him. But just as Minerva was contemplating what reward to offer, Kang Jun-hyeok froze.
“There’s a problem.”
[A problem?]
“We’re almost there now. Once I dismantle this final layer, we can escape the prison. But… it’s incredibly intricate. And there’s a trap embedded within it.”
[Is there any way I can help?]
“If you understood the structure, it might be possible. But otherwise, it will be difficult.”
Kang Jun-hyeok steadied his breathing for a moment, then extended his hand.
“Even so, I think I can manage. Please stay alert, just in case.”
[Understood.]
Minerva’s expression grew serious as she gathered her power.
Kang Jun-hyeok’s hand moved with delicate precision. Just as he had warned, violent repulsion began erupting from all directions.
But the repulsion gradually subsided.
It meant Kang Jun-hyeok was successfully dismantling the structure. A glimmer of relief crossed Minerva’s face.
Then, in that moment—
Crack-crack-crack-crack!
A sound of something being crushed rang out.
Minerva’s intuition flared. Something had broken. A fierce repulsion erupted like a tempest, engulfing Kang Jun-hyeok entirely.
[Kang Jun-hyeok!]
“Ugh—gaaah!”
Kang Jun-hyeok gritted his teeth and unleashed his power. Internal Energy, Mana, Divine Power, and Telekinesis—he poured everything into suppressing the repulsion.
But it was not enough. The repulsion only grew more violent, threatening to tear him apart.
Minerva’s expression became desperate.
Even without understanding the prison’s structure, she could see the truth: he simply didn’t have the raw strength to contain that repulsion.
Simple assistance was impossible. She couldn’t comprehend the structure—her interference would only destabilize the already fragile balance further.
There was only one solution.
To forge a contract with Kang Jun-hyeok and share a portion of her own power.
Yet Minerva could not reach that decision easily.
She was a king.
Not once in her existence had she entered into an equal contract with a Surface Dweller. This hesitation arose not merely from pride or dignity as a monarch—there were pragmatic reasons as well.
Any human who formed a contract with her would rise to equal standing. They would gain absolute dominion and ownership over every Wind Spirit under her command.
No king surrenders their crown simply because a beggar saved their life.
And yet.
[Damn it!]
Minerva bit her lip and made her choice.
[Open yourself to me.]
Her form sank into Kang Jun-hyeok’s body. A tremendous aura of nature enveloped him in an instant.
[Open all your meridians. Accept the force of nature. Understand me and embrace me.]
Kang Jun-hyeok’s Nature Affinity, which he had never possessed, began to awaken by the sheer force of the king’s will.
[This is a contract between you and me. Until we escape this prison, my power shall dwell within you. Do you accept?]
Kang Jun-hyeok nodded.
The contract was sealed.
Then a vessel formed within him—a space to hold the king.
[Stat: Nature Affinity acquired.]
[Nature Affinity + 50]
[Title: Temporary Contractor of the Wind Spirit King acquired.]
The king’s power settled into his being.
An aura so vast and dense that all his previous strength seemed like a handful of dust in comparison. Kang Jun-hyeok clenched his fist. A violent wind erupted outward, obliterating every repulsion and structural constraint, shattering and dismantling them all.
Crash!
With a sound of breaking, the prison shattered.
They returned to the surface.
Minerva burst into wild laughter.
[Hahahaha! Hahaha! We made it! We made it! You damned Demons! I’ll slaughter every last one of you—!]
Her words were cut short. Dozens of black boxes hurtled toward her all at once.
The same black prison that had held her.
Minerva hastily summoned wind to shatter it. She cried out, her face twisted.
[Berid!]
[Hmm.]
From between the fractured crevice, a man’s thin voice echoed.
That being was the Demon Lord of Binding. Berid.
[How did you escape? It should be impossible for that dim head of yours, even after a thousand years.]
[Did you dare descend to the surface!]
[No. No. Look carefully.]
A single arm thrust through the crevice, wriggling.
[I can barely pull out one arm. The state is terribly unstable. But you—locked away in that prison—should have come with me without issue… What happened?]
Berid, who had been puzzled, soon sensed Kang Jun-hyeok’s presence. And grasped it by instinct.
[You?]
“A pleasure to meet you, Berid.”
[The power I feel isn’t particularly impressive.]
Berid, still bewildered, recovered fragments from the shattered prison. Reading the records embedded in the fragments, Berid let out an exclamation.
[You disassembled it brilliantly? Your approach is methodical. It feels as if you’ve been trapped in my prison countless times.]
Kang Jun-hyeok brushed his hands clean without comment. Berid, who had been impressed, grew puzzled.
[But why did you dismantle the final structure so crudely? The last part isn’t difficult at all. You could have managed it easily, yet you deliberately twisted it and put strain on yourself.]
[What?]
Minerva’s pupils trembled.
Berid looked at Kang Jun-hyeok with curious eyes.
[You. You’re interesting. I want to study you.]
With that, he snapped his fingers. The black prison flew toward them. Kang Jun-hyeok moved his hands swiftly.
[Crevice Distortion.]
Whoosh.
The crevice swallowed the black prison. Both Minerva and Berid gasped in shock.
[What!]
[My prison—you consumed it? What was that power just now?]
The fourth tier erasing the power of a warlord-class demon. It was impossible. Berid laughed.
[I’m very deeply intrigued now. Perhaps you might actually understand my art. What do you say? Come with me to Hell. I’ll treat you generously.]
“That’s not a bad offer, it’s true.”
[What insanity are you spouting!]
Minerva burst out with a sharp retort. To respond favorably to a demon’s proposal! Unthinkable for a Surface Dweller. Kang Jun-hyeok shrugged and stepped back.
“I’m afraid my role isn’t that, so I must refuse. Besides, I’d rather not listen to your tedious philosophy of art.”
[Amusing words. You speak as if you’ve conversed with me before. Though I have no memory of it.]
Berid chuckled.
[It can’t be helped. Then I’ll simply do what I must.]
“Minerva. I ask for your cooperation.”
Minerva looked at Kang Jun-hyeok with a stern face. After a long moment of deliberation, she stepped forward.
[Once this is over, there will be explanations owed.]
“Of course.”
Minerva gathered the wind. Berid sneered.
[Do you think you can stand against me without a Summoner at your side?]
[That’s what I should be saying. You dare oppose me with merely one arm? I’ll grind you to dust!]
Boom!
A tremendous force erupts and tears outward. In an instant, the entire area is swept away.
Kang Jun-hyeok swiftly puts distance between them using Crack Movement.
Manbyeonggi murmured.
[You’ve deceived Minerva.]
“Otherwise she wouldn’t have agreed to a contract with me.”
Had he succeeded cleanly, Minerva’s reward would have been at best the Essence of Wind, or perhaps a catalyst of nature—not bad, but hardly exceptional. She was a queen, after all. As a queen, she could only act accordingly.
So when Kang Jun-hyeok disassembled the final structure, he deliberately created a crack.
A crack that only Minerva herself, through a direct contract with him, could resolve.
The result: he had successfully contracted with the Elemental King of Wind and gained Nature Affinity. He allowed himself a satisfied expression.
“Perfect. Normally this would require dozens of high-grade materials to achieve, yet I’ve obtained it so easily.”
[Once this ends, Minerva will try to kill you. You should prepare an excuse.]
“There’s no point in worrying about that now.”
Kang Jun-hyeok stretched, recovering his spent strength and settling into stance.
“For now, winning comes first.”
“A variable, then.”
A deep voice resonates through the air. The creature with crimson horns atop its head mutters as if perplexed.
“I was told it would be a simple task—just kill the elves obstructing the recovery of Minerva and be done with it. But it seems I was mistaken. This is a far more dangerous mission.”
What stood before him could not be called life.
Its mere presence crushed the aura of everything around it. A being with four pairs of wings and eyes black as pitch.
A higher-ranking demon.
A powerhouse of the 4th Tier. Manbyeonggi muttered with intrigue.
[Ah. So it’s that one.]
“I am Kuzan, Demon of the Spear. And your name?”
“Kang Jun-hyeok.”
“Kang Jun-hyeok. I have a proposal. Would you not withdraw from this place? You are no elf. There is no reason to stake your life for them, is there?”
“I’m afraid I can’t do that.”
“I see. So you are one who risks his life for others. Then it cannot be helped.”
“Not exactly that either.”
Kang Jun-hyeok shrugged. Though they exchanged light words, the tension between them stretched taut and unyielding.
[That one is strong. Even for you, it won’t be easy.]
Manbyeonggi offered a rare warning. He didn’t need to speak it—the aura emanating from Kuzan was razor-sharp, like a spear incarnate.
4th Tier.
Even within that rank, a powerhouse of the upper echelon.
He possessed the strength to kill Kang Jun-hyeok.
Kang Jun-hyeok drew his own spear in response. Kuzan’s eyes widened slightly.
“You wield the spear as well?”
“Reasonably well.”
He stirred his aura. His lips curved upward.
Since reaching the 4th Tier, this was the first time he faced an opponent of equal strength.
A worthy opponent to feel his growth against.
The moment his breath exhaled, his opponent charged.
A perfect surprise attack targeting a gap no larger than a speck of dust. The sharp spear drove straight toward Kang Jun-hyeok’s throat.
The man he was not long ago would have struggled merely to evade.
But he was no longer that man.
He moved his arm. Swinging the spear shaft, he deflected the incoming thrust. A sharp crack split the air.
He planted his feet and drove his spear forward. Kuzan shifted his spear shaft to block.
Clang-clang-clang-clang!
A furious exchange of air-cutting sounds erupted around them.

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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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