After Regressing, I Gained the Power of the Demonic Dragon - Chapter 51

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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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Episode 51
The next day.
Sang Hyuk used his newly issued Personal Challenge Ticket to enter the 31st floor.
Whoosh!
As the light faded, a long, vast corridor came into view.
Soldiers in black armor stood in a line along the corridor.
They were all the same height, wielded identical swords, and even their faces beneath the helmets were identical.
[31st Floor Personal Trial: ]
[Primary Objective]
– Find the true body hidden among the illusions and defeat it.
[Hidden Objective]
– Defeat only the true body without shattering a single illusion.
The foremost soldier raised his sword.
In that instant, over a hundred soldiers moved as one.
Slash!
The blade tips turned toward Sang Hyuk in unison.
‘Demon Dragon’s Eye.’
Sang Hyuk’s eyes deepened to a blood-red hue.
On the surface, every soldier radiated identical magical power.
But through the Demon Dragon’s Eye, he could see that all the power flowed from the soldier standing in the center of the corridor.
That power moved the surrounding illusions.
Having located the true body, Sang Hyuk kicked off the ground.
Boom!
Over a hundred swords came down at once.
Sang Hyuk drew power from the Heart of the Apocalypse Demon Dragon and sent it through both arms.
Crack-crack-crack!
Black scales erupted from his hands to his shoulders.
Rather than evade sideways, Sang Hyuk drove straight through the soldiers.
Clang-clang-clang!
He batted away the sword blocking his path with his left arm.
The blade aimed at his throat from the right he pushed aside with his scale-covered palm.
Sang Hyuk plunged through the gap without toppling the illusions.
The moment he shouldered aside the one soldier before him, the distance to the true body collapsed.
The true body belatedly raised its sword.
Sang Hyuk caught the blade with his right hand and reached out with his left.
Boom!
A fist covered in black scales tore through the armor at the chest.
The true body’s form flew backward and tumbled across the floor.
In that moment, all the soldiers filling the corridor stopped at once.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh.
The illusions that had filled the corridor scattered into black mist.
“You have completed the 31st Floor Personal Trial.”
[Illusions Defeated: 0]
[True Body Defeated: Complete]
[Clear Time: 00:21]
“You have achieved the Hidden Objective.”
[Hidden Objectives Achieved (Cumulative): 15 → 16]
[Conquest Rating: SSS]
“Your level has increased.”
[Lv.31 → Lv.32]
“Your Flawless Ascent consecutive record has been updated.”
[Personal Ascent SSS Rating: 30 consecutive → 31 consecutive]
[Uncharted Footprint: 1/10]
[You have obtained two Hidden Objective rewards according to cumulative bonuses.]
[Equipment Option Recrafting Ticket Fragment × 2]
[Collection Progress: 3/5 → 5/5]
[You have gathered all required fragments.]
“You have obtained the Equipment Option Recrafting Ticket.”
Sang Hyuk’s eyes brightened.
It was the first Equipment Option Recrafting Ticket he had ever held.
When using the recrafting ticket, one of the regular options on a tower-tier piece of equipment could be rerolled, and then one of three new candidates could be selected.
Used wisely, it was a reward that could reliably patch the gaps in gear meant for long-term use.
Sang Hyuk examined his equipped items and the gear stored in his inventory one by one.
There were pieces he could use immediately, but there was no reason to rush through his first recrafting ticket.
It was better to wait until he was certain about long-term gear, then fill in the missing options.
Sang Hyuk placed the recrafting ticket into his inventory.
Then he looked at the freshly marked footprint.
The ten he’d collected before had all been used to open the first Uncharted Battlefield—the Scale of Ruin.
With the SSS from the thirty-first floor, collection toward the second Uncharted Battlefield had begun again.
Nine footprints remained.
Once all the footprints were gathered and the second Uncharted Battlefield was fully conquered, the authority of the Akashic Record would also rise to level two.
From then on, he’d be able to access records about artifacts and mana structures that he’d directly verified and documented himself.
Sang Hyuk closed his progress window.
Since he’d obtained the Dark Mark from the first Uncharted Battlefield, it was worth anticipating what records he might encounter in the second.
* * *
Back in reality, Sang Hyuk immediately used his Channel League participation ticket for that day.
[Eastern Bronze Personal Ranking: 11th Place]
The gap between him and tenth place wasn’t large.
One more win in a regular match and he could close it.
When Sang Hyuk chose to participate, the match format and battlefield were decided in turn.
[Match Format: 1v1 Hunting Competition]
[Battlefield: Red Hunting Ground]
[Victory Condition]
– Be the first to acquire 100 Beast points.
[Standard Beast: 1 point]
[Elite Beast: 10 points]
[Boss Tier Beast: 50 points]
Whoosh!
Sang Hyuk descended into a vast basin covered in crimson earth.
Standard beasts roamed in packs throughout the basin.
In the deepest section, elite beasts towering over human height appeared alongside colossal boss-tier creatures.
The Vietnamese player across from him rushed toward the nearest pack first.
Each sweep of his long spear brought down several standard beasts at once.
[Vietnam Beast Points: 7]
[Vietnam Beast Points: 12]
His opponent targeted the weaker beasts to build points quickly.
Sang Hyuk didn’t follow that path.
Instead, he ran straight toward the center of the basin where the elites and boss tiers congregated.
Growwwwl!
Dozens of standard beasts spotted Sang Hyuk and rushed at him from all directions.
Behind them, two elite beasts with four horns each pawed the ground.
Sang Hyuk didn’t slow his pace at all.
‘Dragon Pressure.’
Wooooom!
A blood-red aura swept across the center of the basin.
The legs of every standard beast charging at Sang Hyuk went rigid at once.
Even those trying to turn their bodies kept their heads lowered, unable to move.
Sang Hyuk cut straight through the frozen beasts.
With each swing of his left arm, three or four beasts flew sideways.
The beast caught in his right hand was hurled above the pack pursuing him.
Crash! Boom!
Fallen beasts accumulated in an instant.
[South Korea Beast Points: 18]
[South Korea Beast Points: 30]
Then the two elite beasts broke through the pressure and flew at him from both sides.
Sang Hyuk caught the horn coming from the left with his hand.
Crack!
Using its own momentum against it, he drove its head straight into the ground.
Snap!
The elite beast from the opposite side aimed for his back, but Sang Hyuk’s right arm moved first.
Scales covering his elbow drove upward into the beast’s jaw.
Crash!
The massive body lifted into the air, arcing backward before it fell.
[South Korea Beast Score: 50]
In the deepest part of the basin, the Boss Tier rose to its feet.
It was an enormous lion with a mane of flame-red fur spread like wildfire.
[Red-Maned King Lion Lv.36]
As the king lion roared, the lesser beasts—crushed moments before by its pressure—began to stir again.
Sang Hyuk surveyed the king lion’s chest through the Demon Dragon’s Eye.
Deep within the thick hide and bone, a blood-red Life Stone glowed where magical power collected.
‘Decay.’
A black mark seared itself across the king lion’s chest.
The foreleg sweeping down at Sang Hyuk slowed noticeably.
He dove beneath the descending paw.
He deflected the claws that passed overhead with his left arm, then stretched his right hand toward the king lion’s chest.
‘Only the Life Stone.’
‘Annihilation.’
A high-pitched whine pierced the air.
Black energy seeped through thick hide and bone, funneling into the Life Stone alone.
A soft crumble.
As the crimson crystal transformed into black sand, the king lion’s enormous body collapsed forward.
Boom!
[Boss Tier Beast defeated.]
[South Korea Beast Score: 100]
「South Korea has claimed victory.」
[Final Beast Score]
[South Korea: 100]
[Vietnam: 24]
While the opposing team felled twenty-four weaker beasts, Sang Hyuk pierced through the entire pack at the basin’s center and ended the match in a single stroke.
The settlement followed immediately.
[Official Channel Personal Record: 1 Win 0 Loss → 2 Wins 0 Losses]
[Received personal rank points and League currency as victory rewards.]
[South Korea Channel League Season Score +5]
[South Korea Channel League National Season Ranking: 63rd / 64 Nations]
[No rank change.]
The national ranking hadn’t budged yet.
But Sang Hyuk’s personal ranking had shifted.
[Eastern Bronze Personal Ranking: 11th → 10th]
「You have met the conditions for Silver Promotion Match entry.」
[You may challenge the Silver Promotion Match with your next Channel League participation ticket.]
[Failure in promotion will prevent you from attempting the Silver Promotion Match again for 7 days.]
A day after receiving his Bronze placement, Sang Hyuk had already climbed to the promotion threshold.
The moment his ranking updated, new posts appeared on PlayerNet.
[Impossible achieves Eastern Bronze 10th! Silver Promotion Match opened!]
[Korea/Lv.31] Refresh Scoreboard: He was 11th right after placement, then hit 10th in the very next match. 2 wins in 2 official games!
[Korea/Lv.33] Newbie Guardian: Dude’s opening promotion matches before he even unpacks in Bronze lol
[Korea/Lv.38] Makeup Before Boss Doors: Everyone else grinds through Bronze the whole season struggling to escape, but Impossible is knocking on the door in one day.
[Korea/Lv.36] Rules Daily Reader: He hasn’t promoted yet though. Fail once and you can’t retry for a week. The real question is whether he can do it on his first shot.
[China/Lv.68] Beijing Sword Guest: His last two matches were dominant wins. But promotion matches have battlefields where raw strength alone isn’t enough to pass.
What kind of challenge would be assigned was impossible to know until he stepped inside.
One failure meant waiting a week, but Sang Hyuk had no intention of postponing the attempt.
* * *
The next day.
Before entering the Channel League, Sang Hyuk used his newly issued Personal Challenge Ticket first.
The trial on the 32nd floor was to break through a corridor thick with toxic vapor.
Along the path to the corridor’s end, several detoxification zones were scattered throughout, and five gatekeepers blocked the spaces between them.
The Hidden Objective was to reach the exit without ever entering a detoxification zone.
Sang Hyuk drew a deep breath at the entrance and immediately sprinted forward.
Poison needles raining down from walls and ceiling he swatted away with the scales on both arms.
He sidestepped the blades and spears thrust by the gatekeepers, then drove them off the path with his shoulder.
The moment the last gatekeeper rolled across the floor, the exit door swung open.
“You have completed the Personal Trial of Floor 32.”
[Detoxification Zone Used: 0 times]
[Conquest Time: 00:49]
“You have achieved a Hidden Objective.”
[Hidden Objectives Achieved Cumulative: 16 → 17]
[Conquest Rating: SSS]
“Your level has increased.”
[Lv.32 → Lv.33]
“Your Flawless Ascent consecutive record has been updated.”
[Personal Ascent SSS Rating: 31 consecutive → 32 consecutive]
[Uncharted Footprint: 1/10 → 2/10]
[Based on cumulative bonuses, you obtain two Hidden Objective rewards.]
[Combat Consumables Selection Box Fragment: 2 pieces]
[Collection Progress: 0/3 → 2/3]
Sang Hyuk placed the two fragments into his Inventory and examined the Uncharted Footprint.
Eight more footprints remained before the second Uncharted Battlefield would open.
If he continued to secure SSS ratings, the second Uncharted Battlefield would unlock eight floors ahead.
A complete conquest of that battlefield would also allow him to reach the second stage of the Akashic Record.
Sang Hyuk finished his settlement and immediately opened the Channel League menu.
[Eastern Bronze Personal Ranking: 10th Place]
[Silver Promotion Match Participation Available]
Sang Hyuk didn’t hesitate. He selected the promotion match.
‘Participate.’
“Channel League participation ticket has been used.”
“Eastern Silver Promotion Match has been assigned.”
After a moment, the promotion match information appeared before him.
[Match Format: 4-Player Cooperative Defense Battle]
[Battlefield: Four Spires of Plague]
[Promotion Target]
[South Korea / Lv.33 / Private]
[Cooperative Players]
[Japan / Lv.44 / Shield Unfolds]
[China / Lv.41 / Fun Only For Me]
[Vietnam / Lv.38 / Arrows Saved]
A promotion match pitted one promotion target against three randomly assigned Silver players from the same Eastern Channel in a cooperative battle.
Sang Hyuk and the three players were engulfed in a shimmer of silver light.
Flash!
As the light faded, an enormous circular battlefield emerged.
A black spire rose from each of the four cardinal directions.
The blue light extending from the four spires enveloped the guardian stone that floated in the center of the battlefield.
Sang Hyuk was assigned to the southern spire.
Shield Unfolds stood at the eastern position, holding an enormous rectangular shield.
Fun Only For Me, positioned in the west, wielded a staff embedded with blue gems, while Arrows Saved to the north drew a long bow.
The three examined their positions before turning to face Sang Hyuk.
Arrows Saved glanced back and forth between the black mask and Sang Hyuk’s participation information.
“Wait. Are you Impossible Left by any chance?”
“Yeah.”
Arrows Saved’s face lit up.
“So it’s really you! You only just got placed in Bronze, and you’re already in a promotion match? That’s incredible.”
Then a low chuckle drifted from the western spire.
“Heh-heh.”
Fun Only For Me laughed, a hand covering his mouth.
Shield Unfolds furrowed his brow.
“What’s so funny?”
Arrows Saved also looked at him with confusion.
Then, the moment he checked the public name of the player assigned to the west again, his expression hardened.
“Wait. Fun Only For Me…….”
His grip tightened on the bow.
“You’re not that troll who deliberately ruins matches every promotion round, are you?”
Fun Only For Me’s laughter deepened.
“So you finally recognize me.”
“Don’t tell me you’re thinking of pulling the same trick again?”
Fun Only For Me gazed at Sang Hyuk, grinning wickedly.
“With the Impossible One right here.”
He rested his staff across his shoulder.
“It’d be a shame to let you advance quietly without a proper fight.”

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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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