I Became a Mythical Hunter After Killing the Golden Goblin - Chapter 200

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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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Chapter 200. River of Flowing Stars
“Finally! He’s entered the trial of stars.”
Middle Realm Stage 101—the pursuers had gathered there. They were those who had already passed the trial of Stage 100 and advanced into the Middle Realm. They could bypass Stage 100, which allowed no second attempts.
From their position as pursuers, they were the weaker side and needed their opponent’s carelessness. This moment was the perfect timing.
“We end this here.”
Stage 100 connected through only a single path. Unlike other stages that divided into ??-??, there was only Stage 101 in its entirety.
Of course, it was an equally dangerous operation. A single path meant that the gazes of all who passed through it would converge on this one place.
“Execute the operation as quickly and flawlessly as possible.”
“Understood.”
“This is the Middle Realm now. No longer the Lower Realm. Abandon that attitude. No matter how much of a dragon you are, to the powerful ones hiding here, you’re nothing but vermin like us.”
Ignium’s face crumpled at the counsel—or rather, the presumption—from a being inferior to him. He wanted to tear and kill the creature right then, but he couldn’t. The other was a god. A supreme deity unbound by the System’s constraints.
To win, he needed even one more hand from the vermin. There was nothing to do but endure.
“It’s not wrong. Transcendents appear frequently enough, and even gods often visit the Middle Realm, if not the Lower Realm. If we offend their sensibilities, a greater threat could find us.”
It was true. Unlike the Lower Realm, which lagged in development, the Middle Realm was the most naturally developed region where the greatest number of players and dimensions converged—so widely known that even gods visited it often.
Since the Upper Realm of transcendents and the Abyss Realm of the Divine Seat were essentially their own worlds, the Middle Realm was the largest region within the Abyss.
Precisely because it was such a magnificent city, one had to be even more careful. No matter how much temporary power one gained from the gods’ blessing, that power was only ever temporary.
Moreover, if transcendents and those of the Divine Seat allied with Shin Ju-ha, even with restrictions, defeat would be absolute. Caution was paramount.
“We’ll establish a barrier. Since he’s entered Stage 100, it will take at least a month, so we have time.”
“A month? Isn’t that monster? Applying the same timeframe as insignificant beings like us doesn’t make sense.”
Ignium forcibly swallowed the urge to strike at the vermin who dared contradict him again, opened his dragon eyes, and released his pressure, piercing through the surroundings.
“For vermin like you, the middle reaches of the river is the limit—that’s all you’d ever achieve. But the true Stage 100 lies in the upper reaches. All those who were originally gods congregate there. Even Shin Ju-ha won’t find it easy. And that Divine Seat at the summit—they say it’s the star of an entity that has never once fallen since reaching the top. It will take far longer.”
A story told only among the Divine Seat. An undefeated god of war who never once fell from the summit after ascending to it.
Ignium had only heard it in passing while receiving successor training from his father, the Lord, but he knew it to be true.
“Even the great Dragon God had to settle for merely the middle of the upper reaches.”
Everyone’s expressions turned to shock at those words. For them, reaching even the middle reaches was considered a tremendous achievement.
Naturally, they had no idea what the upper reaches were like. That such tremendous beings had records left behind was something they were hearing for the first time.
Though they were somewhat renowned in the Middle Realm, this was the extent of their limits.
“So shut up and follow my orders. I’m about to establish the barrier, so those skilled in magic or sorcery, assist me.”
Ignium was a dragon. Moreover, of the Lord’s bloodline. In human terms, he was the successor certain to ascend to the next throne.
As a dragon for whom bloodline mattered, Ignium, being the Lord’s direct descendant, possessed talent and magical power incomparable to other hatchlings, and his abilities were exceptional.
With the help of vermin, he could even establish a grand barrier alone.
“After all, this path is only for those who’ve passed Stage 100. We’ll use the grand barrier to trap them all.”
“An excellent idea. Having them engage in a slaughter competition to weaken them further is also sound strategy. If by chance a god or transcendent of a new dimension is included… it could become slightly problematic. But surely that won’t happen?”
“We must remain as inconspicuous as possible. The rest of you, verify whether anyone might interfere.”
“Yes.”
Thus, the Anti-Shin Ju-ha Alliance immediately began executing their plan. A month—or longer, considering the time Shin Ju-ha would invest in learning Tai Chi.
And time was nothing less than an increase in their combat strength. So the demon of the trap began opening its massive jaws, preparing to receive Shin Ju-ha.
Yet from Shin Ju-ha’s perspective, it was merely the futile thrashing of crude vermin.
***
Time flowed swiftly. Upon that magnificent river cradling the light of beautiful stars, I trained relentlessly, layer upon layer of cultivation.
〚Authority: Tai Chi (太極)[Legendary]〛
Through inheriting from Jang Sam-bong, the progenitor who possessed Tai Chi of source-grade, the Tai Chi I acquired was of ancient-grade. This was only possible because it too carried the source-grade essence.
Ordinarily, I should have cultivated it step by step, beginning from the common-grade.
I’m not certain how much time had elapsed. Yet every moment of that passing time felt far from wasted.
‘Tai Chi—this power is immensely satisfying. No, it transcends satisfaction itself.’
This was a force entirely sufficient to become a concept. Of course, I remained far too weak and inadequate to reach that level.
A power so feeble it would be presumptuous even to compare it with the unstable sky I harbored. Yet its potential alone was worthy of acknowledgment.
As evidence, why hadn’t Concept: Sky—that ravenous devourer of all abilities, even consuming the Golden Tower itself—absorbed Tai Chi?
‘Well, strictly speaking, the Authority: Golden Tower was voluntarily absorbed by Sky.’
When Authority: Golden Tower was absorbed into Concept: Sky, the Creator’s will gained even greater influence—it was clearly intentional.
Yet the will does nothing in particular, nor can it control me, so I left it be.
‘And strictly speaking, Sky became a vast cage containing it, not an erasure.’
I sense it. The wills of Misfortune and Fortune, among others, have not vanished but still dwell within my inner landscape.
Yet Tai Chi was not absorbed. It was as though Sky rejected it—as if consuming it would cause Sky to burst from fullness.
-Hehehehe. Cease your idle musings. Tai Chi is the power of circulation and harmony. When balance crumbles, so too does the power.
I opened my eyes and gazed upon Jang Sam-bong standing before me.
“It is finished, then.”
I sensed it instinctively. Since he had passed on the power of Tai Chi to me, he had gradually begun losing the light of the stars. Now he stood on the very brink of complete dissolution.
-This too is merely the course of nature. A mere counterfeit fashioned from a small law. Having recklessly inherited the true power, there is a price to be paid.
“Where is the true one? Come to think of it, shouldn’t we send aid to him?”
I had wondered about this all along. Why had he entrusted me with the Wudang Sect in the Celestial Martial World?
A Jang Sam-bong possessing Tai Chi should have easily defended against a mere martial sect of the Upper Realm.
Jang Sam-bong chuckled at my words, then completely faded away, gazing down at his body transforming into luminescence as he left words like a final testament.
-The stars existing here are counterfeit. The survival of a counterfeit does not mean the true one survives.
The true Jang Sam-bong had died. I narrowed my eyes. Though merely a created avatar, the depth of power Jang Sam-bong possessed surpassed any being I had encountered.
Not raw strength—depth. I could boldly say it exceeded even my Younger Sibling, called the Heavenly Demon Emperor, whom even lesser gods had prostrated before.
-I am grateful that at least one heir to Tai Chi’s legacy remains. I beseech you—save the fallen Taoism Sect.
That was all. Jang Sam-bong vanished completely. Simultaneously, his star by the riverbank, which had shone far brighter than the others, crumbled to dust and disappeared.
The true one had died, and the avatar had died. Now no existence called Jang Sam-bong remained in this land.
“Tsk. Rest now, Master.”
I paid my final respects. He had left me much; such treatment was fitting.
Authority: Tai Chi. Jang Sam-bong had sealed everything he had awakened thus far within this authority. Tai Chi is the power of harmony and circulation—according to his words, his avatar had absorbed everything from the true body through Tai Chi and passed it all to me.
“Once I reach source-grade, I will be able to awaken all things….”
Elevating one’s grade would certainly not be easy. Yet it did not seem particularly difficult either. Recalling how I once agonized over a single Legendary-grade ability, such thoughts were indeed luxurious—yet true.
Especially regarding martial arts, it was all the easier for me. The inheritance took roughly a month, and mere days had passed since, yet I had already reached Legendary-grade—proof enough.
“Now, let us advance.”
I would proceed using only Tai Chi. Since Tai Chi was closer to a principle than a martial art, it could be applied to other techniques as well.
With each step forward, I moved toward the mountain’s summit, toward surpassing the being at that peak.
***
The journey upstream to the source where the waters flowed—the summit—proved arduous and treacherous. It was only natural that those who faced these trials felt burdened, for this was where the fractured selves of those who dominated the Divine Realms had been left behind.
“I’ll admit, it was worthwhile having the chance to fight Zeus.”
Exhaustion was inevitable. No matter how inferior they were to me, these were Divine Seats. Fighting dozens of them in relentless succession demanded an enormous toll on my stamina.
Even my incomprehensible regenerative power seemed to have its limits in enduring this.
“This is the final one.”
I quickened my pace. Behind me, the Divine Being I had just slain—an existence I had only heard of by name, one deeply connected to the items I possessed—transformed into light and was pulled back into the river.
“Thank heavens an irregular like Solomon didn’t appear.”
It was a form of randomness. Each stage had fixed inhabitants, and one of the stars dwelling in that stage would be summoned.
〚Solomon’s star does not exist in this place. It is impossible to replicate his shell, as he has already transcended beyond even a Concept Divine Seat.〛
That made sense. Who would replicate such an existence? Even the System could not. Was he not a being acknowledged even by The Creator?
In any case, I had finally arrived at the final zone of this stage.
〚Be cautious. You may perish. If it seems impossible, immediately call out to end the trial.〛
For a mere fragment to warn that I—the supreme Divine King—might die, just how powerful and what manner of being could it be?
Such thoughts were fleeting. A figure emerged atop the massive boulder at the summit.
-It has been quite some time since we’ve had a visitor.
A monkey with a golden crown-like headband, wielding an enormous staff of immeasurable grandeur, its blazing crimson eyes striking an impressive figure.
-Pleased to meet you, friend. I am the hundredth fragment of the great Victorious Fighting Buddha.
The name widely known throughout the world—Sun Wukong, the Great Sage Equal to Heaven.

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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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