I Became an Almighty All-Master with EX-Rank Spirits - Chapter 11

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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 11
11
Gwanak Mountain.
Five years ago, it had been famous as the go-to hiking destination for Seoul residents.
High accessibility and well-maintained trails for both beginners and experienced climbers.
An outstanding view from the summit.
Gwanak Mountain bustled with hikers every single day of the year.
But the world changed, and so did the story.
The problem was a strong fire energy that had always existed there.
Once it met with mana, it began to radiate heat constantly.
Even government intervention proved useless.
As a result, Gwanak Mountain was classified as a hazardous terrain that required specialized protective gear to enter.
While it was regrettable to lose a fine mountain for climbing, it wasn’t without its advantages.
Valuable materials generated naturally.
Mana Stones from monsters.
Even Gates exclusive to fire-type terrain.
It became a material factory and a money-making opportunity for many.
With only different purposes, people soon flooded the place again.
But there was one spot on this lucrative site that nobody visited.
The summit of Gwanak Mountain itself.
The reason was simple.
The higher you climbed, the stronger the fire energy became.
Even decent skills and protective gear couldn’t withstand the heat.
So despite the abundance of materials, people rarely went there.
“It’s not that strong, actually.”
It was no different from before.
Just good vibes.
-Peep! Peep!
[Fire keeps chirping that it’s all thanks to them!]
[Fire is saying you should treat them well because of that!]
“Yeah, yeah. Thanks.”
I’d gathered quite a lot of materials on the way up to the summit.
Four hours had already passed, and I was starting to feel tired myself.
Fire’s Spirit Shelter had its limits too.
I’d stuffed everything into my Inventory without even looking properly, so I’d check it while resting.
“They say even Mount Geumgang looks better after a meal, so let’s eat lunch and take a break.”
-Peep?!
[Fire is asking if you’re going to eat ‘that’ you went down and bought earlier!]
“Yeah. You can’t say you went hiking in the mountains without eating kimbap and instant ramen at the summit.”
The kimbap and cup ramen I’d rushed down to buy before heading to the summit.
I spread them out on a gazebo at the peak that nobody could reach anymore.
I didn’t need to worry about the food spoiling.
Fire protected it automatically.
And thanks to Fire’s appetite, the variety was impressive.
Tuna, pork cutlet, red pepper, anchovy kimbap, seafood, vegetable, beef ramen, and more.
I’d bought nearly every kind.
And besides, the vast panorama of the summit.
Seoul and Gyeonggi Province spread out like a painted scene.
Thanks to my enhanced vision from Awakening and my skills, I could see everything in detail.
Gangnam and Seocho District, Lotte Tower, the Han River, and Namsan—all of it.
I’d never been interested in hiking before, but now I understood why people climbed mountains.
“It’s worth the trip. One bite of kimbap with—?!”
-Peep! Peep!
[Fire is saying the combination is amazing!]
[Fire says cup ramen tastes a lot like processed food, but they’ll let it slide because the combination is so good!]
In a single bite, two cups of ramen and two rolls of kimbap disappeared.
Yeah, eat as much as you want.
I’d set aside one roll of kimbap and one bowl of ramen in advance for moments like this.
I leisurely ate while reviewing the materials I’d collected today.
I hadn’t gathered nearly as much as I’d expected.
Burning Stone Tree ×167
Blazing Cotton ×17
“One hundred eighty-four pieces total.”
The Blazing Cotton was particularly sparse.
There was nothing to be done about it.
The problem was simply that so few of them appeared in the first place.
Without the Eye of Nature, I probably wouldn’t have gathered half of what I did.
“Still, this should be enough for the bed and expanding the space.”
First, I needed to fill my stomach properly.
I quickly finished the kimbap I’d set aside and a cup of instant noodles, then started expanding the square footage.
The method was simple enough.
I just had to think about it.
[Burning Stone Tree: (30/30)]
[Condition met successfully!]
[Fire’s Spirit Shelter has expanded by +1 pyeongsu!]
The Spirit Shelter that barely fit my head
“Oh, it’s gotten bigger.”
had grown enough to fit one more in.
Fire and I could enter together with plenty of room now.
‘If I expand it to five pyeongsu, I could go in and rest there too, couldn’t I?’
I’d definitely have to try that later.
If I was going to rest anyway, wasn’t it better to rest a bit more efficiently?
I felt a little bad toward Fire, the owner.
But he’d probably let me if I compensated him with Mana Stones.
Let’s do this right now.
[Burning Stone Tree: (35/35)]
[Condition met successfully!]
[Fire’s Spirit Shelter has expanded by +1 pyeongsu!]
With each condition met, the required Burning Stone Trees increased by five.
If I hadn’t checked carefully, I might have miscounted.
I had just barely enough to cover the bed.
When I finally reached exactly five pyeongsu,
[Burning Stone Tree: (45/45)]
[Condition met successfully!]
[Fire’s Spirit Shelter has expanded by +1 pyeongsu!]
❰Square Footage: 5 pyeongsu❱
[Condition met successfully!]
[Warm Bed (E) is now available for crafting!]
Two pyeongsu had felt spacious enough, but five?
“Wow! Crazy—this is bigger than my studio apartment.”
It was nice to have the space, but the thought that I was living worse than a spirit made me sigh without meaning to.
I’d need to earn money faster.
Though with food and Mana Stones eating through my funds, that wouldn’t happen anytime soon.
Stepping inside the Spirit Shelter, the sense of scale hit me even more.
“Can I make this my actual home?”
—Chirp! Chirp!
[Fire does not wish to trade the sanctuary for a cage!]
[Fire asserts absolutely not!]
“I’m joking, joking. Can I at least come in sometimes?”
—Chirp!
[Fire says it’s possible if you keep your promise!]
He was talking about playing and Mana Stones.
The finicky little thing.
“Fine, go play. Just don’t wander off the Summit.”
—Chirp!
[Fire declares he’s finished eating and will head out right now!]
He stuffed the remaining instant noodles and kimbap into his mouth, then tore around the vicinity in wild bursts of motion.
He scrambled up a tree, clung to the exercise equipment nearby, and exercised with genuine enthusiasm.
Just watching him play, he was genuinely adorable.
You could almost call him a talking puppy.
After confirming that Fire was playing well, I set about crafting a bed.
The process was the same as when I’d increased the space.
I simply thought about it, and the materials gathered themselves for the crafting.
[Burning Stone Tree : (10/10)]
[Blazing Cotton : (5/5)]
[Conditions met successfully!]
[Warm Bed (E) has been completed!]
Installation was just as simple as crafting.
All I had to do was move the bed from my Inventory to wherever I wanted it placed.
Half of the empty Spirit Shelter was now filled with the Warm Bed.
I’d expected it to be small since it was for Fire, but it was large enough for me to lie down comfortably as well.
More importantly, though, were the bed’s effects and abilities.
<Warm Bed (E)>
Description: A bed expertly crafted by blending Burning Stone Tree and Blazing Cotton together! Rest efficiency increases, and you can achieve complete recovery once per day!
“Rest efficiency and complete recovery once a day?”
I’d planned to gather a bit more on my way down and wrap up my day’s work.
Both Fire and I had accumulated considerable fatigue.
‘I should stay until late evening and make the most of it.’
Materials weren’t all there was.
There were Mana Stones too.
I was going to squeeze everything out of today.
All the materials on Gwanak Mountain belonged to me!
To do that, I needed to rest well.
More furniture had become available to craft, but I decided to check on those slowly later.
I took an afternoon nap on the newly crafted bed.
I was just beginning to drift off.
—Caw! Caw!
Slap!
[Fire (EX) has found something fun!]
[Fire (EX) is slapping your cheek to wake you up!]
“Ow, what did you find?”
—Caw! Caw!
[Fire (EX) is urging you to get up!]
[Fire (EX) is scolding you, saying the new bed will get dirty!]
As if it would get that dirty.
As long as it’s actually fun, I don’t mind.
I left the Spirit Shelter and followed Fire.
But where Fire was leading seemed strange.
A cliff.
Peering carefully down below, the height made my head spin.
If I fell wrong, I wouldn’t come out of it unscathed either.
“You’re sure about this?”
—Caw!
[Fire (EX) is urging you to hurry and follow!]
Danger or not, there was nothing to lose.
My gain was ultimately Fire’s gain anyway.
Even as a prankster, Fire wouldn’t pull something this reckless.
Carefully descending the cliff, I spotted a small entrance just barely large enough for one person to squeeze through.
“Is this it?”
—Caw!
[Fire (EX) nods vigorously!]
It wasn’t a Gate.
Even using the Eye of Nature, it appeared to be just an ordinary small cave formed naturally.
Inside was a modestly-sized chamber with all sides sealed off.
I couldn’t see what was supposed to be fun about it.
The moment I stepped in, I thought there was nothing special about this place either.
[You have discovered the Forgotten Absolute One’s Trial!]
[Will you begin the Forgotten Absolute One’s Trial?]
[Yes/No]
“Hm? Something was here after all?”
-Congratulations. You have discovered a trial created by a being from another dimension.
“You don’t mean a Lucky Opportunity, do you?”
-Yes. It is an event trial that generates randomly across terrain in each country. Upon completion, you should be able to obtain fairly decent rewards. The difficulty is somewhat elevated, however.
It was worth trusting and following along.
The rewards gained from clearing such trials transcend imagination.
An Awakened One with an F-Rank Trait seizes the top position among Awakened Ones through event trial rewards alone.
Some even gain an entirely new Trait from scratch.
Clone speaks truly—the difficulty is indeed quite high.
Those are only the success stories; most died without anyone knowing.
“Yes!”
How hard could it be?
I have Fire, the Spirit King of Flames, at my side.
Let’s begin at once.
My vision darkened, then gradually returned from the center outward.
What appeared first was a vast plain.
It resembled a Disposable Mana Stone Dungeon, except the surroundings were dim and shadowed.
The sprawling fields were all withered, giving the impression of a Land of Death.
Land where no life seemed to exist.
“Ghrrroooow.”
“Ghrrroooow.”
Ghouls, monsters that mirrored the landscape itself, were scattered in all directions.
Fortunately they were typical E-Rank monsters, but the real problem was their number.
‘At least several thousand of them.’
The high difficulty rating wasn’t for nothing.
But the objective of the trial wasn’t anything as simple as eliminating them all.
[You have arrived at the Forgotten Absolute One’s Trial.]
[Survive for one hour as a single individual with all abilities at 1.]
[Survival: 1 second/1 hour]
As the system message appeared, a wave of exhaustion crashed over my entire body.
The same held true for Fire.
I couldn’t use skills at all.
There was nothing surprising about it.
I immediately activated the Warm Bed ability from the Spirit Shelter.
[Fire (EX)’s all abilities are restored!]
Since it wasn’t fixed-duration, the Warm Bed’s effect was immediate.
Energy surged back, and Fire unleashed skills without restraint.
Exactly one hour later.
[You have cleared the Forgotten Absolute One’s Trial!]
[Survival: 1 hour/1 hour]
[You have successfully cleared the Forgotten Absolute One’s Trial with overwhelming dominance!]
[You obtain Lowest-Grade Mana Stone (F) × 1,005!]
[You obtain Low-Grade Mana Stone (E) × 754!]
[You obtain Mid-Low Grade Mana Stone (D) × 350!]
[You obtain Mid-Grade Mana Stone (C) × 183!]
[You obtain Mid-High Grade Mana Stone (B) × 13!]
[You obtain High-Grade Mana Stone (A) × 3!]
[Item: Random Treasure Chest (SSS) obtained!]
“……SSS?!”
I was speechless.
To obtain the ultimate pinnacle of all ranks!
And such an abundance of Mana Stones at that!
I postponed detailed inspection for later.
Even after spending an hour in the Warm Bed, my body hadn’t recovered in the slightest.
Staggering to my feet, I left the trial and gasped for breath.
It had been brutally exhausting.
“It was worth the effort.”
-Wheee!
[Fire (EX) cries out: ‘I did all the work, so what effort are you talking about!’]
I dismissed the words with a light wave.
I hurried to focus on recovery.

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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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