I Just Subscribed and It’s the Best Hunter of All Time - Chapter 58

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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 58.
Broadly speaking, the undead fall into two categories.
One consists of undead created by dark mages.
These are typically formed by infusing mana directly into corpses that have undergone various preparations.
The other category comprises undead that arise naturally when ordinary corpses are subjected to various environmental conditions and mana influence.
“Do you know the method for distinguishing between the two?”
―Not really. I’ve never given it much thought.
“Well, it doesn’t matter much unless you’re a dark mage. But for dark mages, it’s crucial.”
Jung Han-sung spoke while observing the undead drawing closer.
“The easiest method is checking for the presence of a mark. Naturally spawned undead don’t have marks.”
―A mark?
“Yes. A dark mage’s mark.”
Jung Han-sung extended his hand toward the approaching undead.
“If an undead bears a mark, even a dark mage cannot easily interfere with it. For example, all the undead in the Mansion of the Serial Killer and the Hidden Floor connected to it bore marks.”
That’s why I had no choice but to defeat them directly.
“But what if there’s no mark?”
Whoooosh!
A brilliant gleam flashed across my eyes, and from my outstretched hand, black flames erupted with a crackling sound.
“This becomes possible.”
Then, the moment I clenched my fist.
Fwoooosh!
The flames split into dozens of fragments and scattered in all directions.
Rather than dispersing into empty space, the fragmented flames were drawn toward the undead approaching me.
―Grraahhh…!
―Krrgh…!
The undead froze in place, writhing as if on cue.
But only for a moment.
Soon the undead lifted their heads again.
―Graaaaaahhh!
―Grrrhhhhh!
They turned and began charging toward the undead that had been pursuing them.
―Grrwaahhh!
―Graaahhhhh!
I laughed at the sight.
“I just need to repeat this a few more times.”
Now those undead belong to me.
Of course, compared to the undead still filling the Cemetery, the number I had marked was still small.
―Grrwaahhh!
But the marked undead threw themselves forward, blocking the approach of the others.
Fwoooosh!
Jung Han-sung simply stood in place and repeated the same process over and over.
When his mana depleted somewhat, he took brief respites.
Whoosh.
Crack!
Then he repeated the same process again.
As he continued this cycle relentlessly, at some point the undead standing guard over Jung Han-sung outnumbered those charging at him.
When Jung Han-sung began to overwhelm through sheer numbers, instead of summoning more undead, he deployed a different dark art.
It was the synthesis dark art that the Owner of Necronomicon had taught him.
“Devour them. Absorb them. And grow stronger.”
This synthesis dark art wasn’t something that could be applied to only one target at a time.
Rather, the method he was using now aligned far better with its original intent.
Crunch!
The undead under Jung Han-sung’s command lunged at other undead according to his instructions, devouring and absorbing them.
Now that he had deployed the synthesis dark art, Jung Han-sung had nothing left to do.
He simply stood still and watched the undead fight amongst themselves.
After some time passed like that.
[Tombstone Purification: 92/500]
A message window materialized before Jung Han-sung’s eyes.
Upon seeing it, Jung Han-sung immediately grasped what those numbers meant.
‘It must be the total number of undead versus those remaining.’
The numbers continued to decrease in real time even as he thought this.
Jung Han-sung crossed his arms and shifted his gaze back to the undead.
“They’re changing progressively.”
―Looking at them now, no one would believe these were ever ordinary zombies.
Onyx also expressed agreement with Jung Han-sung’s observation.
Originally they moved sluggishly and looked distinctly like common zombies, but now their very appearance had transformed.
Some had developed what looked like gray chitinous plating across their bodies.
Crunch!
Another zombie attempted to bite through it, but its teeth couldn’t penetrate—not even a scratch appeared.
―They look similar to ghouls.
Just as Onyx said, they resembled ghouls, which were considered higher-tier undead than ordinary zombies.
These comprised the majority of the transformed creatures.
And several zombies had transformed in a different manner altogether.
―Those ones seem to be getting progressively more intact.
The bodies of zombies that had originally appeared half-decomposed gradually filled in with flesh.
As if they were being resurrected.
Of course, upon closer inspection, differences remained. Their skin appeared ashen and pallid, and their eyes lacked focus.
Conversely, some were progressively shedding flesh.
Like skeletons, in other words.
However, while ordinary skeletons showed little difference from zombies in terms of combat prowess, these skeletons moved with far greater agility and possessed considerably greater strength.
Crack!
Just moments ago, a skeleton had decapitated all three zombies surrounding it in a single blow.
Watching this, Jung Han-sung reaffirmed what he already knew.
‘Even when synthesizing the same type of undead, different results can emerge. Because their inherent natures differ.’
That’s why, though they all started as ordinary zombies, their outcomes diverged. And there was one more thing.
‘The more undead they consume, the stronger they become.’
However, simply consuming more undead didn’t automatically make them stronger.
The degree of enhancement varied slightly from undead to undead.
―But there seems to be a limit, Master.
“Right. I’d wager Kuhuelt and Karon wouldn’t change much no matter how many ordinary zombies they devoured.”
These zombies were evolving so rapidly precisely because their initial level was so low.
The fact that they were all at similar power levels to begin with certainly played a role too.
The undead themselves seemed to instinctively understand this—once they’d undergone sufficient enhancement, they stopped consuming other undead.
[Cemetery Purification Progress: 51/500]
And so the numbers continued to dwindle.
[Cemetery Purification Progress: 36/500]
[Cemetery Purification Progress: 13/500]
[Cemetery Purification Progress: 4/500]
[Cemetery Purification Progress: 0/500]
And finally, the moment that number reached zero.
[Cemetery Purification Complete!]
[43rd Floor Objective Achieved]
[You receive Essence of Darkness as a reward]
[Record Time Achievement…]
The same clear message I’d seen countless times before appeared.
But this time, it didn’t end there.
[You have purified the Cemetery through a special method]
[The entrance to the Hidden Floor has opened]
Immediately after two messages appeared.
Rumble!
The ground trembled, and with a grinding sound, what had been hidden beneath the earth not far away revealed itself.
“A Staircase?”
Beneath the fissured earth lay a Staircase.
[Descending the Staircase will grant immediate entry to the Hidden Floor (Floor 44). If you return, your next entry can be to either the Hidden Floor or the regular 44th Floor]
“Hmm.”
After reading through the lengthy message, I made my decision immediately.
To descend the Staircase.
“My body’s been itching for action anyway—this works out perfectly.”
Securing a wealth of undead was good and all, but simply watching from the sidelines had grown a bit tedious.
I gathered the scattered undead around me.
“Hmm. Around forty-two, I’d say.”
According to the message, there had originally been roughly five hundred entities, so their numbers had dwindled to less than a tenth.
Yet in exchange, each individual was incomparably superior to ordinary low-grade undead.
Jung Han-sung extended his hand forward, then drew upon his mana once more.
Crack!
He then severed a portion of their rib fragments. Since this too was a form of sorcery, a single gesture sufficed.
Whoooosh!
Next, as he infused mana into the bone fragments, the undead’s forms grew hazy before vanishing entirely.
In their place, Jung Han-sung’s hand held only forty-two bone fragments.
Clink.
He placed them into an appropriate pouch and stored it in his inventory, then turned to descend the Staircase.
Down the damp Staircase he went, and the moment his foot touched the final step.
Creeeeak—.
With the sound of weathered hinges, a door swung open of its own accord, and a message materialized before his eyes.
[Objective: Eliminate the Roiling Darkness]
[Time Limit: 2 hours]
Roiling Darkness.
Jung Han-sung’s eyes narrowed upon reading that name. Certainly, among those he had defeated before, there had been one bearing a similar designation.
‘The 41st Floor. Was it the Creeping Darkness?’
To verify the power of the newly crafted Karon, he had entrusted the 41st Floor solely to Kuhuelt and Karon.
Without need for his intervention, the two had combined their strength to dispatch the Creeping Darkness.
“Hmm.”
Yet Jung Han-sung did not grow complacent.
‘If it were at a similar level, it wouldn’t appear as the boss of Floor 44, much less the Hidden Floor.’
Especially this time, there were no other miscellaneous missions—only the elimination of the Roiling Darkness was required.
Typically in such cases, the enemy’s level proved considerably formidable.
Jung Han-sung organized his thoughts, then stepped beyond the door.
Thud, thud—.
His footsteps echoed through the Darkness.
Jung Han-sung glanced about briefly, then retrieved something from his inventory and hurled it to secure his vision.
Thunk—.
A solid, ore-like object struck the ground before suddenly bursting forth with brilliant luminescence.
A luminous stone—an item frequently used when exploring Dungeons.
The moment brilliant light flooded the interior.
Grrrrrumble—!
The ‘Darkness’ clinging to the periphery emitted an eerie sound, vibrated, then began converging toward a single point.
“The Roiling Darkness, then.”
Jung Han-sung murmured, observing the Darkness gathered in one place.
It churned ceaselessly like boiling liquid, constantly shifting its form.
Witnessing it stirred an instinctive sense of revulsion.
Jung Han-sung extended his sword slightly forward, drawing mana up sharply.
In that instant.
Whoosh—!
The roiling Darkness suddenly surged outward with a violent rush, engulfing Jung Han-sung.
Screeeech!
He hurled himself sideways, slashing his blade through the onslaught.
The Darkness’s form split cleanly in two. But it was only momentary. It knitted itself back together as though nothing had happened.
It bore a striking resemblance to the creeping Darkness from before.
‘What in the world are these things?’
I’d faced creatures like this once already, yet their true nature remained a mystery.
Even searching for information yielded nothing concrete.
But encountering them a second time suggested the probability of a third and fourth meeting was quite high.
Crackle, crackle, crackle!
‘Lightning first, then.’
I converted the mana channeled through my blade into lightning and slashed at the Darkness surging toward me once more.
Thunderous crack!
With the sound of thunder, my blade cut through its form again.
But the result differed from before. The severed portion didn’t easily reattach, and after hesitating several times, it abandoned the attempt and attacked anew.
It had been the same last time.
‘The moment Kuhuelt chanted his incantation, Karon’s attacks began landing properly.’
I wasn’t certain, but I suspected it only took damage from attacks imbued with mana.
As the creature continued its assault, I slashed repeatedly with my blade, turning the thought over in my mind.
‘This is too easy?’
My earlier tension seemed wasted—it showed little difference from the creeping Darkness.
Its attacks consisted of nothing more than spreading its body or extending tentacle-like appendages to strike.
At this rate, the battle would end before I’d even warmed up.
But the moment I thought that.
Rumble, rumble!
Again, that sickening sound pierced my ears. And immediately after.
Screeeeeech!
Its body exploded outward, scattering in all directions.
—Onyx!
I interpreted it as an attack and immediately issued a command to Onyx.
Onyx swiftly formed a shield, protecting the front.
Screech!
The scattered Darkness splattered against the shield before falling to the ground.
But the impact I’d anticipated never came. At most, it felt like a downpour of water cascading against the shield.
I realized something was wrong only after lowering the shield.
Somehow, the surroundings had become engulfed in complete Darkness.
A Darkness so absolute that I couldn’t see even an inch ahead.

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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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