Level -99 Archmage - Chapter 106

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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 106. Ominous God Baal
How long had it been since he left the Hidden Treasure Vault?
The moment he stepped through the entrance, crafting of the Specialized Equipment had begun.
Aheta had supplied all the materials needed for the crafting, so nothing remained but to wait for the result.
When the Second Night ended, Park Chan-woo returned home and gazed quietly out the window, waiting for the outcome.
And then.
“……Huh.”
When the result appeared, he barely swallowed a groan that nearly escaped his lips.
It was because the word “Critical Success”—which appeared only at an extremely low probability during equipment crafting—had suddenly surfaced in his mind.
Even master artisans who possessed the Blacksmith class had less than a 1% chance of achieving a “Critical Success” in their crafting.
And the higher the grade of the equipment, the lower that probability became.
There were virtually no documented cases of “Critical Success” with Specialized Equipment.
‘A Critical Success.’
The effect of the Easter Egg (001).
It seemed the effect that brought one fortune per level gain, stacked five times, had manifested as this “Critical Success” result.
Any other explanation would have been impossible.
Moreover, when a “Critical Success” occurred, the required materials increased.
Occasionally, insufficient materials meant the equipment couldn’t be crafted despite the success.
Yet even that—Aheta had supplied everything.
More than bone-deep, surely it must have cut to the marrow.
Even Aheta, the Creator with the most treasures in existence, must have taken an enormous blow.
“…I didn’t know I could obtain Zero Grade equipment now.”
What struck him most was that this Baal’s Belt was graded as “Zero.”
Zero Grade.
Only by reaching level 99 and opening a Diamond Box—that miracle of possibilities—could one obtain Zero Grade equipment.
There were five grades of boxes obtainable in the Abyss.
Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond.
The Diamond was the highest grade of box, so naturally the process of obtaining it was grueling beyond measure.
One had to run through countless high-difficulty Creative Abyss dungeons created by Named Creators to obtain even a single one.
It couldn’t be obtained at all in ordinary Creative Abyss dungeons.
In the past, he had exhausted every effort to acquire Zero Grade equipment.
‘I must have opened a hundred Diamond Boxes trying to get Zero Grade gear.’
It had been truly grueling work.
Even looking back, it had been insane.
He hadn’t slept, running Diamond Box runs without rest.
He’d run through the Abyss so much he’d nearly gotten sick.
Even after opening roughly a hundred Diamond Boxes, not a single piece of Zero Grade equipment had emerged.
‘Even thinking about it now, my head still aches.’
His headache was actually beginning to flare up.
His head throbbed as though touched by flame.
Diamond Box runs?
If asked to do it again, he would never comply.
Zero Grade did appear in Diamond Boxes, but the probability was below 0.1%.
It might have been far lower than that.
‘The only Zero Grade piece I had was the Sealing Demon God’s Chalice.’
The Sealing Demon God’s Chalice had been his sole “Zero” Grade possession.
He hadn’t even obtained that through a Diamond Box.
Yet here he was—not even at level 99—having obtained “Zero Grade” equipment.
The equipment level was slightly disappointing, but there was no reason to complain when he’d obtained something theoretically impossible.
‘This is my first piece of such equipment.’
Gulp.
Park Chan-woo swallowed.
Zero Grade equipment.
Moreover, Brilliant Exclusive Equipment.
‘Equipment with Set Effects receives better treatment even at the same grade.’
And on top of that, it even possessed a Set Effect.
In short.
‘It surpasses any equipment I obtained before the regression.’
This was simply legendary.
It was the first and finest piece of equipment in his entire life.
I’d venture to say it’s catastrophic in scale.
Of course, I should verify it first.
But I could be certain of its supremacy without even checking.
‘Anyway…….’
Park Chan-woo gazed slowly at Baal’s Belt.
Its appearance held nothing particularly striking.
A somewhat thick black leather belt.
‘There’s an engraving on it.’
The only notable feature was the massive beast carved into the belt’s front surface.
The beast possessed four eyes, and only one of them held a crimson jewel embedded within it.
The other three eyes were hollow and empty.
‘Baal. A being depicted as a demon in Christian tradition.’
At least it bore a different form than the Baal he knew of.
Nothing but a grotesque beast remained.
What would change if he filled in those three empty eyes?
When he reached out and touched the belt, the texture felt rough, with a faint crackling sensation coursing through his fingertips.
A material he’d never seen before.
It appeared to be crafted from a substance as peculiar as the mana patterns it bore.
Or rather, to be more precise…….
‘It seems to be made from the hide of the beast depicted on the belt.’
Baal’s hide.
He didn’t know what manner of being Baal was, but at least there was no demon among them that carried that name.
There should be one. Yet there wasn’t.
Wasn’t that strange?
Wasn’t that odd?
In reality, many demons bore the names of ‘demons’ famous even on Earth.
For instance, that demon spirit he’d encountered in Kim Byeong-han’s Sniper Abyss before.
The demon he believed to be the Grieving Glasya-Labolas was no exception.
For Glasya-Labolas was one of Solomon’s 72 Demons.
Beyond that, the Abyss contained numerous names from among the 72 Demons.
And most of them were Named Creators.
Yet Baal was absent.
At least, from what he knew.
‘The names of mighty lords are not casually adopted by other demons.’
It’s a matter of respect.
Furthermore, the lords of the Abyss disliked demons bearing their own names.
They alone were meant to be unique and incomparable.
In other words.
‘Is this the name of an ancient lord?’
It was possible.
Baal could have been the name of a lord who vanished long ago.
If such a lord was worthy of honor across the ages, it would make sense that demons refrained from using the name Baal out of respect.
The external examination was complete.
Now all that remained was to discern the belt’s true nature.
He concentrated, and at once a Status Window materialized before him.
Name: Baal’s Belt (Brilliant Exclusive Equipment)
Level: -84
Grade: Zero
Description: Presumed to be a trans-dimensional belt crafted from the hide of the Ominous God Baal, one of the four beasts wielded by the Creator God who formed the Abyss. The creator and purpose remain unknown, but legend holds that gathering the four related pieces of equipment and breaking the seal will summon the Ominous God Baal.
★ Due to the Brilliant Exclusive Equipment effect, defense has been amplified threefold. Additionally, all unique options are enhanced.
Equip Slot: Belt
Defense: 450
Durability: Indestructible
Unique Options:
(1) Strength +66
(2) Stamina +66
(3) Divine Authority Roar of the Ominous God (Legendary) usable
(4) All regeneration increased twofold
Set Effect:
(2) Upon collecting 2 pieces of set equipment, Absolute One becomes usable
(3) ??? – Information will unlock when you collect two set pieces of equipment.
(4) ?? – Information will unlock when you collect three set pieces of equipment.
The instant he reviewed the information.
Park Chan-woo’s eyes widened to the size of lanterns.
He had moved beyond mere surprise or shock.
“…This is absurd.”
It simply was absurd.
For Zero Grade equipment, no matter what, these were options far more exceptional than anything he had seen before.
The fact that a single piece of equipment had raised his stats by roughly 130 was already nonsensical, but the unique option effects of items 3 and 4 were far more so.
Equipment that granted the use of Divine Authority.
Baal’s Roar seemed to be a Divine Authority that conferred the ‘fear’ effect possessed by powerful monsters.
Since it was Divine Authority rather than magic, it would grant an absolute effect.
And moreover.
‘All regeneration—health and mana, and even regeneration granted through magic—it meant all of it would double.’
Nothing was wasted.
There were only the most necessary options.
Not only did it solve a substantial part of his chronic stamina problem, but he possessed what was called ‘Super Regeneration,’ a grand spell.
Even the magical effect of Super Regeneration would double.
…It was insane.
Had anyone seen this, they would cry out—to tell no lies—at options of this caliber.
‘The set effect is confirmed, then.’
He examined the description and set effect once more.
It was equipment made up of four parts.
He wasn’t certain what it meant exactly to be able to use the ‘Absolute One’ upon collecting two parts, but judging by the description, it seemed related to the Ominous God Baal.
‘…Ominous God, then.’
There were indeed beings called by this name now and then.
Monsters like gods that drove all to despair and dragged them toward hell.
But either they themselves called themselves ‘Ominous God,’ or it was simply a name we gave them.
There was no true ‘Ominous God.’
A vicious deity. A being that truly possessed Divine Status.
Yet given the belt’s description and nature, there was a strong possibility that Baal was a genuine Ominous God.
‘One of the Creator God’s four beasts.’
The Creator God who made the Abyss.
One who hid toys throughout the Abyss, likely the master of the ‘Easter Egg.’
If it was a beast of the Creator God, it would naturally possess Divine Status.
But this was, after all, merely ‘conjecture.’
There was no text that explained it with certainty.
Once he unsealed all four seals, he would be able to learn more precisely.
‘Three of them are in Aheta’s Hidden Treasure Vault.’
……At the same time, he understood.
The Lord of the Moon, Aheta.
Why he had been so desperate to hide those three treasures.
For if they were treasures related to the Creator God, one would naturally want to challenge for them.
Moreover, the instant it became known, Lords from all corners of the Abyss would flock and vie to claim them.
Aheta alone could not withstand their assault.
So he had hidden them.
So no one could know.
So no one could find them.
He had kept it absolutely secret.
He never would have dreamed that a human like Park Chan-woo would appear.
‘If I can only enter the Hidden Treasure Vault in the Third Night and Fourth Night…….’
At minimum, he would secure three pieces.
Simply obtaining those three would transform his combat strength in remarkable ways.
After all, items from the Hidden Treasure Vault cannot be hidden elsewhere.
The security of such a vault was maintained to that degree.
They were preserved under absolute rules.
To make it so that any being whatsoever could only follow its law, objects had to be fixed in that place.
Aheta himself, the master of the treasure vault, could not manipulate the Hidden Treasure Vault freely.
A smile formed.
‘I look forward to it in the Third Night as well. Lord of the Moon, Aheta.’
The Lord of the Moon, Aheta, was surely a tree that gave without reservation.
Though whether he bestowed upon Han Shin as generously as he did upon Park Chan-woo remained a question.
Now only a final confirmation remained.
‘Status Window.’
Park Chan-woo opened his Status Window to survey the changes within himself.
And.
“Hmm……?”
His brows furrowed.
The state of his Status Window differed from what he’d anticipated.
……It fell far beyond the scope of his expectations, in fact.

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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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