My Skeleton Soldier Is Strange - Chapter 162

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 162
Boom! Rumble!
A thunderous tremor shook the earth as a colossal Volcano erupted skyward, shaking the very foundations of the world. The sight of it tearing through the ground and surging upward resembled a primordial giant born from chaos itself, awakening from an ancient slumber.
With a deafening roar, the Volcano seeped into another realm hidden within darkness. It advanced, shattering obsidian walls and carving chasms in its wake.
Crash! Boom!
Relentless tremors continued without pause. Finally, with an explosion that shook all existence, the Volcano revealed itself in this new world. Upon its darkened peak, still seated upon the throne, I remained visible.
“Hmm.”
A brief, indifferent murmur escaped my lips, yet my eyes burned with an intense ambition to dominate all creation. My gaze began to methodically sweep across this new realm.
Dazzling marble structures filled my vision. Towering columns that seemed to pierce the heavens, walls adorned with intricate and ornate sculptures and reliefs. The sublime atmosphere unique to the Temple permeated the entire space.
“It’s larger than the Volcano?”
A murmur tinged with astonishment escaped my lips as I beheld this colossal Temple.
The aura surrounding the Temple was eerily serene.
Then it happened.
Golden radiance cascaded from the Temple like a waterfall. The brilliant golden light dispelled the darkness and illuminated the surroundings with blinding brilliance.
What began to emerge slowly from within the Temple were statues forged from gold. With each step they took, the heavy metallic sound of clashing metal resonated. Their ornately decorated armor made it abundantly clear these were no ordinary Armored Knights.
The Armored Knight statues turned their heads in unison toward the Volcano. Their eyes blazed with crimson fire, brimming with an insatiable hunger for battle. As if awakening from a prolonged slumber, they revealed their primal instinct to seek out enemies. The sight of them extending their weapon-wielding arms forward and assuming combat stances heightened the tension.
The Volcano, witnessing this spectacle, released a resonant groan.
“Kuuuuh….”
The thunderous low rumble shook the earth itself. It was as though the Volcano itself suffered in agony. Yet simultaneously, it was a thrill before imminent battle. Responding to this signal, the Volcano prepared to defend itself.
The ground of the Volcano trembled, and countless arms suddenly erupted from the earth. These arms, composed of pitch-black stone, resembled those of giants. Their size transcended imagination, and their appearance was utterly grotesque. Innumerable arms writhed and obscured the sky.
The golden Armored Knights roared and charged toward the Volcano. Their war cries echoed across the Battlefield, revealing their hatred and determination toward their foe. The Knights rushed forward at tremendous speed, their footsteps shaking the earth and raising clouds of dust. The heavy, resonant sound of their armor and the relentless clang of colliding metal announced the opening of battle.
The Volcano swung its arms against the Knights’ ferocious assault. Dozens of arms whirled in a frenzy of chaos, overwhelming the enemy. Dark shadows draped across the Battlefield, and pitch-black silence descended. Fingers armed with claws tore through the air, and stone fists lashed out in all directions.
The collision of the two forces reached its crescendo in an instant. The violent sound of stone and metal clashing assaulted the ears. Amid the deafening roar, fragments of shattered rock scattered before the eyes. The Knights, despite sustaining wounds to their armor, wielded their blades without retreating an inch. The brilliantly gleaming golden blades scraped across stone surfaces and severed the dark rocky arms.
Severed arms tumbled to the ground, yet the Volcano did not easily crumble. From where the lost arms had been, new ones erupted like flames. Like fresh flesh growing over a wound, the Volcano regenerated its broken parts. Even if severed, an endless procession of new arms continued to rise. The dark wave engulfed the Knights and sought to consume the entire Battlefield.
Countless arms forced their way between the golden armor and seeped through. Though the valiant Knights resisted, they were overwhelmed against the surging tide of malice. The endlessly regenerating arms dominated through sheer numbers and momentum. Before the Volcano’s regenerative power, the Knights’ blades could only grow dull.
Boom!
Then it happened.
Innumerable arms began sprouting from the Volcano. From severed places and fractured crevices, countless arms rose like fresh flesh. They resembled massive tentacles composed of dark stone. The vast multitude of arms completely overwhelmed the Knights.
Ultimately, the Knights were crushed beneath a tidal wave of arms. They swung their blades desperately, yet could not pierce through the advancing wall of stone. Soon, the Volcano’s arms pierced through the golden armor and burrowed into flesh.
In an instant, the warriors clad in golden armor crumbled to dust and vanished. The statues in the form of Knights shattered into fragments and powder. Their bodies broke apart, and their souls were annihilated.
“Resurrect them.”
I issued a command, observing all that had transpired.
The Volcano responded to the resurrection magic with a resonant howl. Brilliant crimson lava surged from the Crater like magma. The scorching blood of stone consumed the golden dust of the Knights. The enemy’s remains melted into the lava like molten metal.
A red river of flowing, melted fragments of the Knights. Within that liquid, something began to take form. The lava, infused with the spirits of the dead, was shaping itself.
Soon the lava took on a human form. A body sculpted from molten metal and minerals, a flesh brimming with searing heat and magical power. The Lava Knights rose again, transcending death itself.
A faint smile played at the corners of my mouth as I watched the Knights’ resurrection.
* * *
I advanced toward the magnificent Temple, accompanied by the resurrected Knights and the colossal Volcano. However, as I reached the Temple’s entrance, the Volcano suddenly halted.
“Kuuuuh….”
The Volcano released a dissatisfied groan.
At the sound, Kim Jae-beom halted and alternated his gaze between the Temple and the Volcano. Only then did he realize the Temple’s scale was far too diminutive to accommodate the Volcano’s entrance. As a structure, it could only appear insignificant compared to the Volcano’s magnitude.
After a moment of contemplation, Kim Jae-beom spoke.
“You wait here.”
His voice carried an unwavering resolve as he issued the command.
“Kuoooh….”
The Volcano released another mournful cry, clearly reluctant. It seemed displeased at the prospect of being unable to enter alongside its master.
At that very moment, small fragments cascaded from the Volcano’s body. Scattered stone debris across the ground began moving of their own accord, swiftly adhering to one another.
The fragments coalesced at remarkable speed, taking form. Diminutive volcanoes the size of humans were being sculpted from the shattered pieces.
Separated from the colossal Volcano, they resembled miniature avatars. Though reduced in scale, they bore an unmistakable resemblance to the original. Their bodies composed of jagged rock, their craters radiating crimson heat as if alive and trembling.
Before long, dozens of small volcanoes stood arrayed before Kim Jae-beom.
A faint smile graced his lips at their bizarre yet endearing appearance. The Volcano’s determination to follow him pleased him greatly. Now the Temple’s interior would present no obstacle regarding the Volcano’s size.
Kim Jae-beom nodded as he observed the small volcanoes lined in formation. A warm smile adorned his face, and camaraderie gleamed within his eyes.
“Good. Let us enter together.”
His voice brimmed with trust in the small volcanoes.
In that instant, brilliant crimson light erupted from the craters of the small volcanoes. Scorching magma surged skyward with a deafening roar. Incandescent lava laden with volcanic ash cascaded through the volcanoes’ fissures.
The searing heat devastated the surroundings. The air roiled from the inferno, and the earth was drenched in intense crimson radiance. Blazing lava swept across all directions like raging flames.
The whirling vortex encircling the small volcanoes resembled a hellscape rendered in reality itself.
At the magma’s eruption, the golden Armored Knights hastily retreated. They appeared diminished before the scorching heat that threatened to sear their flesh. Trembling with fear, they desperately withdrew to create distance from the small volcanoes.
Kim Jae-beom observed the cascading lava with composure before crying out to the small volcanoes with a commanding voice.
“Lead the way.”
Thud-thud!
The small volcanoes surged forward without hesitation. The miniaturized volcanoes charged toward the Temple with resolute strides. The stone legion engulfed in lava resembled a blazing procession.
Their appearance radiated an unstoppable charging instinct that would intimidate even the most fearsome of monsters.
Satisfaction bloomed across Kim Jae-beom’s face as he witnessed the spectacle.
Kim Jae-beom gestured lightly to the Armored Knights—a silent signal to advance toward the Temple together.
The knights clad in golden armor responded immediately. They too strode forward in the wake of the small volcanoes with measured determination. Their advance toward the Temple was imbued with unwavering resolve.
The Necromancer, the Armored Knight, and the Volcano—a special battalion forged in unity. They marched toward the Temple in perfect synchronization. The earth trembled beneath their footfalls, and armor rang with metallic resonance.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————