My Skeleton Soldier Is Strange - Chapter 76

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

Chapter 76
A violent crimson radiance erupted from the colossal Specter’s form. Uncontrolled energy swept outward in all directions, consuming everything in its path. Brilliant scarlet rays pierced the heavens, and the entire Dark Forest was engulfed in their blinding luminescence.
—Kraaaagh!
The Specter’s body crumbled at an accelerating pace. Its skin fractured, flesh tearing away in strips. Pulverized bone and tissue scattered in all directions. A horrific shriek—a sound of absolute agony—erupted from the creature’s maw. Its face contorted in torment, its eyes wild with madness, now flooded with despair.
—No! This cannot be!
The rampaging energy shredded the Specter’s body, spreading outward with devastating force. The heat it released set the surrounding air ablaze, and trees ignited, transforming into ash. A colossal inferno tornado erupted around the Specter. It was as though the karmic flames of a crimson hell were ascending toward the sky itself.
The violent maelstrom of energy consumed the Specter entirely. Flesh and bone liquefied, losing all form. Its massive body decomposed to atomic particles in an instant, vanishing completely. As the physical form dissolved, the Specter’s soul manifested within the crimson radiance—now a free entity, unbound by material constraints.
Yet the runaway energy incinerated even the soul. The spirit writhed and twisted within the flames. Anguished screams echoed across the landscape. And then, the soul too was utterly annihilated. Fragments of the burning, torn spirit transformed into ash and scattered into the void.
At last, everything ended. The intense crimson glow faded, and the tempest subsided. The colossal Specter had completely vanished, leaving not even a trace of its existence. Only desolate ash drifted upon the wind. The powerful malevolent aura was entirely purified, and tranquility returned to the Dark Forest. In that moment of obliteration, the Specter met absolute death.
Ding!
A cheerful chime resonated within Kim Jae-beom’s mind.
[You have defeated the Specter using Overload Authority.]
[You have acquired control of the Shadow Citadel First Floor.]
“Hmm?”
The reward for eliminating the Specter was none other than control of the Shadow Citadel’s first floor.
Whoosh!
From the ashes where the Specter had vanished, a crimson glow soon blossomed. Beginning as a faint luminescence, it intensified gradually, illuminating the surroundings. The ruby-like radiant point, reminiscent of a star in the night sky, gradually took on a spherical form.
A low hum echoed as the rounded object slowly rose above the ash. The sphere, blazing with vivid scarlet hues, drifted through the air like a phantom. Strange patterns on its surface pulsed with light. Within that crimson sphere, which resembled the heart of a living creature, an immense reservoir of energy seemed to dwell.
The sphere circled above the Specter’s remains, wandering aimlessly. It drifted back and forth before finally approaching Kim Jae-beom and coming to rest before him.
In that moment, a remarkable transformation occurred. The sphere’s form grew indistinct, gradually reshaping itself into something entirely different. Its crimson surface undulated, contracting and expanding in rhythmic waves.
—Grooooan!
The sphere elongated into an increasingly slender form, its surface patterns reorganizing into intricate designs. Soon it was reborn as an ornately decorated key.
The key, glowing ruby-red, was covered in delicate carvings. Bizarre yet beautiful patterns adorned its surface. The handle bore a sculpture resembling a demon’s visage, emanating an ominous aura.
From the key, I could feel the Specter’s formidable energy intact. It radiated an overwhelming aura, as though it retained all the power the Specter had possessed.
Whoosh.
I reached out toward the key.
Boom!
The moment my hand touched the key, an intense crimson light burst forth. As if the key had been waiting for my touch, it flew directly into my palm. The instant it made contact with my skin, the key blazed with dazzling brilliance, igniting with fierce flames.
The crimson energy pouring from the key surged through my arm and spread throughout my entire body. Like fire meeting fuel, the scarlet radiance rapidly consumed my skin. In the blink of an eye, my entire form was engulfed in crimson light.
As the intense energy surged explosively, I accepted its power without pain. Rather, the sensation of the force being absorbed into my body felt strangely natural. It was as though the key’s power was merging with my very existence.
The crimson light seeped into my skin, flowing through my veins. Following the pulse of blood from my heart to every extremity, the key’s power penetrated into every corner of my being. Each cell seemed to become saturated with that energy.
As the radiance faded, no visible changes appeared in my body. My appearance remained unchanged. Yet something within me had undeniably transformed.
Beneath my skin, a faint crimson glow stirred. It was evidence that the power received from the key lived and breathed within my body. The Specter’s tremendous energy had become part of me.
“So there are invisible rewards as well.”
Officially, my stats had not increased. Yet I could distinctly feel that my body had changed.
“Now let me head to the first floor.”
Ye-jin had been dead for some time now.
I could now act alone. For that reason, I returned to the Shadow Citadel First Floor.
* * *
The Shadow Citadel First Floor had transformed into a devastated ruin.
“It’s completely destroyed.”
What had once been a magnificent chamber now lay revealed as a scene of utter devastation, buried beneath rubble and debris.
The floor bore vivid scars from the fierce battle with the Specter. Enormous craters gaped across its surface, and deep gouges scarred it in every direction.
The Marble Floor had been shattered as though by the fist of a giant, its surface a tragic ruin. Fragments of broken stone and dust lay scattered in chaotic heaps throughout the space.
The fortress’s pillars had not withstood the Specter’s overwhelming power and had collapsed entirely. Shattered stone columns lay in rough, broken pieces scattered about the chamber. Those massive fragments had been hurled like toy blocks in every direction. The statues that had once adorned the pillars were now so mangled that their original forms were unrecognizable.
“Hmm…”
The head of a stone statue frozen in an expression of terror had separated from its body and rolled across the floor. The torso, its limbs scattered, lay buried beneath the rubble of collapsed pillars. The portraits that had hung upon the walls were now nothing but ruins.
The ornate frames lay shattered across the ground. The torn and broken paintings were so destroyed that their original subjects were beyond recognition.
‘Not that it matters—they were Specters anyway.’
Occasionally, fragments of the remaining paintings revealed the grotesquely twisted faces of nobles. Crimson bloodstains spread across the shattered canvas.
A massive hole had been torn through the ceiling. The night sky was visible through the opening left by the catastrophic impact.
Crimson moonlight filtered into the ruined fortress interior. The night sky glimpsed from within the darkness created an eerie, unsettling atmosphere. Darkness and silence alone had settled upon the destroyed first floor. In the quiet, wind swept through the ruins. The rustling of broken portrait fragments and the sound of shattered glass rolling across the floor broke the silence.
Crunch.
It was the sound Kim Jae-beom made as he returned to the Shadow Fortress.
[You can open the Warehouse on the first floor with the key.]
As Kim Jae-beom entered the first floor, a System Message appeared instructing him to find the Warehouse. Upon seeing it, he quietly stroked his chin. Then he examined the destroyed Warehouse carefully.
A deep hum resonated through the air. As I surveyed the ruined fortress interior, something stirred within me. The Overlord’s power obtained from the key seemed to awaken of its own accord. My eyes began to glow red, and my vision grew increasingly clear. It was as though a new sense had been unlocked, allowing me to perceive my surroundings in an entirely different way. A crimson light shimmered before my eyes, granting me the ability to see clearly even in darkness. Objects hidden beneath fragments and debris revealed themselves distinctly before me.
“Is it here?”
My gaze, wrapped in a crimson aura, swept across the fortress floor. Then, between the piles of collapsed pillars, a red radiance gleamed. The Overlord’s power emanating from beneath the rubble was revealing something to me. As I pushed through the debris, a faint outline appeared in the center of the floor. What had been invisible beneath the wreckage now manifested itself.
It was a staircase leading downward. Hidden beneath the collapsed ruins, concealing its presence, was the staircase itself. Now, suffused with crimson radiance, the staircase revealed itself, drawn forth by the Overlord’s power. Strange energy rose from the landing as though calling to me.
“Interesting.”
A smile spread across my face upon seeing this. I had never imagined the secret location would be revealed in such a manner.
“Let me descend and see what awaits.”
My footsteps began to descend the stairs. With each heavy step upon the ancient stone steps, the aged staircase creaked, its sound echoing through the space. Candelabras lining both sides of the staircase began to flicker to life, and soon crimson light surged forth, pushing back the darkness and illuminating the entire space.
A deep hum filled the air. As the darkness receded, the surroundings of the staircase gradually revealed themselves. The walls enclosing the staircase were densely inscribed with mysterious patterns that appeared to be of ancient origin. Illuminated by the crimson candlelight, the lines of the patterns seemed to writhe with life, evoking an unsettling sensation. My shadow, cast by the narrow, elongated staircase, rippled in the flickering light upon the walls. The passage at the bottom of the stairs extended into an abyss of unknown darkness. In the profound and eerie silence, only the sound of my footsteps broke the quiet.
Tap… tap.
At the end of the descent, what appeared before me was—
[You have discovered a massive iron door.]
The door guarding the entrance to the Warehouse.

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