Tearing the Gate Apart - Chapter 13

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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 13.
Clang! Crack!
At first, it was nothing but ridiculous.
The creature would move as if performing mime, then freeze, over and over.
But Ha Gyeong sensed that something was amiss.
‘Extraordinarily precise. The movements look straight out of a swordsmanship manual.’
The sluggish attacks grew faster with each passing moment.
Soon, as the distance between Ha Gyeong and the Bone Breaker narrowed.
The creature’s speed abruptly intensified.
Whoooosh—!
The blade thrust forward with a sound like a fighter jet streaking overhead.
It was a vicious charge, but Ha Gyeong dodged it with ease.
The Bone Breaker immediately gave chase.
Then came the brutal swing of a metal club.
Clang!
In the end, Ha Gyeong had no choice but to parry the blow.
A groan escaped his lips.
“Ugh!”
The weight of the impact reverberated through his hands.
He realized now that underestimating a lower-grade dungeon would be a grave mistake.
Ha Gyeong paused for a moment, tilting his head in confusion.
‘Why is it so strong?’
Then came a barrage of dozens of attacks.
Boom-boom-boom-boom!
Remarkably, Ha Gyeong could only block half of them.
The rest found their marks across his body.
It was no wonder no one had cleared this dungeon.
The Bone Breaker’s combat prowess was transcendent.
Ha Gyeong quickly understood the reason why.
‘There’s no breathing rhythm. The gaps between attacks are impossibly short.’
Undead monsters were ordinarily sluggish creatures.
But the Bone Breaker was different.
Now he understood why the Raders Guild held their entrance exam here.
Ha Gyeong parried calmly, absorbing the attacks.
‘Incredibly fast and powerful. But… I can endure this.’
His artifacts were supporting him aptly.
[Reactive Mana Armor activated]
[Spirit-Calling Cloak activated]
[Tyrant’s Bracelet activated]
Whoosh—!
His Abyss Manifestation had now expanded to four meters.
Crimson flames enveloped him.
The Reactive Mana Armor was converting the impacts into mana.
Ha Gyeong took the hits he had to take.
He blocked what needed blocking and pressed forward.
Minor wounds hardly mattered at this point.
The Tyrant’s Bracelet would heal them cleanly.
Ha Gyeong drove the Karambit upward with tremendous force.
Whoooosh—!
The metal club disintegrated in an instant.
The Bone Breaker shattered into fragments.
Crash!
The bone-shaped metal debris crumbled pathetically.
[You have defeated the Dungeon Guardian, Bone Breaker]
[You receive a Blue Shard as a reward]
Ha Gyeong watched the Bone Breaker’s end with an impassive face.
‘As expected… the reward is rather poor.’
All the guardian had dropped was a single blue metallic shard.
It was used in crafting equipment for Awakeners.
But it was clearly lower-grade material.
Ha Gyeong pocketed the reward and turned to leave.
He meant to head for the top floor of the Tower of Judgment.
But then cheers erupted from behind him.
“Awesome! We cleared it!”
“Whoever you are, thank you so much!”
They were Awakeners taking the entrance exam for the Raders Guild.
Apparently they mistook Ha Gyeong for a member of their clearing team and were rejoicing.
But some of them had darkened expressions.
They knew he was challenging the Tower alone.
Naturally, Ha Gyeong had no intention of letting them pass.
‘Since you yielded to me at the auction, I suppose I’ll return the favor with a small obstacle.’
Thinking of Choi Hyun Ki, Ha Gyeong smirked.
Then he climbed the stairs without hesitation.
Click! Click!
Soon the Bone Breaker returned to its original state.
The eager Awakeners immediately received a beating with the club.
Whack-whack-whack-whack!
“Argh!”
Screams erupted continuously.
Ha Gyeong chuckled and headed for the top floor.
“Don’t expect free rides here.”
But at the final boss’s position stood an unexpected figure.
A man nearly two meters tall, his upper garment loose and flowing.
A greatsword slung casually over his shoulder.
It was Ma Do Hyeok.
Ha Gyeong’s thoughts became crystal clear in that instant.
‘What? Why is he here? Is this some kind of trap?’
The situation was far too convenient for coincidence.
But then Ha Gyeong sensed something was off.
Ma Do Hyeok’s face was far too expressionless.
As if devoid of emotion entirely.
It was like looking at a mannequin.
Ha Gyeong ventured a question.
“I thought you were busy breaking through the Bottomless Abyss. What brings you to such a humble place?”
“……….”
But Ma Do Hyeok said nothing in return.
He simply stared at Ha Gyeong, gripping the greatsword.
It seemed he intended to fight.
As the distance between them gradually narrowed.
A system message appeared that answered Ha Gyeong’s question.
[You have encountered the boss of the Abyss Dungeon: Mirror Shade]
‘Mirror Shade? A shadowy reflection. The name itself is revealing.’
What if this wasn’t a trap?
What if the boss took the form of the last person to clear it?
Then Ma Do Hyeok’s sudden appearance made sense.
Ha Gyeong’s lips curved into a meaningful smile.
“So I’m indirectly matched against Ma Do Hyeok.”
Awakeners of considerable renown rarely fought one another.
Most belonged to guilds.
And frequented only places like the Abyss Dungeon.
But a duel with a master was always the best path to growth.
Ha Gyeong drew upon his Abyss Manifestation.
Whoosh—!
A grayish-white blade expanded to two meters.
As the Manifestation Grade entered the second stage, the haze vanished.
But the destructive power had increased dramatically.
Ordinarily, only those with ten or more years of experience could reach the second stage.
To achieve it in his mid-twenties filled him with quiet pride.
Ha Gyeong suppressed the satisfaction and faced the Mirror Shade.
Then the creature’s greatsword came hurtling forward in a blur.
Whoooosh—! Bang!
Ha Gyeong threw himself to the side on instinct.
Rather than parrying or slipping past, he chose to evade entirely.
The reason was simple.
Cold sweat trickled down his spine.
‘The attacking power alone is almost on par with the real thing.’
Each strike was nearly half the strength of the True Soul.
To think an attack swung with such carelessness could be so devastating.
Even Ha Gyeong, who had endured countless hardships, felt a sense of danger.
The Mirror Shade unleashed a relentless barrage of attacks.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The sound of air being cleaved was quite menacing.
And the speed was extraordinary.
Pure offensive assault, ignoring all defense.
That was precisely the trademark of Ma Do Hyeok, the Beast of the Abyss.
No opening for counterattack appeared.
Ha Gyeong could only retreat, widening the distance.
‘Similar to the Bone Breaker. There’s no rhythm to its breathing. But… is that really Ma Do Hyeok?’
The relentless assault poured forth.
It matched Ma Do Hyeok’s combat style perfectly.
And yet, it differed from what Ha Gyeong knew.
‘It feels unrefined. Is it because it’s a copy? But if it’s mimicking accurately, that shouldn’t be the case.’
Focusing solely on evasion, he found it wasn’t completely hopeless.
Then, as Ma Do Hyeok raised his body to strike downward.
Ha Gyeong’s eyes sharpened.
‘This is…!’
A move quite different from the Ma Do Hyeok he’d seen in the Fusion Abyss.
It looked impressive, but inevitably created openings.
During the leap, there was no defense possible.
Ha Gyeong immediately counterattacked.
He ignored the greatsword plunging down to split his skull.
Instead, he swiftly drove the Karambit upward.
In that instant, their silhouettes aligned perfectly.
Whoosh—! Crack!
The grayish-white blade pierced through Ma Do Hyeok’s abdomen.
Meanwhile, the greatsword caught on Ha Gyeong’s wrist.
More precisely, the Tyrant’s Bracelet blocked the strike.
Ha Gyeong was inwardly astonished.
‘Its defensive power is better than expected.’
The Tyrant’s Bracelet bore not a single mark.
Moreover, there was none of the characteristic vibration that metal usually transmitted.
It was as if it absorbed the impact entirely, like the Reactive Mana Armor.
This made Ha Gyeong’s next move far easier to execute.
“Hah!”
Slice—!
Ha Gyeong yanked the Karambit out with brutal force.
Gray fluid gushed from Ma Do Hyeok’s abdomen.
Ha Gyeong genuinely thought the fight was over.
No one survived having their belly completely pierced through.
But Ma Do Hyeok paid it no mind and launched into the next sequence of moves.
Whoosh—! Crack! Thud!
“Grrgh!”
The greatsword traced an odd arc, striking Ha Gyeong’s arm and leg in succession.
Chunks of flesh were torn away.
Blood ran freely.
A moment of carelessness had led to severe injury.
Of course, Ha Gyeong remained unflustered.
He had a powerful artifact for precisely this.
[Tyrant’s Bracelet activated]
[Your body rapidly recovers]
Whoosh—!
Fresh flesh filled in instantly.
The bleeding stopped completely.
Ha Gyeong shook his head slowly.
“Right, it’s not human.”
And the real Ma Do Hyeok would probably act the same way.
Wasn’t his epithet the Beast of the Abyss?
A man who wouldn’t spare a thought for a pierced abdomen.
Ha Gyeong smiled bitterly.
‘To make such a mistake here… I still have a long way to go.’
That moment of self-reflection was enough.
He pivoted swiftly.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-whoosh!
His grayish-white blade extended to five meters.
Then came a lightning-fast slash toward Ma Do Hyeok’s neck.
Whoosh—!
A sharp sound rang out, and a white line traced the emptiness.
His ultimate skill, comparable to no other.
The True Soul had been unleashed.
Unlike before, he poured his power lightly, sensing a different feel to the deployment.
Yet the force exceeded all imagination.
The blade, full of the True Soul, tore through space itself.
It severed both Ma Do Hyeok’s greatsword and neck in one stroke.
“Grrgh!”
The body fell limply. Metal clanged.
The opponent’s form crumpled without resistance.
Soon, Ma Do Hyeok’s body transformed to sand and disintegrated.
For just a moment, surprise flickered across Ha Gyeong’s eyes.
‘Even then, its defensive response was flawless.’
It was such an excellent reaction that it truly embodied the Beast of the Abyss.
Ha Gyeong recalled the real Ma Do Hyeok’s strength from the Fusion Abyss.
“What would it have been like if I’d faced him directly?”
He probably wouldn’t have won so easily.
The Mirror Shade was projecting a past version of Ma Do Hyeok.
But just then, a system message appeared before Ha Gyeong.
[You have completed the Tower of Judgment qualification]
[The final boss learns the movements of whoever cleared it last]
[The difficulty of the Abyss Dungeon increases]
Whoosh—! Crack!
The Mirror Shade, which had turned to sand, began to reconstruct.
Soon it took on a form identical to Ha Gyeong’s.
“Ah… so it comes to this.”
Ha Gyeong exhaled softly.
The dungeon was already unnecessarily difficult.
Now he truly doubted anyone would ever clear it.
Though it didn’t greatly concern him.
‘It only yields low-grade crafting materials anyway.’
Besides, there would surely be other ways to gain access to the Bottomless Abyss.
Ha Gyeong shrugged and turned to leave.
He took it lightly, never imagining.
That this place would become the holy ground of Awakeners.
Time passed.
“Ha Gyeong, you rotten bastard! If you’re going to kick away the ladder, at least do it properly. Making it this difficult means……”
“We’ll bankrupt ourselves trying to get access. Damn it all.”
Groans of frustration echoed from the top floor of the Tower of Judgment.
Gate Tearing
Author |
Moraetop
Publisher |
Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
Supervising Editor |
Editorial Department
Published by |
Samyang C&C Co., Ltd. – Dream Books
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7th Floor, Gwangseong Building, 28 Bongeunsa-ro 114-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
UCI |
G720:N+A063-20260306112
Blog |
blog.naver.com/dreambookss
Twitter(X) |
@dreambookss
Submission |
[email protected]
No part of this book may be used in any form or by any means without the written permission of Samyang C&C Co., Ltd. – Dream Books.

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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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