Tearing the Gate Apart - Chapter 17

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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 17.
A body dark as pitch, shaped like a man.
Where hands should have been, two club-like appendages jutted from its arms.
It seemed to smash everything in sight with those things.
Just as it was doing now.
Whoooosh—! Crash!
With a deafening roar, the cliff face crumbled away.
Directly where Dae Hyeon-ja’s party stood.
Where the Tanker and the ranged dealers had positioned themselves.
It should have been a death sentence, but mercifully they survived.
Thanks to the rope of Abyss Resonance that Ha Gyeong had cast out.
“Ugh.”
A low grunt escaped his lips.
Three Awakeners weighed well over three hundred kilograms combined.
But his response was somewhat different from when he’d rescued the Blackwater guild members.
For one, there were fewer of them this time.
More importantly, Ha Gyeong had grown vastly stronger than he was then.
He hoisted his teammates up easily, even without Dae Hyeon-ja’s aid.
“Hup!”
Slip! Click!
The Tanker, who’d barely escaped with his life, wore an awkward expression.
“Th-thank you.”
To be rescued by someone whose abilities he’d doubted—of course he felt sheepish.
But Ha Gyeong was genuinely unbothered.
Whether Dae Hyeon-ja’s party approved of him or not.
He had the confidence to overturn their judgment completely.
He turned to the Obsidian Titan and said, “If you don’t move soon, you’ll be buried under a pile of rubble. Let’s go.”
“I’ll lead the way,” Dae Hyeon-ja offered.
Soon enough, Dae Hyeon-ja took point.
It was quite an impressive sight.
Healers were rare.
They received treatment like nobility for playing such a crucial role in any conquest team.
Moreover, it wasn’t really a position suited to leading from the front.
They had relatively low physical ability and defense.
Yet Dae Hyeon-ja had volunteered to guide them.
Ha Gyeong easily guessed the reason.
‘He must have the ability to avoid danger.’
An Awakener’s position is determined by the first skill they receive.
But it wasn’t completely fixed.
Depending on which Artifacts you acquired, you could shift your role entirely.
Look at Ha Gyeong himself—he’d become capable of filling a sub-tank position.
Dae Hyeon-ja navigated through gaps in the Collapsed Cliff, finding a path.
A position that cleverly stayed just outside the Obsidian Titan’s line of sight.
Yet Ha Gyeong couldn’t shake his unease.
‘This doesn’t feel right.’
For some reason, it seemed as though their movements had been read.
And sure enough, the Obsidian Titan resumed its assault.
Thud—!
“Argh!”
Dae Hyeon-ja’s body was sent flying into the distance.
Hit by a sneak attack.
A perilous moment, but it didn’t prove fatal.
Ha Gyeong had unfurled Abyss Resonance and pulled him back.
Whoosh! Thud!
“Gasp! Huff! Thank you.”
“I think I should take the lead instead.”
“But you don’t know where we’re going, do you?”
“Getting out of danger is the priority for now.”
“Very well.”
With Dae Hyeon-ja’s agreement, Ha Gyeong began moving in earnest.
He didn’t follow the cliff’s edge.
He cut straight through the center so the Obsidian Titan couldn’t detect them.
The tight spaces were inconvenient.
One wrong step could send them plummeting hundreds of meters below.
But at least they wouldn’t be attacked this way.
True enough, no more impacts came.
Ha Gyeong crossed the massive stone mountain in a straight line.
At his flawless guidance, Dae Hyeon-ja clicked his tongue in admiration.
“You don’t seem to be using any skills, yet your path-finding is remarkable.”
“It’s the result of wandering through the Deep Abyss’s depths for so long.”
Of course, Ha Gyeong could do this because of the Soul Tattoo.
Its keen perception alerted him to dangers.
But there was no need to explain all that.
Ha Gyeong swung his Abyss Resonance at a pile of rocks.
Boom—!
The pale, grayish-white energy coalescing in his fist shattered the massive boulder.
Once they passed through the small opening, his chest felt as though a weight had lifted.
They’d finally escaped the collapsed stone mountain.
Yet Ha Gyeong couldn’t bring himself to smile.
‘What is this feeling?’
He looked up, and his eyes met a pair of crimson, glowing irises.
The Obsidian Titan crouched above, staring down at him.
Ha Gyeong let out a rueful comment.
“It predicted our escape route and was waiting here.”
“Tenacious bastard.”
“It doesn’t seem we can just shake it off.”
“Then that leaves…”
“Fighting.”
Dae Hyeon-ja nodded in agreement.
Ha Gyeong glanced back at his teammates.
Thankfully, none of them looked panicked or despairing.
Dae Hyeon-ja’s claim about assembling an elite squad wasn’t mere bluster.
Still, the situation wasn’t particularly favorable.
Conquests of Unknowable Rank and above typically required thirty Awakeners.
Field Bosses were no exception.
“Scatter!” the Tanker shouted.
He rushed forward, raising his shield.
The Obsidian Titan’s club came crashing down immediately after.
Crash!
The tremendous impact struck the ground, yet the Tanker rose unscathed.
Then he began systematically building aggro.
This gave Ha Gyeong room to position himself.
‘It’s bigger than the Fusion Tyrant, but not necessarily stronger.’
Odds were high it was Unknowable Rank.
If so, five of them could definitely win.
Ha Gyeong was someone who’d cleared even the Abyss at its Unfathomable Rank, after all.
Soon, the Tanker’s shout came through the Whisperer.
—You can come in now.
This was the melee dealer’s moment to shine.
Ha Gyeong checked his teammates’ positions first.
He needed to obliterate the outer shell from the right angle so the ranged dealers would have an easy time.
He drew his Karambit and deployed Abyss Resonance.
Whoosh—!
Pale, grayish-white flames erupted along the blade, which stretched over three meters long.
Ha Gyeong approached the Obsidian Titan’s left flank.
‘This looks good.’
For his opening move, he held other skills in reserve.
The conquest had just begun, and drawing too much aggro too early would be a problem.
Ha Gyeong’s Abyss Resonance exploded against the Obsidian Titan’s torso.
Boom—!
But his attack had no effect whatsoever.
Only his hand tingled slightly.
The Obsidian Titan didn’t even register the blow.
Its targeted flank remained completely intact.
‘Damn, this thing is rock-hard.’
If the ranged dealers couldn’t pierce it, they were wasting their efforts.
If Ha Gyeong’s Abyss Resonance couldn’t break through the shell, what could?
So he doubled down on his offense.
‘Let’s find a way to crack it.’
[Kinship Predation Skill Target Set]
[Objective: Obsidian Titan]
Ping—!
A sharp sound pierced his ears.
Soon, a subtle pain crept through Ha Gyeong’s entire body.
But it wasn’t the excruciating agony he’d felt before.
His capacity to contain Abyss Energy had increased.
Ha Gyeong smiled faintly.
‘It’s nice when your mastery deepens. All these benefits.’
He was far stronger now than when he’d challenged the Ultimate Abyss.
If only he’d possessed such power then, he might have been able to protect his comrades.
But Ha Gyeong shook his head.
‘Don’t dwell on useless thoughts.’
The truth was, much of his current strength came from the Soul Tattoo.
Without the sacrifices of those dear to him, he wouldn’t have risen this far.
Pushing aside his distractions, Ha Gyeong focused on the Obsidian Titan.
It was blindly pummeling the Tanker.
Still a good opening.
Ha Gyeong unfurled True Soul.
Whoooosh—!
The blade extended to six meters, burning with brilliant light.
His slash tore into the Obsidian Titan’s flank once more.
Screeeech!
An ear-splitting howl erupted.
The Obsidian Titan staggered.
Dark fragments cascaded from its body.
Ha Gyeong descended and quickly reined in his Abyss Energy.
‘Good. That’s manageable.’
Kinship Predation plus True Soul.
Normally, both would have imposed crushing strain.
But his Resonance Rank was Level 3.
A stage achievable only through nearly twenty years trapped in the Abyss.
With the outer shell breached, Ha Gyeong tried to withdraw.
But then it happened.
“Grrrrraaaaaagh—!”
The Obsidian Titan’s crimson eyes locked precisely onto Ha Gyeong.
Suddenly, a sensation of overwhelming danger washed over him.
Another moment’s hesitation and his entire body would be pulverized.
Ha Gyeong threw himself sideways without thinking.
Whoooosh—! Crash-crash-crash-crash!
A red beam tore downward with terrifying force.
A fifteen-meter-wide furrow carved into the ground.
The attack’s power was staggering.
Ha Gyeong let out a whistle of awe.
‘That was close. But at least the objective’s achieved.’
His strike had shattered the Obsidian Titan’s flank.
Thick stone fragments had fallen away.
Red flesh was now exposed beneath.
This should allow ranged attacks to land properly.
Ha Gyeong expected the conquest to proceed smoothly from here.
But the Obsidian Titan shattered their expectations in an instant.
Boom! Thud-thud-thud!
Its club-like hands lashed out relentlessly.
Ha Gyeong had no choice but to hurl himself about frantically.
The Obsidian Titan had completely ignored the Tanker and charged at him instead.
He found himself in a corner.
‘If it’s determined to chase me down, there’s nowhere to run.’
The gap in stride was simply too great.
No matter how hard he tried, he’d be caught in a single step.
The Tanker was absolutely essential.
Ha Gyeong dodged the Obsidian Titan’s strikes as best he could.
Without dispersing the impact, he’d be crushed flat.
Screech—! Boom! Screech—! Crash!
His tanking was like walking a tightrope.
No room for even the smallest mistake.
—J-just hang on a little longer! the Tanker’s panicked voice came through.
He was struggling desperately, but aggro wouldn’t stick.
Ha Gyeong’s damage had exceeded the Taunt threshold.
‘And I can’t see a clean angle to finish it.’
In situations like this, relentless offense was often the best tactic.
If he could just bring it down, that would be enough.
But it wasn’t that simple.
The Obsidian Titan had rotated a full one-hundred-eighty degrees.
Now the ranged dealers couldn’t target its weak point properly.
Going around to the other side would take precious time.
Ha Gyeong stared at the Obsidian Titan’s left flank.
‘I’m the only one who can target it from this angle.’
He glanced at the system message.
[Reactive Mana Armor Activated]
[Impact converted to mana]
Reactive Mana Armor charged in an instant.
The Obsidian Titan’s ponderous blows fueled it perfectly.
Soon, Ha Gyeong’s blade was wrapped in crimson flames.
Mana and Abyss Energy had mingled to equal strength.
A burning pain raced down his arm, then vanished just as quickly.
[Responsive Spirit Cloak Activated]
[Pain immunity granted]
Now he was ready.
Ha Gyeong watched the Obsidian Titan.
He was waiting for the moment it raised its left arm.
“Hyah!”
With a shout, he launched himself forward.
A crimson beam of light pierced through the Obsidian Titan’s abdomen.
Craaash—! Splurt!
In that instant.
Time seemed to freeze, and everything went perfectly still.
[Field Boss Obsidian Titan defeated]
[You receive the Titan Mace as a reward]
The Tanker, who’d been frantically casting his Taunt, muttered in a daze.
“What… what did I just see?”
Tearing Open the Gate
Author | Morae Tob
Publisher | Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
Editorial Director | Editorial Department
Published by | Samyang C&C Co., Ltd. – Dreambooks
Address | 7F, Gwangseong Building, 28 Bongeunsaro 114-gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
UCI | G720:N+A063-20260306112
Blog | blog.naver.com/dreambookss
Twitter (X) | @dreambookss
Submissions | [email protected]
No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means without the written permission of Samyang C&C Co., Ltd. – Dreambooks.

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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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