Tearing the Gate Apart - Chapter 34

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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 34.
The Bottomless Abyss—if it were conquerable?
By upper-tier standards, the difficulty was comparable to Extreme Grade.
And the scale was standard, at that.
He couldn’t challenge it with just five people the way he used to.
So Ha Gyeong posed the question.
“We’ll need at least thirty people. Or perhaps forty.”
“Since it’s the Bottomless Abyss, it has to be that way.”
“And yet you’re proposing it anyway… That means your preparations are nearly complete, doesn’t it?”
“Ha! Your insight is truly remarkable. I’ve already reached out to several guilds requesting skilled individuals.”
“But first, shouldn’t we establish the proper qualifications?”
“That’s what we discussed, but it’s proving difficult.”
The Tower of Judgment’s final boss.
Mirror Shade.
It learns the movements of whoever cleared it last.
Ha Gyeong’s shadow was violently kicking at a ladder.
But Dae Hyun-ja wore a meaningful smile.
“So I’ve found another way.”
“Oh?”
“Access to the Bottomless Abyss doesn’t come solely through the Tower of Judgment.”
“Ah, that’s fortunate. How, then?”
“There are places called the Spire of Reversal scattered throughout the Abyss, and you can prove your qualifications there as well.”
Dae Hyun-ja had already distributed detailed locations to his contacts.
This way, he could lead a raid team into the Bottomless Abyss.
Ha Gyeong nodded.
“Understood. Please let me know once a schedule is set.”
“It shouldn’t take long. We’ll be in touch soon.”
“Yes.”
Ha Gyeong returned to his private training ground and began practicing the Byeokheyon-bo.
He had to adapt to it beforehand if he wanted to use it effectively in actual combat.
Once he’d grown somewhat familiar with the skill,
he passed through the Abyss gate with Zon.
His aim was to acquire access to the Bottomless Abyss.
But when they reached the Tower of Judgment, an unexpected sight unfolded.
Awakeners camping near the tower, waiting.
There was even a line at the entrance.
Ha Gyeong asked one of them.
“What are you all doing here?”
“Judging by your appearance, you don’t seem like a novice… Don’t you know what’s happened to this place?”
“Wasn’t the Tower of Judgment supposed to be a place nobody visited? The rewards are poor and the difficulty is needlessly high.”
“Come on, you really don’t know? This is the holy ground that the Immortal Tyrant passed through. If you reach the top floor, you can face that person’s shadow.”
“What? Why would anyone do that?”
“It’s a matter of fandom and the competitive spirit. If you defeat the Immortal Tyrant’s remnants, you gain enormous renown.”
……
Ha Gyeong was left speechless.
He’d never anticipated such a consequence.
He tried to turn back.
‘It’s less troublesome to find the Spire of Reversal instead.’
Without Dae Hyun-ja, he could have been in serious trouble.
But the Awakeners near the tents called out to him.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes?”
“Are you Ha Gyeong?”
The person who’d spoken earlier didn’t recognize him at all.
It was someone unexpected who’d recognized Ha Gyeong.
Not thinking much of it, he nodded.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Oh! Th-the Immortal Tyrant? Would you mind signing something for me?”
“I’m not really such a remarkable person.”
“I saw an article about how you donated fifty billion won for a fallen team member. And you still say you’re not remarkable?”
“That’s actually quite different from the truth…”
Ha Gyeong tried to clarify, but the Awakeners weren’t listening.
They simply rushed toward him.
Eventually, even those standing in line at the Tower of Judgment came over.
“Is that really Ha Gyeong?”
“The Immortal Tyrant has visited our holy ground!”
“Wow! Wow! Wow!”
Ha Gyeong couldn’t hide his bewilderment.
He’d never imagined that distorted media coverage and desperate fandom could work like this.
It felt far more dangerous than being surrounded by a horde of monsters.
But he couldn’t push them away and run.
Yet Zon’s expression beside him was remarkably subtle.
Ha Gyeong ventured a question.
“What are you thinking?”
“Is it really okay for someone of my refined upbringing to witness something like this? Something along those lines?”
“What?”
“Awakeners are supposed to hunt monsters in the Abyss. How can they be running a fan club instead?”
“Uh…”
He certainly wasn’t wrong.
Then the Awakeners who’d rushed over suddenly began to shrink back.
They’d taken a full hit from Zon’s brutal facts.
“Wh-what a harsh thing to say!”
“Is it okay to be that blunt just because he’s foreign?”
“What kind of logic is that?”
While they were all flustered,
Ha Gyeong seized the moment and quickly bowed.
“You must be busy. I’ve taken up far too much of your time. I’ll be going now.”
Then he grabbed Zon’s shoulder and bolted.
Soon enough, Ha Gyeong escaped the vicinity of the Tower of Judgment.
After catching his breath, Zon shrugged and spoke.
“Oh! I’ve seen this scene before in a K-drama. A lovers’ escape! Something like that, right?”
“What?”
“No, wait. If it’s two men, it should be in an American drama for it to be normal.”
……
Today seemed to be full of moments when he was left without words.
Ha Gyeong shook his head and headed for the Spire of Reversal.
* * *
Several days later.
Ha Gyeong, who had assembled his contacts, joined forces with Dae Hyun-ja’s raid team.
In truth, the Awakeners he’d brought numbered only two.
Just Ma Do-hyeok and Zon.
Dae Hyun-ja, meanwhile, had recruited impressive individuals.
“It’s been a while, Ha Gyeong.”
The person who greeted him unexpectedly was the master of the Blackwater Guild.
Yoon Chang-ho of the Diamond Wall.
Ha Gyeong’s expression faltered.
Still, he returned the greeting.
“Hello. But what brings you here?”
“I received an invitation from Dae Hyun-ja. I was skeptical at first. He’s someone who’s only known on the surface.”
Dae Hyun-ja had never maintained connections with the four major guilds or influential organizations.
It was because he disliked the behavior of the powerful.
Wasn’t that why Kang Woo-jin’s reaction had been so muted?
But now, joining hands with Blackwater?
It was quite unexpected.
Soon Dae Hyun-ja approached with a light smile.
“All of this has changed because of your influence, Ha Gyeong.”
“Because of me?”
“Thanks to what I experienced in the Devouring Abyss, I learned much. It helped me shed the arrogance in my heart.”
It was Ha Gyeong who had swept away countless Brood Eaters.
And he who had dealt with the final boss.
It was essentially a solo conquest.
Of course, the team members had played their roles.
But Dae Hyun-ja apparently felt it wasn’t enough.
As they spoke,
a familiar face suddenly emerged.
“How has everyone been?”
Tall like Zon, with a lean, agile build.
A feral man with sharp eyes.
It was Ma Do-hyeok, the Beast of the Abyss.
“Ah, yes. Good to see you.”
Ha Gyeong returned the greeting awkwardly, tilting his head.
The composition of the team felt oddly familiar.
‘It feels like only my acquaintances gathered here.’
Every Awakener on the raid team seemed to have coalesced around Ha Gyeong.
Turning back with a puzzled look, Dae Hyun-ja smiled knowingly.
“Your suspicion is likely correct.”
“Did you really gather only people connected to me?”
“I didn’t deliberately set out to do so. But when I contacted only those with both skill and character, it turned out this way.”
This raid team was remarkably similar to Ha Gyeong’s own ideal.
When he one day challenged the Ultimate Abyss,
these were precisely the teammates he wanted to bring.
Though, wasn’t that true for everyone?
You couldn’t trust your back to disreputable people like the Raiders.
Ha Gyeong smiled faintly.
‘This could serve as a rehearsal.’
It seemed this conquest would hold great significance for him.
Soon, once preparations were complete, the raid team passed through the gate.
They moved to the depths of the Abyss,
then threw themselves into a pond standing at a ninety-degree angle.
Upon passing through the brief wormhole, the team members’ faces turned pale.
For those experiencing the Bottomless Abyss for the first time, such a reaction was inevitable.
The concentration of Abyss Energy permeating the base was simply different.
Even Yoon Chang-ho, counted among the top-tier Awakeners, clicked his tongue.
“The pressure is immense. How in the world do you even fight in a place like this?”
“You’ll adapt as you move around. It’s only difficult at first.”
“I really don’t think it’s just a little.”
Despite Ha Gyeong’s advice, Yoon Chang-ho shook his head.
Of course, being veterans, they all quickly shook off the oppressive feeling.
But none of them could shed the tension.
The Bottomless Abyss was simply that formidable.
—Incoming! Maintain formation!
At Dae Hyun-ja’s call, everyone gripped their weapons.
A horde of monsters greeted the raid team at the entrance of the Bottomless Abyss.
Ha Gyeong recognized them well.
He and Ma Do-hyeok had slain dozens of them before.
But today, they came in overwhelming force.
The wave of Split Reaper Fangs was staggering.
Just by rough count, over five hundred poured forth in a massive assault.
But the swarm of Split Reaper Fangs couldn’t breach the raid team.
Bang-bang-bang! Crack! Thud!
“We’ve halted the charge. Counterattack now!”
The tanks held a solid line,
and melee dealers right behind them carved through the Split Reaper Fangs.
From the rear, devastating ranged fire poured down.
Thud-thud-thud! Crack!
“Kieeeek!”
The Split Reaper Fangs fell relentlessly.
The forty-person raid team Dae Hyun-ja had assembled was elite among the elite.
Unlike the Devouring Abyss, where Dae Hyun-ja had been the sole judge,
these were top-tier Awakeners whom anyone would acknowledge.
They were on par with Kang Woo-jin’s raid team.
Because of that, they could overcome the Bottomless Abyss’s monster horde.
The brutal battle dragged on for quite some time.
When the Awakeners’ stamina reached its limit,
the swarm of Split Reaper Fangs finally withdrew.
Yoon Chang-ho, who’d been commanding the front line, gasped for breath.
“Phew! Huff! Ordinary monsters wandering the streets shouldn’t be like this…”
“Honestly, they were almost on par with Extreme Grade Schism Wretches. Damn, that was rough.”
Even the usually stalwart Zon voiced his exhaustion.
Of course, Yoon Chang-ho beside him couldn’t hide his bewilderment.
He seemed startled by Zon’s bootleg Korean patching.
Ha Gyeong quickly tried to explain.
“His Korean is a bit rough. Please forgive him.”
“Ah, of course…”
Yoon Chang-ho nodded readily.
But Zon wasn’t about to let it drop.
“I speak Korean really well, bro. Kang Woo-jin said the same thing. Thick-faced and shameless, he said I’d live long.”
Ha Gyeong and Yoon Chang-ho both pressed their foreheads at once.
Kang Woo-jin probably just gave up too.
There was no way to stop Zon’s linguistic choices.
In any case, the situation was well resolved.
—Gather the spoils and rest for a bit.
Ha Gyeong participated in the Harvesting.
Split Reaper Fangs sold for quite good prices, after all.
After resting, the raid team resumed their advance.
But a familiar figure caught his eye.
Boom! Thud! Thud!
A giant, dragging massive club-like arms as it moved.
It was the Obsidian Titan.
Dae Hyun-ja pointed it out and spoke.
“That creature gave us quite the headache while we were coming and going from the Bottomless Abyss. So I worked hard on establishing an infiltration route.”
“Ah, so that’s how we were able to get here without triggering it.”
“Exactly. I’d recommend you all memorize it too. Unless you intend to take the Obsidian Titan on directly.”
Everyone nodded at Dae Hyun-ja’s words.
Of course, this route would become useless over time.
The Bottomless Abyss, like the upper tiers, was often completely shuffled.
But for now, this information would prove useful.
After traveling for quite some time, a long-awaited system message appeared.
[You have encountered the Field Boss of the Bottomless Abyss, the Frost Bishop]
[Deadly cold grips your entire body]
The moment they faced it,
Ha Gyeong felt frozen to the marrow.
‘This… this sensation…?’
Gate Ripper
Author |
Morae Tob
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Samyang C&C Co., Ltd.
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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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