The Automatic Rooting Range Is Too Wide - Chapter 201
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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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Auto Looting Range Too Wide Episode 201
Episode 201: Dok-an-gwi (2)
My unique skill, Auto Looting, allowed me to retrieve anything within its range.
Of course, limitations existed.
I couldn’t use Carving on living creatures or objects infused with magical energy.
And the Black Corpse before me fell into neither category.
It was a lifeless cadaver with no inner energy flowing through its body.
In other words, it was a valid target for Auto Looting!
Boom—
Bokdol-i unleashed magical energy toward the Black Corpses.
The Black Corpses struck by the formless slash flew backward.
Yet they charged forward again without hesitation.
-Master! My magical energy is running out soon!
Bokdol-i cried out urgently.
Once the magical energy depleted, I could no longer hold back the Black Corpses.
I quickly turned to Moon Yu-baek with a question.
“What’s the weakness of a Black Corpse?”
“Destroy the head or heart! However….”
I didn’t need to hear the rest to understand.
The Black Corpse had withstood even the blade energy of Dok-an-gwi, one of the Top 100 Masters of the World.
How could I possibly destroy its heart and head under such circumstances?
At this point, it hardly qualified as a weakness.
But I had a method to exploit its weakness.
The unique skill of Auto Looting, Carving, allowed me to extract objects within a cubic meter into my Inventory.
Stagnant water, rocks, steel—anything.
As I prepared Carving, a translucent cube materialized in the air.
The edge length was fifteen centimeters.
This was more than enough to pierce the chest and reach the heart.
The problem was the Black Corpse’s movement.
Despite its rigid, puppet-like motions, it moved so fast my eyes could barely track it.
‘This isn’t as simple as I thought!’
To use Carving, I first had to position the target within the virtual cube.
I burned every movement of the Black Corpse into my mind.
The motions were simple enough that it wasn’t particularly difficult.
-Master! My magical energy is completely depleted!
The mechanical hum from Bokdol-i abruptly ceased.
Ramakan descended from the air to the ground.
The Black Corpses immediately lunged toward the group.
“Miss!”
Moon Yu-baek shielded Wi Ji-yeon behind his back.
A resolute determination flickered in his eyes—he would face death itself to protect her.
Screech—
Just as the Black Corpses were about to overwhelm Moon Yu-baek.
In Mincheol’s mind, prediction and reality merged into one.
【Using ‘Carve Out’.】
【All objects within the cubic range are acquired.】
Rectangular holes punched clean through the chests of the Black Corpses.
The Black Corpses froze mid-attack, their postures locked in place.
Then they crumbled to the ground.
They looked exactly like puppets with their strings cut.
Shock and bewilderment flooded Wi Ji-yeon and Moon Yu-baek’s faces.
They seemed utterly unable to comprehend why the corpses had fallen.
Then they noticed the holes piercing through the corpses’ chests.
“…?”
“…??”
When did those holes appear? We didn’t even see them being attacked.
Both instinctively turned their gaze toward Mincheol.
They had already learned that whenever something inexplicable happened, the first thing to do was ask Mincheol.
True to form, Mincheol let out a deep sigh of relief and muttered to himself.
“It actually works.”
Both their jaws dropped.
* * *
Mincheol’s group wasn’t the only one being ambushed by the Black Corpses.
All the martial artists who had infiltrated the Heavenly Demon Tomb were experiencing the same ordeal.
“Damn it, corpses! Black Corpses!”
“Where did they come from? Who sent them?!”
“Our blades won’t cut through! Argh!”
The Black Corpses lacked martial prowess, so their movements were simple and predictable.
But with bodies as indestructible as diamond and monstrous strength at their disposal, the martial artists found themselves utterly helpless.
Limbs were torn from their bodies, skulls were crushed—the martial artists fell to the Black Corpses’ onslaught.
Only the most elite masters fared somewhat better.
Gunja-geom and Geom-seong, both ranked among the Top 100 Masters of the World, were examples of this.
The two worked in tandem, facing off against the Black Corpses.
Scritch—
With each swing of their blades, wounds carved themselves into the Black Corpses’ bodies.
A stark contrast to the majority of martial artists who couldn’t even draw blood from these creatures.
Truly, they displayed the prowess befitting masters of the highest caliber.
Yet their faces remained grim and shadowed.
“We have to pour this much internal energy just to barely cut through them!”
The Black Corpses’ impenetrable hides were beyond the reach of even these elite masters’ blades.
Considerable reserves of internal energy had to be expended just to sever them.
At this rate, their energy would be depleted before victory came.
“Older Brother Namgung! We must sever the head in one strike! Or at least cut off the legs!”
Moreover, the Black Corpses were not human—they knew no fear.
Unlike humans, superficial wounds could not stop them.
The only way was to decapitate them completely or sever their legs to rob them of mobility.
“Even for the Demonic Cult, deploying such abominable monsters is beyond reason!”
What made matters worse was that this place was a Maze.
With nowhere to flee, they had no choice but to stand and fight the Black Corpses.
“In this Hell, who could possibly survive?!”
Gunja-geom cried out in despair.
* * *
As Mincheol’s group continued forward, they encountered a new Black Corpse.
【Auto Looting is activated.】
【All objects within the cubic range are acquired.】
Just before the Black Corpse lunged forward, I swiftly activated Auto Looting.
Holes instantly pierced through the chests of the Black Corpses.
They collapsed without even straightening their bent knees.
“Dealt with. Let’s move.”
I spoke tersely.
Wi Ji-yeon and Moon Yu-baek nodded with dazed expressions.
The two of them still hadn’t accepted the reality before them.
The Heavenly Demon Tomb had become no different from Hell itself.
Walking just a little further revealed piles of corpses—martial artists slaughtered by the Black Corpses.
Every corpse bore an expression twisted with terror.
But we were the exception.
Thanks to my bizarre ability, encountering the Black Corpses posed no problem whatsoever.
“You said these Black Corpses were manufactured by the Fengsha Ancient Palace?”
I asked Moon Yu-baek as we walked.
“Certain. The Demonic Cult possessed corpse-crafting techniques as well, but these are different. Desiccated corpses like these—so withered and brittle—are a trademark unique to the Fengsha Ancient Palace.”
I recalled everything I had experienced thus far.
Formation arrays designed to counter multiple intruders.
And Black Corpses manufactured by the sects of the Borderlands.
“This feels like a trap.”
“I share that assessment. The Fengsha Ancient Palace—those despicable wretches have undoubtedly devised a vicious scheme using the Divine Cult’s legacy.”
“What… do you mean by that?”
Wi Ji-yeon asked urgently.
Moon Yu-baek spoke with a bitter expression.
“Miss, the Fengsha Ancient Palace is one of the factions that betrayed the Divine Cult. They were even the first to lead the assault on the Main Headquarters.”
Moon Yu-baek’s eyes trembled slightly.
He seemed to be recalling the time when the Main Headquarters was attacked.
“I suspect they discovered the map to the Heavenly Demon Tomb while plundering the Main Headquarters.”
And they likely devised a plan to shake the Murim using the Heavenly Demon Tomb.
It was bait that any martial artist would be unable to resist.
“Why would they do such a thing…”
“The conquest of the Central Plains has long been a cherished ambition for the forces of the Borderlands. That’s why they joined hands with the Divine Cult.”
“Then why would they betray…”
“Perhaps they calculated that even if the Divine Cult took the lead in conquering the Central Plains, there would be little for them to gain.”
So the Borderlands faction betrayed the Demonic Cult and attacked the Main Headquarters.
And now that the Demonic Cult has vanished.
They appear to have resumed their conquest of the Central Plains.
Using the Heavenly Demon Tomb as bait to inflict massive damage upon the Central Plains.
“The map falling into the hands of the Vagrant must have been part of the Fengsha Ancient Palace’s plan as well.”
“They may have controlled the Vagrant through soul-binding techniques. The Fengsha Ancient Palace excels in such arts.”
Moon Yu-baek and I exchanged words.
Wi Ji-yeon staggered and collapsed onto the ground.
“Then the martial arts left behind by Cheonma….”
Moon Yu-baek fell silent.
If the Fengsha Ancient Palace had discovered the Heavenly Demon Tomb first, there was a high probability they had claimed Cheonma’s martial arts as well.
However….
“According to legend, the legacy left by Cheonma can only be obtained by those with the proper qualifications.”
There was no way the Fengsha Ancient Palace, who had led the charge in the destruction of the Demonic Cult, possessed such qualifications.
Thus, the probability that they had failed to obtain Cheonma’s legacy was high.
Yet Wi Ji-yeon’s expression did not brighten.
It was merely a possibility, nothing more.
By common sense, the probability that Cheonma’s legacy had fallen into the hands of the Fengsha Ancient Palace, who discovered the Heavenly Demon Tomb first, was far greater.
“…Let’s abandon the legacy.”
Wi Ji-yeon wiped her eyes with her sleeve as she spoke.
Mincheol asked in surprise.
Wi Ji-yeon was a woman who had been willing to throw away her life for the slimmest of possibilities.
And now she wanted to give up?
“I realized it’s a trap set by the Fengsha Ancient Palace. Struggling to find the legacy would be foolish.”
A fierce light ignited in Wi Ji-yeon’s eyes.
“I…am prepared to sacrifice my life to rebuild the Divine Cult. But I will not die foolishly.”
“I agree with your assessment, Miss. We must escape the Heavenly Demon Tomb as quickly as possible.”
Moon Yu-baek also concurred with Wi Ji-yeon’s words.
“Thanks to Hwa-shin’s mysterious ability, we need not worry about the Black Corpses…but this cannot be the end of it.”
The Heavenly Demon Tomb served as bait, and the Black Corpses were deployed in vast numbers as a trap.
The Fengsha Ancient Palace would surely attempt to achieve decisive results by any means.
“There must certainly be someone overseeing this entire operation within the Heavenly Demon Tomb. I know not who, but…if they are a Dharma Protector-level master, it would be dangerous.”
Moon Yu-baek’s voice trembled slightly.
“The Dharma Protectors of the Fengsha Ancient Palace have reached a level that rivals the Top 100 Masters of the World.”
* * *
A cavern shrouded in absolute darkness.
“Gahhh…!”
A strangled cry tore through the air, as if breath itself was being torn away.
Five skeletal fingers, thin as winter branches, were wrapped around a man’s throat.
The man’s face was contorted in agony.
Yet he had no strength left to resist. His limbs hung limp and shattered.
“You… this monster…!”
One of the Top 100 Masters of the World.
The foremost martial artist representing the Dang Family.
Dang Baek glared at the Mysterious Figure whose grip was crushing his throat.
“A wretch from the Borderlands… dares lay hands upon me…!”
“Ehehehehehe!”
The figure strangling Dang Baek’s throat let out a grotesque laugh.
Its entire body was concealed beneath a black robe, making its face unrecognizable.
“A big fish! A big fish has been caught! Dang Baek! Dang Baek himself!”
The five fingers dug deeper still into Dang Baek’s throat.
At this point, even screams were impossible. Dang Baek’s eyes began to roll back.
Yet the title of Top 100 Masters of the World was not earned lightly.
Even now, Dang Baek’s consciousness was preparing one final resistance.
Using only inner force, he moved his muscles. His broken left arm convulsed.
A long, slender awl shot forth from his sleeve.
Dang Baek seized it in reverse grip and drove it into the Mysterious Figure’s throat.
Heavenly Fissure.
A secret technique of the Dang Family, devised to pierce through the protective inner force of supreme masters.
Dang Baek poured every ounce of inner strength he had accumulated over a lifetime into this strike.
It was the greatest counterattack he could muster.
But.
The awl Dang Baek drove downward failed to pierce the Mysterious Figure’s throat.
Instead, the recoil shattered Dang Baek’s thumb.
“This… is impossible… hack!”
Blood erupted from Dang Baek’s mouth.
The Mysterious Figure had plunged its hand into Dang Baek’s chest.
A sickening crunch.
The Mysterious Figure tore out his heart without hesitation.
Blood gushed from the gaping hole. The light in Dang Baek’s eyes dimmed rapidly.
The Mysterious Figure callously hurled Dang Baek’s corpse away.
“Ehehehehehe!”
Still clutching the heart that continued to beat, it laughed loudly.
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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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