The Crazy Battle God Has Returned - Chapter 147

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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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A Mad Swordsman Returns – Chapter 147

The Earthquake Devourer.
A Lord who operated primarily out of Korea and was rapidly growing stronger through increasingly active Lord Wars.
Beneath him existed many sworn servants.
Some were those he had ensnared without a Lord, others were servants he had stolen from rival Lords.

“Hmm, I’ve gained quite a lot from this Lord War as well. At this rate, I could even expand the structures dedicated to serving my Lord….”

Among them, one was particularly renowned: Yang Seung-ho.
A player who had made a name for himself through countless Lord Wars and enjoyed the trust of the Earthquake Devourer. He was essentially guaranteed a position as an Apostle.
He was lost in thought as he organized the recent gains he had obtained.

[“My sworn servant, observe this.”]
“I am listening. Please speak, my Lord.”

At that moment, words appeared before Yang Seung-ho’s eyes.
Without hesitation, he knelt and assumed a posture of attentiveness.
His Lord, the Earthquake Devourer, was lost in contemplation.

[“The Woman Who Cuts the Moon has made a proposal. She wishes to bring in a single mercenary for this Lord War.”]
“A mercenary… you say?”
[“Indeed. His name is Han Yu-sung.”]

Yang Seung-ho’s brow furrowed.
Using mercenaries in a Lord War was rare, but not unheard of. It was entirely possible with mutual agreement.
However, the problem was not that a mercenary would participate.
The problem was who that mercenary was.

“Would Han Yu-sung not be too dangerous? I do not mean to suggest we would lose, but there are unforeseen variables….”
[“Your words ring true. It would be wise to refuse.”]

The Earthquake Devourer shared the same sentiment.
There was no reason to accept. Victory in this Lord War was already assured.
There was no reason to deliberately introduce the possibility of defeat.
And yet.

[In exchange for allowing the Woman Who Cuts the Moon to employ Han Yu-sung as a mercenary, the Earthquake Devourer has agreed to descend.]
[Furthermore, should the Woman Who Cuts the Moon suffer defeat in this Lord’s War, Han Yu-sung shall fall under the command of the Earthquake Devourer.]

The price was far too tempting.
Even a Lord bearing a title name could not resist such an offer.
An opportunity to possess Han Yu-sung, whose value transcended any coin calculation!
With him alone, one could accumulate an astronomical fortune.
Of course, the risk would be proportional.

[“If I descend, the probability of defeat diminishes.”]
“Indeed, if the condition is limited to your descent alone, then….”

Han Yu-sung was a player of remarkable skill.
Yet he remained merely human. Against a descended Lord, even Han Yu-sung would struggle to exert his full strength.
His participation as a mercenary would not diminish our chances of victory.

“…What shall we do, my Lord?”
[“I accept.”]

The Earthquake Devourer decided swiftly.
His forces were expanding rapidly through successive Lord’s Wars.
With Han Yu-sung added to his arsenal, that expansion would accelerate further.
The moment when he would finally claim a title name of his own drew ever closer.
The opportunity was far too great to forfeit over such a minor risk.

[“Prepare for war. We shall emerge victorious.”]
“Yes, my Lord.”

Yang Seung-ho bowed his head in obedience to his Lord’s command.
Han Yu-sung was certainly a formidable adversary. Yet to Yang Seung-ho’s knowledge, he had never experienced a Lord’s War before.
And if they could make use of descent as well.

‘We shall triumph this time too. As we always have.’

It would unfold precisely as his Lord declared.
Yang Seung-ho was certain of it.

* * *

The next day, Han Yu-sung received a message.
It was word that the Earthquake Devourer had accepted the proposal.

“The Woman Who Cuts the Moon was right about one thing, at least.”
[Hmm. This Earthquake Devourer fellow is quite greedy, isn’t he?]

There was no real reason for the Earthquake Devourer to accept Han Yu-sung’s participation as a mercenary.
If he refused, he could secure victory with certainty, transition to the sacred war, and even absorb the Woman Who Cuts the Moon.
He accepted these terms purely out of greed.
Greed to obtain Han Yu-sung, a sworn servant, for himself.

[If I lose, I won’t let it slide. Your hair will simply…!]
“If I’d been planning to lose, I wouldn’t have agreed in the first place.”
[Hmph!]

Kakasha clearly disapproved of this situation.
It was an unnecessary gamble in many ways. But to test the ‘Grand Duke of Blood Absorption,’ I had to take this risk this time.
Han Yu-sung joined the sworn servants of the Woman Who Cuts the Moon.

“Welcome, Han Yu-sung.”
“We heard you’d be helping us. Thank you so much.”
“Don’t mention it. I’m just helping as the situation demands.”

Baek Min-jun’s party welcomed Han Yu-sung.
The Woman Who Cuts the Moon possessed roughly five hundred sworn servants.
Honestly, I was quite surprised.

[Five hundred? So few sworn servants?]
‘It seems this is all the combat strength deployable in the lord’s war. Even including non-combatants, the numbers wouldn’t increase much.’
[Remarkably diminished, even for a lord.]

Baek Min-jun seemed to notice Han Yu-sung’s surprise.
He scratched the back of his head, looking embarrassed.

“Haha, we originally had more people than this.”
“Our numbers dwindled significantly from continuous defeats in the lord’s war. That’s why we’re even more grateful for your help, Han Yu-sung.”
“Has the Battlefield been decided?”
“Ah, the lord will… Yes. She’ll show us now.”

Baek Min-jun spoke, and in that very moment, a message appeared.

[The Woman Who Cuts the Moon wishes to hire you as a mercenary for her Lord’s War against the Earthquake Devourer.]
[Do you accept?]

Han Yu-sung nodded.
There were multiple formats for a 【Lord’s War】.
One common method involved invading the opposing Lord’s Difficult Realm or domain.
Another involved using a separate Battlefield prepared specifically for the Lord’s War.

[Lord’s War: Valley of Moonlit Shadows.]
[A Battlefield created for the Lord’s War between the Woman Who Cuts the Moon and the Earthquake Devourer. Victory is achieved by eliminating all Oath-sworn and the Lord’s soldiers belonging to the opposing faction.]
[Maximum capacity: 500 Oath-sworn, 1,000 of the Lord’s soldiers.]
[The loser must provide the victor with the compensation promised beforehand.]

This time, it was the latter.
Sometimes Lord’s Wars included gimmicks, but fortunately, this one had none of those complications.
It was, quite literally, a Battlefield where raw power clashed against raw power, with no tricks involved.

‘So it’s a Lord’s War where I simply eliminate all enemies.’

It was a Lord’s War tailored to my preferences.
However, there was one problem.

“Does the Woman Who Cuts the Moon have soldiers of her own?”
“Well… she doesn’t.”

Baek Min-jun let out an awkward laugh at my question.
Just as the Lord of the Dead could deploy undead into the Battlefield to intervene, a Lord possessing a Sanctuary could create soldiers for themselves.
The problem was that doing so required coins.

[A Lord cornered this badly wouldn’t have soldiers, obviously.]
‘Is that from experience?’
[Ugh!]

It was something I’d anticipated to some degree.
In fact, that made me like it even more. Since she had no soldiers, the force disparity would be roughly 1,000 soldiers in the enemy’s favor.
When I factored in the possibility of the Lord herself descending into battle, I couldn’t help but be satisfied.

“As you can see, we’re facing a significant power disparity. I believe we should entrust command to Han Yu-sung, who can break through this situation….”
“Who has been commanding the Lord of the Dead’s forces until now?”
“Pardon? Ah, that would be me.”
“Then let’s have you continue with that.”

Baek Min-jun’s eyes widened in surprise.
He had assumed Han Yu-sung would take command instead.
But considering how Han Yu-sung would conduct himself in this battle, entrusting him with command wasn’t appropriate.

“Even if you entrust command to me, I’m not sure what to do….”
“Just proceed as you have been. I’ll show you when to move.”
“Pardon?”

The Apostles stared at Han Yu-sung with questioning eyes.
But he offered no further explanation.
How much time had passed since then?

[The Lord of the Dead’s battle, ‘Valley of Moonlit Shadows’ has opened.]
[The Apostles who committed to participating in this Battlefield are being transported.]

My vision lurched, and in an instant, the landscape around me transformed.
Spread before everyone’s eyes was a vast, boundless valley.
Moonlight cascaded down upon the darkened gorge.
And beyond, countless enemies revealed themselves.

“Those are the Apostles of the Earthquake Devourer.”

There was no need to count—their numbers overwhelmingly exceeded ours.
Five hundred Apostles. And one thousand golem-type soldiers, seemingly constructed from stone, stood arrayed before them.
Among them, I spotted a familiar face.

‘Yang Seung-ho. That man couldn’t possibly be absent.’

A player who had served under the Earthquake Devourer in my past life.
He should be quite formidable even now.
There would be some entertainment in fighting him, at least.
A smile naturally bloomed across my lips.

“Ugh, ugh….”
“Yang Seung-ho. Are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine. My body’s trembling all of a sudden. Is it the cold?”

Perhaps sensing that gaze, Yang Seung-ho shuddered.
Or perhaps it was tension.
In truth, Yang Seung-ho and the other Apostles gathered here possessed considerable experience in Lord Wars.
Yet even they could not help but feel tension in this particular Lord War.

‘Han Yu-sung… he is no easy opponent.’

It was because of Han Yu-sung on the opposing side.

‘I’ve grasped his fighting style well enough. I know he possesses techniques that unleash tremendous firepower on a massive scale. If I can prepare for that alone….’

Han Yu-sung had recently gained considerable renown.
As a result, information about him had spread widely.
Before this Lord War began, Yang Seung-ho had intensively gathered information related to Han Yu-sung, particularly regarding his combat capabilities.

‘I have devised sufficient countermeasures.’

Using those methods, I would claim victory once more.
Yang Seung-ho resolved himself thus.
And at that very moment.

“Yang Seung-ho! The enemies… no, the enemy is moving!”

Someone from the Woman Who Cuts the Moon’s side had begun to move.
It was Han Yu-sung.
He advanced alone, abandoning the other Apostles.
Witnessing this, Yang Seung-ho drew a sharp breath.
What is he plotting? Does he intend to fight alone?
In an instant, countless thoughts raced through his mind.

“…Proceed as planned. Activate the defensive barrier!”
“Yes!”

But now was not the time for such thoughts.
Han Yu-sung was a player who unleashed wide-range attacks from a distance.
The way to block that was through ‘barriers’.
The golems, soldiers of the Earthquake Devourer, channeled mana and simultaneously erected barriers.
Multiple layers of protective barriers enveloped Yang Seung-ho and the Oath-sworn.

[‘Earthquake Devourer’ has paid coins as compensation.]
[You have been blessed with ‘Lord’s Protection (Lv.4)’.]

Following that came the Lord’s Protection.
The power of the lord settled into the bodies of Yang Seung-ho and the Oath-sworn, and stone-forged barriers layered over them.
The Earthquake Devourer was a lord connected to stone and earth.
By nature, it possessed numerous effects related to defense and protective barriers.

‘With this, I can block whatever attack Han Yu-sung throws at us!’

From here on, this was their domain.
They simply needed to fight using the methods that had brought them victory in lord battles thus far.
Yang Seung-ho made that judgment.

“Holing up in a shell. Well, it’s not a bad strategy, but…”

Han Yu-sung let out a soft chuckle upon seeing their formation.
So that was the countermeasure they’d devised after analyzing me.
Not terrible, really.
But they had overlooked one crucial thing.

“You’ve misjudged your opponent.”

Such barriers were meaningless against me.
Han Yu-sung kicked off the ground and extended my hand toward the void.
In that hand burned the Flame of War, blazing with terrifying hellfire.
I could see Yang Seung-ho’s mouth open in a shout as I approached.
The distance between us collapsed in an instant.

Screech!

A blade tearing through the air.
The hellfire that consumed the sword shot forth, devouring the very air around it before transforming into a calamitous tidal wave.

Whoooooosh!

“Insane…!”
“The… the barrier…!”

I incinerated the barriers that had been protecting Yang Seung-ho and his sworn followers.
Yang Seung-ho’s eyes widened in disbelief at the impossible sight.
Multiple layers of barriers vanished in flames in an instant.
Was such a thing even possible?
How could I destroy a barrier infused with a lord’s power?
But there was no time for such thoughts.

Crackle!

The Thunder God’s Spear materialized in my left hand.
Seeing this, Yang Seung-ho screamed out his command, having already anticipated what attack would follow.
But it was too late.
I thrust the spear toward the heavens.

Absolute Annihilation.

A torrent of spears woven from gold and demonic energy cascaded down.
Like divine punishment descending from the sky itself.

“Aaaahhhhh!”
“Cough… Kyaaahhhhh!”

Agonized screams echoed across the Battlefield.
Not the cries of the Woman Who Cuts the Moon’s sworn followers, but only those of the Earthquake Devourer’s sworn followers.

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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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