The Crazy Battle God Has Returned - Chapter 173

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————

A Mad Swordsman Returns – Chapter 173

Korea and Japan.
Multiple Lords who had chosen their respective sides watched over the Battlefield.
More precisely, they observed a single monster rampaging wildly across it.

[This is unbelievable. That’s a Lord, isn’t it?]
[More accurately, I believe we should say that was once a Lord.]
[A Lord can… deteriorate to such an extent? Is it truly possible for one to fall so far as to become someone’s slave?]
[It’s not impossible to forcibly enslave a Lord.]
[Unless they’ve been subjected to ‘Punishment’, there’s no way they could fall this far…]

The Lords were uniformly horrified.
No trace of intelligence could be found in The Nameless One’s movements. It merely thrashed about like a beast, driven by primal hunger.
The problem was that few could stand against such a creature.
The monster devoured all enemies with the countless mouths that covered its body.
Undead, soldiers, even Japanese players—none were spared.

– Guuuuaaaaahhh…!
“No, please! Save me! Save… aaaahhhhh!”
“Don’t get close! If you do, you’ll be consumed!”

Only the highest-tier undead like Hellknights and Death Liches, along with the most elite players, could hope to contend with the monster.
Naturally, Han Yu-sung understood this well.

– Kuhahahaha!
– Blood and flesh! Combat! The thrill of battle surges within me!
“Slaughter anyone who blocks our path!”

Han Yu-sung led the Army of Strife across the Battlefield at full speed.
He targeted enemies capable of confronting The Nameless One, and with his support, the monster grew ever more ferocious in its rampage.
Korean players then surged into the chaos that had consumed the Battlefield.

“Don’t charge forward recklessly!”
“That monster is on our side! But stay clear just in case—you might be devoured!”
“We’ll use the monster to our advantage! It’ll absorb their attacks for us!”

Baek Min-jun and Yoon Ga-ram tore through the enemy lines alongside their allies.
Their target was the Japanese players. Now that the Battlefield had descended into chaos, they needed to reduce their numbers as much as possible.
The shadows summoned by Yoon Ga-ram pierced through the enemies, and their forces, bolstered by Baek Min-jun’s Battle Command, began to press forward with ferocious momentum.

[Japan is… losing ground.]
[Certainly, it’s surprising. That monster too.]

All the Lords watching the situation felt the same way.
But.

[Still, it doesn’t seem like the Lord of the Dead will lose.]
[The opponent is formidable, after all. The undead can simply be summoned continuously. That monster will fall eventually.]
[Besides, there’s also the Lord of Justice, isn’t there?]

The Lords’ gazes converged on a single point.
Where the light of judgment poured down from the heavens.
Where the Sworn Servants of Justice stood.

[Remarkable. To enslave a Lord. He must have fled with nothing, yet already he’s accomplished this…]

The Lord who had made a contract with Han Yu-sung was surely the Lord of War.
A Lord who had been driven to the brink of annihilation.
Hadn’t I been the one to bring her to that state? Yet she had amassed enough power to enslave others?

[Good. Show me more. All of this…]

Achiros spent a coin.
Light far more brilliant than before cascaded down, granting the Sworn Servants even greater power.
And once more, soldiers were summoned.
Giants with three pairs of wings, clad in armor wrought from pure light.
They raised their swords brimming with radiance and roared.

[You shall become the soil upon which I cultivate victory. Advance.]
“By the Lord’s command, march forward!”
“Let those giants lead the charge!”

Led by the giant, the Sworn Servants of Justice began their advance.
Simultaneously, a colossal magic circle made of light materialized across the sky.
It was a magic circle Achiros had created to annihilate his enemies.
Baek Min-jun, recognizing its presence, turned to Han Yu-sung urgently.

“Commander! Something massive is coming! From the sky too!”
“I know. That is….”

Han Yu-sung turned his head.
The giant and the Sworn Servants of Justice were rapidly closing in.
Then, a single player stood before them.

“The shadow side will handle it.”

It was Yoon Ga-ram, her entire body consumed by darkness.
She felt the tremendous power coursing through her entire being.
And through her eyes, she could sense the presence of a transcendent observing the Battlefield.

[I had instructed you to face the Lord of Justice, not the Lord of the Dead. I thought it was unreasonable stubbornness….]
“…It wasn’t stubbornness after all.”
[Indeed. To think you possessed such means.]

The Lord of Shadow let out a dry chuckle as she regarded the monster.
It was certainly surprising.
But it still falls short. A former Lord alone cannot defeat the Lord of the Dead.
In such circumstances, how did Han Yu-sung intend to contend with this?

“My Lord, regarding descent….”
[I am aware.]

The Lord of Shadow calculated coldly.
Thanks to Yoon Ga-ram’s efforts, she had accumulated enough merit to descend. However, the cost of descent had not diminished.
If she descended, she would have to pay an enormous price accordingly.
Even setting aside the personal affection she held for Han Yu-sung.
Was this battle worth such a price?

[The value seems sufficient. Very well.]

The gains Han Yu-sung had helped me acquire in the previous Trial.
And the tremendous gains I could obtain if I won this Trial.
Even the amicable relationship I could forge with Han Yu-sung and his Lord.
Lord of Shadow reached a conclusion swiftly.

[This time, I shall follow that man’s words. Yoon Ga-ram, while you lend me your body, learn and understand much.]

Yoon Ga-ram’s body dissolved into shadow and vanished.
And in the next instant.

[The sensation of wielding shadow.]

Shadows erupted from everywhere.
Beneath the feet of the Japanese players locked in fierce combat, the advancing Sworn Servants of Justice, the giants pushing forward at the very vanguard—all of them.

Whoooosh!

“Ugh, gah…?!”

The shadows that erupted in an instant pierced through the enemies all around.
There was no time to resist. It was truly instantaneous.
The shadows that had pierced the enemies opened wide like a monster’s gaping maw.
And they swallowed the enemies’ bodies, leaving only their heads behind.

“Ugh, ugh! Wait, my body…!”
“It won’t listen! Aaaahhhhh!”
“Insane! Why are you attacking us!”

The bodies swallowed by the shadows began moving of their own accord.
Some stabbed their comrades’ backs, others pierced their own throats, and still others attacked those similarly consumed by shadow.
Screams filled with terror and despair echoed from all directions.
Then, from the very center of it all, shadow erupted.

[Descent has been such a long time coming.]

A divine form composed entirely of shadow.
A divine form draped in a massive robe from head to toe, its shape utterly unrecognizable.
The descended Lord of Shadow smiled faintly.
She immediately raised shadows, engulfing the surrounding area and the sky in darkness.

KWAAAAAAAANG!

That was when Achiros’s magic circle activated.
The magic circle inscribed across the sky unleashed merciless divine punishment upon the earth, only to collide with the shadow that had consumed the heavens.
The shadow trembled violently, yet remained unbroken.

[A shadow, is it… How troublesome.]
[Lord of Justice. You are the perfect opponent for this descent.]

The wavering light of judgment. And the endlessly surging shadow.
The two forces clashed, and the Battlefield shook violently.

“GRRAAAAAAAH!”
“No, this can’t… AAAAAH!”
“L-Lord! At this rate…!”

The battle was unfolding in an ominous direction.
The numbers in the Japanese Camp were dwindling rapidly.
The Lord of Justice, who could have aided us, was now pinned down by the shadow.
This was dangerous.
We needed a way to break through this deadlock!
The Japanese players naturally turned their gaze to one place.
To the Lord of the Dead who had descended here.

[I don’t know how you managed to enslave a Lord, but…]

Of course, the Lord of the Dead was more than willing to act.
Tremendous malice erupted from her as the center point.
In an instant, the malice that engulfed the surroundings spawned countless undead, and intricate magic circles formed from complex incantations.

[To defeat me requires…]

Far too much power!
Just as the Lord of the Dead was about to cry out those words—

【Moment of Annihilation】.

The sky split open, and countless spears of light rained down.
Dazzling, perhaps, but nothing more. Not worth my attention, nor worthy of it.
The Lord of the Dead swung a cloak woven from spectral forms, conjuring a barrier in its place.
This will suffice. With that judgment, the Lord of the Dead located Han Yu-sung’s position and trained countless magical circles upon him.

[“…!”]

Just as she was about to activate the magical circles.
The Lord of the Dead felt an intense surge of danger.
She hurriedly lifted her gaze toward the massive barrier protecting her.
The cascading spears collided with the barrier of spectral forms.

Crash—crash—crash—crack!

[“What…!”]

They pierced straight through the barrier.
What was astonishing was that their momentum didn’t diminish in the slightest.
Spears wreathed in demonic energy rained down upon the Lord of the Dead.
She gritted her teeth and summoned her death aura. The aura surrounding her transformed into bone barriers, blocking the incoming spears.
Deafening thunder shook the heavens.

“Go.”
[Understood! Advance!]

Han Yu-sung, naturally, did not miss this opportunity.
As he pushed off the ground, buffs including the Protection of Lords cascaded upon him.

[You are engaged in combat with a Lord’s Incarnation!]
[The effect of Divine Descent activates the buff ‘Slayer of Lords’.]
[Your body is fortified. The Crimson Flames of War ignite.]
[The Blood Demon’s blessing strengthens your attacks and weakens defenses.]
[The Army of Strife enhances the Apostle of War.]
[The effect of the Nameless Heavenly Robe, 【Descent】, has been activated.]
[You activate the skill 【Spirit of Blood Ghost】.]

Han Yu-sung shot forward like a beam of light.
Reaching the Lord of the Dead in an instant, he stamped the ground with tremendous force.

Thousand Blood Swords.

Countless blade auras, woven from blood itself, surged toward the Lord of the Dead.
The Lord received the onslaught and recoiled in shock.

‘How is this possible—such power from a human’s attack!’

This was no ordinary skill.
It had to be at least SS-rank or higher.
Yet even an SS-rank skill should be far too weak to harm her.
But this human’s technique was different.
It carried a tremendous force that defied belief for an SS-rank ability.

‘What method could possibly achieve this…!’

The Lord of the Dead’s eyes widened.
Then she perceived something anomalous—the blood aura surging toward her, and within it, a fierce, obsidian energy intertwined.
Demonic power?
No, something different from demonic power, something foreign and strange…

[“Krrrraaaaahhh!”]

Countless blade auras crashed toward the Lord.
The Lord of the Dead erected a veil of death energy to block them. Yet even her barrier could not intercept them all.
A blade aura that slipped through her defense carved across her form.
Han Yu-sung did not relent, pressing forward with relentless strikes.

‘Extraordinary. The power this human possesses is truly extraordinary.’

Countless attacks converged upon the Lord of the Dead.
Shockwaves of blood and flame, torrents of hellfire, a crimson tempest engulfing all directions, blades forged from shadow, and blade auras besides.
Power that seemed impossible for a human to wield.
And yet.

‘It falls short. This alone is insufficient…’

The Lord of the Dead assessed the situation with cold clarity.
This human, Han Yu-sung, is remarkably powerful. Whether his strength derives from the Blessing of Stars or elsewhere, he possesses the capacity to withstand her assault.
But that is all.

‘You’re far too weak to defeat me.’

The Lord of the Dead parried the incoming attacks, blocked those he couldn’t parry, and launched counterattacks in the same breath, arriving at this judgment.
It was not carelessness born of arrogance.
It was a verdict rendered by the experience accumulated through countless battles.

‘I don’t know how you’re wielding this strange energy, but ultimately you’re human. You can’t sustain it forever. Eventually, a gap will appear.’

All I need do is wait for that moment.
And indeed, that was how it was unfolding.

Crash! Crash! Crash!

“Ugh…!”

Han Yu-sung unleashed a relentless barrage of attacks upon the Lord of the Dead.
Meanwhile, the counterattacks that occasionally came his way left his body covered in wounds both large and small.
By contrast, the Lord of the Dead’s wounds healed rapidly. Though cut by that strange sword energy, the overflowing aura could mend them in moments.

[“Han Yu-sung… How much longer do you think you can struggle?”]

In truth, this situation itself was humiliating for the Lord of the Dead.
A Lord, waiting for a human to reveal an opening.
But if he could only kill this human with certainty.
Then such humiliation was entirely bearable.
The Lord of the Dead made this judgment and released his aura.

‘Kakasha. Prepare yourself. The opportunity will come soon.’
[I know. Just a little longer, just a little longer…!]

That very judgment was precisely what I had been waiting for.
Within the explosions that engulfed all directions, my eyes gleamed with cold light.

—————

This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

—————