The Crazy Battle God Has Returned - Chapter 276

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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 276

Crash!

The Collapse Point trembled violently across its expanse.
The shockwave erupted as the plummeting ship drove downward, its form rendered unrecognizable by the catastrophic impact from the sky.
Oath-takers crawled from within, barely clinging to life.

“This… is insane…”
“Cough! Cough! What kind of start is this—they’re trying to kill us!”

The Oath-takers were all battered and broken.
Plummeting from such a staggering height left no other option.
Had they not braced for impact before the fall, death would have claimed them.

I exhaled, brushing dust from my clothes as I surveyed the surroundings.

Through those cracks, an ominous aura surged forth.
And there was something else.
An ominous aura was seeping through the cracks.
“It seems the others crashed the same way.”

“Looks like the others collapsed the same way.”
Black smoke billowed from various points across the landscape.

If my memory served correctly, this Trial was one of considerable scale.
It’s probably smoke from when the ship carrying the other Oath-takers crashed.
‘Each Lord can deploy up to five hundred Oath-takers. But considering how many Lords participated this time, and factoring in the soldiers they can summon…’

“Each Lord can bring 500 Oath-takers to the war. But considering that quite a lot of Lords are participating this time, and factoring in the soldiers they can summon…”
The scope was beyond question.

There’s no need to say more about how large the scale is.
“The most crucial thing is finding the ‘Reward of the Mad Swordsman.'”

“The most important thing is finding the ‘reward for dedication.'”

It shouldn’t be particularly difficult. Even without the aid of the Eye of Omniscience, the blessing itself reveals the location of the reward.
Han Yu-sung confirmed the message that appeared before his eyes.

[A special space has appeared somewhere in the Collapse Point.]
[The ‘Blessing of Trials’ guides you to that location….]

A welcome arrow materialized.
An arrow that guided him to the space created by the deity.
Thanks to the blessing, finding the space would not be difficult.
The problem was.

[You must protect the Wreckage. Should it be destroyed while you search for the reward, you will have no means of escape from this place.]
“Finding the reward becomes meaningless if I can’t escape.”

If I couldn’t escape, I would die here without question.
Of course, there were alternatives. According to my memory, there was another method—seizing a Wreckage from a rival faction to escape.
However, choosing this method would prevent me from using the Unique Facility. The moment the Wreckage is destroyed, I can no longer establish the facility.

[The risk is far too great. Considering the soldiers that would be generated from the Unique Facility, it would be nearly equivalent to losing half my forces.]
“Right. I need to protect the Wreckage if at all possible….”
[Hmm. And there’s one more thing that troubles me.]

Kakasha clicked his tongue and showed me the message.
It was a message shared with the other Lords, including him.

[An anomaly has occurred at the Collapse Point.]
[An unknown force has created a special space at the Collapse Point. This space contains exceptional and formidable rewards.]
[Find the space before anyone else and seize the reward!]

“How troublesome.”

Han Yu-sung clicked his tongue as well upon seeing the message.
If only I knew of this space’s existence, things would have been simpler. I could move alone in secret and locate it without anyone else knowing.
But as if to prevent that, such a message was shared.

“How do you think the other Lords will move?”
[What’s the point in saying it? They’ll obviously try to find the special space. These Lords have endured numerous Trials—they know well how exceptional and formidable the rewards from Trials can be.]
“I suppose so….”

Even Han Yu-sung would have searched for it the moment he received the message.
The special rewards from the Trial would be that useful, after all.
So the task had become all the more troublesome.

“I’ll need a way to defend the Wreckage.”

Fortunately, this Trial contained a mechanic suited for exactly that.

[You and your allies have crashed into an unknown location.]
[This place is destined for endless Collapse, eventually ceasing to exist. Before everything crumbles, you must repair the ‘Wreckage’ you arrived in and escape from the Collapse Point.]
[Fortunately, this Collapse Point contains abundant resources. Gather resources and repair the Wreckage.]
[Additionally, by consuming resources, you can install ‘Unique Facilities’ near the Wreckage. Defend the Wreckage with these Unique Facilities.]

A mechanic to install Unique Facilities.
And one more thing.

[Player Han Yu-sung receives the 【Lord’s Banner】.]
[This banner grants beneficial buffs to you and the War Covenant Members. Strengthen the banner to gain greater power!]

Flames bloomed in the empty air, and a familiar banner materialized.
It resembled the sacred relic Han Yu-sung possessed—the 【War Banner】.

[【Lord’s Banner: War】.]
[A banner that grants strength to the War Covenant Members.]
[Effects: All stats +10%, resource gathering speed +30%.]

Of course, its effects were far inferior to the Lord’s Banner.
It would grow stronger each time I repaired the Wreckage or cleared an event.
I grasped the Lord’s Banner firmly.

“Captain, the banner is…”
“It’s better if I hold it. It would be a headache if it were stolen.”
“Yes. It would be best for the strongest person to hold it.”

If the banner were stolen, one would become the enemy’s slave.
I gripped the banner tightly and surveyed the ‘Wreckage’.
It was so completely destroyed that its form was barely recognizable.
Yet among the ruins, there was one thing that remained completely intact.

[Mana Core (Lv.1)]
[This is the Core of the floating vessel that has now become a Wreckage. Fortunately, the Mana Core possesses a ‘self-repair’ function. Once resources from various points in the Collapse Point are injected into the Core, restoration begins.]
[Surplus resources are stored separately in a ‘Storage’.]
[If the Core is destroyed, restoration becomes impossible.]
[Currently installable Unique Facilities: 0/1.]

This was the core mechanic of the Trial.
Near the Mana Core, I could see a space where mana gathered faintly.
I suspected it was likely the ‘Storage’ where resources were kept.

“I wonder if the number of installable Unique Facilities increases along with the level. How many resources does it require?”
[Let us see. Hmmmm….]

Kakasha made a sound as if concentrating.
Then a semi-transparent Unique Facility appeared in mid-air. It was the Steel Fortress that I had torn from the Lord of the Dead this time.

[Insufficient resources to install Steel Fortress.]
[Required resources: 1,500 Mana Ore, 800 Steel Ingots.]

The number of required resources was greater than I expected.
Or perhaps that was simply how many resources could be obtained at once.
Either way, I would need to mine the resources myself to find out.

“I’ll need to divide into a search party to explore for resources and a defense squad to guard the Mana Core. I’ll take the search party, and Baek Min-jun, you take the defense.”
“Yes, Captain. As usual, then. So the search party members are….”
“Well, that goes without saying.”

My gaze swept across the War Covenant Members.
Among them, there was one man trying desperately to hide himself somehow.

“Sung Ha-yan, Chu Gyu-il. You’re coming with me.”
“Yes, understood.”
“Damn it….”

Sung Ha-yan, who had been designated, nodded calmly.
Chu Gyu-il, on the other hand, lowered his head with a face as if the world were crumbling.
I designated approximately 47 more people after that.

“Since this is a search party, there’s no need to bring a large force. Take fifty people to scout for resources in the nearby area, and bring back whatever you can carry. We’ll depart in ten minutes, so prepare yourselves.”
“Yes!”

The Oath-takers began moving with urgency.
Han Yu-sung stood with his arms crossed, lost in thought.

[What should we do?]
“The other Lords know there are special rewards as well… but they won’t rush to find them the moment the Trial begins.”
[Indeed, they face the same dilemma we do. They must be deliberating how to balance exploration and defense.]
“Then let’s exploit that.”

It was simple.
Establish only the essential Unique Facilities as quickly as possible, then set out to find the special rewards.
We must complete everything and move first before the other Lords take action.

“Speed is what we need.”

Beyond mere swiftness—speed approaching light itself.
Fortunately.

[The Black Sword has absorbed the blood of a Transcendent.]
[The sword is ready to ascend to a higher dimension.]
[The Black Sword ascends to the ‘Eternity’ grade!]

Han Yu-sung possessed the means to achieve this.
The Black Sword in his grip erupted with fierce radiance—a light so brilliant his eyes could scarcely bear it. When that luminescence finally subsided.
The Black Sword in his grasp had transformed into something unmistakably different.

[Black Sword (Eternity)]
· Slot: Weapon (Sword)
· Attack Power: 1000.
· Attack Power +100%, Critical Strike Chance +50%, Critical Damage +100%.
· Speed +70%, Sword-type Skill Damage and Activation Speed +90%.
· Can generate sword energy composed of magical force. The sword energy’s power and the weapon’s attack power increase based on the user’s magical ability stat.
· Can activate 【Black Shadow】, which greatly enhances the Black Sword and its owner. Along with Black Shadow’s unique buffs, the user gains the ‘Light Speed’ buff. This buff can be shared with allied forces following the user.
· When Black Shadow is activated, 【Afterimage】 and 【Severance】 become available. Both effects grow stronger with greater magical expenditure.
· [Afterimage]: Multiple clones appear and simultaneously execute skills the user has learned, with each skill displaying 50% of the original’s power.
· [Severance]: When speed reaches its maximum, unleash a slash that severs spacetime itself. All enemies within the affected range experience 70% speed reduction, and their defense and magic resistance decrease by 50%.
· This weapon ‘grows’ alongside its user.

As the Black Sword strengthened, I noticed new effects being added to it.
‘Afterimage’ and ‘Insulation’—both were intriguing effects in their own ways.
And on top of that, there was an effect that allowed me to share the ‘Light Speed’ buff with my allies.

“I’ll be able to move much faster.”

In a situation like this, it was an especially useful buff.
Soon ten minutes had passed, and the Oath-takers who had finished their preparations gathered at my side. I turned to survey them, then gripped the Black Sword tightly.

[Activating 【Black Shadow】.]
[The ‘Light Speed’ buff descends upon the user and nearby allies.]

Power flowed from the Black Sword, settling into me and the War Covenant Members, immediately granting us tremendous speed.
And I did not hold back that speed.

“Moving.”

Whoooosh!

I shot forward at tremendous velocity.
The Oath-takers, startled by the sudden acceleration, rushed to follow me.
I sensed the presence of monsters scattered throughout the area. Moving at incredible speed, I visually confirmed their locations.

—Grrrrrrr…
—Kaahhh!

I could see multiple creatures gathered together.
Beyond them lay a massive chunk of ore, emanating a peculiarly mystical light—clearly valuable at first glance.
And it truly was.

[Resource discovered: 【Mana Ore】.]

The first resource needed to construct the Steel Fortress.
I pushed off the ground again. Not far away, I spotted a large storage facility of some kind, guarded by numerous monsters.
Upon reaching that storage facility, a message appeared.

[Resource discovered: 【Steel Ingot】.]

Beyond the monsters, I could see boxes stacked high with ingots.
A smile played at my lips as I confirmed all the resources I needed.
Whether it was fortune or simply that these two resources were easy to obtain.
Either way, it didn’t matter.

“Perfect. Let’s finish this quickly.”

This was an excellent opportunity to cut down the time.
And I had no intention of letting this chance slip away.

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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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