The Game of a Legendary Genius Dark Mage - Chapter 254

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

Episode 254
254
‘A small snake?’
Yoo Sung-hyun nearly thought as much upon seeing its form, resembling that of a hatchling.
Yet an inexplicable aura of sanctity emanated from it, dispelling such notions entirely.
By what I could sense through my abilities.
‘This isn’t Apophis.’
That realization came naturally.
Indeed, the power radiating from this small white serpent’s avatar-like form stood in stark contrast to Apophis itself.
Above its head, a luminous band resembling a halo hovered alongside the diminutive snake, while roots of light—not the acrid mist of venom—scattered brilliantly around its form, illuminating the surroundings.
From appearance alone, one could discern its opposition to Apophis.
Moreover, it was not merely an impression of holiness in outward form.
It dispelled the surrounding darkness and purified the thinly-layered toxins.
As expected.
[Hidden Stage: You encounter the Hidden Raid Boss, guardian of Apopis’s Heart—the Savior Snake, Asura Fragment.]
!!!WARNING!!!
You are without a party!!!
This is dangerous!!!
This is a World Boss Hidden Stage!!!
Matchup compatibility is catastrophic!!!
Even the name in the message that appeared was different.
Yet it was undeniable that it bore deep connection to Apophis.
What that connection entailed remained unknown for now.
Regardless, I had to face this creature.
And then another message surfaced.
[TIP—The moment the Corrupted Heart within Apopis Interior is destroyed, the Savior Snake, Asura Fragment will weaken.]
Unlike other Hidden Raid Bosses, it helpfully provided guidance.
And there was even a message about catastrophic matchup compatibility.
This was quite problematic.
On a whim, Yoo Sung-hyun channeled darkness through Lord of Darkness to probe it.
Ssssshhhhiiiiiii———!!!
The darkness melted away as though touched by hydrochloric acid.
‘Damn it….’
Yoo Sung-hyun immediately deactivated Lord of Darkness and withdrew.
Light surged through the darkness, assaulting the space where I had just stood.
Had I not instinctively vacated the position, I would have been struck by the counterattack.
Yoo Sung-hyun’s brow furrowed slightly at the sight.
The matchup was this incompatible.
This was proving quite troublesome.
And as if realizing Yoo Sung-hyun’s dilemma, the massive snow-white serpent opened its maw wide, and in that instant, the halo-like luminous source hovering above its head began manifesting within the gaping jaws.
Sceeeeeeeee——!!!
As the sound of metal trembling violently echoed through the air, an immense pressure suddenly sucked in the surrounding atmosphere.
Yoo Sung-hyun sensed it immediately and swiftly transitioned his body into a shadow within the darkness.
The moment Yoo Sung-hyun transitioned, a pure white beam of light swept across the spot where he had been standing.
Craaaaaash——!!!
The destructive light blazed with brilliant white radiance, carving a deep furrow into the ground.
Yoo Sung-hyun, who had bounced back into position, shook his head as if fed up with what he witnessed.
What kind of destructive power was that?
With my own skills, it wouldn’t be easy to leave such a mark on walls or floors.
Yet that creature left such a mark far too easily.
Being caught by that light would mean death—even a mere graze would be fatal.
However.
‘If that light touches it, darkness is completely nullified.’
The worst possible matchup in terms of compatibility.
If my Lord of Darkness had been even slightly more powerful?
Then I would have held the advantage in this matchup instead.
But now it was the opposite—my Lord of Darkness was effectively sealed.
The same applied to all other darkness-attribute skills.
Because of this, the moment I bounced back into position, I immediately summoned blood swords alongside Hemotoxin.
As hundreds of blood swords materialized,
I wielded a torrent of blood using those swords as my medium.
At first, they merely trembled with a gentle breeze, like a small whirlwind passing through.
One blade.
Two blades.
Soon it exceeded ten, then a hundred.
A massive crimson tempest formed from blood-forged swords came into being.
The blades were as if woven from wind itself, and each razor-sharp crimson edge was saturated with a potent hemotoxin that induced poisoning.
Shwooooosh————!!!
The scarlet storm of blood swords, with blades becoming wind as they whirled forward, flew toward the Asura Fragment, Savior Snake. The creature, caught off guard in its blind spot, reacted too late upon noticing the attack.
Shwooosh———!!!
Shhhhhhh———!!!
The razor-sharp crimson blades instantly shredded the pure white scales and body of the Asura Fragment.
The pristine white scales that formed its exterior were left without a single intact spot, and crimson blood flowed endlessly from the lacerated wounds.
There were countless critical injuries.
It would not be an exaggeration to say victory was already secured.
Just as arrogant thoughts swept through me at how unexpectedly easy this was,
I suddenly felt an ominous premonition and hastily activated a skill.
The crystalline skin I had obtained from Crescent Rae—superior to anything else in terms of defense.
Yet finding that insufficient, I used Extreme Flame and Extreme Limit to generate tremendous pressure, then scattered it around myself.
Then.
The wave of light that erupted from the Asura Fragment collided with my attack, engulfing the surroundings in chaos.
Kwagagagagagaga———!!!
The violent impact swept across my body.
In that instant, the crystal shell shattered into fragments.
‘…Hah.’
Without the crystal shell, that blow would have meant certain death—proof of its devastating power.
Fortunately, thanks to the crystal shell’s protection, I remained unharmed and immediately activated Shadow Drift, concealing myself while using the shadows within darkness to relocate my body.
To think it could mount such a counterattack while bearing injuries of that magnitude.
I never anticipated this.
Before my eyes, now hidden in concealment, an unbelievable sight unfolded.
The Asura Fragment, which moments ago had been on the brink of death from the blood sword, blood poison, and the relentless barrage of blood combinations, had returned to its pristine condition—exactly as it appeared when first summoned.
‘What is this?’
An illusion?
No, that couldn’t be.
I possessed resistance to illusions.
Even if I had been caught, some kind of message would have appeared.
The absence of any such warning meant this was no illusion.
Then only one possibility remained.
‘It recovered in the meantime?’
It possessed not only light and purification, but also the power of restoration?
And restoration potent enough to heal from the brink of death itself.
I stared at the Asura Fragment with a sense of utter bewilderment.
Still concealed, I remained undetected.
Yet merely observing it left me feeling rather helpless.
How was I supposed to defeat this thing?
Endure until the Corrupted Heart is destroyed?
I might manage it, being who I am.
But for any other player, it would be impossible.
‘Even enduring would be difficult.’
The fact that even I harbored such thoughts spoke volumes.
Would things have been different if I still had my Minions with me?
But now I stood alone without them.
So I had no choice but to rely on myself.
As I wracked my mind for solutions, I formulated several strategies.
‘This might just work.’
I hadn’t known it possessed such recovery abilities.
But now that I did.
I simply needed to adjust my tactics accordingly.
With that thought, I rapidly unleashed the most devastating skills I could manage from my concealed state.
I opened the gateway to the Underworld and summoned all the Death Legion I had accumulated, while simultaneously using Corpse Venom to blanket the surroundings in a gentle miasma of poison emanating from the corpses.
I had used half of my power when the Half-Demon King Alliance rushed at me, and what remained was that other half.
The Death Legion’s advance, as if I were betting everything on it.
The moment it tried to purify me after witnessing that.
Yoo Sung-hyun activated two skills from his shadow self within the darkness once more.
Corpse Burst and Venom Burst.
When the two bursts collided.
A small ignition bloomed within the pale-green toxic fog and the tens of thousands of Death Legion soldiers.
Soon, a fierce light spread outward, consuming everything as if bleaching the world itself.
As the pure white Asura Fragment was also swallowed by the light and bleached away.
An indescribable violent explosion erupted.
Kwaaaaaang!!!
A fierce burst that shook heaven and earth.
Yoo Sung-hyun escaped the explosion by slipping away half a beat later as a shadow within the darkness, and right after the explosion ended, he could see the Asura Fragment, now mangled beyond recognition, amid black billowing smoke.
Though its recovery and attack power were formidable, its defense was pitiful.
The state was so devastating that it seemed like instant death, yet I could see its cells writhing and attempting to regenerate.
It hadn’t died even in such a state.
Because of that, Yoo Sung-hyun recalled the worst skill he had obtained after defeating Hindel and activated it.
Salvation’s Destruction.
A skill he had never used since first obtaining it.
As it manifested in the world once more.
The Asura Fragment’s eyes widened in agony as its mouth fell open.
-!!!!!!
It was truly a skill worthy of the name Salvation’s Destruction and most calamitous.
The pure white Asura Fragment, called the Savior Snake, couldn’t even scream, only widening its eyes as its body crumbled without recovering.
Because I caught it at the perfect moment when it was trying to recover, it suffered such massive damage.
If it hadn’t been for Salvation’s Destruction.
Even Yoo Sung-hyun couldn’t have dealt such burst damage.
Damage equivalent to burst combos hitting consecutively.
However.
-Saaaack——!
A pure white baby snake appearing to sprout from its head—or rather, what was presumed to be a ghost of the Savior Snake, an Asura Fragment ghost—cried out something to Yoo Sung-hyun.
Understanding its meaning, Yoo Sung-hyun immediately fled the spot.
Crunch, crunch!
Kwadudududuk——!
With a horrific sound, its body swelled cell by cell as pure white flesh engulfed everything.
Then the pure white flesh bursting forth like an explosion began to shrink as if compressed into one.
It transformed from a complete serpent form into something like a lizardman, a mixture of snake and human.
Simultaneously, the halo above its head grew darker, light burst forth from its back to sprout like wings, and dual swords made of light appeared in its hands.
Yoo Sung-hyun looked at it in disbelief.
I thought this would be the end.
‘That’s unfortunate.’
As if declaring that I could no longer taste the sweetness of victory, the creature’s form shifted dramatically.
In its bestial transformation, it radiated an intensity far greater than before, its gaze fixed upon Yoo Sung-hyun.
Then the message appeared.
[Hidden Raid Boss ‘Asura Fragment, Savior Snake’ is transforming.]
[Hidden Raid Boss ‘Asura Fragment, Savior Snake’ enters Phase 2 and becomes ‘Corrupted Asura Fragment, Savior Snake’.]
A corrupted savior snake.
Seeing the message indirectly reveal its connection to Apophis, Yoo Sung-hyun scratched his cheek with an expression of distress.
‘This is definitely stronger than before….’
This time, I truly would have to endure until the Corrupted Heart shattered.
Whoosh—!
The corrupted Asura Fragment gripped dual blades and moved.
Watching the corrupted Asura Fragment appear before me in an instant, Yoo Sung-hyun thought inwardly.
‘Can I hold out?’
In that moment, a blade of light plunged down toward Yoo Sung-hyun.
Crash—!!!

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