The Lord Who Levels Up by Devouring - Chapter 142

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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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Chapter 142. The Ogre (1)
A monstrous creature suddenly erupted from beneath the earth.
Soon, a colossal body thrust through the soil and debris, revealing itself to the world.
A mass spanning twenty meters.
Muscles evolved from whale blubber were rough and dense as stone.
Unlike whales, two legs had evolved.
Claws transformed from even-toed ungulate hooves raked the ground with savage intensity, announcing that the ocean’s sovereign had come to rule the land.
…No, wait.
Rather, the terrestrial apex predator had conquered the seas as well.
Its very presence alone proved it stood at the pinnacle of predators.
“G-good heavens…!”
“Th-that thing…!!”
“An ogre…!”
The dwarves trembled with terror, collapsing to the ground.
The ogre’s mouth twisted into a grotesque grin as it looked down upon them.
Beneath this sky.
Announcing the arrival of the strongest terrestrial predator.
KRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHH──!!!
The ogre’s roar erupted with a deafening sonic boom, shattering the very space around us.
* * *
The ogre’s roar—an evolution of the whale’s distinctive resonance.
The whale’s resonance that echoed across tens of kilometers of ocean had evolved into an overwhelming roar, releasing a shockwave that seemed to tear reality asunder.
◆The Heir’s Will [EX] resists the Predator’s Roar!
◆13 Sanity points have accumulated.
A message flashed brilliantly before my eyes for an instant.
As my vision cleared, the dwarves who couldn’t withstand the impact lost their footing and fell to their knees.
Blood streamed from the ears of some dwarves—their eardrums had ruptured.
“Ugh…! Th-this is…!”
“Aaaaaahhhhh!”
Dwarves collapsed, clutching their ears.
I frantically pulled a vial from my inventory and drank it down.
To be honest… I hadn’t anticipated this.
‘I never expected the ogre to respond so quickly.’
And I certainly hadn’t foreseen it burrowing underground to ambush us.
If I hadn’t possessed Tremor Sense [B-]?
My response would have been too late.
Then the Arcanoheart would have detonated without any chance to prevent it.
Fortunately, I managed to block it just in time.
But this isn’t over.
KRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAHHH──!!
A roaring ogre.
I had to hunt that monster.
‘It won’t be easy.’
From [A] rank onward, abilities begin to rival a dragon’s innate powers.
Isolde’s Perfect Muscle Control [A].
Iliana’s Apex Intelligence [A+].
Broombar’s Ironclad Fortress [A+].
The abilities possessed by the heroes of the Allied Forces.
These were abilities that could match a dragon, and perhaps even surpass one.
And the ogre’s Imperviousness [S-] was—.
◆Imperviousness [S-]
: This skill is the [Complete Form of Evolution], born from countless natural selections and extreme environmental pressures. The skills interwoven within this ability generate [Synergy] with one another, greatly [Amplifying] the skill’s [Base Effect].
【This skill is a Hybrid Skill composed of Hyperdense Myofibrils [A+], Reinforced Skeletal Structure [A], Organ Replication System [A], Hypersensitive Motor Control [A-], and Enhanced Immune System [B-].】
Hybrid Skill.
A skill where different attributes or types of abilities merge together to produce multiple effects.
In other words, the ogre’s Imperviousness [S-] was no different from combining all the heroes of the Allied Forces into one.
That was no exaggeration whatsoever.
If one examined even a single individual skill that comprised the Hybrid Skill—.
◆Hyperdense Myofibrils [A+]
: Upon acquiring this skill, the player’s muscle fiber tissue is restructured into a [Hyperdense Configuration], increasing muscle density by [+1,350%]. Furthermore, by manipulating the [Actin-Myosin Filament Arrangement] to alter [Contractility] and [Elasticity Coefficient], [Muscle Output Force] increases by [+36,800%], and [Impact Absorption Rate] increases by [+4,240%].
【When acquired as a passive skill, this effect applies permanently.】
…It was insane.
A madman with five such skills.
These skills generated synergy with one another, exponentially amplifying the base effects of the ability itself.
As a result, the Hybrid Skill’s rank reached [S-].
Perhaps wasn’t even the right word.
In terms of survivability and adaptability alone, it had surpassed dragons.
It was no accident that it could challenge a dragon.
It was no accident that it could hunt a dragon.
Of course, it was merely hunting a dragon’s offspring—a hatchling.
Yet it remained unique.
The only terrestrial being capable of hunting dragons, the supreme creatures of this world.
Therefore, hunting an ogre was not merely difficult—it bordered on the impossible.
But.
If I could devour [S+] such an ogre?
I could transcend the limits I now faced in a single leap.
By absorbing the ogre’s power and breaking through my ceiling, I could grow several times faster than I do now.
I carelessly hurled the oil canister that had spilled entirely from my mouth.
Regenerating my left wrist that had burst apart from Dragon Burst [E], I kicked off Rocky Mountain and lunged forward.
“Kai! Seraphia!!”
The operation had been explained beforehand.
“Kai! Let’s go!”
“Hold on tight!”
Kai scooped Seraphia into his arms and followed close behind me.
* * *
Broombar’s teeth ground together.
An ogre that had burrowed through the earth to launch its ambush.
If an explosion hadn’t streaked down from somewhere and twisted the ogre’s trajectory, everything would have been finished.
But merely the sight of the ogre’s colossal frame rising above the ground sent tremors through the earth itself.
And the ogre’s roar that followed turned the surroundings into absolute chaos.
“Ugh, argh…!”
“This is…!”
Dwarves collapsed, bleeding profusely.
They couldn’t rise to their feet easily.
Uuuuuuuung—!
The mana field of the Arcanoheart began to fluctuate unstably.
The air around us pressed down with crushing weight.
The ogre’s eyes flashed for an instant toward the Arcanoheart.
That intense murderous intent directed at the Arcanoheart.
A gaze seething with raw violence.
It burned with pure destructive instinct to crush the Arcanoheart.
The ogre’s massive foot stamped against the ground.
Overwhelming brutality.
It was aimed at the Arcanoheart.
A direct hit would cause the Arcanoheart to explode instantly.
Broombar charged forward.
It couldn’t happen.
The damage from the explosion was a concern, but without the Arcanoheart, we couldn’t mine the Runesteel Ore Vein.
The Arcanoheart couldn’t be remade.
A masterwork of a lifetime.
I had no confidence I could create it again, and even if I could, there was no time.
…Feractrum would be finished.
Broombar swallowed hard and bulged his muscles enormously.
Above him.
The ogre’s fist came crashing down.
KWAAAANG————!!
The earth split open, and rocks scattered into the air.
I barely managed to block the ogre’s fist, but….
“Kuhahahk!!”
Blood gushed forth from the tremendous impact.
The ogre’s fist bore down on my entire body.
I felt as though I would shatter into fragments.
I forced myself to correct my stance.
But.
“Ugh…!”
My vision wavered.
Just as my muscles screamed as if they would tear apart—
BOOM!
An explosion erupted in a straight line from somewhere.
CRASH!
It struck the ogre directly—
ROOOAAARRR!!
The ogre shrieked and was driven backward.
It pushed back that monster head-on…?
My eyes widened in shock.
I had never imagined anything could drive that creature back in a direct confrontation.
‘Who on earth…?’
As if answering my question, a streak of black light flashed before my eyes.
It was Adrian.
In that fleeting glimpse, one of Adrian’s forearms was torn open and exposed.
Yet Adrian paid it no mind.
Like a black wolf, he charged at the ogre without hesitation.
At that very moment.
“Clan Chief!!”
Urgent voices of dwarves rang out.
“The Arcanoheart…!!”
The impact caused by the ogre was triggering a runaway reaction in the Arcanoheart.
If the Arcanoheart exploded, everything would be finished.
But there was no way to stop the runaway—!
In that instant.
“Leave it to me!”
KIIIIIING!
Threads of piercing cold energy coiled through the air.
Standing at their center was Seraphia.
Her eyes blazed with brilliant pure white light as she reached out her hand toward the runaway Arcanoheart—
“The Arcanoheart’s runaway energy…?”
“It’s being controlled?!”
“What…!!”
A few dwarves who had not lost their senses to the roar cried out in astonishment.
But their shock was nothing compared to the bewilderment I felt.
The runaway energy emitted by the Arcano Heart.
It was high-density mana plasma.
A power source that triggered mana nuclear fusion reactions, generating explosive energy.
To control such runaway energy was to…!
Broombar’s eyes flew wide with shock.
And immediately, he doubted his own vision.
A pure white chill spreading from the tips of Seraphia’s fingers.
That was not merely a cold that lowered temperature.
It was altering the very flow of energy itself.
As if reversing the primordial heat source, annihilating all things—
Heat Death.
‘How… how is that even possible…?’
As Broombar’s shock deepened with mounting impact—
Kwaaaaaang!
A deafening roar erupted.
Lifting my gaze, Adrian was boring into the Ogre with relentless force.
* * *
Dragon Burst [E] sacrificed raw power in exchange for surgical precision in striking its target.
But the Ogre’s Impenetrable Defense [S-].
The ultra-dense muscle fibers [A+] that composed it.
Each fiber possessed elasticity stronger than steel, contracting with even greater rigidity.
Kraaaaaaagh—!!
The Ogre remained unmoved by Dragon Burst [E].
Instead, it roared in fury, swinging its colossal fist down.
Kwaaaang!!
The earth’s surface inverted entirely, sending torrents of soil skyward.
…Truly catastrophic destructive power.
But it was not without drawbacks.
When muscular amplification exceeded its limits, bodily balance collapsed.
Tremendous strain was placed upon the nervous system, and fatigue accumulated.
Moreover, a massive body made movement and balance sense sluggish.
Whales did not enter the ocean without reason.
Hippopotamuses did not reduce their size without cause.
But the Ogre was the pinnacle of biological evolution.
The result of countless natural selections.
It had overcome such disadvantages entirely.
◆Enhanced Sensorimotor Control [A-]
: Upon acquiring this skill, the player’s [nervous system] transforms into a [multi-layered neural network structure]. Through this [auxiliary neural network], [neural currents] are meticulously [analyzed], increasing [motor balance] by [+19,240%] and neural response time by [+300%].
Furthermore, even if the [primary nervous system] is [damaged] or [severed], the [auxiliary neural network’s] immediate substitution ensures [motor performance] remains completely [intact].
【This skill, when acquired as a passive skill, applies permanently.】
The ogre’s neural response time was under eight milliseconds.
There was no immediate degradation of bodily function.
In other words, the power of Dragon Burst [E] was insufficient to harm the ogre.
Whether by weight class or any other measure.
The ogre could be called a miniature Crawlgar.
Simply put, the ogre’s combat prowess rivaled Iratum, the Destroyer of Wrath.
And Iratum was a formidable foe even Isolde struggled against.
In other words, the ogre was a monster beyond Isolde’s control.
I extended my left arm forward.
◆Derivative Skill, Dragon Burst [E] activated!
My entire left arm erupted in a devastating explosion.
Kwaaaaaang—!
The ogre, struck directly in the chest, was hurled backward in an instant.
Kuuuuuung—!
A deafening roar as though the earth itself trembled.
But that was all.
The halved power of Dragon Burst [E] could not deliver a fatal blow to the ogre.
Yet it had created an opening.
“Kai!!”
At my cry, a shadow stirred from the undergrowth.
Kai, who had been holding his breath.
Kai’s presence sharpened in an instant.
Spaaaaaht—!
An aura blade that cleaved through darkness.
The ogre’s remarkable reflexes responded to it.
But Kai was different from when he faced Lycanthrope.
Kai’s blade had stepped into the realm of a true master.
It was like the fangs of a wolf, honed beyond mere sharpness—ready to rend all asunder.
Wolf’s swordsmanship. First form.
Dance of Fangs.
* * *
Merciless slashes descended in relentless arcs.
The first strike tore through the ogre’s grip.
The second carved deep into its flank.
And the third, fourth….
Chachachachach—!
A cascade of blade strikes shredded the ogre’s flesh in an instant. Each slash pierced with the ferocity of a beast’s fang.
At last, the ogre staggered, bleeding profusely.
“!!!”
“!!!”
Broombar and all the dwarves gasped in shock.
That monster, which seemed it would never crumble….
Grrr, grraaaaaahhhhh…!
At last, it collapses.
And as that colossal body lost its balance and swayed.
In a single instant, a crimson flash and an azure flash tore through the air.
Adrian and Kai.
…Two wolves began their hunt.

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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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