The Return of the EX-Class Wizard - Chapter 177

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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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The Return of an EX-Rank Mage Episode 177
That should have been the case.
But ‘science’ transcended common sense.
For them, cooldown periods seemed not to exist.
“What… is that?”
Dozens of energy bolts began pouring down.
Luminous spheres tinged with azure light engulfed the sky.
The spheres, revealed through spatial release, commenced their descent.
Just two of them had tilted the Tower.
Yet there were dozens.
The mages could not fathom this situation.
Why were dozens of what they believed to be a finishing spell suddenly unleashed?
“Block it!”
“Intercept them!”
Interception proved ineffective.
Interception magic could not reach them.
Before contact, they simply vanished.
The magical principle defied explanation.
“From what we can observe…”
“Our magic is being destroyed before it can even reach them.”
The analysts provided their answer in real time.
“From a magical perspective, it appears our spells are being destroyed by mana pressure.”
“That’s absurd!”
It merely appeared as though mana pressure alone could accomplish this.
But that was impossible.
“That’s… science.”
A destructive force that magic could not explain.
A form of violence unprecedented in the history of magical civilization unfolded.
“The energy bolts are converging.”
A massive energy field materialized at the base of the Tower.
Energy bolts ricocheted wildly in all directions, forming an energy barrier.
Countless rankers were swept up in it.
“This can’t… be real.”
With those words, no one dared speak further.
The Tower began to collapse.
Growth materials could not stop it.
Rankers were swept away.
Most of the Arcian Empire knights deployed in this disaster were annihilated.
Even accounting for the top 1 to 100 ranked rankers, there were virtually no survivors.
The prestige of the Arcian Empire crumbled.
“The Tower… has collapsed.”
Earth’s counteroffensive did not end there.
Following the EX-rank Awakener’s barrage, ground forces moved in.
Tanks, helicopters—the full arsenal of scientific civilization was mobilized.
Led by South Korea, nations friendly to the Korean Territory formed a Multinational Allied Forces.
In a single day, the Imperial Palace fell.

* * *
[Breaking News: Arcsia Empire Falls Under EX-rank Awakener Support Fire]
[Breaking News: Arcian Emperor Declares Unconditional Surrender!]
Not long ago, Earth had been in disarray under the invasion of otherworldly mages. That Earth no longer existed.
Even Earthlings were shocked.
“Wait, this actually works?”
“It actually works.”
The Arcsia Empire was a vast nation rivaling the Australian continent in size.
How could such an empire crumble in a single day?
“All the top-ranked fighters are dead, apparently.”
“Their will to resist was completely broken.”
It took one area-of-effect spell.
In that single casting, seventy percent of the empire’s military strength vanished.
As a result, the empire lost all will to resist.
[Isn’t this basically a nuke?]
└Stronger than a nuke. No radiation damage, and precision strikes are totally possible.
They say these crazy guys tried to block EX hyung’s magic with magic lol
└So it got dispelled?
└EX-rank Awakener is the emperor of dispel.
[But honestly, without EX-rank Awakener, aren’t we a bit outmatched?]
└Yeah, we gotta admit we’re pretty weak.
But we have a tank, don’t we lol
└They say they’re building runways too. Fighter jets and aircraft carriers will probably be deployed.
└Wasn’t science supposed to be useless?
This was proven in the Iraq incident.
Towers were generated that blocked ‘scientific civilization,’ empowering the Barbarian Warriors.
Science proved ineffective.
[That’s only when they invaded us]
└When we invade them, it’s a completely different story.
They say buffs are going into the Invaders lol
When otherworlders invaded Earth, they received the invader’s buff.
Towers that blocked scientific civilization were the prime example.
Conversely, when Earthlings invade the otherworld, they too receive the invader’s buff.
The army was protected from the magic of the Arcian Empire’s mages.
The scientifically advanced military, bolstered by these enhancements, demonstrated truly formidable power.
[Magical-immune mechanical divisions… absolutely magnificent]
└A military enthusiast’s heart races with excitement
└Give those scientists medals, seriously
└And Korean artillery looked insane
The Awakeners’ individual capabilities fell short.
Yet science bridged that gap.
The Arcian Empire had fallen, and Earth’s multinational forces occupied it completely.
The problem was… who would control the Arcian Empire.
Lin Zhiwei, the Chinese Sovereign, withdrew herself.
“We merely acted to assist the EX-rank Awakener and Korea.”
Spaloti, the Italian Sovereign, did the same.
“We feel likewise.”
What Spaloti desired was to maintain second place.
Second place was acceptable.
If the Arcian Empire took third, his relative standing would rise.
Wanting more would be greed.
Foster, the London Sovereign, spoke.
“The true master of the empire is already determined.”
The benefits would be shared.
But there was only one true master.
“Could there be anyone other than the EX-rank Awakener?”
No matter how much scientific civilization supported them, the fundamental gap in Awakener capabilities remained vast.
Without an EX-rank Awakener, maintaining peace itself would be difficult.
They were too easy to exploit.
Lee Byung-gyu spoke.
“However, the EX-rank Awakener has no interest in politics.”
“….”
Everyone fell silent.
All knew the truth. He was one who dreamed of becoming the emperor of a new era.
An iron-willed ruler who desired to seize and govern everything.
Yet he still maintained the facade of being “uninterested in politics.”
Everyone had much to say, but no one spoke.
Lin Zhiwei quickly interjected.
“Precisely. That person is a mage with absolutely no interest in politics whatsoever.”
But a bust should be erected in the Imperial Palace plaza.
She continued, keeping such thoughts to herself.
“This expedition was undertaken solely to obtain the appraisal magic. Therefore, it seems the Arcian Empire’s new master should be Korea. Perhaps the Korean Sovereign could ascend to the throne as the EX-rank Awakener’s proxy.”

* * *
Surrounding the Arcian Empire were numerous kingdoms and duchies recognized by the Emperor.
They found it difficult to believe in the Empire’s collapse.
“This is our opportunity.”
The top-ranked Awakeners had been annihilated.
The internal circumstances of the Empire remained unclear, but they say it fell to ‘science’.
“Science is certainly terrifying.”
“However, their magical prowess is crude.”
“Our assassins are far superior as well.”
They could not tolerate an invasion from an inferior civilization.
Especially not from a lower dimension that couldn’t even properly conquer Floor 60?
“Rather, this is our chance.”
“The Empire fell because they were careless. We simply need to remain vigilant.”
Several kingdoms united and launched a war.
And there, an energy barrier descended through spatial liberation.
Choi Kang-mok’s brow furrowed.
“Seriously, I need to enter the Gate.”
They kept bothering me from all directions.
Lee Byung-gyu, who had assumed the position of interim Emperor, had clearly issued an official notice that he would strike the Tower if they attacked first.
They ignored the warning entirely and kept launching assaults.
Mayo seemed impatient as well.
-Why not leave the defense to the soldiers and hurry to acquire the [Discernment Grimoire]?
-Thanks to the invader bonus, Earth’s military is quite formidable.
Choi Kang-mok shook his head.
“If it were just me, I’d naturally do that.”
But the situation wasn’t that favorable.
Of all things, my younger brother is an Explorer and my older brother is a Sovereign.
My older brother came here as a Sovereign and is handling various matters, while my younger brother travels through every corner of new dimensions as an Explorer.
One performs the duties of a Sovereign, the other performs the duties of an Explorer.
From a mage’s perspective, this is perfectly understandable.
I too get captivated whenever I see new magic.
“I can’t let my older brother and Kang Hye get hurt because of this.”
So several warnings were necessary.
I destroyed three Towers.
‘But…’
My skills have been improving through doing this.
I wonder if destroying Towers should really be this easy.
Previously, I only shattered the ‘reward system’, but now I’ve reached the level of obliterating the Tower itself.
This means I’m gradually developing new techniques.
-It seems your Dispel ability has increased, which is likely the cause.
-The Tower is the pinnacle of supernatural ability. Dismantling it is precisely what Dispel is.
-Now I can genuinely call myself a
Dispel Specialist Mage
without any reservation.
Choi Kang-mok rubbed the bridge of his nose.
Just as Mayo said, it seemed I could finally have some confidence in myself.
[【Breaking News】 Unconditional Surrender of Nations Surrounding the Arcian Empire]
[【Breaking News】 Towers Crumbled by EX-Rank Awakener’s Firepower… On-Site Photos Released]
The crisis had only just begun to settle.
Successive declarations of surrender from each nation, complete establishment of Korean Territory’s strongholds.
And,
[The Arcian Empire Territory is being incorporated into Korean Territory.]
All of Arcsia had fallen under Korea’s sphere of influence.
A vast land rivaling the Australian continent.
Korea had acquired the largest territory in its history.
While I hadn’t yet secured complete submission from the imperial populace, that was a matter time would resolve.
“Now I really need to go to the Cradle of the Crimson Cat.”
I can’t wait any longer!
Just as sovereigns fulfill their duties and explorers pursue their calling, the time had come for a mage to do what mages do.
My heart races.
‘Can I finally secure the Appraisal Grimoire?’
Dispel followed by Appraisal?
I cannot help but be thrilled.
I’m really going.

* * *
He had actually come.
[You have entered the Crimson Cat’s Cradle Gate.]
[Challenge: Leave a magical scar upon the unbreakable rock!]
[You are limited to 3 attempts per person.]
It was quite similar to the Special Stage of the Labyrinth.
A black rock loomed before me.
It was less a rock and more a colossal cliff face.
Its smooth, dark surface bore countless small marks scattered across it.
“If I completely obliterate this thing, it feels like another mine would be born.”
Since I had already done it before, I could probably do it more easily this time.
I wish completely destroying it would count as a ‘scar.’
“In my opinion… I think the rock’s form itself needs to be preserved.”
-I agree, Master.
-A higher level of magic is required to wound it while maintaining the rock’s shape.
Capture has always been more difficult than killing.
A more sophisticated level of magic was needed.
“The right approach would be to minimize damage while maximizing penetration properties.”
Three attempts.
I decided to try once first.
“But.”
Now Choi Kang-mok was a true mage.
Did I really need to strike from the outside?
I could use high-level spatial magic.
“Through spatial liberation.”
I would deploy Meteor Form.
From inside the rock, outward.
“I’ll strike from within.”
My structural analysis ability had also improved by leaps and bounds.
The structure of the unbreakable rock was laid bare before my eyes.
“If I manifest energy bolts radiating from the center point, I could create far more varied and profound magical scars.”
-A truly spatial mage-like approach.
-The thinking of a mage whose magical structural analysis and spatial liberation abilities have reached their zenith.
-Indeed,
a true mage!
Choi Kang-mok nodded once and attempted it lightly.
Without force, effortlessly.
Meteor Form—Energy Bolt deployment.

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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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