The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 190
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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 190
Chapter 190
The Black Dead Tree of the Swamp.
This was not an item that could be obtained simply by logging trees in the Swampland—it was an item that could only be acquired by defeating a monster called the Swamp Dark Ent.
I could have obtained it alone without difficulty, but I was not alone now, was I?
“Kang Ju-hyuk, call the Guild members for me.”
“Okay!”
Since everyone was hunting in the Swampland anyway, I had him summon all of them.
After all, I couldn’t simply ask the Guild members without offering something in return.
While Kang Ju-hyuk called the Guild members, I decided to prepare modest gifts for them using the materials I had on hand.
‘I have plenty of materials.’
It was not only the Guild members who had been defeating monsters in the swamp.
I too had led the Carriage at the vanguard, striking down monsters with ranged attacks, and with Luke’s assistance, I had recovered all the items.
For example.
[ Swamp Frog Footpad ]
[ Sticky Tree Sap ]
[ Brown Mud ]
….
These sorts of things.
I began crafting items using these materials.
– Using the Crafting skill.
As I used the Crafting skill and began making the necessary items, what I created was.
Boots.
Using various materials gathered from the Swampland, I shaped the form of boots, including the sole.
Since my Crafting skill was a production-type skill, its usage level was quite high, influenced by my All Master skill level.
Mobilizing all my knowledge as well, the result of crafting the item was.
[ Crafting successful. ]
[ Judgment: Critical Success ]
[ Swamp Boots ]
I had successfully created the item I desired.
The purpose of this item was.
[ Swamp Boots ]
Type: Footwear
Grade: Rare
Requirement: Level 300 or higher
Description: Boots crafted by Mir using materials gathered from the Swampland. They prevent your feet from sinking in the Swampland and instead allow you to move even faster.
They eliminated the geographical constraints of the Swampland.
I had also crafted the item restrictions to vary according to the Guild members’ levels.
Once I had finished crafting all the boots.
“Mir! I’ve brought them all!”
“Guild Master, good to see you!”
Kang Ju-hyuk appeared, leading the guild members.
For people like them.
“Here, take these first.”
I handed out a set of freshly crafted shoes to everyone.
At first, the guild members looked bewildered, unsure what these items were, but they accepted them nonetheless.
“Did you craft these rare-grade items yourself?”
“Wow! We’ve been struggling because our feet keep sinking in the swamp and our movement speed drops so much!”
“Thank you so much!”
“You even matched the level perfectly!”
After checking the Item Information, all the guild members expressed their gratitude to me.
The materials weren’t particularly high-quality and I made them in a rush, so they’re only rare-grade, but finding better items than these in the Swampland would be difficult.
“I called you all here because I have a request for everyone.”
“Just leave it to us!”
“Thanks to you, Guild Master, our levels have already risen quite a bit!”
To these members brimming with enthusiasm from the start.
“You need to hunt the Swamp Dark Ents and gather as many ‘Black Ancient Trees of the Swamp’ as possible.”
I issued my first proper task as guild master.
* * *
The guild members who received my request returned to the Swampland immediately.
First, they changed into the shoes I had given them.
“Oh, my feet aren’t sinking!”
“Not only does my movement speed not decrease, it’s actually faster!”
“If we can maintain this speed, our hunting efficiency will increase dramatically!”
“The biggest reason the Swampland hunting grounds are avoided is the movement penalty. With these shoes, we can hunt more efficiently than other hunting grounds.”
The shoes’ effectiveness was extraordinary.
To think he crafted such an item from materials found in the Swampland itself.
I had only thought the guild master was exceptional in combat ability.
But that wasn’t it.
If he could craft shoes of this caliber, his crafting skill must be incredibly superior.
His level didn’t seem particularly high, and his playtime didn’t appear to be that long either.
It was puzzling how he became so strong and acquired such crafting skills.
But for now, I set aside my questions.
“Let’s divide into teams first.”
The guild members moved to carry out the task I had given them.
Higher-level guild members hunted alone, while relatively lower-level members formed parties to hunt together.
The Swamp Dark Ents were fairly strong monsters even by Swampland standards.
“Found one!”
While searching through the Swampland.
One of the guild members finally discovered the first Swamp Dark Ent.
The hunt began immediately.
“Arrow Shot!”
Thunk!
An arrow fired by a Guild member embedded itself into the body of a Swamp Dark Ent.
The arrow had penetrated nearly halfway through, suggesting considerable power behind the shot.
“Grrrrrrgh?”
The Swamp Dark Ent appeared to have sustained no damage whatsoever.
An ordinary archer would have faltered at this point, but she was no ordinary archer.
In fact, if she had been, Mir wouldn’t have accepted her into the Guild in the first place.
Her true identity was none other than.
“Fire Boom.”
A magic archer.
Boom!
The arrow detonated.
The Dark Ent recoiled from the significant impact.
Immediately after, a warrior wielding an enormous greatsword rushed forward and swung the blade with tremendous force.
I thought that would finish it.
Crack!
“Ugh!”
The greatsword became entangled by a dark tendril, and the attack was thwarted.
The warrior—one of Mir’s recruits—skillfully extracted the blade and resumed combat, but the battle proved far from simple.
The flailing tendrils were troublesome, and the monster’s health pool was simply too vast.
Thud.
“Phew.”
“This is difficult.”
“Well, it’s a monster with a higher level than us, after all.”
“Even setting that aside, the hunting difficulty seems quite high.”
“The experience rewards are decent, but… sigh.”
The Swamp Dark Ent.
It proved far more formidable and troublesome than anticipated.
Facing such a creature while gathering timber, I couldn’t even begin to estimate how long this would take.
Then.
“We found another one!”
They had located yet another Swamp Dark Ent.
They were about to commence battle when.
Whoosh!
“Huh?”
“Guild Master?”
There was someone who had discovered the Swamp Dark Ent alongside them.
Their Guild Master himself.
It was Mir, the Guild Master of the Heukryeom Guild.
The moment Mir spotted the Swamp Dark Ent, he dashed forward faster than his guild members, black flames dancing across his palm as he drew out a weapon.
Its identity was.
“An axe?”
“He can wield that kind of weapon too?”
“A sword, a bow, a spear, magic, and now an axe. Could it be that he can use every weapon and skill imaginable?”
It was an axe.
But they knew.
Just how high this monster’s health and defense were.
Even for a Guild Master, it would take some time to deal with this monster, so they were about to go offer support.
Crack!
“Huh…?”
“This can’t be…”
That sturdy Swamp Dark Ent.
Split cleanly in half by a single swing of the Guild Master’s axe.
The cleaved Swamp Dark Ent’s body then ignited in Black Flame and vanished, ending the battle.
“I’ll head on ahead.”
The Guild Master greeted them and immediately moved to find his next prey.
The guild members watching him.
“…Gathering lumber seems like it’ll finish faster than expected?”
“…I agree.”
They couldn’t help but marvel once more at their Guild Master’s overwhelming power.
* * *
Most monsters have clear weaknesses.
And if I recall correctly, this Swamp Dark Ent’s weakness is.
[ Giant Splitter ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Type : Axe
Grade : Heroic
Requirements : Level 400+, X Mastery Lv 15+, Strength 1,500+
Description : A massive double-bladed axe crafted for the sole purpose of splitting giants asunder.
An axe.
When I enhance that massive axe with magic and swing it using a skill.
– Using skill ‘Crimson Wildfire Claw’.
Crack!
The Swamp Dark Ent split in half with a single blow.
This was possible not simply because I was strong, but because I struck the Swamp Dark Ent’s weakness with precision.
In any case, now that it’s been proven I can fell a Swamp Dark Ent in a single strike.
What remains is one thing.
“Luke, do you have anything that might help with the search?”
– Of course, Master.
All I need to do is locate the Swamp Dark Ents.
[ Herbalist’s Herb Detection Device ]
( Non-tradeable )
Type: Tool
Grade: Heroic
The detection device Luke had provided—the herb detector.
Though designed to locate medicinal herbs, this detector could sense most plants, not just herbs.
So when I held the recently obtained fragments of the ‘Swamp’s Black Withered Tree’ against it.
– It’s over there.
“Good.”
I could pinpoint the location of the Swamp Dark Ents immediately.
Since overlapping with the guild members would reduce efficiency, I deliberately rushed deep into the Swampland and hunted the Swamp Dark Ents.
Using the detector, I took them down in order from the closest Swamp Dark Ent to me.
Because I felled each one with a single strike, not only did the ‘Swamp’s Black Withered Tree’ fragments accumulate rapidly.
[ Your level has increased. ]
My level rose swiftly as well.
Gathering materials and leveling up simultaneously.
It was a remarkably efficient situation.
‘I’ll reach level 300 before long.’
My current level was already in the late 200s.
Level 300 was within arm’s reach.
I’d only just started the game, yet I was already approaching level 300.
I knew that Yul-ha, ranked first in Second during its second year of operation, exceeded level 500, and that those who had played consistently typically ranged between levels 300 and 400.
Considering this, my growth rate was astonishing.
No—it was almost unbelievable how fast I was advancing.
Crack!
“Screech—.”
Monsters fell rapidly.
As I ventured deeper into the heart of the Swampland, the monster density seemed to increase further.
The problem was.
“Croak?”
“Gurgle.”
The increased monsters weren’t limited to just Swamp Dark Ents.
But it didn’t matter.
Crack!
Other monsters could also be felled in a single strike if I targeted their weak points correctly.
In fact, this hunting ground was perfectly suited for me right now, making it ideal for accumulating experience.
“I’ll gather them quickly.”
There were more Swamp Dark Ents in the deepest part than I’d anticipated.
I was felling these creatures in one strike, so the amount of materials dropping was considerable.
But more than that.
“Luke, it’s thanks to you.”
– No, sir. It’s only because you are strong.
“No, if it weren’t for you, I would have wasted time picking up materials one by one.”
Luke’s help was invaluable.
Every time I felled a monster, Luke would immediately devour it and collect the dropped items for me.
Thanks to that, I could focus solely on hunting.
As I continued felling monsters.
“The numbers have decreased too much?”
There were no more Swamp Dark Ents visible in the vicinity.
Even if I overlapped with the Guild members, I was wondering if I should gradually move to the outskirts.
Beep beep!
The ‘Herbalist’s Herb Detection Device’ began reacting violently.
Following its signal, I ran toward it.
“Groooooooooaaaaaaash!”
A Swamp Dark Ent incomparably larger than any I had faced so far appeared.
A creature whose name ‘Ancient Tree’ suited it perfectly.
It didn’t seem to be a boss monster.
Perhaps it was a named monster among the Swamp Dark Ents?
Looking at such a creature.
“At that size, a lot of timber should drop, right?”
I was already anticipating the rewards.
At this rate, it seemed I could gather all the timber within half a day.
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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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