The Return of the Genius Ranker’s Myth Warehouse - Chapter 40

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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 40
Chapter 40
Axe-type weapons dealt additional damage not only to plant-type monsters but to actual vegetation as well.
Moreover, my unique skill as an All Master, ‘All Mastery+’, had already surpassed level 10 during my conquest of the Ash Ossuary.
With such proficiency, the axe I wielded carried genuine power behind each swing.
Crack!
I carved through the roots blanketing the ground without hesitation.
Thick roots, thin roots, twisted wooden roots as gnarled as rope—none of them mattered.
Crack!
Each time I brought my axe down, they fell away helplessly.
And for good reason.
– Activating the skill ‘Logging’.
Just as when I had learned and used the alchemy skill before, I was now wielding a proper logging skill.
But that wasn’t all.
I had already learned virtually every basic production-class skill through skill books.
Crafting, repair, cooking, and more.
As an All Master, unrestricted by any single profession, I could learn skills from every class—using a logging skill was second nature to me.
As I continued excavating deeper through the roots.
Clang!
A dull impact echoed from below, and a sharp vibration coursed through my palm.
This sensation came from something other than the roots.
I set down my axe momentarily, swept away the severed roots, and then.
“As I thought.”
I discovered a pile of stones that had been concealed beneath the roots.
Others might have dismissed it as ordinary rubble buried in the earth, but I—who had personally demolished the Black Worm God’s Altar in the past—knew better.
This was no ordinary pile of stones.
These were the remains of the altar I had destroyed.
Over time, trees had grown atop the altar and roots had consumed it, eventually creating what was now called the ‘Ruins Root Forest’.
Sure enough.
Ssssssss—.
A single black beetle crawled out from between the stones.
No—calling it merely a black beetle would be a gross understatement given its enormous size.
It stood as living proof that this place had once been called the ‘Black Worm God’s Altar’.
“This is the right place.”
The Black Worm God’s Altar.
True to the god’s name, every monster that emerged from this altar bore the form of insects.
Moreover, because it was called the Black Worm God’s Altar, divine power dwelt within every creature, making each one extraordinarily formidable and perilous.
In terms of levels, they surely exceeded 500.
Therefore, these black insects were absolutely beyond my current capabilities—having only recently surpassed level 100—but.
Tsssssk—.
The beetle that materialized before me appeared far smaller and weaker than the one I remembered.
I couldn’t determine its exact level, but it seemed manageable enough.
Because of that.
“Luke, the Insect Wedge.”
– Yes, Master.
I drew a new weapon from Luke’s subspace.
Though shaped like a short sword, the wedge bristled with jagged protrusions that resembled nothing so much as a mantis’s severed foreleg.
[ Abhorrent’s Insect Wedge ]
( Non-Tradeable )
Form : Short Sword
Grade : Heroic
Restriction : Level 100 or higher
Description : A razor-sharp wedge crafted from the corpse of an insect-despiser who spent a lifetime loathing vermin, moving only to slay them.
A weapon capable of inflicting substantial additional damage against insects.
During my time in First, I’d obtained this exceptional weapon by accepting a Quest from an unnamed insect-despiser at the Flying Insect Spawning Ground and clearing that location.
With that weapon, I drove the wedge through the gaps in the black beetle’s carapace as it bore down upon me.
The spiny protrusions that had grown along the wedge burrowed into the insect’s characteristically tender flesh.
“Kiiiiiii—.”
Yet the creature did not fall.
My strike had been precise, targeting its weakness, but the level disparity left my attack power insufficient.
However, that was acceptable.
I had already anticipated this much.
I left the wedge embedded in the creature as it was.
– I will now use the 1st Circle Fire magic ‘Fire’.
I cast the spell.
The incantation point was positioned at the wedge’s tip.
Ordinarily, manifesting magic within a living creature’s body would be impossible, but with a weapon driven in like this, it becomes entirely feasible.
Whoooosh!
“Kiiiiiiii—!!”
The black beetle convulsed in agony.
Such insectoid monsters were naturally weak to attacks directed at their internal carapace and to scorching assaults like fire or lightning.
Well, truthfully, even without exploiting a weakness, anyone would suffer if flames erupted within their body.
Crack!
The moment I finished off the black beetle.
A sharp sickle swept past my head as I ducked desperately.
A new monster had emerged from the gaps in the debris.
When I looked up, I saw a mantis-shaped monster.
The sickle that had just grazed my head was that mantis’s foreleg.
Moreover, several more monsters were appearing through the gaps in the wreckage.
The gaps in the debris were barely large enough to fit my head through, yet I couldn’t fathom how creatures of that size continued to emerge from them.
But.
‘The attack patterns of insect-type creatures aren’t particularly difficult.’
I evaded the successive insect attacks with remarkable ease.
While insect-type monsters possessed superior physical capabilities, every attack was executed with rigid, instinctual precision.
Their attack patterns were inevitably simplistic.
I had thoroughly memorized every facet of those simple patterns.
As long as my stats kept pace, dodging was trivial.
Whoosh!
I sidestepped the mantis’s foreleg strike as it lashed out again, then drove forward into its embrace while maintaining my lowered stance.
This creature’s weakness lay in its abdomen.
Unlike its hardened upper body and carapace, the abdomen appeared so fragile that its interior was nearly visible.
Squelch squelch squelch!
I drove the insect spike repeatedly into that vulnerable spot.
I didn’t forget to detonate Fire magic within its body either.
As I frantically engaged the swarm of insects that kept charging forward.
[ Your level has increased. ]
“Phew.”
With the level-up notification, all the surrounding insects collapsed.
Unlike ordinary insects, those lying motionless while bleeding black ichor were naturally.
– I shall partake gratefully, Master.
Crunch crunch crunch!
[ Luke has consumed a ‘Black Beetle’. ]
[ Luke’s stats have increased by 2. ]
….
Luke’s meal disappeared into his mouth.
“Does it satisfy your palate?”
– Insect-type monsters have quite a pleasant, bursting texture.
– Since they’re generally larger than human cuisine, the satiation is abundant, making for a rather satisfying meal.
“Good, then I’m relieved.”
I’d been concerned that after tasting properly prepared cuisine recently, he might become picky about monsters.
Fortunately, he showed no signs of such pickiness.
Judging by how readily he consumed both the undead from the Ash Ossuary and insect-type monsters alike.
“Did the altar’s collapse and the god’s power fading weaken them?”
The monsters I remembered from the altar weren’t this feeble.
They were, after all, creatures that had been granted divine power.
It seemed that after I defeated the Black Worm God and the altar crumbled, all the divine power that had dwelled within it dissipated, causing them to regress so drastically.
Regardless, now that I’d found the altar, I wanted to enter it quickly.
“How am I supposed to get in?”
The gaps between the wreckage were far too narrow to pass through.
I attempted to destroy the debris, but even swinging a powerful hammer couldn’t shatter it.
Even if I widened the gap further, it didn’t seem like I could squeeze my body through.
After finally locating the entrance, I found myself facing an impossible situation.
‘Could the Quest have a specific activation time?’
Suddenly.
The words of the Sage Instructor came back to me.
‘Before long, the awakening of the evil god will occur. You should investigate the altars of the fallen evil gods and wait for the right moment.’
Did that mean the Quest had a predetermined activation time, and I should simply wait for now?
Perhaps a certain amount of time had to pass, or my level had to reach a certain threshold.
Such conditions would be troublesome.
The problem was that I had no way of knowing that information right now.
“I don’t know. Let’s just try going in and see what happens.”
I shook my head shortly after.
Quest activation conditions?
Second was an open-world game to begin with.
That meant Quest activation conditions weren’t limited to just one fixed requirement.
In other games, you’d need to find a key to open a locked door, but in First or Second, it was also possible to break locks with raw strength and force your way in.
So I.
“Was the temple entrance over there?”
Regardless of Quest activation conditions, I immediately began searching for the entrance to the Fallen Altar.
Or rather, what had once been the entrance.
* * *
Kang Team Leader of the Second Crisis Management Team.
He, who always managed his team with composure even in hectic situations, was currently watching someone’s gameplay footage and couldn’t find a moment of peace.
“Early promotion? Wait, can an F-rank Hunter even get promoted early? Does a case like this exist?”
“This appears to be the first time.”
“And on top of that, a special commission! That’s a newly discovered Dungeon that hasn’t been revealed to users yet!”
“…That’s correct.”
The protagonist of the footage was the user who had recently advanced to ‘All Master’ and received the main scenario Quest.
Mir.
The appearance of an All Master—something I hadn’t even expected to happen so soon—was already bewildering.
But the bigger problem was.
“Already surpassed level 100?!”
“To be precise, it’s level 104.”
“Ahhhhh!”
Mir’s growth rate.
It had only been a week since leaving the City of Beginnings.
In just one week, he had surpassed level 100.
Compared to the countless users who had played Second so far.
Whether comparing to users in Korea or across the entire world, no one had ever leveled up this quickly.
If another user had leveled up this fast, I would have simply said ‘impressive’ and moved on, but this situation was different.
“The Main Scenario Quest shouldn’t start this quickly!”
Mir is no ordinary user.
The sole Master who has received a Main Scenario Quest.
The Main Scenario Quest he received stands in a different league from the countless Main Scenario Quests that exist in Second.
The cornerstone of Second’s scenario.
A true Main Scenario Quest that was expected to begin only after the game had stabilized further.
So Kang Team Leader had hoped Mir would grow as slowly as possible, delaying the Main Scenario Quest’s onset.
But contrary to Kang Team Leader’s expectations, Mir leveled up faster than anyone else.
“Still, isn’t it fine as long as it’s before the ‘Awakening of the Evil God’?”
“Hmm, that’s true. Before that point, it would be difficult to discover the location of the Fallen Altar anyway.”
However, the Main Scenario hadn’t actually begun yet.
At this pace, Mir’s level requirements would already be met, but the timing hadn’t arrived.
There was still some time before the Awakening of the Evil God would occur.
But then.
“What? How on earth did he find the altar!”
Mir had found the Fallen Altar.
As if he already knew its location, he arrived at the Fallen Altar via the shortest route without a single misstep.
He even swung his axe, cleared away all the roots, discovered the altar’s remains, and was now certain of its location.
“Still… the Awakening of the Evil God hasn’t happened yet.”
“Huh… that’s right. The entrance to the Fallen Altar won’t be revealed until after the Awakening of the Evil God occurs.”
It would be fine.
It had to be fine.
The location of the Fallen Altar had been revealed, but there would be no way to enter it.
No matter how powerful his attacks were, it would be impossible to completely shatter the altar’s remains and gain entry into the Dungeon.
But then.
“Huh? Huh?”
“Team Leader, that place is…”
Mir headed toward somewhere.
That location was precisely the altar’s entrance.
Though hidden beneath countless tree roots, that was unmistakably the altar’s entrance.
“No, it can’t be. That’s impossible…”
Contrary to Kang Team Leader’s expectations, the protagonist visible on the screen—
Mir drew his axe and approached the tree roots and remains blocking the altar’s entrance.
“Don’t!”
Kang Team Leader’s scream filled the Crisis Management Team.

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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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