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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
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Chapter 367
The thick black smoke obscuring its vision wavered for a brief moment. The heat scorching my body also subsided for an instant.
A gust of wind had swept in from the distance.
I raised my central head, turning toward the direction the wind had come from. Far on the horizon, where the sky met the ground, a mushroom-shaped column of fire was rising.
It was a nuclear cloud the aftermath of a Gamma-class antimatter bomb, a deployable weapon used by the Star Union.
‘Looks like I got the timing just right.’
After hiding within the ash-filled clouds for four hours, they ambushed the reconnaissance fleet.
My first targets were those who had landed on the volcano. They had descended to set up the bombs, meaning they could manually detonate them at any moment. Eliminating them was the top priority.
At the same time, I assigned tasks to my allies. Isabel and Number 26 would disrupt the main fleet hovering in the sky, while Adhai would destroy the communications satellites in planetary orbit.
In combat mode, Number 26 unleashed its powerful psychic ability, ‘Terror of the Deep’, paralyzing the enemy with fear. Even those on the ground were so overwhelmed by its illusions that they failed to respond properly.
Thanks to that, I swiftly eliminated the ground forces and moved on to inspect the bombs.
And then, I waited.
If Salman had planned for contingencies, he would have set up remote detonation. As expected, just minutes after the fleet was attacked, the bomb's timer activated.
With about ten seconds left before detonation, I used one of the strongest enemy markers, ‘Starlight Coordinate’. The timing was deliberately close. If the enemy realized the bomb’s location too soon, they might have stopped it.
My target was the parasite I had entrusted to PS-111.
An hour before launching the operation, the parasite had relayed a report: Mother of the Sky and PS-111 had left the base. An hour was more than enough time for them to escape the antimatter bomb’s blast radius.
Once I was certain they were safe, I teleported the bomb using the Starlight Coordinate. The massive explosive, as large as Isabel, vanished in a burst of blue light right before my eyes.
The result was the nuclear cloud now blooming in the distance.
‘So far, everything’s going according to plan.’
But the real challenge started now.
There was a 50-50 chance Salman had survived. If this were a game, he would have died without question. But in reality, there were too many unknown factors.
One of them was the equipment possessed by the Returner faction.
Unlike the game, this world was full of surprises. Who knew what kind of hidden gear those who had been here for a long time had accumulated? It was hard to imagine armor that could withstand an antimatter bomb, but it wasn’t impossible.
If he was wearing something like that, survival was within the realm of possibility.
‘Other than that, the creatures under his command are another wildcard.’
He had been targeting a Magmasaur. That meant the creatures under his control were of a similarly high caliber. It wasn’t out of the question that one of them had shielded him from the explosion.
‘Even so, he wouldn’t have escaped severe injuries.’
Even as an adult, taking a Gamma-class antimatter bomb head-on would be dangerous. If Salman did survive, he wouldn’t have walked away unscathed.
So what was the next move?
By now, Adhai should have seen the explosion from the ground and finished dealing with the communication satellites. That meant if Salman was alive, he had no way of reaching the outside world.
However, there was still the possibility that he had already requested reinforcements beforehand. I have to wrap things up quickly and prepare to intercept any incoming enemies.
‘That means I should strike the Magmasaur now.’
Confirming Salman’s survival would take time. If he was dead, good. But if he wasn’t…
‘If he’s alive, he’ll do whatever he can to stall for time.’
His only option would be to buy time until reinforcements arrived.
Of course, he might have been overconfident and not called for backup. Or he might have assumed he had enough time to contact them after detonating the bomb.
Either way, I have no way of knowing what he had done.
So, I have to leave the matter of Salman to Mother of the Sky and PS-111.
By now, the two of them are probably on their way back to the temporary nest they built. If it’s the Mother of the Sky, she would know what that explosion means. She’d also know what to do next.
‘If it were before, I would’ve gone to fight alongside them...’
Currently, Salman had lost both his subordinates and the fortress. Most of the animals he controlled had likely been caught up in the explosion as well.
In any case, even if some of the creatures he controlled and Salman himself managed to survive, they would undoubtedly be in a significantly weakened state.
‘Those two will manage just fine.’
The Mother of the Sky, who had obtained new equipment, and PS-111, with its diverse abilities, should be able to overpower Salman.
While those two deal with Salman, I’ll quickly take care of the Magmasaur. After that, I’ll return to where the others are. That’s my plan.
I crushed the empty bomb rack beneath my foot.
[ZZ ZZZ (Leave the rest to me)]
｢Got it!｣
The enormous pink jellyfish with countless eyes responded, splitting apart the battleship with its tentacles.
Behind it, I could see Isabel tearing through the exterior of another ship. A moment later, that ship staggered and collided with another one nearby. In the blink of an eye, the creature neutralized two ships and calmly moved outside to target another.
Leaving behind the fierce battle with the fleet, I spread my wings and flew towards the volcano's peak. Each time my wings fluttered, volcanic ash and gas were scattered into the air.
When I arrived at the vent, a tremendous amount of volcanic ash greeted me. I immediately jumped into the volcano’s interior.
Melted rocks that had evaporated from the heat, extremely compressed gases, and other hazardous substances blocked my path. Every time I pushed forward, I felt a shock similar to when I was under concentrated fire from the Thunderstorm Spirits.
However, even the awe-inspiring power of the supervolcano couldn't stop my movement.
I tore through the obstacles and steadily advanced deeper into the heart of the volcano.
As I continued down, the temperature suddenly rose. Despite being reinforced by the ‘Infernal Illusion’ trait, the heat was intense enough to feel almost unbearable.
Along with that, the scenery, which had seemed obscured by the black mist, also began to change.
Just as the night ends and the sun rises over the sea, a fiery red light began to burn. The light, containing fire, was rising from below.
The closer I got to the bottom, the larger the light grew. What had initially been a thin spark now emitted a bright glow, like molten metal flowing from a furnace.
When the light and heat reached their limit, the space expanded. It was an enormous cavity existing between the volcano and the tectonic plates.
A palace of fire, decorated with melted rocks and lava.
There, the master of the volcano lay.
That being resembled a sauropod from the primordial Earth. It had an enormous neck and tail in proportion to its body, and a physique well-suited for walking on all four legs, features commonly seen in sauropods.
Of course, it only resembled one overall, and very few would likely think of dinosaurs when seeing this creature. In fact, most would not even recognize it as a living organism.
The being, lying in the vast cavern, had a body that was easily three times the size of mine. If you included its head and tail, it was about the same size as the ‘Ring of Agony’ I fought before.
｢Krrrrr｣
A colossal creature, over 300 meters long, recognized my presence. When it exhaled heavily, a thunderous sound echoed throughout the entire cavern.
Its neck, longer than my body, rose up, and its six massive eyes turned to face me. Despite its size, its eyes appeared as innocent as those of a herbivore.
But one should never let their guard down.
The most fearsome predator in Africa isn’t the lion or leopard, but the large herbivores like elephants and giraffes.
The same goes for this gigantic creature the size of a hill. It may not be carnivorous, but it is still an apex monster.
When it saw me flapping my wings in the air, its eyes shifted. Its large maw opened wide, big enough to swallow a small patrol vessel in one gulp.
｢Krrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr｣
With a roar that sounded like thunder, the entire cavern reverberated. In response, I accelerated toward it.
The Magmasaur, known as the demon of the volcano and the king of fire thunder.
The battle with it had begun.
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｢…Damn, that Amorph!｣
Salman, who barely survived the explosion, ground his teeth in frustration.
Just ten minutes ago, his base, floating above a lake of lava, had completely disappeared. All that remained beneath his feet was nothing but flames.
Gamma-level antimatter bombs have enough power to obliterate entire cities. Whatever he did, a bomb of terrifying power had fallen on his base. As a result, his base, subordinates, ships, and most of the creatures he controlled were all wiped out.
‘I almost died.’
Normally, Salman should have been dead by now. Yet, there were two reasons why he managed to survive.
The first reason was the existence of the being slowly rising from the flames below.
That creature, resembling a rocky mountain, was a Mountain Crawler that had grown over thousands of years. It was one of Salman’s most powerful weapons.
Mountain Crawlers, which primarily inhabit rocky planets, are incredibly durable creatures. Even the weakest of them can deflect reinforced alloy rounds with their hard exoskeletons.
But the real strength of the Mountain Crawler lies in its ability to grow continuously, much like a plant. With no limit to its growth, it becomes more powerful as it ages.
In games, this characteristic was often reflected by an ancient Mountain Crawler appearing as a raid boss. The one controlled by Salman had also become immensely powerful after spending countless years growing.
｢Marid(مارد)! Don’t just sit there, move quickly!｣
PR/N: (مارد) is just ‘Marid’ written in Urdu.
｢Grurr...｣
Even for such a creature, a direct hit from an antimatter bomb was a significant blow. Its exoskeleton was severely damaged from the explosion, with some parts even having the armor peeled off, exposing its bones.
However, since it was under the effect of Salman’s special ability, ‘Beast God's Snare’, disobeying its master’s commands was impossible.
The ancient Mountain Crawler, named ‘Marid’, struggled to rise from its position. Seeing its shaky legs, Salman clicked his tongue.
‘Damn, it’s useless like this.’
His original plan had been to use Marid as a tank during battles against the Magmasaur or the Amorph. However, after taking a direct hit from the antimatter bomb, its exoskeleton had been severely damaged while protecting its master.
With the Amorph potentially arriving at any moment, Marid was no longer useful for his survival.
‘Should I abandon it?’
Marid boasted enormous defense and offensive capabilities but was slow-moving. Escaping from the flying Amorph was clearly out of the question.
‘…If I take the drug, I could escape on my own.’
Salman looked down at his transformed body, now resembling a phantom beast.
The name of the phantom beast he had transformed into was ‘Simurgh’.
It was based on the divine bird from Persian mythology.
Like the mythological image, he had transformed into a beast with the head of a dog, the body of a peacock, and beautiful wings. In games, the Simurgh was popular for its stunning appearance and immense strength.
However, his current form was quite different from the typical Simurgh seen in games.
First off, his size was far beyond that of a typical phantom beast. Normally, from head to tail feathers, it would be no more than 3 meters long, but now, it was nearly 10 meters in length.
The feathers covering his wings and tail were astonishingly beautiful. They were made of feathers that resembled emeralds and lapis lazuli, radiating a mysterious light. His head, torso, and hind legs were covered in golden, translucent armor.
The golden armor was from the equipment he had worn before transforming, which had shifted to match his new form. But the rest of his size and the dazzling feathers were entirely due to the effects of the drugs he had consumed.
The drug he took was the Enhanced Scionium Ampoule.
It was an item he had received from a Returner Faction companion, which increased his divine transformation level by one step for 8 minutes.
Without the drug, even if the ancient Mountain Crawler had protected him, he would have taken fatal damage.
‘There’s not much time left, I need to get away quickly…’
At that moment, something caught his eye.
‘What’s that?’
In the sky, where the fiery rain fell, a creature with wings like agate was flying towards him, holding a giant spider-like being.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator – Seraph]
[Proofreader – Draxx]
Join our Discord for release updates!
https://discord.com/invite/dbdMDhzWa2
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