Chapter 25: The Summoner’s Legion Descends

“Ah, Outer! Run… eek! It’s a monster!”

Joo Eun-jong, startled by Lutal, fell hard on his backside.

“Calm down. It’s my summoned creature.”

“Summoned creature? Are there really summons that look this terrifying?”

“They’re right here.”

“If Outer says so…”

“What’s going on?”

“Y-yeah! This is no time for that. A demon! An Immortal Demon has appeared! Hurry and run…!”

The Immortal Demon was also known as undead.

Because it drained the life force of the living and absorbed magical energy, it rarely died, making it a dreaded foe.

Pale figures crawled along the walls and ceiling, approaching.

As they got closer, their forms became clear.

Their arms were unnaturally long, and inside their wide-open maws were rows of sharp teeth.

Their black pupils fixed on Choi Kangjoong and Joo Eun-jong.

They were Dimension Ghouls.

“They’re not the only ones! There’s a Lich inside, and an overwhelming number of monsters too!”

“How many monsters?”

“Just what I saw was 1,000! Who knows how many more are inside… eek!”

When Choi Kangjoong summoned Warriors, Joo Eun-jong was shocked.

“They’re my summons.”

“They look similar to that big one… but the number…”

Joo Eun-jong assumed there would be about ten at most.

But contrary to his expectations, Choi Kangjoong’s summons seemed endless.

He gave up counting after it surpassed 100, yet even then more kept pouring out.

“Kyah!”

“Kiek!”

The Warriors rushed forward, hunting the Dimension Ghouls.

The Immortal Demon’s characteristic powerful vitality meant nothing against the Psionic Chitin Blades and overwhelming numbers.

Joo Eun-jong rubbed his eyes.

The Dimension Ghouls that were easily dealt with vanished into the darkness.

And more kept coming.

“How many are there exactly?”

“Quite a lot.”

Choi Kangjoong had summoned all 380 Warriors.

Lutal led the Warriors forward.

Joo Eun-jong marveled at the imposing number.

There were other summoners with that many summons.

But their summons were weak, E or D rank at best.

No summoner could handle hundreds of stronger creatures like these.

“Incredible! This can’t be measured by rank! This is Guild-level firepower! If this person weren’t on our side, we would have faced horrors multiple times.”

Joo Eun-jong thought the summoning was over.

The power alone from what had appeared was unbelievably tremendous.

“Huaaah!”

But that wasn’t the end.

Smaller, faster creatures poured out in droves.

This time, Joo Eun-jong quickly counted to get an accurate number.

“Over 500 already! Wait, how many was that?”

He lost track of the tens place in his head and restarted counting from 600.

1,000! Over 1,000!

Joo Eun-jong gasped.

The hunters he admired were beyond anything he had imagined.

What he didn’t know was that Choi Kangjoong had stopped summoning because 1,000 was enough.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, hyung-nim!”

“Hyung-nim?”

“The word ‘hyung’ is used for older males, and adding ‘-nim’ shows respect.”

Choi Kangjoong heard “hyung-nim” for the first time in his life.

Though it was from a ruffian, it felt good.

“Stay behind me.”

“Yes, hyung-nim!”

“What about the others?”

“They split up, so I’m not sure.”

Choi Kangjoong and Joo Eun-jong walked on.

The path swept clear by the Warriors had nothing in the way.

Warriors scattered in all directions relayed information to Choi Kangjoong.

A maze map formed in his mind.

“There’s something at the maze center.”

“The summons must have found something!”

“There’s a large room. Looks like the Lich is doing something in there.”

“What could it be?”

“We’ll find out.”

Scouts couldn’t enter due to a barrier formed by the Lich.

They walked further and joined Lutal standing by a hole leading down to the room.

“This is serious. The magical energy is enormous. We should retreat now—”

“Break through.”

“Huh?”

Choi Kangjoong wasn’t speaking to Joo Eun-jong.

Lutal sliced the barrier apart with an Aura Blade.

“O-Aura Blade…!”

Joo Eun-jong was stunned.

The successive surprises had frozen his brain.

Whoosh.

Choi Kangjoong and Lutal leapt down.

The Lich, pouring magical energy into the altar, turned around.

Blue flames burned fiercely within his black eye sockets.

“Interesting. Not undead, yet moving without a soul.”

“What are they doing here?”

“Do you think I’ll tell you?”

The Lich slammed his staff into the ground.

Black shadows spread out, forming ominous spikes.

Crack!

Lutal cut them down with his sickle claws.

Even as the attack was easily blocked, the Lich calmly began casting his next spell.

“Death Spear.”

Countless black spears materialized in midair.

Their power far surpassed the black spikes.

“I’d like to dissect you, but I don’t think I have the time. Die.”

The Lich gestured.

Death Spears launched like a black rain.

“Blink.”

Choi Kangjoong moved to the opposite side of where the Death Spears were falling.

Lutal jumped, shielding his head with his sickle claws.

At lightning speed, the Lich lost sight of Lutal.

“What…?”

Swish, swish.

Lutal’s sickle claws crossed.

The Lich’s spine and pelvis were sliced cleanly.

“This can’t be! You really are a monster.”

Joo Eun-jong couldn’t close his mouth in shock.

Not only did the summons wield Aura Blades, but their movements rivaled or surpassed an S-rank Hunter.

Swish, swish.

Lutal severed the Lich’s neck and vertically split his skull.

But the head didn’t fall; instead, it floated upward.

Without destroying the Soul Vessel, killing the Lich was impossible.

“Aura Blades? Where did these guys come from?”

The Lich, now just a floating head, spoke.

“But it’s already too late. The transfer ritual is complete.”

Boom!

The floor cracked, and a skeletal foot emerged.

Thud!

A massive foot planted on the ground as a head rose.

The Lich’s skull fell.

From the Bone Dragon’s black eye sockets, blue flames flared.

The Soul Vessel had been transferred inside the Bone Dragon.

“B-Bone Dragon! Hyung-nim! Run!”

Joo Eun-jong despaired.

He thought Choi Kangjoong could handle the Lich easily.

But the appearance of the Bone Dragon changed everything.

Though weaker than a living dragon, a monster was still a monster.

The Bone Dragon opened its mouth.

The Soul Vessel, positioned where the Dragon Heart should be, writhed.

Immense mana concentrated there.

“Eeeek!”

Joo Eun-jong closed his eyes and curled up.

Choi Kangjoong summoned an Apocalypse in the maze and blinked over to Joo Eun-jong.

Grabbing him, he opened a Gate and exited the maze.

Immediately after, Death Breath struck down.

Kraaaang!

The overwhelming destructive force tore through the maze.

Death Aura spread, killing monsters, and the shock caused the maze to collapse.

Joo Eun-jong squinted open one eye.

It wasn’t heaven but the maze entrance he saw.

The Bone Dragon’s immense energy and the noise of destruction assured him this was real.

A wave of joy at being alive swept over him.

“Thank you! Thank you! You saved me again!”

Crack!

The ground split.

The Bone Dragon was trying to emerge from the underground maze.

“Now run…!”

“No need. Those are my summons too.”

Choi Kangjoong pointed to a Central Cannon Giant and two Titan Class summons.

Joo Eun-jong nearly fainted at the existence of these abnormal summons.

Kraaaang!

The Bone Dragon burst through the earth.

The waiting Central Cannon Giant fired a Mana Cannon.

The furious mana projectile was stopped by the Bone Dragon’s shield.

“You’re still struggling to the end. I’ll kill you all and use your corpses until nothing is left. Death Spear!”

A black spear, much larger and more powerful than before, formed.

Kraang! Kraang! Kraang!

The Central Cannon Giant blocked the frontal assault with its shield.

The Death Spear dented the solid Psionic Chitin Gauntlet.

Its power was so great the giant’s huge body was pushed backward.

Kra-kra-kra-kra-kraang!

Mana Cannons fired by Kuongi and the Titans struck the Bone Dragon.

The shield, which seemed unbreakable, shattered under the barrage.

When hit by the projectiles, the Bone Dragon spread its wings and took to the air.

Three-dimensional maneuvers caused many projectiles to miss.

“Bio Torpedo, fire.”

Bio Torpedoes erupted from Kuongi’s back.

Turning almost 180 degrees mid-flight, the bio torpedoes accelerated rapidly.

The Bone Dragon, alarmed by the speed, veered sharply right and deployed its shield.

The torpedoes’ guidance system tracked the Bone Dragon.

The hard heads of the bio torpedoes pierced the shield, causing a massive explosion.

Kuaaaang!

The Bone Dragon’s right foreleg and wing were blown off.

Its ribs and skull were scorched and cracked.

The Bone Dragon spiraled downward.

Kuuuung!

Giants swarmed where the Bone Dragon fell.

With one leg and tail barely supporting its posture, the Bone Dragon opened its mouth.

A flash.

The Breath sliced the earth.

Two Giants were struck directly, their upper chests obliterated.

Giants touched by the radiated Death Aura weakened and staggered.

Still, twenty Giants remained.

They successfully closed in, pressing down on the Bone Dragon and stabbing it with sickle claws.

“Damn it!”

Death Spears stabbed deeply into the Giants’ backs.

Even as the Death Aura spread and they fell one by one, they never released the Bone Dragon.

“Krk.”

Lutal leapt.

The rapid-fire Death Spears were deflected with dazzling sickle claw strikes.

He tore through the shield with an Aura Blade.

Thud.

Lutal landed on the Bone Dragon’s chest.

The Bone Dragon struggled, releasing Death Fog.

This was an area-wide lethal magic that could kill thousands or tens of thousands in a city.

Lutal responded by sealing every opening connecting to the outside.

The Giants endured with their strong vitality and rapid regeneration.

Swish.

A rib was cut.

The exposed Soul Vessel scattered magical energy.

Thuk! Thuk! Thuk! Thuk!

Sickle claws pierced the Soul Vessel.

“Kuaaaaaaah!”

A horrifying scream echoed.

It sounded like soul and body being ripped apart.

The Bone Dragon’s blue glow faded.

Walkers rushed in and formed a containment field where the Bone Dragon lay.

The bones and Soul Vessel were consumed.

[Evolution Points acquired.]

[Total Evolution Points: 7,800,121]

[Immortal Demon Evolution Code decoding rate: 11%]

“1.5 million points! That’s a lot for a freshly awakened Bone Dragon.”

The Immortal Demon’s Evolution Code was Death Resistance.

Even if its head was severed or heart destroyed, it could still move somewhat.

Because its magic source was the origin, it wasn’t truly immortal like the Immortal Demon.

Still, it struggled fiercely before death, and if it enhanced regeneration-related Evolution Codes, it could recover its brain or heart beforehand.

“That means it’ll get incredibly strong. I can actually try out what I only imagined before.”