Banished from the herd, I was actually a member of a very rare species. ~With the unique skills that only I can use, I can grow and evolve quickly. I will become an unrivaled monster~ - Episode 157: The Ancient White-Fanged Dragon of Unchanging Might

Episode 157: The Ancient White-Fanged Dragon of Unchanging Might

The “Ancient King” flapped its wings powerfully, grasping the wind with each beat. With a body more than twice my size, it moved freely through the air, riding the gusts.

Thanks to my upgraded evasion ability, with [Instant Shift] evolving into [Temporal Cicada], I managed to narrowly avoid its claws and fangs numerous times. But then—

“GRAAAAHHHH!”

“(Heavy… What kind of output is that?!)”

I failed to fully dodge the breath attack. What spewed from the “Ancient King’s” jaws was a blast of pure |Mana|. Unlike magic bullets or elemental spells like fire or wind, this was raw, untransformed |Mana|.

The primitive nature of the attack meant it wasn’t efficient, but the sheer volume of |Mana| behind it was overwhelming. The force was far beyond anything I’d faced, even compared to the Sea Angel’s strikes. I was slammed to the ground by the impact.

“([Parry], [Super Jump]!)”

“GRRAAAH!”

The moment I hit the ground, I immediately leaped sideways. The “Ancient King” crashed down where I had been, causing the earth to cave in deeply. I barely escaped being crushed.

“(Damn… If that breath had ignored my defense, I would’ve been finished.)”

Despite the intensity of the battle, my |Life| was still full—actually, it was beyond full, thanks to my [Storage], which could store extra |Life|. So I hadn’t taken any damage yet. But, of course, neither had my opponent.

“(Now it’s my turn! Sun Laser!)”

I controlled the eight floating drones around me, firing |Mana| lasers. These drones had multiple functions, including |Mana| shields and lasers. Although they weren’t as powerful as the artifacts I usually used, they were quicker to activate and better suited for immediate responses.

Eight beams of light shot out, but they didn’t inflict any damage. The Mana Leak effect of [Mana Eclipse] should have reduced my opponent’s |Mana|. But even that failed. The problem lay in the thick crimson scales covering the “Ancient King’s” body.

I had already accumulated over ten stacks of [Storm Strike], but it still didn’t seem enough to break through.

I wanted to land a heavy blow and rack up some more counts, but there was no time for that.

“([Super Jump]!)”

“GRRAAAAH!”

Right after my sideways jump, the “Ancient King” swung its massive claw upwards, splitting the ground in two. Its claws hadn’t even touched the earth, yet the force of the swing tore it apart.

“(That’s not a [Skill] that expands its attack range… It didn’t seem to use any |Mana| either. Is that just its raw |Power|?!)”

Before I could even fully process my surprise, another attack came.

The “Ancient King’s” triceratops-like horns emitted an enormous amount of |Mana|, and the sky lit up with lightning.

In an instant, countless bolts of lightning rained down. I got hit by one, but since ranged attacks don’t carry the same defense-ignoring properties, it wasn’t a big deal. 

The real problem lay elsewhere—the “Ancient King” itself, who, after absorbing the lightning, crouched forward in a menacing stance.

“(That’s definitely bad news… [Weapon Storage]! [Block]! [Super Jump]!)”

I pulled out my white weasel shield, activated my [Weapon Skill], and leapt into the air for a better defensive position. I also deployed a shield using the drones, creating a triangular barrier between three of them.

At the same time, I began modifying my body and preparing a shield artifact, but that’s when the impact hit.

The “Ancient King”, having absorbed enough lightning, dashed forward with unimaginable speed. It was faster than a blink, colliding with me in mid-air. The scenery flashed by as I was flung backward at supersonic speed.

I couldn’t hear the sound of my shield and drones shattering because I was flying too fast to register it.

“(Damn, my |Life| just dropped by nearly a thousand! What a bastard!)”

My |Life|, combined with the [Storage], totaled around 17,000. If I took that lightning-charged dash attack 17 more times, I’d be dead.

Right now, my [Storage] was acting as a buffer. But if my true |Life| was reached, my body mass would start decreasing. 

To avoid that, I couldn’t afford to take any more of those lightning dashes.

I wanted to shift to long-range combat, but getting far enough away to avoid those charges wouldn’t be easy…

“(Yeah, it’s not gonna be that simple, is it?)”

“GRUAAAARRR!”

The “Ancient King” was still airborne, closing the distance by flapping its massive wings. The gap between us narrowed rapidly.

“(This is it… [Super Jump]! [Compact Slash]!)”

“GRUOAAAH!?”

Like a ball bouncing off an invisible wall, I changed direction mid-air, dodging beneath the “Ancient King”. I activated [Temporal Cicada]’s evasion ability and slashed at its leg with my Green Spear, crafted from the materials of the ‘Green King.’

The Green Spear resembled a bamboo spear in appearance but was far more deadly.

The spear I wielded had two special effects: rapid extension due to hyper-growth and life force absorption from any target it pierced. Though neither the green spear nor polar thorn could penetrate the “Ancient King’s” scales, their special effects likely inflicted some degree of damage.

“GYUAAA!”

“([Thousand Blade Genesis]! [Lock-On Aim]!)”

As the “Ancient King” made a sharp turn with surprising agility for its massive size, I unleashed a barrage of blades at it. Though it managed to evade the attack unscathed, the [Storm Strike] counter increased significantly. I continued firing magic bullets and sun lasers, but the distance between us was steadily closing. Even with my [Flee] skill active, my speed couldn’t match it.

With no obstacles in the surroundings to use to my advantage, I knew the time for a hit-and-run strategy was coming to an end.

“(…Alright, time to face this head-on. [Super Jump]!)”

I kicked off into the air, diving toward the ground. Thanks to the boost from my [Divine Staff], my descent was faster than the “Ancient King’s” pursuit. The untouched forest far from the battle’s start was torn apart by the force of my landing, trees and earth shattered in every direction. I buried myself in the crater. And without hesitation, the “Ancient King” charged toward me.

However, due to my sudden drop, there was a brief delay in its reaction. It gave me a crucial moment to prepare.

“([Territory] — melt away, [Solar Crucible]!)”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~Territory Details~

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Your [Territory] is [Solar Crucible].

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Within the [Solar Crucible], all things are consumed by magical flames and transformed into Mana Crystals.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Additional Effects: ‘Domination’, ‘Absorption’, ‘Identification’, ‘Efficiency’, ‘Masterwork’, ‘Civilization’, ‘Overlord’

       ↪Option List:

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • ‘Overlord’ (NEW): Enhances all other [Territory]’s ‘Additional Effects’ except ‘Overlord’.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I consciously strengthened the power of my [Territory], which had been clashing with the “Ancient King’s” own. Though our [Territories] remained evenly matched in raw strength, the environment around us changed dramatically. In an instant, the forest was consumed by white flames.

Everything caught in these flames were subjected to a cycle of melting and cooling. They were turned into Mana Crystals, like the earth turning to glass. By overloading the [Territory] with excess |Mana|, I accelerated the transformation, even in the dense and resistant soil of the Great Magical Wilderness.

“GROAARR!”

“(Detonate. [Super Jump]!)”

I detonated the makeshift artifact I had crafted on the spot, narrowly escaping the explosion by using the shockwave to propel myself out of danger. The “Ancient King” crashed to the ground, its body engulfed by the shattering Mana Crystals. Yet it rose, seemingly unfazed by the destruction around it. Its resilience was staggering—something I found myself almost admiring.

“(Alright, looks like the transformation reached all the way to the bottom.)”

Though my eyes locked with the “Ancient King” standing in the center of the crater, my real focus was on the ground beneath it. I confirmed that the entire bottom of the crater had been turned into Mana Crystals and began replicating several weapons.

“(I’ve got enough insurance. Time to finish this! Come at me, ‘Ancient King’!)”

Thus, the real close-quarters battle began.