CH 240

#85. Lord of Greed

Luyang might have ascended to the rank of ‘Duke’, but he was still a dungeon baby. He preferred to use the physical capabilities of his mortal body rather than his unfamiliar powers, and for him, his ‘Satyr-ize’ ability, that let him morph into a giant Satyr, was very suitable. For any opponent he couldn’t defeat by hand-to-hand combat alone, he would make sure they would fall to their knees through the combination of his reckless brute strength and experience as a dungeon baby.

But right now, the man in front of him couldn’t be defeated even with the great powers of ta Satyr and the keen combat senses of a dungeon baby. It was when his sharp beak showed signs of cracking and his talons were cut off by several strokes of the man’s spear that Luyang started to come to that realization.

At that moment, Luyang drew on his powers without hesitation. ‘Shadow Whip’ was the first ability he had gained when he ascended to the rank of commander of the ‘Demon Army of Sin’.

A curse flowed from his fingertips and filled the air; each strike from the cursed ability had the power to burn the opponent's skin and vaporize their blood.

“I knew he wasn’t going to be an easy opponent, but I have to acknowledge his worthiness.” Since he was facing a formidable opponent, he drew out so much energy to the point that it might be considered excessive.

Pzzzk.

Even while watching hundreds of whips flying toward him, his opponent did not flinch even the slightest bit. All he did was wave his hand ever so slightly.

With that one simple gesture, the Shadow Whips vanished.

“Mm...” Luyang had never thought that a powerful opponent like the one he was facing now could be so easily defeated. But even so, he never would have guessed that his opponent could easily match his powers.

Hundreds of black threads faded helplessly in front of his eyes. It was as if they hadn’t existed to begin with, as they disappeared without accomplishing anything.

From Luyang’s point of view, after he had confidently drawn on his powers, this was the moment that made his spine crawl. However, instead of being frightened, he bolstered his momentum even more wildly.

“What a fascinating being, as much as the labyrinth itself!” He roared furiously and charged toward the man once more. The ‘Shadow Whip’ wasn’t the only ability he had gained after his ascension to the rank of Duke. An ominous energy began to spread around him.

***

[Duke Luyang’s power is evil itself.]

[However, his scattered energy is nothing more than delectable food in front of the Lord of Greed.]

[The Power of Greed has devoured all the energy Luyang radiated.]

[This energy, full of hostility and malice, is not suitable for accumulating in your body. However, it is perfectly suitable for immediate use.]

[The energy consumed by your powers temporarily amplifies them.]

When the hundreds of whips had first been directed at him, Kim Jin-Woo couldn’t help but wonder for a moment how he was supposed to deal with such an attack. However, after a brief moment, Gluttony, the Power of Greed, had emerged and devoured every attack by his enemy, as if it had been waiting for this moment.

“Oho.” He slightly admired the utility of Gluttony, and figured that it would be useful for absorbing his opponent’s life and vitality. If this were to go on, it would be easier if Luyang continued to expend his powers, from Kim Jin-Woo’s point of view.

Fortunately, Luyang didn’t disappoint him. A black mist began to rise from the Duke’s body. The black mist, which looked ominous at first glance, grew rapidly as it spread outward in all directions.

Seeing that insidious and ferocious energy, Kim Jin-Woo tried to retreat instinctively, but stopped when he saw the messages that appeared in front of him.

[The Power of Greed resists Luyang’s curse.]

[In its original state, his terrible curse would rot your skin and burn your lungs with a single touch, but it has been blocked by the Power of Greed.]

[The Power of Greed has devoured the curse.]

[Unfortunately, this corrupt and polluted energy has no nutritional value.]

[The Power of Greed has spit out this energy instead of absorbing it.]

The Power of Greed was truly a tough one to satisfy.

***

Luyang felt something was strange when the black light from his ‘Corrupting Poison Mist’ ability seemed different for some reason. Specks of faded gray matter suddenly appeared in the black mist. Those stains quickly came into contact with his body.

Psssk.

He felt a stinging sensation on his hide, as if he had suddenly been thrown from an ice bath into scalding hot water. It felt as if ants were crawling on his skin, and at some point, those ants had decided to bite down on his skin all at once.

His skin swelled up as if burned, and his flesh started to rot. It didn’t take long for his dark, rotten hide to regenerate due to the powerful regenerative abilities of the Satyr form, but it started to rot once again almost immediately, leaving a foul stench in the air.

“No way, is this…” Luyang exclaime. It was a familiar phenomenon to him. This terrible curse that rotted the skin and muscles down to the bones was his own power. The only difference was that now, it was happening to his own body and not his enemy’s.

And that wasn’t all. The numerous powers he had gained when he became the commander of the ‘Demon Army of Sin’, as well as all the curses that debuffed his opponents as much as possible, were turning on him all at once.

“You bastard! You stole my powers!” Luyang exclaimed. The powers that had helped bring him countless victories had ironically turned against him, and become the very thing that was tightening the noose around his neck. After the absurd turn of events, Luyang let out a blood-curdling scream.

***

Angela let out a gasp. She had been frightened in her initial encounter with Luyang, whose ominous aura had engulfed everything around him. It radiated a terrifying longing for any source of life, and it spread fear with its overwhelming malice. Those contrasting emotions had made her tremble to her core.

But what was even more surprising was that her master remained completely normal, even in the midst of all that terrible energy. Despite being visibly obscured by the black mist, her master’s presence shone brighter than ever.

“This is a battle between true rulers…” she murmured. Mere moments before, she had almost been disappointed by the two’s primitive hand-to-hand combat. But now, she felt nothing but disappointment in her own self-doubt, as she let out an audible gasp.

The Grand Labyrinth shook. With each collision of the huge waves of energy, pits formed in the hardened ground and the walls melted away. The tough Satyrs in the vicinity melted away into pools of blood just from being caught up in the energies radiating from the two labyrinth masters’ attacks.

Despite all that, Angela’s master was completely fine. From a distance, it almost seemed as if he were enjoying the battle.

More than that, it was likely that it was only the powerful but ignorant Duke who considered it a battle. To her master, it might as well have been a full course meal spread out in front of him instead, ready to devour at any moment. And he seemed to be sufficiently satisfied with his meal.

“Master!” With a cheerful expression, Angela called out proudly to her master.

In front of her stood her master—a king who devoured everything in his sight and left nothing behind, and could be considered even more vampiric than she was, as he could not live without extorting the lives of others. The fact that such a powerful being was her master, and the fact that she shared a part of his life force, made her tremble with ecstasy.

“Master!” Once again, Angela uttered meaningless shrieks of admiration, completely blinded by adoration and enthusiasm for her master.

***

The battle was one-sided. At first glance, the Naga King seemed to be struggling with the dark energy that surrounded him, but Ariane knew better than anyone who the current battle was leaning toward.

It was beyond anyone’s imagination. The power of the Highlord, which she had thought hadn’t yet bloomed, was so great that it vastly exceeded her expectations. All the powers the mighty Duke brought out were falling apart and scattering in vain.

“I have to report this back to Him,” she murmured.

There was nothing more to see. Even if she didn’t stick around to watch the battle until the end, it was already clear who the winner was. She simply found it a pity that she couldn’t stick around to see the Naga King unleash his full potential.

However, it was highly possible that she couldn’t complete her mission if she stuck around any longer. Thus, Ariane retreated without hesitation. She wanted to retreat and report everything she saw and heard to the one and only King—the True Ruler.

The Naga King was dangerous. The power of the One-Eyed Lord that he had inherited was extremely powerful. That was why, even in the past when the Ten Lords ruled, the One-Eyed Lord had looked down on everyone else.

However, the power that the Naga King was using now was completely different from that of the One-Eyed Lord. The One-Eyed Lord was a sage who sought the Truth, and his spear that pierced the battlefield was not such a ravenous monster.

There was definitely something she didn’t know. Perhaps the Naga King…

“No, only He will pass judgment,” she told herself. The Wardens were to only function as His eyes and ears, not to think for themselves.

Ariane looked at Luyang and the Naga King with gradual disappointment before starting to make her retreat.

***

Kim Jin-Woo’s eyes flashed. From the moment he realized that Luyang's powers posed no threat to him, his attention turned to Ariane. If she was indeed a Warden as he had expected, and her aim was to spy on him, she would look for an opening to sneak away in the middle of his battle with Luyang.

The moment he saw her starting to sneak away, he murmured softly, “Stop her.” The place he was looking at suddenly began to shake.

Krrrrrrrr!

Ariane, who had indeed been secretly trying to sneak away, stumbled due to the sudden, violent vibrations. Soon after, she was swallowed whole by a shadow that suddenly appeared.

It was the Ant Ghost. It swallowed the Queen of Illusions whole, rattling its jaws with glee.

“Don’t swallow her,” Kim Jin-Woo whispered gently. The Ant Ghost grunted and stopped. It seemed dissatisfied as it twisted around for a moment, but it didn’t disobey his orders.

“How noisy,” Kim Jin-Woo muttered. Luyang had been shouting at him noisily after realizing that he wasn’t paying attention to their battle, and he looked back at Luyang with a cold expression.

The Dukes he had encountered thus far weren’t pushovers. Although they all fell short in the face of a Highlord, they were all still powerful and tenacious in their own right. Even the mighty One-Eyed Lord couldn’t fend off all the Dukes at once.

But Luyang was the exception. He was neither tenacious nor insidious like the true Dukes. He was careless with his control over his energy, and used his powers in a haphazard manner.

It was to be expected. Luyang may have ascended to the rank of a Duke, but he had yet to free himself from the shackles of his previous existence as a dungeon baby. He was just a stronger dungeon baby with some extra unusual talents.

Squinting at Luyang, Kim Jin-Woo said coldly to himself, “It’s time to end this.”

If there was a clear difference between himself and Luyang, it was the fact that he knew how a Highlord should fight through the memories of the Mystical Spear.