Chapter 321

Chapter 321

Taesan gripped the sword lodged in his chest.

[You have activated the Branch of Despair.]

“Urrrggh!”

In an instant, despair engulfed Vishnu’s mind. Vishnu barely held on, swinging her arms.

[Vishnu has activated Exclusion of All.]

Kiiiing.

As Vishnu’s bracelet glowed, Taesan’s body was pushed far away. It wasn’t physical force but a manipulation of space itself, forcibly widening the distance.

[You have activated Random Blink.]

However, the moment Taesan pierced Vishnu’s chest with his sword, he had already branded her. Taesan immediately moved in front of Vishnu. His sword came down, and Vishnu hurriedly blocked it.

Boom!

Vishnu’s arms were pushed back. As Taesan pressed on to slam her into the ground, Vishnu’s body disappeared.

[Vishnu has activated the Shoes of Spatial Transference.]

[You have activated Acceleration.]

[You have activated Skill Acceleration.]

Tap.

And Taesan arrived directly in front of Vishnu as she landed.

Vishnu barely twisted her body to avoid the direct hit, letting out a gasp of shock.

“How is this possible?!”

“It’s obvious.”

He had already fully grasped the pattern of Vishnu’s spatial leaps, her estimated location, and the principles of her movements. He could see clearly where she would go in any situation.

“You can’t leap anymore, can you?”

He had also figured out the limitation of the Shoes of Spatial Transference. It was rechargeable equipment, allowing up to three consecutive leaps. Once used three times, it required a cooldown period to recharge.

Vishnu had activated the shoes three times in a row. She couldn’t escape anymore.

Boom!

The sword slammed down, pressing her aggressively.

Although Vishnu was being overpowered, she retaliated by swinging her sword to push Taesan away.

They exchanged attacks.

“Ugh!”

Their health was depleting, but Taesan had the ability to forcibly drain his opponent’s health. This exchange was in his favor.

Clang!

Taesan swung his sword, deflecting Vishnu’s blade. As Taesan counterattacked, Vishnu parried and thrust her sword.

[You have activated Counter.]

Taesan’s Ability Sword ignored Vishnu’s sword and pierced her chest.

“Gah!”

He twisted the sword and applied force with his foot.

Boom!

He activated acceleration and slammed her into the wall. Vishnu raised her arm to summon flames.

But only a tiny spark emerged, a mere flicker of flame.

Most of her power had already been consumed.

Ahh, haha...

Vishnu slumped to the floor, coughing up blood. Taesan sheathed his sword.

“You endured well.”

Taesan praised Vishnu.

It wasn’t just flattery. By the time Vishnu could no longer summon flames, her chances of winning had disappeared.

She had to fight purely with her body and sword, but there was no way a spirit like her could outmatch Taesan in swordsmanship. Even their stats were heavily in Taesan’s favor.

Though it was thanks to the equipment from the deep floors, the fact that she had endured this long proved her strength.

“This is humiliating. I was never in a position to receive pity from anyone.”

Perhaps because she understood this, or maybe because it was all over, Vishnu accepted it calmly.

“I am... dying here.”

Vishnu let out a bitter smile.

Spirits did not possess a true sense of self. Spirits who gained self-awareness eventually became corrupted as their consciousness decayed.

That was the death of a spirit.

As a Spirit King, she possessed an immense and immeasurable lifespan, but even she would inevitably face true death one day.

That terrified her.

She didn’t want to die.

That’s why she had abandoned everything and entered the labyrinth, to achieve perfect self-awareness.

But she had been defeated by Taesan.

Her sense of self was slowly fading. Her very being was dissolving, returning to nature.

It was the moment when one of the oldest spirits in existence began to die.

It was the moment she feared most, yet surprisingly, she felt no great emotional turmoil.

“It’s so quiet.”

Instead of expressing anger or fear, Vishnu looked at the ghost.

“Hero. Do you not resent me?”

The ghost had remained silent since the moment he encountered Vishnu.

The ghost spoke up.

“So this is how it works.”

Taesan had previously acquired spirit skills such as Deer Walking on the Wind Path and Tiny Ember.

Avatar of Nature seemed to be the highest-level spirit skill among them.

It was quite useful. Like Apostle Transformation or Vessel of the King, it was a skill that would be a great help in battle.

[Core of the Fire Spirit King]

[The core imbued with the power of the Fire Spirit King. It contains absolute dominion over flames.]

[Essence of Ancient Nature]

[The condensed essence of natural energy that has existed since the creation of the world.]

These were the two material items obtained after defeating the Fire Spirit King.

[You have summoned the Spirit King of Wind, Minerva.]

The wind blew, and Minerva appeared. She seemed almost drained, likely due to the aftermath of the battle, and her power was barely detectable.

“Ugh... Why did you call me? I was resting.”

She mumbled in a nearly lifeless tone, then stared at the two orbs in Taesan’s hand.

“You won. I thought you could win, but still...”

Minerva’s expression became slightly complicated.

“Of course, I’m happy that you won, but... it’s a bit bittersweet.”

Although the Fire Spirit King had been Taesan’s enemy, she was still a Spirit King. As a fellow Spirit King, Minerva couldn’t simply rejoice over it.

Of course, this conversation didn’t hold much meaning for Taesan. He handed the orbs to Minerva.

“Here. Can you use these?”

“The orbs? Let me see.”

Minerva took the two orbs and examined them closely.

“I can use this one right away.”

She pointed to the Essence of Ancient Nature.

“It’s not the will of something grand, just a pure essence of nature. It’s simply the power that reaches its peak after the passage of time, so I can absorb it.”

“Then go ahead and use it.”

“Are you sure? It’s an extremely valuable item.”

“I don’t mind.”

Taesan replied. Minerva wasn’t strong enough to fight against the higher-ups yet. She needed to become even stronger. Minerva obediently grasped the orb and shattered it.

The natural energy contained within began to merge with her. She let out a sigh of awe as the power filled her.

“Ooh...”

Minerva clenched her fist, the wind swirling around her.

“...This is incredible.”

“So now you can use the abilities that Vishnu used?”

“Not quite, but... I’ve definitely grown stronger. Now I should be able to hold my own even if the World of the King is activated.”

That was a satisfying improvement. Taesan pointed to the other orb in her hand.

“What about that one?”

Inside the orb, flames flickered.

Minerva fiddled with the orb, her expression ambiguous.

“This one... even I can’t handle it carelessly. I didn’t even know until now that a fallen Spirit King could leave behind their core.”

For a Spirit King to be defeated by a mortal and leave behind their core was unheard of. Even with all the knowledge Minerva had gained during her rise to becoming a King, she couldn’t provide an answer.

“I don’t know if I can absorb the power of a different attribute. And I’m not sure if my father would even allow it... We’ll have to check first.”

“Then, for now, you hold onto it.”

“Got it. I’ll also take this.”

Minerva opened her other hand, revealing a very small cluster of energy. It was minuscule compared to the Essence of Nature or the Core of the Spirit King.

Taesan immediately recognized what it was.

“The Mad Spirit.”

A small spirit bound to the labyrinth, driven mad by its desire for vengeance, and having fulfilled its wish.

“I thought it was dead.”

“Almost, but... there’s still a strong sense of self lingering. Since you helped, I thought it might be useful.”

“I don’t mind.”

The Mad Spirit had done more than Taesan expected. Minerva smiled slightly.

“Well, I’m off to rest again. See you later.”

Minerva disappeared along with the Core of the Spirit King.

Lastly, Taesan checked his sword.

The Mad Spirit had fulfilled its wish and disappeared.

Thus, the power related to spirits that was stored in the sword was also gone.

Instead, something new had emerged.

[The Mad Spirit has fulfilled its wish within the labyrinth. A reward has been given to you for helping it achieve that.]

[You have obtained the Aggregate of Negativity.]

[Aggregate of Negativity]

[A collection of emotions filled with hatred and anger. It seems it can be used as material to craft equipment.]

Whether it was a personal reward from the spirit or a gift from the labyrinth for fulfilling its wish, it was undoubtedly a valuable prize.

Everything was more or less settled.

Taesan turned his gaze. The sound of applause echoed.

The Broken Man, leaning against the wall, clapped while looking at Taesan with a satisfied expression.