Lee Shin Woo mercilessly attacked the Lightning Shadow General, whose entire body was frozen stiff; by the end of it, Lee Shin Woo managed to pierce through his neck and kill him without dying once.
[I am... His Majesty...]
"Shadow Horn!"
[Kahak!]
He thought it might be a bit cowardly, but he nonetheless blew him away as the airborne ice crystals evaporated. Since the result is all that mattered! And the result that appeared right after was...
[You have hunted a member of the 12 generals, the Lv7 Lightning Shadow General, Hansen Von Dorthe. All contributing heroes acquire 30,000,000 Perium, and all stats increase by 100. You have acquired 10 permits to God's secret shop. Proficiency in all combat related skills has increased dramatically!]
[The Intermediate Bursting Thunder skill has become Lv9. Strength and Magic have increased by 10.]
[The Intermediate Mana Bone skill has become Lv9. Magic has increased by 10.]
[The Intermediate Shadow Horn skill has become Lv4. All stats have increased by 6.]
[The Intermediate Command skill has become Lv9. All stats have increased by 3.]
...
...
[Intermediate Ice has become Lv4. Magic has increased by 5.]
[The Element Absorption skill has become Lv2. Magic has increased by 10. You can more effectively absorb energy from the elements that you possess.]
There was a stream of messages that appeared! All the skills that he used in battle, as well as those he hadn't used in battle, leveled up instantaneously for no other reason than the fact that he had defeated one of the 12 generals.
The amount of stats he'd garnered from defeating the general, as well as the stats from his skill level ups, was enough to make his head hurt. But wasn't this good for him? There were still some messages remaining, notifying him of his growth.
[You are an excellent example of a Joker! Even in a situation without allies, you faced a variety of enemies and managed to incite them and trick them; in the end, you won 'fair and square'! All stats have increased by 20. The Joker karma has become even stronger. The Joker's innate skills have grown.]
Accompanying this message was a notification that his Acting skill leveled up to level 16, as well as his Disguise skill leveling up by two, up to level 6. He knew just how much these skills changed whenever they leveled up and was surprised, almost gaping in response.
But thinking about it carefully, a general had stood upon his stage, so he should obviously gain this much.
[You have received God's grace. The Invisible Heart skill's maximum level has increased by 10.]
His achievement was rounded off by a present from God. When he thought about it, the quest he'd received from God, which was the quest to hunt undead heroes, increased the maximum level of Invisible Heart as well, but he'd only killed one undead hero (he'd fought against two of them, but he made one of them into his subordinate). This time, the maximum level of Invisible Heart had increased by 10, to a total of 111.
"So this means that my lives have increased by 11, huh..."
He thought about it suddenly, and realized that God's blessing was truly amazing! Lee Shin Woo recognized that God rarely did things out of the kindness of her heart, and just decided to be happy about it.
Lee Shin Woo nodded his head, as Kratia and Jin danced with joy from beside him. Though they weren't rewarded as much as him, he could tell that they were rewarded based on their contributions. But then, Jin suddenly yelled.
"Shin Woo, I'm going to level up!"
"Ah, alright. It's not dangerous here anymore, so take your time."
Jin had barely not reached level 6, and had acquired hundreds of stats as a reward from this battle, so it would be even stranger if he couldn't level up!
Lee Shin Woo vacantly watched as Jin was engulfed in a sphere of light and leveled up, whilst he neatly picked up the loot the Lightning Shadow General had left behind with his own two hands. To be honest, the Lightning Shadow General was considered an intermediate boss, so he thought it'd be nice if he dropped a bundle of loot, but it was quite cold-hearted.
[You have acquired 15,230,550 Perium.]
[You have acquired the Bayran inner map.]
[You have acquired the Lv5 Divine Lightning Sword. Through Bone Reinforcement, the item transforms. You have acquired the Lv5 Thunder Claw (+5).]
[You have acquired the Lv7 Lightning Shadow General, Hansen Von Dorthe's wrist bone.]
Other than that, he saw an item that looked to be a bracelet possessing tremendous magic. However, Kratia had come over when he called without any complaints and had not only helped with the mission but had also contributed towards defeating the Lightning General, so he decided that this would be part of Kratia's share.
"This is a magic reinforcement accessory! It's extremely rare!"
"Ah, was it? I thought he specialized in close combat, yet his magic was really high."
As he thought, leaving that piece of loot as part of her share made her really happy. Lee Shin Woo asked if she wanted him to change it through Bone Reinforcement, but she firmly shook her head. Yep, Kratia was someone who didn't like taking risks.
"Hoo, it seemed possible, but we really beat one of the 12 generals... I knew it, if you're there, everything becomes dynamic, Shin Woo.
"My existence is dynamic, so it can't be helped."
Kratia giggled and said. Lee Shin Woo replied uninterested and examined the last remaining pieces of loot in his hands.
First, the Bayran inner map seemed to detail secret passageways and facilities within some inner city, but he didn't know where Bayran was or what it was, so he stored it into his inventory for now.
However, the rest was amazing.
"As expected, once they become a general, they have to be carrying a level 5 weapon."
"Ah, this bracelet is level 6, though."
"Please trade."
"Don't want to."
Lee Shin Woo suddenly felt regretful. However, Lee Shin Woo used lightning, so even if she did accept his offer, he would have to back out.
The original Divine Lightning Sword, and now the Thunder Claw was definitely a treasure that would make the lightning lethal. He felt slightly burdened, as Kratia watched with bright eyes, yet he absorbed it without delay.
[Recording the Lv5 Thunder Claw (+5)'s information into the Bone Armory. Strength and Magic have increased by 20. The Lightning Tooth and the Thunder Claw's information have been mixed and have become a new weapon!]
"Huuuh!?"
The moment Lee Shin Woo absorbed the Thunder Claw, he sensed an intense change within his insides, or more specifically Bone Armory, and shook.
Of course, it would be lying to say that he wasn't looking forward to this. He'd absorbed another lightning element weapon, so if both of those weapons supplemented each other, he thought it might create a greater weapon.
'But to think it would mix the two weapons' info and create an entirely new weapon... Kuuuuuu.'
Bone Armory wasn't something separate from Lee Shin Woo; it was an equipment storehouse within his body. Lee Shin Woo felt a huge migraine coming on due to the intense reaction going on inside. His health, magic, and all of his skills were involved in creating this new weapon.
Countless information that came from the outside would be combined, and ultimately, a weapon only he could wield would be created. One wouldn't be able to understand it at all from looking from the outside, but what he was doing was akin to a blacksmith's work!
'When I think about it, something like this happened before.'
That's right, the whip. The staff and the whip's info were combined, creating the Bifurcated Whip. However, it wasn't this intense of a reaction back then, and perhaps this weapon would be much greater than the whip; in other words...
[You can now summon the Lv6 Breath of the Lightning God! The Bone Armory skill has become Lv8. You can now summon seven pieces of equipment at a time. Health and Magic have increased by 10.]
Yeah, a level 6 weapon...! As his vague wishes had come true, Lee Shin Woo momentarily observed the weapon and remained completely still. He feared that if he took his eyes off the message, then the weapon would disappear into bubbles.
But as time passed, the message automatically disappeared; Lee Shin Woo sighed transiently and raised a hand.
Of course, he knew that the Breath of the Lightning God's info was stored in the Bone Armory. Since all the weapon's info was meticulously recorded in his head! But he couldn't help the fact that his outstretched hand, which was to summon the weapon, was shaking.
"Shin Woo, Shin Woo?"
"I'm finished with leveling up... What're you doing?"
"I guess he's going through some kind of ritual we don't know about."
While he shook due to how moved he was, Jin and Kratia became really noisy. Lee Shin Woo completely ignored them and concentrated. To be honest, he didn't really need to go that far, but he wanted to keep brooding over this item he'd created, but couldn't adjust himself to.
"...Summon."
After investing approximately 40% of his mana, (it was 40% after improving his mana, so it was a truly considerable amount) the weapon appeared, revealing itself in all its glory. In many ways, its shape looked more like the Thunder Claw than the Lightning tooth, as it was also a bastard sword.
"Oh, oooh."
"It's beautiful..."
The pommel was both sharp and black; the hilt was long and uneven, reminding him of a dragon's scales while the guard took after the Lightning Tooth... And a large blue blade on top...
The end converged into a sharp tip, and it seemed capable of both stabbing and slashing.
"...Hoo."
From an outside view, it just looked like an extremely luxurious sword; the blade could be either bone or metal. Its sheen made it indistinguishable while also making it look distinctive, but... Lee Shin Woo was fascinated by the fearsome energy contained within, especially the electrifying lightning energy within the blade. The others reacted similarly.
"Is that the weapon you just absorbed, Shin Woo? No, it's not. It looks a lot stronger."
"It is a lot stronger."
"How's that possible!?"
After he'd pried off Kratia, who would always stick to him and watch closely for any mana-related phenomenon, he called for the item's info. In the process of recreating the weapon, he'd figured out everything there was to know about it and planned it out, but he really wanted to see the official information on it.
[Breath of the Lightning God]
[Lv6]
[Durability: 4,300/4,300]
[Attack Power: 1,200 - 1,550]
[Element: Lightning Lv6]
[Option: Effectiveness of lightning element +50%]
[Active skill: Thunder Arrow - Summon a lightning arrow in order to attack from long range. The more powerful the user's lightning and the more mana is infused, the more powerful the skill becomes.]
"Ooh, Ooooh."
This was the first time he'd seen a weapon with an active skill attached! Of course, it wouldn't be very difficult for Lee Shin Woo, who could use the lightning element, to create lightning arrows and shoot them, but it felt completely different when the skill was included with the weapon!
Moreover, the skill becomes stronger as his lightning element becomes more powerful. This was an advantage that could only be seen in standardized skills. It was funny to say, but it felt like he'd finally attained an item that befitted a fantasy protagonist.
"I want to test it out, but... I probably shouldn't right now."
Lee Shin Woo smacked his lips after he'd securely fastened his summoned sword to his waist.
Because he'd infiltrated the city on arrival and had so much to do afterward, he hadn't been able to rest properly. He had struggled, as he had fought against the general face to face, even though Kratia had cast a debuff at the last minute.
Even if he was just barely grazed by the general’s sword, his arm would fly off and his ribs would be crushed, so regenerating it all was a pain. It had been a really good learning opportunity; a general isn't a general for nothing...
"Ah."
"What's wrong, Shin Woo?"
"...I forgot I said I'd look after those guys."
He had completely forgotten about the Chimeras and finally remembered after rejoicing over the loot. When he looked back, the Chimeras Avengers were laying on the floor exactly like before.
"They weren't dead?"
"Don't kill off my subordinates as you please."
Kratia tilted her head. After Lee Shin Woo had smiled bitterly and replied, he walked over to the Chimera who looked to be in the worst condition... the Lv7 Chimera Avenger.
He thought it might feel unsatisfied that he hadn't looked after him following the battle, but there was nothing but cheer coming from his face.
[Were we able to... do our duty?]
"Yeah. Because of you, I was able to kill one of the Emperor's agents."
[Very... good. Your strength and your intellect... I've decided that you are good enough to serve as our Lord. So...]
The Chimera Avenger spoke. Not just one, but all of them simultaneously. It was a frightening sight, as only their heads turned to face him as their bodies remained on the floor.
[[Now, please give us a name.]]
"Alright, I'll give you one."
Lee Shin Woo nodded his head seriously and calmly spoke.
"Your name is Chi Paul."
[Chi Paul...! Henceforth, I will be Chi Paul and serve you! Until the day we kill the Emperor, no even beyond that!]
Lee Shin Woo’s face didn't even hint at his true feelings as he nodded his head, firmly accepting Chi Paul's resolution.
Chi Paul was deeply touched by his name, but Lee Shin Woo couldn't tell him that the ‘Chi’ was just short for Chimera.
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