Chapter 72 Infinite Arena (2)
It didn’t take place in the circular arena he was familiar with. Though it was similar in form, it was overwhelmingly larger in scale. In addition, bars were placed on the smooth outer wall, similar to how the waiting rooms were divided in the Great Battle. Except now, there were hundreds of them.
「You have entered the Infinite Duel on the 8th floor.」
「Once a duel ends, you can approach the bars for a challenge.」
「You can get a raise if you win three times in a row.」
Infinite Arena, a different kind of trial from the Great Battle.
Boom!
Whoooooosh!
As he was informed by Elle in advance, Yoon-seok didn’t panic and turned to where the noise came from. In the middle of the stadium where the sun shined, a man and woman were in the midst of a fierce battle.
“Benefit!”
“Do you think it’ll work? I already know that trick!”
A woman who used a dagger as the main weapon and a man who used martial arts. The duel was already nearing its end.
‘It’ll be over soon.’
Yoon-seok had that thought, and moments later, the duel was over. It was a victory for the man that used martial arts, as he’d predicted. The man quickly dodged the dagger that snaked toward his neck and slammed a fist into her jaw.
But…
“I just have to win one more time….conditions had no time to relish the lingering feeling of victory. He held back the dull pain he felt and breathed. Looking at that man, the eyes of the challengers in the cage shone like wild dogs observing their prey.
「The duel is over.」
「You can take on the challenge now.」
It was safe to say that the cages opened almost at the same time the message appeared. Grunts and complaints were heard from all directions.
“Darn it. I failed again?”
“Damn the luck system!”
On the other hand, the chosen challenger’s walk was light.
“It’s supposed to be like this. So don’t blame me.”
With that said, the duel began. The exhausted man exchanged several blows, couldn’t hold his foe back, and lost his head. Unlike the previous battle, it was an empty and dull victory.
「The duel is over.」
「You can take on the challenge now.」
Was it because he’d won without any injuries? No challengers argued back and forth just like before.
“I’ve got a coin for now…it’s not worth losing. Come out now.”
After a while, the challengers looked at each other’s faces. With a slight gap, the cages reopened.
Drrrrrrr!
Unlike before, this was a struggle between challengers in fighting condition. Sooner or later, the winner and the loser were differentiated, but it was a pyrrhic victory for the winner. That scene played on repeat over and over.
Yoon-seok didn’t participate in the duels but only spectated.
‘It’s pretty fun to watch.’
Apart from understanding the duel system, it was extremely interesting to see other challengers fight.
‘Was that a skill that could be used that way?’
No matter if it was an ability, skill, or combat technique, they were all different. Even if it was the same skill, its power changed depending on the combination of other techniques.
‘There’s a difference with mission challengers in terms of levels…’
Should he say that even if going against a hundred was too much, he could easily handle ten by himself? Judging from the level of challengers, the average was much higher than those he’d met during the guarding mission. Still, this huge gap in levels allowed Fahur, who was on the sixth floor at the time, to confidently state that he was the top-ranked challenger on Earth.
However, as time went by, he had a question.
‘By the way, how did he get to the 7th floor with such skills?’
Yoon-seok recalled Chul Namgoong, whom he met on the seventh floor as he saw the challengers struggling in the middle of the arena. Honestly speaking, the difference between them and Chul Namgoong was so severe that it was rude to compare them. To be honest, he didn’t think Chul Namgoong could be beaten by them even if a dozen gathered and fought him together.
‘Was Chul Namgoong considered strong among the admins?’
It looked like he was caught off guard at the last auction and couldn’t do anything when Elle created a shield, but…well, it didn’t make any sense at all. Even in games, some characters stood out initially, and those with growth potential made themselves known.
‘Well, not all admins were strong in the first place….’
With such a guess, Yoon-seok ended his thoughts on the issue. Still, seeing these duel challengers fight on the same floor, one thing was for sure. He hated to say this himself, but…
He was strong until it was hard for him to find an actual opponent on the same floor. To be honest, if it were like the challengers fighting now, it would be easy for a hundred people to come at him at the same time.
‘…Let’s not be arrogant.’
Whenever Yoon-seok had this thought, he recalled his self-evaluation of dividing the quality and skills of challengers by levels. The Heavenly Devil was SSS class, and King of Steel, who gave Yoon-seok his first defeat, was SS class at the time, according to the auction host. Then, the Tower rated Yoon-seok as S class. Even though he was F at first, it was later updated.
‘My competitors are not these people.’
If he met the Heavenly Devil or King of Steel again, Yoon-seok could speak with confidence. He had become incomparably stronger than he was at that time. But that wouldn’t be any different from them.
‘…How strong have they grown?’
Yoon-seok whipped himself mentally that he should work even harder than to be conceited. It was clear that even if it weren’t the two of them, only monsters comparable to them would be left as he ascended.
It was a little early, but just like this moment.
“Keuhahahahaha!”
The challenger in the arena laughed proudly. He was a challenger who broke the heads of challengers with a single blow and won two consecutive games in a row.
“They’re all little bastards! Are you sure you don’t have one? Someone who dares to challenge me?”
Despite the provocation, while looking around, no bars on the outer walls opened. No, rather, that inside stepped far away in fear of receiving the challenge. Everyone was reluctant to fight him. It wasn’t like he couldn’t understand. He hadn’t revealed all his skills yet, but just by that, Yoon-seok knew that the challenger was aware that his level was far from those on the eighth floor.
‘As expected, I was right.’
Just because he couldn’t see it didn’t mean monsters weren’t out there. Why couldn’t these people see it? It was simple; they had already ascended earlier. But just as all streams return to the ocean, they would have to meet each other no matter what.
By then, he might just become one of those challenges.
That’s why…
Thud. Thud.
Yoon-seok approached the bars. He’d been waiting for someone like this internally.
Clank!
The bars closed as soon as he entered the arena. Looking back, he could see a new challenger entering the waiting room where he was. When he first came, the man that relied on martial arts won two games and was defeated. Still, since there were people who never grew tired of challenging, this infinite battlefield was open all the time.
“…”
Soon, Yoon-seok completely gave up his interest and moved all of his attention to his opponent.
「You have met an enemy who is neither a human nor a beast person.」
「Agility increased by +1 temporarily.」
The opponent’s race was Demon. However, it had the largest horn he’d ever seen, including the original owner of b Blood Pact}. Of course, he didn’t know whether horns and powers were related.
「You have encountered evil.」
「All stats will be +1. Strength +1, agility +1, and sacred attributes will be granted until the trial is completed.」
The power of the Judgment Sword, which had grown once more after punishing the evils within the mission trial, coursed through his veins. In fact, with this kind of advantage, it was hard to lose even if he wanted to…
No, he would never let his guard down. But his opponent thought differently.
“Keuhahahaha! This is why it’s fun here!”
The demon laughed loudly at Yoon-seok. Do all demons have that kind of personality? He hadn’t met enough to confirm it, but all the demons he’d met so far had been arrogant and talkative.
“A courageous human warrior. What’s your name…?!”
Yoon-seok didn’t answer. Instead, he fired Bloodseeker’s Energy at him. It was self-satisfaction not to ambush your foe during a conversation, not mandatory.
Booooom!
It was a pretty sharp blow, but his opponent wasn’t that easy.
“Force Shield!”
The demon easily blocked Yoon-seok’s energy by opening up a shield. As a result, he didn’t shed a single drop of blood…
But he seemed very angry that his words had been cut off.
“Grrr…don’t even think about a comfortable death.”
He thought the demon he’d met on the second floor said the same thing…was it his imagination? He didn’t know, but Yoon-seok widened their distance. He was incomparable to the Disaster he’d met on the mission, but it was his first proper opponent since Chul Namgoong on the seventh floor.
‘Let’s explore first…’
Yoon-seok started by returning to his original intention and checking his opponent’s hand. His opponent generously displayed the skills he had.
“Light of Greed!”
A sphere appeared in the demon’s hand, exploding and sending light everywhere like a flare. Of course, his vision was fine because he wasn’t weak enough to be blinded. But…
The problem was that it wasn’t a visual obstruction skill in the first place.
「Ownership of Unique Skill b Trajectory Enhancement} will be transferred for ten minutes due to the influence of {Light of Greed}.」
What the hell was this? Yoon-seok slashed with his sword as a test, but the energy in his sword couldn’t cut through the air like before. He checked the system message again.
Yet even if he looked at it again, it remained silent.
‘Transfer of ownership…?’
Was it what he thought it meant?
When Yoon-seok was searching for the answer, suddenly, the demon waved his hand in the air. Then, green energy in the form of a crescent flew at him. Needless to say…
It was {Trajectory Enhancement} with the toxic property.
“Keuhahahaha! What’s that look? Are you surprised by my powers? Well, because you’ve got your trash-like skills aimed at you, you must be!”
Perhaps he was very proud of his skill, as the demon’s voice grew even louder.
“…”
Yoon-seok didn’t reply. b Trajectory Enhancement} was only one of the many Unique Skills Yoon-seok had…but he didn’t have to tell the enemy about it.
「Ownership of Unique Skill b Enhanced Participation} will be transferred for ten minutes due to the influence of b Light of Greed}.」
If that power stole the {Bloodseeker’s Ultimatum}, it meant that more than half of his power would be instantly gone. Yoon-seok felt the need to hurry up and come up with a countermeasure.
「Lady’s Commandment makes it impossible to use Unique Skill b Light of Greed} within the realm.」
Lady’s Commandment always proactively created a breakthrough in any situation. However, this time, the compatibility was bad.
「Lady’s Commandment is lifted by Martian.」
Martian. Was that one of the powers owned by his contracted admin? He didn’t know what effect the power had, but it was important because it could lift Lady’s Commandment.
‘It could be dangerous in the long run.’
Then it would be best to finish the duel quickly. Yoon-seok rushed to narrow the distance. But…
“Force Shield!”
The demon was sneaky. Did he mainly invest his AP in defensive skills?
Clink! Clink! Clink!
The strength of the protective membrane, which initially blocked Bloodseeker’s Energy, was beyond imagination.
“Hahahaha! You’re taking it seriously!”
But whether his opponent laughed at him or not, Yoon-seok wielded his swords without a break, hitting the translucent membrane that surrounded the demon. Still, no scratches on the shield, but over and over again, regardless.
Clink! Clink! Clink!
Yoon-seok knew that this kind of skill usually consumed magic in proportion to the impact.
‘I don’t know how much magic he has, but it’s gonna run out somehow.’
In fact, the demon looked a little glum, as if his magic had been to flee him. But…
“…?”
Meanwhile, the light burst out again.
「Ownership of magic stats is transferred in a certain amount over a ten-minute period due to the influence of Unique Skill b Light of Greed}.」
Wasn’t he just stealing his skills? A pile of magic replaced by Bloodseeker’s Energy escaped him. In terms of quantity, it was almost half of his current reserves.
“Keuhahahahaha! Even the world wishes me victory!”
The demon became more proud. But thanks to him, he knew. The things he could steal from the light were not what he wanted but random.
Yoon-seok calmly organized his opponent’s abilities.
‘Does his re-use timer last about 1 minute?’
He wasn’t entirely certain. It had only been a minute since the light had previously flashed. There was no way there would be no cooldown, so Yoon-seok judged that his estimation wasn’t that far from the truth.
‘The ability to steal is maintained for ten minutes and can be re-used once a minute….’
In the end, that means he can steal away up to ten stats or skills…
What was the way to stop it?
‘I’ll have to find out.’
Yoon-seok kept hitting the shield while making assumptions. Once again, after a minute, the demon’s mouth opened once more.
“Light of Greed.”
He closed his eyes right away. There was no light in sight. Sadly, however, this method wasn’t the answer. Well, he didn’t believe he’d make it on the first try. But…
「Ownership of Unique Skill b Bloodseeker’s Ultimatum} will be transferred for ten minutes due to the influence of {Light of Greed}.」
Was the God of the Duel helping the demon?
Yoon-seok’s biggest concern came true.
“Keuhahahaha! What the hell is it? What the actual hell is it? This ridiculous amount of power!”
The demon, whose energy began to run ferociously around in his body, shouted like a person high on drugs.
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