Chapter 536. Master-Rank Slash

Translator: Boko

The Red Claw Dwarves conversed amongst themselves.

"I can't believe we lost him!"

"We were so close, but it just had to be near the door."

"Damn it, we have to find a way to break through that door. Then, we'll be able to go straight to their village!"

"Our blacksmiths have tried their best, but they all failed. It'll be tough."

"But it looks like Lord Orgon hasn't forsaken us. A short while ago, the Lava Tribe got themselves a powerful ally, but Lord Orgon has sent us some help too." The dwarf pointed at an individual within the crowd.

The individual had half-curly hair, and looked quite meek. There was a bow strapped to the human's back too.

"Yeah. He's extremely strong."

"He also brought a powerful wyvern with him."

Gyaa.

There was a giant, black armored wyvern standing beside him. For some reason, looking at the wyvern would grip one's heart in fright.

It was Sephiro and Waryong.

"Is there anything you need me to do?" Sephiro asked.

"Not yet. Our scouts haven't found any members of the Lava Tribe either."

"I see." Sephiro softly stroked Waryong's exposed skin.

That day...

The dwarves which had set off to hunt the Lava Tribe came back empty-handed. They hadn't been able to find any Lava Demons, and had come back to their base with Sephiro in tow.

The Red Claw Dwarves' main headquarters could only be reached by passing through a series of complicated tunnels.

Sephiro couldn't memorize the directions or how to open the path. Then again, there was no need for him to do so.

'I can just record it. And... mission complete.'

Sephiro recalled Kang Oh's deal and smirked.

* * *

"I have a favor to ask," Kang Oh said.

"Which is?"

"I need you to be a spy."

"Excuse me? What did you say?"

'Did I hear wrong?' Sephiro picked at his ears.

"A spy," Kang Oh said clearly.

"A spy? Me? Why?"

"There's a new dungeon that appeared on Mt. Helvert. And..."

Kang Oh told him the whole story.

"...And that's it. Do you understand?"

"Yes." Sephiro nodded his head.

"Please pick the dwarves. I'll take you to the dungeon myself. After all, it's difficult to climb Mt. Helvert by yourself. After that, let me know when you find out how to get to the dwarves' main base. Easy, right?"

"It doesn't sound easy to me. And I'm not doing it for free."

Sephiro was a high ranker now. 'I don't work for chump change anymore!'

"Elixium."

"What did you say?"

"I'll give you one bottle of Elixium."

"You have Elixium?"

"I drank six bottles already."

But it didn't have much of an effect on him anymore. After all, he had become a Master, and also broke his limitations.

"You've been drinking that all by yourself?" Sephiro looked at him as if he'd been betrayed.

"Yes," Kang Oh said firmly.

"I should never help you again."

'You have no loyalty!'

"Two bottles."

"Two bottles?"

'Two, huh...'

"Hmm."

Sephiro remained silent. 'Two bottles could become three!'

However, he was completely misunderstanding something.

"I'm ok either way. I can just go find someone else." Kang Oh turned around.

"Oho!" Sephiro quickly grabbed him. "I'll do it!"

"If you're going to do it, then be quicker about it next time."

"Ahem."

Their deal had been established.

* * *

'Elixium sure is good for you, right? Haha.'

He thought of the Elixium he was promised and couldn't stop laughing. Now that he'd become a high ranker, his next goal was to break into the top 50.

At that moment...

"Welcome. I'm in charge of the expedition here. My name is Gainof."

A rough voice snapped him out of it. A dwarf with dark blue skin and a three-pronged mustache on both sides of his face appeared.

"Hello, my name is Sephiro."

"I heard you agreed to help us."

"Yes."

"Thank you. We won't forget this."

"I'm glad to hear that."

Sephiro conversed with him for a bit longer, and then left his residence.

Then, he immediately sent Kang Oh a message.

- Prepare the Elixium.

- Understood.

* * *

He gave Sephiro the Elixium, and was given the footage in return. With this, he knew exactly where the Red Claw Dwarves' main base was.

Strike the iron while it's hot.

Kang Oh gathered all of the Lava Tribe's warriors.

"It's time to drive out those vicious thieves. Let's go!"

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

300 Lava Demons followed Kang Oh.

The dwarves' main base was located between the 13th and 14th floor.

Kang Oh opened the hidden passageway exactly as shown in Sephiro's footage, and went inside.

"How did you get here!?"

"Enemies! It's the Lava Tribe!"

There were a few groups of dwarves, but they fled as soon as they saw how many Lava Demons there were.

Sometime later...

Kang Oh and the Lava Demons made their way through the hidden passageway, and eventually reached a vast space.

It was the Red Claw Dwarves' main base.

The place was filled with buildings unlike the Lava Tribe's, and there were a ton of dwarves there too.

There were more than 1,000 of them. A dwarf with a three-pronged mustache stood amongst them. His skin was dark blue, unlike the other dwarves' skin.

His flesh was covered in dragon skin, not Rikao Snakeskin!

"How did they find this place?" Gainof furrowed his brow at the sight of the Lava Demons. Then, he quickly looked around.

"Where is that human and his wyvern!?" Gainof yelled.

The dwarves looked around for him, but Sephiro and Waryong were nowhere to be found.

It was only natural.

He had already left the dungeon.

"He's nowhere to be found."

"I-I don't see him."

Gainof's eyes lit up with rage.

Grr!

'It was him!'

When he heard about the Lava Tribe's powerful new ally, he didn't even question how convenient it was that Sephiro and Waryong had just shown up out of nowhere.

"That scum!" Gainof yelled furiously.

Then...

"Squad 1, front and center! Squads 2 and 3 will take the right and left flanks!" Kang Oh yelled.

Before coming here, Kang Oh split the Lava Demons into three separate squads. He also appointed commanders and vice-commanders to each, and gave them command over their respective squads.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The advancing Lava Demons were quite a spectacular sight.

It was clear that the Red Claw Dwarves' morale had sunk.

Kuhaang!

Then, Gainof suddenly unleashed a roar.

Lion's Roar!

It was as if an actual lion had just roared. It was only natural. His vocal cords were that of a lion, after all.

"Get a grip! Our tribe's freedom depends on this. And once we're freed, we'll stand at the top of all dwarves!"

Gainus wielded a hammer in either hand. Once he'd finished his speech, he slammed his hammers together.

"Woo! Woo! Woo! Woo!"

The Dwarven Warriors struck their shields with their hammers and yelled.

"Commanders, lead your troops."

"Yes, sir!"

"As you command!"

"For the prosperity of the Red Claw Dwarves! Everyone, charge!" Gainof raised his twin hammers into the air.

300 Lava Demons and 1,000 dwarves clashed.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The Lava Demons and the Dwarven Warriors swung their giant rock fists and tough hammers at each other.

Those struck by the Lava Demons' fists flew through the air like soccer balls, while the dwarves' hammers crushed the Lava Demon's armor.

Spurt!

The Lava Demons released lava from their mouths, which spilled and covered the floor, while the dwarves threw auras through the air.

It was commonplace for the Lava Demons' eye beams to be blocked by the dwarves' shields.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The Lava Demons spun their arms around, as if they were chasing away a fly.

"Dodge!"

"Get out of the way!"

The dwarves quickly scattered.

There were far less Lava Demons than there were dwarves. Thus, they each had to fight at least two dwarves at once, and four to five in the worst case scenario.

The dwarves made full use of their numerical advantage. They would use one of their companions as bait, and the rest of them would break the Lava Demon's tough rock armor.

It was only possible due to the presence of commanders that had fair leadership capabilities.

"Now, attack!"

"Now back off!"

"No, it's already too late."

The dwarves were winning due to their commanders.

Meanwhile...

Kang Oh moved in secret.

With Ubist and Blood in hand, he transformed into the Dual Demon.

Sara was accompanying him via Demon's Descent. Three sapphires floated around her like satellites.

'I've found my target.'

Kang Oh attacked the closest dwarf commander.

Slash!

He sharply swung Blood. It was as if he were wielding a razor blade!

Shards of light burst from the dwarf, and a wound appeared on his body.

Then, Sara blew a breath of cold energy at him.

Yuki-Onna's Breath!

A portion of the dwarf was frozen solid.

Kang Oh shattered the ice using Ubist's heavy blade.

'It's just right.'

He would use Blood to unleash finer, more precise attacks. Sara would then freeze them, and he'd break the ice using Ubist!

It was super effective.

He would also mix in the best skill for the situation.

Kang Oh would cleave the dwarves in two with Slash, or use Tempest Tiger, Abyss Claw, or Fresh Blood Wave to crack the ice.

He didn't skimp on Transcendent Blade, Weapon Bombardment, or Mad Wind's Sword either!

'Hurry, hurry!'

Kang Oh worked in sync with Sara, and killed as many commanders as fast as he could.

There were no dwarves that could stop them. Kang Oh would either cut them in half, or Sara would freeze them; then, Kang Oh would shatter the ice.

It didn't really make much of a difference when Kang Oh only killed one or two of their commanders. The dwarves were still winning the battle.

However, when Kang Oh killed more than twenty of them, that's when the Lava Demons turned the battle around.

It was a small spark, but it would soon turn into an uncontrollable wildfire. Ultimately, that wildfire would eat every single dwarf alive!

Why?

Because Kang Oh had created that wildfire!

Gainof wasn't an idiot. He had been wary of the Lava Tribe's skilled helper from the very beginning. And he had come to a conclusion.

'I have to take him down.'

Gainof led his bodyguards, which consisted of twenty men, and charged at Kang Oh.

'C'mon!' Kang Oh's eyes gleamed as he saw him. Then, he quickly pulled out an AA-rank item that he'd prepared beforehand.

Razor Sharp Dagger. It was an AA-rank weapon with a special passive ability called 'Dagger'. It increased the sharpness of every one of his attacks, and would also make him deal more damage.

Kang Oh, who already appeared like a demon, emitted even greater jet-black energy. It made him only more demon-like.

"I won't let you do as you please anymore!"

Gainof had made it to him.

His twin hammers radiated blue lightning.

Lightning Strike!

Gainof, who already had the advantage of dragon skin, was also capable of producing lightning.

The lightning was too fast, and it came at him from every direction, so there was no way Kang Oh could dodge it.

Crackle!

The lightning struck Kang Oh head-on. Fortunately, the Avenger set reduced the damage he took by 30%. Even so, it stung quite a bit.

𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Crackle! Crackle!

Sparks danced across his skin.

"Uhahk!" Gainof immediately launched a follow up attack. He swung his raised hammer downwards.

Then...

Transcendent Blade!

Demon Sword Ubist cut through the center of Gainof's body at transcendent speed.

Bam!

Shards of light spilled from his body, which Blood greedily devoured.

However, there were already seven stars shining upon his snow-white blade. He had gathered them in the process of killing the dwarf commanders.

Blood's attack power was maximized!

To add to that... Blood Emperor!

Blood was covered in red energy, and before an Emperor's Strike had even been unleashed, his sword flashed through the air.

Slash!

He cleaved through the sword scar that Ubist had left behind.

Sometimes, you have to cut along the grain.

The sword scar was the result of him doing just that.

This attack was the result of Gluttony, Blood Emperor, the Dagger passive ability, Blood at full stacks, and his concentration at its maximum. This had been his plan all along.

Kang Oh had been thinking of the big picture. He set this up so that he'd be able to cut through Gainof's dragon skin, and complete the spontaneous quest.

It worked spectacularly.

Bam!

Gainof's body was split in half. The dwarf's dimming eyes looked at him with resentment and futility.

[You have defeated the Red Claw Dwarves' Expedition Leader, Gainof.]

[You have completed the spontaneous quest, Slash Master. Your reward will be given to you right away.]

[You have mastered Slash.]

[Slash has gained a new ability.]

[You have completed the Master Slash quest. Please find Valan for your reward.]