Chapter 72

When Monarchs died, they were sent to their eternal resting place. The empty dimensions of deceased Monarchs were a realm of nothingness, a place where only their souls could exist.

𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

But Suho, who had been mysteriously summoned to such a world, had numerous options that he could utilize—the first being his skills.

[Skill: “Iron Body Technique” has activated.]

A dark energy enshrouded Suho’s arm.

Querehsha immediately recognized the essence of his power and was astonished. “Unbelievable! Is that the power of the Monarch of the Iron Body?!”

Ammut, the mentor who had transformed a feeble and insignificant goblin into the Iron Body Monarch, was rising out of Suho’s body, revealing another skill of his.

[Skill: “Divine Possession” has been activated.]

A mystical wind swirled around Suho.

[Skill: “Meadow Wind” has activated.]

Suho’s silver hair shimmered as an explosive, beastly vigor burst from within him.

“T-this can’t be... Is that the Monarch of Fang’s power?”

Unbeknownst to her, another fallen Monarch was watching over her from his Place of Eternal Rest.

“Who are you? I can sense your spirit!” she cried.

But upon recognizing a familiar energy, she realized that the being watching her was the spirit of the King of Beasts, who had fought against the Monarch of Shadows alongside her.

[Rakan is watching Querehsha’s sanctuary.]

“Rakan! Why in the world have you lent your powers to the Monarch of Shadows’ son?!” Querehsha simply couldn’t comprehend.

Why would Rakan give the son of his killer his powers?

Regardless of his reason, she couldn’t deny that the essence of Rakan was woven into Suho’s body.

Even though he couldn’t summon his shadow soldiers, Suho possessed the strength to face thousands of insects alone with the Iron Body Technique.

Come at me.

Suho slammed his engorged fist into the oncoming tide of white insects, creating a tremendous explosion.

The residual fragments scattered in all directions, but they soon regrouped and descended once more.

[Querehsha’s Thorny Mantis]

[Querehsha’s Explosive Worm]

[Querehsha’s Venomous Spider]

[Querehsha’s Poison Moth]

Suho was attacked by numerous poisonous insects. However, empowered by Rakan’s essence, he skillfully evaded them with dazzling agility. He then proceeded to land a series of powerful blows. With each explosive attack, hundreds of insects burst forth.

Querehsha clenched her lips in frustration. “You’re putting up quite a fight. But in the end, you are all alone! My insects will eventually poison you!”

[Harmful substances have been detected.]

[Kandiaru’s blessing has started detoxification.]

[3, 2, 1... Detoxification is complete.]

But Suho remained unaffected and moved as if nothing was happening to him.

“How are you unharmed?” Querehsha’s eyes widened with great astonishment.

[Rakan also laughs boastfully, declaring that the insects have grown weak.]

“You dirty animal!” Querehsha screamed.

The situation was going against her expectations. Her plan was to torture the Monarch of Shadows’ son until she was satisfied. She hadn’t foreseen any hurdles since her prey couldn’t call upon any external forces within her world. Not even the formidable shadow army of the Monarch of Shadows could set foot in her resting place.

This is my domain! What is going on?

“Nevertheless, there is still plenty of time. Eventually, you will tire and fall.”

Time...

Suho glanced at the quest window.

[Remaining Time: 3 Hours, 41 Minutes, 17 Seconds]

Querehsha was right. Four hours was a long time to defend, and continuing the battle at the current pace seemed impossible.

I can’t even draw my weapons here.

Somehow, the inventory did not open here.

Then what about the shop window?

[In the current location, the use of potions and the shop is unavailable, and even with level-ups, status recovery will not occur.]

A system message arrived that answered his question.

Leveling up is still possible, huh?

A faint smile crept onto Suho’s lips.

He wondered how many experience points he would gain from killing all her insects. A few insects wouldn’t be worth his time, but killing the countless insects he was up against made it an appealing challenge.

Shall I take this opportunity to level up a bit?

Suho decided to continue the battle, recalling each of the skills currently available to him.

Without a weapon, skills like Storm Slash and Dual Sword Mastery were useless, and he couldn’t enlist the help of his shadow soldiers. The available skills were Pain Tolerance, Ruler’s Authority, Meadow Wind, Giant’s Armor, and Iron Body Technique. However, they were skills that consumed mana in real-time, so they could only last for a short time. In a prolonged battle, conserving health and mana was crucial, so a more strategic approach was needed.

I’m glad I can use Divine Possession, but since I need to conserve mana, I should stop it for now.

Deactivating Divine Possession would slow down Suho’s speed, making it impossible to perfectly evade the attacks of the insects, but he was confident of managing the attacks with the Pain Tolerance skill.

[Skill: “Divine Possession” has been deactivated.]

The moment Divine Possession skill was deactivated, Gray popped out of Suho’s body. The pup looked around with a puzzled expression.

“Woof?!” Gray, startled by the insects swarming from all directions, hid behind Suho’s legs.

[Gray–Level 7–Fang Wolf]

Interesting...

Suho thought. Gray’s persistent hunting in the Shadow Dungeon had increased his level considerably.

Since we’re here, let’s take this opportunity to level you up as well. But I see he’s still a coward.

Even Gray’s former Monarch, who was watching from afar, couldn’t help but click his tongue at his descendant’s cowardice.

[Rakan requests further training for his successor to become stronger.]

Do I get anything out of this?

Suho asked, challenging Rakan with a daring gaze.

[Rakan offers a piece of advice in return.]

Advice?

[Rakan advises that the world you are in is ruled by the law of the jungle. He advises that you should become a predator rather than prey.]

A predator?

Wait, do you mean...

Suho’s gaze shifted to the repulsive insects swarming around.

Are you telling me to eat the insects?

[Rakan nods.]

As absurd as it was, he was the King of Beasts. Suho knew there had to be some wisdom to his advice. After a momentary hesitation, he chuckled. “At least they’re white. It makes them somehow less repulsive.”

“W-wait...!” Surprisingly, Querehsha looked concerned by Suho’s response. “Surely, you’re not considering following that madman’s advice, right?”

Observing her reaction, Suho became even more convinced. He grabbed Gray, hiding behind him with his tail tucked between his legs.

Gray, it’s about time for you to become an adult, don’t you think?

“Woof?”

Suho lifted the wolf pup, his legs wobbling, and without any hesitation, he tossed Gray into the swarm of insects.

As Gray howled, moving further away, Suho smiled and said, “The world is ultimately the survival of the fittest.”

Gray.

Become a predator, not prey.

It was in the wolf pup’s blood to become a true predator. The power of the King of Beasts flowed through him, and Suho himself was now trying to get it out of him.

He led by example and chomped down the venomous insects attached to his body. Their venom burst from their bodies like succulent fruit juice.

[Harmful substances have been detected.]

[Blessing: Effect of “Blissful Longevity” has initiated Detoxification.]

[3, 2, 1... Detoxification is complete.]

Suho chuckled.

This tastes better than I thought.

“This fool is insane!” Querehsha was astounded.

Suho suddenly remembered something she had said earlier.

“I am both a single entity and a collective existence.”

He wondered what would happen if he devoured all the insects of this world as he continued to swallow them without mercy.

“Stop it! Stop eating them!” Querehsha screamed in shock with every bite he took.

A massive hand made of insects emerged from the void to strangle Suho, but he swiftly evaded it and bit into another group of insects.

Calm down.

There’s still plenty of time.

[Remaining Time: 3 Hours, 7 Minutes, 54 Seconds]

Three hours should be enough time for a meal.

Following Suho’s lead, Gray was also diligently devouring the insects.

Suho noticed that the wolf pup kept glancing at him. He wasn’t sure why at first, but he soon realized that the pup was looking at him out of fear that he was going to snatch his food and devour it.

Seeing Gray’s determination, Suho felt even more energized.

Great!

Let’s see who can eat more!

“No, don’t compete with one another!” Screaming, Querehsha intensified her attacks.

But no matter what she tried, there was no way to stop Suho and Gray. Rakan’s advice had proven to be effective. They devoured wave after wave of insects.

[Title: “Natural Enemy of Insects” has been acquired.]

[Title: Natural Enemy of Insects]

[This is a title given to the predator of insects. When facing insect-type monsters, all stats increase by 40%.]

The title sounded similar to Wolf Slayer, and the effects of the title were apparent.

[Title: “Natural Enemy of Insects” buff effect has been activated.]

The endlessly surging wave of insects before Suho trembled greatly. He realized that the insects now instinctively knew he was their natural enemy.

This is a surprise.

Do these creatures also feel fear?

With a screech, the massive swarm of insects, once united, scattered to avoid Suho.

Then suddenly, a mysterious powder sprinkled over Suho’s head. It seemed like the powder was the ashes of the insects he had killed and devoured up until that point.

The ashes of their souls...

[You have seized the role of shaman of the Queen of Insects and the Monarch of Plagues.]