Chapter 14

Chapter 14.

After completing the qualification trial,

Lee Ha-kyung passed through the gate and called Ma Do-hyuk.

—You already cleared the Tower of Judgment? That was fast.

“I was too curious about this place called The Void to sit still.”

—What did I look like in there?

“……”

At Ma Do-hyuk’s question, Lee Ha-kyung fell silent for a moment.

To be honest, he had not been that difficult an opponent.

Since it was only a reflection of his past self, there had been plenty of openings.

And on top of that, the difference in skill power had been stark.

Mirror Shade’s abyss energy had been weaker than Ma Do-hyuk’s mana.

Still, from Lee Ha-kyung’s point of view, it had been a worthwhile fight.

“You must have cleared it quite a while ago. Your style was a little different from how it is now.”

—You are sharp.

“If it had been the latest version of you, I might not have cleared it.”

—Hahaha! So you do know how to flatter someone.

“So what do I have to do now to enter The Void?”

—The method is simple. If you search through the Pit of the Abyss, you will start to sense something different from before.

“So it is something only those with the qualification can recognize?”

—That is right. Getting in is simple, but make sure you prepare thoroughly before you go. The difficulty there is on a whole different level.

“Thank you for telling me.”

—Think of it as repayment for my life. I am not like those others. I do not settle my debts with words alone.

With that, Ma Do-hyuk ended the call in an amused tone.

Now Lee Ha-kyung had learned everything he needed to enter The Void.

All that remained was thorough preparation and the ability to carry it out.

Steeling himself, Lee Ha-kyung rose from his seat.

‘A place deeper than the Abyss….’

Until now, he had roamed across the entire Abyss as if sweeping through it.

And yet he had obtained only two Ultimate Abyss Fragments.

The Void, on the other hand, was an unknown realm he had never reached before.

There might be more fragments sleeping there.

With anticipation written all over his face, Lee Ha-kyung passed through the abyss gate.

Much later, he reached the bottommost depths no one ever visited.

The Pit of the Abyss.

And there, an unfamiliar landscape spread out before him.

That was because the nature of the Abyss was constantly changing.

Lee Ha-kyung recognized the anomaly Ma Do-hyuk had mentioned at once.

“So that is it.”

A faint blue glow blinked in the darkness.

When he approached carefully, he found something rippling against the wall.

It looked like a pond stuck to the surface, as though defying gravity.

Without thinking, Lee Ha-kyung reached out and touched it.

A small ripple spread outward, and his hand passed through naturally.

He was certain.

‘It is exactly the same shape Mr. Ma Do-hyuk described.’

A moment later, Lee Ha-kyung pushed himself into the pond.

The instant he did, his body began falling endlessly.

It had felt like diving into water—

but before he knew it, he was in a mad free fall.

At this rate, he was going to end up like a tomato smashed on the ground.

Lee Ha-kyung forced down his rising sense of danger

and hurriedly drew his karambit.

‘I have to slow myself down somehow.’

His plan was to drive it into the wall

and scrape his way down.

But right then—

THOOM—!

The floor rushed up and slammed into his body.

It happened so suddenly that he could not do a thing.

Then came the sensation of plunging into water.

A little later, he found himself standing alone in the darkness.

[You have reached The Void]

[The flow of abyss energy is unstable]

[Terrain collapse and spatial distortion may occur at any time]

Lee Ha-kyung let out the breath he had been holding.

“Gasp! Hah!”

A thrilling sensation seemed to course through his entire body.

It felt as though an immense force were crushing down on the whole space.

And then Lee Ha-kyung realized it.

‘The density of abyss energy here is overwhelming. It feels different on an entirely different level.’

When he looked up, a towering ceiling stretched high above him.

Maybe that was why there was not a single point of light.

No matter how long he waited, his eyes never adjusted to the darkness.

Lee Ha-kyung pulled out a tactical glow stick and snapped it.

Crack!

Only then did the surrounding objects come into view.

The moment he started walking, it felt as if something sharp were stabbing every inch of his body.

This damned sensation.

Lee Ha-kyung knew this kind of pressure well.

‘Why is the killing intent here so vivid? It does not even seem to be directed at me.’

His tension shot through the roof.

The pressure was suffocating.

Even when he had fought the final boss of an Incomprehensible-rank dungeon, it had not felt this bad.

Suddenly, Ma Do-hyuk’s warning came back to him.

‘He said it was on a whole different level. Right. I have no choice but to admit that now.’

Just taking a single step left his mind reeling.

But little by little, Lee Ha-kyung began adjusting to The Void.

His hesitant footsteps gradually returned to normal,

and his pace quickened more and more.

It was the manifestation of the experience he had built up in the Pit of the Abyss.

Lee Ha-kyung moved through The Void while making a map.

‘It will probably become useless within a week, but until then, it will be useful. There is no reason not to make one.’

Then, the moment he discovered a stone door hidden in the darkness,

Lee Ha-kyung stopped moving.

He stood there blankly for a long while.

The message before him was simply too shocking.

[You have discovered the dungeon ‘Ultimate Abyss’]

Snapping back to himself, Lee Ha-kyung muttered under his breath.

“Why the hell is this here…?”

Ultimate Abyss was a Void-rank dungeon.

The highest-ranking dungeon ever discovered.

And yet he had run into a place like that the moment he came in.

Fear of The Void came crashing over him like a wave.

Lee Ha-kyung stepped closer to the stone door.

‘Does it open if I insert the completed key here?’

Without realizing it, he was already holding a violet key fragment in his hand.

For Lee Ha-kyung, it was both hope and purpose itself.

But it was not time yet.

How was he supposed to clear a Void-rank dungeon alone?

Besides, the key was not even complete yet.

Having given up for the moment, Lee Ha-kyung turned to leave.

But right then—

RUMBLE!

“Huh?”

The stone door began opening on its own.

Lee Ha-kyung could only stare in disbelief.

‘I did not even use the key, so what is this…?’

Ever since entering The Void, one surprise had followed another.

Without thinking, Lee Ha-kyung took a step forward.

“Ugh!”

Then he jolted back in alarm.

He had nearly walked through the open door without realizing it.

At that moment, another unexpected message appeared.

[You have entered the dungeon ‘Ultimate Abyss’]

[This is the place where the Abyss Ruler once resided]

[Find and defeat the remnants of the Abyss Ruler]

[Rank: Incomprehensible]

[Limit: 5 people]

[Reward: Unknown Artifact]

“What? Why is it Incomprehensible?”

Lee Ha-kyung tilted his head.

Abyss dungeon ranks ran from Low all the way to Supreme, and above those came the higher tiers: Unknown, Incomprehensible, Extreme, and Void.

Ultimate Abyss should have been Void-rank.

But instead, it appeared as Incomprehensible, a full two tiers lower.

It was hard to make sense of.

Lee Ha-kyung could not hold back his curiosity.

‘Should I go in and see for myself?’

This was not even the real Ultimate Abyss.

It was supposed to be nothing more than the place where only the Abyss Ruler’s remnants remained.

Lee Ha-kyung considered it.

‘It is Incomprehensible-rank, and the limit is five people. In that case, I should be able to clear it alone.’

Besides, this was not some sealed dungeon that only certain people could enter.

Getting out should be easy enough too.

Trying it once did not seem like a bad idea.

At last, Lee Ha-kyung stepped forward.

The oppressive weight bore down on his entire body, but his resolve did not waver.

‘I found Ultimate Abyss. There is no way I can just turn around without even checking it.’

His pride would never allow him to back down so easily.

The Abyss Ruler.

At the very least, he had to see that bastard’s face before he left.

The moment he entered, a familiar sight shook Lee Ha-kyung to the core.

“This place….”

It was unmistakably the battlefield from five years ago.

The place where Axis Prime’s elites and the Abyss Ruler had fought a desperate battle.

The horrific traces of that day still remained all across the ground.

And on top of a barren hill, a terrifying being revealed itself.

Lee Ha-kyung recognized it instantly.

‘That thing.’

[You have encountered the Abyss Ruler’s Remnant, Boss of the Abyss Dungeon]

Five pairs of arms spread wide like wings.

Ten artifacts gripped in ten hands.

But Lee Ha-kyung noticed at once that something was different from five years ago.

‘It is much smaller.’

The original Abyss Ruler had been a monster over a hundred meters tall.

But this remnant was only around thirty meters.

Of course, even that was enormous, but it still felt far removed from the original.

Suddenly, Lee Ha-kyung understood.

‘The Abyss Ruler is gone, and only its shadow remains here. That is why the door opened without the key.’

His feelings were tangled.

He wanted to crush the Abyss Ruler.

Reason told him it was not time yet.

And there was relief too, relief that he had not met the real thing while unprepared.

All those emotions twisted together inside him.

Just as that bitter feeling settled in, a welcome system message appeared.

[‘Soul Brand’ detects traces of a fragment]

At least that was some good news.

Somewhere in this dungeon, there was an Ultimate Abyss Fragment.

Lee Ha-kyung looked up at the Abyss Ruler’s Remnant.

Soul Brand was pointing directly at it.

He would probably have to defeat that thing to obtain the fragment.

He drew the karambit from his waist.

‘I can do this.’

A single line repeated in his mind.

It might only be a weakened version, but his opponent was still the Abyss Ruler.

There was no chance it would be easy.

But there was no way he could look at the face of his mortal enemy and simply walk past.

Until he tore that thing apart, he was never going to feel satisfied.

But right then,

the Abyss Ruler suddenly fixed its gaze on him.

Even from several hundred meters away, it had noticed his presence.

Then a savage will was forced straight into Lee Ha-kyung’s mind.

—So, the brat who ran from this place has returned.

“……!”

Lee Ha-kyung recoiled in shock.

No monster had ever spoken to him before.

The same had been true five years ago.

Axis Prime and the Abyss Ruler had fought like fated enemies to the death.

They had not exchanged a single word.

So what the hell was this?

After a brief silence,

Lee Ha-kyung finally spoke.

“So you could talk.”

—I do not bother speaking with creatures as insignificant as dust. But you are special.

“Why?”

—Because you are the only one who ever escaped from me.

Considering the Abyss Ruler’s overwhelming presence, it did not sound like an empty boast.

It had been a monster among monsters, one that scattered ten different Authorities without restraint.

The disastrous scene from that day rose in Lee Ha-kyung’s mind.

‘Damn it.’

Not just his body, but his heart felt heavy too.

He had thought he had already overcome that emotional damage.

Apparently, he had merely been forcing it down.

But there was no way he could show weakness to that damned thing.

Lee Ha-kyung tightened his grip on the karambit.

FWOOSH!

Abyss Refinement unfolded, and gray-white flames flared to life.

At that, the Abyss Ruler’s eyes flashed.

—Oh? So you have awakened the power of the Abyss. In that case, perhaps I should promote you from a speck of dust to an insect.

“Shut up.”

Lee Ha-kyung began walking toward the Abyss Ruler, one step at a time.

The emotions he had suppressed over the past five years burst free.

The faces of his father and his comrades seemed to flash before his eyes.

In an instant, his vision blurred.

Tears had risen before he even realized it.

And at that exact moment—

[The Abyss Ruler’s Authority ‘Restraint’ constricts body and mind]

[Mana suppression effect: 30%]

[The Abyss Ruler’s Authority ‘Downpour’ unleashes a rain of death]

Dark crimson streaks began pouring down from the sky.