Artifact-Devouring Player Chapter 166

166
Sgald.

It’s a humanoid rhinoceros monster.

A walking reinforced fortress, wearing heavy steel armor and walking on two legs.

He is also the only obstacle standing in the way of Sang-Hyeon reaping the benefits of the ‘777’ title.

You can obtain an epic grade reward from the 7th artifact.

This is the sixth round of artifacts that the guy will drop. Still, it’s a mountain to climb.

Woohooooh! Woohooooh!

Sgald, whose eyes met Sang-Hyeon’s, snorted repeatedly and let out the shout of a brave warrior.

A massive body.

A weapon that is heavily armored and makes it difficult to see where to stab.

Perhaps many players were frustrated when they saw Sgald.

This is because most players dislike monsters that boost health or defense, so-called ‘meat shields’.

It’s not that I don’t like it for any other reason. I just hate it because it takes a long time to clear.

As time goes by, it means that you get tired and lose focus.

Because it means that it can eventually lead to variables.

As it was a fierce battlefield where lives were at stake by a single point, it was no wonder that he disliked Sgald.

“Well, wouldn’t it be a shame to just kill him?”

However, Sang-Hyeon said something completely different to Sgald.

Understanding human speech – a correction in the system – was a single word that turned Sgald’s stomach inside out.

Woohoook?

Sgald nodded.

So far, I have killed dozens of humans who have visited this dungeon and eaten their flesh.

Even humans who came in groups of four were eaten without a trace. How much more so if they were alone?

This is nothing more than coming in to say, “Catch me, catch me.” How can you be so sorry about that?

Whoa!

Sgald made a sign of the cross with the index finger of his thick right hand. It was a gesture that clearly meant, “You are now dead.”

‘I haven’t had many opportunities to face rushing monsters. I might as well test them out.’

I put all my strength into my body.

In fact, the calculations on how to attack Sgald had been completed a long time ago.

But the reason I left Sgald as is was because he was valuable enough for ‘training’.

What if you have the skill to dodge Sgald’s charge and successfully block his basic attacks?

I’ve had encounters with players from the level 300 to 350 Inspectorate, including players who specialize in close combat.

In other words, Sgald is a kind of combat power measuring device for Sang-Hyeon. And it is a very precious measuring device.

“Come. I’ll close your eyes.”

Sang-Hyeon provoked Sgald.

The guy is brave.

It’s that simple.

If you tell him to come, he comes, and if you tell him to go… … he comes even more irritated.

Bam!

Sang-Hyeon closed his eyes tightly as he placed the Mad Demon Sword on the dirt ground.

Kugogogo!

As expected, the furious Sgald started to charge. Just like a bullfight, there was no turning back for Sgald’s charge.

Pfft!

The speed was so fast that the air was momentarily distorted and a popping sound was heard.

“hmm.”

With a short slurp.

Phew!

Sang-Hyeon used a quick footwork to twist his body and perform an evasive technique of moving sideways. It was a backstep.

Sgald was certain that his body and Sang-Hyeon’s body would definitely collide.

But there was something missing.

The thing is that Sang-Hyeon’s backstep is activated much faster than Sgald thought.

By the time the front feet hit the ground, the body is already quite far away.

Whaaaaah!

Sgald, whose fever was rising, crossed his strong arms and tried to strike Sang-Hyeon.

The Beast’s Charge.

The skill mainly used by Sgald is the rush skill.

This skill cannot be blocked with a sword or basic evasive moves, as it also has a tracking function.

“Khuuuu!”

Sang-Hyeon pretended to be surprised and let out a raspy breath. Then, a smile appeared on Sgald’s lips.

Well then, that’s right.

You might be able to avoid it once or twice by some trick, but more than that is impossible.

Because it’s ‘Sgald’.

Aren’t you the guardian who protects this dungeon forever and the brave warrior of the Kalturos tribe?

The next moment.

Whew!

Sgald, who had struck Sang-Hyeon with all his might, felt his body cutting through the air without end.

Kook… … ?

This couldn’t be happening.

Beast’s Charge is a skill that ‘designates’ a target and will definitely chase after him.

Even if you hide, you will be chased first, so they will chase you to the ends of hell.

But then the tracking was lost.

There are only two ways to lose track: either the opponent disappears completely, or they die.

But where on earth did it disappear to?

Just as Sgald was looking around, trying to find Sang-Hyeon.

Phew!

Wow! Wow!

Sang-Hyeon’s sword, which had stabbed the back of his neck, wounded Sgald’s thick neck.

Although he was not able to decapitate her in one blow, he was severely wounded enough to tear the flesh and expose the bones.

It was an attack that linked the Sage’s Whisper with the Sword of Destruction in a split second, so even Sgald had no way of resisting it.

Pushshush! Gulp! Gulp!

Red blood poured out from the deep wound on his neck, like a flood had burst.

『Whispers of Darkness』

The real name skill that followed immediately.

Sugald, who was badly injured and had lost concentration, didn’t even realize that the blinding skill had been deployed.

The black aura that soon covered Sgald’s head caused complete blindness.

woah!

Nothing is more terrifying than what cannot be seen, especially for those who rely on sight.

『Eyes of the Abyss』

Add some horror to this.

Sgald’s expression, which had naturally turned to fear in the darkness of his real name, became distorted.

That’s because I suddenly fell into the illusion of a hole opening up in the floor and falling endlessly.

Right then.

『Rising Current』

Sang-Hyeon unleashed an upward current toward Sgald.

Every monster has a unique weakness that makes it particularly vulnerable to certain status effects.

Sgald’s weakness was ‘air borne’.

For Sgald, who has lived his entire life as a large, heavy man, the experience of being lifted into the air is… something he has never experienced before.

Shuaaaah!

Rhinoceros, fly.

Is there any expression that fits this moment, right now, as well as this one?

Due to the weakness, Sgald’s body floated up without any reduction in the effects of Airborne.

It was a sudden and drastic change, as if I was riding a roller coaster, soaring high into the sky in an instant.

Whoa whoa!

Sgald, terrified, was waving his hands and feet in all directions, and in the meantime, he continued to rise.

Sang-Hyeon sent successive upward currents to prevent Sgald from even feeling like he was about to fall.

“How does it feel to have your butt washed by the cool, cold wind? Is this the first time in your life? You can’t even reach it with your hands!”

Sang-Hyeon taunted as he looked at Sgald’s naked lower body.

The one who actually became the butt of jokes was Sgald.

Heeeeek!

His face had already turned ashen.

For a rhinoceros with acrophobia, there has never been a situation more heart-wrenching than the current one!

Weeeeek! Weeeeek! Ugh!

Sgald bent over with his whole body and looked at Sang-hyeon with earnest eyes, pleading with him. It seemed as if he wanted him to come down quietly.

“Sgald. This is exactly the kind of situation where you can blow your nose without using your hands. Learn it well. You’ll use it in the afterlife.”

Cookies, cookies, cookies!

Sang-Hyeon used his steel storm to push Sgald higher into the sky.

The number had now grown so high that it appeared to be a single dot. It was a huge body.

Whaaak! Whaaak! Whaa… … !

And then at some point.

The scorpion that had been making the sound of a pig being slaughtered was no longer making any sound or moving.

Sang-Hyeon, who was playing with the Sugald by using the rising air current, nodded his head to the side.

Job!

Sgald’s tongue, which had stopped breathing in mid-air, was hanging out.

He died suddenly of a heart attack!

“That’s why weakness is scary.”

Sang-Hyeon shrugged his shoulders as he watched the corpse of Sgald falling endlessly.

I took out the mid-boss monster in Area 1 without a single proper fight. No one else has ever done that.

That’s why I also thought that ‘knowing’ the future was scary.

If I knew what the future would hold for me, I would definitely be able to come up with the right answer. Unless I’m an idiot.

Kuung!

With Sang-Hyeon’s indifferent expression as the background.

Sgald’s face, which had fallen with both eyes rolled back, was slammed into the ground.

The face that had become a mess was so completely blown up that I didn’t even want to look at it again.

“Good experience!”

Sang-Hyeon looked satisfied as he looked at the experience bar that had settled at 199.6, using numbers as an analogy.

200 is really just around the corner.

If there were no problems until dealing with the mid-boss monster of Area 2, the Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara, it seemed certain that the achievement would be achieved.

That wasn’t the only pleasant thing.

“Mana recovery talisman? I felt like I was missing something with the mana reflux, but isn’t the timing just perfect?”

The amulet dropped by Sgald was an artifact that doubled the overall mana recovery rate.

In other words, it was the best form of multiplication that doubled the final recovery amount strengthened by mana flow.

After settlement!

Thanks to this, the mana recovery speed has been significantly increased to 4.6 times the original speed during the day and 9.2 times the original speed at night in the dungeon.

Compared to players of similar level to Sang-Hyeon, who usually recover about 10 mana per minute.

In fact, you have reached a point where your mana is restored just by breathing.

The basis of skills is mana.

That much more accelerated mana recovery meant that you could use a lot more skills.

“If I can prevent the dark future that Valentin will create and fill that place with brightness… … .”

It doesn’t get any better than this.

Sang-Hyeon quickly moved to the next section while whistling without realizing it.

There are still zones 2 and 3 left.

You have to finish here to completely conquer the Blood Tower. This is just the beginning.

* * *

Same time.

“Take it easy, you crazy guys.”

Nietzsche was scanning the posts on the Predator Network, his black hair flowing down his face.

[Me, Jay, and Roel have already finished making a list of guys we want to eat in Korea.

There are more delicious things in Korea than I thought. Don’t drool for no reason. We’ll eat them all up.

Today, I made eye contact with that guy Shin Sang-hyun, and I think he sensed something.

Well, I guess it doesn’t matter.

Even if someone struggles when they’re going to die anyway, they’ll just die more painfully.

Everyone, wait for the review.

If you click on the recommendations a lot, I will even record the scene of my death in real time on video.]

It was the writing of a group of predators who traveled around the world and specialized in ‘hunting’ only promising talent.

Kay, Jay, Roel.

They were quite notorious guys who used pseudonyms like Nietzsche.

Nietzsche was displeased with them.

Because they leave evidence everywhere and, above all, they are very careless.

This is a case of someone bragging based solely on their skills, but because of these guys, the existence of predators is becoming more and more known.

Thanks to that, I also got a very troublesome enemy named Do Kyung-soo.

It seemed like they had definitely chosen one target this time.

As if it were a murder notice.

The author, ‘K’, wrote down their targets at the end of the article.

[Shin Sang-hyun. Our first prey.]

It was before the wind blew.