Chapter 92: The Jar That Devours Filth
Chapter 92: The Jar That Devours Filth
"What on earth..."
The cult leader staggered back, retreating step by step.
"I thought he was dead... he came back to life. He was definitely dead."
Andria was equally bewildered by the sight.
On the other hand,
Jinhyuk casually massaged his shoulders and back.
"Ah, crossing the River Jordan halfway really does make your back sore."
He had nearly followed the voice beckoning him over to a garden of flowers and beautiful ladies singing, had the song not been from the Greek era—any trot music could have easily carried him away in high spirits.
'The curse of the Demon King has disappeared with this.'
Jinhyuk nodded, looking pleased with himself.
From the moment he first met the Demon King and received the hidden quest,
to squandering the cult leader's holy relic and utilizing the 'Star's Blessing' to lift the curse he had received from the Demon King,
everything had proceeded as planned.
'I timed the casting of the grimoire just right.'
No longer able to use unique abilities or skills,
but that was of no concern.
The cult leader, having expended his holy relic, was in the same situation.
'He's essentially a straw man now.'
The owner of the arena was proficient in various weapons,
and the owner of the mine had unsurpassable strength.
However, the cult leader, while capable of using powerful magic with holy relics,
was notably less formidable once the holy relics were exhausted of mana.
"You! What the hell are you? How could you...!"
The cult leader couldn't finish his sentence.
"Why? Never seen someone come back from the dead before?"
"Of course not!"
"What kind of cult leader can't resurrect? Instead of following you lot, why not believe in me?"
The 'Cult of the Old Waters'—admittedly, your mind might get a bit quirky, but you'll survive for a long, long time. Oh, and sometimes you'll resurrect, shoot lasers from your eyes, and so on. What do you think? Interested?
"Don't spout nonsense!"
The cult leader spat out an insult,
while picking up a crudely made surgical knife from the table.
A clear sign of refusal.
"You'll regret this."
Jinhyuk smirked as he lowered his stance.
Swoosh!
In an instant, a red-hued dagger was gripped in his right hand.
Crash!
The surgical knife clashed with the dagger.
Jinhyuk deflected an attack aimed at the heart and immediately targeted the opponent's thigh.
Thud!
A direct hit.
The dagger plunged deeply into the flesh.
"Aargh!"
The cult leader screamed in agony.
That's what I said. You'll regret it.
The outcome of the fight was virtually determined the moment the man in the back came to the front lines.
Well, there was just one thing.
The cult leader had one last card to play that could turn the situation around.
Of course,
'That too is exactly what I want.'
Jinhyuk alternated his gaze between the cult leader and the jar.
Isn't it about time to play your last card?
You know better than anyone that if you continue like this you will die, right?
As Jinhyuk continually provoked his opponent, pushing him into a corner,
now was the time to make a choice. Will it be dried up and dead, or...
"Damn it all."
Finally, the cult leader made his decision.
[Level 10 'Sacrificial Offering' activated by the 5th floor cult leader!]
Something shaped like a grasping hand sprang from the cult leader's heart.
A form composed of smoke, grotesque in appearance.
"If there is a lack of mana... then I shall replenish it!"
Indeed.
The method of replenishing the holy relic's mana by sacrificing his own followers,
this was the last hidden card the cult leader held.
Whish!
The grasping hand flew at breakneck speed,
and for Andria, who had no real combat experience, it was naturally too fast to react to.
"Ah...?"
Andria looked down at her chest with trembling eyes.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
She could see the hand clutching her heart,
the smoke growing denser.
"Offer your mana to me, my unworthy servant!"
Even the smallest amount of mana in a situation where both parties are depleted would be a significant wildcard.
But,
"Petria de Ame..."
The moment the runic words meant to absorb mana spilled from her lips,
"Peteria de Amerios. Theo pa Berisio."
A familiar voice interposed.
It was Jinhyuk.
"?!?"
The cult leader swiftly turned his head,
almost biting his tongue in shock, but there was no time for that.
"How do you know the runic language...?"
"Knowing ancient runes is just the basics. Doesn't everyone nowadays speak at least three languages?"
More difficult was predicting which spell to execute just from seeing the initial shape of the lips.
From the cult leader's perspective, there was no time to consider such a thing.
Now he would pay the price for not securing the first cast of the spell.
Kuku-kuku-kuku!
The 'Jar That Devours Filth' began to vibrate intensely.
Obeying the caster's command to consume the target.
"Yieek!"
The cult leader turned to run.
Desperate, discarding all dignity to flee with all his might.
But black hands springing from the jar were much quicker.
Clop-clop-clop!
The hands clutched the cult leader's body firmly.
Head, cheeks, waist, shoulders, and finally legs. A perfect capture.
"No, no! This can't be happening!"
The cult leader struggled wildly,
scratching the floor with his fingernails and kicking desks and flooring to try and escape.
Of course, it was all in vain.
The hands of the jar had never failed to consume their intended prey.
Ka-ka-ka-crack!
Ten trails of fingernail scratches trailed across the stone floor,
and with that, the end came.
"Aaaaack!"
The cult leader's body was completely devoured by the jar.
Crunch! Crunch!
What followed were the eerie sounds of bones and flesh being mercilessly crushed.
For one who had manipulated countless followers and lived as the Demon King's minion,
it was a pitiful end.
Or perhaps too easy a death considering he had burned people alive.
He would have felt pain for barely 30 seconds.
Jinhyuk looked on with cold eyes as the cult leader met his fate.
Then, as if he'd just remembered something, he turned his head.
There stood Andria, still half out of her wits.
"Am, am I alive?"
"What's with the questions if you already know?"
"But, but still..."
Andria hesitantly touched her own body,
her face curious not just about surviving but also about how she survived.
"By the way, don't you feel anything odd? Like your body is lighter than usual? Or that you have more strength?"
"Yes? Oh. Now that you mention it... it's like... it's like I've just woken up from a really deep sleep, and there's vitality coursing through me."
'So this is how it goes.'
The cult leader was dead. Yet, there was still no message of conquering the 5th floor.
Naturally.
The boss of the psychiatric ward wasn't dead yet.
'With the cult leader dead during the activation of 'Sacrificial Offering', the holy relic must have chosen a new owner.'
In other words,
the new boss monster of the psychiatric ward was now Andria.
'It's about time she realized it.'
Just as that thought crossed his mind,
"Ah...!"
A light gasp escaped from Andria.
She had come to realize, thanks to the tower's system, that the vitality and strength she was feeling was due to a specific reason.
Succession effect.
At that moment, a new owner of the psychiatric ward was born.
And that owner.
'Will only be loyal to me.'
Jinhyuk's lips curled into a smile.
Every player thought that defeating the boss and conquering the floor was the only way to ascend to the next level.
'But I am different.'
Veteran players don't chase the mainstream.
They don't differentiate when pursuing greater benefits and challenges.
That was how veteran players ascended the tower,
and why they were able to reach the summit.
"You mentioned it earlier. You were betrayed by those most precious to you, and abandoned here."
"Yes. I definitely said that."
"That time is over. At least on the 5th floor, no one will dare treat you lightly anymore."
No longer a disposable follower living a precarious life like a fly, but a ruler of a grind with immense magical power and countless underlings.
That was Andria's position henceforth.
"So from now on, live with a smile on your face."
"Thank you. Truly..."
Andria's eyes reddened with emotion.
It seemed as if all the humiliations and pains she had endured till now flashed before her in an instant.
Already in a position where she could never betray him due to the 'Brand of Revenant Souls'.
Well,
even without it, it was unlikely Andria would betray him.
After all, he was the one who had given her freedom and a chance at a new life.
But it was still necessary to ensure things were clear.
"I don't really like just verbal thanks..."
Jinhyuk's voice trailed off as if waiting for something else.
Then,
Andria wiped away her tears with her sleeve.
Her eyes resolute, she looked at Jinhyuk.
She had made her decision.
On what she would do moving forward.
"My name is Andria. I am the master of this ward."
She knelt down on one knee, respectfully.
"Under my lead, every existence within this ward will follow you, and we will fulfill whatever you may require, even if that demand means defying the rulers of the higher floors."
And with all sincerity, she bowed deeply.
[The boss monster 'Andria' of the 5th floor 'Psychiatric Ward' swears allegiance.]
[The 'Mine' and 'Arena' are liberated.]
[The 6th floor of the Trial Tower is unlocked!]
[Time Remaining to Conquer the Next Floor: 89D 23h:59m:59s]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
[You have leveled up.]
A series of notifications appeared with the opening of the floor and the leveling up.
'The power of the 5th floor will be useful when the time comes.'
Securing the cooperation of the lower floors was one of the tasks that must be completed for the future.
Now, Jinhyuk's eyes turned downward.
Towards the reward, the flower of the raid.
[You are the first to earn the allegiance of a boss monster.]
[You have acquired the special item 'Mirror that Breaks Boundaries' (Over-rank).]
Jinhyuk's eyes narrowed.
An incredible item had emerged.
***
The 5th floor was conquered,
and the world cheered once again.
Yet again, the protagonist who conquered the tower was the Korean ranker, Kang Jinhyuk.
-Takoyaki: Seriously. At this point, shouldn't presidents from various countries be giving awards to Kang Jinhyuk?
-RightHandBlackDragon: Nope. They should just hand over the presidency to him. Why bother with an award?
-IndexTM: I just want to see the video of the clear already. I'm dying to know how it was done. Even if it ends up being an edited version.
Amid the surging excitement,
a video filled with everyone's anticipation updated.
[The Administrator Spills the Beans on a Fugitive Situation]
The provocative title heated up the Trial Tower community like never before.
The video played,
revealing the scene with Jinhyuk and the 'Corridor of Choice.'
A place notorious for its rushed time restrictions and harsh difficulties.
Yet, before a longstanding player like Jinhyuk, all those challenges crumbled away meaninglessly.
As if he didn't even need a hint, Jinhyuk swiftly broke through all barriers.
A sight that defied belief, both for viewers and in reality.
In the end, the administrator had to flee,
overwhelmed more by self-disgust than anger.
-Index: LOL, not just luring clicks, the administrator actually fled for real?
-SeniorVetDetector: Seriously, how rotten do you have to be to pull that off?
-TissueRollOnDesk: When all the renowned longstanding players can't even make a peep, it seems that guy really is one of a kind.
-OldYoungEonHwan: Well, it's basically scholarly consensus that Kang Jinhyuk is on his second life.
-CornerKim: Just second? That level is like 999 runs. Of course, I couldn't do it even with unlimited coins.
-OverworkedWetTissues: Wow, he truly is a player you can trust. His gameplay is just so refreshing. He doesn't hold back!
-WoojinChoi: I'm one of the players who survived in that psychiatric ward. I thought there was no solution other than death in that terrible hell, but thanks to player Kang Jinhyuk, we all survived. Thank you so much. Truly.
The explosive reactions continued deep into the night and into the dawn.
Meanwhile, a new meme spread across the internet.
Above players, there are veterans.
Above the veterans, there are the fossils and oil,
and above everything else is Jinhyuk, watching their antics.
As a translator, my role ends here, faithfully translating the narrative of Kang Jinhyuk's exploits in the Tower. The excitement of his achievements resonates beyond the story, inspiring a community of readers delighted by his unorthodox methods and tenacity. The engagement with the narrative seems to grow ever stronger, with anticipation high for future challenges he may face, and it is my pleasure to ensure that the essence of this tale reaches English-speaking readers with clarity and narrative integrity.