Level Up Machine

Chapter 94 The Blue Giant (3)

– Kwoooaaang!

Leviathan’s Guildmaster, Park Si-a, was struck by the blue giant’s fist and was sent flying.

The giant’s fist, which seemed to be retreating, emitted an intense blue light, shattering the stream of water she had shot.

“Si, Si-a unnie!”

“Guildmaster!”

The members of the Leviathan Guild turned pale as they watched Park Si-a being flung backward.

Park Si-a was the pillar that steadfastly supported the massive Leviathan Guild.

She was stronger than anyone, cold-headed, and charismatic. The number of summoners who relied on her was countless.

Unlike Tiria, who embraced everyone and fostered a strong bond within the guild, she was a different kind of leader. Standing at the forefront, she tirelessly led everyone toward their goal.

If Tiria was a wise ruler, she was a conqueror.

Such a person had fallen. She had been flung back so pathetically.

The Leviathan Guild members were more than shocked by the unbelievable sight.

“Ah, huh…”

Groaning in pain, Park Si-a staggered to her feet. Her arms, which had collided with the blue giant’s fist, were twisted at unnatural angles.

“Guildmaster! We need to heal you immediately…”

A healer from the Leviathan Guild broke formation and approached Park Si-a. She endured the excruciating pain and shouted,

“Maintain formation!”

“But…!”

“Any further dissent will be considered insubordination.”

Park Si-a glared coldly at the female healer, who trembled and nodded heavily at her words.

– Resuming protection of the highest priority target.

The blue giant, having flung Park Si-a away, turned its attention to the altar where Yu-na, Cheon Tae-hwang, and Park Cheol-tae’s party were attacking the golden sword embedded there.

Feeling the giant’s gaze, they shuddered and moved away from the altar. It was impossible to destroy the altar while being targeted by the giant.

“Where do you think you’re going?!”

Enduring the pain coursing through her arms, Park Si-a stepped forward. The Leviathan Guild members watched her with worried expressions but couldn’t bring themselves to stop her.

They knew better than anyone that without Park Si-a, no one could stop the blue giant in the current situation.

“Descent of the Water Dragon.”

Terrifying magic power concentrated around her body. The skill that earned her the nickname Leviathan was activated.

Thousands upon thousands of tiny water droplets formed around her, and these countless droplets merged into one as if drawn to each other.

– 크롸롸롸롸롸롸!

A massive sea dragon, reaching up to 30 meters, roared in the air. The sea dragon, even larger than the blue giant, coiled around the giant’s body.

Boom! Thud!

“Ugh… Gah, Kugh!”

The blue giant, wrapped by the sea dragon, thrashed violently. Every time the giant twisted, a groan filled with pain burst from Park Si-a’s mouth. Dark red blood spilled from her lips.

The so-called descent of the sea dragon did not mean summoning a real dragon. The sea dragon she had conjured was a fake dragon, relying solely on her mana.

Every time the giant struggled, all the shocks inflicted directly affected her mana.

“Huff, huff!”

Every twist of the giant’s body made the mana flowing inside her body surge violently. Park Si-a exhaled rough breaths from the excruciating pain as if her entire bloodstream was being crushed. Her legs trembled so much that standing was a struggle.

‘No.’

She bit her lip, thinking of the guild members standing behind her. Her lip split, and red blood flowed down.

It wasn’t hard to imagine what would happen to the guild members behind her if she collapsed here.

“Guild Master!”

Cheon Tae-hwang, seeing Park Si-a spewing blood, looked at her with urgency and tried to approach her.

Park Si-a spoke in a faint voice that seemed on the verge of breaking.

“Quickly… Destroy the altar.”

The endless power of the blue giant. It was impossible to defeat that monster without cutting off the source of that power. Cheon Tae-hwang nodded with a heavy expression, feeling the desperation in her words.

Four swords embedded themselves in the ground around him. Cheon Tae-hwang took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes.

Mana flowed from his body toward the swords stuck in the ground.

‘Divine Sword Union.’

Unlike the state of the sword described in martial arts novels, this was a somewhat unreasonable skill that allowed him to momentarily exhibit explosive power by directly absorbing the sword into his body.

It was not a skill he could fully control yet, and using it for more than a few seconds would cause significant strain on his body, but this was not the time to worry about such things.

‘Even if it costs my life.’

Cheon Tae-hwang ignited his resolve, recalling Park Si-a’s displayed fighting spirit. The swords embedded in the ground turned to dust and were absorbed into his body.

Feeling immense power surging through his entire body, Cheon Tae-hwang slowly opened his previously closed eyes. The golden sword placed on the altar came into his view.

“Ah?”

A short gasp escaped Cheon Tae-hwang’s mouth. Using the Divine Sword Union, his senses were explosively amplified, and now he could feel the awe-inspiring power of the golden sword. It was strong enough to make the claim that it provided endless mana to the blue giant believable.

Thump.

His heart pounded. The image of the golden sword, radiating brilliant light, was etched into his mind like a brand. He felt a burning thirst.

‘What is this?’

Cheon Tae-hwang frowned at the unfamiliar sensation. His entire body tingled as if the sword was calling out to him.

Cheon Tae-hwang swallowed dryly and took up his sword-drawing stance. A sword made of blue light materialized in his hand.

“One Flash.”

The skill he had directly learned from Kang Ha-rin activated. The sword in his hand slashed through the magic barrier like a beam of light.

Clang!

“Ugh!”

The sword failed to pierce the magic barrier and was repelled. The immense recoil tore his palm open.

“Haa?”

Cheon Tae-hwang seemed delighted that his attack had been repelled, twisting his mouth into a smile as he swung his sword.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

With the clear sound of metal ringing, he felt as if he himself had become one with the sword.

As Cheon Tae-hwang, using the Divine Sword Union, pounded against the magic barrier, Yu-na, watching him, let out a groan.

‘There’s no way I can manage with my current power.’

Yu-na bit her lip harshly as she looked at the blue light sword in Cheon Tae-hwang’s hand. She could easily tell how powerful that sword was without having to clash with it.

Even such a sword couldn’t penetrate the magic barrier.

If she joined in, she would only get in the way.

“Damn it.”

A rough curse escaped Yu-na’s lips. She clenched her fist with a distorted expression. The heavy sense of defeat weighed down her shoulders.

The power of Cheon Tae-hwang, a 61st summoner, had already surpassed her. He had caught up with and overwhelmed all the effort she had put in over the years with his sheer talent.

“Damn it!”

Another curse slipped from Yu-na’s mouth. She glared at Cheon Tae-hwang with her trembling body. She knew all too well how significant a role talent played in this world.

Even if you just considered the level cap, it could be seen as talent. Some people couldn’t raise their level beyond 30 no matter how hard they tried, while others could reach 60, 70, or even higher.

She herself was an incredibly talented summoner compared to the average summoner.

But.

‘This is too overwhelming…’

Yu-na looked at Cheon Tae-hwang, who was swinging his sword with apparent enjoyment towards the magic barrier, with a distorted expression.

It wasn’t just that his level cap was high. His very ability to handle the sword was on a completely different level. The sword strikes Cheon Tae-hwang was showing now felt like an insurmountable mountain that she could never reach no matter how hard she tried in her lifetime.

“This is no time for this.”

Yu-na reproached herself for being distracted and stood up.

At that moment, her eyes caught sight of two twin swords. They were the swords that Yeong-sik had been using to destroy the altar and had been thrown aside.

One sword had a black blade, and the other had a red blade like a crimson lotus.

It was as if she was hypnotized as she grabbed those swords.

“Ugh, ah…!”

As soon as she grabbed the swords, a tremendous power surged through her arms.

The veins in both her arms bulged grotesquely. The ‘voices’ of the swords echoed in her mind.

[My name is Eclipsed Sun.]

[My name is Solar Eclipse.]

[Our name is ‘Twin Eclipse.’]

“Huff, huff… What, what is this?!”

Yu-na gasped for breath as she looked around frantically, hearing the voices in her head.

[I will test if you are worthy of becoming the successor of the hero, Ragna.]

“Ugh…!”

A searing pain shot through her entire body. The bulging veins in her arms started to spread across her whole body. The immense power flowed through her body.

Boom!

A fierce flame whirled around her. Unlike the vivid red flames she usually used, these were a dark, murky color mixed with black.

“Aaaaargh!”

“Yu, Yu-na!”

Yu-na twisted her body in maddening pain. Tiria approached her. Having been knocked away by the giant’s punch, Tiria staggered towards Yu-na.

“Ugh…!”

The intense flames emanating from Yu-na made Tiria cry out in pain. The swirling flames engulfed her.

Sizzle.

“Ugh… Sis! What are you doing? Move, move!”

Even while writhing in agony, Yu-na shouted at Tiria, who had embraced her. Tiria, eyes tightly shut, shook her head desperately.

“No… I can’t… I can’t lose you too…!”

Tiria shouted with a desperate voice. She summoned her strength to protect Yu-na, who was in pain.

“Sis.”

Yu-na’s eyes wavered. The face of her deceased older sister from the tutorial came to mind. She remembered how she had done nothing but be protected by her sister, who had died shielding her.

The despair she had felt back then surged through her entire being once again.

“This time, at least this time…!”

Yu-na bit her lip harshly and tried to control the power surging through her. The pain felt as if molten metal was being poured directly into her veins.

But she had to endure. If she couldn’t handle this power now, Tiria’s life would be in danger.