Genius Regressor Makes Mythic Items

As if there was a hole in the sky, a sinister aura of dark green and grey continued to soar.

And since most of the people here were players, everyone knew well what kind of aura was surging up.

“What the hell!”

“Wh-What kind of ominous energy is that!”

Kim Shimun, like the other players, watched the soaring aura with a somber expression.

‘It’s several times stronger than the aura I saw in my previous life.’

The Chernozem incident that was broadcasted in his previous life, back then, there was the appearance of dark green and grey aura, but it didn’t pierce through the sky like that.

Thus, ‘The outbreak and the power of this aura have increased. If that’s the case….’

The events that follow would also be much worse compared to his previous life. Of course, he didn’t feel scared.

Just, ‘Why is this happening?’

He was curious.

‘What caused this incident to change so much?’

He had little connection with Ukraine, so he was curious why it had changed so drastically compared to his previous life.

‘Well, I have a few guesses….’

That dark green and grey aura soaring madly, hadn’t he experienced it before at the River Styx?

‘It’s the aura of the Death Constellation Quetzalcoatl.’

And even in his previous life, there were only two people who received Quetzalcoatl’s support,

Death Lord Malik, a core member of Desperado, and his sister Marlina. However, knowing that the duo and Desperado were behind the Chernozem incident was a fact he had learned from his previous life experience.

Thus, ‘Someone helped Desperado and Malik….’

There must be an accomplice in this altered event.

‘The most likely place to suspect would be the Continental Guild.’

After his return, the Continental Guild had been the most affected by his actions. But, ‘Desperado isn’t just backed by the Continental Guild.’

Although there were individual sponsors as well, there were two countries that had supported the villain organization, Desperado, since the unofficial arena days.

‘The United States might also be involved in this.’

More precisely, American Dream. Considering how their guildmaster, Derick, handed over the position to Andrew, it was a reasonable hypothesis.

Kim Shimun’s thoughts were interrupted by a high-pitched laugh.

“Kya-haha-hahaha!”

The frivolous laughter was a voice he had heard before at the River Styx. Turning to look, Shimun muttered quietly, “Marlina.”

A black woman with ashen hair, the sister of Desperado’s core member, Death Lord Malik, and the necromancer who would one day become infamous as the Death Lady.

Of course, for now, she was a Platinum-ranked player, considered a top-rank prospect in any country. That was the image Kim Shimun remembered from the last arena.

“Kya-haha! Feathered Serpent God! Devour those worms!”

But the aura Marlina wielded now was on a completely different level.

“Slithering Death.”

As far as Shimun knew, there was no such magic in any necromancy. The method Marlina shouted was not magic but a ‘primordial word’ used to employ authority.

To prove this,

Sssssss

An enormous amount of dark green energy surged from beneath her feet. Although it appeared to be in a gaseous form, the speed at which it spread was so fast that even the awakened would find it hard to react.

At least, “Orabeoni.”

Woom

Yujeong, who had stepped forward in front of Shimun, radiated divine energy to counter the energy, but that was all. From the start, they were in a circular formation centered on the Outbreak.

No matter how strong Yujeong’s divine energy was, it couldn’t protect all the players. In places her divine energy couldn’t reach, “Ahhh!”

“It hurts! It hurts!!”

“My, my body is rotting…”

The players on the opposite side were quickly engulfed by the dark green energy and began to rot. Approximately 30% of the players gathered there died in an instant.

Naturally,

“Oh my God…”

“Insane!”

Those who survived within Yujeong’s divine energy were horrified at the sight of their comrades dying in real-time. Taking it a step further,

“Ahhh!”

“I can’t fight! I can’t fight!”

“We’re all going to die… We’ll all die!!”

Panic ensued, and players began to leave their positions. As more players began to retreat, “Damn! The formation can’t hold this way!”

“Run! If the numbers dwindle, it gets harder!”

“Those who stay are screwed!”

The once solid front line, capable of withstanding platinum-grade Outbreaks, crumbled like a sandcastle.

“Stop! If we fall, the nation falls!”

“Everyone, hold your ground!”

“Do not retreat!”

The association president of Ukraine, Aleksandrovich Kozlov, and the command staff emerged from the headquarters, shouting loudly, but it was in vain.

“Move! Get out of the way!”

“Where are the airships?!”

“Damn it! Stop pushing!”

They couldn’t stop the terrified players from fleeing. It was understandable.

After all, they were not trained soldiers educated in patriotism, just random people who had awakened and become players.

However, this mass retreat was surprisingly easy to halt.

Ssss

As if waiting for them, “The, the energy is everywhere!”

“Gah…!”

The dark green energy enveloped them from all sides. It was inevitable. They had survived Marlina’s energy only due to the impenetrable Saintess, Yujeong’s divine energy.

The players painfully realized this principle at a very high cost.

“Go back! Turn back!”

“Stay close to the Saintess!”

They quickly turned back and returned to the battlefield. In response,

“Ha… You shameless fools…!”

Kozlov, the association president of Ukraine, clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, but that was all he could do.

“Stop standing around foolishly and get into formation at once! Build a defensive line centered on the Saintess!”

The enemy was right in front of them, and he had no choice but to shout commands to the players.

And then, “Ah~ That’s too bad. You should have run just a bit more.”

Marlina’s frivolous voice cut through the air, laced with a mocking grin.

“If you had, I could have gotten more useful materials.”

With a smirk creeping up her face,

“Animate Dead.”

A sinister incantation flowed out.

Soon,

Crack

Snap

The sound of bones twisting.

And,

Groan

Screech!

The sound of the dead echoed from all directions.

It wasn’t hard to find the source of the noise.

“That, that’s…!”

“Oh no…”

The very players from Ukraine who had just been swept away by the dark green energy and died screaming. There were tens of thousands of them.

And then,

“Go. Go and make your comrades meet the same fate.”

With Marlina’s frivolous command,

Screeech!

Groar!

Tens of thousands of undead charged from all directions.

—

“Ahahaha! This is it! This power!!”

The black woman wrapped in dark green and gray energy, Marlina’s grin widened to an almost tearing extent.

Of course, the ghouls she had raised with Animate Dead. Undead who could use a portion of their abilities from life.

“Hold the line!”

“Why are the ghouls so strong?!”

“Damn! They’re using traits too?!”

The ghouls made from Ukraine’s players were showing overwhelming performance. Marlina’s eyes grew larger at the sight.

‘To think that bastard brother of mine was the only one using this incredible power! No wonder he’s so strong!’

She was filled to the brim and overflowing with energy. As this energy, referred to as ‘aura’, was officially bestowed upon her by the Constellation Quetzalcoatl.

“Kyahaha! Now I can aim to be a core member. I can become a ranker!”

She was displaying power befitting that ambition.

Soon, Marlina’s laughter quickly ceased.

The reason was simple.

Fwaaahhhhh

A radiant, white light, a domain of light reminiscent of a sanctuary unfolded exactly where she stood, it was defiantly contending against the aura of Constellation Quetzalcoatl she had unleashed.

Going further,

“He, ghhh!”

“Kyah!”

The ghouls, empowered to the utmost by Quetzalcoatl’s aura, couldn’t even dare to approach.

“Unbreakable Saintess… So, you’re a high-ranked player, huh?”

One of Marlina’s eyebrows raised skeptically. But that was as far as it went.

“Even her appearance is irritating. An Asian woman, no less.”

Normally, she wouldn’t even be able to meet such an individual’s gaze, but Marlina merely glared at her with a vicious look.

“No matter how high-ranked that woman is… she can’t rampage in the domain of the Feathered Serpent.”

The domain of the Feathered Serpent. With Quetzalcoatl’s support, even someone like her, barely at the edge of Platinum, could be elevated to the highest tier of Diamond.

And hadn’t he even granted her his power?

“This is perfect. I’ll kill that woman and raise my reputation.”

And I’ll make an ugly trophy out of her corpse…

Marlina’s humming stopped abruptly. For a very specific reason.

“That, that guy!”

A handsome man with distinct features, but to Marlina, he was a figure her hatred had solely been reserved for.

“Kim Shimun!”

Had he noticed what was happening here?

Toong

With a clear sound, a small, black and white orb flew towards them.

“Hah! Fool! Did you think I wouldn’t know what that is?”

Marlina scoffed, extending her aura-wreathed hand.

‘Since that day… I haven’t missed a single one of your broadcasts!’

Kim Shimun had been the only one to ever defeat her aside from the members of Desperado. Naturally, from the day she vowed revenge, Marlina had meticulously analyzed everything about him.

Therefore,

‘No matter how powerful that explosive magic is…’

She was well-versed in Kim Shimun’s Heavenly Demon Sphere.

Also,

“If I destroy it before it explodes, that’s all it takes!”

And she knew how to counter it.

Ssssss

Aura poured from her outstretched hand like smoke. Not only that, aura scattered in all directions quickly converged to form a sharp ring.

And then,

“Slice it.”

Like a strangling snake, the aura tightened around the Heavenly Demon Sphere,

Slash

And mercilessly shredded it to pieces.

“Huhuhu.”

A sticky sneer formed on Marlina’s lips.

‘Kim Shimun, up till now, you’ve rampaged as you pleased, and everyone fell for it, so it was enjoyable for you.’

But now, you couldn’t even recognize the power of this formidable Constellation. Instead, throwing around this kind of area magic that’s not even single-target!

‘But not anymore. I’ll show you how insignificant your existence is. I will personally engrave it into your death.’

As Marlina’s sneer grew darker,

Ssssss

So did the aura surrounding her, granted by Quetzalcoatl. But Marlina was unaware of two crucial things. First, that the orb Kim Shimun threw was not magic but a martial art technique from the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Therefore, the concept of destroying it before it activated didn’t apply. This was soon revealed.

Woong

As a bright explosion of light.

“How, how can this be?!”

Marlina’s face contorted in shock. However, being a promising name in the necromancy field and a member of the world’s largest villain organization, Desperado, “O Feathered Serpent God! Bind it with the Coil of Death!”

She immediately wielded Quetzalcoatl’s power, trapping the exploding Heavenly Demon Sphere within her aura.

Then, “Hmph! Damn bastard. So, you have some skills, huh?”

Marlina’s face contorted in anger.

Soon after, ‘Well, he’s the one who managed to defeat me, so this level of resistance is to be expected. But in the end…’

She clenched her outstretched hand tightly.

In response, the dark green aura constricting the Heavenly Demon Sphere compressed even further.

Crack

“Meaningless before the power of a Constellation.”

As if discarding trash, Marlina tossed the aura-engulfed Heavenly Demon Sphere aside.

Flick

Step

“Now, Kim Shimun. It’s time for you to understand your place.”

And the second thing she missed was, “I’ll turn you into an undead while you’re still alive, specially…”

That the original Heavenly Demon Sphere was always a black pearl.

As this realization hit her, ‘Wait a minute.’

She stopped in her tracks.

‘Wasn’t that a bright light bursting out just now?’

Moreover, the Heavenly Demon Sphere she had just discarded was definitely ‘black and white,’ not plain black.

Realizing this, “Damn it!”

Marlina, shrouded in her aura, moved hastily but it was too late.

BOOM!

She wasn’t faster than the lightning bolt that erupted right next to her.

—

Groar!

Screech!

The wails of the dead echoed everywhere.

But, “Shadowless Slash.”

A low voice accompanied a flash of light.

Slash

Nearly a thousand undead were instantly sliced in half.

“We’re almost past the respawning area. Nikita?”

“Yes, and there are no ghost-type undead around. Everyone, gather up!”

The onslaught of the undead was paused momentarily by the one-strike massacre.

In the interim, “Cloak of Concealment.”

With a light spin, the Ukrainian ranker Nikita activated his S-rank trait, cloak of Concealment.

Semi-transparent. And then invisible. The entire team disappeared in an instant.

Then,

Groar

Screech

More than a thousand undead surged forward again. But since they only encountered the lifeless land stained by undead like themselves, the undead wandered aimlessly towards the Outbreak entrance.

“Groan…”

Moving towards the dimensional rift. The enormous hill where the undead regenerated without rest. To the sticky soil behind it.

Step

A series of footprints continued to be imprinted.

Then, “This should be far enough.”

A voice emanated from the void. The team hidden within the Cloak of Concealment emerged en masse. At the forefront, Kim Shihyuk looked at Nikita, who was adjusting her traits beside him.

“That was the last respawning area. The core should be somewhere nearby.”

“Yes, I’ll scout the surroundings with a few assassins. In the meantime, Sword Saint, please take charge of the main team.”

“Got it.”

As top-rank players, Kim Shihyuk and Nikita efficiently briefed and divided roles. As the assassins from Ukraine prepared themselves, “Let’s move out swiftly.”

Just as Nikita and the scouting party were about to depart,

Shuaaak!

Kim Shihyuk’s sword suddenly lashed out towards the scouting party.

True to his nickname, the Sword Saint, “What the hell!”

None from Ukraine, except Nikita, could react in time. Then,

Ka-ga-ga-gak!

A grating noise that made everyone wince followed. Fortunately, though the direction was the same, the sword strike wasn’t aimed at the scouting players.

“Everyone, fall back to the main team!”

Nikita quickly drew her dagger and ordered the scouting party to retreat.

And from behind them, “Oh~ I didn’t expect you would notice. As expected of the Sword Saint.”

An elegant-looking East Asian man stepped out.

More precisely, “But I’m curious.”

Swish

He appeared out of thin air. Despite his gentle appearance, “The Sword Saint I know didn’t have any spatial-related traits. How did you figure it out?”

The man’s eyes twinkled with mischief and his voice dripped with amusement.

To this, “You… Haruto?”

Kim Shihyuk frowned as he murmured.

“Haha! It’s an honor that the great Sword Saint remembers my name!”

Haruto, who seemed to catch every word, replied with an even more playful and delighted tone.

“While you’re at it, why not call me by my nickname, Dimension Rascal? I quite like that name.”

“……”

Kim Shihyuk was silent for a moment, thrown off by Haruto’s sudden nonsense.

Soon,

Sling

He was about to respond with another sword strike.

Shuaaak!

But another sword strike flew in first. However, it paled in comparison to Kim Shihyuk’s previous one.

“Hey now~.”

Even the self-proclaimed Dimension Rascal found it lacking.

“You still don’t know when to butt in, Yuto.”

With a sly grin, haruto pointed a finger.

Clang!

Judging by the distinct aura, it was definitely a strong essence. Haruto blocked the strong essence with just a finger.

From behind him, “You! Why are you here?!”

Yuto’s angry voice echoed. One of Japan’s most promising candidates in a long time, “Still as rude as ever.”

Haruto’s sly expression shifted slightly.

But only for a moment. Like flicking a pebble,

Snap!

“Gah!”

He casually flicked his finger, sending Yuto, Japan’s brightest hope, flying.

“It’s been a while, little brother.”

Haruto wore his mischievous smile once again.