Solo Leveling: Ragnarok

Chapter 50

The Scavenger Guild hunters were fighting back the mummies while simultaneously trying to keep up with Randolph, who was leading the way.

“Aaargh!”

Nonetheless, they had fortunately figured out how to handle the mummies to a certain extent after watching Randolph. With his tremendous strength, Randolph had unceremoniously pulled apart the limbs of the mummies blocking his way.

“Don’t just break their legs, rip them out completely! Make sure they never get up again! Tear off their arms so they can’t crawl!”

The method proved effective. In the wake of Randolph’s storm-like charge, the ground was littered with mummies missing limbs, wriggling around like bugs. However, their recovery was ultimately a matter of time.

“Th-these things can regenerate!” a hunter cried.

The bandages were essentially the glue that maintained the mummies’ shape. The bandages began to move on their own, reattaching the fallen limbs and resurrecting the bodies. Randolph’s method wasn’t the solution they were looking for, but it had bought some time.

“Seize this opportunity! Keep running!” Randolph shouted.

The hunters of the Scavenger Guild ran with all their might. However, the labyrinth was intricate and got lost several times. Suddenly at that precise moment, the hunters lagging behind Randolph noticed Suho approaching from a distance.

“Isn’t that the summoner from earlier?”

“Yeah, it is.”

“How dare he enter this place!”

The remaining Scavenger Guild hunters were in a life-threatening situation, but the reason for enduring this level of hardship was to uncover the hidden artifacts within the pyramid, and they couldn’t afford to let other hunters steal their prize.

“Good. Let’s capture him and use him as bait for the mummies.”

Just as they were about to ambush Suho, they heard a loud noise.

Shriek!

A horde of black mummies emerged behind him as Suho turned the corner, and the Scavenger Guild hunters were frozen in place.

“Th-this is insane!”

“What the heck is that?”

Upon encountering him again, they found that Suho was leading a unit of black mummies.

“Huh?” Suho finally noticed the hunters.

The Scavenger Guild hunters immediately turned away as an innate sense of terror took over them.

“Damn it! Run!”

As they began to flee without hesitation, Esil swiftly threw her spear to collapse the wall, blocking their escape route. Eventually, the hunters mustered the courage to turn toward Suho with eyes filled with venom.

“I don’t know what’s going on, but one thing is for sure: We must kill the summoner!”

“Ignore the mummies and just kill that b*stard!”

However, their momentum didn’t last long. The previous mummies they faced had regenerated slowly, but the black mummies before them came back at an unbelievable rate.

“Excellent. The increase in the Young Monarch’s mana is evident.” Beru cheered enthusiastically for the mummies.

The screams of hunters echoed, creating a completely different atmosphere from just moments before.

“Young Monarch, do not forget that your true power lies in this undying army.”

Suho’s army overwhelmed them, continually advancing, but he never became overconfident. He knew he was still behind the strength of Randolph, the A-rank hunter. I need to capture a Venomous Sand Centipede. Suho continued forward toward the distant screams of the sand centipedes. Fortunately, the opportunity to defeat one came sooner than expected.

As the Scavenger Guild hunters began fleeing from the black mummies, the ceiling above them collapsed, revealing a lurking sand centipede.

“Save me! No!”

In an instant, the sand centipede devoured a hunter whole and then shifted its gaze to find more prey. Choked by the venom flowing steadily from the centipede’s fangs, the unfortunate victim struggled to breathe.

[Skill: “Storm Slash” has activated.]

Suho swiftly conjured a storm of blades to disperse the pungent venomous fog as the toxin could deplete his health points. How kind of you to come to me directly! Suho then brandished his dual blades, fully intent on hunting down the creature. “Everyone, charge!”

Nineteen shadow mummies swarmed the sand centipede in response. The sand centipede mercilessly slaughtered Suho’s soldiers, but no matter how torn their bodies became, the mummies continued to regenerate, their bandages reattaching with frightening consistency. With renewed ferocity, the shadow mummies charged at the creature like demons.

The venom dripping from the sand centipede’s fangs seemed to have no effect on the black mummies as they were immune to the poison. In turn, the venom of the black mummies had no effect on the sand centipede. Ultimately, the fierce battle between these relentless beasts continued with each side tearing into the other.

“Arachne! Don’t let it escape! Spin a web to trap it!”

Following Suho’s command, Arachne began spraying webs onto the sand centipede.

“Esil! Keep restraining it so that it can’t tear the webs!

“How?”

“However you can!”

Esil impulsively leaped forward. She infused mana into her spear, and it began to elongate.

“Oh, I didn’t know that was possible.”

Seizing the opportunity, Suho quickly bought a mana potion from the store and drank it. He looked at Esil with amazement.

Beru appeared and explained the phenomena, “I suppose some demons can use spiritual possession that way... It’s like a spirit transfer. The demons from the Stardust factory would have used a similar technique to possess their human vessels.”

“Spirit transfer?” Suho asked.

“Yes. That spear is a demon’s horn. If a demon is capable of transferring its spirit, the spear should be able to accept it, allowing the demon to infuse mana into it and adjust its size.”

“Then what about mine?” Suho asked, raising his weapon.“Vulcan’s Horn.” Isn’t this sword also made from a demon’s horn?

“Ah! Now that you mention it...” Beru’s eyes lit up. “If I recall, Vulcan was an enormous demon. Its horn must have been incredibly large.”

“If the horn was so big, why is this sword so small?”

“In the process of crafting the weapon, the power was likely compressed by using spirit magic.”

At that moment, Suho had a revelation.

[Item: Vulcan’s Horn]

[Acquisition Difficulty: ??

Type: Sword

Attack Power +40

It’s a sword made from the horn of the greedy demon Vulcan.

Vulcan’s power imbues it with the ability to inflict greater damage.

– Effect “Destructive Desire”: Increases physical damage by [40%].

– Effect “Demon Devourer”: As it feeds on demon souls, Vulcan’s power grows stronger.]

[Devoured Demon Souls: 10]

The messages reminded Suho of the sword’s powers. Made from the horn of Vulcan, it was a weapon that grew stronger as it absorbed demon souls, and one happened to be battling fiercely right in front of it. Esil wasn’t just your average demon, she was a demon born with noble blood.

“Esil!”

“What?” she responded without even turning her head.

“I just remembered something, can you help?”

“I don’t know why, but sure!”

“I’ll take that as a yes!” Suho’s mouth curled up as he approached Esil, who was still fighting with the sand centipede. He pushed Vulcan’s Horn toward her. “Can you use spirit transfer now?”

“It’s possible, but why? Eek!” Esil belatedly noticed Vulcan’s Horn in Suho’s hand and was startled.

Suho grinned brightly and asked, “Can you go inside Vulcan’s Horn for a moment?”

“I’m a little busy right now!” Already engaged in a tense battle, Esil had no time to debate Suho’s sudden proposal.

“Is it possible?”

“Yeah, it’s possible, but... Oh, whatever! Spirit Transfer!”

Flash!

Esil’s body gradually turned transparent, transforming into an ethereal form. And just like how Gray had strengthened Suho’s body before, she melded into Vulcan’s Horn.

[Vulcan’s Horn devoured the demon’s soul.]

At that moment, Esil’s sharp voice burst forth within Vulcan’s Horn. “Okay, satisfied? What’s the next step?”

“Great! Can this sword also grow like your spear?”

“Of course! Now I understand what you wanted!”

Time was of the essence, and the explanation given was brief, but Esil understood Suho’s intention. She recalled the moment when Suho had grown in size to confront the sand centipede. He had fought without a weapon and only used his fists.

“Do you want me to enlarge the sword now? I’ll need your mana for that!”

“Hold on! There’s something we have to do beforehand!”

Suho skillfully dodged the incoming attacks from the sand centipede, and then he commanded the shadow mummies to attack the creature. He examined Rakan’s Fang as he held it in his opposite hand.

“You saw that, right? Can you do that too?”

Rakan’s Fang remained silent, offering no response.

“No? I thought it worked the same way as a demon’s horn, you being a fang and all.” Suho vividly remembered his encounter with Rakan, the King of Beasts at the Place of Eternal Rest. He recalled how the sword was made from the fang of the Monarch’s original form, a massive wolf. It had to be larger than this.

“It’s possible, but it’s beyond my authority,” the sword replied.

Then, a timely response came from the former Monarch himself.

[Rakan graciously nods to signal his approval.]

The sword needed Rakan’s permission for he was the original owner of the fang.

Good. Suho had been given the green light, and he felt there was no need to delay his attack any further.

“Giant’s Armor.”

[Skill: “Giant’s Armor” has activated.]

An armor of aura enveloped Suho’s body, and he doubled in size.

“Now!”

His two swords simultaneously expanded, becoming twice as large. Suho wielded the enlarged versions of Vulcan’s Horn and Rakan’s Fang in his hands, having increased in size themselves. He crossed the two dual blades, his eyes gleaming. It’s a whole new ball game now. Suho dashed toward the sand centipede without hesitation, swinging his swords.

The relentless onslaught created numerous wounds on the sand centipede’s body, but it remained formidable. Sensing danger, the centipede wriggled its body and attempted to escape from the pyramid, and the ancient structure trembled as if it might collapse.

Sensing urgency, Suho decided to unleash all of his mana at once. “Gray, it’s time for Divine Possession!”

Gray’s spiritual body from the Shadow Dungeon rode Suho’s shadow and then wove itself into it.

[The spiritual body of “Pet: Gray” is bound to the shaman.]

Suho’s hair took on a silver hue, and a wild energy rippled across his body.

[Skill: “Meadow Wind” has activated.]

[Movement speed is temporarily increased by 30%.]

[Attack speed is temporarily increased by 30%.]

Suho’s sword strikes became incredibly swift as he slashed the centipede with more ruthlessness, and a scream erupted from the sand centipede’s mouth. Finally, Suho’s sword severed the creature’s neck.

[Venomous Sand Centipede has been defeated.]

The colossal monster finally collapsed at the same time Suho’s mana also hit rock bottom.

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

[Level up!]

Thanks to the level-ups, Suho’s condition returned to its original state.

“Deactivate,” Suho said.

[“Divine Possession” has been deactivated.]

[“Pet: Gray” has detached its spiritual body from the shaman.]

[Skill: “Giant’s Armor” has been deactivated.]

Suho shrank again and returned to his original size. He then looked at the sprawled corpse of the giant sand centipede before him. With a sly smile, Suho cast a skill on the dead creature without hesitation.

“Arise.”