chapter 205 – First Sight(1)

[It’s not too late,Anvil.]

“No, it seems to be too late…?” The scenery that awaited Kang Shin-hyuk in Mirotoz was terrible. Cracks were forming all over the ground that lava was flowing through, dark clouds were choking out the sky, and what little water there was had gone dry. He was confident he had made the shackles as quickly as possible, but seeing everything made him regret he didn’t make it faster.

-Thud!

The giant took another step, the loud vibrations more pronounced than before. It seemed like the giant was growing stronger with each step it took. Perhaps it had to do with the energy of theworld.

“The field I made…” The field Kang Shin-hyuk had made with the sickles was also destroyed. This was the result of the successive shocks to the earth from the giant’s quick steps.

“Master Anvil, you came.”

“We thought the master Anvil might never come again.”

“It’s not too late yet, Anvil, once before the world is destroyed…”

“Don’t cling to me. I’ll catch the giant.” The elves approached him as soon as they saw him, clinging to him. He wondered what their feelings were, unable to stop the destruction of the giant that was getting faster and stronger every day. He couldn’t guess… but that didn’t mean they could secretly try to touch hisass.

[It’s not too late, Anvil. I can feel it already that you have completed my request very well.]

“Shall I take itout?”

[No, it’s okay. I’ll designate a specific place, so please install it there.]

Halo dropped a leaf onto Kang Shin-hyuk at that, and his vision suddenly widened. It was like he was looking down on the entire world. And a red line ran over the world he saw below.

“It’s the giant’spath.”

[Now, do you have a sense of where to install it?]

“Yeah.” Kang Shin-hyuk took out his bike and got on. The shackles were still stored in his inventory. He confirmed that all of the parts were in place then nodded at the elves before taking off.

-Vwooooooom

The blue cow let out a faint cry as it pushed itself faster and faster. No matter how large the giant was, it couldn’t dream of catching up to KangShin-hyuk.

-After a while, you will enter the giant’s area. Please be careful not to be pressed down byit.

“Area?”

-You can think of it as a pressurized zone.

“Okay.” He wanted to give out bonus HP for that intuitive explanation. And, just two minutes later, the administrator’s warning provedtrue.

-Vwoooo…!

Suddenly, the movement of the blue cow stopped, and Kang Shin-hyuk felt a supernatural force crushing his body. Even though the shadow of the giant had yet to be cast over them, its presence was bearing down on them.

“Spiritual…”

-That’s right. Its enlarged spiritual power exerts pressure aroundit.

Any high-ranking person could artificially exert pressure like this, but it was just a waste of energy. Kang Shin-hyuk concentrated his spiritual power on the blue cow so it could endure and continue to run, but it was difficult for him to move. How could he face off against such a ridiculous monster? Rather, he was worried if the shackles he prepared wouldwork.

“If he’s in contact with me through spiritual power… isn’t he analyzing me right now?”

-Only you are capable of such elaborate manipulation of spiritual power. As I said before, he isn’t deliberately releasing it; it is just bleeding out of control.

“If we talked about the giant by rank…”

-It would be about X2.

A new unit had appeared. Was he talking about ranks?

-It’s the rank system after SSS+ since you’re curious about it. Basically, it is impossible for humanity to reach, and other mortals cannot easily dream of it.

“X, X2, does it keep going?”

-It starts with X-.

So, after SSS+, the rank increased again in this way: X-, X, X+, X2-. Kang Shin-hyuk suddenly thought of a cartoon he used to enjoy. It was hard to feel strong when a monster of such a distant state appeared.

“Let’s see; I’m SS-ranknow…”

-With the soul connector, you have sufficiently exceeded the average of SS-rank. It’s an opponent that is eight or nine steps beyond you. The word X symbolizes it is beyond the realm of mortals.

“But how the hell will this hold an X2…?”

[Of course, they are shackles created by you.]

Halo intervened.

[What is the level of theshackles?]

“I haven’t been able to confirm it because the assembly hasn’t been completed. Only… I was able to view the ranks of the intricate parts that were completed, but instead of a rank, a message saying it was impossible to viewappeared.”

[That means it is definitely beyond the limit.]

In other words, the shackles he made this time would at least reach the X-rank. Kang Shin-hyuk felt a little relieved at Halo’s words but still felt a sense of despair at the overwhelming difference between his shackles and his enemy.

[Your stuff has always been better than the rank. Don’t worry. By the way, have you arrived at the location?]

The pressure given off by the giant had increased even more in the meanwhile. Kang Shin-hyuk lifted his head and realized he was above the red line in his mind.

“It’s getting harder tobreathe.”

[Assemble it. If you do that, everything will be over.]

“…I know.” He hurriedly jumped off the blue cow and began to produce the parts from his inventory, using his Golden Dragon to fight off the giant’s pressure.

“Let’s start.” He took out all the parts one by one. Each one was different in size, but even the smallest was still several meters long. There were hundreds of parts, but Kang Shin-hyuk had perfectly memorized how to assemble them. Align the parts side by side and take out the spiritual adhesive. He had more than ten cans prepared, so there would be no shortage.

[The giant has been hastened again.]

-It’s ridiculous to see such a huge body move like that.

Halo and the administrator were conversing calmly as Kang Shin-hyuk felt tense. He didn’t want them to worry, but he also recognized their light attitude was an expression of trust inhim.

[Oops, the giant’s speed suddenly grew faster.]

-Double haste! Could it be that he evolved his skill in that short time?

[Hey, he’ll be there in the next five minutes.]

Kang Shin-hyuk blocked them out and started assembling in earnest. It wasn’t difficult, as he was the one who designed and manufactured all of these parts. He squeezed out plenty of adhesives to glue the parts together, his movements bold and free of waste, and his eyes shone a golden glow.

-Uooooooh!

Somewhere far away, the giant’s cry rang out. The pressure felt like it was trying to squeeze out Shin-hyuk’s lungs, but he continued to move. His body was covered in spiritual power and the Golden Dragon energy. The amount of energy he was consuming was no joke, but he had spiritual potions stocked up for this eventuality. He was planning on going through every spiritual potion he had stockpiled from the login bonuses.

-Guoooooh!

Its voice sounded closer. Looking over, there were a pair of legs reaching up into the sky like two indomitable pillars. There was no time to spare; however, he had to connect the joints together firmly. It was only when the shadow of the giant fell over Kang Shin-hyuk that the parts had been fully bonded. The end result wasn’t much different from the roots Halo had first provided him.

[Really… it’sperfect.]

But Halo admired the sight of it. He could see, at a glance, the spiritual power and will contained in it.

“It’s not over yet.” Kang Shin-hyuk glanced up to check the giant’s approach.

“I’ve completed it, so it’s your turn, okay?”

[Leave it tome.]

Kang Shin-hyuk produced the Great Heavenly Spirit. Halo’s energy had been poured out into the parts, but still half of it remained in the orb. Without hesitation, Kang Shin-hyuk poured it out into the tree roots at the same time he imbued it with his own spirit. The only thought in his mind was his will to bind the giant. Imbued with a single purpose from the start, it wouldn’t be strange if the tree roots rose by themselves to chase the giant.

“Let’s finish this now…!” Kang Shin-hyuk emptied out his spiritual power into the shackles. The rest would be up to Halo and his creation. The shackles that Halo had wanted from his previous life were finally barely completed with his insufficient skills now. Halo’s energy and Kang Shin-hyuk’s spiritual power radiated through the roots to tightly bind themtogether.

-Quaaaaaah!

The giant took another step. He hadn’t noticed Kang Shin-hyuk yet, but he must’ve noticed the odd tree roots at his feet. But he didn’t stop walking. Because it looked down on the shackles? No, it could only move one way.

And the moment the foot fell down over the shackles, the tree roots were completed and glowed with a brilliant golden hue.