Chapter 404: 81st Floor, Advanced Magic (4) |
Taesan gathered all the strength he could muster.
The enemy before him was an Immortal.
This was not a being that had lost self-awareness like the King of Machines, nor one that wielded a degraded form of divine power like an Apostle of the Ancient Gods.
It was a pure Immortal, without any penalties.
Both of them had reached the same realm. Moreover, Taesan’s skills—except for magic—were sealed.
The odds of victory were extremely slim. Taesan opened his mouth.
“How many times can I challenge this?”
“Of course, as many times as you want. You didn’t expect to win on your first attempt, did you?”
“That’s fine, then.”
“Let’s start lightly.”
Kiing.
A black dot appeared on the staff. Wirad swung it.
The dot turned into a line.
There was no ripple, no disturbance in power. Like a line drawn on a blank canvas, the black line calmly flew toward Taesan.
It was so silent that it barely felt like an attack.
Taesan belatedly stomped the ground. His skills were sealed, but his stats remained unchanged.
With swift movements, he dodged the black line.
Kuung!
The black line collided with the brown ground, vanishing with a small noise.
‘It’s not that fast.’
Even though his reaction was delayed, he dodged it without much difficulty.
If this was its full speed, he could evade it no matter how many times it attacked.
“You’re quite fast. At this rate, no attack will land.”
Wirad also realized this and lifted his staff.
That last attack was merely a test.
Now, the real battle would begin.
A dot was drawn, and it became a line.
It moved at the same speed as before. Taesan prepared to dodge again and rush toward Wirad.
Kiing.
The line split apart.
Dozens, then hundreds of lines poured out simultaneously. Like lightning branching across the sky, the fragmented lines engulfed the space and surged forward.
There was no room to dodge.
Taesan swiftly made a decision and gathered his mana.
[You have activated Frozen World.]
[You have activated Starlight Arrow.]
[You have activated Magic Focus.]
A storm of frost and starlight arrows surged forth.
These were intermediate-level spells wielded by an Immortal. Their power was on another level compared to anything before.
Even a single strike contained enough force to push the top leaders of the Guides to the brink of death.
But the moment they clashed with the black lines, they were all shattered.
Frozen World scattered into shards of ice, and Starlight Arrows crumbled against the black lines, losing their light.
Taesan twisted his body urgently.
The black lines crashed into the ground.
Kugugugung…
Taesan took no damage.
Frozen World and Starlight Arrows couldn’t block the black lines, but they twisted their trajectory enough to create space for Taesan to dodge.
Taesan clicked his tongue.
Intermediate-level magic wasn’t enough to counter Wirad’s power—it could only slightly distort the trajectory.
But on the flip side, it also meant that, with his current strength, Taesan could at least partially respond to an Immortal’s authority using intermediate-level magic.
“Not bad.”
With a calm voice, black dots formed.
This time, there were five.
Lines poured out all at once. Taesan swung his hand roughly, pulling in more mana.
Kugugugung!
The black lines veiled the world.
They dominated the space, crushing everything in their path.
But within that storm, Taesan did not stop moving.
Kiing!
A black dot appeared right beside Taesan.
Just as he reflexively gathered mana, the black dot erupted—
Firing lines in every direction like a spiked sea urchin.
[You have activated Distortion.]
[You have activated Forced Repulsion.]
Taesan twisted the trajectories of the lines and forcibly pushed them away with invisible force.
With his ability to double-cast, he wielded two spells simultaneously.
But there was no time to rest.
Hundreds of lines poured from black dots forming in midair.
[You have activated Magic Overlap.]
[You have activated the Undying Firebird.]
[You have activated Magic Release.]
Layered Firebirds materialized.
Blazing with a heat that could incinerate the world, they blocked the incoming lines.
In the midst of this, Taesan enveloped himself in the Guardian’s Shield and used Focused Detection on Wirad and the black dots.
Kiing.
But it was blocked.
The mana surrounding Wirad refused to allow Focused Detection to activate.
Wirad leisurely waved his staff.
“That trick would work on other magicians, but not on me.”
Kugugugugung!
The lines pierced through the Firebirds.
Despite their desperate resistance, the Firebirds eventually perished.
Wirad raised his staff again.
Black dots formed all over the space.
The lines poured down like a storm.
And yet, there were no ripples, no signs of force, making them difficult to detect.
Normally, he could have easily tracked them using his Synchronization Vision and Enhanced Senses.
But both skills were sealed.
He had to sharpen his instincts, widen his vision, and dodge purely by sight.
‘This isn’t working.’
He wasn’t even close to reaching Wirad—he was barely managing to defend against the overwhelming black lines.
His mana was slowly being consumed.
At this rate, defeat was inevitable.
He attempted a Restricted Blink, but Wirad blocked it.
For the first time, Taesan realized that high-level magicians could prevent even the activation of Restricted Blink.
It was time for a gamble.
With a determined decision, Taesan leaped into the air.
[You have activated Random Blink.]
A teleportation spell that even Taesan couldn’t predict the destination of.
The black lines immediately chased after him, but there was an inevitable delay.
Seizing the brief window, Taesan rapidly layered his magic.
He gathered the power of Frozen World and detonated it.
Jjeojeojeojeok!
A blast of extreme frost spread across the battlefield.
The black lines momentarily recoiled.
Taesan used that gap to unleash a barrage of spells.
[You have activated the Undying Firebird.]
[You have activated Starlight Arrow.]
[You have activated Earthquake.]
The spells materialized in rapid succession, engulfing the battlefield.
With the help of his Continuous Chanting skill, the speed and power of his spells increased exponentially.
The black lines were gradually being pushed back.
“Are you just holding out? Not bad, but that’s not the answer.”
Wirad waved his hand.
Black lines formed around Taesan from four directions.
Jjeojeojeok.
Then, the black lines merged, shaping into a maze.
They started creating a physical barrier Taesan could not escape.
Wirad intended to trap and wear him down.
But Taesan had already predicted Wirad’s move.
Kugugugung!
Magic poured out without pause.
Dozens of different spells filled the space in an instant.
The seven magicians watching from a distance gasped in amazement.
“W-Wow…”
“What is that?”
They could all use intermediate magic.
But the power Taesan displayed was on an entirely different level.
“So that’s the level required to be granted advanced magic…”
They all realized how distant their goal truly was.
Even Wirad, unshaken by most things, found himself overwhelmed by the sheer flood of Taesan’s magic.
“Just how much mana do you have?”
Even for an Immortal, using intermediate magic so recklessly was unheard of.
In terms of raw mana capacity alone, Taesan had surpassed Wirad.
The magic, which exceeded Wirad’s expectations, scattered mana throughout the space, momentarily obscuring Taesan from view.
The black lines lost track of Taesan, their trajectories faltering for just a moment.
Taesan didn’t miss the opportunity.
He detonated the Starlight Arrows he had preloaded.
Light burst forth, drenching the battlefield in brilliance.
The arrows aimed precisely at Wirad through the openings in the black lines.
Wirad tried to block them with black dots, but at that moment, Taesan activated a skill.
[You have activated Magic Separation.]
The arrows of light split into hundreds of projectiles.
Though the black lines were powerful, they were ultimately just lines.
They couldn’t block attacks that occupied space itself.
Taesan observed Wirad’s reaction, ready for his next strike.
‘Impressive.’
Wirad was genuinely impressed.
With all his skills except for magic sealed, Taesan was undeniably weaker than him.
Yet Taesan refused to give up, exploiting every gap, and was on the verge of landing a decisive blow.
“I hadn’t planned on showing this from the start.”
Wirad muttered as he manipulated the lines.
The lines stretched and expanded—
Turning into a surface.
A black surface shielded Wirad’s body.
The Starlight Arrows crashed into it.
Kugugugugung!
A deafening explosion erupted.
Brilliant light flashed, illuminating the entire space.
When the brightness faded, Taesan clicked his tongue.
The black surface protecting Wirad was unscathed.
“My magic consists of points, lines, and surfaces.”
Wirad raised his staff.
Dozens of black dots materialized in midair at once.
“Unless you can break through all three, you will never push me out of this place.”
With a calm voice, Wirad unleashed another barrage of black lines.
“You’re here?”
As Taesan entered the library, he found Elia waiting with an expression of admiration.
“You’re really strong.”
“Not strong enough—I lost.”
“But he was strong, wasn’t he?”
“I told you, he’s different from us. Grandfather reached his level with his own unique magic. You’re monstrously strong, but Grandfather is just as much of a monster.”
Even if Taesan hadn’t been restricted from using his non-magic skills, he couldn’t confidently say he would have won.
Wirad had that much power.
And Taesan had to face such an opponent using only magic.
His odds of victory were extremely low.
‘But that doesn’t mean I gained nothing.’
Wirad’s magic—The units of matter.
There were no visible signs of power, no intimidating pressure.
The way he cast spells was astonishingly simple.
‘Compressing mana to its limit.’
By repeatedly compressing mana, he created a single black dot.
That dot could then be elongated into a line.
And when spread, it became a surface.
The concept was incredibly simple—
Yet overwhelmingly powerful.
Because the mana was compressed to its utmost limit, no traces of energy leaked out, making it impossible to sense the activation of his magic.
And the sheer density of compressed mana granted it devastating power.
The only flaw was its narrow area of effect.
But by utilizing surfaces, that weakness was negated.
It was incredibly useful yet troublesome magic.
But it wasn’t something Taesan could replicate.
His magic was granted by the God of Magic.
While he could modify spells to some extent, he couldn’t manipulate mana itself like that.
Not that he intended to.
Wirad’s magic was that strong because he had dedicated his entire life to it.
In contrast, Taesan’s focus wasn’t magic.
He was an adventurer.
One who gathered power and wielded it as a tool.
Unlike a mage, he had no desire to obsess over magic itself.
So he would simply take what was useful.
Taesan stood up.
Taesan continued his battles against Wirad.
He had fought dozens of times—
And lost every single one.
“It’s your defeat.”
Wirad pointed his staff at Taesan as he spoke.
Taesan accepted his words without any change in expression.
When he stepped outside, Elia tried to console him.
“You lost again today… But it’s okay! You’ll get there soon!”
Taesan silently nodded.
Elia watched him with a look of pity.
They had all been in awe when they first saw Taesan fight.
His magic’s power.
His methods of using it were intriguing.
Using only intermediate magic, he had managed to pressure Wirad—a being far beyond their reach.
Their doubts and hostility toward Taesan had completely vanished, leaving only respect for an outstanding magician.
But after that first battle, things became strange.
Unlike the initial fight, the time it took for Taesan to lose shortened drastically, and he barely put up a counterattack.
Was he hoping for a lucky break because he knew he couldn’t win in a conventional manner?
Elia felt sorry seeing him like that.
“Grandfather, what’s going on with Taesan? Has he given up and started relying on luck?”
Elia went to Wirad and asked.
Wirad calmly answered.
“Do you think he has given up?”
“Isn’t he? It’s too strange. He’s not even trying to fight back properly, and he’s losing way too quickly.”
“No. It’s the opposite. He’s actually looking for the answer.”
Wirad waved his staff.
“Incredible. So this is a Labyrinth Adventurer? When it comes to strategy, he is flawless.”
“Huh?”
Elia was confused by his completely different perspective.
Wirad continued.
“He’s not losing quickly. Think back on his battles. Have any of them played out the same way?”
“Ah…”
Elia retraced her memories and suddenly paused.
Wirad was right.
Through all those dozens of battles—
Not once had they unfolded the same way.
Elia silently shuddered.
“No way.”
“He’s been drawing different reactions from me in each battle. I didn’t intend to play along, but as the fights continued, I found myself being led in different directions. His tactical ability is exceptional.”
Losing quickly was only natural.
Taesan had been throwing himself into danger just to analyze Wirad’s responses.
“And that’s not all.”
Wirad recalled the look in Taesan’s eyes.
It wasn’t just about reading his reactions.
Taesan was observing the very way he wielded his power.
As if trying to obtain something from it.
His magic was his own creation—an Immortal’s magic.
It was impossible for anyone to steal.
Yet, Taesan’s gaze made it seem like that was a given.
That alone was enough to stir Wirad’s curiosity as a magician.
“I wonder what kind of method he’ll come up with. This is getting interesting.”
Wirad smiled.
At this moment, Taesan had no chance of defeating him.
But at the same time—
He was eager to see how Taesan would bring him down.
A few days later.
Taesan returned to Wirad.
“May I take the test again?”
Wirad looked at him.
Taesan’s expression—
Was different from before.
It was the face of someone certain of victory.
Wirad nodded.
“I accept, Labyrinth Adventurer.”