Chapter 313

Words : 2162 Updated : Oct 13th, 2025

Chapter 313 Se-Hoon narrowed his eyes at the now familiar notification message. It’s still as unpredictable as ever. The notification message, which revealed that Se-Hoon had a new, unique skill as a result of the increase in his own bond level, had now appeared for the third time. The first was shortly after regressing; the second, when he absorbed Wurgen's power from the Eternal Nocturne's Phalanx. And just now, when he grasped the true essence behind Li Kenxie’s power and resolved the collapse of his synesthetic mindscape. Pondering what could be the trigger of the unexpected level ups could be, Se-Hoon frowned. I don’t exactly see a clear commonality... If levels two and three were linked to Perfect Ones’ powers, then he should have seen some reaction when he learnt Ludwig, Baek-Yeon, and Karl’s as well. It must be something related to my synesthetic mindscape, then. From experience, he found that unexplained fluctuations in strength were often associated with one's synesthetic mindscape. Even Li Kenxie, whom he met in the dreamscape, had been unable to surmount a wall because he failed to understand his own synesthetic mindscape. I must have discovered something new about my synesthetic mindscape... though it feels like I’ve only learned about the impurities inside it. Regardless, the impurities that had emerged in his soul after regressing, which altered his synesthetic mindscape, were definitely tied to his recent epiphany. Still trying to figure it out, Se-Hoon checked the name of his newly acquired skill again. Sever Bond... Getting a general idea of the unique skill’s effects from the name, he pulled up the information message. [Sever Bond] [Allows one to extract “—” using their own Fatestone.] “Huh...? This is a bit unusual.” Based on the skill description alone, it likely involved extracting the impurities from his soul. However, the information message didn’t clearly specify what the extracted substance was. Was it simply unknown? Or was its name left undefined because it depended on how he perceived it? First... let’s Bond Extract. [Extracting bond from subject ‘Lee Se-Hoon’] [The bond with the host is Lv. 3.] A dull pressure surged near his heart. Crunch- Extracting the bond felt like trying to drink a thick smoothie through a straw partially clogged with fruit chunks—frustratingly slow and heavy. Se-Hoon’s instincts urged him to pull it out forcefully because of that, but the memory of his heart nearly exploding during a previous mishap kept him cautious. He patiently waited for the extraction to complete, and soon enough, Se-Hoon looked at the fist-sized ore now resting in his hand. “This stone is...” Before he regressed, Se-Hoon’s own Fatestone, Relationship-Null Ore, was a purely transparent crystal. However, because of the impurities that had appeared at its core, it was now clouded, murky and unrecognizable. It looks awful... Although he once found its plain design boring, its current grotesque appearance was too unsettling. Scowling, Se-Hoon inspected the information message. [Fatestone - Tainted Ore] [Tier: Hero] [Quality: Awful] [A muddled metal full of impurities, with poor durability inferior even to scrap iron. When the impurities within interact with mana, it can cause a violent outburst. *Interaction between the impurities and mana may trigger an explosion] “What a mess of a Fatestone.” It felt like clay that was just slightly firmer than mud. His Fatestone had always been fragile, but the increase in impurities had rendered it worse. It was even an outright hazard when in contact with mana now. It’s not even usable for practice anymore. Unlike other Fatestones which typically refined themselves with each bond level increase, his had seemingly taken the opposite path. Making a wry smile at the thought, Se-Hoon held the Tainted Ore to his chest and activated his new skill. Sever Bond Thump- As the skill activated, a fierce pulse emanated from within his heart and began pushing out the impurities rooted in his soul. However, the impurities clung stubbornly, resisting displacement. And at that moment, the Sacred Flame stirred into action. Fwoosh! The flame blazed ferociously around his heart, forcing a portion of the impurities to yield and gradually seep out, merging into the Tainted Ore held against his chest. [Severing “—” from the target ‘Lee Se-Hoon’.] Riiip! A tearing sensation washed over him, and his vision momentarily blacked out. “Ugh...” Then, when his sight returned, he stumbled slightly before glancing down at himself. Did I faint just now? It had only been a fraction of a second, but a faint dizziness lingered. Better not use this skill in combat unless absolutely necessary. Having identified a limitation of Sever Bond, he examined the Tainted Ore in his hand once more. It was darker, nearly completely black, after absorbing more impurities. A quick check of the information message also showed that its quality had risen to Perfect, though its appearance remained dreadful. So it doesn’t fully remove the impurities—just a part of them. The skill offered a way to buy time by gradually managing the impurities in his soul while he came up with a proper way to cleanse them. It was a far cry from the utility of his other skills, like Bond Imprint or Bond Recreate, but it was precisely what he needed most right now. This means I can use Demonic Blood Art again like before. Though using it consecutively would still strain him, regularly offloading the impurities would allow him to cast it one or two more times without worry. Satisfied, Se-Hoon made a faint smile and stored the Tainted Ore into his Dream Storage. This can wait for now. Time to assess the situation outside. Turning around, he spotted a massive flaming bird silently hovering in the air, clutching a green spear in its talons. And upon realizing the Vermilion Bird had quietly swiped the Verdant Lotus Spear while he was focused on himself, Se-Hoon couldn’t help but let out a chuckle. “What do you think you’re up to?” he asked, smirking. The Vermilion Bird instantly froze, its eyes twitching as though caught in the act. Then, shortly after, as if it had been gathering its resolve, it answered with a confident expression. “I simply picked it up because it was on the ground.” “Why?” “It was lying there, so I picked it up. Is that really something that weird?” The Vermilion Bird knew it had been caught red-handed, but it also knew there wasn’t enough evidence to prove its intent. So it quickly seized the opportunity to back out swiftly, meeting Se-Hoon’s gaze with brazen confidence. “Well, then I guess you deserving a beating isn’t that weird, either.” Fwoosh! Not saying anything else, Se-Hoon enveloped his body in Sacred Flames and launched himself toward the bird. Boom! “Ugh?!” His fist drove deep into the bird’s body, causing an internal explosion within. Typically, the Vermilion Bird’s form, solely composed of flames, could just shrug off such blasts, but the Sacred Flames erupting within it changed the story. “My... my flames...!” The translucent fire tore through the Vermilion Bird’s body, devouring its essence. The Vermillion Bird couldn’t believe what it was seeing. How?! It had always thought its flames were on par with Se-Hoon’s. But now it was witnessing Se-Hoon’s newfound mastery of an even stronger flame first hand, leaving the bird flabbergasted and scrambling to escape. “What did I do to deserve this?!” echoed the Vermilion Bird’s cry of indignation. Even if it was for a supposed crime, wasn’t the punishment overkill? Yet, Se-Hoon remained calmly indifferent. “You know you're a monster, right?” “...So?” “Then isn’t it natural for a hero to hunt monsters?” “...” Speechless, the bird opened and closed its beak in outrage before finally letting out a shriek. “You cursed—AAAH!” The flames covering its entire body were unhesitantly torn away, leaving the Vermillion Bird exposed and quivering. *** “Ugh...” Stripped of its proud flames, the once-mighty Vermilion Bird looked bare and shiny, as though it had just been plucked. And it was forced to stay in that humiliating state by the Sacred Flames thinly spread across its form, which kept it from regenerating. “You should’ve just killed me instead of subjecting me to this disgrace...” Collapsed on the ground, the Vermilion Bird radiated not only embarrassment but also profound self-pity. The sight made even Se-Hoon wonder if he had gone too far. But he quickly reassured himself. For trying to steal the Verdant Lotus Spear, one of the famed Five Element Equipment, sparing its life was mercy enough. “Hm...” Ignoring the Vermillion Bird, Se-Hoon turned his attention to the spear he had taken back and examined its information window. [Verdant Lotus Spear] [Tier: Legendary] [Quality: Excellent] [A spear imbued with ancient wood-attribute mana. Forged by intertwining the roots of life, this spear can embed its roots into any target it touches and supply them with vitality. *Can implant a Root of Life in a target it comes in contact with. *The extent the Root of Life spreads increases with the vitality supplied, affecting the target—10%: Regeneration | 50%: Growth | 90%: Absorption *If the Root of Life is not supplied with vitality for more than an hour, the spread decreases, except at 90% where it becomes permanent] Quite befitting of a Legendary-tier weapon, the description was grandiose, and the effects were unsettling. A bioweapon, huh? With just a look at the description, Se-Hoon figured it out. Weapons such as the spear were crafted using a living creature’s body to replicate—or rather, resurrect—the powers it wielded in life. They were currently outlawed under international law; however, they were still secretly forged and used in certain circles. The material was probably a monster, demon, or... even a hero with quite some mastery in wood-attribute mana. From the moment Se-Hoon had seen that the spear forcibly reconstructed its wielder’s body for growth, it was clear the spear was riddled with danger. Who in the world would make such a weapon? Crafting bioweapons was no simple feat, even for underground blacksmiths. On top of the difficulty of procuring necessary materials, the sheer expertise required meant few could forge a properly functioning one, especially a Legendary-tier one at that. Trying to guess, Se-Hoon mentally ran through potential suspects, but none matched the profile. Who could it be...? Unable to figure it out, he dropped it, deciding to investigate it further later, and addressed the empty air around him. “You can come in now.” At his call, two figures appeared within the underground facility. One was Ludwig, wearing his usual kind smile. And the other was Li Kenxie, looking visibly annoyed. They had such contrasting expressions that Se-Hoon smirked. “Nothing happened while I was away, right?” “There was a minor commotion, but it’s been resolved. It’s been ten days, by the way. Are you feeling any discomfort after waking up?” “Ten days?” Se-Hoon blinked in surprise. He had expected some time to have passed, but not over a week. “Wait... the tournament—” “It’s proceeding as planned, so don’t worry about it. The atmosphere’s a bit subdued, but it’ll recover once you show up.” “Oh, I see...” The tournament, originally intended to showcase Se-Hoon’s newly developed technology, had turned into an event revealing the legacy of a legendary blacksmith. It was important, so Se-Hoon had worried about its cancellation, but it seemed Karl had handled things well. Satisfied, Se-Hoon nodded—only to be interrupted by Li Kenxie’s sharp voice. “You seem pretty confident.” Li Kenxie's cold eyes bore into him. “You only have five days left. You’re not thinking of backing out after making such bold claims, are you?” His gaze was chilling, as if daring Se-Hoon to admit defeat. But Se-Hoon just met it calmly. “Don’t worry. Five days is more than enough.” Now that he fully understood Li Kenxie's power, he had no doubts about success. “...” His confidence silenced Li Kenxie, who scrutinized him for a moment before clicking his tongue and turning to Ludwig. “This was a waste of time. Send me back.” “You’re the one who insisted on being called when he woke up...” Ludwig muttered, shaking his head as he prepared to send Li Kenxie away. But before he did, Se-Hoon faced Li Kenxie and spoke up. “There’s something I’d like to ask you.” “What is it? Make it quick.” Although Li Kenxie’s irritation was evident, Se-Hoon, fueled by curiosity, couldn’t resist and asked, “In the past... when you got angry, did you ever headbutt cliffs or something like that?” “...What?” A look of confusion crossed Li Kenxie’s face before his eyes soon widened in shock. “Where did you hear that?!” He reached out in a panic, but just then, Ludwig completed the spatial magic. Whoosh! Li Kenxie vanished without a trace, seen off by Se-Hoon with a wide smirk on his face.

Chapter 313

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