Overgeared

“If you want to do anything to His Majesty, you’ll have to get through me first.”

[I’ll do that,] the immortal replied confidently and immediately swung his sword.

Killing a human? That was so easy for him to do, it couldn’t even be considered a task.

—!

The sword didn’t make a single sound. It wasn’t until a solid red line was carved into Chensler’s neck that Juander and Kujarak became aware that a slash had occurred. They reacted too late. The immortal had already cut Chensler’s throat. The splatter of blood blended with the black water droplets that poured out from the immortal’s sword, splattering everywhere.

“Chensler...!”

Kujarak paled. He was obsessed with doing good deeds and serving justice. He knew how few people like him there were in the world. This was why he was close to Juander and Chensler. He saw them as one of a kind comrades and friends.

Now it seemed like he was going to lose them.

“...Aghhhh!”

Kujarak had been living a life of goodwill and justice since before he reached adulthood. People believed he did that because he was good-natured. Kujarak thought he was doing this for his older brother’s sake. The more good deeds he did, the more blessings of the stars he gathered, and the more bearable his brother’s sickness became... He used to believe this was what he needed to do ever since he grew up.

Up until now, he had done plenty of good deeds every time his brother entered the operating room. He believed that, the more good deeds he did, the better it would be for his brother. To pay for his brother’s surgery, he had been raiding more and more bosses and serving justice every time he stumbled upon something unjust happening.

Yes, this was half the truth.

Blinded by rage, a memory flashed through Kujarak’s mind. He was very young. A wise old man from his hometown was holding young Kujarak in his arms and telling him a story of the stars.

The story...

[......?]

The white-haired immortal was confused. He clearly felt that he’d slashed the man’s neck with his sword, but Chensler’s head didn’t fall off. It was still attached to his body. Chensler even counterattacked by swinging his mace.

[Immortality?]

Chensler was immortal. When Juander and Chensler were still young, Chensler had looted a piece of armor after killing a legendary monster. The moment he put on that armor, he felt a tremendous energy under his skin. If he’d known he would never be able to take this armor off ever again after putting it on, Chensler would have never equipped it. He would have rejected the emperor’s offering.

“You won’t be able to lay a fingertip on His Majesty unless you kill me.”

[You put so much faith in your immortality that you have the nerve to say something so nonsensical.]

The immortal frowned after understanding what was going on. A human who couldn’t die? This was a rare occurrence everywhere except in the immortal world. In the cultivation world, cultivators could achieve immortality by becoming jiangshi with the use of forbidden techniques.

Of course, they wouldn’t become ordinary jiangshi. This only applied if a cultivator from at least the great ascension realm became a jiangshi out of their own free will. Even that was rare. After becoming a jiangshi, they could no longer increase their realm and they would become a lot dumber. They would no longer be truly alive. Except for some exceptional cases, no fool would try to turn themselves into a jiangshi.

Moreover, the biggest characteristic of a jiangshi was that it constantly trembled because it was rotting. However, Chensler didn’t tremble nor was he rotting. He was a normal human being in every way. So why was he immortal...?

The immortal looked at Chensler skeptically before turning to glance at Juander. Even in the midst of chaos, Juander was calm. He wasn’t a normal individual, either. He had surely been born with that red energy. He seemed like the type of person who was extremely courageous. So then, had Chensler also been born immortal?

[Then this world...]

Didn’t this mean that this world was comparable to the immortal one?

Then, even more—

[I have to get my hands on you.]

The white-haired immortal became determined. The battle wasn’t looking too great. The warp connection technique of the Full Moon Fortress would take one more day to be completed.

The Full Moon Fortress was still somewhat protected, but the situation in the west was really bad. The enemy was unbelievably strong. The odds of holding out against their offensive were very low. Even if they lasted until tomorrow, the Full Moon Fortress in the west would have been destroyed by then...

In other words, this remaining Full Moon Fortress was the cultivation world’s last hope. Not enough resources and troops would arrive in time. A new ordeal would begin again.

The immortal was skeptical because of many reasons. He couldn’t show this because of his status, but he believed it was impossible for the cultivation world to intrude on this mysterious world.

However, the white-haired immortal felt obligated to make the impossible possible, though he wasn’t doing this for the greater cause. He coveted that red energy and the man’s immortality. He wanted to capture Juander and Chensler alive so he could have enough time to study them. Intent was revealing his lowly intentions.

”Aghhh!”

Kujarak grabbed the immortal by the collar of his coat. Every time the immortal swung his sword, Kujarak got burned by the water dripping from the blade. Even one of his cheeks was melting a bit. Seeing the hideous face close-up, the immortal clicked his tongue as if he was displeased and waved his arm lightly.

Slash!

He cut off Kujarak’s right hand, which was holding the sword. To add insult to injury, acidic fluid covered half of Kujarak’s chest.

Upon seeing this, Juander and Chensler’s expressions became grim, but Kujarak himself didn’t care. He targeted his severed hand and used a basic wind element skill. The skill altered the hand’s trajectory so that it cut the immortal’s chest with the sword it was still holding.

[......]

The immortal sustained minor injuries. Of course, the severed hand’s sword attack barely did anything. The immortal only had small cuts on his skin. However, he still felt a chill go down his spine. His opponent wasn’t intimidated at all even though he was facing someone much stronger than himself. Rather, he launched an extraordinary counterattack.

The immortal could tell this guy was extraordinary from the beginning, but there was more to it. He got goosebumps when he saw that the man, who should have been scowling from pain, was only exuding anger and killing intent.

The immortal responded calmly and threw a few talismans. [It looks like you will be the first one to die.]

He hurled the fourth grade containment talisman to Juander and the seventh grade weakness talisman to Chensler. Even though he was an Absolute, he was clearly wary of Transcendents.

This wasn’t a laughing matter. Absolutes had lost to Transcendents before. There had been several cases when this happened in Satisfy. Most of the time, this had been Grid’s doing.

The white-haired immortal wasn’t aware of this fact, but he was cautious since he had become an immortal after tens of thousands of years of training.

However, there was one thing he overlooked.

”Aghhhhh!”

It was Kujarak’s strength. He should’ve thrown a talisman at the one-armed man in front of him.

[......!]

Kujarak was incredibly close to the immortal, but he suddenly disappeared. He used a transformation skill. It wasn’t until he got very close to the enemy that Kujarak used his ultimate skill. He turned into a leopard covered in glossy black fur and crouched. This caught the immortal off guard. He hadn’t expected this at all.

After all, Kujarak was one of the fastest Transcendents. Once he unleashed his beast form, his speed was comparable to that of an Absolute.

Of course, like a real leopard, his maximum speed only lasted around three seconds. But to powerful beings such as legends, Transcendents, and Absolutes, three seconds was comparable to someone else’s hours. The disadvantage of the leopard form was that it imposed restrictions on wearing equipment. However, Kujara’s basic stats increased considerably. Because he took the form of a wild beast, he didn’t know how high his defense was, but his total attack power was rather high.

Kujarak, who had lost one arm and dropped his weapon, had his attack power multiplied when he transformed into a leopard. He sunk his sharp teeth into the back of the immortal’s neck. Blood splattered everywhere.

[Is he a demon?]

The cultivation world was accustomed to beings that could go back and forth between the forms of beasts and humans. Demons could do that. Compared to human cultivators, they weren’t very good at mystical arts, but their physical abilities were overwhelmingly superior. In many areas, demon cultivators and human cultivators complemented each other.

In other words, they were opponents that were difficult to deal with and who couldn’t be overlooked. The immortal’s expression gradually crumpled as he tried to shake off Kujarak, whose sharp teeth were still embedded in his throat.

It didn’t matter how much the immortal burned Kujarak’s fur and skin with tricks or how many times the immortal stabbed him. Kujarak showed no signs of backing down. His reddened eyes really resembled those of a beast’s. He was determined to chew and consume the immortal.

[I thought you were extraordinary, but it turns out that you aren’t human.]

For a moment, the memory buried deep in Kujarak’s mind became clear. He clearly remembered what the old man from his old town whispered to him while he was sitting in the old man’s lap.

‘My child, your star is terrible. You are going to end up being devoured. Don’t hate others recklessly. If you always live for others’ sake, your star won’t turn red, but blue.’

The old man had said that his star would turn red. In the east, this was called the heavenly killing star. Kujarak hadn’t known this until a few years before. He had been completing a quest related to the constellations when the heavenly killing star appeared in the story of the god of slaughter, Pluto.

Kujarak finally understood why the old man whispered those words to him every night. He felt that his life had become more rewarding. He had overcome his destiny because of his kind heart. How could he not feel rewarded?

‘But conversely, if I take advantage of that fate—’

Kujarak gave in to seething rage. For the first time ever, fate consumed him. This was quite intentional. He wanted to protect his comrades from a bizarre and powerful enemy. He might regret today’s choice one day. Once he gave in to violence, he might get consumed by killing intent and could alter his destiny for the rest of his life.

Nevertheless, he didn’t care. Turning his back on his comrades right now just because he was vaguely afraid of the future? Kujarak couldn’t even consider this. This was because he and Grid shared the same views.

Kujarak was attacking more violently than before.

“......”

Chensler was stunned. He had been ready to sacrifice his life, but Kujarak was faster than him.

Juander smiled bitterly and wrapped red energy around his sword. “Since things are the way they are now, let’s try to find for all of us to survive.”

He chose to pin his hopes on the fact that a god can’t die. No, only Grid could kill a god, but in any case... He believed that the Four Auspicious Beasts, whose whereabouts were unknown, could return at any time.

“Of course,” Chensler answered vigorously before immediately throwing himself forward. He believed in the immortal effects of the armor and fearlessly attacked the Absolute. He didn’t yet know that the reason he didn’t die was loyalty, not armor. Grid had realized this a long time back.

“Chensler is finally awakening his full potential...”

Grid, who just logged in, muttered this to himself after hearing what had just happened.