Chapter 135 ….
Divine Beast.
A spiritual creature possessing advanced intelligence and mysterious power—not some mere monster.
Divine beasts, the ultimate apex of the Guardian class and the final goal of tamers, were all noble existences.
“Technically, Jihad is classified as a divine beast… but calling him a true one is questionable.”
Jihad was simply a peculiar irregular being.
A true divine beast was, by nature, something that boasted overwhelming power far beyond human common sense.
After all, they were beings that had lived for at least hundreds—sometimes thousands—of years.
“Like the Azure Dragon or the White Tiger.”
Even those were only high-ranked among divine beasts, not the absolute peak—so imagine how terrifying the top tier must be.
Even the Empire’s NPCs treated divine beasts with respect.
“And now, of all things, I’m fighting a divine beast.”
He had never imagined the day would come.
And this wasn’t just any divine beast—it was the ancient king’s divine beast. There was no detailed info since it was his first time seeing it, but there was no way something tied to the ancient king would be weak.
No wonder the secret dungeon had seemed too easy for its reputation.
[Arlagini]
Title: Ancient Divine Beast
Type: Snake
Trait: Sealed
Description: The slough of a divine beast that has lived since ancient times.
A guardian that protected the king’s side, possessing mystical power, a powerful body, and venom.
However, as this is not the main body but merely its shed skin, it cannot use mystical power and cannot display its full strength.
At least the game wasn’t completely without conscience.
That gigantic being wasn’t a complete divine beast—just its shed skin.
Then again, being told to fight one-on-one against the ancient king’s guardian divine beast at this stage would basically be the same as being told to die.
Of course… that didn’t mean the current situation was fair either.
KUUUNG.
Even as mere shed skin, the pressure it emitted was immense.
Destroyer Gaiman had at least been roughly comparable in size—this was on another level entirely.
It reminded him of the Ironblood Demonic Dragon species purely from its scale.
Saaa—
The creature’s reptilian golden eyes flashed.
They looked slightly clouded, almost corpse-like—which only made it more chilling.
With the way its tongue flicked, one mistake and he felt like he’d be swallowed whole.
Not to mention each of those black scales was bigger than Dohyeon’s face.
At that size, sealed or not, wouldn’t its raw physical ability alone crush everything?
“This crazy game… why is the scale always like this?”
Anytime it tied into the main quest, the difficulty went insane.
He had forcibly pulled forward a main quest meant for three years later—so maybe it was only natural.
Still… the difficulty was absurd.
“I seriously need to dissect the brains of whoever designed this main quest.”
Even while mentally cursing, Dohyeon forced himself into a positive mindset.
“Stay calm. It’s not all bad.”
Whether it was Demlock or God of Se—this was definitely a luck-based hell game.
But one thing was certain:
High risk, high return.
If the risk was huge, the reward would be just as big.
If he killed that monster, the payoff would definitely be enormous.
[Thousand Forms transforms into ‘Taksinel’s Brilliant Blue Sword’.]
“Yeah. Let’s do this.”
He had already gained plenty.
Even if he failed the objective, he wouldn’t lose anything—but you never know.
What if beating this thing gave him a legendary reward?
There was no way Dohyeon would give up this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity over mere uncertainty.
Taat!
First strike wins!
Charging in under that rule, Arlagini whipped its body around.
KWAGAGAGAK—
Just a simple tail swipe.
Yet the ground itself was torn apart.
[You use Backstab on Arlagini.]
[A mark is created.]
KKAANG!
He struck from behind in an instant ambush—but piercing those hardened scales was no easy feat.
Still… the damage wasn’t zero.
Whirlik—!
Arlagini suddenly twisted its body.
Despite its massive size, the snake bent at an impossible angle—and before Dohyeon realized it, the creature had completely coiled around him.
Kkwaaak—
It tightened.
The crushing force was enough to warp even steel.
But Arlagini’s expression wasn’t satisfied.
[Backstab reused.]
[Mark removed.]
Dohyeon barely escaped.
Not only that—he had managed to stab several times, slightly damaging the scales.
Shiiik—
Perhaps annoyed by the constant hit-and-run harassment, Arlagini stopped moving and stared coldly at Dohyeon with reptilian eyes.
Dohyeon did the same.
“If my timing had been even a little slower, that would’ve been dangerous.”
He hadn’t even needed to be hit to know.
If he’d taken that attack head-on without using Backstab’s invincibility window, it would’ve been at minimum a critical wound—at worst, death.
He wasn’t exaggerating.
[HP below 80%.]
Just the shockwave graze had already shaved off 20%.
“I need to be careful.”
Backstab was now on cooldown for 50 seconds.
Until then, he’d have to rely on Dash Slash or pure movement.
At least the monster wasn’t moving recklessly either.
“…Jihad. Charlie.”
Yes, my lord.
Got it! Kids, come out!
At Dohyeon’s serious tone, Charlie stepped forward.
Jihad immediately raised black mana and summoned eight undead from the ground.
[Guardian ‘Jihad Black’ summons undead.]
[Forest Red Goblin Undead x2, Forest Blue Goblin Undead x1, Orc Undead x3, Lycanthrope x2 summoned.]
[Legion Control applied — counted as one unit.]
[Over 50% classified as lower-city monsters — mana consumption reduced.]
[Dark Shroud applied to Undead Legion.]
“Grrr—”
In an instant, it became a 10-versus-1 battle.
[Intruders… dangerous… eliminate…]
As if provoked, Arlagini flicked its tongue and prepared to charge—
But the undead were faster.
They scattered and grabbed its tail and neck.
Shishik…!
The monster’s strength came from its elastic flexibility.
This was meant to suppress that.
Among them, the lycanthropes stood out—dark-shrouded arms locking firmly onto the neck.
Master, we’ve got it!
Well done! Truly excellent undead—worthy of a sovereign!
Ahem!
Even in the chaos, Charlie didn’t forget to praise them as he charged in swinging his sword.
Dohyeon followed.
Even so, the creature was too large to fully restrain—they had to repeat hit-and-run tactics.
But that was enough.
[Sword Aura activated.]
[Dark Shroud applied to Thousand Forms.]
[Striking activated.]
Puk! Chaeng—!
With triple buffs active, the feeling was completely different.
“It’s landing now.”
Not lethal—but definitely real damage.
It was a sweet free-damage window…
But it didn’t last long.
SHIEEEEK—!
Enraged, Arlagini spun violently.
The undead were flung away like leaves.
Puhk!
Goblin undead were force-dismissed.
Even the orcs and lycanthropes were slammed into walls—but they recovered quickly and rejoined.
They repeated the pattern several times—
Undead drawing aggro, Charlie and Dohyeon dealing damage.
Eventually—
SHIIIIIK!!
The monster’s movements grew larger.
The dungeon-rampaging giant body was itself a weapon…
But Dohyeon’s expression gradually relaxed.
“Now I’m getting the hang of it.”
The bigger the movement, the easier the prediction.
After initial adjustment, everything became clear:
When attacks came
How far to dodge
Where to strike
A sealed snake relying purely on physical ability was no longer threatening.
Especially with the legion and Charlie drawing aggro.
Even Eliza, perched on Dohyeon, fired webs to interfere.
[Arlagini HP below 70%.]
[Mana below 50%.]
“Damn thing’s tough.”
Even with Sword Aura, he had only shaved off 30%.
Its raw HP was easily among the highest bosses he’d faced.
“At this rate my mana will run out first.”
[Compassionate Light effect — mana recovery +200%.]
Thanks to the Holy King’s Mark he was holding on—but not forever.
“Not good.”
He needed to control the pace.
If this dragged on and he ran dry, one mistake could flip the battle.
He needed to land one massive hit.
“Charlie.”
Yes, my lord! Nghh! An opening!
Charlie instantly understood and charged.
His sword shone brilliantly.
[Guardian ‘Charlie’ uses Sword of Light.]
It was the same blade from their first reunion.
Arlagini instinctively sensed danger and coiled defensively.
But there was one spot it couldn’t protect.
“Now.”
When it coiled, its lowered head inevitably exposed its rear.
[Backstab reused.]
[Mark removed.]
[A powerful strike is possible.]
Dohyeon appeared before the creature’s most vulnerable point and grinned.
His Sword Aura flared blue—
Paaat—!
The energy formed into the shape of an elegant creature.
A peacock.
[‘Blue Peacock’ of Taksinel’s Brilliant Blue Sword activated.]
[Powerful strike proportional to stacked mark damage.]
The second option of the Brilliant Blue Sword had triggered.
Shwaaaaa—!
A massive 3-meter blue peacock spread its wings and flew forward.
Even Jihad and Charlie stared in awe.
The symbol of Taksinel—the Blue Peacock—had descended.
Charlie snapped back and swung his light blade.
Front and back, simultaneous finishers.
Arlagini froze in a perfect pincer—
KWAAAAANG—!!
A massive explosion.
SHIIIIEEK—!!
[Arlagini HP below 50%.]
They had carved off 20% in a single burst.
The monster collapsed, forgetting even to coil.
But for Arlagini—
There was still one more strike coming.
[Sword Aura – Sever activated.]
Dohyeon’s strongest burst skill.
Just as he swung toward its eye—
Ding—
“…Huh? Ding?”
The sudden cheerful alert made him pause.
A message appeared.
