Leveling with the Gods

C271

His eyes burned.

The humidity had reached its boiling point. Even Surt, who had experienced the sensation of unbearable heat, couldn't withstand the intensity of the heat.

The humidity heated up rapidly and began to bubble and boil.

And then...

Boom!

Surt's eyes burst.

"Gaaah!"

Boom, boom, boom.

Purple flames erupted from his eyes.

Feeling the heat, his body involuntarily recoiled. To avoid Surt's contorting body, YuWon activated the Yata Mirror once again.

Surt screamed in agony.

YuWon was certain he had succeeded.

"It worked."

This was the part where opinions were divided.

"The eyes."

"Nothing but the eyes."

When it came to fighting Surt, the eyes were the only weakness mentioned. Surt had an almost invincible resistance to fire. Moreover, it was nearly impossible to harm him in hand-to-hand combat. Unless it was a High-Ranker around the top 10, inflicting a wound on him was almost impossible.

"But will targeting the eyes really be effective?"

"It would be possible if we could obtain the 'Fire'."

"No, it would be difficult."

"Anyway, we should give it a try, shouldn't we?"

"Yes, I suppose so. After all, if we obtain the Fire, we should be able to withstand Surt's fire..."

When opinions were divided...

"Simply enduring won't be enough."

Someone gave a clear opinion.

Odin.

He was more competent in magic and magical power than anyone else in this Tower. Therefore, he could also guess how to safely inflict damage on Surt.

"For that to be possible, we would have to at least dampen (extinguish) Surt's fire."

A fire of a higher level than Surt's. That was the condition for inflicting fire damage on Surt.

But in reality, that premise was ridiculous.

Indeed, in this Tower, there were hardly anyone who could handle fire at a higher level than Surt.

"Surt tends to overestimate his own strength. He believes he cannot be burned by fire and relies on his physical abilities, so he tends to ignore most attacks."

Odin knew more about Surt than anyone else in this Tower.

After his defeat in the first Ragnarok, Odin had been tirelessly working to defeat Surt.

Therefore, he could also suggest various ways to confront him.

"We must use everything we have. For example..."

Boom!

"Why?!"

Surt angrily slammed the ground.

"Why, why, why?!"

He couldn't understand why his fire wasn't working while YuWon's burned so intensely.

His cry of anger made everything around him tense.

"Aaahhh!"

"Stop whining."

YuWon jumped onto Surt's head, who was struggling with his anger.

"I can't believe Odin lost to someone like you."

Crack!

Faji-Jijijijik-!

Then, a red sword gleamed in YuWon's hand.

The hardest and sharpest sword in the Tower.

It was the Kusanagi Sword.

Furthermore...

[The Uranus Heart emits a dark light]

[Tartarus is invoked]

Fajijijik-!

The power of Tartarus enveloped Kusanagi.

Dark magic with corrosive power was effective in breaking the defenses of opponents who came into contact with the sword.

When these two things were combined,

"With the combination of Kusanagi and the Divine Stone of Darkness, we can easily break Surt's defense. The problem is the fire surrounding him...".

[Golden Cinder Eyes control Surt's Annihilation]

[Heart of Fire resists Surt's Annihilation]

[Holy Fire devours Surt's Annihilation]

Hwaah!

YuWon's sword pierced through Surt's body.

Chhhhh!

He could feel something at the tip of the sword... it was the cut.

The Heart of Fire and Holy Fire cut through Surt's flames, and Kusanagi's magic and Tartarus split his skin.

But it was only for a moment.

"It was cut, but not deep."

It was cut, but it was just a small cut considering Surt's size.

It wasn't enough to say that they had "cut" him.

It was just a scratch.

But it was enough to fulfill their objective.

Chyaaa-!

YuWon cut through Surt's body, which felt like steel, and walked on it.

Feeling pain throughout his body, Surtr screamed while covering his eyes with one hand.

"This annoying insect!"

Swish, swish...

Surt swung his hand randomly as he lost sight of YuWon and his wounds increased.

Growing more and more enraged, Surt exploded in increasing rage.

"Aaaah!"

"He can't control his anger, that's his biggest weakness."

That was a common trait among players who wielded elemental fire magic. Unknowingly, they assimilated to the nature of magic and were unable to control their boiling fighting spirit. That's why players who used elemental fire magic learned to be patient for a long time.

But Surt was different.

He was the King of Muspelheim. He was also unbeatable in this Tower. He didn't need to be patient with his anger. He had lived that life.

And that was his one and greatest weakness.

"If someone takes away his Fire and attacks him with a sword like a mosquito, Surt won't be able to endure it. He'll probably get angry and lose his mind."

Swish-.

Flames erupted once again from Surtr's body.

It was a force he hadn't used since realizing his fire didn't work on YuWon. But even that thought faded in Surt's mind as he completely lost control.

YuWon crossed his hands to protect himself from the flames and felt the suffocating heat like in a hot bath.

[You begin to resist Surt's Annihilation]

[Resistance is partially successful]

The content of the message has changed.

To say that the resistance was "partially" successful. That meant some failed.

"Do you intend to ignore what's behind?"

Behind this was Odin. Surt knew it, and he couldn't help but think of holding back some power.

But now it seemed to matter little.

Hwarak-.

YuWon, covered by Surt's flames, felt a burning sensation.

Suddenly, he remembered the Tutorial.

Surtra. The 176th son of Surt.

This fight was a continuation and expansion of the fight back then.

"Wouldn't it be safer to first increase your strength?"

Hercules, being cautious by nature, questioned the idea of fighting with such restraints/conditions. Because he solely relied on his body.

And the same was true for Son OhGong.

"By building power, one can become as strong as Surt... but it would take too much time for that. The scale of Ragnarok would be even greater than that."

If Ragnarok couldn't be stopped, then it was better to start it as soon as possible.

And win the fight.

Odin thought that was the formula for winning this fight.

"Therefore, we must prepare. Prepare to defeat the strong by being weak."

With those words, Odin looked at YuWon.

"That's why you are the right person for this fight."

Odin knew it.

Maybe on other occasions not, but in a fight for which he is prepared, YuWon is invincible.

"You just need to distract Surt's attention along with Hercules and retreat. That's enough..."

"But that's easier said than done."

Hwarak-.

The purple flame that sprouted from YuWon's body pushed against Surt's flame.

'There is still more to gain.'

[The 'Holy Fire' exposes its fangs towards the 'Surt's Annihilation']

[The 'Holy Fire' devours the 'Surt's Annihilation']

The Holy Fire devoured the flames.

The more he tried to force his power, the more YuWon felt his mind drifting away.

And the original owner of that flame. Surt realized that his flame was fading away into the air.

"The flame?"

The flames were being devoured. Usually, fire was meant to be swallowed by a bigger fire. Even if it was magical fire, it was no different.

However, in this case, the fire followed a fire of a higher level.

"It's incredible."

Fwuuh-!

A small flame had an Arcane Power higher than its own flame.

Was it thanks to the 'Fire' he had gathered and collected?

No.

It was just a large conglomerate of the flames of Muspelheim. Obtaining greater power wouldn't change the nature and composition of the power.

Suddenly, he realized there was a familiar sensation somewhere.

"This sensation is...".

A name floated in his mind.

Foolish Chaos.

It was similar to the power he had faintly sensed from him.

"You..."

Surt narrowed his eyes.

"Were you allied with him?"

Gwaaah-!

The flames coming out of Surt's body grew larger and larger.

His pride wouldn't allow him to lose in terms of flames. In terms of flames, Surt believed he wouldn't lose to anyone in this Tower.

And so it was.

[State Anomaly: Burn will begin].

[State Anomaly: Burn rises to Stage 2].

['Holy Fire' Mastery increased by 1,213%].

['Holy Fire' Mastery increased by 1,012%].

['Holy Fire' Mastery increased...]

['Holy Fire' is satisfied].

[State Anomaly: Burn rises to Stage 3].

['Heart of Fire' is full].

[State Anomaly: Burn rises...]

A series of messages came to his mind.

Ji ji, ji ji, ji-.

The Holy Fire let out a laugh.

The sound resonated clearly in his ears. The fire had grown stronger and was spreading faster than YuWon expected, fueled by his energy.

YuWon writhed in pain from the burns all over his body, but still asked:

"Are you satisfied now?"

He didn't receive an answer, but he could feel it clearly.

Is it because the Heart of Fire is full?

The Holy Fire, which had been craving more fire hungrily, finally calmed down, satisfied.

'I have what I wanted now.'

YuWon's head tilted upward.

It was true.

Now was the time.

Pazhi, pazhi zhi zhik-!

In the clouds, far away, beyond his reach, he sensed a surge of Arcane Power.

"What...?"

Surt also noticed the presence and looked up.

And at that moment...

[The "Yata Mirror" is activated]

[Move to the designated place reflected in the mirror].

["Sky Steps" is activated]

[Increase movement speed by 100% for 5 seconds].

[You can walk in the sky for 5 seconds]

YuWon quickly activated his skills and moved away from Surt.

"Hercules-!"

"If you make it that far, I'll take care of the ending." (Odin)

YuWon shouted, recalling the planned end of Ragnarok.

"Get away from here right now!"

"I'll have enough time to set Gungnir in motion." (Odin)

Fazik, fazik, fazik-!

Sweat broke out on YuWon's forehead from the massive flow of Arcane Power he had never felt before.

If he got caught in it, he could literally die.

Gungnir.

One of the largest and most powerful items in this vast tower.

"If I'm given enough time, there's no opponent I can't pierce through with Gungnir." (Odin)

The item would soon come crashing down on Surt's head.